Julio Silpitruca - "La Cumparsita"

My letter to the Texas Water Development Board

Mi familia swimming in Jacob's Well on the occasion of my 50th birthday shindig a couple of years ago...

My letter re: this, to these gentlemen...asking them to repeal the recent decision by the Groundwater Management Area No. 09 [GMA-9] to establish a Desired Future Condition [DFC] wherein the Hays-Trinity Aquifer can be drawn down by thirty (30) feet over the next 50 years.

This action will likely dry up our beloved Jacob's Well, which feeds Cypress Creek, thence into the Blanco River. We're in an "Alarm" Stage drought condition here in the Texas Hill Country - and the economic interests of the few seem to be held higher than the water supply interests of the many...

I have also read recently that given current growth trends, we are on track to actually dry up Lady Bird Lake in downtown Austin and the Colorado River over the next 50 years...

2012 02 29 Alex Long Letter to the Texas Water Development Board

Stop Keystone pipeline before it's too late

http://www.cnn.com/2012/02/22/opinion/turner-keystone-pipeline/

Sent from my iPhone

They walk among us...

This dude is obviously not human.


Impressive Hoop Dance - Watch More Funny Videos

Cortometraggio "Milonga" di Marco Calvise

This just in...an excellent (Italian) short film... a find by my tango field operative Rigoberto Ruiszhik...uploaded just the other day...

Enjoy. It's a good'un. Thanks go out to Rigoberto.




Uploaded by carcasstube on Feb 13, 2012
*Capalbio Cinema International 2011 -- Capalbio(GR)
"Best Director Award"

*Settimo Senso 2011 -- Festival del cinema di Scafa -- Scafa(PE)
"Premio come miglior Corto"

*III Movieclub Film Festival 2011 -- Palestrina(RM)
"Premio come miglior regia"

*Fiati Corti 12 -- Istrana(TV)
"Premio miglior interprete"

*5° Festival Internazionale del Cinema dell'Aquila - L'Aquila
"Miglior Cortometraggio"(cat.Abruzzo)

*6° Festival Cinematografico Cinema & Ciociaria premio "Nino Manfredi" - Frosinone(FR)
"2° Classificato miglior cortometraggio"

Festival di cinema.
Selezione ufficiale:
*TFF - Torino Film Festival 2010 -- Torino
*Bif&st -- Bari International Film & Tv Festival 2011 - Bari
*Cortinametraggio 2011 -- Cortina d'Ampezzo(BL)(fuori concorso)
*A Corto D'Idee 2011 -- Ravello(SA)
*Figari Film Fest 2011 -- Golfo Aranci(OT)
*Trani Film Festival 2011 - Trani(BA)(fuori concorso)
*XIII VideoLab Film Festival 2011 -- Vittoria(RG)
*Premio cinematografico Palena 2011 -- Palena(CH)

Festival Di Tango:
Proiezione:
*I Montalbano Tango Festival 2011 - Montalbano Elicona(ME)
*I Bari International Tango Congress -- Bari
*IX Tano Tango Festival -- Napoli
*VI Choco Tango Festival - Perugia

My letter to the President this morning...

Thanks to Nello Latini for sharing his photo of the White House on flickr!


Dear Mr. President,

Over the past week or so, there has been a great deal of chatter on Facebook about Monsanto, GMO's and Whole Foods.

The entire issue is very confusing and complex, and it's difficult to get at what's actually going on with regard to government regulation of GMO's and biotech companies like Monsanto, Dow, Dupont, Syngenta, et al.

My concern is that unregulated and unsupervised, these companies are potentially harming the environment, the balance of ecosystems, our food supply, and ultimately the health of humans, domestic animals and wildlife. Because of the unknown implications/ramifications of this research and technology (much of which is apparently already being implemented into widespread use) - I feel that a danger exists to all flora and fauna and the ecosystems of the entire planet.

We have many, many very grave issues before us, and I appreciate the monumental job you have before you. When everything on the to-do list is of the highest priority - well, I do feel for the huge responsibilities you face.

If you could point me to an agency website, or if a staffer could fill me in on this (very broad) topic as far as your administration is concerned - your specific policy towards GMO's - and your specific regulatory approvals and other actions within the USDA and possibly other departments (such as the EPA), I would appreciate it.

I'm also concerned about Tom Vilsack's close ties to Monsanto and the biotech industry.

It also appears that several former Monsanto executives/employees have been appointed/hired to key positions within the USDA. Not to question your judgement in this matter, but this smacks of, well, the old "inside the beltway" of doing things.

I would like a specific response to your reasoning behind appointing industry insiders to key positions within your administration - where these individuals may be inclined to steer policy in favor of their former employer/industry, in lieu of steering policy/regulations in a direction that provides the maximum benefit for "We The People" and the (hopefully) wholesome ecosystems we all depend on for healthy life and sustenance.

For reference, here are the two articles that I read on Facebook this morning that prompted this letter to you.

A story that appears to get at the heart of the Whole Foods/Monstato/GMO/USDA matter: http://goo.gl/AUwMe

and from a year ago, an ABC news story about the deregulation of GMO alfalfa: http://goo.gl/o28Nx

Thank you for your time, and keep up the good work. But, and there always is a but, you can do better.

Sincerely yours,

Alex T. Fuego
Driftwood, Texas

(I'll let y'all know when I receive a response...)

Follow up...

Here are two more really good articles from mi amigo Colby:

"Did Whole Foods Sell Out to Monsanto? The Organic Elite Surrenders to Monsanto: Now What?"

and

"19 Studies Link GMO Foods to Organ Disruption"

And lastly, the link to write to the President, your Senators, and Representatives...and State Governors and State Legislators as well...

http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml

Islands at Risk - Genetic Engineering in Hawai'i :: Monsanto Playing God?

Photo by Peter Adams on Flickr...


I would offer that it's not just Hawai'i that's at risk...it's the entire planet, and us along with it.

"We cannot ignore the moral and ethical ramifications of combining species at the molecular level..."

"...(genetic engineering is) crossing sacred barriers...it seems unholy...."

Bio-piracy: Multinational corporations (Monsanto, Dow, Dupont, Syngenta) bought up virtually all seed companies in the 1990's, and with the assistance of the Federal and State governments, and aligning Public Universities to help with additional research (some might say "converting them into their own private laboratories), and conducting genetic engineering research, that is eventually patented and thereby becomes private (corporate) property owned by a few individuals.

"...the end of bio-diversity?..."

"...the vast majority of industrialized nations have banned GMO's (genetically modified organisms) completely...the small papaya farming industry in Hawai'i is dying because Japan, their major market, does not allow the import of GMO's...but not the United States...we are leading the research and development of GMO's..."

Hawaii has more experimental field trials of genetic engineering than any other state in the nation. Just a few of the many examples of permits granted for field trials include:

Corn engineered with human genes (Dow)
Sugarcane engineered with human genes (Hawai‘i Agriculture Research Center)
Corn engineered with jellyfish genes (Stanford University)
Tobacco engineered with lettuce genes (University of Hawai‘i)
Rice engineered with human genes (Applied Phytologics)
Corn engineered with hepatitis virus genes (Prodigene)


I have a bad feeling about all this.


Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Related Info:

The Global Spread of GMO Crops
Inherit the Wind
By PETER MONTAGUE

EarthJustice.Org

Hawaii Seed :: GMO Info

Union of Concerned Scientists :: Food & Agriculture

NPR's "On Being" :: Joanna Macy "A Wild Love for the World"

Joanna Macy - The Great Turning: The Great Turning is a name for the essential adventure of our time: the shift from the industrial growth society to a life-sustaining civilization.

Here is an interesting graphic showing ex-Monsanto employees who are now employed by WeThePeople in positions that in theory they can guide Federal policy to the benefit of Monsanto - or worse - basically corporate spies reporting back to Monsanto. Note that Flickr is blocking me from sharing the image...basically lobbying from within...

Our system is broken...

President Obama's 2012 State of the Union Address - Full Text

My sound card is busted on my laptop and I don't get TV way out here on the eastern fringe of the Chihuahua Desert. So, I couldn't watch President Obama's State of the Union Address. I searched around for the full text - in pdf format so I could download it and print it out and read it in bed - but it was nowhere to be found.

So I created it myself to share with y'all and the world. I expect millions and millions of hits from people wanting to do the same - download/print/read/keep/reflect/ponder/comprehend/actively bear witness to effect change in the world versus passively listen/and begin to act with regard to their own governance...

Yeah right. Anyway, here ya go. Have at it. Nighty night.

The White House President Obama State of the Union Address 2012 Full Text PDF

Sand Cornice

Earlier today I went out to Monahans Sandhills State Park for a quickie look-see. Here's what I saw.



And some video to go along with...



My ears and my asscrack were filled up with 98% pure, 40,000 year old quartz sand.

But it was worth it.

The Internet is Lost :: On SOPA and PIPA

If there ever were a time for us, as citizens of these United States, to engage actively in our own governance, the time is now. Like right now. Before the upcoming Senate vote on PIPA [Protect IP Act] on January 24. That gives us three days to write, or even better, to call our Senators.

The House bill, SOPA [Stop Online Piracy Act], has been tabled for now, but is scheduled to rear its ugly head again in February. So it's important to call (or write) your Congressperson too.

If you're not sure what all the fuss is about, here's a good, balanced explanation from Forbes Magazine titled "What Are SOPA and PIPA And Why All the Fuss?"

Wiki also has a good informational page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:SOPA_initiative/Learn_more

In the C|Net article "How SOPA would affect you: FAQ", the author points out that The Honorable Lamar Smith [R], the right-in-my-backyard House Representative for Texas Congressional District 21, and sponsor of the bill, has an interesting slate of major campaign donors.

Quoting the article, "As CNET reported in December, Smith, a self-described former ranch manager whose congressional district encompasses the cropland and grazing land stretching between Austin and San Antonio, Texas, has become Hollywood's favorite Republican. The TV, movie, and music industries are the top donors to his 2012 campaign committee, and he's been feted by music and movie industry lobbyists at dinners and concerts."

As I like to say with regard to pretty much any bill authored by pretty much any Senator or Congressperson, "FOLLOW THE MONEY".

FOLLOW THE MONEY!

CHORUS: FOLLOW THE MONEY!

It is a sad state of the Republic, that it's the special interests (money) driving most of the legislation in both Houses of Congress. It's the interests of the special interests, that our elected representatives are paying attention to, and not the interests of "We The People".

And as I also like to say, "IF YOU'RE NOT ABSOLUTELY FUCKING LIVID (about your perverted/impotent system of governance), YOU'RE NOT PAYING ATTENTION".

So the time is now to call or write - to help them start paying attention to we the people, and to help them start paying attention to what is in the best interests of we the people.

Personally, I plan to start dedicating an hour or two a week to communicating with my elected officials - both on the Federal and State levels. They are all now in my contacts in Outlook. We dedicate time to ourselves, our partners/spouses, time to family/friends, time to exercise, time to read/listen to music, time to meditate/go to church/bird watch, time for artistic endeavors like photography or dancing Argentine Tango, time to watch sports or other drivel on the boob tube, time to go hunting, play golf, bowl, macrame'/knit (male emphasis here), play video games, shopping at Cabela's or Home Depot and generally if not specifically time for jacking off and reading on the toilet.

Why not time to actively engage in one's own governance? Dedicated, committed time, especially, ESPECIALLY, in these troubled times.

Dedicated, committed, open/mindful, aware, loving time to read and study and write (or call) about the issues we each hold dear. Too many issues? Pick one.

Sorry to get preachy y'all. I'm not preaching to you, kind reader. I'm preaching to everyone. Pleading with the Universe to get with the program, wake up, and take an interest in this world we've created through our profound apathy and inattention.

So here are the links to make it easy...to find your reps and their contact info...


www.opencongress.org

www.usa.gov


And lastly, here is the seed for the title of this post. It's the scene from the film "Downfall" (excellent film by the way) - the scene where Hitler gets pissed off when his generals are telling him they are being overwhelmed/overrun/losing the war. The scene that has been hackneyed on YouTube with folks dubbing in new subtitles to make their point.

The subtitles on this one are gone in a flash, so it's a challenge to follow everything. Some of it is silly, but most of it (the subtitle text) is profoundly true. Not that the Internet could ever actually be "lost" over PIPA or SOPA, but the Internet as we know it, could be.

Bear with it to the end - 4:00 minutes - that's the best part...

Thanks for reading, and make that commitment to call (or write) your peeps in the next couple of days. I thank you, and the citizens of the world thank you, from the bottom of our hearts.



P.S. Plus I'm really pissed that Congress is spending our precious money and time on an issue that really doesn't need to be addressed. The existing laws are possibly just fine, perhaps with some tweakage. I'll share a reply letter I recieved from my representative, Lloyd Doggett in the comments below, that talks about this. My point is that in these troubled times with very grave issues before us - our Congress deigns to squander precious time on needless bullshit. Especially when they are all clamoring for less regulation and less spending and more job creation. These fuckers need to get with the program. And we the people are the only ones who can help them do that.

Just north of Crane, Texas...

RIP Andrea Misse'

Sad, very sad news....

From El Tangauta 02/01/2012:

'With deep sadness we communicate that Andrea Misse died today in a car accident in La Pampa. Javier Rodriguez also reported that her husband and her baby are in critical condition.'

Nature. Beauty. Gratitude. A Good Day.

Best wishes to you and yours...love and light...Alex