on politics

THE POLITICAL BRUHAHA GOES ON this week in St. Paul, Minnesota. This week, like last week, many Americans listed to a lot of rhetoric, politicians telling the American people what they think they want to hear. It's a broad brushing of what they are going to do for us, that same broad brushing that goes away right after the first Tuesday in November.

I'd like to be hopeful about something, but it's difficult. My concern lies in the future: I want to see the planet preserved for generations to come; my tax dollars spent on helping other Americans rather than the world, part of which we have destroyed; a solution to the healthcare crisis; and an opportunity for all Americans to live what was called, when I was young, the American Dream.

My dad -- my moral compass -- taught two very basic lessons both by example and in conversation. First, be nice to others, and they'll be nice to you. On a personal level I have always found this to be true. Sadly, religion against religion, government against government -- our leaders get in the way of us being nice to other citizens of the world. There are misguided zealots and power-hungry take-it-all leaders, but they are the exception, not the norm. I like to think that applies to people in this country, too. The second lesson revolved around working hard to earn a living and be rewarded with a happy life. I work hard. Always have given more than 100% of my energy in any position I've had. Still, I find myself at this rapidly approaching senior citizen age not having enough in this pitiful economy. I work for a terrific startup company, and they do well for us, but I know they have felt the tightening of the belt, too.

So, what will we see come January? Will any of the promises made be fulfilled? I think if 25% of them are, we'll be lucky. What do you think?

on hate

Perhaps you've seen them, or pictures of them, protesting at the funerals -- of military people, people in the news, gays and more -- and other events, holding up signs emblazoned with sayings such as "You're going to hell," "God hates you," "God is your enemy," and one of the worst of them, "God hates fags." They're representatives of that wonderful bastion of family values, the Westboro Baptist Church. The church, founded by Fred Phelps, takes it upon itself to intrude on mourners with their dire messages of hate and warning, thinking they are serving up the word of God as it should be interpreted.

Last week the Winnipeg Free Press, of Winnipeg, Canada, reported Canadian border officials stopped members of Westboro at the US/Canada border, on the way to protest at the funeral of Tim McLean. The Westboro members were determined to protest at McLean's funeral to let the Canadian people know he was murdered on a Greyhound bus as God's response to the hateful Canadian policies enabling abortion, adultery and homosexuality.

Readers will know I'm not Christian. They may not know, though, that I fully support the teachings of Jesus. In my opinion, the greatest of Christ's teachings is that of love and I interpret that teaching to mean loving everyone, without question, even those we may consider enemies.

I have to wonder what will happen to Fred Phelps and his followers when they get to heaven, as after all the Bible teaches: "For if you forgive men for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. "But if you do not forgive men, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions. (NAS, Matthew 6:14-15)

The Bible does teach the only way to heaven is through the acceptance of Christ into your life and through the following of Christian teachings, and I'm certainly not expecting a warm welcome at the pearly gates. Really, that's ok with me -- I like to think I'll be reincarnated, anyway. But what about the Westboro folks? Can hate of someone different than you -- who chooses _not_ to have an unwanted child, who suffers through a young life attracted to the same sex, knowing they are different and wondering if they will ever find acceptance, or who strays from their marriage bed -- be that strong that you feel compelled to hold up signs exhibiting that hate at their funeral, causing all those who are mourning even more pain? Apparently so; the Westboro faithful believe they are following the five points of Calvinism. They firmly believe anyone preaching other than these Calvinist beliefs is a "Hell-bound false prophet."

I don't pretend to know the truth. It may well be that the Christian faith is the only right faith, though I don't really think so. I like to think that Jesus really did teach that you should love your neighbor, and I hope that most of his followers feel the same way.

What's your take?

the end of the day

The sky of our beautiful planet always interests me, whether it be a clear blue of a perfect day, a storm-clouded threat, or filled with fair weather cumulus clouds. Sometimes, though, the sky can take one's breath away.

Just across the desk from where I type is a small window to the world - the window that looks out upon the parking lot of the condo building where I reside. The usual view is a lot of sky, trees, the building across the lot and various vehicles, and the plants just outside the window where butterflies often drop by to feed. I can see storms coming in, birds flying over, and the neighbors come and go.

Most of the time the view is rather mundane, though nature's creatures always tend to brighten my day as they pass the little window. Every once and a while, though, the view catches my eye and insists I grab the camera and step outside the door. Last evening's sunset was one such occasion. In the window's frame were altocumulus and cirrus clouds tinted with shades of pink and orange.

Camera to hand, and with a call to my husband to join me, I dashed outside to watch the sunset unfold. Words are never sufficient to express the beauty of Mother Nature -- certainly, they can paint a reasonable description, but never really fill the mind's eye with the spectacular sight. Our neighbor came out to see what we were doing and for just a minute appreciated the beauty of the sky, too, before beginning to chat with us.

One of the photos I shot is attached. As always, I am in awe of the beauty that surrounds us. We often forget nature as we go through our busy days, and it seems to me our focus on work, the accumulation of things and what goes on inside the walls around us is often more important than sustaining the beauty and environment of our spinning blue and green globe.

Sometimes, you just have to stop what you're doing and step out into nature. It is key to who and what we are.

catch the wind...

Almost every morning, before starting the work day, I can be found looking for enviro-centric news to share with others who share my interests in alternate, renewable resource development and preserving precious bits of nature for future generations.

Given the ever-increasing interest in wind turbine development and wind farming as evidenced by the growing numbers over at the Pickens Plan community, it was a pleasant surprise to read, in today's New York Times, of a renewed interest in the restoration of old windmills in the Netherlands.

While these beautiful old structures grind grain rather than produce energy, it was interesting to learn the rapid changes in the Netherlands due to immigration and ever-advancing globalization have caused many of the Dutch people to look toward a return to their roots.

Additionally, it seems the slow food movement may play a part in this as well, as there seems to be a resurgence of interest in traditional food and drink. A baker indicated the windmill-ground grains used in his product produce a bread with a fuller, richer flavor.

In a world where we go ever faster and grow more and more connected, it was a treat to read about the restoration of the beautiful old testaments to Dutch ingenuity. It seems there is a value to be found in early technology, after all.

thinking, researching, going beyond the topline...

Perhaps it's time to talk about a subject near and dear to my heart - thinking. Odd thought, says you? Perhaps, but here's why.

Many of us spend a lot of time on this thing called the Internet. Some of us for fun, some based on a specific agenda, others to earn a living (like me!) and those who simply read and watch from the privacy of their homes.

There are a lot of sources and possibilities - way too many to count. You can Google, check out Wikipedia, look for groups formed around a particular issue, surf the blogosphere for points of view and even visit that great, modern amalgam of links to all things newsworthy, Alltop (thanks Guy K!); all these things can inform your opinion. But, therein is the crux - while they can inform your opinion, it's critical they don't create your opinion. To do that, you must think.

Sure, it's easy to hop aboard the popular opinion of the day and adopt it as your own. Can you speak about the opinion knowledgeably? Do you understand the underlying facts and issues behind that opinion? What are the pros and cons?

Recently I've jumped on what I hope will be an ever-faster moving train, the Pickens Plan. I listened to several people who said Pickens was missing the point, that other sources - solar, geo-thermal, hydrogen - need to be part of the equation. They are, one has to just look below the surface and pretty pictures of wind turbines. A compadre asked that I look at some of the underlying reasoning for why Pickens is pushing the plan - to gain further land rights, which will help him in an effort to create a water pipeline from the Texas panhandle into the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. As I'm sure water scarcity will, at some point in the future, create a lot of battles for water rights, I find this a bit disconcerting. Realistically, I knew in my heart this oil man hadn't suddenly found himself altruistic. However, as a firm believer in working toward the development and use of alternative, renewable power sources and applications, after consideration I still deem Pickens plan to be a viable one, and, more importantly, something which stands a chance at real grass roots support, and one has potential to get the American people unified in the goal to release us from the bonds of MidEast oil.

I simply attempt to illustrate, above, that there was thought behind my decision to join Pickens and his plan. As I grow older, I try to put careful thought behind all important decisions. The time for following the crowd is long past, at least for me. It is my hope that others might feel the same way.

There are many thoughtful, intelligent, creative, hard-working people in America. We deserve, based upon our contributions, better than what we're getting from a government run by self-serving corporations, particularly when so many of them are guided by that barrel of oil.

Think about it.

saving gas, one drop at a time

As I drive around town - and, admittedly, it's less and less these days - I am continually amazed by those who tear past me to the next stop light in a rush to get there from here, those who take off like the proverbial bat out of hell from a stop, and those who wait til the last possible minute and step hard on the brake pedal.

Certainly they are finding the cost of a fill up as painful as I do - aren't they?

There are simple techniques everyone can use to get the most out of a gallon of gas. Slow acceleration, gradual stopping, and driving highways at 55 rather than 65, 70 or faster can prevent reducing your mileage by up to 33% on highways and 5% around town. Do you really need to be there in such a hurry?

Keep tires inflated to the proper pressure and the vehicle well-tuned. Remove that excess weight. Stuck at a light you know to be ridiculously long? Turn off the engine if it's safe. Using cruise control, which keeps the vehicle at a constant speed, helps to save gas. Be sure to replace the air filter regularly, and use the recommended grade of oil.

Plan your trips in a circuitous manner, and try to make as many right turns, so as to avoid waiting for lights, as possible. Careful planning, to minimize trips to the grocery, bank and other errands, will keep pennies in your pocket, rather than in the gas tank.

Lastly, get onboard actions supporting alternative fuel sources. The solution to the current gasoline pinch isn't digging for more oil, but rather finding ways to reduce our dependence on it by encouraging and supporting the development of alternative fuel sources. My pet project currently is the Pickens Plan. It's not the only answer, but it is a big step, and we can use as many efforts to create alternative power sources as possible.

overfishing

LAST EVENING, AN NBC NEWS STORY brought it home with one simple question... how many pounds of seafood are taken from our oceans every day? The answer simply blew me away. One-half a billion pounds. 

Fishing methodology has a lot to do with it. Bottom trawling can "reel in" many species that should have stayed in the water. Globally, fishing fleets are much larger than is necessary to take in fish and other species, particularly as to what the oceans can sustainably support. Consider this... according to the group overfishing.org, globally the fishing fleet is large enough to cover four Earth-like planets!

According to one source on the NBC news program on the subject, 90% of the large fish are gone. The most serious of these is one of the world's favorites, the bluefin tuna. 52% of the world's fish stocks are fully exploited, says overfishing.org - they are at their maximum sustainable production level. 17% are over exploited, with 7% depleted.

What can we do? Education about the issue is the first step. 

Refrain from eating those fish you know to be in danger. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has a good guide on the subject, here. 

Contact  your governmental representatives and talk up the issue. Remember to mention that habitat protection is one of the keys, and that fishermen and fleets need to be monitored -- fine those who violate the laws, making it uneconomic to cheat. 

Tell your friends. Ask them to jump onboard. 

I'd like to think I will still be able to eat tuna 20 years from now. Wouldn't you?