Alternative Treatments for Sleep Disorders (2): Relaxation and Meditation for Sleep Disorders
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Increased muscle tension and intrusive thoughts interfere with sleep. Therefore, it is not surprising that techniques aimed at relaxing muscles (progressive muscle relaxation and biofeedback) and quieting the mind (meditation) have been effective treatments for insomnia. Most people can learn these techniques but it usually takes several weeks before they can master them well enough to help ease insomnia. There is a growing body of evidence that supports the value of meditation in treating insomnia. Several studies show that regular meditation, either alone or as a part of a yoga session, results in higher blood levels of melatonin, an important regulator of sleep.
Exercise for Sleep Disorders
Regular exercise deepens sleep in young adults whether or not they have trouble sleeping. In addition, several studies show that exercise can improve sleep in older people. Recent studies show that even low-to-moderate tai chi can improve the quality of sleep for older people while Tibetan yoga exercises can help cancer patients with sleep problems. Although consistent exercise has been shown to improve sleep quality, most experts advise completing exercise at least three to four hours before bedtime to avoid interference with sleep.
Warnings About Alternative Therapies
Alternative therapies are not always benign and some herbal therapies can interact with other medications you may be taking. Consider the following points before starting alternative therapy:
always talk to your doctor before trying an alternative approach and tell your doctor what alternative treatments you are using.
if you experience side effects such as nausea, vomiting, rapid heartbeat, anxiety, diarrhea, or skin rashes, stop taking the herbal product and notify your doctor immediately.
avoid preparations made with more than one herb.
beware of commercial claims made for herbal products. Look for scientific-based sources of information.
select brands carefully. Only buy brands that list the common and scientific name of the herb, the name and address of the manufacturer, a batch and lot number, expiration date, dosage guidelines, and potential side effects.
A health treatment that is not classified as conventional western medical practice is referred to as an "alternative" or "complementary" therapy, although a strict definition of complementary medicine implies that it is alternative medicine taken along with conventional treatments. Alternative medicine, also called alternative therapy, encompasses a variety of disciplines that include everything from diet and exercise to mental conditioning and lifestyle changes. Examples of alternative therapies include acupuncture, guided imagery, yoga, hypnosis, biofeedback, aromatherapy, relaxation, herbal remedies, massage, and many others.
Some complementary and alternative therapies used to treat insomnia include supplements, relaxation and meditation, acupuncture, and exercise.
Supplements for Sleep Disorders
Herbal Treatments
The effects of the root of valerian (Valeriana officinalis) on sleep have been examined in people with sleep disorders. Some studies have suggested that valerian helps with the onset of sleep and with sleep maintenance. However, more research is needed before a final conclusion can be made about the safety and effectiveness of valerian for insomnia.
Chamomile and passionflower are other herbs commonly used in the treatment of insomnia but there has been no clinical investigation to support their use and long term safety.
Other herbs promoted as effective sleep remedies include hops, ginseng, lemon balm, and skullcap. The German government has approved certain herbs (valerian, hops, and lemon balm) for the relief of sleep problems. However, clinical studies to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of herbs are scarce. More information is needed before these herbs can be recommended as a first line of treatment for insomnia.
Since herbal supplements can interact with certain medications, always tell your doctor if you are using any herbal supplements. Melatonin
Melatonin is a hormone that is synthesized by the pineal gland in humans and produced in animals as well as plants. Although the effects of melatonin are complex and poorly understood, it plays a critical role in the regulation of your sleeping and waking cycle and other circadian rhythms. Melatonin has been studied as a possible treatment of circadian rhythm disorders and may be helpful in reducing sleep disturbances caused by jet lag.
Adverse effects of melatonin are minimal but long-term studies examining the effectiveness and toxicity of melatonin supplements are needed.
Acupuncture for Sleep Disorders
Acupuncture is often used in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of insomnia and other sleep disorders. This procedure involves the insertion of very fine needles (sometimes in combination with a small electrical stimulus or with heat produced by burning specific herbs) into the skin at specific acupuncture points in order to influence the functioning of the body. The results of recent preliminary clinical trials of acupuncture have indicated improvements in sleep quality in people with insomnia. However, additional research is required before the effectiveness of acupuncture is proven conclusively for the relief of insomnia.
Tiger Woods and the Florida Highway Patrol met at an undisclosed location in Orlando on Dec. 1, the same day that authorities closed their investigation into the golfer's one-car crash outside his mansion, WESH-TV reported Wednesday.
Woods, who was cited for careless driving but not charged criminally, was issued a $164 citation when he met with the highway patrol, Sgt. Kim Montes told the Orlando TV station.
The FHP also wanted to see if Woods suffered any injuries that would not have been consistent with his accident, Montes told WESH. Two captains, a trooper, Woods and Woods' attorney Mark NeJame were present for the meeting, Montes said.
Woods had a "fat lip," but no other visible injuries and officers had no reason to believe the golfer was a victim of domestic violence, Montes told WESH-TV.
Woods was "polite," said "yes sir," made "no other small talk and signed the ticket," Montes said, according to WESH.
At the time the FHP closed its investigation, Montes said the patrol "is not pursuing criminal charges in this matter nor is there any testimony or other evidence to support any additional charges of any kind other than the charge of careless driving."
According to an accident report, Woods crashed his SUV into a fire hydrant and a tree at 2:25 a.m. on Nov. 27. The airbags did not deploy and Woods' wife, Elin Nordegren, told Windermere police she used a golf club to smash the back windows to help him out.
Authorities sought to interview Woods and his wife on several occasions in the days following the accident but were rebuffed each time.
Woods' crash came two days after The National Enquirer published a story alleging that Woods had been seeing a New York nightclub hostess. Tabloids and gossip Web sites fueled speculation about the events leading up to the accident, including that there may have been a domestic dispute between Woods and his wife.
In the days that followed, reports of Woods' multiple alleged infidelities surfaced. One woman who said she had a 31-month affair with Woods shared a voice mail that she said Woods left her two nights before his accident.
On Dec. 11, Woods announced he was taking an indefinite leave from the sport to work on his marriage, saying he was aware of the "hurt that my infidelity has caused to so many people, most of all my wife and children."
The following week, multiple media outlets reported that Woods' wife would seek a divorce. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
KABUL – The Taliban claimed responsibility Thursday for a suicide bombing at a base in eastern Afghanistan that killed eight American civilians and one Afghan, the worst loss of life for the U.S. in the country since October. A U.S. congressional official said CIA employees are believed to be among the victims.
Separately, four Canadian soldiers and a journalist imbedded in their unit were killed Wednesday by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan's south, the bloodiest single incident suffered by that country's military in 2009.
Michelle Lang, a 34-year-old health reporter with the Calgary Herald, was the first Canadian journalist to die in Afghanistan. She arrived in the country just two weeks ago.
It was not immediately clear how the suicide bomber at the base at the edge of Khost city was able to circumvent security.
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in a statement that an Afghan National Army officer wearing a suicide vest entered the base Wednesday and blew himself up inside the gym. A U.S. official who was briefed on the blast also said it took place in the gym.
Khost is the capital of Khost province, which borders Pakistan and is a Taliban stronghold.
The U.S. official said eight American civilians and one Afghan were killed; it was not clear if the Afghan victim was military or civilian. Six Americans were wounded, the official said.
The CIA has not yet commented on or confirmed the deaths.
There was no independent confirmation that the bomber was a member of the Afghan military. Gen. Mohammad Zahir Azimi, spokesman for the Afghan Ministry of Defense, said no Afghan National Army soldiers are at the base, named FOB Chapman.
But an Afghan official in Khost said about 200 Afghans have been contracted by the U.S. to take care of security at the base. They are usually deployed on the outer ring of its walls, although some work inside, the official said on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.
"It's not the first time that Afghan forces have conducted such an attack to kill Americans or foreigners," the Taliban statement said, citing the killing of an American soldier and the wounding of two Italians this week in Badghis province. NATO has provided no details of that incident, but Afghan Gen. Jalander Shah Bahnam said an Afghan soldier opened fire on a base in the province's Bala Murghab district.
The congressional official in Washington said it was not clear how many of the victims in Khost were assigned to the CIA.
A senior State Department official said all of the victims were civilians. A former senior CIA officer who was stationed at the base said a combination of agency officers and contractors operated out of the remote outpost with the military and other agencies. He said contractors also might be among those who died.
All the U.S. officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter with the media.
NATO said only that the base is used by provincial reconstruction teams, which consist of both soldiers and civilians, and other personnel.
A spokesman in Kabul for the international coalition force said no U.S. or NATO troops were killed in the afternoon explosion. The attack was the bloodiest for Americans since eight soldiers were killed in an insurgent attack on a base in eastern Afghanistan on Oct. 3.
In the south, NATO said the four Canadian troops and the reporter died when their armored vehicle hit a bomb while on an afternoon patrol south of Kandahar city. It was the third-deadliest day for Canadians in Afghanistan since the war began.
Michelle Lang "was one of those journalists who always wanted to get to the bottom of every story so this was an important trip for her," said a Calgary Herald colleague, Colette Derworiz.
The military has not disclosed the names of the Canadian troops because relatives have not all been notified.
"We are all very saddened to hear this tragic news," Alberta Health and Wellness Minister Ron Liepert said in a statement. "Michelle covered health issues with professionalism, accuracy and thoroughness. She was tenacious in her quest to inform Albertans, and for her diligence she was very well respected."
Brig. Gen. Daniel Menard, commander of coalition forces in Kandahar, said the soldiers were conducting a community security patrol in order to gather information about daily life in the area and how to maintain security.
Wednesday's attack was the second lethal strike against Canadian forces in a week. One Canadian soldier and an Afghan soldier were killed Dec. 23 during a foot patrol in Panjwayi district of Kandahar province. According to figures compiled by The Associated Press, the latest casualties bring to 32 the number of Canadian forces killed in Afghanistan this year; in all, 138 have died in the war.
Separately Wednesday, NATO questioned Afghan reports that international troops killed 10 civilians, including children, in a weekend attack that prompted hundreds of angry Afghan protesters to burn an effigy of President Barack Obama and chant "death" to America.
The head of an investigative team appointed by President Hamid Karzai told The Associated Press that eight students between the ages of 12 and 14 were among the dead discovered in a village house in a remote section of Kunar province in eastern Afghanistan. NATO said late Wednesday that while there was no direct evidence to substantiate the claims, the international force had requested and welcomed a joint investigation to reach an "impartial and accurate determination" of what happened in the attack.
Conflicting accounts of what occurred during the fighting in Kunar's Narang district prompted an emotional outcry over civilian deaths, one of the most sensitive issues for international troops fighting the more than eight-year-old war. Although insurgents are responsible for the deaths of far more civilians, those blamed on coalition forces spark the most resentment and undermine the fight against militants. With 37,000 more U.S. and NATO troops being deployed to the battle zone, concern over civilian casualties is unlikely to ease anytime soon.
Several hundred Afghans demonstrated in Kabul and in the eastern city of Jalalabad, where the likeness of Obama, adorned with a small American flag, was burned on a pole held above demonstrators.
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Associated Press writers Deb Riechmann and Jim Heintz in Kabul; Matthew Lee, Pam Hess and Pauline Jelinek in Washington, and Adam Goldman in New York City contributed to this report.
Russia's space agency chief said Wednesday a spacecraft may be dispatched to knock a large asteroid off course and reduce the chances of earth impact, even though U.S. scientists say such a scenario is unlikely.
Anatoly Perminov told Golos Rossii radio the space agency would hold a meeting soon to assess a mission to Apophis. He said his agency might eventually invite NASA, the European Space Agency, the Chinese space agency and others to join the project.
When the 270-meter (885-foot) asteroid was first discovered in 2004, astronomers estimated its chances of smashing into Earth in its first flyby, in 2029, at 1-in-37.
Further studies have ruled out the possibility of an impact in 2029, when the asteroid is expected to come no closer than 18,300 miles (29,450 kilometers) from Earth's surface, but they indicated a small possibility of a hit on subsequent encounters.
NASA had put the chances that Apophis could hit Earth in 2036 as 1-in-45,000. In October, after researchers recalculated the asteroid's path, the agency changed its estimate to 1-in-250,000.
NASA said another close encounter in 2068 will involve a 1-in-330,000 chance of impact.
Don Yeomans, who heads NASA's Near-Earth Object Program, said better calculations of Apophis' path in several years "will almost certainly remove any possibility of an Earth collision" in 2036.
"While Apophis is almost certainly not a problem, I am encouraged that the Russian science community is willing to study the various deflection options that would be available in the event of a future Earth threatening encounter by an asteroid," Yeomans said in an e-mail Wednesday.
Without mentioning NASA's conclusions, Perminov said that he heard from a scientist that Apophis is getting closer and may hit the planet. "I don't remember exactly, but it seems to me it could hit the Earth by 2032," Perminov said.
"People's lives are at stake. We should pay several hundred million dollars and build a system that would allow us to prevent a collision, rather than sit and wait for it to happen and kill hundreds of thousands of people," Perminov said.
Scientists have long theorized about asteroid deflection strategies. Some have proposed sending a probe to circle around a dangerous asteroid to gradually change its trajectory. Others suggested sending a spacecraft to collide with the asteroid and alter its momentum, or hitting it with nuclear weapons.
Perminov wouldn't disclose any details of the project, saying they still need to be worked out. But he said the mission wouldn't require any nuclear explosions.
Hollywood action films "Deep Impact" and "Armageddon," have featured space missions scrambling to avoid catastrophic collisions. In both movies, space crews use nuclear bombs in an attempt to prevent collisions.
"Calculations show that it's possible to create a special purpose spacecraft within the time we have, which would help avoid the collision," Perminov said. "The threat of collision can be averted."
Boris Shustov, the director of the Institute of Astronomy under the Russian Academy of Sciences, hailed Perminov's statement as a signal that officials had come to recognize the danger posed by asteroids.
"Apophis is just a symbolic example, there are many other dangerous objects we know little about," he said, according to RIA Novosti news agency.
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AP Science Writer Alicia Chang contributed to this story from Los Angeles.
8 Winter Tips for Healthy Living A better diet, a little more exercise - healthy living is easy if you take it one tip at a time.
Friday, December 25, 2009
You do! Resolve to follow these eight diet, exercise, and lifestyle tips, and you can be good to yourself this winter - and all year long.
1. Enjoy the Benefits of Yogurt
It's creamy smooth, packed with flavor -- and just may be the wonder food you've been craving. Research suggests that that humble carton of yogurt may:
Help prevent osteoporosis
Reduce your risk of high blood pressure
Aid gastrointestinal conditions like inflammatory bowel disease and constipation
Ready to take home a few cartons of yummy yogurt? When buying think low-fat, make sure the yogurt contains active cultures and vitamin D, and keep tabs on sugar content.
2. Help Holiday Heartburn
Getting hit with heartburn over the holidays? Help is at hand! Try these hints and you can stop the burn before it starts: Nibble: Enjoy your favorite foods -- but in moderation. No need to heap on the goodies (or go back for seconds and thirds!). Packing your stomach with food makes heartburn much more likely. Know Your Triggers: Certain foods feed heartburn's flame. Typical triggers include foods full of sugar and fat -- think pumpkin pie slathered with whipped cream. Instead reach for complex carbs like veggies and whole-wheat breads -- or at least share that dessert! Get Up: Stretching out for a nap post-meal is a great way to guarantee you'll get reflux. Instead, keep your head higher than your stomach -- or keep right on walking, away from the dinner table and out the door. Light exercise is a great way to prevent heartburn.
3. Kiss Holiday Cold Sores Good-bye
Holidays: That busy time for toasting the coming year, savoring seasonal sweets, staying up late -- and cold sores?
If you find you're more prone to cold sores (also called fever blisters) during the hectic holiday season, you may be your own worst enemy. That's because lack of sleep, too much alcohol or sugar, stress, and close physical contact (think auntie's smooches) can all contribute to outbreaks.
So, to help keep your kisser cold-sore-free this year -- or to keep from passing your cold sores to others -- try these tips:
Don't overdo the holiday goodies -- maintain a healthy diet.
Get plenty of rest.
Wash your hands.
Don't share food or drink containers.
Discard used tissues.
Don't kiss on or near anyone's cold sore -- and don't let them near yours!
4. De-Stress With Meditation
The bad weather, the seasonal pace, work: If this time of year has your stress meter spiking, it may be time to close your eyes, breathe ... and get a little repetitive.
Repetition is at the heart of meditation's soothing power. The act of banishing thoughts, focusing on your breathing, and repeating a single word or phrase, fires up your body's natural relaxation response.
And meditation can do more than soothe away stress. Research shows it may help lower blood pressure, boost immunity, reduce PMS symptoms, even aid in fertility and the delivery of a new mom's milk.
Boeing Looks Beyond Dreamliner's First Flight Difficult Process Begins of Moving Cutting-Edge Prototype Toward Mass Production
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Boeing Co.'s 787 Dreamliner on Tuesday made its first flight, marking a success for the company after two years of delays but setting up an equally challenging drive to churn out large numbers of the cutting-edge aircraft.
Thousands of spectators gathered under cloudy skies at Paine Field here, cheering as the blue-and-white-striped jet lifted off the runway for its maiden flight. "It's great to finally get the plane in the air," said Boeing Chairman and Chief Executive Jim McNerney.
But the repeated setbacks have pushed the company into a tight spot: Now it must quickly turn a cutting-edge prototype into a mass-produced money maker.
10:06
Boeing's long-delayed Dreamliner took its first flight, but faces a number of additional challenges. WSJ's Peter Sanders and Dow Jones's Steve Wisnefski discuss, in the News Hub.
"Ramping up production certainly will be a challenge," said Mr. McNerney. Boeing hopes to produce seven Dreamliners a month by 2011, increasing to 10 a month by 2013.
The company's ability to achieve that goal will have a huge impact on the commercial-aviation industry world-wide.
The Dreamliner's more than 300 global suppliers won't begin to fully recoup their money until the planes are delivered to customers.
Many suppliers have already been squeezed by past delays. And airlines and leasing firms, which have ordered 865 of the aircraft, are counting on Boeing to make its new production target so they can plan routes and service.
The delays have already caused Boeing—the single largest exporter from the U.S. and long a symbol of American engineering prowess—to bleed cash. The Chicago-based aerospace giant swung to a $1.6 billion third-quarter loss after posting a $3.5 billion write-down attributed to problems with the Dreamliner and another jetliner program. The missed delivery dates have set off payments of millions in penalties and dented the company's credibility with customers and investors.
Boeing has staked much of its future on the pioneering aircraft. It is the first-ever commercial jet to be built half out of strong-but-lightweight carbon-fiber composite material, which the company promises will make the Dreamliner more fuel-efficient and durable than current models. That prospect played well with customers.
The plane, with a list price of more than $160 million, has received more orders ahead of its first flight than for any jetliner in history.
By any measure, even Boeing's seven-planes-a-month production target is ambitious. After 14 years of producing the larger, aluminum-shelled 777 model, Boeing only this year got on track to deliver more than seven of that aircraft a month.
On top of that, the 787 marks the first time that Boeing is trying to manufacture an aircraft made largely out of composite material, the novelty of which has already led to glitches. Boeing in June abruptly postponed what was supposed to be the first flight, disclosing that composites around where the wings meet the main fuselage were damaged. It took nearly six months to fix the problem.
The Dreamliner also must run through an elaborate test-flight program before the Federal Aviation Administration will clear the aircraft to carry passengers. In a sign of the challenges involved,
Boeing shortened the planned four-hour flight by an hour because of bad weather.
Boeing's European rival, Airbus, ran into manufacturing problems when it was attempting to push out its A380 superjumbo.
"Flying was the simplest part," Airbus Chief Executive Tom Enders said of the A380. "The hard part was the complexity of industrialization."
Airbus, a unit of European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co., has faced more than four years of delays on the superjumbo because its manufacturing systems weren't robust enough to meet the two-deck plane's heavy industrial demands. Two years after A380 deliveries started, Airbus officials say the plane's production costs still outstrip its selling price.
From the Dreamliner's conception early this decade, Boeing planned to keep customization to a minimum "to make sure it wasn't a boutique plane," said James Albaugh, the head of the company's commercial-aircraft unit. The company now is intensely focused on "what it's going to take to ramp our production up."
When Boeing set out to build the Dreamliner, it chose to outsource much of the production to firms based as far away as Italy and Japan.
But Boeing had a hard time keeping on top of such a vast network of suppliers. In addition, the many delays strained its relations with some key suppliers.
"The critical issue is not that Boeing isn't going to have a successful flight test," Marshall Larsen, CEO of supplier Goodrich Corp., said earlier this year. "It's that the Goodriches of the world successfully support Boeing in getting the aircraft into service." Goodrich, based in Charlotte, N.C., produces major elements of the Dreamliner and the A380, including the 787's brakes and thrust reversers.
"We really have to focus on making sure we have a supply chain that delivers on what we promised," Mr. Albaugh said. "We know there are going to be changes along the way, and we just have to make sure we minimize disruptions on the factory floor."
One of Boeing's key 787 suppliers, Spirit AeroSystems Holdings Inc. of Wichita, Kan., said it is eager finally to increase production after years of fits and starts.
"We're really excited to get past first flight and get to the next phase and really get into production," said Spirit spokeswoman Deborah Gann. "We're looking forward to getting more regularity with the 787 and think there are lots of improvements on that process that we can continue to make." Write to Peter Sanders at peter.sanders@wsj.com and Daniel Michaels at daniel.michaels@wsj.com
Biz Break: Craig trusted Meg, but didn't get eBay promises in writing
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Craigslist founder Craig Newmark testifies in the legal dispute between his company and eBay. Apple files a countersuit against Nokia. Target opens a temporary store in the heart of San Francisco. Plus: Silicon Valley tech stocks.
Craig: Meg's promises weren't in writing
Craigslist founder Craig Newmark said eBay broke promises former CEO Meg Whitman made before the San Jose online auction powerhouse bought a minority stake in the San Francisco classified-ad site. But he acknowledged in court today that eBay never put those promises into writing.
"If it ain't in the document, you don't get to rely on it, right?" eBay attorney Michael Rhodes asked, according to our friends at The Associated Press.
"That's what these documents say," Newmark replied, according to AP.
Newmark also testified that he didn't complain because that would have been the responsibility of Craigslist's lawyer or CEO Jim Buckmaster.
The dispute between eBay and Craigslist is being heard in a Georgetown, Del., courtroom. EBay contends its minority stake in Craigslist was unfairly diluted. In a countersuit, Craigslist charges that eBay used secret information gained from the deal to start a rival classified-ad site.
Former eBay CEO Whitman is now a Republican candidate for governor of California.
Speaking of legal disputes, Apple, the Cupertino maker of iPhones, iPods and "I'm a Mac" computers, has filed a countersuit against Finnish cell phone maker Nokia.
According to AP, Apple's suit, filed in federal court Delaware, claims Nokia violated 13 Apple patents and contends Nokia tried to "copy the iPhone."
In October, Nokia sued Apple, contending the iPhone maker violated 10 Nokia patents.
Temporary Target in S.F.
Discount retailer Target — which usually operates out of big-box stores surrounded by acres of free parking — is opening three "Target To-Go" stores this weekend in the hearts of three urban areas: in San Francisco, New York and Washington, D.C.
According to a Bloomberg News report, the stores let Target test the market before committing to opening a permanent location in a more expensive urban location.
The San Francisco Target To-Go — at Mint Plaza on Fifth Street between Market and Mission Streets — will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. today, Saturday and Sunday only.
Target will offer a limited selection of 50 holiday items, according to Bloomberg, ranging from 99-cent ornaments to Sony's PSP go video game player.
Silicon Valley tech stocks
Up: Oracle, Gilead Sciences, eBay, Yahoo.
Kaufman Brothers raised its rating on shares of Sunnyvale Internet content powerhouse Yahoo to "buy" from "hold," according to Bloomberg. Yahoo closed at $15.74, up 25 cents, or 1.6 percent.
Down: Google, Apple, Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Adobe Systems.
The blue chip Dow Jones industrial average: Up 65.67, or 0.6 percent, to 10,471.50.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index: Down 0.55 to 2,190.31.
And the widely watched Standard & Poor's 500 index: Up 4.06, or 0.4 percent, to 2,190.31.
Getting the world's richest and poorest nations to cut a deal on climate control that both sides can live with has never been easy. This was evident again when Sudanese ambassador Lumumba Stanislaus Dia Ping who represents 130 countries in a bloc called the Group of 77 and China flatly called a preliminary draft of a policy document on climate control at the Copenhagen climate conference racist and imperialist.
Ping's strident name call is overblown and hyperbole. But his troubling point that industrial production and expansion has driven Western economic plenty isn't. And that to change the game and impose restrictions on industrial growth at the expense of poor nations seems unfair, especially if rich nations aren't willing to dole out the billions that they promised to aid the poor nations combat grinding poverty and boost economic growth.
Ping's blast at the rich nations for dragging their feet on aid to the poor nations is hardly new. Third World leaders have long charged that clamping tight caps on carbon emissions will make it almost impossible for the poorest nations to catch up with the West. By every measure of economic well-being, employment, technology, industry, and national GDP, the imbalance between the haves and have not nations is staggering. When the poor nations demand monies from the rich nations as the price for cutting a deal on climate control they are assailed as obstructionist, selfish, and fatalist on combating global warming and pollution. Third World leaders agree that global warming is a danger. It threatens their water supplies, forests, crops, rivers, and the seas that border their nations. The decades of colonial rule, economic exploitation, the systematic gut of their resources, and crushing debt, have stripped these nations of the resources to combat the threat.
The conflict over how best to balance climate control measures with Third World economic uplift exploded in bitter exchanges at a preliminary conference in Bangkok, Thailand in October. Third World delegates accused the rich nations of trying to wiggle out of their commitment to provide nearly $100 billion to a global donor's fund to aid poor nations promote economic development and growth. The European Union initially pledged to pump $15 billion into the fund by 2020. The Copenhagen conference has an added sense of urgency since the Kyoto Protocol Accords on climate control run out in 2012. Kyoto established the basis for a global warming control agreement.
The US and China are the world's two biggest carbon emitters. Yet they have not contributed a dime to the global fund so far. The Bush administration opposed Kyoto. Bush claimed that the treaty was unfair as its legally-binding provisions for curbing carbon emissions apply only to rich economies, not developing countries. But Bush was deeply influenced by the drumbeat conservative attacks on global warming as a hoax and part of the liberal agenda to retard US industrial growth. The Obama administration is under heavy pressure to reverse Bush policy on Kyoto and drastically cut greenhouse emissions as well as to contribute billions to the global fund for the poor nations.
While China does not slough off the global warming threat, it's still a developing nation, and has a huge vested interest in watering down any effort to place restrictions on emissions from its expanding plants and factories. China so far has opposed the effort to place a "peak" year on capping carbon emissions.
The charge of imperialism and racism aside poor nations will push the US Europe, and Japan hard at the Copenhagen conference not only to come up with ways to clean up the air that they pollute and heated up the planet with but also to strike an accord that does not do further damage to the tottering economies of the poorest of poor nations. They rich industrial nations did the damage to the earth and the economies of poor nations. The burden is on them to undue it. They must fulfill their pledge to shell out the money that they promised to boost poor nations. That's literally the price to make Copenhagen a true success for the planet.
Cash is the key to unlocking the grand climate bargain between the rich and poor world, as was apparent even before the brokering had got under way in Copenhagen. At the end of the first week of talking, this reality has become even starker, for a whole host of reasons.
For one thing, the first world is resisting moving things forward through the power of its own example. The European Council yesterday failed to make any immediate advance on its original offer of a 20% emissions reduction. This despite Gordon Brown's hope that Europe might soon firm up its more tentative talk of a 30% cut. In the absence of action, money will have to do even more of the talking. The indicative offers from developing countries are rather more encouraging – the environmental consultancy Ecofys suggests they are broadly in line with what the scientists demand – but these offers come with financial strings attached, making assistance still more important. Developing countries reject the rich world's tendency to brand such funds as aid, regarding them as reparations incurred by the globe's north for creating a problem which will do most damage in the south. The strength of the feelings showed, when a top negotiator on behalf of the poor countries dubbed Mr Brown worse than a climate-change denier for having squandered all the money on the banks.
It was thus a significant moment when the European Union put some real money on the table yesterday, even if it was not nearly enough in order to seal the deal. The first hurdle is to prove that the €7.2bn pledged over three years is genuine new money, and not – as so often happens when the west trumpets its virtue – the relabelling of existing funds. The second hurdle is persuading Japan and America to match the cash. Even after both obstacles are cleared, however, the bigger challenge will remain. Namely, establishing a funding stream that can be credibly banked on to increase its flow when the climate crisis tightens its grip.
Mr Brown, together with the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, yesterday signalled this was understood by proposing a so-called Tobin tax on financial transactions to provide reliable transnational revenues for climate assistance. Paying the planet while throwing sand in the wheels of freewheeling finance is precisely the sort of imaginative leap that the moment demands. But asking the IMF to review the idea is a very long way from making anything practical happen. While the US treasury continues to oppose it, a new global tax is not going to happen. Either America must soften its stance, or it must devise its own means to raise the money. As so often before, an anxious world is warily casting eyes in the direction of Washington.
We didn’t expect much from the first week of the global warming conference in Copenhagen. Countries need to do a little posturing before getting down to the hard work, which is supposed to start on Monday. But the belligerent talk from China seemed to go well beyond the usual positioning.
The best hope is that the talks will produce an interim understanding under which industrialized countries would commit to fairly precise targets for reduced emissions, and others, like China, to broader but measurable goals. The industrial countries would be expected to help poorer countries shift to less-polluting forms of energy.
That would set the stage for a legally binding deal in 2010. But there is no chance of even an interim agreement without the enthusiastic participation of China, the biggest emitter of greenhouse gases. China’s absence would give other developing countries — and the United States Senate — an excuse to do less than needed.
Beijing’s recent pledge to slow the growth in emissions seemed like a positive shift in attitude. Then on Tuesday, in a surprising show of defensiveness, China’s top negotiator, Su Wei, said the greatest burden rested with the industrialized countries and jumped on the United States, Japan and the European Union for not being aggressive enough. Another Chinese official urged Washington to do “some deep soul-searching” and improve its proposal.
Todd Stern, the chief American negotiator, responded correctly: With emissions in many industrialized countries peaking or declining, just about all of the growth in greenhouse gases is expected to come from the developing world between now and 2030, half from China. Rich nations must still reduce emissions sharply, Mr. Stern said, but “there is no way to solve this problem by giving the major developing countries a pass.”
China has also been demanding that rich nations contribute hundreds of millions of dollars a year to help poor countries address the threat of climate change. Again Mr. Stern was blunt. Washington is prepared to help those who need it, but given China’s huge reserves and revved-up economy, he said he could not envision “public funds, certainly not from the United States, going to China.”
The most positive development has been a pledge by the European Union to contribute $10.5 billion over the next three years to help poorer countries deal with climate change. The United States has said that it will make a contribution but has not said how big it will be.
Transparency is another difficult issue that must be resolved, at least in principle, this week. There is no point in setting targets, or threatening penalties for noncompliance, unless countries are required to report emissions accurately. Transparency has never been one of Beijing’s virtues, and emerging countries generally need aid to create sophisticated monitoring systems.
Copenhagen’s broadest challenge is finding an equitable way to distribute the burden of confronting climate change. Despite some differences, the industrialized nations have pretty much agreed to trim their emissions by 15 percent to 20 percent from 2005 levels in the next 10 years, and by 80 percent by midcentury. And all seem to be willing to make expensive investments to get there. President Obama will need help from Congress, no sure thing.
A host of developing countries — including India, Brazil, Indonesia — have put broad goals on the table, though in some cases they seem more aspirational than real. But the bottom line is that the hope for a meaningful deal is vanishingly small if China doesn’t sign on.
Tiger Woods’s problems seem to be multiplying with the American media reporting the existence of a love child and sex tapes of the golfer.
According to the 'National Enquirer', Woods had fathered at least one child outside his marriage. Friends of Elin Nordegren, however, have said, however, that the golfer’s wife planned to stay with him for the sake of their children. The American edition of People magazine has quoted Nordegren’s “friends” saying she is devastated by Woods’s alleged infidelities but plans to stay married. The couple, who married in 2004, have a daughter Sam, 2, and son Charlie, 10 months. “She is a child of divorce and that’s not something she’s likely to want to do to Sam and Charlie,” an unnamed friend told People. The friends say Woods has come clean and told Nordegren, a former nanny, the full extent of his alleged womanising. Woods has now been linked to at least 11 women.
‘Toothless’ Tiger Texts were also published on Wednesday that appear to show Woods flirting with 24-year-old cocktail waitress Jaimie Grubbs. And it was claimed Woods has avoided the public gaze because his wife broke one of his teeth in their row before the crash. Star magazine reported that Nordegren threw a mobile phone at Woods after she caught him texting club promoter Rachel Uchitel. Meanwhile, two of the women at the centre of the allegations spoke out. Uchitel told OK! magazine in an interview that she had been demonised. “In every story you need a villain and a hero,” she said. “I’ve been characterised as a villain. People have called me homewrecker, gold digger, tramp... I made mistakes, but I’m not those things. I have good qualities.”
Keith Bernstein/Warner Brothers Pictures Morgan Freeman plays Nelson Mandela in “Invictus,” Clint Eastwood’s new film.
December 11, 2009
It may not seem obvious at first, but Clint Eastwood’s “Invictus,” a rousing true story of athletic triumph, is also that director’s latest exploration of revenge, the defining theme of his career. It is hard to think of an actor or a filmmaker who so cleanly embodies a single human impulse in the way that Mr. Eastwood — from “Pale Rider” to “Mystic River,” from Dirty Harry to “Gran Torino” — personifies the urge to get even.
From left, Leleti Khumalo, Adjoa Andoh, Morgan Freeman and Danny Keogh in “Invictus.”
He has also, of course, taken a critical view of the drive for vengeance, investigating its tragic roots and terrible consequences. A movie like “Unforgiven,” most famously, suggests that violent revenge is regrettable. But rarely, in the world of Mr. Eastwood’s films, is it avoidable.
“Invictus” is to some degree an exception, a movie about reconciliation and forgiveness — about the opposite of revenge — that gains moral authority precisely because the possibility of bloodshed casts its shadow everywhere. The film, based on John Carlin’s book “Playing the Enemy,” takes place in South Africa in the mid-1990s, just after Nelson Mandela’s election as the country’s first black president. Many of the whites in the film — most of them Afrikaner nationalists still attached to a system that kept their black compatriots poor, disenfranchised and oppressed — brace themselves for payback as Mandela assumes power. Quite a few of the president’s black supporters expect it, too, as their due after decades of brutality and humiliation under apartheid.
But Mandela, played with gravity, grace and a crucial spark of mischief by Morgan Freeman, knows that score-settling would be a disastrous course for a new and fragile democracy. Passing by a newsstand on the morning after his victory, he spots a headline in Afrikaans. He has shown that he can win an election, it says, but will he show that he can govern? His bodyguards bristle at a pre-emptive low blow from a hostile press, but Mandela shrugs. “It’s a fair question,” he says.
And a perennially urgent one in any democracy. Mr. Eastwood and the screenwriter, Anthony Peckham, are too absorbed in the details of the story at hand to suggest historical analogies, but “Invictus” has implications beyond its immediate time and place that are hard to miss. It’s an exciting sports movie, an inspiring tale of prejudice overcome and, above all, a fascinating study of political leadership.
But much of the ingenuity in Mr. Freeman’s performance lies in the way he conveys that idealism and the shrewd manipulation of symbols and emotions are not incompatible, but complementary. Taking power a few years after being released from 27 years of incarceration, Mandela is already a larger-than-life figure, an idol in South Africa and around the world. His celebrity is something of a burden, and also an asset he must learn to use; his moral prestige is a political weapon.
But he is preoccupied, to the dismay of loyalists in his movement, with finding some kind of concord — not friendship, necessarily, but at least a state of non-enmity — with the people who hate and fear him: the whites who see him as a terrorist, a usurper and a threat to their traditions and values. Mandela’s overtures to the Afrikaners — starting with his refusal to dismiss white members of the presidential staff and security detail — arise partly out of Gandhian principle, and partly out of political calculation. They are a powerful force in the army, the police and the South African economy.
Mandela’s aides — in particular Brenda Mazibuko (Adjoa Andoh) — are baffled when he takes up the cause of the South African rugby team, a symbol of stiff-necked Afrikaner pride despised by most blacks. The team’s Springbok mascot, named for a kind of gazelle, and its green-and-gold uniforms are nearly as loathsome as the apartheid flag, and when Mandela insists that the colors be retained, it seems almost like a betrayal of his life’s cause. South Africa, a pariah in the world of international sports for a long time (“the skunk of the world,” as Mandela puts it), is preparing to host the Rugby World Cup, and Mandela decides that if the nation is to find unity and self-respect the underachieving Springboks must win the championship.
And so an alliance develops between the president and François Pienaar, the Springbok captain, played with crisp, disciplined understatement (and utter mastery of a devilishly tricky accent) by Matt Damon. Pienaar’s struggle to keep control of his team, and also to persuade them to accept some perplexing new social realities, is a microcosm of Mandela’s larger project. And he quietly accepts Mandela, who shares with Pienaar the Victorian poem that gives the movie its title, as a mentor.
Beyond the politician, Mr. Freeman and Mr. Eastwood allow us glimpses of a complicated and somewhat melancholy man, carrying the loneliness of his long imprisonment with him and estranged from much of his family. He is gracious and charming in small groups, a stiff but compelling public speaker and a boss whose authority is buttressed by a phalanx of devoted, sometimes skeptical aides.
But if “Invictus” is predominantly an absorbing character study of one of the most extraordinary characters of our time, it is also fleshed out with well-sketched minor players and subplots that illuminate the progress of racial rapprochement in its comic human dimension. The black bodyguards and their white colleagues proceed from hostility to wary tolerance to guarded warmth in a way that is pointed without being overstated. And that, for the most part, characterizes Mr. Eastwood’s direction, which is always unassuming, unhurried and efficient. In this film he tells a big story through a series of small, well-observed moments, and tells it in his usual blunt, matter-of-fact way, letting the nuances take care of themselves.
And once again, as in “Letters From Iwo Jima” — a tragic rather than heroic inquiry into the nature of leadership — they do. “Invictus” is more sprawling than that film, and more willing to risk hokiness. That is a chance Mr. Eastwood is often happy to take, and no genre is more susceptible to it (or earns it more honestly) than the victorious-underdog team-sports movie. That the sport is as alien to most Americans as it is to black South Africans presents its challenges, but by the end you might care about rugby more than you thought you would, even if it remains harder to understand than politics.
The convergence of the two provides an occasion for some potent, intelligent filmmaking — a movie that hits you squarely with its visceral impact and stays in your mind for a long time after. “Invictus” is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). It has some swearing, the threat of violence and brutal sports action.
When President Barack Obama accepted his Nobel Peace Prize on Thursday, a single Swedish company controlled the dissemination of his words.
Obama's speech was recorded exclusively by Norwegian national television and distributed by Nobel Media AB, a company formed by the Sweden-based Nobel Foundation in 2004 to strengthen control over its intellectual property.
In previous years, independent media could record the first five minutes of the ceremony. Nobel Media did not allow that this year because, the company said, it would conflict with Obama's security requirements.
The limitations did not impede the distribution of Obama's speech: Media around the world could broadcast as much as they wanted live. But any outlet that wanted to play a recorded snippet was limited to a maximum of three minutes that had run consecutively and uninterrupted.
All footage was emblazoned with the Nobel Media logo.
Nobel Media also barred Web sites from live streaming of the ceremony, limiting live online coverage to the Nobel Foundation's Web site, nobelprize.org.
Nobel Media charges a relatively small fee to media outlets, several thousand euros in many cases. CEO Camilla Hylten-Cavallius told The Associated Press that the primary goal of its restrictions on the footage was not making money but making sure coverage of the Nobel ceremony was not manipulated or abused.
The company doesn't "primarily do this in the interest of profiting off of it, but in order to know where the material is spread," Hylten-Cavallius said.
However, Hylten-Cavallius also acknowledged that the three-minute restriction helped the company retain "exclusivity" on the Nobel Foundation's Web site. The site contains full-length, on-demand videos of Nobel lectures.
She said streaming the ceremony only on the Web site was an experiment to see if it would drive more traffic there.
"The goal has been to gain control over these rights that have previously been free for everyone for so many years," she said. "We have to evaluate it and see how it works and perhaps we'll do it differently next year."
Entertainment events like the Oscars generally have far more broadcast restrictions, as do virtually all top-tier sports like the Olympics and soccer's World Cup. None can be aired live, unlike the Nobels, unless costly TV rights are purchased.
In both Norway, where the peace prize is awarded, and Sweden, where the other five awards are given out, the national broadcaster films on the company's behalf.
Sweden's TV4 had the rights to film Nobel events in Sweden on behalf of Nobel Media but the company canceled the contract in 2008 after China Central Television and Shanghai Media Group cut out parts of a speech by Nobel Foundation Chairman Marcus Storch. The excised section mentioned an exhibition in Norway about the importance of freedom of expression in democracies.
TV4 blamed it on Chinese media and said Nobel Media was violating the spirit of the award. Associated Press Writer Louise Nordstrom contributed to this report from Stockholm.
NBC Showcases Statue of Barry Obama at 10 with Nobel Medal and Butterfly
NBC's Brian Williams took time Thursday night to show video a statue of President Barack Obama at age 10, then known as Barry, being unveiled in Jakarta, near where he attended school at that age. “The statue was put there to remind children in Indonesia to follow their dreams and remind them their future is without limits,” Williams helpfully explained.
The life-size bronze replica of Obama in a T-shirt and shorts is adorned with what Politico suggested “appears to be a Nobel medal around his neck” and what the AP described as “the young Obama smiling at a butterfly that has landed on his upheld left thumb.” The AP dispatch also reported: “The statue's pedestal carries an paraphrased quote from former U.S. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt reading, 'The future belongs to those who believe in the power of their dreams.'”
This wasn't the first time the NBC Nightly News found inspiration in Obama's time in Indonesia. Back during the campaign in March of 2008, the newscast ran a celebratory piece about how excited Obama's childhood friends in Indonesia were about his candidacy in a story which began and ended with a picture of Obama's classmates in front of huge “Good Luck Barry!” lettering.
Williams announced on the Thursday, December 10 NBC Nightly News over video showing kids in a band and views of the statue:
This was the scene today at a school courtyard in Jakarta, Indonesia. Young conductor, student orchestra and the unveiling of a statue of 10-year-old Barack Obama, Barry as he was known back then. This is, after all, where the future 44th President went to school as a little boy. The statue was put there to remind children in Indonesia to follow their dreams and remind them their future is without limits.
My March 15, 2008 NB item, “Instead of Wright, NBC Touts Childhood Pals: 'Good Luck Barry!'” recounted:
Friday's [March 14] NBC Nightly News allocated a mere 22 seconds to Barack Obama's condemnation of what fill-in anchor Ann Curry vaguely described as "inflammatory remarks that his long time pastor made about Hillary Clinton and the nation," but instead of informing viewers of any of those remarks, such as Reverend Jeremiah Wright's suggestion that the U.S. deserved 9/11, the newscast then devoted three minutes to a celebratory piece about how excited Obama's childhood friends in Indonesia are about his candidacy.
In a story which began and ended with a picture of Obama's classmates in front of huge "Good Luck Barry!" lettering, reporter Ian Williams trumpeted the wonders Obama is doing abroad: "The fact that Obama lived in Jakarta and studied at this school has really captured the popular imagination. It's already working wonders for America's battered image here." A local commentator oozed over how "Obama's candidacy confirms the romantic ideals people like me have held since childhood that America's the land of opportunity."
Williams concluded with how "friends remember Barry playing barefoot in the paddy fields with a real spirit of adventure," and so now "hope there'll be no turning back on his journey to the White House. And Barry might attend their next reunion as President of the United States."...
—Brent Baker is Vice President for Research and Publications at the Media Research Center
Obama accepts Nobel Peace Prize days after announcing troop surge
President Obama accepted the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo today, acknowledging in his speech the hotly debated irony of receiving it as a wartime president.
According to a Times article today, Obama’s speech to the Nobel Committee defended his war stance, saying the pursuit of a “just peace” sometimes means more than simply refraining from violence.
The selection of Obama for the award has been controversial, coming less than a year into his first term and just days after he announced he would commit 30,000 additional U.S. troops to the war in Afghanistan.
Nobel Committee Chairman Thorbjorn Jagland suggested the award will encourage the president to achieve his goals.
And while he didn’t mention if he supported Obama’s military buildup, a video on the Nobelprize.org website with Geir Lundestad, secretary of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, explained how the President’s prize follows the statutes of Alfred Nobel’s will.
Twitter users and readers have mostly been critical of the president's Peace Prize, but some at least admired Obama's address to the committee:
MEDixon215 (advisor to to Alabama Gov. Bob Riley) tweeted: Didnt agree with the President being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, but I applaud his speech today. Sometimes war is req'd to achieve peace
lancole expresses enthusiastic patriotism: I am SO proud of our President! Beautiful speech. He won based on the calm that came over the world on Nov. 4. HOPE 4 peace!
JonPowles also applauded the speech: Am I the only person in the world who found Obama's nobel speech eloquent and persuasive? I am opposed to the wars, btw.
On the other end of the spectrum:
MorgaineChya tweeted: Obama Congratulations to Nobel for destroying the meaning of the Peace prize; it is now a joke.
andy w commented on the D.C. Now blog: This is crazy. Why does he deserve a Peace Prize. He has done nothing to change the horrible state of the nation. The same old crap Bush pulled. Obama extended the Patriot Act. Oh yeah he hasn't done crap to get us out to this global war on terror. Ask yourself these two question: is he really that different? where's the change we were promised? Upon some reflective thought, you might find he is just a puppet of an much larger olgarical system. A system that is doing everything it can to take away human liberties, destroy our economy, and install a one world government.
zfree complained: Pres Obama accepts Nobel Peace prize with a speech promoting war, humanity is broken can we have a new one?
Did the Nobel Committee make the right decision in awarding President Obama the Peace Prize in a time of war? Or does it contradict the mission of the Nobel Peace Prize, which has in the past been awarded to the likes of Nelson Mandela, Elie Wiesel and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.? Tell us what you think below.
-- Kelsey Ramos Photo: President Obama looks over his Nobel Peace Prize during ceremonies in Oslo today. Credit: Susan Walsh / Associated Press
How healthy (or not) certain foods are—for us, for the environment—is a hotly debated topic among experts and consumers alike, and there are no easy answers. But when Prevention talked to the people at the forefront of food safety and asked them one simple question—“What foods do you avoid?”—we got some pretty interesting answers. Although these foods don’t necessarily make up a "banned” list, as you head into the holidays—and all the grocery shopping that comes with it—their answers are, well, food for thought: 20 ways to feed your family for $100 a week. 1. Canned Tomatoes The expert: Fredrick vom Saal, PhD, an endocrinologist at the University of Missouri who studies bisphenol-A The problem: The resin linings of tin cans contain bisphenol-A, a synthetic estrogen that has been linked to ailments ranging from reproductive problems to heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Unfortunately, acidity (a prominent characteristic of tomatoes) causes BPA to leach into your food. Studies show that the BPA in most people's body exceeds the amount that suppresses sperm production or causes chromosomal damage to the eggs of animals. "You can get 50 mcg of BPA per liter out of a tomato can, and that's a level that is going to impact people, particularly the young," says vom Saal. "I won't go near canned tomatoes." The solution: Choose tomatoes in glass bottles (which do not need resin linings), such as the brands Bionaturae and Coluccio. You can also get several types in Tetra Pak boxes, like Trader Joe's and Pomi. 14 worst health mistakes even smart women make.
2. Corn-Fed Beef The expert: Joel Salatin, co-owner of Polyface Farms and author of half a dozen books on sustainable farming The problem: Cattle evolved to eat grass, not grains. But farmers today feed their animals corn and soybeans, which fatten up the animals faster for slaughter. More money for cattle farmers (and lower prices at the grocery store) means a lot less nutrition for us. A recent comprehensive study conducted by the USDA and researchers from Clemson University found that compared with corn-fed beef, grass-fed beef is higher in beta-carotene, vitamin E, omega-3s, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), calcium, magnesium, and potassium; lower in inflammatory omega-6s; and lower in saturated fats that have been linked to heart disease. "We need to respect the fact that cows are herbivores, and that does not mean feeding them corn and chicken manure," says Salatin. The solution: Buy grass-fed beef, which can be found at specialty grocers, farmers' markets, and nationally at Whole Foods. It's usually labeled because it demands a premium, but if you don't see it, ask your butcher. 25 ridiculously healthy foods you should be eating now.
3. Microwave Popcorn The expert: Olga Naidenko, PhD, a senior scientist for the Environmental Working Group, The problem: Chemicals, including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), in the lining of the bag, are part of a class of compounds that may be linked to infertility in humans, according to a recent study from UCLA. In animal testing, the chemicals cause liver, testicular, and pancreatic cancer. Studies show that microwaving causes the chemicals to vaporize—and migrate into your popcorn. "They stay in your body for years and accumulate there," says Naidenko, which is why researchers worry that levels in humans could approach the amounts causing cancers in laboratory animals. DuPont and other manufacturers have promised to phase out PFOA by 2015 under a voluntary EPA plan, but millions of bags of popcorn will be sold between now and then. The solution: Pop natural kernels the old-fashioned way: in a skillet. For flavorings, you can add real butter or dried seasonings, such as dillweed, vegetable flakes, or soup mix. Your nutritional guide to grocery shopping.
4. Nonorganic Potatoes The expert: Jeffrey Moyer, chair of the National Organic Standards Board The problem: Root vegetables absorb herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides that wind up in soil. In the case of potatoes—the nation's most popular vegetable—they're treated with fungicides during the growing season, then sprayed with herbicides to kill off the fibrous vines before harvesting. After they're dug up, the potatoes are treated yet again to prevent them from sprouting. "Try this experiment: Buy a conventional potato in a store, and try to get it to sprout. It won't," says Moyer, who is also farm director of the Rodale Institute (also owned by Rodale Inc., the publisher of Prevention). "I've talked with potato growers who say point-blank they would never eat the potatoes they sell. They have separate plots where they grow potatoes for themselves without all the chemicals." The solution: Buy organic potatoes. Washing isn't good enough if you're trying to remove chemicals that have been absorbed into the flesh. 14 ways to make veggies less boring.
5. Farmed Salmon The expert: David Carpenter, MD, director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at the University at Albany and publisher of a major study in the journal Science on contamination in fish. The problem: Nature didn't intend for salmon to be crammed into pens and fed soy, poultry litter, and hydrolyzed chicken feathers. As a result, farmed salmon is lower in vitamin D and higher in contaminants, including carcinogens, PCBs, brominated flame retardants, and pesticides such as dioxin and DDT. According to Carpenter, the most contaminated fish come from Northern Europe, which can be found on American menus. "You can only safely eat one of these salmon dinners every 5 months without increasing your risk of cancer," says Carpenter, whose 2004 fish contamination study got broad media attention. "It's that bad." Preliminary science has also linked DDT to diabetes and obesity, but some nutritionists believe the benefits of omega-3s outweigh the risks. There is also concern about the high level of antibiotics and pesticides used to treat these fish. When you eat farmed salmon, you get dosed with the same drugs and chemicals. The solution: Switch to wild-caught Alaska salmon. If the package says fresh Atlantic, it's farmed. There are no commercial fisheries left for wild Atlantic salmon.
Delicious and easy fish recipes
6. Milk Produced with Artificial Hormones The expert: Rick North, project director of the Campaign for Safe Food at the Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility and former CEO of the Oregon division of the American Cancer Society The problem: Milk producers treat their dairy cattle with recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH or rBST, as it is also known) to boost milk production. But rBGH also increases udder infections and even pus in the milk. It also leads to higher levels of a hormone called insulin-like growth factor in milk. In people, high levels of IGF-1 may contribute to breast, prostate, and colon cancers. "When the government approved rBGH, it was thought that IGF-1 from milk would be broken down in the human digestive tract," says North. As it turns out, the casein in milk protects most of it, according to several independent studies. "There's not 100% proof that this is increasing cancer in humans," admits North. "However, it's banned in most industrialized countries." The solution: Check labels for rBGH-free, rBST-free, produced without artificial hormones, or organic milk. These phrases indicate rBGH-free products.
Don’t be fooled by these 11 health food imposters.
7. Conventional Apples The expert: Mark Kastel, former executive for agribusiness and codirector of the Cornucopia Institute, a farm-policy research group that supports organic foods The problem: If fall fruits held a "most doused in pesticides contest," apples would win. Why? They are individually grafted (descended from a single tree) so that each variety maintains its distinctive flavor. As such, apples don't develop resistance to pests and are sprayed frequently. The industry maintains that these residues are not harmful. But Kastel counters that it's just common sense to minimize exposure by avoiding the most doused produce, like apples. "Farm workers have higher rates of many cancers," he says. And increasing numbers of studies are starting to link a higher body burden of pesticides (from all sources) with Parkinson's disease. The solution: Buy organic apples. If you can't afford organic, be sure to wash and peel them first.
Take everything I said below about John Lackey and reverse it and you will come close to assembling the Rich Harden package. As mentioned, Harden made the exact same amount of starts (51) the past two seasons as Lackey did. Harden did throw noticeably fewer innings in that span, 290 to Lackey's 340, mainly as a result of a difference in approach. Lackey averaged 3.64 pitches per plate appearance the last two seasons, Harden was at 4.11. Strikeouts generally take more pitches to complete so it should come as little surprise to see the difference there. The important thing is note is that Lackey threw a total of 228 more pitches than Harden over 2008-9, the equivalent of one extra start per season.
Unlike Lackey, Harden's swinging strike rate is less trendy, partially due to the lack of data points in 2006-7. However, Harden had established a 11% rate in 2003-5 and was at 15% both of the prior two seasons. He would probably demolish Texas' hitters. Harden is also going to walk a good number of fellows. Interestingly enough, Harden's tendency to throw strikes is no worse than Lackey's, both hitting the zone about half the time. Harden is much more often to throw that first pitch for a ball though, but again, that's part of the deal with high strikeout pitchers.
Harden is also more of a fly ball pitcher than Lackey. Again, Harden is about the strikeouts so pitching up in the zone is part of that most of the time. All of this combines to give us the overall picture of Harden to Lackey, way more strikeouts, a few more walks and a few more fly balls. While Lackey's tRA* floated around 4.4, Harden's is around 4.1 though that came in a less offensive league. The difference between the two in terms of those figures is negligible. CHONE is slightly more bearish, also projecting Harden to be equal to Lackey in performance level, but Lackey's clear inferior in durability.
Even accounting for Harden's higher catastrophic injury risk, he grades out as being worth $12 million or so per year. To compare them directly, Harden's fair value over a four year deal would likely be around 4/44 compared to Lackey's 4/52. That Harden's health knocked that 4/44 down to 1/7.5 with an $11.5 million option is what made him a great target. An opportunity potentially (we don't know what went on, there may have been nothing reasonable Jack Z could have done) missed here and that the Rangers signed him makes it all the more painful.
Tigers signing a shortstop likely doomed Seattle's chances of landing Curtis Granderson
Greetings from Day 3 of the winter meetings here in Indianapolis, where I can tell you the Mariners did indeed meet last night with Scott Boras, agent for Adrian Beltre (and Hank Blalock and Jarrod Washburn -- start your rumor engines). The Mariners are hoping to start clarifying the picture somewhat as to who is going to drive in runs for them next season now that the top of the order is solidified.
I'll be going on KJR AM 950 at 8:30 a.m. for a special Talkin' Baseball segment on the Mitch in the Morning show and I'm sure we'll get into that discussion.
One thing I've been hearing since the Mariners lost out on their chance to land outfielder Curtis Granderson, who was dealt (tentatively, anyway) yesterday as part of that Tigers-Yankees-Diamondbnacks swap: the Tigers' signing of shortstop Adam Everett on Monday was likely the sign that any hope Seattle had of securing Granderson was done. Detroit had been looking to land a young shortstop or third baseman, along with relief pitching, in a Granderson deal and Seattle was one of the best matches.
Remember, the M's have Matt Tuiasosopo and Carlos Triunfel (whose stock, I keep hearing in corridors here, is starting to tumble. All those reports about his weight aren't doing much for his rep.). They also have a ton of bullpen arms in the majors and minors and the Tigers were looking to land most of them.
The plan was to secure the shortstop help if possible and then focus on landing a center fielder later on. But then the Tigers shifted gears when they saw they could land young Austin Jackson from the Yankees in the three-way deal. Detroit then went out and signed Everett on Monday as a stop-gap at that position and will focus on a long-term solution later on.
But once Everett was signed, it became clear Seattle was fading from the picture. Detroit could have waited until after the meetings to sign Everett, and doing so now smells of a team making one move in anticipation of a bigger one, which, in this case, did follow soon after.
As for Triunfel, he's still a year away from the big leagues at best. Had he not broken his leg early this past season, the M's might have had the trade juice to get a Granderson deal done.
Mariners aced out by division rival Rangers on Rich Harden
Throughout the week here, the Mariners made it clear that a prime focus was on pitching and that Rich Harden was a target. But as we've discussed at length on this blog, simply having a target -- even one that makes sense and seems the perfect fit -- is no guarantee a team will come away with the prize. Even though the Mariners had extensive talks with Harden's side and went in-depth on the parameters of a potential deal.
In the end, we're told there were certain clauses the Harden camp wanted included in any deal that the Mariners side was not entirely comfortable with.
Did the Texas Rangers meet those demands? We don't know for certain yet. But the Rangers did indeed get their man, agreeing to a one-year, $7.5 million deal with Harden, followed by what's been reported as a club option worth $11.5 million. Now, if it's purely a club option, then that latter figure isn't such a big deal.
But we've yet to hear what the buyout would be on that. Or whether there are any additional incentives in the 2010 part of the deal that could take the $7.5 million well beyond that amount. On the surface, this contract does not seem all that unreasonable if it's just the guaranteed money and a club option with a nominal buyout.
If there is indeed more to this than has been reported, it might go a long way in explaining how the M's did not get this deal done after investing so much time and effort in it. These things happen, which is why there always has to be a Plan B, C, D and so on.
The Mariners could now turn to free agent Ben Sheets, a pitcher Jack Zduriencik knows well from his days in Milwaukee. Or, the M's can try to aim higher for a John Lackey type. There is also the trade route. But unless something happens quickly tonight, the M's could be done at these winter meetings.
Not quite the splash that had been expected of them here so far. Then again, the season doesn't start until April. There really is no deadline in December for them to make any moves.
There have been ongoing developments that could impact Seattle's ability to land free agents down the road. Adrian Beltre has about a half-dozen suitors after him, including the deep-pocketed Red Sox, who appear ready to go out and get that replacement for Mike Lowell. That could spell serious competition for the M's if it comes to a throwdown of dollars.
On the positive front for Seattle, as discussed in the video on the opposite page by Larry Stone and myself, the market for Jason Bay is not exactly erupting with big-time spenders. Angels manager Mike Scioscia said today that his team is not making Bay a priority and that the slugger might not be a fit in Anaheim.
From what I've been told, the Red Sox are not budging from their four-year, $60 million offer to Bay. If the Red Sox should pull out and go after Matt Holliday, or Bay decide he really doesn't want to return to Boston, then the market for him could collapse. That means his pricetag for the M's could be far more palatable.
Waiting Bay out and seeing how badly he truly does want to play for Seattle could be part of the M's strategy. Doubt they'd go anywhere near four years, $60 million on him.
Even if the M's decide to go a different route than Bay, they could simply be biding time on hitters to see just how far some of their value plummets as the non-tender date comes and goes Saturday.
Big-time pitchers are a different story. Harden wasn't considered a front-line guy anymore because of his injuries. But on the high-upside, medium-risk scale, he was about as good as it gets.
The M's have some work to do.
A massive storm buried much of the central United States in dangerous ice and snow Wednesday, stranding scores of motorists with massive drifts that shut down major roads and defeated plows.
Strong winds created drifts as high as 15 feet (4.6 meters) as the storm dropped as much as four feet of snow (1.2 meters) in some areas, said Pat Slattery, a spokesman for the National Weather Service.
"This has been a really big season opening storm," Slattery said.
Hundreds of flights were cancelled, schools were closed and the freezing rain that preceded the snow in many places created hazardous road conditions.
Blizzard warnings were issued across the midwest as the storm moved eastward across the country after pounding Utah, Nevada, Colorado and Arizona.
The storm was expected to move across the Great Lakes into Canada, sparing much of the East Coast.
But flash flood warnings were issued for the Mississippi and Tennessee River valleys and midatlantic and southeast states due to heavy rains from the southern part of the system.
Officials told people to stay home if they can, pack an emergency kit of blankets, food and water if they have to drive somewhere, and to avoid rural side roads.
"It may be a while for somebody to find you if you get hung up," Slattery cautioned.
Stranded motorists were waiting a couple hours to be rescued in Iowa, where the National Guard was called in to help after the state was blanketed with nine to 16 inches (22 to 41 centimeters) of snow.
"We are snowed in. It's not good," said Courtney Green, a spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Public Safety.
"It's bitterly, bitterly cold. It's just been gusting all day. When you have the volume of snow and the high winds, there are just huge drifts." Snow plows were pulled off the roads for part of Wednesday because visibility was so poor and the storm was so bad that they weren't making much of a difference, she said.
Even the military Humvees were having trouble, and large truck drivers were also getting stuck in the snow.
A man who was found behind the post office in Yale, Iowa died en route to hospital. He had been there for at least a couple hours, Green said. Wisconsin declared a state of emergency, shut down government offices and also activated the National Guard after the storm dumped up to 17 inches of snow across the state.
With classes cancelled, meanwhile, students at the University of Madison planned to make the best of the deluge with a massive snowball fight, in their second attempt to beat the world record.
ANDHRA PRADESH was the first linguistic state formed by uniting Telugu speaking people of the then Madras state and the Nizam's Hyderabad comprising of Telugu speaking - Telangana people.
While the state was formed more than five decades ago, yet the disconnect between the people of Telangana region and Andhra region grew and language as a uniting factor failed here miserably.
Telangana people never had emotional integration with the people of Andhra region and several agitations for a separate state tormented the state from time to time. The recent agitation with the fast of K. Chandrasekhar Rao has again brought things to a boil with wide spread destruction of public and private property.
While the people from Andhra region always felt that Hyderabad is their state capital and moved to the city for jobs and started and thrived by starting businesses, industries, hospitals, colleges, hotels among others, the feeling among the Telangana people is that it is the capital of Telangana and that one day they will achieve state hood. The people from the Andhra region were branded as foreign elements in terms of government jobs under compromises.
There are also allegations that people from the Andhra region are looting their water, resources and jobs.
When such strong sentiment is prevalent the only sensible solution is the division of the state and giving into the separate state hood demand for Telangana.
But the rest of the state has regions like the backward Rayalaseema region and the backward North coastal districts and there are demands for separate state hood from these regions too.
The best solution is to have a separate Telangana state and convert the rest of the state into a separate union territory to ensure the just rights of the people of the Andhra region like water rights, sharing of assets and ensuring that fast development of the region leads to a better administered state sans narrow regional feelings.
Such a solution must be acceptable to the people of North coastal districts, coastal districts and the Rayalaseema regions.
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo, resulting in or caused by its death. An abortion can occur spontaneously due to complications during pregnancy or can be induced, in humans and other species. In the context of human pregnancies, an abortion induced to preserve the health of the gravida (pregnant female) is termed a therapeutic abortion, while an abortion induced for any other reason is termed an elective abortion. The term abortion most commonly refers to the induced abortion of a human pregnancy, while spontaneous abortions are usually termed miscarriages.
Abortion has a long history and has been induced by various methods including herbal abortifacients, the use of sharpened tools, physical trauma and other traditional methods. Contemporary medicine utilizes medications and surgical procedures to induce abortion. The legality, prevalence, and cultural views on abortion vary substantially around the world. In many parts of the world there is prominent and divisive public controversy over the ethical and legal issues of abortion. Abortion and abortion-related issues feature prominently in the national politics in many nations often involving the opposing pro-life and pro-choice worldwide social movements. Incidence of abortion has declined worldwide, as access to family planning education and contraceptive services has increased. Abortion incidence in the United States declined 8% from 1996 to 2003.
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This was the scene today at a school courtyard in Jakarta, Indonesia. Young conductor, student orchestra and the unveiling of a statue of 10-year-old Barack Obama, Barry as he was known back then. This is, after all, where the future 44th President went to school as a little boy. The statue was put there to remind children in Indonesia to follow their dreams and remind them their future is without limits.
In a story which began and ended with a picture of Obama's classmates in front of huge "Good Luck Barry!" lettering, reporter Ian Williams trumpeted the wonders Obama is doing abroad: "The fact that Obama lived in Jakarta and studied at this school has really captured the popular imagination. It's already working wonders for America's battered image here." A local commentator oozed over how "Obama's candidacy confirms the romantic ideals people like me have held since childhood that America's the land of opportunity."
