Red, Green, and Blue

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There has been talk recently of boycotting the 2008 Beijing Olympics for any number of valid reasons. Whether it is for the freedom of Tibet, the atrocities in Darfur, or China’s environmental policies.

However, what would be achieved by boycotting the Olympics? Is China going to step back and say, “Whoa… the United States is right. We are all messed up and need to change.” Probably not.

And who are we to tell another country that they aren’t perfect? If the Olympics were here, who would be boycotting our games?

As a child I was led to believe that the Olympics were a coming together of different cultures and nations for the sake of sport and international cooperation. And in fact that WAS part of the basis for reinventing the Olympics in the first place. As the father of modern Olympics, Baron Pierre de Coubertin once said,

“May joy and good fellowship reign, and in this manner, may the Olympic torch pursue its way through ages, increasing friendly understanding among nations, for the good of a humanity always more enthusiastic, more courageous and more pure.”

Of course, I grew up and found that most of my dreams and fantasies taught to me by society were pure poppycock. But do all of our childhood misconceptions about the world have to be disproved? I mean, Santa Claus is a given, but what about the concept of peace on earth and goodwill towards man? Read the rest of this entry »

It’s income tax time again. Just like other special occasions, one would expect the green blogosphere to erupt in lists of eco-advice (see Five Super-Simple Steps to Green Trick-or-Treating or The 12 Green Days of Christmas). Since I can only think of one method to green up tax time (e-file), I will share my thoughts on income taxes and how they could/should benefit the environment instead of creating a list of 5 ways to green your taxes.

Unlike many people I know, I actually don’t mind paying taxes. The problem I have with taxes is that I don’t agree with how the money is spent by the government. In return for my payment of taxes, I expect peace and health for all world citizens, as I do feel this is our responsibility as a wealthy nation engaged in a global economy. These expectations are clearly tied to the environment, of which I expect my tax dollars to consider in every expense. Read the rest of this entry »

[Update: H.R. 1016 has passed the House by a vote of 278-140. There is a similar version awaiting action in the Senate]

The House is scheduled today to vote on H.R. 2016, the National Landscape Conservation Act. And a broad bipartisan coalition ranging from such groups as the Wilderness Society to Republicans for Environmental Protection, is asking you to call your Representative and demand that they support the landmark wilderness conservation legislation.

H.R. 2016 does not change management of the lands in question, nor does it require additional expenditures. In fact, the Congressional Budget Office scored the bill at $0, which means it does not violate House pay-go rules. Please consider calling, writing, or otherwise contacting your representative immediately and asking them to support this important bill that would safeguard millions of acres of wilderness, rivers, forests, mountains, and streams.

The Wilderness Society

This cartoon popped in my head after reading colleague Tim Hurst’s article “Feds Issue Waiver of Environmental Rules for Border Fence” in Red Green and Blue last week.

Other motivation for this cartoon comes from the historical (and current) treatment of native Americans, and this unsourced quote from MAD Magazine: “The suburbs are where they cut down all the trees and then name the streets after them!”
Read the rest of this entry »

She was very young, 3 or 4, when our green light started to blink. As we drove through the streets of suburbia, the extensive urban sprawl was evident everywhere. Orange trees and grapefruit trees were plowed down quickly and furiously by developers. From her car seat she would become enraged about the trees and animals. We found it amusing… at first.

She became incessant and consistent in her convictions as the years passed by. The groves of trees all around us were still being destroyed. She wanted to write to the President of the United States. We started to become concerned. Where was this coming from? How did this happen? A green girl in our very red home. It became a joke — our little “treehugger,” we would say.

One day, standing in our kitchen, she asked me a very pointed question. “Do we recycle?” she knew the answer, by this time she was 5 or 6. I honestly said, “no” (I was a little ashamed). “Why not?” she pressed. I didn’t have an answer. What was I to say? The county provides containers for that very purpose and they retrieve the containers from the end of our driveway. Instead of answering her question I said “Let’s start now.” She was pleased. We immediately found the recycle containers in the garage and put them in a handy place. Then we went on line and looked up the rules, days and times for our area.

Read the rest of this entry »