Post Election Open Thread

It's been a week? How are you feeling?

What are you doing?

Have you stopped celebrating yet?

Any advice for the first family?

What will you work on/ think about next? I am doing some food politics writing and thinking. How about you?

I am also getting ready for our big Thanksgiving dinners at my Tokyo Restaurant. We are the home away from home for many turkey and stuffing starved Americans every year.

So one week in to the transition... how is your transition going?

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Speaking of Hate Related Killing

Authorities still claim to have no known motive for the murder of Arkansas Democratic State Party Chair, Billy Gwatney. A commentor (thanks stormcrow) made the point in my mosque-attack thread, that we will never be able to directly pin these crimes to the likes of Maulken, Coulter, and Limbaugh-- the scum that promote violence as a part of the political process. And mores the pity.

Apparently there was a note with a phone number and Gwatney's name written on it, and the FBI is checking out a computer, but not much of anything else is known at this time.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A computer used by the gunman who killed a state Democratic Party chairman is the last clue to be investigated in the search for his motive, authorities said Monday Timothy Dale Johnson, 50, burst into the Arkansas party headquarters and killed Bill Gwatney on Aug. 13, then was shot and killed by police after a long chase later that day.

Little Rock Police spokesman Lt. Terry Hastings said car keys and a phone number listed on a note found at Johnson's home in Searcy did not turn up any connection between the two men.

"We have everything pretty well figured out except for the computer. ... We've found nothing so far to indicate any motive or reason," Hastings said Monday. "Right now, we've got nothing that points us in any particular direction as to why this happened."

Police did not provide specifics on the investigation of the computer, but have said that the FBI is helping.

The note with the phone number also had the name "Gwatney" on it, but police said it did not match Gwatney's home number or any cell phone number they know of for the slain chairman...

Johnson, who owned at least 16 guns, drove more than 30 miles to Gwatney's office after quitting his job at a Target over graffiti on a store wall.

I think it is clear that things have gotten more than a bit dangerous out there for the reality based community, it is going to be a pretty bumpy ride and one that will continue past 11/4 for certain. I believe the wingnuts will turn more and more to violence as an escape valve for all the cognitive dissonance building up in their system.

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Propogating My New Project; Foodies For Obama

A few months back I was having an interesting conversation with the dynamic Jane of FDL fame and she was making the point that we all needed to be thinking about bringing in other communities and interest groups that might not think of themselves as political. (expanding our base) At the time she mentioned pet owners and dog rescue groups-- since things like green space, and community laws effect them.

This got me to thinking about my interest groups. The biggest ones, of course are those related to foodies, locavores, restaurant people and food bloggers. F&B related issues are my long standing passion. So here is the outcome of that thinking.



And my first outreach effort from that idea is this video;

If you do any blogging, food writing, and food-blog reading, hope you will consider spreading the word about my little video. Working on ideas for #2.

Anyway, feedback and pr help greatly appreciated. And there will be more action going on at the site foodies4obama.blogspot.com

And a big thanks already to Orangeclouds for promoting it on her terrific food site.

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Foodies For Obama

If you are on facebook, join my new group. We will be doing some food related outreach to this interest group and have a great youtube ad planned that we are hoping gets wide circulation. Hoping to reach out to the food channel/top chef/ iron chef world!

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GNB Food Moment

At my restaurant, we change the lunch specials every week. One new plate lunch, one new curry 52 weeks a year. Doesn't actually repeat, though we play with variations on a theme. The cool thing is, all the line cooks (not just the top chef) get to take turns coming up with the specials.

This week we are serving this...



Grilled Marinade Pork Loin on Mushroom Pumpkin Quiche with Sweet & Sour Mustard Sauce

I tried it today and it was damn tasty. Why am I sharing it? Cause I was thinking that the way we serve up lunch every week is a good way to work with people. Empower creative thinking, give everyone a moment in the spotlight, share their skill and bounty with the community, and then do it again next week. Every monday we also send our weekly special in the form of lunch boxes to an area food bank for distribution to a shelter. We serve them what we sell to our customers, not leftovers- or things we wouldn't want to eat ourselves. Not profound, but simple good common practices.

Itadakimasu.

Recipe

Marinate a pork loin in
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
Oregano and Paprika

Grill on charcoal till it is cooked through and has great color!

Sweet & Sour Sauce
combine and bring to a boil
50g grain mustard
40g cornstarch
60g ketchup *homemade is best
150ml soy sauce
210ml sushi vinegar
210ml simple sugar syrup (we make it ourselves)

Quiche
1/2 pumpkin and 1/2 onion slices stir fried with butter and salt
Carrots
Shitake Mushrooms
800ml cream
200ml milk
tbs salt
tbs pepper
tbs nutmeg
8 eggs

Bake together till golden brown on top, in a greased baking pan (no crust) cut in squares and serve with pork on the same plate. Drizzle whole plate with Sweet and Sour Sauce

garnish with Mizuna and Curly Parsley (chopped)
Feeds a Bunch of Folks!

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FDA Still Has No Idea-- Adds Cilantro and Peppers to the Watch List

No closer to knowing what is making people sick... maybe tomatoes, maybe not. Now cilantro and peppers go on the watch list. And people are still getting sick.

the U.S. Food and Drug Administration appears no closer to finding the source of a mysterious salmonella outbreak that has sickened more than 900 people nationwide. The FDA is not even 100 percent sure that tomatoes are the cause — adding peppers and cilantro Saturday to its list of foods under investigation in the outbreak.-- MSNBC

Meanwhile; by the numbers
In addition to the 900 people who have gotten sick...

The USA Tomato Industry has sustained a more than a 100 million dollar loss.

More than 12,000 tons of tomatoes are rotting in warehouses.

And we still don't know anything.
Bon Appetit!

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In Praise of Being a Localvore

lovely farm and nature paintings/etchings by Art Hansen

Locovore/localvore (both spellings found)
the practice of eating food that is grown locally in order to support small business, build community and reduce greenhouse gases as local food does not require shipping across countries and continents.

We've talked about this kind of stuff before-- but it is a topic that I never tier of. Fancy diets, big companies trying to turn organic, eating more vegetables and less meat, all have been proposed to be kinder to the earth and our bodies. Many of these things intimidate most people who are in a hurry- and don't want to think that much about their food.

Turns out the easiest way to eat healthy and clean up the planet is to do our purchasing from companies who make what grows and lives close to home. The time of the small farmer and of homegrown garden is coming again. (amazing how things come back into fashion) Our ancestors did this out of necessity and common sense. Seems like those two motivators are ALSO coming back into fashion.

Eating local is easy, and if you changed even 20% of your purchasing power over to supporting local food growers the impact would be enormous. PLUS it tastes better and is generally better for you. Winning all around.

First steps to being a localvore-

*Find a farmer's market or csa in your area
*Plant something yourself- bucket tomatoes, a kitchen window herb garden, a fruit tree for your yard... something.
*Share your bounty with others- trade tomatoes with a friend who grows great eggplant, that sort of thing... mini co-ops!
*Look through your phone book in your area for small businesses producing food. You'll be surprised at how many entrepreneurs are in the food growing and creating business.
*Buy from smaller local groceries, and read your labels. When you go out to eat, choose mom and pop restaurants, bakeries etc. not chains- and ask where stuff comes from.

These steps are all simple and fun. By purchasing locally you will generally eat a more seasonal and earth friendly diet. PLUS like I said, it is all Much More delicious!

Eating is one of the most intimate things we do. And we all do it so it is also a great common denomimator. (I know all your internet traditions) Learning to really appreciate and enjoy what you eat brings a tremendous richness to life.

Tell your localvore story here;
Who makes what delicious treat in your area?
What is your area's seasonal bounty?
What is the best local eating joint in your town?
Do you have a farmers market? Have you visited a farm in the last 5 years?

Share please; I am starving to hear your stories!

Great reading/resource list about all things Localvore here.
Local Locator resources here.

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Killer Tomatoes Update

As of this weekend-- Salmonella-tainted tomatoes have sickened more than 800 people in the food scandal that just keeps on giving.

As I have written before, the inadequacies of the FDA will have a long range impact. In addition to the people who get sick, (some fatally) when these big-ag outbreaks happen, the absolute inability of the inadequately funded and grossly mismanaged FDA to track down the actually culprits and causes, ultimately effects all growers and particularly medium sized ones - leading to more big ag, more mismanagement and more health & safety concerns. It is a vicious circle.

Growers urge salmonella hearings. Western Growers is urging the House Committee on Agriculture to quickly hold hearings on the salmonella outbreak associated with fresh, red round, roma and plum tomatoes. The industry group, whose membership includes produce growers in Monterey County, said federal food safety and health officials haven't been able to pinpoint the outbreak's source. As a result, tomato growers are suffering great harm, the group said Saturday.

"Congress must investigate this matter and determine ways to avoid this in the future and make the innocent tomato growers, packers and shippers whole," said Western Growers president Tom Nassif."- The Monterey County Herald

The big companies can write this kind of thing off, pass on the expense, push a different product. The Medium size growers, canners, packers and shippers will go out of business which leaves us with less choice, more mono-culture, higher risk of poor health and safety standards.

It will help small, local producers and that is the only good part of this story. Unfortunately small growers cannot grow enough to meet need and demand.

We need some real house-cleaning in the FDA and almost every other federal oversight-bureau. It is going to take years to root out all the corruption and insider “looking the other way,” that is the legacy of this administration.

In addition to making people sick, every major mistake like this will drive food prices higher. As with so many other Bush and Co. policies we are seeing the inevitable conclusions brought about by the GOP conservative, corporatist ideology.

Here are just some highlights of the who's who in regulatory jobs under Bush-Cheney Inc.

DAVID LAURISKI, chosen as the Labor Department’s Assistant Secretary of Mine Safety and Health, previously spent 30 years in the mining industry, during which time he advocated loosening of coal dust standards.

J. STEVEN GRILES, named Deputy Secretary of the Interior, was previously a lobbyist for major oil and mining companies and for the National Mining association.

JACQUELINE GLASSMAN, appointed chief counsel of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, previously worked in the general counsel’s office of DaimlerChrysler, where among other things she helped defend against charges brought by California State officials that the company had recycled defective cars to consumers.

In the DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE (keepers of the tomato saftey responsibility along with the FDA)

Deputy Chief of Staff, Michael Torrey, had been a vice president at the International Dairy Foods Association.

Deputy Secretary James Moseley was a partner in Infinity Pork LLC, a factory farm in Indiana.

Under Secretary J.B. Penn had been an executive of Sparks Companies, an agribusiness consulting firm.

Under Secretary Joseph Jen had been director of research at Campbell Soup Company’s Campbell Institute of Research and Technology.

Under Secretary for Natural Resources and the Environment Mark Rey, whose post involved oversight of the Forest Service, was previously a vice president of the American Forest and Paper Association.

Deputy Under Secretary Floyd D. Gaibler had been executive director of the National Cheese Institute and the American Butter Institute, which are funded by the dairy industry

Deputy Under Secretary Kate Coler had been director of government relations for the Food Marketing Institute.

Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations Mary Waters had been a senior director and legislative counsel for ConAgra Foods.

--all the above taken from http://www.revolvingdoor.info/

I am sure none of these fine people were influenced by their prior corporate positions and none of them would put American citizens at risk in order to create larger profit margins for their former bosses. I am feeling pretty safe, how about you?

*Update* from the thread (h/t ensley) there now seems to be some question if it even was the tomatoes which caused the outbreak. That's how poorly run the FDA really is.

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Attack of the Killer Tomatoes

In new big-bad-agri-business news, tomatoes are being recalled and chain restaurants are pulling menu items that use uncooked tomatoes.

As California health officials confirmed the state's second case related to a multistate salmonella outbreak, Bay Area supermarkets and restaurants on Monday scrambled to pull tomatoes off their shelves and menus.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned consumers nationwide during the weekend to avoid raw red plum, red Roma and round red tomatoes unless they were grown in certain states and countries.- By Ken McLaughlin, Sonia Narang and Sandra Gonzales Mercury News

This story continues to develop with no answers yet as to where/when the salmonella tainted tomatoes entered the market. Huge agricultural corporations, and gutted FDA funding-- not to mention the fact that many FDA officials worked previously for the very companies they should be monitoring, are the cause of these kinds of problems. We will see more of this to be sure. Consumers need to go to local sources, small restaurants, and sustainable businesses to be safe. The up side is that this will make CSA's and Farmer's markets more popular than ever. The downside is we will be seeing more sick people, made ill even as they try to eat healthy fruits and vegetables.

The FDA needs a major shake up. None of the candidates throughout this last year have taken a strong stand on food politics. This is one area where people and communities need to bring some pressure to bear, hold our representative's feet to the fire. Where does your local school district buy produce? Your local restaurants? Find out. Ask questions and get involved in promoting local sustainable agriculture. It is not only better for the environment, but seems that it is safer too.

Tomatoes are easy to grow-- and homegrown are pretty tasty. If this keeps up, DIY is going to be the in thing. Bucket-tomatoes anyone?

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Pakistan Plans to Export 1 Million Tons of Rice

(Photo / Pam Berry for the Globe)

Rice prices eased after a record high in April because Pakistan, confident of meeting local demand, will export 1 million tons and it looks like other countries will follow suit.

Pakistan, the fifth-biggest exporter, will permit shipments of 1 million metric tons because local needs have been met, Mohammad Azhar Akhtar, chairman of the Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan, said yesterday. Rice has fallen 13 percent in Chicago this week.

Prices reached an all time high in April and helped trigger riots over food cost from Haiti to Egypt. This peak and food cost fear was partly due to real concerns over increased demand and diminished supply but was also made dramatically worse by speculative hedge funds and corporate greed.

In spite of good news from Pakistan rice exporters, the outlook is not all that rosy.

The surge in rice prices, coupled with record energy and wheat costs, stoked concern that basic goods would cost more than the poor could afford, creating a global food crisis. The UN's FAO estimated May 12 the global rice trade will drop 7.1 percent this year to 28.8 million tons.

and

Rice prices had also gained earlier this month after a cyclone slammed into Myanmar's main rice-growing region on May 3, inundating farmland and fueling speculation that the nation will be forced to halt exports. The impact of Cyclone Nargis had been factored into global rice prices, Sunny Verghese, chief executive officer of commodity supplier Olam International Ltd., said today. Myanmar used to contribute about 5 to 6 percent of the world rice trade, Verghese said in an interview. ``The new crop, I don't think they will export.- Bloomberg

Now that food concerns are going to finally be center stage, maybe food politics will gain a stronger consideration in global political circles and progressive discourse. Our food strategy in the future is going to have to be an important part of foreign policy in future years. The politics of the world food supply is not going to be something anyone can ignore.

For some basic background reading about food politics I reccomend anything by Marion Nestle

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Buying Organic?

Good Magazine has published this great chart on which massive agra/chemical company is making your favorite boutique label "organic" foods.




Original from here: Buying Organic

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Huge-oh Hugo

Experts are coming to the conclusion that the worst culprits in the obesity and health crisis in the united states are high calorie- HFCS- and high sugar beverages. From sports drinks, to caramel machiattos, to the good ole stand-by a HUGE coke- we are drinking ourselves into xxxl sizes.

The HUGO is a 42 oz soda for 89cents and is a great example of what is wrong, in so many ways.

First off, portion distortion. Americans no longer have any sense of moderation on portions. Those cute little 8oz glass bottles of coke, or even the simple 12oz cans are a thing of the past-- We now need 42oz mega drinks and WOW, look! They are cheap too!

Another evil in the very nature of the Hugo is that it was marketed to lower income neighborhoods, even to the extent that the hugo pr was first targeted in spainish to low income minority communities in California and in the south. Cheap and Huge!

How huge? One Hugo soda contains about 410 calories!

Most nutrionists agree a healthy daily calorie intake should be between 1500-2000 calories (depending on your age, body type, and your level of exercise activity.)

One Hugo is 20-25% of your recommended calories for a whole day!

According to an article last summer in the NYT, Nutrionist (and my hero) Marion Nestle said

When McDonald’s opened in 1955 the largest soda was 7 fluid ounces, according to Ms. Nestle and Ms. Young. Now a small soda is 16 ounces, and a child’s soda is 12 ounces. And what was once considered a normal adult meal is now a child’s portion. A patty the same size as the original McDonald’s hamburger and a serving of French fries, for instance, is now offered to children as part of the Happy Meal, Ms. Young said.

According to the Jounral of the American Medical Association

Sugar-sweetened soft drinks contribute 7.1% of total energy intake and represent the largest single food source of calories in the US diet. Coincidentally or not, the rise of obesity and type 2 diabetes in the United States parallels the increase in sugar-sweetened soft drink consumption. Several studies have found an association between sugar-sweetened beverages and incidence of obesity in children. In one study, the odds ratio of becoming obese increased 1.6 times for each additional sugar-sweetened drink consumed every day.

A big culprit in Kid's weight and health issues is the rise of the Sports Drink. Loaded with sugar, but marketed as a cure for dehydration and use for sports and energy, the sports drinks have been gaining in popularity and portion size in recent years. NutritionData.com had a good take on these sugary sports drinks;

Some public health advocates are pushing for a ban on the sales of sports drinks and flavored waters in schools in order to decrease obesity in children. The University of California at Berkeley warns "that students who drink one 20-ounce sports drink every day for a year can gain about 13 pounds!" These beverages contain the same amount of high fructose corn syrup as soft drinks and artificial food colorings, preservatives, and unneeded sodium.

Cokes are my big downfall, I drink way too much.

Most medical experts agree the real danger of high calorie beverages is that it is too easy to be unaware and unthinking in your consumption. The first key to breaking the hold of high calorie beverages is being deliberate, knowing what you are eating and drinking and what those choices mean. Certainly pressure should be brought to bear to end the direct marketing of these drinks to our kids in school. And as for the Hugo? In 2004 after "Super Size Me" McDonalds ended their super-obesity-sized menus- if you see the Hugo at your local golden arches, it might be a good idea to write to the company, or your local paper and remind Mickey-d's that they were on the right track in '04 and that they should not start back-sliding now.

Our kid's lives may depend on it.

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