Prevented From Voting
Percentage of black Americans in the South who are prevented from voting because they have been convicted of a felony: 13
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SLAVES AMONG US
Nearly 30 million people worldwide are exploited and treated as property. These victims—adults and children—are forced to work, marry, serve in wars or provide sex.
Read moreMedication In The U.S.
Portion of Americans who are currently taking at least one prescription drug: 1/2 Who are taking five or more: 1/10 Estimated number of U.S. children aged two or three being prescribed ADHD medication: 14,000
Read moreWhen going ‘green’ makes people sick
When communities like San Francisco and Seattle began banning plastic bags, said Ramesh Ponnuru, it seemed like a public-spirited thing to do. But’ benign-seeming laws often have unintended consequences— and the plastic-bag ban is now producing a sickening result. The reusable shopping bags that people now use to bring groceries home turn out to be breeding grounds for bacteria carried […]
Read moreCan’t Afford To Post Bail
Some 480,000 suspects are currently locked up in American jails awaiting trial. About 75 percent of them are low-level offenders accused of nonviolent infractions, and are in jail simply because they can’t afford to post bail.
Read moreThe stuff of life on Mercury
Mercury, the closest planet to the sun, has blistering 800-degree temperatures at its equator—but its poles are full of ice. New data from NASA’s Messenger spacecraft, which began orbiting Mercury last year, has revealed that as much as a trillion tons of ice exists in shadowy polar craters, where temperatures can drop to minus 370 degrees. Much of the ice […]
Read moreWhat If You Are Attacked By A Shark?
FIGHT BACK! But forget that old saw about punching them in the nose. The International Shark Attack File recommends that you borrow a page from a pro-wrestling villain and gouge its eyes or claw at its gills, which are more sensitive than its nose. Or you could just befriend some dolphins. On at least two occasions in 2004 and 2007, […]
Read moreLying Through Their Teeth
“The worlds largest oil rig exploded and sank off Brazil. The company said the environmental impact would be minimal, partly because of the isolated location, and partly because they re lying through their teeth.” – Jon Stewart
Read moreUnderwater Mining
Number of square miles of seabed in international waters that were under contract for mining operations in 2000: 0 That are today: 463,323
Read moreMirror, Mirror
A British survey found that the average man looks at himself in the mirror 23 times a day, compared with 16 times for women. Men like to “admire” their appearance, researchers found, while women simply make sure “they look OK.”
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