Blog Archive

Friday, November 02, 2018

Yet Another Vote for the Planet Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. As you vote for the Planet by voting out The Mad King's enablers and hangers-on we bring you, on Election Night here in western Mass, some of the Commonwealth's Green candidates the corporate media failed to tell you about. It turns out 57% of U.S. citizens think a third party is needed. Surprise! Northampton resident Jamie Guerin running for State Treasurer will be the first to call followed by Juan Sanchez running for Secretary of the Commonwealth. Also on the line, running for State Auditor is Green Party candidate Jed Stamas.  All that and the usual hijinks with the Fool-on-the-Hill and His Malignancy The Mad King as well as some Breaking News but first it's time for........... Revenge of the Critters! Elections could be considered turf battles but when humans invade turf meant for big Cats things get a bit dicey.

This week's Fool-on-the-Hill is a repeat offender. We'll let our friends at the Center for Biological Diversity convey the fool's recent foolish move verbatim:  "Recently right-wing Congressman Rob Bishop (R-Utah) has sent letters to the Center bizarrely claiming we're acting as "foreign agents" via our work to save Okinawa dugongs — manatee relatives threatened by a U.S. military base in Japan — from extinction. We won't indulge his paranoid and ridiculous assertions, but instead just sent a letter requesting that the House Natural Resources committee hold an oversight hearing on dugong protection. 'If Rob Bishop's so concerned about our work to save Okinawa dugongs, we'd love to have a full public hearing about it,' said Center Executive Director Kierán Suckling. 'But he seems far more interested trying to bully and harass us with tactics that would've made Joe McCarthy proud.' " And here's a note concerning Texas arch-fool Rep. Lamar Smith who is being challenged for his seat by one of the twelve scientists running for Congress this year,  Joseph Kopser, an aerospace engineer, Army veteran and Austin tech entrepreneur.  Another Go Joe vote, if you will. 

On to His Malignancy The Mad King who, besides being a pathological bullshit artist and a fascist, is also the Enemy of the Earth-in-Chief (but you know that, right?). Think Progress informs us of one of his most recent assaults on Nature: "... he intends to nominate a former agrochemical industry official to lead the Department of the Interior’s Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). The selection of Aurelia Skipwith, who worked at Monsanto for six years, to head FWS carries on [the] administration trend of filling top environmental regulatory positions with officials from companies regulated by the agency. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Skipwith’s duties will include enforcing federal wildlife laws, protecting endangered species, managing migratory birds, and conserving and restoring wildlife habitat." None of which, we assume, will get done.  Hardly surprising is the recent news that The Mad King's enablers at the EPA have come out full throttle for dirty wood biomass.  Bloomberg Report notes: "The Environmental Protection Agency joined the departments of Energy and Agriculture in a letter to congressional leaders committing to “encourage the use of biomass as an energy solution.” The EPA also reasserted its view that power plants burning trees and other woody materials to generate electricity should be viewed as carbon neutral, because when the plants eventually regrow they remove carbon dioxide from the air." We guess we must have 100 years or so for all those trees to grow back! How about this headline from the LA Times: "Trump blames wildfires on California forest policy and threatens to withhold funds from state"? Maybe he'll use the stolen funds to help pay for the U.S. Military's fools' errand to the border with Mexico? Too bad we didn't have this one for our Halloween Special: "'It's a ghost page': EPA site's climate change section may be gone for good". Apparently His Malignancy's enablers won't be keeping their word about putting up a new climate page but you will get this message: "“We want to help you find what you are looking for.” (Actually, we're looking for a real president, OK?)

We have Breaking News! There is a new citizen petition titled, “Moratorium on Logging on Massachusetts State-Owned Lands.” Here is a link to the petition:

https://petitions.moveon.org/sign/moratorium-on-logging-1?mailing_id=40973&source=s.em.cr&r_by=4071355

This petition calls on Governor Charlie Baker to protect all 650,000 acres of Massachusetts state-owned lands — covering 13 percent of the state — from logging. It includes a long list of forests targeted by current or planned logging projects. Many Massachusetts residents will find a forest near them on this list. A growing number of people across Massachusetts believe that bold action is needed to save our state-owned forests from logging and other industrial exploitation before it is too late. To achieve this, we need to unite forest advocates across the state as a powerful movement. Your signature on this petition will be a big step in this direction.

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber we get this op-ed segment in The New York Times from billionaire Hansjörg Wyss: "For my part, I have decided to donate $1 billion over the next decade to help accelerate land and ocean conservation efforts around the world, with the goal of protecting 30 percent of the planet’s surface by 2030. This money will support locally led conservation efforts around the world, push for increased global targets for land and ocean protection, seek to raise public awareness about the importance of this effort, and fund scientific studies to identify the best strategies to reach our target." Wake-up rich people, it's your turn! And this from The Hill: "Arizona’s Green Party candidate drops out of Senate race and endorses Kirsten Cinema". We'll ask our guests about this if time allows. Also concerning Election 2018 Inside Climate News informs us: "Washington state voters will decide this November whether to approve the nation's first carbon fee in what has become the most expensive ballot initiative fight in the state's history and a referendum on the oil industry's political clout." Also this piece: "Election 2018: Clean Energy’s Future Could Rise or Fall with These Governor’s Races" tells us nut job governor Lepage from Maine has finally run his course in trashing The Pine Tree State and his Repugnican standard bearer is in a toss-up with the better candidate, "Maine's attorney general, Janet Mills, who has clashed with the governor repeatedly, including over his wind moratorium." 

After our visit with the Greens we head over to the Bus Stop Billboard:

Saturday November 10, Noon. Nobody is Above the Law (Protect the Mueller Investigation) Pulaski Park, Northampton, MA 01060.  1280 attendees signed up so far! 


Sunday, Nov. 11, volunteers are needed for a pollinators blitz planting at Pulaski Park on Main Street from noon to 3-4 p.m. (Rain date 11/18).  If you can help, contact wmassbees@gmail.com.



Tuesday, November 13, 6:30 – 8 pm. Free Workshop: Solar 101 with PV Squared. Have you been thinking about solar for your home or business, but need a little more information? Join PV Squared Solar, a worker-owned cooperative, for a workshop about how you can benefit from making the switch to solar energy. They will cover the finances (tax credits, incentives, loan programs, etc.) and answer any questions you have about solar.  This free workshop will be held at River Valley Co-op in Northampton- PV Squared installed the solar array on River Valley Co-op in 2008!
Information about pre-registration can be found here:
http://rivervalley.coop/event-details/free-workshop-solar-101 


Thursday November 15, 8 to 9:30pm. 2018 and Beyond: Election Debrief -- the Road Ahead for Safe Energy and Nuclear Waste Tele-Briefing. Nuclear Impacts of the 2018 mid-term elections--analysis from NIRS Executive Director, Tim Judson. 2018 is also NIRS's 40th anniversary. We will hear from Diane D’Arrigo and Mary Olson--both veteran staff of NIRS--who will reflect on MAJOR VICTORIES that NIRS and the safe energy movement have led over the past few decades, and what they show us about how to win the fights ahead. We will open the lines half way through the event to hear your thoughts, questions, and stories! Register HERE .


Saturday November 17, 9am to 4pm. Berkshire Natural History Conference will feature presentations by local and regional naturalists as well as acclaimed authors. Berkshire School, 245 N Undermountain Rd. 
Sheffield, MA. Go to: http://www.thebeatnews.org/BeatTeam/event/2018-berkshire-natural-history-conference/? 2C%202018&utm_source=Robly.com&utm_medium=email



Saturday, November 17, 2018 8:30am.- 4:00pm. 2018 Forum Workshops and Speakers -Building Just Communities in Times of Chaos. GCC, Dining Commons, 1 College Dr, Greenfield, MA.  If you are looking for hope and direction in these troubling times, and are seeking ways of connecting with others of many persuasions, please join this one day forum organized by Greening Greenfield. The forum is anchored by two inspiring keynote speakers, Rev. Mariama White-Hammond & Rep. Jim McGovern and a diverse array of 12 workshops inviting discussion and idea sharing. Go to: https://greeninggreenfieldma.org/events?layout=edit&id=322 


Monday November 26, 7 to 9pm. Climate Action Now MA monthly gathering.  Unitarian-Universalist Society of Amherst, North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA. Climate Action Now is a people powered, grassroots Western Mass organization dedicated to building a powerful, unstoppable climate and environmental justice movement. Go to: http://climateactionnowma.org 




That's all folks! Hopefully we'll be speaking to you in a new slightly improved nation next time if we all remember to listen to your Mother. 

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