n2doc

n2doc's Journal

October 13, 2017

Can the Democrats Imagine a Better Future?

by Mike Dawson

?auto=compress,format&cs=srgb&_=bf3b4baa882a39ef41133933806d59ff
?auto=compress,format&cs=srgb&_=14244b00a97c3b216697097c2125f436

much more

https://thenib.com/can-the-democrats-imagine-a-better-future

October 13, 2017

46 dead in Vidarbha (India) pesticide poisoning

Against the backdrop of deaths of over 45 farmer following pesticide poisoning in Vidarbha, the Quality Control of state Agriculture Department on Wednesday seized pesticides, worth of Rs 14.31-crore from Akola in western Vidarbha.

According to available information, the quality control sleuths of Akola, accompanied by a team of Agriculture commissionerate, Pune, raided 12 different godowns of pesticide companies and sealed those stocked and prevented their sales.

At least 45 farmers died from the suspected pesticide poisoning in Vidarbha since August this year and most of the deaths were reported from Yavatmal, a major cotton-growing district that has often been in the news for farmers’ suicides. They died after spraying pesticides on their Bt cotton plantations in the region.

Milind Janjal, the quality control chief of Akola Agriculture department admitted that they have raided at least 12 pesticide godowns in the district and sealed the stock to prevent further sale.

more
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/46-dead-in-vidarbha-pesticide-poisoning-12-godowns-raided/story-3lEXa7CkCqpAjVI8q54OgN.html

October 13, 2017

Greenpeace fireworks shine light on French nuclear safety concerns

METZ (FRANCE) (AFP) -
Greenpeace activists set off fireworks inside a nuclear plant in eastern France early Thursday after breaking into the facility to underline its vulnerability to attack.

The anti-nuclear group, known for its daring and often spectacular publicity stunts, said the fireworks were set off at the foot of a spent fuel pool -- where nuclear plants store highly radioactive fuel rods that are removed from reactors after their use.

"Our activists launched a firework in the perimeter of a French nuclear plant. These installations are vulnerable," the group said on Twitter, along with a video of the stunt at the plant in Cattenom, near the border with Luxembourg.

The tiny duchy's environment minister, Carole Dieschbourg, was "very worried over the huge security shortcomings" at the plant, her ministry said in a statement.

more

http://www.france24.com/en/20171012-greenpeace-fireworks-shine-light-french-nuclear-safety-concerns

October 13, 2017

Antibiotic resistance could spell end of modern medicine, says chief medic

England’s chief medical officer has repeated her warning of a “post-antibiotic apocalypse” as she urged world leaders to address the growing threat of antibiotic resistance.

Prof Dame Sally Davies said that if antibiotics lose their effectiveness it would spell “the end of modern medicine”. Without the drugs used to fight infections, common medical interventions such as caesarean sections, cancer treatments and hip replacements would become incredibly risky and transplant medicine would be a thing of the past, she said.

“We really are facing – if we don’t take action now – a dreadful post-antibiotic apocalypse. I don’t want to say to my children that I didn’t do my best to protect them and their children,” Davies said.

more
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/oct/13/antibiotic-resistance-could-spell-end-of-modern-medicine-says-chief-medic

October 13, 2017

Magic mushrooms 'reboot' brain in depressed people study

Magic mushrooms may effectively “reset” the activity of key brain circuits known to play a role in depression, the latest study to highlight the therapeutic benefits of psychadelics suggests.

Psychadelics have shown promising results in the treatment of depression and addictions in a number of clinical trials over the last decade. Imperial College London researchers used psilocybin – the psychoactive compound that occurs naturally in magic mushrooms – to treat a small number of patients with depression, monitoring their brain function, before and after.

Images of patients’ brains revealed changes in brain activity that were associated with marked and lasting reductions in depressive symptoms and participants in the trial reported benefits lasting up to five weeks after treatment.

more

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/oct/13/magic-mushrooms-reboot-brain-in-depressed-people-study

October 13, 2017

Trump taps climate skeptic to lead White House environment office

The White House late Thursday announced that Trump picked Kathleen Hartnett White to serve as a member, and eventually chairwoman, of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ).

White is a fellow for energy and environment issues at the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) and the former chairwoman of the state’s Commission on Environmental Quality.

But her views on climate change do not align with the scientific consensus, which says greenhouse gas emissions produced by human activity is the driving factor behind a dangerous warming trend around the globe.

At the TPPF — which has received fossil fuel funding — White led a project to “explain the forgotten moral case for fossil fuels,” and she has written that carbon dioxide is the gas “that makes life possible on the earth and naturally fertilizes plant growth.”

more
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/355281-trump-taps-climate-skeptic-to-lead-white-house-environment-office

Oh boy, another nut for the nuthouse

October 13, 2017

Chef sued by Trump slams Puerto Rico response: 'We are feeding the National Guard'

Spanish-American chef and restauranteur José Andrés on Friday accused the federal government of not doing enough to help the recovery efforts in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria.

The Washington-based Andrés, whom President Trump sued when he backed out of a plan to open a restaurant in Trump's D.C. hotel, took issue with a government focus on feeding responders instead of suffering Puerto Ricans.
https://twitter.com/chefjoseandres/status/918800088058748928

Andres, whose non-profit disaster relief organization "World Central Kitchen" has reportedly served over 350,000 meals to islanders struck by the disaster, as food and water on Puerto Rico remain scarce after the storm.

He previously called the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the agency leading the government's response efforts, saying that its base of operations there is "the most inefficient place on earth."

https://twitter.com/chefjoseandres/status/917829198554779650

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/355291-celebrity-chef-slams-government-for-lack-of-puerto-rico-help-we-are