Thursday, January 29, 2015


News Clips For The Day


http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2015/01/29/382276085/obamas-budget-would-undo-broad-cuts-made-during-recession

Obama's Budget Would Undo Broad, Automatic Cuts Made In 2013
Christopher Dean Hopkins
January 29, 2015

When President Obama meets with House Democrats tonight during their retreat in Philadelphia, officials say he'll lay out the details of his budget proposal, which will include reversal of large cuts to federal spending instituted in 2013.

NPR's Mara Liasson reports that those spending cuts, known as the sequester, hit both the defense and domestic budgets. The cuts were the result of an uncomfortable congressional agreement in 2011 that triggered across-the-board cuts if a "supercommittee," or a panel of bipartisan leaders, could not agree on a way to cut the budget by $1.5 trillion over a decade. When talks on budget cuts fell apart, the automatic spending reductions began — to the tune of $85 billion in 2013.

The president officially will release his fiscal 2016 budget to the public on Monday; White House officials say it also will include boosted spending on education, infrastructure and the military, offset by closing tax loopholes used by the wealthy.

Congressional Republicans are unlikely to accept those proposals, Mara reports.

Responding to Obama's State of the Union address earlier this month, Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, said her party would support tax reform "to lower rates — and create jobs, not pay for more government spending." She also said the Republican caucus would pursue a balanced budget.

A White House official said Obama hopes to work with Republicans to build on 2013's bipartisan budget agreement.

"The president believes we should end the era of manufactured crises and mindless austerity," the statement read.

The stuffed-full "cromnibus" spending bill was passed by a lame-duck Senate in December and funds the government through the end of the fiscal year in September.




“When President Obama meets with House Democrats tonight during their retreat in Philadelphia, officials say he'll lay out the details of his budget proposal, which will include reversal of large cuts to federal spending instituted in 2013.... When talks on budget cuts fell apart, the automatic spending reductions began — to the tune of $85 billion in 2013. The president officially will release his fiscal 2016 budget to the public on Monday; White House officials say it also will include boosted spending on education, infrastructure and the military, offset by closing tax loopholes used by the wealthy.Congressional Republicans are unlikely to accept those proposals, Mara reports. ... "The president believes we should end the era of manufactured crises and mindless austerity," the statement read. The stuffed-full "cromnibus" spending bill was passed by a lame-duck Senate in December and funds the government through the end of the fiscal year in September.”

All three of Obama's proposed budget spending increases are needed. The increases in Russia's military spending lately and the decreases in US and European spending on ours are making me nervous. I'm afraid we aren't a match for Russia should they try to move into more Ukrainian territory or other former USSR states, and I don't trust Putin not to do it. Closing tax loopholes for the wealthy will probably be prevented, but at least some money for infrastructure will probably be voted in. Education is always in need of more money, just like food stamps for the poor. Hopefully some of this money will “trickle down” to the poor someway – jobs building bridges, maybe. Unfortunately, this budget will have to pass the Republican dominated legislature, so it will probably be cut. That will be news for another day.



Excerpt from Lucy Warner's blog January 29, 2015 “A Day At A Time,” on website lucywarner2013.blogspot.com/:

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-dismal-state-of-americas-child-poverty/

1 in 5 American kids rely on food stamps
By AIMEE PICCHI MONEYWATCH
January 28, 2015

America is a global leader on a number of fronts, including having the largest economy in the world. But here is one area where the U.S., given its general affluence, would rather not distinguish itself: It has one of the highest rates of child poverty in the industrialized world.

Even as the economy continues to recover from the Great Recession, 1 in 5 children are on food stamps, the U.S. Census said on Wednesday. Before the housing crash, 1 in 8 received federal food assistance.

This dismal statistic reflects how the recovery is failing to reach families at the lower end of the economic spectrum. While the stock market has reached record highs and the richest 1 percent are on a path to own most of the world's wealth by 2016, many American families continue to struggle to put food on the table. The U.S. now has the second-highest rate of child poverty among 35 industrialized nations, according to the Children's Defense Fund, a child advocacy group.

That is a "shameful distinction," the group said in a new report. "Many countries with fewer resources have lower poverty rates, including the U.K., New Zealand, the Czech Republic and Hungary, a clear indication the U.S. could do much more to reduce child poverty."


 U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

The only industrialized country with a higher poverty rate? Romania, a country that is still struggling to emerge from brutal decades under Communism and is only now starting to create a middle class.

About 15 million U.S. children live below the official poverty level of about $24,000 for a family of four, the Children's Defense Fund found. Children in the U.S. have a 20 percent chance of being poor, while children of color are twice as likely to be poor as white kids.

"It's shocking, and it doesn't have to be this way," Caroline Fichtenberg, director of research at the Children's Defense Fund, told CBS MoneyWatch. "It's in our economic interest to address child poverty."

There's a cost to America's high rate of child poverty, the Children's Defense Fund said. Because financially strapped parents have fewer resources and less time -- many work multiple jobs to make ends meet -- they are less likely to spend time talking and reading to their children. Hunger and food insecurity also lead to health problems, as well as a higher chance of obesity, and poor students are less likely to graduate from high school, which depresses their earnings potential.

"The lost productivity and extra health and crime costs stemming from child poverty add up to roughly half a trillion dollars a year, or 3.8 percent of GDP," the report noted.

Food stamps are just one of the costs. Last year, the food-assistance program provided benefits for 16 million children, compared with 9 million before the recession started in December of 2007. The rate of children who live with married parents and who are receiving food stamps, meanwhile, has doubled in that same time period, the Census said.

The findings come amid increased concern from economists and policy makers about the growing gap in the U.S. between the rich and everyone else. The top 1 percent of income earners captured all the income gains since the recession officially ended in June 2009 in 16 states, while capturing at least half of all gains in another 22 states, according to the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank.

While the "War on Poverty," started by President Lyndon Johnson in the 1960s to lower America's poverty rate, has been successful, the recession hit many lower- and middle-income families hard.

"Why we have the feeling we're treading water is the economy has changed," Fichtenberg said. "We have fewer jobs that pay enough to get by, we have wage stagnation and all the benefits have gone to the top 1 percent. Coming out of the recession, children have been the first to suffer and the last to benefit."

Boosting the fortunes of the middle class was the main theme of President Obama's State of the Union address last week. His proposals include raising the capital gains tax and eliminating a loophole that benefits wealthy families, with the additional tax monies used to fund educational benefits and tax cuts for middle-income earners.

Reducing poverty among America's children could be achieved through policy measures such as increasing the Earned Income Tax Credit for lower-income families and boosting the minimum wage, the Children's Defense Fund said. Those and other policy measures could reduce the country's child poverty rate by 60 percent, the group said.

"By investing more in protecting children from poverty the U.S. could rejoin the ranks of peer nations," the report noted. "Shrinking the U.S. relative child poverty rate by 60 percent would cut child poverty in the U.S. from 23.1 to 9.2 percent, placing the U.S. in line with countries like Germany and Switzerland."

Many of the government's social safety net benefits help families as they cope with periods of income loss or financial stress, and don't necessarily lead to dependence on government handouts, Fichtenberg added.

"We have a culture that focuses on individual responsibility, and we completely agree with that, but we are all in the same boat and it's in everybody's interest" to lift children out of poverty, she said. "Children don't choose their parents or who they are born to."




“America is a global leader on a number of fronts, including having the largest economy in the world. But here is one area where the U.S., given its general affluence, would rather not distinguish itself: It has one of the highest rates of child poverty in the industrialized world. Even as the economy continues to recover from the Great Recession, 1 in 5 children are on food stamps, the U.S. Census said on Wednesday. Before the housing crash, 1 in 8 received federal food assistance. This dismal statistic reflects how the recovery is failing to reach families at the lower end of the economic spectrum. While the stock market has reached record highs and the richest 1 percent are on a path to own most of the world's wealth by 2016, many American families continue to struggle to put food on the table. The U.S. now has the second-highest rate of child poverty among 35 industrialized nations, according to the Children's Defense Fund, a child advocacy group.... Children in the U.S. have a 20 percent chance of being poor, while children of color are twice as likely to be poor as white kids. "It's shocking, and it doesn't have to be this way," Caroline Fichtenberg, director of research at the Children's Defense Fund, told CBS MoneyWatch. "It's in our economic interest to address child poverty." There's a cost to America's high rate of child poverty, the Children's Defense Fund said. Because financially strapped parents have fewer resources and less time -- many work multiple jobs to make ends meet -- they are less likely to spend time talking and reading to their children. Hunger and food insecurity also lead to health problems, as well as a higher chance of obesity, and poor students are less likely to graduate from high school, which depresses their earnings potential.... The top 1 percent of income earners captured all the income gains since the recession officially ended in June 2009 in 16 states, while capturing at least half of all gains in another 22 states, according to the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank..... Boosting the fortunes of the middle class was the main theme of President Obama's State of the Union address last week. His proposals include raising the capital gains tax and eliminating a loophole that benefits wealthy families, with the additional tax monies used to fund educational benefits and tax cuts for middle-income earners. Reducing poverty among America's children could be achieved through policy measures such as increasing the Earned Income Tax Credit for lower-income families and boosting the minimum wage, the Children's Defense Fund said. Those and other policy measures could reduce the country's child poverty rate by 60 percent, the group said.... "We have a culture that focuses on individual responsibility, and we completely agree with that, but we are all in the same boat and it's in everybody's interest" to lift children out of poverty, she said. "Children don't choose their parents or who they are born to."

“The U.S. now has the second-highest rate of child poverty among 35 industrialized nations....” The only nation whose situation is worse than our is Romania. I am not only horrified to see this information, I am ashamed. This is the result of the long austerity program that the Tea Party has been embarked upon since it's emergence on the political scene. The article also describes a situation that will undoubtedly cause the growth of a “permanent underclass,” which I'm afraid is already in existence and can only be made worse. That's one of the reasons people talk so much about “child poverty” specifically – those kids who don't have good nutrition or even sufficient caloric intake cannot learn as well, and can even have brain damage.

We are raising a generation who will be relatively speaking incapable of getting a good education because they can't absorb the information (even when it is of a high quality and taught very well.) The fact that too many of our kids are underperforming in basic reading and math is to me the result of poor books, poor parental vocabulary and uninspired, poor teaching, with the classes so full that the teachers can't give the slower learners the extra help they need. We are raising a generation who can't do a job above a menial level without providing as many menial jobs as we used to generate. Offshoring and the use of ever higher levels of technology in American workplaces have reduced those jobs, while increasing the amount of money in the pockets of already wealthy business owners. I hate to be a ludite, but we need our factory jobs back again. I really miss the unions. They are responsible for most pay raises down through our history, and for keeping those jobs requiring factory skills and a high school education rather than a Masters Degree in Business. Besides many of our young men and women who do have a 4 year degree or even a Masters are not, too often, getting employment when they graduate, especially well-paid work.

I am very worried about our present time, much less our future. I want to see a newly aroused and very progressive Democratic Party that will march on picket lines and become politically more active on the grassroots level. People who are one step above being homeless are living in crowded, decrepit housing on crime ridden streets. They need to talk to each other and work to form pressure groups to force congressional representatives to vote in laws that will benefit them, rather than merely giving in to emotional depression and hopelessness. Those people need to go to whatever lengths are needed to get those hated Voter ID cards and then do some block voting like they did in the Civil Rights days. That's how Obama got elected, I have no doubt, because the average white American didn't vote for him, no matter what their economic position. Race is deeply involved in the economic problems we're having now, but the key element is a jobless economy. Believe me, white mine workers will benefit too if the underclass stands up together and votes the friends of the Koch brothers out.

Businesses have always hated the unions, but they kept business owners aware that if they didn't want a crippling strike they would keep full employment rather than the endless cutbacks on labor that have been occurring for some 15 or 20 years in this country. When I was young, there were no racial riots, but there were union actions. I grew up in an industrialized part of North Carolina, so I saw union workers walking picket lines. We desperately need them back again in full force. I notice there is some union activity now at the fast food establishments. Great stuff!

All the articles talk about the recession of 2007, but the problem goes back farther than that to the time that laws were written to allow the massive movement of our manufacturing businesses to Southeast Asia. While Obama is focusing on making the wealthy pay, he needs to make it illegal for a company to send all its jobs oversees while it keeps its corporated status and low tax levels as a USA bases company. Many of them have set up their corporate offices in the US, but sent their actual manufacturing sites to places where labor is very cheap. Very little is actually being manufactured in this country anymore. Giving young people a higher level of education won't bring those jobs back. We need a “revolution,” and no, I'm not advocating the overthrow of the US government violent or otherwise, but the grassroots involvement of the poor in our politics as we used to have. If that happens, the 1% will have to give up some of their tax sheltered wealth to help feed, heal, educate and house the poor and the middle class. I do hope this happens sooner rather than later. Amen.







http://thehill.com/policy/transportation/230866-sen-sanders-files-1t-infrastructure-bill

Sen. Sanders files $1T infrastructure bill
By Keith Laing 
 01/27/15

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is introducing a bill to spend $1 trillion over the next five years to boost the nation's transportation infrastructure. 

The measure, which has been dubbed “Rebuild America Act,” comes as lawmakers have been discussing the possibility of raising the federal gas tax to help pay for a new round of transportation spending, prices at the pump having reached their lowest levels in years. 

Sanders did not suggest raising the gas tax to pay for his measure in an op-ed that was published in The Hill on Tuesday, but he said a large transportation funding package in Congress was long overdue.

“For many years we have underfunded the maintenance of our nation’s physical infrastructure,” he wrote. “That has to change. It is time to rebuild America. A $1 trillion investment to modernize our country’s physical infrastructure would not just rebuild our country but create and maintain 13 million good-paying jobs that our economy desperately needs.” 

Sanders did not offer a concrete funding mechanism for his transportation proposal. 

The gas tax, which predates the development of the Interstate Highway System, has been the traditional source for transportation projects since its inception in the 1930s.

The tax, which has not been increased since 1993, brings in about $34 billion per year. The federal government typically spends about $50 billion per year on road and transit projects, and transportation advocates have maintained that the larger figure is only enough to maintain the current state of the U.S. infrastructure network. 

The current transportation funding bill, which authorizes the collection of the gas tax at its current rate, is scheduled to expire in May. 

Sanders said U.S. voters would support an increase in funding for the transportation networks they use often. 

“Our infrastructure is collapsing, and the American people know it,” he wrote. “Every day, they drive on roads with unforgiving potholes, over bridges that are in disrepair and wait in traffic jams on congested roads. They see railroads and subways that arrive late and that are overcrowded. They see airports bursting at the seams. They worry that a local levee could fail in a storm.” 

Republicans are unlikely to go along with a large increase in transportation spending without an offset somewhere else in the federal budget. 

High-profile Republicans such as Speaker John Boehner (Ohio) and House Transportation Committee Chairman Rep. Bill Shuster (Pa.) have expressed skepticism about asking drivers to pay more at the pump to finance new transportation projects. 

However, other lawmakers, including a few influential Republicans in the Senate, have indicated that they would be open to raising the gas tax now.

Sanders said it was time to make a large investment in boosting U.S. infrastructure. 

“To get our infrastructure to a state of good repair by 2020, the American Society of Civil Engineers says we must invest $1.6 trillion more than what we now spend,” he wrote. “If that sounds a like a lot of money, consider for a moment that the sad state of our infrastructure already costs the economy close to $200 billion per year.

“A $1 trillion investment would put 13 million people to work repairing the backlog of infrastructure projects all across this country,” he continued. “Moreover, each project would require equipment, supplies and services, and the hard-earned salaries from the jobs created would be spent in countless restaurants, shops and other local businesses. And, all of this economic activity would generate new tax revenues to pay for the services that the American people expect and deserve.”  




“Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is introducing a bill to spend $1 trillion over the next five years to boost the nation's transportation infrastructure. The measure, which has been dubbed “Rebuild America Act,” comes as lawmakers have been discussing the possibility of raising the federal gas tax to help pay for a new round of transportation spending, prices at the pump having reached their lowest levels in years.  Sanders did not suggest raising the gas tax to pay for his measure in an op-ed that was published in The Hill on Tuesday, but he said a large transportation funding package in Congress was long overdue. “For many years we have underfunded the maintenance of our nation’s physical infrastructure,” he wrote. “That has to change. It is time to rebuild America. A $1 trillion investment to modernize our country’s physical infrastructure would not just rebuild our country but create and maintain 13 million good-paying jobs that our economy desperately needs.”  Sanders did not offer a concrete funding mechanism for his transportation proposal. … transportation advocates have maintained that the larger figure is only enough to maintain the current state of the U.S. infrastructure network. The current transportation funding bill, which authorizes the collection of the gas tax at its current rate, is scheduled to expire in May. Sanders said U.S. voters would support an increase in funding for the transportation networks they use often. “Our infrastructure is collapsing, and the American people know it,” he wrote.... However, other lawmakers, including a few influential Republicans in the Senate, have indicated that they would be open to raising the gas tax now. Sanders said it was time to make a large investment in boosting U.S. infrastructure. “To get our infrastructure to a state of good repair by 2020, the American Society of Civil Engineers says we must invest $1.6 trillion more than what we now spend,” he wrote.... “A $1 trillion investment would put 13 million people to work repairing the backlog of infrastructure projects all across this country,” he continued. “Moreover, each project would require equipment, supplies and services, and the hard-earned salaries from the jobs created would be spent in countless restaurants, shops and other local businesses. And, all of this economic activity would generate new tax revenues to pay for the services that the American people expect and deserve.”  

Bernie Sanders is a good statesman and a true Democrat, with an eye to satisfying the needs of our country. I like him lots. On his website one commenter suggested that Sanders might run for president of the US rather than just the Senate. I would definitely consider voting for him. I like his practicality and logical mind.





http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2015/01/28/382218351/amid-fighting-in-donetsk-on-edge-and-seeking-safety-underground

Amid Fighting In Donetsk, On Edge And Seeking Safety Underground
Corey Flintoff
January 28, 2015

Photograph – A woman sits inside a bomb shelter in Donetsk on Wednesday. Some local residents have lived in bomb shelters and basements for more than a month, looking for cover from artillery strikes.

As war rages in eastern Ukraine, European Union foreign ministers are preparing to meet Thursday to consider drastic new sanctions against Russia.

The EU and the United States say Moscow's troops and weapons are directly involved in an offensive by anti-government militias in Ukraine's eastern provinces.

The offensive is the latest phase in a war that has racked the region since last April — and it's grinding hard on the civilians who are caught in the middle.

There are a lot fewer people in Donetsk these days than there were during my last visit in November, but I did find Nadezhda Stolyarenko.

Her apartment was wrecked by shelling, and she's been taking shelter in the basement of her building, shaken by almost constant sounds of artillery.

She and others have already spent about a month living in the basement, she says, and people are very frightened and scared.

"We're all here, and we're scared," she says.

Stolyarenko is a small, dark-haired woman, living with her sister, Galina. They say they sent their children away to safety, but they stay because Nadezhda still has work in the office of a local mine.

They don't have running water or heat, she says. The space where they sleep is about 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

"We want peace," she says, "nothing bad to anyone, just peace."

After she left, I walked into the snowy courtyard, trying to come up with a way to describe what was going on: Separatist leaders say that they've advanced beyond the airport and that they're now fighting for some suburbs and small cities on the other side of the airport, where the Ukrainians have their positions.

Then, a gunshot went off nearby.

It was my cue to hit the ground.

I looked back to see that my two companions were on the ground already, surrounded by about 10 local militiamen with Kalashnikovs.

They swarmed around us, demanding to know who we were and what we were doing.

We produced passports and passes from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic.

They quickly let us go and told us to get out of the area.

It was a measure of how jumpy people are in this city, both civilians and military. They told us a local resident had called them after spotting us in the courtyard. And ominously, they said that they had recently caught two Ukrainian "saboteurs" in the neighborhood.




“As war rages in eastern Ukraine, European Union foreign ministers are preparing to meet Thursday to consider drastic new sanctions against Russia. The EU and the United States say Moscow's troops and weapons are directly involved in an offensive by anti-government militias in Ukraine's eastern provinces. The offensive is the latest phase in a war that has racked the region since last April — and it's grinding hard on the civilians who are caught in the middle. There are a lot fewer people in Donetsk these days than there were during my last visit in November, but I did find Nadezhda Stolyarenko. Her apartment was wrecked by shelling, and she's been taking shelter in the basement of her building, shaken by almost constant sounds of artillery. She and others have already spent about a month living in the basement, she says, and people are very frightened and scared.... After she left, I walked into the snowy courtyard, trying to come up with a way to describe what was going on: Separatist leaders say that they've advanced beyond the airport and that they're now fighting for some suburbs and small cities on the other side of the airport, where the Ukrainians have their positions. Then, a gunshot went off nearby.

It was my cue to hit the ground. I looked back to see that my two companions were on the ground already, surrounded by about 10 local militiamen with Kalashnikovs. They swarmed around us, demanding to know who we were and what we were doing. We produced passports and passes from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic. They quickly let us go and told us to get out of the area.”

The pictures in this article could have taken in a Palestinian community after an Israeli onslaught. I sympathise with the Israelis because they are our allies and are a more democratic nation, but I empathize with the Palestinians. Their lives are being decimated. Still they keep shooting shells across the border into Israel. The result in these kinds of situations is total and mindless destruction. The old doctrine “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” is shared by both the Islamists and the Israelis. Too bad.





http://www.npr.org/blogs/goatsandsoda/2015/01/22/378873364/police-fire-tear-gas-on-kenyan-kids-protecting-a-soccer-field

Police Fire Tear Gas On Kenyan Kids Protecting A Soccer Field
Gregory Warner
January 22, 2015

Photograph – Schoolchildren and activists scramble up a bridge Monday after police try to break up a protest with tear gas at the Langata Road Primary School in Nairobi, Kenya.

Hundreds of elementary schools were protesting the illegal seizure of their playground by a private developer in Nairobi, Kenya, when police fired tear gas into the crowd.

The incident sparked outrage across the city — and on social media, where Kenyans tweeted with the hashtag #OccupyPlayGround.

But the shocking images and videos of the ordeal provoked a surprisingly proactive response. In the end, these Kenyan kids did what ordinary Kenyans are rarely able to do: defend disappearing public space.

The process is known as "land-grabbing." A fence suddenly appears overnight around a parcel of government property. Those who protest are warded off — sometimes violently — by police. In time, a new high-rise or hotel or parking lot appears, owned by a politically connected magnate.

But this time, the land in question was next to an elementary school, Langata Road Primary School. And the protesters were kids as young as 8, who used the land to play soccer.

When developers set up a fence separating the school from the playground over the winter break, several hundred kids showed up on Monday to protest. They ended up breaking down the new fence. In response, heavily armed police fired tear gas on the kids.

"The tear gas was so bad!" Kevin Sande, 10, said Tuesday.

The gas made their eyes red and caused them to cough, other kids said.

In full disclosure, I can't be sure that Sande and his classmates I interviewed at Langata Road Primary School were the ones that got tear-gassed. In the disturbing photos from that day, it's hard to make out the faces on the green uniforms engulfed in white smoke.

"I didn't understand whether we are in Kenya or the Gaza Strip," says Rahab Mwikali, an activist, who came to the school to express sympathy. "I thought what could this be?"

But the deeper question for Kenyans — besides how could police do this — was who were they were doing it for? Who was trying to snatch the kids' playground? No one, not even the government, would say.

Nairobi is one of the fastest growing real estate markets in the world. According to the annual Knight Frank Report, the growth rate of Nairobi's housing cost is rated no. 31 in the world, ahead of Miami, Washington, D.C. and Istanbul.

The growth of Nairobi's real estate market is driven by Kenya's rising economy, which is an unbalanced one: All good jobs are in the capital. But the registration of titles and deeds is murky in Nairobi. They're controlled by an elite group that ordinary Kenyans are usually powerless to stop.

Except this time.

A day after the incident, Kenya's president, Uhuru Kenyatta, condemned the use of tear gas and suspended the senior officer involved. The acting interior minister, Joseph Nkaissery, came to the school personally to apologize.

And then the bulldozers came.

Standing in front of the bulldozers, in a shiny suit and white tie, was the chief surveyor from the Kenyan Land Ministry, Cesare Mbaria. He told reporters the government was delineating the school's real boundary — which includes the playground.

"We need to put a proper wall for the school to ensure we secure the property," Mbaria said.

But why the bulldozers, just to build a wall? Turned out the kids were also getting a brand new flattened soccer field.

"Yes! We are happy. Very happy happy," a bunch of kids at the school cheer. "Because we now have the ground. We can play now."

That's not how these stories usually end. Land grabs are such a divisive issue in Kenya that the most controversial ones have sparked deadly ethnic riots and even acts of terrorism.

But when I drove away from the school in a different part of the city, I saw another victory for the public. I passed another prime piece of real estate with a private developer's illegal fence around it. Government bulldozers were destroying the fence, reclaiming public land, to a surprised and swelling crowd.

It seemed that, at least for now, the school kids in Nairobi had won more than just their own playground.




“Hundreds of elementary schools were protesting the illegal seizure of their playground by a private developer in Nairobi, Kenya, when police fired tear gas into the crowd. The incident sparked outrage across the city — and on social media, where Kenyans tweeted with the hashtag #OccupyPlayGround. But the shocking images and videos of the ordeal provoked a surprisingly proactive response. In the end, these Kenyan kids did what ordinary Kenyans are rarely able to do: defend disappearing public space. … In response, heavily armed police fired tear gas on the kids. "The tear gas was so bad!" Kevin Sande, 10, said Tuesday. The gas made their eyes red and caused them to cough, other kids said.... A day after the incident, Kenya's president, Uhuru Kenyatta, condemned the use of tear gas and suspended the senior officer involved. The acting interior minister, Joseph Nkaissery, came to the school personally to apologize. And then the bulldozers came. Standing in front of the bulldozers, in a shiny suit and white tie, was the chief surveyor from the Kenyan Land Ministry, Cesare Mbaria. He told reporters the government was delineating the school's real boundary — which includes the playground.... "Yes! We are happy. Very happy happy," a bunch of kids at the school cheer. "Because we now have the ground. We can play now."

At least this story has a happy ending, and the police were reprimanded for teargassing six year olds. If only transparency had been used in this case there probably wouldn't have been an angry conflict at all. All the government needed to do was tell the school officials what they were about. The process of suddenly finding a fence around a public area which had been a school playground wouldn't have occurred, and nobody would have been hurt.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/measles-outbreak-california-family-wants-schools-to-ban-kids-without-vaccine/

Measles outbreak: California family wants schools to ban kids without vaccine
CBS NEWS
January 29, 2015

As the measles outbreak spreads, so does the debate over vaccines.

Seventy-nine of the at least 95 known cases in the United States are in California. Some parents are rushing to get their kids vaccinated, while others refuse.

Now one family wants schools to ban kids who haven't been vaccinated, and for good reason, reports CBS News correspondent Ben Tracy.

Six-year-old Rhett Krawitt has already beaten the odds. He fought leukemia for the past four-and-a-half years and the disease is now in remission. Carl and Jodi are Rhett's parents.

"There were times we weren't sure he was going to pull through," Jodi said. "So it's been very much, what I call a roller coaster."

But now the Krawitts are worried about measles. Rhett cannot get vaccinated because his immune system is still too weak from chemotherapy. Exposure to measles could be deadly. His school has made sure the kids in his classroom are vaccinated, but other kids in the school are not.

"So let's say if you are not vaccinated with a medical exemption you can't come to school," Carl said. "Let's get ahead of it and ensure we don't have an outbreak."

"They can mandate behaviors like no nuts, why can't they say you must be vaccinated to come on campus?" Jodi added.

The Krawitts live in Marin County, California, where more than 6 percent of kindergartners have "personal beliefs exemptions" allowing them to bypass state laws requiring vaccinations. That's nearly three times the statewide average of 2.5 percent. School district superintendent Steve Herzog told CBS News that "families do have the legal right to submit personal belief exemptions for their children, but as a school district we will exercise our right to ask them to leave school, should the county have an outbreak."

Some parents who choose not to vaccinate their kids say they do so fearing side effects. However, side effects are extremely rare and a link between the Measles Mumps and Rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism has been widely discredited.

"We rely on the people who can be immunized to be immunized to protect the rest of the population," Carl said. "It's been proven now that the disease is back and that's scary not just for us but for millions of people out there; everybody who has a baby under the age of one."

Infants and those who cannot be immunized benefit from what's known as herd immunity; if the vast majority of the population is immunized that keeps measles outbreaks from occurring and spreading to at-risk populations.

The Krawitts don't want Rhett to have to beat the odds again.

"We don't want to bar kids from going to school, but we think it might be a way to get people to vaccinate their kids," Jodi said.




“Now one family wants schools to ban kids who haven't been vaccinated, and for good reason, reports CBS News correspondent Ben Tracy. Six-year-old Rhett Krawitt has already beaten the odds. He fought leukemia for the past four-and-a-half years and the disease is now in remission. Carl and Jodi are Rhett's parents. "There were times we weren't sure he was going to pull through," Jodi said. "So it's been very much, what I call a roller coaster." But now the Krawitts are worried about measles. Rhett cannot get vaccinated because his immune system is still too weak from chemotherapy. Exposure to measles could be deadly. His school has made sure the kids in his classroom are vaccinated, but other kids in the school are not.... Infants and those who cannot be immunized benefit from what's known as herd immunity; if the vast majority of the population is immunized that keeps measles outbreaks from occurring and spreading to at-risk populations.”

An article on this subject in yesterday's news quotes a doctor who has been allowing large numbers of patients to refuse vaccinations. Measles is not a very serious disease, he says. Unfortunately it sometimes is. There are deaths from measles and sexual sterilization, and adults are often affected more seriously than children. When not enough people are getting a vaccination it allows the disease to spread in epidemic proportions, and deaths and other serious reactions go up in numbers. But what does that doctor care? Parents who don't want to vaccinate are coming to see him now. He's making more money. Maybe we need a law to enforce vaccinations, since some people – even some doctors – aren't using good common sense.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/uva-sororities-told-to-avoid-frat-parties-after-alleged-gang-rape/

U.Va. sororities told to avoid frat parties after alleged gang rape
CBS NEWS
January 29, 2015

More controversy has erupted involving Greek life on the campus of the University of Virginia, still reeling from a now discredited Rolling Stone article detailing an alleged gang rape at a fraternity house.

While the university has lifted a suspension on all Greek events and imposed more regulations in the wake of that story, 16 U.Va. sororities have been told that, for their safety, they will have to avoid a campus tradition -- boys' bid night, reports CBS News correspondent Julianna Goldman.

As many students prepare for one of the biggest party weekends of the year, 2,000 sorority sisters are being told to find something else to do.

"Initially, I was very upset," U.Va. sophomore Ellie Kayton said.

Her sorority, which she asked not be identified, is one of the 16 being told to stay away from the fraternity houses hosting the parties.

"It became obvious to me that while it was well-intentioned, it was having the wrong effect on the culture here at U.Va.," she said.

Fraternities and sororities agreed to new regulations in the wake of the explosive Rolling Stone piece last November. Some of the allegations in the article were later discredited, but the sorority's national chapter presidents are still concerned for members' safety.

In a statement, the national group representing the 16 sororities said the "support the safety of their women, so they support those national presidents making that decision and encouraging sorority women to plan sisterhood events and other 'safer' options."

But students say their decision vilifies U.Va.'s entire Greek system.

"It taking away the ability for girls in sororities to make their own choice," a male U.Va. student said.

"I think the manner in how it's approached, the entire culture is the issue," a female student added.

This week, sorority members created an online petition urging U.Va. to revoke the order, which they said promotes "gender discrimination and "perpetuates the idea that women are inferior, sexual objects."

"You have to take the responsibility off of the women, you can't put rules on them and not punish the fraternities, they don't have any punishments right now, yet we have to stay indoors," Kayton said.

The Change.org petition has garnered more than 2,000 signatures -- the number of women making up the 16 sororities.

Still, some of the sororities are planning those so-called "sisterhood events" in their sorority houses because they are concerned about losing their charters.





“More controversy has erupted involving Greek life on the campus of the University of Virginia, still reeling from a now discredited Rolling Stone article detailing an alleged gang rape at a fraternity house. While the university has lifted a suspension on all Greek events and imposed more regulations in the wake of that story, 16 U.Va. sororities have been told that, for their safety, they will have to avoid a campus tradition -- boys' bid night, reports CBS News correspondent Julianna Goldman.... This week, sorority members created an online petition urging U.Va. to revoke the order, which they said promotes "gender discrimination and "perpetuates the idea that women are inferior, sexual objects." "You have to take the responsibility off of the women, you can't put rules on them and not punish the fraternities, they don't have any punishments right now, yet we have to stay indoors," Kayton said. The Change.org petition has garnered more than 2,000 signatures -- the number of women making up the 16 sororities. Still, some of the sororities are planning those so-called "sisterhood events" in their sorority houses because they are concerned about losing their charters.”

Society is still trying to “protect” young women, I see, but no such thing occurs for male students. Young male students should perhaps be protected from living in fraternity houses before they are 21, since every year there are hazing incidents that cause injury or death. If I had a son or daughter on his way to college I really might prevent him from joining a fraternity for that reason. Besides, it's expensive. It's a waste of money. It's not as though young people on college campuses won't form friendships and go out on the town together. I think young people should spend much more time studying than carrousing, any way. Between frat parties and the overemphasis on sports, the whole purpose of being at a university is being missed, I think. That should be to study and grow into a mature young person. Fraternities don't help with either of those thing, it seems to me.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/france-police-detain-boy-8-over-remarks-on-charlie-hebdo-terrorists/

France cops detain boy, 8, over "terrorist" remarks
CBS/AP
January 29, 2015

PARIS -- Police detained and questioned an 8-year-old boy from the south of France who claimed to support the men who attacked the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, drawing criticism Thursday that France's measures to prevent people from defending terrorism have gone overboard.

Dozens of people have been arrested and accused of defending terrorism since the attacks, with some already drawing years-long prison terms in special expedited court proceedings. But the child from the southern city of Nice appears to be the youngest by far.

The boy declared "The French must be killed. I am with the terrorists. The Muslims did well, and the journalists got what they deserved," Fabienne Lewandowski, deputy director for public security in the Alpes-Maritimes region, told BFM television. She said the child also refused to take part in the national minute of silence for the victims in early January.

As CBS Radio News correspondent Elaine Cobbe reported, across France, an estimated 200 students refused to stand in silence when the call came in their schools.

While few defended the killings, some students said they were angry that the newspaper had printed cartoons of the prophet Muhammad, and so believed the murdered cartoonists did not merit respect. The refusals shocked many teachers, and sparked lively debate among students -- and even a few tussles.

The storming of the newspaper offices left 12 people dead and launched three days of terror in the Paris region that killed a total of 20 people, including the gunmen. The school director brought a complaint against the child on Jan. 21 and he was questioned that day with his father and a lawyer present.

"The reason we questioned him was to determine what could have influenced, what could have driven this child to say something like this," Lewandowski said. "It's a shame that it happened in a formal questioning, but given what he said it was necessary to go further than usual."

Sefen Guez Guez, a lawyer for the family, said the decision to question the child at a police station that day shows a "collective hysteria."

"An 8-year-old does not belong in a police station. This is disproportionate and completely unreal," he said.



http://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2015/01/19/to-counter-terror-europes-police-reconsider-their-arms

After Paris attacks some of Europe's police reconsider their weapons to counter terror
By LORI HINNANT, Associated Press
Jan. 19, 2015 

Photograph – FILE - In this Monday Jan. 12, 2015 file photo,elite police officers take position outside the kosher market where four hostages were killed and shortly before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the site, in Paris. (AP Photo/Francois Mori, File) 

PARIS (AP) — One was a young policewoman, unarmed on the outskirts of Paris and felled by an assault rifle. Her partner, also without weapons, could do nothing to stop the gunman. Another was a first responder with a side arm, rushing to the Charlie Hebdo offices where a pair of masked men with high-powered weapons had opened fire on an editorial meeting. Among their primary targets: the armed police bodyguard inside the room.

With the deaths of the three French officers during three days of terror in the Paris region and the suggestion of a plot in Belgium to kill police, European law enforcement agencies are rethinking how — and how many — police should be armed.

Scotland Yard said Sunday it was increasing the deployment of officers allowed to carry firearms in Britain, where many cling to the image of the unarmed "bobby." In Belgium, where officials say a terror network was plotting to attack police, officers are again permitted to take their service weapons home.

On Monday, French law enforcement officials demanding heavier weapons, protective gear and a bolstered intelligence apparatus met with top officials from the Interior Ministry. An official with the ministry, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing talks, said automatic weapons and heavier bulletproof vests were on the table.

Among the most horrific images from the Paris attacks was the death of police officer Ahmed Merabet, who can be seen on eyewitness video lying wounded on the pavement as a gunman approaches and fires a final bullet into his head. Merabet, who is seen alone on the street, had a service gun and a bullet proof vest, said Michel Thooris, of the France Police labor union.

"But he did not come with the backup he needed, and the psychology to face a paramilitary assault," Thooris said. "We were not prepared in terms of equipment or mind-set for this kind of operation."

One of the attackers, Amedy Coulibaly, said in a posthumous video that his plan all along was to attack police.

"We don't want necessarily the arms that American police have. We need weapons that can respond," said Philippe Capon of French police union UNSA.

Among those weapons, he added, are modernized criminal databases, because the current databases are out of date, and firewalled between different law enforcement branches. "The databases are not interactive. They are not accessible to all. They are not up to date," he said.

Unlike their British counterparts, French national police are armed although their municipal counterparts tend to be weaponless. But Thooris said they are not permitted to have their service weapons while off duty, raising the possibility that they could be targeted when vulnerable or unable to help if they stumble across crime afterhours.

Because of increasing unease and last week's anti-terror raids, police in Belgium are again allowed to carry weapons home rather than put their handguns and munition in specialized lockers.

"The conditions we have now are clearly exceptional," said Fons Bastiaenssens, a police spokesman in Antwerp, where there are many potential targets, especially in the Jewish quarter.

In addition, firearms suddenly became far more visible, with some police carrying heavier weaponry as they guard sensitive buildings and police offices, and paratroopers in the streets of the major cities.

In Britain, the overall threat level is "severe" — meaning intelligence and police officials have evidence that a terrorist attack is highly likely. The threat to police officers themselves is judged to be very high after the Paris attacks as well as the recent disruption of a reported Islamist extremist plot to attack individual police officers in west London. ….




CBS – “...drawing criticism Thursday that France's measures to prevent people from defending terrorism have gone overboard. Dozens of people have been arrested and accused of defending terrorism since the attacks, with some already drawing years-long prison terms in special expedited court proceedings. But the child from the southern city of Nice appears to be the youngest by far. The boy declared "The French must be killed. I am with the terrorists. The Muslims did well, and the journalists got what they deserved," Fabienne Lewandowski, deputy director for public security in the Alpes-Maritimes region, told BFM television. She said the child also refused to take part in the national minute of silence for the victims in early January. As CBS Radio News correspondent Elaine Cobbe reported, across France, an estimated 200 students refused to stand in silence when the call came in their schools.... The refusals shocked many teachers, and sparked lively debate among students -- and even a few tussles.... The school director brought a complaint against the child on Jan. 21 and he was questioned that day with his father and a lawyer present. "The reason we questioned him was to determine what could have influenced, what could have driven this child to say something like this," Lewandowski said. "It's a shame that it happened in a formal questioning, but given what he said it was necessary to go further than usual."

US NEWS – “With the deaths of the three French officers during three days of terror in the Paris region and the suggestion of a plot in Belgium to kill police, European law enforcement agencies are rethinking how — and how many — police should be armed. Scotland Yard said Sunday it was increasing the deployment of officers allowed to carry firearms in Britain, where many cling to the image of the unarmed "bobby." In Belgium, where officials say a terror network was plotting to attack police, officers are again permitted to take their service weapons home. On Monday, French law enforcement officials demanding heavier weapons, protective gear and a bolstered intelligence apparatus met with top officials from the Interior Ministry. An official with the ministry, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing talks, said automatic weapons and heavier bulletproof vests were on the table.... "But he did not come with the backup he needed, and the psychology to face a paramilitary assault," Thooris said. "We were not prepared in terms of equipment or mind-set for this kind of operation." One of the attackers, Amedy Coulibaly, said in a posthumous video that his plan all along was to attack police. "We don't want necessarily the arms that American police have. We need weapons that can respond," said Philippe Capon of French police union UNSA. Among those weapons, he added, are modernized criminal databases, because the current databases are out of date, and firewalled between different law enforcement branches. "The databases are not interactive. They are not accessible to all. They are not up to date," he said.... Because of increasing unease and last week's anti-terror raids, police in Belgium are again allowed to carry weapons home rather than put their handguns and munition in specialized lockers. "The conditions we have now are clearly exceptional," said Fons Bastiaenssens, a police spokesman in Antwerp, where there are many potential targets, especially in the Jewish quarter. In addition, firearms suddenly became far more visible, with some police carrying heavier weaponry as they guard sensitive buildings and police offices, and paratroopers in the streets of the major cities.... The threat to police officers themselves is judged to be very high after the Paris attacks as well as the recent disruption of a reported Islamist extremist plot to attack individual police officers in west London.”

Islam is not going to be as highly protected in Western cultures as it has been in the recent past, I imagine. It was just a couple of months ago when the King of Saudi Arabia publically warned the West via a news report of planned attacks by ISIS followers. These in Paris were al Qaeda, I thought, but perhaps that's the same thing, just another group. It seems clear to me that it is going to be a true war and that it has started already.

This young boy of 8 years is too young to be able to put together such a sophistocated set of statements as this article says, so I feel sure it's coming from his parents. Still, school students in a separate incident refused to maintain a period of silence in honor of the cartoonists. There is conversation going on among young people about this, and some are taking the side of the Islamic groups. I can see how the hard core political drawings could be seen as genuinely provocative, however, and even I have to wonder if it is a fair tactic. It reminds me of a picture I saw a few years ago of a “Jew” as drawn by a Nazi leaning cartoonist, and it was truly grotesque. I personally don't believe in such cartoons. President Obama has been charactured pretty crudely in a couple of websites. It does not conform to the command of Jesus to “love thy neighbor as thyself.” I've always admired the Quakers who, though operating the Underground Railroad during our Civil War, did not behave abusively to their political opponents. There is something to be said for that.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

News Clips For The Day


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/oldest-snake-fossils-show-they-thrived-in-the-age-of-dinosaurs/

Oldest snake fossils show they thrived in the age of dinosaurs
By MICHAEL CASEY CBS NEWS
January 27, 2015

Drawing photograph – A snake fossil of Parviraptor estesi (Upper Jurassic/Lower Cretaceous) swimming in a freshwater lake with snails and algae, from the Purbeck Limestone in Swanage, England.  JULIUS CSOTONYI

Researchers have unearthed the fossil remains of four snakes that are 70 million years older than the oldest snake previously discovered. The finds rewrite what scientists know about the creatures, showing that they were slithering alongside pterodactyls and other dinosaurs as early 167 million years ago.

"We've nearly doubled the geological range for a group," said Michael Caldwell, a professor in the Faculty of Science at the University of Alberta, and lead author of a new study in Nature Communications.

Not only do his findings offer clues on how these reptiles may have evolved, they also reveal that the snakes of the dinosaur age probably didn't look all that different than their modern-day relatives.

Though dating from 140 million to 167 million years ago, the fossilized skulls, jaws, ribs and teeth share many features seen in today's snakes, such as the flexible jaws and sharply-angled, backward-pointing teeth which are instrumental in helping them devour their prey. They also have features found in lizards such as its vertebrae.

Caldwell said he was surprised snakes had changed so little over such a long period of time and that they were still so clearly "identifiable ... as snakes."

Normally you would expect to dig up something that shared traits with modern animals, but looked different, perhaps more like some sort of chimera of two familiar beasts, he said. "You know like the bird-dinosaur idea. You wouldn't be looking for a modern duck in the middle of the Cretaceous."

The oldest of the fossils (the diminutive Eophis underwoodi) came from southern England. The largest, Portugalophis lignites, came from coal deposits in Portugal, and was a much bigger individual at nearly a meter or more in length.

Around 150 million years ago, the locations in England and Portugal were swampy coastal areas on large island chains in the Jurassic seaway that covered most of what is now Western and Central Europe. The one North American species identified, Diablophis gilmorei, was found in river deposits in Western Colorado. The locations offer evidence that the snakes came from a marine environment.

"Is it possible, like a lot of other animals today, they moved around the planet by swimming? Yep, it's very possible. Almost all modern snakes are perfectly comfortable in the water," Caldwell said.

Caldwell also believes these snakes probably had four limbs - though there aren't the fossils to prove it.

An earlier discovery from Caldwell and his colleagues turned up 100- to 90-million-year-old marine snakes from the West Bank, Lebanon, and Argentina that still possessed small but well developed rear limbs. They also varied in size: A snake fossil from 60 million years ago called Titanoboa was probably about 10 times bigger than snakes today.

"It could very well be that what you would see in terms of the missing link features is that this animal would have had four legs and a short body," Caldwell said. "Body-wise, it wouldn't have looked like a modern snake but the skull is clearly demonstrating very snaky features."

Caldwell said the latest discoveries probably aren't going to settle a long-running debate about how snakes evolved. Some said they evolved from burrowing animals - based on primitive, blind snakes alive today that live in burrows - while Caldwell and his supporters have argue they evolved from four-legged, lizard-like ancestors that thrived in the oceans and emerged onto land.

"I suspect we will never put that debate to rest," he said. "It's a very fine scale question and an interesting one ... We have an anatomical and a relationship problem and then we have to find that point in time in the fossil record where we would actually recognize one of these animals as a snake ... If I can find you a four-legged animal with a snake head, will you call it a snake or will we call it a snake-like lizard?"

To really shore up the theory, researchers need a snake fossil further back that has four legs which could take snake evolution to 200 million years. They also need to shore up the fossil record from 167 million to 100 million years ago. That means expanding the area they have searched for snake fossils.

Since the latest crop of fossils came from the Northern Hemisphere and what was then the supercontinent Laurasia, researchers will go in search of fossils in the southern Hemisphere in South America, Africa and Australia or what was then Gondwana.

"We are trying to fill in those bits and pieces of the story," Caldwell said.



http://evolutionwiki.org/wiki/Snake_legs_and_pelvis

Snake legs and pelvis

At some point in their embryonic development, many snakes, with the exception of the colubrids and viperids, develop hind limb budsCohn, Martin J. & Tickle, Cheryll. "Developmental basis of limblessness and axial patterning in snakes"Nature 399, 474-479 (3 June 1999). In most species, these are reabsorbed. However, in a few families, such as the boas (Boidae), pythons (Pythonidae) and thread snakes (Leptotyphlopidae), remnants are retained into adulthood. External remnants are known as anal spurs. In species that have them, anal spurs are found on both males and females. The males are larger and serve to stimulate the female during mating. Species with anal spurs also have internal leg bones and a pelvis.

This is inexplicable from a creationist perspective. There is no reason for an intelligent designer to cause snakes to grow legs and then lose them, and there is no reason for them to retain a pelvis and leg remnants. Claiming they are simply degraded or cursed lizards, as is often claimed Batten, Don & Sarfati, Jonathan. "‘Vestigial’ Organs: What do they prove?", doesn't work because they also have highly advanced features not found in lizards (such as a divided jaw). The ability to move quickly and efficiently over a variety of surfaces, even including underwater (especially aquatic elapid snakes) and through the air (gliding snakes of the genus Chrysopelea) is surely not an example of degradation. Also, if a divine curse is the explanation for this vestigial feature, that would open the door up to a similar explanation in all animals with similar features, and the Bible doesn't suggest God randomly went around cursing whales, dolphins, humans, etc. with lost attributes.




“Researchers have unearthed the fossil remains of four snakes that are 70 million years older than the oldest snake previously discovered. The finds rewrite what scientists know about the creatures, showing that they were slithering alongside pterodactyls and other dinosaurs as early 167 million years ago. "We've nearly doubled the geological range for a group," said Michael Caldwell, a professor in the Faculty of Science at the University of Alberta, and lead author of a new study in Nature Communications.... Though dating from 140 million to 167 million years ago, the fossilized skulls, jaws, ribs and teeth share many features seen in today's snakes, such as the flexible jaws and sharply-angled, backward-pointing teeth which are instrumental in helping them devour their prey. They also have features found in lizards such as its vertebrae. Caldwell said he was surprised snakes had changed so little over such a long period of time and that they were still so clearly "identifiable ... as snakes."... The oldest of the fossils (the diminutive Eophis underwoodi) came from southern England. The largest, Portugalophis lignites, came from coal deposits in Portugal, and was a much bigger individual at nearly a meter or more in length. Around 150 million years ago, the locations in England and Portugal were swampy coastal areas on large island chains in the Jurassic seaway that covered most of what is now Western and Central Europe. The one North American species identified, Diablophis gilmorei, was found in river deposits in Western Colorado. The locations offer evidence that the snakes came from a marine environment.... An earlier discovery from Caldwell and his colleagues turned up 100- to 90-million-year-old marine snakes from the West Bank, Lebanon, and Argentina that still possessed small but well developed rear limbs. They also varied in size: A snake fossil from 60 million years ago called Titanoboa was probably about 10 times bigger than snakes today. "It could very well be that what you would see in terms of the missing link features is that this animal would have had four legs and a short body," Caldwell said. "Body-wise, it wouldn't have looked like a modern snake but the skull is clearly demonstrating very snaky features."...

The legs – anal spurs – are one leftover of a snake with a pelvis and (four?) legs which links some modern species with prehistoric specimens found in the Northern Hemisphere, while some primitive modern species hint at a prehistoric burrowing form (“... burrowing animals - based on primitive, blind snakes alive today that live in burrows...”). I looked up the term burrowing snakes and found 6 different articles on differing species from a number of places around the world, so perhaps many early snake forms were ground dwellers. Other 90 million year old remnants of marine snakes are found to have hind legs, which may indicate a marine origin of snakes. I am reminded of the loathsome cockroach. It has survived with very little change from the earliest days of creatures emerging from the water, which is thought to be the origin of all multicellular life forms. Snakes and roaches apparently had little need for evolution in order to survive.





Dangerous Fundamentalist Religious Beliefs

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/strack-case-utah-family-found-dead-last-fall-died-from-drug-toxicity/

Five members of ​Utah family died from "drug toxicity"
By CRIMESIDER STAFF AP 
January 27, 2015

SALT LAKE CITY - Police say five members of a Utah family found dead last fall died from methadone and other drugs, and interviews with people who knew them revealed the parents worried about a "pending apocalypse."

Springville Police Chief J. Scott Finlayson said Tuesday authorities have concluded their investigation into the September deaths of Benjamin and Kristi Strack and three of their children, ages 11, 12 and 14.

He says authorities determined the cause of death was "drug toxicity," and the parents and the 14-year-old committed suicide.

The other two children's deaths were ruled homicides. However, Finlayson says there were no signs of a struggle.

The couple was found in a bed surrounded by their children.

Finlayson says interviews indicated the parents were concerned with evil in the world and wanted to escape from "impending doom."





“The other two children's deaths were ruled homicides. However, Finlayson says there were no signs of a struggle. The couple was found in a bed surrounded by their children. Finlayson says interviews indicated the parents were concerned with evil in the world and wanted to escape from "impending doom."

For at least 20 years there have been occasional news articles about people fearing “the end of days” or simply the apocalypse. Two Russian presidents have been called the Antichrist, along will Bill Clinton, and at least twice televangelists have foretold a given date for doomsday to occur, only to have to back away from the claim and admit their error. One sizeable group staged a mass suicide because they believe the end of the world was upon them, and that a being from a space ship was going to come and take them up with him when they drank the poison. Meanwhile a highly repulsive television show has gained popularity among some US viewers called “The Walking Dead” – a story that supposedly is taking place after the Apocalypse. It is not a surprise that the current religious right has members who are stockpiling guns and food against the long-overdue Doomsday. I wish they would focus on Jesus' commands “Feed my sheep” and “clothe the needy.” That is the best way they can prepare for the Apocalypse, because they are more likely to go to heaven if they do those things. They won't have to be left on earth to experience the days of evil, but will be “taken up” in a flash of light into the heavens instead. Instead, they are gathering their children around them and committing mass suicide. It makes me sad.





http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2015/01/28/381896551/tiger-skins-and-rhino-horns-can-a-trade-deal-halt-the-trafficking

Tiger Skins And Rhino Horns: Can A Trade Deal Halt The Trafficking?
Jackie Northam
JANUARY 28, 2015

Photograph – Coleen Schaefer (left) and Doni Sprague display a tiger pelt that was confiscated and is being stored at the National Eagle and Wildlife repository on the outskirts of Denver. Some 1.5 million items are being held at the facility. The Asia-Pacific Trade Pact, which is still under negotiation, would punish wildlife trafficking.

If you want a sobering look at the scale of wildlife trafficking, just visit the National Eagle and Wildlife Repository on the outskirts of Denver. In the middle of a national reserve is a cavernous warehouse stuffed with the remains of 1.5 million animals, whole and in parts.

They range from taxidermied polar bears to tiny sea horses turned into key chains. An area devoted to elephants is framed by a pair of enormous tusks.

"You can see right there those are elephant feet," says Coleen Schaefer, who heads the repository. "People either make those into trash cans or foot stools."

In 2013, more than 20,000 elephants were slaughtered, and last year the repository crushed 6 tons of confiscated ivory.

Some poached wildlife is used for fashion or medicine. Schaefer says some of the animals serve as trophies.

"This is probably the saddest item we have," she says. "This is a tiger fetus that was carved out of its mother and then stuffed and placed on a shelf."

Looking around this enormous warehouse, you get a sense of how difficult it is to curb wildlife trafficking. Row after row, shelf after shelf, there are heads and the skins of cheetahs, leopards, jaguars, lions and tigers.

Naimah Aziz, an inspector with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, searches for illegally trafficked wildlife items passing through the cargo area at New York's JFK airport. Here she holds the horns of an argali, an endangered mountain sheep from Central Asia.

The Obama administration is now trying to tackle wildlife trafficking by incorporating rules into the Trans-Pacific Partnership, known as the TPP. This is the massive multilateral trade agreement currently being negotiated among a dozen Asia-Pacific nations, including the United States.

Potential Trade Sanctions

Michael Froman, the U.S. trade representative, says if it passes, countries found to be involved in illegal wildlife trafficking could face trade sanctions.

"What we're doing through the Trans-Pacific Partnership is first of all making sure environmental issues are central to the agreement, including things like wildlife trafficking, and then making them fully enforceable just like any other provision of the trade agreement," he says.

The U.S. is also trying to make this part of a trade deal with the European Union.

But Leigh Henry, senior policy adviser for the World Wildlife Fund, says the Asia-Pacific trade deal is key because much of the demand for the endangered wildlife comes from Asian countries negotiating the TPP.

"Vietnam is huge. They are the primary consumer of rhino horn that's driving this increase in rhino poaching in South Africa," Henry says, adding that Malaysia is a huge transit route for the illegal wildlife trade.

Henry says when it comes to fighting wildlife trafficking, international law has no teeth. She hopes the TPP will change that.

But Henry knows tradition is powerful in many Asian nations, where endangered wildlife is used to make aphrodesiacs, or supposed cures for everything from cancer to stomach ailments.

Henry says Asia's wealth has created a class that wants to display its money and success.

"If you can go out and party all night and turn around the next morning and provide your friends and colleagues with rhino horn to combat your hangover, it shows success," she says. "It shows that you have the money to spend on this incredibly expensive luxury item."

Rhino horns reportedly fetch more than $30,000 a pound — more than their weight in gold. Enforcement is difficult in areas where poverty and corruption are common.

The U.S. is trying to better coordinate with international law enforcement agencies and hopes to beef up customs and borders patrol, and the number of fish and wildlife inspectors, if the TPP agreement is signed.

A Flood Of Packages

Thousands of packages of every shape and size arrive daily in the international mail room at New York's JFK airport. Naimah Aziz, an inspector with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, says illegal wildlife is often bought online and is shipped by mail. There's so much coming in on any given day it's easy to skip detection.

"There's a lot of packages and they move through here really fast," Aziz says. "Sometimes mail comes in the morning and it's out in the afternoon. You gotta be fast."

Aziz is one of 11 Fish and Wildlife inspectors monitoring JFK, LaGuardia airport, and Port Elizabeth, New Jersey, where cargo ships dock. She says there are certain things to look for — a package that's leaking could be caviar or a freshly skinned animal.

A package traveling from South Africa to Austin, Texas, attracts her attention. The paperwork says it's a carpet. But when she opens it up, she finds five zebra skins.

"No one really needs five zebra skins," she says.

As she surveys the stacks of packages surrounding her, Aziz says any help in slowing the tide of illegal wildlife would be most welcome. Even if it comes from a most unlikely of places — an Asia-Pacific trade deal.




“If you want a sobering look at the scale of wildlife trafficking, just visit the National Eagle and Wildlife Repository on the outskirts of Denver. In the middle of a national reserve is a cavernous warehouse stuffed with the remains of 1.5 million animals, whole and in parts. They range from taxidermied polar bears to tiny sea horses turned into key chains. An area devoted to elephants is framed by a pair of enormous tusks. "You can see right there those are elephant feet," says Coleen Schaefer, who heads the repository. "People either make those into trash cans or foot stools." In 2013, more than 20,000 elephants were slaughtered, and last year the repository crushed 6 tons of confiscated ivory.... Naimah Aziz, an inspector with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, searches for illegally trafficked wildlife items passing through the cargo area at New York's JFK airport. Here she holds the horns of an argali, an endangered mountain sheep from Central Asia. The Obama administration is now trying to tackle wildlife trafficking by incorporating rules into the Trans-Pacific Partnership, known as the TPP. This is the massive multilateral trade agreement currently being negotiated among a dozen Asia-Pacific nations, including the United States. Potential Trade Sanctions Michael Froman, the U.S. trade representative, says if it passes, countries found to be involved in illegal wildlife trafficking could face trade sanctions.... But Leigh Henry, senior policy adviser for the World Wildlife Fund, says the Asia-Pacific trade deal is key because much of the demand for the endangered wildlife comes from Asian countries negotiating the TPP. "Vietnam is huge. They are the primary consumer of rhino horn that's driving this increase in rhino poaching in South Africa," Henry says, adding that Malaysia is a huge transit route for the illegal wildlife trade. Henry says when it comes to fighting wildlife trafficking, international law has no teeth. She hopes the TPP will change that.... "If you can go out and party all night and turn around the next morning and provide your friends and colleagues with rhino horn to combat your hangover, it shows success," she says. "It shows that you have the money to spend on this incredibly expensive luxury item."... Aziz is one of 11 Fish and Wildlife inspectors monitoring JFK, LaGuardia airport, and Port Elizabeth, New Jersey, where cargo ships dock. She says there are certain things to look for — a package that's leaking could be caviar or a freshly skinned animal.”

This is really sickening. Imagine finding a package with blood leaking out of it. I'm glad to see that Obama has been concerned enough about the black market trade in animal parts to write it into the new trade agreement. I do hope this will work, because we are running out of elephants and rhinos and other species for the simple reason of human greed. I can see why Jesus said humans are “sick with sin.”





http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2015/01/22/378904803/x-rays-open-secrets-of-ancient-scrolls

X-Rays Open Secrets Of Ancient Scrolls
Geoff Brumfiel

Photograph – The ancient scrolls look and feel more like blocks of charcoal. A new technique gives a peek inside.

Researchers in Europe have managed to read from an ancient scroll buried when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D. The feat is all the more remarkable because the scroll was never opened.

The Vesuvius eruption famously destroyed Pompeii. But it also devastated the nearby town of Herculaneum. A villa there contained a library stacked with papyrus scrolls, and the hot gas and ash preserved them.

Sort of.

"To be honest, being from Kentucky, they look like pieces of coal," says Brent Seales, a computer scientist at the University of Kentucky who has held some of the scrolls. "You look at the end and you can see the circular markings of how it's been rolled, but it looks more like the growth marks of a tree."

Researchers want to unroll these scrolls, but opening them is more like peeling the flaky skin of an onion.

"When you try to pull one layer off, it just breaks away from the rest, and so you have 10 million fragments after you've peeled it away in that manner," Seales says.

Roughly 1,800 scrolls were unearthed back in the 1750s. Seales says only about 300 have survived efforts to read them.

And that's why this latest finding is such a breakthrough. The researchers used a particle accelerator in France to bombard a rolled-up scroll with X-rays. These X-rays were so sensitive, they detected changes in thickness where ink had been used to write letters. The team could make out the entire Greek alphabet inside the tightly wound scroll.

"Capturing those letters, you know, that's pretty amazing in itself," says Seales, who has worked with the team but was not directly involved in this latest effort. The work is published in the journal Nature Communications.

From just the letters, the researchers believe the scroll is in the handwriting of the philosopher Philodemus. He was of the school of Epicureanism, which stressed enjoyment of the pleasures of life, according to Seales. Several other scrolls in the collection have been identified over the years as works by Philodemus.

The researchers can't read whole words yet. And that's where Seales' computer-scientist chops will come in handy. He thinks he can make a program that can distinguish which letters belong to which layers, so the scrolls can finally be deciphered.

"Yeah, I do believe that with this remarkable breakthrough, we're going to get there," he says.




“The Vesuvius eruption famously destroyed Pompeii. But it also devastated the nearby town of Herculaneum. A villa there contained a library stacked with papyrus scrolls, and the hot gas and ash preserved them.... Roughly 1,800 scrolls were unearthed back in the 1750s. Seales says only about 300 have survived efforts to read them. And that's why this latest finding is such a breakthrough. The researchers used a particle accelerator in France to bombard a rolled-up scroll with X-rays. These X-rays were so sensitive, they detected changes in thickness where ink had been used to write letters. The team could make out the entire Greek alphabet inside the tightly wound scroll.... From just the letters, the researchers believe the scroll is in the handwriting of the philosopher Philodemus. He was of the school of Epicureanism, which stressed enjoyment of the pleasures of life, according to Seales. Several other scrolls in the collection have been identified over the years as works by Philodemus. The researchers can't read whole words yet. And that's where Seales' computer-scientist chops will come in handy. He thinks he can make a program that can distinguish which letters belong to which layers, so the scrolls can finally be deciphered....

Archaeology has always been faced with the problem that the digging, or in this case the unwrapping, will destroy the original material. Scientific disciplines in a number of cases are deriving benefit from the expertise of people from other fields. See the following description of Seales' work.

Who is Brent Seales? See this website -- http://vis.uky.edu/about/people/faculty/brent-seales/ --

“Dr. Brent Seales is a professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science. Dr. Seales’ research focuses on digital imaging in two very different directions: medical imaging and cultural heritage. His EDUCE project (Enhanced Digital Unwrapping for Conservation and Exploration) seeks to create readable images of texts such as papyrus scrolls, without opening them, using minimally invasive scanning and virtual unwrapping. Dr. Seales is developing and evaluating new techniques for digital acquisition, restoration, and visualization using real-world library collections with particular focus on preservation and dissemination. He is also the director of the STITCH project (Surgical Technology Integration with Tools for Cognitive Human Factors), which envisions a networked operating room of the future, where computers and surgical instruments are connected. The result: an enriched and more efficient environment for surgeons.”





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-failure-to-protect-children-a-national-disgrace-report-says/

U.S. failure to protect children a "national disgrace," report says
AP January 27, 2015

Photograph – Jennifer Blaz, 34, center, sits with her parents, Tami Windham, 54, left, and Mike Windham, 54, in district court during the sentencing of Matthew Blaz, 33, in Butte, Mont., Nov. 13, 2014;Take Mattisyn Blaz, a 2-month-old, died when her father spiked her "like a football," in the words of a prosecutor. 

The federal government's failure to enforce the nation's child protection laws is a "national disgrace" that leaves abused children vulnerable to future harm, according to a three-year study by two child advocacy groups.

The 110-page report released Tuesday identified some of the same failures reported in December by The Associated Press after an eight-month investigation into hundreds of children who died of abuse or neglect in plain view of child protection authorities.

"Our laws are weak. We don't invest in solutions. Federal laws aren't enforced. And courts are turning their backs. This creates a trifecta of inertia and neglect," said Amy Harfeld, policy director at the Children's Advocacy Institute at the University of San Diego School of Law, which wrote the report with the nonprofit group First Star.

AP's investigation, published Dec. 18, also revealed a system in crisis, hobbled by weak federal oversight, budget constraints, worker shortages and a voluntary data collection system so flawed that nobody can say with accuracy how many children die from abuse or neglect each year.

The AP found that at least 786 children died of abuse and neglect over a six-year span - many of them beaten, starved or left alone to drown - while agencies had good reason to know they were in danger. That figure represents the most comprehensive statistics publicly available, but the actual number who died even as authorities were investigating their families or providing some form of protective services is likely much higher because antiquated confidentiality laws allow many states to withhold vital information, shrouding their failures.

The federal government estimates an average of about 1,650 children have died annually from abuse or neglect in recent years, whether or not they were known to the child welfare system, but many experts believe the actual number is twice as high. And many more suffer from near-fatal abuse and neglect every year.

"Almost everything that happens to these children is cloaked in endemic secrecy, and most efforts by the media and advocates to provide the public with much needed transparency - which leads to accountability - are thwarted by the very governmental entities and officials who have turned their backs on their official duties to children," the groups said.

Michael Petit, who was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve on the Federal Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities and serves as adviser to the advocacy group Every Child Matters, said he agreed with what he has read thus far in the report, entitled "Shame on U.S."

"The report is saying what a lot of people have been experiencing," Petit said, who wasn't speaking on the commission's behalf. "I share many of those sentiments that the federal government is not providing the kind of oversight needed."

The Children's Advocacy Institute and First Star fault all three branches of federal government for failing to protect children. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for implementing and enforcing federal child welfare laws and programs, but the agency largely takes a hands-off approach, allowing states to self-certify that they are in compliance with federal requirements.

"There is no meaningful oversight and the states know it," the report said.

Agency spokeswoman Laura Goulding did not immediately return a call and an email seeking comment on the report Monday. Congress needs to mandate that HHS impose fines, withhold funds or take other punitive actions when states don't follow federal regulations, the report said.

Because HHS and Congress so rarely hold states accountable for their failings, filing a lawsuit is usually the only way private parties can challenge problems within the child welfare system. But lawsuits are time consuming, expensive and often limited in their reach, covering violations in only one state or county rather than widespread systemic failures, the groups said.

"Federal courts have turned their backs on private attempts to enforce federal child welfare law and Congress has shown little interest in advancing the law itself," the report said.

Emily Douglas, a child welfare expert at Bridgewater State University in Bridgewater, Mass., called the report's findings about the judicial branch's shortcomings particularly revealing.

"When something goes wrong, usually you hear that the state child welfare agency is a wreck or that the governor is stepping in to fire someone," Douglas said. "But increasingly judges are going to be on the radar about the important role that they play in determining these kids' safety. Judges are not trained social workers, so are we sure they always know the risk factors when deciding children should be sent back home?"



https://www.firststar.org/programs/foster-youth-academies.aspx

Foster Youth Academies
First Star Foster Academies Story 
from Peter Samuelson.
May 3, 2013

Now replace imagination with truth: these shocking statistics reflectreality for over 400,000 youth in the American foster care system. These youth face different homes, different schools, few opportunities for personalized guidance and support, interruptions in their educational trajectory, and limited financial resources. This is a group truly at risk of missing the benefits of success in higher education and beyond.
First Star is restoring hope for these youth through Foster Youth Academies programs around the nation. These Academies offer college-focused residential programs strategically located on college campuses with monthly follow-up programs. Our students receive superior academic support, enrichment and encouragement to help them prepare for and enter two- and four-year colleges. Thus, the Academies are laying a foundation to improve the likelihood that these youth will seek and attain higher education, good jobs, personal wellbeing, career advancement, economic independence, and the ability to contribute to society as responsible citizens. This groundbreaking program was first envisioned by First Star Board Member, Dr. Kathleen Reardon, in her book Childhood Denied.




“The federal government's failure to enforce the nation's child protection laws is a "national disgrace" that leaves abused children vulnerable to future harm, according to a three-year study by two child advocacy groups. The 110-page report released Tuesday identified some of the same failures reported in December by The Associated Press after an eight-month investigation into hundreds of children who died of abuse or neglect in plain view of child protection authorities. "Our laws are weak. We don't invest in solutions. Federal laws aren't enforced. And courts are turning their backs. This creates a trifecta of inertia and neglect," said Amy Harfeld, policy director at the Children's Advocacy Institute at the University of San Diego School of Law, which wrote the report with the nonprofit group First Star.... The AP found that at least 786 children died of abuse and neglect over a six-year span - many of them beaten, starved or left alone to drown - while agencies had good reason to know they were in danger. That figure represents the most comprehensive statistics publicly available, but the actual number who died even as authorities were investigating their families or providing some form of protective services is likely much higher because antiquated confidentiality laws allow many states to withhold vital information, shrouding their failures.... "Almost everything that happens to these children is cloaked in endemic secrecy, and most efforts by the media and advocates to provide the public with much needed transparency - which leads to accountability - are thwarted by the very governmental entities and officials who have turned their backs on their official duties to children," the groups said. Michael Petit, who was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve on the Federal Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities and serves as adviser to the advocacy group Every Child Matters, said he agreed with what he has read thus far in the report, entitled "Shame on U.S."... The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for implementing and enforcing federal child welfare laws and programs, but the agency largely takes a hands-off approach, allowing states to self-certify that they are in compliance with federal requirements.... Agency spokeswoman Laura Goulding did not immediately return a call and an email seeking comment on the report Monday. Congress needs to mandate that HHS impose fines, withhold funds or take other punitive actions when states don't follow federal regulations, the report said. Because HHS and Congress so rarely hold states accountable for their failings, filing a lawsuit is usually the only way private parties can challenge problems within the child welfare system. But lawsuits are time consuming, expensive and often limited in their reach, covering violations in only one state or county rather than widespread systemic failures, the groups said.... "Federal courts have turned their backs on private attempts to enforce federal child welfare law and Congress has shown little interest in advancing the law itself," the report said.”

It seems to me that this is a particularly severe failure of the federal watch dogs to punish states who likewise aren't doing anything useful. It's a problem when issues like this are left up to the states to implement, essentially without oversight. Or is this a case of HHS being overwhelmed, or worse corrupted? I did just now send an email to President Obama at the White House requesting that he look into this. Hope that does some good.





http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2350891/The-cutest-Haka-New-Zealand-toddlers-adorable-version-All-Blacks-Maori-war-dance.html

The cutest Haka ever: New Zealand toddlers perform adorable version of All Blacks Maori war dance
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
28 June 2013

The cutest Haka ever: New Zealand toddlers perform adorable version of All Blacks Maori war dance

It is one of the most awesome sights in Rugby - the New Zealand All Blacks 'Haka' war dance,  performed at the start of a match to instill fear into the hearts of their opponents.

But now a tiny troop of adorable toddlers have been filmed performing their own version of the haka with hilarious results.
The iconic ritual, officially entitled 'Ka Mate', is usually seen performed by the All Blacks before Test Matches, a tradition they have kept since 1905.

Half pint haka: The five New Zealand toddlers perform their version of the famous Maori war dance

Fearsome: The All Blacks rugby team perform their version of the dance before a match

The Haka dances were traditionally performed by fearsome Maori warriors before going into battle to intimidate the enemy.

They involve various synchronised actions including stamping feet, crouching, waving arms as well as contorting the face and sticking out the tongue which accompanied by a series of grunts and cries 

The five youngsters stomp around, waving their arms around randomly in what has been dubbed 'The cutest Haka ever'.

Tiny terrors: The youngsters stomp around and wave their arms as they perform the war dance

The Haka dances were traditionally performed by Maori warriors before going into battle to intimidate the enemy

The dance is supposed to involve synchronised stamping of the feet and arm movements accompanied by a series of ferocious grunts and cries

Get out the way: Another toddler wanders in front of the camera half way through the routine




Go to the website given above and run the video of the kids doing their versions (each his/her own) of the dance. The first time I ever saw this dance was on the stroke of midnight 2000 with fireworks going off in the background, and the local Maori men were decked out in their loincloths performing what was genuinely a frightening war dance. I think if I'm ever confronted with a dangerous wild animal or a menacing street mugger I'll perform this dance. Well, maybe not.





http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2015/01/28/381924295/group-urges-swedes-to-evade-subway-fares-and-even-insures-against-fines

Group Urges Swedes To Evade Subway Fares, And Even Insures Against Fines
Ari Shapiro
January 28, 2015

Photograph – Christian Tengblad (right) and his fellow fare dodger are part of the group Planka.nu.

Every city that has public transportation struggles with fare jumpers — people who sneak onto the subway or the bus without buying a ticket. In Sweden, fare-dodging is a brazen movement in which the group's members don't try to hide what they're doing.

On a weekday morning, students in backpacks and winter coats stream out of the university subway station in Stockholm. Some people have set up a booth here with a hot pink logo of a man jumping a turnstile, and a sign that says Planka.nu. In Swedish, that roughly means "dodge the fare now."

"We're distributing some leaflets about free public transportation," says Christian Tengblad, one of the group's founders. They're also offering free coffee and cookies.

In this case, "free transportation" is a loose term. The leaflets describe how to avoid paying a fare for Stockholm's subway system, where full-fare users typically pay about $35 for a one-week pass.

At 33, with his infant son asleep in the baby carriage next to him, Tengblad does not exactly look the part of a rebel. He explains that his group basically has set up an insurance system.

"We have a fund, that's like the membership of Planka," Tengblad says. "People pay 100 krona each month [around $12], then if they receive any fines, the fund finances this."

The fine for fare-dodging is around $120, he says.

This group has enough income from its members to pay everyone's fines with money left over, though Tengblad says nobody makes any real income from the project.

It's not a new idea — groups have been encouraging fare evasion and offering insurance for paying fines in a few French cities for the past several years — but the Stockholm group may be among the most public.

Planka started in 2001 as a protest movement. Now it's evolved into something that sounds almost like a think tank.

"We write serious stuff like reports," Tengblad says. "We made a book about the traffic hierarchy, as we call it."

The members of this group believe that public transportation should be paid for by taxes, with free tickets. The idea may not be so far-fetched. Nearby Tallinn, Estonia, recently went that route, and a handful of other cities in Europe and the U.S. have experimented with the same thing.

These fare jumpers complain that subway tickets in Stockholm cost 75 percent more than they did a decade ago. But after 14 years of campaigning, the activists don't seem to have swayed Stockholm's decision-makers.

"I would consider them thieves," says Kristoffer Tamsons, Stockholm's commissioner for public transportation. He says free riders cost the system about $30 million a year.

"Most people in Stockholm agree that you should pay for yourself, and that you should contribute to society," he says. "And if you're not contributing, then you have no right to use our public services."

Back at the University subway station, many subway riders express sympathy with the movement's ideas. Even some people you wouldn't expect, like a subway driver who wouldn't give his name because he could get fired for speaking to reporters.

"Yes, it's too expensive," says the driver. And he has praise for the fare dodgers, saying, "They are actually doing something, not just talking. I gotta respect that."

A lot of people leaving the station say that while they might respect the movement, they're not about to join. Annika Ylamaki and her friend Fanny Vallen go to school here.

"Of course, because we're students we think it should be free, because we don't have much money," Vallen says. But she would never consider joining.

"I think I'm kind of a nice person, so I couldn't do that," Ylamaki says.

"Yeah, that's illegal to do something like that, and we don't want any troubles," says Vallen, nodding.

Lately, membership in the group has dropped from a high of around 600 people. Tengblad says that's not because people are afraid of joining, but simply because some people don't mind the risk. In his experience, subway attendants rarely issue fines anymore, so the monthly insurance payments no longer make sense to some fare jumpers, who are leaving the group while still dodging the fare.

Finally, it's time for a demonstration. Sometimes Planka members just slip through the gates behind someone entering a station, but Tengblad and his friends are carrying coffee, cookies, a kiosk and a baby carriage.

They walk into the station with their gear, and Tengblad takes off his coat. He waves it on the far side of the gate to trick the system into thinking someone is exiting. The gates swing open, and the group passes through.

No jumping, no shouting. Nobody even seems to notice as the fare dodgers blend into the crowd and disappear.




"Every city that has public transportation struggles with fare jumpers — people who sneak onto the subway or the bus without buying a ticket. In Sweden, fare-dodging is a brazen movement in which the group's members don't try to hide what they're doing. On a weekday morning, students in backpacks and winter coats stream out of the university subway station in Stockholm. Some people have set up a booth here with a hot pink logo of a man jumping a turnstile, and a sign that says Planka.nu. In Swedish, that roughly means "dodge the fare now." "We're distributing some leaflets about free public transportation," says Christian Tengblad, one of the group's founders. They're also offering free coffee and cookies.... Stockholm's subway system, where full-fare users typically pay about $35 for a one-week pass. At 33, with his infant son asleep in the baby carriage next to him, Tengblad does not exactly look the part of a rebel. He explains that his group basically has set up an insurance system. "We have a fund, that's like the membership of Planka," Tengblad says. "People pay 100 krona each month [around $12], then if they receive any fines, the fund finances this." The fine for fare-dodging is around $120, he says.... Planka started in 2001 as a protest movement. Now it's evolved into something that sounds almost like a think tank. "We write serious stuff like reports," Tengblad says. "We made a book about the traffic hierarchy, as we call it." The members of this group believe that public transportation should be paid for by taxes, with free tickets. The idea may not be so far-fetched. Nearby Tallinn, Estonia, recently went that route, and a handful of other cities in Europe and the U.S. have experimented with the same thing.... "I would consider them thieves," says Kristoffer Tamsons, Stockholm's commissioner for public transportation. He says free riders cost the system about $30 million a year. "Most people in Stockholm agree that you should pay for yourself, and that you should contribute to society," he says. "And if you're not contributing, then you have no right to use our public services."... Even some people you wouldn't expect, like a subway driver who wouldn't give his name because he could get fired for speaking to reporters. "Yes, it's too expensive," says the driver. And he has praise for the fare dodgers, saying, "They are actually doing something, not just talking. I gotta respect that."... In his experience, subway attendants rarely issue fines anymore, so the monthly insurance payments no longer make sense to some fare jumpers, who are leaving the group while still dodging the fare.... They walk into the station with their gear, and Tengblad takes off his coat. He waves it on the far side of the gate to trick the system into thinking someone is exiting. The gates swing open, and the group passes through. No jumping, no shouting. Nobody even seems to notice as the fare dodgers blend into the crowd and disappear.”

Sometimes I run across a news headline that makes me ask “What? Why?” This is one of those. Apparently, though, the subway fare has become too expensive for lots of people. Some are paying Planka a monthly fee for “insurance” while others just run the risk of getting caught. That rarely happens, and the guards rarely issue tickets anyway, so Planka is now beginning to lose money. Tengblad's foolproof way of getting the gate to open is amazing. In DC the subway gates won't open if you don't put your card in the slot. I think you could easily slip through behind the person ahead if you moved fast enough, though. I never did. I'm like the young woman who said she is “too nice” for such tricks.




http://www.npr.org/2015/01/28/377473153/homeless-man-encourages-others-on-the-streets-to-get-up

Homeless Man Encourages Others On The Streets To 'Get Up'
Pam Fessler
JANUARY 28, 2015

This story begins an occasional series about individuals who don't have much money or power but do have a big impact on their communities.

Sometimes, the people you'd least expect are those who do the most. People like Tony Simmons, a homeless man in Baltimore who helps others get off the street. Simmons says he does it as much for himself as for anyone else.

Simmons is 53 years old and a former Marine. He's also a former heroin addict and drug runner and was in and out of jail. Eventually, he hit rock bottom — homeless, penniless, alienated from family and friends.

Two years ago, he says, he was afraid he might die if he didn't pull himself up. Even then, he knew what he had to do.

"You must start with yourself. Get up. Get going. No excuses. That's what I tell myself every morning after prayer. 'Cause every time I help one person, I get a little part of me back," Simmons says.

Today, Simmons has gotten much of himself back. He's the unofficial go-to person for many of Baltimore's 3,000 homeless residents, people like the bundled up men and women who come to the Health Care for the Homeless clinic downtown to get medical treatment and other services or to escape the cold. Simmons is stationed at the front door, volunteering at a help desk that he helped set up. He hands out fliers for a free dinner at a local church, provides referrals to food pantries and other services in the city, and gives plenty of advice — and hugs.

"The one thing I try not to do is tell them what to do," Simmons says. "I just give them the avenues: 'These are the resources that's out there. Choose something that's right for you, and I will help you navigate through that system.' "

Professionals at the clinic say Simmons can reach people they sometimes can't, that he knows where to get help and how to cut through the red tape. He's now staying with a friend, but he spent three years living in a shelter. So he has lots of credibility with those who are homeless.

And the need for help seems endless. Several people waiting in the clinic lobby use walkers, or wheelchairs. Some are missing limbs. Many need addiction or mental health services. One woman by the door hops nervously as she brushes her teeth.

Outside, it's cold and raining. About two dozen people sleep on the clinic's front porch each night, or across the street by a highway overpass. That's where Theodore Maddox Jr. first saw Simmons over a year ago, helping people outside.

"He never knew that I was watching him, but every day I saw him, and I used to inquire about him: 'Who's that dude there? Who's that dude there?' And I just said, 'Man, that's the person I would like to emulate,' " Maddox says.

Maddox was in bad shape at the time. He was on drugs and homeless after spending 30 years in prison for murder and other crimes. But when he overheard Simmons say he'd rather be homeless than live inside while others were on the street, it got Maddox thinking.

"Here's a dude that's unselfish," Maddox says. "So it taught me how to be unselfish, you know — don't just think about me. I have to think about other people, too."

So Maddox decided to clean up his act. And now, at age 56, he has his first apartment. He has also joined Simmons in a homeless speaker's bureau to share his story at local colleges.

Simmons seems to be involved in just about everything. He advocates in city hall and at the state capitol, works on a homeless newspaper, mentors homeless youth and co-teaches a class on homelessness at Johns Hopkins University. He recently started a part-time job, helping those who face eviction.

But Simmons says what people need most from him is encouragement.

Back at the clinic, Simmons hugs a big bear of a man named James, who has just told Simmons he's now living with relatives and no longer on the street.

When James leaves, Simmons starts to tear up.

"Every day I hear these stories," he says. "People come to me, like, 'You know, I'm not out here anymore. Thank you.' I'm like, I didn't do much. I just said, 'Get up.' That's all. Just get up."




“Today, Simmons has gotten much of himself back. He's the unofficial go-to person for many of Baltimore's 3,000 homeless residents, people like the bundled up men and women who come to the Health Care for the Homeless clinic downtown to get medical treatment and other services or to escape the cold. Simmons is stationed at the front door, volunteering at a help desk that he helped set up. He hands out fliers for a free dinner at a local church, provides referrals to food pantries and other services in the city, and gives plenty of advice — and hugs. "The one thing I try not to do is tell them what to do," Simmons says. "I just give them the avenues: 'These are the resources that's out there. Choose something that's right for you, and I will help you navigate through that system.' "… But when he overheard Simmons say he'd rather be homeless than live inside while others were on the street, it got Maddox thinking. "Here's a dude that's unselfish," Maddox says. "So it taught me how to be unselfish, you know — don't just think about me. I have to think about other people, too." So Maddox decided to clean up his act. And now, at age 56, he has his first apartment. He has also joined Simmons in a homeless speaker's bureau to share his story at local colleges.... Simmons seems to be involved in just about everything. He advocates in city hall and at the state capitol, works on a homeless newspaper, mentors homeless youth and co-teaches a class on homelessness at Johns Hopkins University. He recently started a part-time job, helping those who face eviction. But Simmons says what people need most from him is encouragement.”

Very poor, addicted, disabled people in this country are so commonplace that it's really discouraging to me. The government tries to help, but it only scratches the surface, and in the case of homeless people some of them, perhaps many of them, live on the street by choice. They like the freedom of it, or are afraid to go to shelters because they know that the police are looking for them. If they are addicts who aren't a member of AA or NA, they don't want to go into a shelter because they can't use their substance of choice there. Many of them have places they have found to shelter from the weather – abandoned buildings, bridges, etc. Some live in permanent tent city encampments on the edge of town with others who are friends. There was a documentary about a few who had a permanent place in the city sewers, with their belongings lined up there. They panhandled during the day and went there for the night. I worry most about the ones who sleep out in the cold, and about those who fall victim to cruel young teenagers or other attackers. In Jacksonville a couple of years ago two teenaged boys (white) beat a homeless man to death and put it on their expensive cell phone. It fell into the hands of the news and was shown on TV. Why are some people so evil?

This story, however, is a turnaround from those things – a man who has rescued himself from that situation and is helping others to do the same. He has no special skills except the inner goodness to offer his hope to others and give them information on how to get help. He gives speeches, works on a homeless newspaper, mentors homeless youth, aids individuals faced with eviction, and co-teaches at Johns Hopkins University on the subject of homelessness. I looked on the Net just now to see if his name pops up, but only for this story I've clipped today. He probably wouldn't want to be famous anyway. It would interfere with his ability to do his chosen aid to others.






http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2015/01/26/368449371/dna-blood-test-gives-women-a-new-option-for-prenatal-screening

DNA Blood Test Gives Women A New Option For Prenatal Screening
Nell Greenfieldboyce
JANUARY 26, 2015

When Amy Seitz got pregnant with her second child last year, she knew that being 35 years old meant there was an increased chance of chromosomal disorders like Down syndrome. She wanted to be screened, and she knew just what kind of screening she wanted — a test that's so new, some women and doctors don't quite realize what they've signed up for.

This kind of test , called cell free fetal DNA testing, uses a simple blood sample from an expectant mother to analyze bits of fetal DNA that have leaked into her bloodstream. It's only been on the market since October of 2011 and is not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration - the FDA does not regulate this type of genetic testing service. Several companies now offer the test, including Sequenom and Illumina. Insurance coverage varies and doctors often only offer this testing to women at higher risk because of things like advanced maternal age.

"I think that I initially heard about it through family and friends," says Seitz. "They had had the option of it given to them by their doctors."

To her, it sounded great. She didn't want an invasive procedure like amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling(CVS). Those are considered the gold standard for prenatal genetic testing, but doctors must put a needle into the womb to collect cells that contain fetal DNA, which means a small risk of miscarriage.

During amniocentesis, a needle is inserted through a woman's abdomen into the amniotic sac. A sample of fluid is extracted and screened for genetic disorders such as Down syndrome.

"I wasn't interested in going as far as getting an amniocentesis because of the risk associated with that," she explains, "and so when I heard about this test, that was part of the reason that I was most interested in it."

This new way of testing fetal DNA seemed to have already become fairly common where Seitz used to live, in Washington, D.C. But she had recently moved to Alabama, and the clinic she went to there wasn't as familiar with it — although when she talked to her doctor, she learned they'd just had a visit from a company's sales representative.

"I think it was a fairly new test for them at that point, but she was interested in pursuing it further to see what needed to be done," Seitz says.

Seitz got her blood drawn last July, becoming one of hundreds of thousands of pregnant women who've opted for this new kind of test instead of the more traditional, invasive ones. Doctors say the impact has been huge.

"Those of us in the field who do diagnostic procedures like CVS and amnio have seen a drastic decrease in the number of those procedures that are being performed," says Dr. Mary Norton, an expert on maternal-fetal medicine and genetics at the University of California, San Francisco. "Places are reporting doing fewer than half the number of procedures that were being done previously."

But, she says, things have changed so quickly that it may be hard for doctors and patients to know what they're dealing with.

"It's still new and it's quite different than previous genetic testing that's been available," says Norton. "It's quite a different paradigm, if you will."

An invasive test like amniocentesis or CVS lets doctors get a complete picture of the chromosomes and a solid diagnosis.

Until the new testing technology came along, the only less invasive option was for an expectant mother to get an ultrasound, plus have her blood tested for specific proteins. This can reveal if there's an increased risk of certain disorders, but it's not very accurate and produces a lot of false alarms.

Studies have shown that the new fetal DNA tests do a better job, says Norton. They're less likely to flag a normal pregnancy as high risk.

"They're much more accurate than current screening tests, but they are not diagnostic tests in the sense that amniocentesis is," says Norton, "and so I think that has led to some confusion."

Even though the newer blood tests do look at fetal DNA, they can't give a definitive answer like an amniocentesis can because they're analyzing scraps of fetal DNA in the mother's blood that are all mixed up with her own DNA.

Norton says when women get worrisome results from one of these new tests and are referred to her center, they sometimes don't understand why doctors are offering a follow-up amnio "because they were under the impression that this was as good as an amnio."

She is concerned that some people might end a pregnancy without getting confirmatory testing, and points to one study last year that found a small number of women did that.
"There's at least some evidence that it's happening to a greater degree than I think many of us are comfortable with," she says.

The tests are being used more and more widely. Some worry that the companies' websites and marketing materials don't make the limitations clear enough.

But Dr. Lee Shulman doesn't see it that way. He's an obstetrician and geneticist at Northwestern University in Chicago who has consulted for a couple of the testing firms.

"Patients need to understand that while this is better, it is not a diagnostic test, and I think the companies have done a great job in putting this material out," he says. "Whether or not clinicians use this material and take it to heart and use it for patient counseling is a different story."

He says the technology is so new that a lot of doctors have no experience with it, and consumers need to understand that.

"If the patient, if the couple, are not getting the answers, not getting the information they feel comfortable with, they need to seek out prenatal diagnostic centers, maternal fetal specialists, clinical geneticists, who may have more experience," says Shulman.

For example, here's one thing that might turn out to be a little more complicated than would-be parents might expect. Along with screening for the common chromosomal disorders, companies offer parents the chance to learn their baby's sex—weeks before it's clear on a sonogram.

"Many women are very excited by the idea that as part of their blood testing, they could find out pretty definitively if the baby is a boy or a girl," says Dr. Diana Bianchi, an expert on prenatal diagnostics at Tufts University School of Medicine.

What they may not realize, she says, is that the test will also determine whether there's something abnormal about the sex chromosomes.

"Approximately 1 in 700 pregnancies there's an extra X or extra Y," she says, noting that these are mild conditions that would normally go undetected, unless a woman had an invasive test like an amnio. Some babies with these conditions grow up into adulthood and never know they have them, unless they face a symptom like infertility.

Amy Seitz, in Alabama, thought it was a bonus that getting this new blood test would tell her if she was having a boy or a girl. But it actually didn't do that, because of a paperwork glitch.

"The box for sex got unchecked somewhere along the way so we weren't able to find it out from the test," says Seitz, who learned from an ultrasound that she was having a girl. The results she did get from the fetal DNA test were reassuring.




“She wanted to be screened, and she knew just what kind of screening she wanted — a test that's so new, some women and doctors don't quite realize what they've signed up for. This kind of test , called cell free fetal DNA testing, uses a simple blood sample from an expectant mother to analyze bits of fetal DNA that have leaked into her bloodstream. It's only been on the market since October of 2011 and is not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration - the FDA does not regulate this type of genetic testing service. Several companies now offer the test, including Sequenom and Illumina. Insurance coverage varies and doctors often only offer this testing to women at higher risk because of things like advanced maternal age.... This can reveal if there's an increased risk of certain disorders, but it's not very accurate and produces a lot of false alarms. Studies have shown that the new fetal DNA tests do a better job, says Norton. They're less likely to flag a normal pregnancy as high risk. "They're much more accurate than current screening tests, but they are not diagnostic tests in the sense that amniocentesis is," says Norton, "and so I think that has led to some confusion." Even though the newer blood tests do look at fetal DNA, they can't give a definitive answer like an amniocentesis can because they're analyzing scraps of fetal DNA in the mother's blood that are all mixed up with her own DNA.... She is concerned that some people might end a pregnancy without getting confirmatory testing, and points to one study last year that found a small number of women did that. There's at least some evidence that it's happening to a greater degree than I think many of us are comfortable with," she says. The tests are being used more and more widely. Some worry that the companies' websites and marketing materials don't make the limitations clear enough.... "If the patient, if the couple, are not getting the answers, not getting the information they feel comfortable with, they need to seek out prenatal diagnostic centers, maternal fetal specialists, clinical geneticists, who may have more experience," says Shulman.... What they may not realize, she says, is that the test will also determine whether there's something abnormal about the sex chromosomes. "Approximately 1 in 700 pregnancies there's an extra X or extra Y," she says, noting that these are mild conditions that would normally go undetected, unless a woman had an invasive test like an amnio. Some babies with these conditions grow up into adulthood and never know they have them, unless they face a symptom like infertility.”

This simple blood test that doesn't involve a painful and potentially dangerous amniocentesis procedure seems to me to be a huge improvement, and something that the insurance companies should all pay for. The only problem seems to be that “... they are not diagnostic tests ….” So apparently if the mother get a reading that there MAY be Down Syndrome she should then take amniocentesis in addition before terminating the pregnancy. As a believer in a woman's right to choose whether or not to have an abortion, if it were my pregnancy and the blood test spotted a possible problem I would just go ahead and abort it. I would not want to give birth to a baby with a severe mental or physical disorder. Conservatives are trying to write laws so that this isn't possible, but so far they haven't succeeded.