Toast
— an economical, dual-purpose word meaning to honor OR to roast. Check here every month for our take on the good, the bad and the ugly in money issues and current events. You´ll quickly figure out which meaning we´re using to toast
each of our honorees.
TOAST with cherry jam to Pulitzer-Prize winning New York Times Op-Ed columnist Nicholas Kristof for his impassioned and relentless focus on disenfranchised women around the globe whose lives are threatened for no good reason. Latest case in point: his recent columns on Aisha Parveen, a Pakistani woman who escaped from a brothel. Her country´s courts planned to send her back to the brothel owner, who threatened to kill her. Perhaps as a result of the national exposure given her case through his column, the government changed its position and is now providing 24-hour police protection for her, instead. Check out his columns on http://www.nytimes.com.
Kristof and the Times are sponsoring a once-in-a-lifetime chance for any college student: the winner of the Win a Trip with Nick Kristof
essay contest will earn an all-expenses-paid trip to Africa with Kristof, where s/he will be able to share perspectives and report on experiences. You won´t be practicing tourism, but journalism,
promises Kristof. If you know any budding journalists, let them know about this opportunity. Visit http://www.nytimes.com/marketing/winatrip/ for more details, official rules and application. Entries must be received by April 20.
A TOAST with champagne preserves to Michelle Bachelet, Chile´s first female president, and Ellen Johnson–Sirleaf, Liberia´s—indeed, Africa´s—first elected female president. While we´re at it, let´s toast the voters who elected them. Here´s hoping that electing female heads of state is a trend that catches on in this country. Not that electing a member of the fairer sex
guarantees wiser leadership. But wouldn´t it be nice to see how one of us would do as Commander in Chief for real and not just on TV? Isn´t it about time?
BURNT TOAST to this shameful milestone, reported in the New York Times: According to a study conducted by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, 2005 was the first year on record that a full-time worker earning minimum wage couldn´t afford a one-bedroom apartment anywhere in the country at market rates. Those of us who aren´t concerned about this statistic are living in a housing bubble.
Send your suggested TOASTS and BURNT TOASTS, or comments regarding those we publish, to editor@makingbreadmagazine.com.
