Who is the in the 1%?

“The One Percent” is an amazingly well done documentary that gives an inside look at how the richest millionaires and billionaires in the U.S. live. The documentary was made by Jamie Johnson (as in Johnson & Johnson) in 2003. He reveals his own families struggles to come to terms with their wealth in the face of growing inequalities. In his search for understanding of fairness, justice, morality and profit he speaks to everyone, from Nobel Prize winning Milton Friedman to the granddaughter of Warren Buffet to the poor living in the projects of Chicago or working on sugar plantations in Florida. It's available to stream on Netflix.

Here is a link to the synopsis and trailer.

Also, thanks to my friend Maren, here is a global perspective of where you can find the one percent: MAP.

While these highlight the problem of rising inequality and concentration of wealth, the question remains, what to do about it? I think the answer has to go beyond increasing taxes on the rich. We need structural changes that help to prevent the richest from buying political favors through large campaign donations and funding lobbyists. We also need to make reforms to ensure that even the poorest are able to send their children to quality schools. For a start...

Ray Charles - Biographic Movie

I’ve got Georgia on my mind, I got a woman, Drown in my own tears, Night time is the right time…
Ray Charles created so many incredible songs that broke musical boundaries - mixing gospel, r&b, blues, soul, country, pop ; broke racial boundaries – bring great music to white and black audiences in the north and refusing to sing to segregated audiences in the south; broke international boundaries – going from a ruff life of sharecropping in Georgia to playing and singing around the world; broke many hearts – he had the power to melt women with his music and magnetic personality. I knew he was extremely talented but I didn’t know where he came from besides knowing that he was blind. Last night I watched a fantastic biographical movie that brings his story to life. If you haven’t seen it, I definitely recommend you do.

Guantanamo May Remain Open Indefinitely… Take Action

Under the Bush Administration, the government threw out the Constitution and the Geneva Conventions in declaring an unconventional “War on Terrorism.” The struggle against terrorism is unconventional because we are not fighting against another nation; rather we are fighting against an extremist ideology that supports the use of violence and guerrilla warfare to attack their perception of infidel “Western” powers. Since this is a war of ideology, I don’t believe that it makes sense to further undermine our ideology of democracy and the protection of human rights by using unjust detention and torture of people suspected of committing acts of terrorism. This approach makes us appear hypocritical and weak. To succeed in a war of ideology we have to stand behind what we believe otherwise we have already let them win.
I hoped that the Obama administration would change our course in the struggle against terrorism. One of his first promises was to close Guantanamo. However, Guantanamo is still open and there is now a bill that has passed the House of Representatives and is being voted on by the Senate that would keep Guantanamo open indefinitely. Please join me in writing to your Senator to ask them to vote against this bill and demand changes that ensure that innocent civilians suspected of terrorism are not being treated inhumanely as this will only provide more incentive for people to perceive the U.S. as an enemy. You can find the full text of the bill at here . The sections of the bill pertaining to the status of prisoners at Guantanamo include Sections 1036-1039. You can express your opposition to the bill and write to your representative using the following link.

I recently watched a Danish documentary called Armadillo about the war in Afghanistan that gives a first-hand view of the brutality and ineffectiveness of the war. You can find it on Netflix. Also I suggest reading “Taliban” and “Descent into Chaos” by Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid for an in-depth overview of the situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Dedicated Protestors Making a Difference

The recent global protests are the result of an interesting and beautiful exchange...students in the United States created Facebook which has helped students in Middle Eastern and North African countries to coordinate and protest against dictatorships and inequality and now the success of their protests have inspired Americans to protest our own outrageous economic inequalities.

Tunisians got the ball rolling with a mostly peaceful protest and now a democratic election. Hopefully their new government will be able to respond to the demands of their people more effectively. I also hope that protests in the United States and even in more difficult situations, such as is the sad case in Syria, remain peaceful. The violence that erupted in Oakland is not the way to go. If the protests degenerate into fist fights with the police the credibility that the protests carry a message for how we can rebuild a more inclusive and strong economy will be lost. By contrast, the persistence and coordination of many protesters is gaining more and more positive attention. There is an online public forum for Occupy Wall Street where there is an explanation of democratic structure protesters are using to reach decisions is explained and there are links to open discussions on key issues such as the cash-for-immunity deal in negotiation between the government and banks related to the investigation of fraudulent "robo-signing" of foreclosures. The protesters are not an angry mob seeking to tear everything down, they are a legitimately angry group of intelligent people looking for answers to transform our economic system and society to one that is less unequal and unfair.

I have a passion for using numbers to contextualize problems. Here is a chart that clear shows the growing inequality in our society (click on it to see a larger image) as well as a link to an excellent slideshow elucidating the many problems we are facing.

What do the protesters want? Essentially, strengthened rule of law so that bankers and others can't get away with fraud and other crimes, increased taxes on the rich, and more jobs for the unemployed.

You’re FIRED! Here is $23 million for the SH*T you got us into! ???

“Just last week, Léo Apotheker was shown the door after a tumultuous 11-month run atop Hewlett-Packard. His reward? $13.2 million in cash and stock severance, in addition to a sign-on package worth about $10 million,…Carol A. Bartz took home nearly $10 million from Yahoo after being fired from the troubled search giant..” NYTimes

To fire 5 people in the past year, U.S. corporations spent $66 million. I would love to be paid over $10 million to do a bad job. What kind of an incentive is that to do a good job? And these are numbers after the financial crisis. Imagine what severance packages looked like before the crisis, when there was a lot more money floating around the financial sector. In 2000, at the height of the stock market bubble, pay for the top 10% of corporate executives was 700 times greater than the average worker’s pay – earning over $55 million a year. Well, maybe it’d not that different since not much has changed since the crisis. Following the massive bailouts of the banks, Wall Street firms paid $18 billion in bonuses in 2008. NYTimes: Executive Pay Now they are wondering why people are camping out in Liberty Plaza on Wall Street for the past 12 days with lots of signs. I'm wondering why there aren't more protests around the country.

The argument for the obscenely high pay rates is that the corporations and banks needed highly skilled people who will produce amazing profits that the whole country will benefit from. Obviously, something went very wrong as the whole country is suffering from the mess these star executives made and they are still getting rewarded. Dan Airley, a professor of behavioral economics at Duke University, has done some tests to measure the impact of huge bonuses as an incentive. In his experiments he found that more pay increases a workers output if they are doing manual labor but not if there is cognitive skill or creativity involved. In this case, the bigger bonuses are counterproductive because of the high levels of stress that they cause.

Anyone just wandering around Wall Street can tell that it is not a very relaxed, creative environment. Maybe instead of high pay, corporate executives and financial analysts should be rewarded with more vacation, massages, and coupons to go to yoga classes instead of millions of dollars and our economy would be much better off. Things are changing a little, the protesters are settling in, hopefully the government will finally get the message and start forcing some much needed changes in getting pay and productivity back in line.

Fresh Pesto Pasta

Hello again. I realize that my last few blogs have been pretty much downers and decided to lighten things up with another recipe blog. So if your basil and zucchini plants have not been washed away by the recent hurricane you should try out this easy Pesto Zucchini Pasta recipe:

Ingredients:
• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 2 medium zucchini
• 1 lb thin spaghetti pasta (or any other type of pasta you like)

Preparation:

1. Combine the basil in with the pine nuts, pulse a few times in a food processor. Add the garlic, pulse a few times more.
2. Slowly add the olive oil. Stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula. Add the grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
3. Chop the zucchini into small wedges. Cook in a pan on medium heat with some olive oil and chopped garlic (about 5 min).
4. Cook and drain the pasta as directed on the box.
5. Combine all of the ingredients and enjoy!


Recently I attempted to make meatballs and spaghetti sauce from scratch. It was a lot of effort and not to great result. If anyone has some good meatball recipes please share.

DOWNGRADED - and we deserve it!

When the debt ceiling debates were happening, a friend of mine said that he hoped the U.S. defaulted because we deserved it. I agreed but I didn’t think the world deserved it. Now I think we got what we deserved, we’ve been downgraded. The U.S. is not acting like a world leader so why should we expect the world to continue to give us that title. I think every citizen has to take responsibility for the mess we are in. We have all been spending beyond our means. We haven’t demanded enough of our government to effectively regulate financial markets. We haven’t demanded enough from leaders of banks and corporations to act ethically. We also collectively have not done enough to respond to the obnoxiously loud and illogical demand of the Tea Party. The Tea Party helped push us to the brink of default in refusing to budge on their one demand, no taxes. The Tea Party got its way, no taxes, and now, no recovery either. What I don’t understand is why the Tea Party decided that taxes are the main issue of the day when the rich and big corporations haven’t been paying taxes all of this time anyway. According to Bloomberg, Google, Apple and other top profit making companies have avoided paying about $6 billion in taxes through legal loopholes that allow them to shift profits from the U.S. to Bermuda. IRS tax data for 2009 reveals that 1,400 millionaires paid no taxes in that year.

So why do the rich feel that taxes are what is holding back the economy when not only are many of them not paying taxes but they continue to benefit from Bush’s tax cuts that put capital gains and dividend tax rates at historical lows? Why do they want to undermine government revenues that have largely helped to bail them out when banks went bankrupt? Why do they want to continue to inflict deadly blows to the poor and elderly by demanding spending cuts on social programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security? And my greatest question is, why have more moderate Republicans and all of the Left and Independents not united in throwing a “Dump the Tea Party” Party? We ALL need to contribute to restoring our national economy and reputation for fiscal responsibility, even if it means paying taxes.

Violence in Perspective

The recent attack in Norway has shocked the world. The extremely gruesome and indiscriminate killing of innocent civilians and youths seems out of place in a country considered by many one of the safest in the world. This news combined with other thoughts recently about violence in distraught parts of Central Asia and Africa have made me think about the role of violence in our 21st century society. It seems to be easier to understand the motivations that could lead people to desperate acts of violence in places enduring civil wars and political and economic instability, but it is much more difficult to explain killing of civilians for political ideals in supposedly calm, lawful Westernized countries such as Norway and the recent shooting in Arizona in the U.S. However, even these disturbing instances can be partially explained away as an unpredictable outcome of misguided and mentally disturbed individuals having access to arms.

Yet there is a third type of violence that often does not get much attention even if it is frequently in the news. Violence related to organized crime. Not the acts of people in particularly desperate, violent environments with no rule of law, nor the acts of psychopathic individuals, but organized, rational killings for personal gain. I think this type of violence is the most frightening to me because it reveals a particularly dark side of humanity. Unfortunately from 2003 to 2008 international homicides have been the most common in the Western Hemisphere, yes, among countries in my beloved Americas not in the countries normally considered to be the home to modern “terrorists.” The UN survey defines “international homicide” as “estimates of unlawful homicides purposely inflicted as a result of domestic disputes, interpersonal violence, violent conflicts over land resources, intergang violence over turf or control, and predatory violence and killing by armed groups. Intentional homicide does not include all intentional killing; the difference is usually in the organization of the killing. Individuals or small groups usually commit homicide, whereas killing in armed conflict is usually committed by fairly cohesive groups of up to several hundred members and is thus usually excluded.” Below is a chart of the average homicide rate in regions of the world (based on UN data found on the World Bank World Development Indicators Database).

Average Homicide Rate (per 100,000 people) by Region 2003-2008

Blood and More Blood Flowing in Afghanistan

While the U.S. is trying to claim some form of victory in Afghanistan before drawing down troops, it is a difficult argument to make. Not much has changed. The Taliban and other anti-government forces continue to use violence to scare the population and the current Karzai administration is increasingly implicated in corruption scandals. Recently Ahmad Wali Karzai, the President’s half brother and leader of the Southern province of Kandhar, was shot dead by one of his most trusted security guards. Ahmad Wali was a controversial leader as a result of many accusations that he was involved in drug-related corruption but he was a clear ally to President Hamid Karzai and to the U.S. and ISAF for providing intelligence on Taliban activities. His death and the resulting political vacuum will most likely ignite even more violence in Kandahar; however, there is also the hope that a less corrupt leader could arise. What is clear is that the security situation in Afghanistan is continuing to deteriorate. Not only are elected officials the target of violence, but also civilians. A recent report by the UN Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reveals that the past 6 months have been among the bloodiest in the past five years with 1,462 civilian deaths and 2,144 civilian injuries reported. One of the main causes of death has been an increase in the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) which are essentially the same as anti-personnel mines that explode indiscriminately when stepped on. While IEDs are mainly used by anti-government forces, the government has also been responsible for many civilian deaths as a result of airstrikes. For more information on civilian casualties in Afghanistan see the UNAMA July 2011 Report.

While I don’t believe the U.S. should be playing a military role in Afghanistan, I am also deeply concerned about what will happen when U.S. forces are pulled out. I think it is very likely that violence and chaos are going to escalate with the current Karzai government collapsing. I think the international community; the UN and NATO, should keep some military/peace-keeping forces in place to protect civilians especially in places like hospitals and schools which have also been targets of violence. I also think the U.S. and other countries should shift funds away from providing military support, towards providing development support in areas such as health, education, agriculture, and infrastructure. My hope is that Afghanis will be able to pick themselves up, unite against the Taliban, and form a government that works for them.

Southern Sudan: Peaceful Independence and an Uncertain Future

A mother and her children who recently fled heavy fighting stand inside a schoolroom that has been transformed into a makeshift camp for displaced persons in the town of Khorfulus, Jonglei state, Southern Sudan.

The more I learn about the brutality of the civil war that has finally given rise to the new state of Southern Sudan the more convinced I am that the international community must continue to support and help protect the state from a return to violence. The Government of Sudan has used extremely bloody tactics to put down the rebellions both in Darfur and South Sudan in the past and at this moment is continuing to bomb civilians in the Northern Sudanese state of South Kordofan. There have been incidence of violence among different groups within the South, but the unanimous vote for the Independence of Southern Sudan is a clear demonstration of a desire for a more democratic and peaceful future. In an article on the U.S. Holocaust Museum website a Southern Sudanese man who escaped slavery in the North reflected on his hesitant hope that the liberation of the South from the North will mean a more peaceful future:

“I wish there’s going to be peace...That’s just my wish, but if there’s no peace, well, I’ve always lived in the war. This is what I’ve always expected. I was born in it. I lived through it. If there’s no peace…it’s still the same. I don’t know what peace is.”

Recently I attended a conference in which former USAID administrator Andrew Natsios argued convincingly for the U.S. to continue to stand in defense of Southern Sudan through military alliance, trade agreements, and continued development assistance. He reflected that with support there is the possibility that Southern Sudan could realize its potential to become a stable democratic and economic ally like South Korea. The alternative possibility, on the other hand, is that Southern Sudan could fall prey to cycles of violence resulting in a humanitarian crisis and the loss of even more lives. You can find a recording of Natsios' speech here: http://sidw.libsyn.com/
Also check out an excellent video of VOICES FROM SOUTHERN SUDAN on the U.S. Holocaust Museum website.

B-boying, Breakin, not Breakdancing

Recently I had the opportunity to battle with a couple of amazing b-boys and b-girls as part of the Afro-Brazilian festival organized by Capoeira Males DC. While capoeira and breakin have many similar aspects, I was in awe of the b-boy/girls style and flow with the music, which was percussion played by Mestre Amen and Tonho Materia, not hip-hop music. While the history of breakin does not go nearly as far back as that of capoeira, the struggle of coming from the poor, oppressed part of society to gain freedom and acceptance through the celebration of cultural identity, rhythm, movement, and creative energy is similar to the roots of the creation of capoeira to overcome slavery. I am so glad that both of these art forms exist and continue to grow. I know that my passion lies with capoeira but I'd like to learn more about hip-hop culture and breakin. My roommate is a dedicated b-boy and suggested the following movie as the perfect introduction to b-boy/b-girl history and culture, which he also explained is much more rich than what most people commonly associated with "breakdancing." There are many styles related to breakin and all of them do not include spinning on your head.

check out the movie: The Freshest Kids

Peace!

Farmers' Market Specials

I’m almost as happy about the return of farmers’ markets as I am about the warmer weather. There is nothing more delicious than fresh veggies direct from local farms, well, except for veggies from my own garden but at the moment my garden consists mainly of herbs and a few small green tomatoes and a yellow squash, not quite enough to consider subsistence agriculture.

KOHLRABI:

This year at the farmers’ market I found an exotic looking vegetable that seems like it came from another planet. It has a purple or light green bulb with stems emerging from the sides and twisting around and up like the tentacles of some sort of beautiful and dangerous underwater creature. After talking to the farmers and doing my research on google, I found out that Kholrabi is part of the cabbage family as its German name means cabbage turnip. It is found around the world and is very easy to cook. It is also very nutritious with lots of fiber and vitamins including potassium and folic acid. Here are some ways to eat it:

Salad:
1. Cut off the stems and leaves, wash, dry, chop and place in a bowl
2. Peel the skin off and grate the white part over the leaves
3. Add other salad ingredients, some that I think go well are: grated carrots, snow peas, shredded red cabbage, sesame seeds
4. Add dressing: Tablespoon lemon juice, Tablespoon finely chopped ginger, 1 teaspoons sesame oil, 1 teaspoon honey, a little salt, a little pepper (or any salad dressing you like)

Roasted:
1. Take off the stems and leaves
2. Peel the skin
3. Chop into julienne strips
4. Toss in a bowl with a little olive oil and finely chopped garlic
5. Roast in the oven (400 degrees F) for about 40 minutes in a glass pan, mixing them around occasionally

SWISS CHARD

Another one of my favorite, easy to cook, veggies is Swiss chard. There are many recipes for this but I like it in a stir fry:

1. In a wok or big pan heat a little sesame oil and chopped ginger
2. Add chopped yellow onions, soy sauce (or even better, Braggs Amino Acid), Sriracha sauce, and a little water. Simmer till the onions are a little soft.
3. Add firm tofu diced or Portobello mushrooms and allow it to simmer for 2 minutes.
4. Wash and chop the Swiss Chard into small strips and add to the pan. Slowly simmer for 3-4 minutes. I like the chard still crunchy so I don’t cook it too long, but some people like it more cooked.

Where is the best place in the world to be a MOTHER?

Norway! Norway topped the 2011 Mother’s Index that is put together by Save the Children NGO. Norway has the highest ratio of female-to-male earned income, one of the lowest under-5 mortality rates and one of the most generous maternity leave policies in the developed world. Sitting at the bottom of the rankings is, not surprisingly, Afghanistan. The differences between the two countries are stark. A Norwegian woman on average has 18 years of formal education and can expect to live to be 83 years old. An Afghani woman will typically have fewer than 5 years of schooling, will live only to be 45, and has a 1 in 5 chance of losing a child before his/her fifth birthday.

The U.S. ranked 31st out of 164 countries. To me, it is disturbing that the country with the largest GDP in the world ranks so low in providing for the well-being of mothers. The rate for maternal mortality in the U.S. is the highest of any industrialized nation. In addition, the U.S. only allows about 12 weeks of maternity leave, while several developed countries provide a year or more of maternity leave.

Another interesting note is that many developing countries rank higher than developed countries for the ratio of estimated female to male earned income for equal work. In no country do women earn more than men for the same work; however, in Mozambique and Mongolia women earn almost 90 percent of a man’s salary. In China women earn 68 percent, in the United Kingdom they earn 67 percent, and in the US, ranking 56th, women earn only 62 percent of a man’s salary. Women earn the least in West Bank/Gaza and Saudi Arabia, earning only 12 and 16 percent of a man’s earnings respectively.

For more stats see: State of the World's Mothers 2011

Give your mother some love this Sunday for Mothers Day and always!

Political Violence

In my usual style on this blog of being pretty random, I'm switching from whimsical thinking about the circus to the much more serious topic of political violence in the Middle East and Africa. Events in this region have been moving so fast it is hard to keep track of which country is successfully or unsuccessfully overthrowing their dictatorial leader today.

On the bright side:
- The former President of Cote d'Ivoire, Laurent Gbagbo, has finally been arrested and the newly elected President, Alassane Outarra, is taking steps to try to stabilize the country.
- The President of Yemen, Ali Abdullah Saleh, has promised to resign.
- Hosni Mubarak and his sons have been arrested in Egypt.
On the dark side:
- Protests in Syria over the brutal treatment of teenage anti-government protesters have led to the death of almost 100 people in a protest on Friday and more killings at the funeral of the killed protesters.
- The struggle between rebels with international support and the government and thugs supporting Ghadafi appears to be in a stalemate.
- Italian activist, Vittorio Arrigoni, was captured and killed in Palestine.

Where will the killing end? Where will the protests lead? Do the rebels have the capability and vision to lead these countries to a more peaceful future?

I have been looking over the recently published World Development Report on Conflict, Security, and Development for some context on the situation. The Report does a great job of emphasizing how the current upsurge in political violence is different from previous interstate war related violence and requires different thinking and approaches. The Report is also extremely critical about the ineffectiveness of international aid in preventing violence or addressing the multiple causes of cycles of violence. The Report comes with a interesting database and data visualizer that is fun to play around with if you are a numbers dork like me: http://devdata.worldbank.org/DataVisualizer/

Dreaming about the Big Top

All I remember from the circus when I was little was that riding on an elephant is especially boring and the clowns are sad and scary. Then I read a book about the circus in the US during the Great Depression (“Water for Elephants”) which made me feel really badly for the animals, and the people, but especially the animals. Recently Carlo found a 6 hour PBS documentary on the Big Apple Circus that changed my perspective of the circus, a little. The athleticism and dedication of the performers was truly amazing and the inside glimpse to behind the curtains circus drama was definitely entertaining. There is something romantic about the ‘gypsy’ lifestyle of traveling around all of the time, performing in a big tent, and basking in the oooos, aaaaaaws, and applause of the audience every night rather than sitting in front of a much less exciting computer-screen every day. But then there is the question of what act I would be able to do to perfection twice a day, every day, and not destroy myself. As much as I love the flying trapeze and flying in general, I think I would steal my NY capoeira friends’ idea of playing capoeira with fire-shoes.

Feeding my Soul with a little JAZZ

This weekend I went with my family to an amazing jazz concert of music by Charlie Parker at a theater in Rosslyn connected to Artisphere, one of my new favorite places in Virginia. Unfortunately, no, Charlie Parker was not playing as he died young in 1955. I had known little about him before the concert but now I’m a huge fan. I had no idea about the huge impact he had on opening up the jazz scene, fusing it with other genres of music such as classical and Latin music, and pioneering what later became be-bop. The saxophonist, Vaughn Amborse, and his bass and drum players who played this weekend were amazing.


Now’s the Time
Parker’s Mood
A Night in Tunisia

I’ve been inspired to face my fears regarding music and dive in to trying to learn how to sing, play berimbau, and even guitar. Luckily and unluckily I have a very experienced musician for a boyfriend to help me out but also to point out just how off I get. I have a difficult time staying in the right key and holding a steady rhythm which are major obstacles but I think, like anything else, practice makes almost perfect. Supposedly Charlie Parker would practice 15 hours a day. I’ll be happy both practicing less and not sounding as good. I enjoy listening to music so much that if one day I could make music that other people enjoyed listening to it would be one of my greatest accomplishments ever. I have full respect and envy for all dedicated musicians out there!

Naan Bread Recipe

I got ambitious and decided to try to make Naan bread. I am always afraid of making bread because for some reason my dough never rises. This time it rose thanks to some helpful hints from my mother -- give the yeast time to get frothy and place the dough in a warmed oven to let it rise (warm it then turn it off because you don't want to cook the dough). I had to wake up a little early to make the dough before leaving for work, but its kind of a nice way to get the day started working with your hands to knead the dough.

Makes 6 Naan.
Ingredients:
• 2 cups of All Purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Pinch of baking soda
• 2 tablespoons of oil
• 2 1/2 tablespoons plain yogurt
• 3/4 cup lukewarm water
• 1 small yellow onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (or powder)
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
Chopped cilantro or parsley

1. Dissolve active dry yeast in lukewarm water and let it sit for 10 minutes or until the mixture becomes frothy.
2. Add sugar, salt and baking soda to the flour and mix well.
3. Add the oil and yogurt mix, this will become crumbly dough.
4. Add the water/yeast mixture and make into soft dough.
5. Knead until the dough is smooth. Cover the dough and keep in a warm place for 3-4 hours. The dough should almost be double in volume.
6. Heat the oven to 500 degrees with pizza pan or large flat pan inside for at least 20 minutes so stone is hot.
7. While the oven is warming up chop the onions and garlic. Sautee’ for about 5-7 minutes with a little oil and the spices (cumin, coriander and garam masala).
8. Next turn the oven to high broil.
9. Knead the dough for about two to three minutes and divide the dough into six equal parts. Take each piece of dough, poke a hole in the middle of the ball and add a spoon of the onion/garlic mixture and some chopped cilantro or parsley, pinch the dough to cover the hole and roll into 8-inch oval shape. Dust lightly with dry flour to help with the rolling and use a rolling pin, or if you don’t have one like me, a wine bottle or other bottle works well.
10. Place the flattened ovals of dough 2 at a time onto your hot baking/pizza pan into the oven.
11. The Naan will take about 2 to 3 minutes to cook, depending upon your oven. After the Naan is baked(Naan should be golden brown color on top).
12. Take naan out of the oven and brush lightly with clear butter or ghee.
13. Serve and enjoy!

Capoeira me chama

"Capoeira me chama, e eu vou atender, entra na roda sem medo, com malicia e segredo, pra mi defender..."
"Capoeira calls me, I'm going to respond, to enter the roda without fear, with trickery and mystery, to defend myself..."

I have been training capoeira for about 4 years and feel like I want to learn more and more. I am just beginning to understand the basics and complexity of this beautiful Afro-Brazilian art-form. For me, capoeira is so many things, it is a dance, a fight, a rhythm, a song, a philosophy, a spiritual union, a cultural expression, a long history that is constantly evolving. Capoeira has had a powerful impact on my life in many ways. Through it I've met life-long friends, including my love, and I've learned many things about myself and lessons on how to move myself with grace and confidence in all aspects of life.

At this point in my growth in capoeira I am beginning to move past imitating whatever is demonstrated by the person leading the class and am beginning to search and develop my own style. In this search for my own identity I have come across the question that all capoeiristas face at some point, do I want to play regional, angola, or 'contemporaneo.' The first group I trained with in New York, Guerreiros, played 'contemporaneo' which incorporates movements from both angola and regioinal. I learned the 'chamadas' of angola, as well as the armadas and other fast round kicks developed by Mestre Bimba, the creator of regional.

When I moved to DC and joined Capoeira Males, I soaked up a more regional style of the game, playing mainly to faster rhythms. However, one of my housemates is part of an angola group, Fica. When I have gone to visit this angola group I have been told that I must make a choice between capoeira angola and regional, it is not possible to be proficient in both. This does not make sense to me. Before Mestre Bimba created "regional" in 1932, there was only one capoeira. I want to learn everything I can about capoeira, from the roots that go back to before Mestre Bimba set standards to the art form and formed the first schools, to what capoeira is evolving to today as it is practiced by many groups around the world. Then I want to draw on all of the tools and methods of the universe of capoeira to develop a style that works for me.

I think that I follow the philosopy of Carybe, who trained both with Mestre Pastinha and Mestre Bimba: "Each mestre is a style. Capoeira is just one and he who commands the game is the berimbau with its own rhythms and songs."

Japanese Music: Yoshida Brothers

I just discovered these amazingly talented musical brothers from Noboribetsu, Hokkaido in Northern Japan. Masters on the shamisen, a traditional Japanese 3-stringed instrument, they fuse Japanese folk music with techno, rock, and other genres from around the world to make extremely powerful and inspiring music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RERXiliJfdI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJk8mB7DIS4&feature=related

While the earthquake,tsunami, and destruction of the nuclear plants have led to expressions of deep sympathy for Japan over the past week, the way the Japanese people have reacted to the situation with calm and dignity has also earned international admiration. I hope that one day I can travel to the Japan and get to know more about their incredible culture. The impacts of the recent disaster will no doubt have long-term effects, but I also have no doubt that the Japanese will overcome the many challenges they are faced with to pull their country back together.

Yummy Chinese Stir Fry

Last night I made the best stir-fry I've ever made in my life. It was inspired by a trip to a friend of mine's house where her Chinese parents had the most amazing food ever that was nothing like what you get in a Chinese restaurant and made me want to go to China right now.

Here is the recipe I came up with in my attempt to make something half as good as what I had the joy of eating at an authentic Chinese home.

Shrimp, Mushroom, and Bok Choy stir fry:

• 1 pound peeled, deveined shrimp, medium to large
• 3 to 4 teaspoons Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 teaspoons light Soy sauce or mirin
• 4 teaspoons water mushroom broth
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons crushed ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon chili paste
• 1 leek
• A bunch of shitake mushrooms (remove stems and chop caps)
• 1 pound bok choy, ends trimmed, stalks and leaves chopped
• One bunch of mint chopped
• White rice

1. Add 1 cup water and one cup white rice to a pot and bring to a boil until the rice is cooked (about 20minutes) Meanwhile:
2. Mix 1 teaspoon rice wine, one teaspoon of light soy sauce or mirin, and some ground ginger with the raw shrimp and marinade in the refrigerator for 15 minutes or more
3. Mix remaining rice wine, red wine vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, and mushroom broth in a small bowl and set aside
4. Add sesame oil, crushed ginger, chili paste and chopped leeks to a wok on medium heat and let cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the leeks are a little soft
5. Add the mushrooms and bok choy stalks (not the leaves) and the liquid you set aside. Cook covered for about 5-10 minutes ( I like the veggies still crunchy so I cook for less time).
6. Take the shrimp out of the fridge and sautee them quickly in a separate pan with a little sesame oil (3-4 minutes).
7. Add the bok choy leaves, chopped mint, cooked shrimp, and cooked rice to the wok with everything else. Mix well and cook another 1-2 minutes. Serve!

MUJERES y SALSA

March 8th was International Women's Day. Some people argue that, at least in the US, women are considered equal to men. I agree to a certain degree. I've never felt discriminated against personally in any of my ambitions for being a woman. On the other hand, if I think, what if I'd been born a boy, I think my life would've been very different. Partly for obvious physical differences and partly because I would've been socialized differently to be 'manly', which can mean things as basic as how I walk and talk to what kind of sports or even jobs I consider good for me. In the past the socialized differences would have been even greater. So I think it is important to appreciate women who broke social barriers and have made it easier to imagine women being accepted in all sorts of different roles.
I went to a talk about women in salsa this week. Salsa music is mainly dominated by male musicians and singers and the dance is led by the man. However, below are some links to youtube videos of some pioneering women who decided to make their careers making great salsa music despite pressures from their families and societies that the music scene, especially touring, was not for women.

Anacaona - one of the first all women son/jazz bands, comprised of 11 Cuban sisters and other women: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvjdJw1Aj10

Myrta Silva - Puertorican singer who became known as the queen of salsa before Celia Cruz: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0E2N2zPfX0

Celia Cruz - even if you aren't a huge salsa fan, you probably have been infected at some point by the power of her energy and voice: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mH47G8UNxIg&feature=related

La Lupe - one of the most dynamic and controversial salsa singers, she was kicked out of Castro's Cuba, met up and worked with Tito Puentes for a little while in New York, but no one could control her, she had her own style
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjmcUg3GsF0


There are of course many many more amazing women in salsa but these are some of the first who helped change the façade of the man's world of salsa to embrace the power of the feminine spirit.

También la Lluvia / Even the Rain

Una película increíble! It's not in English, it's not produced by Hollywood, it IS insanely well done and extremely powerful. It shows the irony of how much things have stayed the same since the colonizers first arrived to the Americas in regards to discrimination against indigenous people. I think EVERYONE should watch this movie. For people in the DC area, it is playing at the Landmark Cinema on E street and 11th near Chinatown.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbdOnGNBMAo

Berlusconi , no longer Gaddafi's friend?

Reading the news, I've noticed many odd ties between Berlusconi and Gaddafi. They seem to have a complicated relationship and some unsettling similarities. They both make efforts to portray a stylish, fashionable image, they both like to surround themselves by women, they both have a lot of money, and neither has a great commitment to democratic values, although Berlusconi is nowhere near as ruthless of a dictator as Gaddafi is continuously proving to be. Berlusconi may not have been the first to condemn Gaddafi's violent reaction to protests in Libya but he has taken strong measures reflecting his rejection of his former friend. Like the ties between the two leaders, the ties between their countries go way back, since Italy's occupation of Libya in 1911. In 2008, Italy and Libya made a treaty in which Berlusconi agreed to pay Libya $5 billion over 20 years as compensation for Italy's colonial rule as well as promised not to allow bases in Italy to be used to attack Libya in return for favorable privileges for Italian companies in Libya's energy, infrastructure and defense industries. Now the longest underwater Mediterranean pipeline pumps oil from the coast of Libya to Sicily, Libya's largest bank is headquartered in Rome, and Italy is the top arms supplier and trading partner for Libya.  The tight relationship between the two countries was infamously displayed by Berlusconi's action of kissing Gaddafi's hand at an Arab League summit a year ago -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Se79NO4ODP0

A week ago, Berlusconi announced that the "Treaty of Friendship" with Libya was effectively suspended. Does this mean their relationship is over for good? Will Italy stop supplying arms to Gaddafi to use against his own people and open its bases for a possible international intervention? I hope so.

Recipe: Salmon with Pineapple salsa

This is a really easy recipe that you can use with salmon or any white fish. The pineapple can be substituted with mango for a sweeter taste. Best if served with brown rice and salad ( yes, if you haven't figured it out, I like really healthy, mainly vegetarian cooking)

Ingredients:
1 fresh pineapple
1 red bell pepper
1 red onion
1 serrano pepper
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 piece fresh ginger
1 bunch fresh cilantro
1 bunch fresh mint
10 small plum tomatoes

3 or 4 fresh salmon fillets
a little oil

1. Blend all of the ingredients together in a blender
2. Place the fish fillets in a large bowl and cover using half of the salsa then refrigerate the fish in the salsa for an hour or more
3. Heat a skillet with a little oil (preferably an iron skillet, or use a grill if you have one), cook the fish for 2 minutes, flip, cook 2 minutes or until it is cooked all the way and flakes when you use a fork (may take longer if the fish is thicker)
4. Serve with rice and salad, YUMMY!

How much do you know about Colonel Muammar Gaddafi?

Reading about the horrors going on in Libya right now made me realize how little I know about Gaddafi other than that to me he looks like a crazy homeless man who has a bizarre sense of fashion and hasn’t combed his hair in a few years.  So after informing myself on Al Jazeera, the New York Times, and, of course, Wikipedia here is a little quiz you can take to see how much you know about the man responsible for a lot of bloodshed and international confusion…

1.    How old was Gaddafi when he came to power toppling King Idris?
2. Where does Gaddafi prefer to sleep when he is abroad?
3. Who makes up his personal security guard?
4. Inspired by Mao’s ‘Red Book’, what color is Gaddafi’s book that explains his political philosophy?
5. He is accused of involvement in bombing what in Berlin and Scotland?
6. What was Gaddafi’s solution to dealing with “stray dogs” (Libyan dissidents abroad)?
7. He was given what title by over 200 African kings and traditional rulers?
8. What is his proposed solution to the Israel/Palestine conflict?
9. How many children does Gaddafi have?
10. How much money does he have?

 

Answers: 1. 27 2. Tent  3. Women  4. Green  5. Le Belle disco in Berlin and a Pan Am plane over Lockerbie, Scotland 6. He sent assassins to kill Libyan dissidents abroad 7. “king of kings” 8. “Israteen” – a unitary state for both Israel and Palestine 9. 8 (7 sons, 1 daughter) + 2 adopted children 10. His family is estimated to have 20 billion pounds in liquid assets, mainly in London

 

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/2011/02/201122117565923629.html

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/libya/index.html

What the Pho?

So we went to another restaurant recently, it was Pho-King good!

Greek and Afghan Cuisine in Virginia

This week we splurged and enjoyed the luxuries afforded by living in an extremely diverse area. Arlington may not be New York City, but there is still plenty of diversity around. Latin, Arab, Asian and African diasporas bring not only strong work ethics and family members when they settle in this humble area, they also bring amazing flavors.

The Greek community may be smaller in numbers than some of the ethnic groups around but they make up for it in pride and festivity. We wandered upon a Greek restaurant, Taverna Creketou, with a friend during the week. While hesitant looking at the prices on the menu on the window, the live music, warm atmosphere and suggestion of a random passerby that it was the best food she'd ever eaten caused us to jump in. Once inside we really felt transported to a warm Greek island. I didn't recognize many of the names of optioins on the menu but would recommend the eggplant mousse appetizer and moussaka as well as the house red wine. However, even more than the food, what I enjoyed was the live music and lively dancers. In particular there was a dignified lady with white hair and a talent for performing who is one of my new role models for how I want to enjoy old age when I hopefully get there.

Then last night, exhausted after training capoeira and acrobatics, my boyfriend and I fell back on one of our favorite restaurants down the street, the Kabob Palace, for sustenance. The Kabob Palace is owned by an Afghan family. The place is small but decorated with beautiful paintings and pictures of Afghanistan as well as with a few American flags. The food is amazing - delicious kabobs, vegetable side dishes, and soft, warm bread. I love the shrazi salad and the mango lassi.

Next week we will have to go back to our usual home-cooking which is a little easier on our budget, but if you happen to be looking for good places to go out to eat, I'd definitely recommend these two restaurants.

MOVIE: The Rockers

This is an old movie, but a classic!  Really funny even though you can't understand half of what the characters are saying even with sub-titles in English unless you are Jamaican. Gives a great insights to what it was like to be a reggae artist in Jamaica in the 70s. You can stream it from Netflix, yah man!

Here is a trailer:

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1k8k1_rockers-movie-trailer1977_music

What about Democracy in Cote d'Ivoire and S. Sudan?

The international news for the past two weeks has been dominated by the Egyptian protests and other challenges to "democratic" dictatorships in several Middle Eastern countries that are of strategic interest to the United States. While I am extremely curious about what will happen in Egypt, Syria, Iran, Lebanon,  I am equally concerned about the ongoing struggle to defend the results of democratic elections in Cote d'Ivoire and the challenges facing the fledgling democracy in Southern Sudan.

Cote d'Ivoire: Refugees in Liberia:

Since November 2010, former President Laurent Gbagbo has refused to give up power to the winner of the election, Alassane Ouattara. Tensions have led to the displacement on tens of thousands of people and over 200 have been killed. The AU is trying to negotiate a compromise and there many countries are banning imports of Ivorian chocolate in an attempt to cut off tax revenue that continues to flow to Gbagbo.
Here are two articles calling for tighter bans on Ivorian cocoa to help oust Gbagbo peacefully as well as to make a statement about the practice of using child labor in cultivating cocoa:
http://news.myjoyonline.com/features/201102/60618.asp

http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/30747--Bitter-Chocolate-New-Report-on-Child-Labor-in-Cote-d-Ivoire-and-Ghana-Offers-Further-Evidence-that-Hershey-Cocoa-Industry-are-Failing-to-Address-Abusive-Child-Labor-and-Human-Trafficking 

Southern Sudan: While the referendum for independence was peaceful and conclusive with about 98% of voters in Southern Sudan voting for independence from the rest of the country, the future of the new country is on extremely shaky ground. It is one of the poorest, least developed, and most fractured tribally, ethnically, and culturally. Since the referendum in January 2011, already over 200 people have been killed as a result of clashes between tribal militiamen and the police as well as between rival cattle-herding tribes.
The Government of Southern Sudan and leader Salva Kiir need all the international and regional support they can get.

 http://www.economist.com/node/18070450?story_id=18070450 

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gkIwuSyLVLIlcr9zIiQSMnIpvFEA?docId=CNG.174090b19aab9f0dd092524489bf4699.711

Carrot Ginger Soup recipe

This recipe is much more simple than the Thai Lemongrass Soup I posted last time but is also a delicious, nutritious winter treat.  You can make it sweet by adding a little maple syrup or spicy by adding serrano peppers when you sautee the onions and ginger. 

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

- 3 Tbs olive oil

- half cup yellow onions

- 1/4 cup ginger

- 4 cup carrots

- 3 cup veggie broth

- 1/2 cup orange juice 

Prep:

1. In a large pot, saute onions and ginger in olive oil

2. Add veggie broth and chopped carrots and simmer till the carrots are soft, about 40 min

3. Add orange juice, turn off the stove and let it cool

4. Use a food processor to make the soup smooth

5. Return to the pot and heat a little more

6. Serve, yummy!

An Ode to Coffee

It's been a long week, so little posting but here is an ode to coffee:

Aroma of mornings, warmth, home

My mother’s rich, dark,

Guaranteed to be 100% Colombian cafecito

Sadly now replaced by the

Weak odor from the K-cup coffee machine at my work

That signals the beginning of a long day.

Little coffee bean, why have you lost your past glory?

The bitter, powerful taste arising from the land of Ethiopia to inspire the

Sufi spiritual leaders in Yemen and Egypt,

Then converted to Christianity, refined and concentrated to make little espressos in Europe

Sipped by Enlightenment thinkers declaring the rights of man while enjoying the luxuries born from the sweat and blood of slaves in their colonies.

Now who is the slave?

The coffee or the addicted coffee drinker confined to the office desk.  

Ocean Dream

I had a really strange dream last night that I was trying to save marine wild life, including jelly fish which I don't particularly like, by catching them by hand and moving them from one part of the ocean to another where they would be safe.  I thought it was a completely crazy dream, then I found this documentary about sea nomads in the Coral Triangle near Indonesia. Not quite the same as my dream, but their way they life definitely seems surreal:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-12354346

Impossible Challenge?

I think I may have accepted an impossible challenge. I said I could learn to do a one-handed handstand, legs together like a pencil, held for 3 seconds.  Since acepting this challenge I still can't find a video of someone successfully completing this feat. Only people holding one-handed handstands with their legs wide apart to help balance. If anyone has any suggestion for how I can actually, within the limits of physics on the planet earth, balance, straight body, on one-hand for 3 seconds, please let me know.  So far I only have these videos of super-human Shaolin monks balancing on their fingertips for inspiration:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slOT4PB1lpE&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LkhVeW7VV0&NR=1&feature=fvwp

This is for you, cousin

My cousin was recently held up by gun point for her cell phone on a bus in Colombia. One of my first reactions was sadness over the continued lack of security and high rates of violence and crime in Colombia, a country I think is otherwise an extremely beautiful place for it's diversity of cultures and geography. Then I thought that I'm very fortunate to live in the United States where I'm not usually afraid of getting mugged on the bus. But in reality I also have second thoughts about taking public transportation in this country for very different reasons. Recently there have been a couple of bomb threats on the Washington DC metro which have caused increased security and random bag checks by the police. It is very hard to escape the insanity that exists in the world. I'm not usually the type to try to live my life hiding from conflict as I studied conflict resolution, practice capoeira, and have a fascination for understanding what motivates people to be violent or engage in crime. However, in wondering if it is even possible to completely escape the reaches of potential violent conflict situations, I came across this website with the top 10 safest places to live in the world.  Amazingly, they also appear to be some of the most beautiful places in the world. This is for you Jiji:

http://www.expatify.com/advice/10-best-places-to-live-for-escaping-world-conflict.html 

Delicious Lemongrass Soup Recipe

Alo!  Found this delicious recipe online and modified it a bit to the ingredients I had available. It is a wonderful dish to warm you up from the inside for the winter:

Thai Lemongrass Shrimp Soup
(Tom Yum Kung)

1 lb medium shrimp with shells on (and heads if possible)
1/4 cup lime juice
4 tsp Thai fish sauce
1/4 cup minced green chiles (or to taste)
2 tsp minced lemongrass (from the tenderest part of the stalk)

2 tsp vegetable oil
1 qt vegetable or seafood stock

2 stalks of fresh lemongrass cut into thin long pieces
2 heaping Tbsp fresh cilantro leaves and stems
2 thick slices dried galanga root (optional)
2 thick slices fresh ginger root
2 medium shallots, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup straw mushrooms or whatever you prefer

2 tsp minced scallion
10 cherry tomatoes, halved (optional)


1. Shell the shrimp, reserving the shells (and heads if you have them) Devein and cut each shrimp in chunks. Place shrimp in a bowl, and mix with 2 tbsp lime juice, 2 tsp fish sauce, 1 Tbsp of minced green chilies, and 1 tsp of minced lemongrass. Set aside in fridge to marinate.

2. Add vegetable oil to a soup pot over high heat. Add the shrimp shells and heads, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until the shells have started to brown. Immediately add the stock, 2 Tbsp of the minced chilies, 2 Tbsp of sliced lemongrass, cilantro stems, galanga root, ginger root, and shallots. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 30 minutes.

3. Strain the soup into a clean pot, pressing liquid out of the solids into a strainer. Put the new pot on medium high heat and add the remaining 2 Tbsp of lime juice, the remaining 2 tsp of fish sauce, the remaining 1 Tbsp of minced chili, the mushrooms, the fresh cilantro leaves, the minced scallion, and the tomatoes. Stir well and cook for 5 minutes.

4. Just before serving, add the shrimp along with the shrimp marinade. Warm until the shrimp are just cooked (about 30 seconds), and serve immediately. If desired, top the soup with nam prik pao ( a Thai garlic/fish sauce).