Human rights in the People's Republic of China

The Constitution of the People's Republic of China guarantees freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right to a fair trial, freedom of religion, universal suffrage, and property rights. However, censorship of political speech and information is explicitly and routinely used to protect what the government considers national security interests. The government has a policy of suppressing most protests and organizations that it considers a threat to social steadiness and national unity, as was the case with the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. However, there are limits to the methods that the Party is willing to use as the media have become progressively more active in publicizing social problems, and exposing corruption and inefficiency at lower levels of government. The Party has also been rather ineffective at controlling information, and in some cases has had to change policies in response to public outrage. Although organized opposition against the Party is not accepted, demonstrations over local issues are recurrently and increasingly tolerated.

posted by khandimine at 17/01/07 5:35 AM | 0 comment(s)

Motor transport

Public transport is the most significant form of motor transport on Earth. Whilst in the Western World private cars rule, in meager countries (which symbolize the greater part of human population) most people cannot pay for a private car (or in dense urban areas the cost for parking), so walking, (motor) cycling or public transport are frequently the only options, with only the latter being viable for better distances. This frequently takes the form of mini-buses (jitneys) that might go after fixed routes but are typically flexible, including the option of taxi-style door-to-door transportation.
Public transport could be faster than other modes of journey where a separate transportation is used and thus much higher speeds are probable than are acceptable on roads. Prime examples are in cities where road congestion can be avoided (metro), and for long chilliness travel (trains). On roads this is also likely if the public transportation has its own part lanes. However, in fact the lanes are frequently shared, in which case public transport on roads is usually slower due to the (frequent) stops and changeovers. Additionally, public transport system might be weakly developed and thus can take up to two or might even three times longer than an equivalent trip in a private vehicle.

posted by khandimine at 10/11/06 3:15 AM | 0 comment(s)

Diabetes in cats and dogs

Diabetes mellitus strikes 1 in 400 cats and a similar number of dogs, though recent veterinary studies note that it is becoming more common lately. Symptoms in dogs and cats are similar to those in humans. In general, most dogs and about 5-20% of cats experience type-1 diabetes, rather than the type-2 that's now becoming regular in obese humans. The other 80-95% of cats experience type-2 diabetes. The condition is definitely treatable, and need not shorten the animal's life span or life quality. In type-2 cats, prompt effective treatment can even lead to diabetic reduction, in which the cat no longer needs injected insulin. Untreated, the condition leads to blindness in dogs, increasingly weak legs in cats, and eventually malnutrition, ketoacidosis and/or dehydration, and death.

Cats and dogs will usually show a gradual onset of the disease over a few weeks, and it may escape notice for a while. The condition is unusual in animals less than 7 years old. The first obvious symptoms are a sudden weight loss or gain, accompanied by extreme drinking and urination. Appetite is suddenly either ravenous or absent. In dogs, the next symptom is vision problems and cataracts, while in cats the back legs will become weak and the gait may become stilted or wobbly. A quick test at this point can be done using keto/glucose strips with your pet. If the keto/glucose strips show glucose in the urine, diabetes is indicated. If a strip shows ketones in the urine, the pet should be brought to an emergency clinic right away.

posted by khandimine at 27/07/06 9:48 AM | 0 comment(s)

Cars

Cars are not merely continually perfected mechanical contrivances; since the 1920s nearly all have been mass-produced to meet a market, so marketing plans and manufacture to meet them have often dominated automobile design. It was Alfred P. Sloan who established the idea of different makes of cars produced by one firm, so that buyers could "move up" as their fortunes improved. The makes shared parts with one another so that the larger production volume resulted in lower costs for each price range. For example, in the 1950s, Chevrolet shared hood, doors, roof, and windows with Pontiac; the LaSalle of the 1930s, sold by Cadillac, used the cheaper mechanical parts made by the Oldsmobile division.

He also conceived of the notion of the yearly model change-over, which became a three-year cycle. In the second year of the cycle, the superficial appearance of the cars changed incidentally; for the third, major changes took place, e.g., the fender dies for the 1957 Chevrolet had to be modified to produce thin, pointed fins and squarish headlamp housings. In the next cycle, the doors, roof, trunk, and often the suspension would have to be redesigned. Factories and the yearly work schedule had to be specialized to accommodate these changeovers.

posted by khandimine at 30/08/05 1:02 AM | 0 comment(s)