Bellicose Bumpkin

It’s been a while since I did any podcasts. Recently I had the pleasure of interviewing Mark Rodgers, the Communications Director of Cape Wind. Mark and I discuss the opposition to Cape Wind by by the Aquinnah and Mashpee Wampanoag.

After eight years of review, hearings, and study, the project is at risk of further delay by tribal opposition. While their objections have been noted for a number of years, Cape Wind feels that they have been engaged as valid stakeholders all along. The opposition has taken a new form in an attempt to get 500 square miles of ocean designated as a traditional cultural property on the National Register of Historic Places. Giving this status to open water is, so far, unprecendented and has far reaching ramifications for any coastal or offshore project – not just windmills.

The crux of the opposition is that the windmills will “disturb their spiritual sun greetings and submerged ancestral burying grounds” (from Globe article). The tribes have partnered with the main opposition group to Cape Wind. Proponents of Cape Wind find opposition puzzling considering the environmental benefits of Cape Wind. Others, like myself, find the Mashpee’s statements about being rushed ironic given the breakneck pace that Middleboro was expected to pass an Inter-Governmental Agreement(IGA) with the Mashpee Wampanoag for their proposed Middleboro Casino.

In any event, the perception of Native Americans as “stewards of the land” is resulting in raised eyebrows – whether you are talking about tribal opposition to Cape Wind, or tribal support for a casino.

For the sake of background information, here are a few relevant links.

Globe editorial
Globe article on tribal objections.
BB blog from July
AP coverage
NY Times editorial
A direct link to the podcast is here or you can listen here

In this week’s podcast I talk to Jim Reynolds – owner of The Dahlia Farm in Middleboro that has just started up a CSA – Community Supported Agriculture. In a CSA, you buy a share of a farmer’s crop and pick up produce during the growing season. Mr. Reynolds also runs Reynolds Flowers

Other local CSA’s include Plato’s Harvest and I believe the Soule Homestead.

After our discussion, I bought a half share of the CSA – which came out to around $15 per week. This includes enough veggies to feed 2 people for a week, some eggs, and I think some fresh flowers. Jim also gave me a dozen eggs from his free range chickens.

The picture above is the last 2 eggs from this dozen with 3 supermarket eggs. The photo does not do justice to the amazing orange color in the yolks – apparently from high levels of beta-Carotene. The shells are very strong and break very cleanly. The eggs have a great texture and flavor. Supermarket eggs are just pale and sickly in comparison.

In this discussion, Jim talks about the mechanics of the CSA, why he decided to do one at this time, and organic farming in general. For more info, contact The Dahlia Farm.

I’m doing research for a Gazette column about people who change their careers. The current economic downturn has thrown a lot of people out of work. Some of them are trying to use this “opportunity” to find more satisfying work. Other people might change careers to make more money, a change in family circumstances such as having a baby, or changes in the job market such as offshoring.

I’d be interested to hear your story about a career change for possible inclusion in the column – why you changed careers – how it worked out for you.

In this podcast I speak with David Jacobson. He is a friend of mine who went through a drastic career change. Until about a year ago, he was vice president in a marketing firm. Today he is running his own business – Paint Studio Furniture – creating high end furniture using a technique called vinegar painting.

If you have trouble with the embedded player, the direct link for the podcast is here.

Here is my second podcast – the last one was in August. This is a discussion with Rich Young – president of CasinoFacts.org and Casino Free Mass.

In this installment we discuss the Carcier v. Salazaer/Kempthorne decision, the Mashpee Wampanoag, the prospects for casinos in Massachusetts, Middleboro, and blogs.

The accompanying photo shows Mr. Young talking with Dennis Whittlesey at the TMFH(Town Meeting From Hell). No doubt he’s giving Whittlesy some tips on comping.

The podcast can be directly downloaded or you can listen to it by clicking on the mustache. It clocks in at around 60 minutes – each minute more fascinating than the last.

Here is the audio from my appearance on the radio yesterday. It can be downloaded here or listened to below. We discussed my new column, town meeting, voter participation and other topics.

We had a bunch of pro-casino callers making transparent attempts to make trouble. It was quite humorous. This will be an ongoing thing – there are many pro-casino people who have no interest in hearing my words. They are getting their news from pro-casino sources, and have no intention of reading the source information. On the flip side, we had some anti-casino callers who had a much more positive message(that had nothing to do with me).

Here is the audio. Click the mustache to play.

Rich Young – president of CasinoFacts.Org and Casino Free Mass – and Bumpkin discuss a variety of casino and Middleboro topics. If you make it through the entire 53 minutes, there is a surprising piece of news which will be discussed in a separate blog.

You can download the discussion here or listen below.

Here is the audio. Click the mustache to play and prepare to be wowed.