November 2010 Archives

The Estrella name is well-known for the renowned artisan cheeses from farmer Kelli Estrella's 36 cows and 40 goats. It has also become well-known after appearing in several news stories lately, like the one from The New York Times, after dangerous bacteria was found in some of her cheeses.

No illnesses have been linked to the cheese, but tests found listeria, a potentially deadly bacteria, that is especially dangerous for the very young, very old, and pregnant women.

The Food and Drug Administration moved to shut down the Estrella Family Creamery in Washington last month.

"The level of risk is far less with the little guy than it is with the big guy," said Montana Senator Jon Tester in defense of the Estrella Family Creamery.

William Marler, a Seattle food safety lawyer, doesn't understand the negative attitude from many Estrella supporters toward the F.D.A. "I just don't know how they make the leap from the government trying to do the right thing for public health to 'they're food Nazis in the pocket of big agribusiness.'"

Kelli Estrella plans to fight back in court, according to what she told The New York Times.

"I don't think this issue is about bacteria and it's not about cheese," she said. "I think that we're losing our freedom."

"Motorbikes deliver students -- some with helmets over their head scarves, others with laptops slung across their shoulders -- down the wide, tree-lined boulevard, past the mosque's gold dome, around a fenced-off excavation site where a ninth-century Hindu temple was uncovered this year, and onto the campus of the Islamic University of Indonesia," reported Liz Gooch of the New York Times.

The University is the oldest private university in Indonesia and thousands of other private institutions have followed, totaling more than 3,000 private institutions in the country today, with many success stories to back them.

However, researchers say the quality of education offered by private universities varies greatly, according to The New York Times.

"Some private universities have poor facilities, while others lack qualified lecturers," said Mohamad Fahmi, an academic at Padjadjaran University in Bandung, to The New York Times.

The Islamic University of Indonesia was 12th this year in government rankings and it represents the kind of private institution that academics believe should be replicated, according to The New York Times.

Between "Fire Childress!" cries from those dressed in purple and gold and "Go Pack Go!" chants from those dressed in green and gold, the Minnesota Vikings managed another loss to the Green Bay Packers in their 100th meeting, this time at Mall of America Field.

The Star Tribune reported that The Vikings went without a touchdown in what might be the last meeting between Favre and his former team, which is now being lead by Aaron Rodgers.

With a 31-3 victory, the Packers capitalized on the Vikings' mistakes--mostly turnovers and penalties--both of which have become very familiar to Vikings fans this season.

The Vikings fall to 3-7 and will travel to Washington to play the Redskins next week.

Long after the smell of hot dogs and popcorn, the cracking of a bat and cheers from the crowd, Target Field is getting ready for winter, according to an article by The Star Tribune's Kevin Duchschere.

Workers are carefully encasing the field's outdoor TVs in special blankets, draining fixtures in concession stands and bathrooms, covering the outdoor Budweiser and Captain's decks in canvas, and overlaying cushioned and wood-back stadium seats.

The infield now lies underneath a large tarp, and the bright green grass of the outfield will soon follow suit.

Last week the team announced Target Field "enhancements" for the 2011 season estimated between $4 million and $6 million, including a right-field scoreboard, an LED-lit "Twins Tower," more radiant heat and n addition of yellow limestone on the right-field wall,The Star Tribune said.

When Oliver Tracy looks back on his first-grade photo ten years from now, he will see a striped blue tie, a clean white shirt, and perfect bright blond hair. He won't see the scab that was just below his face that day, because photographers will have removed it with digital retouching, reported The New York Times.

Parents are only given the choice to alter their child's photo and most of them do not choose to go through with it, the article reported.

However, "There are kids who have some substantial socially stigmatizing features that they want to tone down," said Dr. Bradley S. Peterson, chief of child and adolescent psychiatry at Columbia University and the New York State Psychiatric Institute. The option to alter a child's photo may be a good thing in some cases, Dr. Peterson told The New York Times.

But when parents check a box to agree to retouching, they are "potentially validating the concerns that it is not O.K. to be that way," Dr. Peterson said.

Parents now have the option to erase scars, moles, braces and acne, whiten teeth and even fix a bad hair day.

Oliver Tracy's father, Jahn, defends his own choice to digitally erase his son's scab. "It's not like I'm making him thinner," he told The New York Times.

4,500 Carnival Splendor passengers reached land Thursday after a fire knocked out the ship's electricity.

Passengers told reporters that crew members lied about the engine-room fire which had started Monday, saying it was "flameless," according to what passenger Jackie Harlan told CBS News.

The fire was the reason for lack of air conditioning and hot water, the back-up of toilets, and the depletion of food supply.

Several tugboats lead the ship into San Diego Bay after 3 days adrift.

Carnival has offered a free cruise at a later date in addition to a refund for the cruise as well as a reimbursement for their transportation costs back home, according to a report by MSNBC.

According to an article by Business Week, the former head of a federal safety panel said that overall, ocean liners have a good safety record. However, he says, on-board fires have long been a significant concern of investigators.

After a close vote, Arizona voters have approved a medical marijuana law for people with chronic or debilitating diseases, making them the fifteenth state to do so.

1.67 million votes were cast on election day. The final tallies were announced Saturday, favoring Proposition 203 by a margin of less than 5,000 votes.

The bill was opposed by all of Arizona's sheriffs, county prosecutors, the governor, the state attorney general and a number of other politicians, according to the New York Times.

However, New York Times reported that more than 250,000 signatures were collected in favor of Proposition 203.

According to the Eastern Arizona Courier, patients who are recommended by a doctor to treat their ailment with cannabis will be allowed to purchase up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana from a dispensary no more than every two weeks.

Andrew Meyers, campaign manager for Arizona Medical Marijuana Policy Project, expressed his excitement about the bill's passing.

"It's our responsibility to help implement a program that Arizona can be proud of," he said. "We were optimistic that this is what the result was going to be today, and we're thrilled that it came to reality."

Paul and Rachel Chandler were released by Somali pirates around 4 a.m. Sunday after more than a year of being held as hostages.

The British couple had been sailing off the coast of Seychelles in the Indian Ocean on their private 38-foot-yacht when Somali pirates boarded on October 23 of last year.

Paul Chandler, 60, told ABC Australia's Philip Williams that he and his wife were beaten after refusing to be separated.

According to a Huffington Post article from November 2009, Rachel Chandler, 56, reported that she and her husband were told they would not be fed and would also be denied water.

In the same article, Paul Chandler expressed that he had no doubt they would be killed within a week if the demanded ransom was not paid.

Somali pirates had originally demanded $7 million, however the family supposedly paid much less, according to ABC.

Despite the couple's release, Somali pirates still hold nearly 500 hostages since they are usually only released in exchange for multimillion dollar ransoms, according to MSNBC.

British Prime Minister David Cameron has described the couple's release as "tremendous news."

"I unreservedly condemn the actions of those that held the Chandlers for so long," he said. "Kidnapping is never justified."

After 32 years on the air, WCCO's Don Shelby has said goodbye.

Shelby, now 63, faced several setbacks early on, including an ultimatum given to him by his boss after showing up intoxicated to a news cast within his first two years at WCCO.

Since then, Shelby has been deemed 30-years-sober by Alcoholics Anonymous, according to the Star Tribune.

He was challenged again six years ago when he suffered two strokes which ultimately caused a hole in his heart.

He returned to the newsroom in less than a month.

After announcing his retirement in May, Shelby is scheduled for his last WCCO newscast on November 22, according to the Pioneer Press, and Frank Vascellero is set to take over the 10 p.m. spot.

"You can't replace Don's part of the family," WCCO sports anchor Mark Rosen told the Star Tribune.

The pressure is on for University of Minnesota's Board of Regents to find a successor for current president, Robert H. Bruininks.

Bruininks has served as the University's president since 2002 and has been a part of the University staff for more than 40 years, according to the University's website.

His contract ends at the end of the 2010-2011 school year.

According to an article by the Star Tribune in 2008, Bruininks had said that he may leave before his contract ends, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

On Friday, The University named Eric W. Kaler, Provost and Vice President for Brookhaven Affairs at Stony Brook University, as a finalist for the position.

Kaler remains the only finalist. "I'm just thrilled," he told the Pioneer Press.

He is set to visit the University's campus Wednesday and Thursday.