Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Articles”
Several weeks ago, I received a phone call from legendary investigative reporter Seymour Hersh who had seen one of my recent storiesabout Syria and wanted to commiserate over the state of modern journalism. Hersh’s primary question regarding reporters and editors at major news outlets these days was: “Do they care what the facts are?” Hersh noted that in the past – …
Want to end the obsession with standardized testing? Opt your children out of the state tests. Ignore the threats from state and federal officials. The tests today have taken over too much of the school year. Teachers should prepare and give tests that cover what they taught. What if all students opted out of testing? That’s democracy in action. The elected officials …
Get off your duff: A new study finds that sitting less may extend your life. Brazilian researchers who analyzed data from 54 countries linked sitting for more than three hours a day to 3.8 percent of deaths from all causes. Limiting sitting time to less than three hours a day would increase a person’s life expectancy by an average of 0.2 years—or more than …
The Clintons’ high-profile interest in Haiti dates back almost all the way to their wedding in 1975. Shortly after their honeymoon in Acapulco, Bill and Hillary Clinton received an invitation from David Edwards — a friend and Citibank executive — to accompany him to Haiti. Edwards’s motivation in getting the Clintons closer to Haiti was neither cultural nor humanitarian. The …
Exposing tax dodgers is a worthy endeavor, but the “limited hangout” of the Panama Papers may have less noble ends, dovetailing with the War on Cash and the imminent threat of massive bail-ins of depositor funds. The bombshell publication of the “Panama Papers,” leaked from a Panama law firm specializing in shell companies, has triggered both outrage and skepticism. In …
People who are exposed to glyphosate herbicides in their work are more likely to suffer from an aggressive form of skin cancer called cutaneous melanoma, a new study shows. Over 80% of GM crops are engineered to tolerate being sprayed with glyphosate herbicides. Exposure to the fungicides mancozeb or maneb was also associated with a higher risk of this type of cancer. …
To a world raised on conventional foods and thinking, scientists and consumers alike have been touting the nutritional value and overall healthfulness of organics. And as a new study reveals more insight into the value of organics, those who before avoided the truth are once again forced to as the question: Is organic food really inherently healthier than conventionally grown? Yes. Here’s how. Higher Omega-3’s …
Orlando Letelier was an exiled former Chilean diplomat. He had served in the socialist government of Salvador Allende, who, in 1973, was overthrown in a US-backed coup. The notorious dictator Augusto Pinochet took over. Letelier was seized, tortured and imprisoned. He was released a year later as a result of international pressure. He was invited to Washington, DC where he …
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released its first-ever analysis on the effects of three common pesticides—chlorpyrifos, diazinon and malathion—on endangered and threatened species and designated critical habitat nationwide. The resounding conclusion? Pesticides are terrible for them. According to the report, malathion and chlorpyrifos harms an astounding 97 percent of the 1,782 animals and plants protected under the Endangered Species Act. Diazinon harms 79 percent. Malathion is often used on fruit, vegetables …
Why the current cultural fetish for zombies? In 2014’s Hooked, Nir Eyal ventures a guess: “Perhaps technology’s unstoppable progress—ever more pervasive and persuasive—has grabbed us in a fearful malaise at the thought of being involuntarily controlled.” We worry that we’ve become slaves to a tech-induced malady, argues Eyal, so we can relate to those ailing automatons on screen. Eyal may have a point. A recent study showed …
