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Simon

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Everything posted by Simon

  1. Or maybe he should just reverse his pro-coal stance?
  2. And so the evacuation has begun. Just a few weeks ago the first five families from the Carteret Islands, a small coral atoll far off the coast from Papua New Guinea with a population of around 2600 people, abandon their homes. This is the first evacuation of an entire people due to man-made climate change. "As the Ecologist's blogger Dan Box witnessed, the first five families have moved to Bougainville to prepare the ground for full evacuation. There are compounding factors – the removal of mangrove forests and some local volcanic activity – but the main problem appears to be rising sea levels. The highest point of the islands is 170cm above the sea. Over the past few years they have been repeatedly inundated by spring tides, wiping out the islanders' vegetable and fruit gardens, destroying their subsistence and making their lives impossible." It is worth noting that these families are not the first climate refugees in the world. People have abandoned their homes due to natural climate changes before. One example of that can be the abandoned olive presses from the Roman Empire which can be found in North Africa - where once trees and olives flourished there is now just deserts. These five families might not sound as much, but they are just the first of billions of future climate refugees. The European Union has been told to prepare itself for millions of climate change refugees. And Nicholas Stern, the British economist and academic who is probably most known for the Stern Review, has warned that climate change will create billions of refugees and extended world wars.
  3. Simon

    Do you smoke?

    Yes, lets hope so. :cute: Welcome back to the forum daim! It's been a looooooong time since your last visit.
  4. The Robo Taxi is just what it sounds like. A robotic taxi meant to be used in larger cities. The Robo Taxi has no driver, minimal space for luggage and only holds two passengers. It’s powered by two electric motors that are connected on the vehicles back wheels. The taxi will be built with lightweight materials and run for 20 hours before a recharge is needed. The designer Kubik Petr believes the Robo Taxi will be able to reach speeds up to 90kmh. If you want to use the Robo Taxi you will need to call to an operator who will then send a taxi to your location. Passengers will be able to enter their destination on a touch screen interface. via EcoFriend
  5. I agree with you that making buildings more energy efficient is important. But the real change will come from the political decisions we make. For example. How are you supposed to speed up or kick-start the process of making buildings more energy efficient without a strong political support for it?
  6. Kotaku reports: A detonation in the fictional Empire City of newly-released inFamous jacked gas prices, as seen in this shot we took. Yesterday in Brooklyn, 87 octane was $2.55. In Liberty City, last year, it was $3.59.
  7. PETA, an animal rights organization based in USA, has named this year's "Sexiest Vegetarians Next Door". Over 200,000 people took part in the voting process which involved 32 finalists. The voters selected Amber, from Minnesota, and Monty, from California, as the "world's sexiest vegetarians". They both win a free trip for two to Hawaii. If you are interested the PETA Files blog has an interview with the two finalists. Maybe it’s just me. But how does a contest like this help an animal rights groups cause?
  8. The banners says: "Stop detour Stockholm" And: "A climate catastrophe is being built here. Stop the sham. We want to bicycle.". Photos by: Klimax If the third runway in the UK is the proof of the country's climate hypocrisy then Sweden’s would be the huge new highway projects in Stockholm and Gothenburg. In Gothenburg, the second-largest city in Sweden, climate activists from Klimax and the Friends of the Earth "decorated" cranes with banners, planted trees and even had a breakfast on the construction site to highlight and protest against the climate highway madness being built in Sweden. "It's bad enough that large amounts of taxpayers’ money is being wasted on projects that won’t work, but these road projects will even lead to an increase of carbon dioxide emissions. It’s ironically that that we activists’ risks getting arrested while the real criminals, who on a consciously and cynically way make decisions that will lock us into a continued increase of carbon dioxide emissions will go free. We just can’t sit quiet while climate criminal politicians threaten future generations living condition; it’s every citizen’s obligation to put pressure on the decision makers so they make climate friendly choices", said Lovisa Börjeson from Klimax in Gothenburg. "More roads = More traffic = More congestion" "A climate catastrophe is being built here. Stop the sham. We want to bicycle." Watch: ">" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385">
  9. Are you afraid of the swine flu? And yes, I am being very curious at the moment! Swine influenza (also called swine flu, hog flu and pig flu) refers to influenza caused by those strains of influenza virus, called swine influenza virus (SIV), that usually infect (is endemic in) pigs. As of 2009 these strains are all found in Influenza C virus and the subtypes of Influenza A virus known as H1N1, H1N2, H3N1, H3N2, and H2N3. Swine influenza is common in pigs in the midwestern United States (and occasionally in other states), Mexico, Canada, South America, Europe (including the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Italy), Kenya, Mainland China, Taiwan, Japan and other parts of eastern Asia. Transmission of swine influenza virus from pigs to humans is not common and does not always cause human influenza, often only resulting in the production of antibodies in the blood. The meat of the animal poses no risk of transmitting the virus when properly cooked. If transmission does cause human influenza, it is called zoonotic swine flu. People who work with pigs, especially people with intense exposures, are at increased risk of catching swine flu. In the mid-20th century, identification of influenza subtypes became possible, this allows accurate diagnosis of transmission to humans. Since then, fifty confirmed transmissions have been recorded, Rarely, these strains of swine flu can pass from human to human. In humans, the symptoms of swine flu are similar to those of influenza and of influenza-like illness in general, namely chills, fever, sore throat, muscle pains, severe headache, coughing, weakness and general discomfort. The 2009 flu outbreak in humans, known as "swine flu", is due to a new strain of influenza A virus subtype H1N1 that contains genes closely related to swine influenza. The origin of this new strain is unknown. However, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) reports that this strain has not been isolated in pigs. This strain can be transmitted from human to human, and causes the normal symptoms of influenza. Pigs can become infected with human influenza, and this appears to have happened during the 1918 flu pandemic and the 2009 flu outbreak. [source]
  10. Looks good, and the "I killed an African child" is spot on. :thumbup: But I think it would look better if you had a white background instead of that yellow one. :)
  11. Do you smoke? I am just being curious. :cute: And no, I do not smoke.
  12. Photo credit: rockcohen The upcoming European Elections are just a few weeks away. And when it comes to saving the climate this EU election is one of the more important ones. And I believe it’s definitely something you must take part in if you care the slightest about the climate, your children and their future, the environment or just the well state of your country. As you probably already know by now time is no longer on our side when it comes to fighting man-made climate change. We need radical actions now if we are to have the slightest chance to stop the worst doomsday scenarios. That is why this election is so important. Because whatever you like it or not the decisions which are being made in the European Parliament affects all member states. So this is our chance to vote for meaningful actions against climate change that will affect politics and regulations both in Europe and around the world. Don’t wait until the next European Parliament elections in 2014, because then it will be too late. How to vote? If you live in one of the 27 member states of the European Union, and are eligible to vote, you can take part in the election and help save out climate by voting for a green political party. Yes, you read right. I am asking you to vote for a political party that might not be the right party for you personally in terms of your political views or ideology. But this is such an important, almost a once in a lifetime, election for the climate and the future of our civilization which require us to vote for political parties that actually stands for real actions against climate change. When to vote? The elections will take place in early June and all member states votes on different dates. For example the UK voting will be on the 4th and in Sweden the voting is not until the 7th. You can find out when the deadline for voting is in your country by using this map here. Who should you vote for? Because Europe has so many different political parties it’s hard to tell exactly which party should get your vote. That is why I think the easiest way to decide is to choose a political party that is a member of the European Greens (They have even set up a website to promote their candidates and their new green deal for Europe which will help solve the economic crisis and save our climate). The following parties listed below are members of the European Greens: Albania: Partia e Gjelber Austria: Die Grünen Belgium: Ecolo OR Groen! Bulgaria: Bulgarian Green Party/Bulgarian Greens Cyprus: Cyprus Green Party Czech Republic: Strana Zelenych Estonia: Eestimaa Rohelised Finland: Vihreät De Gröna France: Les Verts Germany: Bündnis90/Die Grünen Greece: Ecologoi-Prasinoi Hungary: Zöld Demokraták Szövetsége Ireland: Comhaontas Glas Italy: Federazione dei Verdi Latvia: Latvijas Zala Partija Luxembourg: déi gréng Malta: Alternattiva Demokratika Moldova: Partidul Ecologist din Moldova "Aliante Verde" (PEM AVE) Netherlands: De Groenen OR GroenLinks Poland: Zieloni 2004 Portugal: Partido Ecologista "Os Verdes" Romania: The Green Party Slovakia: Strana Zelenych (SZ) Slovenia: Stranka mladih Slovenije (SMS) Spain: Los Verdes OR Iniciativa per Catalunya Verds (ICV) Sweden: Miljöpartiet de Gröna United Kingdom: The Green Party of England & Wales OR Scottish Green Party Find your country’s green party and vote for it in the upcoming EU election. It really isn’t harder than that! This is our chance to vote for change. Don’t waste it.
  13. This is a picture of a jaguar cub's first appearance at the Berlin Zoo last week. Being cute ain't easy. More: latimesblogs.latimes.com
  14. I don't know really. But isn't the Prius bigger than the Insight, and cost more? Anyone here who knows how much MPG they do? Edit: Just found this on Wikipedia: "Toyota debuted the 2010 Prius at the 2009 North American International Auto Show,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prius#cite_note-28 and sales began in Japan on May 18, 2009, at a price of US$ 21,600. Its new body design is more aerodynamic, with a coefficient of drag reduced to 0.25 Cd, and its EPA estimated combined fuel economy cycle is 50 miles per US gallon (4.7 L/100 km; 60 mpg-imp), a 4 miles per US gallon increase (0.59 L per 100 km decrease) over the previous generation." And the Honda: "Estimated combined fuel economy according to EPA testing methodology is 41 miles per US gallon (5.7 L/100 km; 49 mpg-imp), this is, 40 mpg-US (5.9 L/100 km; 48 mpg-imp) city and 43 mpg-US-imp) highway.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Insight#cite_note-17http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Insight...e.energy.gov-18 Honda UK have published a combined MPG(imp) of 64.2 and an CO2 emissions rating of 101g/km, putting it in the lowest UK road tax bandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Insight#cite_note-19." (5.5 L/100 km; 52 mpg So the results are: Prius: 50 miles per US gallon Insight: 41-64.2 miles per US gallon
  15. I think the upsides of CFLs outweigh any downsides they might have. And the mercury is no big deal if you take care of it properly. But sure, I wished LED was more mainstream and cheap... :whistle:
  16. This is your once-in-a-lifetime chance to save an entire herd of elephants from being gunned down. Baby elephants like him have had their trunks partly amputated by snare traps. Please help us save the Malawi elephant WE MUST ACT NOW to save a large herd of elephants - adults and babies - that face the firing line in the southeast African country of Malawi. The elephants - in a desperate search for food and water - are raiding storage areas and feuding with human communities. Villagers are putting down nail-bedded planks and setting snare traps that cut through the elephants' skin - leaving gaping wounds in their legs and trunks. Three of the elephants have already had their trunks amputated by these vicious snares. Now authorities plan to execute the entire herd if it is not moved from the area. Please help save these elephants now - make your emergency donation right away so that IFAW can move them to safety. IFAW has located a perfect spot for the elephants in a park called the Majete Wildlife Reserve. The animals that used to live there were poached to extinction, but the Malawi government has made the new park a protected sanctuary - an ideal place for these threatened elephants. Unfortunately, Majete is over 100 miles away - so moving these giants will be a monumental task. In order to transport over a half-million pounds of elephant 100 miles, we're going to need major equipment, brute strength, a lot of animal-moving expertise, and funding to help pay for this urgent move. Your contribution will help us: Purchase the medicine needed to safely sedate the elephants - so they don't hurt themselves or the handlers. Pay for the helicopter needed to track the elephants down and shoot them with tranquilizer darts. Supply all other ground transportation costs, including the huge trucks and support vehicles needed to carefully transport the elephants to Majete. We have a large team in place...we have a helicopter and trucks ready to go...and we have plenty of experience moving elephants... Now all we need is your donation. The Malawi Department of Parks and Wildlife has already agreed to partner with us on this special project. But we need to act fast. If the elephants aren't moved by June 5th, they will be shot. Please help us move them to safety - make your emergency donation today. Thank you from the elephants, Fred O'Regan IFAW President p.s. I know we can save the lives of these elephant families - but we must act now. Please rush to their rescue while there is still time to save their lives.
  17. So you have no answers for the deadly and toxic waste problems? Do you even care about it or will you just ignore it and hope other generations will deal and pay for the nuke-mess you are so strongly promoting? Or maybe you are just here to promote this book of yours... <_<
  18. Simon

    Earth Day 2009

    Yes, right-wingers usually tend to block sane progress and ideas. And not just when it comes to the environment! Yes I sort of agree with you. But not completely! Where the left might be lacking in environmental progress is because they are held back by old ideas which are based on their ideology. An example could be one of the largest unions in Sweden who supports fossil fuels such as nuclear energy over renewable energy sources. Why? Because they believe it will benefit their members, i.e. workers, by supplying them with cheap (heavily state sponsored and subsidized) electricity. This even though nuclear energy is dangerous, will not help Sweden become energy independent, not an renewable source and will most likely not result in cheaper electricity. I understand your point. But I am not talking about communism as being the "left". Just as I am not saying that the "right" is nazism. Communism just like the right-wing politics in Nazi-Germany is extreme politics that I hope no one ever wants to see again. I would also like to add that socialism is not communism. :cute: It's also worth noting that during the Soviet Union era they passed some of the most advanced environmental protection laws in the whole world. And ecologically the Soviet Union pioneered in various forms of environmental reforms and policies. Unfortunately when Stalin and his Stalinist bureaucracy came in power in the 30's these laws and policies were in practice disregarded and unenforced because the capitalistic goal of expending production. In other words it turned out to be communistic capitalism!? Capitalism turns humans from free subjects into objects defined by their capacity to work and consume. Capitalism is all about the generating more money above anything else. I will. :)
  19. I have written a bit about this on Green Blog in the past: Climate change with a gender perspective "According to a report issued by Gerd Johnsson Latham on the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Sweden wealthy men and global warming makes a dangerous combination." So I would say women are greener.
  20. Oh then you must watch the new re-imagined series. And you might like this music video: Battlestar Galactica Music video A New Crew in Town
  21. WATCH IT! The BEST Wii game ever? :lol:
  22. Still no answer I see... Yes and I think you are somehow overestimating the sheer size of land that will be required for renewable energy gathering. But yes I agree with you that renewable energy will have great environmental and social impacts. It will create millions of new green high-tech jobs while saving the climate and our environment.
  23. I am happy to pay high taxes as I know I will get something meaningful in return. But also because I know it helps poor, unemployed, sick and old people. I would never want to live in a cold and cruel society, such as USA, that only cares about the rich and successful. In Sweden we have political parties that successfully go to election promising to raise our taxes even more. And in the next Swedish election I will vote for one of those parties. Because if we raise our taxes we will be able to invest more in the public sector, e.g. get better health care, schools and stronger environmental regulations and investments. And yes. I do believe that high taxes and happiness are very much related. If you don't have to worry about becoming unemployed or being able to afford education or health care you will live a happier and less stressful life.
  24. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development says people in Denmark, Finland and the Netherlands are the most content with their lives. The three ranked first, second and third, respectively, in the OECD's rankings of "life satisfaction," or happiness. There are myriad reasons, of course, for happiness: health, welfare, prosperity, leisure time, strong family, social connections and so on. But there is another common denominator among this group of happy people: taxes. Northern Europeans pay some of the highest taxes in the world. Danes pay about two-thirds of their income in taxes. Read the whole story: MarketWatch
  25. And back on topic: Nearly 370 farms in Britain are still restricted in the way they use land and rear sheep because of radioactive fallout from the Chernobyl nuclear power station accident 23 years ago, the government has admitted. Environmentalists have seized on the figures as proof of the enormous dangers posed by nuclear power as the UK moves towards building a new generation of plants around the country. Read more: Britain's farmers still restricted by Chernobyl nuclear fallout
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