Monday, April 22, 2013

Happy Earth Day! Close Your Local Coal Plant!



(Thanks to Informed Comment by Juan Cole.  Here's a quote from this post for those whose
compu-traptions (i.e., laptops, desktops, tablets, cell phones, etc.) can't do videos :
The single most important thing you can do for the earth is call your utility company and pressure them not to use coal, and lobby your city to develop its own solar installations, and put solar panels on your roof.
Close all the 600 coal plants in the United States and you’d dramatically reduce our 500 billion metric tons a year of CO2 emissions. (The supposed good news that our emissions have fallen from 6 to 5 billion metric tons annually is laughable, since 3, 4, or 5 billion tons a year will still radically alter the earth. We need to get it down to sustainable levels and hydrocarbons like natural gas cannot do that!)
Environmentalists should think strategically. As bad as a tar sands pipeline might be, coal plants are far, far worse. We should put all our eggs in one basket and target coal for extinction within a decade.
The solar industry already employs more workers than are in the coal mines.
Every day a trainload of coal goes through my neighborhood on its way to the power plant that heats the US Capitol bldgs.  Our b'loved Congresscritters like their comforts.

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Earth Day/Hemp Day, Legalizing Marijuana for Mother Earth

Earth Day/Hemp Day, Legalizing Marijuana for Mother Earth

Today is 4/20 or Hemp Day, and this post from Bruce Margolin, a prominent Democrat and marijuana attorney who ran for Congress from California's Disttrict 33 last year (and lost to Rep. Harry Waxman, D.) has much information about hemp.  If given a chance and planted by farmers, hemp may save Mother Earth on many counts.

Here are some of Margolin's essay's salient points:


Some Major Environmental Benefits of Growing Hemp:
  • Fast and robust growth: Hemp grows extremely fast and can be grown in any climate, in any agronomic system
  • No herbicides/pesticides required: Hemp can be grown with no (or little) herbicides, fungicides, pesticides, or other biocides.
  • Suppresses weeds: Hemp is a natural weed suppressor due to the fast growth of the canopy. Actually, hemp is a weed. Because it grows so fast and densely, it blocks out sunlight to other weeds that are trying to grow.
  • Improves soil structure: Due to it’s long roots, hemp replenishes soil with nutrients and nitrogen and helps control erosion of topsoil. Also, once harvested, any residue can act as an eco-friendly manure.
  • Hemp produces lots of oxygen: Hemp produces the same amount of oxygen while it’s growing that it would use in carbon dioxide if burned as a fuel. Also, due to it’s leaf/root ratio (this can often be 10% roots vs 30% leaves), hemp can produce between 20% – 40% more oxygen than will be polluted.
  • Cleans up pollution: Hemp can actually clean up toxins from the ground. This process is called phytoremediation. A good example of this is when hemp was used to help clean up the Chernobyl nuclear disaster site to remove radioactive elements from the ground.
  • Hemp can be used to minimize deforestation.
  • Hemp can produce paper and home building supplies.
  • Hemp can reduce global warming by substituting for both diesel and petroleum.


Monday, April 15, 2013

Obama Joins the Club

Obama Joins the Club  (click this to read William Rivers Pitt's brilliant column in today's Truthout).

Thanks, Mr. Preznit!  Thanks one heck of a lot--for nothing.  How did you trick us into voting for you?  Was it your beautiful, brilliant wife and two cute daughters and the White House garden?  Was it your PROMISES, which we now know were worth spit?  Your oratory, which compared with GWB's, dazzled us into thinking you were smart and cared about us?

You can go to you-know-where, and please don't come back any time soon.  Stay out of the mess you've created until we have a chance to fix it and restore the honor of the Democratic Party.



Friday, April 12, 2013

Thoughts for the Day!

I've always loved Rob Brezhny's "Free Will Astrology," still available in the Village Voice and other enjoyable publications.  Here's what he says today for my moon sign:
Here are three of our deepest spiritual aspirations, which we invite you to steal for your own use: 1. to develop the capacity to thrive in the midst of raging contradictions; 2. to be discerning as we protect ourselves from people's flaws while at the same time being generous as we celebrate their beauty; 3. to refrain from dividing the world into two groups, those who help and agree with us and those who don't. 

The preceding oracle comes from my book, PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings

Two More Pix of Jack!!

Here's two more photos of our newest golden boy! One by himself in his Swee'pea garb and one with his mom, Laura.  Lookit that spikey little hair!  Mom looks exceptionally wonderful, considering she's not had any sleep for 3 nights!  Those Scottish women are strong!!



Wednesday, April 10, 2013

4th Generation, continued....Here's Jack!

Welcome, wee Jack!  We're all very relieved and thrilled that your mom got through two+ days of labor and pronounced you "perfect."  Some of us think you've got a perfect name for a tough little lad, too.   Congratulations Laura & Sean!  Wow.  The fambly's growing!  Lennox last month, and now Jack.




There's a pink silk dress in the archives that I was saving for a great-granddaughter, but you can't have it. And I doubt, in their exhausted state, that your parents or your aunt & uncle in Chicago will be rushing to fill the gap any time soon (if ever).  


Tuesday, April 09, 2013

Please welcome Sheepy Lady!

The cheerful woman behind the blog Sheepy Lady works harder than many people.  She not only has four kids and a farm with sheep and a few horses, she also teaches school, works at Home Depot part-time, and does felting.  Anyway, there's a link to her blog in "Blogs I Love" that runs down the right side of this page.  We both participate in Daily Challenge, which is this wacky health website.  We've made several Daily Challenge pacts together, more than half of which we've completed!  XE welcomes her happy presence.  One of my granddaughters, Annie, enjoyed tending a lamb at a summer camp to which her parents sent her several years ago.  She was not enthusiastic about the whole thing at first, but the lamb won her over and bleated piteously when Annie had to leave at camp's end.  I was fascinated by all the sheep in Scotland, too--they even browsed on the roadsides in some places.  And Peggy's friend Et (now deceased, R.I.P.) showed us their newborn lamb triplets!  (Photo coming if I can get my new scanner to scan!)

Monday, April 08, 2013

Let's us get rid of coal, too!

Train tracks run beside the metro tracks at the end of our parking area, and pretty soon this morning, I'll hear a long freight train rumble past.  The cars will be loaded with COAL, and they'll be on their way to the power plant that heats the buildings of the U.S. Congress.  Imagine trying to get Congress to get rid of coal power!  Mentally, they're still using candles & kerosene lanterns to illuminate their proceedings.  (Thanks to Juan Cole for this and related information today.)


Sunday, April 07, 2013

Saturday, April 06, 2013

Yay, Vets!!

Juan Cole has this video clip on his blog today.  There were NO WMDs, and the Iraqis had their country smashed for no reason other than El Busho & Co's desire to start a war and get more oil.  These good-hearted vets show the best of America.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Meanwhile.....

Water also is a source of contention between Israel & Palestine.  Israel does not hold any moral high ground in this, as indicated in this video clip posted today in Juan Cole's blog, Informed Comment.  

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Papa Francisco

"On March 15, the NYTimes had this wonderful article:  "God Is an Argentine."  Why not?

The new pope seems to be drenched in the milk of human kindness, save for his early training
and practice.  It does make me nervous when I see the video clips of him kissing all those little babies, though.  I picture the little runny noses, and I hope Papa Francisco does not catch a cold!!

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/15/opinion/god-is-an-argentine.html?smid=pl-share

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Monday, March 18, 2013

Buon Pranza!

Guess who's coming to lunch at the Vatican today??   President Christina Fernandez de Kirchner!  She's been the president of Argentina since 2007, when her husband, former President Nestor Kirchner, died.  She was reelected in 2011.  She has had her battles with the Pope when he was cardinal of Buenos Aires (she said his position on same-sex marriage was "medieval"), and she lectured France's Sarkozy when he complained about her position toward the euro. She said she doubted he had one cent of Argentine pesos in his banks.  Wouldn't you love to be a mouse in the corner today when she meets the new Pope Francis??  Maybe she'll twitter about it? (CFKArgentina)


Thursday, March 14, 2013

Some Pope! The Cardinals Have Outdone Themselves.



Since when is active participation in a "dirty war" a qualification for the "spiritual" leader of the RCC?

First week!!



Isn't that a sweet, peaceful, interested little fellow??  He's enjoying his world!!  That must be dad holding him--notice the tattoo.....

Mom has been doing a fabulous job for all those long months (well, they're more into weeks now, but e'en so, they add up)!  Now that he's here, she's measuring intake & output, even.  A true nurse!