Rather Quite Obvious, Now That You Mention It

It is the sort of question you might be tempted to answer simply and bluntly, such as by saying, “Well, we’re Americans.”

At least two people have died from heart attacks while shovelling snow in Buffalo, New York. Every winter, about 100 people in the US die doing this. Why?

(BBC)

Turns out the answer appears to actually be medical:

A study looking at data from 1990 to 2006 by researchers at the US Nationwide Children’s Hospital recorded 1,647 fatalities from cardiac-related injuries associated with shovelling snow. In Canada, these deaths make the news every winter.

Cardiologist Barry Franklin, an expert in the hazardous effects of snow removal, believes the number of deaths could be double that. “I believe we lose hundreds of people each year because of this activity,” says Franklin, director of preventative cardiology and cardiac rehabilitation at William Beaumont Hospital, Michigan.

His team found that when healthy young men shovelled snow, their heart rate and blood pressure increased more than when they exercised on a treadmill. “Combine this with cold air, which causes arteries to constrict and decrease blood supply, you have a perfect storm for a heart attack,” he says.

Well, yeah, it would be medical anyway, even if the answer was, “He froze to death.” Then again, we cannot predict that such a notion would have any effect. After all, we’re Americans.

You know how it goes: Sure, it happens. But not to me.

And then one day you fall over, face-down in the snow. Such is the difference between knowledge and wisdom.

Just … you know, take care of yourselves. The only upside is that you won’t be around to hear your mates razzing you about it at the pub.

____________________

British Broadcasting Company. “Why do so many people die shovelling snow?” BBC News Magazine Monitor. 19 November 2014.

Image credit: Derek Gee/Buffalo News

Just a Reminder

With much attention given to the evolving circumstances in Ukraine, perhaps it seems the wrong moment to remind that there are other wars going on:

Ethiopian and Somali government forces have seized a key town in central Somalia from the Islamist militant group al-Shabab, officials say.

At least 12 people were killed in heavy fighting for control of Rabdhure town in Bakol region, residents said.

The attack may signal the start of a new offensive against al-Shabab, according to a BBC reporter in Somalia.

Ethiopian troops are part of a 22,000-strong African Union (AU) force battling the militants in Somalia.

The BBC’s Mohamed Moalimu in the capital, Mogadishu, says the fall of Rabdhure is significant, as it was a major al-Shabab base for attacks across the region.

It would be the first town the group has lost since September, when Mahaday in central Somalia fell to AU-backed government forces.

(BBC)

There are always other wars going on.

An Exploitative Question

Every once in a while circumstance presents what seems a necessary occasion to ask an obviously exploitative question:

Ramón Gustavo Castillo Gaete, who refers to himself as “Antares from the Light,” is on the run from police after four members of his group were arrested by Chilean authorities for the ritualistic murder of an infant girl.

So: Do we blame the individual, the cult, religion in general, or “Christianity”?

(The detail of Megan Carpentier’s report for Raw Story, BBC’s article, or other news source is genuinely soul-scarring; do brace yourself before setting out along that path.)

The Great Brazilian Beer Conundrum

Oh, the problems you’ll find ….

The next FIFA World Cup is not until 2014, but early battles off the field are already drawing attention. Host nation Brazil banned the sale of beer at fútbol matches since 2003, but FIFA officials insist that alcohol sales are a must at World Cup events. Via BBC:

Beer must be sold at all venues hosting matches in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, football’s world governing body, Fifa, has insisted.

Fifa General Secretary, Jerome Valcke, said the right to sell beer must be enshrined in a World Cup law the Brazilian Congress is considering.

Alcoholic drinks are currently banned at Brazilian stadiums and the country’s health minister has urged Congress to maintain the ban in the new law.

Brewer Budweiser is a big Fifa sponsor ….

…. Fifa has become frustrated, because voting on the legislation has been held up in Congress by the dispute over alcohol sales ….

…. “Alcoholic drinks are part of the Fifa World Cup, so we’re going to have them. Excuse me if I sound a bit arrogant but that’s something we won’t negotiate,” he said.

Valcke criticised the pace of construction at Brazil’s world cup venues
“The fact that we have the right to sell beer has to be a part of the law.”

There are, of course, other issues dragging down World Cup ’14. Discount ticket issues are still up in the air, as are trademark protections for World Cup sonsors. Valcke noted that negotiations have gone slowly, asserting that this is the first time FIFA and a host nation had failed to resolve such issues five years after assigning the tournament location.

The Lede of the … Week? Month? Year?

Every once in a while … yeah. Check this lede:

A German student “mooned” a group of Hell’s Angels and hurled a puppy at them before escaping on a stolen bulldozer, police have said.

Via BBC News.