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Investigation ties pet chain to puppy mills Many Petland store dogs bred in poor conditions, Humane Society finds After an eight-month investigation, the Humane Society of the United States accused Petland, the national pet store chain, of selling dogs bred under appalling conditions at puppy mills around the country. The animal protection group made the charges at a news conference in Washington Thursday. The investigation involved 21 Petland stores and dozens of breeders and brokers. The Petland stores are being supplied by large-scale puppy mills, although customers are routinely informed that the dogs come only from good breeders, the Humane Society said. "They are buying from puppy mills where these dogs are not treated like pets," Michael Markarian, an executive vice president with the Humane Society, told a news conference. "They're treated like a cash crop, where mother dogs live in wire cages, sometimes stacked on top of each other in filthy, dirty, cramped...

Cannabis may help keep Alzheimer's disease at bay. In experiments, a marijuana-based medicine triggered the formation of new brain cells and cut inflammation linked to dementia. The researchers say that using the information to create a pill suitable for people could help prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer's. A medicine based on cannabis (right) could help to delay the onset of Alzheimer's. The incurable disease affects 400,000 Britons, with around 500 new cases diagnosed every day as people live longer. For some sufferers, drugs can delay the progress of devastating symptoms such as memory loss and the erosion of ability to do everyday things such as washing. However, there they do not work for everyone and, with the number of patients forecast to double in a generation, there is a desperate need for new treatments. The US researchers studied the properties of a man-made drug based on THC, the chemical behind the 'high' of cannabis. When elderly rats were give...

Texas grand jury indicts Cheney, Gonzales of crime HOUSTON (Reuters) - A grand jury in South Texas indicted U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney and former attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Tuesday for "organized criminal activity" related to alleged abuse of inmates in private prisons. Read full article

If you voted for McCain/Palin because you were concerned about Obama's "associations": Obama - Bill Ayers (anti-war activist), Wiki: "In 1973, the federal government requested the dismissal of the charges against the couple in the interest of national security following accusations of government misconduct..." Obama - Pastor Jeremiah Wright, Wiki: "[Obama] expressed outrage and shock at a press conference on April 29 [2008]..." Obama - Tony Rezko Obama - muslim (he's actually a christian) Obama - ACORN ... were you equally concerned about McCain/Palin's "associations"? Palin - Senator Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) convicted felon Palin - Todd Palin, member of the Alaskan Independence Party Palin - Bishop Thomas Muthee , believes in witches and witchcraft Palin - Sarah Palin , "...abused her power as governor and violated the state's Executive Branch Ethics Act when her office pressured Monegan to fire Wooten..." McCain -...

(CNN) -- Two veterans' organizations Monday filed a federal lawsuit seeking to accelerate decisions on disability claims for retired military personnel. The plaintiffs say the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs takes an average of six months to rule on a typical claim. The lawsuit, filed by the Vietnam Veterans of America and Veterans of Modern Warfare in U.S. District Court in Washington, seeks to force the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide an initial ruling on every veteran's claim for disability benefits within 90 days and to resolve appeals within 180 days. The veterans' groups also are seeking interim benefits for veterans whose claim rulings take longer than those time periods. "The failure to expedite veterans' compensation claims creates, at best, the impression that the nation does not respect its veterans," John Rowan, president of the Vietnam Veterans of America, said in a written statement. "America's veterans deserve more, and th...

Obama Positioned to Quickly Reverse Bush Actions Stem Cell, Climate Rules Among Targets of President-Elect's Team President Bush denied California the authority to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles. The president-elect says he will overturn that decision. Transition advisers to President-elect Barack Obama have compiled a list of about 200 Bush administration actions and executive orders that could be swiftly undone to reverse White House policies on climate change, stem cell research, reproductive rights and other issues, according to congressional Democrats, campaign aides and experts working with the transition team. A team of four dozen advisers, working for months in virtual solitude, set out to identify regulatory and policy changes Obama could implement soon after his inauguration. The team is now consulting with liberal advocacy groups, Capitol Hill staffers and potential agency chiefs to prioritize those they regard as the most onerous or ideologically off...

Barack Obama let the dogs out Friday on his family's future presidential pooch. At his first press conference since the election, he announced the family would prefer to adopt because, "a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me. "With respect to the dog, this is a major issue," he joked. "I think it's generated more interest on our Web site than just about anything." Check out photos from Obama's First Family Album. Before picking out the dog that Obama promised to his daughters during his Tuesday night speech, he says they're still sorting out a few issues. "We have two criteria that have to be reconciled," he said. "One is that Malia is allergic, so it has to be hypoallergenic. There are a number of breeds that are hypoallergenic. "On the other hand, our preference would be to get a shelter dog, but, obviously, a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me. So whether we're going to be able to balance those two things I think i...

No greater risk than general non-tokers Regular readers will recall the confused mess that is this government’s cannabis policy. There has been a drop in cannabis consumption since it was downgraded from Class B to C, but nevertheless they want to put it back up to Class B again. Yes, we know all about the argument that what you ingest is entirely your business, it being your body and all that but morals are always trumped by politics. In the comments section to our last piece the general consensus was that the policy was driven either by a craven servility to the Murdoch press or, as a daring alternative, a bending to Daily Mail woo woo. The general consensus however was that it was Puritanism, that awful fear that someone, somewhere, might be enjoying themselves and that this situation cannot be allowed to continue. We’re arguing over whose Puritanism, not whether. There was one vaguely respectable argument that could be put forward on the prohibitionist’s side, that of cannab...

Tonight, Michigan became the thirteenth state to legalize the physician supervised possession and use of cannabis. According to early returns, more than 60 percent of Michigan voters decided in favor of Proposal 1, which establishes a state-regulated system regarding the use and cultivation of medical marijuana by qualified patients. Voters endorsed the measure despite a high profile, deceptive, and despicable ad campaign by Prop. 1 opponents — who falsely claimed that the initiative would allow for the open sale of marijuana “in every neighborhood, just blocks from schools.” (In fact, Proposal 1 does not even allow for the creation of licensed cannabis dispensaries.) Michigan’s new law goes into effect on December 4th, at which time nearly one-quarter of the US population will live in a state that authorizes the legal use of medical cannabis. Meanwhile, in Massachusetts, some 65 percent of voters (and virtually every town) decided “yes” on Question 2, which reduces minor marijuana pos...

"It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled - Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America."

... of relief...