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marmar
marmar's Journal
marmar's Journal
June 27, 2012
Rudy Eugene -- AKA the "Miami Zombie" -- Was Not High on Bath Salts, Toxicology Report Shows
Rudy Eugene, AKA the Miami Zombie, was not high on bath salts when he ate Ronald Poppo's face last month. The toxicology report found only marijuana in his system-- not the synthetic drugs the media was hoping for.
As I previously reported, the media's insistence that Rudy Eugene was high on bath salts stemmed from an uniformed police officer's speculation. His misrepresentation of facts then snowballed into dozens of false reports, claiming not only that Eugene was high on bath salts, but also that bath salts are a 'super-potent form of LSD' -- another lie. Now, the mainstream media must confront the fact that, despite all of their rumor-mongering and subsequent calls for a baths salts ban, Rudy Eugene was probably mentally ill.
Mental illness was always the most likely cause behind the "Miami Zombie" story. But pinning a tragedy to a drug scare is easier (and perhaps more lucrative) than explaining a non-existent safety net for the mentally ill. Bath salts, the mainstream media naively believes, can be banned and eradicated. Treating mental illness is a far more complicated story. .................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/993407/rudy_eugene_--_aka_the_%22miami_zombie%22__--_was_not_high_on_bath_salts%2C_toxicology_report_shows/
Rudy Eugene -- AKA the "Miami Zombie" -- Was Not High on Bath Salts, Toxicology Report Shows
Rudy Eugene -- AKA the "Miami Zombie" -- Was Not High on Bath Salts, Toxicology Report Shows
Rudy Eugene, AKA the Miami Zombie, was not high on bath salts when he ate Ronald Poppo's face last month. The toxicology report found only marijuana in his system-- not the synthetic drugs the media was hoping for.
As I previously reported, the media's insistence that Rudy Eugene was high on bath salts stemmed from an uniformed police officer's speculation. His misrepresentation of facts then snowballed into dozens of false reports, claiming not only that Eugene was high on bath salts, but also that bath salts are a 'super-potent form of LSD' -- another lie. Now, the mainstream media must confront the fact that, despite all of their rumor-mongering and subsequent calls for a baths salts ban, Rudy Eugene was probably mentally ill.
Mental illness was always the most likely cause behind the "Miami Zombie" story. But pinning a tragedy to a drug scare is easier (and perhaps more lucrative) than explaining a non-existent safety net for the mentally ill. Bath salts, the mainstream media naively believes, can be banned and eradicated. Treating mental illness is a far more complicated story. .................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/993407/rudy_eugene_--_aka_the_%22miami_zombie%22__--_was_not_high_on_bath_salts%2C_toxicology_report_shows/
June 27, 2012
from Der Spiegel:
Is it possible to live modern life without plastic? One Austrian family, concerned about dangers to the environment and health caused by the material, decided to find out. What was meant to last a month has evolved into a new way of life.
Try to imagine living without plastic for just a single day. No computer, no mobile phone, no car and certainly no pre-packaged food. Modern life, marked by the ubiquity of plastic, makes avoiding the synthetic substance a nearly impossible undertaking. But concerned by a growing number of health and environmental problems that arise from constant contact with plastic, one Austrian family decided to go without.
In a new book published in German, titled "Plastikfreie Zone," or "Plastic-Free Zone," Sandra Krautwaschl details how her family of five got rid of many of their plastic items and now rarely buys anything made of the petroleum-based material.
It began as a month-long experiment, but has since turned into a way of life, says Krautwaschl. During a 2009 vacation to Croatia, the 40-year-old physical therapist was struck by how often her three children asked where all of the trash on the beach came from. The experience led her to consider her own responsibility for the problem. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/austrian-family-lives-without-plastic-a-840955.html
Austrian Family Lives a Life without Plastic
from Der Spiegel:
Is it possible to live modern life without plastic? One Austrian family, concerned about dangers to the environment and health caused by the material, decided to find out. What was meant to last a month has evolved into a new way of life.
Try to imagine living without plastic for just a single day. No computer, no mobile phone, no car and certainly no pre-packaged food. Modern life, marked by the ubiquity of plastic, makes avoiding the synthetic substance a nearly impossible undertaking. But concerned by a growing number of health and environmental problems that arise from constant contact with plastic, one Austrian family decided to go without.
In a new book published in German, titled "Plastikfreie Zone," or "Plastic-Free Zone," Sandra Krautwaschl details how her family of five got rid of many of their plastic items and now rarely buys anything made of the petroleum-based material.
It began as a month-long experiment, but has since turned into a way of life, says Krautwaschl. During a 2009 vacation to Croatia, the 40-year-old physical therapist was struck by how often her three children asked where all of the trash on the beach came from. The experience led her to consider her own responsibility for the problem. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/austrian-family-lives-without-plastic-a-840955.html
June 27, 2012
(Bloomberg Businessweek) A new survey by Citrix (CTXS), the Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) company that designs technology for employees to work remotely, shows that many people sneak in other activities while working from home.
Based on a survey of 1,013 American office workers, conducted in June by Wakefield Research, 43 percent watch TV or a movie and 20 percent play video games while officially working from home. Parents are more likely than those without children to partake in these two activities, which aren’t work-related.
Employees might not even be sober: 24 percent admit to having a drink. Twenty-six percent say they take naps. Others are distracted by housekeeping: 35 percent do household chores; 28 percent cook dinner.
Yet despite all the distractions, telecommuters are actually more productive than their peers in the office, according to preliminary findings from Stanford University’s study of a Chinese travel agency. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-06-25/what-people-really-do-when-theyre-working-from-home#r=read
What People Really Do When They're 'Working From Home'
(Bloomberg Businessweek) A new survey by Citrix (CTXS), the Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) company that designs technology for employees to work remotely, shows that many people sneak in other activities while working from home.
Based on a survey of 1,013 American office workers, conducted in June by Wakefield Research, 43 percent watch TV or a movie and 20 percent play video games while officially working from home. Parents are more likely than those without children to partake in these two activities, which aren’t work-related.
Employees might not even be sober: 24 percent admit to having a drink. Twenty-six percent say they take naps. Others are distracted by housekeeping: 35 percent do household chores; 28 percent cook dinner.
Yet despite all the distractions, telecommuters are actually more productive than their peers in the office, according to preliminary findings from Stanford University’s study of a Chinese travel agency. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-06-25/what-people-really-do-when-theyre-working-from-home#r=read
June 27, 2012
A fast-moving wildfire near Colorado Springs forced as many as 32,000 residents to be evacuated on Tuesday, as the blaze—fueled by 65 mph winds—jumped a perimeter set by firefighters trying desperately to contain it.
The Waldo Canyon fire—which was first spotted Saturday near Pikes Peak—doubled in size overnight to more than 24 square miles, according to the Associated Press.
The blaze has destroyed an unknown number of homes, caused roads to be closed and shut down part of the U.S. Air Force Academy. About 2,100 residents of the academy's campus were told to evacuate on Tuesday.
No deaths or injuries have been reported. ..............(more)
The complete piece is at: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/colorado-wildfires-evacuations-124631601.html
Massive blaze jumps fire line in Colorado
A fast-moving wildfire near Colorado Springs forced as many as 32,000 residents to be evacuated on Tuesday, as the blaze—fueled by 65 mph winds—jumped a perimeter set by firefighters trying desperately to contain it.
The Waldo Canyon fire—which was first spotted Saturday near Pikes Peak—doubled in size overnight to more than 24 square miles, according to the Associated Press.
The blaze has destroyed an unknown number of homes, caused roads to be closed and shut down part of the U.S. Air Force Academy. About 2,100 residents of the academy's campus were told to evacuate on Tuesday.
No deaths or injuries have been reported. ..............(more)
The complete piece is at: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/colorado-wildfires-evacuations-124631601.html
June 27, 2012
from the Christian Science Monitor:
An ad featuring a gay pride-themed Oreo is stirring up viral controversy today after Kraft posted the rainbow-colored Oreo on the popular treat's Facebook page. The ad, which featured an oversized cookie with rainbow-hued frosting layers above the date and accompanying caption, “Proudly support love!” was originally posted to Oreo’s profile Monday evening.
June has special significance in the LGBT community. President Barack Obama declared the month Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Pride Month on June 1, 2009. Many US cities, including New York and San Francisco, held annual Pride events over the weekend.
So far, over 167,000 Facebook users have “liked” the photoshopped image of the self-proclaimed “world’s favorite cookie.” It has racked up 48,853 shares and over 22,000 comments – not all of them positive, and quite a few vitriolic.
Website Buzzfeed was one of the first sites to aggregate some of the more negative feedback as rumblings of a possible boycott grew louder Tuesday morning. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.csmonitor.com/Business/2012/0626/Pride-themed-Rainbow-colored-Oreo-stirs-up-more-than-milk
Gay Pride Oreos cause Fundies to lose their cookies
from the Christian Science Monitor:
An ad featuring a gay pride-themed Oreo is stirring up viral controversy today after Kraft posted the rainbow-colored Oreo on the popular treat's Facebook page. The ad, which featured an oversized cookie with rainbow-hued frosting layers above the date and accompanying caption, “Proudly support love!” was originally posted to Oreo’s profile Monday evening.
June has special significance in the LGBT community. President Barack Obama declared the month Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Pride Month on June 1, 2009. Many US cities, including New York and San Francisco, held annual Pride events over the weekend.
So far, over 167,000 Facebook users have “liked” the photoshopped image of the self-proclaimed “world’s favorite cookie.” It has racked up 48,853 shares and over 22,000 comments – not all of them positive, and quite a few vitriolic.
Website Buzzfeed was one of the first sites to aggregate some of the more negative feedback as rumblings of a possible boycott grew louder Tuesday morning. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.csmonitor.com/Business/2012/0626/Pride-themed-Rainbow-colored-Oreo-stirs-up-more-than-milk
June 27, 2012
from Grist:
200 naked Germans buying groceries
By Jess Zimmerman
When a grocery store in Süderlügum, Germany offered $276 in free groceries to anyone willing to shop naked, they expected maybe 10 brave souls. They got more like 250, including folks from nearby Denmark who cross the border to shop for cheaper alcohol. This video is, I hardly need to tell you, not really safe for work — although there’s nothing all that titillating about it. (That said, if you’re headed to comments to make shitty cracks about people’s bodies, please evaluate your life.)
Okay, it’s not quite the nude horde you might have wished for/feared. The store only let people in 20 at a time to avoid, presumably, naked grocery sex-madness. And only the first 100 would-be birthday-suit shoppers got free grub. The rest had to keep their pants on.
200+ Naked Germans and Danes grocery shopping
http://grist.org/list/200-naked-germans-buying-groceries/from Grist:
200 naked Germans buying groceries
By Jess Zimmerman
When a grocery store in Süderlügum, Germany offered $276 in free groceries to anyone willing to shop naked, they expected maybe 10 brave souls. They got more like 250, including folks from nearby Denmark who cross the border to shop for cheaper alcohol. This video is, I hardly need to tell you, not really safe for work — although there’s nothing all that titillating about it. (That said, if you’re headed to comments to make shitty cracks about people’s bodies, please evaluate your life.)
Okay, it’s not quite the nude horde you might have wished for/feared. The store only let people in 20 at a time to avoid, presumably, naked grocery sex-madness. And only the first 100 would-be birthday-suit shoppers got free grub. The rest had to keep their pants on.
June 27, 2012
from the Toronto Star:
Tess Kalinowski
Transportation Reporter
Two councillors leading the TTC say it’s time to move ahead on an accumulating wish list of transit projects: 175 kilometres, including six subway lines, 10 LRTs and five bus and streetcar routes across the city.
The latest proposal would dramatically expand Toronto’s transit network over the next 30 years. And while it comes with a $30 billion price tag, it is well within the city’s grasp, say the councillors at the helm of the Toronto Transit Commission.
TTC chair Karen Stintz (Eglinton-Lawrence) and vice-chair Glenn De Baeremaeker (Scarborough Centre) believe residents can be persuaded to make the kind of transformative investment that would save Toronto from descending into a prosperity-crushing, gridlocked future.
They are calling their proposal OneCity and are asking council to approve a staff study of the plan in July. Councillors would then have until October to take the plan to their constituents before considering approval. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.thestar.com/news/transportation/article/1217721--transit-plan-dramatic-onecity-proposal-floated-by-stintz-debaeremaeker?bn=1
Toronto floats dramatic $30-billion transit plan
from the Toronto Star:
Tess Kalinowski
Transportation Reporter
Two councillors leading the TTC say it’s time to move ahead on an accumulating wish list of transit projects: 175 kilometres, including six subway lines, 10 LRTs and five bus and streetcar routes across the city.
The latest proposal would dramatically expand Toronto’s transit network over the next 30 years. And while it comes with a $30 billion price tag, it is well within the city’s grasp, say the councillors at the helm of the Toronto Transit Commission.
TTC chair Karen Stintz (Eglinton-Lawrence) and vice-chair Glenn De Baeremaeker (Scarborough Centre) believe residents can be persuaded to make the kind of transformative investment that would save Toronto from descending into a prosperity-crushing, gridlocked future.
They are calling their proposal OneCity and are asking council to approve a staff study of the plan in July. Councillors would then have until October to take the plan to their constituents before considering approval. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.thestar.com/news/transportation/article/1217721--transit-plan-dramatic-onecity-proposal-floated-by-stintz-debaeremaeker?bn=1
June 27, 2012
from the Toronto Star:
Tess Kalinowski
Transportation Reporter
Two councillors leading the TTC say it’s time to move ahead on an accumulating wish list of transit projects: 175 kilometres, including six subway lines, 10 LRTs and five bus and streetcar routes across the city.
The latest proposal would dramatically expand Toronto’s transit network over the next 30 years. And while it comes with a $30 billion price tag, it is well within the city’s grasp, say the councillors at the helm of the Toronto Transit Commission.
TTC chair Karen Stintz (Eglinton-Lawrence) and vice-chair Glenn De Baeremaeker (Scarborough Centre) believe residents can be persuaded to make the kind of transformative investment that would save Toronto from descending into a prosperity-crushing, gridlocked future.
They are calling their proposal OneCity and are asking council to approve a staff study of the plan in July. Councillors would then have until October to take the plan to their constituents before considering approval. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.thestar.com/news/transportation/article/1217721--transit-plan-dramatic-onecity-proposal-floated-by-stintz-debaeremaeker?bn=1
Toronto floats dramatic $30-billion transit plan
from the Toronto Star:
Tess Kalinowski
Transportation Reporter
Two councillors leading the TTC say it’s time to move ahead on an accumulating wish list of transit projects: 175 kilometres, including six subway lines, 10 LRTs and five bus and streetcar routes across the city.
The latest proposal would dramatically expand Toronto’s transit network over the next 30 years. And while it comes with a $30 billion price tag, it is well within the city’s grasp, say the councillors at the helm of the Toronto Transit Commission.
TTC chair Karen Stintz (Eglinton-Lawrence) and vice-chair Glenn De Baeremaeker (Scarborough Centre) believe residents can be persuaded to make the kind of transformative investment that would save Toronto from descending into a prosperity-crushing, gridlocked future.
They are calling their proposal OneCity and are asking council to approve a staff study of the plan in July. Councillors would then have until October to take the plan to their constituents before considering approval. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.thestar.com/news/transportation/article/1217721--transit-plan-dramatic-onecity-proposal-floated-by-stintz-debaeremaeker?bn=1
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