Yet another power grab.
This time it's school food. Let's dictate to local schools what the kids must be fed.
I wonder what they'll do with someone like Chef Ann Cooper, who has made a career out of coaching local school on more healthful food choices and preparation methods, and also how to save money doing it. "Sorry, Chef Ann, that Grilled Lemon Herb Chicken is not on today's national school lunch menu."
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Sustainability and Government Involvement
This is a continuation of my last post. Like many of my thoughts, the original post became long and rambling.
There's much talk these days about making things sustainable: agriculture, healthcare, economy, growth, fuel... It seems to be a very popular concept.
My first conscious run-in with sustainability occurred when I lived In Madison, WI. Joe was attending grad school at the University and working almost full time trying to make ends meet. I was home with the, at that time, five kids trying to keep the peace. In the name of maternal sanity, my friend, Beth, and I had a tradition of attending the Dane County Farmer's Market most Saturdays. We'd start our Saturday with a cup of coffee from Starbucks. Then we'd mosey our way around the Capitol Square, examining the wares, and visiting, and solving all the problems in our personal lives and throughout the world. It was great fun!
Many weeks there were other things going on around or near the Capitol, various festivals and promotions and demonstrations and rallies. On one Saturday, the first block of Wisconsin Avenue was cordoned off due to some sort of sustainability display. Beth and I walked through looking at the information and all the while feeling somewhat out of place. We discussed the fact that among people who consider themselves politically conservative, there is no voice for conservation or sustainability. We finally got around to acknowledging that by nature, the goal of most political movements is some sort of governmental involvement; and increased government involvement is anathema to the smaller government ideals of thoughtful conservatives.
Now fast forward to last winter, early 2008, that is. I don't think I ever got a blog post done on this, but I read a book by a Rod Dreher called, Crunchy Cons: How Birkenstocked Burkeans, Gun-Loving Organic Gardeners, Evangelical Free-Range Farmers, Hip Homeschooling Mamas, Right-Wing Nature Lovers, and Their Diverse Tribe of Countercultural Conservatives Plan to Save America (or At Least the Republican Party). Yeah, it's quite a title. That's what drew me to it originally. I really still have to chuckle every time I read the title.
I really had high hopes for the book. Finally, a voice for conservation minded people within conservatism. And much of what Mr. Dreher said, I applauded. But, alas, what I heard loudest throughout the book, was an underlying idea that the driving principle of conservative thought is the financial bottom line.
I don't want to be distracted into a big review of Dreher's book. Read it yourself if your interested. I also heard Mr Dreher once on public radio, on Speaking of Faith, I think. And the same idea was insidious. "Anyone who espouses the conservatism that is prevalent today is selfish and greedy and only thinking about money and getting ahead." Surprisingly enough, I have a real problem with that notion.
So what is it about the green or crunchy or sustainable idea do I like? What would I like to see? Here's where I really start to ramble. It's hard to frame so many various ideas succinctly. Let me try. And realize that some of these are pipe dreams, not reality.
In many cases the government involvement is the problem. Take the food supply for instance. Because of government regulations, it is increasingly difficult for local producers to sell their wares to their neighbors. It's mostly in the name of food safety, I understand. But if I'd prefer to risk my health buying my chicken, for instance, from a neighbor than from the grocery store where the chicken has sat for several days after irradiated to enhance freshness and being shipped in for a few days from some farm somewhere at which I have no idea the conditions under which it was grown or handled, if I choose to make that selection, shouldn't that be allowed to. Ooh, run-on sentence, sorry.
Or fresh milk. I was forwarded this article recently. It is written in a somewhat humorous style, but well points out the frustration of which I am speaking.
Again, I could go on and on. And do I have a point? A summary comment? That one morsel of meaning I want a reader to take with him or her?
Sustainability is not the enemy. But government enforced sustainability is. Freedom will inevitable bring better solutions than bureaucracy can provide.
There's much talk these days about making things sustainable: agriculture, healthcare, economy, growth, fuel... It seems to be a very popular concept.
My first conscious run-in with sustainability occurred when I lived In Madison, WI. Joe was attending grad school at the University and working almost full time trying to make ends meet. I was home with the, at that time, five kids trying to keep the peace. In the name of maternal sanity, my friend, Beth, and I had a tradition of attending the Dane County Farmer's Market most Saturdays. We'd start our Saturday with a cup of coffee from Starbucks. Then we'd mosey our way around the Capitol Square, examining the wares, and visiting, and solving all the problems in our personal lives and throughout the world. It was great fun!
Many weeks there were other things going on around or near the Capitol, various festivals and promotions and demonstrations and rallies. On one Saturday, the first block of Wisconsin Avenue was cordoned off due to some sort of sustainability display. Beth and I walked through looking at the information and all the while feeling somewhat out of place. We discussed the fact that among people who consider themselves politically conservative, there is no voice for conservation or sustainability. We finally got around to acknowledging that by nature, the goal of most political movements is some sort of governmental involvement; and increased government involvement is anathema to the smaller government ideals of thoughtful conservatives.
Now fast forward to last winter, early 2008, that is. I don't think I ever got a blog post done on this, but I read a book by a Rod Dreher called, Crunchy Cons: How Birkenstocked Burkeans, Gun-Loving Organic Gardeners, Evangelical Free-Range Farmers, Hip Homeschooling Mamas, Right-Wing Nature Lovers, and Their Diverse Tribe of Countercultural Conservatives Plan to Save America (or At Least the Republican Party). Yeah, it's quite a title. That's what drew me to it originally. I really still have to chuckle every time I read the title.
I really had high hopes for the book. Finally, a voice for conservation minded people within conservatism. And much of what Mr. Dreher said, I applauded. But, alas, what I heard loudest throughout the book, was an underlying idea that the driving principle of conservative thought is the financial bottom line.
I don't want to be distracted into a big review of Dreher's book. Read it yourself if your interested. I also heard Mr Dreher once on public radio, on Speaking of Faith, I think. And the same idea was insidious. "Anyone who espouses the conservatism that is prevalent today is selfish and greedy and only thinking about money and getting ahead." Surprisingly enough, I have a real problem with that notion.
So what is it about the green or crunchy or sustainable idea do I like? What would I like to see? Here's where I really start to ramble. It's hard to frame so many various ideas succinctly. Let me try. And realize that some of these are pipe dreams, not reality.
- I'd like to grow my own food. Without chemicals. Although this constant battle with quackgrass is really making me want to just spray it with something.
- I'd like to be able to purchase locally those food items available locally that I can't grow or raise myself.
- It is hard to understand overproduction in agriculture, which leads to lower prices which leads producers to strive to produce more yet again. Don't get me wrong, I understand the producer's need to break even. I just don't understand the politics and policies that encourage this catch-22 situation.
- I like green spaces: National, State and Local parks, forests, forest preserves, wildlife refuges. I like the idea of these things, as long as the land was acquired ethically.
- I like the idea of renewable energy. I don't know whether I ever posted this, but when I was in Denver last summer, my good friend John, who works at the National Renewable Energy Lab, had just found out his team set a new world record for solar cell efficiency. Also there was a somewhat local man just recently written up in the Thief River Falls Northern Watch for inventing a mini wind turbine that he's trying to market to individuals and small businesses. I can't find a link to anything about him, sorry.
- I am really into re-use. I just don't see the need to buy something new that I can find second-hand.
- Reduce is good, too. Why do we need to fill a five gallon bucket with junk mail each week. And individually packaged anything drives me nuts. Think 10 separate packages of whatever. I think you get my drift.
- I hate the consumerism that leads to the demand for constantly new stuff which encourages producers to produce junk.
- I like the idea of slow foods. I have no proof, but it just makes sense that all the convenience, pre-packaged, artificially colored and artificially flavored and artificially nutrientized foods we eat can't be as healthful as the meals our grandmothers used to cook.
- I'd like it if the health industry could provide more natural advice instead of so much dependence upon pills. Am I thankful for the medical advances God has allowed mankind to make? Absolutely. But better yet encourage individual and societal choices that discourage chronic disease.
In many cases the government involvement is the problem. Take the food supply for instance. Because of government regulations, it is increasingly difficult for local producers to sell their wares to their neighbors. It's mostly in the name of food safety, I understand. But if I'd prefer to risk my health buying my chicken, for instance, from a neighbor than from the grocery store where the chicken has sat for several days after irradiated to enhance freshness and being shipped in for a few days from some farm somewhere at which I have no idea the conditions under which it was grown or handled, if I choose to make that selection, shouldn't that be allowed to. Ooh, run-on sentence, sorry.
Or fresh milk. I was forwarded this article recently. It is written in a somewhat humorous style, but well points out the frustration of which I am speaking.
Again, I could go on and on. And do I have a point? A summary comment? That one morsel of meaning I want a reader to take with him or her?
Sustainability is not the enemy. But government enforced sustainability is. Freedom will inevitable bring better solutions than bureaucracy can provide.
Seeds and Government Involvement
Yesterday I was reading, Seed Sowing and Saving, by Carole B. Turner. I like the idea of saving seeds. I'm not much good at it. Mostly because of the adult ADD thing I laugh about suffering from. I save any number of seeds each fall from my garden or the gardens of friends. But each year, come spring I have no idea where any of them are. Each time I deep-clean an area of my house, I am sure to find an envelope or zip-lock bag of seeds. But sure enough, by the time I need them, they have all disappeared into the morass of my clutter again .
Here is a quote from the above mentioned book that gave me pause. This is from a definition of and explanation for heirloom seeds.
I have nothing against any of this. If I stretch, I can even imagine an argument for the necessity of this as a matter of national interest. Ie, in case of a nuclear disaster, the gov't could then provide untarnished seeds for replanting uncontaminated ground.
So what's my problem? This same goal can be accomplished without government interference. The United States official affiliate with the Millennium Seed Bank, Seeds of Success, is managed through the Bureau of Land Management. There are many independent organizations from around the world involved. From the Seeds of Success website:
Let's go, for a moment, with the argument that a national seed bank is important for national sustenance in case of some major disaster. I did a quick species search on the SOS website. That would be the very extensive list of seed samples they have in the collection. I searched for Zea mays, or corn. Nothing. The seeds are filed by ecoregions. I searched many regions. I even did a little research on the history of corn, since I know it to be a native plant. After reviewing what I thought to be the original ecoregion for corn, I searched a few more regions. Nowhere in this expansive data base could I find a record of a corn seed having been saved. Lots of prairie flowers and noxious weeds and hardwood trees. No record of this staple of American diet.
I didn't check wheat since I figured it would not be considered native to our area. I think it's of Middle Eastern origin.
I guess there goes my hope that if the government is spending our hard earned tax dollars, that they could at least have a valid national security concern at heart.
And I guess I did not have a plethora of responses to the above quote after all. I think three would only be considered a few or several. But definitely not a plethora. It seemed like more when they were all colliding in my brain.
Here is a quote from the above mentioned book that gave me pause. This is from a definition of and explanation for heirloom seeds.
Since the issue of seed saving has been a low priority for most of our elected officials, seed exchanges were set up as a grass-roots effort to preserve plants that have played an important roll in our heritage and may even end up feeding us in the future.OK, I have just so many responses to this. I suppose, for any Three Amigos fans, one could say that I have a plethora of thoughts in response to this sentence. Here are a few that come to mind straight away.
- Good, one area in which the government has shown restraint. I didn't know there was any such area.
- So what the author is showing is that if a need or desire for something exists and the government does nothing, that need or desire can still be met. Creative people, getting together, pooling their resources, can get the job done.
- And, alas, the book was written in 1997, before the Millennium Seed Bank was established.
I have nothing against any of this. If I stretch, I can even imagine an argument for the necessity of this as a matter of national interest. Ie, in case of a nuclear disaster, the gov't could then provide untarnished seeds for replanting uncontaminated ground.
So what's my problem? This same goal can be accomplished without government interference. The United States official affiliate with the Millennium Seed Bank, Seeds of Success, is managed through the Bureau of Land Management. There are many independent organizations from around the world involved. From the Seeds of Success website:
The initial partnership between BLM and MSB quickly grew to include many additional partners, such as botanic gardens, arboreta, zoos, and municipalities.Again, there are always non-government groups and individuals pulling things together and filling needs. And usually it works better that way.
Let's go, for a moment, with the argument that a national seed bank is important for national sustenance in case of some major disaster. I did a quick species search on the SOS website. That would be the very extensive list of seed samples they have in the collection. I searched for Zea mays, or corn. Nothing. The seeds are filed by ecoregions. I searched many regions. I even did a little research on the history of corn, since I know it to be a native plant. After reviewing what I thought to be the original ecoregion for corn, I searched a few more regions. Nowhere in this expansive data base could I find a record of a corn seed having been saved. Lots of prairie flowers and noxious weeds and hardwood trees. No record of this staple of American diet.
I didn't check wheat since I figured it would not be considered native to our area. I think it's of Middle Eastern origin.
I guess there goes my hope that if the government is spending our hard earned tax dollars, that they could at least have a valid national security concern at heart.
And I guess I did not have a plethora of responses to the above quote after all. I think three would only be considered a few or several. But definitely not a plethora. It seemed like more when they were all colliding in my brain.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Favorite Books
When Amy commented on my previous book post, she asked, "What that you have read on that list are your top 5?" I've been thinking about that.
My initial instinct is that few of the listed books would make my top 5. Which led to long meandering musings about what are my favorite books.
Which led to further flights of thought about favorites in general and how many different kinds of favorites there are. Pure pleasure, candy type favorites. Things that elicit a good laugh. Or good cry. Or favorites that challenge spiritually, emotionally, socially, or academically.
I'd have to start with Jane Austen, any of them; I'd be hard pressed to choose a favorite. The Secret Garden, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, both the listed books by the Bronte sisters would definitely make my top five. Oops, I guess thats more than five already. There is also Treasure Island by Stevenson, Tale of Two Cities by Dickens and The Lord of the Rings by Tolkien.
Others I'd add to the list: The Leatherstocking Tales by James Fennimore Cooper, My Antonia by Willa Cather, Darkness at Noon by Arthur Koestler, How Green Was My Valley by Richard Llewellyn, Silas Marner by George Eliot, A Room With a View by E.M. Forster, and a just about anything by Mark Twain. And I know it's not politically correct, but I really like Uncle Tom's Cabin. I suppose I ought to include an A. C. Doyle and an Agatha Christie title, but choosing just one would be difficult.
I enjoyed the Red River of the North series by Laurraine Snelling, the Mitford books by Jan Karon, and the Cat Who ... mysteries. I recently discovered Raymond Chandler's, detective, Philip Marlowe. And I've gotten hooked on these Vince Flynn books. Of course, much to my constant embarrassment, I love the Stephanie Plum books by Janet Evanovich. I also really like Lisa Lutz's Spellman books.
There are also some great children's books that I'd include. I almost wouldn't know where to start. The list included several by Roald Dahl, but missed my favorite of his, The Giraffe, the Pelly, and Me. There are the Little House books, of course. Ralph Moody wrote a similar series based on his childhood, beginning with Little Britches. Where the Red Fern Grows is definitely in my top five. I have yet to read them all, but they are definitely among my favorites. The Ranger's Apprentice series would be right up there.
Jean Fritz has written many, many great children's books; start with The Cabin Faced West. Erik C. Haugaard's Samurai's Tale. Katherine Paterson has several; my favorite might be Master Puppeteer. Linda Sue Park has written several great ones; my favorite of hers is probably A Single Shard.
The Mildred Taylor books are great. Sad and hard to read, but wonderful. Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt and Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith. Not really in the same category, but the Mandie books by Lois Gladys Leppard are a fun series.
Mary Ray has written historical novels a slew of historical novels set in ancient times and up to early middle ages. I liked Beyond the Desert Gate and the Ides of April. I liked The Broken Blade and Wintering by William Durbin. I liked Daughter of the Mountains by Louise Rankin and Seven Sons for Seven Daughters by Barbara Cohen and Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher, The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken and All of a Kind Family by Sidney Taylor. An obscure one I picked up used and really like is Marin's Little Owl by Finn Havrevold.
I also really liked the Jean Craighead George books, My Side of the Mountain, On the Far Side of the Mountain and Frightful's Mountain. The Pye and Moffat books by Eleanor Estes are great. And I've liked nearly everything I've read by Lois Lenski. Also Elizabeth Enright's books. And Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorensen. Anything by Jim Kjelgaard and Walt Morey and Marguerite Henry.
Then there's picture books. My favorite's have got to be anything by Tomie dePaula, but especially Tom and Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs, and Now One Foot Now the Other. The Billy and Blaze Books by C. W.. Anderson. The Snip, Snap and Snurr and Flicka, Ricka and Dicka books by Maj Lindman. The Sneeches and Fox in Socks by D. Seuss. And I love Mary Azarian's woodcut illustrations. There are so many great picture books. Some are beautiful just to look at.
I could go on and on. Bet you can't tell. I haven't even touched non-fiction.
Are you sorry you asked, Amy?
My initial instinct is that few of the listed books would make my top 5. Which led to long meandering musings about what are my favorite books.
Which led to further flights of thought about favorites in general and how many different kinds of favorites there are. Pure pleasure, candy type favorites. Things that elicit a good laugh. Or good cry. Or favorites that challenge spiritually, emotionally, socially, or academically.
I'd have to start with Jane Austen, any of them; I'd be hard pressed to choose a favorite. The Secret Garden, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, both the listed books by the Bronte sisters would definitely make my top five. Oops, I guess thats more than five already. There is also Treasure Island by Stevenson, Tale of Two Cities by Dickens and The Lord of the Rings by Tolkien.
Others I'd add to the list: The Leatherstocking Tales by James Fennimore Cooper, My Antonia by Willa Cather, Darkness at Noon by Arthur Koestler, How Green Was My Valley by Richard Llewellyn, Silas Marner by George Eliot, A Room With a View by E.M. Forster, and a just about anything by Mark Twain. And I know it's not politically correct, but I really like Uncle Tom's Cabin. I suppose I ought to include an A. C. Doyle and an Agatha Christie title, but choosing just one would be difficult.
I enjoyed the Red River of the North series by Laurraine Snelling, the Mitford books by Jan Karon, and the Cat Who ... mysteries. I recently discovered Raymond Chandler's, detective, Philip Marlowe. And I've gotten hooked on these Vince Flynn books. Of course, much to my constant embarrassment, I love the Stephanie Plum books by Janet Evanovich. I also really like Lisa Lutz's Spellman books.
There are also some great children's books that I'd include. I almost wouldn't know where to start. The list included several by Roald Dahl, but missed my favorite of his, The Giraffe, the Pelly, and Me. There are the Little House books, of course. Ralph Moody wrote a similar series based on his childhood, beginning with Little Britches. Where the Red Fern Grows is definitely in my top five. I have yet to read them all, but they are definitely among my favorites. The Ranger's Apprentice series would be right up there.
Jean Fritz has written many, many great children's books; start with The Cabin Faced West. Erik C. Haugaard's Samurai's Tale. Katherine Paterson has several; my favorite might be Master Puppeteer. Linda Sue Park has written several great ones; my favorite of hers is probably A Single Shard.
The Mildred Taylor books are great. Sad and hard to read, but wonderful. Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt and Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith. Not really in the same category, but the Mandie books by Lois Gladys Leppard are a fun series.
Mary Ray has written historical novels a slew of historical novels set in ancient times and up to early middle ages. I liked Beyond the Desert Gate and the Ides of April. I liked The Broken Blade and Wintering by William Durbin. I liked Daughter of the Mountains by Louise Rankin and Seven Sons for Seven Daughters by Barbara Cohen and Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher, The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken and All of a Kind Family by Sidney Taylor. An obscure one I picked up used and really like is Marin's Little Owl by Finn Havrevold.
I also really liked the Jean Craighead George books, My Side of the Mountain, On the Far Side of the Mountain and Frightful's Mountain. The Pye and Moffat books by Eleanor Estes are great. And I've liked nearly everything I've read by Lois Lenski. Also Elizabeth Enright's books. And Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorensen. Anything by Jim Kjelgaard and Walt Morey and Marguerite Henry.
Then there's picture books. My favorite's have got to be anything by Tomie dePaula, but especially Tom and Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs, and Now One Foot Now the Other. The Billy and Blaze Books by C. W.. Anderson. The Snip, Snap and Snurr and Flicka, Ricka and Dicka books by Maj Lindman. The Sneeches and Fox in Socks by D. Seuss. And I love Mary Azarian's woodcut illustrations. There are so many great picture books. Some are beautiful just to look at.
I could go on and on. Bet you can't tell. I haven't even touched non-fiction.
Are you sorry you asked, Amy?
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Books! My Favorite Topic
I saw a list similar to the following on Joe's facebook last night. This is the Top 100 List from a BBC survey of favorite books. From what I can tell, they did this survey several years ago in conjunction with their The Big Read program. Apparently, The Big Read was and still is an effort to promote a higher level of national literacy in the United Kingdom. They have a web site with several links to ideas for starting reading groups based on tackling the Top 100 list.
The list our friend, Alex, posted on facebook was somewhat different, but allegedly it was also the BBC one. On that list, I came out at 39 books of the 100. This list I only got 38. Either way, kind of humiliating for me, since I pride myself on reading lots of classics. I've been on a pulp fiction wave lately. It takes so much less thought. I"ll have to get my nose back to the classics grindstone.
Although I did not find this factoid anywhere on the BBC pages, Alex said that the average person has only read 6 titles. So I guess I did OK from that perspective. But Alex scored 40 and that gets up my competitive dander.
I'll have to request a few from the list for my summer reading. Actually, if I finished the several I have started in the past and read the others that we have here on our home shelves, I'd probably bump that number up to about 60. Who needs a public library when one is a compulsive used book buyer?
I was interested to see His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman, in the #3 slot. That is the trilogy which includes The Golden Compass. The Golden Compass was the movie that generated so much publicity a while back. Allegedly His Dark Materials is a series which is the anti-Christian counterpart to C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia. I've never read any of Pullman's books, but perhaps I should just to see what they're like. I did pull Once Upon a Time in the North off the library shelf once because it had an interesting cover.
I was, of course, happy to see Pride and Prejudice in the #2 slot and to see so many other Jane Austen titles in the list.
You'll notice I marked the ones I've read. Sorry about the goofy formating. I can't figure out how to do a tab on here.
Take a look an see how you score.
So here goes:
Yes 1. The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
Yes 2. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
Yes 4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
Yes 5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
Yes 7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
Yes 9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
Yes 10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
Yes 12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
Yes 18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
19. Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
Yes 22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, JK Rowling
Yes 23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
Yes 24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
Yes 25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
Yes 26. Tess Of The D'Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
Yes 27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
Yes 28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
Yes 30. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
Yes 35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
Yes 36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
Yes 38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
Yes 40. Emma, Jane Austen
Yes 41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
Yes 46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
Yes 47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher
Yes 51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
Yes 56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
Yes 58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
Yes 59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden
Yes 63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
Yes 64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
Yes 70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
Yes 74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
Yes 81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
Yes 83. Holes, Louis Sachar
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
Yes 87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
Yes 90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie
The list our friend, Alex, posted on facebook was somewhat different, but allegedly it was also the BBC one. On that list, I came out at 39 books of the 100. This list I only got 38. Either way, kind of humiliating for me, since I pride myself on reading lots of classics. I've been on a pulp fiction wave lately. It takes so much less thought. I"ll have to get my nose back to the classics grindstone.
Although I did not find this factoid anywhere on the BBC pages, Alex said that the average person has only read 6 titles. So I guess I did OK from that perspective. But Alex scored 40 and that gets up my competitive dander.
I'll have to request a few from the list for my summer reading. Actually, if I finished the several I have started in the past and read the others that we have here on our home shelves, I'd probably bump that number up to about 60. Who needs a public library when one is a compulsive used book buyer?
I was interested to see His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman, in the #3 slot. That is the trilogy which includes The Golden Compass. The Golden Compass was the movie that generated so much publicity a while back. Allegedly His Dark Materials is a series which is the anti-Christian counterpart to C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia. I've never read any of Pullman's books, but perhaps I should just to see what they're like. I did pull Once Upon a Time in the North off the library shelf once because it had an interesting cover.
I was, of course, happy to see Pride and Prejudice in the #2 slot and to see so many other Jane Austen titles in the list.
You'll notice I marked the ones I've read. Sorry about the goofy formating. I can't figure out how to do a tab on here.
Take a look an see how you score.
So here goes:
Yes 1. The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
Yes 2. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
Yes 4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
Yes 5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
Yes 7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
Yes 9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
Yes 10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
Yes 12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
Yes 18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
19. Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
Yes 22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, JK Rowling
Yes 23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
Yes 24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
Yes 25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
Yes 26. Tess Of The D'Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
Yes 27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
Yes 28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
Yes 30. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
Yes 35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
Yes 36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
Yes 38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
Yes 40. Emma, Jane Austen
Yes 41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
Yes 46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
Yes 47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher
Yes 51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
Yes 56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
Yes 58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
Yes 59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden
Yes 63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
Yes 64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
Yes 70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
Yes 74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
Yes 81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
Yes 83. Holes, Louis Sachar
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
Yes 87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
Yes 90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
On Conspiracies
I have recently heard some stuff. I vacillate between being intrigued and inwardly rolling my eyes. I really like to believe that our civic leaders are basically moral people. I don't like to hear that prominent people I respect, even though I might disagree with some of their decisions, are crooks or underhanded or power grabbers.
This is not a perfect world. There will always be intrigue and deceit and manipulators. There will also always be conspiracies. When I keep in perspective that God is in full control, it keeps me from fretting. But even though I am not fretting. I still like to know the truth. I'm still curious. I don't want to be duped. But also, I don't want to be naive.
What am I talking about? Control of world events. Ever heard of the Bilderburgers? I'll let you do a search on them if you want to know more. According to Wikipedia, from a source they call grreported,
Charlie Skelton, of Guardian has documented his experience trying to report on the May 2009 Bilderberg meeting. I've not read the entire series. The first several articles are kind of light hearted.
Politico writer, Kenneth Vogel wrote an interesting article, Bilderbergers Excite Conspiracists. Mr. Vogel appears to write off the idea of a world wide conspiracy in the Bilderbergers, but he also gives objective information about why the group is the object of conspiracies.
Recently my husband picked up a book from the public library, The Rise of the Fourth Reich:The Secret Societies that Threaten to take over America, by Jim Marrs. I don't think Joe read much of it. It was not what he thought it was when he picked it up. I found the title interesting, so I browsed through it also.
The gist of this book is that various secret groups such as the Bilderbergers and the Trilateral Commision, and several others are fronts for the Nation Socialist Part, aka Nazis. And further that these groups have worked to plant members in positions of power here in the US and abroad in order to manipulate the social order.
Interestingly, The Rise of the Fourth Reich author, Jim Marrs also wrote Crossfire: The Plot That Killed Kennedy the book upon which Oliver Stone's JFK is based. My impression is that this movie was pure political fiction. I've never read the book but, my having seen the JFK movie and knowing that it was based upon Mr. Marrs' book did flavor my impression of The Rise of the Fourth Reich.
I just read George and Laura, Portrait of an American Marriage, by Christopher Andersen. I had also read, long ago, Barbara Bush: A Memoir. Both of these books made me really like the Bush family.
I can't say that I know much about the first President Bush. I was only just coming into political awareness during that time. Perhaps anyone following immediately after Ronald Reagan would seem mediocre. But I do remember really thinking highly of him and his wife, as people, after reading Mrs. Bush's memoir.
I am old enough at this point to have more opinions regarding the younger Bush and his presidency. I think he was strong on many things. Really great. He was just the right man to have in power after 9/11. He appointed many strict constructionist federal judges. He kept additional strains of embryonic stem cells from being exploited. On the other hand, he added to the bloat of the federal bureaurocracy in so many areas.
After reading George and Laura, I really like them as people. On so many levels.
I don't want to, (nor do I) think, for instance, that President Bush planned the 9/11 attacks so he could consolidate his power. I don't like to think he was a pawn of some secret global movers and shakers. I don't even believe that he intentionally falsified intelligence in order to move the war on terror into Iraq.
I know this flies in the face of what some of my conservative friends believe. Sorry.
When all is said and done, I have to remember Psalm 2:1-6
This is not a perfect world. There will always be intrigue and deceit and manipulators. There will also always be conspiracies. When I keep in perspective that God is in full control, it keeps me from fretting. But even though I am not fretting. I still like to know the truth. I'm still curious. I don't want to be duped. But also, I don't want to be naive.
What am I talking about? Control of world events. Ever heard of the Bilderburgers? I'll let you do a search on them if you want to know more. According to Wikipedia, from a source they call grreported,
The Bilderberg Group, Bilderberg conference, or Bilderberg Club is an unofficial, annual, invitation-only conference of around 130 guests, most of whom are persons of influence in the fields of politics, business, and banking. The participants talk about a variety of global issues, economic, military, and political.Sounds pretty benign. But as the above linked Wikipedia article also states, conspiracies have followed this secretive group.
Charlie Skelton, of Guardian has documented his experience trying to report on the May 2009 Bilderberg meeting. I've not read the entire series. The first several articles are kind of light hearted.
Politico writer, Kenneth Vogel wrote an interesting article, Bilderbergers Excite Conspiracists. Mr. Vogel appears to write off the idea of a world wide conspiracy in the Bilderbergers, but he also gives objective information about why the group is the object of conspiracies.
Recently my husband picked up a book from the public library, The Rise of the Fourth Reich:The Secret Societies that Threaten to take over America, by Jim Marrs. I don't think Joe read much of it. It was not what he thought it was when he picked it up. I found the title interesting, so I browsed through it also.
The gist of this book is that various secret groups such as the Bilderbergers and the Trilateral Commision, and several others are fronts for the Nation Socialist Part, aka Nazis. And further that these groups have worked to plant members in positions of power here in the US and abroad in order to manipulate the social order.
Interestingly, The Rise of the Fourth Reich author, Jim Marrs also wrote Crossfire: The Plot That Killed Kennedy the book upon which Oliver Stone's JFK is based. My impression is that this movie was pure political fiction. I've never read the book but, my having seen the JFK movie and knowing that it was based upon Mr. Marrs' book did flavor my impression of The Rise of the Fourth Reich.
I just read George and Laura, Portrait of an American Marriage, by Christopher Andersen. I had also read, long ago, Barbara Bush: A Memoir. Both of these books made me really like the Bush family.
I can't say that I know much about the first President Bush. I was only just coming into political awareness during that time. Perhaps anyone following immediately after Ronald Reagan would seem mediocre. But I do remember really thinking highly of him and his wife, as people, after reading Mrs. Bush's memoir.
I am old enough at this point to have more opinions regarding the younger Bush and his presidency. I think he was strong on many things. Really great. He was just the right man to have in power after 9/11. He appointed many strict constructionist federal judges. He kept additional strains of embryonic stem cells from being exploited. On the other hand, he added to the bloat of the federal bureaurocracy in so many areas.
After reading George and Laura, I really like them as people. On so many levels.
I don't want to, (nor do I) think, for instance, that President Bush planned the 9/11 attacks so he could consolidate his power. I don't like to think he was a pawn of some secret global movers and shakers. I don't even believe that he intentionally falsified intelligence in order to move the war on terror into Iraq.
I know this flies in the face of what some of my conservative friends believe. Sorry.
When all is said and done, I have to remember Psalm 2:1-6
Why do the nations rage,We humans can plot and connive all we want. We can be naive on the one hand or duped by a false conspiracy on the other. But when all is said and done, God will sit in His heavens and laugh. We can rest assured that His King is on His Holy Hill. What more do we need?
And the people plot a vain thing?
The kings of the earth set themselves,
And the rulers take counsel together,
Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying,
“Let us break Their bonds in pieces
And cast away Their cords from us.”
He who sits in the heavens shall laugh;
The Lord shall hold them in derision.
Then He shall speak to them in His wrath,
And distress them in His deep displeasure:
“Yet I have set My King
On My holy hill of Zion.
I'm Appalled
This is kind of old news, but I didn't have a chance to write about it when it was fresh. I am sick, sick, sick of the media bias. Bad enough when the regular news is reported in a one-sided fashion. There are plenty of examples of that out there.
But shame on two "non-news" personages last week.
But shame on two "non-news" personages last week.
- Playboy's Guy Cimbalo and his naughty take on conservative women, one of whom is Michelle Bachmann, who represents Minnesotans in Washington. I don't really want to leave any links for this one. If you don't know what I'm talking about and only if you're an adult, do your own research.
- David Letterman and his joke about Gov Palin's daughter. Madhenmom at The Blog I Would Write... has several posts addressing this episode. My favorite is "Sarah and Me", but check them all out. Especially if you want to find out how to make your voice heard.
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