Monday, October 19, 2009

Politics Disrupt Change


In Canada two film makers partially backed by the Conservative Fraser Institute exploited a low income family in Indiana. The film makers want the environmental war to be more of an cultural war between the rich elites and the poor working class families of “middle America” like the family in Indiana. Nothing could be further from the truth as we shall see during the next couple of decades. But we must change our coal and oil based economy over to a more environmentally and job friendly economy.

The film makers tactics are similar to those used by the anti-Obama health care plan zealots. “Anything but the facts”, should be these group’s motto. Since the facts don’t support their position these groups are going to rely on fear and anger to divide our nation. Most liberal groups and Obama himself, as demonstrated in his speech to both houses of Congress, unfortunately cannot either rely on facts or arguments against the distortion of the truth. The representative who yelled “You Lie” became a superstar of the fanatic right.


If we really want change we will just have to do it by ourselves without the strong backing of the US Government. The Senators and Representatives won’t give the citizens of this country the appropriate legislation that will rip our country out of the hands of the current energy giants and health care companies. These legislators get paid by the very companies that refuse to change for the betterment of our society. During his last campaign Senator Max Baucas received more than a million dollars in campaign contributions from heath care companies. How can he write fair and appropriate legislation for the upcoming health care plan.


The cap and trade bill is the most important legislation introduced so far that could change the course of our country’s self destructive path. But to imagine it will pass strong and intact is a fantasy. The same Senators who receive campaign contributions from health care companies also get money from the current coal and oil companies that control our energy production. These legislators only care about their jobs which they can maintain by campaign contributions are not loyal to their actual employers: Us!


For the next couple of decades it will be up us to make the right decisions that create real change for our environment and our economy. We cannot wait for the legislators to cut the oil and coal umbilical cord. They are too afraid to venture out into the real world.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

What else don't we know?


Too many layers of information hiding too many secrets does not benefit us but we still pay for it and seem powerless to change it.


A Bush era email sent by the EPA 2 years ago was just released to the public. For two years only a select group of people were allowed to read it. Did the information contained in this email contain information that could threaten our national security. I don’t think so.


The 2007 EPA document was prepared as part of the Bush administration's response to the Supreme Court's April 2007 decision in Massachusetts v. EPA. The office of Vice President Dick Cheney, the Office of Management and Budget, the Transportation Department, Exxon Mobil Corp. and others in the oil industry didn’t like what it said so it was buried. It concluded that greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles were endangering public welfare and needed to be regulated under the Clean Air Act.

Luckily that information has been know for decades. And we also knew that during the last administration President Bush and Vice President Cheney would do whatever they could to stop any efforts made towards combating global warming so hiding this information didn’t change the course of history.

What if there are other pieces of information we don’t know about that are floating in cyberspace or hidden in some filing cabinet from the last administration or from any other administration that could possibly effect the course our country heads in the future. We have paid for all of this and it directly or indirectly affects our lives so lets see it. What’s with the closed door meeting and the classified documents. Were the Senators in the meetings on health care also discussing national security issues? Or were they discussing which industry or special interest group should benefit the most from treating the sick and injured.

Unfortunately we will never know what actually happened in those meetings even though we paid for the “debates” and the final bill will greatly effect all of our lives. Instead of the networks broadcasting the endless stream of idiotic and demeaning shows filled with slickly produced commercials selling worthless products every evening they could provide some shows with crucially important information that could possibly change our lives for the better.

Entertainment is a needed and soothing relief from the daily grind but is it just another layer of information keeping us from the important truths that will enormously effect our lives now and in the future. How about a sitcom staring Senator X and industry representative Y telling the truth? Now that would be funny and entertaining.

greenhomexpress.com

Friday, October 9, 2009

Apple Leaves US Chamber of Commerce


Apple is the fourth major US corporation who has recently left due to differences regarding policies over climate change.  Pacific Gas and Electricity, PNM Resources and Exelon have all left because they agree with Apple.  


Apple "supports regulating greenhouse gas emissions, and it is frustrating to find the chamber at odds with us in this effort," said Apple vice president Catherine Novelli, on Tuesday.


In response a spokesman for the Chamber said, "The US Chamber of Commerce continues to support strong federal legislation and a binding international agreement to reduce carbon emissions and address climate change."


And he continues,  "While we'll continue to represent the broad majority of our membership on this goal, we recognize that there are some companies who stand to gain more than others with the current options on the table," said chamber spokesman Eric Wohlschlegel.  


The most meaningful word in that first quote is “international”.  What Mr. Wohlschlegel is really saying is that Apple’s products are manufactured overseas where greenhouse regulations are weak and thus overhead expenses are lower.  So the US should still be able to pollute as much as it wants to in order to be competitive.  An extremely anemic and amoral argument at best.  


The US Chamber of Commerce as a representative of the US should become the world’s role model for corporations in combating global warming. It is our responsibility to lead other nations to uphold strict environmental standards, the US needs to take a long terms approach to this issue. 


It is not entirely true for The US Chamber to say our uncompetitiveness and therefore job loss would occur if the US followed stricter environmental rules.  In the far east where most electronics are manufactured the cost of living is much less than it is here in the US and therefore the wages are much lower.  Whether this is appropriate and whether companies like Apple take advantage of this situation has nothing to due with environmental laws and therefore   for this discussion is misleading. 


Discussing health care relative to the cost of manufacturing would be much more appropriate. Specifically the automotive industry in this country demise was in a large part due to the US’s major competitors based in countries where their heath care is for the most part “socialized”.  Just the mention of socialized health care would cause the US Chamber and its members to scream in utter agony.


Not facing the real truths behind US corporations lack of competitiveness in the world market will only prolong the inevitable, we will lose millions of jobs but not because we follow strict environmental standards.  Our inability to face facts and release old false ideals that for years have been upheld by our falsely supported economic system and ridiculously enormous military industrial complex will actually be our demise.


greenhomexpress.com

Friday, October 2, 2009

Ganges River Dolphin


The Ganges River Dolphin may not end up becoming extinct like its cousin the Yangtze River Dolphin.  Maybe humanity has learned a valuable lesson, time will tell.  The Yangtze River dolphin became extinct in 2007 due to agricultural and industrial poisons being dumped into the river. This dolphin earned the distinction of becoming the first aquatic mammal in 50 years to disappear from our planet, let hope the Ganges Dolphin is not the second. 


The Ganges dolphin, a cousin to the more well know saltwater bottle nose species, has a long thin snout, tubby belly and oversized fins. It is almost blind but has excellent sonar and can leap out of the water if in a joyful mood, something not seen lately.   


According to Conservationists at the World Wildlife Fund about 2,000 dolphins have been killed in India due to untreated sewage dumped into the river and being drown in fishing nets.  Near where the dolphins swim the Ganges contains 60,000 fecal coliform bacteria per 100 milliliters which is 120 times greater than the safe bathing limit and astronomically beyond the safe drinking water limit.  The dolphins have not volunteered for the job and are really not being paid much attention to as the canary in the coal mine. This would partially explain why 1,000 children die each day of diarrhea sickness in India. 

In one town on the river a change has been made with wonderful results.  The river is now cleaner next to Raja Karna.  Instead of poisonous chemical fertilizers the farmers are using home made organic compost. They also built a small but successful sewage treatment plant. So due to these simple and easy changes the population of the Ganges River dolphin has more than doubled from 20 to 55.  A miracle, no, just simple common sense and a willingness to take a small step and think out of the box.  

If the rest of the citizens in towns along the Ganges River could emulate the behavior of the farmers in Raja Karna then possibly a unique and as like all organic matter on this planet including humans, irreplaceable species could live for many more generations. No more extinctions. 

greenhomexpress.com