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POPSdenialist deck of cards this is a hilarious and thorough examination of the tools people/organizations use to get out of having to explain why their position is right. these tools enable someone to simply create the appearance of a debate. useful, especially in a political season.
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POPSsymptoms of cocaine There are many myths and rumors that surround the properties and use of illegal and prescription drugs. Many people hold false perceptions on these topics, rooted in the spread of this misinformation. We have set out to clarify some of the actual facts about these drugs, just how addictive they really are, and some of the extreme treatments necessary to overcome these addictions. Below are the 10 most addictive drugs on the market today.
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POPSSin Stocks a Good Bet What to do when times are tough? Double up on life's vices, of course. That makes sellers of booze and tobacco happy.
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POPSNortheast States Praised for Allergy Policies The Asthma and Allergy Foundation has given top marks to Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Jersey for having policies that support kids with asthma and allergies in school. The group estimates that more than 5 million children in the U.S. have asthma and 2.2 million have a food allergy. States were graded based on their efforts to institute 18 policies, including those that protect students' access to their medications, promote the development of emergency protocols for dealing with asthma and anaphylaxis episodes and ban tobacco use in schools. Those states with the lowest rankings include South Dakota, Georgia, Wyoming and Oklahoma.
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POPSCigarette Tax Burnout In New York City and State, tobacco taxes have been raised so many times that the retail cost can exceed $9 a pack -- about double the national average. Few budget-savvy smokers in the Big Apple pay that tax. Patrick Fleenor, an expert on tobacco taxes at the Tax Foundation, estimates that there is "now a 75% gap between cigarette sales in the city and cigarette consumption." In other words, three out of four cigarettes are bought elsewhere or are contraband. In New Jersey, about 40% of the Marlboros and Virginia Slims that are lit up escape the $2.57-a-pack tax. In Washington State, evasion was so rampant that the legislature decided in 2005 to lower the 75% tax on cigars and other tobacco products as a way to raise revenue and help state retailers.
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POPSThis Makes Me Eel I will have to confess I wonder what it would taste like. Drinking seafood does seem to have a type of liquid symmetry.
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POPSAbsinthe Goes From Banned Drug to Legal Liquor Breaux's research — finally published this spring in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (.pdf) — and that Wired story have helped change absinthe's image from drug to drink. The US has been slowly peeling away its ban, and in March, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau approved the sale of absinthes that were "thujone free" (containing less than 10 parts per million).
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POPSWhat is a Windfall Profit? Maybe they have in mind profit margins as a percentage of sales. Yet by that standard Exxon's profits don't seem so large. Exxon's profit margin stood at 10% for 2007, which is hardly out of line with the oil and gas industry average of 8.3%, or the 8.9% for U.S. manufacturing (excluding the sputtering auto makers). If that's what constitutes windfall profits, most of corporate America would qualify.Chemicals had an average margin of 12.7%. Computers: 13.7%. Electronics and appliances: 14.5%. Pharmaceuticals (18.4%) and beverages and tobacco (19.1%) round out the Census Bureau's industry rankings. But if 10% is the new standard, the tech industry is going to have to rethink its growth arc. LG, the electronics company, saw its profits grow by 505% in 2007. General Electric profits by investing in the alternative energy technology that Obama says Congress should subsidize GE's profit margin in 2007 was 10.3%, about the same asExxon's.
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POPSOptic atrophy Causes - Congenital: e.g. Leber's optic atrophy - Acquired: blood supply changes in the eye or optic nerve (anterior ischemic optic neuropathy or posterior ischemic optic neuropathy), may be secondary to inflammation or swelling within the optic nerve (optic neuritis), may be a result of pressure against the optic nerve (such as from a tumour), or may be related to metabolic diseases (e.g., diabetes mellitus), trauma, glaucoma, or toxicity (caused by methanol, tobacco, or other poisons). It is also seen in vitamin B12 deficiency and Paget's disease of the bone.