This is another photo diary meant to provide a brief respite from the stuggles of the day and as a reminder that we share this planet with all matter of amazing critters. These photos were taken this past weekend, including sunrise at Lanai Lookout at the eastern end of Oahu and during four dives on the west side of the island. I hope you enjoy your visit here.
Pre-Dawn
Welcome to the eKos Earthship, your one-stop-shop for green diaries and series.
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Tonight's editor: patrickz
All views expressed by today's editor do not necessarily represent those of eKos or eKos listed diarists.
California AB 32 is the Global Warming Solutions Act signed into law in 2006. AB 32 focuses on climate change and includes an environmental justice provision to address the killing and harming of poor and minority communities that is now the status quo. Prop 23 is a ballot measure to nix AB 32. Some newspaper editorials oppose Prop 23, but the most recent July polls show a slim majority of no votes. One statewide poll showed 67% favor AB 32, but when the question is focused on Prop 23, support softens by at least 14, or a slim majority (53%) (pdf file). A second statewide poll shows similar results on Prop 23: yes vote (36%), no (48%) and undecided (16%).
As voters gear up for the election, we must continue work to defeat this anti-climate change and anti-civil rights measure.
Remember when Obama came into office and we all rejoiced because we would once again have science-based policy in our country? Well, think again. The Obama administration should be commended for quite a lot of things it's done, but the FDA decision that AquAdvantage GE salmon is "safe" is certainly not founded on solid science. This is important not only because the salmon will (if approved for commercialization) will be in our food supply, but also because this case will set a precedent. It will set the bar for all future GE (genetically engineered) animals and how clearly they need to prove their safety before they are made legal.
If you want to take action, go here.
And, if you want more info, read on...
Unreal! Time to contact your Senators, people! I know it's late in the day, but a few phone calls letting your Senators know that stopping corporate polluters from wrecking America is a GOOD THING doesn't hurt.
Sources on and off Capitol Hill are expecting the Senate Appropriations Committee to vote on an amendment to undercut Environmental Protection Agency climate change regulations when it marks up the agency’s annual spending bill.
Such an amendment has a serious chance of passing given widespread backing on the issue from Republicans and moderate Democrats — so much so that environmentalists were asking committee leaders to punt on the markup entirely.
Bold text added by the diarist
More below the fold, and a call to action
The Gulf of Mexico, her marine life and the people of the Gulf coast are a political sacrifice, and one that the Obama administration had no right to make.
The lies of BP and our government are as toxic as the oil that remains in the Gulf, and the dispersant that BP continues to be used in full view, and apparently with approval from, our government. There is a massive cover-up taking place on the Gulf coast, in full view of the "public", the people, in full view of the corporate media, in full view of the world.
In mid-August, new hubby trs and I took our teenage daughter to Yellowstone and Grand Tetons National Parks. Yellowstone is the site of a huge volcanic caldera caused by the most recent eruption of a still active volcanic hot spot (this neat interactive shows the location of the hot spot in relation to the overlying land over time.)
Yellowstone still shows evidence of the magma pool below it, with 1000 to 3000 earthquakes per year. It's this magma that's responsible for Yellowstone's primary attractions: the largest collection of geothermal features like hot springs, geysers and steam vents in the world.
Stream rising from a pool at Midway Basin by iriti
In this weekly series we have been discussing the benefits of a vegetarian diet including: better health , frugal living, food safety, animal rights, global food crisis and the immense contribution of livestock production to climate change/depletion of resources .
1 pound of beef consumes more water than showering for 6 months
The time is here once again. Time to gather around and take a well deserved hiatus from all the politics of the day. Science talk is here. New discoveries, new takes on old knowledge, and other bits of news are all available for the perusing in today's information world. Over the fold are selections from the past week from a few of the many excellent science news sites around the world. Today's tidbits include Spitzer Telescope spots colorful mix of asteroids, ripples in the cosmic background, termites foretell climate change in Africa's savannahs, irrigation's cooling effects may mask warming in some regions, more hurricanes in greener seas, and the first discovery of bilirubin in a plant. Pull up that beach chair and relax. There is plenty of room for everyone. Settle in for one more session of Dr. Possum's science education and entertainment.
It just sank to the bottom of the ocean. (facepalm)
Scientists on a research vessel in the Gulf of Mexico are finding a substantial layer of oily sediment stretching for dozens of miles in all directions. Their discovery suggests that a lot of oil from the Deepwater Horizon didn't simply evaporate or dissipate into the water — it has settled to the seafloor.
The Research Vessel Oceanus sailed on Aug. 21 on a mission to figure out what happened to the more than 4 million barrels of oil that gushed into the water. Onboard, Samantha Joye, a professor in the Department of Marine Sciences at the University of Georgia, says she suddenly has a pretty good idea about where a lot of it ended up. It's showing up in samples of the seafloor, between the well site and the coast.
Sadly, with each day, Republican Anti-Science Syndrome suffering is becoming ever more pronounced. While the attacks on science, scientific institutions, and scientific authority go well beyond the subject of global warming, Republican politicians are increasingly divorced from scientific institutions and knowledge in the realm of climate science.
Crossposted from the Worldwatch Institute's Nourishing the Planet.
Though rarely consumed in the West, millet is a staple grain for much of the world’s population, particularly in South Asia and East Africa, and has been cultivated for thousands of years. The African native variety, finger millet, likely originated from the highlands of Ethiopia and Uganda and is one of the most nutritious all of the world’s major cereal crops. It can be used to make porridge, bread, malt, animal feed, popped millet (like popcorn), Ethiopian liquor called arake, and even beer.
Please rec the new Mothership #112 here. This one has expired.
The current ROV DIARY: Daily Kos Gulf Watchers ROV #376 - Dancing in the Dark - BP's Gulf Catastrophe - Lorinda Pike
The digest of diaries is here
Rules of the Road
PLEASE visit Pam LaPier's diary to find out how you can help the Gulf now and in the future. We don't have to be idle! And thanks to Crashing Vor and Pam LaPier for working on this!
I spent the weekend taking a bunch of inner city kids from DC camping. It was undeniably my last most beautiful thing, absolutely worth the hours I've spent tracking signups, permission forms, and camping gear, the last few weeks. We drove out to an Outdoor Ed center near Harpers Ferry, WV; set up tents in a field; did a low ropes challenge course; grilled corn, hotdogs, hamburgers and S'mores; had a talent show with comedy, R&B, and gospel; did a Night Hike: kept mostly dry during a 3am lightning storm and downpour; built a fire in the morning, did another hike, and drove home tired and happy.
What was your last most beautiful thing?