By BELÉN FERNÁNDEZ - January 7, 2009

The Israeli government...might consider ceasing the exploitation of its citizens' genuine psychological torment in order to justify existential battles against its neighbors.

by Evelyn Pringle - Dissident Voice

For years, the research that showed SSRI antidepressants (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) were dangerous and practically useless was kept hidden, while the studies published and presented to potential prescribers painted a glowing picture of success. These days, a person would be hard pressed to find someone who does not have a family member or friend labeled mentally ill and taking drugs like Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft, Lexapro and Celexa, or their chemical cousins Effexor, Cymbalta and Wellbutrin.

...[George W.] Bush praised Teen Challenge for its practices, saying that while inside, "if you don't work, you don't eat." That's right: the program uses unpaid, forced labor backed by the threat of food deprivation as "addiction treatment"...Further..."Addiction is a sin, not a disease." Consequently, the program does not allow the use of medication...Beyond this, it humiliates and attempts to "break down" people with addictions, using techniques...that are known to do more harm than good.

Healing the Earth Radio explores the connections between many social and ecological issues. Motivated by a desire to foster more understanding, alliances, and effective action, the show interviews Native people defending their land and culture, environmental, local food, and peak oil activists, writers, lawyers, supporters of political prisoners, scientists, whistle-blowers, tree sitters, and many others who devote their lives to making things better.

In a society where numbers on a measuring tape and weight scale calculate a woman's worth, the field of cosmetic surgery has grown to astounding length...Physicians offer a variety of nip and tuck procedures that can allow the transformation of a female body from the top of her skull to her very tiptoes. More recently, much has been made of what has come to be known as the "designer vagina" craze.

by SAMIR SHAHEEN-HUSSAIN - Thursday, December 04, 2008

The story of a newborn baby whose birth documents were initially withheld by an obstetrician...exposes a lamentable, all-too-frequent reality. It represents the tip of a much more significant problem faced by people who do not have permanent residency status in Canada. Dr. Yvonne Vasilie from the Lakeshore Hospital withheld baby Marley’s birth documents because her parents...were not able to fully pay the fees for the obstetric care...

Everyone's Downstream II: Stop Playing Games With Our Lives
To be held November 22nd, 23rd at

The Edmonton Native Friendship Centre
11205 101 Street NW

This event is co-presented by OilSandsTruth.org [OST] with the Indigenous Environmental Network [IEN]

And on Friday November 21, 2008 at the University of Alberta:

by Margaret Keith and James Brophy

SARNIA, ONTARIO–Industrialized countries are facing a global disease epidemic.

Every year, two million workers die of occupational causes, according to the International Labour Organization (ILO). Seventy-five per cent of these preventable deaths are due to work-related disease. Of these diseases, cancer is the biggest killer. The single largest contributor to this work-related cancer epidemic is exposure to asbestos, causing 100,000 to 140,000 deaths annually worldwide.

By Katie Mercer - Friday, October 24, 2008

Canadian indie rockers Bedouin Soundclash weren't able to play a free concert at a barbecue outside Insite after city officials had the stage taken down, citing bylaw infractions..."Because there was no permit, the city came down with crews and hundreds of police officers to shut us down," said volunteer Chris Livingstone.

Climate Cafe Presents: Building Better - Better Buildings

Have you ever thought of building a kitchen countertop with recycled paper? How about putting clay on your wall instead of paint? What, exactly, is ecotimber?

Dying to Get High: Marijuana as Medicine is an important and accessible book--not heavy on academic jargon, but rather lively and engaging, like a true detective novel--with a broad appeal to those interested in the medical potential of cannabis, an end to the drug war and grass roots activism. I asked the co-authors how working on the book changed them[:]

Links to stories and video by Argus Leader in Sioux Falls, SD on the tragic suicide epidemic involving Lakota youth and young adults

by Susan Lazaruk - Friday, September 26, 2008

Vancouver police are standing behind officers who used a Taser against a 16-year-old mentally ill mother because they feared she would harm her one-month-old baby...After three hours of trying to persuade the five-foot-one, 110-lb. teen to give up her baby, officers warned her she would be Tasered before touching her arm and upper back with the stun gun...The mom, Misha Peterson, had told The Province earlier three or four officers held her down on the bed and zapped her twice on the neck until she let go of her baby...Peterson has marks on her neck.

By FRANKLIN LAMB - September 23, 2008

The fundamental consequences of the 1982 Massacre at Sabra-Shatila and the founding of Hezbollah are two seismic events from the same time and place which some argue are locked in an embrace that will return Palestine to the Palestinians.

September 23, 2008 - Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

OTTAWA — Today the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) released The Harper Record, the most comprehensive analysis of the Conservative minority government’s record to date..."Contrary to the general perception that this has been a moderate government, this book reveals that it, in fact, has taken significant steps to transform Canada in a very short time. Harper's very conservative vision has been advanced across a broad range of policies. It is a deeply troubling prelude of things to come"...