Tag Archives: king of pop

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A Huge Victory for Forests and the Climate!


Tell the Fast Food Industry to Go Deforestation-Free!

Ask fast food chains to adopt a deforestation-free palm oil policy. There’s no excuse to use palm oil that drives climate change, tropical deforestation, and forest fires.

Take Action Today! a repost

In September, we had an incredible month full of successes—and we couldn’t have done it without your help. Together, we persuaded four food companies—Dunkin’ Brands, Krispy Kreme, ConAgra, and Hershey’s—to adopt zero deforestation commitments for their palm oil purchases.

These new commitments are a direct result of public pressure. The Union of Concerned Scientists and other groups rallied our supporters to voice their concerns at Dunkin’ Brands’ annual shareholder meeting in May and attend Krispy Kreme’s new store openings in Tennessee, Delaware, and Florida. What we have seen time and again is that when consumers speak, companies listen, and act.

But the fast food industry still has a long way to go. McDonald’s. Burger King. Taco Bell. Fast food chains are often the focus of negative attention for their effect on our heath, but they are also having a big effect on our climate.

This spring, the Union of Concerned Scientists exposed how these brands are buying palm oil, largely for their fried and baked goods. As tropical forests are cleared to make way for palm oil plantations, carbon is released into the atmosphere, driving global warming and shrinking habitat for endangered species. Most of the big brands have yet to make a commitment to purging deforestation from their palm oil purchases.

Fast food chains need a push, and that’s where you come in. The Union of Concerned Scientists has been in active dialogues with many of these fast food companies about palm oil—and a few are considering announcing new commitments this year. With your help, we can convince the fast food sector to take this issue seriously.

Send an email today urging the largest global fast food companies to go deforestation-free.

Take Action

Sincerely,
Sharon Smith signature
Sharon Smith
Campaign Manager
Tropical Forest & Climate Initiative
Union of Concerned Scientists

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Sea Lions Vs Climate Change


Voracious sea lions invade Columbia River

Pinnipeds are lured in record numbers by millions of smelt, and to the dismay of many they’ve taken over virtually every inch of dock space in Astoria basin

March 27, 2015 by

SeaLionsTheresaTillson2_stjbcq

California sea lions have flooded into the Columbia River in record numbers, thanks to a phenomenal abundance of smelt during a season in which food has been scarce for the voracious pinnipeds just about everywhere else.

The pinniped invasion has overwhelmed the East Mooring Basin in Astoria, Oregon, where 2,340 sea lions were counted recently. That shatters last year’s record count of 1,420 sea lions, and represents “a mind-boggling number,” Bryan Wright, a spokesman for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife,” told OPB News.

sealions

Sea lions have commandeered virtually every inch of dock space and are piling on top of one another, because there is not enough space to accommodate all of them, when they’re not foraging for smelt and salmon.

The blubbery mammals are said to be causing damage to docks and making it port authorities to rent or lease slips to boaters.

Some have come to the sea lions’ defense, saying they could represent a tourism boon if people will pay to see them.

Normal sea lion counts in the basin, from late March through May, average fewer than 300.

The Astoria invasion occurs at a time when young sea lions, who are not strong enough to travel long distances to find food, are starving in California, filling care facilities to capacity.

Unusually warm water in the Eastern Pacific, from Mexico to Alaska, is blamed for displacing bait fish populations the sea lions rely on for sustenance.

SeaLions copy

The so-called “warm blob,” caused in large part by a lack of significant winds and the upwelling those winds typically cause, was blamed for last year’s heat-up, with sea surface temperatures during the spring and summer averaging well above normal.

The phenomenon appears to be evident again this year.

The older and stronger sea lions are lured to the lower Columbia River in part by the early stages of the salmon run, but also by millions of smelt that have returned to the river to spawn.

Harborseals-SteveJeffries

Harbor seals also are foraging on the bounty. The accompanying image showing 6,000-plus seals grouped near the mouth of the river was captured last month by Steve Jeffries, a biologist with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The presence of so many sea lions and seals is cause for concern because the developing salmon run could be decimated by so many voracious pinnipeds.

(The Washington agency has a permit to euthanize a certain number of sea lions each year, to protect salmon entering the river mouth at the Washington-Oregon border.)

While many locals are unhappy with the problems being caused by the sea lions inside the basin, a group called the Sea Lion Defense Brigade tells KGW News that perhaps they will turn out to be a valuable tourist attraction.

“People that come to visit these guys are more than willing to spend money on tourism,” Defense Brigade spokeswoman Veronica Montoya said. “On seeing these guys, on visiting these guys.”

Perhaps, but more than likely, the waterfront community probably wishes it could have its docks back.

–Follow Pete Thomas on Facebook and Twitter

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Update from the WH Council on Women and Girls


WomenshcDear friends,

We hope this message finds you well.

It has been an exciting week here at the White House Council on Women and Girls! This week, Valerie Jarrett, Chair of the Council on Women and Girls and Senior Advisor to the President, announced the Administration’s #LeadOnLeave Tour — a nationwide project that will shine a spotlight on the issue of paid family leave and paid sick days, among other issues that impact families across America. Read on for how to follow this tour across the nation!

Continuing the focus on working families, President Obama gave his weekly address on protecting working families’ paychecks. In addition, the Air Force announced new initiatives to promote diversity and inclusivity, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality announced the start of open nominations for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Program.

Additionally, this week marks the fifth anniversary of West Wing Week, the White House’s weekly video guide to all that’s happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Check out the fifth anniversary edition here.

Read on for opportunities to engage, and don’t forget to follow Valerie Jarrett on Twitter at @vj44. You can also email us at cwg@who.eop.gov.

We look forward to continuing the conversation!

Best regards,

The White House Council on Women and Girls

Latest News and Administration Highlights

#LeadOnLeave: Empowering Working Families Across America
Building on President Obama’s State of the Union announcements supporting greater workplace flexibility for families, the White House and the Labor Department will travel to states across the country to meet with employers, workers, state and local officials, and others to highlight best practices and discuss how paid leave and other flexible workplace policies can help support families and businesses.

Watch Labor Secretary Tom Perez’s announcement and remarks on #LeadOnLeave here:

See more about Lead on Leave.

How can you follow the #LeadOnLeave nationwide tour?

Valerie Jarrett, Secretary Perez, and other Administration officials will be live-blogging throughout the tour to share updates from the Secretary’s meetings with local businesses, workers, and community leaders. The Secretary made his first stop this week in Seattle, where he met with small businesses and advocates to talk about the importance of paid family leave and paid sick days.

Follow Secretary Perez’s blog on the White House website!

Weekly Address: Protecting Working Americans’ Paychecks
In this week’s address, the President highlighted the progress made protecting American consumers since he signed Wall Street reform into law five years ago, including an important new step taken by the independent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau earlier this week toward preventing abuses in payday lending.

The President emphasized his commitment to fighting to advance middle-class economics and ensure everybody who works hard can get ahead, while opposing attempts by Republicans both to weaken the CFPB and give large tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans at the expense of the middle class.

Watch the President’s Weekly Address here:

See the President's Weekly Address.

U.S. Air Force Diversity and Inclusiveness Initiatives
The Secretary of the Air Force, the Honorable Deborah Lee James, released her statements this week from the March 4 “Women and Leadership in National Security” conference. Her new initiatives are aimed, in part, at creating path to leadership and higher ranks within the Air Force Officer Corps for women. She also added the first steps for launching the Air Force Career Path Tool (CPT), a web-based mentoring solution to encourage more diversity within the ranks. These new initiatives are crucial to promoting inclusivity within the Air Force and are paving the way to equality and diversity throughout the entire U.S. military.

2015 Solicitation for Nominations for Members of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force
In agency news, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality is welcoming nominations for new Task Force members. The U.S. Preventative Services Task Force is charged with enhancing the quality, appropriateness, and effectiveness of health care services and access to such services under Title IX of the Public Health Service Act.

To review the nomination process and nominate an individual for consideration, please see the nomination form here. Nominations must be received by May 15, 2015 to be considered for appointment with an anticipated start date of January 2016.

Stay Connected

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

A Deal with Iran


By

United States And Other World Powers Reach Historic Understanding With Iran

After extending the self-imposed deadline by two days, President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry yesterday announced that the United States and five other allies and partners has reached an agreement with Iran on the framework for a deal over its nuclear program. The issue has been at the center of several recent controversies, including Speaker Boehner’s decision to break longstanding protocol by inviting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address Congress weeks before Israel’s elections, and the the choice by 47 GOP Senators to put partisanship over patriotism by writing a letter to Iran undermining the sensitive negotiations. Despite these actions, the decision reached yesterday represents an historic achievement for American diplomacy that makes the world safer by cutting off every pathway that Iran could take to develop a nuclear weapon.

Key details are set to be finalized over the coming months, but the outline of the agreement includes the following points:

  • The deal includes the most robust and intrusive inspections and transparency regime ever negotiated for any nuclear program in history. International inspectors will have unprecedented access not only to Iranian nuclear facilities, but to the entire supply chain that supports Iran’s nuclear program.
  • This will be a long-term deal that addresses each path to a potential Iranian nuclear bomb. There are strict limits on Iran’s nuclear program for a decade, and additional restrictions on building new facilities or stockpiling materials will last for 15 years. And as a member of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran will never be permitted to develop a nuclear weapon.
  • In return for Iran’s actions, the international community has agreed to provide Iran with relief from certain sanctions. But this relief will be phased in only as Iran takes meaningful states to adhere to the deal. Any violations mean sanctions will return as they were before.

This agreement has received wide praise, including from some unlikely sources. After hearing about the tentative deal, Fox News host Bill O’Reilly offered his opinion that “you give it a shot” because “you don’t want a war with Iran.”

Meanwhile, rather than trying to undercut any negotiations, Republicans in Congress should recognize that the legislative branch has an important role to play as the enforcer of the agreement. Congress should establish a mechanism to ensure that Iranian backsliding on a deal would snap sanctions back in place, as legislation from Senators Barbary Boxer (D-CA) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) would do. What Congress should not do is act as a cynical spoiler, impeding any chance for a meaningful deal to score political points.

BOTTOM LINE: This historic agreement of a framework over Iran’s nuclear program, agreed to not just by the United States but also other major world powers like Russia and China, deserves a chance. Any attempt to derail it is is not just a political attack: it is an intentional attempt to disrupt international diplomacy, exacerbate conflict with Iran, and weaken America’s standing in the international community.

~ FDA/USDA ~~ Alerts & Safety

FDA/USDA ~~ Alerts & Safety March 2015 p2


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03/27/2015 04:58 PM EDT
Best Foods Inc. 75 Midvale Rd Edison, NJ 08817 is recalling its 7 ounce packages of Deer Brand Raisin Golden because they contain undeclared sulfites. Consumers who have severe sensitivity to sulfites run risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume this product.
03/27/2015 07:23 PM EDT

Aurora Products, Inc. is expanding its voluntary nationwide recall of certain lots of NATURAL WALNUTS and TRAIL MIXES CONTAINING WALNUTS, because they have the potential to contain Salmonella which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.

03/25/2015 03:29 PM EDT
Due to receiving a recall notice from its organic spinach supplier because of possible Listeria monocytogenes exposure, La Terra Fina is recalling the products outlined in the chart below. Following its voluntary recall of Organic Spinach Dip last Friday, La Terra Fina is expanding the recall to include these products that were manufactured on the same production equipment on the same day as the Organic Spinach Dip and are being recalled out of an abundance of caution.
03/24/2015 06:32 PM EDT
Twin City Foods, Inc. of Stanwood, Washington is recalling the following products because they have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.
03/24/2015 09:40 PM EDT  This recall is based on a recall notice from one of Superior Foods, Inc., organic frozen spinach suppliers that Superior Foods, Inc., may have received organic spinach with the possible presence of Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.
03/24/2015 11:15 AM EDT
Hayward, CA. Carmel Food Group today issued a voluntary recall of certain Rising Moon Organics frozen Ravioli items, because of possible presence of Listeria monocytogenes.
03/23/2015 09:51 PM EDT
Blue Bell Ice Cream of Brenham, Texas, is recalling three 3 oz. institutional/food service ice cream cups- chocolate, strawberry and vanilla with tab lids because they have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.
03/23/2015 07:15 PM EDT Stock Yards Meat Packing Co., Inc., a Tucson, Ariz. establishment, is recalling approximately 2,149 pounds of roast beef due to misbranding.
03/23/2015 02:50 PM EDT
Amy’s Kitchen, Inc. is voluntarily recalling approximately 73,897 cases of select code dates and manufacturing codes of the products identified on Attachment A. This recall is based on a recall notice from one of Amy’s organic spinach suppliers that Amy’s may have received organic spinach with the possible presence of Listeria monocytogenes, an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.
03/23/2015 01:08 PM EDT
Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. is recalling approximately 12,540 packages of Wegmans Organic Food You Feel Good About Just Picked Frozen Spinach, 12 oz. (UPC 77890-32932) due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. The product was sold in the frozen food department of the company’s 85 stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, and Massachusetts between January 27 and March 21, 2015.
03/22/2015 11:36 AM EDT
Nutiva, an Organic Superfoods company, has initiated a voluntary product recall of the following O’Coconut™ products after being notified by supplier that samples of a raw material in this product have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella. “We are choosing to voluntarily recall three of our O’Coconut items as a precautionary measure to provide the safest products for our customers,” states John Roulac, Nutiva’s CEO.
03/20/2015 03:15 PM EDT
Van Lang Foods, a Countryside, Ill. establishment, is recalling approximately 232 pounds of pork potstickers and chicken dim sum due to misbranding and an undeclared allergen.
03/21/2015 09:41 AM EDT
Texas Star Nut and Food Co., Inc. of Boerne, Texas is voluntarily recalling Nature’s Eats Natural Macadamia Nuts, Lot Code #31435001, because it has the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis
03/21/2015 09:20 AM EDT
La Terra Fina is issuing a voluntary recall of its Organic Spinach Dip due to a potential health risk from Listeria exposure. The recall of product available in Bay Area Costco stores is a precaution.

Boa Vida Imports Recalls Pork And Beef Products Imported From An Ineligible Country Without Benefit Of Import Inspection Boa Vida Imports, a New Bedford, Mass., establishment, is recalling approximately 385 pounds of pork and beef products imported from Portugal because this country is not eligible to export meat products to the United States.

03/21/2015 03:59 PM EDT Aurora Products, Inc. is conducting a voluntary nationwide recall of certain lots of NATURAL WALNUTS and TRAIL MIXES CONTAINING WALNUTS because they have the potential to contain Salmonella which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain.

Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage Expands Recall on Organic Garlic Powder Due to Possible Health Risk

03/18/2015 03:28 PM EDT  Vitamin Cottage Natural Food Markets, Inc., a Lakewood, Colorado based natural grocery chain, is expanding their recall of Natural Grocers brand Organic Garlic Powder to all lots as the product has the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella. Consumption of products containing Salmonella can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.
03/18/2015 04:20 PM EDT
First Source, LLC of Buffalo, New York is voluntarily recalling 3,276 plastic tubs (6 oz.) of Wegmans Organic Walnut Halves & Pieces because the product may be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain.