About time for a bit of humor. This is from the weekly newsletter sent by Jennifer Stewart at :
We have just uncovered proof of the existence of a new chemical element. A major research institution has recently announced the discovery of the heaviest element yet known to science.
The new element has been named *Governmentium*.
Governmentium (Gv) has one neutron, 25 assistant neutrons, 88 deputy neutrons, and 198 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312.
These 312 particles are held together by forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons. Since Governmentium has no electrons, it is inert. However, it can be detected, because it impedes every reaction with which it comes into contact. A minute amount of Governmentium can cause a reaction, which would normally take less than a second, to take over four days to complete.
Governmentium has a normal half-life of 4 years; it does not decay, but instead undergoes a reorganization in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places. In fact, Governmentium’s mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganization will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes.
This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to believe that Governmentium is formed whenever morons reach a critical concentration. This hypothetical quantity is referred to as Critical Morass. When catalyzed with money, Governmentium becomes Administratium – an element which radiates just as much energy as Governmentium, since it has half as many peons but twice as many morons.
World Vision reports that as soon as the truce in Lebanon began, they started shipping in urgently needed basic supplies, such as water purification units, hygiene kits and food. Southern Lebanon, particularly, has been affected, with 100,000 people or more isolated by the conflict. As well as continuing those activities, World Vision will be expanding child-focused programs and protection, including psychosocial activities and Child Friendly Spaces:
As in all conflicts, children suffer the most. UNICEF estimates nearly a third of those killed and nearly half of the displaced in Lebanon were children. World Vision has opened two Child Friendly Spaces to help the displaced. At one site, a mother named Fatima watched her three children play and said with tears in her eyes, “I can barely recognize them with their new little smiling faces.” Her family had been displaced from their village for two weeks.
Already World Vision has provided aid to 30,000 people in Lebanon. Help World Vision in its work by:
It was good news to hear of these renewable energy projects:
- In Botswana: The United Nations with the Government of Botswana are working on a project of providing solar power to 65,000 households by 2011, benefiting about 88 villlages, providing heating and lighting. The solar power will help fight diseases by boiling water, reducing respiratory problems resulting from other heating methods, improving medication and equipment that require refrigeration, provide electricity for communication, resulting in the spreading of news about health and fighting disease. http://renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=45653
- In Nigeria: The Nigerian Government, with funding from the Japanese Government are also in the process of providing solar power to 200 villages throughout Nigeria. http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/08/nigeria_launche.php#perma
A new World Bank report, titled “At Home & Away: Expanding Job Opportunities for Pacific Islanders Through Labour Mobility”, advocates greater mobility for unskilled workers from the Pacific Islands to help overcome the challenges the region faces because of small economies, remoteness, growing youth populations and low jobs growth.
“We know that lack of job opportunities can contribute to social and political instability in regions like the Pacific Islands where the youth population is as high as 40 percent in some countries”, said the report’s lead author Dr Manjula Luthria, Senior Economist for the World Bank.
“This report shows that allowing some Pacific Islanders access to jobs currently unfilled in the larger economies of the region, could contribute significantly to the economic and social well being of the workers, their families and wider communities.”
“Access to temporary unskilled work in a neighbouring labour market has the potential to transform lives and bring hope to entire communities”
This is Biblical: to care for the alien and the poor. Both Old and New Testaments are full of instructions on ensuring that aliens are paid, and cared for. In fact, Jesus said that one of the reasons for admiitting someone into heaven is “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in” (Matthew 25:35).
Chartreuse has some interesting thoughts on what social networks are all about: the increase in technology in our world, but a yearning for that connectedness in relationship.
Rick Warren, pastor of the Saddleback Church, of the America’s big churches, and author of the bestseller book “The Purpose Driven Life”, says that the Church should be there helping those facing HIV / AIDS, not pointing the finger and judging. He said that the Church is ideally set up to help:
“We have the widest distribution network. There are churches in every village around the world. We have the most volunteers. You know there are 2.3 billion people who are claiming to be followers of Christ. That’s bigger than China or even the United Nations and we speak more languages than the United Nations. “Then we have local credibility, where pastors in a village are respected and credible; much more than any government or any business because they’ve been caring for people in the tough times of life, the highs and the lows, the good and the bad. They marry and they bury and they’re there in every season of life. “So the second reason that I feel that this pandemic can’t be stopped without the Church is that the church has the moral authority. We have the longest record of caring for people in sickness. A lot of people don’t know that 95 percent of all the hospitals in the world were started by Christians and also 95 percent of all the schools in the world were also started by Christians. Usually the first hospital or the first school in a nation was started by Christian missionaries.”
Warren then made some comments about AIDS now affecting women in huge numbers:
“Sixty percent plus of the people who have HIV/AIDS are women,” he stated. “But it is driven by male behavior, and so the number-one way people get it today is through heterosexual sex. Then the second way is through drug IV use. The third is other needles that are infected. Really only about five percent of AIDS infections today around the world total are from gay relationships. So there are a lot of myths that need to be corrected about HIV/AIDS.”
One of Rick Warren’s aims is to set up AIDS testing centers in churches around the world, then if the results are positive, the Church would be situated to help throughout the course of the illness.
“Regardless of how people got it, we must love them and care for them the way Jesus would.”
http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/s06080079.htm
The Victorian Dept of Health reports some of the significant differences in health between indigenous Australians and the rest of the population:
- The infant mortality rate is three times higher than the national average.
- Indigenous people are nearly twice as likely to be admitted to hospital than non-indigenous.
- Aboriginal people have much higher rates of infection from many contagious and potentially life-threatening diseases, including HIV/AIDS, TB, meningitis and gonorrhea.
- Indigenous people have a 18-19 year shorter life expectancy than the rest of the population. The average life span for an Aboriginal male is 57 years, and for a female is 62 years.
Why this is happening in this day and age, in a civilized country?
Bill and Melinda Gates, in a joint keynote at and AIDS Conference, said that world leaders need to put the power of HIV prevention in the hands of women, by accelerating the search for microbicides and other HIV prevention tools.
Bill Gates said that stopping AIDS is the Gates Foundation’s top priority.
