Tag: New York Times

Just as Hurricane Katrina revealed racial inequalities, the recovery has also been shaped by systemic racism. According to a recent survey of New Orleanians by the Kaiser Foundation, 42 percent of African Americans – versus just 16 percent of whites – said they still have not recovered from Katrina. Thirty-one percent of African-American residents – versus 8 percent of white respondents – said they had trouble paying for food or housing in the last year.

1) Lennar paid federal lobbyists $240,000 to win them a $320 million cash bailout characterized as a retroactive tax refund. 2) In the accounting for its fourth quarter report, announced on Jan. 7, 2010, Lennar used $284.9 million of the $320 million to offset its quarter losses. 3) Lennar then reported the remaining $35.6 million as profit, earned income. 4) Taxpayers, yet again, footed the bill.

Although much of prison health care is inadequate, many of its youthful captives can at least squeak by on what’s presently provided. Not so for those over 50 years of age, most of whom are beset by the common old age infirmities. The smartest and quickest way to begin reducing prison health care costs and prison overcrowding is to release aged and infirmed Lifers and those serving Life Without Parole (LWOPs).

The most current BLS fatality data, for 2006, shows risks similar to what was found for 1997: the lethal risk of police work is closer to the risk of the average worker than it is to the high risk work of roofers or farmers. Risk for taxi drivers and construction laborers have now decreased to be closer to that of police, who are still ranked at No. 14. Police fatality risk is well below that of refuse workers.

The New York Times piece, "Rwanda Stirs Deadly Brew of Trouble in the Congo," laid the foundation for a more honest dialogue about the resource war in the Congo, which has resulted in dying and suffering of holocaust proportions.