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A large and growing body of scholarship now suggests that many household outcomes, including children's education and nutrition, are associated with a wife's bargaining power and control over household decision-making. In turn, bargaining power in a household is theorized to be driven by a wife's financial and human capital assets – in particular the degree to which these assets contribute to household productivity and/or to the wife's exit options. This paper draws on the detailed Farmer First dataset in Tanzania and Mali to examine husband and wife reports of a wife's share of decision-making authority in polygynous households, where multiple wives jointly contribute to household productivity, and where exit options for any single wife may be less credible. We find that both husbands and wives assign less authority to the wife in polygynous households relative to monogamous households. We also find that a wife's assets are not as strongly associated with decision-making authority in polygynous versus monogamous contexts. Finally, we find that responses to questions on spousal authority vary significantly by spouse in both polygynous and monogamous households, suggesting interventions based on the response of a single spouse may incorrectly inform policies and programs.
Yam is a major staple in West and Central Africa and an important supplementary food in East Africa. In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), virtually all yams are produced for human consumption, with women responsible for processing yams for consumption. This brief provides an overview of the role of women in yam production, and provides a framework for analyzing barriers to women and technology's impact on women throughout the cropping cycle. We find that though yam was traditionally considered a man's crop, it is clear that women farmers contribute greatly to yam cultivation, especially during weeding, harvesting, and processing. Propagation of improved varieties with resistance to pests and diseases like yam mosaic disease has great potential to benefit women farmers. Increased yields and lower post-harvest losses will increase household food security. However, because yams extract high amounts of nutrients from the soil, soil and land management techniques are necessary to ensure future gains in yield. Women's groups serve as potential venues for dissemination of new yam cultivation and processing technologies. Additionally, women's groups can undertake new propagation techniques as income generating activities. Women farmers need increased extension efforts to fully benefit from technology improvements.
Though not indigenous to Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), cassava plays, to varying degrees, five major roles in African development: famine-reserve crop, rural food staple, cash crop for urban consumption, livestock feed, and industrial raw material. Cassava production in SSA was historically a significant staple crop for smallholder farmers and continues to be the second most important food crop in Africa (after maize) in terms of calories consumed. Subsistence crops such as cassava are often considered women's crops with the standard explanation that women are responsible for feeding the family and thus prefer to grow crops for the household. This brief reviews the role that women play in cassava production, and considers ways to better address gender issues from planting through post-harvest production. We find that the potential gains to cassava production made possible through improved technology will not be fully realized without the participation of women farmers and without women farmers having access to credit, markets, and extension services. Additionally, evidence from SSA suggests that labor for harvesting and processing, rather than labor for weeding, has become the key labor constraint for cassava, and addressing this concern may be more important than further yield increases for raising production levels.
The millets, a group of small-seeded grasses indigenous to Africa, are an extremely important staple food in resource-poor regions of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Millet requires few inputs, suffers less from insect pests and disease than other grains, and can tolerate areas even too hot and dry for sorghum. These characteristics make millet an essential component of food security and risk management strategies for many Africans, though both consumption and production per capita of millet has declined in the last 20 years as farmers have shifted toward maize and rice production. This brief provides an overview of the role of women in millet production, and provides a framework for analyzing barriers to women and technology's impact on women throughout the cropping cycle. We find that the shift away from millet may result in poorer nutrition and increased time burden for women where they must find alternatives to millet fuel, but that little is known about these consequences. Investing in improved varieties that account for both men's and women's preferences, introducing labor-saving technology, and increasing market access all have the potential to increase millet's production and consumption on the continent.
Sorghum grows well in arid and semi-arid agroecological zones and is thus one of the most important cereals in the Sahel region of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Both men and women cultivate sorghum primarily for household consumption, though women are nearly exclusively responsible for post-harvest production of the grain, including brewing and selling sorghum beer. This brief provides an overview of the role of women in sorghum production, and provides a framework for analyzing barriers to women and technology's impact on women throughout the cropping cycle. We find that improved sorghum varieties have the potential to greatly increase sorghum yields in SSA by alleviating cultivation threats from striga, pests, and drought. Because women farmers are the primary cultivators of sorghum, they stand to benefit most from these improved varieties. However, low adoption rates of new technologies suggest that more resources need to be dedicated to extension efforts and informal seed distribution networks that include women farmers. Post-harvest processing of sorghum is both time and labor intensive and is causing many women farmers to transition to maize or rice. Finally, increased demand for sorghum as a biofuel stock may not translate into gains for women farmers as expected, because women farmers tend to lack input resources, and women farmers often lose control over crops as they transition to cash crops.
In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), maize alone provides an estimated one third of the mean caloric intake and in 2006, accounted for 21% of all harvested food crops, making it the single most important food crop in the region. In addition, maize is also used as feedgrain and fodder, adding to its importance in integrated smallholder farming systems in SSA. In general, women are the main producers of staple crops such as maize. Understanding the gender dimensions of maize is particularly challenging because maize is used as both a subsistence and cash crop, and may be considered either a male or female crop depending on farmer circumstances and how the particular variety is promoted. This brief provides an overview of the role of women in maize production, and provides a framework for analyzing barriers to women and technology's impact on women throughout the cropping cycle. We find that lower access to factors such as extension access, education level, land, and labor contribute to female's lower rate of maize technology adoption. Understanding women's disproportionate access to resources and how improved technology may change allocation of resources should help project developers improve both women's and men's productivity.
In the last half century, the increased opportunity cost of women's time in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has led to remarkable growth in the consumption of wheat and other easy-to-prepare staples. Wheat tends to be grown and processed on a large scale in SSA. Ethiopia (SSA's largest producer of wheat) is the exception, where smallholders are responsible for 76% of total production. This brief provides an overview of the role of women in wheat production, and provides a framework for analyzing technology's impact on women throughout the cropping cycle. We find that many constraints exist to adoption of improved wheat varieties by women. A review of improved wheat variety adoption in the developing world found that it takes 5-10 years after breeding to the release and another 5-10 years for full adoption, but this length of time has been found to be reduced with the use of participatory breeding, varietal selection, and gender analysis. By including women in every stage of development and planning of new technologies, programs can become more aware of the needs of targeted women and therefore, increase adoption rates and improve the productivity of men and women in wheat farming.
As a source of employment for over 20 million Sub-Saharan African (SSA) farmers and the fastest-growing food source in Africa, rice plays a vital role in African economies and daily life. Women play a substantial role in SSA rice production and rely heavily on the income it generates. Not recognizing this role has often resulted in development and research projects failing to address women's well-being and also failing to achieve project and development goals. Female farmers in SSA have been less likely than male farmers to adopt productivity-enhancing rice technologies such as improved seeds, fertilizer, pesticides, or small machinery, even when those technologies are designed specifically to help women. A more complete understanding of the dynamics and diversity of gender roles in rice farming is necessary to improve the likelihood of successful interventions. This brief provides an overview of the role of women in rice production, and provides a framework for analyzing technology's impact on women throughout the cropping cycle. We find that labor constraints, low education levels, cultural inappropriateness, and asymmetric access to resources all contribute to low adoption of rice technology by women. In order to fully realize the poverty reduction benefits of increased rice production in SSA, evidence suggests that research and extension programs must consider how interventions will affect women along every stage of the production chain. The effect on women and their households will vary depending on region, culture, ethnicity, socio-economic status, and role in cultivating rice.


text:
Over the past couple years, I've developed an interesting way of dealing with the chaos in my life. I never intentionally started this habit; it just sorta happened. The more out-of-control circumstances get in my life, the more I have this need to clean and organize things in my house. You see, I have this
But after the recitation, I was still all mad-like about the things I couldn't control. I tried changing it up a bit.
the ultimate power to change the things I supposedly can't;
However, God apparently doesn't work that way.
So, when I can't get control of some major things going on in my life, I go to town cleaning out my linen closet, kitchen cabinets, underwear drawers, the refrigerator, and even (gag) the boys' room. It gives me a sense of peace. I feel like I've accomplished something when I no longer have to shove stuff in the closet, slam the door closed before the stuff falls out, and tape the door shut. When the rest of my life is chaos and mess, at least I can look in my cabinet and know that my Tupperware is conveniently stacked and easy to get to. Seeing the towels neatly folded in my closet give me a sense of calm.
(Speaking of my linen closet. I had an absurd amount of hotel toiletries. I mean, how many tiny bottles of cheap shampoo can one person use? And that's the thing! I never even use them. I take them from my hotel room, stock-pile them at home like some precious collection, and let them just sit there. Why? Why do I do this? It's not like I'm going to pack them for my next trip somewhere. Why would I do that when I know I'm going to get a fresh supply of new miniature bottles? Seriously, this is what took up one whole shelf in my closet...
I tossed an entire garbage bag filled with this stuff. Of course, a few days after I tossed all this stuff, I needed to bring the boys shampoo and soap in the hospital. Stinkin' Murphy's Law! Anyway, back to my story...)
I was thinking about adding "Drink More" to my list of new year's resolutions, but I suppose I should stick with cleaning. Its calming effect is as good as a glass of wine, plus it's free. In fact, last week, I weeded six bags of clothes and other items out of my closet and I donated them to Wings. So my need to create order out of chaos is a win-win all around. I have a clean closet, Wings got some donations for their resale shop, the money those items will earn will help the women and children in Wings' safe house, and mostly, I was able to get a grip on my swirling emotions in a healthy way.
Now I'll end with my new and improved, new and improved Serenity Prayer.
"God, I know you'll always give me the tools I need to handle whatever comes my way. But please put a stop to the chaos in my life before I start alphabetizing my cans of soup. Amen."

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Monday, January 19, 2009
Wedding Crashers, Cake Wrecks Style
Monday, January 19, 2009
Many thanks to Gini N. for sending it in!
82 comments | Post a Comment
Now if only some of our wreckerators could do that good.
- January 19, 2009 at 1:25 PM
- Kate Merriman said...
This is great! Who created the original claymation? I want to post that to any links I give to this, give proper attribution. But so far, my googling hasn't found the makers. Any ideas?
- January 19, 2009 at 1:26 PM
- Melanie said...
That was fantastic!!!!!!
- January 19, 2009 at 1:35 PM
- eventer79 said...
Brilliant! I don't even have words for how much I love this -- wonderful use of colours and shapes and just fun, cute, and clever!
- January 19, 2009 at 1:38 PM
Great example of acceptance and integration on this, Martin Luther King's birthday. Also fabulous claymaton.
- January 19, 2009 at 1:38 PM
- Miranda said...
I think the little icing entities belong to the Ministry of Silly Walks. ;) - January 19, 2009 at 1:42 PM
- Garret said...
That was great! Definitely worthy of a post!
http://jimandgarret.blogspot.com/ - January 19, 2009 at 2:00 PM
Delightful! Here's the same clip including subtitles for those interested in what the words from La Traviata by Verdi mean.
Big fan, daily visitor.
-Toby - January 19, 2009 at 2:01 PM
Wow, that was too cute and amazingly done.
- January 19, 2009 at 2:06 PM
It's not everyday that I get to say, "That was a great claymation opera!"
- January 19, 2009 at 2:07 PM
First comment! WOOHOO! IN YO FACE!!!
those little dessert claymation people did a better job decorating that cake than many Wreckorators I have seen. Lets have a big round of applause fo cute little opera-singing clay desert people!!!!!!!!!!!! - January 19, 2009 at 2:09 PM
- Laura said...
THAT was VERY cool!!
- January 19, 2009 at 2:14 PM
- Babs said...
Loved it!
- January 19, 2009 at 2:26 PM
Wow That is just amazing!
- January 19, 2009 at 2:30 PM
- Vashti said...
That was awesome!!! I wonder how long it too to make! So clever. And Cute!
- January 19, 2009 at 2:34 PM
That was really cute!
- January 19, 2009 at 2:38 PM
- Debbi said...
That is stinkin' cool! - January 19, 2009 at 2:51 PM
that was truly an amazing video! thanks for sharing!!
- January 19, 2009 at 2:52 PM
- Jane said...
Ha! That was cute!
- January 19, 2009 at 3:01 PM
- bpddjeoomon said...
Those little guys are adorable.
- January 19, 2009 at 3:01 PM
- Juliet said...
Woo! That was awesome! It wasn't entirely what I was expecting but it was beautiful nonetheless. As a once-was-an-animation-major I know exactly how hard that was to make and I -always- appreciate claymation. So glad you posted it = )
- January 19, 2009 at 3:03 PM
- Clint Bourgeois said...
Well, I'm hungry.
- January 19, 2009 at 3:04 PM
- Michelle said...
That was great! I loved it, too bad we couldn't see what the cake looked like from a different view when it was done.
- January 19, 2009 at 3:06 PM
- Lobbie said...
That is adorable! If different dessert goos can learn to get along...why can't we?
- January 19, 2009 at 3:07 PM
Funny, always loved clay-animation!
- January 19, 2009 at 3:12 PM
- MiniKat said...
That was so cool!
- January 19, 2009 at 3:13 PM
- Natt said...
fantastic! As I am a lover of both claymation and desserts, this definitely tickled my fancy -- thanks for sharing!
- January 19, 2009 at 3:15 PM
- robyn said...
Oh, well done!! >claps< I love the little marching puddings!
- January 19, 2009 at 3:16 PM
- Kelly said...
This is very fun. Thanks for sharing. My toddler wanted to watch the ending with me again and again!
- January 19, 2009 at 3:28 PM
- Sara said...
Great video and great blog! Thanks!
- January 19, 2009 at 3:28 PM
- CrazyKwilter said...
Holy cow! Someone has WAY too much time on their hands.
That was hypnotic to watch.
And now the music is stuck in my head. - January 19, 2009 at 3:34 PM
- Lynne said...
This is fabulous! And a perfect addition to this hilarious blog.
- January 19, 2009 at 3:37 PM
- WM said...
This is absolutely lovely and incredibly creative...I love the characters and the finale is just beautiful...Wheeeeee!
- January 19, 2009 at 3:39 PM
- chow bella said...
that was really impressive! But I don't know if that cake would have turned out a wreck if it were real...lol
- January 19, 2009 at 3:44 PM
Awesome! I can't imagine how long it took to make that.
- January 19, 2009 at 3:47 PM
- Lisa said...
What a cool video! I love it!
- January 19, 2009 at 3:53 PM
I couldn't help thinking of those cute little Adipose fat babies in Doctor Who; "the fat just walks away"
- January 19, 2009 at 4:18 PM
That was adorable! I love the end--them becoming decorations was great!
- January 19, 2009 at 5:26 PM
- scrappinfox said...
This is just too cute - and so well done! Thanks for sharing!
- January 19, 2009 at 5:30 PM
Awww this one cut short. The link Toby gave is better you get the whole sha-bang at the end! Too cool. Apparently it's from something called L'Opera Imaginaire (it's in the comments of youtube and there's a few more clips from the collection there, different animation styles).
- January 19, 2009 at 5:48 PM
- kitsana_d said...
That was AMAZING. It was nice to cake-themed animation on here; it breaks up the awesomely bad cakes with just pure awesome.
Keep up the great work! - January 19, 2009 at 7:20 PM
- Layla said...
Super cute! Um, but... okay, maybe I'm just a little wrong. Did the yellow blobs that hopped along not look like, well, something unmentionable? Urm.... Still, incredibly creative and fun to watch!
- January 19, 2009 at 7:48 PM
- Lizzy Leigh said...
That was so totally fantastic! i just love it.
- January 19, 2009 at 8:19 PM
i think its made be a french company. i saw another version that was slightly longer and included the name of the composer "verdi" and then 2 french words. i dont speak french so i dont know if it was someone's name or what. but after a little more search i found a site which seems to have the info of who/what/where/why but again, in french. freetranslation.com!!!
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xp7vr_verdi-traviata-choeur-bohemiens - January 19, 2009 at 8:52 PM
Great! My 2 yo loves it too.
- January 19, 2009 at 9:06 PM
- Unknown said...
THAT WAS AWESOME! Thank you for sharing! I want you to know that I read your blog everyday. I've only recently caught onto the cake wrecks madness, but I am so glad I have found you! Thank you and your wreckporters for your endless entertainment! I love it! :)
- January 19, 2009 at 10:30 PM
- Scritzy said...
Would that I had the talent to make such a video. Simply amazing.
- January 19, 2009 at 10:40 PM
- STRJKTKNITTING said...
- January 19, 2009 at 11:08 PM
- Bridgete said...
This is so much fun! I loved it! =)
- January 19, 2009 at 11:25 PM
- Unknown said...
question, I'm trying to jazz up my blog, how did you get this template? Do you have someone do it for you? Or did you purchase it, or were you able to download it from the internet, email me because I need to do something to my blog.thanks
you can email me from there.
thanks - January 19, 2009 at 11:32 PM
That was amazing claymation!
- January 19, 2009 at 11:32 PM
Fabulous! Many thanks for sharing!
- January 19, 2009 at 11:33 PM
Exquisite. Thank you!
- January 20, 2009 at 12:23 AM
- Penny said...
Thanks for posting this! I've added it to my blog sweetbrownpoison.blogspot.com with a link to Cake Wrecks! (and a big Thank You to you!)
--Penny - January 20, 2009 at 12:26 AM
philipchek SAID on youTube
"L'Opéra imaginaire" is a french vsh/dvd a collection of 12 videos (the present video is of them) made by Guionne Leroy et Pascal Roulin in 1993. May be It would have been easy to explain it in the video description... Anyway, thanks for the subtitle work. - January 20, 2009 at 4:38 AM
Someone ha WAAAAAY too much time on their hands. LOL!
- January 20, 2009 at 7:37 AM
- Deirdrea said...
Wow... I can't even imagine the number of HOURS that must have taken. Just fantastic!
- January 20, 2009 at 8:52 AM
- Suzanne Dargie said...
That is SO cute and very well done! I'm in the animation industry myself, so I can REALLY appreciate the time and effort that went into it. Thanks so much for posting it!
- January 20, 2009 at 10:34 AM
- the ginabean said...
That. Was. Awesome! Now I totally wish I could understand...whatever language that aria was written in (Italian?). It'd be fun to know what the song was REALLY about. :)
- January 20, 2009 at 10:37 AM
- Stephany Benbow said...
Oh how I love claymation. Especially with as inundated as we are with digital animation now. There is just such a charm, especially to this little dessert opera. Thanks for posting this
- January 20, 2009 at 1:27 PM
Sorry. Typo. That's supposed to be "had" not "ha," ha ha ha!
- January 20, 2009 at 1:52 PM
- Jessi said...
That was really cool. :D
- January 20, 2009 at 2:35 PM
wow!!!!! amazing.
- January 20, 2009 at 2:37 PM
Thank goodness it had a happy ending... I was worried it would ruin my love of pastry forever if the little blobs did something bad!
p.s. I'm still a little disturbed by the movements of the bavarian cream, though. Kinda creepy. Luckily, I never did really care for that stuff...
Donna C, The Colony, TX - January 20, 2009 at 3:02 PM
- Ruby Re-Usable said...
what a SWEET post, this made me So happy on such an already happy day!
- January 20, 2009 at 3:08 PM
- Rebecca said...
My kids and I really enjoyed this, thanks!
- January 20, 2009 at 6:21 PM
- The Random Muse said...
that's awesome
- January 20, 2009 at 7:47 PM
layla...i thought the same thing. glad i wasn't the only one.
- January 20, 2009 at 8:17 PM
- emily said...
opera imaginaire was a series of short animated videos, each set to a different aria. the series ran on bravo in the 90s. each short film was beautifully done and each very different... i've been searching for a tape or dvd for years! you can find a few on youtube, and i highly encourage looking them up! ;.)
- January 20, 2009 at 11:35 PM
If you're in the US then you can get it on Amazon:
Can't find any reasonably priced PAL versions though *snif*
Anne H. - January 21, 2009 at 3:12 AM
- Reformed Supermom said...
Man! That *totally* made my morning! :D
Rebecca - January 21, 2009 at 8:57 AM
- Kreanna said...
That was awesome!
- January 21, 2009 at 12:46 PM
- ksaldria said...
omg! I love it! And now I'm just a little bit scared of cutting into my mom's birthday cake.
- January 21, 2009 at 7:08 PM
- Buffy said...
That was amazing!
- January 21, 2009 at 8:01 PM
- Paige said...
That was great! Very cute & clever.
- January 22, 2009 at 8:35 AM
Very cute!
- January 22, 2009 at 8:45 PM
- Vicki-Sue Brotherhood said...
that was fantastics!
- January 31, 2009 at 7:25 AM
one word: EPIC.
- March 19, 2009 at 9:28 PM
- The Whiz Kid Forte said...
Thanks a bazillion Jen! It brings me back memories of watching it on Classic Arts Showcase several years ago - it's still good after all those years!
- December 3, 2009 at 1:39 PM
Clapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclap!!! Bravo! Bravo! Bravo! Fantastico!!
That is the most adorable thing I have ever seen! Who did the claymation? I love them! - May 6, 2010 at 3:21 PM
OMG! That was AMAZING! Just remember this excuse, next time your friend pops to the bathroom and returns to find her delicious dessert has "disappeared" from her plate (yum!). Just say:
"It got up and ran away!!!!"
Thanks! - May 29, 2010 at 4:09 PM
- troyin17331 said...
wow that was way cool !!!!!
- July 5, 2010 at 10:04 PM
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text:
Long-time reader Brian Glover sent me this article he has written in reponse to my recent post about Cycling Isn't Fun, It's Transport. I have no idea why on earth I'm publishing a critique of myself, but then again, it's Sunday late morning and I'm hungover, vulnerable and incapable of making balanced judgements. So here goes.
No, Cycling isn't "Fun," It's Transport – But If You Want Cycle Transport, Make Cycle Transport Sexy.
Guest article by Brian GloverLast week Mikael wrote the post Cycling Isn't Fun, It's Transport, taking on the U.S. cycle advocates – ever cheerful, ever wholesome, ever useless and ignored – who seem to assume that people will take up bicycles as transportation because it's the right and moral thing to do. His answer: "/I don't give a shit... I want to get there quick./" And he's absolutely right: anyone who thinks mainstream people are motivated by ethics and altruism, in the U.S.A. or anywhere else, should come talk to me about some amazing Florida real estate. He's right to say that people will choose the bike over the car only when it's the fastest, most convenient, most direct way to get where they want to go. Cities should rebuild their streets to make that a reality.
And yet... I think Mikael is being more than a little disingenuous here. For several years now, he's been telling us to "Copenhagenize the Planet," and a surprising number of people seem to think that's a good idea. I'm one of them.Yes, we like those bike paths. Yes, we love those little railings for cyclists to grab at stoplights. The infrastructure of Copenhagen is efficient and practical, and Mikael photographs it alluringly. Really, though, "Copenhagenize" is not selling asphalt and blue paint; it's selling style.For people in "developing bicycle cultures," Mikael offers an alluring ideal, which often involves attractive women (and men) in tasteful clothes, undoubtedly on their way from fabulous apartments to up-to-the-minute offices or chic restaurants and bars, all of which we can imagine filled with well-designed Danish furniture. For a lot of people, this will look like the good life, or at least one version of the good life.But here's the problem: for a lot of people in my "developing cycling culture," the Copenhagenize fantasy does not look like the good life. In San Francisco, New York, Portland, and a few other cities, sure, people are likely to agree. In those few places, Americans really aren't too different from their urban European counterparts. They want the same things, more or less, and follow the same styles (again, more or less).Mikael's graphic design aesthetic, for instance, rides hard on Helvetica (see "American Apparel") and faux-hand-stenciling (see "Every Indie Band Ever, Pretty Much"). If I were selling stuff to the average 30-something yuppie in Brooklyn (or the people who love him/her), I'd do exactly what he's doing. But the vast majority of Americans don't find that lifestyle or its signifiers appealing. It's not just true that most Americans live in automobile-dependent suburbs; they /like/ living in automobile-dependent suburbs. Even when cycling clearly is the fastest, most convenient way to get somewhere, they won't do it, and they'll look with disdain on anyone who does. From inside the head of a person in a developing cycle culture, Mikael's photos look very different. He wants us to see freedom, convenience, and status appeal; here in the States, his audience is likely to see something that's not just weird, but threatening. I can't speak for other non-cycling nations, but I suspect that a lot of the same principles apply. Let me explain.
In any culture – as far as marketing is concerned – what matters is status. People will buy things if they think they'll get approval and envy from the people around them. In mainstream U.S. culture, driving a car in a city that has been designed only for driving cars is a high-status activity. It implies that you have a lot of private property (power, wealth, respect) and that you don't have to enter into public, shared spaces (vulnerability, poverty, disrespect).In the worldview through which most Americans understand their lives, a car is an extension of the suburban home: independent, private, isolated. And in that worldview, isolation is a good thing. In this world, apartments are bad. Urban life as Mikael presents it is bad. Interactions with strangers are bad. We need protection from strangers, and a mobile steel-and-glass box – the bigger, the better – is the best way to get that protection.Transportation biking, then, is a low-status activity – a /very/ low-status activity. That's why the original survey that got Mikael all steamed up is so ridiculous; it asked
"Why do you choose to bicycle to work?,"but it should really have asked"Why do you choose to do something that, in the eyes of 95% of your society, marks you as a freak and a loser?"
No one will say this out loud, of course – it's not polite – but it's the truth. And no one will answer this question honestly, either, but if they did, the choices would look like this:A. I am too poor to get around in any other way. I have no choice. Iam abject.B. I have had my rights as a citizen stripped from me because ofrepeated, unforgivably bad behavior (i.e. drunk drivingconvictions). I am an outcast and a pariah.C. I think most mainstream people are idiots, and I actively seekout their disapproval. I am a rebel. If the majority of peoplearound me start biking, I'll hate that too.D. I genuinely don't care what other people think of me. I am anindependent thinker. I also have enough job security and socialstatus that I can afford not to care what other people think of me.I am either uncommonly strong, or uncommonly privileged.(As for me, I'm a combination of C and D. I hope.)When a mainstream American sees a person on a bike (without the signifiers of cycling as a sport – an entirely different thing, status-wise), he or she sees one of those four categories, and none of them look appealing. The poor (A) provoke either pity (Democrats) or disdain (Republicans). The other three categories are actually threats – whether through degeneracy (B), subversion (C), or class oppression (D). Urban Europeans will generally provoke the same reactions, even when they're not on bikes – so Mikael's plan to "Copenhagenize the Planet" probably won't get far here, without some major revisions.What, then, is to be done? I do think it's possible to market cycling to the mainstream here in the U.S., and in developing cycling cultures around the world. But the way to make that happen is to tie cycling to high-status lifestyles in specific local cultures. A one-size-fits-all approach won't work. Though it may trouble Mikael to admit it, "Denmark" is not a magic word for everyone. So, advocates and marketers need to look at what people really want; to be crude about it, they should market cycling in ways that, for the mainstream of a given local culture, just might get you laid. What we need is a new model of cool/smart/sexy/desirable, a lifestyle model that is indigenous to the local culture but incorporates many of the underlying elements we see in places like Copenhagen.
I live in North Carolina – and not in Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Charlotte, or Asheville, but pretty deep in the conservative "red-state" area. Here in Greenville, the current model of the good life includes a big suburban-style house, a really big SUV, a significant dose of evangelical Christianity and a lot of college football. This may not appeal to readers from other parts of the world, but that's the point: local culture does matter.But even here, and in much of the South, I can see possibilities. For instance, I think a "Charleston" approach would appeal to quite a lot of people -- blonde sorority girls on updated beach cruisers, tailgate parties with kegs and dogs (arriving by bike trailer), couples who look like George W. and Laura Bush (or even better, Cindy McCain) pulling up on expensive city bikes to big ol' Victorian houses in dense, Spanish-moss-draped neighborhoods right out of Southern Living. Ladies who lunch, pedaling stylishly in pastels to an azalea-shrouded church that isn't an exurban megacomplex. Maybe even U.S. military dudes in uniform, riding European bikes in a German city (sorry, Denmark – we've got more bases there). People do have some positive mental frames for urban lifestyles in this region, but they're a little bit submerged right now; it's time to go out and activate them.Wherever you live, though, the point is to determine who the high-status people are. They're the ones you need to reach, and they're the ones you need to co-opt. Others will aspire to follow them. Once cycling becomes a high-status activity, people will do it even where the actual road infrastructure isn't very friendly – just as they now refuse to do it, even where the roads are pretty good. Like every culture, bicycle culture is all in your head.
by Brian Glover, May 2010
Copenhagenize replies:Firstly, thanks to Brian for taking the time to write this article and to send it to me.I won't get into details, but I'll add a couple of comments.1. I am so-o-o-o-o going to change the Copenhagenize.com banner graphic.
2. Changing the status of cycling is really the foundation of what I try to do. It is the cornerstone of the Cycle Chic concept, of which Copenhagenize is an extension. Why has Cycle Chic rolled out around the world over the past three and a half years? It presents images, not only from Copenhagen but around the world, of cycling in a different light. Of cycling how it used to be. The world was ready for this, apparently. The first photo I took was recently called The Photo That Launched a Million Bicycles, which is a wild, humbling tagline, but the status of cycling has changed and continues to change. All over the world.
Not only in the large cities, but in Charleston, in Flagstaff, Georgia, Sacramento, on the Change Your Life, Ride a Bike website - and beyond. Lodz, Poland. Bandung, Indonesia. And so on. And so on.
Changing the social status of cycling - of ANYTHING - cannot possibly begin in areas outside of large, urban centres. It's a fact of life that First Movers live in Big Cities and that the ideas they adopt, if successful, filter down to the rest of society.The Law of Diffusion of Innovation highlights how we are all divided up into five groups; Innovators, Early Adopters, Early Majority, Late Majority and Laggards.
Cycle Chic - to use an phrase that highlights the marketing of urban cycling - has been wildly successful at targeting Innovators and Early Adopters all over the planet and we are moving steadily towards Early Majority in many regions. In this context, the Innovators are not cycling enthusiasts and/or advocates but rather Citizen Cyclists taking to the streets. People who have elegantly leapt over traditional advocacy and the outdated and ineffective messages associated with this advocacy.3. My use of Helvetica and my graphic design aesthetics are aimed at Innovators and Early Adopters and not at the 'heartland', whether in the US or France or anywhere else. The wheels start turning in the cities and, with luck and hard work, the momentum will be achieved and filter down. The people who read Southern Living do not read this blog, for example. On Copenhagenize.com the readership is, very roughly, traffic planners, urban planners, bicycle advocates. A more focused group. I speak to this group, not to their neighbours across the street. But by speaking to the 2000-odd daily readers on Copenhagenize.com, perhaps the ideas that people think are good will spread on the tailwinds.Most readers of Cycle Chic probably don't read Southern Living either, to be honest. But they are certainly closer to the trend pulse. On the Cycle Chic facebook group, the members are 53% women and 43% men [the remaining 4% are companies/orgs etc] and this is the same on the blog. Most are interested in fashion/lifestyle/design/urban living.
Matthew Broderik on a bicycle.These are the people to whom urban cycling must be sold, and sold differently. Seeing fashionistas and celebrities on bicycles, seeing major fashion brands using bicycles in their adverts... all this is good. Whether the purists like it or not. This is a repeat of the bicycle boom in the 1890's where urban cycling went mainstream and transformed our societies. Individual mobility, liberation of the working classes and of women. All through a simple product with an excellent design but also through positive marketing.
Something's Fishy
I remember a fantastically interesting study about sushi. About how a team of researchers used the spread of sushi restaurants throughout America as a yardstick to determine how people in different age groups react to trends and at what age they start getting 'stuck in their ways' and start to refuse trying new things, foods, ideas.I can't for the life of me find the link, but selling urban cycling and mainstream bicycle culture is much the same as sushi's global march. There are now sushi bars in the strangest places. Deep in heartlands where massive steaks once ruled supreme there are now places selling tiny bits of raw fish on sticky rice.The advantage that urban cycling enjoys over sushi is that it has already gone global - over a century ago. It in public domain and not restricted to one foreign culture. Very few people have to learn to ride a bike - they've done that. Learning to eat - and enjoy - raw fish from a foreign culture is a considerably greater challenge.I don't actually feel that I'm selling "Danish bicycle culture". I merely show what is possible in a large city - and one with the third-largest urban sprawl in Europe. I don't really know or care what 'Copenhagenizing the Planet' means. It's just a way of expressing possibilities, encouraging a change of thinking, highlighting how the bicycle is one of the key elements in the [re]creation of liveable cities.But the words 'copenhagenize' dates to the beginning of the 19th century and originates in America. :-) It features in the splendidly named "Cyclopædia of Political Science, Political Economy, and the Political History of the United States - By the Best American and European Writers" from 1899. It's a naval military phrase that refers to the practice of the British Navy to confiscate all the ships of a defeated adversary, as they did with the Danish Navy following the Battle of Copenhagen in 1807.
"But, even when it was repealed in 1809, the belief that Great Britain would "Copenhagenize" any American navy which might be formed was sufficient to deter the democratic leaders from anything bolder than non-intercourse laws, until the idea of invading Canada took root and blossomed into a declaration of war."
Which has nothing to with bicycles, but hey, at least it's in a CYCLOpædia...But I digress... which is a good sign that I should shut up. Thanks again, Brian, for the chat.


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Newsletter Video, November 2016
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Holidays can be a time of great anxiety for people with diabetes because it is so focused on food.
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In an effort to "reclaim" the word jihad, Muslim activists launched a new ad campaign in the nation's capital this week. Commuters in the Washington, D.C., subway system will start seeing posters stamped with the "#My Jihad" hashtag.
Each poster depicts a Muslim sharing their personal struggle: "my jihad: is to march on despite losing my son," and "my jihad: modesty is not weakness."
The campaign is organized by Ahmed Rehab, the executive director of the (CAIR). The ads first launched in December 2012 in Chicago and then in San Francisco in January.
Rehab tells us he started the initiative because "jihad and the concept of jihad was misunderstood."
They wanted to stop letting "anti-Muslim propaganda" define what the tenets of Islam stood for and to protect the "mainstream [Muslim] voice," Rehab says.
The of the campaign defines jihad this way:
"Jihad is a central tenet of the Islamic creed which means 'struggling in the way of God'. The way of God, being goodness, justice, passion, compassion, etc (not forcible conversion as wrongly claimed by some)."
Social media is another strategy the campaign is using. The My Jihad website encourages people to use the Twitter hashtag #myjihad, and describe what they struggle with.
For the most part, many Twitter users have jumped on the bandwagon and have been supportive. But not all of it has been positive.
Scrolling through the feed, you'll see many negative tweets, most notably from political activist and blogger Pamela Geller. As we told you in September, Geller launched her own jihad ads that read: "In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man. Support Israel. Defeat Jihad."
Despite some push back, Rehab focuses on the support; "[Geller's] voice is hers alone," he says.
The campaign is still moving forward with plans to continue to expand its outreach to more cities and possibilities of radio and television spots in the future.
(Maureen Chowdhury is an intern on NPR's National Desk.)
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


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IT Salary Survey: Outlook Points to Cautious Optimism
1. Overall IT Salary Trends
According to results from the 2012 InformationWeek Salary Survey, salaries and total compensation for IT staff and managers seem to be relatively flat from 2011 levels. Median base salaries for IT staffers remained at $90,000, while median total compensation for this group increased $2,000, to $99,000, in 2012. For managers, median base salary dropped to $117,000 from $120,000 in 2011, while median total compensation, including bonuses, for this group dropped to $130,000, nearly returning to its 2010 level.
Bryan Yurcan is associate editor for Bank Systems and Technology. He has worked in various editorial capacities for newspapers and magazines for the past 8 years. After beginning his career as a municipal and courts reporter for daily newspapers in upstate New York, Bryan has ... View Full Bio


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Guys.... this is the lead story in 'The Week.' More tomorrow. My daughter Arundhati leaves tonight.... my arm and a leg will be missing till I see her again.
People change. Values don't. "Value" is such a loaded 5-letter word. Difficult to define, difficult to compute. Yet, this much we do know - certain 'values' are universal …. eternal. Those are the ones that cut across cultures and centuries and cannot be challenged – truth, loyalty, goodness, honour. When it comes to compiling a list of India's Most Valuable, it is virtually impossible to draw it up in an all-inclusive fashion.
It is all about branding.Isn't everything these days? Companies are brands, products are brands, shockingly enough, even people are brands . Perfectly sensible marketing professionals speak earnestly about Ratan Tata's personal brand equity and I wonder if that makes him squirm…. or is he realistic enough to see it from a business leader's perspective: personal brand equity = value addition to the company's stock. True enough in his case. Just like one cannot separate Bill Gates from Microsoft, Ratan is TATA. And TATA is him.
It wasn't always this way in India. Ratan Tata is in a unique postion given the Tata legacy. But there are countless other self-styled tycoons who believe business credibility is but a click away. Such 'personalities' walk around flaunting price tags , labels… brazenly boasting about their net worth … buying their way into and out of situations. Even a decade ago, such crass conduct would have been frowned upon, even despised. But in today's far more upfront age of aggressive self- promotion, if a famous person does not cash in on individual equity, he\she is considered dumb … out of it. Media , of course, has played a key role in promoting personality cults.
In this context, those making the short list for the country's Most Valuable People, are the ones with the highest profile. People who have impacted one billion lives directly or indirectly during the past one year. The same people watched by an awestruck nation giving nightly gyaan on tv channels , those whose mug shots peddle products ranging from cameras to condoms, those who bring glory to India in the sports arena and most significantly, those who influence policy, those who entertain the masses via music, cinema, tv. So long as the average Indian can put a face to the name, the fame game is on. Often , the actual achievements of the person being enthusiastically applauded by the masses is unknown even to those fans clapping away. But that's a matter of detail…. nobody minds. We love our icons . We worship our heroes. We adore success.
It has often been said that the biggest marketing guru India produced remains Mahatma Gandhi. The man and his message are both alive and well a little more than six decades on. Gandhi gave Indians their spine back. His 'product' was independence. His 'byproduct' – self-respect. We have been patiently waiting for the New Mahatma to rescue us in the 21st century. We may have to wait much longer. But, why despair? There are several 'amazing minds' in our midst, who influence our lives on a daily basis. These are towering individuals … well, most of them. For better or worse, we need it identify and acknowledge their contribution in their chosen disciplines. The Editors at 'The Week' have done a comprehensive job of putting the list together. Whether it's Kapil Sibal who will be shaping the minds of Young India by placing education right at the top of India's priorities, or M.S. Swaminathan who will ensure no Indian goes hungry if he can help it, these are the two most important individuals on the list. A nation that accepts the existence of even one hungry stomach in a population of over a billion people, is a nation that must hang its head in shame.India cannot afford to boast about a single other achievement so long as there are starvation deaths .For every child who dies of malnutrition, there is collective responsibility involved. Since education cannot be forced down a gullet that is denied access to even clean drinking water, forget edible food, perhaps it is time to link the two most critical programmes of feeding and educating the masses in a more meaningful way. Everything else will fall into place, as it has in other countries that made both a top priority before launching space programmes , putting men on the moon or going nuclear.
India has led a pretty schizophrenic existence throughout its complex history. But never has that been as apparent as it is today. We know – or claim to know – what's 'good for us'. And yet, we seem paralysed to do something concrete about it. We 'know' religious differences get us nowhere ( main reason for the Congress win and BJP defeat in the last election), and yet we are afraid to move against those who foster hatred between communities. Narendra Modi, with his loyal and considerable fan base can be converted into a 'valuable asset' if only his mindset miraculously changes.That is one 'conversion' nobody will object to! He is dynamic and bold. His vision for a prosperous Gujarat has attracted unprecedented investments. And yet, his party received a resounding slap on its face when the voter snubbed them. Modi as P.M.??? Not for a long, long while. Rahul Gandhi's immense appeal to the youth of India can be better harnessed if he frees himself from Dynasty and strikes out on his own. Rahul represents Tolerant India – forward-thinking and progressive. Growth-driven and ambitious.His secular stand has won him the hearts of the nation. Rahul could very well emerge as the People's Politician.
So long as we remain passive bystanders and tolerate those fanning communal strife, so long as we silently endorse the merchants of terror, we cannot dream of real progress – the sort that isn't measured by the GDP or Sensex swings. Perhaps the BJP has woken up to the country's real compulsions, which extend well beyond mandir-masjid politics.
Market marshals talk about more transparency. SBI Chairman O.P.Bhat, super brains like Anil Kakodkar, along with the SEBI Chairman C. Bhave , control India's financial destiny and positioning in the complex, volatile world of finance. Never mind that Pranab Mukherjee's uninspiring Budget speech didn't bring cheer to the aam aadmi, India is still far better off than several developed countries reeling from the economic meltdown . We need sharp strategists to manage our domestic economy during this tricky phase, and we are lucky to have them.But somewhere in this complicated numbers game, we cannot afford to neglect the two issues that directly affect each and every Indian – national security and terrorism.This is where Manmohan Singh's vision and leadership could propel India into a more secure zone. Unfortunately, so far, his contribution has been either too subtle or too sage for it to have made the required difference. The most recent Balochistan Blunder has focused the nation's attention on how ineptly and unconvincingly his appointee S.M Krishna undertook the crucial damage control exercise….much to the horror and embarrassment of the watching world. He fell flat on his face…. he is still there.
We like to believe Indians have made a fantastic breakthrough in International cinema, thanks to the publicity generated by 'Slumdog Millionaire' which is NOT an Indian film to begin with. But what it has done is gift A.R.Rahman's genius to the world. This modest musician has waited a long time for universal recognition. It is now his – Rahman is in a league of his own with no real competition, either here or overseas. He is a genuine, gilt-edged 'Valuable' – self-made and supreme.
Our sports stars largely remain indigenous phenomena, loved by a cricket-mad nation…. And furiously commercialized by their keepers. They are indeed valuable, but it is high time we looked beyond Brand Sachin or Brand Dhoni ( a little tarnished at present), and recognized the contribution of those incredible, small town boys from under- privileged, rural homes who have made the country proud on innumerable international occasions. Leander Paes , dubbed a 'Tennis Statesman' needs to be acknowledged for his grit and endurance. Right now, however , sports lovers are looking keenly at a new star on the horizon - Saina Nehwal, ranked number 6 in the world. This plucky 19 -year-old (who recently battled chicken pox), has single- handedly revived Badminton in India, and is expected to do well at the upcoming BWF World Championship.
The time has definitely come to honour our 'Most Valuable' citizens - those anonymous Jawans who risk their lives for us, guard our borders, defend us fiercely, and remain the most undervalued citizens of the country. Our grateful 'salaams' to our Armed Forces as we salute India's unsung heroes on this important day.


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Q#1 Which City is the Capital of China?
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Horsemeat & Horsepucky
As the Great Horsemeat Crisis continues to spread—"gallops" is the verb favored by the European press—across the continent, and countries pile on to blame Romania (France, Holland, Cyprus, etc.), what is becoming increasingly clear is that old-fashioned corporate greed, aided and abetted by politicians eager to gut "costly" regulations and industrial inspection regimes is behind the scandal.
In a sense, it is fitting that the whole imbroglio began in Ireland, where inspectors in Ulster first identified that hamburgers should have more properly been labeled "horsewiches." The Emerald Isle has more horses than any country in Europe, and, according to the Financial Times, in 2007 Ireland produced 12,633 thoroughbred foals and has some 110,000 "sport" horses.
The year 2007 was just before the Irish real estate bubble imploded, bankrupting the nation and impoverishing millions. And the year the "Celtic Tiger" died was very bad news for horses. Thousands of the creatures were simply turned loose by their financially strapped owners, and the number of horses sent to slaughterhouses jumped from 2,000 in 2008 to 25,000 in 2012. The Irish-horse connection goes back to when Celtic speaking people first burst out of Central Europe during the second century B.C. Celtic cavalry and chariots—the Celts introduced the latter to Europe—were pretty formidable, as the Romans discovered on a number of occasions.
Horses have always been a high status item in Ireland, and during the colonial period the English figured out a devilishly clever way to take advantage of that.
According to the Irish Penal Laws of 1692, no Catholic—the vast majority of native Irish were Roman Catholics—could own a horse worth more than five pounds. So the English would go into the countryside, select a thoroughbred, and force the breeder to sell them his horse for a pittance. Sometimes the "buyers" would then turn right around and re-sell the animal to its former owner for hundreds of pounds.
When the Irish first discovered horsemeat in the food chain, they claimed innocence and blamed the Poles. It turns out, however, that a small slaughterhouse in Tipperary was shipping horsemeat labeled as beef to the Czech Republic. The British blamed the Romanians, and Rupert Murdoch's newspaper, The Sun, took the opportunity to indulge in his favorite sport: ethnic bashing. A "grim Romanian slaughterhouse built with EU (European Union) cash" was the culprit, blared the largest (and sleaziest) tabloid in England.
The Romanians did indeed use EU cash to build a plant, but the slaughterhouse produced records showing that they had correctly identified the meat as horse. Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta complained that Romania was routinely made the EU's scapegoat.
Then the Swedes got into the act and blamed France, and it does appear it was the French company Spanghero that slipped "old Dobbin" into the food chain. Spanghero denied the charge and, in its defense, trotted out yet another animal: a weeping crocodile. "My first thought is for the employees," said a choked-up Laurent Spanghero at a press conference. "My second thought goes to our kids and grandkids that carry our name. We have always taught them the values of courage and loyalty and today we have been plunged into dishonor."
Except, according to French Consumer Affairs Minister Benoit Hamon, Spanghero could hardly have failed to notice that the meat it was importing from Romania was much cheaper than what the company normally paid for beef. A kilo of horsemeat costs .66 cents, a kilo of beef, $3.95. According to Hamon, Spanghero made $733,800 substituting horsemeat for beef. Then things got really murky. The Netherlands said the Cyprus-based meat vendor Draap that sold the meat to Spanghold was responsible, and the company's track record would suggest the Dutch had a point. In 2012 Draap was convicted of selling South American horsemeat labeled as German and Dutch beef.
But it turns out Draap—based in Cyprus but run by a trust in the British Virgin Islands—is owned by the company Guardstand, that in turn owns part of the arms dealing company, Ilex Ventures. According to prosecutors in New York, convicted international arms dealer Viktor Bout owns Ilex Ventures. Guardstand's sole shareholder, reports Jamie Doward of The Observer, is Trident Trust, which sets up companies in tax-free nations. Guardstand helped set up Ilex.
Sorting this out will be nigh on impossible, because tax havens like Cyprus and the British Virgin Islands are not about to give up their secrets, and the powerful corporations that shelter their ill-gotten gains there know how to keep inspectors at bay. Hypocrisy has been in abundance during the Great Horsemeat Crisis.
Owen Paterson, the British environmental secretary who oversees food safety and a member of the Conservative Party, thundered in Parliament about an "international conspiracy." However, the current Conservative-Liberal government has instituted cutbacks on inspections by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and turned enforcement over to some 330 local authorities. "It is a shame that testing by the FSA has been reduced," Dr. Chris Smart told The Guardian. "I am sure there will be other crises that come along in the next few years." And given that UK food prices have risen nearly 26 percent that will surely be the case. Inspectors have already uncovered adulterated olive oil and paprika made from roof tiles.
At the heart of this are the continent-wide austerity programs that have driven up the ranks of the poor, requiring low-income families to rely on cheap meat or go without. "Why was horsemeat present in beef burgers?" asks Elizabeth Dowler, a professor of food and social policy at Warwick University, "Because the price has to be kept as low as possible." Horsemeat is one-fifth the price of beef, so the temptation is to either adulterate beef with horse or sell it as cheap beef. "This has the most impact on those with low income and large numbers of children," says Dowler. "People in this situation have no money to buy better quality burgers or to go to a butcher and make their own mincemeat. Instead, they depend on special 3-for-2 offers. The problem is linked to poverty."
Horsemeat for some, beer and skittles for the likes of Spanghero. But the real culprits in this crisis are the banks in Britain, Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain that ignited the economic crisis by artificially pumping up real estate bubbles. Up there in the docket with the bankers should be the politicians who shoved through development schemes, waved environmental regulations, and turned a blind eye to speculation. And when everything crashed, the taxpayers—the vast majority of whom never got in on the boom years—got stuck with the bill.
Poor Ireland. The EU enforced austerity scheme has raised the unemployment level to above 15 percent—30 percent for young people—and saddled homeowners with onerous tax and fee hikes. Wages have been cut, health care fees raised and welfare butchered. In spite of these "reforms," the economy grew an anemic 0.9 percent in 2012 and is scheduled to rise to 1.5 percent in 2013, down from the 2.2 the government originally predicted.
And the Irish economy is actually much worse than the figures indicate because much of the wealth Ireland currently creates goes into the coffers of huge multinationals attracted to the island's 12.5 percent corporate tax rate, the lowest in Europe. The Economist points out, "The Irish people have fared much worse than the Irish economy." And the pain for the average Irish working person is due to get worse. The 2013 budget will cut spending $4.6 billion, increase taxes, and add yet more austerity in 2014 and 2015. All of this woe has drawn widespread praise from the EU and the International Monetary Fund, which suggests that if a bank praises you, it is time to reach for a barricade.
This is not just a European problem, because the trend toward cutting back on regulations and inspections is worldwide. For instance, under pressure from the agricultural lobby, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has backed off trying to reduce the amount of antibiotics used on livestock. According to a recent report by the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System, 80 percent of all the antibiotics manufactured in the U.S. are used on farm animals. The result is that antibiotic-resistant salmonella is spreading rapidly in chicken and turkey populations, and turning up in hospitals, clinics, and gymnasiums.
Horsemeat is going to be the least of our problems.


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About the Western Snowy Plover
The Western Snowy Plover is a threatened small shorebird, approximately the size of a sparrow. During the breeding season, March through September, plovers can be seen nesting along the shores, peninsulas, offshore islands, bays, estuaries, and rivers of the United States' Pacific Coast from Oregon to California. Plover nests usually contains three tiny eggs, which are camouflaged to look like sand and barely visible to even the most well-trained trained eye. Plovers will use almost anything they can find on the beach to make their nests, including kelp, driftwood, shells, rocks, and even human footprints.
Snowy Plovers have natural predators such as falcons, raccoons, coyotes, and owls. There are also predators that humans have introduced or whose populations they have helped to increase, including crows and ravens, red fox, and domestic dogs. Humans can be thought of as predators too, because people drive vehicles, ride bikes, fly kites and bring their dogs to beaches where the western snowy plover lives and breeds. All of these activities can frighten or harm plovers during their breeding season.
Energy is very important to this small bird. Every time humans, dogs, or other predators cause the birds to take flight or run away, they lose precious energy that is needed to maintain their nests. Often, when a plover parent is disturbed, it will abandon its nest, which increases the chance of a predator finding the eggs, sand blowing over and covering the nest, or the eggs getting cold. This can decrease the number of chicks that hatch in a particular year. Did you know that a kite flying overhead looks like a predator to a plover? A kite over a nesting area can keep an adult off the nest for long periods of time.
There are many key things YOU can do to help save the western snowy plover! Allowing these small birds to remain in their breeding area, undisturbed, throughout the breeding season is most important. People should be able to recreate on the beaches AND there should be room for plovers to nest too. The idea is to "Share the Shore." This means having fun while protecting our natural environment at the same time.
The Western Snowy Plover has been living on the Pacific Coast for thousands of years, but was listed by the federal government as threatened in 1993, due to low population and decreased habitat. Let's help ensure the plovers' success! Remember that when a species goes extinct, it is gone forever! We are privileged to be able to be stewards of the beach, its habitat, and its occupants, including the western snowy plover. Protect your beach and the plants and animals that use it and most importantly, share your knowledge with friends and family. Get the word out; we can make a difference and that difference starts with you.
Thank you for your support and interest.
How you can help, right now
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Search Widens for Suspect in Vegas Strip Shooting
LAS VEGAS (Associated Press) — The search has widened to the southeastern U.S. for a 26-year-old man who police call the prime suspect in a shooting and fiery crash that killed three last week on the Las Vegas Strip.
Las Vegas police Capt. Chris Jones said Monday that investigators were tracing places where Ammar Harris lived and worked in the past.
Public records show Harris lived in South Carolina and Georgia; was convicted in Atlanta in 2005 of marijuana possession; and was arrested in Miami in December on a reckless driving charge.
Harris also was arrested last year in Las Vegas on pandering, kidnapping, sex assault and coercion charges.
Harris is accused and firing shots into a Maserati, killing an aspiring rapper, and causing a crash and explosion that killed two people in a taxi at the heart of the Strip.


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Before leaving today, my agent and I did one last "touristy" thing. We took a little walk to the Empire State Building. I can now say that I've gone to the top of the Empire State Building. I do not feel the need to do it again. Ever. While waiting for four and a half hours in line (or ON line as New Yorkers say) we listened to folks threaten guests that once they reached the top, there would be no signs telling about the buildings or the view and there would be no people to answer questions or explain what they were seeing. Sooo, in other words, "buy our special map and audio tour for the bargain price of $12.99."
Saturday, December 15, 2007
I'm Leaving Today...
Before leaving today, my agent and I did one last "touristy" thing. We took a little walk to the Empire State Building. I can now say that I've gone to the top of the Empire State Building. I do not feel the need to do it again. Ever. While waiting for four and a half hours in line (or ON line as New Yorkers say) we listened to folks threaten guests that once they reached the top, there would be no signs telling about the buildings or the view and there would be no people to answer questions or explain what they were seeing. Sooo, in other words, "buy our special map and audio tour for the bargain price of $12.99."
48 comments:
- Bonnie said...
Wow!! I can't believe that I'm the first to post something. Looks and sounds like you had a blast! I would love to visit there someday. I would enjoy that I think. Glad to hear that everything went well, it's amazing how capable our husbands can be when we are gone yet so incapable when we are home!!
- December 15, 2007 at 12:35 AM
Uhmmmm.. That rat looks happy.
I've been house bound for too many years. - December 15, 2007 at 1:38 AM
The Empire State Building is such a total tourist trap LOL! I can understand why people want to go, but I always try to avoid it if I can! BTW, what did you think the tunnels were for? Do they build tunnels that *don't* go underwater? Just wondering, b/c the only ones I've ever used all go under water:) And I also now feel better about saying "on line." I always say that and it drives my husband crazy! I no longer live up there in the NY area, but I grew up there. I guess I never realized that is why I say that. It never seemed to be wrong either, but my husband apparently thinks it is. According to him, "on line" is using the internet, and "in line" is, well...being in line LOL! I tell him that "in line" is a type of skating--hehe!
- December 15, 2007 at 1:42 AM
The next time you go to NYC, you have to take a Trolley Tour. It's the easiest, fastest, most comprehensive way to get an overview of the city. It will help you get your bearings and you'll see most of the sites. It wasthe first thing I did when I took my kids there and they loved it. I think Jonathan can spring for it! I enjoy your blogs and wish you well with your book.
- December 15, 2007 at 1:55 AM
- Becky said...
It's good for husbands and wives to swap roles from time to time. Gives each of them a little perspective on what the other goes through...and helps the husband to appreciate being the one who 'gets' to go back to work on Monday, lol!
- December 15, 2007 at 2:23 AM
- Terri said...
Glad you had a nice time in NYC. I am about 20 minutes outside the city and don't get there nearly enough. Ain't that the way it goes. That big RAT is usually displayed by the Unions outside of construction jobs that are using Non-Union workers.
Ter - December 15, 2007 at 2:42 AM
- Rick said...
Where's my picture of you tickling Lady Liberty's arm pit?
http://organizeddoodles.blogspot.com/ - December 15, 2007 at 2:51 AM
- Debbie @ Three Weddings said...
I wondered if that tunnel you mentioned was the water one. I've heard of it, but it frightens me! I have somewhat of a water phobia and I hate those big aquariums where you are in a plexiglass tunnel of water. I'm always afraid they will break. BTW, to Hollie, tunnels are for other things like mountains. I've been through those. :)
http://weddingsx3.blogspot.com - December 15, 2007 at 7:05 AM
Loved all your New York's photos. I was in this great city in 1980 for 15 days and it was fabulous.
One question Dawn. What do you do in order to get those very large photograph in your blog? They are excellent to look at the details.
I'll be waiting for your answer right here. Won't even go to the bathroom.
Best Regards,
Omar.- - December 15, 2007 at 8:25 AM
- Irene said...
I get so jealous when I hear about trips to NYC during the holiday season. Someday, somehow I WILL make it there! Sounded like a wonderful trip.
- December 15, 2007 at 8:27 AM
Dawn ~
It's great to hear you talking about NYC! I live Upstate, and can you believe I've only been to NYC once??!! My husband brought me along to a holiday party (we also had our then-infant daughter - left the other two at home) two years ago, and it was so much fun walking around the city during the holiday season. And the cabs rides? One of the scariest moments of my life! We didn't go to the top of The Empire State Building - too expensive! However, we did have a lunch at a nice Mexican place that cost us over $75 (HOLY COW!). Lunch! Glad you had fun, and you got home just in time. There's a major storm brewing!! - December 15, 2007 at 8:43 AM
- Lissete said...
Told ya to go to the Top of the Rock!! :) 15 minutes wait (max), not as crowded, unubstructed views. Next time....
For some reason my husband fixes stuff too when I'm away for a few days. I should leave more often! :)
Glad you had a nice time. - December 15, 2007 at 9:06 AM
Oh, yes, I agree about the whole Empire State Building thing. My husband thought it was awesome, but me? Eh! It could have been the fact that I was still trying to stave off my nausea from the super fast elevator ride to the top...did I mention I was sick in the 1st trimester and I'm always sick then? Hmmm. Well, I still think its all a scam for tourists.
- December 15, 2007 at 9:27 AM
- Tracy J-Flores said...
The Empire State Building is a total tourist trap, I can totally agree. Instead of going there, you should have gone to the "Top of the Rock" at Rockefeller Center. While it's not the Empire State Building, the view is so MUCH better and you can see the Empire State Building from where you're standing. Plus, your view of the city is amazing, such as being able to see Central Park and how it splits the Upper East and Upper West Side of New York. Oh and it's a lot roomier, less crowded and the gift shop is downstairs as opposed to upstairs.
The tunnel you went through on your way to the airport is the Midtown Tunnel. Since Manhattan is an island, it's one of the few ways someone from Manhattan gets into Queens for the airport.
Did you have a chance to ride the subway while you were here? - December 15, 2007 at 9:50 AM
- Mom of 4 said...
I'm glad you had a good time. Any time I get to be away from my family ALONE(although I loved them dearly) is a good time!
- December 15, 2007 at 9:55 AM
I've been neglecting you, Dawn. Tis the season to be busy. Your New York trip sounds very cool! Love all the pictures!
~Dawn too - December 15, 2007 at 9:58 AM
- Suburban Correspondent said...
Dawn, thank you for mentioning that "in line, on line" thing. I have always said "on line" (and my husband makes fun of me), but I never realized it was a product of where I grew up. Duh.
St. Patrick's Cathedral, of course - are you too young to remember seeing the giant Sta-Puf Marshmallow Man stepping on it in "Ghostbusters"? And Bill Murray yelling, "Nobody steps on a church in my town!" Cracks me up, just thinking about it. - December 15, 2007 at 10:09 AM
- Nate B said...
That's too bad about your crummy Empire State Building experience. Maybe I was lucky. I went on a Wednesday night. It was the same night the Boston Red Sox won the World Series (over the St. Louis Cardinals after coming back from 0-3 to beat the Yankees in the championship game... not that I or anyone here really cares) and everyone was watching the game or depressed that stupid Boston was winning the world series or something... I dunno. Anyway, in addition to the above game, it was also the same night as a lunar eclipse. There was kind of a misty haze going on but the view was still clear. The moon was just starting to darken. I got some very cool long-exposure night shots of the surrounding city from the observation deck. Glad you had fun otherwise, though.
- December 15, 2007 at 10:12 AM
you mean other men out there ask crazy questions like that?? oh thank goodness. I thought I was stuck with the only one. I've gotten some doozies like "i wonder why they named this road X" or "do you ever wonder what it would be like if we had wings and could fly" this was at Thanksgiving with my parents. The answer was a resounding "no, can't say I have ever thought about that" from both of them.
- December 15, 2007 at 10:34 AM
- dlyn said...
Ran across links to your blog in a couple places, so I had to come and check it out. I will be back to read more - hope you had a safe trip home!
- December 15, 2007 at 10:40 AM
- Lucille said...
Glad you made it home safe and sound! Looks like you missed the snow! Yes - another storm for the midwest! I love how we hear 1-2 inches and once that first snowfall hits we are all immune to the threat of it! LOL!
I'm impressed that your hubby got some home improvement done while you were gone AND supposedly watched 6 kids! :)
Welcome home!
http://whosgoingtotellyou.blogspot.com/ - December 15, 2007 at 10:47 AM
The gentleman who sat next to you on the plane - around my house, we refer to those kinds of questions as "If a monkey bit you.." questions (from an old episode of Wings, in which an extremely annoying customer asks Joe some dumb question about biting monkeys). And yes, my husband comes up with them all the time, too. We once had an argument in Home Depot about what kind of mailbox to buy - we ended up going home without one. At least your Joe can make a decision without a major "consultation" in a public place!
- December 15, 2007 at 10:56 AM
- Ellen said...
The rats aren't usually THAT big... that was parked there for the WGA picket that happened earlier this week. Go, writers!
- December 15, 2007 at 12:05 PM
- Veggiemomof2 said...
Thank you so much for sharing your trip with us. I just showed dd10 all these pictures & she liked them too...she knew the inside of those places from Elf & Madagascar.
- December 15, 2007 at 12:26 PM
- Angeline said...
What a trip! Its always good to take time off from the 'daily-mundane-stuff'...we as 'domestic managers' really need to get some life back!
its also a good time to let the man do the job...*wink*
Awww...but fun is over now...back to the four walls of noise, mess, fun and laughter..*grin* - December 15, 2007 at 12:33 PM
- Cheryl said...
So glad to hear you had a good time in New York (except for the Empire State Bldg!) and got home safely before the next big snowstorm hit. Every mom needs to get away from the house and kids once in a while. You have a good hubby to hold down the fort and help make that possible. All the best to both of you for being a great team! And to the kids for not driving daddy crazy while you were gone. :-)
- December 15, 2007 at 1:53 PM
- Regina said...
Love the pictures! Wish I could see NYC during the Christmas season. Maybe next year. I was able to go twice this summer. Love the architecture of a lot of the bldgs. The Top of the Rock (Rockerfeller) was nicer than the Empire.
The cab rides didn't bother me, but it did my girlfriend that went on the first trip. We got matching tees that say "I survived a NYC cab ride" with a cab with a scared rider on it. To me, it was like riding in a cab in South Korea. Took me back to my military days.
I didn't wear very good walking shoes the first time either. My feet were so sore! The second time I went, I wore my trusty tennies.
The next time you go, try to take the Circle Line cruise around the island. Nice ride and great way to see Lady Liberty, Yankee Stadium, and the skyline.
Can hardly wait for your book. - December 15, 2007 at 3:19 PM
"(not that we could see out the window with the throngs of people and sweat dripping down our faces into our eyes.)
SHE'S BAAAACK! - December 15, 2007 at 8:01 PM
welcome home! I went to NYC for the first and last time for our anniversary in May. I hated it! I thought the people were rude. So, I'm glad to hear of someone who liked it. It gives me hope that if I went back again I might meet different people who are actually nice.
Pam - December 15, 2007 at 8:12 PM
- MaNiC MoMMy™ said...
You didn't post the picture I was most looking forward to seeing!!!
The one of your daughter with whatever medium she had decided to paint herself with while you were gone! Surely she got INTO SOMETHING and painted herself? Yes? Please! You gotta give me something!!! You can't tell me you went away and your husband was in charge and your child did not get into anything blue or green or markers or food coloring or frosting or anything fun like that?
That would totally, completely bum me out!
Glad you're home safe! - December 15, 2007 at 8:21 PM
Ok, so I keep thinking about those pennies. I didn't bother to read the articles that were so helpfully provided (shame on me, I know), but ummm... they were raised for charity. What charity has them if they're on display? When does said charity get them? How much did it cost to build that lovely display? How much did it cost to ship the pennies there? This seems like such an inefficient (although very cool) way to raise money... and yes, I have issues with United Way, too, because of the percent of money they raise that actually goes to charity. I'd rather donate directly to a charity that I know has low overhead and high percentage straight to the cause. I'm off my high horse -- but truly intrigued by the pennies thing.
Ok, and for the Christmas decorations in NYC -- how long after actual Christmas day do they keep them up?
Thanks! - December 15, 2007 at 9:39 PM
- Becky said...
No one is going to answer the baseball on the plane question? No? OK. I won't blather on about Sir Isaac Newton and the laws of motion...just suffice it to say that the people on the plane are going the same speed as the plane. So are all the objects on the plane. Since everything is already moving at 200+ MPH, the ball will just go up and come down with very little loss in velocity. Sorry, it won't whip to the back of the plane. :-)
- December 15, 2007 at 10:01 PM
Hi Dawn, Glad your home safe. When I was in New York for the Hair convention we rode the subway into China town. We just had to sit up front with the train driver. We asked him all sorts of questions. One of the interesting things he told us was that the drivers only work a few years, because they see alot of suicides with people jumping in front of the trains. That has to be a terrible job. Kristine in Michigan
- December 15, 2007 at 10:08 PM
Just wanted to say that there is more than one tunnel there that goes underwater LOL. There's no "the tunnel that goes underwater" :) I'd forgotten about mountains, but well...there's not too many of those on the East coast--you have to go inland a bit. Never occured to me to be surprised a tunnel went underwater. Around here, that's just what they do. Water tunnels are just really common:) At least to me:)
- December 15, 2007 at 10:24 PM
- Cyndy said...
We went to NYC in 1997 and got to go to the top of the World Trade Center...it was amazing and roomy I might add. When we got back down from the top we went across the street to see a historical church (which survived). In front of the church was a graveyard...we were strolling by reading some of the markers when my husband pointed out what at first he thought was a dog,...when it disappeared down a hole in front of a marker (icky) we realized it was a rat.
Yep, they grow 'em big in the Big Apple. - December 15, 2007 at 10:36 PM
If i have my NY tunnel knowledge correct (I'm from LI and my dad works for the bridges in the city) The tunnel is actually underground under the water.
I'm glad you had a good time! - December 15, 2007 at 11:05 PM
- Mystii said...
Oh, it sounds like you had such a good time in New York! I do love that city. I lived in Brooklyn with my boyfriend (now my husband) for a bit over a year. He'd been there for ten years and not only worked in the city but knew it really well. We walked all over the place; across the Brooklyn Bridge, from the Village to the Upper East Side, all the way through Central Park, up Madison Avenue, you name it! It was a wonderful experience and I loved it. We live south of Chicago now and as much as I love Chicago, New York is a special, special city.
I'm looking forward to your book coming out. I hope that a lot of good things continue to come your way Dawn. You have a wonderful talent and I'm glad it'll be shared with a wider audience! - December 16, 2007 at 12:03 AM
- Heidi said...
Oh, that's too bad the Empire State Building was a let down. Though, that was hilarious that you mentioned An Affair to Remember. I wasn't even thinking about that until you mentioned it--LOL!
Glad your trip was safe and fun! It sounds like it was just beautiful! - December 16, 2007 at 2:05 AM
- It's all about Sam said...
Ahhhh, but Hollie, there *is* only one tunnel that goes from Manhattan to Queens...otherwise you have to take one of the bridges. The other two tunnels take you to Jersey (insert Jersey joke here).
Pam/soccer mom--I thought NYers were rude too, until I moved here. Then I realized that it's not so much that they're rude but that it takes some determination to get to where you're going quickly, as you're constantly fighting crowds. Which is why I always, always avoid Times Square and Herald Square unless I'm forced to go there. It's enough to make anyone cranky!
Dawn, so glad you had a great time here. Yep, the Empire State building is a big 'ol tourist trap, but you gotta do it once. Same thing with the Space Needle in Seattle--all that time and $$$ and the elevator doors open into a gift shop! Come back soon! - December 16, 2007 at 7:44 AM
- Brenda said...
I'm glad you had such a great trip. Sleepless in Seattle is my favorite movie. It is kind of a remake of Affair to Remember. Did you get the snow globe???????????
- December 16, 2007 at 8:29 AM
- Donetta said...
Wow Girl you sure have had a ride. E-bay has been very very good to you:)
- December 16, 2007 at 3:03 PM
Glad your trip went well, we missed you
- December 16, 2007 at 5:34 PM
- Kitti said...
Wow, what a fun trip! Espececially getting to see NYC at Christmas, I hear it's beautiful.
SO, how was your house and kids when you got home? Did Joe clean up for you and were the kids all still intact? LOL! - December 16, 2007 at 6:12 PM
I've been through lots of tunnels, and none of them have been underwater. So I think you were definitely justified in thinking it was strange!
- December 16, 2007 at 7:27 PM
- Elizabeth F. said...
America kills the joy of things with marketting and trying to sell us stuff! Or maybe Hollywood makes it look too glamorous!!
- December 16, 2007 at 9:45 PM
hey i live in ny.. it is a crazy city but i wanted to ask u where did u see that big rat ive never seen it before i dont get to manhattan much
- December 17, 2007 at 1:31 PM
Great post indeed..These are great.Here you can get more information and facts about new york at
New York Map - December 18, 2007 at 4:45 AM
- Unknown said...
Dawn, my husband takes the Lincoln tunnel everyday during his commute to NYC (yes, another underwater tunnel). When the traffic is backed up, you just sit in the tunnel, without moving, for what seems like FOREVER. One day while sitting thus, the man next to my husband (on the bus) turned to him and said, "You know, the next time the terrorists hit, it will be here." What an awful thing to say!!! Truly, though, there a zillions of people sitting in those tunnels at any given moment...I try not to think about it!
- December 20, 2007 at 12:27 PM