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France moves to ban GM maize planting in short, long term


Yahoo News
Mon, 17 Feb 2014 07:01 UTC
Genetically Modified maize
© LexpressGenetically modified maize
France published a decree on Monday to prevent the planting of genetically modified maize as a stopgap measure, while the government works on changes to domestic and European laws to ensure a longer-term ban.

The French government, which maintains that GM crops present environmental risks, has been trying to institute a new ban on GM maize (corn) after a senior court twice struck down similar measures.

But in a surprise move, the French Senate late on Monday rejected a proposed domestic law banning GM maize crops with a majority of voters adopting a motion of inadmissibility claiming the attempt as unconstitutional.
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Red Flag

Second coal ash dump leak sends toxins into North Carolina river

Eric M. Johnson
Reuters
Wed, 19 Feb 2014 06:53 UTC
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© Gerry Broome/APOfficials said the coal ash is burying aquatic animals and their food.
North Carolina on Tuesday ordered Duke Energy Corp to plug a leak of contaminated wastewater from a decommissioned power plant, which authorities in the state said might be leaking into a river that supplies drinking water.

The arsenic-laced discharge from a 36-inch stormwater pipe was the second this month from beneath a coal ash dump at the Eden plant.

In early February, thousands of tons of sludge spilled into the Dan River after a 48-inch pipe broke under the 27-acre ash pond, Duke said.

The company - which is mired in a long-running legal battle with the state over the storage of coal ash waste - said on Tuesday it would use a temporary system to cap the second discharge until it developed a permanent scheme.

Pipe water samples indicated elevated levels of arsenic, though the duration and volume of the discharge was not known, the Charlotte, N.C.-based firm said.
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Cult

Los Angeles bishop kept altar boy list from police


Washington Post
Wed, 19 Feb 2014 06:45 UTC
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© AP Photo/Nick Ut, FileCardinal Roger Mahony
When Los Angeles police were investigating allegations of child abuse by a Roman Catholic priest in 1988, they asked for a list of altar boys at the last parish where the priest worked.

Archbishop Roger Mahony told a subordinate not to give the list, saying he didn't want the boys to be scarred by the investigation and that he felt the altar boys were too old to be potential victims, according to a deposition made public Wednesday.

The detectives investigating allegations against Nicolas Aguilar Rivera, a visiting Mexican priest, ultimately got the names of the boys from parish families. They determined the priest molested at least 26 boys during his 10 months in Los Angeles, according to the priest's confidential archdiocese file and police records made public by attorneys for the victims.

Twenty-five of the alleged victims were altar boys and the 26th was training with the priest to be one, said Anthony DeMarco, a plaintiff attorney. It's not clear what impact Mahony's action had on the investigation, though at the time police complained that the archdiocese wasn't fully cooperating.
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Sheriff

U.S. border agent shoots, kills person who threw rock at him near Mexican border

Jill Replogle
KPBS
Wed, 19 Feb 2014 06:30 UTC
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© Jill ReplogleU.S. Border Patrol agents monitor the road leading to where a suspect was shot, Feb. 19, 2014.
A U.S. Border Patrol agent fatally shot a man along a rugged section of the Otay Mountains in southeast San Diego early Tuesday, authorities said.

According to San Diego Sheriff's homicide Lt. Glenn Giannantonio, the two Border Patrol agents had split up to cut off a group of three suspected undocumented immigrants when the shooting occurred about 4 miles east of the Otay Mesa border crossing on 6:40 a.m. Tuesday.

"The two agents were out of sight of each other when one of the agents was struck in the face by a rock thrown by one of the suspects. Fearing for his safety, the agent fired his duty pistol at the man, striking him," Giannantonio said in a statement.

Agents tried to revive the man, who was declared dead at the scene. The agent suffered minor injuries.

Comment: One has to wonder where the statistic is that shows how many agents have suffered serious injury or death from being hit by a rock.

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Airplane

'Rollercoaster' turbulence injures passengers on Cathay flight over Japan


Agence-France Presse
Wed, 19 Feb 2014 06:01 UTC
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© AFP/File, Philippe LopezThis picture taken on December 7, 2012 shows a Cathay Pacific plane on the tarmac of the international airport in Hong Kong
Several passengers and crew members were injured when a Cathay Pacific jumbo jet hit turbulence over northern Japan, the airline said Wednesday, as one passenger likened the experience to a "rollercoaster".

The Boeing 747-400, carrying 321 passengers and 21 crew, was rocked by sudden turbulence when it flew over Hokkaido prefecture Tuesday.

Cathay Pacific said two crew members and a number of passengers were injured, but did not confirm a total of 12 injuries reported by the South China Morning Post newspaper.

The flight from San Francisco to Hong Kong landed at the southern Chinese city's airport at 6.26 pm local time to be greeted by a fleet of ambulances and emergency vehicles.

Comment: This is the second incident in as many days airplane passengers have been injured due to turbulence. One has to wonder just what exactly is going on in the clouds to cause such intense turbulence.

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Ambulance

University of Chicago student's body found decomposing in dorm


abc7chicago.com
Mon, 17 Feb 2014 12:47 UTC
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Nicholas Brastins Barnes, a third-year student, was found dead in his dorm room at University of Chicago, school officials said. Police say he had been dead for some time.

Police found the 20-year-old's body on Saturday afternoon after other students in the International House complained of a smell. The last time he used his keycard to enter the dorm was on February 7.

"I don't understand how the people that live next door, and the people who were responsible for his well-being could have not seen that he has been gone for a week," said International House resident Jordan Ginsburg.
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Light Saber

The Babbila reconciliation: A light at the end of Syria's dark tunnel

Erets Zen
Syrian Free Press Network
Wed, 19 Feb 2014 04:13 UTC
Syrian reconciliation
© Erets Zen Channel
The Syrian government's efforts in promoting reconciliation and amnesty to Syrian militants who took up arms against it has paid off. Babbila, Yalda, and Beit Sahem are three towns in the Damascus countryside that recently had reconciliation between their militants and the Syrian Army.

These deals included agreements on ceasefire, lifting of siege, allowing food and aid to get in, and the giving up of weapons - in most cases - in exchange for the residents raising the Syrian flag.

In Babbila, videos of the armed Islamist militants standing side by side with the Syrian Army might have seemed strange a week ago; however, today, this presents a sliver of hope that there might actually be a way out of this conflict, if all Syrians work together to get their country back.

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Ambulance

9 die in fire destroying Argentine bank archives


The Washington Post
Tue, 18 Feb 2014 22:12 UTC
Argentina archives
© Associated Press
Buenos Aires, Argentina - Nine first-responders were killed and seven others injured as they battled a fire of unknown origin that destroyed an archive of corporate and banking industry documents in Argentina's capital on Wednesday.

The fire at the Iron Mountain warehouse took hours to control and at least half of the sprawling building was ruined despite the efforts of at least 10 squads of firefighters.

The nine firefighters and civil defense workers were crushed when a brick wall collapsed on top of a large group of first-responders on the sidewalk and street outside. Tearful rescuers removed rubble by hand to reach their comrades.

"It took them completely by surprise," said Argentina's Security Secretary Sergio Berni said. "Some of the injured are fighting for their lives."
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Cow Skull

15 reasons why your food bill is going to start soaring

Michael Snyder
theeconomiccollapseblog.com
Sun, 16 Feb 2014 19:38 UTC
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Did you know that the U.S. state that produces the most vegetables is going through the worst drought it has ever experienced and that the size of the total U.S. cattle herd is now the smallest that it has been since 1951? Just the other day, a CBS News article boldly declared that "food prices soar as incomes stand still", but the truth is that this is only just the beginning. If the drought that has been devastating farmers and ranchers out west continues, we are going to see prices for meat, fruits and vegetables soar into the stratosphere. Already, the federal government has declared portions of 11 states to be "disaster areas", and California farmers are going to leave half a million acres sitting idle this year because of the extremely dry conditions. Sadly, experts are telling us that things are probably going to get worse before they get better (if they ever do). As you will read about below, one expert recently told National Geographic that throughout history it has been quite common for that region of North America to experience severe droughts that last for decades. In fact, one drought actually lasted for about 200 years. So there is the possibility that the drought that has begun in the state of California may not end during your entire lifetime.
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Shopping Bag

Food prices soar as U.S. government says there's no inflation

Dan Weil
Moneynews.com
Sat, 15 Feb 2014 19:13 UTC
Food Inflation 'Far Greater' Than Government Admits
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Wages aren't keeping up with food inflation, creating a problem for American families.

While consumer prices overall have risen 6.4 percent since 2011, chicken has jumped 18.4 percent, ground beef 16.8 percent and bacon 22.8 percent, CBS News reports.

"Food inflation is far greater than the government thinks it is," ConvergEx market strategist Nick Colas told CBS.

At the same time, median income has gained only 1 percent a year, CBS reports. That makes it difficult for parents to save for their children's college expenses. College tuition has increased 6 to 8 percent a year for the last five decades, according to CBS.

While some economists see the overall economy in fine shape, "middle-class families are quietly struggling," writes CBS correspondent Michelle Miller.

Comment: WHEW! That's coming from a psychopath who is way up there in the responsibility stakes for creating the very same "gaping income inequality"...

Are we feeling the pinch yet?

Additional examples of soaring food prices around the world:

World food prices near crisis levels

India: Inflation dips but food prices soar

Rising food prices - not just your imagination

Higher energy, food prices are hurting most Americans

Rising food prices, climate change and global 'unrest'

World Food Crisis Looms as Prices Soar to Record High

Misery for UK households as food prices soar at twice the EU average

Rising Food Prices Continue to Climb, with Prices Up 10% in July Alone

Steak to become 'luxury item' as UK food prices predicted to soar in 2014

Indonesia's food prices hiked by a whopping 12.9%, inflation at 22-month high

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