Unearthed: News of the Week the Mainstream Media Forgot to Report

Government Report Links Extreme Weather In North America To Global Warming Pollution

The U.S. Climate Change Science Program released a 162-page report overwhelmingly confirming that manmade pollution is causing "changes in weather and climate change." The report concludes that an increase in the frequency and severity of extreme weather events "could seriously affect" human health, agricultural production, and the availability and quality of water in North America.
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/20080619_climatereport.html
Led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the report represents the most extensive assessment yet of how global warming will impact North Americans in the future, synthesizing the findings of more than 100 academic papers, including the latest scientific evidence which wasn't considered in the most recent IPCC assessment. The report confirms that manmade global warming pollution has caused an increased frequency of heat waves, droughts, severe rainfall, and fierce hurricanes, and that there is a 90 percent likelihood that the frequency and intensity of such extreme weather events will continue to accelerate unless immediate action is taken to slow global warming pollution.

Exxon, Shell and BP Among Oil Giants Set to Receive No-Bid Contracts in Iraq

Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP -- the original partners in the Iraq Petroleum Company prior to nationalization of Iraq's oil business 36 years ago -- are "in talks with Iraq's Oil Ministry for no-bid contracts to service Iraq's largest fields." The contracts are intended to jumpstart oil production by half a million barrels a day while Iraqi leaders debate legislation on how to divide the nation's oil revenues.

Although worth only about $500 million to each company, the no-bid contracts are expected to give the companies a significant bidding advantage over competitors in future contracts on Iraqi oil development. The New York Times confirmed that the "unusual" no-bid contracts were awarded to the oil companies because they provided free advice over the past two years to the Iraq Oil Ministry. In all cases but one, the same company that provided free advice to the ministry on a specific oil field was awarded the contract for that field.

Leila Benali, an authority on Middle East oil at Cambridge Energy Research Associates, told the Times that "The bigger prize everybody is waiting for is development of the giant new fields," and that these initial contracts give the winning companies a "foothold" to vie for longer-term deals in Iraq.

While State Department spokesman Tom Casey told reporters that the U.S. had "no involvement" in encouraging the no-bid deals with U.S. oil companies, the Times points out that "there are still American advisers to Iraq's Oil Ministry."

The Bush administration indicated that it sees no need to "get involved" with the negotiations, despite concerns that the presence of U.S. companies, particularly ExxonMobil, could escalate tensions in Iraq and lead to further violence against U.S. troops.

U.S. Government Testing Drugs with Severe Side Effects on War Veterans

The government is employing hundreds of military veterans as lab rats in drug tests, distributing medications known to have potentially severe side effects like psychosis and suicidal behavior. A media investigation uncovered how the Department of Veterans Affairs is paying cash to distressed soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan to take part in medical experiments. The practice raised serious ethical concerns in the wake of a near-lethal confrontation between police and an Iraq war veteran who suffered a psychotic episode while taking the controversial anti-smoking drug Chantix.

The VA knew for weeks that the drug had potentially severe mental side effects, yet failed to inform study participants of the dangers prior to the near-fatal incident involving James Elliott, a decorated Iraqi veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) who was Tasered by police responding to a 911 call at his Maryland home. Elliot claims he was suffering from Chantix-induced psychotic hallucinations when he reached for a gun as officers approached him. Elliott was part of a Chantix trial targeted toward veterans with PTSD, and said the drug led him to suffer frequent hallucinations and suicidal thoughts.

The FDA alerted the VA weeks before Elliott's incident that Chantix was responsible for a large number of reported hallucinations, suicide attempts and psychotic behavior, but the VA did not alert Elliott or his fellow study participants of the risks prior to his confrontation with police. "You're a lab rat for $30 a month," Elliott said, arguing that the VA treated him like a "disposable hero."

New Research Links Traffic Pollution to Childhood Allergies

A study by German epidemiologists reveals the strongest evidence yet that the risk of developing a range of allergies and respiratory illnesses increases the closer children live to congested roads. The study suggests the risk of developing asthma, hay fever, eczema or other allergies is roughly 50 percent higher for children living 50 yards from a busy road than for those living 1,000 yards away.

"We consistently found strong associations between the distance to the nearest main road and the allergic disease outcomes," the study's lead author, Joachim Heinrich, wrote in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Oil Tycoon Pickens Tells Congress World Oil Production Has Peaked

Billionaire oil investor T. Boone Pickens told Congress he believes that oil production has peaked at 85 million barrels per day. Pickens said during testimony to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that the United States' continued heavy reliance on foreign oil could drain the U.S. economy unless lawmakers act quickly to jumpstart a clean technology revolution. "The price of oil will go up further," Pickens predicts. "In 10 years, we will have exported close to $10 trillion out of the country if we continue on the same basis we're going now. It is the greatest transfer of wealth in the history of mankind," he said. Pickens, who made his fortune investing in oil, announced plans for a $2 billion wind energy project earlier this year.

Blackwater Asks Judge to Apply Afghan Islamic Law Instead of U.S. Law In U.S. Soldier Fatalities Lawsuit

Private military contractor Blackwater is asking a federal court to rely on Sharia, the Islamic law of Afghanistan, rather than U.S. law, in an effort to avoid potentially stiff penalties in a lawsuit brought by the widows of three American soldiers who died when the Blackwater-run plane they were on crashed in the Afghan mountains.

Blackwater founder and owner Erik Prince told editors and reporters at North Carolina's News & Observer newspaper that, because the crash occurred in Afghanistan, the company believes the case should be decided by Afghan law. Sharia does not hold a company responsible for the actions of employees during the course of their work.
The lawsuit would be dismissed if the judge agrees that Sharia law applies in Blackwater's case.

Denver Police Stockpiling Pepper Weapons Ahead of Democratic Convention

Denver police are buying dozens of guns that fire a pepper spray-like substance instead of bullets, designed to aid police efforts to disperse crowds. The guns fire plastic balls filled with a powder that's "like a combination of cayenne pepper and baby powder," according to the manufacturer, which confirmed to reporters that the police requested the order be delivered in time for the Democratic National Convention in late August.

Denver received a $50 million federal grant for security during the convention, but refuses to disclose exactly how it is spending that money, prompting a lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union last month.

Cheney Wins Battle, Records Will Remain Hidden From the Public

Vice President Dick Cheney won the battle to withhold his office's records from the public, leaving members of Congress frustrated and convinced that there may not be any further avenues to gain access to the secretive Vice President's records before he leaves office. "I'm not sure there's anything we can do," said Representative Henry Waxman, the chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. "He has managed to stonewall everyone."

Cheney argues that he doesn't belong to either the executive or the legislative branch of government exclusively, and therefore isn't subject to public information laws, even though previous administrations complied with information requests. Government personnel officials also confirmed that they have no information on Cheney's staff available for public review either.

The Justice Department rebuffed repeated requests by members of Congress to investigate Cheney's claims to secrecy, agreeing with the Bush administration's assertion that Cheney and his staff are not part of the executive branch.

Rumsfeld Solicited Torture Advice From Army Psychologists, Ignored Lawyers' Objections

A Senate Armed Services Committee investigation revealed that former Defense Secretary Don Rumsfeld and senior aides in the Pentagon asked military psychologists as early as July 2002 to provide a list of harsh methods interrogators might employ against detainees held at Guantanamo Bay. The psychologists, who train Army troops how to survive enemy interrogations, responded with a list of techniques including sensory deprivation, sleep disruption, stress positions, waterboarding and slapping. Despite immediate objections from military lawyers who questioned the legality of using the proposed techniques without further review, Rumsfeld ordered interrogators to use the methods on detainees at Gauntanamo anyway.

The Committee's investigation also revealed that the Defense Department strategically hid prisoners who were subjected to the harsher techniques from Red Cross personnel monitoring detention centers to ensure compliance with the Geneva Convention rules for treatment of prisoners of war. According to secret memos from 2002 when the harsh methods were first employed at Guantanamo, Pentagon attorney Lt. Col. Diane Beaver advised interrogators to "curb the harsher operations" while the Red Cross monitors were around, and said in a private meeting that interrogators' use of the techniques "is not being reported officially. The [Red Cross] is a serious concern. They will be in and out, scrutinizing our operations, unless they are displeased and decide to protest and leave. This would draw a lot of negative attention."

Beaver's comments were recorded in the minutes of an October 2002 meeting between CIA and military lawyers and intelligence officials who discussed how to hide "ghost detainees" from the Red Cross at military detention centers.

Another attendee at the meeting, senior CIA lawyer John Fredman, explained that whether harsh interrogation amount to torture "is a matter of perception." Fredman said, "If the detainees dies you're doing it wrong."

Armed Services Committee chair Sen. Carl Levin commented, "Were these actions the result of 'a few bad apples' acting on their own? It would be a lot easier to accept if it were. But that's not the case. The truth is that senior officials in the United States government sought information on aggressive techniques, twisted the law to create the appearance of their legality, and authorized their use against detainees."

Send tips about other stories the mainstream media forgot to report: [e-mail]

Comments

[racom]

Face it folks, no matter who you support, we, the people, always lose!!! Election day I'm going fishing and I don't even fish!!!

[LizM]

I feel your pain.

[gurukalehuru]

I know this is not a major story, but it's an interesting one, and I think it's bizarre, and a sign of obvious bias, that the national media is not covering it: In Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which you will recall is flooded, a FEMA employee struck a pedestrian in the crosswalk, then got out of his car and assaulted the pedestrian with a golf club.
He's being held in Linn County jail, charged with assault.
The Cedar Rapids paper has it, maybe the Des Moines Register, and Wonkette.

[syllepsis]

If Dick Cheney's office is not in a particular branch of government, then it should be in none:
Remove the Vice President from office, and remove the Vice Presidency from our Government forever.

[larryfishkorn]

Well, if Erik Prince is sincere in wanting to have Islamic law apply to avoid a company lawsuit, he can demonstrate his sincerity by forcing his wife and daughters (if he has them) to wear borkas. Or maybe his sister.

[mergina]

I know that whenever you guys post, I am in store for a depressing set of URGENTLY NEEDED TO BE REPORTED news. Thanks for letting us have it right between the eyes on a regular basis. Unfortunately, most people turn away from the truth as they would from anything else that frightens them.

[LizM]

"Thanks for letting us have it between the eyes on a regular basis."

Were 'these guys' telling us - from the beginning of the primary race - about the only candidate who was telling us what we needed to know and not what we wanted to hear?

Were these guys telling us about the only candidate who, over the course of the last three years, met with Iraq's sectarian leaders and representatives of the UN Security Council while developing a comprehensive and viable strategy to end the civil war in Iraq and bring US troops home without leaving a failed state in their wake?

Were these guys telling us about the candidate who is the leader among Democrats on foreign policy, national security, and constitutional issues whose impeccable and unimpeachable credentials in these areas are wholly unmatched by any of his presidential rivals? Did they mention that issue #1 is, in fact, the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and that how we proceed on both will determine how successfully we can change the course of the nation, domestically and internationally?

You're absolutely right about this...most people turn away from the truth, and from anyone who speaks it.

[NoFactsJustTruth]

Thoroughly enjoyed listening to the radio program today, gentlemen, keep up the good work.

Last year we were told a political reconciliation would be required in Iraq to get new 'Hydrocarbon Laws' signed into effect, allowing American companies to sign deals fair to ALL Iraqis within THEIR country. We were also told here that 'political reconciliation' would be the mark of success for the 'surge' (escalation), which is now supposedly instead measured by some subjective 'level of violence' that does NOT include Muslim on Muslim violence, however. It now appears the 'OIL Minister' alone can sign deals, even perhaps giving away ALL of Iraq's natural gas reserves for FREE as partial payment to these companies.

Some of us KNEW before the invasion and occupation the WMD and 'threat to America' was cover for geopolitical thievery, but the level of seeming complicit conspiracy by the main stream media is still astounding to this day. Not only do they FAIL to even discuss Iraq any longer, but just as in McClellan word's they failed to ask enough question pre-invasion, they NOW give Mc-same-ol­'-same-ol' identical deferance in what one must surmise is a desire to perpetuate their delusions of integrity.

YOUR reality checks are greatly appreciated by many.

[LizM]

Did their reality checks include telling us which presidential candidate had been working tirelessly in the Senate to ensure that body was on record as being opposed both to permanent US military bases in Iraq and to US control over Iraq's natural resources?

They might also have mentioned that this candidate questioned the desirability of Iraq ceding ANY control over to multinational oil companies in the guise of a Hydrocarbon Law during a time of such political instability. This reality check would also have told us that the Hydrocarbon Law is one thing...but, a constitutional amendment to enshrine the concept of the equitable sharing of Iraq's oil revenues amongst the major groups in Iraq is quite another and a critical element to any sustainable power-sharing arrangement.

Did their reality checks include telling us about the only candidate who talked about Iraq, incessantly and intelligently, and who had developed and honed a comprehensive strategy to reverse US policy on Iraq to promote a sustainable political solution by providing a mechanism and process to bring the warring Iraqi factions to the negotiating table to hammer out THEIR OWN political future?

Now, THAT would have been a reality check!

[HunterSThompson]

"They gave their lives so that oil can be free. No, I mean so that Iraqi's can be free. Oil is $140 per barrel, exactly as planned"

Resident George W. Bush
xxxxxxxxxx­xxxxxxxxxx­xxxxxxxxxx­xxxxxxxxxx­xxxxxxxxxx­xxxxxxxxxx­xxxxxxxxxx­xxxxxxxxx
CATAPULT THAT PROPAGANDA

"See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in," he said, "to kind of catapult the propaganda."

George W Bush

[klmebane]

i find it funny that they want to apply sharia law to non-muslims. it is ONLY for muslims.

[gwpriester]

The last resort, and possibly the last hope Congress has of getting any information out of the Bush Cheney administration is to bring charges of impeachment against both men. They are guilty of multiple high crimes and misdemeanors.

This administration has thumbed its nose at every attempt Congress has made to procure evidence that it has no legal right to hide. Persons subpoenaed to appear before congress have not bothered to show up and have offered no explanation except the vague concept of executive privilege.

There has never been a more appropriate time to IMPEACH.

[Soulsurfer]

And there it is.......more relevant information on one page than in 10 newspapers (excluding McClatchey News Service). Every one of those stories merit front page placement, yet not a one to be found in a place of prominence in the MSM. Imagine, one of the most famous oil men in the world admitting to Peak Oil Theory..........the VA giving Iraq War vets with PTSD money to participate in psychotic drug tests. The next Rambo series of movies just wrote itself....­......Chen­ey gets away without disclosing, under an executive order, what his office is doing. He's not a Senate member, he's not a member of the Executive, he's certainly a public employee, but just what IS he? Our State and Justice Department just don't care! And of course, for all you fence sitters, the US government's OWN REPORT ON GLOBAL WARMING (held back for several years by the Busheviks) reveals that YES, WE ARE CONTRIBUTING TO GREATLY TO GLOBAL WARMING, and it will beat the hell out of us if we don't act NOW to alter it.

Thanks again for the post, the most informative on HuffPo.

[lennix]

what msm you mean the jokers who reports on fist bumps and flag pins

[Frangelica]

HuffPo, WHY no headline that the Stock Market has lost 1000-1400 points this month. Billions evaporated to foreign deposits: THEFT OF PUBLIC FUNDS by Bush strata, cronies and thru sheer audacity, not hoping for it, but doing it, offshore deposits that leave USA BANKRUPT & IN VIRTUAL FORECLOSURE--from War profiteering, speculative profit-taking, energy manipulation, deregulation of securities & banking, justice dept, and elimination of most services to public infrastructure, community growth, and peace!

[gwpriester]

I pledge allegiance
to my lapel flag pin
of the Divided States of America
And to the Republicans
For which it stands
Two nations Red and Blue
Unequal and divided
With liberty and justice
for None.

[Gasparilla]

All the stuff like global warming and peak oil is perfectly true, except so many on the left refuse to recognize the legitimate issue of a growing population in the United States mainly fueled by immigration, some illegal but chiefly due to legal immigration. We passed 300 million in October 2006 and we are approaching 305 quickly.

[MNinWI]

Are you saying that people moving to the US illegally has caused the increased use of oil? How do you figure that? They would not be using those resources if they had stayed in the their own country? I am assuming you are referring to Mexico. You really have to think globally when you are speaking of oil use. I have read the US uses 25% of the worlds oil-which is a lot for a single country but you are saying recent immigrants caused this? I fail to see your logic.

[castlerider]

I have a suggestion guys, and i hope you take it to heart.

Why don't you place a dedicated solitary link on each of these incidents, or articles, and let us see the full story, or in a separate, solid form so we can comment on them individually?

Comments people offer sometimes have a way of really getting the ball rolling on somethings. I've seen it happen. These cases are just tremendously important, especially like the one about the War Criminal Cheney getting his way when it never should have happened. There needs to be a lawsuit placed on his fat -...self immediately. Let's give some of these stories more life, the maximum possible, so that we can post our comments in true progressive, vehement fashion.

[MNinWI]

I second the motion!

[Sciguy]

This is a serious question about global climate change. How does one convince people to look to genuine climatologists like those at NOAA for facts about climate change rather than accepting thinly-veiled nonsense from oil companies? We no longer accept "facts" about tobacco from tobacco companies, but we still accept "facts" about climate change from those who profit from it.

[sheila]

but global warming ain't in no bible, so it ain't true. now, let's get back to the REAL threat to humanity - them ho-mo's gettin' hitched.

[Soulsurfer]

Yuck Yuck Yuck!!! How true.

[Sciguy]

....sigh... You're too right!

[Aaror]

Easy explanation for using vets as gunea pigs: costs
This is a three trillion dollar war (and rising) because of the costs of veteren care. If you can kill off the vets early, the costs drop signifigantly.
As vets, we should do our part and start killing ourselves after we serve!

[Soulsurfer]

Let's just hope you don't run into one of these guys at the mall or in a bar. So, the VA is once again showing its true colors for our troops. And the troops are mostly republican why?