28 Sep 2005
Dog flu: widespread but treatable

More scary stuff - note that this one jumped from equines. Apparently this has been making the rounds of various e-lists of late, and was brought to the attention of Snopes.com, who verified it and published more detailed information.

A new canine influenza has sickened dogs at greyhound racing tracks, boarding kennels, and animal shelters in as many as 11 states, killing some animals, causing respiratory infections in others, and striking fear in the hearts of pet owners nationwide. From January to May 2005, reports of outbreaks of a new, respiratory disease primarily in racing dogs came into the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from Florida, Texas, Arkansas, Arizona, West Virginia, Kansas, Iowa, Colorado, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. Not all of these are confirmed cases of canine influenza. However, since this spring, scientists say they've confirmed cases of dog flu in pets in Florida, New York, and Massachusetts, and calls are coming in from veterinarians, shelters, and kennels elsewhere.

(link) [U.S. News & World Report]

00:00 /Agriculture | 0 comments | permanent link

No Green Acres? Try Skyscrapers

It's shit like this that makes me distrust the "organic" label:

"This is a factory, not a farm," says Hessel, whose own background is in the chip industry. "We just build lettuce instead of CPUs."

Well, at least he's honest about it. He can "build" all the "organic" lettuce he wants to: but I for one will not consume it. I prefer my veggies to be grown, in the ground, under the sun. If that makes me a "Luddite" or a "throwback", then so be it. I contend that we are monkeying about with things we don't really understand - with systems that are too complex to be reduced, and that, eventually, we will pay a terrible price for our hubris.

And guys like this are gonna get the first bill.

Organic farms don't have to be in bucolic settings. They could stand alongside skyscrapers in the middle of Tokyo or Los Angeles, if a Delaware company has its way. By Sam Jaffe.

(link) [Wired News]

00:00 /Agriculture | 0 comments | permanent link

Free the Cell Phone!

DMCA madness.

At least one company hopes to outlaw software that unlocks your phone so you can use it on a competing network. But since when is consumer choice a crime? Commentary by Jennifer Granick.

(link) [Wired News]

00:00 /Copywrongs | 0 comments | permanent link

Gas Prices Blamed for Late Credit Payments

Well. Just wait until these new "delinquents" get next months bill.

AP - The percentage of credit card payments that were past due shot up to a record high in the second quarter as surging gasoline prices strained budgets and made it difficult for some people to pay their bills.

(link) [Yahoo! News: Top Stories]

00:00 /Politics | 0 comments | permanent link