chuck kottke

They're up there in years, but as far as I know, they're alright! Anyhow, great music, and for all the right reasons - I still listen to their stuff. Folk songs sung with great feeling - "it's a battle cry of freedom, of justice, of all the brothers and the sisters, all over this land.."

I thought this might be an interesting topic to discuss! I began a quest to see what 10 billion people would actually look like, and it turns out that if we all stood within two feet (roughly 2/3 meter) of one-another, and stood in formation, the marching square for 10 billion (projected human population in a few years) would only be 75 miles, or ~120 kilometers, on a side. Putting this to scale on a map gives us some perspective to how big humanity is, if we were seen from above.. And then, calculating the productivity of my garden, assuming I live in an average area of North America for climate and soil fertility, it takes about 1/6th of an acre (1/15th hectare) for the grain portion of my diet, and another 1/6th of an acre for everything else. 1/6th of an acre works out to a garden plot that's 50 feet by 150 feet (15 meters by 45 meters), to put that into perspective. Extrapolating that by 10 billion, the area required (land only) to feed 10 billion of us then works out to 5.4 million square miles (or 8.7 million square kilometers). To put it into perspective, North America has an area of roughly 8.1 million square miles (13 kilometers square). So, the productive farmland in North America, plus dry lands irrigated with desalinated sea water would pretty much be able to feed 10 billion people (if only it were that simple!). On a practical level, obviously no one continent nor region will be providing all the food, but it does offer up the idea of making it possible to live quite well on our planet, if we make sound intelligent choices about how we achieve global stability. Of the problems we face, the questions arise about food distribution and use. Roughly 1/3rd of the grain produced here goes to feed livestock for meat production, thus cutting off a fair share of the available grain to be put on the market at an affordable level for those in food-scarce regions, so if more people decided to voluntarily eat more vegetable foodstuffs (beans, whole grain foods, etc.), then a full third more of the food production could be freed up for supplying those in need. And then there's the bio-fuel issues - devoting more food grains for alcohol and oilseed fuels is taking some of the food out of the market. While some contend this is a bad thing, I think it isn't so much that we're diverting a great deal towards fuel uses, it's that we use the energy we have so inefficiently first off, and secondly we eat too much meat here in the developed world. Solving the last two issues makes enormous sense, then devoting perhaps 10% of the cropland to fuel production would be insignificant in it's impact on available food. (plus there would be fewer clogged arteries in the West:P)... But getting back to the gardening issue.. It just makes good sense. If everyone who has a lawn or yard, or available space, raised their own food (even a portion of it), we would greatly lessen our environmental footprint. No need to "plow" tons of fuel and fertilizer into the input side of agriculture with a garden - till once, fertilize with compost, plant, water, weed, and amend with diluted urea. Locally produced, there's no need for energy in shipping, handling, extra fertilizer (since the waste is composted & added back), and the nutritional value is superior to anything off a shelf. The savings alone is enormous - $2,000 a year, by my estimate, off the food budget for a family. With the best energy-efficient freezers or food dehydrators, it's quite easy to store the produce for year-round use, and energy costs kept to a minimum. But in terms of global demand - solar desalinated sea water is the key. Dry regions have all they need, if only they could put it to use: Sun & Sea. Solar energy peaks in the mostly cloud-free equatorial regions, where annual average solar radiation exceeds 6 kilowatt-hours per square meter per day, and the oceans can provide vast quantities of water for irrigation if the water is obtained carefully, and the remaining brine is dried for use as table salt or for ceramic glazes. Vast desert regions, presently growing as the planet warms and soil erodes could be re-converted into the wet, lush regions they once were, and the area turned into a net food exporter, with a population of well-off farmers, if we put our efforts into making this become reality. Population growth tapers off when prosperity and stability goals are achieved, and a flourishing of commerce and economic improvement can happen, if we "prime the pump" in equatorial desert regions. Anyhow, just my ramblings - please tell me what your thoughts are!;)

:rolleyes::laugh3: Death and all His Bookmarks.:P (computer death, that is..)

Where do the Black Crows fit into the scheme of things?

and tell me, did you fall from a shooting star, one without a permanent scar, did you find that heaven is overrated, and the lights are all faded..

wondering if India needs the gold at the bottom of the sea, along the ridge - perhaps if it were done with care, it could be obtained.. but perhaps more important is everything else that everyone seems to pass by as less important... like clean water, sanitation, etc.

Are children the future of the world? Hmm.. we're all the future of the world I'd have to say, along with the planet and the life on it.. It's all a work in progress - as the old saying goes, in 2 dimensions it looks like we're just going in circles, but when you look at it in the third & fourth, it's actually a spiral moving forward in spacetime...

Yes we can eat spam.:P

I was listening to Styx & REO Speedwagon - roll with the changes.:)

shiny happy people laughing!

I'll take a gander at Debussy, but I re-discovered Gershwin recently, and now it's one of my all-time favorites: - Rhapsody in Blue:[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhj9W9CoNfQ]YouTube - Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue - Part 2[/ame]

Yes we can eat crunchy carrots fresh from the garden (Michelle Obama says so.:P).

Friday night's main event here is?

? Game? I was thinking - are we just to be momentarily excited and moved by current event after current event, or will we collectively ever get to the root of things?

:rolleyes:Is static electricity involved?:P Shocked at, or by, what?

Hey comeon guys! Want to stop the unjust wars? End poverty? Reign in the high rollers wrecking the economy? It all boils down to getting an honest government - central to being the ref in the game, and directing our efforts in the world.. Give me some feedback here! (ppplease!:))

and click the heels of your ruby slippers three times, and you'll be back home from OZ!:P Maybe a better approach would be, "how to live in a more peaceful, just, enlightened, enjoyable, and sustainable world. Please think deeply, read widely, and follow your conscience":laugh3: The wheel of life just keeps a spinnin' a round..

Nick, you're most welcome!! In trying to get to the heart of the matter and find a way out of the vicious circle we've been in, I began to probe the possible reform strategies to regain true representative governance. Here are my musings thus far: Approaches to Reform; the Paths towards True Representation: 1.) Supporting Honest Candidates: As a starting point, organizing for candidates that accept only small campaign donations from real citizens within their districts would help improve the odds of getting true representation through broad bases of support. To make it work, a very effective campaign highlighting honesty through broad support of the everyday men and women in society would draw citizen interest, and keeping the donations below an amount affordable to all average citizens would ensure that the interests of the whole, not a wealthy minority with special interests of their own, would be served. The best option might be to offer the support only if the candidate signs an agreement that the money thus collected will only be offered to that candidate's campaign account if they agree to not accept any money from donations over an acceptable limit (say, $200 for instance in a congressional race), and all donations must be from real citizens living within that district. No cash from PAC's, corporate donations, or any other bundled funds. In essence, if money buys influence, then that influence should come from the broadest base possible, so that the aggregate will of the citizens is expressed through the actions of the lawmaker. 2.) Mount a grass-roots awareness campaign to put pressure on elected officials to pass meaningful and carefully worded campaign finance reform measures into law. Make doubly sure that the reform is carefully and thoughtfully written, and not tampered with in committee. 3.) Support grass-roots efforts to open up part of the radio & television broadcast airtime to provide free and equal access to candidates running for office. This essentially levels the playing field for all candidates, and the broadcasters owe the public this right in return for their privileged use of the broadcast frequency spectrum - our commons. 4.) As the numbers of candidates in office that have the broad support of citizens in their districts grows, begin by introducing an amendment to the Constitution stating our Rights to Fair Elections and Fair Campaigns, as the right to fair contests for office is as critical as the right to vote, the rights by which all other rights are protected. 5.) Also, honest elected officials can start to reassert our rights to the commons, and re-establish the checks and balances necessary for proper government & market regulation, including expanded anti-trust laws & enforcement, protection of the commons (water, air, frequency spectrum, public lands, et. al.), and greater safeguards against conflicts of interest. No more Wall-Street/Washington revolving doors, no more paid lobbyists having direct and preferential access to politicians without a citizen's advocate & reporter at all meetings. No more allowing industry insiders to head or staff government agencies with "yes" men, no more monopolistic or oligopolistic industries - they need to be broken up to avoid the excess concentration of power and corruption that ultimately follows. Trade deals brokered in as honest and equitable way as is possible, and a safety net for all workers.

The main thing to me is how the information/images/details are obtained. If it's found while the band members are in the public arena, and if during a private moment permission is granted to some photographer/journalist, then I would say that's fine. But information obtained by spying on people in their private residences, that's a definite wrong. George Orwell presaged those sorts of problems, and not just for famous people - for all of us, really!

Welcome aboard the board, David! What's the news from Nashville?

I would recommend living in denial! But I was just thinking about what it takes to make all this stuff go - really, quite an amazing effort by dedicated, intelligent people working the bugs out, getting stuff to come off the production lines, etc..

kermitflail? Is that a new word?? Sounds like newspeak to me!:)

Mildly Tense: This occurs when neighbors drop by unexpectedly. Moderately Tense: This occurs when neighbors drop by unexpectedly at 3AM. Very Tense: This occurs when neighbors drop by unexpectedly at 3AM with some bad news to tell you. Extremely Tense: This occurs when neighbors drop by unexpectedly at 3AM to tell you that your home's roof has just caught on fire! :) (just kidding around!)

(for the TV Question): not lately, but I understand the feeling! We all use computers today, so name three logic gates.:P

Was I dreaming it all?