spiritual recourse

Lots of interesting items in the inbox from the past few days. i could wax poetic on more than a few, but for lack of time to pontificate i'll just drop these here and expound upon them later:


Distributism - ran across this in a list of replies to an article on the Myth of Organic Farming, in Business Week. The poster said, "Look it up." I did. Wow. So this philosophy I've been developing all by me lonesome for the past 15 years has a name, I'm not the first one to think of it, and I'm not crazy? OK, maybe I am, but so are some other people. Take a look. I'll write (alot) more on all the thoughts this intelligence provokes soon.

Keep the Chickens Out of Cages- this is totally a no-brainer for anyone who raises chickens. I mean for those of us who actually RAISE chickens, not build a big metal building just over the hill and cram 118,000 birds inside it. As Page Smith explains in the marvelous work, The Chicken Book, the history and the ultimate fate of the human race is inextricably tied to that of Gallus domesticus. We are what we eat, fellas.


Don't fence us in!

Which leads me to...

New Study Details Devastating Effects of Eminent Domain Abuse on African Americans
“Eminent domain has become what the founding fathers sought to prevent: a tool that takes from the poor and the politically weak to give to the rich and politically powerful,” concludes Dr. Mindy Fullilove in her new report released today titled, “Eminent Domain & African Americans: What is the Price of the Commons?”

'Nuf said. But don't say I didn't tell you so.

Rethinking Suburbia - Neighborhoods that once held the suburban dreams of many have become havens for crime and the all-too-familiar problems of the inner city...

um.... duh.

this is why whenever i see a 800 to 900K, 7,000 sf home in the 'burbs being built by mexicans i think to myself, "nice apartment building."

what goes around just keeps spinning 'round.


School of Rocky
You know, the most interesting part of this whole story is, the guy seems to be doing an Al Gore (as in, no thanks, i'm not running, i've got more important things to do. things that will actually make a difference one day). That's 'cause when you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas, and you can take only so many fleas.


Sustainable Cities
ahem... if that isn't an oxymoron.
the only thing keeping me from writing more on this obvious silliness is the worry that in their haste to be chic and politically correct, that Cities will do to 'sustainable' what WalMart and Dean Foods did to 'organic' and Public did to 'education'.
you can't make black into white by painting over it --you'll only get grey. you have to remove the black and start over.

on a lighter (and perhaps saner) note:
I missed the weekend Field Day at Georgia Ladies Aside, but I hear it was a "really, fun, windy, time!" Aside, IMHO, is the only way to ride, if you are of the gentler persuasion, and a student of history as well. "life's too short not to ride aside."

And finally...

BBC Three's new show: Kill It, Cook It, Eat It This is so awesome. I don't know where to start. Why don't we have shows like this over here on the stupid side of the Atlantic? My dh is all over this --elbowing the vegans out of the way, he'd bark, "Thanks, I'll have your share!" This from a guy who names all the cows we pass on the highway: "Lunch, Filet, Au Jus..." and whose favorite Christmas gift one year was a genuine old-fashioned southern country ham. I thought he was going to take it to bed with us. Needless to say, he's a master with the chicken knife. I just get to pluck.