From June 22-28, Just Food, a non-profit organization that works to develop a just and sustainable food system in the New York City region, will be sponsoring “Pollinator Week”, a series of events in Manhattan that highlight the use of local honey in food and drink. In part these events are designed to bring public attention to a drive to legalize beekeeping in New York City.

Kicking off the week will be the First Annual Beekeeper’s Ball at Pier 17, South Street Seaport on Monday, June 22 from 6-11pm. On Thursday the 24th, fifteen Manhattan bars and restaurants will be featuring signature dishes and drinks that incorporate locally harvested honey. On Saturday the 26th, the Union Square farmer’s market will be having a “honey fest” featuring local beekeepers and their wares.

As part of Pollinator Week, I will be one of the speakers at Jimmy’s #43 on June 25th at 6pm. This is a fundraiser for Just Food, admission is $10. The evening includes a screening of “Hidden Hives”, a movie about urban beekeeping. Representatives from the Manhattan Meadery and the Long Island Meadery will be present to let you sample their commercially available offerings. I will be speaking about the art of making homebrewed mead, and may have some of my own stuff for people to try.

No. We WON’T stop.

No. We WON’T shut up.

No. We are not inventing problems that don’t exist. We are drawing attention to problems you WISH didn’t exist.

Problems you don’t want to deal with. Problems you don’t want to acknowledge. Problems that leave widows and orphans, obscene miscarriages of justice, cruelty, theft, murder, lies. Problems that foster the rise of sanctioned organized crime, shadow government, globalist corporate feudalism.

Problems that leave both of our great uncles rolling in their graves, AND YOU DAMNED WELL KNOW IT.

Do you know why the roses were white that you laid on the sacred ground at Buchenwald, President Obama? Do you know who the White Rose were? Do you know the price they paid? Do you know that the White Rose is still alive? Do you know that there are more than a few still ready to pay that price to fight the evil that plagues our world, in this country and elsewhere?

I can always tell when the NY Times has a pearl of wisdom like THIS to offer on it’s front page…

…that it’s time to check Der Spiegel to find out what’s really going on.

And once again the Deutsch do not disappoint, serving up an insightful and thorough analysis of the current state of uneasy politics between the US and Germany. However, not content with that, they further use the opportunity to dish up excellent information on some of the behind-the-scenes globalist machinations that have further served to create tension between Merkel and the Obama administration:

Washington has not forgotten how she thwarted the US Treasury’s attempts to solve the crisis within the forum of the G-20. The Chancellery instead used diplomatic channels to push for a meeting of G-8 states.

The thinking in Berlin was that Germany would have had more influence over G-8 decisions. And that would have meant that China, the world’s third largest economy and the US’s biggest creditor, would not have been involved. However, the US regarded Germany’s stance as unacceptable both economically and politically. In the end Berlin had to back down.

Ever since, the Germans have been shown time and again that things can be done without them. It was the Americans and the British who were behind the push to triple the International Monetary Fund’s lending capacity to $750 billion. The Germans, who had originally specified a lower figure, were persuaded to fall in line.

The IMF’s executive board, on which Germany has a seat, didn’t even get to meet to discuss the issue. It simply had to implement the decision made at the London G-20 summit. For the first time in the IMF’s history huge sums could be doled out without obligations attached. In recent weeks credit lines worth billions of dollars have been granted to Poles, Mexicans and Colombians. A leading IMF employees said: “We have almost no control over how this money is used.”

The fact that Germany is being left out of the loop has registered with Merkel. But she is maintaining her silence. She doesn’t dare enter into conflict with a US president who is so popular in Germany.

You will roll away from this story alone feeling like your brain has just loaded up on an obscene amount of protein and carbs at a Bavarian ski lodge. “Der Fatterland” as I facetiously call it (as I ruefully look down upon the extra 50 pounds I came back home with 18 years ago and was never quite able to lose) has plenty of food for thought these days. They have not forgotten their hard-learned lessons, even if we have. A love of freedom and democracy still burns in the heart of the German people. They do not take such things for granted, even if we do. Let that be the light and sweet Nahe Spatelese which is paired with the delicious and meaty offering of Der Spiegel.

For those of you with less demanding tastes, I leave you to the NY Times, “Randy Kennedy” (WTF?!??!?!??!?) and the excessive perusal of Speedos. Yikes.

Yay! My husband brought me b1rthd4y b33r!

And see what happens when there is b1rthd4y b33r? See? Beware the b1rthd4y b33r!!!

I have a mighty redheaded ex-sergeant from Brooklyn’s size six and a half military issue combat boot for the ass of the ship of state, and I shall apply it repeatedly and well, right the fuck now.

How is it possible that a Nobel Peace Laureate is harassed by Department of Hopeless Insecurity goons ON OBAMA’S WATCH? Why is the Obama administration permitting this fascist behavior to continue?

Nobel Peace laureate Mairead Maguire detained by USA Homeland Security

On Friday 17th May, 2009, Mairead Maguire, Nobel Peace laureate, was detained on her entry into Houston Airport, USA, by Homeland Security Immigration. Maguire was on her way home to Northern Ireland, after attending a 3 day conference in Guatemala, which was hosted by herself and three Sister Nobel Peace Laureates, Rigoberta Menchu, Jody Williams, and Shirin Ebadi. 150 women activists from around the World attended the Nobel Womens’ Conference to discuss, ‘Redefining Democracy, Human Rights and Peace.’

Maguire was held for two hours, during which she was questioned, fingerprinted, photographed and questioned again. This resulted in her missing her flight. She was released upon the actions of the Nobel Women’s Initiatives representatives’ who insisted on her immediate release.

Upon release Maguire said:

‘This kind of behaviour and treatment is unacceptable. They questioned me about my Nonviolent protests in USA against the Afghanistan invasion and Iraqi war. They insisted I must tick the box in the Immigration form admitting to criminal activities. I am not a criminal, my nonviolent acts in USA opposing the war on Afghanistan, and Iraqi, are acts of conscience and together with millions of USA citizens, and world citizens, I refuse to be criminalized for opposing such illegal policies. Every citizen has a right, indeed a moral obligation, to nonviolent civil disobedience in the face of illegal and unjust laws, especially war. If anyone is to be criminalized for these illegal and immoral policies it is the USA Government, who must be held accountable before the International community for these acts of crime against humanity.

Why is the Department of Hopeless Insecurity still operating at all in an era where our economy is teetering on the brink of collapse? The FBI is stepping up it’s RIGHTFUL role in antiterrorist investigation – a role it should have had reinforced immediately after 9/11 instead of being completely subverted by a new, completely unnecessary agency which has only served to harass our citizenry, embarrass our nation and leech our tax dollars. Why do we have two intelligence agencies doing the same job – and why are we PAYING for it?

And the hits just keep on comin’…

Obama Justice Department Sides with Cheney in Valerie Plame Case

One day before President Barack Obama and former Vice-President Dick Cheney gave dueling speeches criticizing each other’s national security policies, the Obama administration supported Cheney in a lawsuit filed against him by former CIA agent Valerie Plame.

Plame’s lawsuit has been dismissed twice by lower courts, forcing her to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Justice Department under President Barack Obama asked the high court on Wednesday not to consider Plame’s appeal, saying “further review is unwarranted.“

A crude but effective way of getting one’s message across to Congress was born several years ago out of my involvement with CodePink: the Wacky Fax. Originally used to lobby Congress on matters of impeachment and war funding, the Wacky Faxen relied on humor to get their points across. Faxzero provides an easy and fast means to lobby Congress from your PC.

Today or tomorrow the Senate will vote on the war supplemental bill. In concert with UFPJ’s National Media Day of Action on Afghanistan I urge all two and a half of my readers (there’s evidently been some serious soul fragmentation out there) to join with me in the sending of this, my latest Wacky Fax creation.

The Senate has already turned back a request from the Obama administration for an EIGHTY MILLION dollar budget to close Guantanamo Bay; a decision I feel is wise since honestly I find it boggling that it would cost that much to close anything so illegal and immoral. The rest of the country is suffering and we simply cannot afford to continue paying extortionate prices to do the right thing with our military. I demand to see justification for such a ridiculous budget. Close the doors, turn off the lights, find the unfortunate people who pulled that duty work somewhere else, send the folks inside either to a fair trial or back home with some form of well deserved wergild, and GO AWAY. This costs that much, exactly why? I think we have a right to know. Let’s see the budget. Let’s see the line items. Let’s see who got the no-bid contracts.

When my family is hit with a car repair or medical bill, we don’t eat. I’ve had to miss meals so that my husband can afford his asthma medication. There have been months where I had sixty dollars to work with for the food budget. I won a small cash prize of $100 last summer from a web site that went straight into the fridge. And we’re actually doing well compared to some.

I think we have a right to know why these military/industrial complex gluttons continue to be allowed to fleece the American public for all they’re worth. I think we have a right to see exactly what’s getting pork barrelled and where this money – money WE NEED coming to US – continues to go. I’m tired of being forced to deal with parts of our government who are still behaving like mafiosi running a protection racket. As Memorial Day and July 4th near, my otherwise formidable ex-military stomach turns as the warmongers ratchet up the hype and trot out that tired old propagandist music. If I never hear “Wind Beneath My Wings” or “Proud to be an American” again it will be too soon. What’s to be proud of? What’s to celebrate? The achievement of MY American dream? The way my entire family’s DoD service has been twisted and turned against the American citizenry on every level, to include me and mine? Proud of sanctioned torture? Proud of warrantless wiretapping and domestic spying? Proud of our collapsing economy? Proud of a complete and total lack of accountability toward the war criminals who pulled off the most vicious swindle of this or ANY century in the entire history of our nation? Oh, PLEASE!

Enough already. Get your Wacky Faxen going on. Use the one I posted here, or make your own.

There’s an outdoor Scandinavian Day festival that takes place around this time of year in a park close to where I was born. We’ve been attending the festival as re-enactors for close to a decade. My husband does double duty as a live steel performer with one group and a fencer with the other, while I perform the role of seidhkona and do rune readings for three bucks.

It’s a small fair, and the only one where I feel comfortable doing psychic readings for several reasons. What I do adds color to the nature of the festival and fits it’s paradigm, so I don’t feel like “being myself” here is pushing anything onto the community that it doesn’t want. It is also held in what I consider to be one of my “odal” or “sacred lands”. The hospital where I was born, the house where my grandparents lived for seventy years and the room where I took my oath of enlistment are all mere blocks from the site.

We generally have good success with the weather, but when it becomes more important to the stupid, the arrogant and the hateful to make the local shamanic practitioner look and feel like a powerless fool, well, there’s going to be rain when rain isn’t really wanted by ANYONE else. It never fails to amaze me how these cointelpro-like cretins claim “victory” and “success” for throwing a monkey wrench into the shamanic work done with the intent to benefit all, but the world is full of paranoid control freaks who would gladly convince the rest of the world that if they can’t do it themselves or exclusively on their terms, it can’t and should never be done. So last year was a day where I had difficulty keeping the rain up and finally ended up losing that battle at around 3:30pm.

This year the morning started out with mist and light rain, but the husband and I packed up anyway and wended our way to Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. There was a lighter attendance than usual, and I despaired of making any money this year (I usually average around $85) but stubbornly set up my double-headed eagle viking chair.

Photo: Miguel Paz

The weather steadily improved to the degree that I ended up coming home with a well-sunburned face and $99. I immediately converted $60 of that to a case of honey that a friend got for me at cost from an upstate apiary. There’s gonna be some mead making this summer at Chez Coles. Several people from last year were only remarkable by their absence, and they were also not missed. “Goodbye Earl”, as the song says…

For some strange reason, while the United Nation’s formal rebuke of Israel several days ago does appear in the New York Times, Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon’s speech yesterday on the 60th Anniversary of the establishment of the State of Israel did not quite make it past the editors. Hold on to your hats…

Few people know that Israel is the only state to be given a conditional admission. Under General Assembly Resolution 273, Israel was admitted on the condition that it grant all Palestinians the right to return to their homes and receive compensation for lost or damaged property, according to General Assembly Resolution 194, paragraph 11. Suffice to say, Israel has never lived up to these terms, and never intended to.

The past cannot be undone, but the future can change. As its newly elected Secretary-General, I promise that the UN will no longer be a passive enabler of genocide. Therefore, I will ask the General Assembly to meet in special session at the earliest possible time to strip Israel of its membership.

Ordinarily, a motion to expel a member nation would have to come at the recommendation of the Security Council, but this is not an ordinary motion. Because Israel is in violation of its terms of admission, it is not a member in good standing, so the UN has every right to declare General Assembly Resolution 273 null and void. Since Israel’s membership depends on adherence to that resolution, its expulsion is automatic.

Essentially, the unavoidable, lamentable truth of the last six decades is that the UN has been a moral and political failure because it has refused to enforce its own rules and defend the Charter. Nothing the UN does can have any value as long as this illegitimate member occupies a place in the General Assembly. I want the UN to have value.

Link to the .pdf file of the entire transcript.

Not for the first time, craft brewing is under attack by the big boys. The Brewer’s Association, a consortium of professional and home brewers and the parent organization of the American Homebrewing Association, has formed a coalition to bring national awareness of issues concerning this industry to the general public. The AHA sent a disturbing message out this morning to it’s members living in the State of New York, which I’ve cut and pasted because it puts it more succinctly than I can. I’ve put it below the fold as non-New Yorkers might not be interested and it’s pretty space intensive. This IS an action alert, so if you live in NY State please take a look.

FINALLY, someone had a good idea about green industry that wasn’t just a bunch of blowing smoke with fancy buzzwords or an attempt to gain stimulus funding and/or sell their book!

Solving the problem of veteran homelessness and the energy crisis in one swell foop is made of nothing but win. Chlorosilane is pleased. She only looks pissed off because she was drawn that way. ;-7

I’ve been looking at the Veterans Green Jobs program, which is loosely affiliated with Obama’s Americorps endeavor. I applied to the program and receive email about opportunities for training as they occur. The next iteration appears to be oriented mostly toward forestry careers. It’s taking place in Colorado and runs from June 1st until August 14th.

The video (linked from Change.org) has it’s cheesy moments as it is interspersed with old newsreel footage, but in general is good and useful information.

Applicants will apparently be expected to be able to deal with living under “in the field” conditions for most of these programs. While I am no stranger to this, a back injury prevents me from being able to do heavy lifting, extended walking or standing. However, it’s not like I don’t have anything to offer once the program moves closer to my area and/or expands into training that will accomodate my existing skill set and abilities.