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Dramatic rise in bedbugs infesting seats on buses and trains ....The number of bedbugs on public transport has risen dramatically in the past year... a 40 per cent increase in the number...in the past year. More than two-thirds of infestations involved bedbugs. Don't let the bedbugs bite: The critters cause itchy white lumps on the skin Savvas Othon, technical director at Rentokil, said: 'The short turnaround times for planes and other forms of transport means they are sometimes not inspected as thoroughly as they used to be. ... ...have increased 51 per cent for cars, 24 per cent for airlines...

The fallout from April's Immigration Raid continues in Chattanooga's immigrant community. Local Social Service Agencies, already stretched to the max, have combined forces to help those affected. Still, the need is great... April 16th in Chattanooga hundreds of lives were disrupted in an immigration raid at Pilgrim's Pride Poultry Plant. More than 100 accused illegal immigrants were arrested, leaving families without an income and children without caregivers. Local social service agencies stepped in for assistance. Rev. Mike Feely, Executive Director of the St. Andrew's Center says, "The reality is, like a lot of other situations, whether it's a flood or...

If you cross the US-Mexican border at the town of Calexico you might run into a photographer named Daniel Santillan. But he's not likely to be shooting pictures of tourists. He only has eyes for Mexican schoolchildren who want an American education. Mr. Santillan is a residency enforcer, assigned by local education officials to make sure students live in the US, not Mexico. When he's not tracking students on weekday mornings at the border crossing, he visits local homes to make sure children live where their parents say they do. Santillan isn't thrilled about busting youngsters for living south of...

There is no federal law banning states from admitting illegal immigrants to colleges and universities, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said. The statement contradicts a letter issued this week by the North Carolina Attorney General, who advised the State Community College System that federal law prohibits the admission of illegal immigrants to public colleges and universities. "The Department of Homeland Security does not require any school to determine a student's status," the department said.

The Federal Aviation Administration. The Social Security Administration. The National Science Foundation. The Treasury Department. All could lose as much as a quarter of their employees by 2012, mostly because of retirements. They are not alone. Across the government, about a third of full-time employees will retire in the next five years, according to estimates prepared by the Office of Personnel Management. The turnover could be even higher in the ranks of federal executives and supervisors. From the start of the Bush administration, agencies have been preparing for the churning that will be caused by the baby boom retirement wave....

State Sen. Paula Sandoval, D-Denver, wants to end some of the uncertainty that may surround young adults in Colorado who are U.S. citizens and qualify for in-state tuition - but whose parents are in the country illegally. Senate Bill 79 would help remedy one of the unintended consequences of a 2006 law that was meant to tackle illegal immigration. It would give students the legal standing to establish residency without exposing their parents to added scrutiny. Students could then receive the significant financial benefit of in-state tuition without risking getting their own parents into trouble with immigration authorities. ...

Members of Congress return to Washington this week $4,100 richer. During their three-week vacation, the annual cost-of-living adjustment kicked in, bringing the salary of a congressman to $169,300. At a time when partisan bickering has dragged congressional approval ratings to just 25 percent, Democrats and Republican can agree on one thing: a pay raise for poor performance. Any American workers who had such dismal reviews would be fired. But in the case of lawmakers in Washington, it’s business as usual. Support for the pay raise was among the most bipartisan issues Congress grappled with last year. An attempt to block...

WASHINGTON — Senate leaders have agreed on a way to bring a pulled immigration bill forward, breaking the impasse that had stalled the bill, Fox News confirms. The compromise legislation could come up as early as the middle of next week, once the Senate completes a large energy package. Legislators will consider 19 amendments (10 from Republicans and nine from Democrats) that are in need os some 'polishing' a senior Republican aide tells Fox News.

SACRAMENTO – Students who came to the country illegally could apply for state financial aid when they attend California colleges and universities under legislation approved Tuesday by the Assembly in a party-line vote. Supporters said immigrant children who have graduated and completed at least three years of high school in California should not be penalized for their parents' decision to bring them to the U.S. illegally. “It is one small measure to help these kids that are working their butts off to live the American dream,” said Assemblyman Hector De La Torre, D-South Gate. The bill would build upon existing...

I.R.S. to Cut Tax AuditorsBy DAVID CAY JOHNSTON Published: July 23, 2006 The federal government is moving to eliminate the jobs of nearly half of the lawyers at the Internal Revenue Service who audit tax returns of some of the wealthiest Americans, specifically those who are subject to gift and estate taxes when they transfer parts of their fortunes to their children and others. The administration plans to cut the jobs of 157 of the agency’s 345 estate tax lawyers, plus 17 support personnel, in less than 70 days. Kevin Brown, an I.R.S. deputy commissioner, confirmed the cuts after The...

Approximately $250,000 will go directly to recovering out-of-pocket expenses, Rothschild said, and will be divided among American Civil Liberties Union, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and Pepper Hamilton. The rest will go toward the ACLU and Americans United. The Discovery Institute, a Seattle-based pro-intelligent design organization, has criticized civil liberties' groups of using threats of lawsuits to bully school districts. But Rothschild said, "The threat of a lawsuit is real when the Constitution is violated. It's important to recognize here with this case, the substantial expense to bring and win this lawsuit."

WASHINGTON — Technology and communications companies rank third on the list of U.S. and U.K. industries with the most litigation, according a new survey of manufacturing companies. The survey by the law firm Fulbright & Jaworski, a leading intellectual-property litigator based in New York and Houston, found that the average U.S. manufacturer currently faces 40 lawsuits. Of those, an average of 18 were initiated in the last year. While product liability remains the largest generator of lawsuits, the survey found that intellectual property disputes are an emerging problem, especially for technology companies. IP and patent lawsuits accounted for an estimated...

Law falls short as some strike back on their own Some spammers launch cyber attacks against anti-spam crusaders By Jon Swartz USA TODAY SAN FRANCISCO -- Charles Booher was so mad, he did what others have longed to do: He told a spammer to stop -- or else. But the Silicon Valley tech worker went too far, prosecutors say. Last year, he allegedly threatened to shoot and torture an employee of a Canadian company that spammed him, court documents say. He also threatened to send a package "of anthrax spores" to the company unless it removed him from an...

Greedy American Trial Lawyers to Increase South African Poverty Through Apartheid Lawsuits That Will Only Make Them Rich America's 34-million African-Americans should be outraged by the campaign of economic blackmail that a handful of profit-driven personal injury lawyers are waging against the financially beleaguered Republic of South Africa. Against the expressed wishes of the revered Nelson Mandela and President Thabo Mbeki, the lawyers are filing class-action lawsuits in courts against U.S. corporations who did business in South Africa during apartheid - unjustly claiming that their mere presence in the country aided and abetted that nation's racist government. In fact, the...

California's Budget Logic Exclusive commentary by Garth Eisenbeis Jun 6, 2003 Here in California, the majority party (Democrats) has overspent an ample flow of revenue to the state treasury. Over the past four years our revenue has grown 28 percent, but our Democrat Legislature and Governor have passed a series of budgets that have, during the same four-year period, increased spending over 37 percent. Now the Governor and Democratic Legislative Leaders are asking for increases in several tax rates to fund their spending addiction. They have continually claimed that we have a revenue problem, but that is only true if...

Los Angeles Daily News Tax guzzlers Legislators trade in SUVs for more gravy To the great surprise of many, it seems that state legislators do, in fact, have some sense of shame. Last year, when Sacramento Democrats were busily pushing legislation to crack down on California's sport utility vehicle owners, it came to light that many of the would-be environmental crusaders themselves drove SUVs -- on the taxpayers' dime, no less. Embarrassed by their own hypocrisy, legislative Democrats are now working on ways to purge the behemoths from their fleet. The state Senate might soon bar its members from using...

Resident Commissioner Anibal Acevedo Vila asked the Navy Monday to look into whether downsizing operations at Naval Station Roosevelt Roads "goes beyond what is necessary and legitimate." In a letter to Acting Navy Secretary Hansford Johnson, the resident commissioner said he was "deeply concerned about conflicting information regarding the intentions of the Navy over future operations" at the Ceiba base. Employees at the base, and others, have charged that the downsizing ordered by the Atlantic Fleet chief Adm. Robert Natter is of a broader scope than just shutting down operations related to the training facility at Vieques. The Navy intends...

Popular Democratic Party Sen. Juan Cancel Alegria said Friday Navy Adm. Robert J. Natter's decision to close the Atlantic Fleet Weapons Training Facility at Naval Station Roosevelt Roads is illegal, citing the National Defense Authorization Act of 2001. He also called on U.S. government officials to investigate the legality of the matter. "Section 1504 of the Act is clear to the effect that the termination of training and related closures are specifically and exclusively limited to Vieques Naval Training Range. No authorization was granted to affect the rest of the AFWTF," Cancel Alegria said in a letter to several U.S....

<p>CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) . A walkout by surgeons protesting high malpractice insurance costs will continue indefinitely because Gov. Bob Wise and the Legislature have not done enough to address the problem, a participating surgeon said Friday.</p> <p>More than two dozen orthopedic, general and heart surgeons serving four hospitals in West Virginia's Northern Panhandle began 30-day leaves of absence Wednesday or planned to begin leaves in the next few days.</p>

Almost daily, a missive arrives announcing a new effort to “clean up politics.” Usually, these breathless announcements come from one or the other political parties. Their efforts are always aimed at the laughable assumption that one political party in this country is responsible for all the corruption in politics and the other (the one announcing the clean up) is blessed with purity and clean hands. Which, of course, is bullshit. Like most of the viruses that affect the political power structure in this nation, corruption crosses all party lines, infects all political philosophies and drives most of the posturing and...