The Past
I saw some bike riders the other day all decked out in their fancy biking gear and helmets, and I remembered what bike riding used to be like in the “old days.” Three of us ( my two brothers and I because the others were still too small) had to share two bikes. I had this old, beat up no-name bike and my brothers had a newer “flyer.” I didn’t have to share my bike as my brothers wouldn’t be caught dead riding it. We also didn’t have to share a helmet, because no one wore helmets when riding a bike. You simply hopped on your bike and rode like the wind and hoped you didn’t crash and burn. The one really serious bicycle accident I remember happening in the neighborhood happened to a friend who lived a couple of houses down the block. We were riding up and down mounds of dirt in a construction area. She hit a rock and flew off the bike. When she landed, however, she hit the upraised handlebar of the bike and ruptured her spleen…an accident that no protective device (except maybe body armor) could have prevented. There is no moral to this story, other than the fact that trying to ensure safety doesn’t always guarantee one will be safe.
The Present
Perhaps such legislation as the Patriot Act, the National Defense Authorization Act, and the NSA programs have contributed to our safety. But at what cost? I believe one day people will wake up and be terrified at the power and control they have handed over to the government. I fear we have snoozed in the passenger’s seat while the monstrosity in Washington moved into the driver’s seat and is about to control us in ways reminiscent of George Orwell’s 1984. Lord Acton was a British Baron who gave us the quote, “ Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.” In addition to serving in the British Parliament, Acton was also an historian and writer from whom we received several little jewels of wisdom: “Men cannot be made good by the state, but they can easily be made bad. Morality depends on liberty.” And “Despotic power is always accompanied by corruption of morality.” We now have a corrupt government because we have a government from which morality has been excluded.
Recipes
Banana Bread
½ cup melted butter
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teas. vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teas. baking soda
½ teas. salt
½ cup sour cream
½ cup chopped walnuts
2 medium bananas (ripe)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x5” loaf pan. (I use four little pans). In a large bowl, stir together the melted butter and the sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla. Mix well. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt and whisk together. Stir this into the butter and sugar mixture until smooth. Finally, fold in the sour cream, bananas and walnuts. Pour into the greased loaf pan. Bake at 350 for 60 minutes (35 minutes for little pans). Cool in pan 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack.
This is a recipe I found on the internet—it surely does make MOIST banana bread. I love it!