Socialism, Class Warfare, Tax Code, OH MY!

So, a big thing in the news and politics right now is this idea of the 99%, Wall Street, Class Warfare, etc. As evidenced by the Occupy Wall Street movement (which... lets be real, smelled more than anything else), Americans are becoming frustrated with rich people. But I think this is the wrong label for this movement.  What is fundamentally wrong with the so-called 1%, is not necessarily that they have money, but the feeling of entitlement for what they have, and the feeling that these people have been treated specially in a political system that (allegedly) favors the (white) man with money.  Just read this article on http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-things-rich-people-need-to-stop-saying/ that I think puts into words well most of my viewpoints. It's obviously a bit biased, but here are some great points I think it makes.

1. Not everyone can be an investment banker.  The world needs plumbers, construction workers, and hey, even musicians sometimes. Don't think I'll be making anything over six figures for the rest of my life.
2. Just because you work hard, doesn't mean I don't.  I understand I didn't choose the most lavish lifestyle, but we both work hard, we can both afford to do our part.
3.  The country doesn't run just because of rich people.  The country works because your employees come to work everyday and make your company function.  Mind you, in my field, most professional orchestras are sponsored largely by corporations, which puts a bit of an anchor in my argument, but I still believe it could work without.

I have no problem with others being rich, as long as you and I are held to the same social responsibility.  It's a complicated issue, with probably no good right answer (except a flat tax rate maybe?). What do you think?

Welcome to my first official blog post! I'm still not sure of the blogs theme/what it's going to eventually look like, so for now, it's going to be a posting place of all ideas and awesome things I can think of! Today we are Creating. OoooooOOO. (Get it, from top of the page? I'll try to explain later) First on the plate, is PULLED BBQ CHICKEN.  Now, my philosophy on cooking is that truly everyone can do it, so I try to make things that are cheap, healthy, and easy to make.  Some require more time than others, but this one COULDN'T BE EASIER.  I got this idea from another blog (http://www.biggirlssmallkitchen.com/category/blog), where she makes her own bbq sauce and has pickled onions on top with a nice roll.

Yum. But other ideas for pulled chicken? Tacos. On a salad. In a wrap. On toast. With eggs. In a sandwich with guacamole and caramelized onions. BY ITSELF. All good choices. So here is what you'll need.

4 (at least, and depending on the size of your pot) skinless, bone-in, chicken thighs*
4 cups of chicken broth
1 jar/bottle BBQ sauce (really any kind works here)
A little olive oil

*You can use boneless too, makes pulling a bit easier, but with the bones gives a bit more flavor. You definitely want skinless though, gets too messy when you want to pull the chicken.

Four ingredients? WHAAT? Yea, ok, I'll calm down. So anyways, pay close attention. I'll try to be very specific so there's no questions.

1) Preheat the oven to 350(F).
2) Put the olive oil and barbeque sauce in a sturdy pot or dutch oven (something that can go in the oven, with a lid) and put on medium heat.
3) Put in the chicken (bones down).
4) Add the chicken broth until it covers the chicken (it's ok if you don't have quite enough broth, just add some water!).
5) Mix the saucy juices a bit until its a little better incorporated.
6) Put on the lid until it starts boiling (may have to turn up the heat a bit to get it going). At this point, put the pot in the 350(F) oven and cook for 1 hour 30 min.
7) Take out the pot and leave it on the burner (or outside since I'm in Canada in February), until the chicken cools enough so you can touch it.
8) In a bowl, start pulling at the chicken with a fork, or your fingers, until you get every bit of that damn deliciousness off of them bones!

Serves about 3-4, depending on how you're serving it and how much people eat. You can make more by using the boneless thighs and using a bigger pot or multiple pots. But DONT THROW AWAY THE LEFTOVER SAUCE IN THE POT! Next time I'm going to show you how to make a (way healthier) veggie soup with it, that'll make you forget you're eating vegetables!

Until next time, and let me know if you have questions or comments! Ciao for now,

Jake

Who needs another blog to follow? Who needs another gay guy with too much time on his hands extolling the virtues of cooking, cute pictures, music, culture, and that funny video everyone's already seen? Well, I'm aiming to do a few things. 1) extoll the virtues of cooking, cute pictures, music, culture, and funny videos (of course). 2) Create, Reflect, Engage, Adapt, Tolerate, and Emote (CREATE). 3) Provide a place for my ideas and rants. 4) Hopefully distract us from things in our lives that are probably not worth the stress, and creatively solve the problems in our lives.

Now this sounds way more serious than it needs to be... Oh well.  I'm always thinking about new things, from music, global issues, politics, cooking, pleasures, relationships... but if you have any ideas for me to think about or want to know my opinion on, just contact me!