No One Knows Health And Wellness Like We Do
Sunday, February 26, 2017
Monday, February 20, 2017
She’s Alive… Beautiful… Finite… Hurting… Worth Dying for.
Dedicated to all those who have died in her name…..
Live and Learn. We All Do.
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Filed under: Environment, Science, Spirituality, wellness, World Tagged: Act now, Endangered Species Act, environment, EPA, Home, mother earth, timescapes
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Saturday, February 18, 2017
The More We Learn, The Less Certain We Become
One the most important factors for the continued existence of any country is its defense capability. As a nation, it must be in a constant state of preparedness to face all kinds of threats and danger from external and internal sources.
No matter how well developed and advanced a country may be, if it fails to defend itself, it could be brought to ruin with the launching of even a minor military offensive against it, or even a well-directed and unanticipated terrorist act. In the face of such threats, neither its natural resources, its technological prowess, not its economy will be of any avail. If the country in question is unable to defend itself, it may even cease to exist
This is one of the reasons why significant amounts of the national income is regularly allocated to defense; nowadays, armed forces have to be provided with the most advanced weaponry, tools and equipment fitted with the latest technological features, and meticulous training has to be given to soldiers in an all-out attempt to keep defense systems fully functional.
No less than countries, people too have to be concerned about their defense, if they want to lead a healthy and peaceful life. They inevitably have to protect themselves and their possession against criminal acts, such as theft and murder, as well as against natural disasters, such as accidents, fire, earthquakes and floods. But this is not the end of the matter.
Human beings have other enemies, which go unseen by them and, as such, are often ignored. Actually, these enemies are much more resilient than the others. Serious measures must, therefore, be taken to guard against them.
Who, or what then are these enemies that keep human beings under constant threat?
They are bacteria, viruses, and similar microscopic organisms, which may exist in the water we drink, the food we eat, the house we live in, and the office where we work. In essence, they are everywhere.
Most interestingly, in spite of being surrounded by such a serious threat, we make no effort whatsoever to protect ourselves against it. This is because there is a mechanism within our bodies, which undertakes this task on our behalf, providing the necessary protection for us, without causing us the slightest disturbance. This is “The Defense System”.
The defense cells that protect the human body against invaders, such as bacteria, viruses, and similar micro-organisms, are equipped with extraordinary abilities. The patterns of intelligence, effort, and sacrifice, which these cells display during the war they wage in the body, astonish everyone who learns about them.
According to statements of scientists, the defense system possesses an “irreducible complexity”. This term refers to an intact system composed of several well-matched, interacting parts that contribute to the basic function, wherein the removal of any one of the parts causes the system to effectively cease functioning. As an example, let us think of the devices we would need if we were to send a fax:
– A facsimile device
– A telephone line
– A cable
– Paper.
If any one of these items is absent you cannot send a fax. Nothing from the above list must be missing. Besides, they must conform to exact specifications. For example, the length of the cable must be sufficient for the plug to reach the socket, otherwise the available items will be of no use. Similarly, although all elements of the defense system fulfill their functions perfectly, if there are a few components which malfunction, this would cause the body to lose the war.
For example, if the tiny granules located within the T cells do not function properly, they cannot store toxins, which in turn cannot be transferred to the enemy, again resulting in the war being lost. Therefore, in a system where the enemy cannot finally be killed, important functions such as the formation of warrior cells, their training, the transmission of the necessary signals to appropriate locations by the cells at the right time, and the thousands of combinations needed by our genes to produce antibodies, or the storing of limitless information in the memory cells, would all be worthless.
The system would simply not work. Similarly, the existence of the many and varied functions of the human body, which has an irreducible complexity, is equally useless in the absence of a defense system. If the defense system did not exist or failed to operate properly, no human being would be able to survive.
Most researchers are well aware that evolutionist statements are nothing more than consolation and window-dressing. Klaus Dose, a well-known researcher in the field of molecular biology states:
More than 30 years of experimentation on the origin of life in the fields of chemical and molecular evolution have led to a better perception of the immensity of the problem of the origin of life on Earth rather than to its solution. At present all discussions on principal theories and experiments in the field either end in stalemate or in a confession of ignorance.
Even Darwin, the founder of the theory of evolution, experienced the same lack of confidence some 150 years ago:
When I think of the many cases of men who have studied one subject for years, and have persuaded themselves of the truth of the foolishest doctrines, I feel sometimes a little frightened, whether I may not be one of these monomaniacs.
Let’s pause and ask ourselves what would happen if we were asked to control only our defense system and nothing else, we would have to be involved in such a complicated and difficult process. Even a simple common cold would require us to go to the doctor’s many times over, follow up the recovery course of the cells with extremely advanced medical equipment, and use them as necessary. Even the slightest delay or a problem in the course of the process would cause the illness to be further aggravated.
Let’s take it further; what if you were asked to form these cells, make them recognize the enemy and manufacture the appropriate antibodies, then teach and organize all the processes they would perform … Unquestionably, such a life would be far more troublesome and distressful than the aforementioned model. Actually, it would literally be impossible.
The cell of a living being is more complex than all of the technological products produced by us today. Even in the most developed laboratories of the world, a living cell cannot be produced by bringing inorganic materials together.
The conditions required for the formation of a cell are too great in quantity to be explained away by coincidences. The probability of proteins, the building blocks of cell, being synthesized coincidentally, is 1 in 10950 for an average protein made up of 500 amino acids. In mathematics, a probability smaller than 1 over 1050 is practically considered to be impossible.
The DNA molecule, which is located in the nucleus of the cell and which stores genetic information, is an incredible databank. It is calculated that if the information coded in DNA were written down, this would make a giant library consisting of 900 volumes of encyclopedias of 500 pages each.
An unlimited number of combinations can be made with the use of one hundred thousand genes. The cell, however, uses, with great intelligence, only 5,200 basic combinations and produces 1,920,000 specific antibodies. How has the cell learned to make the right combinations out of these unlimited possibilities to form the required antibodies?
Making the correct combinations out of an infinite number of possibilities aside, how did the cell get this idea to make combinations?
Moreover, the produced combinations serve a certain purpose, and aim to produce an antibody that would eliminate the antigen that enters the body. Therefore, the cell also knows the properties of the millions of antigens entering the body.
No intellect in this world can produce a design of such unparalleled perfection. But cells only the size of a hundredth of a millimeter can do so.
So, how has the cell learned such a special system?
The truth is that no cell has the opportunity to “learn” a biological function in the real sense. This is because the cell does not possess the ability to perform such an act at birth, nor has it the chance to develop the required skill during the rest of its lifetime. In such cases, it is a prerequisite that the system in the cell should be ready and complete at the beginning of life. The cell neither possesses the skill to learn such combinations, nor does it have the time to learn them, as this would cause it to fail in stopping the antigens entering the body and the body would lose the war.
The fact that a system that baffles mankind, even at the point of comprehending it, has been placed in a cell which has no ability to think and reason, has a very special meaning.
People in general would like to know what makes them ill, how illnesses take complete control of their bodies, what causes fever, fatigue, pain in their bones and joints, and which processes take place in their bodies throughout their illnesses.
Before delving into the astounding details of the war of defense fought in the innermost recesses of our bodies, we must first have a general look at the defense system and its elements.
Briefly, the defense system may be defined as “an extremely disciplined, hard-working and organized army that protects the body from the clutches of external enemies.” In this multi-faceted war, the main duty of the elements fighting in the front line is to prevent the enemy cells, such as bacteria or viruses, from entering the body.
Although it is not easy for the enemy organisms to enter the body, they exert themselves to the utmost to reach their ultimate goal of invading the body. When they successfully do so, after overcoming various obstacles such as the skin, and the respiratory and digestive tracts, they will find tough warriors waiting for them. These tough warriors are produced and trained in specialized centers such as the bone marrow, spleen, thymus, and lymph nodes.
These warriors are “the defense cells” referred to as the macrophages and lymphocytes.
The phagocytes, known as the scavenger cells of the defense system, take the first action. They fight hand-to-hand with the enemy. They are just like infantrymen who fight with bayonets against enemy units.
Sometimes, phagocytes cannot catch up with the increasing numbers of the enemy, at which point big phagocytic cells, macrophages cut in. We can liken the macrophage to cavalrymen cleaving their way through the middle of the foe. At the same time, macrophages secrete a fluid, which sets off a general alarm in the body to increase the body temperature.
People do not immediately realize that microbes or viruses are invading their bodies. Only when the symptoms of their illness surface do humans become aware of them. This is proof that a virus, a bacterium, or a similar micro-organism has long ago settled within their body. This means that the primary intervention has resulted in failure. Such unchecked conditions could cause the disease to progress considerably, resulting in irremediable dispositions. Even if the person has been infected with a curable and relatively simple disease, delayed response may result in a serious crisis, or even death.
We may not be aware of it, but all the elements of the immune system protect our bodies just like the soldiers of a huge army.
In this situation, the individual resembles a “besieged castle”. Needless to say, such a castle, which is surrounded by countless enemies, must be protected in a very complete and organized manner. Human beings are created along with this perfect protection they need, and are not, therefore, entirely defenseless against these enemies. The “micro” guards in our bodies never leave us alone and fight for us on many fronts.
The invader cells that want to take control of the body first have to fight their way through the front line of the body. Even though these fronts have their weaknesses at times, the enemy is hardly ever allowed to pass through them. The first front the enemy must penetrate is our skin.
The skin, which covers the entire body of our body just like a sheath, is full of amazing features. Its ability to repair and renew itself, its non-permeability by water, despite the existence of tiny pores on its surface as opposed to its function of discharging water through perspiration, its extremely flexible structure, allowing free movement, as opposed to its being thick enough to avoid easy rupture, its ability to protect the body from the heat, the cold, and harmful sunrays are only a few of the features of the skin that have been specially created for human beings.
The technology of the 20th century has proved insufficient even at the level of understanding the methods of this perfect production.
The brave battle fought by of our defense system is comprised of three important stages:
- Identification of the enemy, first action.
- The attack of the real army, all-out war.
- Retreat to a normal state.
The defense system has to clearly identify the enemy before it starts the fight. This is because each engagement differs from the other depending on the type of enemy. Moreover, if this piece of intelligence is not properly handed on, our defense system may inadvertently attack the body’s own cells.
If you were to design an antibody molecule, how would you do it?
Human beings, however, have been unable to design an antibody, despite all the technology at their disposal. The antibodies produced in the laboratory environment are either derived from antibody samples taken from the human body, or the bodies of other living beings.
When people become curious about the creation of the universe and its contents, it will be sufficient for them to assess the self-evident truths objectively and with a free mind.
Once materialism is invalidated, all other theories based on this philosophy are rendered baseless. American astrophysicist Hugh Ross explains this as follows:
Atheism, Darwinism, and virtually all the “isms” emanating from the eighteenth to the twentieth century philosophies are built upon the assumption, the incorrect assumption, that the universe is infinite. The singularity has brought us face to face with the cause – or causer – beyond/behind/before the universe and all that it contains, including life itself.
The primary reason why the theory of evolution ended up in such a big impasse about the origin of life is that even the living organisms deemed the simplest have incredibly complex structures. The cell of a living being is more complex than all of the technological products produced by man. Today, even in the most developed laboratories of the world, a living cell cannot be produced by bringing inorganic materials together.
A very interesting dilemma emerges at this point: the DNA can only replicate with the help of some specialized proteins (enzymes). However, the synthesis of these enzymes can only be realized by the information coded in DNA?
Natural selection holds that those living things that are stronger and more suited to the natural conditions of their habitats will survive in the struggle for life. For example, in a deer herd under the threat of attack by wild animals, those that can run faster will survive. Therefore, the deer herd will be comprised of faster and stronger individuals. However, unquestionably, this mechanism will not cause deer to evolve and transform themselves into another living species, for instance, horses.
Therefore, the mechanism of natural selection has no evolutionary power. Darwin was also aware of this fact and had to state this in his book “The Origin of Species:”
So, how could these “favourable variations” occur? Darwin tried to answer this question from the standpoint of the primitive understanding of science in his age. According to the French biologist Lamarck, who lived before Darwin, living creatures passed on the traits they acquired during their lifetime to the next generation and these traits, accumulating from one generation to another, caused new species to be formed. For instance, according to Lamarck, giraffes evolved from antelopes; as they struggled to eat he leaves of high trees, their necks were extended from generation to generation.
Darwin also gave similar examples, and in his book “The Origin of Species,” for instance, said that some bears going into water to find food transformed themselves into whales over time.
However, the laws of inheritance discovered by Mendel and verified by the science of genetics that flourished in the 20th century, utterly demolished the legend that acquired traits were passed on to subsequent generations. Thus, natural selection fell out of favor as an evolutionary mechanism.
In order to find a solution, Darwinists advanced the “Modern Synthetic Theory”, or as it is more commonly known, Neo-Darwinism, at the end of the 1930’s. Neo-Darwinism added mutations, which are distortions formed in the genes of living beings because of external factors such as radiation or replication errors, as the “cause of favorable variations” in addition to natural mutation.
Today, the model that stands for evolution in the world is Neo-Darwinism. The theory maintains that millions of living beings present on the earth formed as a result of a process whereby numerous complex organs of these organisms such as the ears, eyes, lungs, and wings, underwent “mutations,” that is, genetic disorders. Yet, there is an outright scientific fact that totally undermines this theory: Mutations do not cause living beings to develop; on the contrary, they always cause harm to them.
The reason for this is very simple: the DNA has a very complex structure and random effects can only cause harm to it. American geneticist B.G. Ranganathan explains this as follows:
Mutations are small, random, and harmful. They rarely occur and the best possibility is that they will be ineffectual. These four characteristics of mutations imply that mutations cannot lead to an evolutionary development. A random change in a highly specialized organism is either ineffectual or harmful. A random change in a watch cannot improve the watch. It will most probably harm it or at best be ineffectual. An earthquake does not improve the city, it brings destruction.
Not surprisingly, no mutation example, which is useful, that is, which is observed to develop the genetic code, has been observed so far. All mutations have proved to be harmful. It was understood that mutation, which is presented as an “evolutionary mechanism,” is actually a genetic occurrence that harms living beings, and leaves them disabled. (The most common effect of mutation on human beings is cancer). No doubt, a destructive mechanism cannot be an “evolutionary mechanism.” Natural selection, on the other hand, “can do nothing by itself” as nature. Since no evolutionary mechanism exists, neither could any imaginary process called evolution have taken place.
We would like to remind you that even now, you are totally indebted to your defense system if you are able to read this book peacefully, without being infected by the microbes all around you. Had the immune system not existed in your body, you would never have been able to read this book, having left this world even before you learned how to read and write.
Harun Yahya
Live and Learn. We All Do.
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Filed under: Healing, Islam Tagged: cell, defense, Harun Yahya, health, health is wealth, Immune System, Immunity, islam, origin of life
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Thursday, February 16, 2017
Democracy Is Not A Spectator Sport
Live and Learn. We All Do.
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Filed under: Education, Healing, Sports Tagged: #ironarnold, Americans, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Democracy, Great Nation, United States
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Monday, February 13, 2017
The Derek I Know
Written by Hannah Jeter @ The Players’ Tribune
This is the first of a new editorial series in which family members, friends, and those closest to them, share special insights into the athletes they love.
I thought he was a pitcher.
I know it sounds strange that I didn’t know he was a shortstop. When a mutual friend introduced us while I was at dinner with my mom in New York, I didn’t really know who Derek was at all.
I can just imagine all of the New Yorkers reading this right now thinking, Oh, come aawwnn. They probably don’t believe me.
You probably don’t believe me.
But it’s true.
Don’t get me wrong: I’d been living in the city for a couple of years — and I know I saw Yankees hats and probably a Jeter jersey or two (or 100), but they didn’t register. I grew up in the Virgin Islands, on St. Thomas, which is only about three miles wide. Baseball wasn’t really “a thing.” We didn’t have professional teams to obsess over so I was never a baseball fan.
Derek and I met during the off-season, and I think that was a lucky break. It let us spend some time together away from New York. I didn’t have any preconceptions about who he was, and I didn’t need much more to go on than this: I had met the nicest guy, and I wanted to get to know him on my own terms. Not Google’s.
We met at the right time. To me, what matters in a relationship is being at the same place in your lives. And right from the start, I could tell that the timing of Derek’s life and mine were aligned.
I’d grown up really fast. I started working as a model when I was 14, and traveled the world and built a career for myself. A life like that — going from job to job around the globe, and especially in my industry — kind of forces you into adulthood. The truth is: Just as Derek had lived a whole life before he’d met me, I’d lived a whole life before I’d met Derek.
Where we’d been, where we were and where we wanted to go — everything just seemed to fit.
That off-season was sort of a bubble. I don’t think I realized the full magnitude of his career — of everything — until I went to Yankee Stadium for the season opener in April. You have to understand: Up to that point, I’d only really known him as Derek, this great guy I was dating. This was the first time that I’d seen him as Derek Jeter: a New York icon, a Yankees hero.
I walked into the stadium and saw fan-made signs:
I LOVE DEREK JETER.
DEREK, WILL YOU MARRY ME?
It was a wild feeling, seeing all of that affection, live and up close. It felt almost as if New York and I were dating the same person. As if I was in love with the same person as millions of other people. I thought, Here’s this guy, who I go home and watch TV and order takeout with — and the rest of the world feels like they have a piece of him too. It was strange. I didn’t know how to reconcile it all.
I think people assume that — because I was a relatively well-known model — dating a famous baseball player wouldn’t have been an adjustment for me. But trust me, not all levels of fame are created equal. When Derek Jeter walks into a room … the whole room takes notice. Paparazzi followed us at times. People interrupted us during meals. The only way to maintain some sort of privacy — to be together, just the two of us — was to stay in. It’s funny: You don’t see many photos from the early part of our relationship … and that’s why. We rarely went anywhere.
One way I learned to cope was by compartmentalizing baseball as much as I could, by telling myself that there was Derek Jeter, and then there was Derek. During that first year, I treated baseball like it was just his job. A very extraordinary job — but a job all the same. The workout and meal regimens, the travel, the attention … I tried to tell myself that this was just part of Derek’s “office” life.
But at the same time, when you love someone, compartmentalization is pretty much impossible. Part of loving someone means wanting for them the same things that they so passionately want for themselves. And I gradually began to realize that, if baseball was important to Derek, then it had to be important to me. The next season — Derek’s last — I decided to travel to some of the games. My managers, at times, were not too happy with me; I canceled jobs left and right just to be present at those remaining games. And I still didn’t feel totally in my element. Even during those last few months, I felt like I was still learning to identify the Derek Jeter everyone was saying goodbye to as the same Derek that I knew.
And then, during his last game at Yankee Stadium … that’s when, for me, everything fell into place.
That night, I got it.
I remember watching Derek walk out to shortstop for the last time at Yankee Stadium. I remember how he seemed to be absorbing everything — every sound, every fan, all of the energy. There was something about the feeling of that night that was unforgettable. I knew how much it meant to me. But for the first time, I think I could also fully sense how much it meant to everyone else: the culmination of this 20-year career, this 20-year journey that they had all been on together. This atmosphere that I had gotten so swept up in — for a lot of people, baseball is like that every night. Yankees fans had had two whole decades worth of nights like this. They grew up with Derek Jeter, and he grew up with them. And I don’t think I’d understood that before.
But I’m glad I understand it now.
Timing is everything.
On May 14, the Yankees will retire Derek’s number. It’s a significant moment, and one that’s had me thinking a lot about the end of his playing career — those last two years for him as a player, that also happened to be the first two years for us as a couple. Big moments have a funny way of doing that, I think — of getting you to look over your shoulder and reflect.
Big moments also have a funny way of making you look ahead.
Now, pregnant with our first child, Derek and I are looking to the future.
He already has a name in mind — he’s set on it. (We’ll see.) He’ll say when he calls me during the day:
“So, how are you and so-and-so doing?”
“That’s not the name yet, sweetie.”
Whatever her name is, I know she’ll run circles around him.
We want our kids’ lives to be as “normal” as possible. They’re going to be born into such an extraordinary situation. They’re going to have to be some strong little people. We don’t want them to be defined by their dad’s name — for them, we want him to just be “Dad.” That will be the piece of him they’ll have that the rest of the world doesn’t. It will be special, and it will be theirs.
Still, though, I want them to know Derek Jeter. I feel some sadness — and Derek must as well — thinking about how our children will never get to experience that time in his life. We can show them videos, and photos, and memorabilia — I already can’t wait to show them footage of that last night at the Stadium. But I know it won’t be quite the same. I’ll tell them myself: You had to be there.
And I’m sure that both of us will be thinking about that in May.
Derek and I will want our children to understand that the lives they’ve been given are so fortunate, in so many ways. We’ll want them to learn to help others, and to care for others, and to give back to the world.
We’ll let them know that they are strong and smart, and that they can do anything they put their minds to. I hope they’ll be honest like their father. I hope they’ll be stubborn like me. I hope that they know what they want and won’t settle for less.
And if they want to play baseball, well, we’re gonna have a little talk first.
Filed under: Sports Tagged: athlete, Derek Jeter, Hall of Fame, Hannah Jeter, life, May 14, New York, Yankees
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Sunday, February 12, 2017
Is This The Land History Promised?
Opportunity should not discriminate, the ball should bounce the same for everyone. Worth should outshine color. If we can be equals here – we can be equals everywhere.
Equality has NO boundaries.
#Nike
Live and Learn. We All Do.
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