a-step-further

House Democrats Will Ban Earmarks for Companies in Election-Year Crackdown

by on March 10, 2010

By Brian Faler March 10 (Bloomberg) — House Democrats announced they are banning so-called earmarks for defense contractors, energy firms and other private companies in an election-year attempt to crack down on the much-criticized funding process. Lawmakers will also direct federal auditors to inspect five percent of projects awarded to nonprofit groups to guard against companies masquerading as such entities, said House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey and Defense Spending Subcommittee Chairman Norm Dicks in a joint statement. The two lawmakers estimated that companies received about 1,000 earmarks from Congress last year. Critics have singled out for attack the funding of such projects for companies, saying they amount to no-bid contracts to firms that often return the favor with contributions to lawmakers’ re-election campaigns. President Barack Obama echoed such criticism last year, calling such earmarks “the single most corrupting element in this practice.” Steve Ellis , vice president of Taxpayers for Common Sense , a Washington group that tracks projects, called today’s House announcement “a significant positive step forward” because “earmarks to for-profit entities are certainly ground zero for pay-to-play.” Deficit Issue The plan may help Democrats deal with concern among voters about rising federal spending and deficits , as well as a series of ethics-related inquiries involving Democratic lawmakers. Most earmarks benefit public or nonprofit organizations such as hospitals, police departments, universities and arts centers. Projects for profit-making entities tend to go to either defense contractors or energy companies. Obama’s proposals to crack down on earmarks ran into opposition on Capitol Hill, especially in the Senate, where lawmakers balked at more modest restrictions than announced by Obey, a Wisconsin Democrat, and Dicks, a Washington state Democrat. The announcement was praised by Representative Jeff Flake , an Arizona Republican who is a persistent critic of the earmarking practice. He called it a “good first step,” and said he hoped “Republicans take these restrictions a step further and impose a moratorium on all earmarks this year.” House Republicans are considering such a moratorium, said Majority Leader John Boehner , an Ohio Republican. A spokesman for Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye , a Hawaii Democrat, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. To contact the reporter on this story: Brian Faler  in Washington at   or bfaler@bloomberg.net .

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House Democrats Will Ban Earmarks for Companies in Election-Year Crackdown

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Fecal Odor May Lead to Faster Test Outcome for Diarrhea Bug, Doctors Say

by on February 5, 2010

By Jason Gale Feb. 5 (Bloomberg) — A new device that sniffs out malodorous bacteria in stool samples may yield the first rapid, point-of-care test for a potentially lethal diarrheal disease spreading across North America and Europe. Doctors in England say their OdoReader analyzes gases emitted from feces to diagnose the presence of the bacterium Clostridium difficile in less than an hour. Prototypes will be tested against existing diagnostic methods , according to the Wellcome Trust , the world’s second-biggest medical research charity, which is funding the development of the portable device. Earlier detection could help stem the spread and hasten treatment for a disease that can cause life-threatening bowel inflammation. About half a million Americans were infected with C. difficile in 2008, and hospitalizations doubled to 300,000 in 2005 from 2000, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . “For a long time it has been known that stools have a distinctive and different odor if there is an infection,” said co-developer Chris Probert , professor of gastroenterology at the University of Bristol, in a statement today. “What OdoReader does is take this ‘knowledge’ a step further by comparing the odor of feces of patients with those from people with specific gastro-intestinal disease to make a rapid diagnosis.” C. difficile invades the colon, causing diarrhea and a potentially more serious complication called colitis. More than 50,000 cases of infection occur annually in England and Wales. Antibiotics used to treat other diseases can lead to C. difficile infection by disrupting normal bowel flora, according to the CDC in Atlanta. Fecal Bug The bug is found in feces and typically transmitted in hospitals and nursing homes by staff who have touched contaminated surfaces. Reported deaths from C. difficile in the U.S. increased to 23.7 per million population in 2004 from 5.7 per million in 1999, according to a 2007 study in the CDC’s journal Emerging Infectious Disease. The 1.3 million pounds ($2 million) of funding from the Wellcome Trust will support the development of OdoReader prototypes, according to the statement. If the prototypes are successful, they will undergo a clinical trial before being available commercially, the charity said. To contact the reporter on this story: Jason Gale in Singapore at j.gale@bloomberg.net .

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Fecal Odor May Lead to Faster Test Outcome for Diarrhea Bug, Doctors Say

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Michael Jordan’s Number Isn’t About the Money: Scott Soshnick

November 17, 2009

Commentary by Scott Soshnick Nov. 17 (Bloomberg) — LeBron James is right. His boyhood idol, Michael Jordan , deserves more. So do the sports fans that pay too much for parking and beer and those wretched personal-seat licenses. James said he’s giving up his uniform No. 23 as way to pay homage to Jordan, the five-time National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player who won six championships with the Chicago Bulls. The Cleveland Cavaliers star and reigning MVP went public with his idea last week after playing a game in Miami as The Man himself sat courtside to take in Nike Inc.’s heir to Air. Enshrining Jordan in the hall of fame isn’t enough, James says. Not for all that Jordan has meant to sports. James knows that Commissioner David Stern isn’t about to alter the NBA’s iconic logo , which is modeled after a dribbling Jerry West . So James, who beginning next season will wear No. 6 in honor of his second-favorite player, Julius Erving , suggested that no NBA player should wear No. 23. James wants a leaguewide moratorium on Jordan’s number. Every team. That’s what Major League Baseball did for Jackie Robinson , whose No. 42 won’t be issued again. James is starting a petition. “I’ve got to get everyone in the NBA to sign it,” he said. “If I’m not going to wear No. 23, then nobody else should be able to wear it.” Critics like Orlando Magic coach Stan Van Gundy point out that Jordan, socially speaking, is no Robinson, who in 1947 became the first black player in the major leagues. Another First So I went to basketball’s version of Robinson, Earl Lloyd, who in 1950 became the first black player in the NBA. Speaking by telephone from his home in Tennessee, Lloyd said he supports any initiative that recognizes Jordan, the basketball player. “Let me tell you why Michael was revered internationally – - he was a prime-time player,” the 81-year-old Lloyd said. “That guy would put more daggers in people’s hearts than Genghis Khan.” Let me take James’s idea a step further. All teams in all sports should retire No. 23 . Put it out there for all to see, fans and players alike, in the rafters and on the outfield walls. These days every owner, general manager, player and even fan could sure use a reminder that there once was a player with no financial motivation who went out there and gave it his best. Best Every Night And not just when a championship ring hinged on that night’s outcome, either. Jordan brought his best every night, including those seemingly random snowy January games in Milwaukee, when he could have sleepwalked his way to 30 points and a win. Andre Agassi in his recently released book admitted to tanking a match. Just didn’t feel like playing that day, he wrote. Try explaining that to Jordan, who hated to lose at anything, anywhere. Even practice. When you see No. 23 on a tank top you think of the bald head who fueled the NBA’s global growth and who helped Nike sell the swoosh without borders. When you see No. 23 you think game-winning shots, of a guy defying gravity, tongue out, doing the unexpected. Most of all you think of effort and winning. Jordan wouldn’t address the media after games until he was dressed, tie knotted just right. It was a much-needed dose of professionalism in a league whose commissioner after Jordan’s retirement felt compelled to implement a dress code. Maybe baseball players would run hard to first base if they were reminded of No. 23 from the dugout. Maybe football players wouldn’t loaf through a play here and there. Following a Lead Consider some of the other NBA players who now sport No. 23: the 76ers’ Louis Williams ; Jodie Meeks of the Bucks and Kevin Martin of the Kings. Something tells me they would be willing to follow LeBron’s lead. Even Lloyd says there will only be one Jackie Robinson. Sure, Lloyd heard the taunts and racial epithets in his day. But here was a kid from Virginia, the cradle of the Confederacy, as he called it, where he’d absorbed much worse. “I used to tell those folks they needed to get someone to do a seminar on name-calling because they were rank amateurs,” Lloyd said, letting loose a belly laugh. This isn’t about Jordan living up to the legacy of Robinson. It’s about recognizing a man who changed the sports landscape. All while the world was watching. “Any accolades relative to basketball — he earned them,” Lloyd said of Jordan, who during the 1994-95 NBA season came out of retirement wearing the No. 45. He returned to No. 23, which had already been retired by the Bulls. Answering Skeptics James ought to silence skeptics who will surely point out that changing uniform numbers is a surefire way for a player to sell more jerseys. James can do that by including in his petition the idea that all proceeds from sales of his No. 6 go to charity. James’s jersey is the second-best seller in the league to the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant , who several years ago switched to No. 24 from No. 8. The NBA likes to say it cares. We know Jordan did — about winning. A daily reminder might just be what sports needs these days. ( Scott Soshnick is a Bloomberg News columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.) Click on “Send Comment” in the sidebar display to send a letter to the editor. To contact the writer of this column: Scott Soshnick in New York at ssoshnick@bloomberg.net

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Breast Cancer Awareness VIDEO: Watch Out For Misleading Pink Labels

October 14, 2009

It’s Breast Cancer Awareness month, and breast cancer is not the only thing you should be aware of. The next time you see pink packaging beckoning you from the shopping aisle, don’t fall for it right away – sometimes, pink is just pink. According to a report by Wish TV , some products (especially cleaning supplies) just slap some pink on their packaging and a “Breast Cancer Awareness” emblem, but don’t take it a step further by donating any proceeds. There’s arguably nothing wrong with making people aware of Breast Cancer Awareness month. However, it’s clearly a marketing ploy, as consumers understandably assume that a pink ribbon equals a donation. So instead of donating to the cause, the company actually capitalizes off of it. Things are also ambiguous when it comes to companies that are making donations. Breast Cancer Action , the watchdog of the breast cancer movement, is a great resource for tracking down information such as: how much money is being donated per purchase, to what organization, and for what kind of research. The Better Business Bureau also issued a warning of fake pink ribbons and how to avoid being duped. A simple way of spotting products that definitely donate to the cause is by looking for the pink ribbon paired with a dot, which is the symbol for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation. Bottom line: Think before you buy pink.

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