Retirees Tighten The Belt, But Still Struggle

February 14, 2012

MSNBC

By John Schoen

As the rebound in the U.S. economy helps boost income and spending among working-aged households, older Americans relying on retirement income are having a hard time paying the bills.

Despite steady belt-tightening as they age, retirees’ incomes just aren’t keeping up, according to a review of the latest data by the Employee Benefits Research Institute. On average, retired households spend about 80 percent of what working households spend, but their earnings are only 57 percent of what working households take home.

Not surprisingly, retired Americans spend a rising portion of their income on medical expenses as they get older. Health care cost consume roughly 13 percent of spending by those 65 and older — more than double the 5.3 percent of spending for those 45 to 54 and just 4.0 percent for those under 25, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That rises to about 20 percent of total spending for those ages 85 and over, according to the EBRI.

With government health care spending soaring, Congress is wrestling with various proposals to contain costs. That doesn’t bode well for retirees who already face higher health care bills than younger households.

Click here for the full report from MSNBC

Laura Richardson’s Ethics Woes Mount

February 14, 2012

Politico

By Jonathan Allen and John Bresnahan

Democratic Rep. Laura Richardson instructed taxpayer-funded House aides to work on political redistricting last year, sources familiar with the situation told POLITICO.

Such activities could amount to a violation of prohibitions against lawmakers pressuring aides to do political work, as well as rules against using official resources, including staff, for campaign purposes.

The redistricting work, which has not previously been disclosed, allegedly occurred after it became clear Richardson was under investigation over another set of allegations that she forced House aides to perform political and personal tasks in violation of House rules. Richardson did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

Sources told POLITICO that Richardson’s congressional aides collected information about communities outside her district, organized a workshop to train constituents in advance of a public meeting of California’s independent redistricting commission, and wrote talking points for those constituents to deliver during the public-comments portion of the meeting at Long Beach City Hall in April 2011.

The redistricting work was done at Richardson’s direction — rather than on a voluntary basis — these sources said.

A spokesman for the Ethics Committee declined to comment on the Richardson case, but several sources indicated that investigators have expanded the probe and are now looking into the redistricting angle.

Social Security Is Failing Even Faster Than We Thought

February 14, 2012

Daily Finance

By Chuck Saletta

In last year’s Trustees Report, the Social Security Administration warned that the program’s trust fund was likely run out of money in 2036, leading to deep cuts in benefits. If that weren’t bad enough for anyone expecting to be alive then, a more recent projection from the Congressional Budget Office paints a much worse picture.

This year’s CBO report forecasts that by the end of this decade, the combined Social Security Old Age and Disability Trust Funds will be about $800 billion smaller than last year’s SSA projections. That’s a very substantial drop — and a sign that this year’s Trustees Report will likely bring another downward revision to the year it expects those Trust Funds to dry up and benefits to be cut.

Dolphins Stranded On Cape; Unexplained Phenomenon

February 14, 2012

Boston.com

By Colin A. Young

At least 11 more dolphins have stranded themselves on the shores of Cape Cod this morning as the mass strandings enter the second month. The International Fund for Animal Welfare said at least one of the 11 had died.

The animal welfare group said the dolphins were found in an area commonly known as “the gut,” a muddy area near the Herring River in Wellfleet.

“The team is out there now with 10 live dolphins,” the group’s spokesman Michael Booth said. “It could take quite awhile; it’s a treacherous location with lots of mud. The team is trying to pull them out of the mud and bring them to our rescue trailers.”

Click here for the full report from Boston.com

Food Recalls Sharply Increase, But You Pay Less Attention

February 14, 2012

eMaxHealth

By Armen Hareyan

The sharp increase in food recalls is a serious source of concern, but the consumer is paying less attention for several reasons.

Food recalls across the nation increased 50 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 and affected over 80 percent more units compared with the previous three-month period, according to the quarterly ExpertRECALL Index, released today. Conversely, the ExpertRECALL Index found that consumer product, pharmaceutical and medical device recalls decreased compared with previous quarters.

Undeclared allergens remained the leading factor in initiating food recalls, accounting for more than a third of food recalls in the quarter. Concerns about Listeria contamination were the second-leading cause of fourth-quarter recalls, accounting for almost 20 percent of all food recalls listed on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s website from October through December.

“Despite the drop in several other categories, the sharp increase in food product recalls is cause for concern,” said Mike Rozembajgier, Vice President of Recalls at Stericycle ExpertRECALL. “Food recalls are challenging because they affect all consumers. Ensuring consumer safety during food recalls is complicated further when food is repackaged for storage or put in re-sealable containers, eliminating any chance of identifying the food in our homes as having been recalled.”

Click here for the full report from eMaxHealth

Santorum, Romney and Gingrich Vow To Enforce Anti-Porn Laws

February 14, 2012

Raw Story

By Eric W. Dolan

Republican presidential candidates Rick Santorum, Mitt Romney, and Newt Gingrich have all told the group Morality in Media that they would enforce federal obscenity laws that prohibit the distribution of pornography.

Those laws, the anti-pornography group said, are being ignored by the current administration.

“Federal obscenity laws should be vigorously enforced,” Santorum told the group. “If elected President, I will appoint an Attorney General who will do so.”

Romney told the group it was “imperative that we cultivate the promotion of fundamental family values.”

“This can be accomplished with increased parental involvement and enhanced supervision of our children,” he said in a statement.

“It includes strict enforcement of our nation’s obscenity laws, as well as the promotion of parental software controls that guard our children from Internet pornography.”

Gingrich also said he would appoint an Attorney General who would enforce federal obscenity laws.

Santorum and Gingrich previously signed a pledge by the conservative Christian group The Family Leader in which they vowed to protect women and children from “seduction into promiscuity and all forms of pornography.” But Romney refused to sign, saying the pledge was “undignified and inappropriate for a presidential campaign.”

Click here for the full report from Raw Story

Whole Fraud: Exposing The Myth of So-Called ‘Natural’ Foods

February 14, 2012

Natural News

By Ronnie Cummins

On Jan. 31, organic and natural foods giant Whole Foods Market (WFM) once again attacked http://blog.wholefoodsmarket.com Organic Consumers Association, the nation’s leading watchdog on organic standards, as being too “hard-line” for insisting that retailers like WFM stop selling, or at least start labeling, billions of dollars worth of so-called “natural” foods in their stores – foods that are laced with unlabeled, hazardous genetically engineered (GE) ingredients.

WFM’s most recent attack on OCA predictably backfired, throwing gasoline on the fiery debate surrounding my previous essay “The Organic Elite Surrenders to Monsanto.” http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_22449.cfm In that essay, written in January 2011, I criticized WFM and several other well-known organic companies for their foolish (now hopefully repudiated) stance of espousing “co-existence” with the USDA and Monsanto, in exchange for minimal federal regulation of genetically engineered crops.

In subsequent articles OCA has called for an end to “organic infighting” http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_22499.cfm and for the organic industry, farmers, and consumers to join forces and pass laws or state ballot initiatives (like the current campaign in California) that would require mandatory labels on products containing genetically engineered ingredients, as well as to make it illegalhttp://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_24074.cfm to label or market GE-tainted foods as “natural” or “all natural.”

Sugar Sweetened Drinks Increase Heart Disease And Diabetes Risk In Women

February 14, 2012

Natural News

By John Phillip

The result of a research study released by the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Scientific Sessions provides evidence that women drinking two or more sugary drinks a day may increase waistline size and risk of heart disease, even if they don’t gain weight. Heart disease is the leading killer of women and men alike and closely parallels the development and progression of diabetes. Consumption of refined carbohydrates and sugar in particular dramatically increases blood fats known as triglycerides, a significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease and heart attack. Small lifestyle changes that substitute sweetened beverages for healthier alternatives can dramatically lower the risk of developing heart disease and diabetes in millions of at-risk women.

Researcher’s tracked 4,166 women aged 46 to 84 and analyzed a group of studies known as a meta-analysis to determine the effect of sugary drinks on heart disease and diabetes risk. After crunching the data from these studies, it was clear that the relationship between the sweet drinks and metabolic syndrome and progression to diabetes was strong.

12 Top Food Choices For A Healthy Heart

February 14, 2012

Natural News

By Tony Isaacs

When it comes to eating for good health, choosing foods for heart health should be at the top of the list. The heart is the organ that literally keeps us going – delivering nutrients, oxygen and disease fighters throughout the body. Cardiovascular disease also happens to be the leading cause of death in the U.S., ranking just ahead of cancer.

There are several foods which can help give us a healthy heart and cardiovascular system – especially if they are chosen in their healthiest whole food forms. Instead of processed foods found on grocers’ shelves, choose fresh whole foods which you can eat with little or no processing and cooking. Certified organic whole foods are the best choice of all.

Is Western Democracy Real Or A Facade?

February 14, 2012

Info Wars

By Paul Craig Roberts

The United States government and its NATO puppets have been killing Muslim men, women and children for a decade in the name of bringing them democracy. But is the West itself a democracy?

Skeptics point out that President George W. Bush was put in office by the Supreme Court and that a number of other elections have been decided by electronic voting machines that leave no paper trail. Others note that elected officials represent the special interests that fund their campaigns and not the voters. The bailout of the banks arranged by Bush’s Treasury Secretary and former Goldman Sachs chairman, Henry Paulson, and Washington’s failure to indict any banksters for the fraud that contributed to the financial crisis, are evidence in support of the view that the US government represents money and not the voters.

Recent events in Greece and Italy have created more skepticism of the West’s claim to be democratic. Two elected European prime ministers, George Papandreou of Greece and Silvio Berlusconi of Italy, were forced to resign over the sovereign debt issue. Not even Berlusconi, a billionaire who continues to lead the largest Italian political party, could stand up to the pressure brought by private bankers and unelected European Union officials.

Papandreou lasted only 10 days after announcing on October 31, 2011, that he would let the Greek voters decide in a referendum whether or not to accept the austerity being imposed on the Greek people from the outside. Austerity is the price charged by the EU for lending the Greek government the money to pay to the banks. In other words, the question was austerity or default. However, the question was decided without the participation of the Greek people.

Consequently, Greeks have taken to the streets. The conditions accompanying the latest tranche of the bailout have again brought large numbers of Greeks into the streets of Athens and other cities. Citizens are protesting a 20% cut both in the minimum wage and in pensions larger than 12,000 euros ($15,800) annually and more cuts in public sector jobs. Greek taxes were raised 2.3 billion euros last year and are scheduled to rise another 3.4 billion euros in 2013. The austerity is being imposed despite Greece’s unemployment rate of 21% overall and 48% for those under the age of 25.

One interpretation is that the banks, which were careless in their loans to governments, are forcing the people to save the banks from the consequences of their bad decisions.

Another interpretation is that the European Union is using the sovereign debt crisis to extend its power and control over the individual member states of the EU.

Click here for the full report from Info Wars

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