I am an Environmentalist

I'm not sure why I feel the need to say this, but I want to. I am an environmentalist, and I'm darn proud of it. I'm concerned about the planet, and I do what I can to help preserve it.

• I mow my lawn with an electric lawn mower. (It doesn't look like the one in the picture. It's green, and an older model.) My mower doesn't have a ton of power, and it only holds its charge for about an hour and a half (less with all the rain - tall, wet grass), so I can only do half my lawn at one time. It's a compromise, but it's worth it. I'm not using fossil fuels, even to generate my electricity (see below), and I'm not releasing exhaust into the atmosphere. When I was a kid, the combination of grass clippings and gasoline fumes had me sneezing all day when I mowed the lawn. Not anymore. It's a lot quieter, too (though I do use hearing protection).
• I buy green electricity. It's completely from renewable sources (primarily hydro, but also some wind power). I know that hydro dams and wind turbines have their own impact on wildlife, and this does concern me, but I believe that the negative impact on the planet is much less than that created by oil, gas and coal. One day, when Maine's incentives are in place and I can better afford it, I will put solar panels on my roof and live even less on the grid.
• I try to conserve energy as much as possible. I have my TV's and other electronics plugged into surge protectors, and I try to turn off all electrical supply to them whenever they are not in use (otherwise they draw electricity even when turned off). Sometimes I forget, but it's still better than never turning it off at all. I also drive a 1995 Mazda Protege. It's not a great car, it's not the safest car on the planet, but it gets 35-40 MPG, and I'll drive it until I can afford a hybrid.
• I buy as much all-natural and organic food as is practical. We have a few great natural foods stores locally, such as Royal River in Freeport, Morning Glory in Brunswick and the Whole Grocer in Portland. I've only been there a couple of times, but I would also like to point out the Fare Share co-op in my (almost) home town of Norway. Buying organic is better for my body and my planet, as no harmful chemicals (pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers) go into either of us. Buying organic produce also means that I am usually supporting the local farmer, because the lack of preservatives makes it difficult to ship tender vegetables over long distances. Supporting the local farmer is good for the local economy and helps perserve the wonderful rural nature of Maine.
• The vegetables, herbs and flowers that I grow at my own home also do not receive any chemical stimulation. I use only natural fertilizers, and I even spade the soil rather than using a roto tiller. Some of my efforts fail, but I'd rather do the right thing and come up a little short in the veggie department than vice versa.
• I also buy all natural cleaners from manufacturers such as Seventh Generation and Ecover, and personal care products from companies like Kiss My Face and Burt's Bees. I am starting to buy more organic cotton and hemp clothing, such as sold by Santa Fe Hemp. The reason is simple - the less bad stuff that goes into the earth and the atmosphere, the better off the planet, the animals, and the people will be.
• I recycle as much as I possibly can. In a typical week, my wife and I will fill about 2/3 of a tall kitchen bag with garbage. That's not much. The rest is either recycled or composted.

I'm not your stereotypical environmentalist. I don't have long hair or wear tye-dyed clothing and Birkenstocks. I don't listen to the Grateful Dead or do anything with hemp other than wear it. I'm an accountant, for pete's sake! But I'm more committed to the environment than I am to GAAP.

So why am I writing this? I guess it's because I believe that it's time to put my mouth where my money is. I don't understand why more people aren't environmentalists, because the long-term health of the planet is more important than any job or any company's bottom line. I don't have any children, but I believe that it is unfair for us to use up the planet at the expense of other generations. At some point, the human race is going to have to come to grips with what we are doing to the Earth and change its ways. I want that day to be today, not 50 or 100 years down the road. We know that our consumerism (especially in America) can not last forever, so why put off change.

I don't know if anybody will even read this blog. It's been very much neglected until the last week or so, but I'm getting much more traffic at my other blog, so maybe somebody will skip over here. But I am writing this because, if you do read this, I want you to think about what you take out of the planet, and what you put into it. We should all strive to have a positive impact in our lives, not a negative one.

Some day I hope to be working in an industry that is having a positive impact on the environment. When I was laid off by megabank last spring, I started looking for environmental jobs, but they are few and far between in Maine and I ended up with a smallish wholesaler. I had a sort of "pre-interview" with the Maine Chapter of the Nature Conservancy last winter, but no job materialized. It was a disappointment, to say the least, as I had identified this particular job as my ideal while I was unemployed (they are located in Brunswick, after all). I have a lead with a major retailer that is very close by that is also heavily committed to the environment (I won't name names, but it shouldn't be hard to figure out). If that works out, at least I can feel good about working for a company that shares my values (I'm not sure that my present employer even has values). Ideally, however, I'll eventually be working for someone who is preserving land from development, or investing in alternative energy solutions (solar, wind, biodiesel, etc.). At that point, I will really feel good about my contribution to the environment.

In the meantime, however, there is this post on this blog, and if you read it, I hope I had an impact.

Control Room

In continuing the theme of looking at happenings in the Middle East, we rented the film Control Room last night. The movie came out last year so it's a bit dated, yet it remains timely. Control Room is a documentary focusing on Al Jazeera's coverage of the first few months of the Iraq war. The setting is the US military's Central Command ("CentComm") in Qatar, and we see behind the scenes with Al Jazeera's producers and on-air personalities. It's a fascinating and eye-opening look at Al Jazeera, which has been portrayed by the US as an anti-American propaganda machine. What we see doesn't really support that image, as the coverage seems to be a little more balanced than the US version, showing both Iraqi and Coalition casualties and making an effort to show the human cost of the war.

I'm not going to write a full review of the movie. Mark Caro of the Chicago Tribune does a good job with that effort. I was impressed with the professionalism of the the Al Jazeera journalists portrayed in the movie. They did not back down from their Western counterparts when challenged about their journalistic bias, pointing out that no journalist can be completely unbiased. I was also impressed with the US reporters in the film, who expressed concerns about the lack of information coming from the military. The most interesting moments came when the Al Jazeer journalists would offer their reflections on the US government, Saddam Hussein, and the conflict at hand. To a person they acknowledged that the US would secure a military victory but that it was unlikely that the US would be able to institute a stable democracy in Iraq by using such a heavy hand. The Iraqi people did not like Saddam Hussein, but they also do not like the US invoking its will upon the region, fearing another Israel/Palestine situation.

It's no secret that I am not a fan of the Bush regime or the war in Iraq. The snippets from Donald Rumsfeld, spewing lies and propaganda as he accuses Al Jazeer of the same, are frankly embarassing. Then again, I'm embarassed pretty much any time I hear him speak. I am sympathetic to the people of Iraq, because I think that it's wrong what we have put them through in the name of neutralizing a "threat". I think that the current administration has gotten the US into a bigger problem than it realizes.

But enough of my blabbing. Control Room sort of flew under the radar in the midst of the hype associated with Fahrenheit 9/11, but I think it brings a critical portrayal of the Iraq war in a package that I think more Americans would find agreeable. Director Jehane Noujaim has done a terrific job in presenting a seemingly balanced view of the war without a hint of either preachiness or hyperbole. I recommend anybody who wants to learn more (and put a human face on our Arab "enemies") to rent this film.

Common Dreams

Anti-Iraq War rhetoric at Common Dreams. This is the type of thing that I might write if a) I had the time for research and b) knew anything about history. In a nutshell, Iraq War bad, George W. Bush bad. I still can't believe we re-elected this dork.

Thanks to Dave for the heads up on the article.

Another Road Home

We went to see the movie Another Road Home at the wonderful Eveningstar Cinema in Brunswick. We hadn't really planned to see a movie tonight, this was a complete impulse move as we were driving by. "Another Road Home is on in 15 minutes!" "What's it about?" "I dunno - I remember thinking that it sounded good...." "Well, let's go check it out." (It turns out that I had other priorities tonight, but it was a good decision to go.

Another Road Home is a documentary about Israeli filmaker Danae Elon's quest to reconnect with Musa Obeidallah, a Palestinian man who worked for Elon's Jewish parents in Jerusalem for 20 years. Elon's father Amos Elon, a historian and sharp critic of Israel's policies regarding the Palestinians, was less a figure in Danae's formative years than Musa, who worked 18 hours a day in the Elon home and was Danae's primary caregiver during her youth. After Danae Elon moved to the US to study filmmaking in 1991, her parents moved their primary residence from Jerusalem and eventually lost contact with Obeidallah. After 9/11, Danae asks her mother if Musa was still alive, and her mother replied, "Yes. I would have heard if something had happened to him," although she could not specify who would have informed her.

And so it is that Danae Elon begins her quest for Musa. Locating a Palestinian within Israel promises to be a daunting task, so Danae tries another tact - Paterson, New Jersey. Obeidallah had sent all eight of his sons to study in the US, to acquire an education that they could not be afforded in Israel, and the Elons were aware that many of the sons had lived in Paterson, which has a large Palestinian population, and that one of them had owned a grocery on Main Street. And so it is that Danae heads to Paterson where, after a relatively short search, she finds someone who knows one of Musa's sons. He remembers Danae and a reunion follows shortly.

There are many poignant moments in the movie. Among Musa's children, Danae was closest in age with Naser, who now is opening a pharmacy in Paterson. Musa often brought Naser to the Elon house with him, and Naser and Danae were friends. Naser now has many questions for Danae - questions which, given the many awkward silences in her responses, the filmmaker wasn't prepared to be asked. Naser is direct: "What did you think of me, this Arab in your home? What did you think of my father?" Danae doesn't really answer. Later in the film she admits that she wasn't entirely sure what she was looking for when she started her search. I believe that she doesn't have an answer for Naser because, in those years, she was just a kid, who probably didn't fully understand the Israel - Palestine conflict. Her parents, after all, were obviously sympathetic toward the Palestinians, so she would not have thought of the Obeidallah family as lesser people than her own. Naser, however, was very much aware of the class differences, having to face them every day. "When I came over, I remember that you used to have a guitar that you would play with. Obviously they were giving you these things in school. My school didn't have any guitars. You had lots of books on the shelves. My school didn't have all of these books." Danae doesn't have an answer to Naser's queries.

Many telling moments involve Amos Elon. Noted as a critic of Israel's policies regarding the Palestinians, Amos Elon nonetheless is obviously nervous about being reunited with the Obeidallah family. I believe that this is because he is a well-off Jewish man, and thus sees himself as a potential target of the Palestinian people. He asks if any of Musa's son's have beards, which would be an indication that they are fundamentalist Arabs and, therefore, potentially terrorists. He admits being skeptical that there can ever be peace between Israel and Palestine (which, interestingly, both families acknowledge as the same geographic location), due to the years of hatred and bloodshed between the people. He offers that relationships between the Arabs and Jews are "painful". There can be no social relationship, because the conflict between the people must always be acknowledged. He stopped calling Musa six years earlier, because he sensed a hesitance in Musa's voice, as if he were somehow withdrawing from the relationship. I believe that it was Amos Elon who became uncomfortable being friends with an Arab, but feels the need to rationalize the decision by attributing the withdrawal to Musa Obeidallah. Amos and Beth Elon (who grew up in the US) are very intelligent people who are sympathetic to Palestine, yet even they have difficulty in dealing with the war between their people.

After Musa learns that his family and the Elon family have been reunited in the US, he decides that he must visit. Here is where we start to learn about the harsh realities facing the Palestinians. Because he is not Jewish, Musa may not fly out of the Jerusalem airport. Instead he must drive to Jordan. There are many checkpoints in Israel, and Palestinians are often detained for being Palestinians. What should be a one-day trip turns into a four-day ordeal. When he arrives in Maryland (where his eldest son lives), he is nonetheless in good spirits. He is happy to see his family, and he is happy to see Danae. He is reunited with Amos and Beth in New York, and he obviously still has much affection for his former employers. But his strongest feelings are obviously for Danae, whom he considers his own daughter (in fact, he may have known her better than his own children when she was growing up). Musa is in sharp counterpoint to Amos' contention that Israelis and Arabs can't socialize, even asking at one point to not speak of politics because he simply wants to enjoy the company of his friends.

Musa Obeidallah turns out to be the real star of this film, and a true joy to watch. He is a very giving man. He thinks nothing of traveling for four days, sometimes sleeping on floors, to get to the US. "I did it to see you," he tells Danae. He worked 18 hour days to afford to send his sons to the US to be educated, so they can have a better life than he does. (His daughters have remained in Israel and married.) His sons, in turn, have honored him by becoming very successful, one a pharmacist, one an engineer, another a graphic designer. Five of the sons continue to live in the US, and while they don't appear to have plans to return to Israeal any time soon, all feel strongly connected with their homeland. They all own houses in Israel (Palestine, as they refer to it), and though they may never set foot in those houses, it is how they stay connected to their homeland. And despite the fact that their lives have been forever affected by the Israel - Palestine conflict, they all warmly welcome their Jewish friends into their homes.

I have never been a scholar of the war between Israel and Palestine, so I learned a lot from this film. One thing that I have sorta been aware of is the nature of this dispute - basically land was taken from the Palestinians and given to the Jews, with the full blessing of the west. The Palestinians are understandably not fond of this arrangement, yet the US media always portrays them as the bad guys. I'm not sure that's necessarily the case. When Musa returns to Israel, accompanied by Danae, we see barbed-wire fences and concrete barricades. Israeli soldiers at checkpoints sometimes turn routine stops into several hour interrogations simply because the Palestinians can't be trusted. (There are many parallels to this in many societies, obviously, but it still doesn't seem right). It's sad to me that these kinds of conflicts must persist for so long, with no real hope of reconciliation. The source of the reconciliation can be found in the person of Musa Obeidallah, because he realizes that, at the core, people are people. He treats everybody kindly because he sees the person, not the nationality. This enables this simple man, with a sixth-grade education, to trust the Elon family because they are his friends. Too many others would distrust them because they are Jews, with no regard for what they stand for as individuals. It's a a lesson that I hope Danae and her family learned, and that I hope more of us can learn, too.

Bizarre George

OK, there's no direct George Bush in here, just his administration:

"The report had real consequences," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said Monday. "People have lost their lives. Our image abroad has been damaged. There are some who are opposed to the United States and what we stand for who have sought to exploit this allegation. It will take work to undo what can be undone."

No, no, he's not talking about the faulty reports of WMD and an imminent attack from Iraq (which has cost many thousands of lives). He's talking about that troublesome Newsweek story, which spurred rioting that has resulted in more than a dozen deaths. I'm certainly not defending Newsweek (if, in fact, the story is untrue), I'm just wondering where the indignation is for, you know, that other thing.

McLellan also weighed in on the Uzbekistan problem:

"The people of Uzbekistan want to see a more democratic government, but that should come through peaceful means, not through violence."

I believe he said this without a hint of irony. Because, you know, that other thing has its own web pages.

So, in retrospect, over the last couple of days we have:
* Alternative energy = good
* People dying due to faulty reporting = bad
* Using force to institute democracy = bad
* Admission of wrongdoing = nonexistant

Bizarro George

US President George W. Bush urged Congress to encourage development of alternative fuels, to reduce our dependence on foreign oil supplies.

I'm not entirely sure what to make of this.

On the one hand, this is welcome news to be celebrated. I have quietly championed alternative energy solutions for a couple of years now, though I haven't been able to actively use alternative power sources all that much myself. Access is limited (BioDiesel), or prohibitively expensive (solar power). However, if Congress makes it a point to incent the development of alternative energy sources, perhaps access and affordability will become less challenging.

On the other hand, Bush has never really come across as the "Environmental President". The cynic in me supposes that his cronies are ready to take advantage of the uptake in demand for non-fossil-fuel sources, therefore now is just the right time to start doling out tax breaks for their efforts. If that's the case, I won't begrudge him too much for it. He'd still be doing the right thing, even if it's for the wrong reasons.

What is troubling to me, however, is that there is no backing off on his plan to drill in the Alaska Natioal Wildlife Preserve. Also, he still wants to invest in additional nuclear power plants and oil refineries. These are not initiatives that I support.

Furthermore, and perhaps most maddening, is that there doesn't seem to be any talk of actually conserving fuel, especially that used by automobiles. There is really very little need to encourage people to buy gas guzzling SUVs. In fact, given the technology that already exists, there is no need for SUVs to guzzle gas the way that they do. Automobile manufacturers complain that it would be too expensive to implement this technology in automobile production - but don't the costs ultimately get passed down to the consumers? And if they're afraid that the consumers will balk at paying the higher prices, why don't they provide tax incentives to people who drive fuel-efficient automobiles? Ultimately, that works as the government subsidizing the auto industry (by increasing demand for their products), just someone else gets the tax refund.

(Also, people are willing to wait to pay full price for a hybrid vehicle. Doesn't it follow that they might be willing to pay a little more for a readily-available fuel-efficient car? The demand for this product isn't driven by cost, it's driven by the fact that fuel conservation is a desired goal for many consumers.)

I clearly have a good-sized rant in me on this topic, but I'll need time to complete some research to do it justice. I believe that one of the most important things that this country can do in the name of national security, is to make it fuel conservation seem Patriotic. Hell, we already think that we don't need anything from any other countries, why can't we extend that to, "We're Americans, we don't need your stinkin' oil"?

In the meantime, I'll take Bush's speech to be a good sign. At the very least maybe the Alternative Energy industry will become mainstream, and make more jobs available to people who care about the cause. (Like, for example, me!)