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Sarah Palin on legal reform, Exxon Valdez and polar bears
Point of Law News Clipping
By: Carter Wood
8.29.2008
Not much to say about Alaska's governor, Sarah Palin, on legal reform issues (certainly a lot less than Sen. Joe Biden). The Pacific Research Institute's 2008 State Liability Index ranks Alaska as having the No. 2 legal climate in outputs (costs) and No. 16 in inputs (laws).
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PhRMA's New Marketing Code
Medical Progress Today "Second Opinion" Expert Forum
8.28.2008
Critics have accused the pharmaceutical industry of inappropriate marketing practices that inflate health-costs through inappropriate physician detailing that promotes new, branded medicines to the detriment of cheaper generics.
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Universal Malpractice
Campus Report Online News Clipping
By: Lance Nation
8.28.2008
Although Americas are hearing political elites promising to end their health care woes with universal coverage, the government that would hand out this treatment does not have a stellar record of delivering the services it already offers.
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Kids' Obesity Rates Leveling Off
Weight Loss Tips Blog News Clipping
By: Aleks Karnick
8.27.2008
Childhood obesity rates in the United States have leveled off after decades of increases, according to a study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
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Mixing Oil and Water
Sacramento Union Op-Ed
By: K. Lloyd Billingsley
8.27.2008
On Aug. 6, the California Coastal Commission approved a desalination plant at Carlsbad in San Diego County, a region with severe water needs in normal times and hard hit by the current drought. The $300-million for-profit venture by the Poseidon Resources Corporation aims to produce as much as 50 million gallons of fresh water each day, about nine percent of the water San Diego County uses. The approval marks a change for the Coastal Commission, an unelected body usually in the business of rejection.
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It's the Outcomes, Silly
Insure Blog News Clipping
By: H.G. Stern
8.26.2008
Well-meaning but ignorant folks from the AMA to AARP [ed: sorry, couldn't find any Z org's that fit the bill] have long touted gummint-run healthcare, a la Medicare, as the ideal solution to a system they consider "broken." Nationalized health care, they argue, provides the most fair and efficient means of delivery.
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The governor’s war on health insurance choice
Eureka Reporter (CA) Op-Ed
By: John R. Graham
8.26.2008
Ever since Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ABX1 1 stumbled just short of the finish line last January, he and his Democratic allies in the Legislature have been looking to move bits and pieces of the failed health reform plan forward. Amazingly, one that he favors is sponsored by the legislator who killed ABX1 1, state Sen. Sheila Kuehl, as well as the California Medical Association.
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Labor reform debate needed
The Oklahoman Op-Ed
By: Jason Clemens
8.25.2008
It's no surprise that the labor movement is behind the Democratic Party and presumptive presidential nominee Barack Obama. The union movement has normally maintained cordial, if not intimate, ties with Democrats. Some estimate that unions will spend nearly $1 billion this election cycle in support of Democrats.
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Wind Power Pollution
Cohotan Wind Watch News Clipping
By: Jack Sullivan
8.25.2008
They say let us clear the air together, do they mean let us befoul the North Country? The wind industry's development of a giant industrial complex aka a "wind farm" produces large amounts of greenhouse gases as well as significant mercury pollution.
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The Case Against Socialized Medicine
Powerline News Clipping
By: Paul Mirengoff
8.25.2008
Health care reform may have receded slightly as a campaign issue this year, as focus shifts to even more immediate concerns like the cost of filling our cars with gas. Although a bad employment picture can cost some Americans their health care coverage, it may also be true that the goal of guaranteeing coverage to every American sounds more like a luxury and less like a moral imperative during bad times.
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Little Rhetoric Riding Hood
Washington Post News Clipping
By: George F. Will
8.24.2008
Barack Obama has made his economic thinking excruciatingly clear, so it also is clear that his running mate should be Rumpelstiltskin. He spun straw into gold, a skill an Obama administration will need to fulfill its fairy-tale promises.
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Judicial races much too vital to bypass in the voting booth
The Orlando Sentinel News Clipping
By: Carlos Muhletaler
8.24.2008
From health care and community safety to schools and the economy, and just plain fairness in our courts, Florida's judges make decisions every day that affect our lives. Yet for most Floridians, the judiciary is the least understood branch of government.
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Push Algebra on Eighth-Graders?: YES: Don't accept failure as the standard
The Press Entreprise (Riverside, CA) Op-Ed
By: Ian Randolph
8.23.2008
The state Board of Education recently unveiled a plan to require all eighth-graders to take algebra by 2011. That sparked opposition from education officials, including state schools superintendent Jack O'Connell, who said the move was "irresponsible" and "setting up schools for failure."
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Who Deserves the Tech Vote?
Tech News World Op-Ed
8.22.2008
Nine months after Barack Obama, John McCain has unveiled his own technology plan for America. At last, both candidates can be graded for their long-term friendliness to the tech sector.
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Study: State is a 'saint'
Mississippi Business Journal News Clipping
8.22.2008
The Pacific Research Institute (PRI) has released its report comparing the legal climates of all 50 states. And the report is favorable for Mississippi, ranking it ninth.
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How has the state's legal climate changed since tort reform was enacted?
Columbus Business First (OH) News Clipping
8.22.2008
So, the hard work of the Ohio Alliance for Civil Justice to pass comprehensive tort reform made an important contribution to our state’s economic health. As Ohio’s economy struggles to improve, we should thank the Ohio legislators who had the courage to reform our civil justice system.
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High-Tech Lessons for Sacto from SF
Sacramento Union Op-Ed
By: Daniel R. Ballon, Ph.D
8.21.2008
For nine days last month, San Francisco’s state-of-the-art new computer network was held hostage by a convicted felon. Even a team of Silicon Valley’s best and brightest engineers working around the clock could not crack his code. Finally, in a secret midnight meeting at the Hall of Justice, the mayor himself convinced the perpetrator to relinquish control.
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A New Lesson for California School Superintendent
Sacramento Union Op-Ed
By: Lance T. Izumi, J.D.
8.21.2008
When middle-class parents in California opened their newspapers recently and read that the leviathan Los Angeles Unified School District had overpaid their employees by $53 million, many likely took comfort in the belief that at least the school districts in their own cozy suburban neighborhoods were well managed. These parents, however, should think again.
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Code for drug reps should fend off new regulations
The Buffalo News Opinion Op-Ed
By: Sally C. Pipes
8.20.2008
The pharmaceutical industry’s trade group just announced a new voluntary code of conduct. The updated rules, which take effect on Jan. 1, severely restrict drug company sales reps from giving gifts and purchasing meals for doctors. The rules also impose new regulations on consulting arrangements between physicians and drug companies.
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How Water, Oil, and Government Mix in California
California Republic Op-Ed
By: K. Lloyd Billingsley
8.19.2008
On August 6, the California Coastal Commission approved a desalination plant at Carlsbad in San Diego County, a region with severe water needs in normal times and hard hit by the current drought. The $300-million for-profit venture by the Poseidon Resources Corporation aims to produce as much as 50 million gallons of fresh water each day, about nine percent of the water San Diego County uses. The approval marks a change for the Coastal Commission, an unelected body usually in the business of rejection.
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Best U.S. Cities To Earn A Living
Forbes News Clipping
By: Matt Woolsey
8.19.2008
Though Houston has plenty of fat cats, this is not a story about America's Most Overweight Cities. Rather, Houston is recognized here for its dynamic business environment, low unemployment and high wages relative to income. These factors make Houston the best city to earn a living by our calculations.
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MS ranks as 9th best in US for tort status
Y'All Politics News Clipping
8.19.2008
The Pacific Research Institute released its report comparing the legal climates of all 50 states. According to the U.S. Tort Liability Index: 2008 Report, Florida ranked the worst in terms of tort costs and litigation risks, while North Dakota ranked the best. In a separate ranking, the study also evaluated the tort laws of each state. Colorado had the best tort laws on its books, while Rhode Island had the worst.
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INSURANCE: Small business owners try to manage higher premiums.
Tonawanda News (NY) News Clipping
By: Dave Hill
8.18.2008
Turns out, New York is really a red state. That's according to the Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy, a San Francisco-based non-profit organization that characterizes each state's litigation climate by designating one of three colors to it — red, yellow or green.
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New Chinese Antitrust Law Threatens America’s High-Tech Leadership
The Hill
By: Daniel R. Ballon, Ph.D
8.15.2008
As athletes from around the world gather in Beijing for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, the Chinese government has its eyes on the gold. The gold that China wins on the field of play, however, will pale in comparison to the riches it plunders from America's most successful innovators. Armed with a vast new antitrust law that went into effect this month, the country is gearing up to extort billions of dollars from leading firms such as Google, Intel, and Microsoft.
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Vive la Reagan Revolution
Human Events News Clipping
By: Andrew P. McIndoe
8.15.2008
Dressed in jeans, a denim jacket, and cowboy boots, President Ronald Reagan emerged from his humble, hacienda-style adobe ranch house located high in the mountains of Santa Barbara, Calif. With his dog “Millie” by his side, the president walked to the leather covered patio table, sat down in a chair and faced open pasture. Though this describes many of the 350 days the President spent at “Rancho del Cielo” during his 8 years in office, August 13, 1981 was different.
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It's More Than a Pants Suit
Myrtle Beach Herald (SC) News Clipping
By: Todd Stottlemyer
8.15.2008
Did you hear the one about the $65 million pair of pants? It sounds like the start of a joke, but unfortunately it's not.
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California's Affluent Schools Ooze Corruption
Human Events Op-Ed
By: Lance T. Izumi, J.D.
8.14.2008
When middle-class parents in California opened their newspapers recently and read that the leviathan Los Angeles Unified School District had overpaid their employees by $53 million, many likely took comfort in the belief that at least the school districts in their own cozy suburban neighborhoods were well managed. These parents, however, should think again.
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Expel ‘Promote Now, Pay Later’
Sacramento Union Op-Ed
By: Vicki E. Murray, Ph.D
8.14.2008
Last month, Californians were stunned to learn that around one in four high school students drops out, almost twice as many as the state previously reported. In districts like Grant Joint Union High, more than one in three dropout.
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National Think Tank Releases State Rankings on Health Ownership
PRI Press Release
8.14.2008
San Francisco-Americans lack the basic freedom to make their own health care decisions according to the second edition of the U.S. Index of Health Ownership, an annual report by the Pacific Research Institute (PRI). The Index measures the degree to which individuals, be they patients, health professionals, entrepreneurs, or taxpayers, "own" the health care in their states.
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The Internet - Should Feds Be Involved?
The Radio Patriot and BlogTalk Radio
By: Daniel R. Ballon, Ph.D
8.14.2008
PRI's Dr. Daniel Ballon discusses the Fairness Doctrine, net neutrality and regulation of the internet on the Andrea Shea King Radio show.
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Crist's court appointments can end 'lawsuit lottery'
Tallahassee Democrat News Clipping
By: Carlos Muhletaler
8.14.2008
As the media fixate on Sen. John McCain's short list of potential running mates, the eye of America is focused on Gov. Charlie Crist. But as Crist's attention is increasingly lured toward the presidential campaign, he must not fail to recognize his responsibility to the people of Florida.
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Verizon, Alltel Merger Brings Questions About Worker Health
Dow Jones Newswire News Clipping
By: Fawn Johnson
8.11.2008
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers wants the Federal Communications Commission to require Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) and Alltel Corp. (AT) to adopt a nationwide safety program protecting people from harmful radio frequencies as a condition of their proposed merger.
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Sing a Song of Freedom
Front Page Magazine Movie Review
By: K. Lloyd Billingsley
8.11.2008
The small nation of Estonia, strategically placed at the east end of the Baltic, had been prey for conquerors for centuries. It acquired a serious existential problem in 1939, when Adolf Hitler and Josef Stalin divvied up Europe with the Nazi-Soviet Pact. In that deal, Stalin got Estonia and occupied that independent, democratic nation. The odds were long that the Estonian people would emerge from that nightmare, but they did. How they managed to do so is an inspiring story and cautionary tale that until now has escaped notice in film.
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Lessons for Sacramento from San Francisco's high-tech heist
Eureka Reporter Op-Ed
By: Daniel R. Ballon, Ph.D
8.10.2008
For nine days last month, San Francisco's state-of-the-art new computer network was held hostage by a convicted felon. Even a team of Silicon Valley's best and brightest engineers working around the clock could not crack his code. Finally, in a secret midnight meeting at the Hall of Justice, the mayor himself convinced the perpetrator to relinquish control.
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Political Gain and Net Neutrality
Tech News World Op-Ed
8.8.2008
Last week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) came under fire for making a ruling that many consider outside its authority. Without levying a fine, it charged that Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSK) violated federal policy when it interfered with a file-sharing application used by consumers.
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The Case for Womanism
California Republic Op-Ed
By: Sally C. Pipes
8.8.2008
“If there were more women in positions of power,” Dee Dee writes, “not just in Congress, but across the United States and around the world, lots of things would be better. Not perfect. But better. We’d have more representative government; a stronger economy; and a healthier and more sustainable planet. We’d be better able to resolve conflicts and keep the peace. We’d have stronger families.”
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Obama plan doesn't promise health care reform
The Detroit News Op-Ed
By: Sally C. Pipes
8.7.2008
Sen. Barack Obama has promised to "turn the page on the failed politics of yesterday's health care debates." He's right to call for a new approach to healthcare reform. What he's offered thus far, however, is a government-heavy solution that's all-too-similar to the tired proposals of yesteryear.
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Why is The Budget Always Late?
Sacramento Union News Clipping
By: C.W. Wilkinson
8.7.2008
Longtime California residents may have noticed a trend in state politics: The California State Budget is almost never passed by the constitutionally-mandated deadline, July 1. This year is no different.
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Biotech at risk for broadside hit
Boston Herald Op-Ed
By: Sally C. Pipes
8.6.2008
On the last day of July, the Massachusetts Legislature passed the Act to Promote Cost Containment, Transparency and Efficiency in the Delivery of Quality Health Care. It’s both a mouthful and a mess. If Gov. Deval Patrick doesn’t veto the bill by Aug. 13, the law will put a needless chill on clinical research and pharmaceutical innovation in the commonwealth.
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Tort reform: Ohio sets good example
Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum (OH)
By: Lawrence J. McQuillan, Ph.D
8.5.2008
State Sen. Larry Mumper was right to praise the Ohio General Assembly for its efforts to bolster economic growth through initiatives such as tort reform ("Legislature seeks to cut the cost of doing business in Ohio," July 29). In fact, Ohio is setting an example that other states would be wise to follow.
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Exit exam can help special-ed students succeed
San Francisco Chronicle
By: Lance T. Izumi, J.D.
8.4.2008
San Francisco school officials and advocates for the disabled have recently made news fighting the state requirement that special education students take the high school exit exam. Upon closer inspection, this seeming issue of simple compassion becomes much more complicated.
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Forced health coverage unhealthy
Scranton Times-Tribune (PA) News Clipping
By: John R. Graham
8.3.2008
In 1949, Pennsylvania became the first state to impose benefit mandates on health insurance, requiring plans to pay for osteopathy and dentistry services. It was a watershed event that led to a flood of legal requirements in other states.
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Unbalanced billing In California hospitals
The Eureka Reporter Op-Ed
By: John R. Graham
8.3.2008
Imagine if you bought an airline ticket to fly from San Francisco to Chicago and after the flight you received an extra bill from the co-pilot for what he claims is a fair price for his services. He is unsatisfied with the airline’s pay and would like you and your fellow passengers to make up the difference.
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Attention eBay Users: Online Sellers Facing New IRS Rules
Internet Business Law Services News Clipping
By: Kelly O'Connell
8.3.2008
Countless Americans selling as individual entrepreneurs on sites like eBay must now be aware that the Internal Revenue Service has modified their rules to make sure taxes are reported on private Internet transactions.
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Google, DoubleClick Merger Raises Concerns
Info Tech and Telecom News
By: Daniel R. Ballon, Ph.D
8.1.2008
Questions about how a merged Google and DoubleClick would handle privacy concerns arising from the combined companies' massive collection of personal data have been raised by Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the lead Republican on the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee.
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Sixteen States May Ban Texting While Driving
Info Tech & Telecom News Clipping
By: Krystle Russin
8.1.2008
Citing an alleged rise in automobile accidents, 16 states--including Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, and New York--are considering legislation to ban text messaging, or "texting," while driving.
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HHS Devises Another Strategy for Health Information Technology
Health Care News (The Heartland Institute) New Clipping
By: Dr. Sanjit Bagchi
8.1.2008
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has released a plan to "coordinate the federal government's health IT efforts, which seek to achieve nationwide implementation of an interoperable health IT infrastructure throughout both the public and private sector."
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Congressional Task Force Seeks to Regulate Health Care
Health Care News (Heartland Institute)
By: Krystle Russin
8.1.2008
U.S. Sens. Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Judd Gregg (R-NH) are creating a bipartisan task force of White House and Congressional officials that will meet through the end of the year to consider legislative ways to lower health care costs; address the long-term funding issues affecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid; and study the comparative regional and demographic effectiveness of national health policies.
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AHIP Cedes Initiative to Government in Health Care Overhaul Proposal
Health Care News (The Heartland Institute)
By: Dr. Sanjit Bagchi
8.1.2008
Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), a trade association representing more than 1,300 health insurance providers, has offered a proposal it says could help the United States reduce total spending on health care by more than $145 billion in the next decade while improving quality.
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U.S. Slipping in Tech Innovation
Info Tech & Telecom News Clipping
By: Aricka Flowers
8.1.2008
America's position as a technology innovation leader--and hence a prime destination of venture capital funds--may be under threat. That's the conclusion of a recent survey of venture capitalists at Deloitte and the National Venture Capital Association.
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Environmentalists Oppose New CO2 Scrubber Idea
Environment and Climate News (Heartland Institute) News Clipping
By: Krystle Russin
8.1.2008
Scientists at Columbia University are developing a carbon dioxide (CO2) scrubber device that removes one ton of CO2 from the air every day.
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