EASTER FUN WITH KIDS

In the US, it is traditional to decorate Easter Eggs. Unfortunately eggs take skill to cook and eggs can rot outside the fridge. So A NEW IDEA. Take candy shaped like bunnies, eggs, etc. and decorate them using cake decorating techniques.

This is REALLY EASY. First you make frosting, put the frosting into multiple bowls and color the frosting. (Have some confectioner's sugar around in case you need to stiffen the frosting.) Use the frosting to make clothes. Use a blunt knife to spread the frosting. If you have cake decorating tools, you can use it to make eyes, buttons, etc. Or you can use cake decorating stuff to do this. I like the little tubes of colored frosting sold in most large groceries. Sprinkles are also fun. (Do I really have to tell you that you color frosting by putting drops of food coloring into the frosting and then stirring it in?)

If you are on a budget, and do not know anything about cake decorating, you should get food coloring, and a frosting can.

Let the kids get COVERED with frosting. Almost all US houses have bathtubs waiting to clean the mess. Have them wear old clothes.

Allow creativity to rule the enterprise. If the weather is nice, set up a table outside and leave them to the mess. In any event, you should watch from the sidelines and keep your mouth SHUT unless there is some sort of danger.

Frosting is mostly sugar and butter. There is nothing in this project that can cause harm unless you are the kind of helicopter mom that thinks an occasional bout of sugar can harm children. If so, I feel sorry that I can not invite your children over to my house so they can be kids for awhile.

CIVIL RIGHTS AND MONEY

Civil rights are ALWAYS about money. DOMA says, "No federal money will be given to gay spouses." Slavery was about NOT paying people. Corporations are THRILLED that they can get intelligent minorities for less pay due to their not having an equal education. Men HATE to have to give their wives equal status instead of giving them the status of unpaid domestic worker.

Keeping people poor is a way of controlling people. Without money, people can not even afford to go on a protest march.

But BE WARNED. The one thing that poor people can do is VOTE.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING ISN'T

San Jose wonders why people are sleeping under bridges. They think affordable housing will solve the problem. Last year the least expensive affordable housing in San Jose, CA, was a 345 square foot studio in a huge building. You had to have an income of $1600 to be elligle. Subsidized housing, where rent is a percentage of income, has a five year waiting list.

We all think that because we are building "affordable housing" we are helping the poor. Minimum wage workers can not afford affordable housing.

We allow the rich to get richer without requiring them to pay people a living wage.

We allow the rrich to get richer without requiring them to pay their fair share of taxes.

Then we wonder why people are sleeping under bridges.

CYPRUS SAVINGS MESS

It is incredibly stupid to tax small saving accounts without warning. Honestly, do you really WANT to encourage people to keep their money in their mattresses?

I agree that the large saving accounts should be taxed without warning. Think of it like when the Russians encouraged South American countries to nationalize industries. The thought of having an industry nationalized made the US and European investors into people who actually thought of the social impact of their profitable acts. And the Russians will only lose a percentage of their Cyprus savings, rather than the entire amount.

Russian investors have turned the Cyprus banking system into their private banks. They may even be using the Cyprus banks to launder money.

In any event, no one can force the citizens of Cyprus to guarantee the banks. Iceland refused to guarantee that stupid Icelandic internet bank. Since the large depositors caused the mess in the Cyprus banking system, they should pay the price.

The Cyprus mess was caused by going after high profits, such as Greek loans. Even the Russians have to learn. HIGH RISK means that you can lose your ENTIRE INVESTMENT.

Since the Cyprus bailout will prevent the high savers who caused the problem from losing everything, they should at least pay SOME of the cost.

'FREE' FOOD - SNAILS INTO ESCARGOT

Urban rumor states that ALL of the snails in San Francisco Bay Area gardens are descended from four snails brought over by the French in the 1800's so they could eat escargot. I was once part of a group of highly educated Berkeley residents who tested this theory.

First, you need LOTS of snails. By offering to cook the snails, I figured that I would get out of any further work as no one would collect snails. Did I mention Berkeley people tend to follow through on their obsessions?

Once LOTS of snails were living in two large buckets with weighted screened tops, we all discussed the possibility of the snails having eaten poison. The problem with educated people is that they can solve the little problems that the prospective cook brings up.

After a MONTH of someone else feeding the snails clean water and corn meal, the snails were unfortunately pronounced safe to eat. I had already consulted James Beard for the best cooking method. A date for a snail feast was set.

Cooking took a long time but was fairly easy. James said to remove the snails from the shell after cooking. James did NOT mention how to do that. I finally shelled the snails like they were badly cooked boiled eggs. I even had great Berkeley bread toasted and ready for the feast. (Note that the snails shrink when cooked.)

The French are correct. Snails taste REALLY GOOD. I was worried that there would not be enough snails for the cook to overindulge. Luckily, the thought of eating snails, and the gray color of the snails, kept most of the guests drinking wine and eating cheese.

Honestly, I just do NOT understand why restaurants charge so much for escargot. %<)

LET UN GUYS GO

Whoever is holding the UN people hostage need to let them go.

I am not certain that it is actually Syrian rebels holding the UN people. I did not think the Syrian rebels were that stupid.

The rebels have been careful to be as humane as possible. Now they supposedly make hostages of UN peacekeepers.

If it was really rebels, they need to release the peacekeepers immediately.  If it was another of Assads stupid disinformation ideas, it is another reason why the rebels need to get organized.

NEW NUKES BUT NO HEALTH CARE

The House Republicans are trying to pass a budget that fully funds replacement nuclear bombs but unfunds health care and financial regulations.

I guess they really want to lose the next election. Or else they are AGAIN trying to win the next election by trashing the economy.

Heads up, Republicans. We are not that stupid