Todays Darker Side celebrates the fallen weird bird. My friend Harry Haynes wrote me to say that he had seen his guardian angel and he was excited. I said what are you talking about. He sent this back. All I can say is TGI(WB)F.!
http://www.commentfarm.com/viewcomment.aspx?id=37d6d8d2-34c7-44cb-9ab1-ae1f2d1f02d1
The Work of Michael D. Smith, actually intitled:
The Strange Birds Are Back:
http://www.uptownwebs.com/images/13inWow%20Look%20at%20the%20Strange%20birds.jpg
This as always dedicated to Sir John Martin and the loyal Susan Kay. Most people don’t know that John was knighted by the Queen for his efforts to elevate higher education higher. He has worked for years with Brigham Young University to develop curricula for a modern Mormanism such as Poligamy and How to Hide It, My Young Son My Lover, and the counter intuitive, My Son My Accuser (or it was just a bad dream defense). As I said Susan is Loyal. For their Blog please see the bottom of the CES’ Blogroll, not because we don’t like them but because they were the first one we ever added and we would love to have them at the top…I am such a bad blogger I don’t know how to do it…sigh.
Study: Ethanol use could worsen global warming
By H. JOSEF HEBERT
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS____________
WASHINGTON — The widespread use of ethanol from corn could result in nearly twice the greenhouse gas emissions as the gasoline it would replace because of expected land-use changes, researchers concluded Thursday. The study challenges the rush to biofuels as a response to global warming.
The researchers said that past studies showing the benefits of ethanol in combating climate change have not taken into account almost certain changes in land use worldwide if ethanol from corn — and in the future from other feedstocks such as switchgrass — become a prized commodity.
“Using good cropland to expand biofuels will probably exacerbate global wanning,” concludes the study published in Science magazine.
The researchers said that farmers under economic pressure to produce biofuels will increasingly “plow up more forest or grasslands,” releasing much of the carbon formerly stored in plants and soils through decomposition or fires. Globally, more grasslands and forests will be converted to growing the crops to replace the loss of grains when U.S. farmers convert land to biofuels, the study said.
The Renewable Fuels Association, which represents ethanol producers, called the researchers’ view of land-use changes “simplistic” and said the study “fails to put the issue in context.”
“Assigning the blame for rainforest deforestation and grassland conversion to agriculture solely on the renewable fuels industry ignores key factors that play a greater role,” said Bob Dinneen, the association’s president.
There has been a rush to developing biofuels, especially ethanol from corn and cellulosic feedstock such as switchgrass and wood chips, as a substitute for gasoline. President Bush signed energy legislation in December that mandates a six-fold increase in ethanol use as a fuel to 36 billion gallons a year by 2022, calling the requirement key to weaning the nation from imported oil.
The new “green” fuel, whether made from corn or other feedstocks, has been widely promoted — both in Congress and by the White House — as a key to combating global warming. Burning it produces less carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas, than the fossil fuels it will replace.
During the recent congressional debate over energy legislation, lawmakers frequently cited estimates that corn-based ethanol produces 20 percent less greenhouse gases in production, transportation and use than gasoline, and that cellulosic ethanol has an even greater benefit of 70 percent less emissions.
The study released Thursday by researchers affiliated with Princeton University and a number of other institutions maintains that these analyses “were one-sided” and counted the carbon benefits of using land for biofuels but not the carbon costs of diverting land from its existing uses.
“The other studies missed a key factor that everyone agrees should have been included, the land use changes that actually are going to increase greenhouse gas emissions,” said Tim Searchinger, a research scholar at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and lead author of the study.
The study said that after taking into account expected worldwide land-use changes, corn-based ethanol, instead of reducing greenhouse gases by 20 percent, will increases it by 93 percent compared to using gasoline over a 30-year period. Biofuels from switchgrass, if they replace croplands and other carbon-absorbing lands, would result in 50 percent more greenhouse gas emissions, the researchers concluded.
Not all ethanol would be affected by the land-use changes, the study said.
“We should be focusing on our use of biofuels from waste products” such as garbage, which would not result in changes in agricultural land use, Searchinger said in an interview. “And you have to be careful how much you require. Use the right biofuels, but don’t require too much too fast. Right now we’re making almost exclusively the wrong biofuels.”
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But don’t let me decide for you….Check out the raging debate:
www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol_fuel
www.ncga.com/ethanol/main/index.htm
www.igreens.org.uk/ethanol_from_corn_.htm
www.ers.usda.gov/AmberWaves/
www.usnews.com/articles/business/
www.feinstein.senate.gov/05speeches/ethanol-oped.htm
www.petroleum.berkeley.edu/
www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9QQcP_Y1II
www.ethanol-gec.org/corn_eth.htm
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Yes its time for our weekly tribute to the birds in our lives. This weeks image comes from San Francisco’s own John
Mitchell:
http://www.jungle-life.com/?query=john+mitchell&amount=0&blogid=1
Being a print by John Mitchell it’s important to take a closer look where you may notice the flowers giving birth to these strange birds through their delicate vaginas.
Strange Birds by John Mitchell
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Dedicated to Pa Martin and Ma Kay, 6th generation farmers who saved this bloggers life by warning him about the impending earthquake that hit Illinois last night. They called me up and said, “The cattle was a acting funny.” So I slept in my car last night. Thanks guys.
:}Its true. Our children should be worried. Our grand children? They shoul be very afraid.
Oh to see more: http://www.fborfw.com/strip_fix/
Throwing Things Away Is A Bad Idea…
After spending nearly 15 days discussing the environment and religion I feel like I need a work out or something…Its like being in the clouds and then landing. Your ears pop all the way down. Terra firma feels so good. Time to get back to the manly world of drilling for oil, digging for coal, and sailing the oceans loaded with Liquid Natural Gas. Oh sorry I mean hoisting Solar Water Preheat panels, riveting Wind Turbine towers and pioneering the Noncarbon Based Economy. HAHA
Thank God it is Weird Bird Friday TGI(WB)F!
So much local stuff has gone by while I was watching my navel. Wind Farms in Christian County…Some guys are building an alternative fuel car in Auburn (of All places) to compete in the XPrize Races…But here is a story I have wanted to cover for awhile. People have complained about the pigeon poop downtown for years. So 2 years ago the Mayor and the City Council of Springfield hired a guy from Decatur with a 164,000$$$ nobid contract. This guy is known locally as the “Bird Whisperer” because of his magical and secret methods….that he refuses to disclose because they are proprietary.
In reality he is a sad old man who uses pellet guns and poison to get the birds at night when they sleep and terrorizes them during the day with fire crackers…which cause the birds to move to another part of the downtown.
http://www.sj-r.com/News/stories/28324.asp
or maybe he uses more fire power than that:
Bird whisperer’ could lose contract
Accused of firing rifle in downtown parking garage
Published Wednesday, April 09, 2008
The “bird whisperer’s” $164,000 no-bid contract with the city of Springfield is in jeopardy after Police Chief Ralph Caldwell said Tuesday that James Soules had probably broken the law by firing a .22-caliber rifle in a parking garage.
WEB EXTRA: Archive video of the ‘bird whisperer’ Caldwell told aldermen that an investigation had found probable cause to believe that Soules or one of his employees had fired inside the parking garage for the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
“You just can’t shoot a firearm in downtown Springfield,” Caldwell said.
In a telephone interview, Soules, of Decatur, said later Tuesday that he does not even own a .22-caliber rifle. He said he had shot a sick pigeon inside the garage with an air rifle.
“I probably had 20 people say, ‘Why don’t you get those birds because they crap all over our cars?’” he said.
Soules said he does have a .22-caliber pistol but did not use it in the garage. Such a weapon would be useful only at close range, he said.
The Illinois State Police, the lead agency because the alleged offense occurred on state property, has turned its report over to Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Schmidt, who is reviewing it, Caldwell said. Soules could be charged with misdemeanor unlawful use of a weapon.
Told of the findings at a meeting Tuesday, aldermen on the Springfield City Council’s finance committee unanimously forwarded an ordinance by Ward 8 Ald. Kris Theilen revoking Soules’ contract to the full city council for a vote April 15.
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Instead of doing the obvious. That is banning the feeding of wild life and enforcing it:
Not to be confused with the real Bird Whisperer, Ken Globus:
http://www.thebirdwhisperer.com/
Internationally known as The Bird Whisperer, Ken Globus has been taming “difficult” birds for more than twenty five years. From handling literally thousands of birds, many of them terrified, extremely aggressive and considered “un-handleable,” Ken developed the kinds of hands-on bird taming techniques that have enabled him to do what few others can do: calm down even the wildest birds. If a bird bites, flees, threatens or quakes with fear. If it’s insecure in new surroundings or with new people. If it prefers one gender over the other. If it’s timid and unhappy. If it’s cage territorial, dominant or just plain aggressive. If other approaches have failed to get you results, Ken can help.
Believe it or not the bird belongs to Steven Spielberg and Cate Capshaw…wow I knew I’d get a bird picture in there. AWW cute budgie.
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Jodie Foster, Pregnant Man, Iran, Prince Philip, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, American Idol, Obama, China, Beyonce, Rolling Stones. (sorry for the deception but please read below)
Normally I wouldn’t bother to cover this but since it’s on the list I felt I needed to “dis” it as much as I could. I even took the time to get Buzzes top searches for the week to punch it up a bit. I even checked every category Energy Tough Love has to publicize this human indignity. The list of “Religions” that I used to start this meditation on the relationship between Religion and the Environment placed Juche well down on the list but with 18 million adherents that still alot of folks. I had never heard of it before and I even asked a couple of people if they had heard of it. Imagine my suprise when I typed it into a search engine and up popped this Prick who claimed he was god:
During his lifetime he forced millions of people in North Korea to worship him. Can you imagine anything more degrading or disgusting then a man who points a loaded gun at your head and demands that you treat him like a god. You must pray to him. Oh most Divine Leader. Makes me want to puke. But then he is followed by this buffoon:
Now they are “worshiping” something no better than a trained monkey. If they had an ENVIRONMENTAL group in North Korea, I wish them the best of luck but I ain’t gonna publish it. I ain’t even gona type it into a search engine. If anybody ever deserved to get a nuke shoved up his poop shoot. This would be it.
http://www.perfectgreeting.com/index.cfm?action=view&id=11823
I could have got this picture at the above greeting card site…..But I Didn’t.. I really hate it when I can not attribute a photo so if you see this on the web let me know. It was forwarded to me by Harry Haynes a buddy in Madison so I will probably ask him where he got it.
I know its late but Easter came so early! It is just now getting to the point where the weather feels like Easter:
This as alway is a tribute to John and Susan who Blog about all things Denver
at their blog linked above. Few people know that they are life long Chicken Breeders who specialize in the rarer breeds of Asturian Painted Hens. They have raised several national champions. They report that they are good layers, too.
http://www.dailyhaha.com/_pics/retards_we_all_know_one.htm
I do not believe that they are the originators of this poster but if you are interested you can probably find out from them.
This post as always is dedicated to Susan and John who blog all things Denver (at thedrunkablog listed on our Blogroll) who will be Super Delegates at the up coming Denver Convention. Hillary or Barack? They won’t say.
