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HuckleB
HuckleB's Journal
HuckleB's Journal
September 9, 2015
"...
I’m seeing a lot of writing about not calling refugees “migrants.” This is in reaction to those who say refugees are “only” migrants, that this “flood” of migrants flows to richer countries for economic benefit. And it’s true that there’s an urgency in the condition of refugees (no one growing up thinks this will be their fate: to be a refugee, at the crucial mercy of others), and what is specially awful about being a refugee must be recognized and acted on, and not simply reduced to money.
But here’s the thing: migrants should be welcome too. Migrants are welcome. Some of the refugees become migrants, once the immediate danger is past. Some migrants become refugees, caught in an unexpected vortex of malice. Don’t let yourself be spun into a language of hatred and exclusion, at this hot moment in which it’s deemed OK to support refugees but still condemn migrants.
I say refugee, I say migrant, I say neighbor, I say friend, because everyone is deserving of dignity. Because moving for economic benefit is itself a matter of life and death. Because money is the universal language, and to be deprived of it is to be deprived of a voice while everyone else is shouting. Sometimes the gun aimed at your head is grinding poverty, or endless shabby struggle, or soul crushing tedium.
And more than “refugee” or “migrant,” I say “people,” and say it with compassion because everyone I love, and everyone they love has at some point said tearful goodbyes and moved from place to place to seek new opportunities, and almost all of them have by their movement improved those new places. Because I reject the poverty of a narrowly defined “we” that robs me of human complexity. Because I don’t believe that radical inclusivity is going to destroy “our” way of living, when I generally don’t know what “our” you’re talking about, and when I think we can do much better than this malevolent way of living anyway.
..."
Absolutely.
Migrants Welcome By TEJU COLE (This piece is worth reading, IMO.)
http://thenewinquiry.com/blogs/migrants-welcome/"...
I’m seeing a lot of writing about not calling refugees “migrants.” This is in reaction to those who say refugees are “only” migrants, that this “flood” of migrants flows to richer countries for economic benefit. And it’s true that there’s an urgency in the condition of refugees (no one growing up thinks this will be their fate: to be a refugee, at the crucial mercy of others), and what is specially awful about being a refugee must be recognized and acted on, and not simply reduced to money.
But here’s the thing: migrants should be welcome too. Migrants are welcome. Some of the refugees become migrants, once the immediate danger is past. Some migrants become refugees, caught in an unexpected vortex of malice. Don’t let yourself be spun into a language of hatred and exclusion, at this hot moment in which it’s deemed OK to support refugees but still condemn migrants.
I say refugee, I say migrant, I say neighbor, I say friend, because everyone is deserving of dignity. Because moving for economic benefit is itself a matter of life and death. Because money is the universal language, and to be deprived of it is to be deprived of a voice while everyone else is shouting. Sometimes the gun aimed at your head is grinding poverty, or endless shabby struggle, or soul crushing tedium.
And more than “refugee” or “migrant,” I say “people,” and say it with compassion because everyone I love, and everyone they love has at some point said tearful goodbyes and moved from place to place to seek new opportunities, and almost all of them have by their movement improved those new places. Because I reject the poverty of a narrowly defined “we” that robs me of human complexity. Because I don’t believe that radical inclusivity is going to destroy “our” way of living, when I generally don’t know what “our” you’re talking about, and when I think we can do much better than this malevolent way of living anyway.
..."
Absolutely.
September 8, 2015
Can you name a safety risk associated with genetic engineering that could not also be applied to other plant breeding methods?
PS: https://www.uq.edu.au/news/node/117763
Can anyone answer this question?
Can you name a safety risk associated with genetic engineering that could not also be applied to other plant breeding methods?
PS: https://www.uq.edu.au/news/node/117763
September 8, 2015
Yup.!
3
White Sand Beaches Are Made Of Fish Poop
http://grossscience.tumblr.com/post/128563222203/if-youve-ever-bathed-in-the-sun-on-a-tropicalYup.!
3
September 8, 2015
"Treating dairy cows and other farm animals with antibiotics and then laying their manure in soil can cause the bacteria in the dirt to grow resistant to the drugs. But a study now suggests that the manure itself could be contributing to resistance, even when it comes from cows that are free of antibiotics.
The mechanism at work is not yet clear, but the finding — published on 6 October in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences1 — suggests a complex link between antibiotic use in agriculture and resistance in human pathogens.
Many bacteria in the environment naturally carry antibiotic-resistance genes, probably as defence against the antibiotics produced by some soil fungi and bacteria. Laboratory-made versions of these antibiotics are used to treat infection in humans and animals, and to promote growth in livestock.
Because manure itself is known to change the composition of bacterial communities in soil, a team led by microbiologist Jo Handelsman, then at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, decided to examine whether it also affects drug resistance. The team treated soil samples with either a nitrogen-based fertilizer or with manure from cows that had never been fed antibiotics.
..."
This is why we can't buy into so much bad fear mongering regarding food. No one is saying that we should run from manure here, but it's something to follow. The same goes for other issues in agriculture and food.
Science matters, especially to true progressives.
Don't let propaganda stop good science.
Manure fertilizer increases antibiotic resistance
http://www.nature.com/news/manure-fertilizer-increases-antibiotic-resistance-1.16081"Treating dairy cows and other farm animals with antibiotics and then laying their manure in soil can cause the bacteria in the dirt to grow resistant to the drugs. But a study now suggests that the manure itself could be contributing to resistance, even when it comes from cows that are free of antibiotics.
The mechanism at work is not yet clear, but the finding — published on 6 October in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences1 — suggests a complex link between antibiotic use in agriculture and resistance in human pathogens.
Many bacteria in the environment naturally carry antibiotic-resistance genes, probably as defence against the antibiotics produced by some soil fungi and bacteria. Laboratory-made versions of these antibiotics are used to treat infection in humans and animals, and to promote growth in livestock.
Because manure itself is known to change the composition of bacterial communities in soil, a team led by microbiologist Jo Handelsman, then at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, decided to examine whether it also affects drug resistance. The team treated soil samples with either a nitrogen-based fertilizer or with manure from cows that had never been fed antibiotics.
..."
This is why we can't buy into so much bad fear mongering regarding food. No one is saying that we should run from manure here, but it's something to follow. The same goes for other issues in agriculture and food.
Science matters, especially to true progressives.
Don't let propaganda stop good science.
September 5, 2015
The anti-GMO Million Dollar Question.
Can you name a safety risk associated with genetic engineering that could not also be applied to other plant breeding methods?
PS: https://www.uq.edu.au/news/node/117763
September 4, 2015
We should all be very concerned that bad propaganda is leading to unworthy practices being pushed upon the public. We know too much to fall for this stuff. And yet we're allowing it, blindly. This takes up valuable health care resources that should not be wasted so carelessly.
https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/kings-of-quackademia-georgetown/
Also, read the link in post 1 above. It shows the very real problems with this issue on the ground, in Oregon.
Just because it is used, doesn't make it effective. It's an elaborate placebo.
https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/can-we-finally-just-say-that-acupuncture-is-nothing-more-than-an-elaborate-placebo/We should all be very concerned that bad propaganda is leading to unworthy practices being pushed upon the public. We know too much to fall for this stuff. And yet we're allowing it, blindly. This takes up valuable health care resources that should not be wasted so carelessly.
https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/kings-of-quackademia-georgetown/
Also, read the link in post 1 above. It shows the very real problems with this issue on the ground, in Oregon.
September 4, 2015
Medicine in the Magic Kingdom of Cascadia
https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/medicine-in-the-magic-kingdom-of-cascadia/#more-38708
September 4, 2015
"A lot of companies are changing their recipes to remove genetically modified organisms and "unnatural" ingredients, and plenty of customers think that's great news. But these moves play more on irrational fear than they do on actual science, and basing all your food choices on avoiding "unnatural" ingredients may not be as healthy as you'd think.
...
The same holds true with a lot of the other recipe changes major companies have been making -- removing dyes, changing sweeteners, and so on. Several of these changes -- the removal of a harmless chemical in Subway's bread that happens to also be present in yoga mats, and the switch from artificial dyes to paprika in Kraft Mac and Cheese -- seem to have been made directly in response to anti-science fear-mongering. And in both of those cases, there was no real science behind the decision to make the changes.
And do you really think the maker of boxed macaroni and cheese is concerned about your health? Step back and think about that for a second.
You have to make your own food choices. And if you want to stick with manufacturers that avoid products you're afraid of, no one can stop you. But think twice about why companies are making the claims they're making -- and whether those promises really mean what you hope they do.
..."
A nice, concise piece with good links.
Why ‘GMO-free’ is a marketing ploy you shouldn’t fall for
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2015/09/02/why-gmo-free-is-a-marketing-ploy-you-shouldnt-fall-for/"A lot of companies are changing their recipes to remove genetically modified organisms and "unnatural" ingredients, and plenty of customers think that's great news. But these moves play more on irrational fear than they do on actual science, and basing all your food choices on avoiding "unnatural" ingredients may not be as healthy as you'd think.
...
The same holds true with a lot of the other recipe changes major companies have been making -- removing dyes, changing sweeteners, and so on. Several of these changes -- the removal of a harmless chemical in Subway's bread that happens to also be present in yoga mats, and the switch from artificial dyes to paprika in Kraft Mac and Cheese -- seem to have been made directly in response to anti-science fear-mongering. And in both of those cases, there was no real science behind the decision to make the changes.
And do you really think the maker of boxed macaroni and cheese is concerned about your health? Step back and think about that for a second.
You have to make your own food choices. And if you want to stick with manufacturers that avoid products you're afraid of, no one can stop you. But think twice about why companies are making the claims they're making -- and whether those promises really mean what you hope they do.
..."
A nice, concise piece with good links.
September 3, 2015
This really brings reality home. Unfortunately, I'm not in a constructive mode, so I'm not going to post this widely at DU. Still, some of you might be interested, so...
Focus on Pesticides is a Distraction from Major Eco Impacts
http://fafdl.org/blog/2015/03/06/focus-on-pesticides-is-a-distraction-from-major-eco-impacts/This really brings reality home. Unfortunately, I'm not in a constructive mode, so I'm not going to post this widely at DU. Still, some of you might be interested, so...
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