Well, this is news I didn’t need to wake up to today.

Methinks the writer is an oil industry proponent…by the slanted view of this piece.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said last Thursday that he was prepared to bring a measure approving the pipeline to the Senate floor despite the administration’s continued reluctance to determine the project’s fate.

Reid is no fan of the pipeline, but he is feeling heat from his own members to bring the issue up for a vote – possibly this week – provided Republicans agree to support a separate energy efficiency bill drafted by Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Rob Portman (R-OH).

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Ever heard of “just say no”, Harry?  Tell me, what price is a soul going for nowadays? $10,000?  $100,000? $1,000,000?  Because the Keystone XL is the end of us.  The Earth cannot take any more–we are at the point of no return–that point where if we stopped destroying the environment, the Earth just might have a chance to recover.

People are overwhelming against the Keystone XL—yet Reid, Landrieu, et al, try to say that they are feeling the heat from their constituents.  I find that hard to believe….because they’re not hearing from people made ill by petroleum refineries, as in the folks in Texas.  And what about Louisiana, which has had its own battle with fierce nature…the more we destroy the environment and increase climate change, the more fierce the weather will become.  I don’t think Louisiana can afford Katrina times ten. And they’re not listening to the environmentalists.

So…who are they listening to…?

On gue$$.  They’re promoting Keystone XL, while investing in it…

The Clintons connection to XL. This is probably the biggest reason that they are pushing Hillary Clinton’s bid for the Presidency.  God help us if she gets elected.

ALEC and the dirty nine.

BP and the Tar Sands connection.

Keystone Pipeline Exposed.

All is not lost, folks…there are some decent people in Congress after all…who care about the truth and the lies of the Hillary Clinton State Dept.’s hoax.   I do hope Elizabeth Warren runs for President.  Like I said before, I’ll knock on doors and do whatever it takes to help get her elected.

And, just to quash the naysayers who claim environmentalists are phonies (while doing nothing for the environment themselves…here is my own journey:

…my advocating for the environment has been a slow evolving process that includes my experience with mercury poisoning, growing awareness of what we’re doing to the atmosphere, and a spiritual component of realizing everything is connected.

Here are some of the things I do:

–use cloth bags when going to the grocery.  I might use plastic for meat, but I re-use those bags, too, bringing them to the grocery along with the cloth bags.  If you use the cloth bags for meat, be sure to launder them before using again, to avoid contamination.

–avoid plastic packaging. …well, plastic *everything*.   This has been much easier following the GAPS diet because you don’t eat the processed food in packaging, but real food.  If I am given an option, I will buy something in glass packaging before plastic.

—re-use the glass containers for drinking glasses, food storage, plants, etc. I try to avoid ziploc bags when possible.

—don’t purchase synthetic materials like nylon and other materials requiring petroleum.  The list I think is a catch-all, because I think some of the things listed are made with petroleum if plastic or manufactured cloth such as nylon, so some of the products listed could be okay if not using those materials.  Here’s a website on organic cotton, fyi.

–When I had my home, I made a conscious decision not to pave the driveway–it was gravel.  I didn’t spray for weeds, either.  I let my grass grow to 3 inches so that the roots could grow deeply enough to avoid having to water the lawn, especially during the dry time in July–this also helped keep the weeds down. Meanwhile, my neighbors practically shaved the grass off and…wait for it…had to waste precious water to keep the grass from dying in July.    I let a patch of ground that was the former owner’s garden, grow its natural way, without my interference.  Yeah, I was the neighborhood hippie…

—use baking soda, borax, and vinegar for cleaning.  A formula I found in a natural health mag goes like this:  Bathroom cleaner:  6 T vinegar, 2 T borax mixed with a cup– of warm water.  Put this in a 1 qt. spray bottle and fill the rest with water.  Works great, especially if used every day.

—I use non-toxic natural cleaners for laundry, dish washing, etc.,  when I am able to afford them.  Oh, and fyi, avoid dishwashers–the detergent used in them is highly toxic.

—ride a bike or walk when going somewhere.  This was easier for me when I lived in Fort Wayne, where everything was within walking distance.  I could get to the downtown in 45 minutes to an hour.  There is something to be said for walking or riding–you are much more connected to what is going on around you.  You hear the birds sing.  Feel the breeze.  Hear the ripple of water along the river…driving a vehicle cuts you off from so much, besides polluting.

—use flannel cloths instead of toilet paper and re-wash them.  I know, I know, some of you are going “ick” right now.  No. 1 is fine…No. 2 still requires paper. So there.

—cloth pads instead of chemically manufactured pads.

—use less.  I just use less.  This was part of the learning process of being poor–you just learn how to manage on less.  Not easy, for sure.  I became much more adept at planning meals and using food up before it went to waste.  I didn’t buy as much at the grocery until I needed it.  This is easier if the grocery is within walking distance….which is becoming harder as the independents are being forced out while big box stores are situated out in no-man’s-land, forcing people to drive there.

—garden organically, using compost from kitchen waste, and if you’re really adventurous, pee and poo.   This is not for sissies…so come with your brain in active mode and your determination to get away from petroleum and chemicals.  You will succeed, but you can’t give up when challenged.  Nature does challenge you, but also gives such splendid rewards. 😉

This is an ongoing process, for sure.  I didn’t just wake up one day and start doing all of this.  It was a gradual endeavor with every new discovery of my own contribution to pollution.

So…there you have it…my efforts towards helping instead of hurting the environment.

I think if we all took those first steps, and built on that, we would greatly reduce our dependency on petroleum.  Everything helps and every bit matters.