Articles by Michael Higham

A recent investigation by the Center for Public Integrity (CPI) found that there are approximately 1,000 ingredients that companies have added to their foods over the years that were not first reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration, a government agency that is responsible for regulating 80 percent of the nation's food supply. The investigation found that not only does the FDA not know anything about these ingredients, but consumers don't know the potential risks, either. How is it possibl...

It is nearly impossible for candidates outside the major parties to qualify for a presidential debate. The Commission on Presidential Debates, founded by the Republican and Democratic parties in 1988, requires candidates to poll higher than 15 percent in polls conducted by 5 national public opinion polling groups selected by the commission. The rules have kept many candidates not affiliated with the major parties from getting the exposure they need to build support. However, a group of nearly 5...

For four consecutive months, Gallup has reported that Americans continue to mention government as the most important U.S. problem. While 'Government,' 'Economy,' and 'Unemployment' have gone back and forth, claiming and reclaiming the top spot, Government now has a 7-point lead. "While dissatisfaction with government is by no means a new issue to the American people, it has not in recent months been as clearly the leading problem as it is now, given that fewer Americans mention the economy." - ...

Digital learning is becoming more prominent in classrooms as schools prepare students for the digital world. However, only 61 percent of California schools and 56 percent of the state's school districts have Internet connections faster than 100 megabits per second (mbps), according to the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC). California implemented new tests known as 'Smarter Balanced Assessments' in concert with Common Core Standards. These tests are taken online and do not require mu...

California State Assemblymember David Hadley (R-South Bay) took office as the representative of Assembly District 66 after one of the most competitive Assembly races in California. After narrowly placing first in the 2014 top-two primary, Hadley unseated incumbent Democrat Al Muratsuchi by just 706 votes. The loss of Muratsuchi's seat was one of a handful of Democratically-controlled seats that led to the loss of a supermajority in the Legislature. The cost of health care will continue to be a...

On Thursday, Arizona became the first state in the U.S. to pass a law requiring high school students to pass a civics exam before graduating. Lawmakers who support the bill say students don't know enough about basic government, but would requiring such a test actually have the desired effect of producing better citizens? The American Civics Act will require students to pass 60 out of the 100 questions on the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization civics test. The bill will likely be the quickest ...

This year did not give voters much in terms of transcending partisanship at the Congressional level. However, breakthroughs of candidates and politicians who have publicly challenged the fiction that politics is a choice between Republican or Democratic ideas should not go unnoticed. Included in this list are politicians whose actions cannot be defined as simply left or right. Instead they represent a diverse set of principles and ideas that span the political spectrum. Here are the most indep...

President Obama has been known to support the idea of net neutrality. However, he made it clear that he supports Title II reclassification of the Internet with a statement and video (see below) released on Monday, November 10. Title II reclassification under the Telecommunications Act means that the Internet would be treated as a utility in the eyes of the government. Utilities provide the goods (water, electricity, etc.) but do not have a say in how consumers use the goods. An Internet service...

Many people have a flashlight app on their smartphone. It's a useful tool when the power goes out or when a user is looking for something in a poorly lit environment. However, what most people likely don't realize is these apps are geo-locating the user and stealing their data.In an interview with independent investigative journalist Ben Swann, Gary Miliefsky, CEO of SnoopWall LLC, the world's first "counterveillance" company, said his group discovered that the top 10 Android flashlight apps are...