WASHINGTON — Passengers on airlines flying within the U.S. who have compromised immune systems may want to think twice before drinking the water on board, the Environmental Protection Agency warned Wednesday.

The drinking water on about 1 out of every 6 airplanes flunked a random bacteria test administered in November and December at airports across the nation, including Los Angeles International Airport.

The results surprised the EPA, which ran the tests to make sure that a sampling in August and September was valid. But the new round indicated a wider problem than the first tests, which found bacteria in the water of 1 out of every 8 planes sampled.
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In its new round of testing, the EPA sampled water from galley taps as well as bathroom faucets in 169 domestic and international flights, finding total coliform bacteria — an indicator of potential disease-causing organisms — in 29 planes.
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ATA spokesman Doug Wills said the EPA’s failure to find E. coli, a bacteria that can cause severe gastrointestinal problems, showed that drinking water on airlines was safer than ever.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 19 - On the heels of electoral victories barring same-sex marriage, some influential conservative Christian groups are turning their attention to a new target: the cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants.

“Does anybody here know SpongeBob?” Dr. James C. Dobson, the founder of Focus on the Family, asked the guests Tuesday night at a black-tie dinner for members of Congress and political allies to celebrate the election results.

SpongeBob needed no introduction. In addition to his popularity among children, who watch his cartoon show, he has become a well-known camp figure among adult gay men, perhaps because he holds hands with his animated sidekick Patrick and likes to watch the imaginary television show “The Adventures of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy.”

Now, Dr. Dobson said, SpongeBob’s creators had enlisted him in a “pro-homosexual video,” in which he appeared alongside children’s television colleagues like Barney and Jimmy Neutron, among many others. The makers of the video, he said, planned to mail it to thousands of elementary schools to promote a “tolerance pledge” that includes tolerance for differences of “sexual identity.”

The video’s creator, Nile Rodgers, who wrote the disco hit “We Are Family,” said Mr. Dobson’s objection stemmed from a misunderstanding. Mr. Rodgers said he founded the We Are Family Foundation after the Sept. 11 attacks to create a music video to teach children about multiculturalism. The video has appeared on television networks, and nothing in it or its accompanying materials refers to sexual identity. The pledge, borrowed from the Southern Poverty Law Center, is not mentioned on the video and is available only on the group’s Web site.

Mr. Rodgers suggested that Dr. Dobson and the American Family Association, the conservative Christian group that first sounded the alarm, might have been confused because of an unrelated Web site belonging to another group called “We Are Family,” which supports gay youth.
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On Wednesday however, Paul Batura, assistant to Mr. Dobson at Focus on the Family, said the group stood by its accusation.

“We see the video as an insidious means by which the organization is manipulating and potentially brainwashing kids,” he said. “It is a classic bait and switch.”