Burger King reveals its burgers were contaminated in Horsemeat scandal -

Burger King reveals its burgers were contaminated in Horsemeat scandal -


Burger King has revealed that some of its burgers were contaminated in the horsemeat scare, as the tainted food crisis threatened to undermine the confidence of consumers, and major retailers tried to protect their reputations.

The fast food company, whose products were not tested in the food standards checks by Irish authorities that sparked the furore earlier this month, moved production from the Silvercrest plant in Ireland to Germany and Italy as a precaution. On Thursday night it said test results at the plant revealed "very small trace levels" of horse DNA in its products, but burgers taken from restaurants had tested negative.

As governments in Ireland, the UK and Poland, where a supplier used by Silvercrest for a year is thought be the source of the contamination, continued their urgent investigations, Burger King admitted that contrary to previous assurances made to it by Silvercrest, they too have been now been linked to the scandal. Authorities insist there is no health danger to consumers.

In another potentially serious development, Aldi UK became the first major retailer to suspend its contract with a British plant, Dalepack Hambleton in north Yorkshire, which like Silvercrest is part of the ABP Food Group, pending further investigations into why three of nine newly-tested burger samples had traces of horse and pork DNA. The products were from stock withdrawn in recent weeks as a precaution but made since October, the company said.

The Aldi announcement came a week after tests at Dalepak for ABP and the UK Food Standards Agency had come back negative for horse DNA. The FSA has also previously suggested that its investigations into Dalepak were concentrating on events before October.

Aldi in Ireland has terminated its contract with the Silvercrest plant in County Monaghan, Ireland, where Burger King, Tesco, the Co-op and Asda have all pulled out. Burger King said on Thursday that new tests on burgers made at Silvercrest had shown traces of horse DNA.

Burger King said in a statement: "Our independent DNA tests results on product taken from restaurants were negative for any equine DNA. However, four samples recently taken from the Silvercrest plant have shown the presence of very small trace levels of equine DNA.

"Within the last 36 hours, we have established that Silvercrest used a small percentage of beef imported from a non-approved supplier in Poland. They promised to deliver 100% British & Irish beef patties and have not done so. This is a clear violation of our specifications, and we have terminated our relationship with them."

Diego Beamonte, vice-president for global quality at Burger King Corporation, said the company was "deeply troubled by the findings of our investigation and apologise to our guests, who trust us to source only the highest quality 100% beef burgers. Our supplier has failed us and in turn we have failed you."

All the major supermarkets including those not implicated in test results by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland published on January 15 which started the scare, withdrew from sale products made at the two ABP plants and Liffey Meats as a precaution.

Read more - 
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2013/jan/31/burger-king-horsemeat

Thousands of Radioactive Cattle Found Near Fukushima -

Thousands of Radioactive Cattle Found Near Fukushima - 


Thousands of cows were abandoned in the evacuated zone around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated the Tōhoku region of Japan and released radioactive materials from the plant.

Now, nearly two years after the disaster, those abandoned cattle were found to be contaminated with radioactive elements. Traces of radioactive cesium, silver and tellurium were found in the 79 cattle analyzed by a scientific team led by Tohoku University engineer Tomokazu Fukuda and published in the journal PLOS ONE.

Fetuses and calves had radioactive materials concentrations up to 1.5 times higher than the adults. The calves had been born, and the fetuses conceived, after the disaster.

In the event of a nuclear Armageddon, don’t eat the steak. Radioactive elements collected most heavily in the cattle’s skeletal muscle.

The cattle showed differences in radioactivity depending on what they had been eating. One group of cows had been kept in a pen and fed grass that hadn’t been contaminated in the Fukushima disaster. These cattle were less radioactive than cattle that had been allowed to graze freely in the area within 20 kilometers of the nuclear plant.

None of the cattle showed outward signs of mutation.

The Japanese cattle aren’t the first bovines to be inadvertently irradiated. During some of the very first tests of the atomic bomb at the Trinity site in New Mexico, cattle were accidentally exposed to radioactive fallout. Those cows were also studied to help scientists (and potential nuclear doomsday survivors) understand how the steak and milk suppliers might stand up to radiation.

Read more - 
http://news.discovery.com/animals/radioactive-cattle-found-near-fukushima-130130.htm

Study: New E15 gas can ruin auto engines -

Study: New E15 gas can ruin auto engines - 


This week's warm Washington temperatures had some thinking about rolling the Lawn-Boy out of the garage for the first cut of the year. And we all know what that means: Difficult starts due to E10 gas that gels when it sits.

Now, according to a new study, cars and truck may face the same fate thanks to President Obama's demand for a higher ethanol in the new E15 gas.

The fuel industry's American Petroleum Institute tested the 15 percent ethanol gas approved in 2010 and found it gums up fuel systems, prompts "check engine" lights to come on, and messes with fuel gauge readings.

"Failure of these components could result in breakdowns that leave consumers stranded on busy roads and highways," said the industry report. Worse: API said the fuel problems--not found in E5 or E10 blends--aren't always covered by auto warranties.

The industry prefers pure fuel to an ethanol mix, but the report isn't likely to slow the administrations green push, according to a Washington auto lobbyist.

The key points from the API report are below:

The additional E15 testing, completed this month, has identified an elevated incidence of fuel pump failures, fuel system component swelling, and impairment of fuel measurement systems in some of the vehicles tested. E15 could cause erratic and misleading fuel gauge readings or cause faulty check engine light illuminations. It also could cause critical components to break and stop fuel flow to the engine. Failure of these components could result in breakdowns that leave consumers stranded on busy roads and highways. Fuel system component problems did not develop in the CRC tests when either E10 or E0 was used. It is difficult to precisely calculate how many vehicles E15 could harm. That depends on how widely it is used and other factors. But, given the kinds of vehicles tested, it is safe to say that millions could be impacted.

In 2010 and 2011, EPA gave the green light to use E15 - the 15 percent ethanol gasoline blend - in model-year-2001-and-later cars and some other vehicles. EPA's action was irresponsible. EPA knew E15 vehicle testing was ongoing but decided not to wait for the results. Why did EPA move forward prematurely? Part of the answer may be the need to raise the permissible concentration level of ethanol so that greater volumes could be used, as required by the federal Renewable Fuel Standard. Most gasoline sold today is an E10 blend, but rising volume requirements under the law can't be met much longer without going to higher blends. When Congress passed the law, it could not know it was creating this problem. Today we know. The answer is to repeal the RFS before it puts millions of vehicles and many motorists at risk.

Read more - 
http://washingtonexaminer.com/study-new-e15-gas-can-ruin-auto-engines/article/2520078

Smelly sperm whale secretion could mean big money for British beachcomber -

Smelly sperm whale secretion could mean big money for British beachcomber - 


One very smelly sperm whale secretion may soon make one lucky British beachcomber a very happy man.

Ken Wilman told British broadcasters that he had been walking along Morecambe beach in northern England when his dog, Madge, discovered a hard, soccer ball-sized piece of smelly rock.

“She wouldn’t leave it alone. I picked it up and it smelt horrible so I knocked it with my walking stick and a small lump came off,” he told Sky News television in comments broadcast Thursday. “I put both pieces back on the beach but something in the back of my mind told me it might be something unusual.”

One Google search later and Wilman realized that Madge had found ambergris, a waxy byproduct of sperm whale digestion that has traditionally been used in perfumes, spices, and medicines — and can fetch large sums of money. He said he immediately drove back to the beach to find the ambergris. He said he has been offered €50,000 ($68,000) for the musky material.

Callum Roberts, a professor of marine conservation at the University of York, said the find appeared legitimate.

“It’s a waxy, yellow-grey piece of flotsam. I’m sure that 95 per cent of people would walk past it without further thought,” he said in a telephone interview. He praised Wilman’s quick thinking, invoking the scientific dictum that “fortune favours the prepared mind.”

Wilman, 50, had a slightly different take on his find, telling BBC television that people should trust their dogs.

“If your dog pays an interest in something, YOU pay an interest in something,” he said. “Because you never know. There’s gold out there on that beach — floating gold.”

Read more - 
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/smelly-sperm-whale-secretion-could-mean-big-money-for-british-beachcomber/article8030840/

25 Facts That The Mainstream Media Doesn't Really Want To Talk About -

25 Facts That The Mainstream Media Doesn't Really Want To Talk About - 


For decades, the mainstream media in the United States was accustomed to being able to tell the American people what to think.  Unfortunately for them, a whole lot of Americans are starting to break free from that paradigm and think for themselves.  A Gallup survey from earlier this year found that 60 percent of all Americans “have little or no trust” in the mainstream media.  More people than ever are realizing that the mainstream media is giving them a very distorted version of “the truth” and they are increasingly seeking out alternative sources of information.  In the United States today, just six giant media corporationscontrol the mainstream media.  Those giant media corporations own television networks, cable channels, movie studios, radio stations, newspapers, magazines, publishing houses, music labels and even many prominent websites.  But now thanks to the Internet the mainstream media no longer has a complete monopoly on the news.  In recent years the “alternative media” has exploded in popularity.  People want to hear about the things that the mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about.  They want to hear news that is not filtered by corporate bosses and government censors.  They want “the truth” and they know that they are not getting it from the mainstream media.

We are watching a media revolution happen, and many in the mainstream media are totally freaking out about it.  In fact, some in the mainstream media have even begun publishing articles that mock the American people for not trusting them.  For example, a recent CNN article entitled “Still ‘paranoid’ after all these years” portrayed Americans that don’t trust the media as paranoid conspiracy theorists that have left rationality behind…

Ever have the feeling you’re being lied to by the news media, the authorities, the corporate world? That somebody — or something — is out to get you?You’re not alone.

Welcome to 21st-century America.

Look around. Trust is hitting historic lows. Just a third of Americans have a favorable view of the federal government, a decline of 31% since 2002, according to the Pew Center for People and the Press. Gallup has Congress’ approval rating is in the low 20s, after nearing single digits last summer. And the news media aren’t much better off.

“Negative opinions about the performance of news organizations now equal or surpass all-time highs on nine of 12 core measures the Pew Research Center has been tracking since 1985,” a Pew report said.

The article goes on to make it sound like it is very irrational not to trust the media, but in this day and age it is imperative that we all learn to think for ourselves.  Blindly trusting someone else to do your thinking for you is very dangerous.

Anyone that does not acknowledge that the mainstream media has an agenda is not being honest with themselves.  The mainstream media presents a view of the world that is very favorable to their big corporate owners and the big corporations that spend billions of dollars to advertise on their networks.  The mainstream media is the mouthpiece of the establishment, and the worldview being pushed on the big networks is going to be consistent with the economic, financial, political and social goals of the establishment.  The mainstream media loves to talk about things that fit with that agenda, and they don’t like to talk about things that suggest that there is something wrong with that agenda.

The following are 25 facts that the mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about right now…

#1 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that gun sales are absolutely skyrocketing in the aftermath of the horrific tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

#2 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that disarming the population has resulted in some of the most horrific massacres in human history.  The following is from the Warrior Times…

1911 – Turkey disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1915 – 1917 they murdered 1.5 million Armenians.

1929 – Russia disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1929 – 1953 they murdered 20 million Russians.

1935 – China disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1948 – 1952 they murdered 20 million Chinese.

1938 – Germany disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1939 – 1945 they murdered 16 million Jews.

1956 – Cambodia disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1975 – 1977 they murdered 1 million Educated people.

1964 – Guatamala disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1964 – 1981 they murdered 100,000 Mayan Indians.

1970 – Uganda disarmed it’s citizens, and between 1971 – 1979 they murdered 300,000 Christians.

#3 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that a bill allowing for the “indefinite military detention of US citizens on American soil” was passed by the U.S. Senate on Friday.

#4 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that volcanoes all along the Ring of Fire are roaring to life.  It seems like a new eruption is being reported every few days now.  In fact, a red alert has just been issued for a massive volcano that sits along the border between Chile and Argentina.

#5 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the use of genetically engineered seeds has caused on explosion of new “super weeds” that are incredibly difficult for farmers to kill.

#6 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that renowned trends forecaster Gerald Celente is predicting a “financial disaster” in 2013.

#7 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that it is easier to get into Harvard than it is to get a job as a flight attendant in America today.

#8 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that nearly 400 TSA employees have been fired for stealing from travelers since 2003.

#9 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that giant corporations such as Facebook are funneling gigantic amounts of money through offshore banking havens such as the Cayman Islands in an effort to avoid taxes.

#10 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the U.S. dollar is in danger of losing its status as the primary reserve currency of the world.

#11 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that Barack Obama has gone off to vacation in Hawaii while the rest of the nation hopes for a fiscal cliff deal to get done.  Of course the mainstream media has to mention that he is on vacation because they always keep track of what the president does, but they are not making a big deal out of it because they love Obama.  And it sounds like Obama is having quite a good time on his little vacation…

The president is expected to indulge in some of his favorite pastimes on the island where he was born and raised: golf, an expedition for the local treat “shave ice,” and an evening out with family and friends. He hit the links at the nearby Marine Corps base under sunny skies on Saturday afternoon.

#12 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that there are government websites that give immigrants instructions about how to come over to our country and apply for welfare.

#13 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the U.S. economy is losing millions of jobs to nations where it is legal to pay workers slave labor wages.  The mainstream media is totally married to the one world economic agenda that their corporate owners make so much money from, and so they say nothing as a steady stream of businesses and jobs continue to leave the country.

#14 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the recent tax increase is causing large numbers of wealthy individuals to consider moving out of the state of California.

#15 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that hunger and poverty are absolutely exploding in the United States at the same time that they are telling us that the economy is “recovering”.

#16 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that North Korea now has a three-stage rocket with enough range to potentially hit the western United States.

#17 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the United States Postal Service is losing 25 million dollars a day and is on the verge of financial collapse.

#18 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that our biggest oil supplier in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, still kills people for changing religions.

#19 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that political correctness is taking over America.  The truth is that the media does not see any problem with that at all.

#20 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that nearly half a million employees of the federal government are making more than $100,000 a year.

#21 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the birth rate in the United States fallen to an all-time low.  The elite are actually absolutely thrilled that less babies are being born.

#22 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that violent crime in the United States increased by 18 percent in 2011 and that many major U.S. cities are seeing violent crime totally spiral out of control.

#23 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that Barack Obama received more than 99 percent of the vote in more than 100 precincts in Ohio on election day.

#24 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that during the first four years of the Obama administration, the U.S. national debt grew by about as much as it did from the time that George Washington took office to the time that George W. Bush took office.

#25 The mainstream media doesn’t really want to talk about the fact that the Federal Reserve created the conditions for the last financial crisis and their mismanagement of the economy has now brought us to the verge of another horrible economic downturn.  According to the mainstream media, the Federal Reserve is “above politics” and should not be criticized.

Are there any other items that you feel should be added to this list?  Please feel free to share them by posting a comment below…

Read more - 
http://www.blacklistednews.com/25_Facts_That_The_Mainstream_Media_Doesn%27t_Really_Want_To_Talk_About/23248/0/0/0/Y/M.html?morestories=obinsite

Tennessee bill would require schools to report gay activity to parents -

Tennessee bill would require schools to report gay activity to parents - 


A Republican lawmaker is proposing legislation that would require schools to inform a student's parents if the child is engaging in homosexual activity.
Under the measure sponsored by Sen. Stacey Campfield of Knoxville, a school counselor, nurse or principal can inform parents if their children's "circumstances present immediate and urgent safety issues involving human sexuality."
Campfield told reporters on Wednesday that he considers the "act of homosexuality" to be dangerous to a child's health and safety.
The measure is part of a similar proposal, known as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, that Campfield passed in the Senate in 2011, but the companion bill failed in the House last year.
The proposal would ban the teaching of gay issues to elementary and middle school students.
Campfield says the current legislation has a House sponsor and he's optimistic about its passage.


Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/01/31/tennessee-bill-would-require-schools-to-report-gay-activity-to-parents/?test=latestnews

Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall take the Tube -

Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall take the Tube - 


To mark the 150th anniversary of the London Underground Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall took a trip on the Tube.

Click here to see the gallery.

The pair touched in with their new Oyster Cards at Farringdon station before catching the Metropolitan line to Kings Cross.

They were given a tour of the station including platform 9 3/4 from the Harry Potter books. 

Read more - 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/prince-charles-and-the-duchess-of-cornwall-take-the-tube-8472729.html

Bronx Women Busted At JFK With Cocaine In ‘Diapers’ - More Than 6 Kilos Of Coke -

Bronx Women Busted At JFK With Cocaine In ‘Diapers’ - More Than 6 Kilos Of Coke - 

Talk about a loaded diaper.

Priscilla Pena and Michelle Blassingale, of The Bronx, arrived at JFK Airport on a JetBlue flight from the Dominican Republic on Saturday.

Pena was selected for inspection by customs agents because a drug-sniffing dog alerted agents to something around Pena’s midsection, according to the court documents.

According to an affidavit, agents searched Pena’s luggage and said she appeared very nervous during the search.

An agent then requested a pat-down and Pena agreed. That is when the agent found a hard object around Pena’s stomach and buttocks.

Read more - 

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/01/30/officials-bronx-women-busted-at-jfk-with-cocaine-in-diapers/

New App Lets Users ‘Bang’ Facebook Friends - facilitate sexual encounters with users -

New App Lets Users ‘Bang’ Facebook Friends - facilitate sexual encounters with users - 


A controversial new sex app called “Bang With Friends” claims to facilitate sexual encounters with users and their Facebook friends without the embarrassment of rejection.
“Anonymously find friends who are down for the night,” the company website said. “Your friends will never know you're interested unless they are too!”
The Bang With Friends app, aimed at 20-somethings, was created by three college-aged men from California, who are withholding their identities, according to US media reports.
The app, launched a week ago, only alerts users of a potential hookup if both parties express interest by selecting what is called the “Down to Bang” button.
The creators of the app said it has already gained more than 30,000 users, registering five new users every minute according to a report on the online tech site Mashable.
“By being honest and forward, we’re taking the no [BS] approach [to sex],” one of the apps creators told The Daily Beast.
But critics of “Bang With Friends” told RIA Novosti, putting the physical first is the reason for the demise of the majority of marriages and relationships in the United States.
“Back in the day people would court, they would go out with different people without exploring the sexual relationship because it allowed you to get to know what you may or may not have in common,” said Kristen Crockett, a Washington based relationship coach.
And while some who use the app may be more interested in sex than building a relationship, Crockett cautions users with the potential drawbacks of getting physical with a Facebook friend.
“Once you start sleeping with someone, your red flags, your fears, all of those things get pushed into the back of your mind,” she said, adding often times people ignore signals and signs because of how the person makes them feel physically.
One of the app’s creators told The Daily Beast, the group came up with the idea as a way to improve traditional online dating sites like Match.com.
“It would be great, as guys, if you could find out which girls are actually into you and not dance around anything,” he said.
Skip the dating and jump straight to the sex, one of the creators said.

Read more -

http://en.rian.ru/business/20130131/179131785/New-App-Lets-Users-Bang-Facebook-Friends--------.html

Leafy Greens Cause the Most Illnesses—Mushrooms, the Least -

Leafy Greens Cause the Most Illnesses—Mushrooms, the Least - 


Sometimes a diet of Tang and chewing gum seems the only safe option left. A new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study finds that leafy greens—for example, lettuce, spinach, kale, and arugula (or “rocket,” as some Canadians call it)—cause more illnesses than any other food. Anxious herbivores need not worry themselves sick, though: Mushrooms were associated with the fewest cases of illness among all foods.

Together, fruits, nuts, and vegetables accounted for 46.1 percent of food borne illnesses from 1998 to 2008. Leafy greens accounted for 2.1 million cases, or 22.1 percent of the total, often by carrying viruses. Fungi were responsible for only 4,542 cases, due mostly to toxins produced by the food and to chemicals such as pesticides.

People often cook mushrooms, rather than eat them raw, and they consume them less frequently than leafy greens. It’s also rare that people eat poisonous mushrooms, CDC spokesperson Candice Hoffmann wrote in an e-mail.

The study did not measure how much of each food is typically consumed. (This might explain why there were few incidents—only 9,097 cases—of illness associated with game such as venison and bear.) The average American eats only 4 pounds of mushrooms each year, compared to 30 lbs. of lettuce.

Also, greens such as lettuce and spinach cause illness more frequently because they are consumed more often, not because they are grown or harvested in a riskier way than other vegetables, says Scott Horsfall, chief executive officer of the California Leafy Green Products Handler Marketing Agreement, a program under the state’s Department of Food and Agriculture.

In fact, the problem with leafy greens has less to do with farming than with handling. Many were tainted with norovirus, which causes stomach flu, and “were most often contaminated during preparation or service by a sick food handler,” the report found. Infected persons are contagious “from the moment they begin feeling sick until at least three days after they recover” and can spread the virus through vomit and stool, according to the CDC.

Before sadistic meat eaters start chuckling at the fates of some health-focused, leaf-eating counterparts, they should consider this: While leafy greens may have caused the greatest volume of sickness, poultry accounted for the most deaths, at 19 percent. Pass the portobello mushrooms, please.

Read more - 
http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-01-30/leafy-greens-cause-the-most-illness-mushrooms-the-least