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 If you are like me, your family’s health is a big part of your overall personal security reading. High on my list of health research subjects is inflammation. There is no doubt that some of the earliest signs of cancer and diabetes show up in our mouths. And these signs can be present long before we realize anything is wrong. There appears to be a solid link between inflammation in the mouth and inflammation in the body.
There is growing evidence that there is a direct link between inflammation in the gums, an increase in C-reactive protein, and heart disease. The medical profession is clear in its findings that oral bacteria are found in the plaques that can clog arteries. Cutting off inflammation at the pass is almost certainly a worthy challenge for us all. In my readings, the spice turmeric pops up over and over as offering anti-inflammatory power.
In researching powerful natural cures, one of the first places I turn to is Jonny Bowden, Ph.D. ‘s The Most Effective Natural Cures on Earth
. It is a magnificent research effort. You will not find a more reader friendly or beautifully presented reference source. Thumbing to the index (the first place I look in any book) for inflammation, turmeric quickly pops up. The family of compounds thought to be responsible for turmeric’s medicinal effects are the curcuminoids, which give turmeric its bright yellow color and are believed responsible for turmeric’s anti-inflammation properties. As Jonny notes, curcumin, in one study, was found to be virtually as effective as the anti-inflammatory medication phenylbutazone. There certainly appears ample evidence to consider turmeric as an anti-inflammation fighter. My next step was to turn to New Chapter, Inc. of Brattleboro, Vermont, to check on what this company had to offer. New Chapter boldly labels the #1-selling herbal in the U.S. as its product Zyflamend. I have no idea if Zynlamend really sells as well as New Chapter claims, but given my family’s monthly tab for all of its organic, whole food vitamins and herbs, I would not be surprised. Zyflamend combines turmeric with rosemary, ginger, holy basil and green tea to create a whole body inflammation response.
I know that with just a little independent research on your own, inflammation will quickly surface as a subject of deep concern for you and your family. And along the way, you are most likely to find yourself researching the potential benefits of turmeric.
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 Let’s run the math. Some state pensions guarantee 7.5%. If they don’t make the return, then it’s up to taxpayers to make up the difference. For perspective, the five-year Treasury yields 0.71%. You have to go back to the early 90s to find the last time the five-year Treasury yielded 7.5%.
In order to meet the 7.5% guarantee, state treasurers are taking on more risk, including investing in hedge funds, but returns have yet to materialize. Through Tuesday, August 22, The Wall Street Journal reports that measures of hedge fund performance are not off to a great start to the year. The All Hedge Index is up 3.2%, the Convertible Arbitrage up 5.2%, the Dedicated Short Bias down 10.08%, the Emerging Markets up 2.22%, the Equity Market Neutral up 2.55%, and the Event Driven up 0.96%.
Politicians were all too willing to increase the guaranteed rates of return in the good times. Now they’re slow to reduce them. It’s easier for politicians to hope for higher returns and kick the can down the road to get re-elected. But hope is not a strategy.
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We have long maintained that the most important effect of the 2012 presidential election will be the ability of the winner to appoint two or more Supreme Court justices. After the ruling on Obamacare, that issue became even more important. Chief Justice Roberts has proven himself to be unreliable as an originalist, and must be counterbalanced by more justices on the bench who view the Constitution as America’s guide.
The stakes are known to many and occupy the minds of many political thinkers, including the president himself. In a recent story on the president’s campaign, Glenn Thrush explains that the president fears a Romney victory would allow a 7-to-2 conservative Supreme Court within a few years.
And as Clint Bolick, author of Two-Fer: Electing a President and a Supreme Court, explains, the stakes have never been higher for the Supreme Court.
First, because as human longevity increases, lifetime tenure has grown increasingly valuable. The average tenure of a Supreme Court justice today is 25 years—spanning more than six presidential terms. And presidents are catching on, naming ever-younger justices. If the newest justice, Elena Kagan, serves for all of her current life expectancy, she will remain on the court until 2045.
Second, the science of nominating philosophically consistent justices has grown more precise. In the past, presidents from Abraham Lincoln to Franklin Roosevelt to Richard Nixon tried to pack the court with reliable fellow-thinkers, with decidedly mixed success. Dwight Eisenhower famously remarked that his two biggest mistakes both served on the Supreme Court (Earl Warren and William Brennan). John F. Kennedy appointed Byron White, who turned conservative toward the end of his tenure, and George H.W. Bush appointed David Souter, who was liberal from day one.
These days, however, justices are carefully chosen on the basis of long philosophical track records. Indeed, most Supreme Court justices today remain more true to their principles than the presidents who appoint them.
Americans who believe that the Founding Fathers meant what they wrote in the Constitution cannot allow President Obama to appoint another two justices to the Supreme Court.
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 The HK416 (5.56 mm) was developed by Heckler & Koch for U.S. special operations forces as a major product improvement of M4/M16-type carbines and rifles. Using the HK-proprietary gas piston system found on the G36, the HK416 does not introduce propellant gases and carbon fouling back into the weapon’s interior, making it the most reliable of any M4/M16 type weapon.
The HK416 has been combat-proven in Southwest Asia and has also gained the attention of military, law enforcement, and security users outside of the US. In April 2007, the HK416 was selected as the new Norwegian Army rifle.
The origins of the HK416 began with the realization of the deficiencies of the direct gas impingement (gas tube) operating system found on conventional M4/M16-style weapons. Input from the users of current M4/M16-type arms, high-speed video assessment, and extensive live-fire testing in extreme operational environments such as the U.S. Army Desert Proving Ground in Yuma, Arizona revealed multiple areas for improvement.
Improvements were made to the internal operating system and miscellaneous component parts to improve reliability in best and worse case scenarios, with all types of ammunition, with all barrel lengths and with and without sound suppressors attached.
An innovative free-floating 4-quadrant rail system designed by HK allows all current accessories, sights, lights, and aimers used on M4/M16-type weapons to be fitted to the HK416. This HK rail system and can be installed and removed without tools.
The HK-proprietary gas system uses a piston driving an operating rod to control the function of the bolt, preventing propellant gases and the associated carbon fouling from entering the weapon’s interior. This increases the reliability of the weapon and extends the interval between stoppages. It also reduces operator cleaning time, heat transfer to the bolt and bolt carrier, and wear and tear on critical components.
To improve reliability, service life, and operator safety during obstructed bore occurrences or after extreme extended firing sessions, the HK416 uses barrels produced by Heckler & Koch’s famous cold hammer forging process.
The highest quality steel is used in this unique manufacturing process producing a barrel that provides superior accuracy for greater than 20,000 rounds with minimal degradation of accuracy and muzzle velocity. HK416 variants are available with 10.4, 14.5, 16.5, and 20 inch (264, 368, 419, 508 mm) barrels. Some HK416 variants also have “OTB” (Over-the-beach) capability and can be safely fired after being submerged in water and not completely drained.
In addition to the improvements in the baseline weapon, HK has produced a corrosion resistant steel magazine and a proprietary buffer to improve functional reliability.
An add-on single shot 40 x 46mm grenade launcher module can be quickly attached to the rail system of all models without tools. HK has applied its proven and fielded Safety Blank Firing Attachment and Live Round Excluder Magazine technology to the HK416, eliminating the possibility of live rounds being loaded into and fired through a standard issue weapon outfitted for blank firing only.
The HK416 is available as complete carbine or rifle or as a “drop-in” HK416 upper receiver module for use on the lower receivers of existing M4/M16 type weapons.
Technical Data
Calibre: 5.56 mm x 45
Operating principle: Gas-operated
Magazine capacity: 20/30 rounds
Modes of fire: 0-1-D
Rate of fire: approx. 850/min
Sights: D
Buttstock: R
Dimensions
Length min./max.: approx. 941/1037 mm
Width: approx. 78.0 mm
Height: approx. 240.0 mm
Barrel length: approx. 505 mm
Sight radius: approx. 521.0 mm
Weight
Weapon : approx. 3,855 g
Magazine: approx. 160/250 g
Source: Heckler & Koch
Recent News: Face Time With the HK416 – The Gun That Killed Bin Laden – Popular Mechanics
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 State governors from across the nation have asked Detroit auto companies to build them natural gas vehicles for their state fleets. Governors are ready, willing and able to buy vehicles that can avoid imported oil from countries with populations hostile to America.
The biggest problem with vehicles fueled by CNG or LNG is a lack of places to fuel them up. Tracy Samilton of NPR says, “Filling up a natural gas car’s fuel tank is a cinch — if you live in the right place. Ann Arbor, Mich., for example, has two natural gas pumps. But that kind of infrastructure is unusual in the vast majority of U.S. cities.”
If twenty states added natural gas powered vehicles (NGVs) to their fleets, the infrastructure for fueling those vehicles would necessarily expand to those states, and allow for citizen refueling of NGVs. This is a better way to introduce natural gas to the country than a federal mandate. Allow states, who already replace their fleets of vehicles on a regular rotation phase in NGVs to foster growth in the infrastructure facilities needed to cater to those vehicles.
Across the country, fuel consumers are considering a switch to natural gas from petroleum products. As reported in The Trucker New Service, “Slightly more than half (51.4 percent) of carriers are considering natural gas (NG) fueled trucks when new trucks are purchased.” The study also reports that the greatest obstacle to wider acceptance of NGVs is a lack of fueling stations. The governors’ effort should help to alleviate that problem if successfully implemented.
Click here to view CNG Now’s national map of natural gas fueling stations. You can find a station near you and the price of fuel there.
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