News and Issues
Scientific American: How Reliable Are the Memories of Sexual Assault Victims? The Expert Testimony Excluded from the Kavanaugh Hearing
Editorial note: If Jim Hopper had been permitted to provide his expert testimony at the September 27, 2018 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Judge Kavanaugh’s confirmation, these would have been his remarks: "In short, what I’m talking about here today are realities, not theories or hypotheses—realities known all too well by our nation’s defenders and its millions of sexual assault survivors. The science helps us understand why people have incomplete and fragmentary memories, including the brain structures and processes involved, while revealing complexities we would not otherwise discover. And science gives us conceptual tools—mental spotlights, if you will—that help us to see reality more fully and clearly." more »
Sexual Harassment, Senate Judiciary Committee History, Links to Member's Biographies and Transcripts From Previous Hearings
"Call the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline: Call 800.656.HOPE (4673) to be connected with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area. When you call, you’ll be routed to a local RAINN affiliate organization based on the first six digits of your phone number. Cell phone callers have the option to enter the ZIP code of their current location to more accurately locate the nearest sexual assault service provider." more »
Ah, Well, Another Good Health Dream Shattered: Daily Low-dose Aspirin in Healthy Older Adults Didn’t Prolong Life or Help Prevent Heart Disease, Physical Disability, Dementia, or Stroke
Most participants were aged 70 and older (65 and older for African-American and Hispanic individuals). None had dementia, a physical disability, or a previous heart attack or stroke at the start of the study. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either 100mg of aspirin per day or an inactive placebo pill that looked similar. Health outcomes were followed for an average of about 4.7 years. Initial findings were published online on September 16, 2018 in three papers in the New England Journal of Medicine. more »
FactCheck.org Highlights Trump’s Fuzzy Medicare Math, "Medicare will be $700 billion stronger over the next decade thanks to our growth." South Dakota, September 7, 2018
President Donald Trump on several occasions has taken credit for making Medicare “stronger.” “Medicare will be $700 billion stronger over the next decade thanks to our growth.” Medicare’s finances have worsened since he took office, and economic growth is not expected to help the program as much as he claims: The latest Medicare trustees report says the Medicare Part A trust fund, which covers payments to hospitals, will run out of money by 2026, three years earlier than projected just last year. That’s partly because the tax cut law that Trump signed last year will reduce Medicare revenues and increase expenses. more »
