Clarissa León

What a world we live in.

Clarissa León

Attempting to log on to HBOGo for the Game of Thrones season premier.

Because, when you say you're not a feminist you have to wonder what exactly are you?

I know so many other feminists have raised their hands over this particularly grating and infuriating apologetic statement. Because, when you say you're not a feminist you have to wonder what exactly are you? Because, without feminism you wouldn't be working in The Office. You wouldn't be voting. Hell, you might not even be raising your hand.

Model image for "The Tattoo Artist" by Norman Rockwell, courtesy Visual News

"The Tattoo Artist" by Norman Rockwell, 1944, courtesy Visual News. Also accessible via Brooklyn Museum.

New Yorker October 29 & November 5 2012 Cover “Skin Deep” by Barry Blitt

This was actually pretty funny. I especially like Seinfeld's comment, "We're just raindrops on a windshield."

Don't like crowded supermarkets? Go on Wednesdays, says this Coupon Cabin supermarket infographic. Why is candy placed at eye level? For the kids, of course. If you want to eat healthier, shop the perimeter of the supermarket and look at the top of the shelves. More expensive, name brand items are placed at eye level whereas the healthier options are placed at the top, and cheaper items at the bottom. For a larger view, and more info, click here: Supermarket Infographic.

Photo by liltree, Creative Commons license.

06-12-2012

Michele Simon from EcoWatch finds the SNAP program hurtling toward an obese future if industry powerhouses such as Coca-Cola, Kraft, and Mars remain giant beneficiaries. In her report published earlier this month Food Stamps, Follow the Money: Are Corporations Profiting From Hungry Americans? Simon asks why the FDA has not tabulated SNAP's expenditure on sugary drinks. 

"Without data on how much money is being spent on Coke versus orange juice, or Lucky Charms versus oatmeal, how will we ever evaluate the nutrition goals of the program?" Simons asked in Reuters.

Some, such as Dr. Kelly D. Brownell of Yale, director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University, estimate SNAP soda sales to be in the billions.

“It’s a real shame that the U.S.D.A. won’t allow this to be tested,” Dr. Brownell said in the NY Times. “The government purchases $4 billion worth of soda through the food stamp program every year, and that soda is making people sick.”

Here are a few more stats from Simon's report where she examines the role of three powerful industry sectors that benefit from SNAP:

1. Major food manufacturers such as Coca-Cola, Kraft and Mars
2. Leading food retailers such as Walmart and Kroger
3. Large banks, such as J.P. Morgan Chase, which contract with states to help administer SNAP benefits. Findings from the report include:

• Powerful food industry lobbying groups such as the American Beverage Association and the Snack Food Association teamed up to oppose health-oriented improvements to SNAP, at times working with anti-hunger groups
• At least nine states have proposed bills to make health-oriented improvements to SNAP, but none have passed, in part due to opposition from the food industry
• In one year, nine Walmart Supercenters in Massachusetts together received more than $33 million in SNAP dollars—more than four times the SNAP money spent at farmers markets nationwide
• In two years, Walmart received about half of the one billion dollars in SNAP expenditures in Oklahoma
• J.P. Morgan Chase holds contracts in 24 states to administer SNAP benefits, indicating concentrated power and a lack of competition
• In New York, a seven-year deal originally paid J.P. Morgan Chase $112 million for EBT services, and was recently amended to add $14.3 million—an increase of 13 percent
• States are seeing unexpected increases in administrative costs, while banks and other private contractors are reaping significant windfalls from the economic downturn and increasing SNAP participation.

Everyone in New York has probably done this. If they haven't I presume their excuses are health-related. But walking across the Brooklyn Bridge is one of those things most New Yorkers have experienced in their youth or at least, when they had a minute to give thanks to a Public Works project. This weekend I finally walked across the bridge. At first, it's like, oh yeah, the bridge! Then, it became a matter of when is this bridge ever going to end?! It did end and I am more the wiser.

In my humble opinion, Rush Limbaugh doesn't know what he's saying half the time. I know he has millions of listeners, and, he needs to say something worthwhile. But, as a college dropout with multiple divorces, maybe he should stop picking on the single, white, women who are educated with bachelor's degrees. I didn't think I would write this piece, but, it's nice to set some record straight about Tracie McMillan, my former boss. Read the piece I wrote at The Daily Beast here.

Yesterday, Scribner officially launched The American Way of Eating. I'm proud to have helped with the book and even prouder of the author I worked with, Tracie McMillan. Yes, it seems odd for me to be proud of her, but that's just how it goes when you feel excited for someone you've come to admire so much. And, if you couldn't see from the picture, The New York-effin-Times wrote a review! You'll have to read the review for yourself. But, the press has not stopped. There's been press from NPR, Slate, Salon, LA Times, SF Gate, and many others. Michael Pollan gave a quick "Congratulations" over Twitter to Tracie herself. The best part is that yesterday I finally met Tracie. Believe it or not, all my work was done remotely and over the Internet. But, she said, she still owes me dinner.