Murray Bookchin, social theorist and activist, died Sunday, July 30th at his home in Burlington, Vermont. He was 85. During his prolific career, he founded the Institute for Social Ecology. He advocated decentralization and argued that, in order to address the ecological ills created by capitalism, social relations need to be reformed to address the fundamental problems of heirarchy.
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I harvested 9 lbs of grapes (I believe muscadine) from our arbor today. It probably would have been a bigger harvest had I picked a little earlier. I’m making grape juice. To do this, I added a cup of water to 7 lbs. of grapes in a stainless steel pot, put it on low heat until the whole mess was hot to the touch. Then I used a bean masher to mash the grapes and simmered for another 15 minutes or so. Next, I used a wire mesh strainer to strain out the skins and seeds. I took the remaining juice and strained it through 2 layers of cheesecloth laid in the strainer. The instructions I had said to let it sit for another 24-48 hours and then filter through cheesecloth again to remove sediment which apparently can turn bitter. Optionally, you can simmer and dissolve sweetener in it. Since I’m watching my caloric intake, I may foresake the sweetener. I got more then 2 quarts out of it and it’s grapeilicious!
I was listening to the July 8 program of Weekend America, which had a segment on the Jolly Garogers. Shortly thereafter, a segment on Texas Music Matters described the closing of the Backroom after 33 years. It just so happened that the Jolly Garogers were playing. I had to go and talked a friend into attending. I wore a Dio shirt from the 1985 Sacred Heart tour, a gift from another friend.
The Backroom is/was a good sized venue, with 2 bars and a stage in the back. The crowd was surprisingly diverse, lots of metal fans, punks, Hispanics, kids, some Anglos who looked like they’d just left the golf course, and a number of African Americans. The Jolly Garogers were equally eclectic. While they primarily played straight ahead original rock, they played some punk and then branched into hip hop. Their pirate theme was a lot of fun, I’m sure if the pirates of the 17th century were here today, they’d be listening to Iron Maiden.
I’ve got a problem. It’s led to health problems, and kept my wife awake at night. I admit, I’m powerless against it. I like to eat, too much in fact. I had a dieting relapse that went on for about a week, once I hit my target I went on a several day binge. I’m back on the road to recovery.
Here’s a list of tightly interconnected modern ills. Everytime I hear a news story about one of them, I think of the others. I rarely hear the news media, even NPR, making the connections. Americans seem to be trapped in a rut that’s taking the rest of the planet with it. Here’s a list of interrelated global problems that I believe are of great significance in the lives of Americans :
I was listening to Weekend America, which covered the first summer expedition to the North Pole undertaken by Eric Larsen and Lonnie Dupre. The journey was intended to bear witness to the effects of global warming, which is expected to have the most immediate impact at the poles. Scientists have predicted that the Arctic could be ice free as soon as 2030. Eric Larsen and Lonnie Dupre spoke of the dramatic changes that have occurred since their last polar expedition, and the possible extinction of the polar bear. A picture taken in 1998 of a starving polar bear could be the harbinger of things to come. An article from the Toronto Globe and Mail describes cannibalism and death among polar bears, raising concerns among researchers about dangerously low food levels.
I’m a pacifist. I don’t understand how people killing people could ever be morally acceptable. I like people. You’re one of them. People are getting killed on my dime. I want the killing to stop.
I attended the 1983 US festival, the first time where huge screens were placed adjacent to the stand to bring the rest of us in closer to the action. I just came across this video of Eddie Van Halen’s solo on Heavy Metal day, apparently the day that new wave died.
I remember standing there slackjawed, somewhat stunned at his virtuosity. David Lee Roth, on the other hand, was a jackass. Eddie was truly amazing.
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Syd Barrett, a founding member of Pink Floyd, has reportedly died. If you don’t know him from Piper at the Gates of Dawn, you may know the allusion to him from Pink Floyd the Wall. In the movie, Bob Geldof played Pink, a character inspired by Syd.
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