Hello, Everyone, on this cloudy Tuesday.  Our temperatures are on a roller coaster going between well above normal and about normal.  The forecast today has the possibility of lake effect snow but not much or long lasting with about normal temps in the low 30s.

Well, the news last night and this morning say Germany and France have issued an 'ultimatum' to Greece: reduce government spending or no new funds.  Their action reminds me of some of the scifi movies where the guys with guns blaze away, and blaze away, and blaze away with weapons that don't have any effect or may make the situation worse.  Greece has cut government spending repeatedly and then, because the cuts actually reduce economic activity, failed to meet deficit reduction targets because the tax revenue also fell.  This is a downward spiral with no go end in sight.  But something that intrigues me is the coverage of this Greek tragedy.  The stories always allude to 'necessary' budget cuts without specifying those needed cuts.  I have seen only a couple of stories which said anything specific on the matter and those were in bloggers who did not link to their sources.  They said the demands included a 25% cut in the minimum wage (translate that to going from $7.50/hour here in the U.S. to just over $5/hour), cutting the pension benefits by 35%, and eliminating 100 government agencies throwing another large number of Greeks into unemployment.  What effect do you think that would have on tax revenues and how likely do you think it that Greece will meet the next deficit reduction target?  This piece  in the Financial Times explains some aspects of the situation and confirms the numbers cited by the bloggers.  Maybe they would like to make the proposed changes retroactive to all of the employees who have neither been paid (some for as much as 18 months) nor laid off (so the employer could escape paying unemployment and severance.)  Here is the link I provided a couple of days ago.

This is an intriguing story I have been reading about for a little while now.  Interesting that the number of states contemplating legislation to authorize gold and silver coins as payment of debts has gone from 3 three years ago to 13 this year.

I hear your sentiments on religion, Lois.  I think my comments on history yesterday (that each generation reassess the interpretations in light of their own circumstances).  I said before that I am not much of a gambler.  Well, I am not much of a joiner either and churches are among the institutions I resist joining--vigorously.  I remember a very apt line at the end of Angles and Demons where a cardinal asks Langdon to treat the church gently when he writes of it because religion is flawed 'because men are flawed.'  What ever deity I believe in it isn't the deity of organized religions/churches--any of them.

A few weeks ago the news announced Sears Holdings planned to close 100+ stores across the country. It caused a furor because it came on the announcement that Chicago and Illinois had come up with a package of bribes tax relief measures Sears demanded to keep its headquarters in Chicago.  I noticed that no Chicago stores were slated to close but just a bit ago Mom was reading an article which listed two local stores on the chopping block.  Today, on our way to our favorite year-round farm market, we passed one.  It is the largest local K-Mart and, I think, the only 24-hour store.  It is also right across the road from the Super Wal-Mart.

Good foggy, frosty Monday morning.  The weather people say it should clear out and we will see partly sunny skies today.  They are warning us of a change toward more normal temps for a couple of days.  I was amused when the news anchor observed that normal now feels cold because it has been so warm lately.

Glad you enjoy the commentary, Gina.  I don't often listen to talk radio but I know the kind of comments you wrote about.  They don't surprise me, again, because of my readings in history.  Most people have heard of Malthus and Darwin, and most can give a sketchy outline of their theories.  What most don't remember, however, is that Malthus was an English clergyman and Darwin, between discovering how unsuited he was to study medicine and making his mark as a naturalist, was sent to Cambridge to prepare for a career in the clergy.  The moral foundation of Malthus' economic ideas are most often overlooked.  He saw the plight of the poor as resulting from their moral failings.  Unlike the upright middle-class, the poor were unable to control their baser urges and limit their family size thereby ensuring they would have far more children than they could care for and continuing their impoverished state.  It is more difficult to see the same foundations in Darwin but they are there.  Some years ago science historian James Burke produced an episode of his series The Day the Universe Changed titled Fit to Rule.  There Burke traced the influence Darwin's theories, especially the part concerning the 'survival of the fittest,' on the three dominant -isms of the 20th century (Capitalism, Communism, and Nazism.)  In all of them, the struggle for survival and domination were raised to a moral imperative and those individuals, societies, states that failed in this struggle did so because of natural law which was, for Christians, a reflection of God's will and law. Even Christians who revile Darwin's notion of descent from an ancestral form of life embrace his struggle for existence.  And that idea meshed very nicely with the 'Puritan Work Ethic' that so many of our pundits trot out every now and then.  Calvinist doctrine, from which a number of Protestant varieties trace their origin, insisted that Christians had a duty to work hard in a socially beneficial calling.  Work became a religious imperative.  But John Calvin's followers were beset with severe anxiety.  The doctrine of predestination held that God had decided at the beginning of time the fate of each individual, damnation or salvation.  It was entirely in God's hands and the individual could do nothing to change that fate.  Even the most faithful and observant member of the church may harbor a failing that would condemn them and, worse, neither they nor their companions in the church could ever be absolutely assured of their postmortem fate.  Calvin did throw out a tenuous lifeline: a believer who worked hard in his calling and prospered may be favored by God and likely saved.  Calvin never absolutely equated prosperity with salvation; after all, many of the unGodly prospered in this world.  Others would do that for him.  And I can't blame Calvin; after all, Christ himself said 'by their fruits ye shall know them'.  I think you can see where this is going.  Though morphing over time, the connection between morality and prosperity, or fitness, or success has remained.  And we have people blasting the poor for being lazy, the foreclosed homeowner for gaming the system, the long term unemployed for preferring handouts to honest work, etc.  And of course, those condemning their fellow citizens are bolstering their own fragile egos because the implicit comparison is 'how good am I that I am not them.'

Oh, yes, Nicola.  Greece is in deep and not likely to get out any time soon.  I find it interesting that the pundits have gone from discussing whether Greece will default to when Greece will default and what the ramifications will be among the other fragile Eurozone countries.  Very few really note how pervasive debt has become over the last thirty or so years.  When the total debt of a country (individual, corporate, sovereign) amounts to several times the GDP, you are in trouble.  Most of the advanced economies around the world are in exactly that position.  I read a bit ago that U.S. debt last year equalled GDP.  Of course, government officials claim that we are still below that by excluding the debt owed between government agencies--but that is fiddling the books.

This interesting read comes from Club Orlov.  I am not much of a gambler and so it fascinates me to watch various aspects of gambling in our society.  I had to look up the 'Legion of Thebes' and the notion of repeated decimations is interesting albeit frightening.

For those who are, like me, always on the lookout for frugal living tips, check out Rhonda's latest post at Down to Earth.  We immediately bookmarked the Budget101 site.  It has a wonderful, long list of seasoning mixes you can make yourself.

Good morning.  We woke to heavy fog that is lifting now.  I hope, looking out at what look at the moment like clear skies, to see the sun today.  That storm that buried Colorado lost its steam out in Iowa somewhere so we got just a dusting of snow and some rain.  The weather people say our temperatures over the next week will be closer to normal.  I think I will go ahead and prepare the milk jug 'greenhouses' and winter sow some spinach.  I am in the process of going through all the seeds, left overs and new, to plan when I will start what.  My list looks absolutely too much for my containers but then some (like the cabbage and kale) will be started in the summer for late fall harvest.  I am still debating putting in a few potatoes and have some time to decide.  I noticed that the edges of my containers have started to thaw a bit.  The interiors are still frozen but the plants still look good below the dead foliage.

Welcome, Gina.  I am glad you came by.  I think Mark Twain is credited with the quip that 'history doesn't repeat but it does rhyme.'  He was totally right.

On the notion that we never learn, Lois, Robert Reich in his 2011 book Aftershock says that part of that comes from 'loss of generational memory.'  Few now remember the devastation of the Great Depression and those that remember World War II are getting fewer in number every year.  Those were times when Americans agreed, to a very large degree, that we were all in the soup together and we had to get out of it together.  This time a significant part of our society seems to have decided that everyone is on their own.  Also, each generation reassesses history in the light of the cultural and social values of its time.  I noticed the beginning of such a shift about fifteen years ago when I was a teaching assistant in a university history department.  I was assigned to work with a professor temporarily hired for the year who had decided that slavery had absolutely nothing to do with the coming of the Civil War and totally dropped it from the curriculum.  A friend, also assigned to work with this fellow, was totally outraged by this historical myopia and made sure her students were thoroughly informed on how intertwined slavery, politics, and economics were.  And, in case you wondered, the idiot also totally ignored aspects of northern labor history as well.  In other words, labor unions played no roll in U.S. history either.  The so-called titans of industry (Rockefeller, Carnegie, and Ford, et al.) however were thoroughly covered.

NPR featured this article on the Greek disaster.  There isn't any other way to describe their fiscal mess.  I noticed over the last week that hitches in the negotiations with employers and labor were stalling the long anticipated agreement on the next installment of bailout money the government needs.  Talk about a Catch-22.  Employers don't pay their employees but don't lay them off either.  That way they don't shell out the owed wages and avoid the severance pay they are legally obligated to pay workers they lay off.  And for those who are unemployed the government is having difficulty keeping up with the stipends they system promised.  And getting a new job in the current depressed economy--not likely.  I just love the Repthuglican argument that our 'overly generous' unemployment benefits encourages workers to stay out of the workforce and on their lazy butts.  It reminds me of the arguments slave holders in the Old South trotted out to justify their harsh treatment of African slaves.  The congenitally lazy and immoral slaves wouldn't work hard unless they felt the bite of the lash.  Well, obscene compensation for the our financial whiz kids and top CEOs really yielded good results for our economy, didn't it?

Talke about deja vu--this story seems to come back to life like a vampire in the dark of every winter.  If I were a head of state of any European country one of my top priorities would be finding a way to do without Russian gas.

It is interesting that al Jazeera asks the question most in American politics refuse to ask.  I saw one of the interviews with Buddy Romer, former Louisiana governor, which may be the one the author is citing.  He came out and stated directly that our system 'isn't broken. It's been bought.'

Good Saturday morning, All.  A dusting of snow fell over night.  It looks like we are catching the northern edge of that system that dropped snow by the foot on Colorado and points east.  Kuma cried so pitifully that I let him out.  He was't happy when he came in and is now skulking upstairs.  Glad to see you are back, Lois.  Hope your internet problems are solved.  Given the snow out your way I gathered your boys would be sulking, also.

There isn't much in the news I really feel like commenting on so I will go off on a tangent.  Every now and then I get a feeling of deja vu looking at the events of today.  Not that I feel that I have been in the same place personally but rather that as a society we have been here before.  It comes I think from having studied history for way too much of my adult life.  As I watched the Occupy movement take shape and the 'official' response (i.e., sending in the 'troops,' a.k.a. police) the deja vu feeling was especially strong.  It didn't take long to recall my readings on the Great Depression and the Bonus Army.  In 1932, a bit over 30k people (men, women, and children) including 17k veterans of WWI camped on the Mall in Washington, D.C. demanding that the government honor immediately the bonus certificates given veterans in lieu of part of their military pay.  The certificates were not due to mature until 1945 when the government was obligated to pay the back pay plus interest.  However most of the veterans had been unemployed since the beginning of the Depression 2+ years earlier.  After the city police met with resistance during which some of the veterans were killed, Hoover sent in the army which cleared the National Mall and set fire to the tent city.  Commanding officer was General Douglas MacArthur with junior aid Major D.D. Eisenhower supported by 6 tanks under General John.

The military roll in the suppression of the Bonus Army tickled another memory in my mind and I finally tracked it down:  Coxey's Army of 1894.  In the wake of the depression of 1894, Jacob Coxey inspired several groups of varying sizes across the U.S.  All demanded government help for the unemployed and others hurt during the severe economic crisis.  Coxey led a band from Ohio through a large swath of Pennsylvania while another band took over a train in the Northwest which they rode through Montana.  Large numbers of supporters prevented U.S. marshals from arresting the party so the government sent in the army which succeeded in intercepting and ending the ride in Missoula.  The army was used to disband other segments of Coxey's 'Army' providing the blueprint for the use of Federal troops against the demonstrations during the Pullman Strike in Chicago a few months later.  Though all of these groups intended to carry their protest and demands to Washington itself,  none made it that far.

I guess we have been there and done that.

Good morning to you all on this foggy Friday.  The weather people say there is a monster storm with blizzard and heavy snow warnings for the plains from Colorado through eastern Kansas.  They don't expect us to get more than variable amounts of rain.  High 30s here and low 30s in Chicago.  I will see what the forecast is late next week before deciding when to put the cover on the greenhouse.  I am still collecting the milk jugs because I can put them in the green house to start the hardy plants.  I did some errands yesterday.  Stopped at my favorite quilt shop and, of course, I couldn't leave getting a small bundle of fat quarters.  The colors and patterns always raise my spirits.  I also stopped at my favorite source for seeds.  Found two of the specific varieties I was planning to order on line from Burpee along with a couple of good substitutes for two other varieties.  And, of course, I found a couple of impulse seeds.  The only thing I didn't find was the Christmas basil but I will put that on the list for next year unless my favorite nursery has transplants.

Your weather has made our news over here, Nicola.  The snow in eastern Europe is stunning as are the temperatures.  I hope they don't make the news because of spring flooding.  With that much snow that is entirely possible.  And, yes, the labeling on foods is frightening both for what is included and for what is not.  Our food industry has been fighting any requirement that they label GMO foods or GMO ingredients included in processed foods.

Hey, Kay.  What is Jobs and Family Services doing to restrict your food choices?  I know that many of our 'social service' organization seem to bend with faddish wind that blows and to do so with intrusive insensitivity.  The news said that Punxitawny Phil saw his shadow while another groundhog didn't.  I guess you can take your pick.

The news last night had a short piece on a salmonella scare that no one knew about--because the FDA and CDC did not release the information and when they did they referred to the fast food restaurant chain only as 'Restaurant A.'  Restaurant A has been identified as Taco Bell which makes this the second time in three years and so far, in neither case, has the source of the contamination been identified.  But what is really troubling is the lack of information given to consumers.  It is rather hard to make an informed decision on what risks you want to take if you are kept in the dark.  It seems that our health and food safety agencies are more concerned with the financial 'health' of businesses rather than the physical health and well being of consumers.

Well, I guess the kitchen got a bit too hot for the Komen Foundation.  This came by way of Crooks&Liars.

New flooding in Australia.  If I remember rightly, parts of these areas were hit last year.

The mainstream media is celebrating the wonderful (tongue in cheek alert) economic news that 243,000 new private sector jobs were created last month--far more than expected.  But I don't take any economic data at face value.  We have inflation data that eliminates most of the goods and services that affect me because it is 'too volatile.'  This piece in the Agonist shows why I don't trust the employment data either.

Good Thursday morning, Everyone.  It looked very foggy in the news/weather pictures of Chicago.  They say we should get clearing skies and sun later.  I am rethinking the notion of 'winter' sowing.  I haven't seen a high temperature forecast below 35F for the next week.  I may just put the cover on the mini-green house earlier than planned.  The whole reason for winter sowing seems to be to allow the freeze/thaw cycle to work to crack the seed cover and then the seed will sprout when the temperature gets warm enough.  I remember reading that some seed need exposure to cold to sprout.  I don't have to worry about that because between seasons I store my seeds in the refrigerator.  Oh, well--one needs to be flexible.

I agree with you totally, Nicola.  We have become much more cautious of what we eat.  We began reducing the number of prepared foods drastically.  We are often amazed by the amount of salt and sugar in the foods followed by the number of chemicals whose sole purpose is to extend the shelf life.  Yesterday we had a beef pot pie for supper but it wasn't a name brand from the supermarket.  We got it from our local meat market and they prepare it from scratch.  We prepare our cakes and pies from scratch and have done so after becoming very dissatisfied with the mixes.  More and more we find that the industrial food system fails on every level--taste, health, and (surprisingly) convenience.

The news media have focused on Mitt Romney's very callous dismissal of the 'very poor' while claiming that he focuses on the middle class who 'are hurting.'  As though the middle class isn't dropping into the 'very poor' category in increasing numbers.  As though somehow the pains of the middle class are worse than the pains of the very poor.  But I remember quipping when GW Bush proclaimed himself a 'compassionate conservative' that the phrase was an oxymoron.  And, as if we really need any reminder, John Boehner was cited in this story as opposing the new Administration programs to help underwater homeowners refinance.  They used to talk about a 'throw away' society in terms of the things we discarded.  Now, it seems to me, we have to talk about our 'throw away' society in terms of the people we are discarding--elderly, poor, workers, the sick.

To pick up the nutrition thread again--the news this morning featured a segment on a new study in which the authors claim that 'added sugars' in the American diet are as destructive of health and as addictive as alcohol and should be taxed.  This BBC story provides more details.  I put quotation marks around the phrase because it isn't entirely clear who is adding the sugars to the food.  The reporter interviewing their medical expert asked for clarification on that part.  Most people do add a lot of sugar to their foods but a lot more is incorporated into the prepared foods by the manufacturers.  The advice: start by eliminating sodas, sports drinks, and limiting your juice to one glass per day.  I also noticed that the report doesn't distinguish between sugars.  The food industry has for the past couple of decades been adding high fructose corn syrup--which the industry wants to relabel as 'corn sugar.'  Recent studies have indicated that this sugar is far more dangerous than other sugars.  My prescription: more label reading.

They keep telling us that the economy is getting better but stories like this make me wonder.  Over the last five years I have been reading a constant stream of similar stories.  However, this takes the story to incredible new lows in thievery.

I absolutely love the old girls (if they are old and girls--there was some question of that a couple of years ago) at Margaret and Helen.  I agree with Helen on all three points in today's post .  Mitt and Newt are getting boring.  That W.Va. state senator is wonderful.  We got a kick out of her amendment to the pre-abortion ultrasound bill. And I agree on the Susan G. Komen issue as well.  I haven't walked in their Race For The Cure myself but one of my nieces has and I have supported her.  No longer.

The folks at Rural Revolution has this cute anecdote which should tickle all you animal lovers out there.  I loved it.

Good Wednesday to all of you.  It looks like we got a bit of rain overnight.  The temperatures are still much above normal.  I checked all of the plants I left in the gardens and all appear to be doing well, so far.  The roses could be in mid summer from the looks of the leaves.  They are crisp and green.  The blueberries have only a few leaves left but a number of leaf buds just ready to open up at--hopefully--the right time.  The stems are a pretty light green.  The lemon balm looks dry until you push the dead leaves aside and you find nice bright green new growth underneath.  The German thyme looks just as it did when I put it in last fall--green and crisp.  I think I saw new growth under the old stalks and leaves of my mums.  I checked the hardiness of all of the plants before I left them out--all are hardy to at least one zone north of mine.

Well, this is good news.  When I first heard about 'pink slime' we had already eliminated all of the fast food hamburger joints from our patronage.  What I read (and read to Mom) about this simply reinforced our determination not to frequent these establishments and we wondered about the hamburger in the supermarket.  Our dissatisfaction with the quality of the ground beef in our local groceries had already moved us to grinding our own hamburger.  Having broken the fast foo habit I doubt we will be going back to it.

Just when I think the Repthugicans can't possibly be any more despicable they descend to a new low.  Check this out to see the latest.

Then, of course, there is military double-speak in this bit.  On the one hand, we have said for sometime that this mess is going to end with a lot of money spent (which contributes to our national fiscal woes) and with no real political gain.  I said that when we went into Iraq before finishing up in Afghanistan.  Double-talk, you ask?  That comes in with the military spokesman acknowledging the document and then diss-ing it by saying it isn't a 'strategic document' and merely reflects the 'opinions' of Taliban prisoners.