Nationalgeographic, By: Brian Clark Howard, 08/11/2013

When Josh Humbert inspects his farm, he dives into the clear blue waters of a lagoon, on a picture-perfect island that is fringed with palm trees. Humbert is the manager and owner of Kamoka Pearl, a boutique family business on the French Polynesian atoll of Ahe that is trying to shake up the international pearl market by raising pearls more sustainably.

"It's like another planet," Humbert told National Geographic about Ahe, an atoll that sits just a few feet above sea level, about 300 miles (480 kilometers) northeast of Tahiti in the Tuamotu Archipelago. "There's no dirt, it's just sand and coral, so the bottoms of your bare feet don't even get dirty."
 

For more on this story visit www.nationalgeographic.com

Commondreams.org, By: John Atcheson, 08/28/2013       

Most of the debate around Manning and Snowden focuses on what they did and whether they are heroes, traitors, or something in between. And that’s exactly the way our leaders want it. Because that keeps the debate off the fact that our government is spying on us; that the fourth amendment is in shreds; that the degree of government intervention in our lives is not warranted by the nature of the threat we face; and the breakdown in the media coverage of the Patriot Act in particular, and national security in general, made these leaks essential if we are to have a functioning democracy.

For more on this story visit www.commondreams.org

True Activist, By: Amanda Froelich, 08/26/2013

With Harvard’s confirming study on the detrimental effects of milk consumption , startled families are torn between habit and health-minded effort as to what to consume in its place. Creamy, filling, and a staple to many, its acidifying, hard-to-digest effects have long been overlooked for too long by dairy industry-backed regulators. There are many reasons to once and for all put down your glass of Moo juice.

First, cow’s milk is essential…for baby calves meant to increase substantially in weight during their first years of life. The molecules vary dramatically from human breast milk and because individuals lose their ability to produce lactase (the enzyme that digests lactose) at a young age, most every individual is lactose intolerant. This can cause flatulence, acne, and fatigue among many other symptoms.

For more on this story visit www.realnews24.com

Naturalsociety, By: Lisa Garber, 08/03/2013

For women, menstruation is a fact of life. For many women, it’s also a source of nearly unbearable pain in the form of menstrual cramps. We take unpaid leave from the office to crawl into bed for days or spend bucket-loads of money on physicians who suggest invasive surgery. Menstrual cramps therefore have an economic factor unaddressed by mainstream media except by the magical birth control pill. What these doctors won’t tell you, however, is that a number of simple, effective, and natural home remedies for menstrual cramps are available.

For more on this story visit www.naturalsociety.com