A collection of ideas, letters, opinions, and inspiration. On freedom, on Generation X, modern society, the ethereal dance of the unconquered mind (ok, that's the name of a photo exhibit in San Jose, but it's nifty sounding), the Democratic Party, how much rock and roll and the web will fuel activism, things worth chronicling, things we can improve, and the future.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Cheaper battery power heralds electric car - UPI.com
Big time grooviness! And ups to Envia! This is SUPER news....
"...Envia Systems, which says it achieved world record energy density for lithium-ion batteries at half the price, outlined reasons that make affordable mass-market electric vehicles "dramatically closer to commercialization...."
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Food security, a fundamental responsibility of the state - The Economic Times
Super sustainability and forward-thinking planning for balance needed here.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Report: 25% More U.S. Children Now Living in Poor Areas
Disproportionate earnings and widening class division - not sustainable. Bad news.
"New figures show the number of U.S. children living in poor neighborhoods has increased 25 percent since the turn of the century. The Annie E. Casey Foundation reports eight million children lived in poor communities in 2010, a 1.6 million increase from 2000. In a reflection of the stagnating wages for most American workers, three-quarters of those children had at least one parent working a job."
U.S. Agencies See No Move by Iran to Build a Bomb - NYTimes.com
Let's hope so. But the ambiguous messaging - and their denial of UN inspector access - still smells really bad. As per previous posts, it doesn't compute that they'd enrage international opinion - and risk debilitating sanctions and even attack - just to be coy and ambiguous.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
BBC News - Iran 'bars' IAEA nuclear inspectors from Parchin site
Whoa!!!
This is escalation, right here in not quite slow motion.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Iran says UN inspectors in Tehran will not visit sites, only hold talks with officials - The Washington Post
Iran should feel at danger if they continue to shun the UN and the peacekeeping goals of its agencies.
But threats of pre-emptive action by them is certainly only posturing, because that would be close to a national death sentence.
They must cooperate with the UN. How could this not be seen to be in their best interest?
Two options as I see it: (1) Iran denies the UN full access. Which results in war, debilitating sanctions or eventually both. Hastening serious or complete destruction of their country.
(2) Iran allows full access to the UN. Which allows for peaceful energy production, and good standing and protection by the UN itself.
The Iranian people should be able to vote on this, as it seems the government marches ultimately to option one.
"...The titles of the members of the visiting delegation is not inspectors. This is an expert delegation. The purpose of visit is not inspection,” said Mehmanparast. “The aim is to negotiate about cooperation between Iran and the agency and to set a framework for a continuation of the talks.”
Visits to individual Iranian nuclear sites were also not part of the IAEA earlier visit three weeks ago.
But on Monday, Iranian state radio said the U.N. team had asked to visit the Parchin military complex outside Tehran, a known conventional arms facility that has been suspected as a secret weapons-making location and also to meet Iranian nuclear scientists involved in the country’s controversial program
“Iran’s cooperation with the (IAEA) agency continues and is at its best level,” added Mehmanparast.
Also Tuesday, the deputy head of Iran’s armed forces said that Tehran is ready to take pre-emptive action against its foes if it feels that it is in danger...."
Iran says UN inspectors in Tehran will not visit sites, only hold talks with officials - The Washington Post
Huh? Then why are they going?
Iran is not cooperating with the world governing body on nuclear safety.
This is really not good policy from Iran at this point. Surely they must realize that.
Monday, February 20, 2012
BBC News - Iran nuclear crisis: UN inspectors arrive in Tehran
"The IAEA inspectors described their last visit, in January, as positive, and said Iran was "committed" to "resolving all outstanding issues".
Mr Nackaerts said on Sunday that he hoped to have a "couple of good and constructive days in Tehran".
"Importantly we hope for some concrete results from the trip. The highest priority remains of course the possible military dimensions of Iran's nuclear programme, but we want to tackle all outstanding issues," he said...."
Saturday, February 18, 2012
10 Steps to Smartphone Privacy
Do we really have to work so hard for cell phone privacy?
Apparently so. Read this article.
Should we really have to work so hard for cell phone privacy?
NO!!
Friday, February 17, 2012
Mitsui to pay record fine for Gulf oil spill - Sustainability for Businesses
Businesses must ensure their behavior is accountable and not disruptive of natural ecosystem functioning.
I feel deep oil wells are dangerous, and a temporary at best 'solution' for our energy needs.
Moving away from fossil fuels as they become scarcer and more difficult, dangerous, and costly to extract is job #1.
Moving further into truly clean, renewable energy sources is job #1A.
"This landmark settlement is an important step -- but only a first step -- toward achieving accountability and protecting the future of the Gulf ecosystem by funding critical habitat preservation projects," US Attorney General Eric Holder said in the statement.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Obama Campaign Launches ‘Truth Team’ To Fight GOP Attack Ads
I always like to see the fact checking after debates.
And here I like the truth - hopefully this will get us more truth.
I'm sure this team will be fact checked too.
We can handle - and should have - the truth.
**Severe Conservative Syndrome !
"...Anyone with an Internet connection is aware that Mr. Santorum is best known for 2003 remarks about homosexuality, incest and bestiality. But his strangeness runs deeper than that.
For example, last year Mr. Santorum made a point of defending the medieval Crusades against the “American left who hates Christendom.” Historical issues aside (hey, what are a few massacres of infidels and Jews among friends?), what was this doing in a 21st-century campaign?
Nor is this only about sex and religion: he has also declared that climate change is a hoax, part of a “beautifully concocted scheme” on the part of “the left” to provide “an excuse for more government control of your life.” You may say that such conspiracy-theorizing is hardly unique to Mr. Santorum, but that’s the point: tinfoil hats have become a common, if not mandatory, G.O.P. fashion accessory.
Then there’s Ron Paul, who came in a strong second in Maine’s caucuses despite widespread publicity over such matters as the racist (and conspiracy-minded) newsletters published under his name in the 1990s and his declarations that both the Civil War and the Civil Rights Act were mistakes. Clearly, a large segment of his party’s base is comfortable with views one might have thought were on the extreme fringe.
Finally, there’s Mr. Romney, who will probably get the nomination despite his evident failure to make an emotional connection with, well, anyone. The truth, of course, is that he was not a “severely conservative” governor. His signature achievement was a health reform identical in all important respects to the national reform signed into law by President Obama four years later. And in a rational political world, his campaign would be centered on that achievement.
But Mr. Romney is seeking the Republican presidential nomination, and whatever his personal beliefs may really be — if, indeed, he believes anything other than that he should be president — he needs to win over primary voters who really are severely conservative in both his intended and unintended senses.
So he can’t run on his record in office. Nor was he trying very hard to run on his business career even before people began asking hard (and appropriate) questions about the nature of that career...."
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Ahmadinejad: Iran will soon announce major nuclear achievements - Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News
We were getting close - we needed to hit sanctions harder. See my commentary at left sidebar of this blog.
See Iranian people feeling sanctions in quote below. Perhaps it's not too late, we'll find out.
"But beneath the bombast, strains on Iran’s economy from the sanctions showed further signs of deepening, with the government looking for ways to avoid the use of dollars in international oil trade, new reports of problems importing food, and a Gallup poll that suggested a majority of Iranians were worried about financial pain from the penalties already imposed."
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/09/world/middleeast/iran-defiant-in-face-of-sanctions.html
Protests erupt across Europe against web piracy treaty | Reuters
Surveillance and censorship = no freedom.
Curtail piracy, not freedom.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
L.A. is ranked 2nd statewide in solar energy generating | Environment California
"In the past two years alone, Los Angeles has tripled the amount of solar power that it had installed in the previous 10 years combined," said Michelle Kinman, co-author of "California's Solar Cities 2012: Leaders in the Race Toward a Clean Energy Future," a report from the Environment California Research and Policy Center.
But Kinman added that Los Angeles still has a lot of catching up to do.
"Whereas Santa Rosa and Clovis each have roughly 10 solar installations per 1,000 residents, Los Angeles has only one solar installation per 1,000 residents, illustrating ample opportunity for further growth," she said.
The Associated Press: Obama campaign urges fundraisers to back super PAC
Well, this seems to be a necessary 'evil.'
As the Supreme Court (wrongly) allowed corporate personhood and unlimited spending on elections, Obama would be naive to not fight fire with fire against GOP groups.
I agree super PAC's and unlimited corporate spending on elections is bad. But using them to stay even with the greedy GOP is necessary - until corporate personhood and their unlimited spending are repealed.
"...campaign manager Jim Messina said it would be unfair and unwise for the president's re-election effort to live under one set of rules while the Republican presidential nominee benefits from the new fundraising landscape.
"We decided to do this because we can't afford for the work you're doing in your communities, and the grassroots donations you give to support it, to be destroyed by hundreds of millions of dollars in negative ads," Messina said...."
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Sunset, Venice 12/20/2012
What if in fact the world did end? Even though this probably will not happen, to live consciously it is honest for us to take a bit of an inventory.
Am I happy with how I've lived my life? (Yesterday, I thought mostly yes, with some areas for improvement, as below.) Are there changes I would make?
Would I have tried to forgive those that were hostile or disappointing to me?
Would I spend more time with those I loved the most, telling them that, feeling that more?
Would I be happier, grateful for what I have, what I've experienced, the joy, the beauty in this world?
Maybe the answer is yes to all of the above.
So this time can serve as a point of rebirth for all of us. If we think about it.
Because somewhere along the line I realized I think maybe mankind deserves it. !
The way we are killing each other, killing the planet.
How selfish we are, and snotty to those around us. Petty, competitive. Why is this? Do we have to behave this way? (I say no, it greatly detracts and misdirects energy from the full-time celebration in which we could engage, the great multi-cultural, multi-rhythmic dance we can sustain here.)
Maybe God or the Great Universe is fed up, and will pull the rug out from under us.
Don't think I can say we could blame Him/Her/It.
But it probably won't happen. (Probably not! This time.)
Still we are finite on this ride.
It is a time to think, am I happy with how I've lived my life?
Hopefully most of us can say yes.
For the part of us that have a little worry, a little sadness....
This is the time to be present.
This is the time to be the person you want to be, that can die at peace, that can hope to every day be able to look yourself and the Universe in the eye and say, how beautiful, smiling, and thank you. Let's do that.