From the Radio Free Michigan archives ftp://141.209.3.26/pub/patriot If you have any other files you'd like to contribute, e-mail them to bj496@Cleveland.Freenet.Edu. ------------------------------------------------ PROJECT CENSORED Top 25 Censored Stories (From the *Project Censored* 1994 Yearbook) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 25 -- EPA Fiddles While Illegal Incinerator Pollutes Ohio==> In spite of campaign promises by Bill Clinton and Al "Ozone Man" Gore to block operation of the Liverpool, Ohio, hazardous waste incinerator, it continues illegally burning hazardous wastes to this day. Waste Technologies Industries (WTI) operates the incinerator. Could the $100,000 campaign contribution by WTI founder Jackson Stephens to the Bill Clinton presidential campaign have anything to do with why Clinton/Gore did *not* keep their campaign promise? {*The Nation*, 9/27/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 24 -- Setting the Fox to Guard the Chickens==> California has adopted a new environmental policy where it has turned over the responsibility for protecting endangered species to private corporations and developer-friendly local governments. {*This World, San Francisco Chronicle*, 9/19/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 23 -- The Biggest Drug Bust of All==> DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) is the nation's leading drug education program. Yet, it doesn't work. Since 1987, studies conducted at more than 100 schools in the U.S. and Canada have produced the same results: "[There were] no statistically significant differences between experimental groups and control groups in the percentage of new users of... cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, alcohol, marijuana." {*USA Today*, 10/11/93, *Prevention File*, Fall 1993} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 22 -- Stinger Missiles Sting Taxpayers Twice==> Now that the Cold War is over, the CIA is desperately trying to buy back hundreds of the surface-to-air Stinger missiles that it secretly gave Afghan guerrillas only a few years ago. {*Chicago Tribune*, 12/6/92, *Santa Rosa Press Democrat News Services*, 7/24/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 21 -- EPA Ignores Its Own Toxic Experience==> Despite tests performed by private laboratories and *by the EPA itself*, which indicate a link between chemicals found in new carpeting and health problems, the EPA still sends out brochures that say carpeting poses no risks to the health of consumers. But the EPA notes that more research is needed. {*In These Times*, 7/26/93, *Public Citizen Health Research Group Health Letter*, March 1993} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 20 -- Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith -- An Oxymoron?==> The Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith (ADL), established eight decades ago to combat anti-Semitism, has itself been charged with civil rights violations, involving domestic spying on a massive scale. The ADL collected secret files on some 1,000 political organizations and 12,000 individuals. Groups allegedly targeted include Greenpeace, the KKK, the ACLU, the American Indian Movement, the Aryan Nation, the NAACP, the United Auto Workers, the American Nazi Party, ACT-UP, the National Lawyers Guild, and Project Censored. {*Lies Of Our Times*, July/August 1993, (Other sources listed in 1994 Project Censored Yearbook)} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 19 -- Big Business Corrupts the Judicial System by "Buying a Clean Record"==> In a sophisticated legal scam, corporations are now using a *vacatur* process to undermine justice. Basically the *vacatur* process allows a corporation found guilty in a lower court action to make a settlement with the plaintiff so that the case will not be appealed to a higher court. Both plaintiff and defendant request that the presiding appeals judge "vacate" the decision and strike the previous finding from the record, ultimately eliminating the precedential value of the ruling. {*Multinational Monitor*, July/August 1993} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 18 -- The Silent Slaughter in Bangladesh==> One of the most horrifying acts of mass murder in recent years continues to go unreported in the U.S. and international press. On April 10, 1992, an estimated 1,200 tribal men, women, and children were massacred in Logang village, Bangladesh, by a group of Bengalis, Bangladeshi soldiers, and paramilitary troops. Almost all of the victims were herded and locked into their homes and the houses were set ablaze. {*The Guardian*, 5/8/92, *Survival International*, 4/5/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 17 -- Clinton's Option 9 Plan==> The Clinton plan for the ancient forests of the Pacific Northwest, known as Option 9, sets up "riparian corridors" -- areas in old-growth forest reserves not necessarily off-limits to logging. A forest reserve is generally defined as an area where no logging is permitted. However, under Option 9, the system of reserves are considered to be neither inviolate nor permanent. Every reserve would be open to thinning operations and timber salvage sales. {*Lies Of Our Times*, November 1993, *The Nation*, 8/23/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 16 -- Tropical Rainforests -- More Endangered Than Ever Before?==> Today, "Save The Rainforest" T-shirts, posters, calendars, etc. are everywhere. Yet, in the face of the media blitz, in late September, 1993, an Associated Press wire story reported that satellite photos show the number of fires burning in Brazil's vast Amazon rain forests has increased by nearly 50 percent over the last year. As industrialized nations become more concerned with protecting their own environment, oil companies and other corporations are moving into deserts and rainforests in the Third World. Here are some of the major culprits: Georgia- Pacific, Alcoa, Amoco, Arco, Chevron, Exxon, Maxus Energy, Mobil, Occidental Petroleum, Texaco; also the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank play key roles in rainforest destruction. {*Z Magazine*, May 1993, *Green Magazine*, December 1992} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 15 -- Thousands of Cubans Losing Their Sight Because of Malnutrition==> A rare malnutritional ailment, called optic neuropathy (which can lead to blindness), has affected at least 45,000 Cubans to date. Cubans are losing their eyesight because of an almost total lack of meat, milk, cheese, and vegetables in their diet. A number of them are also suffering from beriberi, an illness related to Vitamin B1 deficiency that attacks muscles and nerves and can lead to paralysis. One of the prime causes of malnutrition in Cuba is the U.S. economic blockade of that island. {*Philadelphia Inquirer*, 4/16/93, *The Cuba Advocate*, May 1993} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 14 -- Public Relations, Legalized Manipulation and Deceit==> Journalists have been replaced by the public relations flacks of Madison Avenue. Altogether, in 1991, the top 50 U.S.- based "Public Relations" firms charged more than $1.7 billion for manipulating public opinion. As Johan Carlisle noted in *CovertAction*, "One of the most important ways public relations firms influence what we think is through the massive distribution of press releases to newspapers and TV newsrooms." A study by Scott M. Culip, ex-dean of the School of Journalism at the University of Georgia, revealed that 40 percent of the news content in a typical U.S. newspaper originated with "public relations" press releases, story memos, or suggestions. {*CovertAction*, Spring 1993} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 13 -- Public Input and Congressional Oversight Locked Out of NAFTA==> The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was created during highly secretive trade negotiations. Researcher and author Jeremy Weintraub reports, "From the beginning, negotiations were conducted clandestinely, documents classified, and statements veiled, all because, according to Administration officials, NAFTA was far too complex, too dense for the average member of Congress." It makes sense to ask, if NAFTA is so complex, then how can "the average member of Congress," let alone his or her constituents, make an intelligent decision on the agreement. Although citizens were barred from the negotiation process, one industry expert after another was called in to participate. {*The Progressive*, January 1993, *Rolling Stone*, 10/28/93, *The Texas Observer*, 6/18/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 12 -- The Grand Jury That Wouldn't Take It Anymore==> A special grand jury impaneled in Denver in August 1989 found that Rockwell International, owner of the Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant in Colorado had failed to "obey the law. Indeed the plant has been, and continues to be, operated by government and corporate employees who have placed themselves above the law and who have hidden their illegal conduct behind the cloak of 'national security'." A plea bargain was arranged which called for Rockwell International to pay a fine of $18.5 million. That might have been the end of it, except this particular grand jury refused to participate in a cover-up and contacted a Denver-based alternative weekly newspaper (*Westword*) with their story. On November 20, 1992, the grand jurors went public charging that the Justice Department prevented them from fulfilling their oaths to pursue wrongdoing regardless of the consequences. {*Denver Westword*, 9/30/92, *Harper's Magazine*, 12/92, & other sources listed in the Project Censored 1994 Yearbook} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 11 -- Maquiladoras In Silicon Valley==> Silicon Valley is home to some of the nation's dirtiest, most dangerous jobs. A large part of the problem is that these jobs are handled by subcontractors. The big *Fortune 500* dynamos of Silicon Valley, whose employees enjoy flextime, elder and child care, sabbaticals, paternal leave, profit-sharing, employee swimming pools, and fitness centers, benefit enormously from the use of subcontractors and their sweatshops. {*The Nation*, 4/19/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 10 -- Haiti: Drugs, Thugs, the CIA, and the Deterrence of Democracy==> Few Americans are aware of our secret involvement in Haitian politics. Both before and after the bloody 1991 military coup which ousted duly-elected President Aristide, high ranking military officials in Haiti have been on the CIA's payroll. Indeed, some of these military officers were involved in the coup itself. According to a confidential Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) report, Haiti is "a major transshipment point for cocaine traffickers" who are funneling drugs into the United States. The DEA report also revealed that the drug trafficking is taking place with "the knowledge and active involvement of high military officials and business elites." {*New York Times*, 11/1/93, other sources listed in *The 1994 Project Censored Yearbook*} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 9 -- There's a Lot of Money to be Made in Poverty==> Investment in "Fringe Banks" (a.k.a. pawn shops and check cashing outlets) are one of the latest ways in which some large U.S. corporations are profiting from the cycle of poverty. The Fall 1993 *Southern Exposure* magazine documents how huge national and international corporations own and finance a growing "poverty industry" that targets low-income, blue-collar, and minority consumers for fraud, exploitation, and price gouging. Other corporate investments (besides "fringe banks") include second- mortgage companies, used-car dealers, finance companies, rent-to- own stores, trade schools, and debt collection agencies. {*Southern Exposure*, Fall 1993} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 8 -- America's Deadly Doctors==> The trust Americans put into their doctors may be sorely misplaced. According to estimates, 5 to 10 percent of doctors could be hazardous to your health. Experts cite two major reasons why some doctors are dangerous: They've become physically or mentally impaired (e.g. alcohol abuse, drug abuse, mental illness), or they were poorly trained or incompetent to start with. {*Woman's Day*, 10/12/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 7 -- The Ecological Disaster That Challenges the Exxon Valdez==> The ecological disasters caused by the oil spills from the Exxon Valdez in 1989, and the Braer, off Scotland's Shetland Island in 1993, pale when compared with the chronic environmental nightmare being wrought by selenium-contaminated drainwater flowing from irrigated lands in California and 13 other Western states. Man-made "lakes" and ponds saturated with selenium from agricultural run-off are threatening our drinking water and wildlife. {*Sports Illustrated*, 3/22/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 6 -- U.S. Army Quietly Resumes Biowarfare Testing After Ten-year Hiatus==> The U.S. Army has brought biological warfare testing back to a site (Dugway, Utah) it declared unsafe a decade earlier. One tiny air leak could result in a catastrophic release of deadly diseases. Since re-opening, the Dugway Proving Ground has been cited for 22 violations of state hazardous-waste regulations, ranging from inadequate record-keeping to improper dumping of poisonous chemicals. In September 1993 the biowarfare oversight committee that advises the governor of Utah on biological defense testing matters at Dugway voted to make itself off-limits to the public. {*The Salt Lake Tribune*, 1/27/93; 7/28/93, other sources listed in *The 1994 Project Censored Yearbook*} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 5 -- The Hidden Tragedy of Chernobyl Has Worldwide Implications==> The Chernobyl accident was *not* the result of operator error but was caused by major flaws of design present in 15 other Soviet reactors that are still in operation. Author (*Chernobyl: Insight from the Inside*) and nuclear physicist Vladimir Chernousenko insists that not 31 volunteers but between *7,000 and 10,000 volunteers* died from exposure to radiation in their efforts to contain the emissions. Chernousenko further charges that the accident released the lethal contents of 80 percent of the reactor core rather than the 3 percent figure announced to the world. The radiation released was roughly equivalent to the explosion of 1,000 Hiroshima bombs. {*The Nation*, 3/15/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 4 -- The Real Welfare Cheats: America's Corporations==> Five major areas of government giveaways to corporations include: (1) Research & Development (R&D) money flows from the government to universities and private firms. If R&D gets results, these same universities and private corporations are allowed to keep the patents and the profits on products developed. For example, AZT was developed with public funds, yet Burroughs Wellcome Corp. now owns the patent (*given* to it by the FDA) and has earned over $300 million in sales over the last 2 years from AZT; (2) Chapter 11 of the bankruptcy code allows solvent corporations to jettison "debts" (e.g. toxic site clean-up costs, retirement benefits owed to employees, etc.), and then go on with business as usual; (3) Companies are allowed to mine federal lands for valuable metals and minerals without paying a cent in royalties; (4) U.S. government continues to subsidize the nuclear power industry; (5) Undervalued timber sales (annual loss to U.S. taxpayers, $1 to $2 billion) from over 192 million acres of forest lands that are managed by the U.S. Forest Service and Department of Agriculture. The largest recipient of these subsidies is Louisiana-Pacific. {*Multinational Monitor*, Jan/Feb 1993} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 3 -- The Sandia Report On Education: A Perfect Lesson In Censorship==> One of the most thorough investigations into public education did not produce the expected results and instead, ended up being censored. In 1991, Sandia National Laboratories released its first findings on the state of public education. The results did *not* reveal a seriously deficient educational system in dire need of profound changes. The report was suppressed. {*Phi Delta Kappan*, May 1993, other sources listed in *The 1994 Project Censored Yearbook*} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 2 -- Why Are We Really In Somalia?==> Was the recent preponderance of tragic images of starving Somalis all over the major media outlets merely a refined and cynical method of selling another (post-Kuwait) war for oil? If the U.S. has not consistently acted in an altruistic manner toward starving people in Africa, why did it make a special case with Somalia? {*Los Angeles Times*, "The Oil Factor In Somalia," 1/18/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NUMBER 1 -- The U.S. Is Killing Its Young==> The United States has become one of the most dangerous places in the world for young people -- and it is getting worse. (1) Nine out of ten young people murdered in industrialized countries are slain in the United States; (2) The U.S. homicide rate for young people ages 15 to 24 is five times greater than that of Canada, its nearest competitor; (3) The U.S. poverty rate for children is more than double that of any other major industrialized nation; (4) Over the past 20 years, while other industrialized nations were bringing children out of poverty, only the United States and Britain slipped backward. {*Dallas Morning News*, 9/25/93, *USA Today*, 6/16/93} -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ------------------------------------------------ (This file was found elsewhere on the Internet and uploaded to the Radio Free Michigan archives by the archive maintainer. All files are ZIP archives for fast download. E-mail bj496@Cleveland.Freenet.Edu)