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HEADLINES:

Another Trillion Dollar Deficit--How Long Can It Go On?

For the fourth year in a row, Washington faces a $1 trillion-plus deficit and just servicing the nation’s debt will soon cost as much as paying for Medicaid, the federal-state health care program for the poor and disabled.

Shocking Collapse Of World Economy Warned Is Underway

A grim report just issued by the Finance Ministry that is circulating in the Kremlin today says the United States Clearing House Interbank Payments System (CHIPS) has ground to a virtual halt signaling that a major global economic collapse is currently underway and could very well likely enter into the dreaded “freefall zone.”

Senators' Bill Calls for Independent Study of Airport Scanners

A group of five Republican and Democratic senators on the homeland security committee introduced a bill today that would require an independent health study of the X-ray body scanners used in airports nationwide.We have been reporting on the cancer risk associated with the Transportation Security Administration’s scanners and on the expansion of X-ray equipment at the border, in prisons and on U.S. roads. In addition to mandating a health study, the bill would also require the TSA to place larger signs in front of security lines advising airline passengers about the radiation and the option to have a physical pat-down instead.

What The FBI Wants In a Social Media Monitoring App

The FBI has raised eyebrows in the tech world with a public document that asks for advice on how to harvest information from social networking sites.According to the document, the bureau is looking for a mapping app — or a "geospatial alert and analysis mapping application" — that, among other things, helps it search "publicly available" sources like Facebook and Twitter for national security threats.Some other items on the FBI's functionality wish list include:

"... instant notifications of breaking events, incidents, and emerging threats that have been vetted and meet the defined search parameters."

The ability to "geospatially locate bad actors or groups and analyze their movements, vulnerabilities, limitations, and possible adverse actions"

Monsanto Accused In Suit Tied To Agent Orange

For about two decades, ending in 1971, a former Monsanto chemical plant in West Virginia produced the herbicide 2,4,5-T which was used in "Agent Orange" — the defoliant the military sprayed over Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. Now, Monsanto faces a class-action lawsuit, filed on behalf of people living where the herbicide was manufactured in Nitro, W.Va.

New Silica Rules Languish In Regulatory Black Hole

Any job that involves breaking up rock or concrete or brick can potentially expose workers to dangerous silica dust, and last year it looked like the Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration was about to put stricter controls in place to limit this health hazard. Breathing tiny particles of silica, which is basically sand, can damage the lungs and cause silicosis. Experts estimate that there's thousands of new silicosis cases each year, and hundreds of deaths. Silica has also been linked to other diseases like lung cancer. As the one-year anniversary approaches, many safety advocates wonder what's holding things up. Records show that officials have held nine private meetings on the issue.

Massage Eases Inflammation In Worn-Out Muscles

...scientists now say that massage reduces inflammation caused by exercise, making a rubdown nature's answer to Advil. Now, it's true the study involved only 11 men. But the scientists didn't just ask the volunteers how they felt. The stuck needles in the volunteers' legs to biopsy their quadriceps muscles.The men exercised hard, riding a stationary bike until they could ride no more. After that, one leg got a 10-minute massage. The researchers compared muscle cells from the two legs at a very deep level. They found that the massaged muscles produced fewer cytokines, proteins that can cause swelling and soreness. Those lucky muscles also made more new mitochondria, which produce energy in the body's cells. The findings published online in Science Translational Medicine.

01/28/2012 COFAH News and Notes Update

THE COFAH NETWORK BLOG — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:24:19 GMT

HEADLINES:

Gunned Down In Broad Daylight
US Deploys 15,000 Troops To Kuwait
U.S Falls To 47th In press Freedom Rankings
ACTA = Global Internet Censorship
Memphis Mom Arrested After Babies Test Positive For Cocaine
Cocaine Found at U.N
Demi Moore "Smoked Something" Before Convulsions: 911 Tape
Obama Accused of Contempt of Court in ‘Birther’ Hearing
Beam of Light From Mexican Pyramid
Kansas GOP House Speaker ‘Prays’ Death On Obama