Al Gore is Dangerous & Destructive, Mini Diesel Car Video, Green Heat for NYC,
Stafford Williamson
November 04, 2009
Al Gore Talk is Dangerous and Destructive
But wait … we interrupt this message for something even more important!
Matt Hoh resigns in protest of Afghanistan War Policies
If you have been paying close attention to the political news this past week you will recognize the name, Matthew Hoh. Mr. Hoh was a Marine Captain who was posted to Iraq, but later joined the State Department and was working in Afghanistan before he resigned last week. It is a tradition in "foreign service" that resigning a post to protest government policy is considered an honorable but highly critical course for a member of a mission to take. In this case, Mr. Hoh´s clear and concise assessment of the Afghan situation and the Taliban/al-Qeada conflict in particular are wholly at odds with w General McCrystal´s proposals to increase troop concentrations in that country. You will notice that none of General McCrystal´s alternatives suggested reduction of forces or resources. That is actually fairly odd because General McCrystal has been credited by some as being responsible for the "stand-off" anti-terrorism successes using remotely piloted drones against al-Queda in Pakistan´s tribal regions. But Mr. Hoh has hit upon the key element that makes the enunciated Obama Administration strategy a "trap" for General McCrystal. As stated last March, the Obama government wanted General McCrystal to produce an assessment of options to conduct an "anti-insurgency" strategy. Mr. Hoh says that the only reason most Afghans are attacking ("counter-insurging" if you will) American and coalition NATO forces in Afghanistan is that they are there, "invaders" supporting the strong-arm "tax and control" policies of a central Afghan government that is neither strong enough nor traditionally entitled to exact tribute from disparate, remote and highly diverse Afghan tribes. Mr. Hoh, appearing on Fareed Zakaria GPS pointed to an example of a remote valley where the US FOB (forward operating base) set up to establish authority. The Afghan National Police came in and told the locals (through translators, because the local people of the valley ONLY SPEAK their OWN UNIQUE LANGUAGE) that the mountains forests that provide the region´s only industry, logging, no longer belong to them (or their ancestors for hundreds of years) and they now must pay taxes to the Central Government for their harvests. At that point, the locals took up arms against the Americans, joining the "Taliban" who were based in the next valley, to attack the US troops stationed there in the Forward Operating Base.
Now, it is not difficult to see a potential parallel between these remote native residents and the moonshine brewing hillbillies of Kentucky or West Virginia, or whatever. A more accurate analogy would be if the government of the Canadian province of Quebec arrived in the hills of Vermont (on Bombardier snowmobiles, no doubt) and told the maple syrup producers (in French, and, or, badly translated from French) that they now had to pay taxes to the Government of Quebec to boil the sap of the maple trees into that delicious breakfast syrup, and by the way, they also owed royalties to the French government for the use of the pancake recipes, too.
Mr. Hoh´s central point was that the only reason most Afghans attack us as ´invaders´ and ´forces in occupation´ is because we are. All they really want is to be left alone. Yes, most probably also prefer not to see the Taliban regain power over the government, nor impose the repressive regime from which we managed to liberate them with just 2500 American troops on the ground. What they do not want is a bunch of foreigners, Americans, Germans, Canadians, or anyone else presuming to tell them what to do. Matt Hoh wants to see gradual reductions of troops in Afghanistan.
What I want to see is someone with the balls and the authority to do something about it to recognize, as Mr. Hoh does, that al-Qeada is an ideological "conspiracy" of a few hundred people, spread around the world now, with little or no "central organization" nor any need for a harboring failed state, as well as the recognition that fighting terrorists is a POLICE FUNCTION, you can´t defeat terrorists with a army. Not anyone´s army, no matter where they are.
Al Gore Talk is Dangerous and Destructive
Albert Gore appears as the cover photo on the latest COSTCO magazine we received. Consistent with his "message" the article by him is about alternatives for energy in the future. But former Vice President Gore got it wrong on at least one count, and I would like to make him aware that talk like that is both dangerous and destructive.
Mr. Gore is campaigning these days, but he is campaigning with the wrong slogan, in my not-so-humble opinion. (imNSho) He is shouting from the rooftops and, in this case, the covers of magazines that we need to "get off of carbon-based fuels". Now maybe his advisors have told him to dumb-down his message because of how woefully ignorant such a large percentage of the American people are, which is a sadly accurate and even deteriorating statistic. But what he has done is leave out several of the most promising of the alternative energy sources because the whole situation is so poorly understood.
We need "to get off of" those fossil carbon based fuels, the ones that "nature" put away in the ground millions of years ago. Some of the carbon dioxide from which they were formed was essential to the evolution of life on the planet, but now represents a threat to the existing species who have so nicely adapted to the current climatic conditions. In fact, the "threat" that carbon dioxide represents is exaggerated in terms of the survival of the species because of what are called the "devastating effects" of rising sea levels and the effect that would have on low-lying coastal areas. While certainly some additional storms, and lots of flooding will likely cost some lives in the process, the "threat" is not so much to the species as to the real estate and the investments in it that may (very likely) be of much lesser value once they are immersed in 6, 8 or 10 feet of sea water.
It may be hard for several million New Yorkers to get over their fond memories of Central Park in the Autumn, and indeed like many of the Palestinians who never actually "saw" the "homeland" from which their parents or grandparents were displaced the sense of loss may become a lingering cultural ache for "better" times. In truth it is like the "green" shift in technologies taking place gradually around the world, the whole forced adaptation could actually have a net beneficial effect. Modern metropolises become like Venice on the "surface" but extend down below the water into subterranean worlds of underwater subway/railway tunnels carrying subway passengers by the millions. No traffic problems on surface streets, there won´t be any. Sewage might seem like a big problem, but not if we develop the methods (which we already have) of turning sewage into fuels and fertilizers, they just have to be in a well sealed, water-tight system. And that doesn´t even begin to consider the effect on new construction and relocations of both business and telecommuting workers.
I fear that if former-Vice President Gore is allowed to have his way that we´ll ignore cellulosic fuels, algae derived fuels, and other alternatives that can supplement greater development of wind power, photo voltaic power, concentrated solar thermal power and geothermal power. So let´s get the language of the alternative energy campaign aligned to benefit all the sectors of alternative forms of renewable energy, including those we can grow. And while we are at it, let´s not cave in too easily to those who would have us turn to nuclear power that continues to accumulate toxic radioactive waste that remains toxic for thousands of years.
Green Homes Through GREEN HEAT for NYC Residents
Boro Fuel Oil will be offering citizens of New York a greener choice in heating fuel this winter, "Biogreen" biofuel is a blend of 10% soybean oil (do they really mean 10% bean oil, or do they mean 10% soy biodiesel? I suspect that they mean the latter) but despite the fact that the price will be the same as regular heating oil, BioGreen users will also be rewarded financially, thanks to New York State's Bioheat Tax Credit , which allows Boro Fuel Oil customers a direct tax credit of 10 cents for each gallon of BioGreen they buy through 2011. The first heating oil dealer in Brooklyn to offer a green heating oil alternative, "We are proud to be at the forefront of the green energy revolution with our eco-friendly BioGreen," says Jeff Cohn, President of Boro Fuel Oil.
Greener Cars, or Not?
There is a lighthearted joke about lazy rich people with so much money that when the ashtrays in a new car get filled with cigarette butts that they tell the servants, "Time to get a new car." These days you have to special order cars with ashtrays, or buy them as accessories, which reminds me of another expression, "left in the dust" by something moving away at a tremendously greater speed. The combination of the two seems to describe my situation this week.
You see, my ten year old car, which was a hand-me-down from my wife in the first place because we used my old Buick as a trade-in when we bought her the brand new Mercury Mariner Hybrid a couple of years ago, my old Pontiac Montana just wore out. Bluebook value was about US$3600 and the repair estimate was … you guessed it, US$3600, so we were lucky they didn´t charge us to haul it away when we traded it in. The "time to get a new car" in our case, obviously, was not from having an excess of money. (That reminds me, does anyone ever really have "spare change"? How can you have "spare money"? You might think that someone begging money from others would have grasped the concept of the value of a dollar, wouldn´t you? Obviously that conclusion is not accurate for many people, but that whole "entitlement" mentality is a pet peeve I´ll save for another day´s discussions.)
I am not unaware of the argument that a new hybrid vehicle actually contributes more to environmental degradation than an old car belching carbon dioxide and other noxious gases for a dozen years. The "net" carbon calculation on manufacturing a new car when you consider mining iron ore, smelting it, harvesting rubber from trees and shipping it around the world to be vulcanized into tires, mining nickel (mostly in Canada) and smelting that, mixing it with heavy metal cadmium to make long lasting batteries, and finally compared to running an inefficient gasoline engine for a couple of years … well, it´s a calculation too complex to consider that anyone´s estimated values for each of those steps is accurate enough to arrive at an unequivocal conclusion one way or the other. So I tried to stack the "odds" in my favor.
I decided I wanted a modest priced used car, and I was lucky to find a good value in a 2008 Toyota Prius. So we are now a two hybrid family. The good news is that the Prius puts the Mariner to shame in the mileage department. It´s getting around 47 MPG which over the first 30 miles means I´ve only managed to use a little less than 2/3 of a gallon of gas. The dashboard contains a digital LCD screen (or two), one of which will display a constant, instant readout of energy consumption. The Pontiac Van that we traded in has a similar feature in the overhead console which makes it a little more distracting to read and both report summaries over various period of time or distance that give a fairly accurate (as far as I can tell) average for consumption. I learned to drive the Pontiac using the instant mileage report gauge and got into some good habits that consistently gave me 19.5 MPG, which is good for mostly city driving in a 10 year old van. With all of about 50 miles driving experience in the Prius under my belt, I am still learning to maximize "electric" mode to conserve gasoline, but I´m starting to think about writing an advice booklet on my observations of how to get your best mileage with a hybrid and for that matter with any modern car. Believe me it isn´t quite the same as maximum economy in a conventionally powered auto, although there are some distinct similarities as well.
A Mini Commuter Car - Reviewed
(These remotely hosted videos sometimes change locations, my apologies if this link is no longer valid when you view this column.)
A Screen Gem
It may be the greatest sin in the movie that the character mis-uses the world "salacious" to describe some scandalous news received about the heroine, but other than that, Easy Virtue is not only a delight but stands as if it were a carved in alabaster archetype of that perfect English romantic, comedy of manners, tragedy from the 1930´s. Oddly enough, though it escaped me during the reading of the opening credits of this DVD release, it bloody well should. It is actually a re-make of the 1928 original version of the same title written by none other than the incomparable genius of stage, screen and music hall (and musical) Noel Coward. Well, in truth, it is more of an adaptation and sequel, perhaps, since in the original the "original sin" of the heroine Larita (played in the modern version by Jessica Biel [who seems to get lovelier with age] is to be a divorcee, which in that era was still a scandalous situation. Though that is the heart of the matter in the original film, it is tossed aside by the writers and the other leading character in this movie who replies to a remark that "God doesn´t believe in divorce," with the archetypical Coward turn of phrase, "God is the supreme, all powerful being. He can believe in whatever he likes." [My apologies to the incomparable Mr. Coward if I have not gotten that quote exactly right.] The other really "leading" role is not the husband, but Kristin Scott Thomas who is, most fortunately, actress enough that she takes on the appearance of age appropriate to the role of disapproving mother-in-law. Ms. Thomas does a fine job of playing a perfectly awful person. Meanwhile, however, Colin Firth does an even better job of playing the disillusioned warrior returned from the trenches of WW I who seems to be the only one "modern" enough to mesh with the American interloper played by Ms. Biel.
Having captured so much of the tone and sensibility of Noel Coward in what amounts to a major re-write is, in itself, an impressive accomplishment, and the film is well worth the time, especially on a chilly evening at home with a loved one.
Happy Thought
In the interest of brevity this week, I´ll simply say, I am really pleased that my wife´s sniffles turned out to be a cold and not the swine flu.
I am afraid I might have hounded her mercilessly for weeks with porcine puns and hammy humor, if it had been.
Love and warm wishes,
Sincerely,
Stafford "Doc" Williamson
But wait … we interrupt this message for something even more important!
Matt Hoh resigns in protest of Afghanistan War Policies
If you have been paying close attention to the political news this past week you will recognize the name, Matthew Hoh. Mr. Hoh was a Marine Captain who was posted to Iraq, but later joined the State Department and was working in Afghanistan before he resigned last week. It is a tradition in "foreign service" that resigning a post to protest government policy is considered an honorable but highly critical course for a member of a mission to take. In this case, Mr. Hoh´s clear and concise assessment of the Afghan situation and the Taliban/al-Qeada conflict in particular are wholly at odds with w General McCrystal´s proposals to increase troop concentrations in that country. You will notice that none of General McCrystal´s alternatives suggested reduction of forces or resources. That is actually fairly odd because General McCrystal has been credited by some as being responsible for the "stand-off" anti-terrorism successes using remotely piloted drones against al-Queda in Pakistan´s tribal regions. But Mr. Hoh has hit upon the key element that makes the enunciated Obama Administration strategy a "trap" for General McCrystal. As stated last March, the Obama government wanted General McCrystal to produce an assessment of options to conduct an "anti-insurgency" strategy. Mr. Hoh says that the only reason most Afghans are attacking ("counter-insurging" if you will) American and coalition NATO forces in Afghanistan is that they are there, "invaders" supporting the strong-arm "tax and control" policies of a central Afghan government that is neither strong enough nor traditionally entitled to exact tribute from disparate, remote and highly diverse Afghan tribes. Mr. Hoh, appearing on Fareed Zakaria GPS pointed to an example of a remote valley where the US FOB (forward operating base) set up to establish authority. The Afghan National Police came in and told the locals (through translators, because the local people of the valley ONLY SPEAK their OWN UNIQUE LANGUAGE) that the mountains forests that provide the region´s only industry, logging, no longer belong to them (or their ancestors for hundreds of years) and they now must pay taxes to the Central Government for their harvests. At that point, the locals took up arms against the Americans, joining the "Taliban" who were based in the next valley, to attack the US troops stationed there in the Forward Operating Base.
Now, it is not difficult to see a potential parallel between these remote native residents and the moonshine brewing hillbillies of Kentucky or West Virginia, or whatever. A more accurate analogy would be if the government of the Canadian province of Quebec arrived in the hills of Vermont (on Bombardier snowmobiles, no doubt) and told the maple syrup producers (in French, and, or, badly translated from French) that they now had to pay taxes to the Government of Quebec to boil the sap of the maple trees into that delicious breakfast syrup, and by the way, they also owed royalties to the French government for the use of the pancake recipes, too.
Mr. Hoh´s central point was that the only reason most Afghans attack us as ´invaders´ and ´forces in occupation´ is because we are. All they really want is to be left alone. Yes, most probably also prefer not to see the Taliban regain power over the government, nor impose the repressive regime from which we managed to liberate them with just 2500 American troops on the ground. What they do not want is a bunch of foreigners, Americans, Germans, Canadians, or anyone else presuming to tell them what to do. Matt Hoh wants to see gradual reductions of troops in Afghanistan.
What I want to see is someone with the balls and the authority to do something about it to recognize, as Mr. Hoh does, that al-Qeada is an ideological "conspiracy" of a few hundred people, spread around the world now, with little or no "central organization" nor any need for a harboring failed state, as well as the recognition that fighting terrorists is a POLICE FUNCTION, you can´t defeat terrorists with a army. Not anyone´s army, no matter where they are.
Al Gore Talk is Dangerous and Destructive
Albert Gore appears as the cover photo on the latest COSTCO magazine we received. Consistent with his "message" the article by him is about alternatives for energy in the future. But former Vice President Gore got it wrong on at least one count, and I would like to make him aware that talk like that is both dangerous and destructive.
Mr. Gore is campaigning these days, but he is campaigning with the wrong slogan, in my not-so-humble opinion. (imNSho) He is shouting from the rooftops and, in this case, the covers of magazines that we need to "get off of carbon-based fuels". Now maybe his advisors have told him to dumb-down his message because of how woefully ignorant such a large percentage of the American people are, which is a sadly accurate and even deteriorating statistic. But what he has done is leave out several of the most promising of the alternative energy sources because the whole situation is so poorly understood.
We need "to get off of" those fossil carbon based fuels, the ones that "nature" put away in the ground millions of years ago. Some of the carbon dioxide from which they were formed was essential to the evolution of life on the planet, but now represents a threat to the existing species who have so nicely adapted to the current climatic conditions. In fact, the "threat" that carbon dioxide represents is exaggerated in terms of the survival of the species because of what are called the "devastating effects" of rising sea levels and the effect that would have on low-lying coastal areas. While certainly some additional storms, and lots of flooding will likely cost some lives in the process, the "threat" is not so much to the species as to the real estate and the investments in it that may (very likely) be of much lesser value once they are immersed in 6, 8 or 10 feet of sea water.
It may be hard for several million New Yorkers to get over their fond memories of Central Park in the Autumn, and indeed like many of the Palestinians who never actually "saw" the "homeland" from which their parents or grandparents were displaced the sense of loss may become a lingering cultural ache for "better" times. In truth it is like the "green" shift in technologies taking place gradually around the world, the whole forced adaptation could actually have a net beneficial effect. Modern metropolises become like Venice on the "surface" but extend down below the water into subterranean worlds of underwater subway/railway tunnels carrying subway passengers by the millions. No traffic problems on surface streets, there won´t be any. Sewage might seem like a big problem, but not if we develop the methods (which we already have) of turning sewage into fuels and fertilizers, they just have to be in a well sealed, water-tight system. And that doesn´t even begin to consider the effect on new construction and relocations of both business and telecommuting workers.
I fear that if former-Vice President Gore is allowed to have his way that we´ll ignore cellulosic fuels, algae derived fuels, and other alternatives that can supplement greater development of wind power, photo voltaic power, concentrated solar thermal power and geothermal power. So let´s get the language of the alternative energy campaign aligned to benefit all the sectors of alternative forms of renewable energy, including those we can grow. And while we are at it, let´s not cave in too easily to those who would have us turn to nuclear power that continues to accumulate toxic radioactive waste that remains toxic for thousands of years.
Green Homes Through GREEN HEAT for NYC Residents
Boro Fuel Oil will be offering citizens of New York a greener choice in heating fuel this winter, "Biogreen" biofuel is a blend of 10% soybean oil (do they really mean 10% bean oil, or do they mean 10% soy biodiesel? I suspect that they mean the latter) but despite the fact that the price will be the same as regular heating oil, BioGreen users will also be rewarded financially, thanks to New York State's Bioheat Tax Credit , which allows Boro Fuel Oil customers a direct tax credit of 10 cents for each gallon of BioGreen they buy through 2011. The first heating oil dealer in Brooklyn to offer a green heating oil alternative, "We are proud to be at the forefront of the green energy revolution with our eco-friendly BioGreen," says Jeff Cohn, President of Boro Fuel Oil.
Greener Cars, or Not?
There is a lighthearted joke about lazy rich people with so much money that when the ashtrays in a new car get filled with cigarette butts that they tell the servants, "Time to get a new car." These days you have to special order cars with ashtrays, or buy them as accessories, which reminds me of another expression, "left in the dust" by something moving away at a tremendously greater speed. The combination of the two seems to describe my situation this week.
You see, my ten year old car, which was a hand-me-down from my wife in the first place because we used my old Buick as a trade-in when we bought her the brand new Mercury Mariner Hybrid a couple of years ago, my old Pontiac Montana just wore out. Bluebook value was about US$3600 and the repair estimate was … you guessed it, US$3600, so we were lucky they didn´t charge us to haul it away when we traded it in. The "time to get a new car" in our case, obviously, was not from having an excess of money. (That reminds me, does anyone ever really have "spare change"? How can you have "spare money"? You might think that someone begging money from others would have grasped the concept of the value of a dollar, wouldn´t you? Obviously that conclusion is not accurate for many people, but that whole "entitlement" mentality is a pet peeve I´ll save for another day´s discussions.)
I am not unaware of the argument that a new hybrid vehicle actually contributes more to environmental degradation than an old car belching carbon dioxide and other noxious gases for a dozen years. The "net" carbon calculation on manufacturing a new car when you consider mining iron ore, smelting it, harvesting rubber from trees and shipping it around the world to be vulcanized into tires, mining nickel (mostly in Canada) and smelting that, mixing it with heavy metal cadmium to make long lasting batteries, and finally compared to running an inefficient gasoline engine for a couple of years … well, it´s a calculation too complex to consider that anyone´s estimated values for each of those steps is accurate enough to arrive at an unequivocal conclusion one way or the other. So I tried to stack the "odds" in my favor.
I decided I wanted a modest priced used car, and I was lucky to find a good value in a 2008 Toyota Prius. So we are now a two hybrid family. The good news is that the Prius puts the Mariner to shame in the mileage department. It´s getting around 47 MPG which over the first 30 miles means I´ve only managed to use a little less than 2/3 of a gallon of gas. The dashboard contains a digital LCD screen (or two), one of which will display a constant, instant readout of energy consumption. The Pontiac Van that we traded in has a similar feature in the overhead console which makes it a little more distracting to read and both report summaries over various period of time or distance that give a fairly accurate (as far as I can tell) average for consumption. I learned to drive the Pontiac using the instant mileage report gauge and got into some good habits that consistently gave me 19.5 MPG, which is good for mostly city driving in a 10 year old van. With all of about 50 miles driving experience in the Prius under my belt, I am still learning to maximize "electric" mode to conserve gasoline, but I´m starting to think about writing an advice booklet on my observations of how to get your best mileage with a hybrid and for that matter with any modern car. Believe me it isn´t quite the same as maximum economy in a conventionally powered auto, although there are some distinct similarities as well.
A Mini Commuter Car - Reviewed
(These remotely hosted videos sometimes change locations, my apologies if this link is no longer valid when you view this column.)
Greenbang's Smart ForTwo Cdi Review from Greenbang on Vimeo.
A Screen Gem
It may be the greatest sin in the movie that the character mis-uses the world "salacious" to describe some scandalous news received about the heroine, but other than that, Easy Virtue is not only a delight but stands as if it were a carved in alabaster archetype of that perfect English romantic, comedy of manners, tragedy from the 1930´s. Oddly enough, though it escaped me during the reading of the opening credits of this DVD release, it bloody well should. It is actually a re-make of the 1928 original version of the same title written by none other than the incomparable genius of stage, screen and music hall (and musical) Noel Coward. Well, in truth, it is more of an adaptation and sequel, perhaps, since in the original the "original sin" of the heroine Larita (played in the modern version by Jessica Biel [who seems to get lovelier with age] is to be a divorcee, which in that era was still a scandalous situation. Though that is the heart of the matter in the original film, it is tossed aside by the writers and the other leading character in this movie who replies to a remark that "God doesn´t believe in divorce," with the archetypical Coward turn of phrase, "God is the supreme, all powerful being. He can believe in whatever he likes." [My apologies to the incomparable Mr. Coward if I have not gotten that quote exactly right.] The other really "leading" role is not the husband, but Kristin Scott Thomas who is, most fortunately, actress enough that she takes on the appearance of age appropriate to the role of disapproving mother-in-law. Ms. Thomas does a fine job of playing a perfectly awful person. Meanwhile, however, Colin Firth does an even better job of playing the disillusioned warrior returned from the trenches of WW I who seems to be the only one "modern" enough to mesh with the American interloper played by Ms. Biel.
Having captured so much of the tone and sensibility of Noel Coward in what amounts to a major re-write is, in itself, an impressive accomplishment, and the film is well worth the time, especially on a chilly evening at home with a loved one.
Happy Thought
In the interest of brevity this week, I´ll simply say, I am really pleased that my wife´s sniffles turned out to be a cold and not the swine flu.
I am afraid I might have hounded her mercilessly for weeks with porcine puns and hammy humor, if it had been.
Love and warm wishes,
Sincerely,
Stafford "Doc" Williamson
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