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March 18, 2019 Ajit Pai, Chairman Michael O’Rielly, Commissioner Brendan Carr, Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, Commissioner Geoffrey Starks, Commissioner Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street, SW Washington, DC 20554 Dear FCC Commissioners: The FCC has been an inert toady for the radio and television broadcasting industry, and the cable industry, for so long its obligations have…
Read MoreFebruary 25, 2019 Andrew LackChairman, NBC News 30 Rockefeller Center New York, NY 10112-0002 Dear Mr. Lack: As a baseball fan, I am writing you for the third time in the hope that you will accord me the courtesy of a considered response (attached are my two previous letters). There was a time years ago…
Read MoreDecember 13, 2018 President Donald Trump White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20500 Dear President Trump: After repeatedly telling the autoworkers in Ohio and Michigan not to sell their homes because the jobs are coming back—“believe me, believe me,” you declared, GM is making a fool of you and you are pouting and…
Read MoreBy Ralph Nader and Marc Rotenberg Last week the Federal Trade Commission scheduled two days of hearings to explore new challenges to consumers in the digital age. The hearings were heralded by incoming chair Joe Simons as the first comprehensive review of the consumer agency’s role in almost two decades. The only problem is that…
Read MoreThe FAA authorization bill, facing a September 30 deadline, includes a provision, section 3129, authorizing the Secretary of Transportation to decide whether fees by the airlines are “unreasonable or disproportionate to the costs incurred.” Skyrocketing airlines fees total nearly $5 billion a year and are the leading cause of airline passenger complaints to Congress. Members…
Read MoreNicholas Kachman spent his professional career as a chemical engineer at General Motors from 1957 to 1993, specializing in curtailing toxic hazards in the workplace and into the outside environment by GM. For years he was GM’s technical liaison with the Environmental Protection Agency on regulatory matters. After his retirement, Mr. Kachman wrote in 2015…
Read MoreAugust 31, 2018 President Donald Trump White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20500 Dear President Trump: There is a double peril for consumer safety and our national security for you to ponder during your Labor Day vacation. First, the New York Times reported that China is withholding samples of a dangerous flu virus—the…
Read MoreGary Kelly, CEO Southwest Airlines 2702 Love Field Dr. Dallas, TX 75235 Dear Mr. Kelly: Why would an airline company, which is so sensitive to its consumers that it does NOT charge for reservation changes or baggage fees etc. (as other airlines such as Delta, United, and American do), announce that it will no longer…
Read MoreChairman Charles Grassley Senate Judiciary Committee U.S. Senate SH-135 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Dear Chairman Grassley: It’s been a while since our spirited meeting in your office after you came back from a meeting where Senators Schumer and Kerry were defending the “carried interest” tax escape and you amusingly asked, “Why are…
Read MorePresident Donald Trump The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20500 Dear President Trump: It has become overwhelmingly clear that your Administration has supported with arms sales, refueling, daily operational logistics and other ways and means the governmental actors opposing the rebels in the Yemeni Civil war. The bombing raids and blockades combine…
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