Bucky Scooped Jim Hightower

Just heard a report on that infernal NAIS from Jim Hightower (for my report see archived Sagebrush Variety Show #30). Not to brag too much - I was a bit ashamed that the NAIS was publically released in 2005 and I didn't hear about it until February of this year. Also, Mr. Hightower caught something I missed, the fact that big agribusiness operations get "bulk discounts" on tagging fees.

Sagebrush Week of 4/10/06

We've got another Eye-Opener (there may be only one or two more coming, as the legislative session is about to end); April wrote a rant on the anti-gay marriage amendment in Idaho; Part 3 of The Dolphinarium (the chilling conclusion comes on next week show); Bucky Buckaw further unravels the nefarious secrets and moneydealing behind the avian flu hysteria; an interview with John Barrett, Interim Executive Director of Idaho Smart Growth on transit options in Idaho; and what will no doubt get us some fan/hate mail, a piece by Robert Blurton on composting human excretion. Send us your feedback, good or bad, to sagebrush-at-radioboise.org.

Bucky's April Avian Flu Links

My latest favorite source for information on sustainability, biodiversity and democracy in agriculture, GRAIN. For a mainstream article on Rumsfeld's Tamiflu fortune CNN Chuck Schumer's heroic efforts to insure no Tamiflu is left unsold in his own words And a piece on the Tamiflu-related run on star anise from National Geographic

2006 Captain Hook Awards

Aar! The recipients of this annual set of awards given to leaders in biopiracy have just been announced! We did our best to deliver them in our best pirate voices. Here's the list:

• Worst Threat to Food Sovereignty: Syngenta
• Greediest Biopirate: J Craig Venter
• Biggest Threat to Genetic Privacy: Google: Indexing Your Genes
• Extreme Makeover Award: Delta & Pine Land
• Most Shameful Act of Biopiracy: US Government
• Worst Déjà Vu: Human Genographic Project
• Access of Evil Award: Canada, Australia, New Zealand
• Biggest Tiny Claim On Nature: Nanosys, Inc.
• Worst Betrayal: Genencor et al.
• Most Hypocritical - Joint Winners: University of California-Davis and The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO)

Visit the Coalition Against Biopiracy website (link above) for details, matey.

Dolphinarium update

The second installment of The Dolphinarium will be webcast next week.

The Commercial Empire Strikes Back

Khalil's rant on why big-box stores sap the local economy applies not only to Wal-Marts, but also any national chain stores, fast-food joints, and shopping centers. Here are the stats:

small retail stores (local) average +$326 per 1000 sq ft
large retail chains average -$468 per 1000 sq ft

fast-food chains average -$5168 per 1000 sq ft
shopping centers average -$314 per 1000 sq ft

These numbers in red are deficits passed onto the local taxpayers, mainly in the form of road building and maintenance and crime-related costs. Never mind all the other dollars lost from not using local vendors and suppliers such as printers and advertisers.

Some links:

Local ownership pays off for communities
As police costs rise, towns reconsider big boxes

Alan Thein Durning Interview

Gwen Sanchirico talked with Alan Durning of the Northwest Environment Watch (NEW) while he was in Idaho for various conferences, talks, and presentations on sustainability and how societies should define progress. They talked about approaching sustainability issues from different angles. NEW takes the ecoregion of Cascadia and evaluates it on seven factors:

• pollution
• health
• economy
• population
• energy
• sprawl
• forests

NEW has recently published the Cascadia Scorecard 2005, which finds Boise to be the "most sprawling city in the Northwest." Gee, what a surprise. This is one of our favorite websites, which is packed with compelling information. Durning is the author of several fabulous books, including Stuff: the Secret Life of Everyday Things, on which several Sagebrush segments are based.

Dirk Kempthorne Spotlight

Now that Idaho Governor Dirk Kempthorne has received so much attention from outside the state after having been nominated as the new Secretary of the Interior, this might be a good time to go back to the Sagebrush archives and listen to Snow Blow Hard (even though it's really an end-of-year type story). See how many similarities there are between the character Duke Bramblevine and the current commentary in the national press. It's fun, and a lot of it is based on reality.

National Animal Identification System (NAIS) Episode

For those of you having trouble taking Bucky Buckaw's word for it that the USDA is competing with the Department of Homeland Security for most intrusive agency in American History go to the USDA site on NAIS and poke around for yourself. Then get the opposition viewpoint and ways to oppose NAIS from the No-NAIS site and, for something specifically geared to us chicken lovers American Bantam Clubs PDF of NAIS Then, just for fun, look at some pictures of Silkie and Auracana breed chickens at Brown Egg Blue Egg and then ask yourself would you want a world where all the chickens were factory issue broilers? I mean deep down they have the same chicken charm as the "exotics" but once you've seen one you've seen them all. Bred for an average life expectancy of 1 year and to break their own legs by the very act of growing up!

Terry Shepard, Friends of the Liberty Tree

This week's interview is with Terry Shepard, President of Friends of the Liberty Tree. His bill to recognize April 19 as Patriots Day in Idaho was recently passed by the state legislature, and he hopes to have a tree in Capitol Park (across the street form the Idaho capitol) dedicated as a Liberty Tree. To learn more about the project, you can contact Terry at 208-602-2387.

Sagebrush Variety Show on Radio Free Moscow

Radio Free Moscow KRFP (92.5 FM) is trying out Sagebrush Variety Show Monday afternoons, 4-5pm PST. If you live in the area, you can tune in, even in your economy car!

This Week's Sagebrush

We've got the latest UV-Eye-Opener and a Sagebrush Transit Report, along with some older bits. As of next week, be prepared to 100% all-new material, starting with the conclusion of Eternal Quest. If you're a new listener, you might want to download the podcast containing the entire series (up until the cliffhanger, of course).

Alan Thein Durning in Idaho

We mentioned that the piece we did on coffee was based on Stuff: The Secret Lives of Everyday Things by John C. Ryan and Alan Thein Durning. Thurning will speak at BSU on Friday, March 3 at 7pm in the Student Union Building--and it's free. We highly recommend going.

There will also be a reception with Durning that Idaho Smart Growth is hosting on Saturday, March 4 5:00-6:30 pm at the Idaho Integrated Design Lab at the corner of 6th and Main in Boise. To RSVP for this event ($40) call the ISG office at 333-8066.

Sagebrush will be there, of course, so if you can't make either event, you will get to hear about it on RadioBoise.org!

New segments this week

We've worked in a few new segments this week:

• the Sagebrush Sprawl Monitor #2 - this will be a recurring report on real estate development. This week Kevin Bayhouse gives an update on the Hammer Flat propposed subdivision. Opponents of it can find more information at www.savetheplateau.org.
• the Sagebrush Pollution Report #2 - another newly introduced regular segment that looks at Idaho's polluters and reminds listeners of public comment opportunities regarding polluter permit renewals and expansion. Much of this can be found at the DEQ public input site.

Our "vacation" is almost over, and we've been working hard at developing and producing brand-new material. Our new "season" launches the week of March 13.

Additional Webcast Time

The Sagebrush Variety Show will now be on three times a week on RadioBoise. The new timeslot is Sunday 8pm MST.

Sagebrush Production Update

We're working on some great new material we will begin webcasting in mid-March, including Corporate Prime, a serial drama taking place in a post-apocalyptic, post-peak oil setting; our Idaho-ified adaptation of The Dolphinarium, a 1995 BBC radio play by Steve Walker; issue collages on shoes, newspapers, and feminism; more interviews; and, of course, the conclusion to Eternal Quest.

Don't forget to read through this blog for background on issues covered in past episodes. If you don't see them on the front page, search for them (at top). Feel free to download our archived shows to catch up on all the programs. If you like what you hear, don't forget to tell your friends about us!

Diane Jones Interview

We interviewed Diane Jones last autumn and although winter is far from being over, it's time to think about spring and planting again. She runs Draggin' Wing Farm, which specializes in hardy, drought-tolerant perennials. You can find her plants at the Boise Co-Op in season, and again in the spring at the Annual Idaho Native Plant Society Plant Sale. She's also at the downtown Boise's Farmers Market Saturday mornings (also in season). You can also visit her nursery Tuesdays 9am to noon, and 5pm-8pm (in season). She is in the process of establishing demonstration beds to showcase the many varieties of xeric alternatives to lawns. and roses. Draggin' Wing Farm is located on Stinger St off Castle Drive in NW Boise. You can call her at 345-4199, or hardyplants@cableone.net.

News Jumble

This week's segment, News Jumble, is an experiment using headlines from the week's newspaper headlines in the local paper's business section. We tried to create new stories based on two or three headlines, but because the exercise wasn't obvious, we provided explanations for the fictions. How many storied did you recognize from real life? That's what Sagebrush is all about -- life is often stranger than fiction, and most of the stories you hear in our serial plays and skits are all true. Tell us what you think of this latest format.

Raven Usher Interview

In a re-broadcast from October, Curtis Pullin interviews ex-Marine Raven Usher, an LGBT activist here in Boise. She is also the editor of Diversity magazine. Raven talks about her transexual transitioning and gives advice for others who may be going through similar issues.

Conscious Consumer: Slave Chocolate

One of the most bitter ironies is that no matter how despicable most people find the concept of slavery, their infatuation with chocolate usually overrides any ethical impulses. With the largest supplier of chocolate - Cote d'Ivoire (aka Ivory Coast) - being known to have slaves and indentured servants making up the cocoa-harvesting workforce, it's next to impossible to avoid slave chocolate unless one puts a little effort into it. Here are a few links to learn more about the issue and alternatives (fair-trade chocolate):

• Project Hope and Fairness, with associated blog by Prof. Tom Neuhaus reporting from Africa
• Chocolate and Slavery: Child Labor in Cote d'Ivoire
• Global Exchange: Did Child Slaves Harvest Your Latest Chocolate Treat?
• Is your chocolate fair trade or slave trade?
• One of the earliest explorations of slave chocolate, including company information on their ingredients