Heartworm drugs for pets; Big Pharma’s cash cow

(NaturalNews) In a seemingly diabolical plot, veterinarians and pharmaceutical companies have teamed up in a marketing campaign to frighten pet guardians into giving year-round heartworm preventatives to their cats, as well as dogs. These so-called experts say they’re doing this to improve protection for individual pets, but the facts say their motives may be less pure. With few exceptions, heartworms (Dirofilaria immitis) are a completely seasonal problem, so there is no reason to give heartworm medicine to ANY pet year-round-except to make money for those who make and sell it! Those financially-motivated folks say the number of cases will rise unless everybody gives the medications. They rationalize this by citing statistics on how most people don’t use the products, and proclaiming that the number of unprotected dogs will surely cause even more disease. However, despite years of many animals being given unnecessary drugs and many more who aren’t, the prevalance of heartworm has not really changed. In fact, a recent headline in a veterinary publication trumpeted, “Heartworm now found in all 50 states”–as if it was a triumph! While that statement may be technically true, the survey did not differentiate between all dogs testing positive for heartworm, and dogs testing positive for heartworm that came from somewhere else! The increase in positive-testing dogs may be attributable to the widespread dispersion of heartworm-infected dogs after Hurricane Katrina, rather than a true increase in the level of disease. Heartworms are transmitted by mosquitoes. Heartworm larvae, called microfilaria, live in the blood and are sucked up by the bug. Once inside the mosquito, they must further develop before they can infect another dog. For that to occur, outside temperatures must remain above 57 degrees F, day and night, for a certain period of time (but at least 8 days). The warmer the temperature, the faster the larvae will mature. If the temperature drops below the critical level, larval development will stop, but the larvae don’t die, development will re-start at the same point when the weather warms back up. Larvae reach their infective stage in 8 to 30 days (the latter being the insect’s entire lifespan-if the larvae haven’t matured by then, they will die along with the mosquito). It should be obvious that during seasons and in areas where there are no mosquitoes, there is no risk of heartworm. Evidently that little fact escaped the attention of the veterinarian who prescribed heartworm protection — in December-for a puppy living high in the Colorado mountains. At that altitude, temperatures are never warm enough for heartworms! On this map, heartworm risk is shown by the month when the use of heartworm preventatives should begin. In most states, protection should be continued through November or December. In the Michigan UP, preventatives are suggested from August through October. Within 150 miles of the Gulf Coast and other areas in pink, prevention is recommended from April through January. In the red areas of southern Texas and Florida, year-round preventatives may be needed. Local conditions may vary from year to year. Global warming, hurricanes/flooding, and other factors may increase the mosquito population and thus influence heartworm risk. (This map is a very loose approximation only, and is not intended to be used exclusively to determine risk.) http://www.naturalnews.com/images/US-Heartworm-Map-1.jpg When an infected mosquito bites a dog or cat, the microfilaria are deposited on the skin, where they then crawl into the bite wound and enter the bloodstream. Inside the body, they grow and progress through other larval forms. In dogs, the heartworm’s natural host, larvae migrate to the heart and eventually develop into adult worms. In cats, full-grown worms can develop (but not reproduce). A cat cannot transmit the disease. Adult heartworms are over a foot long when grown (in 6-8 months), but it takes only 1 or 2 to fill up a cat’s tiny heart and cause serious problems. However, in 80% of infections, the cat’s own immune system kills the larvae at an earlier stage, and clears the infection. However, heartworms don’t have to be full-grown to cause problems. In cats, a respiratory condition can develop. Not-quite-full-grown microfilaria can get stuck small blood vessels in the lungs, where they can cause significant inflammation and damage. This uniquely feline condition is called Heartworm Associated Respiratory Disease, or HARD. Symptoms are similar to asthma; and it’s possible that some “asthmatic” cats are misdiagnosed with an immune-mediated disease instead of a parasite. Even so, about half of infected cats never develop any signs of heartworm disease at all. And while the disease causes serious damage to the lungs, much of the damage may be reversible by the body’s normal healing processes. Chronic and sequential infections have not been studied. Indoor cats are, of course, less likely to be bitten by a mosquito, but anyone who’s ever been around them knows that the little buggers can be quite persistent, so it isn’t impossible. In one study, 25% of heartworm-positive cats were reported to be indoors-only. Outdoor cats are at higher risk not only for heartworm but also for feline leukemia, feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV or feline AIDS), and all the other parasites, injuries, and diseases common to outdoor cats. However, keeping all pets indoors during prime mosquito-feeding time (late afternoon an evening) will greatly reduce the risk of a bite. Heartworm preventative drugs do not kill adult heartworms, but they do kill microfilaria up to a certain stage of development. Currently it is believed that larvae under 6 weeks old are affected. This means that in order to prevent heartworms from reaching adulthood, the preventative can be given up to 6 weeks after the mosquito bite occurs, and still work. The recommendation is to give the drugs every 30 days, purportedly because once-a-month dosing is easier for most people to remember (and, coincidentally, it also sells more drugs!). The most common preventative drugs for heartworm are ivermectin (Heartgard) and selamectin (Revolution). While these drugs are generally considered “safe and effective” at the low doses used for heartworm prevention, there are always exceptions. Signs of toxicity associated with ivermectin include: depression, ataxia (balance problems or unsteady walk), and blindness. Selamectin is also used to treat ear mites and some intestinal worms; adverse reactions include hair loss at the site of application, diarrhea, vomiting, muscle tremors, anorexia, lethargy, salivation, rapid breathing, and contact allergy. Most veterinarians hand out heartworm preventatives like candy; but there is a serious and growing problem of resistance of heartworms to these drugs. This means that we are selecting for “superworms” that will be able to survive and grow even in animals on heartworm preventatives (despite Big Pet Pharma’s denials that this is happening). As with all cases of drug resistance, the correct response is to reduce use of the drug and reserve it only for when it is absolutely necessary. Unfortunately, the veterinary profession and drug industries have decided to go for profits instead, and are continuing to call for all pets to be on medications all year round. This is bad science, and it is bad policy. The Big Pet Pharma folks are very protective of the income from heartworm drugs, and will apparently stop at nothing to increase profits. Merial, maker of the popular heartworm preventative Heartgard, was repeatedly warned by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to stop exaggerating the effectiveness of the product (which has been declining for at least a decade). Moreover, a fired Merial executive filed suit against Merial, claiming that the company deliberately lied for years, not only about the product’s effectiveness, but also the true number and severity of adverse events. Pfizer’s Animal Health division alone, which makes the heartworm preventative Revolution as well as vaccines and other animal drugs, is valued at $10 billion to $16 billion (and may soon be sold to Merial or another competitor!). If you feel you must use heartworm prevention products, get them from your veterinarian. Surveys have found mislabeled, expired, imported, and counterfeit products being sold from other sources. Follow dosage instructions and do not over-treat. NEVER, EVER use a heartworm product made for dogs on a cat. The components are different between dog and cat products, and dog products can kill a cat in a matter of hours. Many cats have suffered and died this way.

Radiation disease – here are the symptoms and causes

(NaturalNews) What does radiation do to us? It burns the cells, kind of like burning down a house. It is well known that radiation burns our cells by creating too much free radical damage. Now of course this is like talking Greek to medical officials and professors because if they knew this they would be on the bullhorn telling the public what to do to minimize free radical damage. You really do not want to get sick from radiation exposure and that is why the supreme rule in dealing with radiation is to avoid exposure. You want to move as far away from the danger as possible and you surely do not want to eat radioactively-contaminated foods. There is great individual variation in how people respond to radiation and the process is not fully understood . If you are feeling sick from radiation exposures, be assured this is not a figment of your imagination. Radiation syndrome, radiation toxicity, radiation illness and/or radiation damage will make you and your children very ill possibly to the point of causing death in one of a number of different ways. The New York Times says, “Experts hesitate to predict where the radiation will go. Once harmful radioactive elements are released into the outdoors, their travel patterns are as mercurial as the weather and as complicated as the food chains and biochemical pathways along which they move. When and where radioactive contamination becomes a problem depends on a vast array of factors: the specific element released, which way the wind is blowing, whether rain will bring suspended radioactivity to earth, and what types of crops and animals are in an exposed area. Research related to the 1986 Chernobyl accident makes clear that for decades, scientists will be able to detect the presence of radioactive particles released by the crippled Japanese reactors thousands of miles away .” The CDC tells us: The first symptoms of ARS are typically nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. These symptoms will start within minutes to days after the exposure, will last from minutes to up to several days, and may come and go. Then the person usually looks and feels healthy for a short time, after which he or she will become sick again with loss of appetite, fatigue, fever, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and possibly even seizures and coma. This stage of serious illness may last from a few hours to several months. People with ARS typically also have some skin damage. This damage can start to show within a few hours after exposure and can include swelling, itching, and redness of the skin (like a bad sunburn). There can also be hair loss. As with the other symptoms, the skin may heal for a short time, followed by the return of swelling, itching, and redness days or weeks later. Complete healing of the skin may take from several weeks up to a few years depending on the radiation dose the person’s skin received. The chance of survival for people with ARS decreases with increasing radiation dose. Most people who do not recover from ARS will die within several months of exposure. The cause of death in most cases is the destruction of the person’s bone marrow, which results in infections and internal bleeding. For the survivors, the recovery process may last from several weeks up to two years. There are many types of radiation exposures we can be confronted with, such as X-ray exams that are seemingly harmless or cancer radiation therapy that may result in nausea, anemia, hemorrhaging and fibrosis. Getting CAT scans and PET scans involving the injection of radioactive dyes and other substances for medical diagnostic purposes results in exposure to very high levels of radiation. Even living at high altitudes or taking frequent airplane flights results in higher exposure to ionizing radiation. Living near a nuclear power plant, a coal-burning plant or an old government radiation testing ground (such as in Nevada or New Mexico) exposes you higher than normal levels of radiation. If you’ve worked in uranium mining, uranium or plutonium processing or in weapons manufacturing, your contaminant exposure is definitely above normal and ill effects are not far behind. Plenty of Gulf War veterans have been exposed to “depleted uranium” military sources and believe strongly that their health problems are due to this exposure. Working at a nuclear power plant, in a submarine, or with certain types of diagnostic medical equipment are all ways to become sick from radiation exposure even if there is not an accident. “If you don’t heal yourself of the effects of radiation exposure and if you don’t bind radioactive particles and flush them out of your body if you’ve ingested them, then they’ll just stay there and slowly work at destroying your health. Eventually you will succumb to unexplained symptoms of fatigue, lethargy, a weakened immune system, tumors, unexplained illnesses, anemia, excessive bleeding, genetic damage, cancer, leukemia, cataracts, or possibly having children with severe birth defects. You can develop all sorts of conditions that just don’t seem to respond to medicine … and for which there doesn’t seem to be any explanation,” writes William Bodri . If you have been exposed to radiation fallout you will know it through a change in your health status. If the levels are extraordinarily high then people all around you will be feeling and sharing similar changes and discomforts including: -Nausea and vomiting -Diarrhea -Skin burns (skin reddening) -Weakness -Lethargy and fatigue -Loss of appetite (anorexia) -Fainting -Dehydration -Inflammation of tissues (swelling, redness or tenderness) -Hemorrhages under the skin -Bleeding from your nose, gums or mouth -Anemia (low red blood cell count) -Hair loss (usually from just the scalp) -Decrease in platelets Nausea and vomiting are typically the earliest symptoms of radiation sickness. The higher the dose of radiation, the sooner these symptoms appear — and the worse the prognosis. Someone who starts to vomit within one hour of exposure is likely to die. Sometimes people with radiation sickness feel bad at first and then start to feel better. But often new and more serious symptoms appear within hours, days, or even a few weeks of this “latent” stage. You are going to want to learn the secrets of what I call “Natural Allopathic Medicine” in order to protect yourself and your loved ones from unexpected exposure to radiation. The heart of the protocol employs the use of heavyweight medicines used in emergency rooms. Radiation sickness can cause bleeding from the nose, mouth, gums, and rectum. It can cause people to bruise easily and to bleed internally as well — and even to vomit blood. The problems occur because radiation depletes the body of platelets, the cellular fragments in the blood that are form clots to control bleeding. So behind the mighty mallet of Arm &a Hammer baking soda we bring in some other superhero emergency room medicines like magnesium chloride, iodine and vitamin C. We quickly assemble a nutritional arsenal of superfoods and super-concentrated naturally made medicinals like an omega-3s, spirulina- and chlorella-based nutritional food formulas, get some heavy metal natural chelator products, and pump in glutathione through a number of different avenues. Dealing with radiation or heavy metal poisoning is tricky to say the least. Some people can manage massive amounts of it with no ill effects, others can’t. The severity of symptoms and illness (acute radiation sickness) depends on the type and amount of radiation, how long you were exposed, and which part of the body was exposed. Symptoms of radiation sickness may occur immediately after exposure, or over the next few days, weeks, or months. Not everyone is going to die or even get sick from a given level of exposure . Because it is difficult to determine the amount of radiation exposure from nuclear accidents, the best measure of the severity of the exposure are: the length of time between the exposure and the onset of symptoms, the severity of symptoms, and severity of changes in white blood cells. If a person vomits less than an hour after being exposed, that usually means the radiation dose received is very high and death may be expected. Radiation “targets” cells in the body that reproduce rapidly — and that includes cells that line the intestinal tract. Radiation sickness causes major irritation of the intestinal lining, resulting in severe and sometimes bloody diarrhea. Radiation can travel quickly in air currents. Students from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY measured radiation fallout in New York during atomic bomb testing over Nevada desert (2,300 miles away). Just a few hours after the explosion the students reported that the average radiation readings in nearby towns were 20-100 times higher. Radiation fallout travels quickly and is therefore dangerous. A spokesman for the Geneva-based U.N. health agency said contaminated food poses a greater long-term risk to residents’ health than radioactive particles in the air, which disperse within days. It was the strongest statement yet from the world body on radiation risks to ordinary people rather than nuclear workers. “They’re going to have to make some decisions quickly in Japan to shut down and completely stop food from being used from zones they feel might be affected,” Gregory Hartl told the Associated Press. “Repeated consumption of certain products is going to intensify risks, as opposed to radiation in the air that happens once and then the first time it rains there’s no longer radiation in the air. A week ago we were more concerned about the radiation leakages and possible explosion of the nuclear facility itself, but now other issues are getting more attention including the food safety issue.” The initial symptoms reported by the Japanese and (later by American) observers were the loss of hair from the scalp, bleeding into the skin, inflammation of the mouth and throat, vomiting, diarrhea and fever. Nausea and vomiting that appeared within a few hours after the explosion were frequently noted and while the vomiting usually subsided by the following morning, occasionally it continued for 2-3 more days. Diarrhea of varying degrees of severity was also observed and in severe cases, it was frequently bloody. Radiation sickness can cause people to feel weak and out of sorts — almost like having a bad version of the flu. It can dramatically reduce the number of red blood cells, causing anemia and increased risk of fainting. There were also observations of lesions of the gums, the oral mucous membrane, and the throat — these areas usually became deep red in color and in many instances began ulcerating and dying (necrosis) as the tissues began to break down. Leucopenia (low-white-blood-cell counts) were found on blood testing with extreme cases falling below 1,000 (normal levels are around 7,000). The syndromes of acute radiation illness can be divided into three categories based on the amount of radiation dosage in total. The gray (symbol: Gy) is the SI unit of absorbed radiation dose of ionizing radiation and is defined as the absorption of one joule of ionizing radiation by one kilogram of matter (usually human tissue). It is interesting to note that in radiation therapy, the amount of radiation varies depending on the type and stage of cancer being treated. For curative cases, the typical dose for a solid epithelial tumor ranges from 60 to 80 Gy, while lymphomas are treated with 20-40 Gy. Preventive (adjuvant) doses are typically around 45-60 Gy in 1.8-2 Gy fractions (for breast, head, and neck cancers). Along with red cells, radiation sickness can reduce the risk of infection-fighting white cells in the body. As a result, the risk of bacterial, viral, and fungal infections is heightened. The average radiation dose from an abdominal X-ray is 1.4 mGy, that from an abdominal CT scan is 8.0 mGy, that from a pelvic CT scan is 25 mGy, and that from a selective CT scan of the abdomen and the pelvis is 30 mGy. It is again interesting to note that an abdominal and pelvic CT scan can cause symptoms similar to the category of cerebrovascular syndrome, even though this radiation exposure is supposed to be therapeutic. The three categories are as follows: The cerebrovascular (brain) syndrome – This is when the total dose of radiation is extremely high, exceeding 20-30 Gy. A person with cerebrovascular (brain) syndrome rapidly develops confusion, nausea, vomiting, bloody diarrhea, and shock. Within hours their blood pressure falls due to heart and circulatory damage, accompanied by the inability to coordinate gait, seizures and coma. Patients often die within hours (usually within the first two days) after severe radiation exposure. In particular, the cerebrovascular syndrome has 3 phases: the first period of nausea and vomiting; then listlessness, drowsiness, apathy and confusion; and finally, tremors, convulsions, seizures, coma, with death usually within a few hours. Since the cerebrovascular syndrome is always fatal, treatment is geared toward providing comfort by relieving pain, anxiety, and breathing difficulties. The gastrointestinal syndrome occurs when the radiation dose is smaller but still high, and is due to the effects of radiation on the cells lining the digestive tract. Doses in the 10-20 Gy range affect the intestines, stripping their lining and leading to death within three months due to causes of vomiting, diarrhea, starvation, and infection. Victims receiving 6-10 Gy all at once usually escape an intestinal death, but instead face bone marrow failure and death within two months from loss of blood coagulation factors and the protection against infection provided by white blood cells. The symptoms of people suffering from gastrointestinal syndrome include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea that can lead to severe dehydration, diminished blood plasma volume and vascular collapse that can result in death within 3-10 days. Severe nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea begin 2-12 hours after exposure to 4 Gy or more of radiation and the symptoms may lead to severe dehydration, but they usually resolve themselves after two days. After this period of feeling well, severe diarrhea (often bloody) returns, once more producing a state of dehydration. As the intestines deteriorate, the bacteria inhabiting the digestive tract start to invade the rest of the body producing severe infections. People with the gastrointestinal syndrome require intravenous fluids and sedatives. They need to be kept isolated so that they do not contact infectious microorganisms. Oral antibiotics, such as neomycin, are given to kill intestinal bacteria that may invade the body and antifungal and antiviral drugs are also given intravenously when necessary. Radiation sickness can cause visible ulcers in or on the mouth. In addition, ulcers often form in the esophagus, stomach, and intestines. The hematopoietic syndrome is caused by the effects of radiation on the bone marrow, spleen, and lymph nodes, which are the primary sites of blood cell production (hematopoiesis). The hematopoietic syndrome is characterized by loss of appetite, apathy, lethargy, nausea and vomiting that usually begin 2-12 hours after exposure to 2 Gy or more of radiation and may be maximal within 6-12 hours from this yet smaller radiation exposure. The symptoms typically subside completely within 24-36 hours after the exposure, and the person typically feels well for a week or more. However, during this symptom-free period the lymph nodes, spleen and bone marrow begin to waste away leading to a severe shortage of white blood cells, which are the body’s main defense against infection, followed by a shortage of platelets and then red blood cells. This is the critical point where the person needs to be supported nutritionally to build blood cells and increase immunity, otherwise many hematopoietic patients die within 30-60 days after exposure. Once again, the early symptoms of ARS typically involve nausea, vomiting, headache and diarrhea which will start within minutes to days after the exposure, last for minutes up to several days, and may come and go. The person will usually look and feel healthy for a short time — mistakenly thinking they are all well — after which they will become sick again with loss of appetite, fatigue, fever, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and possibly even seizures and coma. This seriously ill stage may last from a few hours up to several months. Areas of skin exposed to radiation may turn blister and turn red — almost like severe sunburn. In some cases open sores form. The skin may even slough off. For all the references, sources and more articles on radiation and chemical toxicity please visit Dr. Mark Sircus blog .

Weather control is no myth: Scientists engineer thunderstorms over Abu Dhabi

(NaturalNews) Discussions of weather control technology used to be limited to the hushed gossip of conspiracy theorists, but it turns out the conspiracy theorists were right (again). Today in Abu Dhabi, scientists have successfully manipulated entire weather systems, causing up to fifty downpours of rain across the Al Ain region the desert nation over the last year. It’s all being accomplished by a team of scientists working for Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the president of United Arab Emirates. They have erected entire fields of giant ionizers to generate waves of negative ions which rise into the lower atmosphere and attract dust particles. The dust particles, in turn, attract condensation from the ambient air, and when enough condensation is achieved, the clouds can’t hold the water anymore and a downpour of rain is unleashed. The whole system was devices by a Swiss company named Metro Systems International. This last year saw huge rainstorms over Abu Dhabi during July and August — months that are normally bone dry in the desert. The success of the project astonished even the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology , whose former director reportedly said, “Maybe this is a most important point for mankind.” (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1343470/Have-scientists-discovered-create-downpours-desert.html) Where are the skeptics now? What I find really interesting in all this is that, for decades, the so-called “skeptics” have insisted that all this talk about weather control is pure conspiracy theory. If you tell a typical conventional doctor that “weather control technology can make it rain in the desert,” they’ll look at you as if you were some kind of nut. But it turns out the skeptics are getting soaked over this issue, as usual. This technology is up and running right now, bringing rain to Abu Dhabi at a fraction of the cost of desalination plants. The conspiracy theorists were right yet again about the existence of weather control technology. Jesse Ventura even did a show on it last year on his Conspiracy Theory series: Remember the episode about HAARP? (High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program.) Watch that episode on NaturalNews.TV right now: http://naturalnews.tv/v.asp?v=E3CADA3AE2B04FB92F27BB09C8AE19FB HAARP appears to be an experimental weather control technology being operated by the U.S. government right now, shrouded in secrecy. The field of HAARP ionizers looks eerily similar to those set up in Abu Dhabi (http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/), and the entire project is understood by those who have really looked into it as a “weather weapon” capable of “potentially triggering floods, droughts, hurricanes and earthquakes.” (http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/pandora/haarp.html) Today we know that weather control technology works . It’s up and running right now in Abu Dhabi, and there’s little question that controlling the weather has many applications, including military and economic applications. So for those who raise their eyebrows when you say “weather control,” just answer them with “Abu Dhabi.” Fifty thunderstorms prove it already works.

Why are the animals dying? Birds, fish wiped out in mysterious deaths

(NaturalNews) In the last week, nearly 100,000 fish washed up on the shores of the Arkansas River, dead. Also in Arkansas, thousands of red-winged blackbirds fell from the sky and plummeted to the ground where they were also found dead. The scene repeated itself in Southern Louisiana where 500 red-winged blackbirds recently plunged out of the sky, dead on arrival, and in Chesapeake Bay, thousands of dead fish have begun washing up onto bay shores. It is common sense to be concerned when the animals around us start dying suddenly and in large numbers. So far, scientists are dismissing these scenes as common phenomena. They say the fish in Arkansas were killed by “disease” and dismiss any possibility of chemicals being involved. The red-winged blackbirds, after autopsies were performed yesterday, appear to have been killed by “blunt trauma,” but it’s not clear whether that trauma was the act of slamming into the ground or if it was caused by something else beforehand. Coincidence? Or is there another cause? While there are many documented cases of birds (and even frogs) falling out of the sky throughout world history, the seeming coincidence of having thousands of birds fall out of the sky while, at the same time, 100,000 fish wash up as dead in the same geographic region demands greater scrutiny. What’s happening in Arkansas that’s killing these animals? The question becomes even more important when you consider that other animal die-offs are occurring with alarming frequency across North America. Not only are honeybees dying off in record numbers, but now bats are being wiped out, too (http://www.naturalnews.com/022989_bats_bees_disease.html). What’s the root cause behind the mass die-offs? Conventional scientists say it’s all due to “disease,” but they neglect to ask the obvious question: What makes these animals suddenly so susceptible to disease? Because that answer may be a uncomfortable to the established industries that sell pesticides, or build cell phone towers, or grow genetically modified crops. For all we know, these 100,000 dead fish are downstream from a field of GMO corn that mutated into something even more deadly than the GMOs we already know. This may not be so far-fetched, actually: Monsanto has a corporate office in Arkansas (in Stuttgart, Arkansas) that’s not too many miles from the Arkansas River (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Arkansasrivermap.jpg). This isn’t proof of anything, of course, but the idea that a whole lot of birds and fish are suddenly dying near Monsanto’s corporate offices should at least get intelligent people asking some serious questions. Are secret experiments the cause? The PrisonPlanet.com websites suggests that these deaths may be due to secret government experiments (http://www.prisonplanet.com/is-mass-bird-and-fish-die-off-connected-to-government-testing.html). This is not as far-fetched as it sounds. NaturalNews has documented the long history of U.S. government experiments on human beings, too (http://www.naturalnews.com/019189.html). Just last year, Obama was forced to apologize to Guatemala for the U.S. medical experiments conducted on prisoners there (http://www.naturalnews.com/029924_medical_experiments_Guatemala.html). So the idea that the government might be conducting experiments on the weather or on wild animal populations is in no way bizarre. It’s routine, in fact. Still, more mundane explanations may be valid, too. For the birds, the most likely explanation is that they were somehow struck by a freak hail storm . But if hail struck the birds, that same hail should have also appeared on the ground (birds don’t fly at super-high altitude), and no hail was reported. So the hail theory doesn’t pan out. The fish deaths are also a mystery: While the scientists say that disease is the most likely cause — because only one fish species washed up dead — that explanation doesn’t hold water. Here’s why: Animals deaths don’t resemble infectious disease pattern A virus, bacteria or fungus doesn’t magically and suddenly spread across 100,000 members of one species all on the same day. It takes time for such infectious agents to spread. If disease were the cause, you should have seen a few fish showing up dead on one day, followed by a few more some days later, then a lot more after that, and then finally a much larger mass over the subsequent days or weeks as the infectious agent spread through the population. Yet that’s not what we saw. Instead, we saw 100,000 fish dying all at once (or very nearly all at once). This is not indicative of infectious disease. Even the CDC will tell you that. Infections don’t time themselves to kill large populations simultaneously. The pattern of death all but rules out infectious disease as the cause. This pattern is, however, indicative of a poison or some other radical change such as a sharp temperature change in the river. Something changed in the environment — perhaps a rapid depletion of oxygen, or the interference with fish physiology through electromagnetic means. And this points to something other than disease: Perhaps the behavior of a corporation or the actions of a government experiment. In either of those cases, the truth will almost certainly be hidden from public view. Scientists will be paid off to say it was caused by disease, and the corporate-controlled press will buy it, too. And that’s what people will be told. But I’m suspicious. When I see animals dying 100,000 at a time and birds falling out of the sky, I begin to suspect much more than just normal in-the-wild infectious disease. I suspect something far more nefarious is afoot, and whatever it is, you have to ask the inescapable question: Is this a trial run of a much larger experiment involving other species? Perhaps even humans? Sources for this story include: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40887450/ns/us_news-environment/ http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/01/03/arkansas.falling.birds/index.html http://www.cnn.com/2011/OPINION/01/03/yarnold.bird.kill/

Health Ranger’s predictions for 2011 – 2012; an era of self reliance and human awakening

(NaturalNews) What’s ahead for 2011 – 2012? This time in human history promises to bring forth more changes than any other similar duration of time known to our civilization. I believe the changes that will occur in the next two years will rock the foundations of our economies, governments and belief systems. In the end, after considerable turmoil, I see a great expansion of human consciousness and a maturing of the human race. Here are the details… More people growing their own food Beginning in 2011 and continuing for many years beyond, we will see an explosion in the number of people growing their own food. People see the big trends in the food supply fast approaching: GMO contamination of crops, the loss of local food production due to FDA interference, the crackdown on small farmers, and even disruptions in the global food supply. As people realize the importance of having their own home-grown source of food, we will see a surge in backyard gardens, food storage and in-home production methods such as sprouting and food dehydrating. We will see a strong “back to basics” interest surge leading up to 2012, with many people choosing to move out of high-density cities (or even high-density nations) and seek self-reliance in more rural areas. This will also reveal renewed interest in home-grown meat production with more people growing (and eating) their own chickens and cows rather than relying on processed, factory-farmed meats. Increased awareness of natural remedies and health freedom The natural health community will achieve significant victories over the next two years in awakening people to natural remedies, medicinal herbs and the core ideas of health freedom. The monopolistic pushers of pharmaceuticals are fighting a desperate, losing battle to try to keep people ignorant, but they will lose that fight and natural medicine will ultimately emerge as the healing method of choice for an increasing number of people. Natural childbirth will continue to gain recognition around the world, and more parents will begin to question the ADHD drugging of their children. The industry of psychiatry as we know it today will continue crumbling under the burden of fraud and criminal behavior, finally collapsing well before 2020 thanks to the efforts of a few groups, notably CCHR. The global shift away from pharmaceuticals and toward disease prevention and nutrition will accelerate in 2011 – 2012, with vitamin D leading the charge. An increasing number of people will learn about top nutrients such as resveratrol, astaxanthin and omega-3s. Nutrition education will become increasingly evident in public schools, and many school lunch programs will be reworked to remove more processed dead foods and increase real nutrition. Significant victories will be achieved over water fluoridation , mercury fillings and GMOs (see below). The vaccine issue, however, will remain highly contentious. Victory over seasonal flu vaccines will take many more years… More people waking up to reality Today, most people are sleepwalking through their lives, functioning as cogs in a giant machine of which they have no knowledge and no control. Over the next two years, that will significantly change. More and more people will be awakened into a state of awareness . They will realize that living out their lives working mundane jobs, watching television, eating junk food and taking pharmaceuticals is not fulfilling their true purpose in life, and many will seek a higher purpose . An increasing number of people will come to understand that their lives are mere illusion — that they’ve been following programming set out for them by others, and that if they wish to truly achieve freedom (of mind), they must break out of the patterns that have been constructed for them. As a result, we’re going to see more people rebelling against the status quo while simultaneously expanding their own awareness of the bigger picture — how things work in our world and what their role might be in uplifting our shared reality. In the short term, this might result in a tremendous amount of strife, but in the end, it will give rise to a true uplifting of consciousness among the people in our world. Specific upcoming victories in the world of natural health • The People will achieve significant victories over GMOs. I believe that We the People will ultimately win this battle against GMOs in America. As information about the dangers of GMOs continues to spread, people will increasingly demand that GMO foods be labeled. With enough support (perhaps in 2012, but probably later), a law will be passed requiring that GMO foods be labeled as such, and that will spell the beginning of the end of the GMO era in America. • The FDA will, one way or another, be forced to admit that mercury fillings (“silver fillings”) are dangerous for human health. At the very least, the agency will warn that children and expectant mothers should not be exposed to silver fillings. If this does not happen, you can expect a popular revolt against the FDA and a loud cry for the dissolution of the entire agency. • The next big public health battle will be over water fluoridation , and you can expect NaturalNews, the Fluoride Action Network and many other organizations to turn up the heat on the dangers of water fluoridation. Expect to see the fluoride pushers eventually forced to back down and admit that the fluoride dripped into the municipal water supplies is actually collected as a toxic waste byproduct of the phosphate mining industry. (We are releasing a significant mini-documentary on this topic in the next 30 days.) The reputation of the ADA — which has backed mercury fillings for decades — is headed into the dumpsters. • On the issue of freedom and liberty, I predict a surge of interest in Libertarian political philosophy from both former Democrats and former Republicans who realize that the path to prosperity and freedom is found in individual liberty and personal responsibility . I see the Tea Party suffering from disillusionment as its own elected members betray its supporters with more taxes and Big Government spending. Expect to see Ron Paul and Rand Paul do extraordinarily well in the coming years (as long as they stay on principle), and watch for a groundswell of popular support for the once-again-new idea of sensibly limited government. • Watch for a rise in the Tenth Amendment movement in America as an increasing number of Americans fight back against what they see as a dangerous expansion of the power of the federal government. With the TSA in your pants and the FDA in your greenhouse, there’s no telling what part of your life Big Brother wants to control next. America was founded on the idea of limited government , and I believe we’ll see a powerful, passionate movement that seeks to bring the federal government back down to its Constitutionally-mandated size (which is a fraction of its current size and scope). The Tenth Amendment, by the way, specifically reserves all rights not specifically granted to the federal government to be held by the States or the People. The Constitution, for the record, never granted the federal government the right to run a health care system, nor to give away the power to coin money to a private banking cartel, nor to inspect your backyard food production operation that you use to produce jams and jellies for the local farmers’ market. Specific short-term predictions • Expect a new Big Government war on internet freedom. Mostly due to the Wikileaks releases, governments around the world are going to desperately attempt to police the internet and clamp down on web-based free speech. This will likely result in an online war between the “empire” (the USA and the UN) and the “rebel alliance” (the internet hackers such as ‘anonymous’). • By the end of 2012, I predict significant food supply disruptions in North America, brought about either by radical weather affecting crop yields or perhaps the invasion of disease indirectly caused by the over-use of pesticides or GMOs. The number of people in America struggling to feed themselves and their families will rise along with food prices (see next). This will inevitably result in a huge increase in crime (burglaries, thefts) at precisely the same time that cities are laying off local law enforcement officers due to budgetary restrictions. • Expect to see food prices climb with alarming speed over the next two years. Wheat is already on the rise, and even meat prices will surge up sharply before the end of 2012. While food won’t disappear, it will become significantly more expensive, causing more people to shift to subsidized foods (corn, sugar, etc.) which also happen to be some of the worst foods for your health. GMOs are cheap in the short run… until you get your hospital bill. • Oil prices will also trend sharply upwards over the next two years. We will almost certainly see oil at $150 per barrel and possibly even at $200 for a brief time. This will of course impact food prices, the transportation industry and virtually the entire economy. • By late 2012, the economic downfall of the United States will have accelerated, and the inevitable collapse of the U.S. dollar will by that time have become apparent to virtually everyone. The ability of the U.S. Treasury to auction its debt will drop sharply as ratings institutions either downgrade U.S. debt or publicly threaten to. Long-term predictions • Over the next decade, I predict a disappearing “health middle class” and a great divide between the healthy and the sick. The healthy, you see, are consuming superfoods, getting sunshine on their skin and taking nutritional supplements on a daily basis. The unhealthy are eating processed foods, taking prescription medications and following the advice of their ignorant doctors even if it kills them. There will be fewer people of “average” health in America in the coming years. The masses will gravitate toward disease and sickness while the informed few (such as NaturalNews readers, raw food vegans, superfood fans and so on) will get healthier and more productive. • By 2025, the FDA as we know it today will be ancient history, and a new era of food freedom and health freedom will have swept across the former United States of America. Marijuana will become a key crop for raising revenue for the states (or the equivalent governing entity), the pharmaceutical industry will have severely downsized, and the scientific censorship of the FDA will have been abandoned to a chapter of the dark history of America. Millions of doctors, oncologists and useless government bureaucrats will find themselves out of work or, in the most extreme cases, subjected to court trials for their crimes against humanity. • By 2030, it will become obvious that all those people treated with vaccines, chemotherapy, pharmaceuticals and conventional medical procedures are largely infertile and dying from degenerative disease. Also by this time, those individuals who ate diets largely made of GMOs, processed foods and artificial chemical additives will discover they, too, are infertile and diseased. The dying, diseased people of the western world will look back upon the “age of medical science” with hatred and disbelief, and the vaccines, chemotherapy, mercury fillings, water fluoridation and other poisons that are common in our world today will, by 2030, be written up in the history books as examples of humanity’s incredible capacity for self-deception and faulty thinking, even in the realm of so-called “science.” Health Ranger predictions are already coming true Many of the predictions I made a year ago have already come true, by the way. These include: • China unleashes armies of corporate espionage hackers onto western nations (now verified as true through Wikileaks cables) • A worldwide shortage of rare earth metals (already under way) • Food supply disruptions (disruptions have been widely reported throughout 2010) • Honeybee population collapse spreads to other species (bats are now threatened, too) • Weather patterns become increasingly radicalized (also widely reported in 2010) • Medical imaging scandal unfolds as older patients begin to show serious health damage from radiation via mammograms, CT scans and more (widely reported in medical journals in 2010) • War on health freedom ramps up, targeting raw milk, homeopathy, herbs and supplements (major raids have been conducted this year on food co-ops and raw milk producers) • New attempts are made to destroy internet freedom (the UN is now planning to roll out internet police, and the U.S. customs department has been seizing websites for the last several months) These are just some of the many predictions I made one year ago. Many more will yet come true in the years ahead. Overall, by the way, I remain optimistic about our future, if only because it is evident that by living through suffering, oppression and slavery, enough members of the human race will finally see the importance of health freedom and take the necessary action to regain it and defend it for generations to come. In the grand experiment of nations and civilizations now playing out across our tiny planet, those nations which forget the importance of health and freedom are doomed to eventually destroy themselves. Only those nations which recognize freedom and invest in the health of their citizens have any sustainable future. And one day, such a nation of truly free people will undoubtedly rise from the ashes of whatever is left after the current global miscalculations run their course.

Honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder caused by virus? Get ready for honeybee vaccines

(NaturalNews) A group of biologists claims they’ve found the cause of Colony Collapse Disorder — the devastating but mysterious phenomenon of rapidly disappearing honeybees. According to their research, published in PLoS One, the population collapse is caused by the combination of a virus and a fungus (Iridovirus and Microsporidian). From this discovery, the mainstream media is leaping to the conclusion that Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) has been “solved.” Oh, it’s a virus and a fungus! Mystery solved! This kind of thinking is quite characteristic of pseudoscientific western medicine, where everything comes down to naming the right virus, fungus or strain of bacteria discovered to be involved. But it completely misses the far more important question of why honeybees are suddenly more susceptible to such viral and fungal infections . The real cause is even deeper You see, the Iridovirus has been around for a long, long time. And the Microsporidian fungal strain has been around for probably even longer. So why didn’t honeybees get infected before? Obviously something had to change over the last few years to create a vulnerability to infection that’s causing the bees to die off. By comparison, in the human world, many people think the seasonal flu is caused by a flu virus. That’s not actually true, since the flu virus is circulating all year long. What truly causes “the flu” is when people become vitamin D deficient in the winter months, creating an immune system vulnerability that the circulating virus is now able to exploit in achieving a successful infection. It is the changes in the terrain (the altered immune function caused by nutrient deficiency) that allows an ever-present virus to cause an infection in humans. That’s why people who have healthy nutrient levels can be exposed to seasonal flu viruses all year long and never get sick. (Go ahead, sneeze on me. I dare ya!) Getting back to the honeybees, something has obviously changed that created a vulnerability that the virus and fungus can now exploit. So the real scientific question here is what caused the honeybee vulnerability to infection? This is a question that’s one level deeper than what western scientists typically dare to ask. Even in medicine, doctors are happy to name a symptom as a disease — “high blood pressure” — without bothering to ask what caused the symptom in the first place. They actually have a disease called “high cholesterol.” Well that’s not a disease. That’s just an observation of a symptom. I could say the weather suffers from “a really windy day” but that tells me nothing about why the wind is actually blowing harder. Similarly, “high blood pressure” is a meaningless disease label because it indicates nothing about the cause of it. To say that honeybees are being killed off by a virus is similarly meaningless because it doesn’t get to the root cause of the infection vulnerability. Are they going to vaccinate the honeybees? Now, according to the limited thinking models of western scientists, the “cure” for a viral infection is, of course, none other than a vaccine! By ignoring the root cause of the infection and focusing on the virus itself, they can promote a vaccine as the solution. Hey, why not? They do it for HPV, flu season and soon even things like cancer! This is precisely what goes on with HPV and the scare campaigns that try to recruit young girls into getting vaccinated with high-profit HPV vaccines. Although cervical cancer is actually caused by the lack of good immune health, it is blamed on the presence of a virus that can be targeted with a vaccine. But in HPV infections, the presence of the virus is actually more of a symptom of disease than the cause of it . I can’t wait to see what the loony vaccine pushers are going to suggest for honeybees. Will they come up with little vaccine needles and set up fly-through honeybee vaccine clinics? Will they set up a Walgreens outside every honeybee colony and offer vaccine shots 24/7? Will they launch a new non-profit called “save the honeybees” and run a TV telethon to raise millions of dollars to fund “the search for the cure?” I can just see the pharmaceutical companies drooling over the possibilities here. If they can push this viral explanation of CCD, they could potentially start marketing vaccines for honeybees. And why stop there? Why not start discovering viral infections in wild birds and butterflies and promote vaccines for them, too? (No animal is safe from Big Pharma’s vaccine agenda, it seems… just ask your veterinarian.) The real cause of Colony Collapse Disorder So what’s the real cause of CCD? Well it’s certainly not the mere presence of a virus and a fungus. Those are just the symptoms of something else that’s gone wrong. To really answer the question, you need to look at the environmental influences on honeybees. What has changed over the last few years that could create an infection vulnerability among honeybees? Some of the more obvious factors to consider include: • An increase in the number of genetically engineered crops that are pollinated by honeybees (http://www.naturalnews.com/025287_bees_honey_crops.html). • An increase in the number of cell phone towers emitting radiation that might affect honeybees. • An increase in the use of chemical pesticides on crops pollinated by honeybees (http://www.naturalnews.com/023679.html). And (http://www.naturalnews.com/028429_colony_collapse_disorder_chemicals.html). • Increased pollution of streams and rivers (water sources for honeybees) with trace levels of pharmaceutical chemicals. • Increased air pollution and coal-fired power plant emissions. • Changes in the atmosphere which may impact the amount of solar radiation reaching honeybees. • Lack of genetic diversity among honeybees, creating an “in-breeding” genetic vulnerability to disease. … and so on. It’s not difficult to come up with a list of possible factors that are likely be the real root causes of CCD. But I suspect that western scientists, who are typically unwilling to consider environmental factors for just about everything (just look at the cancer industry!) will ignore these root causes and focus on the viral infections. And that will send them down the path of trying to come up with a honeybee vaccine rather than addressing the real root causes of disease. They’re doing precisely the same thing in humans, of course. Instead of addressing the real root causes of disease — widespread consumption of processed junk foods, chemicals in personal care products, lack of exercise, and so on — they focus on the presence of a virus and the intervention of a vaccine. Vaccines are useful tools for simple minds . They’re convenient for unintelligent scientists who are incapable of looking beyond the obvious. But they don’t really do much for people. The scientific evidence, by the way, says that seasonal flu vaccines don’t really work at all (http://www.naturalnews.com/029641_vaccines_junk_science.html). But that doesn’t stop superstitious scientists from “believing” in them. I can’t wait to see what sort of vaccines they’re going to come up with to “treat” the honeybees while ignoring the real root causes of CCD. This will go down in history as yet another striking demonstration of human scientific stupidity while the honeybees continue to die off. Maybe they’ll come up with psychiatric drugs to treat the honeybees. That’s actually the subject of a satire article I wrote back in 2007 called Breakthrough honeybee drugs to treat Colony Collapse Disorder (http://www.naturalnews.com/021857_honeybees_colony_collapse_disorder.html). There’s also a CounterThink cartoon on this topic that we published in 2008: http://counterthink.com/Honeybees_Go_on_Strike.asp

Texas leads the pack in wind power generation

(NaturalNews) The race to develop alternative energy sources to offset traditional ones has been intensifying as states look to take advantage of federal incentives. Wind energy in particular is quickly becoming a hot new market, and none other than Texas is ahead of the game in this particular sector. Texas tops Iowa, Washington and California in wind energy generation, harboring a capacity of nearly 10,000 megawatts in 2009. According to data, roughly five percent of Texas energy is now produced by wind, an impressive statistic considering that it has been achieved in less than a decade. When Texas first deregulated electricity in 1999, it established a requirement that 2,000 megawatts of power be derived from wind by 2009. It was the first state to make such a move. Texas achieved , and exceeded , this goal by 2005, and is set to reach production of 10,000 megawatts of renewable energy by 2025. Texas’ Public Utility Commission is currently working on constructing a matrix of new transmission lines across the state that will accommodate the full capacity of the state’s wind power potential. Since the grid can only handle a certain amount of wind energy in its current format, the system has to be expanded in order to handle the load. The network is expected to be finished sometime between 2013 and 2015, and by the time it reaches completion, it will be able to handle up to 18,000 megawatts of wind power at its peak output. But because wind energy can be fickle, literally “changing with the wind,” it is difficult to rely solely on it for energy production. But Texas is forging the way in developing technologies that help to forecast the weather and control the storage of wind energy to accommodate changing weather patterns. Interestingly, Texas is having considerable success with wind because it cut itself off from the rest of the nation during the New Deal of the 1930s. While other states were partnering to share energy and transmission lines with one another, Texas exempted itself from partnerships and remained independent. Other energy providers in Texas are not so pleased with the success of wind power, particularly because it is heavily subsidized by federal grants that keep it artificially inexpensive. Many of them, including natural gas providers, are having a tough time competing and think that wind energy should have to survive on its own without the need for subsidies. They also believe that wind energy providers should help pay for the cost of meeting reserve requirements when the wind is not blowing. Basically, the consensus is that the wind industry should have to abide by the same standards as everyone else in the energy sector. The good news is that legislators are working with the industry to establish fair guidelines that will keep everyone happy and allow for the continued growth of clean, renewable energy. Sources for this story include: http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2010/04/08/08climatewire-is-texas-writing-the-book-on-wind-power-35036.html