News Items

  • Election Reforms: Falling short

    WASHINGTON — Proponents of progressive election reform gave cautious approval to the recent report issued by a commission assigned to investigate the improvement of federal elections. Many critics, however, point to several obstacles that remain in the way of free and fair elections throughout the United States. The report, issued by the National Commission on Federal Election Reform headed by former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford, was presented to President Bush. Among its recommendations are provisions regarding increases in equipment standards and stepped-up federal funding for the administration of elections.

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  • Son of Star Wars: Another arms race?

    WASHINGTON — Reports emerging from the Pentagon about plans to test a “Space Bomber” are drawing accusations that the U.S. government is attempting to engage in another arms race. The bomber, a spacecraft reportedly capable of destroying targets on the other side of the globe within 30 minutes, is a key component of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s plan to modernize U.S. weaponry. The satellite is currently under production by NASA and Lockheed Martin, a leading military contractor. Pentagon claims that the bomber can cause greater and deeper ground damage from a virtually unassailable height have many critics questioning it as…

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  • ExxonMobil: Facing a boycott

    ExxonMobil, one of the biggest corporations on the planet, is now facing a boycott spearheaded by activist groups protesting the company’s policies at home and abroad. The boycott was launched by PressurePoint, a grassroots organization looking to “take real action on climate change and corporate influence,” according to Chris Doran, campaigns director for the group. “The U.S. government’s climate change policy is the ExxonMobil policy,” Doran says. “What sort of democracy do we have when one company can buy off our political process for its own gains?” ExxonMobil is a charter member of the Global Climate Coalition, an influential industry…

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  • Beyond the Ford-Firestone Uproar: Critics blast lack of regulation, accountability in SUV safety

    WASHINGTON – Recent congressional hearings probed the accountability of Ford and Firestone in many incidents where car or tire malfunctioned, causing injury or death. The hearings also questioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the federal government’s chief regulator of automobile safety, and its role in providing the public with adequate information. While the blame-placing among corporate executives and congressional subcommittees occurred on Capitol Hill, several analysts decried the lack of accountability being demanded of the corporations involved. Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen, pointed to a lack of regulation of sport utility vehicles and rollover standards.

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  • NEWS BRIEFING WITH LAWRENCE SUMMERS, SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY RAYMOND OFFENHEISER, PRESIDENT, OXFAM

    Questions from IPA appear below in bold HEADLINE: NEWS BRIEFING WITH LAWRENCE SUMMERS, SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY RAYMOND OFFENHEISER, PRESIDENT, OXFAM DEBT RELIEF TO POOR COUNTRIES AND OXFAM EDUCATION NOW AWARD INTRODUCTION: MARTA ARIAS LOCATION: NATIONAL PRESS CLUB, WASHINGTON D.C. BODY:

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  • Ten Real Reasons To Impeach Clinton

    We all seem to have lost our sense of proportion. Why are the political leaders of the United States and the major media talking of impeaching Bill Clinton for lies about sex, surely not the most important sins of his administration? If Clinton is to be impeached, why do it for frivolous reasons? I can think of at least ten reasons to impeach him, for acts far more serious than his dalliance with Monica Lewinsky or his lies to Kenneth Starr. I am speaking of matters of life and death for large numbers of people. 1. Clinton approved, very early…

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  • Autopsy Of A Disaster: The U.S. Sanctions Policy On Iraq

    For a shorter version of this timeline, click here. Myth: The Sanctions Will be Lifted When Iraq Complies with the U.N. Inspections April 3, 1991: U.N. Security Council passes Resolution 687 which states that upon “the completion by Iraq of all actions contemplated in” specific paragraphs of the resolution, “the prohibitions against financial transactions … shall have no further force or effect.” The paragraphs cited have to do with weapons inspections. Other paragraphs in the resolution have to do with “return of all Kuwaiti property seized by Iraq” and Iraqi liability for losses and damage resulting from Iraq’s occupation of…

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  • EPA Protesters: Years After BP Spill, Toxic Effects Continue

    “Address the problems posed by landfills in our communities. Hazardous wastes cannot be disposed of at landfills that were not designed to handle hazardous wastes. For example, oil and chemical dispersant-laden wastes from cleanup in the Gulf Coast were disposed of in many non-hazardous waste landfills. These landfills are located in and near communities, often…

  • Families Confront EPA’s Failure to Protect the Public

  • Membership to Vote on Railroad Strike; Role of Wall St.

    Mel Buer, contributor to The Real News Network, “It will ultimately be up to the union membership to decide if the deal negotiated by their leadership is satisfactory: the tentative agreement is to be sent back to members for review, with a vote later this month.”

  • Economists Find Roughly 500,000 U.S. Adults Out of Labor Force from Covid-19 Illnesses

    Economists Gopi Shah Goda and Evan Soltas estimate that roughly 500,000 U.S. adults are still out of the labor force due to past Covid-19 illnesses. 

  • Prominent Anti-Vaccine Doctor Under Indictment in Brazil

    Dr. Flávio Cadegiani, a founding member of a prominent anti-vaccine, pro-ivermectin doctors’ group called Frontline Covid-19 Critical Care Alliance (FLCCC), is under indictment in Brazil. 

  • Activists Exposing “Forever Chemicals” Confronting EPA

    One reason harmful chemical PFAS are manufactured in Brenda Hampton’s community is to make food packaging grease resistant for companies like McDonald’s. A chemical plant owned by a company called Daikin makes PFAS upriver from Lawrence County’s drinking water intake valve — and pollutes the water in the process.

  • Biden’s “Anti Hate” Agenda Perpetuates “Harmful Counterterrorism Framework” that “Furthered White Supremacy”

    On Thursday, President Biden is scheduled to give a talk at the “United We Stand” summit which he is hosting. But dozens of groups have just released a letter criticizing the Countering Violent Extremism program, writing that they are “deeply concerned that the United We Stand summit will continue or expand the harmful counterterrorism framework and initiatives that…

  • Military Victims of the Red Hill Water Crisis to Join Others at EPA Protests

    U.S. Army Major Amanda Feindt’s entire family has experienced adverse medical effects from fuel-tainted water. Now, she is involved with SAFE — Scientists, Activists, and Families for Cancer-Free Environments, which has announced a protest at EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 20. The demonstration will feature families, firefighters, and military members from around the…

  • Mississippi Water Crisis Highlights Infrastructure Needs Proposed in WATER Act

    Mary Grant, Water Program Director for Food & Water Watch, said today: “Congress must pass the WATER Act to fully fund our water and wastewater systems nationwide, and mitigate the burden on communities already struggling with unaffordable water bills. The federal government must restore its commitment to safe water and provide water justice to communities across…

  • Behind the Severe Drop in Life Expectancy in the U.S.

    The average life expectancy in the United States fell again in 2021, leading to what the New York Times called the “sharpest two-year decline in nearly 100 years”. Jim Kahn at Health Justice Monitor says that single payer would have made a “huge difference… What’s the role of health insurance? The [New York Times] doesn’t…

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