Alcohol kills more than AIDS, TB or violence: WHO

GENEVA (Reuters) – Alcohol causes nearly 4 percent of deaths worldwide, more than AIDS, tuberculosis or violence, the World Health Organization warned on Friday.
Rising incomes have triggered more drinking in heavily populated countries in Africa and Asia, including India and South Africa, and binge drinking is a problem in many developed countries, the United Nations agency said.
Yet alcohol control policies are weak and remain a low priority for most governments despite drinking's heavy toll on society from road accidents, violence, disease, child neglect and job absenteeism, it said.
Approximately 2.5 million people die each year from alcohol related causes, the WHO said in its "Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health."
"The harmful use of alcohol is especially fatal for younger age groups and alcohol is the world's leading risk factor for death among males aged 15-59," the report found.
In Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), every fifth death is due to harmful drinking, the highest rate.
Binge drinking, which often leads to risky behavior, is now prevalent in Brazil, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa and Ukraine, and rising elsewhere, according to the WHO.
"Worldwide, about 11 percent of drinkers have weekly heavy episodic drinking occasions, with men outnumbering women by four to one. Men consistently engage in hazardous drinking at much higher levels than women in all regions," the report said.
Health ministers from the WHO's 193 member states agreed last May to try to curb binge drinking and other growing forms of excessive alcohol use through higher taxes on alcoholic drinks and tighter marketing restrictions.
DISEASE AND INJURY
Alcohol is a causal factor in 60 types of diseases and injuries, according to WHO's first report on alcohol since 2004.
Its consumption has been linked to cirrhosis of the liver, epilepsy, poisonings, road traffic accidents, violence, and several types of cancer, including cancers of the colorectum, breast, larynx and liver.
"Six or seven years ago we didn't have strong evidence of a causal relationship between drinking and breast cancer. Now we do," Vladimir Poznyak, head of WHO's substance abuse unit who coordinated the report, told Reuters.
Alcohol consumption rates vary greatly, from high levels in developed countries, to the lowest in North Africa, sub-Saharan Africa, and southern Asia, whose large Muslim populations often abstain from drinking.
Homemade or illegally produced alcohol -- falling outside governmental controls and tax nets -- accounts for nearly 30 percent of total worldwide adult consumption. Some is toxic.
In France and other European countries with high levels of adult per capita consumption, heavy episodic drinking is rather low, suggesting more regular but moderate drinking patterns.
Light to moderate drinking can have a beneficial impact on heart disease and stroke, according to the WHO. "However, the beneficial cardio-protective effect of drinking disappears with heavy drinking occasions," it said.
One of the most effective ways to curb drinking, especially among young people, is to raise taxes, the report said. Setting age limits for buying and consuming alcohol, and regulating alcohol levels in drivers, also reduce abuse if enforced.
Some countries restrict marketing of alcoholic beverages or on the industry's sponsorship of sporting events.
"Yet not enough countries use these and other effective policy options to prevent death, disease and injury attributable to alcohol consumption," the WHO said.
Alcohol producers including Diageo and Anheuser Busch InBev have said they recognize the importance of industry self-regulation to address alcohol abuse and promote curbs on drunk drinking and illegal underage drinking.
But the brewer SABMiller has warned that policy measures like minimum pricing and high excise taxes on alcohol could cause more public health harm than good by leading more people to drink homemade or illegally produced alcohol.
(Editing by Laura MacInnis and Paul Casciato)

New Address

Well  I have been indoor person for 5 years now  This is my new studio apartment  in North Long Beach  California . A lot has happened in these 5 years including me going to work for Mental Health Dept  here in Long Beach , Ca

Today was sad but happy

Today was a sad day. Bill's momerial service . Just 13 friends and family talking. I showed a 46minute video of the old campsite.
Bob Bill's brother wants one. and so does a few other people so I guess I have a ready market for some.
Glad it went off as well as it did.
If the question is do I still miss him . The answer is yes.

Great Vacation, Bad news After

We we had a grat trip . Luck was in fact a lady to both Bill and myself. We got two (2) Royals within the first 24 hours. The movie was shot and edited. We were looking forward to March 06 for a rerun.
Life was good
Then on November 27th that all changed -Bill Pelfrey died .
That ended a 13 year friendship that ran through a lot of years of homeless camp ,$212.00 per mo incomes etc.
Now I have to think about life beyond that myself.
Strange how things work out

We are getting a vacation

Finally we get to go to Laughlin Nv for a week. I really do need the trip. Between taking care of this place and working at my businesses. I spent 16 hours per day .
Look visit Our Web Siteand see what we do.

Long Beach Phone Company

Well Verizon really stuck there foot in their collective mouths. The phone service in Long beach went down this Tuesday . Not ours but most everyone elses.
The 911 system was included.
Verzion's answer was use your cell phone.
That was fine , but as pointed out in the Press Telegram this morning . Long beach is the 6th worst proverty center in the country. Over 50 % of the kids here can't pass an high school exit exam ( Now I know that does not mean they can't dial a cell phone.)
But what this writer is talking about is a lot of people like my dad can't use a cell phone. I know he's got one and can't get the hang of it.
Maybe a better idea is to have SBC and Verizon make an agreement that the other one will handle calls should an accident to one happen.

Well it's almost done

The money pit will finally pay off . It's almost done one more thing to do that's major .
Speaking of almost done I through along with 54% of Bush's Speech tonight . He did a poor job of explaining how to rebuild New Orleans .
( My source for the 54% disapprover rating is AOL . That was with 192,000 plus people . i don't think we all can be wrong.
I must admit they are doing a little better in N.C. but of courser that's only a catagory 1 storm/ with a lot of flooding .

The Money Pit update

The tenting is all done . There was a delay while finding Laughlin (our cat). was safe. if you have ever spend 36 hours in a garage . You would know why I was pushing for an early enter.
To add insult to injury my DSL had to be reinstall and when that happened I found out I had 388 E-mails related to our business.
So last night and eary this morning we covered those. Theres nothing like this crazy game.

The Money Pit

If any of you think that redoing a house is fun . I could disagree with you .
1st . I wanted the interior of my dads house painted we that started 3 weeks ago . and still isn't complete .
2nd We did the wood floors and they do look nice They can be seen at Our Web Cam but for the better part of 48 hours it was climb out my office/bedroom window to even use the rest room or fix food . Plus we had to keep the cat off the floor also. Try explaining that to your cat .
3rd we take up the kitchen floor . When the people grt here to reinstall the new floor . We get a "no way " answer. So it's re subfloor it.
Today I have movers coming over and the center pieces of the living room are the strove and Fridge. Ain't that going to be fun.
Tomarrow we tent this place for 4 days. As usual with this it only turns out that the coolest day of the year so far are the days we tent .

The Money Pit 2205 edition

The Money Pit

If any of you remember the movie "The Money Pit" which starred Tom Hanks.
Well I going through that as we speak. As most of know I 'm in the process of overseeing the work on my dads house.
For the history of this project in a nut shell is as follows:
He moved here in the 60's and very little has been done since then.
So we started to paint this house 3 weeks ago . That's not totally done yet. Cost (1600.00 +) For god shake I wanted a house painted interior only not the Mona Lisa.
That's phase one Next was the Hard wood floors refinished . Take it from me .You want to move to another planet for those days . Unless of course you love climbing in and out of your office /Apt windows just to use the restroom or fix food.
Also I had to keep my cat inside (explain that to your cat)
But we survivied that Ok and it can be viewed at our webcam at http://jlngbch.ww.com .
Next was take up the kitchen floor , So yesterday the new floor was to be laid in. "No way" said the installer. Not without a new subfloor . Am I hearing More Money I think so .
Now today I have movers coming in and the range and fridge are now the center pieces of my living room , and are likely going to stay that way for awhile .
To add to these problems we are tenting the house Friday . with the coolest temps since Last Oct coming in. And the possibility of Rain also.
All I can say is if you try this "get a large dose of humor and have the willpower of JOB. You will need it.

strange Daze's

As the song title implys .
These are strange days, and people are even stranger . Today has started like most days . You know coffee first, cat pets (a total event at my house) . Then a Call from Hong Kong (not a usual event) to be an ageent for an export company. A job that we have taken because after last month we need the money. Read the E-bay posts
I was so glad to see that the Local S.P.C.A. (Long Beach)was sending help for the animals in New Orleans.

What's Next

Well we went from $9,500.00 ahead to minus $1500.00 overnight. That happens in this world I guess.
Then I get a call that my painter is in a coma so still more delays.
What Next. I think I'll find a rock and craw under it today.

E-Bay

When you get an e-mail from e-bay about making 3 -K or more they are right. You can . In fact we did yahoo last month and made $9,500.00 in sales.
There in lies the problem collecting that amount .
It seems most the flakes of the world are on the auctions sites.
I mean people who for one reason or another just don't pay their bills or withdraw for deals with stated terms .
You know like holding their checks till they clear before shipment ( thing like that) . So now we are without a bank account because of these type of people ( actually that nicer english than I want to use) but this is a public forum .
The past month this has been our experience :
One check written on a closed account for $4000.00, and two checks written on NSF . One for 3500.00 and One For 4500.
This doesn't not include a shipment made in good faith for 1500.00 that we have never seen
So if you think it's buyer beware on Web Auction Sites. From a sellers point of view it's Seller Beware .

Our World

My personal feeling about the Animals of New Orleans. As a cat owner (I not real sure who owns who) My cat is the most important thing in my life.
You could ask some people who have been told to leave my house that.
I feel for those pet owners who had to leave that family member behind.
I pray for the animal to be safe, and reunited with it's family.

Our webcam

If you care to view us Laughlin and Me up close go to http://jlngbch.ww.com . It's our webcam and it's child safe .
Things we are doing now is a big fix- up of the house.
Painting , Redid the Hard wood floors , Tenting the house this weekend, and we will be replacing the windows with new one's later on.
What you will see on the webcam is the work as it progresses, Laughlin my cat , and maybe me working .

New Orleans

Since Aug 29th I think the world has seen what happened. I want to see what will happen in the aftermath.
I think that New Orleans will in fact rebuild and be even better than before. That's the day I hope to see soon.
I know the goverment has failed to address the needs there ,but the problems are so big that noone could handle them all at once.
My heart goes out to those people and the animals lost.
All we can do is wait and see what happens.