News & Submissions 3/24/2011

March 24th, 2011 by sivodd

To break up all the monotony, I’ve done a little reformatting.I I hope this is more pleasing to the eye, the old format was bugging me. Be sure to check back daily, more changes are on the way. All comments and suggestions are welcome.

Headlines:

DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS – Japan Disaster Relief (Click to Donate)

Events:

Festival Invites Public to Stand With Japan – Beginning at 6:30pm on March 24, people will gather at Sylvan Theater (15th Street and Independence Avenue, SW) before walking the Tidal Basin. All donations received throughout the fundraising effort will go directly to the National Cherry Blossom Festival Red Cross Online Donation Site, benefiting the Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami fund.

Arts & Entertainment:

‘The Secret Circle’ Gets a Little Smaller
Executive producers Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain are out as executive producers of The Secret Circle, CW’s witchcraft pilot based on the novel by Vampire Diaries author L.J. Smith.  More after the jump. Read full story from fearnet.com

Exclusive video: Leigh Whannell on “INSIDIOUS,”
How’s this for a match made in…hell?! The creators of the SAW and PARANORMAL ACTIVITY franchises have teamed up for INSIDIOUS, a superscary haunted house chiller guaranteed to have you jumping out of your seat. Over the next week or so, Fangoria.com will be presenting exclusive video chats (directed and edited by Bill Hall) with Australian filmmakers James Wan and Leigh Whannell. Today Fango’s Tony Timpone continues his talk with actor/screenwriter Whannell (see part one here) about the making of INSIDIOUS and provides scoops on his future projects. Read full story from fangoria.com

Environment:

Oil Spill in South Atlantic Threatens Endangered Penguins
A major spill of heavy crude oil from a wrecked freighter has coated an estimated 20,000 endangered penguins on a remote South Atlantic island chain, the local authorities and environmental groups said Tuesday.

More than 800 tons of fuel oil has leaked from the Maltese-registered ship, which ran aground on Nightingale Island, part of the Tristan da Cunha archipelago, a British territory, early in the morning of March 16, local officials said. All 22 crew members of the M.S. Oliva were rescued.

“The scene at Nightingale is dreadful, as there is an oil slick encircling the island,” Trevor Glass, a local conservation officer, said in a statement. Read full story from nytimes.com

Say it with Butterflies – Green Start-Up Grows Monarch Butterflies for Events, Therapy & Conservation
Here is an interesting buisness idea; grow butterflies to let fly at special ocasions and at the same time help the enviornment as well as people with special needs. The project is called Mariposeando (Spanish for something like ‘butterflying’) and has just hatched out in the North of Spain. The idea behind it is to help the population of Monarch Butterflies (Danaus Plexippus) grow as it has been declared as a species that needs protecting by the Spanish Ministry of the Environment. So why not let some butterflies free at your next party or send them as a green wedding gift! Read full story from treehugger.com

Health:

6 Natural Remedies to ‘Cure’ a Cold
With winter fully upon us, cold season has officially arrived, with coughing, sinus congestion, and the dullness that colds impart. Fortunately, natural cold remedies can help you to beat colds more quickly, and reduce the severity of symptoms.

Here are a few of my favorite remedies, which are free of side effects. Read full story from foxnews.com

Old cures, new uses
Modern America is chronically overmedicated, report after report says. Traditional doctors prescribe drugs for all sorts of maladies, but one shop in Chicago’s Chinatown is touting its ancient cures as an alternative.

Kent Young Health Products Center Co. in sells over 400 herbs for a variety of ailments, from the common cold, nausea and digestive problems to urinary tract infections, high blood pressure and cancer. Read full story from chicagojournel.com

Lifestyle & Religion:

Rich under attack
Newly rich South Africans are increasingly accused of witchcraft and attacked by their neighbours, police in the northern province of Limpopo said Wednesday.

“Now you are a witch because you are driving a four-by-four. This is the mentality that people have,” police spokesman Hangwani Mulaudzi, told the Sapa news agency.

“Once people start amassing wealth, getting bigger houses and sending their children to better schools, it means you are engaging yourself in witchcraft. Read full story from theprovince.com

White witch Dot is refusing to die
THE White Witch of Milton Keynes is alive and magical after a spell of sickness so severe doctors gave her three hours to live.

Remarkable Dot Griffiths, known as Madam Morgana, has bounced back after gruelling surgery and radiotherapy to take her wheelchair-bound wizardry all over the country.

The 74-year-old great gran has been casting spells, practising paganism and fighting for the good of the world for decades.

Even on her sick bed, fighting stage 3 Endometrial cancer, she held impromptu clairvoyance session for her fellow patients. And while recuperating she dashed out a book of spells called ‘Grimoirs of Madam Morgana’, which she hopes to get published. Read full story from miltonkeynes.co.uk

Local Celtic jeweler gets national attention

Fairport, N.Y. — The difference between jeweler Stephen Walker and historians who study Celtic jewelry is simple. While they analyze how ancient metal crafts were made, he has a more hands-on approach — something that comes naturally to him.

Walker, who owns Walker Metalsmiths Celtic Jewelry in Fairport, has worked with silver and gold for more than 25 years, studying the intricate artistry of Scottish and Irish craftsmen of old. It’s a topic that’s interested him since the age of 13, and his curiosity has earned him a spot on the international stage.

In July he will be presenting his research at the Sixth International Conference of Insular Art in York, England. He is one of the few craftsmen presenting, and says having the chance to share his findings with the best and brightest scholars, archeologists and curators in his field is a great honor. Read full story from fairport-erpost.com

News:

Pastor loses job after questioning hell’s existence
DURHAM, N.C. — When Chad Holtz lost his old belief in hell, he also lost his job.

The pastor of a rural United Methodist church in North Carolina wrote a note on his Facebook page supporting a new book by Rob Bell, a prominent young evangelical pastor and critic of the traditional view of hell as a place of eternal torment for billions of damned souls.

Two days later, Holtz was told complaints from church members prompted his dismissal from Marrow’s Chapel in Henderson. Read full story from msnbc.msn.com

Crisis In Japan: Dead, Missing Total Rises Above 26,000
Here are some of the latest developments in Japan, which is recovering from the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami that killed thousands, left hundreds of thousands homeless and crippled a nuclear power plant in Fukushima:

— More Than 26,000 Dead Or Missing: According to the latest estimate from the National Police Agency, “more than 26,000 people are officially dead or missing.” There are 9,737 confirmed deaths and 16,423 people unaccounted for. (NHK) Read full story from npr.com

Westboro Baptist Church Plans To Picket Elizabeth Taylor’s Funeral
Members of Westboro Baptist Church revealed plans on Wednesday to picket the funeral of Elizabeth Taylor, the silver screen legend who passed away this week at the age of 79.

The Twitter stream of Margie Phelps, legal adviser and de facto spokesperson for the small Kansas-based congregation, was littered on Wednesday with messages disparaging the late activist actress and revealing plans for Westboro to demonstrate at her forthcoming funeral.

“No RIP Elizabeth Taylor who spent her life in adultery and enabling proud fags. They cuss her in hell today. #Westboro will picket funeral!” one tweet read. Read full story from huggingtonpost.com

32 arrested for ‘witch’ murders
The suspects were found just after midnight yesterday hiding in a cave on a mountain near the village.

Limpopo police spokesperson Brigadier Hangwane Mulaudzi said police launched a massive manhunt after a tip-off from members of the community, who told them the whereabouts of the suspects.

He said the police went to the houses of the suspects at about midnight. Read full story from sowetanlive.co.za

Witches have right to live
The number of victims in the various witches’ camps in Northern Ghana appears to be increasing by the day, despite numerous campaigns by both non-governmental organisations (NGO) and the media. The existence of three camps in the three, namely the Upper East, Upper West and Northern, is helping to address the problem.  Many accused of witchcraft are now insulated from the wrath of their own people, by being confined to these camps.

It is a shame that in a society like Ghana, where old age has always been revered, to be in the evening of one’s life is threatening to become a nightmare.

The vulnerable, especially, old and weak women, is the group of people who always fall victim when suspicion of the existence of a witch or wizard arises among a family or society. The belief of the people of the northern part of the country makes people attribute bad dreams, poor harvests, sickness and epidemics to witchcraft manipulation. Read full story from modernghana.com

Paranormal:

Creeped Out by Paranormal Doings at Home?
Creaky floors. Cool drafts. Bumps in the night. They’re enough to get the imagination running. Hollywood images converge with rational explanations, clouding reality and making these occurrences difficult to comprehend.

“Eighty percent of the claims of paranormal activity are things that can be explained away,” said Melissa Tanner, founder and lead investigator of TnT Paranormal Investigators LLC. For three years, Tanner and her crew have been enlisted by area homeowners to dispel potential hauntings. Armed with digital camcorders, audio equipment and infrared cameras, Tanner seeks explanation. Read full story from frankfur.patch.com

Media:

Eco-homes: Living the good life – video (Source – Guardian)
Following his trip to the self-sustainable Lammas in Wales, Heydon Prowse visits Pembrokeshire national park to meet two families living in low-cost, environmentally sustainable dwellings

Storm Worlds (Source – National Geographic)

Blogspot:

Feel free to leave comments regarding the articles posted.

If you’re interested in guest blogging or would like to submit an article or event, contact me at pagansworld.org@gmail.com.

Thanks for stopping by! Well wishes to you all and have a great day!

Lisa

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