Alternative Energy Daily News - March 16, 2007

• Forward-thinking city officials in Vista, CA have approved a special use permit which allows Envirepel Energy Inc., to move forward with the balance of the permits required to finish construction of its renewable, bio energy facility and begin operation of it for an initial 18-months.

• New Jersey Resources, parent company to one of the state's largest natural-gas suppliers, has pledged to aggressively reduce its greenhouse-gas emissions as part of efforts to fight global warming.

• A long-awaited MIT study on the future of coal says the technology needed to capture greenhouse gas emissions from plants and store them underground apparently is sound, and urged Congress to swiftly pass controls on gases that contribute to global warming.

• The Alliance to Save Energy today joined other energy-efficiency advocates and light bulb giant Philips Lighting North America in a coalition to advocate for policies that will transform the U.S. marketplace to energy-efficient lighting products by 2016.

• Out of the ashes of the Internet bust, many technology veterans have regrouped and found a new mission in alternative energy: developing wind power, solar panels, ethanol plants and hydrogen-powered cars.

General Immorality

Marine General Peter Pace, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in a newspaper interview on Monday that homosexual acts between adults are immoral, and the military should not condone it by allowing gays to serve openly in the armed forces. He said that "I do not believe the United States is well served by a policy that says it is OK to be immoral in any way." OK great, immorality is bad, and it should not be condoned by this country. But what is immorality? It is obviously the opposite of morality, and according to Merriam Webster the definition of morality includes "conforming to a standard of right behavior".

So morality is conformance to a standard of right behavior. Great. Now, lets take Gen. Pace’s logic a little further. He says that the U.S. is not served by a policy that says it is OK to be immoral "in any way." OK, great again. But would he apply this standard to war? War represents a complete breakdown of civility. With it come the death of both combatants and innocents and barbarity on a widespread scale. Because of this, many people feel that a war fought by a country, not to defend itself against an aggressor nation or one that is imminently ready to attack, but for other reasons, is immoral. Shouldn’t it then be the policy of the U.S. not to engage in a immoral war?

I submit that to attack a country that never attacked you on the basis of lies is immoral. I submit that a war fought not for reasons of national self defense but for reasons of profit and to maintain the flow of a commodity (i.e. oil) is immoral. I submit that a war fought against a country with a vastly inferior army to show who is the toughest badass on the block is immoral.

I submit, therefore, that the Iraq war is immoral.

So I would ask the good General to apply his own standards to this war. The Iraq war is immoral. This country should not countenance, let alone start and engage in, an immoral war. So, General, stop worrying about conduct engaged in by consenting adults that harms no one. Worry about the immoral conduct of your country that is harming tens of thousands.

- Jeff Bloomfield

Alternative Energy Daily News - March 12, 2007

• The Washington state Senate overwhelmingly approved a climate-change bill Saturday that has won the embrace of utilities and environmental groups for curtailing the market for power produced by coal technologies.

• California is no longer alone in its campaign against climate change. The nation's most populous state, after passing a landmark law last year to slash industrial greenhouse gas emissions 25 percent by 2020, has joined with Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington to address what some are calling one of the planet's most serious threats.

• The two most influential groups in the home building industry and the code development and enforcement community are collaborating to bring uniformity to sustainable building practices.

• The JPMorgan Environmental Index-Carbon Beta, jointly launched by JPMorgan and Innovest Strategic Value Advisors, is the first bond index designed to address the risks of global warming.

• Responding to growing concern from Madison, WI area residents about global warming, Madison Gas & Electric will triple the size of its green-power pricing program and reopen the program to new customers.

• Japan is spending as much as $8 billion to buy minority stakes in 40 ethanol distilleries across Brazil, a Brazilian newspaper reported.

Thompson Trouble

According to an AP report this past weekend, former Senator Fred Thompson (R-TN) is considering entering the GOP presidential race. Thompson would be a formidable opponent. He is a powerful speaker, has experience, and he obviously has the star power lacking in any of the current GOP candidates. At first blush he may seem to be the lesser of the evils if you have to have a Republican president. He may even seem to be as good as a conservative Democrat. The problem with Thompson, however, is that when you look at his views, he can't even be considered a moderate Republican (if such a thing even exists anymore). According to the story, Thompson:

_Is "pro-life," and believes federal judges should overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade abortion rights decision as "bad law and bad medical science."

_Opposes gay marriage, but would let states decide whether to allow civil unions. "Marriage is between a man and a woman, and judges shouldn't be allowed to change that."

_Supports the escalation in Iraq. He says that mistakes happen in war, and you rectify things, which he thinks is what we are doing now.

_Opposes gun control, and praised last week's 2-1 federal appeals decision overturning a long-standing handgun ban. "The court basically said the Constitution means what it says, and I agree with that."

_Would pardon former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby's conviction for perjury and obstruction of justice now, rather than waiting until all his appeals are exhausted. Thompson is a fundraiser for Libby's defense.

I guess I was lulled by his booming voice and his forceful presence into thinking that he is something that he is not. I even voted for him when he ran for the senate. But Thompson, if elected, and if he holds to his current views, could be not only one of most conservative presidents that we have had but also one of the most persuasive and effective. He could be Bush with a brain and a silver tongue. And that could be real trouble.

- Jeff Bloomfield

Impeach Gonzalez

"On Thursday, Senator Arlen Specter, the senior Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, hinted very obliquely that perhaps Mr. Gonzales’s time was up. We’re not going to be oblique. Mr. Bush should dismiss Mr. Gonzales and finally appoint an attorney general who will use the job to enforce the law and defend the Constitution."

The rantings of the liberal blogosphere? Crazy talk by the fringe leftist wing of the Democratic Party? No, that's today's editorial page of the New York Times. Now, I know that certain "Anonymous" readers would argue that the Times is nothing but a liberal rag anyway. And that's fine, those fine patriots can enjoy getting constant Terror Alert updates while watching Fox News all day.

We understand that the simple fact that the nation's most important newspaper is calling for AG the AG to be let go doesn't mean that Bush is going to listen. He never does. Nevertheless, the fact that a senior Republican Senator like Arlen Specter is hinting that Gonzalez's removal is a possibility, along with the Times is calling for his dismissal, is significant.

As more and more citizens become aware of the multitude of current scandals involving the Department of Justice, Congress needs to be prepared to impeach Alberto Gonzalez and force Bush to replace him with someone both competent and willing to protect the Constitution.

Update: This morning on CBS’s Face the Nation, Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer (NY) called on Gonzalez to resign. Watch the video here.