While the words might change from country to country and are sometimes taken for granted, human rights represent one of the universally agreed upon ideas — that all people are born with basic rights and freedoms that include life, liberty, and justice.

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations.

Bloggers Unite For Human Rights challenges bloggers everywhere to help elevate human rights by drawing attention to the challenges and successes of human rights issues. 

 

I 'll continue along the line of my previous post regarding the neglect and cruel treatment of groups from American institutions.  Yesterday I wrote about the Washington Post investigation that uncovered a pattern of medical neglect endured by foreign detainees held in U.S. custody. 

I am proud to be an American and I'm proud at the effort this country puts forth to help those less fortunate but I have to say I'm somewhat dismayed that at times we look the other way or perhaps don't do enough to oversee that American values and principles (equal rights to all, fair, ethical, just treatment, etc.) are upheld by our own folks. 

The tendency of our large institutions like jail, hospitals, detention centers to mistreat the less fortunate, mentally challenged or criminally charged must be addressed.  As I mentioned in the last post, perhaps the sheer size of these places foster such lapses in morality, perhaps shifts are too long and need to be rotated more often to limit a degrading of ethics from desensitization from these extreme situations and routine staff psychological evaluations to weed out those who lack the empathy & judgement needed to do the job.

I would also like to invite you to sign Amnesty International's pledge help end illegal detentions and torture at Gantanimo Bay.   

Illegal Detentions at Guantanamo Bay

Since first detainees arrived on January 11, 2002, the U.S. detention facility at Guantánamo Bay has become a global symbol of U.S. human rights violations. Infractions have included: illegal detention, denial of fundamental legal rights, and torture. The only proper recourse is to close the detention facility.

Amnesty International calls for detainees held at Guantánamo Bay, other U.S. facilities, and secret CIA sites to be charged and given fair trial before independent and impartial tribunals such as U.S. federal courts. Tearitdown.org is Amnesty International’s global initiative to end illegal US detentions.

Today you can do something about it.  Sign the tearitdown.org pledge

Washington Post investigation uncovers pattern of medical neglect endured by foreign detainees held in U.S. custody -

Here are 2 examples:

 

1. Yusif Osman was a U.S. legal resident from Ghana and had been living in Los Angeles for five years. Osman was facing deportation on smuggling charges, when a companion was found with a fake ID.  While in his cell at the detention center, Osman collapsed suffering from chest pain.  A guard saw him on the ground, but did not go in. Instead, he called a clinic nurse to find out whether Osman had any medical problems.

When the nurse opened his medical file, she found it blank because supposedly the intake nurse had mistakenly clicked it as completed even though there was nothing entered.  When the nurse found it blank, she decided there was no emergency and said Osman needed to fill out a sick call request. The guard went on a lunch break.

The cellmate yelled again. Another guard came by, looked in and called the nurse. This time she wanted Osman brought to the clinic. Forty minutes passed before guards brought a wheelchair to his cell. By then it was too late: Osman was barely alive when paramedics reached him. He soon died.

 

E-Mails Show Attempt To 'Patch Up' a Case Of Medical Negligence:

At the agency in Washington responsible for foreign detainees' medical care, internal documents reveal a tendency to conceal the truth by withholding complete medical records or by offering misleading public explanations.

2. After living in Los Angeles, for about 25 years, Francisco Castaneda, was being deported after serving a four-month sentence for drug possession. Medical staff members suspected that he had penile cancer. A lesion on his penis was bleeding and oozing. The staff sought approval for a biopsy, but the Division of Immigration Health Services, in Washington denied the procedure for 10 months.

After pressure from the American Civil Liberties Union, a biopsy was finally scheduled but immigration officials suddenly released Castaneda from custody days before the surgery, sparing the agency the cost.

When the DIHS medical director, Timothy T. Shack, was asked to review the case, he concluded: "I looked over about 200 pages of medical records for this case. In my opinion, the care provided to this detainee was, and is, timely and appropriate."

One week later after the review, UCLA doctors gave Castaneda a diagnosis of invasive squamous cell carcinoma. On Valentine's Day, surgeons amputated his penis.  He died a year later, leaving a 14 year old daughter behind.

 

These types of situations show the problem with large institutions in general.
Yes, these systems can be strained due to budget and staffing problems but I've come to the conclusion that:

 

1- Humans seem to have a problem with empathy & compassion for people who they perceive as very different then they are.
2- Large institutions foster cliques (aka gangs).  The staff versus the patients or inmates is the biggest clique.
3- The clique with more power (the staff) will grow more indifferent or even more cruel towards the weaker, less powerful group.
4- Mankind has a great capacity to hate. 

Predjudice will find its' way in somehow.  If you're a different race, you'll hate over color. If you're the same race, you'll hate over religion.  If you're the same race and same religion, you'll hate over money & power.  If you're the same race, religion and social status, you'll hate over sex. It goes on & on.

I suspect this happens due to personal insecurities and an attempt to elevate oneself to a higher perceived standing in society (I hesitate to use the word civilization, since there's nothing civilized about it).  

The minute I read the sentence at the beginning of the article that stated the nurse hit the wrong button by mistake and closed his medical file, I knew the institution staff was guilty, they knew they were guilty and they got their story together.  It's possible they erased the record. 

Having used electronic medical records, I know they aren't so flexible.  How do you close an empty record?  Either you didn't type anything into it or you forgot to hit save but the records usually ask you if you want to save before you close or you erased it by accident and you didn't feel like starting all over again. If you can't respect and value life can you please just do a decent job for the principle of the thing?

As I've mentioned already, I work in healthcare and trust me the more I work with people the more I dislike them but believe it or not, it doesn't matter if I like you or not.  I'm not your family, I'm not your friend but I am your nurse, doctor, dentist, whatever.  A professional should be able to separate the emotions and do the job at hand.  A life is a life and should be respected as such but if you can't, don't you have enough self respect to do a good job for the principle of the thing?

Who cares right? It's just some insignificant immigrant.  Well, Albert Einstein was an immigrant, Mother Theresa would have been an immigrant, oh and your great grandpappy and grandmamma probably were immigrants too and I hate to burst your bubble but they weren't that different or worth any more than those poor schmucks you're neglecting and abusing now.

 

A lion sculpture stands guard at the Neptune Memorial Reef, a cemetery that opened last fall,
45 feet below the waters off the coast of Florida, 3 1/4 miles off the coast of Key Biscayne. 

The concrete, bronze and steel reef is designed to last forever and withstand hurricanes. 
Any certified diver can reach the cemetery.

Individual memorials are created by blending cremated human remains with concrete. 
The cost of burial in the reef ranges from $995 to $6,495.

African-inspired bracelet, made from pink-colored silk rope with a precious central oval in pink 18K gold and a diamond.

Proceeds from your purchase of this item will help the cause of OrphanAid Africa.

OrphanAid Africa is a non-profit, non-governmental organization, which aims to provide financial support for orphans and vulnerable children in Ghana to grow up in healthy and nurturing environments. OrphanAid Africa does this by assisting the families, communities, organizations and departments charged with their care to provide quality care, protection, education and support.

The purity of form elevates Ileana Makri's creations to a mystical level, vibrating energy, light, and meaning. She has a unique talent in capturing the real identity of different cultures with such lightness and feminine beauty.

Ileana Makri for OrphanAid Africa - Bracelets on YOOX.COM

 Here, some of the ways having a second and third child differs from having your first:
(Jokes About Network)



Your Clothes

1st baby: You begin wearing maternity clothes as soon as your OB/GYN confirms your pregnancy.

2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes for as long as possible.

3rd baby: Your maternity clothes are your regular clothes.

 

Worries

1st baby: At the first sign of distress - a whimper, a frown - you pick up the baby.

2nd baby: You pick the baby up when her wails threaten to wake your firstborn.

3rd baby: You teach your 3-year-old how to rewind the mechanical swing.

Activities

1st baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics, Baby Swing, and Baby Story Hour.

2nd baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics.

3rd baby: You take your infant to the supermarket and the dry cleaner.

 

Going Out

1st baby: The first time you leave your baby with a sitter, you call home 5 times.

2nd baby: Just before you walk out the door, you remember to leave a number where you can be reached.

3rd baby: You leave instructions for the sitter to call only if she sees blood.

At Home

1st baby: You spend a good bit of every day just gazing at the baby.

2nd baby: You spend a bit of every day watching to be sure your older child isn't squeezing, poking, or hitting the baby.

3rd baby: You spend a little bit of every day hiding from the children.

PLEASE HELP!  GIVE WHAT YOU CAN. 

Children affected by Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar.
Photo credit: Save the Children.

Dear StyleSwag Magazine,

As the death toll in Myanmar continues to rise as a result of Cyclone Nargis and as hardships for thousands of survivors left in its wake increase, Save the Children continues to mount a rapid response to provide lifesaving relief to children and families.

 

Although there are issues getting additional aid into Myanmar, we have been able to provide food, clean water, shelter and non-food items to 72,000 people whose homes have been destroyed. This is thanks to the brave efforts of our staff and generous donations from our supporters so far.

But even this isn't enough to cope with a disaster of this scale.

As the situation unfolds, we must do more. Will you please help?

Save the Children has operated in Myanmar since 1995 as one of the largest nongovernmental organizations at work in Myanmar, implementing programs focused on early childhood care and development, child survival and child protection. As a result, we have been able to quickly mobilize our 500 employees in 35 offices across the affected region to help the most vulnerable – children.

As their immediate physical needs are met, we will work to restore their well-being and sense of normalcy, in addition to ensuring that their protection, education and survival needs are addressed. So far, several child-friendly spaces for children have been set up in temporary shelters in Yangon.

Since Monday, Save the Children has distributed two metric tons of food, plastic sheeting, water purification tablets, kitchen equipment, rehydration salts and other non-food items to those whose homes have been destroyed. In addition, a center in Yangon for HIV-positive girls and young women is being supplied with clean water, food and essential medicines.

Shelter materials, clean water, mosquito nets and emergency health kits are critical needs at this time — and we are moving quickly to provide these lifesaving items. The rainy season will commence soon and is likely to complicate an already desperate situation. We need to move aid quickly to alleviate current hardships and mitigate the potential for a greater crisis later on.

Please give as generously as you can to aid in our efforts to help the children and families whose lives have been forever changed by Cyclone Nargis.

 

Learn more about the situation and our response.

On behalf of the children,



Charles MacCormack
President and CEO
Save the Children

I've always had an interest in psychology and it's effect on behavior so when I came across this personality test, I thought, "What the heck. Let's see how screwy I really am." If you answer honestly, you'll be surprised how accurate some of these can be.

I knew it. I've always said that I think like a man. I'm not saying that I'm a man trapped in a woman's body.
I just process information more like the way men do.  That might explain my attraction to action movies, fart jokes and my affinity to grey sweatpants.  Supposedly, only 0.5% of females think this way (based on this particular personality test, anyway).

 

 

My Results:

INTJ - The "Strategist"   Temperament: NT (Intellectual) 

- The "Strategist"   (Intellectual) 

Primary Function: Introverted Intuition    Population: 1.5% (2.5% male, 0.5% female)

 

This test says I'm a Strategist. So true! I can remember waaaay back, sitting in the dark of night, with my sister, strategizing as we used to call it.  I'm often heard saying, "Life is like a chess game.  You have to think a few moves ahead." Well my

It also says I'm introverted. That's also true. I've learned how to turn it "on" when I'm interacting with people but I'm usually the one standing slightly outside the circle. I can be very lonely in a crowded room, full of people that I know. It's not that I'm not enjoying the company or the interaction, it's just that sometimes the conversation going on inside my head is a little louder than the talk outside.

My intuition is my guide.  Let's just say my friends (yes, I have a few) think I'm a witch.   I've learned not to fight it.  If I have a sense about something, it's usually freakishly close to being on target. 

 

Dr. Keirsey on the INTJ Rational Personality:

They are proud of themselves in the degree they are competent in action, respect themselves in the degree they are autonomous, and feel confident of themselves in the degree they are strong willed.

Ever in search of knowledge, this is the "Knowledge Seeking Personality" -- trusting in reason and hungering for achievement.

They are rather rare, comprising no more than, say, 1% of the population. ( I told you I was a rare loon!)

 

Some Famous People With Similar Traits:

   Ellen Ripley         Hannibal Lecter           Mr. Burns         Vito Corleone
      Aliens          Silence of the Lambs     The Simpsons       Godfather

 

   Katie Couric               Issac Newton          Thomas Jefferson        Rudy Guliani

 

Okay, well...thanks for the complement but I don't think this site measures up to The Principia and The Declaration of Independence!

 

How well do you know yourself? The real you, not the you that upbringing and society have forced you to develop and present to the outside world.  Try taking the test and find out.

A friend told me this one yesterday. 

 

ABE LINCOLN:  Intellectual Mind.

BILL CLINTON:  Great Mind.

GEORGE BUSH:  Never Mind.

 

A California man found a pit bull stuck in the engine of his truck and chewing through wires Tuesday morning.

Walter Witthoeft lifted the hood of his truck to put the finishing touches on a $1000 repair job and he saw a pair of eyes, heard growling.  There was about 60 pounds worth of Pitbull staring back at him!  

The dog must have scrambled up from under the truck and to keep him entertained through the night, he chewed up quite a bit of wiring.  Pitbully finally wiggled himself free and stepped right out of the truck. 

City officials took him to a local shelter, where his owner came to get him yesterday.  Look at those eyes, as if to say - "Do I amuse you?  I stuck in this embarrassing predicament and you taking pictures?  I'm so sad, where are my peeps?"

Tony Stark played by Robert Downey Jr.,  is a wealthy philanthropist (man after my own heart), an industrialist (what do they actually do?) and also master engineer. 

Tony is captured by terrorists in Afghanistan (were they really from Afghanistan in the original comic book?).  The bad guys want him to build a deadly missile for them, but Stark, who is also a bit of a genius, builds a powerful robotic exoskeleton and escapes.

As he perfects his futuristic suit of armor, not that it wasn't cool already with built-in weapons, rockets and flamethrowers, he finds out about a destructive conspiracy and decides to use his new power suit to fight the evil doers.

Gwyneth Paltrow is Virginia "Pepper" Potts, his personal assistant. Also assisting him in the development of the Superhero 'power suit' is military jet pilot, James "Rhodey" Rhodes played by Terrence Howard.

 

Here's what a few fans had to say:

Iron Man....rocks! by DePluma

My 9 year old son and I very much enjoyed the movie. There was only one scene that started out questionable for a 9 year old......then ended up OK.  The blend of live action and CG was well done. This is certainly a must see on the big screen. We can't wait until Iron Man 2 is out.

 

One of the best comic book adaptations so far!    by  TFunke

Easily the best superhero movie behind Batman Begins. It's fun, the action is great, and the acting is top notch.

Show your support by helping them call their loved ones back home.

The troops defending our freedom around the world ache for the sound of a familiar voice. That’s why the USO, through Operation Phone Home®, buys and hands out pre-paid phone cards to our men and women in uniform.

For those at the Front, there’s no better way to celebrate a birthday, anniversary, or any other special occasion than with a phone call to loved ones back in the States.

Your $10 donation provides a GI in Iraq with 30 minutes of prepaid calls to the US. A $20 donation buys 60 prepaid minutes. A $100 donation: 300 minutes. Please give as generously as you can, today! Tomorrow could be too late.

Last year, E! Television premiered a little show named Sunset Tan. 
The series chronicles the lives of the managers and employees of
a tanning salon in Los Angeles.  Big whoops, you say?

 

Well, it turns out that mixing business with pleasure and helping 
celebrities get their bronze on creates a whole lot of drama!

 

I had a chance to catch up with two of the stars of Sunset Tan, Ania Migdal and Nick D'Anna,
to find out what to expect from Season 2.

Nick & Ania

Q.  Hey everybody, this is Mickie from StyleSwag Magazine, and I’m talking with Ania Migdal and Nick D’Anna from E!’s Sunset Tan.  How are you guys doing?

A.  We are doing good. Just relaxing in bed right now, having a glass of wine.

Q.  I’m so glad to be talking to you both.  What was your reaction when you were first asked to join the cast?

A.  (Nick) It wasn't really a big deal.  I just kinda remained the same. I got a lil nervous in the beginning but after awhile you forget about all the cameras and just roll with the punches or deliver them!

A.  (Ania) Before I actually worked at Sunset tan (as brunette),  I was just Nick's girlfriend, portrayed as the jealous psycho type. My job at Kitson on Robertson wasn't working out, so I was offered a position at Sunset Tan. I said, "Sure, why not, a job with my boyfriend, how fun?"   Before I knew it, the show was more focused now on our relationship rather than us, as individuals.  My reaction was to just roll with it.

Q.  Well, the first season of Sunset Tan became the E! Network’s most watched reality show of the year!  When did it register that you were on a hit TV show?

A.  (Ania) - I mean it was really never anything crazy other than walking in the streets and having the paps snap away. I grew up in the city of paps, and i went to Beverly High, so this was something i never wanted a part of. Life works its ways out, and its all real to me. I just know the editing room portrays everyone the way they want, and i was stuck taking the rich , Bev Hills, spoiled brat character.  I have no problem with that....ha!

A.  (Nick) I never thought following the lives of people at a tanning salon would be of any interest to anyone. Man was I wrong, the show was a hit in America and about 30 other countries. Who would have thought me and the other people I work with are going to be in millions of homes across the globe. Crazy how things work out sometimes.

Q. Nick, you’re a New York native, who headed west, in order to find success as a model and actor. Some say you’re self-confident, cocky and a know-it-all and your mannerisms will end up either getting you into a load of trouble or cement your success.  Is that a fair assessment?  Does the New York in you get you into trouble?

A.  I feel I am perceived pretty right on. I mean I am not always cocky, I am very confident, but by no means a know it all. I am thankful everyday for the things and people I have in my life. What people forget is that they only show 22 minutes of what was 40 plus hours of film. Of course they are going to air what is juicy and causes drama. If they showed the boring stuff of me being a good manager then it wouldn't be interesting. Its all in the editing.

Q.  Ania, you were born in Poland , but grew up in Beverly Hills .  You’ve been described as someone that people will either hate or love.  Is this true?  Why do you think people are so drawn to you? Besides being drop dead gorgeous, of course.

A.  Well other than being drop dead gorgeous, SOOOO JOKING!!! kinda !!  I don't know.. I have always had drama follow me around. People really do love or hate me.  If you asked anyone that knows me for longer than a month, I meet one person and they are my new best friend, or I can feel the evil black cat eyes from across the room waiting for there chance to destroy me.  All I can do is blame  it on the Polish Scorpio. :-)

Q.  Well, whatever it is, the audience loves you guys and we are very happy that Sunset Tan is back for its’ second season.  What can we expect this time around?  Nick, being Manager, will we see more of the competition between employees that went on last season?

A.  The show is coming back on this summer. From what we hear around June or July. People can expect more drama and more in depth look into the characters and also a few new faces as well. There is a good share of drama with Ania and I. We can't say much so you will just have to wait and see.

Q.  Ania, I hear you’ll be working on your upcoming vintage fashion line called Lock-It.  I adore vintage. I’m asking right now for some tickets to your first show.  Tell us a little about that.  Why did you choose the name ‘Lock-It?’

A.  Well, a couple of years ago i got a tattoo on both of my wrists. On my right was a key, and on my left was a locket.  My locket  was left unlocked because I always said that when i meet my 'forever' man and the 'marriage' day would come I would officially lock-it!!!!  Well, that concept was a forever part of me so I made my logo a skeleton key and my brand name called, "Lock-it:.  How cute..?  That's what everyone says ... jk :-)

Q.  There were plenty of celebrity guest appearances, Britney Spears, Kim Kardashian, Chelsea Handler.  I thought Pauly Shore and Chris Kattan were hilarious (as usual).  Who was the most fun for you and can you give us a sneak peek at who might be stopping by in Season 2?
(pwetty pweeeze)

A.  (Ania) Hmmm... Well, Nick and I have our usual fair share of relationship drama. Is he the one for me or not??  hahahee....  As for celebrities....what is a celebrity now a days?.....like "the Hills" girls..ahhahahahahah!

A.  (Nick) We are sworn to secrecy. I will tell you it has its share of celebs and wacky people. Sunset Tan is an A list freak show of random people and celebutards.

Well, we’ll be watching. I want to thank you so much for your time, and I hope you guys all the best.
Ania, best wishes with the new fashion line and Nick, we Noo Yawkerz are rootin’ for ya.

If you need to play catch up, the complete first season is available on .

"An Aston Martin combines three important elements: power, beauty and soul.
Aston Martins are truly special - they always have been and always will be."



"To celebrate the French première of the 1964 James Bond film Goldfinger, the star of the movie, Sean Connery, drove its most famous prop, a silver grey Aston Martin DB5, along the Avenue des Champs-Elysées in Paris accompanied by sixty women whose bodies were painted gold like that of the voluptuous woman in the title sequence.


Elegant on the outside, but armed with deadly weapons by Goldfinger’s designer Ken Adam, the Aston Martin DB5 reflected the stylish brutality of the early Bond films. In Ian Fleming’s original Goldfinger novel, Bond drove an earlier Aston Martin, a DB3 fitted with such modest ‘extras’ as reinforced bumpers and a Colt 45 pistol in a concealed compartment.


Ken Adam took it further by kitting out the DB5 with an ejector seat, machine guns, wheel scythe, revolving number plates and homing device. The producers vetoed his suggestion of twin flame throwers."
- DesignMuseum.org

 

IOWA CITY, IA—University of Iowa neuroscientists studying spatial learning and the effects of stress on memory announced Tuesday that a little son-of-a-bitch mouse ruined an experiment on cognitive performance by effortlessly navigating a maze that researchers spent nearly a year designing and constructing.

The test subject, a common house mouse, briskly traversed the complicated wooden maze in under 30 seconds. According to researchers, the fucking bastard never even broke his stride during the first trial, always selecting the correct route while consistently avoiding blind dead-end alleys.

"It is regrettable to spend such a tremendous amount of money studying mammalian neuropathways, only to have some hotshot mouse ruin everything," Eng said. "However, we have compiled substantial data on this species's ability to breeze right in and destroy an entire postdoctoral legacy."

Despite attempts to condition the mouse by screaming directly into its face, the researchers reported that the subject smugly completed the task with ease. A videotape of the mouse pausing during the final run has been subjected to a thorough review by the lab in order to determine if one of the maze's obstacles managed to momentarily confuse the mouse or if the test subject was, in fact, gloating.

Pinky and the Brain are two laboratory mice living at Acme Labs whose genes have been spliced. The Brain is a genius (who sounds like Orson Welles), whereas Pinky is quite insane.  They make nightly attempts to take over the world. Their twilight campaign is easy to explain: Each week sees Brain come up with a new plan for the two (led by him) to take over the world, which ultimately ends in failure. This series was produced by Steven Spielberg and Warner Bros. Animation, and aired from 1995 to 1998 on The WB Television Network, running for 65 episodes.

The cartoon's famous tagline is: "Gee, Brain, what do you want to do tonight?"
"The same thing we do every night, Pinky: Try to take over the world!"

The series won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class - Animated Program in 1999.