O:9:"magpierss":24:{s:6:"parser";i:0;s:12:"current_item";a:0:{}s:5:"items";a:25:{i:0;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-2136264071547983703";s:9:"published";s:29:"2007-03-25T11:28:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2007-03-25T11:37:25.278-06:00";s:5:"title";s:10:"Disclosure";s:12:"atom_content";s:2420:"It occurs to me that in the interest of complete disclosure I should state here that I am officially employed by the Becker for SLC Mayor campaign.  So, to my legion of followers and every-word-hangers-on...there you have it.  I outed myself.<br /><br />There is a <a href="http://www.sltrib.com/ci_5517118">very well-written article</a> in Sunday's Salt Lake Tribune about the campaign kickoff tour yesterday, which highlights in particular the depth and breadth of supporters:<br /><blockquote> "Ralph knows we don't live in a citadel," said <span style="font-weight:bold;">Rebecca Chavez-Houck</span>, who helped introduce her Avenues neighbor before a small gathering at City Creek Park. "There is no moat at 21st South. There is no moat at 600 North."<br /><br />Former state Sen. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Paula Julander</span> agrees that the urban planner's temperament, along with his dedication to historic preservation, sets Becker apart from a mayoral field already crowded with 10candidates.  "Ralph's key element is listening," Julander said. <br /><br />...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Tony Milner</span>, a Salt Lake City resident who introduced the candidate at Rose Park Elementary, said it "touches my heart" that Becker would first stop at a west-side school that serves minorities.<br />    "Ralph is one of the very few political leaders that actually gets it," Milner said. "He realizes there's actually a west side to the city."<br /><br />...<br /><br />    <span style="font-weight:bold;">Jon Nepstad</span>, an urban planner who turned out at an early stop with his dog, says he'd like to see more neighborhood connectivity in the capital. His fellow planner, Nepstad says, is up to the job.  "The mayor needs to work in a more collaborative, not antagonistic, way," he said. "[Becker] will do a good job."<br /><br />    The roving campaign camp was also joined by state <span style="font-weight:bold;">Sen. Scott McCoy</span>, D-Salt Lake City, and <span style="font-weight:bold;">City Councilman Eric Jergensen</span>, who both have endorsed Becker.<br /><br />    But for downtown business owner <span style="font-weight:bold;">David Ibarra</span>, the mayor's race is not a popularity contest.  "We have one time to get it right," he said about the capital's planned makeover. "I believe Ralph, with his heavy planning experience, is the perfect match." </blockquote>";s:4:"link";s:49:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2007/03/disclosure.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:121:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=2136264071547983703&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/2136264071547983703";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/2136264071547983703";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:1;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-3540779052819694811";s:9:"published";s:29:"2007-03-17T16:30:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2007-03-17T16:31:43.314-06:00";s:5:"title";s:17:"Becker for Mayor!";s:12:"atom_content";s:48:"<a href="http://www.ralphbecker.com">Go here</a>";s:4:"link";s:55:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2007/03/becker-for-mayor.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:121:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=3540779052819694811&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/3540779052819694811";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/3540779052819694811";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:2;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-4645091880934080589";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-12-30T23:30:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-12-30T23:35:20.280-07:00";s:5:"title";s:11:"Too late...";s:12:"atom_content";s:482:"<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/12/30/mosque.pig.ap/index.html">A man in Texas</a> thought that Muslims wanted his land (?!  Those damn islamo-imminent-domainists at it again!) and in protest staged pig races.<blockquote>Earlier this month, Baker conceded that the Muslims probably aren't after his land, but he said he had to go through with the pig races because "I would be like a total idiot if I didn't. I'd be the laughingstock now because I've gone too far."</blockquote>";s:4:"link";s:47:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/12/too-late.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:121:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=4645091880934080589&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/4645091880934080589";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/4645091880934080589";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:3;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-2154142110046370538";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-12-23T16:01:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-12-23T16:09:11.981-07:00";s:5:"title";s:68:"Gatorade AM: a small yet undeniable sign of the impending apocalypse";s:12:"atom_content";s:438:"So I'm back in the motherland, where apparently the Great Provider is test-marketing a new product.  Or a new, ah, application of an old product.  From the label:<blockquote>Gatorade AM helps put back the fluids and energy you lose during a full night's sleep.  It's the same scientifically proven formula in flavors designed for the morning.</blockquote>Strong indications here that Rove has transitioned into the private sector already.";s:4:"link";s:76:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/12/gatorade-am-small-yet-undeniable-sign.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:121:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=2154142110046370538&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/2154142110046370538";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/2154142110046370538";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:4;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-8976811910614099207";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-12-22T19:43:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-12-22T19:51:56.374-07:00";s:5:"title";s:42:"Tom Wharton on Utah's environmental myopia";s:12:"atom_content";s:1428:"It doesn't look like the Tribune published my letter to the editor (too brilliantly erudite?  too crushingly scathing?  too long?  oh the pain), but <a href="http://www.sltrib.com/outdoors/ci_4875725?source=email">Tom Wharton's recent column</a> at least mentioned the travesty of the state government's short-sighted approach to land use management:<blockquote>    Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. wants to turn over management of thousands of acres of roadless U.S. Forest lands to county commissioners, who too often have displayed only a willingness to exploit land we all own for short-term booms at the expense of a long-term vision. <br />    <br />The Bureau of Land Management seems hell-bent on ignoring its multiple-use mandates in a mad dash to exploit every last drop of oil and natural gas. <br /><br />    In sprawling Washington County, Utah Sen. Bob Bennett and Rep. Jim Matheson want to fuel poorly planned growth by selling public lands. <br /><br />    Utah seems too willing to give up thousands of gallons of west desert water to Las Vegas without a thought as to how it might impact the Great Salt Lake or fragile basin and range ecosystems. </blockquote>Now if only someone would take the fantastically-named "Public Lands Policy Coordination Office" to the mat.  I'm still mostly convinced that the Governor has not closely examined this situation, but has instead relied on the PLPCO to divine policy.  We'll see.";s:4:"link";s:73:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/12/tom-wharton-on-utahs-environmental.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:121:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=8976811910614099207&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/8976811910614099207";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/8976811910614099207";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:5;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-8103492210435829392";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-12-10T22:29:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-12-10T22:36:02.095-07:00";s:5:"title";s:22:"Wilderness = the devil";s:12:"atom_content";s:2444:"I've grown to respect Governor Huntsman over the past year - his principled stances during the 2006 legislative session and his positions on high level waste and the value of education in Utah are commendable.  So I was a little surprised to see that he was essentially getting rolled on the whole roadless forest designation situation.  I'm guessing it has more to do with delegating to a rogue committee than actually reflecting his values.  But I could be wrong.  <a href="http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_4814525">Here's the article</a>, below's my letter to the editor.<blockquote><br />Regarding Huntsman's roadless forest petition (Sunday, December 10):<br /> Once again, Lynn Stevens and the Public Land "Policy Coordination" Office are in knee-jerk reaction mode, claiming that any effort to maintain roadless areas - on federal land, mind you, not state land - is the work of the devil.  It's a shame to think that these "policy coordinators"  are 1) being funded with our collective tax dollars, and 2) horse-whispering into the ear of the Governor the self-aggrandized, simplistic, and utterly short-sighted pablum that passes for policy advice.  From the looks of it, the only coordinating that's happening is a simultaneous nodding of heads of a small group of ideologues at the notion that wilderness is evil and the maximum short-term exploitation of natural resources is good.  Is there any back-and-forth up there in that fifth floor office?  Any real debate?  Anyone up there dare suggest that maybe, just maybe, roadless areas are good for our state's economy because they attract not only hunters and anglers but many other recreationists?  Anyone up there willing to acknowledge that one of the things that makes Utah great is the vast amount of open space, and that slicing it up with more roads not only fragments critical animal habitat but also destroys the very thing that attracts untold numbers of people, as visitors and residents, to Utah in the first place?  Even Idaho's figured that out, apparently.<br /><br />Governor, please ignore this ill-gotten advice.  It does not reflect Utah values, and it serves only the interests of a few polarizing politicians who have long forgotten the intrinsic value of leaving some places alone.  Our economy, our quality of life, and our children's inheritance will all benefit from a thoughtful public lands policy that can actually see the forest for the trees.</blockquote>";s:4:"link";s:55:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/12/wilderness-devil.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:121:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=8103492210435829392&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/8103492210435829392";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/8103492210435829392";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:6;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-3032182507688079995";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-12-10T20:24:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-12-11T20:08:39.887-07:00";s:5:"title";s:39:"Commie beef growing hippy e coli haters";s:12:"atom_content";s:1586:"A couple of articles on the value of eating locally have come my way in the last week or so - illustrating the health (i.e. avoiding e coli), economic, and nutritional benefits to knowing where your food comes from....For instance <a href="http://www.sltrib.com/food/ci_4785097?source=email">from the Salt Lake Tribune</a>:<blockquote>Today, it is called "value-added" meat, but it is really just a return to the old-fashioned way of raising cattle - the way cattle was raised before industrialized farming began more than 50 years ago. </blockquote><br />And from the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/07/nyregion/07prod.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin">New York Times</a>:<blockquote>Today, according to the F.D.A., 35 percent of the fresh fruits and vegetables sold in this country are imported, and the figure grows every year. There are no regulations governing the countries or the plants from which produce is imported. Only 1 percent of the imported produce is inspected, the agency said, and only a small part of that is actually checked for bacterial contamination.</blockquote>But who'd think that paying the extra few cents that it costs to buy local beef or vegetables is worth knowing that your food is 1) safely processed and 2) not laced with hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, etc. etc. ad nauseaum, and that your money is going to a farmer or rancher who lives in your state or at least your country instead of transnational corporate stockholders.  Buncha communist hippies, that's who.  <br /><br />It's a terrible idea, internalizing the externalities.";s:4:"link";s:78:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/12/commie-beef-growing-hippy-e-coli-haters.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:121:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=3032182507688079995&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/3032182507688079995";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/3032182507688079995";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:7;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-5518984472305381928";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-12-02T10:00:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-12-02T10:13:27.339-07:00";s:5:"title";s:25:"Lance on Wal-Mart in Moab";s:12:"atom_content";s:4902:"Is Wal-Mart coming to Moab/Grand County?  If so, what effect would it have on the area?  R. Lance Christie has some insight:<br /><br />A Wal-Mart Supercenter siting in Grand County is likely to damage our overall local economy for two reasons:<br /><br />First, in 2002 the Austin Independent Business Alliance commissioned a report by Civic Economics, an economic analysis and strategic planning  consultant. The question Civic Economics was asked is, has siting "big box" retail stores raised or lowered total tax revenues to the jurisdictions in which the stores were built?<br />The report found that, depending on the siting of the "big box" chain  store, it could lower the total tax revenues to a community from retail  activity. If "big box" chain stores are sited in large shopping campuses  with many different, complimentary stores, overall shopping traffic  increases as shoppers going to one store also browse and buy at neighboring  stores, and total tax revenues go up. If a "big box" chain store is sited  away from a shopping campus of complimentary retail stores, it tends to  draw customers away from other businesses and causes a drop in overall tax  revenues to local government.<br /><br />The Austin report says the reason for the drop in total local tax revenues  lies in what happens to the revenue stream from chain "big box" versus  locally-owned stores. With a chain store, essentially the only money that  remains in the community is that paid to local labor hired by the store.  The rest goes to the national headquarters, with profits being distributed  to shareholders around the world. With a local merchant, more money stays  in the community in the form of salaries to management as well as staff;  purchasing local accounting, advertising and other business services; and  expenditure of some of the profits from the store locally by owners.<br /><br />Second, we are told that an average Wal-Mart Supercenter here employs  between 350 and 500 employees, 70% full and 30% part-time., with full-time  employees starting at an average of $10.59 per hour nationally with health  benefits costing the full-timer an average of $22 per month. Most of the  wages among existing employers in Grand County: hardware stores, banks,  grocery stores, landscapers, as well as the tourism hospitality businesses,  run below $10.50 per hour without health benefits. According to Workforce  Services, 40% of local jobs paid less than $8 per hour this June. In June  there were over 300 vacant jobs, 177 full-time and 38 year-around; 123  offered $10 per hour or less. In 2006 we had fewer warm bodies in jobs in  Grand County than we had in 1999: the workforce is shrinking slightly as  new workers can't afford to move here because of high housing prices,  replacing people who leave or retire. If a Wal-Mart opens here, I expect  we will hear a "giant sucking sound" as the store poaches employees from  existing businesses of all types. This will drive a large number of these  businesses over the edge into closing, because as we learned at the June 22  "labor summit" meeting here, local businesses are already stressed and  faltering from inability to hire enough staff.<br /><br />As was pointed out by Lisa Roman at the labor summit, the official  projection of the number of new residents moving into Grand County by 2010  is less than the number of vacant jobs now, even if all the new residents  were available for workforce employment here. In fact, these are folks who  can afford to pay the Grand County median new house price of a quarter  million dollars with money they earn from somewhere else, and except for a  few teenage kids, my bet is that none of the new resident family members in  the next four years will end up in a job here. None of the non-resident  people who bought new houses here since 2000 have taken workforce jobs here.<br /><br />The "bottom line" is that, if Wal-Mart opens here, it will be on an  isolated campus north or south of Moab, it will compete with all local  employers for a shrinking workforce, and it will likely cause a net  reduction in local tax revenues even if overall county retail sales  increase. Under these conditions, local governments should not offer any  inducements or bend any rules to get a Wal-Mart to open here. If Wal-Mart  can find a suitable site for an acceptable price and build on it without  getting any zoning changes or variances, so be it - they are entitled to  equal treatment under the law. But it is clear to me that a Wal-Mart would  have a negative effect on our local economy overall because of our peculiar  local housing and labor conditions, and we should discourage a store siting  here by any legal means available.<br /><br />Sincerely yours,  <br />Lance Christie, Moab  <br /><br /><br />December 2, 2006<br />Letters to the People<br />Moab Times-Independent<br /><br />Dear friends,";s:4:"link";s:64:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/12/lance-on-wal-mart-in-moab.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:121:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=5518984472305381928&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/5518984472305381928";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/5518984472305381928";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:8;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-3037189010161398612";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-11-21T10:12:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-11-21T10:24:19.085-07:00";s:5:"title";s:14:"Land ownership";s:12:"atom_content";s:1635:"From the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/21/world/middleeast/21land.html?hp&ex=1164171600&amp;en=2e03da87b76e6581&ei=5094&amp;partner=homepage">New York Times today:<br /></a><br /><blockquote>The definitions of private and state land are complicated, given different administrations of the West Bank going back to the Ottoman Empire, the British mandate, Jordan and now Israel. During the Ottoman Empire, only small areas of the West Bank were registered to specific owners, and often villagers would hold land in common to avoid taxes. The British began a more formal land registry based on land use, taxation or house ownership that continued through the Jordanian period.<br /><br />Large areas of agricultural land are registered as state land; other areas were requisitioned or seized by the Israeli military after 1967 for security purposes, but such requisitions are meant to be temporary and must be renewed, and do not change the legal ownership of the land, Mr. Dror, the Civil Administration spokesman, said.<br /><br /></blockquote>As this article implies, land ownership in the Middle East is a major point of contention - though not just in the Occupied Territories.  The American model of property and its attendant rights is not by a long shot universal, even among western nations. <br /><br />Maybe this will raise the profile of this issue as it relates to depressed/nonexistent local economies, social anomie, and the development of insurgencies and terrorism in the middle east.  To me, land reform is a fundamental but frequently neglected component of any strategy for addressing the roots of terrorism.";s:4:"link";s:53:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/11/land-ownership.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:121:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=3037189010161398612&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/3037189010161398612";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/3037189010161398612";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:9;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-116395742886430730";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-11-19T10:22:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-11-19T10:30:28.886-07:00";s:5:"title";s:41:"Thanksgiving brings a focus to local food";s:12:"atom_content";s:843:"The Salt Lake Tribune has a series of articles on local and organic food in today's edition:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_4687472?source=rv">Buying from local farm takes root in Utah</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.sltrib.com/ci_4687470">From farm to feast: How healthful is your meal? How local? How safe?</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.sltrib.com/ci_4687471">Avoid the 'Dirty Dozen,' buy organic</a><br /><br />It's incredibly vindicating to see these ideas becoming so mainstream.  The e coli scare this summer may have been the tipping point, but better that than a more comprehensive disruption in supply from any of a number of other causes. <br /><br />Supporting local food production should be a no-brainer for our legislators as well; if we should be subsidizing anything, it should be local food systems.";s:4:"link";s:73:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/11/thanksgiving-brings-focus-to-local.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=116395742886430730&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/116395742886430730";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/116395742886430730";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:10;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-116188480870727992";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-10-26T11:55:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-10-26T11:57:42.733-06:00";s:5:"title";s:59:"Statement in support of the Utah Family Farm Protection Act";s:12:"atom_content";s:3713:"Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the proposed Utah Family Farming Act. <br /><br />First, of course, I’d like to thank Chairman Skibine for his thoughtful and understated leadership during this latest legislative session; I know I speak for us all when I note that without his presence, none of us would be here today. So, thank you Mr. Chairman.<br /><br />Second, I must direct your attention to a quiet epidemic. Across America, the family farm – that is, agricultural operations that are owned and operated by people, not corporations – are being wiped out. In the last 25 years, 750,000 family farms have disappeared; as transnational corporations have taken over, they have eliminated over a million rural jobs in farming. And for what? A few cents saved on a pound of chuck roast? The convenience of strawberries in February? I submit to you that some things are more important than a bottom-dollar hamburger and access to exotic fruits year round, and primary among them is the quality of life that family farms provide – not just to the farmers and their families, but to all of us who live in this state.<br /><br />The proposed Utah Family Farm Act will prohibit further corporatization of agriculture in Utah. Current corporately-owned operations will, of course, be allowed to continue. But no new corporate farming or ranching operations will be permitted. Additionally, incentives will be established to encourage startup family farms and ranches, as well as for the conversion of current corporate operations to locally-owned businesses. It’s time to retake our farmlands back from out of state, even out of country faceless corporate boards who couldn’t care less about the health of local communities – both rural and urban – here in Utah.<br /><br />I should note that we are not out on a huge limb here: at least nine other states have enacted similar legislation, and one – Nebraska, that radical bastion of lefty nuttiness – added a strong family farming provision to its constitution. And while Utahns are certainly not interested in further government regulation of their businesses, this proposed Act only strengthens our citizens’ rights as in-state business owners and community members by protecting them from amoral out of state corporate invasion.<br /><br />Furthermore, by saving family farms, we save ourselves. Centralized agribusiness operations are vulnerable to widespread contamination – eaten spinach lately? – and, as outgoing Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson noted in his final address, particularly to terrorist attack. Decentralized, locally-oriented farms are far more responsive to their communities both in terms of human health (who’s going to be able to tell you exactly what kind of fertilizer is being used on the leafy greens you eat, your neighbor the farmer or the multinational corporate executive overseeing millions of tons of production a month) and economic vitality (a dollar for your neighbor’s pork chops stays in the community, supporting local schools and other local businesses and their families).<br /><br />This bill is, I hope, the first in a series that will provide state leadership for local agriculture in Utah. It strikes at one aspect of the problem: out of state, shareholder-driven, Wall Street-obsessed agribusinesses that are increasingly dominating the state’s agriculture. By making additional non-family corporate ownership of farms illegal, this bill brings hope to Utah families that are the backbone of both our culture and our existence. Because, after all, without food, there is no life.<br /><br />Mr. Speaker, I urge support for this bill, and in doing so, yield the floor.";s:4:"link";s:74:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/10/statement-in-support-of-utah-family.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=116188480870727992&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/116188480870727992";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/116188480870727992";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:11;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-116188512396506512";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-10-26T11:47:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-10-26T11:52:04.016-06:00";s:5:"title";s:62:"Legislation as it should be:  The 2006 Utah Family Farming Act";s:12:"atom_content";s:4605:"(Proudly adopted from <a href="http://uniweb.legislature.ne.gov/legaldocs/view.php?page=c0112008000">Nebraska's state constitution</a>)<br /><br />Proposed: The 2006 Utah Family Farming Act<br /><br />No corporation or syndicate shall acquire, or otherwise obtain an interest, whether legal, beneficial, or otherwise, in any title to real estate used for farming or ranching in this state, or engage in farming or ranching.<br /><br />Corporation shall mean any corporation organized under the laws of any state of the United States or any country or any partnership of which such corporation is a partner.<br /><br />Farming or ranching shall mean: <br />(i) the cultivation of land for the production of agricultural crops, fruit, or other horticultural products, or <br />(ii) the ownership, keeping or feeding of animals for the production of livestock or livestock products. <br /><br />Syndicate shall mean any limited partnership organized under the laws of any state of the United States or any country, other than limited partnerships in which the partners are members of a family, or a trust created for the benefit of a member of that family, related to one another within the fourth degree of kindred according to the rules of civil law, or their spouses, at least one of whom is a person residing on or actively engaged in the day to day labor and management of the farm or ranch, and none of whom are nonresident aliens. This shall not include general partnerships.<br /><br />These restrictions shall not apply to:<br /><br />1. A family farm or ranch corporation. Family farm or ranch corporation shall mean a corporation engaged in farming or ranching or the ownership of agricultural land, in which the majority of the voting stock is held by members of one family, or a trust created for the benefit of a member of that family, related to one another within the fourth degree of kindred according to the rules of civil law, or their spouses, at least one of whom is a person residing on or actively engaged in the day to day labor and management of the farm or ranch and none of whose stockholders are non-resident aliens and none of whose stockholders are corporations or partnerships, unless all of the stockholders or partners of such entities are persons related within the fourth degree of kindred to the majority of stockholders in the family farm corporation.<br /><br />2. Non-profit corporations.<br /><br />3. Utah Indian tribal corporations.<br /><br />4. Agricultural land, which, as of the effective date of this Act, is being farmed or ranched, or which is owned or leased, or in which there is a legal or beneficial interest in title directly or indirectly owned, acquired, or obtained by a corporation or syndicate, so long as such land or other interest in title shall be held in continuous ownership or under continuous lease by the same such corporation or syndicate, and including such additional ownership or leasehold as is reasonably necessary to meet the requirements of pollution control regulations. For the purposes of this exemption, land purchased on a contract signed as of the effective date of this amendment, shall be considered as owned on the effective date of this amendment.<br /><br />5. A farm or ranch operated for research or experimental purposes, if any commercial sales from such farm or ranch are only incidental to the research or experimental objectives of the corporation or syndicate.<br /><br />The Governor or his appointee shall monitor corporate and syndicate agricultural land purchases and corporate and syndicate farming and ranching operations, and notify the Attorney General of any possible violations. If the Attorney General has reason to believe that a corporation or syndicate is violating this amendment, he or she shall commence an action in district court to enjoin any pending illegal land purchase, or livestock operation, or to force divestiture of land held in violation of this amendment. The court shall order any land held in violation of this amendment to be divested within two years. If land so ordered by the court has not been divested within two years, the court shall declare the land escheated to the State of Utah.<br /><br />If the Governor or Attorney General fails to perform his or her duties as directed by this amendment, Utah citizens and entities shall have standing in district court to seek enforcement.<br /><br />The Utah Legislature may enact, by general law, further restrictions prohibiting certain agricultural operations that the legislature deems contrary to the intent of this section.";s:4:"link";s:76:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/10/legislation-as-it-should-be-2006-utah.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=116188512396506512&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/116188512396506512";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/116188512396506512";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:12;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-115870284046572501";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-09-19T12:47:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-09-19T15:54:00.506-06:00";s:5:"title";s:13:"Back to  it -";s:12:"atom_content";s:513:"Well I'm paying for this damn thing so I guess something better get posted eventually.  <br /><br />Lots going on: the second year of law school is thoroughly underway, I'm clerking part-time for a boutique employment law firm, and am currently sitting in on the special session of the Utah Legislature the the Governor called to 1) attempt to change the state tax structure and 2) allow for area transportation projects to be funded by sales tax (as opposed to property tax).<br /><br />Fun times.  More to come.";s:4:"link";s:49:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/09/back-to-it.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=115870284046572501&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/115870284046572501";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/115870284046572501";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:13;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-113656592106833178";s:9:"published";s:29:"2006-01-06T09:41:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2006-01-06T09:45:21.093-07:00";s:5:"title";s:31:"The Geopolitics of Conservation";s:12:"atom_content";s:4974:"Here it is, a decent diatribe on the connection between our national consumption habits and Mideast authoritarianism (and others) - <br /><br /><a href="http://select.nytimes.com/2006/01/06/opinion/06friedman.html?hp">The New Red, White and Blue</a><br /><br />By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN<br />As we enter 2006, we find ourselves in trouble, at home and abroad. We are in trouble because we are led by defeatists - wimps, actually.<br /><br />What's so disturbing about President Bush and Dick Cheney is that they talk tough about the necessity of invading Iraq, torturing terror suspects and engaging in domestic spying - all to defend our way of life and promote democracy around the globe.<br /><br />But when it comes to what is actually the most important issue in U.S. foreign and domestic policy today - making ourselves energy efficient and independent, and environmentally green - they ridicule it as something only liberals, tree-huggers and sissies believe is possible or necessary.<br /><br />Sorry, but being green, focusing the nation on greater energy efficiency and conservation, is not some girlie-man issue. It is actually the most tough-minded, geostrategic, pro-growth and patriotic thing we can do. Living green is not for sissies. Sticking with oil, and basically saying that a country that can double the speed of microchips every 18 months is somehow incapable of innovating its way to energy independence - that is for sissies, defeatists and people who are ready to see American values eroded at home and abroad.<br /><br />Living green is not just a "personal virtue," as Mr. Cheney says. It's a national security imperative.<br /><br />The biggest threat to America and its values today is not communism, authoritarianism or Islamism. It's petrolism. Petrolism is my term for the corrupting, antidemocratic governing practices - in oil states from Russia to Nigeria and Iran - that result from a long run of $60-a-barrel oil. Petrolism is the politics of using oil income to buy off one's citizens with subsidies and government jobs, using oil and gas exports to intimidate or buy off one's enemies, and using oil profits to build up one's internal security forces and army to keep oneself ensconced in power, without any transparency or checks and balances.<br /><br />When a nation's leaders can practice petrolism, they never have to tap their people's energy and creativity; they simply have to tap an oil well. And therefore politics in a petrolist state is not about building a society or an educational system that maximizes its people's ability to innovate, export and compete. It is simply about who controls the oil tap.<br /><br />In petrolist states like Russia, Iran, Venezuela and Sudan, people get rich by being in government and sucking the treasury dry - so they never want to cede power. In non-petrolist states, like Taiwan, Singapore and Korea, people get rich by staying outside government and building real businesses.<br /><br />Our energy gluttony fosters and strengthens various kinds of petrolist regimes. It emboldens authoritarian petrolism in Russia, Venezuela, Nigeria, Sudan and Central Asia. It empowers Islamist petrolism in Sudan, Iran and Saudi Arabia. It even helps sustain communism in Castro's Cuba, which survives today in part thanks to cheap oil from Venezuela. Most of these petrolist regimes would have collapsed long ago, having proved utterly incapable of delivering a modern future for their people, but they have been saved by our energy excesses.<br /><br />No matter what happens in Iraq, we cannot dry up the swamps of authoritarianism and violent Islamism in the Middle East without also drying up our consumption of oil - thereby bringing down the price of crude. A democratization policy in the Middle East without a different energy policy at home is a waste of time, money and, most important, the lives of our young people.<br /><br />That's because there is a huge difference in what these bad regimes can do with $20-a-barrel oil compared with the current $60-a-barrel oil. It is no accident that the reform era in Russia under Boris Yeltsin, and in Iran under Mohammad Khatami, coincided with low oil prices. When prices soared again, petrolist authoritarians in both societies reasserted themselves.<br /><br />We need a president and a Congress with the guts not just to invade Iraq, but to also impose a gasoline tax and inspire conservation at home. That takes a real energy policy with long-term incentives for renewable energy - wind, solar, biofuels - rather than the welfare-for-oil-companies-and-special-interests that masqueraded last year as an energy bill.<br /><br />Enough of this Bush-Cheney nonsense that conservation, energy efficiency and environmentalism are some hobby we can't afford. I can't think of anything more cowardly or un-American. Real patriots, real advocates of spreading democracy around the world, live green.<br /><br />Green is the new red, white and blue.";s:4:"link";s:66:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2006/01/geopolitics-of-conservation.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=113656592106833178&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/113656592106833178";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/113656592106833178";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:14;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-113414436777873759";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-12-09T09:03:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-12-09T09:06:07.806-07:00";s:5:"title";s:22:"Obesity in the Avenues";s:12:"atom_content";s:759:"<a href="http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_3292893">In today's Salt Lake Tribune</a>: <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Heaviest Utahns live in Rose Park; leanest in Aves<br /></span><br /><blockquote> Age and women's education were the only factors statistically linked to areas' obesity rates. Those two factors accounted for about half of the difference between the most and least obese areas, Larsen said. <br />    "It's very interesting because you would think income would have something to do with it," she said. "My intuitive sense is that a higher proportion of college-educated women means they're more likely to be physically active and perhaps take care of their spouse differently, but we really aren't sure why that was a factor." </blockquote>";s:4:"link";s:57:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/12/obesity-in-avenues.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=113414436777873759&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/113414436777873759";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/113414436777873759";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:15;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-113399159475700654";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-12-07T14:26:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-12-07T14:39:55.173-07:00";s:5:"title";s:47:"Cognitive dissonance and one effort to fight it";s:12:"atom_content";s:1854:"Past a certain point (say, beyond the genetic predisposition idea), I am not willing to concede that obesity is out of the control of the individual.  Yes its causes are complex and interrelated, yes you can get addicted to sugar/fat/comfort foods.  But for God's sake take some ownership for your own health.  <a href="http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/gate/archive/2005/12/07/notes120705.DTL&nl=fix">Morford</a>, as usual, puts it best:<br /><blockquote> know, it's not a simple problem. I know obesity is a terribly complicated issue, crosses myriad sociocultural lines, is more than merely too much unhealthy food coupled with too much laziness coupled with too much I'm-a-victim thinking coupled with lack of self-control coupled with lack of exercise coupled with lack of decent health education coupled with lousy upbringing coupled with sinister garbage-food corporate marketing coupled with increasingly sedentary TV-addicted lifestyles coupled with pain-avoidance mechanisms coupled with believing it's all up to the Big Pharmcos to merely invent a magic bullet to cure it all. Oh wait, check that, it's not more than that at all. That's exactly what it is.</blockquote><br />That is exactly what it is.  And most of those factors can be either completely controlled by the individual or strongly mitigated.  <br /><br />On a more promising front: <a href="http://www.cspinet.org/">The Center for Science in the Public Interest</a> is <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/07/business/07soda.html?hp&ex=1134018000&en=0e188930a391e159&ei=5094&partner=homepage">going after the big soda manufacturers</a> in order to get them to stop suckering schools into exclusive vending contracts that 1) end up not generating that much revenue for the individual school and 2) amount to unfair and deceptive marketing practices.  I say: go get 'em.";s:4:"link";s:77:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/12/cognitive-dissonance-and-one-effort-to.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=113399159475700654&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/113399159475700654";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/113399159475700654";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:16;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-113356360123148740";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-12-02T15:34:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-12-02T15:48:06.776-07:00";s:5:"title";s:46:"Obesity, health insurance, and the Corporation";s:12:"atom_content";s:725:"(Regarding a post from last July)<br /><blockquote>Blue Cross of California said...<br />Krugman has a great discussion on obesity and health care. The discussion is very interesting as obesity can lead to higher cost in health insurance.</blockquote><br />So true.  And as a direct result, corporations (e.g. <a href="http://www.wakeupwalmart.com/news/20051026-nyt.html">Wal-Mart and its now-famous memo</a>) are looking for ways to reduce their costs by screening for healthier employees when hiring.  Is this an unethical practice - that is, employment discrimination against obese people?  <br /><br />Does it provide incentives for people to stay/become healthier?<br /><br />Would it be analogous to screen for smokers?";s:4:"link";s:67:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/12/obesity-health-insurance-and.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=113356360123148740&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/113356360123148740";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/113356360123148740";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:17;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-112753129019841549";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-09-23T21:00:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-09-23T21:14:22.753-06:00";s:5:"title";s:61:"Five weeks of law school, and all I got is this lousy t-shirt";s:12:"atom_content";s:1885:"...Not really - I did get a t-shirt alright, but it's not lousy.<br /><br />Anyway it's Friday night and I am not going to read about personal jurisidiction or promissory estoppel or breach of duty.  Enough for one week.  Here are my notes about the first 5 weeks of being in law school/living in Salt Lake City/gone from Moab and friends and Leah and my house and vegetable share:<br /><br />1. Everyone seems so young<br />2. Why did I not do this 7 years ago<br />3. I'm so glad I didn't do this 7 years ago - perspective on the process and the content is invaluable<br />4. SLC has some kickass singletrack, and alot of it is accessible 1/2 mile from my door<br />5. I love the access to live music, e.g. Tori Amos (no band, just Tori, just like the first time) at the USANA Amplitheater<br />6. The University of Utah law school is a scorchin' deal and I thoroughly enjoy the professors<br />7. The University of Utah is no Univeristy of Washington; parking lots in the interior of campus + dorms far away + utterly haphazard design and planning + hello, where's the damn quad, every university has a quad! = not a people-oriented place.  Weird, and tragic, ultimately.  What a waste of real estate.  Shameful for a flagship university.<br />8. However: the student union food is excellent, and it mostly isn't megacorporate fast food.  Nice.<br />9. <a href="http://www.slcgov.com/arts/twilight/lineup.htm">Summer Twilight Concert</a> Series at the Gallivan Center!  I mean, freakin' Cracker for pagan devilworshiping antiestablishment's sake<br />10. Wow do I miss my Moab/Seattle/California/Colorado/North Carolina/Florida friends.<br />11. New Salt Lake/law school friends.  Also quality.<br />12. A full moon rising over the Wasatch range two days before the autumnal equinox.  Not so bad.<br /><br />There's more, but I am going to see a movie.  Good night.<br /><br />David";s:4:"link";s:77:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/09/five-weeks-of-law-school-and-all-i-got.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=112753129019841549&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112753129019841549";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112753129019841549";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:18;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-112749999391719972";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-09-23T12:18:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-09-23T12:28:46.246-06:00";s:5:"title";s:16:"American Fascism";s:12:"atom_content";s:4893:"It's been over a month since the last post.  School does take some time.  But I ran across this on <a href="http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2005_09_18_digbysblog_archive.html#112735527199148161">Digby</a> and had to have it for my own...<br />(via Andrew Sullivan's reference to an article by Marshall Auerback at <a href="http://prudentbear.com/internationalperspective.asp">Prudentbear.com</a>)<br /><blockquote>Dr. Lawrence Britt has examined the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia) and several Latin American regimes. Britt found 14 defining characteristics common to each:<br /><br /><br />1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.<br /><br />2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.<br /><br />3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial, ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.<br /><br />4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.<br /><br />5. Rampant Sexism - The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.<br /><br />6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.<br /><br />7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.<br /><br />8. Religion and Government are intertwined - Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.<br /><br />9. Corporate Power is protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.<br /><br />10. Labor Power is suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.<br /><br />11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.<br /><br />12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.<br /><br />13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption - Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.<br /><br />14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.<br /><br />(Source: The Fourteen Defining Characteristics of Fascism, Dr. Lawrence Britt, Spring 2003, Free Inquiry)</blockquote>";s:4:"link";s:55:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/09/american-fascism.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=112749999391719972&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112749999391719972";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112749999391719972";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:19;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-112463574545184356";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-08-21T08:48:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-08-21T08:56:29.956-06:00";s:5:"title";s:13:"World On Fire";s:12:"atom_content";s:127:"<a href="http://www.worldonfire.ca/">Watch this now.</a><br /><br />via <a href="http://ideaologue.blogspot.com/">IDEAlogue</a>";s:4:"link";s:55:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/08/world-on-fire_21.html";s:12:"link_related";s:26:"http://www.worldonfire.ca/";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=112463574545184356&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112463574545184356";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112463574545184356";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:20;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-112368572544019501";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-08-10T08:51:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-08-21T08:59:48.106-06:00";s:5:"title";s:18:"Mark Morford Rules";s:12:"atom_content";s:1597:"<span style="font-weight:bold;">Liberals Are So Intolerant! <br />The Right loves to sling this smug accusation at critics from the Left. Mark Morford has a reply<br /></span><blockquote>But I am perhaps most intolerant, not of Christians per se, not of faith, certainly not of radiant self-defined spirituality, not even of organized religion, though I do fully believe more independent spirits and raw human souls and moist sexual licks have been lost to its often narrow-minded and cosmically rigid brainwashing techniques than have ever been saved. But hey, that's just me.<br /><br />I am most intolerant of, well, of those who allow such intolerance. Of those who would, based on their narrow views of sex, God, love, hope, war, the mind, the Earth, soil and animals and air and water and fire and love and spirit and drugs and guns and dildos, work to legislate those neoconservative beliefs, codify them, make them the law of the land, force their regressive beliefs on everyone else under punishment of violence and beatings and prison. I am, in short, intolerant of intolerance.<br /><br />Oh, let us be clear. I love diversity, religious pluralism, peace and love and pacifism and good drugs and open-mouthed sensuality, happy to let you believe in any god you like and marry any gender you like and let you love how you will and be in full control of your sex and your body and your mind.</blockquote>Over the top?  Yes.<br />Completely on target?  Absolutely.  <a href="http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/gate/archive/2005/08/10/notes081005.DTL&nl=fix">Read the whole thing.</a>";s:4:"link";s:57:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/08/mark-morford-rules.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:34:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112368572544019501";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112368572544019501";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:21;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-112250790314597898";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-07-27T17:39:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-07-27T17:45:03.153-06:00";s:5:"title";s:19:"Living by Leviticus";s:12:"atom_content";s:6449:"An original piece by Lance Christie, in its entirety:<blockquote>LIVING BY LEVITICUS<br /><br />                        by Richard Lance Christie<br /><br />U.S. religious fundamentalists argue that homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22, and therefore cannot be condoned under any circumstance.  Many also argue that the Bible is the literal revealed Word of God and advocate strict compliance with Biblical Law in both personal behavior and public codes of law.<br /><br />Reading the Old Testament, I find the following requirements to stand alongside the condemnation of homosexuality as an abomination in Leviticus 18:22:<br /><br />Exodus 21:7 sanctions selling my daughter into slavery.  Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. Obviously the Amendment to our Constitution prohibiting slavery is anti-Biblical.  In an upright Bible-based theocracy, we should be able to own Mexicans and Canadians.<br /><br />Leviticus 15:19-24 allows me no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual cleanliness.  The problem is, how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.<br /><br />Exodus 35:2 prohibits working on the Sabbath and clearly states offenders should be put to death.  I'll see you and your sack of stones at the local convenience store next Sunday!  Or is that Saturday... <br /><br />Leviticus 11:10 says that eating shellfish is an abomination.  It is not clear whether customers at Red Lobster eating clams are committing a lesser abomination than homosexuality.<br /><br />Leviticus 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear corrective lenses. Does my vision have to be 20/20 before I can attend church, or must I limit attendance to churches which do not have altars in them?<br /><br />Leviticus 19:27 prohibits men from getting their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples.  How should the male customers emerging from Pete and Company Hair Salon die?<br /><br />Leviticus 11:6-8 states that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean.  Obviously, the football players are engaging in abomination unless they wear gloves on the field.  Or have they gone from pigskin to vinyl footballs these days?<br /><br />Leviticus 19:19 prohibits planting two different crops in the same field, or wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (e.g., cotton/polyester blend).  Looks like we've got plenty of abominations occurring there.<br /><br />Leviticus 24: 10-16 obliges the community to gather together and stone to death those who blaspheme the name of God with curse words.  All I ask is that you start with the rappers.<br /><br />Leviticus 20:14 states we must burn to death those who have sex with their in-laws.<br /><br />I will believe people's claims that God's revealed word in the Bible is literal, eternal and unchanging when I see them down at the Wal-Mart or convenience store stoning the employees who are working on the Sabbath, punishing men who have had their hair cut, burning people who have had sex with their in-laws to death, refusing to eat shellfish and picketing restaurants that serve them, stoning to death people who utter curse words, advocating and practicing slavery, and railing against anti-Biblical abominations such as the USDA for advocating companion planting of crops and the garment industry for producing clothes made out of fabric containing blends of threads.  If they're doing all that, then I will believe that their opposition to homosexuality as an abomination is an expression of their devotion to strict compliance with literal Biblical principles.<br /><br />Speaking of literal Biblical principles, much of the concern about homosexuals forming families and obtaining some or all of the privileges of marital union through "civil union" or other state-recognized institutional forms is based on the notion of defending Bible-based concepts of marriage endorsed by God.<br /><br />The Presidential Prayer Team is currently urging us to: "Pray for the President as he seeks wisdom on how to legally codify the definition of marriage. Pray that it will be according to Biblical principles. With any forces insisting on variant definitions of marriage, pray that God's Word and His standards will be honored by our government."<br /><br />Any religious person believes prayer should be balanced by action. So here, in support of the Prayer Team's admirable goals, is a proposed Constitutional Amendment to codify marriage on the principles stated in the Old Testament of the Bible.  Except for Paul's remark that it is better to marry than to burn, there are no principles concerning marriage in the New Testament and Jesus did not speak on the matter:<br /><br />A. Marriage in the United States shall consist of a union between one man and one or more women. (Genesis 29:17-28; II Samuel 3:2-5)<br /><br />B. Marriage shall not impede a man's right to take concubines, in addition to his wife or wives. (II Samuel 5:13; I Kings 11:3; II Chronicles 11:21)<br /><br /> C. A marriage shall be considered valid only if the wife is a virgin. If the wife is not a virgin, she shall be executed. (Deuteronomy 22:13-21)<br /><br />D. Marriage of a believer and a non-believer shall be forbidden. (Genesis 24:3; Numbers 25:1-9; Ezra 9:12; Nehemiah 10:30)<br /><br />E. Since marriage is for life, neither this Constitution nor the constitution of any State, nor any state or federal law, shall be construed to permit divorce. (Deuteronomy 22:19; Mark 10:9)<br /><br />F. If a married man dies without children, his brother shall marry the widow. If he refuses to marry his brother's widow or deliberately does not give her children, he shall pay a fine of one shoe. (Genesis 38:6-10; Deuteronomy 25:5-10)<br /><br />The next time you hear somebody fulminating in favor of a Bible-based theocratic government in the United States, bear in mind that these are the literal Bible-based commandments in question.  If the advocate confronted with these principles denies they would implement any one of them, then they are admitting that they will institute principles according to their own human judgment - no doubt claiming divine inspiration - rather than a literal adherence to Biblical rules and laws. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /></blockquote>";s:4:"link";s:58:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/07/living-by-leviticus.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=112250790314597898&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112250790314597898";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112250790314597898";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:22;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-112112446661705048";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-07-11T17:17:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-07-11T17:27:46.623-06:00";s:5:"title";s:18:"Krugman on obesity";s:12:"atom_content";s:4167:"Paul Krugman had a couple of op-ed's on obesity in the New York Times recently.  From <a href="http://www.smirkingchimp.com/article.php?sid=21782">"Girth of a Nation"</a> (via <a href="http://www.smirkingchimp.com">Smirking Chimp</a>)<blockquote>I've been looking into the issues surrounding obesity because it plays an important role in health care costs. According to a study recently published in the journal Health Affairs, the extra costs associated with caring for the obese rose from 2 percent of total private insurance spending in 1987 to 11.6 percent in 2002. The study didn't cover Medicare and Medicaid, but it's a good bet that obesity-related expenses are an important factor in the rising costs of taxpayer-financed programs, too. Fat is a fiscal issue.<br /></blockquote>(Yes it is: and it's tied, like so many other seemingly single issues, into a web of a multitude of others, like self-esteem and mental well-being, "free market" values and government oversight, education priorities, etc etc et al ad nauseaum)<blockquote>There is, understandably, a movement to do something about rising obesity, especially among the young. Bills that would require schools to serve healthier lunches, remove vending machines selling sweets and soda, and so on have been introduced in a number of state legislatures. By the way, Britain - with the second-highest obesity among advanced countries - has introduced stringent new guidelines on school meals.<br /><br />But even these mild steps have run into fierce opposition from conservatives. Why?<br /><br />In part, this is yet another red-blue cultural conflict. On average, people living outside metropolitan areas are heavier than urban or suburban residents, and people in the South and Midwest are heavier than those on the coasts. So it's all too easy for worries about America's weight to come off as cultural elitism.<br /><br />More important, however, is the role of the food industry. The debate over obesity, it turns out, is a lot like the debate over global warming. In both cases, major companies protect their profits not only by lobbying against policies they don't like, but also by financing advocacy groups devoted to debunking research whose conclusions they don't like.</blockquote>And a week later, this is <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/08/opinion/08krugman.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd%2fOp%2dEd%2fColumnists%2fPaul%20Krugman">"Free to Choose Obesity?"</a><blockquote>How can medical experts who see obesity as a critical problem deal with an ideological landscape tilted in the direction of doing nothing?<br /><br />One answer is to focus on the financial costs of obesity, and the fact that many of these costs fall on taxpayers and on the general insurance-buying public, rather than on the obese individuals themselves...<br /><br />It is more important, however, to emphasize that there are situations in which "free to choose" is all wrong - and that this is one of them.<br /><br />For one thing, the most rapid rise in obesity isn't taking place among adults, who, we hope, can understand the consequences of their decisions. It's taking place among children and adolescents.<br /><br />And even if children weren't a big part of the problem, only a blind ideologue or an economist could argue with a straight face that Americans were rationally deciding to become obese. In fact, even many economists know better: the most widely cited recent economic analysis of obesity, a <a href="http://www.nber.org/papers/w9446">2003 paper by David Cutler, Edward Glaeser and Jesse Shapiro of Harvard University</a>, declares that "at least some food consumption is almost certainly not rational." It goes on to present evidence that even adults have clear problems with self-control.<br /><br />Above all, we need to put aside our anti-government prejudices and realize that the history of government interventions on behalf of public health, from the construction of sewer systems to the campaign against smoking, is one of consistent, life-enhancing success. Obesity is America's fastest-growing health problem; let's do something about it.</blockquote>";s:4:"link";s:57:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/07/krugman-on-obesity.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=112112446661705048&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112112446661705048";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112112446661705048";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:23;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-112049785310425625";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-07-04T11:17:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-07-04T11:38:57.796-06:00";s:5:"title";s:44:"Antiterrorism = food supply decentralization";s:12:"atom_content";s:1258:"From the Washington Post via <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/7/3/191656/9257">Daily Kos</a>:<blockquote>The analysis by Wein and graduate student Yifan Liu considered what might happen if terrorists poured into a milk tanker truck a couple of gallons of concentrated sludge containing as much as 10 grams of botulinum toxin, a potent bacterial nerve poison now popular in low doses as a wrinkle eraser.<br />Because milk from many sources is combined in huge tanks holding hundreds of thousands of gallons, the toxin would get widely distributed in low, but potentially lethal, concentrations and within days be consumed by about 568,000 people, the report concludes.</blockquote>The article was focusing on the conflict between scientific freedom and national security, but the larger and continually marginalized issue is at the heart of the report itself: a centralized food production and distribution system is infinitely more vulnerable to sabotage/terrorism than a diffused network of local and regional food systems.  See additional discussion <a href="http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/06/city-folk-be-carrying-you.html">here<br /></a> and <a href="http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/06/small-farms-regional-food-systems-good.html">here</a>";s:4:"link";s:64:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/07/antiterrorism-food-supply.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=112049785310425625&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112049785310425625";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/112049785310425625";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}i:24;a:12:{s:2:"id";s:57:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582.post-111981004593133042";s:9:"published";s:29:"2005-06-26T11:44:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2005-06-26T12:20:45.933-06:00";s:5:"title";s:26:"City folk be carrying you!";s:12:"atom_content";s:2537:"So the BIL is taking me to task:<blockquote>I've noticed an inevitable Fed-hating theme lately, please post these facts to your blog:<br /><br />1. A Federal system of government is one in which the central govenment is weak and power is dispersed to the slack-jawed yokels. They feature largely in counties of large geographical area but also in Germany (because the US played the largest role in fixing it up post war, hence the FRG).<br /><br />2. city folk be carrying you!<br /></blockquote><br /><br />And here's the link to a report on <a href="http://www.taxfoundation.org/publications/show/62.html">federal spending capita per state</a>, showing that Utah, for instance, gets $1.19 for every $1.00 paid in taxes, while California gets $0.78.  <br /><br />I say: All the better reason for you to support stronger regionalization.  I'm not "fed-hating" as put it.  I want to see the scale of responsibilities revised.  I want to see regional economic self-reliance to reduce everyone's vulnerability to natural and man-made (economic, political, social) disasters.  I want to not depend on getting lettuce from the Central Valley, and I want to have electricity that I use generated near where I live, so that the money spent on it stays within the regional economy to benefit my community and encourage stronger regional relationships. <br /><br />I do not want to be disconnected from the national grid - in case of emergency or unforeseen need, that backup is useful.  But it should be just that: a backup, or redundant, source.  Same with all the other basics of life: food, shelter, textiles, etc.  The vision is that trade, of which tourism is one kind, brings in things that certainly enhance our quality of life (coffee comes immediately to mind), but don't necessarily make or break our existence.<br /><br />The whole idea is not black and white like you seem to want me to make it out to be - it's an adjustment of scale.  <br /><br />And based on your definition, we don't reside in a "federal" system of government, because the local/state/regional proportion of control and power is much weaker than that of the federal, particularly in the intermountain west.  Over 60% of the land in Utah is federal.  I never would have said this before moving out here 10 years ago, but after living in this kind of dynamic, my simplistic views on the conflicts between and roles of local and federal authority have definitely changed.  I certainly don't trust local politics for all the answers, but the local process has merit.";s:4:"link";s:64:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/2005/06/city-folk-be-carrying-you.html";s:12:"link_replies";s:120:"http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9087582&postID=111981004593133042&isPopup=truehttp://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:9:"link_self";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/111981004593133042";s:9:"link_edit";s:69:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default/111981004593133042";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";}}s:7:"channel";a:12:{s:2:"id";s:33:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9087582";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2008-05-23T10:46:06.150-06:00";s:5:"title";s:10:"Voxdeserto";s:4:"link";s:26:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/";s:9:"link_next";s:80:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default?start-index=26&max-results=25";s:9:"link_self";s:50:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/9087582/posts/default";s:42:"link_http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed";s:34:"http://www.voxdeserto.com/atom.xml";s:11:"author_name";s:3:"DME";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/00381695241806499201";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:9:"generator";s:7:"Blogger";s:10:"opensearch";a:3:{s:12:"totalresults";s:2:"74";s:10:"startindex";s:1:"1";s:12:"itemsperpage";s:2:"25";}}s:9:"textinput";a:0:{}s:5:"image";a:0:{}s:9:"feed_type";s:4:"Atom";s:12:"feed_version";N;s:8:"encoding";s:5:"UTF-8";s:16:"_source_encoding";s:0:"";s:5:"ERROR";s:0:"";s:7:"WARNING";s:0:"";s:19:"_CONTENT_CONSTRUCTS";a:6:{i:0;s:7:"content";i:1;s:7:"summary";i:2;s:4:"info";i:3;s:5:"title";i:4;s:7:"tagline";i:5;s:9:"copyright";}s:16:"_KNOWN_ENCODINGS";a:3:{i:0;s:5:"UTF-8";i:1;s:8:"US-ASCII";i:2;s:10:"ISO-8859-1";}s:5:"stack";a:0:{}s:9:"inchannel";b:0;s:6:"initem";b:0;s:9:"incontent";b:0;s:11:"intextinput";b:0;s:7:"inimage";b:0;s:17:"current_namespace";b:0;s:15:"source_encoding";s:5:"UTF-8";s:13:"last_modified";s:31:"Fri, 23 May 2008 16:46:10 GMT
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