0 No More Plastic Bags: Africa Leading the Way

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If you have ever had the experience of being in a major metropolitan city, I am sure that the experience of seeing a dirty plastic bag caught in the branches of a tree, hanging off an electric pole or flying leisurely through the air, has offended you as much as it should.

Plastic has become one of the major hazzards to our ecosystem in this age and small steps are being taken by individuals and organizations to control the spread of the use of plastics.

Leading the charge on the continent are Rwanda and Congo-Brazaville. Six years ago, the environmental minister of Rwanda announced that the use of plastic bags was illegal. As with most things, the sale of plastic bags has gone underground since the use of paper bags is vastly more expensive, but it is a step in the right direction. They have continued to have "days of cleaning" where the nation takes the day off to pick up litter in their communities. As a result Kigali, Rwanda's capital, is one of the shining examples of a clean city.

On Wednesday, June 1st, a spokesman for the government announced that a new decree had been adopted prohibiting the use of plastic bags to pack food, groceries, water and other beverages. He said,

"For some years now, particularly in urban areas, Congo has witnessed major environmental pollution caused by discarded plastic bags which block drainage systems, causing floods and landslides"

Plastic is one of the by products of oil refining and is used to create most of the packaging of products in much of the developed World. Plastic is a non degradable product, which means that it will never rot or decay to form different compounds. Little bits of plastic have been found in the bellies of fish all over the World and plastic in general is choking water bodies and streams.

This documentary was made to help understand what they have called the life cycle of plastic. Our efforts to purchase goods that have less packaging are a step in the right direction, however it is important to continue the hard work to reduce the damage that has already been done to the delicate ecosystem that has supported the evolution of our species.

Hopefully other countries will follow in the footsteps that Rwanda and Congo-Brazaville are walking. However, for now it is important for each of us to understand the hazards associated with plastics and do our part by reducing, reusing, recycling.

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0 10 Things I'd Rather Be doing

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0 Phylicia Barnes - A Tragic Ending for a Promising Life

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Phylicia Barnes was a 16 year old, vibrant young girl with a bright future. She disappeared on the 28th of December, 2010 and was never seen again.

The attention brought to this case by black bloggers and other bloggers was the only reason why the media picked up this story. The disproportionate attention brought to cases involving caucasian women missing for a shorter time than Phylicia seemed to incense the blogosphere, who together continued to blog about her, about her case and make her information known.

As a result, many blogs with black and/or female authors covered her disappearance including us here at Qalil. Kudos to all of them. There are other missing women of color out there who need to be found, whose possible tragic ends have to be discovered and perpetrators brought to justice. Like stfufauxminists said guilt is not what we need, we need a call to action for ALL women.

Today the devastating news of her death is being played over and over again by the same media that ignored her disappearance. As we mourn for this life lost so young, let it be our constant reminder of the terrible injustice that permeates our society.  This terrible injustice that women of color who go missing are less likely to be featured in the media than their white counterparts.

There needs to be a change.

Today Qalil.com stands beside the family of Phylica, hoping that time will help these bitter wounds heal.

Rest in Peace Phylicia.

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0 The Face Behind The New Crime Wave!

Image courtesy of Websquirrellolz

As you may have guessed, there are new criminals in town who are making it more difficult for our Police officers to do their day to day activities of serving and protecting. These new criminals are fast, fearless and furry! What makes them more dangerous than your average fast, fearless and furry creatures, is their early start to a life of crime.

These vicious criminals are now targeting our school children *GASP*, running and terrorizing poor teens who would never hurt a fly! THEY ARE SQUIRRELS!!!!!!!!! Yes, you heard me right. The police have now begun pepper spraying squirrels due to too many law suits pending against their departments across the country for going pepper spray happy on erryone. I mean grannies got sprayed, babies got sprayed, the differently able got sprayed...hell they even sprayed each other!

*you can find that footage on cops gone wild part 4 ( j/p)*

What da heck is going on with the popo? This police officer in the video is seen spraying a BABY SQUIRREL... O_o I mean really, a baby squirrel! But he did say something about it being rabid and about to attack those poor teens who are deathly afraid for their lives! I bet you the poor squirrel was skurrred of them teens chasing his poor little tail just to see how loud they squeal. Do squirrels squeal??? NEVER MIND! Enjoy the video. Be sure to pay close attention to the half bottle of pepper spray being used on the tiny creature.

You know that old adage, the smaller they are, the more pepper spray you need!

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0 Happy Black Girl Day!!

Ok, seriously, how fabulous is this?! A day we can celebrate that is our very own and we get to do it EVERY month! Woooooo chile! There's about to be an UPSET up in here!!

Who is this Jonny-come-lately, you ask? I know I'm a year behind (fine fine, a year and a month), but I don't think it matters as long as I got my pom-poms and joined the parade, right?

I'm not going to be fair or humble about HBGD day, because I am so happy and proud to be an HBG! Especially today! This is my first celebration so bear with me as I fly hither and thither across my mind.

I enjoy the company of women, I particularly enjoy the company of black women and there is NOTHING that beats the company of self aware black women gathered together to support and encourage one another. Their beautiful smiles, brilliant white teeth flashing against bronzes, mocha, ebony and mahogany hues brings a big smile to my own. Their sharp wit and deep belly laughs rolling around the room cascading over you and reverberating in your own chest. Their quick feet as they rise to their favorite old school beats, showing off their dorkiest dance floor moves.

Don't just read this wondering what HBGD is, go and read it for yourself!

Happy Black Girl Day my sisters, I am blessed to be a part of you!

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0 WTF Files: Ecstacy may not harm your brain

What the f**k?! If you are a HuffPost troll-er like I am, you may have seen this study on the front page of the popular news website yesterday. In case you didn't, here is the article. We all know the hyperbole that HuffPost is famous for so I will not even go there, but HONESTLY speaking, can we trust the results of this study?
Studies on ecstasy had been done prior to the one mentioned in the article, but the results that were obtained were considered to be flawed because they were performed on people who belong to the "rave" culture (people who like to party). Rave-ers (is that correct? Someone help!) often go without sleep, combine the drug with alcohol and other unhealthy rave-y practices (other drugs and sex). So a group of scientists convinced NIDA to give them 1.8 million to do further studies and came up with "Ecstasy may not harm your brain".
Jigga what?! You don't say! Well then I guess this means that I can get back to rave-in'.
C'mon now! What has science become?
Any drug, prescribed correctly and not abused has been created by pharmaceutical companies to HELP people. Unlike many others, I don't think the historical roots of the pharmaceutical companies is necessarily evil. They have become more evil than the devil himself, but that is a conversation for another time. Basically, we all know that Ecstasy was not created for the sole purpose of getting people high. It was an anti depressant FIRST. But human ingenuity cannot be held down and someone who was REALLY happy with it decided to take it to a party. Fine, that is my take on it and not historically correct, but you get the point.
My main point - which I am trying to get to - is that Ecstasy, X, E, happy pill, smiley face, is in fact a harmful drug. When it is taken by revelers (the rave people) it is rarely ever taken alone and rarely taken just once. People get hooked on that shit. Alcohol isn't dangerous on its own, in fact it has been shown to have health benefits, but there are still people who are alcoholics, for whom the continued consumption of alcohol will severely shorten their lives.
Mr. Pharmaceutical company has seen how lucrative the business is, doesn't want to stop manufacturing the drug so they publish studies like these for the average American who is not curious enough to do more research.
Be warned!

So does this mean that ecstasy really is the risk-free, hangover-free, miracle drug that lets young ravers and gamers party all weekend without having to pay the price?  Says Halpern, “No.  Ecstasy consumption is dangerous:  illegally-made pills can contain harmful contaminants, there are no warning labels, there is no medical supervision, and in rare cases people are physically harmed and even die from overdosing. It is important for drug-abuse information to be accurate, and we hope our report will help upgrade public health messages.  But while we found no ominous, concerning risks to cognitive performance, that is quite different from concluding that ecstasy use is ‘risk-free’."

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0 MISSING! Phylicia Barnes

The mother of missing Phylicia Barnes is criticizing the response since the initial call for help to police in Baltimore.

Janice Sallis told CNN said pleas for help during the first 48 hours of the case were ignored, though she wouldn’t say who was to blame. She made the remarks during an interview with the network news program, which were also reported in a story in the girl’s hometown newspaper, the Charlotte Observer

Click here to read the rest of the story.

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0 American Justice: The Scott Sisters

The news has been peppered with the story about two black women who have been in prison for 16 years and finally granted parole only if one of them donates a kidney to her sister so they can GET OFF the government payroll.

In 1994 the two women were accused of armed robbery and a Mississippi court determined that it was right a just for them to be sentenced to a term of no less than LIFE for their first offense.

Their mother and a few friends have kept the case alive in the minds of those who first came across the story at http://freethescottsisters.blogspot.com where the details of the case can be found. According to the transcripts the women, along with three other accomplices robbed a man at gunpoint and took his wallet.

The trial, a complete sham, ended with a life sentence for both women despite recanted statements, the recovered wallet (with all its contents still intact) and the sisters were sent to jail.

Of course, without first eye witness it is difficult to judge whether the jury was right in finding these women guilty, however it is clear that life sentences for each woman were completely unjust.

Now the Governor, tired of having people write him letters, has determined that the cost of keeping Jamie Scott alive in prison (dialysis treatments) is too expensive for the state and has offered them parole if Gladys donates a kidney to her sister.

This is the truth of American justice for the black woman.

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0 Wikileaks: "The Rat"

by Terri

The moral dilemma surrounding the recent wikileaks scandal is not a new one within the black community. Often times we end up wondering whether the effects of having a ruined reputation outweigh the good of one small member of the community.

We are used to hiding domestic violence, sexual aggravation, drug lords and murderers as part of our survival in our neighbourhoods. 'The Rat' label is accompanied by alienation from friends and family, sometimes physical harm as a warning.

Understanding why the government and their allies are chasing Mr. Assange around the World is not difficult. We know what it means.

Suddenly finding ourselves backing a 'rat' in our midst might seem counter productive, destroying diplomatic relations with allies in order to uncover the truth. Is it worth it? Is there any merit to what the owner of Wikileaks has done?

The proverbial skeletons dancing out of the closet in this instance may haunt US diplomatic relations for a lifetime, or they may quietly jangle back into the closet never to be heard from again depending on the outcome of the scandal.

However this saga turns out, it is an exciting time to be part of the globe and witness to potential global tsunamis that will echo through history.

NEWS UPDATE: Arrest warrant for Julius Assange amended.

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0 Wikileaks: "The Rat"

by Terri

The moral dilemma surrounding the recent wikileaks scandal is not a new one within the black community. Often times we end up wondering whether the effects of having a ruined reputation outweigh the good of one small member of the community.

We are used to hiding domestic violence, sexual aggravation, drug lords and murderers as part of our survival in our neighbourhoods. 'The Rat' label is accompanied by alienation from friends and family, sometimes physical harm as a warning.

Understanding why the government and their allies are chasing Mr. Assange around the World is not difficult. We know what it means.

Suddenly finding ourselves backing a 'rat' in our midst might seem counter productive, destroying diplomatic relations with allies in order to uncover the truth. Is it worth it? Is there any merit to what the owner of Wikileaks has done?

The proverbial skeletons dancing out of the closet in this instance may haunt US diplomatic relations for a lifetime, or they may quietly jangle back into the closet never to be heard from again depending on the outcome of the scandal.

However this saga turns out, it is an exciting time to be part of the globe and witness to potential global tsunamis that will echo through history.

NEWS UPDATE: Arrest warrant for Julius Assange amended.

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