Mental Health Break: Politician Goes Reality TV Star

Politician, Sarah Palin, decides to take a stab at the Reality TV world after her political ambitions didn't work out so well. After viewing this commercial, most people are left saying, "Is this for real?"

Madoff's Son is Found Dead

Mark Madoff, the son of Bernie Madoff, was found dead in his apartment on Saturday morning on December 11th. This was the exact day of the second anniversary of his father's arrest for his financial scandal. It still remains to be seen whether or not Mark Madoff was involved in the scheme. Here is the report from CNN:

Surprise Attack on Sweden

Sweden has been disturbed with a terrorist attack, reports Malin Rising. Sweden hasn't been burdened with a terrorist attack for over three decades. Nobody died except for the alleged bomber and only a few were injured. There were two car explosion. One was in the center of a busy shopping area while the other was on a pedestrian crowded street. Malin further explains that,

Experts said the alleged bomber probably didn't succeed in detonating all the explosives and could have caused much greater damage.

Although police haven't confirmed Saturday's attack was motivated by Islamist views, an audio file sent to Swedish news agency TT shortly before the blast referred to jihad, Sweden's military presence in Afghanistan and a cartoon by a Swedish artist that depicted the Prophet Muhammad as a dog, enraging many Muslims.

Free Speech on Facebook?

In an article written by Miguel Helft, the issue of privacy policies on Facebook is addressed. Mr. Dave Willner has attempted to fix the problem by taking down content that is illegal or violates the terms of service Facebook agreement. It seems that Willner is simply trying to protect the users of Facebook but this article asks whether or not people should have their right to free speech on the internet. Helft reports that,

With Facebook’s prominence on the Web — its more than 500 million members upload more than one billion pieces of content a day — the site’s role as an arbiter of free speech is likely to become even more pronounced.

“Facebook has more power in determining who can speak and who can be heard around the globe than any Supreme Court justice, any king or any president,” said Jeffrey Rosen, a law professor at George Washington University who has written about free speech on the Internet. “It is important that Facebook is exercising its power carefully and protecting more speech rather than less.”

 Should Facebook tighten the restraints on content? Or should it continue to allow users to practice their right to free speech?

Kudos for Contrave

For the first time in over a decade the Federal Advisory Committee has recommended the approval for a prescription diet pill. The drug is called Contrave and is developed by Orexigen Therapeutics of San Diego. It is rare for pharmaceutical companies to gain approval for drugs trying to combat America's problem with obesity. Most diet pills are burdened with the increased risks of heart attacks and strokes. According to an article written by Andrew Pollack,

With Contrave, the big issue was that the drug had only modest effectiveness while also causing a slight increase in blood pressure and pulse rate. That could conceivably raise the risk of heart attacks and strokes, though the trials conducted by Orexigen were too small and too short to determine that.

Both the FDA and the company agreed that further testing for heart attack risk will be done but not till after the drug has been approved. It would take many years to complete the testing before releasing the drug which is why the company wants to do it after. Others argue, though, that the drug could potentially be dangerous and although it will take awhile, it is better off to complete the testing first. 

Mental Health Break: Oh, Silly Sarah!

Entertain yourself with the oh so wonderful Sarah Palin:

Too Much TSA?

Recently, the Transportation Security Administration has added on a new level to their security system. Rather than simply walking through a medal detector, passengers will have to get a full body screening. Some have complained that the screening violates their privacy because it is too revealing. The alternative to the screening isn't much better though. Those who wish to not be screened must get a full body pat down. Many object to this because they feel much discomfort with the process. In this video a reporter gets the first hand opinions from the passengers at the airport in West Palm Beach, Florida.

More information about this on 60 minutes:

Palin for President?

In an interview with Barbara Walters, Sarah Palin talks about her possible plan to run for president against Obama in 2012. This has been talked about for some time now and she made it clear that it hasn't been set in stone yet but she is seriously considering the idea. Besides explaining the possible run for presidency, Palin also said she feels confident about beating Obama. She recognizes that she will face much difficulty, though, because of the public's view of her record. She addresses that,

"It's been much more perplexing to me than where the lamestream media has wanted to go about my personal life. And other candidates haven't faced these criticisms the way I have. I'm on television nearly every single day with reporters. ... Now granted, that's mainly through my job at Fox News, and I'm very proud to be associated with them, but I'm not avoiding anything or anybody.
I'm on Facebook and Twitter. I'm out there. I want to talk about my record, though."

Mental Health Break: Christine O'Donnell's Greatest Hits

The Many Massacres of Mexico

There have been a stifling number of killings and kidnappings in Mexico. Gunmen have been showing up at local gas stations, recovery centers and even birthday parties. The victims have ranged from being children to adults and from men to women. It is thought that most of this violence stems from the rise of drug cartels. Drug gangs form from these cartels who are then dangerous to the citizens of Mexico. In the article, E. Eduardo Castillo, reports that, President Felipe Calderon, feels that the rise of the drug cartels were not acted upon in time. He goes on to explain that,

"I have a great respect for former president Fox," Calderon said. "But I think he made a lot of mistakes on this issue. Perhaps the most important was not acting in time on this.

"I think that if Mexico had started to fight against this problem 10 years ago, we would be talking about something completely different now." 

Hopefully, it is not too late for Calderon to make some changes to alleviate the problem. It is most important that the violence be subdued as soon as possible.

Haitian Citizens Reject Aid

Over 420 cases of Cholera have been confirmed in Haiti and there are now 284 total deaths. Help has been brought, but some has actually been rejected by protesters in Haiti. In the city of St. Marc, rocks were thrown at a cholera treatment center. This is quite puzzling. For some reason, the citizens of this city in Haiti fear that the treatment center will only make the problem worse. In Jonathon Katz's article, he explains further that,

Some of the roughly 300 students and other protesters said they feared the Doctors Without Borders-Spain clinic would bring more of the disease to their seaside town, which is one of the hardest hit in the week-old epidemic that has killed 284 people and infected 3,769, according to United Nations figures.

Right now, anyone crossing the border must wash their hands and fill out a medical form. Security has tightened in order to control any riots around the border.

Indonesia Under Attack of Natural Disasters

Slamet Ryadi reports that Indonesia got hit Tuesday, October 26th, with both a volcanic eruption and a tsunami. The eruption of Mount Merapi killed at least 25 people while the tsunami killed at least 100. 500 people remain missing after the tsunami hit. Ryadi explains,

The eruption of Mount Merapi on Tuesday killed at least 25 people, forced thousands to flee down its slopes and spewed burning ash and smoke high into the air on the island of Java.

Meanwhile, off the coast of Sumatra, about 800 miles (1,300 kilometers) west of the volcano, rescuers battled rough seas to reach the remote Mentawai islands, where a 10-foot (three-meter) tsunami triggered by an earthquake Monday night swept away hundreds of homes, killing at least 113 villagers, said Mujiharto of the Health Ministry's crisis center. Up to 500 others are missing.

The twin disasters happened hours apart in one of the most seismically active regions on the planet.

Scientists have warned that pressure building beneath Merapi's lava dome could trigger its most powerful explosion in years.

But Gede Swantika, a government volcanologist, expressed hope the 9,737-foot (2,968-meter) mountain, which sent rocks and debris cascading down its southern slope, could be releasing steam slowly.

"It's too early to know for sure," he said, adding that a big blast could still be coming. "But if it continues like this for a while, we are looking at a slow, long eruption." 

Coffee vs. Tea...

Eduoard Guihaire explains in an article, the emergence of a new political party called the "Coffee Party." It seems that this party is completely opposite of the tea party. The founder, Annabel Park, describes its beginnings all on Facebook.

"I've never created a fan page before and then within a couple of days all these people start to join it... It just kind of started to go viral," added Park, who says she is politically closer to the Democrats than to the Republicans.

It stands in direct opposition to the Tea Party's professed goal of stopping "intrusive government" in favor of "common sense constitutional conservative self-governance."

Despite the quick rise in fans, the Coffee Party will not become any sort of political heavyweight for a very long time.

 

Michael Moore Sees the "Biggest Box of Fruit Loops"

Michael Moore feels that there are a lot of candidates in the upcoming election that are a little out of the ordinary. He expresses that he does have confidence in American citizens in that we will make the "right" choices though. See the video below to watch the interview between him and Larry King.

Google Finances Building of 'Superhighway' for Wind Power

The article written by, Juliet Eilperin, discusses Google's involvement in the building of an underwater tunnel that funnels energy from off-shore wind farms to 1.9 million homes. This project would eliminate the need for off-shore wind developers to build transmission lines that reach peoples' homes. The 350-mile network of cables will reach from northern New Jersey to Virginia. Wondering what Obama thinks? Eilperin reports that:

"The Obama administration has identified offshore wind development as top energy policy priority, and administration officials have vowed to ease the way for wind farms off the East Coast.
"By identifying high-priority areas offshore for potential wind projects, we can explore the development of a transmission backbone in the Atlantic Ocean to serve those areas," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said last month. "Rather than develop transmission infrastructure plans on a piecemeal basis, we should - in close coordination with the private sector, states and tribes - lay out a smart transmission system up front."

This project will be quite a feat and the predicted construction start is not till 2013. The estimated finish of the tunnel wouldn't be until 2020. Although the project will take awhile Google officials explain that,

"We believe in investing in projects that make good business sense and further the development of renewable energy."

What's my Party?

I used this website to take a quiz that tells me my political party. Here are my results:

Conservative/Progressive score: 11
You are a social progressive. You generally consider yourself a humanist first. You probably think that religion and patriotism go too far in society. You probably consider yourself to be a citizen of Earth first rather than a citizen of your country.

Capitalist Purist/Social Capitalist score: 7
You are a Moderate Capitalist. You support an economy that is by and large a free market, but has public programs to help people who can't help themselves or need a little help. Pretty much you believe in the American economy how it currently is.

Libertarian/Authoritarian score: 7
You're a Moderate. You think that we all have certain inalienable rights that must be protected, but that sometimes laws need to be made to protect the majority's lives or quality of lives. You might think that the 2nd amendment isn't necessary anymore because letting everyone a gun is extremely dangerous to the community. You might also be against illegal drug use or public pornography because of its possible harmful effects to society.

Pacifist/Militarist score: 1
You're a Pacifist. You are angered that the United States thinks it should dominate the world through its military force. You think that the only time war is necessary is when we are in direct danger of being attacked. You also believe the US spends way too much of its money on defense, as we can practically cut it in half and still easily defend ourselves, and use that money to fix all our economic problems.

Overall, you would most likely fit into the category of Democrat

Bakonyi Released From Custody Despite Major Damages Done

The manager, Zoltan Bakonyi, of the company linked to the red sludge spill in Hungary, has been released from custody without charge. His lawyer argued that sufficient evidence seems to be lacking in order to prosecute Bakonyi. In an article from the New York Times, the writer, Dan Bilefsky explains that,

"The court had met to review possible charges of Mr. Bakonyi’s negligence — including the contention by his critics that a failure to prepare emergency warning and rescue plans — had contributed to the calamity."

Unfortunately the spill ended up killing eight people and injured hundreds. For now, a state commissioner has been appointed as the new manager of the company and the Hungarian government has made sure that the company will pay for the damages and for all who were affected by this event.

Anger Drives Citizens to Vote

An article titled, "Who's upset over the economy? Everybody, everywhere" by Jane Sasseen, discusses the difference in attitude between Republicans and Democrats. She also goes on to explain how these attitudes effect the poles. Apparently Republicans tend to be more angry which causes them to vote more and Democrats are just dissatisfied giving them less motivation to head to the voting booths. Not only is there a difference in attitude between the political parties, but there are differences between generations. The article explains that:

"While many Americans middle-aged and up have lost jobs, seen the value of their homes collapse and their retirement savings eviscerated, younger adults, despite the drab job market and daunting levels of college debt, probably feel they have more time to wait out the downturn."

"Millennials have not lost as much in the downturn, so they have less to be angry about," says Michael Cornfield, an adjunct professor at the Graduate School of Political Management at the George Washington University. Moreover, he adds, "They don't have as high expectations from government as boomers do."

Sasseen summed up the end of the article by making clear why an angry person is more likely to vote than someone who is just dissatisfied.

"Everyone is unhappy today, but when you get the higher level of intensity, those people are more motivated to vote than those who are just dissatisfied," says Cornfield. Republican voters, along with an increasing number of independents, don't like what the government has done; they're eager to put a stop to policies they see as both intrusive and ineffective. Democrats, on the other hand, are unhappy with the pace of change but think the administration deserves more time to right the economy. "If you're a Democrat, you're in favor of waiting," he adds. "But waiting doesn't get you to the polls." 

Chilean Miners are Almost Out

It has been 69 days since 33 Chilean miners became trapped about half a mile underground. Today, Tuesday October 12th, the first miner was finally able to breathe fresh air and see his family. A customized escape capsule was constructed specifically for retrieving the miners. It is about a 20 minute ride up if everything goes smoothly. Many safety precautions had to be considered in order to ensure the most successful escape. The article reports that:

"As each miner is hauled up, a small video camera in the escape capsule will be trained on his face so rescuers can watch for panic attacks. The miners will wear oxygen masks and have two-way voice communication.

Their pulse, skin temperature and respiration rate will be constantly measured through a biomonitor around their abdomens. To prevent blood clotting from the quick ascent, they took aspirin and will wear compression socks.

The miners will also wear sweaters because they'll experience a shift in climate from about 90 degrees Fahrenheit underground to temperatures hovering near freezing if they emerge at night. Those coming out during daylight hours will wear sunglasses."

As soon as the miner reaches the top they are ushered over to a triage center to receive immediate medical attention. Next, they will be air-lifted to a nearby hospital that has prepared two entire wards  specifically for the care of these miners.
The Chilean government has put in immense time and effort to assure that the miners will receive the best possible care and to also show the gratitude it has for their hard and dangerous work.

Boehner's Close Ties with Lobbyists

In an article written by Eric Lipton, brings up the topic of John A. Boehner's (representative of Ohio) connections to lobbyists. In order to conquer the passing of the regulatory bill, Boehner suggested to lobbyists to team up. He felt that this would be the best way for them to take their last shot. In the end the bill passed, however, many people express negative feelings toward his relationship with the lobbyists. Lipton writes that,

The woman he hopes to replace, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, derided him on Friday as having met “countless times with special-interest lobbyists in an effort to stop tough legislation” that would regulate corporations and protect consumers. And the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, through a spokeswoman, charged that he “epitomizes the smoked-filled, backroom, special-interest deal making that turns off voters about Washington.” 

Obviously, democrats are turned off about Boehner's close ties and they hope that these ties won't have a positive impact on his political endeavors.

Mental Health Break: Lady Gaga's Stance on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

Lady Gaga made a speech about her strong opinions in repealing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. This seems to be an effective way to get more people listening.

How Does Obama Feel About Losing his Top Economic Advisor?

Obama's top economic advisor, Larry Summers, is leaving the White House soon to return back to being a Professor at Harvard University. Not everyone seems to agree if this is a good thing or a bad thing. In an article from the CNN Wire Staff, Obama claims that,

"Over the past two years, he has helped guide us from the depths of the worst recession since the 1930s to renewed growth, and while we have much work ahead to repair the damage done by the recession, we are on a better path thanks in no small measure to Larry's wise counsel."

To Obama, Summers has contributed a great deal of his knowledge, and he is sad to see him go. A White House official explained that Summers agreed to a one-year policy. Obama, however, invited him to stay for one more year. Unfortunately, Harvard has a strict two-year leave policy and Summers had already committed to returning for the Spring semester of 2011.
Although Obama seems rather adamant that Summers' knowledge has been of great benefit, there are others who are happy to see him leave. 

"He was criticized by conservatives for his role in the Obama administration's economic stimulus package and its bailout of automakers General Motors and Chrysler, while some of the administration's liberal supporters accused him of watering down needed reforms in the wake of the financial crisis that erupted in 2008."

Regardless of everyone's opinion of Summers, his time to leave has arrived and he is staying loyal to his job at Harvard. 

The Electric Car Makes a Comeback

In 2006 film director, Chris Paine, directed his documentary titled, "Who Killed the Electric Car?" He created this film to glorify the benefits of electric cars that had been popular but were then destroyed. Mother Nature Network interviewed him about his new upcoming film, "Revenge of the Electric Car," which revels the electric car's regain in popularity.

There will be a part of the film documenting the Driving Sustainability 2010 conference in Reykjavik, Iceland, where the world's first electric-car-based transportation system will be discussed. Iceland having just a mere population of about 300,000 and 85% of the country's electricity being zero-emission geothermal makes this country highly conducive to this type of transport.

If you haven't seen Paine's first film, "Who Killed the Electric Car?" be sure to watch the trailer at the bottom of the interview.

Plans for Energy Efficiency in the Mojave

An article by Tiffany Hsu explains the plans for the Abengoa Mojave Solar Project.

After many approvals and receiving a 1.45 billion dollar federal loan from President Obama, the project will soon be getting underway. Getting underway doesn't mean that it will be done any time soon. Construction is planned to begin in the 4th quarter of 2010. The project will be set in San Bernardino County, about 100 miles north east of L.A. The entire project will take up about 1,700 acres of private land.

"The Mojave plant is scheduled to start producing energy commercially by the early 2013. The installation will use technology in which the sun hits curved parabolic mirrors arranged in troughs that heat fluid. The heated fluid then generates steam that produces electricity as it expands through steam turbine generators.

The state is pushing investor-owned utilities to glean 33% of their power from renewable sources by 2020."

Although this plan is not expected to be considered very helpful until ten years from now, the project is still a step in the right direction on our way to becoming "green."

Can America Keep Up?

In an article titled, "How Innovation Killed the Lights," by Peter Whoriskey, he discusses that the last major GE factory, in Winchester, VA, will be closing this month. This is a factory in which incandescent light bulbs are produced. The factory is being shut down because of Congress' ruling in 2007 that banned all incandescent bulbs to be made by 2014. This law will force Americans to only use fluorescent bulbs which are said to be more energy efficient.

Although switching over to fluorescent bulbs is saving energy, it is also depriving many Americans of jobs. Not only have the jobs slipped away, but the entire industry is now overseas. 

"Rather than setting off a boom in the U.S. manufacture of replacement lights, the leading replacement lights are compact fluorescents, or CFLs, which are made almost entirely overseas, mostly in China. Consisting of glass tubes twisted into a spiral, they require more hand labor, which is cheaper there. So though they were first developed by American engineers in the 1970s, none of the major brands make CFLs in the United States."

Whoriskey discusses that there are a lot of countries all jumping into the "green bandwagon," which creates competition among countries to be the world's suppliers of more "green" products. Whoriskey also explains that,

"In Obama's vision, the nation's mastery of new technology will create American manufacturing jobs.
"See, when folks lift up the hoods on the cars of the future, I want them to see engines stamped "Made in America," Obama said in an Aug. 16 speech at a Wisconsin plant. "When new batteries to store solar power come off the line, I want to see printed on the side, "Made in America." When new technologies are developed and new industries are formed, I want them made right here in America. That's what we're fighting for."

It is obvious that America did not win the battle over the who-can-make-more-efficient-light-bulbs battle. Our earth keeps getting hotter and hotter and America needs to figure out a way to dominate in the innovative world.

Should We Expect Less of Our Longevity?

One of the main topics of Tom Freidman's, Hot, Flat and Crowded, is overpopulation. He discusses in his book the major effects that overpopulation has on the world. Not only is it a problem now, but it is going to be a problem for our future unless we do something about it.
How exactly do we go about decreasing our population size? Or how do we prevent it from increasing at the rate it is growing now? Is it ethical to stop improving our health care and simply ignore the needs of individuals in order for them to live? I was interested to find an article that stated the statistics of longevity of men and women in New York and in the entire nation. By the end of the article the author, Roni Caryn Rabin, explained that the there is a gap in longevity between men and women. According to the directer of epidemiology, Carolyn Olson,

“We want to encourage New Yorkers to incorporate physical activity into their routines, pay attention to their weight and make small changes in diet, like eating more fruits and vegetables, consuming less sodium, and drinking more water instead of soda,” Ms. Olson said. “We want to send a message: we would like our men to be living longer.” 

It was reported that in the US females tend to live to the age of 82 and men only to 76. Although the average person prefers to have a decently long life span, should our expectations decrease in order to help the issue of overpopulation?

"The 2 Elephants in the Room"

In this article written by, Mark Bittman, he discusses a book called The Coming Famine by Julian Cribb. Bittman describes that Cribb addresses many of the same issues brought up in Tom Friedman's Hot, Flat and Crowded.
The Coming Famine is referring to the fact that overpopulation is becoming a larger and larger problem for our earth.

"Mr. Cribb is reporting on the fate of a planet whose resources have, in the last 200 years, been carelessly, even ruthlessly exploited for the benefit of the minority. Now that the majority is beginning to demand — or at least crave — the same kind of existence, it’s clear that, population boom or not, there simply isn’t enough of the Euro-American way of life to go around."

Another topic that Cribb brings up in his book is the issue of the world becoming more and more "flat," as Freidman would put it. The world becoming flat signifies the rise in the middle class which means there is higher demand for resources.

"Most important are what he calls “the two elephants in the kitchen”: population growth and overconsumption. A projected 33 percent growth in population in the next 20 years, combined with increased consumption of meat as the global middle class grows larger, means that food production must grow by at least 50 percent in that same period."

Both overpopulation and the rise in middle class is combining into one immensely huge crisis for the world.

At this point it seems that the world's situation can't be any worse until we remember the global warming problem. Bittman describes some of Cribb's explanations for how to become a more environmentally stable society in his book. One of them is:

"He proposes subsidizing small farms for their stewardship of the earth, and paying them fairer prices for production; taxing food to reflect its true costs to the environment; regulating practices that counter sustainability and rewarding those that promote it; and educating the public about the true costs of food. “An entire year of primary schooling” should be devoted to the importance of growing and eating food, he suggests."

Both Cribb and Freidman understand how and why our society is diminishing. Our world is becoming "Hot, Flat and Crowded."

The Price of Oil Effects our Pace of Freedom

Tom Freidman talks in depth about the "hot" aspect of the issues our world is facing. In his book, Hot, Flat and Crowded, hot refers to the serious problem of global warming that our nation seems to be ignoring. Throughout the book he refers to the term "Code Green" rather than "Code Red." Watch his video, where he discusses key points in becoming a greener nation.

He first explains the effect that the United States has on other countries (primarily developing countries). If we become the leading country in energy efficiency, we will be followed by the developing nations. At the same time wealthy countries will increase energy efficiency as well, which will prevent the earth's natural resources from being consumed much quicker than we imagined.
Another big point he brings up is the involvement of money in this entire process. Freidman explains that the main goal behind becoming green is becoming an emissions free nation at a "China" or "India" price. Obviously, if being green comes at a low cost, people will most likely contribute toward the project of being more energy efficient. He brought up something he calls the "First Law of Petropolitics." This law explains that the price of oil has an inverse relationship with the pace of freedom. The lower the price of oil, the higher the pace of freedom. If we raise the price of oil, we are forced to come up with new innovations and ways to conserve oil because of the high price. In the end bringing up the price of oil eventually brings down the global cost of oil. The reason this happens is because during the time when our nation's oil prices are high we would have come up with more energy efficient innovations. When the energy efficient innovations are in higher frequency, the global price of oil comes down.
Freidman concludes the video by talking about how this project is probably one of the biggest transformative concepts to come around. It is best that we try not to become too intimidated and take on the task because in the end it is what is going to propel us forward.