News From Around the World - June 19th, 2014

[caption id="attachment_2693" align="aligncenter" width="400"] News from Around the World[/caption]

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Welcome back My Dear Readers to The Other Shoe. As well, welcome to the June 19^th, 2014 edition of ‘News from Around the World’. Just moments ago I published a review of the first Eleven episodes of ‘The Horror in Smithville’. Just click on that link, just behind us at the end of the last sentence, and you can get caught-up on all the action and thrills! Then, come back right here tomorrow (Friday June 20^th, 2014) and read the twelfth episode!

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Now, let us proceed with this edition of “News from Around the World’. Today were are going to drop by L.A., Spain, Washington state, and Washington D.C. for a jaunty romp through the headlines. Every week I rummage through headlines to find some of the stories not covered by the network news, and a new take on some that were. Honestly, there were more stories to cover this week, than I had time to properly prepare the article. So, let’s jump right in and get our feet wet!

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Our first story for the day, takes us to L.A. and a law that found its way on to the books, back in 1983. For more than two decades it has been illegal for residents from using their vehicles as; ‘living quarters, both day-to-day, overnight and otherwise’[1]. I know, from personal experience, that in the city of Los Angeles this law is; rigorously, dutifully and sometimes zealously enforced. Today, June 19^th 2014, a Federal Appeals Court ruled that this law is “unconstitutional” as it targets the homeless and the poor.

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[caption id="attachment_3073" align="aligncenter" width="466"] Car Sleeper Palo Alto CA[/caption]

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In the decision the judge made this observation;

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"Is it impermissible to eat food in a vehicle? Is it illegal to keep a sleeping bag? Canned food? Books? What about speaking on a cellphone? Or staying in the car to get out of the rain?" Judge Harry Pregerson wrote for the panel. "These are all actions plaintiffs were taking when arrested for violation of the ordinance, all of which are otherwise perfectly legal."[2]

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This decision helps to highlight a divide happening all across Los Angeles. On one hand the city council of L.A. is working to pass a new ordinance that would make it illegal to ‘feed the homeless, while in the city limits of Los Angeles…’ and on the other hand courts are striking down old discriminatory ordinances and laws. What we have here is a genuine conflict between the will of the wealthy, and the needs of the poor and underserved. Whereas a good many of the wealthy citizens of Los Angeles are going weary of ‘seeing’ the least advantaged and feel that they detract from the natural beauty of Los Angeles’, the courts are actively protecting the rights of the poor and homeless.

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[caption id="attachment_3074" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Living in the Car[/caption]

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For the past thirty years Los Angeles has had a growing homeless population. With the growing inequality, and a recovery that is helping only those that already ‘have’. The L.A. elite (some, in the Hollywood Hills and Beverly Hills) have grown too weary from having to actually see the results of overt greed and avarice. They have, in turn, turned to the local municipalities (Santa Monica, Los Angeles, Beverly Hills) and become involved in local politics for one reason, to have the poor and homeless ‘removed from site’.

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While the city councils and Mayors are, at times, all too happy to serve this minority (the wealthy) and help pass discriminatory laws against the rights of the least among us; the poor, the homeless, transients and the rest. At the same time the local courts have been awaken by local civil rights organizations. These organizations want to work with local governments, yet there exists a conflict of interests. The local governments figure if they just ‘make life for the poor unbearable in our city, they will leave’, they are (in fact) violating the civil rights of American citizens. This battle is long from being done, and I fear that things for the least among us will only get worse, before it gets better. I will follow in future editions, this battle between rights and wealth.

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Now we will take a journey of several thousand miles to the country of Spain. I am very happy to share this news item, from today’s news. Spain has just gained its newest King! Seventy-six year old King Juan Carlos abdicated his crown, so that the Spanish Monocracy could gain younger blood. Today King Felipe VI was sworn in, in front of the entire nation, in the royal palace in Madrid.

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[caption id="attachment_3076" align="aligncenter" width="630"] Spain's new King Felipe VI, his wife Queen Letizia, Princess Sofia and Princess Leonor attend the swearing-in ceremony at the Congress of Deputies in Madrid, June 19, 2014.[/caption]

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It is the hopes of the Crown, and elected officials, that this ‘new blood’ will (somehow) help with the terrible financial problems. Spain is beset with crippling financial problems, and very few solutions. On the up-side the country, and the people, are gaining a very handsome ‘Royal Family’. Ending the long rein of the 76 year old sovereign, just may not have the desired results on their economy. I have shared a couple of the images I have picked up on line, of the searing in ceremony, and the new King. I just thought it was a nice turn from the opening article, and a little light on an otherwise gloomy day.

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[caption id="attachment_3077" align="aligncenter" width="630"] Spain's King Juan Carlos (R) places the Sash of Captain-General on new King Felipe VI[/caption]

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Next, well if you are anything like me (a news junky) you know that President Obama has addressed the nation, and taken many questions, on the current situation in Iraq. Now, My Dear Readers, if you have read my article from last Thursday (News From Around the World – Iraq Update) then you are fully aware of my position on this Iraqi situation. If not, here it is in a ‘nutshell’. What we are witnessing, in Iraq, is the results of a blood feud between the (in power) Shiite population and the (not in any power positions) Sunni population. This is exactly what many American foreign affairs experts feared, when we stormed into Iraq under President Bush and Dick Cheney.

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At this point in time most American people realize that the ‘War in Iraq’ was a war of choice. Meaning, Iraq had nothing to do with the attacks on 9/11, there are no credible evidence of ‘Weapons of Mass Destruction’ in Iraq (at the time we attacked). There really was no logistic or ‘National Security’ reason for America to go into Iraq, at that time. Many foreign affairs experts, most notably among them Henry Kissinger, to go into Iraq would be to ‘destabilize the whole region for generations to come…’. We were not “Greeted as liberators’ in 2005 the insurgency was not “in the last throes”[3]as Dick Cheney stated.

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Now, Iraq is being torn in twain and there is blood running in the streets. The war hawks that pushed us into the original conflict, are doing double-time on television and the air waves pushing for us to throw more American lives into this meat grinder. For a growing number of Americans, this is not a reasonable solution. We have, already, lost trillions in national treasure, and thousands of American lives. This brings me to the national televised decision of President Obama that we America will not put boots on the ground in Iraq, again.

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That he is sending over military advisors, to help the Iraqi Generals regain control over their forces (in their first clashes with ISIS troops the Iraqi Army threw down their arms… and ran). I am not overjoyed that President Obama said “the United States is prepared to take “targeted and precise” military action against Islamist militants in Iraq”[4] Even though he did say that American forces “will not be returning to combat.”[5]

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Again, My Dear Readers, I will be tracking and writing about this topic as the story unfolds. It is just that this is NEWS and it is so rarely that I have the opportunity to share real news in a timely fashion, and today I have that opportunity. I stand behind Presindet Obama’s choice to not spill more American blood in the sands of Iraq. This is just a ‘family thing’ between Sunnis and Shiites and the best thing America can do, at this point in time, is to just keep our boots out of that sand!

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While strolling through the news, one day, in the very merry month of… June. I came across a very disturbing news story. I am not of the time, or the knowledge, to ding into this story the way I usually do. Yet, I just could not turn away so I am going to share this news story in the hopes that I can help bring the story of this tragedy to more Americans. There is a very perplexing cluster of birth defects in Washington state. I just read about this today, and I am sharing this news as I am learning about it. Please be aware that I am on a bit of a learning curve on this story, that I usually do not find myself.

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It just called out to me… cried out for attention… and ink. Since 2010 forty-two (42) babies have been born with “so-called neural tube defects … … … including 32 with a fatal condition in which they’re born missing parts of the brain and skull”[6]

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Now, comes (what I find) to be the most disturbing aspect of this cluster of illness. More than half of these babies were born to Mexican-American mothers. Now, from my experience working in pharmacology, I can tell you that birth defects, of this nature, generally point to low levels of folic acid in the mother’s diet during gestation. My Dear Readers, this was a known problem among mother’s of European decent, in the early part of the 20^th century.

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[caption id="attachment_3075" align="aligncenter" width="460"] Newborn baby[/caption]

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The FDA came in and we added Iron supplements to all breads, as a part of an international effort, in the 1940’s. This was labeled ‘Enriched Flour’[7] and we see this all over our markets, today. It is in nearly all of our breads and most of our flours. However, the Hispanic population does not eat much of our enriched flour breads and enriched flour products. As a part of their normal (regional based) diet they eat corn mesa (corn flour), which is not enriched with; folic acid, riboflavin, niacin, thiamine and calcium.[8]

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Now there is a petition, calling for the fortification of corn mesa, that has been sitting with the Food And Drug Administration for the past two years. It is my humble opinion that more Americans need to get behind this effort to have corn mesa fortified, just the way our flours have been for the past seventy years. It is not fair to these families, to these mothers, and to these babies to not have fortified Corn Mesa available for them to purchase and use in the diet.

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[caption id="attachment_3072" align="aligncenter" width="275"] Nursing Baby[/caption]

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These neural tube birth defects can be quite costly, to the family and in poor families this cost is passed on to the community as a whole. It really is in the best interest of our society that we make sure that these foods get the proper fortificationof the vitamins and minerals that we, Americans of European decent, get every single day. That’s My Two Cents for this week.

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That, My Dear Readers, brings us to the end of ‘News from Around the World’ for this week. I hope that every one of my readers is in good health, and fine spirits. If you read my ‘Notes from Behind the Keyboard’ (This week) and/or watched the video… well, then you know my current health condition, and the complications that lay ahead for me. Moving on… I hope that everyone has enjoyed the news articles I have brought here, today. Each week I look and look for news and articles that I think might be of interest, and that many (of not most) news media outlets have missed.

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As always, I have enjoyed our time together and look forward to seeing you here tomorrow for… … … “The Horror in Smithville – Part Twelve’! Matter of fact, as soon as I rest my neck and back… get a handle on the pain, I will be right back behind this keyboard taking Timmy, Archer, David (Mr. Champion) and US for another adventure in Smithville. Until then…

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Adieu!

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Thank YOU!

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[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="234"] The Other Shoe eBay Store[/caption]

http://www.ebay.com/usr/enzomatrixlt

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[caption id="attachment_2866" align="aligncenter" width="630"] Danny Hanning of The Other Shoe - May 6th, 2014[/caption]

 

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[1]http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Los-Angeles-Sleeping-Living-in-Vehicles-Cars-Law-Court-Ruling-Appeal-263860741.html

[2]http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Los-Angeles-Sleeping-Living-in-Vehicles-Cars-Law-Court-Ruling-Appeal-263860741.html

[3]http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-TV/2014/06/19/Megyn-Kelly-to-Dick-Cheney-History-Has-Proven-that-You-Got-It-Wrong-as-Well-in-Iraq-Sir

[4]http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/iraq-turmoil/obama-u-s-prepared-take-targeted-action-iraq-n135621

[5]http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/iraq-turmoil/obama-u-s-prepared-take-targeted-action-iraq-n135621

[6]http://www.nbcnews.com/health/womens-health/mystery-birth-defect-cluster-diet-blame-n135026

[7]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enriched_flour

[8]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enriched_flour