Shock findings in new GMO study (PHOTO)

 

 Eating genetically modified corn (GM corn) and consuming trace levels of Monsanto's Roundup chemical fertilizer caused rats to develop horrifying tumors, widespread organ damage, and premature death. That's the conclusion of a shocking new study that looked at the long-term effects of consuming Monsanto's genetically modified corn.

The study has been deemed "the most thorough research ever published into the health effects of GM food crops and the herbicide Roundup on rats." News of the horrifying findings is spreading like wildfire across the internet, with even the mainstream media seemingly in shock over the photos of rats with multiple grotesque tumors... tumors so large the rats even had difficulty breathing in some cases. GMOs may be the new thalidomide.

It reported, "Scientists found that rats exposed to even the smallest amounts, developed mammary tumors and severe liver and kidney damage as early as four months in males, and seven months for females."

It goes on to say: "The animals on the GM diet suffered mammary tumors, as well as severe liver and kidney damage. The researchers said 50 percent of males and 70 percent of females died prematurely, compared with only 30 percent and 20 percent in the control group."

Findings from the study

Here are some of the shocking findings from the study:

• Up to 50% of males and 70% of females suffered premature death.

• Rats that drank trace amounts of Roundup (at levels legally allowed in the water supply) had a 200% to 300% increase in large tumors.

• Rats fed GM corn and traces of Roundup suffered severe organ damage including liver damage and kidney damage.

• The study fed these rats NK603, the Monsanto variety of GM corn that's grown across North America and widely fed to animals and humans. This is the same corn that's in your corn-based breakfast cereal, corn tortillas and corn snack chips.

The Daily Mail is reporting on some of the reaction to the findings:

France's Jose Bove, vice-chairman of the European Parliament's commission for agriculture and known as a fierce opponent of GM, called for an immediate suspension of all EU cultivation and import authorisations of GM crops. 'This study finally shows we are right and that it is urgent to quickly review all GMO evaluation processes,' he said in a statement. 'National and European food security agencies must carry out new studies financed by public funding to guarantee healthy food for European consumers.'(http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2205509/Fresh-fears-GM...)

Read the study abstract

The study is entitled, "A Comparison of the Effects of Three GM Corn Varieties on Mammalian Health." Read the abstract here:
http://www.biolsci.org/v05p0706.htm

That abstract include this text. Note: "hepatorenal toxicity" means toxic to the liver.

Our analysis clearly reveals for the 3 GMOs new side effects linked with GM maize consumption, which were sex- and often dose-dependent. Effects were mostly associated with the kidney and liver, the dietary detoxifying organs, although different between the 3 GMOs. Other effects were also noticed in the heart, adrenal glands, spleen and haematopoietic system. We conclude that these data highlight signs of hepatorenal toxicity, possibly due to the new pesticides specific to each GM corn. In addition, unintended direct or indirect metabolic consequences of the genetic modification cannot be excluded.

Here are some quotes from the researchers:

"This research shows an extraordinary number of tumors developing earlier and more aggressively - particularly in female animals. I am shocked by the extreme negative health impacts." - Dr Michael Antoniou, molecular biologist, King's College London.

"We can expect that the consumption of GM maize and the herbicide Roundup, impacts seriously on human health." - Dr Antoniou.

"This is the first time that a long-term animal feeding trial has examined the impact of feeding GM corn or the herbicide Roundup, or a combination of both and the results are extremely serious. In the malerats, there was liver and kidney disorders, including tumors and even more worryingly, in the female rats, there were mammary tumors at a level which is extremely concerning; up to 80 percent of the female rats had mammary tumors by the end of the trial." - Patrick Holden, Director, Sustainable Food Trust.

Statistics: Palestinians will outnumber Israeli Jews in Holy Land by 2020

JERUSALEM — The Palestinian statistics bureau estimates that Arabs will outnumber Jews in the Holy Land by the end of the decade, a scenario that could have grave implications for Israel.

The bureau said Tuesday that 5.8 million Arabs live in Israel, the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem. That compares to about 6 million Israeli Jews, according to Israeli data.

It said that based on current birth rates, the two populations would be equal in 2016, and in 2020, Arabs would outnumber Jews by 7.2 million to 6.9 million.

The demographic issue is a main argument for Israeli backers of creation of a Palestinian state. They say relinquishing control of the Palestinian territories and its residents is the only way to ensure Israel's future as a democracy with a Jewish majority.

RUSSIA: Moscow is preparing to welcome the New Year 2013. - Beautiful lights in Moscow city (VIDEO)

2012: 105,000 CHRISTIANS HAVE DIED FOR THEIR FAITH

According to statistics gathered by the Catholic Church, during the year 2012 around 105,000 Christians have died all over the world for their faith. This information was announced by the coordinator of the Observation Commission for Religious Freedom in Italy, Massimo Introvigne, Sedmizta.ru reported Friday.

The statistics provided by this expert are truly alarming—on the average, every five minutes a person dies in the world because he is a follower of Christ.

The researcher distinguished the most dangerous territories, which are for the most part located on the African continent: Nigeria, Somalia, and Mali, where people are plain afraid to come to church. Great risks also exist in Pakistan, certain regions of Egypt, countries where totalitarian communist regimes still exist today with North Korea at the fore, or countries that are in part under the influence of ethnic nationalists, such as India.

As for the causes of hatred toward Christians, the expert noted first of all the rule of aggressive ideologies “One one hand there are cruel persecutions, murders, and torture proceeding from specific ideologies; for example, the ideology of Islamic radical fundamentalism, the more aggressive versions of ethnic nationalism, and the old communist ideologies. There is also a difference between manifestations of intolerance as a given in certain cultures, and discrimination based on unjust legal actions, which we can see even Western countries, as the Pope of Rome noted in his Encyclical for Peace Day 2013,” noted Massimo Introvigne.

The expert also emphasized that the several days ago the Pope spoke to members of the Roman Curate that there is also a danger connected with a cultural dictatorship that forces specific ideologies, one of which is the “gender” ideology. “These ideologies obviously feel threatened by Christians and the Church, who speak out against them and therefore their lobby is initiating a campaign of intolerance and discrimination,” emphasized the Intovigne.

ISRAEL: Christian Community Continues to Grow

On the eve of Christmas celebrations in the Holy Land —Dec 25 for Catholics and Protestants and Jan. 7 for Orthodox Christians—the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) released new data on the Christian community in Israel, Ynetreported.

 

According to the CBS, there are 158,000 Christians living in Israel, constituting 2 percent of the population. This is up slightly from 154,500 last year.

Of the Christian population, 80.6 percent are Arab, primarily residing in northern Israel. Nazareth—the childhood home of Jesus—is the largest Arab-Christian town.

Most of the non-Arab Christians are immigrants from the former Soviet Union who came to Israel with their Jewish families under the Law of Return.

The CBS noted that Arab Christians fared best in terms of education in comparison to all other ethnic groups in Israel. For example, some 56 percent of Arab Christians, compared with 50 percent of Jewish students, 36 percent of Druze students and 34 percent of Muslims, received a high school diploma that met the basic demands of Israeli universities.

Israel is one of the few countries in the Middle East that has seen its Christian community grow. An estimate 100,000 Christians have fled the civil war in Syria, while in Egypt, Christians are fearful of the rise of Muslim Brotherhood. Even in the Palestinian Authority-controlled city of Bethlehem—the birthplace of Jesus—the Christian population has shrunk to a third of the town’s residents, down from 75 percent only a few decades ago.

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50% British voters would leave the European Union

The public mood of Euroscepticism is hardening, according to the poll that finds 51 percent of respondents would vote to take Britain out of the EU, against just 40 percent who say they would vote to stay in.

This is the first time that poll results show that more than a half of British citizens are opposed to the EU, even though in autumn 2011 opinion was already leaning in the anti-European direction, by 49 percent against 40 percent. 

The Guardian points out that the citizens’ stance toward Brussels has drastically changed in the last decade. When ICM asked a slightly differently worded question in May 2001, the public indicated that it wanted Britain to remain a member of Europe by 68 percent to 19 percent. 

Even worse news for the pro-Europeans emerges when respondents were asked about how definite they were in their view, the paper writes. 

Fully 36 percent say they would definitely vote to pull Britain out, against just 22 percent who definitely want to stay in. That compares with 18 percent who say they would probably want to stay in, and 15 percent who indicate that they would probably want to get out. 

The deteriorating standing of the EU emerges at the end of a year in which it has won the Nobel peace prize for its success in bringing peace to a continent, but also – and perhaps more significantly – a year which has been marked by the crisis of the single currency moving from an acute to a chronic phase, the Guardian writes. 

When voters were asked to provide a "school report grade" for the work of various institutions, the EU was awarded a D+, somewhat worse than the C- average mark awarded to both David Cameron and Ed Miliband. 

ICM Research interviewed a random sample of 1002 adults over the age of 18 by telephone on December 19-23, 2012.

UK: Christians have no right to refuse to work on Sundays, rules judge

Celestina Mba, who lost an appeal against her former employers earlier this month

A new ruling by a High Court judge - the first on the issue in nearly a decade - says that Christians have no right to decline working on Sunday as it is not a “core component” of their beliefs.

The judgment - which upholds an earlier decision - means that individual Christians do not have any protection from being fired for not working on Sundays.

Campaigners said the decision puts Christians at a disadvantage to other religions and means the judiciary are deciding what the core beliefs of Christians can be, which they say is an interference in the right to practise religion.

The judgment was issued by Mr Justice Langstaff as he ruled on an appeal brought by a Christian woman who was sacked after she refused to work on Sundays at a care home.

Celestina Mba claimed the council she worked for pressured her to work on Sundays and threatened her with disciplinary measures - even though other workers were willing to take the shifts. The 57 year-old, from Streatham Vale, south London, worships every Sunday at her Baptist church, where she is also part of the ministry team offering pastoral care and support to the congregation.

She said that when she took the position in 2007 providing respite care for children with severe learning difficulties at the Brightwell children’s home in Morden, south-west London managers initially agreed to accommodate the requirements of her faith.

But within a few months of starting the job, Miss Mba said managers began pressuring her to work on Sundays.

She found herself repeatedly allocated Sunday shifts and threatened with disciplinary measures unless she agreed to compromise her church commitments, meaning she had no alternative but to resign from the job she loved, she said.

The care worker launched an unsuccessful legal claim in February this year and this month lost her appeal in the High Court.

Her constructive dismissal case was funded by the Christian Legal Centre which instructed Paul Diamond, a leading religious rights barrister.

Mr Justice Langstaff, who as president of the Employment Appeal Tribunal is the most senior judge in England and Wales in this type of case, upheld the lower tribunal’s ruling which said it was relevant that other Christians did not ask for Sundays off.

The fact that some Christians were prepared to work on Sundays meant it was not protected, the court said.

The senior judge said that a rule imposed by an employer which affected nearly every Christian would have a greater discriminatory impact than one which only affected a few.

There was evidence that many Christians work on Sundays and this was relevant in “weighing” the impact of the employers’ rule, and the earlier decision did not involve an error of law, he added.

Campaigners said the ruling showed that Christians are being treated less favourably than people from other religions, such as Muslims, Jews and Sikhs. They pointed to cases where the courts offered protection to other religions even when only a minority of adherents were affected.

In 2008 Sarika Watkins-Singh, then 14, successfully claimed she was a victim of unlawful discrimination because she had been excluded from school in Aberdare, south Wales, for breaking a jewellery ban by refusing to remove a “kara” bangle which she said was central to her faith.

But in her case the court did not examine how many Sikhs wanted to wear similar items of jewellery.

The judgment in Miss Mba’s case will fuel concerns that judges are promoting secularism. A report from the cross-party Christians in Parliament group warned earlier this year that there was a lack of religious literacy among judges, politicians and officials.

Andrea Williams, director of Christian Concern, said of the latest ruling: “The court in this case created an unrealistic test which means that people like Celestina who wish to respect the Sabbath will be forced out of the workplace.

“The court seems to be requiring a significant number of adherents of the Christian faith to observe a particular practice before the court is willing to accept and protect the practice.

“In the past year we have seen mandatory tests of faith in relation to the wearing of crosses by Christians, belief about marriage between a man and a woman and now observing the Sabbath when in all cases reasonable accommodation could have been made.

“Such tests do not appear to be similarly applied to Muslims who are permitted to wear the hijab and observe prayers and Sikhs with the kara bracelet.”

In 1994, when Sunday trading in England was liberalised shopworkers were given a guarantee that working would be strictly voluntary, but the guarantee did not apply to people in other sectors.

The Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations, published in 2003, say employers must justify Sunday working as a “legitimate business need” and does not give a blanket right to Christians not to work.

If employers fail to treat staff fairly and proportionately, the employee may be able to claim discrimination, the rules add.

The last ruling by judges was when a quarry worker claimed his Christian beliefs had been treated with “contempt” by employers who tried to force him to work on Sundays in 2003.

Stephen Copsey lost his case at the Court of Appeal in 2005, with judges ruling his employer had “compelling economic reasons” for insisting that he worked on Sundays.

Yvette Stanley of Merton council, Miss Mba’s former employers, said it did its best to allow religious practice but also had a duty to meet the needs of the disabled children for whom it cares and added: “We are pleased with the outcome of this second tribunal. Staff recruited in the respite care service are advised that it is by its nature a weekend service.”

Harvard Scientist Proposes Refreezing Arctic to Prevent Global-Warming Disaster (VIDEO)

Harvard University geoengineer and environmental scientist David Keith has a "plan B" in case of an environmental emergency.

Keith's unusual proposal is this: Force reflective particles into the Earth's upper atmosphere -- the stratosphere -- to reverse global warming.

"One approach is to disperse particulates at high altitude to reduce the effective solar flux entering the atmosphere," Keith and his fellow researchers report in the Nature Climate Change journal and Environmental Research Letters.

The idea comes from nature, Keith said in a TED talk. In 1991, Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines erupted and cooled the Earth. About 15 millions tons of sulfur dioxide rose into the upper atmosphere, creating an "hazy layer" of aerosol particles, according to NASA. The plume of particles in the atmosphere shaded the Earth's surface, creating a cooling effect for almost two years.

Keith is proposing something similar to save the Arctic sea ice, which is at an all-time low. The large-scale geoengineering solution could reduce the penetration of the sun by at least 0.5%, according to his papers.

For now, the $8 billion geoengineering plan remains a radical option. The solar geoengineering investigators hope their ongoing research sparks a global conversation about the environment.

"If one is optimistic, one might hope that the injection of this new technology into climate policy will energize the topic, breaking the static trench warfare that now characterizes much of the debate about climate and perhaps producing a better outcome. But, that is a wish, not a prediction," Keith said in a recent Q&A with the Belfer Center Newsletter.

The scientist believes there are solutions for global warming, including enforcing global conversation, reducing carbon-dioxide emissions and increasing wind power. What we currently lack, according to Keith, is urgency, attention to the problem and action.

Do you think we're doing enough to conserve the environment, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions?

The New Middle East: Hidden US-Israeli Military Agenda

A timely article in the Jerusalem Post in June brings to the forefront the unspoken objective of US foreign policy, namely the breaking up of Syria as a sovereign nation state –along ethnic and religious lines– into several separate and “independent” political entities. The article also confirms the role of Israel in the process of political destabilization of  Syria.  The JP article is titled:“Veteran Kurdish politician calls on Israel to support the break-up of Syria‘ (by Jonathan Spyer)

The objective of the US sponsored armed insurgency is –with the help of Israel– to “Break Syria into Pieces”

One possible ”break-up scenario” pertaining to Syria, which constitutes a secular multi-ethnic society, would be the formation of separate and  “independent” Sunni, Alawite-Shiite, Kurdish and Druze states:   “We need to break Syria into pieces,” Abbas said. (Quoted in JP, op. cit., emphasis added).

“The Syrian Kurdish dissident argued that a federal Syria, separated into four or five regions on an ethnic basis, would also serve as a natural “buffer” for Israel against both Sunni and Shi’ite Islamist forces.” (Ibid.).

Ironically, while Islamist forces are said to constitute the main threat to the Jewish State, Tel Aviv is providing covert support to the Islamist Free Syrian Army (FSA).

Map 1

Meeting behind Closed Doors at the US State Department

A top level US State Department meeting was held in May with members of the Syrian Kurdish opposition. In attendance were representatives of the Kurdish National Council (KNC),  Robert Stephen Ford, the outgoing US ambassador to Syria (who has played a key role in channelling support to the rebels) as well as Frederic C. Hof, a former business partner of Richard Armitage, who currently serves as the administration’s “special coordinator on Syria”. (Ibid). The delegation also met with Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman.

Frederic C. Hof, Robert Stephen Ford and Jeffrey Feltman are the State Department’s key Syria policy-makers, with close links to the Syrian Free Army (SFA) and the Syrian National Council (SNC).

Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman

Frederic C. Hof, The Administration’s “special coordinator on Syria”

Robert S. Ford, outgoing US Ambassador to Syria

The public statements of KNA leader Sherkoh Abbas in the wake of the State Department meeting suggest that the political fracturing of the Syrian Arab Republic along ethnic and religious lines as well as the creation of an “independent Kurdistan” were discussed. “State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner described [the meeting's] purpose as part of ‘ongoing efforts… to help the Syrian [Kurdish] opposition build a more cohesive opposition to Assad.’”  (Ibid).

The KNA leader called upon Washington to support the creation of a separate Kurdish State consisting of  “an autonomous region in Syria; joining the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq – which borders the Kurdish region in Syria; or perhaps an even larger Kurdish state” [Greater Kurdistan].

It is worth noting, in this regard, that the creation of a “Greater Kurdistan” has been envisaged for several years by the Pentagon as part of a broader “Plan for Redrawing the Middle East”.(See map 2 below)

This option, which appears unlikely in the near future, would go against the interests of Turkey, a staunch ally of both the US and Israel. Another scenario, which is contemplated by Ankara would consist in the annexation to Turkey of parts of Syrian Kurdistan. (See map above).

Map 2. The New Middle East

The following map was prepared by Lieutenant-Colonel Ralph Peters. 

Although the map does not officially reflect Pentagon doctrine, it has been used in a training program at NATO’s Defense College for senior military officers.
This map, as well as other similar maps, has most probably been used at the National War Academy as well as in military planning circles.




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Man-made tornadoes may produce green energy (PHOTOS)

 

Massive man-made twisters reaching to the skies from cyclopean structures on the ground may be the future of suburban landscape. A Canadian firm is developing the technology to use the tornadoes to produce electricity – and assures it would be safe.

The company, AVEtec Energy Corporation, is working on a proof-of-concept device after winning this month a grant from The Thiel Foundation, a non-profit organization created by PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel. The machine is meant to make a rotating column of air that sucks air from its base like a natural twister.

The company already built a four-meter diameter prototype and will now use the grant money to construct a version twice as big, which it hopes will produce a 40-meter tall vortex with a diameter of 30 centimeters.

 

“Power output increases geometrically with size, so commercialization will become economically viable when we build a 40-meter diameter prototype in 2015” said Louis Michaud, AVEtec president.

The proposed design is not unlike a conventional solar updraft tower, in which the sun heats up air in a large greenhouse-like structure and goes up through a tall chimney in the center. The air convection moves turbines to produce electricity.

The LM-6 prototype. (Photo by AVEtec)

The proposed Atmospheric Vortex Engine (AVE) takes a similar approach, but the air goes inside the tower through tangential inlets and forms a tornado. Thanks to the rotation of the air column it remains stable long after rising past the top of the chimney rather than mixing with the cooler ambient air. It can potentially go up as far as 20 kilometers for a vortex with the base diameter of 100 meters generated in a 200-eter diameter 80-meter high tower, the company’s website explains.

The height of this “virtual chimney” and the low temperature at its “outtake” in the troposphere means that the process can be sustained with a much smaller temperature difference that what is required for an updraft tower power plant to operate. In fact it does not require a solar collector farm, instead pre-heating the air on the intakes to start the process, the company says.

The device in action. (Photo by AVEtec)

The initial heat input may come from industrial waste heat (the company says one of the applications of the technology may be simply replacing cooling towers at plants with cheaper twister generators) or from a natural source like the tropical ocean waters – the same that give energy to the natural tornadoes and hurricanes.

The big ‘if’ in the technology is whether the man-made twister is able to survive a horizontal wind. This question can be answered only after a larger-scale test, the company says. If the concept proves reliable, it may become one of the cheapest sources of energy costing as low as 3 cents per kilowatt hour, which would also not produce additional emission.

Side effects of the technology, if it goes industrial scale, may include producing clouds and rains in a power plant vicinity and making the environment there somewhat cooler. AVEtec assures that an artificial tornado cannot run amok, destroying the plant that produced it and the neighborhood.

UK: All I want for Christmas is a daddy

 

While most children look for toys and gadgets on Christmas day, some are looking for something a little longer lasting. A survey by a major shopping mall in the UK shows the tenth most popular Christmas gift for children is a dad.

The survey of children aged three to 12 years showed trendy toys, blockbuster games, electronic devices and even pets – were all left behind by one steady request, that of a father.   

While some have put a new baby brother or sister at the top of their Christmas list, a request for a "mum" has only reached number 23 on the list, The Telegraph reported.

Of the top 50 Christmas requests, some 17 reportedly related to pets and animals, with some children asking Santa for a donkey or an elephant. 

While smart phones and tablet computers remained permanent fixtures of the wish list, some kids immodestly asked for the moon and a time machine. 

One child raised eyebrows when he asked Santa for Desperate Housewives actress Eva Longoria.

Teens tempted in 2 directions

When it comes to teenagers, it is the latest electronic gadgets that define their holiday requests.

Tablets, laptops and cell-phones rule the day. 

Also, more than 80 per cent of teens in UK said decorations “are a must”, according to Research Now and K&A BrandResearch that surveyed teenagers between 12-17 years of age. 

However, a major concern with teenagers this holiday season is underage drinking. 

A growing number of disturbances have been reported in the time leading up to Christmas. 

Over the last couple of years there has been an increase in the number of alcohol-related injuries in the UK, putting a strain on hospitals and police this time a year, reports Sara Firth from Newcastle.  

On the weekend before Christmas, residents of Newcastle have a day nicknamed black-eye Friday, reference to a number of fights that break out there due to obsessive drinking. 

Drink Aware has rolled out a campaign warning people about how much they drink over the holiday period and cautioning them to be responsible. 

The main problem however is that the young people are “preloading” on alcohol before going out, and arriving at parties already under the influence of alcohol. 

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Turkish Professor Calls for the Return of Saint Nicholas' Bones to Turkey

Akdeniz University (AÜ) Archaeology professor Nevzat Çevik has called on the Vatican to return to Turkey the bones of Saint Nicholas (the original Santa Claus), which were taken out of the country in 1087, in an interview with Anatolia news agency.

Myra - St. Nicholas Church

Çevik said the bones of Saint Nicholas were taken from Turkey "by force" to be buried in a church in the Bari province of Italy, and should be returned to the place where the saint lived.

"This has nothing to do with tourism. Returning his bones to his grave in Demre [a town in the southern province of Antalya] is a human wish," Çevik said, adding that Saint Nicholas would himself like to be buried in the funerary chapel next to his church in Demre.

In the interview, Çevik also expressed his satisfaction at the return of a number of artifacts to Turkey through the initiative of the Culture and Tourism Ministry.

"Saint Nicholas is also important for the Muslim world, despite belonging to a period before the arrival of Islam. He was trying to spread Christianity, which was also a religion sent by God," he said.

Çevik also emphasized the importance of the Saint Nicholas Church in Demre as a place of pilgrimage for 1500 years.

Saint Nicholas was born in the Aegean region and he lived in ancient town of Myra, in Lycia, which is today called Demre. The Saint Nicholas Church was built in the 4th century A.D., and is now a museum that attracts scores of visitors, especially Orthodox tourists.

Genetically Modified 'Frankenfish' To Appear In US Stores

 

Regulators with the FDA have released a preliminary report that suggests they will soon give the go-ahead to a team of scientists who’ve created a sci-fi “frankenfish.”

On Friday, the US Food and Drug Administration released an environmental assessment report regarding a salmon-hybrid developed in the laboratories of AquaBounty. The FDA must wait two months before they make final their decision regarding the fate of the frankenfish, but through their study they have determined that the genetically engineered animal, the “AquAdvantage,” is safe enough to be sold.

The fish, a hybrid of the Pacific Chinook salmon and a ray-finned creature called the eelpout, is engineered to grow twice as normal as traditional salmon. Once the frankenfish is approved for good, AquaBounty will be able to offer meatier fish able to feed more people.

“In all other respects,” the company says the AquAdvantage fish is “identical to other Atlantic salmon.”

The AquAdvantage "will not have any significant impacts on the quality of the human environment of the United States,” the FDA wrote, noting additionally that the fish is unlikely to harm populations of natural salmon.

The FDA has 60 days to hear remarks from the public before it makes its final decision. At this point, though, experts weighing in with the Associated Press say the report suggests an approval is all but certain. From there, AquaBounty is likely to release what will be the first genetically engineered animal ever determined safe for human consumption. With no other such animal ever approved in the past, though, concerns have been plentiful over what consequences the creature could spawn.

Bill Freese, a science policy analyst with the Center for Food Safety, told Women’s Health Magazine recently that while the FDA obviously has regulations the fish will have to pass, that process is “totally unlike” how the FDA goes about approving drugs.

According to Freese, “a very lax regulatory system” could lead to dire results.

“This is a radical new technology. We need very good, careful, close regulation, and we just don't have that. We can't be assured of the safety of any of these genetically engineered organisms,” he said.

Developing the frankenfish has so far cost AquaBounty nearly two decades of research and tens of millions of dollars. Only weeks ago, though, the very fate of the fish was put at risk.

While awaiting news from the FDA in early December, AquaBounty CEO Ron Stotish told the Associated Press that length delays had nearly drained the company from all their money.

"It's threatening our very survival," Stotish told the AP. "We only have enough money to survive until January 2013, so we have to raise more. But the unexplained delay has made raising money very difficult."

In 2010, the FDA concluded that the AquaAdvantage fish was just as safe as traditional salmon to eat. Only now, however, has it been finally able to release its environmental assessment report, one of the final steps before AquaBounty can be given the green light.

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THE TRUTH ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING.....(PHOTO)

 

 

SIGN A WHITE HOUSE PETITION TO PROTECT CHRISTIANS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Greek Orthodox priests in Damascus pray during a service in January for a Christian boy who was killed in the fighting in the central Syrian city of Homs. (Joseph Eid / AFP/Getty Images)

Greek Orthodox priests in Damascus pray during a service in January for a Christian boy who was killed in the fighting in the central Syrian city of Homs. (Joseph Eid / AFP/Getty Images)

The website Orthodox Christian Laity has posted an appeal to Orthodox Christians in the U.S. to sign a petition to protect Christians in the Middle East:

THIS IS AN IMPORTANT EFFORT. PLEASE TAKE THE TIME AND REGISTER YOUR SUPPORT.

Friends,

Are there 25,000 Orthodox Christians in America who are ready to stand up for Orthodox Christians in the Middle East this holiday season?

Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC) is launching a petition asking President Obama to respond to the fact that religious minorities need protection across the globe, and we need your help.

In Turkey alone — which boasts a population of over 75 million — the number of Greek Orthodox Christians has plummeted to just 3,500 because the Turkish government refuses to grant the Greek Orthodox Church its full religious freedom. 

In occupied Cyprus, Turkish forces have stopped Christmas liturgy from being celebrated by enslaved Orthodox Christians. In Iraq, Syria, and Egypt, religious minorities are unable to worship in peace this holiday season.

Under the White House rules, if we can find 25,000 people to sign the petition, the White House will have to issue a response. Can you help us reach our goal?

To sign the petition, click on the link below:

http://hellenicleaders.com/freedom

Thanks,

Endy

Endy Zemenides
Executive Director
Hellenic American Leadership Council

P.S. This isn’t just a Greek Orthodox issue. Freedom of religion is a basic human right that all people should fight for, whether they’re Christian, Jewish, Muslim, agnostic or atheist. Forward this email to your friends and family and ask them to join the call in protecting this fundamental human right.

Albania: Orthodox Community disappeared - Orthodox in Albania are more than 24% of the population

Orthodox Church: Orthodox in Albania are more than 24% of the population

Red and Black Alliance has today submitted to the Office of the President a formal requestto remove the decoration Archbishop Dr Anastasios of Tirana.

"The Spirit of Dr Anastasios of Tirana is against Albanian territorial sovereignty. Under the Constitution, the church is separated from the state and politics. Archbishop Dr Anastasios of Tirana should be removed the "Order of Skanderbeg". Decorated the founder of the Albanian church, not anti Albanian occupants, "stated representatives of Red and Black Alliance.

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Indonesia Arrests Fake Islamic Prophet for 'Sex Cult'

A man who allegedly claimed to be an Islamic prophet and tricked his male followers into allowing him to have sex with their wives and daughters has been arrested, Indonesian police said Friday.

According to a report by AFP, the 48-year-old was detained on the island of Borneo after several followers reported he had told them to pay him money or organize sexual relations with relatives to purify them of their sins, a police spokesman said.

"According to the followers' reports, if they can't afford to pay the money, they have to let their wives or daughters sleep with him as an alternate way to go to heaven," Kutai Timur district police spokesman Ketut Cakri told AFP.

"We believe the man has slept with several of his followers' wives and daughters, and has received money as well," Cakri said, adding that he did not know if the women had consented to sex or if the man had any female followers.

He had spread "deviant" Islamic teachings through his cult for at least five years, Cakri said, and could be jailed for fraud and blasphemy in the world's biggest Muslim-majority country.

"We don't know the exact number of followers or victims yet, but the police investigation is still ongoing. We are digging for more information from him and his followers," Cakri said.

In 2009 an Indonesian court jailed for blasphemy a cult leader who gave sermons in his underpants and demanded that his acolytes take part in orgies.

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Instagram’s ‘suicide note’: Company to sell users’ photos

(AFP Photo / Karen Bleier)

Imagine seeing the most private moment of your life displayed in an ad campaign without notification or financial compensation. When Instagram’s new Terms of Use policy kicks in on January 16, this could become a new marketing reality.

Instagram’s new policy allows the popular photo sharing app to use submitted photos, names and text for marketing purposes.

“Some or all of the Service may be supported by advertising revenue. To help us deliver interesting paid or sponsored content or promotions, you agree that a business or other entity may pay us to display your username, likeness, photos (along with any associated metadata), and/or actions you take, in connection with paid or sponsored content or promotions, without any compensation to you,” the new Terms of Use reads.

New York-based photographer Clayton Cubbit wrote on his account that the new policy is “Instagram's suicide note,”referring to an allegedly widespread desire among users to quit the popular app because of the proposed changes.

Image from instagram.com user@claytoncubitt

User ‘gkkd’ called it “too high price to pay” for the service, adding that if it “goes into effect I'm done with Instagram.”

(Screenshots from twitter.com)

Another addition to the new terms is a layer of protection for Instagram from any liability, such as class action lawsuits, for making private photos public. The new policy states that “we will not be liable for any use or disclosure of content” and “Instagram will not be liable for any use or disclosure of any content you provide.”

Author and software developer Reginald Braithwaite interpreted the new policy on his blog: “You are not our customers, you are the cattle we drive to market and auction off to the highest bidder. Enjoy your feed and keep producing the milk.”

A screenshot from http://raganwald.posterous.com

Other changes include standard points like “no porn” and “you must be 13 to use Instagram.”

There is no way to opt-out of the new Terms of Service – the only option for dissenting users is to delete all of their Instagram photos and deactivate their accounts.

Photography site PopPhoto.com said that users are not happy with the changes. “The service itself is still a fun one, but that's a lot of red marks that have shown up over the past couple weeks. Many shooters – even the casual ones – probably aren't that excited to have a giant corporation out there selling their photos without being paid or even notified about it.”

The new Terms of Use is the first major policy shift since Facebook bought Instagram in August. Critics raised privacy concerns as soon as the acquisition plan was announced.

“Part of the concern is that it's Facebook,” ACLU of Northern California attorney Chris Conley told CNET News. “And their history of privacy and respecting user choices is mixed.”

Facebook has recently excluded its users from having any input in policy changes. The social network also faces a legal showdown in Europe over accusations of privacy violations. In the past, Facebook has made extensive changes to the default privacy settings, making more user data public over time.

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