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January 31, 2007

Melissa from Shakespeare's Sister Is Netroots Coordinator for John Edwards

I have to say this is a BRILLIANT choice by the Edwards team, but then again he seems to be on track for brilliance as it were. I'll admit I don't agree with everything he says (Iran for example), but at least he's taking a stand on the issues and I think by far he's the best candidate running so far!

Here's a bit of the announcment:

I have been offered and have accepted a position as the Netroots Coordinator for John Edwards’ presidential campaign, joining an outstanding internet team that now also includes Pandagon's Amanda Marcotte, with whom I'll be working closely. (Watch out, world!)

Congrats to Melissa! You'll do an excellent job for John Edwards! I'm so happy for you!

Check out the news on Shakespeare's Sister.

Posted by Dianne at 9:47 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Al Franken to run for Senate in Minnesota

WASHINGTON -- Comedian and radio talk show host Al Franken has begun calling Democratic members of Congress and prominent Minnesota Democrats to tell them he will definitely challenge Republican Sen. Norm Coleman in 2008, McClatchy Newspapers has learned.

On Monday, Franken announced that he was quitting his radio show on Feb. 14, and he told his audience that they'd be the first to know of his decision. But Franken has been working the phones in recent days, telling his political friends he's ready to declare his candidacy. McClatchy Newspapers confirmed Wednesday that Franken made calls to at least two members of the Minnesota congressional delegation in Washington to break the news. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity, not wanting to pre-empt Franken's announcement.

Run Al, run!

Found via McClatchy Newspapers.

Posted by Dianne at 8:39 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Columnist Molly Ivins Dies

AUSTIN — Molly Ivins, whose biting columns mixed liberal populism with an irreverent Texas wit, died at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at her home in Austin after an up-and-down battle with breast cancer she had waged for seven years. She was 62.

Ms. Ivins, the Star-Telegram’s political columnist for nine years ending in 2001, had written for the New York Times, the Dallas Times-Herald and Time magazine and had long been a sought-after pundit on the television talk-show circuit to provide a Texas slant on issues ranging from President Bush’s pedigree to the culture wars rooted in the 1960s.

"She was magical in her writing," said Mike Blackman, a former Star-Telegram executive editor who hired Ms. Ivins at the newspaper’s Austin bureau in 1992, a few months after the Times-Herald ceased publication. "She could turn a phrase in such a way that a pretty hard-hitting point didn’t hurt so bad."

Molly Ivans was a brilliant journalist and author. Her death is truly a great loss. Rest in peace Ms. Ivans. We here at Daffodil Lane are great admirers!

Found via the Star Telegram.

Update: 8:34 pm: CNN is now reporting Molly Ivan's death as well:

The writer, who made a living poking fun at Texas politicians, whether they were in her home base of Austin, Texas, or the White House, revealed in early 2006 that she was being treated for breast cancer for the third time.

More than 400 news organizations, including CNN.com, subscribed to her nationally syndicated column, which combined strong liberal views and populist-toned humor. Ivins' illness did not seem to hurt her ability to deliver biting one-liners.

"I'm sorry to say (cancer) can kill you but it doesn't make you a better person," she said in an interview with the San Antonio Express-News in September, the same month cancer claimed her friend, former Gov. Ann Richards.

To Ivins, "liberal" wasn't an insult. "Even I felt sorry for Richard Nixon when he left; there's nothing you can do about being born liberal -- fish gotta swim and hearts gotta bleed," she wrote in a column included in her 1998 collection, "You Got to Dance With Them What Brung You."

In a column in mid-January, Ivins urged readers to stand up against Bush's plan to send more troops to Iraq.

"We are the people who run this country. We are the deciders. And every single day, every single one of us needs to step outside and take some action to help stop this war," Ivins wrote in the January 11 column. "We need people in the streets, banging pots and pans and demanding, 'Stop it, now!"' (Read the column)

Ivins' best-selling books included those she co-authored with Lou Dubose about Bush. One was titled "Shrub: The Short but Happy Political Life of George W. Bush" and another was "BUSHWHACKED: Life in George W. Bush's America."

Read more at CNN.

Posted by Dianne at 7:57 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Annapolis voters fill council vacancies

A high school English teacher and a retired health economist will join the Annapolis City Council, voted in yesterday by residents in a two-ward special election.

Democrat Sheila M. Finlayson, an educator, will represent Ward 4 in the western part of the city, and Democrat Ross Arnett will represent Ward 8 in Eastport.

Great news in Annapolis! Despite repeated Republican financial shenanigans the people of Annapolis stood up to say they didn't want to surrender their city to the corrupt special interest groups that the GOP represents. I send out my congratulations this morning to the new Alderwoman Finlayson and Alderman Arnett. I'm expecting great things from both of them in the coming years, but we are going to have to work on turnout in these special elections. The Republicans are ruthless in their mobilization of their few supporters and there appears to be some level of apathy on our side to stand up to them. You can just look at the state of our country and you'll get a good idea what would happen to your city if the Republicans gain control even for a short period of time. Corruption and criminality are the mainstays of their worldview. It's not safe to have them in office even for a short period of time. I suspect we will start seeing the side effects countywide with the election of Leopold before long. Failure is the hallmark of what it means when a Republican is in charge. It's not a question of if, it's a question of when their incompetence will start causing damage to the local population.

Read more over at Baltimore Sun.

Posted by Jamison at 1:57 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

It Went Well!

I talked to my mom about an hour ago and the surgery went well! So well in fact they were almost back home! She sounded a little groggy, but she was talking as normal. She starts physical therapy on Monday. Thanks for the well wishes and prayers! :O)

Posted by Dianne at 1:51 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

A Thought Or Prayer

My mom is having knee surgery this morning so send a little thought or prayer her way if you get a chance and you do such things. It's just outpatient, but they will put her completely under, which is always something to take seriously. She should be able to go home this afternoon. I'll post an update as soon as I hear anything from my dad.

Posted by Dianne at 8:55 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

January 30, 2007

Obamamania Jon Stewart Style

Jon Stewart slaps down Faux News. Just go watch. Sort of NSFW due to some of the discussion, but very funny!

Posted by Dianne at 10:10 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

My New Food Blog

After some thought I decided to start my own food blog and move the recipes away from here at Daffodil Lane. So stop by and check out Dianne's Dishes! I'll be posting all my recipes there from now on. I'm still in the process of tweaking a few things, but it's up and running! Stop by and say hello! :o)

Posted by Dianne at 2:29 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Camera Update

It turns out my camera is taking pictures just fine, but there is something hosed with the viewfinder. When you look through the viewfinder to focus the picture all you see is a big blur, but it's actually taking a picture. The down side is that it gives you a headache when you take a picture and you aren't quite sure what you've got until you actually look at the picture itself.

Jamison took it and had a guy look at it yesterday, but he wasn't sure, so now we're going to have to take it to someone else. Hopefully we'll have it worked out soon. Not knowing what you're actually going to get until you see the picture is getting annoying!

Posted by Dianne at 2:25 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 28, 2007

Remember

Today is the anniversary of the Challenger explosion. Check out the Wikipedia entry for more information. Also take a look at NASA's page on the subject.

21 years...I still remember the day like it was yesterday.

Posted by Dianne at 1:14 PM

January 27, 2007

It Doesn't Take A Rocket Scientist

Jan. 27, 2007 - President George W. Bush concluded his annual State of the Union address this week with the words “the State of our Union is strong … our cause in the world is right … and tonight that cause goes on.” Maybe so, but the state of the Bush administration is at its worst yet, according to the latest NEWSWEEK poll. The president’s approval ratings are at their lowest point in the poll’s history—30 percent—and more than half the country (58 percent) say they wish the Bush presidency were simply over, a sentiment that is almost unanimous among Democrats (86 percent), and is shared by a clear majority (59 percent) of independents and even one in five (21 percent) Republicans. Half (49 percent) of all registered voters would rather see a Democrat elected president in 2008, compared to just 28 percent who’d prefer the GOP to remain in the White House.

You can not simply ignore the will of the people and expect them to bow down to you. Bush is arrogant, delusional and completely out of touch with reality. America is ready for a change.

Found via Newsweek.com.

Posted by Dianne at 12:58 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Now He's Just Cool!

I came across a blog called Don to Earth that was posted about on 10,000 Monkey's & a Camera. Don to Earth is written by Donald Crowdis, who just happens to be 93 years old! How cool is that? He's witty, he's funny and he shows great depth of feeling in terms of looking back at his life.

Check out Don to Earth. It's a good read!

And also check out the Wikipedia entry for Donald Crowdis as well.

Posted by Dianne at 12:23 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

My Organic Market

When we went over to Katherine's on Wednesday she was telling me about a market called My Organic Market that she was going to check out the next day. She sent me an email after she went and told me how neat it was and pointed out that they had one near me in Jessup, or as they call it "Columbia East". This morning we ventured over to check it out and I must say even Jamison was impressed!

Here's their mission statement:

Our Mission, our reason for existing and our #1 priority is to restore the environment to the maximum extent we are able.Whether taking action as individuals (both employees and customers), as a company, influencing other companies, funding legislative efforts, or supporting environmental advocacy groups, we will work tirelessly towards ensuring a clean and restored environment for our children and many future generations.

My kind of company! They are also completely wind powered! How cool is that?? A proactive company is one I like to see!

In January 2005, MOM‘s began purchasing 1.2 million Kilowatt-hours of Wind Energy per year. This purchase represents our entire energy use for one year at all three stores.

The benefits of this wind-powered energy are:
The elimination of the emissions equal to: 104 cars per year or Offsetting the contamination of the air produced by 120 average households or The positive value of planting 97,989 trees, which naturally remove harmful amounts of carbon dioxide from the air.

They are now up to 5 stores (4 are open, one in Frederick is opening soon) and they continue the same philosophy that they have had since the very beginning. Also I was highly impressed not only with their selection (they had Jamison's Rice cheese and they even had Rice cream cheese), but also their prices! Jamison's Rice cheese was a dollar cheaper per package than at Whole Foods as was Alexis' milk! Their products were comparable in price to my local Giant and they were even cheaper than Giant on organic products! (Which make up the majority of the store...if it's not organic it's all natural, or both!)! Their produce was beautiful and they had a HUGE selection of everything from flour to cheese to yogurt to whole grains to nuts to well you get the picture! They even had vitamins, bath products, etc.! And their staff was very friendly and eager to help if you needed anything, which we didn't, but it was nice to know they were there if we did need them.

Here's some more information on the "Columbia East" location:

MOM's - Columbia East, MD General Manager - Elliot Satin -- Since opening in Sept. 2006, MOM's is proudly serving the Howard County community with our most environmentally friendly location yet. We are truly "Walking the Talk", from skylights and energy efficient equipment to produce clippings and our bamboo service desk. Once again produce is the highlight of this location. We even decorated with photo's of our own beautiful 100% organic produce. Stop by soon and take in our incredible selection of organic,natural and specialty products.

If you live in Maryland or Northern Virginia check out the My Organic Market website and see if there is a branch near you and if you're interested in going to the location in Jessup then click on the map above.

Posted by Dianne at 11:47 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

January 26, 2007

Elizabeth Edwards

Elizabeth Edwards has a nice blog entry up about her family going green. Check it out here.

Posted by Dianne at 7:54 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Stewart On Cheney

As always Jon Stewart is brilliant! Just go watch...What are you waiting for? ;o)

Updated: 7:05 pm

Oh and you HAVE to watch the Darth Vader part! :o)

Posted by Dianne at 3:31 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

My Camera Is Wonky

Something is up with my camera and it won't focus even on manual or auto focus. I am going to give it a good cleaning this weekend and see if I can't figure out what is happening. So for the next few days or so there won't be any pictures or recipes. Hopefully I'll be able to figure out what I'm dealing with and fix the problem. If not I'll have to dig out my old camera and see if I can get it to work, but given it was having issues which led me to buy the Canon in the first place, that might not work either. Either way it's much easier to work on such things when little hands aren't trying to "help". I'll keep you posted.

Posted by Dianne at 1:10 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Birds In Iraq

The BBC has an interesting article up about bird conservation efforts going on in Iraq. Check it out...It's an interesting read!

Posted by Dianne at 10:25 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Blues legend B.B. King hospitalized

GALVESTON, Texas (AP) -- B.B. King was hospitalized for undisclosed reasons but was in good condition early Friday, a hospital official said.

The 81-year-old bluesman, who had been scheduled to perform at the Grand Opera House on Thursday night, was admitted to The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, said Paul McCarthy, a nurse administrator.

McCarthy said King was not in the intensive care unit and that he could be released later Friday or Saturday.

I have always loved B.B. King's voice. I'll admit I don't know the names of his songs, but when I hear that voice I know it's him! You just have to stop and listen! It's so easy just to melt into his music. It's epic.

I hope he's back on his feet and feeling better soon.

Via CNN.

Posted by Dianne at 10:11 AM

January 25, 2007

Democrats Fight For GOP Support On Iraq Resolution

This is the most baffling exercise I think I've ever heard of. Why are the the Democrats wasting time trying to talk to Republicans?? These people stand up and scream that they think the President is wrong, I mean quite literally half the Republicans on the committee that sent the resolution to the floor stated clearly that they thought Bush was wasting American lives by this escalation in Iraq, but in the end they can't change the fact that they are puppets and happily voted against the resolution that they allegedly agree with. So you're left to try and decide what is really going on. Either they don't believe what they are saying about it being a bad idea, or that they are helpless to contradict their corporate masters to vote against this horrible idea. Now most are disingenuous liars, so that's a very easy argument to make, the word two faced doesn't really cover how vile and low they really are, but one wonders at what point will they put the American people ahead of their radical partisan agenda? I doubt it will ever happen honestly, it's just not in there nature. They are Republicans, you'll get one maybe two with a momentary prang of conscious like Hagel (interestingly coinciding with a presidential campaign bid), but the reality is the Republican party is a machine and it's members are nothing but drones. They will say or do anything to get reelected and protect their campaign funds. So the Democrats need to stop wasting valuable time trying to talk to these people. The effort is better spent on getting these people out of office than talking with them at all. The radical right don't believe in unity except as a tool to do damage to the enemy and America is their enemy. The Democrats need to stop messing around trying to pretend things are different than they really are.

Read more over at CNN.

Posted by Jamison at 11:21 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Senate Republicans Block Minimum Wage Increase

I know what you'er thinking...Republicans have given themselves a pay raise every year since the last time the minimum wage was raised. How could they be so cruel and heartless? Well they are Republicans they don't work like you and I, they see a person starving on the street and they think it sucks to be them. Decent people wonder if there is something I can do to help. It's a fundamentally different moral compass, or lack there of, that defines who is a Republican and who is not. But ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I have good news for you. The 43 Republicans in the Senate that stood up to take food out of the mouths of working people's families mouth do have to answer for their transgressions. 18 of those scumbags are up for reelection in 2008, well technically 17 of them, because one has already decided to retire rather than face the wrath of the angry voters in his state. We only need 6 more votes to have the interests of the American people put ahead of the greedy corporate masters of the GOP. So if you'd like to know where to start making this country a better place here's the list of people who couldn't bring themselves to do the right thing.

* Lamar Alexander (R-TN)
* Wayne Allard (R-CO)
* Saxby Chambliss (R-GA)
* Thad Cochran (R-MS)
* John Cornyn (R-TX)
* Larry Craig (R-ID)
* Elizabeth Dole (R-NC)
* Pete Domenici (R-NM)
* Michael Enzi (R-WY)
* Lindsey Graham (R-SC)
* Chuck Hagel (R-NE)
* James Inhofe (R-OK)
* Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
* Pat Roberts (R-KS)
* Jeff Sessions (R-AL)
* Gordon Smith (R-OR)
* Ted Stevens (R-AK)
* John Sununu (R-NH)

Remember them with your votes at the ballot box and give generously of your time and money to their opponents in 2008. Change is quite possible. Find your Jim Webb or John Tester and help us make America better place by removing these corporate puppets onto the unemployment line. We'll get the rid of the rest of them in 2010 and 2012. Changing this country for the better starts each and everyone of you doing the right thing.

Read more over at Bob Geiger.

Posted by Jamison at 11:17 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Iraqi War Vets Speak Out On SOTU address

Once again our good Daffodil Lane buddy Rose Forrest was on CNN setting the record straight on the incompetent Republican Iraq war plans.

If you'd like to catch Rose's previous appearance on CNN, here's the link for that as well. Once again, Rose does a fabulous job!

Posted by Jamison at 9:59 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

January 24, 2007

Whole Wheat Pasta Salad Take Two

I made this pasta salad tonight with a little tweaking. It's such a versatile recipe! Tonight I served it with tomatoes and avocadoes. I also used a different type of whole wheat pasta. You can make it with any veggies or pasta you like really and it's delicious no matter what!

Posted by Dianne at 7:17 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Rolling Stone: "Run, Al, Run"

Rolling Stone has a very interesting article on why Al Gore should run again for president.

If the Democrats were going to sit down and construct the perfect candidate for 2008, they'd be hard-pressed to improve on Gore. Unlike Hillary Clinton, he has no controversial vote on Iraq to defend. Unlike Barack Obama and John Edwards, he has extensive experience in both the Senate and the White House. He has put aside his wooden, policy-wonk demeanor to emerge as the Bush administration's most eloquent critic. And thanks to An Inconvenient Truth, Gore is not only the most impassioned leader on the most urgent crisis facing the planet, he's also a Hollywood celebrity, the star of the third-highest-grossing documentary of all time.

"He's perceived very differently now than he was six years ago," says Frank Luntz, the Republican consultant who advised George W. Bush to dispute global warming during the 2000 and 2004 elections. "He's an icon. Imagine that: Al Gore, Mr. Straight and Narrow, Mr. Dull on Wheels -- now he's culturally cool."

Indeed, Gore is unique among the increasingly crowded field of Democratic contenders. He has the buzz to beat Obama, the substance to supplant Hillary, and enough stature to enter the race late in the game and still raise the millions needed to mount a successful campaign. "Very few people who run for president can just step in when they want, with a superstar, titanic presence," says James Carville, the dean of Democratic strategists. "But Gore clearly is one of those. He's going to run, and he's going to be formidable. If he didn't run, I'd be shocked."

I won't lie...I'm a HUGE Al Gore fan and as I've said before if the man he is today ran in 2000 Bush wouldn't have been able to tweak Florida in his favor, because Gore would have won by such a great margin it wouldn't have mattered that Bush and his Daddy's buddies stole Florida.

I will also admit now that I'm torn. On the one hand the idea of Al Gore as president makes me giddy! On the other he is doing such great work now for the environment that perhaps he's found his calling there. Then again maybe he could do so much more work for the environment as President. Regardless he'd be a great candidate!

Will he run? I don't know, but if he does I think he's more than worth a second look!

Found via Rolling Stone.

Posted by Dianne at 7:04 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Webb overshadowed Bush

For the first time ever, the response to the State of the Union Message overshadowed the president's big speech. Virginia Sen. James Webb, in office only three weeks, managed to convey a muscular liberalism—with personal touches—that left President Bush's ordinary address in the dust. In the past, the Democratic response has been anemic—remember Washington Gov. Gary Locke? This time it pointed the way to a revival for national Democrats.

Webb is seen as a moderate or even conservative Democrat, but this was a populist speech that quoted Andrew Jackson, founder of the Democratic Party and champion of the common man. The speech represented a return to the tough-minded liberalism of Scoop Jackson and Hubert Humphrey, but by quoting Republicans Teddy Roosevelt (on "improper corporate influence") and Dwight D. Eisenhower (on ending the Korean War), he reinforced the argument that President Bush had taken the GOP away from its roots.

I don't think the term overshadowed really does justice to the complete butt whipping that Webb gave Bush and the entire Republican party last night. Also my favorite part of when there is a story written about Webb is that we always get the following paragraph included.

The contrast with Bush and Vice President Cheney—both of whom avoided going to Vietnam—could not have been starker. Webb did not have "other priorities" (Cheney) or a cushy billet defending Texas from Mexico (Bush).

Ah the money quote there, reminding the American people that the Republican party is filled with and led by draft dodging cowards.

The coup de grace of course came in the close of Webb's speech:

These Presidents took the right kind of action, for the benefit of the American people and for the health of our relations around the world. Tonight we are calling on this President to take similar action, in both areas. If he does, we will join him. If he does not, we will be showing him the way.

Remember as you watch Webb's speech that he shredded the one sent to him by the DLC'ers in the Democratic party to surrender America to the vile monsters in the Republican party. No, he wrote the entire thing over from scratch. No more triangulation and surrender to people who aren't our moral or intellectual equals. Do the right thing, or we'll make you do the right thing, end of story, end of comment. The Republican party has nothing of value left to contribute to the national debate on the future of this country. It's time for the grown ups to take over and it will be done in spite of the Establishment Democrats desire to surrender.

John in DC brings up the point that watching the video you see what a future president looks like. I have to say I can't disagree, if you haven't seen the speech you should definitely take a look at it.

Read more over at Bob Geiger, MSNBC and America Blog.

Posted by Jamison at 12:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Busy Day

Not only do graduate classes begin for Jamison and me today, but Alexis and I have ventured over to Katherine's house so that I could watch Nelson while she goes to the dentist. Alexis and Nelson are playing and having a grand old time. They do so well together! And now that Nelson is walking he likes to follow her so they can plot together. He's wanted to do that since he first realized that she was up moving around and now he can! So posting will most likely be light today since we'll be in transit back home this afternoon and I have some school things to do once we get there.

I hope you all are having a great day!

Posted by Dianne at 11:57 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 23, 2007

Stir Fried Veggies With Quorn "Chicken" Tenders and Brown Rice

I've been experimenting with meat substitutes lately since I'm going completely meat free for the month of January and tonight I made Stir Fried Veggies With Quorn "Chicken" Tenders and Brown Rice. I was QUITE impressed with the Quorn "chicken" tenders! I think I will try and make some sort of "chicken" casserole with them next. Quorn is meat free, soy free and wheat free and it tastes very authentic! It's vegetarian, but it's not vegan since it has egg whites in them so keep that in mind.

I stir fried bell pepper, red onion, mushrooms, carrots, snow peas, broccoli and the Quorn tenders in a little avocado oil with some pepper and topped it when it was finished with some low sodium soy sauce and put it on a bed of brown rice. Delicious!

I switched to Boca burgers a few years ago and never looked back, so now if I could just find a veggie "bacon" that didn't look like a Twizler and taste like barbeque sauce and a veggie "sausage" that tastes like sausage and I'll be a happy meat free camper! ;o)

Posted by Dianne at 6:05 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Lentil Soup

1 large carrot, chopped
1 large celery rib, chopped
1 small red onion, chopped
2 large button mushrooms, chopped
2 small leeks, chopped
2 cups lentils
4 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 pinch sea salt
1 pinch black pepper

Sauté veggies in olive oil over medium heat until tender. Add lentils, water, sea salt and pepper and cook covered for about one hour or until lentils are tender.

Cross posted at Lose This Weight!

Posted by Dianne at 3:27 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

What Are You Listening To Tuesday Edition

What are you listening to today? Do you have a CD or iTunes playlist that you're really digging right now?

For me it's Norah Jones "Come Away With Me" I particularly like the first two tracks "Don't Know Why" and "Seven Years".

Posted by Dianne at 3:11 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Oscar Nominees Announced

You can read the entire list of nominees here, but I'd like to point out two that I was very thrilled with:

Jennifer Hudson in "Dreamgirls" for Supporting Actress

and

"An Inconvenient Truth" for Best Documentary Feature.

"An Inconvenient Truth" also got the nod for Best Original Song for "I Need to Wake Up" from "An Inconvenient Truth" by Melissa Etheridge. It's a beautiful song if you've never heard it, then pop over to iTunes and give it a listen!

Congrats!

Posted by Dianne at 1:18 PM

Report Due On Global Warming

WASHINGTON - Human-caused global warming is here — visible in the air, water and melting ice — and is destined to get much worse in the future, an authoritative global scientific report will warn next week.

"The smoking gun is definitely lying on the table as we speak," said top U.S. climate scientist Jerry Mahlman, who reviewed all 1,600 pages of the first segment of a giant four-part report. "The evidence ... is compelling."

Andrew Weaver, a Canadian climate scientist and study co-author, went even further: "This isn't a smoking gun; climate is a batallion of intergalactic smoking missiles."

The first phase of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is being released in Paris next week. This segment, written by more than 600 scientists and reviewed by another 600 experts and edited by bureaucrats from 154 countries, includes "a significantly expanded discussion of observation on the climate," said co-chair Susan Solomon, a senior scientist for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. She and other scientists held a telephone briefing on the report Monday.

That report will feature an "explosion of new data" on observations of current global warming, Solomon said.

Here's the consensus shown yet again that global warming is real and it's worse than first thought. This report has the backing of scientists across the globe. You can't get much more consensus than that!

Global warming is "happening now, it's very obvious," said Mahlman, a former director of NOAA's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Lab who lives in Boulder, Colo. "When you look at the temperature of the Earth, it's pretty much a no-brainer."

Look for an "iconic statement" — a simple but strong and unequivocal summary — on how global warming is now occurring, said one of the authors, Kevin Trenberth, director of climate analysis at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, also in Boulder.

The February report will have "much stronger evidence now of human actions on the change in climate that's taken place," Rajendra K. Pachauri told the AP in November. Pachauri, an Indian climatologist, is the head of the international climate change panel.

An early version of the ever-changing draft report said "observations of coherent warming in the global atmosphere, in the ocean, and in snow and ice now provide stronger joint evidence of warming."

And the early draft adds: "An increasing body of evidence suggests a discernible human influence on other aspects of climate including sea ice, heat waves and other extremes, circulation, storm tracks and precipitation."

The world's global average temperature has risen about 1.2 degrees Fahrenheit from 1901 to 2005. The two warmest years on record for the world were 2005 and 1998. Last year was the hottest year on record for the United States.

The report will draw on already published peer-review science. Some recent scientific studies show that temperatures are the hottest in thousands of years, especially during the last 30 years; ice sheets in Greenland in the past couple years have shown a dramatic melting; and sea levels are rising and doing so at a faster rate in the past decade.

Also, the second part of the international climate panel's report — to be released in April — will for the first time feature a blockbuster chapter on how global warming is already changing health, species, engineering and food production, said NASA scientist Cynthia Rosenzweig, author of that chapter.

I will also add that it's good to see some US agencies breaking away from being stifled on global warming as the Bush administration has tried to do over the past few years. 1 degree here or there doesn't sound like a lot, but in reality it's a HUGE leap! It only takes a few degrees here or there to melt the polar ice caps! Let's hope it doesn't take entire cities being flooded out to get people to wake up and realize what is happening here.

Found via Yahoo! News.

Posted by Dianne at 12:50 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Which Famous Feline Are You?

Jamison's Famous Feline

I'm not convinced on this one.

Also via Shakespeare's Sister.

Posted by Dianne at 12:12 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

What Mythical Beast Are You?

What mythical beast are you?

You're a unicorn. You're very pure and innocent. Almost everyone loves you and you love almost everyone. You may be naive to the point of gullibility. You're pretty much incapable of violence, the exception being when someone you love is threatened. While your intentions are nothing but good, some might call you a "straight-edger." Your alignment is EXTREMELY *good*. Take this quiz! Quizilla | Join | Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

Jamison's Mythical Beast

Via Shakespeare's Sister.

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January 22, 2007

For The Bible Tells Me So

For Hundreds Of Years...

The Hebrew and Christian Bibles have been used to sanction discrimination, repression, and injustice around the world. They have justified slavery, empowered segregation, and excused the subjugation of women -- and the tradition continues.

Today, a handful of religious passages are commonly exploited to justify condemnation of and violence against homosexuals.

FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO (working title) is a new feature-length documentary film that will look at this phenomenon and will directly confront the use of scripture by the religious right to deny gay and lesbian people basic human rights.

We will tell the story of V. Gene Robinson, a man from New Hampshire, whose consecration as the first openly gay bishop in the Anglican Communion (indeed in Christendom) has sent shock waves throughout the world. We will also feature Chrissy Gephardt, the lesbian daughter of Congressman Dick Gephardt, as she and her family struggle to deal with her very public coming out. (In addition, an undecided third story of theological transformation on this issue will be featured.)

Throughout the unfolding of three very human journeys, clergy and major Biblical scholars will also weigh-in on what those oft-quoted scriptural verses, so often cited by religious conservatives, really mean. Among those voicing affirming interpretations of scripture are Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard's Peter Gomes, openly gay Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and Reverend Jimmy Creech.

I was reading a story yesterday about a documentary called For The Bible Tells Me So which is based on the same premise as this book. It promises to be an interesting film and I'm looking forward to it being released on DVD so that I may see it too.

Check out the website for the documentary here and find out more about Sundance here.

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Executives Push Bush On Climate Change

WASHINGTON - The chief executives of 10 major corporations and business groups, on the eve of the State of the Union address, urged President Bush on Monday to support mandatory reductions in climate-changing pollution and establish reductions targets.

"We can and must take prompt action to establish a coordinated, economy-wide market-driven approach to climate protection," the executives from a broad range of industries said in a letter to the president.

Bush, who in the past has rejected mandatory controls on carbon dioxide and other "greenhouse" gases, was expected to address climate change in his State of the Union speech Tuesday night, but has repeatedly argued that voluntary efforts are the best approach.

Major industry groups such as the Chamber of Commerce and National Association of Manufacturers continue to oppose so-called "cap and trade" proposals to cut climate changing pollution, mainly carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels.

But the 10 executives, representing major utilities, aluminum and chemical companies and financial institutions, said mandatory reductions are needed and that "the cornerstone of this approach" should be a cap-and-trade system.

The officials, expected to elaborate on their plan at a news conference later Monday, include the chief executives Alcoa Inc., PB America Inc., DuPont Co., Caterpillar Inc., General Electric Co., and Duke Energy Corp.

In the letter they urged Congress to enact legislation "to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions."

I must say I'm surprised with some of the companies that are calling for this, but this is definitely a good sign. I'm sure it will be ignored by Bush and Co., but it's still a step in the right direction.

Found via Yahoo! News.

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Miss G Plays In The Snow

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Snow!

Snow makes for a very happy me!

Posted by Dianne at 12:05 PM | Comments (7)

Answering the Question

I was thinking about Dianne's underlying question...What is it about us that seems to attract the most vile and disgusting people out of the woodwork desperate to challenge us? So I started making a list of the characteristics of the people that end up banned and I ran them through a Google search. And one type of person came up over and over again...A Bully. They have a very predictable targeting criterion:

* bullies are predatory and opportunistic - you just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time; this is always the main reason - investigation will reveal a string of predecessors, and you will have a string of successors

* being good at your job, often excelling

* being popular with people (colleagues, customers, clients, pupils, parents, patients, etc)

* more than anything else, the bully fears exposure of his/her inadequacy and incompetence; your presence, popularity and competence unknowingly and unwittingly fuel that fear

* being the expert and the person to whom others come for advice, either personal or professional (ie you get more attention than the bully)

* having a well-defined set of values which you are unwilling to compromise

* having a strong sense of integrity (bullies despise integrity, for they have none, and seem compelled to destroy anyone who has integrity)

* having at least one vulnerability that can be exploited

* being too old or too expensive (usually both)

* refusing to join an established clique

* showing independence of thought or deed

* refusing to become a corporate clone and drone

Daffodil Lane is the living embodiment of everything they hate and despise. We are good at what we do. We are not brain dead zombies. We point out the flaws and mistakes of the radical right, so they hate us with a passion. We have thousands of readers from around the country/world. We've gotten involved in politics and we've been successful at it. We don't have the urge to sell out our principals. We are the living polar opposite of everything a Republican is and it infuriates them to no end.

Amusingly in 2004, when we were defeated, we didn't give up. We redoubled our efforts and in 2006 we successful. These people have preached their ideology of hate, fear and greed and they've lost and in their sad deranged minds we are responsible. Because we knew right from wrong and didn't surrender to their radical hate ideology. We will be successful in 2008 and 2010, and it will drive them even more insane. And even if we aren't successful, we are decent people and we will continue to fight on against evil because it's just our nature.

I found this quote particular insightful:

Despite the facade that such people put up, bullies have low self-confidence and low self-esteem, and thus feel insecure. Low self-esteem is a factor highlighted by all studies of bullying. Because such people are inadequate and unable to fulfil the duties and obligations of their position (but have no hesitation in accepting salary), they fear being revealed. This fear of exposure often borders on paranoia.

Bullies are seething with resentment, bitterness, hatred and anger, and often have wide-ranging prejudices as a vehicle for dumping their anger onto others. Bullies are driven by jealousy and envy. Rejection (which cannot be assuaged) is another powerful motivator of bullying.

Since childhood, bullies have learnt that they can avoid the unpleasant consequences of bad behaviour through the instinctive response of denial, blame, and feigning victimhood.

It describes every single person that we've had to ban since we started the blog. So we know their problem, we know why they are here, the question now becomes what do we do about it? The advice with bullies is always the same...Stand up to them, which we do and ignore them which a ban defacto does. They recommend not giving back what they give in return. I'm bad about that, because I have an uncontrollable urge to fight evil, but all it does reinforce their insane notion of victimhood. I'm going to have to debate that approach for a bit. Ultimately I see no way to avoid the problem without crawling into a cave. Since that is not going to happen, they are sort of out of luck.

Read more about bullies.

Posted by Jamison at 11:52 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Richardson Is In

There is only one guy that I think has a chance on the Democratic side of the fence of actually knocking Edwards out of the race. And that's Richardson. He's got the experience that dwarfs everyone else in the field. I have little doubt that there will be a Democratic ticket that doesn't have him on it. I would love to see an Edwards/Richardson ticket because I think it would be a sweep. For now I'm just happy to see that the radical right is focusing all their attention on Hillary and Obama, because I don't think either are overly serious about running.

[via Daily Kos]

Read more over at Richardson for President.

Posted by Jamison at 7:31 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 21, 2007

Bread Machine Oatmeal Rosemary Bread

This is another attempt at bread with whole grains. It's really good!

1 1/4 cup evaporated milk
1/3 cup of warm water and 1/4 cup warm water, separated
1 tablespoon of honey
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups of white whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon of sea salt
4 teaspoons of yeast
1 tablespoon of wheat germ
1 tablespoon of wheat bran
1 tablespoon of ground flax seed
1/2 cup of raw, unsalted sunflower seeds
2 tablespoons of wheatberries
1/2 cup of rolled oats
2 tablespoons of fresh rosemary, chopped

Add liquid ingredients to the bottom of the bread maker pan minus 1/4 cup warm water that needs to be set aside. Add flour and the rest the ingredients on top of wet ingredients. Add remaining 1/4 cup of warm water to top and set bread maker to 2 pound whole wheat setting.

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Lunch

Veggie Pizza...What's not to like?

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And Now On To Something More Positive! Snow!!

We are getting our first snow of the season! It's not supposed to amount to much, maybe an inch, but as you can see Alexis is beyond thrilled! She wants to go outside barefoot and dance in the snow!

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

Posted by Dianne at 4:51 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Let's Go Over The Rules Again Shall We?

Since I've had to ban two people in the past two days I think we should reiterate The Rules Of Daffodil Lane once again. It always shocks me to no end that people just can't follow basic rules and ignore common decency the way they do, so here we go again!

First off let me say I enjoy people coming here to read my blog. Have at it, read away. That being said if you disagree that's fine too, but watch your tone if you want to comment! Better yet do as I do when I see something on someone's blog I don't agree with...DON'T COMMENT AT ALL! There is too much of a temptation to slide into negativity and I don't want to go down that slide with you! Rest assured I will ALWAYS get the last word here and I will NOT tolerate being talked down to, nor will I tolerate direct violations of the rules I set up for my net home as it were. If you have something to say of a negative tone about me say it on your own blog, because trust me I DON'T CARE what you might say about me, it's been said before. I also won't show up there to argue with you, because as I told you before I DON'T LIKE THE ARGUE!! The negativity completely sucks the life out of person! And despite what you think you are not debating...You are just yelling for the sake of yelling!

And contrary to popular belief I don't enjoy banning people. I don't like to argue with people, it's draining so just obey the rules or go away. It's as easy as that. There is no need to act like a three year old! And I shouldn't have to keep pointing this out!

That is all.

Posted by Dianne at 4:40 PM

How Do You Lose A Knife?

I'm missing a knife out of my kitchen and my favorite knife at that!. How does a large knife disappear? Alexis says she didn't take it (and she'll tell you if she did...She's forever taking my camera cord and she always owns up to it and tells me where she hid it even though she knows she isn't supposed to touch it!) and the kitchen has been completely cleaned several times since it went missing, but it has not resurfaced. I don't take things out of the kitchen, especially not knifes because I'm very conscious of keeping them out of the reach of Alexis and she knows not to touch them if she sees them! Alexis knows the only knife she's allowed to use is her safety knife.

So how does a whole knife disappear into thin air? Is there a knife fairy? Or did it get thrown away? (This is the theory I'm leaning toward, but I have no idea how!) I guess I'll have to make another trip to IKEA soon and get another one. I LOVED that knife!!

Posted by Dianne at 10:39 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

January 20, 2007

Putting A Human Face On The Troops In Iraq

This affects us all! This could be you! It's time to put a face on the brave soldiers and what their families go through each and every day.

I believe that my husband will call me tomorrow.

Tonight I'll say, "Have a great day," and "I love you" to my husband, who is 11 time zones away in Iraq. Then I'll hang up the phone. I'll fall asleep as I did last night, next to our baby daughter. We'll sleep in the guest bedroom downstairs — it's less lonely to sleep there for now.

First, I'll pet and talk to our dogs. I weaned them from sleeping with me a few months ago, but they still seem a bit disappointed when I go off to bed without them. I'll promise them a long walk tomorrow, and I'll make good.

In bed, I'll lay my hand on our daughter's chest several times before I fall asleep, just to make sure that she is breathing. I'll curl up in two blankets: one from Guatemala, one from Peru. I'll allow these souvenirs of past travels to warm the empty space in the bed. I'll get up three times during the night to feed our baby. Each of those times I'll tell her that she has a beautiful life to look forward to. I can say this because I believe that my husband will call me tomorrow.

In the morning after my cup of coffee, I'll change diapers and move around loads of laundry. I'll pour dog food, eat cereal, get dressed, and do the dishes — all with one hand, holding our baby in the other. I'll do the shopping, pay the bills, and stop in at work to see how my employees are getting by. Every three hours I'll stop what I'm doing to feed, change and play with our daughter. I'll make good on the promised walk with our baby strapped to my chest and a dog-leash in each hand. When people say, "Looks like you have your hands full," I'll smile and acknowledge that it's true, but I make the best of it because I believe that my husband will call me tomorrow.

If there is a letter addressed to me from the military, I'll open it because I believe that my husband will call me tomorrow. If there is a knock at the door, I'll answer it, because I believe that my husband will call me tomorrow.

And when he does, I'll talk to him and tell him again that I love him. I'll be able to hang up the phone, keeping my fear at bay, because I believe — I must believe — that my husband will call me tomorrow.

It's time to bring these brave men and women HOME where they belong! It's time for these men and women to be with their families, not off fighting for something that we never should have gotten involved in in the first place. We've been lied to long enough. We've lost too many brave soldiers. It's time to bring them home NOW!!

From NPR via My Left Nutmeg.

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How To Go Green Guides

TreeHugger has an excellent page with How To Go Green Guides! Check it out...They have information on how to green every aspect of your life!

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My Take On Going Back To School

You may have read Jamison's excited post about returning to school and I would love to say that I share that enthusiasm, but I decidedly don't. I know that it's what I must do right now, but do I want to? No. I also know once classes get into the swing of things I'll excel because well that's what I do, but I still am not all that thrilled about the prospect at the moment.

One thing I've noticed from looking over the syllabi for my classes is that there is much less physical work involved in graduate level classes. This worries me because I'm sure that the illusion is just that, an illusion. I've heard it both ways...I've heard people say grad school is much lighter in terms of work load and I've heard those say it's much more work. Right now it appears to be the former and not the latter, but only time will tell.

Books! Books suck! I just paid $125 for one text book and the school actually wanted $165 for a used copy! I got it from Amazon instead, but $125 for a textbook? That's freaking nuts! My other text book was $95. Are these books plated in gold? It's ridiculous!

Another thing that really has me down is the fact that both major classes have group projects. DEAR GOD IN HEAVEN I FREAKING HATE GROUP PROJECTS!! I hate them with a passion that outshines all other passions! Group projects are the bane of my existence! You always have the person or people that don't do a damn thing and then you are graded on their ineptitude. Or you have the person that does as little work as possible to skate by and you end up doing everything yourself. I had a professor argue one time that this is how real life is, to which I told him that that was the problem with our society...No one wants to do the job, they just want to do what they can to get by and that is why American businesses flounder! He said he had never thought of it that way before, but I bet he's still giving group projects!

But I digress.

So I know going in I'll end up doing the brunt of the work, because well that's how it always ends up. I'm hoping to be pleasantly surprised at the graduate level and have other people actually chip in. I can always hope right? For one of the classes the group project is the majority of the grade. There is no final, so that just makes me all the more tense about the whole thing. I take my grades seriously and some people don't!

Anyway, so the march to classes begins! I'd much rather it be a march to the beach instead! ;o)

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13 killed when U.S. forces chopper crashes in Iraq

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- All 13 people aboard were killed Saturday when a U.S. military helicopter went down northeast of Baghdad, the U.S. military said.

The victims were described as passengers and crew members. Their identities were "being withheld pending notification of next of kin," the military said in a statement.

Keep the friends and families of these 13 souls in your thoughts and prayers.

It's time to bring these people home to their families before anymore lives are lost for a war based on lies and arrogance.

Found via CNN.

Posted by Dianne at 12:46 PM | Comments (2)

I Guess We Should Mention...

That Hillary has thrown her hat into the ring for the 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination. And while this is historic in that a major woman candidate has never done this in American history, I will readily tell you that my support is still strongly behind John Edwards. He is the best candidate. I used to adore Hillary Clinton and the thought of a female president is exciting, but I just can't seem to forget what she did to Lamont.

Found via the New York Times.

Posted by Dianne at 12:39 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Surge in carbon levels raises fears of runaway warming

New figures from dozens of measuring stations across the world reveal that concentrations of CO2, the main greenhouse gas, rose at record levels during 2006 - the fourth year in the last five to show a sharp increase. Experts are puzzled because the spike, which follows decades of more modest annual rises, does not appear to match the pattern of steady increases in human emissions.

At its most far reaching, the finding could indicate that global temperatures are making forests, soils and oceans less able to absorb carbon dioxide - a shift that would make it harder to tackle global warming. Such a shift would worsen even the gloomy predictions of the Stern Review which warned that we had little over a decade to tackle rising emissions to avoid the worst effects of climate change.

But the Bushites don't want you to know this:

UPDATE: The US National Oceanic and Atmosph