|
|
|
Recall of pet food hits close to home
Business Law Info |
2007/03/19 09:10
|
More than 60 million cans of dog and cat food sold under dozens of brand names were recalled on Saturday after being linked to the deaths of 10 animals. The food was manufactured by Menu Foods, of Streetsville, Ontario, which makes wet food sold as store brands for companies like Wal-Mart, Kroger and Safeway. The company also makes food on behalf of many brand-name pet food makers. Menu Foods said it had recalled some food made for the Iams unit of Procter & Gamble. Two other pet food companies — Nestle Purina PetCare and Hills Pet Nutrition, the unit of Colgate-Palmolive that makes the Science Diet brand — recalled some of their products that were made by Menu Foods. Menu Foods is recalling only certain gravy-style pet food in cans and pouches it made from Dec. 3 to March 6. The company said in a statement that tests of its food had “failed to identify any issues with the products in question.” But it did associate the timing of the reported deaths with its use of a new supplier for wheat gluten, a source of protein. Sarah Tuite, a spokeswoman for Menu Foods, declined to name the supplier. |
|
|
|
|
|
Israel will limit Palestinian talks
Legal World News |
2007/03/19 05:17
|
The Israeli cabinet voted Sunday to limit talks even with moderate Palestinian officials to shared security and humanitarian concerns, ruling out a formal peace process until the new Palestinian government recognizes Israel and renounces violence.
In officially rejecting the Palestinian unity government that was sworn in over the weekend, the cabinet also stated that "Israel expects the international community to maintain the policy it has taken over the past year of isolating the Palestinian government." The vote was unanimous, with two cabinet members from the Labor Party, including the only Arab minister, abstaining. "This is a government that does not accept the conditions of the international community," Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said. The new Palestinian cabinet includes rival political parties and has pledged to respect previous agreements that recognize Israel, unlike the previous cabinet in office since the radical Islamic movement Hamas took control of the government nearly a year ago. But it continues to be led by Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, and its political program falls short of renouncing violence and explicitly recognizing Israel, the conditions for resumption of foreign aid. Most international donors cut off economic aid after Palestinian voters chose Hamas to run the Palestinian Authority in January 2006. Unemployment and poverty have increased in the territories since then, and about 130 Palestinians have been killed over the past year in a violent power struggle between Hamas and the rival Fatah movement. |
|
|
|
|
|
3,000 in San Francisco protest Iraq war
Headline News |
2007/03/19 04:15
|
For a second consecutive day, thousands of protesters flowed through the streets of several cities Sunday to call for an end to the funding of the Iraq war or the immediate return of U.S. troops. Demonstrators converged in San Francisco, New York, Portland, Ore., and elsewhere to mark the fourth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq and call on President Bush to heed what they said was the will of the people. In largely peaceful demonstrations, about 3,000 people in San Francisco closed Market Street; in New York, more than 1,000 protesters converged in a park near the U.N. headquarters. Dozens of police in San Francisco on foot and motorcycle blocked traffic and kept an eye on the crowd, which stretched for blocks through the financial district. No arrests were reported by late Sunday afternoon. |
|
|
|
|
|
Attorney General Gonzales Faces a Tough Week
Headline News |
2007/03/18 23:48
|
On the Sunday talk shows, Democrats said they had no confidence in his ability to lead. Republicans refused to defend him. "Ultimately, this is a decision up to the president and the attorney general, as to whether he will continue in that position," said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, on ABC News' "This Week with George Stephanopoulos." "I'm reserving judgment on that, until we finish the inquiry," Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., ranking GOP member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on "Fox News Sunday." "I think it's highly unlikely he survives," remarked Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., during an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press." "I wouldn't be surprised if a week from now, he's no longer attorney general. … Instead of just being the president's lawyer who rubber stamps everything the White House wants, he has a role as attorney general as the chief law enforcement officer of the land without fear or favor." On Monday, the Justice Department is expected to release more documents detailing the role Gonzales, Justice Department officials and the White House played in the firings. On Tuesday, the White House is expected to announce whether it will allow former White House counsel Harriet Miers and Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove to testify before Congress. If they don't, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary committee promises subpoenas. "I want testimony under oath," Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said on "This Week." "I am sick and tired of getting half-truths on this." U.S. attorneys serve at the pleasure of the president. But the Bush administration got itself into trouble by claiming the dismissals were solely performance-related. The White House did not disclose its own involvement until e-mails surfaced suggesting political loyalty may have played a role. |
|
|
|
|
|
Thousands Protest As War Enters 5th Year
Law & Politics |
2007/03/18 07:14
|
Denouncing a conflict entering its fifth year, protesters across the country raised their voices Saturday against U.S. policy in Iraq and marched by the thousands to the Pentagon in the footsteps of an epic demonstration four decades ago against another divisive war. A counterprotest was staged, too, on a day of dueling signs and sentiments such as "Illegal Combat" and "Peace Through Strength," and songs like "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" and "War (What's It Good For?)." Thousands crossed the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial to rally loudly but peacefully near the Pentagon. "We're here in the shadow of the war machine," said anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan. "It's like being in the shadow of the death star. They take their death and destruction and they export it around the world. We need to shut it down." Smaller protests were held in other U.S. cities, stretching to Tuesday's four-year anniversary of the Iraq invasion. In Los Angeles, Vietnam veteran Ed Ellis, 59, hoped the demonstrations would be the "tipping point" against a war that has killed more than 3,200 U.S. troops and engulfed Iraq in a deadly cycle of violence. "It's all moving in our direction, it's happening," he predicted at the Hollywood rally. "The administration, their get-out-of-jail-free card, they don't get one anymore." Other protests and counter-demonstrations were held in San Francisco, San Diego and Hartford, Conn., where more than 1,000 rallied at the Old State House. |
|
|
|
|
|
U.S. Supreme Court to decide Alaska case
Court Feed News |
2007/03/17 17:54
|
The Supreme Court will hear arguments Monday in the case of Joseph Frederick, the Alaska high school student who was suspended for displaying a "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" banner. Other cases involving students' First Amendment rights are making their way through the courts: - In Vermont, middle school student Zachary Guiles wore a T-shirt that used images of cocaine use and a martini glass to criticize President Bush. The shirt also called Bush "chicken-hawk-in-chief" and said he was on a "world domination tour." School authorities said the shirt violated a dress code that bans clothing that promotes use of alcohol or drugs. Guiles taped over the images, sued and won rulings from lower federal courts. The Supreme Court has yet to act on the school district's appeal. - In suburban San Diego, Tyler Harper was pulled from his class for wearing a T-shirt bearing the words "homosexuality is shameful." Harper said he wore the shirt after his school backed an event meant to show support for homosexuals, bisexuals and trans-gender students. Harper sued the Poway Unified School District for violating his civil rights, contending he was suspended for expressing "sincerely held religious beliefs." The school said its dress code is designed to prevent disruption. A federal judge upheld the policy and the same federal appeals court that sided with Frederick now is considering the case. - A national Christian legal group sued a suburban Philadelphia school district on free-speech grounds, saying the district censors prayer club members and threatens discipline if students speak out against homosexuality. The lawsuit filed by the Alliance Defense Fund accuses the Downingtown Area School District of improperly forcing a student group to drop explicitly Christian or Scriptural references from its literature, and to meet as the "Prayer Club" instead of the preferred "Bible Club." |
|
|
|
|
Recent Lawyer News Updates |
|
|