Some stories I have been interested in…

I am bt1980 in the comments, if you wanted to know…

Ont. to spend $2 billion on road repairs

The end of food

Internet protesters descend on Ottawa

NDP to Introduce Net Neutrality Bill

New power plant to tackle Toronto’s energy needs

China’s All-Seeing Eye: Rolling Stone – by Naomi Klein

My Idea: Envirobags Borrowed for $1 Refundable Deposit…

This idea was inspired by the LCBO and Beer Store:
http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/story/2008/05/27/lcbo-bag.html

Can any of you relate to this? I frequently find myself on the way home from work and passing the grocery store only to randomly remember that i need a few items. The problem is that I have forgotten my reusable cloth bags at home.

If the store offer plastic bags, I can carry my loot home; but my eco-chic neighbours will look down their noses at me. However in an increasing number of neighbourhoods (example the Milton Loblaws Real Canadian Superstore), they have stopped stocking plastic pouches. Now they sell the reusable cloth bags for $1 a piece.

If I have a growing supply of $1 cloth bags at home; but I happen to be passing by and thought of some items to purchase; but it was not a planned shopping trip it would be nice to have a temporary carrier…

I would like to propose an idea to all retailers:

Where I come from, this is known as a ’security exploit’

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,2306948,00.asp?kc=PCRSS03129TX1K0000625

This is a link to an article entitled, “Use a Vista Restore Point to Log On to a System [using older credentials stored in said restore point]“

Does anybody else see something wrong with this? For example, what if you changed your password to something new because your old one was exploited?

The differences between an urban and suburban mindset

Toronto as a whole needs to make the following mindset changes:

1) The population density is too high to rely on cars as primary transport… does anybody study other cities? London, New York, Tokyo?
2) Cost and space efficient mass transportation – not more parking lots and roads – parking lots and roads space things out and make unwalkable distances
3) Dedicate lanes, a new subway line, or somehow make transit less affected by personal vehicle traffic

Putting a higher priority on transit development than on more roads will have the following benefits:

A Humbling Experience

This weekend (May Long Weekend 2008), I had a chance to slip away from the campfire and sit on the dock for a bit. I stared at the sky. The full moon was brightly shining, illuminating the edges of clouds that were racing by and making the surface of the lake sparkle. At that distance, the crackling of the campfire and the conversation of the other people around had faded away.

Check Before Spelunking

The US Department of Energy has funded research into capturing carbon dioxide emissions and storing them in underground caves.  The article is linked here.

This sounds like a band-aid if I have ever heard one. If stored in gaseous form, this plan will literally and figuratively encounter many leaks.

The capture of carbon to be converted into different compounds such as chaulk (precipitated calcium carbonate), baking soda or to grow algae and plants all sound like better long term goals to supplement the primary goal of reducing overall emissions.

Gas Pains

his is some news from CityNews today. Some citizens are calling on the government to subsidize fuel costs that are becoming very high ($1.25/L in Southern Ontario and up to $1.37/L in other parts of Canada). There are a couple of problems with this idea:

1. Citizens pay the taxes from which subsidies are derived… so subsidizing fuels costs at the pump is essentially what I like to call a “reverse-Robin Hood” by taxing everybody and then putting that money into the pockets of the people who drive the most (multiple vehicle owners)… and potentially cutting into the pie from which government employees, social/educational, and medical services personnel are paid
2. As prices continue to rise, subsidization is only a band-aid solution to stop the hurt now; but prevents the red-flag from being raised regarding the larger issue of improving the fuel economy of daily life. People should have commute times under an hour. Urban dwellers should almost all be able to use transit to get to work, school, or do grocery shopping. 

The Ugly Duckling

I saw this posted on Torontoist and thought it was a great shot.

Credit to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/missyv110/2461872040/in/pool-torontoist/

An Agnostic Stance on Global Warming

There appears to be some controversy and mixed signals coming from the media that question the reality and/or the human impact on Global Warming. I am not a scientist, so it can be confusing when there is conflict on a topic I cannot fully understand. Maybe Global Warming is not the most immediate issue.

I have to think about the indisputable facts and concepts that I already do have a grasp on and what kinds of problems can be extrapolated from ‘human-progress’ continuing, unchecked:

1. The Earth is finite in size and resources
2. The human population is growing at exponential rates
3. Smog and pollution have affected my personal health
4. The molecules we need for food are composed of the same elements as the molecules we need to make goods out of AND those are made from the same elements that we burn for fuel
5. Every single thing in my life consumes hydrocarbons or carbohydrates