No, those are not the rants of a disheveled malcontent on the street wearing a Che Guevara T-shirt and waving an anti-Wall Street placard; that quote is taken from a study, published last year, conducted by two prestigious American Universities, Princeton and Northwestern. Are Americans so brainwashed and/or stupid that they fail to realize this? No, many are painfully aware of it. But think of the Soviet Union in its fading days some years before it collapsed.

The reference to the Roman Empire is more than just metaphor. The facts are disturbing. The data on stratification reveals that America is actually worse than ancient Rome. The 500 wealthiest Roman senators were roughly 10,000 times as rich as the average 'plebe' in the empire, generally a landless farmer or a slave. Big deal, each of the 500 wealthiest Americans is about 20,000 times as rich as the average person in the bottom 90 percent. If we focus only on financial resources, the average American in the top 500 has 40,000 times the wealth- power of the median citizen.

In Rome wealth and political power went together overtly. Today, in America money buys political offices and therefore the votes of the politicians, but usually quietly through the back door. At least the Romans admitted they were oligarchs, their American descendants try to hide the reality by spinning a tangled web of lies and half-truths.

In this kind of distorted socioeconomic looking-glass world, the ruling class uses the Constitution and Bill of Rights as toilet paper. But they and their minions are careful to pay lip service to the founding documents when in front of TV cameras. Privately they sneer up their sleeves as they hand John Q Public the new Social Contract in a sealed envelope. When he opens it, he reads, The Patriot Act... Tax Cuts for the Rich... Debt... Austerity ...Wars, Wars and more Wars. But apologists claim, the US is a democracy and every citizen has a voice when they cast their ballots in elections. Like all the other noble ideals, in the realm, it sounds good in theory but does not work in the real world.

He added: ‘Why not come and help the president of this country or the prime minister of that country?’ In the profile in the American magazine Newsweek, Mr Blair also praised the authoritarian military regime in Egypt, which has been accused of human rights abuses, saying: ‘Yes, democracy is important, but democracy is not on its own sufficient. You need effective government taking effective decisions.’

The article – which described Mr Blair’s ideas of leadership as ‘close to a benevolent dictatorship’ – added that Mr Blair had concluded from the foot-and-mouth crisis of 2001, when the army slaughtered ten million sheep and cattle, that soldiers were better at emergencies than governments. When asked about his future work plans, he grandly announced: ‘I’ve done British. I suppose where I think I can make most difference is on a global level, working on things that had interested me as Prime Minister but that I was not able to devote myself to.'

The 61-year-old has been working as a Middle East peace envoy while picking up international consultancy work that earns him millions of pounds a year. Talking about the group of ex-leaders he hoped to deploy in his business, Mr Blair suggested that only those who had risen to the top of their countries could properly relate to each other.

Currently, immunisation is a requirement to access childcare payments and the FTB supplement. But all parents have to do to dodge the requirements is sign a form confirming they have discussed immunisation with a GP and have a “personal philosophical, religious’’ reason not to vaccinate.

Current exemptions on medical or religious grounds will continue, but Mr Morrison said they would only exist where the parent was affiliated with the religious group, and the governing body had formally registered an objection and it had been approved by the government.

But Turkey has always disputed that figure and said the deaths were part of a civil conflict triggered by WW1. The row has continued to sour relations between Armenia and Turkey. The Pope made the comments at a Mass in the Armenian Catholic rite at Peter's Basilica, attended by the Armenian president and church leaders.

He said that humanity had lived through "three massive and unprecedented tragedies" in the last century. "The first, which is widely considered 'the first genocide of the 20th Century', struck your own Armenian people," he said, in a form of words used in a declaration by Pope John Paul II in 2001.

According to Greek Reporter, Konstantopoulou has said that the newly established “Debt Truth Committee,” will investigate how much of the debt is “illegal” with a view to writing it off. Proving that this is more than just a populist stunt, during a vote that took place early yesterday, out of the 300 Greek MPs, 156 voted in favor of establishing the public debt auditing committee.

“The committee will examine how Greece entered into the bailout agreements with its international lenders, as well as any other matter related to the memoranda’ implementation,” SYRIZA Parliamentary Secretary Christos Mantas had explained earlier. “We are fulfilling our commitment and the social demand to explore the causes and responsibilities of an unprecedented crisis that devastated the vast majority of society,” Mantas added.

If the Greek "Debt Truth Committee" indeed persists with determining how much of its debt is legal and enforceable, and ultimately decides to rescind some (or all) of it, the only question is how long until other countries around the world, all of which are burdened with massive, untenable debt loads across the government, financial and household sectors, decide it is time to do the same and declare a fresh start.

Because at the end of the day, the winners will be 99% of the population - or all those who have been trampled upon by the central banking regime and their crony capitalist, private bank and oligarch backers. The only losers will be that 0.01% of the population which benefited during the past 8 years of what is now obvious to all has been nothing more than a farcical global "recovery."

"I’m neither for nor against the outcome of the recent talks. According to the Iranian officials involved no measure has been taken yet and there are no binding results," said Khamenei during a televised speech on Thursday. Khamenei added that in light of past experience, he is not optimistic regarding the negotiations with the US, but allowed for the talks to take place anyway, stressing that he supports the ongoing negotiation, and would support a future agreement if it upholds Iran's honor and interests.

Khamenei also said that it's too early to tell if the talks will lead to an agreement, and called for restraint among Iranians on announcing victory or failure in the negotiations. "I fully trust our negotiating team, but I'm weary of the other side's attempt at deception. It's all about the details. The deceptive side may want to stab Iran in the back over the details; it is too early to congratulate," continued Khamenei, who also praised Iranian nuclear achievements thus far, and reiterated previous Iranian claims that its nuclear program has peaceful purposes. "I told President Rohani and Foreign Minister Zarif that any agreement must preserve Iran's right to scientific and technological development. They need to find a way for that to happen," Khamenei said.

According to Khamenei, the United States published a document that was "mostly false" after the latest round of talks. "I gave President Rohani my list of principles and red lines. Beyond that, I don't intend to get involved in details," although he also noted that he instructed the negating teams to make it clear to the Western powers that Iran will not allow IAEA inspectors into military facilities under the pretext of supervision of its nuclear program.

Indeed, following similar developments in Syria and Iraq, the conflict in Yemen is increasingly looking like a proxy war between Riyadh and Tehran. The two capitals are blatantly wrestling over supremacy in the region. Either Saudi Arabia, the traditional Western ally that is watching nervously as the United States slowly pulls back. Or Iran, which has been expanding its power in the region of late and which has just taken an historic step toward rapprochement with the US and its allies.

Thursday night saw Iran take another step forward. The Saudi monarchy, whose power is based on the country's vast oil reserves, were forced to watch from the sidelines in recent weeks as its historic ally America passionately pushed for a solution to the nuclear conflict with Iran. The deal was announced late on Thursday by Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif and European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini - and means that Iran has now moved a bit closer to the West and, first and foremost, to the US.

The Saudis have dubbed their offensive "Operation Storm of Resolve." But they won't be able to win with air strikes alone; to avoid defeat, they must be prepared to fight on the ground as well. The country's army is hardly in a position to do so, but eyewitnesses have nonetheless reported seeing kilometer-long tank columns along the Saudi border while on the other side thousands of Houthi rebels prepare to do battle with the invaders.

Once before, back in the 1960s, a large regional power sent tens of thousands of soldiers into Yemen. But the operation ended in disaster. It is remembered by history as Egypt's Vietnam.

Trying to decipher this complex enemy — a hybrid terrorist organization and a conventional army — is such a conundrum that General Nagata assembled an unofficial brain trust outside the traditional realms of expertise within the Pentagon, State Department and intelligence agencies, in search of fresh ideas and inspiration. Business professors, for example, are examining the Islamic State’s marketing and branding strategies.

“We do not understand the movement, and until we do, we are not going to defeat it,” he said, according to the confidential minutes of a conference call he held with the experts. “We have not defeated the idea. We do not even understand the idea.”

You can call in all the marketing executives and Harvard academics all you like, but when the Obama administration — meaning the entire US government – as a matter of established policy refuses to acknowledge the ideology and intentions that our enemy publishes IN ENGLISH in the form of videos, audio recordings and magazines, and actively prohibits anyone in a government department or agency from discussing or speaking about said ideology, you really are beyond hope. And so is America.

Differing accounts of what the deal entails have been published between the US, Europe, and Iran, with each version providing drastic variations on the deal's content. Israel has repeatedly denounced the deal as an "historic mistake." "To my regret, all of the things I warned about vis-a-vis the framework agreement that was put together in Lausanne are coming true before our eyes," Netanyahu said.

"This framework gives the leading terrorist state in the world a certain path to nuclear bombs," he warned. "How can such a country be trusted?" The emerging deal, which is to be finalized by June 30, would leave Iran with "significant nuclear capabilities," he said. "It is not dismantling them, it is preserving them. We also see that the inspection is not serious... As of now, there is no monitoring," he said. "We see that the sanctions are being lifted, immediately, according to Iran's demand, and this is without Iran having changed its policy of aggression everywhere."

Hours after Netanyahu made the remarks, Iranian Revolutionary Guards chief General Mohammed Ali Jafari, who is considered to be one of the most influential men in Tehran, stated publicly that the US conceded all of its red lines in negotiating the deal as well.

It was there he developed an unhealthy obsession with eating 'proper' food. 'All I could think about was food,' he said. 'But even when I became aware that my scrabbling in the dirt after raw vegetables and wild plants had become an obsession, I found it terribly difficult to free myself. I had been seduced by righteous eating.' Bratman's description draws parallels with many modern dietary fads that promise superior health by restricting whole food groups without a medical reason or even a valid scientific explanation. Raw food followers might meet regularly to 'align their bodies, minds and souls' by feasting on 'cleansing and immune-boosting' raw foods.

Such foods are never heated above 44˚C, so 'all the living enzymes in the food remain intact'. No gluten, dairy or 'sugar' is allowed. Clean eaters may follow similar regimes, removing gluten, dairy and even meat from their diets. You might overhear a discussion about 'superfood green smoothie' recipes after a yoga class that also happen to 'cleanse your gall bladder'. And finally, around the corner, paleo pushers may 'beef up' together with a Crossfit class, followed by a few steaks. Again, with paleo, there is no gluten – or any grains for that matter – and no dairy or other such 'toxins' are allowed.

There is a blurry line separating 'normal' healthy eating and orthorexia nervosa, but one way to define the condition is when eating 'healthily' causes significant distress or negative consequences in a person's life. They may be 'plunged into gloom' by eating a piece of bread, become anxious about when their next kale, chia or quinoa hit is coming, or eat only at home where 'superfood' intake can be tightly controlled. Such behaviours can have a significant impact on relationships with family members and friends, let alone on their mental health.

As a nutritionist and a recovered sufferer of bulimia, I leave you with some advice: 'Don't trust all-devoted kale consumers, including health professionals and celebrities, if their advice isn't based on scientific evidence.' Don't make food the most important focus of your life. As Bratman says: 'Rather than eat my sprouts (or kale) alone, it would be better for me to share a pizza with some friends.' Try to be a balanced food consumer with a 'mostly and sometimes' mantra.

Laurent Stefanini, 54, a senior diplomat and Mr Hollande's chief of protocol, was nominated in early January but the Vatican has maintained a stony silence over whether it accepts his credentials, officials in Paris said. The usual time frame for their acceptance is a month and a half. After that, a prolonged silence after a nomination is normally interpreted as a rejection.

The Elysee said that the choice of Mr Stefanini to represent France at the Vatican resulted from "a wish by the president and a cabinet decision" and that the president regarded him as "one of our best diplomats." French media widely reported that Mr Stefanini has been blackballed due to his homosexuality. Le Journal du Dimanche quoted a Vatican insider as saying that the rejection was "a decision taken by the pope himself."

Liberation, the left-leaning daily, said that "the Vatican's homophobia seriously tarnishes Pope Francis' image as being (slightly) more open-minded that his predecessors on sexuality". France in 2007 nominated a gay ambassador to the Vatican who had a partner recognised under French law but the Holy See never responded to the nomination, despite lengthy attempts to secure him the post.

He hopes it will encourage UN negotiators meeting in Paris in December to make courageous decisions about protecting the world from global warming, he told reporters traveling with him to the Philippines earlier this year. "I don't know if (human activity) is the only cause, but mostly, in great part, it is man who has slapped nature in the face," he said in January before visiting with survivors of 2013’s Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest tropical cyclones ever recorded, according to federal weather experts. "We have in a sense taken over nature."

Pope Francis is exceptionally well regarded at the end of his first two years as pontiff, a tenure during which he has rejected ostentatious trappings of the Vatican, embraced the poor and criticized a church that he says has become obsessed with abortion, gay marriage and contraception. An NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released in March found that only 6 percent of Americans viewed him negatively, while 55 percent had positive feelings about him.

Christiana Peppard, an assistant professor of theology, science, and ethics in Fordham University's Department of Theology, said she doubted that Francis would convince doubters in the US Congress to change their minds. "But I think it is good to have people who are respected as moral leaders and powerful ones at that remind powerful politicians that in a globalizing world a lot more is at stake than might be discerned in election cycles or fiscal quarters," she said.

Though the petition has already surpassed the required amount of signatures needed for the initiative, Sibila said that he hopes it will gather another 50,000 by early May in order to highlight the issue. “Who wants to stay in euro? This is the main question,” Sibila told RT. “But we don’t want to get out just like this - we want a program and a discussion, and then let the citizens decide. It’s really necessary today as the situation in Italy is going from bad to worse where jobs and economy are concerned.”

The Italian constitution, however, does not provide for the cancellation of international agreements through referenda. According to Sibila, Italy’s debt increased dramatically after the introduction of the euro. He also noted that Italy’s unemployment rate hovers around 12.7 percent, the sixth highest in the EU. “We can’t have our own fiscal policy, but without the euro it is possible in Italy,” Sibila said.

The Five Star Movement, formed in 2009 by comedian and activist Beppe Grillo, finished second in the 2014 European Parliament election with 21 percent of the vote.

For decades, we’ve been poisoning our soils with chemical fertilizers and pesticides. We’ve been overgrazing and over-farming our soil to the point that what were once prairies and grasslands teeming with life, are now lifeless dust fields.

The top six inches of soil are the most precious yet least understood ecosystem on Earth. In order to appreciate its importance to our very survival, you first must understand the role carbon plays in maintaining the ecological balance of our entire planet.

Conventional agriculture that relies on tilling and monocrops decimates the top soil and is responsible for massive losses every year. So much so that some predict that most of the topsoil in the US will be lost in the next two generations.