A single genetic error is blamed for crippling disorders, such as sickle-cell anemia, Huntington's disease and muscular dystrophy. Scientists long ago identified the defective genes responsible for each of these calamities, but have been unable to capitalize on that knowledge.
That may soon change with the discovery of a new method to edit the genetic code. At its basic level, the cutting-edge tool potentially will allow doctors and scientists to edit out unwanted disease-causing genes. Imagine new generations of babies born without these genetic defects.
Although it is an oversimplification, the new technology is like using the "delete" button on your computer keyboard to remove a word. In this case, the gene is removed as easily as correcting a typographical error. It opens up a new frontier for making some diseases extinct in the future.
The pioneering discovery was publicly unveiled about four years ago when scientists realized a protein could be deployed to facilitate gene editing. The protein acts as a pair of scissors, snipping out pieces of viruses or faulty DNA. In addition, it enables the cell to knit itself back together.
The scientific name for the gene editing process is CRISPR-Cas9. CRISPR is an acronym for "clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats,"a description of repeating sequences of genomes. Cas9 is the protein that enables the gene editing.
Without diving too deeply into the science, envision a cellular scalpel that is guided through a complex web of genomes until it locates the precise flawed gene. Scientists believe this technology will usher in a new era in biology research, medicine and biotechnology.
Although other gene editing procedures exist, researchers have found that CRISPR-Cas9 is simpler, faster, cheaper and more accurate. That is part of the technology's allure, which scientists believe may make it possible to address complex maladies, such as cancer, which involve hundreds of genes.
Using the science, doctors could potentially eliminate or add genes in human embryos, sperm or egg cells to correct a mutation that otherwise would promote the development of a debilitating disease leading to a lifetime of suffering and expensive medical treatment.
The heritable gene alterations made in humans would be passed on to future generations. It is plausible to believe that the technology could transform evolution itself as heritable genes for certain diseases are forever eliminated from a family's lineage.
Dr. George Church, a professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School, urges prudence to avoid unintended consequences. "If a new technology is an improvement over previous practice, then we cautiously implement it for the clearest needs first, watching for opportunities to make it even safer," he wrote in The Wall Street Journal.
The Harvard educator suggests beginning with a focus on repairing the most deadly, incurable genetic diseases in newborns. If these trials yield safe, effective results, then Dr. Church advocates moving to other undesirable heritable traits.
However, the prospect of gene-editing is not without ethical concerns, especially because of its intended use on embryos. It conjures up images of designer children, programmed with genes for intelligence, hair color, stature and other desirable characteristics.
That kind of genetic tampering raises eyebrows in the scientific community. Already, Chinese scientists have successfully genetically modified monkeys in the embryonic stage. Another Chinese team pushed the limits further, experimenting with editing genes in human embryos.
However, there are other non-human applications for the genetic technique. For example, it could be used to alter genes in plants to guard against fungus or to develop drought-resistant crops. Even this function, however, has sparked debate about the use of technology to genetically alter foods.
No doubt there needs to be more study about gene editing applications. But the implications for a future free of human disease, punishing disorders and misery is too encouraging to hamstring the progress of trials. Not to forget, the impact on medical expenses for treating the diseases.
The science will remain unproven until carefully monitored, ethical human experiments are green-lighted. America should be at the forefront of this new frontier, leading instead of standing on the sidelines and complaining about the nefarious intentions of others.
Monday, April 25, 2016
Monday, April 18, 2016
Tax Thieves: The Biggest Scam in U.S. History
By any measure, it will be the biggest heist in American history. An estimated $21 billion will be hauled in this year by identity thieves using fake tax returns to hijack refunds. Since 2011, these crooks have siphoned off more than $24 billion from the U.S. Treasury.
These are no ordinary mom-and-pop criminals. Often the crimes are committed by large criminal enterprises that are well organized. The masterminds behind the schemes employ sophisticated means to scoop up data from sources ranging from hospitals to nursing homes and banks.
The swindlers pilfer Social Security numbers, drivers license information, addresses and other data. The criminals then use the material to file forged tax refunds, often with state revenue agencies as well as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
The bandits file the fraudulent returns early in the tax season, betting they will receive the refunds before the unwary victims submit their tax forms. With electronic filing, it is even easier for thugs to register a return and receive a refund via direct deposit.
The hijackers use bogus wages and other phony information that will result in a refund. Unfortunately, the IRS does not match electronically submitted tax forms with a taxpayers past returns until months after the refund check has been dispatched.
When the real taxpayer files his return, the IRS turns the tables on the victim. The agency will not issue an immediate refund as it did for the embezzler. The IRS notifies the victim that it has already distributed a refund and demands proof of identity from the authentic taxpayer.
In a 2013 report, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration found the IRS took an average of 312 days to resolve the matter of a counterfeit refund. That year the inspector general projected the IRS issued 1.1 million refunds to thieves using stolen data.
The problem is growing worse, despite IRS assurances it would crackdown on tax refund theft. In fact, tax cheats utilized the inept agency's own taxpayer system to steal the data of 724,000 citizens between January 2014 and May 2015. A red-faced IRS eventually shuttered the loophole.
There are other signs that the IRS is incapable of policing the issue. For example, Treasury's inspector general uncovered another whooper. In 2011, the agency sent $3.3 million in tax refunds from 2,137 bogus returns to a single address in Lansing, Michigan.
Shouldn't that have set off alarm bells? Apparently, it didn't because that same year the bungling agency transmitted $1.1 million to one address in Belle Glade, Florida. The refunds came from 741 returns submitted to the feds. Another address in Tampa, Florida, was the recipient of $1.7 million.
Before the current tax season, the IRS published a list of the "dirty dozen" scams that snag victims, but dodged responsibility. "Though the agency is making progress on this front, taxpayers still need to be extremely careful and do everything to avoid being victimized," the agency said.
Spoken like a true Washington bureaucrat. "Don't blame the IRS because it's doing all it can. It's stupid Americans who are the problem." You can almost hear the cascading water as Pontus Pilate washes his hands.
For its part, the IRS proudly points to a Security Summit Initiative, which it hosted in 2015 with states and representatives of the tax industry. The goal was to enhance coordination between states, the IRS and tax preparers to create a more secure system for taxpayers.
It must not be working too well. The IRS is responsible for that estimate of $21 billion in tax refund fraud in 2016. Two years ago the figure was $6.2 billion. Does that sound like progress?
Some guffaw when Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz promises to abolish the IRS. "What would happen with tax fraud?" the doubters shriek with disbelief. Well, apparently it couldn't get much worse.
Tax fraud costs taxpayers double. Their taxes pay for the inept IRS. Then taxpayers cover the loses of the U.S. Treasury when it sends out spurious refunds. The insanity must stop. A good first step would be to fire the IRS commissioner and every executive in the agency.
These are no ordinary mom-and-pop criminals. Often the crimes are committed by large criminal enterprises that are well organized. The masterminds behind the schemes employ sophisticated means to scoop up data from sources ranging from hospitals to nursing homes and banks.
The swindlers pilfer Social Security numbers, drivers license information, addresses and other data. The criminals then use the material to file forged tax refunds, often with state revenue agencies as well as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
The bandits file the fraudulent returns early in the tax season, betting they will receive the refunds before the unwary victims submit their tax forms. With electronic filing, it is even easier for thugs to register a return and receive a refund via direct deposit.
The hijackers use bogus wages and other phony information that will result in a refund. Unfortunately, the IRS does not match electronically submitted tax forms with a taxpayers past returns until months after the refund check has been dispatched.
When the real taxpayer files his return, the IRS turns the tables on the victim. The agency will not issue an immediate refund as it did for the embezzler. The IRS notifies the victim that it has already distributed a refund and demands proof of identity from the authentic taxpayer.
In a 2013 report, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration found the IRS took an average of 312 days to resolve the matter of a counterfeit refund. That year the inspector general projected the IRS issued 1.1 million refunds to thieves using stolen data.
The problem is growing worse, despite IRS assurances it would crackdown on tax refund theft. In fact, tax cheats utilized the inept agency's own taxpayer system to steal the data of 724,000 citizens between January 2014 and May 2015. A red-faced IRS eventually shuttered the loophole.
There are other signs that the IRS is incapable of policing the issue. For example, Treasury's inspector general uncovered another whooper. In 2011, the agency sent $3.3 million in tax refunds from 2,137 bogus returns to a single address in Lansing, Michigan.
Shouldn't that have set off alarm bells? Apparently, it didn't because that same year the bungling agency transmitted $1.1 million to one address in Belle Glade, Florida. The refunds came from 741 returns submitted to the feds. Another address in Tampa, Florida, was the recipient of $1.7 million.
Before the current tax season, the IRS published a list of the "dirty dozen" scams that snag victims, but dodged responsibility. "Though the agency is making progress on this front, taxpayers still need to be extremely careful and do everything to avoid being victimized," the agency said.
Spoken like a true Washington bureaucrat. "Don't blame the IRS because it's doing all it can. It's stupid Americans who are the problem." You can almost hear the cascading water as Pontus Pilate washes his hands.
For its part, the IRS proudly points to a Security Summit Initiative, which it hosted in 2015 with states and representatives of the tax industry. The goal was to enhance coordination between states, the IRS and tax preparers to create a more secure system for taxpayers.
It must not be working too well. The IRS is responsible for that estimate of $21 billion in tax refund fraud in 2016. Two years ago the figure was $6.2 billion. Does that sound like progress?
Some guffaw when Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz promises to abolish the IRS. "What would happen with tax fraud?" the doubters shriek with disbelief. Well, apparently it couldn't get much worse.
Tax fraud costs taxpayers double. Their taxes pay for the inept IRS. Then taxpayers cover the loses of the U.S. Treasury when it sends out spurious refunds. The insanity must stop. A good first step would be to fire the IRS commissioner and every executive in the agency.
Monday, April 11, 2016
New Normal: Americans' Losing Jobs and Wages
Each month when the nation's unemployment numbers are released the Obama Administration's mouthpieces do verbal back flips to celebrate. They brag that the figures are proof of sustained economic recovery, robust job growth and unparalleled prosperity.
American workers are not buying the hype. Pew Research finds that a majority (56%) of Americans say their family's income is falling behind the cost of living. More than a third (37%) believe their household income is barely staying even with inflation. Workers are more apprehensive than ever.
There is a disconnect because the president and his minions are fixated on a number that has lost all meaning for ordinary Americans. The unemployment rate, now at 5.0 percent, has almost no relation to the health of the economy because it has been watered down by bureaucratic definitions.
The number does not include people unemployed for 27 weeks or more. It excludes those who are not in the labor force, but have looked for a job in the last 12 months. It does not count so-called discouraged workers who are not longer seeking jobs. The real unemployment is above 9 percent.
This bureaucratic tinkering hasn't fooled Americans. The economic recovery remains a myth for many employees. Most workers know they are hanging on by a thread to their jobs. Even those with secure job futures, have experienced wage stagnation or worse.
This bureaucratic tinkering hasn't fooled Americans. The economic recovery remains a myth for many employees. Most workers know they are hanging on by a thread to their jobs. Even those with secure job futures, have experienced wage stagnation or worse.
The median household income in 2009 when President Obama took office was $55,415. At the end of 2015, it was $56,058. That's a gain of of $643 in seven years. That won't even pay for the rate increases of the last three years that consumers experienced under Obamacare health coverage.
The Pew Research Center has analyzed the real wages of U.S. workers, which means earnings after adjusting for inflation. After poring over five decades worth of wage data, the research concluded that real wages have been trending downward for years.
Since 2000, wage data from the Labor Department adjusted for inflation reveals that workers' pay has fallen 3.7 percent in real terms. There are many theories being bandied about to explain the phenomenon, but most fall short of identifying the intrinsic cause.
Economists fail to account for the abrupt change in the nature of American jobs. It is hardly news that the country has evolved from a manufacturing economy to a service economy. However, there has been little accounting for the sheer numbers of lost jobs and the wage trade-offs of the new economy.
In 1979, there were 19,553,000 manufacturing jobs in America. Today the number is 12,291,000 and tumbling each month. Manufacturing shredded another 29,000 jobs in March. In the last 36 years, 7,262,000 American manufacturing jobs have disappeared. Gone. Forever.
The figures for March job growth underscore the depressed wage issue. There was a gain of 215,000 in payrolls for the month, a figure the ill-informed hailed as a sign of booming job expansion. Nonsense. Most of the hiring was in retail stores, fast-food restaurants and bars.
That means the only payrolls expanding are those for jobs that offer wages below the national average. For example, the current average hourly pay for a manufacturing job is $25.69, according to the Labor Department. Retail and food service jobs average $17.77 and $13.73, respectively.
If you dive below the headline numbers, you also discover the number of Americans working part time for economic reasons rose 135,000 in March. These workers want full-time employment but cannot find it. It means there are more than six million people mired in financial quicksand.
Unfortunately, this has become the new economy ushered in by President Barrack Obama, whose policies have pressured businesses to reduce hours, flatten payrolls and outsource jobs. The next president will face the arduous task of reversing eight years of economic paralysis and wage decay.
The Pew Research Center has analyzed the real wages of U.S. workers, which means earnings after adjusting for inflation. After poring over five decades worth of wage data, the research concluded that real wages have been trending downward for years.
Since 2000, wage data from the Labor Department adjusted for inflation reveals that workers' pay has fallen 3.7 percent in real terms. There are many theories being bandied about to explain the phenomenon, but most fall short of identifying the intrinsic cause.
Economists fail to account for the abrupt change in the nature of American jobs. It is hardly news that the country has evolved from a manufacturing economy to a service economy. However, there has been little accounting for the sheer numbers of lost jobs and the wage trade-offs of the new economy.
In 1979, there were 19,553,000 manufacturing jobs in America. Today the number is 12,291,000 and tumbling each month. Manufacturing shredded another 29,000 jobs in March. In the last 36 years, 7,262,000 American manufacturing jobs have disappeared. Gone. Forever.
The figures for March job growth underscore the depressed wage issue. There was a gain of 215,000 in payrolls for the month, a figure the ill-informed hailed as a sign of booming job expansion. Nonsense. Most of the hiring was in retail stores, fast-food restaurants and bars.
That means the only payrolls expanding are those for jobs that offer wages below the national average. For example, the current average hourly pay for a manufacturing job is $25.69, according to the Labor Department. Retail and food service jobs average $17.77 and $13.73, respectively.
If you dive below the headline numbers, you also discover the number of Americans working part time for economic reasons rose 135,000 in March. These workers want full-time employment but cannot find it. It means there are more than six million people mired in financial quicksand.
Unfortunately, this has become the new economy ushered in by President Barrack Obama, whose policies have pressured businesses to reduce hours, flatten payrolls and outsource jobs. The next president will face the arduous task of reversing eight years of economic paralysis and wage decay.
Monday, April 4, 2016
Will Hillary Clinton Be Indicted?
Republicans fantasize about a throng of FBI agents swooping into Hillary Clinton's campaign headquarters and hauling her off in handcuffs. They daydream about the Democratic presidential front-runner decked out in an orange jumpsuit lolling in a prison exercise yard.
Their swooning has taken social media by storm. Thousands of posts on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and other sites feature unflattering images of Ms. Clinton in prison garb, behind bars or on trial. Judging from the content, the former First Lady's critics have no doubt about her guilt.
However, the decision on her legal future rests primarily with the FBI. There is a cadre of 147 FBI agents investigating Ms. Clinton's use of a private email server to receive and transmit classified materials. That information comes from The Washington Post, a liberal iconic newspaper.
The crux of the investigation revolves around whether Ms. Clinton or her aides knowingly communicated government secrets over a non-secure email system while she served as Secretary of State. Legal experts point out it does not matter if the emails were marked classified or not.
Every government official, including cabinet level executives, are obligated to recognize sensitive material and protect against its release to unauthorized individuals or organizations. No one gets a "Get Out Of Jail" card if the material does not carry the "Classified" stamp.
The episode has raised questions about Ms. Clinton's judgment. But Clinton surrogates have trotted out their standard defense of "everyone else does it," as if that justifies illegal behavior. Her own public utterances about the FBI inquiry have been carefully parsed and not very forthcoming.
However, none of this matters to the Clinton Campaign. They swear that voters have "largely dismissed" the email issue. That is a gratuitous opinion. A majority of Democratic primary voters (56%) view her as untrustworthy. Her unfavorable ratings are among the highest of all candidates.
Despite news leaks about mounting evidence against Ms. Clinton, the email scandal likely will not end with an indictment. No clear thinking person actually believes the Obama Administration will allow any Democrat to suffer the indignation of a criminal prosecution based on its history.
Investigations of the Obama Administration and its top officials suffer early deaths. Benghazi went nowhere. The IRS scandal evaporated. The Veterans Affairs dust up has been buried. Meanwhile, the sycophant news media looks the other way and chastises Republicans for chasing ghosts.
Some guardians of justice point to the stubborn independence of FBI Director James Comey as reason to expect felony charges. The six-foot-eight-inch tall lawman served as deputy attorney general under President George W. Bush, burnishing his credentials as even-handed.
However, Comey serves at the pleasure of the president. What if Comey suddenly steps down under pressure? Sure there would be howls of protest, but so what? This is an administration that has shown it has no shame when it comes jettisoning those who disagree with its political objectives.
Even if Comey recommends a criminal charge, Attorney General Loretta Lynch has the final word on prosecution. There is no doubt Ms. Lynch will carry out the president's wishes in this matter. Her office will either dismiss the complaint or foot-drag past the election before dropping the case.
If the president did not plan to run interference for Mrs. Clinton, he would have encouraged his trusted Vice President Joe Biden to enter the presidential race long ago. Only the naive would hold to the notion that Mrs. Clinton has not obtained assurances from Mr. Obama about the outcome.
The betting here is that the FBI will find no criminal wrongdoing, but will issue a strongly worded reprimand for her use of a private server to conduct classified government business. A contrite Mrs. Clinton will offer a half-hearted apology and the incident will be off limits during the campaign.
Truth has never been an admired virtue of Mrs. Clinton or her husband. They prevaricate, deconstruct and evade. Every moral or legal infraction ends the same. The Clintons are political Houdini's who always escape responsibility for their misdeeds.
Their swooning has taken social media by storm. Thousands of posts on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and other sites feature unflattering images of Ms. Clinton in prison garb, behind bars or on trial. Judging from the content, the former First Lady's critics have no doubt about her guilt.
However, the decision on her legal future rests primarily with the FBI. There is a cadre of 147 FBI agents investigating Ms. Clinton's use of a private email server to receive and transmit classified materials. That information comes from The Washington Post, a liberal iconic newspaper.
The crux of the investigation revolves around whether Ms. Clinton or her aides knowingly communicated government secrets over a non-secure email system while she served as Secretary of State. Legal experts point out it does not matter if the emails were marked classified or not.
Every government official, including cabinet level executives, are obligated to recognize sensitive material and protect against its release to unauthorized individuals or organizations. No one gets a "Get Out Of Jail" card if the material does not carry the "Classified" stamp.
The episode has raised questions about Ms. Clinton's judgment. But Clinton surrogates have trotted out their standard defense of "everyone else does it," as if that justifies illegal behavior. Her own public utterances about the FBI inquiry have been carefully parsed and not very forthcoming.
However, none of this matters to the Clinton Campaign. They swear that voters have "largely dismissed" the email issue. That is a gratuitous opinion. A majority of Democratic primary voters (56%) view her as untrustworthy. Her unfavorable ratings are among the highest of all candidates.
Despite news leaks about mounting evidence against Ms. Clinton, the email scandal likely will not end with an indictment. No clear thinking person actually believes the Obama Administration will allow any Democrat to suffer the indignation of a criminal prosecution based on its history.
Investigations of the Obama Administration and its top officials suffer early deaths. Benghazi went nowhere. The IRS scandal evaporated. The Veterans Affairs dust up has been buried. Meanwhile, the sycophant news media looks the other way and chastises Republicans for chasing ghosts.
Some guardians of justice point to the stubborn independence of FBI Director James Comey as reason to expect felony charges. The six-foot-eight-inch tall lawman served as deputy attorney general under President George W. Bush, burnishing his credentials as even-handed.
However, Comey serves at the pleasure of the president. What if Comey suddenly steps down under pressure? Sure there would be howls of protest, but so what? This is an administration that has shown it has no shame when it comes jettisoning those who disagree with its political objectives.
Even if Comey recommends a criminal charge, Attorney General Loretta Lynch has the final word on prosecution. There is no doubt Ms. Lynch will carry out the president's wishes in this matter. Her office will either dismiss the complaint or foot-drag past the election before dropping the case.
If the president did not plan to run interference for Mrs. Clinton, he would have encouraged his trusted Vice President Joe Biden to enter the presidential race long ago. Only the naive would hold to the notion that Mrs. Clinton has not obtained assurances from Mr. Obama about the outcome.
The betting here is that the FBI will find no criminal wrongdoing, but will issue a strongly worded reprimand for her use of a private server to conduct classified government business. A contrite Mrs. Clinton will offer a half-hearted apology and the incident will be off limits during the campaign.
Truth has never been an admired virtue of Mrs. Clinton or her husband. They prevaricate, deconstruct and evade. Every moral or legal infraction ends the same. The Clintons are political Houdini's who always escape responsibility for their misdeeds.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)