Discussion Divas

Oh, how I wish it would rain

Fire, fire, fire. It was pretty much impossible to turn on a television or pick up a newspaper this week without seeing images of the huge wildfires that lit up Southern California like a tinderbox.

And while the scope of this fire was bad—forcing a million people from their homes and scorching 500,000 acres—it’s just one example of a severe drought plaguing the country. And the real story seems to be the possible role of global warming and the need for water, water, water.

Droughts are normal
Droughts are simply part of the natural climate cycle. And dry, hot SoCal is always highly susceptible to these fires, which happen with regularity. That said, the nation seems a bit more parched than usual.

South dries out and Great Lakes shrink
In fact as the fires burn on the West Coast, a severe drought is plaguing the Southeast.

Take Georgia—not a place you usually confuse with the Sahara—but it’s currently being crippled by a drought so nasty, experts say it comes around only once a century. Officials have asked that part of the region be declared a disaster area, something the U.S. government hasn’t done for a drought since 1977. Nearby neighbors in North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama are also looking to the skies for rain.

Meanwhile, up north, the Great Lakes could also use a drink. The water levels in all five lakes are below normal, and could stay that way until spring. And out West, experts are worried about the shrinking mountain snow pack.
>> Check out these federal maps, which show huge areas of the nation currently suffering from drought conditions ranging from a little dry to downright thirsty., which show huge areas of the nation currently suffering from drought conditions ranging from a little dry to downright thirsty.

The big picture
The vast majority of scientists now believe in global warming and that the average temperature of the earth is slowly rising. And many say human activity is partly to blame. Oddly enough, experts also tend to believe global warming is actually going to make the world wetter—it’s just going to shift who gets wet. In short, more moisture at the poles, less toward the center.

What it means
If this holds true—if water gets scarcer and the country gets drier—images like those out of SoCal may become all too common. Already, there is evidence that wildfires in the West have been getting worse in the past two decades, consuming many times more land than they did in previous years.

If she weren’t a material girl before, she is now

Even music industry insiders’ jaws must have dropped when news hit that the pop-legend and world’s most famous Kabbalah devotee Madonna was bolting from her big record label to sign a $120 million, all-inclusive record deal with a concert promoter. And while that’s a whopping sum, the bigger news is what it means for the music business itself.

Trading traditional
The fact that Madonna, who has sold over 200 million albums in her career, is willing to bail out on a traditional record label, in this case Warner Music, is evidence that the music business as we know it is imploding in the face of digital downloads and file sharing.
 
Certainly not music to their ears
In a nutshell, the picture is grim for record companies, which have been stubbornly clinging to a business model many see as outdated. In the past, record companies would sign artists and release the music to rake in their d

ough, while artists signed with concert promoters to tour, sell stuff, and rake in their own dough. But CD sales have been dropping for years—down 18.5% in 2007—while single-track Internet downloads are up 46% as more people opt for single song titles at 99 cents, and not the whole, more expensive album. And that has record labels—and a host of new competitors—wanting in on some of the artist’s other revenue streams.
 
Live Who? A new player makes a risky deal
Enter Live Nation. The Beverly Hills-based company will pay Madonna handsomely for the right to not only release three of her albums, but also promote her concerts and sell her stuff. Live Nation may be getting the whole Madonna enchilada, but many, many people seem to be questioning the financial wisdom of the agreement.
 
The big picture
Whether good deal or bad, it is undeniable that the economics of the music business have changed forever. Just last week, the indie-rock gods Radiohead put their latest album on sale on their own Web site and let customers pay what they want. Yes, even nothing. And we haven’t even broached the pressures of illegal file sharing here. As for Madonna's future? The business savvy mega-star—buff as always—certainly inked a sweet deal and will likely still be packing arenas into her 70s.

Race and the national conversation

Two weeks after sparking controversy for inviting Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak on campus, Columbia University is again in the news, this time for a noose found draped on the office doorway of a black professor of race and multiculturalism.

The incident sparked student protests on campus and the NYPD’s hate crime unit launched an investigation with plans to test the rope for DNA. But it’s just one of many recent reports from around the nation of nooses appearing in situations of racial conflict.

What’s happening?
You’ve probably seen the headlines about the “Jena Six,” referring to a group of six black high-schoolers in Jena, La., who were accused of beating a white classmate last year. In fact nooses played a role in this case—the incident came after nooses were hung from a tree on the school premises. The local prosecutor charged the students with attempted murder.

One of the students was tried as an adult and convicted of battery. But last month an appeals court threw out that ruling, saying he should not have been charged as an adult.

Subsequent calls to let the teenager out of jail led to one of the largest civil rights rallies this country has seen in some time, with 10,000 people marching in Jena in late September. But a judge ruled to hold the student in jail while the prosecutor appeals the earlier ruling. And after the rally, nooses surfaced again—this time on the back of a truck driving by groups of demonstrators.

Since then the press has reported other episodes of nooses around the country, left strategically with clear racial intent, from Maryland to New York to Alabama.

The big picture
It’s been 50 years since nine students integrated Central High School in Little Rock, Ark., and over 40 years since the end of Jim Crow laws. Still, the Southern Poverty Law Center, a group that monitors hate crimes and racist organizations, says the use of nooses symbolically has been on the rise for a couple years.

The noose remains a notoriously powerful symbol of violence and repression, stirring up painful memories of black subjugation and disenfranchisement. Its re-emergence, even symbolically, is a frightening reminder that America still has a long way to go in its quest for racial equality and tolerance. Let's hope that these recent incidents of intolerance serve as a wakeup call, because the national conversation on race is far from finished. 

The wild, wild East

Headlines about Blackwater USA, the private security contractor working in Iraq, have been above the fold for several weeks now, conjuring up images of the old Wild West—when guns and lawlessness ruled the day. Except it’s 2007 and it’s not the Wild West.

 

Here’s what’s happening, in a nutshell:

 

In mid-September the Iraqi government ordered Blackwater out of the country

Why? On Sunday, September 16, while providing security services to U.S. State Department officials attending a meeting in Baghdad, Blackwater security forces were involved in a shoot-out that left as many as 17 Iraqis dead. Blackwater says they were fired on and returned self-defense shots; Iraqis called it excessive force.

> Read a witness account in the NYT that will tear your heart out.
> ABC put together some photos of the explosion and the convoy.

Iraqi officials said enough, we’re revoking your license to work in this country, calling the contractor “unfit.”

The State Department said hold on, let us conduct an investigation before you kick them out. In the meantime a Congressional committee launched a broader inquiry into Blackwater and found it was involved in 195 shootings since 2005. On Tuesday Blackwater founder and former Navy SEAL Erik Prince appeared before the House committee and defended his company.

What is Blackwater USA?

Blackwater is one of many, many foreign contractors operating in Iraq that do all kinds of jobs—from infrastructure construction to cell phone services. But Blackwater is specifically a security provider for U.S. officials, with about 1,000 employees in Iraq.

Although the work is often extremely dangerous, these contracts are often very lucrative. Blackwater has reportedly earned $1 billion from the U.S. government since 2001, or $1,200 a day for each security agent, according to the Congressional report. A New York Times editorial says that’s six times the pay of a comparable U.S. soldier.

If Iraqis want to prosecute Blackwater, they can’t

In fact contractors in Iraq apparently aren’t subject to U.S. or Iraqi judicial systems, though the laws are murky on this point. On Thursday the House of Representatives passed a bill paving the way for prosecution of contractors in U.S. courts but it’s unlikely to garner White House support.

The big picture

The September shootout put Blackwater on the radar of the American public for the first time, although Iraqis have been complaining about their conduct for some time. The Iraqi government is in a bind. While civilians want answers, the government is trying to keep the peace with U.S. officials. The U.S. government is in a bind too, as this incident comes at a time of escalating unpopularity of U.S. presence in Iraq both there and at home.

Update your look with ONE purchase

Hi ladies, this is Erica, on the fashion scene in New York. I’m from the Midwest so my heartland sensibilities have followed me to the East Coast, where I work in the fashion industry. My philosophy is that smart and sassy looks can be had on a smart dime. That’s what we’re aiming for with this column. Here goes with our first one!
 
Update your look with ONE purchase
 
While fashion magazines and catalogs might have you believe that each season requires a fashion overhaul, it’s simply not the case. Often ONE crucial purchase can update any look.
 
This fall, that look is the WIDE-LEG pant, perhaps a welcome reprieve for those who rebel against the skinny-leg pant which, by the way, is still in fashion! I’m not talking bell-bottom wide, just wider than say the traditional “boot cut.”
 
For anywhere from about $60 to $200 you can dress ‘em up or dress ‘em down. Immediately you’ll have a fresh look to go with all the sweaters and blouses already in your closet. Very ingenious!
 
Wear them with: Try them with a slim turtleneck, a feminine blouse with ruffles, or a short suiting jacket.
 
Find them at: For the casual look, check out denim versions from j-brand, Seven for all Mankind and Juicy Couture. These pants also look great dressed up for work in suiting fabrics from Theory and even from Express, which has great fits that won’t break the bank.
 
The fit
My general rule for a wider-leg opening is that it should be about an inch off the ground. It really doesn’t matter how wide the leg itself is, but proportion is important. The overall look will make you look taller. And remember, feeling great and looking great go hand and hand.
 
Smart looks on a smart dime
I choose a pant and think it is an investment piece. I would suggest spending the money on one or two great pair, and they will last. If you do, spend the extra $15 to $20 and have them altered to fit you perfectly. It is worth the money! And hey, in the end, you will have updated your entire look for the fall season with just two additions. Now take that to the bank!

Questions? Join the discussion!

-- Erica Naumann