According to the United Nations, over 10,000 Palestinians were displaced after a rare winter storm and torrential rains turned large swathes of the region into a "disaster area." At least two people are dead.

"Large swathes of northern Gaza are a disaster area with water as far as the eye can see. Areas around Jabalia have become a massive lake with two meter high waters engulfing homes and stranding thousands," UNRWA spokesperson Chris Gunness said in a statement published by the Ma'an News Agency Saturday.

An Israeli blockade, imposed in an attempt to unseat the Hamas-led government, limits the import of everything from building materials to inexpensive fuel leaving Palestinians in Gaza with widespread food insecurity, a shortage of potable water and the inability to power their homes and businesses—a tenuous situation, that relief workers say was exacerbated by the current crisis.

Before the storm hit, the 1.8 million people living in the Gaza strip have endured daily blackouts of around 12 hours since the territory's lone power plant was switched off last month due to a fuel shortage, Al Jazeera reports.

-snip-

http://www.countercurrents.org/cc161213.htm

this is a humanitarian crisis.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/nyc-train-derailment-leaves-4-dead-dozens-injured/2013/12/01/d180a0fe-5aa1-11e3-bf7e-f567ee61ae21_story.html

http://www.tradereform.org/2012/01/whole-foods-not-so-organic-after-all/

http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/10/01/food-babe-investigates-whole-foods/

"JFK - the smoking gun" at 1 pm tomorrow 11/23. check your listings. there may be more reruns. it's a must see.

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/11/21/21520758-accidental-assassin-jfk-theory-alleges-secret-service-agent-fumbled-gun

anyone see it? very interesting.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2510343/Up-15-000-US-troops-remain-Afghanistan-2024.html

will cost taxpayers tens of billions, but we had to cut food stamps, unemployment, etc.

who are in the path of these terrible storms.

stay safe.

saw my doc friday. to make a long story short he's a liberal dem but is disappointed that obama didn't do a better job of making sure the ACA website was working. he said "we should have gone all the way -- universal healthcare". i said "medicare for all"? he said "yes". we talked about how medicare would be saved with younger people buying in.

i mentioned how some docs will not take medicare. i said "it's not illegal -- but it's unethical". he agreed with me.

he's a kind and caring doc and i'm fortunate to have him.

believe that men and women can have platonic relationships?