Controversies
Gulf of Mexico Residents Brace for Largest Dead Zone Ever
With record floods flushing out the Mississippi River basin, the terminus of the nation’s largest river—the Gulf of Mexico—is set to experience the worst dead zone ever.
The Gulf is no stranger to dead zones, a product of agricultural waste ... read more
Is Klonopin the Most Dangerous Prescription Drug?
It’s not as famous as OxyContin, but the prescription drug Klonopin can be just as dangerous.
Around since 1975, Klonopin (clonazepam) was first prescribed to help epileptics control their seizures. Eventually, though, the medication was giv... read more
Regulator of Fannie and Freddie Opposes Transparency
Even after costing American taxpayers $150 billion since their government takeover, public-private mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should not be subject to greater public transparency, says their federal regulator.
Edward DeMarco,... read more
21 Large Cities are Closer to Nuclear Plants than the Fukushima Evacuation Zone
Millions of people around the world could find themselves in the same predicament as the 172,000 Japanese who were forced to evacuate their homes because they lived within 30 kilometers (19 miles) of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant when ... read more
Florida Orders Applicants for Federal Needy Families Program to be Drug Tested…and Pay for It
Republican Governor Rick Scott signed the legislation that applies to anyone applying for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. The program provides block grants to states with the goals of “promoting job preparation, work ... read more
Air Force Gives in to Whistleblower Mechanic who Protested Shoddy Upkeep of Spy Planes
George Sarris has won his three-year battle with the U.S. Air Force, which retaliated against him after he complained about dangerously-poor maintenance work on American spy planes.
A lifelong civilian mechanic working at Offutt Air Force Ba... read more
Unusual Supply Shortage Hits Nuclear Smuggling Detection
For years secrecy trumped communications within the U.S. Department of Energy, resulting in the United States now facing a critical shortage of a rare gas needed for detecting nuclear weapons smuggling.
At one end of the Energy Department is... read more
Who Removed Terrorism Suspect Abu Zubaydah’s Eye and Why?
Nearly 10 years ago, detainee Abu Zubaydah lost his left eye while in the custody of the CIA at a secret location. To this day he says he doesn’t know why the Americans removed it.
During his capture in Pakistan in March 2002, Zubaydah was s... read more
Pro-Radiation Lobby Wins Right to Scan all Air Travelers
Within three years, most airline passengers in the U.S. will have to pass through full-body scanners before boarding planes, exposing them to radiation levels that the government says are safe but that some scientists have questioned. The move t... read more
Should the Military Pay for Abortions in Case of Rape?
Federal law has long prohibited the use of taxpayer dollars to fund abortions, except in cases of rape or incest. But this exception does not apply to female members of the military who are raped and become pregnant.
Democrats, civil liberta... read more
Homegrown Terrorism or Entrapment?
Recent cases of American Muslims arrested for plotting terrorist acts were little more than government entrapment operations, says a study from New York University’s Center for Human Rights and Global Justice.
Three terrorism cases in New Yo... read more
Scalia Accuses Supreme Court Majority of “Most Radical Injunction Issued by a Court in Our Nation’s History”
In opposing the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling regarding the release of prisoners from California penitentiaries, Justice Antonin Scalia unleashed a blistering dissent this week that characterized the majority opinion as a “judicial travesty.”
... read more
Spent Nuclear Fuel a Bigger Threat in U.S. than in Japan
Spent nuclear fuel rods, which have garnered considerable attention since the nuclear plant crisis in Japan, represent an even larger threat in the United States, home of the world’s largest collection of radioactive refuse.
The Institute fo... read more
Did Obama Ruin Case against Bradley Manning by Declaring Him Guilty before Trial?
Speaking at fundraiser in San Francisco on April 21, President Barack Obama declared that the U.S. Army private accused of giving classified information to WikiLeaks is guilty of breaking the law, before he has even gone to trial.
In respons... read more
More Than 2,600 Protestors Arrested Since Obama Inaugurated
Whether there’s a correlation or it’s just a coincidence, the number of protestors arrested each year since President Barack Obama took office has gone up.
In 2009, Obama’s first year in the White House, 665 people were arrested. The followi... read more
What is the Secret Memo that Gives Obama’s FBI Access to Phone Records without Court Approval?
A government watchdog group has sued the Department of Justice to force the release of a secret memo used by the FBI to access any American telephone records without court approval.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed its civil ca... read more