Detroit may be feeling wind in their sails today, but they have a much bigger problem on the horizon.
A confluence of events — environmental worries, a preference for gadgets over wheels and the yearslong economic doldrums — is pushing some teens and twentysomethings to opt out of what has traditionally been considered an American rite of passage: Owning a car.
...you are probably on a computer. Or some sort of hand-held device. Smart phone. Pod. Pad. Berry. Tablet. Insert [catchy name of the next latest greatest cool and hip new gadget about to hit the market].
What the manufacturers of these shiny new objects fail to tell us is what goes into making them and what happens after we're done with them.
Annie Leonard, the producer of the acclaimed The Story of Stuff video, just released her latest work, The Story of Electronics.
I think it's well worth watching and pondering.
Rest in peace, "clean" coal. Such a tragic death -- killed by the people who claimed to love it. With "clean" coal's best interests at heart, they blocked the only thing that could've kept it alive: A comprehensive climate & energy bill.
Today 44 volunteer 'reclamation workers' (activists) illegally marched onto a supposedly reclaimed mine site to plant trees. Why? Because the 'reclamation' efforts done by the mining company resulted in a barren hillside with sparse grass and baking sun - a far cry from the lush and diverse forest destroyed in the process.
After negotiating with the police and planting all the trees, all 44 were allowed to leave the site without repurcussions.
Today the rain fell
and the small barn roof
was the timpani
in the symphony of the rain
Today the rain fell
and the big barn roof
thrummed like a thousand
marching hobnail boots.
The Florida voter initiatives make for entertaining reading most election cycles, but every once in a while an important one slips into the stream. Amendment 4 is one of them.
I first noticed a "Vote No on Amendment 4" banner attached to a land developer's building. Then I saw one on a Rinker site - a company that provides fill for new construction sites.
That spurred some research.
In short:
* link is to a synopsis of the history of this legislation and here you'll find a lot of wonky land use definitions.Amendment 4 requires the voters ok any changes to the Comprehensive Land Use Plan* at the community's expense.
The President's National Oil Spill Commission released preliminary findings today from its investigation into BP's oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. Read more about how the White House hid the truth on the spill, and what we know now.
Just in time to give the Global Work Party a White House-sized boost, the Obama administration announced this morning that they are going to put solar panels on the First Family's living quarters, returning to a tradition begun by president Jimmy Carter and abandoned by Ronald Reagan.
Not sure where I got that phrase mental gymnastics from, but I've used it for decades to describe doing something just to do it. Not cause you have to. Not cause you are forced to. Maybe not even because you think it will be fun. But to do it to think, learn, and maybe expand your horizons.
I've been a liberal for as long as I can recall. Coming here I don't know how many years ago has not changed my views much. This site has instead reinforced them. Educated me endlessly. And maybe most important of all, given me the ability to express my views to others in a much more persuasive manner.
But it has changed me in one major way!
For most of my life I was the cheerleader on the sidelines. Somebody could tell me they were going to "save the world" I'd cheer them on endlessly. Offer support. And then say something like, "hey when you are done saving the world I'll be here when you get back." Before I came here I had never worked on a political campaign (well once). I had never given money to a campaign. I'd been to marches and rallies, but mainly cause I figured they'd be a train-wreck and I wanted to watch it.
The community here has changed all of that. Which is why if you follow me below the fold I'll explain why I'm going "green" in the next year.
Today's output from Blogistan Polytechnic Institute’s state-of-the-art HEMMED (High-Energy Meta Mojo Elucidation Detector) machine is not sudsing up and leaves a bit of a film. But is it Clean?
I wanted to write this diary when Meteor Blades originally proposed "Tell us what you're doing", but it was just too difficult at that time, so I'm glad that he asked again.
(first published Friday, Sept. 17, 2010 at StarkReports.com)
The PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) program is simple and brilliant: Cities borrow money using their credit and then make that money available to homeowners who, in turn, use it to install solar systems and other green technologies. The money given to homeowners is paid back by special assessments on their property taxes.
By all accounts, the PACE program is remarkably successful: It's been adopted by 23 states and the District of Columbia. It creates jobs, lowers utility bills for homeowners, cuts pollution and easily transfers to new homeowners when homes change hands.
An exhibit on evolution & climate at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History that doesn't even mention manmade climate pollution or the current impacts of global warming?
It's a shocking story ... until you learn who sponsored it.
Last night, on our way to see some live music at a local cafe in San Francisco's Mission District, my friends and I were stopped in our tracks by an unusual looking Women's Building on 18th Street. This is saying something, as this building is far from ordinary in its normal state: wrapped in the Maestrapeace, a stunning mural honoring the healing power, wisdom and contributions of women throughout history, this multi-service center for women and girls is a roadside attraction on any given day.
Strobe lights beaming from the roof, ropes hanging from windows, loudspeakers on the sidewalk, and a throng of onlookers in curious anticipation, we knew something was up. Before we'd had time to get comfy on the curb, the lights dimmed and one of the most amazing public performance pieces I've ever seen was unfolding in front, or rather, ahead of us.
Yesterday, we learned that another oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. Thankfully, nobody was hurt and no oil has leaked into the Gulf as a result of the explosion.
But this most recent explosion happened less than five months after the tragic explosion at BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig, which killed 11 workers, dumped 4.9 billion barrels of oil into our waters and wreaked havoc on the local economies of Gulf communities.
The most dangerous thing these spills have in common is this: there were warnings that disaster might occur. Just like BP, Mariner Energy, who owns the oil rig that exploded yesterday, was cited for two safety violations in the past six months alone.
It’s clear now, more than ever, that we need to rethink America’s energy strategy. We need to rethink the way we power our economy.
A new study by J. Alroy, just published in Science (subscription required for full text), has been getting some reporting by other sources. It's mildly entitled "The Shifting Balance of Diversity Among Major Marine Animal Groups."
It prods me to my keyboard.
Evolution, and biodiversity, and the interrelationships of biosystems, are to me the imprint of the universe's organizing principles. It's what I grew up with instead of religion.
My father was an evolutionary biologist and animal behaviorist, and so I grew up with dinnertime discussions about evolutionary pressures on butterfly wing designs, or the evolutionary explanations for beehive altruism, or why mating behavior affected peacock feather development.
Elroy's analysis -- while not a surprise -- hit me surprisingly hard, because it drove home the full impact of the "sixth extinction."
Bioaccumulation.
It's what's for dinner.
And lunch, and breakfast. Its danger depends a bit on whether you're flora or fauna, insect or mammal, baby or oldster -- and, of course, what you've accumulated.
But it's dangerous, and on the rise.
Welcome to the eKos Earthship, your one-stop-shop for green diaries and series.
Beneath the fold you will find news and notes, community announcements, and our eco-diary roundup.
Peruse the eKos Library to find previously listed diaries. You can also follow eKos on Twitter.
Tonight's editor: ellinorianne
Please remember to rec the BP Catastrophe Liveblog Mothership: 90
And don't forget to check out Ecojustice, tonight's diary is EcoJustice: Coming to Ecuador, with or without Chevron
All views expressed by today's editor do not necessarily represent those of eKos or eKos listed diarists.
In this weekly series we have been discussing the benefits of a vegetarian diet including: better health , animal rights, frugal living, global food crisis, food safety and the immense contribution of meat production to climate change/depletion of resources.
What You Eat Is More Important Than Where It Came From
"Where you get your food from is a relevant factor in family food decisions, but what you are eating - and the processes needed to make it - is much more important from a climate change perspective,''
Today, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) announced plans to target former Club for Growth President and Pennsylvania Senate candidate Pat Toomey for defeat by adding him to the 2010 "Dirty Dozen" list. Coinciding with the announcement, we launched an online campaign that includes a web video and targeted online advertising, alerting Pennsylvania voters to Toomey’s campaign cash from Big Oil and his dangerous support for oil and gas drilling in Lake Erie, even in the wake of the Gulf Coast catastrophe and the record-breaking Midwest oil spill in the Kalamazoo River.