Date-rape drugs -- so called because they render victims unconscious or provoke memory loss, facilitating rape -- were increasingly easy to obtain, the International Narcotics Control Board said in its annual report Wednesday.
"The 'date-rape drug' phenomenon is evolving rapidly, as sexual abusers attempt to circumvent more rigorous drug controls by using substances not restricted by the international drug conventions," it noted.
Rohypnol, the best known date-rape drugs, is subject to strict checks, but others like GHB, ketamine, an anaesthetic, and GBL, a solvent, are becoming more and more common and are easily available through legal channels.
Abuse of prescription drugs -- including morphine, codeine and methadone -- has also spread in recent years to become a "major concern" in many countries, with the number of users even surpassing the combined figure of cocaine, heroin and ecstasy users in places such as the United States, the INCB said.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
DRUGSTORE INDUSTRIES SQUASHED PHARMACY LABEL VOTE
A CVS pharmacy official that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed to the Pharmacy Board provided the vote to kill the bill.One other appointee was attorney Tappan Zee. The bill was to require large type on drug labels, and make oral translation of them available for all non-English speakers.The governor appointed Deborah Veale the job the day before the vote was conducted.
The California Retailers Assoc., has contributed $400,000 to the governors committees Other donors were Walgreens, Rite-Aid and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores.
The bill has been supported by consumer advocacy groups, and senior citizen and minority groups.Nan Brasmer ,president of the California Alliance of Retired Americans said "some people can't clearly read little tiny type".
State Senator Ellen Corbett wrote the state law that empowered the pharmacy board to create label guidelines.
The California Retailers Assoc., has contributed $400,000 to the governors committees Other donors were Walgreens, Rite-Aid and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores.
The bill has been supported by consumer advocacy groups, and senior citizen and minority groups.Nan Brasmer ,president of the California Alliance of Retired Americans said "some people can't clearly read little tiny type".
State Senator Ellen Corbett wrote the state law that empowered the pharmacy board to create label guidelines.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
BRITAIN INVESTIGATING ASSASSINATION OF HAMAS LEADER
There were stolen idenity and forged document papers of the hit squad. Everything was caught on tape in Dubai.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
SCIENTOLOGISTS TO SET UP AN ORPHANAGE IN HAITI
Scientologists flown to Haiti by John Travolta to help in the relief effort plan to set up a permanent base in the stricken country once the aid operation is complete.
The first group of Scientologists arrived in Haiti two weeks ago, and were boosted last week by the arrival of actor John Travolta in his Boeing 707 . The Scientologists, who are carrying out an operation called The Volunteer Ministry Disaster Relief for Haiti, have already begun plans to build an orphanage in the country.
Members of the group have volunteered to work in the hospitals, using healing techniques that reportedly include touching certain parts of the body or telling patients to stare at the wall.
Pat Harney, a spokesperson for the organization, told The Times: "I have no doubt that in some form or other there will be a church of Scientology here."
The first group of Scientologists arrived in Haiti two weeks ago, and were boosted last week by the arrival of actor John Travolta in his Boeing 707 with food, medical equipment, and baby food,doctors and volunteer ministers.
An Oxfam spokeswoman was quoted as saying: "I didn't know touching could cure gangrene", while other people questioned how Travolta was able to gain landing permission while many other aid flights were turned away from the airport.
The first group of Scientologists arrived in Haiti two weeks ago, and were boosted last week by the arrival of actor John Travolta in his Boeing 707 . The Scientologists, who are carrying out an operation called The Volunteer Ministry Disaster Relief for Haiti, have already begun plans to build an orphanage in the country.
Members of the group have volunteered to work in the hospitals, using healing techniques that reportedly include touching certain parts of the body or telling patients to stare at the wall.
Pat Harney, a spokesperson for the organization, told The Times: "I have no doubt that in some form or other there will be a church of Scientology here."
The first group of Scientologists arrived in Haiti two weeks ago, and were boosted last week by the arrival of actor John Travolta in his Boeing 707 with food, medical equipment, and baby food,doctors and volunteer ministers.
An Oxfam spokeswoman was quoted as saying: "I didn't know touching could cure gangrene", while other people questioned how Travolta was able to gain landing permission while many other aid flights were turned away from the airport.
Monday, February 15, 2010
JAPAN'S WORLD WAR II ' S UNIT 731 REVIEWED AGAIN
TOKYO: More than 60 years after the end of World War II, the name Unit 731 still has the power to generate shock, revulsion and denial in Japan.
The Imperial Japanese Army's notorious medical research team carried out secret human experiments regarded as some of the worst war crimes in history.
It subjected more than 10,000 people a year to grotesque torture in the name of science. Russian soldiers and downed American aircrews were among the victims.
Experiments included hanging people upside down until they choked, burying them alive and injecting air into their veins. Some victims were subject to vivisection.
The bones of up to 100 people were discovered in a mass grave in 1989 during construction work. They bore the marks of saws and some of the skulls had drill holes and portions of the bone cut out. But the issue is so controversial in Japan that the remains have since been stored in a repository.
Acting on information from a former nurse, the authorities have said they will re-examine the bones to determine whether they were part of the experiments carried out by Unit 731 in the last days of the war.
Toyo Ishii came forward to say that during the weeks after Japan's surrender in August 1945, she and her colleagues at an army hospital were ordered to bury corpses, bones and body parts before the Allies arrived.
She claimed that the hospital had three mortuaries where bodies with numbered tags around their necks were stored in a pool of formalin to preserve them before they were dissected. Organs and other body parts were preserved in glass jars.
The sites that Mrs Ishii pinpointed as mass graves will now be excavated. The area is an apartment complex in the Shinjuku district of the city which is scheduled for redevelopment.
An investigation after the remains were found in 1989 concluded they were mostly non-Japanese Asians and had probably been used in ''medical education'' or taken to the medical school from battlefields overseas for analysis. .
Unit 731 was mostly active in China, where it carried out biological, bacteriological and chemical weapons tests on civilians and prisoners of war.
The Imperial Japanese Army's notorious medical research team carried out secret human experiments regarded as some of the worst war crimes in history.
It subjected more than 10,000 people a year to grotesque torture in the name of science. Russian soldiers and downed American aircrews were among the victims.
Experiments included hanging people upside down until they choked, burying them alive and injecting air into their veins. Some victims were subject to vivisection.
The bones of up to 100 people were discovered in a mass grave in 1989 during construction work. They bore the marks of saws and some of the skulls had drill holes and portions of the bone cut out. But the issue is so controversial in Japan that the remains have since been stored in a repository.
Acting on information from a former nurse, the authorities have said they will re-examine the bones to determine whether they were part of the experiments carried out by Unit 731 in the last days of the war.
Toyo Ishii came forward to say that during the weeks after Japan's surrender in August 1945, she and her colleagues at an army hospital were ordered to bury corpses, bones and body parts before the Allies arrived.
She claimed that the hospital had three mortuaries where bodies with numbered tags around their necks were stored in a pool of formalin to preserve them before they were dissected. Organs and other body parts were preserved in glass jars.
The sites that Mrs Ishii pinpointed as mass graves will now be excavated. The area is an apartment complex in the Shinjuku district of the city which is scheduled for redevelopment.
An investigation after the remains were found in 1989 concluded they were mostly non-Japanese Asians and had probably been used in ''medical education'' or taken to the medical school from battlefields overseas for analysis. .
Unit 731 was mostly active in China, where it carried out biological, bacteriological and chemical weapons tests on civilians and prisoners of war.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
YAMAHA MOTORS IS STRUGGLING, WILL CUT 1000 JOBS, AXE PLANTS
Japanese motorcycle maker Yamaha Motor has announced plans to close seven factories globally with the loss of 1,000 jobs, in an effort to bounce back from a $2.7 billion annual loss.
Yamaha, the world’s second biggest motorcycle manufacturer after Honda, said it would cut 200 jobs overseas, on top of the 800 in Japan announced last week.
The streamlining is also in addition to a 10-per cent reduction in the company’s global workforce of 17,000 already underway, a Yamaha spokesman said.
The group will shut five of its 12 domestic factories by 2012, all in Shizuoka prefecture, central Japan, now producing parts for motorcycles, marine products and buggies.
Overseas, Yamaha will close a motorcycling factory in Italy and a marine products plant in the US state of Florida.
‘‘The company is expanding the scope of three structural reforms - reorganizing the manufacturing layout, the workforce and reducing costs - beyond the level envisioned in the previous announcement,’’ Yamaha said.
Yamaha said it suffered a net loss of 216.1 billion for the year to December, against a year-earlier profit of 1.8 billion.
Revenue dropped 28.1 per cent to 1.15 trillion in 2009 as the economic slump dented sales of motorcycles and marine products both at home and overseas, Yamaha said.
For 2010, the company expects to break even on a net basis with solid demand in Asia projected to lift revenue by 8.4 per cent to 1.25 trillion.
Yamaha, the world’s second biggest motorcycle manufacturer after Honda, said it would cut 200 jobs overseas, on top of the 800 in Japan announced last week.
The streamlining is also in addition to a 10-per cent reduction in the company’s global workforce of 17,000 already underway, a Yamaha spokesman said.
The group will shut five of its 12 domestic factories by 2012, all in Shizuoka prefecture, central Japan, now producing parts for motorcycles, marine products and buggies.
Overseas, Yamaha will close a motorcycling factory in Italy and a marine products plant in the US state of Florida.
‘‘The company is expanding the scope of three structural reforms - reorganizing the manufacturing layout, the workforce and reducing costs - beyond the level envisioned in the previous announcement,’’ Yamaha said.
Yamaha said it suffered a net loss of 216.1 billion for the year to December, against a year-earlier profit of 1.8 billion.
Revenue dropped 28.1 per cent to 1.15 trillion in 2009 as the economic slump dented sales of motorcycles and marine products both at home and overseas, Yamaha said.
For 2010, the company expects to break even on a net basis with solid demand in Asia projected to lift revenue by 8.4 per cent to 1.25 trillion.
AUSTRALIANS WAIT FOR PERMISSION TO JOIN HAITI RECOVERY EFFORT
FIVE air traffic controllers sent by Australia to assist the emergency effort in Haiti have been stranded in Miami for two weeks after failing to get approval to enter the earthquake-ravaged country.
The controllers from the air force's surveillance and response group left Australia on January 27, 15 days after the earthquake, but arrived too late to enter Haiti with the initial influx of disaster-relief workers.
The Defence Force said yesterday that the controllers had been ''training and liaising'' with US counterparts in Miami while they awaited permission to enter Haiti.
''Immediate emergency aid was required in the initial aftermath of the earthquake, which is why some countries were able to enter Haiti quickly,'' a Defence Force spokesman said. ''Since the emergency phase has concluded, regular diplomatic processes have recommenced, with which participating nations are expected to abide.''
The Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, announced the deployment of the controllers on January 23, as the United Nations said the emergency phase of the relief effort was ending.
Australia has pledged $15 million in aid to Haiti, including $10 million for immediate humanitarian needs such as food, water and sanitation.
The controllers from the air force's surveillance and response group left Australia on January 27, 15 days after the earthquake, but arrived too late to enter Haiti with the initial influx of disaster-relief workers.
The Defence Force said yesterday that the controllers had been ''training and liaising'' with US counterparts in Miami while they awaited permission to enter Haiti.
''Immediate emergency aid was required in the initial aftermath of the earthquake, which is why some countries were able to enter Haiti quickly,'' a Defence Force spokesman said. ''Since the emergency phase has concluded, regular diplomatic processes have recommenced, with which participating nations are expected to abide.''
The Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, announced the deployment of the controllers on January 23, as the United Nations said the emergency phase of the relief effort was ending.
Australia has pledged $15 million in aid to Haiti, including $10 million for immediate humanitarian needs such as food, water and sanitation.
VANUATU ASKS US SAILOR TO LEAVE
AN AMERICAN sailor seeking answers about the mysterious death of his wife in Vanuatu last year has been asked to leave the country by Vanuatu's immigration officials.
Doug Nash has been waiting for the results of an autopsy report on his wife's death but the Australian Federal Police refuse to release the results.
Mr Nash's visa had been extended as he waited six months for the report, but it is understood he received a letter yesterday saying he must leave within 30 days.
Australian Federal Police in Vanuatu have a copy of the autopsy report by an Australian pathologist, but will not release it to Mr Nash until the Vanuatu coroner does so. But the coroner, Rita Bill Naviti, is filling in for a magistrate for two months on the island of Santo and yesterday had not yet received the report.
Federal police withdrew assistance to Mr Nash, a retired NASA geologist, after the Herald revealed his plight last month. A spokeswoman confirmed they had assisted in the case but would not comment further.
Mr Nash's wife, Silvia Fink, died after drinking Miracle Mineral Solution in August, a product responsible for at least three hospital admissions in Australia. He blames the product for her death but its reclusive creator, Jim Humble, denies it is toxic.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration said it was continuing its investigation into the distribution of Miracle Mineral Solution in Australia.
Doug Nash has been waiting for the results of an autopsy report on his wife's death but the Australian Federal Police refuse to release the results.
Mr Nash's visa had been extended as he waited six months for the report, but it is understood he received a letter yesterday saying he must leave within 30 days.
Australian Federal Police in Vanuatu have a copy of the autopsy report by an Australian pathologist, but will not release it to Mr Nash until the Vanuatu coroner does so. But the coroner, Rita Bill Naviti, is filling in for a magistrate for two months on the island of Santo and yesterday had not yet received the report.
Federal police withdrew assistance to Mr Nash, a retired NASA geologist, after the Herald revealed his plight last month. A spokeswoman confirmed they had assisted in the case but would not comment further.
Mr Nash's wife, Silvia Fink, died after drinking Miracle Mineral Solution in August, a product responsible for at least three hospital admissions in Australia. He blames the product for her death but its reclusive creator, Jim Humble, denies it is toxic.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration said it was continuing its investigation into the distribution of Miracle Mineral Solution in Australia.
Friday, February 12, 2010
AMERICANS DON'T WANT MEMBERS OF CONGRESS RE-ELECTED, ACCORDING TO POLLS
Just 8 percent of Americans want the members of Congress re-elected, according to a CBS News-New York Times poll taken nine months before roughly one-third of the Senate and the entire House face voters.
The Feb. 5-10 survey found 81 percent of respondents saying the lawmakers shouldn't’t receive another term.
By 80 percent to 13 percent, Americans said members of Congress are more interested in serving special interests than the people they represent.
Also, 75 percent disapproved of the job Congress is doing, the highest level since 74 percent said they disapproved in October 2008. Congress’s job approval rating was 15 percent in the current survey; it was 12 percent in October 2008.
Another poll released today also showed electoral discontent. The Pew Research Center for the People & the Press survey found that 31 percent of U.S. voters don’t want their representative to Congress re-elected. That’s higher than in 1994 and 2006, when midterm elections shifted party control on Capitol Hill.
Patrick Kennedy, son of the late Edward Kennedy has revealed that he is retiring from Congress.He has had struggles with depression and substance abuse.
.
The Feb. 5-10 survey found 81 percent of respondents saying the lawmakers shouldn't’t receive another term.
By 80 percent to 13 percent, Americans said members of Congress are more interested in serving special interests than the people they represent.
Also, 75 percent disapproved of the job Congress is doing, the highest level since 74 percent said they disapproved in October 2008. Congress’s job approval rating was 15 percent in the current survey; it was 12 percent in October 2008.
Another poll released today also showed electoral discontent. The Pew Research Center for the People & the Press survey found that 31 percent of U.S. voters don’t want their representative to Congress re-elected. That’s higher than in 1994 and 2006, when midterm elections shifted party control on Capitol Hill.
Patrick Kennedy, son of the late Edward Kennedy has revealed that he is retiring from Congress.He has had struggles with depression and substance abuse.
.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
OBAMA TO MEET WITH DALI LAMA AT THE WHITE HOUSE
The White House Thursday said President Barack Obama would meet the Dalai Lama next week, sparking an immediate demand from Beijing for the withdrawal of the diplomatically explosive invitation.
Obama's meeting with the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader is sure to further strain increasingly testy US-China relations, as the president seeks to overcome Beijing's reluctance to place a choke hold of sanctions on Iran.
In one step apparently meant to mollify China, the February 18 talks will take place in the White House Map Room, not the symbolic surroundings of the Oval Office, where Obama normally meets foreign leaders and VIP guests.
Next week's meeting comes at a time when Sino-US relations have soured over the sale of a 6.4-billion-dollar package of US weapons to Taiwan, which Beijing regards as a Chinese territory to be reunified by force if necessary. Related article: China says it has 'no dissidents'
Obama also knows Chinese support is vital if he is to succeed in winning unanimous backing at the UN Security Council for the tough regime of sanctions he wants to impose on Iran for stepping up its suspect nuclear work.
The Dalai Lama, 74, fled his Tibet homeland to exile in India in 1959, after a failed uprising against Chinese rule. That came nine years after Chinese troops were sent to take control of the region.
Since the 2008 round of talks, China has maintained a tough crackdown in Tibet it launched following a wave of anti-Chinese unrest that erupted in March of that year and which Beijing blamed on the Dalai Lama.
Obama's meeting with the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader is sure to further strain increasingly testy US-China relations, as the president seeks to overcome Beijing's reluctance to place a choke hold of sanctions on Iran.
In one step apparently meant to mollify China, the February 18 talks will take place in the White House Map Room, not the symbolic surroundings of the Oval Office, where Obama normally meets foreign leaders and VIP guests.
Next week's meeting comes at a time when Sino-US relations have soured over the sale of a 6.4-billion-dollar package of US weapons to Taiwan, which Beijing regards as a Chinese territory to be reunified by force if necessary. Related article: China says it has 'no dissidents'
Obama also knows Chinese support is vital if he is to succeed in winning unanimous backing at the UN Security Council for the tough regime of sanctions he wants to impose on Iran for stepping up its suspect nuclear work.
The Dalai Lama, 74, fled his Tibet homeland to exile in India in 1959, after a failed uprising against Chinese rule. That came nine years after Chinese troops were sent to take control of the region.
Since the 2008 round of talks, China has maintained a tough crackdown in Tibet it launched following a wave of anti-Chinese unrest that erupted in March of that year and which Beijing blamed on the Dalai Lama.
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