The Myth of Drug Expiration Dates
ProPublica
Hospitals and pharmacies are required to toss expired drugs, no matter how expensive or vital, and that could be costing patients millions of dollars. The FDA has long known that many drugs remain safe and potent for years past expiration dates. But regulations and the profit motive insure that most companies do not test their products' true staying power. Post Office Let Workers Campaign for Hillary
Washington Free Beacon
The U.S. Postal Service allowed some workers to take months off work to campaign for Hillary Clinton, according to a government watchdog. The Office of Special Counsel concluded that the agency "engaged in systemic violations" of the Hatch Act, which regulates federal employees' involvement in political campaigns. ICE Exploits New York Prostitution Courts
Village Voice
New York state created human-trafficking intervention courts in 2013, figuring immigrants accused of prostitution were likely victims, not criminals. If they agree to meet with agencies and "stay out of trouble," prosecution stops. But now agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been sitting in the courts and arresting people for immigration violations. This defeats the courts' anti-trafficking purpose, critics say. Bermuda Firm Tied to Russian Anti-Fracking Effort
Washington Times
Republican lawmakers say Russia has been using a Bermuda shell company to funnel money to environmental groups opposed to fracking. One recipient, the League of Conservation Voters, says such charges are meant to distract from President Trump's Russian problems. But Hillary Clinton made similar claims about Russian meddling. How Internet Trolls Haunted Teenage Whaler
High Country News
Chris Apassingok, 16, was proud of harpooning and landing his first whale -- a rite of passage in Alaska's harsh coastal northwest. It prizes whale meat as "soul food of the Arctic" and an alternative to costly store groceries. But then word spread beyond the teen's small village, and he began receiving death threats on Facebook. Environmentalist Paul Watson, a personality on Animal Planet's "Whale Wars," ranted online against him. Now, Chris says, "it never stops." We're Government Cheese Experts and We're Here to Help
Bloomberg Businessweek
Cue concerns about obesity. Amid a historic glut of dairy products, Dairy Management Inc. -- the secretive, government-sponsored entity behind the "Got Milk?" campaign of the 1990s -- is helping to develop menu items to push cheese anywhere it can stuff it. As in Taco Bell's Quesalupa: a taco served in a cheese-stuffed fried shell whose 2016 arrival was heralded by a Super Bowl ad featuring a cackling George Takei. For Dairy Management's help, farmers pay 15 cents for every 100 pounds of dairy they sell. | 
