What is Child Abuse

Although there are many formal and acceptable definitions of child abuse, the following is offered as a guide for information on child abuse and neglect.
Child abuse consists of any act of commission or omission that endangers or impairs a child’s physical or emotional health and development. Child abuse includes any damage done to a child which cannot be reasonably explained and which is often represented by an injury or series of injuries appearing to be non-accidental in nature.

Forms of Child Abuse

Physical abuse

Any non-accidental injury to a child. This includes hitting, kicking, slapping, shaking, burning, pinching, hair pulling, biting, choking, throwing, shoving, whipping, and paddling.

Sexual abuse

Any sexual act between an adult and child. This includes fondling, penetration, intercourse, exploitation, pornography, exhibitionism, child prostitution, group sex, oral sex, or forced observation of sexual acts.

Neglect

Failure to provide for a child’s physical needs. This includes lack of supervision, inappropriate housing or shelter, inadequate provision of food and water, inappropriate clothing for season or weather, abandonment, denial of medical care and inadequate hygiene.

Emotional abuse

Any attitude or behavior which interferes with a child’s mental health or social development. This includes yelling, screaming, name-calling, shaming, negative comparisons to others, telling them they are “bad, no good, worthless” or “a mistake.” It also includes the failure to provide the affection and support necessary for the development of a child’s emotional, social, physical and intellectual well-being. This includes ignoring, lack of appropriate physical affection (hugs), not saying “I love you,” withdrawal of attention, lack of praise and lack of positive reinforcement.

What do I do if I think someone is abusing a child?

If a child discloses that he or she has been abused by someone, it is important that you LISTEN to them most of all.

• Ask ONLY four questions
• What happened?
• Who did this to you?
• Where were you when this happened?
• When did this happen?
  Asking any additional questions may contaminate a case!

DO NOT

• Investigate
• Ask leading questions (a question that suggests the answer or contains the information the questioner is looking for – That man touched you, didn’t he?)
• Make promises
• Notify the parents or the caretaker

DO

• Provide a safe environment (be comforting, welcoming, and a good listener)
• Tell the child it was not his/her fault
• Listen carefully
• Document the child’s exact quotes
• Be supportive, not judgmental
• Know your limits
• Tell the truth

If you suspect abuse, but a child has not disclosed to you, call 1-800-4-A-CHILD. Or counselors can talk through the situation with you and help decide what the best course of action is.

Activists: Clashes in Aleppo, Syria's largest city

BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian troops and rebels fought the heaviest battles in months Friday Aleppo, Syria's largest city, a day after U.S. officials said Washington has authorized sending weapons to opposition fighters for the first time.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the clashes concentrated in the eastern rebel-held neighborhood of Sakhour, calling the fighting "the most violent in months." It said troops attacked the neighborhood from two directions but failed to advance, suffering casualties.

Aleppo, Syria's commercial hub before the civil war, is near the Turkish border.

The opposition's Aleppo Media Center said troops bombarded Sakhour with tank shells and rockets before sending in troops. The fighting lasted about four hours, and then warplanes raided rebel positions in Sakhour.

The intensified fighting coincided with President Barack Obama's decision to authorize sending weapons to Syrian rebels, marking a deepening of U.S. involvement in Syria's two-year civil war.

U.S. officials said the administration could provide the rebels with a range of weapons, including small arms, ammunition, assault rifles and a variety of anti-tank weaponry such as shoulder-fired rocket-propelled grenades and other missiles. However, no final decisions have been made on the type of weaponry or when it would reach the rebels, according to the officials, who insisted on anonymity in order to discuss internal administration discussions with reporters.

The United States also announced Thursday it had conclusive evidence that President Bashar Assad's regime has used chemical weapons, including the nerve agent sarin, on a small scale against opposition forces. The White House said multiple chemical attacks last year killed up to 150 people.

Obama has said the use of chemical weapons cross a "red line" triggering greater U.S involvement in the crisis.
Rami Abdul-Rahman who heads the Observatory says troops were trying to capture a major intersection in Sakhour that links several major roads in Aleppo including one leading to the city's airport and another to the north.
"It is a strategic area," said Abdul-Rahman. He said large numbers of rebels took part in the fighting.
The attack on Sakhour comes a week after Syrian government forces backed by Hezbollah fighters captured the town of Qusair near the Lebanon border.
Regime forces now appear set on securing control of the central provinces of Homs and Hama, a linchpin area linking Damascus with regime strongholds on the Mediterranean coast, and Aleppo to the north.
The fight for Aleppo, a city of 3 million that was once a bastion of support for Assad, is critical for both the regime and the opposition. Its fall would give the opposition a major strategic victory with a stronghold in the north near the Turkish border. A rebel defeat would buy Assad more time, at the very least. It could also turn the tide of the civil war against the rebels.
Opposition fighters have managed to seize control of several neighborhoods in Aleppo since storming the city last summer.
The conflict started with largely peaceful protests against Assad's regime in March 2011 but turned into a civil war. About 93,000 people have been killed in the war, according to the United Nations.

The UN’s New Tool for Resolving Conflicts

Despite attempts to curb conflict since the end of World War II, the world community, and the United Nations in particular, has been unable to eradicate armed conflict globally, particularly in resource-rich areas. The UN has adopted many mechanisms to prevent or contain conflict, and to stop crimes against humanity, which affect people as individuals, and genocide, which affects people as members of a specific group. A new mechanism has just been created that changes how the UN deals with conflict.

The UN’s tools have historically included preventative diplomacy, the inviting of conflicting parties to solve disagreements without the use of violence. In a few specific cases, this has been successful. If a dispute escalates and the states involved are considering the use of violence to solve their disputes, peacemaking can be used to de-escalate tensions. If military force is used, the conflict zone can be managed by the UN through Security Council resolutions, and most notably by peacekeeping, the use of military personnel as a buffer between warring parties.

UN peacekeeping forces have had limited mandates and scope in an effort to not complicate matters between warring nations. Many outside observers have argued that this is ineffective. Others believe it is the only option, because if UN forces had offensive capabilities, they would be a global military force sanctioned by a world government, and as such either could redefine and rival the concept of state sovereignty or redefine the relationship of state sovereignty to the United Nations.

Resolution 2098, which created an “intervention brigade,” made history March 28, 2013. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) “authorized the deployment of an intervention force” in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) “to address imminent threats to peace and security” in the resource-rich eastern North Kivu province. For the first time, UN forces will be authorized to support government efforts “to protect civilians, neutralize armed groups, and implement key reforms to consolidate peace in the country.” The reforms, like establishing a strong judiciary and general nation-building, will now fall primarily under the control of military personnel, who will “support the political objectives” of peace and security.

The DRC does not have an effective political process or full sovereignty within its legal borders. It is sovereign enough to establish international agreements with corporations and bankers, but not sovereign enough to be a functional government. Resolution 2098 is meant to change that.

UNSC Resolution 2053, agreed on in 2012, emphasized “the linkage between the illicit exploitation and trade of natural resources” and the proliferation of the conflict by “international actors.” These actors include neighboring Rwanda and Uganda, and most notably multinational corporations (MNCs) that profit from the resource exploitation in both rebel-controlled areas and government-controlled areas, where civilians are abused and basic human services are neglected. Furthermore, mutinies like the one led by Bosco Ntaganda show the powerful influence of actors within the DRC’s army. Unfortunately, while Resolution 2053 emphasized the need for the DRC to have “accountable and sustainable security forces” and “cohesion within the national Army,” the UN did not give the monetary support to pay these forces.

The UN has also failed to take into account historical and cultural understanding of this challenge, or the role MNCs and foreign governments have played in preventing such DRC Army cohesion and stable political processes and services. Resolution 2098 does not help fund sovereign government forces, nor help international debt forgiveness, or address MNC exploitation of minerals and bribing of government officials. The Resolution makes the DRC depend on global military forces to define its national sovereignty and security, without addressing the underlying corruption.

Even if the DRC “intervention brigade” is successful, how do we gauge this success if there is little to no political leadership, political process, and civilian participation in this process?  How many other nations will need UN intervention brigades to meet minimal sovereign standards without their civilians involved?  One thing is sure: it is a brave new world for global governance.

Submitted by Yiannis Konstandinos Floropoulos

The opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not represent the opinions of Rutgers University or the Division of Global Affairs.

Challenging Rape Culture and Environmental Plunder

As I have argued before , we must confront our globally endemic rape culture in order to curb sexual violence against women. In order to do this, we need to engage in sustained social discourses that challenge patriarchy. This will result in not only a more peaceful and equitable gender balance, but also perhaps a platform to address the major ecological predicaments of our time.

The link between the domination of women and of nature has been stressed by an intellectual and political movement known as ecofeminism. This term, ecofeminism, was apparently coined in 1974 by Françoise d’Eaubonne, who was part of a rich tradition of French feminism. Nearly a generation earlier, in her seminal study Le Deuxième Sexe (The Second Sex), Simone de Beauvoir likewise suggested how the patriarchal logic of domination has subordinated both women and nature, two subjects which have long been conflated, for better and for worse.

In fact, this link between nature and women is present in the etymology of the word “nature” itself, which ultimately derives from the Latin verb nasci, “to be born,” thus alluding to the most fundamental feature of womanhood – the bearer of life. This link was respected by many ancient religions. The ancient Greeks worshipped Gaia, who was the goddess or personification of the Earth. Her ancient Roman counterpart was Terra. Even today, the Indigenous peoples of the Andes give reverence to Pachamama, the goddess of Mother Earth.

In the modern industrial world, however, Mother Earth is generally no longer endowed with such reverence. She has been denuded of her spiritual significance and imaginatively turned into an inert storehouse of raw materials, ripe for plundering. Thus, looking at the graphic pictures of the ruthless exploitation of tar sands in northern Alberta, Canada, for example, one cannot help but see it as a form of rape. This term, by the way, is not being used metaphorically. In fact, one of the first meanings of the word “rape” in the mid-14th language of Middle English was “the act of taking something by force, plundering.” That is, quite simply, what the tar sands operations are all about. They are brute force in extremis.

Thus, the tar sands operations are exemplary of both the extremities of modern industrialization and of patriarchy. The millennia-long legacy of male domination, oppression, and ownership has arguably laid the seeds for the attitude that not only justifies but indeed demands the terrible exploitation of Mother Earth. And just as women are pervasively objectified, stripped of their dignity and inherent moral value, so too is nature denuded of its spiritual essence. As we move forward, then, in challenging and ultimately overturning our rape culture, we must appreciate how much is at stake. It is not just about curbing sexual violence against women, although that is a hugely significant priority. But in addition to that, it is about saving our shared home from destruction.

Counterterrorism and Military Force

The terrorist attack at the Boston Marathon on April 15 has helped revive many debates in the United States concerning how the American people and their government can best respond to the threat of terror. Before the attack begins to fade from people’s memories, two important questions in particular need to be answered. First, is the fight against terrorists first and foremost a military operation? Second, how can Americans break the cycle of fear and cynicism that often follows an act of terror? This post will respond to the first question, while an upcoming post will address the second.

Five days after the bombing, four members of the U.S. Congress publicly argued that the surviving suspect, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, was “a good candidate for enemy combatant status,” and that he should be tried in a military court. But this argument confuses two different things: the need to punish terrorists and the need (in some cases) to use military force to punish them. These needs are related, but to say that they are the same thing is to say that the U.S. (or any other country threatened by terrorism) should automatically react to terrorist threats with military force. The truth is far more complicated and nuanced.

After September 11, 2001, it was certainly necessary for the U.S. and NATO to invade Afghanistan. Only by overthrowing the Taliban could the West make a serious attempt to punish al Qaeda for its actions. Unfortunately, once the Bush administration shifted its focus toward an unwise war in Iraq, the goal of the mission in Afghanistan was lost: Were the allies trying to fully stabilize and democratize the country, or merely trying to eliminate al Qaeda there? That question was never truly answered by George W. Bush, and even as Barack Obama has begun to withdraw U.S. forces from Afghanistan, he has failed to solve this dilemma.

If Bush and his national security team had remained focused on al Qaeda and its continued ability to launch attacks in a wide range of countries, they would have strengthened America’s ability to conduct quick, stealthy strikes against terrorist groups, making greater use of special operations forces and unmanned aircraft (as the Obama administration has done) than conventional military forces. Instead, the Bush administration saw terrorism as a problem that could largely be solved by overthrowing hostile governments (even governments, like Saddam Hussein’s, that were not actively connected to anti-American terrorism). This led the U.S. to place too much emphasis on the military aspect of counterterrorism.

Military force can and should play a part in counterterrorism. As controversial as the use of drones is, both in the U.S. and around the world, they are a key part of modern counterterrorism (although governments must remember not to rely too heavily on them). Al Qaeda may never be destroyed entirely by force of arms, but the U.S. and its allies should still make a priority of fighting the organization wherever and whenever they can, and drones have been very effective in this effort.

But while military force is a necessary component of a general strategy to fight the kind of terrorism facing the world today, it is only one of many parts. When Islamist terrorists strike the territory of a country that has been fighting Islamist terrorism on the other side of the world, military force does not make sense unless events in another country have helped lead to the attack. The Boston bombers were largely self-radicalized; they were not agents or allies of a foreign government, the way the September 11 hijackers were members of a group allied with the Afghan Taliban. They were never soldiers, and they should not be labeled enemy combatants.

As for proposals for a military tribunal in the Boston case, Tsarnaev was arrested by domestic law enforcement, and has been charged with a crime committed on American soil. A trial in a civilian court is thus the right choice.

The hysteria of those who see counterterrorism as strictly a military matter is evidence of an unfortunate cycle in American views of terrorism: panic, distrust and cynicism. This cycle will be discussed in greater detail in my next post.
 

Eyes on China: Showing you what the real China looks like

Life is elsewhere: Chinese well-to-do seek better life abroad

True life is elsewhere, as the Czech novelist Milan Kundera says. While everyone is looking for his final destination, for the wealthy Chinese, there is one common direction - Out of China.

According to an October survey by the Bank of China and Shanghai-based Hurun Report (a publishing and events group), who issues an annual ranking of China’s richest people, there are more than 500,000 Chinese who possess investable assets of over 10 million yuan (€1.2 million), and almost 60 percent are either considering emigrating, have begun the process or have already left the country.

There are a number of reasons that so many of China’s wealthy opt to leave: their children’s education, pollution-free environment, safe food, developed justice system and most of all – sense of security. US, Canada, Australia and Singapore are among the most desired destinations.

In the US this year almost 3000 Chinese citizens have applied for investor visas, also known as the EB-5, up from 270 in 2007. This counts for 78% of the total applicants for this type of visa.

This new immigration trend is different from that of refugees during the wartime in early 20th century or those who have studied abroad since China’s reforms and opening up to the outside world in the early 80s. Instead, these emigrants are self-motivated, mostly educated in China and may even have business based in China.

From the brain drain to the possible wealth drain, China should really start to think how to beef up its soft power in an attempt to halt this exodus of its financial elite. So while the Chinese government places disproportionate emphasis on economic growth, it seemingly comes at such a high price for the environment, food safety and security. In the long run, this simply will not be sustainable, especially if the country’s elite have all left.

How to lose friends and alienate people

The Palestinian bid for statehood, due to be submitted to the United Nations next week, has long been touted by Israel as a potential turning point in its relations with the Palestinians. The move, which is likely to secure an overwhelming majority in the General Assembly, has been dubbed a "diplomatic tsunami" by Defence Minister Ehud Barak, alluding to the vast repercussions Israel will face in the wake of the crucial vote. Other members of Israel's diehard rightwing government have threatened to annul the Oslo Accords, which give the legal grounding to the very limited autonomy of the Palestinian Authority, and even to annex parts of the West Bank, the territory slated for the future Palestinian state.

The most striking aspect of Israel's rabid reaction to the Palestinian move is that it's entirely incommensurate with the outcomes next week's vote may bring about. All the more so, given that a State Department spokesperson explicitly said last week that the United States would veto the Palestinians' bid for full UN membership in the Security Council. The Palestinian would then have to make do with upgrading their current observer status to that of a non-member state, in which capacity their ability to exert diplomatic leverage on Israel will nevertheless remain very limited. Israel is likely to be humiliated on the most prestigious diplomatic battlefield, but at least on that front, the Palestinian struggle for independence is mainly symbolic.

The panic that has gripped the Israeli government ahead of the much-dreaded month of September has not only been unwarranted, but counter-productive too. Focussing almost solely on the Palestinian juggernaut, Israel has neglected key areas of its strategy: its relationship with Egypt and Turkey, two regional superpowers that were, until recently, Israel's closest allies among its neighbours. The proximity of the events was staggering. Within a week, the Israeli ambassadors were expelled from Ankara and Cairo, in the former case by a government decision following the Palmer report, and in the latter following the takeover of the Israeli embassy by an angry mob. Even before the UN vote on the Palestinian statehood, the proverbial diplomatic tsunami has splashed along the Tel Aviv coastline.

Benjamin Netanyahu's government did very little to appease its potential adversaries, when it refused to apologise for the killing of nine Turkish nationals aboard the so-called Gaza Freedom Flotilla last year, and treated with insufficient seriousness the probably unintentional killing of five Egyptian soldiers by the Israeli army in the wake of the coordinated terror attack that hurled from the Sinai desert in Egypt's wild east. But there is also a good deal of truth in the Prime Minister's claims that these developments are independent of Israel's demeanour. With their EU membership bid postponed indefinitely, Turkey and its Islamist government are turning east, seeking to bolster their country's clout among the Arab and Muslim world. To this end, cooling its long-standing love affair with an increasingly belligerent Israel is essential. In Egypt, on the other hand, disgruntled protesters found in the Israeli embassy an easy target to vent their frustration at the interim government that has so far failed to live up to the high hopes evoked in Tahrir Square. The incident at the Israeli embassy, for all that, underscored the tensions that encumber the Egyptian society. It was the first time since Mubarak's departure that security forces turned against protesters, killing three and wounding dozens in the process, and more importantly, the despised emergency law, so intimately associated with the old regime's disregard for human rights, was partially restored in consequence.

And as if this is not enough, the Israeli Foreign Ministry has ordered the evacuation of the embassy in Jordan, the only Middle Eastern country with which Israel still holds fully normalised ties. Israel is reluctant to take any risks ahead of a protest rally outside its embassy in Amman, planned for this weekend, for fear it may escalate into a repetition of the Cairo debacle. That the Jordanian public opinion is predominantly anti-Israeli is hardly new; but this widespread sentiment found rare resonance in Amman's Royal Palace this week. King Abdullah, arguably the region's most moderate and even-handed leader, said on Monday in a closed meeting dedicated to the Palestinians' latest diplomatic endeavor that his country has "an army and we are ready to fight for our homeland and the future of Jordan". These extraordinary remarks came after Israeli officials tried to resuscitate the long-defunct "Jordanian option" – a veteran darling of the Israeli rightwing, wishing to eschew the establishment of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza by relocating the Palestinians living under Israeli occupation to the desert kingdom, where some two thirds of the population are already of Palestinian origin.

Israel has owed its convivial relations with Turkey, Egypt and Jordan mainly to the divisions in the Arab and Muslim world, divisions so spectacularly deep that they are second only to the hollowness of the ridiculously earnest rhetoric emanating from Arab capitals, hailing with pathos an obviously non-existent united Arab front. Israel effectively ensured the perpetuation of these divisions – between moderates and extremists, pro-Western and zealous nationalists, etc. – by reiterating a (too often disingenuous) commitment to the recognition of the Palestinians' national aspirations, thereby sowing dissent between those who incline to accept Israel, provided it ends the occupation of the Palestinian territories, and those who wish to do away with the Jewish state altogether. Netanyahu, in his persistent attempts to avoid meaningful peace talks with the Palestinians, has ended up contributing more to Arab and Muslim unity than Gamal Abdel Nasser, the charismatic Egyptian leader and herald of pan-Arab nationalism, ever did in his entire lifetime.
 

The road not taken

Like many American Jews in the last decade, I first travelled to Israel through the Birthright (Taglit) programme. In just ten days, the goals of Taglit had been met as far as I was concerned. Israel’s importance in my life had shifted from a country we always discussed in the High Holidays’ imaginary roughly the size of New Jersey to the beacon of pan-nationalist Jewish sentiment.

How could I not be moved by the stories of oppression and victory? The Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum? Or even the climb up Massada where the guide recounts the tale of how Jewish extremist rebels, known as the Sicarii, overcame the Roman garrison by committing mass suicide rather than becoming enslaved to those that had destroyed the Second Temple in 70 CE. Upon my return to my college campus, Israel advocacy became a top priority winning me even a few more trips to Israel with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. I was able to meet analysts, professors, Israeli MPs and even Michael Oren, who now holds the key office of Israel’s Washington ambassador.

It wasn’t until a few years ago when I lived in Israel that I realised that the “only democracy in the Middle East” I had fought to uphold already faced much more of a touch-and-go reality.  Palestinian Israelis were second-class citizens. They received a bottom-tier education in state schools and had difficulty accessing basic goods and services. History books were filled with historical revisionism that negated any narrative about the foundation of the state of Israel that was not Zionist. The status quo and locked peace process was never our fault nor did we bear any responsibility. Everything became about “us” versus “them”. And whilst I understood genuine concerns about another intifada, it was then that it became crystal clear to me that Israelis were being short-changed by their government on the type of egalitarian country those kibbutzniks fought to build.

In the three-year period between the 2006 war with Hezbollah and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s return to the office of Prime Minister in 2009, the country operated in complete schizophrenia. On one hand, Noam and Aviva Shalit held countless rallies to bring their son Gilad Shalit home on Rabin Square as liberal Israelis condemned their government’s uselessness. While on the other, settlement building binged, American Jewish donors threatened to take away the funding from Ben Gurion University if professors like Neve Gordon didn’t keep quiet about divestment and Israel’s religious high court pushed to have more weight than the Supreme Court.

It was obvious to me, as well as my journalist cronies living in Israel at the time, that the tension could not go on forever. After all, two-way democracies don’t really exist. The belief that you can only reap the benefits of equality if you are actually “just like me and agree with me” is incongruous with a pluralistic society that establishes checks and balances by way of dissent.

And while we did foresee a clash between a right infused with religious Zionist (and racist) ideals and a more moderate Israeli society on the fence about its future, we hoped, or at least I did, that an increasingly globalised world would stop these precipitating measures. There was no way a modern country would give up years of working to solidify democratic institutions in order to maintain hegemony at the cost of recidivist policies.

Boy, was I wrong.

As Tobias Buck explains in his Financial Times article, three pieces of contentious legislation have passed the Knesset with a few more bills on their way.

“The first is the so-called Nakba Law, banning any state-funded entity – including schools and theatres – from commemorating the Nakba, or catastrophe. The term is central to the Palestinian understanding of recent history: it refers to the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, when hundreds of thousands of their ancestors were expelled or fled from advancing Israeli troops.

Critics say the ban is a blatant violation of freedom of speech – as is the so-called Boycott Law, passed earlier this year. It introduces a long list of penalties for any Israeli who advocates an academic, cultural or economic boycott of Israel, including the Jewish settlements that, contrary to international law, exist in the occupied Palestinian territories.

A third contentious law again takes aim at Israel’s Arab minority, which accounts for more than 20 per cent of the population. It allows small rural communities to have so-called admission committees to scrutinise potential residents and reject them if they are deemed not to fit in. The law comes in response to a 16-year campaign by an Arab family, the Qadans, who were denied permission to buy a property in Katzir, a Jewish community in Galilee. The community was finally ordered to let them in, thanks to a ruling by the high court. The new law circumvents the judges…

…One widely debated bill seeks to clamp down on foreign government donations to Israeli human rights groups and NGOs that criticise the government and army; another calls for a massive increase in damages that newspapers would have to pay in libel cases. It has been denounced by the press as an attempt to silence critical reporting”.

These measures have even raised the eyebrow of the Anti Defamation League’s Abraham Foxman. Known for his unequivocal stance with Israel, Foxman wrote in the Huffington Post last month that these laws would hurt Israel perception abroad “as defending democratic values are crucial to Israel’s good name”.

I understood one day there would be a bifurcated path; on one side there would be the road to consolidating a racist state made for like-minded people that share your ideals, and on the other the democracy that political leaders on opposite ends of the spectrum, Rabin and Begin praised. Unfortunately, it seems like they’ve chosen to go with the former.

As Hagai El-Ad, the director of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel said, the future is in the hands of voters. “Eventually, if the vast majority of Israelis do not want democracy, they will get what they want”, he said.

And as a diaspora American Jew, that is an Israel I cannot stand to defend.

Notes on a country straddling between reality and utopia

Saeb Erekat: “Maybe Netanyahu needs a therapist for numbers”

Palestinians, frustrated by the failure of the frozen US-sponsored peace process with Israel, are expected to campaign for statehood on September 20. The unilateral decision by the Palestinian Authority (PA) has sparked diplomatic tensions across the Middle East, the European Union and the United States. Since the PA’s announcement, the Obama administration and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, have been attempting to dissuade Palestinians from going to the UN as it is generally expected that the US will veto the Palestinian bid for full member status at the United Nations Security Council.

On the European front, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppé said Friday that a Palestinian attempt to win state recognition could trigger a “futile and dangerous diplomatic confrontation” as members of the EU are divided over the Palestinian question and it is not certain that France and Germany will be able to lobby for a united nay.

Recently our France 24 Correspondent, Gallagher Fenwick spoke with ‘Israel-Fatah’ key negotiator and the former chief PLO Steering and Monitoring Committee head, Saeb Erekat. The Oslo Accords chief veteran who has often been regarded as demure in his delivery was seemingly irked by our correspondent’s questions going as far as to say that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu needs “a therapist for numbers” and maybe this time he will accept 1967 borders.

Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs reported that Clinton is currently in talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas "to urge President Abbas to receive them and hear them with open ears and to continue to work hard with us to avoid a negative scenario in New York at the end of the month”. The National Security Council’s Dennis Ross and Acting Special Envoy David Hale are in meetings with Netanyahu today to also mediate the Israeli side of an incoming diplomatic debacle.
 

 

Yes, secular Jews are Jewish too

You should be ashamed. That’s all I have to say to the hundreds of ultra-Orthodox Jews who protested in Jerusalem’s Sabbath Square on Saturday night. Some of the demonstrators wore yellow Star of David badges; others dressed in concentration camp-like uniforms to symbolize the Nazi regime’s prosecution of Jews during World War II. Their point: to say that the secular majority has made them the scapegoats of everything wrong in Israel and that the country incriminates their “Jewish” way of life.

Like most Israelis whom for years have put up with the lack of public transportation on Saturdays, the barricaded streets on Shabbat, and the ridiculous teachings in state schools, I’d usually turn a blind eye and nod to their nonsense. This time, however, they’ve crossed a dangerous line. You see that’s the issue when a country’s entire national identity is tied to the Holocaust. When you invoke that weapon, it could quickly turn into a double-edged sword. This morning, everyone from Defence Minister Ehud Barak to Opposition Leader Tzipi Livni, expressed the outrage that echoed across Israeli dailies and social networks.


Enough is enough. This isn’t an argument about a religious versus a secular way of life. Spitting on a seven-year-old girl in Beit Shemesh constitutes as harassment and the individuals who are propagating these kinds of behavior are going to face the law.  Defending them, by invoking the false analogy of the Shoah is scandalous and offensive.

Unfortunately, Israeli politicians slapping the Haredi community on the wrists and telling them that they are doing “bad, bad, things” is not going to cut it. This is a wake up call for them too. For far too long your arms have been twisted to believe in the narrow logic of a Jewish democracy, leaving you to build “consensus” with extreme religious groups. You have attempted to appease them but each and every time you give another piece of an ever so brittle democracy.


Daniel Hartman expresses this malaise in his blog:

“The failure of the remaining 80 percent of Israeli society lies in the fact that it has not of late produced sufficient heroes of its own with a vision of the values necessary to create a liberal Jewish democracy, as well as the values which give primacy to the people over land, and to the State over tribal ideologies and loyalties. When encountering the ideological heroism and agenda of the settlers and the ultra-Orthodox, most of Israel capitulates.

"The fault is not in the political system but in a combination of ideological weakness, a lack of comprehensive values agenda, and a deficiency in heroism when it comes to internal Israeli policy. This has created a lethal cocktail for the future of Israeli society, a cocktail which seems to have anesthetized much of Israel into acquiescing to demands made by those who seem to care more about the issues than they do.


"But the problem is even more severe. The timidity of the majority of Israel is enabling the heroism of the settlers and the ultra-Orthodox to morph into fanaticism. When one is not challenged nor forced to confront the limits of one’s own arguments, there will always be some who interpret this as license to cross the line”.

Indeed, the problem is even more severe. However, it has to do with the notion that a liberal Jewish democracy can exist. By definition, a modern Jewish state that advocates for the rights of a particular group of people that is defined a “raced religion”  (read: Jews) is a twenty-first-century theocracy.


Let’s not forget that the majority of European Jews before World War II were not members of ultra-Orthodox Hardi communities as we’ve come to know them today. They were traditionalists. They kept the Sabbath, lived in shtetls, married other Jews but were not Haredim. In Germany, France and the U.S., many were secular. The Haredi movement of the late 1800s was a complete knee-jerk reaction to modernity and to European nationalism. Herzl and the first waves of Zionists just created their own version.

The problem with today’s Haredi movement is more of the same. They have co-opted history to blame all non-ultra Orthodox and secular Jews and say, “you see, that is why they killed us during the Holocaust. Had you honored your faith, we would have survived”. When in reality, all Jews were victims of the most extreme form of nationalism.


And today it seems that we too have become victims of the same Nazi logic. This time, we’re doing it to ourselves. Instead of owning up to this truth, we prefer to expound the logic of Nazis themselves with a twist, propagating the “Jewish homeland”. We build settlements, openly discriminate non-Jewish communities because “they have a nation-state somewhere in the world”, and now even watch as a young girl is openly harassed.  This ideology is so extreme, even us poor secular folk will parish in the Gehenom concentration camp.

Syrian rebels executed a 14-year-old boy for insulting Islam

When a 14-year-old boy from the Syrian city of Aleppo named Mohammad Qatta was asked to bring one of his customers some coffee, he reportedly refused, saying, “Even if [Prophet] Mohammed comes back to life, I won’t.”
According to a story reported by two grassroots Syrian opposition groups, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Aleppo Media Center, Qatta’s words got him killed. A group of Islamist rebels, driving by in a black car, reportedly heard the exchange. They stopped the car, grabbed the boy and took him away.
Qatta, in refusing to serve a customer coffee – it’s not clear why – had used a phrase that the Islamist rebels took as an insult toward the Prophet Mohammed, the most important figure in Islam. That offhand comment, made by a boy, was apparently enough for these rebels to warrant a grisly execution and public warning.

The rebels, according to ABC News’ reconstruction of the Syrian groups’ reports, appear to have whipped Qatta. When they brought him back to where they’d taken him, his head was wrapped by a shirt.
The rebels waited for a crowd to gather; Qatta’s parents were among them. Speaking in classical Arabic, they announced that Qatta had committed blasphemy and that anyone else who dared insult the Prophet Mohammed would share his fate. Then, the shirt still wrapped around the boy’s head, the rebels shot him in the mouth and neck.
As Islamist groups continue to take territory in the Syrian civil war, more Syrians are coming under the control of armed extremists who enforce an austere and sometimes violent version of sharia law. The Washington Post’s Liz Sly has reported on other such punishments in Aleppo, where the al-Qaeda-allied group Jabhat al-Nusra is thought to lead the newly established sharia enforcement authority.
Such incidents are a sign of the rise of extremism within a rebel movement that began, over two years ago, largely unified behind the goals of ousting President Bashar al-Assad and establishing democracy.
The influx of avowed jihadists and extremists is bad news for Syrians, and not just because those under rebel rule have to worry about sharing Qatta’s fate if they are perceived as insufficiently pious. The growth of these groups seems bound to exacerbate tensions between rebel factions, easing Assad’s military path to victory, and scaring off the Western powers that might otherwise be persuaded to lend the rebels greater support. Lots of people in and outside of Syria could get behind the idea of ousting a cruel and unpopular dictator and replacing him with something more democratic. But few things are more universally loathed than an al-Qaeda-allied group that executes children.

Councillor calls for black Italy minister to be raped

A councillor belonging to Italy's anti-immigrant Northern League party called Thursday for the country's first black minister to be raped, sparking an outcry and her expulsion from the party.
"Won't someone rape her, just to make her understand what victims of this terrible crime feel? For shame!" Dolores Valandro, a councillor in Padua in Northern Italy, wrote on Facebook alongside a photograph of African-Italian Immigration Minister Cecile Kyenge.
Valandro was apparently reacting to an article on a website called "all immigrant crimes" which detailed an alleged attempt by a Somali in Genoa to rape two Romanian girls, Italian media reports said.
Kyenge, an eye doctor and Italian citizen originally from Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), has been subjected to a barrage of racist attacks since being appointed minister in February.
She has attracted heated criticism from the League for plans to push for legislation that would allow children born in Italy to immigrant parents to get automatic citizenship instead of waiting until 18 to apply.
The League immediately expelled Valandro from the party.

Awaken Your Relationships

Awaken Your Relationships
    "In life one makes and participates in many relationships.  Some flow
easily while others become and remain difficult.

    It is important to be constant with your energy while engaging in a
relationship.  Like any other living being, they require attention.  Be of
good cheer with them whenever possible.  Allow unconditional love to flow
even with the difficult ones.

    As the sun rises each day, decide that it is going to be a good one.
Embrace those about you as you would embrace yourself.  Thus the reason for
the good day and opinion of the self.

    We understand that most of you cringe when asked to embrace the
difficult.  Attempt to take a good look at their core while realizing that
perhaps it is merely armor that they wear.  While moving from one life
experience to another, many bring baggage that causes their behavior to be
erratic.

    It is not necessary to sacrifice your energy in the relationship.  It
is important, however, to see their soul.  Often it is damaged.

    It is not for you to repair the damage.  It is for them alone to do so
.  You can love unconditionally while remaining at a safe distance for your
own well being.

    In the end, it is about remaining open to the potential of the
relationship.  Movement towards their healing can be accomplished with your
energetic support.  The hard part is recognizing that it is their path and
you cannot do it for them.

    So awaken each day with a bright perspective.  By seeing their energy
potential and believing they can heal can do wonders for their progress.

    Relationships are an intricate essence of your own advancement.  Look
at them through your spiritual eyes.  It will help you in your
understanding of yourself and them."

Self Awareness

The Importance of Self Awareness
  "Each physical life offers an opportunity to expand the soul.  Life
lessons are created to offer the choice in regard to the accomplishment of
that.  The physical reality offers the choices but alas also offers
many distractions that can keep one from attaining their full potential.

    Attempt each day to have awareness of your participation.  Within the
chatter and noise of the physical lies a path to the core of your own
soul.  It is important to maintain the trueness of that path by being
totally aware of your participation in this physical realm.

    Decide to release unnecessary drama that can cloud your purpose.
Often that includes separation from those who are creating the drama, and
taking responsibility for your energy within the moment.  A complicated
moment it may seem, however, once the energy is silenced, the clarity of
your soul speaks loudly.

    Take the time for the exploration.  Be aware of your soul and its need
in this reality.  Often the chaos is a reflection of those around you, not
necessarily your own vibration.  By being self aware, you may be able to
discern the root of the chaos.

    Align with the rhythm of your inner energy.  Be aware of all its
nuances, and become harmonious with it.

    It is a great gift to be evolved, but the moment becomes more enhanced
by being aware.

    Pay attention to the small moments.  They are the seeds to the garden
of your experience.

    Be aware of what your energy brings to the table.  Be responsible for
altering your perspective in the situation.  That ingredient may realign
the drama and enhance the evolution."

Animal Poaching A Great Danger To African Animals

Elephant poaching in Africa is increasing both in frequency and sophistication. As  conservationists, we are now extremely worried by this problem. Sadly, most of us only become aware of the number of elephants killed from estimates calculated based on the ivory hauls netted at various international entry and exit points. Case in point, recently in Nairobi, more than one ton of ivory was intercepted having been hacked from an estimated 58 brutally murdered elephants.  

We hardly get to know how or when the elephants are killed. Which means that a lot of dead elephants go unreported. By coincidence, Paula Kahumbu came face to face with an elephant that was the victim of poachers. Luckily, the elephant survived, but two others - probably shot the same day and by the same people - did not.

In the shadow of these dark acts of brutality, it is a welcome gesture to see prominent groups, such as the National Geographic Society, recognise and award those who have dedicated their lives to the conservation of Africa's magnificent wildlife - from the large to the small. From elephants to bees. Such is the case of Paula Kahumbu and Dino Martins in our second article.

Similarly, the joint efforts of organisations and communities to conserve nature is a positive action that lifts the dark cloud of extinction. It is encouraging to see that communities, government and NGOs continue to work together to preserve the  Virunga National Park - home to almost half the remaining world population of the critically endangered Mountain gorilla 

seven rhinos killed by poachers in Kenya’s bloodiest week

Kenyans aghast as deadly co-ordinated attacks bring country’s rhino death toll to 24 this year

A rhino poached on private ranch Oserian Wildlife Sanctuary, Kenya, killed in late May 2013. Photograph: Phil Mathews

Gunshots rang out across the wilderness on 23 May when poachers shot to death one rhino in Lake Nakuru National Park. Then three days later on 26 May they struck two sites, Solio Ranch near Nyeri in central Kenya, and at Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary in Tsavo West National Park killing one rhino in each protected area. The very next day they struck again atMeru National Park in the north of the country where they shoot yet another rhino. Two days later on 29 May, three more rhino were poached on a private ranch Oserian Wildlife Sanctuary.
All of these sanctuaries were created specifically to save rhinos in Kenya. Although the authorities heard the gunshots in every case, and even saw the poachers cutting horns in Oserian, no arrests have been made, and all the horns except those of the Oserian rhinos were taken.

Four rhinos were killed in Kenya’s deadliest week this year according to  KWS. On 23^rd May poachers shot to death one rhino in Lake Nakuru National Park. Then on Saturday 26^th of May they struck two sites, Solio Ranch near Nyeri, and Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary in Tsavo West National Park killing one rhino in each protected area. Then, on Sunday 27^th May they struck again at Meru National Park shooting yet another rhino dead. Although the authorities heard the gunshots, all the horns from the rhinos were taken.
Gunned down in the light of a full moon
This coordinated attack comes after 2 weeks of relative quiet – the last attempt at killing a rhino was recorded in Solio over 2 weeks ago, and the last successful attack was 3 weeks ago in Nakuru National Park. The Kenya Wildlife Service puts the toll at 21 rhino killed to date in 2013 – a major increase from last year when the country lost 30 rhino. The Kenya Wildlife Service puts Kenya’s official  rhino population at just over one thousand individuals, however Richard Leakey, the former Director of KWS is doubtful.

“I am not surprised at this attack and when it comes time to do an accounting of our rhinos, I would be surprised if there were more than 500 individuals”

Leakey said on phone from USA.
In response to the latest killings, the Kenya Wildlife Service has mounted a major operation in pursuit of poachers. In a press release issued late on Monday, they state that “security teams are following crucial leads and expect to catch up with the perpetrators of the heinous crime.”
Speaking from Laikipia, Batian Craig, Director of 51 Degrees Ltd, a security company with management oversight in Ol Pejeta and Lewa Conservancies notes that the coordinated attacks are not surprising. “Poaching always goes up during a full moon, the rhino are easiest to spot and to shoot.” he laments.
On the future outlook Craig adds

 “What we have is a small number of people threatening the economic value of rhinos to 43 million Kenyans. These people are a security threat to Kenya. While we are not yet losing this war, but we are at a tipping point. We could arrest this crisis now by taking advantage of the global world attention, positive changes in government and the recent motion in parliament to elevate penalties for wildlife crime.”

Reforming Kenyan laws
He is referring to a recent news that Kenyan members of parliament voted almost unanimously to raise penalties for wildlife poaching and trafficking of wildlife products on Wednesday 22^nd of May. This decision clears the way for the creation of emergency legislation to raise penalties to up to 15 years in jail and fines amounting to millions of shillings. Currently poachers and traffickers have been facing penalties amounting to a less than USD 500 in Kenya.
To Kenyans feels as if Kenya is losing the battle against poachers. Kenya has already lost 21 rhinos since January 1st, and 117 elephants. Out of these elephants, 37 were killed in protected areas while 80 were outside protected areas. Last year, Kenya lost 384 elephants and 30 rhinos to criminals. According to the authorities who wish to remain anonymous, the poaching is being conducted by organized crime syndicates and with internal involvement and international links.
Demand in Vietnam – not traditional
Rhino trade expert Esmond Bradley Martin says the main problem facing rhino’s is in Vietnam.

“Rhino horn has always been rare and was important in European, African and Asian cultures where it was carved. It was always rare, expensive and valuable. Previously only the rich could afford it, but now the nouveau riche can afford it. But even more worrying is the new trends in how it is being used. They are using it for aphrodisiacs, grinding it into food, and claim they are curing cancer with it. They had no tradition of using it for these purposes, it’s all new and contrary to traditional medicine in Vietnam”.

If the situation is bad in Kenya, in South Africa it is catastrophic. The country has already lost 350 rhinos this year. According to Martin the rocketing value of rhino horn is a major reason for the ongoing slaughter of rhinos in Africa. Only 6 years ago it was valued at USD 4-5000/kg. Today it goes for ten times that amount and more in Vietnam. This week poachers will have made tens of thousands of dollars each. The combined weight of eight rhino horns is approximately 24 – 32 kg.   At these prices the challenge of halting the crisis seems remote.
Kenya should emulate unique success in rhino protection in Nepal
But surprisingly this is not so. Nepal is one of the poorest counties in the world, and it suffers from extremely poor governance. Yet they have managed to control the situation. Last year Nepal lost only 1 rhino,  and only one the year before. Martin is finalizing an analysis of the situation and says he believes that there are four key reasons for this success.
First, the Prime Minister has taken personal interest in the crisis and has created three new organizations to tackle wildlife crime. Secondly, the law enforcement focus is on combating traders. Thirdly, the communities benefit from parks by receiving 50% of the proceeds. This means they support the parks and conduct their own voluntary patrols long the boundaries of the parks. Finally, the role of the army in anti-poaching has been expanded from 7 posts to 51 posts in Chitwan National Park  alone – this park is home to 503 of the countries 534 rhinos.
The success in Chitwan may have direct application in Kenya and South Africa if the Presidents of the two countries make it their personal mission to save rhinos.

Eat To Boost Your Sex Life

Improve Your Sex Life with these  Delicious Aphrodisiacs.

Certain foods are reputed to strip away inhibitions, put you in the mood for lovemaking, or  improve blood flow to your genitals, all of which could  enhance your performance and your pleasure.
In truth, there’s not much scientific proof to substantiate the link between food and passionate sex. But that's no reason why you and your partner should shy away from these so-called natural love potions.

Experts say that most notorious food aphrodisiacs are a treasure trove of nutrients that are needed for sexual prowess and good health. It’s a win-win situation.

Sexually Suggestive Fruits and Vegetables

Some people find produce erotic. Bananas, asparagus, cucumbers, and carrots speak for themselves.
Avocados were prized by the Aztecs, who called them "testicle trees" because they grow in pairs. Ancient Greeks and Romans feasted on figs to promote potency. Pomegranates were also known as "love apples."
Ancient civilizations were on to something. Fruits and vegetables are loaded with vitamins and minerals required to produce the sex hormones necessary for sexual arousal and pleasure.

Honey

Ever wonder where the term "honeymoon" came from?
Centuries ago, newlyweds in Europe drank honey wine during the first month of marriage to improve their sexual stamina.

Chocolate

The Aztec emperor Montezuma's chocolate consumption is legendary. Rumor has it that he drank 50 glasses of honey-sweetened chocolate a day in the name of virility.
Perhaps Montezuma valued chocolate for its feel-good qualities too. Cocoa beans contain phenylethamine, a compound that triggers the release of endorphins, compounds associated with pleasure.

Oysters

Oysters are dripping with dopamine, a compound that stirs feelings of sexual desire and pleasure. These mollusks are also bursting with zinc, a mineral that fosters the production of testosterone, necessary for arousal and pleasure in men and women.

Salmon

You can't get down when you're uptight. Eating salmon can help brighten your disposition.
"Salmon harbors an abundance of omega-3 fats, which qualifies it as a natural mood booster," says registered dietician and author or The Good Mood Diet, Susan Kleiner.
Salmon also supplies large amounts of vitamin D.

 

Essential Nutrients Every Woman Needs

For the first decade or so of a woman’s life, there isn’t much -- nutritionally speaking -- that separates her needs from those of the boy next door.
Once girls hit adolescence, however, the story begins to change. Not only do nutritional requirements change from what they were in childhood, but there are also differences between the needs of men and women of the same age. And some of those needs continue changing throughout your life.
Find out what nutrients you need to stay healthy and energized, and what foods provide the best sources.

Childbearing Years: Iron and Folic Acid

If you're feeling tired all the time, you may not be getting enough iron in your diet. You need more iron during your childbearing years because you lose blood each month when you have your periods. Iron needs also jump during pregnancy.
“Women who have regular periods and especially heavy periods are more at risk of having low iron stores. If you start off a pregnancy with low iron stores, you are more at risk of dipping down into actual anemia, and your baby may not receive all of the iron she needs for her own stores,” says Melinda Johnson, RD, a spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Folic acid -- or the naturally occurring form of this B vitamin, called folate -- is another must-have nutrient during your childbearing years. Low levels of folic acid when you're pregnant women put your baby at risk for neural tube defects, such as spina bifida. And since half of all pregnancies in the United States are unplanned, you should get the recommended amount even if you're not trying to get pregnant.
“I like to tell wannabe moms to eat and act as if they are already pregnant -- especially if they are actively trying to get pregnant,” Johnson says. “Wannabe moms need to make sure they are eating as healthy as possible to get their body ready to carry a baby.”
Even if you're taking birth control pills, it makes sense to add foods with folate to your diet. Some of the older oral contraceptives as well as other medications, such as large doses of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), can make it hard for your body to absorb folic acid. So you may need more.
Also be aware that medications such as antacids that decrease stomach acid can reduce the absorption of iron.
How much iron you need: 18 milligrams per day for women 19-50 years old. For pregnant women, it increases to 27 milligrams per day.
Foods high in iron: Meats, seafood, nuts, lima beans, spinach, broccoli, and iron-fortified cereals
 How much folic acid you need: 400 micrograms per day for women 14 and older; for pregnant women, 600 micrograms per day; for breastfeeding women, 500 micrograms per day
Foods high in folate: Beans, lentils, peas, nuts, fruits, vegetables, and breads and cereals fortified with folic acid

Moms-to-Be: Calorie Requirements

Although pregnant women do need more carbohydrates and calories, Johnson has one major myth to bust. “It is an important message for women to hear that they are not actually ‘eating for two.’ The extra calorie needs don't even start until the second trimester, and even then they are quite modest," she says. "I find that most women are able to meet their caloric needs by listening to their own hunger cues.” You'll need about 350 extra calories in the second trimester, 400 more in the third, and more if you are carrying multiples.
And not just any calories. Johnson points to studies linking a baby’s future food preferences to the mother’s diet during pregnancy. “Babies are continually swallowing amniotic fluid, which takes on the tastes of the mom's diet,” Johnson says. “If it's a junk food diet, it will taste quite different than a diet based on good, healthy foods. Anything you put into your body will go into the baby's body.” That's true for breast feeding mothers as well.

Your Daughter's Diet: Calcium and Iron

Anyone who's tried to get a teenager to eat a healthy diet knows it can be an uphill battle. Teens often seem to subsist on a diet of fast food and snacks -- foods that are high in fat, saturated fat, and calories and low in nutrients.
Amy Jamieson-Petonic, director of wellness coaching at the Cleveland Clinic, says, “Nutrition during the teen years can have a big impact on future health, including prevention of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and osteoporosis.”
Teen girls need 1,300 milligrams of calcium a day, Jamieson-Petonic says. But as many as 80% of teen girls don’t get enough. Girls may fear that drinking milk will cause them to gain weight, and they replace milk with soft drinks. One solution is try sneaking calcium into your daughter's diet via smoothies made with nonfat milk, calcium-fortified soy milk, or tofu. Or top nonfat yogurt with berries and get more nutritional bang for your buck.
Teenage girls also need at least 15 milligrams of iron per day, Jamieson-Petonic says. Iron deficiency can lead to anemia, which causes fatigue, confusion, and weakness. What if your daughter is a vegetarian? To help keep iron levels up, Jamieson-Petonic suggests iron-fortified cereals, soy products such as tofu, soy nuts, soy milk, and even peanut butter. Bean-based dips -- including hummus -- can also provide iron and calcium.
Maybe the best thing you can do to get your daughter to eat healthfully is to make sure that you do. Model the behavior you want her to adopt. Keep cut vegetables on hand -- cucumbers, peppers, celery, carrots -- for easy, chip-free snacking. And make time for healthy family meals.

Menopause: Calcium and Vitamin D

When you reach menopause, your dietary needs change again. Calcium requirements go back up to teen levels -- from 1,000 to 1,200 milligrams a day. Yet most women get only 600 milligrams a day and usually need to take supplements to make up the difference.
“It is important for menopausal women to get enough calcium,” says Ruth Frechman, MA, RD, a spokeswoman for the ADA. “If there isn't enough dietary calcium, the body will take calcium from the bones to use for nerves, muscles, and the heart. Estrogen helps deposit calcium in the bones. Menopausal women start losing their bone mass without estrogen.”
So what does that mean for menopausal women who are prescribed hormone replacement therapy to help reduce symptoms of menopause? “The estrogen in hormone replacement therapy will protect a woman's bones,” Frechman says. “However, it is still necessary to eat a high-fiber, low-fat diet, which includes enough calcium and vitamin D.”
Like calcium, vitamin D is important for retaining bone mass. It helps your body absorb calcium and helps with bone growth. Without it, bones can become brittle and thin, leading to osteoporosis.
Now that you're not menstruating, you don't need as much iron -- requirements drop from 18 milligrams a day to 8 milligrams when women turn 50.
Be sure to get enough fiber. Fiber helps reduce the risk of coronary heart disease, diabetes, diverticulosis, and irritable bowel syndrome. You should be able to get the recommended 21 grams per day by eating a healthy diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Don't rely on fiber supplements, says Frechman. “Fiber supplements are not intended to replace foods. They may be necessary, depending on the situation," she says. "Keep in mind, there may be more health benefits from eating whole foods.”
One common health problem for women over 50 is high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Frechman recommends the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet, which focuses on lowering sodium and eating fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy. “A dietary approach and losing weight can lower cholesterol 20% to 30%," Frechman says.
How much calcium you need: 1,200 milligrams per day for women 51 and older
Foods high in calcium: Milk, yogurt, cheese, tofu, fortified orange juice
How much vitamin D you need: 400 international units (IU) for women 51-70; 600 IU for women over 70
Foods high in vitamin D: Fish, milk, fortified cereals

Nutrition for Seniors

On average, as an older adult, you need the same nutrients as your younger counterparts. But you may not always get them. Problems with teeth and gums can make chewing food difficult, and health conditions can cause lack of appetite.
Frechman suggests that older women eat smaller, less frequent meals that include a sampling from all the food groups and include favorite foods. Older people often don't get enough protein, which you need to maintain muscle mass and keep your immune system healthy. If you have trouble chewing meat, you may have an easier time with tofu or even nutritional supplements; if you don't, you can opt for lean meats, Frechman suggests.
Frechman calls vitamin D the “must have” vitamin if you're over 70 because of the benefits for retaining bone mass. Fortified foods or vitamin B12 supplements are a good idea for anyone over 50, she says, because 10% to 30% of older adults may not be able to efficiently absorb the B12 that's found naturally in food. A doctor can perform a blood test to determine whether B12 levels are low.

The Benefits Of Fibre Foods

Start Your Day With Whole Grains

Americans don't eat enough fiber. On average, we get less than half of what we need of this nutrient that can lower cholesterol, prevent constipation, and improve digestion. Most whole grains are a great source of fiber. Start at breakfast: Look for whole-grain cereal or oatmeal with 3 or more grams of fiber per serving. Add fruit and you'll be on your way to the daily goal of 38 grams for men and 25 grams for women. 

Fiber and Fresh Fruit

Any type of fresh fruit is a healthy snack. But when it comes to fiber, all fruits are not created equal. One large Asian pear has a whopping 9.9 grams of fiber. Other high-fiber fruits include raspberries (4 grams per 1/2 cup), blackberries (3.8 grams per 1/2 cup), bananas (2.4 grams each), and blueberries (2 grams per 1/2 cup). Pears and apples -- with the skin on -- are also high-fiber choices.

Try Whole-Grain Bread and Crackers

Keep the grains coming at lunch. Eat a sandwich on whole-grain bread. Or dip whole-grain crackers into your favorite healthy spread. Whole grains include the entire grain -- bran, germ, and endogerm -- giving you all the nutrients of the grain

Eat Your Vegetables

High-fiber veggies include artichoke hearts, green peas, spinach, corn, broccoli, and potatoes. But all vegetables have some fiber -- from 1 to 2 grams per 1/2-cup serving. To boost your fiber intake, add vegetables to omelets, sandwiches, pastas, pizza, and soup. Or try adding interesting vegetables -- such as beets, jicama, Jerusalem artichokes, or celeriac -- to a salad or other meals.

Fiber in Dried Fruit

Prunes are well known for their ability to help digestion. That's in part because of their fiber content -- about 3.8 grams in a 1/2 cup. Most dried fruits are loaded with fiber, which can help regulate bowel movements and relieve constipation.

Fiber From Beans

From adzuki to Great Northern, beans are high in fiber, packed with protein, and low in fat. Try eating beans instead of meat twice a week for a fiber boost. Use them in soups, stews, salads, casseroles, eggs, and with rice and pasta dishes. Or boil edamame beans for four minutes and sprinkle with salt for a healthy snack. Be sure to wash down all that extra fiber with plenty of water to avoid constipation and gas.

Nuts, Seeds, and Fiber

Many people steer clear of nuts and seeds because they tend to be high in calories and fat. However, they can be a great source of fiber and other nutrients.

Buy Fiber-Enriched Foods

If you can't work another serving of fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, or whole grains into your diet, consider eating a food enriched with fiber. It's easy to find cereal, snack bars, toaster pastries, pasta, and yogurt fortified with extra fiber.