Anger can be a force for good, but chronic, intense anger is neither helpful nor healthy. Here's how to get a grip

Anger can be a force for good, but chronic, intense anger is neither helpful nor healthy. Here's how to get a grip

Most of the time you’ll answer “no” to at least one question; if so, this is not one of those times when your anger is a sign that you should take some action. Better to distract yourself from your angry feelings and get on with your day.

If you answer “yes” to each question, you have a legitimate beef and should take action (but spend some time brainstorming possible responses before doing anything). Often the best approach is to speak not aggressively but assertively -- not to swallow your ire but not to spit it out either. Explain your feelings as impassively as possible, and request a specific change in the other person’s behavior. For example, if you’re mad because someone called you “dumb” for a remark you made, don’t simply say “Stop putting me down!” Say, “You called me dumb. I feel hurt and angry. Please don’t use words like ‘dumb’ to describe me.”

This simple approach can go a long way toward restoring your tranquility. “When you answer the four questions and either distract yourself or take constructive action, you no longer feel quite as helpless about the situation,” Williams says. “As much as is possible, you’re taking control, whether it’s of your own thoughts and feelings or the other person’s behavior. This can be a very powerful way to reduce the anger you feel.”

Research confirms the value of Williams’ approach. In a recent study, heart patients were asked to describe a situation that had made them angry. Those who had received anger-management training experienced less anger and a lower surge in blood pressure than those who had not received the training.

Tips for Taming Your Anger

Here’s what else you can do to keep anger from turning toxic:

• Take better care of yourself. Often it’s possible to curb anger simply by cutting back on stimulants like caffeine and nicotine, which can shorten your emotional fuse. Getting more sleep can also help. Ditto for exercise. “I’ve found that anger is less of a problem for people who work out regularly -- say running an hour a day,” says Karina Davidson, PhD, a clinical health psychologist at Columbia University in New York City and president of the American Psychological Association’s health psychology section.
• Talk over your feelings. Having a heart-to-heart with a friend or family member can help you understand and overcome your anger. “Hearing honest feedback from others can be a great way to understand and change our emotional responses,” Davidson says. “Sometimes the people around us are better than we are at recognizing our characteristic emotional responses, if we’re willing to listen.”
• Just don’t go overboard: Kupfer says that rehashing your anger with more than a couple of people can actually reinforce angry feelings, making them more intense rather than less intense.
• Practice delay and distraction. Counting to 10 really works for some people, as does wearing a rubber band on your wrist and snapping it each time you feel angry. Mindfulness meditation can help, as can humming a favorite tune or saying a prayer, Williams says. He also advocates deep breathing -- silently intoning the word “calm” each time you breathe in and “down” each time you breathe out. “Listening to loud, aggressive music can be a great way to curb anger,” Davidson says. “Anything that takes your mind off angry feelings.”
• Get help for depression. Psychologists used to believe that anger and depression were two sides of the same coin. But recent studies involving PET scans of the brain reveal the two conditions are distinct, Davidson says. Even so, experts say that depressed people often feel angry, and that getting help -- via psychotherapy and/or antidepressant medication -- is a good idea. The same SSRI medications prescribed for depression often prove helpful for chronic anger.
• Stop believing that life must be fair. It’s a cliche to say so, but life isn’t fair. Feeling that it should be sets you up for resentment and rage, Kupfer says, “Most of the time, we get angry because we feel that someone has violated one of what has been called our ‘unenforceable rules,’” such as the “rule” that other motorists should be courteous or the “rule” that Bernie Madoff shouldn’t have stolen from his investors. Stop trying to enforce these rules, he says, and you may find it easier to keep on an even keel.

Vinegar Seen as a Tangy Fat Fighter

Are you fighting to keep unhealthful, unsightly fat off your belly? Join the crowd!

Vinegar enjoys an ancient reputation as a healthful food, and new research suggests that pickled foods and vinegary dressings may help fight abdominal bulge.

The secret to the fat-fighting potential of vinegar lies in its defining natural constituent ... a tart, tangy chemical called acetic acid.

(For some suggested ways to get vinegar into your diet, see “What can you do with this information?” below.)

The body stores excess dietary calories as body fat, and most of that fat ends up one of two places.

Fat can be stored either as subcutaneous fat, located just under the skin. Or it can be deposited as unhealthier, harder-to-lose abdominal (visceral) fat which, by definition, is fat found around the body’s central organs.

An excess of abdominal fat is known medically as central obesity, and is commonly called belly fat.

Aside from being socially and romantically undesirable ─ fairly or not ─ there’s a strong correlation between central obesity and an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance, and diabetes.

In fact, central obesity is one of the physiological factors that constitute metabolic syndrome, which often leads to diabetes.

The genetic connection between vinegar and body fat

It’s been known for some time that activation of genetic switches called PPARs induces the body to store excess calories as subcutaneous fat instead of depositing them as unhealthier abdominal fat.

The acronym PPARs stands for “peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors”, and these switches help regulate the expression of genes associated with metabolism of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins.

Long-time readers of Vital Choices may recall past articles about the beneficial effects of omega-3s on PPARs with regard to development and progression of diabetes. (See “Fish Oil Trims Diabetics’ Belly and Blood Fat”.)

Three years ago, researchers at Laval University in Quebec, Canada, published a study in which they fed rodents carboxylic acid (COOH), which is the chemical “parent” of acetic acid (CH3-COOH).

As they reported, “In rats treated with the full PPAR-gamma agonist [activator] COOH for 3 weeks, subcutaneous fat mass was doubled and that of visceral fat was reduced by 30% relative to untreated rats.”

And the Laval team found that feeding rodents this close chemical cousin to acetic acid also stimulated fat burning (thermogenesis) in abdominal (visceral) fat:

“The agonist [acetic acid] increased … fatty acid oxidation and thermogenesis much more strongly in visceral fat than in subcutaneous fat ... These findings demonstrate that PPAR-gamma agonism [activation] redistributes fat … and energy expenditure is greatly increased in visceral fat, with consequent reduction in fat accumulation.” (Laplante M et al. 2006)

Their findings indicated that carboxylic acid ─ and perhaps related compounds like vinegar’s acetic acid ─ is an ally in the fight to shift body fat to a healthier location, and preferentially burn body fat sited in its least healthful location.

New findings support the fat-fighting value of vinegar

Last month, researchers at Japan’s Mizkan Group published findings that more directly support the promise of vinegar’s acetic acid as a potent ally in the fight to prevent central obesity (Kondo T et al 2009).

In short, they found that dietary acetic acid helps prevent obesity in mice fed a high-fat diet, both by the PPAR mechanism reported from Quebec in 2006, and via other means as well.

The Japanese team reports that acetic acid “up-regulates” the expression of genes that induce oxidation (burning) of fatty acid in the liver … an effect called thermogenesis that suppresses the accumulation of body fat.

As they said, “Significant increases were observed in the expressions of genes for PPAR-alpha and for fatty-acid-oxidation- and thermogenesis-related proteins … in the liver … In conclusion, AcOH [acetic acid] suppresses accumulation of body fat and liver lipids …” (Kondo T et al 2009)

Specifically, the new study showed that mice fed a high-fat diet with added acetic acid developed about 10 percent less body fat than mice fed a high-fat diet absent the characteristic vinegar compound.

Importantly, the new research provides the first hard evidence that, like carboxylic acid, acetic acid fights body fat build up by switching on genes that in turn activate fat-burning enzymes.

What can you do with this information?

For starters, you can munch on pickles (cucumbers marinated in vinegar) and add vinegar-pickled veggies like beets and cauliflower to salads and sandwiches.

Salad dressings made with vinegar are another avenue, although the amount of oil in most vinaigrettes would overcome any fat-fighting benefit.

Balsamic vinegar is a particularly healthful, delicious way to get more acetic acid into your diet, without added fat.

Use balsamic vinegar as a sauce ingredient when cooking, as in today's recipe for Grilled Halibut with Fresh Tomato-Basil Relish and our recipe for Balsamic-Blackberry Sauce Over Halibut or Salmon.

Or drizzle it sparingly over breads, salads, and cheeses … even sorbet! Our deep, dark, 100% organic balsamic vinegar is made in Spain from concentrated organic grapes and organic red wine.

Here are a few other suggestions:

• Use cider vinegar as a substitute for fresh lemon juice in recipes.
• Pour cider vinegar over roasting lamb. Adding honey and sliced onions to the roasting pan will produce a sweet, tangy sauce when the vinegar mixes with them.
• Sushi rice: Japanese use rice vinegar as an essential ingredient for sushi rice.
• Use cider or white wine vinegar to flavor collard greens, green beans, or cabbage.

Perhaps the healthiest, zestiest of all pickled foods is the addictively delicious Korean side dish called kimchi or kimchee.

Kimchi usually features crisp green vegetables like cabbage, cauliflower, cucumbers, bell peppers, garlic, onions, chili peppers, radishes, and the like.

These foods have few calories but lots of fiber, vitamins (especially A and C), beneficial polyphenol antioxidants, and minerals such as calcium and iron.

The distinctive flavor of kimchi depends on the level of acetic acid (more is better), which will vary according to the ingredients used, the fermentation temperature (cooler is better) and period, and the level of salt (less is better).

Kimchi fermented with less salt at a low temperature has more acetic acid and a better flavor, according to connoisseurs. And, like yogurt, kimchi contains lactic acid generated by beneficial probiotic bacteria.

Sources

• Kondo T, Kishi M, Fushimi T, Kaga T. Acetic Acid Upregulates the Expression of Genes for Fatty Acid Oxidation Enzymes in Liver To Suppress Body Fat Accumulation. J Agric Food Chem. 2009 May 26. [Epub ahead of print] DOI: 10.1021/jf900470c
• Laplante M, Festuccia WT, Soucy G, Gélinas Y, Lalonde J, Berger JP, Deshaies Y. Mechanisms of the depot specificity of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma action on adipose tissue metabolism. Diabetes. 2006 Oct;55(10):2771-8.

How to Make Natural Outdoor Fly Repellent with Essential Oils

1. Clean out a small tin with a lid.
2. Take a clean piece of cloth or a small piece of dish sponge able to fit into the container. Saturate it with one of the following oils (after it has been diluted appropriately, see Tips):
   
   
   • Lavender oil - lavender is considered to be particularly effective against flies^[1]
   • Citronella oil (dilute with water first)^[2]
   • Eucalyptus oil (dilute with water first)^[3]
   • Pennyroyal oil (dilute with water first)^[4]
   • Peppermint oil (dilute with water first; likely more effective against mosquitoes but also considered to work against horse-flies^[5])
   • Lemongrass oil (dilute with water first)^[6]
3. Place the cloth in the tin and shut the lid. Allow to sit for 24 hours.
4. Use. Whenever you need to use the tin, remove the lid and place on the entertaining table. Make as many as you wish to put around the entertaining area to deter flies.
5. Replenish the oil after each use; once open to the air, the strength weakens and needs to be topped up.

No smoking: Historic vote could bring new limits Senators who opposed tobacco bill received top dollar from industry

ABOUT TIME TO GET RID OF THIS HEINOUS POISON AND BURDEN TO THE PREVENTIVE HEALTH CARE SYSTEM

Senators who opposed tobacco bill received top dollar from industry

these are the ones need to be hung in public, arrogant corrupt pendejos
so call or email tell them to shoot themselves NOW!


The Senate struck a historic blow against smoking in America Thursday, voting overwhelmingly to give regulators new power to limit nicotine in the cigarettes that kill nearly a half-million people a year, to drastically curtail ads that glorify tobacco and to ban flavored products aimed at spreading the habit to young people.

President Barack Obama, who has spoken of his own struggle to quit smoking, said he was eager to sign the legislation, and the House planned a vote for Friday. Cigarette foes said the measure would not only cut deaths but reduce the $100 billion in annual health care costs linked to tobacco.

Fierce opposition by the industry and tobacco-state lawmakers had prevented passage for years, along with veto threats by the George W. Bush White House. In the end, the nation's biggest tobacco company supported the measure, though rivals suggested that was because it could lock in Philip Morris' share of the market.

Cigarette smoking kills about 400,000 people in the United States every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 45 million U.S. adults are smokers, though the prevalence has fallen since the U.S. surgeon general's warning 45 years ago that tobacco causes lung cancer.

The legislation, one of the most dramatic anti-smoking initiatives since the surgeon general's report, would give the Food and Drug Administration authority to regulate the content, marketing and advertising of cigarettes and other tobacco products.

"This legislation represents the strongest action Congress has ever taken to reduce tobacco use, the leading preventable cause of death in the United States," declared Matthew Myers, president of Campaign for Tobacco-free Kids.

The 79-17 Senate vote sent the measure back to the House, which in April passed a similar but not identical version. House acceptance of the Senate bill would send it directly to Obama, who said Thursday that final passage "will make history by giving the scientists and medical experts at the FDA the power to take sensible steps."

"At any given moment, millions are struggling with their habit or worrying about loved ones who smoke," said Obama.

His signature would then add tobacco to other huge, nationally important areas that have come under greater government supervision since his presidency began. Those include banking, housing and autos. Still to come, if Congress can agree: health care.

Supporters of FDA regulation of tobacco have struggled for more than a decade to overcome powerful resistance — from the industry and elsewhere. In 2000 the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the agency did not have the authority under current law to regulate tobacco products, and the Bush administration opposed several previous efforts by Congress to write a new law.

Thursday's legislation gives the FDA power to evaluate the contents of tobacco products and to order changes or bans on those that are a danger to public health. The agency could limit nicotine yields but not ban nicotine or cigarettes.

Regulators could prohibit tobacco companies from using candy or other flavors in cigarettes that tend to attract young smokers, and restrict advertising in publications often read by teenagers. Rules on sales to minors would be toughened, as would warning labels. Tobacco companies would have to get FDA approval for new products, and would be barred from using terms such as "light" or "mild" that imply a smaller health risk.

Costs of the new program would be paid for through a fee imposed on tobacco companies.

"This is a bill that will protect children and will protect America," said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., a leading supporter. "Every day that we don't act, 3,500 American kids — children — will light up for the first time. That is enough to fill 70 school buses."

The Congressional Budget Office estimated that FDA regulation could reduce underage smoking by 11 percent over the next decade.

The bill, said American Heart Association CEO Nancy Brown, "provides a tremendous opportunity to finally hold tobacco companies accountable and restrict efforts to addict more children and adults."

The tobacco lobby, contended Durbin, has long been the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill, "and they managed to create an exemption in virtually every law so that no federal agency could take a look at them and regulate them."

But the industry has also taken hits in recent years as the dangers of smoking became more apparent and states moved to limit smoking in public places. In 1998 the industry agreed to pay the states $206 billion to help cover health care costs, and this year Congress raised the federal cigarette tax by 62 cents, to $1.01 a pack, to fund a health care program for children.

The nation's largest tobacco manufacturer, Philip Morris, USA, has come out in support of the legislation. Its parent company, Altria Group, said in a statement that on balance, "the legislation is an important step forward to achieve the goal we share with others to provide federal regulation of tobacco products."

Its main rivals, however, have voiced opposition, arguing in part that FDA restrictions on new products will lock in Philip Morris' share of the market.

Lawmakers portrayed the bill as a major first step in bringing down health care costs, an essential goal of the health care overhaul legislation that is the top priority of the Obama administration this year.

"This bill may do more in the area of prevention, if adopted, than anything else we may include in the health care bill in the short term," said Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., who managed the legislation on the Senate floor in the absence of the ailing Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., who has long promoted FDA regulation.

Opponents, led by Republican Sen. Richard Burr of the tobacco-growing state of North Carolina, argued that the FDA, which is in charge of ensuring the safety of food and drug products, was the wrong place to regulate an item that is injurious to health.

He also contended that the bill would restrict tobacco companies, including several based in his state, from developing new products that might be less harmful to users. He unsuccessfully proposed the creation of a new agency that would both regulate tobacco products and encourage efforts to make cigarettes less harmful.

___

The bill is H.R. 1256.

On the Net:

Congress: http://thomas.loc.gov

Among the 17 senators who voted against allowing the Food and Drug Administration to regulate tobacco are some of the top recipients of campaign contributions from the tobacco industry, which has donated millions of dollars to lawmakers in the past several campaign cycles.

Over the course of his nearly quarter-century Senate career, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell , who hails from the tobacco-rich state of Kentucky , has received $419,025 from the tobacco industry, more than any other member of Congress , according to the Center for Responsive Politics , a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that analyzes the influence of money on politics and policy.

North Carolina Republican Sen. Richard Burr , who led the opposition to the bill, is the second highest recipient and netted $359,100 from tobacco-related political action committees and individual contributions. His state is the nation's largest tobacco grower and is home to R.J. Reynolds , the nation's second largest tobacco manufacturing company, which contributed $196,850 to Burr's campaigns.

Georgia Sen. Saxby Chambliss , the ranking Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee , is the third highest recipient with $228,700 . Kentucky Sen. Jim Bunning , who's up for re-election next year and is considered the most vulnerable Senate Republican, ranks eighth with $194,166 .

All oppose giving additional tobacco regulatory powers to the FDA , an agency they argue doesn't have adequate resources for the task. They say cigarette companies' campaign contributions didn't color their positions on the legislation.

The measure passed the Senate Thursday on a vote of 79-17.

"I voted against the FDA tobacco bill because I'm opposed to the overregulation of an industry that's already highly regulated, from farmer to manufacturer," Chambliss said. "The bill saddles the already overburdened FDA with even more oversight duties, and does nothing to reduce the rate of smoking among Americans — cigarettes already on the shelves will remain on the market."

Burr, who's received nearly $196,850 from Reynolds , worked with Sen. Kay Hagan , D- N.C. , for a week to stymie the FDA regulation bill. Their amendment, which was defeated 60-36, would have created a new agency to regulate tobacco, with fewer restrictions than the underlying bill.

Virginia Democratic Sens. Mark Warner and Jim Webb supported the measure, as did Altria Group , the Richmond, Va. , company that owns Philip Morris . Altria contributed $78,418 to Warner.

"We think it's important to stay active in the political process," said William Phelps , an Altria spokesman. "We're proud of our commitment to the political process on behalf of our employees and shareholders."

Critics say the measure gives Altria a competitive advantage in using its deep coffers to meet FDA requirements.

McConnell staffers point out that though Altria contributed $79,650 to his campaigns, the senator's opposition to the measure differed from the company's stance.

"Mandating the FDA to regulate and approve the use of tobacco would be a distortion of the agency's mission and a tremendous misuse of its overstretched priorities," McConnell said. "We should focus FDA resources on protecting the public health, not burdening it with an impossible assignment."

Contributions to federal candidates, committees and parties from the industry have fallen dramatically since the late 1990s, when companies gave almost $10 million each year, according to the Center for Responsive Politics . In 2006, the tobacco industry donated $3.5 million , with Altria Group and Reynolds American contributing the most. Donations from the industry overwhelmingly favor Republicans, who lost control of Congress in 2006 after more than a decade of dominance.

ON THE WEB

OpenSecrets.org's tobacco contribution list

The revolution continues

War is a racket

Unlike many presidential candidates who fade away when they don't win (Kerry, McCain, Dole, Dukakis etc. etc), Ron Paul carries on.

Maybe that's because he actually has a message and a commitment.

You don't have to agree with everything he says to realize this is one of the rarest of people: a US politician who actually cares about the nation's future.

We can't afford the Bush-Clinton-Bush-Obama program of endless war - and it doesn't do anything to make the country safer. Quite the contrary.

Energy from pig slurry helps fight climate change

I have been touting this for years, India has had large scale Biogassers for over 30 years

STERKSEL, Netherlands – The 2,700 pigs on the farm that John Horrevorts manages yield more than ham and bacon. A biogas plant makes enough electricity from their waste to run the farm and feeds extra wattage into the Dutch national grid.

He even gets bonus payments for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

As the world struggles to reduce pollution causing climate change, attention has focused on the burning of fossil fuels in factories, power stations, and vehicles. But U.N. scientists says farming and forestry account for more than 30 percent of the greenhouse gases that are gradually heating the earth. Much of that pollution comes from cattle, sheep and pigs that belch or excrete methane, a heat-trapping gas more than 20 times as potent as carbon dioxide, the most common global warming gas.

Negotiators from 190 countries have been working to reach a new climate change agreement in December on ways to reduce emissions and help countries adapt to changes in climate. They will reconvene June 1 in Bonn, Germany, for another two-week session.

Yet it is uncertain whether cutting agricultural emissions will be part of the agreement expected to emerge at the final meetings in Copenhagen, Denmark. The subject is complex, emissions are difficult to measure, and the whole question is politically sensitive, touching on the distrust between the world's rich and poor countries.

Scientists say it is too important to be left out.

"It would be absolutely nuts to ignore agriculture and forestry in any future climate deal," said Pete Smith, professor of soils and global change at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland.

U.N. studies say agriculture is the main source of income for one of every three working people. It also is a growing source of pollution, as the global population increases and living standards rise in developing countries where more people are eating meat.

The latest research by the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization says animal husbandry accounts for 18 percent of all greenhouse gases, when taking into account the grassland and forests that are cleared for raising livestock.

When the FAO report came out in 2006, "people in the livestock sector were shocked because they thought they did a good job," says Akke van der Zijpp, a professor of animal husbandry at Wageningen University, a premier Dutch technical facility. Now they "are becoming slowly aware that this problem has to be solved."

One way to deal with it is to reduce the methane animals produce by changing their diet or through breeding.

Another is to make use of it and burn it.

Horrevorts says Wageningen University's Praktijkcentrum, or Sterksel Research Center, creates 5,000 megawatts a year, enough to power 1,500 homes. The farm uses the electricity it needs and feeds the rest into the national grid, for which the government pays up to euro177 ($238) per megawatt as a green energy subsidy.

Pigs can be remarkably house-broken animals. Here, they drop their waste through slats on the floor in the middle of the barn while spending most of their time in open stalls to the side. The slurry is channeled into three 4,000 cubic meter (141,250 cubic feet) tanks, then mixed into a thick goo with other organic waste like low-quality grain and carrot juice to increase the methane potential. Bacteria break down the material in a digester tank and the gas is siphoned off into a generator to produce electricity.

Horrevorts says a group including his operation and four other commercial farms avoids methane emissions equivalent to 40,000 tons of carbon a year. Dozens of private or nonprofit companies known as offset providers will "buy" those tons as a way of supporting renewable energy or other projects that reduce carbon emissions, then resell the credits to individuals or companies who want to shrink their carbon footprint.

Last year, Horrevorts said, a British offset provider paid euro5 ($6.70) per ton for people wanting to neutralize plane travel or rock concert tickets. This year, the farm was negotiating with a Dutch company seeking to become carbon neutral to promote a green image.

Though operating expenses for the biogas plant are considerable, the combination of electricity savings, power production and carbon credits makes it profitable, Horrevorts says.

Horrevorts, who is a biological researcher rather than a professional farmer, says that with financial incentives through electricity subsidies, it could become standard practice for ordinary farmers. About 50 commercial biogas plants operate on farms in the Netherlands, and the practice is spreading across industrial livestock farms around the world.

"I think in the future every pig farm will have a biogas plant," he says.

But at euro1 million ($1.3 million) for a big plant like Sterksel's, it's a rich man's answer to climate change.

About 70 percent of the world's agriculture is on small land holdings in the developing world, which complicates climate politics, says Antonio Hill of the nonprofit group Oxfam International.

"It sounds like a big pot," Hill said, but dealing with farming is tougher than with industries. "You're talking about tens of thousands of sources of industrial emissions in rich countries. That's a lot more manageable than hundreds of millions of agricultural operations."

Measuring and verifying carbon reductions from soil conservation, grassland management and livestock is complicated, and those reductions may not be permanent. Trees planted to soak up carbon from the air, for example, can always be cut down and burned.

In the past year, much effort has gone into quantifying emissions from deforestation in the tropics and ways to compensate countries like Brazil or Indonesia for protecting their rainforests. But no comparable effort has gone into accounting for the vast farming sector.

Another obstacle to an agreement in the U.N. talks is the suspicion that rich countries will meet a large part of their emissions reductions by buying credits on the international carbon market rather than constraining their own industries. In other words, they would buy credits from farmers to reduce their carbon footprint, in the same way the offset company bought credits from the Sterksel pig farm.

"If the idea is that rich countries will do most of their reductions through offsets, a lot of developing countries have a big problem with that," says Hill, speaking from his home base in Bolivia.

Hill says he expected nothing more in the Copenhagen agreement than "place holders," or general statements that can be filled in later with details. But Smith, the scientist from Aberdeen who co-wrote the agriculture section in the 2007 report by the U.N's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, says including agriculture in the Copenhagen agreement would provide a source of capital from rich countries to poor ones.

"It would be a desperate shame if it were blocked for political reasons," he says.

Vast US illegal drug market fuels Mexican cartels

of course
duh?


Latest federal data, http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/NSDUHlatest.htm


The Mexican drug cartels battling viciously to expand and survive have a powerful financial incentive: Across the border to the north is a market for illegal drugs unsurpassed for its wealth, diversity and voraciousness.

Homeless heroin addicts in big cities, "meth heads' in Midwest trailer parks, pop culture and sports stars, teens smoking marijuana with their Baby Boomer parents in Vermont — in all, 46 percent of Americans 12 and older have indulged in the often destructive national pastime of illicit drug use.

This array of consumers is providing a vast, recession-proof, apparently unending market for the Mexican gangs locked in a drug war that has killed more than 10,780 people since December 2006. No matter how much law enforcement or financial help the U.S. government provides Mexico, the basics of supply and demand prevent it from doing much good.

"The damage done by our insatiable demand for drugs is truly astounding," said Lloyd Johnston, a University of Michigan researcher who oversees annual drug-use surveys.

The latest federal figures show that 114 million Americans have used illegal drugs at some point — and 20 million are current users.

Marijuana is by far the No. 1 drug, sampled by 100 million Americans, including nearly half of high school seniors. But more than 35 million Americans have used cocaine at some point and 34 million have taken LSD or other hallucinogens.

"It's a drug dealer's dream — sell it in a place where he can make the most money for the risk taken," said Dr. H. Westley Clark, director of the federal Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.

"There's a tremendous amount of denial until you're face to face with it," Clark added. "A substance abuser can be anybody. Everybody is at risk."

___

The Mexican cartels are eager to feed this ravenous appetite. Once used mostly to transship drugs from South America, Mexico is now a major producer and distributor; its gangs control cocaine networks in many U.S. cities and covertly grow marijuana on U.S. public lands.

For now, the Mexican government is fighting the cartels and working with U.S. authorities who have promised to stop the southbound flow of weapons and cash — but all parties are aware of the role played by the U.S. market.

"When the U.S. government turns up the pressure a lot, then is when you see a return to the old formula of saying (to Americans), 'You also have corruption, you consume the drugs, you're the biggest drug consumer in the world,'" said Jose Luis Pineyro, a sociologist at Mexico's Autonomous Metropolitan University.

Gil Kerlikowske, a former Seattle police chief recently appointed by President Barack Obama as the U.S. drug czar, said the Mexicans "make an excellent point."

"Our drug abuse causes problems elsewhere — our per capita consumption is very high," said Kerlikowske, who argues that reducing demand through education and treatment is as vital as border interdictions in quelling Mexico's drug violence.

___

Country of origin didn't matter much to David Hart.

Now 49, Hart said he started using drugs at 14 and didn't stop until he entered a one-year recovery program in January at the Springs Rescue Mission in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The son of an alcoholic father, Hart moved from Arizona to Colorado in 1993. A promised construction job didn't materialize, and since then he's mixed part-time work with stints of homelessness, panhandling to pay for hits of crack, marijuana and speed.

"When you're depressed about your lot in life, and angry about the way you've been treated, drugs are a perfect way out. You smoke that crack and your problems just go away. You know they're going to come back, but for that brief moment you don't have to deal with it."

He's grateful to his supporters at the recovery program, but unsure what lies ahead.

"It's been a part of my life for so long," he said. "It's going to be a challenge for the rest of my life to stay clean."

Yet Hart is, in some respects, lucky. Federal figures indicate that roughly 7.5 million Americans needed treatment for illegal drug abuse in 2007, and only about 1.3 million received it.

The Rescue Mission's CEO, the Rev. Joe Vazquez, said Hart is part of a wave of drug-abusing transients who've settled into the netherworld of an outwardly prosperous region.

"There's this whole segment of our community living well below what their creator created them for — these men coming with a toolbelt and backpack, living in little rundown motels, struggling with addiction," Vazquez said.

___

Federal surveys reveal cyclical trends in drug abuse — but the number of lifetime users keeps growing. Overall abuse rates were highest in the 1970s, declined through the early '90s, went back up and now seem to have stabilized over the past six years.

Studies of youth drug use in Western Europe show a few countries with serious problems, but overall a far lower portion of young people there are abusing drugs than in America. Elsewhere around the world, drug use also is widespread, though data is generally not as thorough as in the U.S.

"There's no escaping the fact that we have the highest drug rates in the world," said Craig Reinarman, a sociologist at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

U.S. authorities were encouraged that drug use among 12-to-17-year-olds declined by about 25 percent between 2002 and 2007. But Johnston, the University of Michigan researcher, says his latest student survey suggests the decline halted in 2008, and he is concerned by data showing that fewer students view smoking marijuana as a serious risk.

There was no similar recent drop-off of drug abuse among the biggest demographic category — young adults aged 18-25. Illicit drug use also has surged among those aged 55 to 59 — baby boomers whose young adulthood coincided with the drug culture's heyday. And there is deep concern about increasing abuse of prescription medicines among all age groups.

Survey after survey shows the vast scope of illegal drug use — deep-rooted in all regions, among all races and socio-economic groups. Big cities indeed have severe problems, but the states with the highest overall abuse rates include Rhode Island, Vermont, Montana and Alaska.

"There's this assumption that drug abuse is more common in racial minorities, especially blacks," said Dr. Wilson Compton, a division director at the National Institute on Drug Abuse. "It's not true. Either the rates are lower or at least no higher."

Reinarman reflected on the recent methamphetamine outbreak across the American heartland — Iowa, Missouri, Kansas and elsewhere.

"Here they live in crummy little houses, in towns that are dying ... and along comes a drug that provides a great rush," he said. "You can't separate drug problems from the broader matrix of social and personal problems. You can't have a drug policy that works unless it's part of a much broader social policy."

___

For those concerned about marijuana, Vermont is an active front line, with the nation's highest rates of pot usage. It's one of several regions where joints may now be more prevalent among teens than cigarettes.

"People say, 'It's easier for me to get pot than to buy a beer,'" said Barbara Cimaglio, deputy commissioner of the state Health Department's Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Programs.

Annie Ramniceanu, clinical director at Spectrum Youth and Family Services in Burlington, Vt., says many of the 350 youths her agency counsels annually started smoking pot before their teens.

"They just get high all the time," she said. "They never learned how to have fun without smoking pot, never learned how to deal with conflict, how to focus on anything."

In both blue-collar and affluent families, she sees multigenerational problems.

"It's become the cultural norm for these families, where drug use is absolutely no big deal," she said. "The kids smoke with their parents, or know their parents use other drugs."

Another drug counselor, Yolanda Morales of New York City, is cautiously upbeat about the attitudes she observes among young people.

Now 55, Morales lapsed into a cocaine habit and a 15-year addiction while trying to juggle graduate school and a job. She spent five years in federal prison for trafficking, got out in 2003, and now works for the Fortune Society in New York, counseling other ex-offenders.

She has shared her story candidly with her college-bound daughter.

"When I was in school in New York, people stood on the corner selling drugs — no one gave a damn," Morales said. "The consequences of that era has the younger generation a little more scared. I don't see them doing the hard drugs like we were. They're more informed — there's more wariness about trying different stuff."

But other Fortune Society staff members see worrisome signs.

Damien Cabezas, vice president for clinical services, says New York teens are starting to use cheap heroin arriving from Afghanistan.

Kerlikowske, as he takes over the Office of National Drug Control Policy, would like to beef up treatment programs and divert more drug offenders to them instead of prison. It's an issue with personal overtones — the drug czar's own stepson has faced drug charges.

Eliminating drug abuse is not a realistic goal, Kerlikowske cautions. "But we can reduce the harm, the dangers, the drain on our economy."

___

Associated Press writer Mark Stevenson in Mexico City contributed to this report.

___

On the Net:

Latest federal data, http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/NSDUHlatest.htm

Navajos largely unscathed by recession

By FELICIA FONSECA, Associated Press Writer Felicia Fonseca, Associated Press Writer – Sun May 17, 5:36 am ET

TONALEA, Ariz. – Talk at the community center in this small Navajo town isn't as focused on the economy as it is in many places off the reservation.

That's because the people living on the largest American Indian reservation have been largely unscathed by the recession.

Most Navajos own their own homes, tend not to invest in the stock market and have long had difficulties borrowing money, distinguishing them from millions of other Americans who've suffered from rising mortgage payments, sinking 401(k) retirement accounts and stricter terms from lenders.

And with half of the Navajo Nation's work force unemployed long before this latest recession hit, there's not much fear the job situation could get much worse on the reservation.

"They're freaking out out there, but to us, we've always had 50 percent unemployment," said John C. Whiterock, a Navajo youth pastor. "To us, that's just part of life."

That's not to say the 200,000 people who live on the largest American Indian reservation, which extends into Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, have escaped untouched. Tribal officials are wrangling over how to address a $25 million budget shortfall and requests for social services have prompted newspaper ads for more employees to handle them.

The key has been the ability of Navajos who maintain traditional beliefs to cope, and the attitude that allows them to persevere. The culture teaches that wealth isn't measured by dollars and that the language, the land and kinship are the greatest survival tools.

For reservation resident Delores Claw, that means leaning on traditional practices such as keeping livestock and growing corn to offset the rising cost of food. Claw lost her job at a day school after enrollment dropped, and the construction work for her husband has slowed. As money got tight, Claw's family butchered 10 of their lambs.

"They always say if you have livestock, you're rich," she said.

Other Navajos still sell hand-woven rugs at trading posts or jewelry and food at roadside stands and at flea markets usually bustling with buyers. It's an industry that contributes about $6 million a year to a $1.3 billion economy, though the jobs aren't counted in the tribe's employment statistics.

"In many ways, we have the means to sustain ourselves," said Navajo President Joe Shirley Jr.

Among traditional Navajos, those who most closely cling to the beliefs and practices handed down through generations, there's a strong emphasis on self-sufficiency, and balance and harmony. The tradition is deep-rooted among elderly Navajos, though some argue it has tapered off with the younger generation.

Wilson Aronlith Jr., a 76-year-old instructor of Navajo culture, philosophy and history at Dine College, said his health, following his ancestors' teachings and passing along the language and stories of the Navajo people mean more to him than money ever could.

"If you have all the good capabilities, that's wealth," he said. "What else would you ask for?"

Ivan Gamble, a Navajo man from the community of LeChee, said tradition is not so much sticking strictly to the ways of his ancestors but blending the best of Navajo culture and Western society.

The 31-year-old Gamble lives in a home without water and electricity, and grows crops and raises animals by choice, but he still has a cell phone and Internet access and numerous jobs to earn money.

"That's what our ancestors taught us, to adapt, to survive," he said.

By most measurements, the Navajo Nation fits the definition of poor. But despite the 38.5 percent poverty rate among families, an unemployment rate that consistently hovers around 50 percent, a per capita income of about $7,500 and the lack of unemployment benefits, there's a sense of contentment with the simple life on the reservation characterized by its rugged landscape and remoteness.

Many Navajos still haul water from long distances to cook and for their livestock. Navajo children in the more remote areas must do their homework by the light of a kerosene lamp and daily chores include chopping wood or gathering coal to heat the home.

The cost of living on the reservation is low, and the income derived from arts and crafts along with public assistance is enough to sustain some people, said Trib Choudhary, an economic development specialist for the tribe. Aside from basic needs, he said, there's not much more that is desired.

"I usually say that you cannot dye a black rug into any other color. That's what the Navajo Nation is," he said. "If there is a downturn, it doesn't matter. If there is an upswing, it doesn't matter. We are happy."

What Navajos hope for, along with better roads, running water and electricity, is an improved economy, one that will allow their children to return to the reservation, help their people and maintain the language and culture.

The tribe has made small strides toward improving the economy, opening up the first of six planned casinos on the reservation last year. There's a push for green jobs that would reflect the traditional life, and a coal-fired power plant is in the works.

Still, many tribal members are forced off the reservation to look for jobs.

Economic development has long failed to keep up with population growth. To keep the unemployment rate stable, some 3,500 jobs must be created each year, but Choudhary said only about 200 are.

The situation on the Navajo Nation tends to reflect what is occurring on other American Indian reservations, where unemployment rates are twice that of the rest of the country and real per-capital income is less than half the national average, said Dante Desiderio, an economic development policy specialist for the National Congress of American Indians.

The group has called on the federal government to respond to what it says has essentially been a decades-old depression on tribal lands.

Desiderio notes that many tribes don't have the tax base that cities or states do and are looking to federal stimulus money to help build infrastructure and spur economic development. Of the $787 billion economic stimulus package, $2.5 million was set aside for tribal programs.

"If you read the papers and you see what the rest of America is struggling with, it matches what tribes have been struggling with," Desiderio said. "If we're going to fix it, this is the chance."

Rejuvenate Naturally: No Drugs, Hormones, or Surgery

Your body was designed to heal itself, and it can rejuvenate naturally—without drugs, hormone replacement, or invasive surgery. You can live a long, healthy life by using the natural secrets of the Chinese medical tradition, which can revitalize your body, slow the aging process, and activate your body's built-in regenerative powers. I have collected the very best of these secrets in my new book Second Spring. Here are 4 secrets that will start you on your Second Spring!
1. Green tea combats Alzheimer's
If you replace your morning cup of coffee with green tea, you'll get more than a fleeting pick-me-up. Studies suggest that green tea may actually protect against Alzheimer's disease and other forms of mental degeneration. Green tea is packed with polyphenols, antioxidants that have been found to increase cognitive acuity and learning ability.

One particular polyphenol is responsible for these beneficial brain effects: catechin. The concentration of catechins in green tea is four times that of black tea. Researchers aren't exactly sure why, but the minimal processing used for green tea may help to preserve a higher concentration of the antioxidants. Another bonus to green tea? Studies suggest that you can lose more belly fat when you add green tea on top of your weight-loss exercise regime. So drink up to reap long-term benefits for your brain.

2. Magnesium for more energy
Magnesium is an essential mineral that mitochrondria—the tiny power generators in your cells— require to help your body produce energy. Most of us don't get enough magnesium because two common dietary habits leach magnesium from our bodies: too much dairy and too much salt. And most of us just don't get enough magnesium to begin with due to the popularity of overprocessed foods. For example, rice bran contains an ample supply of the mineral, but bran is only found in brown rice. White rice has none. In the same way, wheat germ has plenty of magnesium, yet there's none in white bread and white pasta.

So keep eating whole grains for maximum magnesium intake. You can also get plenty of magnesium from nuts and seeds. Have a daily handful of pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, Brazil nuts, and cashews. Magnesium also helps your heart health, relieves muscle cramps, and protects your skin from UV damage. If you prefer capsule form, try taking 500 mg magnesium daily.

3. Try chai for revitalization
The herb that gives chai tea its main flavor is cardamom, a spice that has long been valued in Asia for its ability to increase circulation and improve energy. Cardamom is a stimulant that positively affects your overall well-being, as both a revitalizing tonic for the body and as an antidepressant for emotional disorders. Orchid bees are drawn to cardamom, and use it to synthesize pheromones.

Because of this combination of properties, cardamom is routinely prescribed by Chinese doctors—generally in doses up to 5 grams per day—to rekindle sexual desire. But that's not all! Cardamom also reduces fever, eases indigestion, and combats intolerance to grains. So add some to your cereal or bake it into breads and cakes for a tasty treat free from digestive issues. And of course you can always drink the tea for this myriad of benefits.

4. Ease nervous eating with magnolia
Millions of Americans experience the symptoms of chronic stress: nervous tension, restless sleep, irritability, difficulty focusing—and eating disorders in paricular. Who hasn't responded to stress by reaching for convenient comfort foods? Many people respond to situational stress by eating ice cream, cookies, and chocolates. When the stress becomes chronic, overeating becomes a habit—with predictable results.

To break the pattern, natural Chinese medicine uses magnolia, boasting a bounty of versatile benefits. Magnolia bark regulates appetite, improves digestion, and reduces swelling and bloating. The flower is a powerful remedy for allergies and sinus conditions. Studies have found that magnolia contains a phytochemical, honokiol, which is equipped with anti-stress properties that are helpful with appetite control and weight management. You can take a magnolia supplement by itself or in formulations with other herbs, in capsule form or as a tea, available in health food stores, online, and from acupuncturists and Chinese herbalists.

Bring these new rejuvenating secrets into your life on a regular basis, and you'll have amazing results. I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.

May you live long, live strong, and live happy!

-Dr. Mao

What Finland can teach America about true luxury

By Trevor Corson Trevor Corson – Fri May 1, 5:00 am ET

New York – What is true luxury? Just when I thought I'd settled on my answer – a flat-screen TV the size of Kansas and a leather-upholstered car that can travel at triple the speed limit – I made several visits to Finland. Shortly after my return the financial crisis hit. Finland has been on my mind ever since. In these hard times, we could learn a few things about luxury from the Finns.

Strolling the streets of Helsinki, the capital, I noticed a lack of grand architecture and opulent homes, and an abundance of modest cars. Helsinki was a nice enough city, and it had some gems of modern design, but part of me felt that Finland was a bit dull. And, strangely, some of the Finns I met seemed to take pride in this.

Finland seemed even duller on my next visit in July. The weather was glorious, but Helsinki felt like a ghost town. I learned that most Finns take a five-week summer vacation, and that many of them disappear for the entire time to tiny, bare-bones cottages in the woods. Curious, I wrangled an invitation to visit one of these secluded cabins. It was meticulously cared for, but lacked any creature comforts. I quickly realized that there was nothing to do and no one to see.

After a couple of days at the cabin I was a convert. It was marvelously relaxing, and I realized the Finns were on to something – a form of luxury that had little to do with high-end products, the quest to acquire them, or the need to show them off. While some Finns pursue the material trappings of success, most seem to feel that the pleasures of time and solitude are more precious.

During my visits, I met some North American expats, including a Canadian who'd lived in the US for years. "I talk to friends back in North America," he told me, "and they tell me about all the latest toys they've bought. Here I'm just puttering away on my little house like a Finn, and that's about it. The pace of life is slower. I like that."

Americans in Finland shared similar sentiments. But they weren't naive about the place, and there was a reason they weren't buying the latest toys. "I'll never become rich in Finland," one explained, "the taxes are just too high." But for him it was a trade-off worth making. "Great healthcare, basically free. My kids get one of the best educations in the world, free." By the way, that includes college, free. He had no plans to move back to the States.

As I spent more time in Helsinki, my own notion of the luxuries available in Finland expanded to include more than just the quiet pleasures of a cabin getaway. Finnish cities are filled with universally well-maintained and high-quality schools, hospitals, buses, trains, and parks. While most Finns might never be able to own a well-appointed SUV or a big house, they value the less-tangible assets they do have, which add up to quality of life and peace of mind.

Finland doesn't pay lip service to providing a level playing field for all its citizens. It really does give the vast majority of its citizens a fair and equal chance in life, in a way that the US just doesn't, no matter how much Americans like to think it does.

Finland has its downsides, of course. The Finns I met described high rates of depression and alcoholism among their countrymen, and admitted that many Finns seem to suffer from low self-esteem. When I returned to the dynamic bustle of New York, I was happy to be back, even with the financial crisis decimating the economy.

Compared with Finns, Americans have qualities I admire and treasure: optimism, an entrepreneurial spirit, and a willingness to be opinionated, for starters. These qualities will help us fight our way back to economic health.

But let's face it: The single-minded pursuit of outsized material consumption helped get us into this mess. As we struggle to get back on our feet, perhaps we should pause for our own "Finnish moment."

Trevor Corson is the author of "The Secret Life of Lobsters" and "The Story of Sushi: An Unlikely Saga of Raw Fish and Rice."

Indict Bush Now!

This is how they managed the Iraq War billions BUSH Family of Crooks

This is how they managed
the Iraq War billions

Can you imagine the scope and scale of the theft that will take place with the bank bailouts?

For four generations now, the Bush family has been involved in supporting the country's enemies (most notably the Nazi Party in Germany) and robbing the country blind. 

The family was directly involved and profited from the Savings and Loan scandal of the 1980s and has participated in security fraud as well. 

With this understanding as a background, the Iraq War can be viewed as their "masterpiece." 

The Bush family and its associates have stolen countless billions of dollars in the course of the war. In fact, one of their motivations for pushing the war in the first place was the opportunity for theft. 

Chances are the destruction of World Trade Tower Seven, the home of crucial and now lost forever SEC and other federal law enforcement evidence and case files was carried out to cover their tracks. 

Why isn't the news media pointing out that the last time we had a banking system collapse that enriched a bunch of crooks, a Bush was in the White House running the show? 

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