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Mayor of Hawaii’s Big Island signs anti-GMO bill into law

A protest in Hawaii against GMO.

by Natural News’s news services

Mayor Billy Kenoi signed Bill 113 into law this week, banning biotech companies and new genetically modified crops from the Big Island of Hawaii. The island’s GMO papaya industry is exempt from the bill. The law reflects Hawaiian sentiments to encourage community-based farming, as opposed to letting global corporations take over their agriculture. Biotech companies have not yet begun operations on the Big Island, and the new bill will help keep it that way.
Much of Hawaii’s agricultural sector opposed the bill, and, the mayor said, some farmers were “treated disrespectfully” while the new legislation was being debated. Kenoi urges community healing and an end to the angry rhetoric that lead to the passage of the bill. Just a few weeks ago, Kauai passed its own law to regulate GMO and pesticide usage.
“Our community has a deep connection and respect for our land, and we all understand we must protect our island and preserve our precious natural resources,” Kenoi wrote to council members. “We are determined to do what is right for the land because this place is unlike any other in the world.” (Originally reported by Sophie Cocke – (http://www.huffingtonpost.com))

Polls consistently show overwhelming majority of Americans support GMO labeling

As reported by RT.com, polls consistently show that the majority of Americans support laws for requiring the labeling of foods that contain genetically modified organisms.

A New York Times poll conducted earlier this year revealed that 93 percent of respondents were in favor of GMO labeling, and a 2010 survey by the Washington Post resulted in 94 percent in favor.

In recent years, states such as California and Washington have tried to pass GMO labeling initiatives, which polls had shown were supported by most of the residents who responded. Despite this, biotech companies like Monsanto and DuPont and food corporations like PepsiCo, Coca-Cola and Kellogg have furiously poured money into pro-GMO propaganda in those states and kept such legislation from passing, against the best interests of their customers.

Regardless of advertising, GMO labeling laws have recently been passed in Maine and Connecticut, but they will not be in effect until four other northeastern states with a combined population of at least 20 million enact similar laws.

GMO labeling continues to gain steady support across the country as people realize the dangers of eating pesticides, chemicals and man-made creatures and blindly trusting corporations with the safety and quality of their food. Enacting sensible labeling laws is possible, and we must continue our efforts to do so if we are to achieve the health freedom that we, and future generations of Americans, deserve. (http://rt.com/usa/gmo-labeled-majority-americans-601/)

Argentinian Monsanto protester threatened, then physically beaten, by industry goons

A mother of three has met the brutal hand of the insanely powerful biotechnology industry, which recently sent a duo of thugs to literally beat her relentlessly after earlier threatening to murder her. GM Watch reports that Sofia Gatica, who has successfully spearheaded campaigns to block plantings of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in her home country of Argentina, was targeted by two men on motorbikes who very likely would have killed her if it were not for the intervention of her neighbors.

Reports indicate that the men approached Gatica near her work, just 72 hours after she received a terrifying death threat. An outspoken activist on issues relating to GMOs, Gatica led the charge back in 2012 to require that chemical companies first prove the safety of their poisons before gaining official approval for their use in Argentina. She is also currently leading efforts to prevent the establishment of a new Monsanto facility in the Malvinas region of Argentina, where she helped set up blockades to impede construction.

“I was at the bus stop and two men appear on a motorcycle in the opposite direction,” recalls Sofia about her terrifying experience at the hands of pro-GMO thugs. “One jumped on top of me and they kicked and beat me. I screamed loudly and the neighbors came out to help me,” she adds, noting in a separate interview with La Voz del Interior that the men hit her “neck, arms, legs, everything.”

The unidentified assailants did not steal anything from Gatica, nor did they target her property or her neighbors, which leads her to believe that the attack was prompted by the very industry players that she actively works to prevent from destroying her homeland. Argentina, after all, is a major biotech target and is currently the world’s third largest exporter of Monsanto’s Roundup Ready GM soybeans, which require heavy applications of deadly chemicals.

Gatica filed a complaint with local police not long after the incident but was wary about having to enlist the help of guards for protection. But with three little ones at home and more work to be done on the food freedom front, Gatica has cooperated with local law enforcement and agreed to have an armed guard stand watch at her property.

“I didn’t want to have guards watching over me,” she told Cordoba’s Canal 10 news. “I just want the people of Monsanto to leave me in peace.” (NaturalNews).

Juan Orlando Hernández declared Honduras president

by the El Reportero’s news service

Juan Orlando HernándezJuan Orlando Hernández

Conservative Juan Orlando Hernández, the candidate of the governing National Party, has been declared the winner of the presidential election held last week in Honduras, election officials said.

Hernandez won 36.8 percent of the vote, while former first lady Xiomara Castro, of the leftist Liberty and Refounding Party, or Libre, garnered 28.79 percent, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, or TSE, said.

The final results were released on Saturday, six days after the election was held in the Central American country.

“As a result, the winner of the elections at the presidential level is attorney Juan Orlando Hernandez Alvarado, of the National Party of Honduras,” TSE chairman David Matamoros told radio and television networks.

Matamoros did not say what percentage of the ballots were counted to achieve the final result.

The TSE will continue “with the counts at the level of National Congress legislators and municipal entities, following the established technical and legal rules,” Matamoros said. The Libre party said it would ask the TSE on Sunday for a review of hundreds of allegedly defective ballots.

Castro is the wife of President Mel Zelaya, who was ousted in a June 28, 2009, coup. Honduras, unlike some other Latin American nations, does not require an absolute majority for victory.

Honduras has the world’s highest murder rate, but last Sunday’s voting was largely peaceful, though five people were gunned down nearing a polling place.

REPORT: Most corrupt Latin American countries

Transparency International’s annual Corruption Perceptions Index was released this week.

The report found that corruption worsened in Latin America over the past year as economic heavyweights Brazil and Mexico didn’t improve and gang-plagued Central America worsened. The Corruption Perceptions Index ranks countries and territories based on how corrupt their public sector is perceived to be.

The countries that had the least perceived corruption were Denmark and New Zealand who scored 91 out of 100 on the survey. The countries that had the highest perceived corruption were Afghanistan, North Korea, and Somalia who scored 8 out of 100 on the survey. The least perceived corrupt country was Uruguay, who tied with the United States with a score of 73 out of 100.

Checkout Latincorrupt countries below. 123. Dominican Republic (29 out of 100) 123. Guatemala (29 out of 100) 127. Nicaragua (28 out of 100) 140. Honduras (26 out of 100) 150. Paraguay (24 out of 100) 160. Venezuela (20 out of 100)

USA deports more than 46,000 Guatemalans

The number of Guatemalans deported from the United States in the first 11 months of the year totaled to 46,198, which was 23 percent more than the same period last year, the National Immigration Office said. Of the total deported this year so far, 41,965 are men, 3,941 are women and 292 were younger than 18, the office said. The higher number of deportations did not negatively impact family remittances, which totaled $4.281

America’s most

Is your TV spying on you? It sounds like science fiction

Many new TVs can watch you or even film you on the sofa

by Guy Adams
Daily Mail.co.uk

You are sitting in bed in your pajamas, drinking a cup of cocoa. A loved one lies next to you, watching late-night television. Pillow talk is exchanged. An alarm clock is set. Eventually the lights are turned out.

Earlier, you sat on the living-room sofa eating supper, before loading the dishwasher and heading upstairs.

You have, in other words, just enjoyed a perfectly normal night, in a perfectly normal home. The curtains are drawn, the central heating turned up. It’s cozy, relaxing and, above all, completely private. Or so you thought.

The truth turns out to be quite the opposite. For on the other side of the world, people you didn’t know existed are keeping a beady eye on your every move.

These characters can see what clothes you have been wearing and what food you’ve eaten. They heard every word you said, and logged every TV show you watched. Some are criminals, others work for major corporations. And now they know your most intimate secrets.

It may sound like a plot summary for a futuristic science-fiction movie. But real-life versions of this Orwellian scenario are being played out every day in towns and cities across the globe — and in most cases the victims have no idea.

At fault is a common electronic device invented nearly a century ago and found in almost every modern household: the domestic television set.

Put simply, our TVs have started spying on us.

Last week, there was a high-profile case in point. An IT consultant called Jason Huntley, who lives in a village near Hull, uncovered evidence that a flat-screen television, which had been sitting in his living room since the summer, was secretly invading his family’s privacy.

He began investigating the £400 LG device after noticing that its home screen appeared to be showing him ‘targeted’ adverts for for cars, and Knorr stock cubes — based on programs he’d just been watching.

Huntley decided to monitor information that the so-called smart TV — which connects to the internet — was sending and receiving. He did this by using his laptop effectively as a bridge between his television and the internet receiver, so the laptop was able to show all the data being sucked out of his set.

He soon discovered that details of not just every show he watched but every button he pressed on his remote control were being sent back to LG’s corporate headquarters in South Korea.

There, the electronics company appeared to be using its customers’ data to make money. A promotional video shown to commercial clients suggested that data was being used to provide ‘the ad experience you have always dreamed of’.

The information Huntley’s TV had sent — without his knowledge — included the contents of his private digital video collection, which he’d watched on the television. This included camcorder footage of family celebrations containing images of his wife and two young children.

Most worrying of all, the device continued sending such information to Korea even after Huntley had adjusted the television’s default settings to ‘opt out’ of data sharing.

Huntley wrote about the findings on his blog. After his case was picked up by mainstream news outlets, LG announced an investigation. ‘Customer privacy is a top priority,’ the firm said. ‘We are looking into reports that certain viewing information on LG smart TVs was shared without consent.’
LG has also removed its promotional video about targeted advertising from its website.

The Information Commissioner’s Office says it is now investigating the firm for a ‘possible breach’ of the Data Protection Act. Jason Huntley, meanwhile, tells me he is ‘very suspicious and also a little worried’ by the affair. ‘I don’t think we’ve heard the last of this. Who knows what else these televisions are doing that we don’t know about?’

It doesn’t take much digging to find out. Talk to any IT security expert and they will tell you that Huntley’s discovery is probably the tip of the iceberg.

What’s to blame is the continuing rise of smart televisions, which account for most new TV sets sold and are predicted to be in more than half of British homes by 2016. These high-tech devices differ from traditional televisions in that they are not just passive boxes that receive a signal and transfer it to a backlit screen. Instead, they are essentially computers that connect to the internet — and so also send information back the other way.

In theory, this can be extremely useful. For example, many smart TVs have shopping ‘apps’ to access Amazon. They connect to iTunes. They allow us to watch YouTube, instantly download films via Netflix, stream BBC shows on iPlayer, and talk to friends using the video phone link Skype. But in practice, like almost every type of computer, they can be all-tooeasily hacked. And unlike PCs, almost all of which have fairly good anti-virus ‘firewalls’, smart TVs have little or no such software.

Indeed, most have been designed so that outside software — including anti-virus programes — can never be installed. This year, Luigi Auriemma, an IT security researcher and computer programmer from Malta, demonstrated the risks that these devices pose when he showed it was possible to hack into several types of Samsung smart television.

After accessing the devices via the internet, Auriemma was able to control them: turning the TVs off and on, and secretly accessing data they held about a user’s viewing habits. Had he been a criminal, he could also have obtained details of the credit cards that users had uploaded to access pay-per-view TV, download films or use shopping apps.

Other experts recently made the chilling discovery that it is possible to remotely access the video cameras built into the front of thousands of smart televisions, and spy on the users in their own home.

One such expert is Kurt Stammberger, who works for the IT security firm Mocana. He says the company was recently asked by a television manufacturer to do ‘penetration tests’ on its devices.

‘We weren’t just able to find out what someone was watching, and had watched,’ he says. ‘We could also install “spyware” that could, if they had a video camera, allow us to see through that camera — without even activating the little light that indicates it’s on.

‘It was a fairly straightforward thing to do. People who work in IT often place tape over their computer’s camera lens [in a laptop they are usually set into the inside of the lid] unless they want to actually use it, because it’s so common to hack them. We should all do the same with smart TVs.’

Such an attack, which Stammberger describes as ‘frighteningly easy’ to mount, could provide voyeuristic hackers with a chance to snoop on unsuspecting home-owners in their living rooms or bedrooms.

You have only to witness the extraordinary success of the critically acclaimed Channel 4 show Gogglebox, in which consenting families allow the viewing public to watch them watching television, to appreciate how enticing that prospect could be. More commercially minded hackers could use such an attack to steal commercial secrets. It could even be used to spy on foreign powers.

‘It’s a serious prospect and I would be very surprised if the Government ever puts in a big order for TVs from, for example, a Chinese manufacturer such as Huawei,’ adds Stammberger, referring to the giant corporation that has been banned in America because of fears over espionage.

‘But supply chains these days are so long and so complex that it’s very rare to buy an electronic device that doesn’t have some sort of Chinese component in it.’ Gangs based largely in Eastern Europe and Russia, meanwhile, are already using so-called ‘data-mining’ programs to travel the internet looking for smart TVs in which owners have entered their credit card details. A single search can yield thousands of results.

According to Roger Grimes, who has written eight books on IT security and worked in the field for 28 years, the gangs then sell lists of hacked credit card numbers to fellow criminals. Card details that were obtained within the past 24 hours sell for around 2.20 pounds each. Older ones are cheaper because there is more chance the cards could have been changed or stopped. ‘What we are starting to see now is really just a foretaste of what’s going to be happening in the next couple of decades,’ says Grimes. ‘Thanks firstly to mobile devices, and now smart TVs, we are entering a brave new world where there will be computers everywhere.

Bad guys will take advantage of that.’ And we may not even be safe in our own living rooms.

Saw Palmetto – naturally reverses enlarged prostate while improving male health

by John McKiernan

Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) is a palm plant that has been used by native Americans and other cultures for centuries to treat various urinary and reproductive issues. The active ingredients come from the fruit of the plant’s brown-black colored berries.

As effective as Proscar at treating BHP

A large percentage of men over the age of 40 and nine out of ten men over 60 have less than perfect prostate health. Most common is a condition known as BHP or benign prostatic hyperplasia, which is the medical term for an enlarged prostate. Although the condition is not cancerous, it can cause trouble urinating because the enlarged prostate presses on the urethra. Saw palmetto is the number one herbal treatment for reversing BHP.

Numerous clinical trials have been conducted in Europe comparing saw palmetto to the most prescribed drug for BHP, Proscar. A critique of 24 of these European trials was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in November of 1998. Almost 3,000 men in total participated, using either saw palmetto, Proscar or a placebo.

The journal found that groups consuming the saw palmetto had a 28 percent improvement in urinary tract symptoms, a 24 percent improvement in peak urine flow and 43 percent improvement in general urine flow. The outcomes were similar to the groups taking Proscar and superior to the placebo groups. Other sources have come to the same conclusions regarding saw palmetto and Proscar. Dr. Allen E. Shaughnessy and Dr. Andrea E. Gordon analyzed 21 prior clinical studies in a March 2003 issue of American Family Physician. They concluded that saw palmetto was as effective as Proscar at treating enlarged prostates. In addition, they commented on the fact that the plant-based remedy is less expensive than its pharmaceutical counterpart.

Scientists aren’t sure precisely how Saw Palmetto improves BHP, but they suspect that its active substances may inhibit 5-alpha-reductase, an enzyme which converts testosterone to dihydrotestosterone. Dihydrotestosterone is a fundamental component involved in the onset and advancement of BHP.

While Saw Palmetto can be very effective in treating BHP and improving prostate health in general, there are other nutrients to consider. Each of these essential vitamins and minerals can improve prostate health and help prevent prostate cancer:

– Vitamin D

– Vitamin K2

– Vitamin E

– Calcium

– Magnesium

– Selenium

More benefits:

Saw Palmetto may also be effective in increasing testosterone levels, improving sexual energy and promoting hair growth. Its effectiveness in inhibiting 5-alpha-reductase may also be responsible for its usefulness in preventing baldness, a form of hair loss called androgenic alopecia. Saw Palmetto may also aid in muscle growth as it contains fatty acids that aid protein in building and strengthening muscle tissues. Its active ingredients include fatty acids, plant sterols, and flavonoids, all of which are chemicals that are effective in preventing cancer, reducing inflammation and strengthening the immune system. This versatile herb has also been shown to be effective in treating sore throat, asthma, colds, coughs, irritated mucous membranes, chronic bronchitis and migraines and can be used as an antiseptic and an expectorant.

Side effects Saw Palmetto extract is considered very safe and related to very few side effects or allergic reactions. Gastrointestinal side effects are among the most common; however, they may be reduced by ingesting the supplement along with food.

Tips for buying Saw Palmetto

Many herbal supplements contain no active ingredients at all, which is why it’s always important to purchase reputable brands. Also, be sure that the manufacturer uses the super critical carbon dioxide method to extract the active ingredients out of the berries. Other more harsh methods may diminish these beneficial substances.

Sources for this article include: http://www.herbwisdom.com/herbsaw-palmetto.html.

Two Constitutions of the United State Part 2

by Marvin Ramirez

Marvin J. RamirezMarvin Ramirez

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR: Dear El Reportero’s readers, I have received this interesting article, published in several websites around the internet,. It goes deep into a US history not told in current history books. However, I found it worth publishing to shared it with you all. It opens up a different perspective and exposes controversial claims about how the US really operates – not as a country but rather as a corporation. You must do your own research in order to get a better understanding of this information. Part 2

First one was suspended in favor of a Vatican corporation in 1871. First published by Press Core

Pope meeting with the board of directors of The Vatican Bank

Since 1871 the United States president and the United States Congress has been playing politics under a different set of rules and policies. The American people do not know that there are two Constitutions in the United States. The first penned by the leaders of the newly independent states of the United States in 1776. On July 4, 1776, the people claimed their independence from Britain and Democracy was born. And for 95 years the United States people were free and independent. That freedom ended in 1871 when the original “Constitution for the united states for America” was changed to the “THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA”.

The Congress realized that the country was in dire financial straits, so they made a financial deal with the devil – international bankers — (in those days, the Rothschilds of London ) thereby incurring a DEBT to said bankers. The conniving international bankers were not about to lend the floundering nation any money without some serious stipulations. So, they devised a way of taking back control of the United States and thus, the Act of 1871 was passed. With no constitutional authority to do genéticaso,

Congress created a separate form of government for the District of Columbia.

With the passage of “the Act of 1871” a city state (a state within a state) called the District of Columbia located on 10 sq miles of land in the heart of Washington was formed with its own flag and its own independent constitution – the United States’ secret second constitution.

The flag of Washington’s District of Columbia has 3 red stars, each symbolizing a city state within the three city empire. The 1three city empire consists of Washington D.C., London, and Vatican City. London is the corporate center of the three city states and controls the world economically. Washington’s District of Columbia city state is in charge of the military, and the Vatican controls it all under the guise of spiritual guidance. Although geographically separate, the city states of London, the Vatican and the District of Columbia are one interlocking empire called “Empire of the City.”

The constitution for the District of Columbia operates under tyrannical Vatican law known as “LexFori” (local law). When congress passed the act of 1871 it created a separate corporation known as THE UNITED STATES and corporate government for the District of Columbia. This treasonous act has unlawfully allowed the District of Columbia to operate as a corporation outside the original constitution of the United States and in total disregard of the best interests of the American citizens.

POTUS is the Chief Executive (president) of the Corporation of the United States operating as any other CEO of the corporation — governs w/a Board of Directors (cabinet officials) and managers (Senators/ Congress) Obama as others before him is POTUS — operating as “vassal king” taking orders once again from “The City of London” through the RIIA (Royal Institute of Intl Affairs). The Illuminati (founded by the The Society of Jesus or Jesuits, the largest Roman Catholic Religious Military Order headed by the Black Pope) created the Royal Institute of International Affairs (RIIA) in 1919. The American equivalent to the RIIA is the Council of Foreign Relations (CFR). The RIIA and CFR set up Round Table Groups (based on the King Arthur myths). What did the Act of 1871 achieve? The ACT of 1871 put the United States back under British rule (which is under Vatican rule). The United States people lost their independence in 1871.

THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is the constitution of the incorporated UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. It operates in an economic capacity and has been used to fool the People into thinking it governs the Republic. It does not! Capitalization is NOT insignificant when one is referring to a legal document.

This seemingly “minor” alteration has had a major impact on every subsequent generation of Americans. What Congress did by passing the Act of 1871 was create an entirely new document, a constitution for the government of the District of Columbia, an INCORPORATED government.

Instead of having absolute and unalienable rights guaranteed under the organic Constitution, we the people now have “relative” rights or privileges.

One example is the Sovereign’s right to travel, which has now been transformed (under corporate government policy) into a “privilege” that requires citizens to be licensed – driver’s licenses and Passports. By passing the Act of 1871, Congress committed TREASON against the People who were Sovereign under the grants and decrees of the Declaration of Independence and the organic Constitution. The Act of 1871 became the FOUNDATION of all the treason since committed by government officials. NEXT WEEK THE UNITED STATES IS NOT A COUNTRY, IT’S A CORPORTATION!

The Mexicans are coming, the Mexicans are coming!

by Kurt Nimmo

Pope Francis released his first encyclical on Tuesday. In addition to restating opposition by the Catholic Church to abortion, the new Pope criticized free market capitalism and advocated wealth redistribution.

He said “some people continue to defend trickle-down theories which assume that economic growth, encouraged by a free market, will inevitably succeed in bringing about greater justice and inclusiveness in the world. This opinion, which has never been confirmed by the facts, expresses a crude and naïve trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power and in the sacralized workings of the prevailing economic system. Meanwhile, the excluded are still waiting.”

So-called “trickle down” is not an economic theory. It is a pejorative term used by socialists and others in favor of wealth distribution to describe laissez-faire capitalism. A product of the Enlightenment, laissez-faire capitalism was “conceived as the way to unleash human potential through the restoration of a natural system, a system unhindered by the restrictions of government,” writes Toufic Gaspard. For political economist Adam Smith and other classical economists, the concept was inextricably connected to natural rights.

Laissez faire recognizes the individual is the central unit of society endowed with a natural right to liberty, including the right to economic activity between consenting individuals so long as this activity does not impede the rights of others. In his book The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Smith used the metaphor of an “invisible hand” to describe unintended effects of individuals involved in economic organization and self-interest.

Although laissez-faire capitalism flourished in the United States, it was undermined early on by proponents of the American School and Alexander Hamilton, who proposed direct control of the economy by a central bank and tariffs that favored the industrial North over the agricultural South (eventually resulting in the so-called Civil War).

Carl E. Prince and Seth Taylor write that by the early 19th century “it is quite clear that the laissez faire label is an inappropriate one” to describe the increasingly close relationship between large corporations and the United States government. Instead of unhindered free trade, the Whig tradition of economic nationalism reigned as the government regulated and controlled the expansion of national infrastructure, particularly the railroads. The first federal income tax was imposed at this time to pay for the Lincoln’s war against the South. In the period following the war, government diminished laissez-faire capitalism by accelerating a mixed economy and enacted 2various laws, including the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 and the Sherman Anti-trust Act. Socialist doctrines, under the rubric of Keynesian economics, dominated economic policy following the Federal Reserve engineered Great Depression.

Until recently and despite the unrelenting attack on laissez-faire economics the American economy reigned as an undisputed engine of prosperity. The political attacks of Pope Francis and other socialists are the latest effort to undermine free market capitalism and replace it with a socialist system that has demonstrated repeatedly it is incapable of creating the sort of prosperity society requires to prosper.

Natural law and a natural system of liberty is now under concerted attack. Criticism of “the sacralized workings of the prevailing economic system,” as Pope Francis defined free trade and the natural law of laissez-faire capitalism, is highly misleading.

In fact, the United States has never enjoyed pure laissez-faire capitalism, but has suffered under varying degrees of crony capitalism, more accurately described as corporatism — or as Benito Mussolini termed it, fascism. In the recent past, the destructiveness of self-serving business and government relationships and state-run monetary policy directed in the shadows by a globalist financial elite were mitigated by the engine of prosperity. However, we have now entered a dangerous period as the global elite and corporations work in concert to erode the fiscal and moral underpinnings of the economy. The country now teeters on the verge of financial and social ruin.

As a tutored Jesuit and Argentine, Pope Francis is a student of the Jesuit Reductions, the Catholic program of the 17th and 18th centuries to Christianize, tax and govern the people of Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia and America. In Paraguay under the Jesuits, according to the New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia, the “economic basis was a sort of communism” ruled over by the caciques, or tribal leaders, at the behest and guidance of the Padres.

“The Jesuits aimed to set up [in Paraguay] a completely communistic system, in the sense that no individual rights were recognized and there was no private property,” writes John Findlater in The Revolutionary Movement: A Diagnosis of World Disorders.

“Everything belonged to the State, and was supposed to be shared in common. But in reality much the greater part of the proceeds of good sold was always remitted to the Camarilla [advisers to the Spanish kings]; and the Guaranis [Indians of Paraguay, northern Argentina, and southern Brazil] got only the bare necessities of life in return for their toil and sweat.”

In modern times, the well-honed process of confiscation and accumulation by the state is far more sophisticated, but the end result is almost identical — in the wake of looting by multinationals and globalist organizations such as the IMF and World Bank, millions of people are locked in poverty while a distinct minority revel in untold riches. Pope Francis and the Catholic Church blame free trade capitalists for this state of affairs, not the state and its system of crony capitalism in the service of a parasitical corporate and transnational elite.

Pope Francis is playing to so-called progressives in America and Europe who believe wealth must be redistributed, in short confiscated from the producers at gunpoint and distributed to politically useful non-producers by government. In reality, the mega-wealthy, the financial elite on Wall Street and the City of London, never pay their “fair share” and are, in fact, the main driving force behind socialist confiscation schemes. Breadcrumbs are handed out to the poor and destitute under a bloated and bureaucratic system while the lion’s share is spirited away under a cover of darkness to a small minority. Infowars.com.

Van Van celebrates anniversary with new record

by the El Reportero’s news services

Los Van Van. (PHOTO REPRODUCED FROM WWW.SONGLINES.CO.UK)Los Van Van. (PHOTO REPRODUCED FROM WWW.SONGLINES.CO.UK)

The symbolic popular music band Los Van Van celebrates its 44 anniversary, immersed in the production of a new record titles La Fantasía (Fantasy).

Director Juan Formell told Prensa Latina the CD is inspired in people’s dreams, whether they are reachable or not. It is an album inspired by dreams but connected to reality and everyday stories.

Formell, who recently won a Latin Grammy Award to Musical Excellence, said there will be three song written by him, as well as others by Samuel Formell and Mandy Cantero (the new singer of the band), among others.

“We are sure it will be a really good record. We have not made it to win awards but to please the audience, that is what really matter, the audience gets a quality product”, he said.

He also stressed his joy after receiving this year the Latin Grammy Award and the Womex Award.

Jennifer López’ AMA Tribute to Celia Cruz

Check out Jennifer López’ tribute to the late, great Celia Cruz at the American Music Awards. There was a lot of J-Lo and not that much Celia Cruz critics say. Many salsa fans were expecting more footage of Cruz and not López’ name splashed all over the screen. López wore several eye-popping costumes in her 3-minute long performance honoring the “La Reyna de Cuba.” The 44-year-old singer performed shortly after her ex-husband, Marc Anthony, won favorite Latin artist.

López went on stage with 30 dancers singing a mix of the salsa singer’s greatest hits.

Celia Cruz, who on Oct. 21 would have turned 88 years old, was one of the most representative Latino artists in an industry that has managed to place its idols right in the middle of the Anglo market. Cruz died July 16, 2003, in New Jersey.

Jenni Rivera Album with Final Performance Goes on Sale

Just a few days before the anniversary of singer Jenni Rivera’s death a year ago, a disc with the last performance of “La Diva de la Banda” will go on sale, the Universal Music Latin Entertainment/Fonovisa label said.

The record company said in a press release that the album “1969-Siempre. En Vivo desde Monterrey, Parte 1” will go on sale Tuesday in Mexico and the United States.

The disc, which also has a DVD, is made up of norteño band and acoustics music that were part of the artist’s repertoire during her final performance at the Arena Monterrey on Dec. 8, 2012.

That same night, Rivera, 43, died together with six others when their plane crashed and none survived.

March for City College and afordable housing

Compiled by the El Reportero staff

March for City College (Info below).March for City College (Info below).

Twenty groups and hundreds of students, teachers, and community members will unite for a day of action to Reclaim the Promise for our public schools and affordable housing that is sponsored by thousands of union members, advocates, and organizers in over 60 cities across the country.

Join us on Monday, December 9th at 4:30 p.m. at 9th and Market Street for a march and candlelight vigil to expose corporate tax cheats who represent tax and public policies gone wrong. Together we can stop displacement, invest more in City College, and win tens of millions of dollars for our public schools and vital services.

Deadlines approaching for entries to 2014 San Francisco International Film Festival

The San Francisco Film Society is now accepting submissions for the 57th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 24 – May 8, 2014), recognized throughout the world as an extraordinary showcase of cinematic discovery and innovation in one of the country’s most beautiful cities.

Works in all genres, forms and lengths are considered. Tens of thousands in cash prizes. The final deadline for short films was Monday Dec. 2, and the final deadline for features is Monday Dec. 9.

HOW TO ENTER Entry form and information: sffs.org or withoutabox.com.

SJJF brings Latin Youth Jazz Ensamble

San Jose Jazz, the producer of the San Jose Jazz Summer Fest, presents dozens of concerts in San Jose year-round.

The concerts feature well-known musicians and talented “gems” of San Jose’s music scene playing jazz, Latin jazz, blues, R&B, folk, Americana and related genres. The programs offer a diverse set of genres and venues, but share the quality and sense of discovery for which San Jose Jazz is known.

Mid December, the Latin Youth Jazz Ensemble (Dec 13) and our 2013-14 High School All Stars (Dec 20) are focusing on the Holidays, with Christmas-inspired repertoires.

Enjoy the rest of our December performance schedule below, and visit sanjosejazz.org for the latest information on artists, venues, and times.

The Revolutionary Nutcracker Sweetie: The Kidz Version

Featuring The Grrrl Brigade & Jr. Grrrl Brigade, this show is a twist on the Nutcracker classic. The politically infused storyline includes youth ages 5-18 that encourages us to continue fighting for peace, justice, and social equality! The show opens in the home of Mr. & Mrs. McGreed, the richest people in town. We go on a journey with their maid, Clara and their rebellious daughter, Drosselmyer and discover that what makes us truly rich is following our dreams and creating a global community where all people can thrive. Presented by Dance Mission Theater’s Youth Program.

Saturday, Dec 14 at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.; Sunday, Dec. 15 at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Tickets: $15- $20. Available at www.brownpapertickets.com.

Mittens and Mistletoe: A Winter Circus Cabaret

Sweet Can Productions is proud to announce the 4th Annual Mittens and Mistletoe: A Winter Circus Cabaret! Now a holiday tradition, ‘Mittens’ is back with more comedy, music, spectacular circus feats, and holiday high jinks. This year’s cast includes veterans from Teatro Zinzanni, Circus Bella, Vespertine Circus, The Pickle Family Circus, and will be hosted by Bay Area performing legend, Joan Mankin. Come see the holiday show that everyone will love.

Friday, Dec. 20 and 21 at 8 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 22 at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., Monday, Dec. 23 at 2 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 24 at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Tickets $15-$60. www.brownpapertickets.com. Produced by Sweet Can Productions presents

Elections in Honduras: Nationalist Party wins under suspicion of electoral fraud

A military guards the electoral process in a school in the colony La Travesía, popular district of Tegucigalpa. (PHOTO BY ORSETTA BELLANI)

by Orsetta Bellani

On Sunday, Nov. 24, Honduras showed a devastating situation in the polls: 70 percent of the population lives in poverty and 40 percent is unemployed. The collusion between officials and organized crime is invasive and the militarization of society, on behalf of the fight against organized crime, has caused an increase in murders and the presence of drug-trafficking organizations, which takes advantages of the impunity of 80 percent of crimes.
According to the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration), 80 percent of the drug that transits to the United States crosses through Honduras, and in 2013 the authorities have seized only two tons of cocaine. In addition, the vice-minister of the Defense, Carlos Roberto Funes has recently stated he suspected that “El Chapo” Guzmán, leader of a drug-trafficking Mexican organization, is in the country.
The army increased its presence for the elections, and was put in charge of guarding the entrance of each polling venue, as accounted by Azadeh Shahshahani, president of Nacional Lawyers Guild, who went to Honduras as one of 800 international observers, and arrived in a plane from Georgia to Central America, together with Honduran military students from the School of the Americas, who came back to the Central American nation because of the elections.

Since last October, the Honduran military police unit has been reinforced with a thousand members of the new Military Order Police, created to fight drug trafficking. The formation of the elite body has been promoted by presidential candidate Juan Orlando Hernández, of the ruling National Party, who won the vote for the presidency of the Central American nation with 34.08 percent.

The campaign of Juan Orlando – conceived by the Venezuelan JJ Rendón, involved in successful campaigns of several Latin American right-wingers, such as “Pepe” Lobo, Enrique Peña Nieto and Henrique Capriles – has focused on the promise of security through the militarization of society. In addition, Juan Orlando has promised the creation of thousands of jobs in maquiladoras (sweatshops), improving the housing situation in the poorest neighborhoods and the expansion of sugarcane crops and African palm. The program of the Nationalist Party has been welcomed by the Honduran oligarchy, the group of people that owns 40 percent of the wealth of the country, mainly concentrated in the maquiladora industry and ended in large monocultures for export, especially African palm.

“In Honduras there are ten families who make the decisions. They control industries, banks, the media, the justice and the government,” says Miriam Miranda of the organization for the defense of the rights of people with African background, OFRANEH. The owners of Honduras have middle-eastern surnames: Facussé, Canahuati, Kafie and they finance the system that ensures the alternation between the National Party and the Liberal Party since 1902.

With her candidacy, Xiomara Castro – wife of former President Manuel Zelaya, forced into exile in June 2009 following a coup organized by the oligarchy – challenged Honduran machismo, that takes the life of a woman every 14 hours and a centenary of bipartisanship at the only Central American country that didn´t have a guerrilla able to challenge U.S. imperialism during the Cold War. Americans have always ruled in what is considered the quintessential Banana Republic, putting  puppet presidents to allow companies like Chiquita exercise a de facto government.

“In 2009 Xiomara Castro was with us in the streets of Tegucigalpa marching against the coup and I support her candidacy, although I do not like some members of her party and I keep the right to criticize her government,” says Tomás Gómez Membreño of COPINH indigenous organization, who met with El Reportero with a few days before the election. “Besides, I’m afraid there will be election fraud, it’s difficult to think that the oligarchy will let Xiomara rule.”

In fact, the Bureau of Analysis on Violations of Human Rights received 60 complaints of irregularities during the electoral process, from the harassment of international observers to vote-buying by the National Party in exchange for food or money.

On the morning of Monday, at a press conference animated by their bases, the Libre Party (Libertad y Refundación) ignored the election results that attributed only 28.92 percent of the votes to candidate Xiomara Castro. Manuel “Mel” Zelaya, former president of Honduras, husband of Castro and general coordinator of Libre, reported that over 20 percent of the ballots had not been registered. Moreover, Zelaya stated he was not seeking an agreement with the National Party and denounced an electoral fraud, but could not present to the international community the necessary evidence to invalidate the election.

According to later statements, Libre would present the evidence to the fraud.

Cell phone radiation breast cancer link – new study raises grave concerns

by Lloyd Burrell

A new study raises concerns of a possible association between cell phone radiation exposure and breast cancer in young women.

The research team, led by Dr. Lisa Bailey, a former president of the American Cancer Society’s California Division and one of California’s top breast surgeons, studied four young women – aged from 21 to 39 years old – with multifocal invasive breast cancer.

The researchers observed that all the patients developed tumors in areas of their breasts next to where they carried their cell phones, often for up to 10 hours per day, for several years. None of the patients had a family history of breast cancer. They all tested negative for BRCA1 and BRCA2 – breast cancer genes linked to about one-half of breast cancer cases – and they had no other known breast cancer risks.

Imaging of the young girls’ breasts revealed a clustering of multiple tumor foci in the part of the breast directly under where their cell phones touched their body. Tiffany Frantz, one of the young girls involved in the study, said that she had no idea of the risks involved.

“I put my cellphone right in my bra,” said Miss Frantz in a TV interview that also won an Emmy. However, her mother Traci Frantz immediately made the connection right after Tiffany developed breast cancer at age 21. “We never took it seriously until after she was diagnosed.” Her tumors were exactly where her cellphone had been kept in her bra for about six years. No one ever told us that this was a very bad idea.” said Traci Frantz. Surgeons had to remove Tiffany’s left breast. Her family had no genetic or other risk factors.

Dangers of other EMF exposures

Cell phones emit a form of electromagnetic field (EMF) called radio frequency radiation.

This radiation exposure has previously been linked to brain tumors, cancer, cardiovascular disease, depression and other serious illnesses.

Studies show that other EMF exposures from similar, supposedly harmless, everyday appliances and devices can also be dangerous. The recently published “BioInitiative Report 2012” concluded, “there is sufficient evidence from in vitro and animal studies, from human biomarker studies, from occupational and light-at-night studies, and a single longitudinal study with appropriate collection of urine samples to conclude that high MF (magnetic field) exposure may be a risk factor for breast cancer.” The report’s authors went on to say that “there is rather strong evidence from casecontrol studies that longterm, high occupational exposure (over 10 milliGauss) to ELF (Extremely low frequency) magnetic fields is a risk factor for breast cancer.”

EMF safety standards out dated

Currently, the main international guidance comes from the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection. These guidelines offered no protection for Traci Frantz and others who unknowingly put their health at risk by carrying their cell phone in close proximity to their body. Nor do these guidelines protect individuals from high magnetic field exposures in the home and workplace. The existing exposure limit for magnetic fields is 904 mG in the US – some 90 times higher than the levels at which independent studies have observed adverse biological effects!

Even cell phone manufacturers suggest that users keep their cell phone at least one-half inch or more away from any body part. But these recommendations, lost in the small print in user manuals, are not heeded. Current safety limits can no longer be said to be protective of public health, and they should be replaced.

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