Amudo, Mozambique

how many cans of Taiwan beer can I take from Taiwan into South Africa. I am a South African.? I could only get info about hard liquer and tabacco. If you don't know about South Africa . please tell me about other countries custom laws concerning beer. or a number that I could call. A number in Taiwan. I have already called the liaison office in Taipei. They do not know.

Question on South African social customs? Ok, i have always thought Sotuh Africa would be nice to visit. Depending on what happens, i may have a date with a 15 yr old south african boy. Im a 15 yr old american girl, so i wanted to know (every country is different) a couple things about how people in SA greet each other. Is it more of a touchy feely culture (ex. my mum is spanish and they hug and kiss EVERYONE) or are they less touchy? How should i greet him, with a hug or handshake? Also, is there any other social cusoms in SA that are unique to it? Sorry if i sound dumb, i just want this lad to like me. Thanks sooo much :)

Question on South african belief on marriage..? My husband cheated on me with a woman from South Africa.He told his mother in a letter that the reason why he had a relationship with her is because she respected him 10times more than I did.One way was by serving him first during meal times and that no one would eat till he came .Now she has 2 kids for him.I want to know if it is custom to serve the man/husband before children or if it is is just a tactic to get a man in general? Obviously his mom thinks its a stupid excuse He is never at home for meals.We have always disputed on this as I believe it should be family time.He is always extremely late or eats "somewhere "else I have always put my husband first even before the kids came along.Too many days have passed when I stay at home eating a cold dinner by myself just waiting for him only to get a call that he has eaten already Even on the few days he is home he has everyone waiting over 2 hours doing nothing really important like cleaning the car again even though he did the day before. What am I to tell my hungry kids when we are waiting for him all the time. I still put my husband first in all things. It is hard respecting him when he doesn't respect the fact that others have been waiting 2 hours for him

What do you think Texas Official Claims Terrorists Have Been Apprehended on Mexican Border? ARTICLE SYNOPSIS: The Texas Director of Homeland Security claimed in a September 12th speech that border crossers with ties to Middle East terrorists groups have been arrested in his state. Follow this link to the original source: "Security chief says terrorists have been arrested on Texas border" COMMENTARY: Steve McCraw, the top homeland security official for the Lone Star State, pointed to his knowledge that individuals with links to terrorism have crossed the border from Mexico. In his speech before the North Texas Crime Commission, he said that persons apprehended at the border had ties to such identifiable terrorist groups as Hezbollah, Hamas and al-Qaeda. Expanding on his rather sensational accusation, McCraw said that, since March 2006, 347 individuals from "terrorist-related countries" have been arrested at the border. Since last year, he added, the number from Iraq alone has "tripled." He identified Farida Goolam Mahomed Ahmed as the most notable terrorism-related detainee. After wading across the Rio Grande, she was apprehended in July 2004 carrying large amounts of currency and a doctored South African passport. She was wanted for questioning about the bombing of a U.S. consulate. Suspicions about her had also been raised by a U.S. congressman, but she was eventually deported to South Africa. A spokeswoman for the El Paso office of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency said she was unaware of any border arrests of persons linked to terrorism. But McCraw's claims have been corroborated by National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell. In August, McConnell told the El Paso Times that persons with known connections to terrorist groups had been caught crossing the border from Mexico. McCraw summed up his remarks with, "A porous border without question is a national security threat." Yet, despite warnings given by him and many others, the Bush administration has done little to address this serious problem. http://www.jbs.org/node/5517 Mexicans know the border better than we do.Living close to it,I know they have routes that they use to drive back and forth at will.If there is another attack within our borders,it will be because our Govt.,for some weird reason,and they have many,did not and will not, secure the borders.We are committed to life and death situations with other countries to secure their safety and secure their borders,but where is the Govt.we need for America?Their attempt to wholesale our country with the shamnesty stuff opened a lot of peoples eyes.And,they are still at it trying to revive a dead horse.I hope voters do not have a short memory.

Why do people think that Egypt African Negress country? Egypt is not a black Negress Believe me, I do not lie Egyptians also were not Arabs but have the image of Arab and Arab character .. And the language of Egypt is not Arabic, but from 40 to 65 percent Arabic words and some ancient Egyptian words and some words in English, Turkish, Italian and French Egyptian civilization does not belong to Africa , but only belong to the Egyptians most Egyptians converted to Islam almost a year before 1400 year I know they are Muslims, but religion is only a belie.. Anyone can convert to Islam Egypt is the world's least countries the proportion of crime.. Only the ground in Africa, but of culture, race, history and customs is quite different from black Africa I read a statistic that the number of women raped in South Africa in one year, more than 50000 women raped means every day more than 130 women raped I do not speak for the German white people but I speck for the Africans,the police official says in South Africa the number is much higher because women do not go to the police ... In Egypt, there is never such a thing.. might be the number of women in the 6 women in one year or less .. in Egypt can go to any place, even in the middle of the night Without fear of any one too safe in Egypt.. Mediterranean countries of Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco are not Negress ... Yes, in Africa, but black people are not .. Unfortunately, we hear of the kidnapping of children from Morocco to the African black people selling large amounts for prostitution in Black Africa countries. Egypt is not an ethnically mixed as the people think I'm from the Middle East, and I know that ..even the northern Egypt not mixed with southern Egypt ... blacks had not built the pyramids ... were built by Egyptian you can ask scientists prove that the Egyptian relics and writings of Egyptian and mummy and Heriglovife and you can question the American University in Cairo .. Egyptian Empire ended before 1800 year from now..lasted nearly five thousand years .. sorry my English is weak

Do you share this share this view of the name Africa? "Africa" – a great and problematic word This site is generalising when using the word "Africa" all over the place. Thought I better explain my feelings about this word. Most people (including myself) frequently use the word Africa, not only for the continent, but also as a common denominator for 50 countries, 720 million people and 1000 languages. We say "Africa" when we don't remember the names of the countries and many people wrongfully believe there is a common language called "African". We also use terms like "African culture", "African music" or "African religion" even though there is no single culture, music or religion for all of the countries/regions. A first step to understanding "Africa" is to acknowledge that it consists of a huge number of religions, tribes and groups of people each with a very different history. Quite describing for our view on Africa and it is history, "Africa" is not even an African word. The origin of the word is still a little uncertain, but it is credible to see a connection from Latin (Africa = sunny) and Greek (Aphrike = not cold). The Romans were the first to use the name. For them it covered Tunisia and the most northern parts of Algeria and Libya. They could also have been inspired to the name from some of the first people they met on the continenent: The Afri, which were a berber tribe in the Carthage area. Egypt was already known territory, but further South was unknown land. Around 2,000 years ago "Aethiopia" seems to have been used to describe the land found south of Sahara, but Europeans later used "Africa" to describe the entire continent. This is why we began to see Africa one land with only one kind of people. Strangely enough it changed from the land of sunshine and warmth to "the dark continent". The story is much more complex than that: a more fulfilling explanation can be found in the excellent book "Wonders of the African World" by Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr, which is also my source (see "shop now" box elsewhere on this page). It has always been comfortable and easy for Westerners to see Africa as a whole. Africa used to be somewhere far away with dark skinned people, having customs so different from our own: A land of fairytales or sometimes horror. Today we are a bit wiser, but it still seems like an impossible task to really understand the amounts and numbers we are dealing with in Africa... the cultural diversities – and the social disparities. The African continent is so vast, varied and rich in every way. It is fantastic and completely incomprehensible. Nothing compares to all this and yet we try to make it all fit into a small word of 6 letters. It is almost an insult! It is Impossible! No word can hold so much ...but in some way it does. When used to generalise and simplify the word can be harmful, but most people on the continent proudly describes themselves as Africans. Sometimes the African identity is even stronger than the actual nationality. Historically this could be due to the fact that most nations and borders in Africa are a European-colonial invention. Before colonialism there were around 10,000 kingdoms, but no countries called "Kenya", "Ghana", "South Africa" or "Ivory Coast". Independence gave birth to the nations we know today, but also to a pan-African feeling. Generalising again, I risk saying that Africans all over the world calls each other "brothers and sisters". Obviously the colonial exploitation had given the Africans some kind of a common history. But long before any white man sat foot in Africa the tribes and people had already been mixed together and switched homelands several times. Obviously there ARE similarities between tribes and people in Africa. The name of the rose The word might have a shady history, but it seems we have agreed to use it anyway. I love the word "Africa" and everything it carries along. In some strange way the small word has come to fully describe my passion - something that has actually changed my life. I guess only people who share my passion will understand the word in the same way. I know I am not the only "Africa aficionado". Is there any other place in the world that attracts and spellbinds people in the same way? Maybe it is the magic, juju, voodoo or whatever name we give it. For me it is probably the fantastic combination of the light, the heat, the brutal history, the rich nature, the rhythms of life and music, the strength and openness in people, the future possibilites - and not least the most beautiful and graceful women on earth. I maybe closer attached to some African countries than others, but it is still about "Africa" and not a single nation. In spite of the differences I hold on to the word. But let's use it with caution, not to forget that Africa, it's countries, people and cultures all deserve proper attention for the details that makes each one unique. I forgot to add that the article can be found on: http://crawfurd.dk/africa/word.htm I must add that some of the authors statements are his/her own opinion and posting this doesn't mean that I share all his views. Robert Shelton, there is nothing wrong with living in unity and inter-connection with nature. A spear, hut etc. is African. So what? You cannot want to dictate over every one about how they are going to live their lives. You want us all to live in concrete buildings under the blazing heat and then spend on energy inorder to bring in air conditioning? isn't that what you have always done.? What happened when the heat wave hit Greece and surrounding countries this summer? They all turned on the air. conditioning like crazy, their energ supply almost collapsed - not to mention the size of the energy bill. What you want for all of us is unsustainable in the long run. Africa, at least south of the Sahara, is predominantly rural (but It's changing very fast and I don't what the results of that willl be globally if new technological innovations don't arrive fast) and if these people leave the huts tomorrow for an urban and "more civilised" lifestyle then we're gone as a planet. Now about the absence of African philosophers. If the Western philosophers had been so effective how did the planet arrive at the situation we're in today? Another thought that comes to my mind is that Africa has never really needed philosophers. We have social and moral codes etc. These are practiced and don't remain largely theoretical. They are not questioned. To question them would mean the birth of philosophy. I could be wrong but that's what I think. There are blacks North of the Sahara desert but I'll speak for sub-Saharan when I saty that the overwhelming majority of us think of ourselves mainly as Africans and we call each other brother and sister even when we meet overseas. I want to clarify though T4 that Bantu is not a etnic group, tribe or anything but rather a lingual classification.

African travel? I'll be travelling to Africa this August and I have a few questions,even if u can only answer 1 I'd still really appreciate it.Okay,so I've heard of this whale festival in Hermanus,South Africa,the main festival is in September r October so I won't b able to go to that,but there is a 'calf festival' on in August but everytime i look it up on the net I keep finding out about the main festival,but i want to no about the calf festival,does any1 no where i could find out info on the calf festival.Also i'd like to know of any hot springs in South Africa. Any other cool things to do in africa apart from goin on safari.Does any1 no about the local customs or Zimbabwe, Zambia, South Africa, Morrco or Madacasgar. Or does any1 no howw to get to Sun City from Cape Town and how long it takes. Thanks.

Why white people are afraid to talk about Atlantic slave trade? We can talk about the Holocaust, genecides but not the Atlantic slave trade? I know there are other slave trades like the Arab trade and the Indian Ocean trade. Also, I know slavery in Africa was existed since ancient Egypt, but the Atlantic slave trade is different because slavery is in many ancient worlds a captial punishment. The Atlantic slave trade isn't. It is no doubt that the Europeans made a huge impact of trading enslaved Africans from African kingdoms. The Native Indians were dissappearing because of diseases ,and the indentured servitude failed to make a sufficient workforce. Enslaved Africans were first criminals and the mental ill at the first part of the Atlantic slave trade , but soon Europeans 'wars against African tribes and the capture of weak African kingdoms by strong African kingdoms because they are spellbound by the goods and riches of the Europeans destroyed the innocent of many Africans of the second half of the Atlantic slave trade, especially during the peak of the 18th century. It spread the many African tribes to the New World. The cultures, customs, and idenity were destoryed. It damaged and steroytpe the Africans by the Atlantic slave trade in the past, present,and future. Not only the African nations were invovled, but Europeans and Christianity are the in the same guilt. Pope John VI wanted to clean these "heatens" by teaching the word of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In the 21 century, there are apologies comming out from numbers of nations, including United States, Great Britian, France, Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands, and of course the African Nations At the 2001 World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa, African nations demanded a clear apology for slavery from the former slave-trading countries There are number of apologies from countries, but however there are countries are opposition to block attempts to apologies mainly, United States, Great Britain, France, Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands. Neverless, they did apologies during the mid-2000's from French President Jacques Chirac, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, the United States House of Representatives, the United States Senate, the Virginia General Assembly, and Governor of Alabama, Bob Riley, signed a resolution expressing "profound regret" for Alabama's role in slavery and apologizing for slavery's wrongs and lingering effects. Alabama is the fourth Southern state to pass a slavery apology, following votes by the legislatures in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina Other agologies: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_slave_trade#Apologies Anyway, why is that white people are afraid their share of guilt during the Atlantic slave trade? Blacks already talked about it and learn a lesson from it. P.S. Slavery in modern Africa isn't the discussion here. A total different subject and out of topic. These tribes are still practricing becasue they never expose the other views of slavery by other nations. In otherwords, they still living like they are in ancient times. I hope you read the detials of my question. Any stupid answers show that people still haven't reached maturtiy. XdX: What in hell are you talking about? Who's inferior here? There no such thing I said it in my question. Read my question again. Food: You are getting out of topic. The slaves in Africa is different from the Atlantic slave trade becasue slavery is practrince as a captial punishment. Big difference. yes, slavery should be ended right now. Also, no one is blaming this. We all involved in the slave trade. We can learn fom this and move on.

Why can't people accept the fact that Egypt was an indeginous African development? Specific central African tool designs found at the well known Naqada, Badari and Fayum archaeological sites in Egypt (de Heinzelin 1962, Arkell and Ucko, 1956 et al). Shaw (1976) states that "the early cultures of Merimde, the Fayum, Badari Naqada I and II are essentially African and early African social customs and religious beliefs were the root and foundation of the ancient Egyptian way of life." Pottery evidence first seen in the Saharan Highlands then spreading to the Nile Valley (Flight 1973). Art motifs of Saharan rock paintings showing similarities to those in pharaonic art. A number of scholars suggest that these earlier artistic styles influenced later pharaonic art via Saharans leaving drier areas and moving into the Nile Valley taking their art styles with them (Mori 1964, Blanc 1964, et al) Earlier pioneering mummification outside Egypt. The oldest mummy in Africa is of a black Saharan child (Donadoni 1964, Blanc 1964) Frankfort (1956) suggests that it is thus possible to understand the pharaonic worldview by reference to the religious beliefs of these earlier African precursors. Attempts to suggest the root of such practices are due to Caucasoid civilizers from elsewhere are thus contradicted by the data on the ground. Several cultural practices of Egypt show strong similarities to an African totemic clan base. Childe (1969, 1978), Aldred (1978) and Strouhal (1971) demonstrate linkages with several African practices such as divine kingship and the king as divine rainmaker. Physical similarities of the early Nile valley populations with that of tropical Africans. Such connections are demonstrated in the work of numerous scholars such as Thompson and Randall Mclver 1905, Falkenburger 1947, and Strouhal 1971. The distance diagrams of Mukherjee, Rao and Trevor (1955) place the ancient Badarians genetically near 'black' tribes such as the Ashanti and the Taita. See also the "Issues of lumping under Mediterranean clusters" section above for similar older analyses. Serological (blood) evidence of genetic linkages. Paoli 1972 for example found a significant resemblance between ABO frequencies of dynastic Egyptians and the black northern Haratin who are held to be the probable descendants of the original Saharans (Hiernaux, 1975). Language similarities which include several hundred roots ascribable to African elements (UNESCO 1974) Ancient Egyptian origin stories ascribing origins of the gods and their ancestors to African locations to the south and west of Egypt (Davidson 1959) Advanced state building and political unity in Nubia, including writing, administrative apparatus and insignia some 300 years before dynastic Egypt, and the long demonstrated interchange between Nubia and Egypt (Williams 1980) Black Egypt!

A question about how to communicate with your african potentical clients? (SOS)? I will attend a sign exhibition in South Africa. This is my first time to visit Africa. Hence, my question is how to communicate with your African potential clients? Do you have any sugestions? Do they have any special customs I need to remake? BTW, is Johnnasburg very dangous? I am very worry about that, for I am not traval alone I will visit with my manager with very limited English, in another words, I will be both guard and guide for him. Hence, I hope any of you can me some advises. Thank you very much

How much of a positive outcome will there be from China's investments and growing presence in Africa? http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-02-03-voa13.cfm China is continuing to push for strengthened ties with Africa, with an announcement that the Chinese president will make his first overseas trip in 2009 to four African nations and Saudi Arabia. In recent years, China has been stepping up efforts to develop stronger relations with what Chinese leaders call a "traditional friend," Africa. Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told reporters President Hu Jintao will visit the region next week. His trip includes Mali, Mauritius, Senegal and Tanzania, as well as Saudi Arabia in the Middle East. Jiang says President Hu's trip is aimed at further consolidating and strengthening China's friendly relations with the five countries. She says the visits are also aimed at, in her words, "translating into reality the achievements of the Beijing summit of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum." The 2006 Beijing summit brought together leaders from China and 48 African countries. The resulting declaration called for the establishment of a new "strategic partnership" between China and Africa. The countries also adopted an action plan that calls for more exchanges and cooperation between China and Africa. Mr. Hu will follow Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi to the continent. Yang visited Malawi, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda in January. Trade between China and Africa totaled more than $73 billion in 2007, according to official Chinese figures. China's General Administration of Customs says it expects the trade volume for 2008 to exceed $100 billion. Chinese sources say trade volume between China and Saudi Arabia reached $25 billion in 2007. Saudi Arabia also is one of China's main providers of imported oil. Angola overtook Saudi Arabia as China's main foreign oil source, in 2006.

Why all the negatively about Africa? I’m a 19 year old white South African male and I feel very emotionally attached to Africa particularly the landscape, the fauna, the animal’s, the traditional music and the customs. While some outsiders may try to argue that I can’t classify myself as a real African because I’m Caucasian but I beg to differ because I was born and raised here therefore I’m very much a part of Africa as Africa is apart of me. Recently on my holiday trip to Canada all I heard were people I met say negative things about Africa and I understand the media only covers the poverty and the corruption but the media also captures some of it’s beauty like on Animal Planet, The Travel Channel even the Discovery Channel covers some of the beautiful scenery so why do people still constantly feel the need to speak of Africa in a negative light? What about our beautiful safari’s why not speak of how ravishing they are? @cute-wAs susPeNded LV 4: I am an original South African born and raised...bigot! @Luke: It's not all wars there are more wars in the middle east..

Africa Royal Family. and. Year marrying..? Ever heard Royal Family with name Matshilli?I think its at South Africa..Please tell me more on Matshili royal family..Their names some always start with Mp....... -such Mpfareleni Matshili(Matshili is their family name i think) 2)Lets say if the prince wan 2 marry.R they usually marry someone that is younger than him?R the princess usually marry someone that is older than her age? What about the African ordinary people(commoner)? Or maybe Africa country don't care about age@don't have any rules@custom,so,they can marry as their wish wether older or younger than them (including@go same way on the royal family)? Help me plz..Perhaps with links 4 me...Thanks.. Ever heard Royal Family with name Matshilli?I think its at South Africa..Please tell me more on Matshili royal family..Their names some always start with Mp....... -such Mpfareleni Matshili(Matshili is their family name i think).The person from Matshili family that knew live in CAPE TOWN. 2)Lets say if the prince wan 2 marry.R they usually marry someone that is younger or older than him?R the princess usually marry someone that is older or younger than her age? What about the African ordinary people(commoner)? Or maybe Africa country don't care about age@don't have any rules@custom,so,they can marry as their wish wether older or younger than them (including@go same way on the royal family)?Must they marry from royal family?Must they marry people who r from their country@marry with African people too? Help me plz..Perhaps with links 4 me...Thanks.. Whoopsy,I put it twice when editting..Read the second one coz I add some other details there.. Here some information,he said he use language : venda and xhosa also sotho which is his mother 's tongue..So,u now which information from website r related to my question and mayb u could tell me people from where use that language?

Ordering a product via internet? Mid November I ordered a product by contacting the salesperson directly via e-mail, from South Africa. Payment was transferred to their account and a promise was made that the product would reach me within two weeks. A week after expected time, I contacted the person again, asking why there was a delay. I was told that it might be the Christmas bulk. Another week later I again made a query, was then asked to contact the customs on my side to try and trace it. Shortly after that another e-mail came through saying that they tried to trace the parcel, but it seems to be stolen, and they could either send it by mail or refund me. From South Africa, they apparently sent it to Brittain first from where it would be forwarded to Taiwan. (I am a South African. I am here teaching.) I have now insisted that they send it to me via speed mail using the postage system. Am I wrong to be impatient? Are there any suggestions out there as to how I should deal with the matter?

Spousal Visa Expiry? I'm a South African Citizen married to my British wife and currently I hold a spousal visa. My visa is expiring on the 22nd of March and I need to first write Life in the UK test before I can apply for my ILR (Idefinate Leave to Remain). My dilema is that I'm on holiday in South Africa untill the 3rd of March. Question1. Would customs allow me back in the UK with less than a month remaining on my visa? Question2. Am I allowed to work while my application in with the Home Office? (assuming i'll get my application off 2 weeks before it expires)

Who is this Santa Claus whom you lie to your children, could he be Satan & his demons(claws)? *** g85 12/22 pp. 13-14 Does Christ Approve of Christmas? *** Does Christ Approve? ‘But the Puritans were too rigid,’ some may object, ‘and so were early Christians. Now Christmas honors Christ.’ Does it really? Christ always stood for truth, but Christmas fosters untruths. (John 14:6) ‘It is Christ’s birthday,’ even schoolteachers and clergymen say. But it is not! ‘Santa Claus will bring you presents if you are good.’ But that is not true! Consider, too, the Nativity scenes. Many of these show the Magi, or astrologers, with Jesus when he was born. Yet the Bible says that by the time the astrologers arrived, Jesus was no longer a baby but was a child living in a house. (Matthew 2:7-11) Do you really believe that Christ approves of a celebration that so misrepresents the truth? Even more serious, however, is the false impression given by Christmas that Christ is simply a helpless baby. A little girl viewing a Nativity scene was heard to ask her mother: “Did Jesus ever grow up?” Why did she ask? “Well,” she responded, “he hasn’t grown at all since I saw him last year!” And the impression left at Christmas is just that, that Christ is a helpless babe, not the ruling King that he is, one who will soon rid the earth of all unrighteousness.—Psalm 2:9, 12; 110:1, 2; Revelation 12:5; 19:15, 16. When you consider what goes on at Christmas, really how could Christ approve? “Alcoholics and their families have an especially rough time of it because the Christmas spirit so often comes in bottles,” Time reported. “And the lipstick worn home from the office party disturbs untold millions more.” Yes, Christmas has not changed from its licentiousness of earlier days. The book Curiosities of Popular Customs, by William S. Walsh, observes: “In spite of the condemnation of the wise and the sane, Christmas in the early days frequently reproduced all the worst orgies, the debaucheries and indecencies, of the Bacchanalia and the Saturnalia. . . . The wild revels, indeed, of the Christmas period in olden times almost stagger belief.” When you think about it, perhaps you will concur with the opinion voiced last December in The Sunday Express, a newspaper of South Africa. “It’s that time of year again,” the article began, “when the festive spirit comes to the fore and religious people say: ‘Let’s put Christ back into Christmas.’ “Since Christ was not there in the beginning, it would be far more appropriate to remove any reference to Him altogether and call Christmas by some other name. “Why besmirch Christ’s name with all the associations of commercialism, excessive eating and drinking and revelry?” What Will You Do? Surely, Christ does not approve of Christmas. It dishonors him and his teachings. So what will you do at this season of the year? The above-quoted South African newspaper suggested: “Let’s rather be honest and turn Christmas back into the pagan feast that it was in the beginning and relax and enjoy ourselves in partying and jollifications with all the trappings of yule-logs and wild feasting—without pretending that we’re celebrating Christ’s birth.” True, that may be unhypocritical, yet Christ does not approve of licentious pagan feasts, whether they are carried on in his name or not. (2 Corinthians 6:14-18) So if you truly desire Christ’s approval, what will you do? The columnist Bill Hall, quoted earlier, answers: “Any genuine Christian—assuming there actually are a few of them left—would shun any association with the worldly, modern celebration known as Christmas.” Jehovah’s Witnesses everywhere do that very thing. They take no part in the celebration of Christmas because they are truly trying to win the favor of their heavenly King, Jesus Christ. And they seek to live in accord with his teachings, not just on special occasions but every day of the year. If that also is your desire, Jehovah’s Witnesses will be delighted to help you fulfill it.

Why are you ignorant and racist? or Why don't you believe in Out of Africa theory? Why are you ignorant and racist? Why dont you believe in out of Africa theory? Im not racist And I know we all originate from Africa its obvious It has been proven that we all have a recent ancestor a women who lived in East Africa over 100,000 years ago if that women was killed we would all not exist either humanity would be extinct or there would be 6.5 billion completely different humans so dont you understand how we are all one. Proof my 17 years of knowledge 7 Oldest common ethnic groups in the Human species 1. Capoid 110,000 years ago http://www.diebergers.at/KHB%20Bushmen%20near%20Hammerstein.jpg Every single one of us ancestors looked like these people they are in fact not the oldest human ethnic group but the only ones to survive are almost extinction before that there were humans who looked like stuff your imagination cant think of completely diferent races and diversity meaning the diversity we have today came out of one of the many groups which ones lived but died out 110,000 years ago 2. Pygmy & Native Australasian 70,000 - 65,000 years ago Pygmy 70,000 years ago All Black peoples ancestors looked like this And Native Australasian 65,000 years ago http://www.pngtourism.org.pg/png/export/pics/images/manus.jpg All people of non sub sahran ancestry ancestors looked like these people they left Africa years ago 70,000 years ago 3. Ethiopian 60,000 years ago http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/Nakempte_Boys.jpg Over 90% of African inhabitants todays ancestors looked like this they split from the Pygmy group where is now Ethiopia 4. Congoid (Negrooid) 57,000 years ago http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1107/577903895_83dd602ebe.jpg The largest group in Africa the Negroids split from the Ethiopian group and migrated to West Africa later re population almost all of Africa to become what you commonly call a black person so we are in fact 4th oldest group on Earth not first 5. Melanesian 50,000 years ago http://www.friendly-bungalows-tanna-vanuatu.com/images/girls-custom.jpg All South West Asians ancestors ie Thai, Philippians etc split from the Native Australasian group 6. Indian 40,000 years ago http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/07/south_asia_pakistan_supreme_court_and_the_president_/img/2.jpg All White people, Middle Eastern and South Asians ancestors looked like this also splitting from the Native Australasian group taking a large proportion almost all of the Various eyes colors blue green etc and hair colors blond red etc traits though they still appear in the Native Australasian group today- http://news.softpedia.com/images/news2/Naturally-Blonde-Blacks-2.jpg 7. Siberian 15,000 years ago http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library/price/Fig.9.jpg All Eskimos East Asian & Native American again also splitting from the Native Australasian group but later than both Melanesians & Indians Now thats the whole of Humanity we came from 1 group The oldest ethnic group out of the Capoid 'Bushmen' still live in the bush as hunter gatherers unchanged from our original state whilte the English are the youngest ethnic group in the world its seems the same people who had the biggest empire are also the same who did the most changing adapting to living etc in reality they are bushmen who did alot of traveling Do you still not beleive it? We all humans get over it you racists lool no one gets to me I dont care just want to educate the uneducated a bit if your not racist or belive in the out of africa theory you dont need to answer im so sorry if i wasted your time by forcing you too d- how can white people be better than black people if we are both people and the names black and while are merely labels??? English gained advantages because of their situation not their skin color lol you can teach English to any human right and you can also teach them Swahili to the same people no mater their skin color

What's really interesting about your country? Tell me something about your country that is not commonly known among other nations, like some ethnic food, customs, rituals, domestic literature, preferences, religion, mythology etc. I asked this question a couple of weeks ago but only got 2 answers. Since many people probably use the name of their country as search string for questions to answer, I'm just gonna tag some countries here: AFGHANISTAN ALBANIA ALGERIA AMERICAN SAMOA ANDORRA ANGOLA ANGUILLA ANTARCTICA ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA ARGENTINA ARMENIA ARUBA AUSTRALIA AUSTRIA AZERBAIJAN BAHAMAS BAHRAIN BANGLADESH BARBADOS BELARUS BELGIUM BELIZE BENIN BERMUDA BHUTAN BOLIVIA BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA BOTSWANA BOUVET ISLAND BRAZIL BRITISH INDIAN OCEAN TERRITORY BRUNEI DARUSSALAM BULGARIA BURKINA FASO BURUNDI CÔTE D'IVOIRE CAMBODIA CAMEROON CANADA CAPE VERDE CAYMAN ISLANDS CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC CHAD CHILE CHINA CHRISTMAS ISLAND COCOS (KEELING) ISLANDS COLOMBIA COMOROS CONGO CONGO, THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE COOK ISLANDS COSTA RICA CROATIA CUBA CYPRUS CZECH REPUBLIC DENMARK DJIBOUTI DOMINICA DOMINICAN REPUBLIC EAST TIMOR ECUADOR EGYPT EL SALVADOR EQUATORIAL GUINEA ERITREA ESTONIA ETHIOPIA FALKLAND ISLANDS (MALVINAS) FAROE ISLANDS FIJI FINLAND FRANCE FRENCH GUIANA FRENCH POLYNESIA FRENCH SOUTHERN TERRITORIES GABON GAMBIA GEORGIA GERMANY GHANA GIBRALTAR GREECE GREENLAND GRENADA GUADELOUPE GUAM GUATEMALA GUINEA GUINEA-BISSAU GUYANA HAITI HEARD ISLAND AND MCDONALD ISLANDS HONDURAS HONG KONG HUNGARY ICELAND INDIA INDONESIA IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAQ IRELAND ISRAEL ITALY JAMAICA JAPAN JORDAN KAZAKHSTAN KENYA KIRIBATI KOREA, DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF KOREA, REPUBLIC OF KUWAIT KYRGYZSTAN LAO PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC LATVIA LEBANON LESOTHO LIBERIA LIBYAN ARAB JAMABIRIYA LIECHTENSTEIN LITHUANIA LUXEMBOURG MACAU MACEDONIA, THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPU8LIC OF MADAGASCAR MALAWI MALAYSIA MALDIVES MALI MALTA MARSHALL ISLANDS MARTINIQUE MAURITANIA MAURITIUS MAYOTTE MEXICO MICRONESIA, FEDERATED STATES OF MOLDOVA, REPUBLIC OF MONACO MONGOLIA MONTSERRAT MOROCCO MOZAMBIQUE MYANMAR NAMIBIA NEPAL NETHERLANDS NETHERLANDS ANTILLES NEW CALEDONIA NEW ZEALAND NICARAGUA NIGER NIGERIA NIUE NORFOLK ISLAND NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS NORWAY OMAN PAKISTAN PALAU PANAMA PAPUA NEW GUINEA PARAGUAY PERU PHILIPPINES PITCAIRN POLAND PORTUGAL PUERTO RICO QATAR R?UNION ROMANIA RUSSIAN FEDERATION RWANDA SAINT HELENA SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS SAINT LUCIA SAINT PIERRE AND MIQUELON SAMOA SAN MARINO SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE SAUDI ARABIA SENEGAL SEYCHELLES SIERRA LEONE SINGAPORE SLOVAKIA SLOVENIA SOLOMON ISLANDS SOMALIA SOUTH AFRICA SOUTH GEORGIA AND THE SOUTH SANDWICH ISLANDS SPAIN SRI LANKA SUDAN SURINAME SVALBARD AND JAN MAYEN SWAZILAND SWEDEN SWITZERLAND SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC TAIWAN, PROVINCE OF CHINA TAJIKISTAN TANZANIA, UNITED REPUBLIC OF THAILAND TOGO TOKELAU TONGA TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO TUNISIA TURKEY TURKMENISTAN TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS TUVALU UGANDA UKRAINE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES UNITED KINGDOM UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (USA) UNITED STATES MINOR OUTLYING ISLANDS URUGUAY UZBEKISTAN VANUATU VATICAN VENEZUELA VIET NAM VIRGIN ISLANDS, BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS, U.S. WALLIS AND FUTUNA WESTERN SARARA YEMEN YUGOSLAVIA ZAMBIA ZIMBABWE

going to tanzania: is my septum piercing okay? to travelers/cultural anthropologists: before we get too into opinions concerning facial piercings, I wanted to know whether or not I should take out the jewelry from my septum before traveling to east africa: i'll be in this country for 2 months this summer, and sadly do not know much about indigenous traditions or customs that may exist in the area. i know that the the septum piercing can be attributed to original south/central american and australian people, i wanted to avoid having my piercing close up, but if leaving it in meant offending/ridiculing anyone there then i'd be more than willing to remove it. keeping it clean and everyerthing is a different issue that i'd be able to handle. i have a feeling that it isn't such a big deal; besides me never hearing of any traditional african customs involving septum deviation, it's a changing world. any thoughts? someone who knows more than me? i'd appreciate it.

Black Clergy: Don't Deport Illegal Immigrants let our own people do without? Members of the group Concerned Black Clergy rallied in front of Atlanta’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office Monday. They prayed and sang songs, denouncing America’s treatment of illegal immigrants -- and not just the ones from Latin America.E-Mail News Alerts Black Clergy: Don't Deport Illegal Immigrants Group Says Immigrants Of African Decent Targeted, Too Written By: Rebekka Schramm - CBS Atlanta Reporter ATLANTA -- Members of the group Concerned Black Clergy rallied in front of Atlanta’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office Monday. They prayed and sang songs, denouncing America’s treatment of illegal immigrants -- and not just the ones from Latin America. “It’s about those individuals, people of color, friends in Haiti,” said Dr. Richard Cobble, the group’s president. “We’ve just gone through this thing in Haiti. People coming out of Haiti, they’re sending folks back to Haiti. They’re from South America, from Africa, from all over this world.” The group is calling on President Barack Obama to fulfill his campaign promise of immigration reform. Until then, the group is demanding a moratorium on deportations until the system is fixed. “Shouldn’t people who came into the country illegally be punished for that?” asked CBS Atlanta’s Rebekka Schramm. “We will be the first to admit that there are a lot of what we call undocumented who are here,” answered Rev. Timothy McDonald of the First Iconium Baptist Church. “But why not create a path where they can become legal?” “We don’t want criminals here,” said state Rep. Tyrone Brooks, D-Atlanta. “We want people who want to be here and be law-abiding citizens.” “What about the people, though, who are breaking our laws every day by driving without a license and getting into wrecks and killing people. What about those illegal immigrants?” asked Schramm. “I think the state can deal with that. I think we need to make it possible for those persons who are driving to gain a license,” responded Brooks. Inger Eberhart, a board member for the pro-enforcement organization the Dustin Inman Society blasted the rally. She sent CBS Atlanta the following statement: “The first people hit by the crime of illegal immigration are some of American's poorest, including African-Americans and many native-born Hispanics. In these desperate times of soaring unemployment and scarce resources, this vigil against enforcement of our immigration laws is a shameless and mindless affront to hard working Americans of all descriptions." An ICE spokeswoman sent CBS Atlanta this statement: “We recognize that our nation's immigration challenges require serious solutions and are fully supportive of needed comprehensive immigration reform efforts. Until such reform is enacted by Congress, ICE will remain focused on smart, effective immigration enforcement, not sweeps or raids that target undocumented immigrants indiscriminately.”

why blacks should acknowledge? Slavery is what built this country and because of the free labor there were economical and political gain for those in power. So African Americans, blacks, Negros or whatever you want to call your self should be proud of your peoples past present or future because of their hard work we live in the most powerful country in the world. In addition I will answer some past and futrer post on the issue such as: Slavery happened along time ago. Yes it did I am glad you can do math. But slavery impacts many if not all African Americans Today. Because black’s slaves were forbidden to read or become educated in slave state whole generations grew up into forced illiteracy. Even after slavery schools were segregated with out dated materials. Even such issues as hair texture are a dilemma in the black community. Willie Lynch http://www.africanamericanimages.com/aai/willie%20lynch.htm Why do black people always play the slavery card? It is all we have. History book s does not teach about black inventors or scholars in America, but they do have small water down section on slavery. Slavery is why black people have the customs and tradition we have like Soul food: food slaves had to live off of, Music like the Blues, gospel, Jazz, Rock and roll, ECT: music song for hash experiences and spirituality. Black people make something out of nothing and other people make profit off of it. http://www.elvis.com/elvisology/bio/elvis_1935_1957.asp There was also white slave in America. Yes, they were called indentured servants and they later received their freedom after their agreed servitude. http://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/investigations/212_indenturedfeature.html Many other minorities help but America. Good point, but they did not come until later years and were out numbered by the African slaves. Most Europeans who did come to America Such as the Irish, Jews, and Italian didn’t come in great numbers until the 1920’s when the country was some what established as a rising power. And those mentioned people should be proud of their history and part in building America. Slavery existed before America. Yeah and great impairs were built off of the free labor. Egypt, Rome, Mongolian empire, Moorish empire, Turkish empire, ECT. When you win a war and capture your ermines and force them to work and assimilate into your culture you can form a great empire, but the eastern world allowed the people the capturer to keep their religion, tradition, and language unlike in America. Many black people are mixed with differ types of African backgrounds and European backgrounds so it would be hard to have a single “black culture”. African had slaves also. Slaves in Africa were treated different than slaves in the Americas. http://autocww.colorado.edu/~blackmon/E64ContentFiles/AfricanHistory/SlaveryInAfrica.html America would still be the same or better without the slaves. No. Slavery help fuel the American Economy in the north and the south. Without the free labor the money to fund revolutions and wars would have made America a permanent colony. The French did dislike the British and wanted to harm their economy, but noting comes free so weapons had to be brought or traded for goods. Also the expansion of the U.S. began with the Louisiana Purchase which was made by Thomas Jefferson who owned slaves like other founding fathers. The slaves mostly did agriculture while Asians and Irish built America. Asians helped build rail road and other things, but mainly after war and in the Pacific Coast. As well as the Irish help build major cities and along East Coast. Both were paid unlike slaves, freed slaves who also contributed to the rail roads but at less pay. http://cprr.org/Museum/Chinese.html http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674008175 Slavery was mainly in the south and had little to do with northern economical system. Well maybe, let’s go back to the civil war. The war had little to do with slavery and more to do with power. The slave states wanted more representation and rights because they were growing and slowly becoming a force. With the differences in political views and south’s relations with Britain’s the northern states wanted to have more say so. When they southern states would claim they had a growing population the northern representatives would point out that it was because of the slaves ( which were counted as 3/5ths of a man so there were a lot of slaves) being added. So because of the southern states breaking apart from the U.S. the northern states feared competition with free labor and a growing number of slaves who could be forced into a war. There went that many slaves during early America. Look at the Constitution. Data was collected with less accuracy and more stipulations. http://projects.edtech.sandi.net/roosevelt/constitution/threefifths.htm Why isn’t Africa powerful then? Because Africa not ran by Africans it's ran by Europeans. Some Africa

Is it good to drink milk? The text is too long but worthwhile read....? "MILK" Just the word itself sounds comforting! "How about a nice cup of hot milk?" The last time you heard that question it was from someone who cared for you--and you appreciated their effort. The entire matter of food and especially that of milk is surrounded with emotional and cultural importance. Milk was our very first food. If we were fortunate it was our mother's milk. A loving link, given and taken. It was the only path to survival. If not mother's milk it was cow's milk or soy milk "formula"--rarely it was goat, camel or water buffalo milk. Now, we are a nation of milk drinkers. Nearly all of us. Infants, the young, adolescents, adults and even the aged. We drink dozens or even several hundred gallons a year and add to that many pounds of "dairy products" such as cheese, butter, and yogurt. Can there be anything wrong with this? We see reassuring images of healthy, beautiful people on our television screens and hear messages that assure us that, "Milk is good for your body." Our dieticians insist that: "You've got to have milk, or where will you get your calcium?" School lunches always include milk and nearly every hospital meal will have milk added. And if that isn't enough, our nutritionists told us for years that dairy products make up an "essential food group." Industry spokesmen made sure that colourful charts proclaiming the necessity of milk and other essential nutrients were made available at no cost for schools. Cow's milk became "normal." You may be surprised to learn that most of the human beings that live on planet Earth today do not drink or use cow's milk. Further, most of them can't drink milk because it makes them ill. There are students of human nutrition who are not supportive of milk use for adults. Here is a quotation from the March/April 1991 Utne Reader: If you really want to play it safe, you may decide to join the growing number of Americans who are eliminating dairy products from their diets altogether. Although this sounds radical to those of us weaned on milk and the five basic food groups, it is eminently viable. Indeed, of all the mammals, only humans--and then only a minority, principally Caucasians--continue to drink milk beyond babyhood. Who is right? Why the confusion? Where best to get our answers? Can we trust milk industry spokesmen? Can you trust any industry spokesmen? Are nutritionists up to date or are they simply repeating what their professors learned years ago? What about the new voices urging caution? I believe that there are three reliable sources of information. The first, and probably the best, is a study of nature. The second is to study the history of our own species. Finally we need to look at the world's scientific literature on the subject of milk. Let's look at the scientific literature first. From 1988 to 1993 there were over 2,700 articles dealing with milk recorded in the 'Medicine' archives. Fifteen hundred of theses had milk as the main focus of the article. There is no lack of scientific information on this subject. I reviewed over 500 of the 1,500 articles, discarding articles that dealt exclusively with animals, esoteric research and inconclusive studies. How would I summarize the articles? They were only slightly less than horrifying. First of all, none of the authors spoke of cow's milk as an excellent food, free of side effects and the 'perfect food' as we have been led to believe by the industry. The main focus of the published reports seems to be on intestinal colic, intestinal irritation, intestinal bleeding, anemia, allergic reactions in infants and children as well as infections such as salmonella. More ominous is the fear of viral infection with bovine leukemia virus or an AIDS-like virus as well as concern for childhood diabetes. Contamination of milk by blood and white (pus) cells as well as a variety of chemicals and insecticides was also discussed. Among children the problems were allergy, ear and tonsillar infections, bedwetting, asthma, intestinal bleeding, colic and childhood diabetes. In adults the problems seemed centered more around heart disease and arthritis, allergy, sinusitis, and the more serious questions of leukemia, lymphoma and cancer. I think that an answer can also be found in a consideration of what occurs in nature & what happens with free living mammals and what happens with human groups living in close to a natural state as 'hunter-gatherers'. Our paleolithic ancestors are another crucial and interesting group to study. Here we are limited to speculation and indirect evidences, but the bony remains available for our study are remarkable. There is no doubt whatever that these skeletal remains reflect great strength, muscularity (the size of the muscular insertions show this), and total absence of advanced osteoporosis. And if you feel that these people are not important for us to study, consider that today our genes are programming our bodies in almost exactly the same way as our ancestors of 50,000 to 100,000 years ago. WHAT IS MILK? Milk is a maternal lactating secretion, a short term nutrient for new-borns. Nothing more, nothing less. Invariably, the mother of any mammal will provide her milk for a short period of time immediately after birth. When the time comes for 'weaning', the young offspring is introduced to the proper food for that species of mammal. A familiar example is that of a puppy. The mother nurses the pup for just a few weeks and then rejects the young animal and teaches it to eat solid food. Nursing is provided by nature only for the very youngest of mammals. Of course, it is not possible for animals living in a natural state to continue with the drinking of milk after weaning. IS ALL MILK THE SAME? Then there is the matter of where we get our milk. We have settled on the cow because of its docile nature, its size, and its abundant milk supply. Somehow this choice seems 'normal' and blessed by nature, our culture, and our customs. But is it natural? Is it wise to drink the milk of another species of mammal? Consider for a moment, if it was possible, to drink the milk of a mammal other than a cow, let's say a rat. Or perhaps the milk of a dog would be more to your liking. Possibly some horse milk or cat milk. Do you get the idea? Well, I'm not serious about this, except to suggest that human milk is for human infants, dogs' milk is for pups, cows' milk is for calves, cats' milk is for kittens, and so forth. Clearly, this is the way nature intends it. Just use your own good judgement on this one. Milk is not just milk. The milk of every species of mammal is unique and specifically tailored to the requirements of that animal. For example, cows' milk is very much richer in protein than human milk. Three to four times as much. It has five to seven times the mineral content. However, it is markedly deficient in essential fatty acids when compared to human mothers' milk. Mothers' milk has six to ten times as much of the essential fatty acids, especially linoleic acid. (Incidentally, skimmed cow's milk has no linoleic acid). It simply is not designed for humans. Food is not just food, and milk is not just milk. It is not only the proper amount of food but the proper qualitative composition that is critical for the very best in health and growth. Biochemists and physiologists -and rarely medical doctors - are gradually learning that foods contain the crucial elements that allow a particular species to develop its unique specializations. Clearly, our specialization is for advanced neurological development and delicate neuromuscular control. We do not have much need of massive skeletal growth or huge muscle groups as does a calf. Think of the difference between the demands make on the human hand and the demands on a cow's hoof. Human new-borns specifically need critical material for their brains, spinal cord and nerves. Can mother's milk increase intelligence? It seems that it can. In a remarkable study published in Lancet during 1992 (Vol. 339, p. 261-4), a group of British workers randomly placed premature infants into two groups. One group received a proper formula, the other group received human breast milk. Both fluids were given by stomach tube. These children were followed up for over 10 years. In intelligence testing, the human milk children averaged 10 IQ points higher! Well, why not? Why wouldn't the correct building blocks for the rapidly maturing and growing brain have a positive effect? In the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (1982) Ralph Holman described an infant who developed profound neurological disease while being nourished by intravenous fluids only. The fluids used contained only linoleic acid - just one of the essential fatty acids. When the other, alpha linoleic acid, was added to the intravenous fluids the neurological disorders cleared. In the same journal five years later Bjerve, Mostad and Thoresen, working in Norway found exactly the same problem in adult patients on long term gastric tube feeding. In 1930 Dr. G.O. Burr in Minnesota working with rats found that linoleic acid deficiencies created a deficiency syndrome. Why is this mentioned? In the early 1960s pediatricians found skin lesions in children fed formulas without the same linoleic acid. Remembering the research, the addition of the acid to the formula cured the problem. Essential fatty acids are just that and cows' milk is markedly deficient in these when compared to human milk. WELL, AT LEAST COW'S MILK IS PURE Or is it? Fifty years ago an average cow produced 2,000 pounds of milk per year. Today the top producers give 50,000 pounds! How was this accomplished? Drugs, antibiotics, hormones, forced feeding plans and specialized breeding; that's how. The latest high-tech onslaught on the poor cow is bovine growth hormone or BGH. This genetically engineered drug is supposed to stimulate milk production but, according to Monsanto, the hormone's manufacturer, does not affect the milk or meat. There are three other manufacturers: Upjohn, Eli Lilly, and American Cyanamid Company. Obviously, there have been no long-term studies on the hormone's effect on the humans drinking the milk. Other countries have banned BGH because of safety concerns. One of the problems with adding molecules to a milk cows' body is that the molecules usually come out in the milk. I don't know how you feel, but I don't want to experiment with the ingestion of a growth hormone. A related problem is that it causes a marked increase (50 to 70 per cent) in mastitis. This, then, requires antibiotic therapy, and the residues of the antibiotics appear in the milk. It seems that the public is uneasy about this product and in one survey 43 per cent felt that growth hormone treated milk represented a health risk. A vice president for public policy at Monsanto was opposed to labelling for that reason, and because the labelling would create an 'artificial distinction'. The country is awash with milk as it is, we produce more milk than we can consume. Let's not create storage costs and further taxpayer burdens, because the law requires the USDA to buy any surplus of butter, cheese, or non-fat dry milk at a support price set by Congress! In fiscal 1991, the USDA spent $757 million on surplus butter, and one billion dollars a year on average for price supports during the 1980s (Consumer Reports, May 1992: 330-32). Any lactating mammal excretes toxins through her milk. This includes antibiotics, pesticides, chemicals and hormones. Also, all cows' milk contains blood! The inspectors are simply asked to keep it under certain limits. You may be horrified to learn that the USDA allows milk to contain from one to one and a half million white blood cells per millilitre. (That's only 1/30 of an ounce). If you don't already know this, I'm sorry to tell you that another way to describe white cells where they don't belong would be to call them pus cells. To get to the point, is milk pure or is it a chemical, biological, and bacterial cocktail? Finally, will the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) protect you? The United States General Accounting Office (GAO) tells us that the FDA and the individual States are failing to protect the public from drug residues in milk. Authorities test for only 4 of the 82 drugs in dairy cows. As you can imagine, the Milk Industry Foundation's spokesman claims it's perfectly safe. Jerome Kozak says, "I still think that milk is the safest product we have." Other, perhaps less biased observers, have found the following: 38% of milk samples in 10 cities were contaminated with sulfa drugs or other antibiotics. (This from the Centre for Science in the Public Interest and The Wall Street Journal, Dec. 29, 1989).. A similar study in Washington, DC found a 20 percent contamination rate (Nutrition Action Healthletter, April 1990). What's going on here? When the FDA tested milk, they found few problems. However, they used very lax standards. When they used the same criteria, the FDA data showed 51 percent of the milk samples showed drug traces. Let's focus in on this because it’s critical to our understanding of the apparent discrepancies. The FDA uses a disk-assay method that can detect only 2 of the 30 or so drugs found in milk. Also, the test detects only at the relatively high level. A more powerful test called the 'Charm II test' can detect drugs down to 5 parts per billion. One nasty subject must be discussed. It seems that cows are forever getting infections around the udder that require ointments and antibiotics. An article from France tells us that when a cow receives penicillin, that penicillin appears in the milk for from 4 to 7 milkings. Another study from the University of Nevada, Reno tells of cells in 'mastic milk', milk from cows with infected udders. An elaborate analysis of the cell fragments, employing cell cultures, flow cytometric analysis , and a great deal of high tech stuff. Do you know what the conclusion was? If the cow has mastitis, there is pus in the milk. Sorry, it’s in the study, all concealed with language such as "macrophages containing many vacuoles and phagocytosed particles," etc. IT GETS WORSE Well, at least human mothers' milk is pure! Sorry. A huge study showed that human breast milk in over 14,000 women had contamination by pesticides! Further, it seems that the sources of the pesticides are meat and--you guessed it-- dairy products. Well, why not? These pesticides are concentrated in fat and that's what's in these products. (Of interest, a subgroup of lactating vegetarian mothers had only half the levels of contamination). A recent report showed an increased concentration of pesticides in the breast tissue of women with breast cancer when compared to the tissue of women with fibrocystic disease. Other articles in the standard medical literature describe problems. Just scan these titles: 1.Cow's Milk as a Cause of Infantile Colic Breast-Fed Infants. Lancet 2 (1978): 437 2.Dietary Protein-Induced Colitis in Breast- Fed Infants, J. Pediatr. I01 (1982): 906 3.The Question of the Elimination of Foreign Protein in Women's Milk, J. Immunology 19 (1930): 15 There are many others. There are dozens of studies describing the prompt appearance of cows' milk allergy in children being exclusively breast-fed! The cows' milk allergens simply appear in the mother's milk and are transmitted to the infant. A committee on nutrition of the American Academy of Pediatrics reported on the use of whole cows' milk in infancy (Pediatrics 1983: 72-253). They were unable to provide any cogent reason why bovine milk should be used before the first birthday yet continued to recommend its use! Doctor Frank Oski from the Upstate Medical Centre Department of Pediatrics, commenting on the recommendation, cited the problems of acute gastrointestinal blood loss in infants, the lack of iron, recurrent abdominal pain, milk- borne infections and contaminants, and said: Why give it at all - then or ever? In the face of uncertainty about many of the potential dangers of whole bovine milk, it would seem prudent to recommend that whole milk not be started until the answers are available. Isn't it time for these uncontrolled experiments on human nutrition to come to an end? In the same issue of Pediatrics he further commented: It is my thesis that whole milk should not be fed to the infant in the first year of life because of its association with iron deficiency anemia (milk is so deficient in iron that an infant would have to drink an impossible 31 quarts a day to get the RDA of 15 mg), acute gastrointiestinal bleeding, and various manifestations of food allergy. I suggest that unmodified whole bovine milk should not be consumed after infancy because of the problems of lactose intolerance, its contribution to the genesis of atherosclerosis, and its possible link to other diseases. In late 1992 Dr. Benjamin Spock, possibly the best known pediatrician in history, shocked the country when he articulated the same thoughts and specified avoidance for the first two years of life. Here is his quotation: I want to pass on the word to parents that cows' milk from the carton has definite faults for some babies. Human milk is the right one for babies. A study comparing the incidence of allergy and colic in the breast-fed infants of omnivorous and vegan mothers would be important. I haven't found such a study; it would be both important and inexpensive. And it will probably never be done. There is simply no academic or economic profit involved. OTHER PROBLEMS Let's just mention the problems of bacterial contamination. Salmonella, E. coli, and staphylococcal infections can be traced to milk. In the old days tuberculosis was a major problem and some folks want to go back to those times by insisting on raw milk on the basis that it's "natural." This is insanity! A study from UCLA showed that over a third of all cases of salmonella infection in California, 1980-1983 were traced to raw milk. That'll be a way to revive good old brucellosis again and I would fear leukemia, too. (More about that later). In England, and Wales where raw milk is still consumed there have been outbreaks of milk-borne diseases. The Journal of the American Medical Association (251: 483, 1984) reported a multi-state series of infections caused by Yersinia enterocolitica in pasteurised whole milk. This is despite safety precautions. All parents dread juvenile diabetes for their children. A Canadian study reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Mar. 1990, describes a "...significant positive correlation between consumption of unfermented milk protein and incidence of insulin dependent diabetes mellitus in data from various countries. Conversely a possible negative relationship is observed between breast-feeding at age 3 months and diabetes risk.". Another study from Finland found that diabetic children had higher levels of serum antibodies to cows’ milk (Diabetes Research 7(3): 137-140 March 1988). Here is a quotation from this study: We infer that either the pattern of cows' milk consumption is altered in children who will have insulin dependent diabetes mellitus or, their immunological reactivity to proteins in cows' milk is enhanced, or the permeability of their intestines to cows' milk protein is higher than normal. The April 18, 1992 British Medical Journal has a fascinating study contrasting the difference in incidence of juvenile insulin dependent diabetes in Pakistani children who have migrated to England. The incidence is roughly 10 times greater in the English group compared to children remaining in Pakistan! What caused this highly significant increase? The authors said that "the diet was unchanged in Great Britain." Do you believe that? Do you think that the availability of milk, sugar and fat is the same in Pakistan as it is in England? That a grocery store in England has the same products as food sources in Pakistan? I don't believe that for a minute. Remember, we're not talking here about adult onset, type II diabetes which all workers agree is strongly linked to diet as well as to a genetic predisposition. This study is a major blow to the "it's all in your genes" crowd. Type I diabetes was always considered to be genetic or possibly viral, but now this? So resistant are we to consider diet as causation that the authors of the last article concluded that the cooler climate in England altered viruses and caused the very real increase in diabetes! The first two authors had the same reluctance top admit the obvious. The milk just may have had something to do with the disease. The latest in this remarkable list of reports, a New England Journal of Medicine article (July 30, 1992), also reported in the Los Angeles Times. This study comes from the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto and from Finnish researchers. In Finland there is "...the world's highest rate of dairy product consumption and the world's highest rate of insulin dependent diabetes. The disease strikes about 40 children out of every 1,000 there contrasted with six to eight per 1,000 in the United States.... Antibodies produced against the milk protein during the first year of life, the researchers speculate, also attack and destroy the pancreas in a so-called auto-immune reaction, producing diabetes in people whose genetic makeup leaves them vulnerable." "...142 Finnish children with newly diagnosed diabetes. They found that every one had at least eight times as many antibodies against the milk protein as did healthy children, clear evidence that the children had a raging auto immune disorder." The team has now expanded the study to 400 children and is starting a trial where 3,000 children will receive no dairy products during the first nine months of life. "The study may take 10 years, but we'll get a definitive answer one way or the other," according to one of the researchers. I would caution them to be certain that the breast feeding mothers use on cows' milk in their diets or the results will be confounded by the transmission of the cows' milk protein in the mother's breast milk.... Now what was the reaction from the diabetes association? This is very interesting! Dr. F. Xavier Pi-Sunyer, the president of the association says: "It does not mean that children should stop drinking milk or that parents of diabetics should withdraw dairy products. These are rich sources of good protein." (Emphasis added) My God, it's the "good protein" that causes the problem! Do you suspect that the dairy industry may have helped the American Diabetes Association in the past? LEUKEMIA? LYMPHOMA? THIS MAY BE THE WORST--BRACE YOURSELF! I hate to tell you this, but the bovine leukemia virus is found in more than three of five dairy cows in the United States! This involves about 80% of dairy herds. Unfortunately, when the milk is pooled, a very large percentage of all milk produced is contaminated (90 to 95 per cent). Of course the virus is killed in pasteurisation-- if the pasteurisation was done correctly. What if the milk is raw? In a study of randomly collected raw milk samples the bovine leukemia virus was recovered from two-thirds. I sincerely hope that the raw milk dairy herds are carefully monitored when compared to the regular herds. (Science 1981; 213:1014). This is a world-wide problem. One lengthy study from Germany deplored the problem and admitted the impossibility of keeping the virus from infected cows' milk from the rest of the milk. Several European countries, including Germany and Switzerland, have attempted to "cull" the infected cows from their herds. Certainly the United States must be the leader in the fight against leukemic dairy cows, right? Wrong! We are the worst in the world with the former exception of Venezuela according to Virgil Hulse MD, a milk specialist who also has a B.S. in Dairy Manufacturing as well as a Master's degree in Public Health. As mentioned, the leukemia virus is rendered inactive by pasteurisation. Of course. However, there can be Chernobyl like accidents. One of these occurred in the Chicago area in April, 1985. At a modern, large, milk processing plant an accidental "cross connection" between raw and pasteurized milk occurred. A violent salmonella outbreak followed, killing 4 and making an estimated 150,000 ill. Now the question I would pose to the dairy industry people is this: "How can you assure the people who drank this milk that they were not exposed to the ingestion of raw, unkilled, bully active bovine leukemia viruses?" Further, it would be fascinating to know if a "cluster" of leukemia cases blossoms in that area in 1 to 3 decades. There are reports of "leukemia clusters" elsewhere, one of them mentioned in the June 10, 1990 San Francisco Chronicle involving Northern California. What happens to other species of mammals when they are exposed to the bovine leukemia virus? It's a fair question and the answer is not reassuring. Virtually all animals exposed to the virus develop leukemia. This includes sheep, goats, and even primates such as rhesus monkeys and chimpanzees. The route of transmission includes ingestion (both intravenous and intramuscular) and cells present in milk. There are obviously no instances of transfer attempts to human beings, but we know that the virus can infect human cells in vitro. There is evidence of human antibody formation to the bovine leukemia virus; this is disturbing. How did the bovine leukemia virus particles gain access to humans and become antigens? Was it as small, denatured particles? If the bovine leukemia viruses causes human leukemia, we could expect the dairy states with known leukemic herds to have a higher incidence of human leukemia. Is this so? Unfortunately, it seems to be the case! Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin have statistically higher incidence of leukemia than the national average. In Russia and in Sweden, areas with uncontrolled bovine leukemia virus have been linked with increases in human leukemia. I am also told that veterinarians have higher rates of leukemia than the general public. Dairy farmers have significantly elevated leukemia rates. Recent research shows lymphocytes from milk fed to neonatal mammals gains access to bodily tissues by passing directly through the intestinal wall. An optimistic note from the University of Illinois, Ubana from the Department of Animal Sciences shows the importance of one's perspective. Since they are concerned with the economics of milk and not primarily the health aspects, they noted that the production of milk was greater in the cows with the bovine leukemia virus. However when the leukemia produced a persistent and significant lymphocytosis (increased white blood cell count), the production fell off. They suggested "a need to re-evaluate the economic impact of bovine leukemia virus infection on the dairy industry". Does this mean that leukemia is good for profits only if we can keep it under control? You can get the details on this business concern from Proc. Nat. Acad. Sciences, U.S. Feb. 1989. I added emphasis and am insulted that a university department feels that this is an economic and not a human health issue. Do not expect help from the Department of Agriculture or the universities. The money stakes and the political pressures are too great. You're on you own. What does this all mean? We know that virus is capable of producing leukemia in other animals. Is it proven that it can contribute to human leukemia (or lymphoma, a related cancer)? Several articles tackle this one: 1.Epidemiologic Relationships of the Bovine Population and Human Leukemia in Iowa. Am Journal of Epidemiology 112 (1980):80 2.Milk of Dairy Cows Frequently Contains a Leukemogenic Virus. Science 213 (1981): 1014 3.Beware of the Cow. (Editorial) Lancet 2 (1974):30 4.Is Bovine Milk A Health Hazard?. Pediatrics; Suppl. Feeding the Normal Infant. 75:182-186; 1985 In Norway, 1422 individuals were followed for 11 and a half years. Those drinking 2 or more glasses of milk per day had 3.5 times the incidence of cancer of the lymphatic organs. British Med. Journal 61:456-9, March 1990. One of the more thoughtful articles on this subject is from Allan S. Cunningham of Cooperstown, New York. Writing in the Lancet, November 27, 1976 (page 1184), his article is entitled, "Lymphomas and Animal-Protein Consumption". Many people think of milk as “liquid meat” and Dr. Cunningham agrees with this. He tracked the beef and dairy consumption in terms of grams per day for a one year period, 1955-1956., in 15 countries . New Zealand, United States and Canada were highest in that order. The lowest was Japan followed by Yugoslavia and France. The difference between the highest and lowest was quite pronounced: 43.8 grams/day for New Zealanders versus 1.5 for Japan. Nearly a 30-fold difference! (Parenthetically, the last 36 years have seen a startling increase in the amount of beef and milk used in Japan and their disease patterns are reflecting this, confirming the lack of 'genetic protection' seen in migration studies. Formerly the increase in frequency of lymphomas in Japanese people was only in those who moved to the USA)! An interesting bit of trivia is to note the memorial built at the Gyokusenji Temple in Shimoda, Japan. This marked the spot where the first cow was killed in Japan for human consumption! The chains around this memorial were a gift from the US Navy. Where do you suppose the Japanese got the idea to eat beef? The year? 1930. Cunningham found a highly significant positive correlation between deaths from lymphomas and beef and dairy ingestion in the 15 countries analysed. A few quotations from his article follow: The average intake of protein in many countries is far in excess of the recommended requirements. Excessive consumption of animal protein may be one co-factor in the causation of lymphomas by acting in the following manner. Ingestion of certain proteins results in the adsorption of antigenic fragments through the gastrointestinal mucous membrane. This results in chronic stimulation of lymphoid tissue to which these fragments gain access "Chronic immunological stimulation causes lymphomas in laboratory animals and is believed to cause lymphoid cancers in men." The gastrointestinal mucous membrane is only a partial barrier to the absorption of food antigens, and circulating antibodies to food protein is commonplace especially potent lymphoid stimulants. Ingestion of cows' milk can produce generalized lymphadenopathy, hepatosplenomegaly, and profound adenoid hypertrophy. It has been conservatively estimated that more than 100 distinct antigens are released by the normal digestion of cows' milk which evoke production of all antibody classes [This may explain why pasteurized, killed viruses are still antigenic and can still cause disease. Here's more. A large prospective study from Norway was reported in the British Journal of Cancer 61 (3):456-9, March 1990. (Almost 16,000 individuals were followed for 11 and a half years). For most cancers there was no association between the tumour and milk ingestion. However, in lymphoma, there was a strong positive association. If one drank two glasses or more daily (or the equivalent in dairy products), the odds were 3.4 times greater than in persons drinking less than one glass of developing a lymphoma. There are two other cow-related diseases that you should be aware of. At this time they are not known to be spread by the use of dairy products and are not known to involve man. The first is bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), and the second is the bovine immunodeficiency virus (BIV). The first of these diseases, we hope, is confined to England and causes cavities in the animal's brain. Sheep have long been known to suffer from a disease called scrapie. It seems to have been started by the feeding of contaminated sheep parts, especially brains, to the British cows. Now, use your good sense. Do cows seem like carnivores? Should they eat meat? This profit-motivated practice backfired and bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or Mad Cow Disease, swept Britain. The disease literally causes dementia in the unfortunate animal and is 100 per cent incurable. To date, over 100,000 cows have been incinerated in England in keeping with British law. Four hundred to 500 cows are reported as infected each month. The British public is concerned and has dropped its beef consumption by 25 per cent, while some 2,000 schools have stopped serving beef to children. Several farmers have developed a fatal disease syndrome that resembles both BSE and CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob- Disease). But the British Veterinary Association says that transmission of BSE to humans is "remote." The USDA agrees that the British epidemic was due to the feeding of cattle with bonemeal or animal protein produced at rendering plants from the carcasses of scrapie-infected sheep. The have prohibited the importation of live cattle and zoo ruminants from Great Britain and claim that the disease does not exist in the United States. However, there may be a problem. "Downer cows" are animals who arrive at auction yards or slaughter houses dead, trampled, lacerated, dehydrated, or too ill from viral or bacterial diseases to walk. Thus they are "down." If they cannot respond to electrical shocks by walking, they are dragged by chains to dumpsters and transported to rendering plants where, if they are not already dead, they are killed. Even a "humane" death is usually denied them. They are then turned into protein food for animals as well as other preparations. Minks that have been fed this protein have developed a fatal encephalopathy that has some resemblance to BSE. Entire colonies of minks have been lost in this manner, particularly in Wisconsin. It is feared that the infective agent is a prion or slow virus possible obtained from the ill "downer cows." The British Medical Journal in an editorial whimsically entitled "How Now Mad Cow?" (BMJ vol. 304, 11 Apr. 1992:929- 30) describes cases of BSE in species not previously known to be affected, such as cats. They admit that produce contaminated with bovine spongiform encephalopathy entered the human food chain in England between 1986 and 1989. They say. "The result of this experiment is awaited." As the incubation period can be up to three decades, wait we must. The immunodeficency virus is seen in cattle in the United States and is more worrisome. Its structure is closely related to that of the human AIDS virus. At this time we do not know if exposure to the raw BIV proteins can cause the sera of humans to become positive for HIV. The extent of the virus among American herds is said to be "widespread". (The USDA refuses to inspect the meat and milk to see if antibodies to this retrovirus is present). It also has no plans to quarantine the infected animals. As in the case of humans with AIDS, there is no cure for BIV in cows. Each day we consume beef and diary products from cows infected with these viruses and no scientific assurance exists that the products are safe. Eating raw beef (as in steak Tartare) strikes me as being very risky, especially after the Seattle E. coli deaths of 1993. A report in the Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research, October 1992, Vol. 56 pp.353-359 and another from the Russian literature, tell of a horrifying development. They report the first detection in human serum of the antibody to a bovine immunodeficiency virus protein. In addition to this disturbing report, is another from Russia telling us of the presence of virus proteins related to the bovine leukemia virus in 5 of 89 women with breast disease (Acta Virologica Feb. 1990 34(1): 19-26). The implications of these developments are unknown at present. However, it is safe to assume that these animal viruses are unlikely to "stay" in the animal kingdom. OTHER CANCERS--DOES IT GET WORSE? Unfortunately it does. Ovarian cancer--a particularly nasty tumour--was associated with milk consumption by workers at Roswell Park Memorial Institute in Buffalo, New York. Drinking more than one glass of whole milk or equivalent daily gave a woman a 3.1 times risk over non-milk users. They felt that the reduced fat milk products helped reduce the risk. This association has been made repeatedly by numerous investigators. Another important study, this from the Harvard Medical School, analyzed data from 27 countries mainly from the 1970s. Again a significant positive correlation is revealed between ovarian cancer and per capita milk consumption. These investigators feel that the lactose component of milk is the responsible fraction, and the digestion of this is facilitated by the persistence of the ability to digest the lactose (lactose persistence) - a little different emphasis, but the same conclusion. This study was reported in the American Journal of Epidemiology 130 (5): 904-10 Nov. 1989. These articles come from two of the country's leading institutions, not the Rodale Press or Prevention Magazine. Even lung cancer has been associated with milk ingestion? The beverage habits of 569 lung cancer patients and 569 controls again at Roswell Park were studied in the International Journal of Cancer, April 15, 1989. Persons drinking whole milk 3 or more times daily had a 2-fold increase in lung cancer risk when compared to those never drinking whole milk. For many years we have been watching the lung cancer rates for Japanese men who smoke far more than American or European men but who develop fewer lung cancers. Workers in this research area feel that the total fat intake is the difference. There are not many reports studying an association between milk ingestion and prostate cancer. One such report though was of great interest. This is from the Roswell Park Memorial Institute and is found in Cancer 64 (3): 605-12, 1989. They analyzed the diets of 371 prostate cancer patients and comparable control subjects: Men who reported drinking three or more glasses of whole milk daily had a relative risk of 2.49 compared with men who reported never drinking whole milk the weight of the evidence appears to favour the hypothesis that animal fat is related to increased risk of prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is now the most common cancer diagnosed in US men and is the second leading cause of cancer mortality. WELL, WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS? Is there any health reason at all for an adult human to drink cows' milk? It's hard for me to come up with even one good reason other than simple preference. But if you try hard, in my opinion, these would be the best two: milk is a source of calcium and it's a source of amino acids (proteins). Let's look at the calcium first. Why are we concerned at all about calcium? Obviously, we intend it to build strong bones and protect us against osteoporosis. And no doubt about it, milk is loaded with calcium. But is it a good calcium source for humans? I think not. These are the reasons. Excessive amounts of dairy products actually interfere with calcium absorption. Secondly, the excess of protein that the milk provides is a major cause of the osteoporosis problem. Dr. H egsted in England has been writing for years about the geographical distribution of osteoporosis. It seems that the countries with the highest intake of dairy products are invariably the countries with the most osteoporosis. He feels that milk is a cause of osteoporosis. Reasons to be given below. Numerous studies have shown that the level of calcium ingestion and especially calcium supplementation has no effect whatever on the development of osteoporosis. The most important such article appeared recently in the British Journal of Medicine where the long arm of our dairy industry can't reach. Another study in the United States actually showed a worsening in calcium balance in post-menopausal women given three 8-ounce glasses of cows' milk per day. (Am. Journal of Clin. Nutrition, 1985). The effects of hormone, gender, weight bearing on the axial bones, and in particular protein intake, are critically important. Another observation that may be helpful to our analysis is to note the absence of any recorded dietary deficiencies of calcium among people living on a natural diet without milk. For the key to the osteoporosis riddle, don’t look at calcium, look at protein. Consider these two contrasting groups. Eskimos have an exceptionally high protein intake estimated at 25 percent of total calories. They also have a high calcium intake at 2,500 mg/day. Their osteoporosis is among the worst in the world. The other instructive group are the Bantus of South Africa. They have a 12 percent protein diet, mostly p lant protein, and only 200 to 350 mg/day of calcium, about half our women's intake. The women have virtually no osteoporosis despite bearing six or more children and nursing them for prolonged periods! When African women immigrate to the United States, do they develop osteoporosis? The answer is yes, but not quite are much as Caucasian or Asian women. Thus, there is a genetic difference that is modified by diet. To answer the obvious question, "Well, where do you get your calcium?" The answer is: "From exactly the same place the cow gets the calcium, from green things that grow in the ground," mainly from leafy vegetables. After all, elephants and rhinos develop their huge bones (after being weaned) by eating green leafy plants, so do horses. Carnivorous animals also do quite nicely without leafy plants. It seems that all of earth's mammals do well if they live in harmony with their genetic programming and natural food. Only humans living an affluent life style have rampant osteoporosis. If animal references do not convince you, think of the several billion humans on this earth who have never seen cows' milk. Wouldn't you think osteoporosis would be prevalent in this huge group? The dairy people would suggest this but the truth is exactly the opposite. They have far less than that seen in the countries where dairy products are commonly consumed. It is the subject of another paper, but the truly significant determinants of osteoporosis are grossly excessive protein intakes and lack of weight bearing on long bones, both taking place over decades. Hormones play a secondary, but not trivial role in women. Milk is a deterrent to good bone health. THE PROTEIN MYTH Remember when you were a kid and the adults all told you to "make sure you get plenty of good protein". Protein was the nutritional "good guy”" when I was young. And of course milk is fitted right in. As regards protein, milk is indeed a rich source of protein- -"liquid meat," remember? However that isn't necessarily what we need. In actual fact it is a source of difficulty. Nearly all Americans eat too much protein. For this information we rely on the most authoritative source that I am aware of. This is the latest edition (1oth, 1989: 4th printing, Jan. 1992) of the Recommended Dietary Allowances produced by the National Research Council. Of interest, the current editor of this important work is Dr. Richard Havel of the University of California in San Francisco. First to be noted is that the recommended protein has been steadily revised downward in successive editions. The current recommendation is 0.75 g/kilo/day for adults 19 through 51 years. This, of course, is only 45 grams per day for the mythical 60 kilogram adult. You should also know that the WHO estimated the need for protein in adults to by .6g/kilo per day. (All RDA's are calculated with large safety allowances in case you're the type that wants to add some more to "be sure.") You can "get by" on 28 to 30 grams a day if necessary! Now 45 grams a day is a tiny amount of protein. That's an ounce and a half! Consider too, that the protein does not have to be animal protein. Vegetable protein is identical for all practical purposes and has no cholesterol and vastly less saturated fat. (Do not be misled by the antiquated belief that plant proteins must be carefully balanced to avoid deficiencies. This is not a realistic concern.) Therefore virtually all Americans, Canadians, British and European people are in a protein overloaded state. This has serious consequences when maintained over decades. The problems are the already mentioned osteoporosis, atherosclerosis and kidney damage. There is good evidence that certain malignancies, chiefly colon and rectal, are related to excessive meat intake. Barry Brenner, an eminent renal physiologist was the first to fully point out the dangers of excess protein for the kidney tubule. The dangers of the fat and cholesterol are known to all. Finally, you should know that the protein content of human milk is amount the lowest (0.9%) in mammals. IS THAT ALL OF THE TROUBLE? Sorry, there's more. Remember lactose? This is the principal carbohydrate of milk. It seems that nature provides new- borns with the enzymatic equipment to metabolize lactose, but this ability often extinguishes by age 4 or 5 years. What is the problem with lactose or milk sugar? It seems that it is a disaccharide which is too large to be absorbed into the blood stream without first being broken down into monosaccharides, namely galactose and glucose. This requires the presence of an enzyme, lactase plus additional enzymes to break down the galactose into glucose. Let's think about his for a moment. Nature gives us the ability to metabolize lactose for a few years and then shuts off the mechanism. Is Mother Nature trying to tell us something? Clearly all infants must drink milk. The fact that so many adults cannot seems to be related to the tendency for nature to abandon mechanisms that are not needed. At least half of the adult humans on this earth are lactose intolerant. It was not until the relatively recent introduction of dairy herding and the ability to "borrow" milk from another group of mammals that the survival advantage of preserving lactase (the enzyme that allows us to digest lactose) became evident. But why would it be advantageous to drink cows' milk? After all, most of the human beings in the history of the world did. And further, why was it just the white or light skinned humans who retained this knack while the pigmented people tended to lose it? Some students of evolution feel that white skin is a fairly recent innovation, perhaps not more than 20,000 or 30,000 years old. It clearly has to do with the Northward migration of early man to cold and relatively sunless areas when skins and clothing became available. Fair skin allows the production of Vitamin D from sunlight more readily than does dark skin. However, when only the face was exposed to sunlight that area of fair skin was insufficient to provide the vitamin D from sunlight. If dietary and sunlight sources were poorly available, the ability to use the abundant calcium in cows' milk would give a survival advantage to humans who could digest that milk. This seems to be the only logical explanation for fair skinned humans having a high degree of lactose tolerance when compared to dark skinned people. How does this break down? Certain racial groups, namely blacks are up to 90% lactose intolerant as adults. Caucasians are 20 to 40% lactose intolerant. Orientals are midway between the above two groups. Diarrhea, gas and abdominal cramps are the results of substantial milk intake in such persons. Most American Indians cannot tolerate milk. The milk industry admits that lactose intolerance plays intestinal havoc with as many as 50 million Americans. A lactose-intolerance industry has sprung up and had sales of $117 million in 1992 (Time May 17, 1993.) What if you are lactose-intolerant and lust after dairy products? Is all lost? Not at all. It seems that lactose is largely digested by bacteria and you will be able to enjoy your cheese despite lactose intolerance. Yogurt is similar in this respect. Finally, and I could never have dreamed this up, geneticists want to splice genes to alter the composition of milk (Am J Clin Nutr 1993 Suppl 302s). One could quibble and say that milk is totally devoid of fiber content and that its habitual use will predispose to constipation and bowel disorders. The association with anemia and occult intestinal bleeding in infants is known to all physicians. This is chiefly from its lack of iron and its irritating qualities for the intestinal mucosa. The pediatric literature abounds with articles describing irritated intestinal lining, bleeding, increased permeability as well as colic, diarrhea and vomiting in cows'milk-sensitive babies. The anemia gets a double push by loss of blood and iron as well as deficiency of iron in the cows' milk. Milk is also the leading cause of childhood allergy. LOW FAT One additional topic: the matter of "low fat" milk. A common and sincere question is: "Well, low fat milk is OK, isn't it?" The answer to this question is that low fat milk isn't low fat. The term "low fat" is a marketing term used to gull the public. Low fat milk contains from 24 to 33% fat as calories! The 2% figure is also misleading. This refers to weight. They don't tell you that, by weight, the milk is 87% water! "Well, then, kill-joy surely you must approve of non-fat milk!" I hear this quite a bit. (Another constant concern is: "What do you put on your cereal?") True, there is little or no fat, but now you have a relative overburden of protein and lactose. It there is something that we do not need more of it is another simple sugar-lactose, composed of galactose and glucose. Millions of Americans are lactose intolerant to boot, as noted. As for protein, as stated earlier, we live in a society that routinely ingests far more protein than we need. It is a burden for our bodies, especially the kidneys, and a prominent cause of osteoporosis. Concerning the dry cereal issue, I would suggest soy milk, rice milk or almond milk as a healthy substitute. If you're still concerned about calcium, "Westsoy" is formulated to have the same calcium concentration as milk. SUMMARY To my thinking, there is only one valid reason to drink milk or use milk products. That is just because we simply want to. Because we like it and because it has become a part of our culture. Because we have become accustomed to its taste and texture. Because we like the way it slides down our throat. Because our parents did the very best they could for us and provided milk in our earliest training and conditioning. They taught us to like it. And then probably the very best reason is ice cream! I've heard it described "to die for". I had one patient who did exactly that. He had no obvious vices. He didn't smoke or drink, he didn’t eat meat, his diet and lifestyle was nearly a perfectly health promoting one; but he had a passion. You guessed it, he loved rich ice cream. A pint of the richest would be a lean day's ration for him. On many occasions he would eat an entire quart - and yes there were some cookies and other pastries. Good ice cream deserves this after all. He seemed to be in good health despite some expected "middle age spread" when he had a devastating stroke which left him paralyzed, miserable and helpless, and he had additional strokes and d ied several years later never having left a hospital or rehabilitation unit. Was he old? I don't think so. He was in his 50s. So don't drink milk for health. I am convinced on the weight of the scientific evidence that it does not "do a body good." Inclusion of milk will only reduce your diet's nutritional value and safety. Most of the people on this planet live very healthfully without cows' milk. You can too. It will be difficult to change; we've been conditioned since childhood to think of milk as "nature's most perfect food." I'll guarantee you that it will be safe, improve your health and it won't cost anything. What can you lose? es esta pagina link http://notmilk.com/kradjian.html The most important information dissemination my. Not that, but I can make your text too long jajaja. If I write bad is that I am leading a translator jaja

Must read these. They are awesome. Star if you like it please? The women of the Tiwi tribe in the South Pacific are married at birth. -When Albert Einstein died, his final words died with him. The nurse at his side didn't understand German. -St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, was not Irish. -The lance ceased to be an official battle weapon in the British Army in 1927. -St. John was the only one of the 12 Apostles to die a natural death. -Many sailors used to wear gold earrings so that they could afford a proper burial when they died. -Some very Orthodox Jew refuse to speak Hebrew, believing it to be a language reserved only for the Prophets. -A South African monkey was once awarded a medal and promoted to the rank of corporal during World War I. -Born 4 January 1838, General Tom Thumb's growth slowed at the age of 6 months, at 5 years he was signed to the circus by P.T. Barnum, and at adulthood reached a height of only 1 metre. -Because they had no proper rubbish disposal system, the streets of ancient Mesopotamia became literally knee-deep in rubbish. -The Toltecs, Seventh-century native Mexicans, went into battle with wooden swords so as not to kill their enemies. -China banned the pigtail in 1911 as it was seen as a symbol of feudalism. -The Amayra guides of Bolivia are said to be able to keep pace with a trotting horse for a distance of 100 kilometres. -Sliced bread was patented by a jeweller, Otto Rohwedder, in 1928. He had been working on it for 16 years, having started in 1912. -Before it was stopped by the British, it was the not uncommon for women in some areas of India to choose to be burnt alive on their husband's funeral pyre. -Ivan the terrible claimed to have 'deflowered thousands of virgins and butchered a similar number of resulting offspring'. -Before the Second World War, it was considered a sacrilege to even touch an Emperor of Japan. -An American aircraft in Vietnam shot itself down with one of its own missiles. -The Anglo-Saxons believed Friday to be such an unlucky day that they ritually slaughtered any child unfortunate enough to be born on that day. -During the eighteenth century, laws had to be brought in to curb the seemingly insatiable appetite for gin amongst the poor. Their annual intake was as much as five million gallons. -Ancient drinkers warded off the devil by clinking their cups -The Nobel Prize resulted form a late change in the will of Alfred Nobel, who did not want to be remembered after his death as a propagator of violence - he invented dynamite. -The cost of the first pay-toilets installed in England was tuppence. -Pogonophobia is the fear of beards. -In 1647 the English Parliament abolished Christmas. -Mao Rse-Tang, the first chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, was born 26 December 1893. Before his rise to power, he occupied the humble position of Assistant Librarian at the University of Peking. -Coffee is the second largest item of international commerce in the world. The largest is petrol. -King George III was declared violently insane in 1811, 9 years before he died. -In Ancient Peru, when a woman found an 'ugly' potato, it was the custom for her to push it into the face of the nearest man. -For Roman Catholics, 5 January is St Simeon Stylites' Day. He was a fifth-century hermit who showed his devotion to God by spending literally years sitting on top of a huge flagpole. -When George I became King of England in 1714, his wife did not become Queen. He placed her under house arrest for 32 years. -The richest 10 per cent of the French people are approximately fifty times better off than the poorest 10 per cent. -Henry VII was the only British King to be crowned on the field of battle During World War One, the future Pope John XXIII was a sergeant in the Italian Army. -Richard II died aged 33 in 1400. A hole was left in the side of his tomb so people could touch his royal head, but 376 years later some took advantage of this and stole his jawbone. -The magic word "Abracadabra" was originally intended for the specific purpose of curing hay fever. -The Puritans forbade the singing of Christmas Carols, judging them to be out of keeping with the true spirit of Christmas. -Albert Einstein was once offered the Presidency of Israel. He declined saying he had no head for problems. -Uri Geller, the professional psychic was born on December 20 1946. As to the origin of his alleged powers, Mr Geller maintains that they come from the distant planet of Hoova. -Ralph and Carolyn Cummins had 5 children between 1952 and 1966, all were born on the 20 February. -John D. Rockefeller gave away over US$ 500,000,000 during his lifetime. -Only 1 child in 20 are born on the day predicted by the doctor. -In the 1970's, the Rhode Island Legislature in the US entertained a proposal that there be a $2 tax on every act of sexual intercourse in the State. -Widows in equatorial Africa actually wear sackcloth and ashes when attending a funeral. -The 'Hundred Years War' lasted 116 years. Congrats on readi

Some amazing facts. Enjoy and star if you like em please? The women of the Tiwi tribe in the South Pacific are married at birth. -When Albert Einstein died, his final words died with him. The nurse at his side didn't understand German. -St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, was not Irish. -The lance ceased to be an official battle weapon in the British Army in 1927. -St. John was the only one of the 12 Apostles to die a natural death. -Many sailors used to wear gold earrings so that they could afford a proper burial when they died. -Some very Orthodox Jew refuse to speak Hebrew, believing it to be a language reserved only for the Prophets. -A South African monkey was once awarded a medal and promoted to the rank of corporal during World War I. -Born 4 January 1838, General Tom Thumb's growth slowed at the age of 6 months, at 5 years he was signed to the circus by P.T. Barnum, and at adulthood reached a height of only 1 metre. -Because they had no proper rubbish disposal system, the streets of ancient Mesopotamia became literally knee-deep in rubbish. -The Toltecs, Seventh-century native Mexicans, went into battle with wooden swords so as not to kill their enemies. -China banned the pigtail in 1911 as it was seen as a symbol of feudalism. -The Amayra guides of Bolivia are said to be able to keep pace with a trotting horse for a distance of 100 kilometres. -Sliced bread was patented by a jeweller, Otto Rohwedder, in 1928. He had been working on it for 16 years, having started in 1912. -Before it was stopped by the British, it was the not uncommon for women in some areas of India to choose to be burnt alive on their husband's funeral pyre. -Ivan the terrible claimed to have 'deflowered thousands of virgins and butchered a similar number of resulting offspring'. -Before the Second World War, it was considered a sacrilege to even touch an Emperor of Japan. -An American aircraft in Vietnam shot itself down with one of its own missiles. -The Anglo-Saxons believed Friday to be such an unlucky day that they ritually slaughtered any child unfortunate enough to be born on that day. -During the eighteenth century, laws had to be brought in to curb the seemingly insatiable appetite for gin amongst the poor. Their annual intake was as much as five million gallons. -Ancient drinkers warded off the devil by clinking their cups -The Nobel Prize resulted form a late change in the will of Alfred Nobel, who did not want to be remembered after his death as a propagator of violence - he invented dynamite. -The cost of the first pay-toilets installed in England was tuppence. -Pogonophobia is the fear of beards. -In 1647 the English Parliament abolished Christmas. -Mao Rse-Tang, the first chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, was born 26 December 1893. Before his rise to power, he occupied the humble position of Assistant Librarian at the University of Peking. -Coffee is the second largest item of international commerce in the world. The largest is petrol. -King George III was declared violently insane in 1811, 9 years before he died. -In Ancient Peru, when a woman found an 'ugly' potato, it was the custom for her to push it into the face of the nearest man. -For Roman Catholics, 5 January is St Simeon Stylites' Day. He was a fifth-century hermit who showed his devotion to God by spending literally years sitting on top of a huge flagpole. -When George I became King of England in 1714, his wife did not become Queen. He placed her under house arrest for 32 years. -The richest 10 per cent of the French people are approximately fifty times better off than the poorest 10 per cent. -Henry VII was the only British King to be crowned on the field of battle During World War One, the future Pope John XXIII was a sergeant in the Italian Army. -Richard II died aged 33 in 1400. A hole was left in the side of his tomb so people could touch his royal head, but 376 years later some took advantage of this and stole his jawbone. -The magic word "Abracadabra" was originally intended for the specific purpose of curing hay fever. -The Puritans forbade the singing of Christmas Carols, judging them to be out of keeping with the true spirit of Christmas. -Albert Einstein was once offered the Presidency of Israel. He declined saying he had no head for problems. -Uri Geller, the professional psychic was born on December 20 1946. As to the origin of his alleged powers, Mr Geller maintains that they come from the distant planet of Hoova. -Ralph and Carolyn Cummins had 5 children between 1952 and 1966, all were born on the 20 February. -John D. Rockefeller gave away over US$ 500,000,000 during his lifetime. -Only 1 child in 20 are born on the day predicted by the doctor. -In the 1970's, the Rhode Island Legislature entertained a proposal that there be a $2 tax on every act of sexual intercourse in the State. -Widows in equatorial Africa actually wear sackcloth and ashes when attending a funeral. -The 'Hundred Years War' lasted 116 years. Congrats on reading it all

WOW these are incredible. Star me if you like them? -The women of the Tiwi tribe in the South Pacific are married at birth. -When Albert Einstein died, his final words died with him. The nurse at his side didn't understand German. -St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, was not Irish. -The lance ceased to be an official battle weapon in the British Army in 1927. -St. John was the only one of the 12 Apostles to die a natural death. -Many sailors used to wear gold earrings so that they could afford a proper burial when they died. -Some very Orthodox Jew refuse to speak Hebrew, believing it to be a language reserved only for the Prophets. -A South African monkey was once awarded a medal and promoted to the rank of corporal during World War I. -Born 4 January 1838, General Tom Thumb's growth slowed at the age of 6 months, at 5 years he was signed to the circus by P.T. Barnum, and at adulthood reached a height of only 1 metre. -Because they had no proper rubbish disposal system, the streets of ancient Mesopotamia became literally knee-deep in rubbish. -The Toltecs, Seventh-century native Mexicans, went into battle with wooden swords so as not to kill their enemies. -China banned the pigtail in 1911 as it was seen as a symbol of feudalism. -The Amayra guides of Bolivia are said to be able to keep pace with a trotting horse for a distance of 100 kilometres. -Sliced bread was patented by a jeweller, Otto Rohwedder, in 1928. He had been working on it for 16 years, having started in 1912. -Before it was stopped by the British, it was the not uncommon for women in some areas of India to choose to be burnt alive on their husband's funeral pyre. -Ivan the terrible claimed to have 'deflowered thousands of virgins and butchered a similar number of resulting offspring'. -Before the Second World War, it was considered a sacrilege to even touch an Emperor of Japan. -An American aircraft in Vietnam shot itself down with one of its own missiles. -The Anglo-Saxons believed Friday to be such an unlucky day that they ritually slaughtered any child unfortunate enough to be born on that day. -During the eighteenth century, laws had to be brought in to curb the seemingly insatiable appetite for gin amongst the poor. Their annual intake was as much as five million gallons. -Ancient drinkers warded off the devil by clinking their cups -The Nobel Prize resulted form a late change in the will of Alfred Nobel, who did not want to be remembered after his death as a propagator of violence - he invented dynamite. -The cost of the first pay-toilets installed in England was tuppence. -Pogonophobia is the fear of beards. -In 1647 the English Parliament abolished Christmas. -Mao Rse-Tang, the first chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, was born 26 December 1893. Before his rise to power, he occupied the humble position of Assistant Librarian at the University of Peking. -Coffee is the second largest item of international commerce in the world. The largest is petrol. -King George III was declared violently insane in 1811, 9 years before he died. -In Ancient Peru, when a woman found an 'ugly' potato, it was the custom for her to push it into the face of the nearest man. -For Roman Catholics, 5 January is St Simeon Stylites' Day. He was a fifth-century hermit who showed his devotion to God by spending literally years sitting on top of a huge flagpole. -When George I became King of England in 1714, his wife did not become Queen. He placed her under house arrest for 32 years. -The richest 10 per cent of the French people are approximately fifty times better off than the poorest 10 per cent. -Henry VII was the only British King to be crowned on the field of battle During World War One, the future Pope John XXIII was a sergeant in the Italian Army. -Richard II died aged 33 in 1400. A hole was left in the side of his tomb so people could touch his royal head, but 376 years later some took advantage of this and stole his jawbone. -The magic word "Abracadabra" was originally intended for the specific purpose of curing hay fever. -The Puritans forbade the singing of Christmas Carols, judging them to be out of keeping with the true spirit of Christmas. -Albert Einstein was once offered the Presidency of Israel. He declined saying he had no head for problems. -Uri Geller, the professional psychic was born on December 20 1946. As to the origin of his alleged powers, Mr Geller maintains that they come from the distant planet of Hoova. -Ralph and Carolyn Cummins had 5 children between 1952 and 1966, all were born on the 20 February. -John D. Rockefeller gave away over US$ 500,000,000 during his lifetime. -Only 1 child in 20 are born on the day predicted by the doctor. -In the 1970's, the Rhode Island Legislature in the US entertained a proposal that there be a $2 tax on every act of sexual intercourse in the State. -Widows in equatorial Africa actually wear sackcloth and ashes when attending a funeral. -The 'Hundred Years War' lasted 116 years. -The British did