A federal judge in San Diego, California recently ruled that a background screening company Kentech Consulting must face a jury trial over claims that it got a woman fired because of an inaccurate and outdated report it produced back in 2014. Job seekers, potential job seekers, and anyone who may be worried about the contents of a future background check should pay attention to the outcome of the case, as it may have significant implications on how background checks are conducted in the future. Virginia Abrogina applied for a job with a company called Alere, Inc. in January 2014. She got some ..read more

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) announced the unsealing of eight indictments in early October 2023. That isn't unusual, the DoJ indicts people all the time. What is unusual are the targets of these indictments: eight China-based companies and their employees. The indictments are built on prosecutions first announced in June 2023 and are the second set of prosecutions targeting China-based chemical manufacturing companies and Chinese nationals. Why would the DoJ target Chinese companies and Chinese nationals? The indictments concern crimes relating to fentanyl and methamphetamine production ..read more

Think about the last time you had to take a flight somewhere. You got up early, sat in traffic (or sped because you got up late), and then stood in line for what felt like hours in security. Then, after finding your terminal and finding the right flight, you get onto a small, cramped flying tube with dozens of strangers for hours on end. And, assuming there were no layovers, injuries, or unruly passengers, you finally get to your destination … just to do it all again when you have to go home. Who in their right mind would go through this just to get somewhere quic ..read more

Airbnb seemed like a win/win for everyone at first. Hotels were expensive and restrictive, so why not rent a room in someone's house or stay in someone's apartment while they were out of town? Just people helping people get a little extra cash in exchange for some homey lodging. What could go wrong? Plenty of things can go wrong nowadays. Homeowners have given way to real estate ventures with fat portfolios of short-term rental properties. Low prices have crept upwards. Guests are expected to clean and maintain the property or else face hundreds of dollars in fees from the owners ("cleaning fe ..read more

The kids call it "scalping." It's one of those names that really conveys how people feel about the practice. In theory, scalping is a perfectly rational, economically efficient thing to do. Just like those people who bought up all the toilet paper early in the pandemic and tried to resell it for a much higher price (the word "try" here is important. States do have laws against price-gouging). But economic theory holds that the "correct" price for any good or service is exactly the price at which a buyer is willing to buy and a seller is willing to sell. It's true for food. It's true for s ..read more

Actor Danny Masterson has been convicted of rape and sentenced to 30 years to life. He became popular due to his work on the sitcom “That 70s Show," which also starred Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis in an ensemble cast. Kutcher and Kunis drafted letters of support for the court describing positive aspects of Masterson's personality, in hopes that showing his good character would reduce his potential sentence. Wildly Differing Accounts The victims described Masterson as a “pathetic, disturbed and completely violent" man who showed no remorse for what he did. In addition, they affirmed their wish ..read more

Loving dogs may be universal, but Americans have a rather rabid case of furbaby fever. Most of the U.S. lives with a pet, and the trend is only growing. Given that they're our best friends and all, we like keeping our dogs around wherever we go. But as you'll know if you've ever tried to walk your dog into a Sumerian bar, it can get tricky when it's not your property. Although it may be understandable that pet owners want to include their furry friends in their daily lives as much as possible, it's also reasonable that proprietors of establishments have qualms about animals on t ..read more

Cars are getting smarter. New cars are packed with an ever-increasing array of sensors, telematics, digital consoles, microphones, and cameras to the point that they're essentially computers on wheels. Like every other digital device we interact with, they spend a good amount of time sucking up all the information about us we're willing to share — and then some. Mozilla, the company behind the privacy-conscious Firefox browser, recently released a piece about the findings from their latest "Privacy Not Included" survey. Their researchers examined some of the latest models from 25 differen ..read more

Who doesn't love beating the system? Sure, there are rules, and many of them exist for a reason, but there are few things humans enjoy more than finding and slipping through big old loopholes. It makes you feel smart, lets you scratch that rebellious itch many of us still carry from our teen years – and often saves you a little money in the process. There's just one jumbo jet-sized problem: Sometimes the system fights back. All The Kids Are Doing It Some people call it "skiplagging." Others call it "hidden-city ticketing." Major airlines call it "a huge pain in the butt." You may know it by it ..read more

It's hard to describe America's weight problem without sounding like a crass standup comedian from the early 1980s. Over 42% of American adults are obese. Some 25% of people between the ages of 17 to 24 are too heavy to join the military. Obesity and obesity-related illnesses cost the healthcare system $173 billion per year before you factor in the costs associated with the increased incidences of type 2 diabetes, cognitive impairment, reduced lifespans, and reduction in productive working years. It's a mess. We aren't going to waste time here talking about why obesity rates hav ..read more