The New York Times Magazine this week features an outstanding open letter to the next president urging him to give consideration to an increasingly unavoidable and global issue: food. He rightly points out that prices are on the rise, excessive petroleum energy is required to produce it, globalization of food opens it to various quality issues and health risks, and widespreadedly enculturing sincerely healthy eating habits will significantly reduce strains on the healthcare system and American healthcare consumers.

We need to wean the American food system off its heavy 20th-century diet of fossil fuel and put it back on a diet of contemporary sunshine.

It’s a long article, but impressive in its scope, clarity, and passion. I enthusiastically recommend reading it.

“The trick of living is to slip on and off the planet with the least fuss you can muster. I’m not running for sainthood. I just happen to think that in life we need to be a little like the farmer, who puts back into the soil what he takes out.”

— Paul Newman, 1925 -2008

Some great podcasts that are worth your attention and talk about what’s going on in our collapsing economic system:

NPR’s Planet Money podcasts are running a day-by-day of the crisis. I don’t agree with everything they conclude, but it’s good information nonetheless.

Their blog is worth your while, too.

Bill Moyers’ Journal’s current episode, ‘Facing the Fallout’ presents on outstanding dialog on the subject.
Moyers’ Journal is, to my mind, the best example of quality investigative journalism out there right now, and his unabashed outrage at corporate corruption is refreshing. If you’re not watching or listening to him already, start now. In my opinion, there’s no greater living patriot than Bill Moyers.

This American Life’s Giant Pool of Money is an outstanding explanation of the Market’s absurd and bizarre valuation, and the abuses of the American mortgage market to fuel that valuation.

In general, if you’re not outraged that the Federal Government is going to bail out Wall Street with your tax money, you should think about it again. Corporate heads and lobbyists shouldn’t be able to so blatantly privatize gains and socialize losses; all these bail-outs due is preserve the fortunes of the rich who don’t pay taxes and pass the losses stemming from their bad decisions onto the people who do.

Seriousness aside, I’m gonna be a fanboy now:

It goes largely without my saying that Portishead’s 2008 release, Third, is not only their best work, but handily one of the best albums of the year. JHW and I have both commented – frequently – that much of the material on the excellent album was perfect fodder for some dancefloor remixes. Imagine our surprise, then, when JHW stumbled upon the Noise/Floor Crew’s remix of the entire album this weekend.

It’s not just a remarkable feat that this Crew remixed the entire album. And it’s not just remarkable that the remixes solidly represent a broad cross-section of the best of what’s happening in modern dance music right now. And it’s not just remarkable that they pay sincere homage to the source material (rather than grabbing one or two choice vocals and tossing them into an otherwise entirely different song). What’s really remarkable is that it’s a fantastic album in it’s own right – truly solid, smart and at-times innovative, hard-rocking dance remixes, and an enjoyable listen from start to finish.

Download the 320kbps files from Trash Menagerie now!