There is a lot we can do to mitigate the effects of climate change, and a positive side effect is that we'll strengthen our economy and weaken our political opponents.

Over the past three years, many car makers have begun making plug-in cars. Some, like Nissan's LEAF, are pure electric, and others, like the Chevy Volt, are plug-in hybrids. These cars allow people to drive without using much, or any, oil.

The price of wind energy has fallen a lot the past decade, so much so that it is now less expensive than a new coal plant. Solar PV has also fallen dramatically and continues at such a rate that it should reach parity with new coal inside of 5 years. While these are intermittent sources of energy, the use of various energy storage technologies renders tham capable of replacing baseload energy.

So, as individuals, you now have the choice of switching your home's energy to renewable (RE) by either installing solar on your home, or by signing up for your utility's RE program. And if you need to drive a car, you can now buy or lease one that will allow you to drive on RE. Doing these two things will reduce your pollution footprint by over 90%.

An added benefit is that you no longer give money to the oil, coal or natural gas companies. The economic and political effects of this are substantial. Here in CA, we spend some $55 billion for gasoline and diesel every year. Over 90% of that money leaves CA for good. That's a hit to our economy of about $50 billion every year. If you switch to an EV, you spend about 20% for electricity what you used to spend for oil. The 80% savings, which is over $1,000 per person per year, can be spent on local goods and services instead of accruing in the off-shore coffers of the oil industry. Over time, this will result in hundreds of thousands of new jobs in CA.

Further, when you stop giving money to these industries, they can no longer use your money to buy political influence. Even better, you can use a small portion of your savings to donate to political orgs that represent your philosophical point of view.

There is a similar effect with the savings by using solar or wind, but instead of impacting the oil industry, you are impacting the coal and NG industries.

As an example, I installed solar in 2002 on my house in Santa Monica, CA. I then bought my first EV, a 2002 Toyota RAV4. For over 12 years, I've been running my home and car on sunlight-generated energy and none of my money has gone to the oil, coal or NG companies. I've saved close to $20,000 in the past dozen years. We now have about 170,000 Americans driving plug-in cars. That represents about a quarter of a billion dollars not going to the oil companies. We expect to almost double that number this year.

So, rather than worrying about what will happen, please take action and eliminate your purchases of dirty energy. You'll have an effect, I promise you.

I think Monsanto is a dangerous, fascist, farm-destroying, health-destroying, toxic entity the world would be vastly better off without. The sooner they crash & burn, the better. And this "terminator gene" you mention, Mark, sounds like something out of a science fiction horror movie. The mere mention of Monsanto is enough to raise my blood pressure by double-digits. - Aliceinwonderland

Robindell, there's an awful lot of neglect in public housing. Before the '80s, when the budgets started getting cut, public housing was usually a reasonably nice thing for both the tennants and the community. Then, when they started cutting, it was just written off. Nothing ever got repaired or maintained and it was just allowed to slowly crumble.

Sometimes that's by design, There's an under the radar policy official called, by sociologists, "planned shrinkage", that is a vehicle of gentrification. When the realtors, businesses and rich land owners decide they want a piece of land that some poor people are living on what happens is that the local or city government officials then start the process of removing those people by just cutting the area off. They stop investing or maintaining the area, they close all the schools, libraries, parks, etc., grudgingly give the area even the most minimal services and police protection hoping everyone there will just leave or drop dead.

There's a very good book about life in public housing in Chicago called There Are No Children Here by Alex Kolowitz. Chicago, according to housing rights organizers, is a test case for the removal of public housing in the United States and our city government does and always has practiced "planned shrinkage" of poorer communities, more recent, higher profile examples are the school and clinic closings.

I hate the 21st Century!!!

"...our window for impacting climate change is rapidly closing."

This from Thom's piece above is what I want to address.

The use of "our" implies a "we". And who is the "we"?

Who's in control and in a position to affect a change?

Those who can address this 'problem' are the Elites and Power Establishment. Are they even interested? (If they are involved, it is my guess they are already altering Earth weather patterns via experiments using high technology weather modification, etc.) And we already know that all the Elites seem to want to do is figure out how to make more money, as they have already done with externalizing pollution costs to the public. Now I think the Elites want to make even more money with more pollution with claims that More Pollution Is a Solution to 'climate change' via Geoengineering (like geoengineered weather modification and aerosols in the atmosphere and depositing materials in the oceans). It looks to me that the weather is being manipulated by the Elites and Their Friends, as a means to bring people to a sense of desperate quietude.

I think they are confident Disaster Capitalism works, and they are thrilled by this weather beaten gravy train they're on.

One 'for instance ' question in closing--

Could the Elite (corporate, financial, economic) mine the Canadian tar sands if weather/climate were 'normal'?

o

;-)

Bob Hearns ~ Everyone is always concerned with sustainability. Where is your next meal coming from, right? It is only since industrialization in a Capitalistic "free market" that environmental sustainability has taken a back seat to market sustainability. Yet even our Corporate Pirates would take great concern over sustainability--at least in their lifetimes. What is lacking is long term sustainability. What is lacking is responsibility for the greater good. We used to know what that is. It was called common sense. Today, it is a liability. Nothing you've said is untrue. I simply disagree that it is human nature alone that is responsible. We all have the need to survive. The economic system we are born into corrupts that basic need. We need to focus on the real problem that is slightly beyond the control of the average person--the competitive marketplace and the industrial revolution. We are being forced by history to adapt to our own creative evolution. Our success is necessary for our survival. I don't think our current problems are an inherent flaw as much as a evolutionary phase that we must adapt to. Unless we succeed at this phase in our evolution, there is no future for mankind; or, quite probably, any other so called intelligent life in the universe. Any form of intelligent life must overcome this same obstacle at some point. Failure is not an option!

Oh well, Mark... I guess we should expect this blog to be invaded by these clueless numbskulls every so often, being the public forum that it is. But you and I and Palin and Marc will be here to give 'em a run for their money! - AIW

Do to the hard work of so many I am legally Stoned in one multiverse or the other.. states of consciousness.lol thank you to the advocates of the World hemp like Normal (bought the Tshirt.). keep up the "mild state of euphoria"to quote Ben Franklin 420 rules

"Our window for impacting climate change is rapidly closing." Yet there are still those amongst us who debate and consider the possibility of running the Canadian's Kochstone pipeline directly across our "this land is your land this land is my land." We have the technology to turn things around. How about a massive non profit renewable energy program similar to Germany's solar energy program? But that would require a representative government and it would exclude a few from making billions for themselves.......so lets just destroy the whole god damn planet instead.

Yes hemp, yes reforestation, yes get those banksters, yes stop the geoengineering , and it is INTERNATIONAL WOMENS DAY ON Sat 8th of March, so yes to EQUAL GENDER GOVERNMENTS!

ps HEMP for so many reasons!! such as a lumber replacement keeping forests stable positive constructive change!!

NOW we motivate the Military for a take over Jackson style "your a den of snakes" their outed arrest them!! Thanks

Thomas Jefferson said banksters are "worst than standing armies" 100Air Craftcarriers a Year GONE !!proof Take back time lol