catbird.org

The Washington Post writes:

With the Chinese milk products-melamine scandal generating fresh headlines, U.S. health officials on Friday unveiled what they consider acceptable levels of contamination with the industrial chemical.

The bottom line: No amount of melamine is safe in infant formula.

For all other foods, only amounts less than 2.5 parts per million are risk free, U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials said.

I personally prefer my food to be… food.

catbird :: Oct.03.2008 :: cat rants, going green :: Comments Off

1. She doesn’t have any national experience and less than two years experience as governor of Alaska
2. She’s pro-life. Fine in an individual, not in the VP
3. She’s against same-sex marriage
4. She supports natural-gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
5. She said, “[polar bears] are worthy of our utmost efforts to protect them and their Arctic habitat. But adding polar bears to the nation’s list of endangered species … should not be part of those efforts.”

Bonus reason: She named her children Bristol, Willow, Piper, Track, and Trig

BTW, Governor Palin, don’t patronize me by equating yourself to Senator Clinton. You don’t even come close.

catbird :: Aug.29.2008 :: cat rants :: Comments Off

On Wednesday, the New Jersey Court ruled that factory farming practices cannot be considered humane just because they are widely used. This decision, reached unanimously, sets a legal precedent to end abuses of livestock on factory farms across the U.S. and comes as several other states are making similar rulings.

catbird :: Aug.01.2008 :: cat rants :: Comments Off

Yesterday I sat on the grassy hump in front of my mother’s gravestone and dug out five shallow holes in the fertile earth in which to set five small flower pots. Nestling the pots in protects them from the wind and gives the roots access to moist dirt when I can’t get back to water them.

While I scraped out holes with a wire hanger from the back of the car, little ants and beetles kept crawling up and down my legs. I was very gentle in removing them from me, for, after all, aren’t they my brothers and sisters, nourished on my mother’s flesh and bones?

Later, driving home, one little ant came crawling up my arm. Reacting without thinking, I brushed her off roughly. I’m sorry, my little sister! I hope you found a stray pretzel or goldfish on the floor to make up for it.

catbird :: Jul.25.2008 :: cat rants :: Comments Off

Sometimes I can’t even believe what I’m reading is actually real.

“For the first time, the new rule allows the government to publicly release the names of the stores that have sold recalled meat and poultry posing the most severe risks to peoples’ health.”

Note that it’s a “rule” not a law.

“..the changes announced today would not have applied to the February recall, which was categorized as a slightly lesser risk to public health.”

Not a “most severe risk” although it was the largest recall ever in the U.S.

Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer stood by the new rule, pointing out that consumers are a bunch of idiots and can’t handle too much information: “‘We don’t want to unnecessarily scare the public,’ he said asserting that releasing information during recalls that have less serious health risks might confuse consumers.”

This must have left more people than just me scratching their heads in disbelief.

Wenonah Hauter, Food & Water Watch’s executive director said (and I heartily agree), “If a problem is serious enough to spark a recall, it is serious enough to give consumers all the information they need to avoid potentially dangerous products.”

The Consumers Union suggested (wisely) that the rule should include to Class II recalls and that the lists of places receiving tainted meat and poultry should also include schools and nursing homes.

Well, duh.

My personal theory is that the USDA doesn’t want us to know how many recalls there actually are. Sign up for recall notices by email.

catbird :: Jul.11.2008 :: cat rants, going green :: Comments Off

U.S. law allows food manufacturers to label a food as something that it only vaguely resembles. For example, what is yogurt?

Yogurt is, according to Merriam Webster, is “a fermented slightly acid often flavored semisolid food made of milk and milk solids to which cultures of two bacteria (Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus) have been added.”

However, Dannon is allowed to label its Fruit on the Bottom strawberry as yogurt even though the ingredients are:
- Cultured grade A lowfat milk
- strawberries
- sugar
- fructose syrup
- high fructose corn syrup
- pectin
- modified corn starch
- natural flavor
- kosher gelatin
- purple carrot juice concentrate
- carmine and turmeric (for color)
- malic acid
- calcium phosphate
- active yogurt cultures including L. acidophilus

Compare to Stonyfield Farms Strawberries and Cream ingredients:
- Cultured Pasteurized Organic Whole Milk
- Organic Strawberries
- Naturally Milled Organic Sugar
- Pectin
- Organic Beet Juice Concentrate (For Color)
- Natural Flavor
- Six Live Active Cultures Including L. Acidophilus, Bifidus, L. Casei And L. Rhamnosus.

Even better, take a gander at Sky Top Farms maple yogurt:
- Organic Whole Milk
- Pure Organic Maple Syrup
- Active Yogurt Cultures (S. thermophilus, L. bulgaricus, L. acidophilus, bifidobacterium longum, bifidobacterium infantis)

So, which one sounds the most like yogurt, as opposed to “yogurt”?

I find it ironic — or maybe just sickening — that to get a Dannon “yogurt” that is actually closer (yes, just closer) to yogurt, you have to buy the one that says “All Natural”. What? That seems just crazy to me.

Oh, and another Dannon note: the ingredients of Danimals (Dannon’s smoothies for kids) aren’t even listed on the web site. Hum… I wonder why. Not really.

Kinda makes you wonder: Is your yogurt really yogurt? How about your bread? Your peanut butter?

catbird :: Jun.24.2008 :: cat rants :: Comments Off

Steve’s Born replacement shoes have cracked a sole. Are these shoes designed to only last 6 months? Ridiculous. I won’t even bother contacting the company this time. But really, we are done with Born.

catbird :: Jun.18.2008 :: cat rants :: Comments Off

President Bush wants to allow offshore oil drilling in previously protected lands off the U.S. Coast. Doing so could yield 18 billion barrels of oil.

“That would meet current U.S. consumption for about 2-1/2 years, but it would likely take a decade or more to find the oil and produce it.”

<sarcasm>Brilliant.</sarcasm>

Meanwhile, here in NJ lawmakers are considering a different question:
“The bill would allow the owners of preserved farmland to construct, operate and install solar or wind energy facilities or equipment on their farms. The generated power could be used to operate the farm or be sold to a utility company.”

Why not? Solar panels are unobtrusive and don’t take up extra space. Even windmills are soothing to look at (at least I think so.) Seems like a win-win.

catbird :: Jun.18.2008 :: cat rants, going green :: Comments Off

The End of Food by Thomas F. Pawlick. Another book to feed my obsession with food issues (no pun intended).

catbird :: Jun.13.2008 :: cat rants, going green :: Comments Off

As wildly ecstatic as I was about Whole Foods last week because of the local grass-fed beef, I am just as wildly disappointed this week. I just read a news story about how much of the 365 brand organics aren’t USDA certified, as we are led to believe by the packaging, and, in fact, many come from China.

Not only am I upset about being misled (although my frozen spinach clearly says “Product of China”), but I’m also upset that my 365 vegetables have a much larger carbon footprint than I believed, and that, now, my grocery bill will go up once again as I switch to more expensive brands.

I guess I should have been more skeptical. They had to get the better prices somehow.

catbird :: May.22.2008 :: cat rants, going green, socio-pop :: Comments Off

Samba writes a blog about, well, overdevelopment in West Orange. Specifically the (in)effectiveness of the town council in protecting trees by adopting a tree ordinance.

catbird :: May.06.2008 :: cat rants, socio-pop :: Comments Off

Jon Bream from the Minneapolis-St. Paul Star-Tribune is a bit of an idiot. And I’m being generous. His article about music in New Jersey is full of backhanded compliments.

Mr. Bream notes that “Per capita, the fertile Garden State has probably turned out more big-name music stars than any other state.” (including Count Basie, Bruce Springsteen, Frank Sinatra, Lauryn Hill, Queen Latifah, and even, apparently, Eddie Rabbit) Why? he wonders, when the state is merely “Miles upon miles of industrial smokestacks, the filthy turnpike through the wastelands, two NFL teams that won’t even take the name of the state in which they play.”

Oh, here’s why, says Bream:
1. Being between NY and PA give us Jerseyites an “inferiority complex.”
2. In his words: “Those pollution-spewing factories do have a positive impact by helping to instill a strong work ethic in Jerseyites.” What is NJ part of a Dickens novel?
3. Gosh, this guy is an ass. Apparently, we have an “underdog mentality that comes from being the butt of jokes and living in a culture-deprived state that, unlike New York and Philly, had no pro sports until the 1970s.” What the heck do pro sports have to do with music?

Maybe this guy was dumped by a Jersey girl, I’m not sure. But I do know that he has never spent any real time in this beautiful state, which is full of diversity both cultural and natural. I’m 20 minutes from NYC by train, but in a 10 minute bike ride I can be in South Mountain Reservation surrounded by trees and wildlife. Beautiful beaches, mountains, farmland, rolling green hills, and the history of Washington’s Crossing — just the tip of the iceberg. On any given night in my neighborhood, you can smell Caribbean food cooking at the neighbor’s house (yum!), walk down the hill for Spanish or (authentic) Mexican food, head over to the pub for a pint, or go into Newark’s Ironbound District for Portuguese. Not to mention Cecil’s Jazz Club right down the street.

Have I mentioned that this guy is an idiot, or an ass, or maybe an idiotic ass? Not just the music, baby, NJ’s got it ALL!

catbird :: Mar.13.2008 :: cat rants, music :: Comments Off

Maia shared this news story from the NYT about how the government thwarts small farmers who provide local produce to people who really want to buy local produce. What it says isn’t surprising, but it is super disappointing.

The author of the article is Jack Hedin, a small organic farmer in Minnesota. He explains how the government penalizes corn farmers for growing anything else, including renting land to other farmers. It seems that an empty field is more desirable to the government (and various lobbyists) than growing other vegetables and fruits.

“Farmers need the choice of what to plant on their farms, and consumers need more farms like mine producing high-quality fresh fruits and vegetables to meet increasing demand from local markets — without the federal government actively discouraging them.”

I just want to prepare and eat real food. Local (and preferably organic) fruits and veggies and pasture fed meats. Why is the government subsidizing corn and soybeans anyway? The last thing we need is more high fructose corn syrup, soy isoflavins, and processed crap food-like substances.

catbird :: Mar.03.2008 :: cat rants, going green :: Comments Off

I bought Steve a pair of Born shoes last year. After about only six or seven months, the sole cracked completely in half. Maybe if I had bought a pair of cheapo-joes from some random discount store we would have just tossed them, but Borns… really, we expected more. I contacted the company, expecting that they would have us send them back for a replacement. Instead, the rep that replied to my email, Ilario Altamura, sent a form to fill out and return. The form noted that the process could take 3-5 weeks. So I completed the form, sent it back on Oct 19, 2007, and we sat back to wait. And wait, and wait, and wait.

Finally on January 4, 2008, what, like 10 weeks later?, I emailed Mr. Altamura again, asking for an update. Today is the 17th and I haven’t heard anything.

How disappointing! I wanted to like this company with their super comfortable shoes. Instead, I’m left feeling like they don’t care about their customers and that they produce a shoddy product. If they believed in their product, it seems they would have not hesitated to replace the shoe, or, at the very least reply with a reason why not.

Let’s contrast Born to a company that cares and stands by their product: LL Bean. A pair of winter boots, several years old, had soles that started disintegrate due to dry rot. LL Bean took them back, no questions asked. Because the soles shouldn’t dry rot after such a relatively short period of time, because they believe in their products, and because, most importantly, they want me to continue to purchase things from them. Which I will.

UPDATE 1/25/08: The day after my post above, I received an email with a request to call Born. Mr Altamura said he never received my form. How odd he must have thought it was that I emailed him saying “I have attached the form” and later “Do you have any information for us?” If he had emailed me with his confusion, I certainly would have promptly responded to clear things up. I emailed my form again and also called (Mr. Altamura was “on the phone or away from his desk” so I left a message. I love my caller id, too.) I guess the form got through this time because a few days later I got an email to send the shoes back for a replacement pair. Thank you Ilario Altamura!

Better late than never, I suppose. Although I could certainly have done without the drama.

catbird :: Jan.17.2008 :: cat rants :: Comments Off

I’m not ambitious enough to try all seven; two is more my speed. And one came straight from a can.

The menu: baccala, stuffed artichokes, poor man’s pizza, pasta with primavera sauce, meatballs, antipasta with carrots, celery, olives, bread, anchovies, roasted peppers, and cheese. For dessert, fruit bowl and cookie tray. Apparently I can’t cook for four so we have been eating leftovers all week.

The schedule: (I forgot to include “soak the cod” and almost blew the baccala):

11:00 prep and soak artichokes

11:30 make pizza dough

11:45 cook cod (~30 min.)

11:50 stuff artichokes

12:15 cook artichokes (2.5 hours)
[Nate sprinkled his own yogurt for lunch]

12:30 make baccala

12:40 - 2:30 random tasks: cookie tray, fruit bowl, set table, make antipasta
[Nate made the cookie tray]

2:45 artichokes out of oven

2:50 sauce on, pasta water on

3:00 cook pizzas (20 min. each)

3:30 cook pasta

4:00 eat! (Okay, we really ate around 4:30, but I was close.)

[Van loved the pizza] [Nate gave the feast the thumbs up]

catbird :: Dec.26.2007 :: cat rants, house stuff :: Comments Off

Oooooh yeah… Finally, I can get it January 1 (well, on the 2nd, I guess) and find out what I can eat. And if I was as cool as John, I could get it for just $9.99 and read it on my Kindle.

catbird :: Dec.25.2007 :: cat rants :: Comments Off

Your “It’s like preschool on TV” tagline is ridiculous. Passive TV watching, even with “educational” segments, is nothing like preschool. At preschool, kids run around, play, imagine, interact, and learn by doing, not stare at a screen that tells them what a hexagon is. Just because you say it, doesn’t make it true.

catbird :: Dec.08.2007 :: cat rants, mommyhood :: Comments Off

At Thanksgiving, Moose A. Moose showed us the Turkey factory farm, then yesterday, he introduced a segment about a chicken farm with a barn the size of two football fields and and farmer happily shoveling sawdust for the “special delivery” of thousands of chicks. I turned off each segment before they could describe the “happy” life these birds will have, living inside, over crowded and never seeing sun or feeling grass under their feet for the few weeks they have to live.

Hey Noggin, what’s up with that?

catbird :: Dec.08.2007 :: cat rants, mommyhood :: Comments Off

Okay, I was really super pissed when my new Keens finally arrived from LL Bean with two right shoes. Returning mail order stuff is a pain in the neck. I called to make sure I would send everything back correctly and, what do you know, when they heard the problem, they offered to send me out a new pair that I’ll have by the end of the week. Then I can send back my two rights with a prepaid shipping label. Plus the customer service people were very personable. Thanks LL Bean. It’s still a bummer, but you made as painless as possible. What more could I ask for, except maybe, better QA.

catbird :: Nov.26.2007 :: cat rants :: Comments Off

This guy can’t possibly be as much of an idiot as he sounds, right? Encouraging people to bike and walk seems like a superb idea in a nation where obesity is called an epidemic, global warming is just being acknowledged by the general public, and alternative energy sources are being pursued.
If McHenry was really smart, he would have pointed out, however, that now we need to build the infrastructure to make it safe to bike and walk to work, the store, school, etc. Bike lanes (or at least wide shoulders!), walking and biking paths, and more communities with pedestrian-friendly shopping areas would make it a lot easier for people to leave the car at home when commuting or doing errands. Those things will require more money than the tax incentive will cost, that’s for sure.

But are they worth it? Absolutely.

catbird :: Sep.05.2007 :: cat rants, going green :: Comments Off