We Must Do Something NOW

This is NOT a joke, a sham, a ruse, or otherwise an intent to do something other than tell the truth, you need to know that this is a FACT.

The world is under siege by an onslaught of power hungry, money grubbing imperialists...again! The wealthiest men in the world think they haven't got quite enough money to suit them, so they're at it once again trying to conquer yet another corner of the globe. Under the guise of a morally correct, religiously sound demeanor, the group that currently runs the government of the USA is notifying the entire world that it wants MORE!!! No matter that the Bush administration stole it's way into the White House, twice, and no matter that the US citizens have voted in an opposing majority, the wealth/war wheel continues to turn in order to make profit, and oppress entire nations.

We're all FUCKED, for lack of a better term. We, as a human race, are in more trouble then we've been in for 75,000 to 100,000 years (the last time our species came close to extinction). The ice is going to melt, cities are going to drown, people are going to die, and there is nothing we can do about it. The only chance we have for survival is taking action within a window of time that will be closed in less then 8 years. This may sound bleak, but this is all true. The powers that be have known about this for years, yet they've done nothing about it so they can continue to reap huge profits.

Because of our unchecked use of industry and fossil fuels, we now face a global cataclysm that will reshape the entire planet. A natural system that took millions and millions of years to develop is destroyed in two hundred years by humans. Some scientists speculate that it will take 50,000 to 100,000 years for the earth to balance itself out again. And what are we all doing about it, watching t.v., goofing off on the computer, going to movies/games/concerts, just about anything we can to distract ourselves from the truth.

Well here's the TRUTH. What we've taken all this time to accomplish, everything we have to show for the millions of years of our evolution, it's all about to go away. We'll be lucky if we survive this next phase of our existence. Profit is meaningless if there is no society in which to spend it. What the hell is the point of making money if it means that the world will DIE? Oil/industries/riches will all come and go, but this lifetime will only happen once.

The world can't take it any more. We are killing the planet. All of our mass consumerism, our drive-through-fast-food lifestyles, our keeping it 73 in the winter and 68 in the summer, our television educations, our constant communications, it is wasting us away to a greedy mindless society. We've become fat, lazy, and stupid. And we're proud of it. Well NO MORE. Turn it off, get up, get out, and talk about something meaningful for once. Give up your lazy comfortable life, and take on the challenge of making a difference in this world.

Our only hope is that EVERYONE will take on this challenge of change. The world will not survive our abuse any longer. The tipping point has been reached, and if we don't start shuffling in the other direction, our asses will be poured right off this planet. You think the World gives a damn whether we're here or not? You know it doesn't. Our opportunity to act is slipping away.

So what can you do? Here are a few hints: Go out of your way to stop over consuming, and tell others to do the same. Shop locally, never buy anything that traveled more then a few miles. Only buy products and goods that have been produced locally. Avoid shopping at stores that import everything they sell. Stop wasting, do everything you can to live a garbage free lifestyle. Take containers or reusable bags to the store and shop exclusively in the organic bulk section. Sacrifice, avoid long trips in the car, fly as infrequently as necessity dictates, make every single one of your own meals (w/ friends and family if possible). Be proactive, write to your politicians, tell everyone you know to tell everyone they know... Lend a hand, show others how they can switch to a sustainable lifestyle, lead by example, and don't be afraid to speak out against inequities. Become informed and stay connected, do everything you can to find out about ways to consume less, and to communicate with others who are doing the same.

The only thing in our way is the elite group of war-mongers that control the wealth and power of our societies. They pull the strings both locally and globally, and they'll continue to impede our path until we face them and bring them to justice. The desire of money is what got us in this mess in the first place, so the ones with the most money bare the most responsibility. We must remove any and all obstacles that stand in the way of saving our planet.

We have just this one chance. There will never again be an opportunity to advert a catastrophe like this. None of us should rest until we're 100% sure that we've done everything humanly possible to make a difference. Without a global wide collaboration, there will be no stopping our impending fate. But, if we all work together, and start acting without hesitation, we might be able to make all the necessary changes in time.

The fate of the world literally rests in our hands.

Till next time,
Scott Riedy
WhyGreenEnergy

Change today, Dine tomorrow

How is it possible to consider climate change when you're not even sure where your next meal will come from? In many of the "poorer" countries of the world, the thought of living without the use of a (usually 12 mpg) pickup truck or car (in order to save the planet) is the furthest thing from the minds of it's citizens; let alone converting to hybrid or electric technology. Here is a response to my blog posting about my mission from one of my friends over at Yuwie:

"{Hi!

i totally support your mission and will do as much as i can personally to follow your guidelines.

although, i have to say that poor countries such as the Philippines will really find it hard to catch up with environmentalist principles. most people are preoccupied with mere survival! a lot of people will eat whatever they can afford, worrying about where the food comes from is the last thing on their minds. plus, green cars aren't available here yet, and our poor gov't can't provide enough green public transport facilities.

there's also the problem of losing the global dimming effect that "creates a cooling effect that may have partially masked the effect of greenhouse gases on global warming" (wikipedia) too drastically. i believe europe is experiencing heat waves because of a drastic drop in particle levels in the atmosphere.

just letting you know of some dilemmas that me and my friends have in convincing others to become green. but we'd like you to know that there are many of us who support endeavors like yours.

take care! }"

For many, just being able to get to work on time is enough of a struggle as it is without having to worry about whether or not their mode of transport is contributing to the demise of the planet. A growling stomach speaks louder then just about anything else around you. And when it's not only your own stomach, but the stomachs of your loved ones as well that need filling, that's bound to take precedence over all other worries; even if those worries include the fact that in the very near future, food may be more scarce then we could ever imagine. Economically and monetarily it is plainly not feasible for some countries to change the way they conduct daily life. But if they don't, and we don't find a way to aid them, a lack of food may become the least of all our worries.

Help, it seems, is on the way. The EU recently announced that it has set aside 50 million euros, to help the worlds poorest countries with what they'll need to battle climate change. Because there is less industry, it's actually much cheaper to help poor countries to produce less green house gases. If the US and others were to rally to this cause, many of the developing economies of this world could get off on the right foot, and a terrific bottom-up-approach model would emerge. This seems like a great idea, but it's only a fraction of the change that needs to occur. I've detailed a small list of some of the major things that need to occur on my backup blog. Of course there are dozens of other things that need to be considered. So I invite you to leave a comment here or at my Yuwie blog, or both.

The world will have to work together as a single community in order to avoid this looming catastrophe. We're in this mess together, and if we don't help one another, the feat will never be accomplished. United we stand, divided we fall never meant as much as it does now. Make sure to call or write to your state and federal representatives and emphasize the importance of this message to them. Action must be taken, and it must be taken immediately.

Till next time,
ScottRiedy
WhyGreenEnergy

Yuwie - Strange Name, Cool Concept

You don't have to remind me that this isn't really Green Energy related, but I want to tell you about it anyway. One reason I feel it merits mentioning is because it's an idea I had a couple years ago but I never thought it would fly. Yuwie.com launched back in May, and it's taking off like you would not believe. If I can convince the site owners to use Green Hosting or utilize some other Green Alternative, I'll have accomplished another small part of my mission.

Take a guess at how much advertising revenue the major social networking sites make each month. It's in the millions for most of them, and they make more and more with each new member that signs up. The people over at Yuwie realized the power of sharing that ad revenue with their members, and I swear that I had this idea back in 2005; I can remember the conversation almost exactly. I said, "Someday there will be a website that pays you just to be there, so you'll be more interested in the ads presented." (You see what happens when you don't act on an impulse [kicking myself...doh!]). Well, here is your chance to not pass one up.

Sign up for your own, completely FREE Yuwie.com account, and use it as a networking tool to spread awareness about the Green Lifestyle. That's what I'm doing. Yuwie pays you every single time someone visits your profile, or views your images, your blog, your videos, even your custom layouts. You earn a few cents per visit, but it adds up quick, especially if you network with other people. The amount varies from month to month based on the ad revenue Yuwie has generated. It may not seem like much, but THEY PAY YOU, and all you have to do is what you normally do on MySpace or any of the other social networking sites. Sound to good to be true? Try it out for yourself to see if you like it. Remember, it's FREE!

My Yuwie profile can be found here.

If you want to sign up right away go here.

Send me a message once you're all set up and tell me what you think. I'm still testing it out my self, so I'm keen to learn how well Yuwie really works. If you dig it, let others know..;-)

Thanks for reading,
Scott Riedy
WhyGreenEnergy

More info about Yuwie can be found here.

You Carb What You Eat

This seems to be a touchy subject that's come up recently in the global warming debate. Several of the Carbon Footprint calculators factor in a large portion of carbon output per year based on the type of diet you have. Some of the calculators show a differential of 2 tons annually when comparing vegans to omnivores. For many reasons, I agree with the differential, but it seems to touch a nerve with meat eaters to learn that they account for such a significantly greater carbon output. Surprisingly, fish is one of the biggest contributors to green house gas abuse, but that's just the tip-o-the ice berg, as it were.

I admit being biased as I have an almost entirely vegan diet, but it seems that vegans have quite a bit less of an impact on the environment. Less of our food requires refrigeration; we purchase groceries grown and/or produced locally, so it hasn't required much fuel to get to our tables; we use primarily organic ingredients, so no antibiotics or chemical fertilizers put in the environment; and 100% of the packaging (at least for the products that I buy) is made from recycled materials. I can't speak for all vegans, but I make a point to buy groceries from local marts such as Sidecar for Pigs Peace rather than from the major grocery chains. The profits from Sidecar go to a pig sanctuary where the little guys get to live out their days without risk of being eaten. Once you've seen a smile on one of the residents over at Pigs Peace Sanctuary you'll never want to eat pork again. The bottom line is, changing your diet can have a decent sized impact on how much carbon you account for.

This is not to say that all meat eaters are horrible carbon offenders, and that they're the reason our world is going to hell. I'm not saying that at all. I'm sure there's a great number of omnivores who are extremely environmentally conscientious, and I bet they're all helping out as much as they think they can. I happen to know several people that are both meat eaters and green preachers. But, if they were to change their diet, they'd be making even that much more of a difference. There are several dozen other factors to consider of course, and some critics try to counter or discredit this argument with a new finding that has recently come to light.

Rice fields, or rice paddies as they are commonly referred to, produce an astonishing amount of methane gas. The same gas that the million cow feed lots produce. So some are claiming that rice eaters are as big a culprit as the meat eaters are. Upon further investigation, I discover that the sun's UV rays help destroy the vast majority of organic methane that escapes into the atmosphere. The question of how much methane plants account for had never really been looked into before. But as it turns out, plants the world over produce millions of tons of methane per year. source And by that estimation, the amount contributed by rice paddies is a fraction when compared to the whole planet.

Even if the methane that we as humans account for is only a small percentage, it still adds up. Especially when the amount we add becomes more and more as the population continues to grow. I read a great analogy in the forums the other day, (sorry for not giving credit to the original author), that said, "Imagine the atmosphere is a plugged sink full of water, you can stir the water to make it spin all the way up to the edge without making it spill over. But, if you turn on the water even a little, and keep stirring, the water will eventually overflow." The balance of gases in the atmosphere that nature took all this time to work out is slowly being thrown out of whack by our rice paddies, our beef farms, and all of our power hungry technologies. Technology is of course the worst culprit. Carbon as a green house gas far outweighs methane in terms of how much we send to the sky. But every little bit of difference we make is good and necessary.

So consider switching to a vegan diet as one of the ways to help combat global warming. It's a small part of the eco-neutral lifestyle, and coupled with everything else you can do, it can really make a difference. As our population continues to boom, we'll need more ways to practice sustainability and I feel veganism is a great way to start. The earth thanks you, and our friendly furry neighbors will too.

Thanks for reading, leave a comment, and take care.

Till next time,
Scott Riedy

Additional Information: Also posted on Wednesday Sept 12 is this article found on Yahoo.

Eight Years Left? What can we do?

According to a recent report by The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), we have only eight years left to take action before the affects of global warming become to sever to reverse. If they are right, from what I can decipher in the report it seems they are, the clock is officially ticking. It makes my stomach tie up in knots and my skin crawl to think about how awful the world will become if we don't do something about this. The time to act is now. If you haven't yet, check your carbon foot print to determine how large of an impact you and your family has on the planet. If your foot print is large, you must start changing your ways immediately. Instruct your friends and loved ones to do the same. We're in this together, and everyone needs to do their part, no matter how large or small.

What will you be able to tell your grandchildren when they ask how involved you were in saving the planet? Will you tell them you sat idly by and watched as the weather got continuously hotter and hotter until it was unbearable? Or will you tell them that you traded your gas guzzling vehicle for a more efficient one, you switched to solar power, you gave up keeping it 68 degrees in your house in the summer..? Our future generations depend on us acting now, what kind of planet do you want to leave behind for them? I think the answer to that question is an easy one.

Waiting around for others to act is no longer an option. Write to your senator and your representatives in congress. Write to your governor. Tell them that you want laws passed and rules enforced that make it harder for people to pollute. If you have ideas about new ways to help make a difference, spread the word. Make a blog like this one, start a news letter, or just tell everyone you meet. If you're unsure about what you can do, write to me at the email address found on this page, and I'll do what ever I can to aid you. I'm taking action because I don't want to see any more coal fired power plants built. They're the major offenders if you ask me. Find a motivating factor, and become inspired.

Thanks again for reading, and please leave a comment. This blog is intended to be an open forum. Take a moment to read some of the other articles, and if you like what you've read, get updates via email.

Take care,
Scott Riedy

Old Paint - New Art

You've just finished remodeling, or you recently moved into a new apartment/condo and painted it exactly the way you imagined...now what to do with your remaining paint? Well, thanks to AGS Custom Interiors you now have a useful and artistic way to use up the rest of that expensive paint. I sat down with the founder, Drew Stone, and he explained the ins and outs of his eco-friendy art, personalized for you and your space. He's described to me a thoughtful and unique way to be environmentally aware, and fashion savvy at the same time.

Back in 2003, when faced with a shortage of paint, Drew had a bright idea, the light appeared above his head. He knew some friends who had recently remodeled their home, and a business owner who had repainted his office. When asked what they planned to do with the leftover paint, they inclined that it'd be hauled off to the dump. Seizing the opportunity, Drew asked that they allow him to take the paint off their hands. Naturally, his friends had no problem with the idea, and were in fact excited about keeping the paint out of the local landfill. And thus, the premise for using recycled house paint for art was born.

Today, Mr. Stone's plan for AGS Custom Interiors includes creating art for non-profit organizations at a much reduced price to help circulate his business name. For all others, the price is determined by the scope of the project that you agree to through a personal consultation at your residence or place of business. The overall cost will depend on how much detail you want, and the size of the painting. After the consultation, Drew will drive off with your paint, your vision, and collaborative sketches to complete the work in about 2 to 3 weeks at his private studio. Your personal style will be incorporated into a sophisticated painting that's free from the constraints of normal everyday art, without being flashy or over-the-top. When Drew arrives back at your home he'll have a custom piece of art that will match your personality and your dwelling's interior decor.

Motivated to be Green, unique, and a contributer to the beautifying of our society, Drew Stone has earned a place on the WhyGreenEnergy Blog. Be sure to check out his Web Site, and drop him a line if you're in or near the Seattle region to obtain your own original AGS art work. Like always, tell your friends, and take care.

Thanks for reading,
Scott Riedy

Defiant and Dissenting Voices

What does it mean to be defiant or to be called a dissenting voice? Almost every bit of change, good or bad, is the result of someone or some group defying the norm or challenging the current system and/or the authority of a system. Without challengers, authority and authoritarians go unchecked and systems can become corrupt(able) and may break down or fail entirely. The need for defiance and dissentiency is unquestionably necessary as a fundamental component of any system. By system, I refer to any scenario in which one (smaller) group is placed in charge of the group as a whole where things pertinent to the running of a society are concerned.

For example, a power company: where the power company is in charge of maintaining electric service to it's customers, and ensuring that the service is reliable and affordable. Why would a power company ever change how it operates if the managers never see or hear any objections from their customers? They haven't got any incentive to do so, because their customers just keep on paying their bills never for a second wondering where their power comes from. If made aware of an unsafe business practice, some customers may decide to voice an objection or take action to show that they don't agree with how their power is manufactured. If a customer, or group of customers were to perhaps decide to generate their own electricity via some new type of technology, we could consider those customers as defiant to the system. But what is the best way to make a power company listen when they seem to have no reason to? The mighty dollar speaks loudest of all.

You cast a vote every single time you spend your money. By paying someone for a product or a service, you're telling them that you approve of whatever they're selling. Not only that, but you're telling them that you approve of how they acquired that product or ability to provide that service. Your dollar is a vote and the cash register is the ballot box. Once spent, you can not re-cast that vote. The more votes an entity receives, the more votes it is able to pull in, (for the most part anyway). Cut off the votes, and you hinder the entities ability to acquire further voters. Analogies aside, power is controlled in currency, and in our society as it is, controlling how you spend your money and who's hands it ends up in is your biggest power.

A conclusion one could draw here is that you can be a dissenting voice simply by spending your money in an educated way. The informed consumer holds all the power because every one of his/her "Votes" is accounted for. No one benefits simply by being in the right place at the right time, or for having the catchiest advertising. A system with products and services sold to informed consumers is a very difficult one to corrupt simply because the consumers won't allow for poor or detrimental conduct. So, a possible way to fix a system that appears to be broken or malfunctioning would be to inform the consumers. Revolution is the only word to describe when the group as a whole takes charge in order to fix a broken system.

So what can you do if you feel the system you're in is broken and/or malfunctioning? Become a dissenting voice, and tell others to dissent along with you. Inform yourself about who profits from your purchases. Spread the word about how to be an informed consumer and what it means. Take a proactive approach by reading up on company/industry standards and practices and "Vote" for the one you find most agreeable. You may be stuck voting for the company/industry you find least disagreeable, but you'll be the one in control. The system relies on us, and it's time we send a reminder about who is really in charge. A simple, peaceful, yet incredibly powerful revolution awaits, and we have only but to spend our money the right way to achieve it.

It's completely within our power to accomplish a peaceful reorganization of the power structure that manages our society. We have many possible ways to go about it, but the easiest way to start is by becoming informed and informing others. If you have anything to add or share, please leave a comment. I hope these articles will start a discussion and get others thinking about what needs to be done to enact some real change.

Thanks for reading,
Scott Riedy