Global Warming
June 22, 2007
New Study Finds Carolina Coastal Economy Vulnerable to Sea Level Rise
Raleigh, NC - A recently released research study finds that North Carolina's coastline will continue to experience significant loss in land area, property and recreational value in the next 30 to 75 years due to projected changes in climate.
The findings appear in the report "Measuring the Impacts of Climate Change on North Carolina Coastal Resources," which assesses the impact of rising sea levels on property values, recreation and quality of life, and was conducted by researchers from Appalachian State University, East Carolina University, University of North Carolina Wilmington and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. The study finds that:
North Carolina's coastal topography makes it especially vulnerable to sea level rise and hurricanes-both economically and ecologically.
A one- to three-foot rise in sea level along four North Carolina coastal counties could mean billions of dollars in private property losses over the next 75 years.
Recreational fishing and beach trips also are vulnerable to increased erosion from sea level rise and hurricanes.
Business interruption losses from hurricanes could increase by as much as $157 million per storm event by 2080.
http://appserv02.uncw.edu/news/article.asp?ID=2162
I will take on the challenge of climate change, and call on political and business leaders to do the same.
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/climate-change/take_action/7steps/climate-claymation-video-ein?utm_source=gpi+cyberactivist-list&utm_medium=email&utm_content=816407&utm_term=funny+video+link&utm_campaign=liveearth
Joining forces
Live Earth, a 24-hour seven-continent concert series, hopes to inspire a global effort to combat the climate crisis.
By RIZAL JOHAN
startwo@thestar.com.my
THE environment is getting more attention now than ever. Climate change and global warming have prompted NGOs, multinational companies, governments and even musicians to rally together and spread the message that unless steps are taken now, the future of the planet is in peril.
Come July 7, a 24-hour seven-continent series of nine concerts called Live Earth hopes to inspire a global movement to combat the climate crisis.
http://www.star-ecentral.com/news/story.asp?file=/2007/6/29/music/18137698&sec=music
FEATURE-Belize barrier reef suffers, global warming blamed
29 Oct 2006 23:03:39 GMT
Source: Reuters
By Mica Rosenberg
CAYE CAULKER, Belize, Oct 30 (Reuters) - A rainbow-hued parrot fish nibbles on a veined purple sea fan in the tranquil waters of Belize's barrier reef, the largest in the western hemisphere.
But the fish stays well away from a large patch of dying coral, a white skeleton amid the bright colors of spectacular ocean life along the coast.
Much of the 200 miles (320 km) of Belize's coral reef has been "bleached" in the last decade and some scientists warn it is likely to die, a victim of global warming.
Reefs around the world are in peril with people damaging the delicate ecosystems and endangering some 1 million species of animals and plants that call the coral home.
Scientists estimate over 27 percent of the world's coral has been permanently lost and at current rates of destruction, another 30 percent will disappear over the next three decades.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N27300634.htm
Ford leaders talk global warming, fuel economy in letter
June 29, 2007
By SARAH A. WEBSTER
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER
Ford Motor Co. on Friday issued its 8th Annual Sustainability Report, which updated investors and those concerned about global warming and fuel economy about progress the automaker has made "for our planet and its inhabitants."
In a joint letter from Bill Ford, the company’s executive chairman, and Alan Mulally, president and CEO of Ford, the leaders acknowledged there was a relationship between the challenges confronting the environment and the struggling automaker, which is trying to bounce back from a record $12.6 billion loss in 2006.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070629/BUSINESS01/70629071/1014/BUSINESS01
Editorial Page Editor: The time to solve global warming is now
By MARK TRAHANT
P-I EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR
The weather looked awful when I peeked out of the airplane window last week: Torrential rain, lightning and wind gusts that seemed to lift the Boeing 757 off the ground. But none of that was as striking as the announcement that the flight was canceled. Nearly every passenger seemed to know that once we stepped off that plane our options would be worse. Too many people were trying to go too many places. (We all had hope: At one point in the 6 1/2 hour journey from New York's JFK Airport's Gate 20 to Gate 27 we were No. 1 for takeoff.)
I heard several people on board repeat the notion that they expect more dreadful weather in the months and years to come. Unsettled weather patterns are now the assumption; it is the perception of climate change. Every bad storm, winter or summer, every hurricane, every allergy season that seems way too early or comes too late fits the narrative of global warming. These stories are important to the civic discourse because they reflect what ordinary Americans tell one another about our world. We get it.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/321836_trahant01.html
Global Warming Will Cause More Summer Deaths
(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- More people are expected to die during the summer months due to global warming.
Researchers at Harvard University say the higher temperatures are the reason for the rise in deaths. And the milder winters will not offset the increase.
The study analyzed weather data related to the deaths of more than 6.5 million people in 50 cities in the United States between 1989 and 2000. It found during two day cold snaps the extreme temperatures increased deaths by 1.59 percent. And during extremely hot weather death rates went up by 5.74 percent. When temperature fluctuations were less extreme deaths did not go up as high.
In general, deaths from all causes increase as temperatures rise; and heart attacks and cardiac arrests are more likely when it is very cold. So the logical results of the study would be that global warming would increase deaths when it was hot but fewer deaths in the winter would make up for it, but that was not the case.
http://www.ivanhoe.com/channels/p_channelstory.cfm?storyid=16560
Global warming cited as Europe reels from new weather extremes
By JULIA DAVID
In 2003, Europe was consumed by a heat wave that killed roughly 35,000 people. Four years later, there have been reminders of this strange climatic event as temperatures in some parts of Europe over the past week have reached up to 46 degrees.
Though the death toll in Europe is nowhere near that of 2003, it is still raising eyebrows. Forty-two people have died in Italy and the Balkans, 23 deaths were reported in Romania, two in Bulgaria and Cyprus, nine in France, two in Spain and seven heat-related deaths in Greece. Many of those who died due to heat-related complications were elderly people, dying of breathing or heart problems.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1183053062214&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull
Ad Council Promotes Awareness in Global Warming
Posted on June 27th, 2007 by Auggie V
The Ad Council which is a private, non-profit organization that has enlisted volunteer talent from the advertising and communications industries to deliver critical messages to the American public. Over the years the Council has focused on issues ranging from smoking and public health to crime and poverty. Some of the recent messages have had a tint of green for instance I blogged about the I Spy Green campaign the council did in early 2006.
Most recently the Ad Council has partnered with Environmnetal Defense Fund and they have developed a message and web site on global warming. The above billboard which is on the corner of Walnut and Edwards Streets in Hartford, which I drive past every morning on my way to my Job at CBIA, is a great message and touts a Web site were you can go for more information to get your head out of the sand on global warming. The site is pretty good and I would even recommend it to kids. It is easy to navigate and even easier to understand. The best was the Myth vs Fact.
http://buildingctgreen.com/AuggieVGreenBlog/?p=106
Encroaching deserts due to global warming the ‘challenge of our times,’ study says
28 Jun 07
The study by the United Nations University, produced by more than 200 experts from 25 countries, suggests climate change is making creeping deserts "the greatest environmental challenge of our times".
One-third the Earth's population - about two billion people - are potential victims. Overexploitation of land and unsustainable irrigation practices are making matters worse, it says, while climate change is also a major factor degrading the soil.
http://www.desmogblog.com/encroaching-deserts-due-to-global-warming-the-challenge-of-our-times-study-says
House passes bill affirming global warming exists
By Richard Cowan
Jun 27, 2007
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday, aiming to put an end to the debate over whether global warming is actually occurring, passed legislation recognizing the "reality" of climate change and providing money to work on the problem.
By a vote of 272-155, the House approved an environmental funding bill for the fiscal year starting October 1 that would increase federal investments in basic research on climate change and establish a new commission to review scientific questions that need to be addressed.
http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=3323811
Warming debate deja vu
By PAUL EASTON - The Dominion Post
Wednesday, 27 June 2007
There are many parallels in the debate about ozone depletion and the current controversy over global warming, according to a United States academic.
Karen Litfin, professor of political science at the University of Washington at Seattle, said lessons could be learned from the way the ozone issue developed over the 1970s, 80s and 90s.
The main similarity was that both ozone depletion and global warming concerned the atmosphere – the earth's protective cushion, said Dr Litfin, who visited Wellington recently.
"The atmosphere is really the symbol for our interdependence. It's quite amazing that using your hairspray in
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4109867a7693.html
States already acting on global warming issues
by J.K. Johnson
Paddock
ATLANTA -- If the United States is going to reach the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 70 percent in the next 50 years, states will find themselves playing an increasingly important role in shaping and enforcing the regulations that will make that reduction possible.
At a climate change forum during the National Association of Attorneys General national meeting last week in Atlanta, state AGs learned that the continuing debate over the link between greenhouse gasses and global warming won't delay the impact the debate will have on businesses in their states.
http://www.legalnewsline.com/news/197248-states-already-acting-on-global-warming-issues
Tree planting: A key weapon against global warming
Carbon News and Info
Tuesday, 26 June 2007
Tree-planting activities - reforestation and afforestation - have come in for criticism in recent times, giving rise to a debate over whether planting new forests in order to combat climate change is worthwhile, and whether it can be accurately reflected in a system of economic credits.
The criticisms focus on:
the validity and accuracy of methods used to calculate the climate change benefits,
the ethics of ‘offsetting’, that is, compensating for emissions rather than eliminating them at source, and
the social and environmental impacts of plantations.
Carbon Positive believes strongly that tree-planting can and will make a valuable contribution to the fight against global climate change, as well as providing a host of wider environmental and socio-economic benefits. We further believe that carbon markets in their various forms are key to providing an effective means of financing tree-planting activities on the scale needed to make a difference globally.
This article seeks to support this view by outlining the many benefits of reforestation projects, and responding to some of the most frequent criticisms made of them.
http://www.carbonpositive.net/viewarticle.aspx?articleID=743
Readers React Angrily to Global Warming Column
Is it heresy to suggest the debate isn't over?
Charles J. Murray, Senior Technical Editor -- Design News, June 25, 2007
Remember, you heard it here first:
Global warming raises your blood pressure. I say this with confidence, having spent the past three weeks reading e-mails from scores of Design News readers who saw a column of mine about global warming (DN 4.9.07). The common thread among most of the respondents was anger. A few wrote to agree with me and then proceeded to vent about the politics behind the subject. Many more, though, e-mailed to tell me I was wrong in a multitude of ways. Those readers insisted global warming is no longer a debatable subject and told me I was horribly out of touch for believing otherwise. Even my friend, colleague and chief editor, John Dodge, chided me. In his blog, John wrote, “Where I disagree (with Chuck) is with the suggestion that global warming is a media invention, which he all but says.”
So what did I say to cause this uproar? In the column, I referenced a reader poll on our website showing 38 percent of our readers consider global warming a serious threat to life on earth. I compared that to a separate media survey showing 74 percent of Americans consider global warming a serious or somewhat serious problem. Looking at the numbers, I suggested engineers might be thinking differently about global warming than the rest of the country. Then, I entertained the idea many newspaper and magazine articles might be premature in suggesting the debate is over.
That, evidently, is where I got myself in trouble. And that's what I find shocking.
Let's be honest here — I wrote a column that verged on being boring. Instead of taking sides, I urged readers to carefully consider the issue. Keep the politics out, I said. It was about as wishy-washy as an opinion piece can be.
And what was the reader response? A collective yawn? No. It was rage.
http://www.designnews.com/article/CA6451568.html?industryid=43656
Schwarzenegger, Sarkozy meet to talk about global warming
The Associated Press
Published: June 25, 2007
PARIS: California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and new French President Nicolas Sarkozy talked for half an hour Monday, partly about ways to work together to fight global warming.
Schwarzenegger, in Paris on a European tour, said after the talks that he admired Sarkozy "tremendously," and believed he would "put a new energy in the relationship between France and other countries, and our state." Both men are conservatives who put major emphasis on the fight against climate change.
"I want to do anything possible to help him, and we should work together," Schwarzenegger told reporters at the Elysee Palace. Schwarzenegger said he and Sarkozy talked about how to cooperate on global warming and about a trade mission in 2008 to promote French products in California and vice versa.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/06/25/europe/EU-GEN-France-Schwarzenegger.php
July 6, 2007
NWS seeks help verifying tornado
The storms that swept the region on July 4 produced several unconfirmed reports of funnel clouds or a tornado touching down in the region. The National Weather Services is asking for the public's help in finding storm damage that might indicate a true touchdown. Here's their appeal:
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IS IN THE PROCESS OF INVESTIGATING
WHETHER TORNADOES OCCURRED FROM SEVERE STORMS THAT AFFECTED THE
REGION ON INDEPENDENCE DAY.
A SURVEY TEAM IS IN MONTGOMERY COUNTY LOOKING FOR ANY DAMAGE THAT
MAY HAVE OCCURRED FROM A SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORM THAT SHOWED STRONG
INDICATIONS OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. WE ARE SPECIFICALLY LOOKING IN
THE DAMASCUS...LAYTONSVILLE AND GOSHEN AREAS. IF YOU HAVE OBSERVED
ANY STORM RELATED DAMAGE SUCH AS DOWNED TREES OR ANY STRUCTURAL
DAMAGE WE ASK THAT YOU CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON FORECAST OFFICE AT 703.260.0107.
http://weblogs.marylandweather.com/2007/07/nws_seeks_help_verifying_torna.html
Insurance cost of storms becoming clear
The value of insurance claims relating to June’s severe storms is likely to total £1.5 billion, according to an industry body.
The Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters (CILA) says that storms and the subsequent flooding in the last week of June have lead to domestic claims worth £825 million and claims from business to the value of £680 million.
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) today said that insurers are ‘well advanced’ in assessing the damage to homes and businesses. Stephen Haddrill, the association’s Director-General said: “Insurers continue to work flat out to help customers in these difficult times. Families, elderly customers, those with health difficulties and getting businesses back to work are our priority.”
In the week before the floods, the ABI had called on the government to invest at least £750 million a year in flood defences. The organisation has since welcomed environment secretary Hilary Benn’s announcement of an increase in government funding.
http://www.charcol.co.uk/knowledge-resources/home-and-money-news/article/view/insurance-cost-of-storms-becoming-clear/585/
July 06, 2007
She's Rained Out
I've been thinking about rain lately. Lots of rain.
My area of the world has made national headlines. Because of rain. Lots of rain. Some would say, too much rain. There are homes aplenty around here where the inhabitants haven't been able to get to and from their houses because of standing water. They count themselves more fortunate than those who are wading through their homes, assessing flood damage.
I've had several emails from my blog friends asking if I'm among those flooded. I'm not. We're fine. But there are places we usually traverse that we avoid now. Lots of rain. Unlike last year when I asked for prayer more than once because we had no rain at all. For many months. And we made national news because of grass fires. Prayer warriors, you can stop asking for rain on my behalf now.
This year, jokes about building arks can be heard wherever two or more are gathered in these parts. It's pretty funny until I check the National Weather Service website and see more severe storms predicted as far out as they dare predict. Which threatens the outdoor concert I'm scheduled to play next week.
http://she-lives.typepad.com/she_lives/2007/07/shes-rained-out.html
Flood insurance rates may surge
N.C. declines to adopt international window code
By Gareth McGrath
Staff Writer
gareth.mcgrath@starnewsonline.com
Thousands of coastal residents could see their flood insurance premiums rise this fall because North Carolina hasn't adopted the latest international building codes on wind-borne debris.
But the N.C. Building Code Council, a board dominated by development interests, said doing so could price many middle- and lower-income residents out of the housing market.
The problem, council members said, is that the international code would require every window in new homes as far inland as Burgaw and parts of Columbus County to be equipped with protective plywood panels, hurricane shutters or expensive shatter-resistant windows.
Currently, only new homes within 1,500 feet of the ocean shoreline must have the added safety features.
http://www.starnewsonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007707060410&source=email
Storm Drains Clog As Drains Fill
POSTED: 5:16 am EDT July 6, 2007
UPDATED: 5:42 am EDT July 6, 2007
BOSTON -- Severe thunderstorms soaked the Merrimack Valley Thursday.
The flash flooding in Lawrence was so bad that the only way some cars got around was with a forklift.
Flooding was only part of the problem. Entire sections of Lawrence were in the dark Thursday night after trees fell on power lines.
Puddles became pools in just minutes as rain fell by 1 inch to 2 inches per hour.
Public Works crews were spread thin trying to clear storm drains and prevent sink holes from getting worse. Neighbors who didn't want to wait grabbed their shovels and cleared the drains themselves.
Late in the evening, the same spot that caused trouble for drivers all day meant trouble for a car with two children inside as the car became submerged. Eventually police came in and carried the kids to safety.
Overnight, National Grid was reporting 4,000 power outages in the Merrimack Valley, most of them right in Lawrence.
Copyright 2007 by TheBostonChannel.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/13631533/detail.html
Alcan endorses United Nations Global Compact climate change statement
ALCAN JOINS MORE THAN 150 GLOBAL COMPACT PARTICIPANTS IN A CALL TO ACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE
July 05, 2007: 12:28 PM EST
MONTREAL, July 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Alcan Inc. announced today that it has signed the UN Global Compact's "Caring for Climate: The Business Leadership Platform" statement. The official statement, which was announced in conjunction with the Global Compact Leaders Summit in Geneva, Switzerland, is a powerful call to action from the participants of the Global Compact who wish to advance practical climate change solutions and voice the need for all businesses, governments and citizens to take steps to address climate change.
"Alcan is pleased to join the more than 150 signatories of the Global Compact's statement on climate change," stated Dick Evans, President and CEO of Alcan Inc. "At Alcan, we firmly believe that climate change is a truly global issue, and therefore we need to combat the negative impacts of climate change on a global level. This statement clearly articulates the urgent need for all sectors around the world to work together towards the common objective of advancing practical climate change solutions," he added.
Alcan has long been committed to addressing the issue of climate change. In addition to significantly reducing its own greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions over the past 17 years, Alcan has been a leader in the climate change debate. The company chaired the Executive Forum on Climate Change in 2005; took part in the Carbon Disclosure Project; participated in the United States Climate Action Partnership; and on an ongoing basis, lends its support to progressive NGOs like the World Environment Center.
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/prnewswire/MO24705072007-1.htm
Alcan
http://www.alcan.com/survey396/396invitation.html?href=http://www.alcan.com/
The Alcan Prize for Sustainability is a US$1 million Prize that recognizes organizations demonstrating a comprehensive approach to addressing, achieving and further advancing economic, environmental and/or social sustainability.
The Alcan Prize for Sustainability is one of the world’s most significant, privately funded Prizes. One Prize is awarded annually.
Additionally, Alcan Grants valued at US$15,000 are awarded to the remaining nine shortlisted organizations, with the specific intention of investing in certifiable training and capacity building for the organization.
To ensure the credibility and integrity of the Prize, Alcan partners with The Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF) to develop, facilitate and manage the program.
Prize and Grant recipients are selected by an independent, high-level international panel of distinguished Adjudicators, who consider both past performance as well as evaluating how
organizations will continue to contribute to and impact on sustainability through their ongoing activities.
Alcan’s commitment to the Prize is for an initial nine-year period. The inaugural Prize was awarded in 2004.
http://www.alcanprizeforsustainability.com/tiki-index.php?page=home_en&switchLang=en&bandwidthspeed=high
Alcan responds to Alcoa announcement
2007/05/07
MONTREAL, May 7 /CNW Telbec/ - Alcan Inc. today announced that it hasreceived from Alcoa notice of intent to file an unsolicited offer to acquireall of the outstanding shares of Alcan for US $58.60 in cash and 0.4108 of ashare of Alcoa common stock for each outstanding common share of Alcan.Consistent with its obligations and focus on delivering value toshareholders, Alcan's Board of Directors will consider the proposal and how itcould impact the interests of Alcan's shareholders and other stakeholders.Alcan's Board of Directors and management remain committed to building anddelivering value for shareholders and other stakeholders, and believe thatAlcan's strategy and recent performance and accomplishments clearlydemonstrate this commitment.
http://www.alcan.com/web/publishing.nsf/Content/Tender+Offer
Supreme Court rules Alcoa smelter is illegal
Iceland Review
06/10/2005 10:40
Supreme Court invalidates environmental assessment of Alcoa smelter.
Site of the illegal smelter
Yesterday the Supreme Court of Iceland invalidated the decision of the Minister of the Environment to waive the requirement for Alcoa to undergo an environmental assessment before obtaining a license to operate the smelter currently under construction at Reyðarfjörður on the East Coast.
The plaintiff was the former Minister of Industry and Trade and former Member of Parliament Hjörleifur Guttormsson; defendants were Alcoa and the Republic of Iceland.
The minister had justified waiving the environmental assessment for Alcoa's 322 thousand tonne smelter because a prior environmental assessment of a smelter proposed by Norsk Hydro for a 520 thousand tonne smelter at the same site had already been approved. Because the Alcoa facility differs materially from Norsk Hydro's, both in exterior design and in smelter technology, the Supreme Court found that the Alcoa smelter, currently under construction, had to undergo a new and separate assessment. According the the court, law 106/2000 concerning environmental assessments was violated when the operating license was issued.
http://www.savingiceland.org/node/246
Alcoa Says It May Increase $27.7 Billion Alcan Bid (Update4)
By Dale Crofts
Alcoa plant, Rockdale, Texas
July 3 (Bloomberg) -- Alcoa Inc., the world's second-largest aluminum company, said it may be willing to increase its hostile $27.7 billion bid for Alcan Inc. as it seeks to fend off rising competition from aluminum producers in Russia and China.
Alcoa Chief Executive Officer Alain Belda told Alcan CEO Richard Evans in a June 28 e-mail he was ``ready to consider value for your shareholders beyond that reflected in our outstanding offer,'' if justified by financial data that Alcan has yet to provide, New York-based Alcoa said today in a regulatory filing.
Belda is trying to overcome Alcan's opposition to a merger that would create the world's largest aluminum company and fend off competition from emerging-market producers such as Russia's United Co. Rusal. Acquiring Alcan would give Alcoa cheaper power supplies for its smelters and access to 3.5 million tons of aluminum capacity a year in countries from Australia to Iceland.
``I'd still put high odds on these two companies coming together,'' said Charles Bradford, an analyst at Soleil Securities Inc. in New York. ``The management that is being attacked has to yell and scream to get the best price for their shareholders,
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aix.W42rnYr4&refer=news
Leading Scientist Says Climate Change Increases Poverty and Hunger
By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
05 July 2007
A leading climate change scientist says the warming of the planet would have a devastating impact on the poor and the hungry. He urges the United Nations to make greater efforts to help the poor, the hungry, and malnourished adapt to the realities of climate change and its difficulties. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva.
The chairman of the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Rajendra Pachauri, says the effects of climate change will be mainly felt in the areas of health and agriculture. He says it is the poor who would suffer most from the change.
He says heat waves in different parts of the world are making people ill and causing many deaths. He says the situation is particularly bad in poor countries that do not have the infrastructure or wherewithal to protect people from extreme heat.
Speaking of the agricultural effects of climate change, Pachauri says two-thirds of the world lives in rural areas and the majority of these people are in developing countries. He says a great many are dependent on rain-fed agriculture.
http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-07-05-voa42.cfm
South Africa: Live Earth Concerts to Raise Awareness of Climate Change
Southern African News Features (Harare)
5 July 2007
Posted to the web 5 July 2007
Mukundi Mutasa
Harare
Music will be used to generate awareness of climate change during a series of "Live Earth" concerts to be held on seven continents on the seventh day of the seventh month of 2007.
The 24-hour-long series of concerts, dubbed Live Earth, will be held on 7 July in South Africa, Germany, United Kingdom, United States, Brazil, China, Australia and Japan.
Live Earth marks the beginning of an annual campaign by the Alliance for Climate Protection, the Climate Group and other international organisations to drive individuals, corporations and governments to take action to solve global warming.
Among artists scheduled to perform in Johannesburg are the South Africa's Soweto Gospel Choir, Benin's Angélique Kidjo and UK reggae group, UB40.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200707050820.html
Israel urged to 'act now' or risk global warming tragedy
By RON FRIEDMAN
Israel could lose its sea ports and suffer billions of dollars in irreparable damage if global warming is allowed to continue unchecked, an environmental group warned on Thursday.
According to a new report by the Israel Union for Environmental Defense (Adam Teva V'din), Israel will not be spared the tragic outcomes of increased global warming and will in fact experience higher-than-average temperature increases. The group studied the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) report and derived from it the probable scenarios for Israel.
The report, titled "The forecast is in our hands," describes two possible scenarios. The first reflects the outcome of unchecked global warming with few or no steps taken to curb greenhouse gas emissions.
Under this scenario, temperatures will rise by approximately 3.3 degrees Celsius with more frequent and more intense heat waves. Annual rainfall will decrease by 20 percent to 30 percent, mostly coming from sporadic and intense storms. Rising sea levels caused by the melting of polar icecaps will flood the entire coastline, causing irreparable damage to essential infrastructure like ports and power plants, as well as residential areas along the shore. The southern desert will expand northward from Beersheba, where it is today, to places like Kiryat Gat. Public health will suffer due to problems in the water drainage systems and an increase in airborne diseases.
The economic expense of coping under this scenario is calculated at roughly $33 billion a year.
The second scenario, which is based on the assumption that the world makes a concerted effort to reduce emissions by global adoption of economic, social and environmental sustainability, shows a much lower impact. While temperatures will still rise and precipitation will decrease, the impact on agriculture, air quality and public health will be limited and no harm will occur to state infrastructure.
Joining the world in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will cost Israel roughly $1.5 billion a year.
"It is both possible and desirable to make a change. We call on the government to adopt the necessary policy, to set out clear goals and timetables in order to reduce the global warming," said IUED Executive Director Tzipi Iser Itzik.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1183459208545&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull
Climate change contributing to Pacific health problems
12:50PM Friday July 06, 2007
By Cherelle Jackson
SAMOA - A recent study by the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that climate change directly or indirectly contributes to about 77 000 deaths annually in Asia and the Pacific.
A figure for the Pacific itself could not be obtained however WHO representative to Samoa, Dr Kevin Palmer told Newsline the figures are a cause for concern.
"The total number of deaths in the region is significant and the impacts are pretty specific," Dr Palmer said.
Major changes related to climate change such as the gradual disappearance of atolls, do make a contribution to health problems, he said.
"The mosquito population is on the increase and with that the prevalence of malaria."
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=149&objectid=10450063
Drought, Floods Fuel Australian Climate Change Debate
By Phil Mercer
Goulburn, Australia
05 July 2007
A long drought and recent floods have intensified debate in Australia over climate change. Many Australians believe man's reliance on fossil fuels is warming the earth, while skeptics say it is all part of a natural cycle. Phil Mercer reports on Australia's climate change debate from a sheep farm near the outback town of Goulburn in New South Wales.
http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-07-05-voa10.cfm
Global warming sends Tibet temperatures up
BEIJING: Temperatures in Tibet have been up to 5 degrees Celsius above average so far this month, as global warming pushes up temperatures, a weather official said Thursday.
“Global warming is having an effect on Tibet, making the temperature higher and higher,” said He Xiaohong, a senior engineer with the region’s meteorological station. The Tibetan capital, Lhasa, also recorded its highest July temperature in 30 years on Monday when the mercury hit 29 degrees Celsius, he said. Tibet just experienced its third warm winter in seven years, with temperatures 9 degrees Celsius above average in some areas, he said. Temperatures were 3 to 5 degrees higher in Xigaze Prefecture, Shannan Prefecture and areas around Lhasa during the first four days of July, he said. The official Xinhua News Agency reported Tibet’s glaciers have melted at an annual rate of 131 square kilometres over the past three decades.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\07\06\story_6-7-2007_pg4_17
India invests $ 595 mn to combat global warming
New Delhi, July 5 (AP): India is investing nearly $ 600 million in an international project to create an experimental fusion reactor aimed at combating global warming by providing an alternative to fossil fuels, the government said Thursday.
The Cabinet approved the 25 billion rupee ($ 595 million; euro437 million) investment Thursday, enabling India to take part in the International Thermonuclear Experiment Reactor, the Cabinet spokesman said in a statement.
India will join the United States, the European Union, China, Russia, Japan and South Korea in the $ 12.8 billion (euro10 billion) project to build the experimental reactor in southern France with hopes it could revolutionise global energy use for future generations.
Participants expect the reactor to be operational by 2040.
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200707051542.htm
Arctic Ponds Disappear Due to Global Warming, Scientists Say
By Alex Morales
Cape Herschel Lagoon is seen dried up
July 3 (Bloomberg) -- Arctic ponds that date back thousands of years are disappearing as global warming increases evaporation rates, a development that may alter the ecological balance in the frozen north, scientists said.
The researchers at Canada's Queen's University and University of Alberta examined two dozen ponds on Ellesmere Island, beginning in 1983. By 2006, they found many of the ponds were drying up over the summer, and others were shrinking.
``It's clear that it's warming and drying and the ponds are evaporating much more,'' John Smol, professor of geography at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, said in a telephone interview. ``The ponds are smaller: Some are completely dry. The changes are happening much faster than we thought and it's going to start cascading through the ecosystem.''
The ponds provide a habitat for insect larvae, and their loss could affect birds and other animals that prey on the insects, as well as mammals that rely on the ponds for drinking water, Smol said. The findings are published in this week's online edition of the U.S. journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Of 24 ponds studied, 23 were drier in 2001, 2004 and 2006 than in 1983, 1984 and 1986. The only pond unaffected was one that receives snowmelt from two high plateaus via several streams, the scientists said in the paper.
Thawing Permafrost
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601082&sid=aEcswicVXx7g&refer=canada
The Psychology of Global Warming Deniers
Posted by Ish
To stay updated you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed, bookmark the site, or enter your email address in the form on the right to receive a daily digest of our articles. After that, please join the discussion and leave us some comments. Thanks for visiting!
Skepticism is healthy. And when it comes to talking about climate change, one can understand - to a certain point - why certain people are cautious or slow to accept scientific findings concerning global warming as being true.
Yet when skeptics become outright opponents of the idea of climate change, one wonders what exactly is going on in their psyches. Especially given that global warming is, in a sense, akin to Pascal’s wager: that is, if we take precautions to forestall damage caused by global warming (such as switching to alternative fuels, which we will, as J-Ro points out, have to do at some point anyway), we stand to gain much and lose relatively little. If, on the other hand, we deny the existence of global warming and refuse to take precautions, we gain little and stand to lose a great deal.
So what motivates people who deny the need for precautions in the face of global warming? And how do they defend their stances rhetorically?
THE MOTIVES
Why do prominent politicians and scientists deny global warming?
Regarding politicians, the cynical answer is that they are financially connected with the fossil fuel industry in America. Sadly, George Bush’s well-known connections with oil companies, and the contributions from Big Oil to the campaign chests of such prominent deniers of global warming such as Senator James Inhofe (R-OK), seem to confirm some of the speculation that financial motives, or a desire to protect close associates, are a motivating factor in such politicians’ stances on energy and sustainability issues.
http://www.theseminal.com/2007/07/05/the-psychology-of-global-warming-deniers/
Galyan joins Gore in global warming fight
Related links
By Bruce C. Smith
bruce.smith@indystar.com
With one of Indiana's most recognized family names in business, Patrick Galyan is a proven entrepreneur willing to take on a good challenge.
Patrick Galyan, former CEO of the family-owned Galyan's Trading Co. sporting goods stores, has become an environmentalist intent on conserving millions of acres in Alaska. - Bruce C. Smith / The Star
He's at it again with no smaller goal than to save millions of acres of primitive Alaska from development. And he's become one of former Vice President Al Gore's personally trained champions of the environment.
Galyan insists his motives to fight global warming aren't political.
Rather, he said during an interview at his Eagle Creek-area home, he wants to spread the message to other entrepreneurs and business owners that saving the environment is more than just good business. It is the future of our planet.
"Some people don't want to hear this. They say they don't want to be confused by the facts," Galyan said. "But as a citizen of the world, it is obvious that we have to change."
He took over the Galyan's Trading Co. founded by his parents several decades ago in Plainfield and built it to a growing force in retailing and sporting goods. The company was sold in 2004 to Dick's Sporting Goods.
And when he stepped down as chief executive in 1997, Galyan didn't stop looking for more opportunities.
http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070705/LOCAL/707050487
Severe storms possible for the Great Lakes Region!
Posted At: July 5, 2007 @ 12:45 PM
Posted By: Reed Timmer
Related Categories: General
Instability and deep-layer shear are sufficient for severe storms over the Great Lakes Region this afternoon and evening, as northwesterly flow prevails over much of the Central and Eastern U.S. The tornado threat will be very low over this region, however, as low-level shear values are very meager. Given a weak capping inversion, the lake breeze fronts should provide the necessary convergence for initiation...here are some select RUC analysis maps from 17z.
http://tornadovideos.decadehost.com/index.cfm/2007/7/5/severe-storms-possible-for-the-great-lakes-region
Jul 6, 2:08 PM EDT
Heat wave sizzles western states
By REBECCA BOONE
Associated Press Writer
BOISE, Idaho (AP) -- When the mercury hit 104, Rick Overton took his colleagues tubing on the Boise River, thinking it couldn't get much hotter. On Friday, parts of the West got a little relief, but not everywhere - Boise was expected to hit 107.
"Once it gets that high - 105, 107, 109 - it just feels hot," said Overton, a copywriter for the digital marketing firm Wirestone.
Warnings of excessive heat were still posted Friday morning for much of Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Oregon and Washington state. The Southwest was expected to cool off slightly, though, said weather service meteorologist Jamie Meier.
"The high pressure system that has been stubbornly parked over Southern California is on a weakening trend, allowing temperatures to cool down to seasonable temperatures," Meier said.
For California firefighters who have been trying to put down a 1,500-acre blaze in the rugged canyons above Santa Barbara, the cooler forecast could only sound good. Four had to be treated for heat exhaustion on Thursday.
"It's a matter of too much work and too much heat," said Santa Barbara County Fire Capt. Eli Iskow.
Temperatures climbed so high across much of the West on Thursday that authorities warned residents of southern Nevada, southeastern California and northwestern Arizona that outdoor activities could be dangerous except during the cooler early morning hours. Phoenix reached 115 degrees; Baker, Calif., reached 125 degrees.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/H/HEAT_WAVE?SITE=ININS&SECTION=HOME
A message from the melting slopes of Everest
The sons of Hillary and Tenzing speak out about climate change: "Believe us, it's a reality"
By Cahal Milmo and Sam Relph
Published: 06 July 2007
Fifty-four years after Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first men to scale Everest, their sons have said the mountain is now so ravaged by climate change that they would no longer recognise it.
On the eve of the Live Earth concerts this weekend, Peter Hillary and Jamling Tenzing yesterday issued a timely warning that global warming is rapidly changing the face of the world's highest mountain and threatening the survival of billions of people who rely on its glaciers for drinking water.
The base camp where Sir Edmund and Norgay began their ascent is 40 metres lower than it was in 1953. The glacier on which it stands, and those around it, are melting at such a rate that scientists believe the mountain, whose Nepalese name, Qomolangma, means Mother of the World, could be barren rock by 2050.
Up to 40,000 Sherpas who live at the base of the Himalayas face devastation if vast new lakes formed by the melted ice burst and send a torrent of millions of tons of water down the slopes.
Mr Hillary, who has himself twice reached Everest's summit, said: "Climate change is happening. This is a fact. Base camp used to sit at 5,320 metres. This year it was at 5,280 metres because the ice is melting from the top and side. Base camp is sinking each year. For Sherpas living on Mount Everest this is something they can see every day but they can't do anything about it on their own."
http://environment.independent.co.uk/climate_change/article2739751.ece
Hotter weather could signal severe storms
By James Bennett
Thursday, July 5, 2007 9:07 PM MDT
As Green Valley and Southern Arizona baked under temperatures ranging from 104 to 109 degrees Wednesday and Thursday, severe thunderstorms started to threaten the region.
The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Santa Cruz County on Thursday afternoon after radar detected a potential micoburst over Patagonia Lake. Large storm clouds southeast of Green Valley produced wind and lighnting but little rain.
“The wind picked up, and there were big, black clouds,” Patagonia Lake State Park Assistant Manager Colt Alford said Thursday: “That was about it.”
Patagonia Lake generally attracts 1,200 visitors on Saturdays and Sundays, Alford said. The park sold only 648 day-use permits Wednesday because it offered little relief from the heat. The high was 104 degrees at the lake Wednesday, Alford said. Last year on July 4, the temperature was 93.
http://www.gvnews.com/articles/2007/07/05/news/news03.txt
Saving coral reefs becomes a tourism priority
Green sea turtles, cascades of glittering reef fish, blooming coral pillars — countless travelers have come nose to nose with a thriving undersea universe while on vacation. But increasingly, divers and snorkelers are swimming over bleached hunks of coral devastated by shore runoff or overfishing.
From the South Pacific to the Caribbean, coral reefs — which are among the most delicate of marine ecosystems — are bearing the brunt of climate change and other human-driven activities — including coastal development, deforestation and unrestricted tourism. Now, many in the tourist industry are trying to halt the damage.
And it is no wonder. The dollars involved in reef-based tourism are significant: Australia's Great Barrier Reef alone draws about 1.9 million visitors a year, supporting a $4.2 billion industry. According to the Nature Conservancy, the annual economic value of coral reefs to world tourism is $9.6 billion.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/06/26/travel/trreefs.php
July 5th…3:30 pm
Reason #18 why you shouldn’t ever let me leave…when I’m gone, bad things happen. A couple of years ago we had a historic flood in Franklin County. In the midst of an epic dry spell in early June I take off for a few days and we get hail the size of small children in Lexington. Now last night as I’m down on the beach with my family in Florida severe storms knock down dozens of trees over on Lexington’s eastside. (In case you’re wondering…aside from occasional days off I’m not going anywhere). By the way…this just in…the damage was offically declared to be caused by STRAIGHT LINE WINDS. We had a reporter along with the Weather Service from Louisville and got the information.
http://community.lex18.com/weather/?p=346
Tornadoes cause $7m damage, storms move north (+photos)
1:01PM Friday July 06, 2007
The thunderstorms which caused a series of twisters in Taranaki and Wanganui last night are now moving north.
Storms are forming offshore across Northland, Auckland and the Waikato and conditions could be right for more tornadoes, Newstalk ZB head weather analyst Philip Duncan said.
A severe weather warning from MetService said a low in the Tasman Sea was expected to track across Northland early this afternoon and Auckland this evening.
Heavy rain and thunderstorms ahead of this were due on Northland from late this morning.
A state of emergency was declared in the New Plymouth district last night after a series of tornadoes there left thousands without power and homes severely damaged.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10450001
Twister's trail of destruction covers 140km
Taranaki Daily News
Friday, 6 July 2007
A seven-day state of emergency has been declared in Taranaki after a swarm of tornadoes cut a 140km swathe of damage across the region.
From Motunui in the north to Normanby in the south, trees were uprooted, roofs flung from houses and powerlines torn from poles as at least six tornadoes struck.
Between 40 and 50 houses in Oakura suffered up to 80 per cent damage.
Yesterday's mayhem followed a single destructive twister that swept through central New Plymouth on Wednesday, tearing a roof off the Placemakers store, damaging six business premises, and uprooting fences and blowing in giant plate glass windows at the racecourse.
But that event was dwarfed by yesterday's multiple strike.
Meteorologists, who describe the Taranaki coast as a tornado hotspot, said a series of thunderstorms swept in from the Tasman Sea, spawning numerous tornadoes.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/4118348a10.html
Michael Moore Today
http://www.michaelmoore.com/
SiCKO's Impact
by Michael Moore
Fri Jul 06, 2007 at 09:04:16 AM PDT
We're here today to discuss the impact SiCKO is having on the health care debate in this country. To date, we have appeared in Congress to discuss the need to get rid of private health insurance. We testified before the legislature in California in support of a reform effort to protect Californians from for-profit health insurance. We have done events with mayors, with leading members of Congress, on Wall Street and with progressive groups. We have stood shoulder to smock with the
2.9 million California Nurses, as well as other working Americans such as the U.S. Steelworkers - the people who have helped build American beam by beam, rivet by rivet, floor by floor.
And to date the public has responded to our collective action. We opened in over 400 theaters last week and had a great turnout. More impressive, over the last five days the momentum has continued to grow - while others have gone down in the box office - we have actually gone up - which is virtually unheard of.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/7/6/94342/72898
"You would have to be dead to be unaffected by Moore's movie..." -- Barclay Fitzpatrick, Vice President of Corporate Communications, Capital BlueCross
Friday, July 6th, 2007
BlueCross Secret Memo Re: 'Sicko' ... "You would have to be dead to be unaffected by Moore's movie..."
July 6th, 2007
Friends,
An employee who works at Capital BlueCross has sent us a confidential memo written and circulated by its Vice President of Corporate Communications, Barclay Fitzpatrick. His job, it seems, was to go and watch "Sicko," observe the audience's reaction, and then suggest a plan of action for how to deal with the movie.
The memo, which I am releasing publicly in this email, is a fascinating look at how one health care company views "Sicko" -- and what it fears its larger impact will be on the public. The industry's only hope, the memo seems to indicate, is if the movie "flops."
Mr. Fitzpatrick writes: "In typical Moore fashion, Government and business leaders are behind a conspiracy to keep the little guy down and dominated while getting rich."
No. You don't say! That can't be!
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/message/index.php?id=215
-- Maria Watanabe, American SiCKO
Claremont attorney on silver screen in 'Sicko'
By Redmond Carolipio / Daily Bulletin
ONTARIO, California -- When more people file in to see Michael Moore's latest film, they're also going to see a story that has local ties.
"Sicko" is Moore's biting examination of the nation's health care system. The movie compares the U.S. system with that of other nations, such as Canada and France, and it's also rife with extreme examples of how HMOs and other elements of the U.S. system have failed their patients.
One such example is detailed by Scott Glovsky, an attorney who lives in Claremont and works for Arkin & Glovsky in Pasadena, specializing in health-care related litigation.
Glovsky sued the HMO of Maria Watanabe, an Eagle Rock woman who Glovsky said was prevented from seeing specialists and undergoing tests that would have revealed a brain tumor that she had.
"She had a family member die of a brain tumor, and she was worried about the same thing happening to her," Glovsky said. "She was having headaches, dizziness - she blacked out a few times. And the symptoms kept getting worse."
http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/news/article.php?id=9994
Thank Blue Shield of California for Their Repeated Denials
Media Contacts
If you are a member of the news media, call the media hotline at (415) 229-5359, send an email to publicaffairs@blueshieldca.com, or contact the following media professionals.
David Seldin: (415) 229-5366
Elise Anderson: (310) 744-2660
Erica Perng: (415) 229-6171
Ashley Wilkerson: (310) 744-2661
If you are not a news reporter but have a question about Blue Shield, please contact us.
https://www.blueshieldca.com/bsc/newsroom/newsroom_07.jhtml
Where can I see the film?
http://www.sickotix.com/
Tuesday, July 3rd, 2007
"Sicko's" Successful Weekend Puts it in 200 More Cities Beginning Today!
Friends,
The results are in from the weekend -- and they are amazing! "Sicko" more than doubled what industry insiders had predicted it would do for the weekend and, as I predicted, it did indeed have the second largest opening weekend in film history for a documentary (after F911). It also had the second highest per screen average for the weekend (after the Pixar animated film, "Ratatouille"). All this in spite of the fact, as Variety wrote, it's not been a very good year for documentaries at the box office. According to Variety, there have been 29 docs released in theaters in 2007, and they have grossed less than two million combined. What does it say about the state of affairs for non-fiction films if, in just three days, one film more than doubles what all 29 of them did together? I've decided I want to do something about this. I see so many great documentaries and it's a shame that most of you don't get to see them. Later this year, I will announce a new project that will help other filmmakers get the distribution they deserve.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/message/index.php?id=214
July 4th, 2007 5:10 pm
'I am the balance,' says Moore
By Colin Covert / Minneapolis Star Tribune
For the nitpickers who say the health-care expose Sicko lacks balance, Michael Moore would like to make this perfectly clear:
"I am the balance," he said in a phone interview. "Every night I watch the nightly news. It's funded by the pharmaceutical companies. Virtually every ad is a drug ad. They get their say every night on the nightly news through advertising.
"In our newsweeklies, how often will you see a 12-page advertising supplement sponsored by a health-care company? So every two or three years I come along for three hours and say, 'And now for the other side,' two hours of equal time for the thousands of hours that they have."
Moore, who in earlier films cornered CEOs and top lobbyists and allowed them to self-destruct on camera, takes a different approach this time. The problem with America's private for-profit health-care system, he contends, isn't a matter of a few bad apples, but of a rotten barrel.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/news/article.php?id=9991
July 3rd, 2007 2:27 pm
You can't call San Francisco 'sicko'
City's universal health care initiative signs up its first applicants in Chinatown
By Heather Knight / San Francisco Chronicle
Ying Fei Feng waited months for Monday to arrive. She'd seen a news story on the local Chinese TV station about San Francisco attempting to become the first city in the nation to provide universal health care to its residents and made a mental note of the program's start date.
The 54-year-old set out from her home the Sunset District, rode Muni all the way across the city and walked into the lobby of North East Medical Services, a nonprofit health care center on the border of North Beach and Chinatown.
She walked past bouquets of brightly colored balloons marking the occasion and into a small office, where she waited her turn to talk to an intake worker. She had a simple question: How do I sign up for Healthy San Francisco?
"Oh, I'm very happy," she said in Cantonese. "I've wanted something like this to happen for a long time. I heard about it in April, and I've been waiting."
http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/news/article.php?id=9979
July 4th, 2007 4:30 am
Jackson: Put impeachment back on table
WASHINGTON (AP) - Congressman Jesse Jackson Junior wants his fellow Democrats to reconsider impeaching President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.
The Illinois Democrat today reacted to Bush's decision yesterday to commute the sentence of former vice presidential aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby.
Bush issued a statement saying he respected the jury's verdict but had concluded that Libby's 30-month prison sentence was "excessive."
Jackson contends Bush has subverted the legal process, and he says the president's decision goes against the will of the American people.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9988
David Swanson: 14 Congress Members for Impeachment
Wednesday, 4 July 2007, 10:24 am
Opinion: David Swanson
Fourteen Congress Members for Impeachment
By David Swanson
The official list of cosponsors of H Res 333 to impeach Dick Cheney cannot be updated until July 10 when Congress gets back to Washington. But Congress Members can contact Dennis Kucinich's office in the meantime and sign on. And citizens can encourage them to do so. In fact, this is the week in which you should visit your Congress Member's district office and demand that he or she sign onto Kucinich's articles of impeachment or introduce their own. And they should not just sign on, but make a public statement in support. Here's everything you need to know: http://impeachcheney.org
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0707/S00036.htm
Contacting the Congress is a very up-to-date database of congressional contact information for the 110th Congress. As of June 25, 2007 there are 535 email addresses (of which 507 are Web-based email homepages), and 538 WWW homepages known for the 540 members of the 110th Congress. Traditional ground mail addresses are available for all current members of Congress.
http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/
COUNTDOWN: Olbermann's Special Comment "resign" (07.03.07)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kLnM52mVBE
The 'I' word
Talk of impeachment seems to have faded a bit from the campaign trail, by a common consensus of the leading candidates to dismiss the idea.
But it may be coming back. MoveOn.org, which has emerged as perhaps the most powerful player in the primary, used the "I" word in an e-mail to members this afternoon, suggesting that Congress subpoena Dick Cheney and, if he won't answer congressional questions, impeach him.
Congress can start by demanding answers from the Bush administration about the Iraq war and their illegal spying program, and not backing down until they get them. Cheney won't testify? Subpoena him. He won't come? Hold him in contempt of Congress and send over the police. And if that doesn't work, impeach the guy.
(Impeaching Cheney avoids the problem with impeaching Bush, which is President Cheney.)
Several of the Democratic candidates, of course, are members of Congress. And John Edwards has been known to express his views on what Congress should do. So expect them all to get asked about impeachment again soon.
Here's the MoveOn petition.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0707/The_I_word.html
July 3rd, 2007 4:00 am
Bush wipes away Libby's prison sentence
By Matt Apuzzo / Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Just when things looked darkest for I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, when prison seemed all but certain, President Bush wiped away the former White House aide's 2 1/2-year sentence in the CIA leak case.
Bush's move came Monday, just five hours after a federal appeals panel ruled that Libby could not delay his prison term. His prospects for an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court seemed bleak. The former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, Libby was just waiting for a date to surrender.
After months of sidestepping pardon questions, Bush stepped in. He did not issue a pardon but erased a prison sentence that he felt was just too harsh.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9976
July 3rd, 2007 4:52 am
Analysis: Bush now must limit fallout
By Tom Raum / Associated Press
WASHINGTON - President Bush's decision to spare former vice presidential aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby from going to prison — but not pardoning him — may have been an attempt to have it both ways. If so, it appears to have proved only partially successful.
Democrats still slammed Bush's commuting of Libby's 2 1/2-year sentence for obstructing a CIA leak investigation. And while some Republican conservatives applauded the decision, others grumbled that Libby should have been granted a full pardon.
Calling Libby's sentence "excessive," Bush on Monday spared the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney from having to go to prison. But he left in place Libby's conviction, two years probation and a $250,000 fine.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9978
Tuesday, July 3rd, 2007
'Call Out the Instigator' ...Cindy Sheehan
Call out the Instigator
Because there’s something in the air
We got to get together sooner or later
Because the revolution’s here
You know it’s right!
-- Thunderclap Newman
I’m not backing off. I tried to remove myself from the political realm of the US, what BushCo is turning into an Evil Empire, but the blatant audacity of George commuting Scooter’s sentence (he’s not ruling out a full pardon -- and you know he will) has dragged me kicking and screaming back in. I can’t sit back and let this BushCo drag our country further down into the murky quagmire of Fascism and violence, taking the rest of the world with them!
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=883
Summer of Love 07
On a Journey for Humanity
*update Walk will kick off from Camp Casey on July 10
We are going to walk from Atlanta, GA to Congress
beginning July 13th and ending up in DC on July 23rd
to send the mis-leaders back home to face the music of
justice in their own districts.
It is about time us “peasants” (in the eyes of the
Fascist Ruling Elite) march on DC with our
“pitchforks” of righteous anger and our “torches” of
truth to demand the ouster of BushCo. I have a dream
of the detention centers that George has built and
filled being instead filled with Orange Clad neo-cons
and neo-connettes.
http://www.gsfp.org/article.php?id=320
Mike Likes :
The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On
This absorbing documentary follows Kenzo Okuzaki--a veteran of Japan's WWII campaign in New Guinea--as he searches out those responsible for the mysterious deaths of several soldiers in his unit. Though he holds Emperor Hirahito accountable for all the suffering caused by WWII, he painstakingly tracks down former military officers and accuses them of specific war crimes, often times abusing them verbally and physically. Director Kazua Hara's subtle cinema verite not only captures the zeal of Okuzaki's lifelong mission, but also exposes the atrocities committed by the Japanese military against its own soldiers. The film created such controversy in Japan upon release that no major distributor would touch it. "The most amazing piece of filmmaking" (Michael Moore). Winner of the Caligari Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival. In Japanese with English subtitles.
http://www.facets.org/asticat?function=buyitem&catname=facets&catnum=/DV91921/
Be sure to check out Angelina Jolie in 'A Mighty Heart'
http://www.amightyheartmovie.com/
Local audiences cheer health-care documentary
Phoenix Daily News-Sun
Lou and Lou Ann Ives clapped along with the rest of the audience Monday afternoon at AMC Theaters in Glendale after the closing credits of Michael Moore’s “Sicko.”
With a crowd of mostly seniors, the Youngtown couple watched the documentary that focuses on the U.S. health-care industry and insurance horror stories. The Iveses said they loved the film and hoped others would “see what we already knew.”
“It’s a typical Michael Moore film, and he tells it like it is,” said Lou Ives. “I knew he’d bring up everything wrong with our medical system.”
Lou Ann Ives said Moore’s documentary explained in detail how other countries had good health care for their citizens.
“Sometimes I wonder why we’re one of the richest nations, but don’t have adequate insurance for everyone here,” she said.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/news/article.php?id=9987
Health-care costs are sickening
By Cindy Richards / Chicago Sun-Times
As we celebrate the founding of our country today, we'll be remembering all of the great things about America. Freedom of religion. Freedom of speech. Freedom to protest.
What we won't be celebrating is the freedom to get sick without worry.
This most shameful fact about America -- that we all are one job loss away from being uninsured and many of us are just one major illness away from bankruptcy -- is hardly something to celebrate.
Michael Moore knows it. The filmmaker has turned his considerable spotlight on the problem in the new movie "Sicko."
Amazingly, the movie is being called a comedy, as if there were anything funny about the fact that nearly 50 million Americans have no health insurance or the fact that even those of us who have it get no guarantees it will be there when we need it.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/news/article.php?id=9992
July 2nd, 2007 5:34 pm
Hundreds of protesters besiege Bush-Putin meeting
Associated Press
KENNEBUNKPORT, Maine -- Hundreds of demonstrators calling for the impeachment of President George W. Bush marched to within a kilometre of the site of the meeting between Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Protesters chanting slogans including "Impeach now, impeach now!'' carried colourful signs and pulled a wagon with a two-metre-tall replica of the Statue of Liberty in a coffin, representing the perceived loss of liberties under the Bush administration.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9971
Kennebunkport Impeach Bush Protest July 1, 2007 095
http://flickr.com/photos/97798686@N00/
July 2nd, 2007 5:36 pm
One Protester Still Jailed Monday Morning
KENNEBUNKPORT (AP) -- One protester remains jailed on a trespassing charge following a demonstration near Walker's Point.
Nearly 2,000 protesters calling for the impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney held a rally with music and speeches at the Village Green, then marched down Ocean Avenue toward the Bush home.
The rally and march coincided with the arrival of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The event was peaceful but two people who crossed a police checkpoint a half-mile from Walker's Point were arrested. One of them was released last night but the other remains in the York County Jail on $250 bail.
Monday, Bush and Putin wrap up their talks at the Bush family summer home. Both are scheduled to depart after lunch.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9972
July 2nd, 2007 5:59 pm
Bush commutes sentence for Libby
Associated Press
President Bush commuted the sentence of former aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby Monday, sparing him from a 2 1/2-year prison term in the CIA leak case.
Bush left intact a $250,000 fine and two years probation for Libby, according to a senior White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision had not been announced.
Bush's move came hours after a federal appeals panel ruled Libby could not delay his prison term in the CIA leak case. That decision put the pressure on the president, who had been sidestepping calls by Libby's allies to pardon the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9973
Gold Star Families for Peace
We as families of soldiers who have died as a result of war are organizing to be a positive force in our world to bring our countrys sons and daughters home from Iraq, to minimize the human cost of this war, and to prevent other families from the pain we are feeling as the result of our losses.
http://www.gsfp.org/
Monday, May 28th, 2007
"Good Riddance, Attention Whore" ...by Cindy Sheehan
I have endured a lot of smear and hatred since Casey was killed and especially since I became the so-called "Face" of the American anti-war movement. Especially since I renounced any tie I have remaining with the Democratic Party, I have been further trashed on such "liberal blogs" as the Democratic Underground. Being called an "attention whore" and being told "good riddance" are some of the more milder rebukes.
I have come to some heartbreaking conclusions this Memorial Day Morning. These are not spur of the moment reflections, but things I have been meditating on for about a year now. The conclusions that I have slowly and very reluctantly come to are very heartbreaking to me.
The first conclusion is that I was the darling of the so-called left as long as I limited my protests to George Bush and the Republican Party. Of course, I was slandered and libeled by the right as a "tool" of the Democratic Party. This label was to marginalize me and my message. How could a woman have an original thought, or be working outside of our "two-party" system?
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=878
1ST ANNUAL 9/11 RESPONDERS DOO-WOP ROCK 'N' ROLL BENEFIT CONCERT
The FealGood Foundation, Artists 4 Hope, and
the Gear Up Foundation, in conjunction with
FRIEND ENTERTAINMENT LTD,
are proud to announce the 1st annual
9/11 RESPONDERS
DOO-WOP ROCK ‘N’ ROLL BENEFIT CONCERT
Saturday, July 21, 2007, 7:30PM
At the Kupferberg Center for The Performing Arts,
Queens College (Colden Auditorium)
Starring
Johnny Maestro and The Brooklyn Bridge
"The Worst That Could Happen"
http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/news/article.php?id=9964
July Journal:
Wednesday, July 4, 2007 (late): First, a quick update. I made it to Delphos today with an early start and overcast skies, then we motored in to Lima (off route) so I could treat Jonna to a motel room for her birthday. Having been out of cell phone coverage for the past day it was not until we arrived at the motel and got plugged in that we discovered Cindy Sheehan has returned and will be walking from Atlanta to Washington, D.C.
A number of events and conversations have coalesced over the past few days to bring me to the point of asking something major of you. I am continuing to meet a great number of people who are tremendously supportive of what I'm trying to do, but have essentially despaired - they have come to believe that all of this is beyond our control, that nobody in Washington is going to listen to anything we have to say, and that our nation is going to continue to slide out of our hands and into the hands of the politicians and corporations.
http://wtetw.com/journal.htm
Tuesday, April 4th, 2006
Be It Resolved: You Can Impeach the President
Official State Impeachment Text
Impeachment Text for Cities & Towns
Impeachment Text for County Democratic Committees
Impeachment Text for State Assemblies and/or Legislatures
Jefferson's Manual, Section LIII, 603
You Can Impeach the President
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=622
Contact the Media About Impeachment Coverage
The Bush Administration has ignored the Constitution. Impeachable offenses need to be investigated. These are two statements that are true, yet are rarely heard via the mainstream American media. We have all seen what complacency in the media can bring. The Iraq War could not have been executed without it. Impeachment is being framed as a distraction. impeachment is being framed as revenge. It is time for the media to discuss the real evidence that supports Impeachment and leave the opining to the citizens of this country.
http://capwiz.com/pdamerica/issues/alert/?alertid=9196431&type=ME
Find Your Congressional District Impeachment Committee
Submitted by Bob Fertik on November 7, 2006 - 10:49am.
ImpeachForChange
AL03, AZ03, CA01, CA03, CA06, CA09, CA11, CA13, CA23, CA25, CA26, CA28, CA29, CA30, CA36, CA37, CA38, CA47, CA49, CA51, CA52, CA53, CO01, CT05, DC00, DE00, FL01, FL02, FL06, FL08, FL10, FL18, FL19, FL20, FL24, HI01, HI02, IA05, IL01, IL03, IL05, IL09, IL11, IL13, IN01, IN06, IN09, KS01, LA02, MA01, MA03, MA04, MA06, MA07, MA08, MA10, MD03, MD06, ME01, MI03, MI07, MI10, MI12, MN01, MN04, MN05, MO08, MA02, MS03, NH02, NC04, NC05, NC06, NC09, NC11, NC13, NE03, NJ01, NJ12, NY05, NY07, NY08, NY09, NY10, NY11, NY12, NY13, NY14, NY15, NY19, NY20, NY21, NY22, NY23, NY24, OH11, OH18, OK??, OK01, OK05, OR01, OR04, PA06, PA08, PA11, PA13, PA17, PA18, PA19, SC03, SD00, TN05, TX18, TX25, UT01, VA02, VA08, VA11, VT00, WA03, WA02, WA06, WA07, WI03
Don't see a committee in your district? Help us create one! http://democrats.com/cdic
http://www.democrats.com/cdic-find
Ten Reasons to Impeach George Bush and Dick Cheney
I ask Congress to impeach President Bush and Vice President Cheney for the following reasons:
1. Violating the United Nations Charter by launching an illegal "War of Aggression" against Iraq without cause, using fraud to sell the war to Congress and the public, misusing government funds to begin bombing without Congressional authorization, and subjecting our military personnel to unnecessary harm, debilitating injuries, and deaths.
2. Violating U.S. and international law by authorizing the torture of thousands of captives, resulting in dozens of deaths, and keeping prisoners hidden from the International Committee of the Red Cross.
3. Violating the Constitution by arbitrarily detaining Americans, legal residents, and non-Americans, without due process, without charge, and without access to counsel.
http://www.democrats.com/peoplesemailnetwork/88?ad=d1
The Impeachment Project:
If you feel George W. Bush should be impeached, paint a sign that says "Impeach." and post it in a public place.
Send pictures to: freewayblogger@yahoo.com
http://www.freewayblogger.com/impeachment_project2.htm
Video
http://freewayblogger28.cf.huffingtonpost.com/
3590 U.S. MILITARY DEATHS IN IRAQ
July 5, 2007, 4:54 pm
source: antiwar.com
http://www.michaelmoore.com/takeaction/deaths.php
26558 U.S. MILITARY WOUNDED IN IRAQ
July 5, 2007, 4:54 pm
source: antiwar.com
http://www.michaelmoore.com/takeaction/wounded.php
THIS PAGE REPRESENTS 26,200 OF THE 655,000
'EXCESS' IRAQI DEATHS SINCE WAR BEGAN
source
http://www.michaelmoore.com/takeaction/iraqi_deaths.php?page=25
continued...
