Top Stories
$4.2 Billion in Military Hardware Donations Fuels Militarization of U.S. Police Forces
In South Carolina, the sheriff of Richland County acquired a tank (dubbed “the Peacemaker) with 360-degree rotating machine gun turrets.
In Jefferson County in upstate New York, the sheriff’s department guarding a community of about 120,000 people now has a 20-ton Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle, which was developed for the U.S. military to survive roadside bomb attacks. It was given to the county sheriff by the Pentagon.
read more
Most Americans in 74 Years Consider Government Nation’s Worst Problem; Approval of Republican Party Plunges to All-Time Low
A new Gallup poll found 33% of Americans said dissatisfaction with government and elected representatives was the nation’s top issue. Not since 1939, when Gallup began keeping track, have so many people put government at the top of the fix-this list.
The economy came in a distant second, at 19%, . The situation in Syria, which last month was rated as the country’s top problem by 8% of Americans, has now fallen nearly out of sight at 1%.
read more
$2-Billion E-Cigarette Industry Unleashes Lobbying Blitz to Limit Taxes and Regulation
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) plans to begin regulating e-cigarettes this month, and state and local governments may not be far behind in deciding how to tax or limit the use of this new nicotine-delivery technology. Manufacturers of e-cigarettes, however, aren’t in support of their products being regulated, and are trying to minimize the government’s interference in the industry. read more
Shutdown Ends Food Inspections in U.S., Leaving 90% of U.S. Seafood Imports Unchecked
With about half of the workforce at the Food and Drug Administration on furlough, 91% of seafood imported into the United States is not being inspected, according to media reports.
Nearly 50% of fruits and 20% of vegetables imported and consumed in the U.S. also aren’t undergoing inspection.
read more
U.S. Now Leads the World in Oil and Gas Production
America’s ascendance as an energy king has been several years in the making, as U.S. companies’ embrace of hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) to tap into shale-rock formations has opened up new supplies of oil and natural gas. read more
Super-Rich Campaign Donors Look Forward to “Citizens United 2” Supreme Court Case
The case of McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission will focus on the cap that one person may contribute during a two-year election cycle to federal candidates, political parties and committees. the two political parties will likely court about a thousand super-rich donors who gave at least $134,300 0f their own money in 2012, which will give these individuals “a unique ability to set and limit the party agendas.” Two-thirds of these donors are Republicans. read more
Youth Arrest Rate for Violent Crimes Drops to 32-Year Low
American law enforcement made just more than 60,000 violent crime arrests of youth under age 18 in 2012—a decline of 10% compared to 2011, and an overall drop of 36% since 2003. Over the same decade, violent crime arrests involving adults fell 9%.
Between 2003 and 2012, youth arrests for murder fell 37%, forcible rape arrests went down 36%, robbery arrests slipped by 20%, and aggravated assault arrests plummeted by nearly 43%.
read more
Review Finds Twice as Many Accidental Gun Deaths of Children as Reported
This undercounting takes place because local officials, including coroners, will mistakenly classify the deaths as something other than an accident, like a homicide.
The New York Times also determined that in almost every case, the accidental shooter was a boy and that 81% of the victims were boys. In 28% of the cases, the fatal wound was self-inflicted.
read more
Homeland Security Requests Lid on Drone Data after Internal Documents Reveal 500 U.S. Flights
Five hundred is considerably more than the two flights that DHS admitted to operating when the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General contacted the agency for a report on unmanned aircraft.
DHS has filed a motion (pdf) with the federal judge overseeing the EFF lawsuit to throw out the remainder of the case before it has to reveal any more details about drone activity.
read more
Majority of Executions Come from Just 2% of Counties
The jurisdiction with the most executions is Harris County, Texas, which includes Houston, with 115. Dallas County is second with 50.
Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Arizona accounted for 60% of all of the nation’s executions. In fact, 36% of executions took place in Texas.
Eighty-five percent of counties did not carry out a single execution.
read more
Little Used Rule Gives Just 17 Republican Representatives the Power to Halt the Government Shutdown
No. XV of the House Rules—applies in situations where the Speaker of the House refuses to have an up-or-down vote on the House floor, as Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) is now doing. If a majority of House members sign a “discharge petition,” Boehner would have to allow a vote. Given that all 200 Democratic members would sign, only 17 Republican signatures would be needed to force a vote and end the shutdown. read more
Justice Dept. Awards Grants to Put Police in Schools
Denied tougher gun-control measures in the wake of last year’s Newtown school shooting, the Obama administration is taking a different approach to making classrooms safer: Fund more school security.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced late last week that it would distribute $44 million in grants to help schools in 141 cities and counties hire more than 350 security personnel, known as school resource officers.
read more
Navy’s Failed Access Control System: Is Cronyism To Blame?
But was it more than just opening doors? The report criticizes the Navy for evading competition in awarding the contract to Eid Passport. For example, the RAPIDGate kiosks that visitors use were priced at $2,499 each—exactly $1.00 less than the amount that Navy rules required “open market” competition. In response to complaints, the subscriptions were renewed and expanded at a cost of millions of dollars, under unusual subcontracts that also circumvented federal rules. read more
Wal-Mart Supreme Court Case Cited in 1,200 Decisions in 2 Years
By several measures the decisions, which has been cited in more than 1,200 federal and state cases, has reshaped the legal landscape to favor employers over employees. Judges have overturned jury verdicts, tossed out settlements, and rejected or decertified class actions to the benefit of corporations like Family Dollar, Lockheed Martin, Cintas, and Hearst. The size of worker discrimination settlements has fallen as well. read more
Judge Gives Go-Ahead to Case Equating Gmail Scanning with Wiretapping
In the case filed in federal court in San Jose, a group of named plaintiffs have sued Google for violating the federal Wiretap Act by scanning emails sent or received via its Gmail service for words and content, and intentionally intercepting messages between non-Gmail subscribers and subscribers. “The ruling means federal and state wiretap laws apply to the internet. It’s a tremendous victory for online privacy." read more
Scientists Claim 95% Certainty that Humans are “Dominant Cause” of Global Warming
A United Nations-sponsored panel of international scientists that convened in Stockholm says it is 95% certain that humans are the “dominant cause” of global warming over the last six decades.
That leaves about a 5% chance for the naysayers to clutch onto.
But really, experts insist, more than half of the planet’s temperature increases have been caused by humans during the past six decades. read more