Trump ordered that the term Homo sapiens be changed to Hetero sapiens. In history books and on websites, the airplane from which the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima will no longer be identified as the Enola Gay, but rather the Enola Straight. Trump also ordered billionaire Mark Cuban, who supported Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, to change his name to Mark American. If he does not do so, he will be charged with terrorism.   read more

At issue is the Medicare Part D drug program that was created in 2006 to cover beneficiaries eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid. Before Part D came along, drug companies were required to provide rebates to the government to help pay for medications for so-called dual eligible beneficiaries. But eliminating the rebates has proved costly to the government. The Congressional Budget Office has said the switch would save billions of dollars in government spending every year.   read more

The case, Boyer v. Louisiana, stems from a claim by Jonathan Edward Boyer that his constitutional right to a speedy trial was violated when the state of Louisiana refused to pay for his defense counsel for five years. Boyer has argued that witnesses died during the lengthy delay and he suffered a mental breakdown which rendered him unable to assist in his own defense.   read more

Africa is set to become a major flashpoint for the U.S. military. Although the stated strategy is “countering violent extremist groups” on the continent, the next general in charge of U.S. forces in Africa has made it clear that the goal is to protect “western interests.” Rodriguez wants more resources for the Africa Command, which was established only six years ago. It needs more drones, surveillance aircraft and satellite imagery, according to the general.   read more

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office awarded Amazon the patent (“Secondary Market For Digital Objects”), giving the company the ability to set up a marketplace for the transfer of used digital objects, whether they are sold, rented, loaned, traded or gifted. Amazon’s effort has raised the question of how digital products become “used,” which is more easily understood with hardware or physical retail items.   read more

The most alarming part of the manual, though, says there are times when drones could be utilized to spy on Americans. “[Unmanned aircraft] operators cannot conduct surveillance on specifically identified U.S. persons, unless expressly approved by the Secretary of Defense, consistent with U.S. laws and regulations….Use of unmanned aircraft systems requires approval at high levels within the DOD and the FAA prior to employment.   read more

In 2010, two-thirds of all gun-related deaths were the result of someone shooting themselves (20,000 out of 30,000), according to the most recent figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). State level statistics indicate that with higher rates of gun ownership comes higher rates of suicide. The three states with the highest suicide rates are also the top gun-owning states (Wyoming, Montana and Alaska).   read more

Despite the old saying, it seems a rising tide does not necessarily lift all boats. According to newly released data, since the end of the Great Recession in 2009 the richest 1% have increased their income by 11.2% while incomes for the bottom 99% actually shrank by 0.4%. As study author Emmanuel Saez, an economist at the University of California, Berkeley, put it, “the top 1% captured 121% of the income gains in the first two years of the recovery.”   read more

In a victory for anti-fracking activists and open government advocates, a federal judge in Denver has ordered the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to disclose the names of companies that nominate specific parcels of public land for oil or gas development. The North Fork leases, which are opposed by a coalition of environmentalists, ranchers, tourism interests, and farmers, have twice been put up for sale and then yanked back by BLM, most recently on the same day Matsch signed his ruling.   read more

In a sign of continuity with the pre-revolutionary regime, President Mohamed Morsi of Egypt last fall appointed a new ambassador to the U.S. who is a career diplomat in the Egyptian Foreign Service going back to 1983. Mohamed M. Tawfik, who presented his credentials to President Barack Obama on September 19, 2012, served previously in the U.S. during the 1980s. A member of the Egyptian Writers Union and PEN International, Tawfik has published three novels and three volumes of short stories   read more

New research shows that the developed nations’ decision years ago to classify plastic as solid waste was based on the now discredited view that plastics are inert. Now we know that plastic debris is laden with highly toxic pollutants, which can be inhaled or ingested by people and wildlife as plastic debris degrades and breaks down. Studies have found that such microscopic fibers are present in human lung cancers.   read more

Trial judges may admit testimony from high-paid fact witnesses, but should alert the jury to the danger of bias, New York’s highest court ruled last week. At issue was a $10,000 fee paid to fact witness Barry Krosser, an emergency room physician who treated a patient for a fall she had suffered. Under cross-examination, Krosser acknowledged the fee, but insisted it had no effect on his testimony.   read more

On May 11, 2012, four villagers in a boat on the River Patuca, two pregnant women, a 21-year-old man and a 14-year-old boy, were killed when local police entered the town of Ahuas in northeastern Honduras to conduct a counternarcotics operation. Another four boat passengers were injured by gunfire. It was later learned that members of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) participated in the raid, which raised questions of whether Americans were responsible for the killings.   read more

Filed January 31, the bill clarifies the state’s indecent exposure law by redefining “private parts,” to include “the nipple, or any portion of the areola, of the human female breast.” If the exposure is determined to be “for the purpose of arousing or gratifying sexual desire,” the woman could be charged with a felony, while non-sexual exposure would be a misdemeanor worth up to 30 days in jail, and “incidental” exposure during breastfeeding would remain exempt.   read more

Kaambi was the communications adviser to President Azali Assoumani from 2004 to 2006. An educator, Kaambi taught high school philosophy in Moroni and in Mitsamihouli from 1995 to 2003, and was a law professor at the University of Comoros from 2006 to 2011. Kaambi is concurrently accredited as permanent representative to the United Nations in New York and as ambassador to Canada and to Cuba. Comoros has a population of about 800,000.   read more

O’Connor reportedly lost $13 million gambling between 2000 and 2009, while placing wagers worth $1 billion. O’Connor’s attorney said she would play video-poker for hours at the Barona Resort & Casino near San Diego. But she was also a regular in Las Vegas, where casinos would send a jet for her. O’Connor admitted taking money from the R.P. Foundation in 2008 and 2009 while she was one of its trustees.   read more

An investigation by USA Today found the government delved into state driver’s license records to locate foreign-born applicants, and sent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to local traffic safety checkpoints in an effort to catch as many illegal aliens as possible before 2012 was up. ICE also focused on processing more unauthorized immigrants arrested for low-level crimes to pad the agency’s numbers.   read more