The Top Ten

I wrote this for those people who are pondering the purchase of organic foods. I'd like to begin by telling you what “organic” means to me, and also some of the reasons why I personally made the switch.

For food to be classified organic means it is produced without the use of chemicals, herbicides, fungicides, petroleum, sewage, sludge-based fertilizers or chemical pesticides. These foods are also not bio-engineered, genetically modified, or irradiated, and contain no or much less synthetic or artificial flavorings, colors, chemical preservatives, pesticides, hormones or antibiotics.

Also please note that “Natural" or "All Natural" doesn't mean organic. Because organic foods are popular becoming more popular, many companies are labeling unhealthy foods "Organic," such as Fruit Loops and other junk-type foods. So a good rule to remember is to stick with raw, unprocessed foods and use your best judgment.

It was my concern that the widespread use of antibiotics in conventionally raised animals and pesticides use on crops may spawn drug resistance, and that synthetic growth hormones could cause cancer or speed up puberty for children (especially little girls).

Pesticides do cause disease and death. Their goal is to kill off bugs and pests, but it was my concern that they could also have a serious impact on the lives of humans, especially children. This is particularly important because the long-term effect of this combination of pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and chemicals can affect fertility, development, and the overall health of our children.

Here, according to Delicious Organics, are the Top Ten Fruits and Veggies produced using the most chemicals. These are the ones that you should try and buy organic if you can ALL of the time.

FRUITS	VEGETABLES	OTHER
Strawberries -one of the most pesticide laden food of all Raspberries Apples Grapes Raisins Grape Juice Peaches- listed as the worst with the highest levels of pesticides of all conventional produce Nectarines Apricots Pears Cherries Lemons Limes Bananas - heavy chemicals for the trip to America including Thiabendazole, which damages the brain and nervous system Kiwis Cantaloupes - from Mexico Tomatoes	Potatoes Green Beans - Acephate, Benomyl, Chlorothalonil, Methamidophos - Damages Brain and Nervous System, Cause Birth Defects Carrots Corn - bugs love it, plus most corn is now genetically modified! Celery Cucumbers Spinach Green & Red Bell Peppers Lettuce Hot Peppers Green Beans Hard Winter Squash	Rice - loaded with pesticides! Oats Milk - antibiotics and hormones are forced into America's conventional dairy cow Baby Foods Farm raised Salmon GMO - like Corn and Soy

And here are the Top Ten Fruits and Veggies produced using the least amount of chemicals.

• Onions
• Avocado
• Pineapple
• Asparagus
• Broccoli
• Mangoes,
• Papaya,
• Sweet Peas
• Cauliflower
  
• Kiwi

While it’s true that organic items can be a bit more pricey to purchase, I would suggest looking for coupons in the Sunday paper, e-mailing companies and asking for coupons (they will generally send them), and purchase items that are on sale. And oh, let’s not forget about the good benefit of locally grown fruits & veggies that can usually be found at co-ops.

Sources:

-WebMD Medical News January 10, 2006
-The National Dairy Council
-USDA Pesticide Data Program.

An Ongoing Travesty - Free the Jena 6

From the Afrosphere's Eddie G. Griffin we learn Mychal Bell, the first of the Jena 6 defendants, is scheduled to be sentenced on July 31, 2007, and that a rally in his support is planned on the steps of the Jena courthouse.

The whole episode in Jena, LA is shameful and no rational, thinking person who reads all of the details can reasonably defend such judicial behavior in this day and age.

The one good thing that has come about as a result of this whole episode, and unfortunately the many others like it that, has been the way the Afrosphere has brought this issue to the attention of America and the world, and galvanized the people for direct action in opposition to this travesty.

I wish I could be at the rally on July 31st but unfortunately can't do it at this time. But I'm sure the good people of Jena will prolong this injustice into the foreseeable future and I'll be able to head over at the next available opportunity.

If you can go, do. At least sign the petition. These folks aren't going to do right unless they are forced to by unrelenting pressure from the community. So please click on the image for numbers of caravan organizers in your area.

It Figures.

Uh oh. Looks like most of that mountain spring water we've been consuming is not from the mountains or a spring.

Pepsi-Cola announced Friday that the labels of its Aquafina brand bottled water will be changed to make it clear the product is tap water. The new bottles will say, "The Aquafina in this bottle is purified water that originates from a public water source," or something similar, Pepsi-Cola North America spokeswoman Nicole Bradley told CNN.

Americans spent about $2.17 billion on Aquafina last year, according to Beverage Digest, an independent company that tracks the global beverage industry. The U.S. bottled water business in 2006 totaled roughly $15 billion, it said.

Corporate Accountability International - which describes its work as challenging "irresponsible and dangerous corporate actions around the world" - has been pushing for this change for months with its nationwide "Think Outside the Bottle" campaign, said spokeswoman Deborah Lapidus.

Its aim was "to challenge the marketing muscle of the bottled water corporations and to galvanize support for our public water systems around the country," she said. The campaign focused on Nestle, Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

I guess their challenge is working based on the drop in share prices of some of the major companies in the industry after Pepsi's announce was made.

Shares of Pepsi (down $1.18 to $65.66, Charts, Fortune 500) closed down 1.7 percent to $65.66 on the New York Stock Exchange, while shares of rival Coke (down $0.70 to $52.28, Charts, Fortune 500) closed down 1.3 percent to $52.28

Introducing: That Girl Boo - Or, Did She Really Use Ferric Orthophosphate In A Sentence?

I would first like to say "thank you" to DP the HBIC (Head Brother in Charge) of the famous (or is it infamous) There... Already. First for taking the time to start the blog, and secondly, for allowing my words to be heard.

So, let me introduce myself.

You can call me That Girl Boo, and I live in Houston, TX. My goal is to educate us and keep us informed about our health. I'm not a doctor or a health professional "yet," I'm just a sista who one day asked herself why are there fifty ingredients in every food that I consume for myself and purchase for my family, and why can't I pronounce half of the ingredients? Then I asked myself "if a splat of ferric orthophosphate was sitting on my plate right now, would I eat it?

The answer of course is no, so why would I eat this same poison in my rice?

I took things a step further and teamed up with a nutrition guru, and together we learned about the benefits of eating organic foods in comparison to traditional foods. I've since been taking the time to learn (and I'm still learning) what the doctors and health professionals aren't teaching us; namely that all of these chemicals are slowly harming us.

It is my hope to bring what I've learned to our African-American family with the same type of energy and dedication as I did for myself and my family. It is my hope that little by little we can all educate ourselves about how to prepare foods without destroying all of the nutrients. Together I plan to take us on a journey where we can educate ourselves about organic foods, pesticides, non-irradiated spices, holistic medicines, essential oils, the benefits of water. We'll take some side trips to get more information about the toxins in our make-up, deodorants, cleaners, tupperware, soaps, mattresses; the list goes on and on.

So hang on ya'll because were going to get down right deep about the chemicals and toxins that were surrounded by and ingesting everyday. The million dollar question for this week is "are all of these toxins causing the huge array of cancers that everybody you know keeps coming down with?" Want my opinion? We'll check out my next post! Until then, the next time you're in the grocery store reaching for that tomato that's been sprayed with pesticides, remember that the bugs had enough sense not to eat it, and so should you.

Until Next Time,

That Girl Boo

New Blood

I'm sure y'all noticed that the pace of new posts has slowed to a crawl around here, and the reason is pretty simple; I've been busy. But while I've been too busy to blog regularly, important issues like school resegregation, the Genarlow Wilson case, the Jena Six, Pakistan's implosion, Michael Vick's dogfighting empire, and about a million others have passed without any acknowledgment on this blog. Which got me to thinking, why not bring in a little new blood to keep content flowing in this space?

So after an exhaustive search of Houston and the surrounding areas, I've opened this space up to two people with completely different perspectives and passions and I want to introduce them to you now.

First up is That Girl Boo. No, no, no, not just Boo, it's like A Tribe Called Quest, or A Pimp Named Slickback - you got to say the whole thing. Say it with me now, That Girl Boo. Now That Girl Boo is passionate about how the food we eat and other things surrounding us in our daily lives are impacting our health and well being and will be bringing us information from her perspective on that subject matter. Look for her first post a little later.

Also coming aboard is my man Buzz B. This brother has the technology scene down cold, and has a knack for putting complex technical issues into terms that you and I can easily understand but more importantly figure how this stuff is really impacting our lives. Buzz B. is also know around here for having the pulse of the local political scene.

So please help me welcome There... Already's new contributors and I hope you enjoy their work.

While I Was Sleeping

I've been going through a little bit of the blogger burnout thing for the past few weeks; posting very irregularly. In the meantime, so much has been going on that I feel I should have been posting about.

Like the Jena Six.

If there was such a thing as an outrage meter, mine would be in the red zone right about now. I know I'm late to this discussion, but what's occurring right now in Jena, LA is a travesty and a crime. It's been covered far better than I can do by many others in the Afrosphere and beyond, but in a nutshell (and lifted in it's entirety from www.michaeldavidmurphy.com/jena/), the issues in Jena are:

In September 2006, a group of African American high school students in Jena, Louisiana, asked the school for permission to sit beneath a "whites only" shade tree. There was an unwritten rule that blacks couldn't sit beneath the tree. The school said they didn't care where students sat. The next day, students arrived at school to see three nooses (in school colors) hanging from the tree.

The boys who hung the nooses were suspended from school for a few days. The school administration chalked it up as a harmless prank, but Jena's black population didn't take it so lightly. Fights and unrest started breaking out at school. The District Attorney, Reed Walters, was called in to directly address black students at the school and told them all he could "end their life with a stroke of the pen."

Black students were assaulted at white parties. A white man drew a loaded rifle on three black teens at a local convenience store. (They wrestled it from him and ran away.) Someone tried to burn down the school, and on December 4th, a fight broke out that led to six black students being charged with attempted murder. To his word, the D.A. pushed for maximum charges, which carry sentences of eighty years. Four of the six are being tried as adults (ages 17 & 18) and two are juveniles.

Mychal Bell, the first of the Jena Six to face trial, was found guilty of aggravated second-degree battery and conspiracy to commit the same on June 28th.

Like they say, the more things change, the more they stay the same. You can find more information and action plans here, and definitely sign the petition.

Reading is Fundamental

I hadn't seen this but apparently it's making the rounds. I found it at 3 Brothers and a Sister via Thoughts of an Angry Black MF.

Strong language and content; Parental Guidance is advised.



The crazy part is that a lot more books will probably be read now.

Good Riddance

You'll all be happy to know that the N-Word is now officially dead and buried. There apparently were at least 2 ceremonies over the past couple of days in Houston and Detroit where the oh so troublesome word was put out of our misery. In Houston;

...the so-called interment celebration will be at Houston Memorial Gardens in Pearland. A casket, draped with a banner, will contain a hanging noose, a burned cross, a replica of a Ku Klux Klan robe and an ax. It will be buried in an unmarked grave site.

"This word wasn't created by blacks," said Tammie Campbell, the former president of the Missouri City NAACP. "It was created by whites. They have a responsibility as well as blacks — more so than anybody else — to destroy and annihilate this racial term that has hurt this nation as a whole."

While in Detroit, the burial served as an opening for the NAACP Annual Conference (Hat tip to the Field Negro). According to Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick;

"Today we're not just burying the N-word, we're taking it out of our spirit. We gather burying all the things that go with the N-word. We have to bury the 'pimps' and the 'hos' that go with it. Die N-word, and we don't want to see you 'round here no more."

I really don't know what to say, but I do think the umarked grave in Houston was a nice touch. Or as my friend P.B. said, " I wish I'd been there so I could've said 'seeya later n*gga' when it was all over with."

Contact Us

Got a topic that you think we should be talking about too? Want to trade blog links? Looking for that latest recipe from That Girl Boo?

Whatever the reason, if you need to contact any of us at anytime, drop us a line at:

therealready@gmail.com

About

There... Already is a collective effort out of Houston, TX dedicated to advancing our never-ending struggle for dignity and respect.

We blog everything Houston, Texas, Politics, Health, Technology, Food, Environmental Issues, and Just Plain Foolishness.

As stated on the front page, everything expressed here is the personal opinion of the individual writers and those who comment, and do not reflect the views of our employers, churches, family members, friends, or anybody else. If you have an issue with anything, take it up with that individual in the comment section of their posts, or email them directly.

More biographical information to com.

Lift Him Up!

I've always been an aviation buff. Since I was a kid, I've been able to visually name most types of civil (passenger) and military aircraft from around the world, but I never transformed that love of aircraft into a passion for flight itself. That's why I'm glad there are young men like Barrington Irving around.

Mr. Irving just completed a solo, round-the-world airplane flight. He's the youngest to ever do so, and the first Black. His itinerary brought him to Houston yesterday, and his trip concluded in Miami today. Why did he do it? Well according to the website of his nonprofit organization, he was motivated to attempt the journey because of;

"...the hopelessness and negative influences in my community! I was born in Kingston, Jamaica but have lived in inner-city Miami since I was 6 years old. When I was a teenager, there was little incentive for me or my classmates to get off the streets and pursue real careers. And the situation hasn't improved: in the neighborhoods between my home and high school, more than 24 kids under the age of 21 were murdered by other kids under 21 in the past year alone. I believe part of the reason for this is the lack of hope inner-city youth see for their futures—I want to show them they can do more with their lives than resort to violence! I'm also motivated to show the few people who doubted what I could do that anything is possible—they said I was too young and had no money, but that hasn't stopped me."

No doubt. When he couldn't find a sponsor willing to donate, lend, or lease him an aircraft for the journey, he;

"...went to manufacturers of the individual components such as the engine, cockpit system, seats, tires, and so forth. The plane, a Columbia 400, was manufactured by Columbia Aircraft in Bend, Oregon using donated parts from Teledyne Continental Motors, Avidyne, Kelly Aerospace, Precise Flight, S-TEC, Oregon Aero, Goodyear, and Seamech."

Impressed yet? Well, as I said earlier, he's also formed a non profit organization to

"...to encourage youth to pursue careers in aviation. The industry itself faces a shortage of qualified personnel for at least the next 10 years, and these youth have the potential to fill those jobs. They just need to know how and where they can get the necessary training, and more important, they need to believe they have the potential to succeed.

His plane is named Inspiration, and you can view his flightpath here, or go here to read his blog of the trip.

Inspiration indeed.

Juneteenth, or Know Your History (And Their's Too)

It's Juneteenth again; time to celebrate the culmination of the centuries long struggle our people underwent against the slaveholding system that the American nation was pretty much built upon.

Taking inspiration from some of the brilliant writing I've been reading lately in the Afrospear/Afrosphere, and noting the fact that my ancestors here in Texas were the last group of American slaves to hear of the Emancipation Proclamation, I've taken the liberty to draft this abrogated history of my home state and it's pivotal role in OUR history.

Now, I'm a native Texan. What that means is that I was born in the state and have lived here for a good portion of my life. It also means that I attended the public schools here, which means that I am well versed in at least what is called Texas history. You've all probably heard some of it: Rugged pioneers immigrated in to claim free land offered by the Mexican government (which possessed Texas at the time). Said Mexican government begins to infringe on the rights of the aforementioned settlers, who began a fight for independence. That fight led to the establishment of Texas as an independent nation in April 1836, and later joining the United States in 1845.

The two major battles that illustrate the Texas War of Independence took place at the Alamo in San Antonio, and San Jacinto, near present-day Houston. The Texians (as they called themselves) were defeated at the Alamo, although you would never be able to tell from the historical embossments and myriad theatrical retellings of that 13-day siege that ended up with everyone inside dead. The second battle was at San Jacinto a few days later, where the main Texian army under Gen. Sam Houston caught the Mexican Army by surprise and routed them in a matter of minutes, leading to Texas independence. Legend has it that the presence of a Black woman in the tent of the Mexican Army commander (and President) Gen. Santa Anna, the so-called "Yellow Rose of Texas," was a major reason why the Mexican Army was not exactly on high alert at the time of Houston's attack. The Yellow Rose was one Emily West, and you can read more about her here.

Ms. West's role notwithstanding, the Battle of San Jacinto signified a major shift in the balance of power on the North American continent. Within 15 years, the United States had taken possession of nearly half of all Mexican territory. This was accomplished after a devastating war during which the United States invaded to secure Texas' right to be annexed, and to establish its southern border at the Rio Grande River. The resulting peace treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ceded all Mexican claims to Texas, New Mexico, and California.

Think about that for a minute. Before the Mexican-American War, Mexico and the United States were about the same size, and had approximately the same number of people. Afterwards, well, you know the rest. Here's a visual.



The great untold truth in regard to Texas independence, and later annexation, is the role of slavery. In fact, slavery had been abolished by most of the former Spanish colonies upon independence, and in Mexico specifically by 1829. After multiple legislative sessions focusing on the slavery question, The Mexican Congress issued a decree on July 13, 1824 that;

...left no room for doubt as to the attitude of that body towards at least one phase of the slavery question. It prohibited the slave trade, domestic and foreign, in the most positive terms. Infractions of the law were to be punished with the greatest severity: any vessel engaged in this traffic, which brought slaves to Mexico, was to be confiscated with its cargo; and the owner, purchaser, captain, master and pilot were to be condemned to a year's imprisonment. Slaves brought into the country by such trade recovered their freedom the moment they touched Mexican soil.

The decree made no provisions for the removal of slaves already in bondage, and allowed an extension of penalties for six months in favor of those colonists who might wish to land slaves in the recently created province of Itsmo (Texas and Coahuila). These slavery debates in the Mexican Congress, as well as the lobbying efforts of Americans settling the Mexican territory of Texas are a fascinating study in themselves. However, despite it's intent with the decree of 1822, the Mexican government;

...while all buoyant with the hopes born of the Revolution and moved by theories of the equality and brotherhood of man, authorized the introduction of negro slavery into one of its fairest provinces, while it deluded itself with the belief that it was providing for the almost immediate extermination of the abhorred institution.

Most of the settlers who came to Texas were from slaveholding southern states. These people were not interested in settling a new territory unless provisions were made for their slaves as well, and were willing to fight to maintain that right. This led to a prolonged discourse within the Mexican Congress that persisted through multiple changes of government, coups, and finally, revolution. I could go on, but the end result dramatically altered the balance of power on the North American continent, and helped to solidify the institution of slavery in Texas until Union Gordon Granger landed at Galveston in 1865 with news of the two-year old Emancipation Proclamation and our right to henceforth and forever annually barbecue chicken and ribs in commemoration.

Happy Juneteenth Y'all!

Happy Father's Day

That fine looking gentlemen is my Daddy, holding my baby girl (when she really was a baby girl). I lost him quite a few years back, a few months after this picture was taken as a matter of fact; but not before he transferred a lifetime of wisdom to my brothers and I, most of the time without us even knowing it was going on.

This man grew up in segregated east Texas but went on to serve this country honorably during World War II as a Red Ball Express driver in both the North African and European Theater of Operations, facing more racism and disdain from his fellow American soldiers than from the Germans they were all over there to fight.

Coming home, he settled back in east Texas and worked for city government before starting his own business hauling trash, on which he raised a family of six kids.. The business grew to hundreds of customers, and exists to this day run by my cousin. There's a lot more I can tell but I won't here. Suffice it to say, I miss my Daddy and wish I could get the chance to talk with him a few more times now that I have a little more sense in my head.

Happy Father's Day.

R.I. P. Steve Gilliard

I didn't know Steve at all but I feel his loss deeply. His The News Blog was one of my go-to sites when searching for news analysis from an African-American's perspective, and that analysis always provided insight and thoughtful details that have been missing from the corporate media for years. In fact, I linked to an old post of his regarding military logistics in Iraq just yesterday.

Steve, you will definitely be missed. Our prayers and condolences to the family.

Oops, There Goes Another One.

Yet another bridge destroyed in Baghdad.

Iraqi police say insurgents have destroyed a major bridge that connects the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, with the northern cities of Kirkuk and Arbil. They say the insurgents used explosives to destroy the Sarha Bridge, near the town of Tuz Khurmato on the Chinchal River, 150 kilometres north of Baghdad. The blast severely damaged the bridge, forcing motorists into detours and traffic jams.

Several bridges have been targeted in Iraq, most notably the popular Sarafiya Bridge which was destroyed in April in a truck bombing that sent large sections of the steel structure crashing into the Tigris River in central Baghdad.

To me, it's starting to look more and more like the insurgents are working towards cutting off American forces in the city from their supply routes in order to force a decisive, Dien Bien Phu type battle. Steve Gilliard posted a detailed analysis of the supply chain situation back in February. Definitely worth another look. And for a closer look at how the military supply chain in Iraq works, here's an article from August 2005 that was also linked from Gilliard's original post. Key points:

Iraq’s roads are critical ground. The country’s network of railroad lines are not functional, mainly because of old infrastructure and a successful intimidation campaign against the families of the Iraqi civilians who run the trains, according to Chambers. “Reinvestment would not be worth it at this time,” he added, “but it’s something we may do in the future.” That left the roads, and weeklong convoy missions, as the way U.S. and coalition forces were kept in operation.

The route from south to north runs through the “Sunni triangle,” where insurgent attacks on truck convoys are daily, dangerous occurrences. Insurgents were clearly targeting the coalition supply line, but U.S. military officials did not believe their enemy had the acumen or organization to sever it. They were proven wrong in early April 2004.

The tactic described by Chambers was simple: “They went after our bridges.”