The U.S. Senate approved spending $4.6 billion for civil settlements with black farmers who alleged racial discrimination by government lenders and with 300,000 American Indians who say they have been cheated out of land royalties dating back to 1887.
Passage of the measure by voice vote today unblocks a legislative logjam that has thwarted payouts of $1.15 billion to black farmers and $3.4 billion to American Indians. The two settlements were negotiated by the Obama administration.
Senate Votes to Fund Indian, Black Farmer Settlements
London Mayor Boris Johnson: Bush Could Be Arrested For Torture
Boris Johnson is a total Tory and an old friend from college days. In a piece in the conservative Daily Telegraph, he advises George W. Bush not to bring his book tour to Britain, because he could face arrest as a war criminal:
“Waterboarding” is a disgusting practice by which the victim is deliberately made to think that he is drowning. It is not some cunning new psych-ops technique conceived by the CIA. It has been used in the dungeons of dictators for centuries.
Darvon, Darvocet painkillers pulled from the U.S. market
The maker of Darvon and Darvocet announced Friday that it will stop marketing the widely used painkillers in the U.S. because of a new study linking the active ingredient in the drugs to serious and sometimes fatal heart rhythm abnormalities.
Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Newport, Ky., agreed to the ban at the request of the Food and Drug Administration, which also asked makers of generic versions of the drugs' core compound, known as propoxyphene, to stop selling it in the U.S.
Over 95 Percent of 9/11 Workers Approve Settlement
More than 95 percent of the workers who sued New York City and its contractors over health damages suffered in the 9/11 rescue and recovery effort have approved a negotiated settlement of their claims, clearing the way for payouts of at least $625 million, lawyers said Friday.
Plaintiffs had faced a deadline of Tuesday night for accepting or rejecting the settlement, with a 95 approval rate required for the accord to take effect. In responses relayed on Friday to the federal judge overseeing the litigation, they narrowly cleared the threshold: 95.1 percent , or 10,043 of the 10,563 workers, accepted the settlement’s terms.
Canadians vote against fluoridated water supplies
Campaigners against fluoride believe that adding fluoride to the water supply is tantamount to poisoning and are lobbying for fluoridation to be stopped all over Canada. Opponents of fluoride claim the chemical is illegal, unnecessary and dangerous; campaigners believe fluoride contributes to health conditions, including increased risk of cancer, thyroid disease and arthritis.
Republican Cantor recants on Israel
"I'm with you, not my president," Eric Cantor told Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.
Soon-to-be House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) is desperately trying to explain away the promise he made to Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu last Wednesday.
Cantor huddled with Netanyahu just prior to the Prime Minister's meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
'Stop touching me!' Fury as airport security staff are caught on camera searching a crying three-year-old girl
The national outcry over intrusive body searches at American airports intensified today after it emerged security staff were caught on camera frisking a crying three-year-old girl.
Mandy Simon is seen sobbing and pleading with staff at Chattanooga, Tennessee airport.
She had become upset after having to have her teddy bear put through an X-ray machine and can be heard screaming: 'Stop touching me!'
Airport X-ray scanner is just as likely to kill you as a terrorist bomb
The controversial machines have been brought in at major airports across the globe, including the UK, leading to fears that the increased exposure to harmful radiation may cause cancer.
Now a US physics professor has added to the debate by claiming that the scanners are redundant because you are just as likely to contract cancer from the radiation as you are to die in a terrorist bomb on your flight.
12 Facts That Will Blow Your Mind – Federal Employees And Members Of Congress Are Getting Rich While Those Of Us Who Pay Their Salaries Suffer
Do you remember the days when getting elected to Congress or choosing to work for the government was referred to as "public service"? The idea was that you would be making a sacrifice for the greater good of the country. Well, those days are long gone. Today, getting elected to Congress or working for the federal government is a good way to get rich. Median household income in the United States fell from $51,726 in 2008 to $50,221 in 2009, and yet the personal wealth of members of Congress and the salaries of federal workers (especially at the higher levels) continue to explode. A lot of corrupt politicians and federal fat cats are raking in stunning amounts of cash, and we are the ones paying the bill. There is certainly nothing wrong with making a lot of money, but does it seem right that so many of our "public servants" are getting filthy rich while so many of the rest of us are barely getting by?
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