Midwest Airlines flies the Milwaukee Brewers on their planes through a “charter service” says the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, but the Brewers weren’t grounded like the over 100,000 other passengers who were booked on MD-80s.
Quality & Safety
Mattel Losing Money As Manufacturing Costs Rise
By 4.21.08
Sales of Barbie fell 12 percent in the U.S. as the 49-year- old doll faced competition from Hannah Montana and Ganz’s Webkinz. Mattel, which recalled more than 21 million Chinese-made products in 2007, expects Chinese manufacturing costs to rise further. The yuan has climbed 10 percent against the dollar over the past 12 months, and inflation in China is near an 11-year high.
Pilots Complain That Cash-Strapped Airlines Are Skimping On Fuel
By 4.19.08
What’s the surest way to save money on rising fuel prices? Don’t use it! MSNBC has gathered pilot complaints from a database NASA maintains for the FAA, and they show that airlines are challenging pilots’ refueling decisions, urging them to carry only the minimum fuel required by FAA regulations in…
The Crocs Fad Is Over?! Profits Down, Will Close 1 Factory
By 4.18.08
Like Zubaz pants before them, Crocs seem to be well on their way to assuming their rightful place of honor in the bad fad hall of fame as the company slashed its sales forecast and announced that it would be closing a plant in Quebec due to decreased traffic in its US stores.
USDA Accused Of Bullying Inspectors Who Reported Safety Violations
By 4.18.08
First the FAA makes their own inspectors cry in front of Congress and now the Associated Press says that the head of the federal inspectors’ union is alleging that the USDA told him to “drop the matter” when he reported food safety violations at slaughterhouses. When he refused, he was placed on “disciplinary investigative status.”
US Airways Pilot Who Fired Gun In Cockpit Will Himself Be Fired
By 4.18.08
The US Airways pilot who accidentally fired his weapon in the cockpit of a plane will be fired, says CNN. The pilot, Capt. James Langenhahn, 55, was not available for comment. He told investigators that he was stowing his weapon in preparation to land when the gun went off. The bullet pierced the jet’s fuselage but did not hit any crucial wiring or instrumentation, according to the TSA.
17th Fatality Sets Colorado Ski Slope Death Record
By 4.16.08
Safety is important, people. This year’s skiing season is going out on a sombre note as a new record was set for the most skiing or snowboarding deaths on Colorado ski slopes in a single season.
Canada May Become First Country To Classify BPA Toxic
By 4.16.08
Canada is about to become the first country to declare bisphenol-a (BPA)—used in baby bottles, drink containers, and as a liner in cans—a toxic chemical, reports the New York Times. An anonymous source has said that the work by Canada’s chemical review program to list BPA as a toxic chemical “was complete and was recently endorsed by a panel of outside scientists.” The announcement is expected any time between today and the end of May.
This Earthbound Farm Organic Salad Comes With A Free Dirty Glove
By 4.16.08
Reader Justin claims he discovered this gray glove in a package of Earthbound Farm organic salad. Salads, organic or otherwise, do not typically contain prizes, and Justin’s reaction (“I was mortified”) is understandable. The experience has scarred Justin’s psyche and he is left wondering, “How many times was I one package away from eating glove?” Additional picture inside.
Southwest Passengers Sue Over Missed Inspections
By 4.16.08
The AP is reporting that four Southwest passengers have filed a federal lawsuit alleging that Southwest broke its contract with passengers by skipping important safety inspections… over a period of six years.
Malt-O-Meal, Puffed Rice Cereal Recalled For Salmonella
By 4.14.08
The recalled products were distributed nationally under the Malt-O-Meal brand name as well as under private label brands including Acme, America’s Choice, Food Club, Giant, Hannaford, Jewel, Laura Lynn, Pathmark, Shaw’s, ShopRite, Tops and Weis Quality. The cereals have “Best If Used By” dates from April 8, 2008 (coded as “APR0808”) through March 18, 2009 (coded as “MAR1809”).
This Rodent Skull Does Not Belong In Nutty Cranberry Maple Granola
By 4.13.08
Sabrina bit into a rodent skull and cut her gums while eating a bowl of cereal. The 100% natural, premium gourmet nutty cranberry maple granola she was trying to enjoy was purchased at a Hannaford in Maine and manufactured by Bakery on Main. Aside from selling the rodent skull, both Hannaford and Bakery on Main are handling the situation well.
These Headlines Are Getting Repetitive: AA Cancels 570 More Flights
By 4.11.08
American Airlines has canceled 570 more flights today, upping their total number of cancelled flights (this week) to A BAZILLIONTY. (Ok, 3,000.)
American Cancels 933 More Flights, Raising Total To Over 2,500
By 4.10.08
The trouble continues at American Airlines! They’ve cancelled 933 more flights today. This raises the total number of flights canceled this week to 2,500, as the airline struggles to perform a backlog of neglected safety inspections on its MD-80 aircraft.
By 4.9.08
../../../..//2008/04/09/delta-has-canceled-a-few/
Delta has canceled a few flights on MD-80 aircraft. [Fox Business News]
Pre-Emption Doctrine Would Make FDA Responsible For All Drug Problems, Shield Big Pharma From Lawsuits
By 4.8.08
Johnson & Johnson is waiting to hear whether or not a judge in Ohio will allow any lawsuits over its Ortho birth control patch to move forward, and the New York Times says lawyers on both sides think there’s a good chance he may find in the company’s favor based on the doctrine of pre-emption. The argument goes that it’s the FDA’s responsibility to monitor the safety and labeling of drugs that go to market, and therefore if something goes wrong, it’s the agency’s fault and not the pharmaceutical company’s.
Drugs In The Water No Big Deal, Says NYC Official
By 4.8.08
In regards to a headline grabbing AP investigation that found the drinking water of major cities contained trace amounts of an array of pharmacopoeia, the deputy commissioner of New York City’s Department of Environmental Protection, “A person would have to drink one million glasses of water to get the dose of even one over-the-counter ibuprofen tablet or the caffeine in one cup of coffee…Even at eight glasses of water per day, this would take the average person over 300 years to consume.” So for those of you hoping to replace your medicine cabinet just by draining the Brita, sorry Charlie. However, there are no studies on the long-term effects to human of small exposure to a vast array of drugs, although, the Times notes, they have been shown to cause mutations in fish.
Apple's MagSafe Adapters Still Fraying, Melting, Sucking
By 4.4.08
Apple’s perpetually melting and fraying MagSafe adapters—apparently these things are made out of Styrofoam and rice paper—continue to cause trouble.
