Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Breast-Cancer Rates in Britain Drop to New Low; Walnut Remedy?



© Shutterstock


Today 2:25 pm

By The Staff at wowOwow.com


Do the Brits know something we don’t when it comes to preventing breast-cancer deaths?

New research out of the UK shows that the number of women dying from breast cancer has fallen to a record low — under 12,000 a year — for the first time since 1971, BBC reports. Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer in the UK, affecting 45,500 women every year; one in nine women will develop the disease.

"It’s incredibly encouraging to see fewer women dying from breast cancer now than at any time in the last 40 years, despite breast cancer being diagnosed more often," said Cancer Research UK’s chief clinician, professor Peter Johnson.

This is great news, especially given that over the past 25 years, there has been a steep increase in the number of patients diagnosed with cancer, thanks to obesity, binge drinking and women having children later in life, notes The Daily Telegraph. The use of hormone replacement therapy to alleviate menopause symptoms and a graying population have also caused a spike in diagnoses. Here in 2008 in the United States, 182,460 more females were diagnosed with the disease, and 40,480 died from it. The National Cancer Institute estimates that 12.7 percent of women born today — or one in eight — will be diagnosed with breast cancer at some point in their lives. Women ages 40-49 have a 1-in-69-percent chance of getting breast cancer; those ages 50-59 have a 1-in-38-percent chance, and those ages 60-69 have a 1-in-27-percent chance.

Hoping to keep this disease at bay? You may have another way to do it: Eat more walnuts! New research out this week shows that walnuts may help. It turns out that compounds in the nut — omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants and phytosterols — have been proven to reduce incidence of breast tumors in mice.

"Walnuts are better than cookies, French fries or potato chips when you need a snack," said Elaine Hardman, associate professor of medicine at Marshall University School of Medicine. "We know that a healthy diet overall prevents all manner of chronic disease."
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Health Buzz: Swine Flu and Other Health News


Health Buzz: Swine Flu and Other Health News
Posted April 22, 2009

Two California Kids Diagnosed With Swine Flu


Two children in California were diagnosed with a unique kind of swine flu last week, the Associated Press reports. The kids, a 10-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl, became ill in late March; both have since recovered. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there's no reason for the public to be alarmed or take special steps to protect against this type of flu. Health officials are looking into the genetics of the virus and are testing people who may have had contact with the two infected children. The kids had not had contact with one another. Both had symptoms of fever and cough, and the boy experienced vomiting. In the past, the CDC has gotten reports of about one case of human swine flu every one to two years. The past few years have seen slightly more cases, with more than a dozen human cases reported since late 2005.
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Another form of flu, bird flu, has gotten attention in the past few months. Read about a breakthrough discovery that may fight off flu and bird flu. And learn how to keep your family safe from bird flu.



Soft Drinks and Energy Drinks: Too Sweet for Your Own Good


Sugary soft drinks and energy drinks are taking it on the chin these days, Katherine Hobson reports. Two researchers are saying the drinks contribute to obesity and need an extreme makeover. Walter Willett, who chairs the nutrition department at the Harvard School of Public Health, argues that there is a "direct causal link" between sugar-sweetened soft drinks and energy drinks and obesity, which is in turn linked to heart disease, some types of cancer, arthritis, and type 2 diabetes.
Willett and a colleague, Lilian Cheung, a lecturer in the nutrition department, suggest that we all focus on drinks with far lower levels of sugar and calories: things like water, tea, seltzer with a splash of juice, and coffee with one lump of sugar. They call on beverage makers to create reduced-calorie beverages with no more than 1 gram of sugar per ounce, without using noncaloric sweeteners like aspartame and stevia.
Just recently, two public-health experts floated the idea of a specific tax on sodas and energy drinks. Related: VitaminWater is a poster child for the importance of reading food and drink labels.



Narcissism Epidemic: Why There Are So Many Narcissists Now


Narcissism, or excessive self-love, is marked by bloated confidence, vanity, materialism, and a lack of consideration for others, Lindsay Lyon reports. Those personality traits have become so pervasive in American culture that they threaten to transform us into a nation of egomaniacs, research psychologists Jean Twenge and W. Keith Campbell say in their new book The Narcissism Epidemic: Living in the Age of Entitlement . Twenge and her team at San Diego State University also report in a new study that narcissism continues to spread quickly among college students, especially young women. Considering how cultural influences on girls have changed in the past decade, that's not surprising, says Twenge. Plastic surgery rates have jumped since the 1990s, and materialism is increasingly being emphasized in song lyrics, for example, she says.
Read up on 7 common myths about narcissism. Also, check out what Twenge had to say about narcissism a few years ago, not long after the publication of her earlier book, Generation Me , which examines why young people today are more narcissistic than their parents.



—January W. Payne



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13 Breathtaking Effects of Cutting Back on Meat





The meat industry contributes to land degradation, climate change, air pollution, water shortage and pollution, and loss of biodiversity.


My first post on the effect of eating meat on the environment provoked quite a bit of discussion, so in honor of Earth Day, I thought I should follow up with more information about how our natural resources (e.g., air, water, and soil) are depleted and devastated by animal agriculture.


Of course, Earth Day is also a good time to remember that animal agriculture only exists at astronomical levels because people are purchasing vast quantities of chicken, beef, pork, and fish. The market for meat (i.e., we, the consumers) drives the depletion and destruction.

Excrement produced by chickens, pigs, and other farm animals: 16.6 billion tons per year -- more than a million pounds per second (that's 60 times as much as is produced by the world's human population -- farmed animals produce more waste in one day than the U.S. human population produces in 3 years). This excrement is a major cause of air and water pollution. According to the United Nations: "The livestock sector is... the largest sectoral source of water pollution, contributing to eutrophication, 'dead' zones in coastal areas, degradation of coral reefs, human health problems, emergence of antibiotic resistance and many others."

Water used for farmed animals and irrigating feed crops: 240 trillion gallons per year -- 7.5 million gallons per second (that's enough for every human to take 8 showers a day, or as much as is used by Europe, Africa, and South America combined). According to the UN: "[t]he water used by the sector exceeds 8 percent of the global human water use." As just one example, "[O]n average 990 litres of water are required to produce one litre of milk." So drinking milk instead of tap water requires almost 1,000 times as much water.

Emissions of greenhouse gases from raising animals for food: The equivalent of 7.8 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year, according to the UN report. Concludes the UN: "The livestock sector is... responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions." That's about 40 percent more than all the cars, trucks, planes, trains, and ships in the world combined (transport is 13%). And "The sector emits 37% of anthropogenic methane (with 23 times the global warming potential-or GWP-of CO2)... It emits 65% of anthropogenic nitrous oxide (with 296 times the GWP of CO2). These figures are based on the power of these gases over 100 years; in fact, over 20 years-a more important timeframe for dealing with global warming-methane and nitrous oxide are 72 times and 289 times more warming than CO2. And Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, Chair of the IPCC (which shared the Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore) has been saying that the 18% figure is probably an underestimate.

It takes more than 11 times as much fossil fuel to make one calorie of animal protein as it does to make one calorie of plant protein.

Soil erosion due to growing livestock feed: 40 billion tons per year (or 6 tons/year for every human being on the planet-of course if you don't eat meat, none of this is attributed to you; if you're in the U.S. where we eat lots more meat than most of the world, your contribution is many times greater than 6 tons/year). About 60% of soil that is washed away ends up in rivers, streams and lakes, making waterways more prone to flooding and to contamination from soil's fertilizers and pesticides. Erosion increases the amount of dust carried by wind, polluting the air and carrying infection and disease.

Land used to raise animals for food: 10 billion acres. According to the UN: "In all, livestock production accounts for 70 percent of all agricultural land and 30 percent of the land surface of the planet." And "70 percent of previous forested land in the Amazon is occupied by pastures, and feedcrops cover a large part of the remainder." And "About 20 percent of the world's pastures and rangelands, with 73 percent of rangelands in dry areas, have been degraded to some extent, mostly through overgrazing, compaction and erosion created by livestock action."

According to the UN, animal agriculture is a leading case of water pollution. The main water pollutants in the US are sediments and nutrients. Animal agriculture is responsible for 55 percent of the erosion that causes sedimentation, and for a third of the main nutrient pollutants, nitrogen and phosphorous. On top of that, animal agriculture is the source of more than a third of the United States' water pollution from pesticides, and half of its water pollution from antibiotics.

Livestock are also responsible for almost two-thirds of anthropogenic ammonia emissions, which contribute significantly to acid rain and acidification of ecosystems.

Grain and corn raised for livestock feed that could otherwise feed people, according to the UN: 836 million tons per year (note that the more commonly used figure, 758 million tons, is metric). That's more than 7 times the amount used for biofuels and is much more than enough to adequately feed the 1.4 billion humans who are living in dire poverty, and the number doesn't even include the fact that almost all of the global soy crop (about 240 million tons of soy) is also fed to chickens, pigs, and other farmed animals.

An American saves more global warming pollution by going vegan than by switching their car to a hybrid Prius.

Razing the Amazon rainforest for pasture and feed crops: 5 million acres of Amazon per year. Former Amazon rainforest converted to raising animals for food since 1970 is more than 90% of all Amazon deforestation since 1970.

According to the UN: "Indeed, the livestock sector may well be the leading player in the reduction of biodiversity..." And "[l]ivestock now account for about 20 percent of the total terrestrial animal biomass, and the 30 percent of the earth's land surface that they now pre-empt was once habitat for wildlife." And "Conservation International has identified 35 global hotspots for biodiversity, characterized by exceptional levels of plant endemism and serious levels of habitat loss. Of these, 23 are reported to be affected by livestock production. An analysis of the authoritative World Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species shows that most of the world's threatened species are suffering habitat loss where livestock are a factor."

United Nations scientists, in their 408-page indictment of the meat industry, sum up these statistics, pointing out that the meat industry is "one of the ... most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global," including "problems of land degradation, climate change and air pollution, water shortage and water pollution, and loss of biodiversity."


Perhaps it's time to explore vegetarianism. Click here for tips. Happy Eating!




Promote Healthful Living




I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. Rom. 12:1.


It is impossible for a man to present his body a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, while continuing to indulge habits that are depriving him of physical, mental, and moral vigor. Again the apostle says, "Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." Rom. 12:2.

We are in a world that is opposed to righteousness or purity of character, and especially to growth in grace. Wherever we look, we see defilement and corruption, deformity and sin. How opposed is all this to the work that must be accomplished in us just previous to receiving the gift of immortality! God's elect must stand untainted amid the corruptions teeming around them in these last days. Their bodies must be made holy, their spirits pure. If this work is to be accomplished, it must be undertaken at once, earnestly and understandingly. The Spirit of God should have perfect control, influencing every action.

The health reform is one branch of the great work which is to fit a people for the coming of the Lord. . . . Men and women cannot violate natural law by indulging depraved appetites and lustful passions, without violating the law of God. Therefore He has permitted the light of health reform to shine upon us, that we may realize the sinfulness...

To make natural law plain, and to urge obedience to it, is a work that accompanies the third angel's message. . . . He [God] designs that the subject shall be agitated, and the public mind deeply stirred to investigate it; for it is impossible for men and women, while under the power of sinful, health-destroying, brain-enervating habits, to appreciate sacred truth. . . .

He who cherishes the light which God has given him upon health reform, has an important aid in the work of becoming sanctified through the truth, and fitted for immortality.

Maranatha, E. G. W., pp. 119.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Jekyll & Hyde Obama: Protectionist or Free Trader?


Jekyll & Hyde Obama: Protectionist or Free Trader?

By Dana Gabriel

http://www.borderfirereport.net/dana-gabriel/jekyll-hyde-obama-protectionist-or-free-trader.php


NAFTA partners may be confused, as to the mixed signals being sent by President Barack Obama in regards to trade. The Buy-American provision which was part of the stimulus package, alarmed Canadians, as well as many others. The Obama administration managed to outrage Mexico by ending a cross-border trucking program. Like most politicians, Obama is speaking out of both sides of his mouth. He is pandering to some of his core support while at the same time, trying to uphold the U.S. as a global leader in trade initiatives.

When the Buy-American provision was first announced, both Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Mexican President Felipe Calderon, warned of the dangers of protectionism. Although the language that passed as part of the stimulus package was softened, Canadian officials remain concerned. Canada has every right to be worried about American protectionism considering that 80% of its exports flow across the border. During his February trip, Obama reassured Canadians that he was committed to NAFTA and that the U.S. would honor all its trade obligations. He also discussed plans to place NAFTA’s labour and environmental side deals into the main body of the agreement, which in actuality would accomplish very little. This is a far cry from a man who at one time, threatened to tear up the trade accord. He has all but abandoned his promise to truly fix NAFTA and make it fairer for American workers.

The House Democrat fiscal 2009 spending bill, effectively ended the controversial Bush administration cross-border trucking program. As a result, Mexico retaliated by slapping tariffs on many U.S. imports. Allowing Mexican long-haul trucks full access into the U.S. is a provision of NAFTA. Many contend that it is because of protectionism, not safety and security concerns, that Mexican trucks have been restricted across the border. Before his scheduled trip to Mexico in mid April, Obama could propose a new trucking program that attempts to satisfy both the Mexican government, as well as critics of the former cross-border project. Considering the growing drug violence in Mexico, this might not be an appropriate time to introduce any type of cross-border initiative.

In early March, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announced that the Obama administration would work with Congress to establish benchmarks, so that long-stalled free trade agreements with Colombia and South Korea could move forward. Obama opposed both trade deals during the presidential election campaign last year. At that time, he said that he wanted to see a reduction in violence against trade unionists in Colombia. He also wanted to renegotiate some provisions of the South Korean trade agreement which he felt were bad for U.S. automakers and other manufacturers. There might not be an auto industry left to protect. Obama has taken money that could have been used to stimulate the real economy and instead has given it to the bankers. This is a Wall Street takeover. Through all the bailouts and corporate looting, the only path being set forth by which the U.S. economy can recover is through more globalization.

Just ahead of the G-20 Summit, José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, warned against de-globalization, protectionism and economic nationalism. He advocated reshaping globalization as a solution to the worldwide economic crisis. At the G-20 Summit in London, leaders pledged to work together to rebuild confidence and trust in the financial system and kickstart international trade. As a result, a new Financial Stability Board has been established to unite regulators. The IMF has been given more money and power in order to boost the economies of the world. Obama proclaimed that the summit represented a turning point in global economic recovery. UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown called it the start of a new global financial architecture and said that out of the economic crisis, a New World Order is emerging. The U.S. has been used as an engine for world government and their markets will now play a lesser role in the global economy, as they surrender more sovereignty to this new system.

Obama is a tool of the global elite and giving him labels only serves to provide him with cover. He is not looking out for the best interests of American workers, the poor or the middle class. He is of the bankers, by the bankers and for the bankers. Many of the same people who are responsible for past failed U.S. economic policies, have been rewarded with a spot in the Obama administration. They will finish what they started—the destruction of the U.S. economy. This amounts to economic terrorism. We stand on the dawn of a new global economic order. Will the American people be suckered and buy into this system?
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Cuban prisoners don't want to be traded for spies


Students hold a Cuban flag during a march to mark the 48th anniversary of the triumph of Cuban forces during the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion , in Havana, Saturday, April 18, 2009. Trading their warmest words in a half-century, the United States and Cuba built momentum toward renewed ties on Friday, with President Barack Obama declaring he 'seeks a new beginning,' including direct talks, with the island's government.(AP Photo/Javier Galeano)

By ANITA SNOW, Associated Press Writer Anita Snow, Associated Press Writer – Tue Apr 21, 9:25 am ET

HAVANA – A leading rights activist says most of Cuba's 200 or more political prisoners would rather serve out long terms on the island than be part of an exchange for five communist agents imprisoned in the U.S., as Cuban President Raul Castro has suggested.

President Barack Obama has said Cuba should make the next move as both leaders try to thaw relations — and that releasing political prisoners would be a significant step.

Castro responded in part by suggesting a prisoner swap — sending all of Cuba's political prisoners, and their families, to the United States in exchange for the five convicted Cuban spies.

The prisoners themselves? They want nothing of such a deal, Havana's leading dissident said Monday.

"It's nearly unanimous among the prisoners that they not be exchanged for military men arrested red-handed in espionage activities in the United States," said Elizardo Sanchez of the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and Reconciliation. "They would rather stay in prison."

Most prefer to stay in their homeland with their families and culture and fight for changes to the political system of their own country. They consider themselves patriots, and having risked everything to speak out — their jobs, homes and family prospects — they are committed to working from within to improve life in Cuba.

Sanchez, the most veteran of the island's rights activists, talks to numerous political prisoners and their relatives by phone each day, and updates detailed lists of inmates that he releases every six months. His reports are a key source of information for international groups monitoring Cuba's human rights situation.

Castro's government has unilaterally released "prisoners of conscience" before without suffering any political consequences inside Cuba. In February, four political prisoners were set free and immediately exiled to Spain, following human rights talks in Madrid. It was at least the fifth known release of a group of political prisoners by Cuba since the mid-1980s that followed an international appeal or negotiations.

The U.S. has swapped prisoners before with other countries — notably in the case of KGB spy Rudolph Ivanovich Abel, traded to the Soviets in 1962 for imprisoned U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers.

But Obama could suffer serious political fallout if he agreed to swap the so-called Cuban Five — communist agents who were convicted of espionage in Miami in 2001. The ringleader was implicated in the death of four exiles killed when Cuban military fighters shot their planes down off the island's coast in 1996.

Senior State Department officials in Washington said Monday they knew about Castro's statement but were unaware if Havana had made an official prisoner swap proposal.

There are several similar lists of Cuban political prisoners compiled by different rights groups, and Obama has not specified which inmates he is talking about.

Sanchez's list numbers 205 and includes three men sentenced to death for violent acts, including two Salvadorans convicted in Havana hotel bombings that killed an Italian tourist.

Jose Miguel Vivanco, Americas director for Human Rights Watch, said his group uses some of the Cuban commission's information, and also lists more than 200 political prisoners, but doesn't include anyone convicted of violent crimes.

Amnesty International says it has adopted 58 Cuban "prisoners of conscience," but it's unclear why its list is significantly shorter than the others or if it uses different criteria.

Castro clearly referred to the list Sanchez compiles during a passionate speech in Venezuela last week, offering to free political prisoners who include "confessed terrorists" when saying he would discuss "everything" with Obama.

Sanchez has suggested that the Salvadorans serve the rest of their terms in their own country.

"I would be happy if they released some or all, but our position is that we want the liberation of all, without conditions," he said.

Vivanco called Castro's proposal "an absurd proposition," equating five government agents with "more than 200 political prisoners serving time simply because they tried to exercise fundamental freedoms — free speech, the right to association."

Vivanco accompanied France Libertes, a French human rights group led by former first lady Danielle Mitterand, on a 1995 trip to Cuba that resulted in the release of six political prisoners, including two prominent dissidents.

As a congressman, former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson secured the release of three Cuban political prisoners during talks with Raul Castro's older brother Fidel in Cuba in 1996, and the Rev. Jesse Jackson facilitated the liberation of 48 prisoners of conscience during a 1984 trip to Havana.

The Cuban government released 299 prisoners on humanitarian grounds, including dissidents but mostly common criminals, as a gesture to Pope John Paul II after his papal visit in January 1998.

Vivanco acknowledged these previous releases, but said the communist government has not changed its criminal code, which includes vague charges that presume guilt before the fact, such as "social dangerousness," or inhibit free speech as "enemy propaganda."

"Most of these are people who simply have a disagreement with the government, who then make their disagreement public," he said. "Any discussion of engagement with Cuba needs to take into account that Cuba is the last country in the hemisphere that represses nearly every form of political dissent."

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Associated Press Writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report from Washington.



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Is Newt Preparing for a 2012 Run?


Jose Luis Magana / AP Photo





As Newt Gingrich converts to Catholicism, a leading Catholic conservative says his sins—including an affair with a congressional aide—"no longer exist." Is he gunning for 2012?

When Catholic University announced in January 2005 that Newt Gingrich would deliver a speech on campus, a group of students rose up in protest, accusing the twice-divorced, admitted philanderer of violating the Catholic values that their school was founded upon. Four years later, just last week, on March 24, Gingrich blasted another hallowed institution of Catholic higher learning: “It is sad to see Notre Dame invite President Obama to give the commencement address since his policies are so anti-Catholic values,” Gingrich wrote on Twitter of the president’s scheduled May address. What happened?

During the George W. Bush era, Gingrich rose quietly from the ruins of his failed crusade to impeach President Bill Clinton, trying to transform himself from a Republican pariah into a voice of conscience for the badly demoralized conservative movement. The religious-right elements that helped orchestrate Gingrich’s downfall as Speaker of the House became the catalyst for his resurrection and may now propel him into contention for the GOP presidential nomination in 2012. But winning them over has not been easy. Before earning a seat at their table, Gingrich has had to confess his darkest sins and beg for redemption, first on the radio show of his former nemesis, James Dobson, and then before a priest at St. Joseph’s Rectory, a Catholic church on Capitol Hill.

“He [Gingrich] has gone through a change in his life through his third marriage and he has decided to settle down....You’re never too old to settle down.”

Indeed, on Sunday, March 29, Gingrich converted to Catholicism, the faith of his third wife, Calista Bisek. Though the ceremony was announced without fanfare, leading Catholic conservatives like Deal Hudson are brimming with excitement. Hudson was the most important Catholic political adviser to President Bush and Karl Rove, founder of the seminal Catholic journal, Crisis magazine, and self-described “theocon.” He contends that Gingrich’s conversion represents more than a concession to his wife; it signals a dramatic break from the past, both personally and politically.

“From a Catholic point of view,” Hudson told me, “Newt’s sins no longer exist—they’ve been absolved. He’s made a fresh start in life. So Newt will continue to sin and confess but there aren’t going to be a lot of Catholics who will hold that against him. They understand why being a Catholic makes a difference.”

Hudson said that while many of his friends are “extremely close” to Gingrich, he and the former Speaker of the House are just friendly acquaintances. But Hudson explains that he relates to Gingrich’s experience on a deeply personal level. Like Gingrich, he is a convert and a thrice-married sinner engaged continually in confession and absolution.

Raised as a Southern Baptist, Hudson converted to Catholicism at age 34 after becoming enraptured by the writings of St. Thomas Aquinas. Upon receiving communion, Hudson received an annulment from his first wife, then divorced his second wife four years later. “It’s not unusual to do that in this day and age,” Hudson reflected, “so that sort of angle that Chris Buckley is taking to make fun of Newt is unfair.”

After entering the church, Hudson worked his way up the rungs of academia, eventually earning tenure as a philosophy professor at Fordham University. He was a charismatic figure in the classroom, casting a spell over his students with engaging lectures on natural law. But Hudson was not without his weaknesses. In 1994, after a night of drinking games at a West Village pub, during which he allegedly made out with two female students and took “body shots” with them, Hudson brought an extremely intoxicated 18-year-old student named Cara Poppas back to his office and compelled her to perform oral sex on him. When the student told school authorities about the incident, Hudson promptly resigned and moved to Washington to edit Crisis. Two years later, Hudson settled a sexual-harassment lawsuit out of court with Poppas for $30,000. The incident remained unknown to everyone except Poppas and Hudson’s closest confidants.

At Crisis, Hudson railed against Clinton for his dalliances with Monica Lewinsky. "Over and over again, we hear on the talk shows that we shouldn't hold the president to a 'higher standard,'” Hudson wrote in 1996. “I would argue quite the opposite… Those who are not willing to bear the burden of these higher standards should not seek office… After we have stripped away all idealism from offices that bind our culture together—president, father, husband—what will be left for us to aspire to? Who will want to sacrifice personal desires for public responsibilities?”

That same year, a group of Hudson’s closest conservative Catholic allies hosted a symposium, called The End of Democracy?: The Judicial Usurpation of Politics, in which they questioned the very legitimacy of American democracy. One speaker, Princeton professor Robert George, advocated mass civil disobedience to resist federal court decisions protecting reproductive and gay rights. The most influential member of the religious right’s evangelical wing, James Dobson, endorsed these Catholics’ calls for rebellion.

The movement’s apocalyptic mood resonated inside the halls of Congress, where Gingrich advanced impeaching Clinton as his party’s unifying theme ahead of midterm elections in 1998. But away from the limelight of the press, Gingrich was involved in an extramarital affair with Bisek, a young blond Capitol Hill staffer 23 years his junior who he had arranged to be put on the House Republicans' payroll. The wild mood swings that had always characterized Gingrich’s behavior intensified as the president strengthened his position against the impeachment tribunal. Staffers discovered the Speaker crying at his desk. In the end, Gingrich’s strategy backfired in the 1998 midterm elections, resulting in the worst defeat in 64 years for a party that did not control the White House. House Republicans intimately aware of his affair with Bisek were involved in forcing Gingrich to resign from Congress so they could push on to their apocalyptic impeachment of Clinton without worrying about Gingrich’s exposure.

Gingrich promptly turned to matters of the heart, dumping his second wife, Marianne Ginther. He announced his intention to divorce her just as he had done with his first wife, Jackie Battley—while she was lying in a hospital bed, immobilized after a major medical procedure. (Battley was recovering from cancer surgery; Ginther’s appendix had ruptured.) He never bothered to tell his wife in person that he was leaving her for another woman. He called her on the phone, delivered the news, and hung up.

While Gingrich bided his time in the political wilderness, Hudson brought the Catholic right to the peak of its influence during George W. Bush’s 2004 campaign for re-election against the Catholic Democratic nominee, Senator John Kerry. A confidant of Karl Rove, Hudson became Bush’s Catholic point man, enlisting a network of antiabortion bishops to threaten their congregants with excommunication if they voted for Kerry. Meanwhile, Hudson intimidated Catholic Democrats from inside the church, persuading the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to fire a low-level employee, Ono Ekeh, for hosting a “Catholics for Kerry” event. ("If you're going to play in the sandbox," Hudson told a reporter, “then you have to take the consequences of your public utterances and your public actions.”) Hudson’s crusade worked. In 2000, Bush won 46 percent of the Catholic vote; in 2004 he carried 52 percent—a decisive swing.

But at the height of the campaign, Hudson’s own past came back to haunt him when journalist Joe Feuerherd published a lengthy story in the National Catholic Reporter about Poppas’ sexual-harassment lawsuit. Hudson responded in a column on the Web site of the National Review, casting himself as a victim of “personal attacks” intended to undermine his conservative activism, but added, “No one regrets my past mistakes more than I do.” He quit the Bush campaign soon after, and then resigned from Crisis, which is now defunct. “Every single Catholic who has ever lived has violated church doctrine,” Hudson told me. “That’s called sin. That’s my situation too—it’s a matter of public record.”

With Bush back in the White House, Gingrich ignited his comeback campaign. He focused his efforts most intensely on reaching out to the religious right, beginning with a March 2007 phone call to the country’s third most popular radio show, Focus on the Family, hosted by Dobson. A producer promptly transferred Gingrich to a studio line, and the public confession he and Dobson had planned a month earlier began.

“I believe you to be a confessing Christian and you and I have prayed together,” Dobson reminded Gingrich, “but when I heard you talk about this dark side of your life when we were in Washington, you spoke about it with a great deal of pain and anguish, but you didn't speak about repentance. Do you understand the meaning of repentance?”

With Dobson’s questioning of Gingrich’s faith, the sinner turned reflective. “They say when you're younger you want justice and when you're older you want mercy,” Gingrich said. “I also believe there are things in my own life that I have turned to God and got on my knees and prayed to God and asked for forgiveness. I don't know how you could live with yourself without breaking down and trying to find some way to deal with your own weaknesses and to go to God about them.”

Dobson seemed pleased with Gingrich’s confession and especially the image of the sorry politician on his knees before the Lord. Meanwhile, Hudson listened intently to the confessional interview. He was richly gratified. “Whether he is going to run for president or not, he has done the right thing for himself and the country,” Hudson wrote on his personal blog. “Gingrich will endure the predictable brickbats, but I admire his willingness to put this on the table, saying in effect to the country, ‘Here is who I am, and what I have done, if you still want me to run for president, I am ready.’”

After some early feints, Gingrich stayed out of the presidential race in 2008, observing it as a commentator for Fox News. (“[T]here is a gay and secular fascism in this country that wants to impose its will on the rest of us,” Gingrich warned during an on-air discussion of California’s anti-gay-marriage Proposition 8.) He would not be ready to consider running until his absolution was granted by Father Milton Jordan, the senior priest at St. Joseph’s Church in Washington.

With this act and Gingrich's subsequent conversion, Hudson said Gingrich has ratified his devotion to the “theocon” agenda. “Newt’s conversion represents about as radical a rejection of secularism and relativism as you can make,” Hudson told me.

With more than $5 million from right-wing casino baron Sheldon Adelson, Gingrich recently founded a conservative nonprofit called Renewing American Leadership. Among the group’s planned activities, which appear coordinated with a who’s who of the Christian right, are a series of “tea party”-style protests against Obama’s economic plan, and the production of a film about Pope John Paul II’s role in bringing down the Soviet Union.

According to Hudson, Gingrich’s outrage over Obama’s speech at Notre Dame was his first act as a Catholic politician. “When I learned he was about to convert, I understood his concern,” Hudson said. “He was worried about the Church he was about to enter.”

With his sins officially expunged, Gingrich appears poised to play a decisive role in the 2012 Republican presidential sweepstakes. Whether or not Gingrich declares his candidacy, Hudson, who advised John McCain in 2008 and plans to participate in the next campaign, says he believes Gingrich has consolidated his influence in the party. “[Gingrich] has gone through a change in his life through his third marriage and he has decided to settle down,” Hudson said. “You’re never too old to settle down.”

Max Blumenthal is a senior writer for The Daily Beast and writing fellow at The Nation Institute, whose book, Republican Gomorrah (Basic/Nation Books), is forthcoming in Spring 2009. Contact him at maxblumenthal3000@yahoo.com.


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Obama Campaign's Multi-Million Dollar Propaganda Firm Deployed in Iraq to Advise on "New Media"




With Iraq in ruins, Obama sends a politically connected firm, along with reps from AT&T, Google, and Twitter to build 'smart power' in Baghdad.


The U.S. State Department has announced it is sponsoring a "New Media Technology" delegation to Iraq to "explore new opportunities to support Iraqi government and non-government stakeholders in Iraq's emerging new media industry." Of all of the areas in Iraq in desperate need of attention, its "emerging new media industry" is not the one that pops to mind. Things like clean water, electricity, right of safe return for refugees and an end to the occupation seem more pressing than increasing Nouri al Maliki's Twitter followers. But unfortunately, that's how U.S. priorities in Iraq seem to work.

Anyway, the super star tech delegation, according to the State Department press release, includes "a mix of CEOs, Vice-Presidents and senior representatives" from "AT&T, Google, Twitter, Howcast, Meetup, You Tube and Automattic/Wordpress."

But the final company listed as participating in the delegation begs for some sort of special review: Blue State Digital, a firm which boasts its services were "Critically important to President Obama's victory" in the November election. Indeed, federal campaign spending records indicate that the Obama campaign paid the firm at least $2,864,138 in 2007-2008, including more than $700,000 on election day.

Blue State Digital (BSD) is a technology company founded by four former staffers from Howard Dean's 2004 presidential campaign: Clay A. Johnson, Jascha Franklin-Hodge, Joe Rospars and Ben Self. BSD, in large part, specializes in building Democratic Party campaign websites and online fundraising mechanisms, including the creation of Barack Obama's web presence for the 2008 presidential campaign and developing the my.barackobama.com concept. It has also worked for the Democratic National Committee, Bill Richardson for President, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Senate Majority Leader Senator Harry Reid and Senator John Kerry, now chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The firm has also worked for billionaire George Soros. The BSD website features a quote from Sen. Ted Kennedy praising the firm's work for him and prominently displays the Obama campaign as a test case. Blue State Digital describes the work it did for Obama as such:

Obama retained BSD to manage the online fundraising, constituency-building, issue advocacy, and peer-to-peer online networking aspects of his 2008 Presidential primary campaign. Critically important to President Obama's victory in November 2008 was his campaign's use of the BSD Online Tools Suite. The campaign utilized BSD's tools to mobilize over 3 million individual donors to contribute over $500 million online, to motivate over 2 million social networking participants, and to create and promote more than 200,000 offline events across the country.

Press reports about BSD during the campaign indicated that the firm was likely to get contract work with the Obama White House. According to the State Department's opaque description of the Iraq trip, Blue State Digital and the other firms:

will provide conceptual input as well as ideas on how new technologies can be used to build local capacity, foster greater transparency and accountability, build upon anti-corruption efforts, promote critical thinking in the classroom, scale-up civil society, and further empower local entities and individuals by providing the tools for network building. As Iraqis think about how to integrate new technology as a tool for smart power, we view this as an opportunity to invite the American technology industry to be part of this creative genesis.

During the trip the delegation will meet with representatives from the Government of Iraq, the public and private education sectors, Iraqi technology companies, and groups active in Iraqi civil society.

Let's re-read one of the above lines: "As Iraqis think about how to integrate new technology as a tool for smart power, we view this as an opportunity to invite the American technology industry to be part of this creative genesis." Putting aside that this sounds like some crap-ass Tom Cruise movie description or a brochure for some Scientology ceremony, the State Department description is so kooky and vague that one is left to guess what the end game is here. Presumably, it will eventually mean contracts for U.S. companies either with the U.S. government in Iraq or the Iraqi government.

Just because Blue State Digital was used by Obama and now is heading to Iraq where it could potentially make substantial money down the line as a contractor doesn't mean there is necessarily any conflict outside of the normal way business is done in Washington. Similar concerns could be raised about the presence on the State Department delegation of (warrantless wiretap facilitator) AT&T, which was a major corporate sponsor of the Democratic National Convention in Denver last year. (AT&T has also worked with Blue State).

"We work with Democratic candidates," Blue State says on its Facebook Page, "We are partisan in the candidates we work with." Fair enough. But imagine if the Bush White House deployed a firm in Iraq that was a major player in the Bush campaign fundraising machinery that was "partisan in the candidates" it worked with and its name was Red State Digital -- it would surely be all over the blogosphere.

Oh, and here is one final, interesting tidbit from The Times of London:

Even Karl Rove, the Republican political adviser who masterminded George W. Bush's two election wins is an admirer [of Blue State Digital], saying that the company does "good things for the wrong people".

Source: http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/137603/obama_campaign%27s_multi-million_dollar_propaganda_firm_deployed_in_iraq_to_advise_on_%22new_media%22/?page=entire

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Why is the U.S. boycotting the UN Racism Conference?


Why is the U.S. boycotting the UN Racism Conference?
Christopher J. Metzler Posted April 20, 2009 3:34 PM
FOUNDING SPONSOR

As President Obama shook hands with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, he was willing to take the political heat. He said that he was not concerned about the politics of the hand shake and more concerned about extending an open hand to nations hostile to the U.S. The open hand, it seems, is not so open after all. The President announced that, like the Bush Administration, the United States will boycott the world anti-racism conference (Durban II), which opens in Geneva today. According to the President, "I would love to be involved in a useful conference that addressed continuing issues of racism and discrimination around the globe. We expressed in the run-up to this conference our concerns that if you adopted all of the language from 2001, that's not something we can sign up for. "Hopefully some concrete steps come out of the conference that we can partner with other countries on to actually reduce discrimination around the globe, but this wasn't an opportunity to do it."


He is not willing to take the political heat in this case because there is language criticizing Israel and the West in the final document. As the world celebrates the election of the first Black President, the United States boycotts the world conference against racism. Symbolism, it seems has met political reality.

On this issue, it is difficult to reconcile the President's rhetoric with his actions. The President has repeatedly said that his policy is to talk with those with whom he disagrees. He is talking to Chavez, to Ahmadinejad, to Medvedev and Kim but cannot talk to human rights defenders about the best way to address the continuing significance of racism world wide? Surely the message cannot be that the United States does not believe that the right to be free from racism is not a basic human right.

Ostensibly, he refuses to talk because the draft document and the conference will be used as a platform to defame Israel. So, why didn't he walk out of the Summit of the Americas when Chavez presented him with the book, "The Open Veins of Latin America?"

Wasn't it this same President who on his recent trip to Europe decried American arrogance and was savaged for doing so on "foreign soil?" And gladly took the criticism.
Given this, one must ask why he is now unwilling to take the political heat by sending a delegation to the conference to counter the alleged "defamation" that will occur. The 2009 conference presents an opportunity for the United States, Israel and others to move beyond the vile and base debate about Israel and frame the debate in a manner which addresses the continuing scourge of racism worldwide. The reality is that this conference is not about Israel; it is about racism. By boycotting and encouraging other countries to do so, the United States is telling human rights defenders to defend human rights in a way that is clinical, antiseptic, and free of critiques of those you consider human rights violators. Of course, this is both an intellectual and practical oxymoron since equidistant to the defense of human rights; defenders must be free to render criticism without fear of requital. It is what defending human rights are about.

Despite representations to the contrary, the policy on multilateral engagement of the United States is now that despite the existence of a problem we will not seek solutions to human rights abuses where there will be those in attendance who will criticize Israel. If this is the case, then the President has undermined his own argument on American arrogance. No country is above reproach for the way it addresses racism including the United States, Israel, Italy, Germany, France, Canada, and others.

The President's argument is reminiscent of Eleanor Roosevelt's stratagem, when as Chair of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights; she strenuously objected to the United Nations hearing the NAACP's "An Appeal to the World," a document which detailed the scourge of racism in the United States. In fact, she threatened to resign from the NAACP's Board of Directors because she thought the petition would embarrass the United States on the world stage. The President simply cannot have it both ways; he cannot call for engaging the international community when it suits his interest and refuse to engage when it does not. It is he and his administration who have acutely criticized the most recent Bush administration's commitment to multilateral negotiations as being off target. He seeks a seat on the Human Rights Council but then chooses which human rights are worthy of U.S. attention?

"The sad truth is that countries professing to want to avoid a reprise of the contentious 2001 racism conference are now the ones triggering the collapse of a global consensus on the fight against racism," said Juliette de Rivero, Geneva advocacy director at Human Rights Watch. "As these Western governments demanded, the negotiated text for the review conference upholds freedom of expression and avoids singling out Israel. But these governments couldn't take 'yes' for an answer and are boycotting the conference anyway."


Dr. Christopher J. Metzler is associate dean at Georgetown University and the author of The The Construction and Rearticulation of Race in a Post-Racial America.



UN body OKs call to curb religious criticism


UN body OKs call to curb religious criticism


By FRANK JORDANS http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090326/ap_on_re_eu/un_un_free_speech


GENEVA (AP) — The U.N.'s top human-rights body approved a proposal backed by Muslims nations Thursday urging the passage of laws around the world protecting religion from criticism.

The proposal by Pakistan had drawn strong criticism from free-speech campaigners and liberal democracies.
A simple majority of 23 members of the 47-nation Human Rights Council voted in favor of the resolution. Eleven mostly Western nations opposed it and 13 countries abstained.

The resolution urges states to provide "protection against acts of hatred, discrimination, intimidation and coercion resulting from defamation of religions and incitement to religious hatred in general."
"It is individuals who have rights and not religions," said Canadian diplomat Terry Cormier. Canada's criticism was echoed by European Union countries, all of which voted against the proposal.

The council is dominated by Muslim and African countries. Muslim nations have argued that religions, in particular Islam, must be shielded from criticism in the media and other areas of public life. They cited cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad as an example of unacceptable free speech.

"Islam is frequently and wrongly associated with human rights violations and terrorism," the resolution said.
A coalition of more than 100 secular and faith groups had called on governments to oppose the resolution, warning that it could lead to accusations of defamation among different faiths.

The United States did not vote on the resolution because it is not a member of the council. The Bush administration announced it was virtually giving up on the body and would participate in debates only if absolutely necessary because of the council's anti-Israel statements and its failure to act on abuses in Sudan and elsewhere.

India, which normally votes along with the council's majority of developing nations, abstained in protest at the fact that Islam was the only religion specifically named as deserving protection.

India's Ambassador Gopinathan Achamkulangare said the resolution "inappropriately" linked religious criticism to racism.

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Prepare to meet thy God


Amos 4


1Hear this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to their masters, Bring, and let us drink.

2The Lord GOD hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fishhooks.

3And ye shall go out at the breaches, every cow at that which is before her; and ye shall cast them into the palace, saith the LORD.

4Come to Bethel, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years:

5And offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven, and proclaim and publish the free offerings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.

6And I also have given you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread in all your places: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

7And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered.

8So two or three cities wandered unto one city, to drink water; but they were not satisfied: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

9I have smitten you with blasting and mildew: when your gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees and your olive trees increased, the palmerworm devoured them: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

10I have sent among you the pestilence after the manner of Egypt: your young men have I slain with the sword, and have taken away your horses; and I have made the stink of your camps to come up unto your nostrils: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

11I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and ye were as a firebrand plucked out of the burning: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

12Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel: and because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.

13For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, The LORD, The God of hosts, is his name.
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The Handshake Heard (seen) Round The World

Monday, April 20, 2009

The Testimony the World Needs


You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on your hearts, to be known and read by all men. 2 Cor. 3:2, R.S.V.


Transformation of character is to be the testimony to the world of the indwelling love of Christ. The Lord expects His people to show that the redeeming power of grace can work upon the faulty character and cause it to develop in symmetry and abundant fruitfulness.

But in order for us to fulfill God's purpose, there is a preparatory work to be done. The Lord bids us empty our hearts of the selfishness which is the root of alienation. He longs to pour upon us His Holy Spirit in rich measure, and He bids us clear the way by self-renunciation. When self is surrendered to God, our eyes will be opened to see the stumbling stones which our un-Christlikeness has placed in the way of others. All these God bids us remove. He says: "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed." James 5:16. Then we may have the assurance that David had when, after confession of his sin, he prayed: "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee." Psalm 51:12, 13.



When the grace of God reigns within, the soul will be surrounded with an atmosphere of faith and courage and Christlike love, an atmosphere invigorating to the spiritual life of all who inhale it. . . . Everyone who is a partaker of Christ's pardoning love, everyone who has been enlightened by the Spirit of God and converted to the truth, will feel that for these precious blessings he owes a debt to every soul with whom he comes in contact. Those who are humble in heart the Lord will use to reach souls whom the ordained ministers cannot approach. They will be moved to speak words which reveal the saving grace of Christ.


And in blessing others they will themselves be blessed. God gives us opportunity to impart grace, that He may refill us with increased grace. Hope and faith will strengthen as the agent for God works with the talents and facilities that God has provided. He will have a divine agency to work with him.



Maranatha, E. G. White, pp. 113.


Sunday, April 19, 2009

Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother:


Zechariah 7


1And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chisleu;

2When they had sent unto the house of God Sherezer and Regemmelech, and their men, to pray before the LORD,

3And to speak unto the priests which were in the house of the LORD of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?

4Then came the word of the LORD of hosts unto me, saying,

5Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me?

6And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?

7Should ye not hear the words which the LORD hath cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, when men inhabited the south and the plain?

8And the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah, saying,

9Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother:

10And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.

11But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.

12Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts.

13Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the LORD of hosts:

14But I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations whom they knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through nor returned: for they laid the pleasant land desolate.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother:


Zechariah 7

1And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chisleu;

2When they had sent unto the house of God Sherezer and Regemmelech, and their men, to pray before the LORD,

3And to speak unto the priests which were in the house of the LORD of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?

4Then came the word of the LORD of hosts unto me, saying,

5Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me?

6And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?

7Should ye not hear the words which the LORD hath cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, when men inhabited the south and the plain?

8And the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah, saying,

9Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother:

10And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.

11But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.

12Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts.

13Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the LORD of hosts:

14But I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations whom they knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through nor returned: for they laid the pleasant land desolate.

Friday, April 17, 2009

Supermarket Big Brother: The spy in your shopping basket... but how DOES Ocado know I'm Jewish? By Hilary Freeman

Last updated at 3:33 PM on 16th April 2009

A fortnight ago, I received an unexpected seasonal greeting via email. 'Chag Sameach, Hilary,' it read - to translate, that's Hebrew for 'Happy holiday'.

Last week saw the start of the Jewish festival of Passover.

How kind, I thought, at first.
But this was no ordinary greeting. It didn't come from a friend, relative or even a colleague.
It came from Ocado, the delivery partner of Waitrose. And, rather than being a thoughtful gesture, it was actually an invitation to spend my hard-earned cash on Passover groceries.



Worrying: Hilary Freeman was surprised when Ocado, the internet arm of Waitrose, sent her a Passover greeting indicating they keep information including her Jewish ethnicity

Call me paranoid, but this direct - and ethnic - marketing ploy made me feel slightly uneasy. How on earth, I wondered, did Ocado know I was Jewish?

Had I loudly exclaimed 'Oy Vay's me!' (a Yiddish phrase, loosely meaning 'woe is me') to the delivery driver when he accidentally dropped my yoghurts? Was it my - often but not always Jewish - surname, Freeman? Or the conspicuous lack of bacon in my weekly deliveries?

After racking my brains, I decided that Ocado could only have concluded I was Jewish because I have occasionally bought fried gefilte fish balls, a Jewish delicacy, as part of my monthly shop. Now, you don't have to be Jewish to enjoy fishballs, but it helps. My non-Jewish husband finds them repellent.

Though I'm not a practising Jew, I am proud of my identity and have no wish to conceal it. Yet, it concerns me that a shop should mark me out as Jewish because I occasionally enjoy Jewish food.

Had I bought a curry, would Ocado assume I was Indian and send me 'Happy Diwali' greetings? And what else could they have concluded about me, by recording what I buy? Does the supermarket think that because I like Jewish food I must fit other racial stereotypes? Will it only be a matter of time before it sends me special offers on Woody Allen DVDs and self-help books?

As the grandchild of German Jews persecuted by the Nazis and forced to wear yellow stars before they fled to safety in Britain, being listed on any database as a Jew doesn't sit comfortably with me.



Supermarket ethnic profiling has reportedly been used by the authorities to mark out individuals for observation
What if this information were to fall into the hands of nationalists or extremists? Or what if a future government decided that people who eat fishballs are undesirables? You might think I'm over-reacting, but supermarket ethnic profiling has reportedly been used by the authorities to mark out individuals for observation.

Following the September 11 attacks, U.S. federal agents were said to have reviewed the shopping records of the terrorists involved to create a profile of ethnic tastes and shopping patterns associated with extremism.

Your online buying patterns can tell an interested party a great deal about your life
So, if the terrorists bought lots of pitta bread in the weeks before the attacks, anyone buying lots of pitta bread could in the future find themselves marked out as a potential terrorist. When store loyalty cards were introduced in the Nineties, there was a lot of concern about how the data they collated could be used to keep and disseminate private information about the public.

I remember being at a Michael Moore gig in which the film-maker invited the audience to cut up their store cards as a gesture of protest against big corporations. I'm ashamed to say I held on to my Boots card because I had £11 worth of points on it, which I was planning to cash in for a mascara.

Now that such cards have become commonplace, most people seem to have accepted them unquestioningly.

But the fact remains that every time you hand over your loyalty card, data is stored about what you've bought and how you've paid for it.
When you filled out the application form you'll have had to list such facts as your employment status and how many children you have. Buying anything online potentially has the same consequences.

The online shop will have a record of your purchases, how much you spend, where you live and how often you shop.

They'll use this to bombard you with marketing - unless you opt out - and could sell on this information to other stores. Your buying patterns can tell an interested party a great deal about your life.

My ethnicity is now on record. Sainsbury's also knows how green I am because it gives me Nectar points for every shopping bag I bring. It knows I'm time-strapped, because I buy ready chopped carrots, and that I have lots of headaches because I buy multipacks of paracetamol.

It knows I am conscious of my weight, too, because I buy skimmed milk. What does your supermarket know about you? Have you started buying nappies? You must have had a baby.

For now, this might mean that you get sent offers for toys or baby food. But imagine how this sort of information could be used in the future by a nanny state. Not buying enough fruit and veg? Your doctor could give you a lecture about making sure you eat your five a day.

And if you've been buying too many bottles of wine, you could find yourself in trouble for exceeding the healthy drinking limits - or you might even be refused NHS treatment for a liver problem. I've decided that the best way to stop the shops making assumptions about me is to subvert the system by confusing it.
I didn't buy my Passover groceries from Ocado - I bought an Easter egg instead.

And, when I make my next order, I might throw in a packet of bacon, a tin of dog food and some nappies.
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Homeland Security on guard for 'right-wing extremists'


Returning U.S. military veterans singled out as particular threats

Posted: April 12, 2009
9:40 pm Eastern

© 2009 WorldNetDaily


WASHINGTON – A newly unclassified Department of Homeland Security report warns against the possibility of violence by unnamed "right-wing extremists" concerned about illegal immigration, increasing federal power, restrictions on firearms, abortion and the loss of U.S. sovereignty and singles out returning war veterans as particular threats.

The report, titled "Right-wing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment," dated April 7, states that "threats from white supremacist and violent anti-government groups during 2009 have been largely rhetorical and have not indicated plans to carry out violent acts."

However, the document, first reported by talk-radio host and WND columnist Roger Hedgecock, goes on to suggest worsening economic woes, potential new legislative restrictions on firearms and "the return of military veterans facing significant challenges reintegrating into their communities could lead to the potential emergence of terrorist groups or lone wolf extremists capable of carrying out violent attacks."

Are you ready for a second Declaration of Independence? Sign the petition promoting true freedom once again!

The report from DHS' Office of Intelligence and Analysis defines right-wing extremism in the U.S. as "divided into those groups, movements and adherents that are primarily hate-oriented (based on hatred of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups) and those that are mainly anti-government, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration."

"[T]he consequences of a prolonged economic downturn – including real estate foreclosures, unemployment and an inability to obtain credit – could create a fertile recruiting environment for right-wing extremists and even result in confrontations between such groups and government authorities similar to those in the past," the report says.

It adds that "growth in these groups subsided in reaction to increased government scrutiny as a result of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and disrupted plots, improvements in the economy and the continued U.S. standing as the pre-eminent world power."

"Proposed imposition of firearms restrictions and weapons bans likely would attract new members into the ranks of right-wing extremist groups as well as potentially spur some of them to begin planning and training for violence against the government," the report continues. "The high volume of purchases and stockpiling of weapons and ammunition by right-wing extremists in anticipation of restrictions and bans in some parts of the country continue to be a primary concern to law enforcement."

Most notable is the report's focus on the impact of returning war veterans.

"Returning veterans possess combat skills and experience that are attractive to right-wing extremists," it says. "DHS/I&A is concerned that right-wing extremists will attempt to recruit and radicalize veterans in order to boost their violent capacities."

The report cites the April 4 shooting deaths of three police officers in Pittsburgh as an example of what may be coming, claiming the alleged gunman holds a racist ideology and believes in anti-government conspiracy theories about gun confiscations, citizen detention camps and "a Jewish-controlled 'one-world government.'"

It also suggests the election of an African-American president and the prospect of his policy changes "are proving to be a driving force for right-wing extremist recruitment and radicalization."

The report also mentions "'end times' prophecies could motivate extremist individuals and groups to stockpile food, ammunition and weapons. These teachings also have been linked with the radicalization of domestic extremist individuals and groups in the past, such as the violent Christian Identity organizations and extremist members of the militia movement."

"DHS/I&A assesses that right-wing extremist groups' frustration over a perceived lack of government action on illegal immigration has the potential to incite individuals or small groups toward violence," the report continues.

The report states the DHS will be working with state and local partners over the next several months to determine the levels of right-wing extremist activity in the U.S.

Last month, the chief of the Missouri highway patrol blasted a report issued by the Missouri Information Analysis Center that linked conservative groups to domestic terrorism, assuring that such reports no longer will be issued. The report had been compiled with the assistance of DHS.

The report warned law enforcement agencies to watch for suspicious individuals who may have bumper stickers for third-party political candidates such as Ron Paul, Bob Barr and Chuck Baldwin.

It further warned law enforcement to watch out for individuals with "radical" ideologies based on Christian views, such as opposing illegal immigration, abortion and federal taxes.

Chief James Keathley of the Missouri State Patrol issued a statement that the release of the report, which outraged conservatives nationwide, prompted him to "take a hard look" at the procedures through which the report was released by the MIAC.

"My review of the procedures used by the MIAC in the three years since its inception indicates that the mechanism in place for oversight of reports needs improvement," he wrote. "Until two weeks ago, the process for release of reports from the MIAC to law enforcement officers around the state required no review by leaders of the Missouri State Highway Patrol or the Department of Public Safety."

"For that reason, I have ordered the MIAC to permanently cease distribution of the militia report," he said. "Further, I am creating a new process for oversight of reports drafted by the MIAC that will require leaders of the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Department of Public Safety to review the content of these reports before they are shared with law enforcement. My office will also undertake a review of the origin of the report by MIAC."


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Economic survivalists take root

Patrick and Melissa Wojtowicz play Scrabble with daughter Gabrielle, 15, left, and her friend Brittney Watson, foreground. They've made family time a higher priority.

By Al Goldis for USA TODAY

By Al Goldis for USA TODAY
Gabrielle Wojtowicz, left, and her father Patrick feed animals on their 40 acres near Alma, Mich

Economic survivalists take root

FRUGAL FAMILY CHALLENGE
SPECIAL REPORT: Tips on trimming your budget for everyday expenses; video

Updated
2d 9h ago

By Judy Keen, USA TODAY

When the economy started to squeeze the Wojtowicz family, they gave up vacation cruises, restaurant meals, new clothes and high-tech toys to become 21st-century homesteaders.

Now Patrick Wojtowicz, 36, his wife Melissa, 37, and daughter Gabrielle, 15, raise pigs and chickens for food on 40 acres near Alma, Mich. They're planning a garden and installing a wood furnace. They disconnected the satellite TV and radio, ditched their dishwasher and a big truck and started buying clothes at resale shops.

PHOTO GALLERY: A survivalist family

"As long as we can keep decreasing our bills, we can keep making less money," Patrick says. "We're not saying this is right for everybody, but it's right for us."
Hard times are creating economic survivalists such as the Wojtowicz family who are paring expenses by becoming more self-sufficient.

Reviving "almost lost" skills and preparing for tough days make people feel more in control, says Charlotte Richert, consumer sciences educator for Oklahoma State University's Extension Service in Tulsa County.

Karen Gulliver, MBA program chair at Argosy University in Eagan, Minn., expects the movement to grow as the sour economy forces people to reassess priorities. People are asking, "Do I really want to be 100% vulnerable with no self-sufficiency skills if something happens?" she says.
Some signs of the trend:

•Stockpiling. When the stock market drops, orders surge for freeze-dried food, survival kits and emergency supplies, says Nitro-Pak president Harry Weyandt. One best seller: a $3,375 food reserve that feeds four people for three months.

•Gardening. Sales of vegetable seeds and transplants are up 30% from 2008 at W. Atlee Burpee, the USA's largest seed company. The National Gardening Association says 7 million more households will grow food this year than in 2008 — a 19% rise. A book on building root cellars is the top seller at Johnny's Selected Seeds in Winslow, Maine, supervisor Joann Matuzas says.

•Canning. Jarden Corp. says sales of its Ball and Kerr canning and preserving products are up more than 30% from 2008. Sonya Staffan, owner of The Jam and Jelly Lady commercial cannery in Lebanon, Ohio, is offering twice as many classes this year.

•Sewing. More people are learning to sew so they can mend clothes and make home décor, says Rachel Cohen, spokeswoman for SVP Worldwide, owner of sewing-products makers Singer and Husqvarna Viking.

•Relocating. Steve Saltman, general manager of LandAndFarm.com, a national real estate company, says more customers want to "live simply in a less-expensive place." Jonathan Rawles of SurvivalRealty.com says more people moving to rural areas "are specifically worried about economic and social instability."

Patrick Wojtowicz's family decided to transform their lives when his paycheck began to shrink last year. A truck driver, he was spending more time on the road, paying his own expenses while waiting for loads. He disliked being away from home for weeks at a time and worried about losing his job. Melissa Wojtowicz is self-employed and works from home.

Their dual paychecks allowed them to live comfortably, but they weren't satisfied, Patrick says. "We would basically buy stuff to feel good," he says. "When that stuff stopped filling the voids we had, we started analyzing what it was that we were really missing. We were missing being around each other."

The Wojtowiczes made a list of the things they could give up if Patrick quit his job and they relied on Melissa's income. They already lived in a house on property Patrick inherited from his father a few years ago.

Gabrielle "put up enough resistance to qualify as being a teenager," Patrick says, but soon she was reminding her parents to turn off lights to save electricity.

Steps such as that, and keeping the thermostat set on 63 degrees this winter, cut monthly electric bills from $300 to $150, Patrick says. He hunts deer and turkeys. Instead of buying books and going to movies, they visit the library weekly. For Christmas, they got canning gear so they can preserve the food they grow.

"The earn, spend, earn era has come to an end for us," he says on truenorthfound.blogspot.com, their blog. "The idea of living a fuller, more satisfying life seems simple to us now. ... Money, cash, credit, maybe they don't matter. Maybe, just maybe, it is those things that impede our ability to be truly happy."

Whatever happens to the economy, the Wojtowicz family hopes to remain self-sufficient. Instead of spending their tax refund, as they usually did, they used it to pay down debt. They stopped using credit cards and they're trying to build up savings. "I'm working harder than ever," Patrick says, "but it's more satisfying work and ... it's much easier to sleep at night."

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A Character the World will Recognize


That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world. Phil. 2:15.


It is God's purpose to manifest through His people the principles of His kingdom. That in life and character they may reveal these principles, He desires to separate them from the customs, habits, and practices of the world. . . . By beholding the goodness, the mercy, the justice, and the love of God revealed in His church, the world is to have a representation of His character. And when the law of God is thus exemplified in the life, even the world will recognize the superiority of those who love and fear and serve God above every other people in the world.

Seventh-day Adventists, above all people, should be patterns of piety, holy in heart and in conversation. To them have been entrusted the most solemn truths ever committed to mortals. Every endowment of grace and power and efficiency has been liberally provided. They look for the near return of Christ in the clouds of heaven. For them to give to the world the impression that their faith is not a dominating power in their lives is greatly to dishonor God.

Because of the increasing power of Satan's temptations, the times in which we live are full of peril for the children of God, and we need to learn constantly of the Great Teacher, that we may take every step in surety and righteousness. Wonderful scenes are opening before us; and at this time a living testimony is to be borne in the lives of God's professed people, so that the world may see that in this age, when evil reigns on every side, there is yet a people who are laying aside their will and are seeking to do God's will--a people in whose hearts and lives God's law is written. . . .

Their thoughts are to be pure, their words noble and uplifting. The religion of Christ is to be interwoven with all that they do and say. They are to be a sanctified, purified, holy people, communicating light to all with whom they come in contact. It is His purpose that by exemplifying the truth in their lives, they shall be a praise in the earth. The grace of Christ is sufficient to bring this about.
Maranatha, E. G. White, pp.113.
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I Shall Be Whiter than Snow


Lord Jesus, I long to be perfectly whole;
I want Thee forever to live in my soul;
Break down every idol, cast out every foe—
Now wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Refrain:
Whiter than snow, yes, whiter than snow,
Now wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.


Lord Jesus, let nothing unholy remain,
Apply Thine own blood and extract every stain;
To get this blest cleansing, I all things forego—
Now wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.



Lord Jesus, look down from Thy throne in the skies,
And help me to make a complete sacrifice;
I give up myself, and whatever I know—
Now wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.


Lord Jesus, for this I most humbly entreat,
I wait, blessed Lord, at Thy crucified feet,
By faith for my cleansing, I see thy blood flow—
Now wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.


Lord Jesus, Thou seest I patiently wait;
Come now and within me a new heart create;
To those who have sought Thee Thou never said’st “No”—
Now wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.


The blessing by faith, I receive from above;
Oh, glory! my soul is made perfect in love;
My prayer has prevailed, and this moment I know,
The blood is applied, I am whiter than snow.



James L. Nicholson, 1872
Copyright: Public Domain
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Main subject: Altar Service
Scripture: Psalm 51:7
I Shall Be Whiter than Snow
William G. Fischer, pub.1911
Copyright: Public Domain
I Shall Be Whiter than Snow
William G. Fischer
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