That's not natural or organic: How Big Food misleads

A Salon report states: “Major conglomerates claim their food is healthy. But they might have funded the study -- and the feds barely care.”

The Dallas Morning News investigation shows how Dr. Tariq Mahmood operated a chain of dangerous small-town Texas hospitals for more than four years until regulators finally started to crack down. Before they acted, repeated warnings about grave risks to patients and potential fraud reached multiple agencies. At least four patients died. 

The project details how federal and state regulators don't track problem hospital operators or hold them accountable. Nor do they look for patterns of care breakdowns inside hospital chains. Top regulators didn't know Dr. Mahmood owned multiple hospitals until The News began asking questions about them earlier this year.

“Doctors under contract with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation sterilized nearly 150 female inmates from 2006 to 2010 without required state approvals, The Center for Investigative Reporting has found.”

An Orlando Sentinel report states: “Nowhere in America are pedestrians at greater risk of being struck and seriously injured or killed. Nowhere are drivers more likely to suffer the life-changing split second of taking someone's life — simply by operating one of the 3,000-pound machines that are so ubiquitous in Central Florida life, and so deadly.”

The Koch Club | Investigative Reporting Workshop
Koch foundations gave more than $41 million to 89 nonprofits from 2007-2011, part of a wide effort at funding organizations with public policy, education and political interests that align with those of Koch Industries, run by Charles and David Koch. The Investigative Reporting Workshop examined Internal Revenue Service documents for a closer look at Koch giving, which also includes millions to the arts, medicine and colleges across the country, as well as continued support of a "No Climate Tax Pledge." 

Control tower errors rise at Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport | The Star Tribune
Air traffic controllers made more mistakes recently at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport than at five of the 10 American airports that had more plane traffic. And MSP had almost as many errors as the Atlanta airport, which is the nation’s busiest with nearly three times the passengers.

13 excessive force complaints in officer involved in controversial shooting | The Star Tribune
His supervisors and fellow officers praise Officer Lucas Peterson as a courageous and exemplary cop. Court records offer a different view — an officer whose aggressive methods frequently cross the line. Since he joined the force in 2000, he has been named in at least 13 excessive force complaints that so far have cost the city and other agencies more than $700,000 in settlements, court and city records show.  The actions of Peterson and other officers have come under scrutiny as the Hennepin County attorney’s office reviews whether police were justified in shooting Terrence Franklin in the basement of an Uptown houseMay 10.

Paid via Card, Workers Feel Sting of Fees | The New York Times
A growing number of American workers are confronting a frustrating predicament on payday: to get their wages, they must first pay a fee.

ATF uses fake drugs, big bucks to snare suspects | USA Today
The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has locked up more than 1,000 people using controversial sting operations that entice suspects to rob nonexistent drug stash houses. See how the stings work and who they target.

Oregon Employment Department shake-up casts spotlight on accusations of nepotism | The Oregonian
An ongoing investigation by The Oregonian into the Employment Department shake-up shows that familial relationships figured prominently as the agency's top tier unraveled. The director is retiring after a state probe, the deputy abruptly departed for a lower paying state job, and the No. 3 was fired as Gov. John Kitzhaber's administration cleaned house.

Inpatient hospital bills can vary widely | San Antonio Express-News
Consumers rarely know in advance what hospitals will charge when they are admitted for inpatient procedures, particularly in emergencies. However, a San Antonio Express-News analysis of data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services suggests it's worth taking into consideration — because fees can vary widely from one hospital to the next.

Fireworks lobby ensures nightly barrage in Indiana neighborhoods despite noise, danger | The Indianapolis Star
In a state with some of the nation’s loosest laws, fireworks stands pop up this time of year like weeds in your garden — in strip malls, abandoned big-box stores and under tents by the side of the road. Millions of dollars are spent, an estimated $50 million annually in this state alone, on fireworks that are labeled “consumer grade” but often rival what you might see at a professional show.

To Cope with Sequester, Justice Department Staffs Unpaid Attorneys | ProPublica
There are currently 96 unpaid special assistant U.S. attorneys working for the department, according to a spokesperson, who said paid assistant U.S attorneys have starting salaries ranging from $44,581 to $117,994.

Secret no-fly list blamed for American's Bangkok nightmare | Los Angeles Times
A Pomona medical student spent 10 nights in an airport detention area after, he believes, his name turned up on the list. His ordeal underscores the mystery surrounding the government roster.

Nearly One in Five Members of Congress Gets Paid Twice | National Journal
They draw government pensions from previous work in addition to their congressional salary. The practice is called “double-dipping.”

NSA in Utah: Mining a mountain of data | Salt Lake Tribune
In many ways, the new Utah Data Center is the quintessential black box … but a sharper picture of what is likely to go on within its walls has come into focus with recently leaked documents on NSA surveillance, combined with prior revelations, building specifics, information from defense contractors and hints dropped by top NSA brass.

Data obtained and analyzed by ProPublica suggest another factor in the drug Bystolic's rapid success: Many of the drug's top prescribers have financial ties to Forest Laboratories, its maker.

Unjustified | Newsday
“Report reveals how cop shot unarmed man - and kept his job.”

Secret files reveal how pay-to-play works in N.J. | The Star-Ledger
“A special report by The Star-Ledger exposes how one politically connected engineering firm parlayed campaign donations into millions of dollars in public contracts, all the while keeping the scheme hidden from the public. An analysis of the records, meticulously kept and numbering 137 pages, found Birdsall made more than 1,000 secret campaign contributions worth in excess of $1 million to politicians of all stripes and in all corners of New Jersey. At the same time, the company cashed in on more than $84 million in public contracts.”

Female workers face rape, harassment in US agriculture industry | The Center for Investigative Reporting
“Hundreds of female agricultural workers have complained to the federal government about being raped and assaulted, verbally and physically harassed on the job, while law enforcement has done almost nothing to prosecute potential crimes.”

Under the Curse of Cartels | The Oregonian
“In a nine-month investigation, The Oregonian has learned that Mexican cartels, including the powerful Sinaloa and the brutal Los Zetas, have infiltrated almost every corner of Oregon. At last count, authorities were aware of no fewer than 69 drug trafficking organizations selling drugs in the state, nearly all supplied by cartels.”

Computer Industry, Unions Big Donors to Immigration Bill Supporters | OpenSecrets.org
“The 27 senators who voted against the amendment, which strengthens border security but is also a step towards passing the overall immigration package, on average received very little money from those three types of groups, but did receive heavy support from donors in the agribusiness industry.”

Top Medicare prescribers rake in spending fees from drug makers | ProPublica
“Data obtained and analyzed by ProPublica suggest another factor in the drug Bystolic's rapid success: Many of the drug's top prescribers have financial ties to Forest Laboratories, its maker.”

Sodomy Hazing Leaves 13-Year-Old Victim Outcast in Colorado Town | Bloomberg News
“High-school hazing and bullying used to involve name-calling, towel-snapping and stuffing boys into lockers. Now, boys sexually abusing other boys is part of the ritual. More than 40 high school boys were sodomized with foreign objects by their teammates in over a dozen alleged incidents reported in the past year, compared with about three incidents a decade ago, according to a Bloomberg review of court documents and news accounts.”

In Debate Over Military Sexual Assault, Men Are Overlooked Victims | The New York Times
“In a debate that has focused largely on women, this fact is often overlooked: the majority of service members who are sexually assaulted each year are men.”

In Connecticut, it can take two years or longer for complaints against physicians to result in license suspensions, revocations and other disciplinary actions by the state Medical Examining Board, working with the DPH. According to a Connecticut Health I-Team report, a review of disciplinary decisions in the past 18 months shows that the medical board rarely acts within a year of an incident occurring – and sometimes the process takes as long as four years, with physicians still practicing freely in the interim.

An Oregon program designed to help those with mental health histories restore gun ownership rights currently operates with a $576,000 budget and has restored those rights to just three people, according to an investigation by The Oregonian. The program comes from federal money -- the result of lobbying efforts by the National Rifle Association -- but funds are expected to dry up and the state legislature has a pending bill that would shift the cost to the state's taxpayers.

In cases from Wyoming to Arkansas, Pennsylvania to Texas, drillers have agreed to cash settlements or property buyouts with people who say hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, ruined their water, according to a review by Bloomberg News of hundreds of regulatory and legal filings. In most cases, homeowners must agree to keep quiet.