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Thomas Paine

To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Ecoposts - and Informed Foreign Policy from CASMII

Saab 99 running on wood gas. Wood gas generato...Image via Wikipedia
Banking Trojan steals money from under your nose

Crimeware gets worse - How to avoid being robbed by your PC
http://blogs.computerworld.com/14806/crimeware_gets_worse_how_to_avoid_being_robbed_by_your_pc
Do online banking from Linux using Firefox. 

GREENPLANETZ
Why Recycle ?


1. Recycling prevents many materials from being wasted by reusing them to make new products.


2. Recycling saves natural resources by reducing the need for more raw materials while making new products.
 
3. About 40% of the waste in the U.S. is paper, but nationwide we only recycle 25-30% of our paper waste.

4. Americans throw away the equivalent of 30 million trees a year, just in newsprint alone.

5. By recycling one aluminum can per day we can save enough energy to power a television for three hours.

6. A glass bottle thrown away today will still be here in the year 3000.

7. Close to 60 billion pounds of plastic is produced every year, and 25% of it is used for packaging food. Two million birds and 100,000 mammals are killed every year due to discarded plastic.

8. The recycling process creates far more jobs than landfills, and recycling can be the least expensive waste management method for most cities.


1. Recycling prevents many materials from being wasted by reusing them to make new products


Mutant bacteria + polyester = more biofuel (MSNBC)
Published:Thu, 27 Aug 2009 23:02:36 GMT
Brewing a certain type of biofuel with a mutant bacteria and polyester could double the fuel's production, researchers have found....

Syntec Biofuel Disturbed by Headlines in Wall Street Journal: US Biofuel Boom Running on Empty (Marketwire)
Published:Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:14:07 GMT
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Aug. 28, 2009) - Syntec Biofuel Inc.'s (OTCBB:SYBF) CEO Michael Jackson addressed the front page headlines in yesterday's WSJ US BIOFUEL BOOM RUNNING ON EMPTY. Jackson is concerned with the impression given out by the media that all Biofuel technologies are equal, which is not true. As a quick lesson Jackson explains, Biodiesel is typically made from ......

Mass. regs could limit definition of biofuel to waste oil (Mass High Tech: The Journal of New England Technology)
Published:Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:06:32 GMT
The state Department of Energy Resources released its version of federal clean energy biofuel regulations last week, which would make biodiesel generated from waste oil the only compliant fuel — leaving out fuels derived from sources such as animal fat, algae or other biomass....

Biofuel station opens in Ashland (Ashland Daily Tidings)
Published:Fri, 28 Aug 2009 00:02:50 GMT
Ashland's first biofuel station is open, offering diesel motorists a self-service fill-up at $3.25 a gallon and manufacturing the green fuel with local recycled grease and fat and locally grown canola seed oils....

Watermelon Juice Makes Great Biofuel (Slashdot)
Published:Thu, 27 Aug 2009 20:44:09 GMT
Mike writes Watermelons are more than just a tasty summer snack — researchers at the USDA have determined that the fruit constitutes a promising and economically viable source of biofuel. It turns out that the relatively high concentration of directly fermentable sugars in watermelon juice can be easily converted into ethanol. Rather than grow fields of the fruit for the purpose, the report ......

Powerful Ideas: Mutant Bacteria + Polyester = More Biofuel (LiveScience.com via Yahoo! News)
Published:Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:16:03 GMT
Editor's Note: This occasional series looks at powerful ideas - some existing, some futuristic - for fueling and electrifying modern life....

Will watermelon rejects be the next biofuel? (Scientific American)
Published:Tue, 25 Aug 2009 23:00:26 GMT
Twenty percent of watermelons never make it to the picnic table. Rather, one in every five is left to ripen and rot in the field, rejected for even the slightest of cosmetic imperfections. But U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) researchers may have found a way to elevate these outcasts to an even higher calling than the summer BBQ: biofuel production. [More]...

EU funds waste biofuel project (the Engineer)
Published:Wed, 26 Aug 2009 08:56:58 GMT
European institutes and companies have begun work on a multi-million Euro effort to develop manufacturing methods for liquid biofuel from agricultural and forestry waste....

EKU gets biofuel research grant (Richmond Register)
Published:Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:21:53 GMT
Eastern Kentucky University students and faculty working to turn algae into energy recently were awarded a $220,000 biofuels research grant through the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund....
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Lithium Supply Fears are Total B.S.

Written by Hank Green on 19/08/09
lithiumionbattery
For some reason, with everyone jumping on the electric vehicle bandwagon, it's becoming really interesting to start comparing lithium to oil. Jerry Flint, in Forbes Magazine, just stated his fear that countries with lots of lithium would create their own OPEC, and thus keep the cost of electric vehicles artificially high.
Others fear that the world's lithium supplies will be quickly depleted and we will find ourselves in a whole new mess.
None of this makes any sense. So here are some reasons why we don't need to create a "strategic lithium reserve," and why, actually, the costs of lithium won't be driving up battery prices.

  1. Lithium is a trivial part of the cost of a lithium-ion battery. The expensive bits par are the mind-bendingly complicated cathodes and anodes that have to be created with extremely complicated chemistry, even nanotechnology. And this is not to mention the active cooling systems that have sent the price of the Volt and the Tesla higher than expected. Every Chevy Volt contains about $180 of lithium. The battery is estimated to cost more than $10,000.

  2. Lithium is not scarce. Currently Bolivia produces about half of the world's lithium but only because their supply is particularly easy to extract, and thus very cheap. But if Bolivia decided to start using their power to drive up prices, economically viable sources of lithium would be found in nearly every country in the world. At 5x the current price, it would be economically viable to extract lithium from seawater. Hopefully we won't have to worry about running out of seawater.

  3. Lithium is not used up inside of batteries. While oil is burned by cars, lithium just sits there and, unless the battery is destroyed in a crash, it will be recycled. It won't however, be recycled for economic reasons, because lithium is too cheap to justify the costs. It will be recycled for environmental reasons, but that doesn't mean the recycling companies (see our story on Toxco) won't be feeding the lithium back into the market.

  4. Once the battery is built, commodity costs cease to matter. With oil, we're all at the mercy of wildly flucuating pump prices. With lithium, on the other hand, you've already got your battery and fuctuating costs of lithium won't affect you until you need a new car (or battery.)

  5. Advanced batteries use less lithium. The better these batteries get, the less lithium is needed per mile of travel. And as technologies get better and more batteries are made, battery prices will drop much faster than increasing lithium costs ever could.
Lithium is literally nothing like oil. I'd say it's apples to oranges, but at least they're both fruits. It's more like comparing apples to underwear. Lithium prices will go up, but battery prices will drop much faster (and likely use less lithium) due to economies of scale and technological advancements.
In short, lithium supplies are the last thing we should be worrying about.

Campaign Against Sanctions and Military Intervention in Iran


Working for International Dialogue and Peace

Former UN Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter Warns Against “Politically Motivated Hype” on Iran Nuke Program

by Scott Ritter (inteview with Open Democracy) (source: Democracy Now) September 30, 2009
Scott RitterScott RitterFormer UN weapons inspector Scott Ritter joins us to discuss what he calls “politically motivated hype” over Iran’s nuclear program. The Obama administration has warned of sanctions unless Iran allows inspections of a newly disclosed nuclear site. Iran insists the site has been used for peaceful purposes. The row comes just after Iran’s test-firing of medium- and long-range missiles and before Iranian officials are due to hold talks with the US and five other nations in Geneva. [includes rush transcript] ››read more

Missile tests nothing to do with new nuke plant, Iran officials say

(source: Monsters and Critics) September 30, 2009
JafariJafariTehran - Iran's missile tests this week had nothing to do with revelations that Tehran is constructing a second uranium-enrichment plant, the commander of the Revolutionary Guards said Tuesday.
››read more

US Story on Iran Nuke Facility Doesn’t Add Up

by Gareth Porter (source: Anti War.Com) September 30, 2009
PorterPorter The story line that dominated media coverage of the second Iranian uranium enrichment facility last week was the official assertion that U.S. intelligence had caught Iran trying to conceal a "secret" nuclear facility. ››read more

Key facts to keep in mind while opposing war against Iran

by Phil Wilayto (source: CASMII) September 29, 2009
Phil WilaytoPhil WilaytoRepresentatives of Iran and six of the world's most powerful countries are scheduled to meet this week in Geneva, one of a series of events that increasingly looks like a rerun of the build-up to the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.
››read more

Obama, the Missile Shield and Iran

by Michael Brenner (source: National Journal Security Expert blog) September 26, 2009
Prof. BrennerProf. BrennerThe White House’s decision to abandon the project for a missile shield based in Eastern Europe raises an intricate set of questions. A full issue of the NATIONAL JOURNAL would be needed to do justice to them. So, I propose simply to lay down a few analytical markers as I see them to help guide the discussion. ››read more

Obama and the West’s Double Standards on Iran

by Kim Petersen (source: Dissident Voice) September 26, 2009
AhmadinejadAhmadinejadA double whammy has hit Iran in recent days. First, much of the western world and western corporate media continued its rude behavior toward Iran through demonization of its president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Second, Iran made known a second uranium enrichment facility in a mountain near the Shiite holy city of Qom for which it has attracted much western criticism ››read more

Iran's Mousavi opposes sanctions against Tehran

(source: AFP) September 28, 2009
TEHRAN — Iran's opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi said on Monday he opposes sanctions against Tehran, ahead of talks between the Islamic republic and world powers over its controversial nuclear programme. ››read more

Iran vows to stick with low-level nuclear enrichment

by Hiedeh Farmani (source: AFP) September 28, 2009
SoltaniehSoltaniehTEHRAN (AFP) – Iran will keep its uranium enrichment level at up to five percent -- much lower than bomb-grade -- its nuclear chief said on Sunday after news of Tehran's new atomic facility sparked a global outcry. ››read more

Enough Rope Yet?

by Gordon Prather (source: Anti-War.com ) September 27, 2009
Security Council Security CouncilBefore President Obama persuaded the UN Security Council to adopt his Resolution 1887, which prominently notes that "enjoyment of the benefits of the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons by a State Party can be assured only by its compliance with the obligations thereunder," someone should have reminded him of an old American proverb that says "Give a man enough rope and he’ll hang himself." ››read more

Iran to put new uranium plant under IAEA supervision

(source: AFP) September 27, 2009
TEHRAN (AFP) – Iran said on Saturday it will put its newly disclosed uranium enrichment plant under the supervision of the UN nuclear watchdog, in a move welcomed by the United States. ››read more

Iran confirms building new enrichment plant

(source: AP) September 26, 2009
SalehiSalehiTEHRAN: The head of Iran’s nuclear programme confirmed on Friday that his country was building a new uranium enrichment plant and suggested that UN inspectors would be allowed to visit the previously secret facility. ››read more

Obama: Iran Is on Notice, Won’t Rule Out Military Action

by Jason Ditz (source: Anti War.Com) September 26, 2009
Citing Iran’s revelation earlier this week that it is constructing a second, smaller uranium enrichment facility, President Barack Obama demanded that the Iranian government “come clean” about his long-standing accusations of a nuclear weapons program, and said he would not rule out attacking the nation if they refused. ››read more

        Editor's note: The West has launched a propaganda campaign of deception against Iran. Since the Qom nuclear site will not be operational for another 18 months, Iran had informed the IAEA of the nuclear plant one year earlier than required by the Safegaurd rules of the agency. Iran therefore has done nothing wrong.

U.S. was aware of ‘new’ Iranian nuke site for years

(source: CNN) September 26, 2009
WASHINGTON (CNN) — The United States was aware of Iran’s unfinished uranium enrichment site for several years, senior U.S. officials told CNN on Friday. ››read more

        Editor's note: Iran has acted completely legally by informing the IAEA of the construction of the Qom nuclear plant 18 months before it is due to become operational. IAEA requires notification only six months ahead of any nuclear material being introduced in the site.

As Required, Iran Informs IAEA About New Enrichment Site

by Jason Ditz (source: Anti War.Com) September 26, 2009
The IAEA only actually requires that it be informed six months before an enrichment facility comes online, and the new site is at least that far from completion. Nuclear material has not been added, and the IAEA says that the data they’ve been given suggests that as with the existing Nanatz facility, the new site is only designed to enrich uranium to 5%, useful for energy production at the nation’s Bushehr power plant but not for military purposes. ››read more

Netanyahu Leads Calls for Harsh Moves Against Iran

by Jason Ditz (source: Antiwar.com) September 25, 2009
Following yesterday’s comparatively brief speech by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, today belonged firmly to the anti-Iran crowd, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu getting the ball rolling on what was a day of calls for harsh action against the nation. ››read more

China opposes Iran nuclear sanctions

(source: AFP) September 24, 2009
BEIJING — China on Thursday reiterated its opposition to sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme, as Tehran came under mounting pressure from world leaders at the United Nations to stop uranium enrichment. ››read more

Iran offers U.S. access to its nuclear scientists

by Glenn Kessler (source: MSBNC) September 24, 2009
UNITED NATIONS - Iran is willing to have its nuclear experts meet with scientists from the United States and other world powers as a confidence-building measure aimed at resolving concerns about Tehran's nuclear program, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday. ››read more

Little Hope for Progress in US-Iran Talks

by Jason Ditz (source: Antiwar.com) September 24, 2009
With just a week left before the ostensibly “landmark” talks between the Iranian government and the US and five other UN Security Council members, speeches from both Presidents Obama and Ahmadinejad suggest there is little prospect for any serious deals coming out of the meeting. ››read more

Beijing begins petrol supplies to Iran

(source: Financial Times) September 24, 2009
Chinese state companies this month began supplying petrol to Iran and now provide up to one-third of its imports in a development that threatens to undermine US-led efforts to shut off the supply of fuel on which its economy depends. ››read more

Former Hostage Urges Negotiations with Iran

by Judith Latham (source: VOA) September 23, 2009
John Limbert has wrestled with the ghosts of his past. He says it's time to move on. Limbert has just published a book in which he urges the United States change its approach toward the government of Iran after 30 years of confrontation. His proposal carries the weight of experience and personal re-evaluation.
››read more


Iran News and Viewpoints

Netanyahu’s UN Speech: The Pathology of Evil by Gilad Atzmon on Sep 30
However this plays out, Iran's leader can claim a win by Arshin Adib-Moghaddam on Sep 29
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: Here We Go Again by Kam Zarrabi on Sep 26
Rafsanjani seeks to heal Iran’s deep rifts by Najmeh Bozorgmehr on Sep 24
AIFC Welcomes President Ahmadinejad to US by American Iranian Friendship Committee on Sep 23
U.S. Shadow Boxing with Iran by Ardeshir Ommani on Sep 20
Clashes show unresolved Iran crisis by Jim Muir on Sep 19
Netanyahu plays a Russian rope trick by Sreeram Chaulia on Sep 15
Iran frees Mousavi aide, human rights lawyer by AFP on Sep 14
Iran panel demands action against Karroubi by AFP on Sep 13

Ask Your Senators to Support Diplomacy with Iran.
Fact Sheets of Iran-US Standoff: Twenty Reasons against Sanctions and Military Intervention in Iran
Give Diplomacy a Chance - Say No to Military Conflict!
Iran’s Civil Society Movement Sets Up "National Peace Council"
International Statement for a Middle East free of all Weapons of Mass Destruction

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