Two stories on Egypt worth reading:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n + An encounter with Egypt’s secret police at the height of the crisis. “We can be treating you a lot worse,” said one. We knew. We heard the screams.<\/p>\n “CAIRO \u2014 We had been detained by Egyptian authorities, handed over to the country\u2019s dreaded Mukhabarat, the secret police, and interrogated. They left us all night in a cold room, on hard orange plastic stools, under fluorescent lights.<\/p>\n But our discomfort paled in comparison to the dull whacks and the screams of pain by Egyptian people that broke the stillness of the night. In one instance, between the cries of suffering, an officer said in Arabic, \u201cYou are talking to journalists? You are talking badly about your country?\u201d<\/p>\n A voice, also in Arabic, answered: \u201cYou are committing a sin. You are committing a sin.\u201d<\/p>\n For the full article, click here.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n + America’s journeys with strongmen have a rhythm. Focus first on the benefits. The costs are paid later.<\/p>\n WASHINGTON \u2014 If the United States is, as so many presidents have said in so many speeches, the world\u2019s pre-eminent champion of democracy, then why does the drama unfolding in Cairo seem so familiar?<\/p>\n A Washington-friendly dictator, propped up for decades by lavish American aid as he oversees a regime noted for brutality, corruption and stagnation, finally faces the wrath of his people. An American administration struggles over what to say, what to do and what to expect if the strongman is toppled.<\/p>\n The agony of Hosni Mubarak\u2019s Egypt raises again the question of whether such a pattern can ever be broken. More than mere misjudgment or duplicity is behind it; the embrace of dictators has been so frequent over the last half-century that it obviously results from hard-headed calculation.<\/p>\n Every country has both values and interests. Sometimes they coincide \u2014 for example, promoting human rights can help combat terrorism \u2014 and sometimes they conflict. What makes the United States stand out, perhaps, is how frequently American officials proclaim their values to the world, setting themselves up for charges of hypocrisy when a policy is expedient rather than idealistic.<\/p>\n For the full article, click <\/strong><\/a>here.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Weekend reading.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n + Don’t use WebMD for medical advice.<\/strong> Use MayoClinic.com.<\/strong><\/a> The New York Times Magazine says of WebMD as “not only a waste of time, but it’s also a disorder in and of itself — one that preys on the fear and vulnerability of of its users to sell them half-truths and, eventually, pills. Where WebMD is\u00a0 a coproration that started as an ad-supported health-alarmism site with revenues of $504 million in 2010, the Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit medical-practice-and-research group that started as a clinic. … The integrity of the whole institution is on the line with this site, and the Mayo Clinic has every motivation to keep its information authoritative and up to date. Mayo\u2019s storied past as the country\u2019s premier research hospital, in Rochester, Minn., and its storied present as one of Fortune\u2019s \u201c100 Best Companies to Work For\u201d surface in the integrity of the site itself, which \u2014 though not ad-free \u2014 is spare and neatly organized, with the measured, learned voice of the best doctors. The byline for most entries is \u201cMayo Clinic staff.\u201d The integrity of the whole institution is on the line with this site, and the Mayo Clinic has every motivation to keep its information authoritative and up to date. Contrast this with WebMD, which \u2014 with every reason to amp up page views, impress advertisers and drive traffic to commercial sites \u2014 has the junky, attic-y look of your standard ad-chocked Web site. Amid so-called information about cancer<\/a> and depression are banner ads for brands like Crest, L\u2019Oreal, Bounce and Clorox.”<\/p>\n + Get watch battieries replaced by mail. http:\/\/www.watchbatterycentral.com\/prices.php<\/strong><\/a> Saves schlepping to the store.<\/p>\n + What’s behind skyrocketing food prices?<\/p>\n Droughts, Floods and Food<\/strong> by Paul Krugman<\/p>\n We\u2019re in the midst of a global food crisis \u2014 the second in three years. World food prices hit a record in January, driven by huge increases in the prices of wheat, corn, sugar and oils. These soaring prices have had only a modest effect on U.S. inflation, which is still low by historical standards, but they\u2019re having a brutal impact on the world\u2019s poor, who spend much if not most of their income on basic foodstuffs.<\/p>\n The consequences of this food crisis go far beyond economics. After all, the big question about uprisings against corrupt and oppressive regimes in the Middle East isn\u2019t so much why they\u2019re happening as why they\u2019re happening now. And there\u2019s little question that sky-high food prices have been an important trigger for popular rage.<\/p>\n So what\u2019s behind the price spike? American right-wingers (and the Chinese) blame easy-money policies at the Federal Reserve, with at least one commentator declaring that there is \u201cblood on Bernanke\u2019s hands.\u201d Meanwhile, President Nicolas Sarkozy of France blames speculators, accusing them of \u201cextortion and pillaging.\u201d<\/p>\n But the evidence tells a different, much more ominous story. While several factors have contributed to soaring food prices, what really stands out is the extent to which severe weather events have disrupted agricultural production. And these severe weather events are exactly the kind of thing we\u2019d expect to see as rising concentrations of greenhouse gases change our climate \u2014 which means that the current food price surge may be just the beginning.<\/p>\n Now, to some extent soaring food prices are part of a general commodity boom: the prices of many raw materials, running the gamut from aluminum to zinc, have been rising rapidly since early 2009, mainly thanks to rapid industrial growth in emerging markets.<\/p>\n But the link between industrial growth and demand is a lot clearer for, say, copper than it is for food. Except in very poor countries, rising incomes don\u2019t have much effect on how much people eat.<\/p>\n It\u2019s true that growth in emerging nations like China leads to rising meat consumption, and hence rising demand for animal feed. It\u2019s also true that agricultural raw materials, especially cotton, compete for land and other resources with food crops \u2014 as does the subsidized production of ethanol, which consumes a lot of corn. So both economic growth and bad energy policy have played some role in the food price surge.<\/p>\n Still, food prices lagged behind the prices of other commodities until last summer. Then the weather struck.<\/p>\n Consider the case of wheat, whose price has almost doubled since the summer. The immediate cause of the wheat price spike is obvious: world production is down sharply. The bulk of that production decline, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data, reflects a sharp plunge in the former Soviet Union. And we know what that\u2019s about: a record heat wave and drought, which pushed Moscow temperatures above 100 degrees for the first time ever. The question then becomes, what\u2019s behind all this extreme weather?<\/p>\n To some extent we\u2019re seeing the results of a natural phenomenon, La Ni\u00f1a \u2014 a periodic event in which water in the equatorial Pacific becomes cooler than normal. And La Ni\u00f1a events have historically been associated with global food crises, including the crisis of 2007-8.<\/p>\n But that\u2019s not the whole story. Don\u2019t let the snow fool you: globally, 2010 was tied with 2005 for warmest year on record, even though we were at a solar minimum and La Ni\u00f1a was a cooling factor in the second half of the year. Temperature records were set not just in Russia but in no fewer than 19 countries, covering a fifth of the world\u2019s land area. And both droughts and floods are natural consequences of a warming world: droughts because it\u2019s hotter, floods because warm oceans release more water vapor.<\/p>\n As always, you can\u2019t attribute any one weather event to greenhouse gases. But the pattern we\u2019re seeing, with extreme highs and extreme weather in general becoming much more common, is just what you\u2019d expect from climate change.<\/p>\n The usual suspects will, of course, go wild over suggestions that global warming has something to do with the food crisis; those who insist that Ben Bernanke has blood on his hands tend to be more or less the same people who insist that the scientific consensus on climate reflects a vast leftist conspiracy.<\/p>\n But the evidence does, in fact, suggest that what we\u2019re getting now is a first taste of the disruption, economic and political, that we\u2019ll face in a warming world. And given our failure to act on greenhouse gases, there will be much more, and much worse, to come.<\/p>\n + Sleeping pills don’t work. Click here for the article from Men’s Journal.\u00a0 Click here.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n + How to live forever, or at least until 2065. From Mens Health magazine:<\/p>\n 10 Things to Avoid if You Want to Be Glad You Lived until 2065<\/strong><\/p>\n 1. Bad knees<\/strong> 2. Bad back<\/strong> 3. Bad eyes<\/strong> 4. Bad ears<\/strong> 5. Bad bladder<\/strong> 6. Bad bones<\/strong> 7. Bad gut<\/strong> 8. Bad skin 9. Bad brain 10. Bad mood Favorite Barron’s cartoon:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
\nThe Russian heat wave was only one of many recent extreme weather events, from dry weather in Brazil to biblical-proportion flooding in Australia, that have damaged world food production.<\/p>\n
\nCause: too many decades carrying too much weight. Prevention: Lose excess weight. It’s much better to be mobile, especially when you’re old.<\/p>\n
\nLosing a few pounds will spare your spine as well as your knees. Runners: Anything you can do to reduce impact shock will pay off here.<\/p>\n
\nFarsightedness happens; not all cataracts should. Buy sunglasses that block 100 percent of UV rays, especially if you spend a lot of time on the water, on snow, or at high elevations.<\/p>\n
\nHearing deteriorates with age, so don’t hurry the process. Your MP3 player can reach 115 decibels; hearing loss starts at 85. I know very few satisfied users of hearing aids.<\/p>\n
\nAs many as one in four men over age 75 have some form of incontinence at some time, much of it from a lifetime of putting off trips to the bathroom. Over decades, the strain reduces our bladders to nervous wrecks. So stop laughing and go pee. What happens if you don’t? Depends.<\/p>\n
\nOsteoporosis occurs in men too. If you don’t consume a lot of dairy, ask your doctor if you should start taking 1,200 milligrams a day of calcium carbonate (calcium citrate if you’re on drugs for acid reflux). Have your vitamin D levels checked, too.<\/p>\n
\nConstipation is another one of those funny-when-it-happens-to-other-people things, but I have seen people die of constipation, and it wasn’t funny at all. Eat roughage. Stay hydrated. Exercise. And don’t use laxatives without talking to your doctor.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Your skin is the organ that makes you look old; it’s also the site of most cancers. So buy yourself a hat for when you work outside. Read the label on your sunscreen. (You probably haven’t been using it correctly.) And try not to worry. It causes lines.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>This is another funny one, until the next time you can’t find your car. Remind yourself (if you can) that Alzheimer’s disease may begin well before the age of 30: Start accumulating excess brain capacity now. Also avoid anything causing your brain to slam against the inside of your skull, from roller coasters to football. A helmet won’t save you from dementia.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Seek treatment for an episode of depression and you’ll reduce your risk of a relapse later in life. If you can’t sleep at night, if your appetite, energy, or motivation is gone, or if you feel worthless, discouraged, or overwhelmed, seek help today. Depression is one of the most treatable of illnesses. Take care of it now so people won’t have to take care of you later.<\/p>\n
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