Next time you drive by Burke Lakefront Airport - or perhaps when considering attending the next Cleveland Air Show - realize the following facts about such small-time airports and many of the planes flying there... they cause lead poisoning! From "Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Lead Emissions from Piston-Engine Aircraft Using Leaded Aviation Gasoline: Regulatory Announcement", from the EPA, that certainly impacts Burke Lakefront Airport and other small local airports, and should have been reported in the local media (as this is a time for public comment), consider these facts - There are almost 20,000 airport facilities in the U.S. where leaded avgas is used ( Burke is certainly among them) - Aviation gasoline is utilized in general aviation aircraft with piston engines, which are generally used for instructional flying, air taxi activities, and personal transportation. Lead is not used in jet fuel, the fuel utilized by most commercial aircraft (Burke seems popular with piston engine airplanes) - Emissions of lead from piston-engine aircraft using leaded avgas comprise approximately half of the national inventory of lead emitted to air (being dumped on area citizens from various altitudes along the flightpaths for Burke Lakefront Airport) - EPA estimates that approximately 14.6 billion gallons of leaded avgas were consumed between 1970 and 2007, emitting approximately 34,000 tons of lead (we sure got/get our share) - Airport-specific lead inventories for 2008 are currently undergoing review by state, local and tribal authorities and will be completed in 2010.

Citizens of Northeast Ohio should have been informed about local inventories and plans to meet more stringent EPA guidelines in the future... perhaps it is time to now CLOSE THE DAMN AIRPORT!!! The EPA will accept public comment on the ANPR for 60 days following its publication in the Federal Register. To provide comments to EPA, follow the instructions provided in today’s action... read more below....

                      Happy Holiday everyone on REALNEO and please drive safe and drive for others watch the children,and eat plenty of food.       BE BLESSED

Drew Carey was in Cleveland today to discuss his series of documentaries "Reason Saves Cleveland" with Cleveland City Council - this is an interview he conducted with Cleveland.com, offering some of his personal perspectives on the economic situation here and his efforts to improve conditions here. Additional coverage of his interesting libertarian perspectives is found at Cleveland.com here... I can't say I agree with all that I have seen of these documentaries but I do intend to explore Carey's overall vision and his willingness to follow-through further.

Northeast Ohio - Today's high temperatures and lack of wind may result in exceedances today for both ground-level ozone and fine particles.  An Air Quality Advisory is in effect for today, May 27, only.  Fine particle concentrations will be highest in urban areas, while ozone may be more widespread.

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Tears for Fears performs EWTRW live at Knebworth 1990.

Dine Out For Peace at Bac Asian-American - an asian american bistro & bar

A casual bistro with full bar & outdoor patio featuring authentic Asian & fusion cuisine, along with Asian-inspired drink specials. Say, "I'm with Dine Out for Peace!" and 20% of your purchase will benefit the peace groups. (Includes Dine-In and Take Out. Bar Not Included.)

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show of Depeche Mode in the station rose bowl-

THE HANDSHAKE SEALS THE CONTRACT
FROM THE CONTRACT THERE´S NO TURNING BACK
THE TURNING POINT OF A CAREER
IN KOREA BEING INSINCERE
THE HOLIDAY WAS FUN-PACKED
THE CONTRACT, STILL INTACT

The NYTimes reported today that "The Jamaican government declared a state of emergency in portions of Kingston, the capital, on Sunday after supporters of a gang leader who is wanted in the United States on gun and drug charges attacked three police stations in an attempt to pressure the government to let him remain free, officials said." The Jamaica Observer offers more local perspective: "The political fallout, however, appears to be of little consequence to the women of West Kingston who seem more concerned with the fact that Coke has been a benefactor for many years, a man who, they said, ensures their safety, is mainly responsible for sending their children to school and putting food on their tables."

I’m writing to invite you all to the opening of an exhibit by three Cleveland photographers about three refugee families from Burundi, Burma and Nepal/Bhutan who are living in our area. The same night, you can also enjoy the premiere of a video about the families.

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May 19, 2010

WASHINGTON — As part of its most comprehensive study of climate change to date, the National Research Council today issued three reports emphasizing why the U.S. should act now to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and develop a national strategy to adapt to the inevitable impacts of climate change.  The reports by the Research Council, the operating arm of the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Engineering, are part of a congressionally requested suite of five studies known as America's Climate Choices.

"These reports show that the state of climate change science is strong," said Ralph J. Cicerone, president of the National Academy of Sciences.  "But the nation also needs the scientific community to expand upon its understanding of why climate change is happening, and focus also on when and where the most severe impacts will occur and what we can do to respond."

Below is the Executive Summary from the 2008–2009 Annual Report of the President’s Cancer Panel - REDUCING ENVIRONMENTAL CANCER RISK... What We Can Do Now - April 2010. This report is submitted to the President of the United States in fulfillment of the obligations of the President’s Cancer Panel.

Executive Summary

Despite overall decreases in incidence and mortality, cancer continues to shatter and steal the lives of Americans.  Approximately 41 percent of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives, and about 21 percent will die from cancer.  The incidence of some cancers, including some most common among children, is increasing for unexplained reasons.

Public and governmental awareness of environmental influences on cancer risk and other health issues has increased substantially in recent years as scientific and health care communities, policymakers, and individuals strive to understand and ameliorate the causes and toll of human disease.  A growing body of research documents myriad established and suspected environmental factors linked to genetic, immune, and endocrine dysfunction that can lead to cancer and other diseases.

Below is the cover letter to the President of the United States from the 2008–2009 Annual Report of the President’s Cancer Panel - REDUCING ENVIRONMENTAL CANCER RISK... What We Can Do Now - April 2010. This report is submitted to the President of the United States in fulfillment of the obligations of the President’s Cancer Panel.

The President
The White House
Washington, DC  20500

Dear Mr. President:

Though overall cancer incidence and mortality have continued to decline in recent years, the disease continues to devastate the lives of far too many Americans.  In 2009 alone, approximately 1.5 million American men, women, and children were diagnosed with cancer, and 562,000 died from the disease.  With the growing body of evidence linking environmental exposures to cancer, the public is becoming increasingly aware of the unacceptable burden of cancer resulting from environmental and occupational exposures that could have been prevented through appropriate national action.  The Administration’s commitment to the cancer community and recent focus on critically needed reform of the Toxic Substances Control Act is praiseworthy.  However, our Nation still has much work ahead to identify the many existing but unrecognized environmental carcinogens and eliminate those that are known from our workplaces, schools, and homes.

In my neighborhood, the "graffiti" is all tagging, either for gangs here (haven't seen much of that lately) or in memory of someone who has died... still see plenty of that. One of the more intense memorial tags in EC is for "Lil Shit" on a beautiful boarded up house off Terrace, in East Cleveland. I assume Lil Shit lived or died here and was much loved by Hough Harlem. Anyone know any details?

I think Lil Shit is still around here.

I'm not a party politics guy, but I sure supported Obama from the first day I saw what he offered the world - and I well remember the awe of the moment I knew Obama was President. While I'm sure I could do much better, and so could you, I think he is doing an excellent job overall, and I am certain we want to stay the course with him and leaders who share his vision, through this administration and another - he is turning around a leaky rusting out of control supertanker here, hoping to get our economy back to safe harbour before we have another deepwater experience.... and this supertanker US Enterprise is running on empty.

To help the nation get and stay on course for the future, in the Blue state of Ohio, the Democratic party must be effective, and that means citizens need to get involved helping good candidates succeed... at least getting candidates engaged about what citizens believe and want from their leaders. That's one thing I feel realNEO enables well, and I know our core members make a point to get active in support for good in politics, to the core. Below is a message from Governor Strickland asking everyone to volunteer to " Fight for Ohio’s Future", and I look forward to dialog here on the candidates in the upcoming elections - there are certainly some big races being decided in November... best not sit this one out as a passive spectator in 2010, to find yourself a helpless victim in 2011!

I got chills today, scanning ongoing coverage of Cleveland City Hall's plans to lock citizens and their children here into a 10 year sole-source LED lighting contract with Sunpu Opto, of China - Cleveland council committee embraces LED lighting deal - when I made the interpretation my instincts about Sunpu Opto are the same as Councilman Polensek's... which means my instincts may be wrong, as how could he be right?

Polensek's take on the Sunpu Opto deal:

"When my gut tells me something is wrong, I've been around long enough to know it's not right," Polensek said during the hearing.

He accused the administration of conducting a faulty process in choosing Sunpu-Opto.

"We're going to pay for every one of those jobs five times, six times over," Polensek said.

I turned my Nexus One to Pandora tonight to stream some free music while I work. It launched to my Pere Ubu radio and the first track that played seems so fitting for this week - "Chinese Radiation". I just heard Pere Ubu play it live at their performance of Modern Dance, at the Beachland, but I can't find any place to stream the song to you from on-line... here is a sample on Pandora - so you will have to just read the lyrics below and imagine the rest of the tune in your head... the song does not remain the same, but the story does, 32 years since 1978... buy Modern Dance:

He'll be the red guard
She'll be the new world
He'll wear his grey cap
and she'll wave her red book
He'll tell her
One way?
I want you all ways
One way

Free Download — whitehouse — May 01, 2010 — President Obama speaks at the 2010 University of Michigan commencement ceremony in Ann Arbor, MI.

Below is the text President Obama's speech at the University of Michigan Commencement, as prepared for delivery.

It is great to be here in the Big House, and may I say "Go Blue!" I thought I'd go for the cheap applause line to start things off.

Good afternoon President Coleman, the Board of Trustees, faculty, parents, family, friends, and the class of 2010. Congratulations on your graduation, and thank you for allowing me the honor to be a part of it. And let me acknowledge your wonderful governor, Jennifer Granholm, your mayor, John Hieftje, and all the Members of Congress who are here with us today.

Remarks of President Barack Obama--As Prepared for Delivery
Hampton University Commencement
May 9, 2010
Hampton, Virginia

Good morning, Happy Mother's Day to all the moms here today, and thank you for inviting me to share this special occasion with the Hampton community. Before we get started, I just want to say, I'm excited the Battle of the Real H.U. will be taking place in Washington this year. You all know I'm not going to pick sides. But it's been, what, 13 years since the Pirates lost. As one Hampton alum on my staff put it, the last time Howard beat Hampton, The Fugees were still together.

 

Join Phil Metres and Robin Pease-Kerr for an evening of poetry, stories and discussion Saturday, May 22nd at 7:30 pm.

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The ICEarth Welcome Wagon stopped by Sansai Environmental Technologies this weekend to tour the world's largest indoor vermitechnology facility and meet Cleveland's greenest, meanest, fighting machine - the 60 million worm team bringing the world "Magic Dust". See Sansai for more information on their amazing processes and products... here are some pictures of their crib, right in the heart of South Collinwood - Cleveland - Ohio.

In 2006, Gen-X Consultant Rebecca Ryan came to Cleveland to speak at the City Club and lead some roundtable discussions (hosted by realNEO) on making this region more desirable to the global Generation-X population.  She was working on Gen-X planning in Akron and Canton and proposed to the City of Cleveland some collaboration with her regional efforts - she was suggesting to brainstorm very openly at very little cost to the city. Her outreach received the cold shoulder here. The last time I remember communicating about this was with Chris Ronayne, then with the city of Cleveland, and I was basically told the development people were too busy trying to close a Nike Cavaliers advertising deal to bother with Rebecca Ryan's proposal - the city economic development resources were too focused on Cavaliers advertising to care.

No real issue to discuss here--just putting out some flowers--peace offering.