November’s most popular AllGov stories reflect a growing sense of injustice in the United States. A hospital denies a liver transplant to a patient because he took marijuana prescribed by one of its own doctors; a policeman pepper sprays non-violent students; members of Congress get richer while most Americans are struggling. There is also a creeping intrusion on traditional citizen rights. TSA expands to random checks on highways; the Senate uses vague language to allow the indefinite imprisonment of U.S. citizens.

 

The good news is that there is still a search for answers to unusual questions…who was the wealthiest athlete in history; what is the best place to relocate to in Outer Space.

 

         Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles is refusing to grant a liver transplant to a cancer patient because he used medical marijuana, which not only is legal under California law but also was prescribed by a Cedars doctor.

         In Tennessee Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) has been set up at five weigh stations and two bus terminals. State officials noted that they were not responding to any particular threat, but rather were providing “a visible deterrence and detection security presence across Tennessee.”

         Bipartisan legislation being considered in the U.S. Senate would expand the military’s power to go after any terrorism suspect, including American citizens, anywhere in the world—including within the United States—and confine them indefinitely without being charged or tried. S. 1867, referred to as the National Defense Authorization Act bill, was drafted in secret by Senators Carl Levin (D-Michigan) and John McCain (R-Arizona)

         “I have never seen such an inappropriate and improper use of chemical agents,” Loghman told The New York Times. Having helped police departments develop guidelines for using pepper spray, Loghman said pepper spray is appropriate only if a person is physically threatening a police officer or another person

         Diocles (104-146) established himself as the greatest competitor of Rome’s chariot races. Some have estimated he won 35,863,120 sesterces in prize money over 24 years of racing—or $15 billion by today’s standards, according to Peter Struck at Lapham’s Quarterly.

         The Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services put the third grader, who weighed more than 200 pounds, into a foster home after it decided the mother was not following a doctor’s order for reducing the eight-year-old’s weight.

         JPMorgan Chase is the No. 1 holder of stock in BP. That distinction also has earned the Wall Street bank the title of “Global Ultimate Owner” of the oil giant, as it owns 28.34% of BP. Next, at 7.99%, is Legal and General Group, a British-based financial services company with assets of more than $350 billion.

         A group of astrobiologists has calculated which planets and satellites are the next best options for supporting life outside of earth. Saturn’s moon Titan was ranked the most likely among destinations within the solar system because it is the most like Earth. Beyond that, the best bet is Mars.

         The base mortuary lost a dead soldier’s ankle and another set of remains that had been stored in a plastic bag. In another case, employees sawed off the damaged arm bone of a Marine so he could fit into his uniform and coffin without telling his family.

         The numbers are skewed by the wealth of one Congressman, Michael McCaul (R-Texas), who is worth at least $294 million. Still, the median net worth for members of Congress, $513,000, is four times that of the median American household.