2011 State Department & More

Now let’s see what the rest of the government has been doing for the last few months of 2011.

The Federal Cobra insurance for the unemployed was discontinued on September 1, 2011 and a US Mint officer admits to stealing $2.4 million in coins. On October 25 we heard that paper money needs to be replaced every 36 months and costs 7 cents to print. Folks said people won’t use the dollar coin so just do without the dollar bill. Paper and ink lobbyist want to keep them as well as the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association and lobbyists for mining and vending machines want the coins. I didn’t hear what the final decision was however, on December 9 it’s reported that the Mint is stopping the printing of presidential coins saving taxpayers $50 million a year; they will start up again next spring but only making enough for pre-orders.

On October 17 a report from the Environmental Health Trust (group of doctors and researchers promoting awareness of environmental health risks) said our government uses a study (of plastic mannequin heads that correspond to a 6’2”, 220 pound man) that doesn’t fit the bill for 97% of the population to say the radiation from cell phones is okay. Devra Lee Davis of the Trust said the standards are based on old science, old models and old assumptions on how we use cell phones. The head images show that radiation for a 10-year old goes through the head 150% deeper than an adult’s while the radiation absorption for a 5 year old is even more. The Trust’s report mentions a different report that says a child’s bone marrow absorbs radiation 10 times more than an adult and the eyes are greatly affected. The mannequin doesn’t test what affect that radiation has on other parts of the body. The Trust report recommends scanning full sized models that represent all ages. The FCC website says there is no scientific evidence that link cell phones to cancer or other diseases. Per Dr. Besser, the radiation from X-rays is called ionizing radiation while the radiation from cell phones is non-ionizing like in a microwave which causes heat. To reduce the radiation, limit the talk on the phone, use a hands-free device or speaker phone, and text instead of talk. On October 21 another study of over 350,000 people over 17 years found no more or no less cancer than those that don’t use cell phones but experts say the risk still can’t be ruled out.

On October 31, per the US Travel Association, the US lost 78 million visitors over the last 10 years, enough to add 500,000 jobs a year because there weren’t enough people to process the paperwork. The State Department’s David Donahue said safety and security come first (we were attacked on September 1, 2001 and had to be cautious) but they’re working on it; they’re sending 100 workers combined to Brazil and China (and here I thought we checked things out at customs on US soil). On November 1 we heard that High Tech companies here in the US have many foreign entrepreneurs, CEOs and hire many Americans; they choose to come here and in the last 10 years have created 450,000 American jobs. Foreign students educated here in America are having their Visas denied while Americans are being offered start-up money and incentives to start companies in other countries. Amit Aharoni is from Israel, was trained at Stanford and denied a Visa because the US says he’s not using the advanced degree that he got. Due to the airing of the show, Amit’s visa was approved and he’s coming back from Canada to house his company Cruisewise.com (investors have already put in millions). On November 7 a State Department security official faced murder charges in Hawaii. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is all over the world and on November 30 she’s the first US official to visit Myanmar in 50 years; she asked and Ellen accepted the position of Special Envoy for Global Aids Awareness; Ellen will be working with Bono in his two campaigns (Red/The One) to help fight hunger and aids as well as work with others on this issue.

On November 7 it’s said that the Federal Trade Commission is looking into yo-yo financing (sending people home with the vehicle before financing is secured) and dealers calling later to say either pay more for the car or bring it back while they kept the trade-ins and deposits. We were warned of hidden mark-ups (dealers profit from the loans they sell the customers) and told to shop for a better loan and look for expensive add-ons like paint sealants and fabric protection that are unnecessary on new cars. On November 12 we hear that federal regulators are investigating electric vehicle batteries after a Chevy Volt catches fire 3 weeks after a crash test. On November 15 the feds are looking into a gear shift problem (the vehicles say they’re in park when they’re in drive) of GMC vehicles from 2004 – 2008; 7 crashes were blamed on the problem (never heard anything more on this). On November 26 another Chevy Volt battery catches fires after a crash test but there’s no report of battery fires in accidents on the road, GM cooperated and on December 7 it’s reported that a coolant leak was causing the problem; preventative measures were announced on January 6, 2012.

November 16 it’s reported that the federal agency that insures the pensions for 1 out of 7 Americans ran its largest deficit in US history. November 26 there’s another mission to Mars (26 of 40 have failed).