An American Tragedy

Bush Tours America To Survey Damage Caused By His Disastrous Presidency

Food for thought. Did you know?

Did you know that Martha Stewart contributed $4600 to Hillary Clinton’s campaign?

Did you know that Tim Russert has mentioned UFOs and smoking bans in presidential debates, but not once uttered the words “global warming” on his show or at a debate?

Did you know that there were over 188 veteran suicides last year? It’s being called a silent epidemic. How do we help our soldiers cope with what we are asking them to do? I highly recommend this article about a Marine back from Iraq and his struggle to get back to his life.

Did you know that most writer’s and editorial assistants in the entertainment industry are women? How is really paying for the strike?

Did you know that Pakistani militants have destroyed the second most important Buddhist sculptures in South Asia?

Did you know there’s a new movie about punk icon Joe Strummer? Did you know that Stummer was born in Turkey?

Crap.

No wonder our kids are being diagnosed left and right with autism, aspergers, ADHD, ADD, and other behaviorial, mental, and learning disorders. Read: Test reveal high chemical levels in kids’ bodies

Going back to green

I got a very needed kick in the pants after reading Amy Karol’s recent post about greening her family. Although I earn my salary (so-to-speak) as a Marketing Ho Jill-of-all-Trades, most of my education is in environmental biology (hence my passion for Al Gore for the past 18 years). Before I grew old and cynical, I was an idealist that was going to change the world. Now, as a beat up old drunk (in recovery), I just can’t afford to live a mediocre semi-green life. So, instead of actually talking about being an environmentally conscious citizen, I’m taking an aggressive, action-oriented stance on cleaning up my family and our way of life. Realistically and simply. I’m not going for pie-in-the-sky perfection, here….just an honest appraisal of how my family consumes and a plan for making us better. I’m starting with the little things like getting rid of my daughter’s toxic sippy cups and replacing them with a cleaner, safer versions; knitting up some net grocery bags out of some hemp yarn that I already have in my stash; buying all my fruits and vegetable locally; joining the local co-op; using a stainless steel coffee cup instead of paper; and commuting to work at least 2-3 times per week. Below are just a few of the resources I’ve used and thought you may be interested in: Continue reading »

Al Gore, how do I love thee?

I’m a crazy kind of girl, I know,  but I’ve been in love with Al Gore since I first read “Earth in the Balance” in 1992 (also the year I stopped smoking and quit eating meat). I believe in his authenticity and integrity. I just do. I can’t help it. Anyway, if you get the chance read his latest editorial, please do:

StopGlobalWarming.org: Moving Beyond Kyoto

“This is not a political issue. This is a moral issue, one that affects the survival of human civilization. It is not a question of left versus right; it is a question of right versus wrong. Put simply, it is wrong to destroy the habitability of our planet and ruin the prospects of every generation that follows ours. “

He’s brilliant, as always.

More good news: Court sends message to Bush administration about global warming

Court Rebukes Administration in Global Warming Case - New York Times

This is also good news. Although, please notice in the article it explains that converative justices John Roberts, Samuel Alito, Antonin Scalia,  and Clarence Thomas all dissented. Hmmm, so much for checks and balances.

Technorati Tags: court, global warming, al gore, supreme cout, epa, clean air act

Fast Food Social Responsibility?

Burger King Shifts Policy on Animals - New York Times - Looks like Murder King is trying to clean up it’s act a little. Bummer it’s only 2% of eggs for the next few months and 10% of pork, but it’s a start. And it’s an acknowledgment of a huge problem that, frankly, I didn’t expect the fast food industry to cop to for quite some time. Wow, it warms my little bleeding heart to see big business actually realize that there might be some fiscal advantages to being socially responsible. Go figure.

Technorati Tags: burger king, social responsibility, humane, animal rights

Global Warming: An Inconvenient Truth

Eloquently weaves the science of global warming with Al Gore’s personal history and lifelong commitment to reversing the effects of global climate change. A longtime advocate for the environment, Gore presents a wide array of facts and information in a thoughtful and compelling way. The film is not a story of despair but rather a rallying cry.

Ok, yes, everyone that knows me is aware that I’ve been madly in love with Al Gore (yes, my husband knows, too) since I read “Earth in the Balance” in college. And, yes, I become more of a bleeding heart liberal every year, BUT (that’s a big but) isn’t it time we started really doing something about global warming? Even little, every day things make a big difference. The kiddos and I are spending tomorrow, Earth Day, putting together a permanent family plan for treading more lightly on our planet.

Learn more about Al’s movie by watching the trailer, or reading a review or visiting the website.

And have a fantastic Earth Day!

[Treehugger]

Real Simple’s “Special” Family, uh not so simple

“Get it all done with time to spare: smart solutions for busy parents.“

I was really looking forward to this special issue. I love Real Simple. I love all the little lifehacks, tips, and product reviews in every issue. Honestly, though, I was a little disappointed and just slightly offended by this issue. Yes, it was chock full of awesome ideas for organizing families and family time. But, really, the whole idea of SuperMom is bullshit and so last century. We can’t do everything. And trying to do everything is exactly how I ended up in rehab. To do everything on our lists we need to re-prioritize and make the fucking list shorter. SHORTER.

Every “organized” mom featured in the mag was either a stay-at-home mom (which is awesome for them, but I can’t really relate) or is able to rearrange work schedules so they are at home. Obviously, the had the bucks, too. Which leads me to one of my big fat pet peeves: how do normal, every day peeps get to care about the environment, have thriving families, and have healthy work lives and stay sane and not break the bank? Hmmmm?

Say “No” to PVC Packaging

I submitted the following on Nintendo’s comments page. Please feel free to use it.

Dear Nintendo,

Until your company stops using PVC packaging, my family will not be purchasing anymore of your products. This is unfortunate since my son loves his GameBoy, GameBoy Advanced, and GameCube.

This holiday season is no time to be packaging our gifts in PVC that will be tossed out immediately and wind up incinerated with the 250,405 tons of PVC burned each year in the US. This burning release tons of carcinogenic dioxin, polluting the air of nearby communities as well as the groundwater surrounding landfills where dioxin-containing ash is buried. Attaching to fat, dioxins build up in the food chain and, in particular, have been found in milk, accounting for a major amount of the dioxins people take in every day.

But this is only half the story: Dioxins build up in breast milk over a woman’s lifetime and then are fed to growing infants where they may pose developmental as well as cancer risks. “This chemical has biological activity at extraordinarily low levels,” says Ted Schettler, M.D., science director of the Science and Environmental Health Network. The developing fetus is highly sensitive to dioxin, he notes, citing evidence of “a correlation between levels of dioxin a fetus is exposed to and the strength of the developing immune system.” Dioxins have been linked to endometriosis, a painful disease of the uterine lining, in rhesus monkeys, and a study of Dutch children found that those with higher levels of prenatal dioxin exposure had increased ear infections and a smaller response to vaccination.

Taking action to eliminate PVC packaging will benefit growing children and ensure that the holidays don’t pollute the rest of the year. Please help keep toxic PVC out from underneath Christmas trees this year and find a safer packaging alternative for your electronic products.

Sincerely,
Russann D. Keller