Free Republic

Simply put, the idea of “Palestine” is dead and buried, and no matter how hard they may try, Western politicians will never be able to revive it. In recent weeks, various leaders of Western countries have publicly broached the idea of the unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, asserting that the time has come to give the Palestinians independence, even in the absence of a negotiating process. UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron and more recently French President Emmanuel Macron have floated this suggestion, despite the ongoing war in Gaza. But what these esteemed statesmen have apparently failed to grasp is...

Dick Bramer, 76, likes to watch birds. But for two years he couldn't see them well enough to identify the various species. Bramer suffered what doctors diagnosed as an ocular stroke (they said a small particle of plaque must have blocked blood flow to the optic nerve) in one eye. A friend happened to tell about Low Vision Restoration in Blaine, Minnesota. Optometrist Chris Palmer prescribes devices that can help improve people's vision when other glasses can't. Palmer fitted Bramer with the devices, which are like miniature binoculars or telescopes affixed to regular glasses. Bramer tried them out and suddenly...

Multiple viral videos of Tesla drivers wearing an Apple Vision Pro headset while letting the car drive itself has people sounding the alarm about Elon Musk’s notoriously dangerous assisted driving technology. Mashable reports that multiple videos of Tesla drivers wearing the new Apple Vision Pro headset while driving using the vehicles “Full Self-Driving” feature has caused worries about potential safety issues. In one video, a 23-second clip shows a Tesla driver taking his hands off the steering wheel and concentrates on controlling the headset’s virtual reality display. The video was posted on February 2, the day the new Apple headset...

It was Jan. 19, 1989. Ronald Reagan was in his final full day as president of the United States and was making remarks at a Presidential Medal of Freedom presentation. As he finished celebrating the achievements of the honorees, he turned to another subject that was on his mind: “Since this is the last speech I will give as president, I think it’s fitting to leave one final thought, an observation about a country which I love.” What followed is remembered as Reagan’s most majestic description of America as a welcoming harbor for immigrants. Here is just some of what...

In a recent randomized, controlled human study, consuming grapes for 16 weeks improved key markers of eye health in older adults. The study looked at the impact of regular consumption of grapes on macular pigment accumulation and other biomarkers of eye health. This is the first human study on this subject, and the results reinforce earlier, preliminary studies where consuming grapes was found to protect retinal structure and function. Science has shown that an aging population has a higher risk of eye disease and vision problems. Key risk factors for eye disease include oxidative stress and high levels of ocular...

Research led by Nicolas Bazan, MD, Ph.D. suggests that age-related macular degeneration (AMD) decreases an essential fatty acid, preventing the formation of a class of protective molecules and reducing repair potential. The discovery may also open new therapeutic avenues for AMD. The study shows that AMD decreases peripheral retinal docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) 22:6 in rod photoreceptor cells, limiting the elongation of fatty acids to form very-long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (VLC-PUFAs). VLC-PUFAs are precursors of elovanoids, bioactive chemical messengers made from omega-3 very- long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids. Elovanoids, discovered by the Bazan lab, have been shown to restore the structure and...

Research promises to spare many premature infants from undergoing invasive eye exams to detect retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), the most common cause of preventable lifelong blindness in children in the U.S. ROP is caused by an abnormal development of small blood vessels on the retina. Isabelle De Plaen, MD, and colleagues found that imaging the capillaries in the nailbed of preemies within the first month of life using a non-invasive technique, called nailbed capillaroscopy, can identify infants at high risk for developing ROP. This screening could eliminate the need to evaluate all premature infants with eye exams about a month...

Degenerative retinal disease is a problem for millions of people worldwide, as light-sensitive cells called photoreceptors at the back of the eye die without being replaced. Thanks to new research, a solution to the problem might not be far off. Scientists in Canada have come up with a way to transform dormant support neurons called Müller glial cells into tissues that work like cone photoreceptors, which are required for color perception and visual acuity. While the process has only been tested on mice cells, it could eventually be developed into a therapy that can restore vision in people. Part of...

It could signal a new era in the treatment of age-related diseases. Anew gene therapy that reprograms cells to their younger state reversed vision loss in primates, according to a new study — potentially signaling a new era in the treatment of age-related diseases. The challenge: Non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) is a condition caused by decreased blood flow to the optic nerve, resulting in sudden, significant, and usually permanent loss of vision in the eye. Scientists aren’t sure what causes NAION, but most of the 6,000 Americans diagnosed with it every year are over the age of 50....

(CNN) - Recalled eye drops have been linked to dozens of dangerous infections and at least one death. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identified 68 patients in 16 states with infections from Global Pharma Healthcare’s Artificial Tears Lubricant Eye Drops. The artificial tears, distributed by Ezricare and Delsam Pharma, were first recalled in February. According to the CDC, patients were infected by a rare strain of drug-resistant bacteria never before reported in the U.S. Eight patients reported losing vision, and four had to have eyeballs surgically removed. One person died. The CDC says anyone who has used Ezricare...

The Food and Drug Administration warned Wednesday of another imported eye product that could be contaminated with bacteria, in the wake of an outbreak earlier this year of highly drug-resistant bacteria that hospitalized and blinded some patients. Americans should stop using Delsam Pharma's Artificial Eye Ointment, the FDA says, an over-the-counter product manufactured by Global Pharma Healthcare Private Limited. The company has agreed to recall the product. It's the same manufacturer behind the EzriCare and Delsam Pharma artificial tears products that were already recalled earlier this year. The FDA had faulted the company for multiple violations and banned imports into...

The CDC has urged several doctors and patients to stop using EzriCare Artificial Tears as it has been linked to 50 bacteria-resistant infections and one death in 11 states, according to a report. Most of the people infected said they used artificial tears, with EzriCare being the most reported brand. EzriCare drops are preservative-free and don’t have any ingredients that prevent bacterial infections from occurring. “CDC recommends that clinicians and patients immediately discontinue the use of EzriCare Artificial Tears until the epidemiological investigation and laboratory analyses are complete,” said the report.

Public health authorities are investigating an outbreak of bacterial infections across the United States caused by over-the-counter eyedrops contaminated with a rare “extensively drug-resistant” bacterial superbug. At least 68 patients in 16 states are suffering from severe side effects after using Artificial Tear eyedrops that were infected with a rare strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced on Tuesday. Last month, Artificial Tears Lubricant Eye Drops, a product used to lubricate dry eyes, was recalled by its manufacturer Global Pharma Healthcare. The drops were distributed by EzriCare and Delsam Pharma and sold at drug stores...

Eyedrops from EzriCare and Delsam Phama were recalled .... As of March 14, a reported 68 patients in 16 states have been infected with this 'rare strain' of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, according to an update by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Global Pharma Healthcare recalled its Artificial Tears Lubricant Eye Drops that were distributed by EzriCare and Delsam Pharma last month. The drops had been sold at drug stores across the country, including Walmart, Target, and CVS, and on Amazon, though the products have since been pulled.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending that consumers and health care providers immediately stop using EzriCare Artificial Tears as it investigates a "multistate cluster" of infections that testing has linked to the eye drops. At least one death has been associated with the infections. Infections have been found in 50 patients in 11 states, the CDC said, adding that most of them had used artificial tears and that the mostly commonly used brand was Ezricare. Results in some patients included "permanent vision loss resulting from ocular infection, hospitalization and [the] death of one patient with bloodstream infection,"...

Unlike Force Design 2030, Vision 2035 is a roadmap for a better way forward for the U.S. Marine Corps.In the rush to restructure the Marine Corps from a global force focused on uncertainties to a regional force focused on the certainty of a single threat (China’s Navy), the Marine Corps jettisoned many capabilities needed to fight and win today and in the future. The magnitude of these divestments is reflected in the accompanying graphic.The multiple years’ gap between the divestiture of currently needed force structure, equipment, and logistics and the arrival of new capabilities with proven effectiveness and in sufficient...

New research suggests aging is an important component of retinal ganglion cell death in glaucoma, and that novel pathways can be targeted when designing new treatments for glaucoma patients. Dorota Skowronska‐Krawczyk, Ph.D. describes the transcriptional and epigenetic changes happening in aging retina. The team shows how stress, such as intraocular pressure (IOP) elevation in the eye, causes retinal tissue to undergo epigenetic and transcriptional changes similar to natural aging. And, how in young retinal tissue, repetitive stress induces features of accelerated aging including the accelerated epigenetic age. "Our work emphasizes the importance of early diagnosis and prevention as well as...

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) reportedly said Wednesday that what he and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) have said about the future of the Republican Party is “remarkably similar.” The comment comes after Schumer said in an interview with the New York Times he would like Republicans to work with Democrats in the aftermath of the midterm elections. Schumer’s remarks precede a Senate Republican Conference meeting in which Republicans will have to choose between McConnell and Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), the outgoing National Republican Senatorial Committee chairman, as the new Senate minority leader.

Glaucoma is an irreversible blinding eye disease characterized by progressive ganglion cell death. To date, IOP control has been almost the only clinical option for the treatment of POAG. However, visual field damage continues to progress after lowering IOP in most patients, suggesting the existence of more complex pathogenic mechanisms in glaucoma. Recently, a collaboration between Academician Yang Zhenglin and Professor Zhang Houbin of Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital affiliated with the University of Electronic Science and Technology revealed the important role of cholesterol metabolic homeostasis in the pathogenesis of glaucoma and rescued the ganglion cells of ABCA1 knockout mice after...

New research shows that a treatment for retinal vein occlusion yields long-lasting vision gains, with visual acuity remaining significantly above baseline at five years. However, many patients require ongoing treatment. Retinal vein occlusion is one of the most common blinding conditions in the United States; without treatment, central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO), the most severe type of retinal vein occlusion often leads to significant and permanent vision loss. Retinal vein occlusion is caused by a blockage of the veins carrying blood away from the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye. The most effective treatment, injections of...