jenny penny

Just fyi, some people are legally obligated not to use their real names on the Internet by their employer. If my name doesn't suit, that's ok. I lurk more than post anyway.

Annoying article that basically says that big Ag is better than local or small-scale farming. It also makes some other points like local farming would make fattening food cheaper and contribute to obesity, consuming locally-produced food doesn't really save on carbon emissions, and other interesting tidbits. It's depressing to see that [still] the only two accepted forms of agriculture are big Ag, and small-scale big Ag. And this article got picked up by two news sites so far so it's making the rounds.

http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/11/14/the-inefficiency-of-local-food/

paul wheaton wrote:
I feel powerfully compelled to tell people about permaculture and ... well ... all the things I talk about in my videos and podcasts.  And, even more, I feel powerfully compelled to change the world.  I feel I am changing the world, and I feel compelled to make bigger changes faster. 

Wow, that's very cool. And really humbling. I'm still trying to convert my little 1/2 acre of the world...

Re: the forward velocity comment of FB...
Maybe I've missed it--Are you talking about your own forward velocity and establishing a community to do things the way you think they ought to be done? Or are you truly hoping to lead as many as possible (including those with other ideas about permaculture) toward a global permaculture movement?

Or is symbiculture a way of leading a subset away from the main group to try and lead by a different example? Or do I have this all wrong? (quite possible since I'm one of those creepy lurkers  )

This is our compromise...
http://www.amazon.com/Sunbeam-6131-Water-Dispenser-Black/dp/B000C3QSPQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1317419141&sr=8-1

It heats up to 2 cups of water. You can just fill your mug, dump the water in, and heat. It shuts off immediately when it's done. You only heat the exact amount of water you need. Caveat--you can't fit tall mugs (like travel mugs) under the dispenser. You have to use a regular mug and transfer.