Current Events Watch

Tomorrow is the Fourth of July, Independance Day here in the U.S., and I thought it only appropriate to spend a few minutes thinking about the price paid for our “freedom”.

 Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

 Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.

 Eleven were merchants.

 Nine were farmers and large plantation owners.

 They were men of means, and well educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his Ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKean was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of William Ellery, Lyman Hall, George Clymer, George Walton, Button Gwinnett, Thomas Heyward, Edward Ruttledge, and Arthur Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife’s bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.

Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn’t. So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It’s not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free!

A new credit-card sized device could provide a way to test people for heart disease using a pinprick of blood. Developed by a team of researchers from Harvard and Northeastern universities in Boston the device can measure and collect a type of cells, called endothelial progenitor cells, using just 200 microliters of blood. 

endothelial progenitor cells

The depletion or ageing of these bone-marrow derived endothelial progenitor cells is a risk factor for vascular disease, as they can enter the bloodstream and go to areas of blood vessel injury to help repair damage. This is because they have the ability to become the cells that make up the lining of the blood vessels (endothelial cells). So the device, which enables the easy collection of these cells, could also bring efforts to create tissue in the laboratory for vascular bypass surgeries another step closer to reality.

 The device works much more easily than current techniques for collecting endothelial progenitor cells. To collect the cells, it works similar to Velcro or a magnet. Specifically, the inside is coated with antibodies that only bind to endothelial progenitor cells. Blood flows through the device through a funnel-like opening (except the blood enters through the narrow end and exits through the wide end), passes over the antibodies, and endothelial progenitor cells are “picked up” in the process.

 Aside from providing a new tool to assess cardiovascular health that cuts the amount of blood needed down to a pin prick, its compact size could also be useful in developing countries where access to medical laboratories is difficult. It also brings us closer to a future where new blood vessels, veins and arteries for transplants no longer need to be grafted from patient’s bodies, significantly reducing the amount of pain and recovery times for bypass surgeries. 

The team’s research is detailed in the study, “Development of microfluidics as endothelial progenitor cell capture technology for cardiovascular tissue engineering and diagnostic medicine”, which appears in the FASEB Journal

Has affordable, practical home wind power generation become a reality?

The Honeywell Windgate wind turbine from EarthTronics may be a contender. EarthTronics and Honeywell Corp developed the Windgate to help homeowners and businesses meet their energy needs, even if they are not located in prime “windy” areas.

 In the US, for example, wind suitable for power generation is concentrated on the coasts and in parts of the Midwest. In fact, some estimates indicate that 90 percent of US wind resources average 9 mph (14.5 kph) or less. Most traditional wind turbine designs don’t start spinning until 7 or 8 mph (12 kph); finding a place to install the turbine becomes a major issue.

 EarthTronics and Honeywell designed the Windgate to be suitable for installation where the power is being consumed, even in areas with light winds. The Windgate measures just 6 feet (1.8 meters) across and weighs less than 95 lbs (43kg). The turbine can be installed on a house or business rooftop, wall or on a self-standing pole. The Windgate’s design eliminates the geared hub design found in other turbines, and EarthTronics says this allows the unit to run more quietly and with less vibration.

 EarthTronics designed the Windgate to start spinning in light winds as low as 2 mph (3.2 kph). To accomplish this, the turbine generates energy using its gearless “free wheeling” Blade Tip Power System, which reduces mechanical resistance and drag. Rim-mounted permanent magnets generate power at the tips of the fan blades - the fastest moving area - instead of at the fan hub as in traditional turbine designs. The efficiency of this design, the company says, allows the Windgate to operate in a greater range of wind speeds (2 to 45 mph, 3.2 to 72.4 kph) than traditional wind turbines. Traditional turbines typically begin turning at 7.5 mph (12.1 kph) and shut down around 29 mph (46.7 kph) to protect their gearing systems. The Honeywell Wind Turbine was designed to operate in a much greater wind range, with a cut-in speed (startup) below 2 mph and a shutdown speed of 45 mph.

 The Honeywell Windgate wind turbine comes with a computerized control box, power inverter, and an interconnect switch to wire the system into a household panel. A professional electrician is required for installation and the homeowner must also supply one or more automotive-type batteries to complete the system. Once installed, the Windgate can create up to 2000 kilowatt hours (kW) of power per year, which is about 15 percent of an average household’s energy needs.

The EarthTronics Honeywell Windgate will be available this fall in ACE Hardware stores in the United States for $4,500. EarthTronics says that the turbine’s installed cost is about one third of the cost of traditional turbines, with a lower installed cost per kW than other turbines on the market.

In the US, homeowners are eligible for federal and state rebates that cover anywhere from 30 percent to 100 percent of the overall cost of the turbine, making the Windgate an even more affordable option for personal wind power generation.

Learn more here.

Broadband and telecommunications giant Orange is using its regular slot at the UK’s most talked about music festival to announce its vision of ultra- comfortable camping for lovers of all things live and musical.

Extreme camping this won’t be, the proposed solar tent definitely nods more towards the “glamping” market (glamping is a portmanteau of glamorous and camping - it’s camping whilst ensuring you aren’t missing out on all the luxuries modern living has to offer). Green extravagance is the name of the game here. The company’s vision for the festival tent of the future will incorporate tech first shown in 2004’s SMS activated piece where weary campers will be able to use their mobile phones to text and light up or glo-cate (get it?) their tent. 

Rigid solar panels may soon be old news as the latest research into solar tech is hinting at more pliant, bendy materials becoming available in the very near future. It is thought that the tent could utilize specially coated solar threads woven into the fabric allowing hosts of new possibilities for capturing the sun’s energy. Directional glides made up of this special photovoltaic weave would be positioned outside the tent and could be adjusted by the happy camper from time to time to ensure the most efficient energy capture. 

Inside the tent, power generation and consumption information and wireless internet surfing will be available via a touchscreen interface. The device will allow cable-free charging of mobile devices by using magnetic induction technology to generate electric charge will also feature. And if it gets a bit on the cold side after dark, don’t worry - your tent will look after you. The tent’s groundsheet will have a heating element embedded into it which will automatically activate when it gets below a certain temperature to provide some welcome warmth as you cozily doze.

 The solar tent is still very much in the concept stage, technology has to advance a little bit further before anything like it gets the opportunity to make an appearance. But it does serve to give some indication that in the future, enjoying some time in the great outdoors might not mean giving up on those familiar creature comforts or your mobile gadgetry.

On a 219 to 212 vote, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the landmark H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (ACES), the most important environmental and energy legislation in our nation’s history. The bill that emerged from the House has the fundamental structure we need to significantly reduce carbon pollution while growing the economy. It puts strong cap on emissions and reorients our energy market to make low-carbon power the goal. It ensures that utility rates will stay affordable and a competitive playing field for U.S. companies.

 The House climate bill would mandate that 15% of the nation’s electricity come from sources such as wind and solar power by 2020, potentially expanding the market and profit potential for companies in those sectors. Towards that goal, it seeks to boost nascent industries such as wind-generated electricity and solar power. By putting a price on emissions of common gases, such as carbon dioxide, the bill would affect the way electricity is generated, how homes and offices are designed, how foreign trade is conducted and how much Americans pay to drive or to heat their homes.

 This legislation was masterfully written by two longtime champions for building a clean energy economy in America and aggressively fighting climate change - Chairman Henry Waxman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and Chairman Ed Markey of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.

 The vote was close. Know that all of your efforts — whether a signed petition, a donation, or a call — made a difference in the outcome. Together, we are truly showing the power of government by the people and for the people.

 Now that the House has passed this historic bill, it is on to the Senate. Everything we are hearing on the Hill tells us that Big Oil will continue to spread their lies in order to sabotage our chances to transition to a clean energy future. Big Oil and its cronies launched an opposition campaign that was tough, well-funded, and relentless. Thanks to more than 70,000 calls and over 60,000 emails to your Representatives, we were able to stand up to the corporate and special interests who tried to sabotage this bill at every turn.

Now it’s time to repeat those call, this time to your Senators. Let them know that we support clean energy and want them to pass this bill.

…for the two week absence and lack of new posts.

I have been having major technical difficulties. Two weeks ago, my computer suffered a complete meltdown. I was hoping for a simple software fix, but that was not to be. After I installed a new OS (operating system) and updating drivers, I still could not access the internet.

Then I replaced the modem and cables, did the drivers thing again, and still no internet. After going over everything with my ISP’s (Internet Service Provider) tech support guy we had it narrowed down to an internal hardware problem.

I’m not all that knowledgeable about the internal working of a pc, so I called a friend to come check it out for me. Turns out that the ethernet and USB ports on my pc’s motherboard are fried, hence no connection to the modem and no internet.

I finally had the money to go pick up an ethernet card that plugs in to the motherboard. I have internet access again, yay!

The only downside? I lost about two years worth of saved emails, documents, bookmarks, and passwords.

Nothing like starting from scratch to make you appreciate backups. Wish I was disciplined enough to do it on a regular basis, maybe I wouldn’t be out two years worth of stuff.

‘The Southeast has been portrayed as a region that will face significant cost and difficulty meeting a national RES due to scarce access to renewable energy resources. This assertion is simply inaccurate,’ the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy’s February report, Yes We Can: Southern Solutions for a National Renewable Energy Standard says. The heavily forested region could meet nearly two-thirds of a national standard through biomass generation using wood products or energy crops. In addition, the region has solar energy potential. It is not as vast as the Southwestern states because the Southeast has frequent cloud cover, but solar is still capable of providing 7% of the region’s electricity. Indeed, the report cites several solar projects under development, particularly in North Carolina and Florida, by Duke Energy, SunEdison, Progress Energy, Vanir Energy, and FPL Energy. In addition, Florida’s Gainesville Regional Utilities have developed a solar photovoltaic feed-in tariff, one of North America’s first. Another Florida utility, Lakeland Electric, was the first company in the U.S. to quantify RECs from solar hot water production.

Rhone Resch, CEO and president of the Solar Energy Industries Association, says the Southeast has vast potential for solar energy development. Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina have solar resources 60% better than Germany.

‘In Georgia, 23.6% of electricity could come from rooftop solar alone. As a policy investment, solar is one of the best values for putting Americans back to work and creating growth opportunities for utilities and small businesses alike in the Southeast and across the country,’ he says.

Georgia could gain added capacity from large-scale photovoltaic projects, similar to those underway in Florida and North Carolina, according to SEIA. The organization points out that in North Carolina, Duke Energy plans to buy more than 10 MW from a solar farm being built by SunEdison in Davidson County. And Florida Power & Light has already begun building the state’s first concentrating solar power plant north of Palm Beach County.

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PowerFlare’s PF-200 electronic LED safety light is not your average roadside flare. Invented by Ken Dueker, a former police officer and PowerFlare’s CEO, the PowerFlare PF-200 replaces chemical flares with a reusable, non-combusting alternative. Each PF-200 features a 360-degree LED array protected by a rugged plastic housing that can withstand the weight of a fire truck at highway speeds.

The PowerFlare PF-200 is designed for use by police, firefighters, emergency medical technicians (EMTs), rescue first responders and military personnel. PowerFlares can be used anywhere you would use traditional flares and in many places you cannot use them. Unlike incendiary flares, they can be safely used indoors, in combustible areas, or in other Hazmat situations, without causing a fire danger or contaminating the air and water. PowerFlares are water-resistant to 80′ and can even be used for scuba diving (Professional Dive Model waterproof to 300′).

PowerFlare uses include:

* Roadside safety

* Emergency signaling

* Highway checkpoints

* Route marking

* Helicopter landing zones

* Identifying friend or foe (IFF)

* Personnel or item recovery

* Scuba applications

The PF-200 features steady-on operation as well as a choice of 10 flashing patterns (including Morse code SOS).

PowerFlares are available in a variety of colors. The shells come in yellow, orange, blue or olive. The LEDs are offered in amber, blue, green, red or white. A version of the PowerFlare is also available with infrared (IR) LEDs for use with night-vision equipment.

PowerFlares are reusable and have a battery life of up to 100 hours. The PF-200 has a replaceable CR123 battery or you can choose the rechargeable model (PF-200R). The PF-200R 6-Pack Rechargeable System even comes with a recharging case that can be plugged into a vehicle 12V power outlet or wall power point.

PowerFlares are available directly from the manufacturer. Prices start from USD$50, depending on LED color. Cases and accessories are also available.

For more information, visit www.powerflare.com.

Two-time presidential candidate Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) will soon be introducing legislation which truly is the way out of recession and back to prosperity.

The primary cause of a recession is a shortage of money in the hands of the American people, the way out of recession is to put more money in their hands. Under the present monetary system this can only be done by borrowing more and going deeper in debt.

The American Monetary Act takes three simple steps to correct this debt problem:

(1) Incorporate the Federal Reserve Banks into the U. S. Treasury where
all new money is created by government as real money, not
interest-bearing debt, and spent into circulation to promote the general welfare; monitored to be neither inflationary nor deflationary.

(2) Eliminate Fractional Reserve Banking in a manner that makes the
federal government the only entity with the power to create, issue and regulate our money, as Article I, Section 8, Clause 5 of the United States Constitution mandates.

(3) As the “debt-money” created by the privately owned Federal Reserve
System and the commercial banks disappears when debts are paid, it will be replaced with real money spent into circulation to rebuild our badly decayed public infrastructure, which includes roads, bridges, dams, water and sewage plants, mass transit, schools, etc.  It also includes universal health care and education for all.  This will create
millions of high paying jobs. Also a substantial stimulus check will be
sent out to immediately put money back in the hands of the American people.  We don’t need to “get credit flowing,” we need to get real money flowing.  All of this will be an interest-free, debt-free,
inflation-free dividend to the American people.

Click the link below to read the American Monetary Act:

http://www.monetary.org/amacolorpamphlet.pdf

When a company goes bankrupt, everyone takes a hit: fair or not, workers lose some contract wages, stockholders get wiped out and creditors get fragments of what’s left. That’s the law. What workers don’t lose are their pensions (including old-age health funds) already taken from their wages and held in their name.

However, Stevie, the Rat, Rattner is demanding the bankruptcy court simply wipe away the money GM owes workers for their retirement health insurance. Cash in the insurance fund would be replaced by GM stock. The percentage may be 17% of GM’s stock - or 25%. Whatever, 17% or 25% is worth, well … just try paying your doctor with 50 shares of bankrupt (worthless?) auto stock.

Yet Rattner thinks Citibank and Morgan should get everything owed to them - $6 billion - right now and in cash - from a company that can’t pay for auto parts or worker eye exams. I guess if all the workers are laid-off, they won’t need their eyes?

Come on, RATtner, pull your head out of your ‘hole, and back into reality. There is a BIG problem with this idea:

IT’S ILLEGAL!

In 1974 Congress passed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. ERISA says you aren’t allowed to seize workers’ pension funds (whether monthly payments or health insurance) any more than you can seize their private bank accounts. And that’s because they are the same thing: workers give up wages in return for retirement benefits. Company executives must hold these retirement funds as “fiduciaries.”

“The primary responsibility of fiduciaries is to run the plan solely in the interest of participants and beneficiaries and for the exclusive purpose of providing benefits.”

ERISA also gives participants the right to sue for benefits and breaches of fiduciary duty.

To understand California’s road to insolvency, we need to go back to June 1978, when Californians went to the polls and enacted Proposition 13.

Under Republican Gov. Earl Warren and Democratic Gov. Pat Brown, California epitomized the postwar American dream. Its public schools, from kindergarten through Berkeley and UCLA, were the nation’s finest; its roads and aqueducts the most efficient at moving cars and water, the state’s lifeblood, ­ to their destinations. All this was funded by taxes, which fell heavily on the state’s flourishing banks and corporations.

Amid the inflation of the late 1970s, however, the California model began to crumble. As incomes and property values rose, Sacramento’s tax revenue soared ­ but Democratic Governor Jerry Brown, neither spent those funds nor rebated them. With the state sitting on a $5 billion surplus, frustrated Californians grumped to the polls and passed Proposition 13, which killed property taxes ­ effectively destroying the funding base of local governments and school districts, which thereafter depended largely on Sacramento for their revenue. Ranked fifth among the states in per-pupil spending during the 1950s and ’60s,California sank to Mississippi-like levels ­ the mid-40s in rank ­ by the 1990s.

Since 1978, state and local government in California has been funded more by taxes on personal income and sales. Bank and corporation taxes have been steadily reduced. In the current recession, with state unemployment at 11 percent, tax revenue has fallen off a cliff.

But the problem with Proposition 13 wasn’t merely that it reduced revenue. It also made it very difficult to increase revenue.

Raising taxes now requires a two-thirds vote of the Legislature, though in 47 other states, a simple majority suffices. California has become overwhelmingly Democratic in the past two decades, but Republicans have managed to retain footholds ­ representing just over one-third of the districts ­ in both houses of the Legislature.

The current Republican crop has refused in good times as well as bad to raise business or other taxes. (Increasing the tobacco tax, for instance, has failed each of the past 14 times it has come up for a vote.) They protest that the state already has the nation’s highest taxes. In fact, California ranks 18th among the states in percentage of personal income paid to state government, and its presumably beleaguered wealthiest 1 percent, according to Citizens for Tax Justice, pay just 7.4 percent of their income to the state while the poorest pay 10.2 percent.

The state is facing a $24.3 billion deficit that it somehow has to close. In short order, the state will have to throw 940,000 poor children off its health-care rolls and lay off tens of thousands of teachers.

The nation’s banks are stuck with so many California mortgages gone awry that a huge contraction in state spending would make their assets even more toxic. In the short term, the only way to avoid a further downturn may be a federal loan to the state. The Obama administration ignores California’s plight at its own ­ and the nation’s ­ peril.

A more permanent, homegrown solution to California’s woes would require the state to eliminate the two-thirds threshold for enacting taxes, to repeal Proposition 13’s freeze on the value of commercial properties (some of which are still assessed at their 1978 levels) and to end the process of ballot-box budgeting through the initiative process, which is now more dominated by monied special interests than the Legislature ever was.

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Masdar has officially connected a 10-megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant to Abu Dhabi’s grid, marking the integration of the largest PV plant in the Middle East to the grid. The plant will provide clean energy to the temporary Masdar site administration facilities, and power the ongoing construction activities of Masdar City.

In addition, the plant will supply all the energy needs of The Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, a graduate-level scientific institution dedicated to renewable energy study, which opens in late 2009.

The 10 MW plant, consisting of 50% thin film and 50% crystalline silicon panels, is projected to generate 17,500 MWh of clean energy each year. With the construction costing US $50 million the plant is also one of the most cost-efficient PV installations in the world in terms of its projected power output, Masdar said.

Congress is likely to pass some kind of health care reform, and long-term care MUST be included.

Call your Senators and Representatives and ask them to help make sure long-term care is part of any health care reform package.

When you call, you’ll be joining thousands of people from across the United States who will be calling for the same reason.

Call toll free to (866) 281-7219.  The system will ask you to say your state name and then transfer you to your state’s U.S. senators.

According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 60 percent of Americans over 65 years old will need long term care at some point. Private rooms in nursing homes can cost more than $50,000 a year.

Read a report on long-term care costs HERE.

INSTRUCTIONS:  From 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., please call toll-free to (866) 281-7219. The system will ask you to say your state name and then transfer you to one of your senators. When you get through, tell your senator that HEALTH CARE REFORM MUST INCLUDE LONG-TERM CARE.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has launched a new web site to strengthen the connection between college and university mental health professionals and the Veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts now studying on their campuses.

Many of our newest Veterans are beginning their post-service lives by starting, continuing, or finishing their post-secondary educations, according to Dr. Gerald M. Cross, the Department’s acting under-secretary for health. This initiative is designed to ensure that colleges and universities are able to assist with any special mental health needs their enrolled veterans may have.

The web site, www.mentalhealth.va.gov/college, features recommended training for college and university counselors, with online modules including Operation SAVE for suicide prevention, PTSD 101 and Helping Students Who Drink Too Much. It also will feature a resource list that will be updated regularly.

Although the web site is designed primarily for counselors, it also serves as a resource for Veteran-students who wish to learn more about the challenges they may face in adjusting to their lives after leaving the military.

”We hope counselors and our returning Veterans will find this site helpful and easy to use,” Cross said, “as the site grows, we expect it will become an increasingly valuable resource.”

The new site is one of several new web-based tools the VA has developed to assist our Veterans in dealing with mental health issues. Other veteran aids include a guide for the families of military members returning from deployment and information about a suicide prevention hotline for Veterans.

Researchers at the University of New South Wales have restored vision in patients suffering corneal damage with a ground-breaking technique using contact lenses cultured with the patient’s own stem cells.

Stem cells from the cornea (the thin, transparent barrier at the front of the eye) stick to contact lenses.

Researchers obtained stem cells from the healthy eyes of patients who were blind in one eye. The healthy stem cells were then cultured in extended wear contact lenses for ten days. The surfaces of the patients’ corneas were cleaned and the contact lenses inserted. Within 10 to 14 days the stem cells began to re-colonize and repair the cornea.

The procedure also works in patients who have had both eyes damaged. “One of our patients had Aniridia, a congenital condition affecting both eyes,” said lead author of the study, UNSW’s Dr Nick Di Girolamo. “In that case, instead of taking the stem cells from the other cornea, we took them from another part of the eye altogether – the conjunctiva – which also harbors stem cells.”

Patients that were only able to count fingers at a close distance in front of their eye are now able to read letters on a standard visual chart. The research team isn’t getting over excited, still remaining unsure as to whether the correction will remain stable, but the fact that the three test patients have been enjoying restored sight for the last 18 months is definitely encouraging. The simplicity and low cost of the technique also means that it could be carried out in poorer countries.

“The procedure is totally simple and cheap,” said Dr Di Girolamo. “Unlike other techniques, it requires no foreign human or animal products, only the patient’s own serum, and is completely non-invasive. There’s no suturing, there is no major operation: all that’s involved is harvesting a minute amount – less than a millimeter – of tissue from the ocular surface.”

The World Health Organization estimates that corneal disease could be responsible for 1.5 million people losing sight in one of their eyes every year.

Although at the moment the treatment can only help people with damage to the edge of the cornea, the researchers say it offers hope to people with a range of blinding eye conditions and could have applications in other organs

A paper detailing the breakthrough appears in the journal Transplantation.

Read More Here