Friday, October 26, 2018

Sheet-Pan Orange-Apricot Drumsticks in the Kitchen

Helen notes this recipe from Diabetic Living Magazine, Sheet-Pan Orange-Apricot Drumsticks:


  • 1 pound multicolor fingerling potatoes, halved lengthwise

  • 1 pound green beans, trimmed

  • 1 cup thinly sliced red onion

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, divided

  • ½ teaspoon ground pepper, divided
    • 4 large chicken drumsticks (1½-2 lbs. total), skin removed
    • 1 orange
    • 3 tablespoons apricot preserves
    • 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce or tamari
    • 3 cloves garlic, minced
    1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
    2. Place potatoes, green beans and onion on a large rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with ½ tsp. salt and ¼ tsp. pepper. Nestle chicken into the vegetables.
    3. Grate ½ tsp. zest from orange and squeeze it to get 2 Tbsp. juice. Combine the zest and juice, preserves, soy sauce (or tamari), garlic and the remaining ¼ tsp. each salt and pepper in a small bowl. Brush the chicken with half of the glaze.
    4. Roast the chicken and vegetables for 15 minutes. Stir the vegetables; turn the chicken and brush with the remaining glaze. Continue roasting until the chicken registers at least 165°F on an instant-read thermometer and the potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes more.

    • People with celiac disease or gluten-sensitivity should use soy sauces that are labeled "gluten-free," as soy sauce may contain wheat or other gluten-containing sweeteners and flavors.




    So that's a diabetic friendly recipe.  Also on diabetes, Sonny e-mailed to say that the American Diabetes Association has a Create Your Plate tool online which can help you plan meals.



    This is C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" for Thursday:


    Thursday, October 25, 2018.  Adel Abdul al-Mahdi proves to be so much like all that has come before.


    Iraq has named a prime minister.  We word that carefully because we should not say "new."  All hopes that this time would be different have slipped away.



    Iraq PM Adel Abdul Mahdi sworn in amid bickering over cabinet






    Iraqi Prime Minister swore in 14 ministers to his new government last night. All were male.



    "None of the [14] appointments were known to have come from the online application portal opened by Abdul-Mahdi to bring new faces into government. His office received over 15,000 applications in the span of less than a week, earlier this month."




    He did not nominate two women but Parliament refused to vote on those two.



    The new Prime Minister of Iraq Abdul Mahdi and his 14 ministers were sworn yesterday. We see No Woman for ministry.









    Press Release: SRSG Ján Kubiš welcomes confirmation of Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, urges early confirmation of the full Council of Ministers, and expresses concern at the lack of female representation among ministers



    SRSG Ján Kubiš welcomes confirmation of Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, urges early confirmation of the full Council of Ministers, and expresses concern at the lack of female representation among ministers







    Let's give AP credit for these two passages:


    Abdul-Mahdi will hold the portfolios of defense, justice, and others until parliament votes to approve his nominees. The lawmaking body is scheduled to reconvene on Nov. 6, though there is no constitutional deadline to confirm the appointments.
    Former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki went without ministers of defense or interior for the whole of his second term, from 2010 to 2014.

    On the first paragraph, that is what will happen.  On the second, that is what happened.  But we stood alone in real time in pointing that out.  The press repeatedly pretended otherwise.  Someone Nouri puts in place, without the Parliament, is not the minister.  (After we bitched and moaned forever, some outlets began using "acting minister.")  Parliament approval is required to be a Cabinet member.  To be removed as a Cabinet member?  That goes through the Parliament as well.  Bypassing the Parliament meant that Nouri let that person pretend as long as his decisions met with Nouri's approval.  It was a puppet.

    Now let's grasp just how bad a failure al-Mahdi currently is.  ISIS was never defeated in Iraq.  The press is pimping the lie that ISIS is back -- it never left.  But whether you accept the reality that it never left or the current myth, ISIS remains a huge problem for Iraq.  Minister of Defense?  Kind of an important position right now.  And he's unable to fill it?  That does not speak well for al-Mahdi.




    Another two bombings in Qayara town south of , town east of , Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Halboussi: "continuation of bombings
    in liberated cities recently needs new security plans"





    Where's the Minister of Defense?  To be appointed.


    Let's do numbers.  The Cabinet has 22 ministers.  How many spots did al-Mahdi fill?  14.

    This is a leader?

    This is someone who can get things done?



    I am wondering what happened to Iraq’s PM-designate Adel Abdul-Mahdi's online portal application for those who run for Iraq's 22 Ministries? I am one of those who applied for one of those positions and see myself as qualified as anyone else...






    He got a lot of attention for that, al-Mahdi did.  Even though the application period had ended, several outlets were still doing pieces on it earlier this week.  His announcement was treated as yet another indication that this was the one Iraq had been waiting for.  Time and again, we're told this Iraqi (who fled Iraq for years and only returned after the US military invaded in 2003) will be the change agent.  And they turn out to be exactly the same as the one that came before.

    al-Mahdi's words are treated as reasons to rejoice and then when his actions fail to live up to his words, the media reduces it to a paragraph deep in the story.

    It's amazing that the online applications qualified as headline news yet the failure to use those applications is not considered worthy of a headline.

    But then re-selling the war requires that the media never tell the harsh truths.  You can't keep a war going for 15 years and counting without the help of the media.



    Haider al-Abadi out, Adil Abdul-Mahdi officially in vowing a 'new phase' for under his premiership





    He's vowing a "new phase"?  Oh, goody, more words.  He's been incapable of living up to his promises thus far in the last month but let's all pretend that's going to change.  His first broken promise was that he wouldn't be meeting with foreign officials during his time as prime minister-designate.






  • مجلس الوزراء يعقد جلسته الاعتيادية الاولى برئاسة رئيس مجلس الوزراء السيد عادل عبد المهدي في مكانه الجديد خارج المنطقة الخضراء.



    رئيس مجلس الوزراء السيد عادل عبد المهدي : مجلس الوزراء سيعقد اليوم اول اجتماع للحكومة الجديدة للبدء بالعمل وتحديد الاولويات والتوجيه بالالتزام بالبرنامج الحكومي وتنفيذه في اوقاته المحددة .



    رئيس مجلس الوزراء السيد عادل عبد المهدي : علينا جميعا التعاون والعمل يداً بيد من اجل حاضرنا ومستقبلنا ،حيث ان امامنا الكثير من التحديات والعمل الجاد في مجال تطوير الاقتصاد وتنشيط سوق العمل وتوفير الخدمات وكل متطلبات شعبنا .



    رئيس مجلس الوزراء السيد عادل عبد المهدي : قدمنا برنامجا وزاريا طموحا وتفصيليا بمدد زمنية واضحة وسنعمل على تنفيذه وان هدفنا الأسمى هو تحقيق تطلعات شعبنا الذي عانى طويلا وآن له ان يقطف ثمار صبره وتضحياته.



    رئيس مجلس الوزراء السيد عادل عبد المهدي خلال مراسيم التسليم والاستلام : بحمد الله والتوكل عليه نتسلم اليوم مهامنا الرسمية بعد نيل حكومتنا ثقة ممثلي الشعب.



    جرت اليوم الخميس مراسم استلام وتسليم الحقائب الوزارية بحضور رئيس مجلس الوزراء السيد عادل عبد المهدي ورئيس مجلس الوزراء السابق الدكتور حيدر العبادي .



    ....جاء ذلك خلال زيارة سيادته لمقر جهاز الامن الوطني واجتماعه بالمدراء فيه، حيث حيا جهود العاملين في الجهاز الذي كان له حصة في النصر الذي تحقق وبالاخص تضحيات الشهداء والجرحى .



  • رئيس مجلس الوزراء القائد العام للقوات المسلحة الدكتور حيدر العبادي يؤكد ان التحدي المقبل يتمثل بالإعمار وتقديم الخدمات وجلب الاستثمارات،  وهذا لن يتحقق بدون استقرار الامن ....
     






  • The two last ones, from the 24th, are Hayder as prime minister.  The ones from two hours ago are al-Mehdi.


    At one minute, he insists that they've presented a detailed plan, later on (further up the thread) he's crowing that the Cabinet will meet for the first time today and decided on priorities.  Didn't that detailed plan he spoke of earlier do just that?

    Words, words, pretty and empty words.


    And Iraq's facing real crisis -- that's plural.  It's not just ISIS.  There are many more.  For example, this:




    OMG. While all eyes on formation of new govt, drought crisis hit the country strongly, according to Iraqi Agriculture Ministry,the country will lose 55% of agricultural land within the next 12 months. If this happened in another country will be declared state of emergency!













    The following community sites -- plus the ACLU -- updated: