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Doctors declared obesity is a disease

by Critical Health

 

Well, its official, obesity is a disease. So declared the doctor delegates at the American Medical Association’s annual meeting this past June. Americans are the second fattest people in the world (second only to Mexico, and only by 1 percent, according to Scripps Media Inc.). According to Dr. Patrice Harris, a member of the association’s board, considering corpulence as a doctor issue is good thing. “Recognizing obesity as a disease will help change the way the medical community tackles this complex issue that affects approximately one in three Americans, in the words of Dr. Harris.

How exactly these changes will show up remains to be seen. AMA doctors say reclassifying it as a disease will reduce the stigma that can result from the silly idea that obesity is simply the result the result of too much food and too little exercise. Apparently, our medical saviors feel that their patients do not have control over their weight and physiology.

It’s not like modern medicine has a great or even good track record when it comes to dealing with the diseases that are already on its plate. Americans spend more money on doctor care than any other country in the world. And for all those dollars spent, we are statistically worse off than any other country in nearly every single marker of health, including disease incidence, infant mortality and longevity. And now the geniuses of the American Medical Association want us to trust them to deal with another “growing” health crisis?

Could it be that after medicalizing obesity there will be even more high-tech medical options than bariatric surgeries and gastric banding? Or, will we have even more potent anti-obesity medications? Interestingly, two anti-fat pharmaceuticals were released the same month as the American Medical Association’s decree.

The first, Qsymia is combination of a couple of poisons (drugs). One, called phentermine is an amphetamine like stimulant that has been available for over 40 years and was the second agent of the famous weight loss combo therapy known as “Fen-phen”. Phentermine use is associated with a whole host of adverse reactions including: fainting, dizziness, inability to exercise and insomnia. The other is a seizure medicine called topiramate, which boasts its own unpleasant side effect profile including: skin rashes, digestive difficulties, uneven heartbeat, muscle coordination issues and problems breathing. Nonetheless, if you want to drop a few pounds and don’t mind taking an anti-convulsant and speed to do it, Qsymia is the choice for you!

The second, Belviq works by activating one of the body’s stress management hormones, serotonin. In a fashion similar to (although not the same as) Prozac and other SSRI drugs, Belviq works by essentially potentizing the action of this important neurotransmitter; appetite is suppressed, satiety induced and vigilance and alertness promoted. Belviq essentially puts the body on an emergency status which has the effect of reducing hunger and the desire to eat. Unfortunately, as with all prescription medications, adverse reactions are possible, including: low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), mental problems, slow heartbeat, headache, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, dry mouth and constipation. One of the more insidious results of the doctor’s decision to label obesity as an illness is the fact that now 100 million Americans will be considered diseased. And that of course means medical treatment and overtreatment. Essentially the AMA has now made one third of all American’s wards of the medical model. And that’s a lot of new customers!

Obesity is no more of an illness than meth-rotting teeth and gums are dental disease or self-injurious cutting is a skin disease. It is, for the most part, (with some exceptions) a consequence of lifestyle choices and behaviors that are none of the medical model’s or your doctor’s businesses. Even though physicians would love nothing more than to have another billable, reimbursable product (and that’s what so-called diseases are), medicalizing obesity is a classic case of the camel sticking his nose under our tents. And make no mistake about it. If the camel is the medical model, you can rest assured, it’s being ridden by a government bureaucrat.

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Suspects arrested in LeBarón massacre; FBI agents join investigation

Many members of the LeBarón family have left Mexico for the US

 

by Mexico News Daily

 

Suspects have been arrested in connection with the massacre of nine members of the LeBarón family in Sonora last week, Security Secretary Alfonso Durazo said on Monday, but declined to reveal the name of the criminal organization to which the alleged perpetrators belong.

Federal authorities said last week that they believed that La Línea, a gang with links to the Juárez Cartel, may have mistaken the vehicles in which the murdered women and children were traveling as those of a splinter cell of the Sinaloa Cartel known as Los Salazar. Family members rejected the hypothesis.

Durazo told reporters today that the case is being handled by the federal Attorney General’s Office (FGR) and its counterpart in Sonora and that it wasn’t his place to provide additional information about the people who have been arrested.

He also said the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is in Mexico and working with Mexican investigators. The three women and six children killed were all United States citizens.

Speaking at the presidential press conference, Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said that Mexico had invited the FBI to participate in the investigation.

“. . . The FGR is interested in the participation of the FBI because there are resources and weapons [involved] whose origin is the United States . . .” he said.

As United States citizens were killed in the attack, there is no reason not to allow the FBI to take part, Ebrard said, adding that Mexico has sought similar involvement in cases in the U.S. involving Mexican citizens, such as the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, in August.

The foreign secretary stressed that the FBI would not replace the FGR at the head of the investigation and explained that the don’t have permission to be armed or to carry out inquiries without informing Mexican authorities.

Ebrard also said the government would stipulate how many FBI agents can come to Mexico to support the investigation and how long they can stay.

Alex LeBarón, a former federal lawmaker, said the participation of the United States in the investigation was necessary because Mexico is going through “a serious rule of law crisis.”

Members of the LeBarón family, part of a breakaway fundamentalist Mormon community that has lived in northern Mexico for more than a century, said last week that they would not be intimated into leaving the country.

But about 100 people from La Mora, the small Mormon community where most of the victims of the barbarous attack lived, and Colonia LeBarón in Chihuahua decided to leave and traveled to the United States in a convoy of 18 vehicles on Saturday.

“They want to be in the United States to feel safe,” said Julian LeBarón, a community leader and relative of the murder victims.

Some of the families were headed to Tucson and others to Phoenix, the Associated Press reported.

Bryce Langford, whose mother Dawna was killed in the attack, told The Arizona Daily Star that members of the communities had been considering moving even before last Monday’s ambush due to increasing violence in the area.

“The assets that they’ve acquired down there are tremendous,” he said. “And to have to up and leave from one day to the next and leave all that behind, there’s definitely a lot of sad people here.”

The exodus of the families came just hours after the funeral of Christina Langford, the last of the nine victims to be laid to rest. According to children who survived the attack, she got out of her vehicle and raised her hands to alert the attackers that they were firing at women and children. She was shot and killed anyway.

Members of the National Guard have been deployed to both La Mora and Colonia LeBarón, where the remaining members of the community are determined to fight for justice.

“When we face a tragic event like this, we don’t run,” Lienzo Widmar, a cousin of one of the murdered women, told CBS news.  “We seek answers. We try to solve it.”

Source: Milenio (sp), Infobae (sp), CBS News (en), The Associated Press (en).

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Opposition senator assuming the presidency in Bolivia after fleeing from Evo Morales

by the El Reportero‘s wire services

 

After Evo Morales resigned and asylum in Mexico, Jeanine Añez, an opposition senator assumed the interim presidency of Bolivia.

Morales abandoned power under pressure from the opposition and the Armed Forces leaving an institutional vacuum on Monday in the Andean country.

“We are going to call elections with proven personalities, that they are the ones that carry an electoral process that reflects what they want and the feeling of all Bolivians,” the second vice president told the press at the entrance of the Legislative Assembly of La Paz. of the Senate.

“We already have a calendar. I think the population screams that on January 22 we already have an elected president, ”he added.

After a night of violent clashes in the Bolivian capital, which left burning buildings and looting, the second vice president of the Senate, said she was willing to temporarily assume the government, as indicated by the regulations on the line of succession.

“I will take on the challenge only to be what is necessary to call for transparent elections, so that Bolivians have the certainty that their vote will be respected,” said the legislator of the Democratic Union party in an interview with the television channel Red One, in which he did not clarify when his assumption could occur.

Upon arriving at El Alto airport, near La Paz, Añez was taken by an Air Force helicopter to a military academy, from where she would be transferred to Congress, Senator Arturo Murillo told reporters.

 

Evo Morales arrives in Mexico and insists he will continue fighting

Evo Morales descended from the plane in Mexico in the company of former vice president Alvaro Garcia Linera and health personnel.

In his brief statements, Morales gave details of the coup d’état following his electoral triumph on Oct. 20.

“My ideology remains unchanged despite the coup d’état and the most important thing is that I am alive to continue the fight,” Bolivia’s former president Evo Morales said on his arrival in Mexico this Tuesday.

‘We are now three weeks into the last stage of the civic political coup joined by the national police,’ he said.

The former ruler expressed gratitude for the role played by the government of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and all the efforts made by Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard.

He stressed that thanks to them they were able to preserve their lives because of the threats of the coup plotters, who even offered to pay 50,000 dollars for their heads.

“As long as I live, I will continue in politics, I will continue fighting, and we are certain that the peoples of the world have the right to free themselves and they will,” Morales said, visibly moved.

 

Nayarit beach reopened after it was privatized in 2016

Environmental officials say the beach’s closure by the previous government was illegal

 

A Nayarit beach that was closed to the public in 2016 has been reopened by the federal government.

The Secretariat of the Environment (Semarnat) revoked a concession for La Lancha beach to a real estate consortium, reopening it to the public.

The beach in Punta Mita was closed to the public when the office of maritime land zones (Zofemat) granted an exclusive concession of the land to a consortium comprised of DINE, Rancho Punta Mita and Cantiles de Mita.

Semarnat said it will file a complaint against Mariana Boy Tamborrell, then head of Zofemat and currently in charge of Mexico City’s environmental protection agency. The federal department claims that the privatization of La Lancha beach was illegal.

Environmentalists removed the company’s gate to the beach on Friday and invited people to visit once again.

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Thanksgiving: The Forgotten History of America’s Thanksgiving and What It Commemorates

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

Dear readers:

For the purpose of actualization, this article is coming out a day after Thanksgiving, for which I say, hope you had a wonderful family reunion amid a delicious dinner in peace and love. This article, written by William Banzai, describes “the forgotten history of the United States’ Thanksgiving and what it commemorates. Hope you enjoy it. – Marvin Ramírez.

by ammodotcom

Thanksgiving is the oldest national holiday in the United States. However, it’s observation is not a continuous presence in American history. While the celebration of Thanksgiving predates even the founding of the nation, it was proclaimed by George Washington, then ignored by Thomas Jefferson. From then on, it was sporadically observed until Abraham Lincoln, who once again introduced a National Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving to the United States.

Indeed, it was Lincoln who set the day as the last Thursday in November. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt changed the day between 1939 and 1941, which was highly controversial. The days were called “Franksgiving.” Roosevelt changed the date because retailers communicated to him through the Retail Dry Goods Association and the Secretary of Commerce, that the late date of Thanksgiving that year (the last day of November) might negatively impact retail sales. It was considered bad form to put up Christmas decorations or put on Christmas sales before Thanksgiving.

If only we still lived in such times.

In 1942, Congress set Thanksgiving as the fourth Thursday of the month, and here it has stood since then.

The Early Days of Thanksgiving

Harvest feasts date back centuries, with the earliest “thanksgiving” celebrations in the New World dating to the 16th Century with the French and the Spanish. The Commonwealth of Virginia had regular celebrations of this type dating back to 1607. The first permanent settlement, Jamestown, Virginia, had a thanksgiving celebration in the year of its founding, 1610.

Of course, anytime someone says “Thanksgiving,” one immediately thinks of the Pilgrims. “Thanksgiving” as we know it is generally dated back to when the Pilgrims first celebrated it in 1621. This was in response to a successful harvest, however, it was not the first of a consistent celebration. The Pilgrims celebrated this only sporadically.

No one is entirely sure when the Thanksgiving celebration took place. There was a three-day celebration following their harvest, sometime between September 21 and November 11, with the Feast of Michaelmas (September 29) being the most likely date. We do, however, know that all 50 surviving Mayflower passengers were there, as well as 90 Native Americans. The feast was cooked primarily by four women, all of whom were on the Mayflower. Two years later, in 1623, following another boat of colonists arriving, the first civil (not religious) Thanksgiving took place in July.

The Revolution to the Civil War

The day of national Thanksgiving jumped around until the founding of the nation. During the late Colonial period, the Continental Congress merely recommended the day be celebrated by the various colonies. Samuel Adams drafted the first national proclamation, issued in 1777 – something to remember when you tip back one of his beers while watching the game. Revolutionary Commander General George Washington set the date in December of that year to celebrate early revolutionary victories.

In 1789, President George Washington would proclaim November 26, 1789, to be a National Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving. This day also provides the roots for America’s National Day of Prayer. In 1795, Thanksgiving was celebrated, again by presidential proclamation, on February 19. President John Adams continued the tradition in 1798 and 1799. The tradition was undone by deist and skeptic President Thomas Jefferson. President James Madison revived the tradition in 1814, but it remained sporadic until the Civil War. Many governors proclaimed celebrations statewide.

In November 1863, however, President Lincoln made the celebration national again. He was inspired by an editorial series written by “Mary Had a Little Lamb” author Sarah Josepha Hale. Secretary of State William H. Seward wrote the proclamation. During this period, traditions were regional and some of the food is decidedly not what we would consider to be traditional Thanksgiving fare today (pigeon pie, for example).

Franksgiving

Franksgiving is one of those things like the court-packing plan that made FDR’s opponents squeal with laughter. FDR’s moving of the date of Thanksgiving caused his opponent in the previous election, Alf Landon, to compare him to Hitler. James Frasier, chairman of the Plymouth, Massachusetts board of selectmen heartily disapproved of the change.

The change caused a number of problems, not least of all holiday travel plans. Football teams around the nation played before empty stadiums because they couldn’t change their schedule. Many games were cancelled. In what is a familiar scenario to anyone who has followed 21st-century politics, Democrats narrowly supported Franksgiving (52 to 48), Republicans widely despised it (79 to 21) and most of America didn’t like it (62 to 38).

All told, 23 states and the District of Columbia recognized the new date, while 22 preferred the traditional date. The remaining three (Colorado, Texas and Mississippi) went with both dates, meaning there was plenty of time off for everyone. In 1940, 32 states and the nation’s capital went with Franksgiving, while the remaining 16 opted for what was called “Republican Thanksgiving.”

A report from the Department of Commerce issued in 1941, found that there was no difference in retail sales due to the day of the month. Indeed, barely more than a third of all retailers even observed Franksgiving. What’s more, only two out of every seven Thanksgivings would fall on a fifth Thursday rather than a fourth. Still, a joint resolution of Congress, signed into law by President Roosevelt, permanently moved the date to the fourth Thursday, where it has stood ever since. Most states concurred, and while revelry was on the back burner thanks to the war, Thanksgiving in its final form took root by 1945.

If you ever find yourself watching the Merrie Melodies cartoon Holiday Highlights, you’ll notice a reference to two different Thanksgivings – one for Republicans and one for Democrats – that will now make sense to you.

Texas was the last state to observe the traditional “last Thursday” Thanksgiving in 1956.

Thanksgiving Haters

While it has its roots in European harvest festivals, there is perhaps no more quintessentially American holiday than Thanksgiving. Americans eat more food this day than they will any other day of the year, including the Fourth of July and Christmas Day. Unsurprisingly, there are people who think that the celebration of Thanksgiving is shameful and should be abandoned.

Both liberal college professors and some Native American activists believe the traditional story of Thanksgiving has been whitewashed by conquerors. They believe in replacing the day with a National Day of Atonement and fasting. Other prominent Native Americans such as Tim Giago, who founded the Native American Journalists Organization, believe that the celebration of Thanksgiving is a synthesis of both European and Native American traditions and is, as such, uniquely American.

The rest of us, however, will enjoy stuffing ourselves with turkey, slipping into a tryptophan coma, and waking up just in time to catch the big game or the parade. Real Americans, as it turns out, would much rather enjoy a day off than complain.

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Exhibition of recent paintings of San Francisco and Italy

Compiled by the El Reportero’s staff

 

Beryl Landau and Anthony Holdsworth will be exhibiting paintings created over a period of 2.5 months, this year, in Italy as well as recent paintings of San Francisco from Nov. 9 to Dec. 2 at Luna Rienne Gallery on 22nd Street near Valencia in the Mission District.

https://vimeo.com/224601571

Twice during the exhibition we will screen a new, 48-minute video titled ” Sketches of Italy” about our painting tour from Sicily to northern Italy. Sicily, Matera, Ostuni and L’Aquila are among many locations featured.

Through Dec. 2 at Luna Rienne Galler, 3318 22nd St, San Francisco.

 

Carlos Reyes “Santana meets Gipsy Kings”

Carlos Reyes bridges unique fusions of Blues, Rock, Jazz, Latin and Classical styles.

On stage from the age of five, Carlos Reyes, born in Paraguay, never ceases to amaze. World renowned for his mastery of the Paraguayan harp and violin, Carlos’ musical talents have touched the hearts and spirits of people around the world. From performances on the streets of Havana to the Vatican, his music transcends all boundaries. Described as “Santana meets Gipsy Kings”, Carlos bridges traditional musical genres and mesmerizes audiences with unique fusions of Blues, Rock, Jazz, Latin and Classical styles.

Born in Paraguay to a world-famous musician and national hero, Carlos began to play the violin at age three under his father’s strict tutelage. He moved with his family to the United States as a child and continued to develop his already extraordinary musical talent. At age ten, he debuted on harp with the Oakland Symphony and made his debut on violin with the Oakland Youth Symphony at age fourteen.

On Dec. 5, 7 p.m. at Yoshi’s, Oakland, 510 Embarcadero West, Oakland.

A Merry-Achi Christmas – SF

Led by the incomparable José Hernández, Mariachi Sol de Mexico® returns to Davies Symphony Hall for a festive musical tribute to Mexico’s Christmas traditions!

Experience a truly international celebration, with the ensemble singing and playing holiday favorites from both Mexico and America in a vibrant performance that will have the whole family dancing in the aisles.

San Francisco Symphony, 201 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco. Tickets $35–$125. Sunday, Dec. 8 at 8 p.m. – 10 p.m.

The SFIAF to unveil 2020 program

San Francisco International Arts Festival will publicly unveil the performance program for the 2020 Festival at its annual Holiday Dinner & Party on Saturday Dec. 7.

As always, the Festival will include a host of artist productions including world and U.S. premieres, North American debuts and cutting-edge performances speaking to the 2020 theme: In Diaspora: I.D. for the New Majority.

I.D. asks artists to contemplate the changing demographics of the USA and/or apply the ideas of social justice and change to reflect on the conditions of minority, migrant, disenfranchised and/or displaced peoples in other countries.

Bay Area and International artists, Holiday Party. This year’s Festival Holiday Dinner & Party will also serve as an end-of-year fundraising event for the organization. The San Francisco International Arts Festival is presented in partnership with the Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture and co-presented by the Eyes and Ears Foundation.

The Festival will be held at multiple locations.

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Yalitza Aparicio: Indigenous people lose identity so as not to be discriminated against

by the El Reportero’s news services

Mexican actress Yalitza Aparicio, protagonist of the Oscar-winning film “Roma”, denounced Tuesday that indigenous women are often forced to lose their “identity” to avoid being discriminated against in Mexico.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fp_i7cnOgbQ

“I think that discrimination has led us to lose many things as indigenous women: our identity,” he said during a forum on sexist violence organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) in Mexico City.

The family of Yalitza Aparicio, originally from the southern state of Oaxaca, did not teach her the Mixtec language to prevent her from being discriminated against, something that for the actress means “forcing people to be who they are not.”

He also gave as an example that many indigenous women “have had to stop wearing their clothes so that they are not judged with their eyes”, something that is “painful because they are such beautiful clothes,” he said.

“Many times we include indigenous people as if they were the same, but each community is different in their way of thinking and customs. What unites us, unfortunately, is discrimination,” said Aparicio, who since October has been an ambassador of good will of Unesco. Source: EFE

 

Book on economics by Mexican president on sale online

The new book by Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador, entitled ‘Hacia una economía moral’ (Towards a moral economy), is now on sale online, publishing house Planeta announced.

In a brief Tuesday press release, the publishing house informed that the volume will be sold at a price of 7.99 euros, equivalent to 171.59 Mexican pesos.

Planeta notes on its website that ‘Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador offers, as no other president of Mexico had done before, an intimate and eloquent dialogue about the specific results of his first year in government.’ The synopsis of ‘Hacia una economia moral’ states that ‘the paradigm we are building is based on the conviction that generosity is stronger than selfishness, empathy is more powerful than hate, collaboration is more efficient than competition, freedom is more constructive than prohibition, and trust is more fruitful than distrust.’

President López Obrador has insisted that the economy must be based on ethical principles that counteract the neoliberal model.

The print edition of the book will be released in bookstores on Dec. 1.

 

The story of an American family who suffers deportation from their parents

Presented by Sony Pictures Television, this reimagining of the series follows the five children of the Acosta family as they deal with everyday struggles to survive as a united family after their parents are unexpectedly deported to Mexico.

In a new version of the creators of the original series Amy Lippman and Christopher Keyser, this beloved story of a young family that must deal with adversity will be told again with a look linked to current issues and cultural conversation. The series features Brandon Larracuente as Emilio Acosta, Emily Tosta as Lucia Acosta, Niko Guardado as Beto Acosta and Elle Paris Legaspi as Valentina Acosta. Bruno Bichir and Fernanda Urrejola participate as the parents of the Acosta brothers, Javier and Gloria.

The first episode of “Party of Five” will be available for a special preview on Hulu, the Freeform.com app, and on demand starting Wednesday, Jan. 1.

The long-awaited drama “Party of Five” will be released with two episodes on Wednesday, Jan. 8 (9 – 11:00 p.m. Eastern time).

 

Cuba’s Chucho Valdés wins Latin Grammy Award for Best Jazz Album

Cuban multi-award winning pianist Chucho Valdés expanded his long list of awards by winning a Latin Grammy in the Best Jazz Album category.

The legendary pianist’s album ‘Jazz bata 2’ featured among nominations that included the albums ‘Turning Pages’ by Claudia Acuña, ‘Elemental’ by a trío composed of Otmaro Ruíz, Jimmy Haslip and Jimmy Branly, ‘Dos orientales’ by Hugo Fattoruso and Tomohiro Yahiro, and ‘Rio-São Paulo’ by Andre Marques.

This is Valdés’ fourth Latin Grammy Award, in addition to being the winner of six Grammy Awards.

 

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Tragedies in Bolivia: chaos, dead, mourning in dozens of families

by Enrique Bachinelo

 

It is almost indescribable to detail the hundreds of problems that plague the Bolivian people, as a result of the resignation of its president Evo Morales Ayma, on November 10, 2019.

The events arise when Morales calls for a referendum demanding the extension of his mandate for another period, the voting population rejects that request. But Evo wants to continue in power and resorts to call elections to nominate the new leaders where Morales and García Linera, their vice president, head for a new period. The citizens’ response is to fulfill their electoral vote and then proceed to count the votes.

The vote count is suspended for 24 hours due to technical problems. Given that the opposition candidate was very close to his candidacy before the cut of the count and when after those 24 hours the vote count shows that the figures are favorable to Evo Morales who declares himself immediately the winner of the elections for a new period.

But, it happens that this declaration of Evo as winner of the elections produces reactions of protest in Bolivian society threatening massive movements, acts of violence from both sides and pressing Evo to leave power. It is presumed that there was electoral fraud in complicity with the Supreme Electoral Tribunal. It triggers days and weeks of vandalism, blockages, lack of necessities and even dead.

Evo goes to its coca bases in the Chapare, tropical zone of Bolivia and the danger of the armed forces taking de facto actions is when an officer of the FF.AA. He suggests to Evo to leave. He has no other alternative. Resort to exile. López Obrador president of Mexico sends a plane to pick up Morales, García Linera and the former health minister from his cabinet.

End of a period of fourteen years of government. Sad fate of a government that did many good things in favor of its people.

Bolivia is without a government: in the absence of the president he should assume the vice president, but these two characters went into voluntary exile in Mexico; then the command of the nation would correspond to the president of the senate, also presents resignation. Senator Jeanine Añez is the next online promotion, but there is no quorum for approval. This confusing situation is taken advantage of by Senator Jeanine Añez who calls herself president and is possessed by the commander of the FF.AA. It is an exceptional event that will go down in history in the life of Bolivia.

But things don’t end there. Chaos and disorder prevail in the highland country. Crowds that descend from the city of El Alto to the city of La Paz in support of Evo. The population of La Paz contemplates that march absorbed. Meanwhile another group of citizens of El Alto are heading to Senkata which is an area where the fuel storage tanks are. The desire of these inhabitants is to protect these deposits in order to prevent criminal hands from trying to damage or burn them, an event that would result in the death of thousands of inhabitants of that densely populated area. Helicopters roam that area and are supposed to be the devices that Evo bought to provide the FF.AA. that at some point they have shot at the crowd that guarded those deposits causing deaths and injuries. And roadblocks continue throughout the country.

So far there have been 33 deaths and 715 gunshot wounds. Who shoots who? Sad story. But this does not end here, in the burned palace, which is called the seat of the executive branch, a gigantic bible was shown for the possession of the current president and as an allegorical auction, the police burn the wiphala, ancestral symbol of the Bolivia’s peasant population.

But, the million-dollar question is important: Why so many dead and wounded? They were townspeople, humble peasants who respect and support Evo. The military and the national police have not hesitated to shoot these masses of protesters and the people who live in Senkata protecting fuel tanks. Evo Morales during his 14 years of government had no dead, injured or political detainees; In addition, the country’s economy remained at a high point in relation to other countries in South and Central America. We predict that the new government that occupies the burned palace in La Paz tries to maintain the economic value of the national currency; given that its economy has been managed with a lot of technicality with highly trained people in the management of the national budget.

It is known that the first victim of a political problem is the truth. And what Bolivia is living now is desperate. It is painful to know the sacrificed work of national and foreign journalists and reporters who, without having any protection, are covering the news that is generated at every moment in La Paz, Cochabamba and Santa Cruz, without forgetting that also in the other departments of Bolivia, since, the political situation is confusing and arrests, persecutions and detentions are already being presented to the members of the MAS party. What a sad story, Mrs. President.

Now the National Congress has called for elections and the appointment of a Supreme Electoral Tribunal begins. The time is short and the end of these events must be fulfilled until January 2020 as the deadline.

It only remains for us to complement the most promising omens so that peace and tranquility return to Simón Bolívar’s favorite daughter.

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If you’re at risk of diabetes, you should start pumping iron

by Melissa Smith

 

People often practice strength training or resistance training exercises to build muscle and achieve their dream figure. But strength training can benefit the body in more ways: A study published in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings suggested that this type of exercise can be beneficial for reducing the risk of Type 2 diabetes.

In the study, researchers from Iowa State University found that adults with moderate muscle strength were 32 percent less likely to develop Type 2 diabetes. They reached this finding after studying 4,681 people who did not have Type 2 diabetes. To measure the participants’ fitness and muscle strength levels, the researchers asked them to carry out a series of fitness tests, which included leg and bench presses as well as using the treadmill.

During an average follow-up of eight years, the researchers revisited the participants and found that five percent developed Type 2 diabetes. Moderate muscle mass cut the risk for Type 2 diabetes by 32 percent, irrespective of previous fitness levels, smoking, drinking, obesity and high blood pressure.

“Performing even a small amount of resistance training, which is a main contributor to muscular strength, may provide big benefits,” suggested Dr. Angelique Brellenthin, one of the researchers of the study.

The researchers noted that although their findings suggested that moderate strength can be beneficial, they weren’t able to tell exactly how much training people need to do to reduce their risk of Type 2 diabetes. They also wrote that one limitation of the study is that the participants were not asked to report their diet, which is one of the most important risk factors for Type 2 diabetes.

Brellenthin recommended bodyweight squats, lunges, pushups, and planks for beginners.

How strength training helps

Strength training helps reduce the risk of diabetes – not by eliminating the need for insulin but providing a way for the body to burn glucose for fuel without producing much more of it. When you use larger muscles during resistance training, you allow glucose to enter muscle cells, where it will be used for fuel, without the need for additional insulin.

“When you’re performing resistance training, you’re tearing muscle fibers apart,” Christel Oerum, a co-founder of Diabetes Strong who lives with Type 1 diabetes, told Healthline.com.

Oerum explained that those muscle fibers have to be rebuilt to become stronger, a process that requires more energy. For this reason, more glucose and calories are burned after you exercise. She also emphasized that exercise itself and the gradual building of healthy muscles provide the greatest benefits.

Strength training also helps protect against diabetes by increasing the ability of your muscles to store glucose. This increases with your strength, which helps your body regulate blood sugar levels better. In addition, your body’s fat-to-muscle ratio declines with strength training. As a result, the amount of insulin you need in your body to help store energy in fat cells also decreases.

You also don’t have to worry about getting too bulky. You only need to get your muscles stronger and not bigger. Getting bulk muscles also does not come too quickly as it requires significant intention, well-structured training programs, and proper nutrition.

The American Diabetes Association suggests the following guidelines for a strength training routine:

  • Perform strength training two or three days each week, with at least a day off between session to let muscles rest and rebuild.
  • Do at least eight to 10 weight exercises per session to work all the main muscle groups of the upper and lower body.
  • Your workout should last 20 to 60 minutes per session.

Researchers continue to find ways to fight diabetes as the number of people with this condition continues to increase. Learn more on how to protect yourself against this chronic condition at PreventDiabetes.news.

Sources include:

Diabetes.co.uk

Healthline.com

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The future of Dreamers –and of one lawyer who represents them- is in the hands of the Supreme Court

Despite news reports about a potential setback by SCOTUS, experts are optimistic about the chances of DACA recipients to remain in the U.S. in the long term

 

by Pilar Marrero

 

Among the lawyers representing almost 800,000 DACA recipients in front of the Supreme Court was Ted Olson, a veteran who has argued in front of the high court so many times that even the janitorial staff and the elevator operator greeted him by name that day. Accompanying Olsen was Dreamer Luis Cortes, 31, also a lawyer.

“As we walked into the building, you could feel the gravity of the place,” Cortes said in an interview. “This is the same space that has changed history, from desegregation to woman´s rights and so many other things. Olson has argued there 65 times. It was my first time even being inside.”

As they settled in their seats inside of the hearing room, Olson introduced Cortes to the man who would argue against their case: Noel Francisco, solicitor general of the United States, representing the Trump Administration against DACA.

“Olson made sure to tell Francisco that I was co-counsel and that I was one of the DACA recipients they would argue about,” said Cortes. “We shook hands and he said something like ‘great,’ then moved away. He might have been a bit uncomfortable after that.”

The questions don’t predict the outcome

After the arguments were over that day, various experts started to predict how the justices may vote based on their questions. Several media stories anticipated a negative result for DACA, particularly because of questions from Chief Justice, John Roberts, who is expected to be the tie-breaking vote in a court that often rules 5-4.

Neither Cortes nor other experts interviewed for this story feel that way, insisting that justices’ questions cannot predict their vote.

Thomas A. Saenz, president and general counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), referred to similar news analyses that ran after the arguments were presented to SCOTUS regarding adding the citizenship question to the 2020 U.S Census by the Trump administration.

“Let me remind everyone that seven months ago, they all decided we were going to lose on the citizenship questions because of what Roberts said in the hearing,” Saenz said. “I don´t put a lot of stock on that assessment. Justices, in particular Roberts as it appears from recent history, do consider carefully the implications of a decision. And the implications here are huge.”

Roberts, a conservative, sided in June with the four liberal justices to rule against allowing the Trump administration to add the citizenship question to the 2020 Census, a result no one had predicted a few months ago. Some are banking on a similar surprise from Roberts this time, but no one can really tell what´s going to happen.

After the Nov. 12 DACA hearing, Cortes and Olson left the room optimistic about the results, Cortes said.

“A lot of the time justices use the questions or a conversation for one of the other justices,” he said. “We left very optimistic –we had the best answer with every question that was asked and left everything on the table.”

The possible results for Dreamers

The DACA program, a deferred-action decision allowing temporary legal status to hundreds of thousands of immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children, was put in place by former President Barack Obama in 2012. In 2017, the Trump administration announced it would phase out the program, alleging that it was illegal from the very beginning.

Several lawsuits argued that Trump´s planned termination of DACA violates federal law requiring certain procedures before major rules are changed, as well as equal protection and due process guarantees.

Federal courts issued nationwide injunctions, blocking the administration´s plans to end DACA and forcing the continuation of program renewals. SCOTUS took the unusual step of taking up the cases before lower courts had fully heard them.

SCOTUS could rule at any time before next June, and it would all fall in the middle of a presidential election year, a fact that could affect the President´s mind and political calculations, said Frank Sharry, a veteran Washington observer and executive director of America´s Voice, a pro-immigration reform group.

Sharry believes Trump is less likely to move on terminating DACA if the court says it should be done differently.

“If the court says the Trump administration did have the authority to terminate but that it did it in the wrong manner, then there´s a chance he won´t do it at all,” Sharry says.

“I think Trump understands the backlash, because it was big after the revocation was announced in 2017,” Sharry added. “He may try to get away with saying that he will take care of it after the election and keep his base happy that they won and at the same time not completely alienate moderates who support the program. But he doesn´t know if he will be there after the election.”

For Nico Espiritu, a lawyer with the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), a ruling like that from SCOTUS would give Dreamers more time to stay in the country.

“If it´s sent back to the lower courts saying it wasn’t done right, SCOTUS will have to issue another rule to wind down the program,” said Espiritu. “This would allow those still receiving DACA to continue to stay and be authorized to work and protected from deportation.”

Sharry added that Dreamers can apply for an extra two years even if their current DACA has not expired. “There will be a major push for them to do it as soon as possible,” he said.

If SCOTUS rules that the Trump administration did everything right and DACA is allowed to expire, DACA recipients are likely to be allowed to finish their current period in the program and then be put on deportation, but they could still fight it individually, said Saenz. These individual deportations in backlogged immigration courts could take a long time.

In that case, a future new president could restart the program again, issuing another rule, or a new Congress could take up the Dream Act. If Trump remains president, all bets are off, however.

Bill Hing, law professor at the University of San Francisco, expects major protests and mobilizations by the Dreamers, the best organized immigrant group in the country, if DACA is allowed to expire by the SCOTUS decision.

“I think we would see some of the biggest protests in the movement so far,” he said. “They have a lot of support.”

For Dreamer-lawyer Luis Cortes, who practices immigration law, the future lives of his clients are at stake, as well as his own.

“I worry about my clients, but my future is tied up with theirs,” Cortes says. “One of the reasons I was fighting this case is to prevent my clients from being deported, and me with them.”

 

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Trump says drug cartels will be designated terrorist organizations

Mexico will seek high-level meeting with US to discuss the designation

by Mexico News Daily

The United States will designate Mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations, U.S. President Donald Trump said in an interview Tuesday, triggering a request by Mexico for high-level bilateral talks.

“They will be designated… I have been working on that for the last 90 days” Trump told political commentator Bill O’Reilly.

“We’re losing 100,000 people a year to… what’s coming through Mexico,” Trump said, referring to narcotics trafficking. “They [the cartels] have unlimited money… it’s drug money and human trafficking money…”

Trump’s remarks prompted a swift response from the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs (SRE).

“The foreign secretary [Marcelo Ebrard] will establish contact with his counterpart, Michael R. Pompeo, in order to discuss this very important issue for the bilateral agenda,” the SRE said in a statement.

“In accordance with the good relations… between both countries, the Mexican government will seek a high-level meeting as soon as possible to present Mexico’s position and understand the point of view of United States authorities.”

Ebrard said Tuesday that he believed designating cartels as terrorists was unnecessary and stressed that Mexico will not allow a United States intervention in Mexico, an assertion repeated by President López Obrador on Wednesday.

He said he did not wish to start an argument on the eve of the Thanksgiving holiday in the U.S. so his message to Donald Trump was a brief one: “Cooperation yes, interventionism no. And that’s where we shall leave it.”

López Obrador also offered hugs to U.S. citizens in celebration of the holiday.

Trump’s affirmation that the terrorist designation will be made came two days after the LeBarón family, who lost nine members in a suspected cartel ambush this month, posted a petition to a White House website that calls on the United States government to do exactly that.

But conservative U.S. lawmakers have been urging the Trump administration to classify cartels as terrorists since early this year.

Two Republican party representatives called for the move in a February letter to Secretary of State Pompeo, and soon after Trump endorsed the idea, telling the news website Breitbart, “we’re thinking about doing it very seriously… Mexico, unfortunately, has lost control of the cartels.”

Once a group is designated as a terrorist organization, it is illegal under U.S. law for people to knowingly offer support. Members of the organization are barred from entering the United States and those already in the country face deportation.

Financial institutions that become aware they have funds linked to a terrorist group must block the money and notify the U.S. Treasury Department.

Some of the implications of the designation were aired by Mexican columnist León Krauze in The Washington Post last week. He wrote that a terrorist designation of Mexican cartels “would greatly complicate an already strained bilateral agenda.”

He said “the U.S. government would be immediately granted a set of blunt diplomatic instruments that could have unforeseen consequences for both countries.” He noted that U.S. intelligence capabilities and the government’s ability to antagonize people suspected of assisting cartels would both increase.

“…While the situation in Mexico is undeniably difficult, the designation of some of the country’s cartels as terrorist organizations seems disproportionate and counterproductive,” Krauze wrote.

Arturo Sarukhán, a former Mexican ambassador to the United States, told Milenio TV that a designation could have “very broad and brutal political, diplomatic, financial, economic and commercial consequences.”

The move would reinforce “this narrative of Mexico as a threat to the national security of the United States,” he said.

The editor of the newspaper El Economista argued that the planned designation is politically motivated, writing in an opinion piece that “the president knows that attacking Mexico can offer him a high return from his electoral base.”

Luis Miguel González contended that the move would further complicate U.S. ratification of the new North American trade agreement and could cause the bilateral relationship to plummet to “new lows.”

He predicted that the U.S. president will increasingly use Mexico as a punching bag as the 2020 presidential election draws closer.

“…Will Trump take the Mexican piñata out of the garage? You can bet that he will. Perhaps he won’t dare to break it because of the high risk that implies…” González wrote.

“[But] maybe he will because he likes strong emotions, because he’s a supporter of protectionism more than free trade and… because he doesn’t like Mexico. It’s as simple as that.”

Source: Milenio (sp), Reuters (en), El Economista (sp), The Washington Post (en).

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