Conservation

by Aaron Turpen, Cheyenne Green Living Examiner

Recently, the Wyoming Tribune Eagle's Outdoors Editor Shauna Stephenson published an article about recent changes to energy rules and regulations from the nation's Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and how they would affect both Wyoming's energy producers and the conservation groups that fight them. (Yes, we need energy, but not at any cost)  Stephenson failed to ask the one fundamental question that should be driving this debate and instead focused on the partisan issue at hand.

The driving question should be: why is it Washington's decision what Wyoming does with our energy?

Being something of a tree hugger, I understand the issue of sustainability and conservation, but I am practical enough to understand that the forces at work here are not what they pretend to be.  A generally free market, Constitutional understanding of the issue immediately tells me that government, especially centralized control in Washington, will do little to "conserve" anything and a lot to bring new hazards to our great state's future.

Whether you own your home, rent, lease, or are just living there, you have at least one sink with a faucet.  Probably more than one.  If the water where you live is relatively hard, you probably battle hard water buildup on your sink, in your tub, etc.  Did you know that same buildup can slow down the water flow and even cause you to use more water?

Yep.  I found this out.

Most likely, you either do most of the maintenance in your home yourself or you hire a handyman to do it.  A lot of stuff, like what I'm about to show you, is so easy that paying someone to do it is just ridiculous.

Hard water buildup also affects the aerator on your faucet spouts.  The aerator is the little screen that looks like the screens on your windows for keeping the bugs out.  All it does is "break up" the water as it flows through, making it come out more uniformly by aerating it (breaking it up to add air).

Ok, at the risk of getting a little "granola" and hopefully not causing you to hit the "back" button... I have been tossing around the subject of the economy and how it is affected the way Americans vacation and travel. What got me thinking was the discussion on AirForums. It looks pretty bleak but it is a very small concern when you hold it up next to the bigger problems we all face.  I am not trying to whine about something so trivial as an Airstream when other people can’t pay their mortgage, people across the globe cannot afford rice and others are trying to struggle with the affects of war in their land.  But, I guess the relevance of Airstreams is this…  Isn’t it time we Americans start prioritizing our spending habits and perceptions of consumerism anyways? 

Animal Health, Cruelty and Welfare 'SECRETS' Exposed! (Warning: This blog entry may make you feel the blogger is a lunatic! lol No matter, I hope you enjoy this blog entry!)

One of the reasons why I blog about this is because I was touched. I was touched by Oprah's kindness to allow TV broadcasts....exposing the way dogs have been poorly treated in some dog breeding centres. This was not long after her companion of 13 years passed away. There may be many more things not addressed in this blog entry but I will attempt to voice what concerns animal lovers - health, fitness and welfare of animals all over the world.

Less than 24 hours from the posting of this blog entry, some pigs will be killed after an “PANDEMIC VACCINE TRAINING” exercise ends on Monday April 26th 2009. The Vaccine Training was scheduled to occur in Texas between 24th (Saturday) till April 26th, and involves Texas National Guard Troops involving “drive-thru vaccination clinics”. Are these pigs used as a desperate find to the anti-Swine Flu vaccines?? Full news
 

[ Jump to What Potential Pet-owners Should know  ::  What others have said about Animal Rights and their Welfare ::  Microchips for Pets  ::  Cruelty to Animals in Corporate-Run Farms  :: 

RICHMOND, VA (January 22, 2009) – In an unprecedented online partnership, five of Virginia’s leading conservation groups are joining forces with three top bloggers to launch ArticleXI.com, a blog dedicated to providing Virginians with a one-stop source for news on conservation issues ranging from clean energy to protecting the Chesapeake Bay. The blog’s name references the section of Virginia's Constitution dealing with conservation and protection of Virginia's natural resources.

“When RaisingKaine.com decided to close its doors at the close of 2008, it left a huge gap in Virginia’s online conservation community,” said Eileen Levandoski of the Sierra Club’s Virginia chapter. “But instead of a loss, we saw a unique opportunity to set aside partisanship and unite Virginia’s conservationists.”

“The threats facing Virginia’s economy and environment aren’t partisan – and neither are the solutions,” said Lowell Feld, founder and lead blogger of RaisingKaine.com. “It’s too easy for Democrats and Republicans to point across the aisle and blame each other for the gridlock. ArticleXI.com won’t hesitate to praise or criticize either party.”

ArticleXI.com’s initial lineup of lead bloggers includes:

·         Mike McCoy and JW Randolph of Appalachian Voices

·         Susanna Murley of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network

·         JR Tolbert of Environment Virginia

·         Eileen Levandoski of the Sierra Club’s Virginia chapter

·         Jessica Lee and Matt Zogby of the