Transition Towns

 

Locally grown foods sold at a farmers market

So I just heard of this thing called Transition Towns, and I am in the process of joining one.  The overall idea is to adjust to life without oil and with climate changes in order to make life “Post Oil” livable and even enjoyable.  Read more here.

The first problems which come to mind are our oil dependencies in the areas of food and heating.  

I am writing from central Illinois, so food is all around us, but delivering it to the rest of the country/world will become impossible.  Industrial agriculture is also dependant on oil.  Without our tractors, combines, and other oil driven machines our capacity to produce will be diminished.

Living in the mid-west is an exercise in suffering the elements.  This year we had several cold snaps lasting for more than a week during which the temperature did not raise above zero degrees Fahrenheit.  No amount of insulation would have kept our house warm enough without gas heating.

Further Post Oil challenges include but are not limited to transportation, medical care, law and order, art, and education.

The climate change element is something I am not certain we can completely prepare for.  The idea of unpredictable weather patterns disrupting agriculture and displacing large urban populations is staggering.  Does that mean the interior of continents should prepare to host millions of refugees?  To do so while facing food and transportation shortages is going to be a challenge if we don’t have an oil free solution ready to implement when crisis strikes.

Obama and Racists

This is sort of funny sort of deep.

Racists for Obama?

Included is this gem:

it’s perfectly possible to hold a negative view of at least one aspect of African-Americans and yet simultaneously prefer Obama, racial feelings are not as cut and dried — not as black and white — as people often say.”

Onion or Real

The Onion is a humor news paper and it does it’s job well.  I read it and am consistently impressed.  I write here and I try to string ideas together coherently, sometimes I do.  I write for Fact Checked, and sometimes I’m funny, never as funny as the Onion, I don’t think.

But sometimes I find an article in a serious newspaper (note I didn’t say real) that feels like it would be at home in the Onion, or I would be proud to have thought of it an put it on Fact Checked.  Politico delivered such a headline just today.

Joe not a licensed plumber

This will only make sense if you watched the last Presidential debate.

Americans Must Always Act On Conscience.

You might not have heard about this at the time but I did, and it has been bouncing around in my head for a few months.  A pharmacist refused to fill a prescription for birth control because of his religious beliefs.  At first, I rolled my eyes and thought about how so many Christians push there convictions on others, but then I watched something the History Channel (sometimes called the Hitler Channel for its large focus on World War Two).

Under the Third Reich terrible things were required of the citizens by law.  In my heart I believe the people of Germany are no more evil than any other people group, but they did the worst things in all of history.  Why?  Well, they had a leader who had charisma and a hate filled goal.  They had hate of their own, anger, and the technology to carry out revenge.  Many countries have these things, why did Germany succumb to it all?

It was the State ethics and morals usurping the place of individual conviction and conscience.  The laws said one must carry out orders, and orders were carried out.  If the people of Germany decided that they would not participate in the brutality, than the brutality would not have happened.

The pharmacist sees birth control and wrong, the United States government sees it as a right of an individual to prevent a pregnancy if she chooses.  If we as a people stand up and refuse to allow the government to determine right and wrong for us, and always seek the highest ethics and morals, we can ensure that no massacre is on our heads.  We can ensure that no people are trampled beneath us.

Playing the ‘Playing the Race Card’ Card

I hope I am the one to coin that phrase. If you were not paying attention to the O.J. Simpson trial, Wikipedia has a pretty good definition of the Race Card.

I don’t know if Obama brought up race for is own benefit, or if he benefited by it when he said he, “doesn’t look like all those other presidents on those dollar bills.” I don’t care, I already know what he looks like compared to the other presidents. I might even say skin color won’t show that much when printed in green ink. Which I hope happens; America could use a currency worthy president.

McCain, however, definitely played the ‘played the race card’ card by trying to gain an advantage by accusing Obama of gaining an advantage by accusing McCain & Co. of being racist. The New York Times writes about the whole thing here.

I have a hard time staying optimistic in times like these.

Repressive Left

French air-bag convicted of downplaying the Nazis

The person in question is historically wrong, and morally suspect. But that is not the point. When we say thing like, “We have the right to say what we think.” It would sometimes be followed by an example to the contrary of a notorious county (USSR, East Germany, China). But this is France, the cradle of the Enlightenment and the Rights of Man.

Can a people be so concerned about protecting the population from oppressive ideas, like fascism, they become oppressive?

Update: What the hell is going on in France?  French Police ‘made Nazi salutes’ 

The Shoe Is On The Other Foot

If you are old school like me, than you think of the Republicans as being the effective fund raisers, and the Democrats as the sorts who rely on their message to gain votes. Well, look at this CNN page, it seems the Democrats have raised more money than the Republicans. If I am misunderstanding the stats, please correct me.

So does this mean the Democrats are simply learning how to win in this political system? Or does it mean the left is losing some of it’s integrity?

I cannot speak for where the funds are coming from. For example, Howard Dean in 2004 was funded by many individuals giving small amounts. Is this what is happening?

Become Coveted

Are you a Republican or a Democrat? If you answered yes, you are getting suckered. I’m not here to suggest we all go vote third party or anything, nor am I telling you one is better. It’s just not my point. Once the general election starts the partisans will forget you. I am serious, and especially right this year. Please hear me out.

The Republicans will count on their rank and file voting for the party line (or at least against the Democrat). The Democrats will be the same. Both will know there is no use convincing many on the other side to change their ideologies. They will both be trying to appeal to the politically independent voter.

If you are independent, like me, you get to enjoy eight months of candidates speaking to convince you. It is always nice to have people pay attention to you.*

How does one become an independent? For me, it is a matter of not settling for mediocre ideas or people. The Democratic platform is not good enough for me, and neither is the Republicans’. You have to pick things issue by issue, and sometimes neither side offers a good stance, so you need to look outside the realm of Red and Blue to find a good solution to a problem. Then come election time everybody loves you, as long as you are in a swing state with lots of electoral votes.

*Some campaigning will be to “get out the vote” within the candidates party. You see this glaringly with Republicans who bring-up many a bogymen to get people out for the election (gay-marriage, war on terror, abortion). But the Democrats are not above it either (gay-marriage, war on terror, abortion).