INDEX(back to beginning)
ISSN: 1530-5775
July 2008, Vol.10 #7
Hitting the Bricks by Mary C. Wickner
Back At Work from Georgia Jones
Your Own Tree of Dreams, by Lynn Andrews
Lose Weight With Smart Thinking
a special series by Richard Kuhns
by Irma Hudson
The Combing of the Hair
Poems from Shimon Weinroth
The next installment from
Flying Lessons for Butterflies by Sheila Whitman
An Extraordinary story
from the Killing Fields of Cambodia
Other Cloaks—Our Hosts Are Versatile
First oil then food-Who starves?
A Review of The Kindness of Strangers
It's Not Over
Be Afraid
Last Month Our Exceptional Women Were You
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LadybugLive.com, MooseMeals.com, and TeenTalkNetwork.com
We have it all This Month: Other Cloaks—Our Hosts Are Versatile We come to know our audio hosts for what they say each show. We think of them in their titles or their subject: Dr. Doris Jeanette is a passionate believer in human potential, Marilyn Wetston is all about fashion… Yet both of them have invested heavily of themselves to help others, Doris supported Hillary's run for the Presidency and Marilyn has lent her skills and resources to other businesswomen helping women and their communities. These are sometimes things that only I know because I talk to hosts and listen to their programs, while you usually only get to hear the public broadcast. Sometimes, though, we get something more in the public arena:
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A Conversation with |
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Georgia@ladybugbooks.com
Please use the subject title: NewVoices Information
It's Not Your Same Old Radio!
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"There are people who have something to say and those who have something to sell. We are interested in the ones with something special to teach the world."
For LadybugLive, TeenTalkNetwork, and MooseMeals to continue growing, we need correspondents and readers. The process is quite simple: submissions are by email. If accepted, a reader calls, either our local or our toll free number as directed in the acceptance email, to record. What will you be recording? We are looking for: readings of original creative work, comment and commentary, and ideas for regularly appearing programming that can be done within this format. We are not able, as yet, to do direct call in shows, but shows that require listener (delayed) response are OK. All of this, of course, within the same guidelines as everything we do: Of interest to women (no particular restrictions). This format might also be ideal for some of those traditional topics, such as clothing and makeup, with a fresh "twist."
We strive to bring you the best in women's writing. And... Keep up to date on what is happening at NewVoices and LadybugFlights by signing up for our monthly newsletter:
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We also offer our audio programs in downloadable MP3 format for offline listening, and at the same modest subscription price — With no unwanted advertising! We know online radio is new to many of you but we also know how rewarding it can be. So, if you need help to get started, don't hesitate to contact Georgia for help... And, hey! Our hosts love hearing from you!
Our teen site, TeenTalkNetwork.com programming is safe — no porn or other unwanted promotions are attached to our files.
New programming is always available at:
TeenTalkNetwork.com
MooseMeals.com
LadybugLive
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Midwest Floods & Ruined CropsFirst oil then food - Who starves?
We were fortunate during the first part of this year to be observers and not a victims, when natural disasters destroyed crops across the globe. Because of this U.S. farmers planted record crops this spring and expected to get record prices as one of the few global suppliers. Now, however, we got whacked, too. Heavy rain in the Midwest has caused rivers to overflow and levees to break. Millions of acres of farmland are now underwater and their crops likely destroyed. In Iowa, our top corn-growing state, more than 1.3 million acres of corn and 2 million acres of soybeans have been flooded; in total, about 16 percent of the state's farmland is under water. And we don't yet know the full extent of the damage; the damage is still going on. Because of the flooding we have two immediate concerns: higher prices and shrinking supplies. On Monday, corn prices on the Chicago Board of Trade reached $8 a bushel, an increase of nearly 20 percent in the last two weeks and more than double last years prices.  Typically, high prices encourage farmers to replant lost or damaged crops. However, summer is here and replanting at this point is a risky idea, especially for corn, which has progressively poorer yields when planted after the middle of May. The costs of replanting can also become prohibitive. "If I have to put fertilizer and herbicide down again, I might be putting another $200 an acre into the ground," says Iowa Farm Bureau Federation Director of Research Dave Miller. "There is a point when the economics say that it's not a risk worth taking." Even if farmers do replant, they will have to wait at least a week for soils to dry out, Miller says, and yields will most likely be 30 to 40 percent below average. At this point it is obvious that the U.S. will produce less corn this year than last year, which will push up competition for what is left. This raises the question about use: should corn be consumed, converted into fuel, fed to animals, exported? And how much the corn now being used for ethanol is affecting food prices. This year corn supplies will drop by 20% and demand for corn-based fuel is still growing: Corn used for ethanol is expected to jump by about a billion bushels, or 30 percent, this year. Ethanol producers are also in trouble. Flooding has knocked five ethanol plants temporarily offline. Record corn prices are proving more of a problem. According to several new reports, many small and midsize ethanol plants, suffering under the rising price of corn, may have to close their operations as soon as this summer. Profit margins have dropped and many plants are running at a loss. This impact is across the board on both large and small ethanol plants. The debate over our U.S. ethanol policy has intensified. The Environmental Working Group, a prominent critic of corn-based ethanol, issued a report this week in which it warned that the extreme weather problems in the Corn Belt will very likely worsen food inflation this fall. Congress, the report said, "has only one recourse: reopen the debate on the ethanol mandate." (The mandate, passed in December, requires that the U.S. produce 15 billion gallons of corn-based ethanol by 2015.) But ethanol proponents say such demands are misguided. "Their case is built upon a faulty premise," says Renewable Fuels Association spokesperson Matt Hartwig. Without ethanol blended into gasoline, Hartwig says, gas today would cost 50 to 60 cents more per gallon, which in turn would raise fuel costs which would then be included in the price of food. The flooding in the Midwest will likely have a rapid and lasting impact. Have you looked at the price of chicken at your local grocery store? Victory gardens may be a necessity in the near future. Food prices world-wide are surging. Before the recent floods in the Midwest, corn prices already had more than doubled over the past two years; they've jumped another 25 percent in just the past few weeks. Worldwide, food prices have risen 83 percent in the past three years. The issue of food security is becoming a big deal for a lot of food-producing nations,” said Ewen Cameron Watt, a market strategist at BlackRock Merrill Lynch. “There’s a whole host of food-producing nations, Egypt, Vietnam, Cambodia come to mind, who have effectively stopped exporting their surplus product because they’re concerned about potential shortages domestically and their effects on the domestic inflation. What happens when the larger nations, China, India, US, Europeans stop exporting? The question we need to ask is Who starves and Why?Happy Trails, B.S.
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Dear Friends and Readers,
Secrets that no one would believe
The Kindness of Strangers |
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 Our society, not unlike many others, believes in keeping secrets; at least secrets that are the type that no one would believe, in fact might cause the person who spread them to be labeled 'crazy' if that news was shared. Women gossip, tell tidbits about each other, even spread malicious tales, but usually those are meant to get the others goat, or, at least start more gossip. However Sarah Laden, the heroine in Kathrina Kittle's novel The Kindness of Strangers, at first only suspects something is going on and, when her suspicions are confirmed, is unsure of whom to trust with the startling knowledge. Sarah's closest friend Courtney, is the mother of an elementary school boy. Jordan is somewhat different than others his age. He has few friends and those he has tend to make fun of him behind his back. Danny, Sarah's son, was once his friend but something has happened to change that and noone seems to know the cause. Except Jordan, and he too has kept the secret for years. |
When the secret is spilled Sarah agrees to become Jordan's foster mother. She must reach deep into her own soul and come to grips with truths she herself has refused to face. Added to the revelations is the guilt that the knowledge was right in front of her but she did not, or could not, listen and hear what her two sons were trying to tell her.
Kittle's book is one that most women will read and think of incidences in their own background where a 'secret' was not shared that should have been. Each must decide for themselves if a different course of action would have made a difference and, if presented with the same set of problems and circumstances, would they act different today. The novel will leave the reader thinking about the increase of media and ease of communication in our lives and whether it is had been a good advancement.
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YOUR HOUSE IS ON FIRE
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It's Not Over! Many of us are looking forward to a Democratic President hoping that the attack on women's rights might end and we can breath easy for a few years. It is not that simple. Among the changes we all hope for is the end to the "global gag rule", also known as the Mexico City Policy. This policy is strongly supported by so-called family values activists whose goal is to eliminate abortion, and most other forms of birth control, and to establish abstinence-only sexuality education as the international standard, whether it works or not (and studies show it doesn't). Don't ever think otherwise, this is an international attach on women and girls and its advocates will not be going away any time soon. The Bush administration has already had access to the court system of the United States and has shaped the administration of laws to suit their anti-woman agenda. He has packed the Supreme Court with like-minded adjudicators who will not be going away any time soon. Like it or not, Bush has left his mark on the world and it extends far beyond our boarders. Our regular readers (both here and LadybugPress books) already know about 34 Million Friends. Because this organization was begun to address these concerns in the shape of the authorized monies the Bush Administration has refused to release for UN programs for women's health, I asked author and co-founder Jane Roberts for a comment on the situation. She sent the following:
I guess we can say that there is an old fashioned double standard in the Bush administration. Still, we take what we can get and sometimes we can be happy about it... While there has been a very real (and sometimes heated) attack on women's rights by this administration it would be unfair to ignore recent actions at the UN to support women's security. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is being given the majority of the credit for a recent UN resolution declaring that "Women systematically raped by regimes' armies is as unacceptable as genocide," according to draft wording. With this resolution, rape has been lifted to the same level of international concern as genocide. Women have been protected by UN resolutions against wartime violence since 2000, but the systematic use of rape, though illegal under international law, was not considered a crime against women and so there was no international or UN obligation to protect women, until now. |
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(Inclusion in these announcements is not an endorsement for the cause or organization by LadybugPress, LadybugBooks.com, or LadybugFlights.) |
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Schar Freeman has been a busy artist making her way to reach out beyond her beautiful island of Kauai and offer artwork in all different options, from originals to cards, prints and magnets. We are pleased to announce her latest venture at the bustling Etsy Shop Site. Schar is a long-time participant here at Ladybug so stop by. You might need to register but there is no charge. Drop her a note under the contacts link to let her know you were there or better yet purchase something to support one of our favorite artists. |
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LadybugFlights: It has been ten years and we are always looking for your help. Are you a news hound with a concern for women's issues? Contact Georgia@ladybugbooks.com. We think we are looking for you. At the same time, we are always looking for articles, stories, and poetry for every issue. We have discovered some excellent writers here at LadybugFlights and would love to add you to our list of outstanding first timers— or to our list of regulars!
Find out how to be published here.
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Caught Inside An Electrical Storm