America's Caffeine Addiction Keeps Growing

Make That a Double-Our desire for caffeinated 'energy' products is soaring
By Anna Kuchment
Newsweek Health

July 30, 2007 issue - A few years ago, it dawned on Zach Thomas that coffee didn't have enough caffeine. At the time, he was pulling all-nighters as a student at the United States Military Academy at West Point. By the time he became an instructor at the U.S. Army Ranger School in Fort Benning, Ga., he lived by a common saying at his school: "Sleep is a crutch." "I used to just drink a pot of coffee, but then you have to go to the bathroom 100 times during the day. If you could just get more caffeine in one cup, then that would be the best of both worlds," he says. In 2005 Thomas, now 30, founded Ranger Coffee, with a "hypercaffeinated" blend that contains double the caffeine of regular coffee, or about 300 milligrams per 12-ounce serving—the equivalent of six Diet Cokes. The small, Rockmart, Ga.-based company sells 1,700 bags of coffee a year, nearly half of them to troops stationed in Iraq.

These days you don't have to be a war hero to be a caffeine addict. Everywhere you look, people are wired on caffeine or touting its benefits—or both. Tabloids run images of celebrities sipping Red Bull or toting Starbucks venti lattes; Dunkin' Donuts ads feature a coffee-swilling Rachael Ray, who moves so fast she leaves tread marks on the floor. There's no shortage of ways to get your caffeine fix. Sales of energy drinks like Red Bull and Full Throttle have grown tenfold since 2001, and new ones enter the market weekly. Products that already have caffeine are adding more—in the past few months Diet Pepsi, Jolt and Mountain Dew have all rolled out extra-caffeinated versions. Novelty items, like caffeinated lip balm, caffeinated sunflower seeds, caffeinated beer and even caffeinated soap ("Tired of waking up and having to wait for your morning java to brew?") are also popping up in retail stores and nightclubs. In a spoof on this caffeine arms race, the site Energyfiend.com launched a "death by caffeine calculator" that shows a 180-pound adult would have to down 44 tall cups of Starbucks coffee before checking in to the big java house in the sky. See: America's Caffeine Addiction Keeps Growing

African Hebrews proud of community's first officer

First member of Dimona's African Hebrew Israelites completes officer training course. 'This is a big step for us,' community leader says
Anat Bereshkovsky
Israel News

Itay Ben Yisrael of the African Hebrew Israelites community in Dimona is the first member of the group to become an officer in the IDF. Some 120 young community members currently serve in the army, after the IDF began promoting their enlistment several years ago.

Itay said that the move from life in Dimona to military life was "a culture shock" for him. "I was stunned by how the other guys talked, the curses, the foul language, the direct approach to everything. They could ask me the most intimate questions, as if we grew up together in the same room.

"On the other hand, in the army I discovered the value of friendship. The guys with whom I trained are today my best friends," he added.

The community's leader, Ben Ami Yisrael, told Ynet, "Itay could become a symbol for all of us here in Israel. this is a big step for us. From now on, no one will doubt our willingness to serve in the Israeli army. Itay is certainly a pioneer, our first officer, and we're proud of him."

See: African Hebrews proud of community's first officer

Zero calories, same great taste (and heart risks)

Diet soda linked to same health problems as sugary drinks in bubbly puzzle
MSNBC News Service

Sodas — even diet ones — may be linked with increased risk factors for heart disease and diabetes, researchers said on Monday.

They found adults who drink one or more sodas a day — diet or regular — had about a 50 percent higher risk of metabolic syndrome — a cluster of risk factors such as excessive fat around the waist, low levels of “good” cholesterol, high blood pressure and other symptoms.

“When you have metabolic syndrome, your risk of developing heart disease or stroke doubles. You also have a risk of developing diabetes,” said Dr. Ramachandran Vasan of Boston University School of Medicine, whose work appears in the journal Circulation.

Prior studies have linked consumption of sugar-laden sodas with multiple risk factors for heart disease, but Vasan and colleagues also found the link extends to diet sodas.

The results surprised the researchers who expected to see a difference between regular and diet soda drinkers. It could be, they suggest, that even no-calorie sweet drinks increase the craving for more sweets, and that people who indulge in sodas probably have less healthy diets overall.

See: Full story

‘Fat tax’ could save thousands of lives each year

Study: Charging extra for unhealthy foods would cut consumer demand
Reuters News Service

LONDON - A “fat tax” on salty, sugary and fatty foods could save thousands of lives each year, according to a study published on Thursday.

Researchers at Oxford University say that charging Value Added Tax (VAT) at 17.5 percent on foods deemed to be unhealthy would cut consumer demand and reduce the number of heart attacks and strokes.

The purchase tax is already levied on a small number of products such as potato crisps, ice cream, confectionery and chocolate biscuits, but most food is exempt.

The move could save an estimated 3,200 lives in Britain each year, according to the study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

“A well-designed and carefully-targeted fat tax could be a useful tool for reducing the burden of food-related disease,” the study concluded.

See: ‘Fat tax’ could save thousands each year

The Hazards of Refined Sugar

...to the Mind and Body
From Everlastinglife.net

Of all the foods consumed today, refined sugar is considered to be one of the most harmful. ...In 1997 Americans devoured 7.3 billion pounds of candy. Americans spent an estimated $23.1 billion dollars on candy and gum. The average American consumed a record 27.3 pounds of candy and gum in the same year-the equivalent of about six regular sized chocolate bars a week-marking the fifth consecutive year of increased demand.

...Consumption of processed foods (which are laced with sugar) cost the American public more than $54 billion in dental bills each year, so the dental industry reaps huge profits from the programmed addiction of the public to sugar products. ...Today we have a nation that is addicted to sugar. In 1915, the national average of sugar consumption (per year) was around 15 to 20 pounds per person. Today the average person consumes his/her weight in sugar, plus over 20 pounds of corn syrup. This means that since there are some people that use no sweets, or much less than the average figure, a percentage of the population consumes a great deal more refined sugar than their body weight. The human body cannot tolerate this large amount of refined carbohydrates. The vital organs in the body are actually damaged by this gross intake of sugar.

...Refined sugar contains no fiber, no minerals, no proteins, no fats, no enzymes, only empty calories. What happens when you eat a refined carbohydrate like sugar? Your body must borrow vital nutrients from healthy cells to metabolize the incomplete food. Calcium, sodium, potassium and magnesium are taken from various parts of the body to make use of the sugar.

Many times, so much calcium is used to neutralize the effects of sugar that the bones become osteoporotic due to the withdrawn calcium. Likewise, the teeth are affected and they lose their components until decay occurs and hastens their loss. ...Refined sugar is void of all nutrients, consequently it causes the body to deplete its own stores of various vitamins, minerals and enzymes. If sugar consumption is continued, an over-acid condition results, and more minerals are needed from deep in the body to correct the imbalance. If the body is lacking the nutrients used to metabolize sugar, it will not be able to properly handle and rid itself of the poisonous residues. These wastes accumulate through the brain and nervous system, which speeds up cellular death. The bloodstream becomes over-loaded with waste products and symptoms of carbonic poisoning result.

Click here to read complete article: The Hazards of Refined Sugar

Murder toll mounts in Philadelphia

With 5 killed early Sunday, city on pace for deadliest year in a decade
Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA - Five people were shot to death within six hours early Sunday, including three who were killed after an argument in a neighborhood bar, police said.

The deaths bring the number of killings in the city this year to 232, on pace to be the highest rate in a decade.

No suspects were immediately arrested in any of Sunday’s shootings.

Police said a man opened fire shortly after midnight at Abay Wheelers Bar in the Kingsessing section of the city, killing three men, ages 20, 30 and 31, and injuring a fourth.

On Sunday, a small memorial of stuffed animals, balloons and signs sat outside the corner bar.
A 23-year-old man was also killed in north Philadelphia, and an unidentified man died in the Wynnefield section of west Philadelphia in separate shootings.

Bush cedes power to VP during colonoscopy

Cheney temporarily in charge; screening procedure described as routine
Associated Press

CAMP DAVID, Md. - President Bush transferred the powers of the presidency to Vice President Dick Cheney on Saturday just before being sedated for a routine screening to detect colon cancer.

With a signed letter to the leaders of the House and Senate, Bush temporarily transferred his authority at 7:16 a.m. EDT to Cheney, who is at his home on the Chesapeake Bay in St. Michaels, Md., about 30 miles east of Washington.

“The vice president is now serving as acting president,” White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said.

He said the temporary transfer of power will end when Bush transmits a second letter to the congressional leaders advising that he is resuming the powers of the presidency immediately.

Bush relinquished his authority by implementing Section 3 of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution. The amendment — approved in 1967 four years after President Kennedy was assassinated — has been used only twice before. See: Bush undergoes colonoscopy

Nigeria files new lawsuit against Pfizer

U.S. drug maker did not properly obtain consent from families while testing an experimental drug on their children
By BASHIR ADIGUN
Associated Press Writer

ABUJA, Nigeria - Government lawyers filed a new $7 billion civil lawsuit Friday against Pfizer Inc., adding a more serious fraud charge to their allegations that the U.S. drug maker did not properly obtain consent from families while testing an experimental drug on their children.

The government has accused Pfizer of taking advantage of a 1996 meningitis epidemic to test an experimental drug without authorization or the full understanding of the families involved — allegedly contributing to the deaths of some of the children and sickening others. Pfizer denies wrongdoing.

Pfizer treated 100 meningitis-infected children with an experimental antibiotic, Trovan. Another 100 children, who were control patients in the study, received an approved antibiotic, ceftriaxone — but the dose was lower than recommended, the families' lawyers alleged.

Eleven children died — five of those on Trovan and six in the control group, while others suffered physical disabilities and brain damage. Pfizer has always insisted its records show none of the deaths was linked to Trovan or substandard treatment, noting that the study showed a better survival rate for the patients on Trovan than those on the standard drug. Meningitis survivors sometimes sustain brain damage or other complications from the disease.

See Complete Article: Nigeria says Pfizer did not obtain family consent for experiments

In UK wealth gap 'widest in 40 years'

The gap between rich and poor in the UK is as wide as it has been for 40 years, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation warns
BBC News Service

The JRF found that households in already wealthy areas had become "disproportionately" richer compared with society as a whole.
But the social policy think tank said the number of "poor" households had risen over the past 15 years.

Since the 1980s, wealthier people have moved to the suburbs while the poor remain in inner cities, the JRF added.

Society polarised
Looking at wealth patterns over the past four decades, the JRF found that the gap between rich and poor actually narrowed in the 1970s. But during the 1980s and 1990s inequality had increased, as a "polarisation" in British society had occurred.

As for the decade beginning in 2000, the report said the picture was "less clear", with some initiatives such as tax and pension credit helping the poor while wealthier people were gaining from a property market boom.

Rich and poor are also less likely to be living next door to one another than in the 1970s, it was reported. See: News - Wealth gap 'widest in 40 years'

Over the past 40 years wealth gap in US widens

Chasm between wealthiest households and everyone else has grown more than 50% since the early 1960s
By Jeanne Sahadi
CNNMoney.com senior writer

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Over the past 40 years, those at the top of the money food chain have seen their wealth grow at a rate far outpacing everyone else, according to a new analysis released by the Economic Policy Institute, a liberal research group.

In the early 1960s, the top 1 percent of households in terms of net worth held 125 times the median wealth in the United States. Today, that gap has grown to 190 times.

The top 20 percent of wealth-holding households, meanwhile, held 15 times the overall median wealth in the early 1960s. By 2004, that gap had grown to 23 times. See: Wealth gap has widened more than 50% during past 40 years - Aug. 29, 2006

75 percent of Americans overweight by 2015

Two-thirds considered heavy or obese now; rate still increasing, study finds
Reuters News Service

WASHINGTON - If people keep gaining weight at the current rate, fat will be the norm by 2015, with 75 percent of U.S. adults overweight and 41 percent obese, U.S. researchers predicted on Wednesday.

A team at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore examined 20 studies published in journals and looked at national surveys of weight and behavior for their analysis, published in the journal Epidemiologic Reviews.

“Obesity is a public health crisis. If the rate of obesity and overweight continues at this pace, by 2015, 75 percent of adults and nearly 24 percent of U.S. children and adolescents will be overweight or obese,” Dr. Youfa Wang, who led the study, said in a statement.

For more info see: 75 percent in U.S overweight by 2015

An oasis of African-American soul in Israel's desert

A people who have pride and are able to point to certain successes that have been elusive for the African world
By Simona Kogan Israel21c



Deep in the heart of Israel's Negev desert, where you would expect to find mostly camels and sand, a community of expatriate black Americans has made a new life for itself in towns like Dimona, Arad and Mitzpe Ramon.

They call themselves the African Hebrew Israelites, but they are better known in Israel as the Black Hebrews, a 2,000-strong religious group dressed in colorful African prints made of natural fabrics like silk and linen according to their doctrine. And while it's taken most of the 40 years they've been residing in Israel to feel like part of the country, today Black Hebrews can be found in many facets of Israeli society - from the army to the entertainment industry.

"We are a people who have pride and are able to point to certain successes that have been elusive for the African world," says national spokesman Ahmadiel Ben-Yehuda, who lives in Dimona, but spent time in Ghana, South Africa, and other African locations studying African cultural connections and migration patterns.

The Black Hebrews movement originated in Chicago in 1966 when their leader Ben-Ami Ben-Yisrael, then a steel worker named Ben Carter, had a vision where the Archangel Gabriel revealed to him that African Americans were descended from the lost tribe of Judah. In 70 CE, the Israelites were exiled from Jerusalem by the Romans and ended up in West Africa where they were later transported to America as slaves.

See: An oasis of African-American soul in Israel's desert

Judge OKs $660M Clergy Abuse Settlement

The deal settles all 508 cases that remained against the archdiocese
By GILLIAN FLACCUS
Associated Press Writer

The settlement is by far the largest payout by any diocese since the clergy abuse scandal emerged in Boston in 2002. Individual payouts, to be made by Dec. 1, will vary according to the severity of each case.

Cardinal Roger Mahony, whose archdiocese counts 4.3 million Catholics, sat through the hearing but did not speak. He issued an apology Sunday after the settlement was announced and said Monday in a statement that he would spend the rest of the day praying for those who claimed abuse.

District Attorney Steve Cooley said in a statement that there could still be a criminal case, despite a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on statutes of limitations in molestation cases.

"We are aware there could be records that may become available to us as a result of today's settlement. If these documents reveal evidence of criminal activity on behalf of individual priests or anyone else, we will pursue them," Cooley said. "The book is not closed on our investigation."

The deal settles all 508 cases that remained against the archdiocese, which also paid $60 million in December to settle 45 cases that weren't covered by sexual abuse insurance. The archdiocese, the nation's largest, will pay $250 million, insurance carriers will pay a combined $227 million and several religious orders will chip in $60 million.

The remaining $123 million will come from litigation with religious orders that chose not to participate in the deal, with the archdiocese guaranteeing resolution of those 80 to 100 cases within five years, Hennigan said. The archdiocese is released from liability in those claims, said Tod Tamberg, church spokesman.

Plaintiffs' attorneys can expect to receive up to 40 percent of the settlement money -- or $264 million. The settlements push the total amount paid out by the U.S. church since 1950 to more than $2 billion.

Previously, the Los Angeles archdiocese, its insurers and various Roman Catholic orders had paid more than $114 million to settle 86 claims. Several religious orders in California have also reached multimillion-dollar settlements in recent months, including the Carmelites, the Franciscans and the Jesuits. See: Judge OKs $660M Clergy Abuse Settlement

Dining Out: Soul Vegetarian South

“The food, the people, the price: Soul Vegetarian can’t be beat!”
From
VegCooking.com

PETA pal John Feldmann, lead singer of the punk band Goldfinger, raves: “Soul Vegetarian has the most awesome vegan lasagna and vegan gyro sandwiches ever!”

John’s not the only one singing the praises of the Soul Vegetarian restaurants. PETA’s elephant specialist, Jane Garrison, says, “When you walk into Soul Vegetarian South, the aroma of the food carries you (running) down the hall to the dining room. The people who run the restaurant always greet you as if you are entering their home—after the second visit, we were greeted with hugs!

“My favorite dish is the ‘bar-b-que twist’—absolutely incredible fib ‘ribs.’ The texture is amazing—not too mushy and not too tough. The homemade sauce is so delicious, you will find yourself trying to lick every bit off your fork! This dish is served with the best vegan potato salad I have ever had and some yummy Southern-style greens. Every meal at Soul Vegetarian for me is followed by my favorite dessert: sweet potato pie topped with vegan vanilla ‘ice cream.’ The crust of the pie is so sweet and delicious, you feel like you are eating a pie that has been placed on a cookie!

“Other amazing dishes include the lasagna, baked tofu, pasta casserole, divine protein salad (mock chicken salad)—and anything else they are serving as the special for the night!

“The food, the people, the price: Soul Vegetarian can’t be beat!”

Philosophy
For more than a decade, Soul Vegetarian has been the place where vegetarians and nonvegetarians come to enjoy a more healthful way of eating without concern for loss of flavor or the joy of eating. Colorful and delicious dishes, exotic décor, and superb staff combine to create a completely vegan dining adventure that must be experienced to be believed.

Contact us in Atlanta at:

Soul Vegetarian Restaurant
879-A Ralph Abernathy Blvd. SW
Atlanta, GA 30310
(404) 752-5194
or
Soul Vegetarian International
652 North Highland
Atlanta, GA 30306
(404) 874-0145

Click here to see all of our locations: Soul Vegetarian

Strong earthquake jolts northwestern Japan

7 killed, hundreds of homes destroyed; nuke plant leaks radioactive water
MSNBC News Service

KASHIWAZAKI, Japan - The impact of a strong quake Monday in northwestern Japan caused the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant -- the world's largest – to leak water containing radioactive materials, a company spokesman said.

At least seven people were killed by the quake, which destroyed hundreds of homes, buckled seaside bridges and caused a fire at the nuclear power plant.

The quake, which left fissures 3 feet wide in the ground along the coast, hit shortly after 10 a.m. local time and was centered off Niigata state. Buildings swayed 160 miles away in Tokyo. Sirens wailed in Kashiwazaki, a city of about 90,000, which appeared to be hardest hit.

See: Strong earthquake jolts Japan

Antiguans travel to Israel

Antigua stated that the New World celebration is truly a time of extreme joy

by Afeefah Beharry

Antigua Sun News

A group of six Antiguans went to Israel in May to participate in the 40th Anniversary of the New World Passover, 2007.

New World Passover is an annual celebration since the exodus began out of the Americas (modern day Egypt), for the descendants of those brought to Antigua as slaves, due to disobedience to the laws of God.

A press release from the Ministry of Information African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem, Antigua stated that the celebration is truly a time of extreme joy and festivities where people from all corners of the world journey up to Israel to celebrate obedience to his laws and true freedom. The event was held from the 16 to 17 May.

The group spent one month in Dimona, a small town located in the Negev Desert of Israel which is also known as the “Village of Peace”. The group was comprised of Ammi, Yasheer, Beniah, Shahma, Rumiah and Koliah.

Other countries who were present at the celebration included St.Vincent, Bermuda, Atlanta, USA, South Africa and Guyana.

Euro Hits New High Against U.S. Dollar

Euro Soars to New High Above $1.37 Amid Worries About U.S. Economy
By Jackie Farwell
AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- The euro shot to an all-time high against the U.S. dollar Tuesday on concerns about the American economy that were fueled by discouraging growth forecasts from key U.S. retailers and homebuilders.

The euro hit a new record of $1.3738 Tuesday, its highest level against the dollar since the 13-nation currency started trading in 1999, before retreating to $1.3729. That was still above the euro's previous high of $1.3682 reached on April 27 and the $1.3623 it bought late Monday in New York.

"The dollar is a basket case," said Peter Schiff, president of Euro Pacific Capital Inc. "We are going to pay the piper for years of having the underlying fundamentals of our economy disintegrate beneath our feet."

Given the state of the U.S. economy, he said, the dollar could continue to fall in the coming years against the euro, to $2.50 or even $3.

Some black Americans returning to Africa

Connection with heritage sought
By Bryan Mealer
Associated Press

A growing number of black Americans trading potentially lucrative careers and relative comfort back home for a new life in Africa, where the former slave-trading hub of Ghana is wooing Americans with some of the easiest immigration rules on the continent. That includes a "right of abode" for qualifying American members of the African diaspora, echoing Israel's offer of automatic citizenship for Jews.

Centuries ago, the Gold Coast — Ghana's name under British rule — was a major slave-embarkation point; every year thousands of Africans left here to become human chattel in the New World.

Centuries ago, the Gold Coast — Ghana's name under British rule — was a major slave-embarkation point; every year thousands of Africans left here to become human chattel in the New World. Untold numbers died in slave raids or making the "middle passage" in cramped, pestilential ships. Some parts of Africa were left virtually unpeopled.

The tide was reversed in 1957, when Ghana became one of the first countries in sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence from colonial rule. Many black Americans began turning up here.
Ghana's first president, Kwame Nkrumah, a graduate of Lincoln University in Chester County, Pa., was a leading voice for repatriation, enlisting Americans like the authors W.E.B. DuBois and Maya Angelou to help spread the movement.

Post-independence euphoria was quickly shattered, however, as Ghana fell into decades of military rule before embracing constitutional democracy in 1992.

These days, the country's expanding economy, stable government and laid-back, English-speaking population make it an easy holiday choice for tourists, who flock to the chain of slave forts that still line Ghana's coastline.

For some, Ghana offers incentives to stay: It is the only African country to offer black Americans "right of abode," allowing those who qualify to work and own property, said Janet Butler, president of the African American Association, a support group for expatriates. Applicants must live in Ghana seven years before fully qualifying.

As many as 1,000 black Americans are living in Ghana, Butler said. They are a varied lot: aid workers, pan-African nationalists here since the 1960s, entrepreneurs, retirees, Rastafarian's. A few live in mud huts, embracing the agrarian life of their ancestors.

KNN-This article was originally written in Jan. 2005

Pope: Other denominations not true churches

Benedict issues statement asserting that Jesus established ‘only one church’
MSNBC News Service

LORENZAGO DI CADORE, Italy - Pope Benedict XVI has reasserted the universal primacy of the Roman Catholic Church, approving a document released Tuesday that says Orthodox churches were defective and that other Christian denominations were not true churches.

Benedict approved a document from his old offices at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith that restates church teaching on relations with other Christians. It was the second time in a week the pope has corrected what he says are erroneous interpretations of the Second Vatican Council, the 1962-65 meetings that modernized the church.

On Saturday, Benedict revisited another key aspect of Vatican II by reviving the old Latin Mass. Traditional Catholics cheered the move, but more liberal ones called it a step back from Vatican II.

See Article: Pope: Other denominations not true churches

Also See: revisited another key aspect of Vatican II by reviving the old Latin Mass.

Wildfire Spreads Across Western U.S. States

Property and vegetation in almost 300,000 acres (120,000 hectares) of land has been destroyed
RTT News Service

7/9/2007 10:51:08 AM Wildfires are sweeping dangerously across South Dakota and several western U.S. states, threatening homes and closing main roads. South Dakota is the worst affected state, where one person has died and 27 homes have been destroyed, local officials said. The fire, sparked by lightning on Saturday, has burned across nine square miles. Residents of at least 50 properties have fled the fire.

Extremely hot temperatures and high winds are acting catalysts to flare up the fire. Temperatures have gone up as high as 100° Fahrenheit, following a drier-than-normal winter. creating ideal conditions for fires. South Dakota state wild land fire co-coordinator Joe Lowe attributes these two factors as creating ideal conditions for fires. Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, California, Colorado, Arizona, Washington D C, and Oregon are the other states affected by fires, forcing many people to evacuate their homes.

Property and vegetation in almost 300,000 acres (120,000 hectares) of land has been destroyed in the largest ever wildfire in the state of Utah.

Several road accidents have occurred on a stretch of highway near Richfield, Utah, killing one person. Around 34,000 acres of woods have been scorched in California's Inyo National Forest.

Nancy Upham, a spokeswoman for the Inyo National Forest, said that even seasoned fire fighters are finding it very difficult to tackle the fire, which behaves in a way they have never seen before. 11 firefighters were injured in the Los Padres National Forest in southern California while trying to save 22 homes. See: Wildfire Spreads Across Western U.S. States []