Americans get an 'F' in religion

50% of high school seniors think Sodom and Gomorrah were married
By Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA TODAY

Sometimes dumb sounds cute: Sixty percent of Americans can't name five of the Ten Commandments, and 50% of high school seniors think Sodom and Gomorrah were married.

Stephen Prothero, chairman of the religion department at Boston University, isn't laughing. Americans' deep ignorance of world religions — their own, their neighbors' or the combatants in Iraq, Darfur or Kashmir — is dangerous, he says.

"We're impoverished by ignorance," says the Rev. Joan Brown Campbell, former general secretary of the National Council of Churches. "You can't draw on the resources of faith if you only have an emotional understanding, not a sense of the texts and teachings."

But if people don't know Sodom and Gomorrah were two cities destroyed for their sinful ways, Campbell blames Sunday schools that "trivialized religious education. If we want people to have serious knowledge, we have to get serious about teaching our own faith."

TEST YOUR BIBLICAL LITERACY: Americans get an 'F' in religion

And he shall think to change times and laws

Daylight savings time to change this year
KNN News

The U.S. Energy Policy Act of 2005, passed by the U.S. Congress July, 2005, extended Daylight Saving Time (DST) in the U.S. by approximately four weeks. As a result, beginning in 2007, DST will start three weeks earlier on March 11, 2007, and end one week later on November 4, 2007, resulting in a new DST period that is four weeks longer than previously observed.

The Joy of Living Live 2nd Anniversary !!

It’s been a busy and exciting year for "The Joy of Living Live"
KNN News

February 2007 marks the 2nd year anniversary of The Joy of Live cookbook. The Joy of Living Live has touched the lives of thousands of individuals all over the world. We’ve brought Joy to more than 12 countries…and still going. Here are some of the highlights:

Health lectures, food demonstrations, raw food preparation classes, book signings and radio interviews during our U.S. Tour in Atlanta, GA; Capital Heights, MD; Baltimore, MD; Brooklyn NY; Detroit, MI; Richmond, VA; Washington, DC; and West Hollywood, CA.

Book signing in Atlanta, GA at health event featuring David Wolfe sponsored by The Women of Wellness and Soul Vegetarian Restaurant.

Book signing in Brooklyn, NY at health lecture by Dr. Llaila Afrika.

Book signing in West Hollywood, CA at health lecture featuring Dr. Gabriel Cousens sponsored by MOA and the world-famous Bodhi Tree bookstore.

Health lectures, book signings, raw food displays and “Pot Blessings” (better than “luck”) in Israel, Northeast Africa.

Health lecture in the Village of Peace in Dimona, Israel featuring Paul Nison.

“20 Simple Ways to Improve Your Health” lecture and “Live Cake” demonstration at a health event in Birmingham in the United Kingdom.

Joy recipes are being used to improve the health of people in Jamaica, St. Croix, Ghana, Benin, South Africa, Congo, Ethiopia, Israel, India, and United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, and the United States.

Many thanks and blessings to all of you who made this possible. We look forward to many new and exciting projects for this up-coming year.

The Joy of Living Live: A Raw Food Journey by Zakhah has over 100 delicious, international raw and living foods recipes. It features testimonies from long-time raw foodists including Dick Gregory, Dr. Llaila Afrika, Aris LaTham, Karyn Calabrese. Joy features information on simple ways to improve your health, transitioning to raw, organic foods, food combining, herbs and spices, sprouting, gourmet food preparation, fasting, detoxification, exercise, prayer and meditation, holistic dental care and more.

Visit our website at: http://www.joyoflivinglive.com

The brothers in Mississippi are ready to grow

KNN-Cleveland

Under the leadership of Nasik Rham and Ahk Eliyahu - The brotherhood in Mississippi has 40 acres of land and is preparing to grow a variety of organic food this year. Ahk Keymah recently visited Mississippi to talk with the brothers about this years growing season.

Last year they produced sweet-delicious watermelons, which were displayed at last years Brotherhood Conference in Texas. They also grew truckloads of greens. Some of which were shipped to our southern missions. In addition to these crops, tomatoes, soybeans, corn, and many other items were planted. They had so many tomatoes last year that they did not know what to do with all of them.

Akh Moshey told KNN that; “Many of the crops that we planted last year were also eaten by dear”. This year the brothers have installed 6 foot fencing all around the farmland. Ahk Yoseff from Mississippi has been heading up this effort.

As a community effort they also provide fresh produce for the local elderly in their community. “Everybody wants and needs wholesome food grown without all of those harmful pesticides,” said Ahk Eliyahu, Head of the Mississippi Mission.

The brothers expect to start planting in the next few weeks. They will be producing a variety of food this year, especially foods that can be dried and stored in case of a national disaster. We will not soon forget the lessons learned from hurricane Katrina.

Any questions regarding our farm in Mississippi should be directed to our Southern Prince – Nasik Rham. Yah Khai!!!!

Scores killed as strong quake shakes Indonesia

At least 70 confirmed dead; official says toll expected to rise
Associated Press

PADANG, Indonesia - A powerful earthquake crumpled houses across a large swath of western Indonesia on Tuesday, killing at least 70 people and injuring hundreds, authorities said, predicting that the toll would rise.

The magnitude 6.3 quake struck on Sumatra island and was felt as far away as neighboring Malaysia and Singapore, where some tall buildings were evacuated. It was followed by several strong aftershocks.

"Women were crying out in terror. We all just fled as quickly as we could," said Alpion, a welder in the seaside town of Padang who uses a single name. Along with thousands of others, he was running to higher ground, fearing a tsunami that never came. See: Indonesia quake kills at least 70

Childhood obesity can trigger early puberty

Study: Girls who gain weight through age 6 develop breasts by age 9
Reuters News Service

CHICAGO - Childhood obesity in the United States appears to be causing girls to reach puberty at an earlier age, for reasons that are not clear, a study said on Monday.

The report from the University of Michigan’s Mott Children’s Hospital said a multiyear study following a group of 354 girls found that those who were fatter at age 3 and who gained weight during the next three years reached puberty, as defined by breast development, by age 9.

“Our finding that increased body fatness is associated with the earlier onset of puberty provides additional evidence that growing rates of obesity among children in this country may be contributing to the trend of early maturation in girls,” said Dr. Joyce Lee, the lead author.

“Previous studies had found that girls who have earlier puberty tend to have higher body mass index, but it was unclear whether puberty led to the weight gain or weight gain led to the earlier onset of puberty,” she added.

“Our study offers evidence that it is the latter,” Lee said.

Earlier studies have found that U.S. girls are reaching puberty earlier than was the case 30 years ago, a time span during which rates of childhood obesity also increased, the study said. In the study girls were classified as at risk for being overweight if their body mass index (a measurement of weight related to age and height) was between the 85th and 95th percentiles, and defined as overweight if the measurement was greater than the 95th percentile.

The researchers said that 168 of the girls were classified as being “in puberty” by the age of 9 and nearly two dozen reported having their first menstrual period by two years later. Higher body mass index scores at all ages had a “strong association with earlier onset of puberty, the authors said.

The study was published in Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics. “Earlier onset of puberty in girls has been associated with a number of adverse outcomes, including psychiatric disorders and deficits in psychosocial functioning, earlier initiation of alcohol use, sexual intercourse and teenage pregnancy and increased rates of adult obesity and reproductive cancers,” the study said.

Healthy diet in pregnancy and lactation non negotiable

The African Hebrew Development Agency (AHDA) from Dimona Israel recommends adhering to a nutritionally adequate diet during pre-conception period, pregnancy and lactation
A Ghana News Agency Feature by Linda Asante Agyei

Motherhood is a precious moment that should be cherished by everyone and women should not be left alone to go through the difficulties of childbirth...

Diet is another important component of ensuring healthy pregnancy and delivering a healthy baby but most often some pregnant women suffer a “no appetite” syndrome which makes it difficult for them to take in well balanced meals...

The Ministry of Health with its responsibility of ensuring a healthy population has developed a new health policy that emphasizes health promotion and prevention with the aim of improving the health status of Ghanaians through promoting healthy lifestyles with emphasis on nutrition.

The Ministry is therefore embarking on a project to improve the health and nutritional status in children and ensure that their physical and mental development lays the foundation for a more productive nation in the future.

The project, “Regenerative Health and Nutrition”, is being done on pilot basis throughout the country under the theme “Renew Your Strength: Prevent Disease”.

It is supported by the African Hebrew Development Agency (AHDA) from Dimona in Israel and admonishes that non-communicable diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancer and other related mortality are on the increase due the unhealthy lifestyles of the people.

A document made available to the Ghana News Agency that recommends some dietary intake for women during pregnancy and during lactation. Since Ghanaian diets are largely carbohydrate based, it is important to increase the amount of protein foods like cowpeas, soya beans, groundnuts, agushie and others as much as possible.

It also recommends increased intake in the quantity of fruits and vegetables to supply the minerals and vitamins needed by the body since it contains fiber that helps eliminate waste from the body thereby contributing to maintain good health and prevent degenerative diseases.

Ms Zvenah E. Elahsuv, Nutritional Specialist of AHDA, in an interview with the GNA, says the benefits for adhering to a nutritionally adequate diet during pre-conception period, pregnancy and lactation were very crucial.

She explains that for breakfast, cereal porridge like koko, rice water, weanimix, and oats together with bread, kose, roasted groundnuts or groundnut paste were recommended.

“Fruit is something that should not be ignored at all after every meal and any of these- two oranges, four medium size banana, medium size pawpaw or mango should be taken after breakfast.”

For lunch, Ms Elahsuv recommends fufu, rice, wakye, ampesi, kenkey, touzaafi or banku should be served with generous amounts of soups, stews and boiled legumes like cowpea, bean stew, soya chuncts to accompany it. Fruits should also be served after this.

“An extra meal or two snacks is recommended for the pregnant woman whilst any complete adult meal could be eaten and at least three glasses of soya milk could be taken in a day together with whole bread sandwich,” Ms Elahsuv said.

Lactation is another very important period for both the mother and the baby that should not be taken lightly. Though it is not different from pregnant women, the only difference is that the lactating mother should take two additional complete meals to give her more milk for the baby.

It is also important for the lactating mother to engage in light exercises such as walking in the morning and having adequate rest during the day. She should as much as possible drink enough water, about 10 glasses in a day.

Regenerative diet promotes the use of plant-based foods and is not processed. These include a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grain cereals (brown rice) and natural food supplements such as parsley, brewer’s yeast, soy and soy products, wheat germ, molasses and many others.

As much as we need healthy children to lead the nation in the future we also need our pregnant women to also eat healthy diets to ensure their good health as well their unborn babies.

Ghana has in abundance some of the nutritional required foods like the legumes, fruits and vegetables which are cheap in their season.

It is sad to see vegetables and fruits in the markets rotting away in their season.To ensure a healthy mother, healthy baby and a healthy nation, we need to change our lifestyles and adopt a healthy dietary pattern. Husbands should help their pregnant wives to ensure that they have healthy diets for themselves as well as the entire family. See complete article: Healthy diet in pregnancy and lactation non negotiable - Feature

D.C. Brotherhood Brunch is Extraordinary

Enjoy a Delicious and Healthy Brunch at the Everlasting Life Health Complex!
KNN-D.C.

Our hearty breakfast includes delicious scrambled tofu flavored with peppers, onions, and zesty herbs and spices, tasty vegan "sausage", fresh organic steamed broccoli, organic corn grits, orange juice, delicious waffles and mouth watering pancakes made with whole wheat unbleached flour and soy milk (no eggs), served with 100% real Maple syrup.

Brunch is also served each Sunday at the Soul Vegetarian Restaurant on Georgia Ave. in Washington DC - across from Howard University. Note that the menu selections and pricing at that location are not identical to those at our Everlasting Life location in MD.

Served from 11:00 am Until 3:00 pm Every Sunday!
9185 Central Avenue, Capitol Heights MD - exit 15b off the Capitol Beltway

If you are in the D.C. area call: (301) 324-6900

Sunday Brunch

Strawberry Waffle

Tropical Waffle

Chocolate Waffle

Healthy Diets, Not Standard-American Diet Prevent Disease

Dr. Baruch

Many Americans assume that the United States is the world's healthiest nation. Unfortunately, statistics show that we are not as healthy as we may think. We do enjoy one of the highest standards of living in the world, with extraordinary emergency medical technology and trauma care.The average American has first-class access to emergency health care, but this fact doesn't make us healthy. When we evaluate our national lifestyle as one of healthy living we get a different picture.

Poor Health At Best, Disaster At Worst!

The Standard-American diet typically might include a doughnut or muffin with coffee and orange juice for breakfast followed by a mid-morning bagel with cream cheese. Lunch would likely be a turkey sandwich with some chips and a soft drink-or a hefty fast-food burger with extra cheese, a large order of french fries, and a "super-sized" soft drink. The afternoon hours would feature an "energy-boosting" candy bar from a vending machine with another softdrink. Dinner promises a meat-and-potatoes entree with a roll and margarine, some green beans for the health-conscious, and some ice cream for desert. This diet amounts to a prescription for poor health at best and disaster at worst. Virtually any departure from this diet will make you feel better. There is very good reason that the Standard-American-Diet is referred to by its acronym-SAD!

Ancestors Healthy Diet

Just one hundred years ago or less, the Standard-American Diet was dramatically different from what we eat today. Widespread corporate"mono-agriculture" with concentration on single crop specialties and chemical fertilizers and pesticides was unheard of then. The typical Standard-American-Diet consisted mostly of fruits, vegetables, wild grain and seeds, fish, raw unpasteurized dairy products, and meat from wild animals. Our ancestors consumed 30 to 65 percent of their daily calories (and up to 100 grams of fiber a day) from a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. That is why, long before the discovery of vitamins, people who had access to healthy foods lived extremely long lives without vitamin deficiencies or major illnesses. This diet protected our ancestors against diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.

Laws of Diet-Nutrition

Many who violate the laws of diet-nutrition are ignorant of the relation of the laws of living (eating, drinking, and working) to their health. If then we would resort to simple means, and follow the simple laws of health that we have been neglecting-proper diet, use of pure water, fresh air, sunshine, rest, and nature's remedies, herbs, etc., nature would restore the body to its original health. The Standard-AmericanDiet would be sad no more.

If we cared about living healthy lives, instead we would choose healthy eating plans, like those espoused by Dr. Baruch.

Check out these videos for more information on the price we payfor not challenging what we are being fed: http://drbaruch.wholefoodfarmacy.com/2005/video_library.asp?mv=getfat.flv

Louis Farrakhan addresses tens of thousands at Saviours' Day in Detroit

Speech billed as his last major public address
by Rachel Martin -NPR News

In a speech billed as his last major public address, Minister Louis Farrakhan, ailing leader of the Nation of Islam, lambasted the Bush administration's foreign policy.

Farrakhan was speaking Sunday night to tens of thousands of Nation of Islam members in Detroit, where the movement began.

Farrakhan recently underwent surgery for complications from prostate cancer. And even though many within the Nation were hesitant to call this a good-bye speech, Farrakhan himself, his voice quivering, said it was just that.

"My time is up. The final call can't last forever."

That's a difficult message for some loyal followers to hear. Minister Jeffrey Muhammad has been a member of the Nation for 17 years and works in the group's Chicago offices. For him, and many people at the speech, Farrakhan represents much more than a spiritual leader.

See related articles:

Farrakhan Delivers Final Major Speech

Farewell appearance for Farrakhan

In possible farewell, Farrakhan calls for unity at Ford Field

Virginia Lawmakers Pass Slavery Apology

The resolution was introduced as Virginia begins its celebration of the 400th anniversary of Jamestown
By LARRY O'DELL - AP

RICHMOND, Va. (Feb. 24) - Meeting on the grounds of the former Confederate Capitol, the Virginia General Assembly voted unanimously Saturday to express "profound regret" for the state's role in slavery.

Sponsors of the resolution say they know of no other state that has apologized for slavery, although Missouri lawmakers are considering such a measure. The resolution does not carry the weight of law but sends an important symbolic message, supporters said.

The measure also expressed regret for "the exploitation of Native Americans."

The resolution was introduced as Virginia begins its celebration of the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, where the first Africans arrived in 1619. Richmond, home to a popular boulevard lined with statues of Confederate heroes, later became another point of arrival for Africans and a slave-trade hub. See: See What Lawmakers Regret

Cloned beef burgers on the menu

A Pennsylvania company may be serving a taste of the future at regular Friday lunches featuring meat from cloned cows.
By BusinessWeek-MSN Money

Shirley Trimmer knows her hamburgers. She prepares them with a handful of bread cubes, a little egg, chopped onions and just the right sprinkling of salt and pepper. Trimmer recently served burgers for a lunch meeting of the seven-member team that makes up the biotech company Cyagra, based in Elizabethtown, Pa.

But something was different about these hamburgers: They were made from the meat of cloned cows. Every Friday for the past year or so, Cyagra employees have been eating their way through the thousands of pounds of beef left over from the 11 clones that the company had raised and slaughtered for a cloned-meat study.

"We started with the steaks, which we grilled all summer long, and now we have hamburger meat left over," Trimmer says. Steve Mower, the company's director of marketing, says, "She cooks (the burgers) just right. They're delicious."

Like it or not, Trimmer and her colleagues may be getting a taste of the future. On Dec. 28, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an 800-page report that concluded meat and milk from clones are safe for consumption. The FDA has asked for public comment on the issue over the next couple of months, but it appears likely to give final approval for food from cloned animals.

"It's not a big deal," Mower says. "I've eaten cloned beef for a year and a half. It's scientifically proven to be safe." See: Cloned-beef burgers may head onto the menu

Health For All - The Dimona Community

A Reality Or A Mirage?
By Dr George Amofah
Director Public Health, Ghana Health Service

Imagine a community of about 3500 people composed of women, men and children of various age groups. Imagine that for almost 40 long years no one in the community has died of any natural medical condition inspite of the fact that women are giving birth five or more times in their lifespan. And not only that, sickness of any type (including the myriad of non-communicable diseases) is so unusual that it becomes a major surprise when it occurs rather than an expectation.

Yes, you will not be wrong to imagine that you are in a dreamland or probably in heaven! But the fact of the matter is that the scenario depicted above is a reality happening right before our eyes in a community of African Hebrews Israelites in the village of DIMONA in the southern part of Israel. This community does not only believe that it is possible to be healthy, but actually they are living what they believe and reaping the benefits thereof. Against the backdrop that in this modern world where sickness is not only expected but, as someone rightly said, “we have all been programmed to accept sickness as inevitable and eagerly and helplessly awaited for!” what is happening there is almost miraculous.

Health for All
Come to think of it, the fact that people believe that it is possible to be healthy is not really strange because that is what the international community has since 1977 proclaimed in the famous vision of “Health for All by year 2000”. In 1977, health was defined as “a State of Physical, Social and Mental WELL BEING, and not merely the absence of disease nor infirmity”. In 1978 the international community, at the Alma Ata conference, formulated the Primary Health Care (PHC) concept to guide all of us to achieve this vision of Health for All.

Since then, and even before that in Ghana, the principles and concepts envisioned in PHC have guided public health practice in Ghana and elsewhere although with minimal degree of success. Twenty eight years after, we are still saddled with all types of diseases (though major progress has been made in various preventable childhood diseases). Under 5 Mortality, Infant Mortality and Maternal Mortality rates are still very high in developing countries, sanitation - related diseases are on the increase and, unfortunately, non-communicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and cancers are on the rise.

A closer look at what is contributing to the success story in DIMONA reveals that largely it is the same guiding principles envisaged under PHC that are shaping their lives, in addition to Biblical principles as enshrined in the first five books of the Old Testament. The difference largely is that they not only believe in those principles but are actually living them and setting up systems to support their lifestyles and beliefs. The difference is there for all to see.

PHC Principles and Concepts
What were the PHC principles and concepts? The key ones, among others, are:
1. Focus on promotion of health and prevention of diseases
2. Community participation
3. Inter-sectoral collaboration
4. Equity
5. Appropriate technology and self-reliance

Promotion of health encompasses all interventions and actions designed to make people healthy and stay healthy. These may include proper dietary practices, exercises, mental harmony and adequate rest and recreation. Prevention of diseases includes immunization, good environmental practices and personal hygiene, and avoidance of tobacco and alcohol. Community Participation envisages a group of people in a defined area with a common vision, each being the others keeper and all working together to achieve the shared vision.

Inter-sectoral collaboration recognizes that individuals and institutions have their own individual and corporate strengths and advantages and no single individual or institution has all the knowledge, skills and resources to achieve the common goal or vision. There is therefore the need for inter-dependence and due recognition of the contribution of all, no matter how small it may appear. Appropriate technology is based on the fact that simple things can work and one does not have to wait for complex technologies in order to succeed. More often than not what is workable locally may be sufficient for the task ahead if only the necessary information and skills are provided as part of capacity building. Equity is based on justice, fair play, solidarity, and respect for human rights.

The Dimona Community
The DIMONA community has literally established systems to actualize these principles and they are practically attempting to live them and the results are almost miraculous. After closely observing that community, as far as I can deduce, their success stems from the fact that from the womb through nursery, adolescence and adulthood, everyone in the community has the shared vision of healthy living. Messages are deliberately designed all the time to positively affirm the vision that it is possible to be healthy and stay healthy. In addition, as someone once said, “we are what we eat” and the community takes very seriously what they eat, how and when to eat and drink. Through its regenerative nutrition programme the community encourages eating mostly plant-based diet with no artificial additives, with plenty of vegetables, fruits and water. They also believe in elimination of waste through various measures including regular colonic cleansing with pure water.

Through its healthy lifestyle programme, individuals are encouraged to exercise and rest regularly, positively affirm and encourage each other and minimize all forms of stress, especially stress with respect to inter-personal relationship. They focus a lot on clean environment and personal hygiene and inculcate these values in their children right from birth. The community’s support systems are designed to facilitate the actualization in their lives of the principles of PHC of equity, community participation and inter-sectoral collaboration. Every person who is employed (by the community or outside) contributes a proportion of his/her income (depending on the means) into a common fund for a social welfare scheme. Everyone has to find a defined period to offer free service to the community in the spirit of solidarity.

I can go on and on. One need not accept all what they believe or practice (and certainly I do not accept all their religious beliefs, interpretations and practices) but certainly any unbiased student of public health will recognize that something very interesting and positive is happening in that community. The people are very healthy and enjoy living it - something that has eluded most people especially in the developing world. Not surprisingly, their basket ball team made up of 50 year olds and above won the 2006 national basketball tournament championship in Israel and the team, I am told, is to represent Israel in the European championship in 2007!

We have a lot to learn from the DIMONA community. There are social, cultural and religious differences which cannot be wished away. These differences should guide us in modifying what they practice to suit our environment. As the Honourable Minister of Health keeps on saying there is the need for a paradigm shift - a shift back to the basis of life, the positive things in how our fore fathers lived and ate and actualizing the guiding principles of PHC. This paradigm forms the basis of the new health policy and a Regenerative Health and Nutrition project about to be launched and implemented countrywide.

There is obviously a need for a paradigm shift to promotion of holistic health, healthy lifestyles, salubrious environment and shared vision of health for all. The alternative, unfortunately, is worsening mortality and morbidity statistics and a saddling with increasing prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, cancers, and dependence on drugs!

Health for All is a reality not a dream or a mirage. The international community in 1977 believed it was possible to achieve it by 2000. The DIMONA community has demonstrated that it is not only possible but a reality. They have shown us the way to be healthy and stay healthy. Let us live to be healthy and be healthy to live.

Yah Khai!!!

Now Available-All Natural African Liquid Black Soap

Paradise Fresh Body Wash takes your skin into Paradise
KNN Advertising Dept.

Paradise Fresh Body Wash is formulated with natural moisturizer, herbal extracts, neem oil, coconut oil, shea-butter, and other essential ingredients from Africa. While some other body washes contain lots of thick and heavy moisturizer. Paradise Fresh moisturizer absorbs quickly and easily leaving your skin soft, and beautifully clean. Available in 8oz bottles @ $10.00 per bottle or buy the case at 12 bottles for $100.00 which includes shipping & handling.

Take your body to Paradise and feel the difference, you'll be glad you did. Place your order today @ 216-255-6759 or e-mail: paradisefreshbodywash@yahoo.com

The fist five people to respond to this Ad will receive a free sample of Paradise Fresh Body Wash.

Take a step into Paradise - you'll be glad you did !!

Moving away from cash - is the dollar bill dead?

New $1 coin the first to feature a president - Will dollar with Washington's image find more success than other versions?
Associated Press

WASHINGTON - George Washington’s birthday celebration will have a golden tinge this year. Millions of new gold-colored dollar coins bearing the first president’s likeness are being introduced in time for the festivities. The question is whether people will reject them as they did the two previous $1 coins.

The new $1 coins, the first in a series featuring four presidents a year, were to go into circulation on Thursday, just before next week’s President’s Day celebrations.So far the Federal Reserve, the Mint’s distribution agent, has placed orders for 300 million of the Washington coins. Many have already been delivered to commercial banks under orders not to begin selling them to customers until Thursday. “For the vast majority of Americans, they will be able to get the new dollar coin on the day that we issue it,” Mint Director Edmund C. Moy said in an interview with The Associated Press.

“I don’t know of any country that has successfully introduced the equivalent of a dollar coin without getting rid of the corresponding paper unit,” said Douglas Mudd, the author of a new book on the history of money, “All the Money in the World.” “If the new one-dollar coins are going to win, then one-dollar bills will have to lose,” said Jeff C. Garrett, president of the Professional Numismatists Guild. See: See the brand-new $1 coin

Minister leads chiefs to Israel

The Minister of Chieftaincy and Culture, S.K. Boafo and African Chiefs visit the African-Hebrew village in Dimona
Ghana News

The Minister of Chieftaincy and Culture, S.K. Boafo, is leading a delegation of chiefs to Israel where they will visit the African village in Dimona.

A statement issued in Accra said the nine-day visit will afford the delegation the opportunity to interact with officials of Dr Martin Luther King Jr SCLC/Ben Ammi Centre for new humanity, which is a conflict resolution centre with a string of achievements in the area of social, moral, cultural and intellectual development.

The delegation will also visit places of historical and Biblical interests and interact with politicians and the business community. Among those on the delegation are Daasebre Dr. Amankona Diawuo II, Berekumhene, Nii Odai Ayiku IV, Nungua mantse, Oseadeeyo Ameyaw IV, Techimanhene and Togbui Duklui Attipoe V and Mr Napoleon Agboada, representatives of the Anlo Traditional Council.