Cheap Chinese products come with a cost, a hidden cost. More and more U.S. companies are paying the price of recalling their products. Why? Because a good number of Chinese-made products are tainted with lead. Toy-maker Fisher-Price is recalling 83 types of toys which include Big Bird, Elmo, Dora and Diego characters because their paint has excessive amounts of lead. Now, the question is whether these products are going to be destroyed. Are they going to be sold and dumped in places and countries where there are no regulations monitoring lead content? Between May and August, more than 967,00 plastic preschool toys were made by a Chinese vendor. Get more news about Chinese-Made products that are tainted at Podshoppingblog

Bloggers are revealing the barbaric nature of torture in Egypt.  Since the release and diffusion of the torture video showing Ali Mohamed known among friends as Emad al-Kabir, Egyptians and world-wide foreigners get to see what is happening in the barracks and inside police stations.  The 21-year old bus driver was shown lying on the floor stripped naked from the waist down; his hands were bound behind his back and his legs held in the air.  He was screaming and begging as he was being sodomized with a stick while those around him, whose faces are not visible to viewers, taunt him.    What was the crime committed by this young man?  No Crimes Deserve Such a Treatment   He was intervening to break a fight, a scuffle between a cousin and some police officers.  The latter became enraged and decided to teach him a lesson that show how savage, wild these police officers are.  Torture appears to be accepted in the Egyptian society.  Thirty-six hours later, the young cab driver was released.  What is different about this event is that a web impresario named Demagh MAK uploaded the video for the world to see and comment.  With its links posted on various blogs, the impresario had unleashed a storm of attention both at home and abroad.  That is indeed the true power of the blogosphere.  Links can be found on technorati and various websites.  The possibility of shaming the torturers and the rest of the society that accepts such violence and violation of human rights will push the case further and may be the reason of change in the country.    For sure, the police officers who supervised the torture were arrested afterwards. 

High demand from U.S. ethanol producers is causing something of a phenomenon among corn farmers. Corn prices have been high lately without any doubt. Those who depended on corn exported by the US in poor countries of the world now have to compete with ethanol plants. The corn grains that used to feed chickens are now being processed for other reasons. The thirst for corn-based ethanol is being felt around the globe. Corn farmers are now laughing all the way to the bank. They getting higher profits for their production. Cattle farmers have to pay more to get their livestock fatten. U.S. government subsidized corn has been used by Mexican farmers to fatten their hogs, chickens and cattle for a long time. Now they may have to buy from local farmers. That means that more Mexican farmers will have to produce corn. They will also make more money. One of the U.S. companies that stands to make some good profits from the use of corn is Pacific ethanol which was originally based in Fresno, CA. The headquarters of the company was just moved to Sacramento, California's political capital. Pacific Ethanol is a major leader in the West. It also has its competitors in companies such as Midland and others. There are currently 110 ethanol plants in the United States snapping up hundreds of millions of bushels and an additional 63 refineries slated to come on line very soon. Argentina, Brazil, South Africa and Mexico may encourage their farmers to produce more corn.

Colleges and Universities' Preferred-Lender Lists: Tuition Rises; Students' Loans Skyrocket New York Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo is sending letters to colleges and universities from Boston to California. He wants to know about the nature of the relationships between colleges and universities and loan companies. The question to ask is whether these two entities are conspiring to push tuition costs to the point where education becones unaffordable to many young men and women. It is worth nothing that private student loans have become a very lucrative and fast-growing business over the years. All the while, tuition costs at many colleges and universities have soared. Who stands to benefit from the hidden relationships between Universities and Colleges and those loan companies? Until now, many families and students go to these centers of higher learning only to get taken advantage of. NY Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo wants to know more details about the preferred-lender lists. Most colleges and universities compile these lists to offer to students. But nothing is said about the nature of the relationships between the school and the loan companies. What is in it for the schools? The Federal Education Department is thinking about regulating this side of the business. It is requesting more transparency. The students must know whether these institutions stand to make money in the deals. Private student loans may have their days counted. Mr. Cuomo has also demanded information from both loan companies and schools. "My office is seeking to ensure that students are being steered toward lenders offering the most competitive rates, not t hose who offer the best perks to schools of financial aid administrators," said Mr. Cuomo.

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It seems that Ana Nicole Smith has never recovered from the death of her son. She had a short troubled history. At 39, she died young. She was found dead in a Hard Rock Cafe owned by Seminole Indians in Florida. It was not her first time staying there. What was odd is that she was traveling with a nurse. According to observers, she was dead on arrival at the hospital where she was taken after being administered CPR. Read Paris Hilton Videos, Britney Spears' Revealing Pictures and Lindsay Lohan's Continuing scandal

After initially denying his alcohol problems and after consulting with family members and close friends, the SF mayor admitted to having a drinking problem.  Now we know that is a separate event from the fact that he slept with his re-election campaign manager's wife a  year and a half ago.  Well, Rep. Mark Foley went to Rehab.  So did Tara Conner, the Mss USA pardoned by Donald Trump.  Now, it is the mayor's turn to go to rehab.  He refused to resign. 

Find out more about this developing scandal and the confrontations by Alex Tourk who resigned.  He still has to figure out how he is going to get a check.  He has a kid to take care of.  Is he still with his wife?  He was getting paid 15,000 per month.  It seems that he is about to lose everything.