Last week a case of Mad Cow Disease was accidentally discovered in the U. S. No big deal, right?
Not according to this Mother Jones article: http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2012/04/mad-cow-california
U. S. Department of Agriculture claims that the discovery proves the effectiveness of U. S. screening methods appears disingenuous. The discovery, in the face of the absolutely minuscule number of tests administered, was more accidental that fortuitous.
According to the Mother Jones article, not even sick cattle are rigorously tested. And there does not seem to be any intention of increasing the testing in the face of proof Mad Cow Disease is infecting American herds.
Industrial agriculture trumps regulation again. This cannot possibly be a good thing.
Here's what I think...
Monday, April 30, 2012
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Paper, plastic or cloth
Lots of suggestions online today on how individuals can do their part to preserve our planet.
Reduce/eliminate consumption of plastic bags. Take shorter showers and don't leave the water running while brushing teeth. Turn the old thermostat down during the winter and up during the summer.
These suggestions are not bad ideas. None of them seem to apply to what our institutions could/should be doing.
Stop mountaintop removal and the conversion of pure mountain springs into gobs of poisonous slurry.
Apply conscientious safety precautions to avoid turning vast swathes of the Gulf of Mexico into a tar pit.
Stop industrial agriculture's poisoning of waterways and acceleration of soil erosion.
Stop polluting the air we breath with toxic emissions.
Beef up enforcement against the slip shod maintenance of aging nuclear power plants.
Apply effective disciplinary measures, including charter suspension or removal, against corporate bad actors.
Abandon corporate welfare for big energy companies and initiate substantive support for the development of green power industries.
Admittedly just a beginning. But hey, we have to start somewhere.
Reduce/eliminate consumption of plastic bags. Take shorter showers and don't leave the water running while brushing teeth. Turn the old thermostat down during the winter and up during the summer.
These suggestions are not bad ideas. None of them seem to apply to what our institutions could/should be doing.
Stop mountaintop removal and the conversion of pure mountain springs into gobs of poisonous slurry.
Apply conscientious safety precautions to avoid turning vast swathes of the Gulf of Mexico into a tar pit.
Stop industrial agriculture's poisoning of waterways and acceleration of soil erosion.
Stop polluting the air we breath with toxic emissions.
Beef up enforcement against the slip shod maintenance of aging nuclear power plants.
Apply effective disciplinary measures, including charter suspension or removal, against corporate bad actors.
Abandon corporate welfare for big energy companies and initiate substantive support for the development of green power industries.
Admittedly just a beginning. But hey, we have to start somewhere.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Blame the Old Folks - Part 2
I recently posted on Facebook that I have been blessed with having many incredible senior citizens in my life.
A grandmother and grandmother-in-law who both lived to be 99. Parents-in-law that lived to 89. A close friend who died at 87. Another dear friend who is 89. An uncle who lived to be 83 against incredible odds and who clung vehemently to his "liberal Democratic" values to the end. An aunt who is 92 and failing now, but whose entire adult life, like her older sister, my Mom who will be 97 in May and is still going strong, was devoted to civil rights, environmental activism and intellectual pursuits.
Another aunt, 83, who until she finally succumbed to the numbing mental stagnation of Altzeimers two and a half years ago, was the life of every party she ever attended, a source of joy and fun to everyone who crossed her path. And my very special aunt, the baby of her siblings at 81 whose career has included time being a Carmelite Nun, an elementary school teacher, a caretaker for her mother and later her handicapped brother, and who never in her life has left a debt unpaid or an opportunity to help others unchosen.
These wonderful people have NEVER dragged down our society. They have all helped make it great! Hard working as long as they worked (my 89 year old mother-in-law until two days before she died). Voters in every election for candidates they believed WERE BEST FOR THE COUNTRY. That's right. Not for any personal agenda they had - for the good of the country they loved.
Collectors of Social Security and Medicare? Those that qualified, yes. Some, as public servants, did not qualify. Some contributed to the Social Security System from its very beginning. And it enabled some of them to live independent, dignified lives to the end of their lives.
Where did the idea come from that our elderly citizens drag our country down? Nothing could be further from the truth. Most of them played a major role in building it up!
Are the Old Folks I personally know the exceptions? Hard to swallow that when so many of them have given so much so consistently for so long.
Just saying.
A grandmother and grandmother-in-law who both lived to be 99. Parents-in-law that lived to 89. A close friend who died at 87. Another dear friend who is 89. An uncle who lived to be 83 against incredible odds and who clung vehemently to his "liberal Democratic" values to the end. An aunt who is 92 and failing now, but whose entire adult life, like her older sister, my Mom who will be 97 in May and is still going strong, was devoted to civil rights, environmental activism and intellectual pursuits.
Another aunt, 83, who until she finally succumbed to the numbing mental stagnation of Altzeimers two and a half years ago, was the life of every party she ever attended, a source of joy and fun to everyone who crossed her path. And my very special aunt, the baby of her siblings at 81 whose career has included time being a Carmelite Nun, an elementary school teacher, a caretaker for her mother and later her handicapped brother, and who never in her life has left a debt unpaid or an opportunity to help others unchosen.
These wonderful people have NEVER dragged down our society. They have all helped make it great! Hard working as long as they worked (my 89 year old mother-in-law until two days before she died). Voters in every election for candidates they believed WERE BEST FOR THE COUNTRY. That's right. Not for any personal agenda they had - for the good of the country they loved.
Collectors of Social Security and Medicare? Those that qualified, yes. Some, as public servants, did not qualify. Some contributed to the Social Security System from its very beginning. And it enabled some of them to live independent, dignified lives to the end of their lives.
Where did the idea come from that our elderly citizens drag our country down? Nothing could be further from the truth. Most of them played a major role in building it up!
Are the Old Folks I personally know the exceptions? Hard to swallow that when so many of them have given so much so consistently for so long.
Just saying.
Blame the Old Folks - Part 1
As I ramble around the Internet looking for interesting or important news, I frequently run across commentary condemning the United States' aging population for ultra conservatism, dragging down the system with demands it cater to their needs, voting against the interest of the general population.
It occurs to me this is just one more example of an ongoing practice of the "powers that be" to divide and fragment our social fabric. Hate the old people for demanding Social Security and Medicare. Hate the unions for demanding a living wage and decent working conditions. Hate the Democrats for creating a "nanny" state. Hate the Republicans for ravaging civil liberties and creating a welfare state for the one percent. Hate the Blacks for being violent. Hate the Hispanics for being illegal. Hate the Catholics for imposing their morality on the rest of the populace. Hate the atheists for being ungodly. Hate the born-again Christians for being too godly. Hate the tea partiers for being racist. Hate the Occupy Wall Streeters for being noisy and messy. Hate the young for being unruly.
How is this working for me? Not so much.
It occurs to me this is just one more example of an ongoing practice of the "powers that be" to divide and fragment our social fabric. Hate the old people for demanding Social Security and Medicare. Hate the unions for demanding a living wage and decent working conditions. Hate the Democrats for creating a "nanny" state. Hate the Republicans for ravaging civil liberties and creating a welfare state for the one percent. Hate the Blacks for being violent. Hate the Hispanics for being illegal. Hate the Catholics for imposing their morality on the rest of the populace. Hate the atheists for being ungodly. Hate the born-again Christians for being too godly. Hate the tea partiers for being racist. Hate the Occupy Wall Streeters for being noisy and messy. Hate the young for being unruly.
How is this working for me? Not so much.
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