Category Archives: Uncategorized

Conservative group to run television ads attacking CFPB

The Wall Street Journal reports: Most Americans have probably never heard of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Many will learn about it on Tuesday night when millions tune in to watch the next Republican presidential debate. The American Action Network, a right-leaning advocacy group that has spent heavily to elect Republicans, plans to blanket the Fox […]

FDA requests comment on use of “natural” on food labels

Recent years have brought lots of litigation about food products that are labeled as "all natural" but contain highly processed or "unnatural" ingredients. Dating back much further, the Food and drug Administration has long acknowledged the confusing and even misleading use of the term, but until today, the agency had not used its regulatory authority […]

Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch on text of Trans-Pacific Partnership

The text of the is out — finally — and it's "worse than we thought," according to a Public Citizen analysis. Among the lowlights, according to Public Citizen, are "New Rights for Fossil Fuel Corporations to Challenge Climate Protections"; "Constraints on Food Safety Provisions"; "Opportunities for Drug Firms to Contest Medicine Purchasing and Pricing Decisions"; and expansion of the […]

NYTimes editorial on arbitration

Following up on its 3-part series on forced arbitration clauses, the New York Times published an editorial reiterating the conclusions of the series. The editorial concludes: Reversing the broader trend of forced arbitration, however, will require public outcry loud and long enough to stir the White House and Congress to action. Many people interviewed in […]

LA Times’s David Lazarus: Using TiVo? Your personal choices may be going straight to advertisers

Here.  Here's the beginning of the story: If you're a TiVo user, your digital video recorder may be ratting you out to advertisers. In the latest example of consumer privacy being threatened by Big Data, TiVo's number-crunching subsidiary this week announced a partnership with media heavyweight Viacom that helps advertisers target TV viewers with specific […]

In a first, the FCC is fining a major cable company for getting hacked

The Post reports: In the first such case against a U.S. cable company, federal regulators are slapping Cox Communications with a $595,000 fine after Cox allowed hackers from Lizard Squad to penetrate its systems and steal private customer information. By posing as an IT administrator and tricking a couple of Cox employees into giving up […]

Gallup: “Americans With Government Health Plans Most Satisfied”

As a new Gallup survey puts it: Americans' satisfaction with the way the healthcare system works for them varies by the type of insurance they have. Satisfaction is highest among those with veterans or military health insurance, Medicare and Medicaid, and is lower among those with employer-paid and self-paid insurance. Americans with no health insurance are […]