http://educate-yourself.org/cn/interestingreading10nov05.shtml
November 10, 2005
From rfb@shaw.ca <rfb@shaw.ca>
* UNCATEGORIZED *
United States of America v Rafil A.Dhafir
Are we a society that calls this justice?
By Katherine Hughes
Dr. Rafil A. Dhafir was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison on Thursday,
October 27th, 2005 for sending humanitarian aid to starving Iraqi civilians
through his charity Help the Needy. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10859.htm
-----
Wal-Mart: is this the worst company in the world?
It is the biggest private employer in America with a turnover equivalent
to that of a medium-sized country, but churches, unions, and an innovative
film-maker are set on holding Wal-Mart to account http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article324050.ece
-----
All Problems Bleed from America’s Wound
By Brian Bogart
Making and selling weapons has been America’s top industry since 1950,
that we have sustained this weapons-based economy by supplying more than
200 wars in 55 years, and that some 310,000 companies and 400 colleges are
on the Pentagon’s ever expanding payroll. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10882.htm
-----
The reality of Britain's reliance on torture
I will tell you what torture means.
By Craig Murray
It means the woman who was raped with a broken bottle in both vagina and
anus, and who died after ten days of agony. It means the old man suspended
by wrist shackles from the ceiling while his children were beaten to a pulp
before his eyes. It means the man whose fingernails were pulled before his
face was beaten and he was immersed to his armpits in boiling liquid. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10892.htm
-----
Linda McQuaig: Beneath spy `outing' lies story of lies about
Iraq
If George W. Bush had announced, prior to invading Iraq, that his motive
was to seize Iraq's oil, to enhance Israel's power or to ensure U.S. military
dominance of the Middle East, none of these justifications would have satisfied
the public. Hence the need for a cover story http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10894.htm
-----
Let them eat pork
Congressional leaders say it's time to get serious about the deficit, so
they cut $36-billion in spending on the country's working poor. And then
they give the wealthy $70-billion more in tax breaks. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10902.htm
-----
Why torture is OK
Imagine that you are on your way to work, coffee in hand, one December morning
when three men in United States military uniforms, armed with guns,
approach you. They say your name; you acknowledge it. - The men throw a
heavy plastic black hood over your head. http://www.opendemocracy.net/globalization-village/torture_2938.jsp
-----
What's behind high world oil prices?
Robyn Ball, 26/09/2005
World oil prices have more than doubled since the beginning of 2004 and
the consequences are being felt around the world. We spoke to Vandana Hari,
a Singapore-based Asian oil and gas analyst for energy market information
provider, Platts, about what's causing the oil price surge. http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/news/profiles/s1467117.htm
-----
The Sleeping Giant Stirs
Something remarkable is taking place. At long last, however belatedly, the
public is beginning to appreciate the shallowness and incompetence of George
Bush and the unparalleled mendacity and corruption of his administration. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10930.htm
-----
* HEALTH *
WE ALL HAVE CANCER AND HOW IT STARTS
"Because of the solid research by the now Dr. Kreb Jr. the formulations
worked miracle after consistent miracle. At first they cured cancer by the
dozen, then by the hundreds and later by the thousands. Most readers of
this forum are aware, but many who will receive a copy have no clues about
cancer cures. If you will dig into the history of cancer, you will discover
that a medical cancer system has been created so large that if a cure for
cancer
were applied today, within 6 months the total American economy would collapse;
it is that much intertwined into the total economy. Therefore any
cancer cure is a threat not only to the AMA and its membership doctors who
do not decide policy, but also to the American government itself. Thusly
the
AMA and the FDA combines forces to stop all applications of cancer cures
that affect more than a few people." http://educate-yourself.org/pnl/beardsleyandcancer02nov05.shtml
-----
Soy, whats that you say?
For years, we've been hearing that soy is a good source of
protein, lowers cholesterol and reduces the risk for heart disease. There
was also talk of soy protein having a protective effect against cancer.
The reputation of soy still seems solid with mainstream doctors and dietitians.
Lately, however, there have been rumblings of dissent in the nutritional
community -- and some of these rumblings are very loud. Have we been oversold
on soy?
To find out, I spoke with Kaayla Daniel, PhD, CCN, nutritionist
and author of The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America's Favorite Health
Food (New Trends), who wrote three well-documented protests filed with the
FDA regarding the proposed soy protein/cancer health
claim. What I learned was disturbing.
MARKETING VERSUS SCIENCE
"Soy is not a health food, soy is not a panacea and soy
has not even been proven safe," Dr. Daniel told me. "It's a triumph
of marketing over real science." According to Dr. Daniel, the soy we
are being sold in today's US market is a far cry from the soy eaten in Asian
diets. "The type of food Asians eat is very different from what's appearing
on the American table," she said. "While Asians do indeed eat
small amounts of old-fashioned whole soy, they do not consume processed
products made with soy protein isolate, texturized vegetable protein and
soy oil. They rarely if ever consume soy shakes, energy bars, soy milk,
soy burgers and other newly invented foods that use processed soy rather
than 'the real deal'."
THE PROBLEMS WITH SOY
According to Dr. Daniel -- and to the growing number of soy
detractors -- there are several other problems with soy...
First, it's not a particularly good source of protein. "Soy
is very low in an essential amino acid called methionine, without which
it can't be fully digested and utilized by the system," said Dr. Daniel.
"It consistently scores low on almost all protein ratings except one,
the protein digestibility corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS), which was
set up as almost an 'affirmative action' rating system to make soy look
better than it is."
Second, soy contains phytates. Phytates are compounds found
in beans, grains and seeds that bind toxic metals such as cadmium (a good
thing), but also bind with minerals such as iron, zinc, calcium and magnesium,
preventing their absorption (a bad thing). Phytates can cause iron deficiencies,
leading to fatigue, lethargy, poor athletic performance and a weakened immune
system. Iron deficiencies also can affect the thyroid, which in turn leads
to weight gain.
Soy also contains protease inhibitors, compounds that inhibit
important enzymes, such as trypsin, which are needed to digest protein.
Protease inhibitors are the reason that soy protein, in all forms, is notoriously
hard to digest and can badly stress the pancreas. "The commonly held
notion that low levels of these protease inhibitors pose no threat to human
health is simply untrue," said Dr. Daniel. Protease inhibitors have
been linked to malnutrition and
pancreatic disease. "While it's widely believed that cooking destroys
them, it does not eliminate them completely."
Finally, there's the issue of phytoestrogens, which are plant
estrogens found in soybeans. Phytoestrogens exert estrogenic effects directly
and indirectly throughout the body. When eaten in sufficiently large quantities,
"they can interfere with the production of thyroid hormones, disrupt
menstrual cycles, contribute to infertility, even interfere with testosterone
production in men, reducing their sex drive," Dr. Daniel told me. She
concedes that soy sometimes reduces hot flashes but warns that the possible
benefit is outweighed by proven risks to the thyroid, already a vulnerable
gland for menopausal women, most often causing weight gain, fatigue and
brain fog. Due to dangerous risks to ovarian hormone production, these phytoestrogen
products derived from soy should not be used over the long run to treat
PMS or symptoms of menopause.
SOY AND CANCER
As for the claim that soy prevents cancer, soy estrogens are
listed as carcinogens in some chemistry textbooks. Dr. Daniel believes that
compounds in soy may indeed have valid pharmaceutical uses in cancer treatment,
but that's not the same as saying we should eat a lot of soy foods. According
to Dr. Daniel, numerous studies actually show that soy can contribute to,
cause and accelerate the growth of cancer. "Most alarmingly,"
she told me, "parents who feed their infants soy formula are unwittingly
giving them the hormonal equivalent of three to five birth control pills
a day, potentially interfering with brain and reproductive system development."
The British Dietetic Association, Swiss Federal Health Service and other
health authorities have warned parents and pediatricians against the use
of soy formula, but in America, 25% of the bottle-fed market uses soy formula...
and this number is growing.
Although most researchers are more moderate, believing that
one or two portions of a good soy protein a day are probably fine, more
and more nutritionists share Dr. Daniel's thinking. "There's no problem
eating traditionally fermented products like miso in moderation, and even
a little tofu once in a while," she told me, "but for people who
want protein shakes, whey is a much better choice. The problem isn't the
moderate consumption of soy -- it is the enthusiastic view of it as a perfect
protein option for those looking to reduce their consumption of red meat
and dairy products."
ASTRONOMY PICTURE OF THE DAY http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
-----
"Disobedience, in the eyes of anyone who has read history, is man’s
original
virtue. It is through disobedience that progress had been made, through
disobedience and through rebellion."
- Oscar Wilde - (1854-1900)
All information posted on this web site is
the opinion of the author and is provided for educational purposes only.
It is not to be construed as medical advice. Only a licensed medical doctor
can legally offer medical advice in the United States. Consult the healer
of your choice for medical care and advice.