I've been predicting major food poisoning for the past eight years, and how ironic is it that the most prominent example happens only after Bush is on the way out the door?

I used to work for an FDA-compliance consulting firm, and shortly after Bush took over, the FDA called all its agents back from the field "to rewrite the field manual" (even though it was updated on a regular basis) and announced they would no longer do random inspections of facilities. In fact, the only manufacturing facilities they would inspect were the ones that were already operating under a consent order!

There was even an FDA FAQ directed at employees: Q. "Isn't this defacto deregulation?" A.: "Of course not! We are simply trying to make the agency more efficient." (Hint: Whenever they spell out an objection in order to deny it, it's usually a dead giveaway.)

I was appalled. I gathered up all the supporting documentation and started making phone calls to science and business reporters: The New York Times, the Washington Post, the L.A. Times, the Boston Globe, even the trade industry publications.

No one was interested. Everyone I spoke to said they found it hard to believe that the U.S. government would risk the food and drug supply like that and treated me like a crank.

Not so far-fetched now, huh?

The Food and Drug Administration is not staffed to handle the growing complexity of food inspection, especially now that a significant amount comes from abroad and is never inspected, a leading candidate to head the embattled agency said yesterday.

Dr. Steven Nissen, chairman of cardiovascular medicine at the Cleveland Clinic - and reported to be on President Barack Obama's short list to become FDA chief - said food inspection is swamped by the FDA's other responsibilities: the approval of medications and medical devices.

The result is an overworked and understaffed agency continually hit by sweeping food scares that sicken scores of people and sometimes result in death.

"The truth be told, the FDA is a failed agency ... the main problem is that it is terribly underfunded," Nissen said. "It needs to do more inspections, especially of foods brought in internationally. We are all very vulnerable. This has to be fixed and fixed quickly."

democracyarsenal: While our national conversation has been focused on porcine makeup, a Maine television reporter - unlike the BBQ press - asked a baffled McCain some tough questions. Naturally, the Psychogeezer responded to the first question with a lie, then just kept spreading manure. Example: Sarah Palin..."knows more about energy than probably anyone else in the United States of America."

Open Left: Did McCain tamper with the Drug Enforcement Agency to protect his career?

Prometheus 6: Typical of a member of the Kouncil of Konservative Kitizens

Needlenose: Advice for Obama...

Clusterdouche! Matt Damon to produce "Hockey Mom" for Disney Channel; George Lucas will provide CGI-enhanced presidential gravitas

OFF THE BEATEN PATH: nihilix, TheZoo, Click Your Opinion, Blue Heron Blast

Bloomberg:

June 7 (Bloomberg) -- Taser International Inc., the largest stun-gun maker, lost a $6.2 million jury verdict over the death of a California man who died after police shot him multiple times with the weapon. The defeat is the first for Taser in a product- liability claim.

A San Jose, California, jury yesterday said Taser had failed to warn police in Salinas, California, that prolonged exposure to electric shock from the device could cause a risk of cardiac arrest. The jury awarded $1 million in compensatory damages and $5.2 million in punitive damages to the estate of Robert Heston, 40, and his parents. The jury cleared the police officers of any liability.

His parents sued Taser, alleging failure to warn of the dangers of the weapon, and Salinas police officers, claiming excessive force. The jury ``exonerated the police because they said the police didn't know repeated exposures could kill someone,'' Burton said. Read on...

I understand that law enforcement officials have difficult jobs and often find themselves in life or death situations. There are times where the use of these alternative weapons can save lives, but it seems, as in this case, as with others, if improperly used or in the wrong circumstances, they are deadly. Amnesty International has laid out some recommendations for the use of tasers, which I quite agree with; law enforcement agencies should treat them as deadly weapons:

Amnesty International calls on all governments and law enforcement agencies to either cease using TASERs and similar devices pending the results of thorough, independent studies, or restrict their use to situations where officers would otherwise be justified in resorting to deadly force where no lesser alternatives are available. Read on...

I love Asian Yakuza movies. Heck, I love a lot of the J-horror flicks too, but I never thought I'd see this in real life. Hello, DHS---where the hell were you?

UCLA Medical Center and its most accomplished liver surgeon provided a life-saving transplant to one of Japan's most powerful gang bosses, law enforcement sources told The Times.

In addition, the surgeon performed liver transplants at UCLA on three other men who are now barred from entering the United States because of their criminal records or suspected affiliation with Japanese organized crime groups, said a knowledgeable law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity. The four surgeries were done between 2000 and 2004 at a time of pronounced organ scarcity. In each of those years, more than 100 patients died awaiting liver transplants in the Greater Los Angeles region...read on

You have got to read this story. It's a Pulitzer Prize winner....I have used the UCLA medical group in the past. Damn, if I would have produced a samurai sword when I checked in---who knows what kind of treatment I might have received.

TPMMuckraker:

For days, Bruce Barclay's political career hung in the balance. The Republican commissioner of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, had been accused of rape -- by a man, no less -- and the police were bearing down. Barclay's lawyer issued a strong denial ("This accusation of rape is ludicrous It will be defended forever and is wrong."). But it was clear things were looking pretty dicey. Until... vindication! Well, sort of.

On March 31st, police, investigating the allegation of rape by the 20-year old Marshall McCurdy, obtained a warrant to search Barclay's home. They didn't find evidence of rape. But they did find videotapes of hundreds of sexual encounters with men that Barclay had filmed on high-tech surveillance cameras. The cameras were hidden inside AM/FM radios, motion detectors and intercom speaker systems, among other places. There was also one at his business office. [..]

On April 10th, the rape charges were dropped. One of the videos found during the search showed Barclay and McCurdy engaging in apparently consensual sex. [..]

Sadly, his vindication was his undoing. Barclay was forced to resign.

Of course, Barclay may be out of the frying pan, but he definitely landed in the fire. He faces charges of privacy violations, among others. McCurdy, on the other hand, is facing charges of making false reports to law enforcement and faces up to 3 years in prison.

Robert Somma (pictured left) a Bush-appointed federal judge was in full drag when he was arrested for DUI after rear ending a pickup truck in New Hampshire on February 6th:

"He had a difficult time locating his license in his purse. He passed over it multiple times before removing it," officer Paul J. Thompson wrote in his report.

Local news reports mention that Judge Somma resigned after pleading guilty to drunken driving. Other than the gay press, no one mentioned the black evening gown and fishnet stockings. Read on...

Howie was all over another story that isn't so lighthearted. Robert McKee(pictured right), a Maryland Republican Delegate, anti-child porn crusader and former bigwig in Mitt Romney's MD campaign was arrested after police found kiddie porn at his Hagerstown home:

Law enforcement authorities, both the FBI and county sheriff's office, who are conducting a child pornography investigation, seized two computers, videotapes and printed materials when they searched the Republican's home in Hagerstown 2 weeks ago.

You think? McKee was sponsored Maryland's Child Protection From Predators Act and a proposal to collect DNA samples from sexual predators. He also sponsored several other sexual offender and child abduction bills in the past. None of the reports coming out of Maryland so far have indicated whether it was little girls or little boys-- or both-- who the Republican was interested in. He's been very active in the Little League and, predictably, was a chaplain for the First Christian Church, a position Republican child predators often use to seduce young children. Read on...

When it comes to kicking Americans out of the military because they’re gay, the occasional defense — offered by conservatives who know the policy is absurd — is that the Pentagon is merely following the law. If Congress wants able-bodied, patriotic, American volunteers to join the Armed Forces, regardless of sexual orientation, lawmakers should change the policy. If not, the Defense Department doesn’t have a lot of choice.

Except, that’s wrong. Gay soldiers discharged under the DADT policy have dropped from 1,200 a year in 2001 to less than half of that now -- and it's probably not a coincidence.

The U.S. military says it is enforcing the ban on open homosexuals in the ranks, as it has for decades, in the face of statistics that show a sharp drop in the number of discharged homosexuals as wars in Afghanistan and Iraq continue.

Homosexual rights advocates cite the plunge as evidence that the military is losing interest in enforcement and lets openly homosexual men and women serve because commanders need every able-bodied troop.

"Truth be told, I don't think the Pentagon is a big fan of the law anymore," said Steve Ralls, spokesman for Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, which is pushing for the ban's demise.

Then maybe it's time to end the ban?

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington:

Today, in light of another year rife with corruption, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) released a new report on the Top Ten Ethics Scandals of 2007. It is available in its entirety at www.citizensforethics.org.

No new enforcement mechanisms for congressional ethics;

Ted Stevens still sitting on Senate Appropriations;

Senate Ethics Committee looking into Sen. Craig, but not Sen. Vitter;

Millions of missing White House emails still unaccounted for;

Rep. Murtha's abuse of the earmarking process remains unchecked;

Lurita Doan remains chief of GSA despite illegal conduct;

White House covering up its role in the firings of the U.S. Attorneys;

No Child Left Behind funds directed to Bush fundraisers who provide inadequate reading materials for kids;

Court decision regarding search of Jefferson's office limits ability of DOJ to investigate other corrupt lawmakers; and

FEMA knowingly let Katrina victims live in hazardous trailers

Yet more blog links for you from Bob Morris of the leftie enviro Politics in the Zeros.

Asymptotic Life cut carbon emissions in their home by a whopping 70% after doing an energy audit - saving money in the process too. Here's how they did it.

They went underground in another country to infiltrate groups carrying out terrorism in their country. When they discovered serious new plots, they notified law enforcement in that country - and for their trouble received harsh decades-long prison sentences. Yes, The Cuban Five still rot in US prisons.

Will Bloomberg run in 2008? (Talk about an 800 lb. gorilla...!)

Respect, the UK party co-founded by George Galloway MP, has fractured mostly due to machinations by the far left SWP. The resulting shambles is affecting their major antiwar coalition. Sigh.

Considering the droughts, maybe it's time to re-think golf courses in deserts?

Send tips to bob (at) polizeros (dot) com

Most Attorneys General, upon stepping down, move to private-sector legal work. Some take on faculty positions at respected law schools. And then there’s Alberto Gonzales, arguably the worst Attorney General in U.S. history.

Since resigning in disgrace, Gonzales has retained a high-powered DC criminal-defense lawyer to represent him. Given that the U.S. Inspector General may recommend criminal charges against Gonzales, it was probably a good move.

It’s reached the point at which Gonzales’ friends have had to create a legal defense fund for the embattled former AG.

Supporters of former attorney general Alberto R. Gonzales have created a trust fund to help pay for his legal expenses, which are mounting in the face of an ongoing Justice Department investigation into whether Gonzales committed perjury or improperly tampered with a congressional witness.

The establishment of a legal defense fund for the nation’s former chief law enforcement officer underscores the potential peril confronting Gonzales, who is one of a handful of attorneys general to face potential criminal charges for actions taken in office.

If criminal charges against Fredo come quickly enough, maybe he can get the special Scooter Libby get-out-of-jail-free card?