Controversies
Florida Hospitals Ignore Voter-Approved Law Requiring Disclosure of “Adverse Incidents”
Voters in Florida overwhelmingly (81% to 19%) approved a constitutional amendment seven years ago that gave victims of medical malpractice the authority to see reports on their own case or on other mistakes made by the same doctors who had treated... read more
Drones Now Being Used by Police and Sheriffs in U.S.
The obsession with using unmanned aircraft in warfare has now shifted to the home front, where the federal government and local law enforcement are now using drones to catch criminals.
The first known drone-aided arrest took place in eastern N... read more
Nuclear Regulatory Chief under Bipartisan Attack from Fellow Commissioners
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) top appointee is facing accusations from his fellow commissioners regarding his behavior, while the agency debates new—and controversial—safety reforms for the industry.
Four NRC commissioners, two Dem... read more
Lowe’s Pulls Ads from TV Show with Positive Portrayal of American Muslims
Pressured by Christian fundamentalists, the home improvement chain Lowe’s has pulled its advertisements from TLC’s All-American Muslim television program.
Lowe’s withdrew its ads after the Florida Family Association launched a campaign against... read more
FDA Yanks Voting Rights from Drug Safety Committee Member Who Opposes Bayer Birth Control Pill
For opposing the use of birth control pills made by Bayer, a consumer advocate has lost his voting power on a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel.
Sid Wolfe, head the Public Citizen Health Research Group, was a full member of the... read more
Only 12% of Prescription Drug Tests are Published on Time
The federal government is not getting the disclosure it had hoped for clinical trials when it mandated four years ago that researchers register studies of prescription drugs and report results on ClinicalTrials.gov.
Of the studies submitted ... read more
Air Force Dumped Ashes of 274 Troops in Landfill
The partial remains of more than 270 American soldiers were twice-burned before they were discarded into a landfill, according to the latest development in the U.S. Air Force controversy.
Air Force leaders admitted this week that the number ... read more
Up to 40,000 Kids Mine Gold in Mali, as U.S. Debates Gingrich Child Labor Proposal
Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has raised the issue of changing “stupid” child labor laws in the U.S. because, he says, those from poor families don’t understand the value of work. While Gingrich, his supporters and detractors d... read more
BP Accuses Halliburton of Destroying Gulf Oil Spill Evidence
Halliburton has been accused of destroying evidence that might have indicated it was partly responsible for the fatal oil well blowout that occurred on April 20, 2010, in the Gulf of Mexico.
The accusation was leveled by BP, which together w... read more
Firemen Watch House Burn Down Because Owner Didn’t Pay Subscription Fee…As Usual
Firefighters in South Fulton, Tennessee, have done it again—allowing a home to burn to the ground because the owners didn’t pay for the local fire protection fee.
Resident Vicky Bell called 911 on Monday after her mobile home caught fire. Fi... read more
Mine Owner to Pay $209 Million in Death of 29 Men, but Old Boss may be Back in Business
Alpha Natural Resources has been ordered to pay the largest penalty ever for a mining disaster. The company will pay $209 million in restitution and civil and criminal penalties for owning Massey Energy, the notorious mining business that operated... read more
Alabama Prisoners Might Work the Farms
With a shortage of available farm workers, thanks to the state’s anti-illegal immigrant law, Alabama may use prisoners to pick crops.
Farmers are pushing the idea to state agricultural officials, arguing they need someone to help harvest field... read more
In 2011, Fewer Laws and Fewer Confirmations
Five hundred and thirty-five lawmakers on Capitol Hill spent the last 12 months producing one of the least productive congressional sessions in recent memory. As of November 30, the House had approved only 326 bills, the fewest in at least 10 non-... read more
Whites Far More Likely to Receive Presidential Pardons than Blacks
The process of presidential pardons for convicted criminals has not been colorblind in recent years, according to an investigation by ProPublica.
After examining hundreds of pardons issued during the Bush and Obama administrations (mostly the ... read more
Hidden Software on Millions of Phones Logs Everything a User Does
Users of Android, BlackBerry and Nokia mobile phones can forget about keeping their cellular activities to themselves. Almost everything a person does on these phones is recorded by a secret program that few knew about until last week.
That wa... read more
FDA Ponders Move After Reports of Arsenic in Apple Juice
Having previously attested to the product’s safety, the Food and Drug Administration is now considering guidelines to limit the amount of harmful arsenic in apple juice.
The FDA currently does not regulate arsenic levels in fruit juices. But r... read more