Big Zero Editorial Board Making Things Up

You would think that the single most important thing for a major newspaper editorial board would be having some evidence to back up pronouncements about "the single most import (sic) way to help people" avoid financial troubles.

The reflexive habit among the well-to-do is to blame "financial illiteracy" because it has the nice compound effect of diverting attention away from government policies and also carries an element of blame the victims, which is always useful when trying to keep people from thinking about how our tax and regulatory policies have systematically funneled money from the bottom to the top. 

But the fact is, we're as financially literate as we've ever been, if not more so. What has changed is not the financial acumen of the bottom 99% but the rapacity of the 1% -- we have never had since the advent of the Progressive Era is such a complete rollback of democracy-enhancing policies and the concomitant takeover of the political process by the power of the 1%, which of course the Big Zero prefers not to address.

Keeping bill collectors at bay: Editorial | OregonLive.com
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/08/keeping_bill_collectors_at_bay.html

The single most import way to help people avoid unmanageable debt: education. Schools must do a better job of teaching students about financial issues. A recent international survey showed that about one-fifth of American students struggle with basic financial tasks, such as reading an invoice. Fewer than 10 percent master advanced tasks such as comprehending tax brackets or investment options – or deciphering medical bills.

Great Stuff: Videos From a Zany Food Psychologist - Pacific Standard

SmarterLunchrooms.org

http://www.psmag.com/footnotes/awesome-videos-zany-food-psychologist-ranked-87119/

Earth Ovens Workshop - Corvallis

Hey!  We are hosting a workshop with local artists and authors Kiko Denzer and Hannah Field (they wrote Build Your Own Earth Oven; Kiko has built ovens for several local businesses, including Gathering Together Farm, The Blue Goat in Amity, Fireworks Restaurant, and most recently, Queen Bee Apiaries). They will guide us in building a wood-fired EARTH OVEN and using it for cooking everything -- especially NATURALLY LEAVENED WHOLE GRAIN BREADS (you'll get starter to take home, as well as a copy of the book).  

 

DATES: Saturday and Sunday. August 16-17

 

LOCATION: 770 SW LOOKOUT DRIVE CORVALLIS, OR 97333, home of Bo and Diane - aka Diane's urban farm retreat.

 

PRICE: Because this is a local workshop for the instructors, and part of a gift exchange, we're able to offer it for only $80.

FOOD: Bring a lunch or have us prepare one for you ($10/day). We'll host a potluck supperon Saturday night if folks are interested. 

 

ACCOMMODATION: For those traveling from out of town, there are rooms available for overnight stay - $60 per night.  Please see urbanfarmretreat.com for more information.

MORE INFO: See the attached flyer, and Kiko's website and bookpage  If you have any questions, don't hesitate to call!  (541 753 0762)

 

There are a limited number of spaces.  To reserve your spot,  please send full payment to :

Diane Arney

770 SW Lookout Drive

Corvallis OR 97333

The high cost of delay | Opinion | The Register-Guard

(Meanwhile, Salem and the Chamber of the 1%'s pet lapdog newspaper continue pushing a $400 to $800 million auto bridge boondoggle to promote more sprawl. Fascinating to see two cities 75 miles and maybe 60 years apart, with Salem continuing to pretend it is 1954 rather than 2014.)

http://registerguard.com/rg/opinion/31937458-78/climate-emissions-report-carbon-cost.html.csp

The high cost of delay

Just one day after the Eugene City Council on Monday approved a landmark climate ordinance, the White House issued a report that underscores the importance of policymakers at the national, state and local levels acting to rein in greenhouse gas emissions. . . .

The report estimates the cost of mitigating the effects of climate change could rise by as much as 40 percent if action to reduce emissions is delayed 10 years. Such an increase would outweigh any potential savings of the delay urged by most Republicans and some Democrats, who argue that strong action now on climate change would hurt the economy and cost jobs.

Eugene's ordinance seeks to cut communitywide fossil fuel use by 50 percent by 2030, and it calls for city government operations to be entirely "carbon neutral" by 2020. It requires city officials to prepare detailed plans for achieving the emissions reductions, and mandates progress reviews and status reports. And it binds future councils and city managers to pursue the emissions-reduction goals.

By approving the ordinance, the city has committed itself to a sustained course of action to confront climate change. It has, to borrow an old Irish expression, "tossed its cap over the wall," leaving it with no legal choice but to find a way to get to the other side to retrieve it. . . .

On Monday, Eugene showed the way for other U.S. cities and local governments by turning those aspirational climate goals into law. It did so because council members understood, as the new federal report says, that postponing carbon cuts will ultimately lead to higher costs, both in terms of climate-related impacts and in more expensive emissions reductions.

The council also acted because it was the right thing to do. "Fighting climate change is one of the important and defining issues of our time," Councilor Alan Zelenka said Monday night. "Fortunately, Eugeneans get it."

Eugene Leads, Salem Lags

The longer we wait to begin, the more painful the changes will be.  

But not as painful as the costs of failing to act.  Nature bats last, and she doesn't take excuses or rationalizing; only actions count with her.

 Goals for carbon reduction become law in Eugene

The Eugene City Council voted Monday to put some teeth into previously approved goals to reduce the city's fossil fuel use and carbon emissions, seeking to cut communitywide fossil fuel use by 50 percent by 2030, compared with 2010 usage.
Eugene Register Guard, July 30

Want Clean Air and Water, Safe Food and Cars? If so, Defend Public Protections

 If You Want Clean Air and Water, Safe Food and Cars, Defend Public Protections

 "Katherine McFate, Center for Effective Government" <katherine@foreffectivegov.org>

July 30, 2014 The air we breathe. The water we drink. The food we eat. The cars we drive. Most of us don't give a second thought to the basic components of our day-to-day lives, and we just assume they're safe. And we usually can. Over the past century, America has developed a system of standards and safeguards and protected its people from a variety of public health, safety, and environmental hazards. These standards have improved our nation's quality of life and public confidence in American products and businesses. Today, we released a new study, The Benefits of Public Protections: Ten Rules That Save Lives and Protect the Environment. It examines ten proposed or adopted federal standards from agencies including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. In almost all cases, the benefits of the rules, when converted to dollars and cents, outweighed their costs. Combined these ten rules: Save 10,000 American lives annually Prevent 300,000 cases of disease, illness, and injury every year Create net economic benefits of between $46 billion to $122 billion each year Rulemaking is the way our democracy balances the public's interest in safety and well-being with private industry's priority of maximizing profits. It's about ensuring that we all breathe clean air, drink clean water, eat safe food, and travel in safety. It's about improving and protecting American living standards. Check out the study on our website, then let your elected officials know how important public protections are to you, your family, and your community. Thank you for being an active, engaged citizen. Warm regards, Katherine McFate President and CEO P.S. Please consider supporting our work by making a gift to the Center for Effective Government today through our website. Your support makes a difference!

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Finish line photo: Scenic Shore 150

Here at LoveSalemHQ we sold "Margarita" the tandem recumbent to a father who wanted to take his daughter with blood cancer on the leukemia fundraising ride in Wisconsin. Thanks to his mechanical engineering skills, he was able to turn that huge bike into a travel model. Awesome!

> Thought you would be interested in this photo. It is the finish line of our 150 mile fund raising ride. Thanks for taking the extra effort at the sale time in selling the bike to us.
>
> Dan

We need millions for this: Grey to Green: Creating “Cool” Cities Symposium Report

This is one of the future-proofing/resiliency ideas that we should be pouring our scarce resources into, instead of into CH2M-Hill and the Sprawl Lobby's already-overflowing pockets. NOT the Bridgasaurus, in other words.

The one thing that is needed is to get the urban forestry people to start talking to OSU, and Salem Harvest and the Food Share about how we can take action NOW to make our urban forests into food forests as well. Instead of a No Place, Salem can lead in something positive for a change -- getting rid of ornamental cherry trees, planting real ones! And apples, plums, pears, and figs, and Asian pears, and walnuts. 

We need a robust partnership (public/nonprofit) spray and pruning operation that ensures that every fruit and nut tree in Salem is maintained and harvested, and that neighborhoods are given the tools and guidance to help them. 

There is this absurd idea that we need only ornamental trees, and that fruit and nut trees should be shunned in the city ... Where the most hungry people are.

This is insane. We have countless acres of good land wasted in parking strips and grassed areas already provided with water.  There's a school serving every part of the city.  Wherever there is a school, there is an opportunity for a whole engaging curriculum core based on getting kids to help monitor and care for food trees, and to connect the community to the schools, and we are sure as hell going to need the food.

Grey to Green: Creating "Cool" Cities Symposium Wrap-Up

Dallas, TX (July 21, 2014) — The cities where we live are heating up, but trees and green infrastructure can help them stay cool. In late May, the Texas Trees Foundation hosted a regional conference, Grey to Green: Creating "Cool" Cities. They've just released a wrap-up report from the symposium which featured keynote speaker Dr. Brian Stone, an expert on urban environmental planning at the Georgia Tech.

What makes a cool city? Green infrastructure, sustainable design, art, music, trails, walkability, greenways, complete streets, parks, open space, and really cool people.

Over 100 people gathered at the Dallas Museum of Art to hear keynote speaker Dr. Brian Stone, Jr., associate professor in the School of City and Regional Planning at the Georgia Institute of Technology and author of The City and the Coming Climate: Climate Change in the Places We Live.

Other speakers included David Hitchcock of the Houston Area Research Center, Dr. Robert Haley with UT Southwestern Medical Center, and Matt Grubisich, and urban forester with Texas Trees Foundation. All addressed the urgent need to manage urban heat and the role of trees and green infrastructure.

Managing urban heat in an increasingly hot and dry climate, such as Texas, is necessary to protect public health, infrastructure, the economy and quality of life. This makes trees and green infrastructure a priority.

The symposium report, "Grey to Green: Creating Cool Cities," is available online for download at http://actrees.org/files/Events/TXTreesUrbanHeatReport.pdf.

The nature of quotes on the internet

Notable Quotes (Susan Ohanian Speaks Out)

http://www.susanohanian.org/quotes.php

"Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor, the enemy of the people. It will keep you cramped and insane your whole life. . . . I think perfectionism is based on the obsessive belief that if you run carefully enough, hitting each stepping-stone just right, you won't have to die. The truth is that you will die anyway and that a lot of people who are not even looking at their feet are going to do a whole lot better than you and have a lot more fun while doing it. . . . 

Perfectionism means that you try desperately not to leave so much mess to clean up. But clutter and mess show us that life is being lived. "

—Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird, p. 28