RUTHFULLY YOURS

Antibodies may help immune system kill flu by keeping virus from
hiding in cells, research shows

It may be far from your mind in the mid-summer heat, with beaches full of sunbathers — but researchers in Jerusalem have developed antibodies that may boost the body’s resistance to the winter flu. The antibodies – proteins that fight disease – may help the immune system eliminate influenza by interfering with the ability of the virus to hide in the body’s cells, the researchers found. Recently published in the journal Science, the findings could point the way to more effective flu-fighting drugs. “Altogether, the novel antibodies we have developed will allow our immune system to respond more efficiently to a wide variety of influenza infections,” said Yotam Bar-On, a doctoral candidate in immunology and cancer research, who led the study under Prof. Ofer Mandelboim at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The flu is a major global health problem. Seasonal epidemics, which typically peak in the weeks after the New Year, result in up to about 5 million serious infections and about 500,000 deaths annually. In the United States, flu epidemics result in some 3.1 million days in the hospital and an average of $10.5 billion in direct medical costs every year. “It is thus urgent to develop new drugs for fighting influenza infection, which requires an understanding of the virus’s life cycle and its interaction with the host’s immune system,” said Bar-On. The body has its own ways of battling the flu. Natural killer cells, which are part of the immune system, have been shown to be capable of eliminating flu-infected cells.

A Muslim mob in Uppsala, Sweden last week set upon and severely beat a Jewish mother of four, for wearing a Jewish Star of David necklace, Israel’s NRG News reported Sunday.

“One of the attackers signaled me to ‘Shut up or we’ll kill you,’” Anna Sjögren, in her 40s, said of the ordeal, which transpired on Thursday. So far, she said she’s too traumatized by the assault to file a police complaint.

While walking in one of the city’s largely Muslim populated neighborhoods, “A Muslim girl saw that I was wearing the Star of David on my neck and she started swearing at me and spat in my face. I got very upset and pushed her off” Sjögren told the World Zionist Organization Center for Countering Antisemitism.

Sjögren said that someone standing next to the girl then threw a sharp object at her face. “I’m not sure who it was. Everything happened so fast,” she said.

“There were at least ten witnesses to the attack. All ten of them were wearing hijabs or scarfs in the colors of the PLO. Some surrounding witnesses claim that I ‘tripped’ and fell and that no one hurt me. It’s just unbelievable.”

Sjögren’s jaw was severely damaged, her eyes swollen, and she sustained injuries all over her body, according to the report.

AT THE RECENT 2014 Aspen Ideas Festival, former 9/11 Commission Chairman and Governor of New Jersey, Tom Kean, noted that cybersecurity has exponentially grown as a threat since the original 9/11 Commission Report was issued.

The Governor is right–much has changed in the last decade. While dire terrorism threats remain, cyberterrorism and cybercrime have elevated as persistent, sophisticated, and dangerous threats to security and commerce.

The new reality is that almost all of our critical infrastructures operate in a digital environment, including the health care, transportation, communications, financial, and energy industries. While the information technology landscape has greatly evolved, so have the vulnerabilities. Ten years after 9/11 we are all reliant on the Internet’s connectivity for vital human services in almost every aspect of our daily lives.

security privacy cyberIn addition to its primary role in combating terrorism, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has assumed the lead civilian agency role in government for addressing cybersecurity. The agency’s role has evolved in correlation with the growing and complex threat, especially to the critical infrastructure.

Developments in the last few years have shaped DHS’s policy role. In July of 2010, The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) designated DHS with the primary responsibilities of overseeing the federal-wide information security program and evaluating its compliance with the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) of 2002. As a result, DHS became responsible for overseeing the protection of the .gov domain and also for detecting and responding to malicious activities and potential threats. DHS was also charged with annually reviewing the cyber security programs of all federal departments and agencies.

In October of 2012, President Obama issued an Executive Order further delineating DHS’s increased cybersecurity role toward developing standards and enhancing information sharing with critical infrastructure owners and operators. The Executive Order was aimed at identifying vulnerabilities, ensuring security, and integrating resilience in the public/private cyber ecosystem and had three areas of major focus: 1) Increase information sharing with the private sector, including classified cyber threat data; 2) Create a voluntary framework based on industry best practices to improve the cybersecurity of critical infrastructure providers; and 3) Protect privacy and civil liberties throughout the sharing and framework. DHS created eight working groups to implement the Executive Order.

Confronting the Muslim Brotherhood in the American Heartland — on The Glazov Gang
One group’s brave battle against the Brotherhood’s malicious plans in Omaha, Nebraska.
http://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/frontpagemag-com/confronting-the-muslim-brotherhood-in-the-american-heartland-on-the-glazov-gang/