Spanish mothers strip for calendar to save school bus

A new measure introduced in July cut funding for the school bus running in the Monserrat district of Valencia in eastern Spain. A group of mums got together and posed for an erotic calendar to raise money for their children's transport.

The problem is that, according to Spanish law, the government only has to provide transport if students live more than 3km away from the school. However, this new austerity measure states that the distance has to be calculated in a straight line, and this meant that "Evaristo Calayatud" school in the Monserrat District of Valencia was no longer eligible for a school bus. 

 

However, as Silvia Lucas, one of the mothers, points out, “We have to scale a mountain and climb down a cliff to get to the school. On foot, using the most direct route it’s 4.5km, if you walk on the road it’s six." 

 

Some of the parents are unemployed and have problems paying for petrol to drive the children to school themselves. For this reason, and to try and raise 43,000 euros, the group of mothers got together, disrobed and posed for the erotic calendar. 

 

To make their point, the mothers struck various poses, including scaling cliffs and pushing prams along dirt tracks, which clearly illustrate the 6km walk their children were being forced to endure every morning. They figured that not only could their calendar raise the necessary money, it could at the same time “give the politicians a slap in the face.” 

 

It took just over a month after the launch of the calendar to raise enough money for the bus to run for three months for the 83 affected children. 

There were difficulties along the way, when police ejected them from the town center for illegally selling the calendar. However, Silvia Lucas pointed out, “We were not selling them, we were collecting donations.” 

 

She further said that while the calendar is not to everyone's taste in the neighborhood, there was little other choice. “A lot of people tell us that we could have organized a community meal and not the calendar, but that would not have made nearly enough money. Our husbands are happy with the result and proud of our achievement” added Lucas, saying that she had done it for her children.

Read more and view video: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/340157

17 arrested in Voodoo sex-trafficking ring in Spain

According to Spain's Interior Ministry, police have arrested 17 people on suspicion of smuggling Nigerian women into Spain. Once in the country, the women were forced into prostitution with claims that Voodoo spells would be cast should they not comply.

In January, police detected that around 10 women had been brought into Spain illegally on a small boat and forced into prostitution in the streets of Barcelona. Most of these women were pregnant or the mothers of very young children. 

 

In further investigations, it was found that a dozen women in an illegal immigrant rescue center in Utrera, Seville were "behaving strangely." They were reportedly maintaining "frequent contacts with several people outside the center," which alerted the police forces. 

 

Members of the National Police and Guardia Urbana (Urban Guard) later found that this contact was with members of the criminal organization. 

 

Following the investigation, police raids seized mobile phones, computer equipment and falsified work permit and identity documents. The detectives further discovered objects that they say were allegedly for use in "Voodoo" rituals. Police said that some members of the group forced the victims to commit robberies and thefts. The stolen objects were then sent to Nigeria. 

 

According to a statement released on Sunday, after months of investigation, police officers have tracked down the suspected pimps, arresting 16 Nigerian nationals and one Ugandan, in Barcelona, Badalona, Santa Coloma de Gramenet and other towns throughout Spain.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/340178

Saudi police foil Christmas celebration plot, arrest 41 people

According to a police statement, the religious police in Saudi Arabia raided a house in Al Jawf Province on Wednesday, arresting 41 people, who were "plotting to celebrate Christmas."

The Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar reports that the police said the detainees were the Christian guests of an Asian diplomat. There were apparently also a Saudi Arabian and an Egyptian (both Muslims) present at the gathering. 

 

According to the police report, the host and the two Muslim guests were “severely intoxicated.” In Saudi Arabia, only religious practices in line with strict Sunni Islam, the state religion in Saudi Arabia, are allowed. All other religious activities are banned. 

 

Reportedly authorities do usually turn a blind eye to private ceremonies, but this policy is not "set in stone" and raids such as this can occur. The "virtue and vice" police regularly enforce the religious norms in the country, including crackdowns on Christians and Hindus living in the country. Religious leaders encourage this attitude and Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Aziz bin Abdullah had previously condemned “invitations to Christmas or wedding celebrations.” 

 

The Grand Mufti also recently caused controversy by authorizing Muslim men to marry girls as young as 10-years-old. It is not known, at present, whether the people detained in the raid were released or if they will face further prosecution.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339988

Anonymous threatens California Police Department over shooting

Manteca - In June last year, a California police officer fired 11 shots at an unarmed suspect, killing him. The cop was cleared but Anonymous says he should pay.

After a video surfaced (above) of the cop in question firing 11 times at point-blank range, hacktivists from the collective Anonymous are now demanding that the California police department remove the officer from the force. 

 

According to the Manteca Police Department, Officer John Moody was in the right when shooting 11 bullets at Ernesto Duenez Jr. onJune 8, 2011, including several in his back when lying on the ground, and killing him.

 

Wanted for questioning in a domestic violence incident earlier in the day, Duenez, a 34-year-old parolee, apparently led the police on a car chase. When Duenez finally pulled up at a residence and left the vehicle, Moody fired the 11 shots. 

 

The officer claimed that the suspect was wielding a knife, but evidence now reveals that the weapon was left in the bed of the truck that he had been driving, throughout the shooting. Hence the officer had shot 11 rounds at an unarmed man, eventually killing him. 

 

In December, the San Joaquin Country District Attorney's office concluded that Officer Moody had been legally justified in the shooting of Duenez. 

 

 But since then, this decision has been called into question due to the video published on YouTube. Rosemary Duenez, mother of the victim, agreed to release the video after the court cleared Moody of the shooting of her son, saying, “As heartbreaking as it is, people need to see what happened,” she told the Chronicle. “They need to know what we see, and what we’re fighting for.” 

 

Now Anonymous has joined the fight, and is saying that they will retaliate for the death of the unarmed man,unless Moody's job with the police department is terminated. In a video uploaded to YouTube, a member of Anonymous says, “Having a badge does not give you legal permission to murder freely,” "Manteca police department, we demand as a final resort that you disband your corrupted Officer John Moody and serve justice for his despicable act of violence.” Otherwise, the actor warns, Anonymous will wage a cyberattack against the Mantec Police Department, including “a complete shutdown of the official website.” 

 

Sister of the victim, Reyna Duenez, says she did not know about Anonymous until their video was released. She told KXTV News, "We don't even know who they are. They're voicing their opinion and that's their right, but we don't condone anything that's illegal." 

 

Duenez continued, "We appreciate everyone's voices being heard and all the support and love that we've gotten, but we don't condone anything illegal done to the police department," 

 

"We want legal action against Officer John Moody; we're not trying to do anything illegal. We want to take the right steps all the way," she added. 

 

While the Manteca Police department has told Manteca Bulletin that they view the video by Anonymous as a valid threat, they have not, as yet, identified any persons involved in this video.  

 

The website for the Manteca Police Department doesn't show very much, and apparently lists former Captain Rex Osborn, who retired two years ago. News10 apparently phoned Osborn and he said it hasn't been updated for some time and contact information listed on the website is no longer in use. The site reportedly mostly offers phone lists along with links to other police websites.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/340058

 

French fries: Where did they originate — France or Belgium?

A popular snack or meal accompaniment worldwide, French fries have always been considered to be, well, French. However, it seems Belgium might have come up with the idea first.

According to French historian Madeleine Ferriere, ­"Fries, they are the orphan of street cooking, of low birth. That is why it's hard to establish where they really come from." 

 

And in France, indeed, they are considered to be a staple part of the diet. However, they are also recognized as a national dish in Belgium. 

 

Experts are up in arms, trying to decide which country was first to create this salty, crispy treat, which tends to put more weight on than red meat. 

 

 A popular theory says that the first appearance of "pommes de terre frites" occurred in Paris. Shortly before the French Revolution, in the late 18th Century, street hawkers started selling fries on the city's oldest bridge, Pont Neuf.

 

However, experts in Belgium say that French-fried potatoes were invented in Namur in the late 1600's. They further believe that when American soldiers arrived in Belgium during World War I and tasted the Belgian fries, they labeled them "French" simply because at that time it was the official language of the Belgian Army. 

 

Chef and co-author of the book "Simply Fries", Albert Verdeyen says that "We Belgians, we have made fries a noble food, much more than just a vegetable." In Belgium it is possible to get a true taste of Belgian fries at various small "Fritkot" snack stands in cities all over the country. 

 

The owner of one of the stalls in Brussels, Philipppe Ratzel, told AFP, "To go to a Fritkot, that is the very essence of being a Belgian."

 

"Here, you can meet anyone – the old lady who is taking her dog out for a walk, students or even the government minister who lives nearby," he added. 

 

Whichever country came first in inventing the tasty treats, they will remain a popular item on most people's menus (and on their hips!). 

Roel Jacobs, a history specialist in Brussels said, "At the end of the day, we do not care where fries came from. What counts, is what has been done with them."

 

 "The French and the Belgians took different tracks. For the French, fries normally go with meat, usually a steak while the Belgians eat them on their own or with a sauce," he added.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/340084

Five elephants killed by passenger train in east India

Five elephants, part of a herd crossing railroad tracks in the Rambha forest area of east India, were killed when a passenger train plowed into them. 

RN Mohapatra, a railways spokesman, said the incident happened early on Sunday. 

The Howrah-Chennai Coromandel Express train was traveling in the Rambha forest area, approximately 180km (110 miles) south of Bhubaneshwar, the capital of the state of Orissa, and about 45 km (28 miles) from Berhampur, when it encountered the herd crossing the tracks.  

Forest officials say that the accident could have resulted from poor visibility caused by foggy conditions in the area. 

The train was damaged in the accident and rail services in the area were delayed for around seven hours. 

Chief conservator of the state's wildlife department, JD Sharma, has accused the railroad authorities of ignoring his department's warnings that trains should slow down, due to a herd of elephants moving in the area. However, Mohapatra said that the warning came too late.

In recent years, dozens of elephants have been killed after being struck by trains when crossing railroad tracks, which often run through national parks and forests. The wild elephant population in India was recently estimated to be only around 26,000.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/340130

New Mexico next in line to try for GMO labeling

While California's Proposition 37 ballot initiative to label GMO products seems to have failed, a State Senator in New Mexico is next to take the baton in the fight for labeling of genetically modified food products.

As was seen with Proposition 37, with Monsanto and Big Pesticide's excessively deep pockets used to fight the ballot initiative, New Mexico might have a fight on their hands too. 

 

However, State Senator Peter Wirth (D-Santa Fe) has proposed an amendment that, while it won’t be brought into debate until next year, he hopes will be approved and will ensure that NM consumers know exactly what is in their food. If Sen. Wirth’s amendment is approved, it will make it mandatory for genetically engineered food and items containing genetically modified, or genetically engineered (GE), products to be adequately and clearly labeled. 

 

 Sen. Wirth said, “The premise of this amendment is simple – New Mexicans deserve the right to know what’s in the food they are eating and feeding to their families.” “Labeling GE foods and feed will empower consumers with basic information to help them decide for themselves the types of food they want to buy.” Sen. Wirth is already making headway in terms of getting people to talk about his plan. 

 

 Food & Water Watch's New Mexico Organizer, Eleanor Bravo says of his amendment, “Giving foods with GE ingredients a label will only improve and expand independent health and scientific knowledge about genetic engineering.” 

 

“We need the research of genetic engineering to be expanded beyond the companies who own the seeds and stand to profit and labeling will allow this to happen,” she added. 

 

Sen. Wirth's proposal would state that companies that do not properly label GMO items will be subject to penalties under current rules pertaining to “mis-branding.”  

 

It will be a hard fight, as just a few weeks ago, Proposition 37 lost by a margin of 53 to 47 in favor of the No on Prop 37 campaign. People involved in the Yes on Prop 37 campaign feel that the last-minute defeat was caused by the multi-million dollar campaign launched by Monsanto, other pesticide companies, and junk food companies against labeling of GMOs. 

 

There is still a certain amount of concern over the results of the election, due to discrepancies in tallies shown on the California Secretary of State's website, but no real outcome has come of this.

 

Mark Kastel of The Cornucopia Institute said in a statement last month that “Genetically engineered foods found on market shelves have most commonly been altered in a lab to either be resistant to being sprayed by large amounts of toxic herbicides, or to produce, internally, their own insecticide.” 

 

“Corporations that produce both the genetically engineered crops and their designer pesticides, in concert with the multi-billion-dollar food manufacturers that use these ingredients, fought this measure tooth and nail, throwing $46 million at the effort that would have required food manufacturers to include informational labeling on GMO content on their packaging.”  

 

Related articles:

Proposition 37 — possible that election fraud made it fail  

Cheerios' Facebook page hijacked by anti-GMO protesters 

Pepsico's 'Naked Juice' to feel the pain after boycotting Prop 37 

Vandana Shiva interviewed on HARDtalk by the BBC about GMOs (video)

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339653

First fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen published online

It was recently reported on Digital Journal that the very first fairy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen, titled "The Tallow Candle", had been discovered. Now the full text has been published in English and is available for reading online.

Digital Journal reported on December 5 that a handwritten book, lost for decades in a dusty box in the Danish National Archives, contained Andersen's "first fairy tale." 

 

Discovered by a local historian, the book was entitled "The Tallow Candle" and experts claim that it is the very first fairy tale written by Andersen.  Ejnar Stig Askgaard of the Odense City Museum, who has been studying the old book, is one of Denmark’s leading Hans Christian Andersen experts. 

Askgaard dubbed the find “sensational,” because it shows the writer’s interest in fairy tales as a young man, before writing became his career. He said, “I am in no doubt that it has been written by Andersen.” Andersen wrote and dedicated the fairy tale as a gift to Madam Bunkeflod, a woman he knew in his childhood, that he both read to, and borrowed books from. 

“It’s a wonderful little document as part of the history of Hans Christian Andersen. The fairy tale was a gift. A gift of thanks to a woman whose home had been very important to him,” Askgaard said. Digital Journal decided to do a follow up, to find out if the book had been published, and not only has it been published online, but it has also been translated to English and can be read in full here.

 

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339649

Video: Mayan ceremony at 'Star Wars' temple in Guatemala

While most of us are chuckling over the non-happening apocalypse (and some are secretly relieved it didn't happen), the Mayans are taking the date more seriously, as they already knew the world wasn't ending today. 

There has been much hype recently that the world was going to end on December 21, 2012. The media and Hollywood saturated the world with the news that this date is the end of the Mayan calendar, and thus, the end of the world. 

Well guess what. It is now December 21, and we are still around. No apocalypse here. Carry on with what you are doing... 

However, those who know the true meaning of the date on the Mayan calendar held a special ceremony on Thursday night to mark the end of the 13th Baktun, or the end of our current era, according to the Mayan Long Count Calendar. 

Tourists and true believers gathered at Mayan archaeological sites across Guatemala to watch the ceremony, as can be viewed in the video above.

Many believe that the human race will become more conscious in this new era. 

Similar ceremonies were held at Mayan sites in Mexico. Yucatan Governor Rolando Zapata, said, "We believe that the beginning of a new baktun means the beginning of a new era, and we're receiving it with great optimism." 

Esther Romo, a Mexico City businesswoman who works in art promotion and galleries said, "This is the beginning of a change in priorities and perceptions. We are all one." "No limits, no boundaries, no nationalities, just fusion." 

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339540

Assange's full Christmas address from Ecuadorian embassy, London

WikiLeaks founder and editor, Julian Assange, gave a Christmas address to his supporters on Thursday evening from the balcony of the Ecuadorian embassy in London. 

Marking the six month anniversary of his stay in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where Assange first sought, and later received diplomatic asylum from Ecuador, a crowd was out in the street waiting for his speech. 

His first words were, "Good evening, London, what a sight for sore eyes," as he viewed the crowd gathered in front of the embassy. He thanked his supporters worldwide for their help and for the support of WikiLeaks and its aims and referred to other journalists and whistleblowers who are currently in a much worse situation that he, including Nabeel Rajab, Bradley Manning, Jeremy Hammond and Godfried Svartholm. 

The full transcript can be read here.

D15 — Sandy survivors' day of action in Rockaways, NY

Residents of Rockaways joined together with Occupy Sandy on December 15, marching the streets and demanding that the government do something to help rebuild the neighborhood after Hurricane Sandy. 

It is now two months since Superstorm Sandy hit the area, but the disaster is far from over for these residents, and relief needs are still great. 

 

Heat and electricity are still absent in many areas, and many homes are uninhabitable, with black mold taking hold. Those living in homes with mold are becoming sick. 

 

With some landlords increasing rents by huge amounts, to try and cover their costs, and with other property owners deciding not to repair properties and evicting tenants, times are very hard in the Rockaways. Some people had household insurance on their houses and are now finding that the response from the insurance companies is taking much too long. 

 

Yet with all the problems still ongoing, government and FEMA response has been glaringly absent. As they did with Hurricane Katrina, and other recent disaster-and-recovery events, reconstruction resources and responsibility have been handed off by city, state and federal agencies, to corporations and markets. This hand-off has pushed affected people further out of their communities, further into crisis and vulnerability, and further from the decision-making tables that allocate public resources. 

 

Where the government has failed, Occupy and other groups have stepped in. Occupy Sandy Relief NYC has done the very best it can, but it cannot restore electricity and replace homes. 

 

On December 15, citizens, activists and community leaders took to the streets to demand change from the government and to take charge themselves. The people are demanding that power is restored to the people.

The people also now understand that climate change has turned a corner and they know they will be hard hit again by extreme weather events. Hence they are taking to the streets to ask "whose interests our government serves? Is it polluters, predatory lenders, and disaster profiteers?" 

 

"Or can we build a stronger, better, resilient New York where all of us, regardless of race, class or power, can weather future storms?" Do you live near the Rockaways? Have you also been affected by the lack of government and FEMA support after Sandy? Please comment below.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339478

Pepsico's 'Naked Juice' to feel the pain after boycotting Prop 37

Naked Juice is the next company to feel the hurt, after their parent company, Pepsico, contributed $2.5 million against Proposition 37, the ballot initiative for mandatory GMO labeling in the recent elections.

Digital Journal reported recently on the attack on Cheerios' Facebook page, in retaliation for General Mills' support of the "No on Proposition 37" campaign. Now there is yet another company feeling the strain. 

 

Did you know that Pepsico owns some of your favorite "organic" and "natural" brands, including Naked Juice, Tostitos, Tropicana, Tazo, Loóza, Izze, Sabra, Smartfood, Stacy's, Mother's and Near East? And that Pepsico contributed $2.5 million against GMO labeling in the recent elections in California? 

 

Well now, Organic Consumers Association has started a campaign against Naked Juice and is calling on consumers to boycott the product. Concerned citizens can send an email to Mike Torres, senior director of communications for PepsiCo, telling him they're all done buying Naked Juice - or any other Pepsi brand - until PepsiCo and Naked Juice support GMO labeling and product transparency. 

 

Anti-GMO protesters and activists are also invited to share their thoughts and speak their minds on the Facebook page for Naked Juice, and will find plenty of company amongst all the comments already pouring in. 

 

 On top of this, it is interesting to note that Naked Juice is the subject of a class-action lawsuit for fraudulently promising that its beverage products are "100% juice," "all natural," and "non-GMO." 

 

According to the lawsuit, Naked Juice uses soy ingredients that are genetically engineered "by design or by contamination." (Naked Juice doesn't use certified organic or verified non-GMO soy.) 

 

The lawsuit also accuses Naked Juice of intentionally using misleading language to give consumers "the false impression that the beverage's vitamin content is due to the nutritious fruits and juices, rather than the added synthetic compounds such as calcium pantothenate (synthetically produced from formaldehyde)" and "Fibersol-2 (a proprietary synthetic digestion-resistant fiber produced by Archer Daniels Midland and developed by a Japanese chemical company), fructooligosaccharides (a synthetic fiber and sweetener) and inulin (an artificial and invisible fiber added to foods to ... increase fiber content without the typical fiber mouth-feel)." 

 

The plaintiffs in this class-action suit are requesting compensatory and punitive damages, as well as an injunction against Naked Juice stating that its products are 100 percent juice, are all natural and that they contain no genetically modified organisms, when this is clearly not the case.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339270

Photo essay: 'PictoParque' — Art in the park in Fuengirola, Spain

The Councillor for Culture in Fuengirola, Rodrigo Romero, has come up with a great idea. Artists will be able to display their work and discuss art in the Parque de España every Sunday, at no charge. 

Not only will artists display their work, the park will become a meeting place for artists and fans of the world of art. Discussions and exchanges of ideas will also take place. And also, not only is this great for local artists, they figure it also helps to make Fuengirola more interesting for tourists. 

For a rather nice change, there is absolutely no charge for the use of a section of the park to display your wares. The premiere of this cultural project was December 16.

Read more and see many more photos at: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339172

'Casablanca' piano sold at Sotheby's, New York for $602,500

The famous phrase, "Play it, Sam" is now off the table, as the famous piano goes under the hammer at Sotheby's in New York. 

The 58-key upright piano made an appearance in the classic 1940's Oscar-winning World War II movie, Casablanca. It was used in one of the movie's most iconic scenes, when the song "As Time Goes By" was played by Sam (Dooley Wilson). 

 As Sam played, Humphrey Bogart's and Ingrid Bergman's famous characters, the doomed lovers Rick and Ilsa, toast with glasses of champagne. Then Bogart's character, Rick, pronounces his most famous line, "Here's looking at you, kid."  

The sale of the piano marks the 70th anniversary of the classic film, which was largely set in the Moroccan port city of Casablanca, then part of unoccupied French North Africa. 

Just before the bidding began, Rachel Kaufman, a pianist invited by Sotheby's, played the famous tune "As Time Goes By".

Kaufman, 43, is a professional pianist, who made her living as a music director and accompanist in the musical theater and cabaret worlds in New York City for 20 years.

She said, “It was very emotional to play. I’m still choked up. There’s something magical about this piano.”

The Japanese owner purchased the piano for $154,000 on auction in 1988. At the time, this was one of the highest prices ever paid for a movie prop.

He was hoping to get $1.2 million for the piano, but had to settle for $602,500 when the famous piano went under the hammer to an unnamed owner. Apparently the lot failed to meet the expert's expectations.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339143

Cheerios' Facebook page hijacked by anti-GMO protesters

Following the recent demise of Proposition 37, the ballot initiative for GMO labeling, many companies are being boycotted for supporting the wrong side. One of these companies is the owner of Cheerios, who mistakenly tried some social media marketing. 

Unfortunately for them, this month General Mills, the Cheerios guys, decided to try and engage with their customers through Facebook.

Big mistake.

As reported by triplepundit.com, "What was supposed to be a warm-and-fuzzy page dedicated to childhood odes to Cheerios has turned into an anti-GMO (genetically modified organism) rant." The image at the top of their Facebook page reads, "Your moments. Our timeline. The story of Cheerios as told by you." And boy, did people tell their stories! 

One recent comment reads,

"Instead of wasting your money on campaigning against labeling GMOs you should have saved that money and changed your labels. Maybe your values are misplaced. Maybe you have GMOs in your products and you were afraid of losing business? Well, guess what? You are losing customers anyway because you didn't support labeling and joined the opposing team with monetary support. That told customers the answer they were searching for even without the label. Great job! Geez! I used to like Cheerios. Shame on you."

They even went so far as to ask customers questions, like: "What are your favorite memories of childhood?" To which one commenter wrote:

"As a child, my favorite cereal was Cheerios."

However, they immediately added,

"Now that I have my own child, I don't let him eat it. I will not support a company that supports GMO's."

Another question was, "This Thanksgiving, we’re grateful for you, our fans, for showing us that the most simple things can bring great joy. What are you thankful for?" To which some protesters responded:

"I'm thankful I have a choice NOT to buy your GMO product and I CAN buy organic products."

And another:

"I'm thankful for social media making it easier to call out big corporations that only have profits in mind, not the health of families...esp kids."

Along with many, many more - I could keep this up pretty much all day! In fact, perusing the comments on the image, where they asked their question, there don't seem to be any positive comments at all. 

Most of the offending remarks on the timeline itself have since been removed, but new ones are cropping up all the time, like:

"Boycotting until the GMO's are gone! People over profits! You don't exist if we choose not to support you. Plant that in your modified fields :)".

And another reads,

"Genetically modified Mills, I have stopped buying your products."

And yet another:

"TRUSTED........ NO WAY!!! How can we trust a Company..... who contributed over $1.1 million to "NO on 37"??? Why don't you want labeling of GMOs (genetically modified organisms)??? What are you hiding from us???"

One more:

"I will not spend one red cent on ANY product produced by a company who spends their capital $$ lobbying to block the labeling of GMO usage in our food. Get with it, General Mills."

In fact, perusing the Cheerios photo page is a hoot, each photo has more anti-GMO comments. 

The main barrage against General Mills was apparently headed by GMOInside, a coalition that aims for GMO-containing products to be properly labeled. However other anti-GMO activists were not slow in getting into the action.

General Mills, the owners of Cheerios, contributed a whopping $1.1 million to the "No on 37" campaign. Being on the "No on Proposition 37" list, probably means that the company uses genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in their cereal.

Come on guys, all the protesters really want is a little transparency.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/339052

Assange to run for seat in Australian Senate, WikiLeaks party

Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks, has said that he intends to run for a seat in the Australian Senate in the 2013 federal election, and plans to form a WikiLeaks party. Another interview speaks of his health and the financial blockade of WikiLeaks.

Assange made the announcement from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he has been holed up for six months to avoid extradition to Sweden and possibly the US. 

Assange told Fairfax Media that his plans to register the WikiLeaks political party were “significantly advanced” and added that “a number of very worthy people admired by the Australian public” have expressed their availability to run for election on the party ticket.. read more and listen to interviews.

Zombie doomsday at CERN: low-budget horror movie 'Decay' released

While stressing that the film has not been authorized or endorsed by CERN, students have released "Decay", a zombie doomsday scenario film, sparked by the Large Hydron Collider and search for the Higgs Boson.

Just when you thought you'd seen enough zombie movies, a group of students has put together a low-budget horror film called "Decay", featuring a bunch of zombies roaming the tunnels of CERN. 

The movie was set entirely at the Large Hadron Collider, in the nuclear research center located in Switzerland, with the massive lab serving as backdrop for the dire scenario.

It was written, directed and produced by two physics PhD students, Luke Thompson and Hugo Day of the University of Manchester in England. Thompson and Day decided to post their work online and to make it a free download, with Thompson saying that the idea was never about money. 

"The fact is that it's a no-budget indie and there's no reason to expect we'd sell more than a few hundred copies," he explained. "So we'd rather our two years of work was seen by more people by releasing it for free," he told Wired. 

The theme of the movie is that the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) maintenance crew, trapped underground at the CERN installation, accidentally get struck by Higgs radiation, which turns them into zombies. 

 

The story follows a group of students who discovered what the radiation did to some of their team.  

 

Shortly after this, the zombie maintenance crew begins its hunt for the CERN physicists, with scary results. 

 

Thompson and Day began their project in 2010, and it took two years and only $3,000 to complete. Around 20 people, some of them students, star in the 76 minute film. The film apparently might even prove to be educational. 

 

Thompson told Wired, “I don’t want to spoil the film, but we realized the theme and location also gave us a great chance to do some satirical commentary on various aspects of people’s perceptions of science.”

 

“So there are some hidden depths to the film too, beyond us just having fun!” he added.

 

While the film was made in their premises, CERN did not give the project its official support, with a disclaimer opening the trailer to the movie, and the shooting took place only at publicly accessible areas of the research center. 

 

The film was premiered on November 29 and a preview can be watched here or you can watch the full movie on YouTube here or download from the movie's website.

Read more and watch preview: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/338806

 

Photo essay: Changing moods of the Mediterranean

Most people imagine the Mediterranean sea as a calm blue ocean and dream of warm, sunny beach holidays. But the Med is much more than a calm blue pond.

While in spring, summer and autumn, you can mostly count on relatively calm seas, warm temperatures and an endless stretch of sandy beach, winter brings some quite different moods to the Costa del Sol. In this article we are visiting Fuengirola, on the south coast of Spain, and exploring some changes which were made in the last couple of years to the fishing and leisure port in the seaside town.

Read more and see more photos: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/338736

African Civil Society petitions the African Union to ban GMOs

In the wake of the recent ban by Kenya on the importation of GMO products until proper health evaluation has been completed, the African Civil Society is now requesting the African Union (AU) to ban GMOs.

Digital Journal reported recently on the ban by Kenya on the importation of genetically modified products. 

Following this ban, the African Civil Society has called on the AU to discuss banning all genetically modified organisms throughout the African Union at the next AU summit, set to be held in January 2013.  

 

The African Civil Society is represented by 400 African Organizations consisting of small-scale farmers, social movements, non-governmental organizations, faith-based groups, organic producers and consumers, business people and ordinary citizens. As a group, they signed a statement, which has been sent to the Permanent Representative Council (PRC) of the AU. In the statement, they point out the lack of safety data on GM foods, as well as condemning the patenting of life and privatization of agriculture, which will threaten to displace the control of African food producers over their production systems. 

 

An extract from the statement reads:

"We also call upon the governments of Africa to take note of our additional strong objections to GMOs. These concern the patenting of life forms and privatization of agriculture, which has led to the dependence by farmers, rural communities and indigenous people on external private and monopolistic seeds suppliers. We are also extremely concerned about the adverse impact of industrial and GM based agriculture on biodiversity and climate change. We cannot ignore the suicide epidemic of farmers in India - a direct result of farmers' dependence on GM cotton - and the resultant increased costs and unmanageable debt"

The full statement can be read here. 

 

The group requests that African leaders address this issue at next year's Summit, which is themed “Pan Africanism and the African Renaissance”. 

Elizabeth Mpofo is Chairperson of the East and Southern African Farmers Forum (ESAFF) and member of La Via Campesina, an international peasant movement. Mpofu says that, “corporate-owned, genetically modified seed won’t solve any of our problems. We have our own varieties, we have our own knowledge. We need to be supported so that we can flourish in the agricultural systems that are our heritage”.

 

The group's call for a ban is consistent with the Precautionary Principle, which states that "where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent that damage."

 

A prevalent issue of concern is the long term safety of genetically modified products and their consumption, and this concern has escalated after the results of an independent study were published in the Journal of Chemical and Food Toxicology in September 2012.

 

The peer-reviewed study, run over the lifespan of the test rats by Professor Gilles-Eric Séralini, and his research team at the University of Caen in France, found that GM maize and its related chemical, glyphosate, had a significant impact on the kidneys and livers of rats, as well as their hormonal balance, mortality rates and life spans. 

 

The rats developed cancerous tumors within the fourth month of the study.

Director of the African Centre for Biosafety (ACB), Ms Mariam Mayet, explained that, “the results of this study have been discredited by scientific bodies with industry ties, but even they acknowledge that long-term safety studies do not exist and are necessary. Maize is a staple food for millions of Africans, making it imperative to ensure that it is safe in the long term”. 

 

The statement by the African Civil Society reminds the PRC that “the African Union has played an important historical role in shaping global biosafety policy and shown admirable political will to protect African citizens. They must now show the rest of the world that GE crops can only be accepted when society is satisfied that their benefits outweigh the risks. Currently, that is not the case”.

 

Faustin Vuningoma, Secretary General of the PELUM Association, an African regional network representing over 200 organizations, said that its members “stand to fight for food sovereignty through securing indigenous seed rights and practising ecological systems of agriculture that are affordable to the small-scale farmers and sustainable to feeding the masses”. 

 

 In October 2012, in the wake of the peer-reviewed study, ACB, a consumer watchdog organization, also called on South African Authorities to enact a ban on Monsanto’s tumor linked maize crop known as NK603, saying, “We urge the South African government to take the necessary steps to protect its citizens.”

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/338726

The Guardian 'Person of the Year 2012' is Bradley Manning

Each year the Guardian's editors and readers nominate and vote for the person they consider to be most important and a headline-maker for the year. This year the winners were Bradley Manning, followed by Malala Yousafzai.

In response to suggestions and ideas by their editors and staff, The Guardian asked their readers to nominate their Person of the Year for 2012.

Suggestions included everything from scientific and Olympic heroes to whistleblowers, and even included other celebrities like Psy, composer and performer of Gangnam Style... read more.

Vandalism: 62,600 liters of Tuscan wine down the drain

In a wine lover's nightmare, the equivalent of 85,000 bottles of quality Soldera Tuscan wine was literally washed down the drain after criminals broke into the wine cellar. The owner believes he is being threatened. 

It happened on the night between Sunday, December 2 and Monday, December 3.

According to a press release on the winery's website, unknown people broke into the cellar at Case Basse. 

They did not steal a single bottle, but in "an extremely serious act of deliberate criminal vandalism for the whole area, they opened the valves of 10 barrels of 6 vintages of future Brunello di Montalcino: 2007 - 2008 - 2009 - 2010 - 2011 - 2012." 

The winery reports losses amounting to 62,600 liters of Brunello, resulting in considerable economic damage. The wine that ran down the drain could have a retail value of $21 million, a huge financial loss for the owner Gianfranco Soldera and his family. 

Soldera says he cannot imagine why anyone would do such a thing. According to Mauro Soldera, Gianfranco's son, he and his family have never received any threats, but he believes that this is, "a true act of the mafia."

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/338475

Rare tornado hits Auckland, New Zealand, 3 dead (video)

Auckland, New Zealand has been hit by extreme weather on Thursday, with a tornado, thunderstorms and very heavy rain. 3 people have died and many have been evacuated. 

The storm hit the western suburbs of the Auckland metropolitan area at around noon on Thursday, and was one of the deadliest tornadoes New Zealand has seen in 60 years. 

While it only lasted around five minutes, extensive damage was caused to the Hobsonville and Whenuapai districts... read more and watch video.

Plane crash in South Africa’s Drakensberg mountains kills 11

A military aircraft crashed in severe weather in the Drakensberg mountains in South Africa, after taking off from Pretoria's Waterkloof Air Force Base, en route to Mthatha in the Eastern Cape on Wednesday morning. 

The plane was a Douglas C-47TP Dakota, a twin-propeller aircraft, according to a military spokesman, Brig. Gen. Xolani Mabanga.  The Defense Ministry said in a statement, "On board the aircraft was a crew of six and five passengers and it was confirmed that there are no survivors.".. read more.