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Canada’s Environmental Irresponsibility

2011/12/15 By Leave a Comment

I’m embarrassed by Canada’s environmental irresponsibility and specifically by Canada’s current conservative governance. The most recent embarrassment is Canada’s withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol; making Canada the first country in the world to abandon this historic, international, environmental treaty on climate change.

Abandoning Kyoto was irresponsible. It’s also humiliating, Canada is better than this.

Fact: Over sixty percent of Canadian voters, who cast ballots in the last federal election, did not vote for the Conservative Party, the political party that just humiliated most Canadians.

Q: How could the Harper Government back out of a treaty that Canada ratified years ago? Where was the debate? Why wasn’t this momentous decision brought to a vote?

Some time ago, I laughed in agreement when Brian Topp wrote, "Unfortunately, the angry old uncles are now in charge of the government of Canada…" If I could edit that article for The Globe and Mail, today, I’d add a couple of words, "Unfortunately, the angry, arrogant, greedy, irresponsible, old uncles are now in charge of the government of Canada."

"Unfortunately, the angry old uncles are now in charge
of the government of Canada"

Q: What can we do?
A: Make sure that your voice is heard.

Frustrated Canadians, might want to consider:

  1. electing more women
  2. encouraging the Green Party and the Liberal Party to merge
  3. electing Elizabeth May to lead the ‘New Green Party’.

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Natural Gas Fracking

2011/09/22 By Leave a Comment

What is natural gas fracking or fracking for natural gas? Fracking is a, commonly used, short way of saying or writing hydraulic fracturing. Wikipedia‘s descriptive first sentence is:

Hydraulic fracturing, often called fracking, fracing or hydrofracking, is the process of initiating and subsequently propagating a fracture in a rock layer, by means of a pressurized fluid, in order to release petroleum, natural gas, coal seam gas, or other substances for extraction.

There’s a very stark contrast between Exxon Mobil’s commercial and the Gasland trailer:

Exxon Mobil

Gasland

>> Gasland is now on PBS

If wellness is one of your priorities, you owe it to yourself to watch Gasland.

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A Retired MD’s Observations

2010/08/31 By Leave a Comment

Doctor's Office by Norman Rockwell

Retired MD, Frank Eves’ generalized, observations about a few things noticed along the way:

  • a doctor’s humanity is often more valuable than his/her education
  • humility and a sense of humour/humor are invaluable
  • listening carefully to the client/patient avoids most problems
  • it’s tough to always be on-time when you’re trying to do it right
  • most doctors are doing their best to help
  • the best family doctors have very few patients in hospital
  • most problems can be dealt with in a single visit and do not require dozens of tests and frequent follow-up visits
  • the least competent doctors attempt to garner the most attention in the ER
  • some specialists have forgotten the GP stuff
  • some surgeons really do see patients as a ‘hole’ and are most comfortable with people when they’re sedated
  • the best surgeon drove a VW Beetle
  • many internists hide when there’s a hint of something surgical
  • obstetricians work long hours and appear to function well without sleep
  • the worst gynaecologist/gynecologist drove a Cadillac
  • the nicest specialists are the paediatricians/pediatricians
  • psychiatrists have too many patients and too few friends
  • U.S. trained physicians love technology
  • British trained physicians value a good history
  • some older physicians need their patients more than their patients need them
  • recent med school graduates spend too much time studying the fee schedule
  • most clients/patients are friendly and honest
  • women are better communicators
  • when men are asked, “How can I help you?” a surprising number respond, “My wife made the appointment, I’m not sure.”
  • guys are more nervous about rectal exams than women are about internal exams. Guys like to joke, “If I feel two hands on my shoulders I’ll know it’s not your finger… “ they assume the doctor has never heard this ubiquitous humour/humor
  • the richest man wore a Timex
  • the most obnoxious guy wore a gold Rolex with a diamond bezel.

It was very rewarding to quietly help someone without turning it into a major production.

My last comment flys in the face of the advice I once received. A retiring doc suggested I always say “It’s the worst case I’ve ever seen.” that way, if they get better, you’re a hero. Of course that same character was infamous for billing ‘no-shows’ with a diagnosis of ‘amnesia.’ :)

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Antioxidants – An Everyday Battle for Life

2010/02/03 By

Antioxidants – An Everyday Battle for Life
- it’s those radicals again

Free Radicals – the bad guys (mostly)

Free radicals are highly charged matter that can damage or even destroy mitochondrial DNA and cell membranes. Free radicals are usually oxygen molecules that have lost one of their electrons and therefore have what’s referred to as an unpaired electron. Atoms with unpaired electrons try to grab electrons from other atoms, thereby setting off chain reactions which cause damage.

Normal living produces many free radicals, they’re unavoidable. Free radicals are produced more often and become more active when we encounter polluted air, water and food.

When iron is exposed to free radicals, it oxidizes, we call it rust. A cut apple turns brown when it oxidizes. People age more quickly and become more susceptible to certain diseases when exposed to excessive free radicals. In recent years, free radicals have been linked to most diseases by thousands of scientific studies.

Antioxidants – the good guys (mostly)

Antioxidants help to protect your cells from the damage and aging caused by free radicals.

There are two groups of antioxidants

Primary Antioxidants – you make these guys

Primary antioxidants are your best defence, they’re about a hundred times more potent than secondary antioxidants. Primary antioxidants are produced by your body, remain in your body and protect your cells 24/7/365. Although you can consume primary antioxidants, they’re not absorbed, they’re digested. You can however consume precursors that will be absorbed and these precursors will help your body produce more primary antioxidants, resulting in a higher level; you want to keep your tank as full as possible. The best known primary antioxidants are:

  • Glutathione
  • SOD (SuperOxide Dismutase)

Secondary Antioxidants – you consume these

Most people know the ACES (Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E and Selenium) but there are many more antioxidants. Secondary antioxidants are found in food or supplements. You need them every day.

Unfortunately, in this story, sooner or, hopefully, later the bad guys win; we inevitably die. The trick is to be the very best your genetics allow you to be, for as long as possible.

To quote Gandalf, in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.”

Note: In the past decade, I’ve marketed liquid supplements from two companies. The first focused on minerals and vitamins, the second mangosteen and minerals. Both were excellent products at the time they came to market. I’ve sold thousands of bottles.

The good:
- liquids are very well absorbed

The bad:
- the super-fruit hype and associated nonsense

I’ve recently discovered a new liquid antioxidant that does everything right. It focuses on:

  • both primary and secondary antioxidants
  • nutrients that promote our powerful primary antioxidants
  • secondary antioxidants from multiple sources
  • herbal adaptogens

>> click here to discover XYNGULAR Super Fruit Global Blend

Link deactivated

Update 20111103: I’m no longer involved with network marketing.

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Water – Don’t Take Yours for Granted

2009/12/20 By

Image of earth from space

Where I live, water is abundant, but did you know that one in eight people worldwide don’t have access to clean water?

“Most of us have never really been thirsty. We’ve never had to leave our houses and walk 5 miles to fetch water. We simply turn on the tap, and water comes out. Clean. Yet there are a billion people on the planet who don’t have clean water. It’s hard to imagine what a billion people looks like really, but one in eight might be easier. One in eight people in our world don’t have access to the most basic of human needs. Something we can’t imagine going 12 hours without. Here, we’d like to introduce you to a few of those billion people. They are very real, and they need our help. They didn’t choose to be born into a village where the only source of water is a polluted swamp. And I didn’t choose to be born in a country where even the homeless have access to clean water and a toilet.”
– charity: water (About Us tab)

>> click here to visit charity: water’s website

Geographical water shortages aren’t the only threat to your water, I suspect that coming years will make it obvious that corporate greed is an even bigger threat.

Have you watched ‘Flow – the film?’

>> click here to watch the trailer

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ShelterBox – Shelter, Warmth, Dignity

2009/12/06 By Leave a Comment

ShelterBox - the contents of a ShelterBox

ShelterBox responds to earthquake, volcano, flood, hurricane, cyclone, tsunami or conflict by delivering boxes of aid.

Each box supplies an extended family of up to 10 people with a tent and lifesaving equipment to use while they are displaced or homeless. The contents are tailored depending on the nature and location of the disaster, with great care taken sourcing every item to ensure it is robust enough to be of lasting value.

ShelterBox was a new discovery for me, but has been the Rotary Club’s largest project since 2000 and in May 2009 ShelterBox launched its official partnership with The Scout Association.

>> click here to visit ShelterBox.org

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American Children at Risk?

2009/08/19 By

David Mitchell writes, “Seventy percent of American children are at increased risk for bone and heart disease because of low levels of vitamin D, according to a recent study published in Pediatrics.”

His article appears in AAFP (American Academy of Family Physicians) NEWS NOW.

>> click here to read the full article

>> click here to view the abstract of the original Pediatrics article

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Prostate Cancer

2007/04/28 By

If current trends continue, cancer deaths may eventually surpass deaths from cardiovascular disease.

Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer in men, affecting approximately one in every forty men. Unfortunately, nearly 250,000 men in the US will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year. Fortunately, when diagnosed early, prostate cancer has a cure rate of over 90%. Currently, early detection relies on rectal examination and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing.

There’s a new prostate cancer screening test on the horizon. Professor Robert Getzenberg, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, evaluated a new test that detects a recently discovered blood protein, ProstaMark® EPCA-2 (Early Prostate Cancer Antigen)*. Dr. Getzenberg found that found that EPCA-2 was more accurate detecting prostate cancer than the standard PSA test.

Comparison:
- elevated PSA level – 20% have prostate cancer
- normal PSA level – 15% have prostate cancer

- Positive EPCA-2 – 94% have prostate cancer
- Negative EPCA-2 – 3% have prostate cancer

Early diagnosis is good, but…

“If there was a race between treatment and prevention, treatment would always finish dead last.”
– Frank W. Eves MD

Did you know that prostate cancer prevalence varies widely across the world? Prostate cancer is least common in Asia and most common in the United States, leading many experts to conclude that diet plays a significant role. Consider downloading the ‘Nutrition and Prostate Cancer Guide’ from the Prostate Cancer Foundation’s Web Site.

* Onconome, Inc.

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Dyson vs Golden Retriever

2006/03/28 By

We are the proud owners of a delightful golden retriever; she is very loving, always at the door to greet us when we arrive home. She is also an incredibly efficient hair-producing machine. Her hair is always everywhere, I’m certain her allergy inducing dander is too. We’ve been using an old TriStar Cyclonic vacuum and a much newer Miele Platinum canister vacuum; they’re both good vacuums. I recently succumbed to Dyson’s TV advertising blitz. I purchased the original Dyson DC07 Animal. Folks this thing is really impressive, it handles our dog’s long hair and has picked up pounds of fine dust/dirt, in our carpets, that the other vacuums obviously missed. If you have a long-haired pet be sure to check out the Dyson Animal.

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Indoor Air Quality

2005/09/20 By

For the last few months, I’ve been joking with my family, telling them that I’m rapidly becoming a ‘wheezer geezer.’ Frankly, my attempted humour/humor about my frequent cough and an obvious expiratory wheeze wasn’t doing a very good job of allaying my family’s concerns. My wife and grown children were aware that my grandfather, on my mother’s side, died from complications of asthma. My wife was also aware that I had significant exposure to asbestos when I was a boy. Common sense told me that our Golden Retriever and our old house probably had something to do with my breathing difficulties, but a doctor’s imagination can be a terrible thing. I was secretly concerned and I knew that a doctor’s visit might be on the horizon. Did you know that many doctors don’t like to go to the doctor?

I decided to attempt to improve our indoor air quality before conceding that I might need an inhaler.

I purchased two gadgets manufactured by SHARP Electronics Corporation; specifically the SHARP FP-N60CX and the FP-N25CX. Bluntly stated, I’m very impressed; it’s only been a few days, my cough is disappearing and my wheeze is gone. I’m delighted with these things. They look nice, they’re quiet and, of course, best of all, they have worked magic.

If you’re concerned about your indoor air quality visit the SHARP web site and watch their movie about Plasmacluster Ion technology.

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