Maggie's Farm

My weekly time at the Food Bank has been very enlightening.  Yesterday was different, I did something I wasn't used to doing.  "Separating and stocking" it was called.  Normally I pack food into boxes for shut-ins, SNAP supplement, or other family assistance.  Some of that food is donated by large supermarkets or food producers, unsold stuff that hasn't quite hit expiration.  Most is purchased by the bank itself, from donations.  A commenter had asked where the food came from, and I have learned that a good portion is purchased, another good chunk donated.

Yesterday I learned about another big portion of it.  Individual donations.  When you clean out your pantry and drop it off at your local Food Bank, it goes into a bin and when there's enough volunteers like me spend hours unpacking and sorting.  It's astounding, to be honest.  For several reasons.

First, and I say this because we don't tend to think about it, and we mean well, but a good portion of the food donated is useless.  Not the majority, but a noticeable minority of it. 

To explain why, and maybe help save other volunteers time and effort, it's worth noting how the food is broken out.  There are about 20 separate boxes, among them: Coffee & Tea, Cereal, Rice & Pasta, Canned Protein, Condiments, Baking Goods, Snacks, Drinks, Water, Peanut Butter, Vegetables, Fruit, Soups and Broth, and Peanut Related products.  There are more, but these are the main ones. 

There are at least 3 reasons I noticed for why food is tossed.  First - boxed foods often are donated partially opened.  Even if there is a wrapped package inside, many banks will reject the food immediately.  Particularly if it includes individually wrapped packages without expiration dates on them.  And that's a second reason - Expiration Dates.  While a canned good dated Oct. 2, 2020 is acceptable until 2022, a boxed good with the same date is not always. It may have a 3-6 month acceptable shelf life, and if it is baby food it must not be past expiration.

These may seem somewhat questionable guidelines for food freely donated, but trust me, the artichoke hearts I picked up 3 years expired were not in the least appetizing.  I may have eaten them if I'd stored them in my refirigerator at home, but realizing the nature of the situation (as my supervisor said) is such that maybe a year ago we MAY have been willing to push some limits, but right now we can't afford to. 

In addition, I picked up 2 twenty pound bags of rice.  Some of the rice spilled out, and I knew that bag had to go (who wants to attract rats and insects? That's the third reason...resealed boxes/bags.  The first bag I threw out.  The second wound up getting tossed when a supervisor noticed a hole which someone had taped over.  

One other thing I learned had to do with peanuts.  As you probably realize, anything that had peanuts in it, or was prepared in a facility with peanuts, was put in the "Peanut" box. What you may not realize is how much food is prepared in facilities that handle peanuts.  I handled 3 different kinds of Ramen packages.  The most well-known brand, Top Ramen, was a "Peanut" product.  The others were Soup and Broth, but I was shocked at all the items that wound up in "Peanuts".  Sometimes you just don't think much about it.

While I am always proud that we manage to prepare weekly food boxes for people, often up to 750 in a 3 hour shift, yesterday was another kind of learning experience.  When I donate food in the future, I'll be sure to box it, separate it and make sure the expiration dates are acceptable.  I'm sure I meant well donating a jar of olives that was 3 years past expiration, but I had no idea I was probably making someone do the work I should have done and just tossed them.  Or that half open box of mac and cheese, which I taped closed, and which someone could have used.  That someone being me...not someone else. 

It was good knowing we sorted 524 boxes of these various foods. They are sent to local food pantries for distribution, or used in local food kitchens. 

One last thing I noticed while I was there was the number of meals served each year.  This past year, 2020, the number more than doubled.  

Part of that was due to the ill-considered and misguided lockdowns which cost us jobs and productivity.  But every year from the year it was founded, the Food Bank has seen the numbers of meals served increase.  This past year may wind up being an anomaly.  I hope it is.  But it's worth knowing that volunteers are needed, and if you have it in you to spend a few hours a week, it's worth it.  Hopefully I can convince my next employer that this is an important thing I do and get 3 hours a week to continue doing the volunteer work.  I recommend it.  As much as I I'd like to say I'm doing it because I ike to help people, the reality is I'm doing it for me.  It makes me feel good.  That's pretty much why we do most of whatever we do in life, and I'd never recommend doing it if you find it annoying or a pain in the ass.  I have learned a lot, I can say that.

Parler being dumped by Amazon Web Services wasn't the first shot.  Gab was in 2018.  Gab is still around, though it is private now and subscription only.  That may be the future for Parler and others like it which fill a need.

But going private isn't the only solution, there are other solutions.  But private is probably bes.  However, being aware and adept at meeting the Progressive/Leftist challenges to free speech is essential.  I am particularly fond of The Mises Institute's approach.

This is a space in which I'm uniquely informed and aware.  I've been seeing this slowly developing for years, and it's been a growing concern.  I've been told for years "oh it will never get that bad" and now it really is that bad.  Many said Net Neutrality was necessary because the provider of the pipes would throttle, reduce and limit ability for sites and apps to work.  Ironically, the purported supporters of Net Neutrality are the very same businesses who are throttling free speech - you know, the free speech they felt Net Neutrality was required to prevent OTHERS FROM THROTTLING THEM.  Except, they will argue, 'this is different'.  It's not.  And Net Neutrality would have given these tech oligarchs more power to do this very kind of thing. 

That said, because all this has happened slowly at first, then suddenly (due to the Capitol incident), Hemingway's description of bankruptcy fits these moves restricting the freedoms on speech very well.  When it's taken, unlike bankruptcy - which is usually noticeable, this is going largely unnoticed and unmentioned.  Or, at least, it's being done in a manner many consider 'acceptable'.  Because the main beneficiaries are the very groups doing damage to free speech - the tech oligopolists.  Who know 'better than you' about how things should be done, how you should live your life, and what you can or should say.

Don't get me wrong.  Tech in't bad. Social media isn't bad.  It's not inherently evil.  It is ambivalent to morality.  But individuals themselves can be good or bad, and as a result can have overbearing and long-lasting impacts on our realities.  I'm sure Gutenberg was not loved by leaders of the day and "War of the Worlds" certainly sent many scurrying to talk of the damage radio can do.  TV was described as a "vast wasteland" and Bill Gates felt there was little commercial value to the internet.  

What is happening now requires individual awareness and action.  It does NOT require fighting or violence.  Just intelligence and smart, cordial and meaningful action.  The Progessives are just starting, in my view.  I don't believe violence will help solve issues - it will be used to justify positions.  But being louder, smarter and more aware will make a difference.

Mrs. Bulldog and I went into the city to meet our boys for brunch and decided to visit the "new" Penn Station which is formerly the US Post Office (across the street from the "old" Penn Station and Madison Square Garden).  It is designed to handle what were very crowded spaces in Penn (ugh...some nights were unbelievable, especially when trains broke down) and provide a bit of a 'link' to the past as the old Post Office's architecture and interior were somewhat similar to the original Penn Station, which was destroyed (tragically) years ago.

I have included 2 pictures.  I am not impressed.  The open interior, with glass ceiling that lets a ton of light in, is excellent.  What was formerly an interior parking area is now the main part of the terminal.  Beyond that, as Mrs. Bulldog said, "The great train halls of Europe need not worry of competition."

It is antiseptic, utilitarian and lacks a soul.  Clean (though new), bright, cheery - these are all positives, but in terms of originality and whimsy, there is none.  I found nothing interesting or inspiring.  Where Grand Central has all kinds of angles and views to catch your eye and keep you interested, Moynihan Train Hall has none.  It's boring and uninspired.

But maybe it's not supposed to be inspiring.  Millions will pass through there on the average week, mostly commuters to Long Island and New Jersey.  Who needs to be distracted?

Hopefully calm will be restored as the nation moves back toward some semblance of whatever it is we consider 'normal' for the last 9 months.  I hope things continue to improve as we move out of the Covid scare and fear mongering (yes, Covid is real, I had it as have many friends, but no it's not so bad for 95% of the people who get it).  If we can move past all this, my job opportunities may improve.

Then again, who knows?  I know few of you are on Facebook, but I am (or was).  It allowed me to reconnect with friends and family and it's a useful tool.  I've also shared Maggie's articles there with my friends, and met many other people who I share interests with.  I am well aware of the privacy issues, but I know how to navigate them (part of my everyday job) and manage them effectively.  There is, however, one thing I can't manage.  It's the real problem we're facing today.  It's the reason I deactivated my Facebook recently (after letting people know how they can reach me if they want/need to).

I am aware of many HR Departments doing sweeps of social media to find things out about people.  I have heard several stories of pro-Trump people losing job offers.  This doesn't surprise me at all in NYC today.  The shift here has been significant from not just hating Trump to full-fledged belief that anyone who supports him is a deranged psychopath.  I have never been a Trump supporter, but that doesn't mean anything because I've never hated him, either.  It's best to hate him with the passion of a thousand suns in order to win approval with many organizations today. 

I haven't loved him, haven't hated him, I've merely tolerated him, and realized his persona was a massive problem but that he was accomplishing some good things.  I was for honesty and balance of thought and reason.  Today, you can't be that way.  You have to be a true believer, or at least not come across as a believer of "the other side".  In other words, it is almost a requirement to be Progressive to be "acceptable".  Such is the nature of modern definitions of Diversity - be like us or you're not acceptable.  I'm all for Diversity.  Diversity of thought, and respect for other views, without accepting the enforcement of those views on others by law, social shame, or other means of behavioral modification (brainwashing via education, for example).