Preet Bharara, former U.S. Attorney
On Friday, I wrote about Volkswagen pleading guilty to criminal charges and agreeing to pay a $2.8 billion fine for the company’s decade-long scheme to sell diesel vehicles containing software designed to cheat on U.S. emissions tests.
Unlike in past, the U.S. Department of Justice’s news release was short. Under the Obama Administration, the department went on and on about wrongdoers, describing their unlawful behavior in detail and offering lots of quotes. It was as though this Volkswagen settlement was negotiated under the previous administration, so it wasn’t important.
It’s troubling to think how the department is going to operate under conservative Jeff Sessions. Sessions asked 48 federal prosecutors for their resignation on Friday, including Preet Bharara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. I’ve written dozens of times about the lawsuits Bharara has settled on behalf of consumers.
It’s a huge concern that many members of the public don’t seem to understand that unless there is a strong government regulatory process corporations will steal even more from consumers.
Even before President Donald Trump took office, big business spent millions of dollars to push legislation to block victims’ legal rights to seek justice against corporate recklessness and medical malpractice. For more information, see Public Citizens’ “Corporate Interests Give Tens of Millions to Dismantle Legal Rights of Consumers and Patients.”
Laura Lee Carter of the Adventures of the New Old Farts also is concerned about how strange the current political situation is. Carter writes about the major historical contradictions she sees all around her these days. She thinks we seem to have no sense of history, with history appearing to repeat itself.
Tom Sightings of Sightings Over 60 also is delving into the past. Sightings reports on a study from the American Psychological Association that shows how personalities change – or don't change – as people get older. Sit on the couch over at “Does Your Personality Change?” to see if your experience matches what the researchers say it should be.
Boomers know a little something about aging, so over at Heart•Mind•Soul Carol Carrara and her readers offer some helpful aging “hacks” to enhance quality of life – and extend it.
Meryl Baer’s recent past includes wandering in warm places. Baer, who blogs at of Six Decades and Counting, arrived home in time to don thermal clothes and experience cold weather and a winter storm. While wrapped in blankets, Baer ponders the pros and cons of travel in “Six Weeks a Wanderer.”
This is the Best of Boomer Blogs #488. Click on the links above to read more about these topics. And, be sure to join in the conversations. Boomer bloggers love to hear from readers.
