5 players behind the Big Money attacks in NC Supreme Court elections

Chris Kromm Facing South
Big money groups like Justice for All NC could reshape how justice is carried out in North Carolina. This year, seven top state judicial seats are up for election, including four on the seven-member NC Supreme Court, which is now ruled by a narrow 4-3 conservative majority.

Transit Irony: The More You Rely on It, the More They Cut

Samantha Winslow Labor Notes
In 2011 the transit authority cut its budget by 15 percent, eliminating 29 bus routes. It laid off 180 workers and reduced hours for more. The cuts continued the following year, and the region lost tens of thousands of bus riders. Some switched to cars, if they had one, or carpooling. Others walk now.

Three Interesting NLRB Decisions

Nation Labor Relations Board
In three recent cases the National Labor Relations Board ordered the re-opening of a facility it said was closed to avoid negotiating with a union; ordered a trucking company to re-hire workers and bargain with their union; and ordered the reinstatement of three non-union packing house workers who struck to protest working conditions.

There’s No Humane Way to Carry Out the Death Penalty

Eugene Robinson The Washington Post
There’s no reason to believe lethal injection is a more humane way to end a life than electrocution, poison gas, hanging, firing squad or even guillotine. Of course, we’ll never know. We can tell ourselves any story we want about how quickly and painlessly death arrived, and the one person who could prove us wrong will never speak again.

Why It’s So Easy to Believe Our Food Is Toxic

Beth Skwarecki PLOS One
When you hear somebody trying to scare you about food, ask what they’re selling. If you distrust Big Ag and Big Pharma, you won’t find any better treatment from Big Juice

Meet Emily: Tech Demo

Yes, a TECH demo. Emily IS the demo. Until the 1:30 mark, when the video reverts back to the source (the real actress), her entire face is being simulated by the technology.

Thomas Piketty's 'Capital' in 3 Minutes

BBC's Policy Editor Chris Cook tells you everything you need to know about Thomas Piketty's landmark book on inequality: Capital in the twenty-first century.

Documentary: Unlocking the Cage

Chris Hegedus' and D.A. Pennebaker's films include Don't Look Back with Bob Dylan, The War Room chronicling Clinton’s 1992 Presidential campaign, and Startup.com shot during the Internet’s first boom and bust. These are stories about passionate people who took risks that changed history. They believe their new film, Unlocking the Cage, is just such a story. For the past two years they have been following an animal rights lawyer, Steve Wise, who is attempting to break down the legal wall that separates animals from humans. Help crowd-source this film project here.