Text 37489, 169 rader
Skriven 2013-06-02 07:33:00 av DAVE DRUM (1:261/1381)
     Kommentar till en text av MICHAEL LOO
Ärende: NPR madness
===================
-=> MICHAEL LOO wrote to DAVE DRUM <=-

 DD> I don't mind them taking the hat around - but, I wish there were some
 DD> magick button or back channel or secret code that one could use after
 DD> having kicked in for the entertainment. Because the constant grovelling
 DD> for shekels is certainly not entertaining - and is mostly grating after
 DD> a short spell.

 ML> I wonder whether anyone has studied the effectiveness of
 ML> various kinds of appeals. If it's been done, it is a sad
 ML> commentary on the human race that frequent and whiny has
 ML> been deemed to be a top method.

As I told Nancy it used to work when wheedling their parental units - I suspect
arrested development.
 
 NB> Especially when the voices get shriller and more insistent...  I don't
 NB> mind so much the extra talk about how much the station means,

 ML> Can you imagine a world without public radio?

No, but the tea-baggers certainly can. They'd prefer that all radio be
conserva-fantasy talk-radio with Dash Lardache, Bill O'Reilly and Glenn "The
Crybaby" Beck.
 
 ML> Of course I can. Peace and quiet.

There is a knob or switch on every radio with which I am familiar that turns
the instrument on and also turns it off. There is also a control which switches
between AM/FM/MW/SW and another that lets one select what manner of noise one
cares to hear. I use that one quite frequently when I hear the grating tones of
Rash Lardbutt or another of those mentioned previously. 
 
 NB> especially when they get some of the phone volunteers to the mike to
 NB> tell of their experiences with classical music or whatever...  but the
 NB> grovelling gets wearisome quickly...  This time they opened up pledging
 NB> on the online a couple of weeks early and encouraged (via quick PSAs)
 NB> those who wished to avail themselves, and shorten the on air portion of
 NB> the drive.

 ML> They might do better offering more personal and less canned
 ML> copy, mightn't they.

The on-line pledging and its accompanying announcements are *much* less grating
than the constant on-air whining. One of the popular jazz stations (WSIE-88.7)
deep sixed one whole beg period because they had met their goal via on-line
pledges.

 DD> Another one of my pet peeves is being on their sucker list
 DD> forevermore. I am still getting pleas for pesos from one of the PBS

 ML> When contributing to charity I always used to blank out
 ML> the human-readable contact information on the checks, but
 ML> the persevering idiots then started tracing back through
 ML> bank records, and I would get the mail appeals anyway.
 
If I really want to help a charity without being traceable I have been known to
go down the corner C-Store and buy a 39c money order and fill out, under the
"Remitter" section A. Nony Mous with an address of 123 Madeup Street in
Faketown, USA. I learned long ago not to do on-line or bank cheque
contributions to the beggars.
 
 ML> I will nevermore answer a mail appeal. Groups that fell
 ML> afoul were as diverse as Save the Children, CARE, UNICEF,
 ML> Oxfam (one of the worst), Common Cause, and various PBS
 ML> and NPR iterations and clones, but in my experience among
 ML> the worst and most persistent were the libertarian groups,
 ML> go figure.

If I can slip a candidate I support a Grant or Franklin then I will kick in.
But, the campaign rules governing ca$h, or, indeed, *any* political
contributions are pretty onerous and discourage such donations.

However, the recent Supreme Court "Citizen United" decision that opened the
floodgates of unregulated PAC money have provided an anonymous avenue through
"527" organisations.
 
 DD> TeeVee stations I used to support - back when I watched TeeVee. They
 DD> also have an AM and an FM radio station - which I can't receive
 DD> reliably here, nearly a hundred miles down the road. They could
 DD> probably save a fair whack in postage and printing if they would parse
 DD> their beg list for addresses which have not kicked into the pot for -
 DD> say - five years and counting. All those letters do here is to
 DD> contribute to my trash collector's incipient hernia.

 ML> And why is bulk mail allowed to happen? Strikes me that the
 ML> easiest way to ensure that Hap keeps receiving his pension
 ML> would be to get rid of it. That would save a bunch of trees
 ML> as well. The avowed purpose is well outdated anyhow.

Actually bulk (3rd class) and Parcel Post (4th class) are the profitable parts
of the USPS. The profits they generate help to support the money losing 1st
class letter delivery and 2nd class periodical (thank you Thomas Jefferson)
delivery. SPAM e-mail has cut into the amount of 3rd class mail being handled
by the post orfice - along with regular e-mail cutting down the number of
letters and greeting cards sent. Electronic editions of magazines, newsletters
and newspapers are reducing the amount of second class mail, as well.

For domestic ground delivery the USPS does as good or better a job as Fed-Ex
ground or UPS brown label delivery of parcels. And usually at a better price.

What gob-smacks me is people prating about the Post Office losing money. Hello?
It's a government SERVICE. It's not supposed to turn a profit. Thank you
tea-baggers and your ilk, I think, for the change in attitude.

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06

      Title: Old Post Office Crab Cakes
 Categories: Seafood, Breads, Citrus
      Yield: 8 cakes

      1 lb Jumbo lump crab meat
      1 lb Claw crab meat
      1 c  High quality mayonnaise
    1/4 c  Dijon mustard
      1 tb Old Bay Seasoning
           Juice of 1 lemon
      1 c  Panko
      2    Egg whites; stiffly beaten

MMMMM---------------------MOUSSELINE SAUCE--------------------------
      4 lg Egg yolks
      2 ts Lemon juice
    1/4 lb Butter; melted, boiling hot
           Cayenne
      1 ts Salt
      2 tb Heavy cream

  HOW TO COOK MOUSSELINE SAUCE: Put the egg yolks and lemon
  juice in a blender and add the butter in a slow steady
  stream; make sure the butter is very hot.

  Blend in the cayenne and salt.

  Add heavy cream.

  If you wish to have the sauce thicker, place a bowl over a
  pot of softly boiling water, and stir constantly with a
  whisk until thick.

  MAKE THE CAKES: Preheat the oven to 475øF/245øC.

  Make sure there are not shells in the crab meat and that
  the meat is moist but not watery. Gently mix the crab 
  meats, mayonnaise, mustard, Old Bay, lemon juice, and
  panko, being careful not to break up the lump crab meat
  too much. Fold in the beaten egg whites.

  Using about a 4-ounce ice cream scoop, scoop out cakes
  onto an oiled baking sheet. (You can make large or small
  cakes.)
  
  Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until the cakes are fluffy and
  golden.
  
  Serve the crab cakes with Mousseline Sauce.

  From The Cooking in The Lowcountry From The Old Post
  Office by Jane & Michael Stern - 2004.

  From: http://www.all-fish-seafood-recipes.com

  Uncle Dirty Dave's Archives

MMMMM

... We got married for better or worse. She couldn't do better, nor I any worse
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