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Voters in 19 countries, including in three of the world’s largest democracies, are widely skeptical about whether their political elections are free and fair, and many favor a strong, undemocratic leader, according to a study released Thursday. The report by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, or International IDEA, concluded that “democratic institutions are falling short of people’s expectations.” The 35-member organization promotes democracy worldwide. ”It is past time that people’s perceptions are centered in conversations about the future of democracy; this analysis is a small but important first step towards that effort,” the Stockholm-based organization wrote. […]...

Research suggests that a cup of tea can help in the fight against COVID-19. Findings demonstrate how certain teas inactivate SARS-CoV-2 in saliva—in some cases by up to 99.9%. This is important because the virus infects and replicates inside the oral cavity, passing through the oropharynx before reaching the lungs. "Inactivating SARS-CoV-2 in the mouth and the throat matters because that potentially reduces the introduction of the virus to the lower respiratory system," Esseili said. Esseili and Julianna Morris studied 24 different types of commercially available teas, some of which claim to aid in respiratory health. Of those, they found...

Welcome to the PRAYER REQUESTS thread. This daily thread is a listing of prayer requests that have been posted by Freepers to the main forum who wish to have continued prayer. Hopefully this thread will remind us to continually pray for our fellow Freepers’ cares and needs. GOD hears and answers our prayers.To keep this thread organized, please read the directions below.For a prayer request to be included on this thread: First post your own prayer thread. (Step by Step Instructions Below) Notify Stars & Stripes Forever on Reply 1 of your post. Stars & Stripes Forever will then...

Gov. Ron DeSantis signs legislation hiking criminal penalties for retail thieves and "porch pirates" "We're not gonna put up with that [...] Your package is gonna be there, and if it's not, someone is gonna have hell to pay." "We will raise penalties [...] They are going to be deterred." "We are gonna hold people accountable."

Eating more dietary fiber may help prevent type 2 diabetes by promoting beneficial gut bacteria and substances produced during metabolism, according to research. The study looked at data from up to 11,000-plus participants in the ongoing Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos. The researchers found that higher fiber intake was associated with specific "good" gut bacteria and certain favorable metabolites in the blood—some of which were actually produced by gut bacteria. Those gut microbes and metabolites were associated with lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes during an average follow-up of six years. According to federal dietary guidelines, the majority...

President Joe Biden keeps lecturing corporate America to “pay your fair share” of taxes. It turns out he’s right that some companies really are getting away scot-free from paying taxes.But it isn’t Big Tech companies in Silicon Valley or the Wall Street financial company “fat cats” or big banks or Walmart. They pay billions in taxes.The culprits here are the very companies that President Biden is in bed with: green energy firms.It turns out that despite all the promises over the past decade about how renewable energy is the future of power production in America, by far the biggest tax...

A popular study that claims ivermectin has shown no effectiveness against all-cause mortality contains false information but remains uncorrected.The meta-analysis, published in 2021 by the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, explores how groups in randomized, controlled trials fared after receiving ivermectin compared to control groups.Among five trials included for the portion on all-cause mortality, none showed an effect for ivermectin, the authors claimed.Ivermectin “did not reduce all-cause mortality,” they wrote.But the claim is wrong. One of the five trials was described as finding ivermectin recipients were more likely to die, but actually found that ivermectin recipients were less likely to die....

Idaho school districts soon will have to remove any requirements that teachers use transgender students’ preferred pronouns. Gov. Brad Little quietly signed House Bill 538 on Monday. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Ted Hill, R-Eagle, broadly enacts protections for public employees, including teachers, who are unwilling to use someone’s preferred name and pronouns. It had overwhelming support among Statehouse Republicans. The bill bars teachers from referring to a student by a name or pronoun that doesn’t align with their birth sex, unless the teacher has parental consent. It also gives teachers the right to sue their district if they’re disciplined...

Washington continues to spend like deficits and debt don’t matter, and the politicians would rather you don’t know. For the record, the Congressional Budget Office reported Monday that the federal budget deficit for the first six months of fiscal 2024, ending in March, was $1.064 trillion. Enjoy it, because you’ll eventually pay for it in higher taxes. The problem isn’t a shortage of tax revenue, which rose 7% from a year earlier to $2.19 trillion. Individual income-tax and payroll-tax revenue both rose 6%, while corporate income taxes rose 35%. Is a 7% increase what President Biden would call a “fair...

High blood pressure, or hypertension, remains a global health concern, contributing to 19% of deaths worldwide. In an international review, biologists highlight the pivotal role of dietary fiber in managing hypertension and reducing cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, and call for the inclusion of dietary fiber in clinical guidelines for hypertension. The review sheds light on the often-overlooked importance of dietary fiber in blood pressure management. Said Francine Marques, "Dietary fiber has emerged as a crucial yet underappreciated part of hypertension management." "Our comprehensive analysis emphasizes the evidence supporting the effectiveness of dietary fiber in lowering blood pressure and reducing the...

U.S. innovation fuels our economic strength and is vital for our national security. Released last earlier this month, the National Science Board’s congressionally mandated State of U.S. Science and Engineering Indicators report shows that an accelerating science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) talent crisis is imperiling America’s economy and security.Let’s start with a bit of perspective. The U.S. STEM workforce is now one quarter of the total U.S. workforce – 38 million people at all degree levels who use STEM skills in their jobs, including 19 million skilled technical workers without a bachelor’s degree. That number will only rise as...

First, we learned that President Joe Biden's spot on the Ohio ballot was in danger and analyzed how that might play out. We still don't even have a definitive answer to that question, but an almost identical situation has now cropped up in Alabama. The Alabama Secretary of State, a Republican, has informed the Alabama Democratic Party Chairman, letting him know that the deadline for certification of candidate names on the ballot for November falls four days before the DNC is set to begin in Chicago. The rules in Alabama appear to allow for some provisional options to avoid this...

The former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani is facing federal charges related to his alleged theft of millions from the slugger, a source with direct knowledge of the investigation confirmed to ESPN late Wednesday. The New York Times was first to report Wednesday that Ippei Mizuhara, 39, is in negotiations to plead guilty and that the investigation is racing toward a conclusion. The probe started just three weeks ago when news broke that at least $4.5 million was transmitted from Ohtani's bank account to a California bookmaker under federal investigation. In the first of a pair of...

STUTTGART, Germany — The United States needs to revive the lines of communication with Moscow that helped both countries avoid nuclear conflict during the Cold War, the top American general in Europe said this week. “We could read each other’s signals. We knew how to send signals to each other… almost all of that is gone now,” Gen. Christopher Cavoli, NATO supreme allied commander and head of U.S. European Command, said Monday.

It is the most spectacular trial ever held in Vietnam, befitting one of the greatest bank frauds the world has ever seen. Behind the stately yellow portico of the colonial-era courthouse in Ho Chi Minh City, a 67-year-old property developer stands accused of looting one of Vietnam's largest banks over a period of 11 years. The numbers involved are dizzying. Truong My Lan is charged with taking out $44bn (£35bn) in loans from the Saigon Commercial Bank. Prosecutors say $27bn may never be recovered. The habitually secretive communist authorities have been uncharacteristically forthright about this case, going into minute detail...

hree of the five people reported by Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co to have died after taking its red yeast rice dietary supplements had preexisting medical conditions such as prostate cancer and malignant lymphoma, Japan's health ministry said Tuesday. Three women and two men -- three in their 70s, one in their 90s, and one whose age is unknown -- have so far been reported to have died after consuming the Osaka-based drugmaker's products containing "beni-koji" red yeast rice. Health issues among three of the deceased also included hypertension, hyperlipidemia and rheumatism, while the medical history of the remaining two are unknown,...

A group in Hiroshima opposed to nuclear weapons on Wednesday criticized a U.S. lawmaker's remarks on the use of an atomic bomb as a metaphor describing a way to end the prolonged conflict in the Gaza Strip. The Hiroshima Congress against A- and H-Bombs sent a letter to Republican congressman Tim Walberg and demanded he retract his March 25 remarks calling for an end to the conflict in the Palestinian enclave "like Nagasaki and Hiroshima" to "get it over quick." "It is extremely inappropriate to mention Hiroshima and Nagasaki as a metaphor for swiftly ending a war," the antinuclear group...

A Section High School transgender female student says she was turned away from the prom Friday because she was wearing a dress and wouldn’t change into slacks. Jackson County parent Lesa Drake spoke with WAAY 31 News. She tells us she told her son that if he and their friends needed anything during prom night, to give her a call. Lesa then says she got a call from a transgender female student asking if she would help walk her into the prom. Drake says once she got to the prom, Section High School’s principal told the transgender student she could...

The Arizona Legislature devolved into shouts of "Shame! Shame!" on Wednesday as Republican lawmakers quickly shut down discussion on a proposed repeal of the state's newly revived 1864 law that criminalizes abortion throughout pregnancy unless a woman's life is at risk.