Free Republic

MIAMI (AP) - Authorities in Florida are sending convicted sex offenders to jail for violating the terms of their probation by having men's magazines such as Maxim. Andrew Calderon, 23, was jailed for six days before a judge ordered his release after officers found a racy poster and calendar and copies of Maxim in his home earlier this year. A judge will decide next month whether Calderon's probation should be revoked or extended and whether the materials were innocent. Corrections officials said Calderon, who was on probation for the sexual battery of a mentally disabled relative, committed a violation by...

COVINGTON, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen put a halt Friday to document shredding in the state personnel department after learning that files were destroyed involving sexual harassment investigations of two men he appointed. The governor ordered the move until a new law can be passed to address the handling of such documents. The order requires the agency "to retain all investigative records, including those related to workplace harassment," said his spokeswoman, Lydia Lenker. The state's previous practice was meant to "protect people who would come forward," the governor said during an appearance in Covington, explaining that department investigators...

ABORTION STAND HALTS CLINTON'S SHIFT TO MIDDLE By IAN BISHOP Post Correspondent May 6, 2005 -- WASHINGTON — Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is putting the brakes on her move to the political middle by opposing legislation that would bar helping underage girls cross state lines for an abortion without their parents' consent. Clinton — despite preaching moderation in recent speeches — will toe the Democratic line in the Senate in an effort to block a GOP-backed bill that just passed the House and makes it illegal for anyone to help a girl get a secret out-of-state abortion. "I don't believe...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger became the highest-level official to call for investigations of Bay Bridge construction as Caltrans ordered a halt to a welding operation that is part of an FBI fraud probe that widened Thursday. Caltrans Director Will Kempton ordered Bay Bridge construction team KFM Joint Venture to cancel a concrete pour over four of the remaining footings where workers allege shoddy welds are being done. Kempton also called for a reinspection of all the welds that would have been buried by the pour, even as the state agency and KFM insist that the nearly 5,000 welds were done properly...

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Herbalife Ltd. (HLF) said on Sunday it had halted sales of one of its products in Israel amid an investigation by Israel's Health Ministry over complaints from customers that it caused liver problems. Yona Fichman, general manager of Herbalife Israel, said the company was cooperating with the ministry even though there had yet to be a link between the product and what he called abnormal liver test results. A health ministry spokeswoman said eight people reported liver problems over a year and a half, five of whom had consumed Herbalife's Sesame Herb product. She noted that there...

Another Painkiller Linked to Heart RiskNIH Halts Study On Aleve Ingredient The epidemic of bad news about the potential risks of popular anti-inflammatory medications expanded yesterday as federal officials announced that naproxen, a painkiller sold by prescription and also over the counter as Aleve, might increase people's risk of having a heart attack or stroke. <> The new findings bring to three the number of widely used anti-inflammatory drugs suddenly in the spotlight for their potential health risks. Vioxx was pulled from the market this fall, and its sister drug Celebrex, the blockbuster arthritis drug, was linked to heart attacks...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - The California Pollution Control Financing Authority voted Tuesday to temporarily halt funding dairy projects and to adopt standards to ensure that future funds improve air and water quality. The 90-day moratorium puts applications for $25.6 million on hold for five San Joaquin Valley dairies as the authority looks into how $65.9 million in low-interest loans were issued for 18 dairy projects that may have led to expansions and created more pollution. "We want to be improving the environment, not harming it," said Treasurer Phil Angelides, chairman of the authority. "It's very clear that there are air quality...

U.S. Halts French Processed Meat Imports Wednesday February 25, 2004 12:01 AM By ANGELA DOLAND Associated Press Writer PARIS (AP) - The United States is suspending imports of all French processed meat and poultry products, including cold cuts and delicacies like foie gras, because of food safety concerns, officials in both countries said Tuesday. U.S. experts who inspected plants in France starting last month said they didn't conform with U.S. food safety requirements. Officials of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service found the sanitation systems failed to meet U.S. standards, said Steve Cohen, a department spokesman....

Tobacco chemical 'halts brain diseases' A tobacco chemical could provide new treatments for memory loss and brain diseases, according to new research. The substance, cotinine, is obtained when the body breaks down nicotine. But unlike nicotine, which has also been shown to protect brain cells, it is not addictive. Nor does it cause other side effects of nicotine, such as constricted blood vessels, stomach cramps and nausea. A team of US scientists led by Dr Jerry Buccafusco found that cotinine showed potential for the treatment of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's as well as symptoms of schizophrenia. Dr Buccafusco, who presented the...

BA halts flights to Saudi Arabia By Ed Johnson, AP 13 August 2003 British Airways today suspended flights to Saudi Arabia due to heightened security concerns. The Department for Transport said it had received "credible intelligence of a serious threat to UK aviation interests in Saudi Arabia." It did not elaborate. "As a matter of precaution we have decided to suspend all flights to Saudi Arabia for the time being and we will continue to liaise closely with the British government," said Geoff Want, the airline's director of safety and security. The airline normally operates four flights a week to...