| Today's summaries save you 90 minutes of news reading! | | Happy Friday, Below the Fold!
After a few straight weeks sharing positive and neutral stories, today is one of those days where our edition skews more negative. If you prefer more positive stories and missed last week, head here to get caught up. Otherwise, if you're up for it, we have some important updates on unfortunate events happening around the world. | | Nearly 100 more deaths added to Yemen's six figure toll
Tue Jan 18 The world's worst humanitarian crisis is still being neglected in mainstream news feeds, even as the situation intensified last week. If you've missed what's going on, here's a majorly summarized version of what's happening in Yemen. - Almost a decade ago, weak country leadership made way for the Houthis, a "rebel" group that has been gradually taking over more of the country.
- In reaction, a coalition was formed to re-establish the government. Formed and led by Saudi Arabia, where the current Yemen president lives, it was supported by Western countries including the U.S.
- Over the years, not only has fighting ensued between the Houthis and Saudi-led coalition, but additional groups have formed amidst the instability — and just about all are accused of war crimes against humanity.
- Calls for ceasefires have also come and gone. Meanwhile, another group is hoping for an entirely independent South Yemen (the north is largely Houthi controlled).
Most recently, a detention center in Yemen was bombed, killing nearly 100 people, wounding many more, and cutting off internet access for four days. While satellite photos confirm the attack came from Saudi Arabia, their government denies involvement. The recent damage to Yemen only caused further harm in a country already on the brink of famine. The latest figures show the conflict has caused ~233,000 deaths, including 10,000 children directly as a result of fighting and over 8,000 civilian deaths from Saudi-led coalition strikes.
And little accountability has come from the United Nations, with extra scrutiny placed on the U.S. for prolonging the war and worsening the humanitarian crisis after promises to exit the war. The U.S. is also still providing defensive support and allowing commercial entities to sell arms to Saudi Arabia, enabling Saudi Arabia to continue fighting and committing crimes against humanity. Further, the U.S. is considering reinstating Houthis as a terrorist group after failed peace talks, but this would also greatly limit the aid and resources that can flow into the country to civilians, 80% of whom need that aid. | | More than a theory: Pollution causes asthma
Fri Dec 17
A new study has proven the impact that traffic-related pollution can have on children. Researchers studied global concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) at ground level. NO2 is found in tailpipe vehicle emissions, power plants, and industrial sites. They also tracked the global asthma development in children from 2000 to 2019, ultimately finding that roughly 2M new asthma cases develop in children as a result of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) every year.
Past studies have shown how this pollution affects every stage of life, such as one that links air pollution to harm in children still in the womb. Air pollutants can also increase rates of depression, anxiety, substance abuse, dementia, and even death — numbers pre-pandemic show 10 people die every day in the U.S. from asthma alone.
And access to clean air is more than preventing needless death, it also provides a myriad of benefits — especially for children. This includes healthier lung function development, ability to combat allergies, and better sleep with reduced risk of developing respiratory sleep disorders such as snoring or sleep apnea. Fortunately in the U.S, strict clean air regulation has already resulted in an improvement in the number of pediatric asthma cases, dropping from 20% in 2000 to 16% in 2019. Although NO2 has been declining in the U.S. and Europe, it's rising in many other parts of the world. Presence of NO2 represents a large public health burden in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East. In fact, at the end of last year, Delhi had to shut down the country as air pollution reached dangerous levels. Moving forward, researchers recommend reducing the use of fossil fuel powered transportation, improving waste management, and investing in better energy production methods. | | Potentially Traumatic Language A book on trauma, The Body Keeps the Score, was published in 2014. Three years later, it climbed to the New York Times bestseller list — and has remained there for 168 weeks since. The word "trauma" has increased in usage and with it our interest in books about it. "Trauma" now shows up in conversations about being stuck in traffic as frequently as conversations about serious traffic accidents. With such dilution in meaning, some are questioning the use of the term altogether.
>> Read More | | Bananas for Plantains? There are multiple books on the history of bananas, yet inadequate literature on plantains — the larger, potato-like versions of bananas. Plantains are a longtime staple for many globally, enjoyed boiled, baked, or fried. Yet, bananas have overshadowed plantains given their connected and similar stories. Now, experts with cultural ties to plantains are pushing for more to be published on plantains, in hopes of both educating on this fruit and having it become more widely available to consumers in the West. >> Read More | | | 🎬 Action of the Week Want to play your part in improving the air quality of your community? While there are endless lists of lifestyle changes that can help, we recommend pressuring your local governments to make air quality a priority. Cleaner air is often put on the backburner — especially in marginalized communities. | | | Al Jazeera: Latest attacks on Yemen 13 days old | 10 minutes long | | Detailed history of Yemen
3 days old | 14 minutes long | | | Biden and the Houthis
16 days old | 3 minutes long | | Asthma from traffic study
1 month old | 7 minutes long | | | Daily death rates of asthma
1 days old | 7 minutes long | | Clean air benefits for kids
5 years old | 7 minutes long | | | Air pollution affect on health
3 months old | 2 minutes long | | Delhi shuts down
2.5 months old | 7 minutes long | | | _ //\ V \ \ \_ \,'.`-. |\ `. `. ( \ `. `-. _,.-:\ \ \ `. `-._ __..--' ,-';/ \ `. `-. `-..___..---' _.--' ,'/ `. `. `-._ __..--' ,' / `. `-_ ``--..'' _.-' ,' `-_ `-.___ __,--' ,' `-.__ `----""" __.-' hh `--..____..--' Neglecting plantains makes us peel bad.
Art Credit: ASCII Art Archive | | | |
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