John Paul Getty III's Ear Pasta

I have to just paste the whole paragraph from Wikipedia, because it's too good to paraphrase:

In early 1971, he [JPG3] was expelled from St. George's English School (later St. George's British International School), in Rome, Italy. His father moved back to England, and at 3am on 10 July 1973, Getty was kidnapped in the Piazza Farnese in Rome. A ransom note was received, demanding $17 million in exchange for his safe return. When that ransom message arrived, some family members suspected the kidnapping was merely a ploy by the rebellious youngster as he had frequently joked about staging his own kidnapping to extract money from his frugal grandfather. He was blindfolded and imprisoned in a mountain hideout. A second demand was received, but had been delayed by an Italian postal strike. Jean Paul Getty II asked his father for the money, but was refused. Getty Sr. argued that were he to pay the ransom, then his 14 other grandchildren could likely be kidnapped as well. In November 1973, an envelope containing a lock of hair and a human ear was delivered to a daily newspaper with a threat of further mutilation of Paul, unless $3.2 million was paid: "This is Paul's ear. If we don't get some money within 10 days, then the other ear will arrive. In other words, he will arrive in little bits."

The best part is that the postal strike also caused the ear to be delayed. It was cut off on October 22 and took 17 days to arrive at the newspaper office. The story continues:

At this point Getty Sr. agreed to pay a ransom, although he would only pay $2.2 million because that was the maximum amount that was tax deductible. He loaned the remainder to his son who was responsible for repaying the sum at 4% interest. The reluctant Getty Sr. negotiated a deal and got his grandson back for about $2.9 million. Getty III was found alive in southern Italy on 15 December 1973, shortly after the ransom was paid.

I feel bad for JPG3, don't get me wrong, because his grandfather was obviously a fucking asshole, but the saga only really gets dark in its conclusion:

Nine of the kidnappers were apprehended: a carpenter, a hospital orderly, an ex-con and an olive-oil dealer from Calabria, as well as high-ranking members of the 'Ndrangheta – a Mafia-type organization in Calabria – such as Girolamo Piromalli and Saverio Mammoliti. Two were convicted and sent to prison; the others, including the 'Ndrangheta bosses, were acquitted for lack of evidence. Most of the ransom money was never recovered.

I wonder which two kidnappers were convicted? (My guess is the carpenter and hospital orderly.) Letting the mafiosos off the hook for stealing $3 million is nothing as bad as letting US financial corporations off the hook for stealing billions. The US government has fully adopted the dictum "money makes right." Truth is assigned to whatever propositions serve the people with the strongest interests (i.e., the most money, in a capitalist system). I'm partially to the converse, expressed by Louis Althusser thus: "In principle, true ideas always serve the people; false ideas always serve the enemies of the people." Eat the rich, because as long as they're wealthy they'll never affirm such a socialistic, compassionate principle.

But first, eat pasta! Simple.

servings: 2

prep. time: approx. 20 mins.

INGEDIENTS:

1/2 lb. spiral flax pasta, or something

2 portobello mushrooms, halved and sliced

portion of a head of cauliflower, chopped

several handfuls spinach

2 cloves garlic, sliced

sherry

red wine vinegar

oregano

salt

pepper

sage

olive oil

nutritional yeast

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a pan over medium-high heat, saute the cauliflower and mushrooms for several minutes. Toss in the spinach and garlic and season.

2. Boil pasta for 11 minutes.

3. Drain the pasta and put back in pot. Drizzle olive oil and toss with a dozen shakes of nutritional yeast. Mix in the contents of the pan.

Turns out I published a twitter-fic story on March 22 and never saw it. I've never even read PicFic...

Office of Homeland Security Dragon Bowl

A decade ago on October 8, George W. Bush announced the establishment of the Office of Homeland Security. A couple of days ago, the media reported on an Iranian assassination plot against the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the US. The US government better not be preparing the ground for military action against Iran, because people are already in the streets and we know now that Homeland Security has nothing to do with safety.

A. made this deliciousness. The miso gravy recipe she used is based on the gravy at The Naam, a restaurant in Vancouver that we went to many times in July.

serves: 4

prep. time: approx. 1 hour

INGREDIENTS:

2 Idaho potatoes, sliced in eighths

1 lb. tofu, cubed

flour

1 beet

1 large carrot, chopped

1 head of broccoli, chopped

1 head of cauliflower, chopped

alfalfa sprouts

DIRECTIONS:

1. Toss the potatoes in a bit of vegetable oil. Grease a pan and preheat the oven to 425F. Bake the potatoes for 20 mins., flip and bake for another 25-30 mins.

2. Boil the beet. Peel the beet. Chop up the beet.

3. Roll the tofu cubes in flour. Fry in a pan with oil over medium-high heat until crispy.

4. Steam the other veggies.

5. Layer in a bowl in the following order: potato, tofu, gravy, beet and carrot, gravy, broccoli and cauliflower, gravy, alfalfa sprouts

Last of the Great Auks Miso Soup, Red Curry, and Salad

The Great Auk was a beautiful, penguin-like flightless bird. You can look at a wonderful illustration by John James Audubon here. (And then you should look up Walton Ford.) So why haven't you ever seen a real life auk? I quote Wikipedia:

The last colony of Great Auks lived on Geirfuglasker (the "Great Auk Rock") off Iceland. This islet was a volcanic rock surrounded by cliffs which made it inaccessible to humans, but in 1830 the islet submerged after a volcanic eruption, and the birds moved to the nearby island of Eldey, which was accessible from a single side. When the colony was initially discovered in 1835, nearly fifty birds were present. Museums, desiring the skins of the auk for preservation and display, quickly began collecting birds from the colony. The last pair, found incubating an egg, was killed there on 3 July 1844, with Jón Brandsson and Sigurður Ísleifsson strangling the adults and Ketill Ketilsson smashing the egg with his boot.

Oy. Vey. Strangulation less likely to damage the skins? More likely to damage the psyche. Extinction: first as tragedy, then again as tragedy. (Or is the farcical return the Apocalypse?) "The last pair, found incubating an egg..." puts meteors in my dreams. Worth considering is whether the modern policy of preserving species in captivity is substantively different than preserving a species in taxidermy. Considered worth a No.

I'm in Beautiful British Columbia now. Yesterday made food for girlfriend's family. A warming night in a place cooler than I'm used to this time of year. Gf made miso soup in the afternoon.

Fermented soy, tofu, mushrooms, green onion, spinach. Yumsies. She also made salad: lettuce and parsley with lemon vinegar dressing.

And now the curry recipe. Next time we'll use more cayenne, more basil, and more red pepper. And not slice the basil leaves.

makes approx. 7 servings

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/2 c. basmati rice

1 lb. tofu

1/2 head of cauliflower, chopped

1 red bell pepper, sliced

2 handfuls little potatoes, cubed

1 red onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 cans light coconut milk
1 handful Thai basil, sliced

4 spoonfuls curry paste

curry powder

cayenne

ground sea salt

ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

1. Cook the rice according to package directions.

2. In a large pot, sauté onion in oil over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally, add garlic after several minutes. Add red pepper and tofu.
3. Boil the potatoes in water. Don't cook them too long, but as soon as they're tender transfer them with a slotted spoon to the pot. Boil the cauliflower for a few minutes.
4. Add the cauliflower to the pot, then pour in the coconut milk. Add the curry paste, basil, and seasonings. Lower the heat and reduce until desired consistency.

One more thing. A few days ago we went to Palace Playland in Old Orchard Beach, ME. I've been terrified of amusement park rides my whole life, ever since I went on Rocky Mountain Railroad at Disneyland as a young child and felt like I was going to die. My uncle convinced me to go on a proper roller coaster several years later, but it must have been equally traumatizing because I've repressed all memory of it between the initial ascent and stepping off onto firm ground. But my girlfriend's giddiness got me so excited I steeled myself and rode both the Galaxi and the Power Surge. And I loved it! I've never felt so relaxed and fuzzy as I did after being spun through the air with my feet dangling.