Saturday, June 30, 2018
Hegel & Early Modern Philosophy - Adrian Johnston Interview (part 1)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtqH509dkeQ
As Interest in Democratic Socialism Surges, Ocasio-Cortez Explains to Colbert What a 'Moral' Economy Would Look Like
"I believe that in a
modern, moral, and wealthy society, no person in America should be too poor to
live."
Since Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's stunning
primary win over Rep. Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.) on Tuesday, interest in
democratic socialism—the label Ocasio-Cortez unabashedly uses to describe her
platform and political outlook—has surged exponentially, prompting corporate
TV networks to feature segments on the term and driving a record-breaking
membership boost for the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).
In an interview on "The
Late Show With Stephen Colbert" Thursday night, Ocasio-Cortez—who is one
of DSA's 42,000
members—was given a chance to explain the core principles of democratic
socialism to an audience
of millions.
"I believe that in a
modern, moral, and wealthy society, no person in America should be too poor to
live," Ocasio-Cortez told Colbert, who claimed that democratic socialism
is "not an easy term for a lot of Americans."
"So what that means is
healthcare as a human right," Ocasio-Cortez explained.
"It means that every
child, no matter where you are born, should have access to a college or trade
school education if they so choose it. And, you know, I think that no person
should be homeless if we can have public structures and public policies to allow
for people to have homes and food and lead a dignified life in the United
States."
While democratic socialism may
not be an "easy term" for Republicans and corporate
Democrats, a large percentage of Americans appear to have no problem with
the label.
Sen. Bernie Sanders
(I-Vt.)—who has self-identified as a democratic socialist for decades—is by far
the most
popular politician in the country, and polls have shown that Democratic
voters prefer socialism over capitalism.
In an attempted takedown of
Ocasio-Cortez's ambitious progressive agenda, Fox News host Sean Hannity inadvertently
demonstrated why many Americans view democratic socialism favorably,
particularly during a time of staggering inequality, soaring
healthcare costs, environmental degradation, and falling
wages.
"Many are hailing Cortez
as a rising star on the political landscape, but in reality, her views, her
policy positions are actually downright scary... Look very carefully,"
Hannity ominously warned in a Wednesday night segment. "This is the
future, this is the modern Democratic Party."
The camera then proceeded to
show a list of widely
popular proposals like Medicare for All as well as basic, humane
principles like "Women's Rights" and "Support Seniors."
As Vice summarized,
"Sean Hannity accidentally made a great argument for socialism."
Aaack! New Analysis Shows Superbugs Lurking on Three-Fourths of U.S. Supermarket Meat
"The public shouldn't
have to wait until 100 percent of the bacteria found on meat on supermarket
shelves are untreatable by antibiotics before the FDA takes strong
action."
A new analysis offers alarming
findings as many Americans get
ready to fire up their grills for the 4th of July—nearly 80 percent of
supermarket meat was found to
have antibiotic-resistant bacteria, also known as superbugs.
That's according to the
Environmental Working Group (EWG), which sifted through over 47,000 tests of
bacteria on supermarket meat, including beef, chicken, pork, and turkey,
undertaken by the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System in 2015,
the most recent year for which the data is available.
"Consumers need to know
about potential contamination of the meat they eat so they can be vigilant
about food safety, especially when cooking for children, pregnant women, older
adults or the immune-compromised," said report author Dawn Undurraga, a
nutritionist with the Washington, D.C.-based research and advocacy organization.
The high levels, the report notes, call into question the effectiveness of the
FDA's 2013 guidance calling
for reduction in the use of use of antibiotics to make livestock grow
more quickly.
Undurraga noted that "the
government still allows most producers to give highly important antibiotics to
healthy animals to compensate for stressful, crowded, and unsanitary
conditions," which are rampant on factory farms. "These non-treatment
uses are counter to WHO recommendations, and create a breeding ground for
antibiotic-resistant bacteria."
EWG also says the FDA
continues to downplay the data, even as warnings about the threat of antibiotic
resistance increase at the national and global level.
According
to the WHO, such resistance remains "one of the biggest threats
to global health, food security, and development today," and warns the
crisis "is rising to dangerously high levels in all parts of the
world."
EWG's new analysis shows that
three in four bacteria on the grocery store meat samples were resistant to at
least one of the 14 antibiotics tested. The group stressed that being resistant
to just one is cause for concern, as genes that confer the trait of antibiotic
resistance can transfer from one bacterium to another.
Specifically, the federal
testing detected antibiotic resistant bacteria on: 79 percent of ground turkey;
71 percent of pork chops; 62 percent of ground beef; and 36 percent of chicken
breasts, legs, things, or wings.
"Now is the time for the
federal government to get medically important antibiotics out of factory
farms," Undurraga wrote.
Alongside the analysis, EWG
also sent a letter (pf)
to the FDA, which warned that "there are alarming and growing numbers of
superbugs in supermarket meat," and called on the agency to take urgent
action to live up to its mission.
"Voluntary guidance is
not enough," the letter states. "The public shouldn't have to wait
until 100 percent of the bacteria found on meat on supermarket shelves are
untreatable by antibiotics before the FDA takes strong action. If the FDA waits
for this serious threat to become a true national health crisis, the FDA will
have been negligent in its mission of 'protecting the public health ... by
ensuring the safety of our nation's food supply.'"
In the absence of such action,
EWG points consumers to a short guide to
help avoid superbugs, which includes tips such as being aware of misleading
labeling, choosing organic meat, and using safe practices in the kitchen.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)