The Idiot Cycle

Once upon a time, a king accumulated most of the gold in his kingdom. His subjects were very poor, without land to grow food. When the subjects began to starve and watch their families perish, they realized they had nothing to lose.

They stormed the castle and found the king in a large room, cowering next to his mounds of gold, begging them not to steal his gold.

The subjects did not take the gold. But they left the room and locked the king inside.

Upon leaving they called out, "now you will be able to see the real worth of your gold."

The king, trapped in the room with no water, air or food, realized the gold was useless.

This story became the impetus for The Idiot Cycle - a film about cancer.

"Everyone should know that the 'war on cancer' is largely a fraud."

Dr. Linus Pauling, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and the Nobel Prize in chemistry

The film follows the cycle taken by the world's largest chemical producers:
Dow Chemical, BASF, Bayer, Dupont, Astrazeneca, Monsanto and how these chemical companies, who manufacture and emit cancer causing chemical substances, also develop, produce and invest in cancer treatments, the most profitable disease on the planet.

Today we are bombarded with 18 million man made chemicals, many that have mixed in the environment to form new chemicals. Only 2,000 of these synthetic man made chemicals have full toxicological profiles. No government in the world knows which chemicals are in what consumer products and at what quantities.

"For the first time in the history of the world, every human being is now subjected to contact with dangerous chemicals, from the moment of conception until death."

Rachel Carson, Silent Spring

Now these chemical companies are launching biotechnology, an "innovative" frontier, just like synthetic chemicals were half a century ago. These companies are now developing, producing and hyping genetically modified crops, which have never been tested for long term health effects like cancer.

"Commercialization of genetically modified crops seems to have been based on public relations and not on full and truthful scientific reporting. Science has begun to feel the impact of putting commerce ahead of full disclosure and debate."

Once again, like synthetic chemicals, GMOs have been unleashed onto the consumer market, without full health and toxicological studies, without proper governmental regulations and without public consent. Once again, these companies will test their products on the general population.
And round and round goes the idiot cycle.

"When the same mistakes are repeated over and over again, it's time to consider the possibility that they are not mistakes at all."

http://www.japanesepopsongs.com/idiotcycle/index.html

Beauty and the Beets

Good morning and happy Friday!
Someone posted this recipe today on Facebook and I had to repost! I have seen something similiar online. I don't remember if it was a restaurant link or a recipe blog, either way the colors in this dish are amazing and I have to have it! This may be a Saturday afternoon experiment.




Beauty and the Beet

6 medium beets, peeled and sliced very thin on a mandoline
2 tablespoons cold-pressed olive oil
Salt & Black pepper to taste


For the Parsley Pesto
3 cloves of garlic
3 cups raw pumpkin seeds, soaked for 4-6 hours, drained and rinsed
2 cups parsley leaves (well-packed)
¾ cup cold-pressed olive oil
¾ teaspoon Himalayan salt


For the Sweet Pepper-Fennel Cream
2 sweet bell peppers
1 cup roughly chopped carrots
½ cup cold-pressed olive oil
2 cloves of garlic
¾ teaspoon Himalayan salt
¾ teaspoon fennel seed

Beet Instructions:
1. In a large bowl, toss the beets with the olive oil and sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper to season.
2. Make sure all of the beets are evenly coated.
3. Set aside.

Parsley Pesto Instructions :
1. Place the garlic in your food processor and process to finely chop.
2. Add all remaining ingredients and process until well combined.
3. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides a few times to keep things moving.
4. Scrape into a bowl.

Pepper-Fennel Cream Instructions :
1. Place the bell pepper, carrot, olive oil, garlic and salt in a blender.
2. Blend until smooth.
3. Add the fennel seed and blend lightly until just combined.
4. Pour into a bowl.

To assemble:

For each beet stack, begin with one slice of beet. Top with 2 teaspoons of parsley pesto. Top with another slice of beet. Top that with 2 more teaspoons of pesto and then a third slice of beet. Place a small spoonful of the sweet pepper-fennel cream on top of the third beet. The process will go much faster if you make several stacks at a time. Continue until you have used all of your beets and pesto, but make sure you’ve saved some of the sweet pepper-fennel cream. Before placing the stacks on a plate, place a spoonful of sweet pepper-fennel cream on the plate for each stack you’ll be serving. Place the beet stacks on top of the sweet pepper-fennel cream, garnish with chopped parsley and serve.