Over the Edge + November 17, 2010 5 Former President George W. Bush Releases Memoires On November 9 George W. released his memoir “Decision Points” HANNA PETERSEN NEWS EDITOR It has been awhile since anyone has heard from George Bush. He has remained sequestered from the public eye for almost two years now. Many assumed he was blissfully enjoying retirement on his Texas ranch. Instead of riding horses on the Texan plains or attending charity luncheons, George Bush has been working away on his much anticipated memoir, Decision Points. As George Bush is a less than conventional figure, his memoirs are also less than conventional. The memoir is not structured as a typical political memoir, but instead focuses on the important decisions (or lack of decisions) that Bush made over his lifetime. Since it has been two years since he was last in office, and two years of a new President's legacy for the public and political pundits to scrutinize, Republicans and Bush supporters are hoping that the blame for the majority of America’s problems will no longer be directed at the ex-president. To aid this process and to garner general public interest about his book, Bush took to the media circuit and appeared on television shows such as The Today Show with Matt Lauer, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and the Tonight Show with Jay Leno. When announcing the books release date last year, Crown Publishers claimed the book would include revealed details about the 2000 presidential election, Bush’s reaction to the 9/11 attacks, as well as stories about his relationships with family members. Even before the book was released on November 9 details on the books content were leaked to the press. Notable details of the memoir included the revelation that Bush was genuinely surprised not to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq ; Bush considered dropping running-mate Dick Cheney in the 2004 election; and that Bush considered the lowest point in his career the moment Kanye West told a live television broadcast that “George Bush doesn’t care about black people.” This detail incited a slight double-take by critics. Some felt it was the lack of response to the hurricane disaster that was the low point of the administration rather than Kanye West’s remark regarding the matter. However, in an interview with Lauer, Bush defended himself by stating “Il also make it clear that the misery in Louisiana affected me deeply as well. There’s a lot of tough moments in the book.” Some of those tough moments were illustrated in his low approval rating which was at a low of 25% that equalled Richard Nixon’s before his resignation over Watergate. Bush was also widely vilified by many who opposed the war in Iraq, and the American financial crisis did begin under his presidency. However, after a two year cooling period, George Bush is back in the public eye. His memoirs were also released conveniently just after the mid-term elections, where the - ;,5 Republicans dominated. If the American political winds are changing once again, a : ONLINE SOURCE personalized memoir and the power of hindsight might put George W. Bush back in favour with the masses. |WLocal Foods Local food is the best! ALEXIE STEPHENS CONTRIBUTOR Former President George W. Bush If you are reading this on November 17", it’s your lucky day! Head down to the cafeteria or Stackers Deli and eat some delicious local food provided by Eurest, in collaboration with NUGSS, the Green University Office, UNBC and PGPIRG. If you are reading this after November 17", then hopefully you were able to enjoy the celebration of local food that happened on that day. Eurest Dining Services, NUGSS, the Green University Office, UNBC and PGPIRG, collaborated to make this event a success. All students, staff and faculty were welcome to attend this local food celebration event held in the Cafeteria and at Stackers Deli. Local farmers and producers were also on campus to provide information about their products and about the importance of locally produced food. Eurest Executive Chef Dean Russell had his work cut out for him, planning and preparing a days worth of UNBC’s meals (breakfast and lunch) with food from within British Columbia. Some of the foods were even from within 100km, for example the beef, free-range eggs, and many of the root vegetables were from farmers in and around Prince George. In an effort to raise awareness around the variety and abundance of local foods, regular menu items, such as Coyote Jack’s, were not available. Food produced locally not only cuts back on the distance food travels from farm to table, but also keeps money in the local economy. The majority of carbon emissions related to food comes from its travel. We eat foods grown in South America, New Zealand, Holland, etc. when similar foods can be produced in and around Prince George and BC. The short growing season does provide a barrier to local food consumption, but eating seasonally and locally whenever possible is an important aspect of sustainability, and being ecologically friendly. The best way to ensure that local food continues to be available is to support the farmers and producers---so check out the farmers market before you go to the grocery store! It is easy and delicious to support local farmers year round by shopping at the Prince George Farmers Market, every Saturday from 8:30am-2pm at George St. and 3" Ave. GAVIN IRELAND Local for me and you!