"Mr. Maginnis said he concluded that the analysts were being “manipulated” to convey a false sense of certainty about the evidence of the weapons. Yet he and Mr. Bevelacqua and the other analysts who attended the briefing did not share any misgivings with the American public. Mr. Bevelacqua and another Fox analyst, Mr. Cowan, had formed the wvc3 Group, and hoped to win military and national security contracts."
If I'm reading this correctly, a few military analysts had been so co-opted by the government in their quest for funding, they were willing to allow the American public to be duped into a war. They stood by--specific people with the power to end the madness. Instead, it turns out they too were mad, driven crazy by the pursuit of money.
Then again, insanity has always been a part of the human condition. That explains why I'm not so surprised. Really, I'd be surprised if the opposite happened. Yet shouldn't there be balance? Because if we either despair completely or embrace it, then we wouldn't be aware of the difference, or the existence of this quality.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Saturday, October 10, 2009
thoughts
Most of the men I meet in the Northwoods fit the same general category--fit guys who spend the weekends drinking beer, fishing, hunting, playing football, and eating game for dinner. I know, there's got to be plenty of couch potatoes too, but it still feels like all the boys in the woods spend their weekends running around the woods in rites of manhood.
A friend thinks conservatives are the conglomeration of society's winners--religious, wealthy, 'popular kids' type people. Liberals are the outsiders, loser type people. This sounds like a case of low self-esteem from internalized marginalization.
Today it snowed. Many trees haven't even changed colors (and this is definitely what most people were talking about today, as though yearning for order). I thought it was beautiful. After work I went for a drive with my friend of 6 years. Over the course of that drive, the leaves turned from light green to brilliant yellow. Snow began to fall in clumps like goose down. The leaves let out low rustles, splintering in the sky; frozen water in their veins.
A friend thinks conservatives are the conglomeration of society's winners--religious, wealthy, 'popular kids' type people. Liberals are the outsiders, loser type people. This sounds like a case of low self-esteem from internalized marginalization.
Today it snowed. Many trees haven't even changed colors (and this is definitely what most people were talking about today, as though yearning for order). I thought it was beautiful. After work I went for a drive with my friend of 6 years. Over the course of that drive, the leaves turned from light green to brilliant yellow. Snow began to fall in clumps like goose down. The leaves let out low rustles, splintering in the sky; frozen water in their veins.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
The ways of trout and men
"I sit in happy meditation on my rock, pondering, while my line dries again, upon the ways of trout and men. How like fish we are: ready, nay, eager, to seize upon whatever new thing some wind of circumstance shakes down the river of time! And how we rue our haste, finding the gilded morsel to contain a hook. Even so, I think there is some virtue in eagerness, whether its object prove true or false. How utterly dull would be a wholly prudent man, or trout, or world!"
--Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac
As I read these words, I couldn't help but think about the two weeks (was it really just two weeks) at a start-up commune outside Des Moines, IA. With almost no time spent pondering pros and cons, I quit my job for a chance to put my thoughts of self-sustainability into action.
In less resume-leaning words, I've wanted to escape the capitalism-induced rat race for roughly a year. Once while trying to fall asleep, I thought about all the hands my bedsheets, pillows and pillow covers must have gone through to comfort my insomniac self. Where was the cotton grown? Who harvested it? Where does polyester come from? How much were the various human laborers paid? Who drove the materials via semi to the retailer? What was the clerk's name who sold it to me? What happened to those dollars shoved with efficient fingers into the cash register? Like water molecules in the Misssissippi: impossible to know.
The questions piled on top of me, weighing me down. So many invisible hands (no pun intended). Is it perverse to turn up my nose to it all, like a picky toddler? A fan of post-apocalypse fiction, I'm worried. My role in society is to consume. Economists assume we are all rational (as opposed to emotional), self-interested (as opposed to we-interested) individuals (rather than part of an interconnected web of global citizens).
Once on sightseeing trip in Laos, we stopped at a village. The huts emptied and a makeshift booth of wares quickly appeared. I found myself haggling with a woman etched in wrinkles for a few dolls. She wanted two dollars, I only had one. My friend gave me a ten, which soon disappeared into the woman's purse. Furious at being "cheated," I stormed back to the taxi, where everyone gave me and my preposterous anger a wide berth. This is what rational self-interest got me: a transaction that left me frustrated and alienated.
Soon I repented. For the price of Ann Coulter's How to Talk to a Liberal (If You Must), the woman's windfall was enough to feed her family for a week. A bit sick at myself, I gave away the dolls to a few girls at a school for children born with H.I.V. in Thailand. Seen in this light, a point of view wholly alien to the self-interested rational consumer, the trade was a good one, a tithing of sorts for the general we're-in-a-mess fund.
--Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac
As I read these words, I couldn't help but think about the two weeks (was it really just two weeks) at a start-up commune outside Des Moines, IA. With almost no time spent pondering pros and cons, I quit my job for a chance to put my thoughts of self-sustainability into action.
In less resume-leaning words, I've wanted to escape the capitalism-induced rat race for roughly a year. Once while trying to fall asleep, I thought about all the hands my bedsheets, pillows and pillow covers must have gone through to comfort my insomniac self. Where was the cotton grown? Who harvested it? Where does polyester come from? How much were the various human laborers paid? Who drove the materials via semi to the retailer? What was the clerk's name who sold it to me? What happened to those dollars shoved with efficient fingers into the cash register? Like water molecules in the Misssissippi: impossible to know.
The questions piled on top of me, weighing me down. So many invisible hands (no pun intended). Is it perverse to turn up my nose to it all, like a picky toddler? A fan of post-apocalypse fiction, I'm worried. My role in society is to consume. Economists assume we are all rational (as opposed to emotional), self-interested (as opposed to we-interested) individuals (rather than part of an interconnected web of global citizens).
***
Once on sightseeing trip in Laos, we stopped at a village. The huts emptied and a makeshift booth of wares quickly appeared. I found myself haggling with a woman etched in wrinkles for a few dolls. She wanted two dollars, I only had one. My friend gave me a ten, which soon disappeared into the woman's purse. Furious at being "cheated," I stormed back to the taxi, where everyone gave me and my preposterous anger a wide berth. This is what rational self-interest got me: a transaction that left me frustrated and alienated.
Soon I repented. For the price of Ann Coulter's How to Talk to a Liberal (If You Must), the woman's windfall was enough to feed her family for a week. A bit sick at myself, I gave away the dolls to a few girls at a school for children born with H.I.V. in Thailand. Seen in this light, a point of view wholly alien to the self-interested rational consumer, the trade was a good one, a tithing of sorts for the general we're-in-a-mess fund.
***
And so, with thoughts of anti-capitalism whispering through the hallways of my mind, I'm looking for a way to opt-out. I didn't choose this system. If I had any choice in the matter, I'd choose something much different...right? Armed with a college education I shook off that musty job and headed for the woods.
My dreams collided with reality, and there were no survivors. With autumn approaching, I was living in a non-winterized cabin with no running water, no harvest, and a coterie of washed-up hippies who kept most of their belongings at their parents' house a few miles away. To me, this was a lifestyle change; to them, it was a cheap vacation.
None of it was dull, so Leopold was right in that respect. Is my eagerness a virtue, as he intones from the warm spring banks of Wisconsin's Round River circa 1966? To decide that, it's time to pull out its antonyms: reluctant, loath, unwilling. Thank you very much, no. I'm siding with eagerness on this one.
My dreams collided with reality, and there were no survivors. With autumn approaching, I was living in a non-winterized cabin with no running water, no harvest, and a coterie of washed-up hippies who kept most of their belongings at their parents' house a few miles away. To me, this was a lifestyle change; to them, it was a cheap vacation.
None of it was dull, so Leopold was right in that respect. Is my eagerness a virtue, as he intones from the warm spring banks of Wisconsin's Round River circa 1966? To decide that, it's time to pull out its antonyms: reluctant, loath, unwilling. Thank you very much, no. I'm siding with eagerness on this one.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
What a day
It's funny what a shift in perception does to a person. For the first time ever, I looked forward to coming home...and for the first time ever, I'm having a great time. It's exhilarating how easy it is. In a dozen different ways the town has been saying "Welcome back!". I've been home for less than a week, and already I have a job, airtime at KAXE and the role of laundress/chorus member in the Grand Rapids Players production of "The Christmas Carol." When I visited Brewed Awakenings, my purchased drink earned me a free beverage of my choice!
I do worry about my sanity in being a "boomerang" young adult. This hometown is by no means perfect. There's not a lot of young people like myself who are "with it." The smart and ambitious usually move to the Twin Cities and beyond, and I fear those who don't have lost some sort of struggle to break free from the backwaters of the Iron Range. Who would choose to return to a community that has always experienced economic stagnation when the country is in the midst of the Great Recession? Have I commited economic suicide just so I could live somewhere closer to my comfort zone?
Thing is, this town is the antithesis of my comfort zone. Throughout my youth, I felt alienated and alone. For years my plan had been to leave town as quickly as possible and never return.
Then I did leave, and walked the earth. My travels include Nicaragua, Vietnam, Spain, and Iowa. I've learned that happiness cannot be found in a particular place like eggs on Easter morning. Furthermore, most cultures don't expect people to go very far from home. Travel? Yes. Pilgrimage? Very much so. Permanent uprooting? From what I've read, Grapes of Wrath being an extreme example, this usually causes more unhappiness than staying put.
Besides, what's not to love about a town with multiple lakes within city limits, the Mississippi, and more forests than the inhabitants know what to do with? It took me a while to admit it, but I fit into this place like one of Mom's knitted mittens fit onto my hands. As far as I'm concerned, my homecoming is a fresh start. It's also a chance to put into action my favorite bumper sticker commandment: think globally, act locally.
Then I did leave, and walked the earth. My travels include Nicaragua, Vietnam, Spain, and Iowa. I've learned that happiness cannot be found in a particular place like eggs on Easter morning. Furthermore, most cultures don't expect people to go very far from home. Travel? Yes. Pilgrimage? Very much so. Permanent uprooting? From what I've read, Grapes of Wrath being an extreme example, this usually causes more unhappiness than staying put.
Besides, what's not to love about a town with multiple lakes within city limits, the Mississippi, and more forests than the inhabitants know what to do with? It took me a while to admit it, but I fit into this place like one of Mom's knitted mittens fit onto my hands. As far as I'm concerned, my homecoming is a fresh start. It's also a chance to put into action my favorite bumper sticker commandment: think globally, act locally.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
In transit, still
I'm at my parents house. My goal: reduce worldly possessions to one (1) box of memorabilia and one (1) backpack. This is hopefully going to be simple--I have the memorabilia box full, and now I just need to pack for Acorn. Once I'm done packing, I'll send the rest to Salvation Army. Still, I know there's going to be a few roadblocks, in particular my beloved teapot and coffeemaker. Then there's the shoe situation, posters, souvenirs... maybe I need a third box of stuff I plan to use if I ever settle down.
Ok, so a backpack and two boxes of worldly possessions. Everything else I can't part with, I bequeath to my parents. They have already unknowingly inherited my food stash and several boxes of books.
I found a website of super-teeny houses. One may even call them one room cabins. It would look great nestled in the woods somewhere. As soon as I have enough money saved up to buy land, the house plans, and the equipment needed to build the house, I'm planting myself somewhere near a lake in northern minnesota. Where I can hear loons calling and watch the northern lights.
Being at my parents house is oddly exhilarating. Usually I dread it, because I spend long stretches of time vegging out and feeling lonely. But after the commune experience I think my expectations have adjusted. The teenage angst from high school has evaporated, and all the clutter in the house has disappeared. These two things were apparently the only issues holding me back from bliss.
I think I'll have myself a sauna tonight. Tomorrow I send the rest of my clutter to Sally A. And buy a plane ticket to Virginny.
About the cabin in the woods. Will I feel lonely? Thing is, I feel lonely even when I'm in a room full of people. In fact, I feel even more lonely, like I've misplaced my soul. Solitude is preferable. As long as I have high speed internet of course. And this all hinges on having an income, which is also a bother. Minnesota's growing season isn't that great, so I'm not sure if I can grow all the food I need myself.
Baby steps. First I'll go to Acorn and embark on my goal towards self-sustainability. The rest will follow--this is definitely something I can figure out.
Monday, August 31, 2009
And another thing...
As I work on my grande coffee, I've been feeling more and more hyper. Also more anxious, as I keep exploring different career options once I'm set to leave the cabin. But I need to remind myself how exciting this time in my life is, and I don't want to waste these moments feeling anxious. I have plenty of money saved up and my parents are supportive. They've even invited me to move back in with them if I'm having trouble finding a job. So there's no reason I can't find a job I love, given all these tools I have.
I have sent out resumes to 6 great organizations: Environment America, Earth Day, USPIRG, Worksafe, Food and Society Fellows, and the Cascade Land Conservancy. I've already had an interview with Environment America, and I know it went well. I'll keep doing research on other environmentalist organizations to see about landing a job if these don't work out.
I've also started exersizing, more out of necessity than choice. If I want to leave the cabin, I need to bike to town. So I've been biking at least 10 miles a day. Yesterday I biked over 30 miles. I've also started meditating 15 minutes a day.
From now on I have three daily goals: meditate for 15 minutes a day right after waking up. My cell phone is already set for two alarms--one for waking up, the next for the end of my meditation session. The other goal is to bike to Adel every day after breakfast to check my email and read the news. My final goal is to write for 30 minutes while in Adel, whether that's a blog entry, journaling, a poem, whatever.
This will at least keep me busy for the next week and and two days.
I'm starting to seriously put my life in order. Pay off those loans with a career in environmentalist activism. Save up for WWOOFing abroad. Spend a few years in eco-villages around the United States. Get a PhD in American History. Land a professorship at the University of Iowa. Live in Iowa City.
Sounds fantastic.
I have sent out resumes to 6 great organizations: Environment America, Earth Day, USPIRG, Worksafe, Food and Society Fellows, and the Cascade Land Conservancy. I've already had an interview with Environment America, and I know it went well. I'll keep doing research on other environmentalist organizations to see about landing a job if these don't work out.
I've also started exersizing, more out of necessity than choice. If I want to leave the cabin, I need to bike to town. So I've been biking at least 10 miles a day. Yesterday I biked over 30 miles. I've also started meditating 15 minutes a day.
From now on I have three daily goals: meditate for 15 minutes a day right after waking up. My cell phone is already set for two alarms--one for waking up, the next for the end of my meditation session. The other goal is to bike to Adel every day after breakfast to check my email and read the news. My final goal is to write for 30 minutes while in Adel, whether that's a blog entry, journaling, a poem, whatever.
This will at least keep me busy for the next week and and two days.
I'm starting to seriously put my life in order. Pay off those loans with a career in environmentalist activism. Save up for WWOOFing abroad. Spend a few years in eco-villages around the United States. Get a PhD in American History. Land a professorship at the University of Iowa. Live in Iowa City.
Sounds fantastic.
and the storm clouds of student loans gather
I spent a few hours today happily researching all the places I could go. an ecovillage in virginia, organic farms in denmark/argentina/nepal.
and then it hit me. student loans. a quick search of loan forgiveness programs looked quite unappealing.
I can't travel. I have student loans to pay.
I can't do what I want to do. Student loans are on the horizon.
So, I've come to admit this one dreadful fact--I need a real job.
Fortunately, I just completed an interview with Environment America a week ago, and I think it went well. They will even provide some loan assistance. So I hope to be paying back my loans at about $300/month. At that rate, I should be out of debt by the time I'm...30.
But I will also be saving lots and lots of dinero for traveling. I'm ushering in a new era of thrift. Gotta start buying my own coffee, since it's obvious that I cannot kick this habit without allowing my mental faculties to suffer. Gotta prepare my own meals. Brown bag it to work. Use my bike as often as possible. Mainly, I splurge on eating out, so I just need to reign that in. I want as much of my income as possible to go towards a traveling fund.
My list of must-do:
1. Kathmandu to Istanbul
2. Circling the Mediterranean (begin in Morocco, end up in Spain)
3. Going home: Denmark, Germany, Czech Republic
I don't plan on traveling fast--I'd like to spend equal parts backpacking, WWOOFing, and couch surfing.
In the meantime, I'll be politically active--work for Environment America (or something similar), pay off these fecking student loans, save, and dream.
and then it hit me. student loans. a quick search of loan forgiveness programs looked quite unappealing.
I can't travel. I have student loans to pay.
I can't do what I want to do. Student loans are on the horizon.
So, I've come to admit this one dreadful fact--I need a real job.
Fortunately, I just completed an interview with Environment America a week ago, and I think it went well. They will even provide some loan assistance. So I hope to be paying back my loans at about $300/month. At that rate, I should be out of debt by the time I'm...30.
But I will also be saving lots and lots of dinero for traveling. I'm ushering in a new era of thrift. Gotta start buying my own coffee, since it's obvious that I cannot kick this habit without allowing my mental faculties to suffer. Gotta prepare my own meals. Brown bag it to work. Use my bike as often as possible. Mainly, I splurge on eating out, so I just need to reign that in. I want as much of my income as possible to go towards a traveling fund.
My list of must-do:
1. Kathmandu to Istanbul
2. Circling the Mediterranean (begin in Morocco, end up in Spain)
3. Going home: Denmark, Germany, Czech Republic
I don't plan on traveling fast--I'd like to spend equal parts backpacking, WWOOFing, and couch surfing.
In the meantime, I'll be politically active--work for Environment America (or something similar), pay off these fecking student loans, save, and dream.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Always free in the woods?
So, I'm here. At the cabin. My feelings are mixed.
Rainbow is not the steady guy I thought he was. He left in the middle of the night to sleep at his parents house. I woke up completely alone, with no explanation. Any romantic feelings I entertained for him have dissolved.
The cabin itself has a lot of potential. But progress has been slow. The place needs insulation and a dependable heat source before one could even entertain the idea of spending the winter here. If that heat source ends up to be wood...well, we just don't have the time to chop up all the wood needed to heat the cabin. I seem to recall my dad spending all summer chopping wood for the winter.
I've been talking to Star about this (the only other person at the cabin with both intelligence and work ethic) and we agree that the cabin is almost what we've been looking for...but not quite. I'm happy to spend some time healing this part of Mother Earth--there's trash everywhere that I want to get to the dump before I leave--but I can't stay here. I am not nearly educated enough to be a rural homesteader. I had no idea what I was getting into when I quit my job and headed for the woods.
Do I regret quitting my job? No. Star had some more wise words about being a wanderer. It's a blessing to live such a life. Many people are stuck and have no escape to see the world.
Will I be happy as a wanderer? I don't even know if that's a valid question, because I can't imagine a different life than the one I'm living.
Plus, there's no way I'm staying at the cabin. The people Rainbow allows to stay are...well...a bit unhinged. They have little to no respect for themselves or those around them. They linger at the cabin, while all the sensible folks leave, unable to handle the cabin's demands and the energy-sucking Unhinged.
At the same time, the cabin sits on some gorgeous land. I wanted to spend my time writing and creating. Instead, it's more like a nonstop party. When people arrive, they inevitably bring beer. It's not what I'm looking for.
Time to regroup. I have a couple job leads in the Twin Cities. From there, I can tap into the sustainable development sector and score an internship. Then next summer, I'll apprentice in a rural sustainable community and learn from people who have been living simply for decades. Much better idea than trying to teach it all myself and do it all by myself in near isolation.
Still, I thank Rainbow for convincing me to leave my previous job, which was taking me nowhere I wanted to go. Now, I have the opportunity to recenter myself. I know this sounds cheesy, but I sometimes get this feeling inside that I'm destined for great things. It's just that, a vague feeling, nothing more tangible at the moment. But that will change as I keep growing and trying new things.
Life's lack of straight lines is frustrating. But I know that trying to impose a straight line won't work for me. I'm like a river winding its way "sedulously" to the sea. Actually, that is a pretty good metaphor, because I do sometimes suspect I'm choosing the path of least resistance. But I know that's not true, since it wasn't easy to quit my job, and now it's definitely not easy to admit defeat, so soon after arrival. I've just got to face the facts--this cabin idea is premature for me. It's my end goal--sustainable rural living--but I have much more to learn before I'm ready.
Rainbow is not the steady guy I thought he was. He left in the middle of the night to sleep at his parents house. I woke up completely alone, with no explanation. Any romantic feelings I entertained for him have dissolved.
The cabin itself has a lot of potential. But progress has been slow. The place needs insulation and a dependable heat source before one could even entertain the idea of spending the winter here. If that heat source ends up to be wood...well, we just don't have the time to chop up all the wood needed to heat the cabin. I seem to recall my dad spending all summer chopping wood for the winter.
I've been talking to Star about this (the only other person at the cabin with both intelligence and work ethic) and we agree that the cabin is almost what we've been looking for...but not quite. I'm happy to spend some time healing this part of Mother Earth--there's trash everywhere that I want to get to the dump before I leave--but I can't stay here. I am not nearly educated enough to be a rural homesteader. I had no idea what I was getting into when I quit my job and headed for the woods.
Do I regret quitting my job? No. Star had some more wise words about being a wanderer. It's a blessing to live such a life. Many people are stuck and have no escape to see the world.
Will I be happy as a wanderer? I don't even know if that's a valid question, because I can't imagine a different life than the one I'm living.
Plus, there's no way I'm staying at the cabin. The people Rainbow allows to stay are...well...a bit unhinged. They have little to no respect for themselves or those around them. They linger at the cabin, while all the sensible folks leave, unable to handle the cabin's demands and the energy-sucking Unhinged.
At the same time, the cabin sits on some gorgeous land. I wanted to spend my time writing and creating. Instead, it's more like a nonstop party. When people arrive, they inevitably bring beer. It's not what I'm looking for.
Time to regroup. I have a couple job leads in the Twin Cities. From there, I can tap into the sustainable development sector and score an internship. Then next summer, I'll apprentice in a rural sustainable community and learn from people who have been living simply for decades. Much better idea than trying to teach it all myself and do it all by myself in near isolation.
Still, I thank Rainbow for convincing me to leave my previous job, which was taking me nowhere I wanted to go. Now, I have the opportunity to recenter myself. I know this sounds cheesy, but I sometimes get this feeling inside that I'm destined for great things. It's just that, a vague feeling, nothing more tangible at the moment. But that will change as I keep growing and trying new things.
Life's lack of straight lines is frustrating. But I know that trying to impose a straight line won't work for me. I'm like a river winding its way "sedulously" to the sea. Actually, that is a pretty good metaphor, because I do sometimes suspect I'm choosing the path of least resistance. But I know that's not true, since it wasn't easy to quit my job, and now it's definitely not easy to admit defeat, so soon after arrival. I've just got to face the facts--this cabin idea is premature for me. It's my end goal--sustainable rural living--but I have much more to learn before I'm ready.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Economics rant
Forget about math. Few graduates will ever retain their knowledge of calculus and algebra past their final exams. It's information useless to most laypeople, excepting those who are planning to major in math upon getting into college.
In my high school, economics was an optional course, and one that I avoided. Economics--a dusty, irrelevant-sounding course I assumed had nothing to do with me.
Oh how wrong I was.
Economics is the prime mover of world events. Historical events, so often presented as static events based on the decisions of a few important people, are much easier to understand as the product of economic trends. Colonialism, imperialism, WWII, the Darfur genocide, U.S. civil war, Iraq war, it all comes back to money.
Then there's economics and how it affects my life. How to create and stick to a budget, what a credit card is, what loans are, taxes. Why are these topics relegated to an optional upper level course? We should be taught this from 8th grade onwards.
As a voter, it would be so much easier to decide who to vote for when I know the politician's stance on economics. Does s/he support Keynesian economics or Friedman's neoliberal model? The answer will greatly affect me while s/he serves their term.
Economics is an obfusticating topic. One of my econ professors in college joked about a colleague of his that, whenever a non-economist starting asking too many questions, would pull out 5-syllable terms to dampen all curiosity.
People are economically illiterate, both in terms of personal budget-keeping and national policy. With transnational corporations on the rise, economic trends are becoming more important than political trends. If we want a society prepared for what I'm starting to believe is such an eventuality, we need to replace math with economics courses. Teach our 1st graders basic mathematics, then start showing them supply and demand curves. We can no longer stand for economic illiteracy--it should be as necessary as reading and writing.
In my high school, economics was an optional course, and one that I avoided. Economics--a dusty, irrelevant-sounding course I assumed had nothing to do with me.
Oh how wrong I was.
Economics is the prime mover of world events. Historical events, so often presented as static events based on the decisions of a few important people, are much easier to understand as the product of economic trends. Colonialism, imperialism, WWII, the Darfur genocide, U.S. civil war, Iraq war, it all comes back to money.
Then there's economics and how it affects my life. How to create and stick to a budget, what a credit card is, what loans are, taxes. Why are these topics relegated to an optional upper level course? We should be taught this from 8th grade onwards.
As a voter, it would be so much easier to decide who to vote for when I know the politician's stance on economics. Does s/he support Keynesian economics or Friedman's neoliberal model? The answer will greatly affect me while s/he serves their term.
Economics is an obfusticating topic. One of my econ professors in college joked about a colleague of his that, whenever a non-economist starting asking too many questions, would pull out 5-syllable terms to dampen all curiosity.
People are economically illiterate, both in terms of personal budget-keeping and national policy. With transnational corporations on the rise, economic trends are becoming more important than political trends. If we want a society prepared for what I'm starting to believe is such an eventuality, we need to replace math with economics courses. Teach our 1st graders basic mathematics, then start showing them supply and demand curves. We can no longer stand for economic illiteracy--it should be as necessary as reading and writing.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
In da kitchen
Nothing like listening to reggae and creating tasty new dishes! Here's a few recent creations:
Garden Lo Mein
This was a spontaneous creation between myself, my Nica buddy, and her roommate. As Nica lady and I were walking back to her apartment, I had this huge craving for stir fry. We arrive home, and her roommate has the wok out, steaming cabbage fresh from the garden. With barely a word, Nica lady and I went to work. The end result? A stir fry more filling and satisfying than anything I've had with meat. People who say they are never full after a vegetarian meal need to check-a-lo this stir fry.
spaghetti, cooked
olive oil
garlic
onions, sliced
cabbage, shredded
sweet red pepper, diced
summer squash, sliced
basil
sweet oregano
ginger
soy sauce
chili sauce
Erica hot sauce
1. saute the veggies and garlic in olive oil, in whatever ratio most pleases you (or determined by the quantity in your fridge). Go from toughest veggie to least tough--start with onions, garlic and red pepper, then the cabbage, then the squash.
2. Add the sauces and herbs, again in whatever amount suits your taste. Start with just a bit and taste as you go.
3. Add the cooked and drained spaghetti, let the juices cook together for a while.
4. When the smell is unbearable, serve hot.
Fruit-y dessert
Ok, this one is a bit of a cop-out, but it's great on a hot summer day:
Frozen cubed mangos
Frozen blueberries
1. Put in a martini cup.
2. Feel classy.
Raw Wild Rice Soup
wild rice, soaked in a bowl of water for 24 hours (you'll know it's ready when the rice is soft and chewy)
vegetable stock
1-2 carrots
2-3 stalks celery
2-3 coves garlic
lots of thyme
1 can cream of mushroom soup (I used Annie's brand, since it had the easiest-to-understand list of ingredients)
red pepper flakes
parsley
1. Blend the stock, veggies, garlic, and thyme until the consistency is that of a thick smoothie.
2. Put in a large bowl, stir in the mushroom soup, red pepper flakes, and wild rice.
3. Put the bowl in the fridge. Add chopped parsley as a garnish when you're ready to serve. Because this recipe is raw, the flavors will be even more intense than normal. Hold on to your pants everybody.
Garden Lo Mein
This was a spontaneous creation between myself, my Nica buddy, and her roommate. As Nica lady and I were walking back to her apartment, I had this huge craving for stir fry. We arrive home, and her roommate has the wok out, steaming cabbage fresh from the garden. With barely a word, Nica lady and I went to work. The end result? A stir fry more filling and satisfying than anything I've had with meat. People who say they are never full after a vegetarian meal need to check-a-lo this stir fry.
spaghetti, cooked
olive oil
garlic
onions, sliced
cabbage, shredded
sweet red pepper, diced
summer squash, sliced
basil
sweet oregano
ginger
soy sauce
chili sauce
Erica hot sauce
1. saute the veggies and garlic in olive oil, in whatever ratio most pleases you (or determined by the quantity in your fridge). Go from toughest veggie to least tough--start with onions, garlic and red pepper, then the cabbage, then the squash.
2. Add the sauces and herbs, again in whatever amount suits your taste. Start with just a bit and taste as you go.
3. Add the cooked and drained spaghetti, let the juices cook together for a while.
4. When the smell is unbearable, serve hot.
Fruit-y dessert
Ok, this one is a bit of a cop-out, but it's great on a hot summer day:
Frozen cubed mangos
Frozen blueberries
1. Put in a martini cup.
2. Feel classy.
Raw Wild Rice Soup
wild rice, soaked in a bowl of water for 24 hours (you'll know it's ready when the rice is soft and chewy)
vegetable stock
1-2 carrots
2-3 stalks celery
2-3 coves garlic
lots of thyme
1 can cream of mushroom soup (I used Annie's brand, since it had the easiest-to-understand list of ingredients)
red pepper flakes
parsley
1. Blend the stock, veggies, garlic, and thyme until the consistency is that of a thick smoothie.
2. Put in a large bowl, stir in the mushroom soup, red pepper flakes, and wild rice.
3. Put the bowl in the fridge. Add chopped parsley as a garnish when you're ready to serve. Because this recipe is raw, the flavors will be even more intense than normal. Hold on to your pants everybody.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Outsourcing
They called at a bad time. I've been reading Naomi Klein's Disaster Capitalism, which criticizes neoliberalism and its bad habit of "frontier capitalism." In other words, a disaster occurs (or is created), and in the ensuing chaos, the country's economy is deregulated, privatized, and downsized. This impoverishes the country while enriching its elite and those at the head of the corporations who were on hand to enjoy the bonanza. From Chile to South Africa to Russia to Thailand, corporations have pursued fast easy profits from markets pried open by IMF loan conditions, Chicago-educated economists, and U.S. financial advisers such as Jeffery Sachs and Milton Friedman. Big business and big government have teamed up to form capitalist imperialism, conquering markets rather than land.
It trained me to think in terms of "follow the money."
Anyway, I'm close to finishing up the book (the last chapter is the best) when I get a call. It's a telemarketer claiming I filled out a survey on Google a while ago about a way to work from home. I didn't remember this, but I did remember a very badly-thought out attempt to snag a free laptop by signing up for some online-type opportunities (learn Italian! Netflix! $3000 getaway to Georgia!). Needless to say, I did not follow through with it, as I would have had to actually take a $3000 getaway to Georgia. But it did disseminate my phone number to countless telemarketers, and potential monthly payments of $160 if I didn't cancel my free trials straightaway. Something from which I'm still working to untangle myself.
But I digress. The phone call about the google survey about some get-rich-quick scheme. I decided to play nice and hear the pitch. The telemarketer asked me a few questions--how much I'm looking to make, what I'm doing now, etc. My answers must have sounded pretty weird, since it revolved around the fact that I quit my job as a health care activist to live on a commune. This qualified me to hear a recorded pitch about the opportunities waiting me in this as-yet-unknown market.
The market? Advertising. Companies will pay me upwards of $25 an ad to "place" it. To be qualified to do this, the pitch vaguely states, involves four training sessions. The cost? Who knows, but if all goes according to plan, I will recoup my expenses fairly quickly.
The recording starts out with stating this is a billion dollar industry. And now companies are looking to outsource possibly THE most expensive aspect of being a company. Schmucks desperate for income will pay for training, then get paid on commission to place ads for companies. I have a feeling I know who will make the *real* profits from this venture.
My response? Let companies pay for their own brainwashing. I don't want to make it any easier for companies to convince humans to buy their product.
It trained me to think in terms of "follow the money."
Anyway, I'm close to finishing up the book (the last chapter is the best) when I get a call. It's a telemarketer claiming I filled out a survey on Google a while ago about a way to work from home. I didn't remember this, but I did remember a very badly-thought out attempt to snag a free laptop by signing up for some online-type opportunities (learn Italian! Netflix! $3000 getaway to Georgia!). Needless to say, I did not follow through with it, as I would have had to actually take a $3000 getaway to Georgia. But it did disseminate my phone number to countless telemarketers, and potential monthly payments of $160 if I didn't cancel my free trials straightaway. Something from which I'm still working to untangle myself.
But I digress. The phone call about the google survey about some get-rich-quick scheme. I decided to play nice and hear the pitch. The telemarketer asked me a few questions--how much I'm looking to make, what I'm doing now, etc. My answers must have sounded pretty weird, since it revolved around the fact that I quit my job as a health care activist to live on a commune. This qualified me to hear a recorded pitch about the opportunities waiting me in this as-yet-unknown market.
The market? Advertising. Companies will pay me upwards of $25 an ad to "place" it. To be qualified to do this, the pitch vaguely states, involves four training sessions. The cost? Who knows, but if all goes according to plan, I will recoup my expenses fairly quickly.
The recording starts out with stating this is a billion dollar industry. And now companies are looking to outsource possibly THE most expensive aspect of being a company. Schmucks desperate for income will pay for training, then get paid on commission to place ads for companies. I have a feeling I know who will make the *real* profits from this venture.
My response? Let companies pay for their own brainwashing. I don't want to make it any easier for companies to convince humans to buy their product.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
A Very Long Entry
I can never resist the annual lure of resolutions. The routine is ingrained, the same as my routine disobedience of them a few months down the line. Nevertheless, here’s to 2009:
1. Continue buying nothing new. This went fairly well last year—it’s pretty easy to do, considering how well stocked Salvation Army tends to be when it comes to the basic items I occasionally need. A few days ago I walked to the one near Coe, armed with a wish list of items, more than half of which were fulfilled (my best find was four armless pleather swivel chairs for the kitchen table: $25 for the set). The rest were crossed off by my roommate, who has scavenging skills that rival my own. This resolution has had the side effect, I think, of getting more interested in the food I eat, since it’s the only thing new that I allow an exception for—I am not, nor have I ever been, a dumpster-diving freegan.
2. Switch to a vegan diet. Yes, I will get plenty of protein. No, I won’t get osteoporosis (there’s actually more absorbable calcium in dark leafy vegetables than there is in milk). No, I won’t get anemia. There’s some great books out there, written by real nutritionists, that lay out compelling evidence regarding the wondrous nutrition in vegetables. North Americans typically dislike vegetables, and I blame the industrialized food system that has tried to convince us tomatoes will taste as good in December as they do in August (and even if we do buy them in August, that driving the tomatoes thousands of miles to our grocery store inflicts negligible damage to their quality). If I’m sufficiently motivated, I’ll put up some recipes that were successful. I’m also going to try a new grain and a new vegetable each month, if not twice a month.
3. Cardio! I’m definitely getting déjà vu on this one. Persistence is key. Today I tried out the elliptical machine—2.9 miles later, I feel like a new woman. The gym bathrooms also have a small sauna, which was used to great effect after the run. The whole experience was…fun. Especially since (I truly am the daughter of my mother) I bought a retro bowling bag (from Salvation Army!) for my exercise gear. It’s aqua with white piping and looks absolutely adorable.
The apartment has gradually been improving, at the same rate as my scavenging skills. There was a particularly good haul last night from Murray Hall’s 9th floor lobby. It is now possible to illuminate the living room exclusively from Christmas lights—tastefully, of course. The heat from the apartment beneath us heats our own apartment, meaning we don’t even have to use up energy using our own heater. This brings joy to my granola crunching heart.
For my final semester as an undergrad, I decided to challenge myself. My first art class in 5 years, first science class in 3, first music class in 4, two upper-level classes for my major, and an 8 a.m. class. Wheee. For notepaper, I’m using sheets that had been printed on one side rescued from recycling bins around campus (I’m using yellow paper for the 8 a.m. class in an effort to keep me alert).
And the coup de grace: I have a foam pad! Another find from 9th floor, something I’ve pined after since the last one disappeared over winter break two years ago. Sleeping at Coe has never been so easy.
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