In New York many firefighters did not receive protective gear during
the first two weeks of the clean-up, which involved prolonged exposure
to asbestos and the handling of thousands of body parts. 40 percent of
the workers who cleaned up Ground Zero had no health insurance, and 75
percent have reported ongoing respiratory difficulties. By M.C. Perez,
from the US Socialist Appeal
The crisis of unemployment and poverty in America continues to worsen. Despite a
nominal increase in jobs in recent weeks, what is not reported is what kind of
jobs are being created. Manufacturing jobs, the backbone of any economy,
continued to be lost for the 37th month in a row in October. For the vast
majority of Americans, the days of high quality jobs with decent wages,
security, and full health and retirement benefits are a thing of the past.
By John Peterson, from the US Socialist Appeal
So far over 400 US soldiers have died in Iraq (during and after the "end" of
the war). This is having a big impact on US public opinion. A further 1500 US
soldiers have been injured in armed conflicts, and a staggering 9,341 have been
flown out for various other health reasons, most importantly for mental stress. Fred Weston
reports on the growing dissatisfaction in the US Army