If you haven't already seen Lisa's post of the NPR abomination I'm calling "A very few things hastily considered", please take a look.

Anyone wanting to tell National Public Radio what they think of this biased piece of dangerous bandwagon-jumping they're passing off as responsible broadcasting can write to them here.

Since many of our children come from marginalized indigenous populations within birth countries, this report on the Declaration of Indigenous Rights will be of great interest.

The Declaration was adopted by the UN General Assembly this month and it's being touted as a history-making step that addressed treaty rights, land rights and self-determination for the indigenous peoples of the world.

One hundred and forty-four countries voted for it.

Four voted against it -- the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand -- stating that the declaration "goes too far in recognizing the rights of Indigenous Peoples."

The International Indian Treat Council Board president, a Mayan Kachiquel from Guatemala has confirmed that, "for the Indigenous Peoples of Guatemala the adoption of the Declaration by the UN General Assembly is a historic moment because is it the fruit of more so many years of direct negotiations between states and Indigenous Peoples, including the Mayan Peoples of Guatemala."

Being that this is the UN, however, it must be understood that this declaration is not legally binding.

Costa Rica is in the early stages of creating a law that prevent same-sex couples from adopting children.

I'm unofficially nominating a Houston doctor to receive some accolades from the international adoption community for working to develop a vaccine that would prevent Delhi Belly, Montezuma's Revenge, or in the more general vernacular, 'traveler's diarrhea'.

Hip, hip and hooray! And, it's about time.

Delivered through a skin patch ... not even any needles involved, so another 'hip' for that ... University of Texas School of Public Health professor Dr. Herbert DuPont's vaccine is headed into the third phase of clinical trials next year and hopes to be done by 2009.

Since about 10 million people a year suffer from this miserable and always darned inconvenient condition, and since the effects can be very serious for those with compromised immune systems, the reduction of the impact of unfamiliar bugs will be a very welcome development.

And for a very cool inside look at life in Ukraine, this story from a mom with a son in the Peace Corps there provides one.

Although some aspects don't sound all that different from the circumstances that one faces on a tropical island in the Indian Ocean, I'm thinking a lack of soft toilet paper, razors and watchable TV is easier to take when a view like mine is the backdrop, as I'm pretty sure it's drearier in Kiev.

The article is a great read for anyone traveling. (Thanks, Angela!)