Archive - Sep 29, 2009

• Michael Moore calls on Democrats to pass public option healthcare reform
• Streetbeat: Texas health professionals discuss congressional healthcare plans
• Unrest at Kraft Foods plant sparks street protests in Argentina
• Tropical Storm Ketsana causes humanitarian crisis in the Philippines
• Bakassi oil deal affects locals, fishermen on Cameroon Nigeria border

• France breaks ties with Guinea after forces kill more than 150 protestors
• Micheletti suggests he may reverse constitutional rights roll back
• Drones kill in Pakistan, civilians continue to flee Waziristan
• 30 civilians die in roadside bomb attack in Afghanistan
• FDIC proposes banks pony up next three years of payments now
• Man accused of plotting terror attack pleads not guilty

In their fifth day of public deliberations, the Senate Finance Committee is debating the so-called public option. The provision is not included in their version of the bill, but some Democrats hope it is added. Meanwhile, filmmaker Michael Moore has descended on Washington and vowed to defeat any Democrat who does not support universal health care. FSRN’s Leigh Ann Caldwell reports.

New census data shows that Texas has the largest uninsured population in the country, with one in four residents living without healthcare coverage. Texas is also home to the world's largest medical center, a sprawling campus of 47 different health related institutions, from state-of-the-art hospitals and research institutes to nursing and medical schools. For this edition of Street Beat, reporter Shannon Young went to the Texas Medical Center in Houston to ask healthcare professionals and medical students their personal opinions about what lawmakers should prioritize in health care reform.

A Kraft Foods factory has reopened in Argentina after workers shut it down for more than a month to protest massive layoffs and anti-union measures.  The Illinois-based corporation denies it was trying to break up unions and last week it obtained a court order to dislodge more than 60 workers who were blocking operations at the factory.  The incident sparked street demonstrations yesterday and a response from the US embassy.  FSRN´s Marie Trigona has more from Buenos Aires.

The death toll caused by Tropical Storm Ketsana in the Philippines has risen to more than 230 people, according to the the National Disaster Coordinating Council. The tropical storm, also known as Typhoon Ondoy, swept through the northern Philippines on Saturday, pouring more than a month´s worth of rain on Manila in less than 12 hours.

Flooding has forced people to sleep in schools and gyms across the capital city. During the day thousands line up for food at disaster relief centers, including one that was  set up on the grounds of the Presidential palace. FSRN´s Manuel Rueda spoke with Alex Mahoney, the disaster manager for Asia at the American Red Cross.

For more information on the American Red Cross relief efforts visit: blog.redcross.org

FSRN recently visited the Bakassi Peninsula on the Cameroon Nigeria border.  Both countries have decided to share the regions oil resources, after settling a century-old border dispute that gave the land to Cameroon. But the deal has made life difficult for Nigerian fishermen who were recently relocated and for people still living in Bakassi.  FSRN´s Sam Olukoya has the story.