I'm boggled. I'm not a huge fan of Al's, and I can understand why people wouldn't want to listen to him, but not listening to the science behind it seems a little silly.

http://www.theolympian.com/377/story/60208.html

This is actually a global issue, but I wanted to talk a little bit about it and then discuss a more local perspective.

I've been coming into contact with more and more information surrounding The Codex Alimentarius. I'm far from an expert on it, and I'm not certain that I have the time to become one. The gist of the matter seems to be that folks that support The Codex feel that it protects everyone by setting food standards. The folks that don't support it seem to feel that The Codex harms everyone by setting up standards that are not based on health, but are instead motivated by economic trade considerations.

You can read the official stance of The Codex by reading information at the link above.

The other side of the matter can be read about at healthfreedomusa.org, or you can get a slightly bigger "gist" by watching the video below:

So, that is the global side.

Now, I want to talk about the very local side of things starting with the basic family unit.

These new concerns about standards join very old problems as "simple" as hunger.

I'm a big fan of understanding these large issues of legality, but one of the things that strikes me as I listen to all sides of the argument is how very important the home or community garden really is. Deciding to feed yourself and become fully aware of how to do so has become a truly revolutionary and empowering skill.

So, I am interested in hearing from people in the community on this topic.

How can people in our community become more independent in this way?

What groups (such as farms or garden clubs or neighborhood collaborations) help to do this?

What food grows well here without much (or any) need for intervention beyond giving it a space to thrive?

In addition to that, what do you know about how to protect your own water source or how to filter water to make it safer for you without dependance on laws?

If you do deal with commercial sources for gardening supplies, seeds, water, and such...who have you learned to trust for that and why?

Do you have a list of resources or a body of knowledge on local gardening to share?

Ruth Wilson Gilmore, an Associate Professor of Geography and Director of the Program in American Studies and Ethnicity at the University of Southern California will give a lecture "Gender, Race and the Landscapes of Social Justice: Our Struggle to Understand and Dismantle the Prison Industrial Complex," Tuesday, Jan. 23 at The Evergreen State College's Tacoma campus. Gilmore's lectures are at 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. A live interactive video broadcast of the lecture will be available on the Olympia campus at Lecture Hall 1.

The Tacoma campus is located at 1210 6th Avenue.

Gilmore recently completed a book on the political economy of California's significant prison expansion since 1982, and the urban and rural grassroots opposition to the expansion.

The talk is sponsored by the college's 2006-2007 Diversity Series. For more information go to http://www.evergreen.edu/genderandrace/ruthwilsongilmore.html. The lectures are free and open to the public.

Seattle author Jack Hamann will appear January 17 at the Washington State Library

Journalist Jack Hamann, author of the acclaimed nonfiction book “On American Soil,” will speak at the Washington State Library on Wednesday, January 17. The event is free, and begins at 6:30pm. Hamann is a 2007 recipient of the Horace Mann Award, honoring individuals who have “won victories for humanity.”

“On American Soil” tells the true story of the only trial in American history in which black men were convicted of a lynching. The trial stemmed from a riot at Fort Lawton, in the Magnolia neighborhood in Seattle, on August 14, 1944. An Italian prisoner of war named Guglielmo Olivotto was found hanged; the Army eventually charged 43 US soldiers—all of them African-American. What followed was the largest and longest Army court-martial of World War II, prosecuted by none other than Leon Jaworski, who would later go on to be one of the most famous lawyers in American history, particularly for his role at Watergate special prosecutor.

Years of research led Hamann and his wife Leslie to uncover a previously unpublished U.S. Army report in the National Archives. With compelling narrative, the book dismantles the prosecution’s case, and immerses readers in a long-forgotten chapter of Northwest history.

Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. named “On American Soil” the best investigative book in America for 2005. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer named the book one of the ten best of 2005; Barnes & Noble made it an international “Discover Great New Writers” selection.

Jack Hamann has been a journalist for more than a quarter century. His assignments have taken him around the globe, and have earned him ten Emmy awards, medals at film festivals in New York, Chicago, Columbus and Houston, and accolades from the National Press Club and the Society for Professional Journalists, among others. For ten years, he was a correspondent with CNN, primarily with its acclaimed environment unit. He was also the Seattle Bureau Chief for PBS’ NewsHour. He has a law degree from the University of Oregon (1980) and a degree in Economics from UCLA (1976).

I awoke to snow in Olympia this morning, not as much as predicted, but enough to make getting to work difficult. Hopefully city crews will have the streets clear soon.

An international public-private partnership in support of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth is to help schools - at home and all over the world - become safe places where every family can belong, where every educator can teach, and where every child can learn, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation.

In any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: collection of the facts to determine whether injustices exist; negotiation; self-purification; and direct action.