MIT’s Fracking Report Backs its Donors: Gas Companies

You know things are really getting bad when supposedly independent academic institutions release research of great importance to public health that is demonstrably influenced by the agenda of big corporate donors. Check out ProPublica's story on the recent MIT fracking report that claimed hydraulic fracturing for natural gas does not threaten to contaminate water supplies.
http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/blogs/mits-fracking-report-backs-its-donors-gas-companies/

Bank Errors Continue to Cause Wrongful Foreclosures

With regulations due to go in effect later this summer that will prohibit banks from selling a home in foreclosure before a final decision on a mortgage modification, banks are rushing to foreclose on as many homes as possible. Thousands of people engaged in loan modification efforts have seen their homes sold before the process was completed and for far less than they were worth. It's a senseless situation that's causing terrible disruptions throughout the country. Regulators acknowledge that these banks are breaking rules in this practice but so far have done little to stop it. ProPublica has been investigating these ongoing  foreclosure scams aggressively ever since the bubble burst in 2008.
http://www.propublica.org/article/bank-errors-continue-to-cause-wrongful-foreclosures

Los Alamos Lab Under Siege From Wildfire

This is a story that I only heard about today from a co-worker, but apparently there is an unbelievable amount of deadly nuclear and other types of waste stored at the WWII era Los Alamos site. The lack of controls and prudent safety measures taken by our government with regard to storing spent nuclear fuel rods and other potentially devastating and catastrophic contaminants is astounding. When are we, as a nation, going to come to terms with the risks posed by massive radiation and chemical vulnerabilities? We cannot afford to play the riverboat gambler on public health issues that could poison millions and cripple the country. 
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/28/los-alamos-lab-wildfire_n_886610.html

As Obama Quietly Pushes for a Nuclear Weapons Renaissance, Wildfire Threatens Los Alamos Nuclear Lab
http://www.democracynow.org/2011/6/28/as_obama_quietly_pushes_for_a

FDA Unfairly Maligns Tobacco Plant With Graphic New Cigarette Warning Labels

Read the title of this piece by Mike Adams of NaturalNews.com carefully before you dismiss it. I didn't even read the piece for several days, because I didn't understand where he was coming from. The pint is that tobacco by itself, without hundreds of chemical additives, is far less dangerous than conventional cigarettes. There are 599 chemical additives that produce over 4,000 chemicals that are inhaled when the user lights up. Smoking the tobacco plant is not a safe practice, due to the naturally produced chemicals released when burning substances, but it does not deliver the toxic cocktail you get with processed cigarettes. The FDA refuses to acknowledge this distinction and as such is being intellectually bankrupt in its duties to ensure the safety of food and drugs in our society. The FDA refuses to put warning labels pointing out the dangers of chemical additives in processed food, such as sodium nitrate, aspartame, MSG, partially-hydrogenated vegetable oils, and artificial food colors, all known to cause diseases that are a common cause of human suffering and burdensome expense in America. This is a contradiction that citizens should no longer tolerate and it's got to change.
http://www.NaturalNews.com/032795_tobacco_warning_labels.html

A nuclear-free future for America

Democracy Now's Amy Goodman, writing for the Guardian, reviews the mounting problems, conflicts and safety issues facing the nuclear energy industry in this country. She also points out that the public in Georgia has already paid $1 billion in increased rates for the Vogtle plant there, despite $8.3 billion in federal guarantees awarded by the Obama Administration to the project. We learn some details about Obama's connections to the industry and more on the lax regulatory culture promoted by the NRC. Goodman argues that we should scrap nuclear energy altogether and begin a public works program to retrofit buildings to be more energy efficient as we continue develop alternative energy capabilities, and I agree. Let's create some jobs that benefit society as a whole and can't be outsourced!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/jun/22/nuclearpower-nuclear-waste

U.S. Regulators Opening Up on Flawed Nuclear Power Plant Policing

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/the-center-for-public-integrity/us-regulators-opening-up_b_881154.html

Bribery, but Nobody Was Charged

When a manager in a Mexican livestock operation owned by Tyson Foods uncovered payments to the wives of staff veterinarians tasked with ensuring the safety of food processing there, executives decided to pay the vets directly through honorariums so that they would continue to overlook regulatory abuses at the plant. These payments represented bribery and the practice put public health at risk, but when the company finally came clean they only paid a fine and no prosecutions resulted. A new writer for the NYT, James B. Stewart, author of Den Of Thieves, does an excellent job of running down clues and clarifying issues of effective enforcement of corruption laws, pointing out the value of prosecution of executives as a deterrent, in his very first article for the paper.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/25/business/25stewart.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all

Fracking In California Prompts State Legislators To Introduce Regulation Bill

It turns out that there has been a frack well operating in a wine region of California, unbeknownst to the public and many government officials, and the discovery has lead state legislators to introduce more stringent laws to govern or restrict the activity. Man, these greedy bastards are not only reckless but brazen as hell too. The law, if passed in the State Assembly, would be one of the toughest in the country and require operators to disclose the chemicals they use as well as the vast amounts of water require in the process.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/06/fracking-california-regulation-bill_n_872170.html

Gov. Perdue vetoes voter ID bill

This is welcome news as the Governor of North Carolina pushes back against a restrictive Voter ID bill that would disenfranchise many eligible voters in her state. Unfortunately, it also appears that Perdue would be willing to sign a less restrictive Voter ID bill. There's a flurry of such activity around the country in response to the US Supreme Court upholding Indiana's voter ID bill in 2008. The post also details many of the intricate legislation tactics that are being employed in the effort to reduce democratic-leaning voters.
“The right to choose our leaders is among the most precious freedoms we have – both as Americans and North Carolinians. North Carolinians who are eligible to vote have a constitutionally guaranteed right to cast their ballots, and no one should put up obstacles to citizens exercising that right.

“We must always be vigilant in protecting the integrity of our elections. But requiring every voter to present a government-issued photo ID is not the way to do it.  This bill, as written, will unnecessarily and unfairly disenfranchise many eligible and legitimate voters.  The legislature should pass a less extreme bill that allows for other forms of identification, such as those permitted under federal law.

“There was a time in North Carolina history when the right to vote was enjoyed only by some citizens rather than by all. That time is past, and we should not revisit it.

“Therefore, I veto this bill.”

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/06/27/988275/-Gov-Perdue-vetoes-voter-ID-bill?utm

Eric Cantor's glaring conflict of interest

This is rather unbelievable: Eric Cantor, the #2 Republican in the House, has an investment that profits when US debt becomes undesirable, say in the case of Congress voting NOT to increase the debt ceiling. Of course, conflicts of interests are rampant in our government and academic institutions but that doesn't make it right. Check it out.
http://www.salon.com/news/eric_cantor/index.html?story=/politics/war_room/2011/06/27/eric_cantor_conflict_of_interest

What will replace oil?

This is a thoughtful and I think quite fair discussion of the prospects for energy production thirty years from now, when oil and gas will most certainly be largely phased out due to global warming concerns as well as supply issues. The author claims that without technological advancements related to storage and a new integrated energy grid that solar and wind are likely to produce only about 4% of world energy (from 1%) by 2041. Let's get going on that new energy grid!
http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/06/27/energy_future/index.html

Idaho Will Defy No Child Left Behind, Schools' Chief Luna Tells Duncan

The state of Idaho has fired a shot across the bow of the Obama Administration's NCLB education policy by declaring that it will ignore the federal law without applying for an exemption as required. Many educators believe the misplaced emphasis on standardized testing in this Bush era law is counterproductive, and by flouting it Idaho hopes to add momentum to a national movement to have it repealed.
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2011/06/idaho_will_defy_nclb_state_chi.html

Death threats for Australian climate scientists

This post is a couple of weeks old but it nonetheless demonstrates the perils of speaking out against mainstream industrial interests in our global world today. If you have the courage to articulate unpopular opinions, you will likely become the object of scorn, threats and other efforts aimed at discrediting your voice or that of the institution or organization that you represent. This is true even if you are an academic and have scientific studies backing up your arguments. Such is the state of the world and so now are we at the point where people with courage and conviction, who are aware of the risks and willing to sacrifice based on principle, must rise to the occasion for the sake of the planet and future generations.
http://www.grist.org/climate-change/2011-06-12-death-threats-for-australian-climate-scientists

U.S. SPENT $8,100 PER PERSON ON HEALTH CARE IN 2009

Chronic illnesses and a propensity of doctors to order expensive tests for patients has lead to an explosion of expenses for healthcare in the US. Meanwhile, there is little emphasis spent on preventing disease in this country, and our health insurance model leads to a lot of unnecessary healthcare expenditures that produce a lot of profits for industry but very little for the population. These issues present a big problem for the country and are dragging the economy down as healthcare now represents 17.6 percent of GDP. Single payer healthcare, anyone?
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2011/06/27/255433/u-s-spent-8100-per-person-on-health-care-in-2009/

Dane County Sheriff's Office Investigating Alleged Prosser 'Chokehold' Incident

Good grief. The controversial conservative justice in the Wisconsin State Supreme Court, and ally to Gov. Scott Walker, is now accused of physically assaulting one of the liberal members of that court. This is after another verified incident in which he called the chief of the court a 'total bitch,' and other recent claims by members of the Court that the conservative majority fudged the legal facts in their decision to uphold an injunction by another court on the anti-labor bill that Republicans passed without public comment a few months ago. There seems to be a great deal of turmoil on the bench in Wisconsin's Supreme Court and now there are two investigations into the latest demonstration of uncivil conduct there.
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/06/dane_county_sheriffs_office_investigating_alleged_prosser_chokehold_incident.php?utm

Bernie Sanders to Obama and the Democrats: Stand Up to the Economic and Political "Schoolyard Bullies"

Bernie Sanders made an important speech today on the Senate floor urging President Obama, Democrats and working people to stand up to the Republican who seek to defund Medicaid and Medicare and they continue to serve wealthy corporations and billionaires rather than the interests of the American people. As a veteran community organizer the Senator stressed that it is time for people to make their voices heard on critical issues that will dramatically affect the future well-being of Americans, and give the President the courage to stand up and fight.
http://www.thenation.com/blog/161683/bernie-sanders-obama-and-democrats-stand-economic-and-political-schoolyard-bullies

The full text of Sanders' speech can be read here:
Bernie Sanders Tells Obama, "We Will Not Balance The Budget On The Backs Of Working Families"
http://www.thenation.com/article/161684/bernie-sanders-tells-obama-we-will-not-balance-budget-backs-working-families

If you wish to support Senator Sanders' push in defense of working families and include wealthy individuals and corporations in the 'shared sacrifice' that is being called for, please read and sign his petition.
Shared Sacrifice Petition Sponsored by Bernie Sanders
http://sanders.senate.gov/petition/?uid=c1fd7f9b-abd8-4e7a-a370-1867881259d8

E. Coli and the Misuse of Antibiotics

Finally there's another piece in the media about the antibiotic resistance characteristics of the E. coli outbreak that recently struck in Germany. The author also states that the source of that pathogen is still unknown, and refrains from blaming it on bean sprouts as so much of the media has mindlessly parroted the official line. Bravo.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andrew-gunther/e-coli-and-the-misuse-of-_b_876039.html

A Decade of Dangerous Food Imports from China

This report from Food & Water Watch details a long list of unsanitary and unhealthy practices from China's agricultural industry, a major exporter to the US. Let's all start paying some serious attention to the myriad food issues that abound in our increasingly global world.
http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/reports/a-decade-of-dangerous-food-imports-from-china/

New York State must treat hazardous fracking waste as such

This release by the Citizen's Campaign for the Environment details the loopholes that allow natural gas companies to dump untreated fracking wastewater in public waterways. Key to the logic of states who wish to ban current fracking practices is that the chemicals that are shipped to drilling sights are required to have warnings about their toxicity displayed on shipping containers yet when these same chemicals are pumped into the ground the responsibility to inform the public about the dangers disappears down that deep hole in the ground. CCE also points out that due to the nature of the drilling these fluids accumulate radioactive characteristics from the earth and massive levels of naturally occurring salts, in addition to the chemicals used in the process.
http://www.citizenscampaign.org/news/story.asp?id=363

Natural gas fracking is being falsely hailed as a clean alternative to America's energy needs and the wave of the future by industry and numerous politicians, including the Obama Administration, who are beholden to Big Oil interests. The Times' Ian Urbina, who broke the influential investigative piece on fracking dangers to drinking water supplies during the winter, lays out details of the support and opposition to this widespread and unregulated practice. This report, however, focuses on revelations revealed from internal documents within the governments Energy Information Administration that the industry may be over-hyped, beset by conflicts of interest and set up for financial bust, regardless of the environmental issues.

Behind Veneer, Doubts on Future of Natural Gas
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/27/us/27gas.html?hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1309172461-f81WCt6lelrSWlQJXcO1LA

Unusual Traits Blended in Germany E. Coli Strain

This article is useful but only as far as it goes. There are monumental open questions about the E. Coli that has killed over 40 people in Europe and destroyed livers of hundreds who will need monthly dialysis for the rest of their lives. If the pathogen is resistant to eight classes of antibiotics, as reported, then how did it get that way? Nobody seems to be asking this critical question. 
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/23/health/research/23ecoli.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Roundup Birth Defects: Regulators Knew World's Best-Selling Herbicide Causes Problems, New Report Finds

The US government has known since 1980 that glyphosate, the active ingredient used in the GMO pesticide Roundup, causes birth defects, but chose not to inform the public. There are a host of other problems as well with Roundup, including the promotion of soil pathogens that cause spontaneous abortion in livestock and super weeds that require more and more pesticides to be used. This herbicide is a public health disaster and needs to be taken off the market, but regulators in Europe recently postponed a review until 2015 and the USDA seems quite unconcerned by all the damning data available on this popular and profitable weedkiller herbicide.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/07/roundup-birth-defects-herbicide-regulators_n_872862.html

An updated account from the same author with more detail and information.

Roundup: Birth Defects Caused By World's Top-Selling Weedkiller, Scientists Say

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/24/roundup-scientists-birth-defects_n_883578.html

More Problems With Glyphosate: Rice Growers Sound Alarm

http://foodfreedom.wordpress.com/2011/05/16/glyphosate-and-natural-rice/

Monsanto Pesticide (Roundup) Found to Infect Plants With AIDS-like Disease
http://www.NaturalNews.com/032441_pesticide_AIDS.html