Salvador Carbons

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The Luckiest Unlucky Man on Earth | An All Time Record

Luck, many people complain about not having it, some actually live in anger with their life and existence, even with their God for not being able to remember the last time they had a great and lucky moment, however it happens that, luck is relative and sometimes it is necessary to take a close look at death to realize how lucky we are. This takes us to the story of Mr. France Selak, who claims to be the "Luckiest Unlucky Man on Earth"

Start Counting, Selak First Accident-Train Derailed

It was January morning in 1962, and the Croatian music teacher, Frane Selak took a train, and while minding his own business, his train suddenly derailed. Disconnected from the rest of the train. his train car plunge down a narrow canyon and into a cold as crap river. Desperately trying to escape the sinking car train, Frane miraculously made his way to safety, reaching the shore, where he was pulled out of the icy waters by a bystander that could not believe what he just saw.

That day, 17 other people drowned in that accident, while Frane got away with nothing more than a broken arm.

Fear to Fly?. Destiny will give you Something to be Sacred of

As the story continues, about 1 year later, Selak's mother fell sick, and as a deeply concerned good son, Frane went to see his mother, although he has always being scared shitless of flying, immediately booked a plane ticket from Zagreb to Rijenka. Now, since the first flight was already fully booked, Frane managed to persuade a sympathetic airline employee to let him ride in the rear of the plane, with a single flight attendant.

He was very nervous, but that didn't seem to matter much given the circumstances, so Selak took to the skies without incident, gently and friendly chatting up with his neighbor flight attendant, and sharing some tea so he could put his mind of the present circumstances and off his nerves.

It was time to land, he will be off the hook in just a few minutes, he thought, when the rear door of the aircraft suddenly blew open and the pressure differential of the plane, sucked Selak, the flight attendant, and lots of luggage clear out of the airplane. As you may have imagined, Frane was plunging to a certain death, but he was miraculously saved by landing on a haystack, suffering just a couple of minor injuries.

No one else survived that terrible accident. Two brushes with death should be enough for a single lifetime, but let's just say that fate was not done with Mr. Selak. So, It's Better for Frane to take a Bus?

Almost four years after the plane accident, Frane was commuting on a local bus, when it suddenly skidded into a river. Again, plunged into icy waters, Frane managed to swim his way out of the sinking vehicle and swimming to safety, suffering just a few bruises and cuts, just like if he was playing with a friendly Pitt-bull dog.

Four other riders lost their lives that day. No Trains, No Planes, and No Buses, Perhaps a Car? Perhaps and very understandably, deterred from public transportation, Frane purchased a car of his own. In 1970, while driving, his car burst into flames and exploded. Diving for safety, Selak jumped off the car, getting away from the claws of death once more with some minor wounds. But that crap was not about to stop. Three years later, what should have been a freak accident, repeated itself with yet another of Frane's vehicles, exploding after spontaneously catching fire. Once again, diving for safety, our Selak friend escaped from fate with nothing more than minor burns. No Moving Stuff, Frane should walk instead, right? Perhaps giving him a chance to catch his breath, life gave Mr. Selak 22 years of relative peace until a bus hit him while walking on the streets of Zagreb in 1995. Although he was pretty old at that time, he practically got away flawless. So Frane went back to drive, but he was forced off a mountain road by a speeding United Nations truck that jumped out of a curve suddenly, giving him 3 seconds to react. The car was sent plunging off the mountain ledge and into a ravine. Facing certain death, Mr. Selak managed to open the door of his moving coffin, jumping out at the last second and grabbing onto the branches of a tree and hoist himself to safety, avoiding the 300 feet drop that his car took. By the way, this happened just a year later, in 1996. That was death's last attempt to take Frane's life, well, that is until to date. As if to make up for his incredible streak of bad luck (I really don't know if good or bad luck to be honest), Frane caught a break in the year 2003, winning 1 million dollars in the lottery. In his own words "you can take a look at my life in two ways, I was the unluckiest man in the world or just the luckiest, I prefer to believe the latter" His reputation had made it almost impossible to make or keep friends, people around him are hesitant to get into vehicles with him, or being in his general proximity for that matter, but, can you blame them? clearly not. Until next time friends, thanks for reading.

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Most Stupid Laws in the World-Funny Laws Around the World

Most Stupid Laws in the World-Funny Laws Around the World

I bet you might not now that nowadays a bunch of potentially harmless activities can land you in trouble with the long arm of the law, alth

I thought that you might like this.

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Most Stupid Laws in the World-Funny Laws Around the World

I bet you might not now that nowadays a bunch of potentially harmless activities can land you in trouble with the long arm of the law, although, laws of the land that probably made lots of sense when first brought about, just don't work as they use to anymore. Since past and useful things such as old laws, have the tendency to stick around even if they have no place in today's society. Additionally to the old laws, a few newer and pretty bizarre laws of the land that have found their way into the law books. So with this in mind, let's go ahead and explore the rules of the land that have taken the pole position for being the most useless, dumbest, weird asses, stupid, and antiquated in today's world. Top Weirdest Laws in the World-Strange Laws that still Exist Great Britain The G.B has some of the most strange laws in the world, some of which are broken every single day. Did you know it was illegal to be drunk in a pub in the UK? well, yeah sir, that is "in any highway or other public places whether a building or not or in any licensed premises" (Section 12 of the Licensing Act, 1872).

Kind of makes you think, how many Brits brake that law every day? Now if you went a little happy on the Guinness to the store and buy a salmon, hell, you are in trouble 2 times as fucked as you were by just being drunk. According to the law, you are guilty of a crime if you are handling a Salmon in "suspicious circumstances" (Section 32 of the Salmon Act, 1986)

It is also illegal to carry a plank of wood along the pavement (Section 54 of the Metropolitan Police Act, 1839), especially, one would imagine, after getting drunk in a pub with a Salmon in your back or front pocket.

Not so bizarre is the stipulation that members of the parliament in jolly old England are not allowed to wear a suit of Armour in the Parliament (Statute Forbidding Bearing of Armour, 1313). It is my humble opinion that this law could have been updated by the lawmakers themselves while in Parliament.

It is also an offense to beat or shake a carpet or rug, except if it is a doormat before 8 am (Metropolitan Police Act, 1839). If you are Englander, forget about dinning on an exotic waterfowl, that is of course if you are the Queen or King of England, then it is OK to supper a swan. Check it out.

Should you be pregnant in England, it is perfectly legal to spend a penny in a policeman's hat or in fact, anywhere else, should be an emergency.

Now, in order to be fair, there does not appear to be a specific exception for pregnant women to urinate anywhere they chose to, but discretion no to charge may be exercised if a pregnant woman was caught short in public. However, it seems highly unlikely that a policeman officer would offer his helmet or hat for this purpose (Public Order Act. 1986)  On a similar note, and on the subject of toilets, in Scotland, if someone knocks on your door asking to use the bog, you must by law let them inside and relief him/herself. It is also related, the moral fares to be charged if someone is caught in short doing the following somewhat bizarre acts. In Scottland (again), that bizarrely colorful land of haggis and bagpipes, there may be more than a folk tale about Scotsmen and their kilts. Have you ever wonder what hides underneath that colorful and hard to stand skirt? According to ancient legend...they are butt-naked.

No underwear should be worn under a kilt, and according to the urban legend, if a Scotsman is found wearing underwear beneath his kilt, he is to be charged 2 beers by whoever had the courage to uncover his non-commando status. The United States of America The U.S.A also has its fair share of quirky laws, let's take for example: Arizona: Allowing your pet donkey to sleep in your bathtub is against the law since 1924.

 Alabama: Placing salt on the railway is an offense punishable by the death penalty, that is if you are in Birmingham, Alabama.

Although it seems kind of...fuck that's harsh...it has a good explanation. If you place salt on a railway, a train might get derailed or the salt may attract cattle onto the track, in which case, it most definitely will derail. California: It's against the law to play a game of frisbee without acquiring the permission of a lifeguard in Los Angeles.

Georgia: It is against the law to let your chickens roam around unattended in this state. So, guess what happened to the chicken that crossed the road?...yeah, its owner got arrested.

Hawaii: It is against the law for twin brothers or sisters to work at the same company. Talking about dumb ass laws...

Idaho: It is illegal for a human being to live in a dog kennel. It kind of gives a brand new meaning to sleeping in the doghouse.

Vermont: By law, if a woman wants to get herself false teeth, she needs first to obtain permission from her husband. Mainland Europe And here it comes the strange world of the laws in Europe. Greece: It is illegal to go sightseeing around the ancient ruins wearing high heels France: You can't name your pig Napoleon. In fact, the French government is constantly vigilant for creative names, especially if it involves the name of your kids. Some names that have been denied by a court of law to the creative parents of children in France are: Megane Renault (Mr. and Mrs. Renault were forbidden from naming her daughter Megane, because of the car's name) Tietuf (Tietuf is a children's comic book hero) Joyeux (Like Happy in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs) Babord and Tribord (like port and starboard in a ship) The list goes on and on, just one thing to say though. I kind of agree with the French not to let ignorant parents put dumb ass names to their children that will embarrass them for life. Italy: In Rome, it is illegal to keep a lone goldfish in a Fishbowl, it is considered animal cruelty, but if you have more than one in a bowl, it is considered acceptable, since fish are sociable creatures. Poland: In some parts of Poland, children are not allowed to walk outside their houses with any Winnie the Pooh memorabilia, that is, T-shirts, Lunch Boxes, Back Packs, etc, for this cartoon character is considered "non-gender specific inappropriate hermaphrodite" without the decency to wear a pair of pants. So, for some Poles, Winnie's lack of genitalia is very offensive and against their good ways. Now...Let's go to Asia Phom Penh, Cambodia: The sale and importation of water pistols are prohibited during the new year festivities. Thailand (you are gonna love it): It's illegal to step on money, to leave home without underwear, to hold your hand out in tribute to "The Hunger Games", or to publicly criticize a fellow countryman. India: Apparently, in some parts of India, if a man is in debt, he can legally offer his wife as a down-payment, that is until the debt is settled. Japan: It is against the law to be fat, with the government setting a maximum waistline of 33.5 inches (85.09 cm) for men and 35.5 inches (90.17 cm) for women, that is if you are 40 years old or older (that excludes Sumo wrestlers). China: Buddhist monks are banned from reincarnating unless they have specific government permission. Oceania is Up Now... Samoa: It is found illegal to forget your wife's birthday. Australia: It is against the law to disrupt a wedding. This act is punishable by a fine of AUS$ 10,000.  Across the world, while laws are there to help to protect us all, and to keep society out of the constant threat of anarchy, some decisions made by lawmakers make us think of the extreme complexity that surrounds the human being.

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Top 10 Dumbest Promotional Mistakes that Made Companies Lose Millions Marketing going Wild

If you are a small business owner and get angry because of that small Facebook Ad you paid for $5 didn't work all that well, well, imagine that you are one Chief Marketing Officer, working for a "Blue Chip" company and realize that instead of making the company money, his marketing mistake actually cost his company millions.

So here it is, the Top 10 Dumbest Promotional Mistakes that Cost Companies Millions!!!

Number 10: Apple-U2 Giveaway

You would have probably heard of this one, the story that made U2 part of the meme world for years to come, but just in case you don't know, let's go ahead and explain it a bit.

Back in the year 2014, some genius at Apple, Inc came up with the idea that people would love to have their new product prepackaged with an album that no one really cares about. At this point, you might think, "well, just a simple give away, what is wrong with that.?" well, aside from the annoyance it caused for people logging into iTunes for their very first time, there is also a mythological thing called "Royalties." So Apple, Inc paid an undisclosed fee in royalties to U2 and also took a whopping of 100 million in marketing campaigns for the band to promote their new album. As shocking as this might seem, Apple even stepped in to defend the promotion and the band which clearly led to a bunch of undesirable responses within various online communities.

Number 9: Walkers Weather Prediction

Answer quick, when I say "British Weather" what comes to your mind.? it was RAIN, right,? well you are probably smarter than the guys running marketing for Walkers Crisp and this is how the story goes. Some genius decided that people would have fun predicting the weather if they could win a prize for it, so Walkers Crisp decided to pay their faithful customers 10 pounds if they correctly guessed where the rain will fall on a grid map of the UK, of course, they weren't that stupid as they charged everyone the cost of a bag of chips (40 pence) to have a go, but as you've probably guessed, offering a total of $25 return to anyone that can guess the climate of a country with such a predictable weather pattern is not a great deal. Rain kept pouring during the time of the promotion and Walkers bravely followed through with their promises at a great cost. After the contest was over, Walker Crisp had to pay nearly 700,000 pounds to cover the entire contest but to be honest, you can conclude that it ended up working well as a marketing promotion since it made people remember the name "Walkers Crisp" for years to come.

Number 8: Ballon Fest in 1986 in Cleveland

For some people, the word "balloon" would cause them to have a flashback to the time United Way decided to release 1.5 million balloons over Cleveland and screwed up miserably. The whole stunt had a neat little idea behind it, since they basically wanted to do a little fundraising and grab the town's attention for a while, so they built a giant box the size of one city block and had 2500 students do the balloon filling while they waited for the crowds to gather. Once the launch started, it was one of the most beautiful things you could see, that is, for about 2 minutes, you see, nobody actually accounted for the fact that wind exists and therein lies their downfall...literally. The 1.5 million balloons started falling into the ground causing massive damage, the clogged the streets, waterways and pretty much every nook and cranny in town. If this wasn't bad enough, the balloons were blamed for the death of 2 fishermen who were found drowned 2 days later after the balloons interrupted coast guards in their attempt to rescue them, in fact, one of the fishermen wive's sued the company for 3 million dollars but settle for an undisclosed figure.

In the aftermath, United Way ended up paying millions to the city and the cleanup crews, not to mention settling several lawsuits from not a few citizens who were damaged by the balloons. 

To think that the Persians in the "300" movie used arrows to bot out the sun, what a waste, they should have just gotten United Ways to plan their attack and doomed the Spartans to a certain death.

Number 7: Jagermeister's Pool of Death

If you think the title is a bit too much, as you read on you will realize that is not far from the truth. This goes again to show that the marketers sometimes ignore the basics. So let's go a little into chemistry, some genius in the marketing team department decided that they'll make a gigantic pool party for Jagermeister's drunken fans, which I must admit, it was a great start, but then they wanted to have a lot of fog above the pool for that added effect which again, should be a plus to the sick party, however, what was not nearly nice was the liquid nitrogen they used to create the fog by pouring it into the water. Now, this is where everything goes to hell, the liquid nitrogen basically made an unbreathable fog above the whole area when it came into contact with the water and the marketing team must have been shocked big time upon realizing that humans need air to survive. This whole event was a mess and actually left one party-goer in a coma while hospitalizing 8 others. Jagermeister never actually disclosed. Now I realize that you need to see this by yourself so, here it is.

Jagermeister never actually disclosed how much they had to cough up for this mistake, but considering that they put someone in a coma, we can assume that it was a lot. Just goes to show, if you want to play smoke on the water, don't go happy on the chemicals.

Number 6: The Energizer Bunny

How can a cute little bunny screw up a company that much.? well, to answer that, go ahead and tell me the brand of the batteries in your remote. I bet you don't have a clue, and that was what the marketing team of energizer realized after it was a bit too late. While the bunny is actually a cute little mascot and it's probably known amongst the young whippersnappers of my readers, you can't really pull off that kind of marketing for something like a battery. The campaign was successful for sure, but the problem was that the actually managed to advertise their competitor in the battery field.

Duracell released a report after the Energizer Bunny first aired showing that their profits had actually doubled at that time because people thought that the bunny was advertizing Duracell, in fact, it worked so well that Duracell uses a bunny as their mascot now.

Now, as you may see, while the company didn't lose money, directly, the drastic drop in sales and all that money wasted on promoting your competitor is enough of a burn to make sure that they are more careful next time.

Number 5: The Tesco Math Problem

Tesco is praised for being a fairly cheap place to go shopping in the UK, but after this marketing failure, you might think that it's just because they really suck at math. Back in the year 2011, Tesco decided to do a special little promotion to outdo its competitor ASDA. Basically, it was the whole: "we will refund you twice the difference if our competitors item is cheaper." Tesco sadly forgot that most people go to school and know basic operations and count, and even if they didn't, they managed to learn on the way, so all its customers got savvy by only buying items that were on sale at ASDA, so they could go to Tesco, buy the same items on sale at ASDA and then after checking out they'd request double the difference by refering to ASDA website. For example, 1 shopper spends 200 pounds on Tesco in a shop that would have cost 120 pounds on ASDA (on sale products), so he or she is entitled to claim a 160 Pound voucher, therefore, Tesco is actually receiving 40 dollars for all that shopping.

You can see that doing this multiple times would save you a whole lot of money at the expense of Tesco. While this was a monetary and marketing catastrophe for Tesco, you have to give them props, they actually made a promotion that ended up being great for its customers...(dumb asses).

Number 4: Oprah and KFC

As we all know, Oprah is the omnipotent master of our destinies, so when she offers people a free KFC 2 piece meal, we all jump to get it, so why was it such a catastrophe.? Well, you can imagine that KFC was not all that pleased when people managed to print out over 10 million free food coupons from Oprah's website. During the time of the promotion, KFC gave away over 40 million dollars worth of free food and probably paid Oprah and an obscene amount of money to get her to do the promotion for them. No need to say that KFC will not be contacting her anytime soon.

Number 3: Silo...Bananas for Stereo

Now, this one didn't cost a lot of money but it was really stupid on the marketing side. So the same old formula comes to play, 

savvy customers + dumb exchange = price

Silo, a chain of electronic stores decided that a dumb exchange item would be bananas and the prize would be a stereo. Imagine their surprise when after the whole thing settled, they ended up with 11,000 bananas in their warehouse and a lot of stereos given away for around 40 dollars. So the only way to go is being nice and giving away all the bananas to the local zoo. Still, it kind of makes you think how wasted you have to be to come up with an idea like that in the first place.

Number 2: Mc Donalds Olympics

Well, pairing McDonald's with something that requires you to be fit, is a bit weird, but it gets weirder fairly quickly.

During the Olympics of 1984, McDonald's had a catchy slogan "If the U.S wins, you win." They included a ticket you could scratch on every meal and you would win a Big Mac for a gold medal, french fries for silver and a coke for a bronze medal in the event that was on the ticket. The problem was that the Soviets boycotted the Olympics and the USA ended up with 83 gold medals, 61 silvers and 30 bronze.

Basically, Mc Donald's lost a huge pile of money because the Russians were too lazy to compete. It seems that Russia can screw American businesses, even without the hackers.

Number 1: Lucky Number 349 by Pepsi

Riddle me this, what happens when you over estimate the powers of numbers.? If your answer was extreme riots and lawsuits, you probably work for Pepsi. Back in 1992, Pepsi had its "Number Fever" promotion and promised to give away 1,000,000 pesos, the equivalent to 40,000 US dollars to one lucky person with the right number on its bottle cap, the problem was that they had accidentally printed the winning number, 349, on 800,000 caps, due to an oversight in the manufacturing process. Consequently, they accidentally promise to give away a total of 55 billion of today's dollars. So people calmly understood the mistake and caused no trouble...Hell no!! people got furious, thousands of Filipinos began writing on the streets, demanding that Pepsi paid their rightful prize, which now totaled in millions. People even filed 689 civil suits and more than 5200 criminal cases for fraud and deception. However, Pepsi wasn't entirely at fault. It is believed that this marketing failed was caused by DG consultors, a Mexican consulting firm that Pepsi had hired to randomly pre-selecting the winning numbers which were clearly instructed not to make the number 349 a winner but, they clearly didn't read the memo.

Obviously with such a costly mistake, Pepsi couldn't affort to pay everyone, instead settled on giving just under 2000 US dollars, so Pepsi ended u paying nearly 10 million dollars for the whole campaign, rather than the original budget of 2 millon dollars.

Till next time friends, 

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What Happens When you Die?

What happens when you finally die, or in other words, what happens when you finally kick the bucket? so to speak. Despite our mostly science-grounded views on death theses days, it seems that many of us still believe in life after death. In 2014, UK citizens were polled by the Telegraph, and just under 60% of the respondents said that some part of us lives on. Now, in the USA, which still a very christian nation, Pew research in 2015 asked people what happened after you die. The survey found that 72% of Americans believe that you go to heaven, which was described as "where people who had lived good lives are eternally rewarded." 58% of the American adults replied that they believed in hell, which in turn was described as a place "where people who had lived bad lives and have died without being sorry are eternally punished."

It seems that alot of people do believe that after death, we might be ensconced in some cloud-strewn paradise, or conversely, if we failed to adhered to the ethics prescribed to us by our chosen religion, we might face eternal hellfire and the prospect of groveling to a bearded-red man who hardly ever puts down his pitchfork. But let's start with some empirical realism and what actually happens to the body when we die.

Physicians know that you are dead because your heart stops beating and there is no longer any signs of electrical activity in your brain. Brain death equals dead, although machines can keep you going a little bit longer. You might also get what is called a "cardiac death" which means that your heart stops beating and therefore, blood does not flow through your budy anymore. The strange and even wonderful thing is, people who had suffer cardiac death but had been brought back to life said that they were aware of what was going on around them. Others have talked about walking towards a light in such a near death experience. 

So you can be brought back to life from what we call "clinical death", but you only have a grace period of about 4 to 6 minutes. But let's assume that you get to the light and pass through; that is what we call "biological death" this means...game over, the final whistle, dead as a dodo. And this is where it get kind of undignified, but what is it to you, you're dead now, remember?, so when you are no longer with us, your muscles relax, that means your sphincter too, meaning that big ass burito you had for lunch will splill out of you, the gas you have inside of you may also leak out and cause a stink. The same goes for the pee you've got in your bladder, so dying not surprisingly is a very messy affair.

You want to know some crazy shit?, men may even ejaculate, and women may give birth after you have died in you were pregnant, which is something called "coffin birth". It doesn't happen oftend though, since instead of pushing, it's the gases in the abdomen that squeeze the newborn into the world.

As the body gets rid of what is trapped inside, noises might be emitted from your mouth as air escapes. Nurses and people working close to dead bodies have regularly reported hearing very alive-sounding moans and groans coming from the dead bodies. You might twitch, but it doesn't mean there is life in you, these are just muscle contractions.

You could also soon get an erection if you die lying on your stomach and the blood flowed down to your pecker. All your blood will pool to a certain area of your body. This is called "Livor Mortis" and it is the reason parts of your body will have that dark purple color you have seen on TV. So this are the lovely things that can happen quite shortly after you go.

With no blood flowing through your body, it will begin to cool down, this is called "Algor Mortis", or simply "death chill". It will keep cooling until it is the same temperature as your surroundings and you will become stiff within about 2 to 6 hours, and this we call "Rigor Mortis". This is because calcium is getting into your muscle cells, cell break down because there is no blood flow and this leads to bacteria growth, and that is why you start to decomopose.

You might look like your nails or hair have grown, but that isn't so, what is happening is that your skin is receding, giving the wrong impression of growth. The skin will loosen too, and blisters will appear on the body.

The following stage is putrefacation, when the bacteria and microorganisms start feasting on you. You will soon start to stink as bad as anything you could have imagined while you were alive...really it is unholy.

Soon, everything that was soft becomes liquefied, with things like bones, cartilages and hair remain strong, you are already on your way to decomposing by the time you are being put into the ground, but if embalmed and buried, decomposition could be a slow process. If you are left above ground, you'd be a liquefied mess within about a month, feasted on by insects, maggots, plants and animals. Underground, some experts say that it could take 8 to 12 years before you are reduce to your skeleton, and after 50 years, you will come back to the periodic table.

While some people report that their near-death experience was a scene to be hold, that's not always the case. One person writting on reddit said tha his experience was as follows:

I attempted suicide a few years ago by hanging myself with an extension cord. I had no pulse when the police arrived but nobody is really sure how long I was up there. I was resuscitated in the ambulance but was in a coma for a little under 2 weeks. Anyway, all I remember is a feeling similar to general anesthesia once I jumped off the table, but for the 5 seconds before it went black, I was in total panic and had a total change of heart from the confidence in my decision to end it seconds before. And then it was just... nothing. Like a deep sleep. And when I finally awoke from the coma, it was like finally reaching the surface of pool after diving too deep. I was in the same panic that I was immediately after I jumped from my table. Like I just blinked instead of being knocked out for 2 weeks. So to answer your question, I don't remember anything at all. It was like being in a deep, dreamless sleep. Perhaps if I regained consciousness immediately after being resuscitated, I'd remember something more interesting, but yea "nothing" is about all I can offer.

Edit: My personal theory is that I didn't have a near death experience like others because I had cut off oxygen to my brain. When I die down the road, I hope I still have some brain activity right before I go. I think Those near death expirences are the brains way of helping someone relax and allow their bodies shut down peacefully, without a fight.

Irish empiricist philosopher George Berkely was so hellbent on knowing what happens after, or those moments fter clinical death, that he actually hanged himself  to the point of death, with a friend nearby ready to cut him down before he died. He believed that there was something between Heaven and Earth, perhaps what philosophers have called the ether. The story has become lore in the philisophical circles, but it's thought all Berkeley really discovered was that hanging hurts your neck.

Frederich Nietzsche talked about the concept of eternal recurrence, or eternal return, meaning all existances or energy in the universe has forever an will forever keep repeating itself  "ad infinitum." So you get to live the same life over and over again, forever. Another reason for you to want to live well.

Here we can make similarities to the buddhist belief of the "Wheel of Samsara," wherein all souls, lives, will begin in a cycle again after death, except not exact the same life. This is what we called reincarnation, which some people say is connected to what we sometimes called "deja vu." Buddhist believe that we can put an end to this vicious cycle if we can become truly enlightened, therefore achieving "Nirvana."

Or maybe we make our way to heaven after our body stops working, tipping our cap to St. Peter at the Pearly Gates, hoping that he will not deny us entrace for stealing that candy bar when we went on a school trip to Niagara Falls. We will be taken into paradise, a place replete with excellent foods and gorgeous maidens that make your dead knees go weak? or will we simply seed the Earth, our souls nothing more than a worldly fancy that took our minds off our cosmic insignificance and the feeling of futility that we sometimes experience here on "terra-firma"

It doesn't matter what religion or creed best describes you or follow, all of us are slowly or fastly walking to the bitter end, its time to make a change, not only because you think that will buy you a ticket to "Nirvana" or "Heaven", but because in this limited time you wish to make a change, live better and happier, for you and for the ones you love.

Until next time my friend, 

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Top 10 Richest Families in the World |Can you Believe Our Number 1?|

There is a difference between having money and being rich and making sure that no one in your family will ever have to take public transportation or go to work (unless is one of those obscure and twisted fantasies that only a rich kid could have). Here are the 10 Richest and more powerful families in the world.

10. The Cox Family

(Estimated Net Worth: $41 billion dollars)

Back in 1898, James M. Cox bought "Dayton Evening News" which subsequently expanded to Cable TV, radio, and more, much more. Today, his grandchildren are taking over the family business, and the 41 billion fortune is divided among the 5 of them,  Jim Kennedy (he is Cox Enterprises' current chairman), Blair Parry-Okeden, James Chambers, Katharine Rayner and Margaretta Taylor.

Besides the media business, the Cox family also takes on the automotive market challenge. Eleven years ago, the family made a $4 billion dollar acquisition of DealerTrack, a marker of software for car dealerships. The family also owns "AutoTrader.com", "Kelly Blue Book", and "Manheim Car Auctions".

9. The Bettencourt Family

(Estimated Family Net Worth: $47.5 billion dollars)

If you have never heard this name before, I bet that you have heard of L'Oreal. Back in 1907,  Eugène Schueller started this legendary business, after he passed away, his daughter Liliane Henriette Charlotte Bettencourt took over, who was until she died in September 2017, the richest woman in the world. Now, her only daughter, Françoise Bettencourt-Meyers is the richest woman in the world with a net worth by herself of 47.1 billion dollars.

8. Cargill-MacMillan Family

(Estimated worth: $49 billion dollars)

The Cargill-MacMillan family has the most billionaire members compared to any other family in the world (there are 14 of them). Cargill, Inc is one of the largest private companies in America (if not the largest) and their products and services range from bio-industrial, energy, agricultural food, and beverage to pharmaceuticals, however, most of the 108 billion in revenues come from agribusinesses. 

Back in 1865, William W. Cargill started his business empire, founding a small grain storage company, and made his own fortune as the railroad expanded westward at the end of the 19th century in the United States. As his son-in-law, John MacMillan took over the business in 1909, the wealthy family went commonly known as Cargill-MacMillan. The family has not run the company since 1995 when Whitney MacMillan stepped down. The family has agreed that 80% of the company's net income is to stay inside the business for reinvesting activities.

7. Slim Helu Family

(Estimated Net worth: $68.8 billion dollars)

Carlos Slim Helu is, of course, the richest man in Mexico, and is ranked 7 in the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Carlos alone has a net worth of $65.3 billion dollars (as of April 2018).

He became a billionaire back in 1982 during the currency devaluation and economic crisis of Mexico by investing aggressively and buying companies at very low prices that would soon recover.

In 1990, Carlos had the opportunity to buy Telmex (monopoly telephone company owned by the Mexican government), paying close attention to Telmex's cellular service, offering the public pre-paid phones. The company's customer base exploded, growing at 66% every year, for 15 years.

Besides the telecom companies, Carlos also owns the biggest stake of the New York Times shares. He also bought majority stakes of other big companies in South America such as, "Grupo Carso", among other business in education, media, sports and entertainment, healthcare, manufacturing, real estate, airlines, mining hospitality, technology, retail, oil, and financial businesses.

6. The Mars Family

(Estimated Net Worth: $78 billion dollars)

Well, I guess is candy time! I am sure that all of you guys have eaten at least one of the Mars family candies, if Milky Way, Mars, Sneakers, and M&M ring the bells in your head, this means that you know what we are talking about, for this sweet sins are popular not only in the USA but also worldwide.

Franklin Clarence Mars started his candy selling company from a small kitchen back in the year 1911 and 18 years later his son, Forest Mars, joined in. That was the beginning of nougat flavor invention that formerly became the base of sneakers, one of the world's best selling nougat bar.

5. The Koch Family

(Estimated Net Worth: $82 billion dollars)

This family owns America's second-largest private company. They chose oil and gasoline as the market niches to concentrate their efforts in. It all started back in the year 1920 when Fred Chase Koch, an American Chemical Engineer developed a new method for the refinement of heavy crude oil into gasoline and it was groundbreaking. Today the Koch family runs several businesses, from food companies to transportation.

4. The Arnault Family 

(Estimated Family Net Worth: $83.4 billion dollars)

Mister Arnault has built his massive luxury empire under the LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton umbrella. He just not own one luxury brand, he owns almost every luxury brand that you can think of, here is the list. (Spoiler. includes, Tag-Heuer, Dior, Hublot, Bvlgary...need I say more?). What I find surprising for these days billionaires is that he is not a school drop-out, he graduated with a bachelor degree in Arts and Science, and of course, luxury things can bring the best taste of art.

Mister Bernard has been in the luxury business since 1984 when he bought a company for $15 million dollars, including "Dior", now he is 69 years old and is still the Chairman and CEO of LVMH.

3. The Walton Family

(Estimated Net Worth: $130 billion dollars)

While most of the wealthiest families focus on diversification, running multiple industries at the time, the Walton family only focusses on one...Walmart, yeah, wow, they own the largest retailer in the United States. The retails business revenue reach up to $483 billion dollars in sales. Sam and James "Bud" Walton founded the retail business back in 1962, it grew bigger and bigger until what it is today.

After both of the Walton brothers passed away, Walmart was taken over by their children, Sam's 2 sons and 1 daughter and James'es 2 daughters. Today, the Waltons 3rd generation is in charge o the CEO position and make part of the board members, alongside with Kevin Systrom, co-founder of Instagram, and Marissa Mayer, the CEO of Yahoo.

Forbes crowned them the richest family in the United States.

2. The Al-Saud Family

(Estimated Net Worth: $1.4 Trillion dollars)

They are also known as the House of Al-Saud rules Saudi Arabia. The first notable Al-Saud member of the family was Mohammed bin Saud al Qasimi, the founder of first Arabia estate emirate of Syria. Now the family has thousands of members, together they form a wealthy family with an entire net worth that doesn't measure in billions, but trillions of dollars. The family members are also listed in Forbes billionaire list, but the highest rank is for Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal who is currently the 41st richest man in the world with an estimated net worth of $19.5 billion dollars. He does love the eccentricity that only money can buy, owning the most expensive private jet in the world. Let's take a look.

1. The Rothschild Family

(Estimated Net Worth: $2 Trillion???)

Would you ever guess that they are Jewish? well, they are and it makes you wonder how the heck they survive Hitler? well, the answer is...Hitler is just a small time punk to this legendary family, and when you are a punk, you know who you can push around and from who you should stay away, and these people was just out of his league, in other words, he was better off taking his chances with the United States of America than with these people.

Some people say that the estimated net worth of the family is nearly $500 trillion, which is absurd at first, since the total wealth of the world is $250 trillion (the year 2016), but once you take a look at their history, you will notice the almost limitless power of this family that has played the low profile card for centuries, and start to realize that perhaps there is not enough money in the world yet to pay what many countries owe to this family. It makes you think that the entire world's wealth is one thing and the Rothschild fortune is from another world.

The family goes back to 1744, when Mayer Rothschild was born and raised in a Frankfurt Jewish ghetto in the German Duchy of Hesse. Back then, Jewish people were prohibited to live near Christians, so he was poor and hungry. He lived with 30 other family members and learned very young the secrets of a good trade from his father Amschel Moses Rothschild, who traded silk, coins, and commodities for a living.

Although his parents wanted him to study to be a Rabbi, that of course never happened, partly because he became an orphan at the age of 12 and mostly because of his financial killer instinct that does not go along very well with a religious way of living. So he was just a child and with his parents out of the picture, he took an apprenticeship with a banking firm in Hanover shortly after he turned 13. This is when he learned the "ins" and "outs" of banking and foreign trade.

Forward into the future and as the family's alpha, he left a strict rule after his death, the fortune stays in the family. According to the publication of the discover magazine of 2003, "Go Ahead, kiss your cousin". if any of the Rothschild's women marries someone outside the family, she would lose all her money, inmediately.

The family has been involved in trades since the year 1798 that go from acting like the first Central Bank of Europe, brokering purchases for kings, rescuing national banks and funding infrastructure such as, railroads, and almost every single war that was important since 1798.

Among the things that have leaked from the family history, there is one that I think is the most epic of all, I repeat, the known ones. It was the Napoleonic wars. Nathan Rothschild managed and financed several subsidies that the British government sent to different allies and loaned funds to pay the British troops almost single-handed. At the same time, he secretly funded Napoleon too, this way he was growing his own business with the even use of war. The year was 1815 and Nathan was informed that Napoleon appeared to be suffering defeat at Waterloo while the English government believed that they were the ones that were losing the battle. That was a golden opportunity for Rothschild, who began to sell all his bonds, encouraging the rumor that Napoleon had won and that the British papers will soon be worth only the paper they are written on. Soon the English market panicked and followed Rothschild lead. It was then that Rothschild's agents began buying all the bonds he came across at dirt cheap prices. Two days later, when Wellington's envoy confirmed that Napoleon Bonaparte had indeed suffered a crushing defeat, Nathan Rothschild was effectively in control of the English stock exchange. Until this day (April, 2018), England is still paying back money owed to the Rothschild family from this Napoleonic maneuver.

Now, they claim to have prosperous business in the wine industry and other niches (bull crap to me) making an effort to explain their huge estate, but this is useless and perhaps  a little insulting. They thought that it might be a good idea to show $2 trillion in assets to get the people off their back, but, I mean, if it was true, forbes would had it published a long time ago, but to date, there is no mention in regards the Rothschild's fortune.

For this people, the rest of the billionaires in the world are just kids going crazy in a playground they call "the market", but they still won't say anything or seem visible in any way.

Until next time my friends.

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[tornadorojo5]

[tornadorojo5]

What If the USA stopped Paying Its Debt

This is one difficult topic, but let's try. The USA has more than 20 trillions of dollars in national debt, that is a 2 followed by 12 zeros, so let's break it down. Let's imagine for instance that you are a millionaire, and all your money is represented in 1000 dollar bills, that adds up to one thousand to make up your million, and if you stack your 1000 bills on top of each other, that stack would be about 4 inches tall (10.16 cm). If you have a thousand of those stacks, you'd be a billionaire, the cash stack would rise to be 333.33 feet tall (101.6 m), which is roughly the height of a 35 story building. Now let's say that you have 1000 of those stacks, then you will be a trillionaire and your cash stack would rise would be 63.14 miles high, which or 9 times the height that a commercial airline flies. Now, this is one trillion and if we multiply that by 20, that is 1263 miles from the surface, this means that we are way passed the Exosphere (6,665 miles from the surface of the earth), yeah, a debt out of this world.

Of course, you just don't wake up one day and find out that you owe a stack of money that would stretch out of the planet, it takes lots of spending. Looking back 50 years ago, the US debt was 348 billion dollars (37% of the GDP) and the first trillion dollars was reached in Ronald Reagan's administration back in 1982, counting for 34% of the GDP. When he left office, the US Debt almost triple (2.9 trillion or 50% of the GDP). Clearly, it was not only his fault, since there is still a big jump to today's 20 trillion, With big tax cuts, spending on dumb ass things like war overseas, and then with economic stimulus packages, it all adds up to where we are now. 

The debt rises because the US government spends more than it can collect in taxes, then it needs to make up the shortfall by selling US treasury bonds to investors and other countries (selling the taxes it has not collected yet, but hoping that will be collected sometime in the future, that is if shit doesn't hit the fan first) promising not to default.

So, What is Default?

When a country defaults on its debt, it is called sovereign default, if the USA were to default, it would essentially stop paying the money it owed to the investors of the US Treasury bonds, if this happens, well, I am sorry to say but, the web has not reached a consensus, this means that nobody really knows what would happen. But some things are going to happen for sure, for example, a global market plunge of biblical proportions, followed by a global rise in interest rates. The impact would be felt by the US creditors (other countries) who are owed the money. Let's check out 5 potential knock-on effects, that will occur in the event of the US defaulting on its obligations.

Depression and Unemployment

The Treasury and the federal reserve, would make their way through banks and eventually blow a hole to the Main Street economy. The unemployment rate would rise and a ton of uncertainty would take center stage. The stock market would suffer, with the stock prices on a free fall as investors fled to other countries for safer investments like gold. The recession would be on the economic horizon, public services disruption since there would be no money to pay salaries or benefits of any kind to federal or military personnel and retirees, social security recipients, Medicare bills, student loans, tax refunds and payments to keep government facilities open. This, of course, would lead to a lot of disruptions and unrest across the American public.

Affect on Business

A US default would significantly raise the cost of doing business since the companies would have to pay higher interest rates on loans and bonds to compete with the higher interest rates of the US Treasury. There would be price increases on goods and services and rising inflation. Business would suffer and as a result, there would be higher unemployment.

US-Dollar Impact

There would be a massive sell of U.S Dollars, an event that would threaten the greenback's status as the world's reserve currency. Prices for everyday commodities and services would go up, and we would be saying goodbye to low mortgage rates. All of the above would affect negatively the buying patterns of the American population, which again would further impact the economy.

Global Market Impacted

The US economy has a far-reaching impact so it would not only be the homeland where the effects would be felt. As you can see (I hope in the image above), foreign nations hold over 40% of the US debt, as you can see, the list is long but China and Japan stand out with over 67% of the 40% (2.24 trillion) and putting this some other way, what we owe Japan (1.17 trillion) is equivalent to 20% of its annual economic output and would shake the Japanese economy for sure. This specualation is all fascinating, I hear you say, but on what grounds is all this based on?. Well, let's take a real example in another country. Remember Greece?. Debt Crisis in Greece-Short Discussion The most recent debt crisis took place there, back in 2015, the country formally defaulted on 1.7 billion payment to the on the IMF in Athens. I know, this is not even close to 1 trillion, but it was still, hugely disruptive. There is a great article about Greece Debt Default that you must read, It will clear this up for you, so click here to read the article from "The Balance". Let's check out some numbers. Extreme Poverty Threshold Back in 2015, 15% of Greeks (about 1.61 million people) earned below 50% of the extreme poverty threshold, when 6 years early, did not exceed 2.2%. Cost of Goods The high cost of goods lead to a drop on the net Greece households close to 40% in the same period of time. Although unemployment has fallen in a substatially, it remains the highest in the EU at 22%.

This is a hard topic to write and read, because at the end, to answer the question: "How realistic is the prospect of the US defaulting on its obligations?. The answer is "Not likely to happen" and the reason for that is that all the US government Debt is denominated in US dollars or US dollar assets, and the US dollar is the underlying asset of almost all currencies in the world, this means for example that, the Mexican Peso is only worth the dollars someone else is willing to pay for it, and the dollar underlies on the American capacity to generate wealth. This was not always like this, money used to be backed up by precious metals like gold and silver but with the "Breton Woods Agreement" of 1944, all major currencies around the world were forced to change its precious-metal based-value system to one of fixed exchange rates. By 1971 there was no turning back and the gold standard was abandoned. So, we live in a bubble, the mother of all bubbles, the currency bubble, a bubble that will explode someday and will have consecuences of biblical proportions and the whole world knows that, this is why that in the event of the US defaulting on its debt, the world will cut its obligations with the USA to the very zero if necesary, or will grant a time extention of 1000 years if that is what it takes for the USA not to break apart, because if the USA breaks, the whole world will follow. Now, allow me to quote the world's greatest dumb ass ever, the former Chairman of the FED since 1987 to 2006.  "The United States can pay any debt it has because it can always print money to do that. So there is zero probability of default" Alan Greenspan Thanks for reading and if you are Alan Greenspan, kindly click away, this blog is not for you. There is an special place in hell for people that does the type of shit that you have done.

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[tornadorojo5]

What if Coke was the Only Thing to Drink, and Nothing More?

Ok, I know, everyone knows that great loads of sugar are bad for your health (especially if you are a woman), but the sad truth is that we all humans have a sweet tooth. Back in the XVIII century, the British started to refined very large quantities of sugar but back then, it was still considered a luxury item. They had a name for sugar, they called it the "White Gold", as it was so precious and expensive that only the very rich could afford to eat it. 

Nowadays, the sugar industry is huge (enormous, holy cow!! really big) and while our daily intake of this sweet delight should be only about 37.5 grams for men (that would be something between 8 to 9 teaspoons. This is a little more than 150 calories) and 25 grams for women (approximately 6 teaspoons, which is a little over 100 calories), it is thought that American sugar consumption was at its peak (1990), the average citizen was consuming 111 grams a day on daily basis. Things are getting better now since today we have a national average of 94 grams/person, which is mostly attributed to soft drinks. Now, let's talk about the one that by far is the most important soft drinks manufacturer in the world. Let me present you Coca-Cola.

History of Coca-Cola

The history of Coca-Cola starts in 1886 when an American pharmacist called Dr. John Stith Pemberton started messing around with carbonated water and syrup, and he was so pleased with the results that within a year, he was selling 9 servings a day, 5 cents each.

Today, around 1.7 billions of coke servings are sold every day, that is 42.8% of the U.S Carbonated drinks market. 

It's believed that half of the U.S.A population drinks at least half a glass of soda every day of their lives. So I think the question is Is it any good for them?.

First, let's take a look what is actually in Coke. Is there really a secret ingredient that nobody can fathom except its creators?. Well, the secret formula was actually created as a marketing stunt back in 1891, but until today, Coke says that only a few people on the inside know what that is.

Coke actually labels each ingredient as a merchandise, and they numbered from 1 to 9. One of them is of course sugar, or other sweeteners, caffeine, caramel coloring, and phosphoric acid. From here, the rest of the formula is a mystery, although there might be orange, lime, vanilla, cinnamon, and even nutmeg in the syrup. To add a little more mystery, one of the ingredients is called "7X". In a book on the subject, writer Mark Pendergast mentions that he has found the secret ingredients and they were a mix of oils containing extract of orange, Lemmon, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Coriander, Neroli and some alcohol. I'll leave you an Amazon link in case you want to check out this book.

In case that you wonder if the rumor that accuses Coca-Cola of containing coke?. Well, yeah, it used to contain Coke, but in those days the coca leaf was promoted as a health benefit. All we know is that by the year 1902, it contained 1/400 of a gram of cocaine per ounce of syrup, not enough to make you high but enough to get you a little hooked. Cocaine was finally removed from Coke back in 1929 (cocaine was made illegal in the USA in 1914 with the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act).

Prior to that, it was the drink's selling point, with its creator, a morphine addict himself, saying that Coke was "a most wonderful invigorating of sexual organs".

Much has changed, but Coke's marketing strategy is still often related to having a lust for life, youth, spirit, and sexiness. But, let's get to the point now, the sugar.

Sugar In Coca-Cola

There are 9 grams of sugar in every 100 grams of the drink, this means that in a 12 oz. can of coke (340.19 grams) there is 1.08 oz. of sugar (30.61 grams) or 2.16 tablespoons. But of course, we all know how people like to overdose on Coke, so in a 7-Eleven Big Gulp (30 oz. of Coke), there are 2.7 oz. of sugar (76.54 grams), more than 2 times the recommended daily sugar intake for men and more than 3 times the recommended daily dose for women, and a Super Gulp (44 oz. of Coke) contains 3.96 oz. of sugar (112.26 grams), and a Double Gulp (64 oz. Coke), 5.76 oz. of sugar (163.29 grams) or 11.52 tablespoons.

You can do the math by yourself, just multiply the serving size by 0.09 (or 9%) and you get the sugar ounces that you are eating, in tablespoons, you take this last result and multiply by 2.

Since drinks got so big, New York created the "Sugary Portion Cap Rule", but that had no effect on 7-Eleven monstrous portions since it only applies to restaurants, which were prohibited from serving sugary drinks bigger than 16 ounces (23% smaller than a large Mc Donald's soda). No surprise that the sugar drinks conglomerate opposed the bill, stating that the poor income families will lose out those great deals. You could splurge and purchase 3 separated drinks.

So, if you just drink Coke and nothing else, you will be putting yourself in a lot of danger, although it might be acceptable if you are in a Zombie-Apocalypse scenario, and you are locked up in a Coke warehouse, and there is nothing but stock. As you can imagine, your teeth will start to root, since the phosphoric acid on Coke gets in touch with your teeth, therefore destroying the enamel and the sugar will soon lead to cavities. The calories you consumed would be less than the recommended 2000, if you drink 14 cans of Coke at 140 calories per can, you will get near the daily recommended caloric intake, but still, the contents will hurt you.

Remember that all that high fructose corn syrup you are consuming would start to increase fat in your liver and will put you at risk of getting a cardiovascular disease. 

What is it like to Drink Coke Every day? Let's Ask John.

Meet John Prior, a super fit 50-year-old guy from L.A that actually drank nothing but Coke, every day, for a month, that is, 10 cans (1400 cal.) a day for 30 days. He ate other things too though. After his binge, the British press said that he put on 28 pounds (12.7 Kg). So in a month, from being slim, he developed "love handles", a "pot" belly, and man boobs. He also said that his blood pressure went u from 129/77 to 145/96, his conclusion was that "I think there are a lot of  people suffering health problems like diabetes and heart disease, who aren't aware they could help themselves by just stopping sugar." He also admitted that big corporations and their lobbying arm would be hard to stop.

According to some experts at Yale University, we'd start aging rapidly, as well as putting on pounds and losing teeth. The same study says that we'd feel very hungry all the time as sweet tastes increase appetite. We might even start gnawing at the crates in the warehouse and weight gain would be definite. Studies have shown that 1/5 of America's famous obesity epidemic is from people just drinking sugary products compulsively.

Another article about Natasha Harris, a woman who drank 18 pints of Coke every day (a little less than 8.5 liters) and no water for 16 years, died at the age of 30 from a cardiac arrest. At the time of her death, this woman, mother of 8 children had "hypocalemia, or the lack of potassium in the blood, did not have any teeth and one of her 8 children was born without enamel. 

Natasha Harris from New Zeland, downed nearly 9 liters of Coke every day otherwise she'd go crazy

Research has shown that only by reducing the amount of sugar in drinks could prevent over 1 million cases of obesity.

"We have solid evidence that keeping intake of free sugars to less than 10% of the total energy  intake reduces the risk of overweight, obesity and tooth decay"

WHO's Department of Nutrition for Health and Development, 2015

I know things could change, but sugar politics is a big deal and in the end, the bottom line is more important than your health, says most critics.

The sugar industry has spent over 54 million dollars lobbying in the last 8 years and well, in the UK, politicians knew this and tried to come up with a way to reduce obesity in the country by taxing sugar higher. This hasn't come in yet, but already drinks manufacturers have begun reducing the sugar in their drinks in the UK by almost 50% because of this. Coke was one of those companies, but the 30% sugar reduction will only happen in the UK, according to CNN. Let's check out what the Euro News are saying these days.

What Happens when you Drink Coke?

In a 1-hour period of time, after drinking a standard can of Coke, this is what happens.

Start Counting

The phosphoric acid that Coca-Cola contains gets in touch with the enamel on your teeth, provoking dental erosion. This type, unlike the localized erosion that gives you cavities in a certain tooth, affects all your teeth at the same time.

In 10 Minutes

A little more than 2 tablespoons of sugar strike your system (about 80% of the recommended daily intake of sugar). You won't be able to vomit due to the overwhelming sweetness because of the large quantity of phosphoric acid that cuts the flavor. Still, almost all the sugar that you were supposed to intake in a day, is punched at once in a short period of time (sounds pretty bad, huh?)

20 Minutes

You will experience a spike in your blood sugar, followed by an insulin burst. Now your liver gets to work (like when your boss makes you work until you break) turning all the sugar at its reach into fat. It accumulates very fast.

40 Minutes

Your pupils dilate due to all the caffeine absorbed, and as your blood pressure raises, your liver dumps more sugar into your bloodstream. At this point, the adenosine receptors in your brain are blocked preventing drowsiness.

45 Minutes

Your dopamine production increases, stimulating the pleasure centers of your brain. In case you have not figured it out yet, this is just how heroin works.

60 Minutes

1) The phosphoric acid binds the calcium, zinc, and magnesium in your lower intestine, generating a further boost in your metabolism. The result is an increase in the urinary excretion of calcium, zinc, and magnesium. (Now you know why Coke is especially bad for women.)

2) Now we experience the caffeine diuretic properties in all its extension. At this point, you will pee all the calcium, magnesium, and zinc previously bonded, that were supposed to go to your bones (teeth included). Sodium, electrolyte and of course water get flushed at this point too.

3) As the rave party in your body dies down, you will start to have a sugar crash. It is possible that you get irritable and/or sluggish. Since you pissed away all the water of the Coke that you just had, not before infusing it with valuable nutrients your body could have used to build strong bones and teeth or hydrating your system, you will get thirsty again, only this time, you also get hungry, since you need to replace all the valuable minerals you have just pissed away.

So you take another Coke and there we go again.

There are several health issues involving Coke, and the one that I think is the true and silent-slow killer is the progressive damage to your kidneys. So eat well, drink more water, and try not to drink Coke...so you can "Enjoy".

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[tornadorojo5]

What if Coke was the Only Thing to Drink, and Nothing More?

[tornadorojo5]

Was the European Union a Good Idea or Should all take the GB path?

This is the question nowadays, and part of the reason is that some people feel strongly disconnected to the E.U, while others praise its achievements. All things considered. Is its existence good or bad for Europeans?.

Remember that the U.K is leaving the E.U, so I think we better treat it like if it's no longer part of the club (well, I think it was always like that, remember that they kept the Pound as national currency). The E.U is the combination of 27 countries and has a population of a little more than 508 million people, making it the third most populous country in the world and in case that you wonder, followed by the United States in 4th place (327 million people). It's the world's second-largest economy by GDP (approx. 17 trillion dollars) and has the biggest single market in the world. But this was not the original idea of the creation of the E.U, the original purpose was "peace". Europeans are really good at war, so they have been involved in bloody conflicts for basically all their history (the list is huge but, click this link to check out the most important since 1450). From all that hate, it is remarkable the one-century long rivalry between Germany and France that has cost millions of lives and ran so deeply that the Germans invented a word for that, that is "Erbfeindschaft" which can be translated as "enmity". So, after WWII, Europeans decided that they wanted lasting peace that is not based on a balance of military power, instead, the economies, the politics and all the people of Europe should become so closely integrated and interconnected, that war would become unthinkable and unpractical, and it worked, between Euro members we'd had over seventy years of peace.

Yeah, peace is great but, is that all? is peace the only achievement of the European Union?, clearly not, look, today, many citizens benefit from several individual freedoms, treaties, and regulations to ensure easy traveling between countries, cheap phone communications, an awesome variety of food and services, as well as very strong health and safety standards.

Europe is not afraid to pick a fight with any industrial giant, (Apple, Microsoft, Facebook, and much more) in regards tax evasion, data protection or fair competition.

Talking about the E.U science program, the European Union became a collaborative engine that works as a hub of science in the wider world, unrestricted travel and the possibility to work anywhere in the continent, makes it easy to apply for funds and to set up an international team of experts with the best equipment possible. In turn, the European Union became the world's leader in terms of its global share of science, that makes more than 34% of the world's research output, that is very impressive especially if you think that all that knowledge comes from only 5% of its population.

Despite all of the above, more than a few citizens feel distrust toward the E.U, Brussels seems far away, untransparent and technocratic and somehow difficult to understand. To make things even worse, the E.U is terrible at outreach and explaining what it actually does. This is leading to an ever-shrinking voter turnout over the decades. The E.U is in desperate need of more transparency and accountability, that is if it wants more institutional trust on behalf of their citizens.

Currently, the EU is still shaking from the refugee crisis of 2015, some countries have accepted far greater numbers of asylum seekers than others, while the border countries are overwhelmed and feel like they were left alone in this terrible situation. Other countries a shocked by the initially unregulated mass migration, therefore closing their borders, effectively shutting down the largest route into Europe.

Due to E.U's freedom and wealth, people think of it as an attractive destination and this is not about to change, but the population is split on how to react to that. Some people argue that Europe is letting in too many immigrants with different culture without strictly demanding integration, while others think that immigration is not the problem, but the racism and discrimination of immigrants are preventing integration.

To strike a balance between helping refugees turning illegal immigrants away and integrating the ones that stay is nowadays the most difficult challenge that the Union faces. 

Immigration aside, several more challenges lie in the future, such as defense. It is a tradition that the European countries had relied strongly on the protection of the United States of America through NATO. But in today's political climate, Europe has to ask itself if it really wants to depend in such a great manner on the USA for its safety. 

If combined today, militaries of the European Union could form an effective defensive force and be the third largest military in the world. I know this is a sexy topic, let's take a moment to check the E.U military forces and the top 4 most powerful military forces on the planet.

What About Money?

Well, as you could probably think, this is a very complicated issue. The E.U created the largest single market in the world, inside of it, you can trade border and customs free, countries that entered the European Union got a massive boost on their economies, even between neighbors, trade increased by one hundred percent, and there was a steady creation of new jobs. Research has suggested that joining the European Union has left most of its members with an average of a 12% higher GDP than if they had remained outside and for those regions with weaker economies and poor infrastructure, E.E institutions provide billions of Euros every year helping economic investments, infrastructure, and social development.

But there is a negative side, that is because the E.U tries to hold together countries that with vastly different economies and laws regarding labor, social security, taxes, etc. The cost of one hour work in an E.U country ranges from 4 Euros to 40 Euros, some countries have large industries and strong exports, while others focus on services, tourism, or natural resources. On top of this, the Euro is the common currency of most but not all these countries.

As the Greek crisis shows, this can be a recipe for disaster because you can't unify vastly different economies under one currency, but keep their economy policies separated, that is because if something really bad happens (2008 world economic crisis) weaker economies cannot depreciate their currencies and make their products and services be perceived as cheaper to the eyes of other stronger countries (potential buyers), this way, getting their economies into the path of economic recovery. This among other irresponsible decisions got the Greek economy broke in a few months.

I think the question is: Should all European Union countries unite under the common currency, or not?. Should the weakest links of the chain be thrown out of the Euro, or should countries be made to adopt common policies on taxes, healthcare, and social security?. This question has been brewing for years now and it is nowhere near a suitable solution.

So all things considered. Is the European Union a good idea, or should every country follow the UK path?. Well, I think that the E.U is very flawed, and still needs a lot of work and refinement, but it is very fair to say that the E.U makes Europeans a solid and powerful figure in the world, remember that they lead the path of science, through extensive investments in research and development, plus they are one of the strongest economic and military power in the world, but more importantly, the European Union gives Europeans peace, security, and a sense of shared identity, and something very important to humans in theses turbulent times, stability. I think that if Europeans want to protect the values that they are so proud of, a strong European Union is the way to go so they can make sure that their voices are heard throughout the world. If the E.U breaks apart, all its countries as small states will hardly stand a chance in a world of shifting superpowers (USA, China, Russia or even India).

If you don't agree with me, that's fine, you just have a different opinion, in the words of Evelyn Beatrice Hall (English writer-Voltaire's Biographer, Known as S. G. Tallentyre): "I do not agree with what you have said, but I'd defend to the death your right to say it" 

Cheers Friends,

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[tornadorojo5]

[tornadorojo5]