Transplanting Taxes from Corporations to the Rest of Us | Common Dreams

Transplanting Taxes from Corporations to the Rest of Us | Common Dreams
"Today, corporate profits are setting all-time records while middle class families continue to struggle financially. These trends are intertwined."

Ken Cuccinelli’s Legal Appeal And How He Helped Undermine Virginia’s Protections Against Adult Sex With Minors

Ken Cuccinelli’s Legal Appeal And How He Helped Undermine Virginia’s Protections Against Adult Sex With Minors: Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II (R) filed an appeal last week after a federal appeals court struck down Virginia’s sodomy law as unconstitutional. Virginia prosecutors had charged a 47-year-old man with soliciting oral sex from a 17-year-old girl — a felony under the disputed law. But whether or not Cuccinelli’s appeal succeeds, his vote [...]/p

Foodopoly: The Battle Over the Future of Food and Farming in America from Monsanto to Wal-Mart

Monsanto Cashes in on Ongoing Drought | Common Dreams

Monsanto Cashes in on Ongoing Drought | Common Dreams
"As ongoing drought continues to rampage through America's heartland, genetically modified seed giant Monsanto is cashing in."

News Corp. Outlets Fail to Disclose Big Oil Ties of Their Commentators | Alternet

News Corp. Outlets Fail to Disclose Big Oil Ties of Their Commentators | Alternet
"News Corp. properties Fox News and The Wall Street Journal failed to disclose the fossil fuel industry ties of commentators who used the media outlets to advocate pro-fossil fuel industry positions."

Think Your Bank Deposits Will Always Be 100 Percent Guaranteed by the FDIC? Think Again.

Think Your Bank Deposits Will Always Be 100 Percent Guaranteed by the FDIC? Think Again.
"Bottom line

This proves three things, I think:

1. Major governments exist, in part, to make sure no banker takes a loss anywhere in the world, regardless of risky behavior on the part of the banks. The world and its governments serve the bankers.
2. The next banking crisis is anticipated to dwarf the last one, and the Bigs have been making plans to bail it out with depositor funds, not taxpayer funds. Cyprus is just the first implementation.
3. Loss of deposit insurance is coming to the U.S."

The Real Victims Of The Sequester

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STUDY: States With Loose Gun Laws Have Higher Rates Of Gun Violence

STUDY: States With Loose Gun Laws Have Higher Rates Of Gun Violence: The National Rifle Association (NRA) and its allies in Congress frequently claim that gun violence is highest in places with the toughest crime laws. But a new study from the Center for American Progress (CAP) suggests something closer to the opposite is true — the states with laxer gun laws tend to be the ones [...]/p

Surprise! A New Set Of Scandals Rock The Political World

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Nuclear Waste Site at Risk of Hydrogen Explosion, Report Warns | Common Dreams

Nuclear Waste Site at Risk of Hydrogen Explosion, Report Warns | Common Dreams
"Tanks at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, which sits on the Columbia River in Benton County, Washington face dangerous risk of hydrogen build up which could trigger an explosion of radioactive materials, a nuclear safety board announced on Monday."

If Election Were Held Today, Democrats Would Win House In A Landslide — And Only Win A 5 Seat Majority

If Election Were Held Today, Democrats Would Win House In A Landslide — And Only Win A 5 Seat Majority: According to a Quinnipiac poll released today, if the election were held today 43 percent of the electorate would support a Democratic U.S. House candidate, as opposed to just 35 percent who would back a Republican. That 8 point lead for Democrats is significantly more than the GOP’s margin of victory during the 2010 Republican [...]/p

STUDY: An Increasing Number Of Patients At Isolated Rural Hospitals Are Dying

STUDY: An Increasing Number Of Patients At Isolated Rural Hospitals Are Dying: Critical access hospitals (CAHs) are medical providers located in America’s most isolated regions, serving rural communities that do not otherwise have easily-available access to care. Since the closest alternatives to these hospitals are usually over 35 miles away, they provide an essential resource for Americans living in secluded communities — and therefore receive enhanced funding [...]/p

Pipeline Ruptures In Mayflower, Ark. Sending Crude Oil Everywhere

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How Little We Know About Heavy Tar Sands Oil | The Nation

How Little We Know About Heavy Tar Sands Oil | The Nation
"When the Exxon Pegasus pipeline ruptured Friday in Mayflower, Arkansas, tens of thousands of gallons of diluted bitumen were sent forth into a residential neighborhood, and 22 homes had to be evacuated."

How the Financial Plutocracy Tugs the Leash on the Two-Party Duopoly

How the Financial Plutocracy Tugs the Leash on the Two-Party Duopoly
"The Payoff: Why Wall Street Always Wins explains why fighting financial malfeasance and greed is like betting against a gambling casino where the dealers play with marked cards."

Exxon's Arkansas Tar Sands Spill: The Tar Sands Name Game | Common Dreams

Exxon's Arkansas Tar Sands Spill: The Tar Sands Name Game | Common Dreams
"As the American public becomes acquainted with images of tar sands flowing across lawns, driveways and streets of an Arkansas suburb near Little Rock (for video of the spill go here), Exxon is now making the claim that the crude spilled from its ruptured Pegasus pipeline isn’t technically tar sands. This attempt is reminiscent of the knots that Enbridge tied itself into to deny that the million gallons of tar sands it spilled into the Kalamazoo River weren’t actually tar sands."

Has The Rate Of Sea Level Rise Tripled Since 2011?

Has The Rate Of Sea Level Rise Tripled Since 2011?: You may recall a couple years ago the climate disinformers trumpeted the (very) short-term slowdown in sea level rise. We can hardly wait for their posts on the recent speed up — JR. Figure 1: Mean sea level (in centimetres) since 1993 obtained by satellite altimetry observations. Annual and semi-annual signals have been removed to [...]/p

Exxon Off The Hook For Paying Into Cleanup Fund. Guess Why.

Exxon Off The Hook For Paying Into Cleanup Fund. Guess Why.
"Isn't this just perfect: Exxon won't have to pay into the cleanup fund for their pipeline spill -- because under the regulations, tar sands crude isn't classified as oil! And of course, the same regulation applies to the Keystone XL pipeline, too."

Lawrence O’Donnell to Asa Hutchinson: Can you call your NRA study independent?

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Eleven North Carolina Republicans Sponsor Resolution Saying Their State Can Ignore The Constitution

Eleven North Carolina Republicans Sponsor Resolution Saying Their State Can Ignore The Constitution: The Constitution “does not grant the federal government and does not grant the federal courts the power to determine what is or is not constitutional” according to a resolution sponsored by North Carolina House Majority Leader Edgar Starnes (R) and ten of his fellow Republicans — a statement that puts them at odds with over [...]/p

OK Tea Partier Threatens State Lawmaker For Stalling Bill Promoting U.N. Conspiracy Theories

OK Tea Partier Threatens State Lawmaker For Stalling Bill Promoting U.N. Conspiracy Theories: An Oklahoma Tea Party group is under investigation following a warning to a State Senator that he had to bring a conspiracy-theory laden piece of legislation to the floor — or else. At issue is paranoia-induced anti-U.N. House Bill 1412 and its current status languishing in the Senate’s Energy Committee, much to the chagrin of [...]/p

Wake Up!: Campaign Aims to End Evening News' Prime Time 'Climate Silence' | Common Dreams

Wake Up!: Campaign Aims to End Evening News' Prime Time 'Climate Silence' | Common Dreams
"Major TV stations including ABC, NBC and CBS need to "connect the dots between climate change and extreme weather" and provide far more climate change coverage during their evening newscasts, a coalition of environmental and media groups urged with the release of a new petition campaign Tuesday"

NYPD Commissioner Wanted Stop-And-Frisks To ‘Instill Fear’ In Young Minority Men, State Senator Testifies

NYPD Commissioner Wanted Stop-And-Frisks To ‘Instill Fear’ In Young Minority Men, State Senator Testifies: During a 2010 meeting, New York Police Department Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the city’s aggressive stop-and-frisk policy targeted so many young black and Latino men because “he wanted to instill fear in them, every time they leave their home they could be stopped by the police,” according to testimony by State Senator Eric Adams (D). [...]/p

PERRspectives: GOP Fights to Keep Texas Health Care Among Nation's Worst

PERRspectives: GOP Fights to Keep Texas Health Care Among Nation's Worst
"As it turns out, Texas is a role model only in the sense of being a horrible example to be avoided at all costs. As the numbers show, by almost every objective measure the Texas health care system ranks among the very worst in the nation."

Arkansas oil pipeline rupture foreshadows devastating environmental impact

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Exxon’s Duck-Killing Pipeline Doesn’t Pay Taxes To Oil Spill Cleanup Fund

Exxon’s Duck-Killing Pipeline Doesn’t Pay Taxes To Oil Spill Cleanup Fund: A technicality has spared Exxon from having to pay any money into the fund that will be covering most of the clean up costs of its Arkansas pipeline spill. The cleanup efforts themselves took a sobering turn as crews found injured and dead ducks covered in oil. The environmental impacts of an oil spill in central [...]/p

Busted! Unbelievable Plot to Rig New York's Mayoral Contest Revealed | Alternet

Busted! Unbelievable Plot to Rig New York's Mayoral Contest Revealed | Alternet
"The Federal Bureau of Investigation has arrested half a dozen New York City and state officials over bribery charges.

Among the arrestees was State Senator Malcolm Smith, who is charged with illegally trying to get on the New York City mayoral ballot. Others arrested included City Councilman Dan Halloran, a Republican who allegedly received cash from Smith in exchange for setting up meetings with GOP officials with Smith. Smith, a Democrat who had recently joined forces with the GOP, wanted the meetings so he could bribe the officials to get on the ballot despite his party registration."

Two-Thirds Of Louisianans Oppose Gov. Jindal’s Plan To Cut Taxes For The Rich, Raise Them On The Poor

Two-Thirds Of Louisianans Oppose Gov. Jindal’s Plan To Cut Taxes For The Rich, Raise Them On The Poor: Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) is among the Republican governors pushing an overhaul of his state’s tax code that would abolish the state income tax and replace it instead with increased sales taxes. Such plans are inherently regressive, and Jindal’s is no exception: one analysis found that it would raise taxes on 80 percent of [...]/p

From Growing Profit to Growing Food: Challenging Corporate Rule | Common Dreams

From Growing Profit to Growing Food: Challenging Corporate Rule | Common Dreams
"The global movement for food justice and food sovereignty seeks to bust the corporate takeover of our food system, which has been accomplished with the complicity of our governments."

Epic Voting Lines Will Live On In Virginia

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Fukushima Meltdown Driving Increased Abnormalities Among US Infants | Common Dreams

Fukushima Meltdown Driving Increased Abnormalities Among US Infants | Common Dreams
"Infants on the West Coast of the United States are showing increased incidents of thyroid abnormalities, which researchers are attributing to radiation released following the March 2011 meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant."

The Christian Right Is Panicking Because They Know They Are Losing | Alternet

The Christian Right Is Panicking Because They Know They Are Losing | Alternet
"They know the tide of public opinion has turned against them on gay marriage."

Texas Republicans Stand United Against Providing Low-Income People With Health Care

Texas Republicans Stand United Against Providing Low-Income People With Health Care: Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) and the state’s two Republican senators, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, joined forces at the state capitol on Monday afternoon to reiterate their opposition to expanding the Medicaid program under Obamacare. Despite the fact that Texas could add about 1.5 million low-income people to its Medicaid rolls if lawmakers opted [...]/p

Democratic Senator Touts Bill To Allow Patients Involuntarily Committed For Mental Illness To Purchase Guns

Democratic Senator Touts Bill To Allow Patients Involuntarily Committed For Mental Illness To Purchase Guns: Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR) hinted on Tuesday that he would oppose a Democratic initiative to expand background checks to all gun purchases, but reiterated his support for an NRA-backed measure that would permit individuals deemed mentally ill or incompetent to purchase firearms more freely. Pryor is part of small group of Democrats in red states [...]/p

Is the GOP Marriage of Convenience Between Bible Thumpers and the Filthy Rich Falling Apart? | Alternet

Is the GOP Marriage of Convenience Between Bible Thumpers and the Filthy Rich Falling Apart? | Alternet
"The Gordon Geckos don't care for the Bible Thumbers, the Bible Thumpers don't care for the Gordon Geckos. The knives are out."

Kansas Republicans Mock Rape Exceptions For Abortion Restrictions As ‘Little Gotcha Amendments’

Kansas Republicans Mock Rape Exceptions For Abortion Restrictions As ‘Little Gotcha Amendments’: The Kansas legislature is advancing an omnibus abortion bill that would, among other things, define life as beginning at conception in the state constitution and place unnecessary restrictions on abortion providers in the state. HB 2253 has already passed the House, and looks poised to gain enough support to sail through the Senate — but [...]/p

House GOP Budget Cuts To Food Assistance Would Cost America 340,000 Jobs

House GOP Budget Cuts To Food Assistance Would Cost America 340,000 Jobs: The House Republican budget unveiled last month converts the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps, into a federal block grant to the states, costing the program $125 billion in funding over the next decade. It also cuts an additional $10 billion from the program after the transition is completed. Such reform [...]/p

Alaska Lawmaker Tells Exxon Valdez Spill Not Its Fault As State Considers Giving Oil Industry Huge Tax Cut

Alaska Lawmaker Tells Exxon Valdez Spill Not Its Fault As State Considers Giving Oil Industry Huge Tax Cut: Alaska is set to give oil companies, including ExxonMobil, a massive tax cut. The bill, which passed the Senate 11-9 and is endorsed by Republican Gov. Sean Parnell, is being debated by the House of Representatives. The plan raises the base tax rate that companies pay no matter the price of oil, and also gives [...]/p

The Methane Beneath Our Feet | Common Dreams

The Methane Beneath Our Feet | Common Dreams
"Insouciant New Yorkers—here is another pending disaster to shrug off with characteristic brio! There is a huge, ongoing gas leak beneath your very feet. A team of natural gas experts recently commissioned to survey the New York system has found vastly elevated levels of methane in locations all over Manhattan, a clear indication that Con Ed’s 4,320-mile network of pipes, dating back to the 1800s, is corroded, full of holes, and spewing methane into the atmosphere. The main danger here is to planetary, not personal, safety: though it has received relatively little attention, methane, the primary component of natural gas, is second only to carbon dioxide on the list of greenhouse gases that are inducing climate change."

Memo To GOP: It’s Hard to Love Diversity When You Don’t Live It

Memo To GOP: It’s Hard to Love Diversity When You Don’t Live It: Republicans are having a wee bit of trouble reinventing themselves as a minority-friendly party.  One reason is that prominent Republicans keep doing and saying things that don’t seem, well, very friendly.  Consider the recent remarks of Republican Congressman Don Young from Alaska: My father had a ranch. We used to hire 50 to 60 wetbacks [...]/p

No, American Corporations Aren’t Paying The World’s Highest Tax Rate

No, American Corporations Aren’t Paying The World’s Highest Tax Rate: Japan lowered its corporate tax rate one year ago this week, leaving the United States with the highest statutory corporate tax rate in the world. And as Washington turns its focus to corporate tax reform, groups of corporations aren’t letting lawmakers forget the anniversary. The RATE Coalition, a group of corporations advocating for lower tax [...]/p

Democracy vs. Dollarocracy

8 Ways the Prophets of Capitalist Greed Justify Their Success and Your Slide Toward Poverty | Alternet

8 Ways the Prophets of Capitalist Greed Justify Their Success and Your Slide Toward Poverty | Alternet
"many of those responsible have been hypocritical, portraying themselves as advocates of freedom and prosperity while the greater part of America slides toward poverty."

PERRspectives: A Week in the Life of the One Percent

PERRspectives: A Week in the Life of the One Percent
"Judging by the 2012 election result, the one percent is not winning the hearts and minds of the American people. But as a quick glance at the headlines will confirm, the hearts and minds of the American media are a different story."