Whose Eyes Were Opened More By A President Obama?

Just having my coffee and watching a little morning Joe, and they were just talking about how this is a historic day because, among other things, the first black American has become President. They made the point that this changes how every black child or parent looks at what they can do in life now. I would agree on both points, but, I would also add that this changes the way white Americans think as much as black Americans think.

If we look at things only by the numbers, black Americans could not alone vote in a black candidate. So who is the one that didn't think a black American could be President? I would say, President Obama has changed the way white America thinks more than the way black America thinks. He may have made black America more proud and confident then they were a year ago or 10 years ago, but he isn't the first black that woke up one day and said I want to be President of The United States, and he certainly won't be the last. I guarantee, that there were as many white Americans, right or wrong, who woke up one Wednesday morning in November 2008 and said, he actually did it?

So let's forget the color of my skin, your skin and President Obama's skin, and let's worry about the colors that matters in America right now, red, white and blue! We need people of all colors, backgrounds and status to come together and fix the huge issues that are ahead for our Country.

Colbert Line Of The Night

"Is off shore drilling the solution to the oil shortage? It's definitely the solution to our whale surplus"

I've Only Been Saying This For 5 Years

But it is nice to see that the MSM and not just a nobody like me finally has the courage to say it.

(NYT)Who knows how long it will be before the U.S. disengages in any significant way from Iraq. What you can take to the bank is that this country will not make any major advances in energy policy, in health coverage, in rebuilding its infrastructure, in improving its public schools or in curtailing runaway public and private debt until our open-ended commitment to this catastrophic multitrillion-dollar war comes to an end.

And let's not forget that Iraq has severely limited what our military could do in Afghanistan, where the real terrorists are. Not to mention our response capabilities, say if Russia or China decided to play USA and invade a country full of natural resources.

A little more planning and a little less gut reaction would have done this country well over the last 7 years.

SCOTUS Folds To Big Oil

I guess big oil has friends on The Supreme Court too. While Justice Alito was recused cause he owns stock in Exxon, it appears that others on the court are as unwilling to stand up to big oil as the Congress is. I am so glad our government is by the people for the people.

Sportsmen Speak Out Against Climate Change

Over 600 hunting and fishing organizations have set their sites on Congress and their lack of policies regarding the environment.

“America’s sportsmen have a special connection to the outdoors, and for that reason we are on the front lines of global warming,” said Larry Schweiger, President & CEO, National Wildlife Federation. “It has been impossible to ignore the changes happening before our eyes – you don’t need to be a scientist to feel that something is seriously wrong. As a grandfather who looks forward to a time when I can fish with my grandson, I strongly believe we must work together to preserve America’s sporting traditions for our children’s future.”(h/t TP)

Nothing To See With The Climate Here

Other than 60+ degree temperatures in January, in Chicago. And never mind the tornado too.

Why Al Gore Shouldn't Run For President

First of all, congratulations to Al Gore for winning the Nobel. With that said, PLEASE don't run for President! Why you ask? Well, it's the very thing he won the Nobel for, the environment!

Whether you agree with him or not, he has brought a great deal of attention to this topic. After all, Galileo took a lot of criticism for contradicting Aristotle. Eventually, the geocentric mentality went bye bye. Mainly because Galileo didn't give up doing what he was doing, and that is why Al Gore shouldn't give up doing what he is doing. And while I would vote for him, since I did once already, I am afraid that the issue of the environment will get lost if he were to get elected.

The environment is a big enough issue for Al Gore to deal with by itself, he doesn't need to get involved in the mess known as the United States Congress! Besides, they are too busy going after political pundits!

The NASA Two Step

This is why politicizing agencies is not in the best interest of the American people. I bet you can pick out the statement by the political nominee from that of the NASA scientist.

Even "moderate additional" greenhouse emissions are likely to push Earth past "critical tipping points" with "dangerous consequences for the planet,"

Or

"I have no doubt that a trend of global warming exists, I am not sure that it is fair to say that it is a problem we must wrestle with."

Is Harriet Meyers leading NASA now?

They're Back

While some have already been spotted around the suburbs, tomorrow is the "official" day for the Cicadas to come out of the ground.

(ABC 7 Chicago) Cicadas spend 17 years underground feeding on tree roots. When ready to make an arrival, they construct exit tunnels to the surface. For people who have never seen a cicada, naturalist Dan Spencer is conducting a cicada class at the Trailside Museum Nature Center.

Wal-Mart Trying Solar

For all the crap I give Wal-Mart, and rightly deserved, this is something that they need to be applauded for trying.

(Red Herring) Wal-Mart, the retail chain purveyor of ultra-cheap goods, announced Monday it has contracted to buy solar energy to power nearly two dozen of its stores and distribution centers in Hawaii and California.

If all goes well, solar energy providers BP Solar, SunEdison, and SunPower subsidiary, PowerLight, will supply a total of 20 million kilowatt-hours per year to 22 stores, supercenters, Sam’s Clubs and distribution centers, the company said. Wal-Mart said the systems could reduce greenhouse gas emissions that would otherwise be spewed from power plant smokestacks by up to 10,000 metric tons a year.

It's going to take companies like Wal-Mart to start a trend. They almost are the guinea pig. But if this is successful, it could only help.

Giuliani's Texas Ties Questionable

I guess if you don't believe in climate change, then you won't have any issue with this. But for those of us that believe the climate is changing, and that humans are playing a part of it, Giuliani's ties from the law firm that bears his name should raise some questions.

(NY Times) That affiliation adds to Mr. Giuliani’s personal wealth but also could pose political risks for him. The firm is perhaps the nation’s most aggressive lobbyist for coal-fired power plants, heavy emitters of air pollutants and carbon dioxide, a gas associated with global warming. Environmentalists say the firm played a significant role in persuading the Bush administration to roll back major provisions of the Clean Air Act.
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Most significantly, perhaps, the law firm is one of the higher-profile defenders of the oil, gas and energy industries, to which it provides legal help and extensive lobbying services in Washington. It is difficult to say just how much of Mr. Giuliani’s contributions from those industries stem from his affiliation with Bracewell, but employees of companies in those sectors, including several Bracewell clients, have contributed more than $400,000 to Mr. Giuliani’s campaign so far.

Soon he is going to be painted as too liberal for the right and too conservative for the left. The race for the Republicans hasn't heard from the winner yet.

Fighting Climate Change Is Like Fighting The Nazis

So says Prince Charles.

(USA TODAY/AP) The environmentalist prince told a business conference at his St. James's Palace residence that "the crisis of climate change is far too urgent and discussion simply isn't enough."

"I do not want my children and grandchildren, or anyone for that matter, saying to me, 'Why didn't you do something when it was possible to make a difference and when you knew what was happening?'" he said.

"We can do it, just think what they did in the last war. Things that seemed impossible were achieved almost overnight."

EPA In No Rush

Even after the Supreme Court ruled that the EPA must regulate carbon dioxide, when asked how he would respond, EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson said he was not going to be "rushed" into making a decision.

(AP) The legal argument has been settled and "now there's is an unmistakable green light to take action now," Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., the committee's chairman, told Johnson: "There is no excuse for delay."

But Johnson called the court's ruling complex and said he did not want to be tied to a specific timetable.

No rush boys, it's only the planet we are talking about.

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earthday 2007!

Newt On Board With Climate Change

And he says the rest of conservatives are hesitant because of big government. Really? So that means that people like Sen James Inhofe are using religion for political gain? Nah, they are the party of morality, they wouldn't do that.

SCOTUS Tells EPA To Act On CO2

In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that the EPA has authority to regulate CO2 because,

(LA Times) In its ruling, the Supreme Court agreed that global warming represented a different kind of air pollution problem. Gases such as carbon dioxide, once released into the atmosphere, "act like a ceiling of a greenhouse, trapping solar energy and retarding the escape of reflected heat," the court said.

The majority opinion, written by Justice John Paul Stevens, said that under the Clean Air Act, the EPA was required to regulate the emission of "any air pollutant" that was likely "to endanger public health or welfare."

He said the word "welfare" was defined broadly to include "effects on the climate and weather."

In scolding the EPA for not moving to regulate greenhouse gases, he said the emissions fit well within the law's definition of air pollutants and that the agency had "the statutory authority to regulate the emission of such gases from new motor vehicles."

However, he does say that the EPA can "avoid" taking action on CO2 and greenhouse gases if they are proven not to contribute to climate change. I wonder what Bush and the loopy Sen. Inhofe will come up with in response to this?

The Power Of The Gavel

Yucca Moutain To Cost $27 Billion

Yucca Mountain, the proposed nuclear waste dump 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, will cost $26.9 billion to build and operate through the year 2023. Of course a nuclear waste dump will have to operate beyond 2023, that cost is estimated to be around $60 billion.

The dump is intended to hold up to 77,000 tons of waste from civilian reactors and military activities.

New Orleans Still Vulnerable

34 heavy duty pumps that are supposed to keep New Orleans safe from a hurricane are still not working properly. What do I mean "still" not working properly?

(CBS/AP) The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, rushing to meet President Bush's promise to protect New Orleans by the start of the 2006 hurricane season, installed defective flood-control pumps last year despite warnings from its own expert that the equipment would fail during a storm, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.

Luckily 2006 wasn't intense, yet those 34 defective pumps still aren't completely fixed. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is again having to rush to try to fix these before this years hurricane season. What are the problems with these pumps you ask?

The pumps are now being pulled out and overhauled because of excessive vibration, Corps officials said. Other problems have included overheated engines, broken hoses and blown gaskets

Evolution Happening Before Our Eyes

I was going to put this in Today's Strange News, but I think it is a little too important for that. Chimpanzees in Africa have been observed making and using spears to hunt prey.

(WaPo) Using their hands and teeth, the chimpanzees were repeatedly seen tearing the side branches off long, straight sticks, peeling back the bark and sharpening one end, the researchers report in Thursday's online issue of the journal Current Biology. Then, grasping the weapon in a "power grip," they jabbed into tree-branch hollows where bush babies — small monkeylike mammals — sleep during the day.

After stabbing their prey repeatedly, they removed the injured or dead animal and ate it, the researchers reported in yesterday's online issue of the journal Current Biology.

The use of sticks by Chimps isn't a new phenomenon according to scientists, it's the fact that they are now using them to hunt that is creating the interest.

The new observations are "stunning," said Craig Stanford, a primatologist and professor of anthropology at the University of Southern California. "Really fashioning a weapon to get food — I'd say that's a first for any non-human animal."

Oh shit, there goes the planet!