False Sense Of Security

Footage of distressed cows stir questions about growth drugs

"Tyson Foods Inc declared it would no longer accept cattle that had been fed the most popular brand of the feed additive, called Zilmax, a powerful and fast-selling product from pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. The debate over Zilmax follows a similar dispute over ractopamine. China and Russia have banned the import of meat from ractopamine-fed animals, and the U.S.-based pork giant Smithfield Foods in May announced it will stop feeding ractopamine to half its pig herd, a move seen as an effort to recapture the lucrative China market. The FDA has deemed beta-agonists safe both for farm animals and for human health." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFootage of distressed cows stir questions about growth drugs

Hospital technician pleads guilty to leaving dirty needles after feeding his painkiller addiction

"A former hospital technician in New Hampshire who caused patients as old as 80 to become infected with hepatitis pleaded guilty to leaving dirty syringes for hospital use after he injected himself with stolen painkiller. The technician, David Kwiatkowski, had previously admitted to knowing that he was infected with hepatitis C. He pleaded guilty to 14 criminal counts related to seven cases in which he caused infections in patients ranging in age from about 40 to more than 80. He was working at Exeter Hospital in New Hampshire in early 2012 when he began stealing syringes of the powerful pain medication Fentanyl." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHospital technician pleads guilty to leaving dirty needles after feeding his painkiller addiction

The NSA Is Hiring! And Following A Pittsburgh Car Dealership On Its Twitter Account?

"The NSA's hiring arm has a Twitter account, NSACareers. This account tweets new job listings and pro-NSA news into the void, gathering more derision than potential hires in its pursuit of people skilled in the art of data wrangling but completely devoid of a conscience or soul. Could this be you? Are you the sort of 'informaticist' who can swiftly extract needles from haystacks to help prevent the next terrorist attack? Failing that, can you swiftly extract victory from the jaws of defeat and say, 'Tough luck on the recent bombing, but we'll get the next one, I promise?' If so, your country needs your informaticizing skills NOW." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe NSA Is Hiring! And Following A Pittsburgh Car Dealership On Its Twitter Account?

The Secret Plot to Prop Up the Municipal Bond Market

"Not only are capital regulations, written as parts of Basel II and Basel III, driving banks to hold government instruments such as US Treasury securities, but it is also driving banks to buy junk municipal debt. The disclosure that European banks are holding bad Detroit paper confirms my suspicions as to the true principles of the so-called safety guidelines capital requirements. They are no such thing, they are crony rules designed to prop up risky government paper. In time, as more government regions from Puerto Rico to Chicago and Los Angeles go into a financial crisis stage, we will learn of even more global bank exposure to debt from these sectors." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Secret Plot to Prop Up the Municipal Bond Market

Gupta Mea Culpa

"Dr. Sanjay Gupta has recently reversed his opposition to marijuana legalization and apologized for supporting marijuana prohibition. His reversal is a good reminder that our ultimate goal is to be rid of an entire health care system by which we are ruled by health care technocrats, bureaucrats, and politicians. The mainstream perspective is that experts and technocrats should establish what the best medical practices are and then bureaucrats should enforce those practices on everyone. Practices deemed suboptimal, unproven, or potentially dangerous should be prohibited by politicians and the prohibition enforced by bureaucrats." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGupta Mea Culpa

New York’s Crony Motivated Swipe Against the Sharing Economy

"Nigel Warren, an East Village resident, was fined $2,400 for running an illegal hotel because he rented his bedroom out to a visitor for three days. He wasn’t operating a sleazy flophouse, and the entire transaction was markedly casual, but he was prosecuted nonetheless. Warren’s offending transaction took place through Airbnb, an online hostelling website. Airbnb works on a peer-to-peer structure, connecting people with extra space to people who can’t (or don’t want to) shell out for a regular hotel. One can’t help but suspect big hotel powers might be lurking behind a law that forbids short stays anywhere but in hotels." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNew York’s Crony Motivated Swipe Against the Sharing Economy

Police chief defends ‘libtards’ rant: ‘Cops are there to clean up the mess’

"Embattled Gilberton, Pennsylvania police Chief Mark Kessler is currently serving a 30-day suspension for using local property without permission in a series of videos in which he fires weapons while loudly cursing 'libtards.' He has since referred to Democrats as 'the most vile creatures in this country' and accused Gilberton City Council members of planning a 'kangaroo court' against him. 'I don’t regret it,' Kessler said to WTXF regarding the videos. 'I believe I have had an impact on a lot of people across the country. You would not believe the tens of thousands of emails. My phone doesn’t stop.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPolice chief defends ‘libtards’ rant: ‘Cops are there to clean up the mess’

Bangladeshi student sentenced to 30 years in prison for FBI plot to blow up the Fed

"A Bangladeshi student who came to the U.S. intending to commit jihad was sentenced to 30 years in prison today after pleading guilty to terrorism charges for trying to blow up the Federal Reserve Bank in New York. The plot was a phony operation engineered by undercover agents. The 22-year-old begged for leniency and forgiveness, apologizing to the judge, the United States, New York City and his parents and said he no longer believed in radical Islam. Nafis was arrested after he tried to detonate a phony 1,000-pound truck bomb outside the bank in October." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBangladeshi student sentenced to 30 years in prison for FBI plot to blow up the Fed

Man Released After Spending 9 Years In Jail For Possessing “Al Qaeda Literature”

"Omar Altimimi has been released from prison after 9 long years. His crime? Simply possessing digital literature relating to Al Qaeda and unfortunately being Muslim at the same time. Altimimi a Dutch national – who resided in Bolton – was alleged to have had a 'vast' terror library, but actually possessed just 'six computer files connected with the preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism under the Terrorism Act 2000.' The infamous 'Al Qaeda training manual' that has resulted in other men being locked up for its possession, was actually written by an informant for the CIA. So is that Al Qaeda material, or American Government material?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMan Released After Spending 9 Years In Jail For Possessing “Al Qaeda Literature”

New York Mayor Bloomberg to appeal ruling that blocked stop-and-frisk policy

"New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Monday said he would appeal a federal judge’s ruling that the police department’s 'stop and frisk' crime-fighting tactics violate constitutional rights. Bloomberg remained firm in his argument that the practice drove down the city’s crime rate, saying, 'The possibility of being stopped acts as a vital deterrent.' His administration plans to ask for a stay of the judge’s order until the appeal is heard, officials told a press conference." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNew York Mayor Bloomberg to appeal ruling that blocked stop-and-frisk policy