January 31, 2002
More Damaging Enron Documents
Potentially damning revelations for board members of the embattled energy trading giant Enron Thursday. Just released minutes of Enron board meetings suggest that board members knew as far back as four years ago that the company was shifting its debt to subsidiary companies…To keep the stock price high. That doesn’t bode well for Enron’s ex CEO Ken Lay, who makes his first appearance before Congressional investigators Monday. Meanwhile Enron refuses to divulge information about its subsidiaries. These developments, and the revelation of an Enron wish list for national energy priorities have consumer advocates urging congress to scuttle the bush energy proposal.Joshua Chaffin reports from Washington:
Afghan Refugees Stop Hunger Strike in Australia
Rachel Maher reports on Prime Minister John Howard’s solution to the Australian refugee crisis: giving the refugees a one way ticket off the continent.
Thousands of Protesters Greet WEF in New York
Scott Harris reports from the streets of New York where thousands have turned out to protest the World Economic Forum.
Crackdown in Kashmir
The signs are not positive even if the immediate threat of war between India and Pakistan has been averted. India has rejected the latest Pakistani proposals for de-escalation of tensions. Cross border shelling in the southern part of Jammu and Kashmir remains a daily occurrence, as are reports of skirmishes between Indian security forces and Kashmiri militants. The state itself remains sealed off from the rest of the country – no phone or Internet connections since more than a month now. Kashmir remains, now like before, under the shadow of the gun, but the mood seems to be changing since the January 12 landmark speech of Pakistani President General Musharraf. This is the first of 2 reports from Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian administered Kashmir from FSRN reporter Sputnik Kilambi.
Arsenic in the Wood
That green tinge you often see on wooden fences, decks and playground equipment indicates that the wood has been treated with a chemical called CCA — Chromated Copper Arsenate. It’s used to preserve outdoor wood from insects and the elements. CCA is 22% arsenic by weight. Arsenic, known to cause cancer in humans, can leach from CCA-treated wood. That’s a big concern to some environmentalists who believe that CCA-treated wood is a hazard to children who play on decks and playground equipment made from it. While the Environmental Protection Agency investigates the matter, environmentalists and the wood preserving industry are at odds over how well consumers are being informed of the possible risks of CCA. More from Kellia Ramares.
