“Some experts worry that, if the country went to war, many reserve units might be unable to deploy. A U.S. official who works on these issues put it simply: ‘We can’t get enough people.’”

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Human trafficking is humanity’s worst atrocity. It is an activity that is illegal worldwide where humans are frequently trafficked for sexual slavery. Every 30 seconds a person is forced into human trafficking! Eighty percent of these cases are girls and women. Human trafficking is a crime that generates billions of dollars worldwide and much of that money is generated in the United States. The numbers are chronically underreported.

In 2022, Ohio was the fifth state with the most victims of human trafficking. In Columbus, human trafficking has to do with the cartel, sometimes with the police, and many times with drug dealers. The victims are of different races and are violated, some murdered and thrown like garbage in alleys and placed in abandoned buildings. We have a huge humanitarian crisis in the capital of Ohio.

This article first appeared on the Buckeye Flame

The staff of The Buckeye Flame arrived at one of Ohio’s largest Pride celebrations in 2024 to find our table sandwiched between a cellphone company and a grocery-store chain. 

To our left, the cellphone company was giving out gift cards and T-shirts. To our right, the grocery store chain was giving out high-quality tote bags and industrial strength carabiners. The enthusiastic staffers, with Chappell Roan blaring behind them, beckoned Pride-goers over to their tables to grab their free stuff.

All throughout the day, people would come to our table straight from one of our corporate neighbors, totes open and at the ready.

“What do you have?” people would demand, truly without salutation or preamble. 

Our retorts of, “The truth!” or “Queer journalism!” never went over well. 

So we would point to the fishbowl of rubber bracelets, people would take one and immediately walk off to the next stop on their gay trick-or-treating experience. 

Wednesday, February 5, noon-8pm
Ohio Statehouse, 1 Capitol square, Columbus
Join a decentralized self-organized community for a peaceful protest. 

Also, there is also a planned meet up at State and Third St. at 11:45 with local activist Meryl Neiman. Meryl is planning to take a group to march down to Bernie Moreno's office in the federal building and have folks go up to talk to staff. Please join her! Showing up at his office is super important.

I recently heard an interview on OnPoint Radio with Jane Clayson. The interview
subject was an internist named Stuart B. Mushlin. He had practiced in the Boston area
for 40 years and had recently written a book describing 20 difficult to diagnose patients
that he had encountered during his career. The book was titled “Playing the Ponies and
Other Medical Mysteries Solved”.

In the interview, Dr Mushlin expressed many of the same concerns that I have had with
the Big Business of medicine, and so I wrote the following letter to him:

Dear Dr Mushlin: Thank you for writing the book and also for taking the time to reveal
some unwelcome truths about the sad status of America’s healthcare system.