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POPSSept. 19th - Tis time to talk pirate, me hearties More: But it wasn't until humorist Dave Barry caught wind of the idea and threw his support behind it in a September 2002 Miami Herald column that this rickety ship took sail. # Ahoy -- Hello. # Avast -- Stand and give attention; listen up. # Aye -- I heartily agree with everything you said or did. # Aye Aye -- Yeah, boss, I'll get on that as soon as I finish this coffee or rum. #Aarrr -- Not to be confused with Arrgh (a sign of pain), it's a way of announcing yourself to the world, telling everyone you're here and alive. It could mean don't look at my girlfriend that way, or I'm enjoying this hamburger.
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POPSSan Francisco test drives Universal Health Care: Result - Good More: The program, now in its third year, is proving popular. More than 43,000 people were enrolled as of June, up from 24,000 a year before. One reason for the jump: the income test for eligibility was relaxed in February to include people whose income was 500 percent of the poverty level--about $54,000 for a single person and $110,000 for a family of four. The program costs San Francisco about $280 per person per month. How are the results? Hospital admissions of plan members have dropped, and the average stay for those who wind up in the hospital has been cut almost in half, Varney reports. Those changes suggest chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, asthma and hypertension, are being managed better, reducing the need for crisis care.
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POPSHealth Care Reform: Poll shows most Doctors support Public Option More: "Whether they lived in southern regions of the United States or traditionally liberal parts of the country," says Keyhani, "we found that physicians, regardless — whether they were salaried or they were practice owners, regardless of whether they were specialists or primary care providers, regardless of where they lived — the support for the public option was broad and widespread." The survey even found widespread support for a public option among doctors who are members of the American Medical Association, a group that's opposed to it. The AMA fears a public option eventually could lead to government putting more limits on doctors' fees. Appears only rightwing nutjob townhall screamers don't support health care reform.
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POPSGlenn Beck's '9-12' Logo based on Communist and Socialist designs More: Turnout for the 9-12 Project's Saturday march on Washington was a bust; 30,000 protesters signed up in advance (MSNBC reporter David Shuster tweeted that D.C. park police called that figure "generous"). But even if three times that many actually showed up, the number would fall far short of the hundreds of thousands (and even millions) claimed to be planning to attend. Even in that reduced crowd, however, surely someone recognized how odd the right-wing gathering's left-wing logo was. Maybe Beck will explain. Sort of.
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POPSRebubbacan Newt Gingrich Hearts Porn Company “Newt would like to arrange a private dinner with you at the historic Capitol Hill Club on the evening of October 7, 2009 in Washington. You’ll dine privately with Newt at this exclusive venue and he’ll take the occasion to present you with your well deserved award and have your photo taken together.” Alas, after McKenna's post, American Solutions for Winning the Future, Gingrich's PAC, rescinded the offer. Family Values Rebubbacans strike again. FAIL!
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POPSWalter Cronkite Memorial: Presidents Obama & Clinton Speak More: … We also remember and celebrate the journalism that Walter practiced — a standard of honesty and integrity and responsibility to which so many of you have committed your careers. It’s a standard that’s a little bit harder to find today. We know that this is a difficult time for journalism. Even as appetites for news and information grow, newsrooms are closing. Despite the big stories of our era, serious journalists find themselves all too often without a beat. Just as the news cycle has shrunk, so has the bottom line. And too often, we fill that void with instant commentary and celebrity gossip and the softer stories that Walter disdained, rather than the hard news and investigative journalism he championed. “What happened today?” is replaced with “Who won today?” The public debate cheapens. The public trust falters.
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POPSU.S. style feedlots and the death of the Argentinian Gaucho More: General manager of the Argentine Feedlot Chamber, Troncoso has a master's degree in agribusiness and travels to other major cattle-producing countries, including the United States, to study their latest techniques. Troncoso said he expects that more than 60 percent of Argentina's cattle will pass through feedlots in five years. "I'm not a romantic," he said, referring to those who pine for the old days in cattle country. "Argentina sold this image to the world to position itself -- that was the '40s, '50s, '60s, '70s and '80s. But the reality is all the rest of the world went the other way." From Australia to the United States, the world's top cattle producers have been penning up cattle for years. Troncoso said that if Argentina wants to take advantage of the world's growing appetite for meat, then it, too, must become a more efficient producer of beef. Me: How sad.
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POPSGlenn Beck, anti-communist art critic? More: Fair enough. That’s cable television for you. On to a bigger question: Does Beck know what he’s talking about? Absolutely not, says Christopher Knight, an art critic (a real one) for the Los Angeles Times. Beck was as “nutty as usual,” Knight wrote: He pointed to a portrait of Lenin in Mexican master Diego Rivera’s destroyed Rockefeller lobby mural, “Man at the Crossroads,” but forgot to mention that old John D. had the mural removed because of it. (Facts are stubborn things — even more stubborn than demagoguery.) With comedy stylings like that, Beck is turning out to be the Harold Harby of our day. Who was Harold Harby? A Los Angeles city councilman in the early 1950s, Harby took up propaganda-arms with a paranoid group of right-wing loonies called the Society for Sanity in Art. They made it their patriotic duty to search out Communist symbols they just knew were hidden in that weird, postwar abstract art.
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POPSFall colors fade in U.S. west as Aspen Trees die
Dale Bartos, aspen ecologist with the Rocky Mountain Research Station, is cautious about using climate-based forecasts to predict an end to aspen. "I see aspen moving up and down the hillsides with climate change," he said. "As it dries out, we may see aspen on the lower end move up the hill. I don't think the answer is cut and dried." Others foresee a grim outlook for a tree long associated with the appeal of the West. "What we think will happen is that aspen will disappear in some areas and there will not be anything we can do about it," said SAD expert Wayne Shepperd. A study by the federal Rocky Mountain Research Station presented just such a scenario. It predicted the near total disappearance of aspen in the Rocky Mountain region by 2090. The research, to be published in Forest Ecology and Management, concludes that up to 41 percent of Western forests would be unable to support aspen by 2030. That figure would rise to 75 percent by 2060 and as much as 94 percent
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POPSTexas DNA exonerees find prosperity after prison More: Two who served about 26 years in prison for rape will receive lump sums of about $2 million apiece. Another, Steven Phillips, who spent about 24 years in prison for sexual assault and burglary, will get about $1.9 million. The biggest compensation package will likely go to James Woodard, who spent more than 27 years in prison for a 1980 murder that DNA testing later showed he did not commit. He eventually could receive nearly $2.2 million but first needs a writ from the state's Court of Criminal Appeals or a pardon from the governor. McGowan and the others are among 38 DNA exonerees in Texas, according to the Innocence Project, a New York legal center that specializes in overturning wrongful convictions. Dallas County alone has 21 cases in which a judge overturned guilty verdicts based on DNA evidence, though prosecutors plan to retry one of those.
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POPSAntibodies found that prevent HIV from causing severe AIDS More: The antibodies were able to block the activity of about three-quarters of the 162 separate strains of HIV they tested it against. Immunologist Dennis Burton of Scripps and his colleagues then showed that the antibodies bind to regions of two proteins on the surface of the virus, called gp120 and gp41, that help the virus invade cells. These regions had never before been considered as targets for vaccines. Researchers still have a long way to go to produce a vaccine, however. The antibodies themselves could potentially be used as a treatment for infected patients who develop severe disease. But the long-term hope is to find molecules, either synthetic or natural, that can stimulate the body to produce the broadly neutralizing antibodies. Such molecules could potentially be the basis for a successful vaccine.
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POPSBeen diggin this song and video - Hurricane Waters by Citizen Cope Stumbled across this song while sampling CD's at a Borders Book store. However, I stumbled upon the recent Richie Havens cover version. This song has been out since 2004 but I had never heard it. Some of the comments are that this is a very talented under recognized artist so I thought I would clip it. The video is by and independent film maker who pieced together 10 years worth of film from around the NYC area shot on 8mm film. Video is cool and kinda mesmerizing. Enjoy. Look up the Richie Havens version. It's good also.
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POPSPrime Time on the Internet is 11 p.m. Gaming is another big evening activity, but one that’s most intense between 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern, coinciding with TV’s prime time for most Americans. Labovitz found a jump in gaming traffic at exactly 8 p.m. Eastern, and speculates that it’s caused by “World of Warcraft” players who arrange to get together then to tackle virtual monsters. And of course Clipmarks. :-)
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POPSCrazed Oklahoma Republican lies to constituents, later admits lying "conceded that President Obama requested more military spending" Arguably the greatest embarrassment to U.S. politics - Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe. Cry baby. Pet project removed from increased defense budget under President Obama. Resorts to lying for payback. Another typical rebubbacan
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POPSPresident Obama unshackles Global AIDS Work from ideological Bush restrictions In new guidelines for 2010, the Obama Pepfar team opened the way to linking AIDS work with strengthening of health systems generally, taking into account the development of human resources, maternal and child health, family planning and access to it for women, gender equality, malaria and tuberculosis, food and nutrition, education and local economies. While Pepfar money may not be involved directly, the program's door will be open for cooperation. It is, in short, a holistic and realistic policy. It will matter because the United States is the world's largest contributor to HIV/AIDS relief, and Bush restrictions have had a deadening effect on many international programs. An estimated tens of millions of women who want contraceptives are unable to get them, or may have no choice beyond crude sterilization or unsafe abortion.
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POPSHeartless GOP: Michael Steele meet Amanda Duzak The room woke up and other than those glaring from the front, the applause was wall to wall. But it's Steele's response that makes this moment both newsworthy and a terrible comment on his character. After saying that he believed in a mature, honest discussion and not in shouting, Steele said, "People are coming to these town meetings and they're like ." He then looked and gestured right at Ms. Duzak and said, "It makes for great TV. You'll probably make it tonight, enjoy it." He then turned his back to her, as the crowd clapped. Think about what Steele did. He didn't only turn his back and rudely dismiss a young woman whose mother just died of cancer. He used the shameful recent behavior of the right wing town hall screamers -- his own party's base -- to try and turn the crowd against Ms. Duzak. As Smith said to me afterward, "I couldn't believe he acted that way toward her... toward all of us. He was just mean.
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POPSRacism in Israel - Against Ethiopian Jews Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu characterized the refusal of admission as a "moral attack," using a word often used to describe terrorist strikes. President Shimon Peres said it was a national "disgrace." Despite the Education Ministry's intervention, many Ethiopian students were reportedly turned away today, the first day of school, according to Israeli news outlets. Wearing a T-shirt that read "We want equality, we're all Jewish," protest leader Uri Kabadeh shouted through a megaphone in the community's native Amharric and Hebrew. "Down with racism, down with discrimination," the crowd chanted. "This is leaving a scar on our kids," said Mr. Kabadeh. "It will prevent them from advancing ."
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POPSFarm Factory Food: Chicks being ground up alive. Hy-Line said the video "appears to show an inappropriate action and violation of our animal welfare policies," referring to chicks on the factory floor. But the company also noted that "instantaneous euthanasia" – a reference to killing of male chicks by the grinder – is a standard practice supported by the animal veterinary and scientific community. Story continues below According to Mercy for Animals, male chicks are of no use to the industry because they can't lay eggs and don't grow large or quickly enough to be raised profitably for meat. That results in the killing of 200 million male chicks a year. Hy-Line says on its Web site that its Iowa facility produces 33.4 million chicks. Based on that figure, Mercy for Animals estimates a similar number of male chicks are killed at the facility each year.
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POPS2 Secrets to a Better You: Pat yourself on the Back By the way, showing appreciation for yourself and accomplishments has many rewards that go far beyond boosting your own self-confidence. It's like a cascade--your heightened confidence will spill over into other aspects of your life. Watch what happens when you gain that special trust in yourself. You'll attract opportunities, experience more fulfilling relationships, and have no trouble reaching loftier goals. Remember, people like to be around those who have a healthy self-esteem and who are achieving their goals. Commit to acknowledging your achievements and your brain will begin to tell you the truth: that you can do anything!
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POPSEnd of life management - Conservative Style Feel sorry for the guy that he felt that was his only way out. Seems like physician assisted suicide would have been far less jolting on his loved ones. It's sad when you can not have a way to end your life on your terms in a dignified manner. On another note. While in Ireland Egan will be most remembered for attending a Sinn Fein annual convention right after 9/11. Because the visit took place directly in the aftermath of 9/11 Sinn Fein was under pressure on the terrorism front. Egan's presence signaled that the Bush administration was still determined to deal with Sinn Fein despite 9/11. What's this, conservatives negotiating directly with terrorists? Seems like all the noise from conservatives regarding direct political talks with terrorists is merely posturing and grandstanding for political gain regardless of outright hypocrisy.
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POPSUS is slipping toward Plutocracy: Money rules Latest example is healthcare reform. In the second quarter of 2009, the health industry spent $133 million on lobbyists, reckons the Center for Responsive Politics. That doesn’t count lobbying by associations. The US Chamber of Commerce alone spent $26 million on lobbying in the first half of this year, “a good chunk” on the health issue, says Dave Levinthal, spokesman for the center. Polls show the public wants healthcare reform and a public-insurance option. So the health-insurance industry is pretending to be in favor of reform while trying to kill it through campaign contributions, ads, and lobbying, says Wendell Potter, who until recently led corporate communications at CIGNA, a major health-insurance company. Moreover trade unions provide some balance of power to the might of business and wealth. In Sweden, 85 percent of the labor force is organized; in other major nations 35-40 percent. Compare with 7.4 percent of workers in the private sector in the US.
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POPSMexicans break World's 'Thriller' Dance Record "He transcends borders," says Fabiola Aguilar, decked out in the red get-up that Michael Jackson wore in the original video. She crouched over, next to her 9-year-old son in an identical outfit, and both simulated arising from the dead, as they rehearsed moves they'd practiced for two weeks. "Dancing brings us all together." Birthday celebrations and memorials across the globe came as Jackson's June 25 death was officially ruled a homicide. Mexico City's event had the full backing of the capital, which marveled at the spontaneity of a grassroots effort turned mega. "Many of these kids weren't even alive when Thriller came out," says the head of the city's youth institute, Javier Hidalgo, sporting a white glove.
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POPSJob Insecurity Worse For Your Health Than Unemployment More: If you're feeling good about your job's prospects, here's one more thing to stress about: Other research has shown that the stress of a tough job - long hours and high pressure to perform - can also ruin your health. Nothing's worse than starring down the barrel of the gun. Been there done that. I will no longer sell my soul for the company store.
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POPSIraqi shoe thrower to be released early Thousands demonstrated for al-Zeidi's release and hailed his gesture, which came in the waning days of the Bush administration. The incident also embarrassed al-Maliki, who was standing next to Bush at the time. Neither leader was injured, but Bush was forced to duck for cover as the journalist shouted in Arabic: "This is your farewell kiss, you dog! This is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq."
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POPSWhat Britney Spears Can Reveal About Alzheimer's More: When volunteers saw names such as Britney Spears, George Clooney, and Marilyn Monroe, those who were at the highest risk of developing Alzheimer's - those with both the genetic makeup and a family history - showed high levels of activity in the hippocampus, posterior cingulate and regions of the frontal cortex, all areas involved in memory. The control group showed the opposite pattern. Their brains became more excited when they saw unfamiliar names, which included Irma Jacoby, Joyce O'Neil and Virginia Warfield. That could mean that the at-risk people were working harder to recognize the well-known celebrities, compensating for already damaged or destroyed neurons that were no longer functioning, while the control group had to struggle only when trying to place the names of noncelebrities, recruiting more nerve cells and connections, racking their memory banks and recall centers. Other signs of Alzheimer's were not present yet allowing for earlier detection.
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POPSCan One Pill Tame the Illness No One Wants to Talk About? More: Exactly how zinc stops diarrhea is not entirely clear. Olivier Fontaine, a diarrhea specialist for the WHO, believes that since the mineral is an essential ingredient in about 300 enzymes, boosting zinc levels strengthens the body's immunity, thus preventing diarrhea from turning deadly. A single course apparently also staves off further bouts of diarrhea for about three months — long enough to see a community through the deadly rainy seasons. Contrast that with ORT, which is extremely effective in replacing fluids and nutrients but offers no quick end to the diarrhea itself. ORT has another drawback: crucially in cultures where seeing is believing, it offers no quick evidence that a patient is recovering Scientists first hit on zinc's effectiveness in the early 1990s, when researchers from the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health in Baltimore, Md., gave children in New Delhi a daily dose of syrup containing 20 mg of zinc. The rate of diarrhea dropped dramatic
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POPSCompetition lacking among private health insurers Congressional investigators this year looked at insurers catering to small employers around the country. The Government Accountability Office found that the median _or midpoint — market share of largest carrier increased to 47 percent in 2008 from 33 percent in 2002.
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POPSAntibiotic Resistance at Factory Farms More (way more at article website): Kellogg Schwab, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Water and Health, refers to a typical pig farm manure lagoon that he sampled. "There were 10 million E. coli per liter . Ten million. And you have a hundred million liters in some of those pits. So you can have trillions of bacteria present, of which 89 percent are resistant to drugs. That's a massive amount that in a rain event can contaminate the environment." One day, a Bloomberg School colleague down the hall from Silbergeld came back from a weekend on the Eastern Shore complaining about how disgusting she'd found having to drive behind a truck hauling chickens to a processing plant. They found that the air in the car and both surfaces showed increased levels of enterococci after they'd driven behind the chicken trucks. Graham had trapped the flies near poultry farms on the Eastern Shore and found resistant staph and enterococci on them.
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POPSTerror Alerts used in 2004 to help Bush win reelection More: Dave Weigel, writing for the Washington Independent, notes that in the past, Ridge has denied manipulating security information for political reasons. In 2004, for example, he said, "We don't do politics in the Department of Homeland Security." The Bush administration was forced to admit in the days after the 2004 alert that it was based on intelligence three or four years old. Officials then claimed there was a previously unmentioned "separate stream of intelligence" that justified the warning -- but offered little tangible information to support their new story.. Ridge's book, "The Test of Our Times: America Under Siege...and How We Can Be Safe Again," comes out September 1. Ridge reveals that he considered resigning because he was urged to issue a politically-motivated security alert on the eve of Bush’s re-election:
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