Given the highly toxic state most people find themselves in, the rapidly changing environment which we live in, and the incredible ability that iodine has to strengthen people's health and improve their lives, I decided to write the following summary about iodine supplementation as an introduction to the subject. The information presented here is based on preliminary research available on this forum discussion thread on iodine and on the books Iodine: Why You Need It, Why You Can't Live Without It (5th Edition) by Dr. Brownstein, and The Iodine Crisis by Lynne Farrow.

Iodine is an essential micro-nutrient. This means every single cell of every single person needs it. Evolutionary biologists reckon that seafood consumption, and thus iodine absorption, played an important role in human brain development and evolution. Iodine also has excellent antibacterial, anticancer, antiparasitic, antifungal, and antiviral properties.

Unfortunately, iodine deficiency in the general population is of pandemic proportions in our modern world due to iodine's displacement in our bodies by environmental toxins such as bromide, pesticides, and food additives. Modern farming techniques have also led to deficiencies of iodine and other minerals in the soil. Thus, crops grown in iodine-deficient soil are deficient in iodine.

Certain diets and lifestyles can also predispose a person to develop iodine deficiency. Those who eat a lot of bakery products (breads, pasta, etc), which contain high amounts of bromide, are at risk. So are vegetarians and those who don't like sea food, sea vegetables or salt.

According to Dr. Brownstein, author of Iodine: Why You Need It, Why You Can't Live Without It, about one-third of the global populations live in a region of iodine deficiency. He and other iodine researchers have tested thousands of people, and found consistent results: approximately 96% of patients test low for iodine. The World Health Organization has recognized that iodine deficiency is the world's greatest single cause of preventable mental retardation. Iodine deficiency has been identified as a significant public health problem in 129 countries and up to 72% of the world's population is affected by an iodine deficiency disorder.

To understand what is happening on the geopolitical global scene today, you have to understand what has been happening on that same scene for the last 100 years, because it hasn't really changed much.

The US Empire has been the world's only (and 'greatest') superpower since at least the end of the Second World War. Once the Empire had achieved that position, it was determined to keep it. Russia was supposed to have been destroyed as a result of the 1939-45 war, but Russian ingenuity and hardiness, and Stalin's surprising independent streak, forced the Empire to accept a division of the world between 'East' and 'West'. As soon as the lines were drawn, however, the Empire sent its agents out to continue and complete the process of global conquest.

Apart from the few overt US military forays (Korea, Vietnam, the odd turkey shoot in Latin America) the Empire relied primarily on covert operations to expand its control. In Western Europe - a prized piece on the 'grand chessboard' - the US Empire established 'stay-behind' networks made up of paramilitary groups from various backgrounds and espousing right-wing, fascistic ideologies. The rationale for 'mining' Europe with weapons caches and nutjobs trained in sabotage and bloody mayhem was that, in the event of a Soviet invasion and occupation of Europe, 'resistance fighters' would form the West's front-line in the coming war with the Soviets.

These groups were created and funded as part of the Truman Doctrine, which pledged to "support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures". A Soviet invasion was never on the cards, of course, and thus this 'support' took the form of CIA funding, training and arming of minority groups that used extreme violence to 'correct' any European political or social drifts towards 'the left', or anything that opposed the Empire's interests. In their spare time, many of these groups involved themselves in arms- and drug-smuggling and other racketeering, much of it also under the control of the CIA and other Western intel agencies.

This aspect of the Truman Doctrine was the beginning, in earnest, of the US National Security State's covert foreign policy, which has comprised the bulk of all US foreign policy over the past 70 years. Most of the details of that foreign policy has not only been kept from the American people, but from most American politicians also. In December 1947, United States National Security Council (NSC) Directive 4-A "secretly authorised the CIA to conduct these officially non-existent programs and to administer them" in such a way that "removed the U.S. Congress and public from any debate over whether to undertake psychological warfare abroad."

Broadcasting from deep in the heart of the American Empire, join your host Elan Martin, and fellow Sott.net editors, as they discuss everything from current events and the latest machinations and manipulations of the global elite to history, science, and religion, and how it all fits together.

After the downing of the Russian Bomber by Turkish forces in Syria this week, as well as other big stories, we can see the floodgates of revealing news items and outspokenness opening up as never before. While the flow of true information is still held tightly under the Western leash, the larger narrative of lies is crumbling among ever larger numbers of people. At the same time, the push to 'divide and conquer' is also being ramped up - effectively working against the awakening of the masses to the true state of affairs concerning the "war on terror". What can we expect to see in the near future as a result of these opposing forces? And what do these events of recent weeks and months portend for the future of all?

The Truth Perspective is brought to you by the SOTT Radio Network and SOTT.net, your one-stop source for independent, unbiased, alternative news and commentary on world events.

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Running Time: 01:59:00

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Death is everywhere, yet no one talks about it. Violent video games, constant death in the news, fear of disease and dying. Why are we so afraid of talking about death openly?

Today on the SOTT Talk Radio Health and Wellness Show, we look into the subject of death.

What are the top five regrets of the dying? What about reincarnation and near death experiences? What about the physical process of dying?

All this will be explored and more as we explore the subject of death here on the Health and Wellness Show.

Running Time: 01:29:00

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France and Russia have agreed to cooperate in the fight against the Daeshbags. The news comes after Hollande and Putin met in Moscow yesterday, where they agreed to share intelligence, intensify and coordinate airstrikes together, and jointly make sure their airstrikes concentrate on "terrorist" groups, including Daesh. Putin clarified:

... we will exchange information with France about the areas that are being held by healthy opposition, not terrorists, and will refrain from delivering air strikes at them. We will also exchange information, when we - France and Russia - know for sure that certain areas are captured by terrorist organisations, and we will coordinate our efforts with regard to those areas.

It looks like France really is allying with Russia, to the extent it is able -- something the U.S. has refused to do. Putin said he and Hollande "are looking at this kind of cooperation as concrete and practical input towards forming a broad anti-terrorist coalition, a broad anti-terrorist front under the auspices of the United Nations. I will note that the number of nations sharing this initiative is growing." He also said that both parties "agreed to continue working together very actively within the framework of the International Syria Support Group and promote the fulfilment of all agreements reached within this group, first and foremost with regard to the deadlines and parameters for holding intra-Syrian talks."

Since the terrorist attacks in Paris on November 13th, we have seen France declare a state of emergency, allowing the government to control its population more tightly, to order raids on any "suspicious" home (the security forces no longer requiring warrants for arrests and raids when investigating an "imminent threat") and to curtail freedom in the home of alleged "Liberté".

While the official story leaves much to be desired, has more holes than the walls of the raided apartment in St-Denis, and doesn't prove conclusively that the attackers where only "islamic" terrorists, one thing you don't hear much about in the media is how this has been affecting the Muslim population in France and other countries.

There are 5 million Muslims in France, about eight percent of the total population and they are suffering the consequences of attacks perpetrated by a handful of psychos, with no regard for the decades that they have been living peacefully in France like any ordinary "white" citizen.

The latest news on the Genetically Modified foods front is the FDA approval of the GMO salmon in the US, or "Frankenfish", as it's not-so-affectionately termed. This marks the first genetically modified animal food to be approved for entry into our foodchain, and its approval in other countries is anticipated to follow, despite widespread public outcry.

Today on the SOTT Talk Radio Network's Health and Wellness Show, we'll be reopening the topic of GMOs and exploring the implication of genetically modified animal foods entering our foodchain. Is there any hope in avoiding these frankenfoods? Join us as we explore this topic and more.

Running Time: 01:36:00

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While it's pretty clear that the Erdogan government is lying about the shoot-down of the Russian jet, and that it was indeed a deliberately planned provocation as Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov says, that doesn't necessarily mean that the Erdogan government planned it.

It was the Turkish government's actions in the immediate aftermath of the shoot-down that makes me now think that these guys were caught with their pants down.

Immediately after the shoot-down of a Russian bomber jet near the Turkish-Syrian border, Ankara and Moscow told two different stories. Turkey claimed:

• it warned the Russian jets 10 times in 5 minutes (presumable before airspace violation) to change their course
• the Russian jets violated Turkish airspace for 17 seconds ("to a depth of 1.36 miles and 1.15 miles in length)
• the downed jet was fired upon by Turkish F-16s "while in Turkish airspace"

In contrast, Russia claimed:

• no warnings were received
• the jets did not violate Turkish airspace; the downed jet was shot down 4 km from Turkish border
• a Turkish jet entered Syrian airspace to target Russian jet

Both sides have released maps showing the alleged violation (or not). Here they are roughly overlaid, showing that the alleged flightpaths do not correspond. The Turkish one clearly shows the Russian jet crossing over Turkish territory (dotted pink) 1-2 km from the southern border; the Russian one shows it avoiding the border (solid red) by around 1 km.

Want to know why the Russian Su-24 was shot down yesterday? Read on.

Turkish, Saudi, French, British and US-backed terrorists have been operating in Syria for the past 4 years in an effort to overthrow the Syrian government. This cabal wants to remove Assad in order to a) pave the way for Qatari gas to supplant Russian gas to Europe, b) possibly open up a front for a jihadi invasion to destabilize and pressure Iran and Russia, and c) secure Turkish territorial integrity and its long-term role as a buffer zone for Western powers to play in the Middle East sandbox with impunity.