Pesticides causing sickness among farm workers

Reports suggest somewhere between 10,000 and 20,000 sicknesses per year for farm workers, which is a staggering number. Also, there's hardly any question about it impacting consumers either, so why do we allow this to continue?

MotherJones:

Yet when workers do complain—as in the case in Arkansas—securing hard information can be daunting. Sometimes, workers say, they pay a price for speaking up. When pesticides were sprayed near them in 2010 in the tomato fields outside the city of Newport, in a patch of east Tennessee where the mountains touch the clouds and road signs warn of falling rock, the migrant farmworkers complained to state regulators. When it happened again, they say, they snapped videos with their cellphones.

The tomato farm's response, the workers say in an ongoing federal lawsuit: to fire them on the spot, pile them on a bus and route them back to Mexico. The company denies any wrongdoing or retaliation. In Florida in late 2009, farmworker Jovita Alfau, working in an open-air plant nursery in a rural swath of south Miami-Dade County, said she became dizzy and weak, with numbness in her mouth, and vomited. Alfau said she had been told to tend to hibiscus plants at the Homestead nursery less than 24 hours after they had been sprayed with the pesticide endosulfan. The grower sent workers out too soon after the spraying, Alfau said in a lawsuit, violating the Worker Protection Standard, and did not tell her when pesticides were applied, provide protective gear, or tell her how to protect herself.

Endosulfan is so toxic that, by summer 2010, the EPA banned its use, saying the pesticide "poses unacceptable risks to agricultural workers and wildlife."

Reading this story, I'm reminded of the stories of my dad's uncle who died when he was 29 years old after working in a car battery factory. The fumes of the Philadelphia factory ended up killing him and a number of other young workers. At the time, too few people cared about just another poor Irish immigrant who worked in a factory.

Just as too many today dismiss issues like this for Latino workers, before, it was the Irish or the Italians. Somehow people like Justice Scalia don't quite grasp that our families were all there before. Imagine what our immigrant population would have looked like if the rules today were in effect from 1880-1920. Would Scalia's father even have been admitted for his unknown special skills? Read the rest of this post...

Health insurance lobby throws over $100m at defeating Obamacare

It's really hard to imagine what part of "here are millions of new customers for you" they don't like, but that's where we are today. Most of us on the left wanted the public option, which the private health insurers hated, but giving in to their needs wasn't enough.

But no, heaven forbid the health insurance industry is asked to give a little with the windfall. Millions of new customers and no competition from the public option wasn't enough money for the bloated and spoiled industry that keeps setting record profits.

So who is more spoiled and thankless between the bankers and the health insurance brats?

According to the National Journal’s Influence Alley, at the very same time the American Health Insurance Plans (AHIP)—the health insurance industry super lobby—was cutting a deal with the White House leading to its stated support of the proposed Obamacare legislation, they were secretly funneling huge amounts money to the Chamber of Commerce to be spent on advertising designed to convince the public that the legislation should be defeated.

How much money?

A stunning $102.4 million spent over just 15 months.

The brilliant Rahm Emanuel sure did a great job of bargaining, didn't he? If there is a next time with health care reform, he needs to stay far away from it and the public option has to be there so that consumers get some competition. If that industry can't show any appreciation, there's no reason to show mercy in the future. Read the rest of this post...

Poll: Mitt Romney less popular than George Bush (and Barack Obama)

A new MSNBC/WSJ poll shows only 9% of people have a "very positive" feeling about Mitt Romney.  Less than George Bush, and far less than Barack Obama.

MITT ROMNEY
Very Positive: 9%
Somewhat Positive: 24%
(Combined positive: 33%)

Neutral: 22%

Somewhat Negative: 17%
Very Negative: 22%
(Combined Negative: 39%)

Don't Know Name/Not Sure: 6%


GEORGE BUSH
Very Positive: 13%
Somewhat Positive: 23%
(Combined positive: 36%)

Neutral: 18%

Somewhat Negative: 19%
Very Negative: 26%
(Combined Negative: 45%)

Don't Know Name/Not Sure: 1%


BARACK OBAMA
Very Positive: 29%
Somewhat Positive: 19%
(Combined positive: 48%)

Neutral:14%

Somewhat Negative: 11%
Very Negative: 27%
(Combined negative: 38%)

Don't Know Name/Not Sure: -% Read the rest of this post...

Video: How to cut one bagel into two interlocking circles

This is actually kind of cool.

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Romney says nothing about immigration, otra vez

So, Romney just spent a weekend behind closed doors with his billionaire donors doing seminars on policy issues and answering all their questions. But, for the rest of America, he refuses to answer even basic questions, especially on immigration.

We still don't know where Mitt Romney stands on the relief for DREAMers. And, his response to the SB 1070 decision has been pathetic, especially considering how nasty he was during the primaries. Back then, Romney couldn't talk enough about vetoing the DREAM Act and self-deportation then. Now, he's trying to hide his views.

Romney finally said a few words about immigration at a fundraiser in Arizona late yesterday.  But, as the report notes, it was the usual Romney gobbledygook:

This answer is marginally clearer than anything else the campaign has said on the issue today -- and he does say he'd focus on immigration in his first year in office -- but it still doesn't address how Romney feels about the particulars of the law.

Some of the best headlines of the day, lay out the issue perfectly:
- Mitt Romney’s immigration headache becomes a full-on migraine
- Mitt Romney Leads on Immigration by Releasing Vague, Useless Statement
- VIDEO: Romney Spokesman Dodges 20 Questions On Romney’s Immigration Position

I loved Frank Sharry’s (America’s Voice) reaction to the whole thing: "[Mitt Romney] comes across like the school kid who says, ‘I know you are, but what am I.'"

Sharry is right. Romney is a niño. Read the rest of this post...

Steve Martin demonstrates the Euro-crisis

Why is it that the leaders of Europe find it so hard to get the fact that the Euro is not working, and their attempts to rescue it are only making matters worse?

This Steve Martin clip from The Man with Two Brains is the best illustration of their approach I can imagine:



The Germans of all people should remember what happens when a country is forced into penury to repay a foreign debt. (A lot of us remember when Greece and Spain were both ruled by military dictators.)

European leaders have a choice: Either they let the Euro zone print money on a vast scale or they admit the Euro project is a failure and work out an exit strategy.

Fear of a return to more authoritarian ways is of course one of the reasons that Greek politicians have been so desperate to stay in the Euro club, and thus they ignore the obvious fact that you can't 'bailout' a bankrupt state by lending it more money. Even more so when the conditions attached to the 'bailout' have crippled the Greek economy. Every future general election in Greece is going to be a referendum on the question of whether Greece should stay in the Euro. At some point the voters are going to say 'no'.

The rest of Europe is likewise ignoring the fact that even if the Euro survives the current crises in Greece, Spain, France and Italy, it is a matter of "when," not "if," the whole house of cards comes crashing down.

Read the rest of this post...

Are gay Republicans self-loathing or just selfish?

Are gay Republicans self-loathing or just selfish?

And is there a difference?

Dan Savage has been taking a gay Republican group to task for endorsing Mitt Romney for President when Romney opposes every single major (and minor) gay civil right being debated today.

The gay group, called GOProud, had already said that they'd endorse whoever the Republican candidate was, leading many to wonder if the group wasn't simply a front for Republicans attempting to co-opt the gay Republican vote, which usually measures in the 25-30% range.

Dan gave a detailed explanation as to why these particular gay Republicans are self-loathing.  But some in the comments to the post argued that it's not self-hatred motivating them, it's simply selfishness - they know they'll probably get yet another tax cut with Romney, so to hell with their civil rights.

I'd argue that in this case self-loathing and selfishness are the same thing.  By not having sufficient respect for yourself, you see no problem in putting your material (monetary) interests above your own humanity.  You've done the balance sheet, you've compared the two interests (money and self), and decided that money is more important expressly because you don't like yourself and therefore devalue its relative importance.

Take a look at my post over at AMERICAblog Gay, and Dan's brilliant (and scathing) analysis, and see what you think. Read the rest of this post...

Five Questions: Frances Causey, director of the documentary "Heist"

One more interview in our series, Five Questions, about American history, progressives, Democrats and the future.

Today's interviewee is Frances Causey, producer–director of the new, highly acclaimed documentary Heist: Who Stole the American Dream?

Heist tells the story of the theft of America, starting with the Powell memo; strong stuff, and a story every progressive should be aware of.

Five questions, Frances Causey with Gaius Publius, recorded at Netroots Nation 2012. Enjoy:



About the movie: The trailer tag line says: "This is the story of the biggest heist in American history." You can play that trailer here.

The longer version of the trailer is below, and watching it would be an excellent use of time. It tells a well-told tale and provides a valuable look back. Knowing how we got into this mess shows the way out.



The full list of "Five Questions" interviews includes the following. Links to names will take you to previously-published interviews.

• Alan Grayson, former (and perhaps future) U.S. Congressman
• Marcy Wheeler, of emptywheel.net
• Cliff Schecter, who comments regularly with Sam Seder at Majority.fm among many other places
• Tom Tomorrow, cartoonist with DailyKos and This Modern World
• Alex Lawson of StrengthenSocialSecurity.org
• Josh Orton, with Russ Feingold's Progressives United
• Frances Causey, producer–director of Heist, the documentary
• Chris Pearson, a Progressive Party Vermont state legislator
• Susan Smith, Progressive Caucus chair of the Florida Democratic Party
• Sarah Burris, labor activist and progressive youth organizer

These interviews will be concluded this week. Thanks for listening to them.

(If you have trouble with this audio, please let me know in the comments and I'll address it as quickly as I can. Thanks.)

GP

To follow or send links: @Gaius_Publius
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TSA spills cremated remains, laughs at man frantically sweeping up grandpa's bone fragments

There's your TSA at work. Thoughtful, compassionate and following the rules.

"They opened up my bag, and I told them, 'Please, be careful. These are my grandpa's ashes,'" Gross told RTV6's Norman Cox. "She picked up the jar. She opened it up....

She used her finger and was sifting through it. And then she accidentally spilled it."

Gross says about a quarter to a third of the contents spilled on the floor, leaving him frantically trying to gather up as much as he could while anxious passengers waited behind him.

"She didn't apologize. She started laughing. I was on my hands and knees picking up bone fragments."

Read the rest of this post...

Senate votes 73–26 to deny states the right to label GMO foods (Or, Meet your Monsanto Senators)

The headline tells it all, but there's an excellent piece by Howie Klein at Down With Tyranny on this news — "Genetically Modified America" — that's well worth a read. Do go there for more. A taste:

Last week the House Agriculture Committee-- basically a bipartisan arm of Agribusiness whose members are handsomely bribed to trample on consumer interests-- voted in favor of Frankenfoods....

Not hard to get Howie's drift.

Here I'd like to do the Dems thing, and talk about the actual votes — who did what.

This is the Senate amendment (my emphasis):

Question: On the Amendment (Sanders Amdt. No. 2310)

Amendment Number: S.Amdt. 2310 to S. 3240 (Agriculture Reform, Food, and Jobs Act of 2012)

Statement of Purpose: To permit States to require that any food, beverage, or other edible product offered for sale have a label on indicating that the food, beverage, or other edible product contains a genetically engineered ingredient.

Note that this isn't a federal labeling requirement. It simply allows states to decide labeling for themselves.

The amendment failed, 26–73. These are your Monsanto senators:

NAYs ---73
Alexander (R-TN) Ayotte (R-NH) Barrasso (R-WY) Baucus (D-MT) Bingaman (D-NM) Blunt (R-MO) Boozman (R-AR) Brown (D-OH) Brown (R-MA) Burr (R-NC) Carper (D-DE) Casey (D-PA) Chambliss (R-GA) Coats (R-IN) Coburn (R-OK) Cochran (R-MS) Collins (R-ME) Conrad (D-ND) Coons (D-DE) Corker (R-TN) Cornyn (R-TX) Crapo (R-ID) DeMint (R-SC) Durbin (D-IL) Enzi (R-WY)	Franken (D-MN) Gillibrand (D-NY) Graham (R-SC) Grassley (R-IA) Hagan (D-NC) Harkin (D-IA) Hatch (R-UT) Heller (R-NV) Hoeven (R-ND) Hutchison (R-TX) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Johanns (R-NE) Johnson (R-WI) Klobuchar (D-MN) Kohl (D-WI) Kyl (R-AZ) Landrieu (D-LA) Lee (R-UT) Levin (D-MI) Lugar (R-IN) McCain (R-AZ) McCaskill (D-MO) McConnell (R-KY) Menendez (D-NJ)	Moran (R-KS) Nelson (D-FL) Nelson (D-NE) Paul (R-KY) Portman (R-OH) Pryor (D-AR) Reid (D-NV) Risch (R-ID) Roberts (R-KS) Rubio (R-FL) Schumer (D-NY) Sessions (R-AL) Shaheen (D-NH) Shelby (R-AL) Snowe (R-ME) Stabenow (D-MI) Thune (R-SD) Toomey (R-PA) Udall (D-CO) Vitter (R-LA) Warner (D-VA) Webb (D-VA) Wicker (R-MS)

Your Monsanto senators in action:

• Al Franken (202-224-5641)
• Sherrod Brown (202-224-2315)
• Dick Durbin (202-224-2152)
• Tom Harkin (202-224-3254)
• Amy Klobushar (202-224-3244)
• Debbie Stabenow (202-224-4822) 

Six of many ... forces for good on a mountain of evil.

Except for Gillibrand, these folks voted to keep $4.5 billion out of the school lunch program — and all were PIPA supporters or co-sponsors as well.

Evil must be rubbing off.

UPDATE: Looks like we have a Monsanto President. Commenter ezpz has the goods, here and here and here.

And here's the link to CREDO Action to fire Monsanto lobbyist Michael Taylor as Obama's "Food Safety Czar." Who are these people?

GP

To follow or send links: @Gaius_Publius
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Kids bullying adult bus monitor, caught on tape

This story is from a few days ago. I hadn't heard about it until I read this related post from Dan Savage (which talks about the mess that is certain gay Republicans, but mentions bullying).

Someone started an online fund to raise a few thousand dollars to send the poor woman on a vacation, and the fund has now raised $300,000 according to ABC.

It's hard to watch this video.

Read the rest of this post...

Cyprus requests EU bailout as Greek losses take their toll

Considering the close relationship with the Greek economy, it's not a surprise. The German response continues to be all over the place and the fractured leadership of Europe isn't helping.

The German response is not dramatically different from the response of many homeowners in the US who aren't enthusiastic about solving the problem of underwater houses. Plenty of US homeowners hate the idea of rescuing people that they think gambled and acted irresponsibly. Fixing that problem in the US or bailing out countries is painful, but to delay the process in an attempt to make a point is only going to cost more in the long run.

Another?

Cyprus has become the fifth eurozone country to seek outside financial help to shore up its ailing economy after a day of heavy selling on financial markets prompted by fear that this week's European summit will end without a blueprint to rescue the single currency.

The government in Nicosia admitted that it had been caught in the backwash from the crisis in neighbouring Greece as it formally applied to Brussels for assistance.

On a day when Fitch cut Cyprus's credit rating to junk, a statement said: "The purpose of the required assistance is to contain the risks to the Cypriot economy, notably those arising from the negative spill-over effects through its financial section, due to its large exposure in the Greek economy."

Read the rest of this post...

States without income tax show no economic benefits over those with taxes

Wait, you mean they're saying that the GOP mantra of cut taxes or eliminate them is a lie? Get me a cold towel because I feel faint and am shocked. I was so certain that the Republicans were telling the truth this time. My entire world has been thrown upside down. Bloomberg:

The BGOV Barometer shows the nine states with the highest personal income taxes on residents outperformed or kept pace on average with the nine that don’t tax their residents’ incomes, according to a study of economic output, unemployment and household income by the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.

The findings show cutting state income taxes to stimulate growth relies on “flawed analysis” based on the theories of economist Arthur Laffer, said Carl Davis, a senior analyst at ITEP in Washington and author of the report. Laffer’s work was cited by Republican Governors Sam Brownback of Kansas and Mary Fallin of Oklahoma as a reason to cut income taxes as a way to stimulate job growth and attract business.

“Being low-tax doesn’t generate economic competitiveness or long-term economic viability,” said Ralph Martire, executive director at the nonpartisan Center for Tax and Budget Accountability in Chicago. “There are other factors that are far more important. The state tax burden overall is marginal compared to federal tax burden.”

How could it be that the "high tax" states showed much stronger growth than the no or low tax states when we've been told that is impossible? Read the rest of this post...