Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Stop thinking, you!

I've now seen the H.R. 1955 Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007 bill which just passed in the House of Reps in about every internet reading place I like to go to. And, everyone is super shocked, its dubbed the thought crime bill; many understandable references to 1984. Honestly I'm shocked that so many folks are shocked, though. I parted with my first amendment rights with the Patriot Act, just like everyone else. And I watched as the fear that the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act would be used to prosecute peaceful AR activists, become a reality as the SHAC 7 and many other good folks found themselves in jail. Putting a web site up has already got people in trouble, this is hardly anything new. It's an essential dictatorships last lingering leap for finger holds into American law. I'm pretty sure it's only going to get worse. Hell, Gravel can't even go to debates now. I don't even like him, but I want him back. Keep the illusion up for folks that anyone can run for president. I do like though, how now all these ultra republican publications are getting worried about this, and totally seem to think that it is aimed at targeting them. That does get me laughing.



P.S: I don't think about any action, or inaction ever, and actually this blog is just random letters that my fingers type from time to time and I'm so a patriot and love our troops. So, you know, I don't and will never do anything this bill says I shouldn't do.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Go smoothie!

GGSE #2
ingredients:
apple
5 ice cubes
1 cup frozen grapes
banana
2 cups swiss chard
1 cup alfalfa sprouts
1 cup pea springs
2 small kiwis
1 tablespoon blackstrap molasses
1 tablespoon flax seed
.25 cup water

So this one definitely had a taste. It was sweet, and if "refreshing" was a taste, that would be it. Also it felt like little bubbles in my mouth, and I decided I liked a breakfast that did that. It has a slight bite as an after taste, but I think that’s because a few radish sprouts ended up in there. It was sort of green too! Only a murky one with little multi-colored specks in it. But not to shabby getting the color so on track on the second go. It did yield me two coffee mugs full, and by the end of the second one I was sort of getting tired of it and thinking it was a bit sweet.

Fat: 9, Calories: 655, Carbs: 142, Protein: 17, Vitamin A: 49%, E: 78%, K: 1155%, C: 446%, B-6: 126%, Thiamin: 66%, Riboflavin: 58%, Niacin: 42%, Folate: 63%, Iron: 70%, Zinc: 36%, Selenium: 18%, Calcium: 38%, Phosphorus: 58%, Magnesium: 106%

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

The Big Bang Theory inspired, very practical Great Green Smoothie Experiment

Recently, because of some of my favorite television shows ending (can you say Gilmore Girls?), and a few old ones I liked ending up not entertaining me this season for whatever reason (Numbers, for one); I've fallen onto a new show that I absolutely love: The Big Bang Theory.

Now, I'm not one to really blog about TV in the past, but it brought me to my newest quest, so an impromptu introduction was needed. The co-op was selling all these greens for unusually cheep price, so I ended up picking up way to many for a normal twenty-two year old to go through left to her own devises. So I was looking at my unusually large amount of chard, kale, dandelion greens, and spinach, watching said show last night trying to incorporate my unusually large collection of greens into dinner with, a...um salad because I'm (1)not too original late at night, (2) generally enjoy salads despite having to constantly answer clichéd remarks about it, (3)figured it was the best way to start making a dent in them (along with chugging down a few quality heirloom tomatoes).

Well Sheldon started a bunch of experiments, and one of them was achieving the best scrambled eggs. Which, eww, but it got me thinking along the lines of kitchen expirements. And, I have a digital camera! One that I haven't fully worked out yet, but what better way to learn. Additionally, I hadn't found any one single green smoothie that I had all the ingredients for or liked all the components, so fueled on by Sheldon, I have decided to pursue The Great Green Smoothie Experiment. Boring for every other person except me.

Ahem, without any further ado:

GGSE #1:
ingredients:
apple
1 cup frozen strawberries
1 cup frozen blueberries
banana
1 cup chopped kale
1.5 cup chopped swiss chard
1.5 tablespoons flax seed
dash of nutmeg (why not)
.5 cup soy milk and .25 cup water
1 tablespoon blackstrap molasses

So, on the positive side: it didn't taste bad. It was also frozen-ish which is how I like my smoothies. And it got rid of some green stuff, but I think I got a bit to happy with the fruit. On the cons: it wasn't green, which was, a huge disappointment. Purple would be a nice description, grey would sort of be more accurate. It didn't really taste like anything, mostly just frozen, however, only faintly like molasses. Maybe if I strained my taste buds a bit of strawberry.

But it was edible, even though I had no clue what I was doing! I just threw stuff into a blender. So, I'm quite satisfied with day one.

I suppose most people if they were not me would be interested in the nutritional information, and this being all "science-y" I guess I'll post an approximation, made by fitday, which is a site I sometimes use when I'm feeling particularly neurotic about nutrients. I'll try posting the pictures when and if I figure out the camera situation.

Calories: 506, Carbs: 109, Fat: 10, Protein: 13, Vitamin A: 132%, B-6: 115%, B-12: 38%, K: 1867%, C: 424%, Thiamin: 48%, Riboflavin: 54%, Calcium: 43%, Niacin: 24%, Folate: 36%, Iron: 64%, Zinc: 23%, Selenium: 15%, Phosphorus: 41%, Magnesium: 85%

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Katrina's accomplices?

I thought, hands down this article would be getting into the failure of the Bush administration, race, class and gender issues...any number of ideas that I'm interested in always reading on. Katrina's accomplices?? I knew the answer to this question...

Unfortunately the author didn't. Instead, he decided to compare a parent leaving their child in a hot car to die; to a parents "decision" not to evacuate. Like folks in the Ninth Ward were like, well, I could save our lives, but I'm just not feeling up to it. He even mentions not having the resources. Only this was answered with, well; saying I'm poor never let parents who leave their children in cars off the hook. Prosecute Katrina victims as well. They lost a child, let's make them "really" pay with some legal consequences.

I'm mind numbingly floored at the inability to grasp class struggles. What it means that the majority(?) of Americans don't understand what it means to live in poverty day in and day out, to not have enough money for dinner or medicine; let alone the finances to back a trip. There was no decision. Folks who were left vulnerable in New Orleans weren't there because they choose it; society and capitalism pushed people there. And this administration did jack shit. How you can analyse the situation and find the victims at fault is really, truly beyond me.