Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

Nuclear Operator Raises Alarm on Fukushima Crisis
NYTimes | Hiroko Tabuchi | 08/23/13

The operator of Japan's tsunami-hit nuclear power plant sounded the alarm on the gravity of the deepening crisis of containment at the coastal site on Friday, saying that there are more than 200,000 tons of radioactive water in makeshift tanks vulnerable to leaks, with no reliable way to check on them or anywhere to transfer the water.

The latest disclosures add to a long list of recent accidents, leaks and breakdowns that have underscored grave vulnerabilities at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant site more than two years after a powerful earthquake and tsunami set off meltdowns at three reactors. ... Read more

Alternative to a Military Response to 9/11
costsofwar.org/ | author | date

Comparisons have been made between states that have used military responses to terror tactics (for example, France in Algeria in the 1950s and 1960s) and states that have taken alternative policing and political approaches (for example, Italy in the 1970s in response to the Red Brigades).

A Rand report made systematic examination and comparison of 268 groups using terror tactics in the period from 1968 to 2006. It showed that several approaches have been much more effective than military responses at eliminating future attacks. They include criminal justice responses and attempts to address the well-being concerns of both combatants and the broader populace that might support them. ... Read more
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Corporate Power and Profiteering
costsofwar.org | author | date

Large defense contractors have played a central role in fighting the post-9/11 wars, as well as in arming and supplying coalition forces and the new Iraqi and Afghan governments. Their involvement raises major economic and security concerns among critics.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, along with an increase in the Pentagon's budget, have led to an increase in total military contracts to nearly $400 billion, their highest levels since World War II. Private contracting has grown to such a level that, by 2011, there were more private contract employees involved in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan than uniformed military personnel. Pentagon contracts awarded in the 2000s have been concentrated in the hands of just five contractors- Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and General Dynamics. These five companies account for over one-third of all Pentagon contracts. ... Read more
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Halliburton's Iraq gravy train
Salon | Farhad Manjoo | 02/27/04 old, but good

Bunting, who has recently been telling his story to congressional Democrats, says that Halliburton, which has been awarded billions of dollars of contracts for work in Iraq, routinely purchased the most expensive equipment and services on the government's tab. Bunting claims that Halliburton managers frowned on any attempts to save the military any money. They had no incentive to do so: taxpayers would pick up the cost. In fact, they had an incentive to bill high: the more they spent, the more money their company would make.

Bunting worked as a buyer for Halliburton's "Logcap" contract with the U.S. Army, a $3.7 billion deal under which Halliburton provides the military with logistics support -- it builds bases, runs mess halls, does the laundry, supplies water and performs dozens of other tasks necessary to keep the Army running. The contract is a "cost-plus" contract, meaning that the military reimburses Halliburton for all of its expenses, and then gives it an extra percentage as a profit. Experts have long criticized cost-plus contracts as being economically inefficient; companies that work under cost-plus deals have no reason to reduce their expenses, meaning that the government may end up paying more than it should for services. ... Read more

Right-Wing Wannabe Obama Impeachers Are Living in Dreamland
AlterNet | Joan Walsh | 08/23/13

Tom Coburn, Ted Cruz and other crackpots can't stand up to their base and face reality. Can this party ever change?

Will the American Right Kill Us All?
AlterNet | Robert Parry | 08/21/13

That is because the scientific consensus continues to solidify that human activity is causing global temperatures to increase dangerously, possibly causing a catastrophic rise of three feet in sea levels by the end of the century. Yet, right-wing obstructionism, which deems federal environmental activism unconstitutional, has hobbled any effort to enact a timely response to the emergency.

... From the Tea Party to the "libertarians," oil money from fossil-fuel energy tycoons, such as Charles and David Koch of Koch Industries. has fueled "populist" propaganda challenging the case for global warming, first by funding "scientists" who quibble with the research or who assert that the warming will be modest and manageable. ... Read more

Democracy Now! U.S. and World News Headlines for Monday, August 26 [12:17]

Chris Hayes | Matt Taibbi: How can the nation deal withthe scary cost of college? (08/23/13) [13:27]

America's New Landlords
Aljazeera | Kristyn Martin | 08/23/13

It's a new phenomenon sweeping across the nation: big institutional investors buying up foreclosed homes by the hundreds -- even thousands -- in distressed communities.

"Looking back a year and a half ago, not one institution owned more than 1,000 single family rental homes," says David Bragg, Managing Director at Green Street Advisors. "However, today the top six players combined own 80,000 single family rental homes."

"Hedgefunds across the country are realizing that our market is going from what they refer to as an owner nation, to a renter nation…so the rental market is huge," says Sheree Villar, a local realtor with ERA Atlantic Realty in Gwinnett County, Georgia. She buys homes for two large institutional investors every month at the foreclosure auction from the steps of the Gwinnett County courthouse. "What they're doing is buying these homes in blocks to turn around, put on the rental market, and resell when the market really is strong." ... Read more

The Surprising Reason Americans Are Far Less Healthy Than Others in Developed Nations
AlterNet | Sam Pizzigati | 08/20/13

Back in 1990, shouts a new study just published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the United States ranked a lowly 20th on life expectancy among 34 major industrial nations. The United States now ranks 27th -- despite spending much more on health care than any other nation.

Media reports on this new study blamed all the usual suspects for America's disappointing health: poor personal health habits, inadequate access to health care, and just plain poverty.   If Americans exercised more and ate and smoked less, this conventional wisdom holds, the United States would surely start moving up in the global health rankings.

But many epidemiologists -- scientists who study health outcomes -- have their doubts. ... Read more