If you haven’t checked out the issue yet here are some cool select quotes from Michael Pollan’s interview. with Organic Gardening:

Pollan on what’s truly organic…

“Organic is in danger of being co-opted. I’ve been on organic factory farms, and if most organic consumers went to those places, they would feel they were getting ripped off. I think organic risks a real crisis of perception if the values that they’re selling don’t accurately reflect the practices they’re engaging in. They’re organic by the letter, not organic in spirit.”

Pollan on First Lady Michelle Obama…

“The future is [people] really making the connections between food and energy and climate change, and food and health care. Watch what Michelle Obama is doing. That’s really important stuff: her emphasis on fresh food. She talks about organic, but she [also] talks about fresh. Basically, getting away from processed food is key. And if you’re eating produce, and it’s not organic, it’s a big step up from eating processed food. All these partial steps are very important.”

Pollan on the question: Can organic feed the world?

“…Even if you can’t feed the world organically, and I don’t know that you can’t—there are very good arguments that you can—even if you just feed half the world organically, you’d be doing so much for the land, so much for our health, so much for the atmosphere, that it’s well worth doing. So the fact that you might not be able to get all the way does not damn the effort to try. And so I don’t think people should be discouraged by that.”

“But ‘can organic feed the world?’ is a question really up for grabs. The honest answer is, we don’t know. I’ve seen research that suggests with really smart rotations and cover cropping there is enough nitrogen to do it. I also think that if we changed our relationship to meat, we probably could.”

Pollan on if he prefers local foods to organic foods…

“No, I don’t. I support local, because in my experience here in California, local is organic…But if I were a supermarket shopper I would, because you can’t meet farmers face to face and you don’t really know what they’re doing, so to the extent people depend on the supermarket and are not interested in the farmers’ market, we need organic. If people are willing to put in more time and like the farmers’ market experience—because it is more than food that’s on offer there—[then] local, definitely.”

The whole “Can organic feed the world question” is a big deal right now with recent slams on organic by the media and Michael Mack, chief executive of Syngenta, a Swiss agribusiness giant that makes pesticides and seeds. Mack noted, “Organic food is not only not better for the planet… it is categorically worse.”  The piece on Mack was run in the New York Times and one of his issues was that organic can’t feed the world, which may have some truth to it, but is not 100% by any means and the theory hasn’t been tested. I like Pollan’s take on that – the whole we haven’t tried, and if we did it would so much better in the long run for the planet and our health and so on. Very cool.

Find the full article “A Conversation with Michael Pollen” in the November-January 2010 issue of Organic Gardening Magazine.

[image via stock.xchng]

Post from: Blisstree

Author Michael Pollan on Organic Food

Do you think this is true? Should women be more involved in healthcare reform because they are the medical decision makers in their family?

Image: Zuma Press

Post from: Blisstree

Women Crucial to Healthcare

George Ball, chairman of Burpee and proprietor of Fordhook Farm says, “The White House Garden has done a great job of showcasing the advantages of growing your own vegetables. In creating our Fordhook version of the garden, we utilized the diagram they provided and created an exact replica. We chose to make some alterations in what we planted in view of soil conditions and typical weather conditions experienced over a long period of time.”

Heirloom varieties and hybrids were both included in the Burpee version of the White House Garden, because the company decided to plant what they felt would produce in greater quantities and superior quality.

Burpee’s White House Garden has an Autumn Garden Tour scheduled – open to the public on September 25 & 26. They’re also considering a special Presidential Luncheon, well, if as Ball says, “We can convince President Obama or The First Lady to attend.”

To learn more about the actual White House Garden watch this video below. It’s excellent and offers some great healthy eating tips too.

You can also watch a cute video on the history of the White House Garden.

[image via business wire]

Post from: Blisstree

White House Garden Replica

The White House vegetable garden is irregularly-shaped. The online version utilizes a new rotate feature to recreate even the stepping stones and non-square edges of the garden beds. The round edges were done using the curve feature. Plangarden plans to maintain the garden views with up-to-date information as the garden plantings change throughout the year.

The company also just released a handy online tool, “Grow Your Own Vegetables – Value Calculator” that estimates the value of produce from your vegetable garden in supermarket, farmer’s market, and organic produce dollars. This can help calculate how much can be saved on groceries as more families are being squeezed in this economic downturn. Variables, such as vegetable costs, can be modified.

(photo credit: Newscom)

Post from: Blisstree

Tiptoe through the White House Garden

Dear Tracee,

What more do you people want?

She’s literally campaigning FOR her opponent. She’s signing over her delegates. Lots of political losers can barely shake hands with the winner.

There’s a certain number of the population who might vote for John McCain now that Barack Obama didn’t pick a woman VP. Especially if John McCain picks a woman as his VP. But, it won’t be because of Hillary.

I’d be lying if I said I couldn’t understand the appeal of this thinking.

At first I thought that’s crazy, it’s the politics. The healthcare, the economy, the war.

Then I thought, wait.

I no longer believe men – Republican or Democrat – are capable of acting in the best interests of women.

Men will act in their own self-interest.

Case in point, my husband voted for Barack Obama, though clearly Hillary Clinton was in the best interest of me, and my position in this economy and the workplace.

If women were that smart, we’d be a hell of a lot better off than we are today. Hell, if women acted in their own economic self-interest we’d have the brass ring of equality.

I don’t care how nice or good the men are or how much they say the right thing.

Women are entitled to be represented in our own government. We’re half the population. We’re half the economy.

It’s not passe, it’s not cliche to want that or to insist on it.

We should stop believing that Democrats are our only hope – we should start holding Republicans equally accountable to women. No one should get a free pass.

Both of these guys better realize that when they talk about “The Economy”
My economy and theirs are two different animals. My economy isn’t even the same as my own husband’s.

I don’t enjoy economic dependance and I’m fighting against it with my vote this year. Since reading The Feminine Mistake , by Leslie Bennetts, I now understand how “The Market” and “Family Pressure” is pushing women out of the workplace.

I, frankly, think that’s dangerous for me, my daughter, this society and our economy.

One of the best things I heard last night, and I believe it was the president of The White House Project, Marie Wilson who said it,

WOMEN are an underused and under-appreciated and underpaid VITAL resource for the economic future of this country.

If you think we can compete on the world stage in science, computer technology, health care, business, or any other industry without utilizing women as a fundamental resource then I think you don’t understand much about our economy, how it works, or the kinds of world pressures it’s under.

Women must stop acting and voting as if we’re okay with being on the clearance rack - 25% Off.

I want to see BOTH candidates offer me equal pay for equal work, I want to see both candidates realize that I want health care whether I work for a corporation or not, I want to see both candidates acknowledge that children exist and must be cared for by all employees. I want to apply pressure to both because it’s in MY best interest to increase my odds of getting it.

With Hillary, I felt it was a sure thing that these issues would get addressed as a high priority. She’s a woman so she gets how different her economy is from Bill’s.

With Barack, apathy while he deals with what HE feels is a higher priority of importance, is no better than the outright disregard of John McCain.

Some have suggested that it could only be a “twisted sense of loyalty to Hillary” that might make people reconsider their political interests.

This ignores the fact that lots of Republican women were willing to cross the Party Line to vote for themselves and their own personal economies, with a vote for Hillary. But may not be willing to do so for a man.

Let me assure you – my vote will come from a place of 100% loyalty to ME and my daughter’s future.

If Barack Obama wants my vote – he better make some promises to women and families. I’m talking about First 100 Days promises, not platitudes.

If John McCain wants my vote – he better make some promises to women and families.

Black Grandmothers

Image Source: Empowering Girls: So Sioux Me, my political loyalties lie 100% in the best interests of me and my daughter’s economics. Momsrising.org - that T-shirt I’m wearing, is applying pressure to both parties to make the economy of women and all families equal to that of men.

Post from: Blisstree

Hillary, Barack, John & Women’s Economy

Michelle Obama gave a pretty good speech last night. I like her more now. Not that I disliked her before, but you know my loyalties with Hillary and all that.

Anyone else watching the Democratic National Convention?

They played Stevie Wonder’s Isn’t She Lovely after her speech. It was a tad over the top. But, it was pretty good love fest last night.

Barack Obama was beamed in via satellite from Kanas City (Here he is Live) to talk to Michelle and the girls. I was irritated by this stage production, Do you have somewhere better to be than in Denver accepting your party’s nomination Barack?

My husband, Jeremy, says they do this via satellite bit at every convention to build anticipation. I am too lazy to look it up to prove him right or wrong. I think its stupid.

Ted Kennedy spoke and brought everyone to tears. He talked about the future, not of the Kennedy past.

The pundits were complaining the whole time that there wasn’t enough negativity and criticism for the other party.

One news guy actually said, “I don’t think Democrats have proven they are very good at negative campaigning. Republicans are brilliant at it. They win. Democrats have not shown tonight, once again, that they are good at negative campaigning.”

Dear God let it be true that Americans will see that it’s more effective and better for us to focus on what we do want, the hope, the triumph, our abilities, our strength than to focus on the failings of other people with other ideas in other parties.

Personally, I’m so sickened by negative campaigning that I hope Democrats will hold the course. The fewer mentions of how horrible The Republicans are the better.

Every time people buy into it I wonder why my fellow Americans are so stupid and easily Fear Pressured into doing crap they don’t really want to do.

I’m sick and tired of both parties starting every sentence, “I could be more effective if Republicans would just . . . “ or “I would do something about this if the Democrats would just . . . ”

No more. Take responsibility by making it YOUR problem if you’re elected.

. Taking a rigid, unrelenting stance on issues (abortion, etc) is a really easy excuse to do NOTHING.

If I can manage to respectfully and effectively deal with people who think differently than I, who disagree with me, every day – then I expect nothing less from the public officials I elect.

Every American in this country is sick. to. death. of. negative campaigning. It’s really just a politician loophole, a built-in excuse, to not DO anything effectively.

Anderson Cooper kept criticizing that much of the evening “made boring television” – as if the function of government is to amuse newscasters, pundits, and the audience at home.

This isn’t trashy Realty TV Anderson, its Democracy. Where “The People” govern themselves. They have to do “boring” votes and party business at a National Convention cause that’s how Democracy works. The action of our nation consists of boring meetings and boring votes. Next time, I’m sure cable news will lobby for a “producer” to take over “the made-for-TV event.”

Got Perspective?

Post from: Blisstree

Michelle, Isn’t She Lovely?

I’m proud of my country because we can admit that we were tragically WRONG for participating in slavery and bigotry and that it still carries consequences to this day.

I’m proud of my country because this year we’re deciding we’re done with our long history of racism and sexism.

I’m proud of my country because this year we’re determined that in the richest nation in the world we can afford healthcare for all of our people.

I’m proud of my country because this is the year that we’re going to pass a Family Leave Insurance Act< /em>, allowing the time families need to deal with birth and illness without nosediving into poverty.

Post from: Blisstree

I’m Proud Of My Country