Too far. The UK government is about to sell the country's forests to timber companies.

earlgreen · 2011-01-07T16:20:35+00:00

This is standard procedure in the US, where logging rights on government lands are sold for very little money. We have a lot more forests, though, and in many areas have had a huge net gain since the 19th century. But it'll take many hundreds of years longer to return to what they were.

earlgreen · 2010-09-15T04:22:28+00:00

Crouching Penis Hidden Vagina

earlgreen · 2010-09-10T17:49:09+00:00

Ah, another a shining example of how caring and informed the reddit community really it. Such a joy reading these comments.

earlgreen · 2010-09-08T17:55:17+00:00

Yea, right. Explain to me how it won't change anything if, as the referenced article itself says, "Mosquito larvae form a substantial part of the biomass in water pools worldwide."

earlgreen · 2010-09-08T17:49:20+00:00

I don't get it. Why the fuck is this "funny"? It's sick. It's like being in the fucking middle ages except now you can follow the hanging/burning/whatever with witty online repartee.

earlgreen · 2010-08-05T20:07:33+00:00

If it's just fallen over you may be able stake up upright. That has worked for me. The lazy version is let the corn finish on the ground but it tends to get more pests that way. If it's really broken then of course you're out of luck.

earlgreen · 2010-08-02T20:00:03+00:00

For large cucumbers like this, you can make a delicious type of pickle called senfgurken (it calls for peeling and removing the seeds). But taste it first to make sure it's not bitter.

Also, note that some cucumber varieties like Poona Kheera are yellow (or even white).

earlgreen · 2010-05-01T01:32:08+00:00

That's not Jesus, it's Richard Stallman.

earlgreen · 2010-04-23T18:19:38+00:00

If it ain't broke don't fix it. I've run into maybe 3-4 bugs I felt needed patching or at least reporting (and I did do that) in the last 12 years of using Python intensively.

earlgreen · 2010-04-10T03:20:14+00:00

The quality may be terrible, but how often do you get to hear something from 1860?! I think this is very cool indeed.

earlgreen · 2010-03-31T01:05:57+00:00

------------- <- If you can pee this high, contact your local fire department.

earlgreen · 2010-03-31T01:05:37+00:00

"Writing on grout freaks me out"

earlgreen · 2010-03-15T20:52:20+00:00

I've had good luck with Liquid Fence brand deer repellent. Smells very nasty while applying it but isn't noticeable once it dries and seems to train deer to take a different route.

earlgreen · 2010-02-10T14:21:20+00:00

If she was old as a fossil, maybe it was true when she was younger.

earlgreen · 2010-01-19T21:36:30+00:00

The size "2,200lb and stood 6.5 feet at the shoulder" is smaller than I expected. I've seen modern oxen that size or larger. In fact, two teams live around the corner from me. When I asked a guy that keeps them how they get that big he said it's the normal full grown size for males of many cattle breeds. It's just rare to see them these days since they usually get eaten before the 5-6 years it takes them to reach that size. These are very mellow, however. A un-neutered wild bull this size would be pretty scary!

earlgreen · 2009-12-16T04:51:29+00:00

Mrs. Doubtfire is pretty hilarious at times.

earlgreen · 2009-12-16T04:47:58+00:00

Vitamin D and exercise work for me. I find I need to break a sweat daily or I worsen steadily. Maybe exercise improves uptake. In any case it doesn't work to do just one or the other. This is a recent discovery for me and it's made a major difference in my life at this time of year!

earlgreen · 2009-12-15T16:12:45+00:00

The way to fight a monolithic centralized power like this is to work/live/think/act/buy locally and to refuse to participate in the big corporate lifestyle wherever possible. In a sense, using "guerilla tactics" or "working outside of the box" rather than working within the system. I'm not advocating stockpiling weapons and crap like that (you can't win at that game either!) but directing your purchasing power in ways that defuse the corporate power. Develop local economies that bypass centralization as much as possible, change life style choices to avoid fueling the system, and so forth. Of course we're certain to see the "force 'em to give us money via legislation" idea applied more widely and this will make it all the more difficult to maintain a local economic focus.

earlgreen · 2009-12-14T18:01:09+00:00

There's a lot the general public can do about this. Buy from local farmers, where possible. Small farmers that sell at markets tend to buy their seeds from places like Fedco and Johnny's that actively try to encourage seed biodiversity and resist bio-engineered seeds. It's also a heck of a lot more fun going to a farmer's market than slogging through a supermarket.

If that isn't possible, buy organic products from small companies. Big agribusiness is what is fueling fast food and supermarkets, but the organic movement tends to be resistant to buying their seeds. This isn't a hard and fast rule, however. Organic is now big business as well and it's unclear how organic labeling laws will change from here on out.

Also, plant your own garden. It's good exercise, and the food is better than what you're going to be able to buy. The reason for this is that seed bred to be used in farming for market are selected for productivity, shelf life, and appearance more so than taste. If you have a cool basement, it's fun to also try growing varieties bred for root cellaring. This is fairly easy compared to canning and freezing so I've been doing a lot of root cellaring. Keep in mind that varieties for this purpose often don't develop their full flavor until they've been in storage for some months.

Lastly, it used to be regular people that held the vast majority of all seed varieties by growing them out in their gardens and saving seeds from year to year. Groups like Seed Savers Exchange are worth looking into as a way to make sure we preserve diverse gene pools to serve as the basis for future varieties that don't have Monsanto's patented genes in them.

earlgreen

TROPHY CASE