1300 Girls Harmed by HPV Vaccines in UK; Bizarre Side Effects Like Paralysis and Epilepsy

More than 1,300 girls in the United Kingdom have experienced negative reactions to the government-mandated Cervarix vaccine for the human papillomavirus (HPV), according to adverse events reports collected from doctors by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).




"When they introduced this new vaccine, we had major concerns about its safety," said Jackie Fletcher of Jabs, a support group for those negatively affected by vaccines. "The current statistics detailing adverse reactions -- including cases of epilepsy and convulsions -- bears out that we were right to be concerned."




Cervarix, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, inoculates patients against strains 16 and 18 of HPV, which are believed to be responsible for 70 percent of cervical cancer cases. The British government began a program to vaccinate all secondary school girls in September 2008, and 700,000 have received the injections so far. The government's plan is to have all girls under the age of 18 vaccinated by 2011.

Treehugger's Best Regional Politician

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty was selected by Treehugger as their best regional politician, joining international environmental advocates like former U.S. President Bill Clinton, Australian PM Kevin Rudd and San Fransisco Mayor Gavin Newsom for this prestigeous honour.




Read all about it at:




http://www.treehugger.com/galleries/2009/04/best-of-green-business-and-politics.php?page=5




Best Regional Politician: Dalton McGuinty


The citizens of Ontario, Canada really didn't expect much when they elected Dalton McGuinty in one of those "throw the bums out" elections in 2003. Were they in for a surprise.




Since then, the change has been extraordinary: He invested in the health care system, banned junk food in schools, prohibited smoking just about anywhere (including private cars if children under 15 are in them), removed taxes on bikes, brought in free immunizations, protected boreal forests, instituted wine and liquor bottle deposit returns, changed the definition of marriage to include homosexual couples. On the energy front: He also closed coal fired power plants and promised to eliminate coal from the province by 2014, changed the rules to encourage alternative energy, and is introducing a controversial but important green energy plan. Not only that but he declared a green belt the size of the Province of Prince Edward Island; and recently announced a massive investment in rapid transit for Toronto.




Unlike the "checks and balances" in American government, in Canada if you have a majority government you can pretty much do what you want. Dalton McGuinty has consistently used that power to make this province greener, to control development and to try and fix our energy problems. Some have accused him of turning us into a nanny state; others of not doing nearly enough. However I do think it is fair to say that he has surprised us all with an extraordinary list of accomplishments and more in the works. --Lloyd Alter

Lancer Evolution chosen as Women’s World Car of the Year contender

The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution is a one of a kind high performance sports sedan that represents the ultimate in road licensed Mitsubishi vehicles. The Evolution showcases several outstanding technologies, including: a 291 hp, 2.0 litre DOHC, turbocharged-intercooled engine; the brilliant 6-speed Twin Clutch Sportronic® Shift Transmission (TC-SST) an automated manual transmission capable of executing lightning quick gear changes with no drop off in engine power; Super All-Wheel Control (S-AWC), a vehicle dynamic control network that provides an extraordinary level of control at individual wheels. An award winner in its own right, Super All-Wheel Control was recently named best new technology by the Automotive Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC).




This landmark award was initiated by Sandy Myhre, a journalist from Auckland, New Zealand. It brings together ten top women automotive journalists from North America, India, South Africa, the U.K., Australia and Europe. These well respected women will vote on vehicles that are new to the market between September 2008 and September 2009, and on sale in at least ten countries. The judges from Canada are Regina Chan, founder and Editorial Director of AutoNerve Magazine, and Jil McIntosh, reviewer for The Toronto Star (Wheels Section) and Assistant Editor of CanadianDriver.com.

2006 Copain Roussanne

2006 Copain Roussanne


James Berry Vineyard, Paso Robles




Very small production winery in Paso dedicated to making organic single vineyard wines that are true to the varietal characteristics.




Aromas: lemon cream pie, white flowers, orange dreamsicle, fennel, beeswax


Body: Medium


Color: Straw Yellow




From their website: Bees wax, lemon curd and fennel pollen aromas are pure and full on the nose. Crisp acidity buttresses the waxy roussanne character and keeps the zesty pear and lychee flavors lively on the palate. A beautifully seamless finish is long and pure with long lingering honeycomb like flavors.

IZZY AND GEORGE GONE FROM GREY’S?

It was a big night on TV for finales and a very emotional night on Grey's Anatomy. We had already heard that Katherine Heigl and T.R. Knight were preparing to leave and with the way last night's episode ended, their characters Izzy Stevens and George O'Malley appeared to be gone. In a stunning climax to the episode, Izzy flatlined after a risky surgery to remove a brain tumor and George appeared set to meet his maker after getting hit by a bus. There was one thing missing: Nobody called out "time of death".

ISV CAMPUS STAFF IN AUSTRALIA!

ISV Campus Staff are set to hit the shores of Australia to promote ISV's phenomenal volunteer and adventure programs!




Any past participants are invited to help our Campus Staff on their respective Universities to spread the good word of ISV to thousands of other students so they too can experience the trip of a lifetime!




The schedule for recruiting down under is as follows:




Week beginning March 16: Monash University - Caufield Campus


Week beginning March 23: University of Melbourne


Week beginning March 30: Monash University - Clayton


Week beginning April 6: Deakin - Burwood


Week beginning April 20: Latrobe - Bundoora


Week beginning April 27: Swinburne, Griffith - Mt Gravatt, JCU, Strathfield, UWS - Campbelltown, UWA - Bankstown, Southern Cross University


Week beginning May 4: University of Sydney, QUT, University of South Australia, Curtin University - Perth


Week beginning May 11: University of New South Wales, University of Queensland, Flinders University, Edith Cowan University


Week beginning May 18: Woolongong University, University of Canberra, University of Adelaide, Murdoch University


Week beginning May 25: Macquarie University, ANU (Canberra), UTAS - Hobart, University of Western Australia


Week beginning June 1: Newcastle, UTS, University of Ballarat, CSU - Bathurst, CSU - Albury, Wodonga - University of Southern Queensland

Purina Event Center Groundbreaking

Was alerted by the good folks at Purina, who sponsor this blog, that they finally broke ground for the new Purina Event Center.

I wrote about the canine event center awhile ago and wanted to follow up on it, since it's now in the development stage. This video is a good laugh - and indication that this new "state-of-the-art 84,000 sq. foot INDOOR facility" is going to be a big hit at least with the four-legged crowd!

In the video, you can see a team of Parson Russell Terriers in hard hats (good laugh, there) as they "break ground"... It looks like they're digging their way to China! LOL

As a "loyal supporter of dog fancy, Purina is building this world-class facility to accommodate thousands of dogs and their owners and handler at 40 to 60 events a year." If you attend one, send us some pics. We'd love to share!