Obama’s Nobel Prize: Philosophical Objections

Barack Obama Peace Laureate 2009

Posted by Fenrir on Politics of Sanity

A Nobel prize is, presumably, awarded for accomplishment. It is not awarded for intentions, aspirations, or fine sentiments. I have yet to hear of a Nobel Prize in Physics being awarded to a physicist for intending to discover a universally accepted unified field theory, or of a Nobel Prize in Literature being awarded to somebody for aspiring to write a brilliant novel. I think most people would agree that a prize awarded purely on the basis of intentions or aspirations is absurd. Anyone can have fine sentiments; what’s truly admirable is having the courage to act on those sentiments, and the knowledge and skills to make them a reality.

But in awarding President Obama the Nobel Prize for Peace, the Nobel Committee has behaved no less absurdly than if they were to award me the Nobel Prize for Medicine because I gave a stirring speech about how wonderful it would be to find a cure for cancer. No speech, however well-chosen the words and however charismatic the delivery, is going to provide a cure for cancer. Likewise, while Obama may have promised a new era of “hope” and “change”, it is not at all clear nine months into his presidency that he has been able (or even willing) to deliver on any of his promises. And given that he was nominated as a potential recipient a mere two weeks into his office (nominations were due on February 1st) makes the award all the more preposterous.

Even a child is able to tell the difference between saying you are going to do something and actually doing it. But it seems the Nobel Committee, and much of the international community, have totally taken leave of their senses and forgotten this basic distinction.

This may seem like a minor issue, with all that’s going on in the world. But I think it’s symptomatic of a larger problem endemic within society — a problem where we regularly mistake words for deeds, symbols for actions, and abstractions for reality. Something to consider as the Nobel laureate for Peace plans to continue his war.

I respect and admire Obama but him getting a Nobel price at this time is quit premature, although I suspect the Nobel committee aim is to add pressure on the American president to avoid being trigger happy when dealing with international conflicts’ such the Iran one…… ama?

TIME Examines Debate Over Using Female Condom To Fight HIV/AIDS In Uganda

women incharge....

TIME examines the debate over the Ugandan government’s recent decision to use money from the U.N. Population Fund to purchase and distribute 100,000 female condoms to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. Supporters of the government’s plan say female condoms increase a woman’s ability to negotiate with her partner. “The main issue was the desire for women to be able to say, ‘OK, you’re not going to use yours, then let’s use mine,’” Serra Sippel, president of the Center for Health and Gender Equity, said.

“Many experts, however, disagree,” fearing instead, “that by offering yet another choice, the government’s move may only distract from other drug and condom programs,” the magazine writes. Also, as the article notes, the female condom, which is more expensive than the male condom, has been slow to catch on since its introduction in the 1990s.

“Uganda sees the female condom as one way to regain the success the nation had in the fight against HIV/AIDS in the 1990s. After slashing its AIDS rate from more than 20% in the late ’80s to about 6% in 2000, Uganda saw a leveling off of AIDS cases and then a slight rise,” according to the magazine.

Beginning this year, the government will distribute the condoms in two regions in Uganda and will consider extending the program with the support of donors, according to TIME. However, the magazine writes, “[m]ajor donors including PEPFAR say they are not likely to back the female condom in Uganda.” Mike Strong, coordinator for PEPFAR in Uganda, suggested the government focus on the programs already in progress rather than starting from scratch with new programs (Wadhams, 8/30).

This information was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

© Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

Should Kenya follow suit?  Does the ‘A’ in  the -ABC- approach work? How does this female condom work? There is a new Germicide/ anti-HIV gel in the market for our ladies! how does it compare to the female condom?

Ladies & Gentlemen  we need to hear form you……

Cell phone-cancer link found by Tel Aviv University scientist

(Adapted from eurekalert.org)

An Israeli scientist, Dr. Siegal Sadetzki, has found a link between cell phone usage and the development of tumors.

Dr. Sadetzki, a physician, epidemiologist and lecturer at Tel Aviv University, published the results of a study recently in the American Journal of Epidemiology, in which she and her colleagues found that heavy cell phone users were subject to a higher risk of benign and malignant tumors of the salivary gland.

Those who used a cell phone heavily on the side of the head where the tumor developed were found to have an increased risk of about 50% for developing a tumor of the main salivary gland (parotid), compared to those who did not use cell phones.

The fact that the study was done on an Israeli population is significant. Says Sadetzki, “Unlike people in other countries, Israelis were quick to adopt cell phone technology and have continued to be exceptionally heavy users. Therefore, the amount of exposure to radiofrequency radiation found in this study has been higher than in previous cell phone studies.

“This unique population has given us an indication that cell phone use is associated with cancer,” adds Sadetzki, whose study investigated nearly 500 people who had been diagnosed with benign and malignant tumors of the salivary gland.

Controlled Study Reveals Link

The study’s subjects were asked to detail their cell phone use patterns in terms of how frequently they used one, and the average length of calls. They were compared to a sample of about 1,300 healthy control subjects.

The study also found an increased risk of cancer for heavy users who lived in rural areas. Due to fewer antennas, cell phones in rural areas need to emit more radiation to communicate effectively.

Sadetzki predicts that, over time, the greatest effects will be found in heavy users and children.

While anecdotal evidence has been substantial, the consistency of the results of this study support an association between cell phone use and these tumors. The risks have been hard to prove, mainly due to the long latency period involved in cancer development, explains Sadetzki.

Keep Calling but Call Smarter

Today it is estimated that more than 90% percent of the Western world uses cell phones. As the technology becomes cheaper and more accessible, its usage by a greater number of people, including children, is bound to increase.

“While I think this technology is here to stay,” Sadetzki says, “I believe precautions should be taken in order to diminish the exposure and lower the risk for health hazards.” She recommends that people use hands-free devices at all times, and when talking, hold the phone away from one’s body. Less frequent calls, shorter in duration, should also have some preventative effect.

While she appreciates the ease of communication that cell phones allow between parents and their children, Sadetzki says that parents need to consider at what age their children start using them. Parents should be vigilant about their children’s using speakers or hands-free devices, and about limiting the number of calls and amount of time their children spend on the phone.

“Some technology that we use today carries a risk. The question is not if we use it, but how we use it,” concludes Sadetzki.

Sadetzki’s main research on this new study was carried out at the Gertner Institute for Epidemiology and Health Policy Research at the Sheba Medical Center. Her research is part of the international Interphone Study, which attempts to determine an association between cell phones and several types of brain and parotid gland tumors.

The complexities of sexual identity – The Semenya controversy

Let Her be....

(adapted from BBC Health)

It may be thought that determining if someone is a man or woman would be as simple as looking to see if they have breasts and a vagina or a penis.

But in reality it is far more complex.

Even someone’s external genitalia can be “ambiguous”. For example, the clitoris may be enlarged so that it looks like a small penis or a female’s labia may be fused, resembling a scrotum.

There are also chromosomal and hormonal variations and conditions which medics will test for.

The South African athlete will be assessed and tested by a group of doctors, including an endocrinologist, a gynaecologist, an internal medicine expert, an expert on gender and a psychologist.

They will look at her external genitalia, but they will also look at hormone levels and her chromosomal make-up.

Hormone levels

There are also particular conditions they will check for, including congenital adrenal hyperplasia.

This is a condition in which the body produces more androgen, a type of male hormone.

If a girl has it, she will usually have normal internal female reproductive organs, but may not have periods and may have a male appearance.

This, and a number of other conditions, are recognised by the IAAF as potentially giving some advantage but are accepted.

There are other conditions, including polycystic ovaries and androgen producing tumours, where a woman can have higher than normal levels of testosterone which are not thought to offer any advantage to athletes.

In addition, there is a condition called androgen insensitivity syndrome where someone may have internal and undescended testes – and high levels of testosterone – but look like a woman and have a vagina and a uterus.

Rare

Professor Adam Balen, a specialist at Leeds General Infirmary, said: “This is an extremely complicated area.

“The reality is that the difference between males and females with respect to strength is based upon hormones.

“So if you have high levels of testosterone, you are more likely to have better muscle strength.”

Such conditions are rare. Around one in 20,000 UK children is born with some kind of sexual development disorder.

However rates can vary around the world, usually because of genetic variations.

Of swines, a Flu, Politicians and a clergyman

By Luchiri Omoto

Heeee!! Heee!!

News from my rural gutter sources say that a Member of Parliament is embroiled in a tussle and war of words with a local renown Pastor. Bone of contention being the H1N1 Flu.

The Member of Parliament who has been conducting rallies sort to pacify his constituents, since rumours about the flu were spreading much faster than the disease itself.

It is reported that the MP had reassured residents they didn’t have to worry because he would take care of the ‘Swine flu;’ ridding of the flu and leaving villagers with the ‘Swine; which they could either sell for a handsome return to the butchers or rare till Xmass for a feast.

Trouble brewed when the MP accused the Clergyman of engaging in subversions that were aimed at undermining him. He accuses the Clergyman of driving hordes of Swine over a cliff and into a river.A good number being swine he’d separated from the flu.

In his defence the clergyman says he sees nothing wrong since he was doing nothing out of his jurisdiction only out of the ordinary: And that, those who sort his divine help came willingly(after a scary sermon he’d delivered Titled: Swines and Demons). He also added that the Swines were responsible for the ‘Flu’.
Quoting extensively from chapters and verses he sort to prove that it was not the first time swines were being sent over a cliff and into a river.

The clergy who is said to be eying ‘a Parliamentary’ seat has also accused the MP of being responsible for the numerous ‘other’ sanctuaries popping up all over.Splitting his ’sheep into numerous flocks’ and curtailing ‘planting of seeds’ crucial for spiritual, physical and developmental growth.

In response the MP categorically denied anything to do with such maneuvers, though he thought it appropriate that a growing population should have services ‘brought closer’to the people.

Workers ‘using swine flu to skive’

Press association

Company bosses fear that measures designed to reduce the impact of swine flu on the workplace could end up creating a “skivers’ charter”.

More than 1,000 firms have contacted one employment law service to seek advice about staff who use the pandemic to extend their summer holidays.

Employment Law Advisory Services (ELAS) says it has been inundated with inquiries from managers who claim colleagues without any signs of illness are using a self-diagnosis website and causing more disruption to the workplace than the flu itself.

Peter Mooney, ELAS’s head of consultancy, said his firm began receiving calls from angry managers at the end of last month.

He said: “Managers feel that some staff are simply taking advantage of concerns about the transmission of swine flu to take an extra few days off work.

“Because the emphasis has been on not going to your local GP but using websites to assess the infection and the risk to others, those who stay at home are not going to need a doctor’s note or have too many people calling on them to see how they feel.

“Based on the volume – and the nature – of calls we have been taking, the number of deliberate false cases of the condition is having a significant impact on workplaces across the country, something bosses are keen to tackle.”

The National Pandemic Flu Service advises that individuals who appear to have symptoms associated with swine flu should stay at home for up to seven days.