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Swine flu goes global

03 May 2009 - Preaching the News for Sunday

The reading from the Acts of the Apostles assures us that Jesus brings healing, and healing is what the world needs at the moment as it is confronted with the threat of a swine flu epidemic. The World Health Organization raised the flu pandemic alert level to a 5 at a Wednesday meeting, signaling that the outbreaks pose a risk of reaching pandemic proportions. The maximum level is six. The number of deaths in Mexico as of Tuesday morning was at least 150, with another 2,400 people sickened. WHO has confirmed 66 cases in the United States and 105 in seven other countries. In an interview with CNN, Dr. Richard Besser, acting director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, confirmed the flu death of a 23-month-old child in Texas--the first death outside Mexico. Mexico has suspended all schools until May 6, and in Mexico City other public venues have closed and public events have been cancelled. The U.S., the European Union, and several Asian health commissioners have discouraged nonessential travel to Mexico. In an age of widespread air travel, it is difficult, if not impossible, to contain a newly emerged infectious agent, and that is proving to be the case with swine flu. "At this time," said Dr. Keiji Fukuda, assistant director-general of WHO, "containment is not a feasible option." The name of the flu has caused some controversy. Dr. Nikki Shindo, a WHO flu expert, said WHO affiliates around the world will consider a request from the Food and Agriculture Organization to stop calling the disease swine flu, because the virus is not food-borne and has nothing to do with eating pork. The World Organization for Animal Health, which handles veterinary issues around the world, issued a statement late Monday suggesting that the new disease should be labeled "North American influenza," in keeping with a long medical tradition of naming influenza pandemics for the regions where they were first identified. Source: Articles by the Associated Press and Keith Bradsher for the New York Times and Thomas H. Maugh II for the Los Angeles Times

world health organization nikki shindo keiji fukuda mexico centers for disease control and prevention richard besser pandemic epidemic swine flu influenza
Pushers push back in Mexico’s drug war

19 Jul 2009 - Preaching the News for Sunday

In this Sunday's reading from the Book of Jeremiah, the Lord warns bad shepherds he will punish their evil deeds. Mexican President Felipe Calderon's efforts to capture and punish drug dealers for their deeds is leading to increased militarization in troubled regions and concern among human rights observers. Calderon launched the military offensive 10 days after assuming office in December 2006, saying it was necessary to restore government authority in parts of the country. But the longer and harder the war is prosecuted, say observers, the more complex and daunting it becomes. Recent setbacks such as prison breakouts, kidnappings, and killings of federal officials have led to questions about whether Calderon was prepared for the breadth and depth of the problem. By disrupting the cartels' operations, the offensive intensified turf struggles among the traffickers. About 11,000 people, some of them bystanders, have died in the violence. "They hit a wasp nest, and the wasps are stinging," said Jose Luis Pineyro, an expert on national security at Mexico City's Autonomous Metropolitan University. "There definitely wasn't a well-structured plan to know what kind of threat they were confronting." Government forces have scored victories, almost all credited to the military: They've arrested more than 66,000 suspects, seized tons of cocaine and marijuana, and intercepted guns, grenades, airplanes, and even drug-laden, submarine-like vessels. But every success is offset quickly by a fresh surge of violence. Critics also worry that the military's expanded role could undermine the country's fragile democracy. Others fear that the military, one of Mexico's most respected institutions, will fall prey to the corruption that has corroded so many police departments and local governments. Source: Articles by Ken Ellingwood and Tracy Wilkinson for the Los Angeles Times and Gusavo Ruiz for Associated Press

Violence corruption mexico felipe calderon drug war drug dealers jose luis pineyro
Neighborly disagreement at NAFTA-partner summit

16 Aug 2009 - Preaching the News for Sunday

In the reading from the Book of Proverbs this Sunday, Wisdom encourages us to "advance in the way of understanding." Hoping to do the same, leaders of Canada, the United States, and Mexico met in Guadalajara, Mexico this week for their fourth annual summit, an effort to bring the signers of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) closer together. But the meeting also served to highlight differences on issues such as migration and drug trafficking. President Barack Obama said at the conclusion of the summit Monday that his administration will seek a comprehensive overhaul of the U.S. immigration system this year but that no action on legislation will happen before 2010. The issue of immigration has also generated controversy between Canada and Mexico. Canada announced last month it would begin requiring Mexican citizens to secure visas before entering the country, a decision that angered many in Mexico. The Canadian government claimed too many Mexicans are fraudulently claiming political asylum in Canada, overwhelming the system. The Mexican government struck back with an announcement that Canadian diplomats and government officials would now be required to obtain visas to enter Mexico. Mexico also raised a trade dispute that began when the U.S. Congress canceled a program, in violation of NAFTA, that allowed Mexican trucks to operate in the United States. Mexico responded by imposing billions of dollars in tariffs on American products. Another sore point is the "buy American" clause in the Obama administration's economic stimulus plan, which both Canada and Mexico oppose. There is also some discord on the issue of combating Mexico's drug violence. The American aid package for Mexico says that 15 percent of the funds can be disbursed only if the U.S. State Department decides that the Mexican government meets certain human rights conditions. Recently reports of abuse have emerged. Mexican President Felipe Calderón's government has characterized any abuses as isolated. And aides to Obama said he strongly favors releasing the aid. Source: Articles by Cheryl W. Thompson and William Booth for the Washington Post and Ginger Thompson and Marc Lacey for the New York Times

immigration drug trafficking canada nafta north american free trade agreement felipe calderon mexico united states barack obama visas
Trusted truckers step out of line at the border

29 Nov 2009 - Preaching the News for Sunday

"Be vigilant at all times," Jesus counsels his disciples in this Sunday's gospel. Guards at the U.S.-Mexico border vigilantly search for contraband but worry that a program that offers trusted trucking companies speedy passage across U.S. borders is being hijacked by Mexican drug smugglers. Large shipments of illegal drugs have been discovered in recent months. Most trucks enrolled in the program pause at the border for only 20 seconds before entering the United States. And nine out of ten of them do so without anyone looking at their cargo. But among the small fraction of trucks that are inspected, authorities have found multiple loads of contraband, including nearly 13 tons of marijuana seized in a three-week period last spring. Some experts now question whether the program makes sense in an environment where drug traffickers are willing to do almost anything to smuggle their shipments into the U.S. The trusted-shipper system "just tells the bad guys who to target," said Dave McIntyre, former director of the Integrative Center for Homeland Security at Texas A&M University. The government keeps the list of participants hidden, citing national security and trade secrets. But some of the 9,500 companies who are part of the system advertise their membership to drum up business, making them targets for smugglers who can then threaten drivers or offer them bribes. More than half of all U.S. imports now come from companies in the program, called the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, or C-TPAT. Mexican trucking companies make up only 6 percent of global membership in the system but they account for half of its 71 security violations during the past two years. Stephen Flynn, senior fellow for Counterterrorism and National Security Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, said truckers do not feel safe rejecting bribes, no matter what agreements their companies have made with the U.S. government. "The basic vulnerability for a truck driver remains the 'plata-or-plomo' dilemma," Flynn said, using Spanish shorthand for taking a bribe or a bullet. Source: An article by Christopher Sherman for the Associated Press

united states c-tpat customs-trade partnership against terrorism trusted-shipper dave mcintyre trucking contraband us-mexico border smuggling drug trafficking mexico stephen flynn
Trusted truckers step out of line at the border

29 Nov 2009 - Preaching the News for Sunday

"Be vigilant at all times," Jesus counsels his disciples in this Sunday's gospel. Guards at the U.S.-Mexico border vigilantly search for contraband but worry that a program that offers trusted trucking companies speedy passage across U.S. borders is being hijacked by Mexican drug smugglers. Large shipments of illegal drugs have been discovered in recent months. Most trucks enrolled in the program pause at the border for only 20 seconds before entering the United States. And nine out of ten of them do so without anyone looking at their cargo. But among the small fraction of trucks that are inspected, authorities have found multiple loads of contraband, including nearly 13 tons of marijuana seized in a three-week period last spring. Some experts now question whether the program makes sense in an environment where drug traffickers are willing to do almost anything to smuggle their shipments into the U.S. The trusted-shipper system "just tells the bad guys who to target," said Dave McIntyre, former director of the Integrative Center for Homeland Security at Texas A&M University. The government keeps the list of participants hidden, citing national security and trade secrets. But some of the 9,500 companies who are part of the system advertise their membership to drum up business, making them targets for smugglers who can then threaten drivers or offer them bribes. More than half of all U.S. imports now come from companies in the program, called the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, or C-TPAT. Mexican trucking companies make up only 6 percent of global membership in the system but they account for half of its 71 security violations during the past two years. Stephen Flynn, senior fellow for Counterterrorism and National Security Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, said truckers do not feel safe rejecting bribes, no matter what agreements their companies have made with the U.S. government. "The basic vulnerability for a truck driver remains the 'plata-or-plomo' dilemma," Flynn said, using Spanish shorthand for taking a bribe or a bullet. Source: An article by Christopher Sherman for the Associated Press

united states c-tpat customs-trade partnership against terrorism trusted-shipper dave mcintyre trucking contraband us-mexico border smuggling drug trafficking mexico stephen flynn
Mississippi delta threatened by oil slick

02 May 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

The psalmist praises the "glorious splendor" of God's kingdom this Sunday, but the beauty and splendor of the fragile wildlife eco-system off the coast of four U.S. Gulf Coast states is threatened by an approaching oil slick. The U.S. Coast Guard Wednesday started a "controlled burn" to battle the giant oil slick from last week's deadly offshore drilling rig explosion, but strong, gusty winds and thunderstorms moving into the Gulf of Mexico Thursday could push the large seaward oil spill ever closer to the coast. At midday Wednesday the edge of the spill was only 23 miles off the coast of Louisiana, close to a delicate system of coastal estuaries and swamps teeming with birds and other wildlife. The leaking well, 5,000 feet under the ocean surface off Louisiana's coast, has created a growing oil sheen and an emulsified crude slick that has a circumference about the size of Jamaica--and growing, the Coast Guard said. London based British Petroleum, the oil company that contracted with Transocean to use the rig, has been unable to shut down the gushing crude. "We will not stop until we have exhausted every single option," company executive Doug Suttles said, adding that the company was spending $6 million a day in the effort. The drilling rig caught fire April 20, leaving 11 workers missing and presumed dead. The fire raged until the rig sank last Thursday, severely bending the pipe that connected it with equipment on the seafloor. Crude began to gush from the end of the pipe as well as from a hole in it. Thousands of feet of boom were being readied at staging areas in Venice, Louisiana, Biloxi, Mississippi, and Pensacola, Florida to keep the oil slick from reaching coastal areas. But the precautions did little to assure biologists on the coast, who warned that the oil will affect everything from oyster beds and fisheries to endangered wildlife. Source: Articles by Chris Baltimore for Reuters, Ben Casselman, Angel Gonzalez, and Guy Chazan for the Wall Street Journal, and Rick Jervis for USA TODAY

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Gulf coast on slippery slope toward ecological disaster

09 May 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

With their livelihoods and natural surroundings in serious jeopardy because of the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, many coastal residents are praying with the psalmist this Sunday that "God have pity on us and bless us." The U.S. Coast Guard said Monday it may take at least three months to stop the flow of oil, but there was hope containment domes might trap some of it. On Wednesday British Petroleum (BP) managed to cap one of three leaks at the deepwater oil well, but the work was not expected to reduce the overall flow of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. BP officials have said that fewer leaks will make it easier to drop a containment box on the breach. The well has been spewing at least 210,000 gallons per day since an April 20 explosion at a rig 50 miles off Louisiana. Oil leaking from the well in the Gulf of Mexico could surge to 60,000 barrels a day if plans to cap it with a containment dome fail, said Representative Edward Markey (D-Mass.) after a meeting with industry executives. John Curry, a BP spokesman, said he didn't have any worst-case-scenario data and could not comment. BP expects to have the dome in place on the seafloor and trapping oil within five days, Doug Suttles, chief operating officer of exploration and production for the London-based company, said at a press conference. The 125-ton, 40-foot-tall steel box is designed to capture 85 percent of the oil. Source: Articles by Jim Polson, Lisa Lerer, and Mark Chediak for Bloomberg, Pascal Fletcher and Anna Driver for Reuters, and the Associated Press

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U.S.-Mexican border rocked by shooting

13 Jun 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

A person is not justified by works of the law, the reading from the Letter to the Galatians tells us this Sunday. Outraged Mexican authorities say there is no justification for the killing of a 15-year-old Mexican boy shot to death by a U.S. border patrol agent for throwing rocks at him from the Mexican side of the border. The shooting of Sergio Adrian Hernandez Guereca of Juarez happened Monday when a group of individuals threw rocks at U.S. border agents taking two men into custody for illegally crossing the border at El Paso, U.S. authorities said. Mexican President Felipe Calderon condemned the shooting and called for the incident “to be thoroughly investigated and those responsible punished,” his office said. “Using firearms to respond to an attack with rocks is a disproportionate use of force, particularly coming from officials that are specially trained,” the Mexican foreign ministry said in a statement. The U.S. State Department acknowledged in a statement that an agent had fired his weapon, killing “one of the suspects” allegedly hurling rocks. “We regret the loss of life,” the statement said, but claimed that the agent, whose name wasn’t released, was defending himself. The Border Patrol says it is subjected to hundreds of rock attacks during its patrols. In the past year there were 604 reported rock-throwing incidents involving agents, officials said. The government of the Mexican state of Chihuahua, where the teen died, condemned the killing, calling it a blow to all Mexicans and an example of the xenophobia that the anti-immigration law in Arizona has fomented in the United States. Last week Mexico made similar protests over the death of a Mexican migrant after he was given electric shocks by U.S. agents trying to deport him. Mexico’s foreign ministry says its records so far this year show 17 Mexican nationals have been killed or injured by U.S. immigration authorities, up from 12 last year and five in 2008. Source: Articles by Marc Lacey for the New York Times, the Associated Press, United Press International, and BBC News

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U.S.-Mexican border rocked by shooting

13 Jun 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

A person is not justified by works of the law, the reading from the Letter to the Galatians tells us this Sunday. Outraged Mexican authorities say there is no justification for the killing of a 15-year-old Mexican boy shot to death by a U.S. border patrol agent for throwing rocks at him from the Mexican side of the border. The shooting of Sergio Adrian Hernandez Guereca of Juarez happened Monday when a group of individuals threw rocks at U.S. border agents taking two men into custody for illegally crossing the border at El Paso, U.S. authorities said. Mexican President Felipe Calderon condemned the shooting and called for the incident “to be thoroughly investigated and those responsible punished,” his office said. “Using firearms to respond to an attack with rocks is a disproportionate use of force, particularly coming from officials that are specially trained,” the Mexican foreign ministry said in a statement. The U.S. State Department acknowledged in a statement that an agent had fired his weapon, killing “one of the suspects” allegedly hurling rocks. “We regret the loss of life,” the statement said, but claimed that the agent, whose name wasn’t released, was defending himself. The Border Patrol says it is subjected to hundreds of rock attacks during its patrols. In the past year there were 604 reported rock-throwing incidents involving agents, officials said. The government of the Mexican state of Chihuahua, where the teen died, condemned the killing, calling it a blow to all Mexicans and an example of the xenophobia that the anti-immigration law in Arizona has fomented in the United States. Last week Mexico made similar protests over the death of a Mexican migrant after he was given electric shocks by U.S. agents trying to deport him. Mexico’s foreign ministry says its records so far this year show 17 Mexican nationals have been killed or injured by U.S. immigration authorities, up from 12 last year and five in 2008. Source: Articles by Marc Lacey for the New York Times, the Associated Press, United Press International, and BBC News

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BP pressured to shore up efforts

20 Jun 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

The first reading this Sunday tells of great mourning in Jerusalem. As Gulf Coast residents mourn a way of life and a livelihood slipping away on the oil slick, state and federal officials increased the pressure on BP to do more to stop the gushing oil, clean up the spill, and speed reimbursements to those affected. During a White House meeting with President Barack Obama, BP agreed to set aside $20 billion to pay the victims of the massive oil spill. The independent fund will be directed by lawyer Kenneth Feinberg, who oversaw payments to families of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. After the four-hour White House meeting, the British company's chairman apologized to Americans for the worst spill in U.S. history. BP is suspending its dividends to shareholders for the rest of the year to help pay for the costs, said chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg. After visiting the Gulf region for the fourth time since the spill, the president addressed the nation Tuesday evening from the Oval Office. He urged Americans to rally behind legislation that would begin changing the way the country consumes and generates energy, saying the expanding oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is "the most painful and powerful reminder yet that the time to embrace a clean energy future is now." The president also promised a long-term plan to make sure that the Gulf states suffering from the oil spill are made whole again. He appointed Ray Mabus, the secretary of the Navy and former governor of Mississippi, to develop a Gulf Coast restoration plan in cooperation with states, local communities, tribes, fishermen, conservationists, and Gulf residents. The government on Tuesday also released a new, much higher estimate of the amount of oil still flowing from the well. The new estimate said that as many as 60,000 barrels of crude could now be spewing into the Gulf each day, a sharp increase over the estimate last week of 25,000 to 30,000 barrels a day. Nearly six in 10 Americans want BP to pick up the tab for all losses in the spill, even if it means putting the company out of business, a Gallup-USA Today poll found. In addition, 71 percent of Americans think Obama has been too soft in his dealings with the oil company. Source: Articles by Helene Cooper and Jackie Calmes for the New York Times, Amy Schatz and Guy Chazan for the Wall Street Journal, Suzanne Goldenberg for Guardian.co.uk, Ben Feller for Associated Press, and Scott Wilson and Anne E. Kornblut for the Washington Post

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