The Top 50 Environmental Blogs – All good things must come to an end

People have been saying to me, “There is climate summit going on, oil speculators about, and the EPA just declared it will regulate CO2 and other noxious gases because they threaten human health under the Clean Air Act and you are wasting your posting on the Blog about web sites. That’s just wrong.” To which I say nana nana toddle do” or something equally intelligent. I mean I will get to that but today we will finish up this list and then get to the HARD news reporting. Today’s post literally fell into my hands. But first I have to say:

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Community Energy Systems is a nonprofit 501c3 organization chartered in Illinois in Sangamon County. As such we are dependent on public donations for our continued existence. We also use Adsense as a fundraiser. Please click on the ads that you see on this page, on our main page and on our Bulletin Board (Refrigerator Magnets) and you will be raising money for CES. We say a heartfelt THANK YOU to all who do.

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As I said, this story literally fell into my lap. I was at a site that I have already sited in this series of posts. It is an accumulation of some of the most popular environmental sites around. There was a site listed there that I had never seen before but it was to cool to be true. When I clicked on it I went to a list of environmental sites and I though my work for the day is done:

Cool Site:

http://www.hippiemagazine.com/

Cool List:

December 9th in Resources by Cyrus .

18 excellent green blogs to follow

These are some of our favorite blogs that deal with the climate crisis. We strive to bring you excellent resources to incorporate into your green lifestyle. If you have your own eco favorites, feel free to add them as comments below!

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I feel gratified that many of my faves are on the list but here are a few I overlooked.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/green/

ALL EYES ON COPENHAGEN

Island Nations Fight For Survival.. WATCH: The Powerful Big Ag Lobby That Rarely Makes News.. WATCH: Climate Denier Lord Mockton Calls Activists “Hitler Youth”.. Follow The Events LIVE On Twitter

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This name says it all:

http://poorplanet.blogspot.com/

Monday, December 7, 2009

“I am sorry” – Greenpeace 2020 Banners


The UN summit on climate change kicks off in Copenhagen as I write this. Many people have stopped believing in the head of developed countries as having the power and courage to take the right decisions, even if this means sacrifice. Barack Obama received the nobel peace price but ironically decided to send an extra 30,000 soldiers to war in Afghanistan. Let’s see if he can do better in terms of environment. The USA have to lead the world in taking action against global warming and other issues. How could we ask China or India to reduce their CO2 emissions if the leading countries are not doing the expected efforts?

Greenpeace, along other associations, are putting pressure on the leaders, or at least trying to. Since last week, travelers arriving in the Copenhagen’s international airport will come across the following banners. These depict different leaders of developed nations apologizing in 2020 (ten years from now) for not taking the right decisions. I’ll let you judge by yourself.

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This is a very happy and upbeat site.

http://www.environmentastic.com/blog/

This past weekend (November 2o, 2009, to be exact), filmmaker Robert Stone introduced a showing of his newest film, Earth Days.

In Robert’s own words, he wanted to make a movie “not about the present, not about the future, not doom and gloom, but about how we got here.” In doing so, he hoped to show how today, politics tends to be the issue when it comes to environmentalism, and he also hopes that movie will “point a way forward.”I’m not a professional movie reviewer, in fact, I go to movies less often than your typical hermit, but I’ll do my best here to give this film it’s due.Stone immediately lays politics out as part of his statement, as the opening scene shows statements about the environment being made by presidents starting with John F. Kennedy, all the way through George W. Bush (who’s statements on the environment for his entire eight-year tenure in office were limited to, apparently, “We are addicted to oil.” Duh.).

Stone then introduces nine “pioneer” environmentalists, each with a different background and modus operandi:

  • “The Radical” – Stephanie Mills
  • “The Conservationist” – Stewart Udall
  • “The Astronaut” – Rusty Schweickart
  • “The Biologist” – Paul Ehrlich
  • “The Motivator” – L. Hunter Lovins
  • “The Futurist” – Stewart Brand
  • “The Organizer” – Denis Hayes
  • “The Politician” – Paul (Pete) McCloskey
  • “The Forecaster” – Dennis Meadows

The film speaks of some of the typical “demons” of the environmental movement, including the interstate highway system and automobiles, and theorizes that one of the core problems of the environmental movement is that it asks human beings to move outside of their instinctual “reaction” mode. Early humans faced many risks, and those who survived were the ones who, when faced with immediate threats or opportunities, made a choice rooted in the moment – without having to consider the long-term consequences of their actions. In other words, “cavemen,” when faced with a woolly mammoth, ran. They didn’t have to consider where to run, nor what they would do once they escaped the creature. Conventional business works – even today – in much the same way. Short-term considerations are most important, if the long-term is even thought about at all.

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Many many many people will say that this should have been higher on my list, but it is just a catalog..I mean a damn good catalog:

http://www.inhabitat.com/

GREEN GIFT GUIDE: Gifts That Give Back

by Yuka Yoneda, 12/10/09

Inhabitat Gifts that Give Back Guide, Green Gifts that Give Back, green gifts, eco gifts, sustainable gifts, charitable gifts, donations, holiday donations, humane society

The holidays are a time for fun and family, but they’re also about the spirit of giving selflessly and charitably to those who are less fortunate. So this year, why not give a gift that is both meaningful and special to the recipient and gives back to a cause that is near to their heart? It won’t cost you any extra and if you need ideas, we’ve got a ton in our Gifts that Give Back Guide. Whether you want to give a stylish reusable water bottle that supports the environment or delight someone with an adorable rescued doggie or cat, check out our guide for our top picks!

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This is another site that people would place a lot higher…again this is just stuff and if you have seen the stuff movie –http://www.storyofstuff.com/ you know that stuff is problematic still I can’t leave em off the list:

http://www.ecotoolbox.com/blog/index.php

4 Battery Solar Charger

No operating cost, charging by solar is safe, fast and easyWith unique design and can charge 4pcs “D”/”C”/”AA”/”AAA” size rechargeable batteriesWith all weather durable fiber glass board 7V solar panelFull set of multi-plug and cable wire is provided for easy connection to many appliancesWith adjustable stand for adjusting the best angle to absorb maximum sunlight for faster chargingA blocking diode is built into the circuit to prevent the reverse flow of electricity at night timeEquipped with a portable handle for easy carryingAll weather resistant:}

And Finally TADA

http://www.worldchanging.com/

http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/010868.html

Letter from Copenhagen: An Update from Alex

Alex Steffen, 9 Dec 09

I’m in Copenhagen, where I’m speaking at the Bright Green Expo (NYT coverage here) and the Copenhagen Climate Summit for Mayors, delivering a lecture for the Blekinge Institute of Technology, participating in several other events and giving a lot of media interviews. Meanwhile, the full mayhem of the COP15 summit itself is unfolding here.

COP15 is a pretty astonishing event, with thousands of delegates, journalists and advocates swarming around (or at least standing in lines in) Copenhagen’s large convention center. (You can get the flavor of the event by reading the dispatches from Katie Fehrenbacher, Jonathan Hiskes and Kate Sheppard.)

Though Worldchanging isn’t covering breaking news — I’m here in Copenhagen more to be quoted than quote others — I am updating my Twitter feed frequently, keeping folks abreast of the happenings. You can find follow me at @AlexSteffen.

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That was harder than it looked

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50 Top Environmental Blogs – We broke 35 yesterday which makes this the biggest list on the internet

It is true. I started this meditation on Environmental Blogs in part to make fun of the idea, to also show that experts only really have their opinions about what is the Best Blog and to point out the question – where do you stop? See now that I have done a list of 50…someone will surely come along and do 60 or maybe 75 and 100 of the best of the web. Before I start though I must say:

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Community Energy Systems is a nonprofit 501c3 organization chartered in Illinois in Sangamon County. As such we are dependent on public donations for our continued existence. We also use Adsense as a fundraiser. Please click on the ads that you see on this page, on our main page and on our Bulletin Board (Refrigerator Magnets) and you will be raising money for CES. We say a heartfelt THANK YOU to all who do.

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OK today it is the lawyers. No I do not believe lawyers are bad or should be made the butt of jokes. In a society where we have a hit TV show about ad men call MAD MEN, where we tolerate used car salesmen and cosmetic sales women, I don’t think lawyers are at the bottom of the dung heap. The good hearted ones actually make the world a better place. As for the oft used quote, “first we kill all the lawyers”, that is proceeded by “how shall we recreate the world of kings”…so please get off it. All of you who have been through a bad divorce or been sued need someone to blame…right?

First up, what is not to like about an attorney who is LEED certified:

http://www.greenbuildinglawblog.com/

The 50% Rule or Why Emails and Statistics Don’t Matter

We have heard a chorus of voices over the past few days raising the moribund concept that climate change is not happening, and is some global liberal conspiracy to devalue oceanfront property in Palm Beach.

At the center of raising the hydrahead of the Palm Beach Conspiracy was the discovery of  some emails from the University of East Anglia where climate change scientists were engaging in the age-old academic practice of arguing with one another.  For a “pro” climate change perspective, Gawker explains the situation here, for an “anti” climate change perspective, the Weekly Standard provides this analysis.

I was guest lecturing at Princeton a few weeks ago, and I used the opportunity to propogate one of my favorite ideas–I call it the 50% Rule. It can be used to explain the Palm Beach Conspiracy, statistics about climate change, and as a means of deflating your brother-in-law’s wild stories about catching a 45 foot trout during holiday meals. Here it goes–when you hear a statistic or a scandal or a wild trout fishing tale, assume the information is off by 50%.  One-half.  Then determine whether the information still matters.  If your brother’s trout was only 22.5 feet, not 45, that’s still a mighty large fish.  Similarly, with climate change, if scientists’ statistics about sea level rise or drought are off by 50%, we are still looking at a serious problem.  The result? We still need to do something about it.

With respect to the Palm Beach Scandal, Micheal Oppenheimer from Princeton on NPR explained it beautifully. The consensus of hundreds of scientists, using many different methodologies, all in competition with one another have reached a consensus that climate change is real and caused largely by man’s actions.  Even if 50% of the data is wrong or subject to bias or manipulation,  that is still hundreds of the world’s best scientists coming to a consensus (which if you have ever had two scientists in a room is a feat in and of itself) coming to the same conclusion.

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She is cute too. Oh sorry.

http://www.greenenergyanddevelopmentlaw.com/

Centerbuild 2009

Hello from the ICSC’s Centerbuild 2009 conference in sunny Scottsdale, Arizona.  While it is certainly cold here at night, the great weather was an added bonus to a conference that was chock full of great information.  The theme this year “Get Smart” lived up to its billing.  The speakers, workshops and roundtables did not disappoint the conference-goers.  The focus of every event was to share information with the latest technologies and Green issues.

I was fortunate to have the opportunity to host a workshop on incentives for green shopping centers.  At the conference, I promised to post our PowerPoint presentations on this blog.  Here is my presentation along with Kent Jeffreys and Greg Stark.  I will post Jim Westberg’s next week.  Due to technical limitations, I cannot post that now.

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I know these are hard core sites but you asked for the BEST right? Why China you ask? Well that is where the action is going to be for the next 100 years if our species lasts that long.

http://www.greenlaw.org.cn/enblog/

he Prospects for Global Cooperation to Address Climate Change at Copenhagen and After

Filed Under Climate Change, Feature Article By Greenlaw · December 8, 2009 · Leave a comment

Download Article (PDF, 141KB)

Download Article (PDF, 141KB)

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Representatives from China, the US and all of the other countries of the world will soon gather in Copenhagen, where they will work towards an international agreement to address climate change for the period after 2012.  While there has been enormous progress this year, many observers have begun to worry that countries will be unable to fully bridge their differences in Copenhagen.  Taking both the progress and remaining difficulties into account, we are optimistic that the global community will succeed in creating an international structure for equitably, effectively, and collectively addressing one of the greatest threats to humanity.  Progress will be made at Copenhagen, but for a number of reasons, hammering out the full international agreement may take into next year.

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Then there is the movie star:

http://www.brockovichblog.com/

Million Baby Crawl

Remember when the million man march, a vast grassroots movement, conveyed to the world a different picture of the African American man?

Move over men, it’s baby time.

There’s another march on the way, only it’s not for a million men. It’s not a march either–it’s the Million Baby Crawl.

Seventh Generation has invited me to be a spokeswoman for the Million Baby Crawl, a movement to focus public attention on toxins in household products.

Currently the government only tests 200 of the more than 80,000 chemicals on the market. Who knows how many dangerous ingredients are sitting on our own shelves?
This movement is around to focus attention on protecting our families from toxins secreted in products on the shelves in every American home.

Yes, under our kitchen cabinets, there’s a hotbed of toxic chemical soups marketed as cleansers, polishes, insecticides, etc.

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I periodically tout a Blog that appears to have died or become fixed in time. I don’t really care why that happens, it is the content that matters and this site is pretty good:

http://www.sustainabilitylawblog.com/

August 18, 2009

Portland and Seattle Among Test Markets for Electric Vehicle Program

The U.S. Department of Energy has funded a pilot program by eTec Corporation and Nissan North America to deploy up to 5,000 electric vehicles (EVs) in five U.S markets in 2010, including Portland and Seattle. Program participants will have the opportunity to buy new Nissan EV’s at about the cost of an average family sedan, which are expected to be able to travel about 100 miles on a single charge. The federal money is part of a $2.4 billion program to fund battery research and manufacturing, EV development and installation of EV infrastructure.

Portland General Electric (PGE) has already installed 20 EV charging stations in the Portland Metro area and Salem. The program will work with PGE and three Seattle utilities to install an additional 2,550 charging stations in Portland and Seattle, and will install personal charging stations at no cost in the homes of program participants. ZipCar, a popular car sharing service, will also participate in the EV program in Seattle.

I already use ZipCar and love it. I think I’ll look into participating in the pilot program.

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Anyway I wish I already had a ZipCar, damn it. These guys focus on New England but again very very into the actual law:

http://renewableenergylaw.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Carbon Harvest Energy

Carbon Harvest Energy’s proposal to turn old landfills into no-waste energy producers has been in the news lately, with stories both in the Burlington Free Press and on Vermont Public Radio. Carbon Harvest Energy will be taking a defunct landfill-based methane facility in Brattleboro and turning it into an active, zero-waste, energy-producing facility. According to the Free Press article, the electricity, heat and carbon dioxide produced by the methane-fueled generator will all be utilized. The former landfill will be able to sell the electricity, heat a greenhouse and a fish tank, and use the carbon dioxide as a contribution to an algae farm. The Vermont Food Bank will be the main recipient of the food and fish raised in the facility, and the University of Vermont’s Rubenstein School of the Environment and Natural Resources is partnering with Carbon Harvest to study the algae produced.
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Some of these I got from:

http://www.criminaljusticeusa.com/blog/2009/50-best-blogs-about-environmental-law/

50 Best Blogs About Environmental Law

See I am not the only one.

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The Top 50 Environmental Blogs – What about the media mopes

Its Jam Band Friday – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yc2leWX56A

But first I gotta say:

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Community Energy Systems is a nonprofit 501c3 organization chartered in Illinois in Sangamon County. As such we are dependent on public donations for our continued existence. We also use Adsense as a fundraiser. Please click on the ads that you see on this page, on our main page and on our Bulletin Board (Refrigerator Magnets) and you will be raising money for CES. We say a heartfelt THANK YOU to all who do.

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( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7olsf7IlRI )
It seems like everyone has lists of green blogs. There is list for babies, mothers, products and even the media gets into the act:

http://www.greenedia.com/

Greenedia: The Best of Green Social Media

 

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Latest Environmental Headlines

December 04, 2009

 

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Conservative Appears to Have Won in Honduras

Porfirio Lobo’s main opponent conceded in the presidential election that many hoped could help Honduras after the crisis caused by last summer’s coup.

 

image

 

Markets Rally Across Asia as Dubai Fears Recede

Key indexes in the Asia-Pacific region rebounded Monday, as investors’ worries about potential fallout from Dubai’s debt troubles eased.

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Greenbuild 2009: Monumental – Building Priorities Briefing

GREENBUILD 2009– The Empire State Building plans to trim 38 percent from its monumental 11 million dollar annual energy bill with an energy efficiency retrofit. This month we hear from a person who’s

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( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7lHHF7-kNY )

These are their favorite Blogs (notice Hugger and Mill are 2 and 3 so this list is pretty good):

http://green.autoblog.com/

Fisker Karma – Click above for high-res image gallery

What does Joe Biden have to do with Fisker Automotive? On the surface, the answer would seem to be nothing at all.. or at least it did until the Vice President himself revealed the startup automaker’s plans to introduce a new series of electric vehicles under the Project Nina banner. Not only that, Fisker just so happens to have decided to build cars in Biden’s home state of Delaware. Coincidence?

According to Fisker spokesman Russel Datz, coincidence is exactly what it is. There were a number of good reasons to choose the former GM plant in Wilmington, Deleware, and the fact that it’s Biden’s home state is not one of them. First, the plant is relatively new and hasn’t been shuttered for a long period of time, meaning that it’s in good shape.

Second, the plant is about the size Fisker was looking for. Further, the plant is already set up to install GM’s 2.0-liter Ecotec engine, which is what will be installed in the Karma sedan and convertible. Moving along, GM had recently upgraded the plant’s paint shop, leading to the quality kind of paint jobs that Fisker is looking for. Finally, the plant has easy access to shipping lanes and a UAW workforce that will require very little training.
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( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58bWg0_nTOc )
http://news.mongabay.com/bioenergy/

Thursday, December 11, 2008

From bioenergy to smart conservation

People come and go, and so do websites. With Biopact, we have tried to promote bioenergy in Africa as a way to help small farmers make a better living. We did so by pointing at possible strategies to use natural resources in as intelligent a manner as possible, and by connecting initiatives dealing with agriculture, forestry and bioenergy. We hinted at the role Europe could play by re-writing trade rules, farm subsidies and international development policies.

The small group of dedicated people who wrote for Biopact have learned a lot during these past few years. We learned, for example, that large-scale biofuel production may do a lot of harm, while small-scale, locally rooted bioenergy initiatives may change lives for the better. We gained an insight into new farming techniques, like biochar, which may help tackle key problems in the developing world. We changed perspectives when it became clear that the interrelated threats of climate change and energy insecurity require far more action on the part of individuals, communities and governments. And above all, we came to think that the few patches of untouched nature we have left on this planet, need to be conserved.

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( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYeJRiaRSK4&NR=1 )

http://www.desmogblog.com/

The oily echo machine behind “climategate”

The most vocal organizations around the University of East Anglia hacked email story (aka. “climategate”) have been involved in a decade-plus campaign to delay action on climate change.

The goal of this campaign, which began around the time of the first Kyoto Protocol negotiations, was to assemble a group of like-minded “free-market” think tanks and pseudo-experts that would bring into question the scientific realities of climate change, create doubt with the public and politicians and effectively delay the introduction of clean energy policy in the United States.

It’s no coincidence that the groups pushing this story the hardest have a long history of taking money from oil and coal companies to attack the conclusions made by climate scientists.

What I wouldn’t do to have a few of these organizations private emails over the years!

Here’s a few of the groups I’m talking about and a very brief background on their previous activities, as well as funding sources:

Center for a Constructive Tomorrow: owns and operate ClimateDepot.com, which has been a main clearinghouse for the right-wing climategate echo chamber. ClimateDepot.com is managed by Marc Morano, former aide to Republican Senator James Inhofe. CFACT has received grants from Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and well-known right-wing foundations like the Carthage Foundation and the Sarah Scaife Foundation.
Read more: The oily echo machine behind “climategate

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I knew it! Sooner or later I would be able to put up a picture of that schitzoid lieing worthless Glenn Beck. Thankyou Green Media.

So now for something different

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TB0scwvIuI8&NR=1 )

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The Top 50 Environmental Blogs – They are cheaper by the dozen

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Community Energy Systems is a nonprofit 501c3 organization chartered in Illinois in Sangamon County. As such we are dependent on public donations for our continued existence. We also use Adsense as a fundraiser. Please click on the ads that you see on this page, on our main page and on our Bulletin Board (Refrigerator Magnets) and you will be raising money for CES. We say a heartfelt THANK YOU to all who do.

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We start out today’s enumeration with a blog that if you believe its title is the Environmental Blog of all time. They are pretty good but they only post once a week:

http://www.theenvironmentalblog.org/

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Chromium 6 Emissions from ESCO in Portland

ESCO, chromium 6

This story comes the NW Examiner in the Northwest Neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. http://www.nwexaminer.com/issues/11November2009.pdf

Hexavalent chromium accumulates in organisms and does not break down in the environment. No level of human exposure is considered safe.

The EPA says that the respiratory tract is the major target organ for chromium 6 toxicity, both for acute (short term) and chronic (long-term) inhalation exposures. Shortness of breath, coughing and wheezing were reported from a case of acute exposure to chromium 6, while perforations and ulcerations of the septum, bronchitis, decreased pulmonary function, pneumonia and other respiratory effects have been noted from chronic exposure. Human studies have clearly established that inhaled chromium 6 is a human carcinogen, resulting in increased risk of lung cancer.

Most of the of the 64 toxic substances emitted by ESCO have multiple health consequences. In addition to seven substances known to cause cancer, another 12 are suspected carcinogens.

ESCO is increasingly the topic of discussion among anti-toxics groups in Oregon. Neighbors For Clean Air, the Northwest District Association, and now the Oregon Toxics Alliance are all taking note of ESCO’s toxics emissions. Please join these groups to help put pressure on the DEQ to do its job.

Thoughts, Comments, Questions…

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OK that was pretty yuckie. Next we have to include the transportation world.  This is a pretty geeky site:

http://www.greencarcongress.com/

Mitsubishi Motors Corporation and Japan Delivery System Corporation Develop EV Charging System for Apartment Buildings in Japan

1 December 2009

Icharger
Over view of the i-CHARGER system. Click to enlarge.

Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) and Japan Delivery System Corporation (JDS) have jointly developed an electric vehicle (EV) charging system for apartment complexes. The system, called i-CHARGER, is to be sold by JDS starting 1 December.

Installation and management of EV charging infrastructure for shared parking lots of apartment complexes is an issue in Japan for the popularization of electric vehicles. The i-CHARGER addresses this problem by utilizing existing “delivery box” systems. A “delivery box” is a system of lockers that allow for delivery or sending of packages when tenants are not at home. The “delivery box” notifies tenants when a package has arrived, and the package can be retrieved by the tenant by PIN code or verification card.

Continue Reading “Mitsubishi Motors Corporation and Japan Delivery System Corporation Develop EV Charging System for Apartment Buildings in Japa

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Those guys got acronyms out the yingyang. If you are after something a bit more sporty:

http://www.greenercars.org/

greenest vs. meanest: highlights of the model year ratings

GREEN DRIVING TIPS

Buying green is just the first step in reducing the environmental impacts of automobile use. Your choice of vehicle is most important, but how you drive and how well you maintain your car, van, or light truck will also make a difference. More…

 

2009 MARKET TRENDS

Reading the tea leaves for the vehicle market is greatly complicated by the current turmoil in the auto industry. New vehicle sales in 2008 barely broke the 13 million mark, the lowest since 1993 and down from over 16 million in 2007. More…

 

LEED CERTIFIED VEHICLES

A downloadable excel spreadsheet of all model year 2000 – 2009 vehicles that meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED criteria can be found he

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If you are in Bellevue Washington you might get ahold of these guys:

http://www.thegreencarco.com/about_us/contact_us.php

 

 

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Address: 345 – 106TH AVE NE, Bellevue, WA 98004
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Everything is so much more fun when you put GREEN in front of it.

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The Population Of Britain Falls To 2 Milllion After Spectacular And Bloody Die Off

That is that there will be a massive die off when the cheap oil runs out. He also believes in euthanasia for the less fortunate.

http://timesonline.typepad.com/environment/2009/11/peak-oil-and-population-control.html

November 04, 2009

Peak oil and population control

Flintoff

Last week I had the miserable experience of interviewing a man who had accidentally survived a suicide pact with his wife.

Dr William Stanton, 79, has bone cancer and is plainly very ill: doctors give him three to eight months. His wife Angela was 74, and in good health, but didn’t want to survive him.

Dr Stanton happens to be one of the foremost proponents of population control in Britain, possibly anywhere, and has written articles and letters for anybody who will publish them, including his local paper and the New Scientist. But the latter stopped publishing him more than 20 years ago because – he believes – his views are regarded as being beyond the pale.

A geologist by profession, Dr Stanton has made a massive study of global population growth since the start of the industrial revolution, and suggests persuasively that the growth can be accounted for precisely by the advent of cheap oil. He contends that global oil production is at peak now, however, and that diminishing supplies will require the population of Britain to fall from around 60m today to just 2m in 2150.

Two million!

This will either happen inadvertently, he argues, as people kill each other for precious resources, or in a controlled way, as laws restrict women to just one child each, humane euthanasia becomes widespread to deal with people who represent a “net drain” on society, and immigration is made illegal – arrivals would be put to work in chain gangs, with other criminals.

In its own terms, Dr Stanton’s analysis makes some sense, but his prescriptions are utterly repellent. But when I said that, he told me I was being sentimental. Was he right?

You can read my Sunday Times interview here. If you wish to find out more about Dr Stanton’s views – and his struggle to get them into the mainstream – you should Google him.

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Unfortunately, in the long article of maybe a gazillion words, he mentions Bill Stanton’s beliefs on population in two or three paragraphs focusing most of the rest of the article on Stanton and his wife’s botched double suicide. The irony of his healthy wife dying and he being terminal with cancer and living is over exploited. Also the author spills a lot of ink on Britain’s law against assisted suicide and how 132 Britains went to Switzerland to do the deed.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article6897964.ece

November 1, 2009

William Stanton: I botched our suicide pact

William Stanton and his wife tried to end their lives together – but they only half succeeded. He says He’d do it again

Terminally ill Dr William Stanton from Westbury-sub-Mendip, Somerset who entered into a suicide pact with his wife Angela which he survived but left the otherwise healthy Mrs Stanton dead

Early one morning in September, William Stanton heard footsteps coming up the stairs of his cottage in Somerset. He knew who it was and panicked. “I shouted out: ‘Go away, Nigel, leave me to it, leave me to it!’”

Nigel, a neighbour and family friend, did not go away. He came into the bedroom and found Stanton in distress and his wife Angela lying dead with a plastic bag over her head.

The Stantons had made a pact to end their lives together and put it into effect just days after the director of public prosecutions revealed how he would apply the law prohibiting assisted suicide. It did not work out as they planned and stands as a terrible cautionary example for anybody thinking that self-inflicted death is easily arranged.

I met Stanton last week in the neat and pretty bedroom where Angela’s body was found. I noted a commode in the corner and a trolley-load of pills beside Stanton, who was sitting up in bed. He is 79 and obviously unwell — his doctors say bone cancer will kill him in three to eight months — but he complained only that the pills make him lethargic.

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For a better exposition you might look here:

http://billtotten.blogspot.com/2005/07/oil-and-people.html

Association for the Study of Peak Oil & Gas, Ireland

ASPO Newsletters, Article Number 573 (July 2005)

The population of the World expanded six-fold in parallel with oil production during the First Half of the Age of Oil. William Stanton, author of The Rapid Growth of Human Population 1750-2000 (Multi-Science Publishing, 2003) contributes the following analysis of how population will have to return to pre-Oil Age levels. Let us hope that it does not come to this, but the options explained do have a certain chilling logic.

Reducing Population in Step with Oil Depletion

by William Stanton

Recent articles in the ASPO Newsletter have agreed that the explosion of world population from about 0.6 billion in 1750 to 6.4 billion today was initiated and sustained by the shift from renewable energy to fossil fuel energy in the Industrial Revolution. There is agreement that the progressive exhaustion of fossil fuel reserves will reverse the process, though there is uncertainty as to what a sustainable global population would be.

In this time of energy abundance, and the complacency it engenders, the vast majority of the general public assumes that what the future holds is “more of the same”. They argue, if pushed, that the expertise inherited by post-fossil-fuel scientists and engineers will allow a smooth transition into a new kind of energy-rich world in which renewable generators will produce as much energy as fossil fuels do now. Such a view is untenable because it ignores the fact that almost all materials essential to modern civilization will be orders of magnitude more costly, and scarce, when they have to be produced using renewable energy instead of fossil fuels.

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Or more to the point read the original:

http://www.relocalize.net/files/Futures%20proof.pdf

By the By, if he is right there would only be 12 million people left in America. Best estimates for Native American populations the were 21 million..

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Wind Turbines Don’t Kill Birds Hunters Do – The record on bats is a little less clear

http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/28/wind-turbines-dont-kill-birds-coal-plants-do/

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/hunting/upland_bird/harvest/index.asp

In Oregon alone hunters kill over 94,000 Ruffled Grouse in 10 years…now on to other news

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Continuing with my meditation on “living off the land”, (and my life a*s a google whore) there are many passive ways to use the environment to our advantage. One of these is solar water heaters. Hell I remember when they were called solar water preheaters because the utility companies were petrified that everyone would have them.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China_Business/KJ29Cb02.html

China Business

     Oct 29, 2009

      

 
China leads solar home revolution
By Ryan RutkowskiGazing across the Chinese urban cityscape, one quickly notices many strange tubular devices dotting the rooftops of many residential buildings. These are solar water heaters.Solar water heaters rank among the world’s fastest-growing applications of solar thermal technology. According to the WorldWatch institute, the solar thermal heating sector expanded worldwide in 2007 at its highest rate since 1995, up 19 gigawatts of thermal equivalent (GWth) to 147 GWth total capacity. Solar thermal energy harnessed for domestic water heating is the primary application of this technology, accounting for 86% of all installations in 2009.

China is the world’s largest market for solar water heating (SWH). Since the 1990s, China has blossomed with an increase in annual
production to 114.1 million square meters in 2007 from 0.5 million square meters in 1991, accounting for two thirds of global output. According to “The China Greentech Report 2009”, the country has the world’s largest installed base of solar water heaters, at over 125 million square meters, with one in 10 families such devices.

In 2007, SWH firms in China generated sales of 32 billion yuan (US$470 million). The country’s annual production of solar water heater systems is twice that of Europe and four times that of the United States.

Moreover, China has become a global leader in the manufacturing of components for solar water heater systems. According to “The China Greentech Report 2009”, over 95% of core solar water heating technology patents are held by Chinese firms. In 2005, China produced over 90% of the world’s evacuated tubes, 70% of the world’s borosilicate glass, and more than 90% of the world’s “getter” – reactive materials used for removing traces of gas from vacuum systems.

In recent years, China has begun exporting its SWH technology. In 2007, the sector’s exports grew 28%, with a total value of US$65 million, the equipment going to 50 countries and territories in Europe, the United States, Africa and Southeast Asia. China’s leading export companies are Jiangsu Sunrain New Energy Group, Shandong Linuo Solar Energy Group and Beijing Tsinghua Solar.

Solar water heater systems can be seen across China, from the largest urban metropolitan areas to the smallest rural hamlets. The systems are most common on residential buildings in urban areas, while 90% of the systems are used in single households and 10% in schools, hotels and restaurants.

Altogether, over 30 million households in China use the systems. Southwestern Yunnan province, an area known for abundant sunshine and consistent year-round temperatures, has adopted widespread use of solar water heater systems, with almost all residential buildings in cities and rural areas equipped with them.

A combination of low production costs and significant government support has contributed to the rise of the systems. A standard household system can be set up for just over 2,000 yuan (US$294), compared with 1,800 yuan for gas and as low as 500 yuan for comparable electric water heaters. However, every cubic meter of natural gas costs about 1.7 yuan and every kilowatt hour of mains electricity costs about 0.44 yuan, compared with no cost for a SWH system – a significant savings over time, especially in areas with no access to natural gas and with abundant solar energy.

According to a study by Shanghai Jiao Tong University, SWHs were the most economical domestic hot water system compared with diesel oil boilers, gas boilers, or electric water heaters. The annual operating costs of SWHs in Shanghai were 70% less than electric water heaters.

On January 1, 2006, China passed a revolutionary renewable energy law to spur local governments to support the development of renewable energy projects across provinces. In 2007, the National Development and Reform Council’s Medium and Long-term Development Plan for Renewable Energy in China called for an increase in the total installed area for SWH systems to 150 million square meters by 2010 and 300 million square meters by 2020 – of this 100 million square meters will be in rural areas.

At present, the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone next to Hong Kong, eastern Nanjing, Zhengzhou and Xiamen, and Shijiazhuang near Beijing, are among cities that make SWH systems compulsory on newly built and rebuilt residential buildings at 12 stories or below. In Shanghai, the local government is also pushing for an increase in the solar collecting area.

Three types of solar SWH systems are in use in China: vacuum tube collectors, flat-plate collectors, and combined storage collectors. The vacuum tube collectors are the most prevalent, making up 88% of the market in 2004, compared with 11% for flat-plate collectors, and less than 1% for combined storage collectors. New models often have electrical heaters inside the water tank to ensure efficiency in all weather conditions. According to a study by Shanghai Jiao Tong University, under weather conditions in Shanghai, the annual solar collecting efficiency of flat panel SWH systems is about 36-40%.

The SWH manufacturing market is highly fragmented, with more than 5,000 producers throughout the country. A lack of comprehensive standards for components and manufacturing and local protectionism has kept down the costs of entry for firms.

In April this year, the Ministry of Commerce announced a “Home Electronics to Countryside” program to encourage the growth of SWH systems in rural areas with a 13% subsidy on the cost of buying a system for rural residents. Many experts view this plan as a tool to encourage consolidation in the industry through adoption of more rigid standards. Only 92 of the 133 companies that placed a bid for the program were selected.

Shandong is the world production center for SWHs, based on measured area of concentrated heat vacuum tubes, with over 100 million square meters a year and 387 manufacturers. Of China’s 30 leading makers of the products with over 10 million yuan in production value, 10 are based in the province, including some of the largest SWH producers, such as Himin Solar Energy Group, Shandong Sangle Solar Energy and Linuo Paradigma Solar Energy.

Dezhou city, home to Himin Solar, boasts that 90% of households there use SWHs and that the streets are lit with solar-powered lights.

Recently, Jiangsu province joined the drive into SWH manufacturing. Of the 92 companies selected for the home electronics to the countryside program, 15 were from the province, including Jiangsu Huayang Solar Energy Heater, Jiangsu Sunrain Solar Energy and Jiangsu Sunshore Solar Energy Industry.

Jiangsu Huayang has filed for 150 independent patents and exports products to the US, Germany, Italy, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan.

The industry’s growth is attracting overseas interest. On September 17, Milwaukee-based, AO Smith Corp acquired a controlling stake in Tianlong Holding, one of China’s leading water purification companies. AO Smith is a world leader in residential and commercial water heating equipment and is already the second-biggest maker of water heaters in China, posting sales revenue of US$2.3 billion in 2008.

China’s rapid adoption of SWH technology will help counter the country’s dependence on fossil fuels. In 2004, SWH units already provided 12% of China’s renewable energy, second only to hydropower. According to the government’s mid-to-long term plan, China could save 20 million tonnes of coal by installing a total of 150 million square meters of SWHs by 2010.

According to “The China Greentech Report 2009”, the market size for green technology in China could reach up to 15% of gross domestic product by 2013. Clearly, this is not only an opportunity for foreign firms to jump on the bandwagon of a Chinese market with astronomical growth potential, it is also a golden opportunity for Chinese firms to gain a foothold in the rapidly developing renewable energy markets in Europe and North America. China’s solar revolution is well underway, and will not be limited by national borders.

Ryan Rutkowski is a master’s student studying international economics at Johns Hopkins University – Nanjing University Center for Chinese-American Studies.

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They got sales going on too:

http://www.china-solar-collector.com/solar%20collector.html?gclid=CICS167S4p0CFSMNDQodgT5vCQ

solar collector-roof[1]

Solar Collector or Solar Water Heater is a device that absorbs thermal energy from the sun and converts it into usable heat. The heat is normally absorbed by water, or a freeze resistant water mix, which can then be used to supplement hot water heating, space heating and even space cooling via use of an absorption chiller or dessicant cooler technology.

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I March In The Labor Day Parade With IBEW 193 – Labor Unions are 300 years old

Which makes commercial oil production look like a baby at 150 (please see last weeks Posts).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_union

As always it was very very cool, everyone gathered:

laborday0.jpg

laborday1.jpg

laborday3.jpg

And Everyone marched:

laborday4.jpg

Some places were crowded:

laborday5.jpg

Some places weren’t. But it always amazes what things you never notice unless you are actually in the street. Somehow on the sidewalk they just do not stand out.

laborday6.jpg

Then it was over, but we will be back next year:

laborday10.jpg

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Sarah Palin Demands Cap and Trade System To Save Alaska’s Environment – You betcha

OK maybe not but all the deniers are now having to become cryers…They lost the public because they lost sight of scientific truth, which of course half of them don’t believe in anyway.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixAGZZK_XbMkinda doesn’t matter at this point:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2IVytlHDcY

to the right of Bush/Cheney:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=viFu7iB02xs

But then:

Climate change: Alaska Gov.

Sarah Palin acknowledges global warming is affecting her state

But the former GOP vice presidential

candidate contends gas drilling will help curb rising temperatures

ANCHORAGE — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin acknowledged Tuesday that global warming is harming her state but said stepped-up natural-gas production could mitigate its effects.

Palin spoke at a hearing before Interior Secretary Ken Salazar — the third of a series he is holding across the country to consider renewed oil and gas leasing on the Outer Continental Shelf.

The 2008 Republican nominee for vice president said relatively clean-burning natural gas can supplant dirtier fuels and slow the discharge of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

“We Alaskans are living with the changes that you are observing in Washington,” she said. “The dramatic decreases in the extent of summer sea ice, increased coastal erosion, melting of permafrost, decrease in alpine glaciers and overall ecosystem changes are very real to us.”

In the past, Palin has questioned the science behind predictions of sea ice loss.

But at Tuesday’s hearing, she made it clear that she recognizes the problem of global warming and cast energy development as part of the answer.

“Stopping domestic energy production of preferred fuels does not solve the issues associated with global warming and threatened or endangered species, but it can make them worse,” she said.

Palin acknowledged that “many believe” a global effort to reduce greenhouse gases is needed.

“Meeting these goals will require a dramatic increase, in the very near term, to preferred available fuels—including natural gas—that have a very low carbon footprint,” she said. “These available fuels are required to supply the nation’s energy needs during the transition to green energy alternatives.”

The federal Minerals Management Service estimates that Alaska’s offshore basins could hold 27 billion barrels of oil and 132 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

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Drill baby Drill. Sustainability, not so much.

As this blogger points out Sarah is always kinda vague about everything. No one can figure out whether that is symptomatic of a vague mind or a generalist’s over intelligence:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/10/sarah-palin-dis.html

Sarah Palin discusses global

warming and its causes, vaguely, on CBS

Sarah Palin clearly was in her comfort zone when she chatted on-air Tuesday with conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt. As The Ticket noted , she presented a persona and offered some lines that could serve her well in her Thursday debate with Joe Biden.Sarah Palin takes the stage in Ohio

Tuesday also saw the broadcast of another of her several interviews with Katie Couric of CBS.

This segment may not spark more calls from conservative commentators that Palin give up her spot on the Republican national ticket. But in front of the television cameras — and in the face of more pointed questioning — the self-assurance that marked her conversation with Hewitt continued to elude her.

One answer by Palin will do little to quell concerns about her position on global  warming. As she did with ABC’s Charlie Gibson a few weeks back, she did her best to skirt a direct answer on its causes.

From the transcript:

Couric: What’s your position on global warming? Do you believe it’s man-made or not?

Palin: Well, we’re the only Arctic state, of course, Alaska. So we feel the impacts more than any other state, up there with the changes in climates. And certainly, it is apparent. We have erosion issues. And we have melting sea ice, of course. So, what I’ve done up there is form a sub-cabinet to focus solely on climate change. Understanding that it is real. And …

Couric: Is it man-made, though in your view?

Palin: You know there are — there are man’s activities that can be contributed to the issues that we’re dealing with now, these impacts. I’m not going to solely blame all of man’s activities on changes in climate. Because the world’s weather patterns are cyclical. And over history we have seen change there. But kind of doesn’t matter at this point, as we debate what caused it. The point is: it’s real; we need to do something about it.

Pardon us for asking, but would it not be difficult to devise an effective policy to mitigate the effects of global warming without a firm grasp on what caused it?

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I am voting vague mind.

Martin Luther King Was A Hero For Environmental Justice – God bless you

http://www.peabody.yale.edu/events/mlkday.html

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s

Legacy of Environmental and Social Justice
at the Yale Peabody Museum

“…one of those great events New Haven people remember for years”
The New Haven Advocate

Have a Good Weekend – You earned it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCPbL4yA7ik

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/04/02/virgance-looks-to-turn-green-options-media-network-into-a-blogging-empire/

Virgance Looks To Turn Green Options Media Network Into A Blogging Empire

 

18 Comments

by Jason Kincaid on April 2, 2009

Virgance, the unique ‘Activism 2.0? startup that is looking to improve the world while making money in the process, has announced the latest addition to its portfolio of campaigns. The company has revealed that beginning six months ago it began quietly acquiring a number of blogs, namely the Green Options Media Network – a collection of 15 blogs, each of which is focused on a different portion of the environmental space. Since the acquisition the blog network has managed to become profitable despite the floundering economy, and has seen its writing staff grow significantly. But according to Virgance, they’re just getting started.

Green Options was founded back in 2007, and has grown to around 2.5 million monthly unique visitors. The network’s most popular blogs include Gas 2.0 (a blog focused on alternative fuels) and CleanTechnica, a blog that examines the latest trends in clean tech. The network sees around 30-40 new blog posts a day, though some of the niche blogs are updated less frequently than the others.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jURRsAMGuZk

http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2009/04/02/usgs-finds-sources-dead-zone

USGS Finds Sources for New Jersey-Sized Dead Zone in Gulf

« Prev Post | All Posts

Every year, excess fertilizers and animal manure flow down the Mississippi River and empties into the Gulf of Mexico, leaving an increasingly large swath of the gulf completely lifeless.

The Gulf’s “Dead Zone,” as it’s commonly known, is largely the result of excess fertilizer use; as the NOAA website on the gulf hypoxic zone puts it, “Nutrient over-enrichment from anthropogenic sources is one of the major stresses impacting coastal ecosystems.” When too much fertilizer and animal waste flow off of farm and ranch lands, it adds too much nitrogen and phosphorus to the water, which depletes oxygen, results in algae blooms, and drives off fish, shrimp and other aquatic life.

In addition to killing off massive amounts of sea life, the Gulf’s dead zone has crippled fishing industries for long stretches of the summer in Louisiana and eastern Texas. Last year, the NOAA predicted the largest-ever dead zone, at 8,800 square miles about the size of New Jerseyhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gC1ivZl7AE4&feature=related

 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/02/us/02everglades.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Everglades Restoration Plan Shrinks


Published: April 1, 2009

 

 

MIAMI — The Everglades have become yet another victim of the shrinking economy.

 

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Cane being cut in Clewiston, Fla., in fields owned by the United States Sugar Corporation.

 

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Times Topics: Everglades

Gov. Charlie Crist announced Wednesday that Florida would significantly scale back its $1.34 billion deal to restore the Everglades by buying 180,000 acres from the United States Sugar Corporation.

At a news conference in Tallahassee, Mr. Crist outlined a far more modest proposal: $530 million for 72,500 acres, with an option to buy the rest by 2019.

“We feel this is the best opportunity, the best financial scenario we can present,” Mr. Crist said, adding, “The economy has been what it has been, and we have to deal with the parameters we are given.”

The new proposal, if approved by the South Florida Water Management District and the board of United States Sugar, would amount to the second major revision of a plan that began last June as a purchase of United States Sugar, all assets included, for $1.75 billion.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wt7OqNNqwlw&feature=related

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life is….

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