Category Archives: Social Justice

Social Justice

Did you know that blood pressure medications may help to prolong the life of patients with pancreatic cancer?

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7 March 2022 – New study reveals that everyday blood pressure drugs may extend the lives of individuals with pancreatic cancer, a notoriously difficult-to-treat illness with dismal survival rates.

Note: A diagnosis of high blood pressure must be confirmed with a medical professional. A doctor should also evaluate any unusually low blood pressure readings.

These medications, referred to as angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor blockers, work by relaxing veins and arteries and enabling the heart to pump blood more freely. These drugs have been found in animal studies to reduce the development of pancreatic cancer. Numerous tiny human investigations imply the same phenomenon, but the sample sizes were insufficient to make firm conclusions. The new study analyzed data on 3.7 million persons in Italy and discovered 8,158 cases of pancreatic cancer reported between 2003 and 2011. The research, published in the journal BMC Cancer last month, discovered that most of these individuals died within about six months after diagnosis. Patients who received ARBs after a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer had a 20% decreased risk of death compared to identify patients who did not get ARBs. ARB users showed a 28% decreased risk of death in a smaller cohort of individuals who had cancer surgery. Patients with pancreatic cancer who used ACE inhibitors had a 13% decreased risk of death during the first three years after diagnosis, but this effect diminished with time. “ARBs and ACE inhibitors should still be considered experimental therapies for pancreatic cancer,” research investigator Scott Keith, Ph.D. of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, warns. Timothy Pawlik, MD, Ph.D., also warns against drawing definitive conclusions from this research. “While the statistics are intriguing, they are not definitive,” adds Pawlik of Ohio State University’s Comprehensive Cancer Center. “Because the research is retrospective, it is prone to selection and treatment bias. Additionally, the data were taken from an administrative health care database, which is known for its lack of detailed clinical information “he emphasizes. Additionally, Pawlik emphasizes that research on the effects of blood pressure drugs on cancer risk and outcome is inconsistent. Numerous prior research shows that ACE inhibitors and ARBs may protect against some types of cancer, such as colorectal cancer, while other data reveal a probable relationship between ACE inhibitors and an increased risk of certain types of cancer, such as lung cancer.

Reference
Blood Pressure Meds May Prolong Life in Pancreatic. https://www.webmd.com/cancer/pancreatic-cancer/news/20220307/blood-pressure-meds-for-pancreatic-cancer?fbclid=IwAR0N3j-_pDSVcFXu7OajXAyv0dazqfaFh9hTGGzm9T_99iRsRUB7lSMYsZs
Diabetes Report Card 2019 | CDC. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/library/reports/reportcard.html

Social Justice

Was Pence’s veiled jab at Trump when he said the GOP will not tolerate “apologists for Putin”?

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As Vice President Mike Pence watches, President Trump, delivered a speech at the White House Rose Garden on April 27, 2020.

President Donald Trump speaks as Vice President Mike Pence looks on during a news conference on April 27, 2020, in the Rose Garden of the White House. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)

Mike Pence, the former vice president of the United States, stated Friday night that there is no place in the Republican Party for “apologists for Putin.” Pence spoke to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in an address to Republican fundraisers in New Orleans. Despite the sanctions imposed by the United States and the rest of the world, Vice President Mike Pence said it was time for conservatives not to back Vladimir Putin. What state would our Eastern European allies be now if they were not a part of NATO? “If NATO had not enlarged the bounds of freedom, where would Russia’s tanks be today?” he asked. A Putin apologist will not be welcome at this party. However, despite Pence’s lack of reference to Trump, he has been one of the most outspoken Republican voices favoring Vladimir Putin. Despite Trump’s insistence that the assault on Ukraine would never have occurred under his watch, Putin has been praised as “clever,” “intelligent,” and “a genius.” While Putin is brilliant, Trump remarked last week, “the issue is not that Putin is smart — because of course he is smart — but rather that our politicians are foolish.” Dumb. “It is ridiculous,” he said. Barr claims that Trump was responsible in the broad sense for the disturbance on January 6, 2017.
Pence’s remarks come at a time when violence continues in Ukraine. On Saturday, after halting evacuation attempts in Mariupol due to continuous Russian bombardment, Putin again lambasted the wide-ranging sanctions slapped against Russia by the global community. If Ukrainian and global leaders continue to fight back against the invasion, it will jeopardize “the survival of Ukrainian sovereignty,” he added of the sanctions. According to UN agencies, three hundred and thirty-one civilians have been killed in clashes between Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian separatists. Researchers, however, advise that the actual death toll is likely far higher due to the difficulty and risk of counting the dead in battle. In the wake of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, Republicans like former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have characterized the Russian president as a competent statesman who has “a lot of talents” to offer. In the wake of Lindsey O. Graham’s (R-S.C.) assertion that the “only option” to settle the conflict in Ukraine is for Putin’s assassination, politicians on both sides of the aisle lashed out at the Republican senator. While there is much unrest in the world right now, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov claimed Graham’s statements show a “hysterical, acute pressure of a Russian eruption.” The White House likewise rejected Graham’s assassination call.

“That is not the perspective of the United States government and not a statement you would hear from the lips of anyone working in this administration,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Friday during a daily briefing. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Texas, and Sen. Ted Cruz called Graham’s remarks “reckless” (Ga.).

Volodymyr Nezhenets, a 54-year-old volunteer warrior, was killed in a gun battle in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on February 27. It was decided that his wishes would bury him. Fox News personality Tucker Carlson has similarly shifted his tone toward Putin after first downplaying the crisis and asked Americans why they despised him. The conservative pivot on Russia has also come from Fox News. Although Pence made a veiled reference to Trump in his Friday address, the vice president echoed the former president and blamed the Biden administration’s handling of the Ukraine conflict on the Trump administration. Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was “no accident,” Vice President Mike Pence stated. “Weakness arouses evil, and the enormity of evil pouring over Ukraine speaks volumes about this president,” he says. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine was lauded for his bravery, and Zelensky said that Putin “only knows strength.” Additionally, Vice President Pence called on Republicans to support humanitarian and refugee help initiatives.

If Trump had won reelection, Bolton claims Trump would have withdrawn the United States from the NATO alliance. When asked about future elections, Vice President Pence said Republicans needed to move on from their defeat in the 2020 presidential race. During the tallying of the electoral college ballots by Congress, Trump continued to erroneously imply that Vice President Pence had the right to reverse the 2020 election. The “Hang Mike Pence!” scream that arose among the pro-Trump crowd during the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, fueled such bogus accusations. This election will be won if the Republican Party stands unified behind a vision of the future based on its most dear principles. “We can’t win by re-fighting the past or re-opening old wounds.”

Reference

Pence says there’s no room in the GOP for ‘apologists for Putin’ in veiled swipe at Trump. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/03/05/pence-putin-russia-apologists-gop-trump/?fbclid=IwAR2KLA9ZdTI6QDO_mmWrTl2JCxx8DxqjEUCgLKAWo_ZY0sU9oMW_I3Y8l7A

Social Justice

Could Wine Consumption with Dinner Reduce the Risk of Type 2 Diabetes?

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Consumption of alcohol in moderation may have some health benefits, including improvements in glucose metabolism.

Алик Фатхутдинов / Getty Images

A study published in October 2015 discovered that moderate wine consumption significantly reduced cardiometabolic risk in people with type 2 diabetes. For more than a decade, the study followed 312,388 healthy current drinkers who did not have type 2 diabetes. Consuming wine with dinner was associated with a 14% lower risk of type 2 diabetes when compared to drinking alcohol alone. Wine’s flavonoids and other antioxidants (ethanol can act as an antioxidant) can help protect the heart and blood vessels from alcohol’s damaging effects.

Due to the majority of participants being white, it is unknown whether the findings are applicable to other populations. Alcohol consumption is associated with both short- and long-term health risks, including motor vehicle accidents, violence, sexual risk behaviors, high blood pressure, obesity, stroke, breast cancer, liver disease, depression, suicide, and alcohol abuse. The more a person drinks, the greater the risk to his or her health. The risk of developing certain cancers and other health problems increases even at very low levels of alcohol consumption — less than one drink daily — for some cancers and other health problems. According to the CDC, moderate alcohol consumption can increase your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

For women, “moderate” drinking is defined as one glass of wine or other alcoholic beverage per day; for men, it is defined as up to two glasses per day. A standard drink in the United States contains 0.6 ounces (oz) or 1.2 tablespoons of pure alcohol. That is the typical amount found in a 12-ounce beer with a 5% alcohol content.

Reference

Drinking Wine With Dinner May Reduce the Risk for Developing Type 2 Diabetes. https://www.everydayhealth.com/type-2-diabetes/drinking-wine-with-dinner-may-reduce-the-risk-for-developing-type-2-diabetes/?fbclid=IwAR1vhW1NY0gNHUYhZR8_n-HQy0HklRtRh6PETI7KQkqwAyQP0sy4maIstmw

Social Justice

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Is Said To Have Withstood Three Assassination Attempts Within The Last Week

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The Kremlin has dispatched two distinct groups of mercenaries to Kyiv to assassinate the Ukrainian President. According to The Times of London, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has survived at least three targeted assassination attempts in the last week.

Since Russia’s unprovoked war on its western neighbor began last week, Zelenskyy has conducted business from a handful of bunkers scattered throughout the nation’s capital, having declined an offer from the United States to evacuate him. As a result, he is vulnerable to assassination attempts by teams of Kremlin-backed assassins. Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, told a Ukrainian television network that anti-war elements within Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) were instrumental in foiling several plots. Zelenskyy acknowledged in a defiant speech last week that he is “target No. 1” to “damage Ukraine politically by assassinating the head of state.” “However, we are not afraid of anything,” he stated. “We have no qualms about defending our country. We have no apprehensions about Russia.”

Last month, US officials warned that Russian forces had compiled a hit list of Ukrainian citizens murdered or detained in detention camps. According to reports, the Kremlin has dispatched two distinct groups of mercenaries to Kyiv in an attempt to carry out that directive. One is being organized by the Wagner Group, a private military contractor headed by Yevgeny Prigozhin, dubbed “Putin’s Chef.” The other is a group of elite Chechen fighters that Ramzan Akhmadovich Kadyrov’s Chechen Republic controls.
Danilov stated on Tuesday that a Chechen assassination attempt over the weekend failed and that the group responsible had been “destroyed.” Among those killed by Ukrainian forces was Chechen-Russian Gen. Magomed Tushayev, who faces charges of torturing and murdering LGBTQ+ people in Chechnya. “As we have seen in the past, we anticipate Russia will attempt to coerce cooperation through intimidation and repression,” a US official told Foreign Policy on condition of anonymity. “These acts, which have included targeted killings, kidnappings/forced disappearances, detentions, and the use of torture in previous Russian operations, would almost certainly target those who oppose Russian actions, including Russian and Belarusian dissidents in exile in Ukraine, journalists and anti-corruption activists, as well as vulnerable populations such as religious and ethnic minorities and LGBTQI+ individuals.”

Reference

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Has Reportedly Survived 3 Assassination Attempts In The Last Week. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/volodymyr-zelenskyy-assassination-attempts_n_62223f97e4b0bd1df76b3a74?fbclid=IwAR2B4MTER6lt65YaUy3jWlO4SznrVYVLWzoHMbZg8GPpPs6-MlyL4rckb-o

Social Justice

Do you believe that COVID is still here?: Immunocompromised individuals express worry following the repeal of mask regulations

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While the majority of the country is eager to shed their masks, a sizable portion of the populace is unable to do so.

Credit: Tatiana Ayazo

According to many, the most challenging aspect of being immunocompromised is convincing others. Durk Carlisle, 41, of Redlands, has recently discovered that wearing a mask attracts attention. “Now that I’m wearing the mask, I enter a building and notice that people are staring at me oddly. They are still unaware that I have a liver disease and hence regard me as being too cautious “‘He stated. However, you cannot be too cautious as a liver transplant recipient. Carlisle received a new transplant last year after his liver was devastated by an inflammatory condition. He is now on anti-rejection medication. “Anti-immunosuppressive medications are required to suppress the immune system. However, it also impairs the immune system’s ability to fight off infections such as COVID “Dr. Michael de Vera, Loma Linda University Health’s Chief of Transplant Surgery, stated. Around 3% of Americans are transplant recipients, and millions more suffer from comorbid illnesses that increase their risk. “Diabetes. Obese patients with heart disease and underlying pulmonary problems “As de Vera stated. Doctors encourage immunocompromised patients to use caution in crowded circumstances and to exert as much control as possible. “I want to underline the importance of vaccination. It lowers the danger of developing severe COVID, and the other option is to continue wearing a mask “As de Vera stated. Carlisle has had vaccinations and boosters. He understands why people are tired of masks, but cautions against forgetting how many lives are at stake. “They could transmit it on to another person, who could then pass it on to someone who is immunocompromised. And, unwittingly, they may cause a fatality as a result of their failure to wear a mask “Carlisle explained.

Reference

‘COVID is still here’: Immunocompromised people express fears as mask mandates are lifted.https://abc7.com/immunocompromised-immune-system-covid-mask/11614945/?fbclid=IwAR0oOE_RJaaPJ8ydo8Qj60ii7sAKi8xPWXoxNLdvGHTTEmS4MlgCKU0TaFY

Culture, equal rights, Ethics, government, Politics, Religion, Social Justice, White House

United States Supreme Court will hear arguments

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Amy and David Carson desired that their daughter Olivia attend Bangor Christian Schools, a private religious elementary through secondary school. Maine has said that it would not subsidize religious education. The United States Supreme Court will hear arguments on whether the state violated the Carsons’ constitutional rights. Carson v. Makin is the most recent in a series of lawsuits petitioning the Supreme Court for a ruling on religious liberty. If the court decides widely, it might have a profound effect on the ability of religious organizations to receive public financing.

Getty Images (2); TIME


It has the potential to “eviscerate” rules prohibiting public sponsorship of religious education. Maine parents have filed a lawsuit against the state for failing to include their favorite schools in a tuition aid program. Plaintiffs and supporters contend that the state discriminates against religious individuals. The case follows a series of previous judgments on public support for religious organizations. The case sets the free exercise provision of the First Amendment against the establishment clause.
According to some legal experts, Carson v. Makin is likely to become an extension of Espinoza. Officials in Maine assert that religious schools do not give an education “equivalent to a public education.” Carson v. Maine calls into question the relationship between religious liberty and LGBTQ rights. Maine contends that Bangor Christian and Temple Academy in Maine discriminate against members of other faiths and instructors and students who identify as LGBTQ. Advocates fear that government money may flow to discriminatory schools if the plaintiffs win.
Maine is just a few states that give this kind of tuition assistance to pupils who live in areas without public school choice. However, experts are concerned that other states may experience similar pressure from religious groups to implement similar schemes. This possibility concerns Americans United for the Separation of Church and State.

Reference

This Supreme Court Case Could Take a ‘Wrecking Ball’ to Separation of Church and State.https://time.com/6125676/maine-religion-schools-supreme-court-carson-makin/?fbclid=IwAR2y4KzyfGY6NuggKM8mZIgYpKYuhD_YqmKoiKzgnDJ7WUKGTBkFzCmgyW8

Culture, Ethics, History, human rights, Politics, Social Justice, White House

March on Washington for Voting Rights

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Voting rights are essential for all individuals. The March on Washington for Voting Rights commemorated the 58th anniversary of the March on Washington. Marchers are urging Congress to enact voting-rights legislation to halt the implementation of restrictive voting laws in states around the country. The John Lewis Voting Act would reinstate the 1965 Voting Rights Act’s pre-clearance provisions, lower in the 2013 Supreme Court case Shelby County v. Holder. The Rev. Al Sharpton, one of the march’s organizers, contended that the filibuster could not obstruct progress. Democrats currently dominate the Senate but have been unable to overcome filibusters on voting-rights legislation.

Washington march voting rights
With the Washington Monument in the background, the Rev. Al Sharpton, center, holds a banner with Martin Luther King, III, and Democratic Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee and Al Green of Texas, during the march to call for sweeping protections against a further erosion of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 on August 28, 2021. AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana


To enact voting rights legislation, moderate senators have resisted attempts to weaken or remove the filibuster. The organizers planned to bring attention to problems such as reparations for slave descendants and a $15 minimum wage. The march was led by New York Rep. Mondaire Jones, who has advocated for the filibuster’s removal.

Reference
‘Old battles have become new again’: Thousands march in Washington, DC, and across the US to push for voting-rights legislation. https://www.businessinsider.com/march-voting-rights-legislation-washington-dc-cities-filibuster-2021-8

Ancestry, Behavioral Science, Culture, equal rights, government, History, human rights, Politics, Social Justice, White House

Judicial aspect of race in the America

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Judicial Aspects of Race in the United States: A Nation Fighting for Minority Rights by [Kenneth Dantzler Corbin]
New book on Amazon

This book is about the Judicial aspect of race in the America. In the United States, legislation aimed at regulating interactions between racial or ethnic groups has grown through various historical periods, beginning with European colonization of the Americas, the triangular slave trade, and the American Indian Wars. Racial legislation has been linked to immigration laws, which have sometimes contained explicit clauses targeting certain nations or ethnic groups, such as the Chinese Exclusion Act and the 1923 US Supreme Court decision the United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind. In the antebellum period, all slave states and a few free states enacted similar legislation. Ozawa v. the United States and the United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind are the two most notable instances. Takao Ozawa, born in Japan and lived in the United States for 20 years, sought citizenship but was rejected because he was not deemed white. Americans of Italian and German ancestry and Italian and German citizens were also imprisoned, although on a far lesser scale, even though Italy and Germany sided with Japan in the war against the United States. In 1954, in Hernandez v. Texas, a federal court determined that Mexican Americans and all other ethnic or “racial groups” in the United States may have equal protection under the 14th Amendment.

Social Justice

Progressive to the New Administration

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Neera Tanden nominated the OMB candidate. She’s a prolific tweeter who has lifted both right-winger and left-winger hackles. She has deleted 1,000 tweets since November, reports Daily Beast. T and is American Progress Center chief, a liberal think tank. She is also the candidate to run the Management and Budget Office, a Cabinet-level post likely to require Senate confirmation. GOP has no leg to stand on she’s mean on Twitter” rap, considering the tone of the president.


Sally Kohn: Sander Tanden’s remarks on President Trump scandalize GOP. She says GOP has passed Trump’s Twitter-abusing nominations, including Ric Grenell. Kohn says it’s rich hearing some of Twitter’s most pugilistic people complain about Tandan’s tweets. She asks: Who’s the higher standard? Kohn, who supports Bernie Sanders, says Tandin’s messages aren’t as egregious or provocative as the president’s.
Sally Kohn: The prolific, divisive social media presence of Amy Tanden complicates her confirmation. She says it poses an interesting question: how do we want people to act online who are politically active and passionate? She says the response is “imperfectly, within acceptable limits,” Kohn says anyone on Twitter trolling and abusive might be the kind of person we want in power positions. She adds that as president, Joe Biden can choose his team — as long as they are eligible for the job. Why make this an issue?

Neera Tanden is being treated unfairly. https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/02/opinions/neera-tanden-biden-omb-filipovic/index.html

Behavioral Science, Culture, Ethics, human rights, mental health, Philosophy and Religion, Religion, Social Justice, Stigma

Pope Francis’ call for legal acceptance of same-sex relationships

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Pope Francis’ call for legal acceptance of #same-sex relationships has raised both hope and worries among #LGBTQ Catholics.

“What we need certainly to create is a civil union law,” the pontiff said in “Francesco,” an upcoming documentary from Russian American filmmaker Evgeny Afineevsky. “That way, these are typically legally covered. I stood up for that.”

Image: Pope Francis delivers "Urbi et Orbi" Christmas Day message from main balcony of St. Peter's Basilica

The remarks are a departure from earlier church messaging. Inside the last book, “Memory and Identity,” Pope John Paul II suggested same-sex marriage was “part of an innovative new ideology of evil.”

In 2003, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who later became Pope Benedict XVI, wrote that respect for gays and lesbians “cannot lead in any solution to the approval of homosexual behavior or even to legal recognition of homosexual unions.”

“Legal recognition of homosexual unions or placing them on a single level as marriage will mean not only the approval of deviant behavior,” Ratzinger wrote, “but would also obscure basic values which fit in with the normal inheritance of humanity.” It has not been long ago that African Americans and Whites could intermarry. At that time, some Whites believed that Blacks would destroy the white race. Now, we see that the Pope is making a bold statement. Why are some people concerned about others’ marriage when their marriage ends in divorce because of an unfaithful partner who may be practicing deviant behavior with an individual of a different gender or that same-gender, which leads to adultery? Why get in other people’s business if your business is not perfect? Who gives a person the right to tell others who to love when your Christian bible say, “save yourself”? What would G-d say about one’s prejudice toward a sister or brother who may not share the same beliefs? Are we better than the other person because we know scriptures and many times misquote them without knowing the historial context that time in which scripture was written? If we take the scriptures literally, should we be stoning people?There are gay people in our families, pulpits, professional life who are doctors, lawyers, teachers, nurses, firefighter, ministers, essential workers, and in the church serving in every ministry whether known or unkown. There are just questions to think about.

Reference
Pope’s civil union remarks raise hopes, doubts for gay Catholics. https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/pope-s-civil-union-remarks-raise-hopes-doubts-gay-catholics-n1244337?cid=referral_taboolafeed