State Dept.'s gaffe causes a stir with the Spanish government.

Are the children of political figures exempt from the right to their privacy? That question is asked and, in part, answered in this article on yahoo news. It would seem that the daughters of Spain's Prime Minister José Louis Rodríguez Zapatero, attended a reception in America given by President and Mrs. Obama at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. At this reception, the President and his First Lady took part in over 130 posed photo opportunities. One of which included Prime Minister Zapatero, his wife and teenaged daughters. This photo, along with many others, was released to the State Department's Flickr page.

In Spain, there is a law that prohibits the publication of photos of politcal leaders' under aged children, so sixteen year old Laura and thirteen year old Alba have never been seen in photos by the public of Spain. As soon as the mistake was realized, the photos were taken off of the Flickr page and even the Spanish news agency the EFE, didn't run the photograph. The Spanish government tried to keep the girls' photos out of the press, but their efforts were too little too late.


So, do the family's of political figures deserve privacy? I admit that I am torn on this. I think that it would be considered one of the many down sides to a political career, having your life be an open book. But I also see the devastating consequences that the paparazzi can bring about: , Princess Diana's tragic death as case in point. I was also a bit saddened that John McCain's daughter Meghan, who was quoted in the article, was so very surprised that there was still someplace where laws could protect the underage children of politicians.

This is a classic example of what we are studying right now, two differing viewpoints of the same event. The article I linked above is taking (in my opinion) the viewpoint that this whole thing was a mistake and that even though containment was attempted, that it is too late. But, I also found this article, that talks about how the two girls are dressed in clothing that signifies them as being "Goth" and that the leaked photo is getting the "thumbs up" from adolescent girls all across Spain. In any case, trying to protect the privay of people that choose to put themselves into the spotlight is getting more and more difficult, and it is one more reason I am glad that I am not famous.

Carolyn Savage of Sylvania, Ohio gave birth to a healthy baby boy today. But what makes this story, found in the American Press, so interesting is that she plans to give the baby back to the parents whose frozen embryo was mistakenly implanted in her. Savage and her husband, Sean found out back in February that what they believed to be their own embryo used during implantation at a fertility clinic outside of Ohio was in fact not their own. It belonged to Paul and Shannon Morrell, a couple with twin daughters from Detroit. The Morrells found out that their embryo had been mistakenly implanted into Sharon, about ten days later. The Morrells were understandably upset and worried that the parents-to-be of their child might choose to terminate the pregnancy or try to keep custody.
Thankfully, the Savages have said in recent press releases that they will give the baby back to his biological parents. They even wished the new parents and big sisters all the best when they announced the birth of the baby boy. Understandably, the Savages are asking for privacy as they are having a difficult time.

I was rather pleasantly surprised that this young couple chose to do the right thing. In a world full of law suits and custody battles, arguments over custody rights vs. property rights and the battles over the power of choice I am gladdened to see people willing to help their fellow man, even at the expense of their own health and happiness. It would have been very easy for the Savages to have chosen to abort the baby so that they could get on with "having their own" child. But they, instead, chose to act in a totally selfless way.
The article was released about seven minutes before I started writing this article, so it will be interesting to see how this all unfolds. I do hope that they follow through with their decision and keep their word.

Ammunition sales sky-rocket

First guns, now ammunition sales have spiked in the last year according to this article in the Associated Press on Wednesday the 23rd. Right after President Obama was elected, gun sales were through the roof, but now it is the ammunition sales that are up. According to the National Rifle Association ammunition sales went from seven billion a year to nine billion a year. This increase in sales is thought to be the result of gun owners fearing that the rumors about Barak Obama's intent to limit gun owners rights would prove to be true.

In the recent past, police forces had problems attaining ammunition, but that problem was attributed to the rise in ammo use by the U.S. military. This shortage, however, is not caused by the same issues, nor can it be traced to the local sportsmen and women. The majority of gun owners that are out buying up large quantities of rounds are most likely hoarding their purchases, according to one source quoted in the article.


I found this article very interesting, both in its content and the tone used. I have found that the majority of article about gun owners are written from an "anti-gun" point of view. We normally see articles about the stupidity of gun owners, or the tragedies of careless gun storage. I felt that this article was pretty straight forward and to the point about the increase in sales. I didn't feel like there was any slant to this article. As a former gun owner (bipolar child in the house... no guns now) I have watched this "panic" to buy ammo unfold. I have spoken to several other gun owners who even started buying up all the bullets and shells that their guns needed before the presidential election was over. I agree with the author and the sources quoted in the article that most of the ammunition being snapped up is being hoarded. I also liked the quote at the end of the article about how gold used to be the most precious metal, but now it is lead.

And the beat goes on....

It is safe again to ride the school bus in Belleville IL. The two young men responsible for beating up another, older, student have been arrested. The driver of the bus has been suspended. According to the article on stltoday.com (and being picked up by newsweek.com as well) states that the victim, a 17 year old student got on the bus and looked for a seat. When he finally sat down the 14 year old student in the seat next to him attacked him, punching him in the head and then holding him by the neck and punching him in the face. The victim was attacked again later by another young man aged 15.

The victim is Caucasian and the attackers are African American. This is leading to claims that this attack is racially motivated. The Belleville police released the video from the school bus and stated that the motive was racial. Then the next day a police department spokesman said that the statement was personal opinion and emotional. It was also stated that in the state of Illinois there needs to be more evidence of racial motives than the fact that the victims are of two different races. This has sparked a national debate about racial violence


I am not sure how to feel about this. Especially after reading some of the blog comments. I rode a bus to school in he mid 1980's and some of the things that went on during that rural ride make my toes curl as a present day mother. That being said, there is no telling what set that fight off, but to make it a racial even seems a bit gratuitous. Conversely, if the victim had been African American, Latino or homosexual and the attacker Caucasian it would definitely be labeled racial. It kind of makes me think that there is a large double standard here.

I also think that it was very unprofessional for the police department to release the video and to make an off the cuff statement like they did. Perhaps they deliberately tried to start the debate.

Fast food really can hurt you!

John Manley a 50 year old North Carolina man had been ill for several years. He complained of not being able to breathe. Finally, after several visits to local doctors, Duke Hospital's Dr. Mohem Wahidi was able to find the cause. Dr. Wahidi found that there was a one inch piece of plastic imbeded in Manley's lung. The article posted on abc.com stated that during the procedure the scope showed the plastic and the doctor and nurses could read the letters "amburger" and figured out that it was a piece of a spoon from Wendy's. The side of the spoon visible would read "Old Fashioned Hamburgers".

Doctor Wahidi removed the piece of plastic and Mr. Manley is doing very well. When asked if he had any idea how the plastic got into his lungs, Manley replied that he grew up in a large family where you had to take big bites and eat fast if you wanted your food. He said that he takes big drinks and probably inhaled the plastic piece while "inhaling" a drink.


Wow! How blessed is this man? In this version of the story Mr. Manley stated that there were doctors out there that had no idea what was wrong and suggested that they could remove his lung to try to find out. Manley declined. He had been sick with coughing, pneumonia and shortness of breath ever since he moved from Queens New York and had no idea it would be something as unique as this. I am flabbergasted that this man could inhale a piece of plastic and have no idea that he did it.

Dr. Wahidi stated that inhaling foreign objects is not that unusual, but that is more common in children. Dr. Wahidi also stated that this was one of the most unusual objects that he has ever removed.

It's all in the Genes

In the September 10th, 2009 issue of Newsweek.com, there are several articles concerning obesity. The main title of the articles is: The Fat Wars: America’s Weight Rage. The article that caught my eye is titled: The Real Cause of Obesity. This article claims that obesity is genetic. The probability that a person’s genes will determine their weight is the same “strength” as the genes that determine how tall they will be. These genes are even more powerful than the ones that determine if a person will have heart disease or breast cancer.

The body uses its fat cells to produce a gene called Leptin. The leptin sends signals to the brain that tell it when to eat and when not to. When the levels of leptin drop, the body gets hungry. As an example of how certain genes can contribute to obesity, a case from Great Britain is cited. There was a young boy whose body could not make the leptin and as a result he was ravenously hungry all the time. At the age of four, he could eat over a thousand calories a day. Once the leptin levels were corrected, the young man’s appetite went back to normal and he is now at a healthy weight. Nothing else in the boy’s eating habits changed. His parents still fed him the same food, but he was no longer ravenous. This is just one of several genetic factors that can contribute to a (pardon the pun) slim portion of the world’s obese population. But, research is only just now looking for these kinds of genetic problems. There is hope that perhaps as we understand more about genetic predispositions to weight issues, there will be “cures” as well. Maybe some of the obese people really “can’t help” being overweight.



The article I quote above is not the only one on newsweek.com concerning obesity. I found one that talks about the discrimination that obese people endure. This discrimination is not just limited to the school yard. It is being seen as high up as the Surgeon General’s office. Dr. Regina Benjamin is President Obamah’s pick for the office of the Surgeon General, but she is meeting great opposition from several fronts. It has nothing to do with her politics or any potential changes she plans to implement, but because she is overweight. Her opposers are concerned that she will send the wrong message.

New research is also showing that as we as a population expose our children and our unborn babies to pollutants and chemicals we may be predisposing them to obesity as well. Author Sharon Begley warns in an upcoming Newsweek article that several hormones can be affected in our up and coming generations that will markedly change how their bodies metabolize food. So, in essence we may be programming our kids to be overweight by our overexposure to chemicals.

The information that Newsweek put out was not limited to just written articles. I also found several photo slide shows. My favorite is this one, depicting how Hollywood looks at obesity. All in all, I found out a lot of great information about several causes of obesity. My concern is that those of us obese people don’t use this as an excuse for not trying to live a healthy life, and my hope is that the people out there that hate and fear fat, will find some reasons to be a lot more compassionate.

Too Much Sleep?

According to an article published by Reuters, older people that get more than eight hours of sleep per night may just be at a higher risk for dementia. The study, conducted by Spanish researchers, showed that of the 3,300 patients tested, the ones that slept over nine hours were more likely to show the signs of dementia. The patients tested were all over 65 years old and showed a 5 percent chance to exhibit the signs of early dementia. Conversely, the patients that got less than five hours of sleep showed almost the same percentage of dementia concerns.




As a person that has short term memory “issues” and a mother with Alzheimer’s I was intrigued by this article. I was holding my breath until I saw what defined the term “older patients” in the article, since I am 41 and can sometimes get lumped into the “older” category. Imagine my relief when I saw that the study was of patients over 65.

The study itself is interesting and in my opinion doesn’t really suggest too much that sleep is the cause of these patient’s problems. I think that the author of this story wanted a sensational story and took an ordinary finding and slanted it to fit her needs. There were several things that factored into the study that could have a much bigger effect on the findings. For example: it is suggested that perhaps sleeping longer is itself a symptom of early dementia. Or perhaps some of the medical conditions that lead to dementia also cause excess sleep. And finally, sleep apnea was mentioned as causing symptoms such as impaired memory and the need for excess hours in bed.

I find it frustrating when someone writes or reports a story with a sensational headline or opening only to get our attention and then change the story. But then again, would I have read it otherwise?

The old euphemism that “You can’t stop progress.” is being proven true in Mongolia. In an article on MSNBC.com one reporter blogs about her experience with the “Reindeer People” in Hosvgol Province. After a three day journey comprised of airplane, Russian van and horse back, reporter Adrienne Mong was happy to still see that she still had cell phone service.

The reporter and her crew were en route to a village further north, but had time to stop in Tsagaannuur for a visit and to see their new Tsaatan Community & Visitors Centre (TCVC). The villagers of Tsagaannuur were traditionally a nomadic tribe, relying on their reindeer for the majority of their needs. But recently, several events impacted the tribe in drastic ways. The first was a bacterial infection that dramatically reduced the reindeer herd’s population. The second was the increase in “eco-tourists” coming to the village being led by guides not of their tribe. There was thousands of dollars and euros being spent, but not within the village. Now, thanks to volunteers, the local tribesmen have been trained how to run the TCVC earning a living and the reindeer herd’s size has doubled. Things seem to be looking up for the “Reindeer People”.




To be honest when I first read this article I had mixed feelings. Being Native American I admit to having a tainted view about “helping” native people with progress. But the young woman also mentioned in the article, Morgan Keay, seems to be going about helping the natives in a positive way. So many times in the past, help offered came with a drastic price; the loss of a people’s identity. Time has taught us that entire societies were destroyed by “progress”.

Ms. Keay, however, seems to be truly helping this group of people help themselves. Instead of removing their cultural heritage, they are now celebrating it and profiting from it. Keay set up the nonprofit Itgel Foundation, a group through which she raised the funds to bring in veterinarians and animal experts from both over seas and from the area. They in turn, discovered why the reindeer herds were declining and then taught the Tsagaannuur people how to treat their animals and care for the herd themselves. Now, the herd is preserved for future generations, and the funds will be there to further their education thanks to the cultural center being run by fellow villagers. If change had to come to this tribe, I am glad it came in the form that it did.