Author: Galen

The Federalist – by Denise Shick

You have to be 16 obtain a driver’s license in California, 18 to buy a rifle, engage in consensual sex, or get married without parental consent, and 21 to buy a handgun, alcohol, or marijuana. But in the nation’s most progressive state, you only need to be 12 years old to privately seek and consent to treatment for gender transitioning.

The recently enacted California law was written to “provide that the rights of minors and nonminors in foster care, as described above, include the right to be involved in the development of case plan elements related to placement and gender affirming health care, with consideration of their gender identity.”   Continue reading “California Passes Law Allowing 12-Year-Olds To Get Tax-Paid Transgender Treatments”

Campus Reform – by Grace Gottschling

Student ambassadors at Cornell University were given an “orientation packet” ahead of welcoming the incoming freshman class. The packet contains a sheet of categories labeling certain groups as having “privilege” or being “oppressed.”

Campus Reform obtained a copy of the document from a concerned student who felt the content was inappropriate. The sheet outlines social issues and designates certain demographics as privileged or oppressed in a “U.S. Context.” The 15 categories range from gender identity to martial/parental status, education level, and “use of English.”  Continue reading “Cornell tells students if they are ‘privileged’ or ‘oppressed’”

Oil Price – by Leonard Hyman & William Tilles

Solar and wind farms, stretched across North Africa’s Saharan desert and relying solely on existing technologies, could produce enough electricity to power the entire world. (That amount of electricity approximates over 21 terawatt hours.) As an added benefit these combined wind and solar arrays would also increase rain fail in the arid Sahel region thereby slowing the steady southern encroachment of the desert.

This was the conclusion arrived at by academic researchers using supercomputers. Teams at the University of Maryland and University of Illinois modeled their results in a study financed in part by a Chinese government agency. Their results were published in the prestigious journal Science (September 7).   Continue reading “How The Sahara Could Power The Entire World”

Business Insider – by Naomi Tomky, The New Food Economy

Since 2012, Virginia Moore and Rebecca Martello have farmed a tiny plot of land, just 1/16 ^th of an acre, 45 minutes from their home in Bremerton, Washington. That worked out for the first five years, when the couple grew only enough to eat themselves. But this season they sold 10 shares in a 16-week CSA branded as Sun Dog Farm — a small step forward that quickly maxed out their cozy plot. Now, with every available inch already planted, their dream of becoming full-time farmers is on hold.

“We can’t expand, can’t go into markets, can’t serve more people,” says Moore. So the pair will continue to work elsewhere — Moore full-time as a mental health clinician, Martello part-time as a dental assistant — until they can find more land. The tiny plot they do have is owned by Martello’s parents. But the hunt for acreage of their own has so far been unsuccessful.

Continue reading “Americans are having trouble buying farmland, and a 1600% price increase is the least of their worries”

Green Med Info – by Kelly Brogan, M.D.

With 1 in 5 Americans taking a psychiatric medication, most of whom, long term, we should probably start to learn a bit more about them. In fact, it would have been in the service of true informed consent to have investigated long-term risks before the deluge of these meds seized our population over the past thirty years.

You may be unaware of a literature that suggests long-term treatment with all psychiatric medications is more likely to leave you with a lesser quality of life. Here’s one more reason to reconsider life partnership with your psychiatric medication – it may contribute to your cancer risk. Continue reading “Psych Meds Put 49 Million Americans At Risk For Cancer”

Hartford Courant

An important bill died in the legislature this year, “An Act Prohibiting Female Genital Mutilation.” Senate Bill 190 would have made it a Class D felony, punishable by up to five years in prison, to perform female genital mutilation on a person under 18.

FGM is outlawed federally, and 26 other states in the United States also ban it. Connecticut needs to join them to put this terrible practice on the radar of schools, clinics, courts and police. Connecticut lawmakers need a zero-tolerance law banning FGM to protect young women and girls.   Continue reading “A Law Against Female Genital Mutilation”

Global Research – by Andrew Korybko

China will soon operate the Israeli port of Haifa if everything goes according to plan.

Haaretz reported on a conference late last month in Israel where the former navy chief of staff and chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission Shaul Horev warned about China’s forthcoming management of the strategic port of Haifa. The deal was agreed to three and a half years ago by the Transportation Ministry and Port Authority without what the outlet claimed was the input of either the National Security Council or the navy itself, the latter of which is supposedly concerned because Israel’s submarine fleet is based next to the port. The impending implementation of the agreement has led to the usual fear mongering about “debt traps”, military implications, and oddly enough, even whether Israel is pivoting away from the US.   Continue reading “China To Acquire Management Control over Israel’s Strategic Port of Haifa?”

NPR

During hurricanes like Florence, many people find themselves trapped and needing rescue. Sometimes volunteers step in to help — but emergency managers say some may be creating problems of their own.

This week while visiting eastern North Carolina, President Trump thanked the first responders who sometimes risk their own lives to help, mentioning traditional government officials like police officers and firefighters – and “our great Cajun Navy.”  Continue reading “The Cajun Navy: Heroes Or Hindrances In Hurricanes?”

BBC News

If towing icebergs to hot, water-stressed regions sounds totally crazy to you, then consider this: the volume of water that breaks off Antarctica as icebergs each year is greater than the total global consumption of freshwater. And that stat doesn’t even include Arctic ice. This is pure freshwater, effectively wasted as it melts into the sea and contributes to rising sea levels. Does it sound less crazy now?   Continue reading “The Outrageous Plan To Haul Icebergs To Africa”

Madness Hub

A student editor at a top university has been fired in a transphobia row after he tweeted that ‘women don’t have penises’.

Angelos Sofocleous, assistant editor at Durham University’s philosophy journal ‘Critique’, was sacked from his post after just three days for writing a tweet deemed ‘transphobic’ by fellow students.   Continue reading “Student editor who retweeted article pointing out that that ‘women don’t have penises’ is fired from university journal”

Activist Post – by Nicholas West

One of America’s oldest insurance companies, John Hancock, has its eyes set firmly on the future. With the arrival of Big Data and the now never-ending stream of information that is available to data brokers on individuals in nearly real time, the lure of using it for customer analytics and behavior modification has become irresistible.

According to a recent announcement cited by Reuters, the company is taking the unprecedented step of “selling only interactive policies that track fitness and health data through wearable devices and smartphones.” Previously, John Hancock created its interactive policies as a supplement to traditional life insurance, but now the “Vitality” program will encompass ALL policies beginning in 2019, as well as converting old policies to the new model.   Continue reading “Life Insurance Company Will Add Fitness Tracking Data to ALL Policies Next Year”

Mint Press News – by Whitney Webb

HODEIDA, YEMEN — The “world’s worst humanitarian crisis” is now more dire than ever according to a new report from the U.K.-based charity Save the Children, which warns that 5.2 million children now face starvation in Yemen.

The group’s warning comes as the coalition led by Saudi Arabia and supported by the U.K. and the U.S., launched a new campaign to capture the Yemeni port city of Hodeida on Tuesday. Over 90% of Yemen’s food is imported through Hodeida, prompting the charity to warn that any disruption to food and fuel supplies coming through the Hodeida port “could cause starvation on an unprecedented scale.”   Continue reading “Amid Renewed Saudi Offensive, 5.2 Million Children in Yemen Now Face Starvation”