GRANDPÈRE'S HEIRLOOM TOMATOES

For the first time, Grandpère grew heirloom tomatoes in his garden.  The tomatoes don't look beautiful in the pictures, nor are the colors true, but the taste is delicious. The excellent flavor is different from any tomato I've eaten.  Wikipedia says:

Heirloom tomatoes lack a genetic mutation that gives tomatoes an appealing uniform red color while sacrificing the fruit's sweet taste.

The fruit in the pictures are not quite ripe, because GP is competing with a bird to pick the tomatoes whole without chunks pecked out of them.  The tops of the tomatoes never turn red, so the time is ripe for eating when the feel is slightly soft to the touch.  I'm told by a friend that when the tomatoes can be found in stores or markets, they are expensive.  What a treat for me.

ZAZ WITH JAZZ - "JE VEUX" - ALIVE AND JOYFUL

And she plays the "horn".  Zaz sings in French, in case you wonder.  Her voice reminds me a bit of another French singer.

H/T to my favorite economist.

ALREADY THE TYPICAL LITTLE MAN

Ha ha.  Perfect.  Thanks, Marthe.

ABOUT THE EXPLOSION AT THE CHEMICAL PLANT IN GEISMAR, LOUISIANA

This I did not know, but I am not at all surprised.

A petrochemical plant in Geismar, Louisiana that exploded on Thursday, killing one person and injuring 73, has not been inspected by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in the past two decades, according to an analysis by ThinkProgress. The Williams Olefins plant, which produces about 1.3 billion pounds of ethylene and 90 million pounds of polymer grade propylene, according to the company’s website, does not have any recorded inspections for plants producing either substance in OSHA’s database since 1993.
....

The same plant also had an accident in 2009, according to Reuters. At that time, 60 pounds of flammable mixture was released, causing a fire that did not lead to injuries. Louisiana has experienced at least two other explosions in petrochemical facilities in the last two years: an explosion at the Westlake Chemicals vinyl plant in Geismar that “sent a cloud of toxic vinyl chloride and hydrochloric acid over the town” in 2012 and another at a Multi-Chem Group plan in New Iberia in 2011. Neither resulted in injuries, Reuters reports.

Petrochemical plants line the Mississippi River in Louisiana.  Due to budget constraints, OSHA inspections occur less and less frequently, thus allowing corporations to self-regulate for the greater part of the time.  The cause of the explosion is not yet known, so we'll have to wait for the results of the investigation to know whether Williams Olefins followed safety regulations in its operation of the plant.

H/T to Charles Pierce at Esquire. 

UPDATE FROM THE ADVOCATE:

A second worker critically injured in Thursday’s explosion at the Williams Olefins chemical plant in Ascension Parish died Friday afternoon as the Tulsa, Okla., company regained control of its shattered Louisiana facility from state emergency officials and while federal regulators looked into the still-unknown cause of the deadly fire.

Scott Thrower, 47, of St. Amant, Williams supervisor of operations and a company employee since April 1999, succumbed to his injuries at Baton Rouge General Medical Center’s burn unit.

The final count of the number of injured is not yet known.

UPDATE 2: OSHA is now on the scene.

THIS IS NOT GOOD

President Barack Obama’s decision to authorize lethal aid to Syrian rebels marks a deepening of U.S. involvement in the two-year civil war. But U.S. officials are still grappling with what type and how much weaponry to send the opposition forces and how to ensure it stays out of the hands of extremists battling for control of Syria.

U.S. officials confirmed Obama’s authorization Thursday after the White House announced it had conclusive evidence that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime used chemical weapons against opposition forces. Obama has said the use of chemical weapons would cross a “red line,” suggesting greater American intervention.

Sending lethal weapons to rebels in an already violent country will not help end the civil war in Syria.  Not everyone agrees with the decision to arm the rebels nor with the assessment by the White House on the use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime.  I'm getting flashbacks to the pre-Iraq war period.  Why do we persist in thinking that our weapons and military interventions will benefit the people in the countries in the Middle East?  Look at Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan post-intervention by the US?  Can we claim success in even one of the countries?

The rebels don't even want our light weapons.

Initial consignments are expected to consist of small arms and ammunition, which the rebel Free Syrian Army said on Friday would be largely “meaningless.” The Syrian Opposition Coalition called for “strategic and decisive” support.

I'd hoped Obama would resist the pressure to intervene in Syria with military aid. No good will come of this.  When will the citizens of the US have a say in our military interventions abroad?

UPDATE: This morning, I wrote to President Obama of my sadness that he had decided to send weapons to Syria and requested a reply.  This afternoon, I received a reply which included the following:

Dear June:

Thank you for writing.  I have heard from many Americans about issues affecting seniors.  Today’s economic climate further intensifies the unique challenges they face, and I appreciate your perspective.
 
My Administration continues to support older Americans encountering unfair treatment, financial hardship, or difficulty obtaining health care.  The historic Affordable Care Act strengthens Medicare by not only preserving but also expanding benefits for Americans who depend on Medicare every day.  The law has helped more than five million seniors and people with disabilities save an average of over $600 on prescription drugs in the “donut hole” in Medicare coverage.  Additionally, in 2011, more than 32 million seniors received 1 or more free preventive services, including the new Annual Wellness Visit.  To learn about help available through the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, visit www.CMS.gov.
 ....

Thank you, again, for being in touch.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama

Blah, blah, blah, with nothing about the subject of my message.  Is this the best the White House staff can do?  Better no reply, n'est-ce pas?

UPDATE 2:  You may want to check Andrew Sullivan's post on sending arms to the Syrian rebels. 

WHO ARE THE PEOPLE MINDING THE STORES?

So there's this vast federal facility for storing data in Utah, the Intelligence Community Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative Data Center, and other federal storage facilities, which may have more data than is necessary or even useful in mining for information to protect us from terrorism and cyber attacks.  Vast as is the amount of information gathered and processed, the system did not work well enough to warn the federal agencies of the Tsarnaev brothers' plan to bomb the Boston Marathon, which leads me to think again of the possibility that more is less (Or is it less is more?) or TMI.

As marvelous as is the ability of the machines of technology to function all on their super-intelligent own, human interaction is sometimes necessary for monitoring, repairing, etc. in the facilities, so who are the people minding these stores?  We know that much of the work of government today, including collection and storage of data on persons at home and abroad for purposes of security, is contracted out to private companies.  Who are the people minding the privately-owned stores?

Edward Snowden is a high-school drop-out, who eventually obtained a GED and took college courses, after which he joined the U S Army Special Forces but was discharged after several months, according to Snowden, because he broke both legs in a training exercise.  The Army will not comment on why Snowden was discharged.  As I've said before, a person with Snowden's background does not seem to me an obviously wise choice for a position which requires top security clearance, and, indeed, the choice proved to be disastrous.

Perhaps the good that may come from the Snowden leaks is a conversation about how much information the government can and should be gathering and how it safeguards the information in its possession.  

ST JOHN'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH - BLESSING OF THE SCATTER GARDEN

After the church service on the morning of June 9, 2013, the congregation at St John's gathered for the blessing of St John's Scatter Garden.  Fr Ron, our interim priest-in-charge, instructed us to pray for clear weather on the day of the blessing, but earlier in the morning, the rains came.   I wondered whose prayers hadn't worked or who among us had sinned so grievously that God sent the rain despite the prayers.  Fortunately, the early rain proved to be only a distraction, and the prayers were efficacious, as you see from the shadows cast by the shining sun in the pictures below.

Just in case, a tent had been set up to keep the congregation dry, but instead the cover served to keep us cool and out of direct sunlight. What was the plan for Fr Ron and those who assisted him in the blessing, had the rain continued? I don't know, but with the clearing skies, we did not move to Plan B.

Fr Ron's swing with the aspergillim (Ha! I bet you're surprised I know the name of the vessel that sprinkles holy water.) is strong, indeed.  Over the years, the arm and shoulder muscles have developed suitably for sprinkling.  Then, too, picking and strumming the guitar year after year helps develop the finer muscles for the proper aim.
 

Here's Fr Ron coming right for those of us under the tent aiming, no doubt, for a direct sprinkling hit with the holy water in the aspergillim.

Joking aside, Julie Green, a member of our congregation, carved the lovely Celtic cross that stands in the middle of the scatter garden.  Photos do not do justice to the beautiful motif carved on the cross.  Once the smaller plants in the ground surrounding the cross grow as ground cover, the site will look much more attractive.

My instructions to my family for when my "little life is rounded with a sleep" are for my remains to be cremated, but I had no instructions for what to do with the ashes.  I think that neither they nor I would wish to have them in a box or a vase on the mantle, and I've thought and thought about an appropriate spot to spread the ashes, and, before the scatter garden came to be, I had no idea.  Now the problem is solved.  The garden is a lovely, peaceful area, shaded by ancient oaks.  What more would they or I want? 

GOING AGAINST THE GRAIN ON THE NSA INVASION OF PRIVACY

You see, I'm still hung on this question of privacy.  First, Google, Yahoo, Amazon, et al., have as much if not more information on me than NSA does.  Same goes for Verizon, ATT, T-Mobile, et al.  Is this not a gross invasion of my privacy?  Every online vendor knows what I've bought.  My bank knows when I've accessed my records on line.  They don't know how often I look at a printout of my statements, but they do know how long, when, and from where, I look on-line.  Have I given up my privacy to them, or should I be able to demand they not keep such records?

Exactly.  I'm puzzled by the surprise and anger.  A person who chooses to make use of the wonders of the technological revolution should know full well that private information is rather easily accessed.  Then, too, government agencies spying on Americans is hardly new.  The ways of obtaining private information are new and different.  Now it is possible to mine vast amounts of information, but one wonders if more is not less in the long run.  As Rmj says, if you are concerned about privacy, try to find an old typewriter, or, better yet, a fountain pen.

Whistleblowers who commit acts of civil disobedience and break laws, just or unjust, should know that consequences may follow.  People involved in the struggle for civil rights for African-Americans back in the 1960s were well aware of consequences, and they were willing to take the risks despite their knowledge of what might follow.  Must we all now assume, as a matter of course, that  no consequences will follow?

What Atrios at Eschaton says:

Haven't had a chance to dive into it fully, but my basic belief is that aside from civil liberties issues, the security/surveillance state industry is just a giant grift, a big scam there to enrich certain communities in Northern Virginia. That it is a net good is bullshit, that it makes us "safe" is bullshit, and that "making us safe," as opposed to perpetuating its own existence and fattening the wallets of its members and those that play along, has much to with anything that goes on is bullshit.

The "aside from civil liberties issues" most certainly concern me.

Besides, tell me the name of one politician who lost a bid for reelection because of a vote in favor of the Patriot Act.  Who among us is not complicit in the latest "scandal"?

When it comes to spying, those were the days.  Nowadays, it seems an incredibly boring undertaking.

UPDATE: Not to belabor the the matter under discussion, which, by the way, is being belabored over and over by print media and hyperventilating cable news hosts and their guests, whether bemoaning or praising Edward Snowden's actions, I believe David Simon introduces a note of sanity to the entire affair.  David's post and the large number of comments which follow, many of which Simon takes the trouble to give a response, are well worth reading.

SOELLE IN SUMMER: CHALLENGE AND WONDER - ONLINE COURSE AND RETREAT

My friend Jane Redmont writes:

Remember the question I asked here?

Well, we're on!

Soelle in Summer: Challenge and Wonder

 an online course-retreat

 June 17-July 31, 2013

Read and reflect in community on the work, thought, and spirituality of Dorothee Soelle (also spelled Sölle). 

Soelle (1928-2003) was a German theologian, poet, peace activist, and Protestant Christian with Catholic, secular, humanist, and Jewish companions and allies; she was also a friend, teacher, spouse, mother, socialist, and from mid-life on, feminist.

  
Details of the course-retreat are here.

Check it out.

IT'S NOT THE GUNS - PART 5

Santa Monica is the latest scene of a mass shooting resulting in multiple fatalities. At least six people are dead after a man reportedly wielding an AR-15 semiautomatic assault rifle ran through the Los Angeles suburb, firing indiscriminately at passing vehicles and people as he made his way to Santa Monica College, where he was killed by police.

It's unknown at this time what the man's name is or why he allegedly did this. Right now, it looks like the spree began sometime around noon Pacific time at a house fire, where two men were found dead, apparently from gunshot wounds.

Another mass shooting with at least 6 people dead and others wounded.  Two of the dead were the shooter's father and brother.  And we do nothing.  How many deaths will it take?

UPDATE: Apparently, 5 rather than 6 people were killed in the rampage.