April 27, 2016


News and Views


https://www.yahoo.com/news/san-francisco-police-ensnared-2nd-racist-texting-scandal-192819363.html

San Francisco police text scandal at odds with diverse image
JANIE HAR and PAUL ELIAS, Associated Press
April 26, 2016


SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Details of a second batch of racist and homophobic text messages sent by a San Francisco police officer seem at odds with the image of a rainbow-flagged city that prides itself on diversity.

But people who have long complained of mistreatment by police are unsurprised, saying that the dozens of texts released by the city's public defender on Tuesday reflect a city where minorities feel increasingly harassed, whether by police or by developers eying traditionally ethnic neighborhoods for gleaming new condos.

"In many respects we have a history and tradition of progressive politics that has ironically worked against reform, because I think it took a long time for people to recognize that even in San Francisco, we can have the same problems as Ferguson," said San Francisco Supervisor David Campos, referring to the Missouri city where a black teenager was shot and killed by a white police officer in 2014, sparking a national movement for greater police oversight.

"We think we're above it all," Campos said, "and we're not."

San Francisco is amid a technology-based jobs boom that has added thousands of wealthier newcomers to an already crowded city where the median price of a house is now more than $1 million. Growing tension between the people who have well-paying jobs and those who do not — many who are minorities— simmers beneath the city's veneer as a mecca to tech and tourism.

The offensive texts released Tuesday refer to a Latino man as a using a derogatory term and compare black people to "a pack of wild animals on the loose." The texts, which also disparage Indians, the homeless, gay people and President Barack Obama, are the second batch to rock the city since it was disclosed in late 2014 that another group of police officers had exchanged in racist and homophobic text messages in an unrelated corruption case.

A judge ruled last year that those officers could keep their jobs and avoid discipline because San Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr had waited too long to address the allegations.

The latest text messages emerged during a rape investigation of Jason Lai, a former officer who resigned from the department earlier this month. He had been accused of rape. Prosecutors declined to file rape charges but released the messages to the public defender, whose office is representing a defendant in a case involving Lai.

The messages were on Lai's personal cell phone. Don Nobles, Lai's attorney, did not respond to requests for comment.

Public Defender Jeff Adachi released the texts Tuesday saying that messages exchanged among Lai and two other San Francisco police officers in 2014 and 2015 may affect at least 200 criminal cases, including three murder cases.

"It is a window into the biases they harbored. It likely influenced who they stopped, who they searched, who they arrested, and how they testified in criminal trials," Adachi said.

It's not just about text messages. Relations between African American and Latino communities and the police have also deteriorated over the shooting deaths of two civilians.

This month, police officers killed a homeless 45-year-old Latino man they say was advancing on them with a knife. In December, officers killed a 26-year-old African American man, saying that he refused to drop a knife.

"There is a certain mean-spiritedness, an attitude in the department," said the Rev. Amos C. Brown, president of the San Francisco NAACP. "We are not runaway slaves who should be captured. We're citizens of the United States of America. Some are good, others are bad. Go after the bad ones and stop profiling the good ones."

Activists have called for Suhr to resign or be fired, but the chief says he is working to overhaul the department's "use-of-force" policies. Mayor Ed Lee said he supports the chief's reform efforts.

Suhr said Tuesday that the three officers have quit or retired after they were caught sending the texts to each other. He is seeking to fire a fourth officer. Suhr said he has no plans to resign.

Samuel Walker, a retired criminal justice professor from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, said Tuesday he's stunned the officers felt they could get away with trading such messages and blames that attitude on a lack of leadership.

"If you have a poorly managed department without standards of accountability, everybody sinks to the bottom," he said.

Several people interviewed Tuesday near San Francisco's City Hall shrugged at the texts. But Geo Vala, a 23-year-old after-school mentor for elementary school students, said the texts were scary and could affect the way the officer acts on the job.

"If you're talking that way," he said, "that really shows your true colors."

AP reporter Sudhin Thanawala contributed to this report.


COMMENTS

Marcquess 3 minutes ago
its hard to believe that these people we paid to keep us safe are the one terrorizing us now. these people needs to be provided a weekly training on how to deal, respond on civilian population in humanly manner. i myself have lost faith, shy away whenever i saw police in uniform...individually these guys need to be evaluated on monthly basis by public independent agency in regards to their weekly accomplishment, attached them w/ tracking, video/audio 24/7.
we are paying these guys even higher than most of a 4 year degree, yet they were not screened properly if they are fit, qualified, in performing a very delicate, demanding job.
the police dept need a re-organization, reconstruction an independent evaluation dept w/c "include a private citizen" responsible in monitoring, evaluating them on their weekly job report. all reporst, audio/video recording, including their personal files will be keep by the said dept, that will out of their illegal tampering.

Kevin M 10 minutes ago
And there's the myth in full exposure. That which the article conveniently ignores is that this isn't a police problem, it's a societal problem.
The myth being that only whites can be racists or bigots, and that much of this is limited to police departments. That doesn't explain the innumerable instances of events demonstrating the racist vitriol coming from minority communities [ anyone remember Reginald Denny? How about the Congressional Black Caucus at a D.C. Tea Party rally? Perhaps the Tawana Brawley incident? ].
There is no value in denying the obvious, unless you stand to benefit from it politically. It is long past the point in time for each of us to ask ourselves, who benefits from the race baiting agenda in America?

Salman 35 minutes ago
SF had the Withe Night Riots is 1979. Since then, the SFPD became much more diverse, as well as the city itself. Fast forward to the present day, the tech boom, and rising housing costs have lessened the diversity in SF, making it a city of "Haves, and Have nots." Of course, there is some dislike among the two groups. When I lived there, I was always in the Mission, but I didn't live there. In the Mission, I was among friends, and culture that saw as my own. On my most recent trip to SF, the Mission's Mexican culture was eroding. I didn't feel as comfortable any longer.

freedomrings 1 hour ago
No San Fransicko, there is no such place as utopia. Everyone has prejudices and biases, some just can't hide them very well. Can't change normal.

Jason S 24 minutes ago
Show me the person whose SAYS they never said a discriminatory thing or had prejudice thoughts about someone and i'll show you a PURE BRED LIAR. Racist texts that aren't sent to the person they are talking about doesn't prove mistreatment.

EVERYONE HAS THEIR OWN PREJUDICES. ADMIT IT AND MOVE THE HELL ON. YOU WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO LEGISLATE PEOPLE LIKEING ONE ANOTHER. WE"LL ALWAYS FIND SOME STUPID REASON TO DISLIKE ONE ANOTHER.. I will ALWAYS hate professional whiners and complainers.. I make no bones about it. Doesn't mean I'm going to mistreat them. Just means I think they are useless #$%$ with nothing better to do to make themselves feel important.

Desktop 22 minutes ago
The bigger issue is not that we don't have biases, prejudices and opinions BUT to what extent do you allow that to impact YOUR JOB. Example, I have a fear of bees (using the pejorative 'bee' term to mean yellow jackets & wasps), I understand their usefulness but I hate them- for this reason I hate being outside.

BUT how much does my hate translate into me going out of my way to destroy them? Maybe even to my own harm? It's one thing to knock they off my person when they fly on me, or take down a nest on the house- it's something else to blow up my shed house, fall off the mower and get injured (but blame the bees), willfully walk in to a bee hive, kill the Queen, bathe in sugar water, buy an unholy amount of Mexican pesticides to sprinkle on the land and eventually poison the town water supply? . . . .

The issue to date, keep your prejudices but when you are in a public servant/services/customer service type position- you may need to find a new job. I would not work as a bee keeper- it's just dumb because eventually those biases will lead you to disproportionately arrest, detain and trouble those you 'individually' have a problem with because you are reflecting your prejudices on others.

I can hear a bee from yards away, my fear makes me in tune to them. I have to wear ear phones when doing work- to be productive (lest I spend all my time fighting a bee flying by). For this story, it's one thing to pull over a minority for a violation- it is something else to pull over a minority because you 'think' they are suspicious, or that you think the stop is more likely to yield drugs, and that you embody the law. Now, you are projecting on them you prejudices- this makes you the violate not them. So any word, action or thing they take issue with is considered a 'violation' of your private code and not one (always) backed by the law. Or you can simply inflate some charges because they 'doth protest'.



“Public Defender Jeff Adachi released the texts Tuesday saying that messages exchanged among Lai and two other San Francisco police officers in 2014 and 2015 may affect at least 200 criminal cases, including three murder cases. …. A judge ruled last year that those officers could keep their jobs and avoid discipline because San Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr had waited too long to address the allegations. The latest text messages emerged during a rape investigation of Jason Lai, a former officer who resigned from the department earlier this month. He had been accused of rape. …. Activists have called for Suhr to resign or be fired, but the chief says he is working to overhaul the department's "use-of-force" policies. Mayor Ed Lee said he supports the chief's reform efforts. Suhr said Tuesday that the three officers have quit or retired after they were caught sending the texts to each other. He is seeking to fire a fourth officer. Suhr said he has no plans to resign. …. "If you have a poorly managed department without standards of accountability, everybody sinks to the bottom," he said. Several people interviewed Tuesday near San Francisco's City Hall shrugged at the texts. But Geo Vala, a 23-year-old after-school mentor for elementary school students, said the texts were scary and could affect the way the officer acts on the job.”


Some people are honest about the harm things like this do, thank goodness. It’s no coincidence that a school mentor for elementary students spoke with shock about the situation. People who “people oriented” do tend to speak up for the underdog and work against what I tend to call “evil.” That is my “strongly held religious belief,” rather than who has sex with whom. The fact that there are “dozens” of abusive emails saddens me, but it doesn’t surprise me these days. Some 200 investigations may have been discredited, and “perpetrators” unjustly convicted. That really is a shame, not to mention the number of unjustified shootings or beatings that may have occurred. I’m glad somebody caught the issue and publicized it. No city wants a stain like that on their honor and reputation, but the only way to solve the problem is to “come clean” about it and punish those who are guilty.

This set of reader comments are particularly to the point, and without much in the way of truly abusive language (Exception: I will ALWAYS hate professional whiners and complainers. I make no bones about it. Doesn't mean I'm going to mistreat them. Just means I think they are useless #$%$ with nothing better to do to make themselves feel important.”)

My personal favorite of these comments is that of Desktop about the bees. I grew up in the South, so I’m very familiar with bees. A wasp or a hornet is a scary thing. They’re vicious, and they will actually chase you if you accidentally violate their territory. I agree with him totally when he says, “For this story, it's one thing to pull over a minority for a violation- it is something else to pull over a minority because you 'think' they are suspicious, or that you think the stop is more likely to yield drugs, and that you embody the law.” A key phrase is “you embody the law.” None of us, even cops, are “the law” incarnate and they certainly shouldn’t be above the law, especially when they have the power of life and death, which is too often triggered by a paranoid fear or a cruel whim. Too many policemen are bullies or even sadists. I recognize that policemen need to be tough, but they shouldn’t be unfair or vicious. We are failing to weed out aggressive borderline psychotic people in our hiring for that very important public service job. We seriously need top to bottom reform. For my full comment, see “Jason’s” viewpoint below.

Jason’s classic “conservative” comment has some truth in it, but shows little tolerance for those who pursue minority rights which are particularly under attack these days. I agree with him that “He who is without sin should throw the first stone.” That is absolutely true for every human being, (including me) because indeed we all have prejudices and it affects our actions. I tend to hate Freudian psychology, but the concept of the “unconscious” as a basic part of our thinking and emotional reactions is at play in this matter. However, I personally believe that we, as people who would be decent folk, must work to overcome these “natural” things in ourselves, and if we have hostile feelings, refrain from acting on them or encouraging them by these groupthink hate sessions. That way there will be more good citizens than bad in this society, and we may survive with our democracy intact.

If we will actually go the farther distance and come to know outsiders personally and actually like them as individuals or as a group, then we will actually be the “city upon a hill,” which one Tea Partier claimed America is in the last few months or so. That was in defense of what I consider to be excessive patriotism. One of the biggest problems in modern times is that we shun so many people of all kinds. We need to be open to people instead of studiously avoiding them. I believe in one on one human relationships, rather than a more sophisticated version of gang banging. What I’m worried about most, however, goes beyond my hatred of bullies and other SOBs; it is the particular social imbalance that is becoming predominant again in both America and Europe at this time. We really must remember 1939.

Those “whiners and complainers” that the commenter named Jason so scornfully mentions, actually do a great deal to prevent holocausts, lynchings, etc. by shaming the shameless, so their activities from bloc voting and well-placed lawsuits to street marches are indeed very important to the health of any society, just as “obeying the rules and getting along” are also useful. “Getting along” must be modified, however, by an internal conscience-based conviction and instinct to think and act for ourselves, and make a real attempt to accept and find true value in all life, from endangered animals to minorities (outsiders) of all kinds (even gays).

Jason’s defense of racist texts that aren’t sent to those who are the butt of the “joke” as being essentially harmless, however, is untrue, or perhaps I should say “inaccurate.” That very sort of abusive and biased commentary shows the writer’s internal tendency toward groupthink, aggressiveness and hatred, and leads directly to the kind of NeoNazi movement that has been active in America and Europe to an unusually great degree (it never died out, of course) during these last twenty years or so. It is a short step from there to Kristallnacht. I not only dislike that kind of thing as intensely and instinctively as Jason dislikes “whiners”, I fear it.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/teen-hunter-gandee-brother-branden-111-mile-walk/

Teen carrying disabled brother finishes 111-mile walk
CBS/AP
April 27, 2016, 8:06 AM


Photograph -- SI High School Athlete of the Year Hunter Gandee, with brother Braden Gandee attend Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year Ceremony 2015 on December 15, 2015, in New York City. THEO WARGO/GETTY IMAGES FOR SPORTS ILLUSTRATED


LANSING, Mich. - A 16-year-old boy and his disabled younger brother finished a 111-mile walk Monday, reaching the steps of the Michigan Capitol after the teen carried his sibling on his back for all but the last half-mile.

It was the third and longest journey for Hunter Gandee and 9-year-old Braden Gandee, who has cerebral palsy. They set out from Monroe County last Wednesday to inspire people to embrace anyone with a disability.

"Not just cerebral palsy - all disabilities," Hunter told The Associated Press.

Surrounded by family, Braden walked the last half-mile to the Capitol with a walker. Hunter says Lt. Gov. Brian Calley and others greeted them.

"It's hard to take just one moment," Hunter said when asked to describe a highlight. "A lot of memories were created. To see Braden get to the steps of the Capitol building was just amazing."

It wasn't their first trek. Hunter was 14 in 2014 when he carried Braden for 40 miles. Last year, they made a 57-mile walk.

Hunter is a student at Bedford High School in Temperance. Two years ago, he held Braden in his arms on the mound at Comerica Park as Braden tossed the ceremonial first pitch at a Detroit Tigers game.

Braden typically uses a walker, braces or a power chair to get around.

"Whenever I'm going through something that's difficult and doing something that's hard, I see him and how he worked through it, and it just kind of pushes me through," Hunter told CBS News in 2014.

Hunter, a 155-pound wrestler, said he trained for the trek by lifting weights and staying active. And by checking the weather forecast.



I am very pleased by this article for two reasons. First, we human creatures really do tend to be far less empathetic toward anyone we don’t “respect,” which to many/most people includes those with mental or physical disabilities. We should remember that the second greatest physicist of our century has been in a wheelchair with ALS for the last 30 or so years, and yet by modern technology he manages to do his intensive mathematical work to this day.

Second, this young man truly loves his brother. That is not as common a characteristic in this overly competitive society as I would like to see. He is “his brother’s keeper,” and clearly what I call “a good citizen.” Family love is also the basis of all love, even including male to female love. Many a man who says he “loves” his wife will beat her when he is feeling discouraged, angry or insecure. That makes for a violence-ridden and unjust society. Let us not be that kind of citizenry.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-to-visit-flint-next-week-to-discuss-water-crisis/

Obama to visit Flint next week to discuss water crisis
By REBECCA SHABAD CBS NEWS
April 27, 2016, 12:48 PM

Play VIDEO -- Criminal charges filed in Flint tainted water disaster


President Obama is scheduled to travel to Flint, Michigan next week to hear from the city's residents about the water crisis that has plagued their community since 2014, the White House announced Wednesday.

In a letter on Monday, Mr. Obama told 8-year-old Flint resident Mari Copeny that he would visit her city on May 4.

"I want to make sure people like you and your family are receiving the help you need and deserve. Like you, I'll use my voice to call for change and help lift up your community," the president wrote in a letter to Copeny, who is known as "Little Miss Flint."

He was responding to a letter she sent to the White House.

"I am one of the children that is effected [SIC] by this water, and I've been doing my best to march in protest and to speak out for all the kids that live here in Flint," wrote Copeny, who said she was traveling to Washington to watch the congressional hearing in which Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder testified before lawmakers in March.

"I know this is probably an odd request but I would love for a chance to meet you or your wife," she added. "My mom said chances are you will be too busy with more important things, but there is a lot of people coming on these buses and even just a meeting from you or your wife would really lift people's spirits."

The White House said Wednesday that Mr. Obama will hear first-hand accounts from residents during his visit next Wednesday and will receive an in-person briefing on federal efforts to help Flint recover.

The water crisis dates back to 2014, when a state-appointed emergency manager decided to switch Flint's water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River to save money. But the water from that river was corrosive and caused lead to seep into old pipes, leading to significant health problems for a number of residents.

Snyder, who is currently on a business trip overseas, recently said he would drink Flint's water for at least a month.


Some Obama haters will undoubtedly say that this is just an attempt to look good in the public eye, but I’ve seen a number of these incidents, especially the recent White House science awards given to children. He shows a very genuine regard for “ordinary” people of all kinds, including kids. He also is using the power of “the bully pulpit” to speak out about this totally disgusting combination of incompetence and simple lack of regard for human life that went on at Trent. I do hope when the city manages to get out of the public eye, as it will when a bigger story comes along, the whole matter will not be dropped as being no longer “news.” That’s something that the nation’s press tends to do. In too many cases, after all the brouhaha, nothing useful occurs.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/5-decade-study-reveals-fallout-from-spanking-kids/

5-decade study reveals fallout from spanking kids
By MARY BROPHY MARCUS CBS NEWS
April 26, 2016, 5:33 PM

Photograph -- ISTOCKPHOTO
Play VIDEO -- Can playing video games with your kids help parenting?


Spanking a child leads to bad behaviors, not the better manners some parents may think a smack on the bottom will elicit, a new study suggests.

Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Michigan analyzed 75 studies involving more than 150,000 children that spanned 50 years.

"This is a wide swath of children and the findings are incredibly consistent," study author Dr. Elizabeth Gershoff told CBS News. "This shows there is a correlation between spanking and negative outcomes and absolutely no correlation between spanking and positive outcomes."

Spanking doesn't make kids behave better right away and it leads to worse behavior in the long run, said Gershoff, an associate professor of human development and family sciences at the University of Texas at Austin. And spanked kids are more likely to be aggressive and antisocial.

"The irony is that many parents spank when their kids are aggressive. So the child thinks you can use spanking to get what you want - kids learn that," she said.

Even though some may think spanking is an antiquated parenting technique at this point in time - over the past decade or two, parenting books have touted a gentler, kinder parenting technique involving positive reinforcement - Gershoff said spanking still goes on in lots of households.

"There's research showing that by the time most kids get to high school, at least 85 percent have been spanked. So, most kids are being spanked," said Gershoff.

They may not be spanked as often as, say, their parents' generation was paddled, "or with objects," said Gershoff, but spanking is alive and well.

Dr. David Pollack, a pediatrician with several of The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's primary care locations in the Philadelphia area, told CBS News he even witnesses parents spank. "I may, on rare occasion, actually see it happen in my office, where most parents are trying to be on their best behaviors."

The episodes trigger family discussion about discipline alternatives, he said.

Some people spank because they were spanked - it's passed down from generation to generation, Gershoff said. Others may do it because their religious background suggests it's okay.

"To make ourselves feel better about it, we use spanking as a euphemism, but it's still hitting. There's no way to define spanking without using the word hitting," said Gershoff.

The study, published in the Journal of Family Psychology, looked specifically at spanking alone versus lumping in all forms of physical punishment.

"Our analysis focuses on what most Americans would recognize as spanking and not on potentially abusive behaviors," explained Gershoff.

They defined spanking as an open-handed hit on the behind or extremities, and reported that it was linked with 13 out of 17 outcomes -- all negative -- including defying parents, acting aggressive, and exhibiting mental health problems and cognitive difficulties.

The healthy approach is to discipline and to emphasize the positive, said Gershoff. "It's not one single technique. It's a host of behaviors parents should do. They involve the relationship between a parent and child and rewarding the child when they do the right thing."

She said, "People think if you don't spank you're a pushover, but you can be a firm parent with high expectations for children. You don't have to hit them to show you have power."

CHOP's Pollack said, "Discipline is derived from the word 'disciple' or teacher, and our goal is to teach kids right from wrong, to have them always engage with others in a positive and productive way, to live by the golden rule."

Parents should be role models, he said. They should behave as they would wish their kids to behave.

"Our society is becoming increasingly violent and angry; we should try to do everything possible to minimize that culture around our children," he said.


“Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Michigan analyzed 75 studies involving more than 150,000 children that spanned 50 years. "This is a wide swath of children and the findings are incredibly consistent," study author Dr. Elizabeth Gershoff told CBS News. "This shows there is a correlation between spanking and negative outcomes and absolutely no correlation between spanking and positive outcomes." …. And spanked kids are more likely to be aggressive and antisocial. "The irony is that many parents spank when their kids are aggressive. So the child thinks you can use spanking to get what you want - kids learn that," she said. Even though some may think spanking is an antiquated parenting technique at this point in time - over the past decade or two, parenting books have touted a gentler, kinder parenting technique involving positive reinforcement - Gershoff said spanking still goes on in lots of households. "There's research showing that by the time most kids get to high school, at least 85 percent have been spanked. So, most kids are being spanked," said Gershoff. …. "I may, on rare occasion, actually see it happen in my office, where most parents are trying to be on their best behaviors." The episodes trigger family discussion about discipline alternatives, he said. …. "To make ourselves feel better about it, we use spanking as a euphemism, but it's still hitting. There's no way to define spanking without using the word hitting," said Gershoff. The study, published in the Journal of Family Psychology, looked specifically at spanking alone versus lumping in all forms of physical punishment. "Our analysis focuses on what most Americans would recognize as spanking and not on potentially abusive behaviors," explained Gershoff. …. The healthy approach is to discipline and to emphasize the positive, said Gershoff. "It's not one single technique. It's a host of behaviors parents should do. They involve the relationship between a parent and child and rewarding the child when they do the right thing." …. Parents should be role models, he said. They should behave as they would wish their kids to behave. "Our society is becoming increasingly violent and angry; we should try to do everything possible to minimize that culture around our children," he said.”


“They defined spanking as an open-handed hit on the behind or extremities, and reported that it was linked with 13 out of 17 outcomes -- all negative -- including defying parents, acting aggressive, and exhibiting mental health problems and cognitive difficulties.” When do we call a chemical a poison instead of a medicine? When it has devastating effects when administered in a medially accepted dosage. I know that a lot or maybe all of those schoolyard bullies I tend to hate so much are being physically and emotionally abused at home, from beating to shaming and sexual abuse. To one degree or another they are mentally disturbed. The parents, on the other hand, are usually overwhelmed and undertrained for the job. They are also acting out their own hatreds and emotional pain related to the maltreatment they received when they were young. We are a very sick society, an aggregate of sick individuals, and it is being passed down from parent to child.

Perhaps instead of jailing people when they’re aggressive and even cruel we should commit them involuntarily to mental health treatment, especially one of the rationality based talk and peer group psychotherapies. I think many or most of our US population would call that a “violation of their civil rights,” yet we will put them into solitary confinement for weeks to years and call that justice. Undoing all the granny knots and tangles in our thinking is not the work of a momentary attempt to intimidate the rebellious child, but a long term learning process from which in many to most cases a better kind of self-control, self-acceptance, openness, peace of mind, empathy, “knowledge of right and wrong” and other good things as well will emerge.



http://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/valeant-ceo-faces-hostile-congress-regrets-drug-price-hikes-n563386

Valeant CEO Faces Hostile Congress, Regrets Drug Price Hikes
by ASSOCIATED PRESS
HEALTH APR 27 2016, 9:08 AM ET

Image: Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc headquarters in Laval
The company logo of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc is seen at its headquarters in Laval, Quebec in a May 19, 2015 file photo. Shares of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc plunged 30 percent after a short-seller released a report accusing the company of fraud. Valeant has been under fire for its drug pricing practices, and last week disclosed that its pricing practices and patient assistance programs were under investigation by federal prosecutors in New York and Massachusetts. REUTERS/Christinne Muschi/Files CHRISTINNE MUSCHI / Reuters, file
Related: Valeant CEO Takes Medical Leave
Related: Valeant Buys 'Female Viagra' Maker


The outgoing CEO of embattled drugmaker Valeant Pharmaceuticals will tell lawmakers Wednesday that he was "too aggressive" and made mistakes in drastically hiking prices for several critical medicines, according to testimony provided ahead of a hearing.

J. Michael Pearson will issue the unusual mea culpa on Capitol Hill for the business strategy that made Valeant an industry powerhouse but also triggered a backlash against the Canadian drugmaker.

"Let me state plainly that it was a mistake to pursue, and in hindsight I regret pursuing, transactions where a central premise was a planned increase in the prices of the medicines," Pearson states in the written testimony.

The comments come days before Pearson is to be replaced as Valeant CEO, and may not win much sympathy from members of the Senate Committee on Aging. The committee is investigating the dramatic price increases pushed by Valeant and several other drugmakers.

The committee is also scheduled to hear from William Ackman, a billionaire hedge fund manager who is one of Valeant's leading investors and a board member. Howard Schiller, Valeant's former chief financial officer and a current board member, is also scheduled to testify.

A longtime corporate consultant, Pearson took the reins at Valeant in 2008 and embarked on a spree of more than 140 acquisitions, buying up rights to older, niche drugs and repeatedly hiking prices. Pearson's approach -- which bypassed the huge research and development investments typically made by drugmakers -- seemed to offer a cheaper, more reliable business model and made him a favorite of Wall Street investors.

He also pioneered the tax-dodging "inversion" technique later employed by other U.S. companies, merging with firms overseas to take advantage of their reduced tax rates.

But Valeant's tactics eventually attracted scrutiny.

The company caught the attention of Congress last year after buying two life-saving heart drugs, Nitropress and Isuprel, and hiking their prices, tripling one and raising the other six-fold.

Pearson says that Valeant decided to raise the prices after learning that cheaper generic versions of the drugs would soon hit the market.

"In retrospect, we relied too heavily on the industry practice of increasing the price of brand name drugs in the months before generic entry," he states in his testimony.

In recent months, Valeant has been swamped by a host of problems including three ongoing federal probes of its accounting and pricing practices, massive debt and the threat of default on agreements with creditors and bondholders.

The stock of Valeant Pharmaceuticals Inc. has lost more than 80 percent of its value in the past year.



“The company caught the attention of Congress last year after buying two life-saving heart drugs, Nitropress and Isuprel, and hiking their prices, tripling one and raising the other six-fold. Pearson says that Valeant decided to raise the prices after learning that cheaper generic versions of the drugs would soon hit the market. …. "In retrospect, we relied too heavily on the industry practice of increasing the price of brand name drugs in the months before generic entry," he states in his testimony.”


This sounds exactly like what the AIDS drug manufacturer Martin Shkreli did last year, only he did receive criminal charges. According to the following article, however, the “crime” wasn’t his 5,000% increase on the price of a vital medication, but “fraud charges.” Aside from the fact that this practice, which Pearson says is “industry practice,” is immoral and disgusting, it burdens poor to middle class people horribly and is one of the big drains on our Medicare and Medicaid systems. Pure free market business policy simply doesn’t work. We need to look deeply into the entire economy and the cost of life for the “poor working stiffs.”


“http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/dec/21/martin-shkreli-turing-pharmaceuticals-arrest-real-injustice-blames-aids-drug-price-hike, Martin Shkreli calls arrest 'real injustice' and blames it on Aids drug price hike, Jana Kasperkevic in New York, Monday 21 December 2015 12.59 EST.”

“Controversial pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli has called his arrest last week a “real injustice” and blamed it on the political heat generated by his former company’s decision to raise the price of a cancer and Aids drug by as much as 5,000%.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, his first since his arrest on fraud charges last Friday, Shkreli said he had been arrested because his former company, Turing Pharmaceuticals, had raised the price of 70-year-old drug Daraprim from $13.50 to $750 overnight.

“Trying to find anything we could to stop him, was the attitude of the government,” Shkreli said. “Beating the person up and then trying to find the merits to make up for it – I would have hoped the government wouldn’t take that kind of approach.”



http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/bernie-sanders-strategy-evolve-forward/story?id=38713442

How Bernie Sanders' Strategy Will Evolve Going Forward
By MARYALICE PARKS
Apr 27, 2016, 3:49 PM ET

Related: Donald Trump Advises Bernie Sanders to Run as an Independent
Related: Bernie Sanders Pushes on to West Virginia, Makes His Appeal to Convention Delegates
Related: Ted Cruz to Announce Carly Fiorina as Vice President Pick


Bernie Sanders stood unwavering and a little audacious at his first rally in Indiana today.

Despite losing an additional four states on the east coast the night before, which rendered his chances of winning the nomination nearly mathematically impossible, the senator said he believed he would still win the majority of the pledged delegates and was staying in the race to win it.

“So that there is no confusion, we are in this campaign to win and become the Democratic nominee,” he said speaking to a packed room at Purdue University. In a statement released overnight after the final results landed, Sanders notably did not say whether he still believed he could make up Hillary Clinton's lead in pledged delegates, which some interpreted as a near concession on his part.

After Clinton’s latest victories, Sanders would need to win each of the remaining states by 35 points, or 65 percent of the remaining pledged delegates to take the lead on that front. Considering the number of superdelegates who have already pledged their support to Clinton, the former Secretary of State now would only need to win 20 percent of the remaining delegates to reach the threshold for the nomination.

Sanders briefly acknowledged that he was losing the race, but essentially posited that he was hoping for a miracle.

“I am very good in arithmetic and I can count delegates and we are behind today but you know what? Unusual things happen in politics,” he continued at his rally. "And with your help we are going to win the pledged delegates."

Sanders' Strategy Moving Forward

A major part of Sanders’ strategy now seems to be appealing to those superdelegates as well, who do not technically vote until the convention and will likely be the ones to officially put either candidate over the edge. There has been little evidence so far that many party elites are considering switching their allegiances at this late stage. Still, the senator made his pitch today, citing the excitement around his campaign, the large crowds he draws, and how well he does with independents as reasons he is better positioned to represent the Democratic Party.

Sanders added that even if he did not win, his team would fight through the end and try to win to as many delegates as possible in order to put pressure on the party and Clinton.

“We intend to win every delegate that we can so that we when we go to Philadelphia in July we will have the votes to put together the strongest progressive agenda that any political party has ever seen,” he said. In his statement late Tuesday, Sanders specifically listed a $15 dollar minimum wage, the end of hydraulic fracking and universal health care as key components of that platform.

One of the senator's grassroots backers, Democracy for America, echoed Sanders’ firm stance that the onus was on Clinton to unite the party under a more progressive agenda, saying in a statement that the question was “whether the Democratic establishment [was] going to bring our party together by embracing our fight for a political revolution or tell us to sit down, shut up and fall in line.”

So far, Clinton and her campaign have reminded voters and the press that in 2008 she unconditionally backed her opponent Barack Obama once the nomination was out of her grasp and they have urged Sanders to do the same. On the one hand, Clinton will likely not need Sanders’ delegates to put her over the threshold for the nomination -- a fact limiting his negotiating power at the convention and before -- but she will want voters from his wing of the party to remain engaged going into the fall.

Another factor potentially impacting Sanders’ plan to persevere: Donald Trump. The billionaire said today on MSNBC that he was planning on “taking a lot of things Bernie said and using them” in his own campaign against Clinton. Sanders has said repeatedly that his priority will be make sure a Republican does not win in November. Should Trump in fact start quoting him, the pressure from all sides could make him change how he talks about Clinton. Last night and today, Sanders’ notably did not mention Clinton's paid speeches to Wall Street firms, one of the subjects on which he has been particularly aggressive.

A Concession of Ideas, Not Just Delegates

Sanders’ most ardent fans have not been surprised by their leader’s defiance. After all, the senator has been arguing all along that the country’s entire political system is fundamentally broken and platforms of the Democratic Party are too narrow. He has spoken since the beginning of building a movement, not just electing a candidate. To back Clinton now could look like a concession of ideas, not just delegates.

“It's not just about Bernie, It's about the mindset that Bernie has. He’s all about for the people not individual,” Mary Crow, 20, a student and Sanders’ fan said Tuesday night in at Sanders’ rally in Huntington, West Virginia. She had made matching shirts with her friend, Rapen Hall, that read “#BernieorBust #NeverHillary #NeverTrump.”

“I firmly believe that there will be people just like him in the future. I don't think it's over. Even if he doesn't win, it’s just beginning,” Hall continued. “I can't believe how many people turned up today.”

For Sanders, a political revolution means in large part more active civil engagement, and Sanders reiterated today that whether he is elected or not he wants to see voter turnout increase substantially across the country. By continuing his speaking tour and delivering addresses mostly on college campuses, Sanders can in theory continue to gin up support and enthusiasm around his issues, though it remains to be seen where or how he will ask his fans to specifically direct their efforts should his campaign officially end.

Sanders has just begun using his email list and fundraising machine to back local candidates whose agendas align with his. In last few weeks, he has sent fundraising emails in support of three congressional candidates in Nevada, Washington State and New York, perhaps a sign that more of this will come as well.

ABC News' Ryan Struyk contributed to this report



“One of the senator's grassroots backers, Democracy for America, echoed Sanders’ firm stance that the onus was on Clinton to unite the party under a more progressive agenda, saying in a statement that the question was “whether the Democratic establishment [was] going to bring our party together by embracing our fight for a political revolution or tell us to sit down, shut up and fall in line.” …. On the one hand, Clinton will likely not need Sanders’ delegates to put her over the threshold for the nomination -- a fact limiting his negotiating power at the convention and before -- but she will want voters from his wing of the party to remain engaged going into the fall…. Sanders’ most ardent fans have not been surprised by their leader’s defiance. After all, the senator has been arguing all along that the country’s entire political system is fundamentally broken and platforms of the Democratic Party are too narrow. He has spoken since the beginning of building a movement, not just electing a candidate. To back Clinton now could look like a concession of ideas, not just delegates. …. For Sanders, a political revolution means in large part more active civil engagement, and Sanders reiterated today that whether he is elected or not he wants to see voter turnout increase substantially across the country.”


“Sanders has just begun using his email list and fundraising machine to back local candidates whose agendas align with his. In last few weeks, he has sent fundraising emails in support of three congressional candidates in Nevada, Washington State and New York, perhaps a sign that more of this will come as well.” I do hope the ranks of progressive Democrats will broaden and show an ever firmer support for Democrats who do talk about the wealth gap, civil rights, free state college tuition, $15.00 wage and the whole social safety net. Ever since the big manufacturers sent their business abroad and the Republicans were allowed to weaken the power of unions to organize and negotiate, our country has been going downhill. The wealthiest probably don’t think so, but I’ve said before, if the income of our 90% continues to reduce, so will the health of businesses in general, because people do have to buy their products. Sanders’ policies are the most important thing in this situation. I gravitate toward him so strongly because he was one of the few in decades to actually pursue those goals, and I trust his sincerity. Keep on truckin’, Bernie.



http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/28/us/politics/bernie-sanders-campaign.html?_r=0

Bernie Sanders to Cut Hundreds of Staff Members and Turn to California
By YAMICHE ALCINDOR
APRIL 27, 2016

Photograph -- Senator Bernie Sanders at a rally at Drexel University in Philadelphia on Monday. He lost the Pennsylvania primary and three of four others on Tuesday. Credit Mark Makela for The New York Times


WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Senator Bernie Sanders is planning to lay off “hundreds” of campaign staffers across the country and focus much of his remaining effort on winning California, he said in an interview Wednesday.

The Vermont senator revealed the changes a day after losing four of the five states that voted Tuesday and falling further behind Hillary Clinton in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. Despite the changes, Mr. Sanders said he would remain in the race through the party’s summer convention and stressed that he hoped to bring staff members back on board if his political fortunes improved.

“We want to win as many delegates as we can, so we do not need workers now in states around the country,” Mr. Sanders said in the interview. “We don’t need people right now in Connecticut. That election is over. We don’t need them in Maryland. So what we are going to do is allocate our resources to the 14 contests that remain, and that means that we are going to be cutting back on staff.”

When asked how many people would be let go, Mr. Sanders didn’t give an exact number but did say many people would be affected.

“It will be hundreds of staff members,” Mr. Sanders said. “We have had a very large staff, which was designed to deal with 50 states in this country; 40 of the states are now behind us. So we have had a great staff, great people.”

He added that he hoped to work with the people his campaign is letting go in the future.

“If we win this, every one of those great people who have helped us get this far, they will be rehired,” Mr. Sanders said. “But right now, we have to use all of the resources we have and focus them on the remaining states.”

He said his campaign’s fund-raising was not suffering. “We are doing well, and it continues to be very strong,” he said.

Mr. Sanders said he planned to move a number of staff members to California, where he hoped to hold rallies for “hundreds of thousands” of people in cities across that state.

“California will have the most staff,” Mr. Sanders said. “Symbolically and in terms of delegates, if we can win the largest state in this country, that will send a real message to the American people and to the delegates that this is a campaign that is moving in the direction it should.”



“It will be hundreds of staff members,” Mr. Sanders said. “We have had a very large staff, which was designed to deal with 50 states in this country; 40 of the states are now behind us. So we have had a great staff, great people.” He added that he hoped to work with the people his campaign is letting go in the future. “If we win this, every one of those great people who have helped us get this far, they will be rehired,” Mr. Sanders said. “But right now, we have to use all of the resources we have and focus them on the remaining states.”


So, okay. He’s not quitting, but regrouping. What we need is a new party, and I think if more genuine liberals can be elected across the country we can do what is needed. We can start with Elizabeth Warren. Maybe some of his Millennials, etc., will run for office on the local level across the US and produce a large “crop” of would be Senators, Congressmen, Governors and on down the line to local officeholders, we can build that new party. I’ll go to the Net to try to find names of others in that group.