Articles Posted by Ralph E. Stone

I was born in Massachusetts; graduated from Middlebury College and Suffolk Law School; served as an officer in the Vietnam war; retired from the Federal Trade Commission (consumer and antitrust law); travel extensively with my wife Judi; and since retirement involved in domestic violence prevention and consumer issues.

  • Survey: One in Six Americans Living in Poverty

    A record 49.1 million Americans (16 percent) are living below the federal poverty line, according to a recent survey. Considering the U.S. is one of the richest nations in the world, the results are sobering.

  • maternity care

    Consumer Chronicles: Maternity Coverage in Health Insurance Plans

    Under Obamacare, starting in 2014, all new health plans sold to individuals and small businesses will be required to cover maternity and newborn care, services explicitly listed in the law as “essential health benefits” that health plans must provide.

  • workplace islamaphobia

    Islamophobia in the Workplace

    I was surprised then to learn that although Muslims make up only two percent of the U.S. workforce, they filed nearly 25 percent of religious-discrimination claims in 2009. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), during the past fiscal year, it received a record high of 100,000 charges of discrimination, a slight increase over fiscal year 2010.

  • Stopping Those Irritating Robocalls

    Many of these worthless or dubious deals are offered by companies operating “autodialing” businesses, which deliver prerecorded messages that allow clients to deliver large numbers of prerecorded phone calls, or “robocalls.” The prerecorded messages would last just a few seconds. If a call recipient who received a prerecorded message pressed “1” during the message, the recipient would be transferred to a live operator who would attempt to sell the product or service.

  • U.S. Postal Service: Privatize or Reform?

    Part of the problem is that lawmakers continue to micromanage its practices. (We know how Congressional micromanagement has worked with regard to our economy). For example, Congress has repeatedly prohibited requests to eliminate costly Saturday mail deliveries and reduce the number of post offices. Congress and the Obama administration need to empower the USPS to operate more like a business by giving USPS management more control over decisions about its financial well-being.

  • Trayvon Martin, George Zimmerman.

    Trayvon Martin Killing:
    Let Investigations Run Their Course

    The Justice Department will determine whether Zimmerman violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which among other things, outlaws major forms of discrimination against African Americans and women, including racial segregation. The 911 tape indicates Zimmerman may have used the word “coon” when referring to Martin. Martin is Black while Zimmerman’s father is White and his mother is Latino.

  • Puerto Rico: The GOP Primary, Latino Vote and Statehood

    There are about 21.5 million Latino voters now eligible to vote in the November 2012 presidential election, with about 60 percent registered to vote compared to 70 percent Black and 74 percent White. If registration drives are successful between now and the election, the number of eligible Latino voters will increase. Latino voters have a chance to influence the outcome for president in at least 24 states.