The Democracy Gone Wild Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. You think Occupy is the only home of real democracy? Suppose we told you that more than a few critters discovered democracy long before us two-leggeds? Iain Couzin of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Princeton University calls in to talk about what democracy looks like for the rest of us. Also, we delve into the Enviro Show Echo Chamber, Meet the New Boss.....again, as well as our Fool-on-the-Hill and the E-Valley-uation segment, but first it's time for.... Revenge of the Critters! Thanks to Dana for this one: Bull-runners beware of correbous!

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber we checkout that Ohio gas leak courtesy of Sunoco. Since we're on the subject of irresponsibility how about the folks at the Appalachian Mountain Club and the Audubon Society of New Hampshire shilling for the clearcutters. Also this: an in-depth look into Big Green's dark closet. And this with a WARNING (it's rated R for repulsive): the worst rainforest loggers story ever. D.O.'s memorial piece is here.

In our E-Valley-uation segment they're at it again! Yup, it's the Shut it Down Affinity Group getting into the face of Vermont Yankee, this time in costume! Also, VT Yankee campaign goes national! And this other bit of good news: Springfield Biomass incinerator permit revoked!

It looks like The New Boss may be dropping the ball on habitat destruction. O, and how about protecting our coast lines from oil drilling? Maybe not.

Our Enviro Show Quote of the Week takes us on another journey in the Wayback Machine, all the way back to 1902 with a visit to Petr Kropotkin and his book Mutual Aid:

"In the animal world we have seen that the vast majority of species live in societies, and that they find in association the best arms for the struggle for life"

Our Fool-on-the-Hill this week is one of the biggest fools on The Hill, Repugnican Speaker of the House, John Boehner who invited Big Oil into the House Chamber to hear Obama's State of the Union speech. We don't know why the Speaker bothered, Big Oil is already in the House! Why take up more space?

"Killing Wage" by Congress of Starlings takes us to our interview with interview with Iain Couzin on democracy in the rest of the animal world, then it's on to the Bus Stop Billboard:

Wednesday, February 1, All Day. The Occupy Wall Street OccuBus will be making an outreach trip in a couple of weeks making 14 stops including Northampton on Feb 1! Here’s the trip itinerary: http://bit.ly/y8DrM0. There will be 17 Wall Street Occupiers on the bus. The objective of this trip is to strengthen the OWS network by deepening relationships between occupiers, increase OWS’s capacity through mutual transfer of skills and knowledge, and clarify OWS’s narrative by deepening its commitment to listening. There will be a 6pm event at The Academy of Music. Email: geogruven@gmail.com Go to: http://occupynorthampton.com/

Saturday, Feb. 4, 2 pm—9pm. No Nukes Benefit Concert and Speak Out. Sponsored by The Quahogs Affinity Group to benefit the SAGE Alliance. Leverett Town Hall, 9 Montague Rd., Leverett. Food and refreshments will be available free, with a sliding scale for admission. Contact: Ann Ferguson ferguson3636@gmail.com. Call: 413-367-2310

Saturday, February 4, 2PM. Free Pizza And Discussion Of the Pioneer Valley's Energy Future. Join Sierra Club members for free pizza and discussion on how to move the Pioneer Valley away from dirty energy sources and towards a clean energy future. Paisano's Pizza, 136 College Highway, Southampton, MA.

Tuesday, February 7, 7pm. "The Pitfalls and Dangers of Nuclear Power: a Mandate for a Carbon-Free, Nuclear-Free Future". Leverett Elementary School, 85 Montague Road, Leverett.

Tuesday, Feb. 28, 5 to 8 p.m. A public meeting to discuss the findings of epidemiological studies addressing noise, infrasound, vibrations and shadow flickering of wind turbines at Lee Middle and High School Auditorium, 300 Greylock St., Lee, MA. Snow date: Feb. 29.

Saturday, March 3, All Day. 25th Annual Southern New England Environmental Action Conference at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. Go to: http://www.toxicsaction.org/ or call Toxics Action Center at: (413) 253-4458


March Month of Action (and beyond) to permanently close Vermont Yankee:
March 3: Greenfield (MA) Community College affinity group is walking from GCC to the reactor, then celebrating in Brattleboro.
March 11: Anniversary of the ongoing Fukushima nuclear meltdowns in Japan, mock evacuation
March 17 & 18: non-violence trainings and/or teach-ins around New England.
March 21: Vermont Yankee retirement party at the Statehouse in Montpelier.
March 22 and thereafter: Non-violent direct actions against Entergy (the New Orleans-based owner of VY). Details to be determined by an AG Spokes Council.
March 23 and thereafter: national call for solidarity in opposition to Vermont Yankee, Pilgrim and Indian Point.
April 1: mass legal rally in Brattleboro in alliance with legislators and environmental and safe energy groups.
Contact tom@clamshellalliance.org or see Upcoming Events on the homepage of www.sagealliance.net for location and on-going action information.

That's all folks!.....O, wait...we nearly forgot to remind you to LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER!

The Eat Your Heart Out Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. We may not be what we eat, but what we eat probably determines what we are, like dead or alive! Dr. Pam Popper calls in to talk about Forks over Knives, the book and the film that reminds us of the ills on our plates. Warning meat-eaters: this film is rated R.....for reconsider! As always, we checkout the news in the Enviro Show Echo Chamber and our E-Valley-uation segments, as well as look at The Fool-on-the-Hill. This week we return to Meet the New Boss as well as our Quote of the week, but first it's time for....Revenge of the Critters! Man attacked by Hamburger!

It's been awhile since we've met The New Boss, but he made up for that time off for good behavior when Obama signed the National Defense Appropriations Act in which lurks provisions for detaining U.S. citizens on U.S. soil in military custody without trial for as long as there is a war on terror. Soooo, your First Amendment rights? Not so much. The Fourth Amendment? F'get about it! Gosh, how's THAT for hope & change?

The Enviro Show Quote of the Week puts us once again squarely inside the Wayback Machine for a visit with Henry David Thoreau:

"One farmer says to me, "You cannot live on vegetable food solely, for it furnishes nothing to make the bones with;" and so he religiously devotes a part of his day to supplying himself with the raw material of bones; walking all the while he talks behind his oxen, which, with vegetable-made bones, jerk him and his lumbering plow along in spite of every obstacle."

In our Echo Chamber we have a timely piece from Grist on Big Ag getting its shorts all up in a knot over a pending EPA assessment on dioxins. Also this disturbing update on Fukushima from Arnie Gunderson. Here's our Enviro Show Blog Bonus: an action link demanding that subsidies for biomass incineration expire. Finally, in our Anything Worth Doing is Worth Overdoing Department it's last week's Action Link!

It's another plural edition of our Fool-on-the-Hill with a whole pathetic parcel of Repugnicans pimping for Big Oil and working hard to destroy the planet....fools that they are.

In the E-Valley-uation segment we take a peek at an interesting proposal for a Greenfield Food Hub. Of course, the CDC already has a food processing plant in Greenfield to give real meaning to the term "eat local". Given the need to avoid tainted corporate food, shipped in from Goddess knows where with a giant carbon footprint, the more local the better, yes?.

"Beef Jerky" by Cibo Matto takes us to our interview with Dr. Popper, then we saunter over to the Bus Stop Billboard:

Thursday January 19, 6-8pm. Brownfield Forum at the UMass Design Center, 3 Elm St/Court Square, across the street from Springfield City Hall. What do we do with our abandoned factories? What are the risks for our health and our communities? How can I get involved? To address these questions and many more, the Healthy Environment/Healthy Springfield CARE Project invites you to attend Cleaning Up Springfield: A Community Discussion about Brownfield and Hazardous Waste Sites. Call 413-794-1803


Friday, January 20, 11:00 am–1:00 pm. Occupy the Courts! U.S. District Court, 300 State Street, Springfield, MA. Join us on the second anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's infamous "Citizens United" decision to protest that decision and the concept of corporate personhood. For more information go to: movetoamend.org/occupythecourts or email: danielwmcleod@gmail.com

Jan 20, 7pm Screening of Maquilopolis. One of the ways NAFTA was supposed to help Mexicans was by creating a factory zone at the U.S.-Mexico border. How is that working out? Frances Crowe Community Room, 60 Masonic Street in Northampton. Enter via Woodstar Cafe, at the front of the building. The venue is accessible. Email: info@northamptoncommittee.org

January 25 at 6:00 pm in room 220 of Springfield City Hall.Attend the ZBA Hearing to Stop this Incinerator from Being Built City Council and several Springfield residents will appeal the building permit issued
to Palmer Renewable Energy to build a biomass incinerator in the heart of Springfield. It is crucial that you show your support to the councilors and residents who are fighting to help protect the health and well being of all the
residents of Springfield. PRE will not have the necessary city permit to build its incinerator if this appeal is won!

January 25, 6:30 pm. Greening Greenfield Energy Committee presents: "A SEA CHANGE" This film is both a personal journey and a scientifically rigorous, sometimes humorous, unflinchingly honest look at the reality we have created in our oceans. It conveys the urgent steps we need to make to reduce the severity of the chemistry of our oceans. Greenfield Public Library, Greenfield.

Jan 27, 7pm. Screening of Blood in the Mobile. A visit to a tin mine in Congo, where profits fund the Bloodiest War on Earth - and to the headquarters of Nokia, to talk about where they get tin for cell phones. Frances Crowe Community Room, 60 Masonic Street in Northampton. Enter via Woodstar Cafe, at the front of the building. The venue is accessible. Email: info@northamptoncommittee.org

Wednesday, February 1, All Day. The Occupy Wall Street Bio-Bus will be making an outreach trip in a couple of weeks making 14 stops including Northampton on Feb 1! Here’s the trip itinerary: http://bit.ly/y8DrM0. There will be 17 Wall Street Occupiers on the bus. The objective of this trip is to strengthen the OWS network by deepening relationships between occupiers, increase OWS’s capacity through mutual transfer of skills and knowledge, and clarify OWS’s narrative by deepening its commitment to listening. The proposal was approved by OWS GA last year and was prepared by the Direct Action Working Group in consultation with others. Email: geogruven@gmail.com

Saturday, Feb. 4,2 pm—9pm. No Nukes Benefit Concert and Speak Out. Sponsored by The Quahogs Affinity Group to benefit the SAGE Alliance. Leverett Town Hall, 9 Montague Rd., Leverett. Food and refreshments will be available free, with a sliding scale for admission. Contact: Ann Ferguson ferguson3636@gmail.com. Call: 413-367-2310

That's it for this week. Tune-in next time for democracy in the animal kingdom. If they can do it, why not us?? Until then remember......listen to your Mother!

The Immeasurably Diminished Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. Another year gone by, another lost opportunity to save the planet. On our very first show, over six years ago, we read excerpts from the 1992 World Scientists' Warning to Humanity which said in part: "No more than one or a few decades remain before the chance to avert the threats we now confront will be lost and the prospects for humanity immeasurably diminished." In case you missed that from the 1992 Warning, we repeat: "No more than one or a few decades". It's 2012. Happy New Year? Brenda Ekwurzel calls in. Brenda is Assistant Director of Climate Research and Analysis for the Union of Concerned Scientists. The World Scientists' Warning was spearheaded by the late Henry Kendall, former chair of UCS's board of directors. If all that is way too much doom & gloom for you, we'll bury our collective heads in the sand looking for the Fool-on-the-Hill and the Quote of the YEAR!, as well as search for some good news in our Enviro Show Echo Chamber and maybe the E-Valley-uation segment, but first it's time for... Revenge of the Critters! A classic for the New Year: Elephant vs. Big Oil!

The big news in The Enviro Show Echo Chamber was last week's EPA announcement that it has finalized The Mercury Rule, one of the most important updates to the Clean Air Act in the Act's 40 year history. That's the good news, OK? (You see, it's not all doom & gloom here, no matter what people say). You've no doubt heard that the zombie Keystone Pipeline may rise from the dead in two months, yes? Well, for what it's worth, here's an action link requesting Obama to put that monster out of its misery. Did we say action? Here's our Enviro Show Blog Bonus: tell Montana Gov. Schweitzer to Stop Shooting Wolves! Meanwhile, it's mixed messages for wolves closer to home. Wolves in the Great Lakes region have been stripped of protection, though a proposal to remove protections for wolves in Northeast is delayed and likely dead.

In our E-Valley-uation segment we hinted at good news, and here it is: Cinda Jones of Cowls Lumber & Kristin DeBoer, executive director of Kestrel Land Trust have saved Brushy Mountain in Leverett and 666 adjacent acres, much of it in Shutesbury from development forever. It's the biggest conservation deal on a block of privately owned land in Massachusetts history. Congrats to all involved! Of course, there is some bad news: this from Westborough regarding highly questionable logging practices.One hand giveth/one taketh away....like they say!

The second (or is it third?) time candidate for Fool-on-the-Hill has gone so far off the rails that we hesitate to trash her once again and risk being accused of making fun of the mentally challenged. Be that as it may, Rep. Michele Bachmann takes the cake for her recent comment on the science of climate change: "I think all these issues have to be settled on the base of real science, not manufactured science.” Manufactured, we assume, by the vast, vast majority of the world's senior scientists?

The Enviro Show Quote of the Week is from (surprise!) the 1992 World Scientists' Warning to Humanity!

After our interview with Brenda Ekwurzel we amble on over to the Bus Stop Billboard:

Wednesday, January 4th, 7:00-9:00pm. Occupy Franklin County meets at the Second Congregational Church, Court Square, Greenfield. Email: davidjc@comcast.net

Friday, January 6th,7:30 AM - 10:00 AM. Environmental Business Council of New England Breakfast Meeting with Mark Sylvia, Commissioner, Department of Energy Resources. ML Strategies, LLC. One Financial Center, Boston. Commissioner Sylvia will discuss the status and near- term goals of Massachusetts energy programs, as well as their ramification for businesses and communities in the Commonwealth. Hefty entrance fee. Call: (617)505-1818

Tuesday, January 10th and Tuesday January 24th, 6 to 8pm. Community Action for a Renewed Environment in Springfield meetings at Springfield Technical Community College, One Armory Square, Springfield; Scibelli Hall, 7th Floor. Call: (413)794-1454

Wednesday, January 11, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Green Drinks Northampton is at the Northampton Brewery. If you have any materials to swap, please bring them: books, cds, dvds event announcements -- anything of Green or Sustainable interest. GD will start at 5:30 pm and will overlap with the end of Western Mass Green Consortium meeting which begins at 4pm. Call: (413) 586-7350 ext. 28

Tuesday, January 17. All Day +. Occupy Congress! The U.S. House of Representatives convenes for the first time in 2012 on January 17th, and they will be welcomed by the largest national unification of Occupiers to date. This grassroots assembly of nationwide occupations will be a peaceful and non-violent demonstration against our corrupted political system, aiming to further the movement’s success at shifting the political discourse towards real issues that matter to the people of America. Email: occupycongressj17@gmail.com Go to: http://www.occupyyourcongress.info/

Thursday, January 19, 7 to 8:30pm. How much wood do we use? Where does our wood come from? How do our local forests fit into the picture? Can wood be “better?” Join Outreach Service Forester Peter Grima from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation to learn about the local and global consequences of our wood consumption, and take away some bits of knowledge that may enable you to make better wood purchases. Great Falls Discovery Center, 2 Avenue A., Turners Falls, Call: (413) 863-3221

January 25, 6:30 pm. Greening Greenfield Energy Committee presents: "A SEA CHANGE" This film is both a personal journey and a scientifically rigorous, sometimes humorous, unflinchingly honest look at the reality we have created in our oceans. It conveys the urgent steps we need to make to reduce the severity of the chemistry of our oceans. Greenfield Public Library, Greenfield.

That about does it for the New Year. How about a REAL resolution, like listen to your Mother?
--

And Another Winter Solstice Enviro Show!

Solstice Greetings Earthlings! Here it is, another Winter Solstice, another Enviro Show to make you wonder why you're not dancing naked around the Solstice Bonfire. Our favorite house witch, Michelle returns to tell us why we might be doing that and Mark Serreze, Director of the National Snow and Ice Data Center at the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science (and brother to Mary, we might add) calls in with news from the North Pole. If that sounds a little frosty we have some hot news that may warm your heart in our E-Valley-uation segment regarding the scary Vermont Yankee nuke. Also, news all the way from South Africa, Japan and closer to home in The Enviro Show Echo Chamber, as well as a peek at this week's Fool-on-the-Hill and more, but first it's time for....Revenge of the Critters!Another Reindeer attack!

Since we're getting into the warm glow of the season with Michelle, let's move our attention toward that radioactive hot spot just over the border in Vermont. It's our E-Valley-uation segment featuring our own Jean, busted yet again at Vermont Yankee along with the Shut it Down Affinity Group! Also this: nuke safety experts disturbed by operator errors. Come on! What's the worst that could happen anyway??

Did someone say Fukushima? In the Enviro Show Echo Chamber we have dueling opinions on the chances of a China Syndrome event at Reactor #1. This audio interview with Keven Kamps of Beyond Nuclear on the Thom Hartmann Show is flat-out bad news for anyone even remotely close to Northern Japan, but the folks over at Nuclear Information and Resource Service see it differently. Will someone please make-up their mind. If nuclear meltdown isn't of much interest to you, how about complete ecological collapse! The news from the COP17 climate summit in South Africa? COP17 fails, world melts down. We should add however, that at least The Rights of Nature were introduced at this press conference. How about something a bit more positive, OK? The next generation's response: sue the bastards! Finally, our Enviro Show Blog Bonus: will you help Stop Biomass Incineration Subsidies?

This week's Fool-on-the-Hill is Texas Rep. Ralph Hall, the chairman of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology. We're wondering if the Space might be in Hall's head, underneath that tinfoil hat. He has launched a probe of NOAA, claiming that the agency was conducting "a shadow climate service operation". Ooooooo! Science geeks plotting for the end of America! If you'd like to send Hall and his nutjob climate crisis denier friends some actual tin foil hats for the Holidays go here!

Tim Story's "In the Winter's Pale" takes us to our interview with Mark Serreze, then it's on to the Bus Stop Billboard (thanks to Hilltown Families):


Wednesday, December 21st, 2011

6-8:30pm – SOLSTICE FIRE & SONG: Celebrate the solstice with a bonfire and music! Aracadia Wildlife Sanctuary hosts a solstice celebration for families tonight- bring a nonperishable food item to donate to the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts. 413-584-3009. 127 Coombs Road. Easthampton, MA.

Thursday, December 22nd, 2011

7am and 3pm – SOLSTICE SUNWHEEL: Watch the sunrise or sunset at the UMass Sunwheel. There will be a presentation on the significance of the solstices and equinoxes, phases of the moon, and other sunwheels around the world. Learn about the cultural significance of the solstice worldwide! Rocky Hill Road. Amherst, MA.

5-8pm – SOLSTICE STORIES & SONGS: Celebrate the winter solstice at a community event on the Shutesbury town common. Bring your own light source to light up the circle, and share stories and songs. Town Common Road. Shutebury, MA.

6-9pm – SOLSTICE HIKE: Hike with a headlamp tonight at Northfield Mountain! Celebrate the solstice by enjoying nature- especially the stars and moon. Ages 12+, registration requested.. 800-859-2960. 99 Millers Falls Road. Northfield, MA.

7-9pm – SOLSTICE PAGENT: Celebrate the solstice with students from the Hartsbrook School! They’ll be performing seasonal music and songs, as well as sharing stories, at the Northampton Center for the Arts. 413-584-7327. 17 New South Street. Northampton, MA.


A new coalition of regional anti-nuclear groups, is planning non-violent direct actions to stop the re-licensing and continued operation of Vermont Yankee. The court case between the State of Vermont and Entergy is still pending. However, we know that Entergy will try everything it can to keep the reactor open past March 21 2012 - its scheduled shut down date. It's time to get involved! Nonviolence trainings are about to begin and March 21 is not far away. But we need you to get in touch with us, even if you're part of a longstanding group that is reviving. Once we know where you are, we can plug you into the local organizing, training and affinity group formation. We also hope you will spread the word to friends and co-workers so they'll join us as well. Even if civil disobedience is impossible for you, support people who do not risk arrest are vital affinity groups members. And nonviolent training is necessary for all action participants. Please go to the SAGE website and fill out your contact info at http://sagealliance.net/contact/join_us or email the Convener of the SAGE Affinity Group Committee, David Detmold at reporter@montaguema.net

Christmas Bird Count. From December 14 through January 5 tens of thousands of volunteers throughout the Americas take part in an adventure that has become a family tradition among generations. Families and students, birders and scientists, armed with binoculars, bird guides and checklists go out on an annual mission - often before dawn. For over one hundred years, the desire to both make a difference and to experience the beauty of nature has driven dedicated people to leave the comfort of a warm house during the Holiday season. Contact: Greenfield: Mark Fairbrother 413-367-2695; Southern Berkshire: René Laubach 413-637-0320 x8351

Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary. Nature Center/Trail Hours: Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. - noon, Friday 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Saturday, 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Sunday and most holidays except Christmas, noon - 3:30 p.m. 127 Combs Road, Easthampton. Call: 413-584-3009

Friday, January 13,7pm. "What Pentagon Spending Means to Your Community: What is Behind the Numbers?" Chris Hellman, the Senior Research Analyst at the National Priorities Project will be speaking at the Leverett Town Hall Friday evening followed by a community discussion led by Chris and the Leverett Peace Commission
on: "Building a Community Peace Budget in Leverett". Call: Tom Wolff 367 0239 or Jim Perkins at 367 9520.

January 25, 6:30 pm. Greening Greenfield Energy Committee presents: "A SEA CHANGE" This film is both a personal journey and a scientifically rigorous, sometimes humorous, unflinchingly honest look at the reality we have created in our oceans. It conveys the urgent steps we need to make to reduce the severity of the chemistry of our oceans. Greenfield Public Library, Greenfield.

We go out with "The Christians & the Pagans" by Dar Williams and some holiday advice: Listen to your Mother!

The Tortured Brook Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. Recovered from tropical storm Irene yet? The Chickley Brook hasn't. It's gotten trashed by some engineers who should probably be working for the Once-lers. Andrea Donlon, River Steward for the Connecticut River Watershed Council joins us for some river talk and some serious E-Valley-uation. Then it's on to the Enviro Show Echo Chamber and a meet-up with the Fool-on-the-Hill, as well as treating you to our Quote of the Week, but first it's time for....Revenge of the Critters! Otters may be feed up with humans!

In the Enviro Show Echo Chamber we applaud Bolivia on recognizing The Rights of Nature. You may recall Ecuador did this as well. Hey, we've got nature in the U.S. also........well, at least some, but no rights, right? Remember 'The Story of Stuff?' Now, we've got The Story of Broke. It's not about the 1%....no broke there. Our friends at The Global Justice Ecology Project are doing report-backs from the COP17 climate talks in Durban, South Africa. If you want to know what the actual grassroots are up to over there, follow their Climate Connections blog. And this: you want jobs? How about 1.5 million jobs? It's here. Finally, a follow-up on our last coal show: Coal exports bigger climate threat than the Keystone pipeline!.

This week's Fool-on-the-Hill is actually not on the Hill anymore BUT he's truly still a GIGANTIC fool! It's none other than former Rep. Newt Gingrich who once believed the science of the climate crisis so much he did this video with Nancy Pelosi. Now that he's trying to be the Repugnican candidate for prez he's trying to explain his old position......and not very well....actually, kinda' pathetic...he is..

Our Enviro Show Quote of the Week is all about rivers. "What makes a river so restful to people is that it doesn't have any doubt it is sure to get where it is going, and it doesn't want to go anywhere else." - Hal Boyle

Our interview is THE heart of our E-Valley-uation segment, but before we go there we'd like to read an excerpt of a Letter to the Editor of The Montague Reporter concerning the use of live pigs in trauma training at Baystate Medical Center which eventually leads to their untimely, and perhaps painful death. We will read it and weep. Also we look into the windpower controversy that's picking up......wind? in Franklin County.


Following our interview with Andrea Donlon we move on to the Bus Stop Billboard:


Wednesday, December 7, 6pm. Green Speaker Series at GCC - Deb Katz, Act Today to Change Tomorrow. Room C208, (Second Floor Core Building), GCC, Greenfield. For more information you can email us at renewable@gcc.mass.edu or call (413) 775-1472.

Thursday, December 8th, from 6:00 to 8:30 pm VT Yankee Supper/Briefing session.at the Center Congregational Church in Brattleboro VT (193 Main Street, in the basement). The briefing will include the status of the federal court case (Entergy v. State of Vermont), preparations for non-violent direct action if Vermont Yankee is still operating on March 21st, and the many important ways you can participate in and/or support such action. Contact: safeandgreencampaign@gmail.com

Saturday, December 10, 10:30am to 2pm. Second Saturday Children's Nature Series. Daily activities may include crafts, games, investigations, or outdoor adventures. Great Falls Discovery Center, 2 Avenue A., Turners Falls, MA 01376, Call: 413.863.3221

Saturday, December 10, 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM. Green-Rainbow Party of Massachusetts Annual Convention. Unity Hall, First Unitarian Church, 90 Main Street, Worcester, MA. Contact:
Dick Vaillette · rvaillette@gmail.com

Thursday, December 15, 7 PM. Western Mass Fund Our Communities Not War gathering at Open Square in Holyoke (UAW office). What local actions can we actively support and mobilize for in the near future? What are your ideas for building sustainable community? Call: 413-253-2161

Whoa! That went fast. Maybe it's the 60 minute news cycle? In any case, did we remind you to listen to your mother yet?

The Down with King Coal Enviro Show, Part III

Greetings Earthlings. About had it with having some of the worst air quality in the region? How about the Mt. Tom coal-burning power plant? Do you think it's part of the problem....'ya think?? Claire B. W. Miller, Community Organizer for Toxics Action Center calls in to talk about that turkey by Mt. Tom and local activist, Jane Andresen joins us in the studio.. We'll also be giving some thanks in The Enviro Show Echo Chamber while our Fool-on-the-Hill gets the stuffing knocked out him. Tired of the seasonal puns yet? You may find some relief in our E-Valley-uation segment. First though, it's time for....Revenge of the Critters! Turf war with Turkeys!

In the Enviro Show Echo Chamber Grist finds a green Occupy Wall Street right down to the pedal power. Then we give thanks that at least some justice is being served down in coal country. We all look forward to the day Don Blankenship serves some time too! Here's an Enviro Show Blog Bonus Action Link to help stop one particularly ugly mountain top removal project. On the down side (you knew we'd go there, right?), it looks like New England forests will be shipped off to Europe in countless tiny pieces. Since we're talking trash on King Coal here, how about that coal ash spill in Lake Michigan earlier this month? Talk about dirt bags!

Our Fool-on-the-Hill would like to gut the Cross State Air Pollution Rule, you know the one that applies to all that bad air wafting into the Valley from Mid-west mega coal-burning power plants? Yes, and none other than arch Repugnican teabagger Senator Rand Paul, carving knife in hand, is poised to cut away. We're thinking he should be excused from the table.......sorry.....can't resist those T-Day puns.

In our E-Valley-uation segment we're asking you to take action against corporate welfare for biomass incinerators, OK? If you've been paying attention here to the show you know those biomonsters have their beady eyes set on Western Mass forests. Now, about that old coal-burning clunker by Mt. Tom: did you know about the Greening of Mt. Tom? Hmm......well, we wish it was reforestation, but.... Finally, it seems the FBI is all over Northampton looking for Daniel Andreas San Diego, the alleged "eco-terrorist" they put way up on top of their most wanted list. Of course, San Diego is only accused of property destruction but since it was corporate property he must be part of "the number one domestic terrorist threat" in the nation, right? OK, so he's not armed to the teeth like all those far-right militia freaks, and he didn't rip us all off for billions of dollars, throwing many of us into the streets, like the banksters & corporados, he's still a terrorist, right? right? no?...

Tom Neilson's "Corporations are Human" takes us to our interview with Claire Miller. Then we adjourn to the Bus Stop Billboard:

Monday, November 21, 11:00am. March & Rally on Wall Street Banks. Meet behind Dunkin Donuts on Corner of Morris & Central Sts., Springfield, Mass. THIS IS THE BIG ONE! Join hundreds of residents fighting back against banks who are foreclosing and evicting our families for the biggest action yet against the banksters! More information, press releases, flyers will be available at www.springfieldnooneleaves.org

Friday, November 25, All day is BUY NOTHING DAY! Go to: http://www.adbusters.org/campaigns/bnd

Tuesday, November 29th, 7:00 PM, Dr. Penny Gill - “Reclaiming Politics: Thinking About “Occupy Wall Street” Leverett Library, Montague Road, Leverett. “Occupy Wall Street” is a struggle to recreate an independent public space, and in so doing to invigorate local and national political life. Contact: Barbara Tiner - Barbara@wetlanded.com

Wednesday, November 30, 6:30 pm. Screening of "Gasland" at St. James Church, Greenfield. The Halliburton-developed drilling technology of “fracking” or hydraulic fracturing has unlocked a “Saudi Arabia of natural gas”, but is it safe? This film follows a cross-country odyssey uncovering a trail of secrets, lies and contamination.Call: 413-773-7004

Dec. 2-4. Non-violence Training for trainers. The people's campaign of nonviolent direct action to shut down Vermont Yankee on schedule - by March 21st, is looking for experienced nonviolence trainers as well as people who have experience in nonviolent direct action want to become trainers to help to prepare the people for this action. Contact VY-NVTraining@riseup.net

Tuesday, December 6, 6:30pm. LIFE AFTER VERMONT YANKEE. Forum with Panel discussion and Q&A to address what will happen when Vermont Yankee shutters in 2012. A three-person panel will talk about transition, clean-up, long-term waste storage and what role citizens can play in the process. Bangs Center Amherst. This event is co-sponsored by the Safe & Green Campaign, New England Coalition on Nuclear Pollution and Nuclear Free Vermont by 2012. Refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Deb Katz 413.339.5781.

Saturday, December 10, 10:30am to 2pm. Second Saturday Children's Nature Series. Daily activities may include crafts, games, investigations, or outdoor adventures. Great Falls Discovery Center, 2 Avenue A., Turners Falls, MA 01376, Ph 413.863.3221

That does it for us. Be thankful to your Mother....and listen to her!

That Fracking Enviro Show!

Greetings Earthlings. Recovered from the latest natural disaster yet? What makes you think it's natural? Do we need still more anecdotal evidence that humanity is hard at work destroying the ecosphere? No? How about some overwhelming scientific evidence?? We'll get to that and a call-in from fracking expert, Jessica Ennis of EarthJustice. Now is a critical moment in the anti-fracking movement here in the Northeast. Checkout this crucial demonstration set for November 21st. Also, if a snowbound Halloween wasn't scary enough for you, how about a visit to our Fool-on-the-Hill? No? The Enviro Show Horror....er...i mean Echo Chamber is always open for business. We'll lay the Quote of the week on you and maybe some other stuff but first it's time for...
Revenge of the Critters! Gator Gobbles Georgia Granny. Lawyers in hot pursuit!

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber you'll find the NPR story that inspired this week's show. Almost everyone knows about fracking for gas and its associated pollution, but did you know about fracking for oil? How about a GIGANTIC fracking for oil BOOM? And, how about communities coming together and saying: No fracking way! Meanwhile, across the border in New York, citizens are jumping into the fray, as well. Since we're in NY State, check this out: Occupy Wall Street says What the Frack! (Their not stopping there however, it looks like every Sunday may be Environmentalist Solidarity Day at OWS). What? You don't believe fracking is perfectly safe? Well now, back in August this Haliburton CEO had his taster drink their new, improved fracking fluid on stage! No word yet on the underling's status. Here's that climate crisis science we were talking about at the top of the show. Finally this: Chomsky on the Occupation movement.

Guess who's back! "In 2005, at the urging of Vice President Dick Cheney, Congress created the so-called "Halliburton loophole" to clean water protections in federal law to prevent the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from regulating the fracking process, despite serious concerns that were raised about the chemicals used in the process and its demonstrated spoiling and contamination of drinking water. In 2001, Cheney's "energy task force" had touted the benefits of hydrofracking, while redacting references to human health hazards associated with hydrofracking. Halliburton, which was previously led by Cheney, reportedly earns $1.5 billion a year from its energy operations, which rely substantially on its hydrofracking business." That's from the Los Angeles Times, October 14, 2004.

"My Water's on Fire Tonight" by David Holmes takes us to our E-Valley-uation segment where YOUR favorite enviro radio show gets a nod on Grist (blush).

This week's Fool-on-the-Hill is Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) who is targeting the Environmental Protection Agency’s nonexistent farm dust regulations......yes, we said non-existent. Like our own MA Rep. Ed Markey said: "There is no plan to regulate farm dust, any more than there is to regulate fairy dust". Leave it to the Repugnicans to come up empty as the nation goes down the tubes.

The Enviro Show quote of the Week puts us once again into the Wayback Machine, and speaking of machines: "Let your life be a counter friction to stop the machine" - Henry David Thoreau

Following our interview with Jessica Ennis of EarthJustice we head over to the Bus Stop Billboard:

Occupy UMass. General Assembly Wednesdays from 1 to 3pm, and will begin a second meeting starting this week on Fridays starting at 5 PM. Wednesday meetings are held in front of the WEB Dubois library on the cement platform, and the Friday meetings are held on the steps in front of the Student Union. Email: shavahnbest@gmail.com Subscribe to list here: occupyumassamherst@googlegroups.com

Occupy Greenfield rallies on the Common on Saturdays 10am-Noon and Mondays 5-6pm.

Friday, November 11 · 7:00pm - 10:00pm. Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence. Author Christian Parenti will discuss the connection between climate change and increased social and political conflict. Join us as we discuss why climate change is fundamentally a political problem that requires political solutions in order to prevent climate-change driven violence and increased global disparity. Food for Thought Books, N. Pleasant Street, Amherst.

Saturday, November 12th, 1:00pm. Occupy Wall Street Teach-In at Smith College, Stoddard Hall

Sunday, November 13 · 11:00am - 2:00pm, Occupy New England Solidarity March! Worcester, MA. Occupy Worcester, recognizing the need for solidarity between various Occupations, seeks to organize a march with any and all who would share our company. Worcester has a central location in relation to other major cities, we've got a good rapport with the police and city hall, so no major opposition is expected. Schedule: 11AM: Gather in the Commons behind city hall, open forum for inter- city cooperation and solidarity, shared DA's, and idle chit-chat.11:45: March begins! Go to: http://OccupyWorcester.com

Sunday November 13, 7pm. Screenimng of "Farmageddon; The Unseen War on American Family Farms" at the Academy of Music, Northampton. CONTACT: Grow Food Northampton, 413-584-0081,or email: info@growfoodnorthampton.com

Thursday, November 17, 9:30a.m. Meeting of Nuclear free Future in the AFSC office, 2 Conz Street, Suite 2B, Northampton. Call: (413) 584-8975

Friday, November 18, 7-9pm. "It's Our Future! Youth Speak Out to Save the Environment & the Earth". Northampton Center for the Arts, 17 New South Street--across from Academy of Music. Using poetry, prose, hip-hop rhyming, music, dance, art, video, sculpture, skits, and stand-up comedy, young people between the ages of 8 and 25 are invited to speak out about climate change and other environmental threats, and express their hope and vision for a sustainable valley, nation, and planet. Contact: johnpberk@gmail.com

Monday, November 21, 8am. No fracking in the Delaware River Basin! Demonstration before crucial vote by The Delaware River Basin Commission. Patriots Theater at the War Memorial, 1 Memorial Drive Trenton, N.J. Email: savethedelawareriver@gmail.com or go to: http://savethedelaware.wordpress.com/

November 30, 6:30 pm. Screening of "Gasland" at St. James Church, Greenfield. The Halliburton-developed drilling technology of “fracking” or hydraulic fracturing has unlocked a “Saudi Arabia of natural gas”, but is it safe? This film follows a cross-country odyssey uncovering a trail of secrets, lies and contamination.Call: 413-773-7004

There. Another Enviro Show come and gone. There's just one more thing: Listen to your Mother!