Fat is the New Chubby
There have been recent reports by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that currently over 17% of kids in the USA are overweight, and the number has tripled over the past 20 years. Childhood obesity is a serious issue with numerous consequences that continue over a lifespan.
There are a number of things that can lead to obesity. According to the American Obesity Association:
“There are many factors that contribute to causing child and adolescent obesity - some are modifiable and others are not.
Modifiable causes include:
· Physical Activity - Lack of regular exercise.
· Sedentary behavior - High frequency of television viewing, computer usage, and similar behavior that takes up time that can be used for physical activity.
· Socioeconomic Status - Low family incomes and non-working parents.
· Eating Habits - Over-consumption of high-calorie foods. Some eating patterns that have been associated with this behavior are eating when not hungry, eating while watching TV or doing homework.
· Environment - Some factors are over-exposure to advertising of foods that promote high-calorie foods and lack of recreational facilities.
Non-changeable causes include:
· Genetics - Greater risk of obesity has been found in children of obese and overweight parents.”
However, our policies influence obesity as well. The federal farm bill, which subsidizes crops like corn but does little to promote eating healthy foods, also influences the increase in obesity. Toxic chemicals like bisphenol A are also linked to obesity. To find out more, read the report.
Labels: News, Question, Resourcful
posted by MILO @ 5:13 AM
Surfer Stops Supperferry
Superferry Hits Human Blockade in Kauai
I found this story interesting and worth reporting. This story was posted by By: Mari-Ela David on KHNL KAUAI (KHNL)
- After leaving Honolulu Harbor on its first official journey out to sea, the Superferry gets a nasty welcome from protestors on Kauai. Once the vessel arrived in Kauai around 6:00 p.m. Sunday, angry words rippled through the waters at Nawiliwili Harbor, as protestors temporarily blocked the Alakai from docking.
Some protestors swam and surfed towards the vessel, determined to block the giant ship's path.
For safety reasons, the Coast Guard stepped in and stopped the Superferry from docking, leaving 500 passengers stuck on the ship for at least an hour.
Participating in the protest were some of Kauai's leaders. "I'm really disappointed and utterly shocked that the owners are not willing to follow the law to stop their operations," says Kauai County Councilmember Joann Yukimura. Critics say the Superferry is breaking the law.
The Supreme Court ruled the Superferry must provide an environmental assessment. The debate between supporters and opponents is whether or not that ruling means the Superferry can still operate while the assessment is being conducted.
Among Superferry supporters is the State Administration. "Governor Lingle, and the Department of Transportation - I'm very disappointed that they're not respecting the decision that just came down by the Hawaii Supreme Court and I would hope that they would honor that so we can move forward and resolve this very difficult and complicated situation," says Senator Gary Hooser.
But Superferry officials say they are well within the legal lines. In a statement, Hawaii Superferry says "We are extremely disappointed for the passengers who were booked on the voyage to Kauai...we are sorry to see that minority dissident groups have chosen to oppose a service that the people of Hawaii have overwhelmingly embraced."
The Superferry finally docked around 7 pm Sunday.
Witnesses say protestors laid down in front of cars as the crew tried to unload the vehicles off Nawiliwili Harbor. At that point, they say the Superferry boarded passengers back on the ship.
The vessel is scheduled to arrive at Honolulu Harbor around 11:00 p.m. Sunday.
Labels: activism, beaches, boycott, Event, News, Transportation
posted by MILO @ 10:29 AM
SAVE TRESTLES
The Transportation Corridor Agency is seeking to build an extension to the existing 241 Toll Road. The proposed Foothill Transportation Corridor South (FTC-South) is a sixteen-mile long toll road highway that would connect the current terminus of the 241 Toll Road to Interstate 5. The TCA is proposing six alignments for this project; four of which run directly through and along San Mateo Creek. If constructed, not only would this project directly threaten the world class surf break at and around Trestles (including Uppers, Lowers, Middles, Church and Cottons), the project would also result in the obliteration of Southern California?s last remaining pristine coastal watershed and substantially degrade habitat that is critical for the survival of at least seven endangered species, including the Southern Steelhead trout.
Wave Degradation
* This project would require substantial grading of the terrain and millions of yards of hard reinforcement (steel, concrete and other materials), that will alter the natural sediment flow through San Mateo Creek,, which supplies sand to the Trestles surf breaks.
* According to the Transportation Corridor Agency?s own engineering consultants, losses in sedimentation flow would cause ?substantial degradation to surfing resources,? which will likely result in significant degradation to the wave quality at Lower Trestles and nearby breaks (including Uppers, Middles, Cottons and Church).
Water Quality
* A recent scientific report demonstrates that when over 10 percent of a watershed is paved there are significant water quality and ecosystem impacts.
* Similar projects have resulted in generating significant increases of oils, heavy metals and other toxins. Given the proximity of the project to the watershed, this project would result in a decrease of water quality for Trestles and the surrounding breaks.
* The TCA?s assertion that they can mitigate for this run-off is dubious. The initial mitigation systems that were installed on the nearby RT73 Toll Road failed, and had to be replaced at tax-payer expense. All mitigation efforts are ineffective during large rain events.
Environmental Damage from the Toll Road
* The walk in at Trestles is half the experience. The area is home to numerous native plant and animal species, including several endangered species. This area would be profoundly impacted by such a massive project essentially cutting the San Mateo Creek watershed in half.
* The FTC-South will run directly through San Onofre Beach State Park. This 2028 acre park the 5th most visited park in the California State Parks system.
* The San Mateo Creek Watershed is one of the last large coastal open spaces in Southern California The FTC-South will forever change this last vestige of coastal wilderness, including profound compromises to the Donna O?Neill Land Conservancy.
THE PROJECT DOESN?T MAKE SENSE TO BEGIN WITH...
It Provides No Traffic Relief
* TCA claims that the FTC-South will provide relief of traffic congestion along Interstate 5 in fact contradict their own FTC-South traffic projections that rely on cannibalizing San Diego County bound traffic from the I-15 and feeding that Inland Empire traffic to the I-5 via the toll roads.
* FTC-South would be built through undeveloped land, which would promote development, and ultimately bring forth new traffic from urbanization.
* FTC-South will increase, not decrease traffic on the 1-5 stretch in south San Clemente where the proposed toll road will merge with 1-5, which is already at over-capacity along this stretch. Northern San Diego County will also be affected by potentially severe increases in traffic congestion.
Expense
* The FTC-South is expected to cost close to $1 billion (nearly $53 million a mile). Currently the plan is to fund the project by non-recourse bonds, as well as development impact fees that are already being added to real estate sales in Southern Orange County.
*Contrary to TCA claims, these projects are NOT SELF FUNDED! According to an October 10, 2005 article in the Orange County Register, the nearby RT73 Toll Road is ?financially struggling? and ?faces not being able to make its debt payments in about nine years.?
SUPPORT THE SURFRIDER FOUNDATION IN ITS FIGHT TO SAVE TRESTLES!
* The dramatic decreases in water quality, degradation to the wave quality at Trestles, destruction of the San Onofre State Beach Park and some of the last open space in Southern California, and harm to endangered and threatened species
are costs not worth the questionable benefits of this extremely expensive toll road.
* Surfers, swimmers and other ocean enthusiasts enjoy the waters and waves of Trestles year round. There is no other place like it in California or the world. Please join in our efforts to Save Trestles for our children and future generations.
TAKE ACTION
Labels: activism, beaches, boycott, Event, News, Question, Resourcful, surfing
posted by MILO @ 6:00 AM
Home Energy Detective
If you’re obsessed with saving energy and feel a compulsion to control every kilowatt of power consumed in your household than this may be the product for you. The TED is a complete, electricity monitoring system that shows you your power usage numbers in real-time. Designed for a typical North American residence with a single 200-amp (max) service panel. The system comes complete with all you will need to get accurate, up-to-the-second energy data.
I would suggest you get an electrician to install this on your power grid or fuse box though the company says the unit can be installed by a “qualified” homeowner.
TED model 1000 is $139.95 @ theenergydetective.com
Labels: News, Resourcful
posted by MILO @ 5:37 AM
Cancer Update from Johns Hopkins
A friend of mine sent this to me in an email. This is probably old news to most of you. But just in case you still own a microwave, you should probably take note of this.
No plastic containers in micro !
No water bottles in freezer.
No plastic wrap in microwave...
A dioxin chemical causes cancer, especially breast cancer.
Dioxins are highly poisonous to the cells of our bodies. Don't freeze your plastic bottles with water in them as this releases dioxins from the plastic. Recently, Edward Fujimoto, Wellness Program Manager at Castle Hospital , was on a TV program to explain this health hazard. He talked about dioxins and how bad they are for us. He said that we should not be heating our food in the microwave using plastic containers... This especially applies to foods that contain fat. He said that the combination of fat, high heat, and plastics releases dioxin into the food and ultimately into the cells of the body... Instead, he recommends using glass, such as Corning Ware, Pyrex or ceramic containers for heating food...
You get the same results, only without the dioxin. So such things as TV dinners, instant ramen and soups, etc., should be removed from the container and heated in something else. Paper isn't bad but you don't know what is in the paper. It's just safer to use tempered glass, Corning Ware, etc. He reminded us that a while ago some of the fast food restaurants moved away from the foam containers to paper. The dioxin problem is one of the reasons...
Also, he pointed out that plastic
wrap, such as Saran, is just as dangerous when placed over foods to be cooked in the microwave. As the food is nuked, the high heat causes poisonous toxins to actually melt out of the plastic wrap and drip into the food.
Cover food with a paper towel instead. This is an article that should be sent to anyone important in your life!
Labels: boycott, News, Resourcful
posted by MILO @ 6:07 AM
Population 6,666,666,666
I found an interesting web-site the other day when I became curious about world populations, as a result to conversation I was in. There are a few different sites that have different estimates that put the world population between 6.6 billion and 6.8 billion people. The site I became interested is
www.worldometers.info. This site claims to give real-time stats to the world population. They have ongoing meters with the current births this year, current deaths, current population, deaths today and absolute population growth for today. Not only that, they have meters covering how many people died of aids today, how many cartons of cigarettes were made today too how many books that have published this year. World Meters is a pretty interesting site to say the least.
Here is where I took it a step further. I was curious when the world would hit the exact number of man, using 6. Many different scholars have their own interpretation of the number of man is. I was interested when the world’s population would hit 6,666,666,666. Not because I believe that doom’s day will happen or Armageddon, it was just out of plain curiosity. So I put together a couple of proportions and formulas to come up with a date and time. Then I checked my work and was amazed by what I found. Now please do not think that I feel World Meter is 100% accurate, as far as I know they could be way off by weeks ahead or months behind. However, for sake of argument I would like to share with you what I found.
I started my formulas by estimating a day sometime next year. My wifes birthday. No, I was way off. So then I plugged in a date a little closer, let’s say September 11, 2007 the Muslims seam to like this date. No, I was still off. I kept adjusting my dates until I found something that worked. I then checked my math against world meter and was a little bit shocked at what i discovered.
According to World Meter we will hit 6,666,666,666 world populations Tomorrow Morning, (Tuesday) August 7th at 10:04 am and 35 seconds,
Central Standard Time.
08:04 35 Am San Francisco
11:04 35 Am New York
06:04 35 Pm Jerusalem
05:04 35 Am Honolulu
11:34 35 Pm New Deli
01:04 35 Am Perth (08/08/07)
Just in case you were wondering.
Labels: News, Question, Resourcful
posted by MILO @ 1:58 PM
PROJECT JUXTAPOSITION
For the entire month of August Counter Culture Store at Mockingbird Station is having a donation drive called "PROJECT JUXTAPOSITION". Individuals throw away 67.9 pounds of used clothing and rags each year. Collectively, Americans discard two quadrillion pounds (that's a two with fifteen zeroes) of used clothing and textiles into the landfills each year. Fortunately, we can make sure they reach the people who need them rather than find their way into already-bulging landfills.
We are making it as easy as 1,2,3 to make a difference.
1. Drop off your old clothes in our donation bin
2. We give you a 10% discount on new, vintage or refurbished clothes
3. We make sure your old clothes make it to those in need through local charities.
Take the train, ride a bike, skate or drive a friend. We guarantee that once you revolutionize your shopping experience, you will want to teach others how they can.
Counter Culture Store 5331 E. Mockingbird Ln. Suite 110 Dallas, TX 75226
Labels: Event, News, Resourcful
posted by MILO @ 6:56 AM
There Will Be Wars and Rumors of Wars
The lines are being drawn and the players are getting set
Not many Westerners pay attention to World headlines. They are too consumed with wondering who is going to be the next American idol, or if Paris Hilton is wearing her hair extensions or not. This is a dangerous attitude to have considering that major things are happening in the Epicenter of the world that could have major impact on their lives, and they know nothing about it.
Take a Look at some of the latest Headlines.
Iran feels the chill in US cold war tactics Asia Times
Rice agrees $20bn arms deal with Arab states Times Online
Russia's New Arms Deal with Iran The Voice
Iran, Nicaragua deepen links despite U.S. Concerns Reuters
Chomsky: There Will Be a Cold War Between Iran and the U.S. Info Shop news
Reports: Iran to buy jets from Russia Jerusalem Post
Gorbachev defends Putin's methods La Times
Olmert welcomes 'significant improvement' in U.S. military aid Harretz
U.S. Special forces battle Mahdi Army in holy city of Karbala Herald Tribune
Russia Announces Delay in Completion of Iranian Nuclear Plant VOA News
Joint Chiefs of Staff nominee: Iran is trying to drive the U.S. out of Iraq The Hill
Novak: Pentagon's plan to keep Turkey from invading Iraq Human Events
IRAN AGREES TO HELP SYRIA GO NUCLEAR Harretz
Syrian official threatens 'resistance' by September, warns Damascus preparing for large-scale
conflict World News Daily
So you have the leader of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, quoted saying "the end of the world is in 2-3 years.""He will wipe Israel of the face of the earth." Then you have Vladimir Putin of Russia, with its poor economy, striking deals to arm this guy. In the mean time the US is striking deals with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Emirate States and of course Israel to arm them to the tilt. I wonder if Paris Hilton really said that Brittney Spears is lame?.
Labels: News, Question, Resourcful
posted by MILO @ 6:14 AM
