Burgers to blame for most of the global warming

WASHINGTON: A report by the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has stated that 18 per cent of greenhouse gases are coming from animal agriculture - meat and dairy, used in making burgers.

According to Environmental News Network , the 408-page report states that what many people are eating is contributing more to global warming than the entire transportation sector of the United States.

The report said that the Earth, and all who reside here, are in grave peril like never before. It added that everybody has a moral, ethical responsibility and imperative to face up to the truth, even if it means changing their daily habits.

There has never been a time in man's existence when it is so critical to move away from the Standard American Diet (SAD) and embrace an Earth-friendly and sustainable plant-based diet - a vegan diet, the report said. By switching to a plant based diet, mankind will instantly eradicate nearly 20 per cent of the global warming problem. If that isn't amazing enough, this simple yet profound change would greatly curtail further deforestation, top soil erosion and even the ever-worsening tainting of the world's waters.

Also, high cholesterol and heart disease, hypertension, obesity, adult-onset diabetes, kidney disease and many cancers would virtually disappear. But, the great news is that people don't have to give up on eating burgers, they just have to make them from plant-based ingredients. Veggie burgers have the taste, smell and texture of the traditional burger, but without the harmful ramifications.

Want to lose weight? Have chocolates!

Here’s some good news for all those chocolate lovers trying to lose weight – instead of shunning your favourite sweet, dig into it for breakfast.

Wondering how this is going to help you shed those extra pounds? Well, eating chocolates is part of the new ‘Big Breakfast’ weight-loss plan that requires you to take 700-calories of carbohydrates when you wake up.

Along with 30g of chocolate, you will also have to dig into a glass of milk, two slices of cheese, 85g of lean meat and two slices of buttered whole-grain toast every morning.

Doctor Daniela Jakubowicz, who has used the diet on her patients for 15 years, told the Daily Express that the breakfast works because it helps curb hunger cravings later in the day. "Very low carbohydrate diets are not a good method to reduce weight. They exacerbate the craving for carbohydrates," she said.

Humanism

Humanism is a broad category of ethical philosophies that affirm the dignity and worth of all people, based on the ability to determine right and wrong by appeal to universal human qualities — particularly rationality.It is a component of a variety of more specific philosophical systems and is incorporated into several religious schools of thought. Humanism can be considered the process by which truth and morality is sought through human investigation. In focusing on the capacity for self-determination, humanism rejects the validity of transcendental justifications, such as a dependence on belief without reason, the supernatural, or texts of allegedly divine origin. Humanists endorse universal morality based on the commonality of the human condition, suggesting that solutions to human social and cultural problems cannot be parochial.

Aspects

Religion
Humanism clearly rejects deference to supernatural beliefs in resolving human affairs but not necessarily the beliefs themselves; indeed some strains of Humanism are compatible with some religions. It is generally compatible with atheism and agnosticism but doesn't require either of these. The word "ignostic" (American) or "indifferentist" (British, including OED) are sometimes applied to Humanism, on the grounds that Humanism is an ethical process, not a dogma about the existence or otherwise of gods; Humanists simply have no need to be concerned with such questions. Agnosticism or atheism on their own do not necessarily entail Humanism; many different and sometimes incompatible philosophies happen to be atheistic in nature. There is no one ideology or set of behaviors to which all atheists adhere, and not all are humanistic.
As Humanism encompasses intellectual currents running through a wide variety of philosophical and religious thought, several strains of Humanism allow it to fulfill, supplement or supplant the role of religions, and in particular, to be embraced as a complete life stance. For more on this, see Humanism (life stance). In a number of countries, for the purpose of laws that give rights to "religions", the secular life stance has become legally recognized as equivalent to a "religion" for this purpose.In the United States, the Supreme Court recognized that Humanism is equivalent to a religion in the limited sense of authorizing Humanists to conduct ceremonies commonly carried out by officers of religious bodies. The relevant passage is in a footnote to Torcaso v. Watkins (1961). It is often alleged by fundamentalist critics of Humanism that the Supreme Court "declared Humanism to be a religion," however the Court's statement, a mere footnote at most, clearly does not in fact do so; it simply asserts an equivalency of Humanists' right to act in ways usual to a religion, such as ceremonial recognition of life's landmarks.
Renaissance humanism, and its emphasis on returning to the sources, contributed to the Protestant reformation by helping to gain what Protestants believe was a more accurate translation of Biblical texts.

Knowledge

According to Humanism, it is up to humans to find the truth, as opposed to seeking it through revelation, mysticism, tradition, or anything else that is incompatible with the application of logic to the observable evidence. In demanding that humans avoid blindly accepting unsupported beliefs, it supports scientific skepticism and the scientific method, rejecting authoritarianism and extreme skepticism, and rendering faith an unacceptable basis for action. Likewise, Humanism asserts that knowledge of right and wrong is based on the best understanding of one's individual and joint interests, rather than stemming from a transcendental truth or an arbitrarily local source.

Speciesism

Some have interpreted Humanism to be a form of speciesism, regarding humans as being more important than other species. The philosopher Peter Singer, himself a Humanist, stated that "despite many individual exceptions, Humanists have, on the whole, been unable to free themselves from one of the most central... Christian dogmas: the prejudice of speciesism". He called on Humanists to "take a stand against... ruthless exploitation of other sentient beings", and took issue with statements in the Humanist Manifesto II, which he felt gave "precedence to the interests of members of our own species."He also noted, however, that the same Manifesto stated that humans have "no God-given or inherent right to subdue other animals", and acknowledged that "the organizations that have done the most for animals have been independent of religion."

Optimism

Humanism features an optimistic attitude about the capacity of people, but it does not involve believing that human nature is purely good or that each and every person is capable of living up to the Humanist ideals of rationality and morality. If anything, there is the recognition that living up to one's potential is hard work and requires the help of others. The ultimate goal is human flourishing; making life better for all humans, and as the most conscious species, also promoting concern for the welfare of other sentient beings. The focus is on doing good and living well in the here and now, and leaving the world better for those who come after.

Now another SETBACK to Indian education : Resevation for professors at IIT

“This way lies not only folly but disaster.”

— Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru

on communal reservations

It has just become a joke or what for this Government of India, led by Dr.Manmohan Singh,who himself was a professor and a great scholar, to break down this growing education system of our country.The row on the reservation for students in the premier institutes haven't settled, our chosen cabinet is out again with yet another big blast "Reservation for PROFESSORS at IIT". Now even the highly respected people are under the threat of the devil called "reservation", what a pity. This step has just reified the vote policy followed by the so called democratic political parties.

Practically speaking, these people have gone nuts. How can they think of developing the undeveloped(as per them) by keeping the undeveloped as their guides? and, How can they think of further developing the already developed(also as per them) by keeping the undeveloped as their mentors and teachers? , isn't it crazy? These people , theSC,ST,OBC,Gujjars(joined recently), are really fool enough too think it as a way to develop themselves taking under consideration the question I raised at the starting of this paragraph. I believe thet either they are too innocent or they too are like these Netajan who can't see this nation developing.

In this stage I find that the "Vision of India" and "Vision 2020" seen by our very respected "Father of the Nation" and the "Missile Man of India" have been outfocused and this land has become a battle ground for the "Comrades" fighting for "reservation" as if they are fighting for the Indpendence. God please forgive these people for they don't know what they are doing.

I appeal to the 'People of India' to please spread this word and raise the awareness level of all the citizens of this country to work for the development of India and not against it. Please understand that Reservation is not the solution.