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    Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire: The Ultimate Fan Guide [Kindle] $0.99.


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    Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire:  Ultimate Fan Guide

    Georgiana is the subject of the movie "The Duchess" (currently on Netflix) and a relative of the young Prince and Princess of Cambridge. Get the Ultimate Fan Guide -- with plot points, history, and what happened to the historical characters -- for only 99 cents!

  • Green Party Peace Sign Bumper Sticker


    Green Party Peace Sign Bumper Sticker
    The Green Party has continually opposed entry into war and has consistently called for the immediate return of our troops, in stark contrast to the Democratic and Republican parties.
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  • Occupy Wall Street: What Just Happened?

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    Occupy Wall Street: What Just Happened? eBook

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    Occupy Wall Street: What Just Happened? eBook

    Reflections on Occupy Wall Street, with photos, fun, and good wishes for the future. eBook, Occupy Wall Street: What Just Happened? (Only $.99 !) In the eBook, the Occupy movement is explored through original reporting, photographs, cartoons, poetry, essays, and reviews.The collection of essays and blog posts records the unfolding of Occupy into the culture from September 2011 to the present.  Authors Kimberly Wilder and Ian Wilder were early supporters of Occupy, using their internet platforms to communicate the changes being created by the American Autumn.

    The eBook is currently available on Amazon for Kindle;  Barnes & Noble Nook ; Smashwords independent eBook seller; and a Kobo for 99 cents and anyone can read it using their Kindle/Nook Reader, smart phone, or computer.

Long Island Climate Solutions News July 2008

  1. New Web Site: http://www.inhabitat.com
  1. From LI Sierra Club:

I’d like to share the attached text with all the environmentally concerned citizens on Long Island- its a manual that explains how Long Island schools can install renewable energy and efficiency for free (same model as Babylon ‘s). It is also available from our website for download at  http://newyork.sierraclub.org/longisland/energy.html .   I encourage you to pass it on to school administrators, students, parents, teachers, and taxpayers.

  1. Albany: Governor Patterson and the State Legislature have come to an agreement about providing grants to home owners and builders who include energy efficiency and other green building techniques in their plans.  Apparently this will also be applicable to retrofitting homes as well.  NYSERDA will move from providing low interest loans for green building to actually providing grants.
  1. Peak Oil Changes Everything. Posted by Rex Weyler, GreenPeaceUK, August 4, 2008. As the era of cheap liquid fuels draws to an end, everything about modern consumer society will change. Likewise, developing societies pursuing the benefits of globalization will struggle to grow economies in an era of scarce liquid fuels. The most localized, self-reliant communities will experience the least disruption… World oil production increased for 150 years until the spring of 2005, when world crude oil production reached about 74.3 million barrels per day (mb/d), and total liquid fuels, including tar sands, liquefied gas, and biofuels reached about 85 mb/d. In spite of the efforts since, and tales of ‘trillions of barrels’ of oil in undiscovered fields, liquid fuel production has remained at about 85.5 mb/d for three years, the longest sustained plateau in modern petroleum history. Discoveries of new fields peaked 40 years ago. Meanwhile economies everywhere want to grow, so demand for oil soars worldwide. The gap between this surging demand and flat or declining production will drive price increases and shortages. That’s peak oil… One might think that peak oil will solve global warming because less oil means less carbon emissions. Sadly, this is not so because humanity took the best, cheapest, and easiest oil first, leaving dirty, acidic, expensive oil in marginal reserves that require vast amounts of energy to recover. In the 1930s, 100 barrels of oil cost about 1 barrel in equivalent energy to extract. That ratio is now about 20:1 and sinking fast. The Canadian tar sands produce barely 1:1 net energy. By the time someone burns tar sands oil in his or her vehicle, the industry has burned nearly an equal amount retrieving it.”

  1. A Climate Call to Action for New England. Press Release, Conservation Law Foundation, July 28, 2008. “Systematic and immediate changes to New England’s energy programs and transportation infrastructure are needed to meet the climate… crisis, according to a call to action released on July 28 by the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF), New England’s leading environmental group… ‘Our region, like the rest of the nation and the world, is facing the greatest environmental threat of our era, demanding transformations at all levels… said CLF President Philip Warburg. …[The CFL blueprint, New England Down Payment on the Future, PDF, 24 pp]lays out five… [recommended steps:] 1) Expand public transit opportunities and give people the opportunity to drive less by spending at least 75% of [regional] transportation funds… on public transit and compact, transit-oriented development. 2) Invest at least $1 billion in new [residential and commercial] … conservation measures. 3) Build 2,000 megawatts of new wind power. 4) Shut down at least two of the region’s coal-fired power plants or convert them to cleaner, low-carbon fuels. 5) Enact legislation in every New England state that mandates reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and requires review of climate impacts in state permitting and infrastructure decisions.”
  1. Designer Philippe Starck’s Invisible Roof Windmill… for Starters. By Alice Rawsthorn, NYTimes, August 6, 2008.The first of [world-famous product designer Philippe Starck’s] so-called Democratic Ecology products… to be introduced in Europe this fall, and in the U.S. early next year… is a miniature rooftop wind turbine, priced between $780 and $1,250, which Mr. Starck said can produce up to 80% of a home’s energy… There are sound reasons for taking [this particular]… product seriously. One is that it’s deftly designed, not least because the blades are made of transparent plastic, and are virtually invisible on the roof. Another is that it’s designed by him, and Mr. Starck has been so successful at persuading people to buy visually seductive but slightly silly objects — plastic Louis XV chairs, lamps with gun-shaped bases, garden gnome stools and so on — that he may well be able to do the same for something that is actually useful.”
  1. OIL: THE FINAL WARNING. From: New Scientist (pg. 32), Jun. 25, 2008

[Rachel’s introduction: “There is a growing realisation that we are teetering on the edge of an economic catastrophe which could be

triggered next time there is a glitch in the world’s oil supply. A number of converging forces are making such an event more likely than

ever before.”]

  1. Unnecessary flights killing the poor: Tutu. LONDON (Reuters) – Businessmen who take flights rather than use video conferencing are adding to global warming that is condemning millions of the world’s poorest people to death, according to Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu.  The former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town said developed countries had caused global warming and must therefore take the lead in slashing emissions of climate changing carbon gases.

9. http://www.pickensplan.com/ . July 10: David Alexander wrote: T. Boone Pickens has an interesting idea, and one good point is that when business leaders such as him are jumping into environmental action on a large scale, it indicates there is hope for the badly-needed change in society that this indicates.  http://www.planetthoughts.org/Index.cfm?pg=pt/Whole&qid=2264 I have written (see above) a reply to the ideas expressed in that Web site and videos.  The Pickens Plan certainly has good points, but should also be looked at closely since a business leader such as Pickens often has his own agenda that will not often match the public need 100%.

10. A Call to Action from an Inveterate U.S. Oil Man. Commentary by T. Boone Pickens, WSJournal, July 9, 2008, subscription. “One of the benefits of being around a long time is that you get to know a lot about certain things. I’m 80 years old and I’ve been an oilman for almost 60 years. I’ve drilled more dry holes and also found more oil than just about anyone in the industry. With all my experience, I’ve never been as worried about our energy security as I am now. Like many of us, I ignored what was happening. Now our country faces what I believe is the most serious situation since World War II. The problem, of course, is our growing dependence on foreign oil — it’s extreme, it’s dangerous, and it threatens the future of our nation… I have a clear goal in mind with my plan. I want to reduce America ‘s foreign oil imports by more than one-third in the next five to 10 years. How will we do it? We’ll start with wind power. Wind is 100% domestic, it is 100% renewable and it is 100% clean… My plan calls for [using wind power] to replace a significant percentage of the natural gas that is now being used to fuel our power plants… We can use new wind capacity to free up the natural gas for use as a transportation fuel. That would displace more than one-third of our foreign oil imports. Natural gas is the only domestic energy of size that can be used to replace oil used for transportation, and it is abundant… cheap and… clean… I believe this plan will… [afford] us the time to develop new technologies… I also want to see us explore… every energy alternative, from more R&D into batteries and fuel cells to development of solar, ethanol and biomass to more conservation… The future begins as soon as Congress and the president act… We have the grit and fortitude to shoulder the responsibility of change… We need action. Now.” T. Boone Pickens is CEO of BP Capital.

11. T. Boone Pickens’ Ad Campaign on U.S. Foreign Oil Dependency. By Allison Fass, Forbes, July 11, 2008. “‘Did you know, back in 1970, we imported 24% of our oil, and by 1990 it was 42%,’ says billionaire T. Boone Pickens, in his Texas drawl, at the start of a national commercial that began airing this week. ‘Today, it’s almost 70% and climbing every minute.’ His voice plays as the words appear in white letters on a black screen. A fire slowly burns into the background. The octogenarian oilman has a message for Americans and the two presidential candidates: Our dependence on imported oil is destroying the country. Pickens is serious about this — he’s spending $58 million and a chunk of his personal time to get the word out. ‘I’ve been an oilman my entire life,’ he says, appearing in his first TV commercial, ‘but this is one emergency we can’t drill our way out of.’ The 60-second spot debuted Tuesday along with a deluge of paid and unpaid national and local media. The goal is to make U.S. dependency on imported oil ‘the No. 1 political issue in America ,’ says Pickens’ spokesman Jay Rosser.”

  1. Shell Shocked on Long Island Sound… By Gregory B. Hladky, BGlobe,July 13, 2008. “Many lobstermen working Long Island Sound these days, fears that [their] way of life might be coming to an end… The same warming trend that seems to be hurrying the decline of lobsters and other cold-water species in sound could offer a strange sort of ecological compensation. Blue crabs, creatures that flourish in warmer waters, are booming.” … And on the Pacific Coast. By Kenneth R. Weiss, LATimes, July 13, 2008.“Oyster ‘seeds’ are dying as Pacific Coast waters grow warmer. They’re being killed by a bacteria, Vibrio tubiashii, that blooms in warmer waters and the oxygen-starved ‘dead zones’ that have appeared off the coast of Oregon and Washington .”

  1. To Reduce Greenhouse Gases, Start by Shrinking Buildings. By Katherine Salant, WashPost, July 12, 2008. ” New Mexico architect Edward Mazria has a proposal to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming. His target: buildings. Most people do not connect the two, but in the United States , buildings are the largest source of greenhouse gases… Mazria’s proposal, which he calls the 2030 Challenge, is well known in green building circles. It calls for an immediate 50 percent reduction in fossil-fuel-based energy in all new construction and major renovations of existing buildings, and further reductions of 10 percent every five years, starting in 2010. By 2030, all fossil-fueled equipment would be phased out, and all energy used in new and renovated buildings would come from renewable energy sources such as the sun, wind or earth. This may seem impossible, but Mazria says that the majority of his initial 50 percent reduction in houses could be met simply by building smarter so that less energy is required. With housing, the first step is a smaller house. Mazria sees a trend in this direction because you don’t have to heat or cool what you don’t build.”

  1. colleges and Green Buildings

Colleges Take Lead in Building Green. By Tiffany Hsu, LATimes, July 7, 2008. “This spring, East Los Angeles College unveiled 5,952 solar panels that generate nearly half of the college’s energy… At Santiago Canyon College in Orange County , the library is cooled by vertical perforated solar fins… And in Iowa , geothermal wells drilled 120 feet below the parking lot at Grinnell College ‘s Conrad Environmental Research Area help heat and cool the buildings… At the 10 University of California campuses, a 2004 policy mandating that all new or renovated buildings be eco-friendly has saved the system nearly $5 million, officials say… Conventional buildings account for 36% of the country’s total greenhouse gas emissions and 39% of its total carbon dioxide emissions, according to the U.S. Green Building Council… TheAssociation for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Educationis developing a system to judge campuswide sustainability, based on the country’s most prominent rating system, theGreen Building Council‘s certification in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, known asLEED. In 2001, there were 42 LEED projects in the higher education sector. Between 2006 and 2007, the number nearly doubled from 769 to 1,412. As of June, 1,497 buildings were seeking certification.”

‘Green’ Report Cards for Colleges. By Stacy Teicher Khadaroo, CSMonitor, July 8, 2008. “Students looking to narrow their college choices will soon have something new to consider alongside academics and campus life: A ‘Green Rating’ makes its debut this summer in several of The Princeton Review‘spopular college guides. Six-hundred college profiles will include a score reflecting factors such as building and transportation policies, food sources, recycling, and availability of environmental courses… The College Sustainability Report Card, put out by the Sustainable Endowments Institute (SEI) in Cambridge , Mass. , gives letter grades to at least 200 public and private schools with the largest endowments. In addition to green campus factors, it grades how well a school uses its investment leverage to advocate for the environment. ‘When people are comparing schools that all say they are leaders on sustainability… [they can now] peek behind those statements,’ says executive director Mark Orlowski… Six out of 10 college applicants and parents say the environmental factor would affect their decision to apply to or attend a school, according to a Princeton Review survey this year. The idea of ranking something as broad as environmentalism gives pause even to some considered leaders on this front. ‘It’s easy to fall into that trap of mine is greener than yours, but it is fundamentally inconsistent with the reasons why colleges should be becoming more sustainable…. We’re all part of one system,’ says David Hales, president of College of the Atlantic, in Bar Harbor , Maine . A small campus focused on human ecology, it was the first to become carbon neutral. The environmental news website Grist ranked it top among15 green colleges and universitieslast year.”

  1. NEW State and Regional Climate Policy Maps on EPA WebsiteEPA has posted a new suite of maps that show the variety of initiatives

    states are implementing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These maps provide a summary of state activity across a range of climate change policy areas. Maps are broken out by policy and provide details about each state’s policy actions that include Planning and Measurement; Targets and Caps; Reporting; Power Sector; and Transportation Sector. For more information go to:
    http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/wycd/stateandlocalgov/stateactionslist.html

    Furthermore, states are using clean energy policies to help meet their

    expanding energy demand in a clean, low-cost, reliable manner. For example, states have adopted a number of cost-effective energy efficiency actions that remove key market, regulatory, and institutional barriers that hinder investment in cost-effective energy efficiency by consumers, businesses, utilities, and public agencies. To see what actions states are taking in each clean energy policy area go to:
    http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-programs/state-and-local/policy-maps.html

    *******

State and local officials interested in additional information about developing and implementing cost-effective clean energy and environmental strategies that help further environmental and clean energy goals and achieve public health and economic benefits may visit: http://epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-programs/state-and-local/index.html

  1. Global Warming Is a Cause of This Year’s Extreme Weather. Commentary by Sharon Begley, Newsweek, July 7-14 issue. “It’s almost a point of pride with climatologists. Whenever someplace is hit with a heat wave, drought, killer storm or other extreme weather, scientists trip over themselves to absolve global warming. No particular weather event, goes the mantra, can be blamed on something so general. Extreme weather occurred before humans began loading up the atmosphere with heat-trapping greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide. So this storm or that heat wave could be the result of the same natural forces that prevailed 100 years ago — random movements of air masses, unlucky confluences of high- and low-pressure systems — rather than global warming… This pretense has worn thin. The frequency of downpours and heat waves, as well as the power of hurricanes, has increased so dramatically that ‘100-year storms’ are striking some areas once every 15 years, and other once rare events keep returning like a bad penny. As a result, some climatologists now say global warming is to blame. Rising temperatures boost the probability of extreme weather, says Tom Karl, director of the National Climatic Data Center and lead author of a new report [PDF, 180 pp] from the Bush administration’s Climate Change Science Program.” [See Report Predicts Severe Weather Increases As Earth Warms. By Juliet Eilperin, WashPost, June 20, 2008.]

2 Responses

  1. I want to say thank you that you have made your
    web site very good to visit and also very helpful for many people.

  2. Yep. It is getting colder. It will continue to do so for the rest of our lives. The next ice age is over a thousand years away though. Solar cycles cover millenial as well as decadal periods.

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