A linguistic success for Occupy Wall Street
Since the beginning of the Occupy Wall Street protest, published mentions of the term “income inequality” have increased more than fivefold. There were 500 instances of the term last week, according to a survey of print articles, Web stories, and broadcast transcripts, compared with just 91 the week before the protests began.
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The cost of Guantánamo Bay
Taxpayers spend $800,000 a year to house each prisoner at Guantánamo Bay—30 times what it costs to keep a prisoner on U.S. soil.
The Miami Herald
Oklahoma's seismic scares
Oklahoma had an average of about six small earthquakes a year, until 2009, when there were 50. Last year, there were 1,047, and on Nov. 5, the state was rocked by a magnitude 5.6 quake. Residents are now asking whether Oklahoma’s 185,000 drilling wells—particularly those used in fracking—are contributing to the burst of seismic activity.
Los Angeles Times
For rent: St. James Palace and Leeds Castle
With the British government cutting back on financial support to the royal family, the royals are renting out portions of St. James Palace and Leeds Castle in Kent to corporations for next summer’s Olympic Games in London. Prices start at $45,000 a day.
London Daily Mail
A new drug habit among Americans?
Americans last year filled 254 million prescriptions for pain-killing opioid drugs such as OxyContin and Percocet—enough to medicate every American adult around the clock for a month.
Fortune
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Will insurance cover damage in Boston?, and morefeature Companies that suffered property damage or lost income due to the Boston bombings may not get insurance payouts.
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A meagre session for Congress, and more
feature Congress has sent only 54 bills to President Obama so far this year, including 14 to rename post offices.
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The cost of Occupy Wall Street, and more
feature The movement has cost municipalities at least $13 million in police overtime and other services.
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The oil lobby's shared profession, and more
feature Three out of four lobbyists who represent oil and gas companies previously worked for the federal government.
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Big Oil's big subsidies, and more
feature Oil production is among the most heavily subsidized businesses. BP, for example, was getting a tax deduction of $225,000 a day for renting the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig.
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Landfills receive 30% less trash, and more
feature Due to the sputtering economy, landfills are getting up to 30 percent less trash.
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A “pole tax” for the adult-entertainment business?, and more
feature With the adult-entertainment business one of the few bright spots in the economy, states and municipalities are thinking of raising taxes on dirty magazines, sex toys, and strip clubs.