MASSIVE BLAZE rips through unoccupied apt building in Liverpool, Sydney; WATCH

MASSIVE BLAZE rips through upper levels of unoccupied apt building in Liverpool, Sydney's west. Minor damage, cause not yet known. #TenNews http://pic.twitter.com/zBQi27pwkX

— TEN Eyewitness News (@channeltennews) September 8, 2017

New Hazard in Storm Zone: Chemical Blasts and ‘Noxious’ Smoke

HOUSTON — A series of explosions at a flood-damaged chemical plant outside Houston on Thursday drew sharp focus on hazards to public health and safety from the city’s vast petrochemical complex as the region begins a painstaking recovery from Hurricane Harvey.

The blasts at the plant, owned by the French chemical company Arkema, came after its main electrical system and backups failed, cutting off refrigeration systems that kept volatile chemicals stable. While nearby residents had been evacuated, 15 public safety officers were treated at a hospital after inhaling smoke from chemical fires that followed the explosions.

The Arkema plant has been identified as one of the most hazardous in the state. Its failure followed releases of contaminants from several other area petrochemical plants and systemic breakdowns of water and sewer systems in Houston and elsewhere in the storm-struck region.

The explosions — more are expected, the company said — will bring fresh scrutiny on whether these plants are adequately regulated and monitored by state and federal safety officials.

The chemical plant accident came as devastation from Harvey, now a tropical depression moving into the Mississippi Valley, continued to spread across the region. The known death toll from the storm and flooding remained at 39, the authorities said.

Record-breaking floods swept through Beaumont, Tex., 100 miles east of Houston, damaging the water system and leaving the city’s 120,000 residents without clean water.

Hi PLUTO: Icy Pluto taken from spacecraft New Horizons; CLIP

 

HOWDY PLUTO: @NASA releases flyover footage of icy Pluto taken from spacecraft New Horizons #TenNews http://pic.twitter.com/AH384eNwTp

— TEN Eyewitness News (@channeltennews) July 16, 2017

Australian Politics And Media Should Reflect The Fact That Non-Belief Is On The Rise

While fewer people believe all the tenets of scripture, the religious hierarchy successfully pressures politicians to maintain a biblical view of marriage.

It’s high time politicians abandoned the fallacy that religious outrage is a vote changer. For the vanishing few true believers who swap their vote, there exists an order-of-magnitude-larger group of nonbelievers to cancel them out.

The increase in non-belief marks a seismic shift in our belief landscape. So, it’s about time the voices of the godless were heard in the corridors of Canberra, and their faces became more recognisable in the mainstream media.

Take note, Australia: More Australians recorded “No religion” in the 2016 Census than any other individual religion or denomination. Surging from 22.3 percent in 2011 to 30.1 percent, non-belief has overtaken Catholicism, which fell from 25.3 percent to 22.6 percent.

Take note, politicians: Observe the irreligious voting block comprising nearly one third of all Australians — a figure comparable to the the 34.9 percent that the ALP polled in the 2016 Federal election. Thus, nonbelievers represent a powerful, new force in politics.

Take note, media: The large non-believing demographic demands a voice. Secular groups and activists are rarely seen on television or radio, even on issues featuring the intersection of religious belief and politics.

Recall the ABC’s ‘Q&A’ special episode on Church and State in April 2016? The topic was secularism, but the panel featured not one secularist. The panel were exclusively Christian, featuring Christian pastors, academics and, of course, the Australian Christian Lobby.

It’s about time the voices of the godless were heard in the corridors of Canberra, and their faces became more recognisable in the mainstream media.

Our public broadcaster features numerous religious programs, but none specifically dedicated to discussing non-belief. These programs include ‘Compass’, ‘For the God Who Sings’, ‘Religion & Ethics Report’, ‘Songs of Praise’, the ‘Spirit of Things’, and ‘God Forbid’…

MORE: Australian Politics And Media Should Reflect The Fact That Non-Belief Is On The Rise

Imam Ibrahim Omerdic found guilty of marrying 14-year-old girl

A FORMER Muslim cleric has been found guilty of marrying off an under-aged girl to an adult man in Melbourne.

Magistrate Phil Goldberg said on Thursday he found Ibrahim Omerdic solemnised the marriage of the girl and a 34-year-old man.

He is believed to be the first person ever to be found guilty of a forced marriage charge, the Herald Sun reports.

Omerdic, who was an imam of the Bosnian Islamic Society and Noble Park Mosque, had fought the charge, claiming the “marriage” was not subsequently formalised under Australian law…

MORE: Ibrahim Omerdic: Melbourne imam married child bride, 14 in secret ceremony

One Nation directed donations to Pauline Hanson’s personal account

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Car crashes into Geelong Westfield shopping centre

A car has crashed into the glass sliding doors at a Westfield shopping centre and injured two elderly passersby.

The car is believed to have smashed into the entrance of the Geelong complex at Emerald Place, south of Melbourne, about 10.45am on Thursday.

The driver, a man in his 60s, and two elderly pedestrians, a man and a woman, will be taken to hospital for observation, Victoria Police said.

Victoria Ambulance confirmed three people were assessed for injuries.

The woman was treated for back pain. One of the men was treated for neck and chest pain. The injuries for the other man are not yet known.

Part of the wall of the shopping centre complex collapsed on impact, uncomfirmed reports say according to Herald Sun.

Police and emergency services are on the scene.

Source: Car crashes into Geelong Westfield shopping centre | Daily Mail Online

Exercise pill to build muscle AND boost heart health without moving at all

We are one step closer to an ‘exercise pill’, scientists claim as new research reveals how to build muscle mass simply by altering a protein in the body.

The study, conducted in mice, showed that suppressing production of the protein myostatin enhances muscles – and boosts heart and kidney health.

It is an exciting announcement for those who dread the gym.

But scientists also point out that it could be a major development in treating obese people, since studies suggest their bodies overproduce myostatin, making it harder to see results from exercise.

The researchers zeroed in on myostatin because it is known as a powerful inhibitor of skeletal muscle growth.

It means that people with more myostatin have less muscle mass, and people with less myostatin have more muscle mass.

Study leader Dr Joshua Butcher, a postdoctoral fellow at the Vascular Biology Center at Augusta University in Georgia, said: ‘Given that exercise is one of the most effective interventions for obesity, this creates a cycle by which a person becomes trapped in obesity.’

Obesity is linked with several factors that increase the risk of heart disease and diabetes, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, insulin resistance and kidney damage.

The researchers bred four groups of mice: lean and obese mice with uninhibited myostatin production and lean and obese mice that were unable to produce myostatin.

As expected, mice that were unable to produce myostatin developed markedly higher muscle mass, though the obese mice remained obese even with more muscle.

The obese mice that were unable to produce myostatin showed markers of heart and metabolic health that were on a par with their lean counterparts and dramatically better than obese mice with uninhibited myostatin production.

Dr Butcher said: ‘In our muscular obese mouse, despite full presentation of obesity, it appears that several of these key pathologies are prevented.

‘While much more research is needed, at this point myostatin appears to be a very promising pathway for protection against obesity-derived cardiometabolic dysfunction.’

He added: ‘Ultimately, the goal of our research would be to create a pill that mimics the effect of exercise and protects against obesity.

‘A pill that inhibits myostatin could also have applications for muscle wasting diseases, such as cancer, muscle dystrophy and AIDS.’

He was due to present the findings at the American Physiological Society’s annual meeting in Chicago.

Source: A step closer to ‘exercise pill’ to replace your workout | Daily Mail Online

BREAKING: Australia Post CEO Ahmed Fahour quits his job

Australia Post chief executive Ahmed Fahour has resigned on Thursday afternoon just weeks after his multi-million salary sparked backlash.

Source: Australia Post CEO Ahmed Fahour quits his job | Daily Mail Online