Petey's
Pipeline E-zine
Issue #32
June 5, 2006
Contents
Business
First Danger Signs
Random Ramblings & Miscellaneous Musings
The Case for Hemp Legalization: Energy Independence
Write Thinking Commonly Confused
or Misused Words (Part III)
Business
First (Editorial)
Danger
Signs
by Phil Hanson
The
U.S. economy is showing signs of slowing down. Job growth is
off and the once volatile housing market, former rocket fuel
for an expanding economy, is in the process of turning to water.
With
the war in Iraq and a soon-to-be war in Iran propelling a runaway
federal budget deficit, with the national debt at record levels,
with the boomer generation—some 70 million of us—poised
to retire over the next 20 years, the national economy is in
a heap of trouble.
But,
wait! These are just the beginnings of our problems. Let's not
forget the looming energy, healthcare and education crises,
not to mention the threat-to-our-democracy crisis. We're also
running up a tab on the immigration crisis, and still paying
for last year's Katrina crisis.
Now,
add in tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, and the fiscal
disaster hanging over our heads has the potential to make a
full-blown natural disaster look like disaster relief.
That
we're a people living on credit in a nation running on empty
only adds to my sense of imminent peril. The strength and stability
of the U.S. economy looks less strong and less stable, today,
than it did, yesterday.
Hey,
I'm no economist, nor am I a financial wizard. In fact, I'm
hard-pressed to make a convincing argument that I'm gainfully
employed. However, I am smart enough to know that at some point
the bills come due. Sheesh! Bush's spend-and-spend republicans
make tax-and-spend liberals look like geniuses.
Thank
you, President Bush. We'll remember you, not for what you did
for us, but for what you did to us.
Copyright
© 2006 by Phil Hanson
All rights reserved.
• • •
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Let's not defeat that purpose by being hasty or becoming careless.
Random
Ramblings & Miscellaneous Musings
The
Case for Hemp Legalization: Energy Independence
by Phil Hanson
In
a world where demand for energy is increasing at the same time
supplies of fossil fuels are decreasing, finding and developing
alternative energy resources and implementing better energy
use strategies become social, political and economic imperatives.
Without energy, there will be no food security, no economy,
and no way to provide logistical or materiel support for military
defense (or, if you're George Duhbya Bush, military offense).
Dependency
on foreign oil is problematic in that oil-exporting countries
can hold hostage the countries they export to. They literally
have the ability to interrupt an energy-dependent nation's food
supply or destroy its economy at will. No nation that values
its autonomy and sovereignty can long tolerate such circumstances.
Since
the U.S. reached peak domestic oil-production capacity in 1970,
the country has engaged in a long downhill slide, on an ever
steeper and more slippery slope, toward total dependence on
foreign oil. Fortunately, the pending energy crisis is not a
problem without remedies. Imagination, motivation and determination
can solve most problems once affected citizens become sufficiently
inspired.
It
would be shortsighted and foolish to adopt one particular energy
strategy to the exclusion of all others. Any unanticipated problem
leading to the interruption of a nation's energy supply could
leave that nation vulnerable to all sorts of secondary problems.
Equally
shortsighted and foolish is the belief that we can continue
to increase our country's population and still maintain our
current per capita energy demand. There are limits to everything,
and the sooner we accept this inescapable truth the sooner we
can get on with building a sustainable culture fully supported
by adequate energy supplies.
An
arsenal of strategies for attaining energy independence might
include restricting population growth, initiating strict energy
conservation policies, and reducing energy demands and consumption
by increasing automobile fuel economy standards, reducing automobile
use, making wider use of public transportation and alternative
transportation methods. More efficient appliances, insulating
materials and building designs will help reduce energy consumption,
too.
Redesigning
cities for maximum efficiency and livability is high on the
priority list for socioeconomic overhaul. So, too, is developing
sustainable economics, sustainable lifestyles, sustainable culture.
To
reach these goals requires a firm commitment to conservation,
and to using energy wisely and well. It means recapturing previously
wasted energy and diverting it to productive ends. It means
learning to take all of our energy from renewable sources, which
include solar, wind, biomass and water.
Agriculture will take on renewed importance as it seeks to fill
the void left behind by depleted fossil fuels. Biofuels—ethanol
and biodiesel—manufactured from corn, soy, hemp, rapeseed,
algae, and other oil-or-cellulose-producing crops can be grown
and processed locally for local consumption. It's only a matter
of time until home-gown energy replaces imported energy.
True energy independence demands a reawakening of social responsibility,
a new awareness of obligation to self, family and community.
It demands a renewed commitment to change, and a willingness
to make tough decisions, face new challenges and endure hardship
and deprivation unknown to a majority of Americans for the last
three generations.
An
era known for rapid technological and economic advances made
possible by cheap oil is drawing to a close. It does not necessarily
mean an end to civilization, only an end to civilization as
we've known it. Solar carrying capacity will define the
upper limits of population growth and set the pace for a sustainable
economy.
The
future is coming, but we need not let it overtake us unawares.
Sure, we'll need to upgrade our values and downgrade our expectations,
but so what? Think of it as the beginning of a new Renaissance
and a new generation of Renaissance men and women.
A
new wave of creative energy is poised to unleash a wealth of
practical ideas for furthering mankind's cultural and socioeconomic
evolution, for restructuring its sociopolitical underpinnings.
For all of that, there are still people who will first deny
and then resist the inevitability of change. For them, the status
quo is not something to be tampered with.
It
would seem, then, that what we face is not so much an energy
crisis as it is a crisis of mind. But, as it has always been,
wherever the people lead, the politicians will follow.
Copyright
© 2006 by Phil Hanson
All rights reserved.
Write
Thinking
Commonly
Confused or Misused Words (Part III)
Often,
when writers confuse word meanings due to similarities of spelling
or sound, they unintentionally use the wrong word. The resulting
misuse of a word introduces ambiguity and confusion into one's
writing and calls the writer's credibility into question. You
can avoid these embarrassing mistakes by becoming familiar with
the words that frequently cause problems. Learning the spelling,
meaning and accepted usage of these commonly confused and misused
words will make you a better, more credible writer.
Here
are a few more examples to raise your level of expertise:
affect (verb; to influence) How will his speech affect
his chances for election?
effect
(noun; result or outcome) What effect did his speech
have on his constituents?
• • •
among
(used when more than two are involved) The profits were divided
among the investors.
between
(used when only two are involved) Angie and Michelle divided
the profits between them.
• • •
amount
(used in context of something that can't be counted, except
for money) He had a large amount of marijuana stashed
in his basement. The amount of its value came to over
$50,000.
number
(used in context of things that can be counted) The number
of grams in each bag was exactly 3.5.
• • •
bad
(adjective; defective, disagreeable, offensive) She had a bad
attitude.
badly
(adverb; bad manner) She behaved badly during the rally.
• • •
continual
(occurs regularly, but with interruptions) Their continual
bickering drives me crazy.
continuous
(occurs without interruptions) The continuous roar of
the diesel engine adversely affected everyone's ability to hear.
• • •
fewer
(used for things that can be counted) Fewer than 20 people
attended the meeting.
less
(used for things that can't be counted) The challenger has less
charisma than the incumbent.
Look
for more commonly confused words in the next issue.
Copyright
© 2006 by Phil Hanson
All rights reserved.
Disclaimer
The
articles appearing in Petey's Pipeline E-zine are based on information
believed to be true at the time of publication.
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