Author: bkellaway

EU Leaders Announce Huge Coronavirus Recovery Package to Help Rebuild Europe’s Economy

European Union (EU) leaders have finally reached an agreement after almost five days of fraught discussions on a huge post coronavirus recovery package. The package involves 750bn euros which will be given as grants and loans over a period of seven years to the 27-member bloc to counter the impact of coronavirus pandemic. it’s the joint biggest borrowing ever agreed by the European Union.

What is the European Union budget? To finance policies at the European level the European Union has a budget. It is mainly is an investment budget and represents around 2% of all public spending in the EU. It implements priorities agreed upon by all the EU members which in line with the principle of proportionality and subsidiarity adds more effectiveness to EU nations then actions taken at the local, regional, or national level. The commission, the parliament and the council all have a say on how the budget will be allocated and what will be the size of the budget.

The European Commission will borrow the money and give half (390 billion euros) of it as grants to the nations hardest hit by the pandemic including Italy and Spain and the rest (360 billion euros) will be given as loans. A new European budget was also agreed by the leaders of nearly 1.1 trillion euros from 2021 through 2027 which will create a combined spending power of 1.8 trillion euros.

The EU leaders said in a joint declaration that this ambitious and comprehensive package combines the classical budget with a special recovery package designed to overcome the effects of the pandemic and is in the best interest of the European Union. The focus of the coronavirus recovery package is to provide funding on three pillars including investing to help protect from any similar crisis in the future, helping businesses to rebound from the effects of the pandemic, and rolling out new measures to reform economies over the long haul. The decision was made after days of deadlock and talks that can be described as one of the most bitterly divided in years.

Also Read: Covid-19 Vaccine: Oxford’s Vaccine Early Trials Shows Promise

The EU is facing a big recession due to the pandemic and the hardest-hit countries need some economic and financial relief. The European Commission predicted a 7.4% slump IN 2020 in the EU economy but now it has risen to 8.3% which is considerably worse. Before today there were some disagreements regarding the conditions attached to the package, the overall size of the fund, and the mix of grants and loans.

The original plan of the commission included the coronavirus recovery package to be 500 billion euros which were to be distributed as grants and the remaining 250 billion as loans but the size of grants was contested by the so-called frugal countries, which include Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, and Denmark, as they were worried that funding the spending of other governments will burden them with debts.

The frugal nations were given the promise of rebates on their contributions to the EU budget which eventually won them over. French President Emmanuel Macron at one point banged his fists on the table as he believed that the frugal four were putting the European project in danger.

President of the European Council Charles Michel said at a press conference on Tuesday that this is a good and a strong deal and most importantly the right deal for Europe right now. He also said that it is the first time all European Union nations were jointly working to support each other against the crisis.

The post EU Leaders Announce Huge Coronavirus Recovery Package to Help Rebuild Europe’s Economy appeared first on Spark Health MD.

Legal marijuana may be slowing reductions in teen marijuana use, study says

Original post: Newswise - Drug and Drug Abuse Legal marijuana may be slowing reductions in teen marijuana use, study says

A longitudinal study of more than 230 teens and young adults in Washington state finds that teens may be more likely to use marijuana following legalization – with the proliferation of stores and increasing adult use of the drug — than they otherwise would have been.

Traditional PTSD Therapy Doesn’t Trigger Drug Relapse

Original post: Newswise - Drug and Drug Abuse Traditional PTSD Therapy Doesn't Trigger Drug Relapse

Newswise imageJohns Hopkins researchers have demonstrated that behavior therapy that exposes people to memories of their trauma doesn’t cause relapses of opioid or other drug use, and that PTSD severity and emotional problems have decreased after the first therapy session.

The Labyrinth Facilitator

The Labyrinth represents a life’s journey. When I walked a labyrinth for the first time, I realized that I wasn’t lost, I had made no mistakes, for a labyrinth has no dead ends, just one path. That path is the unique road each person needs to travel in order to live in the present moment.

By Megan Woodward Moyer

It is July 2020 and I’m celebrating an anniversary – 13 years of sobriety. I’m so fulfilled today and so proud of this achievement that I often have to ask how this perfectionistic Atheist managed such a transformation?  How did I go from feeling so angry, afraid and hopeless to being filled with such purpose?

When I agreed to enter treatment as the result of my husband’s relentless insistence, I felt a brief moment of true relief and peace because I knew I had become an alcoholic and was begrudgingly making the decision to get help. This moment was immediately followed by a tremendous amount of fear and shame. Fear of having to admit to being less than perfect, shamed by the fact that everyone would know that I had failed in every possible way and, of course, fear of the unknown. To make it easier, I told myself that I was just doing this to get my husband off my back and that I’d have a 28-day break from him – which I really needed. I had no intention of admitting to my alcoholism or to staying sober for the rest of my life.

However, when I was confronted with an assignment that asked me to consider the concept of a Higher Power, all I could say was, “Oh, God!” I was contemptuous about all things spiritual and religious, but I was also still quite the perfectionist and doing my homework assignments well and submitting them on time was my MO.

An interesting thing happened while I was working on the assignment. I was outside and found a bird’s nest on the ground. Then I found several hazelnuts in the area, which became the eggs and then I started thinking about how I could clearly see a Higher Power at work in nature but that I was excluding myself from this realm.

WHY?

And why was I thinking about this instead of slamming the door shut on this concept? I was allowing myself to stray from my rigid thinking because, for the first time that I could remember, I felt safe and understood. I felt that I could explore this and, without realizing it, discovered the first inklings of spirituality. Did I have a Higher Power just waiting around for me to wake up and say “Grace?”

Eventually, I realized that I was equating religion with spirituality and that, in fact, they are very different. I was also beginning to realize that the comfort I was feeling was an awakening of my true spiritual nature – a spirituality that naturally exists within all of us, only needing connection to be ignited.

At that moment, I understood how I could believe in something greater than myself – through connection with others, my small spiritual flame could grow, and I would be able to be part of something much bigger and better – I would be part of the interdependent web of all existence. I no longer had to fake the assignment – I had actually completed steps 2 and 3 with honesty and integrity. I did not have to believe in someone else’s God or make one up for myself. The recognition of my spiritual nature was enough.

The realization that my life was not wasted occurred during my second month in treatment while on a Labyrinth walk. We attended a workshop titled, The History and Meaning of the Labyrinth. I assumed, as many people do, that labyrinths and mazes are synonymous and before the workshop began, I was engaging in morbid reflection, equating my entire life to the metaphor of being stuck and lost in a maze. The Workshop Facilitator began by explaining the difference between a labyrinth and a maze. She said that mazes have many entrances, exits, paths and dead ends. Labyrinths, although resembling mazes upon cursory observation, have only one path. In spite of the winding nature of the labyrinth, you cannot get lost if you follow the path. When I heard this my interest was piqued.

When our lecture was finished, we were invited to walk a large labyrinth painted on canvas in an adjacent room. I cleared my mind and set an intention of just being open-minded. As I began my walk, I found myself, reflecting on my life and letting go. Each turn in the labyrinth seemed to represent different times in my life. When I reached the center, I was calm and able to receive an intuitive message that my life had not been wasted and that I was not at a dead end. The paths I had taken were the ones I needed to travel in order to be at the center of that very labyrinth, right then and there. I felt the freedom of a release of psychic burdens that I had been carrying for a very long time. I meditated, mindfully, in the center of the labyrinth and when I felt ready to leave, I experienced a mounting sense of energy, forgiveness and joy. In the space of three hours, my whole perspective had changed from one of despair to hope. I had experienced something transformative.

Buoyed with my newly discovered spirituality and filled with hope, I was able to admit to my alcoholism and to leave the safety of the treatment center willing to do the hard work that I knew would come. I wanted to strive for the ultimate goal – emotional sobriety. That meant taking a look back and identifying the changes I would need to make. I needed to accept responsibility for my behavior and quit blaming others. I needed to be humble and teachable. I needed to change my thinking, work with others and learn to love myself.

With these goals in mind, I began to tackle huge issues with chronic and clinical depression, shame and codependency as well as developing a supportive community that would allow me to be an Atheist and not try to force anything upon me. It wasn’t long before I realized just how consumed I was by the “would’ves, should’ves and could’ves.”  They were like a very large dysfunctional family taking up space in my head and each of them had “or elses” attached. I know now how they found what they thought would be a permanent home in my head but I’m happy to say that they received eviction notices a while ago and when they try to convince me to let them move back in, I’m strong enough to respect myself and my boundaries and say “no.”

During these last thirteen years, I’ve moved through many highs and lows and have experienced the beautiful process of deep change. I now find myself in a loving and supportive relationship, I earned an MA in Psychology as well as certification as a Labyrinth Facilitator and as a Life Coach. All of these profound transitions have not only given me much joy but have also provided me with a purposeful life allowing me to work with others in deep and meaningful ways as well as knowing that physical and emotional sobriety are possible when in spiritual connection.

Megan Woodward Moyer has been sober since July 16, 2007. With this as inspiration, she became a Trained Labyrinth Facilitator, a Certified Life Coach Practitioner and earned an MA in Psychology.  More importantly, she’s experienced life and the process of deep change. 

Her passion is working with women who are also navigating the process of change and major life transitions.  She resides in Santa Barbara, California, and loves spending time with her family, especially her grandchildren, her partner and her 12-step community. 

You can learn more about Megan by visiting her wonderful website: MeganWMoyer.

 

The post The Labyrinth Facilitator first appeared on AA Agnostica.

Researchers Opinion Regarding Pornography as A Public Health Crisis

According to the existing evidence, pornography has been described as a public health crisis. But there is a conflict in the researcher’s opinion regarding this issue.

Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) researchers suggest that though pornography may have an undesirable effect on some of the people, considering it a public health emergency can lead to harm. They have reasoned against this claim in an editorial to be published in the February issue of the “American Journal of Public Health“.

Along with their argument against pornography as a public health emergency, they have also provided an explanation about why making such a claim can harm the public’s health.

Dr Emily F. Rothman is a Professor at Boston University School of Public Health in its Community Health Sciences Department. Dr Kimberly M. Nelson had knowledge about both psychology and public health and is an Assistant Professor at the same department of BUSPH.

In the editorial, they have written that presenting pornography as a public health concern or something that can harm public health is a political act. Additionally, this claim doesn’t manifest the best existing evidence and is based on an ideology that negates several fundamental principles of public health promotion.

Pornography has been acknowledged as a public health emergency in almost seventeen states of the U.S. via non-obligatory resolutions. But according to the authors, the public health crisis definition criterion isn’t fulfilled by pornography.

With the passage of time, there has been a slow and gradual increase in the use of pornography instead of a sudden climax.

Also Read: Gender Disparity Related to Poor Sexual Health in the UK

Further investigation has shown that pornography hasn’t any devastating effect on the local health systems. And one can’t expect direct and sudden population displacement, property destruction, disease, or death as a result of pornography.

The available evidence has shown that the use of pornography may lead to adverse effects on the health of some individuals. But Rothman and Nelson explained that many of these adverse health impacts were absent in a considerable number of people.

Instead, in some individuals, safer sexual behaviours like solo masturbation were observed as positive effects of pornography. Authors write that rather than ending pornography entirely, it is better to persuade the public to avoid extreme pornography and to limit its frequent use.

Taking these steps can facilitate in reducing the harms caused by pornography. In the same February issue of the journal, Dr Nelson and Dr Rothman have provided an outline regarding their pornography literacy program via the help of their colleagues.

This program may be proved as helpful for adolescents living in Boston. Rothman and Nelson have also answered the question “how describing pornography as a public health emergency may lead to deterioration of health?”

They have written that claiming pornography as public health crisis may cause shifts in funding sources or result in an unwarranted policy that may lead to a reduction in public health workforce to deal with real emergencies or crises.

They added that making such a claim for any sexual behaviour is adversative to public health and may limit sexual freedom.

The post Researchers Opinion Regarding Pornography as A Public Health Crisis appeared first on Spark Health MD.

Twitter Hack: Several High-Profile Accounts were Targeted in Arguably the Biggest Security Incident in Twitter’s History

A major security breach occurred on twitter on Wednesday which saw several high-profile Twitter accounts hacked. Cyber Security analysts have given a warning that the personal data belonging to the accounts targeted in the twitter hack may be compromised. The hackers used these accounts to spread a scam involving cryptocurrency. Official Twitter accounts of health organizations such as NHS, CDC, and WHO are also at the risk of being hacked.

Twitter support team believes that it was a social engineering attack by the hackers who targeted twitter staff with access to the internal tools and systems of twitter and got successful. More than 300 people were fooled by this twitter hack and sent more than 100,000 dollars to the hackers before the tweets were taken down and all the verified accounts were locked.

The accounts that were hacked included that of the former US president Barack Obama, Kim Kardashian West, Jeff Bezos, Kanye West, Warren Buffet and Mike Bloomberg, all of them were saying the same thing that they are feeling generous due to coronavirus and will pay back double in Bitcoins what the people will send to them.

These scams stating “double your Bitcoin” have been seen on Twitter for years but simultaneous hacking of actual accounts of several high-profile people on a large scale is unprecedented. So many people were scammed at the same time which implies that there is a problem with the Twitter platform itself.

Also Read: Putting Exercise Bikes at Offices and Encouraging Employees to Use them Will Improve Heart Health, says the Scientists

The motive of this twitter hack seemed clear that the hackers thought of making what money they can and what little time they had because it was obvious that these fake tweets won’t stay there for long. It’s important to remember however that cyber-criminals are known to fill their bitcoin wallets using their own funds to make the people believe that the scam was successful.

Many angry users and law enforcement will have some questions for Twitter management as to how could this happen. A hack of this nature is not only concerning due to any financial scams but also the majority of world leaders including US President Donald Trump use twitter and make some important announcements on the social media platform. A potential hack that may take control of these accounts could have huge consequences.

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey said it was a tough day for all the people connected with twitter’s management. He assured the people that he and his team will share complete details when they know more about what exactly happened. Dorsey’s own twitter account was hacked last year but the mechanism due to which that hack occurred was fixed, so that mechanism has no reason to be blamed in this case.

Security experts believe that it is fortunate that the hackers were only interested in earning some bitcoins or else they could have caused mass chaos across the globe. Twitter’s share price suffered due to this hack as it went down by more than 4 percent in late trading. It has started recovering since.

While some states have been known to be involved in the hacking of social media platforms, there are suggestions that this twitter hack was the work of amateurs. This attack has revealed the flaws in twitter’s internal system which could be exploited by terrorist organizations in the future to cause chaos or even start a war.

The post Twitter Hack: Several High-Profile Accounts were Targeted in Arguably the Biggest Security Incident in Twitter’s History appeared first on Spark Health MD.

Tufts awards seed funding for work in prevention and treatment of opioid addiction

Original post: Newswise - Drug and Drug Abuse Tufts awards seed funding for work in prevention and treatment of opioid addiction

Newswise imageTufts awards seed funding to 8 projects that seek to address the complex individual & community challenges wrought by the opioid epidemic. The inaugural awards of the Tufts Initiative on Substance Use and Addiction demonstrate a multidisciplinary drive to address this pressing public health crisis.

Experts Strongly Recommend Varenicline Over the Patch for Adult Smokers Hoping to Quit

Newswise imageSmoking cessation initiatives notwithstanding, along with provocative public health campaigns and clinical guidance, quitting tobacco has remained elusive for many smokers. The American Thoracic Society’s new clinical practice guideline on treatment for tobacco dependence in adults addresses how clinicians may deal with patients’ reluctance to quit, one of a number of issues not previously assessed in the older guidelines.