Links

https://www.wate.com/news/national-world/recall-expanded-worldwide-for-certain-blood-pressure-medicines-due-to-cancer-risk/1349857712
Aug. 6, 2018
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has expanded its recall worldwide for certain blood pressure medicines due to a possible cancer risk.
According to the FDA, several drug products containing the active ingredient valsartan, which is used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure, are being voluntarily recalled due to the possible impurity of a potential carcinogen N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA).
The recall has now gone global after the FDA added several new pharmaceuticals to the list including:
[See link for drugs on the list and not on the list.]


https://edition.cnn.com/2018/07/11/politics/brian-benczkowski-confirmed-senate-justice-department/index.html
July 11, 2018
The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Brian Benczkowski to lead the Justice Department's criminal division on a near party-line vote over Democratic objections to his nomination due to ties to a prominent Russian bank.
The Senate confirmed Benczkowski 51-48. Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia was the only Democrat to vote yes.
Benczkowski's nomination was controversial because of his work for Alfa Bank, which has been scrutinized by FBI counterintelligence. Benczkowski, a former lead staffer to Attorney General Jeff Sessions in the Senate and a Trump transition official, has faced criticism from Democrats since he was nominated last year over his past private-practice work on behalf of Alfa Bank, one of Russia's largest financial institutions.


https://globalnews.ca/news/3640194/mexican-and-u-s-firefighters-to-assist-in-fighting-b-c-wildfires/
Aug. 1, 2018
Firefighters from Mexico and the United States have been engaged to assist the B.C. (British Columbia, Canada) Wildfire Service.
One hundred and eight wildfire personnel from Mexico will arrive this week and are expected to be deployed to wildfire zones in B.C.’s Interior on Friday. This is the first time Mexican personnel have assisted the province, although they have fought fires in Alberta many times in the past.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/08/180801182009.htm
Aug. 1, 2018
Researchers have found that several greenhouse gases are emitted as common plastics degrade in the environment. Their study reports the unexpected discovery of the universal production of greenhouse gases methane and ethylene by the most common plastics when exposed to sunlight.


https://www.npr.org/2018/08/06/635983535/photos-as-one-california-wildfire-ebbs-another-explodes
Aug. 6, 2018
As firefighters work to contain a deadly wildfire in Northern California, another fire is rapidly expanding, threatening new communities and prompting fresh evacuations.
The Mendocino Complex Fire is now the second-largest fire in state history. Tricia Austin, public information officer for the Mendocino Complex, tells NPR the previous second-largest fire was the Cedar Fire in 2003, which burned 273,246 acres. The Mendocino Complex is now at 273,664 acres and continuing to grow.
The largest fire in state history, last year's Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, charred 281,893 acres before it was contained.
Meanwhile, other wildfires in California, Oregon, Washington and Idaho continue to burn vast swaths of land, firefighters have been stretched thin battling the numerous blazes.
The communities in the region (of the Mendocino Complex Fire) are largely rural and low-income, which makes the fires even more devastating, she says.
"There's really a lack of affordable housing in the area, so low-income people whose houses get burned down will usually go to wherever they have friends and family they can stay with in the immediate aftermath of the fire," Hutson says. "And if that's not in the area, they can miss out on a lot of help from nonprofits and the government in getting them back into housing in the area where they have lived for years."
The numerous simultaneous blazes have strained the nation's firefighting resources. Thousands of firefighters are actively working on the ground, and crews from Australia and New Zealand have been flown in to assist.


https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/06/opinion/clouds-darken-trumps-sunny-economic-view.html
Aug. 6, 2018
A recent Reuters analysis found that the bottom 60 percent of income-earners have been fueling their spending, and thus the economy’s, by using their savings or credit cards. They almost have to, because wage growth is expanding at a disappointing 2.7 percent annual clip — despite evidence that employers are finally throwing a few more pennies at workers.
The prospects for wage growth ought to be good, given the tighter labor supply. But American companies have made an art form of not sharing the wealth with workers. Productivity growth has vastly outstripped real wage growth since the 1970s, according to Deutsche Bank research. Yet employees are working harder and smarter and not getting commensurately remunerated, while corporations have a record share of the national wealth. That is to say, workers have been getting ripped off.