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Wed Salsa at Shbooms Feat DJ Super Chino

Compiled by the El Reportero’s staff

Make new friends and make long-lasting relationships while learning the hottest dance around!

If you are hot for dancing for a night to have fun, come and join us every Wednesday night at Shboom Nightclub to dance salsa with Beto and Noelani. Delicious dinner buffet. 7:30 p.m. Beginner Friendly Salsa Class 8:15 p.m. Intermediate Salsa at 6-8 p.m. Class 9 p.m. open dancing with DJ Super Chino. Only $10.

Every Wednesday, Jan 16 – Jan 30. Shboom Nightclub 2410 San Ramon Valley Blvd, San Ramon.

https://www.facebook.com/events/393198637918865/

An icon of Latin percussion Poncho Sanchez in SF

Legendary percussionist Poncho Sánchez will bring his Latin-Jazz conga beat to the Bay Area in a few days. He will bring the musical power muscle that he got back when he performed with some of the best, such as Cal Tjader, Mongo Santamaría, Hugh Masekela, Clare Fischer, and Tower of Power and more.
At Yoshi’s, 510 Embarcadero West, Oakland, CA 94607 510-238-9200. On Friday Jan. 25. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. Show starts at 8:00 p.m.

Live Latin Jazz @ Bird and Beckett
Hosted by Adrian Areas Latin Jazz Ensemble

Latin jazz and original compositions for your dancing and intellectual stimulation. New Music, new Energy, the new generation of Latin Jazz!!

The Adrian Areas Latin Jazz Ensemble will Be Performing Live. Cover Charge $5 Donation for Students/Musicians:$10-20 Donation for the Artists/Musicians.

Musicians Line up: Adrián Aréas on the Moperc Tumbadoras, Dan Neville On Vibes, Jordan Brysk On Baby Bass, Brian Andres On Drums.

Sunday February 3rd 2019, Show Time 4:30 p.m. -6:30 p.m., at Bird and Beckett Books in San Francisco.

The Inaugural COVEN Film Festival brings world-class short films made by women to San Francisco

Announcing the first-ever COVEN Film Festival, San Francisco’s new world-class short film festival featuring films made by women, for everyone. A full day of curated short film screenings, complete with filmmaker Q&A’s will take place Saturday, Feb. 9th, 2019 at the New People Cinema in San Francisco’s historic Japantown neighborhood. A private networking event will take place the evening before on Friday, Feb. 8 for filmmakers and sponsors.

More than 200 films were submitted from 19 countries. COVEN is dedicated to showcasing short films by underrepresented emerging women filmmakers with a lineup that includes work from creators of all ages and genres while spotlighting Bay Area artists.

On Feb. 9, at New People Cinema in San Francisco’s historic Japantown neighborhood, 1746 Post St, San Francisco. Tickets are limited and on sale now at covenfilmfest.com.

Dying in Vein, the Opiate Generation

Dying in Vein is an intimate and deeply personal exploration of opiate and heroin addiction. The film follows two young women trying to get clean, a 22-year-old in recovery, a family grieving the loss of their son, and a team of ER doctors trying to save their patients. Through these four stories, the film explores the pill to heroin pipeline and the shame and blame that surrounds the disease of addiction.

The film looks at the aftermath of death on loved ones, the daily commitment of sobriety, the reality of considering treatment after multiple relapses, and the culpability of our medical communities in the opiate crisis.

At the Tiburon Library located at 1501 Tiburon Boulevard in Tiburon, on Thursday, Feb. 14, 2019 at 6:30 p.m.

Bolivia to receive archaeological pieces belonging to it

by the El Reportero’s news services

Some 100 archaeological pieces are currently waiting in various countries to be returned to Bolivia during 2019, after several actions for the protection of heritage were undertaken by the Ministry of Cultures of this country.

Among the ancient relics are a keru or sacred vessel found in Argentina and another one in England, belonging to the Mollo culture – a pre-Inca people from 700 A.D. to 1400 A.D. – who inhabited the western part of the Royal mountain range, in the current La Paz department.

As part of the lot of objects to return to Bolivia is also a pot from the post-Tiwanaku era, culture developed in part of South America and after 1187 A.D.

The casserole is from the Netherlands, while another piece in the process of recovery from the United States is an eight-year-old mummy from the Inca culture.

Out of all these archaic components, 50 were recovered and 20 are expected to be in La Paz in January or February 2019, according to Laura Chambi, head of the International Relations Unit of Bolivia’s Ministry of Culture.

Chambi explained the repatriation process is neither simple nor low-budget.

If there is willingness to return an asset, the process can take up to six months, she said.

The return has two stages, one, delivery to the diplomatic representation of the embassy or consulate, which delays the analysis of the piece, while the second phase includes the return process, with departure permit, diplomatic bag and piece insurance, she added. The Protection and Defense Committee for Bolivia’s Cultural Heritage was reactivated this year, made up of several state agencies and security forces.

The Red List of Property Vulnerable to Illicit Trafficking, Theft and Disappearances of International Groups and Networks was created to prevent pieces trade, Chambi pointed out.

El “L.A. Art Show,” la feria de arte más importante de la costa oeste de EE.UU.
Apuesta por el arte latinoamericano en 2019

La Feria de Arte de Los Ángeles desembarcará en el Centro de Convenciones de Los Ángeles del 23 al 27 de enero de 2019 afianzando su posición como punta de lanza del arte contemporáneo y latinoamericano en la costa oeste de Estados Unidos. En su vigesimocuarta edición, la feria contará con la presencia de 120 galerías procedentes de 18 países – entre ellos México, Argentina, Chile, China y Japón.

La propuesta latinoamericana e iberoamericana se engloba bajo “DIVERSEartLA”, una sección que regresa a la feria por tercer año consecutivo bajo la dirección curatorial de la latina Marisa Caichiolo. “DIVERSEartLA” agrupa las iniciativas artísticas de carácter cívico de instituciones, museos y organizaciones internacionales y locales sin fines lucrativos, como el Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Long Beach (MOLAA), la prestigiosa Colección Arte Al Límite de Chile, LACMA, el CCK de Buenos Aires (con la presencia de la conocida artista argentina Marta Minujín & Andrés Paredes), Launch, Art Share LA o el performance del artista de origen costarricense Dorian Wood.

Noche de estreno Miércoles, 23 de enero de 2019, from 7 p.m. – 11 p.m. En el Centro De Convenciones De Los Ángeles (L.A. Convention Center) – West Hall, 1201 South Figueroa Street Los Angeles. Para entradas visite: https://tinyurl.com/LAArtShow2019. Visita DIVERSEartLA en: https://www.laartshow.com/diverseartla/. Video: https://youtu.be/Tox12Ik22zw.

Benicio del Toro returns to Cuba with ‘Sicario’

by the El Reportero’s news services

A new film about an old problem, brought Puerto Rican actor Benicio del Toro back to the New Latin American Film Festival of Havana, which space is considered today relevant for the regional movie.
The winner of the Oscar for ‘Traffic’ (2000) presented his most recent work in the Cuban capital: ‘Sicario: the Soldier’s Day’, saga of the 2015 film.

That is the world that once again seduces Del Toro who plays a vengeful mercenary who represents the anger and violence of the drug war and the evil that originated from it.

The war against drug trafficking from another point of view, this time from violence ‘in the best Hollywood western style,’ the versatile actor pointed out during a press briefing at the film event.

Del Toro has already become regular in this city. Between gestures and a particular way of speaking he feels and sees himself as just another Cuban. Part of this was due to the intense preparation process on the island for the film about the Cuban-Argentinean guerrilla Ernesto Che Guevara that he also produced in 2008.

Returning to Cuba is always a pleasure, noted the actor, pointing out that events like the Havana Film Festival are windows to show the best of the regional cinematography.

Wide repercussion by death of popular bolero singer Moncho

The death of popular Spanish bolero singer Ramon Calabuch (Moncho) has had a great repercussion in the international media.

Popular singer of boleros, Ramón Calabuch (Moncho), was known as ‘The Gypsy’ and King of Bolero. He sang boleros such as Llévatela written by Armando Manzanero, Voy, by Luis
Demetrio and Amor Fugaz, by Benny Moré, among others written or sung by several famous artists.

In Cuba, Moncho was a very famous singer, and cultivated professional relations with local bolero composers, such as José Antonio Méndez and César Portillo de La Luz. He started his artistic career in 1956 in Barcelona.

In more than 60 years of professional life, Moncho recorded 34 albums, most of them in Spanish, although he left songs in Catalan language.

Several artists such as Joan Manuel Serrat, Dyango and Diego El Cigala were preparing a tribute to him on Jan. 14.

Chucho Valdés and Orishas among Top 20 in Latin Music in 2018

The albums Jazz Bata II by the Cuban jazz musician Chucho Valdes, and Gourmet by the hip hop group Orishas are among the top 20 Latin music made records on the Billboard.

The Cuban jazz musician and Orishas rank 10th and 12th, respectively, in the top 20 this year, according to the influential specialized publication.

In his record, Valdés, who has won six Grammy and three Latin Grammy awards, includes blends of African rhythms and classics of Cuban popular music as a tribute to his father and Irakere founder, Bebo Valdes.

For their part, Orishas returns to the stage with Gourmet, their fifth studio album in which they return to the Cuban roots that marked them as one of the most listened to hip hop groups.
The list is headed by El Mal Querer, the second record by the Spanish singer Rosalia, which was released on Nov. 2, 2018, by Sony Music.

Other musicians on the list include Gilberto Santa Rosa, Victor Manuel and Sonora Sanjuanera; Natalia Lafourcade, Mon Laferte and J Balvin.

Organic strawberries found to stop the growth of cancer cells

by Michelle Simmons

Berries have been widely studied for their potential health benefits, particularly their anti-cancer properties. Various studies have provided evidence that among berries, strawberries, organic ones, in particular, can fight against cancer.

In a study conducted by researchers from Sweden, it was revealed that extract from organic strawberries are especially effective at inhibiting cancer cell growth as they contained more antioxidants and a higher ratio of ascorbate compared to dehydroascorbate, its oxidized form. Extracts from organic strawberries were also more significantly effective in stopping cancer cell proliferation compared to extracts from conventionally-grown ones. (Related: Strawberries contain powerful anti-cancer medicines and have now been scientifically shown to prevent breast cancer).

Berries are good dietary sources of vitamin C and fiber, and evidence shows that these two are the primary cancer-fighting components of berries. A report published in the American Institute for Cancer Research revealed that foods rich in vitamin C are likely to protect against esophageal cancer. On the other hand, foods rich in fiber have long been known to fight against colorectal cancer.

Strawberries are also particularly loaded with ellagic acid, a natural phenol antioxidant. Laboratory studies have shown that ellagic acid can help lower the risk of cancers of the bladder, breast, esophagus, lung, and skin.

Quercetin is another cancer-fighting component of strawberries. Research published in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry identified the means by which fruit extracts or their components work against human liver cancer cells. Out of all the compounds examined, quercetin was revealed to be the most active polyphenol, significantly decreasing cancer cell viability by up to 80 percent after only 18 hours of treatment. Additionally, effective cell death from strawberry extract was found to be dose- and time-dependent.

Quercetin is also a flavonoid that has anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and anti-cancer properties. Earlier research has associated this flavonoid to the prevention or slowing down of other forms of cancer, such as cancers of the ovaries, breast, colon, leukemia, and lung.

Moreover, strawberries and quercetin can decelerate the normal cell cycle before cell death, which suggests that these protective actions may take place together with the different phases of cancer cell development.

Why choose organic ones?

As you may have noticed, this article emphasized “organic” strawberries and not the conventionally-grown ones. Strawberries are naturally delicious and packed with antioxidants. However, if they are conventionally-grown, they may be actually harmful.

Strawberries may ward off cancer, but can be the cause of cancer if they are grown conventionally. This is because conventionally-grown strawberries are loaded with pesticides, which cancel out all the benefits you can get from eating strawberries. Furthermore, these pesticides are known carcinogens, or cancer-causing substances. A study published in the journal JAMA Network has also found a potentially harmful link between eating fruits and vegetables high in pesticides and having fertility problems.

In 2018, strawberries topped the Environmental Working Group’s (EWG) “Dirty Dozen” list of fruits and vegetables with the most pesticide residues for the third consecutive year. In the study, the EWG, a non-profit research group, reported that nearly a third of all strawberry samples had at least 10 pesticides. One sample even had 22 pesticide residues.

The study based its findings on almost 39,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture tests of 47 fruits and vegetables and found almost 70 percent of conventionally grown produce has pesticides and 98 percent of strawberries, peaches, nectarines, cherries, and apples have at least one pesticide.

Spinach ranked second on the list, followed by nectarines, apples, grapes, peaches, cherries, pears, tomatoes, celery, potatoes, and sweet bell peppers.

Read more news stories and studies on cancer prevention through healthy foods by going to PreventCancer.news. (Natural News).

Sources include:
NaturalHealth365.com
USAToday.com

Vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy linked to autism in children

by Zoey Sky

Vitamin D, also called the “sunshine vitamin,” does more than keep your bones and teeth healthy. According to a study, taking enough vitamin D when you’re pregnant can help lower your unborn child’s risk of developing autism.

The study, which was published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, is part of “Generation R,” a large research project on youth in the Netherlands.

Vitamin D deficiency and autism in children

For the study, researchers analyzed the levels of vitamin D of more than 4,200 blood samples taken from both pregnant women and their children. The blood samples examined in the study were taken twice: once when the mother was 21 weeks pregnant, and once at birth.

After the children turned six years old, the parents taking part in the study were instructed to fill out a questionnaire called the “Social Responsiveness Scale.” The parents used the questionnaire to determine if their children were exhibiting “autism-related traits.”

The team of researchers noticed a crucial link after they compared the mothers’ vitamin D levels with the self-reported signs of autism in their children. The mothers with low vitamin D levels in their blood, or at least 36 percent of the female volunteers by the time they gave birth, had a higher chance of delivering a baby who showed autism-related traits once they turned six years old, compared to the women who had regular levels of vitamin D in their blood. (Related: BREAKTHROUGH: Vitamin D supplements taken during pregnancy found to prevent autism in children).

The researchers believe that this isn’t new information, especially since earlier studies suggest that vitamin D is crucial for proper brain development. Previous research has also implied that a deficiency during pregnancy is linked to other conditions in children, like asthma and schizophrenia.

Keep in mind that this study determined a link between D deficiency and autism instead of proving that one caused the other. Another factor to remember is that the “autism-related traits” monitored in the study were self-reported by the parents and that the child did not receive an official diagnosis from a healthcare professional.

Despite these factors concerning the study, pregnant women need to get enough vitamin D to ensure their overall health and the well-being of their unborn children.

Tips for increasing your vitamin D intake while pregnant

If you’re with child, follow the tips below to increase your vitamin D intake:

– Bask in the sunshine vitamin. Sunbathe and expose your arms and face for at least 15 to 20 minutes every day before you apply sunscreen. Take note that women with darker skin will need to sunbathe for longer than 20 minutes.

– Be more conscious of your weight. Expectant mothers who are overweight or obese at the start of their pregnancy may have lower levels of vitamin D in their blood. Try to lose weight before you give birth, and do your best to avoid putting on too much weight during your pregnancy. About six kilograms (kg) of weight gain is normal for pregnant women. Consult a midwife to learn more.

– Eat fatty fish. Oily fish is the best natural source of vitamin D. Consume one portion of at least 140 grams a week. Sources include fresh tuna, mackerel, pilchards, salmon, and sardines.
– Eat other foods that are also rich in vitamin D. Other foods that contain vitamin D include fresh eggs and red meat. You can also eat vitamin D-fortified breakfast cereals.

– Take a vitamin D supplement. Pregnant women need to take a supplement with about 10 micrograms (mcg) of vitamin D every day.

You can read more articles about vitamin D-rich foods and the benefits of increasing your intake of the vitamin while pregnant at VitaminD.news.

Sources include:
GoodHousekeeping.com
DietInPregnancy.co.uk

Banksters hate the free market

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR:

Dear readers,

Have you wondered what the government was created for and is it for? Phrases like this: “the very raison d’etre of the government is to undermine, skew and other things. The government, after all, is a claim of ownership over a geographical territory by a cartel of criminals, and gives them the right to impose restrictions on the inhabitants of the regions “, and below we can read for those who were created the government. Written by investigative journalist, James Corbett, this article describes many and other questions that perhaps had not yet been elaborated in our store of ideas. – Marvin R.

by James Corbett
corbettreport.com

It’s no secret that governments hate the free market. At its base, every single government tax, license, regulation and restriction is an implicit rebuke of the idea that humans should be able to interact freely with those around them.

This is old news to my long-term readers, but it bears repeating because many have been duped by the purveyors of socialist dogma to believe that free interactions between sovereign individuals is a scourge that must be eradicated. Because, you see, the fact that food, clothing, shelter, health care and the means of production don’t magically rain from the sky into the lap of every person on the planet means that any attempt to exchange your skills and services with another in return for compensation is slavery. (No, this is not an analogy, it’s LITERAL SLAVERY, guys!).

The words “free market” have become so tainted in modern economic discourse that their very mention tends to evoke a slew of supposedly related and equally hated terms. “Capitalism” and “big business” and “banker” are thrown together in a stew with “free market” so that anyone who talks positively about voluntary transactions between free people in a positive manner is obviously a poor-hating fat cat who lights his cigars with $100 bills and dines on the tears of beggars.

But here’s a puzzler for the socialists in the crowd: Why is it that the very banksters that they so rightfully rage against are in fact their biggest allies in the fight against the free market?
I know this perfectly straightforward observation will come as a shock to some of my readers, so let’s break it down.

As I’ve already stated, we know that the very raison d’être of government is to undermine, skew, and otherwise hamper free exchange among its citizens. Government, after all, is a claim of ownership over a geographical territory by a cartel of crooks. That claim (according to the cartel and its defenders) gives the mafia the right to set rules for and impose restrictions on the inhabitants of that region. To understand how the gang of crook wields this power over the free market, one merely has to examine the history of the creation of the FDA or the ugly truth about the minimum wage or the nitty gritty details of how the financial regulators really operate.

But it would be folly to conclude from the simple observation that government is put in place to fleece the public that the politicians are the ones who benefit from this extortion scheme. Quite the contrary. The politicians are the punching bags that are put out for the public to lay into, expendable fall guys who are put in place merely to allow an enraged populace to let off steam without ever threatening the real rulers of the system. As Quigley observed long ago:

The argument that the two parties should represent opposed ideals and policies, one, perhaps, of the Right and the other of the Left, is a foolish idea acceptable only to doctrinaire and academic thinkers. Instead, the two parties should be almost identical, so that the American people can “throw the rascals out” at any election without leading to any profound or extensive shifts in policy.
So if interventions in the free market aren’t merely about lining the pockets of the political puppets, then who does this system really benefit?

Well, the big business monopolists, of course. Not only do we have the examples cited above (the FDA, the minimum wage, etc.) of big businesses benefiting from governments regulating their competitors out of the marketplace, but my Big Oil documentary is a case study in how an entire industry can grow up in conjunction with governmental institutions whose function is to cement big businesses in place as ruling monopolists. Oh, how the Rockefellers fell when the Supreme Court split up Standard Oil, hey?

But more to the point, the foundation of our economy lies neither in the politicians nor in the big business monopolists whose back pocket they rest in. It’s in the bankster class that creates the money out of nothing and loans it out (at interest, of course) to those cronies they wish to succeed in the phony baloney economy. And it is for this very reason that the central bankers are always the ones arguing for greater “governmental” power over the economy. Because, in the end, the government is just the mask that they wear to conceal their true face from the public.

Viewers of my Century of Enslavement documentary will already know all about this. When Morgan and his fellow Wall Street moneylenders knew that the public was fed up with the amount of control that they wielded over the country, they willingly put on the “chains” of a centralized, governmental institution. Rather than chain them down, though, the Federal Reserve that they created in fact benefited the banksters class. With the imprimatur of “government” behind their owned and controlled Fed monstrosity, Morgan and the fat cats now had control of a privately-owned central bank that could effectively privatize their profits and socialize their losses.

In the early years, the Fed was used to underwrite the military racketeering of the First World War and oversee the expansion of the bubble that was the Roaring Twenties. But with the Great Depression (which they helped to engineer), the banksters now found a new rallying cry for even further intervention in the markets: Keynesian engineering of the economy! For, you see, it was “free markets” that failed in the 1930s, so the answer was only to be found by greater “governmental” (bankster) control. This fallacious argument continues to influence economists to this day, so that the crisis of 2008 was down to a “lack of government regulation” or “the demise of Glass-Steagal” or whatever other scapegoat could be found. But the idea that the crisis was caused by government interventions in the free market? Why, that’s unthinkable!

This mentality has now pervaded society to the point where the public simply accepts that there is a central bank whose very mandate is to “foster economic conditions that achieve both stable prices and maximum sustainable employment.” And the only way it can possibly live up to that mandate is by interfering in the markets with their magic money out of nothing. Trump knows this; that’s why he decried the banksters’ interventions in the markets before he was president and now muses about how nice it would be if they intervened more now that he’s the don of the governmental mafia.

Many, many other examples can be cited showing how the bankers love to hate the free market, but perhaps no more shocking example exists than that documented in Antony C. Sutton’s book, Wall Street and the Bolshevik Revolution. In that work, Sutton demonstrates in meticulous detail how the Wall Street financiers aided and abetted the Bolsheviks, not because they had particular affinity for the communists’ professed ideals of equality and well-being, but because both groups shared a hatred for free markets and free peoples. After laying out the documentation of Wall Street’s support for the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 over the course of 11 scrupulously documented chapters, Sutton concludes:

The question now in the readers’ minds must be, were these bankers also secret Bolsheviks? No, of course not. The financiers were without ideology. It would be a gross misinterpretation to assume that assistance for the Bolshevists was ideologically motivated, in any narrow sense. The financiers were power-motivated and therefore assisted any political vehicle that would give them an entree to power: Trotsky, Lenin, the tsar, Kolchak, Denikin — all received aid, more or less. All, that is, but those who wanted a truly free individualist society.

This is the plain truth of the matter: The bankers love whatever ideas, systems, beliefs and revolutionary movements will allow them to have more power over the lives of others. Central banks, regulatory bodies, rules, regulations, taxes; all of these are meant to constrain the bankers’ competition, not the bankers themselves. Having been created by and for the benefit of the bankers on the beliefs of the naive socialists who think that they could create a utopia if only they were the ones making the rules and intervening in the voluntary interactions of others, how could these market manipulations do anything but line the pockets and increase the power of the monopolists?

It’s the oldest trick in the book, but it still works. Every. Single. Time. And that’s why the bankers continue to use it.

Cheese from hormone-treated cows found to raise the risk of breast cancer by over 50 percent

by Russel Davis

That gooey mozzarella on your pizza may be the best thing next to chocolate, but little do people know that cheese is quite literally “to die for.” Previous studies have established a link between dairy products and obesity, which in turn increases the risk of developing up to 13 types of cancer.

Now, a recent study supports that claim. Researchers at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in New York examined more than 3,000 women and found that those who had the highest consumption of cheddar cheese, cream cheese, and other American varieties had a 53 percent increased risk of developing breast cancer. However, eating yogurt was associated with a 30 percent reduced risk of cancer.

“Dairy foods are complex mixtures of nutrients and non-nutrient substances that could be negatively as well as positively associated with breast cancer risk,” said lead author and professor of oncology Dr Susan McCann.

Hormone treatment in milk-producing cows may be to blame

Hormones such as Insulin-like Growth Factor -1 (IGF-1) and estrogen were two of the most notoriously hazardous hormones found in milk. IGF-1 was shown to to promote cancer cell growth by turning otherwise health cells into the malignant kind. According to a study published in the Iranian Journal of Public Health, the IGF-1 hormone found in milk may expedite tumor growth through cell stimulation and by anti-apoptosis effect. The results indicate that high levels of IGF-1, insulin, or both were associated with the increased risk of colon, pancreas, endometrium, breast, and prostate tumors. Estrogen has also been associated with higher incidence rates of prostate cancer in Japanese males who had increased consumption of milk and dairy products.

Two more studies revealed that high levels of IGF-1 may raise the risk of colorectal, breast, and prostate cancer. A study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute showed that men with the highest levels of IGF-1 hormone were up to four times as likely to develop colorectal cancer.

Data from another study revealed that women with high IGF-1 levels were two and a half times as likely to suffer colorectal cancer. “The fact that these two large studies give the same results for both men and women increases our confidence in the findings,” said lead researcher Edward Giovannucci. Previous studies have also linked IGF-1 hormone with increased odds of breast cancer and prostate tumor by up to two-folds and four-folds, respectively.

Synthetic treatments for cows may endanger public safety

Ever wonder how cancer-laden cheese gets on our plates? The answer lies in the questionable practices imposed in cattle farms. U.S. farmers raise about 35 million cattle per year. These cows are given recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) — a synthetic hormone designed to help them grow bigger and bulkier. According to Think Before You Pink, a breast cancer awareness organization, rBGH treatment had been in use in the United States since 1993. However, the treatment was used without labeling, which makes it difficult for customers to make informed purchases. However, countries including Australia, Canada, Japan, and all 27 nations in the European Union have imposed a total ban against the treatment, the group reported.

The premise, according to the American Cancer Society, is that administering recombinant bovine growth hormone to cattle results in higher levels of IGF-1 in their milk. It doesn’t take rocket science to do the equation. High IGF-1 in milk means increased odds of cancer for people who consume cheese and other dairy products.

Steroids injected in cattle might also be a primary factor in this conundrum. Data showed that 99 percent of cattle entering feedlots were given steroids to expedite their growth. Steroid, the same compound used by athletes, is carcinogenic. Therefore, consuming dairy products from treated cows may raise the odds of cancer. (Natural News).

Migrants’ caravan leaves Mexico City, bound for northern border

Nearly 2,400 left a temporary shelter, looking for rides to Querétaro

By the El Reportero’s wire services

Thousands of Central Americans left Mexico City Thursday morning to continue their journey towards the United States border as President Donald Trump railed against past and present migrant caravans and continued to argue for his long-promised wall.

Authorities said that just under 2,400 migrants began leaving a sports stadium-cum-shelter at 4:30am to travel by subway to the north of the capital, where they were going to look for rides to Querétaro.

An additional 500 to 600 migrants remained in the shelter, waiting for humanitarian visas to be granted.

The National Immigration Institute (INM) said on Monday it had registered 15,582 requests for the visas and on Tuesday it reported that another 4,750 had been granted.

Since last October, thousands of Central Americans fleeing poverty and violence have entered Mexico as part of several migrant caravans, with most continuing to cities on the northern border, especially Tijuana.

There they remain stranded on the border, where they face long waits to lodge asylum requests with United States authorities.

Despite the likelihood that they too will have to wait for months or even years in cities with high rates of violent crime, members of the latest caravan are determined not to give up.

“I know it’s violent at the border, but I have to take that risk. I don’t have any more money and my family is waiting for me in the United States,” 27-year-old Honduran migrant María Murillo told the news agency Reuters.

Standing alongside her young son at the Mexico City shelter, she added: “Only God knows what we have gone through during all this time. I know that He is not going to abandon us.”
Another Honduran migrant, 33-year-old Óscar López, who is traveling with his wife and two children, said that he planned to go to Monterrey and then decide which section payof the border to travel to.

“I’m not thinking of going to Tijuana . . . I want to find a more accessible border to hand myself and my family in [to United States immigration authorities]. I don’t want to be returned to Mexico,” he said.

On Tuesday, the United States government returned the first Central American asylum seeker to Mexico since a hardened immigration policy known as “Remain in Mexico” was introduced by the Trump administration.

Many migrants have expressed their opposition to the U.S. policy because they say that it will expose them to the kind of violence they are trying to escape back home. Other say that they will try to cross the border illegally, even if that means paying a smuggler.

“I’m not thinking of returning to Honduras, and if it’s necessary I’ll pay to have a [smuggler] help me cross,” said Mauricio Gómez, a young Honduran man.

A few hours after the migrants left Mexico City this morning, Trump took to Twitter to announce that United States authorities are preparing for their arrival.

“More troops being sent to the southern border to stop the attempted invasion of illegals, through large caravans, into our country. We have stopped the previous caravans, and we will stop these also. With a wall it would be so much easier and less expensive. Being built!” he wrote.

In other tweets today, he cited Mexico’s record 2018 homicide numbers, charging “this is a big contributor to the humanitarian crisis taking place on our southern border” and that the situation was worse than Afghanistan.

“Why wouldn’t any sane person want to build a wall! Construction has started and will not stop until it is finished,” Trump wrote.

Asked about the tweets this morning, President López Obrador said he respected Trump’s right to say what he wished but added, “I don’t want to say anything about that.”

Source: Reuters (sp).

US refuses to withdraw diplomats from Venezuela after Maduro breaks ties

“We call on the Venezuelan military and security forces to continue protecting the welfare and well-being of all Venezuelan citizens, as well as US and other foreign citizens in Venezuela”

by the El Reportero’s wire services

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has refused to pull diplomats from Caracas, arguing the government that severed diplomatic ties with the US is not legitimate and threatening ‘appropriate actions’ if anyone is endangered.

“We call on the Venezuelan military and security forces to continue protecting the welfare and well-being of all Venezuelan citizens, as well as US and other foreign citizens in Venezuela,” Pompeo said in a statement on Wednesday evening, adding the US “will take appropriate action to hold accountable anyone who endangers the safety and security of our mission and its personnel.”

Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro declared all US diplomats persona non grata on Wednesday, after Washington recognized opposition leader Juan Guaidó as the country’s president. Guaidó, however, said he wanted the US diplomats to stay, setting the stage for a potential diplomatic incident.

As the US does not recognize Maduro’s “regime,” his order for US diplomats to leave is not legitimate, Pompeo argued, adding that Washington will conduct diplomatic relations with Caracas solely through Guaidó’s government.

After the Trump administration recognized Guaidó’s government, a number of US allies followed suit, including most of the OAS countries and Canada. EU leaders also endorsed the rebel government.
Cuba and Bolivia have expressed support for Maduro, while Mexico has said it would continue to recognize Maduro’s legitimacy “for now.” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the US “handpicking” of a government in Caracas perfectly illustrates the true Western sentiments toward international law, sovereignty and non-interference in internal affairs of states.

Prison’s former security chief recalls El Chapo’s perks and bribes
He provided El Chapo with shoes, a phone and secret visits with his wife

A former security chief at the Jalisco prison from which Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán escaped in 2001 testified yesterday that he and other prison officials took bribes from the former drug lord in exchange for providing him with a range of perks.
On his first day on the witness stand at the New York trial of the former Sinaloa Cartel chief, Dámaso López told jurors that among the privileges afforded to Guzmán while he was locked up in the Puente Grande maximum-security prison were new shoes, a mobile telephone and secret visits with his wife, brother and brother-in-law.

López, who joined the Sinaloa Cartel after resigning from his prison job, said that in exchange he received at least US $10,000, a house valued at 1.5 million pesos and assistance to pay medical expenses for one of his sons.

The witness told jurors that he quit his security job in September 2000 because the federal government was conducting an investigation into corruption at the prison.

However, López said that before he left he had a final meeting with Guzmán, who asked him to speak with the new security chief so that his perks would be preserved.

Known by the nickname “El Licenciado” (The Graduate), López later became a fixer and ultimately a leader in the Sinaloa Cartel. He is believed to have been chosen by Guzmán to be his successor.
However, “El Licenciado” was arrested in Mexico City in May 2017 and extradited last year to the United States, where he pleaded guilty to importing cocaine into the U.S and was sentenced to life in prison.

While López admitted to receiving bribes from Guzmán, he denied that he had anything to do with his escape from the prison in a laundry cart in 2001.

The sole accomplice to the escape was a guard known as “El Chito” who worked in the prison’s laundry section, he said, adding that Guzmán was later upset that other guards were falsely accused of aiding his breakout.

The 52-year-old witness also told the court about several executions that Guzmán allegedly ordered during his years at the helm of the cartel.

López is one of many cartel witnesses who have appeared over the past two months at Guzmán’s trial on charges of trafficking, conspiracy, money laundering and weapons offenses.

The former kingpin’s lawyers have attempted to portray the witnesses as unreliable “degenerates” who are speaking in the hope that their own prison sentences will be reduced.

If convicted, Guzmán faces probable life imprisonment.

Source: Reforma (sp).

AMLO slams Fitch ratings agency ‘hypocrisy’ for Pemex downgrade

President says corruption is over and that investors with ethics know that Pemex is a solid company

by Mexico News Daily

President López Obrador has slammed the Fitch ratings agency after it downgraded the credit rating of the state oil company yesterday to just above junk status.

Fitch cut Pemex’s Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) for foreign and local currencies to BBB- from BBB+ and national long-term ratings to AA (mex) from AAA (mex), stating that the “downgrades reflect the continued deterioration of Pemex’s standalone credit profile” and that the company “has been technically insolvent since 2009.”

Fitch also changed its outlook for the company to negative from stable.

Pemex has US $106 billion in debt, more than any other state oil company in Latin America, which both Fitch and Moody’s have said is a concern for the company’s investment grade rating.

Fitch said in a statement that its new “ratings are constrained by Pemex’s substantial tax burden, high leverage, significant unfunded pension liabilities, large capital investment requirements, negative equity and exposure to political interference risk.”

At his morning press conference today, López Obrador lambasted Fitch, without citing its name, and other credit ratings for their assessment of the state oil company.

“What these organizations do is very hypocritical… They allowed the looting [of Pemex], they endorsed the so-called energy reform, they knew that foreign investment didn’t arrive and investment in Pemex didn’t increase and that was what caused the decline in petroleum production. And they never said anything,” he said.

“They maintained a complicit silence and now that we’re rescuing Pemex, they come out with their recommendations and… ratings of the performance of Pemex,” López Obrador added.

Asked a specific question about Fitch’s ratings cuts, the president responded: “Investors with ethics know very well that Pemex is a solid company because now it’s being managed with honesty.”

López Obrador questioned whether Fitch had considered the government’s crackdown on fuel theft before it released its new assessment.

“Did the ratings agency take into account, as the technocrats say, this variable?… We’re going to strengthen Pemex; public finances are going to be strengthened. Of course, they don’t like it!” López Obrador said.

The veteran leftist, who took office on December 1, charged that the corruption that has plagued Pemex for more than 30 years has now come to an end.

“It was a company that was looted in the neoliberal period, it was among the most looted, most corrupt companies in the world, and these corrupt technocrats took great pains to destroy Pemex but fortunately… the people of Mexico decided to implement a change, to remove the country from crisis and corruption and to rescue Pemex,” López Obrador said.

“And we’re going to achieve it… Those greedy people didn’t manage to completely destroy Pemex… It’s like when a band of criminals goes into a bank and starts to steal the money from the vaults and an alarm goes off – that was the July 1 election. They take what they can but they flee. But they didn’t manage to take everything. What they left is enough to take Pemex and the country forward.”

But investors are worried that the federal government won’t provide support to Pemex through the injection of fresh funds, Bloomberg reported.

“Investors have AMLO’s policy process under a microscope,” said Michael Roche, a strategist at Seaport Global Holdings in New York. “If the expected capital injection is not forthcoming then the market will build a higher political risk premium into the Mexico sovereign spread.”

The downgrade was not unexpected by finance department officials. An undersecretary at the Finance Secretariat said it was worrying but came as no surprise.

Source: El Economista (sp), Reuters (en), Bloomberg (en).

In other Mexico related news:

Government to sell off 263 vehicles, 76 aircraft at two auctions

Sale of vehicles expected to generate over 100 million pesos, which will help fund new national guard

President López Obrador has announced that the federal government will sell off vehicles and aircraft in two auctions at the Santa Lucía Military Base in February and April.
He said proceeds from the sales will be used to fund the creation of the new security force, the national guard.

The government expects to generate more than 100 million pesos (US $5.26 million) at the first event, scheduled for February 23 and 24, with the sale of 263 vehicles.

Among them:

• 171 pickup trucks;
• Seven semi-tractors;
• 30 motorcycles;
• 12 trucks;
• Two farm tractors;
• Two buses;
• Five semi-trailers;
• One armored BMW;
• One armored Audi.

The second auction will take place April 26 and 27 and will see the sale of 76 airplanes and helicopters, including the presidential jet, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

With the sale of the presidential plane, López Obrador will fulfill one of his campaign promises. The aircraft was seen by many as a symbol of the excesses of previous administrations. However, some experts contend that the government might actually lose money on the sale because of the lack of demand for such aircraft and the high cost of reconverting the plane.

During his announcement, the president also addressed concerns regarding the future of the vehicles and aircraft. He said he would ask for thorough background checks on potential buyers to ensure that the items are not used in illicit activities.

Source: El Financiero (sp), El Universal (sp).