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In the hours following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center (WTC), firefighters, police, and emergency medical technicians performed acts of enormous courage. Many of them died or were exposed to health-damaging substances while performing these heroic deeds. Unfortunately, while many bureaucrats were unctuously praising these heroes, irresponsible and deceptive post-attack actions by some officials paved the way for many more illnesses and deaths among workers and residents in lower Manhattan. "What happened here is at the level of Watergate," charges Dr. Marjorie Clarke, scientist-in-residence at Lehman College in New York and an expert on toxic emissions. read more

If you think the price of lifesaving drugs is outrageous, imagine what it must feel like for the poor in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The lack of affordable drugs is a life and death issue, and many people die every day as a result. Actually, poor countries could have ready access to cheap and affordable drugs to treat diseases like AIDS, tuberculosis and Malaria, which kill millions each year. But thanks to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Bush administration, and the powerful transnational pharmaceutical lobby, it is being severely restricted. At the bottom line, trade interests are considered more important than human health and welfare. read more