‘Deadlier than terrorism’ – the right’s fatal obsession with red tape

From deaths caused by the financial crash to unsafe buildings such as Grenfell Tower, an ideological commitment to deregulation costs lives. So how did the idea that we are being ‘strangled’ by petty rules become so pervasive?

….the vast majority of deaths caused by deregulation are silent and stealthy. But so, contrarily, are the life-saving virtues of good regulation: when it succeeds, nothing obvious or mediagenic happens; it’s just that fewer people die, or get sick, or become permanently disabled, which doesn’t tend to make the headlines. And so it is easier to forget that an uncompromising hatred of red tape in all its forms is one of the most dangerous ideas in modern western civilization. read more »

Linde to disgorge $11.2m in corrupt Spectra Gases lawsuit

A complicated legal case involving corrupt payments by a previous subsidiary of Linde North America Inc. has officially been closed by the US Department of Justice (DOJ).

In the case, Linde will have to disgorge a total a $11.2m – over half of which represents the benefits received by Spectra Gases, Inc. from improperly obtained sales of boron gas from November 2006 through December 2009. read more »

CFTC commissioner to depart amid ‘intolerable’ situation

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission looks poised to operate under a single appointee unless new commissioners are confirmed.

The US derivatives markets regulator has been operating with just two commissioners for several months now, three less than a full complement.

On Tuesday one of the pair, Sharon Bowen, announced her exit, explaining the short-handed situation had become “intolerable”. 

“Having just two commissioners makes routine business difficult, but makes important policy decisions almost impossible,” she said. “Without a full complement of commissioners to consider the far-reaching implications of our decisions, we are frozen in place while the markets we regulate are moving faster every day.” read more »

Missouri attorney general sues opioid manufacturers

Missouri on Wednesday became the third U.S. state to accuse major drug manufacturers of fraudulently misrepresenting the risks of opioid painkillers now at the center of a national addiction epidemic.

Similar lawsuits have been filed by local governments, including two California counties; the cities of Chicago and Dayton, Ohio; three Tennessee district attorneys; and nine New York counties. read more »

Uber CEO Kalanick Relinquishes Power After Investor Mutiny

Travis Kalanick has resigned from his job leading Uber Technologies Inc., giving up on his effort to hold onto power as a torrent of self-inflicted scandals enveloped him and the global ride-hailing leviathan he co-founded. read more »