Civil Rights v. National Security

So often in times of danger or fear, civil rights come into conflict with security interests.  We forego some civil rights – usually our rights to privacy, expression, or due process – because we think such sacrifice will make us safer.  Sometimes it can, sometimes it does.  And sometimes, dissenters will ask, “If not these


Wrongfully Convicted NY Brothers Released, Paid $17M

Today, the New York Daily News reported two wrongfully convicted brothers will be released from prison and paid $17 million for their trouble.  The settlement will be shared with a third brother, who died in captivity.  Unfortunately, the brothers will be unable to purchase lost time with their settlement.  Since the article is short, I’ve


Another GM Recall Lawsuit: California v. General Motors

Recently, the lawsuit “People of the State of California v. General Motors L.L.C., 14cv7787” was filed.  There, citizens of California are suing the General Motors car company over its mishandling of the ignition switch recall.  To be clear, the issue with the faulty ignition switches was that they would allow keys to slip and shut


Amazon Pushes Back Against Internet Sales Tax

In recent days, the online retail giant Amazon has pushed back against a potential new Vermont Internet sales tax, barring “Vermont residents and companies from earning money by referring customers to the Amazon website” (USA Today). USA Today also reported “Vermonters participating in the Amazon Associates program were notified by email Tuesday of their immediate


[Listen] Great Podcast on the GOP Plan for Obamacare

Click above to hear a great episode of one of my favorite programs, On Point with Tom Ashbrook, from WBUR in Boston. Here’s Tom Ashbrook’s teaser for the show: “The new GOP-led Congress has Obamacare in its sights — what’s ahead for American health care and the Affordable Care Act? The new Republican Congress, all sworn


Viagra and Melanoma: Further Discussion

Yesterday, I posted about the connection between Viagra and melanoma.  To recap, a few – but just a few – studies have shown that the risk for melanoma is about doubled by Viagra use, but because there aren’t too many such studies, it’s hard to say for sure what’s going on. Undeniably, there’s a correlation


Viagra Linked to Melanoma, Study Shows

This year, a team of medical researchers from Harvard Medical School published a study in JAMA that demonstrated men who used Viagra (sildenafil) were more than twice as likely to suffer melanoma as men who never used the drug. Here, we’ll discuss another article from Harvard University that raised concerns similar to those found in