Ecology

Labor’s opportunity to hold those Voters

nobody@vox.com(petermcc) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 20:28:03 -0700

Under Australia’s new Labor government we are seeing a new appreciation for tackling Climate Change. Something the Voters regarded as a very important change at the last election. The government benches in this country are either, lost by the incumbent, or more rarely won by an Opposition with the overriding factor being the confidence the voters have in those standing.

In John Howard’s case, the Voters lost faith in him being able to grasp the problem and start meaningful changes to address it, whereas Kevin 07 showed an initial enthusiasm to start the complex planning to tackle the serious problem we face.

The Liberal remnants often complain about the Public’s love affair with Kevin Rudd without ever seeming to understand he shows a responsiveness to our concerns that engenders a lot of good will within the voters at large. The concept of Democracy seems to have totally escaped them. All they need do is look back at other honeymoon periods and think why they happen. It lasts as long as the public think they are listening.

For Rudd, the start has been good with a few little wrinkles that need to be addressed in the massive change of direction. The removal of the rebate for alternative energy installation based on income is one such problem. Here the public perception is of paramount importance. The Public is with Kevin 07 in getting started on climate change and this removal runs the risk of having him appear as just another pollie who was “gunna” do something.

I understand where the government is coming from by trying to move the product lower down the socio-economic ladder but it would be far easier to leave the subsidy in place and boost the dollars. The added bonus here is the industry does not suffer a slump while the new market is created and we end up with a bigger pool of skilled installers who are retained in the industry.

As it stands at the moment, Climate Change deniers are using the removal as a tool to suggest Labor isn’t serious about Climate Change, and that it doesn’t matter who you vote for. Labor needs to stop this in its tracks. It has a powerful grip on those government benches and keeping the gap between the parties on the environmental understanding is definitely in its best interests.

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Gas Emissions

nobody@vox.com(Oysterboy) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 23:09:38 -0700

Cow Farts

This was a funny article I saw today regarding cow flatulance. It was surprising to note how many kilograms of gas a cow can produce in a day from all the grain it eats. Eight-hundred to one thousand litres (1kg = 1L of water. I don't have a clue how much a litre of methane is - probably lighter than water - which means everything below is a rant with no merit.) is way more than I thought possible. It's more than the weight of the animals (roughly 550kg, according to the article). It makes me wonder if the article has the numbers right. There's one thing for me to complain about gas emissions - I can make a stinky one from time to time - but for a something to produce twice its weight in gas is somehow very frightening or wrong.

I get the need to fight climate change and do what we can to prevent the thawing of our polar ice caps and reduce our footprint on the environment. I get the need to get out of our cars, even without climate change being a problem because we're too socially adapted to cars and it causes way to much stress in our daily lives. Yeah, it's bad. Cow farms can be bad too. I'm just weirded out by the amount of gas the cows produce. How much does it compare to cars? Are there more cows than cars? Are there more people than cows? What about all the farts we produce? Could our diets be causing global warming? What foods can we eat to stop it?

questions are fun to ask especially since I don't like to look for answers myself. I like talking to people. I learn from hearing the words so I need to ask.

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Tumbleweed houses

nobody@vox.com(thyme) — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 09:56:58 -0700

Libertine posted about a little blond lady living in a cute little wooden house only 84 sq ft, and I just fell in love with the little house. It must be so easy to clean! Apart from being environmentally friendly and all that, which is of course supposed to be the real point to the story.

I think I could do that.

Then someone said that it doesn't look like it has a bathroom.

I couln't do without a bathroom. I need my daily shower.

Frantically, I went and searched the internet.

"Does Dee Williams have a bathroom" I asked Google.

And guess what: Yes. They. Do. Take a look at this cutie here:

Jay's Tiny House Tour

I could do that. I'm sure.

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a shower in the garden

nobody@vox.com(thyme) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 04:56:38 -0700

a shower in the garden, originally uploaded by thymeline.

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Riding bicycles is extremely dangerous in a car-driven society

nobody@vox.com(Oysterboy) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 20:50:53 -0700

I almost got into a fight today over something incredibly stupid. Because i'm too lazy to type again, here is my words with my friend on MSN.
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
Oh, I was very close to getting my ass kicked today by two teenagers in a benz on robson street
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
because I shook my head at them in shame
anita- ange says:
wtf
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
well, I was riding my bike, they almost hit me with their car
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
and they roll down their window and go, "What's your problem? Fucker."
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
and I said, "Just be careful, you almost hit me with your car. Pay attention."
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
they said, "Why don't YOU pay attention?" and I said, "I was, that's why I was able to stop in time."
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
and they said, "What the fuck is wrong with you buddy?"
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
and I said, "Nothing, just watch out. " "How dyou know I wasn't watching out? can you see?"
anita- ange says:
uh..
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
and I said, "No, I can't see. Your windows are tinted because you are have gay sex."
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
they said, "Fuck you, you wanna go?" and I said, "I can't, it's a red light."
anita- ange says:
hahahahahaha
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
and they said, "fuck you, I'm going to fuck you up. Let's go, in the alley."
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
and I said, "No thanks, I don't want to be raped by two asian guys today."
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
and they said, "Yeah, you better..." and I said, "Oh, so you did want to have sex with me."
anita- ange says:
HAHAHAHA
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
They said, "fuck you. You're dead!" and the passenger was getting out of the car
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
and it was a green light so I kicked the car and took off
Ðαvê - what are we doing to ourselves? says:
I was really scared

Anyway, I didn't exacly use those words and neither did the teens. Needless to say, I was scared that I'd have to defend myself or that they'd try to run me over with their car. If their penis size was inversely proportional to the size of their carbon footprint, I'd have had much to worry about.

I rode my bike home, angry at car culture. When did cars have more rights than people? It's already frustrating that Robson street in Vancouver is full of pedestrian traffic and anyone walking there on a hot summer day will note that cars are not the best solution for the street. Yet they exist. drivers are impatiently waiting to get out of downtown and back home are racing down the street. In the summer time, kids with their freshly bought shiny wheels roam up and down Robson looking for hotties to impress with their undeserved freedom.

I like riding a bike. I don't really have to worry too much about pedestrians or getting out of downtown on time. In fact, I know i'm going to be a little late, no matter what my destination is because I'm on a bike. However, I always budget time for that. I have no need to hurry anywhere. Where would I go in such a hurry? I'm getting off work and the only thing left is a nice ride back home. Whatever feeling of urgency I have is gone. when i'm in a car, I feel urgent and slightly panicky. I don't budget my time properly and I'm constantly worried that I'm driving too fast (50km/h) and I'll miss a crazy person who needs to get to the red light before I do. Still, I try my best to drive carefully and watch out for bikers. I know that sometimes I make mistakes and bikers will get angry. Just chill out, biker dudes.

I want to be able to fight car-culture. There's nothing wrong with driving and owning a car, but I don't like the urgency and sense of status associated with driving. If you own a car, does that mean you have disposable income? These days, it's not so clear if you have income to spend on a car. The culture of cars has driven everyone to believe that they can own one, maintain one, and be a star in one. drive because you need to, not because you're unable to be attractive without one.

I'm out of my scared feeling now.

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Living under a yellow sky or how to detect a mad scientist

nobody@vox.com(petermcc) — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 01:53:33 -0700

As a fan of science fiction, I have been wondering how long it would be before someone started talking about terraforming planet Earth and it has finally come up for discussion with scientists talking about pumping sulfur high into the atmosphere.

See the transcript of Radio National’s Background Briefing here.Background Briefing

Anyone nervous yet?

History, rather than sci-fi, is where we should start looking when this idea starts to grow legs. And grow legs it will because cheap and nasty will always appeal to economic rationalists.

This particularly nasty idea has all the hallmarks of being favoured for a number of reasons. It allows folk to continue abusing the planet thoughtlessly, politicians will love a short term fix, it involves getting to use big arse guns, and the scientists get to test their theories on a real planet.

If you are thinking that scientists won’t support this patch fix then a brief look down memory lane is in order. Whether it be experimenting with live human beings like the Nazi doctors or disposing of nuclear waste in the North Sea by the English, there are always scientists who will sign up for the action. Sometimes they will have 2^nd thoughts after the damage is done but youthful enthusiasm will always find ways to excuse the moral argument.

Working with the environment is a very complicated operation. Just ask the farmers who have tried the seemingly easily achievable target of seeding rain clouds. They do have some success but you need a statistician to prove the result. Also consider chemical warfare using 2 components. It’s very difficult to deliver accurately simply because of weather conditions. Even with all the computer power attached to weather prediction.

Building a climate modeling program has taken years as thousands of variables have gradually been added to the model and I’m guessing it still has a long way to go. If the model isn’t accurate then prediction is problematic.

Now we have a “quick fix” for a complex system that offers a far cheaper result if you don’t mind totally trashing the balance. Like the elegant English solution to nuclear waste, this has the unacceptable feature of being irreversible. When the problem arose of 44 gallon drums of nuclear waste splitting after a year or two submerged, they were not able to easily recover the problem drums from the North Sea. As far as I know they are still sitting at the bottom of the North Sea.

The last, and most frightening aspect about this new idea, is that the US can act unilaterally and damage everyone else on the planet. The Chinese probably fit in the same category. Large countries with the wherewithal and the arrogance to try something that might work regardless of what the World, or indeed their own people, want.

Tragically, we won’t even regard these scientists as mad until after the damage is done. Some folk will probably even be reassured by their sponsorship of the whole scheme. We have to remember that no matter how dangerous or crazy an idea is, someone will either believe it or be prepared to sign off on it for money.

Money isn’t everything. In fact it’s a pretty poor basis for deciding how to approach a problem especially if it has long term problems. If Economists only think ahead by 5 years and politicians only as far as the next election, then they are NOT the folk to be allowed to control the response to Global Warming.

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The solar panel subsidy

nobody@vox.com(petermcc) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:21:38 -0700

Solar cells

I have just been reading a petition for the removal of the means test for a Solar Subsidy when you put Solar panels on the roof of your house. It makes interesting reading and some of the additional comments make a mockery of supposed environmentally aware attitude of the folk who left them.

Firstly, I can see where the Government is coming from here. Assuming their figures are correct, and I’m happy to see them challenged, it offers a better outcome than subsidising the whole industry. Folk with the means to afford the panels (those earning over $100k by Government reckoning), should be happy to do their bit rather than ask the Government to help them be responsible.

The subsidy is designed to bring more folk into market. Those not quite rich enough to be able to afford the panels. If people of wealth drop out simply because we, the Tax Payers, won’t give them money, then the environment must be of little concern to them. I’d call that cutting off your nose to spite your face. “Yes, the environment has gone down the toilet but I gave Rudd a bloody nose.”

With the changes we are facing in response to Global Warming, people had better start thinking about how they can play THEIR part. It’s a cop out to expect the Government to carry your can for you. Especially if you have the ability to pay your own way.

I’m happy to concede that some folk on the subsidy margin are not going to be able to afford it, but I would rather see them raise the threshold to $150k or perhaps higher, than waste money on folk who will already do the right thing. That way we get the highest possible number of participants.

In all the complaining I don’t see too many asking for a threshold increase which seems to me to be the more thoughtful approach.

There is a long way to go on addressing Global Warming and of course it’s going to cost. Campaigns suggesting everything can be paid for out of the Magic Pudding of Government revenue are simply unrealistic.

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First Three Steps

nobody@vox.com(Roxanne) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 18:44:17 -0700

Hi. I am new to Vox. My name is Roxanne, and I'm 19 years old. I go to West Virginia University as a full time student. Right now I have the summer off and I'm spending it at home in New Jersey with my family. Recently, I read the book Skinny Bitch and became inspired to be a vegetarian. The two female authors really tell it like it is. Most of us Americans eat crap all day long and when one of our organs goes busted, we just replace it. But the key is to find a way of living that will allow you to be healthy, happy, and strong for your whole life. Shortly after, I was at the Barnes and Noble and saw a table covered with the book Gorgeously Green by Sophie Uliano. By now, I was already eating organic food and no more meat, which I found out was also good for the environment. I was very interested in the book so I picked it up, and low and behold, it changed my life. It taught me that being eco-friendly in little ways every day can make a dramatic difference in the future outcome of our planet.

Recently, I have made a few changes in my life that have not only been easy to make, but have also infected everyone around me. Environmentalism is contagious! Here are some of the changes I've made that are easy to get your family and friends involved in as well.

1) Start eating less meat. You don't have to give it up completely. But a lot of people tend to eat some form of meat at every meal, every day. Try to cut down to eating meat once a day during one meal. Then, if you are ready, cut down to eating meat once a week, or once every few days. Meat will become more special, almost like a delicacy.

2) Paper or plastic? Neither. When you go to the store, try to bring along a few plastic or paper bags that are already lying around the house. If you really want to be eco-friendlier, get a few canvas tote bags (which you can probably purchase for cheap at your local grocery store) and tote your groceries home in those instead of those insightly, annoying, breakable plastic and paper monsters. I know stores like Wegmans, Whole Foods, Genaurdi's, ShopRite, and possibly Acme carry tote bags that are available to you at the register, should you need more than you brought.

3) Buy recycled paper products. Instead of buying paper towels, napkins, paper cups, and toilet paper made from virgin trees, invest in ones that have been made from recycled materials. It may seem slightly more expensive, but all the money you're saving from not eating meat everyday will balance it out! Just think of it this way. By purchasing that roll of recycled paper towels, you are saving a tree from being chopped down at no cost to you. If you wish to take a step further and become eco-friendlier, purchase a few glass cups, ceramic mugs, cloth napkins, and dish towels. This way, you will no longer need to purchase any paper towels, paper cups, or napkins. Purchase a few of each so when some are in the wash, you'll still have others.

So. There are my three steps for today. I will add a few steps every day, until I've covered mostly everything. If you have any requests, need advice, or have any suggestions, please feel free to talk to me! Eventually, I'd like to write a book or post videos on Youtube. Your input could become a part of something! Have a great day everyone!

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A sense of the world

nobody@vox.com(Oysterboy) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 22:21:04 -0700

Somebody asked today a very Miss USA type question: What would you do to change the world? Given the context of the conversation, the asker had a much deeper meaning associated to the question than a simple, "I wish for world peace and the end of world hunger." The questioner was someone I would think is in a better position to do something than a small town girl with big breasts and an ability to do anything to be accepted as beautiful in the eyes of a misinformed public.

So what can I do to change the world? I remember long ago when I started with browsing the internet and trying to develop my own website that I had a grand plot to destroy the world and rebuild. As I've matured, I realize that the loss of the multitude of innocent would be too great to bear for a cleansing of the few meek devils that control the masses. Changing the world from an individual perspective can start high or low. When it comes down to what I'd want to do to step up to the plate, I'd rather see small, local changes. There is no need to make large statements of change to a wide audience who have differing opinions. A small group or committee can set ideals for their own community and decide on what's best. I suppose the Government is always trying to apply this rule from Federal - Provincial - Municipal. Does it work? Do we have to break it down further into neighbourhoods and smaller communities? I like community initiatives.

A sense of belonging goes a long way into developing a sense of the world, which in turn, helps (or hinders) making the world better. Being of Asian decent, traveling throughout Asia and living there gave me a tremendous feeling of home and belonging that I've tried to feel in Canada. The mono-culture of the Asian countries made me feel welcome and at the same time, there was a great curiousity for the "foreign" devils and their culture. My respect for other cultures GREW by being in a smaller community. I saw a different way of life that did not clash with my way of life. It also made me very proud of my own heritage. It made me wish that everyone could feel this way. There was no conflict of the self in my case. I was in japan and their culture was different than Canadian culture but while I was living there, I did not feel imposed to follow their culture. In fact, I was encouraged to express my own. Would that be possible in Canada? Can a new person enter our society, be given the right to express their culture in ALL aspects of their lives and yet maintain a functional role in society? I'm feeling that less and less.

At my current job, one of the first pieces of advice I received was that I was a big round ball and when I go to work, I have to take that ball and squish and cut away until I'm in a box. The next thing I was told was to "think outside the box." This did not make much sense to me. I had to be in the box to be accepted to think outside of it. I've spent the last 4 months thinking inside the box; my future in my current career path is fading away, unless I think outside the box that I've worked so hard to get in to.

The beautiful thing about writing is I can always change subjects halfway through a rant and rant about something else. In order to try to avoid that, I'm going to cut myself out. I'm showing you all a picture of my basement that I've been working hard to fix. Aha! I changed my mind, you can see my bike that I ride to work AND the new flooring at the same time.

Jamis commuter

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Free Geek

nobody@vox.com(VeryScaryCarnival) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 23:10:27 -0700

Here's a little story.
Once upon a time I had a computer and it ran on windows 95 well into 2003. Then I moved and the computer was put in a storage shed for 3 years. When the computer was plugged back in (after said 3 years), it fired up but, alas, it could no longer find its operating system. I know this because I got a big blue screen saying, "CAN NOT FIND OPERATING SYSTEM!!!"
Anyway, I don't know where the system went and even though there is probably a really easy solution to this problem I am donating the whole stinking thing (printer and all) to FREE GEEK. Perhaps you have some computer stuff you could take there too? Check out the website for a Free Geek near you!

What is Free Geek? Watch this movie.

Isn't that kid the cutest thing ever?

Free Geek Vancouver | Ethical Computer Recycling for Vancouver

http://freegeekvancouver.org/

Your old computer equipment goes directly into our volunteer programs. Even while it's being evaluated, people are learning to identify computer parts. Reuseable hardware furnishes computers for volunteers and non-profits. If your equipment has to be recycled, we'll do it as locally and sustainably as possible. Read about our Principles.

Recycle a computer? Why would I want to do that?

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