Survival News Network

A former US lawmaker and a number of other human rights activists remain imprisoned in Israel three days after their failed attempt to break Israel’s Gaza blockade. Tel Aviv has kept most of the peace activists, seized at sea by the Israeli navy, in custody without providing information on their release. [...]

A British embassy employee is to stand trial in Tehran for "acting against national security" — a dramatic escalation in Iran’s campaign to blame Britain for protests against disputed election results. The man, a 44-year-old Iranian who is the British embassy’s chief political analyst, was arrested on Saturday and has been formally ch […]

Nine Chechen policemen sent to crush an insurgency in the neighboring Russian republic of Ingushetia were gunned down Saturday, Interfax reported, intensifying the cycle of violence now unfolding in the region. Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov ordered his troops across the border into Ingushetia to avenge a suicide bomb attack against fellow Kremlin appointee […]

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Friday rejected U.S. President Barack Obama’s charge that he was mired in Cold War thinking, setting the scene for a stormy first meeting at a Moscow summit next week. In a pre-trip interview, the U.S. leader told the Associated Press that Putin needed to "understand that the Cold War approach [...] […]

North Korea fired several short-range missiles toward the Sea of Japan on Saturday, an act that the U.S. watched closely and South Korea called provocative. Pyongyang fired six short-range missiles in less than seven hours, South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said. The missiles were apparently Scud-type, estimated to have a range of about 500 kilometers (31 […]

British nationals will not be forced to carry identity cards after Alan Johnson, the Home Secretary, scrapped plans to make the controversial £4.9 billion scheme compulsory. In a significant climb down, Mr Johnson yesterday announced that the cards would only be issued to Britons on a voluntary basis. The move raises the prospect of the scheme being [...] […]

Leftist President Manuel Zelaya was kidnapped and transported to Costa Rica on Sunday morning after a growing controversy over a vote concerning term limits. Over the last week, Zelaya clashed with and eventually dismissed General Romeo Vasquez — who is now reportedly in charge of the armed forces that abducted the Honduran president. According to the […]

…President George W. Bush signed legislation to pay for the war operations in Iraq and Afghanistan for the rest of his presidency and beyond, hailing the $162 billion plan as a rare product of bipartisan cooperation. Also, the United States announced that it was charging Saudi Arabian Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri with “organizing and directing” […]

This confidential US Special Forces (7th, US Southern Command), briefing dated 17 May 2009 was created for Florida Congressman Miller. Although unclassified, it specifies a For Official Use Only (FOUO) distribution restriction. On page 7 of the document, it is proudly proclaimed that the 7h Special Forces Group has conducted missions in every Latin American […]

Russia on Monday started its biggest military exercises in the Caucasus since its war with neighbouring Georgia last year, mobilising thousands of troops in a clear warning to its foes. Georgia swiftly condemned as "dangerous" the week-long exercises, which are taking place just north of where Russia and Georgia fought over the pro-Moscow breakaway […]

Chavez said Honduran soldiers took away the Cuban ambassador and left the Venezuelan ambassador on the side of a road after beating him during the army’s coup against his leftist ally, Manuel Zelaya, the Honduran President. The Honduran army ousted Zelaya and exiled him in Central America’s first military coup since the Cold War, after he [...] […]

The Air Force successfully launched an unarmed Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missile Monday from the California coast to an area in the Pacific Ocean some 4,200 miles away. The ICBM was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base near Santa Barbara at 3:01 a.m. and carried three unarmed re-entry vehicles to their targets near the Kwajalein Atoll [...] […]

Five out of nine local staff from the UK embassy detained in Tehran have been released, Iranian officials say. Iran’s media earlier said local employees at the UK mission were held over their role in protests against June’s disputed presidential election. UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband has dismissed the allegations as baseless. Separately, […]

As the continuities and disjunctures between the Bush and Obama administrations come into focus it becomes increasingly clear that while Obama’s domestic agenda has some identifiable breaks with Bush’s, at its core, the new administration remains committed to staying the course of American militarization. Now we have an articulate, nuanced president who […]

Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was seized by soldiers and flown to Costa Rica after he tried unsuccessfully to fire the head of the central American nation’s armed forces. “The only reason that I wasn’t assassinated was that the soldiers are from the people,” Zelaya said in comments on regional broadcaster Telesur from San Jose, the [...] […]

I mentioned suckers in an earlier post, saying that you can pinch them if you wish, but don’t have to – well, some people do not know what a sucker actually is. What is a sucker ? Suckers grow our between a tomato leaf branch and its stem.  If you pinch them off and stick them in [...]

It is a good idea to plant cucumbers in hills so they can vine in peace and do not get too crowded. A week or two after your last frost date, make hills that are 4-5 feet apart from each other on all sides, and approximately 12” in diameter.  Plant 6-8 seeds per hill. After 3 weeks, [...]

As tomatoes are most gardener’s favorite plant, especially but not exclusively amongst beginners, here are a few things that might be worth knowing about growing tomatoes.  If those among you who have decades of tomato growing experiences are unhappy with my information or have things to add, please feel free to comment Basically, all [...]

Via: seattlepi.com 1. At a nursery, pick up seeds, potting soil, and a few small pots or a window box (it must be shorter than the length of your windowsill-measure first!). Get a container at least four to five inches deep with a drainage hole at the bottom. 2. Fill container with soil and place [...]

We finally got our seeds, accompanied by a nice letter from FEDCOs, and what they are telling their customers there did not come as a big surprise to us:  Fedco has had record sales this year, an over 40% growth in seed sales, which adds to the 20% growth they saw last year…  At a [...]

Via: Seattle Garden & Kitchen Examiner A prolific garden can save your family a lot of money Food prices are continuing to rise while more and more products get recalled. It only makes sense that all of us considering ways to raise some of the food we eat. The more we food we raise, [...]

You might think it’s weird to think about the gardening season now, but it isn’t.  Even though your garden patch might be buried in snow right now, depending on where you are, you still need to get off your hindquarters and start planning now. 2009 might very well be the year when, for the first time [...]

Just a short note today: We recently talked to a pediatrician who told us that she is seeing a lot more cloth diapers these days than she used to.   Most people are probably using cloth diapers now because they cannot afford throwaway diapers anymore, but it is still difficult to get decent diaper covers in any [...]

I suppose most of you have made millions of apple pies in your time, but if you are looking for a nice online description of how to bake one, I recently found a well made page about how to make apple pie from scratch, with lots of pictures and ingredients for both a lattice and [...]

If you need storage that keeps your food cool without using electricity, a root cellar comes in very handy. There are a tremendous amount of different designs for root cellars out there – check out this site, for example: Root Cellars Their link to the garbage can root cellar is broken though, so here are some basic [...]

I got this information from snopes.com: The potato, the ultimate comfort food in Western society, has a disturbing secret. potatoes This trustworthy old friend so often invited to our tables can, at times, slip us a little bit of poison. The potato — or, rather, green versions of it — contains a natural toxin called solanine. The [...]

Via: Cleveland.com Q. What are the most important considerations? A. Know the square-footage of your home, or the room to be heated, to get the right size unit for that space. Buy the highest quality that you can afford, and have the unit installed by a professional who knows the system and can make sure [...]

Via: thedailygreen.com Save Money and Get Happierby Jeff Yeager One of my all-time favorite movies is the 1979 classic Being There, starring Peter Sellers. The late Sellers (of Pink Panther and Dr. Strangelove fame) plays Chance the Gardener, a simple minded but lovable manservant who lives his whole life cloistered in the estate of an [...]

Via: TwinCities.com “Tell me a farm story, Grandma.” That’s what Mildred Kalish’s granddaughter used to say when Kalish walked the little girl to school some 20 years ago. “I started to tell her stories of my life, and then it dawned on me to put them down for the rest of the grandchildren,” Kalish recalled in [...]

Via: washingtonpost.com As gardeners, we are at the forefront of the new Green Revolution. Thirty years ago, most home landscaping consisted of lawn, foundation plantings, a few trees, and perhaps a bed for flowers or vegetables. Plants were chosen for their color when flowering and their availability at garden centers. Maintenance included mowing, fertili […]

Via: NaturalNews A new study that was recently published sheds more evidence to what many have been saying for a long time, that DNA does not control the body or predestine you to being overweight, ill, sick, weak or anything else, but that the majority of our health and destiny lies within our own [...]

Via: iTWire An American study has shown that Old Order Amish adults–who have a gene that gives them a higher risk to be obese–reduce that tendency to gain alot of pounds by doing one thing. Can you guess what it is? It is known to the scientific community that the Amish eat a normal diet that [...]

Britain faces a projected 100,000 new swine flu cases a day by the end of August and must revamp its flu strategy, the nation’s health minister said Thursday. Britain has officially reported 7,447 swine flu cases and three deaths, but officials acknowledge the real number of cases is far higher, since many with the virus have [...]

Suresh Tendulkar, an economic adviser to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, said he is urging the government to diversify its $264.6 billion foreign-exchange reserves and hold fewer dollars. “The major part of Indian reserves is in dollars — that is something that’s a problem for us,” Tendulkar, chairman of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advi […]

European stocks dropped for a third straight week, the longest stretch of losses since March, as concern mounted that the economy won’t recover soon. Volkswagen AG slumped 6.3 percent, leading declines in automakers, after U.S. car sales fell in June and Credit Suisse Group AG cut its assessment of the industry. ThyssenKrupp AG, Germany’s largest steelma […]

The dollar’s status as the top global reserve currency is unlikely to be mentioned explicitly in the final communique at next week’s Group of Eight summit, a European G8 source involved in preparations for the meeting said on Friday. “It is expected to be mentioned and discussed remotely. But the discussions have not yet reached the [...] […]

Seven banks were shut down by authorities Thursday, pushing the tally of failed banks for 2009 to 52, more than doubling the failures in 2008. Six regional banks in Illinois and one in Texas closed their doors, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The rash of Illinois failures are interlinked: All six banks were controlled [...] […]

Just why is there so much debt in the Anglo-Saxon world? Bankers and regulators know well that it is in nobody’s long-term interests to have allowed borrowing to escalate to a position where the US now owes far more, as a multiple of the economy, than at the start of the Great Depression. The answer is [...]

Stock markets on both sides of the Atlantic tumbled on Thursday as investors took fright at a bigger-than-expected fall in US jobs last month that dashed hopes the recession was all but over in the world’s biggest economy. The data showed that the number of people in employment fell 467,000 in June and the unemployment rate [...]

The recession-blighted UK economy shrank at its fastest rate for more than 50 years in the first three months of 2009, official figures showed today. Output fell by 2.4 per cent in the first quarter of the year – much worse than the 1.9 per cent drop previously estimated – the Office for National Statistics (ONS) [...]

The Food and Drug Administration said yesterday that it had confirmed the presence of E. coli 0157, a deadly strain of bacteria, in samples of Nestlé Toll House refrigerated cookie dough produced at the company’s plant in Danville, Va. Investigators did not find the bacterium inside the factory or on equipment but in a tub of [...]

Britain suffered its second death from H1N1 flu late on Saturday after a 73-year-old man with serious previous health problems died from the virus in a Scottish hospital, Scotland’s health minister said on Sunday. “Although it is concerning that the patient had swine flu, we are aware that the patient had very serious underlying health issues, […]

A 26-YEAR-old Perth woman has died of swine flu, taking the Australian tally of people killed by the virus to five. She is the second West Australian with swine flu to die. A 26-year-old man from the remote WA Aboriginal community of Kiwirrkurra, west of Alice Springs, became the first Australian swine flu fatality when he [...]

A Colorado company’s recall last week of beef products possibly contaminated with E. coli has been expanded, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said this week. The recall came as a result of “an ongoing investigation into 24 illnesses in multiple states,” the USDA said. The initial recall of 41,280 pounds announced last Wednesday was volunt […]

Via: TriCities Q: I planted a small herb garden this year, and it is growing beautifully. Now that it’s growing, though, I don’t exactly know what to do. When do you harvest the herbs and how do you prepare them (cut, dice, chop, etc.) for eating? Actually, anything you can tell me would be [...]

cardamom, cinnamon To relive indigestion, heartburn and even cramps in a tasty way, sprinkle a little cinnamon and cardamom on hot buttered raisin toast, chew thoroughly on every single bite, and only then swallow.

Via: ezinearticles.com Apples can neutralize stomach acid. According to some experts, Granny Smith and Braeburn apples are great acid neutralizers and those who prefer natural remedies might want to give them a try. Apples contain malic and tartaric acids which naturally neutralize stomach acids. This reduces stomach pressure, which lessens the likelihood of […]

Via: Charlotte Alternative Medicine Examiner If you spend a little too much time in the sun without properly shielding your delicate skin, there are a variety of all natural remedies to help heal and soothe the damaged areas. * A compress dipped in a homemade cooling mix will help calm the sting. Try a mixture [...]

Caraway Here is a tee made from caraway seeds that will not only prevent heartburn and acid indigestion, but also, if taken warm, will help relieve uterine cramps, promote breast milk secretion in nursing mothers and help clear away mucus from the back of the throat.  You may even give small amounts of this tea to [...]

carrot, pineapple Drinking carrot juice usually give you a boost of energy right away, probably due to the high sugar content in carrots. But equal parts of carrot and pineapple juice even make a good energy drink for those with hypoglycemia.

honey, green beans, peppermint Yet another great use for honey:  Directly applied to herpes lesions, bedsores or shingles, honey heals these within a very short time. A pod tea of green beans works well as a remedy for herpes, cold sores, blackheads, acne and skin afflictions of a similar nature.  Wash the face or afflicted parts morning, [...]

Yes, everybody is talking about it, and yes, there are indeed herbal remedies that will help you preventing being infected by any flu virus. Vitamin D:  It seems as though an insufficient level of vitamin D make you very vulnerable to flu viruses, be they ordinary flu or swine flu.  Stock up on vitamin D quickly, [...]

Via: Detroit Holistic Health Examiner Try some preventative and natural remedies to cure spring allergies this year. Spring is often the kick off to beginning allergy season for many people. While there are many over the counter and prescription medications to control allergy symptoms, there are many natural cures that can effectively and safely [...]

barley, fennel, peppermint A tea brewed from these ingredients will calm hyperactive children if given in 1-cup amounts, when cool: Cook some barley in plenty of water.  Strain and save the water.  Bring 1 pint of the barley water to a boil and add fennel seed and parsley, 1.5 tsp each, then let simmer for 5 minutes [...]

catnip, chamomile A cup of hot tea brewed from catnip willensure a good night’s sleep for everyone who suffers from nervousness or hyperactivity, although I would not give it to children. To brew catnip tea, at a teaspoon of fresh or dried catnip to 1.5 cups of water that boiled and was taken from the stove.  [...]

lettuce, potato Mix half of a cut lettuce leaf with 8-10 oz of ice water until you have a green puree that resembles milk shake in consistency.  Drink slowly to treat acid indigestion. If you do not handle spicy foods well, chew a small piece of raw potato, approximately the size of your thumb, for a while [...]

anise, cinnamon, cardamom Anise tea serves many purposes. and can be brewed from about 7 tsp of anise seed, added to a quart of boiling water. Then let the tea simmer down to 1.5 pints. Strain. Drink 2 cups of the strained tea once or twice daily to get rid of heartburn. Believe it or not, there [...]

Via: Eat. Drink. Better. Ayurvedicaly speaking, the common cold results largely from an imbalance of the Kapha (water and earth) and Vata (air and space) elements in the mind-ody. Vata imbalances lower immunity and lead to a build up of the Kapha dosha elements to help ‘ground’ the system. However, Kapha mechanisms typically [...]

Via: thehealthierlife.co.uk Now in a combined study from China and the US, researchers say that regular consumption of green tea may reduce a woman’s risk of breast cancer by about 12 per cent. Tea has been used as an alternative medicine in China for thousands of years. In China, tea has been hailed as [...]

Via: NaturalNews Cold sores are caused by the herpes simplex virus. This is an extremely contagious virus and is spread easily by kissing or touching an active sore. Cold sores can even be spread by using the cup or utensils of someone who is having a cold sore outbreak. Natural prevention and control includes careful hand [...]

Via: www.prlog.org 100 Herbs of Power is an influential read detailing the traditional and medicinal uses of herbs for healing in a world where natural solutions are often overlooked. Author John E. Smith sees a world that has a lot of potential for harmony and beauty, and yet also a lot of discord and things [...]

The article below is full of interesting and unconventional pieces of advice, herbal and otherwise. Via: Star-Telegram.com Your body can throw you for a loop at any time. You wake up with a sore throat on the day of your office Christmas party, a seafood-salad sandwich leaves you with grumbling indigestion, or you overdo it [...]