THE HEADLINES

“WE HAVEN’T BURIED THE CHILDREN YET. WE’RE NOT DISCUSSING IT.”

While media mogul Rupert Murdoch has been praised for his public reactions to the Connecticut school massacre by calling for stricter gun regulations in the United States, his Fox News cable channel is accused of dropping the ball on coverage of the tragedy by refusing to discuss gun-related aspects of the story on its air. Memos from top executives at Fox News order subordinates to silence any gun control debate, telling on-air personalities that the network won’t “go there.”

(New York Magazine)

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THE OTHER LESSON OF NEWTOWN: AMERICA’S FAILING MENTAL HEALTH SYSTEM.

“Pervasive” cuts to mental health funding by states and private health providers have left the nation;s system of mental health care in tatters, leaving people like the allegedly unstable Connecticut school shooter without proper treatment and vulnerable to episodes of tragedy. This is the conclusion of mental health experts in the wake of last Friday’s shooting in Newtown, what many hope will be a wake up call to the national crisis of mental health treatment. Government budget cuts have eliminated many programs designed to aid the mentally ill, and reductions in education funding have left many schools short of the nurses and counselors that could alert officials to warning signs among students. also to blame are private health care providers and hospitals that refuse to allocate proper resources to mental health treatment because it is not as profitable as other forms of care.

(Common Dreams)

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FOSSIL FUEL ADVOCATES READY TO “INDOCTRINATE” WYOMING SCHOOL KIDS.

Lawmakers in Wyoming, urged on by energy industry lobbyists, have passed legislation requiring the introduction of curriculum in public schools that would teach students “appreciation and knowledge” of the state’s natural resources and “opportunities” for fossil fuel development.With energy making up a large chunk of Wyoming’s economy and labor force, it may seem like a good idea for the state to prepare future workers with requisite skills they can use as adults. But vocational training is far from the minds of the energy companies and fossil fuel lobbying organizations that have been allowed by Wyoming officials to single-handedly craft the new energy “appreciation” curriculum. One can imagine the outrage in some circles if the oil and gas companies in this scenario were replaced by solar power or other “green” energy industries.

(Casper Star Tribune)

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