Since my story "Beekeepers all abuzz about mysterious syndrome" appeared in The Lawton Constitution on March 25, I've been keeping a close eye on stories about the disappearing bees and what could be behind the so-called "Colony Collapse Disorder." So far, here in Oklahoma, not many hives have been affected. Still, some in Southeast Oklahoma opened up hives to find all the bees simply gone.
Well, Linda Moulton Howe at EarthFiles.com (she's investigated all manner of unusual phenomena) reports the following:
In addition to the United States and Canada, in Europe at least nine countries are now reporting massive disappearances of honey bees – similar to the Colony Collapse Disorder that has affected American beekeepers since the fall of 2006. The European countries reporting bee disappearances are:
1) Spain
2) Poland
3) Greece
4) Croatia
5) Switzerland
6) Italy
7) Portugal
8) Germany
9) England.
To everyone’s surprise, in the U. K. where genetically modified crops have been resisted and beekeeping is on a smaller scale with less pesticide use than in the United States, honey beekeepers in London who opened hives the end of March found at least half of their hives empty.
--END--
Howe continues with interviews with John Chapple the Chairman of the London Beekeeping Association. Chapple said he and fellow beekeepers in Greater London are perplexed by the disappearance of all the bees and estimates that half of the approximately 9,000 hives in the London area have disappeared.
Read the interview here.
And as for beekeepers here in Oklahoma? Well, the rumblings at the Oklahoma State Beekeepers Association is that pesticides and GMO's are most likely at the root of the problem. Agri-giant Monsanto was muttered as well among some at the meeting. Methinks they may be on to something.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Sunday, April 8, 2007
'Watermelon may become state vegetable ' / Lawton Constitution
By Andrew Griffin
Special Correspondent
The Lawton Constitution
Posted: April 8, 2007
OKLAHOMA CITY — What’s green on the outside and red on the inside and tastes sweet and refreshing on a summer’s day?
Answer? It’s the watermelon, and thanks to two Southwest Oklahoma legislators it’s another step toward becoming Oklahoma’s state vegetable.
That’s right. The state vegetable. The popular misconception is that the watermelon is a fruit, but it is, in fact, considered both a fruit and a vegetable, according to the online fact sheet at the watermelon information site www.watermelon.org.
State Sen. Don Barrington, R-Lawton, said he co-authored the bill, HB 1669, with state Rep. Joe Dorman, DRush Springs, and it unanimously passed through the Senate General Government Committee. The bill is scheduled to go before the full Senate in the next several weeks, Barrington said.
“I think it has a good chance of passing,” Barrington added.
“Hopefully, it gets to the governor’s desk,” Dorman said, adding that he had tried to include this as an amendment in a bill last session, but it was left out by the legislator.
“I took his advice to try it again this year,” Dorman said.
And while the state has an official beverage (milk) and an official tree (redbud), there is, surprisingly, no official state vegetable, said Dorman, who is the 1994 Rush Springs Watermelon Festival seedspitting champion.
In fact, Dorman wasn’t sure why, considering Oklahoma’s agricultural economy, no state vegetable had been selected.
“It falls in as a fruit but it’s also a vegetable because it’s a member of the cucumber family,” Dorman said, adding that the attention brought to the watermelon is a boost to his district. Promotion for Rush Springs
“It’s a huge promotion of Rush Springs and the surrounding area,” he said. “Everybody (in Rush Springs) is happy that we’re pursuing this.”
Dorman also said this bill has been popular with school children in his district. In fact, many of them drew colorful watermelons and mailed them to members of the Legislature as a sort of grade-school lobbying effort.
“It’s exciting because we get to teach the kids about the (legislative) process,” Dorman said.
While botanically the watermelon is a fruit,because it’s a vegetable crop using vegetable production systems, it’s considered a vegetable.
When Barrington was asked whether folks considered a watermelon a fruit or a vegetable, he simply replied, “It depends on who you ask.”
Dorman, meanwhile, said the bill came up at a contentious time in the Senate and that the bill helped lighten the mood.
Dorman said he recently visited South Korea and noticed that watermelon is a staple of their diet and it’s popular in China in their stir fry dishes.
--END--
Special Correspondent
The Lawton Constitution
Posted: April 8, 2007
OKLAHOMA CITY — What’s green on the outside and red on the inside and tastes sweet and refreshing on a summer’s day?
Answer? It’s the watermelon, and thanks to two Southwest Oklahoma legislators it’s another step toward becoming Oklahoma’s state vegetable.
That’s right. The state vegetable. The popular misconception is that the watermelon is a fruit, but it is, in fact, considered both a fruit and a vegetable, according to the online fact sheet at the watermelon information site www.watermelon.org.
State Sen. Don Barrington, R-Lawton, said he co-authored the bill, HB 1669, with state Rep. Joe Dorman, DRush Springs, and it unanimously passed through the Senate General Government Committee. The bill is scheduled to go before the full Senate in the next several weeks, Barrington said.
“I think it has a good chance of passing,” Barrington added.
“Hopefully, it gets to the governor’s desk,” Dorman said, adding that he had tried to include this as an amendment in a bill last session, but it was left out by the legislator.
“I took his advice to try it again this year,” Dorman said.
And while the state has an official beverage (milk) and an official tree (redbud), there is, surprisingly, no official state vegetable, said Dorman, who is the 1994 Rush Springs Watermelon Festival seedspitting champion.
In fact, Dorman wasn’t sure why, considering Oklahoma’s agricultural economy, no state vegetable had been selected.
“It falls in as a fruit but it’s also a vegetable because it’s a member of the cucumber family,” Dorman said, adding that the attention brought to the watermelon is a boost to his district. Promotion for Rush Springs
“It’s a huge promotion of Rush Springs and the surrounding area,” he said. “Everybody (in Rush Springs) is happy that we’re pursuing this.”
Dorman also said this bill has been popular with school children in his district. In fact, many of them drew colorful watermelons and mailed them to members of the Legislature as a sort of grade-school lobbying effort.
“It’s exciting because we get to teach the kids about the (legislative) process,” Dorman said.
While botanically the watermelon is a fruit,because it’s a vegetable crop using vegetable production systems, it’s considered a vegetable.
When Barrington was asked whether folks considered a watermelon a fruit or a vegetable, he simply replied, “It depends on who you ask.”
Dorman, meanwhile, said the bill came up at a contentious time in the Senate and that the bill helped lighten the mood.
Dorman said he recently visited South Korea and noticed that watermelon is a staple of their diet and it’s popular in China in their stir fry dishes.
--END--
Friday, April 6, 2007
Southwest US (including OK) to experience superdrought?
Yes, I see snowflakes outside my window here in downtown Oklahoma City. Yet, the latest news is that climate change will lead to a super-drought here in the Sooner State and throughout the Southwestern United States.
And with the Southwest being one of the fastest-growing regions of the United States, water shortages are likely.
By the way, over breakfast this morning, I asked a friend if he felt the United States would experience a break-up, such as Vermont and other New England states breaking off or Washington, Oregon, Idaho and northern California becoming "Cascadia" or somesuch. Well, he said he doubted it and that we would remain united. Now, whether the District of Columbia or Puerto Rico will become states, it remains to be seen.
And with the Southwest being one of the fastest-growing regions of the United States, water shortages are likely.
By the way, over breakfast this morning, I asked a friend if he felt the United States would experience a break-up, such as Vermont and other New England states breaking off or Washington, Oregon, Idaho and northern California becoming "Cascadia" or somesuch. Well, he said he doubted it and that we would remain united. Now, whether the District of Columbia or Puerto Rico will become states, it remains to be seen.
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Coburn's vendetta against 'Voice of America'?
Wayne Madsen, who runs the D.C.-based news site Wayne Madsen Report, is reporting today that Oklahoma's junior U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Muskogee) has it in for the greatly diminished Voice of America radio system. Why?
Writes Madsen:
Oklahoma's extreme right-wing Republican Senator Tom Coburn is on a Joseph McCarthy-like crusade against the Voice of America -- or what remains of it after draconian budget cuts, foreign language program cancellations, and neo-con editorializing.
According to VOA sources, Coburn is on a personal vendetta against some long-serving VOA broadcasters. Coburn is accusing some of having links to Hezbollah, the government of Iran, and other bogeymen of convenience.
Radio Farda, a joint operation of the VOA and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, has been dubbed by Coburn and his staff of neo-cons as "Radio Khatami," a reference to the previous moderate President of Iran, and of airing wire reports from the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).
The VOA's Persian language service has also come in for intense criticism from Coburn.
A VOA official, speaking on conditions of anonymity, said Coburn's vendetta against the VOA was obsessive and mean-spirited.
--END--
This story sounds as if it's worth investigating further. What is Sen. Coburn's issue with VOA? Will see what I can find out.
Writes Madsen:
Oklahoma's extreme right-wing Republican Senator Tom Coburn is on a Joseph McCarthy-like crusade against the Voice of America -- or what remains of it after draconian budget cuts, foreign language program cancellations, and neo-con editorializing.
According to VOA sources, Coburn is on a personal vendetta against some long-serving VOA broadcasters. Coburn is accusing some of having links to Hezbollah, the government of Iran, and other bogeymen of convenience.
Radio Farda, a joint operation of the VOA and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, has been dubbed by Coburn and his staff of neo-cons as "Radio Khatami," a reference to the previous moderate President of Iran, and of airing wire reports from the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).
The VOA's Persian language service has also come in for intense criticism from Coburn.
A VOA official, speaking on conditions of anonymity, said Coburn's vendetta against the VOA was obsessive and mean-spirited.
--END--
This story sounds as if it's worth investigating further. What is Sen. Coburn's issue with VOA? Will see what I can find out.
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Toby Keith shines in "Broken Bridges"
Oklahoma native son and country superstar-turned-actor Toby Keith stars in a film I watched last night called "Broken Bridges."
And while this film is nothing close to what I'd refer to as "high art," Toby Keith seemed comfortable in his role as a washed up country singer who is reunited with his old girlfriend Angela (Kelly Preston) and their out-of-wedlock daughter Dixie Leigh (Lindsey Haun). Toby does a great job in tackling his role and his sense of humor and wit comes through crystal clear.
Surprisingly, Burt Reynolds is again miscast and ignored, playing Angela's grumpy father. Of course it wasn't as bad as his role as Boss J.D. Hogg on the Dixie dud "Dukes of Hazzard" movie out a year or so ago. Willie Nelson plays himself in the film and can do no wrong.
Highlights on "Broken Bridges" include "Crash Here Tonight" (also on his 2006 album "White Trash With Money") and the soulful "Uncloudy Day" featuring Toby, Willie and BeBe Winans.
Now, I've heard through the grapevine that Toby is working on a new project called "Beer For My Horses." I assume it's a modern-day Western based on his 2003 hit of the same name. Will post any updates as they come along.
Choppers!
From my perch here on the fifth floor of a swell building in downtown Oklahoma City, I have a great view of the city looking north. And as I look northward, I've noticed a number of wee helicopters zipping about. Are they news choppers, "eyes in the skies," medical copters or something else. Is there an emergency? I can't say. Will keep y'all posted.
Watermelon as state vegetable?
I was reading this Norman Transcript story today and noticed that two legislators from Southwest Oklahoma want the watermelon to be the state vegetable. Here's how it reads as written up by CNHI Capitol reporter Jaclyn Houghton:
* House Bill 1669, authored by Sen. Don Barrington, R-Lawton; and Rep. Joe Dorman, D-Rush Springs; passed out of the Senate General Government Committee with a 10-0 vote. The bill would designate watermelon as the state’s official vegetable.
--END--
I had no idea Oklahoma did not have an official state vegetable. Watermelons are terrific and make for a top-notch choice. Good job Sen. Barrington and Rep. Dorman.
* House Bill 1669, authored by Sen. Don Barrington, R-Lawton; and Rep. Joe Dorman, D-Rush Springs; passed out of the Senate General Government Committee with a 10-0 vote. The bill would designate watermelon as the state’s official vegetable.
--END--
I had no idea Oklahoma did not have an official state vegetable. Watermelons are terrific and make for a top-notch choice. Good job Sen. Barrington and Rep. Dorman.
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