All posts by nedhamson

Activist, writer, researcher, addicted to sharing information and facts.

Indigenous Resistance: In the news today: Navajo Times

Why does Navajo Times have this article, ‘Groundbreaking, Hawaiian blessing for telescope’ — instead of an article about the Native Hawaiian protest over the telescope desecrating the sacred mountain Mauna Kea?

http://www.bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2014/10/native-hawaiians-protest-telescope-on.html

I was looking at Navajo Times to see if they covered the Dine’ women who were featured in Rolling Stone and on Democracy Now at Flood Wall Street in New York. I don’t see anything about Navajos at Flood Wall Street or the Climate March in New York. But I do see that Navajo Times has a non-Indian reporter covering the Longest Walk and prison camp, ‘Hwéeldi at 150.’

Why is this? There are so many unemployed Navajo and Native American reporters, why does Navajo Times continue to employ non-Indian reporters? Besides the ethics of this, it is a violation of Navajo Preference in Employment law.

The Dine’ women at Flood Wall Street and the Climate March in New York in September took a bold stand against the dirty coal industry and the violators in their homeland: Peabody Coal and dirty coal-fired power plants.

Is Navajo Times censoring the fact that the Navajo Generating Station, on the Navajo Nation, is one of the top polluters in the world? It is easy to fill a newspaper with political turmoil, a good way to distract readers from what is really happening as a result of the dirty coal power plants on the Navajo Nation.

via Indigenous Resistance: In the news today: Navajo Times.

Dozens hurt in Aqsa clashes as Israeli police ‘force Muslims out’ | Maan News Agency

JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — Clashes broke out early Wednesday at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound between Palestinian worshipers and Israeli police officers, leaving dozens hurt, sources said.

Security guards at the mosque told Ma’an that Israeli forces stormed the compound at 7:30 a.m. ahead of expected visits by right-wing Israelis on the occasion of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, or the Feast of the Tabernacles.

Israeli forces forcibly removed worshipers, attacking some of them with clubs, the guards said.

Some Muslim worshipers clashed with Israeli officers in the compound before managing to take refuge inside the mosque.

As worshipers threw stones, soldiers fired tear gas, stun grenades, and rubber bullets, injuring dozens of Palestinians, Al-Aqsa Mosque director Sheikh Omar al-Kiswani said.

Some of the stun grenades were fired into the Al-Aqsa Mosque itself, causing a fire to break out, and fire fighters were not immediately allowed access to the area, al-Kiswani added.

“The compound is almost empty of Muslim worshipers, while Israeli forces allowed herds of extremists to storm it and move freely,” he said.

Witnesses said that eventually Israeli forces succeeded in forcefully removing Palestinians from the compound, besides those who had taken refuge in the mosque itself.

Instead, they closed the doors of the mosque and locked them with chains, trapping worshipers inside, the witnesses said.

Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld tweeted about the incident, saying “masked Arabs” threw “stones/blocks/iron bars” at Israeli forces near the Moroccan gate.

Three police officers were lightly injured, Rosenfeld said.

Since Tuesday morning, Israeli forces have restricted access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, only allowing Palestinian worshipers aged 60 and up to enter. Elderly men and women have had to leave their identity cards with the police officers at the entrances of the compound.

Photos provided by the Israeli police show officers at the Al-Aqsa compound on Oct. 8, 2014

New entrance for non-Muslims

Israeli army radio announced earlier this week that the ministry of tourism was working on a plan to allow Jews to enter the Al-Aqsa compound through the Cotton Merchants Gate, in addition to the Moroccan Gate which is already used as an entrance for non-Muslims.

The announcement was greeted with harsh backlash from Palestinians.

The Palestinian legal counselor of Jerusalem affairs, Ahmad Ruwaidi, said that the Islamic endowment department in charge of the mosque compound has received no notice of any such plan.

Ruwaidi said the announcement was “unacceptable,” calling Palestinian religious sites a “red line” and saying the move would harm the peace process.

Taleb Abu Arar, a Palestinian member of the Israeli Knesset, also said in a statement that opening an additional gate for Jews to enter the Al-Aqsa compound was the equivalent of opening a “gate to war.”

PLO Executive Committee Member Hanan Ashrawi also weighed in, saying: “Israel is creating a new reality at the expense of Palestinians, their religious rights, sites, and historical identity.”

“They are violating the sanctity of religious sites without consequences, which completely terminates possibilities for peace and will ultimately drag the whole region into disastrous clashes,” Ashrawi said in a statement.

The Al-Aqsa Mosque is sensitive for Palestinians due to its status as the third holiest site in Islam and its location in the heart of the Old City of Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem.

Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its “eternal, undivided capital,” but the international community sees East Jerusalem as Palestinian territory and the capital of a future Palestinian state.

The Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, referred to by Jews as the Temple Mount, is also the holiest site in Judaism.

But mainstream Jewish leaders forbid Jews from entering, for fear they would profane the inner sanctum of the Second Temple they believe was once located at the site.

Right-wing Jews, however, often visit the compound under armed guard by Israeli forces, leading to regular clashes with Palestinian worshipers.

via Dozens hurt in Aqsa clashes as Israeli police ‘force Muslims out’ | Maan News Agency.

Minnesota Firm Recalls Meat and Poultry Products for Possible Listeria Contamination

Buddy’s Kitchen, a Burnsville, Minn. establishment, is recalling approximately 62,488 pounds of meat and poultry products due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.

The meat and poultry breakfast products were produced on various dates from July 16, 2014 through Sept. 25, 2014, and then shipped to distributors, retail locations, and airlines nationwide. The following products are subject to recall:

“Swiss Cheese and Mushroom Omelet with Seasonal Tid-Bit Potatoes & Turkey Buffet Sausage Link” trays with the production codes “07/16/14 9”, “08/08/14 9” and “08/27/14 9”.

“Savory Scrambled Eggs with Seasoned Red Skin Potatoes and Turkey Buffet Links” with the production codes “09/19/14 9” and “09/22/14 9”.

“Garden Omelet w/ Parslied Potatoes & Chicken Sausage Links” with the production codes “07/16/14 9”, “07/17/14 9”, “07/18/14 9”, “07/22/14 9”, “07/25/14 9”, “08/22/14 9”, “08/25/14 9”, “09/02/14 9”, “09/09/14 9” and “09/16/14 9”.

“Fiesta Scramble Bowl with Sausage Links” with the production code “10I14 9”.

“Breakfast Skillet Burrito with eggs, sausage and cheese” with the production codes “18G14 2”, “06I14 4”, “16G14 4”, “17G14 2”, “07H14 4”, “20H14 2”, “21H14 4”, “22H14 4” and “25H14 4”.

via Minnesota Firm Recalls Meat and Poultry Products for Possible Listeria Contamination.

Israeli Military Arrest Large Numbers of Palestinian Children – SPIEGEL ONLINE

Mahmood Bassim Ghanim, 14, relates his story from the sofa in his parents’ house in Ya’abad, a village near the Palestinian city of Jenin. An air-conditioning unit, a point of pride for the family, blasts cold air into the room and the father’s engineering diploma hangs above the sofa. Mahmood folds the handkerchief flat and smoothes it out. He has the face of a child, the body of an adolescent, and the large hands and feet of an adult.

Mahmood was arrested twice in the space of two months. The first time he spent four days in jail; the second time he was beaten, interrogated and brought back home the next morning. On neither occasion did there seem to be any reason for his arrest. Perhaps the soldiers were bored. Maybe they made a mistake.

via Israeli Military Arrest Large Numbers of Palestinian Children – SPIEGEL ONLINE.

Coming to America – Ministry’s MRSA reaction to be investigated – The Local

Two leading experts concluded in August that between 6,000-12,000 people are currently infected with MRSA CC398, a variant that can be transmitted from livestock to humans.

 

CC398 has seen a massive increase in Denmark over the past seven years. According to the State Serum Institute (SSI), the CC398 variant only accounted for two percent of all MRSA cases in 2007 but this year is up to 35 percent. In July alone, 105 people were infected with MRSA – the highest monthly total ever.

 

See also: Every fifth pack of pork carries MRSA

 

Last month, an analysis of pork products in Denmark’s supermarkets found that every fifth pack is contaminated with MRSA. Just five years ago, a similar analysis found the bacteria in just five percent of products.

via Ministry’s MRSA reaction to be investigated – The Local.

In Madagascar, a Once-Feared Disease Is No More | UNICEF USA

Since ancient times, mothers in Madagascar have feared tetanus, an excruciating disease that kills one newborn every nine minutes around the world.  Today, however, they can finally be free of that fear. Madagascar is the latest country—there have been 35 since 1999—where UNICEF and its partners have helped to eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus.

via In Madagascar, a Once-Feared Disease Is No More | UNICEF USA.

CDC – Whooping Cough Cases on the Rise | Latina Lista

Whooping cough used to be thought of as a disease of the past, but it’s making a comeback – and 2014 is on track to be a busy year!

There are many factors contributing to the current resurgence of whooping cough. The best protection is to get vaccinated against it. While offering protection, the whooping cough vaccines used now do not protect people for as long as healthcare professionals would like. Additionally, doctors are more aware that whooping cough is still around and affecting communities. This raised awareness, along with better tests to diagnose patients, has contributed to an increase in the number of whooping cough cases being diagnosed and reported.

via CDC – Whooping Cough Cases on the Rise | Latina Lista.

Chile Becomes First South American Nation to Tax Carbon | The Beacon: Oceana’s Blog

Late last month, Chile became the first nation in South America to tax carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The new tax—$5 per ton of CO2 emitted—targets 50 megawatt or higher fossil fuel-emitting power plants, while smaller plants and those fueled by renewable sources will remain exempt. Most of the funds will go into Chile’s education system, says Blue and Green tomorrow.

About 80 percent of Chile’s energy comes from fossil fuel resources, so the move comes in an effort to force power plants to use cleaner energy resources as Chile works towards a voluntary goal to cut greenhouse gases by 20 percent from their 2007 levels by 2020. Four companies—Endesa, AES Gener, Colbún, and E.CL—are expected to contribute the most to the tax, estimated to bring in about $160 million in revenue as part of a larger tax reform, says Reuters.

via Chile Becomes First South American Nation to Tax Carbon | The Beacon: Oceana’s Blog.