The difference between placebos and prayer
PETALUMA, CA, May 1, 2017 – “The difference between placebos and prayer,” said Dr. Harold Koenig during a workshop he was giving at Duke University’s Center for Spirituality, Theology, and Health, “is that with placebos we know there’s no active ingredient, whereas with prayer we know there is.” A compelling assertion, to be sure, especially […]
‘Shockingly high’ losses for Afghan forces over winter
Afghan security forces were killed at a “shockingly high” rate during what historically has been a winter lull in fighting against the Taliban, according to a report by a US watchdog. The US government’s Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) says 807 troops from the Afghan National Defencee and Security Forces died between January […]
Trump Assistant Gorka Is Leaving the White House
U.S. President Donald Trump’s deputy assistant Sebastian Gorka is on his way out of the White House, according to reports. Gorka, a former national security editor of far-right website Breitbart, joined the administration as a terrorism adviser. He will take a job at a federal agency dealing with “the war of ideas” surrounding the battle […]
Trump Gets Tough With South Korea, Goes Easier on China
President Donald Trump’s recent criticisms of South Korea, regarding THAAD and trade, could lead to a rupture in the Seoul-Washington alliance, especially if, as expected, the liberal leaning presidential candidate Moon Jae-in wins next week’s presidential election. On Sunday, Trump’s national security adviser, H.R. McMaster seemed to play down the president’s recent demand that South […]
Dozens of Yazidi ‘slaves’ rescued by Iraqi troops
A group of 36 Yazidi survivors has been rescued in Iraq after three years of “slavery” under ISIL’s rule in northern Iraq, the United Nations said on Sunday. The group of men, women, and children from the persecuted religious sect was freed by Iraqi forces fighting to retake Mosul from Islamic State of Iraq and […]