Question Earthority!

“And so our eight-year interlude from reality draws to a close, and the job of cleaning up begins. The trouble is, we’re not just cleaning up after a failed presidency. We’re cleaning up after a two-century binge. Barack Obama won an historic victory yesterday, and with it the right to take office under the most difficult circumstances since Franklin D. Roosevelt. Maybe more difficult, because while both FDR and Obama had financial meltdowns to deal with, Obama also faces the meltdown meltdown — the rapid disintegration of the planet’s climate system that threatens to challenge the very foundations of our civilization.” (11/05/08)

http://tinyurl.com/66f49r

“President-elect Barack Obama could be the nation’s first green president — whether he likes it or not. The Greens’ early investment in Obama’s political soul has matured, and they’re already angling for — and even demanding — payback. Though the financial crunch should place economy-harming global warming legislation on the back burner, the Natural Resources Defense Council is pushing for it within the first 100 days of the new Congress, supposedly as a means of easing the credit crisis and financing renewable energy projects, according to a report in the November 3 issue of Carbon Control News.” (11/12/08)

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,447904,00.html

“It was 40 years ago in Wall, SD, and Josh was driving to Seattle. Every few miles, often less, he saw a sign advertising Wall Drug. One proclaimed, ‘Everything the traveler wants is in Wall Drug.’ This was in keeping with the store’s philosophy: ‘…you can reach out to other people with something that they need!’ Josh stopped at Wall Drug and asked to buy a can of orange spray paint. ‘Sorry,’ he was told, ‘we don’t have it.’ Josh asked to speak with the owner, Ted Hustead, and was shown upstairs to his office, where he explained what he wanted. Josh told Mr. Hustead that he saw an excess of signs advertising Wall Drug. Hustead seemed pleased and asked why Josh wanted the orange paint. Josh said he admired the scenery of Central SD and found the Wall Drug signs distractive and offensive. He also noted that many signs, not all advertising Wall Drug, suffered from bullet holes. The orange paint was to spray bulls-eyes on the worst of the Wall Drug signs. Hustead wasn’t amused.” (11/12/08)

http://www.free-eco.org/articleDisplay.php?id=640

“Scientists have confirmed that enough solar energy falls on the surface of the earth every 40 minutes to meet 100 percent of the entire world’s energy needs for a full year. Enough wind power blows through the Midwest corridor every day to meet 100 percent of US electricity demand. Geothermal energy is capable of providing enormous supplies of electricity. But to make this exciting potential a reality, we need a new start. That’s why I’m proposing a strategic initiative designed to regain control of our own destiny. It’s not the only thing we need to do. But it’s the linchpin of a new strategy to repower America.” (11/08)

http://tinyurl.com/5n5y5c

“Who could have missed the cow with the dollar bills hanging out of his mouth on the cover of the business section last weekend? Cute? Yes. But the message was a serious downer. It turns out the economy is making us all second-guess every purchase we make — including what we eat. Nielsen Company, a market research firm, reported that organic food sales rose only 4 percent in the four week period ending October 4th, compared to 20 percent a year in recent years. What’s keeping shoppers from purchasing organic food? Cost. No question. And who can blame them? But let’s understand why and what we can do about it.” (11/10/08)

http://tinyurl.com/5fxkpz

“According to rumor, President-elect Barack Obama is considering the creation of an Energy Security Council inside the White House. The council, modeled after the National Security Council, would be headed by a National Energy Advisor who would manage the country’s energy transformation to a low-carbon economy. This idea is reminiscent of the appointment of ‘energy czars’ in past administrations. … So looking back, did the drive to elevate and centralize energy policy and research actually help? Not a lot, as Robert Fri, a former deputy administrator of both the Environmental Protection Agency and the Energy Research and Development Administration points out.” (11/11/08)

http://www.reason.com/news/show/130026.html

“President-elect Barack Obama supports nuclear power to increase US energy independence and fight global warming — but only if a path to safe nuclear waste disposal is opened. Fortunately, there is a two-step plan that can open that path and lead to an effective waste solution within eight years. And it embraces citizen consent. In 1987, Congress cut off comparative site evaluations and closed all discussion of permanent nuclear waste locations except Yucca Mountain, in Nevada. It taxed nuclear utilities to pay for it, racking up $26 billion to date. The Energy Department did what Congress required: It studied Yucca and recently submitted an application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to approve site construction. However, few informed observers believe that the facility can be completed without the cooperation of Nevada, which is dead set against it.” (11/12/08)

http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1112/p09s01-coop.html

“Dr. Riki Ott is launching the movement for the 28th Amendment to the Constitution: Separation of Corporation and State. In the video below, she explains what a 28th Amendment will accomplish, how it is possible, why it is necessary for our democracy.” [Flash video] (11/11/08)

http://tinyurl.com/6arcsw

“The good news: We can avoid multimeter sea-level rise, the loss of the inland glaciers that provide water to a billion people, rapid expansion of the subtropical deserts, and mass extinctions — each of which is all-but inevitable on our current path of unrestrained greenhouse gas emissions. The not-so-good news: We will probably need an ultimate target of 350 ppm (or lower) for atmospheric carbon dioxide — if you accept the analysis of ten leading climate scientists from around the world.” (11/10/08)

http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/11/10/123654/44

“On the surface it seems a good thing. You might assume that the legislature felt it had no business dictating what form its citizens chose to enjoy their water. You might hope that the choice was left for the citizenry to make and not government. But you’d be wrong. It has nothing to do with enhancing freedom, or liberty or choice. It just isn’t convenient yet for the government to ban bottled water …. all the environmental and energy concerns aren’t that important if it inconveniences a government plan. Then cranking out those bottles of water is, in relative terms, a good thing. But when they decide that they’re ready to boot the bottle, the good people of Ontario will be weaned as well. Choice for the government is fine, but not, apparently, the citizenry.” (11/10/08)

http://www.qando.net/details.aspx?Entry=9685