statism watch

CNN
September 9, 2008

WASHINGTON (CNN) — The dramatic drop in violence in Iraq is due in large part to a secret program the U.S. military has used to kill terrorists, according to a new book by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bob Woodward.

The program — which Woodward compares to the World War II era Manhattan Project that developed the atomic bomb — must remain secret for now or it would “get people killed,” Woodward said Monday on CNN’s Larry King Live.

“It is a wonderful example of American ingenuity solving a problem in war, as we often have,” Woodward said.

In “The War Within: Secret White House History 2006-2008,” Woodward disclosed the existence of secret operational capabilities developed by the military to locate, target and kill leaders of al Qaeda in Iraq and other insurgent leaders.

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CBC News
September 9. 2008

Blasts leaders who ’secretly threatened’ to skip debates

Green party Leader Elizabeth May sharply criticized Conservative Leader Stephen Harper and NDP Leader Jack Layton on Tuesday, demanding they publicly admit they threatened to boycott debates next month if she were to be included.

“I think we have to out the leaders who secretly threatened not to participate,” May said in an interview with CBC News on Tuesday.

Her comments come a day after a consortium of television networks declined to let May participate in the nationally televised debates, saying three parties threatened to boycott but providing no more details.

The Green party will file a formal complaint with Canada’s broadcast regulator, the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission on Tuesday, May said.

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Bayer has a rather interesting corporate history; they can take credit for mass HIV infection scandals,  Zyklon B, methadone, and heroin of all things. What will they think of next?

Sabine Vollmer, newsobserver.com
September 9, 2008

German authorities look into allegation that RTP maker’s pesticide harms environment

Bayer CropScience is facing scrutiny because of the effect one of its best-selling pesticides has had on honeybees.

A German prosecutor is investigating Werner Wenning, Bayer’s chairman, and Friedrich Berschauer, the head of Bayer CropScience, after critics alleged that they knowingly polluted the environment.

The investigation was triggered by an Aug. 13 complaint filed by German beekeepers and consumer protection advocates, a Coalition against Bayer Dangers spokesman, Philipp Mimkes, said Monday.

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CBC News
September 9, 2008

Air fresheners marketed as a way to enhance the smell of your home may actually contain dangerous chemicals that could do harm, a CBC News investigation has found.

The CBC tested 19 types of air fresheners for two types of phthalates, DEP and DBP, and found seven contained one or both kinds.

DEP and DBP have been linked to fertility and developmental problems in rats, and are enough of a concern that 12 European countries have banned them from children’s toys.

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