Organizing for the Hungry

     Library of Congress photograph
 

Congress, under  constant, unrelenting pressure from the conservative wing, will turn its back on the poor and hungry in America this week.
by Charlie Leck

“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me...”
                                                                [Matthew 25:35]

Congress will vote, in the next couple of days (and likely today in the House) on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). We have known the program as food stamps. The proposal that will probably become law will drastically cut the food stamp program and will desperately hurt the poorest among us and many of them will be fellow senior citizens. Families with very low income, trying to adequately feed their children, will also be desperately hurt.

Congress has received significant and trust-worthy reports that food stamps kept as many as 4 million people from falling into poverty last year. Under the new law, according to the trusted, non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, more than 4 million people will become ineligible for future assistance.

Hunger in America is about to become a more significant problem than it has been in the a long, long time.

Providing assistance through food stamps has been a bi-partisan effort in Congress over the last several decades. With the restructuring of Congress under the influence of the Tea Party that is about to change. This has been our nation’s most effective way to fight hunger ever since the end of the depression.

As Jim Wallis, of the Sojourners organization, has recently said, food stamps are “the nation’s foremost tool against hunger and hardship, particularly during recessions and periods of high unemployment.”

This is a fight in Congress between those who believe we have something of a responsibility to care for our fellow-citizens who have fallen on hard times and those who don’t. Now that’s blunt and cold; however, it is the absolute truth.

If you can, communicate with your U.S. Senators and ask them to defeat this bill that the House of Representatives is about to send over to them. We must not allow hunger to become brutally real in America again.

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An Embarrassingly Drunken, Reeling Political Party

Tom Toles is my current favorite newspaper cartoonist. He’s very insightful and his stuff is often very cutting. You can take a look at some of his recent work, including a cartoon mentioned below, on the Washington Post web site (go here).
by Charlie Leck

A Tom Toles cartoon, that appeared in the last week or so in the Washington Post, shows an inebriated elephant lying drunk on the edge of an abyss, a broken champagne glass near him, there on the ground. A tiny caption says: “Drunk on ideology!” A bit larger caption says: “Socially Awkward!”

It’s amazing how a cartoon can speak paragraphs and paragraphs. I could blather on here, writing line after line, saying the same thing that the cartoon says in just a little 4 by 4 inch square. Again I say, amazing!

I wish Republicans, socially responsible and clear thinking Republicans, would speak out about the current state of their historic and formerly responsible party. It might do some good. I hate seeing it sprawled into insignificance – and down and out – in such an unsightly way. This is the formerly glorious party of some of America’s finest statesmen and problem solvers. If they are watching from their places in the stars, they must be cringing!

I’ve written here, too many times, about how the Grand Old Party is broken and dismembered. I won’t do it further. The party needs serious and immediate attention.

Tom Toles is about 62 years of age. He won the Pulitzer in 1990 for editorial cartooning. He also won National Cartoonist Society’s Editorial Cartoon Award in 2003. His cartoons appear in more than 200 newspapers around the nation. He graduated from the University of Buffalo (magna cum laude)

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Common Good Books

Yesterday, I wandered around in Common Good Books – G. Keillor, prop.. I spent a wonderful hour there.
by Charlie Leck

Garrison Keillor’s bookstore, in St. Paul, is a wonderful, terrific place. It’s jammed full of books. The emphasis is on the books and not on interior decorating. The staff is incredibly knowledgeable about books and they are totally helpful in a hands-on sort of way.

I picked up a number of books. Some of them were for a grandchild. Another was for a very nice friend of mine, a well-known, retired architect and former head of the University of Minnesota School of Architecture. I made it into a used book by browsing through it. The following quotation caught my attention.

“You must understand that life is serious, that it is difficult, that you have to persevere, that you must be confident, and that you must always forge ahead.” [Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, Le Corbusier]

If you visit St. Paul, you must spend a little time in this wonderful bookstore. It is on Snelling Avenue, at Grand Avenue, just across from Macalester College. You could visit the bookstore’s website here.

After my nifty time in Mr. Keillor’s store, I drove east along Grand Avenue and stopped for a late lunch at Salut Bar Américain. It’s the first time I’ve eaten there. My, it was wonderful! I strongly recommend it.

What a nice afternoon in St. Paul!

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Republican Neglect

Here’s one example of Republican extremism on taxes and government services… and what such zealotry can do.
by Charlie Leck

The Republicans will show themselves again, as the budget crisis moves closer and closer, as an irrational group of nut-cases who would let the nation fall in to disrepair and poverty rather than spend sensible money on government services. They are threatening, once again, to shut government down if the other side of the aisle doesn’t approve vast spending cuts in our national budget.

This morning, in the NY Times, I came across a great example of this kind of approach to the American economy. A column by Ross Ramsey, executive editor of The Texas Tribune, Daily Reminder of Texas State Budget Cuts, was reprinted in the NY Times. Think of Texas; and then think of the U.S. under a similar funding policy.

In Texas, the highway department finds itself without adequate funds and will convert a number of Texas highways back into gravel roads…

“The latest transportation idea in Texas illustrates the troubles of meeting the demands of growth and plain old wear and tear in a state where voters think government already costs too much….

“Lawmakers are in a self-made box, stuck between the promises they and their predecessors have made about government programs and services and their own promises to hold the line on spending.

Spoiler alert: they can’t afford to do the things they have promised to provide without crossing the voters in other ways — by raising taxes or fees or borrowing gobs of money.”

The highway department is not alone in Texas when it comes to governmental services stuck without the funds to carry out their routine services. You can add health and human services to the list and some other departments as well. But, when it comes to highway health and repair, the residents and voters of Texas can see with their own eyes what underfunding does to their state.

Now what about education? What about tourism promotion? What about police protection and public safety? What about hunting, fishing, state parks, public transportation, bridge inspection, state universities and a host of other services that only state government can provide?

Multiply this all out to the scope of a national budget and national services and you can see what the Tea Party crazies will do to America in the name of creating “smaller government” and “limited spending.” You want to live in a country like that?

As the debate in Congress heats up in the next few days, talking about debt ceilings and reduced funding and eliminated departments, just give some thought to Texas. Texas is never a good example for civilized people, but there you are…

Right now, in Congress, a strong Republic bloc is threatening to neglect government financing in the fiscal year that begins in October. Such action would, of course, shut government down and leave it unable to pays its bills and its creditors.

In this regard, yesterday, in New York City, the President of the United States gave a severe warning to Republicans…

“The last time the same crew threatened this course of action back in 2011, even the mere suggestion of default slowed our economic growth.”

Of course, this conservative bloc in Congress is disguising its real fight – and that is one to ruin and repeal the President’s health care law. They are consumed by their rage against this law that will allow nearly every single American to hold health care insurance. They, as I’ve said here before, are so determined to stop this law from going into effect that they are willing to bring the nation down and into economic ruin to do it.

Now if this isn’t crazy, then what can it be? This might be regarded as heroic behavior in Texas, but in America it is known to be just plain insane. Insane!

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Now, if you want a bit of extracurricular reading on this very subject, here’s a piece by Paul Buchheit in Nation of Change (Libertarian Writings that Read Like Comic Books) that will fascinate you. Buchheit points out how these crazies just ignore economic facts when they believe the economy can totally take care of itself and it doesn’t need to be tended. Reading this will give you a clear idea of just how dangerous these folks are. This makes for very good reading.

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Congress Brought to a Stand-Still

It is difficult to be a congressional observer these days. I find what is going on in Congress right now ugly, dirty and detrimental to the nation. How bad are your congressional representatives in the House and Senate?
by Charlie Leck

I’ve remarked here, a number of times, that this is the worst Congress ever. The historical accuracy of that statement has been challenged by a number of readers.

Well, there is some statistical data and some historical information to back up my claim. The 112th Congress passed fewer bills than any other in modern history (since we’ve been able to rapidly prepare and print legislation for debate).

The lack of creative activity in Congress can unarguably be blamed on (or credited to – depending on your view point) the radically conservative wing of the Republican Party. Those several dozen members of Congress came there, first and foremost, to be disruptive of the legislative policy.

This radical wing in Congress is devoted to destroying what has become known as Obama Care even though some very bright analysts and health delivery experts see the President’s soon to be implemented health care plan a very workable and efficient means to deliver affordable, quality medical care to the largest number of Americans in history.

This radical element is committed to destroying, disrupting and ending this new health care delivery program before it gets a chance to prove itself and then become routine.

The commitment to destroy Obama Care has taken precedent over all other matters and radical members of the opposition sell their votes to other members of the Congress based on whether or not the buyers will come over to their side to kill the President’s health care plan.

The American people ought to be crying out, “Shame! Shame! Shame!” However, the ordinary guy on the street just doesn’t know what he can do about stopping this radical element. And, I understand that.

These tawdry members of Congress are going so far as to threaten to completely shut-down Congress by not funding it unless enough reasonable members join them in the vote to repeal Obama Care. This has become an irrational motive on the part of these radicals. They really have no substantial and reasonable argument against the new health care program. They just don’t want it implemented.

The Speaker of the House, Republican John Boehner, is just not capable enough to pull his own party together for the sake of the nation’s economic health.

The New York Times calls the congressional representatives who are a part of this movement to kill Obama Care “the shrill voices of extremists.” (read the entire editorial here)

These extremists have brought Congress to a virtual stand-still. And, they are proud of it. Several of them, like the weird one from Kentucky, dream of being President one day. OMG!

UPDATE (Sunday, 15 September 2013 at 8:55 a.m.)
Read GOP's own anger about these Tea Party U.S. Senators

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A Great Leg of Lamb Recipe

Melissa Clark shows off her marinated, butterflied leg of lamb! We here at Sheepy Hollow know great lamb when we see it.
by Charlie Leck

I’ve raved to you before (probably too often) about the wonders of the NY Times. For me, it would be difficult to live without this remarkable newspaper. It’s simply the greatest newspaper I’ve ever encountered. I no longer can get a real, paper edition delivered way out here to our rural address (the NY Times stopped doing that over two years ago), so I must rely on an Internet subscription to its on-line paper. It’s not as wonderful as turning the pages and getting my fingers ink-stained, but boy, oh boy are those videos you can look at on line spectacular.

For instance, yesterday morning Melissa Clark, who does elegant, elegant food and writes about it for the paper, posted a video of her preparation of a butterflied leg of lamb that looked absolutely spectacular. If you are a lamb lover and you want to try a spectacular grilling recipe, I recommended you click here and go watch this wonderful video. You’ll also learn how to do a very creative cocktail to go with it.

To check out a bunch of Melissa Clark’s absolutely beautiful NY Times videos and recipe ideas, go here! There you’ll find video clips of wonderful sounding things like…

Smoky Eggplant Dip with Pita Chips

Steak with Tomatillo-Pineapple Salsa

Bean Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette

Zucchini Tian with Curried Bread Crumbs

Porchetta-Style Pork Chops

Grilled Sausages and Radicchio

Shakshuka (baked egg dish)

Beans with Bacon

And, by the way, if you try Ms. Clark’s wonderful lamb grilling recipe you may indeed include me on your invitation list.

If you wish to learn more about Sheep Hollow at Native Oaks Farm you may visit its web site!

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Good News News

So you want to read something positive and inspiring and hopeful in the newspaper and all you can find is war, crime, corruption and a decaying environment; well, take a look at this terrific story in this morning’s local paper.
by Charlie Leck

In an article by Kevin Duchschere in this morning’s StarTribune [St Paul Food Oasis is a Million-Dollar Deal] I found reason to pump my fist into the air and holler out “yes!”

The article begins like this….

“Tracy Sides had just ordered a quiche, scone and coffee Monday morning at the Swede Hollow Cafe, near her office on St. Paul’s East Side, when her cellphone rang. Heads swiveled. Eyebrows lifted.

“Sides listened, then raised her arms and let out a whoop. ‘We won!’ she said.”

She was definitely not talking about the Vikings!

Tracy Sides, a cheery looking young woman, has a doctorate in public health and works as an epidemiologist, but she’s also an entrepreneur with a good head for exciting and helpful ideas (according to her friends). She and some of her friends entered a challenge contest this year and turned up the winners! The Minnesota Idea Open made the announcement on Monday of this week that Sides had won. The contest concept was to gather ideas “to make St. Paul great.” The three final entries were announced and the public was asked to vote for the grand-prize winner. The idea from Sides garnered in excess of half the 16,000 votes sent in by the public.

So, what’s the prize?
The idea gets a whopping one million dollars from the St. Paul Foundation. The money will be used to bring the idea to reality.

So, what’s the idea?
Ms. Sides wants to turn an old, vacant railroad warehouse, which has sat vacant near a nature sanctuary right inside the city, into an “Urban Oasis.” The building will become “an all-purpose food hub” that will gather local food, including meat, fish and produce, and turn that into healthy and delicious meals for schools and hospitals. It might also reach some homeless shelters and even restaurants and grocery stores. A catering firm will also work out of the building and it will also include a café and classroom where healthy cooking and canning and gardening classes can be taught.

The building is adjacent to the Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary and there is plenty of open field space that surrounds the building – all of it virtually in downtown St. Paul.

This will be a project to keep one’s eyes on. Hope you read the article.

If you want, you can watch a video interview here and also see some visuals of the concept Tracy Sides has for this ambitious project.

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