NOW LIVE ON WhoWhatWhy
Is Western Policy on Ukraine Putin’ World at Risk?
by Victor Kotsev
Western support of the Ukrainian uprising may have been miscalculated—and has the potential to exacerbate an already-strained relationship with Russia.
WHO
The Super Rich Have a New Way to Buy Elections
Until recently, SuperPACs were driven by “bundlers”—heavy-hitting political players who “bundled” contributions from a bevy of contributors into big piles of political cash. But that was before influence peddling got super-charged by Citizens United. Now the “in” thing is the single-donor SuperPAC. It’s basically a political front group for one mega-donor, who can then reshape elections to suit specific whims, needs or a political ideology. Can you say “oligarchy?”
FBI Overstated Forensic Hair Matches in Nearly All Trials Before 2000
Some 2,500 criminal cases in which FBI experts falsely-testified are under review. But this bombshell comes too late for 14 of the 32 suspects sentenced to death in cases using such flawed evidence: they’ve been executed or died in prison. Stay tuned for WhoWhatWhy‘s take on it tomorrow.
Prison Labor Company Features Promo Video Touting “Best-Kept Secret in Outsourcing”
It stands to reason that Unicor—also known as Federal Prison Industries—doesn’t mind a few wrongful convictions. More convictions are good for their business model. They are a government-owned corporation paying its “federal workers”—a.k.a. “prisoners”—as little as 23 cents an hour to manufacture military uniforms, furniture, electronics and staff call centers. Forget India and the Philippines… Unicor’s promotional video touts their workforce as “the best kept secret in outsourcing!”
WHAT
The Surprising Lesson of the BP Oil Spill
It’s been five years since the largest oil spill in U.S. history despoiled the Gulf Of Mexico and tarnished oil giant BP’s public reputation. The Gulf is still struggling. BP has doubled-down on drilling. Scientists are still trying to figure out why 10% of the oil settled onto the ocean floor… and if the controversial clean-up process actually contributed to the accumulation of oil on the seabed.
The United States of Legal Weed
It’s April 20th and, in case you are among the uninitiated, this is pot-smoking’s national holiday. So, to commemorate 420, Mother Jones compiled a telling data-set illustrating the national shift away from prohibition and increasingly toward legalization of both medicinal and recreational marijuana.
WHY
Why I Quit The Daily Show
Jon Stewart talks about hosting The Daily Show, his decision to leave and his foray into filmmaking in this lengthy profile by The Guardian. Stewart expresses regret that he didn’t hammer former Defense Secretary Don Rumsfeld during a 2011 interview, but that is one of the few low points in what has been an amazing run as the mainstream media’s de facto ombudsman.
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