Briana Franco › Comments

From the page: "The term Blue Moon has at least three different meanings. One is a common phrase for a rare event, that really has little to do with the moon itself. Another is a description of the apparent color of the moon, which is frequently yellowish and rarely bluish. Full moons are given names in folklore, and two definitions of blue moon are a name for a rare full moon that does not have a folk name. One modern blue moon definition is for a second, extra full moon that occurs in a calendar month. The older definition of blue moon is for an extra full moon that occurs in a quarter of the year, which would normally have three full moons, but sometimes has four. Oddly, it's the third full moon in a season that has four which is counted as the "extra" full moon and named 'blue moon'. " - Briana Franco

From the page: "And here I was thinking that sustainable agriculture was about using Natureâ€s patterns and human intelligence and resourcefulness to create systems that run themselves with minimal outside inputs, while creating strong local food economies and a cleaner, more honest food supply" - Briana Franco

From the page: "â€Note†robberies are the single most popular method of robbing banks today. Some use a one-line directive. Others are explicit in detail. Some are plain bizarre. Each day there is another. This book collects Notes from successful and unsuccessful bank robberies - â€oenote jobs” in FBI-parlance. And much like you see here on this blog, provides the vital stats for each attempt." - Briana Franco

From the page: "I have always opposed nation-building as unconstitutional and ineffective. Afghanistan is no different. Without a real strategy in Afghanistan, without a vision of what victory will look like, we are left with the empty rhetoric of the last administration that "when the Afghan people stand up, the US will stand down." I am afraid the only solution to the Afghanistan quagmire is a rapid and complete US withdrawal from that country and the region. We cannot afford to maintain this empire and our occupation of these foreign lands is not making us any safer. It is time to leave Afghanistan." - Briana Franco

Sunflower sprouts are baby sunflowers. They make an inexpensive and tasty nutritional addition to any salad or green smoothie. Fresh, crunchy, and slightly nutty in flavor they are grown indoors all year round, providing lovely fresh greens in the depths of winter. They can also be grown outdoors when the weather is warm. I find they need protecting from hungry wildlife with netting or some squirrel proof wire mesh if I do this. - Briana Franco

From the page: "Nell Brinkley (September 5, 1886 â€" October 21, 1944) was an illustrator and comic artist who was sometimes referred to as the "Queen of Comics" during her nearly four-decade career working with New York newspapers and magazines. She was the creator of the iconic Brinkley Girl, a stylish character who appeared in her comics and became a popular symbol in songs, films and theater." - Briana Franco

From the page: "Plant-Based Nutrition represents a forward-looking view of nutrition that Dr. T. Colin Campbell has developed during his more than 40 years experience in experimental research and 20 years in public policy. This certificate program presents a different paradigm, considering the topic of nutrition both as a science and as a component of the practice of medicine. It is an expansion of NS 200, a successful Cornell course approved by the Department of Nutritional Science and offered for 7 years. This new online series offers the best of Dr. Campbellâ€s work, incorporating material from his best selling book, The China Study, as well as the latest information from leading experts in the field. " - Briana Franco

From the page: "The simple answer is that most people just donâ€t care about the lives or fortunes of animals. If they did care, they would learn as much as possible about the ways in which our society systematically abuses animals, and they would make what is at once a very simple and a very difficult choice: to forswear the consumption of animal products of all kinds." - Briana Franco

.. we've teamed up with The Co-operative for this competition. We have a team of experts ready to watch the films, and they will choose which one will win a cash prize of £2,000, which ones get shown to a Channel4 Commissioning Editor, and which ones have the chance to be shown on Channel 4 itself on their 3 Minute Wonder strand. - Briana Franco

As with any discipline, from horse riding to drama, certain practices are recommended. Over the centuries, the great masters of Yoga have agreed on certain points. Being human, there are many things that they have not agreed on, but seldom is this so on two aspects of diet, these being the amount eaten, and the question of meat. It seems unnecessary to argue the question of overeating. Everybody who has eaten too heartily can remember from their own experience the results. Lethargy, a bloated feeling, pain, sickness, are all evident at times. While inwardly, if the practice is habitual, the most obvious results are an enlargement of the stomach, displacement of large and small intestines and formation of excessive fat, with their attendant health threats. As with any discipline, from horse riding to drama, certain practices are recommended. Over the centuries, the great masters of Yoga have agreed on certain points. Being human, there are many things that they have not agreed on, but... - Briana Franco

Sustainable retreat is a concept developed by independent research scientist Dr. James Lovelock, who is well-known in ecological circles for developing the Gaia theory, in order to define the necessary changes to human settlement and dwelling at the global scale with the purpose of adapting to global warming and preventing its expected negative consequences on humans as portrayed in his latest book The Revenge of Gaia: Why the Earth Is Fighting Back - and How We Can Still Save Humanity published in 2006[1]. - Briana Franco

From the page: "David McReynolds (born October 25, 1929) is an American democratic socialist and pacifist activist who described himself as "a peace movement bureaucrat" during his 40-year career with Liberation magazine and the War Resisters League.[1] He was the first openly gay man to run for President of the United States." - Briana Franco

Mind is the highest term yet reached in the evolution, but it is not the highest of which it is capable. There is above it a Supermind or eternal Truth-Consciousness which is in its nature the self-aware and self-determining light and power of a Divine Knowledge. Mind is an ignorance seeking after Truth, but this is a self-existent Knowledge harmoniously manifesting the play of its forms and forces. It is only by the descent of this supermind that the perfection dreamed of by all that is highest in humanity can come. It is possible by opening to a greater divine consciousness to rise to this power of light and bliss, discover one's true self, remain in constant union with the Divine and bring down the supramental Force for the transformation of mind and life and body. To realise this possibility has been the dynamic aim of Sri Aurobindo's Yoga. - Briana Franco

The Council for Responsible Sport provides an independent, comprehensive certification for sustainable athletic events. By defining realistic objectives and providing a framework for achieving them, ReSport enables event directors to incorporate environmental responsibility into their events while informing consumers which events adhere to the standards. - Briana Franco

The Movement Generation Justice & Ecology Project provides in-depth analysis and information about the global ecological crisis and facilitates strategic planning for action among leading organizers from urban Bay Area organizations working for economic and racial justice in communities of color. - Briana Franco

From the page: "On November 1, 2005 President George W. Bush went to the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland to hold a high profile press conference, to announce a 381-page plan, officially called the Pandemic Influenza Strategic Plan It was no ordinary Bush photo opportunity. This one was meant to be a big splash event. The President was surrounded by almost half his cabinet, including Secretary of State Condi Rice, joined by the Secretaries of Homeland Security, Agriculture, Health & Human Services, Transportation and, interestingly enough, Veteran Affairs. And, just to underscore that this was a big deal, the White House invited the Director-General of the World Health Organization, who flew in from Geneva for the occasion." - Briana Franco

From the page: ""'There was a question about War. How to stop wars? Wars cannot be stopped. War is the result of the slavery in which men live. Strctly speaking, men are not to blame for war. War is due to cosmic forces, to planetary influences. But in men there is no resistance whatever against these influences, and there cannot be any, because men are slaves. If they were Men and were capable of 'doing'(had Will), they would be able to resist these influences and refrain from killing one another.' 'But surely those who realize this can do something?'said the man who asked the question about war. 'If a sufficient number of men came to a definite conclusion that there should be no war, could they not influence others?'" - Briana Franco

From the page: "War memorials and museums are temples to the god of war. The hushed voices, the well-tended grass, the flapping of the flags allow us to ignore how and why our young died. They hide the futility and waste of war. They sanitize the savage instruments of death that turn young soldiers and Marines into killers, and small villages in Vietnam or Afghanistan or Iraq into hellish bonfires. There are no images in these memorials of men or women with their guts hanging out of their bellies, screaming pathetically for their mothers. We do not see mangled corpses being shoved in body bags. There are no sights of children burned beyond recognition or moaning in horrible pain. There are no blind and deformed wrecks of human beings limping through life. War, by the time it is collectively remembered, is glorified and heavily censored. " - Briana Franco

From the page: "Washington, DC â€" Congresswoman Betty McCollum (MN-04) has formally introduced H.R. 3679, the Against Corporations Organizing to Rip-off the Nation Act of 2009 (ACORN Act), which prohibits corporations with a felony conviction from receiving any federal funding. â€oeItâ€s time Congress get serious about taxpayer funding of corporate cheats, crooks, and criminals. Last month Congress took action to defund a non-profit serving poor Americans, but failed to act against the corporate crooks that are actually guilty of felonies â€" including defrauding taxpayers. Why are companies that break the law as a business strategy allowed to receive taxpayer funds? A government contract is a privilege, not a right. If a company commits a felony against the people of the United States, then that privilege must end,” Congresswoman McCollum said." - Briana Franco

From the page: "â€oeThere is no religion without love, and people may talk as much as they like about their religion, but if it does not teach them to be good and kind to beasts as well as man it is all a sham.” â€"Anna Sewell, Black Beauty" - Briana Franco

So begins the vivid fictional account by political activist and bestselling author Ralph Nader that answers the question, "What if?" What if a cadre of superrich individuals tried to become a driving force in America to organize and institutionalize the interests of the citizens of this troubled nation? What if some of America's most powerful individuals decided it was time to fix our government and return the power to the people? What if they focused their power on unionizing Wal-Mart? What if a national political party were formed with the sole purpose of advancing clean elections? What if these seventeen superrich individuals decided to galvanize a movement for alternative forms of energy that will effectively clean up the environment? What if together they took on corporate goliaths and Congress to provide the necessities of life and advance the solutions so long left on the shelf by an avaricious oligarchy? What could happen? This extraordinary story, written by the author who... - Briana Franco

From the page: "for nearly half a decade, Ralph Naderâ€"lawyer, consumer advocate, winner of five-tenths-and-six-hundredths of one per cent of the popular vote in 2008â€"has been secretly working on his first novel, writing drafts and making edits on multiple Underwood Standard typewriters. Nader does not feel comfortable referring to the book as a novel, even though everything in it is made up. He says that the work belongs to a new genre, one that he calls â€oea practical utopia,” and defines as â€oea fictional vision that could become a new reality.” The book, called â€oeOnly the Super-Rich Can Save Us!,” is seven hundred and thirty-six pages long, and it contains dozens of characters, many of them real peopleâ€"Warren Buffett, Barry Diller, and Ted Turner, among othersâ€"who act out Naderâ€s political fantasies. By the last page, most of the reforms that Nader has been arguing for all these years end up being enacted. Corporations are neutered. Third parties... - Briana Franco

From the page: "The site, which was unearthed as preparations were being made for construction of the hotel near the Sea of Galilee, is believed to date back some 2000 years from 50BCE to 100CE. In the middle of the 120 square meter main hall of the synagogue archaeologists discovered an unusual stone carved with a seven branched menorah . "We are dealing with an exciting and unique find," said excavation director and Israeli Antiquities Authority archaeologist Dina Avshalom-Gorni. The menorah engraving is the first of its kind to be discovered from the Early Roman period according Avshalom-Gorni who said the site joins just six synagogue locations that are know to date from the same time." - Briana Franco

From the page: "Seven reasons why people hate reason " - Briana Franco

From the page: "Chi kung, also phonetically spelled "qigong," is an ancient form of Chinese yoga, incorporating yogic breathing techniques with an entire system of postures, exercises, and meditations. Practiced as a brief five- to twenty-minute daily routine, this ancient and versatile form of exercise/meditation can reduce stress, increase energy, and promote health, overall well-being... even longevity! But this 5000-year-old art is practiced not only for the purpose of maintaining health. It is also closely tied in with martial arts to promote energy, both physical and metaphysical. And in meditation, many practice it not just for the "kundalini experience," but to ultimately attain inner peace and fulfillment. " - Briana Franco

From the page: "Achieving peace between human beings, from the household to the international battlefields, depends upon treating each other with respect and kindness. This will be possible when we first extend that respect and kindness to those who are at our mercy and who cannot retaliate against us." - Briana Franco

Interactive Timeline: Katrina and Its Aftermath - Briana Franco

From the page: " Honoring our natural place in the web of life by eating the foods intended for us will plant seeds of abundance, love, and freedom, whatever our religion may be. Our prayers for peace will bear fruit when we are living the prayer for peace and, most importantly, when we offer peace to those who are at our mercy and who also long for peace and the freedom to live their lives and fulfill their purposes." - Briana Franco

From the page: "Personal Development guru Tony Robbins is known for his infomercials in the 80â€s advertising his â€oePersonal Power” motivational audiotapes, as a â€oelife coach to the rich and famous,” and his appearances in movies like Shallow Hal. Robbins, who has over 1.2 million followers on Twitter, has recently released a couple of videos on his â€oetraining blog” interviewing internet marketers Frank Kern and John Reese. What most people watching these videos donâ€t realize is that they are highly-manipulative advertisements, almost certainly for an upcoming get-rich-quick-on-the-internet productâ€"the field of expertise of both Reese and Kern." - Briana Franco

From the page: "Liberating and honoring the feminine principle is perhaps the most pressing task in our cultureâ€s evolution toward peace, sustainability, and spiritual maturity. The feminine principle, cross-culturally, is concerned fundamentally with nurturing, receptivity, making connections, intuition, and bringing forth new life. " - Briana Franco