Category: Present

30% of Baptists in the US are obese, according to the results of a Purdue University study conducted in 2006, as cited by Dr Scott Stoll in a Fox News article. This is higher than for any other Christian denomination and compares with only 1% of Jews and 0.7% of Hindus and Buddhists. Clearly politically correct vegetarian diets are less successful in adding substance to the physique than good old Baptist Burgers and the holiest food of all, Krispy Kreme donuts.

The whole of America must be going Baptist, because another study published this year in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine predicts that the US obesity rate will be almost 50% by 2030. A Northwestern University study from 2011 concluded that young adults who attend a Bible study or church each week are 50% more likely to be obese, while a Pulpit and Pew study from 2001 found that 76% of clergy were overweight or obese compared with 61% of the general population.

So, come along to church and join the Chub Club. It looks as if there is now convincing evidence that Bible-believing Baptists really are more substantial people than those of other faiths. There is a solid scientific reason why those evangelicals are so big-hearted – they need to be in order for the heart to pump blood all the way round their oversized bodies. In Australia, 36% of adults are overweight and 25% obese.

A two-year treatment program for prostitutes started by an Ohio judge has restored many women to health and resulted in savings of almost $1 million in jail costs, according to Amy Sherman writing at Christianitytoday.com. Judge Paul Herbert was challenged about his purpose in life by his daughters while working through Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life, and he decided to start a restorative justice program for prostitutes.

Herbert discovered through research that 87% of prostitutes had been sexually abused as children. Frequently the abuse starts at around the age of 8, then the girl starts using drugs to cope with the trauma around the age of 12, then the girl runs away from home or foster care and is dragged into the commercial sex trade by a predatory pimp. Prostitution for such girls is not a career choice, but a form of oppression.

In the two-year restorative justice program, the women receive intensive therapy in residential rehabilitation programs, appearing weekly before Judge Herbert to report on progress. So far 66% of the 72 women who have been through the program have not been charged with further offences, so that recidivism is much lower than for other prostitutes. However, space limitations in rehabilitation centres mean that only a small percentage of the women arrested for prostitution can participate in the program.

The situation in Syria has been volatile for several months, with fighting between government forces and opponents. Numerous atrocities have occurred, with the latest being a massacre of 108 people including at least 32 children, who seem to have been executed in cold blood. At what stage should the international community intervene? The US has now started lobbying the United Nations for some sort of action.

As recent events have indicated, foreign interventions rarely end well. The US-led intervention in Iraq dragged on for many years, and the Afghanistan intervention is still going. Egypt had its Arab Spring without much foreign intervention, but the country’s future remains uncertain. In Libya there was foreign intervention to support the rebels, but it is still yet to  be determined whether the new regime will be any better than the old.

The insecurity in Syria is complicated by the involvement of al Qaeda operatives who are using suicide bombing tactics to add to the chaos, with the aim of overthrowing the government in pursuit of their own nefarious objectives. At the moment UN action is being delayed by Russia, which has historically been an ally of Syria, and which has continuing economic interests tied up with the current regime.

Uganda has been more effective in impressing donors than Kenya in recent years, according to a report in this week’s East African. Uganda has been the key player in the Amisom African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia, whereas Kenya has avoided any military activity until its quite recent ventures into Somalia in an attempt to beat back Al Shabaab militants. Consequently Uganda has been able to convey the impression of community mindedness and military strength.

Over a period of many years Uganda has been aggressive in promoting its campaigns against HIV/AIDS. Uganda has had a consistent leadership, so that it has been easier for that country to maintain a “coherent foreign policy narrative”, whereas Kenya has had a more divided leadership, resulting in a less impressive foreign policy profile. However, more recently Uganda’s international reputation has been diminishing as a result of political struggles.

Uganda has a greater reliance on foreign aid than Kenya, with almost a third of Uganda’s budget being funded by foreign aid. Kenya is also a wealthier country, with a 2011 GDP per capita of $1700 calculated on a purchasing power parity basis, with 75% of the workforce being employed in the agricultural sector. Uganda had a 2011 GDP per capita of $1300, with 82% of the workforce being employed in the agricultural sector.

Almost three weeks ago the East African Legislative Assembly passed a resolution calling for the trials of four prominent Kenyans charged with orchestrating post-election violence to be transferred from the International Criminal Court to the East African Court of Justice. In an article in this week’s The East African, Mary Wandia outlines some difficulties with this proposal, not the least of which is the fact that the EACJ jurisdiction is limited to interpreting and applying the East African Community Treaty.

Another difficulty with the proposal is the fact that the East African countries do not necessarily see themselves as bound by the decisions of the EACJ. Six years ago, the EACJ found that Kenya had failed to comply with the EAC Treaty in electing members for the East African Legislative Assembly. and Kenya was ordered to pay costs. According to Wandia, Kenya has failed to comply with the costs order. Wandia cites various other instances in which Kenya has allegedly misused the EACJ.

A further difficulty with the proposal is that it is hard to see what might have prompted the Kenyan government to put forward the proposal other than the fear that the ICC will hold the four prominent Kenyans who are currently on trial to account for the crimes which they are alleged to have committed. Perhaps it seems unfair that only a few are being charged when many were guilty; but if that is so, why have no efforts been made to investigate and charge others?

One hundred American Special Forces and numerous groups of Ugandan soldiers have been hunting Joseph Kony and the remnants of his Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) through the jungles of Central Africa, so far without success. The US Green Berets and Navy SEALS established bases 6 months ago in the Central African Republic, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, in their effort to flush Kony out of the jungle.

The lush tropical jungle absorbs electronic signals and sounds, limiting the usefulness of the surveillance equipment used by the Americans, while Kony maintains radio silence and uses runners and pre-arranged meeting places to communicate with his rebel troops. Rough terrain restricts the mobility of Kony’s pursuers and makes it very difficult for them to establish supply lines.

In the last month, the LRA has abducted 29 people, and in the last year it has abducted 588 people and killed 149, according to the LRA Crisis Tracker website. The most recent incident recorded on the website was an attack by 4 suspected LRA members on a man near Nadukpa in northern Democratic Republic of Congo. The man was stripped of his belongings including his clothes.

According to the State of East Africa 2012 report, current challenges for the region include child malnutrition (with one third of Kenyan children and one half of Burundian children stunted), poverty (although limited progress is being made), secondary schooling (now that access to primary education is almost universal although standards are very low), infrastructure, international trade, and exploitation of natural resources.

The region’s population grew by more than 10% in the five years between 2005 and 2010, and is expected to increase by a further 100 million by 2030. This effective doubling in population creates challenges for resource management and food security. Maternal and child health have been improving, as has life expectancy, so that there are fewer infant deaths, but a correspondingly higher overall population.

Mobile telecommunications have been expanding rapidly, with mobile subscriptions increasing from 3 million in 2002 to 64 million in 2010, while fixed-line telephone infrastructure has remained poor. The majority of those who access the Internet do so through their mobile phones. Limited availability of banking services has led to the development and proliferation of the M-Pesa mobile payment system.

The main headlines from Mali still concern the military forces which recently seized power from the government. However, their story seems to be a minor sideshow to the rebel activity occurring in the country’s north. The major struggle has for many years been the fight against Tuareg rebels who are seeking to seize a homeland for themselves. Until recently the rebels had had little in the way of success.

That has all changed since the rebel forces have been bolstered by Libyan militias and al Qaeda operatives (although this is denied), while at the same time the Malian army has been weakened by poor leadership, lack of resources, and general dissatisfaction. Since the army’s coup  last week, resistance against the rebels has all but collapsed, and the Tuareg rebels have seized various cities in northern Mali, now including Timbuktu.

The international community is venting its disapproval and implementing sanctions against the coup leaders, but ignoring what seems to be a far greater problem, the seizure of northern Mali by the rebel forces. By the time proper government is restored, the problems with the rebel forces may be insurmountable. Meanwhile, a humanitarian crisis is brewing in Mali and neighbouring countries as the result of recent drought.

Last week the government of Mali was deposed by a military coup d’état. The northern part of Mali, which borders Algeria to the north, Mauritania to the west and Niger to the east, is largely desert, roamed by the Tuareg people who have not forgotten that their traditional land was divided up amongst Mali, Niger, Algeria, Morocco, Libya and Burkina Faso at the end of the French colonial era, leading to a continuing struggle for autonomy.

The Arab Spring, which eventually resulted in the removal of the Gaddafi regime from Libya, also resulted in many disaffected Libyan fighters and their weapons streaming across the Sahara Desert into Mali. The Libyan militias and Tuareg secessionists have combined to make a powerful force for violent unrest in the north of Mali, and the people of Mali have been dissatisfied with the government’s lukewarm response with a severely under-resourced army.

The leader of Mali’s coup, Captain Amadou Sanogo, has said that he will seek peace talks with the Tuaregs. The prospects of success in such talks do not seem to be high, given the substantial influences of the Libyan militias and Al Qaeda affiliates in the northern rebel forces. Elections in Mali were due at the end of next month; it is not clear now how long it will be before the country is restored to civilian government.

The Climate Institute has released its Global Climate Leadership Review, and Australia is leading the pack at the wrong end. While all of the other 18 countries in the review have improved their “low-carbon competitiveness” score or kept it the same, Australia’s score has slipped backwards since 1995. Australia now holds the distinction of being the only country in the G20 that is less prepared for a low-carbon economy than it was 15 years ago.

Australia wins some points for early preparation. We have taken some moves towards a low-carbon economy, but we have a very long distance to travel because we have the highest carbon intensity of electricity generation of all developed countries. Over the past 15 years, Australia’s economy has become more reliant on mining. The mining and export of coal in particular count against us when assessing carbon performance.

Australia also has the second-highest number of cars per person, as well as high emissions per person from the transport sector. France has the highest “low-carbon competitiveness”, followed by Japan, the UK, South Korea, Germany, Canada and China. Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and India are the only countries out of the G20 still ranked below Australia, while Mexico has been the big improver, leapfrogging ahead of Australia and several other countries over the past 15 years.