It’s been three years since the BP oil spill. Three years since we were all glued to the news waiting for the word that the leak had finally been capped. Three years since we watched in horror as animals washed to shore covered in muck. And how many times have we seen it in the news since then? How much have we been told about the effects of the spill? Once it dropped off the front page, we all went back to our busy lives, thankful that the disaster was over. Once the oil stopped gushing, we didn’t have to worry about it anymore. It was over, finished, complete. Except it wasn’t, and it still isn’t.

“They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden
at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves
from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.” ~~ Genesis 3:8

None of us have ever grown up in the Garden of Eden: we grew up in our families of origin. Our parents are generations away from Adam and Eve, but the shame and guilt of these primal ancestors still operate in our family histories today. My own family operated on a shame culture: the honor of the family’s name and our place in society was very important. Often we children were punished in a group: as the oldest, I should have known better and prevented my two brothers from being trouble makers; the boys were punished because one started the fight and the other finished it, or he came back to tattle.

RED AND JUICY -- Strawberries grown in high tunnels in mid-March are as delectable as those grown outdoors in the spring. High tunnel research being done at the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture may one day extend Arkansas' strawberry growing season from fall to winter. (U of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture photo by Fred Miller)

Fast Facts
High tunnels can increase strawberry production by a third
High tunnels can expand growing season for Arkansas fruit farmers
May is national strawberry month

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdG7UdD0XtY

The movie opens with Rachel (Lindsay Lohan) forcing her mother, Lilly (Felicity Huffman) to stop the car on the way to Lilly's mother's house in Idaho where Rachel is going to be spending the summer...

Calls on Obama to press Israel to end air strikes

WASHINGTON, DC -- Green Party leaders today called on President Obama and Congress to cancel proposed military aid to Syrian rebels and press Israel to cease its attacks on Syria immediately, or risk an escalated conflict in the Middle East.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=mWVpc0-7sM0

President Obama discusses the housing market and urges Congress to confirm Mel Watt to lead the Federal Housing Finance Agency and take action to give every responsible homeowner the chance to refinance and save money on their mortgage.

Victims were Sexually and Physically Assaulted and Forced to Work as Prostitutes in Maryland, New York, and Elsewhere

BALTIMORE—A federal jury today convicted Jeremy Naughton, a/k/a “Jerms Black,” age 32, of Brooklyn, New York, on charges related to sex trafficking, including transporting individuals to engage in prostitution, kidnapping, and using a gun during the conspiracy to commit sex trafficking.