Thursday, April 1, 2010

e-waste is a big concern with cell phones, cameras, tvs and much more

Electronic waste is a sometimes overlooked aspect of the waste that is being caused daily and in absurd numbers.

In fact it is reported that 125 million phones a year are thrown away a year and the average lifespan of a computer is only 3-5 years. Add in any number of household appliances and electronics and e-waste is here to stay.

How we deal with the issue is a different matter. It is easy for people to get into the habit of buying something and carelessly buying a replacement when something is not working properly. Those times are changing.

Websites offering services like iPhone screen repair are popping up everywhere capitalizing on a suffering economy. Like all bad things though, there is some good that comes from it. In terms of e-waste, lots of good has come out of it. In part due to changing financial times, the public is naturally trying to save money. As a result they are looking at ways to extend the use of their products at no or minimal charge. It turns into a good thing because people are saving money and there is less e-waste.

These efforts should be applauded but are also really just a reaction to a big and growing problem along with other waste management issues.

It is crazy to imagine how this stuff will be dealt with in 50 years.

Obama says Drill Baby Drill

WASHINGTON — Shaking up years of energy policy and his own environmental backers, President Barack Obama threw open a huge swath of East Coast waters and other protected areas in Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico to drilling Wednesday, widening the politically explosive hunt for more homegrown oil and gas.

Obama's move allows drilling from Delaware to central Florida, plus the northern waters of Alaska, and exploration could begin 50 miles off the coast of Virginia by 2012. He also wants Congress to lift a drilling ban in the oil-rich eastern Gulf of Mexico, 125 miles from Florida beaches.

Still off limits: the entire Pacific seaboard. And in a nod to conservation, Obama canceled oil exploration in Alaska's Bristol Bay, deeming the area a national treasure.

For this oil-dependent nation, the decision could start to reshape far-reaching economic and national security policies, affecting where the U.S. gets the fuel for its cars, heating and energy-gulping industry.

For a president on a roll following a big health care win, Wednesday's drilling declaration was both aggressive and pragmatic. Even with a push for cleaner energy sources and efficient cars – and with promises of protection for ecosystems and coastal tourism – the nation still needs more oil, Obama said.

"The answer is not drilling everywhere all the time," Obama said in an event at Andrews Air Force Base. "But the answer is not, also, for us to ignore the fact that we are going to need vital energy sources to maintain our economic growth and our security."

Inside politically conscious Washington, Obama's announcement was viewed, too, as a play to win Republican support for a comprehensive climate change bill. Obama needs GOP help to move legislation through the Senate that would limit carbon emissions, a key priority, and his decision on drilling drew at least a bit of Republican applause.

Republican George W. Bush pushed for years to expand offshore drilling. He and Congress lifted bans on some drilling in 2008, when gasoline prices hit record levels. But Obama's plan is narrower than Bush's, which also would have opened up oil and gas leasing areas off California and in the North Atlantic.

Obama got a predictable pummeling Wednesday from environmentalists, who sarcastically compared him to Sarah Palin, the former vice presidential candidate whose oil-promoting speech at the Republican National Convention in 2008 famously drew chants of "Drill, Baby, Drill!"

Any big changes to environmental policy – particularly oil drilling – tend to touch off the bitter debate that Obama says he wants the country to end.

His support for exploratory drilling in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas north of Alaska, for example, drew outrage from the Center for Biological Diversity as a threat to polar bears. "Short of sending Sarah Palin back to Alaska to personally club polar bears to death, the Obama administration could not have come up with a more efficient extinction plan for the polar bear," said Brendan Cummings, the center's senior counsel.

More broadly, the conservation group Oceana declared Obama was "unleashing a wholesale assault on the oceans."

Obama has been a supporter of drilling as part of a broader energy agenda, and the White House played down any talk of wooing Republicans.

But it is clear the president wants to show the opposition party that he is willing to come toward them with hopes the GOP will do the same in return. He has already done so on nuclear energy. However, winning a broad climate and energy bill remains an enormous lift for Obama in this election year.

"He could certainly point to this: `Look, I've moved away from where we were even a year ago, so let's work something out,'" said Guy Caruso, an energy expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a former Department of Energy administrator. "Whether it's enough? I doubt it. But it's a step."

Indeed, the Senate Republican leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, said it was a step in the right direction. But he chided Obama for leaving too many exploratory areas off limits and questioned whether the administration would actually follow through and open areas for oil production. GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a key negotiator with the White House on the energy bill, said he listened to Obama with "great interest."

As for the fallout from environmental activists, White House spokesman Bill Burton said, "None of this should have been a surprise to anybody. We've been talking about all these different elements for a very long time and the president is following through on promises."

While the first lease sale for an area 50 miles off the Virginia coast could come as early as 2012, development in other areas of the South Atlantic would still be years away, according to the Interior Department's leasing plans released Wednesday. The department said it plans seismic studies, environmental reviews and public meetings in the regions involved to determine if leases should be offered in those areas between 2012 and 2017.

Obama's plan to open more of the eastern Gulf of Mexico would require Congress to lift a drilling moratorium it imposed several years ago. An energy bill before the Senate would open an even wider area of the eastern Gulf than Obama is proposing, allowing drilling within 45 miles of some of Florida's coast.

Access to oil and gas in South Atlantic waters also would probably meet stiff resistance from the coastal states unless Congress first enacts a plan to share the billions of dollars in potential revenue from lease sales and oil and gas development. And that's not easy.

Lawmakers from coastal states that would benefit have been pushing for that, but some other senators argue that proceeds from oil and gas resources in federal waters should go to the U.S. Treasury.

Obama is trying to push several levers at once.

As part of his oil announcement, Obama said his government would release new requirements Thursday requiring automakers to build more fuel-efficient cars and trucks. The standards include first-ever rules on vehicle greenhouse gas emissions, which have been blamed for global warming.

For a bit of imagery, Obama stood in front of a Navy F-18 fighter scheduled to fly on Earth Day with a half-biomass fuel mix.

He implored people to accept a middle ground between viewing drilling as a cure-all or claiming it has no place in an energy portfolio.

Said the president: "This issue is just too important to allow our progress to languish while we fight the same old battles."

Any big changes to environmental policy – particularly oil drilling – tend to touch off the bitter debate that Obama says he wants the country to end.

His support for exploratory drilling in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas north of Alaska, for example, drew outrage from the Center for Biological Diversity as a threat to polar bears. "Short of sending Sarah Palin back to Alaska to personally club polar bears to death, the Obama administration could not have come up with a more efficient extinction plan for the polar bear," said Brendan Cummings, the center's senior counsel.

More broadly, the conservation group Oceana declared Obama was "unleashing a wholesale assault on the oceans."

Obama has been a supporter of drilling as part of a broader energy agenda, and the White House played down any talk of wooing Republicans.

But it is clear the president wants to show the opposition party that he is willing to come toward them with hopes the GOP will do the same in return. He has already done so on nuclear energy. However, winning a broad climate and energy bill remains an enormous lift for Obama in this election year.

"He could certainly point to this: `Look, I've moved away from where we were even a year ago, so let's work something out,'" said Guy Caruso, an energy expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a former Department of Energy administrator. "Whether it's enough? I doubt it. But it's a step."

Indeed, the Senate Republican leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, said it was a step in the right direction. But he chided Obama for leaving too many exploratory areas off limits and questioned whether the administration would actually follow through and open areas for oil production. GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a key negotiator with the White House on the energy bill, said he listened to Obama with "great interest."

As for the fallout from environmental activists, White House spokesman Bill Burton said, "None of this should have been a surprise to anybody. We've been talking about all these different elements for a very long time and the president is following through on promises."

While the first lease sale for an area 50 miles off the Virginia coast could come as early as 2012, development in other areas of the South Atlantic would still be years away, according to the Interior Department's leasing plans released Wednesday. The department said it plans seismic studies, environmental reviews and public meetings in the regions involved to determine if leases should be offered in those areas between 2012 and 2017.

Obama's plan to open more of the eastern Gulf of Mexico would require Congress to lift a drilling moratorium it imposed several years ago. An energy bill before the Senate would open an even wider area of the eastern Gulf than Obama is proposing, allowing drilling within 45 miles of some of Florida's coast.

Access to oil and gas in South Atlantic waters also would probably meet stiff resistance from the coastal states unless Congress first enacts a plan to share the billions of dollars in potential revenue from lease sales and oil and gas development. And that's not easy.

Lawmakers from coastal states that would benefit have been pushing for that, but some other senators argue that proceeds from oil and gas resources in federal waters should go to the U.S. Treasury.

Obama is trying to push several levers at once.

As part of his oil announcement, Obama said his government would release new requirements Thursday requiring automakers to build more fuel-efficient cars and trucks. The standards include first-ever rules on vehicle greenhouse gas emissions, which have been blamed for global warming.

For a bit of imagery, Obama stood in front of a Navy F-18 fighter scheduled to fly on Earth Day with a half-biomass fuel mix.

He implored people to accept a middle ground between viewing drilling as a cure-all or claiming it has no place in an energy portfolio.

Said the president: "This issue is just too important to allow our progress to languish while we fight the same old battles."

Article via Huffington POst

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

More Swine Flu Goodness: Masks Don't Protect

As pointed out so expertly on naturalnews.com, those paper masks you see people wearing about town in Mexico City and other places where the swine flu has broken out do not protect against the swine flu or other airborne diseases as is widely assumed.

The newscasts often show them in that context, and that could be a dangerous piece of subconscious information.

The masks are worn by surgeons in order to prevent themselves from transmitting their own germs to their patients but not to avoid the germs of their patients.

Yet the assumption among the swine flu-fearing citizens of North America is that these paper-thin masks will somehow protect them from germs when in reality they aren't helping much at all. Germs can still easily get through the small holes in the masks.

Some people might get a false sense of security wearing these masks for the swine flu and put themselves into potentially harmful situations they otherwise wouldn't, so it's important that the media as well as people around the world spread the word that these masks don't really protect people from swine flu.

The FDA has said as much even though they usually aren't the most trustworthy source. You'll need a full-fledged, tight gas mask in order to truly protect yourself against the swine flu.

But for now, lay low and focus on keeping your immune system strong as we wait for this swine flu "pandemic" to pass.

Monday, April 27, 2009

Swine Flu Prevention Tips

The swine flu is here to stay and even though most people who read this blog are probably healthy enough to fight it off, it's a good idea for me to go ahead and post some basic tips on the swine flu outbreak and how to prevent it.

The first tip is that this flu is spread much like the regular flu we've all heard so much about, so keep close contact with strangers to a minimum as much as possible and stay away from germ-infested areas like hospitals and airports as much as possible.

Be really careful at the gym as well, you should disinfect all equipment before and after you use it and bring a towel with you if possible, especially in states like Texas where swine flu has been reported.

Here are some basic tips and etiquette for swine flu prevention:

Stay home from work or school- If you get sick, make sure you keep yourself in check and don't spread the flu to others, and go to a doctor if symptoms get bad or you suspect swine flu. This one is common sense but should be re-iterated.

Wash hands often- All flus are transmitted the same way but the risk can be prevented with simple hygiene. Grab a bottle of hand sanitizer if you live in an at-risk area and use constantly until the coast is clear.

Avoid touching eyes, nose, or mouth- This is the easiest way to spread swine flu after contacting it.

Feed your immune system to stop swine flu- Vitamin C, zinc, plenty of sunlight, etc. are all good ideas to keep your body ready, willing, and able to fight off all diseases. Swine flu can strike younger people in the 20-30 range but a good immune system is still the best defense against any disease.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Vegetarian Festival Hits Detroit Area

Go to http://www.vegmichigan.org/ to check out some of the events going on in Ferndale, Michigan today.

It's a good thing when vegetarian lifestyles are celebrated as opposed to blasted like they often are in the mainstream media, at least on TV shows and in movies and advertisements, that is.

More vegetarians are obviously good for the planet.

Growing food will reduce emissions from methane gas from animals as well as waste runoff from all of the farm animals as well.

Plus, a vegetarian diet movement would save food overall when you take into account how necessary it is to commit lots of food resources to feeding the massive cows and keep them alive long enough to turn into beef.

Why doesn't the media see vegetarianism for what it is, a noble sacrifice for the planet and a healthy way to live?

Personally, I eat a lot of meat but I would cut that down to once per day (including chicken) if I could if not less. I think less meat consumption would be a good compromise for everyone but Americans obviously don't want to hear it.

Let's do our best to spread the word that vegetarianism is smart and not such an uncool thing to do in the future.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Earth Day Celebrations and Tips

The celebration of Earth Day is upon us and everyone is looking for ways to help the environment.

But the most important way to celebrate the day and to keep the planet healthy is to SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS AND FARMS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.

Put Global Warming, whether you believe in it or not, aside for a second on this Earth Day and follow me here.

It is without hesitation that I tell you that the cause of the Earth's problems, of the massive pollution of the Puget Sound in the Seattle area, of the awful state of our air and water, of the giant dead zones in the ocean...is the corporate pox upon the Earth, mainly through America.

They are the ones who eschew regulations in the name of obscene profit. Money is the most powerful motivator in the world and even one minor tweak or concession can cause MASS LOSS OF PROFITS for the wealthy elite.

They are the ones who drive local farmers out of business or cause them to use their corn for poisonous, obesity-causing, unnatural high fructose corn syrup, and the ones who allow runoff from massive corporate farms' animal manure to pollute the waterways.

Saving the Earth in this day and age is about a return to personal responsibility, about looking after each other and supporting good, honest businesses and people rather than the slave labor corporations like Wal-Mart and the massive industrial DDT and growth-hormone-pumping farms that are the cause of almost all of our problems.

As the Earth heads towards uncertain times, question everything. Question who new taxes and laws are really looking after (hint: follow the money), and question the very existence of Earth Day. Why do we need one in the first place?

Every day should be Earth Day.

Maybe some day we will have a true reason to have an Earth Day celebration.

We must attack the roots of the greed that has gotten us to this point. It's not about CO2 emissions as much as it is the overall toxicity of the instruments of mass capitalism.

Spread the word, do your own research. This is merely a blog on Earth Day and I have other work to do so I couldn't state this as elegantly as I wanted to do.

Let's make it happen and let's take care of each other. Let's watch out for the little guy.

Monday, April 20, 2009

More Urban Greening Projects

The people of Detroit are a resilient bunch, well, a good deal of them at least. Unfortunately it doesn't take many people to screw things up for the rest of the city's citizens.

The people who have stayed behind are often quite upbeat, gritty, and idealistic about their sickly city.

On Saturday, park cleanup projects went down across the city which is a very important thing because all Detroit kids often see are blight and decay and burned out houses. Just getting in touch with nature is so important for inner city kids to see the big picture and what life is really all about.

I drove through one park on the southwest side where trash was strewn all over the place and there were only about three pieces of rusty playground equipment. It seemed like a potentially beautiful site just off of I-96 freeway but people had been dumping things there like trash of all kinds and even a small boat near the back.

The irresponsibility of a few citizens can easily mess up what a bunch of dedicated people can do in no time. That makes it much more honorable that so many people are so persistent with all the greening projects.

One lady I met taught local boys how to grow crops like potatoes and then had them sell them at a local market for spending cash. That's a beautiful thing right there.

The solutions to many of our inner cities' natural problems or at least support for a healthy lifestyle someday comes on the back of green projects like this and others.

Spread the word and let's try to beautify our urban areas as much as possible in the future.