Tuesday, January 5, 2010

US scientists may have discovered key to defeating obesity

I hope the scientists don't lose site of the important of food and nutrition.

in reference to:

"Shutting down an energy-controlling mechanism in mice left them leaner than normal mice and could be a new way to fight obesity in humans, US researchers said in a study published Tuesday.And the finding is big news in the United States, where around a third of the adult population is considered obese, meaning they have a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30, according to the American Obesity Association.BMI is calculated by dividing a person's body weight in kilograms by their height in meters squared.The researchers found that by switching off potassium channels which are sensitive to adenosine triphosphate (ATP) -- a molecule in cells that stores the energy we need to do just about everything -- made mice burn more energy and left them leaner than normal mice.The effect was evident even when the mice were fed high-fat "Western" diets and was long-lasting, too, with the mice remaining slim throughout their lives, scientists from the Mayo Clinic, University of Iowa, University of Connecticut and New York University reported in the journal Cell Metabolism."
- US scientists may have discovered key to defeating obesity | Raw Story (view on Google Sidewiki)

War crimes fears force Israelis to cancel UK trip

Finally the Israeli government is being held accountable for it's violations of human rights, especially during wars they've started.

in reference to:

"A group of Israeli military officers called off an official visit to Britain last week, fearing they could face arrest on war crimes charges, officials said Tuesday.The four unidentified officers, holding ranks from major to colonel, are the latest in a string of Israeli politicians and military officials forced to call off travel to Britain over fears of legal prosecution relating to last year's offensive on the Gaza Strip.Britain is one of the European pioneers of universal jurisdiction, a broad legal concept that empowers judges to issue arrest warrants for nearly any visitor accused of committing war crimes anywhere in the world.Pro-Palestinian activists have sought to use this concept to press charges against Israelis involved in military operations in Palestinian territories, particularly since last year's Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip. British officials have vowed to change the law.The announcement of the cancellation came as Britain's attorney general, Patricia Janet Scotland, was in Israel on a private visit. She met Tuesday with Israeli deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, who called the situation "intolerable," according to a statement from his office, adding, "this makes normal relations between the two countries difficult."The statement said Scotland "stated that she is aware of the importance of finding an urgent solution to this issue" and said her government was considering options to resolve it.The Israeli delegation had been invited to visit by the British army. But officials said they were forced to call off the trip after their British counterparts could not guarantee that they would not be arrested.The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter has become a sore point in relations with Britain. Neither the Israeli military nor the British government would comment.Last month, pro-Palestinian activists persuaded a London judge to issue an arrest warrant for Israeli politician Tzipi Livni, who was foreign minister during the war in Gaza last year. The warrant was withdrawn after Livni canceled her trip, but the matter strained relations between Britain and Israel.More than 1,400 Palestinians, including hundreds of civilians, were killed in the three-week offensive, which was launched to stop years of rocket attacks from Gaza on southern Israel. Thirteen Israelis were also killed. A U.N. investigation accused both Israel and Hamas militants of committing war crimes during the fighting.The threat of arrest has forced several former security officials to call off trips to London, including a former general who remained holed up on an airplane at Heathrow Airport in order to avoid arrest. Last fall, Defense Minister Ehud Barak fended off an arrest attempt by successfully arguing he had diplomatic immunity."
- Newsvine - War crimes fears force Israelis to cancel UK trip (view on Google Sidewiki)

U.N. stops food aid to 1 million in Somalia

More evidence of a world in chaos

in reference to:

"The U.N. food agency on Tuesday suspended the distribution of aid in southern Somalia because of attacks on its staff, a decision affecting up to 1 million people that highlights the dangers of humanitarian work there.The lawless Horn of Africa nation is one of the most dangerous places in the world to live, but few can remember a time when aid workers have faced so many attacks.At least 43 aid workers were killed between January 2008 and fall 2009, according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Four humanitarian workers remain in the hands of their captors."
- U.N. stops food aid in southern Somalia - Africa - msnbc.com (view on Google Sidewiki)

Michael Steele Book: Republicans 'Screwed Up' After Reagan

You think?:

Republican Party Chairman Michael Steele offers a simple explanation for why the GOP all too often lost touch with typical Americans since the Ronald Reagan era: "We screwed up," he claims in a new book offering a blueprint for the party's resurgence.

That "we" includes the last two Republican presidents and the most recent Republican candidate for president.

In "Right Now: A 12-Step Program for Defeating the Obama Agenda," released Monday by Regnery Publishing, Steele says the GOP should acknowledge where "we most glaringly compromised our principles" in the past decade and hold its elected officials accountable.

"We must support Republican officials who assert these principles," he writes. "When elected Republicans vote against Republican principles, the voters must withhold their support – withhold it vigorously and consistently."

On Tuesday, Steele accused the Obama administration of pursuing an inconsistent policy toward terrorism.

Steele said on NBC's "Today" show the administration is wrong in putting terrorism suspects on trial in civil courts, saying "the public doesn't view them as having rights in the criminal system."
Republicans are especially running away from George Bush's legacy:
When he first took office as governor, Rick Perry acknowledged, "I'm not George Bush." And in the decade that followed, he has sought to prove it.

As the 10-year incumbent, Perry is the dominant force in the campaign that formally began Monday, and in Texas politics in general. And one way he got there was by studiously separating himself from George W. Bush.

If Bush reflects the rise of the Republican Party in Texas, Perry represents its political dominance and recent populist shift.

"There's no doubt that psychologically, Perry has tried to step away from the shadow of George W. Bush," said GOP political consultant Matt Mackowiak, a former aide to Perry's Republican challenger, Kay Bailey Hutchison.

Monday was the deadline for candidates to file to run in March 2 primary, setting off a ferocious two-month sprint for offices around the state. No race will attract more attention than the battle between Perry and Hutchison, the Republicans who have dominated state politics since Bush went to Washington.

Perry, who succeeded Bush in 2000, has become the state's longest-serving governor and has charted his own course. He has replaced all Bush appointees with his own. He tells voters he's a fiscal conservative and Bush was not. He has abandoned his predecessor's bipartisanship and pressed his own distinct agenda.

Last month, Perry rejected national English and math accountability standards in public schools – rebuffing a signature Bush theme as governor and president.

"His populist, anti-government definition of himself is one that has more in common with Sarah Palin than it does with George W. Bush" by resonating with the emerging tea-party movement, said University of Texas political scientist Bruce Buchanan.

Hume to Tiger: Convert to Christianity

This is shocking, bigoted, and disgusting. It is proof once and for all that FOXNews is not a legitimate news outlet. They are a propaganda channel. We fear for our democracy when have a major news outlet spouting bigotry:

On Monday night on the "O'Reilly Factor", Brit Hume had the chance to reiterate the personal advice he offered to Tiger Woods last Sunday morning: for a full recovery, the scandal plagued (and Buddhist) golfer should "turn to Christianity."

O'Reilly played a clip of Hume's comments, then asked him: "Was that proselytizing?"

"I don't think so," Hume said, and added that the content of Woods' character was "not what we thought it was."

Hume went on to reassert his belief that "Jesus Christ" offers something that Woods "badly needs."

"He needs something that Christianity especially provides and gives and offers, and that is redemption and forgiveness. I was really meaning to say in those comments yesterday more about Christianity than anything else...I think that Jesus Christ offers Tiger Woods something that Tiger Woods badly needs."
Buddhists should be offended:
Fox newsman Brit Hume is evangelizing to Tiger Woods - and upsetting some peaceful Buddhists along the way.

Hume, speaking on Fox News Sunday, said he wants the beleaguered golfer to convert to Christianity because he believes Buddhism leaves no place for the "redemption" Tiger needs.

"Whether he can recover as a person I think is a very open question, and it's a tragic situation with him," Hume said.

"The extent to which he can recover seems to me depends on his faith," Hume continued. "He is said to be a Buddhist. I don't think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith."

Hume said his message to Tiger would be, "Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a total recovery and be a great example to the world.'"

Buddhists were not happy with Hume's homily.

"I don't like to point out other's faults, but given the record, I would think Christians would show a little more humility about offering advice to the sexually wayward," wrote Barbara O'Brien on her Buddhism.about.com blog.
This from Andrew Sullivan:
An on-air message to Tiger Woods:

"The extent to which he can recover seems to me depends on his faith. He is said to be a Buddhist. I don't think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith. My message to Tiger would, 'Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a total recovery and be a great example to the world."

The pure sectarianism of this comment - its adoption of the once-secular stage of political journalism to insert a call for apostasy - is striking. It even seemed to catch Bill Kristol off-guard a little. But it has long been established that non-evangelical Christians have at best an auxiliary role in today's religiously defined GOP, and the slow morphing of Fox News into the 700 Club is not exactly new. What earthly reason do these pundits now have to prevent or stop it? Once you have abolished the distinction between secular and religious discourse, as they routinely insist on doing, their politics is their religion and their religion is their politics. And both are corrupted.