Go Buy Some of This and Support CounterCulture

Is Ben & Jerry's 'Schweddy Balls' R-rated ice cream?

L.A. Times

"That's the assertion a group of mothers called One Million Moms is making after the ice cream company released a new seasonal flavor called "Schweddy Balls" earlier this month."

"The vulgar new flavor has turned something as innocent as ice cream into something repulsive," the group writes in a statement. "Not exactly what you want a child asking for in the supermarket."

"Fans of "Saturday Night Live" will recognize the phrase "Schweddy Balls" from a late '90s skit starring Alec Baldwin, Ana Gasteyer and Molly Shannon that parodied a monotonous public radio show out of the Midwest. The skit is rife with unsubtle double entendre and innuendo."

Here's the skit (sorry for the commercial):

So - fellow culture warriors, get out there and buy some Schweddy Balls and give some to your Fox News watching friends. To the most obnoxious, you may ask - "Would you like to lick my Schweddy Balls?". Endless opportunity for bridging the gap...

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Update:

Years ago I taught my then young children about words, how words derive their meanings and the culture that tells us if it is right or wrong. How some words were considered "BAD" and anyone who said them was going to get in trouble if they said them in the wrong place or at the wrong time. Then, I taught them that words are only sound vibrations carried through the air to alight on someones eardrum and the only reason we recognize that sound as words is because that is what we are taught as language. I also taught them that the "BAD" words are only made so by people who make those decisions.

On that day, and subsequent days that I chose to reinforce this lesson, I would choose a word to be the "BAD" word of the day. I remember the first one like it was yesterday - "marshmallow". I told my then pre-teen kids that anyone who said the word "marshmallow" was saying a bad word and could face consequences.

The lesson took and they realized that words are only vibrations in the air given meaning by culture and censorship. Later they learned to respect that some words are really hateful and not to be used but I wanted them to not be afraid first, then learn about how some words can convey hate. That stands true today. I am proud of my good citizens.

Goin' Fishin'

It has been a long summer. Usually summers go by in a heartbeat and next thing you know the lawn furniture has a dusting of snow because I didn't put it away in time. This year was a little different and I sure could use some R & R.

My buds and I are going fishing one last time for this season in a beautiful place, almost Eden-like, on Moosehead Lake. We travel to the wilds of North-Central Maine, then get on a dirt road for 8 miles then turn off onto a lesser dirt road, sometimes washed out, for another 3 miles - dodging moose, deer and rabbits along the way. We arrive in the middle of a Game Preserve where there are cabins for rent. The animals who live around the site have lost their total fear of humans and will tentatively stop by your cabin to see if you are an OK person and have apples, carrots, nuts or other goodies to pass around. They are not tame, still wild but not hunted for over 100 years. On any given day you will see deer, geese, ducks, raccoons, moose, squirrels, chipmunks and more within walking distance of camp and sometimes right on the front porch.

The fishing is outstanding with Salmon, Lake Trout and Brookies in abundance. I have been going there for over 25 years. I learned of this place from my fishing mentors, "Old Timers" who taught me how fish with lead line, tie flies, sew on a smelt, dip my lure in sardine juice before trolling and so very much more. To me this is more like heaven than any evangelical could ever imagine.

Here is a short slideshow vid of the greendaykids and the greendaymom at Tomhegan way back when - with a Taj Mahal accompaniment - probably 2002, but some pics may be earlier.

I had to take the family on off weeks because the "old timers" and their sons and sons of sons wouldn't think about allowing women and kids into camp. We are just too nasty and crazy when we get together. Fact.

I have recently turned my conservative friends on to this haven and tried to pass on the respect for the area and skills that were taught to me. Sometimes a challenge, more often they are overwhelmed by the beauty and the experience.

Labor Day Weekend - Not Just for Barbecues

As Union Membership Has Declined, Income Inequality Has Skyrocketed In The United States as Middle Class Income Shrinks

From Think Progress

"Across the country, right-wing legislators continue their attack on labor unions,claiming that they are saving their states money. Yet in waging these anti-labor campaigns, these politicians are ignoring one very simple fact: unions were a major force in building and sustaining the great American middle class, and as they declined, so has the middle class. As CAP’s Karla Waters and David Madland showed in a report they first published this past January, as union membership has steadily declined since 1967, so too has the middle class’s share of national income, as the super-rich have taken a larger share of national income than any time since the 1920s".

Here's Tom Morello

We need strong labor in this country. People need to make more money to drive the economy. This is a fact of American life that seems to escape FoxNewsicans and most politicians. Unfortunately, Multi-national corporations don't need us anymore with their expanding markets in China and in developing countries overseas. Are we to be discarded like a used bic lighter or will we fight for a living wage, for organized labor and the restoration of the middle class?

It is an uphill battle with the combined power of the corporate Media spewing anti-labor lies 24/7 powered by billionaires who see workers as just another commodity to be purchased at the least cost like another piece of equipment. How many dollars until the revolution?