Blogroll
A glance at what Spokesman-Review bloggers have to say
Outdoors
By Rich Landers
Feb. 8 – Responsible bird enthusiasts regularly clean their feeders to help prevent the spread of disease that can kill masses of birds. But even the most conscientious feeders can be deadly if the seed they buy is poisonous.
Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. recently admitted guilt in charges of distributing insecticide-tainted bird seed, potentially subjecting itself to $4.5 million in fines to be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.
The American Bird Conservancy is spotlighting this case as an example of the need for regular monitoring to ensure the safety of the nation’s bird seed supply.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife surveys indicate that one in five Americans is a birdwatcher. They spend a total of $36 billion a year on bird food, equipment and birding-related travel.
Spin Control
By Jim Camden
Feb. 7 – A Washington, D.C., group that researches money in politics has created lists of what organizations spend what on whom, congressionally speaking.
MapLight also has put its research on a map that allows you go see that information with a few clicks of your mouse or computer pad.
The top 5 contributors for Washington are EMILY’s List, Microsoft, Boeing, University of Washington and Weyerhaeuser Co.
Top 5 for Idaho are Amgen, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, American Crystal Sugar, National Automobile Dealers Association and JP Morgan Chase.
End Notes
By Rebecca Nappi
Feb. 6 – With Valentine’s Day around the corner, let’s talk about our hearts.
Here are some of the risk factors for having a heart attack or stroke or a serious cardiovascular disease, or CVD. High blood pressure. Smoking. High cholesterol. Diabetes. Obesity.
The Cardiovascular Lifetime Risk Pooling Project reported its findings recently in the New England Journal of Medicine, according to a National Institutes of Health press release. Bottom line: If you have two risk factors, your chance of “having a major CVD event” goes way up.
The Slice
By Paul Turner
Feb. 10 – There was always one basic problem with the Casual Friday designation in Spokane.
It was redundant. In many workplaces, anyway. Most people here don’t need a special invitation to dress in a relaxed manner.
Perhaps widespread recognition of that is one reason you don’t hear much about it anymore.