grenzwache or crowd-sourcing

Sunday, the citizens of Switzerland went to polling stations to cast a plebiscite, whose assent is casting a chilling pall over the Confederation's relationship with the European Union and towards foreigners living there and prospectives as well. The matter of immigration reform and limits on the numbers of cross-border workers from neighbouring countries was put to a popular vote—which ironically has many crying foul of direct-democracy and those making the most clamor is the Germans who compromise the biggest single class of migrants and also wryly are facing, potentially the same kind of discrimination and quotas that immigrants from Turkey, Eastern Europe and beyond have to deal with when they come to Germany. French and Italian commuters are also concerned. The move, seen in part to protect native workers from outside competition and curb over-crowding—primarily of Ausländer, I suppose, suggesting a type of xenophobia that's just been codified, could see negative, punitive repercussions, as EU leadership question whether neutral Switzerland can continue its special tax-treaties with the bloc if they choose to reject their values and the thinning of boundaries. I wonder what forms sanctions could take. More tariffs could be levied against trade as a result. Politicians are also afraid, I think, of what kind of precedence such a decision—put into the hands of the majority without necessarily minority protection, might bode, what with such movements and closing of borders established throughout the union.

bishop of bling, sultans of swing

As the Vatican is dealing with how to respond to a very frank and confessional survey, which was solicited at the highest levels, of members' attitudes towards sex and loving relationships that reveal in many ways an urgent need to reform, the Church is also dealing with the unresolved investigation, the verdict still out, into the deportment of Francis-Peter Tebartz-van Elst, the suspended senior leader of the diocese of Limburg and also known as the Bishop of Bling for his extravagance.
The Church could probably do without this sort of publicity, and not for the sake of its image and whatever feedback such misguided behaviour or a polling brings but rather I think the Pope would not want the distraction of what's the stuff of headlines and relatively coherent scandals. These detract from real and substantial changes, which in many important ways ought not to be surprising since they are in their job descriptions, and already some quite significant shifts towards to humility, service and inclusion have been accomplished and indiscretions addressed by example, which I suppose might have been tolerated or even culturally encouraged under past regimes. Still, I do wonder—as I suppose I belong to that pastoral-zone, whether he calls himself T-Bartz as his behaviour does seem pretty gangster, not only ignoring run-away cost overruns for his apostolic seat but also taking vacations and maintaining a secret apartment at parishioners' expense.

a bird in the hand

Here is a clever and thoughtful review of the new book, The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking by British reporter Oliver Burkeman, that also presents a brilliant and worthwhile exploration into the recesses and reaches of plans, contingencies and preparedness — the sort of responsible behaviours that are supposed to be key to success in any venture.

Burkeman, with interviews and testimonials of others, however, shows rather that an unflinching focus of on a rigid set of goals is more of a liability and the sort of safe achievement that we are most accustomed to and not something innovative, original and sustaining. Taking the next steps along the path to realise ones goals and resolutions, idealised or assumed and inherited, can sometimes be only for the sake of vanquishing that uncomfortable feeling when one does not know where to go next, and detours—rather than embraced as opportunities or sabbaticals, are seen as set-backs and getting back on the imagined right path can become something counter-productive or ultimately hopeless. There is much wisdom and solace to found in flexibility and improvisation, too.

red kuri squash soup with ginger and coconut milk

We tried a really simple but savoury and delicious recipe for a soup with Hokkaido Squash (also known as Red Kuri Squash or the Onion Squash, cultivated in Northern Japan) that's got a fusion of ingredients that one could vary and substitute infinitely.

For three to four servings, one will need:

• One small Red Kuri Squash, about 500 grams (18 ounces)
• One medium onion 
  
• 3 medium sized carrots 
• One one inch length of ginger root 
• Veget- able bullion to make ½ a litre of broth (2 cups) 
• 200 ml of coconut milk (about one cup) 
• The juice of one lemon 
• Butter (about two tablespoons) 
• Salt, pepper, soy sauce and coriander leaves for garnishing and seasoning 

Hokkaido pumpkins do not need to be peeled—just slice and remove the seeds, and dice up the sections of the squash, onion, carrots and ginger root (removing the outer dry layer) in a food processor. Meanwhile bring the bouillon to a low boil. In a separate, large pot add the butter and transfer the diced vegetables to saute them for about three minutes, folding over the mixture so nothing gets overcooked. Pour in the vegetable broth and allow to simmer for about twenty minutes. Now that the vegetables are soft, puree the soup thoroughly with a hand-mixer directly in the pot and add the coconut milk and lemon juice. Stirring, introduce about two tablespoons of soy sauce and the other spices. Serve with a garnish of soy sauce and coriander leaves and a port or sherry.

confectionery

The Presurfer pointed to this research project, that is certainly worth revisiting, concerning a group from the University of Tokyo study into creating an efficient battery out of more common substances that are in no short supply, sodium (salt) and sucrose (sugar). Traditional Lithium-ion batteries are very good at energy storage and have a relatively long lifetime, but extracting the metal, whose deposits are limited, is a dirty process and the disposal and repurposing usually is not very effective.

The team was making strides in developing a functional vehicle powering items and serving as a receptacle for holding energy until needed about a year and a half ago, but I was not able to locate much news regarding their progress. It seems like promising approaches—especially out of Japan, are sometimes disappeared down a rabbit hole, not out of some sort of conspiracy, I think, but without real explanation, nevertheless, like for all the really neat and clever technologies that won't work outside of Japan or that aren't for export—like those ultrasonic laundrettes or at least there was a significant lag time—like with using one's cell phone as a virtual wallet/coin-purse. I did learn, however, that last year, there was a summit held in the Basque region of Spain that focused on the continued growth of the so-called Sodium Battery (the sugar part is just an extreme carmelization process to make a carbon positive pole to the anodyne of Sodium—and recalls the origin of the word confection, from the Latin for to put together), which could prove instrumental in achieving a real sustainable balance between ecology and growing demand for power.

cornucopia or avon calling

With the support of two major constituencies within the Duma and farming cooperatives, a politician in Russia is championing the near total ban of importation and production of genetically modified foodstuff. Perhaps there is more to the story than is revealed in the top-level motivations, but I do nonetheless wish that other governments had the backbone to question the pratises and sloppy assurances given by the biotech industry, who as the bill's author says, are conducting a grand experiment on humanity and none of us are certain about neither immediate safety nor the long-term consequences.
Already, there are examples of unnatural organisms escaping into the food chain, flashy, patented designations like Aqua-Bounty® —a breed of salmon that has the genes of a fast growing eel spliced into its DNA, or the pollen of GM crops that mixes and mingles in neighbouring fields or the persistent mystery concerning the honey bee population all over the world. Aside from these uncharted risks, there is moreover the manner in which the companies sow their seeds: farmers who subscribe are not just getting a plant without an historic context but are also committing to a licensing agreement, a franchise sort of deal (like DRM or software-bundling for corn or hosts that demand one signs away ones content) as the crops only thrive if one douses them with pesticides (made by the same companies) and farmers agree to grow the same crops year after year and cannot get out of the contract, leading to distress and hopelessness for small farming operations.

spear-phishing

Via Boing Boing (and Wesley Crusher), there's a new low in despicable tactics in American politics. 

At least sixteen Picture Pages have been set up, presumably in contested jurisdictions, by campaigners in the Republican Party, which appear to be standard websites of Democrat incumbents up for re-election, at first glance, with a not unflattering big photograph of the representative and an over-sized button to click to make a donation. Closer examination, sometimes buried in the fine-print or not obvious at all, however reveals that the page is actually soliciting donations for the Democrat's rival. I don't think that anyone would be surprised to learn that politics are dirty and there's no dignities that won't be trounced on—but I do find it incredible that any subject-citizen would give to either cause, by hook or by crook, since there are not enough contributions in private hands in all of America to combat the influence-peddling of lobby-groups.