House approves credit card protections by John Poirier The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted on Thursday in favor of legislation to protect credit card users from hidden fees, sudden interest rate hikes and questionable billing practices.The chamber voted 357 to 70 in support of the Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights, sponsored by New York Democrat Carolyn Maloney. This year, 107 Republicans voted in favor of the bill, compared with 84 Republicans voting for a similar bill last year.
Flu, Mostly Mild, Has Spread Across U.S., Officials Say by Denise Grady Swine flu has become widespread in the United States, with 226 cases in 30 states and more expected to turn up in additional states in the next few days, federal health officials said Sunday.“I think it’s circulating all over the U.S.,” Dr. Anne Schuchat, the interim deputy director for science and public health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in a news conference. “The virus has arrived, I would say, in most of the country now.”
Enough With the 100 Days Already by Frank Rich BELIEVE it or not, there are Americans who have a “very negative” opinion of Barack Obama (13 percent, in the Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll). Some are even angry at him (10 percent, New York Times/CBS News). As the First 100 Days hoopla started to jump the shark last week, I tried, as an experiment in empathy, to see the world through their eyes.
How Character Corrodes by Maureen Dowd How quaint.The Republicans are concerned about checks and balances.The specter of Specter helping the president have his way with Congress has actually made conservatives remember why they respected the Constitution in the first place. Senator Mitch McConnell, the leader of the shrinking Republican minority, fretted that there was a “threat to the country” and wondered if people would want the majority to rule “without a check or a balance.”
Bernie Madoff by Michael Moore Elie Wiesel called him a "God." His investors called him a "genius." But, proving correct that old adage from the country and western song, you never really know what goes on behind closed doors.Bernie Madoff, for at least 20 years, ran a Ponzi scheme on thousands of clients, among them the people you and I would consider the best and brightest. Business leaders, celebrities, charities, even some of his own relatives and his defense attorney were taken for a ride (this has to be the first time a lawyer was hosed by the client).
Aporkalypse Now—Finding the Real Swine in the Pandemic Pandemonium by Lucinda Marsall For the last eight years, there has been no shortage of things to worry about-- Bin Laden, Al Queda, Saddam Hussein, Anthrax, Bird Flu, Katrina, sub-prime mortgages, health care costs, gas pump prices, unemployment, stock price plunges and now we have H1N1, the non-Kosher virus formerly known as Swine Flu.
UAE 'Torture' Scandal and Cover-up Sparks Outrage in the US by Glenn Greenwald As more videotapes emerge documenting the torture inflicted on numerous victims by Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, a prince of the United Arab Emirates, the controversy is beginning to jeopardize the UAE's relationship with the United States, a country that absolutely loathes torture and demands real accountability for those who do it:
Russia to Build Floating Arctic Nuclear Stations by John Vidal Environmentalists fear pollution risk as firms try to exploit ocean's untapped oil and gas reservesRussia is planning a fleet of floating and submersible nuclear power stations to exploit Arctic oil and gas reserves, causing widespread alarm among environmentalists.
Advisor: ‘US Needs to Call off Drone Strikes in Pak’ by Asia News International Lahore - The top adviser to the US army chief in Afghanistan, David Kilcullen, has observed that the US drone strikes in Pakistan are creating more enemies than eliminating them, and hence, needed to be "called off."Responding to a congressman on what the US government should do in Pakistan, he said: "We need to call off the drones."
Dropping the AIPAC Spying Case by Gary Leupp On August 4, 2005 American Israel Political Affairs Committee (AIPAC) operatives Steven J. Rosen and Keith Weissman were arrested on charges relating to espionage on behalf of Israel.This had a lot to do with Iran. It followed the arrest in May 2004 of Larry Franklin, the Pentagon's top Iran analyst by the FBI after he had been caught turning over secret documents (including ones pertaining to Iran) to Israeli Embassy staffers including Mossad Station Chief Naor Gilon.
The Great Bank Robbery of 2009 by Brent Budowsky This week America witnessed Black Thursday for workers and families as the Senate defeated a bankruptcy bill that would have protected distressed homeowners and the House passed a bill that encourages and guarantees banks will continue abuses the bill pretends to remedy for a full year.
Condi Channels Nixon: If the President Says So, It's Not Illegal by Marjorie Cohn Condi was extremely uncomfortable, defensive and nervous. She was rude to the first student, interrupted him and yelled at him.When asked by another student about a recent report that she authorized waterboarding, Condi said, "I didn't authorize anything. I conveyed the authorization of the administration to the agency [CIA] that they had policy authorization subject to the Justice Department's clearance."
Pakistan has world's attention now by Eric Margolis PARIS -- The Taliban are coming! The Taliban are coming!French troops in Afghanistan were just rocketed by Taliban.Last week, a bunch of lightly-armed Pashtun tribesmen rode down from the Malakand region on motorbikes and in pickup trucks and briefly swaggered around Buner, only 100 km from Pakistan's capital, Islamabad.
Banksters on the War Path: How Wall Street Is Fighting Back and Winning Their Fight for the Status Quo by Danny Schechter Dick Durbin knows his way around the Senate. He's been there a long time, long enough to know how things really work. Over the years, the man from Illinois has come to realize that it's not the elected officials who are in charge. Last week, he said it was the bankers "who run the place" acknowledging that Senators may be in office, but not necessarily in power.
Workers Always Lose, Even in Rescue Operations by Dave Lindorff What's wrong with this picture: Four groups invest in a company. One group puts in a 55% investment, a second puts in a 20-35% investment, a third puts in an 8% investment and a fourth goes in for 2%. The group putting in the 20-35% stake gets three seats on the company's nine-member board of directors, which will be appointing the new company's management team. The group investing 8% gets four board members, and the group investing 2% gets 1 seat. Finally, the group that will hold the majority stake in the company, 55% of the shares, gets...the one remaining seat on the board.
Jay Severin's Insanely Racist Rant by Cenk Uygur I am not quick to call something racist. In fact, I wrote an editorial pleading with everyone not to call the NY Post chimp cartoon racist. I went on MSNBC and defended that position. I'm afraid calling someone racist often times shuts off dialogue and should be reserved for only the clearest and worst cases. I also defended Don Imus and insisted he should not be fired for his comments.
