Coal Industry

White House Solar Panels As A Symbol–Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, And Barack Obama

During the administration of President Jimmy Carter, a much maligned President, unappreciated then and now, we had the oil embargo brought on by the Arabs in the Middle East, and Carter decided to promote the concept of solar panels as a better form of long term energy supply than oil, natural gas and coal, seeing the need for a change in US energy policy. This included the establishment of the Energy Department as a new cabinet position.

So Carter arranged in 1979 for installation of solar panels on the White House, a great symbol of our need to change our energy policies.

But seven years later, after much ridicule by the administration of his successor, Ronald Reagan, the solar panels were taken off the White House, as Reagan made clear that he was going to be captive to the oil and coal industries, and concern himself only with their profits, and ignore conservation and the environment, thus helping to accelerate the global warming and climate change crisis, which even now, the Republican Party refuses to accept as reality!

But now, 27 years later, President Barack Obama has reinstalled solar panels, repudiating Reagan and backing Carter in his vision of the energy and environmental future of solar power.

This is to be commended, although the powerful oil, natural gas, and coal industries will continue their lobbying, as their only goal is profit, not concern over the future of the planet.

So the battle over future energy supplies and climate change continues unabated, as the GOP proves yet again, their lack of concern for the long term future, only concerned about capitalistic profit in the present! It is as if they have their heads in the sand, and live in a world of illusion!

The REAL Issues Of 2012 That Are Being Ignored In The Presidential Campaign

If one follows the Presidential campaign of 2012, one would think that ONLY the economy matters.

YES, the economy matters, but the newest jobs report demonstrates that this nation is on the mend, and that over the next Presidential term, the economy will recover, with some experts saying that up to 12 million jobs will be created, whether Barack Obama or Mitt Romney wins the White House on Tuesday.

Others would say the danger of Iran is the major issue, but even on that, it is clear that both Obama and Romney would react similarly to an actual Iranian attack on Israel or any other part of the Middle East.

So the REAL issues are not the economy or Iran!

Instead, they are the following, although ignored in campaign rhetoric:

Climate Change or Global Warming—the reality of it, as demonstrated yet again by Hurricane Sandy, and the need to take the lead in moving away from oil and coal as the major energy resources. But, of course, Republicans and conservatives deny the reality of this threat, and the oil and coal industries do everything they can to protect themselves at the expense of the nation in the long run.

Gun Violence—as demonstrated by what happened so many times in the past few years, including Tucson, Arizona in 2011 to Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords; the mass murders in the Aurora, Colorado movie complex in 2012; the constant murders in cities such as Chicago, often ignored because the victims are African Americans; and so many other cases. And again, the Republicans and conservatives fight any type of gun control, and allow the National Rifle Association to hold America hostage.

Education—the dire need to promote more people attending and graduating four year colleges and universities. Many would say that having a four year degree does not guarantee that one gets the job he wants or needs. While that is true, the unemployment figures make clear that those with a four year degree or more have an unemployment rate under FOUR percent, while those with less education or dropping out of school have an unemployment rate of TWELVE percent! Is there any evidence other than this to convince parents and children of the urgency of getting an education through a four year degree? And besides, there are intangibles other than just getting a degree for a job, such as improving one’s basic skills of reading, writing, and speaking, and improving one’s mind and knowledge; making one a better person in social situations and parent situations; and raising people up from ignorance, conspiracy theory beliefs, and over reliance on religious doctrine, which unfortunately makes many people unwilling to reason for themselves, and just accept gospel as absolute fact. And of course, Republicans and conservatives argue against extra funding and assistance for education, and would prefer to lean on organized religion to “control” the masses, keep them ignorant, and willing, therefore, to accept ideas without questioning or challenge!

The Supreme Court—not understood by many for the important role it plays, and will continue to play, and the urgency of having a President who will select nominees who wish to look to the future, and not the past, and prevent regression politically, socially, and economically back to the Gilded Age and the 1920s. The Republicans and conservatives and Mitt Romney want more Antonin Scalias, Clarence Thomases, and Samuel Alitos, to insure that we go backward for the next 30 years! So the election of Barack Obama is urgent for the future of constitutional law and the preservation of the advancements of the Earl Warren and Warren Burger Supreme Courts.

These issues mentioned above SHOULD be understood before people, who have not voted before Tuesday, vote for our next President, and the best decision for any sane individual is to vote for the candidate who represents a willingness to deal with the future, President Barack Obama!

The Republican Assault On The Environment!

The Republican Party has a heritage of Presidents who promoted the environment, but now it is being totally abandoned by the GOP House of Representatives and the Republican Presidential candidates, in their mad dash to support the oil and coal industries and others which pollute the environment and undermine Americans’ health and well being!

Theodore Roosevelt, while President from 1901-1909, became the supreme conservationist and environmentalist, promoting a quadrupling of national parks, calling conservation conferences at the White House, and working to cut industrial damage to the environment. The historian Douglas Brinkley has written a massive work hailing the environmental commitment of this second greatest Republican President, only ranking behind Abraham Lincoln in historical reputation!

Sixty years after Theodore Roosevelt left office, President Richard Nixon (1969-1974) became a major advocate of the environment, through the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970, and his appointment of former Alaska Governor Walter Hickel as his Secretary of the Interior.

Twenty years after Nixon entered office, President George H. W. Bush (1989-1993) was able to get through the Clean Air Act of 1990, recognizing the great problem that had been created by industry and needing more federal intervention.

And now twenty years after Bush I became President, the party they led is backing away from any concern with the environment. It is not just Rick Perry or Michele Bachmann, but even Mitt Romney, who had earlier backed environmental protection as Governor of Massachusetts, has given up his principles in the pursuit to win the GOP Presidential nomination and appeal to Tea Party looniness! Legislation has been proposed to allow uranium mining in the Grand Canyon, a most reckless action, which thankfully can be prevented by the Democratic controlled Senate and a Democratic President using his veto.

This is a tragedy of massive proportions, and TR and Nixon must be turning over in their graves, and Bush I certainly must be very disturbed privately at the abandonment of the most important heritage America can offer to the future–clean air, clean water, clean soil!