LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) – Artemio was captured on February 12 by a joint police-army patrol in Cashiyacu, in the northern region of San Martín. The rebel leader was shot and injured by one of his fellow insurgents on February 9.

The Sendero Luminoso or “Shining Path” leader was not actually found until Feb. 12, with a badly injured and infected hand.

“It is without a doubt a very important capture, but the drug trafficking industry will continue operating,” Nobel Panduro, an experienced radio journalist says.

“Artemio forged strong ties with the coca growers and the trafficking ‘firms’, but his imprisonment will not prevent them from finding someone else to protect their operations, whether a member of Sendero Luminoso or anyone else who has an armed group.” Panduro interviewed Artemio in 2001, 2003 and 2006.

“Sendero Luminoso received ‘cupos’ (war tax payments) from the drug traffickers to make sure drug production continued unimpaired, which is why the Maoists attacked the antinarcotics forces and the teams tasked with ‘eradicating’ coca crops (by hand). With Artemio in prison, anyone who can offer the mafias security will replace him,” he added.

Artemio was born in 1961 in Camaná, a coastal town in southern Peru. After completing his compulsory military service, he joined Sendero Luminoso at the age of 20. The rebel group was founded in 1970 by Abimael Guzmán, who was captured in 1992 and is serving a life sentence at a naval base.

The 50-year-old Artemio quickly rose up in the ranks of Sendero; thanks to the military commando training he received in the army.

In a 1988 meeting, Artemio is seen sitting next to Guzmán and the rest of the group’s top leaders, which confirmed his status in the organization, where he was in command of the Huallaga Regional Committee where the main trafficking organizations active in the flourishing drug trade were based.

When Guzmán was captured in 1992 and declared the end of the armed struggle against the Peruvian state, Artemio refused to surrender. The Sendero remnant he led survived the governments of presidents Alberto Fujimori, who served until 2000, Alejandro Toledo who served until 2006 and Alan Garcia’s second term that lasted until 2011.

“The drug traffickers have lost a major source of support with Artemio’s capture. But the armed apparatus that he headed remains intact,” reporter Felipe Páucar says.
 
© 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) – Citing an unidentified Saudi Arabian source, the Times newspaper suggested that Pakistan was the country most likely to supply Saudi Arabia with weapons. Western officials were reportedly convinced that there was an understanding between the countries if the situation in the Persian Gulf gets worse. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, in the meantime have denied such an arrangement exists.

Both nations remain strong regional rivals. Iran follows the Shiite branch of Islam, and Saudi Arabia follows Sunni. The Times described its source for the story as a “senior Saudi,” but gave no other details.

“There is no intention currently to pursue a unilateral military nuclear program, but the dynamics will change immediately if the Iranians develop their own nuclear capability,” the source is quoted as saying. “Politically, it would be completely unacceptable to have Iran with a nuclear capability and not the kingdom.”

The source also mentioned an unnamed Western official as saying that Saudi Arabia would ask Pakistan to honor the alleged agreement “the next day” after any Iranian nuclear bomb test.

The West suspects that Iran is using its civilian nuclear work as a cover for a weapons program. Iran insists that its nuclear ambitions are strictly peaceful. The U.S. has used sanctions and diplomacy to pressure Iran on the issue, but has long refused to rule out military action saying that all options are on the table. Israel is also believed to be contemplating a military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Ambassador Mohammed Naeem Khan was quoted as saying that “each Pakistani considers (the) security of Saudi Arabia as his personal matter,” in a statement issued by the Pakistan Embassy in Saudi Arabia. Naeem also said that the Saudi leadership considered Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to be one country.

Saudi Arabia’s former ambassador to the U.S., Prince Turki al-Faisal, said in an interview in January with The Associated Press that unless a zone free of weapons of mass destruction was created in the Mideast there would “inevitably” be a nuclear arms race, and “that’s not going to be in the favor of anybody.”

He stressed that the Gulf States were committed not to acquire WMD.

“But we’re not the only players in town. You have Turkey. You have Iraq which has a track record of wanting to go nuclear. You have Egypt. They had a very vibrant nuclear energy program from the 1960s. You have Syria. You have other players in the area that could open Pandora’s Box,” the Saudi prince said.

Asked whether Saudi Arabia would maintain its commitment against acquiring WMD, Turki said: “What I suggest for Saudi Arabia and for the other Gulf states … is that we must study carefully all the options, including the option of acquiring weapons of mass destruction. We can’t simply leave it for somebody else to decide for us.”

© 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) – The worst offenders were Maybelline’s Color Sensation in Pink Petal, which had 7.19 parts of lead per million. L’Oreal Colour Riche in Volcanic had 7 parts of lead per million.

These levels are almost seven times the average level of 1.11 parts of lead per million found in the FDA tests. Other brands, including Cover Girl and Nars had lead levels in the 4 to 5 range.

IN spite of this, all the lipsticks contained lead levels that the FDA insists are safe.

“Our results do not show levels of lead in lipstick that would pose a safety concern,” the agency says on its Web site.

Some disagree, most notably the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, which has been pushing the U.S. government to set limits on lead in cosmetics. The group also wants the FDA to study whether there are dangers to having lead-containing lipstick applied to human lips, where the neurotoxin can enter the mouth and be swallowed.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics’ Dr. Mark Mitchell says there are concerns over ingesting small amounts of lead over long periods of time.

“Lead builds up in the body over time and lead-containing lipstick applied several times a day, every day, can add up to significant exposure levels,” he said in a statement.

The FDA says insists that there is no need to be concerned. “Lipstick, as a product intended for topical use with limited absorption, is ingested only in very small quantities,” the agency says on its Web site.

“The lead levels we found are within the limits recommended by other public health authorities.”

The Personal Care Products Council also says there is no reason for concern. Halyna, the group’s chief scientist, says that many of the color additives in lipstick are mineral-based and therefore contain trace levels of lead that are found naturally in soil and water.

However, Breslawec said her group would like the FDA to set a 10 ppm limit on lead in cosmetics.

“Although we do not believe that the lead content found in our recent lipstick analyses poses a safety concern, we are evaluating whether there may be a need to recommend an upper limit for lead in lipstick in order to further protect the health and welfare of consumers,” the agency The FDA says.

© 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) – Independent studies conducted in 1998 and 2005 found that the biggest buyers of ivory in Egypt were Europeans, particularly Italian and Spanish tourists. While western visitors continue to buy, the most recent study revealed that Chinese tourists, with a new consumer with growing spending power have developed a strong taste for carved elephant tusks.

“In 2005, the Chinese were hardly buying any ivory. Now they account for over half of all sales,” one researcher says.

The growing number of Chinese tourists in Egypt has increased significantly in the past decade as the two countries increase commercial ties and air links. In 2001, there were only about 100 Chinese expatriates in Egypt. By current estimates, there are now over 60,000 Chinese expatriates and 100,000 tourists a year.

Illegal Ivory traders told researchers that Chinese expatriates and tourists were their principal buyers. One vendor said groups of Chinese buyers would often spend $50,000 on ivory during a single bargaining session.

Lax enforcement and the influx of heavyweight buyers is reversing gains made against Egypt’s illegal ivory trade in the early part of this century and is now fuelling the poaching of Africa’s elephants. However, Egyptian tourism was down at least a third in 2011 due to political instability associated with the uprising that led to the ouster of former president Hosni Mubarak last February.

Egypt still remains a major hub in the global ivory trade. Investigators who surveyed two of the country’s main tourist centers found ivory craftsmen and vendors operating with little risk of arrest.

“Egypt is one of the largest illegal markets for elephant ivory in Africa,” the study noted. “Tusks are smuggled in, mostly through Sudan, and sold to ivory workshops in Cairo . (where they are) openly carved and displayed without any prosecution ensuing.”

Trade in ivory was banned in 1990. An Egyptian ministerial decree issued in 1999 makes it illegal to import, export, or possess ivory products, or to offer them for sale.

“The trade in ivory (in Egypt) is completely illegal without a permit, which has never been given,” endangered wildlife consultant Esmond Martin, the lead author of the report says. “Unfortunately, there is absolutely no law enforcement.”

While customs officers have occasionally seized elephant tusks at Cairo airport, there have been no documented confiscations of ivory items from retail outlets since 2003.

© 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) – The risk of birth defects such as congenital heart disease and spina bifida were increased for diabetic mothers. National guidelines already recommend having firm control over blood sugar levels before trying to conceive.

Both Type 1 diabetes, which tends to appear in childhood, and Type 2 diabetes, largely the result of diet lead to problems controlling the amount of sugar in the blood. Common problems in pregnancy include miscarriage and the baby being overweight due to too much sugar.

In analyzing data from 401,149 pregnancies between 1996 and 2008 – 1,677 women had diabetes. The risk of birth defects went from 19 in every 1,000 births for women without pre-existing diabetes to 72 in every 1,000 births for women with diabetes.

According to the report, sugar levels in the run-up to conception were the “most important” risk factor which could be controlled.

Dr, Ruth Bell from Newcastle University, the lead researcher in the study told TV reporters that “Many of these anomalies happen in the first four to six weeks.”

She added that the number of pregnancies with poor sugar control were “more than we would like.

“It is a problem when the pregnancy is not intended or when people are not aware they need to talk to their doctors before pregnancy,” she said.

Guidelines from the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence say women should reduce their blood sugar levels to below 6.1 percent before trying to have a baby.

Some figures for Sugar levels at conception with risk of birth defect was 6.1 percent for one in 34; 7 percent for one in 26; 8 percent for one in 17; 9 percent for one in 12; and 10 percent for one in nine.
   
“The good news is that, with expert help before and during pregnancy, most women with diabetes will have a healthy baby,” Bell says.

“The risk of problems can be reduced by taking extra care to have the best possible glucose control before becoming pregnant.”

“We need to get the message out to women with diabetes that if they are considering becoming pregnant, then they should tell their diabetes healthcare team, who will make sure they are aware of planning and what next steps they should be taking,” Director of Research Dr. Iain Frame, said.

© 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) – In 2009, 47 percent of those polled said there were “very strong” or “strong” conflicts between the rich and poor. In 2011, 66 percent joined that perception.

Significantly more Americans now see “very strong” or “strong” class conflict between the rich and poor, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center.

This divide has certainly been seen politically. Democrats along with President Barack Obama have spoken out about income inequality.

“Now, this kind of inequality — a level that we haven’t seen since the Great Depression — hurts us all,” Obama said in a December speech in Kansas. GOP front-runner Mitt Romney has in turn charged Obama with promulgating the “politics of envy.” Romney has said that discussions over the distribution of wealth were “fine” to talk about “in quiet rooms in discussions about tax policy.”

The topic of income inequality in the mass media has also risen significantly since the start of the Occupy Wall Street movement.

The survey also found that whites had significantly larger increases in perception of class conflict than blacks and Hispanics, rising to 65 percent from 43 percent in 2009. Seventy-four percent of blacks and 61 percent of Hispanics see class conflicts, increasing by single digits from 2009.

The perception of class conflict has grown. Thirty percent see “very strong conflicts,” which has doubled from 2009, the largest such increase since the question was first asked in 1987.

Grievances against the wealthy haven’t increased, with 46 percent saying that rich people “are wealthy mainly because they know the right people or were born into wealthy families,” and 43 percent saying they are wealthy because “of their own hard work, ambition or education.”

Suffering the highest levels of unemployment, the nation’s young – such as high school and college graduates — see class conflict significantly more than older people, with 71 percent of people aged 18 to 34 seeing “very strong” or “strong” class conflicts while just 55 percent of people over 65 see them.

Republicans see class conflict less than Democrats and independents, with GOP leaders have dismissed calls to raise taxes on the wealthy, calling it “class warfare.” Still, 55 percent of Republicans see “strong” or “very strong” class conflicts in comparison to 73 percent of Democrats and 68 percent of independents.

© 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM

Both have sponsored children through the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging (CFCA), a Kansas City, Mo.-based charity that works in 25 countries to pair up needy children and elderly people with sponsors. In the case of Kaiser and Carr, they each donate $30 per month that is allocated for their sponsored child’s education, clothing, nutrition, and household items needed for basic comfort and good health.

Founded in 1981 by Bob Hentzen and his brothers Jim (d. 1993) and Bud, their sister Nadine Pearce, and friend Jerry Tolle (d. 1995), CFCA is dedicated to the principles of Catholic social teaching. From the beginning, the founders saw sponsorship as a perfect opportunity to both provide ongoing assistance to the poor and allow the poor to share their gifts with sponsors in the United States.

CFCA sponsors and the children and elderly people they support exchange letters and photographs, building a long-distance relationship.

For Carr and Kaiser, though, long distance wasn’t enough. Like many sponsors, they decided they would meet their children in person. They left Salt Lake City Oct. 10, and returned Oct. 23.

Family celebration

Kaiser has been a CFCA sponsor for three years, supporting Sumanth Bala (8). She and Carr set out for India together, but when they reached Hyderabad, their ways separated. Carr, a member of St. Francis of Assisi Parish, traveled further south through Bangalore to a village in the Kolar gold fields where the girl she has sponsored for five years, Jaya Rakani, 15, lives.

Sumanth lives in a village outside Hyderabad. Neither child lives in a home with electricity or running water. Their American visitors stayed in nearby retreat houses and convents.

Before going to Sumanth’s home to meet him, lunch was planned at the CFCA Hyderabad office, and to Kaiser’s surprise, Sumanth and his mother came to the lunch to greet her. Later, they would travel to Sumanth’s house in a rural village in Warangal Province.

“I was amazed to find out that my visit to Sumanth had become a family celebration,” said Kaiser. “When I arrived in the rural village with Father Gade Prakesh, the door to their house opened and 24 family members came out. I was overwhelmed.”

She said it was very strange to walk into the house and find a picture of herself hanging on the wall.

Both Carr and Kaiser were surprised that some 8,000 people were in Hyderabad to greet the Americans, most of them mothers of children who were sponsored.

“So much is done for these children and for CFCA by the mothers’ groups,” Carr said. “They had arranged lunch for us and hours of entertainment. People did so many dances for us. How they must have practiced!”

Everywhere they went, Carr said, they were mobbed by children, some who have sponsors, many who need them.

“They live in tiny homes, so spare, but neat,” added Carr.

Accountability

Kaiser said she was impressed with the annual report supplied for every sponsor, and that CFCA Hyderabad has a folder for each sponsored child. In each folder is an exact accounting of every $30 donation.

Both women spent days near the villages where their sponsored children live. They were shown the CFCA printing shop and book binding enterprise.

Carr, who teaches pre-school special education at Provo’s Farrer School, was most interested in the Indian educational system. She also saw a community center where tailoring is taught.

“The Salesian fathers and brothers do so much for the abandoned street children in Bangalore,” Carr said. “And the Kolar gold fields used to be very profitable, but with prices what they are now, the fields are closed and the slums are very close by.”

Jaya and her mother, Carr learned, live with Jaya’s uncle in a house that has a shrine to Our Lady of Lourdes. Like Sumanth, Jaya is shy and has a beautiful smile.

After spending days with their sponsored children, the American sponsors met again in Delhi, where they saw the Taj Mahal. They shared their experiences – Kaiser had visited a leper colony where whole families live together.

“There was so much to see when we were among the poor that I felt a little out of place at the Taj Mahal,” Kaiser said. “It was an amazing trip, and I came home feeling closer to Sumanth. When I went there, I took him a little red fire truck that he carried everywhere he went.

“I felt a strong sense of community among the mothers,” she said.

Carr, who has spoken to groups about CFCA since she returned, is also sponsoring two more children, one in Mexico and one in Liberia.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) – A carbon credit is a license to pollute. Industries that emit carbon into the atmosphere, which is the leading human contributor of global warming, must pay money per ton of carbon emitted. The money has a purpose.

First, it raises the costs of polluting, so that industry has a financial incentive to minimize pollution. Second, the money can be used to do anything that reduces future emissions, such as fund research programs, technological improvements, or to “help people” to adopt low emission practices. 

It’s in that vague and murky world of “helping people,” where the speculators make their fortunes.

Carbon credits are a commodity, much like any other. They are both and sold and exchanged. Dirty industries must buy them, and clean industries can sell them. They can also be “created.” 
A company creates a carbon credit by reducing carbon emissions. One way to do this involves the third world. In countries where outdated farming practices such as slash-and-burn take place, a company can pay a farmer a few dollars to pass on burning part of the forest.

Or to plant crops that will remove carbon from the atmosphere. In doing this, an institution (government or business) can claim that they “created” carbon credits. And if the claim is granted, then those credits become the property of the company that created them. They can then use them to emit carbon or sell them for cash. How much cash? At least enough that there are entire companies devoted to “verifying” carbon credits. 

A single carbon credit isn’t worth a fortune. For example, most credits may be exchanged for somewhere between $3 and $20. An example: A company sponsors a girl’s school in the third world. Girls attend school instead of gathering wood for burning. The wood that isn’t burned is worth so many credits. The school gets a few dollars and the company, or the speculators, can pocket the change. Which on the corporate level can come to billions.

In 2007, the CO2 market was worth over $60 billion. It would be interesting to know how much of that money went to the third-world, but the numbers don’t exist. No matter, they would merely be an embarrassing footnote. 

The idea is that the corporate world supports third world development, but that isn’t what usually happens.  For the investment of tens of billions per year, we should see better farming practices, food stability, and a higher standard of living, but we see none of that, anywhere. What is happening is speculators are getting rich, and companies are still pumping CO2 into the atmosphere, the climate is warming and life is getting worse, especially for the poor. 

Corrupt governments and speculators have discovered that it’s cheaper to cheat the third-world poor and trade credits on the world market than to actually lower their emissions. Some of the third world emissions are in fact being reduced, but it isn’t cleaning the air in the industrial countries which is what these plans were supposed to do in the first place. So much for the climate benefits. And those third world reductions are actually quite small. A factory has a lot more polluting potential than a schoolgirl.

The poor are cheated because bankers pay them as little as they can to persuade them to engage in the carbon-saving behavior. The several dollars that ought to go to the students or the farmers turn into pennies, and the speculators pocket the difference. Also, the practice of creating the credits isn’t well standardized or regulated, so a lot of the credits are literally pulled from thin air. 

Ultimately, the third-world poor are being shortchanged. Worse, since the exchange of carbon credits isn’t actually reducing emissions, climate change continues unabated. It’s the countries of the third world, such as those in the horn of Africa that suffer famine and drought and desertification of their lands. They die while the rich get richer. 

The free market can be a tremendous force for good, but sometimes that market is hijacked by people whose ambition is solely greed, and without regard for (and often at the expense of) the world’s most vulnerable people. When that happens, we have a moral responsibility to speak out, and act. Unfortunately, we cannot count on the politicos or speculators to address the problem which they themselves have quite cleverly created.

© 2011, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.