Maymont's tiny black bear turns 20
Why it matters: Due to his chronic conditions, he likely wouldn't be alive today if he was left in the wild.
Catch up quick: The American black bear has been with Maymont since May 2006, after the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources rescued him from a highway near Roanoke.
Little Bear is smaller than average due to his dwarfism and symptoms that mimic Addison's disease, Maymont spokesperson Melissa Abernathy tells us.
Those symptoms can include chronic fatigue and joint pain, which Abernathy says Maymont helps manage with medication.
That also means that his companion Big Bear, who is about his same age, is almost 100 pounds heavier than him (476 pounds vs. 384).
Fun fact: Abernathy tells Axios that Little Bear and Big Bear have a "big bro/little bro" relationship and that Little Bear's favorite napping spot is on the cliff.
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San Francisco Chronicle
6 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Gangs and merchants sell food aid in Gaza, where Israel's offensive has shattered security
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Since Israel's offensive led to a security breakdown in Gaza that has made it nearly impossible to safely deliver food to starving Palestinians, much of the limited aid entering is being hoarded by gangs and merchants and sold at exorbitant prices. A kilogram (2.2 pounds) of flour has run as high as $60 in recent days, a kilogram of lentils up to $35. That is beyond the means of most residents in the territory, which experts say is at risk of famine and where people are largely reliant on savings 21 months into the Israel-Hamas war. Israel's decision this weekend to facilitate more aid deliveries — under international pressure — has lowered prices somewhat but has yet to be fully felt on the ground. Bags of flour in markets often bear U.N. logos, while other packaging has markings indicating it came from the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation — all originally handed out for free. It's impossible to know how much is being diverted, but neither group is able to track who receives its aid. In the melees surrounding aid distributions in recent weeks, residents say the strong were best positioned to come away with food. Mohammed Abu Taha, who lives in a tent with his wife and child near the city of Rafah, said organized gangs of young men are always at the front of crowds when he visits GHF sites. 'It's a huge business,' he said. The U.N. says up to 100,000 women and children are suffering from severe acute malnutrition, aid groups and media outlets say their own staffers are going hungry, and Gaza's Health Ministry says dozens of Palestinians have died from hunger-related causes in the last three weeks. When the U.N. gets Israeli permission to distribute aid, its convoys are nearly always attacked by armed gangs or overwhelmed by hungry crowds in the buffer zone controlled by the military. The U.N.'s World Food Program said last week it will only be able to safely deliver aid to the most vulnerable once internal security is restored — likely only under a ceasefire. 'In the meantime, given the urgent need for families to access food, WFP will accept hungry populations taking food from its trucks, as long as there is no violence,' spokesperson Abeer Etifa said. In the alternative delivery system operated by GHF, an American contractor, Palestinians often run a deadly gantlet. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops while seeking food since May, mainly near the GHF sites, according to the U.N. human rights office, witnesses and local health officials. The military says it has only fired warning shots when people approach its forces, while GHF says its security contractors have only used pepper spray or fired in the air on some occasions to prevent stampedes. 'You have to be strong and fast' A man in his 30s, who insisted on anonymity for fear of reprisal, said he had visited GHF sites about 40 times since they opened and nearly always came back with food. He sold most of it to merchants or other people in order to buy other necessities for his family. Heba Jouda, who has visited the sites many times, said armed men steal aid as people return with it and merchants also offer to buy it. 'To get food from the American organization, you have to be strong and fast," she said. Footage shot by Palestinians at GHF sites and shared broadly shows chaotic scenes, with crowds of men racing down fenced-in corridors and scrambling to grab boxes off the ground. GHF says it has installed separate lanes for women and children and is ramping up programs to deliver aid directly to communities. The U.N.'s deliveries also often devolve into deadly violence and chaos, with crowds of thousands rapidly overwhelming trucks in close proximity to Israeli troops. The U.N. does not accept protection from Israel, saying it prefers to rely on community support. The Israeli military did not respond to emails seeking comment about the reselling of aid. Israel denies allowing looters to operate in areas it controls and accuses Hamas of prolonging the war by not surrendering. 'There is no policy of starvation in Gaza, and there is no starvation in Gaza,' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday. The situation changed dramatically in March For much of the war, U.N. agencies were able to safely deliver aid, despite Israeli restrictions and occasional attacks and theft. Hamas-led police guarded convoys and went after suspected looters and merchants who resold aid. During a ceasefire earlier this year, Israel allowed up to 600 aid trucks to enter daily. There were no major disruptions in deliveries, and food prices were far lower. The U.N. said it had mechanisms in place to prevent any organized diversion of aid. But Israel says Hamas was siphoning it off, though it has provided no evidence of widespread theft. That all changed in March, when Israel ended the ceasefire and halted all imports, including food. Israel seized large parts of Gaza in what it said was a tactic to pressure Hamas into releasing hostages abducted in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack that ignited the war. As the Hamas-run police vanished from areas under Israeli control, local tribes and gangs — some of which Israel says it supports — took over, residents say. Israel began allowing a trickle of aid to enter in May. GHF was set up that month with the stated goal of preventing Hamas from diverting aid. Since then, Israel has allowed an average of about 70 trucks a day, compared to the 500-600 the U.N. says are needed. The military said Saturday it would allow more trucks in — 180 entered Sunday — and international airdrops have resumed, which aid organizations say are largely ineffective. Meanwhile, food distribution continues to be plagued by chaos and violence, as seen near GHF sites or around U.N. trucks. Even if Israel pauses its military operations during the day, it's unclear how much the security situation will improve. With both the U.N. and GHF, it's possible Hamas members are among the crowds. In response to questions from The Associated Press, GHF acknowledged that but said its system prevents the organized diversion of aid. 'The real concern we are addressing is not whether individual actors manage to receive food, but whether Hamas is able to systematically control aid flows. At GHF sites, they cannot,' it said. Hamas has denied stealing aid. It's unclear if it's involved in the trade in aid, but its fighters would be taking a major risk by operating in a coordinated way in Israeli military zones that U.N. trucks pass through and where GHF sites are located. The UN says the only solution is a ceasefire U.N. officials have called on Israel to fully lift the blockade and flood Gaza with food. That would reduce the incentive for looting by ensuring enough for everyone and driving down prices. Another ceasefire would include a major increase in aid and the release of Israeli hostages, but talks have stalled. Hamas started the war when its fighters stormed into Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251 hostages. Fifty captives are still being held in Gaza. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed over 59,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which has said women and children make up more than half the dead. It does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and is run by medical professionals. Israel has disputed its figures without providing its own.
New York Post
9 hours ago
- New York Post
Be careful where you use this ‘colonic sweep' hack — doctor warns you might poop right away
Backed up? Dr. Jennale, a primary care doctor with over 275,000 followers on TikTok, recently shared a video that can help get things moving — but, fair warning, she cautions that the trick is dangerously effective. 'Be careful where you use this because you might poop right away or within 30 minutes,' she says. Advertisement Dr. Jennale recently shared a video that can help get things moving — but, fair warning, she cautions that the trick is dangerously effective. TikTok/@ It's called the 'colonic sweep' and it involves pressing and pushing along your lower abdomen in specific directions to mimic the natural movement of poop through your digestive system. The maneuver helps guide stool along the transverse and descending colon, following the path of peristalsis — the wave-like muscle contractions that move waste along. It's a hands-on approach to constipation relief that requires no laxatives — just fingers and finesse. Advertisement To do it, Le recommends first 'opening the outlet' by pressing into the lower left abdomen and pushing down toward the pelvis. Then, she advises moving to the transverse colon area — which is just under the ribs — and repeating the process. The motion is meant to work with, not against, the colon's natural shape and the mesentery — a fold of tissue that holds the intestines in place. Advertisement It's called the 'colonic sweep' and it involves pressing and pushing along your lower abdomen in specific directions to mimic the natural movement of poop through your digestive system. comzeal – In short: The right moves can help you go. The wrong ones could leave you bloated and backed up. Viewers were quick to praise this oddly effective method for relief. 'I learned to do this years ago whenever I feel really bloated,' one wrote. 'Works like a charm most times.' Advertisement @ Replying to @rlroshy colonic sweep. We are following the anatomy! I would make sure there's a washroom nearby ♬ original sound – Jenny | FM Physician Some might even call it magical. 'I did that to my ex once and he went so much, he called me a witch,' another wrote. 'This did, in fact, work within 30 min,' was another matter-of-fact response. Other poop hacks, courtesy of the internet, include taking an 'internal shower' by mixing chia seeds with water, letting them soak for about 20 minutes until they get their gel-like coating and drinking them. Travel nurse Brooke Saprito shared her secret recipe for the Hot Buttered Prune — a heated mixture of butter and prunes than can help move things along. And UK surgeon Dr. Karan Raj suggests sitting on the toilet with one leg crossed over the other to clear up any traffic in your colon. Advertisement An estimated 16% of American adults — and up to one-third of those over 60 — regularly suffer from constipation. It's often caused by a low-fiber diet, dehydration, lack of exercise or certain medications, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Axios
9 hours ago
- Axios
RFK Jr. targets vaccine makers' federal liability protections
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took aim Monday at vaccine makers' federal liability protections. The big picture: Kennedy, who has repeatedly pushed the debunked idea that vaccines cause autism and in the past was involved in litigation over patient injury claims, has argued in the past that the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP) takes away manufacturers' incentive to make vaccines safe. Zoom in: Kennedy is proposing an overhaul to the VICP, which was established by law in 1986 in response to the threat of vaccine lawsuits leading to shortages. It's essentially an alternative legal system for resolving vaccine injury cases. Successful plaintiffs win money from the U.S. government, not vaccine manufacturers. Kennedy argued in a lengthy post on X Monday that the VICP "routinely dismisses meritorious cases" or drags them out. What he's saying: "The VICP no longer functions to achieve its Congressional intent," Kennedy wrote. "Instead, the VICP has devolved into a morass of inefficiency, favoritism, and outright corruption," he alleged, taking aim at the vaccine court judges. "I will not allow the VICP to continue to ignore its mandate and fail its mission of quickly and fairly compensating vaccine-injured individuals," Kennedy said. Between the lines. Weakening or removing liability protections for certain vaccines could be the thing that makes manufacturers contemplate leaving the market, experts say — or at least causes them to significantly raise prices, Axios' Caitlin Owens reports. Flashback: During the confirmation process, Kennedy was asked what changes he was considering making to the VICP and avoided addressing the issue directly in his written response to senators. "I will do nothing as HHS secretary that makes it difficult or discourages people from taking vaccines. As I testified to the Committee, I am not anti-vaccination. I support transparency and sound data for vaccines," he wrote.
