Mission Creep in Syria
This week, the United States and Turkey agreed on a deal to expand cooperation in the fight against ISIS, in part through the creation of an ‘ISIS-free zone’ in Northern Syria. The scope of the agreement is unclear, not least because Turkish officials are hailing it as a ‘safe zone’ and a possible area for refugees, while U.S. officials deny most of these claims. U.S. officials are also explicit that the agreement will not include a no-fly zone, long a demand of U.S. allies in the region.
But what’s not in doubt is that the United States and Turkey plan to use airstrikes to clear ISIS fighters from a 68-mile zone...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - July 30, 2015 Category: American Health Authors: Emma Ashford Source Type: blogs
OECD Scheme to Boost Taxes on Business Sector Will Hurt Global Economy and Enable Bigger Government
Citing the work of David Burton and Richard Rahn, I warned last July about the dangerous consequences of allowing governments to create a global tax cartel based on the collection and sharing of sensitive personal financial information.
I was focused on the danger to individuals, but it’s also risky to let governments obtain more data from businesses.
Remarkably, even the World Bank acknowledges the downside of giving more information to governments.
Here are some blurbs from the abstract of a new study looking at what happens when companies divulge more data.
Relying on a data set of more than 70,000 firms in 121 countr...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - June 9, 2015 Category: American Health Authors: Daniel J. Mitchell Source Type: blogs
Lassa Fever and Travel
As of 2015, at least 57 cases of Lassa virus infection associated with travel have been reported. The following chronology is abstracted from Gideon www.GideonOnline.com. (I’ve also included a 2008 episode involving Lujo virus, a related pathogen). Primary references are available on request
1969 – Lassa fever was first described when three American nurses working at Lassa, Nigeria contracted the illness. Two died and the third was flown to America for treatment.
1971 – A nurse and physician from United Kingdom developed nonfatal Lassa fever in Sierra Leone.
1972 – A nurse from United King...
Source: GIDEON blog - May 26, 2015 Category: Databases & Libraries Authors: Dr. Stephen Berger Tags: Epidemiology ProMED Lassa fever Source Type: blogs
America’s NATO Liabilities
Washington’s collection of European security dependents (aka, the NATO allies) seek an even stronger U.S. commitment to their defense. That desire has clearly been on the rise since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the subsequent escalation of the Ukraine crisis. Not surprisingly, Moscow’s smaller neighbors, especially the three Baltic republics, worry about the Kremlin’s intentions and want to take cover behind the shield of America’s military power. Their latest ploy is to seek the permanent deployment of a NATO brigade (some 3,000 to 5,000 troops) on their territory. It is a safe bet that they...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - May 19, 2015 Category: American Health Authors: Ted Galen Carpenter Source Type: blogs
All the President's Trade Negotiators - Revolving Doors, Regulatory Capture, and Health Care Corporate Friendly Trade Agreements
This week's spectacle in Washington, DC was a nearly unanimous Democratic minority in the Senate blocking a proposal for expedited consideration of multinational trade agreements favored by the Republican majority, but also by the Democratic President and his trade negotiators (look here). Democrats mainly based their actions on perceptions that the trade agreements favored multinational corporations over people.While trade agreements may seem to be another, albeit international species of wonkery, these agreements could have major effects on patients' and the public's health. Since these concerns have ...
Source: Health Care Renewal - May 14, 2015 Category: Health Management Tags: AbbeVie Abbott anechoic effect corporatism Eli Lilly global health health care prices Pfizer PhRMA regulatory capture revolving doors US Trade Representative Source Type: blogs
