"Lobbyists from the fledgling commercial space industry are besieging Capitol Hill, hoping to persuade the government to hand out contracts to help put the U.S. military into orbit," reports John Lasker. The main "talking point" for the 50 to 75 lobbyists is "how the private sector can help the U.S.

"Black History Month 2006 ended on a jarring note," writes Bruce Dixon. "Andrew Young, a former member of Dr. King's inner circle ... who went on to serve three terms in Congress, a stint as UN ambassador and two terms as mayor of Atlanta ...

"This was a 10-year campaign to shape the science to fit the industry's agenda rather than shape the regulation to fit the science," Professor David Michaels said of industry attempts to avoid lower exposure limits for hexavalent chromium. In 2004, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) proposed reducing the exposure limit set in 1943 more than fifty-fold.