Controversies
Air Force Drones Allowed to Record U.S. Citizens in U.S.
Like the rest of the U.S. military, the Air Force isn’t supposed to spy on Americans. But the secretary of the Air Force, Michael Donley, has decided the service’s drones can conduct “nonconsensual surveillance” of people in the U.S. for a limite... read more
ALEC Singled Out for Exemption from Lobbying Law in South Carolina
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), composed of conservative politicians and corporations that promote pro-business legislative agendas, has been allowed to lobby in South Carolina and other states without being required to register ... read more
Shell Shock, a.k.a. PTSD, May Get Yet Another New Name
Severe trauma, the kind most commonly but not exclusively linked to combat, may get a new name if the military has its way.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) could soon morph into PTSI—for post-traumatic stress injury.
Former General P... read more
License Plate Tracking Spreads beyond Criminal Suspects
From Tennessee to the District of Columbia, police are using mobile and stationary surveillance cameras to collect and store license plates of residents who have committed no crime—so that they can be found if they ever do.
In Tennessee, polic... read more
Georgia Sheriffs, Fearing Occupy Movement, Evict Family at Gunpoint
DeKalb County’s sheriff’s department recently treated the eviction of a four-generation family like a violent drug bust, all because the local Occupy Movement was helping her avoid losing the current homeowner home.
In the middle of the night,... read more
Obama Says Frackers Must Reveal Chemicals Used on Public Lands…but only after Drilling is Finished
In what critics are calling a classic case of shutting the barn door after the horse has bolted, the Obama administration has issued a proposed new rule requiring energy companies that engage in hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) on public land to ... read more
Utah and Arizona Pass Bills to Seize Federal Land; Sioux Indians Demand the Same
Conservative legislators in Utah and Arizona have recently passed new laws demanding that the federal government turn over control of federally-owned land in those states or face state taxation. Although legal experts point out that the constituti... read more
FCC Allows Telecom Giants to Ignore Discount Rule for Providing Internet to Low-Income Schools
Under federal law, telecommunications companies are required to provide affordable phone and Internet rates to schools in low-income areas, as well as subsidize the cost of equipment and services. The program is called E-Rate, but the time may hav... read more
Asian-American Fishermen Sue BP over Racial Discrimination in Oil Spill Cleanup
A large group of Asian-American fishermen have sued BP in federal court claiming the oil company discriminated against them when it hired locals to help with the 2010 oil spill.
Through BP’s Vessels of Opportunity (VoO) program, about 5,000 bo... read more
Obama Considers Making it Easier to Sell Firearms Abroad
President Barack Obama has proposed easing export controls on firearms in an effort to help American manufacturers boost their sales. But officials within the administration have objected to the controversial plan, which some say could result in a... read more
81 Boxes of Top-Secret and Restricted Documents Missing at National Archives
At the very end of Raiders of the Lost Ark, the prized Lost Ark of the Covenant is last seen disappearing inside an immense government warehouse, presumably lost forever amid thousands and thousands of boxes.
The same fate may have befallen th... read more
Is Refusing to Stand for the Pledge of Allegiance “Disorderly Conduct”?
A Pennsylvania eighth-grade student and her mother won a battle after challenging school officials’ position that students must stand during the Pledge of Allegiance or else be punished for “disorderly conduct.”
Carolyn Raja sued the Brownsvil... read more
VA Misled Public about Timeliness of Mental Health Care
Officials in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) have been touting their agency’s timely delivery of mental health services to veterans. It turns out those claims were greatly exaggerated.
According to the VHA, 95% of first-time mental-he... read more
Climate Change Deniers Grasping at Clouds
In an era when 97% of climate scientists believe that climate change is a serious problem, increasingly isolated scientific skeptics have turned to the skies to explain why the threat of global warming is much ado about nothing.
Richard S. Lin... read more
Some Cases of Obesity Linked to Urban Air Pollution
Bad air may contribute to cases of obesity for some inner-city residents of New York City.
Researchers at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health studied more than 700 pregnant women and found those exposed to higher concentratio... read more
The Government Program that Kills Wild Animals
A little-known office within the U.S. Department of Agriculture has come under scrutiny for killing thousands of animals in the name of helping ranchers and the environment.
Over the past dozen years, Wildlife Services, which has an annual bud... read more