The EnergyStar-Approved Gas-Powered Alarm Clock

April 1st, 2010. By Hunter West

Remember that fridge you bought with the EnergyStar label? Oh, y’know it may have even cost a bit more than other models that lacked the label. But it’s worth it, right? You’re using less energy…saving on hydro, and being the good environmental steward that you are. 

Don’t bet on it. As revealed last week in The New York Times and in the contents of a government report issued March 26^th, the EnergyStar program can’t be trusted. Okay, well maybe now that the proverbial dung has hit the fan things will improve. But for anyone who has bought anything bearing the blue EnergyStar seal in recent years—well, you really don’t know what you’ve got. 

Because EnergyStar may not know what you have, either. 

EnergyStar is run by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in tandem with the federal Energy Department. A great idea, with lofty goals. As a consumer, you can be assured that by purchasing an appliance with the blue seal you are buying the very best, most efficient item in that class, on the market. 

Or are you? 

Audits are wonderful things. And when the Government Accountability Office (GAO) did a nine-month investigation, the auditors uncovered some interesting factoids: 

• A manufacturer can download the coveted EnergyStar logo from the government website as soon as they are registered as an EnergyStar partner. Many simply pasted the logo on items that had never been submitted for approval.  
• Many approvals are handled by an automated system. EnergyStar officials claim that final approvals are always vetted by a human being, and that the automated system is only used for screening. But this is allegedly not the case in all matters. 
• Many EnergyStar appliances actually use more power than others not carrying the EnergyStar logo. 

In what would make excellent fodder for a movie, the GAO set up four fictitious companies as part of its audit and submitted to EnergyStar various products seeking the EnergyStar seal of approval. Most products just existed on paper. However energy consumption data was issued as if the products were, indeed real. Figures submitted in some cases were 20 percent less than the best-performing appliances out there. That’s quite a feat. 

No red flag. They were approved. 

An air purifier was submitted for approval. Basically it was an electric space heater with a feather duster on top (see photo). 

Approved. 

And here’s the best one…a gasoline-powered alarm clock. An item I suppose for those who are into backwoods Read the rest of this entry »

Stephen King Settlement Nets more than AG Edwards…Huh?

April 1st, 2010. By AbiK

Not often that you see your boss’ name connected to a lawsuit. Then again, when you have a boss whose name—Stephen King—is the same as one the world’s most well-known and prolific writers, you’re bound to see the name in all sorts of places. The fact that this one was for a lawsuit settlement caught my eye—hell, wouldn’t it catch yours?

But, alas, wrong Stephen King. Nothing to forward over to John (also my boss), Jaime, Jason, Jonathan, Jane, Heidi, Gord, Lucy, Brenda, Hana, Michelle and Deb with the requisite “Holy Sh-t have you seen this?!?” subject line. Maybe next time.

But still worth a post.

Why?

Well, first the details. Yes—the lawsuit settlement does have to do with Stephen King, the writer.

Seems when his book, “Cell”, launched back in 2006, some folks got unsolicited text messages to their cell phones that advertised the book and  the Stephen King VIP Mobile Club.

And that was in violation of a federal statute.

Here’s what caught my eye though—straight from the settlement agreement notice:

YOU MAY BE ENTITLED TO A $175.00 CASH PAYMENT

Yes, $175.00.

Keep in mind, I read this on the heels of writing about the roughly $20-per-person AG Edwards settlement.

Just try to grapple with the juxtaposition here—you’ve got a text message snafu that’s worth (potentially) $175 per claimant and a loss of life savings (alleged by numerous AG Edwards claimants) that’s worth a McDonald’s family meal.

I’m not going to argue that receiving unsolicited text messages is right—but whenever I receive a spammy text message (unless of course it’s from that other Stephen King I work for) I don’t even read it and I hit “Delete” and when it asks me if I really want to delete the message, I hit “Damn right I do”.

However, had I lost my life savings, there’s a bit more than a 3-second keypad annoyance at stake.

So I’m hoping that the folks who were AG Edwards account holders during the AG Edwards class action class period (try to say that fast) of 2000-2005 were also those who were receiving unsolicited text messages from Stephen King in 2006. That way maybe they can afford a family meal somewhere that comes with printed menus and real flatware.

PS—if you haven’t submitted your Stephen King text settlement claim yet, you can do so at satterfieldtextsettlement.com.

Fox Business Takes On WellPoint…in case you missed it

March 31st, 2010. By AbiK

“Bad public relations move at a very bad time…” Check it out:

Will Generic Accutane Spawn more Lawsuits?

March 30th, 2010. By janem

Accutane may be buried but the generic form, isotretinoin, is alive and may be hurting. Roche Holding pulled Accutane off the market in June 2009, about 15 years too late for countless victims of Accutane injury. Since its approval in 1984, the drug had been linked to psychological changes, suicidal behavior, auto-immune disease, central nervous system problems, birth defects and most notably,  inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

But Roche didn’t discontinue manufacturing its blockbuster drug for safety reasons. Instead it had to do with legal and economic issues: generic competitors reduced the drug’s market share to less than 3 percent — Accutane’s departure leaves Claravis (Teva/Barr) with 54.8 percent of the isotretinoin market, followed by Amnesteem (Mylan/GenPharm) and Sotret (Ranbaxy), each with 22.8 percent. And Roche has paid out plenty in personal injury lawsuits. (To date, juries have awarded more than $33 million to patients who blame Accutane for their IBD.)

So the pharmaceutical industry spawns other generic forms of Accutane, called isotretinoin, priced from 10 percent to 65 percent (Sotret) less than Accutane. That may be good news for some lawyers–one attorney has filed more than 100 similar cases against makers of generic isotretinoin–but bad news for teens and young adults who (might) weigh the odds and decide they would rather develop IBD than suffer with acne and hey, the medication is now so much more affordable. Granted, acne can be debilitating emotionally. It can cause high levels of anxiety or depression during teen years, reason enough to disregard more dangerous side effects such as IBD.

The dermatology jury isn’t out on isotretinoin, yet. One dermatologist says that pharmacists mistakenly believe all isotretinoin products are therapeutically equivalent and they prescribe the generic brand because their patients wanted a cheaper product. “Dermatologists were essentially forced by patients to abandon [Accutane],” says Dr. Taub, who believes that “bioavailability from patient to patient differs so much more with generic isotretinoin than with Accutane.” Dermatologist Ty Owen Hanson says Claravis didn’t seem to work for his patients. “It was almost like patients were taking a placebo.”

Another dermatologist, Dr Webester, says Accutane and its generics possess identical pharmacokinetic curves. Dr. Feldman says he sees no difference between Accutane and its generics and doesn’t know which generics his patients get. Generally dermatologists stopped prescribing Accutane when the Roche reps stopped coming by with free samples, about the same time the generic isotretinoin debuted. More than two decades after Accutane’s introduction, it still cost up to $1,200 monthly, versus $600 to $900 for generics.

So the end of  Roche’s blockbuster drug paves the way for other drug companies to cash  in.  But will generic manufacturers remain in the marketplace if they begin to get slapped with personal injury lawsuits? After all, there’s only one way to spell isotretinoin…

James Bond Week at Totally Tortelicious

March 29th, 2010. By LucyC

Welcome to Totally Tortelicious—a review of some of the more bizarre legal stories making news. Goodness knows there’s no shortage of them.  

Master of a Walther PPK 7.65mm, but not a Twitter Handle…Apparently MI5—the infamous British spy agency and would-be employer of James Bond—is firing its Bond-generation agents for failure to get up to speed with social networking technology. 

So, part of the job description for international spies and hit men could read “In addition to being able to infiltrate hostile government infrastructure, carry out black ops and assassinate without supervision, the right candidate will have the ability to build their own Facebook group, utilize Twitter and develop appropriate MySpace content.” Seriously? 

I find this utterly depressing. 

Anyway… back to the story… 

Apparently one Jonathan Evans, the director-general of MI5, said “he’s concerned the agency is being held back by older agents (age discrimination anyone?) who don’t understand the world of computer technology. ” To quote a report on UPI, “MI5 has about 3,500 agents and plans to have 4,100 by next year. Many of the new agents are in their 20s and 30s.” 

Ah, but can this lot make a half decent martini? 

Speaking of James Bond… A UK plumber who apparently had had enough with traffic congestion and lack of road manners (and who apparently had a tad bit of a Bond fascination), managed to create an anti-tailgating flame-throwing device for his scooter. The device spewed flames at the flick of a switch. OK—who hasn’t had fantasies about installing something like this on their car or motorbike? Be honest…

Needless to say it all ended badly, with Mr. Furze, the developer of the flame thrower—that’s him at right (photo:REX) —being arrested. Well, it Read the rest of this entry »