6 Reasons You Need To Stock On Survival Food

6 Reasons You Need To Stock On Survival Food

There are four main things you need to survive any emergency or natural disaster: water, food, shelter, and supplies. The most important things from this list are food and water. While it would be dangerous and challenging, it is possible to survive without shelter and supplies. However, you simply cannot survive without food and water.

In this article, we will discuss survival food and what makes it an essential item. There are tons of reasons why you should stock survival food in preparation for emergencies, but we will focus on the six most important reasons. You never know when disaster might strike or when an emergency will hit. Even if you could predict when something will happen, you can never know what will happen during the actual crisis. If you are going to make it through, you will need some survival food.

1.To Save Your Life

This might seem like the most clear-cut reason, but we still think it is worth mentioning. It is also the most crucial reason to stock survival food. One hard fact you must face when preparing for emergencies is that you simply will not survive without food and water. Getting enough to eat should be your top priority if you are stuck at home (or anywhere, really) and you find yourself in the middle of an emergency. During a natural disaster or worst-case-scenario emergency, being stocked with survival food on hand could be the difference between life and death.

2.To Save You Time

Time is both precious and essential, and this is especially true during any emergency or disaster. You never know what situation you might find yourself in, and you might only have time to figure out your next move and how to stay safe. It’s more than likely you won’t have extra time to go and get food if there is a crisis at hand. If you have survival food already stocked and ready to go, it will help to cut out any time that would otherwise need to be spent finding food and other supplies.

3.To Save You Money

This is a fundamental reason, but it’s actually one of the least thought about and most overlooked reasons. During a disaster, essential items, food, and supplies will more than likely become extremely expensive. Suddenly canned goods are $5 each rather than 80 cents each, and a box of granola bars could easily cost you $10! Do not wait until an actual emergency or disaster hits to gather food, or it will end up costing you a lot more than if you buy survival food ahead of time.

4.To Help Make Things Easier During Emergencies

Emergencies and natural disasters are stressful, hard, and dangerous as they are; why make things even more stressful on yourself by having more to worry about? Make things easier by having your survival food ready to go at a moment’s notice. As we mentioned, you cannot survive without food. If you have survival food ready, you have already increased your chances of making it through an emergency or natural disaster. With food taken care of… You will be able to focus on other things, such as making it to safety or finding shelter.

5.To Be Prepared

In a perfect world, you and your loved ones would never have to go through an emergency or natural disaster. Unfortunately, it’s more than likely you will experience at least one emergency in your lifetime. This is a scary thought, but it doesn’t have to make things stressful. The best way to make it through any dangerous or tough situation is to be prepared. This means you need to have the right supplies, the most important of which is your survival food.

If you have survival food stashed away in a disaster-proof location, you’ve already removed so many obstacles and dangers for you and your family. You will never have to worry about going hungry or having to leave the safety of your shelter to search for food. Just knowing your survival food is available will help to provide peace of mind.

6.To Include in a Survival Kit

Having survival food is not the same thing as having a survival kit. A survival kit contains a more extensive amount of supplies, including tools, water, solar-powered equipment, and anything else you might need to survive, which can vary from person to person. But, as we know, food is part of surviving and should therefore be included in your kit. Keeping everything together will help to keep things organized and accessible. When you stock up on survival food, you ensure you’ll always have food for your survival kit.

What is Survival Food?

Survival food is food that is non-perishable and will help you survive emergencies. You can find the best and most high-quality survival food kits at 4Patriots. Our food is designed to last for 25 years, which means it has an amazing shelf-life and is non-perishable! Imagine being prepared for emergencies for over two decades by having our survival food stocked at your home. Once you buy it, you won’t have to worry about buying more or running out of supplies for years to come.

You can buy survival food in all sorts of variations and quantities. You should base your purchase on the number of people who live in your household. For example, if you live alone, you can buy one of whatever survival food kits you want. Each of our kits is designed to last one person for the number of days listed on the packaging, so we do not recommend dividing kits between family members (although, if it’s an extreme emergency, you can). If you have a family, then you should consider buying one kit per person. Here are some of your best options:

  • 4-Week Survival Food Kit: This kit is one of our most popular survival food kits. It gives you a month’s worth of food, ensuring you are prepared for the long-haul.
  • 72-Hour Survival Food Kit: The 72-hour kit will give you three day’s worth of nutrients and calories to help you survive. This also makes a great kit to keep in your car for road trips.
  • Emergency Food Bars: These bars make the perfect addition to any survival kit and are great to have readily available. They can act as meal replacements if need be.

Survival food is not just important — it’s essential. The truth is, you simply do not know what situation you might find yourself in during an emergency. If you are prepared (as prepared as you can be), you increase your chances of survival and decrease stress and danger. While most people like to have a larger survival kit that contains supplies as well as food, even just having survival food well-stocked is a great place to start. As we said, it is possible to survive without supplies, but it’s not possible to make it without food and water.

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Girl of Great Price – Milo James Fowler

In a city run by a powerful mobster, nobody wants to play the hero. Private eye Charlie Madison just wants to pay the rent. When a girl goes missing and no ransom demand is made, Madison takes the case. Time isn’t on his side, and after 48 hours, it’s unlikely an abducted child will be found in one piece. But Madison’s a champion of lost causes, and he’ll be damned before he gives up on her–even if it means putting his own life on the line. As the mystery unfolds, Madison learns a bizarre secret that seems too impossible to believe. It could explain why the girl was kidnapped. And why she might still be alive.


Modifying Lesson Plan

Modifying Lesson Plan
Number of sources: 3
Paper instructions:

An essential part of being a special educator is writing and implementing IEPs and lesson plans associated with goals on IEPs. Due to legal requirements, special educators should understand the steps that go into planning effective lessons and appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities. Being able to translate IEP goals into learning objectives and accompanying lessons requires practice.

Review “Marcus Partial IEP and Lesson” to inform the assignment.

Upon reviewing the Present Level of Performance and the second grade literacy-based standards, create one academic goal specific to Marcus’ needs. Include this academic goal within the â€œLesson Summary and Focusâ€ section of the â€œCOE Lesson Plan Template.â€

Design a standards-based lesson plan, using the â€œCOE Lesson Plan Template,â€ that modifies and extends skills taught in Marcusâ€™ sample lesson plan and is aligned to his identified academic goal.

Write a 250-500 word rationale explaining your instructional choices, how your lesson extends the skills taught in the â€œSample Lesson Planâ€ for Marcus, and how the lesson is appropriate for meeting Marcusâ€™ academic goal. Discuss how elements of UDL will be incorporated to enhance Marcusâ€™ learning.


Question: Is Spiriva Long Acting?

Does Spiriva cause weight gain?

There aren’t any reports of Spiriva causing weight gain in people using the drug to treat either asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

If you have concerns about gaining weight while you’re using Spiriva, talk with your doctor..

Should I rinse my mouth after using Spiriva?

Rinse your mouth after using the inhaler to prevent dry mouth and throat irritation. If you are using other inhalers at the same time, wait at least 1 minute between the use of each medication. Use this medication regularly to get the most benefit from it.

What happens if you use an inhaler and don’t need it?

How long can you take Spiriva?

It’s important to take 2 puffs of SPIRIVA RESPIMAT, 1 time each day, to receive the proper dose of medicine. When used as directed, SPIRIVA RESPIMAT helps to keep your airways open for a full 24 hours. It may take up to 4 to 8 weeks of treatment with SPIRIVA RESPIMAT for your breathing to improve.

What is the strongest inhaler for asthma?

Long-Acting Asthma Inhalers Available in the United States Include:Advair, Dulera, and Symbicort (a combination of a long-acting beta-agonist bronchodilator and an inhaled steroid)Salmeterol (Serevent)Formoterol (Foradil)Formoterol solution for nebulizers (Perforomist)More items…•

Is a lama a bronchodilator?

Long-acting bronchodilators can be either LABAs (long-acting beta2 agonists) or LAMAs (long-acting muscarinic antogonists). LABA and LAMA are types of bronchodilators. LAMAs include: Incruse® (umeclidinium), Take once daily using Ellipta®.

Does Spiriva slow the progression of COPD?

Few COPD studies have enrolled patients with early-stage disease. Analysis of the subset of 2,739 UPLIFT patients with moderate COPD shows that Spiriva could actually slow COPD progression. Treatment also reduced COPD exacerbations and improved quality of life over the four-year study.

How many puffs of Ventolin is safe?

FDA-approved labeling recommends to not exceed 12 puffs/day. For the acute treatment of severe episodes, the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program Expert Panel recommends 4 to 8 puffs every 20 minutes for up to 4 hours, then 4 to 8 puffs every 1 to 4 hours as needed.

Does Spiriva work immediately?

SPIRIVA starts working right from the first dose, helping to improve lung function by opening airways. It may take a couple of weeks for you to notice the full effects of SPIRIVA. But even if you don’t feel it working, your lungs do. It’s important to give SPIRIVA time to work for you.

Why Asthma has no cure?

Is Spiriva short or long acting?

Anticholinergics are agents of first choice for the symptomatic treatment of patients with COPD. Tiotropium (Ba 679 BR, Spiriva) is a long-acting inhaled anticholinergic designed for once-daily bronchodilator treatment of COPD.

Is tiotropium bromide a LABA?

Background: Long-acting bronchodilators, comprising long-acting beta2-agonists (LABA) and long-acting anti-muscarinic agents (LAMA, principally tiotropium), are commonly used for managing persistent symptoms of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

How good is Spiriva for COPD?

Spiriva has an average rating of 6.1 out of 10 from a total of 84 ratings for the treatment of COPD, Maintenance. 48% of those users who reviewed Spiriva reported a positive effect, while 27% reported a negative effect.

Does Spiriva improve lung function?

“There were important lung-function benefits associated with [Spiriva] that were maintained during the four years,” Tashkin and colleagues note. “[Spiriva] reduced respiratory mortality — including a decreased risk of respiratory failure — and reduced cardiac mortality.”

Is pineapple good for COPD?

Can spiriva make breathing worse?

SPIRIVA RESPIMAT can cause your breathing to suddenly get worse (bronchospasm). If this happens, use your rescue inhaler, stop taking SPIRIVA RESPIMAT, and call your doctor right away or seek emergency medical care.

Is Spiriva being discontinued?

What is better than Spiriva?

Although there are no exact clinical studies concerning comparisons on which of these two is better, many patients have reported that Anoro Ellipta works better and is more effective than Spiriva Respimat.

Is there an alternative to Spiriva?

PUR0200 is a once-daily investigative inhaler medicine and is being developed as an alternative to Spiriva HandiHaler (marketed by Boehringer Ingelheim), which was first approved in the U.S. for the treatment of COPD in 2004.

Why is tiotropium long acting?

SPIRIVA is a long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMA) that further increases bronchodilation over ICS/LABA by targeting the cholinergic pathway through the M3 receptors.

Is spiriva a preventer or reliever?

SPIRIVA RESPIMAT, 1.25 mcg, is a bronchodilator indicated for the long-term, once-daily, maintenance treatment of asthma in patients 6 years of age and older.


OVERVIEW 2019OVERVIEW 2019:Uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the U.S. presidential and congressional elections will shape the actions and decisions of countries around the world in 2020.

A contentious election year in the United States means that even as other nations deal with their own domestic, regional and global concerns, they must take into account the opportunities and risks in decisions that overlap U.S. interests, considering the possible dramatic post-election change in U.S. posture.

“Rogue” nations such as Iran and North Korea, and non-state actors including the Taliban and the Islamic State, will assess ways in which they might leverage their behavior to exploit perceived weaknesses in U.S. foreign policy, while also calculating the risks or benefits in making deals with the Trump administration, or waiting for a possible change in U.S. leadership. If they press to accelerate a U.S. response in their favor,  the risk of aggressive posturing to include military and militant action will grow along with the likelihood of miscalculation of U.S. responses to aggressive tactics.

View our Blog: https://ensembleias.com/blog/

China, Russia and other U.S. competitors, as well as Washington’s partners in Europe and Asia, will approach making or rejecting commitments with the United States in 2020 with more caution until there is certainty about the next administration. These countries will consider their much longer-term relationship with the United States, seeking to avoid obligations that could get overturned or taking actions that assume a change of White House leadership.

Whereas Stratfor’s 2019 forecast highlighted several challenges to global economic growth, in 2020, we are less sanguine about the ability of the world to avoid localized economic shocks. Social and political stresses stemming from slowing Chinese economic growth rates, rising protests over social inequality and economic austerity programs across Latin America, North Africa and the Middle East — exacerbated by sluggish commodity prices — and Brexit-related uncertainty could contribute to localized economic instability.

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Uncertainty over the status of global trade agreements and the limited effectiveness of fiscal and monetary tools available to governments already running at extremely low interest rates will compound these local issues. While a single crisis at one time would be largely manageable, should crises occur in rapid succession or economic instability overlap in several places at once, it could rapidly snowball with global effect. Though we expect some partial easing of U.S.-China trade tensions, the deeper systemic differences between the two will not be resolved in 2020, if at all. The differing economic agendas of the United States, China and Europe leave little room for cooperation, increasing global economic risks.

A growing global competition centered on technological development will intensify political battles and further strain economic stability. The U.S. elections will further highlight the use of social media and other mass communication tools to spread disinformation and sow discord. Competition over technology supply chains, and differing regulatory constructs surrounding the intersection of national security, personal privacy and business interests, will likely leave the United States, China and Europe even further apart than they are today, putting global technology supply chains under stress, further increasing economic espionage and highlighting the stark differences in approach to forming a global regulatory consensus.

Source : Google

#china #russia #us #india #growing #proximity  #icons #political_class #blog #current_affairs #daily_updates #free #editorial #geographyoptional #upsc2020 #ias #k_siddharthasir #ensembleiasacademy


3301 Cottman Avenue, Philadelphia PA 19149

215-624-5150 | 215-624-3302

Olli A. Tervo, 39, went to be with the Lord suddenly from natural causes on Friday April 9, 2021.

Olli was born in Finland and moved with his family to the US when he was 2 years old. Olli was a dual citizen of both the United States and Finland. He was very proud of his Finnish heritage, and people around him soon knew where his roots were.  Olli was exceptionally close to his friends, who loved him deeply and found him to be loyal and very generous.

Olli loved to travel worldwide and explore new places both geographically and culturally.  His personality allowed him to make new friends immediately no matter where he was.

There was no denying Olli’s true love for both music and sports. Like father like son, Olli enjoyed tennis in his younger years while also playing little league baseball and soccer. Olli was an avid sports fan just like his father. Major sports which he followed extremely closely were soccer (favorite team Liverpool), baseball (favorite team Atlanta Braves), Formula One (favorite driver Kimi Raikkonen) and ice hockey (favorite team Finland).

Olli was a man of many talents including cooking, as he was always excited to try new things, and he took pride in his creations which made him an excellent chef who loved to serve others.

Olli had a very successful career in advertising and had many great stories to tell from his work experiences in Helsinki, San Francisco, Atlanta, Miami, Philadelphia, New York and Washington DC. He was always looking to share and make new connections around the world. He made many lifelong friends and had colleagues who remember his talents, unique way of thinking, perspective, genuine nature, humor and as someone who always had their back. His last place of work for almost 11 years was with Wunderman Thompson Washington, DC as Associate Art Director.

Olli was the beloved son of Liisa (nee Haapa-aho) and Olavi Tervo; loving brother to Heidi Rivera (Julio) and Tiina Thames (David). Uncle to Anna, Alex, Andrew, and Ava Rivera; Walker, Mia, Elena, and Susanna Thames. He was a caring partner and friend to his girlfriend Tracey Macklin and leaves behind many extended family members and friends, who will all miss him dearly.

A Life Celebration gathering will be held privately by Olli’s family at his parent’s home.  In lieu of flowers the family has requested that potential donations be made in Olli’s name either a) to World Vision in helping to feed hungry children in different parts of the world by clicking the link:, or b) Patmos Mission in helping the children in the slums in Brazil/Fortaleza (Slummikeskus Taivas). Account information as follows: Bank: OP, account number: (IBAN) FI 02578954200084 14, BIC: OKOYFIHH, reference number: 61023, message: Lima Mission.

Please click on the link below to download Olli's tribute video created by his family:
(Press the download tab on the webpage to begin the download)

John F. Fluehr & Sons, Inc.

Funeral Home Serving Families Since 1898

3301 Cottman Avenue
Philadelphia PA 19149

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Telegraph Road

This is the current state of my painting of cormorants, taking the work of John Bellany as a starting point.

those bendy necks

I knew that I should paint the birds in layers, starting with a neutral of burnt sienna and ultramarine, tinted with rose, and then build in light and dark tones on this.

So what I actually did was this.   I mixed a mud of rose, viridan and whatever else was still wet on the palette and whacked it on thick with a knife while sort of dancing to the music of Dire Straits.  Cathartic but artistically challenged.

I had looked again at my first sketch and then tried to redraw the anatomy of the birds in chalk.  I corrected the sloping horizon.  I knew that I wanted to fade those background trees into the sky and bring a mass of smaller birds into the foreground at the cormorants’ feet.

Fishers Homage to JB

those bendy necks (7)

Someone kindly admired those bendy necks in a previous post.  This is indeed meant to be a strong point of the whole composition.  In a series of sketches, I set out to work out how the vertebrae articulate and skull and crop are positioned as the birds preen and watch their surroundings. I looked for lines of action and the relativity of shapes before drawing back in the plumage.  Here I must mention the excellent birdguide site which I used as source material.  Many people upload their photographs daily and they retain the copyright to their images.

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secondhand smoke

A new study published in the British Medical Journal has found that secondhand smoke exposure may impact surgical and anesthetic outcomes among children.

Secondhand smoke exposure is breathing the smoke from burning tobacco products, such as cigars, pipes, and cigarettes, and from smoke breathed out from a smoking person. It has a significant health effect on adults and children. In children, it usually leads to ear infections, severe and more frequent asthma attacks, and other lung conditions including coughing, sneezing, shortness of breath and lung infections. As well, children are more susceptible to adverse effects from secondhand smoking than adults. Besides general health, in adults, secondhand smoking may also complicate surgical and anesthetic outcomes.

A recent meta-analysis, published in British Medical Journal, describes, for the first time, the effects of secondhand smoking on surgical and anesthetic outcomes among children. The study critically analyzed multiple research papers based on children aged 0-18 years who were undergoing surgical or anesthetic procedures. The amount of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure was assessed via parental questioning, observation or measuring biological markers. Fifteen studies were categorized into anesthetic outcomes and twelve studies were categorized into surgical outcomes. Studies related to anesthetic outcomes included children with a mean age of  5.8 years, having had anesthetic procedures among a range of surgical procedures including general or mixed surgery, dental, ophthalmology, and urology surgical procedures. Whereas surgical outcomes category studies were focused on ear, nose, and throat (ENT) patients. One study assessed how the surgery of the child affected the smoking habits among their parents and relatives.

Anesthetic outcomes revealed that ETS exposure increased the risk of sudden and brief narrowing of the vocal cords or contraction of muscles surrounding air passages inside the lungs leading to difficulty breathing and coughing. There was slight evidence that ETS exposure decreased the efficacy of ventilation tubes along with other ear and sinus conditions. The impact of surgery more likely influenced the parents towards cessation of smoking but not necessarily completely quitting smoking.

Effect of ETS exposure on wound healing and infection among children is still not identified. As well, whether awareness of the adverse effects of secondhand smoking on a child’s health would promote smoking cessation among the general population is yet to be explored.

Written By: Alefyah Sunel, Medical Writer

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How Many Gallons Are In A 24 Pack Of Beer?

How many gallons of water is in a 24 pack?

1 gallon = 128 liquid volume ounces.

405.6/128 = 3.16875 gallons in a 24 pack of water bottles..

How many ounces are in a 24 pack of beer?

16Walmart Grocery – Bud Light Beer, 24 Pack Beer, 16 FL OZ Cans, 4.2% ABV.

How many 12 oz are in a gallon?

Different sizes of water bottles in a gallon: there are 16 water bottles of 8 oz in a US gallon. there are 10.6 water bottles of 12 oz in a US gallon.

Is it OK to drink a gallon of water a day?

How many bottles are in a gallon?

7.57For example, to find how many 16.9 oz water bottles there are in a gallon, divide 128 by 16.9, that makes 7.57 water bottles of 16.9 oz in 1 gallon.

How much is 24 oz of beer?

24 oz is equivalent to two normal bottles of beer, and it’s probably not going to be too much for you.

How much is a 24 case of beer?

Beer prices are the highest in Alaska, where a 24-pack costs an average of $31.21. Illinois offers the cheapest prices, with an average of just $15.20 per case.

How much water should I be drinking?

How many cases of water is 5 gallons?

Convert Cases to Gallonscasesgal511.25613.5715.7581812 more rows

How many 20 fl oz makes a gallon?

The answer is that 8 bottles of 20 ounces will equal a gallon.

How many gallons are in a 24 16 oz bottle?

Regarding this, how many gallons are in a 24 16 oz bottle? 16 oz to gallons = 0.125 gallon in 16 oz. 24 oz to gallons = 0.1875 gallon in 24 oz.

Is 64 oz a gallon of water?

Fluid Ounces to Gallons Conversion 1 US fluid ounce (fl oz) is equal to 0.0078125 gallon. … For example, to calculate how many gallons is 64 fl oz, multiply 64 by 0.0078125, that makes 0.5 gallon is 64 fl oz.

How much does 1 can of beer cost?

Beer Prices in AustraliaBeerPrice per bottle (A$)Boddingtons Pub Beer Can 440mL (4 Pack)$20Brooklyn Lager Can 355mL (24 Carton)$77Budejovicky Budvar Bottle 330mL$59Budweiser Bottle 330mL (24 Carton)$50230 more rows•Jan 4, 2020

How many bottles of water should I drink a day?

How many gallons are in a case of beer?

2.25 gallonsHow much beer is in a case of beer? 24 – 12oz. cans or 2.25 gallons (288 oz.). How much beer is in a half barrel?

How many cases of beer is 5 gallons?

1 gallon = 128 oz. so thats about 10.5 12oz bottles per gallon. or 53.3 12 oz bottles per 5 gallon. So if you started out with 5 gallons exactly into the primary. and you ended up with only 38 bottles., that is 456oz.

Does 4 liters equal 1 gallon?

How many beers is 2 gallons?

Enter the number of beers to convert into gallons. Easy beers to gal conversion. A U.S. gallon is a unit of volume equal to 128 U.S. fluid ounces, or about 3.785 liters. Convert Beers to Gallons….How many drinks is 2 gallons?beersgal10.0937520.187530.2812540.375Jun 8, 2020


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As of Monday November 23rd Durham Region is moving to the "Control - Red" level of the Provincial COVID-19 response framework. This means that league play is currently suspended. Please check our COVID page for information on how to access the ice for practice.

1:00pm Mondays
Convener creates teams every draw (approx. 3-5 draws per season)

Convener: Rita Jakym
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 905-725-3769


How long should a strength training workout last?

LINGUVIC: Your weight training session could last anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes, depending on what you’re doing. More is not necessarily better. You want to have a good program that hits your muscles without overdoing it. Your workout should not be more than 45 minutes — tops.

Is 30 minutes of strength training enough?

You can build strength in 30 minutes

Is 2 hours of strength training enough?

A two-hour weightlifting session six days per week may feel like a proper dedicated routine, but it’s just too much for most people. … The fact that you’re able to lift for so long probably means you’re not lifting heavy enough to challenge your muscles and efficiently build strength.

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How long should you strength train a day?

Strength training.

Training level Days of training

Is a 30 minute workout enough to build muscle?

Is it OK to do strength training everyday?

Repeating Workouts

Is 10 minutes of strength training enough?

The Verdict: For someone who isn’t looking to achieve CrossFit-level power, I think 10 minutes of strength training per day is plenty to gain strength and even out muscle imbalances. And it’s a great jumping-off point if you decide to push yourself further once you have a solid foundation and master proper form.

How long does it take to see results from strength training?

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How long after weight training will I see results?

Weight training results are almost instant, although you may not see the results as quickly as they are happening. It could be up to four weeks before you see an increase in muscle size. If you are trying to lose weight, you should aim for losing about two to three pounds per week.

How long should you workout each day?

Can I workout twice a day?

When should you exhale during strength training?

To properly breathe during strength training inhale on the eccentric phase and exhale during the concentric phase. Exhale while you’re doing the hardest work, and inhale as you’re coming back to your starting position. Properly breathing will make it easier to perform the exercise.

Is it better to exercise in the morning or night?

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How many reps should I do to build muscle?

How long does it take to build noticeable muscle?

How long does it take to get a six pack?

Be first


Home / Science / Does your dog know what you’re thinking?

Does your dog know what you’re thinking?

It won’t come as much of a surprise to most dog owners, but new research has shown that man’s best friend is a lot more likely to steal food when nobody’s looking, suggesting for the first time that dogs can understand a human’s point of view.

Dr Juliane Kaminski, of the University of Portsmouth, has shown that when a human forbids a dog from taking food, they’re four times more likely to disobey in a dark room than a lit room, suggesting they take into account what the human can or cannot see.

“That’s incredible, because it implies dogs understand the human can’t see them, meaning they might understand the human perspective,” she says.

Dr Kaminski ran a series of experiments in varied light conditions. In each test, a dog was forbidden by a human from taking food. When the room was dark, the dogs took more food – and took it more quickly – than when the room was lit.

Previous studies have shown that chimpanzees seem to know when someone else can or can’t see them, and can also remember what others have seen in the past. It’s not clear how sophisticated dogs’ understanding is in comparison.

Many earlier research papers have found that, for dogs, a human’s eyes are an important signal when deciding how to behave, and that they respond more willingly to attentive humans than to inattentive ones.


Is Decision An Abstract Noun?

Is decision a countable noun?

1[countable] decision (on/about something) decision (to do something) a choice or judgment that you make after thinking and talking about what is the best thing to do to make a decision (= to decide) We need a decision on this by next week.

He is really bad at making decisions.

What is an abstract noun?

Abstract nouns are nouns that you cannot see, smell, hear, touch, or taste. Examples of abstract keys: – key to learning.

What are 3 types of decision making?

Is problems an abstract noun?

abstract noun Definitions and Synonyms For example ‘thought’, ‘problem’, ‘law’, and ‘opportunity’ are all abstract nouns.

Is kind an abstract noun?

The abstract noun of kind is “KINDNESS”.

What type of noun is decision?

A choice or judgement.

Is Beautiful an abstract noun?

Abstract nouns are the noun which cannot be seen, they can only be felt. Abstract noun for beautiful is Beauty. There are many such other examples of Abstract nouns.

What is the verb of depart?

1a : to go away : leave. b : die. 2 : to turn aside : deviate. transitive verb. : to go away from : leave.

What is the verb of mockery?

mock. To mimic, to simulate. To make fun of by mimicking, to taunt.

Is importance an abstract noun?

Is decision a noun or verb?

Is decision a concrete noun?

The abstract noun of decide is ‘decision’.

How do you identify an abstract noun in a sentence?

Recognizing When a Noun Is Abstract The abstract class of noun is the opposite. We can’t experience these nouns with our senses. If a noun is abstract, it describes something you can’t see, hear, touch, taste, or smell.

What is the verb of decision?

verb. decisioned; decisioning; decisions.


As a tech savvy teenager with her finger on the pulse of the latest news and trends on the Internet, I lead a busy and important life. Since joining the vast network of social media, I have called for the arrest of Joseph Kony, worried for the livelihood of approximately 200 kidnapped girls, seen countless bare midriffs exposed in the name of ALS and lobbied for the incarceration of Ferguson officer Darren Wilson, all from the comfort of my own home. Each wave of activism is accompanied by a surge of identical profile pictures swamping my newsfeed, lasting for about two weeks before the images revert back to saturated smiling faces.

Oftentimes, people will eagerly support a cause, throwing their virtual selves into the thick of the hashtags and meaningful statuses, but will then desert the issue before a solution even begins to emerge from the dust of the media blitz. In the same way that goldfish can, according to urban legend, only pay attention to something for three seconds before their short-term memory times out, it seems that people are only capable of caring about a social justice issue for as long as it’s in vogue before the topic is left to die in the cold like an inadequate Spartan baby.

This sort of behavior doesn’t always stem from a lack of sympathy; most people don’t even realize the nature of their short-term activism. The blitz and split pattern is common among those with privilege, who often don’t have to deal with the direct consequences of the issue they are fighting for. They pat themselves on the back and bask in the glow of their recently posted heartfelt status, priding themselves on stepping up, caring about others and making a capital-D Difference. While the victims of a problem are fighting and screaming their throats hoarse at demonstrations day after day, those unaffected have the luxury of giving and taking away their support on a whim.

The short attention span isn’t necessarily anybody’s fault. There are too many things wrong with the world for an individual to be able to focus on every single one; it’s physically impossible to lead searches for the lost Malaysian airplane while simultaneously helping Emma Sulkowicz drag her dorm bed around Columbia and traveling around the world curing Ebola while on a bike to stop global warming.

Instead, people must recognize the underlying issues that serve as the cause of each recent event. They should realize that racism is not dead in America like we sometimes pretend, and that sexism is an issue that women face every day. They can be mindful of illnesses that don’t often make headlines, and they can remember that there are people in the world grieving for those whose livelihoods are currently at stake. While it’s ridiculous to expect people to take direct action in every single social justice issue, if we could all just take the time to examine each event, the resulting awareness can help prevent further incidents of intolerance.

It’s only natural for everyone to switch interests and focus on other topics — so long as we don’t completely forget the subject we’re moving on from. The key to making short-term activism count lies in remaining aware of issues that other people may face and being ready to defend and support them when the time comes. As removed as we often are from such issues, when big events make the news, what’s most important is not the sudden spike of passion and public outcry but the long lasting awareness and support afterwards.


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Sinopsis de AESOP S FABLES

This timeless collection brings together three hundred of the most enduringly popular of Aesop fables in a collection that will delight young and old readers alike. Here are all the age-old favourites - the wily fox, the vain peacock, the predatory cat and steady tortoise - just as endearingly vivid and relevant now as they were for their very first audience. While their lifespan over several millennia marks them out as one of the most enduring staples of world literature, they have also been the inspiration for countless other forms of narrative in various languages. For all their entertainment value - this is a world where even a lamp and the moon can speak, and mice taunt bulls - they have also come to be fondly regarded as a playful compendium of secular wisdom.

Año de publicación:2014

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December 20th, 2019

Peer Respites in the US

The US is facing a mental health challenge which affects large portions of the population and is growing. Many actors involved in mental healthcare associate this crisis with the traditional, hierarchical and institutional way that mental healthcare treatment is administered. Peer Respites have emerged in response to this challenge. They offer a place where people with mental health conditions can stay in times of crisis and receive peer-to-peer support from trained experts, who have themselves been mental health service users. Initial findings suggest that Peer Respites can be effective both in improving outcomes and in reducing healthcare costs.

The initiative

One of the community-based approaches to tackling mental health is already present in the US. Ever since the numerous legislative efforts to deinstitutionalise mental health and substance abuse systems from the 1960s onwards, there has been a growth of centres that have come to be known as Peer Respites. Currently, there are 22 such respites across the country, all of which have been founded by community grassroots organisations.[6]

These Peer Respites are voluntary, short-term, overnight programmes that provide community-based, non-clinical crisis support to people who are experiencing or are at risk of a psychiatric crisis. The Peer Respite centres operate 24 hours per day in a homelike environment and are staffed by people who have experienced challenges to their mental health. The idea is that individuals suffering from mental health problems can check themselves in and stay for a short period of time (between 3 and 90 days, depending on individual centres) and receive peer support and guidance.[6]

Many of the respite centres in the US have been founded since 2008, although some of the centres are older and were founded as branches of community peer support initiatives.[6] The Hacienda of Hope in Long Beach, California has elements of both characteristics. It was founded as a Peer Respite in 2014, but its origins go back much further, being part of the “Project Return Peer Support Network”, which has a 35-year history of furthering peer support systems.[7] Whilst many of the current centres have their origins in previous peer support initiatives and take guidance from umbrella organisations such as the NEC, the respite centres themselves are wholly peer-operated and peer-run.

Peer Respites are intended to operate as a mechanism for “crisis diversion” for mental health sufferers. Where individuals suffering from mental health difficulties would usually follow a path leading from “psychological stressors” to psychiatric crisis, ultimately followed by costly and often unhelpful psychiatric emergency services, Peer Respites try to act as an intervention in the stages preceding the use of emergency services.[6]

Peer Respites provide a safe place for people to go during a mental health crisis.[8] They are staffed and operated by peers, that is, people who have experienced mental health problems themselves and have also received professional training in providing crisis support.[5] The aim of Peer Respites goes beyond improving health outcomes and reducing the financial burden on emergency services. They are also seeking to alter the framework of how mental healthcare is provided to those with mental health difficulties and to create an alternative to the traditional and often impersonal model of mental healthcare administration.[6]

The challenge

There is a growing concern in many countries, including the US, about the escalation of mental health issues. For example, approximately 1 in 5 adults in the US (46.6 million) experiences a mental health condition in a given year; suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US, and the 2nd leading cause of death for people aged 10-34, and more than 90% of people who die by suicide show symptoms of a mental health condition; and the financial burden of serious mental health illness in the US amounts to approximately $193 billion in lost earnings per year [1].

Mental Health America (MHA), a leading community-based non-profit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental health conditions, has criticised the current system of administering treatment to those experiencing mental health conditions as one of the principal obstacles to individuals receiving appropriate care. MHA highlights the fact that many regions of the US operate with a rigid “medical model” of care, whereby people seek health treatment only when they feel objectively sick, as opposed to a subjective feeling of mental unease. As regards mental health, it is more a feeling of wellness rather than “visible” illness that is the concern of the patient, which is not immediately compatible with the prevailing medical model. This creates difficulty for individuals in the initial stages of mental health crises, because it creates uncertainty in identifying when someone should be seeking mental healthcare.[2]

At the same time, there has been a growing desire among US policymakers to move away from a model of mental healthcare based on psychiatric institutions.[3] This desire is also shared by stakeholders who work in or receive mental health treatment. This contributes to a growing demand for community-based alternatives for providing mental health support. But according to a 2005 report by the National Empowerment Center (NEC) - an advocacy organisation that promotes an empowerment-based recovery model of mental health - frontline healthcare workers often feel isolated and unable to air their views.[4]

These factors have together created a growing consensus that the hierarchical and intrusive nature of America's institutional model of healthcare stigmatises individuals with mental health problems, can hinder processes of social inclusion and recovery, and also places a heavy financial burden on citizens.[5]

The public impact

Due to both the isolated nature of Peer Respites and the often informal way in which they are founded, their relative success or progress has not been easy to measure.[3] Despite that caveat, the initial data does suggest that respites can have a positive influence in reducing individual reliance on inpatient and emergency services and improving the symptoms, social functioning and self-esteem of Peer Respite users. The authors of a 2015 study found that the likelihood of respite users using emergency services was 70 percent lower than for non-respite users. “By reducing the need for inpatient and emergency services for some individuals, peer respites may increase meaningful choices for recovery and decrease the behavioural health system's reliance on costly, coercive, and less person-centred modes of service delivery.”[8]

Furthermore, among those individuals who would tend to call on emergency psychiatric services, a longer stay of up to 14 days within a Peer Respite was associated with fewer hours of emergency services use.[8] Thus, by reducing the need for inpatient and emergency services, there is evidence that Peer Respites serve to reduce overall healthcare costs.[8] The findings of one study suggest that respite users cost USD211 per day on average, compared to USD665 per day for those who were hospitalised.[9]

With only 22 centres across 14 states, Peer Respites have a small presence relative to the entire infrastructure of US mental health and substance abuse services. Therefore, while the recorded success of current respite centres is encouraging, more research needs to be carried out to enhance understanding of their functionality.[10]

Stakeholder engagement

The way in which Peer Respites have developed means that there has often been a minimal level of engagement across the entire field of potential stakeholders. While some stakeholders, such as community members and mental health sufferers, have been engaged throughout the development of respite centres, other stakeholders, such as the federal and state governments, have had minimal engagement.

Stakeholders of Peer Respites include federal and state governments, mental health service users, people working in mental health facilities, pharmaceutical companies that manufacture drugs designed to tackle mental health symptoms, and the general public.

Due to their organic formation, each respite has engaged its stakeholders in its own way. Overall, respites remain largely isolated from key mental healthcare stakeholders, such as medical experts and federal or state governments. The Peer Respites are entirely a product of civil society action, founded, staffed and operated by people with psychiatric histories.[6] These centres utilise a network of knowledge and advice from umbrella organisations such as the NEC,, and regionally based organisations such as the Project Return Peer Support Network. While these organisations are able to call on an array of experts, their level of involvement from one Peer Respite to the next is inconsistent. As these programmes become more widely known at a state and federal level, it remains to be seen whether they will enjoy more involvement and support from state and federal actors.

Political commitment

State and federal governments have fundamentally failed to make the substantial financial contributions necessary to give Peer Respites nationwide coverage.

However, the federal government has made many attempts over the years to facilitate a transition towards community care and peer support centres. These include:

  • The Community Mental Health Act of 1963, which was instituted to provide funding for community mental health centres and promote community-based care as an alternative to hospitalisation
  • Reductions in the coverage of Medicaid for acute psychiatric care, such as the denial of financial coverage for inpatient services for persons between the ages of 21 and 65, known as the Institutions for Mental Disease rule, have forced states to use rely more upon community-based services
  • Federal disability laws such as the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act of 1980
  • Regulations implementing the US Supreme Court's decision in Olmstead v. L.C., 527 U.S. 581 (1999), which was based on the American with Disabilities Act and instructed states to use community alternatives to inpatient care, where they were reasonable and appropriate.[11]

More recently, the 2002 New Freedom Commission's report indicated that the nationwide health focus is primarily based on those with severe disabilities and general illness, rather than wellness. As a consequence, measures “have failed to serve the great majority of individuals who suffer significant but not catastrophic disorders”.[2]

Despite this, the federal government has yet to introduce a policy or initiative to expand Peer Respites, currently numbering only 22. The lack of a consistent model of government funding, along with the sporadic development of Peer Respites, has led several key stakeholders and advocacy groups to describe it as a “peer-run crisis respite movement”, rather than as a coherent programme or government policy. [9]

These initiatives have promoted a move towards greater community-level care. However, there is a need for a policy framework and greater funding, within which programmes could develop services to meet local needs. The deinstitutionalisation movement that began in the 1960s has certainly resulted in changes to mental health and substance abuse treatment, thanks to its promotion and development of community-based care. However, MHA argues that these care centres remain on the whole siloed, fragmented and inadequate.[2] As a consequence, access to effective, community-based services and support is, for many people, extremely limited.

Public confidence

While there is currently minimal evidence demonstrating the degree of public confidence in Peer Respites, there is some evidence of support - among mental health experts and the public - for the role that peer-to-peer community organisations play in tackling mental health issues.

The NEC, one of the NGOs championing the claims of Peer Respites, developed an approach to mental health called Personal Assistance in Community Existence (PACE). This approach is based on the premise that people can recover fully from the most severe mental illness on an Empowerment Model of Recovery and Prevention.[12] A national survey into PACE conducted in 2005 found that the PACE programme had changed respondents' attitudes towards mental health treatment [4]. The report indicated that a majority of respondents had not previously thought of mental health treatment as having community-based solutions, and that they would not be averse to seeing it administered in this way.

Clarity of objectives

Peer Respites have two primary objectives: to challenge the way mental healthcare is administered in the US; and to provide mental health service users with a safe space in which to support each other. They empower individuals to take more prominent roles within their community in giving early access care to individuals suffering from mental health issues.[6] is a website governed by a panel of experts with experience in Peer Respites and other peer-run organisations in the US and is tasked with offering information and guidance about them. Its view is that: “Peer Respites were designed as psychiatric hospital diversion programmes to support individuals experiencing or at risk of a psychiatric crisis. The premise behind peer respites is that psychiatric emergency services can be avoided if less coercive or intrusive supports are available in the community.”[6]

As Peer Respites have sprung from a grassroots movement rather than a government policy, the experts and key stakeholders involved are in full agreement about their overarching objectives. For example, the Monadnock Peer Support Centre in New Hampshire states its objective as: “to establish a culture in which our members and participants feel more empowered and less dependent on the mental health system”.[13] This objective is echoed by other respites, for example, the Monarch House Peer Run Respite in Wisconsin, which states that its objective is to “provide a supportive, home-like environment where people can explore, discover, and direct their path to healing and wholeness”.[14] Both of these respites, and others like them, offer a more welcoming culture than the institutionalised emergency service system.

Strength of evidence

Before the growth of Peer Respites - from 2008 onwards - there was a strong base of evidence in favour of peer-to-peer services for individuals with mental health-related conditions.[15] This is often attributed to the interpersonal nature of peer-to-peer care, where those involved with administering care or treatment are more sympathetic to the difficulties facing service users. [15] This outlook on healthcare, and the relationship between the individuals involved, runs counter to the assumptions of the predominant medical model. There is a lack of recent evidence on the performance of Peer Respites, which is likely related to both the small number of recognised Peer Respites in the US and the degree of inconsistency in their operating models.

One randomised controlled trial in 2008 documented self-rated mental health functioning and satisfaction for respite users compared to users of a locked, inpatient psychiatric facility (LIPF). The study found that the Peer Respite had a positive influence on its users' mental health: they “experienced significantly greater improvement on interviewer‐rated and self‐reported psychopathology than did participants in the LIPF condition [and their] service satisfaction was dramatically higher”.[16] Thus, there is a recognition that more comprehensive research needs to be carried out across the spectrum of currently operating Respite Centres to enhance understanding of their functionality.[10]

Despite the structural obstacles to reorganising the way mental health treatment is thought about and administered, there is strong recent evidence that Peer Respites have proved successful and financially feasible.[17] An investigation run by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) found that, overall, respite centres offered a less expensive alternative to hospitalisation. They were generally run at a 20 to 30 percent lower cost.[18] The presence of these respites in a community also has the benefit of reducing overall health costs, as 70 percent of respite users were less likely than other mental health sufferers to use inpatient or emergency services.[18] This view was supported by findings that average psychiatric hospital costs were USD1,057 for respite users compared to USD3,187 for LIPF users.[18]

Due to the complexity of the US healthcare system, and because Peer Respites are grassroots organisations, the financial model of support for these centres casts some doubt on their feasibility. The average income distribution of respite funding in percentage terms is as follows: state (46), county (35), Medicaid-managed care (7), federal (3), and other (9).[19] The majority of state funding comes from grants given by the Department of Mental Health and the remaining funds come from local sources.[9] There is a significant dependency on other contributors for funding and the capability of local communities to support Peer Respites has a strong impact on the feasibility of these initiatives. Also, there are significant regional differences in the feasibility of running respites, due to variations in running costs, property ownership, rental fees, and salaries.[17]

Since the deinstitutionalisation movement began in the 1960s, an evolving federal-state partnership promoting community-based care has remained siloed and isolated. This impression was supported by congressional hearings in 2015 and 2016, which concluded that the government mental health and substance abuse systems that serve people affected by mental health issues are severely fragmented.[2]

As a result, the development of Peer Respites has been sporadic and is reliant on grassroots groups, advocacy groups, and NGOs for financial support and guidance. Many respites come under the umbrella of larger not-for-profit organisations or NGOs, such as the NEC.[20] These organisations act as advocates for peer-based mental health support, seeking to share and further best practice among the Peer Respite community. In regard to funding, many respites turn to SAMHSA, the federal organisation responsible for providing leadership, resources and funding for “efforts to enhance the mental health of the nation”, in order to apply for grants.[21]

As stated in Feasibility above, the management and implementation of Peer Respites has varied from place to place. For example, the Georgia Peer Support and Wellness Center allows for a maximum of 3 guests to stay up to 7 days, whereas the New Beginnings Center in West Virginia allows a maximum of 8 guests to stay for up to 90 days. While these differences help each respite to develop its distinct organisational culture and healing environment, they can lead to complications in measuring respites' applicability and effectiveness.

Because current Peer Respites are created informally and without governmental direction, they can be isolated from one another and have subtle differences in their structure and operation. For example, some respites require potential users to have full-time accommodation elsewhere whereas others do not, and respites vary in the maximum stay they offer their users (see Management above). These differences make measuring the implementation of Peer Respites more difficult.

However, there is consensus between Peer Respite stakeholders that in order for the programme to gain favour with policymakers, and to ensure that best practice is disseminated, they must be able to track their own progress.[9] Several organisations, such as and the NEC, are also involved in assessing and circulating this feedback among relevant stakeholders and prospective respite centres in order to track progress more accurately.[6][20]

One of the reasons that Peer Respites have failed to gain ground in the US is that their potential stakeholders are pulling in different directions. As detailed above (see The Challenge), the current model of healthcare provision places an emphasis on the treatment of mental illnesses through pharmaceutical prescription drugs.[2] Indeed, the drug lobby in the US has been extremely successful in promoting some of its solutions for an array of mental health concerns over the past 30 years.[2] This may lead some lobbyists and politicians to favour hierarchical medical care, and it impedes the adoption of peer support mechanisms that are advocated by many mental health workers, mental health users, and policymakers.

Consequently, as of 2016, there were only 22 Peer Respites, in just 14 of the US's 50 states. This low number relative to the size of the nation and the urgency of the country's mental health issues indicates the difficulties of creating new Peer Respites within the US mental healthcare system.

[1] Mental Health By The Numbers, National Alliance on Mental Illness,, Accessed 4 September 2019

[2] Position Statement 14: The Federal Government's Responsibilities for Mental Health Services, 9 September 2016, Mental Health America,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[3] Peer Respites: A Research and Practice Agenda, Laysha Ostrow and Bevin Croft, 1 June 2015, Human Services Research Institute,, Accessed 8 August 2019

[4] How the PACE Program Builds a Recovery-Transformed System: Results from a National Survey, J.H. Zahniser, L. Ahern and D. Fisher, 2005, Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 29(2), 142-145,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[5] Peer Respite Crisis Respites: Research & Practice Initiatives in the United States, Laysha Ostrow, March 13 2014, Lived Experience Research Network,, Accessed 8 August 2019

[6] Peer Respites: Action and Evaluation, Live & Learn, Inc.,, Accessed 8 August 2019

[7] History, Project Return Peer Support Network,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[8] Impact of the 2nd story peer respite program on use of inpatient and emergency services, B. Croft and N. Isvan, June 2015, Human Services Research Institute,, Accessed 8 August 2019

[9] A Case Study of the Peer-Run Crisis Respite Organizing Process in Massachusetts, Laysha Ostrow, Spring 2010, Heller School for Social Policy and Management,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[10] Leadership and Characteristics of Nonprofit Mental Health Peer-Run Organizations Nationwide, Laysha Ostrow and Stephania L. Hayes, February 2015, Psychiatry Online,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[11] Civil Commitment and the Mental Health Care Continuum: Historical Trends and Principles for Law and Practice, 2019, SAMHSA,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[12] Recovery at your own PACE (Personal Assistance in Community Existence), Ahern L., Fisher D., 2001, Journal of Psychosocial Nursing Mental Health Services,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[13] Who We Are, Monadnock Peer Support, Accessed 15 August 2019

[14] Monarch House Peer Run Respite, Wisconsin, Milkweed Alliance,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[15] Peer Support Services for Individuals With Serious Mental Illnesses: Assessing the Evidence, Matthew Chinman et al, 2014, Psychiatric Services,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[16] A randomized trial of a mental health consumer-managed alternative to civil commitment for acute psychiatric crisis, T.K. Greenfield, B.C. Stoneking, K. Humphreys, E. Sundby and J. Bond, 2008, American Journal of Community Psychology,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[17] "So You Want To Start a Peer-Run Respite?" Daniel B. Fisher, Rigel Flaherty, Daniel Hazen and Steve Miccio, October 2011, YouTube Webinar,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[18] Peer-run Respites: An Effective Crisis Alternative, Daniel B. Fisher, Bevin Croft, Val Neff, Camille Dennis, Jayme Lynch and RoslindHayes, SAMHSA,,Accessed 15 August 2019

[19] Results from the 2016 Peer Respite Essential Features Survey, Laysha Ostrow and Bevin Croft,,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[20] Programs and Services, National Empowerment Center,, Accessed 15 August 2019

[21] Who Are We, SAMHSA, Accessed 15 August 2019

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Opinions of Wednesday, 14 April 2021

Columnist: Sadiq Adu-Twum

Understanding Terrorism: Building terrorist immune communities

In 2019 about 13,826 deaths were recorded from terrorist attacks. Terrorism is a canker destroying the African continent and the world at large. Despite its long history, terrorism is likely to continue posing a serious threat to our communities and occupy policy makers for the foreseeable future.

There is a strong disagreement between practitioners and scholars over both the meaning of terrorism and which groups and actions can be considered” terrorist” in nature. For some, terrorists are national liberation heroes and “freedom fighters.” Despite divergent views, policymakers, scholars and practitioners agree that ‘terrorism’ is a distinct form of political violence distinct from ‘violent crimes.’ Terrorism, operationally, is the use of violence by non-state actors, directed at civilians, with the intent of achieving an ultimate political objective.

The motivation of the terrorist act aimed to affect political change by using unconventional violence designed to shock, gain publicity and instill fear among the people. Viewing terrorism as politically motivated and as a form of a political expression raises the question: Does the level of available political freedom affect the likelihood of terrorism? Although terrorism is not a new phenomenon, it has become a more serious concern in the last few decades.

The openness of modern society and the availability of new means of communications, and transportation allow terrorists to operate not only within the confines of the nation-state but also transnationally. Although terrorism seems to be falling in most regions, it has become more widespread in others. Seven of the ten countries with the most increase in terrorism is in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The increased frequency and intensity of terrorism over the last three decades has generated a considerable level of concern by various governments over their internal security architecture in combating the menace.

Imperatively, the characteristics and nature of the attacker, the purpose of the attack, and the nature of the victim or victims provide a specific set of terrorism requirements as follows;

First, the perpetrators of terrorism must be non-state actors seeking to change the established order in some fashion which excludes incidences that are commonly referred to as ‘state terror,’ where a government or its representatives perpetrate illegitimate violence against civilians through clandestine agencies or by funneling arms and other forms of support to terrorist groups.

Second, the violence perpetrated by the non-state actors normally directed towards non-security civilians. This is perhaps the integral part of terrorism that is most habitually ignored by nation states. But many countries tend to view any attacks on their security installation or personnel as terrorism.

Third, there must be some kind of overarching political objective behind terrorist violence. This adds an element of precaution to the act of terrorism, excluding random attacks by individuals seized with passionate frenzy.

Suicide terrorism tactics has been observed to be low cost. Bombings, kidnappings, assassinations, and suicide attacks do not require sophisticated weaponry, making such tactics attractive to non-state actors that do not have the ability to conscript a conventional standing army or purchase heavy weapons systems. 9/11 is evident, the attacks created an $80 billion loss for the U.S. economy while the operational expense for the terrorist group was only $400,000-$500,000 according to the 9/11 Commission report. Terrorism accomplishes a lot with relatively little expenditure.

Terrorist groups operate discretely among a civilian population, making government counter measures run the high risk of netting innocent civilians. This leaves policymakers in a bind when choosing to implement counter-terrorism measures.

The heavy handed government responses can serve to further estrange an aggrieved population by causing them physical and economic damage. Government therefore must balance the risk of being perceived as weak with the risk of increasing the support for terrorism among the group’s home audience.

Implications for Policymakers

A critical step in preventing both domestic and transnational terrorism involves the ability to identify hot spots that increase the utility of terrorism as a form of political expression while decreasing the utility of nonviolent political competition. Ghana, currently stand a high risk of possible attacks by terrorist and violent extremist groups within the West African sub-region.

The policy implications for nations, NGOs and IGOs seeking to prevent the occurrence of terrorism should monitor closely, States that have collapsed, or are on the verge of collapse, or are very repressive, because they offer few protections for those willing to participate politically in a non-violent manner and offer incentives for groups looking to utilize terrorism within, as well as groups looking for a base to direct outward attacks on other nations.

In addition, it is advisable that nations experiencing increasingly high levels of state repression be monitored as well. The insecurity situation that persist in Ghana today is a call for greater concern as alluded by the Chief of Defense Staff, Vice Admiral Seth Amoah in a GhanaWeb publication that, Ghana faces a possible threat of terrorism in the Northern region of Ghana.

We expect that nations ratcheting up their repressive actions put themselves at a higher risk for terrorist attacks, as well as increasing the likelihood that they too will spawn groups that attack transnationally. If upward trending repression levels are detected by other nations and organizations early warning systems, it may be possible for those other nations to increase security measures in their regional and international interactions with high risk repressive states to plan a formidable counter-terrorism measures.

Finally, when attempting to determine which repressive nations represent the largest threat in terms of spawning terrorism, it is expected that, the more economically free regimes are the least likely to be problematic therefore, governments must do well to fix very challenging economic issues, however, policymakers and practitioners should have a better understanding of how counter-terrorism, as well as many other applications, require community support and involvement to the fullest extent possible to build terrorism immune communities.

This is underlying fact remains that, the existing threat of terrorism is proof of the failed classical militaristic approaches, the time has come to integrate our communities into the practice of fighting the threat through inclusive capacity building programmes through a robust internal security system with much more focus on border monitoring counter-security systems.

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Overestimation of renal dysfunction in an elderly man

November 4, 2008
Cardiology Review® Online, September 2006, Volume 23, Issue 9

A 62-year-old man was admitted for spontaneous constrictive, intense chest pain.

A 62-year-old man was admitted for spontaneous constrictive, intense chest pain. He was not overweight (weight, 65 kg; height, 168 cm), but he had a 10-year history of hypertension, which was treated with diuretics and a beta blocker. He also had a history of renal dysfunction.

On admission, the patient no longer complained of chest pain, which stopped spontaneously after 20 minutes. His heart rate was 74 beats/ minute, and his blood pressure was 145/75 mm Hg on both arms. Results of the physical examination were normal. An electrocardiogram showed a sinus rhythm and signs of left ventricular hypertrophy with flattened T waves. The patient’s biological markers showed no troponin release, a moderately increased brain natriuretic peptide level (300 pg/mL), a normal D-dimers concentration, and a high creatinine level (200 µmol/L).

The suspected diagnosis was acute aortic syndrome, but echocardiography showed only left ventricular hypertrophy with normal systolic left ventricular function, and there was no valve disease or aortic abnormality. Results of a second biological troponin assessment performed 4 hours later were positive, allowing the physician to diagnose acute coronary syndrome, without troponin release, namely non—ST-segment elevation acute myocardial infarction (MI), according to the “new” definition of MI.1

The patient was treated with combination oral antiplatelet therapy (aspirin and clopidogrel [Plavix]), unfractionated heparin, and statins. Some guidelines-recommended treatments could not be given, such as beta blockers (because of the left ventricular dysfunction), and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, low-molecular-weight heparin, and statins (because of the renal dysfunction). An invasive strategy (ie, coronary angioplasty) was not recommended, also because of the renal dysfunction, and therefore no glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibitors were given.

In this case, the degree of renal dysfunction was overestimated. The creatinine clearance was > 30 mL/min/m2, despite the high creatinine value. Thus, it would be important to recognize this patient as a high-risk patient, not only because of his age and troponin release, but also because of the renal dysfunction. According to the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) score,2 the probability of death was 4% in the hospital and 10% at 6 months, and the probability of death or MI was 19% in the hospital and 35% at 6 months!

Despite the patient’s renal dysfunction and his high-risk level, it would be important to use all effective and guidelines-recommended treatments, including low-molecular-weight heparin instead of unfractionated heparin (or even 2.5 mg fondaparinux [Arixtra],3 according to the results of the Organization to Assess Strategies in Acute Ischemic Syndromes (OASIS)-6 study3; an ACE inhibitor4; an early invasive procedure (coronary angioplasty) after specific preparation and evaluation of the risk of contrast-induced nephropathy5; and a IIb/IIIa inhibitor in view of the possible invasive procedure.6

This case report illustrates the importance of accurate assessment of renal function in acute coronary syndrome patients. Sometimes, renal dysfunction is overestimated and leads to underutilization of recommended treatments.


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Reel Talk with Beard Award Winner Tom Douglas

C+C Communications

October 18, 2017

October is National Seafood Month, so for the next few weeks JBF and our Smart Catch partner, C+C, are highlighting chefs cooking on the front lines of sustainable seafood. Below, the team at C+C catches up with Seattle’s JBF Award–winning chef Tom Douglas on how a home economics class led him to become a chef and restaurateur, his favorite dish on the menu, and much more.

Every chef has their reason for joining the Smart Catch program. For chef Tom Douglas, sustainability is an integral part of his entire organization, from how his team is treated to where they source ingredients. As he puts it, “sustainability is about more than just a piece of fish.” So, for Douglas, joining Smart Catch was just the next logical step.

Smart Catch launched in June and is designed to help both chefs and diners access a greater variety of sustainable seafood options. Chefs who sign up commit to ensuring that more than 80-percent of the seafood on their menu is sustainably sourced. We’re jumping into our second round of Reel Talk with executive chef, restaurateur, author, and radio talk show host Tom Douglas to find out why sustainable seafood is a personal cause for him—and what he can’t leave the grocery store without.

C+C: Why did you want to become a chef?

Tom Douglas: I really enjoyed my home economics class in high school and thought I would give the profession a try when I turned 17. Low and behold, I took to it like a fish takes to water, as they say.

C+C: Why is sustainability important to you?

TD: Working to make something sustainable is part of the process of leaving the earth the way you found it, which is how I try to act throughout my life.

C+C: What is the most interesting thing you’ve learned as part of the Smart Catch program?

TD: I think it’s good to look at your organization from top to bottom, rather than to just look at trends or the “hot new thing.” The biggest takeaway from the Smart Catch program was the reminder to really look at every seafood purchase we make: not just salmon or tuna, but every single item, and make sure we’re ordering the best and most sustainable products.

C+C: What is your favorite sustainable seafood dish right now?

TD: Bristol Bay wild salmon, steamed with a bit of ginger and Washington Chardonnay, plus a creamy pat of butter, served over aromatic star anise sticky rice and sizzling garlic bok choy that we serve at our Tanakasan restaurant.

C+C: What do you think is the most common misconception about sustainability and seafood?

TD: Tracking seafood is both a misconception and a program. There is no reasonable way to track seafood that is frozen around the earth at this time. Your Pollock fillet, caught in Alaska, easily could have been processed in China, then put on a ship back to Russia, then back into the supply chain. We need significant improvement on traceability.

C+C: Knowing that the majority of Americans consume seafood at restaurants, what would you recommend those who are inspired to cook at home start with?

TD: First, I would recommend the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch app, so they know they’re buying sustainable seafood to begin with—then I would buy local (support your local fisherman!) and buy wild.

C+C: If you could have an unlimited supply of one ingredient what would it be?

TD: Wild salmon.

C+C: If you could give one piece of advice to an upcoming chef, what would it be?

TD: Your job is much more than writing a menu and cooking on the stove-top. Sustainability runs deep within an organization: how you treat your team, how you buy products, how you help your community. My advice is the simple fact that sustainability is about your entire business model, not just about a piece of fish.

Learn more about Smart Catch.

C+C is a communications firm that specializes in mission driven campaigns. Find out more at


Career Skills Training

Career experts have identified 8 career skills that will make you more competitive in the job market.

Watch these videos to learn the basics - knowing what they are is the first step to convincing employers that you have them.

Career Skills

Do you know the key skills employers look for in a resume or an interview? Watch this video where we highlight them one-by-one, so you can learn how to articulate them to future employers and show you're career-ready.

Professionalism is essential to employers because it assures them you'll react appropriately and make sound decisions when facing challenges. Understanding how to combine the Triple-A will help you prove you're a professional with good judgment.

Written Communication

Following the WHAT guidelines on necessary details and context and the HOW's around Tone, Clarity, and Organization will improve your written communication - a skill you need to succeed no matter what you do.

Oral Communication

Effective oral communication starts with speaking on-topic, with context-appropriate energy, and honesty. Equally crucial to the way you speak, if not more, is your ability to listen through your body language, eye contact, and asking questions.

Strong collaborators are team players who acknowledge others' efforts, keep a positive outlook, and navigate disagreements by respecting their teammates' ideas. They use cc-power to create transparency and always keep the big-picture in mind by balancing their work with their working relationships.

You don't need to manage others to be a leader, but you should know the 3 key ingredients in Leadership TEA - Trust, Empathy, and Adaptability. We’ll go over the 2P's for building trust (Proximity and Protection), offer 3 ways to practice empathy, and suggest how to get more comfortable with ambiguity.

Problem Solving

Effective problem solving happens when we take these 4 simple steps to 1) identify the problem, 2) consult information, 3) analyze options, and 4) develop solutions. ICAD is an acronym for this process. But following ICAD, or another common tool alone isn’t enough. You must also think critically by asking good questions, like the ones we cover in this video.

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Biden to NATO Allies: 'We Will Respond to Any Aggression'

Vice president's visit is intended to reassure Poland and the Baltics that the U.S. will honor its NATO pledge.

The United States will respond to any Russian aggression against NATO allies, Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday as he visited Baltic countries worried about Russia’s annexation of Crimea.

“As long as Russia continues on this dark path, they will face increase political and economic isolation,” Biden told reporters in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius.

“The president wanted me to come personally to make it clear what you already know that under Article 5 under the NATO treaty, we will respond. We will respond to any aggression against a NATO ally."

There has been widespread alarm at Russia’s explanation that it annexed Crimea in order to protect Russian citizens and Russian speakers. Many of the Baltic nations have a significant number of Russians living within their borders and historical ties that pre-date the Soviet Union.

- Alastair Jamieson


Germany and Austria go 100% renewable

In these two countries, Saint-Gobain has committed to all its plants and offices using green electricity by 2023-2024. The aim is to reduce CO2 emissions to 30%.

Germany and Austria go 100% renewable

In Austria, Saint-Gobain is marking an important step in its drive to reduce its carbon footprint. The Group has just signed a contract for the supply of hydroelectric power so that all of its electricity needs will be covered by renewable energies. This decision, which is part of the Group's roadmap to achieve zero net carbon emissions by 2050, will reduce CO2 emissions by almost a third.

The Group has also just signed a promising hydroelectric power supply contract in Germany. This will increase the share of renewable energies to 60% by 2021, 75% in 2022 and it will then rapidly reach 100%. The goal is to reduce CO2 emissions by nearly 25%.

"For Saint-Gobain, sustainability is an elementary component of our corporate strategy," emphasizes Raimund Heinl, CEO of Saint-Gobain Germany and Austria. "The switch to green electricity is therefore another important and consistent step in our contribution to achieving the ambitious climate targets." With this commitment, Saint-Gobain also wants to give an important signal to its suppliers, customers and the entire industrial sector.