All posts by nedhamson

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

Krugman on the Ugly Truth

Seniors for a Democratic Society

Hunger Games, U.S.A.

By PAUL KRUGMAN

Something terrible has happened to the soul of the Republican Party. We’ve gone beyond bad economic doctrine. We’ve even gone beyond selfishness and special interests. At this point we’re talking about a state of mind that takes positive glee in inflicting further suffering on the already miserable.

The occasion for these observations is, as you may have guessed, the monstrous farm bill the House passed last week.

For decades, farm bills have had two major pieces. One piece offers subsidies to farmers; the other offers nutritional aid to Americans in distress, mainly in the form of food stamps (these days officially known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP).

Long ago, when subsidies helped many poor farmers, you could defend the whole package as a form of support for those in need. Over the years, however, the two pieces diverged. Farm subsidies became…

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Is Egypt Safe to Visit?

The sad thing is that this has to be written – hope that Egypt finds way to reconciliation, democracy and respect for all faiths and peoples that make up the best of Egypt!

Egyptian Streets

 

Through the past three years, Egypt has witnessed a turbulent economic and political atmosphere. From the Port Said Stadium Massacre to frequent unrest at Tahrir Square and the recent toppling of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi, tourists often start to think that Egypt has become unsafe. This has resulted in very low hotel occupancy rates – with only 30% occupancy during peak times – and has severely impacted Egypt’s tourism sector, leading to higher unemployment and the closure of several businesses.

However, despite the lack of law and order, very little of Egypt’s instability actually impacts the tourists. All major tourist attractions are well-guarded and locals are more than glad to be receiving foreigners (you are their business!).

Going to the Citadel in Cairo – for example – you cannot enter with a vehicle unless you are part of a tour group (or are a government official). Upon entering…

View original post 575 more words

Green Drinks: Mosquitoes and Dengue

Poster

Why is Singapore currently experiencing a dengue epidemic? How does the Aedes mosquito, as the dengue vector, behave? Why is it so difficult to eradicate?   Against the backdrop of the outbreak, research is critical for sense-making and identifying possible contributing factors to the current situation. Step behind the scenes with Associate Professor Ng Lee Ching to discover how Singapore’s dengue control programme utilises science to guide its operations. Find out why dengue is hitting harder this year, and what you can do to help stop transmission via this potent environmental threat.

Speaker’s Bio:

DEHI1

Assoc Prof Ng Lee Ching is Director of the Environmental Health Institute, an institute of the NEA and a World Health Organisation collaboration centre.  She graduated with a PhD from the Department of Microbiology, National University of Singapore and obtained further post-doctoral research training at the Umeå University, Sweden. With keen interest in translational research on infectious diseases, she…

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Church grows own produce for Open Hands food bank | StarNewsOnline.com

The Lord’s Church started the garden, called Operation Legacy Farms, last year as part of its food pantry, Open Hands Food Bank. The food program at Lord’s Church on the corner of Fifth Avenue and Greenfield Street is a partner with the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina and hosts food distribution days on Wednesday and Fridays. Since it began three years ago, the church food bank has distributed more than 115,000 pounds of food, according to the church.

via Church grows own produce for Open Hands food bank | StarNewsOnline.com.

Egyptian Aak: Week28. Coup, Plots, and “Useless Idiots”

Nervana

 Main Headlines

 Monday

Tuesday

 Wednesday

  • Egypt’s interim cabinet to be formed next week: PM
  • Egypt strongly dissatisfied…

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Immigration Talk with a Mexican American: Murder of Trayvon Martin similar to Murder of Luis Ramirez. DOJ should File same Federal Charges against Zimmerman!

Though Piekarsky and Donchak were found Not Guilty of murder charges by their local court, the DOJ filed Federal Charges and they were found Guilty of their crimes. Here are the charges by the Federal Court:

“Brandon Piekarsky and Derrick Donchak were convicted in federal court for the brutal beating and eventual death of Luis Ramirez, a resident of the Defendants’ town.  The Defendants were charged with criminal violation of the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3631, which penalizes actions taken against an individual on account of his race, color or national origin, and with the specific intent to intimidate the victim or others like him from exercising their right to housing free of discrimination.”

via Immigration Talk with a Mexican American: Murder of Trayvon Martin similar to Murder of Luis Ramirez. DOJ should File same Federal Charges against Zimmerman!.

Powdered Water Hydrates Drought-Stricken Farms | Green Prophet

“The incorporation of solid rain in the soil improves its structure and moisture holding capacity, this reduces leaching and improves water and nutrient availability to plants,” according to company literature.

“With the use of solid rain, the water requirements can be minimized due to the reduction of losses by percolation or evaporation,” they added.

“The interval between irrigations can be doubled, tripled or more. Additionally, the extra reserve of water in the soil prevents plants from water stress. This is especially important in areas or periods with low precipitation.”

via Powdered Water Hydrates Drought-Stricken Farms | Green Prophet.