by Phillip Smith DRUG WAR CHRONICLE: Attorney General Eric Holder announced Monday that the Justice Department will soon release new, more expansive criteria for recommending federal prisoner clemency applications for President Obama to review. That means Obama, who has so far freed a paltry 10 prisoners early in his first six years could free “hundred, […]

NEW YORK TIMES: The mayor’s plan to ban horse-drawn carriages, an obscure proposal until [Mayor Bill] de Blasio embraced it in last year’s mayoral race, has erupted into a cause célèbre, landing on the cover of The New Yorker and dominating local headlines, even as Mr. de Blasio is trying to refocus his administration on […]

USA TODAY / AP: Philadelphia’s two largest newspapers will be sold at an ascending-bid auction open only to insiders, a Delaware judge ruled Friday. The decision is a victory for majority owner George Norcross in his fight for control of The Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News. Norcross, who favors “hyper-local” coverage, holds a 52% […]

USA TODAY: The United States and other nations in the Group of Seven say they have agreed to “move swiftly” to impose additional economic sanctions on Russia in response to its actions in Ukraine. In a joint statement released Friday night by the White House, the G-7 nations say they will act urgently to intensify […]

FINANCIAL TIMES: …“I spoke to the Russian president this morning and made clear again that … Ukraine has taken a whole series of steps to implement the Geneva accord but on the other side I see no Russian backing for the accord,” [German Chancellor Angela] Merkel said. Until now, Ms Merkel had been signaling that […]

How would bike sharing be funded? Beyond the initial investment, organization and maintenance costs could be substantial. Grants have dried up for the most part, as have donations by businesses.

HUFFINGTON POST: Former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens believes marijuana should be legalized by the federal government, predicting that the public will soon decide prohibiting the substance is “not worth the cost.” In a Thursday interview with NPR’s Scott Simon, the retired justice was asked if he believes the drug should be legal at […]

NEW YORK TIMES: … [President] Obama had hoped to use his visit here to announce an agreement under which Japan would open its markets in rice, beef, poultry and pork, a critical step toward the trade pact. But Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was not able to overcome entrenched resistance from Japan’s farmers in time for […]

NEWSMAX: The Food and Drug Administration is warning that injections of corticosteroids into the spine’s epidural space — commonly done to treat back or neck pain — can result in loss of vision, stroke, paralysis, and death. According to the Los Angeles Times, the FDA warning is part of an agency effort to improve the […]

NEWSMAX: …Directors for the exchange, Cover Oregon, are scheduled to meet Friday to consider a recommendation that the state join the federal exchange, HealthCare.gov. Cover Oregon’s website never recovered from its technology woes, forcing tens of thousands of Oregon residents to apply for health plans using paper applications. Once viewed as a trailblazer for the […]

USA TODAY: …In the first formal step toward reinstating net neutrality, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler presented a draft of the revised rules to his fellow commissioners Thursday. The rules would prevent Internet service providers from blocking or discriminating against lawful content. But the proposal allows fast lanes to consumers’ homes, the so-called “last mile,” that […]

USA TODAY: People taking statins to reduce cholesterol may feel a false sense of security and overindulge in unhealthy foods, according to a new study… Statin users’ caloric intake increased by 9.6 % in 2009-2010 compared with those on statins in 1999-2000, according to a UCLA led study published on the JAMA Internal Medicine site. […]