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Submitted by Bert on Fri, 11/07/2008 - 11:49pm.
I watched a great film that I am excited about tonight. It's called The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil. I recommend it highly to those of you who are interested in community solutions to the problem of depleting global energy resources, and sustainability. You may have already seen the film, it was released in May 2006. It's about the transition Cuba was forced to make in 1990 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. You see, the U.S.S.R. provided a heaping amount of trade to Cuba, and when it collapsed, Cuba's GDP plummeted to 34% of its pre-collapse level. The Cuban people were faced with some very hard times - and some massive challenges. What changes did they make and how did they make them? The film explains a lot of what happened. It's a sweet film. And it's a great window on what many important aspects of moving toward a truly sustainable society could look like. Our wonderful City of Olympia has sustainability as one of its foremost resolutions and goals. This is something which I am sure the majority of us endorse. This film has much to offer: education, knowledge, wisdom, the experience of others: we can learn from the journey of Cuba and the Cuban people, for example - to conserve and to implement local solutions to global problem of finite and depleted energy reserves. Find out more information, including a 2 minute trailer, at the Power of Community film-information-website: The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil Documentary - Welcome! Although the video is for sale, it can be found for free on Google. I also posted it to my other blog: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil.
Submitted by Bert on Wed, 10/08/2008 - 11:14pm.
Oct 20 2008 - 7:00pm Antonia Juhasz at the Capitol Theater at 7 PM on Monday, October 20th, 2008 will present her new book The Tyranny of Oil: The World's Most Powerful Industry, and What We Must Do To Stop It. Link to event details: Antonia Juhasz at the Capitol Theater October 20, 2008 Juhasz will also appear at SPSCC earlier in the day at 2 PM. More details about that event: Antonia Juhasz at South Puget Sound Community College more about the book on the flipside:
Submitted by Bert on Wed, 10/01/2008 - 12:08am.
About the rezone proposal, tonight's deliberations, and some recent interactions on OlyBlog: I have recently been labeled and accused of such things as zealotry, fanaticism, extremism, and being unwilling to compromise (by people who post on OlyBlog.) This is a response. And let me tell you - I strongly object to being labeled with those terms. But if I am a zealot because I care about the environment, then that is OK with me. In fact, I wouldn't have it any other way.
Submitted by Bert on Fri, 09/26/2008 - 1:04pm.
From the Christian Science Monitor:
» see photo
Submitted by Bert on Sat, 09/06/2008 - 4:13pm.
I just posted a new blog entry at my blog, In the Course of Events, about the ethics of corporate power re: social and environmental degradation. It needs some work, in terms of defining exactly what I mean when I use the terms of social and environmental degradation, and otherwise. But here's a link anyway, just in case you're interested: corporate power ethics social environmental degradation bert
Submitted by Robert Whitlock on Tue, 08/12/2008 - 8:45pm.
Considering the environmental and social problems with oil, I'd like to consider ways to reduce and eventually eliminate societal dependence on oil. The following is relevant. Not using bottled water is also one way to support the troops.
Take the pledge to break the bottled water habit.
Submitted by Robert Whitlock on Wed, 08/06/2008 - 10:22pm.
The water was almost up to the boardwalk - about two feet or so shy of the mark. The water was very high when I took this photo. According to www.saltwatertides.com, the high tide for Sunday August 3rd, 2008 was 15.5 feet at 8:35 pm (about 5 minutes prior to this photo being taken.) This area is known to have tides of over 17 feet. A 17 foot tide this night easily might have been at or above street level, especially during inclement weather conditions. If there were to be rain in a high tide situation like this, or in particular a storm with heavy rain and heavy river flow, it would push the water that much higher. Many buildings with businesses in the area would likely suffer flooding in such a situation. Is this a sign of impending sea level rise? I don't want to be a fear-monger. But this is a reality that the best science of the day suggests we will have to confront sooner or later. Could it be sooner rather than later? Discuss. p.s. oh yeah, didn't a big piece of Antarctica break off recently?
Submitted by Robert Whitlock on Wed, 08/06/2008 - 3:05pm.
It has come to my attention that Gary R. Tabor, candidate for Thurston County Superior Court, has received considerable campaign support from the Olympia Master Builders (www.omb.org). Maybe you have seen the advertisements on IT Buses [pdf]. Tabor's challenger, Ed Holm, is not without his own issues. As the director of the Thurston County Prosecutor's Office he is accused of mismanagement. The campaign of Gary R. Tabor has received over $15,000 from Olympia Master Builders via the OMB political action committee "Peoples Choice for Leadership" (this information is tricky and very difficult to find on the Washington Public Disclosure Commission website (www.pdc.wa.gov, but here's a short-cut: type "peoples choice for leadership" into first entry field ["filer name"]). In a time of increasing environmental peril, is this the kind of influence over the judiciary that will do society good? It seems that those of us who are concerned with the issue of how to best approach the problem of creating a truly sustainable society are left with a difficult choice. Is it too late to organize a write-in campaign? - bert
Submitted by Robert Whitlock on Tue, 07/29/2008 - 11:04am.
I noticed a great milfoil bloom on Capitol Lake. What does this portend for the future of the great reflecting lake? Is there a dredger in the future? A weed harvester? Or perhaps a return to the native estuarine habitat? What if we just let it be and see how thick the weeds can get. Do you think the entire surface of the lake could become overwhelmed by them? What if they became so thick that they jammed up the dam and caused a flood. It seems that the "FLOD" (Fetid Lake of Doom) maybe having the final say on this human altered landscape experiment.
» Unfortunately the milfoil doesn't show up very well in the following image, but if you go there, it's plain to see.
Submitted by Rick on Sun, 07/20/2008 - 8:16pm.
Jul 27 2008 - 12:30pm Jul 27 2008 - 2:00pm Next Sunday is Bike Your Watershed Day at Tumwater Historical Park (the lower park), and it looks like some folks are going to get some music going after. Here's the particulars: Bike the Deschutes Fiddle Music Open Session – July 27th 12:30 to 2 pm (we can stay and play as long as we want) Bike Your Watershed is a yearly environmental event that happens at Tumwater Historic Park in Tumwater, Washington. Bike the Deschutes was fun and successful last year – 100 riders and more. From the response and planning we know it will be even better this year! Check out the website and the Folkjam.org announcement here. Biking starts from 8 am to 10 am and features three routes: 5 miles around Capitol Lake, 20 miles and 30 miles up into the Deschutes Watershed (partly along the Chehalis Western Trail). Music starts at 11:30 with Samba Olywa and continues at 12:30 with an open fiddle music session. Come at 11:30 to enjoy Samba Olywa, come at 12:30 to play, or come in the morning and bike, then stay for music! Contact Name: Laurie Morgan (paula-sonata@comcast.net ) Phone Number: (360) 491-2062 Bring a chair, we'll provide some refreshments. Open session, we tend to play Old Time, Celtic and French Canadian (Portland Collection etc.), so fun. Email Laurie Morgan at paula-sonata@comcast.net if you have questions or if you can help with the session. Location: Tumwater Historic Park, off of the Deschutes Parkway on 777 Simmons Road SW below Tumwater Falls  |
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