I’m afraid I’m still down, but I took a leap of faith and planned a menu to feed folks on Christmas, so I better be better in time. I’m current with replies. Maybe tomorrow.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today it took me 4:45 (average 5:50). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From MoveOn: Young Boy Has A Big, Big Problem With Fish DNA Inside Of A Tomato, And He’s Doing Something About It
What children can understand, criminal corporate farmers can too. They just care more about profit, and they know the Republican Party has their back.
From NY Times: The subject of deceptive restaurant menus took on new life last week when Oceana, an international organization dedicated to ocean conservation, released a report with the headline “Widespread Seafood Fraud Found in New York City.”
Using genetic testing, the group found tilapia and tilefish posing as red snapper. Farmed salmon was sold as wild. Escolar, which can also legally be called oil fish, was disguised as white tuna, which is an unofficial nickname for albacore tuna.
Every one of 16 sushi bars investigated sold the researchers mislabeled fish. In all, 39 percent of the seafood from 81 grocery stores and restaurants was not what the establishment claimed it was.
This is yet more proof of the importance of knowing what we eat, but Republicans want to cut and slash funding for the enforcement of even the inadequate safeguards we have.
From Think Progress: Rock Hill Herald, a newspaper in South Carolina, printed a large ad for a big gun sale in Rock Hill on the same page as its coverage of Friday’s massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. The ad, which touted Christmas discounts on Smith & Wesson assault rifles, ran in Saturday’s edition on pages A4-A5:
The paper has to be Republican owned and operated. They alone could be this insensitive.
Cartoon:
Once again, the US needs to follow Canada’s example.
21 Responses to “Open Thread–12/16/2012”
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
3:50 I'm happy as a clam. 2 minutes better than average.
5:07 Patty, you are truly the pearl of this oyster while I am just a grain of sand.
5:01 Am I surprised or what? I'm not last. I'm allergic to clams and all shellfish, and I can't get past the smell of calamari. There was a seafood restaurant in Seattle named Ivar's. Ivar did his own TV commercials and always ended them with "Keep clam!"
Ivar's – the one on the waterfront, not the later franchises – was always one of my favorite restaurants in Seattle. Too bad you're allergic to shellfish, their Viking Stew was the stuff that culinary dreams are made of. In his will, Ivar bequeathed a trust fund to the City of Seattle for an annual fireworks show in his name on the 4th of July. Far as I know, they still do it.
Dang Second place!
Also the gun store didn't have the brains to have them hold the ad or put it in a separate part of the paper. It's so huge, why not an insert? Of course, the ad appearing on the page with the shooting story is the height of insensitivity. The paper and the store might lose some customers over this one.
I hope you get well enough to continue giving us your daily doses of truth, Tom. Somebody should serve Christmas dinner to YOU!
I'm guessing the store had no idea that the ad would be juxtaposed with massacre coverage. Thank you.
Having worked on a paper in high school and college, I will say that ads are laid out days ahead of time and are priced by their location – so it'd be hard for the paper to move it. But it's still pretty insensitive. You'd at least hope some editor would give the ad buyer a "Heads Up" as to what was going on.
And speaking of insensitive ads, Mother Jones posted 20 gun/ammo ads that fall under that rubric:
http://www.motherjones.com/media/2012/12/gun-ads-bushmaster-mattel
They also posted another "A Guide to Mass Shooting in the US" with an interactive map providing details.
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/07/mass-shootings-map?page=1
I am appalled at the ads — appeals to "manliness", sex sells, kids indoctrinated with real looking weapons that are toys. Why are Americans, in general, so obsessed by guns? A UN report shows Americans own 88.8 guns per 100 people.
I heard a news item today that police (I forget where in the US) arrested a 60 year old man who had threatened violence. He had I believe 247 guns/rifles and 100,000 rounds of ammunition. That is not for personal defense. That is enough for a small army!
What horrid ads! They should say, the bigger the gun, the smaller the dingles.
MoveOn ~ I don't want strange DNA in my foods either.
NY Times ~ It's all about the almighty dollar. They get more money by saying the cheaper fish is the more expensive thus increasing their profits. They will continue to do it until they are caught.
Think Progress ~ Same as above – It's all about the almighty dollar. Increased advertising money for the paper and increased sales for the store. No conscience.
Cartoon ~ Well, we're 10 years late ratifying the Kyoto Protocol so far. How much longer???
Everyone has the right to make that decision.
Agree.
Also agree.
First, we need to get folks to admit the problem exists.
NY Times – I suspect that there is a lot of mislabeling of organic foods also.
I used to do pest control, and it pissed me off that the grain I was treating was labeled organic.
Puzzle — 5:01 Last I'm sure. I'm allergic to clams and all shellfish, and I can't get past the smell of calamari. There was a seafood restaurant in Seattle named Ivar's. Ivar did his own TV commercials and always ended them with "Keep clam!"
MoveOn — People before profits!
NY Times — Deceptive practices and fraud, profits before people. Sounds like a Republican/Teabagger!
Think Progress — This isn't insensitive. It is VILE!!!!! This just tries to stoke people into buying guns for protection, taking advantage of their outrage over the deaths of 20 children and 7 adults. Profits before people and decency.
Cartoon — Don't follow Canada. We may have ratified the Protocol 16/12/02 but we withdrew from this leading binding Protocol on 12/12/11. Canada has shown that a legally binding deal does not guarantee countries won't walk away from it, and once one does it, others will find ways. The Tories of course say that the Liberals mishandled the whole thing, and that might be, but so far the Conservatives haven't done a damn thing either.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2011/12/12/pol-kent-kyoto-pullout.html
Extra! Extra! — My new computer just arrived today, so this evening, I may install it if I can gather up the energy. Otherwise, hopefully, sometime tomorrow. My old P4 is fading fast and the reason why my Care2 does not operate properly. The new one is an ASUS intel i5 with a terra byte of memory. I can hardly wait.
Sorry to disappoint you Lynn, but I get the last place spot.
Just did it again — 4:22 — I know it doesn't count but I am stubborn with some things!
I tried it a second time and got 4:35. You still beat me!
Correction
We may have ratified the Protocol 16/12/02 but we withdrew from this
leadinglegally binding Protocol on 12/12/11.Sorry, I wasn't feeling that great — too tired and arthritis pain in my hands and finger joints (obviously my brain too!). It has been a really tough week with my mother, including thursday night when I thought I'd get a call that she had passed away. She did not, fortunately and by saturday afternoon was all smiles. She is in a wheelchair right now because of hip and leg pain.
I hope your hands and your mom are better soon.
Jerry won that honor. 🙂
Amen.
Amen again.
Amen yet again.
OOPS! 🙁
Woooo Hoooo!!!!