Tag Archives: environment

Nov 22 2012

A Day of Thanks

In light of most of my rants and ravings there is relatively little time where I am not grateful for what which I have been blessed.  While there are many days where I consciously spend brain cycles recognizing how lucky I have been in my life, Thanksgiving provides a better time to share.  Whether read or understood by anyone else, writing these down and having the opportunity to see the words helps solidify and deepen the appreciation I should never lose sight of.

I am thankful for many things – some personal and some a bit broader:

1.  My wife – the most important person in my life.  She is my best friend and she has provided me guidance, advice and support for almost 32 years now – despite me often pushing back or trying to ignore it.  She has got to be one of the most caring and giving people I know and she has been an ongoing balance to much of the imbalance I’ve brought to the party.

2.  My kids – they were a lot of work (as all kids are – if you do it right) but they have both blossomed into great, capable and caring adults.  They are a source of both pride and ongoing discovery for me as they grow, learn and continue their journey thru adulthood and all that goes with it.

3. My life in general – I am extremely blessed for what I have.  Yes, I have worked for it but there are many that work hard and meet greater challenges and have less.  I want for little and don’t really have to think twice for anything I really need that I don’t have.  I am blessed that when the unexpected comes up I don’t have to make the hard choices that many do.  I can take care of my family as needed without much concern other than recognizing that I can’t fix everything. (sorry Erin…).

4.  My health – yes, I’m getting older and there are aches and pains that come with that and I have had to have a few parts fixed so they will continue to work as I get even older.  But I am healthy and my family is healthy.  How does it go – when you have your health… –  a saying that becomes more and more true if you look around and see what many deal with on a day-to-day basis.  Anything I have pales in comparison so my complaints don’t really count for much.

5.  It might sound strange but I am thankful for what lies ahead.  We have planned well and have been pretty balanced in how we have lived life so as I look out towards retirement (not that far away) I don’t feel panic.  We will be okay.  I have a life partner to share it with, we will be far from destitute and we will have time to discover new adventures for ourselves.

6.  I am thankful I have lived during a time where the change in this country has been dramatic.  Growing up and coming of age when things like civil rights and equality for women had their roots, experiencing the impact of the war in Vietnam as well as Woodstock, JFK, RFK, Martin Luther King, Jr.  – it has all been instrumental in helping shape who I am today.  It all helped my form a sense of conscience about we as people and how a society should be.  It helped establish a view that we need to be aware of others and that we, as a society, have an obligation and responsibility to take care of others who need help and support.  Not sure what happened to a lot of my peers but for me it is hard to ignore.  And we had the best music.

7.  I am thankful for this younger generation.  While it is important to realize that my generation reared many of them and that is why much of the attitude and perspective is there, how refreshing to see a generation of young adults who are less bigoted and biased.  There is a core of our society that truly doesn’t see people around them as less deserving or 2nd class because they are black, gay, a different religion, whatever.  It gives me hope (and some solace) that my son will be able to live a normal life and will be able to marry and live without constant discrimination because he is gay.

8.  I am thankful for this last election and the American public that made it clear it isn’t just about the economy and it isn’t just about the present at the expense of the future.   Because enough of us cared about others and not just ourselves, we will have at least four more years of progress in rights for women, rights for our LGBT community, forward progress on our environment and global warming, healthcare rights and reform, maybe some fairness in terms of tax reform, etc.  For those of us on the side that won, it was pretty much goodness and a break from having to worry about what progress we’ve seen being rolled backward.

9.  From a different perspective, I am thankful that the likes of Romney, Ryan, Rove, Trump, Santorum, McConnell – the names can go on and on – were unable to really hide who they really are – which are pretty much self-centered shit heads and assholes – to the extent that it became pretty obvious and helped move the election in the direction it went.  Taking nothing from Obama and the Democratic machine, the other side and their views of a “new” America, was so out of touch it became almost laughable if it hadn’t been so sad.

10.  Lastly, thankful I live in a country where I can say and write all the things I have in this blog and not have to worry I’ll be in jail or shot for it.

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Aug 14 2012

Keep the Federal Govt away – unless it helps me out.

Bloomberg News

Obama Announces Meat Purchase to Help Farmers Through Drought

President Barack Obama, campaigning in Iowa today, announced $170 million in government meat purchases to help farmers struck by drought, helping to send hog prices to a one-week high.

The purchase of as much as $100 million of pork, $50 million of chicken, and $10 million each of lamb and catfish come on top of $30 million in assistance announced last week. Farmers and ranchers are struggling with the worst combination of heat and dryness since the 1950s, the administration said.

…More than half the counties in the U.S. have been declared natural disaster areas by the Department of Agriculture, and 69 percent of the Midwest last week had moderate to exceptional drought, government data show.

…Obama has pledged a wide-ranging response to the drought. His administration is giving farmers and ranchers access to low-interest emergency loans, opening more federal land for grazing and distributing $30 million to get water to livestock.

 

 

Okay – what is wrong with this picture.  So let’s add it up.  Farmers, Ranchers, whatever you call those who raise fish, etc.  getting government help to purchase their products.  Add on top of that the benefits that come with being declared natural disaster areas.  Not to cast a wide net here but I expect a good number of the states, and likely voters, where the loudest noise is based on a desire for less Federal Government in their affairs that are benefiting the most from yet another Federal program that takes my tax dollars and again bails out others who sit dramatically opposite my social and political leanings.  I’ll make it pretty clear – what I pay in Federal tax dollars hurts my brain when I do my taxes every year.  I see little of that back given my earnings have for years placed me outside of almost every break and benefit available.  That’s fine as I realize I get other benefits (but not from outside or government sources).  I don’t mind helping others that need help or are less fortunate but it does gall me to see all these people who are the first to shit on the Federal government and anyone who doesn’t believe in what they do or hold their values but yet they are the first to hold their hands out when times are tough.

Okay – now a little test – take a look at these next two graphics and tell me what looks surprisingly similar.  While not perfect, I will guess there is a bit of overlap in those states with the greatest drought conditions and the Red states.

 

Courtesy of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration –
National Climatic Data Center

 

Recent historical look Red vs. Blue states

 

Now, if I can only figure out how to get my two acres here in Pennsylvania declared a disaster area.  Or maybe I need to start raising some livestock or fish out in the backyard.

 

Oh, and lastly, no sense of anything with Global Warming here.  Interesting, on the subject of that huge hoax of Global Warming – I did read a recent article in our local paper – which on occasion stumbles on some story of value – of course they took it from another publication in PA.  Seems we in the Northeast/Mid Atlantic are seeing some change in our weather – might explain where all that rain from mid-west is going.

Pa. getting ‘extreme’ storms more often

By

LAURA LEGERE

The Times-Tribune

August 06, 2012

Pennsylvania’s heaviest downpours have gotten wetter and more frequent in the last six decades, according to a report released by PennEnvironment.

Between 1948 and 2011, the state has seen a 52 percent increase in the number of “extreme” storms — those that are among the largest in the state in the last 64 years.

Large storms that used to happen once a year in Pennsylvania now happen every eight months, the report found. The amount of rain or snow in the largest storm each year has also grown by 23 percent over the same period.

The findings were based on data from the National Climatic Data Center collected from 3,700 weather stations across the country.

The frequency and severity of Pennsylvania’s storms largely matched the average increase of the Mid-Atlantic region, but surpassed the national average, the report found.

Extreme storms happened 30 percent more often nationally in 2011 than 1948 and the largest annual storms produced 10 percent more rain or snow.

 

Maybe I should be looking for Federal Government flood relief aid….

 

Aug 8 2012

Romney – the Chameleon

I was actually looking for more detail on the Romney stand on Global Warming this morning when I came across a recently posted article by Paul Davies in the Philly Post.  The article,

“Mitt Romney Has Perfected Flip-Flopping – Which side of the Republican candidate would show up at the White House?” 

can be found at  http://blogs.phillymag.com/the_philly_post/2012/08/08/mitt-romney-flip-flopping/.  It is quite a well written piece that I suggest everyone read but more impressive is the video embedded in the article which takes the various and everchanging positions of Mitt over the years and displays them very elegantly and effectively.  Say what you will about the Media, it makes it difficult for a politician to duck and run from previous statements and positions they’ve taken.  I’ve included that video below.  It is a bit longer than most (almost 20 minutes) which speaks volumes as to the contradictions and changes we can see in Mitt over his political career.

Now, if only we had a voting public with the intelligence to realize what it going on and the common sense to see that there is a problem here.

I can only hope but my expectations are low.

Aug 2 2012

Lest we all forget – Bachmann and the Tea Party

Not sure about the rest of you but it seems to me like we haven’t heard much as of recent from one of the most uniformed politicians out there – Michele Bachmann.  I personally find it a bit disheartening that someone so obviously half brain-dead can have a law degree, let alone play any role in national politics.  Makes me wonder about the educational standards we set in some of our law schools.  Again, not a surprise but it does also speak volumes of the level of intelligence of a good number of our voting public is given her early run in the Republican presidential campaign.

In any case, I stumbled across this site – http://www.zimbio.com/Michele+Bachmann’s+Craziest+Quotes/articles (kudos and credit to zimbio.com) that provided a quick walk down memory lane as to the long and often confused psyche of this loon.  Whether anti-gay, anti-science, conspiracy theory or just downright stupid – she covers it all.  Here are some of my favorites –

“Normalization (of gayness) through desensitization. Very effective way to do this with a bunch of second graders, is take a picture of The Lion King for instance, and a teacher might say, ‘Do you know that the music for this movie was written by a gay man?’ The message is: ‘I’m better at what I do, because I’m gay.'” — Bachmann, Nov. 2004

“It’s your state that fired the shot that was heard around the world! You are the state of Lexington and Concord, you started the battle for liberty right here in your backyard.”
—Bachmann recounting her version of the American Revolution while in New Hampshire. Unfortunately, Lexington, Concord and the short heard ’round the world all happened in Massachusetts. March 2011
“I don’t know how much God has to do to get the attention of the politicians. We’ve had an earthquake; we’ve had a hurricane. He said, ‘Are you going to start listening to me here?’ Listen to the American people because the American people are roaring right now. They know government is on a morbid obesity diet and we’ve got to rein in the spending.” –Rep. Michele Bachmann, suggesting at a presidential campaign event in Florida that the 2011 East Coast earthquake and hurricane was a message from God (Aug. 2011)       
“Before we get started, let’s all say ‘Happy Birthday’ to Elvis Presley today.” -Rep. Michele Bachmann, while campaigning for president in South Carolina on what was actually the anniversary of Elvis’s death, Aug. 16, 2011 (Elvis was born on January 8) 
“The big thing we are working on now is the global warming hoax. It’s all voodoo, nonsense, hokum, a hoax.”
— March 15, 2008
”Why should I go and do something like that? But the Lord says, ‘Be submissive wives; you are to be submissive to your husbands.”  —Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), recalling in a 2006 speech at a Megachurch in Minneapolis that pursuing tax law wasn’t her choice, but she did so at the urging of her husband because she was certain God was speaking through him 

Two birds of a feather?

Given the Michele is also really all about the Tea Party and all it stands for as well as in recognition of the recent Senate primary win by a Tea Party candidate in Texas, I think we should also highlight exactly what they bring to the table…and there are so many from which to choose.

           

       

    

      

   

Mar 15 2012

It’s also about the environment, stupid.

As we continue through this political season and I listen to both sides continue the positioning and manipulation of facts (yes, I recognize that neither party holds the patent on exaggerations and outright lying), I am hoping that the cloud being raised by all the focus and fuss on the economy doesn’t overwhelm the fact that we can’t just throw all caution to the wind and start making rash and short-term decisions – all in the name of trying to quickly fix an economic situation which did not develop and happen overnight.  I do believe that many of the economic woes we currently have are a result of rapid fire and poorly thought through, short-term focused actions and decisions.  Doesn’t appear to have worked too well for the vast majority of Americans.

We have already pretty much sold our children’s and grandchildren’s economic life somewhat down the tubes in getting to where we are today.  Let us not also throw the environment out the door for them at the same time.  One thing to have money issues – a whole other thing to pretty much find ourselves in a world where everything resembles a toxic wasteland.  I know that is probably an overstatement but I expect most have forgotten what it took to get our air and water to where it is today from where it was when the environmental movement became a force to be reckoned with back in the 1960’s and into the 1970’s when the idea of protecting the environment was still considered radical.  At the time, air and water pollution was almost seen as an expected and reasonable by-product of our continued industrial growth.  And in reality, there was no economic pressure for industry to do anything different.  It was basically a view that the ends justified the means.  Fortunately, smarter and influential individuals and organizations were able to take hold and their efforts eventually made a difference.  I suggest that people take a quick tour back to that time and see what the Great Lakes looked like, take a look at the air pollution in our major cities, get a sense of the number of lives impacted by the toxic waste dumps created by big business.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established in 1970 to put a limit on the amount of pollutants in the air. Congress passed the Clean Air Act in 1963, the Noise Control Act in 1972 and the Clean Water Act in 1977.

I am far from someone who could be considered an extremist when it comes to the environment.  Yes, I wore Earth shoes (who didn’t back then) and I take recycling to be something important but I am far from an activist in any sense.  I believe that there are extremes in the enviromentalist initiatives that probably go too far.  But when I hear the current crop of Republican candidates and leaders start there “Drill baby Drill” chant and when I hear the call to disband the EPA, I start to shudder a bit.  I am one that believes that corporate America will do whatever is needed that leads to an extra penny in a dividend check.  I believe the Exxons of the world don’t have a proactive social conscience and their sense of any social responsibility is more evident only when they get caught.

Yes, it is likely that by increasing oil drilling or removing any EPA required limits for things in the air and water that are known to kill or severely injure people we could see a temporary uptick in some economic indicator they would choose to put out there.  I do ask whether reducing the price of gas by a dime (and I have doubts that any action in the US could have any lasting impact on price) is worth any of us having children or grandchildren with increased cancer rates well beyond that we see today.  I don’t see it and I don’t get it.  And I’m tired of the politicians manipulating the facts and the public into supporting positions which benefit only corporations.  How can we be so stupid when the evidence is all out there?

Prior to 2008, Congressman Gingrich believed in man-made global warming and supported a cap-and-trade program. In 2008, Gingrich shifted his view to be in complete opposition to cap-and-trade and to be skeptical of global warming claims. Gingrich strongly supports expanded drilling both onshore and offshore. Gingrich supports a rapid expansion of nuclear energy, hydrogen energy, wind, and solar energy. One of Gingrich’s more interesting environmental ideas is to build “a large array of mirrors that could affect the earth’s climate,” to extend farmers’ growing season. (from his book "A Contract with the Earth"). Gingrich has opposed EPA regulation of carbon emissions and has called for the EPA to be abolished.

People, open your eyes, stop being sheep, take stock of what you are hearing and make it clear that our leaders hear “yes, while it is about the economy, it is also about the environment, stupid”.   It is time they realize that the American public isn’t as stupid as they think.

Senator Santorum does not believe in man-made global warming. In 2011, he referred to the notion that man was changing the climate as patently absurd. He opposes cap-and-trade legislation, stating that it would destroy a state like Pennsylvania. Senator Santorum supports all manners of energy production. He is a strong advocate for increased oil and gas exploration and increased drilling for oil and natural gas. This includes drilling in ANWR and the outer continental shelf. He opposes the viewpoint that government should chose which resources the people are allowed to use.

Mitt Romney is neutral on the idea that human pollution is a significant cause of global warming. Personally, he's not sure global warming is happening. Romney supports investment in drilling for oil domestically. Romney supports investment in alternative forms of energy including investment in nuclear energy. Romney strongly opposes the protection of natural places from development. Romney is of the opinion wherein the solution to our environmental problem lies in adopting a market approach. While solving the environmental challenges, we should also be supporting growth. Romney is criticized for flip-flopping on the environmental question. He has been blamed for subjecting his will to the likes of big companies.

 

"I am the Lorax, I speak for the trees. I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues... "

 

UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not. – The Lorax – Dr. Seuss

Feb 20 2012

Santorum – back to the 50’s?

No matter how you look at it, the lack of insight as well as the hypocrisy that sits in the head (not sure a brain exists) of Rick Santorum is obvious and rather disturbing.  His latest attack on President Obama and those not part of the “right” again show the depth of not only his lack of connection with the real world but his total disregard for anything other than his shortsighted and anachronistic views of the world and where we are as a society and people in the 21st century.

First the lack of insight and hypocrisy (and I quote – taken from MSN) – “Santorum said, “I’ve been pretty clear that the left in America has their own moral code in which they want to impose on this country. You can call it a theology. You can call it a moral code. You can call it a world view, but they have their own moral code that they want to impose on everybody else. While they insist and complain that somehow or another that people of Judeo Christian faith are intolerant of their new moral code that they want to create here. I’m just saying they the ones who are intolerant in imposing their will on in this case the Catholic church.””  Okay, what am I missing here?  It would seem that I could replace the work “left” in Santorum’s statement with the word “right” and other than the fact that it would no longer impose will on the Catholic Church and it would pretty much read to mirror the intent of those leaning to the right in our country to inject their views and rules into everything the rest of us do and how we live our lives.  Whether it be the Tea Party, Born-again Christians, the Catholic Church, etc., etc., the mantra is essentially “if you are not with me, you are against me” and we of dissimilar faith (or no faith at all) are now the target of their set of delusions.  In this case, if it was up to Santorum, no one would be using contraceptives (maybe other than an aspirin) and we would all be paying for even more of the Santorum offspring issues as a result of being too old to reproduce.

Tweedledick and Tweedledumb

I also find Santorum’s statements on the “Face the Nation” regarding the environment to be somewhat of a throwback view – one I would expect from someone stuck in the 50’s.

“I am talking about his world view, and the way he approaches problems in this country. I think they’re different than how most people do in America,” Santorum said in the broadcast interview.

The former Pennsylvania senator said Obama’s environmental policies promote ideas of “radical environmentalists,” who, Santorum argues, oppose greater use of the country’s natural resources because they believe “man is here to serve the Earth.” He said that was the reference he was making Saturday in his Ohio campaign appearance when he denounced a “phony theology.”

First off, nice Texas Two-Step on the Theology remark – at least have the balls to hold your ground.  That explanation doesn’t even make sense in try to tie “phony theology” to Obama’s take on environmental issues.  Second, good to see that in the world of Santorum, anyone who takes a view that says that the environment is important and that it is important to consider the impact of what we do as man on the earth is a radical environmentalist.  Of course there is no history or evidence that man ever disregards how what we do impacts the environment and the ability of the earth to deal with it.  Oh, that’s right, in the world of the Right, global warming is not real and is something that has no scientific basis.

So this is the one of the contenders for our next President.  Wow, wonder at what point we start to hear it is time that pants for women are outlawed and it’s skirts only – and at least two fingers below the knee.  Looks like The Honeymooners reruns – “To the moon, Alice” – oh wait, that’s Gingrich territory.