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 Title   Date   Author   Host 

Fox News

by Wendy McElroy

March 29, 2006

A child custody case in Massachusetts may be placing family court procedures on a collision course with the First Amendment.

Last week, a Massachusetts family court judge issued an order restraining the distribution of a book entitled "Exposing the Corruption in the Massachusetts Family Courts." The author, Kevin Thompson, is a non-custodial parent who feels betrayed by a judicial system that he calls "anti-father." Thompson claims that his book is "banned" in the Boston sense of that word. But according to the order, which Thompson received by mail last Friday, impounding the book is necessary to protect the privacy interests of the minor child. In other words, the book includes information about Thompson's 4-year-old son, which violates a minor's privacy in a legal proceeding.

Information Week

by K.C. Jones

March 29, 2006

Though a number of efforts have sprung up to limit the practice by government agencies, only two states prohibit offshoring of the federal programs they administer, according to a new GAO report.

Forty-three states are using offshoring to administer at least one federal program, according to a recent report. The Government Accountability Office released a report Tuesday to answer congressional questions about how much the administration of federal programs is shipped offshore. Though a number of efforts have sprung up to limit the practice by government agencies, only two states prohibit offshoring of the federal programs they administer, according to the report.

The Columbus Dispatch

by Dana Wilson

March 28, 2006

The abuse exposed in a northern Ohio home where 11 adopted special-needs children were sometimes caged has sparked state legislation that would revise rules for largefamily adoptions.

Some child-protection officials say two bills presented this month could have better protected the children who fell victim to the system. "Ultimately, there's a purpose for this legislation, and I think it would've prevented this from happening," said Erich Dumbeck, director of the Huron County Department of Job and Family Services. "I think the changes that they're making are good changes."

The Plain Dealer (OH)

by Fran Henry

March 27, 2006

It was early September when the ugly story flew out of Huron County and landed in newspapers with a thud. In their secluded Wakeman home, Michael and Sharen Gravelle made some of their 11 children sleep in cages with no blankets or pillows;

The doors were set with alarms to signal when they were opened. The adopted children, ages 1 to 14, have special needs, including Down syndrome, autism and HIV infection. The Gravelles' story exploded nationwide, and Gov. Bob Taft recommended changes in the adoption and foster care law, hoping to ensure that this never happens again.

Reuters

March 18, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO - A parental advice Internet site has sued Google Inc., charging it unfairly deprived the company of customers by downgrading its search-result ranking without reason or warning.

The civil lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in San Jose, California, on Friday by KinderStart.com seeks financial damages along with information on how Google ranks Internet sites when users conduct a Web-based search. Google could not immediately be reached for comment but the company aggressively defends the secrecy of its patented search ranking system and asserts its right to adapt it to give customers what it determines to be the best results.

Manhasset Press (NY)

by Joe Scotchie

March 17, 2006

Last year, in the case of Kelo v. City of New London, the US Supreme Court ruled that local municipalities may seize private property for development purposes.

That ruling has set off numerous controversies and conflicts throughout the country. Now, the implications of eminent domain have come to North Hills. Two separate lawsuits have been filed in federal and state courts in an attempt to prevent the Village of North Hills from condemning Deepdale Golf Club, a 175-acre privately owned facility. "North Hills is trying to seize a private golf course for the purpose of creating a private 'Village only' golf course."

Austin Chronicle

by Frank Rivera

March 16, 2006

Carol Ann Sayles, co-owner with her husband Larry Butler of East Austin's landmark organic Boggy Creek Farm, is surrounded by a clucking mob. She spreads freshly harvested lettuce and escarole, as her henhouse descends into lunchtime disorder.

Sayles is famously proud of her flock, even compiling tales of the chickens for her children's book, Stories From the Hen House. Lately, however, Sayles' fondness for her pets and feathered farmhands has turned to apprehension, as Texas legislators have been preparing local farmers for the application of the new National Animal Identification System. And more than a few independent farmers aren't particularly keen on the letter of this law.

The Mercury News (CA)

by Patty Fisher

March 15, 2006

Judge Len Edwards works at making parents cry. "It's my job to make them cry," he says. "If they don't cry, then we have a problem, because they don't understand the seriousness of the situation -- that they are about to lose their children."

Edwards supervises Santa Clara County's juvenile dependency court, which assumes responsibility for children whose parents abuse or neglect them. He decides who loses parental rights and who gets second chances. He challenges mothers and fathers to overcome the demons that stand between them and their families.

Digital Media Asia

by Ben Tanner

March 15, 2006

A US District Court is likely to order Google to deliver some of its search data to the US government, although much less than the government originally requested.

Judge James Ware, the presiding judge in the case between Google and the US Department of Justice (DOJ), heard each party's case yesterday in a hearing in San Jose. Though Judge Ware sympathised with the search engine, he said he would ask the company to submit some of its records to the government. Specific details of which and how much data will be requested will not be known until Judge Ware writes his official decision, which he said he would do as quickly as possible.

Sierra Times

by Evelyn Pringle

March 14, 2006

Critics say millions of people were needlessly exposed to the risks of Bextra due to intense off-label promotion and advertising that boosted the painkiller to a position near the top of the list of the most widely prescribed drugs in US history.

Although a drug can only be marketed for specific indications approved by the FDA, doctors are allowed to prescribe a drug for any use regardless of whether its approved for a diagnosis and Pfizer spent a fortune on convincing physicians to prescribe Bextra for unapproved uses.

      
Carschooling by Diane Flynn Keith
Carschooling

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