Two graduate students say they think they’ve solved a public health riddle that has stumped researchers over the years–why Hispanic people in America tend to live longer their white neighbors, even though they are, on average, poorer and less educated. Income and education are directly correlated to longevity, so this exception has had scientists scratching
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Sceptics say move to group cannabis containing more than 15% THC with cocaine and ecstasy will be hard to enforce The Dutch government has said it will move to classify high-potency cannabis alongside hard drugs such as cocaine and ecstasy, the latest step in the country’s ongoing reversal of its liberal policies. The decision means most of the cannabis now sold in Dutch coffee shops would have to be replaced by milder variants. But sceptics said the move would be difficult to enforce, and that it could simply lead many users to smoke more of the less potent weed. Possession of cannabis is technically illegal in the Netherlands, but police do not prosecute people for possession of small amounts, and it is sold openly in designated cafes. Growers are routinely prosecuted if caught. Maxime Verhagen, the economic affairs minister, said cannabis containing more than 15% of its main active chemical, THC, is so much stronger than what was common a generation ago that it should be considered a different drug entirely. The high potency cannabis has “played a role in increasing public health damage”, he said at a press conference in The Hague. The cabinet has not said when it will begin enforcing the rule. Jeffrey Parsons, a psychologist at Hunter College in New York, who studies addiction, said the policy may not have the benefits the government is hoping for. “If it encourages smoking an increased amount of low-concentration THC weed, it is likely to actually cause more harm than good,” he said, citing the potential lung damage and cancer-causing effects of extra inhalation. The Dutch justice ministry said it was up to cafes to regulate their own products and police will seize random samples for testing. But Gerrit-Jan ten Bloomendal, spokesman for the Platform of Cannabis Businesses in the Netherlands, said implementing the plan would be difficult “if not impossible”. “How are we going to know whether a given batch exceeds 15% THC? For that matter, how would health inspectors know?” he said. He predicted a black market will develop for highly potent cannabis. The ongoing Dutch crackdown on cannabis is part of a decade-long rethink of liberalism in general that has seen a third of the windows in Amsterdam’s red light district closed and led the Netherlands to adopt some of the toughest immigration rules in Europe. The number of licensed coffee houses has been reduced, and earlier this year the government announced plans to ban tourists from buying cannabis. That has been resisted by the city of Amsterdam, where the cafes selling cannabis are a major tourist draw. Netherlands Drugs Europe guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Chilean girls stage ‘occupation’ of their own school in education rights protest
October 7, 2011 No Comment
For five months, girls demanding free university education for all have defied police to occupy their state school Sleeping on a tiled classroom floor, sharing cigarettes and always on the lookout for police raids, the students of Carmela Carvajal primary and secondary school are living a revolution. It began early one morning in May, when dozens of teenage girls emerged from the predawn darkness and scaled the spiked iron fence around Chile’s most prestigious girl’s school. They used classroom chairs to barricade themselves inside and settled in. Five months later, the occupation shows no signs of dying and the students are still fighting for their goal: free university education for all. A tour of the school is a trip into the wired reality of a generation that boasts the communication tools that feisty young rebels of history never dreamed of. When police forces move closer, the students use restricted Facebook chat sessions to mobilise. Within minutes, they are able to rally support groups from other public schools in the neighbourhood. “Our lawyer lives over there,” said Angelica Alvarez, 14, as she pointed to a cluster of nearby homes. “If
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Nigel Farage recounted deportation tale, almost word for word, to rail enthusiasts back in July, recording suggests The home secretary Theresa May’s claim that a Bolivian student was saved from deportation by the existence of a pet cat appears to have been lifted almost word for word from the leader of the UK Independence party. In her speech to the Tory conference May said the courts, citing the Human Rights Act, had declared the man should not be deported because he would be separated from his cat. Her remarks led to a spat with the justice secretary, Kenneth Clarke, who accused her of giving a “laughable, childlike” example to criticise the act. Behind the row is a deeper political dispute over whether Britain should ditch the act. In July, Ukip’s leader, Nigel Farage, told a 200-strong audience at the Eastleigh Railway Institute in Hampshire how a court had decided that the man “should not be deported because – and I really am not making this up – he had a pet cat”. A tape recording of his remarks is on the website of the Eastleigh News. In Manchester this week May matched Farage not just in her phrasing but in her timing when talking about the same immigrant, who she said “cannot be deported because – and I am not making this up – he had a pet cat”. Farage told the Guardian: “I have become increasingly used to the Tory party mimicking our policies and phrases in a desperate effort to pretend to their members they are still Eurosceptic. They don’t mean it. We are one of those parties that still believe in holding public meetings, and asking questions from the public. The SWP [Socialist Workers party] turn up, so obviously does Theresa May’s speech writers. “Maybe this will be the beginning of a trend? Flat taxes, cutting foreign aid, a referendum on Europe, grammar schools. Who knows?” One government member said: “Not only has Ms May been caught out making up stories about the Human Rights Act for cheap laughs, she has been plagiarising her clap lines from the UK Independence party.” The immigrant had avoided deportation after it was ruled that it would breach his right to a family life. In Eastleigh, Farage claimed the incident had occurred a few weeks ago and that the man in question was Peruvian – when he was in fact Bolivian. He also claimed inaccurately that the man had a conviction for manslaughter. Apart from overstaying his visa, he was a law-abiding citizen. Both politicians inaccurately claimed the man had been granted leave to stay under the Human Rights Act when it was because the tribunal had previously failed to treat his partner as a spouse, which would accord a right of residence. David Cameron in 2006 earned the ire of Ukip by describing them as “fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists, mostly”. Farage may not have spotted his role as May’s speech writer since he has been obsessing about the state of the euro, and the way in which George Osborne, the “British chancellor is telling the rest of Europe it must abandon democracy. It’s appalling.” Theresa May UK Independence party (Ukip) Conservative conference 2011 Conservative conference Conservatives Immigration and asylum Human Rights Act Human rights Nigel Farage Patrick Wintour guardian.co.uk
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Health Protection Agency investigates cluster of legionnaires’ cases among people who have been to the Greek island A cluster of cases of legionnaires’ disease in people who have been to Corfu is being investigated by the Health Protection Agency (HPA). The organisation said it was aware of nine cases of the disease in people between the ages of 39 and 79 who had travelled to different areas of the Greek island since August. The HPA is working with colleagues in the UK, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), and Greek public health authorities to try to find the possible source or sources. They said although cases all had a history of recent travel to Corfu, a UK source of infection could not be ruled out. As a precaution, it will investigate possible UK sources, as well as working with Greek authorities to look at possible sources in Corfu. The HPA is advising people going on holiday to the island to be aware of signs and symptoms of legionnaires’. The disease, caused by the Legionella bacterium, can lead to severe pneumonia. It can survive in water, and may be spread through exposure to water droplets from cooling systems, shower heads and taps, but cannot be spread from person to person. Symptoms can start between two and 14 days after exposure to a source, often with an initial flu-like illness leading to pneumonia. Legionnaires’ disease is uncommon in the UK, but can lead to complications and can be fatal, the HPA said. Early antibiotic treatment is important. Prof Nick Phin, head of the HPA’s legionnaires’ department, said: “We are concerned that UK residents travelling to Corfu should be aware of this potential risk. However, we are not suggesting that people change their holiday plans. “Legionnaires’ disease is very rare and cannot be spread from person to person so the risk is low. “We are continuing our investigations so that we can provide the best advice for travellers and minimise the risk of further cases. “We will also assist the Greek public health authorities in their investigations into a possible source or sources within Corfu. “Sometimes a source for the infection is never found, because the bacteria can live in a very wide variety of types of water supply.” The HPA is also briefing GPs asking them to be alert to people returning from Corfu suffering relevant symptoms. The organisation is also working with the Foreign Office and the Federation of Tour Operators to make sure travel agencies are aware of the potential risk. Health Greece Infectious diseases Europe guardian.co.uk
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Health Protection Agency investigates cluster of legionnaires’ cases among people who have been to the Greek island A cluster of cases of legionnaires’ disease in people who have been to Corfu is being investigated by the Health Protection Agency (HPA). The organisation said it was aware of nine cases of the disease in people between the ages of 39 and 79 who had travelled to different areas of the Greek island since August. The HPA is working with colleagues in the UK, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), and Greek public health authorities to try to find the possible source or sources. They said although cases all had a history of recent travel to Corfu, a UK source of infection could not be ruled out. As a precaution, it will investigate possible UK sources, as well as working with Greek authorities to look at possible sources in Corfu. The HPA is advising people going on holiday to the island to be aware of signs and symptoms of legionnaires’. The disease, caused by the Legionella bacterium, can lead to severe pneumonia. It can survive in water, and may be spread through exposure to water droplets from cooling systems, shower heads and taps, but cannot be spread from person to person. Symptoms can start between two and 14 days after exposure to a source, often with an initial flu-like illness leading to pneumonia. Legionnaires’ disease is uncommon in the UK, but can lead to complications and can be fatal, the HPA said. Early antibiotic treatment is important. Prof Nick Phin, head of the HPA’s legionnaires’ department, said: “We are concerned that UK residents travelling to Corfu should be aware of this potential risk. However, we are not suggesting that people change their holiday plans. “Legionnaires’ disease is very rare and cannot be spread from person to person so the risk is low. “We are continuing our investigations so that we can provide the best advice for travellers and minimise the risk of further cases. “We will also assist the Greek public health authorities in their investigations into a possible source or sources within Corfu. “Sometimes a source for the infection is never found, because the bacteria can live in a very wide variety of types of water supply.” The HPA is also briefing GPs asking them to be alert to people returning from Corfu suffering relevant symptoms. The organisation is also working with the Foreign Office and the Federation of Tour Operators to make sure travel agencies are aware of the potential risk. Health Greece Infectious diseases Europe guardian.co.uk
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