Global

Will the Administration Look at These NIH Agencies?

As industry conflicts of interest at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) come into the spotlight, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) merit special concern.

National Institute on Drug Abuse

While alcoholics or addicts now have “use disorders,” (and people aren’t disabled they have disabilities) NIDA retains the archaic and judgmental “abuse” in its name as in National Institute on Drug Abuse. What? Is this 1960?

Its current landing page says, “There is little scientific evidence to support the stereotype that people who return to use after a period of abstinence inevitably do so at the same intensity” and proposes using less drugs or alcohol as an addiction solution!

Worsening alcoholism or addiction after a relapse is a stereotype? Abstinence can be replaced by “cutting down”?

Ghazala bent Ammar: The Algerian heroine who invented creative ways to defend women's honor

Look closely at this picture and examine it closely. It was taken by a French photographer and now it is displayed at the Algerian National Museum. This article is meant to shine a light on this Algerian heroine Ghazala bent Ammar who invented creative ways to defend her honor as well as women's honor in Algeria.  The name Ghazala translates to "gazelle" in English. The gazelle is a creature known for its elegance and grace, and it symbolizes beauty, agility and swiftness. Bent translates into daughter and Ammar is her father's name. The French photographer who took this memorable picture wrote in his memoirs: "I have never been more scared in my life than when I took this picture of this woman in the Aures." The subject of the picture is a great Arab Algerian woman, the martyr Ghazala Bent Ammar from Taz in the Tébessa province, from the beloved country of one million martyrs, Algeria.  I should note here that France occupied Algeria for 132 years, from 1830 to 1962. I was 11 years old when Algeria gained its independence from France on July 3, 1962.

Till All the Foe Is Vanquished

I’ve been away from “the world” for a while – by which I mean, away from home and my life of computer-focused hermitude.

As I wait for round 2 of my cataract surgery (my right eye), I remain with my loving family in Appleton, Wisconsin. Yeah, I have my computer with me, but hardly have the wherewithal to stay intensely focused on global events, beyond “Oh my6 God, we’re bombing Iran now?” and masked ICE gunmen are rounding up “illegals” all across the country.

As I sit on the couch, presumably recovering from my left-eye surgery, I want to scream and shove all this obnoxious news into a corner of my mind, where I can absorb it slowly, in a context of hope/ Yeah, we will move beyond all this. The media may not report on it, but humanity is evolving. Right?

'New Middle East': This is Netanyahu's Real Goal in the Region

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu persistently declares his ambition to "change the face of the Middle East". Yet, his repeated assertions seem to clash with the unfolding reality on the ground.

 Netanyahu's opportunistic relationship with language is now proving detrimental to his country. The Israeli leader undoubtedly grasps fundamental marketing principles, particularly the power of strong branding and consistent messaging. However, for any product to succeed over time, clever branding alone is insufficient; the product itself must live up to at least a minimum degree of expectation.

 Netanyahu's "product," however, has proven utterly defective, yet the 75-year-old Israeli Prime Minister stubbornly refuses to abandon his outdated marketing techniques.

 But what exactly is Netanyahu selling?

Warnings Of A Possible Coup

BANGKOK, Thailand -- Thailand's embarrassed and disgraced Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra resisted demands on June 25 that she resign, shrugging off warnings by politicians, analysts and the media of a possible military coup after she criticized a Royal Thai Army commander during a leaked phone call with Cambodia's de facto leader Hun Sen.

"Analysts said another coup would create more problems than it would solve. It would be a disaster for the country, which has still not fully recovered from the consequences of the previous coup in 2014," the conservative Bangkok Post warned in a June 20 editorial.

"Despite assurances from the army chief about protecting democracy, concerns are mounting over a possible military intervention," Bloomberg news reported on June 20.

Ms. Paetongtarn faces a no confidence vote in parliament on July 3, and a hearing at the Constitutional Court on July 8 inquiring into her leaked conversation with Hun Sen.

Either action could end her prime ministry.

Subscribe to Global