HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

"MFC!"

,,,,,,,,,,

Wiretappin' - Toe tappin' - Liberty slappin'

Bush: That's right, I'm spying on all you muthafockers, have been and will continue to, whatcha gonna do about it? Broke a law? I ain't broke no goddam law, I listened to my lawyers and they told me what I wanted to hear, so what's the problem? Ya know, I handled this war the same way and it's going just fine ain't it? Unchecked power? Dictator? I completely reject that! You see, in a time of war, we must throw out all of the safeguards that made this country great. I tell ya, after 9/11, America cannot be America anymore. - ,

Ding Dong the Witch is Dead...

Federal judge: Intelligent design unconstitutional

Must be one of those liberal activist judges!

Or not:

"Jones said those who disagree with the decision - the
first-ever federal trial on the teaching of intelligent design - "will likely mark it as the product of an activist judge." But the judge, a Republican appointed to the bench by President Bush, said "this is manifestly not an activist Court."

Ouch:

"In making this determination, we have addressed the seminal question of whether ID is science," Jones wrote. "We have concluded that it is not, and moreover that ID cannot uncouple itself from its creationist, and thus religious, antecedents."

Gaps schmaps:

"The board's attorneys had said members were seeking to improve science education by exposing students to alternatives to Charles Darwin's theory that evolution develops through natural selection. Intelligent-design proponents argue that the theory cannot fully explain the existence of complex life forms."

(snip)

"The Dover policy required students to hear a statement about intelligent design before ninth-grade biology lessons on evolution. The statement said Darwin's theory is "not a fact" and has inexplicable "gaps." It refers students to an intelligent-design textbook, "Of Pandas and People," for more nformation."

There is a gap in the proven theory, so let’s throw the whole thing out! Wizards created the universe man! Or this thing. Wonder why the fundies get all freaky about those Harry Potter movies?

Lies schmies:

"Dover Area School Board members violated the Constitution when they ordered that its biology curriculum include the notion that life on Earth was produced by an unidentified intelligent cause, U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III
said. Several members repeatedly lied to cover their motives, he said."

(snip)

"Said the judge: "It is ironic that several of these
individuals, who so staunchly and proudly touted their religious convictions in public, would time and again lie to cover their tracks and disguise the real purpose behind the ID Policy."

Hold up:

"The Pennsylvania ruling will do nothing to end the battle over the teaching of human origins that has plagued public schools since the Scopes trial of 1925," said Andrew Coulson, executive director of the Cato Institute Center for Educational Freedom. "It, and all the other cultural and religious 'school wars' that divide our nation, will rage on unless we do something about their root cause: our one-size-fits-all government school
system."

So one school should teach one "idea" of science and another school should teach another "idea" of science? How do you teach one set of students that the earth revolves around the sun and another set of students that the sun revolves around the earth? Go ahead, teach nitwit design, just put it in the appropriate place, such as:

"Reinking said the new board will likely move the subject of intelligent design into some undetermined elective social studies class."

Which is exactly where it belongs.

This whole thing reminds me of a certain president and a particular war.

Related links:
Yahoo News
Dover Area School District
National Center for Science Education
Thomas More Law Center
NPR - This is a good article, if you have time click the "Listen" link below the title. It's not directly related to nitwit design, it's more about the construction of the Christian religion.

In the meantime, how does everyone feel having Bush as a dictator? ,

This Week with Bush

Let me sum it up:

We created a huge fucking mess in Iraq.
We claim we are the only ones that can fix this huge fucking mess.
We claim that Iraqi's want to be free and therefore rationalize the intelligence on WMD's that turned out to be totally false.
We must spy on our own citizens, to keep the citizens safe.
We must jail people we suspect are terrorists in order to protect the American people.
We must stand against torture of these suspects, so we ship them to other countries where torture is ok.
Osama bin Laden has paid no price for his terrorist attacks against the United States.
Vote Repubican.

I hear so many conservatives and Republicans bash bush, yet he enjoys a 70% favorable rating among this group.
"He does not represent me"
"He is not conservative at all"

Uh...so why is backed by the voters that say he does not represent them?

It's not looking good for us, no matter what side your on.

Ok, on to more exciting stuff:

Doxdesk.com

Shortly after I bought a home computer, I got bombarded with spyware and viruses. Doxdesk was a place I stumbled on trying to find solutions for my infected box. ("infected box" heh heh)

Doxdesk provided a lot of information that helped me clean my box ("clean my box" heh heh) and help me keep abreast of that kind of thing.

Doxdesk is also a true web log, long before the word blog was formed.
I urge you to visit and get your geek on.

Might as well, between the end timers, insurgents, terrorists, bird flu, tsunamis, hurricanes, floods, droughts, global warming, and these idiots, the end of the world is right around the corner. ,

I'm Shocked!

Study Links Bake Sales, Weight Problems

"MINNEAPOLIS - Schools that run bake sales and let teachers reward students with candy risk having more overweight pupils, a study in Minneapolis suggests."
(snip)
"Lead author Martha Kubik, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota, acknowledged her research doesn't prove that such food practices contribute to adolescent obesity, but there does seem to be a connection."
(snip)
"Her study's results make sense to Kevin Miller, principal of Fair Haven Middle School, which banned bake sales and went junk food-free as part of a districtwide program in the New Haven, Conn. Miller doesn't allow vending machines, and his cafeteria promotes healthy food.
Kids are actually eating apples and oranges instead of throwing them away. And because there aren't any candy wrappers around, he said, "our hallways are impeccable."

Who says common sense is absent in our American society? ,

"Focus on the Family" Freaks

Argh!

"Last week, Focus on the Family withdrew its funds from Wells Fargo, citing "ongoing efforts to advance the radical homosexual agenda," according to a statement by Jim Daly, Focus's chief executive officer.
"Those efforts are in direct opposition to the underlying principles and purpose of Focus, and thus a decision of conscience had to be made and a stand taken," the statement
said.
Focus on the Family's primary complaint was Wells Fargo's support of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. The San Francisco-based financial giant had agreed to match contributions to a GLAAD media campaign fund."

Go here for the rest of the story.

"SUMMARY: Wells Fargo Bank and Ford Motor Co. are the latest targets in a war to punish firms for gay-friendly policies, and, in Ford's case, one right-wing group appears to claim victory."


As Dorothy walks down the rainbow bricked road...
Wingnuts, fundies and bigots oh my!

I wonder what it will take for the human race to evolve to the point where we can call it human, and civilized.

Right now we're just dogs and rats.

Is that a cynical and bitter view? You betcha.

I guess I'm an idealist, I actually believe that humans are capable of getting along, of tolerance, of evolving, of striving for that day when we can take care of each other and celebrate the miracle that is the human animal.
We have such promise, such ability, yet we squander it all on petty matters while pretending they are important matters.


Ziggy Marley, We Propose:

We propose politicans learn, learn, learn
We propose warmongers learn, learn, learn
We propose fascists learn, learn, learn
Open your ears...listen to the people
We propose...
No one is perfect in this un-perfect world

Cripes, and it's only Tuesday... ,

Minutiae Bloggin’

It's the end of the semester for me and between exams, work, family and politics I've become an irritable and bitchy ass, snapping at everyone and everything. In the coming year I will be reducing my class schedule, not obsessing over national politics, starting a new job, and maybe - even- kinda - possibly - almost - thinking about it - dating again. Not sure that last item will reduce stress levels, but we'll see.

Recidivist and Dr. C, as well as the other sites on my tiny blog roll linky list, do a superb job of keeping us informed about domestic and international affairs, so there is no need for me to muddy the waters with my ill-informed opinions and diatribes. My health has been suffering for it. Ha! I'm an angry liberal!

So, I think my little free bloggity blog will become less of a bitchfest and more of a recipe and informational web log. More personal stuff that's fun and light, mostly because I need to laugh at myself and hopefully provide a chuckle or two for those that do visit here, as well as those that happen to stumble across The Pepper Farm.

Enough trivial crap and on to the culinary diversion!

I've had a few gigs at restaurants in my day, plus being a consummate bachelor and loving to eat, my kitchen skills ain't too bad.

First up, one of my favorite Saturday evening dinners.
Have you worked in the yard all day? House cleaning? Chased crackheads out of the park? Well then, perhaps you deserve a sit down with your favorite dark brew and some blackened catfish.
It's pretty simple to put together and make, and anybody with an ounce of sense and taste can do it.
(click on any image for a larger, mouth watering image)

Here's what you need:

I prefer rice and broccoli when making this dish. Of course, those jalapeños rojo came from my garden, but the other items; broccoli, green onions (scallions), and garlic came from the market.

Chop all your stuff up and put in a bowl. It's a good idea to keep it separated and later you'll see why. I steam the broccoli, and sometimes I cut it up and sometimes I don't, that's up to you. Melt the butter in a bowl, and a larger one would be better than the one pictured. Put the rice on to steam, that normally takes about 20 minutes. I like to get that done up front as the rest of this procedure is labor intensive. Start the broccoli once the rice is finished, and let it go concurrently with the rest of the gig. It will be ready right about the same time the fish is ready.

Now, slather the catfish in butter completely, all over. Cover that with the blackened seasoning that you can get at any market. Use anything from Louisana, you can't go wrong.

This dish is best done in an iron skillet, but you can use a teflon coated pan as well, but things tend to burn a bit with that utensil. Also, it's recommended that you do this outside, because there is going to be some serious smoke created. I do it inside and open all my windows. The house stinks for a few days, but I like that smell.

Get that skillet hot as hell. Super hot. Throw the catfish on and stand back. Let it go for about 3-5 minutes on each side, depending the size and thickness of your catfish. No pictures of that part, as it's VERY smoky and quick, no time to play with the camera.

Ok, I'm doing two fillets here, so I wipe the skillet down with a wet towel and start fresh on the second fish.

Once the second fish is done, I throw the jalapeños and garlic in the butter and seasoning that's left in the pan:

After they have sauteed for about a minute or so, throw in the scallions. This keeps the scallions from getting over cooked and soggy.

Now, for the final touch: pour your favorite brew into a mug that's been sitting in the freezer. Normally, Guiness is my preferred beverage, however this go 'round I had a Yingling. It's barely visible in the upper left of the picture below. Spoon out the rice, place the fish and broccoli, and top off with the 'peno-garlic-onion mix and...

Laissez le bons temps rouler! ,