What He Said

I love you, B. I really do. But Michael Moore has got a point (or several):

Dear President Obama,

How outstanding that you've been recognized today as a man of peace. Your swift, early pronouncements -- you will close Guantanamo, you will bring the troops home from Iraq, you want a nuclear weapon-free world, you admitted to the Iranians that we overthrew their democratically-elected president in 1953, you made that great speech to the Islamic world in Cairo, you've eliminated that useless term "The War on Terror," you've put an end to torture -- these have all made us and the rest of the world feel a bit more safe considering the disaster of the past eight years. In eight months you have done an about face and taken this country in a much more sane direction.

But...

The irony that you have been awarded this prize on the 2nd day of the ninth year of what is quickly becoming your War in Afghanistan is not lost on anyone. You are truly at a crossroads now. You can listen to the generals and expand the war (only to result in a far-too-predictable defeat) or you can declare Bush's Wars over, and bring all the troops home. Now. That's what a true man of peace would do.

There is nothing wrong with you doing what the last guy failed to do -- capture the man or men responsible for the mass murder of 3,000 people on 9/11. BUT YOU CANNOT DO THAT WITH TANKS AND TROOPS. You are pursuing a criminal, not an army. You do not use a stick of dynamite to get rid of a mouse.

The Taliban is another matter. That is a problem for the people of Afghanistan to resolve -- just as we did in 1776, the French did in 1789, the Cubans did in 1959, the Nicaraguans did in 1979 and the people of East Berlin did in 1989. One thing is certain through all revolutions by people who wish to be free -- they ultimately have to bring about that freedom themselves. Others can be supportive, but freedom can not be delivered from the front seat of someone else's Humvee.

You have to end our involvement in Afghanistan now. If you don't, you'll have no choice but to return the prize to Oslo.

Yours,
Michael Moore
MMFlint@aol.com
MichaelMoore.com

P.S. Your opposition has spent the morning attacking you for bringing such good will to this country. Why do they hate America so much? I get the feeling that if you found the cure for cancer this afternoon they'd be denouncing you for destroying free enterprise because cancer centers would have to close. There are those who say you've done nothing yet to deserve this award. As far as I'm concerned, the very fact that you've offered to walk into the minefield of hate and try to undo the irreparable damage the last president did is not only appreciated by me and millions of others, it is also an act of true bravery. That's why you got the prize. The whole world is depending on the U.S. -- and you -- to literally save this planet. Let's not let them down.

LUSH Helps Protect Orangutans. You Can, Too!

Maybe you think I'm fussy because I don't want mass market cosmetics, because my preferred purveyor of all things soapy is LUSH. There is good reason for my insistence. For instance, LUSH is in the process of eliminating all palm oil from all of its products because the environmental and social impact of using it is enormous!

During a recent trip to Indonesia to explore the palm oil industry, we witnessed firsthand the grave impact it has on Asian rainforests, wildlife and indigenous people - massive deforestation, Indigenous peoples being forced from their homes and the orangutans being pushed to the brink of extinction.

As our beliefs are at the heart of everything we do, we knew that we had to take action immediately and minimize our use of palm oil, (and hopefully save some rainforests along the way). The cosmetics industry uses approximately 6-7% of the world’s palm oil, and it’s a main ingredient in many soaps. Upon our return from Indonesia we rushed back to the LUSH labs and for almost a year worked in partnership with a leading UK soap-base manufacturer, Kay’s, to develop the world’s first commercially available palm-free soap base. Cracking this formula wasn’t easy, but after a lot of sweat we’ve finally got it right.

LUSH North America has now switched all of its soap production to this new palm-free base, and we are also using palm-free glycerin. Our end goal is to remove palm oil from all of our products, and we are currently investigating our surfactants which might be palm oil derived. Here at LUSH we understand that if the rainforests have any chance of surviving, retailers are going to have stop putting palm oil into their products.

As long as companies continue using palm oil, the Indonesian and Malaysian governments will allow the clearing and burning of rainforests to develop new plantations. Oil palm trees are so lucrative that governments and businesses only see dollar signs.

It seems to us that the only way to really tackle this problem is if palm oil becomes less popular. Because so many people want to use palm oil, it simply cannot be produced in a truly sustainable manner. Lush is hoping other business will move away from palm oil, which is why we are willing to share our expertise with anyone that wants to take similar steps. We are proud of our new formula for our palm-free soap base, which is why we want to share it with other soap manufactures. more...

See. I'm not fussy. I'm socially responsible. Do some research; maybe (hopefully) you'll want to make a similar stand with your money.

image via LUSH

Cadbury's Dairy Milk Will Be Fairtrade Certified By Fall 2009

Come Fall 2009, Cadbury's Dairy Milk will be Fairtrade certified! This is very exciting. But maybe you're not familiar with why buying fairtrade is so important.

Check it out:

We’re all familiar with the FAIRTRADE Mark and I’m sure we all have a decent sense of what it stands for. But do we actually know what it means to be Fairtrade? What does the stamp of approval on the products we buy symbolise for the farmers and producers on the other side of the planet?

Here are the five key benefits of Fairtrade. We’ll be taking a closer look at them one by one over the coming weeks and months, but here are the headlines for now.

1. Fair and stable prices

Increasing farmer incomes is one of Fairtrade’s main objectives. By reducing the number of intermediaries between the farmers and the end consumer, farmers earn a larger share of the export price. But there are two other characteristics that add to this: a minimum price and an additional premium. The minimum price is calculated to ensure sustainable production and livelihood. The additional premium is paid into a fund which is invested in development projects. More about how it’s used in the next point.

2. Extra income

A committee is set up to take care of this premium fund. This fund is then invested in building schools, clinics, community centres, funding scholarships, paying medical bills and providing low-interest loans. These loans are used to establish small income generating businesses. For instance, a farmer might use this money to start rearing animals for the local market. This means that, often for the fist time, farmers and estate workers don’t have to rely on the kindness of their estate farmers or the government to improve their lives but can take control of things and help themselves.

3. Environmental stuff

Environmental protection and sustainability is part of every producer organisations’ management policy. They have to comply with national and international laws of protection - that includes water, virgin forests and other ecosystems as well as waste management and the use of hazardous chemicals.

4. Stronger position in world markets

Technical information and market knowledge help farmers access and get better prices in the conventional market. But also, because Fairtrade has created a specialist sector for their products, it means far easier access to mainstream markets in developed countries.

5. Closer links between consumers and producers

The Fairtrade movement empowers consumers who are concerned about the reality of the stuff they buy every day. As consumers, Fairtrade accreditation gives us the peace of mind of knowing that the producers in question got a fair deal. The Fairtrade movement is helping producers and consumers trade as closely as possible, according to a set of shared standards.

Please honor the great commitment Cadbury is making by buying their Dairy Milk bars!

image via Cadbury Fairtrade

Help End the HIV Travel Ban

Go here, fill out the form, click "sign the comment."

Good job.

This Week in Dog Poo

Breitbart:

A German lawmaker proposed on Monday a novel and high-tech way of dealing with the menace of dog poo on the streets: DNA testing to identify the canine culprit and fine its owner.

Peter Stein, a conservative politician in eastern Germany, told AFP that under his proposal, officials would test the excrement and then match it up to the offending dog using a DNA database of all pooches.

German dog owners are fined 30-40 euros (40-50 dollars) if they fail to clean up after their pets, but very few are caught, with only four fines given out in Stein's hometown of Rostock -- human population 200,000 -- last year.

"Just saying 'it wasn't my dog' will not wash any more," Stein said.

via Slog

Recently, in Gay News

Great news: Connecticut legalized gay marriage!

Connecticut became the third state to legalize same-sex marriage today in a 4-3 decision by the state Supreme Court.

In an 85-page decision issued at 11:30 a.m., the court ruled that the state had “failed to establish adequate reason to justify the statutory ban on same sex marriage.”

The justices noted in the majority opinion that they recognized “as the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court did in Goodridge v. Dept. of Public Health … that ‘our decision marks a change in the history of our marriage law.’”

The case, Kerrigan v. the state Commissioner of Public Health, was brought by eight same-sex couples who were denied marriages licenses by the Madison town clerk. They argued that the state’s civil union law was discriminatory and unconstitutional because it established a separate and therefore inherently unequal institution for a minority group. Citing the equal protection under the law, the state Supreme Court agreed.

“In accordance with these state constitutional requirements, same sex couples cannot be denied the freedom to marry,” says the majority opinion, which was written by Justice Richard N. Palmer.

via Slog

Also, from Hilary Duff...



via Slog

Navigating the Science (and Sociology) of "Traffic"

On Monday, July 28's "Fresh Air," Terry Gross interviewed Tom Vanderbilt, author of Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What it Says about Us). In the interview, Vanderbilt explained why the elimination of traffic lights and the integration of traffic circles would mean safer roads. He also talked about the benefits of the late merge and the confusion that occurs when we get into the "dilemma zone."

The topic and interview are both remarkable. Driving is often such an unconscious activity; I know I am guilty of relying heavily on my ability to drive on autopilot. This subject is something we don't consider nearly enough. Listen to the interview and read an excerpt from the book here; Vanderbilt blogs on the topic here.

All the Green Girls are Doing It

CAUTION: This post contains talk of lady parts and menses.

I'm not too fond of putting bleach or rayon on my body so I don't know why its taken so long for me to decide not to put them in my body. Today I ordered my first Diva Cup, a reusable, non-absorbent menstrual cup that is made of silicone. It is latex-free, plastic-free, dye and color-free and hypoallergenic. From what I've read, the ladies love this shit.

Like I said, I've been thinking about trying a Diva Cup for a while. I'm not fond of the ongoing expense of tampons and, depending on what you use, the waste involved adds up quickly which is also an issue for me. If you're using most commercially manufactured tampons, the waste is up to and including paper, cardboard and plastic and the actual tampon itself. Organic, unbleached tampons address the issue of bleaching but still create waste that must be disposed. Pads are certainly the less environmentally-sound option. The Royal Institute of Technology of Stockholm did a life-cycle assessment of pad and found that

...the crucial process in the whole life cycle is the LDPE processing. Even though cellulose constitutes more weight percent of a pad, it doesn’t have so profound environmental impacts. It is due to high energy consumption of LDPE production and using oil as a raw material which is very valuable as an energy source. That is why the main impact from pads life cycle is fossil fuel use. Foresting and cellulose processing is much more environmentally friendly than plastic production. Most of the impacts come from raw materials processing and pads production; transportation also makes its inputs but not so large.

We are rapidly switching from plastic to canvas bags because of the significantly positive impact on the environment. I know my change from disposable tampons to the reusable Diva Cup is overdue.

Additionally, since I've been on birth control, my cycle is exceedingly lighter. I am constantly struggling with the following dilemma: should I be putting this foreign object in my body to absorb when my flow is so negligible? I've switched to low-flow options but the primary issue is not addressed by that adjustment.

I'm really happy I've made this decision. The Diva Cup will quickly pay for itself and the benefits inherent in its use make the minimal disadvantages seem even less important. I'll let you know how it goes.

The Business of Death

I spend a pretty significant amount of time thinking about death: my own death, the death of people I know and don't know, the circumstances surrounding the deaths of the already deceased. I know... Its creepy to me, too.

I also think a great deal about how I would like to be disposed of. The more I think about it and the further I get from the "death care" industry, the greener my preferences get. Check out this neat and informative video from Good Magazine on the business of death.

via Planet Green

Tell Google That You Want to "Bike There"

Sign a petition telling Google how important it is for them to add a "Bike There" option to Google Maps. "Drive There" and "Take Public Transit There" options exist already. I'm number 38251.

Read more here and here.

You Don't Like All Those Chemicals, Right?

Jesse and I have recently been buying more and more organic produce. It started slowly and then, all of a sudden, our fridge was stocked primarily with the organic varieties. I am totally behind the organic produce option and love that its available so readily. I love how organic produce tastes so much better and I hate how non-organic produce is so filmy with who-knows-what kind of grime. Yuck. But right now we're stretching one paycheck and sometimes I wonder if a little non-organic produce is ok. Is it really necessary to buy organic scallions when they're four times as expensive? Maybe this one week we can skip the organic limes and get the cheaper, fatter, chemicalier ones and we'll be ok. Do you have this struggle?

Well, I have another downloadable wallet guide for you (see Dear Ocean, I Love You for how to get a downloadable wallet guide of the safe, safer, and totally unsafe list of seafood choices). This list is courtesy of the Environmental Working Group and they have so much great information on their site. They have news about how to protect your pets from toxic chemicals, suggestions on how to pick a sunscreen and a guide to infant formula.

Right now I'm really excited about their Shoppers Guide to Pesticides in Produce. The complete list rates a variety of produce and assigns numbers for the degree of pesticide load (peaches are the worst at 100; onions are the best with the lowest pesticide load of 1). The downloadable version shows the Dirty Dozen that you should always buy organic and the Clean 12 with the lowest pesticide load. If you have to choose some produce to buy that's not organic, these are the best options!


image via The Green Report

Dear Ocean, I Love You

I really like seafood. I particularly love salmon, tuna, swordfish, the top-of-the-food-chain fish. I love the ocean more, however. Its becoming increasingly difficult to responsibly consume these species of fish due to overfishing and irresponsible aquaculture farming. Despite my love of salmon, I'm rarely eating it unless its fresh caught Alaskan. Despite my love of tuna, I'm rarely eating it because its so high in mercury and some are nearing extinction (Blue Fin).

So I'm trying other seafood. But I get to the seafood counter and its hard to remember what are the ecologically responsible choices? What is chock full of mercury? What farmed fish are ok? It can all be very confusing. Luckily, Monterey Bay Aquarium has come to the rescue! They have developed a Seafood Watch pocket guide that can be downloaded from their web site and kept in your wallet or purse. Its great because you can choose a guide from a specific region of the country or you can choose the National Guide. The Aquarium has these pocket guides laid out really nicely. First, it offers a list of the least responsible and/or healthy choices that should be avoided (Orange Roughy, Chilean Sea Bass, imported Swordfish). The second list offers good alternatives to the fish that should be avoided. There are fewer ecological or health issues regarding these species and they can be consumed in moderation (Pacific Flounders/Sole, Northeastern and Canadian Sea Scallops). The last list is the list of the best choices. It includes seafood that is abundant, well managed and harvested in an environmentally-friendly way (US farmed Tilapia, Alaskan Wild Salmon).

I'm still sad when I have to pass up the salmon but I know its best for me and for the planet and Monterey Bay is helping to keep me conscientious.