The Zucchini of Chastisement is one of the longstanding traditions here at Corrente (“longstanding” meaning from at least the year before last, and proven by the fact that it remains No. 1 at Google for this search topic) and was always meant as something of a joke.

The Chastisement of Zucchini on the other hand is a real problem, along with chastisement of tomatoes, watermelons, turnips and those who want to grow them to support the exploding movement to “eat locally.” Turns out—I know this will come as a shock to you—that there are Forces of Edible Evil who do not want you to do this, so they’re—again, brace for a shock—using Congress to tweak the farm subsidy rules to keep farmers from supplying the demand.

Very consise explanation in today’s NYT. The key words are “Farm Flex,” it is a Good Thing and needs to pass.  Read more 

A very cool site called MandarinTools.com has a page wherein you can find “your Chinese name.” So I put in “Johnny Appleseed” (with my birthdate since it insisted on one) and found that maybe when Loud Obbs has a minute he might want to look into the story of Ai Jian Huan. Since the Philadelphia Inquirer is on the story too:

Farmers have been growing apples here since before the Civil War, and as times have changed, they have changed with them, planting smaller trees to speed up harvests and growing popular new varieties to satisfy changing tastes.

Like farmers in the bigger apple-producing states, they are becoming increasingly anxious about the prospect of China flooding the U.S. market with their fresh apples - an event many believe is inevitable, even if it could be years away.

Why is a country which for thirty years has been imposing a draconian population-control program—presumably at least in part because it has concerns about remaining able to feed its own people—taking over the fresh apple trade?

Well, because with labor policies like this, it can:  Read more