Empowered Pathways Newsletter

Empowered Pathways Newsletter

May 5, 2003

Gen Abrams, Publisher
Gen@empoweredpathways.com

..your link to better living
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Welcome!
.. to your "Empowered Pathways" newsletter!

It is my hope that through this newsletter, you will receive
information that will improve the quality of your life.
Included in each issue will be information about health,
nutrition, herbals and supplements, simplifying life, living
more frugally, fun, faith, and joy!

It's all about empowerment, stuff that helps you be
in control of your life, your own pathway to better living!

Just a quick note here-
If you are interested in opportunities to work using the
internet, supplementing your current salary, and working
with a committed team, send an email and let us know!
Or if you currently are involved in your own business,
and are looking for training and marketing support, let
us know! Knowledge and networking can help, and we are
looking for a few key people to join our team!
Maybe it's you!

To all our new subscribers,
as well as faithful readers,
Thanks for subscribing!

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Health, Nutrition and Supplements
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Not All Supplements are Created Equal

Not Enough Fruits and Veggies on American Tables
Surprised? No? Well, how about this...

Families with kids have the worst habits when it comes to
eating fruits and vegetables, according to new research from
the Produce for Better Health Foundation (PBH). While most
Americans realize that eating fruits and vegetables is impor-
tant to a healthy diet, current trends are alarming: fruit
and vegetable consumption is declining; obesity levels are
on the rise, and for many consumers, fruits and vegetables
are being replaced by high-calorie foods. Just 13% of Amer-
ican families eat the recommended minimum of five daily
servings, versus 22% of singles, 27% of empty nesters, and
39% of the elderly.

"While modern science has discovered many impressive health
advances, nothing comes close to the proven health-promoting,
disease-fighting benefits of a diet rich in colorful fruits
and vegetables," says Elizabeth Pivonka, Ph.D., R.D. and
PBH president.

A "Personal" Testimonial
Back in 1995, my dad was diagnosed with COPD. Chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), also called chronic
obstructive lung disease, is a term that is used for two
closely related diseases of the respiratory system: chronic
bronchitis and emphysema. In many patients these diseases
occur together, although there may be more symptoms of one
than the other. He now only has about 38% of his lung
capacity functioning, and is on oxygen all the time. He
also takes a slew of medications and inhalers, and is extremely
susceptible to respiratory infections which could have tragic
implications if contracted. He has taken multivitamin
supplements, the high end type you can buy in most stores.

A few months ago, he began taking a product I recommended to him.
Within just a few weeks, he was feeling better than he had in a
long while! He reports to have more energy, and is up doing things
much more than he has been able to in months! You can honestly
see the change in him!

One of the first questions he asked me is "What makes this
product any different?" - he had been taking the brand name
multivitamin supplement for 'silver' aged people and it never
gave him what these products do. The difference is in the
source of the vitamins and antioxidants. Though the store
brand lists the same values of the same nutrients, it does
not list the source of those nutrients.

Not all supplements are created equal.
To obtain the all the benefits from the supplements we take,
we must consume them in their pure form and consume the right
dosage. Additionally, if a nutraceutical is derived from a
plant it must come from a specific part of the plant.

*These statements has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
This product is not intended to diagnose, treat or cure or prevent any disease.
This notice is required by the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.

Please feel free to pass this newsletter on to friends
or family who may benefit from this information!

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Opportunity Knocks
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Are you looking for a ground floor
business opportunity?

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If it were possible that that $7 led to $214 a month income?
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Gen's Soapbox
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can of spam

What's the real issue here?
And furthermore, who's in charge?

According to survey results of The Pew Internet & American
Life Project (http://www.pewinternet.org/index.asp) found
in a report dated December 8, 2002, relatively little spam
is finding its way to at-work email inboxes. More than half
of work emailers (52%) reported no spam in their email accounts.
Another 19% reported less than 10% of their incoming mail at
work was spam. Eleven percent reported about two thirds or
more of their inbox was spam. By contrast, 21% of respondents
reported no spam in their personal accounts; another 16%
reported less than 10% incoming spam. Thirty percent reported
about two thirds or more of their incoming email personal
email was spam.

Personally, I am on the internet, subscribing and signing up
for things daily. I have several email accounts- personal,
business, yahoo and hotmail, etc.I get hundreds of emails
each day. Almost no spam.

And as for "spam blockers", a while back I wrote about my
personal ISP putting a spam blocker on my account without
telling me, and the difficulties it caused for me. The webhost
provider I use uses "spamassassin" (yes, I will name names
here!), and I have avoided my knee jerk reaction to get it
removed thus far. Instead, I have read all the reports that
come with each of my emails I have subscribed to, and have
used it as a point of learning. The reports, incidentally are
rude, sarcastic, and are based on some points scale that who
knows who put together. (If you have never seen one, email
me and I will forward one to you.)

I am also very careful to not send out spam, only sending
information to those wonderful people who have requested it
or directly subscribed.

My belief is that my email is my responsibility, and the
delete button is the best way to control unwanted email-
just like changing a channel on the television. As with any-
thing else you find offensive, if you ignore it, it will go away!
Personal responsibility and our own actions are the best way
to control our own environments!

Or at least, you would think it would be that simple...
Enter the government. Of course. Last week, a three day (!)
summit was held by the Federal Trade Commission in Washington,
D. C. to discuss the issue of spam, which doesn't seem to
be an issue for most of us. The article which follows talks
about some of the issues presented there. It is particularly
interesting to me that the massive, feuding ISP's with the also
massive bottom lines seem to be the entangling forces in this
issue... Could it be that corporate dollars and their huge
bandwidth and IT issues are the real bottom line here?

Spam has become such a vexing problem that, if current trends
continue, email could become a far less useful way to communi-
cate. But have some of the muscular responses to unsolicited
bulk email, such as blacklists that target internet providers
used by spammers, created problems of their own?

On Thursday, participants at a three-day spam summit convened
by the Federal Trade Commission in Washington sparred over
whether such blacklists are legal and whether they do more
harm than good. Some speakers warned their use means that
legitimate email is often lost or silently discarded - becoming
an accidental casualty in the war on spam.

Margie Arbon of the Mail Abuse Prevention System defended the
practice of blacklisting, in which activists create and publish
a list of internet addresses that are linked with spammers.
Internet service providers and individuals can subscribe to
the list and use it to discard messages that originate from
addresses on it. "Blacklists are a decision by the owner of
the equipment," Arbon said. "They are trying to defend their
property... They are being inundated by this mail."

But the practice came under fire from J. Trevor Hughes,
director of the Network Advertising Initiative's Email
Service Provider Coalition, whose members include DoubleClick,
credit agency Experian and companies that sell high volume
email marketing campaigns. Hughes contended that financial
statements and other important email have been lost because
of accidental or intentional entries on blacklists. "Those
are all messages that have suffered because of blacklistings
and false positives," he said.

The FTC summit is the first serious evaluation of blacklists
undertaken by the federal government, even though the technique
has been the target of criticism for frequently blocking mail
that is not spam. A particularly controversial "guilt-by-
association" approach employed by some list operators places
an entire ISP or hosting service on a blacklist merely because
one of its users is a spammer.

In February, Microsoft's MSN accidentally blocked incoming
messages from rival ISPs, including AOL Time Warner's Road
Runner broadband service and EarthLink. And, as first reported
by CNET News.com last November, the FTC itself adopted black-
lists that blocked some legitimate e-mail to agency staff.
Brian Huseman, a staff attorney in the FTC's division of
marketing practices, said the agency was reviewing its ap-
proach. "We're in the process of examining those blacklists,"
he said.

While blacklists may not break the law, they could amount to
irresponsible censorship, said Cindy Cohn, legal director for
the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Cohn warned of "private
entities and anonymous entities deciding which of your mail
gets through and which doesn't get through." She added that
hobbyists and nonprofit groups operating mailing lists have
encountered an increasing number of problems.

"EFF has received complaints from noncommercial listserv
owners that they have ongoing problems getting their solici-
ted messages through," Cohn said, adding that EFF had begun
to draft a list of "best practices" for blacklist operators
to follow.

While blacklists can be effective in reducing spam, critics
say they can be applied in a secretive and unaccountable way.
In response to a question from the FTC, Spamhaus' Alan Murphy
refused to say which ISPs were using the organization's black-
list and, citing current litigation, would not reveal what
procedure is used to add addresses to it.

One panelist suggested that blacklists could run afoul of
the law by interfering with business relationships. Another
panelist, Michael Grow of the Arent Fox law firm, disagreed.
"If you conduct a reasonable investigation and form an opin-
ion that someone is the source of spam or a particular Inter-
net Protocol address is being used (for spamming), there's a
First Amendment right that attaches to that."

What do you think?
Sound off to me!
What is your take on the spam debate?
Is it a free speech issue? Is it an irritation?
Let me hear it!
Gen@empoweredpathways.com

    And this I pray,
    that your love may abound
    yet more and more in knowledge
    and in all judgement;
    That ye may approve things
    that are excellent;
    that ye may be sincere
    and without offence
    till the day of Christ;
    Being filled with the fruits of righteousness,
    which are by Jesus Christ,
    unto the glory and praise of God.

      Philippians 1:9-11

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Remarkable Quote
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Excellence is the eternal quest. We achieve it by living up
to our highest intellectual standards and our finest moral
intuitions. In seeking excellence take life seriously--but
never yourself!
- Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.

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Reader Feedback
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If you have comments or questions, any feedback is greatly
appreciated! Please let me know if it is okay to share your
comments with other subscribers!
You can email me anytime at: Gen@empoweredpathways.com

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Disclaimers:
*These statements have not been approved by the Food and
Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose,
treat or cure or prevent any disease. This notice is required
by the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.
The purpose of this newsletter is informational only, and
the publisher cannot be held responsible for actions taken
as a result of the information provided herein.
Although we believe our advertisers to be honest in their
business practices, we cannot be held liable for the products
or services promoted by our sponsors. Please take the time
to check out all business opportunities and offers.
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