Category Archives: ecology
Native American Drawings
Scott Sewell has several drawings posted on his blog:
Wace. This one I love. Such tenderness.
This is kinda funny. The Native American society was not a hierarchy, like white society. I found out recently that the Chief system was forced upon them by the whites–they had been an egalitarian society prior to that, so there were no princes or princesses…strictly a figment of someone’s vivid imagination.
The very name for whites–wasichu –was because of white people’s way of taking for themselves without regard for the others. This name means “one who takes the fat” because the very first white man that walked into an Native American village was hungry. He was offered some meat from a deer killed recently. Since the deer is very lean, the Native Americans reserved the fat for the elderly and the children. They saw this white man as selfish for his actions.
Also, if a Native American acquired wealth, he/she is expected to share that in what they called the “giveaway”. Once a year, the wealthy will spread their things out on a blanket and those who are in need could come and take what they needed.
And they saw America as a complex ecology that required careful cultivation. They were careful to always leave plants behind instead of taking them all. Same with animals. They always treated the animals with respect and prayed over the ones they used for meat, clothing and tools.
Greenpeace in France, too, against Nuclear Power
Greenpeace activists were also protesting a dangerous nuclear power plant in France. They are concerned about the plants far-reaching effects.
There has always been a narrow-minded view of nuclear power in that only the immediate area was in danger…but as we have seen with Chernobyl and Fukushima—one country’s nightmare spreads to other countries. The country that benefits from the nuclear power risks radiation, but countries that don’t share that benefit of power will ultimately share in the disaster of radiation.
Greenpeace protests logging in Canada
Report here.
What bothers me is when I see trees torn down for yet more construction when there are thousands of empty buildings waiting to be occupied. There should be a law that prohibits this–we don’t have the luxury of time anymore. We need those trees to take the carbon dioxide out of the air and provide us with fresh oxygen. Indiana is especially bad about destroying forests–when you look at aerial photos, you can pick Indiana out just by the lack of trees. You can tell such a difference when leaving Indiana and going to Ohio–the air is better. Combine this with the 15 million pounds of toxins released into our waterways…toxic soup. (sigh)
Heavy Metals and Chemical Toxins in Foods **edited
Where’s my spoon? /snark
Magnetic Wheaties. The press refused to publish this because they didn’t think it was real. Anyone want to test their own Wheaties and dispute it?
Here’s another paper on heavy metals content in foods.
Arsenic in food. The discussion is in defense of reports of arsenic in organic foods. What the news reports got wrong was that heavy metals are present in conventionally grown foods, too. It’s not a fault of growing them organically…but it is a fault of our toxic environment—which we are all responsible for promoting.
Another link here.
While there is a set legal limit for the amount of arsenic in water, that’s not the case for food. In previous weeks, researchers also detected high levels of arsenic in apple and grape juices. “All of these arsenic studies come back to the fact that there are multiple exposures, with the levels varying from product to product and batch to batch,” says Patty Lovera, assistant director of Food & Water Watch, a consumer safety organization. “We need to figure out some regulatory limit.”
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Arsenic in rice has been discussed on the mercury support group–obviously, we’re concerned about putting more poison in our bodies. It’s frustrating as hell because even if you eat organic, you’re still at risk of heavy metals by the soil contamination.
Someone said in a reply on one of the sites I visited: you’re pretty much going to get exposed by anything you eat…nothing is safe.
But I would not give up organic food. Conventionally grown food is less nutritious, besides polluting the environment even more–it doesn’t make sense on that point alone.
Finally, here’s a disturbing video produced by Environmental Working Group on toxic chemicals in babies’ blood.
I looked up the Kids Safe Chemicals Act of 2008…and I’ll give you three guesses how it turned out. Yep.
But, wait! There’s yet another bill introduced with link to co-sponsors…here’s where it stands.
Sen. Frank Lautenberg [D-NJ] Bill Author
Kirsten Gillibrand [D-NY] Bill Author
Again, no mention on the toxins’ effects on the animals and birds. Mercury has been found in birds on land and sea birds. It’s also been found in marine mammals.
**edited to correct wording.
Exxon Valdez: Sound of Silence
Treating our Oceans like a trash can
Arbiter News has this up on how long it takes for our garbage to decompose.
It’s important to note that plastic is not only bad because it uses petroleum, but it also does not degrade for 400 years! Aluminum? 200 years. Sobering, isn’t it?
Radiation from Fukushima found in soil in Canada
Soil sample collected near Agassiz contains radioactive metal.
…but officials say…wait for it…don’t worry, it’s not that much…yeah, we should worry.
We should be worried, too, looking at this map. It’s not just on the tip of the coast, but quite a ways inland. Just look at the relation to the U.S.
Can you imagine this, combined with Keystone and the pipelines that have already leaked, combined with pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilizers, genetically modified organisms…
U of A scientist find proof of water deep within Earth
…Big Oil, Big Coal, and Monsanto, race to pollute it. /snark
Another model comes forward on Terry Richardson
Another model has come forward on being allegedly sexually assaulted by sleazebag photographer Terry Richardson. My prior post on him here.
This report explains one of the manipulative techniques of Richardson–calling the girl a prude and telling her she needs to loosen up. I’m glad to see a couple of models formerly photographed by Richardson are taking positive action against this predator.
And the question of the hour is…why do people, especially celebrities, who have a lot going for them, are intelligent and compassionate, associate themselves with this manipulative exploitative creep?
He is a dark one. He is beneath contempt. Associating with him and promoting him is feeding the dark side, in my opinion. It’s saying that his behavior is acceptable…it’s okay. And it’s not.
It’s a crazy experience to celebrate the female body as beautiful, and then degrade her because she’s a woman. Crazy.
So much of what is wrong in the world today is by the degradation of women. Wars, violence, greed, all thrive because the feminine–the softness, compassion, empathy, nurturing, and nature–is not respected. Not given equal weight. Not honored.
For example, the Earth, which is feminine, is stripped of oil and then left polluted and scarred…not unlike sexual violence. Wars are the same.
We all can be violent or compassionate. We can feed the dark or light. It’s our choice, our free will.
Eagle 
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