Ray Barbier

July 26, 2010

Global Warming And The Responsible Approach We Should Choose.

Global warming seems to be a very complicated issue now days, One scientists will say that man is to blame, one will say that its caused by external forces and the natural warming trend while one scientist will say its all hogwash. I think the scientists think the average Joe is not smart enough to figure it all out on his own. Any person can figure out if you keep pumping smoke and toxic chemicals into the atmosphere and pollute the water sources that eventually there will be some hell to pay. Deforestation and greenhouse gases are changing the ecosphere and there is no way any scientist can deny that. Of course they can spit out different percentiles of mankind’s contribution to this problem from one extreme to the other. The scientists arguments I hear now days on the news and on other programs about global warming kind of reminds me of the scientists that once said tobacco products were not addictive or harmful. Of course these were cigarette company paid scientists and that may have influenced those scientists findings.

Global warming is a fact and that mankind is playing a role in it is also a fact. The percentage we contribute both directly and indirectly really doesn’t matter. What matters is the fact we are influencing our environment in a defiantly negative way. We need to make changes to how we do things and how we see our home planet earth. The changes will have to be both sustainable and reasonably executed. To stop using coal as a source of energy may have to become a reality just not overnight. We need to phase out the environmentally damaging industries and make sure we build more eco-friendly alternatives at the same time to keep people in work and the lights on per se.

Sometimes people do not see the economical damage that a swift shutdown of all environmentally harmful industries could be. We need to be responsible in the change over as much as we need to be in finding feasible solutions to the current problems at hand. To replace the coal power plants with wind, hydro and solar power plants before shutting them down and make sure the green jobs get placed in the coal mining areas to give coal miners jobs as the mines close down is the responsible approach we should choose.

Coal is not the only fuel source we need to eventually leave behind us, the oil based fossil fuels are also on the list to be dumped eventually as technology allows. Some alternatives such as bio diesel , hydrogen, propane and electric powered vehicles are yet to be perfected but are getting closer each year. Once again this will bring some economical heart ships if we do not do the switch over responsibly. There is always the working man to think about when we make drastic changes in industry and energy. Oil will not be a easy change over since allot of oils byproducts are a part of almost every industry due to plastics, chemicals and even aspirin.

Plastics can be made from plants but far as how versatile the plant based plastics are I myself am not sure as of this post. I do know sun chips is using plant based plastics in their chip bags and besides the noise factor they seem to be just as good as regular plastic based bags. All I know is there should be allot of thought put into the subject of global warming and green technologies.

Well That’s my 2 cents worth anyway.

Peace

July 22, 2010

Responsibility

Responsibility, the one thing most of us either avoid or try to deflect to others. For every action you take and every thought you have had you are solely responsible for any outcome and or result from said actions and thoughts. Each person has free will and therefore must be responsible for the choices they make. Being responsible is to accept the blame and the credit for what you have done and for the results from your actions. If you go through life blaming others for your own mistakes you will never learn to overcome the faults within yourself.

To be responsible for your actions and thoughts is not to beat yourself up over past mistakes, it is to recognize that you have made those mistakes and to try and learn from the experience. It also means you should try and make up for those mistakes if not repair some of the damage caused by them. Once you have accepted responsibility and did what you could to make amends for your mistakes then it is time to forgive yourself for the mistakes made and remember them so not to repeat them.

We also can be responsible for things when we chose not to act, because when you choose not to act you also are taking an action by ignoring the problem at hand. We are also responsible for any influence we have on the actions others may do, So the words you speak and the words you write can influence others. Just remember to think before you speak or write and you should not have any worries about being a negative influence.

All of this is not to be seen as an attempt to make anyone feel guilty, This is more to try and get those who read it to think about their actions, thoughts and words. If only the companies,press/media and the governments of this world would take responsibility for their own words, thoughts and actions then maybe we would be able to live in a better world than we do now.

July 15, 2010

Turning the Tide – Conservation International (CI)

http://www.conservation.org/oceans
Life on our planet originated in the sea; today, the oceans continue to provide countless benefits for all life on Earth. Watch CI’s marine video to learn just how much we owe to these vast habitats, and why we must act to save them before its too late.

July 15, 2010

The Forest Connection – Conservation International

July 15, 2010

Some US National Parks Threatened by Gulf Oil Spill

July 15, 2010

BP Fixing Leak During Containment Cap Test

Oil company BP says it is fixing a leak in a so-called "choke line" leading to one of the shut-off valves of the new cap designed to plug its spilling Gulf of Mexico oil well.Company officials said late Wednesday their engineers had "isolated" the leak and would move ahead with testing of the new containment cap once the repairs were complete. The test involves closing all the valves to determine if the cap can effectively contain the massive leak, or if oil is flowing from another part of the well.

BP began the tests Wednesday, after a day-long delay imposed by the U.S. government who wanted time for further analysis to ensure its safety. U.S. National Incident Commander Thad Allen said officials took about 24 hours to review the plans for the test.Allen has said that if the new cap can maintain high pressure readings over an extended period – six to 48 hours – it could fully contain the leaking oil. If pressure readings are too low, he said it could mean there is damage to the well shaft underneath the sea bed.

The new cap was installed Monday on the damaged well head about 1.6 kilometers below the Gulf’s surface.BP’s Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles said earlier that government scientists raised concerns that the tests of the new cap could damage the well shaft.
In an interview with CNN, Suttles said damaged liners within the well shaft could cause oil to leak underground. On Wednesday, BP, as a precaution, suspended work for two days on relief wells intended to permanently seal the damaged oil well underground.
Suttles said that oil production ships on the surface are continuing to collect and burn off oil leaking from the well.

The oil leak began after the April 20 explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, which killed 11 crewmen. The disaster has fouled vast expanses of the U.S. Gulf coast, killed birds and sea life and devastated the region’s fishing and tourism. BP officials said, as of Monday, the leak has already cost the company some $3.5 billion.

Photo provided by BP America under Creative Commons Licence (by-nc-nd 3.0)
Article is from Voice of America News voanews.com and is in the public domain

Links

Photo Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bpamerica/4694347276/
Article Source: http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/BP-Fixing-Isolated-Leak-During-Containment-Cap-Test–98489439.html

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July 15, 2010

Iran Gives Hero’s Welcome to Nuclear Scientist

Iran gave a hero’s welcome to nuclear researcher Shahram Amiri, Thursday, on his return home. Iran alleges that he was abducted by the United States, a claim that Washington strenuously denies.
Amiri had spent more than a year in the United States, at one point saying in a video posting that he was studying in Arizona of "his own volition."

Iranian government television has played a series of webcam interviews with him in recent weeks, each containing new and conflicting tales about his alleged abduction in Saudi Arabia, last year.
Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton denied the charges, saying that he was "free to leave," as he had been "free to come," in the first place.

At a news conference Thursday, in the company of Deputy Foreign Minister Hassan Qashghavi, Amiri repeated allegations he had made before leaving Washington:
He says that, during his initial two months in the United States, he had been subjected to harsh mental and physical torture by agents and interrogators from the CIA. He goes on to claim that the purpose of his alleged abduction was to discredit Iran and its nuclear program.

During an interview with Iranian TV from the Pakistani Embassy in Washington Tuesday, Amiri alleged that he had been kidnapped in the Saudi city, Medina, after accepting a ride to a mosque. He also claimed to have been given an injection, before being flown out of the country.

In his news conference, Amiri spoke of being interrogated by "Israeli agents" and complained that his laptop had been seized and searched for information. He kept the rest of his story vague, promising to reveal more information, later:
He says that, God willing, he will prove everything he has said and prove that it is American officials who are lying.
Iranian officials have repeatedly complained, during the past year, that Amiri had been kidnapped while on a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia. Amiri’s case also came up frequently when the United States pressed Iran about the capture and detention of three young American hikers in Iraqi Kurdistan.

Deputy Foreign Minister Qashghavi insisted Thursday that the two cases are not related:
Several Iranian commentators, who live in exile in the West, argued Wednesday on al Arabiya TV that Amiri’s family had come under pressure from the government and had been threatened with an "ugly fate" if he did not return home.
Thursday’s Washington Post reports several American officials say Amiri had been paid $5 million to provide information to the United States on Iran’s nuclear program.

Source: voanews.com

Original Article on VOA News

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July 13, 2010

Grow Your Own Organic Foods in a Garden

A good and healthier way to reduce your carbon footprint is to grow your own organic foods in a garden / orchard. The food you grow yourself will taste better and will not require the fuel to transport it or the fuels used to make the pesticides. Being organic it will not have the poisonous pesticides on and in them and will be higher in nutrition due to the fact of the soil wasn’t depleted of nutrients from over farming. A simple garden requires a bit of work but is quite worth it and
if you can your own vegetables and fruits you can keep from having to buy much produce.

When you are forced to buy produce due to the inability to grow a vegetable or fruit due to climate or other factors then try to buy them as organic and when in season. Buying them in season and from as local as a source as you can will reduce the fuels required to transport them. The organic choice is not only healthier but due to the fact no pesticides are used reduces the fuels used in creating and transporting the pesticides.

Here are a few good articles on Gardening

Vegetables Gardening – Profiles, Growing Tips and Ideas – About.com
How to Prepare an Organic Vegetable Garden – ehow.com

Here are a few good articles on Home Canning/freezing etc.

USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, 2009 revision
All About Home Canning*, Freezing and Making Jams and Jellies

Example Video from YouTube

July 13, 2010

Local News | Simple steps reduce carbon footprints | Seattle Times Newspaper

Check out this article on Seattle Times, it shows how to reduce your carbon footprint.
Excerpt: “ From the street, the house looks like any other in this quiet North Seattle neighborhood. But something different is going on here.The trash container at the curb is not much bigger than a shoebox. And inside the house, at 7:15 on a weekday morning, all the lights are off. It’s not because no one’s home “

Click link below to read full article
Local News | Simple steps reduce carbon footprints | Seattle Times Newspaper

July 13, 2010October 14, 2012

Though it’s Late in The Game We Can Make Choices and Changes

Common Sense tells us our garbage and the burning of any fossil fuel creates a toxic environment for both mankind and our fellow inhabitants of earth. Our wasteful and somewhat lazy lifestyle is effecting not only our environment but also our lifespan. Pharmacology can only slow the decline of our health and the mortality rate. The morbid truth is Mankind’s choices and actions is leading to the extinction of both himself and his fellow creatures. The good news is that though it’s late in the game we can make choices and changes that could slow down if not reverse the damage we cause. Simple things like using a water filter versus buying water in plastic bottles or use plant based plastics like the popular snack Sun Chips has done.

Even something as easy as changing your old standard light bulbs for the newer florescent type can save enough energy to reduce some of the carbon footprint made by power plants. Every single one of us are responsible for the upkeep and wellbeing of this planet we live on. Though a little more expensive glass is a far better container for soft drinks and other beverages, also glass is quite recyclable and isn’t as bad for the environment. Though Styrofoam is far better in its thermal properties versus paper, but Styrofoam is far worse for the environment. Even though paper plates and cups do impact trees if we replant what we cut down and recycle what we use it would have a smaller impact on the environment. Using real dishes is the ideal solution but then who wants to take real dishes to a picnic?

There is so many ways to make changes in our lifestyles to help preserve and repair our home called earth. So I leave it up to you to find the better ways and get the news out there. If you know of any ideas to help others make a positive impact on the environment feel free to leave a comment.

Peace