So yesterday I went over to my buddy Jeff's house to watch a little bit of the Monday night game. He's a big Bears fan and I'm a Packers fan, but somehow we seem to coexist without killing each other...probably thanks to the shared affinity for Miller Light.
Unfortunately, I returned home at halftime of the Bears-Rams game last night only to discover one of the most horrible headlines of my 25-year-old lifetime:
Wisconsin could lose its cheese title
COLBY, Wis. - Wisconsin, which proudly calls itself "America's Dairyland" and embraces all things cheese as a whey of life, is not yet ready to become a second-rate cheese power.
California is poised to take over the crown — or the cheesehead? — as the nation's top cheese producer as early as next year, but Wisconsin cheese lovers say quality is more important than quantity.
"We still have the best cheese," says Mary Deheck, a suburban Milwaukee resident who often makes a special trip to this central Wisconsin cheese mecca to stock up. She buys 100 pounds of cheese per year, typically colby or cheddar, for herself and her daughter, and for gifts.
Last year, California made 2.1 billion pounds of cheese, while Wisconsin produced 2.4 billion, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics. Given the production trend, it is only a matter of time before California becomes the big cheese of cheesemaking.
When the subject of the title change comes up, Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board spokesman Patrick Geoghegan turns up his nose faster than a 5-year-old offered his first slice of Limburger (a pungent cheese made in the U.S. only at a factory in Wisconsin).
Geoghegan says there are much more important numbers than tonnage. For one thing, Wisconsin has about 600 varieties of cheese, compared with California's 250.
Or these: Wisconsin 57, California 7. That's the tally of prizes from the 2006 World Championship Cheese Contest which was held — where else? — in Wisconsin.
"We make the best cheese in the United States and we make some of the best cheese in the world," Geoghegan says. "We don't take a back seat to anybody when it comes to making cheese." [READ MORE]
Not having Wisconsin as the nation's cheese capital is almost unbelievable to me, and a loss of that title to California on top of that is practically sacriligious to the Dairyland.
When I moved out to Pennsylvania to get my master's degree almost every person I met asked me if I loved cheese or if I ate cheese all the time because I was from Wisconsin. At first I would laugh and say that's just a myth...but you know, maybe there was some truth to that. Now, sitting at home here in Northcentral Wisconsin, I can proudly admit that I love cheese, and I'm not about to let some wine-making beach state take the Cheesehead title away from us. Them's fightin' words, Cali.
Music
RIAA wants to lower artist royalties, encourage legit music purchases during holiday season
As mentioned on Punknews.org,
According to this recent article, it seems the RIAA is concerned about the amount of money paid to its artists for commercial use of their work, commonly referred to as the artist royalty percentage. The RIAA believes the percentage is too high, and is currently petioning the courts to have this amount lowered, specifically, and ironically, for the use of "innovative services", such as lyrics and melodies in cell phone ring-tones and other "digital sources". Here's what the RIAA had to say about the petition:
Mechanical royalties currently are out of whack with historical and international rates. We hope the judges will restore the proper balance by reducing the rate and moving to a more flexible percentage rate structure so that record companies can continue to create the sound recordings that drive revenues for music publishers.
In a semi-related story, the RIAA has teamed up with its motion picture counterpart, the MPAA, in an "Anti-Piracy blitz" to remind holiday shoppers of the true meaning of the season, purchasing legitimate releases from both groups, according to Brad Buckles, Executive Vice President, Anti-Piracy for the RIAA
"Thousands of people in the music community — including artists, songwriters, musicians and record label employees — work throughout the year preparing releases to showcase their talent during the holiday season. When the hard work of music professionals is undermined by piracy, everybody loses. Music is the quintessential gift during the holiday season, and when consumers buy the real thing, everyone wins. Fans get a superior product, retailers generate tax revenue for the local community and all of the people in the music industry who created the album earn a return for their work.
Muzzle of Bees discusses the Madison Pop Festival (which I sadly could not attend) and Joanna Newsom, and a pretty good discussion follows in the comments.
Tuesday's Tasty Treats
Dresden Dolls - "Coin Operated Boy"
Cold War Kids - "Red Wine Success"
Tokyo Police Club - "Be Good"
Lily Allen - "Alfie"
Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - "Oregon Girl"