Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants

Those words open a great article in the NY Times by Michael Pollan, author of the Omnivore's Dilemma. Pollan examines how nutritionism - the obsession with individual components in food like carbs and fat, for example - causes us to eat poorly and damages our health. Pollan analyzes food trends since the '70s to reveal how pressure from big agriculture and the grocery lobby, and well-intentioned policies at the federal level, have sabotaged the American diet and confused us as consumers. As Pollan notes:

... it’s also a lot easier to slap a health claim on a box of sugary cereal than on a potato or carrot, with the perverse result that the most healthful foods in the supermarket sit there quietly in the produce section, silent as stroke victims, while a few aisles over, the Cocoa Puffs and Lucky Charms are screaming about their newfound whole-grain goodness.

Pollan's view complements those of Dr. Mark Hyman, author of Ultrametabolism, the book and "program" I've been adhering to since last March. Both make compelling cases for a return to eating whole foods, lots of plants, and locally grown, pesticide free produce when possible. Dr. Hyman takes a more medical and scientific point of view in order to explain how various foods and substances are handled by our bodies. Dr. Hyman argues that by eating foods that we have evolved eating such as unprocessed grains, fresh greens and produce, and fish, our bodies will naturally know how to respond, extracting essential vitamins and nutrients, while maximizing our rate of metabolism which keeps us naturally fit and healthy. Conversely, when we eat processed foods that bear no relation to what our bodies have evolved to handle - foods loaded with hydrogonated oils, high fructose corn syrups, preservatives, bleached flours and grains, foods low in fiber, etc - we are confusing the natural systems in our bodies that regulate metabolism and blood sugar levels making it easier for us to gain weight and making us more susceptible to heart disease and diabetes.

Big D does not want fries with that.

The Worst Fate?

People would rather ... than be fat:

Between 15 percent and 30 percent also said they would rather walk away from their marriage, give up the possibility of having children, be depressed, or become alcoholic rather than be obese.

More here.

Inadvertency (yes, it's a real word)

Marty Peretz, war-hawk, Harvard Phd, and co-owner and editor of the New Republic, attempts to a mock a Tom Friedman column but just, well, makes a mockery of himself:

Poor Tom Friedman. He is looking for a Muslim Martin Luther King. There is none, Tom. If one were living on earth, they'd break his windows. Imprison him. Or kill him. Finished.

Thankfully none of that ever happened to MLK. Sigh. Why are these great scholars of history so willfully ignorant of our own country's? (fyi - the Friedman article in question is only available to Times Select subscribers).

Not Sure What I'm Seeing

Seeing by José Saramago (2006)

Seeing is the follow-up to Saramago’s critically acclaimed novel, Blindness. While Blindness was metaphorical and surreal, it was also literal – the characters in the novel literally went blind. Seeing feels much more, almost completely, metaphorical though the events that comprise the story are very real. In Seeing, the government begins plotting against it’s own citizens when the results of a national election reveal that a majority of the population has cast blank ballots. Neither the controlling right party, the opposing left party, nor the central party, gain a majority. The government is both enraged at this act of subversion, and scared. An emergency election the following week produces similar results and the government’s efforts to root out the traitors and subversive elements produce no leads. Though no evidence of organized subversion is found, and though no unrest can be seen in the streets, the government decides to act quickly and authoritatively to root out what it sees as a dangerous cancer growing in the population. Through ill-advised measure after ill-advised measure, the government escalates its war against the unseen traitors, going so far as to abandon and quarantine the city. Weeks into the crisis, an anonymous letter is received by the government which links a key actor from the Blindness crisis, to the current one. A team of undercover officers is dispatched to find, interrogate, and neutralize the suspect. The government turns increasingly desperate, increasingly willing to break the law, manipulating events and the press in order to, if nothing else, turn those citizens loyal to the government against those who are behind the conspiracy. Ultimately the government’s cynicism towards its citizens is overshadowed by it’s miscalculations about them.

Overall, an interesting read but truthfully not the best example of what Saramago offers. That's the view from a fan.

Winged Migration

I finally got around to watching Winged Migration on Discovery HD. It's the kind of program made for HDTV. The photography is stunning. The team behind the film spent four years tracking the migratory patterns of dozens of species of birds traveling through all corners of the globe. Using gliders, balloons, helicopters and planes, the film makers got close up views that will amaze and delight. Watching these birds migrate - some as much as 6,000 miles! - I gained a new found appreciation for birds; for their incredible endurance and determination, for their dedication as parents, and for their role in spreading life across the globe.

Zing

Everyday Superheroes

From artist Dulce Pinzon:

(photo by Dulce Pinzon)

The Mexican immigrant worker in New York is a perfect example of the hero who has gone unnoticed. It is common for a Mexican worker in New York to work extraordinary hours in extreme conditions for very low wages which are saved at great cost and sacrifice and sent to families and communities in Mexico who rely on them to survive.

The principal objective of this series is to pay homage to these brave and determined men and women that somehow manage, without the help of any supernatural power, to withstand extreme conditions of labor in order to help their families and communities survive and prosper.

Party Like It's 1981

This Walmart commercial from 1981 shows breakthrough cassette to cassette copying technology :-)

The cost of $169 (equal to about $375 today), buys a lot more at Walmart these days: a 20 inch TV with built-in dvd player ($148), an mp3 player ($99), and a 5 cd mini stereo ($129).

Afraid Of The Dark? Child Of The '60s?

Then this lava lamp nite light may be what the doctor ordered. Big D isn't afraid of the dark but nonetheless finds this groovy. $10 at Thinkgeek.

Time For Reflection

This conservative writer says Atheists can be conservatives too:

It is often said, in defense of religion, that we all live parasitically off of its moral legacy, that we can only dismiss religion because we are protected by the work it has already done on our behalf. This claim has been debated ad nauseam since at least the middle of the 19th century. Suffice it to say that, to many of us, Western society has become more compassionate, humane, and respectful of rights as it has become more secular. Just compare the treatment of prisoners in the 14th century to today, an advance due to Enlightenment reformers. A secularist could as easily chide today’s religious religious conservatives for wrongly ignoring the heritage of the Enlightenment.

This one reflects, sadly, on his earlier blind allegiance to the Republican push for war:

I had a heretical thought for a conservative - that I have got to teach my kids that they must never, ever take Presidents and Generals at their word - that their government will send them to kill and die for noble-sounding rot - that they have to question authority.

This sort of soul searching is often mocked by the groups these writers most closely identify with though in the following example, the writer seems to not realize just who he his indicting:

It continues to amaze me how the Right so often bucks up admittedly fine, talented and intelligent young men as the would be sages of their age by giving their words such notoriety, when they are so lacking in deeds other than writing - read experience and genuine maturity. And I am not calling Rod Dreher a poseur within the context of his Conservatism, I am calling him that within the context of someone who pretended to have the strength, vision, experience, insight and wisdom to support a difficult war.

I couldn't have said it better myself (as we've noted before, some politicians served their country during their formative years, most in our current administration did not).

On the issue of reflection, these comments should not be that remarkable. When the party and platform you support has failed as miserably as it has, when the president you welcomed as a man of historical greatness is suffering some of the lowest approval ratings of any president in history, when the war you championed - to the point of calling fellow citizens traitors for their opposition - has by many accounts advanced Islamic terrorism beyond anything the terrorists could have done on their own, when your entire platform has been voted out of office by the American people, reflection is good thing.

All emphasis in the above quotes mine.

Damn, I Left My RPG In Saint's Row

Guess I'll just have to hit y'all with my AK:

• My thoughts on the iphone? Wow! But too expensive. Apple develops and builds beautiful and innovative products and while I get a little snotty towards the fanboys, I'm not a hater. But I have yet to feel that what they sell is worth the price premium they charge. Particularly when it comes to phones, for me, less is more. I do have a feeling though, that the non-phone technology in the iphone is going to be incorporated into a lot of other products.
• Speaking of Apple products, a photographer friend once told me that a client in the fashion industry a few years ago was complaining about the quality of the ear phones that came with his new ipod. My friend showed him a pair of (black) Sony earbuds that he had upgraded to. The client responded "but how will anyone know I have an Ipod?" Nuff said.
• My thoughts on the surge/escalation? The Onion has a great solution.
• Saw Matisyahu a couple of weeks ago at the Hammerstein Ballroom. Good times, pleasant aromas.
• Dumb Little Man is a site with good tips on just about everything. Check it out.

Canadian or Regular?

Bearded, earlocked rabbi jumping out of mitzvah mobile: You, you're Jewish -- come in and hear what we have to say.
Shiksa: I'm not Jewish.
Bearded, earlocked rabbi: Yes you are, I can tell. Your mother is Jewish.
Shiksa: No one in my family is Jewish.
Bearded, earlocked rabbi: Maybe no one in your family practices, but Jewish blood is strong, and I can tell you have it.
Shiksa: Leave me alone or I'll throw bacon at you.

via Overheard in New York, Jan 9, 2007

Flavors Of The City

I really enjoyed this Daily News story featuring 100 immigrants from 100 countries explaining why they came to America and what they love about New York.

Tickle Me Evil

The power of Christ compels you!

BBQ And Boobies

Last night I found myself in Fort Greene at 6:00 (half day at the office). I decided to take advantage of the early night by catching Volver, the latest film from Pedro Almodovar starring the spectacular Penelope Cruz. The show started at 7:00 (at BAM) so with an hour to kill I decided to eat and was happy to stumble across The Smoke Joint, a newly opened BBQ restaurant that I remembered reading about a few weeks earlier.

The Smoke Joint is serious about BBQ. Cords of Hickory(?) wood line the entrance. The smell of smoke and sauce get one ready to eat in a jiffy. I ordered a pulled chicken sandwich and a root beer and sat down until my number was called; there is no table service, a welcome nod to those of us preferring speed to service. My sandwich was served on a nicely toasted bun and accompanied by slaw and pickles. The chicken was tender and infused with a minimal amount of smokey sauce. Additional sauce was served on the side. One of the owners was sitting nearby working on his laptop and started chatting with me; the other was behind the counter cooking and serving. The friendliness of the owners and staff, and the quality apparent in what I had has me looking to return to explore more of their menu. My dinner came to $9 and change. The Smoke Joint is located at 87 South Elliott Place (Fulton Street), Fort Greene, Brooklyn; (718) 797-1011.

Now on to the boobies.

Look I'm no film critic* so this review will be brief. Volver is a story about women; mothers and daughters, sisters, and neighbors, the ties that bind them together (namely, cheating husbands), lies, death, and reconciliation. It's funny, well acted, and suspenseful. And there's something about seeing Cruz (even fully clothed) in action that just makes things better. Lest I be accused of misleading anyone, the only naked boobies in the movie are sadly not those of Ms Cruz, however, her cleavage revealing outfits get more mileage than most. If you're a fan of Almodovar, Cruz, well written and acted movies, Volver is a solid choice.

*Speaking of film critics, this may very well be the first and last movie I review (thank me later). Starting very soon, someone with a more serious and informed perspective will be taking up residence in our new Movie Review section. Stay tuned!

I Did It Before It Way Before It Was Trendy

The NY Post writes about lawyers giving up the golden handcuffs:

Young, Gen-X lawyers in their third to fifth year in the business are walking away from their $200,000-a-year positions in record numbers - at times without another job in view.

At the firm I'm currently temping at, the young associates are swamped and varying degrees of miserable. Several (4 out of 9), have spontaneously opened up to me and expressed their deep unhappiness not only with the hours they work, but with the lack of fulfillment they feel with the law in general. They're want to know about temping, I shrug my shoulders.

When I walked away from my career as a big firm associate - the healthy salary, the career I had spent plenty of time and money to join - I was seen by my bosses and peers as reckless, irresponsible and naive. And perhaps I was, I didn't have a job lined up, and though my savings seemed decent, if you really think about what it costs to live in this city, I was essentially broke. But I was miserable and money, prestige, and whatever else came with the job was not fixing that. On the day I left I was surprised at how many of my colleagues, people I knew only through work - hardly good friends - expressed to me a measure of jealousy and envy. I got the sense that they wished they could do it - what I was doing - but Manhattan rents, and family and social pressures made it impossible for them. In some ways I felt lucky at not being part of a social circle where people would know if the firm I was working for was Top 20 or not. In my circle all firms sound the same and I sometimes even get credit (and incredulous looks) for having passed the bar exam on the first try. Needing only to make myself happy, I did.

Five years later I can't say that my path has been without it's problems. And despite my early experiences, I have, for practical and financial reasons, flirted with returning to associate life. Temping is no dream job. It's a paycheck (a decent one), but it's no career and along the way some of the work you will find yourself doing is downright demoralizing. Dave, please count the pages in this stack and make sure there are an equal number of pages in that stack. Yet temping can be a great alternative for those whose interests lie in other areas, or for people with kids to raise, or for people who want to reap the rewards of their education but who don't want to live in the office or check their blackberrys while on their honeymoons.

Super Clever

These rechargeable AA batteries contain a built in USB plug to enable recharging without the need for a separate charger or cables. Big D approves.

Flattery > Douchery

Drunk girl: ...And so Tiffany came over to me and was like, 'Josh is such a douche bag.' And so I was like, 'It's okay, have another drink.' And so she was like, 'Okay. If he comes over here I'm gonna kick him in the balls.' And Josh came over, and he was like, 'Can't you just talk to me?' And Tiffany was all like, 'I hate you, get away from me,' and he was like, 'But you've got a really nice rack,' and so they started hooking up.

Overheard

Learning From The Best?

I don't know if it's because Dems are producing better operatives or have started recruiting from Republican campaigns or what, but it sure does seem like Dems are taking their game way up lately.

Remember Keith Ellison, the American born muslim congressman who's been attacked by various right-wing retards about his planned use of the Koran for his ceremonial swearing in? Check out this gamesmanship:

Rep.-elect Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, found himself under attack last month when he announced he'd take his oath of office on the Koran -- especially from Virginia Rep. Virgil Goode, who called it a threat to American values.

Yet the holy book at tomorrow's ceremony has an unassailably all-American provenance. We've learned that the new congressman -- in a savvy bit of political symbolism -- will hold the personal copy once owned by Thomas Jefferson.

Nicely played, Congressman Ellison.

Then there's John Edwards who recently announced he will be running for President in 2008. On ABC News Edwards deftly labelled the planned - sure to fail - "surge" in Iraq the McCain Doctrine, after the plan's biggest supporter, and not so coincidentally, one of Edward's possible presidential opponents.

Then there's the Macaca brouhaha that helped Jim Webb defeat George Allen for the Virginia Senate seat. Reading this article about how the Webb campaign jumped on Allen's blunder and framed the issue before Allen could defuse it made me think about how deftly the Bush campaign ran with Kerry's infamous "flip flop". For those who don't know, the story about the "flip flop" is that a republican staffer who was assigned to follow Kerry noticed at a campaign event that Kerry had a hard time explaining his votes for the Iraq war. Knowing that Kerry had a propensity to elaborate and confound when speaking, the Bush campaign had a plant at a subsequent Kerry campaign event ask about his votes for the war accurately predicting that Kerry's explanation could be easily distorted. Nicely done, Webb, but you were formerly a Republican so that explains a lot!

Neat - The Stormblade

The future of wind power: more efficient, fewer dead birds.