Green (Living) Review

Privatized prison - payment by results

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Like the UK the USA is also headed down the road of privatization of the prison service and in fact has been on that road for a while (like the UK).

America's largest private prison company, the Corrections Corporation of America, is on a buying spree. With a war chest of $250 million, the corporation, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, sent out letters to 48 states, offering to buy their prisons outright. To ensure their profitability, the corporation insists that it be guaranteed that the prisons be kept at least 90 percent full. Plus, the corporate jailers demand a 20-year management contract, on top of the profits they expect to extract by spending less money per prisoner.

For the last two years, the number of inmates held in state prisons has declined slightly, largely because the states are short on money. Crime, of course, has declined dramatically in the last 20 years, but that has never dampened the states’ appetites for warehousing ever more Black and brown bodies, and also some whites, and the federal prison system is still growing.

However, the Corrections Corporation of America believes the economic crisis has created an historic opportunity to become the landlord, as well as the manager, of a big chunk of the American prison gulag. It also makes, and hopes to make, a nice deal of money from the labor of the prisoners.

While the US has a big mouth when it comes to prison labor – slave labor – in China it is rather silent about what is going on in US jails and how many US companies benefit from this slave labor.

The attempted prison grab is also defensive in nature. If private companies can gain both ownership and management of enough prisons, they can set the prices without open-bid competition for prison services, creating a guaranteed cost-plus monopoly like that which exists between the Pentagon and the military-industrial complex.

If private companies are allowed to own the deeds to prisons, they are a big step closer to owning the people inside them.

For a better analogy on this, we must, by needs, go back and look at the American slave system, a thoroughly capitalist enterprise that reduced human beings to units of labor and sale.

The Corrections Corporation of America’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission read very much like the documents of a slave-trader.

Investors are warned that profits would go down if the demand for prisoners declines. That is, if the world’s largest police state shrinks, so does the corporate bottom line. Dangers to profitability include “relaxation of enforcement efforts, leniency in conviction or parole standards and sentencing practices or through the decriminalization of certain activities that are currently proscribed by our criminal laws."

The corporation spells it out: “any changes with respect to drugs and controlled substances or illegal immigration could affect the number of persons arrested, convicted, and sentenced, thereby potentially reducing demand for correctional facilities to house them."

For the Corrections Corporation of America, human freedom is a dirty word.

And, let no one doubt it, the same attitude prevails in the British prison companies and they, no doubt, are also behind the lobbying for more incarcerations in UK jails, not that we don't already have a huge amount of people in jails.

Yes, crime needs to be dealt with but it should not be or become the domain of private companies for private and corporate gain.

Whatever happened to Localism and the Big Society?

By Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Much has been made in the days when the Con-Dem coalition took power of localism and of the Big Society but both are very much falling by the wayside.

The charities – in fact all charities – that would have been the cornerstones, foundation and operators of the Big Society have their funding slashed and the people of the UK, who are feeling the pinch of the economic crisis and the austerity measures also have no means of giving to those charities. Thus the Big Society is all but dead; at least, if not dead then it is on life support.

Localism is another that is falling by the wayside with the Planning Minister – yes, him again – and the Deputy PM going hell for leather against the wishes of the local communities. Even going as far as, as done by the Planning Minister, accusing councils of ‘dragging their feet’ over giving up green land for development, an issue which he described as a ‘generational crisis’.

As far as I understand the idea of localism it was intended to empower local people and councils as far as planning laws is concerned, removing pressure from Whitehall.

This, however, will only be allowed, it would appear, if the councils' thinking and views, and those of the local people, are in line with the demands of Whitehall. If not then the will of Whitehall will be brought to bear and the locals overruled.

Anyone can spell dictatorship and fakes? The government of the UK is not interested in the wishes and the desires of the people and just pays lip-service, and it does not matter which party is in “power”.

We can see this with regards to the referendum on British EU membership also and especially. The people, in the main and in general, want a referendum where they can clearly state and “in” or “out” preference but Cameron has decided that that is not going to be the right way.

He also has now delayed his speech on the referendum that was due to be held on Friday, January 18, 2012, officially because of the hostage crisis at that gas plant in the desert of Algeria. However, strangely enough just an hour or so before he made that statement that the speech was not going to be forthcoming US President Obama was on the phone to him telling him that the US does not agree with an “in”/”out” referendum.

When will the Obama regime in America realize that the UK is not a state of the USA and that the demands and even the wishes of the US administration are irrelevant as far as the British people are concerned and that Britain is a sovereign country.

The good news is, however, that the Prime Minister has thought the better of it an is, now, promising and “in/out” referendum but, alas, on his terms and not on the terms that the people would like. This, actually, means that he may have promised it but whether the British people will actually get it or not is another question.

Former head of TESCO says high street death is “progress”

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Sir Terry Leahy, the former CEO of TESCO, basically is for the high street of small independent shops to decline and die and he says that this death is “progress”.

This attitude of TESCO does not surprise me at all. It is also this person's desire to have, in line with this “progress”, to have a large supermarket, ideally in his view a TESCO, on every high street and especially more large out of town super- and hyper-stores.

After the debacle with the horse meat in hamburgers I do not think that we need more supermarkets of the TESCO kind on the high street. What we need are reputable small retailers once again, like what the high street used to be made up of.

We need to, once again have the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker, and, obviously, the grocer and general store on the high street, and less of the large supermarkets of the TESCO kind and also less restaurants, bars, clubs and such like.

The only way to revitalize the high street is to get those business that really would provide a (local) service to customers and who also are prepared, and this is down to the proprietors, to go out of their way to get the customer what they want.

Our high streets once were full of those shops whose proprietors would go out of their way to get the customer what he wanted, even if that meant ordering something in especially for that customer. The reply often was “we haven't got it in stock but we can get it for you”.

It is true that today the Internet also has a lot to answer for but then again it was the store owners who were no longer prepared to get people what they were asking for and with the Internet the world is, to a degree, the customer's oyster and almost anything can be ordered on-line to be delivered by mail or courier.

Mail-order companies have been around, however, ever since about the middle of the 19th century and the Internet is, basically, just the modern version of it. Instead of receiving catalogs by mail and then ordering by mail, sending in a check or postal order, today we order and pay online and they send it by mail or other carrier.

However, and that despite being able to even order our groceries from the large supermarkets on-line, we still want the high street grocer and butcher and baker and the rest, for sure. And even more so if those stores offer the right kind of service.

Service often is the answer to many of the problems of the high street and high street stores. Too many shops are not prepared to give the customer the service he or she would like and deserve.

Any store prepared to go the extra mile for customers will always have patrons as word of mouth is one of the best advertising mediums. This also, obviously, applies the other way round in that a shop where owner and staff are not prepared to engage the customer will lose out, and that may be, to a great degree, the reason for the death of the high street.

Personally I have to admit that I do some of my shopping at supermarkets but not at the particular one of which Sir Terry was once CEO. The ones that I use have great staff which are always friendly and will look for something that one cannot find. Unlike staff I have encountered in the stores of the company he used to head.

However, I prefer to buy my fruit and vegetables at a high street greengrocers and also rather go to the local hardware stores than to the big DIY chains. The latter often as the high street store is closer than the DIY chains' stores and while the latter might be cheaper the high street hardware store – especially one – the owner will go out of his way to obtain things I am looking for if he has not got them in stock.

There have been suggestions, coming back to the fiasco at TESCO with the horse meat in beefburgers, that the company was well aware why the things were so cheap. Namely that almost a third of the meat contents was not beef but horse meat.

Instead of more supermarkets like TESCO we need fewer of them and we need affordable rates for high street retail units so that the shops can and will return to our high streets and town centers.

Love your neighbor as you love yourself

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

All too often people in churches and Christian groups are told the formula for JOY...

Jesus first,

Others next,

Yourself last

...but this is not the case.

Jesus said: “Love your neighbor as you love yourself”, which means that you first have to love yourself before you can even begin to love your neighbor.

Like with so many other things there is so many false messages out there concerning the Gospels and the message of Jesus the Messiah.

He did not say that you have to put yourself last... In fact, if you do not love yourself you cannot love your neighbor; it is as simple as that and many churches that spout the J-O-Y formula have got the entire thing wrong.

Then again there are so many other things where they quote verses of Scripture entirely out of context or purposely misquote them in order to push their agenda.

There is nothing, absolutely nothing, written between the lines of the Bible regardless of what this or that “teacher” may claim but there are parts of text that do not work as they are either accidental or deliberate mistranslations.

Everything has to be seen in context and also in the setting of the day when the words were written.

Some people love to band about the false notion that money is evil, or that money is the root of all evil (but it is written, they will say). What is written, however, is that “the love of money id the root of all evil” and not money per se. We can see this, obviously, everywhere in today's world where the love of money takes over and causes all manner of grief.

If they want to quote Scripture they best learn it first...

Planning Minister wants to relax planning laws in our National Parks

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

In his latest wheeze the Planning Minister – yes, him again – is now looking to relax the planning laws governing National Parks to force through the erection of broadband masts and equipment to enable the speedier roll out of the service. This is despite claims that in the past 5 years only 3 out of 140 applications have been turned down on the grounds of spoiling the rural landscape.

The question is therefore whether this is a necessary piece of legislation to increase the availability of modern technology or the setting of a dangerous and unnecessary precedence, open to misuse at some future date. What happened to key decisions being taken locally? And what is the point of providing protection for the countryside when it can be simply rescinded in a move that flies in the face of democracy?

Is this a case of power going to his head? And if so can we do the countryside a favour and increase the voltage!

After several of the media reported this aim of relaxing the planning laws in our National Parks DEFRA has come out with a “myths buster” claiming that what the media has reported simply if not true.

However, just to prove that the current Planning Minister – yes, yes, him again – is not the only 'enemy of the countryside' in this coalition government. The Deputy PM is too for he is calling for an arc of new settlements modeled on Milton Keynes to be built in the Buckinghamshire, Warwickshire and Oxfordshire countryside to solve the housing crisis.

Apparently he believes that destroying some of the best countryside in England will stop planning disputes when developers try and build new housing in already-established communities.

We do not, as mentioned time and again, new (eco) towns as, first of, we have enough empty homes to house everyone who wants a home, plus every homeless person or family in this country, plus all of those in Eire. All that is required would be to refurbish those homes.

But, that's where the problem lies. Refurbishment does not carry the tax relief and tax break that does the building of new homes does for the developers.

The cudgel

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

We live in a dangerous world, just as men have done throughout the ages. In some times and places, the dangers may be obvious and clear, and in others, they may be less obvious, yet they remain.

The saying “walk softly and carry a big stick” is a good adage for it is not always convenient, or legal, to carry a gun, of whatever size or type. In the days of old the weapon of the gentleman, more often that not, was the sword, but that was for gentlemen. The poor could (a) not afford one and (b), theoretically, were also not allowed to carry one.

The answer, however, came in the humble cudgel and our predecessors have provided us with elegant (and effective) solutions for these situations.

One of the oldest, most versatile, and satisfying bits of manly equipage is found in the simple cudgel. At times this may also be referred to as a truncheon, sap, bludgeon, or shillelagh. But in truth a cudgel is a cudgel and a truncheon, for instance, which is known as a Billy Club in the US or a Nightstick, is a policeman's weapon. A sap is not a wooden cudgel or club but something rather different and a shillelagh is a knob-handled walking stick, much like the African knobkerrie.

The wooden thing often referred to as a shillelagh, resembling somewhat of a wooden hammer, is nothing of the kind and just a silly invention of the Irish tourist industry.

The ordinary cudgel is perhaps the simplest of all weapons. It is essentially a short stout stick, usually made of some hardwood, and wielded as a weapon, with one hand.

What could be more convenient? Or natural?

As we all know, the male of our species are, almost mystically, attracted to wood, to sticks. Take your kids for a walk in the woods and the boys, no doubt, and the Dad probably too, will pick up a stick to use either as a walking aid or will sparring with them in stick fighting, even if they have never come across this before. It is just like instinct; like a distant memory.

When during the time of King John I the people of England were no longer allowed to carry “fighting” weapons all that was left to them was the cudgel, the walking stick, and the quarterstaff. The latter two, especially, could be claimed to be used for walking and little could be said or done about it.

Under British law today most that you carry could be misconstrued by a law enfarcement officer as an “offensive weapon” and thus a disguise is needed. No, not you are to wear a disguise; the weapon needs to be disguised, and ideally thus it be a walking stick or knobkerrie rather than the shorter cudgel, unless you can think of a way of discribing it away, so to speak.

Another nice thing about cudgels is that they can be so easily crafted to reflect the nature and personality of their owners. Admittedly, many cudgels, in use, are weapons of opportunity but I believe, though, that most men will want to have their own personal cudgels, and I recommend this as an excellent weekend or evening project to undertake.

The old countrymen of days gone by used to watch their cudgels grow, literally, for they would chose the right branch out there in the copse (coppice) while it was still growing and earmarked it, so to speak, for harvest at the right time.

Some would drill a hole into the working end – the larger part – of the cudgel when they had finished fashioning it and filled it with lead, then plugging the hole with a wooden plug. Personally I do not think that this is, actually, necessary and carrying one filled with lead would definitely land you in hot and deep water with the law in most places in the UK.

Keep it simply wood and then it's good... well, more or less...

Jerusalem Artichoke

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

A member of the Aster (Asteraceae) family, Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus) is a perennial herbaceous plant cultivated for its edible tubers that go by the name of sunchokes.

Despite the name, Jerusalem artichokes are not indigenous to Jerusalem not are they a type artichoke, although they are in the same plant family. The Jerusalem artichoke is grown as a flower or for its food value and is hardy between USDA zones 3 and 9 and more than likely, thus, all across the UK.

Jerusalem artichoke, which also goes by the name girasole and Jerusalem sunflower, or sunchoke, is a large plant, growing 6 to 10 feet in height, with bright yellow flowers, when you ever get the flowers to come up (still waiting for them).

It is somewhat coarse in appearance but was originally cultivated by Native Americans for its nutritious tubers, which contain no starches, only carbohydrates called inulin (not to be confused with insulin).

Sunchokes are delicious whether eaten raw (nutty flavor) or roasted with other root vegetables in the oven – just don't eat too many at one sitting. If boiled they become mushy, but make a nice addition to potato in mash potato dishes. As an aside, inulin is an important source of fructose for the food industry.

The tubers are sometimes used as a substitute for potatoes as they have a similar consistency, and in their raw form have a similar texture, but a sweeter, nuttier flavor; raw and sliced thinly, they are fit for a salad. The carbohydrates give the tubers a tendency to become soft and mushy if boiled, but they retain their texture better when steamed.

The reason for the advice not to eat too many in one sitting is that inulin cannot be broken down by the human digestive system, which can cause flatulence and, in some cases, gastric pain.

The common sunflower belongs to the same genus Helianthus and like other sunflowers, the seed heads are a source of food for birds.

Jerusalem artichoke spreads via tubers and seeds and is known to be weedy or invasive and thus are best grown in large containers where they cannot escape into the “wild”, so to speak. Some allotment associations in the UK have been known to reprimand members for growing this weed without even understanding the value of the Jerusalem artichoke.

While the flower seeds – if ever you manage to get flowers – are valuable source of food for the birds it is reckoned by some gardeners that one should cut the stalks and stop them from ever developing a flower and seed head.

Not that that problem has ever occurred on my garden as, as said, flowers have, so far, not appeared on my sunchokes.

Sunchokes can be left in the ground during winter and are a great source of carbohydrates when potatoes are scarce and have to be used sparingly.

Family realize their dreams with their own forest and sawmill

John Cushnie bought a Logosol sawmill to take care of timber from his woodland property, situated in the middle of the English Lake District, one of the UK’s most visited tourist destinations. “My wife Jane comes from the area and our neighbors are all her relations,” says John Cushnie, looking as though he is the cat who got all the cream as he lifts an oak log onto his Logosol saw.

“I’m a qualified engineer,” says John, who currently works for a mobile telephone company. For him, the forest is not only an opportunity for relaxation. The engineer in him also sees an opportunity to improve and create. That’s why a few years ago he bought a Logosol M7 to deal with storm damaged and thinned out trees. “It’s economically better we take care of the trees ourselves than to bring in a contractor,” says John.

USEFUL AND RELAXING

According to Jane, her husband’s motivation is not quite as scientific as he makes out. “When we have parties for our friends and their families, the dads always congregate around the sawmill,” she says. She means that the sawmill awakens the boy in both her husband and other men. John admits that there could be something in that. “Sawing is both interesting and relaxing. It’s also useful. There are worse places you could be working in,” says John, sweeping his arm over the lake vista.

PLANS FOR THE FUTURE

Currently, the forest and sawmill are just a hobby, but in the long term, the forest will become part of the family’s source of income. The idea is to build a few overnight cabins and run courses associated with the forest. Having a forest with its own sawmill in one of the UK’s hottest tourist areas makes these plans all the more realistic.

Logosol is a Swedish based international company developing and selling unique machines and services within wood processing and woodworking. With innovative and affordable solutions, we have visibly changed forestry and woodworking for more than 20 years. Our products are known for simplicity of design, reliability, and efficiency. See more about their chainsaw mills, bandsaw mills, planer/moulders & joinery machines by visiting their website www.logosol.co.uk.

Full Disclosure Statement: The GREEN (LIVING) REVIEW received no compensation for any component of this article.

This article is for your information only and the GREEN (LIVING) REVIEW does not (necessarily) approve, endorse or recommend the product, service or company mentioned.

The benefits of salt

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

We are so often told that salt is dangerous for us in our diet, etc., but salt is a highly beneficial substance that was once more valuable than gold.

Salt seasons, cures, and preserves. It also seals, cleans, and acts as an antiseptic. It regulates the exchange of water between cells and the fluidic systems making possible the absorption of nutrients and the disposal of waste into the bloodstream.

Sodium is necessary for muscle contraction, as well as the transmission of nerve impulses. Chloride is essential for digestion and respiration.

An adult body contains enough salt to fill 3 or 4 saltshakers ― but we are constantly losing it through bodily functions and must replenish the supply, particularly under labor or sweating.

We know when we have lost too much salt when we are easily dehydrated, have muscle cramps, restlessness, altered mental state, fatigue, muscle spasms and nausea.

Too much salt is not good for us, in fact it can kill. But for the latter to happen you have to really eat an awful lot of it and you simply would not as it would make you sick before you even got anywhere remotely near the fatal dose.

Lack of salt, on the other hand, also kills and here you do not even know when you come close to it, except for the fact that you have, as said above, muscle cramps, restlessness, altered mental state, fatigue, muscle spasms and nausea.

Anyone who has been in the military knows that salt is needed for you get issued salt tablets to be taken when drinking water in order to combat the loss of salt through perspiration and urination when performing arduous tasks such as marching with full kit, etc.

Salt is also useful from which, with the addition of baking soda and a few drops of essential oil, such as Tea Tree, Mint, Aloe Vera, etc., to make tooth powder. Better for you than any commercial toothpaste, as the latter, normally, contains fluoride and other additives which may not, necessarily, be very healthy.

So, don't believe all that you hear about salt...

British army facing more and more cuts

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Considering that we have officially launched the first private (charter) navy the other day those cuts may be the beginning of looking to also create charter armies in the UK; In other words, mercenary operations.

The Con-Dem coalition under David Cameron in mid-January 2013 announced that thousands of soldiers of the British Army will have to be made redundant in the latest round of cuts to government spending and that the Territorial Army, which was never intended to be used outside the UK, but has been for a while now already, is to be given a greater role.

It should be slowly becoming obvious that we are headed for a more or less total privatization of almost anything and the writing is already on the wall, I would suggest, that sooner or later, but probably sooner rather than later, the UK military will be operated by mercenaries on a “for profit” basis, with payments by result, like the way the prison and the probation services, as well as the police, are going.

The “Glencore” Navy is already a reality and sooner or later we may have the “McAlpine” regiment and the “Barclay's” regiment in the British Army.

The “Glencore” Navy is the private naval force that is to combat the piracy crisis in Somalia but I doubt that it will stop there. The interesting part to this is, and thus one can but assume that it is, basically, what was called a “charter navy” and blessed by UK government, that the troops going with his navy are all British and all ex-service personnel.

As, however, mercenary activities are illegal for a British subject, regardless how and where, unless authorized by the government, we should be able to safely assume that this “Glencore” Navy is sailing and operating with the full blessing of the UK government (and other western governments).

First of all, when it comes to the Army, their brief is to defend the realm and that does not mean working in theaters that are not part of the realm and that's where our money goes, to be very honest. Secondly, thus, if the first point would be taken serious then the Army could be reduced and the Territorial Army have its real role, namely that of a defense force of these Islands.

That, however, would not please the so-called defense industry as they would not be able to screw the government with over-priced goods and services, as they do presently, as most of those goods and services would, no longer, be required. And the politicians that are in the industry's pockets would not allow that to happen either. You cannot kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

We don't need a new government, we need a new system...

Archive