10 Steps to Defeat the Corporatocracy

"Many Americans know that the United States is not a democracy but a "corporatocracy," in which we are ruled by a partnership of giant corporations, the extremely wealthy elite and corporate-collaborator government officials. However, the truth of such tyranny is not enough to set most of us free to take action. Too many of us have become pacified by corporatocracy-created institutions and culture."
http://www.alternet.org/economy/151018/10_steps_to_defeat_the_corporatocracy/?page=1

High School Student Stands Up Against Prayer at Public School and Is Ostracized, Demeaned and Threatened

When an high school student wrote to his public school that the prayer planned for graduation was unconstitutional and illegal, and that he would contact the ACLU if government-sponsored prayer occurred, his identity was leaked to the community. Damon Fowler, an atheist, would then suffer the wrath of Christians scorned - damn the law - as teachers, students and his own parents spouted rage and condemnation. Wouldn't it be nice to see a little more tolerance in the country and respect for constitutional law?
http://www.alternet.org/belief/151086/high_school_student_stands_up_against_prayer_at_public_school_and_is_ostracized,_demeaned_and_threatened/?page=1

Bee Numbers Plummet as Billions of Colonies Die Across the World

The crisis in worldwide bee populations, called Colony Collapse Disorder, has been recognized since 2006. Three million bee colonies in America, and billions of bees worldwide, have died during that span. Scientists now expect a full third of the bee population to die each winter. The ramifications for agriculture and food production, should bees become extinct, is profound. Bees are responsible for pollinating most of the world's crops and if they were to perish so too would much of the foods that are commonly grown and raised today.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1270698/Bees-face-extinction-billions-colonies-die-worldwide.html

The USDA's Top Bee Scientist Talks Pesticides and Colony Collapse 
http://www.grist.org/industrial-agriculture/2011-04-21-usda-bee-scientist-pesticide-research-pettis

Bees 'Entomb' Pesticide-tainted Pollen in Effort to Protect Themselves From Extinction
http://www.naturalnews.com/032057_honey_bees_pollen.html

Research prompts calls for GE food ban

A Canadian study has discovered pesticides associated with genetically modified foods circulating in the blood of pregnant women and fetuses. This has prompted watchdog organizations in New Zealand to call for thorough testing and a potential ban on GM foods. You may wonder why I often cite European stories related to GMOs and the primary reason is that there is very little awareness or concern about these issues in the US, not to mention a dearth of press coverage about the potential health hazards represented by biotech-driven agriculture. In fact, the USDA has willfully ignored rules that require Environmental Impact Studies on such crops and foods, having only performed two EIS studies in the 15 years that GM crops have been planted in the US, both times as a result of court-ordered directives.
http://tvnz.co.nz/health-news/research-prompts-calls-ge-food-ban-4188129

Maternal and fetal exposure to pesticides associated to genetically modified foods in Eastern Townships of Quebec, Canada.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21338670

Let's Get Pingy With It

We recently switched our Internet service to Verizon based on a price difference with RCN, against my rather passive disapproval. Fiber optic so far ain't what it's been cracked up to be, and the service seems to be exactly the same in terms of speed compared to the RCN cable feed. But I got a rude surprise tonight when I tried to go to the following website:

http://pingywebedition.somee.com/

This is a site I've used to try and index my Ransacked Nation blog, and I think it's brought some traffic. With Verizon I cannot get to the site. Instead it directs me to a Verizon search page that says the address cannot be resolved. If they're filtering my Internet access and denying certain sites, I will immediately cancel the service and go back to RCN (for lack of a better choice in telecom options). I'd love it if some of you would try to go to the URL above and let me know the results and your carrier. Thanks.

Emails Show Drug Company Used Third-Party Medical Groups to Influence Regulators, Undercut Rivals

ProPublica, dedicated to investigative journalism in the public interest, continues to shed light on the pharmaceutical industry. This story reveals a public relations campaign unleashed by Sanofi-Aventis through several venerable contacts in the medical world to lobby the FDA to delay approval for a generic drug that threatened their blockbuster patented concoction.
http://www.propublica.org/blog/item/e-mails-show-drug-company-used-third-party-medical-groups-to-influence-regu

FBI Arrests 4 Activists as “Terrorists” for Chalking Slogans, Leafleting and Protesting

The FBI has mounted a series of investigations and arrests against activists for various causes recently, charging them as 'terrorists' under provisions of the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act. This miscarriage of justice, serious felony charges for exercising free speech, is part of an alarming nation-wide trend of government actions to stifle and attack organizations and individuals who express dissent to policies of the US.
http://www.greenisthenewred.com/blog/aeta-arrests/1070/

FBI Targeting Political Activists as Terrorists
http://rt.com/usa/news/fbi-political-activists-terrorists/

Two Thousand Six Hundred Activists Arrested in US Protests
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-quigley/two-thousand-six-hundred-_1_b_866029.html

Senators Say Patriot Act Is Being Misinterpreted

Two Democratic Senators warned today, after passage to extend several expiring provisions of the Patriot Act, that the government has interpreted the law to allow more surveillance of Americans without cause. Kudos to them, but where are the other Senators on this issue? Like Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand from New York? Nobody cares about this stuff but it very well could be what brings American Democracy down, leaving an oligarchical police state in its stead.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/27/us/27patriot.html?hp

Tests Reveal Mislabeling of Fish

New DNA sequencing techniques used by biologists and advocates for sustainable fisheries has revealed that 20-25% of all commercial fish are mislabeled to the public. And so, though you paid for Mahi Mahi you might be getting Yellowtail or Mako Shark instead of Swordfish. Tilapia is also frequently mislabeled as other species as it is cheap to farm and very profitable for the unscrupulous to sell. The FDA has been behind the curb on this issue and a great deal of over-fishing combined with such tactics threatens to destroy a naturally occurring and sustainable resource, fish in the ocean. For those interested in this critical issue I recommend the excellent documentary "The End of the Line," available for streaming or DVD delivery on Netflix.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/27/science/earth/27fish.html?hp

EPA Chief Tells Congress 'There's No Proof Fracking Is Dangerous'

Lisa Jackson, head of the EPA, has ventured into the politics of natural gas drilling by trying to assure GOP lawmakers that she and the agency are for gas drilling in the US as a way to reduce fossil fuel emissions. She also had the audacity to declare that there is no evidence that fracking has ever been connected to pollution of ground water when even natural gas executives have admitted that it does. She should be spending her time insisting that fracking be regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act, Clean Water Act and other laws from which it is currently exempt. I'd also like to think that the EPA would demand a complete listing of all chemicals used in hydraulic fracture drilling, between 600 and 900 toxic substances, so that the agency could better assess the danger to public drinking water supplies. This is an extremely disappointing indication of the EPA administrator's priorities.
http://www.care2.com/causes/environment/blog/epa-chief-says-no-proof-that-fracking-is-dangerous/

The Big Debt Lie

The thirty year supply-side, trickle-down economic theory, originating from the Reagan Administration, has been thoroughly debunked by economists and pundits over the years. Yet, people still buy this fairy tale of a fiscal policy and Republicans continue to howl daily about the need to cut taxes for the wealthy and corporations. It's a testament to the ignorance of a population in a country that has added $14 trillion in debt, 90% under GOP presidents, over three decades and sports a world-class inequality gap, where the richest 300,000 have as much income as the bottom 150 million Americans, that this policy has any traction at all. 
http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/05/25/gop_debt_lie/index.html

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Claims It’s Unconstitutional For States To End Company’s Multimillion Dollar Tax Dodging

Okay, we all probably like to save on sales tax when we make an online purchase. Yet, it's important to realize that the Amazon Loophole, in which companies set up subsidiaries in states and then claim they do not have to collect sales tax, provides an unfair advantage for online over local businesses, and starves states of desperately needed sales tax revenue. For example, in 2011 Wisconsin will lose an estimated $127 million in uncollected sales taxes for online purchases.
http://thinkprogress.org/2011/05/18/amazon-ceo-loophole-unconstitutional/

Senate does not eliminate Big Oil tax breaks

Salon points out that all the recent buzz in the Senate about eliminating subsidies for oil companies was nothing more than an empty exercise in political theater. Both parties were able to strengthen their credentials within their bases but the Senate simply did not have the Constitutional power eliminate the subsidies because doing so would raise revenues and by law any legislation that increases revenue MUST originate in the House. 
http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/05/18/oil_tax_break_senate_fail

Republican Governors Use Budget Woes To Wage War On The Arts

In five states Republican governors or legislatures have proposed either dismantling arts or completely eliminating funding streams in a renewed push to cut public funding for the arts and public broadcasting. The brazen, autocratic tactics employed by those pushing this agenda should make your blood boil.
http://thinkprogress.org/2011/05/18/state-level-arts-destruction/

Major Union Victory for Rite Aid Workers Offers Roadmap for Labor Movement

A very interesting and inspiring story detailing how Rite Aid workers were able to win a good union contract over a grueling five year period. They were able to win affordable health care, protections against outsourcing and wage increases despite Rite Aid's aggressive attempts to short-circuit their union movement in California with union-busters and intimidation. The union was persistent and creative over this long and costly battle, and found that reaching out to stockholders and board members can be a productive tactic in negotiations. 
http://www.alternet.org/news/150841/major_union_victory_for_rite_aid_workers_offers_roadmap_for_labor_movement_/

Court of Appeals Dismisses Monsanto’s Appeal of Biotech Beets Case, Preserves Victory for Farmers, Environment

A recent Court of Appeals opinion denying Monsanto's attempt to bypass legally mandated Environmental Impact Studies for GM Sugar Beets designed for human consumption is a victory in the battle against genetically modified biotech crops. The USDA willfully disregarded its legal responsibility to study the impact of this crop before permitting planting and the court has ruled that it must comply with the law. Apparently there have only been two EIS studies on the effects of biotech crops since they came onto the scene about 15 years ago, and they were both court-ordered. The USDA has consistently put the interests of Monsanto above those of the American people. Many battles remain in this arena and I also worry about how Supreme Court might rule should they hear such a case on appeal, but this is good news in the interim.
http://truefoodnow.org/2011/05/20/court-of-appeals-dismisses-monsanto’s-appeal-of-biotech-beets-case-preserves-victory-for-farmers-environment/

Why The US Government is Keeping You Vitamin D Deficient and Who Stands to Gain

A recent decision to lower the standard for levels of Vitamin D considered adequate by the Centers for Disease Control for good health have raised questions about conflicts of interest within the extremely secretive National Academy of Sciences. There is apparently a rush to patent several Vitamin D analog drugs, to treat Vitamin D deficiency, and this article speculates that the new lower levels for identifying deficiency are a deliberate attempt to create a market for the drugs when they are approved by the FDA. Whether or not you believe in this theory, the story raises legitimate questions about the motivations of scientists specializing in Vitamin D who are concurrently developing treatments for patent. The article also takes the CDC to task for failing to sound an alarm regarding the fact that 70% of the African-American population in the US are already Vitamin D deficient. Vitamin D deficiency is a major health issue related to osteoporosis, MS, poor prognosis in breast cancer treatments, cancer, cardiovascular disease and severe asthma among others.
http://www.naturalnews.com/032202_vitamin_D_deficiency_disease.html

Vitamin D Deficiency Information
http://www.webmd.com/diet/vitamin-d-deficiency

8 Possible Side Effects of Pesticides

This article was contributed by a reader and offers important information on the health risks that are connected to pesticide use in agriculture around the globe. I first read here about organ failure associated with pesticide use in India and several other specific side effects of our collective dependence on these agricultural chemicals.
http://www.nursingdegree.net/blog/926/8-possible-side-effects-of-pesticides/

The Pesticide Action Network is a terrific advocate for public health and vigilant regulation and study of the dangerous chemicals commonly found in pesticides.
Pesticide Action Network

Pesticide Watch is another great resource for people concerned about the health effects of pesticides.
Pesticide Watch

Obama Justice Department Subpoenas New York Times Reporter In CIA Leak Case

The Obama Administration has been extremely aggressive in going after whistleblowers in court, having charged five persons with violating the Espionage Act (more than all other Presidents combined), and now they are going after journalistic sources. If the press is supposed to be the fourth pillar of our system of government, charged with keeping powerful interests honest (ha!), then protecting the freedom of the press and First Amendment rights are absolutely essential to the democracy.
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/05/obama_justice_department_subpoenas_new_york_times_reporter_in_cia_leak_case.php?utm

Risk From Spent Nuclear Reactor Fuel Is Greater in U.S. Than in Japan, Study Says

This is an issue that should gravely concern us all. The largest concentrations of radioactivity on the planet are stored at nuclear reactor sites, in spent fuel pools, all over the US. Apparently, when the reactors were conceived in the 60's it was assumed that spent fuel would be reprocessed to extract uranium and when that idea fizzled we never came up with another solution for dealing with this highly dangerous radioactive waste. This study urges swift action on the issue and I couldn't agree more that we have to bite the bullet and responsibly deal with the massive threat to the US population and humanity that the spent fuel represents.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/25/business/energy-environment/25nuke.html?hp