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Whaleboy
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Please make all cheques payable to Whaleboy
Jan 2003
time: 05:27
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4228059.stm
Pope John Paul II has been rushed to hospital in Rome suffering from breathing difficulties brought on by flu, the Vatican has confirmed.
The Vatican said in statement that the Pope, 84, was suffering from an acute respiratory infection.
He was admitted to the Gemelli hospital as precaution and is not in intensive care, the Vatican said.
The Pope also suffers from Parkinson's disease and painful joint conditions.
He was forced to cancel all engagements for the coming days after coming down with flu on Sunday. He has been running a high temperature since then, a Vatican source told the BBC's David Willey in Rome.
Breathing crisis
The Pope was taken to the Gemelli hospital at about 2300 local time (2200 GMT).
"The flu which has been affecting the Holy Father for three days was complicated with acute inflammation of the larynx [throat] and laryngo-spasm," Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said in statement.
"For this reason, it was decided to urgently take the Pope to the Gemelli hospital."
Laryngo-spasm is a closure of the larynx that blocks the passage of air to the lungs - a condition where one cannot catch one's breath.
The Pope is being cared for in the same room at the hospital where he has been treated before.
Contingency plan
The Pope is no stranger to the Gemelli hospital, where he recovered from the attempt on his life in 1981, our correspondent says.
He has subsequently been admitted there at least three times.
A set of rooms has been reserved on the eighth floor for just such an eventuality as has now occurred, our correspondent says.
Vatican sources say a contingency plan was made for the Pope to be transferred to the hospital if he fell victim to the current influenza epidemic sweeping Italy.
Pope John Paul II, who is now in the 27th year of his pontificate, is almost the longest-reigning Pope in history.
A 19th century Pope occupied Saint Peter's throne for more than 30 years and no one knows exactly how long the very first Pope, Saint Peter, lived.
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MRT144
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Seattle Washington
Oct 2002
time: 21:27
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he needs to retire.
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Rufus T. Firefly
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is one way of saying it, though I prefer "mensch"
Sep 2000
time: 07:27
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quote:
Originally posted by Ben Kenobi
It may shock you, but he wasn't the one responsible for much of what you call conservative family planning. That goes back to Humanae Vitae.
As for family planning being a disaster, one need only look at such countries like Russia, and compare them with the third world Catholic countries, to see the success of the 'conservative' policy. |
As a lifelong Catholic, I'm well aware of the origins of the Church's family planning stance. But few Pope's have made the aggressive, dogmatic pursuit and propagation of that stance a centerpiece of their papacies the way JPII has. To have done that in countries where overpopulation is the single biggest problem the country faces (Exhibit A: the Philippines) is a dubious legacy at best. And, frankly, telling people in AIDS-ravaged countries that using condoms is a sin borders on the criminal.
JPII is going to be a tough act to follow. Personally, I hope his successor more greatly resembles John XXXIII.
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Ben Kenobi
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McGregornobi!
Oct 2002
time: 21:27
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quote:
But few Pope's have made the aggressive, dogmatic pursuit and propagation of that stance a centerpiece of their papacies the way JPII has.
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Centrepiece? He's done so many things that I would be hard pressed to name this his centrepiece. It seems to me more of a progression from previous popes, than a personal contribution.
quote:
To have done that in countries where overpopulation is the single biggest problem the country faces (Exhibit A: the Philippines) is a dubious legacy at best.
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First, why is overpopulation a problem in the Philippines, let alone the greatest problem faced by the entire country? One could argue that it is the density of population that will allow for the increase in prosperity.
Secondly, those who leave the Philippines, send remittances. I would hazard to guess that these remittances play a substantial proportion of the economy, and would not be possible without their large population abroad.
quote:
And, frankly, telling people in AIDS-ravaged countries that using condoms is a sin borders on the criminal.
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Why? Condoms don't prevent AIDS, they tend to increase the rate of HIV transmission.
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Rufus T. Firefly
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is one way of saying it, though I prefer "mensch"
Sep 2000
time: 07:27
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quote:
Originally posted by Ben Kenobi
Centrepiece? He's done so many things that I would be hard pressed to name this his centrepiece. It seems to me more of a progression from previous popes, than a personal contribution. |
Maybe not centerpiece -- you have a point there -- but he's given the issue a higher profile than any modern Pope.
quote:
First, why is overpopulation a problem in the Philippines, let alone the greatest problem faced by the entire country? One could argue that it is the density of population that will allow for the increase in prosperity.
Secondly, those who leave the Philippines, send remittances. I would hazard to guess that these remittances play a substantial proportion of the economy, and would not be possible without their large population abroad. |
Your second question answers your first. Overpopulation is a problem because the country does not have the resources to support its own population. Instead, it has to send that population abroad to work. But you know what? Work abroad doesn't generate wealth at home; it generates subsistance incomes for its unemployeed population at home, and that's about it; no savings, no investment, certainly no growth.
Beyond that, it leaves your GNP at the mercy of other countries' immigration policies. Recently the US changed the rules on admitting Philippine nurses, and Japan changed the rules on admitting Philippine entertainers; the Philippine government reacted as if they'd been attacked -- and I suppose they had. In the end, no society prospers by surrendering control of its economy to another country, and that's what the overseas worker phenomenon has done here.
quote:
Why? Condoms don't prevent AIDS, they tend to increase the rate of HIV transmission. |
Right. That's why AIDS is rampaging out of control in the condom-using West, but doesn't present any problems in condom-eschewing Africa. 
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Ben Kenobi
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McGregornobi!
Oct 2002
time: 21:27
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quote:
The more prosperous regions in the world started from MUCH lower density. Economic booms work best when you begin with a small density and grow the population as the economy grows. The US, for example, is the clearest case for example. When you have millions of poor people around, it is hard to get the funds to give for an industrial boom.
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Like in England I suppose? They really didn't start to industrialise until they got most of their production off the fields, and into the cities.
The US is rather a special case. They started with very low overall density, but you have to look at the geography of the US to see why they are so prosperous. You don't have much room before you hit the Appalachians, so most of the population, for quite some time, ended up along the Eastern seaboard.
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And how many condoms were introduced and were they used? All the evidence seems to suggest that most Africans did not have access to condoms or did not use condoms because of superstitions.
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They have had shiploads of condoms given to them.
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In fact the stats say that the average man in sub-sarahan Africa only has access to THREE condoms a YEAR! In those countries where condom use was widespread (such as Uganda where they engaged in widespread condom use and promoting limiting of partners).
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Yes, but they must be used in conjunction. Getting people to use condoms is ineffective in isolation.
quote:
Thailand, for instance, heavily promoted condoms and had them available in large numbers and HIV infection rates dropped greatly.
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I'd love to see a study that confirms the point.
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The problem is that condoms are not available in the numbers that are needed, even though it'd be relatively cheap to remedy that.
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Consider this, you are more likely to have access to condoms in Africa than potable water. The fact that we give them condoms is a sign of our inverted priorities.
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Ben Kenobi
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McGregornobi!
Oct 2002
time: 21:27
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quote:
Your second question answers your first. Overpopulation is a problem because the country does not have the resources to support its own population. Instead, it has to send that population abroad to work. But you know what? Work abroad doesn't generate wealth at home; it generates subsistance incomes for its unemployeed population at home, and that's about it; no savings, no investment, certainly no growth.
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You so sure about that? I would think most Filipinos would want to invest back in the Philippines, once they have the money to do so.
Remittances are a form of investment into the economy, no matter how you shape it.
As for the resources to support the population, the resources are there, the jobs aren't. Travel overseas is more an opportunity to find the opportunities that are not available in the Philippines.
quote:
Beyond that, it leaves your GNP at the mercy of other countries' immigration policies. Recently the US changed the rules on admitting Philippine nurses, and Japan changed the rules on admitting Philippine entertainers; the Philippine government reacted as if they'd been attacked -- and I suppose they had. In the end, no society prospers by surrendering control of its economy to another country, and that's what the overseas worker phenomenon has done here.
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Actually, I would submit that the host country doesn't like remittances, because that is a net outflow of capital, and would rather have all that money stay
home. By regulating immigration, the host countries can establish barriers in favour of their domestics. The problem is that the countries that are the most restrictive, still need the workers to come from somewhere, and the domestic population will not supply their shortage, particularly in Japan.
Any developing economy, because that is what the Phiippines are, needs to have the foreign investment. It doesn't matter whether the investment comes from Filipinos abroad or from others, so long as that investment originates from jobs outside the Philippines. In cutting off the foreign investment, the developed countries are trying to choke off the developing countries, and are attacking the Philippines.
It's a fact of life. Would America have prospered, if trade to other countries was severely regulated? IIRC, that has been the source of some of your wars.
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02-02-2005 06:09
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