Pink slime -- that ammonia-treated meat in a bright Pepto-bismol shade -- may have been rejected by fast food joints like McDonald's, Taco Bell and Burger King, but is being brought in by the tons for the nation's school lunch program. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is purchasing 7 million pounds of the "slime" for school lunches. Officially termed "Lean Beef Trimmings," the product is a ground-up combination of beef scraps, cow connective tissues and other beef trimmings that are treated with ammonium hydroxide to kill pathogens like salmonella and E. coli. It's then blended into traditional meat products like ground beef and hamburger patties. "We originally called it soylent pink," microbiologist Carl Custer, who worked at the Food Safety Inspection Service for 35 years, told The Daily. "We looked at the product and we objected to it because it used connective tissues instead of muscle. It was simply not nutritionally equivalent [to ground beef]. Custer and microbiologist Gerald Zernstein concluded in a study that the trimmings are a "high risk product," but Zernstein tells The Daily that "scientists in D.C. were pressured to approve this stuff with minimal safety approval" under President George H.W. Bush's administration. The USDA asserts that its ground beef purchases "meet the highest standard for food safety." Controversy surrounding "pink slime" stems from various safety concerns, particularly dangers associated with ammonium hydroxide, which can both be harmful to eat and has potential to turn into ammonium nitrate -- a common component in homemade bombs, according to MSNBC. It's also used in household cleaners and fertilizers. In 2009, The New York Times reported that despite the added ammonia, tests of Lean Beef Trimmings of schools across the country revealed dozens of instances of E. coli and salmonella pathogens. Between 2005 and 2009, E. coli was found three times and salmonella 48 times, according to the Times, including two contaminated batches of 27,000 pounds of meat.

This is a simple plea to the casting directors of CBS, to give Kelly Miller a chance to fulfill her lifelong dream of being on SURVIVOR.

Rush Limbaugh has gone too far this time. He has always been a racist, misyginist, and fear monger for years, but this is too much.

H.R. 3553, the Genetically Engineered Food Right to Know Act has been referred to the House Committee on Agriculture. Typically, online alerts would ask us to contact our own reps for support. This way, we can address the committee Chair. We want this bill heard because we affirm the freedom to choose whether foods we are asked to consume contain GMOs or not. Will the US grant the freedom to label GMOs to any other country via the WTO, and not its own citizens?

Jack's Meat Market on Derbigny St and Mandeville St allows public drinking, loitering, drug dealing and other activities that have negative affects to our community. Their operation helps enable crime in our neighborhood.

Rick Scott is cutting back on security at all Florida Rest Areas effective March 11, 2012. As part of his budget cutting policies, Rick Scott will reduce the armed security officer presence at all Rest Areas. He is changing the two single guard shifts from 4pm-8am to a single guarded shift from 8pm-6am. This one guard will work a ten hour shift and will switch sides every 45 minutes. On I-10 this will effectively leave the East and West Rest Areas unguarded for 5 hours during the night. The ten hour security shifts affect all the Rest Areas in Florida. Why risk public safety and tourism. The savings will not even make a dent in the state's budget deficit. More lost jobs will not help the state's economy.

restore united airlines pension plans

Rush limbauph's. it's time to silence him once and for all for what he called that George town university student... Would he accept someone to call one of his kids by that? I'm sure he wouldn't like it ...

Fuel Prices!

7 million-pound order of connective tissue and beef scraps doused in ammonia, set to hit school lunch trays in coming months. Need we say more? This is also said to be in ground beef we buy in stores, but we have no way to know because IF there is an ingredients labels, it states, "lean beef trimmings", which we all know it is anything but.

The use of cellular phones AND texting, while driving is hazardous to the driver, passengers, pedestrians, and all who may come in proximity to a vehicle driven by someone using any such device. Fines should be administered and this practice should stop. The state of Hawaii has such a law, why not the state of Florida?

We want the OHSAA to consider cheerleading, baton twirling and the marching band (etc) a sport!