WalMart’s deleterious effect on the American economy is way more than luring customers away from Mom & Pop’s General Store on Main Street. It’s also cruelly ironic to use “classism” in support of WalMart . (As in: "The anti-WalMart proponents are elitist; knocking the lower-classes who can't afford to buy anywhere else." That paranoid logic is an insult and slap in the face to the now nearly defunct Made In The U.S.A-label and the hundreds of thousands of near-pension-eligible-ex employees who are out of work from companies for whom they’ve loyally toiled behind desks or worked on oft times non-unionized production lines (see: textiles) for 30 years. Companies who've had to close their doors permanently or outsource the majority of jobs overseas because of enormous, unparalleled pressure from the world's largest retailer to tow the WalMart line or suffer the consequences. Jobless, no prospects, with no health care, perhaps no pension and too young for social security, many of these disillusioned folk can now ironically only afford to shop at the very store which put them out of a job in the first place. Perhaps that’s part of WalMart’s plan, too?
I think this article gives a pretty complete description of WalMart’s m.o. and can serve as a background primer for "Organics: Walmart Style" based on their past history.
For the economic-terminology-challenged (myself included), it's helpful to know terms such as “Monopoly” (which is the only one I knew wasn’t just a board game), “Oligopoly” and “Monopsony".
-Monopoly: A market where a seller controls and dictates price and availability.
-Oligopoly: A market of few sellers for a product or service. i.e. multinational corporations that dominate specific products or services.
The main difference between monopolies and oligopolies is monopolies attract a bit too much government attention and regulation for the multinational’s taste.
Then there’s...
-Monopsony: A market similar to a monopoly except that a single, large buyer (i.e. Walmart, which controls the largest proportion of the world retail market) drives prices down by driving manufacturers to slavishly slash their operating costs to the severe detriment of a manufacturer’s profits leading them to either declare bankruptcy or outsource the bulk of their manufacturing to Third World Countries. WalMart has honed monopsony to a fine art.
”Organics” is the hottest potential market. It’s only natural that the world’s largest retailer would salivate at the chance to jump on the bandwagon. But, Walmart doesn’t just want to ride the wagon, chances are it’ll grab the reins, hurling organics down a muddy, dead-end road by undermining quality and purity for profit. Novel? No. But for organic advocates (we are aren’t we?) and organic growers, the potential for dilution of that "organic label" both for U.S. and foreign producers is infinite.
From Eco-Labels.org:
"Originally, the USDA National Organic Program required that all substances used in organic production meet National Organic Program standards. The USDA has since narrowed the definition of substance to ingredient used in organic production. This means that a substance - used in processing that may leave residues but that is not actually an ingredient in the final product - does not have to have USDA approval. " In other words, as long as it’s not used as an intentional ingredient, the residue (pesticide, herbicide, etc.) gets a pass. As long as the alleged chicken has access to a 4x4 outdoor enclosure for 10 minutes a day, it’s considered “free range”. Is it any wonder, then, why so many small & large family organic, sustainable farms have regretfully abandoned the USDA’s organic certification because of the whoring of true organic criteria and More diluted standards.
In light of all of all the aforementioned, here's why WalMart's organi-bubble should be burst.
Once WalMart commences outsourcing (and it will), it’s noteworthy that even the USDA will admit that because of precious few organic certifiers in the field and vast distances between supplier, certifier and retailer, an enormous potential for oversight exists. Especially if the retailer at the reins has golden saddlebags loaded with lobbying loot and foreign certifiers are easily influenced to look the other way.
Even if doubts about WalMart’s foray into organics doesn’t mean diddly to the general population, then the next time you’re checking out at WalMart, take a gander at the person standing next to you in line and wonder if the pair of cheap pajamas, very possibly the only ones you could afford, wasn’t made from the crap Pakistani material that replaced the material that guy or gal or their relative once produced on a loom, 10hour- days , six days a week in a North Carolina, non-unionized mill that now stands quiet, gathering dust. Tough decision, to buy or not to buy? But, sometimes there’s no option. If that’s all you can afford, what are you going to do? Then try to imagine the depression, anger and humiliation that other person must feel if they’ve got the same pair of pajamas in their cart, too. Sad. Very sad.
Sam Walton must be spinning in his grave. He who proudly lauded “Buy American!” on banners upon the grand opening back in Bentonville, Arkansas away back when.
February 18, 2007
February 13, 2007
Cultivating Patience
"Patience" is a virtue. It is also a mainstay for a gardener when it comes to seed starting indoors.
There we sit, seed starting mixture at the ready, seeding containers, cells, plug trays, yogurt cups...whatever...all cleaned and prepped. Tiny tools, spray bottle, fish emulsion ready to dilute when little cotyledons have given way to the first set of true seedling leaves. Heating mats or warmed rooms are arranged and set up. Expensive gro lights or considerably less costly shop lights (one warm and one cool to cover the full spectrum of light) are plugged in. Seeds chosen and journals to record (you do have a journal, don't you?) are at hand. All that's needed now is: Patience. Patience to sow that first little seed.
I've been down that eager road years before and learned the hard way that sowing seed indoors too early can lead to disaster or just a big pain in the neck trying to manage 2-3 foot-tall tomato plants or spindly foot-tall pepper plants or leggy, tangled summer heat-loving herbs like oregano and basil.
Timing is everything. In life and plant life as well. In the life of a soon-to-be-germinated seed, it's crucial to know when it should be sown. As a rule, I don't plan on planting out anything that may be harmed by late frosts, until a week after my last frost-free date. Since that date seems to be getting more and more ambiguous these days thanks to rising and erratic temperatures and the globe's warming climate overall, those FROST FREE DATES must be individually tweaked. Meaning a gardener's eye must be even keener to their previous year's planting-out dates. Most plants placed in its final garden home - even on the late side - will catch up to those planted too early and will stand a better chance of surviving aberrant frost damage, insect and drought conditions as the season progresses. A smaller, stockier plant will overcome even a touchy hardening-off process and better withstand transplant shock. So, I'd rather err on the side of caution and start my seeds later than earlier.
My usual rule of thumb is to consider when I want to ultimately plant out a particular seedling, then count back a week for hardening off and four to six weeks (sometimes eight if the seed needs a longer germinating time) before actually sowing the seed. In a season when my energies and enthusiasm is high, I'll start more seeds and use my 172-plug trays. They take up less space on my heat mats and in their little domed homes. The downside is they'll all need transplanting up to larger cell packs eventually. When I'm thinking a little more rationally and give in to the logic that I can't handle as many seedlings as I used to, I'll start my seeds directly in six or nine-cell packs, under the same conditions as I do for the plug trays. The benefit here is that once these seedlings germinate and begin growing on, they can skip the transplanting process and go directly to hardening off and planting out. The downside is less seeds started. There's a bargain in everything isn't there?
My best advice for first time seed starters when sowing indoors is to count to ten...then count again before dropping that first seed into warm, waiting soil and in eager anticipation of that hint of green to push through the surface into the light. Patience is a virtue to be cultivated as much as you'll need to cultivate those little plants once they've made their debut to the outside world.
There we sit, seed starting mixture at the ready, seeding containers, cells, plug trays, yogurt cups...whatever...all cleaned and prepped. Tiny tools, spray bottle, fish emulsion ready to dilute when little cotyledons have given way to the first set of true seedling leaves. Heating mats or warmed rooms are arranged and set up. Expensive gro lights or considerably less costly shop lights (one warm and one cool to cover the full spectrum of light) are plugged in. Seeds chosen and journals to record (you do have a journal, don't you?) are at hand. All that's needed now is: Patience. Patience to sow that first little seed.
I've been down that eager road years before and learned the hard way that sowing seed indoors too early can lead to disaster or just a big pain in the neck trying to manage 2-3 foot-tall tomato plants or spindly foot-tall pepper plants or leggy, tangled summer heat-loving herbs like oregano and basil.
Timing is everything. In life and plant life as well. In the life of a soon-to-be-germinated seed, it's crucial to know when it should be sown. As a rule, I don't plan on planting out anything that may be harmed by late frosts, until a week after my last frost-free date. Since that date seems to be getting more and more ambiguous these days thanks to rising and erratic temperatures and the globe's warming climate overall, those FROST FREE DATES must be individually tweaked. Meaning a gardener's eye must be even keener to their previous year's planting-out dates. Most plants placed in its final garden home - even on the late side - will catch up to those planted too early and will stand a better chance of surviving aberrant frost damage, insect and drought conditions as the season progresses. A smaller, stockier plant will overcome even a touchy hardening-off process and better withstand transplant shock. So, I'd rather err on the side of caution and start my seeds later than earlier.
My usual rule of thumb is to consider when I want to ultimately plant out a particular seedling, then count back a week for hardening off and four to six weeks (sometimes eight if the seed needs a longer germinating time) before actually sowing the seed. In a season when my energies and enthusiasm is high, I'll start more seeds and use my 172-plug trays. They take up less space on my heat mats and in their little domed homes. The downside is they'll all need transplanting up to larger cell packs eventually. When I'm thinking a little more rationally and give in to the logic that I can't handle as many seedlings as I used to, I'll start my seeds directly in six or nine-cell packs, under the same conditions as I do for the plug trays. The benefit here is that once these seedlings germinate and begin growing on, they can skip the transplanting process and go directly to hardening off and planting out. The downside is less seeds started. There's a bargain in everything isn't there?
My best advice for first time seed starters when sowing indoors is to count to ten...then count again before dropping that first seed into warm, waiting soil and in eager anticipation of that hint of green to push through the surface into the light. Patience is a virtue to be cultivated as much as you'll need to cultivate those little plants once they've made their debut to the outside world.
February 11, 2007
Pesticides & Porn
What do the two have in common you may ask aside from the obvious analogy?
Well, just as those....eh.."magazines", pesticides sold on Canada's Prince Edward Island are now relegated to behind-the-counter-status.
Now, anyone wanting to purchase a potentially toxic pesticide/herbicide must specifically request it and a duly-apppointed, informed store rep must give the consumer proper instructions as to its usage and (hopefully) its potential hazards.
No one's preventing the sale of these items. Just making sure that a consumer really knows what they're getting; whether its appropriate for a specific targeted pest; and how to use it. IMO, these products are dangerous enough, but left in the hands of the ill-informed who might skip over the "use as directed" part of the label, makes these products downright lethal. Kudos to P.E.I.!
Well, just as those....eh.."magazines", pesticides sold on Canada's Prince Edward Island are now relegated to behind-the-counter-status.
Now, anyone wanting to purchase a potentially toxic pesticide/herbicide must specifically request it and a duly-apppointed, informed store rep must give the consumer proper instructions as to its usage and (hopefully) its potential hazards.
No one's preventing the sale of these items. Just making sure that a consumer really knows what they're getting; whether its appropriate for a specific targeted pest; and how to use it. IMO, these products are dangerous enough, but left in the hands of the ill-informed who might skip over the "use as directed" part of the label, makes these products downright lethal. Kudos to P.E.I.!
February 8, 2007
Wolf Slaughter
The proposed slaughtering of all but 100 of the wolf population in Idaho and parts of Wyoming is being considered by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife and the head braintrust leading the government of the State of Idaho, Gov. C.L."Butch" Otter. The Secretary (Kempthorne) has vowed to buy the first ticket (for the mere price of $9.95) to anihilate the first innocent animal.
The very same animals who went through a reintroduction process because of previous near eradication. It seems to be the a pattern in this country: Wipe out (or nearly) a species of animal, mineral or vegetable; moan, groan and boohoo about its decimation and loss to humanity/future generations; then self-righteously reintroduce it; only to commence eradication again. People playing God or just cow-towing to the deep pockets of lobbyists for associations with a stake in this and future slaughters.
Just remember the next time one of you laudable citizens of Idaho or Wyoming who approves this slaughter, when you take your grandkid to the zoo, be sure to remind them it was you who were responsible for putting that last wolf behind those bars because no more now roamed free in the wild. I'm sure your grandkids will be proud of you. Hey, you could always present them with that wolf-skin rug or fluffy tail you no doubt managed to salvage for a trophy.
The pattern will repeat again and again. Minds and values that support legislations and practices such as these will never be changed. And by the time they are, they've long been dwelling in their special rooms in Hell.
It is doubtful that anyone will read this on my lowly blog. But if you read it in time, please sign this petition from The Defenders of Wildlife to be sent to Secretary Kempthorne this petition to save the wolves. If the slaughter has commenced and no number of voices raised in protest has had a positive effect, it is still worth reading of the fate of these helpless, beautiful creatures.
The very same animals who went through a reintroduction process because of previous near eradication. It seems to be the a pattern in this country: Wipe out (or nearly) a species of animal, mineral or vegetable; moan, groan and boohoo about its decimation and loss to humanity/future generations; then self-righteously reintroduce it; only to commence eradication again. People playing God or just cow-towing to the deep pockets of lobbyists for associations with a stake in this and future slaughters.
Just remember the next time one of you laudable citizens of Idaho or Wyoming who approves this slaughter, when you take your grandkid to the zoo, be sure to remind them it was you who were responsible for putting that last wolf behind those bars because no more now roamed free in the wild. I'm sure your grandkids will be proud of you. Hey, you could always present them with that wolf-skin rug or fluffy tail you no doubt managed to salvage for a trophy.
The pattern will repeat again and again. Minds and values that support legislations and practices such as these will never be changed. And by the time they are, they've long been dwelling in their special rooms in Hell.
It is doubtful that anyone will read this on my lowly blog. But if you read it in time, please sign this petition from The Defenders of Wildlife to be sent to Secretary Kempthorne this petition to save the wolves. If the slaughter has commenced and no number of voices raised in protest has had a positive effect, it is still worth reading of the fate of these helpless, beautiful creatures.
January 10, 2007
Pressure Treated Lumber "Cover Up" Nixed By FDA
Despite several missteps, the FDA did one of it's all-too-infrequent pirouettes in the right direction yesterday by denying The Forestry Product's Research Coucil's plea to keep the product ACC (acid copper chromate) from public sale. ACC has been touted as a "protective liquid covering" to be applied to the now (since 2004) banned use of CCA of chromium copper arsenic-treated lumber. Better known as pressure treated lumber. The supposition was that the ACC treatment would "contain" the toxicity presoaked into the pressure treated lumber. The industry had viewed the ACC as a cheaper substitute than what is currently being used. Perhaps. "But at what cost?", asked Jim Jones, head of EPA's pesticide office. The Agency decided the price was too high and the EPA REJECTED ACC
Through urging and protests from environmental groups, ACC was ultimately determined by the agency urging to be loaded with huge health risks, including skin irritation to homeowners, children and contractors working with the preservative. Not the least of which was cancer due to the particularly high concentration of a toxic form of chromate, hexavalent chromium, also known as chromium 6, is a known human carcinogen. The dangers and risks increased especially to workers directly applying the ACC to existing CCA structures and those workers who process the ACC lumber.
So don't let any Big Box or hardware dude or landscape/contractor try and sell you on this stuff. If they try to unload it on you to lighten their inventory or tell you "it's safe", you now know to tell them they are most definitely wrong and defying the ban...and you can back it up with a copy of the story in The Washington Post.
Through urging and protests from environmental groups, ACC was ultimately determined by the agency urging to be loaded with huge health risks, including skin irritation to homeowners, children and contractors working with the preservative. Not the least of which was cancer due to the particularly high concentration of a toxic form of chromate, hexavalent chromium, also known as chromium 6, is a known human carcinogen. The dangers and risks increased especially to workers directly applying the ACC to existing CCA structures and those workers who process the ACC lumber.
So don't let any Big Box or hardware dude or landscape/contractor try and sell you on this stuff. If they try to unload it on you to lighten their inventory or tell you "it's safe", you now know to tell them they are most definitely wrong and defying the ban...and you can back it up with a copy of the story in The Washington Post.
January 8, 2007
Seismic Snakes On A Plane
Scientists in the southern province of Guanxi in China have observed much more useful talents of snakes other than writhing and coiling out of wicker baskets to Kenny Loggins' tunes or slithering around the ankles of Samuel L. Jackson and his fellow passengers on that rather 'rattling' plane ride. (Sam must have fallen behind in some alimony paments.) See: Shake, Rattle and Roll
Apparently the little rattlers can sense a quake is coming from as far away as 75 miles and within at least a five-day notice.
Much like many animals who can detect changes in the earth's terra firma and its atmosphere and exhbit erratic behavior, these reptiles seem to have one definite object in mind when they know a seismic event is approaching: Get the hell out of there as quickly as possible! Leaving nests even in the dead of winter and - if it's a big one on the "Richter Scales of the Snakes", they'll crash into things, other snakes...whatever....just to get as far away from the epicenter as possible.
While snakes apparently have it all over people (and Samuel L. Jackson) in the earthquake prediction department, they do share that similar human trait in the midst of a potential disaster: "Every piece of tail for themself! Outta my way!"
Apparently the little rattlers can sense a quake is coming from as far away as 75 miles and within at least a five-day notice.
Much like many animals who can detect changes in the earth's terra firma and its atmosphere and exhbit erratic behavior, these reptiles seem to have one definite object in mind when they know a seismic event is approaching: Get the hell out of there as quickly as possible! Leaving nests even in the dead of winter and - if it's a big one on the "Richter Scales of the Snakes", they'll crash into things, other snakes...whatever....just to get as far away from the epicenter as possible.
While snakes apparently have it all over people (and Samuel L. Jackson) in the earthquake prediction department, they do share that similar human trait in the midst of a potential disaster: "Every piece of tail for themself! Outta my way!"
Adieu To Another Toxic Pesticide
As of September, 2006, the FDA (in its infinitely circumspect wisdom) has ordered the phasing out of existing inventories of Azinphos-methyl (AZM) by September 30, 2012. Over this time period and at two-year intervals, specific crops will be ordered AZM-free. After all....you don't think the producers of this poison would have totally agreed to this if they had to take a loss by yanking it off the market completely and immediately? AZM Phaseout
The oganophosphate pesticide has been deemed (by the FDA braintrusts) to pose health risks to farm workers, pesticide applicators, and aquatic ecosystems. Something which organic and anti-chemical protagonists have been urging and proclaiming for years. Sadly, the full ban won't take effect for another five years, but...it's something, and this way the poor chemical companies can still turn a profit from their remaining inventories and have that much more time to think of an safer alternative, which they've probably known of for years anyway. Do you think they really care if during the remaining five-year phaseout those people exposed to the pesticide develop symptoms of toxicity? Like getting wounded on the day of armistice and all's fair in love, war and toxic chemicals. Or so they'd have you believe.
The oganophosphate pesticide has been deemed (by the FDA braintrusts) to pose health risks to farm workers, pesticide applicators, and aquatic ecosystems. Something which organic and anti-chemical protagonists have been urging and proclaiming for years. Sadly, the full ban won't take effect for another five years, but...it's something, and this way the poor chemical companies can still turn a profit from their remaining inventories and have that much more time to think of an safer alternative, which they've probably known of for years anyway. Do you think they really care if during the remaining five-year phaseout those people exposed to the pesticide develop symptoms of toxicity? Like getting wounded on the day of armistice and all's fair in love, war and toxic chemicals. Or so they'd have you believe.
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