I'm going to miss Jack Lalanne, who died at age 96 this week. I remember watching him on his TV exercise show when I was a little girl. Jack says "People don't die of old age, they die of inactivity".
Tom Brokaw was on Oprah talking about the soldiers fighting the longest war in US history. Yes, the Iraq/Afghanistan war has surpassed WWII and the Vietnam War…. And currently only 1% of the population is shouldering the burden of this battle. The rest of us go about our lives hardly noticing the new soldier's deaths or injury statistics. I had tears in my eye through most of the show.
Professor Robert Reich will be speaking at the University of Iowa on Feb 1st. I wish I could attend that, but have no plans to be in Iowa City that day. Reich speaks of a different 1% of the US population…. the richest 1% of the population which receives 23 % of wealth, up from 9% back in the late 1970’s. You can read his blogs at http://robertreich.blogspot.com/
I wonder how many of these two 1 percents' people are in both groups..... not many I bet.
I watched the State of the Union speech on Tuesday night. I actually liked the idea of Democrats and Republicans sitting together. I think it got rid of the “pack” mentality… and there was no crazy shouting out this year. A tragedy, the shooting in Arizona, produced some positive energy… it's wonderful when love overcomes hate, at least for awhile.
I hope US politicians are watching closely the protests in Egypt and other countries over there....When the laws only favor the rich and corporations rather than the people, the breaking point comes and things can erupt.
I see on TV that the NE is being hit by more snow... glad we here in Iowa are having a few days of January thaw. (which we never had last year).... I was able to get my Christmas lights down yesterday. It was a perfect day to make a snowman, but I didn't have enough time or energy for that.... I had a cooking project-
Last night it was my mission to make mashed potatoes for the special church neighborhood dinner we will be having tonight. This dinner is in honor of our (Westminster's) new minister and his wife.
I have been assigned to make "party" mashed potatoes for 11 people. Yes, they gave me the "easy" dish.... so why then am I stressing a bit? Well, because I have actually failed at making mash potatoes before... and ended up with paste! Darn, I should of been taking notes at Thanksgiving and Christmas when my Mom made these.... and to think I studied food science/nutrition in grad school. Guess I can't cook unless I am in a food lab with pots, pans and test tubes... and lab rats.
Happy Weekend!
hi Judy, I enjoyed your this and that post.
ReplyDeleteYou ask how many people are in both 1% groups? I would venture a guess that the number would be zero. Those with the most wealth aren't the ones dying over in the wars, they are at home in their comfy mansions, in their fancy cars, while the young men and women with fewer options in life are fighting the rich man's war. It's heartbreaking what is going on in the world, and I agree with governments watching the happenings of Egypt. The people of the world have been oppressed way too long by the elite, and time for them to take back their power.
On a more positive note, your mashed potatoes look yummy, lol! it's one of my fave dishes, and I am sure it will be perfect.
thanks for stopping by my blog, I am glad I could be an 'enabler', lol! I think you will really enjoy the Pan Pastels. Let me know what you think
xoxo
betty