The Nahmias Cipher Report

Ayanna Nahmias, Editor-in-Chief Last Modified: 15:20 PM EDT, 4 May 2012 POTISKUM, Nigeria – This town in Yobe state is at the epicenter of the radical Islamic group, Boko Haram‘s reign of terror. The group has perpetrated over 480 killings since the beginning of the year as they seek to bring Northern Nigeria and then [...]

Ayanna Nahmias, Editor-in-Chief Last Modified: 22:24 PM EDT, 2 February 2012 TANZANIA, East Africa – When one thinks of Neo-Colonialism in emerging economies, the traditional natural resources usually come to mind – minerals, timber, water rights, and oil. The expansion in Africa by oil companies has increased in recent years as the demand for this [...]

“We must find new lands from which we can easily obtain raw materials and at the same time exploit the cheap slave labor that is available from the natives of the colonies. The colonies would also provide a dumping ground for the surplus goods produced in our factories. Rhodes wanted to expand the British Empire because he believed that the Anglo-Saxon race was destined to greatness. In his last will and testament, Rhodes said of the British, “I contend that we are the first race in the world and that the more of the world we inhabit the better it is for the human race.” ~ Cecil John Rhodes

Land grabs by giant agricultural conglomerates are occurring all over the world. From Cambodia in Asia to Ethiopian in Africa, large agro concerns are making deals with the governments to purchase land to produce food, bio-fuel, horticultural and floricultural produce that are 100% exported in a phenomenon that is a new twist of the old theme of colonialism. Land sold for the express purpose of growing food stock or produce that doesn’t directly benefit the local populace either nutritionally or economically is another form of colonialism and is a practice that must be publicized and countered.

Yesterday we posted a piece which lauded a potential life saving break-through in the development of a HIV vaccination which could save millions of lives. Today, this news is tempered by a recent announcement by PlusNews a Global HIV/AIDS news and analysis publication which reports that HIV infection rates are on the increase among the intravenous drug user (IDU) populations of many African countries.

Health officials in Tanzania are worried about rising HIV-prevalence levels among IDUs, who often use a dangerous cash-saving technique known as “flash blood”, in which a user injects heroin or another illegal drug, and then draws a syringe full of blood for a second user to inject.

How to time travel with the aid of spices and African cuisine.