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Uprising’s guest expert Robert Jensen, an author and a professor of journalism at the University of Texas at Austin, analyzes today’s news headlines:

Secretary of State John Kerry has pledged US support for a major global conservation effort aimed at protecting the world’s oceans. Attending a two-day conference at the State Department, Kerry addressed dozens of officials from 80 countries who have gathered in DC this week to address issues of “overfishing, pollution, and changes in ocean chemistry caused by rising carbon dioxide emissions” (Guardian). Overfishing in particular is a major issue, threatening the food security of 3 billion people. President Obama is expected to use his executive authority to announce US efforts in preserving the world’s oceans. According to the Guardian newspaper, “Kerry …has adopted ocean protection as a personal cause.” Click here for a Guardian newspaper article about the story.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has backed a project to create a genetically modified banana that packs more Vitamin A than a natural banana. Claiming to address Vitamin A deficiencies in poor nations, the GMO banana will apparently be tested on humans in the US during a six week trial. The product is aimed at East African countries where Vitamin A deficiencies are high and bananas are a dietary staple. Click here for an RT.com article about the story.

In a teeny tiny victory for gun control, the US Supreme Court ruled this week in a 5-4 decision that it is never okay to lie about a gun purchase. Currently federal laws require that gun buyers state on their purchase form that they are the buyer. If the gun they legally buy is then sold to someone else, even if that someone else is legally eligible to buy a gun, the act of third party selling is illegal unless there is a paper trail. The law is aimed at being able to trace guns used in crimes. Click here for Think Progress article about the story.