Author: Justin Lane

Below are Ring of Fire's top stories from the past week. the best internet security software Video Rewind Does BP Hire Online “Trolls” to Harass Its Critics and Victims? BP has allegedly been hiring internet “trolls,” disruptive site visitors who purposely attack and provoke users wanting to have honest and thoughtful interaction, to attack environmentalists, scientists, and critics of BP of America (BAP). An anonymous whistleblower with the Government Accountability Office in Washington D.C. has come forth with information that points to BP and Ogilvy, its PR firm, for paying people to harass Facebook users. … Read more. Koch...

Facing allegations that the company knowingly sold defective heart devices to health care facilities, which were then implanted into Medicare patients, Boston Scientific Corporation, along with its subsidiaries, Guidant LLC, Guidant Sales LLC, and Cardiac Pacemakers Inc., will pay $30 million to settle a lawsuit filed by a private citizen on behalf of the U.S. Government. The devices that were alleged to have been defective were the Prizm 2 and the Renewal 1 and 2. The devices were designed to detect a patient’s heart entering an irregular rhythm and thus placing them at risk for cardiac arrest. To correct...

Florida Tea Party Representative Ted Yoho thinks that Federal employees furloughed by the government shutdown shouldn’t receive retroactive pay for the time that they have been dismissed. Interviewed during a town hall meeting, the representative was tossed a softball by a caller, “The people that had to work should be paid. But the people that are home watching Netflix and whatever, I’m not sure that we should be sending them checks.” To which Yoho was able to respond with a tea-party homerun of “… If they’re not working, they shouldn’t get paid,” and neglect that the GOP is largely...

The GOP’s favorability rating has sunk to an all-time, record low according to a new poll from Gallup. According to the new poll the Republican Party’s recent antics regarding the government shutdown are not producing any positive feelings. Only 28 percent of Americans view the Republican Party favorably. Contrast that with the Democratic Party’s 43 percent favorability rating. The Republicans had originally set the floor for favorability ratings back in 1999 with a score of 31 percent favorability. At that time, politicians were embroiled in the impeachment of President Clinton. The shutdown and squabbling between the parties is not...

The United States’s corporate-leaning Supreme Court is hearing a case that has the potential to forever change the landscape of political finance contributions. The Court’s decision in McCutcheon v. FEC is likely to take the few remaining holds on campaign contributions off and create the next largest shift in campaigns since Citizens United. The current case is seeking to overturn campaign finance laws that have been a part of the American political system for more than 30 years. These laws regulate the maximum amount that an individual can contribute to a particular politicians campaign and the aggregate amount that...