Silenced #hiroshima #poetry #poem

The White Lotus cannot open again

penned in moon dust

Captive in the frame Captive in the frame

Awakened from deafening noises

pushing away this long night mare

unsuccesful I rub my dark eyes

trying to look through a dusty cloud

I shake cob webs that I wear

Looking in a mirror

I lay back on the floor

 fear grabs me as I  curl up

knowing that this dream must end

or destruction has claimed my world

 Poet’s United Wednesday Motif is reflecting on the 69th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima or A-Bomb Day. We are prompted to write from the point of view of a character then or now.

View original post

Cat Survives 12-Story Fall From Midtown Building: Gothamist

Thank goodness this story has a purrfect ending: A Manhattan cat owner discovered his cat was missing from his 15th floor apartment—and then found him on the third floor overhang… alive!

CBS New York reports:

“I started freaking out,” [Samuel] Jacobs told 1010 WINS’ Glenn Schuck. “I literally saw him and I was like, ‘Oh no, no no. He’s dead.’”

With help from a building porter, Jacobs climbed out onto the overhang and was happily shocked to find Gizmo purring.

“He looked so relieved to see me,” Jacobs said. “He was scared and just crying and screaming.”

via Cat Survives 12-Story Fall From Midtown Building: Gothamist.

H5N6 bird flu virus found for first time in Vietnam

Veterinary authorities have reported two fresh outbreaks of the highly pathogenic H5N6 bird flu in the northern provinces of Lang Son and Ha Tinh for the first time in Vietnam.

>> Vietnam among 6 Asian countries prone to H7N9 bird flu

>> H7N9 virus more virulent than H5N1, ministry says

The outbreaks occurred in a herd of chickens in Lang Son’s Trang Dinh District and in a flock of ducks in Ha Tinh’s Ky Anh District, the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Veterinary Department said.

On Thursday, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long sent dispatches to the People’s Committees of provinces and cities nationwide, warning about the appearance of the H5N6 bird flu virus strain for the first time in the country.

This extremely toxic virus strain has yet to be proven to transmit from human to human, the ministry said in its notice.

All local authorities should keep a close watch on the fatal strain to detect it soon from poultry, the ministry said.

In a report to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) on August 12, the department said a total of 1980 birds were found susceptible, out of which 950 birds were found to be infected.

A total of 15 deaths were reported and the remaining 1965 birds were destroyed, the report said.

via H5N6 bird flu virus found for first time in Vietnam.

Ebola Outbreak-related Immigration Relief Measures to Nationals of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone Currently in the United States | USCIS

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is closely monitoring the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. USCIS offers relief measures to nationals of those three countries who are currently in the United States.

Immigration relief measures that may be available if requested include:

Change or extension of nonimmigrant status for an individual currently in the United States, even if the request is filed after the authorized period of admission has expired;

Extension of certain grants of parole made by USCIS;

Expedited adjudication and approval, where possible, of requests for off-campus employment authorization for F-1 students experiencing severe economic hardship;

Expedited processing of immigrant petitions for immediate relatives (currently in the United States) of U.S. citizens;

Expedited adjudication of employment authorization applications, where appropriate; and

Consideration for waiver of fees associated with USCIS benefit applications.

To learn more about how USCIS provides assistance to customers affected by unforeseen circumstances in their home country, visit http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/special-situations.

via Ebola Outbreak-related Immigration Relief Measures to Nationals of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone Currently in the United States | USCIS.

MSF says Ebola ′fast,′ medics ′facing war-like scenario′ | News | DW.DE | 15.08.2014

The head of Medicins Sans Frontieres (MSF), Joanne Liu — fresh from a visit to western Africa — said in Geneva on Friday that more experts were needed in the hard-hit region.

“It is deteriorating faster, and moving faster, than we can respond to,” Liu told reporters. “Like in a war time, we have a total collapse of infrastructure,” she added.

Lui said the world community needed to get the “upper hand” over the next six months. While the viral spread had been slowed in Guinea, concerns focused especially on Liberia.

“If we don’t stabilize Liberia, we will never stabilize the region,” Lui said.

She was critical of the WHO for delaying its public health emergency warning until August 8.

“We need people with a hands-on operational mindset,” to combat the outbreak, Liu told the Geneva news briefing.

via MSF says Ebola ′fast,′ medics ′facing war-like scenario′ | News | DW.DE | 15.08.2014.

WHO | WHO Ebola news

Elsewhere, the outbreak is expected to continue for some time. WHO’s operational response plan extends over the next several months. Staff at the outbreak sites see evidence that the numbers of reported cases and deaths vastly underestimate the magnitude of the outbreak.

via WHO | WHO Ebola news.

No further explanation or quantification of what “vastly underestimate the magnitude of the outbreak” means. Two, three, ten times the number of cases and death have not been reported? Don’t know but expect they will quickly try to get a better handle on it.

Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation Gala Raises Over $25 Million – Look to the Stars

The Gala – co-chaired by Philippe Cousteau and Jared Leto along with the presenting sponsor Julius Baer and co-sponsor Chopard – raised over $25 million for The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, dedicated to protecting Earth’s last wild places and implementing solutions to build a more harmonious relationship between humanity and the natural world.

Leonardo DiCaprio opened the evening with an impassioned speech about the Foundation’s work and stated, “Today we stand at the 11th Hour – facing a tipping point of environmental crises unprecedented in human history. Not since the age of the dinosaurs have so many species of plants and animals become extinct in such a short period of time. We must now make an effort to protect the rich biodiversity that could allow nature to eventually recover. The good news is there are solutions to these massive problems. Efforts like tonight will start addressing them.”

DiCaprio proceeded to open the live auction with his own Harley-Davidson Motorcycle signed by Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro and himself.

Bono took the stage with Julian Lennon, and took down the house with their own rendition of “Stand By Me.” Bono stayed on stage to auction off his personal guitar for $1 million.

via Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation Gala Raises Over $25 Million – Look to the Stars.

ROTFLMAO Friday! Let the 2016 rumors begin: Sen. Portman heading to New Hampshire | www.journal-news.com

Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who has been considering a bid for the presidency in 2016, will speak on Aug. 26 at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire at what organizers are calling an eggs and politics breakfast.

via Let the 2016 rumors begin: Sen. Portman heading to New Hampshire | www.journal-news.com.

Eat Drink Better | Healthy recipes, good food: sustainable eats for a healthy lifestyle!

Here’s the number one problem with processed food: it’s so processed that we can’t really identify its origins. Especially when we’re talking about processed meat, which is pretty darn gnarly. Photographer Peter Augustus just changed all that.

Texas-born and now Hong Kong based, Augustus took photographs showing the unappetizing origins of processed meat including chicken nuggets, hot dogs and ham.

Only, in Augustus’ photos, he illuminates the unprocessed ingredients such as chicken feet, pig snouts and intestines that are commonly found in these items.

via Eat Drink Better | Healthy recipes, good food: sustainable eats for a healthy lifestyle!.

Spin News for Freakout Friday – Huge asteroid that ‘could wipe out human life’ heading for Earth, scientists say – The Times of India

They were studying Asteroid 1950 DA, which has a one in 300 chance of hitting the planet on March 16, 2880.

via Huge asteroid that ‘could wipe out human life’ heading for Earth, scientists say – The Times of India.