September photo...The two regional giants, India and China, have remained friendly with the military regime, lured by the nation's oil and natural gas reserves. As recently as Sept. 23, India, the world's most populous democracy, dispatched its petroleum and natural gas minister, Murli Deora, to Myanmar on a state visit in search of deals.From an October 1st story here...Seven American soldiers, primarily Sargents serving in Iraq, wrote the following for The New York Times in August...
In a lawless environment where men with guns rule the streets, engaging in the banalities of life has become a death-defying act. Four years into our occupation, we have failed on every promise, while we have substituted Baath Party tyranny with a tyranny of Islamist, militia and criminal violence. When the primary preoccupation of average Iraqis is when and how they are likely to be killed, we can hardly feel smug as we hand out care packages. As an Iraqi man told us a few days ago with deep resignation, “We need security, not free food.”
In the end, we need to recognize that our presence may have released Iraqis from the grip of a tyrant, but that it has also robbed them of their self-respect. They will soon realize that the best way to regain dignity is to call us what we are — an army of occupation — and force our withdrawal.
Until that happens, it would be prudent for us to increasingly let Iraqis take center stage in all matters, to come up with a nuanced policy in which we assist them from the margins but let them resolve their differences as they see fit. This suggestion is not meant to be defeatist, but rather to highlight our pursuit of incompatible policies to absurd ends without recognizing the incongruities.
We need not talk about our morale. As committed soldiers, we will see this mission through.
SOME LOCAL FOOD RELATED LINKS...and HOW NOT TO EAT PETROLEUM OIL:
What's Eating America article in smithsonian magazine by Michale Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma
Unfortunately eating organic isn't always easy ...sometimes it is more expensive, and sometimes we may not be able to trust the rating system of what defines organic.. Trust me though, eating organic is a lot cheaper today than it was when I began eating organically as a teenager. More and more people are seeking oot locally grown organic food, cutting down the use of petroleum products used in fertilizer and air transport...and forcing the prices down to competitive markets.
Local Food
"The most political act we do on a daily basis is to eat, as our actions affect farms, landscapes and food businesses," said co-author Professor Jules Pretty, from the University of Essex, UK.
"Food miles are more significant than we previously thought, and much now needs to be done to encourage local production and consumption of food." From BBC Science News
Eat Local Challenge
Food Routes
Local Harvest In America
Local Harvest in Canada
The Green Pages Canada
4 comments:
Thanks for the great links - I'll be back to do some reading.
For public transport, we're either going to have to force the government to take it seriously and begin to find ways to provide it - I suppose we could as well on a grass roots level do it on a privatized level (somehow) - but most of the country where I have lived - its just not available. A lot of people I think would be happy to be free of car payments, insurance, and upkeep if public transport was available - let alone the issue of environmental damage.
You're right Gardenia, in many areas first, the government encouraged moving to the suburbs for families...and many people do not have any kindof acess to public transit.
You know one of the frustrating things I noticed on the bus segments of my trip last month...were the number of cars with one person in them. And these jackasses would always try to pass or goad the Greyhound buses...with 40 passengers!
People in the burbs or remote areas get a bit of a walk when it comes to pressure for public transit...but city goers give me a break at least take public transit one or two days a week?! It's lovely you can read a magazine or novel on the way to destinations...
I have to say I have never tried anything organic but have been told its better for you. We try to save what we can when we can. I will have a new post up this afternoon sometime. I promise. LOL..
I have heard that organic is better for you too Tweety...I have ehard of the odd study of children who were fed regular grocery store food then organic food and blind tested...and when tey ate organic their tests came back as having less poison and pesticide in their systems. To me avoiding eating pesticides is reason enough to eat organic...but the idea that we would be conserving oil...perhaps reducing violent conflicts over resources...as well...is even more reason to eat organic.
We had a cooking class in New Orleans and the instructor gave a statistic that everyone ate organic even once a week it vastly reduces the amount of petroleum oil use of the whole planet. Maybe Mister anchovy remembers the exact figure, I don't.
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