Environment and Health
Treating Sick Rich Folks
In these trying times of health care austerity, it reaffirms one’s faith in humanity to learn that many hospitals are now going the extra mile to provide top quality care for all.
Soaking the Customer
Ruby Williams, a 78-year-old Aqua Pennsylvania customer, got stuck with a $40,000 water bill because of a serious leak in the pipes under her home in Bristol Township, Pennsylvania. After her situation garnered national media attention, the private company agreed to reduce her bill to a few hundred dollars.
Shifting Gears
Over the past 60 years, transportation has changed less than might have been expected. Still no jetpacks, for example. And while this might change after the presidential election, we’re not yet commuting to jobs on the moon.
Stealing State Parks
In one of the saddest signs of the times, “We’re Closed” signs are popping up all across the country as governors and legislators are cutting off funds (and shutting off access) to one of the finest, most popular assets owned by the people of our country: state parks.
Coal Smoke and Planetary Fever
I recently returned to my childhood home in India with my siblings for a final walk down memory lane with my elderly mother. As expected, it was a powerfully emotional experience. But in ways unexpected, it brought home to me how our planetary fever — climate change — is inflicting a deadly fever on those least to blame for it.
The Fight over Reproductive Rights
The air is still thick with outrage over President Barack Obama’s attempt to require all employers to provide insurance coverage for people who desire (or need) birth control.
Inside Rick Santorum’s Head
Rick Santorum is the latest darling of the most extreme of the GOP’s extremist voters. Here’s just an earful of this guy’s moral piety.
Fracking Perils
Folks, I’ve got some good news and some bad news about the nation’s ever-elusive quest for a sound energy policy. The good news: Finally there’s some under-the-radar bipartisan consensus in Washington. The bad news: The Democrats and the Republicans are dead wrong.
Planned Parenthood
Cheering Obama’s Wise Tar Sands Choice
We cheered when the Obama administration formally denied a federal permit for the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline put forth by Canadian oil giant TransCanada. The 1,700-mile pipeline would have run through six states, carrying toxic, highly corrosive tar sands crude from Alberta, Canada, to refineries and ports in Texas.
