Top Stories
Justice Dept. Mistakes Slapping Wall Street Wrists for True Punishment for Fraud
Instead of settling for consent agreements and fines, DOJ claims it is now insisting on actual guilty pleas to felony charges. But critics remain skeptical, particularly because there is no indication that corporate executives will be held responsible for the crimes committed by the businesses they run. Matt Taibbi of Rolling Stone called the new model “beyond laughable.”
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One-Third of Fish Sold as Food are Mislabeled…and Watch out for Sushi Bars
Sushi bars proved to be the most misleading in terms of which fish were being sold to customers, with 74% mislabeled.
Nationally, 87% fish sold as snapper weren’t snapper and when it came to red snapper, only 7 of 120 samples were actually red snapper. Tuna fared little better with only 59% of alleged tuna being real tuna. In New York, tuna was almost never tuna according to Oceana, which found 94% of samples to be some other kind of fish.
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Housing Vacancy Rates Finally Drop back to Pre-2006 Levels
During the last quarter of 2012, the vacancy rate for homes was 1.9%, and 8.7% for the rental housing market.
To compare, the vacancy rate for homes reached a high of 2.9% in 2008, while the rate for rentals peaked at 11.1% in 2009. On an annual basis, the rental vacancy rate is the lowest since 2001.
Low interest rates and a shrinking supply of homes for purchase have been credited for helping boost the housing market, as has the reduced level of new housing construction. read more
Citizens United 2: Supreme Court to Rule on Campaign Contributions Limits
The plaintiffs in the case are Shaun McCutcheon, a conservative activist and businessman from Alabama, and the Republican National Committee (RNC). They object to current two-year limits on overall spending to candidates (currently $48,600) and groups ($74,600). As it stands, an individual could donate the maximum amount to 18 candidates. A ruling in favor of the RNC would allow individuals to donate unlimited amounts to unlimited numbers of candidates. read more
Report Fingers Chinese Army in Anti-U.S. Hacking Attacks
Mandiant was able to track down the source of the attacks to the PLA unit because two of the hackers momentarily logged on to their personal Facebook or Twitter accounts without first signing off of the servers they were using for their espionage work. A hacker’s use of his cell phone number to register a Google email account for himself provided another clue.
Unit 61398 is acknowledged by the U.S. as the center of Chinese cyber espionage operations.
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Labor Dept. Halts Enrollment in Job Corps
The Department of Labor closed off new enrollment to Job Corps until at least June 30 after lawmakers complained about a budget shortfall that has now reached nearly $100 million.
The decision could impact as many as 30,000 young adults struggling to find work, and it could mean about 10,000 staffers losing their jobs.
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Army Manual Gives Secretary of Defense the Right to Order Drone Surveillance in U.S.
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
Scientists Suggest Reclassifying Most Dangerous Plastic Waste as Hazardous Materials
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
Obama Administration Asks Banks to Regulate Their Own Foreclosure Abuses
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) shut down the foreclosure review by independent consultants—which had already cost about $2 billion— after it was revealed that the banks had selected said consultants. Instead of federal regulators doing the work, they are trusting the financial institutions, including Bank of America and Wells Fargo, to do it. read more
Revolving Door at SEC is in a Whirl as Hundreds Hired by Industry they Regulated
Perhaps the most high-profile concern in this arena is President Obama’s nomination of Mary Jo White to become the new SEC chief. During her most recent job at the firm of Debevoise & Plimpton, White’s clients included JPMorgan Chase, General Electric, Verizon Communications, former Bank of America chief executive Kenneth Lewis, and Rajat Gupta, the former Goldman Sachs board member convicted of insider trading.
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Soybean Farmer Faces Showdown with Monsanto at Supreme Court
Bowman was accused by Monsanto of infringing on its rights regarding its Roundup Ready soybean seeds, which were engineered to withstand its Roundup herbicide.
The 75-year-old farmer never bought Monsanto’s seeds. But he did find soybean seeds in a local grain elevator used for feed and then planted them.
Monsanto insists that regardless of where or how Bowman got the seeds, he owes the company for using them. It sued him in district court and won an $84,456 settlement.
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Homeland Security Approves Seizure of Cell Phones and Laptops within 100 Miles of Border; Report Remains Secret
Americans have no Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable searches and seizures if they happen to be within 100 miles of the border, according to the “Executive Summary” of a still-secret report by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The entire populations of Florida, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Washington, DC, and Michigan—live in this “Constitution free” zone. read more
El Paso Earns Safest Large U.S. City Ranking Third Year in a Row
U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas), who represents the El Paso area in Congress, bolstered Napolitano’s remarks. “The fact is, the border has never been more secure—whether measured in the $18 billion spent annually on border security, the 22,000 boots on the ground, the record number of criminal deportations in the past four years, or the record-low immigrant apprehensions this past year,” O’Rourke said. read more
More and More Americans Going to ER for Dental Care
Over a four-year period (2006-2009), the number of dental-related ER visits increased 16%, rising from 874,000 to 936,432 visits.
In 2009 nearly 13,000 hospital inpatient stays were related to dental problems.
Dental abscess was the principal diagnosis for 63% of the inpatient stays, while 42% of ER visits were related to cavities.
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Studies Show Minorities and Democrats had to Wait in Line Longer to Vote in 2012
The research also revealed that Florida had the nation’s longest lines (45 minutes), followed by the District of Columbia (33.8), Maryland (28.8), South Carolina (24.8) and Virginia (23.6). In Vermont, on the other hand, the average wait was just two minutes, and in Alaska and Maine 3.7 minutes.
In addition, a study by Ohio State University professor Theodore Allen and The Orlando Sentinel concluded that more than 200,000 voters in Florida “gave up in frustration” without voting.
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These 54 Governments Secretly Supported the CIA’s Kidnap-and-Torture Program
Rendition is the practice of bypassing due process to seize a suspect in a foreign country and transport him to another country where there is a warrant for his arrest. Extraordinary rendition is the practice of seizing a suspect and transporting him to another country for interrogation, even though he is not wanted for a crime.
At least 54 countries co-operated with the CIA’s kidnapping, detaining and torturing operation.
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