UPDATE: The TSA said in a statement its agents did not require the woman to remove her diaper: [More]
Government Policy
Convicted Bank Fraudster Could Get 385-Year Sentence
By 6.24.11
Prosecutors in the case against Lee Farkas, who was convicted of leading a $2.9 billion scheme that wrecked Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corp., have asked the judge in the case to sentence Farkas to at least 50-years in prison, adding that the maximum sentence for his crime is 385 years. [More]
Georgia Program Replaces Migrant Farm Workers With Ex-Cons
By 6.24.11
Recent immigration crackdowns in Georgia have left the agricultural sector with a labor shortage. A big one. An unscientific poll puts the gap as high as 11,000 workers, but plants still have to be harvested. The governor responded to farmers’ complaints with a new program that puts people on probation to work in the fields at minimum wage, with bonuses for high production. This seems like an ideal match: probationers have a higher unemployment rate than the general population, and farmers need people in the fields. It turns out, though, that hard work, hot weather, low pay, and inexperienced workers don’t make for a very bountiful harvest. [More]
Food Blogger Jailed For Salty Restaurant Review
By 6.23.11
A food blogger in Taiwan has been sentenced to jail for 30 days and ordered to pay around $7,000 in damages after a judge ruled that her comments about the saltiness of a restaurant’s food were made without doing due diligence. [More]
House Committee Votes To Gut Safe Products Database
By 6.23.11
The Consumer Product Safety Commission’s public database, SaferProducts.gov, which allows people to report unsafe products and search recalls and safety reports, has only been around since March. And already the House Appropriations Committee has moved to cut funding for the project. [More]
Dole Recalls Some Bag Salads Because Listeria Isn't Part Of The "Italian Blend"
By 6.23.11
The folks at Dole have announced a recall of certain batches of its Italian Blend bag salads — including those it makes under the Kroger Fresh Selections Italian Style Blend name for the Kroger grocery store chain — over concern of possible Listeria contamination. [More]
Report: FTC Ready To Serve Subpoenas In Google Antitrust Probe
By 6.23.11
More than two months after it was first reported that the Federal Trade Commission was thinking about launching an investigation into antitrust concerns surrounding Google, it looks like the FTC might be ready to start probing in earnest by issuing formal demands for information from the search engine behemoth. [More]
Supreme Court: Data Mining Of Prescription Drug Records Is Free Speech
By 6.23.11
In 2007, the state of Vermont passed a law forbidding the data mining of prescription drug records (i.e., which drugs are being prescribed and how frequently) for marketing purposes. But earlier today, the Supreme Court ruled that the Vermont law interferes with drug makers’ right to free speech. [More]
Facebook-Suing Twins Stop Legal Battle Short Of Supreme Court
By 6.23.11
After years in court, the determined twin Harvard classmates of Facebook CEO/president Mark Zuckerberg who claim he stole their idea for Facebook have finally given up their legal challenge to their $65 million 2008 settlement. [More]
You Can Carry-On More Than 3oz Of Contact Solution
By 6.22.11
If you don’t have time to buy a travel-sized version instead of your mondo bottle of saline solution before the next time you fly, don’t sweat it. It’s totally cool to fly with more than 3oz of contact solution, as it is covered under the TSA “liquid medication” provision. [More]
TSA Modifies Screening Of Young Children
By 6.22.11
After incidents like this pat-down of an infant at a Kansas City airport landed the Transportation Security Administration in a public relations mess, the head of the agency said this morning that TSA has changed its policies regarding the screening of small children. [More]
Rutgers Becomes Latest School To Sell Football Stadium Naming Rights
By 6.22.11
In contrast to the ubiquity of corporate-named stadiums in the NFL, the vast majority of college football stadiums have stuck with their traditional names. The dominoes may be starting to fall, though, after Rutgers sold the Rutgers Stadium naming rights to High Point Solutions for a reported $6.5 million over 10 years. [More]
Staples Canada Accused Of Selling Computers With Old User Data On Hard Drive
By 6.21.11
Staples stores in Canada have some explaining to do after a government audit found evidence that the office supply chain was violating Canadian privacy law by selling used computers and storage drives that still contained data belonging to the previous owner. [More]
Study: California Spends $308 Million Per Execution
By 6.21.11
A study by a California judge and his law clerk, a law professor suggests that the state should do away with the death penalty in order to save money. The state has spent $4 billion on capital punishment since 1978, but has only executed 13 convicts in that span. And costs are projected to increase to $9 billion by 2030. [More]
Federal Judge: Republishing Full Story Without Permission Was OK
By 6.21.11
According to a ruling by a federal judge, a man was legally protected when he copied and pasted an entire Las Vegas Review-Journal article, including a headline, onto another site. The judge said the man wouldn’t have to pay a Copyright Act fine because the newspaper couldn’t prove that the article’s re-posting reduced the amount of readers who would read the original article. [More]
FDA Unveils New Tobacco Warning Labels For Teens To Laugh At While They Smoke
By 6.21.11
Last fall, the Food & Drug Administration announced they would be requiring tobacco packaging to carry larger and more graphic warning labels. And because our governmental agencies move like quicksilver, it only took about seven months for the FDA to finalize the nine images that will soon decorate your pack of Kools. [More]
FCC Chair: 15 To 20 Million Americans Are Seeing Mystery Fees On Landline Bills
By 6.20.11
Eight months after the FCC settled with Verizon Wireless for $25 million over mystery charges on cell phone bills, the Commission’s Chairman Julius Genachowski says he’s ready to take on the bigger problem of so-called “cramming” on landline bills. [More]
Porsche 911s Recalled For Wheel Hubs Wearing Down
By 6.20.11
For want of a nail, a kingdom was lost. And for want of durable wheel hubs, high-powered Porsche 911s were recalled because the could lead to a compromised wheel-retention system and a crash. [More]
