Tom Mueller

Expanding on his article in The New Yorker an olive oil expert uncovers corruption in the food industry, from ancient times to the present, and describes the lax rules that permit fake and even toxic foods into the United States.

Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil

Blood, Death and Dollars in American Medicine

How to Make a Killing

A David-and-Goliath story for our times: the riveting account of the heroes who are fighting a rising tide of wrongdoing by the powerful, and showing us the path forward. We are living in a time of mind-boggling corruption, but we are also, as it happens, living in a golden age of whistleblowing. Over the past two decades, the brave insiders who decide to expose wrongdoing have gained unprecedented legal and social stature, emerging as the government's best weapon against corporate misconduct--and the citizenry's best defense against government gone bad. They are also forcing us to consider fundamental questions about our democracy, especially the proper balance between free speech and state secrecy, and between individual rights and corporate power. Drawing on relentless original research, including in-depth interviews with more than 200 whistleblowers and the elite coterie of legal trailblazers who have armed them for battle--plus scores of politicians, intelligence analysts, government watchdogs, cognitive scientists, and other experts--Crisis of Conscience is a modern-day David-and-Goliath saga, told through a series of riveting cases drawn from Big Pharma, the military, and beyond. Whistleblowers are not only heroes who expose and anatomize corruption and ensure that it is punished--usually at enormous cost to themselves--Mueller shows they are also the freethinking citizens on whom our republic was conceived, models we all must think and act more like if our democracy is to survive.

Whistleblowing in an Age of Fraud

Crisis of Conscience

"A call to arms and to action, for anyone with a conscience, anyone alarmed about the decline of our democracy." — New York Times-bestselling author Wendell Potter "Powerful...His extensively reported tales of individual whistleblowers and their often cruel fates are compelling...They reveal what it can mean to live in an age of fraud." — The Washington Post "Tom Mueller's authoritative and timely book reveals what drives a few brave souls to expose and denounce specific cases of corruption. He describes the structural decay that plagues many of our most powerful institutions, putting democracy itself in danger." —George Soros A David-and-Goliath story for our times: the riveting account of the heroes who are fighting a rising tide of wrongdoing by the powerful, and showing us the path forward. We live in a period of sweeping corruption -- and a golden age of whistleblowing. Over the past few decades, principled insiders who expose wrongdoing have gained unprecedented legal and social stature, emerging as the government's best weapon against corporate misconduct--and the citizenry's best defense against government gone bad. Whistleblowers force us to confront fundamental questions about the balance between free speech and state secrecy, and between individual morality and corporate power. In Crisis of Conscience, Tom Mueller traces the rise of whistleblowing through a series of riveting cases drawn from the worlds of healthcare and other businesses, Wall Street, and Washington. Drawing on in-depth interviews with more than two hundred whistleblowers and the trailblazing lawyers who arm them for battle--plus politicians, intelligence analysts, government watchdogs, cognitive scientists, and other experts--Mueller anatomizes what inspires some to speak out while the rest of us become complicit in our silence. Whistleblowers, we come to see, are the freethinking, outspoken citizens for whom our republic was conceived. And they are the models we must emulate if our democracy is to survive.

Ice Baby

Sbatté all’improvviso la bottiglia sul tavolo, facendo sobbalzare le tazzine di caffè e i posacenere. “Questo è quello che nel mondo intero prendono per olio extravergine d’oliva: questa roba sta uccidendo l’olio di qualità e sta facendo fallire i produttori onesti”. Mi puntò contro il collo della bottiglia come una pistola, poi sollevò gli occhiali per leggere l’etichetta. “C’è scritto quello che si legge su ogni olio d’oliva: 100% italiano, spremuto a freddo, molito con macine di pietra, extravergine...”. Scosse il capo, come se non credesse ai suoi occhi. “Extravergine? Cos’ha a che vedere con la verginità quest’olio?” Per millenni l’olio di oliva ha rappresentato un bene prezioso per i popoli del Mediterraneo non solo come alimento di primaria importanza ma come medicina, conservante, cosmetico e presenza indispensabile in ogni rituale. Oggi numerosi scienziati ed esperti celebrano le straordinarie proprietà di quella sostanza pregiata e rigenerante che defi niamo, con un’espressione carica di signifi cati, olio ‘extravergine’: un prodotto la cui provenienza italiana è in tutto il mondo sinonimo del massimo standard qualitativo. Ma è possibile che questo simbolo di benessere e di purezza sia diventato il bersaglio di corruzioni, adulterazioni e truffe internazionali? E siamo sicuri che quello che ci propongono i più famosi e pubblicizzati marchi industriali sugli scaffali dei supermercati possieda le qualità che la parola ‘extravergine’ richiede per legge? Alcune importanti indagini e diverse vicende giudiziarie, qui documentate con la serietà del miglior giornalismo d’inchiesta, raccontano una storia molto diversa, fatta di traffici, adulterazioni e scarsissima attenzione ai diritti del consumatore; una storia che sta mettendo in ginocchio i tanti piccoli produttori di olio eccellente, per i quali restare in un mercato saturo di ‘extravergini’ fasulli a prezzi stracciati è sempre più difficile. A partire da un esplosivo reportage commissionatogli dal «New Yorker» nel 2007, Tom Mueller ha indagato il mondo dell’olio d’oliva parlando con storici e magistrati, archeologi e coltivatori, produttori, investigatori e molti altri dei suoi protagonisti. Oggi è considerato uno dei massimi esperti mondiali della materia e, con una scrittura fresca e ispirata, traccia in questo libro il ritratto di un vivace e aff ascinante microcosmo. Viaggiando senza sosta fra le diverse regioni italiane, i Paesi del Mediterraneo e i nuovi mondi della cultura oleicola, Mueller testimonia la battaglia per la qualità e la salute che numerose personalità in ogni campo, accomunate dalla passione per l’olio extravergine, combattono quotidianamente: vite toccate da uno strano, coraggioso entusiasmo, che nasce dalle proprietà antiche di questo alimento e contagerà inevitabilmente anche il lettore.

Il sublime e scandaloso mondo dell'olio d'oliva

Extraverginità

The sacred history and profane present of a substance long seen as the essence of health and civilization.

The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil

Extra Virginity

Encountering hardship can leave us physically and mentally depleted. Yet somehow we must summon our inner strength and courage to persevere and allow ourselves to heal. Too we must maintain a sense of hope. Like a loving pet, hope is our faithful and abiding companion. No matter the circumstances, nurture your sense of hope. For as the ancient ones wisely said, “This too shall pass”.

A Collection of Poems

Hope and Healing

"The Wisconsin 3,800" examines the lives and deaths of more than 30 men and women who were killed in World War II and buried overseas, or were MIA. There are heart-wrenching personal ordeals of people from all services and in all world zones, and some surprising discoveries. The book puts a human face on enormous battles and puts historical context into the deaths of individuals. The servicemen and women in the book come from places like Appleton, Milwaukee, Racine, La Crosse, Viroqua, Waunakee, Augusta, Rice Lake, Glenwood City, Merrill, Juneau, Door County, Kewaskum and many points in between. Their story is Wisconsin's story. Twenty-five years ago, Tom Mueller had an opportunity to visit his soldier uncle's grave in France as a newspaper writer. He was the first in his family ever to go there, and it started a passion to tell the stories of other Wisconsin men and women in World War II. For several years, his Milwaukee editors entrusted him to determine the topic of the page one Memorial Day feature, do the research, take and / or obtain photos and write the package. The Wisconsin Veterans Museum calls Mueller's book "a valuable new resource for everyone interested in Wisconsin's contributions to World War II, from historians to enthusiasts to relatives of the veterans." This book is made possible through the generous support of: American Family Insurance Marcus Theatres Corp.

Tom Mueller

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