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RadioWhoWhatWhy: “If you think you know what’s going on in Mexico, you’re misinformed.”
By Guillermo Jimenez
There’s more to the second prison break by Mexican drug kingpin El Chapo than meets the eye. A podcast.
WHO
Criminal Inquiry Is Sought in Clinton Email Account
Two inspectors general requested a Justice Department inquiry into Hillary’s email “practices” while she was Secretary of State. The story is a problem for her campaign … and for the NY Times. They altered the headline and the story to make Hillary’s “email account” the subject of the probe after the original verbiage identified Hillary “the actual person” as the target. Go figure.
Jeb Bush Defends Medicare ‘Phase Out’ Comment
The Next Bush In Line has his own tempest to deal with after he said Medicare will have to be phased out for all but those currently reliant on the entitlement system. He is, of course, going with the “taken out of context” defense. He also wants to resurrect his brother’s Social Security privatization scheme … much to the delight of Democratic Party strategists. Ironically, a new report shows that the cost of Medicare is declining.
WHAT
The Eurasian Big Bang : How China and Russia Are Running Rings Around Washington
Pepe Escobar puts the Iran Deal into the much-larger geopolitical context now changing Eurasia. The key is Tehran’s unique “geo-strategic” position at the heart of Eurasia. Iran is in a linchpin location and they’ve quietly cemented themselves into a series of interlocking economic and political alliances that link them with Russia, China and a number of developing nations. Meanwhile, Washington’s “claustrophobic echo chamber” bloviates about the “evils” of the Iran Deal … thus showing how little they understand grand strategy and the Eurasian chessboard.
WHY
Why Are People Still Using Asbestos?
Smithsonian Magazine ponders how greed and stupidity sustain the use of a deadly material linked to 107,000 deaths each year. Concerns about the use of asbestos rose significantly in the 19th century and researchers confirmed it was hazardous in the mid-1950s. But, like the tobacco industry, the asbestos industry has remained profitable in spite of common sense and those ubiquitous mesothelioma ads you see every day on television.
Did Radiation Really ‘Mutate’ These Daisies?
Social media is buzzing about a picture of deformed daisies found near Fukushima. Although radiation seems like the obvious explanation, plant biologists are not so sure. Cornell University biologist Jeffrey J. Doyle said, “…this is a pretty common mutation in daisies.” But he didn’t rule it out, noting that similar mutations occur at toxic and radioactive waste sites. The areas around the disaster zone remain woefully contaminated, even as the government continues to “scrub” villages in a questionable attempt to make them safe for humans.
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