psychotic preppy queer

2010-07-28T10:40:00.011-04:00

) e them beyond petroleum. Then the government could end all of BPs most environmentally destructive projects and practices and sell off the rest for bill

2010-07-28T10:40:00.009-04:00

) for paying large portions of what would be a huge investment in the future of the United States. Of corse the companies would be expected to contribute

2010-07-28T10:40:00.007-04:00

) ng an extensive redesighn of infastructure as well as energy and transportation systems. Federal, state, and local governments would all be responsible

2010-07-28T10:40:00.005-04:00

) rk and tourism is practically non existent?

There could be a competitive bidding process by numeorus companies, who would be responsible for introduci

2010-07-28T10:40:00.003-04:00

) nonmys as well as come up with a new more sustainable way of living is greatest. What better time to do it then in a point where thousands are out of wo

2010-07-28T10:40:00.001-04:00

) erfect place to start, they have faced some of the worst catastrophies caused by our current way of living, and therefore there need to rebuild their eco

2010-07-28T10:39:00.005-04:00

) vide about 3 times the jobs per dollar spent but we would be able to actually work towards energy independence and sustainable living. The gulf is the p

2010-07-28T10:39:00.003-04:00

) I understand that offshore oil drilling offers the residents of the gulf coast living wage jobs. However it is apparent that the costs are higher than t

2010-07-28T10:39:00.001-04:00

) he benefits.

If the government were to work with renewable energy companys as well as public and private transportation entities not only could we pro

Marijuana Carcinogens

2010-07-22T14:24:00.005-04:00

Im no expert but with a little research this is what I have found. These are the most commonly found carcinogens in Marijuana according to the Canadian office of environmental health and hazard.

Acetaldehyde: Is an Organic chemical compound that naturally occurs in bread, coffee, and ripe fruit. It is formed as a natural part of the marijuana plants metabolism

Benz[a]anthracene: Is a Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon. There are studies that clearly link Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons to cancer in rats. There are no studies on humans and no studies in regards to inhalation of Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. PAH's are commonly found in food. Most prominently in cereals and oils/fats.

Benzo[a]pyrene: Is also a PAH. It has been found in high concentrations in burnt toast, fried chicken, cooked meats, and anything that is charbroiled.

Benzo[k]fluoranthene: Is also a PAH.

Chrysene: Is also a PAH it is emitted by wood that has been preserved. It is formed in small amounts when any plant matter is burnt or distilled.

Dibenz[a,h]anthracene: Is also a PAH.

Dibenzo[a,e]pyrene: Is also a PAH.

All of these carcinogens are already commonly found in our society as well as in foods we commonly consume. Some of these carcinogens such as Chrysene can be avoided by using a vaporizer. Also the study Hashibe M, Morgenstern H, Cui Y, et al. Marijuana use and the risk of lung and upper aerodigestive tract cancers: Results of a population-based case-control study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 15(10):1829–1834, 2006. "found no positive associations between marijuana use and lung, upper respiratory, or upper digestive tract cancers."

2010-06-09T15:42:00.000-04:00

I'm having a horrible time containing my rage towards society. The political system and the people who run it are just a giant heap of shit that never biodegrades. I try to be in harmony with the earth but on gloomy days I cant help but feel gloomy. Gloomy days are a day for smoking but when you have nothing to smoke it doesn't work out. It's a dependency yes but I sympathize with ernest Hemingway when he said An intelligent man is sometimes forced to be drunk to spend time with his fools. Some may call it elitist or cocky but if your someone who focuses on every atrocity of society your doomed to psychosis unless you have some sort of escape.

Without some sign of success I don't know how much longer I can make it. If I tell someone they will want to medicate me but their medications have only spun me around until I reached oblivion. Im running from complacency and their chemical concoctions offer me no help.

Rivers of oil and the limits of control

2010-05-18T15:50:00.001-04:00

A mile is a long way down and a month is a long time to wait.

How is it that the story of the Deepwater Horizon still dominates the headlines? How can a river of petrochemical ooze still rocket from that fire hose at the seafloor, unchecked even a month after the initial explosion and sinking of the rig? How is it that this problem remains unsolved?

Before we rush to answer that question with finger pointing at BP engineers, Big Oil or failed government oversight, we need to step back — way back — and see the disaster in the gulf for what it is and what it means broadly for a human culture pumped high on technological and scientific magic.

The Deepwater Horizon’s drill had to dive through 4,132 feet of water before it hit sea floor. How deep is that? The US Navy Seawolf class of nuclear submarines can take no more than 2,300 feet of water before they’re crushed like a tin can.

Too deep for human intervention, the Deepwater Horizon site must be serviced by remote control robots. It is nothing less than a technological marvel that we have learned to extract energy resources on an industrial scale in this kind of environment.

In many ways, this was the story of the last century — an age of miracles, when we came to expect that technology would, in the end, always save us.

But what we do not yet grasp is the limits of these technologies or the ever-expanding consequences of their failure. Our machines will not always be able to get us out of the mess they get us into. The oil still billows into the gulf, because we are working at the hairy edge of what is possible. As vast underwater plumes of brown tarry goo begin circulating around the gulf, we are about to see the real meaning of technology’s unintended consequences.

This is likely a lesson that will define our age: From the collapse of the world’s fisheries to the alteration the planet’s atmospheric chemistry, we are stacking up these lessons of “unintended consequences”.

In this century, we will be forced to recognize the limits of technology, the limits of control. Science and technology let us build a complex global culture of undreamt possibilities. Now we must rise to the occasion and face the global consequences of that kind of reach.

But there is a wisdom in limits. It is the basis for all life and its evolved interactions. There is a broad and vital lesson to be drawn from 29 days of uninterrupted technological failure in the gulf.

It took just a few decades last century to build the fossil fuel driven society of miracles we now inhabit. It was a wild, heady ride that allowed us to ignore the reality, for a while, that we live on a finite tightly coupled planet.

Now, quickly, we must learn the lesson of limits – limits in resources, limits in the capacities of technologies. We must become smarter about consequences in the new culture we are forced to build. We need to become more humble in the face of what our science and technology have also shown us to be true – we are in and of the world and so we cannot afford to fail.
(source: NPR.org)

We are running out of time!

2010-03-24T21:51:00.000-04:00

NEW DELHI – For nearly 30 years, India and Bangladesh have argued over control of a tiny rock island in the Bay of Bengal. Now rising sea levels have resolved the dispute for them: the island's gone.
New Moore Island in the Sunderbans has been completely submerged, said oceanographer Sugata Hazra, a professor at Jadavpur University in Calcutta. Its disappearance has been confirmed by satellite imagery and sea patrols, he said.
"What these two countries could not achieve from years of talking, has been resolved by global warming," said Hazra.
Scientists at the School of Oceanographic Studies at the university have noted an alarming increase in the rate at which sea levels have risen over the past decade in the Bay of Bengal.
Until 2000, the sea levels rose about 3 millimeters (0.12 inches) a year, but over the last decade they have been rising about 5 millimeters (0.2 inches) annually, he said.
Another nearby island, Lohachara, was submerged in 1996, forcing its inhabitants to move to the mainland, while almost half the land of Ghoramara island was underwater, he said. At least 10 other islands in the area were at risk as well, Hazra said.
"We will have ever larger numbers of people displaced from the Sunderbans as more island areas come under water," he said.
Bangladesh, a low-lying delta nation of 150 million people, is one of the countries worst-affected by global warming. Officials estimate 18 percent of Bangladesh's coastal area will be underwater and 20 million people will be displaced if sea levels rise 1 meter (3.3 feet) by 2050 as projected by some climate models.
India and Bangladesh both claimed the empty New Moore Island, which is about 3.5 kilometers (2 miles) long and 3 kilometers (1.5 miles) wide. Bangladesh referred to the island as South Talpatti.
There were no permanent structures on New Moore, but India sent some paramilitary soldiers to its rocky shores in 1981 to hoist its national flag.
The demarcation of the maritime boundary — and who controls the remaining islands — remains an open issue between the two South Asian neighbors, despite the disappearance of New Moore, said an official in India's foreign ministry, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on international disputes.
Bangladesh officials were not available for comment Wednesday.

(source:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100324/ap_on_sc/as_india_disappearing_island)

Blair Horner on New York States next governors needed path

2010-03-02T20:18:00.002-05:00

ost-Paterson, how can the mess in Albany be made manageable?
...

Cut Government Immediately
Blair Horner

Blair Horner is legislative director for the New York Public Interest Research Group, a not-for-profit, research and advocacy organization.

Governor Paterson’s decision not to seek election couldn’t come at a worse time. Not only is the budget dangerously out-of-whack, but the recent fight over control of the state Senate, the spate of criminal convictions of state lawmakers, and the resignation of former Governor Spitzer have diminished New Yorkers’ trust in government.

A new governor should slash the many ‘offices’ and ‘authorities’ that have proliferated over the years.

The Great Recession has eroded state revenues, yet the need for services has grown. Thousands of lobbyists clamor for dwindling dollars. The legislative process is substantially hindered since the narrow Senate Democratic majority has trouble cobbling together votes to pass legislation. Yet the governor wields extraordinary powers. New York’s governors are in a dominant position when it comes to the budget.

Also the governor appoints virtually all of the heads of state agencies — which have the power to shape the policies that affect all New Yorkers. The governor can advance public policy by issuing executive orders. And lastly, the governor commands the bully pulpit that, when used properly, can shape public opinion.

The failures of recent governors have stemmed from their direct involvement in political food fights with the legislative branch. These skirmishes may be entertaining, but the public pays billions of dollars in taxes and expects to get something in return.

The next governor will face two crises: one fiscal, the other ethical. While the governor must work with the Legislature to tackle the state’s finances, he can set the appropriate tone by proposing an immediate and dramatic restructuring of state government. The state’s Constitution permits “smart sizing” government if a governor proposed eliminating many of the “divisions,” “offices” and “authorities” that have proliferated over the years.

The new governor should offer a new state budget that slashes the number of these entities. He must do so right away, before his administration feels the pressure to place new appointees in these entities.

In addition, the governor should issue executive orders requiring that all state agencies develop a new “Code of Conduct” that sets high ethical standards for the behavior of governmental appointees, mandates that decisions are developed openly, and creates measurements of success that ensure that government is actually improving the lives of New Yorkers.

New Yorkers should demand that the new governor offer a “blueprint” for a state government that operates in the open, that behaves ethically, that has reasonable costs, and that delivers for the people.

Senator Stachowski it's time to retire

2010-02-27T19:01:00.001-05:00

Move your money

2010-02-21T12:00:00.002-05:00

Move your money away from the big banks! You know the ones that stole taxpayer dollars and gave them away as bonuses. The once that are financing environmental destruction. The ones that are destroying local communities. Geithner says its a bad idea, but dont be fooled he is working for the too big too fail corporate goons and he couldn't even give a reason for why it was a bad idea.

2010-02-17T19:36:00.001-05:00

We find comfort in our selfishnes yet it may destroy the ones we love even if only in thought. How do we overcome it?

Why cant we marry?

2010-02-11T22:52:00.002-05:00

BUFFALO, N.Y. - Even though a bill to legalize same-sex marriage was overwhelmingly defeated by the New York State Senate in early December by a vote of 38 to 24, gay marriage advocates continue their fight to marry.
In a symbolic measure, a same-sex couple applied for a marriage license at City Hall Wednesday. When they were denied, gay marriage advocate Kitty Lambert found a man she had never met and applied for a marriage license with him. She says she did it to prove a point.

"Our point is, for $40, I can come in and purchase a marriage license with a total stranger. But all these years with the same woman and I still can't get a marriage license. What is the senate thinking?" asked Lambert.

Lambert says she will not actually actually marry the man. She wanted to show that committed gay couples are denied the same rights as heterosexual couples.
(source:www.ynn.com

2010-02-08T23:42:00.001-05:00

Im not going any where and i will win out or die

2010-02-08T23:26:00.002-05:00

its like a haze. maybe its cheezy like this music but it still rings true .

2010-02-03T23:36:00.001-05:00

His medication destroys him more than his brain its an evil evil world. It breaks my heart. For all hope is lost

2010-01-09T14:27:00.001-05:00

The religious bases in everything being said is fascinating

2010-01-07T22:38:00.001-05:00

Lies from the white house

2009-12-23T16:26:00.001-05:00

Obama Claims He Didn’t Campaign for Public Option

As the Senate moves closer to passing its healthcare reform bill, President Obama is distancing himself from supporters of the creation of a government-run health insurance program. Senate Democrats recently removed the public option from the healthcare bill in order to gain enough votes to break a Republican filibuster. On Tuesday, President Obama told the Washington Post he never campaigned on the public option.
President Obama: “It is true that the Senate version does not have a public option, and that has been—become, I think, a source of ideological contention between the left and the right, but I didn’t campaign on a public option. I think it is a good idea, but as I said in that speech on September 9th, it just one small element of a broader reform effort.”
As a presidential candidate, Senator Obama touted the benefits of a public option. On his own campaign website, Obama promised that under his health plan, “any American will have the opportunity to enroll in [a] new public plan.” As President Obama said in his weekly address that any plan that he signs must include a public option.'

(source:www.democracynow.org)

The dangers of Nuclear power

2009-12-23T13:53:00.000-05:00

Punish world leaders and free climate activists! Thats real justice

2009-12-23T13:47:00.002-05:00

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Four of our activists face the prospect of Christmas in jail this year over charges relating to our crashing of the Head of State dinner at the Copenhagen climate summit, while the leaders who did practically nothing about the greatest threat to our planet got away scott free.

We called for the immediate release of our people at a candle-lit vigil on Saturday night outside the Vestre Fængsel prison, in Copenhagen.

Over 100 Greenpeace staff and supporters held banners reading “Freedom From Climate Injustice.”'

"Copenhagen has become a 'climate crime scene' after over 120 Heads of State squandered an historic opportunity to agree a climate saving deal,” said Kumi Naidoo, our International Executive Director.

“While the perpetrators of the real crime fled the country on private jets, it is shocking that the Danish authorities have decided to detain, without trial, four peaceful protesters over Christmas.”

“Their families will spend a bleak festive season knowing that their loved ones will be languishing in isolation for acting to save the climate. For standing up in defense of the hundreds of millions of people and countless species which will be severely affected by catastrophic climate change.”

Kids around the Christmas tree
Three of the activists have children at home who will be missing a parent this Christmas. The activists - Juan Lopez de Uralde, Nora Christiansen and Christian Schmutz - are the climate heroes who brought home to world leaders attending last Thursday's banquet with Queen Margrethe the message that leaders were failing the climate.

Yesterday, police also arrested Joris Thijssen, a climate campaigner at Greenpeace International. He is being held under the same conditions as the other three activists.

The activists joined Heads of State from over 120 countries en route to the banquet at the Danish Parliament. Arriving in a three-vehicle convoy, immediately in front of Hilary Clinton, a Greenpeace ‘Head of State’ and his ‘wife’ stepped out onto the red carpet as representatives of the millions of people around the world who wanted a fair, ambitious and legally binding treaty to head-off climate catastrophe.

Holding up banners reading: “Politicians Talk, Leaders Act”, the activists demanded action and not merely words from Presidents and Prime Ministers during their Friday session of the climate summit.

(source: www.greenpeace.org)

lost lonely miserable

2009-12-22T19:19:00.004-05:00

I lay in my bed and sleep to avoid my problems
I stay in my room where its warm and safe
I don't leave because I dont know what to do
I cry because I feel lost
I dont know where im going or what I want
I text people because it comforts me
I thing maybe something will come from it
Maybe someone can save me
My dog she's always by my side
As for anyone else I don't know
My weight makes me miserable
My body makes me miserable
Things that have happened in the past make me miserable
I try to avoid them but it never seems to work out
I think I've lost hope
That makes me miserable
I don't know what to do without hope
I don't know where my hope went
Or why it went to wherever it went
I wish I knew what made me this way
But I dont
I fear the reasons why
I cant believe anyones reasons but my own

European Libel lwas must be changed. Shame on GE

2009-12-20T01:13:00.002-05:00

Two years ago in a conference room in the Randolph hotel in Oxford, Henrik Thomsen gave his inside account of a medical “nightmare”.

In a presentation to about 30 colleagues, Thomsen, one of Europe’s leading radiologists, revealed how patients treated at his hospital had subsequently contracted a rare and potentially fatal disease.

Thomsen and other doctors at his Copenhagen University hospital were baffled as to why 20 kidney patients who had been given routine scans were afflicted by a disorder — nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) — in which the skin gradually swells, thickens and tightens. Some sufferers were confined to wheelchairs. At least one died. There was no known cure.

Then, in March 2006, there was a breakthrough. It was confirmed that all those who had fallen ill with NSF had been given the same drug in advance of a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan.

RELATED LINKS
A wretched law that threatens our free speech
Scientists urge reform of ‘lethal’ libel law
Doctor to argue freedom of speech defence
Omniscan was used to enhance the images produced by the scan. The product was sold around the world and was manufactured by GE Healthcare, a subsidiary of General Electric, one of the world’s largest corporations.

Thomsen’s presentation lasted no more than 15 minutes, with the final slide reading: “I hope none of you meets a similar medical hurricane.”

The quietly spoken 56-year-old, director of the department of diagnostic sciences at the University of Copenhagen, is part of a small group of clinicians credited with alerting patients and regulators to the potential risks of Omniscan for renal patients.

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency this weekend said there had been 20 reports in the UK of NSF after patients were given Omniscan. Five of the patients died.

Last month, European medical regulators recommended that anybody who needed an MRI scan should be given a check to ensure their kidneys were healthy if they were to be given Omniscan or two similar products. In America, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reviewing its advice.

Thomsen, however, now refuses to speak anywhere in England on the possible risks of Omniscan. The reason is that he faces another kind of storm: GE Healthcare is suing him in the High Court for libel.

The company claims his presentation in Oxford, entitled Management Aspects of NSF, was highly defamatory.

GE has already racked up costs of more than £380,000 pursuing the respected academic, who has authored or co-authored nearly 400 papers and delivered countless presentations to his peers. Thomsen will have to pay the firm’s costs if he loses the case.

In recent weeks, The Sunday Times has highlighted how London’s draconian libel laws are being used to silence critics of the rich and the powerful.

In a number of cases, both claimants and defendants have little apparent connection with Britain.

Campaign groups have warned that vital scientific and medical work is being threatened because of the danger of libel actions.

Thomsen, who was in London last week meeting Carter-Ruck, his lawyers, has no doubt about the driving force behind his case. “I believe that the lawsuit is an attempt to silence me,” he said.

IN October 2003 General Electric, one of the most watched companies on Wall Street, made a successful £5.7 billion bid for Amersham, the British healthcare company that had been privatised by Margaret Thatcher.

GE has a finger in many corporate pies, from manufacturing lightbulbs to insurance sales, but this appeared a particularly good business fit. GE Medical Systems made scanning equipment and Amersham made the products used to make medical imaging more effective. The combined business — GE Healthcare — had its headquarters in Buckinghamshire and was expected to generate about $13 billion (£8 billion) annually, representing about 10% of GE’s revenue at that time.

One of its products was Omniscan, which is among a small group of products administered to patients before an MRI scan. It is a so-called “contrast agent” whose properties enhance the differences between fluids and structures in the body when they appear on scans, making diagnosis easier. To date, it has sold more than 48m doses worldwide, including 620,000 in the UK. Such products sell at about $30 a dose.

There was, however, a problem. A small number of kidney patients injected with Omniscan and other products were falling ill with NSF, a horrific disease that first attacks the skin and can then attack organs. Those with healthy kidneys were unaffected and the product has been safe for more than 99% of patients.

NSF was first identified in the United States in 1997, more than five years after the contrast agents were introduced, and doctors were initially mystified as to what caused it.

One victim, Celeste Castillo Lee, from North Carolina, who gave evidence earlier this month to a FDA hearing, described how the disease migrated through her body, causing agony. “Seventy-five per cent of us [NSF victims] are in wheelchairs,” she said. “It’s actually a torture.”

She said swelling, which started in her ankles, moved through her limbs and then attacked her insides. Her bones, she said, felt like they were in a vice.

In British hospitals doctors were also finding cases of the new and strange condition. Giles Roditi, a consultant radiologist at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, said his hospital had 16 cases of NSF in renal patients.

What was causing it? In early 2006 Thomsen had turned clinical detective to try to answer this question.

After he was told that every kidney patient at his hospital who was diagnosed with the disease had been given a drug for a MRI scan, he and his colleagues alerted the medical authorities and then embarked on a review of all known cases of NSF.

Every patient out of the 150 cases that he found had been given a contrast agent for an MRI. About 90% had been given Omniscan. It was not proof that the drug caused NSF, but it was enough evidence for Thomsen never again to give it to any kidney patient.

Omniscan is one of several competing MRI agents that contain the rare-earth metal gadolinium, which is potentially toxic. The metal is chemically protected in its various drug forms and is quickly flushed out of the body by patients with healthy kidneys.

However, regulators believe the chemical structure of Omniscan, and another similarly constructed product, make them less stable and potentially dangerous for those suffering from renal problems.

The Danish Medicines Agency was the first to sound the alarm, highlighting 25 cases linked to Omniscan in a notice in May 2006.

Many of the Danish patients filed claims with a Danish government insurance agency, which pays benefits if it decides that a drug was a likely cause of inquiry or death.

In one of those cases, involving a 55-year-old woman who died from a lung embolism in 2003, the insurance agency concluded the side effects of Omniscan had “caused” her immobilisation, which, in turn, “caused” her deadly embolism. GE declined to comment on this case last week.

In June 2007, the Commission on Human Medicines in the UK advised doctors not to use Omniscan in patients with severe renal problems along with two other products, Magnevist, manufactured by Bayer HealthCare, and Optimark, produced by Covidien. It advised that other products containing gadolinium should not be used for kidney patients unless essential.

GE Healthcare appears to have reacted promptly to concerns about its product, but it objects to some of Thomsen’s work and the decisions by the European regulators. While it does not deny that there is an association between its product and NSF, it felt that to classify its drug as particularly risky was unfair.

It insists that a causal link to NSF has “not been established”. It believes a reporting bias may account for the high number of NSF cases linked to its product.

GE’s arguments helped sway regulators in the US, the biggest market for Omniscan. Doctors there have been warned of an association between contrast agents and NSF, but the FDA until recently said the data was too limited to classify some of the products as more risky than others.

The FDA has also not so far recommended doctors to stop using any of these products in kidney patients, but has simply issued safety warnings.

FDA’s staff has been revisiting the evidence. This month the FDA said it now believes that Omniscan, Optimark and Magnevist pose higher risks. An FDA advisory panel went further: they recommended that Omniscan and Optimark should not be given to patients with severe kidney disease.

This represents a victory of sorts for Thomsen and may mean less chance of kidney patients suffering from this disease in the future. But his mind is now on another looming battle with GE in the High Court.

Academics and radiologists who attended Thomsen’s presentation say it is “ludicrous” that he faces a potentially ruinous legal action and are writing letters of support for him in the action. His PowerPoint presentation is summarised in the writ and appears to be an objective analysis of the association between Omniscan and NSF.

GE Healthcare said this weekend it believed the presentation was defamatory because it accused the firm of suppressing information and marketing its product when it was aware of possible problems.

Last week, however, a spokeswoman was unable to highlight any part of Thomsen’s presentation in which this allegation was made. The writ says the defamation may have been “by way of innuendo”.

Carter-Ruck, defending Thomsen on a no-win, no-fee basis, says the action should be struck out because the words complained of in the writ are clearly not defamatory.

GE Healthcare is also suing over an article that appeared under Thomsen’s name in Imaging Management, a medical journal, published in Belgium, which referred to rumours that the company had been warned about possible problems with its product.

Thomsen says he did not “write or publish” the words that are the subject of the complaint and that they were written by a journalist. He denies libel.

The GE Healthcare spokeswoman said the company supported scientific debate and sued Thomsen only as a “last resort” because it felt it was being defamed. It says it always reacted quickly and in the best interests of patients to any possible side-effects of Omniscan. It reiterated that the product was still safe to use for the vast majority of patients.

THOMSEN’S case, however, is merely the latest example of the courts being used against scientists who scrutinise drugs and treatments. Simon Singh, a science writer, is being sued by the British Chiropractic Association for describing some of their treatments as “bogus”.

Another victim of the libel laws is Peter Wilmshurst, a consultant cardiologist at Shrewsbury hospital. He is being sued by an American company, NMT Medical, after he questioned the effectiveness of a new heart implant device.

The Libel Reform Campaign is now urging capped damages, stricter controls on costs and a stronger public interest defence. John Kampfner, chief executive of Index on Censorship, which is among a number of groups supporting the campaign, said: “[Thomsen’s case] appears to be yet another shocking example of multinational corporations going after academics and scientists working in the public interest.”

Sir Ken Macdonald, the former director of public prosecutions, has already called for reform. “The idea that we are becoming an international haven for people to attack scientists is something that we should not be proud of,” he said.

The culture, media and sport committee of the House of Commons is compiling a report that is expected to recommend change in the country’s libel laws. Jack Straw, the justice secretary, has already announced a review.

Colin Blakemore, professor of neuroscience at Oxford University and an adviser to Sense about Science, which promotes the use of good science in public debates, said any review should ensure the libel courts are never used as forum for assessing the risks of a treatment. “The risk is that the party with the most money will always win in what should be a dispassionate assessment of evidence,” he said.

GE, along with other manufacturers of contrast agents, now faces action in the American courts over its drug. A writ filed in the northern district of the Ohio federal court by lawyers acting for almost 500 plaintiffs says Omniscan was “routinely administered to kidney patients for years without warnings”.

These actions mean the debate over the side-effects of Omniscan and other products is likely to continue for many years to come.

Thomsen’s concern is about medical researchers who will need to highlight possible risks from drugs in the future. He says it is essential that they are not cowed by the prospect of appearing before the libel courts in London.

“It’s dangerous for the patient if we can’t frankly exchange views,” he said.
(source:timesonline.com)

Time to ban BPA by Sen. Feinstein

2009-12-20T00:47:00.001-05:00

No responsible parent would expose their infant to cigarette smoke or car exhaust. But every day in America, millions of infants are exposed to dangerous chemicals hiding in plain view. This exposure can lead to a wide range of adverse health effects later in life -- from increased cancer risk to infertility.

This chemical is called BPA -- short for bisphenol A, a key component of plastics --and it is found everywhere in modern life.

BPA lines the cans of soup on your pantry shelf, and the soft drink cans in your refrigerator. This compound is also in baby bottles, water bottles, plastic containers and countless other everyday food and beverage containers.

And that's a big problem. BPA leaches into food products and beverages, especially when heated in plastic containers. Moreover, a growing body of scientific evidence shows that exposure to this chemical, at very low levels, may be dangerous for humans - especially during prenatal development and early infancy.

Nearly 200 scientific studies show that exposures to low doses of BPA, particularly during pregnancy and early infancy, are associated with a wide range of adverse health effects later in life.

Increased risk of breast and prostate cancer. Genital abnormalities in male babies. Infertility in men. Early puberty in girls. Type-2 diabetes. Obesity. These are just some of the health problems now being linked to BPA exposure.

One survey, by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, estimated that 93 percent of Americans have BPA in their urine.

Another study, published in September 2008 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found significant links between exposure to high levels of BPA and a variety of ailments and abnormalities, including diabetes, heart disease, and high liver enzyme levels.

Last year the National Toxicology Program, which is part of the National Institutes of Health, reported "some concern" that BPA may affect neural development in fetuses, infants and children at current levels of exposure.

Despite the growing evidence, the Food and Drug Administration last year claimed that BPA is safe. But an investigation by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel revealed that lobbyists for the chemical industry wrote significant parts of the FDA's assessment.

On top of that, the agency's own panel of outside scientific advisors questioned the FDA's findings, and now the agency is reassessing its position on BPA.

New findings from the FDA are expected any day now. But states, local governments and private corporations are not waiting around.

Connecticut and Minnesota, and the city of Chicago, have restricted the use of BPA. The government of Canada has banned the chemical outright in all baby bottles.

Wal-Mart and Toys "R" Us will no longer sell baby bottles containing the compound.

In March, six U.S. manufacturers of baby bottles announced they will no longer use the chemical in their products.

Also in March, Sunoco, the large American petroleum and petrochemical manufacturer, announced it would no longer sell BPA without guarantees it will not be used to manufacture baby bottles.

The writing is on the wall.

Yet despite the growing patchwork of restrictions, and the laudable moves by industry to clamp down on its use, there today are no federal curbs.

We must wait no longer. That's why earlier this year I introduced the Ban Poisonous Additives (BPA) Act of 2009, which would eliminate the use of BPA from all food and beverage containers.

This legislation would:

Ban the sale of reusable beverage containers (including baby bottles and thermoses) that contain BPA.
Prohibit the use of other food and beverage containers (including canned foods and baby formula) from being introduced into commerce.
Provide for renewable one-year waivers for manufacturers that can show the FDA that there is no technology allowing the manufacture of a particular product without the use of BPA.
I will do everything I can to see this legislation passed by the Senate. And I will do everything I can to ensure that other food safety legislation considered during this session of Congress includes provisions to ban BPA in food and beverage containers. We simply cannot allow Americans, especially children, to be used as guinea pigs while federal bureaucrats sift through evidence that has convinced so many other authorities of the clear fact that this chemical is harmful to health.
(source:huffingtonpost.com)

Thank you Senator Feinstein! Ban BPA!

2009-12-20T00:41:00.002-05:00

Diane Feinstein of California, has penned a blog in the Huffington Post calling on Congress to ban BPA -- short for bisphenol A, the ubiquitous component of plastics that has been linked to infertility and cancer. Feinstein authored the Ban Poisonous Additives (BPA) Act of 2009, which would eliminate the use of BPA from all food and beverage containers.

Writes Sen. Feinstein:

BPA leaches into food products and beverages, especially when heated in plastic containers. Moreover, a growing body of scientific evidence shows that exposure to this chemical, at very low levels, may be dangerous for humans - especially during prenatal development and early infancy.
Nearly 200 scientific studies show that exposures to low doses of BPA, particularly during pregnancy and early infancy, are associated with a wide range of adverse health effects later in life.

Increased risk of breast and prostate cancer. Genital abnormalities in male babies. Infertility in men. Early puberty in girls. Type-2 diabetes. Obesity. These are just some of the health problems now being linked to BPA exposure.

Earlier this year, SIGG, the maker of water bottles, was stung after it came out that their aluminum containers contained BPA. They offered to take back old bottles and replace them, free of charge.

Feinstein's bill would:

--Ban the sale of reusable beverage containers (including baby bottles and thermoses) that contain BPA.
--Prohibit the use of other food and beverage containers (including canned foods and baby formula) from being introduced into commerce.

--Provide for renewable one-year waivers for manufacturers that can show the FDA that there is no technology allowing the manufacture of a particular product without the use of BPA.

(Source:www.treehugger.com)

Friends of the Earth were denied access to copenhagen negotions

2009-12-18T13:02:00.001-05:00

Today went a bit differently than anticipated.

When I and about 50 other Friends of the Earth representatives from around the world showed up at the Bella Center (site of the climate negotiations) over the course of about an hour this morning, the security staff who scanned our UN ID cards told us that they were not valid and we would not be allowed in.

Given that all of us had appropriate accreditation, as well as the "secondary badges" the UN is now requiring for admission so it can restrict the number of people inside the Bella Center at any given time, we were surprised and confused by our inability to get in.

We'd planned to spend the day monitoring the process of negotiations, working to generate media coverage of the need for a strong and just agreement, and working with delegates from developing countries to draft text that could form such an agreement.

But instead, we were denied access. UN staff told Friends of the Earth International's chair, Nnimmo Bassey, that we were considered a security threat. This begged the question of why we were singled out from the many other peaceful non-governmental organizations taking part in the talks.

When about 15 members of the UN security team surrounded us, and then asked us to leave, we refused, sitting down in the registration area and demanding that we be let in and be provided with an explanation for the UN's refusal to admit us.

UN climate chief Yvo de Boer came out and spoke to us after a while and said access had been restricted because there was not enough room in the Bella Center and that he wanted to resolve the situation.

A few of our representatives went to talk to UN officials while we sat there, but our lack of access remained unresolved. We had both a member of the Norweigan and a member of the Canadian parliament come speak to us to lend us their support. Initially there were a lot of reporters, but the UN then cordoned us off and closed access to media.

Eventually they made us an offer to allow a small portion of our delegation into the conference, even though the full delegation met all the entry requirements that had allowed other groups (except Avaaz, which had also been kicked out) to gain admission.

The UN still has yet to give us a coherent reason for our having been denied access. It's hard to see how de Boer's "no room" explanation makes sense, as the UN continued to allow other NGO observers to enter even as we were denied access. And as for the security threat, we're a bunch of policy wonks and youth activists who have been participating in the negotiations every day for two weeks and represent no threat at all.

One of the key roles Friends of the Earth has played at the conference has been to advocate for climate justice and the interests of the poor countries that have done the least to cause the climate crisis but will feel some of its strongest impacts. Negotiators from those countries are tremendously under-resourced here. For example, I've worked with negotiators who have no media officers (I do media work) to help them communicate their position. They are totally outgunned by the massive delegations of the rich countries, and now thanks to the UN's decision to exclude us, they will have even less support inside the Bella Center to fight for a fair agreement. An agreement that already feels so far out of reach. It's really frustrating, and shameful.

It's been a discouraging day. But even if negotiators fail to produce a strong agreement this week, there is something we can be proud of. We're not backing down in our calls for climate justice, and we're not alone. The international climate justice movement is growing.
(source:openleft.com)

2009-12-11T00:45:00.001-05:00

Your prozak you give me keeps me from letting out my grief my prozak that you keep from me gives me a channel to let that grief out as well as experience another form of happiness

Ranzenhofer survey

2009-12-07T20:51:00.005-05:00

I received a survey from Ranzenhofer's office and filled it in with my own answers.

"we do not know what god has written on our foreheads"

2009-12-06T14:05:00.001-05:00

Tidal wave against legislated discrimination

2009-12-04T16:55:00.002-05:00

Send this to everyone you know through every means possible!

Rally in Bidwell Park (Elmwood ave and Bidwell Parkway)
3 Pm Saturday
December 5th
Rain, shine or snow!
Bring Signs banners and attitude

Western New York isn't scared of weather, but the Senate should be scared of Western New York.

Bring your mom, dad, grandkids, everyone you love and even those you dont like or know very well.

Call if you have questions. (716-578-3782)

Show your not complacent and you will take a stand for equality for all New Yorkers.

Stop the dirtiest oil in the planet

2009-12-04T14:19:00.001-05:00

gap recognized by EPA

2009-12-02T22:17:00.005-05:00

The below article is total greenwashing. As A gap employee I can tell you based on my experience gap does not strive for sustainability but rather strives to market from every angle possible. True sustainable practices are virtually non-existent.

OK, it’s now official: Gap Inc. has been recognized for reducing its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 20 percent between 2003 and 2008.

The recognition came from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which runs a Climate Leaders program to encourage companies to reduce their GHG emissions.

Gap Inc. exceeded its committed goal of an 11 percent energy reduction –through a number of energy efficiency initiatives.

The timing of this announcement is good, too.

Gap Inc. will lend its name and logo to support climate change action during the upcoming climate change summit in Copenhagen, the Danish capital. So far, 60 global leaders will attend the conference, which will be held Dec. 7-18.

The United Nations, which is hosting the summit, has recently reported that greenhouse gas emissions in the Earth’s atmosphere reached record highs in 2008. Levels of GHG emissions, which are believed to be responsible for global warming, have been rising since the Industrial Revolution in the mid 18th century, according to the World Meteorological Organization.

At Gap Inc., the work to reduce its GHG emissions include the installation of energy-efficient light bulbs at its distribution centers and by changing behaviors – and improving energy performance – at stores and headquarter buildings.

Gap Inc. joined the EPA’s Climate Leaders program in 2003.

“We’re so pleased to have made such a measurable reduction in our energy consumption over the past five years and to receive this important recognition from the EPA,” said Kindley Walsh Lawlor, senior director, Global Responsibility, Gap Inc.

“By operating more efficiently, and reducing our energy consumption, we can improve our bottom line and create opportunities for innovation across our business.”

Gap Inc. continues its support for climate and energy policies through membership with organizations like Business for Innovative Climate and Energy Policy (BICEP) and the American Business for Clean Energy (ABCE).

Recently, Gap Inc. improved its score by 10 points in an annual assessment by Climate Counts, which scores companies to “see how serious” they are about stopping climate change. Companies are scored on a 0-100 point scale; Gap Inc. received 52 points, tying with retailers like Apple and Google.

Gap Inc. earned a “Striding” ranking, meaning Climate Counts acknowledges that the company has work to do, but found that the specialty retailer is “beginning to hit their stride.”

Published December 2, 2009

Inequality lives on in New York State (many thanks to the New York State Senate)

2009-12-02T22:02:00.002-05:00

It appears that thanks to the New York State Senate voting down the Marriage Equality bill Inequality will continue on. Gay and Lesbian citizens of new york will be forced to continue living as 3rd class citizens because our senators choose to vote based on their own bigoted ideologies rather than representing the people who pay there salary and upholding the values on which this country was built and needs to continue to be built on.

We have to stop allowing this to go on. The public needs to get outraged. I have to admit I'm starting to lose faith because the public refuses to embrace the issues of are time and really take action and stand up for what is right. If we continue to become more and more complacent our government will overrun us! We can not allow that to happen. We have to take a stand. Call your senator and let them know how you feel about the senate upholding inequality and how they voted.

2009-12-02T21:35:00.001-05:00

2009-11-11T04:18:00.001-05:00

Almost every day it is i lose myself because its easier. Sometimes i cry and sometimes i laugh. If this is how i make it threw whats so wrong with that?

Wants to know why this isnt making international mainstream news.

2009-10-16T23:39:00.002-04:00

Why arent we breaking out onto the streets protesting over this? It makes me so sad that I have to beg and scream at people just to get them to hear me let alone exhaust myself completely trying to mobilize people.

With Each Passing Month the Situation Gets More Desperate: Climate Change Sinks Carteret Islanders
Though it may be a number of years before your life is personally impacted by climate change, for people in low-lying island nations rising sea levels is already a fact of life. One such place is the Carteret Islands off the coast of Papua New Guinea. TreeHugger recently interviewed documentary filmmaker Jennifer Redfearn about her work-in-progress Sun Come Up, which chronicles the efforts of these people to uproot their lives and find new home.

2009-10-05T18:36:00.001-04:00

STATISICLY SPEAKING the best idea i have ever had we will start with cans

2009-10-03T22:28:00.001-04:00

I need to be in a place where i just cant stop living no matter what

Before I crack

2009-09-26T21:28:00.006-04:00

I want just one person who I can connect with on some higher level. Who gets me like you did that day and who I get like I did that day. But not just for one drunken night and the day after but for good. Until we both fall apart for whatever reason.

You know I dont get you. So much for your evolved status you go chasin after some girl who doesnt get you who's a bunch of things you don't even like. What is it about her you like? She's not complicated, shes beautiful, shes the easy choice, she doesn't make you explore things you don't want to explore about yourself. I'm complicated, not so physically perfect, much more difficult, and I will force you to explore things you previously refused to explore very much if at all. So I guess I get it but then your not as evolved as we all thought.

Now I just wait, alone hoping you will figure it out before I crack.

I'm still loaded with anger towards you

2009-09-26T21:28:00.002-04:00

I got your card daddy dearest and It reminded me of how much I still hate you. They say holding on to anger is bad for you well guess what I don't give a fuck. To this day you go on fucking up my life and to this day your fucking greed hurts my mother. It was dark and raining and I read your card by the glow of my cellphone then I lit it on fire unforutnatley the rain fucked that up so i stomped on it smashing it with my foot into the dirty wet cement. Fuck you and your silly fake sentiments, I promise I will do my best to never associate with you for the rest of my fucking life. Hopefully I won't dissapoint myself. I tried to forgive you way too many times. You fucked me over too much and I will never open myself up to that again.

Thanks for the check but after what you done it will take more than 50 dollars to buy me off you could have at least shot for 3 digits.

a drop of dew on a blade of grasses hope

2009-09-22T09:23:00.000-04:00

I want to feel your kiss again. It's like nothing I've ever experienced before. I don't even know how to explain it. I feel like it's only something you can deliver to me. I haven't felt this way about someone in more than two years and my heart is all jumpy, and my stomach all twisty. Experiencing you once was all it took. It's like a realization people can feel like I do. People can understand me, and maybe I have to stop searching for these epic experiences and just live it up allowing them to come to me. Don't lock yourself up but if you never stop to think and experience you just might lock yourself out.

I get what happens next, emotions will fly and shit will hit the fan. We may or may not collide and if and when we do we might mesh or brake apart. Either way it will hurt, I will cry, you will live. My heart may fall because thats how I was born to roll but it will be worth it. Because living on a drop of dew on a blade of grasses hope is better than no hope at all. It will keep me breathing and feed my desire to live. Now I wait and see how strong I can be.

2009-09-22T01:00:00.001-04:00

And when the music stops what will be next. I shed a tear of anger happiness and sadness for all the emotions cant show what will be then

2009-09-20T23:33:00.001-04:00

She may be pretty got more money than me but she dont write poems about you.

props to macy gray

2009-09-18T23:16:00.001-04:00

Sych hopes such dreams always being let down crack my heart open because its how i live so now come on feel the noise ill surrender to your incandrescent drowneing

2009-09-18T16:55:00.001-04:00

I feel like this right here should have been what college was like but it wasnt but maybe idk

2009-09-18T11:08:00.001-04:00

The new world order: scarfs

2009-09-17T22:17:00.001-04:00

"DONT LAUGH WHEN IM BEING PROFOUND"

2009-09-17T20:01:00.001-04:00

People dont feel it like i do. Absorb urself in it pass it around to spread the love. We can make happiness together and change the world for the better. Its a base for us to build ourselves and our community upon. A community taught to embrace peace love and kindness what could be bad about that?

The eco-battery of the future?

2009-09-15T15:59:00.002-04:00

A new battery made of salt and paper could prove to be an environmentally benign replacement for lithium batteries in things like smart cards, RFID tags, and other low power portable devices. Researchers at Uppsala University in Sweden are testing out a prototype, and while it has a few down sides compared to lithium, it certainly has upsides as well.

It sounds like an elementary school science experiment gone pro. Technology Review reports that the new battery is made simply of pressed mats of tangled cellulose fibers acting as the electrodes, and a salt solution acts as the electrolyte - the simple ingredients mean cheap, easy manufacturing and the potential to replace lithium batteries in a range of small portable devices. Now that the researchers have the design down, they're working on making the paper and salt batteries more comparable to lithium in capabilities. According to Technology Review:

Lithium batteries can deliver 4 volts and have energy densities of 200 to 300 milliwatt-hours per gram. In comparison, a single paper battery cell delivers 1 volt and can store up to 25 milliwatt-hours of energy per gram. When providing maximum current, it loses 6 percent of its storage capacity after 100 recharging cycles. However, Stromme says that her team has already run the battery for 1,000 recharging cycles at lower current. She also points out that these are numbers from an initial laboratory prototype.

One thing that is fascinating about the design is not only that it could be more ecologically sound than lithium thanks to its ingredients, but that the cellulose that comprises the paper layers is made from a polluting algae found in seas and lakes. This could not only be a boon for particular water ways should the battery concept make it to manufacturing, but also the composition of the cellulose helps it to charge as much as 100 times faster than lithium. As published in Nano Letters:

"These algae has a special cellulose structure characterised by a very large surface area," says Gustav Nyström, a doctoral student in nanotechnology and the first author of the article. "By coating this structure with a thin layer of conducting polymer, we have succeeded in producing a battery that weighs almost nothing and that has set new charge-time and capacity records for polymer-cellulose-based batteries."

There's still research to do to improve its capabilities, but the scientists are hopeful we could see these thin-film batteries on the market and being used for small devices in as little as three years.
(source:www.treehugger.com)

Tottaly funny (prefferabley LED)

2009-09-15T15:45:00.000-04:00

Googles solar research

2009-09-15T15:30:00.001-04:00

Google's developing new solar tech that will drop the cost from 18 cents a kW-h to just under 5. At least, it's hoping to.

Just like everybody else, Google's disappointed by the industry's lack of innovation so they've decided just to do it themselves. At least that's what Google's Bill Weihl said today at the Global Climate and Alternative Energy Summit hosted by Reuter's right here in San Francisco.

Not too surprising. Google builds its own servers since commercial servers are too expensive. The company makes cheap janky ones and just lets its homegrown software handle the outages.

Google engineers have primarily been focused on solar thermal technology. Weihl hopes they can cut the cost of making heliostats by at least a factor of two, but "ideally a factor of three or four."

"We've been looking at very unusual materials for the mirrors both for the reflective surface as well as the substrate that the mirror is mounted on," said Weihl.

The search engine giant started investing in renewable energy back in 2007. Along with solar thermal tech, the company is also interested in gas turbines that could run on solar power rather than natural gas--a name change might be in order.

Whatever the technology turns out to be, their main interest is the cost. They want to create a renewable energy that has a lower price point than coal. In doing so, they have invested about $50 million in the industry so far.

"Typically what we're seeing is $2.50 to $4 a watt (for) capital cost," Weihl said. "So a 250 megawatt installation would be $600 million to a $1 billion. It's a lot of money."

Google hopes to showcase the technology within a few months. It must first sustain accelerated testing to show its resistance to decades of harsh desert conditions.
(source:www.treehugger.com)

Stop idling modify emergency personell vehicles

2009-09-15T15:26:00.001-04:00

Promising news for electric cars

2009-09-15T15:23:00.001-04:00

Less is More With Electric Motors Too
Electric motors are very efficient compared to gasoline or diesel engines, but it seems like there is still room for improvement. One promising company working on this is a spin-off from Oxford university called Yasa Motors ("Yasa" stands for "Yokeless And Segmented Armature"). Their electric motor was first developed for the Morgan LIFEcar high-performance hydrogen car, but its characteristics - 50% of the volume giving 2x the torque for the same power output - mean it could be used in other things than electric cars, including renewable energy generation and aerospace (lighter airplanes use less fuel...). Even electric bikes could benefit! More details below.

Scaling Up
Yasa motors has just got £1.45 million ($2.42 million) from a funding round with private investor Seven Spires Investments Limited, and a grant from the UK's Technology Strategy Board. This will help them develop a mass-produced version of their lightweight-but-powerful electric motor that can have applications in many fields, including electric cars and renewable energy generation.

In a 2007 white paper (pdf), they claimed a 95% peak efficiency, but back then they were only at a 20% improvement in torque, so it's probable that peak efficiency has been improved since then.

Yasa Motors has been working for 8 months with Delta Motorsports to make an electric motor for a 4-seater that will be tested on the track at the end of this year. "The company is aiming to sell a low volume of the motors in its first year, as well as scaling up production and developing new models."
(source:www.treehugger.com)

Tick saliva the cure to some cancers?

2009-09-15T15:19:00.001-04:00

Useful Little Blood Suckers
It goes to show that you never know where science is going to make its next discovery. Brazilian researchers were studying the repulsive (to me anyway -- maybe some of you think they're cuddly) Amblyomma cajennense tick and discovered an interesting protein in its spit. After some testing on rats with tumors, it looks like tick saliva might hold the key to cure cancers of the skin, liver and pancreas. More details below.

How Does it Work?
According to AFP, the Factor X active protein in the tick spit "shares some characteristics with a common anti-coagulant called TFPI (Tissue Factor Pathway Inhibitor), specifically a Kunitz-type inhibitor which also has been shown to interfere with cell growth." Since a cancer is basically a group of cells that are growing out of control, controlling this growth is very important.

So the protein was tested on cultures of cancerous cells and "exceeded all expectations." It didn't kill normal cells, just those with cancer!

The next step was testing on rats:

"If I treat every day for 14 days an animal's tumor, a small tumor, this tumor doesn't develop -- it even regresses. The tumor mass shrinks. If I treat for 42 days, you totally eliminate the tumor," the scientist said.

Don't Uncork the Champaign Yet
But of course, these results are still just phase 1. the scientists might yet hit speed bumps, or even walls, and not be able to turn this into a cancer treatment. And even if everything works fine, it could take a few years before a drug is made.

But it's very promising, and goes to show that we still have much to learn from nature and that when we destroy it, we could be losing things like... tick spit.
(source:www.treehugger.com)

2009-09-11T18:31:00.001-04:00

There candy lures me like a child to a pedophiles nest its dangerous

Add your name

2009-09-11T15:53:00.002-04:00

2009-09-10T02:20:00.001-04:00

"but when they had unloosed the linen bad
which swathed the egyptians body,- lo! Was found
closed in the wasted hollow of her hand
a little seed, which sown in english ground
did wondrous snow of starry blossoms bear,
and spread rich odours through our springtide air.

with such strange arts this flower did allure
that all forgotten was the asphodel,
and the brown bee, the lilys paramour,
forsook the cup where he was wont to dwell,
for not a thing of earth it seemed to be,
but stolen from some heavenly arcasy

In vain the sad narcissus, wan and white
at its own beauty, hung across the stream,
the purple draon-fly had no delight
with its gold dust to make his wings a-gleam,
ah! No delight the jasmine-bloom to kiss,
or brush the rain-pearls from the eucharis.

-Oscar Wilde

2009-09-06T23:59:00.001-04:00

"I look so strong when the weight of all the world dont take its toal I believed in what was right but im all wrong"

2009-08-30T21:31:00.001-04:00

"No cure for rejection only cigarettes and insecure interspection"

2009-08-30T19:22:00.001-04:00

I believe its definetly possible that darwin was misstaken when he said the 13 year old finches had never made it to the breeding season i think rather these birds had homosexual genetics which has since been proven to be a frequent occurance in the animal kingdom

2009-08-27T17:27:00.001-04:00

I think its so very disrespectful to talk trash about him and a car accident that happened 40 years ago. People dont give a shit about how much good hes done since or how much hes changed they just focus on the bad.

this is it

2009-08-23T03:39:00.002-04:00

The partys over it's 3:39 in the morning... there are dishes to be done. The house is dark and only the sound of the fan and my keyboard remain. Tears streak my face my heart aches for my loved ones. I smell like a brewery and marijuana for probably the last time in buffalo for awhile. It rips me apart. It makes it so reel. God I miss them already I dont know what im gonna do without my family, there my support system our friendship is deeper than any earthly ocean. I fear what these changes in my life will do to me and to my relationships. I know they are strong but am I strong enough to hold on to those bonds and still function? Im so unsure, so overwhelmed, so fearful and I find it hard to function. All I can do is keep taking steps fighting against gravity and hope my heart keeps beating and my lungs keep breathin. I will be strong I will be brave

Obamas Statement on Doma

2009-08-19T22:35:00.001-04:00

Today, the Department of Justice has filed a response to a legal challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act, as it traditionally does when acts of Congress are challenged. This brief makes clear, however, that my Administration believes that the Act is discriminatory and should be repealed by Congress. I have long held that DOMA prevents LGBT couples from being granted equal rights and benefits. While we work with Congress to repeal DOMA, my Administration will continue to examine and implement measures that will help extend rights and benefits to LGBT couples under existing law.
(source:365gay.com)

I feel like we still have yet to see action. We will have to wait and see but frankly I'm getting tired of waiting.

2009-08-17T14:31:00.001-04:00

great news for the bigger better bottle bill

2009-08-14T23:16:00.001-04:00

The on again, off again bottle bill got a new life this week, after a Federal District Court judge overturned an injunction that had blocked the bill.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced the ruling, which was handed down late Thursday, declaring it a victory for New York’s environment and budget.
The ruling allows most of the elements of the so-called Bigger, Better Bottle Bill to go forward, including the return of 80% of the unclaimed nickel deposits to the state and an increase in handling fees for bottle redemption centers. The changes are estimated to bring in over $100 million in added revenue for the state.
Nickel deposits are already collected on carbonated beverages, wine coolers and beer sold in New York. Now, customers buying bottled water will have to pay the extra 5 cents, which is redeemable upon returning the bottle. Water drinks containing sugar are exempted.
The bill became law on April 7, 2009 as part of an effort to increase New York’s revenues and to close an enormous budget gap. But it was opposed by the bottled water industry, including two bottlers, Nestle Waters North America and Polar Corp. In June, a judge blocked the bill from taking effect until April 2010. The bill had been slated to go into effect on June 1.
The most recent ruling by Judge Deborah Batts gives the bottled water industry until Oct. 22 to comply with the law unless the companies can show that compliance is impossible.
A spokesman for the International Bottled Water Association said that the ruling “does not affect bottled water. The industry continues to be exempt from the decision until our hearing on Oct. 22.”
For its part, the bottled water industry says its supports bottle deposit law, but that the current bill still needs work. "We remain committed to working with Gov. Paterson," said Kim Jeffrey, president Nestlé Waters North America, but the bill "has gaping loopholes and sweetheart deals that will hinder recycling."
Mr. Cuomo’s office pointed to one exemption to the ruling. Bottles sold in New York would not need to have a UPC label code specific to New York, as the original expanded bill had required. The bottled water industry had argued that such a code would drive up its costs.
(source:crainsnewyork.com)

The governors statement:

Governor David A. Paterson today issued the following statement in response to the federal court ruling to restore the Bigger Better Bottle bill, which he signed into law as part of the 2009-2010 Enacted Budget on April 7, 2009.

“As a committed advocate for the Bigger Better Bottle bill for years, and after fighting to get it into the 2009-2010 Enacted Budget, I am delighted that a federal court has seen fit to issue an order that restores major elements of the newly expanded bottle bill. This is a victory not only for our State's environment, but also for the State’s finances. According to the court, soda and beer companies are required to provide 80 percent of the unclaimed nickel deposits to the State. This will provide millions of dollars to our treasury for the full year, much-needed revenue during our current economic climate. New York consumers can also expect to see five cent minimum deposits on bottled water no later than October 22, 2009, subject to further court proceedings scheduled for that day.”
(sourse:nydems.org)

2009-08-14T14:05:00.001-04:00

I hurt so bad over leaving my friends its like we all have our own different stuff were going threw now and with all my heart i want us to just be there for each other and now i feel like at this critical moment im just up and leaving the circle it crushes me.

2009-08-14T00:00:00.001-04:00

Imagine this on a hallmark card: us sitting here on this unfinished peace of wood floor waiting threw him stomping on you in a strangled attempt to support you. Now if only you could take a look and see how much you mean.

2009-08-13T13:47:00.001-04:00

I figure with the invention of the e cigarette and the nicotine inhaler as well as the new restrictions on cigarettes that go farther than ever before we will all be shooting up nicotine in the back of some dark moldy alleyway within the next decade

They're free!

2009-08-05T00:24:00.004-04:00

I am so happy to hear that the two journalists from current TV have been freed and give props to Hillary clinton and the state department for securing there release. I also give props to Bill clinton for going over their to carry out "the mission" (as current tV it as) he was the perfect person to do it. He is well liked, persuasive, and very diplomatic. It is great news and a reminder that our government can in fact achieve good things.

2009-07-21T19:57:00.001-04:00

ANDREW eventually you have to leavethis fitting room you will run out of clothes to try on and it wont matter whos across the hall

Nuclear reactors to India

2009-07-20T22:46:00.002-04:00

I frown on selling Nuclear reactor technology to India or any country for that matter. Nuclear power is a horrific thing and poses far to many dangers to be allowed we need to get rid of it not expand it

I'd like an order of socialism hold the capitalist bull shit

2009-07-20T22:21:00.004-04:00

Those who are calling the current healthcare "overhaul" socialism are so naive and off base they have no idea. The funny thing is that for once I wish they were right. I wish this plan was much more like socialism. This plan reeks of capitalism and is not what was promised to us in the 2008 presidential elections. I realize that the president doesn't have control over exactly how it all turns out and all that but his performance gravely disappoints me. I so wish Hillary/Bill's much more socialized plan was put into place in the early 90's if only we had the insurance companies semi approval and oh so positive attitude then, but of course they couldn't support that plan because it would have gotten rid of them. This plan on the other hand allows them to continue reaping giant profits. It may put a damper on there plans but they will thrive none the less. I am so disappointed and as much as I hate to say it for fear the issue will dye for another decade or so but in its current state I hope this bill doesn't pass.

p.s. Maybe I would have been more enthusiastic if I had been invited to barack obamas phone confrence for blogger. Grant it my blog averages about 80 views a month but still. JK
Later in the day, aides organized a conference call for Obama to speak with liberal bloggers and rally them behind the White House's broad outline for overhaul.
"One of the things that I know the blogs are best at is debunking myths that can slip through a lot of the traditional media outlets and a lot of the conventional wisdom," he said, according to audio of the call posted on Web sites. "And that is why you are going to play such an important role in our success in the weeks to come."

2009-07-20T15:49:00.001-04:00

Did u know almost all garden hoses have lead in them? Why do we allow these things?

2009-07-19T10:38:00.001-04:00

I would so like to know what disease is plaging the evergreen trees of wny and what can be done about it. I wish people would start paying attention to it and im not sure what to do about it

2009-07-14T00:32:00.001-04:00

Sarah Palin sighned a baby? Your supposed to kiss them not fucking sighn them. This has to be enough to officaly declare her mentally instable right? Oh and I just wanna say the baby looked pissed he/she must be a democrat or maybe a green party member. These parents must be complete looney bins. If i was religous i would be down on my knees praying for america!

2009-07-12T00:28:00.004-04:00

I cant believe the ignorance amoung our own community

2009-07-06T22:43:00.001-04:00

Its as if oxygen is not enough to satisfy me yet its the only source of air. Im running out of time and unsure of what to do. Im just waiting and may be missing out on the things i have to or want to fulfill time is no longer unlimited and life is therefore not as I know it. Creating horrible unstable and possibly dangerous territory

Just a thought

2009-06-25T21:52:00.001-04:00

The strange thing is just last night I was at my friend Alyces prom dancing to Jackson. As always when listening to his music my heart beat a little bit faster because of the passion in his music. The next day he dies... its devestating

A tragic loss to the music world

2009-06-25T21:40:00.005-04:00

I cant believe the king of pop is dead. Its so unreal. I was a huge fan of Michael Jackson threw thick and thin and have stood buy him when other condemned him. I am devastated that my hopes of hearing the continued musical brilliance of Michael Jackson once again will never be fulfilled. The music community and the world itself has lost a tremendous talent and the King of Pop will never again shake up the music industry, rocking the charts. The funny thing is how everyone now praises Michael even those who wouldn't dare speak praise of him after his public scandal.

2009-06-21T10:25:00.001-04:00

Always changing myslef so as not to hurt other people why cant i just be me

2009-06-21T08:57:00.001-04:00

Please dont trap me

2009-06-16T13:36:00.001-04:00

If there was a day i started believing in love at first sight today would be the day but its just lust as we all know unfortunatley i havent been home in 3 days other than to grab a shower and clothes and ive been doing frieght since i got to this reched place so was all sweaty and frazzled for this grand occasion

2009-06-15T22:30:00.001-04:00

I think we have confined the defenition of relationship to much in an intimate sexual and freindship way. Society has become so fearful of pedophillia and inappropriate relationsips weve made certain relationships in specific those more along the lines of friendship all inappropriate even though they are tottaly kosher. Weve set so many bounries that we are limiting comfort innovation creativity and over all peacefullness. Were trapping ourselves in a very very lonely box. Which can destroy a society. I do my best to fight such boundries and push against the stifling ideas of our society. I wish more people would and that more people would be cooperative and willing to fight on the opposite end. Its really a shame:(

2009-06-11T23:28:00.001-04:00

Why do they call it cum stains cum doesnt really stain? Shouldnt it be cum spot or something?

urgent

2009-06-08T22:02:00.002-04:00

Right now kitty is on her way to the hospital and stuck her in Newfane so very far away. My mom wouldn't let me go cause she said it wasnt an emergency and I can't keep driving after 9 cause im gonna get caught. Im so furious with her it is a fucking emergency. If something were to happen to my grandmother I would never forgive her for not letting me go... I know I dont mean that but its how I feel right now. On the phone with Cory at the end of our conversation of him telling me what happen I heard the ambulance sirens turn on rushing her away and it made it all so real. It made me realize the urgency of the situation because suddenly it was life and not a party. I'm so upset and afraid Kitty means the world to me and I dont know what i would do without her. Shes so tuff yet so fragile. Every time something happens it reminds me of how close we all are to that line between life and death. And how try as we might we have absolutely no control over it. What happens happens and thats that and I dont know if im strong enough to handle it.

2009-06-05T09:50:00.001-04:00

Im having a love affair but i cant tell u with who or rather with what

2009-05-29T23:09:00.001-04:00

The boundries of sexuality are not so easily defined so why do we try so hard to define them and fit into them

2009-05-28T23:46:00.001-04:00

I often tell people that I say what i think too often because it gets me in trouble. But the thing is that there are so many things i dont say because I know that people will refuse to except them as true And they will respect me less and value my opinion less because of how very afraid they are of what this person(me) is saying being reality. I am not afraid of being thought off or even hated as a radical but i want people to atleast take into consideration what i have to say which is why i censor my most radical of radical thoughts from the general public. In hope of being able to do more good... Because atleast this way we can get something acomplished rather than nothing because I failed to be diplomatic in my approach which is confrontational as it is.

Wasting time

2009-05-27T20:36:00.002-04:00

I was talking with my mom and she pointed out to me that I only have about 2 and a half months till I go away to college. I was shocked. I cant believe how fast the past few months have gone by. It's very intimidating. I really want a change of scene and I want new challenges in life but I'm afraid, and I also dont want to leave behind the things and people I love. I feel like I have been wasting valuable time that I could have been scraping up every last bit of the things and people I love working at a place I hate. I'm overworked and underpaid and im not sure that it's been worth it. But it's to late now.... the problem of the present and future is what the fuck do I do about it? I feel like im gasping for air and the air im gasping for represents me trying to take in everything im going to be losing....*tears*

2009-05-25T23:31:00.001-04:00

An interesting adventure my friend hopefully i will keep counting

2009-05-23T23:54:00.001-04:00

Regan destroyed the fucking environment from rolling back cafe standards to slashing renewable energy funding to striping the white house of its solar panels we could have been so much farther ahead instead we are facing a global crisis and quickly running out of time

The bat crisis

2009-05-23T22:25:00.001-04:00

This is the first time I have heard of this disease or the falling population of bats and i will be doing more research and sharing it with you soon

RICHMOND, Vt.— The Center for Biological Diversity and 60 other national and regional organizations sent a letter to members of Congress Wednesday requesting increased funding for research on whitenose syndrome, a disease that has been devastating bat populations in the eastern United States over the past two years. Scientists are predicting that if current trends continue, several species of bat may be extinct in just a few years. The cause of the illness has not been definitively identified, and no cure is known.

Bats are crucial insect eaters and pollinators whose loss could leave devastating gaps in ecosystems and profoundly disrupt the food chain.

The letter was signed by scientists, farmers, and conservation, wildlife, sustainable farming, and antipesticide organizations. Biologists predict that the widespread loss of insecteating bats will lead to burgeoning bug populations, including those that attack crops. Increased use of pesticides on farms may result from the bat dieoff.

"Action is needed now to stop whitenose syndrome from wiping out our bats," said Mollie Matteson, who spearheaded the letter campaign and is a conservation advocate for the Center for Biological Diversity. "Although sometimes superstitiously feared, bats serve a critical role in the food chain. Their loss would mean more insects, more pesticides, and a lot less healthy environment."

Bats have a low reproductive rate and are very slow to recover from population declines. Some bat populations, decimated by loss of cave habitat or outright persecution decades ago, had slowly been making a comeback with the help of conservation groups and wildlife agencies. Now many of these efforts have been undone in a matter of 24 months.

Whitenose syndrome was first documented in the winter of 200708 in bat caves near Albany, New York. It has since spread to eight other states, affecting six species and killing bats in their hibernation colonies at rates up to 100 percent. The malady is associated with a previously unknown fungus that invades the bats' skin. It does not appear to pose a threat to humans. Whitenose syndrome has been spreading and is currently heading for Kentucky, Tennessee, and other southern and midwestern states, where some of the largest populations of bats in the world reside.

Nina Fascione, vice president of field conservation programs at Defenders of Wildlife, helped enlist the support of other groups for the letter to Congress. She said: "Biologists have been scrambling to figure out why the bats are dying, but they've had very little resources to work with. We're asking Congress to help provide those resources because we don't have the luxury of time with this illness. We can save the bats, but we may lose them if we don't act now."

Acknowledgment of the problem is growing. Two weeks ago, the threemember Vermont congressional delegation released a letter cosigned by fellow members from 13 other states, asking for their colleagues' support in addressing whitenose syndrome. In addition to the letter sent by the Center, Defenders, and other groups, individual Center activists have sent over 57,000 letters to their representatives in Congress, asking for emergency action. A hearing on whitenose syndrome is scheduled for the House Natural Resources Committee on June 4.

Other signatories on the letter include Bat Conservation International, National Wildlife Federation, Beyond Pesticides, the Humane Society of the United States, and Women, Food, and Agriculture Network.

Contact Info: Mollie Matteson, Center for Biological Diversity, (802) 434-2388 (office); (802) 318-1487 (cell)
Nina Fascione, Defenders of Wildlife, (202) 682-9400
(www.enn.com)

Reminders of why were on earth

2009-05-23T16:40:00.002-04:00

I had the most interesting experience today with Jessies mom. She is thinking about taking Tyler which would be a great thing seen as the owners of my barn are about to have me killed for money I owe them. So we went to see Tyler today which is an experience I admit that I was nervous about. It turned out great though. I think she really likes Tyler and it was an interesting experience. The car ride there was intriguing cause I got to see Jessies mom from a totally different vantage point then I normally do. It was the first time I have heard her talk about her childhood in any way and it was interesting to here a small sampling of her recollections of her father. She is her own unique being and while I dont always get where she is going with some of the stuff she talks about she is a great conversationalist none the less. while there we bonded with Tyler which was very pleasant and the car ride back was just as interesting. I offered up some herbal sustenance's for when we got to my house but Amanda had to work and Jessies mom... also Amanda didn't really respond. So we said goodbye and I went inside. Then I get a phone call from Jessies mom and I answer thinking she needs directions to get back to transit but instead she says I just remembered what you offered up in the van does that offer still stand and I was like ya of course come on back. So she came back and we went up my room to enjoy our herbal...bowl... also known as cereal, bubble gone, cleaning the attic, or eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Now I have gotten to know Jessies mom (I feel weird referring to her as Amanda) over many circles of fun and sharing she is normally more of an observer of our conversations rather than a participant. But today it was just the too of us which created a very new experience for both of us. Everything we talked about was to do with something in my room wether it was a book on the floor or a poster on the wall. We talked about so many things some whimsical recollections and others deep conversations. We talked about artists and concerts and experiences of storms to fires. we talked about priests and protests and deceptive people. We talked about negative work environments and hate crimes. She told me of her fear of how I "advertise" myself... more particularly my homosexuality and how I could fall a victim to hate crimes because of it. We talked off the people we know and experiences we have had with them. We talked about many many things from snow globes to coal. She made me feel very good about myself. She appreciated the things that I fight for in society and the stands that I take against injustice. In the end after discussing family photos on my wall she told me how glad she was that I was in her life and in Jessies and how she thought we were all good kids combatting those people who bring evil to the world. She offered her shoulder to lean on whenever I need support no matter what and then we hugged and said our goodbyes. It was a very touching experience.

Obama Administration taking a stand for automobile emissions controls

2009-05-18T22:30:00.003-04:00

I am so excited about the Obama taking up emissions regulations in automobiles on a national level. This is bold action and though I'd like it to be bolder nothings perfect. I rarely have felt the Obama administration has taken great strides in anything but in this case they have. The question is how aggressively will they pursue it and will they be successful?

2009-05-18T21:30:00.001-04:00

The hate that we have to fight is still alive and well. For anyone who thinks that homophobia does not threaten peoples lives in the "more liberal" areas of the country and or state think again. Recent hate crimes are the proof. We can not run in fear but rather continue to take a stand. Ghandi and his followers tryed to cross a military barrier that was blocking them in there peaceful protest they were beaten with poles one by one but they got back up going to the gaurds without so much as raising a fist they were repeatedly beaten until the guards were overwhelmed and the people were able to cross even if many of them were bruised and broken. It remains today as one of the strongest public statments in the history of the world. It is time again to revive the lost voice of the public and too once again make a peacful statment that shakes the social and political structures of every country on earth.