Under Obama, military commissions may return

“By any measure, our system of trying detainees has been an enormous failure,” Illinois Democratic Senator Barack Obama said as a candidate for president.

However, in what would appear to be a major reversal from campaign promises, the Obama administration is on the verge of reestablishing controversial military commissions the Bush administration used to try terror war prisoners, a Saturday report revealed.

The Raw Story

Government Could Destroy Records in Hundreds of Guantanamo Cases

A stockpile of documents about hundreds of Guantanamo Bay detainees, some written by the prisoners themselves, could be destroyed under a little-known provision of a federal court order the Bush administration obtained in 2004.

ProPublica

Sarah Haskins in Target Women: Medicine

Target Women is a recurring segment on Current TV’s weekly television show, infoMania. In each episode of Target Women, Sarah Haskins takes a look at the often-ridiculous way the media reaches out to women.

Current

Justice Dept. drops case against war resister Watada

The Department of Justice has dropped its case against 1st Lt. Ehren Watada, a war resister who refused Iraq deployment in June 2006 and denounced President George W. Bush’s decision to invade as illegal and immoral. …In Feb. 2007, military judge Lieutenant Colonel John Head halted Watada’s case following possible inconsistencies concerning a “stipulation of fact” agreed before the hearing. The decision led to a mistrial, ending Watada’s court martial. The Army appealed, but a judge said Watada could not be tried again on the same charges, as it would violate his right to be free of double jeopardy.

The Raw Story

How Safe Are Cosmetics and Body Care Products?

Cosmetics—makeup, creams, fragrances—have been around for thousands of years. Ancient Egyptian and Roman women famously caked on lead-based foundation. (Lead, a metal, can cause nerve, muscle and organ damage.) But surely lead-laden cosmetics have been phased out along with lead-lined water pipes, right? Not necessarily.

Scientific American

Wind Turbine Output Boosted 30% by Breakthrough Design

Technological advancements in wind energy efficiency have generally come incrementally and usually made via a process of increasingly large wind turbine blades. Put simply, the model has been: longer blades = more output per turbine.

Clean Technica