Current Events in September 2012

Auto insurance companies are all about risk management. If you are considered too much of a risk, then you might be at risk of being dropped as a customer.

It happened to Hose, of Fort Mill, of Ft. Mill, SC, who says State Farm dropped him after nine years when he had two claims in two years. He doesn't understand why.

“Why pay for, and have the law mandate insurance if you're dropped when you use the coverage you pay for,” Hose asked in a ConsumerAffairs post. “It's the biggest legal scam going. Then, once they've dropped you, they can code you which makes your next policy cost higher.”

Sometimes consumers find they are not renewed, even though they have made no claims. Insurance companies sometimes do that if there has been an increase in claims in a particular zip code, for example. The company tries to manage its risk by insuring fewer people.

But companies that do that in Massachusetts can run afoul of the law. Massachusetts has a state law called the “clean-in-three” rule. If you haven't had an accident or traffic violation in three years, your insurance company can't drop you.

Two-year investigation

In 2010 Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley's office began investigating Metropolitan Property and Casualty Insurance Company’s (Met P&C) termination of more than 2,600 Massachusetts automobile insurance policies and found some of them violated the law since the policyholders had clean driving records. As a result, the insurance company is required to pay close to $345,000 in restitution to consumers and $50,000 to the Commonwealth.

Under the terms of the settlement with the state, Met P&C will pay 56 consumers a total of $35,000 after their policies were allegedly terminated in violation of state law, and were unfairly assigned to the state’s more expensive residual market -- the Massachusetts Automobile Insurance Plan (MAIP). The company will also pay an approximate total of $310,000 to 2,583 policyholders who were wrongfully non-renewed but found alternative insurance in the voluntary market.

Along with an additional $50,000 in payments to the state, Met P&C has agreed that it will abide by Massachusetts' “clean-in-three” law in the future.

Watson Laboratories is recalling for two lots of Hydrocodone Bitartrate and APAP Tablets, USP 10 mg/500 mg, which are indicated for the relief of moderate to moderately severe pain. 

A customer complaint was received for tablets that were thicker and darker shade than the other tablets. It is possible that some tablets from lots 519406A and 521759A exceed the weight specification and may contain higher than indicated amounts of the ingredients Hydrocodone Bitartrate and/or Acetaminophen. 

Unintentional ingestion of excessive amounts of acetaminophen may potentially result in such things as liver toxicity, especially in patients on other acetaminophen containing medications, patients with liver dysfunction, or people who consume more than 3 alcoholic beverages a day. 

The product label warns consumers that acetaminophen overdose can potentially cause severe liver damage, at times resulting in liver transplant or death. Unintentional ingestion of excessive amounts of hydrocodone may result in an adverse event, including an increase in the severity or frequency of side effects, such as sedation or respiratory depression, particularly in patients who are elderly, have severe kidney or liver impairment, or are also taking interacting medications, for example other sedating medications or certain antidepressants. 

No reports of injuries related to the recalled product have been received to date. 

The recall includes the following product lots: 

• Hydrocodone Bitartrate and Acetaminophen Tablets, USP 10 mg/500 mg, 500 count NDC 00591-0540-05, Lot Numbers 519406A and 521759A both with the expiry date April 2014. 

The affected lots were distributed between 6/27/2012 and 7/18/2012 to wholesale distributors and retail pharmacies nationwide. The lot numbers can be found on the manufacturer’s bottle label. 

Hydrocodone Bitartrate and Acetaminophen Tablets are approximately 0.6 inches in length, blue, bisected capsule shaped, with "Watson 540" de-bossed on one side of the tablet. 

Consumers who have lots 519406A or 521759A should contact their pharmacy or health care professional. Consumers who are unsure if they have the affected lot numbers should consult their pharmacy or health care professional. 

Pharmacists and wholesalers are asked to check their inventories for lots 519406A or 521759A segregate any material from the lots, and to contact GENCO Pharmaceutical Services at 1-800-950-5479 for instructions on product return. 

Pharmacies that received lots 519406A or 521759A will receive a copy of this press release with their recall notification information. In order to make your patients aware of this recall, please post the enclosed press release prominently in the pharmacy area. 

Reports of adverse reactions or quality problems can be reported to Watson Laboratories at 1-800-272-5525 Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. EST. 

Adverse reactions or quality problems experienced with the use of this product may be reported to FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program either on line, by regular mail, or by fax.  

There's been a lot of back and forth about income taxes in this presidential campaign season -- who's paying them and who's not. But as has been pointed out elsewhere, almost all Americans in all income brackets pay taxes of some kind. They're hard to avoid.

If you smoke, you pay a lot of taxes, both federal and state. Governments have jacked up the tax rates on cigarettes in recent years in an effort to discourage consumers from smoking. Research shows it's an effective tactic.

The more cigarettes go up in price, the fewer people smoke them. Unfortunately the people who have the hardest time kicking the habit -- or simply don't want to quit -- are the people least able to pay the tax.

Where the tax falls heaviest

New research published in PLoS One, a medical journal, shows the cigarette tax falls heaviest on low-income Americans. The study, conducted on behalf of the New York State Department of Health, found smoking prevalence is highest among those with low income, low education, and working-class occupations.

While the researchers found that some lower-income smokers respond to increases in the price of cigarettes, many don't, resulting in a highly regressive tax.

"That is, lower-income smokers spend a disproportionate share of their income on cigarette taxes compared to smokers with greater incomes," the authors wrote.

A 2008 study estimates that smokers in the lowest income tercile spent 7.7 percent of their income on cigarette purchases, followed by 3.1 and 1.4 percent for the middle and highest income terciles, respectively. Since that study was completed, cigarette excise taxes have risen sharply in many states and now five states have taxes in excess of $3 per pack.

$30,000 a year or less

What, exactly, is a low-income smoker? For the purpose of the study the researchers defined it as individuals in households earning $30,000 a year or less. These smokers spent an average of 23.6 percent of their yearly income on cigarettes.

The recent increases in the cigarette taxes haven't done much to lower that number. In fact, it's higher than in the past, when taxes were lower.

Higher-income smokers pay the same tax, of course, but it's a much smaller percentage of their income. The study found that individuals in households earning $60,000 or more a year only spent -- on average -- 2.2 percent of their income on cigarettes.

If you receive a postcard inviting you to a presentation on how to saving big money on travel, you might be wise to show some skepticism. These come-ons, usually offering some kind of incentive to attend -- can end badly for consumers.

A suit filed by the state of New Jersey claimed Global Travel Solutions, LLC and its owner, Jason A. Krieck, took payments from consumers for costly travel club memberships that promised steep discounts on vacation packages and other travel benefits, and then failed to deliver the contracted-for services.

Consumers were also charged monthly fees for the memberships. The defendants allegedly invited consumers to attend sales presentations for the memberships with free promotional items, and then failed to deliver the items.

Must pay $350,000

In a settlement with the state Global Travel Solutions is required to direct all billing and reservations companies to immediately stop trying to collect payments from consumers on the company’s behalf. The company is also required to pay $350,000 to the state.

In addition, for a period of 5 years, Krieck is required to post a bond of at least $250,000 with the division if he opens, owns or operates any business in the state that sells merchandise to consumers. The defendants entered into the settlement without any admission of liability but has agreed to dissolve the business.

“We have stopped the sale of these allegedly worthless travel club memberships in the state and the continued collection activity against consumers who previously purchased memberships,” said New Jersey Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa.

He also advised consumers to be extremely careful when listening to an attractive sales pitch for any product, including travel and vacation packages.

Beware of travel scams

“Travel scams, offering free amenities and big discounts for cruises and airfare, can be shockingly effective at separating consumers from their hard-earned money,” Eric T. Kanefsky, Acting Director of the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, said. “These operations often begin with postcards inviting consumers to attend a presentation at which they will hear about amazing deals that really are too good to be true.”

Kanefsky says consumers who purchased memberships based on sales presentations lost thousands of dollars. He said any consumer who receives a similar solicitation should be extremely skeptical.

To date, New Jersey has identified more than 700 affected consumers, the majority of whom paid between $995 and $9,995.00 for the Global Travel memberships, plus a $29.95 monthly fee.

Makowski’s Real Sausage of Chicago is recalling approximately 1,305 pounds of cooked bratwurst sausage products because of misbranding and the undeclared allergen – milk -- that is not declared on the label. 

The following products are subject to recall:

• 10-lb. packages of “Real Sausage Co. COOKED WHITE BRATWURST 4-1”
• 10-lb. packages of “Real Sausage Co. COOKED WHITE BRATWURST 3-1” 

The products also bear the establishment number “EST. 6844” inside the USDA mark of inspection and the Julian dates of: 17812, 18812, 25112, 25712 or 26512. The products were produced June 25, July 5, Sept. 6, Sept. 12, and Sept. 20, 2012, and were shipped to foodservice distributors for hotel, restaurant and other institutional use throughout Illinois. 

The problem was discovered during a routine label review and may have occurred due to a misprinting of the product’s label. There have been no reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about a reaction should contact a healthcare provider. 

Consumers with questions about the recall should contact the company’s president, Nicole Makowski, at (312) 842-5330.

Germs are everywhere and consumers are increasingly aware of them. Walk into a supermarket these days and you are greeted at the door by a dispenser of antiseptic wipes.

Consumers spend millions as well on products to remove germs from their hands when washing them isn't practical or convenient. But how effective are these products?

In Maryland, Attorney General Douglas Gansler has reached a settlement with one such product maker, CleanWell Company and its affiliate OhSo Clean, Inc. It resolves claims that CleanWell hand sanitizer is "proven to kill 99.99% of germs that can make you sick," and is "proven to kill 99.99% of germs including MRSA, Salmonella, Staph, and E. coli," without adequate substantiation for those statements.

'Unsubstantiated claims'

"Companies that make unsubstantiated claims about their products deceive consumers into spending their hard-earned money on something that may not live up to its billing," Gansler said. "With flu season approaching, consumers should know that, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), washing with soap and water is the best way to reduce germs on your hands and that hand sanitizers do not eliminate all types of germs."

Under the terms of the agreement CleanWell has agreed to change how it markets its hand sanitizer products and to refrain from any false, misleading or deceptive promotion of its hand sanitizer products.

$100,000 in penalties

CleanWell will also pay $100,000 in penalties and costs and refrain from representing that its hand sanitizer can prevent disease or infection. The agreement also bars CleanWell from asserting that its product can kill any specific percentage of germs.

In 2011 the Food and Drug Administration cited CleanWell -- maker of CleanWell All-Natural Foaming Hand Sanitizer, CleanWell All-Natural Hand Sanitizer, CleanWell All-Natural Hand Sanitizing Wipes, and CleanWell All-Natural Antibacterial Foaming Handsoap drug products -- for “significant violations” of Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP) regulations for Finished Pharmaceuticals.

Inspectors said they found the products to be adulterated within the meaning of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act.

We’ve all seen it on Facebook before. Pictures of an exotic location being posted, with a caption that reads "I’m vactioning on such and such island," which sometimes is a way of asking "can you envy me a little bit please?"

Or this one: A person takes a photo of their lunch and posts it on their Facebook page as if a plate of food is a brand-new invention. "But it’s MY plate of food," they may think — which obviously makes it more special than anyone else’s, and definitely more important to share.

But the question is: do people really care about each minute detail of our daily lives? Are Facebook followers really sitting by their keyboards or constantly checking their smartphones in anticipatory pain until you update them about you, your family, or your escapades?

Probably not, and according to a university study these postings are mainly for the user to feel better about themselves, and many times all of the Facebook updates are attached to a strong level of narcissism.

Christopher Carpenter, an assistant professor of communication at Western Illinois University conducted the study entitled Narcissism on Facebook: Self-promotional and Anti-social Behavior, and he found that people who incessantly update their Facebook pages with personal details are more likely to exhibit narcissistic behaviors not only in virtual realms but in the physical world too.

Virtual & real

Meaning, if you tend to brag about the fabulous places you’re visiting or show people what a wonderful meal you’re having, you’re more than likely to talk about these things to people in your daily lives, regardless if they’re really interested or not.

Carpenter examined 292 people to gauge each person’s level of self-absorption and found a direct correlation between time spent on Facebook posting photos, updating statuses and gathering followers, to having feelings of narcissism.

The study also found these same people are more likely to seek social support rather than give it, and are surprised and even upset if people don’t comment, or “like” their photo or their posted update.

Also, using Facebook and other social networking pages like it, allows one to shape outside perceptions and kind of tailor their image to what they want it to be. It’s a way of showing your old high-school chums how wonderful your life is, while also letting them know you turned out great.

“If Facebook is to be a place where people go to repair their damaged ego and seek social support, it is vitally important to discover the potentially negative communication one might find on Facebook and the kinds of people likely to engage in them,” said Carpenter.

“Ideally, people will engage in pro-social Facebooking rather than anti-social me-booking. In general, the dark side of Facebook required more research in order to better understand Facebook’s socially beneficial and harmful aspects in order to enhance the former and curtail the later,” he said.

All-time high

According to other studies like the University of Southern Mississippi’s Narcissism and Machiavellianism in Youth, narcissism is at an all-time high, not only within social networking pages, but in the real world too, and these days it’s starting with people at a very young age, researchers say.

Christopher Barry, the lead author of the study designed a self-esteem test for middle school kids and found that 80 percent of the students scored higher in 2006 than kids did in the late 80s. And the same trait was found in college students, as the study found more occurrences of narcissism compared to college kids who were tested in the 70s.

“You can look at individual scores of narcissism, you can look at data on lifetime prevalence of Narcissistic Personality Disorder, you can look at related cultural trends, and they all point to one thing, narcissism is on the rise,” said Keith Campbell of the University of Georgia psychology department, in a statement.

Blame the boomers

In another study conducted by the University of Michigan, it showed that narcissism has been on a steady incline since the Baby Boomer Generation.

The study also goes on to reveal that with each generation, things like concern of self-image, and showing a lack of compassion towards other people has been on a consistent decline.

Researchers at the mid-western school ran a 30-year study on 72 college students and found that over the course of three decades, feelings of kindness, empathy and sympathy have dropped by 34 percent.

And while these attributes were falling off from parts of our society, feelings of narcissism and self-involvement have been on the steady rise, and currently those feelings are at an all-time high, say researchers.

“College students today may be so busy worrying about themselves and their own issues that they don’t have time to spend empathizing with others, or at least perceive such time to be limited,” said the study authors.

And of course it’s not just younger folks who obsess about self-image, as all ages are now feeling the need to detail a great deal of their lives on Facebook, with the idea that others really, really care.

I mean, some might care like close friends and family, but for the most part it’s pretty safe to assume that the average person liking or commenting on our Facebook post, could be doing it out of social networking etiquette, compared to really being concerned about each detail of our lives.

There was at least one sour note as consumers lined up to take delivery of the iPhone 5, Apple's latest version of its smartphone. Apple's replacement of Google Maps with its own version, called Apple Maps, drew some instant consumer complaints.

It wasn't just that Apple wanted to cut the cord with Google, it said it wanted to provide an improved "map experience." The maps in the app were supposed to be prettier, provide turn-by-turn directions, synced up with Siri, and give users the perspective of flying over the landscape.

But some users say it's not ready for prime time. Specifically, they say there are problems with accuracy and in some cases, distorted or missing images. An Apple spokeswoman, in a statement to, asked users be patient.

We're working on it

"We launched this new map service knowing that it is a major initiative and we are just getting started with it," Spokeswoman Trudy Muller said. "We are continuously improving it, and as Maps is a cloud-based solution, the more people use it, the better it will get. We appreciate all of the customer feedback and are working hard to make the customer experience even better.”

Writing on Apple Forum, a poster going by Sparkyscott21 said Apple should have called the new maps app a beta and introduced it slowly, overlapping it with Google Maps.

"To have such a 'not ready' product as one of the most touted new features in the brand new iOS 6 is pretty embarrassing," he wrote.

The technology press was similarly unkind.

“Apple's decision to swap out Google Maps is a rare example of the company openly placing its own interests above those of its customers,” wrote Nilay Patel at The Verge.

Google and Apple are not on the friendliest of terms. Apple, notably late CEO Steve Jobs, has maintained that Google's Android operating system is just a bit too similar to the iPhone's.

No interest in Google?

Google, meanwhile, has reportedly produced a version of its maps app for the OS6 system but there has been no indication it will be added to the new iPhone, whose first day of sales proceeded with the usual frenzy in spite of the maps flap. Consumers who pre-ordered an iPhone were able to pick them up for the first time today.

Apple said pre-orders of the iPhone 5 topped two million in just 24 hours, more than double the previous record of one million held by iPhone 4S. Demand for iPhone 5 exceeded the initial supply and while the majority of pre-orders were expected to be delivered to customers today, many are scheduled to be delivered in October.  

Military and civilian leaders are pausing today to take part in ceremonies marking National POW/MIA Recognition Day, an annual event to honor the nation’s service members who were held prisoner or are still missing, and their families.

“As long as members of our Armed Forces remain unaccounted for, America will bring our fullest resources to bear in finding them and bringing them home. It is a promise we make not only to the families of our captured and our missing, but to all who have worn the uniform,” President Barack Obama said.

"On September 21, 2012, the stark black and white banner symbolizing America's Missing in Action and Prisoners of War will be flown over the White House; the United States Capitol; the Departments of State, Defense, and Veterans Affairs; the Selective Service System Headquarters; the World War II Memorial; the Korean War Veterans Memorial; the Vietnam Veterans Memorial; United States post offices; national cemeteries; and other locations across our country. We raise this flag as a solemn reminder of our obligation to always remember the sacrifices made to defend our Nation," Obama's official proclamation concluded.

Meanwhile, 15 companies and organizations from a port to a power company received the Secretary of Defense Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Freedom Award yesterday.

Panetta visits troops

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta visited with troops in Japan on his way to New Zealand and told them that, although the U.S. has the largest and most sophisticated array of weaponry in the world, "None of it would be worth a damn without the men and women who volunteer to serve their country."

The day’s events include a Pentagon commemoration ceremony hosting former prisoners of war, family members, military service members and distinguished guests.  Traditionally held on the third Friday in September, the event will include formal military honors.  A flyover of military aircraft is scheduled to conclude the ceremony. 

Also, in New York City, Department of Defense (DoD) representatives will participate in the New York Stock Exchange’s Closing Bell Ceremony to honor prisoners of war and those missing in action.  The New York Yankees will acknowledge the day with a home plate tribute to service members, past and present, during a game that evening. 

In addition, observances of National POW/MIA Recognition Day are held across the country on military installations, at state capitols, in local communities, schools and at various veterans' facilities.  

As a result of resolutions passed in Congress, the first official commemoration of POW/MIAs was in 1979, when the first national ceremony was held.  The observance is one of six days of the year that Congress has mandated flying of the POW/MIA flag, created by the National League of Families', at major military installations, national cemeteries, all post offices, VA medical facilities, the World War II Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the offices of the secretaries of state, defense and veterans affairs, the director of the selective service system and the White House. 

The DoD has more than 600 people dedicated to the worldwide mission of accounting for the more than 83,000 missing service members from conflicts as far back as World War II.  

Companies honored

The ESGR Freedom Award ceremony highlighted private and public companies, large and small, which go above and beyond what the law requires to support their deployed Guard and Reserve employees, said keynote speaker Erin C. Conaton, the Undersecretary of Defense for personnel and readiness.

Now in its 17th year, the ESGR Freedom Award is the top honor the federal government can present to employers in recognition of the extra steps taken to support their deployed employees and families.

"We must take time to salute the magnitude of this contribution and to thank you," Conaton said to a large civilian and military audience at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center.

"With approximately 50 percent of the nation's military strength residing in the Guard and [the] Reserves, we know that we wouldn't be able to field the world's greatest military without the depth of reserve components," she added.

These forces maintain their high quality and readiness directly from their dedication to service, strong family support and civilian employer backing, Conaton said.

Such employers seek to not only retain and support their employees who serve in military, they also hire veterans, she said.

Award recipients

This year’s award recipients include:

-- Basin National Cooperative, North Dakota

-- Caterpillar Inc., Illinois

-- Citi, South Dakota and New York

-- Crystal Springs United Methodist Church, Mississippi

-- Delta Airlines, Georgia

-- Gary Jet Center, Indiana

-- iostudio, Tennessee

-- Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety, Michigan

-- L-3 Communications, Utah, New York

-- Nyemaster Goode, Iowa

-- Port of Seattle, Washington

-- Siemens Corp., Delaware, District of Columbia

-- Tennessee Valley Authority, Tennessee

-- Uniform Color Co., Michigan

-- Verizon Wireless, New Jersey

Winners are selected based on nominations from employees who are in the Guard or reserves. This year’s 15 winners bring to 160 the number of awards that have honored companies and organizations across the nation. This year's competition received 3,200 nominations, ESGR officials said.

Groupon is diving into the credit card processing business, offering its merchants a lower rate than most other providers charge. It's taking on competitors including PayPal and Square.  

Built into the latest version of the Groupon Merchants app for the iPhone and iPod Touch, Groupon Payments provides restaurants, salons and spas, retail establishments and other local businesses with the ability to accept all credit card payments at a lower rate than other providers, the company said.

Groupon aims to reach a size where it will become the "operating system" for local commerce, as Chief Executive Andrew Mason put it earlier this year.

Pilot test

• Swiped transactions – MasterCard, Visa and Discover (1.8% plus $0.15 per transaction) and American Express (3% plus $0.15 per transaction)
• No hidden costs or monthly fees

Merchants will also have their credit card deposits in their bank accounts overnight, which is much faster than the typical experience of waiting two to three business days offered by most credit card processors, the company said.

“Our goal is to provide merchants with the most affordable and powerful tools to run and grow their businesses,” said Mihir Shah, VP Mobile and Merchant Products at Groupon. “With groundbreaking pricing and service, Groupon Payments does just that.”

While Groupon Payments is designed for local businesses that run deals with Groupon, the service is also available as a pilot to non-Groupon merchants at the rate of 2.2% (3% American Express) + $0.15 per transaction.

We're constantly being told that it's dangerous to drive while distracted by other tasks. But just how dangerous is it really? Research published in Ergonomics and Design reveals the crash risk of various activities based on observations of drivers in instrumented vehicles.  Even the researchers were amazed by the magnitude of the increase in risk.

"Taking your eyes off the road to dial a cell phone or look up an address and send a text increases the risk of crashing by 600 to 2,300 percent," said Rich Hanowski, director of the Center for Truck and Bus Safety at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute in Blacksburg, Va.

Asserting that driver behavior and performance needs to be understood in the context of the driving environment, the researchers used the results of several naturalistic driving studies. Traditional driver studies have been done on test tracks or with simulators, or have been based on crash studies based on interviews where "drivers and other eyewitnesses are deceased, dazed, inattentive, or fearful," according to the research article.

"Naturalistic driving research involves the instrumentation of vehicles, including video cameras, for the purpose of precisely recording participants as they normally drive as well as in the seconds leading up to crashes and near-crashes," the article explains. Continuous data are collected for as long as two years.

"Near crashes" contain all the elements of a crash except the outcome, which is averted by successful last-second maneuvers.

Most dangerous tasks

The researchers observed that the most dangerous tasks are visual-manual in nature. "You have to take your eyes off of the road to do something," said Tom Dingus, director of the transportation institute. "Most of the tasks require multiple steps to complete and multiple glances away from the road."

The tasks are also rarely associated with built in features that come as original equipment of the car or truck.

"The tasks that we should focus heavily on correcting are the newer cell phone tasks of texting, typing, reading, dialing, and reaching for a phone," Charlie Klauer, research scientist at the transportation institute, said.

The researchers conclude with these recommendations:

• Vehicle manufacturers and aftermarket suppliers need to focus on minimizing visual-manual interaction with devices and thereby minimizing eyes-off-road time. The article suggests interfaces that lock out features while the vehicle is in motion as well as the use of auditory or voice interfaces.
• Manufacturers of nomadic devices should integrate via Bluetooth or wireless to interact seamlessly with an in-vehicle interface that has the features in the first item, or that simply lock out all the most complex features while a vehicle is in motion (as detected by GPS).
• The public needs to be informed of the relative risks of the various tasks that are commonly accomplished in a moving vehicle.

Regarding legislation, the researchers wrote that "Texting bans are appropriate (and) handheld cell phone bans – particularly as applied to smartphones – may be necessary."  However, "Total cell phone bans that include true hands-free voice input-output devices are unwarranted," the transportation research team said.

"Other devices, such as mobile data terminals in trucks, need to be seriously and immediately assessed from design, education, and legislative viewpoints," Hanowski said.

The paper, "Estimating Crash Risk," by Dingus, Hanowski and Klauer, research scientist at the transportation institute, has just received the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society’s 2012 Best Ergonomics in Design Article Award, to be presented at the society's annual meeting, Oct. 22-26, in Boston.

In the 2012 presidential campaign, it has not been a particularly good week for Republican Mitt Romney. Even President Obama has encountered a few bumps in the road to re-election.

But fortunately for both candidates, gaffes and foreign events matter little in determining the outcome of an election, in spite of what the news media covering the campaigns might think.

At least that's the conclusion of two political science professors -- Christopher Wlezien of Temple and Robert Erikson of Columbia -- who argue that specific events in a campaign matter much less than we think and certainly much less than it would appear based on the media attention they receive.

Erikson and Wlezien have studied the timelines of every presidential election since 1952 to develop an idea of how voters' preferences take shape over the course of a campaign. What they found goes against conventional wisdom.

Slow evolution

They found that over the timeline of a presidential campaign the electorate's collective choice undergoes a slow "evolution." And, Wlezien says, "this evolution is predictable and based on fundamental factors, such as partisan predispositions, economic conditions and candidate attributes."

Early polls, the authors say, rarely predict the election outcome. However, by mid-April after the candidates have been selected, voters start to make up their minds -- and polls during this period in past years have successfully named the winner in 11 of 15 elections.

If that's the case, the 2012 race between Obama and Romney appears it may come down to the wire. Most polls show the race virtually tied or the president with a small lead.

Last six months are key

In their book, The Timeline of Presidential Elections: How Campaigns do (and do not) Matter, Wlezien and Erikson argue that voter evolution begins in the last six months before the election, and it takes place slowly.

Instead of resulting in dramatic change, particular events during this period of a campaign -- including debates -- simply confirm voters' inclinations.

"Voters see things through their preference lenses, typically viewing their favored candidate to be the winner of a debate," Wlezien said. “Given an electorate that is as polarized as it is this year, the impact of the 2012 debates might be particularly hard to find.”

The importance of conventions

Again turning conventional wisdom on its ear, the authors suggest the political conventions, which have been markedly de-emphasized in recent years, matter more to voter persuasion than the debates.

"They focus voters’ attention on the election and often substantially rearrange their preferences,” Wlezien said. “Most importantly, unlike other campaign events, the effects of conventions can last to impact the Election Day outcome.”

According to Wlezien and Erikson, voter preferences by now should have hardened.

"History shows that the leader in the polls at the onset of the fall campaign almost certainly will be the victor," Wlezien said.

In the end, Wlezien and Erickson conclude that it's the fundamentals that matter in a presidential election. Even though the election is weeks away, voters may have already made up their minds.

Parents of young children know the drill. Late at night the child awakens in pain with what may be an ear infection.

What usually follows is a late night visit to the emergency room or a costly doctor visit the next morning. But Wilbur Lam, an assistant professor of biomedical engineering at both Georgia Tech and Emory universities, has a different vision.

He's designing Remotoscope, a clip-on attachment and software app that turns an iPhone into an otoscope. Pediatricians currently diagnose ear infections using the standard otoscope to examine the eardrum.

With Remotoscope, parents would be able to take a picture or video of their child’s eardrum using the iPhone and send the images digitally to a physician for diagnostic review.

Potential home diagnosis

“Ultimately we think parents could receive a diagnosis at home and forgo the late-night trips to the emergency room,” said Lam, who is also a physician at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and an assistant professor of pediatrics at Emory School of Medicine. “It’s known that kids who get ear infections early in life are at risk for recurrent ear infections. It can be a very big deal and really affect their families’ quality of life.”

Remotoscope's clip-on attachment uses the iPhone's camera and flash as the light source as well as a custom software app to provide magnification and record data to the phone. The iPhone’s data transmission capabilities send images and video to a doctor's inbox or to the patient's electronic medical record.

The device has the potential to save money for both families and healthcare systems, Lam says. Ear infections, or otitis media, affect 75 percent of children by age 6, making it the most common diagnosis for preschoolers.

15 million office visits

They result in more than 15 million office visits per year in the United States and thousands of prescriptions for antibiotics, which are sometimes not needed. At the initial visit with a patient, physicians say it is difficult to differentiate between ear infections caused by viruses, which resolve on their own, and those caused by bacteria, which would require antibiotics.

“As pediatricians will likely only see the child once, they often err on the side of giving antibiotics for viral infections rather than risk not giving antibiotics for a bacterial infection, which can lead to complications,” Lam said. “So, we are currently over-treating ear infections with antibiotics and consequently causing antibiotic resistance.”

Lam believes Remotoscope may result in fewer prescriptions, saving the consumer -- or their health insurer -- a lot of money.

A clinical trial for the Remotoscope is currently under way to see if the device can obtain images of the same diagnostic quality as what a physician sees with a traditional otoscope. The Food and Drug Administration, through the Atlanta Pediatric Device Consortium, is partially funding the trial, Lam said.

Little by little, gasoline prices that rose rapidly over the course of the late summer began to come down in the last week.

The national average price of self-serve regular today is $3.833 per gallon, compared with $3.871 last Friday, according to AAA's Fuel Gauge Survey. That's about 12 cents higher than a month ago and more than 26 cents above the year-ago price.

The average price of diesel fuel today is $4.114 per gallon, versus $4.123 a week ago.

Gasoline prices followed oil prices lower during the week. Crude prices dropped unexpectedly as traders cashed in their positions over apparent concern about economic data.

There was also a big increase in the amount of oil the U.S. has on hand. The Energy Information Administration reported crude oil stockpiles in the previous week jumped to their highest level since early August. However, U.S. supplies of refined gasoline fell for an eighth straight week.

In the states prices showed remarkable stability, going down a few cents a gallon. There was one state where the price at the pump went up. The average pump price in North Dakota rose two cents a gallon while Ohio saw a significant drop, from $3.905 to $3.764.

The states with the most expensive gas prices this week are:

• Hawaii ($4.419)
• California ($4.149)
• Connecticut ($4.133)
• New York ($4.121)
• Illinois ($4.056)
• Michigan ($4.044)
• Washington ($4.034)
• Alaska ($4.006)
• Oregon ($3.989)
• Maine ($3.986)

The states with the lowest gas prices this week are:

• South Carolina ($3.592)
• Mississippi ($3.599)
• Alabama ($3.635)
• Texas ($3.635)
• Tennessee ($3.640)
• Louisiana ($3.662)
• Arkansas ($3.672)
• New Mexico ($3.684)
• Virginia ($3.694)
• Missouri ($3.700)

While there is a lot of justified concern about congressional inaction to avert the so-called “fiscal cliff” at the end of the year, another deadline is looming on the horizon that could have dire consequences, farm experts say.

Congress passes a new Farm Bill every five years and the current one is set to expire in less than two weeks. Without approval of a new one everything from crop production to school lunches could feel the impact.

The Senate has passed a version of the legislation but it became bogged down in the House. Speaker John Boehner confirmed Thursday the House won't take up the Farm bill until after the election. There appears to be a split among Republicans who either think the massive bill makes too many changes to farm and nutrition-related programs or doesn't make enough changes.

Dairy producers feeling effects

Meanwhile, Andrew Novakovic, a professor in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell, says the U.S. dairy industry is already paying the price.

“On Sept. 1, provisions for the Milk Income Loss Contract program reverted to pre-2008 levels that render the program meaningless,” Novakovic said. “Under the MILC program, dairy farmers have been receiving substantial countercyclical subsidies to help them offset the large imbalance between the price of milk they receive and the prices they pay for corn and soybean meal that they use to feed their cows. MILC payments began in February 2012 and would continue through November or December based on currently expected prices, if the 2008 provisions stayed in effect.”

However, under current law, the last payment made for milk produced was in August. The exact amount of the payment varies each month and across farms, but for many of the nation's farms of average size or smaller, the payment amounts to almost 10 percent of their monthly milk check and can mean the difference between losing money and breaking close to even.

The dairy industry itself is split over the Farm Bill. Producers support it but dairy processors oppose a provision in the bill they saw unfairly manipulates prices.

Takes issue with price management

“This year’s Farm Bill goes in the wrong direction and calls for more government regulation and intervention into milk markets -- not less,” the International Dairy Foods Association, an industry trade group, said in a position statement.” “Instead of helping farmers manage through hard times, some dairy producer organizations want government to guarantee profit margins for producers by imposing new regulations and 'growth management' on processors.”

While corn growers will continue to be covered by the crop insurance they purchased last spring, dairy producers won't -- exposing them to heavy losses from the summer's drought.

Several mandatory research programs that are in the Farm Bill will receive no funds once the legislation expires and there is no new Farm Bill to replace it. Scientists working on subjects critical to the health of the nation and the rural economy, such as specialty crops and organic production would have their primary funding programs suspended.

Haier America Trading has agreed to pay a civil penalty of $850,000, resolving Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) staff allegations that it failed to report immediately a defect involving its blenders that resulted in nearly 60 incidents and an injury to a consumer’s hand. 

The nut on the blender that holds the blade assembly can dislodge during use, allowing the blade assembly pieces to break apart, and/or crack the blender’s glass jar, posing a laceration hazard to consumers. 

The settlement agreement has been provisionally accepted by the Commission (4-0). 

Haier America sold the blenders through retail stores between October 2006 and October 2009. The company became aware of the incidents and injury between January 2007 and September 2009, yet did not file a full report to CSPC until October 2009. 

Violation of the law 

Federal law requires manufacturers, distributors and retailers to report to CPSC immediately (within 24 hours) after obtaining information reasonably supporting the conclusion that a product contains a defect that could create a substantial product hazard, creates an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death, or fails to comply with any consumer product safety rule or any other rule, regulation, standard or ban enforced by CPSC. 

CPSC and Haier America announced a recall of nearly 54,000 blenders in December 2009. 

Millions of Americans take a prescribed medication to control their blood pressure, some of which are very expensive. And some of which do very little at all to help.

So says Dr. Samuel J. Mann, a nationally-known hypertension specialist at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and professor of clinical medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College.

"Despite their best intentions many physicians continue to place their hypertensive patients on blood pressure medications, drug combinations or doses that may not be the best treatment available to them, Mann said. "I believe that with the medications we have, we can do much better than we are doing.

On drugs needlessly

Mann has put his concerns in a new book, Hypertension and You: Old Drugs, New Drugs and the Right Drugs for Your High Blood Pressure. In it, he suggests many people on blood pressure medication don't even have high blood pressure.

He blames incorrect blood pressure measurement, both at the doctor's office and at home, for the mistaken impressions. According to the Mayo Clinic, a normal blood pressure is 120/80 or below.

Mann said he wants consumers to understand the shortcomings of current treatment approaches and present new and better approaches that can help improve blood pressure control, reduce side effects of medications and lower health care costs.

For example, he thinks beta blockers, which slow down the heart to reduce blood pressure, have too many side effects, responsible for what he calls an “epidemic” of fatigue and, in some cases, can cause cognitive impairment.

Diuretics underused

While doctors prescribe many new, expensive drugs Mann says they virtually ignore many older, cheaper drugs that may be more effective. As an example he cites diuretics, which he calls effective and inexpensive but are widely underused and underdosed, resulting in inadequate blood pressure control, unneeded multi-drug regimens and avoidable costs.

And then there are causes of high blood pressure that aren't physical in nature but rather psychological. Hypertension linked to psychological factors, Mann says, responds to a different set of blood pressure drugs than other cases of hypertension.

The bottom line, Mann says, is that blood pressure medications are currently failing millions of people who, despite taking the drugs, are still at increased risk for heart attack and stroke.

Last month a Texas judge rejected a proposed law that would force residents to get a government-issued ID in order to vote in the November election.

Many political officials in the Lone Star State said the law was needed to prevent various types of voter fraud, like someone using another person’s ID to cast a vote.

Critics say that forcing people to get government-issued IDs would disproportionately affect the state’s lower-income and minority voters, while at the same time intimidating them and suppressing their opportunity to vote.

These critics also say that many people in lower-income communities do not possess government-issued IDs for several reasons, including not having a driver's license because they can't afford a car. Others don't have a passport because they can't afford to travel.  

“Chalk up another victory for fraud,” Texas Gov. Rick Perry  wrote on his website after the judge's ruling. “Federal judges subverted the will of the people of Texas and undermined our effort to ensure fair and accurate elections. The Obama administration’s claim that it’s a burden to present a photo ID to vote simply defies common sense. I will continue to work with [Texas] Attorney General [Greg] Abbott to fight for the same right that other states already have to protect their elections.”

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder commended the judge’s decision in a recent statement.

“Under the proposed law, many of those without required voter identification would be forced to travel great distances to get one -- and some would have to pay for the documents they might need to do so,” he said.

19 states 

Currently, there are 19 states that have passed ID laws for voting, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law.

And all of these states maintain the new voting laws will protect the integrity of this upcoming election as well as future ones, although there are few documented cases of people using phony IDs or trying to pass themselves off as someone else in order to vote.

Opponents, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) say the new restrictions are no more than modern versions of the poll taxes and literacy tests that for decades were used to disenfranchise voters in the South.

"Poll taxes and literacy tests have given way to more modern voter suppression tactics packaged as voter ID laws, restrictions to voter registration and cuts to early voting. With these new laws in effect, up to 5 million voters could be turned away at the polls in November," the ACLU charged recently. 

Hollywood celebrities have joined the campaign against the restrictions, as in this video narrated by Whoopi Goldberg.

The ACLU notes that voter turnout in the 2008 election was the most racially diverse in American history, closing the longstanding gap between white and minority voter participation. It charges that the more restrictive voting laws are a response to the growing influence of voters who are not white males.

"States are making it harder and harder for people to vote, virtually guaranteeing that many people won’t really have the right at all," the ACLU said.

Pennsylvania maneuvers

In Pennsylvania, Judge Robert Simpson upheld a March 2012 decision to implement a new voting ID law in that state, after individual plaintiffs filed an injunction and attended a lengthy hearing explaining how such laws would impact them and others in their communities.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs said the law could keep at least 100,000 of the state’s residents from voting in this coming election.

“The vice is not in requiring photo identification, said lead plaintiff lawyer David Gersch. “The vice is in requiring photo identification that not everyone has or has the ability to obtain." 

Of course Pennsylvania is a major swing state, and in recent years the state has swung left. In fact, it wasn’t since 1988 when George H. W. Bush won the presidential election over Michael Dukakis that Pennsylvanians pushed the Republican ticket through the victory tape. And many on the left feel the passing of the ID law is an obvious attempt to better even the Republican score.

Additionally, Democrats say the comments made by Rep. Mike Turzai, the Republican majority leader of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, are proof that the state is trying to manipulate the upcoming presidential election by abruptly changing voting laws.

“Voter ID, which is going to allow Governor [Mitt] Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania? Done,” Turzai was overheard saying recently. 

Pennsylvania Democrats pounced on Turzai’s comment, portraying it as an admission of partisan motivations in enacting the new law, renewing their charge that it is an effort to suppress Democratic votes.

Florida changes

In Florida state officials have also modified that state's voting laws, by shortening the allotted amount of time for early voting.

Last week the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division upheld the modifications, but specified that residents have to get 96 hours for early voting over an eight-day period. However, the option to vote early on the Sunday right before the election has been removed. African Americans have traditionally turned out in large numbers on Sunday.

Republican Ken Detzner, Florida’s secretary of state and chief elections officer, sees the change as a benefit to Floridians and not a form of voter suppression.

“The approval of these changes is a tremendous victory for Florida voters,” he said. “In the areas of the state already able to implement the changes, we have seen how the changes offer more flexibility to vote, more accountability and faster reporting times on Election Day.”

Perhaps the most iconic futile gesture of the current epoch is "unfriending" someone whose Facebook comments we find trite, offensive or just plain old boring. Chances are, our former "friends" will neither know nor care.

And that about sums up the latest attempt by brick-and-mortar retailers to hit back against Amazon, the Internet giant that is slowly but inexorably eating the lunch of just about every retail segment you can think of. OK, Amazon's not selling used cars or puppies yet, but just you wait.

The latest to take a swing at Amazon is Walmart, which announced today it will stop selling the Amazon Kindle e-readers. Target did the same thing last May.

Of course, the Kindle and Kindle Fire continue to sweep the country like, well, wildfire, but never mind that -- Walmart and Target are tired of people looking at stuff in their stores and then buying it online, sometimes while actually standing there flat-footed in the stores.  

Retailers call this the "showroom" effect -- shoppers using their stores to look at stuff they then buy online. 

Walmart said snippily today that it will continue to carry "a broad assortment of tablets and e-readers and accessories at a variety of great price points."

Last we heard, Best Buy and Staples are still selling the Kindle, not that Amazon is likely to be too concerned. Amazon doesn't break out sales results for the various Kindle models, but no one disputes that Amazon and Apple are taking the lion's share of the e-reader and tablet market, with Barnes & Noble, Samsung and others somewhere back in the pack.

Retailers might want to consider whether eliminating Kindles is a good idea with the holiday shopping season bearing down on them. After all, the devices are popular gifts that could draw purchasers into their stores, where they might then find something else to buy. Who knows -- they might even buy it in the store instead of ordering it from Amazon.