August 12, 2010

A total of 1,097 foodborne disease outbreaks were reported in 2007 to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to a CDC analysis. State investigators reported 21,244 illnesses and 18 deaths as a result of these outbreaks. The report also provides the most recent data on how many illnesses were linked to specific types of foods. "Knowing more about what types of foods and foodborne agents have caused outbreaks can help guide public health and the food industry in developing measures to effectively control and prevent infections and help people stay healthy," said Chris Braden, acting director of the CDC's Division of Foodborne, Waterborne and Environmental Diseases. Full release.

Muslims worldwide have entered into the month of Ramadan. Ramadan is the month in the Islamic lunar calendar in which Muslim are commanded by God to abstain from all food and drink from dawn until sunset each day. During Ramadan, Muslims place special emphasis on cultivating spiritual development, compassion, and generosity to others, especially the poor. Muslim American Society Freedom (MASF) the civic advocacy and education component of the Muslim American Society, America's largest Muslim grassroots organization, has launched a national religious freedom campaign. The campaign calls upon Muslims, especially during Ramadan, to reach out to their neighbors and other faith communities to affirm Muslims' collective right to build mosques, as well as the right of all religious communities to build houses of worship. Full release.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration today announced that BP Products North America Inc. will pay a full penalty of $50.6 million stemming from the 2005 explosion at its Texas City, Texas, refinery that killed 15 workers and injured 170 others. The agreement resolves failure-to-abate citations issued after a 2009 follow-up investigation. In addition to paying the record fine, BP has agreed to take immediate steps to protect those now working at the refinery, allocating a minimum of $500 million to that effort. "This agreement achieves our goal of protecting workers at the refinery and ensuring that critical safety upgrades are made as quickly as possible," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "The size of the penalty rightly reflects BP's disregard for workplace safety and shows that we will enforce the law so workers can return home safe at the end of their day." Full release.

The nation's leading advocacy organization for entrepreneurs is saying that the poor jobs picture is the result of misguided economic strategies, legislation and policy threats that will only accelerate joblessness. Commenting on the latest U.S. Labor Department data showing a spike in jobless benefits, Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council) president & CEO Karen Kerrigan said the Obama Administration's fixation on taxing U.S. businesses to advance and promote out-of-control government spending is taking a major toll on businesses of all sizes. Full release.

A new nationwide survey of Republican voters finds that support for former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to win the GOP's 2012 presidential nomination has fallen by one-third since March, sliding from 18 points to 12 points. Palin is now running in fourth place for the nomination behind former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. In all three Clarus polls testing the 2012 nomination strength of a changing roster of potential candidates, Romney and Huckabee have topped the GOP field. The poll was conducted by Clarus Research Group, a nonpartisan Washington, D.C. based polling and research firm. The survey was not sponsored or paid for by any client, candidate or political party. Full release.

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) voices its opposition to plans by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to change the status of broadband Internet Service from a lightly-regulated "information service" to a more heavily regulated "telecommunications service." At its meeting late last week, ALEC's Telecommunications & Information Technology Task Force approved its ALEC Broadband Regulation Resolution. The Resolution declares ALEC's opposition to the FCC's controversial plan to subject broadband Internet service to a handful of older monopoly-era telephone regulations. Full release.

With the midterm elections coming up in the fall, the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life has released a new Web feature, "Religion & Politics 2010," which provides a variety of election resources for reporters, including: * Poll analyses and survey reports on topics related to the midterm elections * Links to news stories about religion-related issues impacting 2010 congressional and gubernatorial races around the country * "Election news briefs" highlighting interesting articles and common themes making news headlines * An interactive graphic illustrating the congressional voting intentions of major religious groups, which will be updated throughout the campaign season as new survey data become available. Full release.

A new video sharing site, NaturalNews.TV, officially launched this week. The site serves up videos covering natural health, green living, exercise and fitness, holistic living, food and nutrition, environmental protection and other similar topics. Co-founded by Mike Adams, the editor of NaturalNews.com, the video site has grown to over 7,000 members in its pre-launch phase, and it is expected to serve tens of millions of video views this year. As with other video sites, NaturalNews.TV is free to join and free to use. Members sign up with an email address and may begin uploading unlimited videos. All videos are screened and quality-rated by NaturalNews.TV staff members, and videos that don't meet the site's quality and content guidelines are declined. Full release.

More than 20 million Americans have multiple Social Security numbers (SSNs) associated with their name in commercial records according to a new study announced today from ID Analytics, Inc., a leader in consumer risk management. The study also found that rather than serving as a unique identifier, more than 40 million SSNs are associated with multiple people. ID Analytics conducted the industry's most comprehensive examination of SSNs using its ID Network, the nation's only real-time, cross-industry compilation of identity information. It examined more than 280 million SSNs to determine discrepancies. Full release.

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