Geneva, Switzerland.  What is the happiest place? Last week (4/23) in its annual World Happiness Report, the United Nations reported that Switzerland was No. 1. The United States ranked No. 15, and the African country of Togo came in last, at number 158. (Scroll down to Figure 2.2 for the ranked list.) Switzerland is arguably the world's most successful country -- and most improbably so. It is landlocked and without much in the way of natural resources. It has four official languages, many different religious groups, and is surrounded by warring neighbors. Yet, it has remained an island of peace and prosperity. The modern Swiss federal state goes back to 1848, when a federal constitution was adopted, giving the central government responsibility for defense, trade and legal matters. All other government matters were left to the cantons and the communes (i.e., cities and towns). The U.S. Constitution, which is more than a half-century older than the Swiss, also greatly limited the powers of the central government -- but unlike the Swiss, there has been a centralization of power in the capital at the expense of the states and local governments. How did the Swiss do it?

It's a jump from Niue to Vegas.  My brain hasn't the faintest idea of what time zone it's in, so my own "puzzle of paradise" is how I'm going to compose a coherent HFR right now, especially when the Rendezvous begins in a few hours. Jack Kelly has been manning the HFR ramparts superbly since early February - that's how long I've been gone - so let's hope I still remember how to do this.  Let's start right off the bat with the HFR Hero of the Week - actually, she's the Heroine of the Week, a British lady named Katie Hopkins... Now, if you prefer an American Hero of the Week - well, that's obvious too:  Peter Schweizer.  His new book, Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich, won't be out until early May - but just a handful of excerpts from it this week are destroying the PIAPS' White House hopes... Scweizer may have written her political obituary.  We need other political obituaries too - like those of any pro-amnesty RINO White House aspirant like Jeb Bush.  Or else it's America's obituary that will be written. Yes, folks, we're turning into Chavista Venezuela, which is seeing a population explosion (of voting age adults!) just in time for elections. Mark Fitzgibbons at AT explains that America is already a Soft Police State.  But there's one instructive counter-example from South Carolina... Meanwhile, you've got to love a guy who drives libtards apoplectic, like he did on Wednesday - a sacred day for all lefty eco-fascists as "Earth Day" - to the moonbats at Mother Jones who ran this headline:  Scott Walker Celebrates Earth Day by Proposing To Fire 57 Environmental Agency Employees.  How cool is that? 

On her way to Iowa in a van she called "Scooby Doo," Hillary Clinton stopped for lunch at a Chipotle restaurant in Toledo. It was "historic," said Newsweek. She carried her own tray, gushed the New York Times. "We've never seen her eat a burrito before!" marveled Mark Halperin of Bloomberg News. Politico wrote a story about "the everyday people who made Hillary Clinton's burrito." The subtext, I gather, was how thrilling that must have been for the peasants. I hope they were thrilled, because Hillary didn't leave a tip. The "listening tour" - right down to the name of her van - is a reprise of what Ms. Clinton did when she ran for the Senate in 2000. Every event in Iowa - where Hillary met mostly with small, pre-screened groups - was staged and scripted. In the first, three "ordinary Iowans" she chatted with in a café were Democrat campaign operatives driven there by her staff. And yet the Lying Swine continue to swoon.

A relationship can have complex and unique needs at any given time, so there isn't really a "one size fits all" panacea for troubles. But of all the specific actions we can take to improve our relationships, I have found none that apply as often or as effectively as this: Be playful. Sounds easy, doesn't it? But it's more challenging than meets the eye, and there are clear guidelines for it to work: We have to play as an ally, as a member of the same team; we have to be for our mate, our child, our friend; and the play must have a spirit of love, kindness and optimism, as opposed to cynicism or sarcasm. There cannot be bitterness or resentment clouding the play; it's the combination of creative, interactive flow and positive emotions that elevates us. If you're up for the challenge, you're in for some pleasant surprises.  Here's how to be seriously playful.

This past week, the International Monetary Fund again lowered its global economic forecast for 2015. The Federal Reserve had forecast the U.S. economy to grow about 4 percent near the beginning of each year for the last five years. But during each year, the Fed was forced to reduce its forecast until it got to the actual number of approximately 2 percent. Other government agencies have been making equally bad forecasts. These mammoth errors clearly show that the forecast models the official agencies use are mis-specified and contain incorrect assumptions. Government economic policymakers have been trying to solve a problem of too much government spending, taxing and regulation by inappropriately using monetary policy, which has not and cannot solve the fundamental problems. It is like using a hammer rather than a shovel to dig a hole. There is only one non-destructive solution to the global econoomy's woes.