What is swine flu?

Swine flu is a type of influenza virus which normally affects pigs. But it has ‘crossed over’ to infect humans before, and the current strain of the virus has now affected many people in Mexico. The concern is that it seems to be spreading between people and might cause a wave of infections around the world.

There have been more than 1,600 cases of swine flu in Mexico in recent weeks, and over 100 deaths. But in other countries, where people travelling from Mexico have caught the disease, infections have been milder, and no-one has died. There have been confirmed cases in the US, in Canada and in Spain. Other suspected cases are being investigated in other countries.

What are the symptoms of swine flu?

Symptoms of swine flu are similar to those of normal winter flu. People have a feverish illness, along with one or more of the following symptoms: cough, sore throat, headache, tiredness and muscle aches. Some people also lose their appetite, and some have reported vomiting and diarrhoea.

What should I do if I get symptoms?

If you’ve been to Mexico or the US, or another country that may have been affected by swine flu, the UK’s Health Protection Agency says you should keep an eye on your health for the seven days after your return. If you develop flu-like symptoms during that time, you should stay at home, and contact your GP by telephone, or phone NHS Direct. Make sure you tell them where you’ve been travelling.

You may need tests, which might be carried out at home, or in hospital. Until you have your test results, you should avoid contact with other people. You should also take sensible hygiene precautions to avoid spreading the virus.

• Cover your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, use paper tissues and dispose of them straight away.
• Wash your hands frequently with soap and water.
• Wash surfaces like door handles with a normal cleaning product.

It’s important that your children also cover their noses and mouths when coughing or sneezing, and wash their hands frequently.

How can I protect myself against swine flu?

At the time of writing, there have been no confirmed cases of swine flu in the UK. However, it’s possible the virus will spread to the UK. Taking sensible hygiene precautions, such as those listed above, will help avoid spreading or catching the virus. Frequent hand-washing has been shown in clinical studies to prevent the spread of cold and flu viruses.

What treatments work for swine flu?

The anti-viral medicines oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza) are being used to treat people with swine flu. Testing has shown that the swine flu virus is susceptible to these medicines.

From:

Health Protection Agency. Swine influenza advice for the public. April 2009. Available at the Health Protection Agency (accessed on 27 April 2009).

Openly lesbian , a 65-year-old whose Jan. 31 elevation to the post of Prime Minister would have seemed the longest of long shots thirty years ago, at the start of the former flight attendant’s political career.

Or, perhaps not: this is a woman whose determination and perseverance have set her apart from others in the tiny nation’s government, a woman who once formed her own party before recommitting to the Social Democratic Alliance.

With Sigurdardottir having taken the reigns of national leadership and Iceland headed toward membership in the European Union, the promise of hope for a nation beset by deep economic woes–and the Jan. 26 fall of a government that had lost the trust of its people–far outweigh the sexual orientation of the new leader.

Even so, Sigurdardottir’s assumption of the role of Prime Minister marks an historic step forward: never before has an openly GLBT individual been prime minister of a nation.

According to the NYT, residents and tourists waded through knee-deep water yesterday as they navigated the city’s narrow streets and alleys, and its historic St. Mark’s Square was inundated.

One of the highest tides in its history brought Venice to a virtual halt, rekindling a debate over a plan to build moveable flood barriers in an effort to save the city from high tides.

For three decades, a single idea on how to safeguard Venice and its lagoon from sinking beneath the sea has held sway: a wall of hinged barriers at each of the three entrances to the lagoon that would rise at the flick of a switch to collectively block extreme high tides from entering the lagoon. Sounds simple, right? Well, it is, after a fashion. Below, watch an animated movie and see how the mobile gates would work.

Mrs. Clinton came to her decision after additional discussion with President-elect Barack Obama about the nature of her role and his plans for foreign policy, said one of the confidants, who insisted on anonymity to discuss the situation. [NYT]

I am so ecstactic, relieved and hopeful today.

We watched the election results on our computer last night. MSNBC had live coverage. Fortunate for us. Here in Puerto Rico we do not have a TV. We were so stressed that history was in the making and we would not be able to witness it.

Teary eyed we were. How fantastic to give this man a chance. He has a tough road ahead of him. Unbelievable challenges and he will be intensely scrutinized. I guess Bush’s legacy will be that his failed presidency allowed for some change in America.

The American people have spoken.  This is a historic moment. A moment when ALL Americans have come together for a common cause, CHANGE.  Yes we CAN and we DID!

Beautiful sunsets they do have, but living here in Puerto Rico has been an enlightening, frustrating and sad experience.

My partner (E) and I arrived a little over a month ago with the hopes of taking a break from NYC, and starting a seasonal bar/grill on the beach. E, would have time and space to read, write and do her artwork, and I would work on menus, cocktails, music and ambiance. How excited we were of the prospect of doing what we enjoy and of waking up to beautiful bright days by the sea.

We rented this small house on the beach. Not the tidiest, but on the beach afterall. We swam most morning before embarking on daily location scouting (for our new spot),  grocery shopping, book store hunting etc.

To give you some background, Rincon is on the far west side of the island.  San Juan is on the East side. There is a big surfing community here, both local and riders from abroad.  These beaches have some of the best surfing on the island.  Rincon also has a large ex-pat community. My guess is surfer dudes that started coming here in the 60′s and 70′s and just decided to stay or come back and settle in. Some have opened guest houses, casual eateries and of course…surf shops. As you can perhaps imagine, it is a very laid back town.

Coming from NYC, it has taken us quite some time to adjust. As New Yorkers, we are so accustomed to getting everything asap.  Here, there is no sense of urgency for anything. I’m not just talking about customer service, there is no urgency on the road, on the check out line, returning a call, keeping an appointment. They must be returning calls while driving because everyone is on a cell phone, which partly explains the turtle speed. I’m not sure if it’s the heat, but it’s unexplicable. I ‘ve heard of “tropical time” but this is ridiculous.

Rincon thrives on tourism. It’s their main source of employment and income. So, you would think that customer service would be priority. There is so much potential here, but I do not understand the disregard for some of the basic requirements to keep customers coming back. The funny thing is that I believe they know what it takes but, just don’t care. Maybe because no one really cares about them.

My parents are Puerto Rican. They both emigrated to the U.S. in the late 1950′s. Not by choice, unemployment was high in Puerto Rico. In the 1950′s, the United States under FDR implemented “Operation Bootstrap”. This program aimed to transform Puerto Rico’s economy from agricultural-based to manufacturing-based. The U.S. offered foreign businesses major tax incentives to get them to set up shop on the island which included hard-working men and women at a fraction of the price. Yes, cheap labor. In the meantime, farmers lost their land, some were bought or taken over by Americans or other foreigners and we stopped producing. If you go into any supermarket in Puerto Rico, all across the island, everything is imported. Puerto Rico has become a dumping ground for products and it’s people have become major consumers.  The U.S. will never give Puerto Rico it’s independence because it needs the island for business. Suzuki, Isuzu, Ponderosa, Burger King, Taco Maker. There are sooo many fast food chains here. Fish is imported from China. This is an island, surrounded by water, where is the fresh fish?

Does the U.S. care about the people of Puerto Rico? I’m beginning to think not. They ask, are we American? Are we Puerto Rican? This limbo state continues indefinitely. Do we have a voice? Certainly not in America. Puerto Ricans can not vote in U.S elections because they do not pay Federal taxes. They don’t seem to have much of a voice here either since many programs and funding need to be approved by the U.S. Federal government.

The island is having it’s elections for Govenor today. There has been a non-stop caravan of cars with loud music, and flag waving crowds along the roads cheering for either the red party (Popular Democratic Party) or the blue party (New Progressive Party). It just seems like an occasion to party and literally “burn rubber” with friends and family. I wondered if anyone really knew what their representatives stood for. Some of these kids weren’t even old enough to vote! I have been warned to stay indoors tonight and avoid the street frenzy that ensues after elections. If only Puerto Ricans were as enthusiastic about maintaining the beauty of the island and it’s waters, education, infrastructure, animal rights, gay rights…

I’ll be glued to the TV set tonight watching the elections in the States and listening to Reggaeton blasting out of souped up Hondas out my louvered windows.

…to be continued.

Council chairman Abdul Shukor Husin told Bernama many young women admired the way men dress, behave and socialize, violating human nature and denying their femininity.

“It is unacceptable to see women who love the male lifestyle including dressing in the clothes men wear,” Abdul Shukor was quoted as saying.

“(Masculine behavior) becomes clearer when they start to have sex with someone of the same gender, that is woman and woman,” he said.

“In view of this, the National Fatwa Council which met today have decided and taken the stand that such acts are forbidden and banned,” he said.

The World Unseen

In 1950′s South Africa, apartheid is just becoming institutionalized. Free-spirited Amina has broken all the rules of her own conventional Indian community, and the new apartheid-led government, by running a café with Jacob her “colored” business partner. When she meets Miriam, a young traditional wife and mother, their unexpected attraction pushes Miriam to question the rules that bind her. When Amina helps Miriam’s sister-in-law to hide from the police, a chain of events is set in motion that changes both women forever. The World Unseen is a captivating human drama, based on the highly acclaimed, multi award-winning novel by Shamim Sarif.  Opens November 7th at the Quad Theatre in NYC

I Can’t Think Straight

In the upper echelons of traditional Jordanian society, Reema and Omar, wealthy Christian Palestinians, prepare for the marriage of their eldest daughter Tala.

But back at work in London, Tala encounters Leyla, a young British Indian woman who is dating Tala’s best friend Ali. The women have an instant effect on each other.

Tala sees something unique in the artless, clumsy, sensitive Leyla who secretly works to become a fiction writer. And Tala’s forthright challenges to Leyla’s cultural foundations begins a journey of self-awareness for Leyla.

As the women fall in love, Tala’s own sense of duty cause her to pull away from Leyla and fly back to Jordan where the preparations for an ostentatious wedding are well under way. As family members descend and the wedding day approaches, the pressure mounts.

When Ali and Leyla’s feisty sister Zara help throw Tala and Leyla together again, Tala finds that her own preconceptions of what love can be is the final hurdle she must jump to win Leyla back.

Screening November 7th @ 9:00 pm at the Museum of Arts and Design and November 9th @ 12:00 noon at the Tribeca Theater, NYC.

Reports from the district of Nasirabad said the women were killed because three of them wanted to get married without the approval of their families.

Last week two senators caused uproar by suggesting that the killings were a matter of tribal tradition.

Women’s rights groups have expressed outrage over the incident.

According to reports from Balochistan, three women between 18-20 years of age from the Imrani tribe were abducted by tribesmen who had heard about their plans to marry without family consent.

Two older women who tried to help the would-be brides were also kidnapped.

The reports say the women were all shot, thrown into a ditch and then buried, even though they were still alive.

On Friday a female senator raised the case in the national parliament in Islamabad.

ow the Senate has passed a formal resolution on the deaths.

“This house condemns the brutal murder of five women in Balochistan’s Nasirabad district and calls for strong action to be taken against the culprits,” the statement said.

It called on the Senate’s human rights committee “to produce a comprehensive report on the incident in one month”.

Prosecutors had charged the women with kissing, groping each other and “indecent acts in public,” the 7Day paper said, adding that this was the first case of its kind in the United Arab Emirates, a federation of seven states including Dubai.

According to police reports, the two women were seen being intimate with each other on Al-Mamzar public beach between Sharjah and Dubai in April.

They will be deported after serving their sentences.

Even more disturbing is that earlier this year two women here in America, “Land of the Free” were asked to stop kissing at a Seattle baseball game or be thrown out.