Part of Understanding Government's mission is to examine the way federal and state agencies cooperate on issues of national importance, or -- as in this article by GIMBY reporter Jane Johnston -- don't. Newburgh, NY, Nov. 20, 2008 -- Millions of gallon of water, laced with carcinogenic and other toxic chemicals, are pumped deep into the earth at pressures great enough to break solid rock and release natural gas stored in pockets. The process is called hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking.” Politicians with an eye for economic development cheer for the gas and the hoped for prosperity it will bring; also pleased are some property owners who have received fat signing bonuses for drilling leases. But what becomes of those millions of gallons of now contaminated water? If left in the ground, could they affect the groundwater supply? What about spillage or leakage from above-ground storage tanks? This scenario has alarmed people in many states in the past few years, and New York State now faces its own dilemmas with the prospect of drilling in the Marcellus Shale formation in Sullivan County.

It's strange to read about a product recall when the product hasn't already killed or maimed someone.  Unfortunately, the reality is usually just that gruesome -- a child is killed by a crib or a high chair, or an adult suffers lung damage from a hazardous home cleaning product, and ...

The Washington Post's Peter Finn reports that a military judge has ruled that a defense lawyer for Guantanamo Bay detainee Ramzi Binalshibh may visit Binalshibh's notorious and hitherto secretive Camp 7 location. Camp 7 is said to hold 14 "high-value" ...

The Washington Post had no less than three examples of preventive journalism Monday.  There was Steven Mufson's front-pager about how falling gasoline prices could slow the shift to alternative fuels and electric cars.  Then there was Kari Lyderson alerted readers to the dangerous increase of pathogens in water ...

I always feel a bit guilty for subscribing to the New York Review of Books.  Pulling it out of the mailbox, impressed by its authoritative headlines, I step inside and put it on the front left corner of my desk, confident that I'll tackle it in a day or two and finally become a smart, thoughtful person with unassailable knowledge and intellectual confidence.  A month later, when my desktop copy is half-covered with bills and other unread magazines and the cover has taken on a slightly yellowed tinge, I realize that I may not be fated to be a true member of the intelligentsia. 

But I keep the Review around, not just to see colorful ads for all the amazing books I'll never get to read, but also because it has reporting that is different from so much else we all consume in one form or another.  Take a look at Michael Massing's excellent travelogue from today's Iraq (with most stops inside the Green Zone) and you'll realize how much we don't know about our government's continuing failures in Iraq -- the country we've been occupying for five years.  You'll also realize just how difficult it will be to extricate ourselves in the next five.

In America's foreign policy, free market rhetoric often goes hand-in-hand with calls for the protection of human rights.  So it would seem like Iraq and Afghanistan, where we've been installing liberty for quite a few years now, should be prime targets for major economic projects.  But when Iraqi state coffers are filling up with unspent oil revenues and American soldiers are on the front lines of economic development with small cash payments, there is a disconnect that could use a few quick fixes.  After all, major infrastructure projects still need building in the countries we are supposed to be rebuilding, and Iraq continues to expand its government bureaucracy instead of its private sector.  So here's a shot at what needs trying:

The next time your credit card company calls you with a question about a charge on your card, be glad that the bank is looking out for its own interests as well as yours.  Financial companies constantly upgrade systems against identity theft to protect their bottom line.  But executive branch ...

Mother Nature, that is.  Given the EPA's challenges, we can't rely on it to do everything...and whatever you think about what Washington should be doing better, it's a great thing when citizens step up to help their community.  Tina Kelley reports in the New York Times about Riverkeeper, an environmental ...

Among other things, government is supposed to try to help increase employment, right?  But it almost looks like the federal and some state governments are trying to cut jobs in this country with overly aggressive on-site inspections.  Businesses are trying to fight back because, as Julia Preston ...

The New York Times' Felicity Barringer takes a look today at California's new plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Acting on a 2006 law, the state seeks to reduce carbon emissions to 1990 levels through a cap-and-trade system involving state utilities and ...