polly7
polly7's JournalIran: Sanctions and Shortages, Empty Pockets for Healthcare
Posted 4 December 2012 0:12 GMT
Written by
Arseh Sevom
There is no doubt about the immediate results of unprecedented sanctions on the lives of millions of patients in Iran. There is not a single day when we do not hear a new story about medicine shortages in Iran and how it adversely affects Iranians, especially those requiring uninterrupted medication.
Over the past three weeks though, local media in Iran have highlighted allegations of mismanagement and mishandling of imports by the government. This has contributed to the drug crisis and revealed corruption and incompetence at the highest levels.
Hossein Ali Shahriari, the head of the parliament's health commission, stated [fa], “The government has paid no attention to the domain of health and medicine.” He added that there has been “virtually no currency” for the budget and the import of medicines over the last six months.
The minister of health, Marzieh Vahid-Dastjerdi, also criticized the budget allocation, saying: “We don't know what happened to the hard currency allocated to the purchase of medicine.” According to her, only 24% of the required budget for the purchase of medicine has been provided by the Central Bank.
http://globalvoicesonline.org/2012/12/04/iran-sanctions-and-shortages-empty-pockets-for-healthcare/
Top Censored Stories of 2013
http://www.projectcensored.org/Top Censored Stories of 2013
(each is a clickable link to its own story)
1. Signs of an Emerging Police State
2. Oceans in Peril
3. Fukushima Nuclear Disaster Worse than Anticipated
4. FBI Agents Responsible for Majority of Terrorist Plots in the United States
5. First Federal Reserve Audit Reveals Trillions Loaned to Major Banks
6. Small Network of Corporations Run the Global Economy
7. 2012: The International Year of Cooperatives
8. NATO War Crimes in Libya
9. Prison Slavery in Today’s USA
10. HR 347 Would Make Many Forms of Nonviolent Protest Illegal
11. Members of Congress Grow Wealthier Despite Recession
12. US Joins Forces with al-Qaeda in Syria
13. Education “Reform” a Trojan Horse for Privatization
14. Who Are the Top 1 Percent and How Do They Earn a Living?
15. Dangers of Everyday Technology
16. Sexual Violence against Women Soldiers on the Rise and under Wraps
17. Students Crushed By One Trillion Dollars in Student Loans
18. Palestinian Women Prisoners Shackled during Childbirth
19. New York Police Plant Drugs on Innocent People to Meet Arrest Quotas
20. Stealing from Public Education to Feed the Prison-Industrial Complex
21. Conservatives Attack US Post Office to Break the Union and Privatize Postal Services
22. Wachovia Bank Laundered Money for Latin American Drug Cartels
23. US Covers up Afghan Massacre
24. Alabama Farmers Look to Replace Migrants with Prisoners
25. Evidence Points to Guantánamo Dryboarding
Leveson’s Punch And Judy Show Masks Hacking On A Scale You Can Barely Imagine
By John Pilger
Wednesday, December 05, 2012
http://www.zcommunications.org/leveson-s-punch-and-judy-show-masks-hacking-on-a-scale-you-can-barely-imagine-by-john-pilger
Chinese Sixth-Grader’s Viral Essay: “Survival and Security of the Entire Human Race” Depend on My
Test Score
November 25, 2012 | by Minami Funakoshi
Chinese Sixth-Grader’s Viral Essay: “Survival and Security of the Entire Human Race” Depend on My Test Score
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, who will surely come if one young boy fails his upcoming test. (Via Wikimedia Commons)
This article also appeared in The Atlantic, a Tea Leaf Nation partner site.
Recently, an essay purportedly written by a sixth grader—an epitome of the “butterfly effect”—went viral on the Chinese Internet.
“Time passes very quickly. It’s midterm season soon, I already began nervously preparing for the test, I must begin working harder, because if I don’t work hard and review well, then my grades will not go up, and I will be scolded by my parents, and if I get scolded by my parents then I will lose self-confidence, if I lose self-confidence then I will not finish my studies, if I do not finish my studies then I will not graduate [from university], if I can’t graduate from university then I will not find a good job, if I don’t find a good job then I won’t be able to make money, if I don’t make money then I can’t pay taxes, if I don’t pay taxes then it will be difficult for the country to pay salary to teachers, if teachers can’t get paid then they will not be dedicated to teaching, if they are not dedicated to teaching, then this will impact our nation’s future, if our nation’s future is impacted, then it will be difficult for China to advance and develop, and the Chinese people will degenerate into a barbaric race. If the Chinese people degenerate into a barbaric race, then the USA will begin to suspect that our nation has large-scale murderous weapons, if our nation has large-scale murderous weapons, then the USA will start a war with China and World War III will erupt, if WWIII erupts, both the strengths of both the USA and China will not be enough, if their strengths are not enough then they will use nuclear weapons, if they use nuclear weapons then they will destroy the environment, if the environment is destroyed then this will create a big hole in the atmosphere, if there is a big hole in the atmosphere then global warming will escalate and the glaciers at both poles will melt, if the glaciers melt then the global water level will rise, if the global water level rises then the entire human race will drown and die. Because it relates to the survival and security of the entire human race, therefore I must spend the remaining next few days on review in order to do well on the test, and thus prevent a tragedy from happening.”
The teacher commented at the end of the essay, “Haha I laughed out loud when I read this!”
This absurdly comical essay did not only make Chinese web users laugh. It also prompted many to reflect. One web user was quoted by People’s Daily as writing, “After I read this, I felt ashamed of myself. This elementary student’s mentality is something we should all learn from.” Another web user was said to comment, “I went back to my books [after reading this].”
Children rarely speak ironically; their off-hand comments often reveal ideologies or anxieties that pervade society at a sub-conscious level. This elementary school student, who worries aloud that his behaviour could affect the future of the human race, reflects a shift in Chinese consciousness: A growing sense of responsibility as a global citizen, an increasing interest in the world outside China, and the realization that China, as an influential nation, must contribute to world peace.
http://www.tealeafnation.com/2012/11/chinese-sixth-graders-viral-essay-survival-and-security-of-the-entire-human-race-depend-on-my-test-score/
Israel To Withhold Tax Transfers To Palestinians AP.
By AMY TEIBEL
— Dec. 2 8:47 AM EST
It was the second act of reprisal since the U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to support the Palestinians' statehood initiative. The following day, Israel announced it would start drawing up plans to build thousands of settlement homes, including the first-ever residential developments on a sensitive piece of land near Jerusalem. Actual construction would be years away.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared the statehood campaign, led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, as "a gross violation of the agreements signed with the state of Israel."
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/israel-withhold-tax-transfers-palestinians
We Want It to Stop
By Kathy Kelly
Sunday, December 02, 2012
Only after Tareq was safely at the hospital did Hazem’s father dare tell his mother that her son Odai was dead. The burial was the following day.
Our area was safe,” said Hazem, “and we couldn’t imagine that this would happen. It was very strange. No one could believe that the Israelis would target our area.” He paused before adding, “They want to clear everything.”
http://www.zcommunications.org/we-want-it-to-stop-by-kathy-kelly
Austerity — the 1%’s Global Battle Cry
By Mark Vorpahl
Friday, November 30, 2012
Whether we are left with the Fiscal Cliff or a Grand Bargain, workers in the U.S. face massive cuts to programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, unemployment insurance, Food Stamp assistance and other needed social safety nets. This is an example of "austerity" which has largely been pursued in the U.S. until now, on a statewide and local level.
The policies of austerity are not unique to the U.S. They are being enacted internationally. In Europe they have been aggressively put into play for four years. While austerity has been pursued on all continents, this article will focus on Europe and the U.S.
What are the policies of austerity? They involve the cutting of public investment and services such as education, health care, and retirement insurance. In addition they also include the privatizing of existing government assets. Public employees suffer wage freezes or cuts and mass layoffs as part of austerity measures. Labor laws are revised to empower employers at the expense of employees' job security, wages, benefits, and voice on the job. And austerity also involves increased taxes and fees on working class people.
Austerity is sold as the only available means of reducing the debt. However, there is plenty of money to take care of these financial imbalances. It is in the pockets of the wealthy and big business elites whose think tanks and politicians are, not coincidentally, the architects of austerity. They want nations' economies to be run more like the corporations and banks, prioritizing that their shareholders get paid first and foremost at the expense of everyone else.
More: http://www.zcommunications.org/austerity-the-1-s-global-battle-cry-by-mark-vorpahl
One million sign against Public Health Service privatization in Madrid
http://www.demotix.com/news/1644920/one-million-sign-against-public-health-service-privatization-madrid#media-1644878
Employees in Greek Municipalities go on Strike again
http://www.demotix.com/news/1645090/employees-greek-municipalities-go-strike-again#media-1645030
Anti-government protests in Ljubljana turn violent
Thousands protested against the budget cuts by the government of Janez Jansa in Ljubljana, and demanded the fall of the capitalist political elites. The peaceful demonstration turned violent when groups of protesters clashed with the police.
http://www.demotix.com/news/1645005/anti-government-protests-ljubljana-turn-violent#media-1646470
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