Top Stories
More Than 3,000 U.S. Prisoners Serve Life without Parole for Non-Violent Crimes
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) identified 3,281 inmates who will never leave prison, even though they did not commit murder.
Among them are men and women who shoplifted, stole gasoline or tools, or tried cashing a stolen check, and as a result, wound up being sentenced to life without parole.
African-Americans make up the vast majority of these individuals: 65%. In one state, Louisiana, 91% of those serving life for non-violent crimes are black.
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All-Important Healthcare Penalty is Invisible in Sign-Up Pitches
Americans who don’t purchase insurance will be penalized. A family of two adults with two or more children, for example, would pay $285 or 1% of the family’s income over the $20,300 filing threshold, whichever is greater.
If a person is due a refund from the Internal Revenue Service, the government can deduct the penalty from the money owed. Otherwise, there isn’t any legal mechanism to punish people for not paying.
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Healthcare Site Problems Prevent Thousands of Medicaid Sign-Ups
Under the Affordable Care Act (pdf), the federal government is supposed to “promptly and without undue delay” transfer the applications of those going through HealthCare.gov that meet the requirements for Medicaid eligibility to states.
But the Obama administration has failed to carry out this important provision of the law.
Unlike regular insurance coverage accessed through the website, which can begin on January 1, those eligible for Medicaid can be covered immediately. read more
Insurance Companies’ Involvement in Healthcare Web Site Fix Raises Conflict of Interest Issues
With the website’s many hardware and software problems preventing people from signing up for insurance, the administration has called on insurers for technical help. But consumers may find themselves going directly to an insurance company’s website for information—and companies would not be required to tell visitors about other plans available through competitors. read more
House-Senate Conference Mulls Protecting Agricultural and Livestock Businesses from Public Scrutiny
One provision in the bill, Section 1613, “would prohibit any federal agency subject to FOIA from disclosing information of any kind that concerns ‘an agricultural operation, farming or conservation practices or the land itself.’ Under this provision, not even statistical data integral to studies of impacts on public health and other effects of farmland operations would be available.” read more
U.S. and Israel Lose UNESCO Voting Rights
Under UNESCO’s constitution, however, any nation that fails to pay dues for two years loses its vote in the UNESCO general assembly. That made UNESCO’s vote-stripping automatic, just as the U.S. “decision” to withhold dues was unavoidable under federal law. The U.S. had never before voluntarily given up its vote in a UN organization, according to diplomats. read more
Homeland Security Dept. Continues to Fight Disclosure of Where it Flies Drones
EFF countered that releasing location information pertaining to drones would not aid suspected criminals. The civil rights group cited the example of Arizona, from which the government flies at least four Predators. Counties there are so large, with an average size of 7,573 square miles, that criminals could not possibly avoid detection by drones even if they knew which county was being watched at certain times.
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Christian Prayers at City Council Meetings Supported by Obama Administration before Supreme Court
The Reagan administration backed prayers before state legislative meetings by clergy as long as the prayers were nonsectarian.
“Remarkably, the Obama administration has backtracked from the position taken by the Reagan administration,” Chemerinsky wrote. “It now argues that even explicitly sectarian prayers are permissible.”
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D.C. Averaged One Gunshot Incident Every Two Hours for Past 8 Years
Consisting of rooftop sensors mounted on buildings and light poles through the city, ShotSpotter notes every time the sound of firearms being discharged is detected.
Those sounds are analyzed by a computer and tracked to within yards of their source location—a process that takes less than 40 seconds per incident. Personnel monitoring the system notify police in the field, who then speed to the location.
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Senate Committee Approves Continued Bulk Spying on Americans
The Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Trevor Timm wrote that “the bill codifies some of the NSA’s worst practices, would be a huge setback for everyone’s privacy, and it would permanently entrench the NSA’s collection of every phone record held by U.S. telecoms. We urge members of Congress to oppose it.”
Critics of Feinstein’s plan prefer legislation introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), which would put a stop to the NSA’s domestic phone-records collection.
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Increased Spending on Judicial Elections Leads to Increase in Guilty Verdicts
Tort reform bills limit liability for negligence or personal-injury lawsuits. Tort reform, corporate front groups realized, is not a politically popular issue—not nearly as powerful as getting tough on crime. Judges who are supportive of a “tough” approach to criminal justice tend to be conservative overall, and thus more likely to support pro-business tort reform efforts. It could even be called a case of “bait and switch.” read more
Document Reveals Talking Points for Defenders of NSA Spying
The 27-page document even includes the recommended statement (found under the subheading “Sound Bites That Resonate”): “I much prefer to be here today explaining these programs, than explaining another 9/11 event that we were not able to prevent.”
Other talking points insist the NSA’s work is “lawful” and compliant with all federal oversight, and that “allies benefit too” from its intelligence gathering (unless they’re targets of NSA snooping, presumably.)
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FDA Overrules Expert Panel to Approve High-Potency Painkiller
The FDA approved the sale of Zohydro on October 25, despite a warning from its own staff in 2012 that said the drug will be abused more than traditional hydrocodone products like Vicodin, which was the most prescribed medication in the U.S. three years ago.
The United States reportedly consumes 99% of the hydrocodone that is used around the world. read more
NSA Invaded Google and Yahoo Global Data Centers to Access Hundreds of Millions of Accounts
The NSA has operated a project called MUSCULAR that involves infiltrating Google’s and Yahoo’s network cables running between their data centers. The effort has also involved Britain’s intelligence agency, the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). A classified document revealed that in one 30-day period from early December 2012 to early January 2013, the NSA processed and sent back 181,280,466 new records—including who sent or received e-mails and when. read more
Members of Congress Avoid First-Ever Testimony by Pakistani Drone War Victims
“I no longer love blue skies. In fact, I now prefer grey skies. Drones don’t fly when sky is grey,” Zubair ur Rehman, 13, said, adding that his leg was injured by shrapnel during the strike.
At one point in the testimony, the translator broke down in tears while relaying the family’s ordeal.
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NSA Monitored 60 Million Phone Calls in Spain in a Single Month; NSA Chief Insists that Allies Did some of the Spying
In heated testimony before the House Intelligence Committee yesterday, NSA chief Keith Alexander claimed that it was European intelligence agencies that did some of the spying in their own countries and supplied the NSA with the data.
In one day alone, December 11, 2012, the NSA intercepted 3.5 million calls, according to an NSA graphic entitled “Spain – last 30 days.” read more