Heinz Recalls Baby Cereal

The list of products contaminated with Chinese milk is increasing. Heinz has recalled products:

“…”In order to reassure consumers about the safety of Heinz products, Heinz has made the strategic decision to switch our milk supply in China and Hong Kong to non-Chinese sources,” the company said in a statement. “We are testing all dairy ingredients for melamine prior to use in our factories.”

Last week, Heinz recalled 270 cases of baby cereal in Hong Kong after testing found trace levels of melamine.”

link: Heinz to stop using Chinese milk in products

The safety guideline has become simple. All milk related products from China are suspect. The melamine contamination is that widespread.

Catherine Forsythe

The Missile Launch Souvenir

What does one do with a such a souvenir? Does it go on the coffee table or the fireplace mantel? An Air Force Officer thought that a missile launch control device would be a good souvenir:

“An Air Force supervisor says a Minot Air Force Base officer admitted taking a missile launch control device as a souvenir because he thought it would be “a cool thing to have.”"

link: Witness: Officer admitted taking missile device

link: Air Force Officer Faces Hearing for Theft

The Air Force Captain is in serious trouble. It does make one wonder about the security of nuclear installations if one of the people can walk off with such a souvenir. And one device still is missing.

Catherine Forsythe

Unilever Recalls a Milk Product

Another manufacturer has recalled a product connected with the Chinese milk scandal.

“Unilever is recalling four batches of Lipton Milk Tea sold in Hong Kong and Macau after finding traces of the chemical melamine in the product, the company said Tuesday.”

link: Manufacturing giant recalls melamine tainted tea

The reported number of children who have been ill because of this contaminated milk has been placed at approximately fifty three thousand (53,000). Some believe that the fifty three thousand figure is a low estimate.

Catherine Forsythe

A Million Laptops Bought for Children - Not OLPC

Venezuela has taken a major step towards improving education for the country’s children. It has bought a million cost efficient laptops for educational purposes. And the laptop is not the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) model which has generated so much publicity:

“…Portugal is manufacturing the blue and white laptops under licence from Intel and are broadly based on the chip maker’s design of its Classmate computer.

Dubbed Magalhaes (Magellan), the laptops will have on board low-power Intel Atom chips designed for laptops. They will also sport digital cameras and a broadband net connection.”

link: Venezuela splashes out on laptops

This purchase is not mutually exclusive of Venezuela’s political ambitions. Venezuela wants to become more predominant on an international stage. It recognizes that one of the basic requirements is that the country’s educational standards need to be improved. This focus on education is a recognition that all international super-power nations must have a educated, innovative younger generations. And part of the process is placing a laptop in the hands of its youth.

Catherine Forsythe

Support for the Google / Yahoo Advertising Plan

There is support for the Google / Yahoo Advertising plan in the House of Representatives:

“…The lawmakers, all Democrats from California, urged the DOJ not to block the ad deal, in which Yahoo would run some Google search ads on its Web pages. The group sent a letter to the DOJ Friday.”

link: Lawmakers call on DOJ to approve Google-Yahoo deal

For Yahoo, this advertising arrangement is imperative. It allows Yahoo to generate income along with Google and it gives Yahoo a financial buffer. The possibility of a Microsoft acquisition of Yahoo still lingers; and Yahoo knows that Microsoft is waiting for an opportunity to revisit the possibility of a Yahoo merger.

Catherine Forsythe

Unprecedented Authority Granted to Henry Paulson

The Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Paulson, will be granted unprecedented authority in the financial bailout plan:

“… Paulson’s new powers will be almost breathtaking in their scope. He and his successor will have the right to buy not just the mortgage-related securities at the heart of the crisis but, under some conditions, any financial instrument “the purchase of which is necessary to promote financial market stability”.

It even gives him the politically explosive power to cut deals with foreign banks in some cases.”

link: Paulson wins unparalleled power

Mr. Paulson is not an elected official. He serves at the pleasure of the President of the United States. This bailout plan grants the Secretary of the Treasury, presently Mr Paulson, unprecedented authority. It effectively bypasses the checks and balances of American government. Hopefully there will not be a necessity to be rescued from the rescue plan itself.

Catherine Forsythe

More Products Contaminated from Chinese Milk

The fallout from the contaminated milk scandal has become international and impacting on milk related products. The chemical melamine, which has caused illness in tens of thousands of Chinese children and which has caused some deaths, has been found in products exported from China:

“Indonesia’s health ministry said melamine had been detected in 12 food items from China, including biscuits, lollies and drinks, as the fall-out from China’s tainted-milk scandal spread to Southeast Asia’s biggest economy.”

link: Melamine ‘found in 12 China food products’

Cadbury is recalling Dairy Milk and other chocolates, as the products contain melamine. The extent of the contamination is so widespread that it cast doubt on any Chinese milk related import. This is especially a concern for young children, the elderly and those with pre-existing health concerns.

Catherine Forsythe

Senator McCain Might Not Read the Manual Either

The financial crisis is dire. The amount of the bailout is staggering. There is no dispute that the economy verges on the brink of collapse. In the midst of this immediate danger there is a bit of behaviour that is frightening:

“…McCain had never committed to support the Administration’s plan. When asked, he had claimed he hadn’t read it, even though it was only a few pages long.”

link: Oh, the Drama! McCain in the Theater of the Absurd

Henry Paulson, the Secretary of the Treasury, had released the bailout plan and asked for unprecedented authority. Perhaps Senator McCain preferred to be briefed by his staff rather than look at the Paulson document himself. However, the bailout plan was only three pages. It would not have taken Senator McCain that long to read the proposal himself. It was a crucial document. Perhaps commenting on the proposal without reading it for himself is part of Senator McCain being a maverick.

Catherine Forsythe

Paul Newman: A Legacy of Life

With the passing of Paul Newman, tributes come from various sources. There is none more potent than from people like Babette Rittmeyer:

“…She explained that her son, Matthew Stein, suffered from childhood kidney cancer. He was among the lucky ones who attended the Hole in the Wall Gang Camps that Newman created for sick kids in five countries.

Her son had gone three times to the one in Connecticut and found a community of kids who were just like himself, some worse off. He was nearing renal failure on his last stay but he had nonetheless gone up to the wall that campers scale as a symbolic feat.”

link: We see Paul Newman’s real gifts in a mother’s tears

Perhaps the next time we are in the supermarket, we can say thanks by buying a ‘Newman’s Own’ food product. Some funds from that purchase will go to a good cause and continue a legacy.

Catherine Forsythe

Medicare Cards Lead to Identity Theft

The Medicare card allows access to medical services. However, this identifier also presents a danger for identity theft. The reason is that the Social Security number is on the card. It ties a name with a Social Security number - and that is all the information that an identity thieve needs to exploit that person’s name.

Further, that Medicare card can be used for medical identity theft. It would allow a person to use a false identity to receive medical treatment. In the case of medical identity theft, the consequences can be deadly.

If there is a family member who is a senior citizen, remind them to safeguard the Medicare card. It holds information that identity thieves target.

Catherine Forsythe