Swine Flu Across India

Summary:

      This article written by Zahir Janmohamed from the Aljazeera America news outlet goes into detail about the rising number of swine flu cases in India. Also known as H1N1, swine flu is a virus that can also be found in the respiratory tracts of pigs, in humans it causes symptoms similar to that of the common household flu. These symptoms usually consist of fever, coughing, fatigue, headache and nasal congestion. In India this year alone there has been a report of more than 32,000 cases and more than 11,000 deaths. There is a current debate on whether or not this is a new strain of the virus. Some believe that it is a new strain while other officials believe that it is the same strain that swept across many nations in 2009. The article also mentions that there are possibly many more cases than are being reported. This is due to the fact or assumption of medical and government corruptions. The  medical corruption in this country consists of bribing doctors, skewing statistics, and not cracking down on malpractice. The article mentions corruption at the governmental level as well. Here political forces take over and health care officials are marginalized. Thus healthcare workers cannot freely speak out on matter due to political pressures.

Analysis:

     The death tolls alone should be enough to put fire under officials to make a changes. But this is not the case here in India, officials are apparently more concerned with their image and the image of the country. According to the article the World Health Organization (WHO) said in that there were 18,500 deaths in 2009 as a result of the first Swine Flu outbreak. But a study done in 2012 following the outbreak said that the numbers were 12 times that figure. So it is clear that corruption and changing or with holding the facts on the matter is something that has been commonly seen in India. In addition the huge population of people in India are not being properly educated on the matter. Does the WHO or CDC have any jurisdiction here? How far could they go in regulating the matter given the corruption?


Phylicia Smith
3/26/2015
10:31 pm


http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/3/23/deadly-outbreak-of-swine-flu-in-india-may-be-due-to-a-mutated-strain.html


  

Blog #6: Venezuela Slams US Sanctions and Claims the Start of A "Rumor War"

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has claimed there is a new international “psychological war campaign” waged against his country by Colombian authority, along with the U.S. and Spain. 

The new war includes a much more uncontrollable force: the spreading of rumors about Venezuela’s security and economic problems: violence, kidnappings, and shortages of food and other goods.

Maduro blames the campaign on Venezuelan right-wing political advisor Juan Jose Rendon, saying that Rendon was organizing the program’s operation in Miami and Bogota, while Felipe Gonzalez, Spain's former Socialist prime minister, coordinates the campaign from Madrid. Maduro explained that the campaign, from his view point, could make Venezuelans disregard the recent US sanctions against the country, and also President Barack Obama's March executive order that placed Venezuela as a country in national emergency. 

In Venezuela, a different campaign was launched to combat the alleged rumors; citizens are collecting 10 million signatures against President Obama’s executive order before the beginning of April 9, when the Summit of the Americas (which is a sequence of meetings between the heads of state in North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean), will open in Panama. This will allow the opportunity for President Obama and President Maduro to discuss the terms of the sanctions and potentially put an end to the negative light that has been casted on Venezuela.

According to Maduro, over 1.5 million signatures have been collected, and once the campaign was voiced on social media, it generated 3 million messages of support for the country. His concerns especially wish to address the US pointing out “serious” violation of human rights and policies that “undermine” democracy in the Venezuela.

On Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov attacked the US sanctions against the seven Venezuelan officials. Initially I was slightly surprised by Lavrov’s intrusion on the subject, but I can see why. This gives Russia an excellent opportunity to play peacemaker between the U.S. democratic machine and sovereign Venezuela. For Russia, it must feel good to be able to point out a bit of the self-righteous attention the U.S. is throwing around in regards to Ukraine. With a small investment Russia could, without a doubt, make things very troublesome for the U.S. in Venezuela. I think this is where the term "spheres of influence" applies, as in if the U.S. doesn't want Russia meddling in Venezuela, it should take a few strides back from Ukraine. As for President Maduro and the rest of the Venezuelan people, this campaign is definitely highlighting their non-violent intent, and I hope this action serves as a basis of change for other nations as well.

Read the article here: http://rt.com/news/243977-usa-venezuela-psychological-war/

Salwa Majeed

3/26/2015

7:53 PM

Blog 6- Girls Not Brides

Mabel Van Oranje: Ending Child Marriage In One Generation

The past weeks have brought the topic of child brides and it’s prevalence in developing countries into play as well as preventative measures various countries are taking to stop forced marriages. This week, the topic continues on how not only countries are trying to stop such an institution but what organizations are doing as well.

The article I have found this week focuses on Mabel van Oranje, the founder of Girls Not Brides. Mabel Oranje and her powerful organization shows great adamancy of ending child brides in one generation and gives much needed detail into the lives of child brides and how we can prevent it. Girls Not Brides encompasses over 400 members from 60 countries all doing their part to stop this act. Oranje states that the first thing she plans to do is to empower girls stating “we need to make these girls aware of their rights, the wrongness of forced marriage, and their value as human beings”. The second plan of attack Oranje is focusing on is to make each country “more powerful members, men for instance, realize the harmfulness of child marriages”. Oranje’s plan also includes education for these young girls involving “knowledge of their reproductive health and what it entails”. “Education”, says Oranje, “provides an alternative to child marriages and may make girls turn against marriage”. Last in her attack is to “implement more laws governing a legal age of marriage for each country”.

After reading this article and exploring Oranje’s website, it appears strong that her mission to end child marriages will happen. It may take longer than she expects, but with help of her 400 members and future members alike it is bound to take flight and we will soon see a world without child brides and forced marriages.

Work Cited

Brand, M. (2015, March 23). Mabel van Oranje of Girls Not Brides wants to end child marriage in one generation. In Pri.org. Retrieved from http://www.pri.org/stories/2015-03-23/ending-child-marriage-one-generation-extended-interview-mabel-van-oranje-girls

Time Stamp: 3/23/2015 3:55pm

Blog 6# Youth Shouldering Austerity in Ireland

As Europe continues its slow climb out of the Eurozone Crisis that has beleaguered many of the continent's nations the specter of austerity is still felt among the young, pensioned and poor. This week Ireland announced further austerity cuts of two and a half billion dollars despite the country's economic growth holding steady at 2.7%.
The first to feel the affects of this cut will be the pensioners. This is a gamble for the ruling party in Ireland as these are the people most likely to get out and vote in elections. Many over the age of seventy will see their savings taxed at over 41% higher than before, subsidies to pay senior phone bills and funeral costs will be scrapped and some will lose healthcare coverage.
On the other end of the age spectrum, Irish youth will find it increasingly difficult to find work. Job seeker allowances will be slashed by roughly a third and and the eligibility for social payments will be extended to the age of twenty-six.
Additional cuts will be seen as the price of cigarettes will rise 10¢ and increased duties and taxes on alcohol such as 50¢ extra per bottle of wine.
These cuts are dangerous for a number of social reasons. The government is putting the squeeze on two dangerous groups to upset. The pensioners have the voter turn out to bring regime change in elections and the youth have the volatility to destabilize the society. Similar to my blogs on the rise of violence and fascism in Greece in the wake of austerity, Ireland could see a similar scenario. Although Ireland is not in as dire straits as Greece the country is only just finding its feet after years of violence between Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland. With youth struggling to find work in Ireland it is more likely they could turn to deviant behavior to bring about change. Often times what starts as protest against the system can become hijacked by more extremist factions (as seen in the battle in Seattle video we saw in class). In a region that has struggled with religious violence for hundreds of years Ireland could see old fault lines reappear in the wake of austerity.

Source:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/15/ireland-more-budget-cuts-despite-recovery

Blog #6 Slain Mexican Kingpin

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Courtney Gaston

Blog #6

For several years Mexico City has struggled with drug gangs running the streets and terrorizing citizens and authority. The boss of the notorious drug cartel, the Zetas or Z-3, was killed this week. Heriberto  Lazcano was originally apart of Mexico’s military before switching sides to join the criminals and then became one of the most feared and biggest kingpin. The Zetas grew into a feared organization that had more than 10,000 gunmen. Heriberto was killed in a gunfight with the Mexico navy but hours after his death a group of armed men took his body from a funeral home that his body was transported to. Mexico military has had difficulty capturing and killing Heriberto because of his expert intelligence and low-key profile. In 2007, Heriberto was mistakenly reported killed by military but later was reported the military had not killed him. With the military killing this notorious kingpin the fight with drug cartels is far from over. Heribertos followers will probably react to his death in rage and retaliate against the Mexico government. Mexico can expect many more killings and riots in the city in honor of the fallen leader. In many organized crimes such as drug cartels, the organizational structure is carefully planned out and there are always next in line authorities in place in case some such as this happens. The Zetas will continue drug trade in Mexico but it will probably be easier for government and military to continue to break down this organization since the leader has fallen. 

http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/10/14342659-slain-mexican-zetas-kingpin-deserted-army-led-deadly-drug-gang?

Blog #6 Corey Sitton

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/29/world/europe/germany-looks-to-southern-europe-to-fill-jobs.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

In this article, we see the common problem of what happens when a countries economy goes under. Spain, dealing with high unemployment rates of 24.4%, is loosing their highly trained and qualified employees for one reason...There is no work for them. Remarks about how much it costs to train one employee really show how much Spain is loosing when their workers go to another country for a job.  Germany, who is starving to higher people due to their economic boom and high  growth rate, needs these employees, and there are not enough of them in Germany. Hiring Employees from a country whos economic situation is in poor shape seems like a good idea, and it is for Germany. However, for Spain, it is only a good thing temporarilly. Workers leaving the country to find work elsewhere helps the starvation for jobs in Spain temporarilly. Many of the workers who leave are expected to return, in percentages of about 90%. However, The highly trained and educated employees who make a life out of working in Germany my not return. That means, when Spain finds its feet again in the economy, they will have to spend more money and more time training new employees, which caused production to go down. Also, If Germany is excelling in engineering now, contracts are being made, along with business friendships and long lasting work promises. Spain is left in the dust while Germany uses their workers to take jobs. If Spain finds the economy soon, Germany will already have a sound footing and have their names out there with all of the companies needing their work services. It is not a good position for Spain either way, except for the fact that their work crisis is being helped temporarily. It is interesting to see the Spainiards adapt to life in Germany. If they can adapt and become comftorable in their work environment, many of them may make a more stable and permanant home in Germany, which would be expecially bad for Spain, depending on percentages.