Amgen Pimps US Senator Baucus Et Al For Pennies On The Dollar

Amgen Gets a Gift From Congress - NYT
For a disheartening example of how intense lobbying and financial contributions can distort the legislative process in Washington, consider what happened to the “fiscal cliff” bill approved three weeks ago by Congress.

Senators who play a major role in federal health care financing were happy to help Amgen, the world’s largest biotechnology company, evade Medicare cost-cutting controls by delaying price restraints on a class of drugs used by kidney dialysis patients, including Sensipar, a drug made by Amgen. That provision was inserted into the final fiscal bill by Senate aides. Many members of Congress did not know it was in the bill until just hours before it was approved.

Although other companies will benefit financially from that delay, Amgen, which has 74 lobbyists in Washington, was the only company to lobby aggressively for the provision. The delay will cost the Medicare program up to $500 million over a two-year period.

The disturbing details were revealed in a report by Eric Lipton and Kevin Sack of The Times on Sunday. The maneuvering to exempt these drugs undercuts a five-year effort to change the incentives used to pay for kidney dialysis care. Previously, Medicare had paid providers separately for the drugs and for administering dialysis treatment, a system that often encouraged overprescribing.

But, in 2008, Congress reversed the incentives by requiring Medicare to pay a single, bundled rate for a patient’s dialysis treatment and related medications, starting in 2011. But certain oral drugs, including Sensipar, were given a two-year reprieve, to expire in 2014, from being included in that more cost-effective bundled system. The fiscal bill has now extended that exclusion for an additional two years.

Supporters of the delay — notably, Senator Max Baucus, a Democrat of Montana, who leads the Senate Finance Committee, and Orrin Hatch, of Utah, the ranking Republican on that committee — say it is needed to give the Medicare system and dialysis providers time to absorb other complicated changes in federal reimbursements for kidney care. But there is good reason to suspect other factors were involved as well. Both senators have political and financial ties to Amgen, as does Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, who exerted great influence over the fiscal negotiations and praised the Medicare provisions.

A top aide to Mr. Hatch, who was involved in negotiating the dialysis delay, previously worked as a health policy analyst for Amgen. The current lobbyists for Amgen include former chiefs of staff for both Mr. Baucus and Mr. McConnell. And the three senators have received substantial contributions from Amgen’s employees and its political action committee since 2007 — almost $68,000 to Senator Baucus, $59,000 to Senator Hatch, and $73,000 to Senator McConnell.

Amgen’s strong influence prevailed even though it had pleaded guilty just weeks ago to marketing an anti-anemia drug illegally and agreed to pay criminal and civil penalties of $762 million, a record settlement for a biotechnology company.

This dreadful episode is a classic example of the power of special interests to shape legislation and shows how hard it may be to carry out the reforms needed to cut health care costs.

See Original NYT story (here).

James C. Collier

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Racism In European Football Kicked Into Spotlight

The lid has come off of Euro-football after Italian fans insisted on making racist monkey gestures/sounds directed to AC Milan star-player, Kevin-Prince Boateng, in a 'friendly' game Jan 2 against team Pro Patria. (here)

It seems that the German-Ghanaian Boateng walked off the pitch (field) at the repeated actions of a group of Italian fans. His teammates followed, and the game ended. Boateng also received the support of his team president, Silvio Berlusconi. The former Italian prime minister, media mogul, and non-stranger to controversy said, "This is an uncivilised problem that needs to be stopped. I congratulated my players for their decision to leave the field during the friendly in Busto Arsizio." (here)

It is interesting watching Europeans and their authorities attempt to deal with such obvious racism in their most beloved sport. The more the authorities try to curb it, the more determined the fans seem to become, especially the Spanish and the Italians. Gone is the smug superiority the Europeans had when witnessing images of US racism, back int he 1960's, eh?

James C. Collier

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Aaron Swartz: 1986 -2013

There are some rare people who are driven to put it all on the line for what they believe - despite the risks. Swartz was one of those people. As an independent researcher, I often ran into the closed doors he fought so hard to prop open. Thanks. RIP.

P.S. To read a petition requesting the government terminate the US District Attorney for overreach against Swartz, click (here).

James C. Collier

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Sandy Hook School And Top Ten Myths About Mass Shootings

Reposted From Chronicle of Higher Education (here)...

Top 10 Myths About Mass Shootings December 18, 2012, 2:42 pm

By James Alan Fox

Even before the death toll in last Friday’s school massacre in Newtown, Conn., was determined, politicians, pundits, and professors of varied disciplines were all over the news, pushing their proposals for change. Some talked about the role of guns, others about mental-health services, and still more about the need for better security in schools and other public places. Whatever their agenda and the passion behind it, those advocates made certain explicit or implied assumptions about patterns in mass murder and the profile of the assailants. Unfortunately, those assumptions do not always align with the facts.

Myth: Mass shootings are on the rise. Reality: Over the past three decades, there has been an average of 20 mass shootings a year in the United States, each with at least four victims killed by gunfire. Occasionally, and mostly by sheer coincidence, several episodes have been clustered closely in time. Over all, however, there has not been an upward trajectory. To the contrary, the real growth has been in the style and pervasiveness of news-media coverage, thanks in large part to technological advances in reporting.

Myth: Mass murderers snap and kill indiscriminately. Reality: Mass murderers typically plan their assaults for days, weeks, or months. They are deliberate in preparing their missions and determined to follow through, no matter what impediments are placed in their path.

Myth: Enhanced background checks will keep dangerous weapons out of the hands of these madmen. Reality: Most mass murderers do not have criminal records or a history of psychiatric hospitalization. They would not be disqualified from purchasing their weapons legally. Certainly, people cannot be denied their Second Amendment rights just because they look strange or act in an odd manner. Besides, mass killers could always find an alternative way of securing the needed weaponry, even if they had to steal from family members or friends.

Myth: Restoring the federal ban on assault weapons will prevent these horrible crimes. Reality: The overwhelming majority of mass murderers use firearms that would not be restricted by an assault-weapons ban. In fact, semiautomatic handguns are far more prevalent in mass shootings. Of course, limiting the size of ammunition clips would at least force a gunman to pause to reload or switch weapons.

Myth: Greater attention and response to the telltale warning signs will allow us to identify would-be mass killers before they act. Reality: While there are some common features in the profile of a mass murderer (depression, resentment, social isolation, tendency to blame others for their misfortunes, fascination with violence, and interest in weaponry), those characteristics are all fairly prevalent in the general population. Any attempt to predict would produce many false positives. Actually, the telltale warning signs come into clear focus only after the deadly deed.

Myth: Widening the availability of mental-health services and reducing the stigma associated with mental illness will allow unstable individuals to get the treatment they need. Reality: With their tendency to externalize blame and see themselves as victims of mistreatment, mass murderers perceive the problem to be in others, not themselves. They would generally resist attempts to encourage them to seek help. And, besides, our constant references to mass murderers as “wackos” or “sickos” don’t do much to destigmatize the mentally ill.

Myth: Increasing security in schools and other places will deter mass murder. Reality: Most security measures will serve only as a minor inconvenience for those who are dead set on mass murder. If anything, excessive security and a fortress-like environment serve as a constant reminder of danger and vulnerability.

Myth: Students need to be prepared for the worst by participating in lockdown drills. Reality: Lockdown drills can be very traumatizing, especially for young children. Also, it is questionable whether they would recall those lessons amid the hysteria associated with an actual shooting. The faculty and staff need to be adequately trained, and the kids just advised to listen to instructions. Schools should take the same low-key approach to the unlikely event of a shooting as the airlines do to the unlikely event of a crash. Passengers aren’t drilled in evacuation procedures but can assume the crew is sufficiently trained.

Myth: Expanding “right to carry” provisions will deter mass killers or at least stop them in their tracks and reduce the body counts. Reality: Mass killers are often described by surviving witnesses as being relaxed and calm during their rampages, owing to their level of planning. In contrast, the rest of us are taken by surprise and respond frantically. A sudden and wild shootout involving the assailant and citizens armed with concealed weapons would potentially catch countless innocent victims in the crossfire.

Myth: We just need to enforce existing gun laws as well as increase the threat of the death penalty. Reality: Mass killers typically expect to die, usually by their own hand or else by first responders. Nothing in the way of prosecution or punishment would divert them from their missions. They are ready to leave their miserable existence, but want some payback first.

In the immediate aftermath of the Newtown school shootings, there seems to be great momentum to establish policies and procedures designed to make us all safer. Sensible gun laws, affordable mental-health care, and reasonable security measures are all worthwhile, and would enhance the well being of millions of Americans. We shouldn’t, however, expect such efforts to take a big bite out of mass murder. Of course, a nibble or two would be reason enough.

James Alan Fox is the Lipman Family Professor of Criminology, Law, and Public Policy at Northeastern University and the author of Violence and Security on Campus: From Preschool Through College (Praeger, 2010).

James C. Collier

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Responding to Newtown, Aurora, Blacksburg, et al

I watched President Obama's speech at the Newtown Memorial last night. My college and high school-aged kids and some of their friends and cousins were there too. It gave me a chance to not only consider how to pick myself up after such a senseless tragedy, but to also grasp what I could do as a father. But I was speechless, my internal BS detector was not having any of it.

During the President's words, all the kids, and adults, oscillated between silent tears, squirms, and nervous comments, reflecting the raw emotion and tension of the moment. It was clear that they were translating the events of Newtown to their own school and work lives. I was silent, because nothing I could say could assure them, or make them feel the safety that is supposed to be my parental job.

This morning I woke still without answers, but with a resolve that I did not have last night. Whatever I do going forward, it must be with a simple notion in mind. Mental health services must be more accessible to everyone, and guns must be more difficult to acquire. With my vote and my wallet I will support leaders who support this, and jettison support for those who dance around the issues.

Down? Yes. Out? No.

James C. Collier

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Jezebel Exposes Young Bigots In-Training

Young people are known for mixing up the sequence "ready, aim, fire" to something more akin to ready, fire, uh...aim", but Tracy Egan Morrissey, over at Jezebel has certainly taken some of the kiddies to 'school' on how responsibility goes hand-in-hand with the First Amendment right to free speech (here).

It seems that quite a few young white folks took to Twitter just after the presidential election to let their worlds know just how they feel about four more years of Mr. Obama. What many had to say was not indicative of good anything...parenting, schooling, coaching or anything else. Mrs. Morrissey/Jezebel simply gave these young people a greater public forum for their youthful vileness. Good for her. It is important for us to know the kids we are raising.

Black parents certainly get a daily dose of what vileness their kids can produce left unattended, but this time around it was white folk's turn to say 'what the hell?'. I also know that kids speak in ways that they were not taught, so I do not automatically blame parents for any particular kid, however, all parents collectively share the blame. You cannot assume that what your kid says in front of you is what they say to others. Parents need to be a little crafty in order to really know their kids - because kids are crafty. And for many parents, it all begins with setting a good example.

In the coming days their will be more made of this, but one thing is for sure, what you say in public forums, electronic or otherwise, follows you and is sticky like syrup. I'm sure Mr. Romney wishes he could take back "self-deportation", "binders of women", "the 47%...", and the like, when he considers how Latinos and women reacted to those words. Mitt certainly wasn't dropping N-bombs, but his gaffes showed that someone could have schooled him a little better about measuring his words.

James C. Collier

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What About Lance Armstrong?

This is the same look that Bill Clinton gave America when it was clear that Monica Lewinsky repeatedly polished his chrome in the White House. Lance wasn't just a doper - he was the Al Capone of dopers. In fact, all past, present, and future dopers will be judged by the standard he has set. Yikes.

Now, let's roll back a few posts (here), where I said, even with it all, I would shake the boy's hand - I take that back! I read Tyler Hamilton's book, and for whatever kind of low-life Hamilton is, Armstrong is one scary dude. Hamilton's replay of Frankie and Betsy Andreu's battle with Armstrong over his hospital admissions to doping, leading up to his testicular cancer, is astonishing.

For me, it is not so much the doping - doping happens everywhere and will continue - rather it was the ruthlessness of Lance. He left no room near the top for anyone else. His policy was scorched earth - serve me, then die!

I never liked Floyd Landis because he suckered a coach I like, Arnie Baker MD, into supporting his claims of innocence, but I hope Floyd prevails in his whistle-blower suit against Lance, because Armstrong deserves all the arrows he may get. Lance froze his doping pal Floyd out of cycling completely, for no reason other than Armstrong is one gigantic paranoid, vindictive asshole.

I could go on, but you get my drift. Lance now has a lifetime to ponder the looks/stares that beg the question of what level of societal scumbag he's earned. The only thing to distract him will be all the people, with lawyers, trying to put his dumb-ass in the poorhouse, including the folks at the United State Post Office and Discovery. I wish them well.

The top symbol of doping in cycling is no longer my old Festina team jersey, but rather it's a Livestrong. Amazing!

James C. Collier

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Love And Hip-Hop Disintegration

Recently someone commented to this blog their surprise at my pessimism on the future of Black America. So what then, besides unemployment, crime, graduation rates, or healthcare could be the cause of my less-than-cheery outlook?

The other week my office-mate introduced me to the hit VH1 show, "Love & Hip-Hop Atlanta". I can only presume that more locations are in the works. Anyway, this reality program about the messy lives of rap-star-wannabees is a shining example of life reduced to feeding on the misery of others. The producers and cast have perfected the art of turning self-debasement of an entire culture into art and entertainment, for fun and profit. And there are a host of other similar shows, including one with the wives/girlfriends of basketball stars.

Taken alone, one might call this harmless fun, but against the backdrop of all of our societal problems, this show is the exclamation point on a very important wake-up call. Survival of a group, culture, or species is not mandatory.

James C. Collier

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Disintermediation: The End of Black America

If the economic troubles of this country were a swimming pool - black folks, including their inability to swim, are definitely in the deep-end. Low-level jobs, not just the ones in manufacturing - are disappearing at an alarming rate.

I was buying something at the Apple store recently and was told that I did not need a sales clerk to 'check out'. There is now an app for this. I found my item, scanned and paid for it with my iPhone, and walked out without any intervention. I even asked the black security guard how he knew I was not shop-lifting, whereupon he instantly pulled up my name and picture of my purchase on, you guessed it, his iPhone.

Expect to see this capability in all retail stores soon - along with more double-digit black unemployment. It's called disintermediation when middle channel jobs go away due to whatever the reason - technology, globalization of labor, etc. - you name it. It is the process of squeezing out every penny of cost from the goods we just can't live without.

Blacks, as the lowest educated/skilled demographic (of size) in this country, are unemployed at minimally 2x the national average, and well beyond the reach of the Congressional Black Caucus, President Obama, or Bill Gates/Warren Buffet. Add to this the carte-blanche that US financial institutions have been given to exploit black financial ignorance (via financial deregulation), and you get one unmitigated economic and social disaster, with no end in sight!

James C. Collier

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Rodney Glen King: 1965 - 2012

James C. Collier

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Why Do Some People Hate Jews?

This was the question asked by Business Insider's Henry Blodget (here), and it seems that it caused quite a storm. Many people took offense to the question, but I was not one of them - similar to my non-offense to the same question about blacks. If it is true that Jews receive a disproportionate share of hatred, and I believe they do, it is very reasonable to ask why. Having said this, care must be taken that the question is not an invite to pile more hatred (as often happens on hate-sites) upon a group that has historically endured as much as any group. In the case of Hitler, the Nazi's, and WWII, that particular instance of genocide has properly come to define the worst that modern humankind has ever offered itself, in one sitting. I present the question for only one reason - to validate it as truth and contribute to stopping it.

To the question, very simply, Northern European Jews, otherwise known as Ashkenazi Jews, catch hell because they consistently and predictably overachieve in disproportion to their relative percent of the population, in areas that influence the concentration of wealth and power, beginning with education. Because of religion, more so than visible ethnicity, members of the group cluster and are readily identifiable, facilitating those whose level of jealousy, envy, and opportunity has them act out their hatred.

Finally, why do Jews overachieve, you ask? I will save this question for another post, but I will say that there is nothing sinister about it or it's origins, and humankind has benefited tremendously because of it.

James C. Collier

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Tanorexic? Really?

Growing up in Colorado, I had a distant cousin who married a fair-skinned white woman, who had a habit of baking herself to a mile-high crisp every summer. The black side of his family always wondered what the hell was wrong with this, otherwise likable, woman - she was still going to be white, regardless of her imitation of rotisserie'd chicken. All that super-tanned skin under her blonde hair seemed unhealthy and a bit creepy, not unlike her famous departed antonym, the pigment-less 'gloved-one'. The picture in the post reminded me of my relative, so I looked up tanorexic as a real diagnosis, but it seems to be slang, for those addicted to tanning.

The more accurate clinical description is body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), "a mental disorder in which one is extremely critical of his or her physique or self-image to an obsessive and compulsive degree". While we are at it, I would add in my vote for "George Hamilton Syndrome" - the actor, and another serial tanner that induced the heebie-jeebies.

Now, the woman in the post, Patricia Krencil, was charged with taking her under-age daughter along on one of her tanning binges (here) - which is a legal no-no. However, in the poor woman's defense, the pictures of her daughter clearly show a healthy, pale-skinned, kid, who looks nothing like her easy-bake-oven'd momma. If guilty, she, with same kid in tow, should probably be sentenced to get some counseling - so the little one doesn't grow up disordered, too.

Shrinks are totally welcomed on this one.

James C. Collier

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Gloom Of Our Doom: Money, Power, And Wall Street

I just watched Part One of a PBS Frontline show on the financial crisis in America, and how it came to be.

I thought I was fully aware, yet I was amazed at the level of greed and incompetence of the financial community, willing to take us to the brink of another 1929 type of disaster. Alan Greenspan and his supporters are true idiots to have believed and behaved as though the bankers, and their markets, would regulate themselves. When bankers are allowed to prey upon the ignorant masses, without scrutiny or fear of reprisal from the authorities, our great society is destined for the scrap-heap - an so we are.

Sadly, no one has or will go to jail for the biggest heist in history. The taxpayers are left with the bill, while Long Island is up to its neck in estates, and the country has more million and billionaires than ever. Decline is our fate, regardless of the color of your state, party, or skin.

Go to "MONEY, POWER, AND WALL STREET", at PBS Frontline (here) - if you dare!

James C. Collier

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Justice Department Study Says Black Juveniles Victims Of Racism

Upon reading a summary of a just released justice department study (here), that revealed disparate treatment upon apprehension, I wondered if black kids are simply more dangerous, as Jesse Jackson spoke of (here). I will have to spend more time with the study, but I suspect that the question may not have been asked. This can often be the case in these studies when the answer is something that might wake the elephant in the living room.

In any case, the first two comments to the HuffPo article (here) set the context for my question, better than I ever could.

Comment One: (from Jamar Jahi),
"another reason why whites make themselves the enemy".

Comment Two: (from Truthseeker427),
"The truth is to[o] scary to print.
African "youths", will knock you out,
then blow your guts out,
and then group steal everything off your dead body,...
To prove it, take a walk in the hood tonight.

That is to[o] scary to comprehend, so let's be in denial,..."

James C. Collier

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The Riot Within By Rodney King, With Lawrence Spagnola

I place Rodney King in a similar iconic category with actor/politician Ronald Reagan, with no intent to offend either. Their individual significance is not about who they are/were, but rather what they reflect about their fellow Americans, from their respective moments in the sun until now.

The emblazoned images of King being beaten with no mercy by the LAPD, and the acquittal of his captors by an all-white jury, galvanized how blacks felt and still largely feel about law enforcement and justice in America.

Even today, the Trayvon Martin killing and George Zimmerman trial have people wondering what will happen once a jury speaks. Will blacks riot? Will vigilantes re-double? 

As for the book itself, beyond its macro-relevance, I enjoyed the easy and honest read of how King, the man, came into infamy. I stopped to think of how the fifty-one person death toll of the riots hit him harder than the bone-breaking baton strikes of Officer Stacy Koon, and others that night. I realized how logical it was that the events of those days would only accelerate the litany of abuse he would continue to heap upon himself, as an alcoholic. It was also interesting to know just how little compensation he actually received ($1.8M of a $5.4 settlement and fees), and how his lawyers, black and white, beat the hell out of him financially, on top of it all.

The up-shot is that whether you loved or hated Rodney Glen King, he is forever a part of history that represents quite the tragic tale of race and the pursuit of justice in America.

James C. Collier

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Werdesheim Assault Of Black Teen Parallels Trayvon Martin

The assault and false imprisonment trial of two Jewish brothers kicked off today in Baltimore, MD (here). The case has resemblance to the Trayvon Martin killing, except the fifteen year old black male victim sustained a broken wrist and laceration, at the hands of Eliyahu (24) and Avi (23) Werdesheim. Eliyahu, a member of a neighborhood watch organization, and his brother confronted the teen as he walked through a predominantly Jewish neighborhood. Like Zimmerman, in Florida, the Werdesheims are claiming self-defense, but with neither the probable cause or authority to stop and confront the victim. The case includes the charge of racial profiling. The trial may be delayed, as the Werdesheim's counsel is expected to argue that the attention of the Trayvon Martin murder trial makes it difficult to mount a fair defense. Authorities and media across the nation are looking to the case to provide some clues as to how the drama of the Martin case will play out.

James C. Collier

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Racist Jury Selection Rescues Death Row Inmate in N.C.

A N.Carolina judge recently ruled that prosecutors 'have intentionally discriminated' against murder defendants - such as Marcus Robinson - by using the peremptory challenge to eliminate black jurors at twice the rate of whites. (here)

The judge found no reason, other than race, for the exclusion of so many blacks from cases with black defendants. Robinson's death sentence was automatically commuted to life without parole.

A Michigan State professor, Barbara O'Brien studied 160 capital murder cases, including Robinson's, to build a convincing argument for the statewide racism. The professor studied selection outcomes for 7,400 capital jurors.

The peremptory challenge is a legal bastion of racism that poisons the judicial process in this country.  Only Kentucky and North Carolina have such laws available to capital inmates who may have been the recipients of racist conduct by prosecutors.

James C. Collier

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All-Non-Black Juries Harder On Black Defendants Than Whites

In a new study, referenced here, if there are no blacks on a jury, the chance of conviction of a black defendant increases by 16%, over a similar white defendant. The study also presents that having one black juror in the jury pool (not the actual jury) eliminates the disparity in verdicts. Okay - hmmmm? So, from the fairness standpoint, the question is what is at play in attaining that lone black juror in the pool to even up the chance at a fair verdict?

As a part-time trial consultant, I know that getting blacks into the jury process and onto actual juries is easier said than done. The first issue is one of jury pool selection, the greater starting group of people from which the petit jury (trial jury) is selected. Selection algorithms exclude blacks by virtue of the nature and quality of public records keeping upon which they depend. Second is attendance, whereby blacks who are selected will no-show at a rate often reaching 80%. Third and finally, there is the dastardly peremptory challenge, whereby attorneys get to exclude whatever blacks remain, without giving the judge any reason. It is here where racial stereotyping runs amok. For more on this go here (Race and Jury Selection).

The result - blacks are significantly absent, as jurors, from the judicial system, and more black defendants are convicted, than if they were white. My solution? It starts with requiring jury pools to be representative, including hitting no-shows in the pocketbook (tickets) along with driving restrictions. Tax rolls and refund check addresses are the most accurate and up-to-date point of contact. Also, juror compensation must take the economic penalty out of serving. Finally, we must eliminate the peremptory challenge, in the case where doing so would exclude a classification that was present in the initial jury pool (not just blacks). Challenge for cause would remain.

James C. Collier

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Secret Service Agents Buy Colombian Sex, Forfeit Careers For $800

I presume that Secret Service Agents buy sex for similar reasons to why all men buy sex - they want it. Of course, there is more to it than this. I went looking for data and this is what I found.

"A survey of 103 men in London, England (here), who frequently sought the services of prostitutes were questioned about their experiences, attitudes, awareness of the sex industry, and deterrents to seeking prostitutes. The study was a collaborative effort between Eaves, a feminist organization that works to curb demand for commercial sex; and Prostitution Research & Education, an educational nonprofit in San Francisco that researches and documents the dangers of prostitution and sex trafficking.

The survey conducted in London was part of a larger international research project that interviewed 700 men to discover why males buy sex. The project covered six countries. The men surveyed in England ranged in age from 18 to 70 and were primarily white, black, Asian, and eastern European. Most of them were employed and had continued their education past high school. More than half were either married or in a relationship with a women. Thirty-five percent reported no religious affiliation, 33 percent said they were Christian, 13 percent had an unspecified religious affiliation, and the remainder were Hindu, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Sikh, or Spiritualist.

When asked how many prostitutes they had ever paid for, 15 was the number most often mentioned, although the numbers ranged from 1 to 2,000. Twelve percent of the men had gone to more than 130 prostitutes, and 65 percent believed that “most men” go to prostitutes occasionally. Even though many of these men sought the services of prostitutes quite often, 71 percent of them said they experienced some degree of shame, guilt, or negative feelings about paying for sex.

Men seek prostitutes for a variety of reasons. The most common reason named was to satisfy an immediate sexual urge or for pleasure (32%), followed by a need for variety (21%), not having their needs met in their current relationship (20%), convenience (15%), the thrill (8%), and an addiction or compulsion (3%)..."

Of course, my pragmatic question to the agents involved is once you have 'stepped in it' (had compromising sex on a presidential detail), how much is your career/marriage/relationship worth to you? Whatever value you calculate - that's how much you should be willing to pay Ms. Colombia, before Air Force One lands - duh?

James C. Collier

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Does The Race Of My Real Estate Agent Matter?

I just read an article (here) that lumps the race of your agent, together with looks and gender, as a support/challenge to the price you get in a sale. Hmmmm??? While I can accept that attractiveness and gender matter (all other things held equal)(here), the race of the agent matters much less, if at all, when compared to greater demographic influence. The influence of the ethnic make-up and trends of the neighborhood should not fall upon the race of the agent.

Following the flawed conclusion of this article, I fear that some people will avoid non-white agents for the fear of not getting the most in their sale, while supporting continued professional segregation.

Selling prices are influenced by the combination of many factors beyond the agent, such as crime, schools, maintenance, etc., and yes, some of those factors correlate to the socio-economic attributes of race/ethnicity. Without getting into macro-influence and causes, identical houses in white and black neighborhoods will predictably sell for different amounts, having nothing to do with the ethnicity of the agent.

So, in contrast to the article, I would offer that choosing your agent by race, rather than individual merit, is financially unwise for both sellers/buyers, and unfair to real estate professionals of color.

James C. Collier

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