Submitted by Norm Roulet on Mon, 05/02/2011 - 00:31.
Industrial hemp has played a significant role in American history. In fact, in the early 1700's American farmers in Virginia were required by law to grow it. Today, healthy and sustainable hemp products are sold across the country, but American farmers are prohibited from growing this crop.
Discussion of about the two comets heading our way Levy and Elenin - why are the mainstream media being so quiet about this? When it is there, you just have to know what to look for. http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2011%20EM51;orb=1 [//]
For the better part of a decade, advocates have attempted to pass bills in the Ohio General Assembly to provide Ohio's sick and dying citizens with safe access to medical marijuana (cannabis). However, when confronted by this issue, our state's elected leaders simply shy away. While the effort to pass a bill in the statehouse is still being pursued, there is another way citizens can enact change.
If a group of citizens feel strongly that an issue has not properly been addressed by the Ohio General Assembly, they can propose an initiated constitutional amendment to the people for a statewide vote. This is the route we've decided to take, placing the issue before the voters on November 6, 2012.
Thank you for today's header--if you haven't already done so, get out on this fleeting weekend to enjoy the cherry blossoms and the daffodil days in University Circle and at parks throughout NEO.
I was fortunate to be up early, both yesterday and today, to hear the robins and the sweet plaintive call of the white-throated sparrow.
I haven't read Water for Elephants, yet, but I imagine it taps into a supernatural energy I once felt at a young age--so I will read it for the teens and most likely push it as a young adult novel.
Elephants are symbolic. They are forever old and young at the same time. I know the feeling. And, of course, they say--elephants never forget. I have my own elephant memories.
In a nation crying for new industry, with budget shortfalls impacting every level of government, cannabis commerce is a shining star hovering on the economic horizon. Cannatax generated from cannabis commerce could provide a lifeline for embattled governments desperate to maintain vital services in the face of rising costs.
It isn’t, because demonization derived from the 1930s is responsible for marijuana “activists” settling for medical marijuana initiatives state-by-state instead of working together to overturn federal prohibition altogether – which effects legalization for every state in one fell swoop. This is a bizarre situation, where a group of like-minded citizens who overwhelmingly outnumber the opposition behaves like a minority which has to beg, plead, and cajole for “patients’ rights” instead of everybody’s rights.
My dear RealNEO family, I haven't posted in a long time or even "lurked" due to new health issues as well as my normal fatigue, balance and speech troubles due to my brain lesion, fibromyalgia, frequent migraines and the backlog of things to do that built up as a result.
Now I need some help, roses don't wait. If you can help me with anything, send me an email via this site And whether you can help or not, remember, everyone is always invited to come see the roses bloom.
When there is a death, it is possible it comes in one of many ways. Often at the hand of others, or self inflicted, or by medical reasons, or by chance. IMO the death of a loved one that is by Suicide ---snip--
U.S. Suicide Statistics (2001)
Emergency Room Visits
Emergency room visits for self-inflicted injury: 400,000
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 04:32.
Potential Biomass Energy Distribution among Ohio Counties (in Billions Btu's)
I imagine the fuel purchasing administrator at Dayton Power and Light (DP&L) thought he was the target of a Tea Party April Fool's joke when he received an email first thing April 1, 2011, suggesting his Century-old, investor-owned, Ohio utility may lead an historic Constitution-oriented new American Revolution against taxation of his enterprise without honest scientific representation.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 02:38.
On Thursday, April 7th, 2011, on the Green rooftop of the Environmental Health Watch Building, Environment Ohio released a new report showing that smog-forming pollution from Ohio’s power plants puts children’s health and Ohio’s environment at risk - Environment Ohio - Clean Air Program Reports - Dirty Energy’s Assault on Our Health: Ozone Pollution - 2011-04-07. From the press release for the news conference announcing this report:
Power plants create the ingredients for dangerous ozone pollution, commonly referred to as smog, and the report ranks which power plants emit the most smog-forming pollution in Ohio and nationwide, and highlights the latest findings about how smog impacts our health and environment.
The report comes as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is set to finalize a standard in July to help reduce smog pollution, which could save up to 12,000 lives per year. Yet Congress and industry lobbyists are working to keep EPA from doing its job by threatening to block rules that limit dangerous air pollution. Environment Ohio is urging Senator Sherrod Brown to stand up for Ohioans’ health and support the EPA.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sat, 04/09/2011 - 14:47.
I had the good fortune to attend the first World's Fair held in Japan - Expo '70(日本万国博覧会,Nihon bankoku hakuran-kai). The theme was "Progress and Harmony for Mankind" and one of the main principles of the master plan was that the wisdom of all the peoples of the world would come together in this place and stimulate ideas. The Expo featured demonstrations of early mobile phones, local area networking and maglev train technology. At age 9, I rode Bullet Trains 100 miles an hour and thought the world could be no more modern than "modern" Japan, of 1970.
At the same time I was exposed to the modern power, wisdom and vision of all the world-peoples' progress and harmony at 日本万国博覧会, in Osaka... 福島第一原子力発電所 was being born, in Okuma, representing the ultimate in "power"-wisdom and vision of that nuclear age. The Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant was connected to the grid around 40 years ago, in 1970, and the world hasn't really evolved our "power"-wisdom beyond that now-ancient "modern" time... as our 1970s "modern" energy technology and world are melting-down.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sat, 04/09/2011 - 12:30.
Shower power! A full bathtub requires about 70 gallons of water, but taking a five-minute shower saves water by using 10 to 25 gallons. Put a little timer or clock near your shower so you can see how fast you are. Save even more water, and money on your water bill, by installing a water-efficient showerhead, or ask your landlord to install one if you rent. More about using water wisely.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Fri, 04/08/2011 - 16:16.
Earth Month Tip of the Day: It's electric.
Today's environmental tip: It's electric! You can check how much of your electricity comes from renewable “green” power sources, such as wind or solar. Green power produces less carbon emissions, reduces air pollution, and helps protect against future costs or scarcity of fossil fuels. If green power is a consumer option, check price differences from suppliers before you buy.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Thu, 04/07/2011 - 12:18.
Earth Month Tip of the Day: Be sensible.
Today's environmental tip: Be sensible! The Earth might seem like it has abundant water, but in fact only one percent of all water on the planet is available for humans. Buy fixtures and products that are water efficient - you can use less water to get the same job done just as well. When you go shopping, look for the WaterSense label to find water efficient products.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Wed, 04/06/2011 - 12:21.
Earth Month Tip of the Day: Environmental hazards and the elderly.
Today's environmental tip: Be extra aware of environmental conditions where older people live! As we age, our bodies become more sensitive to chemicals and environmental conditions. So you should carefully use products such as pesticides or cleaning solvents near areas where older adults live and sleep. Always follow the directions on the product package or label.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Mon, 04/04/2011 - 18:04.
Compliance and Enforcement and Water News (Region 5): Vice president, two managers of waste treatment facility sentenced for Clean Water Act felonies
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - April 4, 2011
Vice president, two managers of waste treatment facility sentenced for Clean Water Act felonies
WASHINGTON - Three officials of Ecological Systems, Inc. (ESI), an oil reclamation company that operated a centralized waste treatment facility in Indianapolis, IN, were sentenced in U.S. District Court, Southern District of Indiana for felony violations of the Clean Water Act. The prosecution stemmed from ESI's intentional discharges of untreated wastewater and stormwater from its facility directly into the Indianapolis sewer system.
"The Clean Water Act is designed to protect our nation's water resources, and the defendants' repeated attempts to hide the plant's capacity to handle the wastes that ESI accepted and excess rain water threatened those critical protections," said Randall Ashe, Special Agent in Charge of the EPA Criminal Investigation Division's Chicago Area Office. "Today's sentences prove that those who willfully circumvent our nation's laws and put Indiana residents and nearby homeowners at risk will be caught and prosecuted."
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Mon, 04/04/2011 - 14:08.
Norm --
Today, we are filing papers to launch our 2012 campaign.
We're doing this now because the politics we believe in does not start with expensive TV ads or extravaganzas, but with you -- with people organizing block-by-block, talking to neighbors, co-workers, and friends. And that kind of campaign takes time to build.
So even though I'm focused on the job you elected me to do, and the race may not reach full speed for a year or more, the work of laying the foundation for our campaign must start today.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Mon, 04/04/2011 - 12:37.
Earth Month Tip of the Day: Check before you go.
Today's environmental tip: Heading to the beach? Check out the beach water before you go! We Americans take almost two billion trips to the beach every year, but people who swim at the beach sometimes get sick because the water is polluted. The good news is in the state where the beach is located, you can check with the state office to find out about the beach water - before you go.
When we talk about environmentalism, it typically brings to mind sweeping vistas and wide-open landscapes. Some people might think of saving the whales, protecting spotted owls or preserving old-growth forests. Those things are critically important – but they only tell part of the story. When the modern environmental movement got its start in the 1960s, it took hold in our nation’s cities and was led by people concerned about pollution in the air they were breathing, toxins in the water they were drinking and chemicals on the food they were eating.
The effort to safeguard our environment started – and continues to be – an effort to safeguard our health.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sun, 04/03/2011 - 15:34.
Earth Month Tip of the Day: Don't idle
Today's environmental tip: Don't idle! Remind your school system to turn off bus engines when buses are parked. Exhaust from idling school buses can pollute air in and around the bus, and can enter school buildings through air intakes, doors, and open windows. Constant idling also wastes fuel and money, and school bus engines really need only a few minutes to warm up.
Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sat, 04/02/2011 - 23:10.
Old man lying by the side of the road
With the lorries rolling by,
Blue moon sinking from the weight of the load
And the building scrape the sky,
Cold wind ripping down the allay at dawn
And the morning paper flies,
Dead man lying by the side of the road
With the daylight in his eyes.
IMO the death of a loved one that is by Suicide ---snip--
