Iron Chef America goes to the White House

Photo courtesy of the White House: Bobby Flay, White House chef Cristeta Comerford, Alton Brown, Michelle Obama, Mario Batali and Emeril Lagasse.

Michelle Obama's vegetable garden serves as the battleground on the two-hour season premier of Iron Chef America, which airs Sunday at 8 p.m.

In an episode filmed this summer, three professional chefs and White House chef Cristeta Comerford are welcomed by the first lady and allowed to use anything found in the garden to create their meals.

The chefs - Mario Batali, Emeril Lagasse and Bobby Flay, plus Comerford - then return to The Food Network's Kitchen Stadium in New York, where Flay and Comerford face off against Batali and Lagasse, each team producing five dishes showcasing the ingredients.



"Most significantly what you'll notice is the fact that she's wearing what has previously been called 'Batali orange," Batali told CNN.

"When I pointed it out to her I said, 'I have to tell you Mrs. Obama, up until today...this has always been referred to as Batali orange, but I think from today on we will call it 'Obama-Batali orange.'

"I think she got a little kick," he added.

The judges include cookbook author and chef Nigella Lawson, Olympic gold medal swimmer Natalie Coughlin and actress Jane Seymour.

Source:baltimoresun.com/

Swan Song: The End of the Jim Zorn Era in Washington, D.C.

The Washington Redskins haven't experienced much success this past decade, and last Monday night was an ode to the pain and suffering this once-proud franchise has undergone.

With the Redskins losing 45-12 to the rival New York Giants in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter in a meaningless game, one could look out into the stadium bowl and see a sea of blue. Redskin fans were long gone; Giants fans had made FedEx Field their home.

The Redskins turned in a dismal performance in front of a national TV audience not only showing themselves to be incompetent, but downright stupid. The Giants beat them in every facet of the game, and then the 'Skins shoveled the dirt on top of their own coffin with an idiotic fake field goal attempt.

It was an ugly game. But then Washington made it laughable when they trotted on the kicking unit only send them in motion out to the left side of the field. At first I had to wonder, what does special teams' coach Danny Smith have up his sleeve?

After all, the 'Skins do have two special teams scores on trick plays this season.

However, this wasn't a calculated risk. It was the death rattle of the Jim Zorn era in Washington. Punter Hunter Smith lobbed up a duck, which was intercepted. Cue the subdued guffaws by Mike Tirico and Co. in the booth.

Exit Zorn. Stage left.

Albert Haynesworth summed it up afterwards: "I mean, the score, the record, they'd say that we're horrible, that we don't know how to play football," Haynesworth said. "But I've been around these guys a lot. I think they know how to play football. I think we're all just going different directions, and we need somebody to lead us in the right direction."

Truer words were never spoken.

Zorn was doing a good job this past month keeping his players focused. He had showed an ability to facilitate and prepare the team in the previous weeks of this lost season.

I believed he had at least saved his credibility with the team's performance the past month. In fact, I was willing to hear a case for retaining him.

However, any good will he had merited was quickly snatched away with this latest catastrophe.

How can the Redskins bring back a guy who had his play-calling duties stripped midway through the season? How can they bring back a guy who turned in three of his worst losses on Monday Night Football (Pittsburgh in 2008, Philly and New York this year) in front of national TV audience?

I want stability for this franchise; I really do. However, keeping Zorn doesn't give the Redskins much stability in anything but losing.

Zorn is a genuinely nice guy. He's a class act. However, that's really all he has going for him.

He wasn't even supposed to be the head coach, but was handed the job when Dan Snyder couldn't find a replacement for Joe Gibbs.

He has had almost no success here in DC; his struggles as a play-caller are astounding; and he has overall failed to get the most out of his players on the field (with the exception of a handful of games over the past two seasons).

Maybe he hasn't been given the best chance because he has lacked personnel on the offensive line, but the fact of the matter is that the Redskins have flopped too many times in many different situations.

They have failed in big games. They have failed in winnable games. They have failed as the favorite and the underdog. They have failed in close games.

All of that adds up to too much failure.

Source:bleacherreport.com/

Washington, D.C. Mayor Signs Law Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage

(RTTNews) - Washington, D.C mayor Adrian Fenty signed a bill Friday that legalizes same-sex marriage in the district.

The bill now enters into a 30-day review period in Congress, though it is widely believed that the Democratic majority will not block the law. By law, Congress has the right to review and, if they wish, overturn any measure passed by the D.C. council.

"We knew this day would come," Fenty said at the signing, which took place at All Souls Church in Mount Pleasant.

He added, "I say to the world: An era of struggle ends for thousands in Washington, D.C. ... Our city is taking a leap forward."

The measure had already been passed by the city council on Tuesday, with the council voting overwhelmingly to send the measure to the mayor.

As expected, the council's decision and the signing drew mixed reactions. The Human Rights Campaign released a statement in which it called the decision "a victory for all D.C. residents."

"The legislation the council passed today reinforces the legal equality and religious freedoms to which all DC residents are entitled," the group said.

Meanwhile, the National Organization for Marriage, a group that opposes same-sex marriage, released a statement in which it said "the fight is not over."

"Politicians on the city council are acting as if they have the right through legislation to deprive citizens of DC of their core civil right to vote, but we will not let them get away with it," the group said in its statement.

Should Congress allow the measure to go through, Washington, D.C. would join Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont and Iowa as places in the U.S. where same-sex marriage is legal. Additionally, New Hampshire will also be joining the group when a law legalizing same-sex marriage takes effect January 1.

While same-sex marriage has seen its fair share of victories, it has also seen plenty of defeats. California and Maine both saw laws passed legalizing same-sex marriage, only to have residents of those states overturn the laws through popular vote. In every state where same-sex marriage has been put to popular vote, it has been defeated.

In addition, New York State and New Jersey lawmakers have recently blocked laws that would have legalized same-sex marriage in those states.

by RTT Staff Writer

Source:rttnews.com/

WDFW sets trap to capture cougar in Discovery Park

Enforcement officers with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) set a trap today in Seattle’s Discovery Park in an attempt to capture a cougar that could be in the area.

The trap was set after the department received another report of a cougar sighting in the area. Since Tuesday, the department has received three reports of cougar sightings in Seattle – two in the Magnolia area and one in the Greenwood area.

Meanwhile, Seattle Parks and Recreation has closed Discovery Park to the public until Monday, Sept. 7, when park personnel and enforcement officers will reassess the situation. The park could reopen earlier if a cougar is captured, said Capt. Bill Hebner, who heads WDFW’s North Puget Sound enforcement program.

Enforcement officers also will be searching the park with the aid of two Karelian bear dogs that are trained to help track and locate bears and cougars.

“We are treating these reports seriously and doing what we can within an urban setting to capture and relocate the animal,” Hebner said.

Residents near the park should be aware that a cougar could be in the area, Hebner said. People living in the area can take a few safety precautions, including keeping small pets inside the house and closely supervising children playing outdoors, he said. For more information on preventing conflicts with cougars, visit WDFW’s website at http://wdfw.wa.gov/wlm/living/cougars.htm.

Anyone who sees a cougar should call WDFW’s Mill Creek office at 425-775-1311 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. After hours or on the weekends, people can call the local Washington State Patrol office or 911.