Coal Kills

This was originally done for an assignment at school but I thought I would post it up on here:

Greenpeace is trying to bring awareness to the world that coal is killing people. Even the CDC admits that the Appalachian region of Kentucky has the highest amounts of caner deaths in the United States. What is in the Appalachian region of Kentucky? A coal company with rights for open mountain mining. This means that the coal company can blow the top off a mountain to get access to coal veins within that mountain. People that live in this area are given information about their drinking water. This includes information about inorganic contaminants, radioactive contaminants, and other pieces of information. A video on their website shows a violation of maximum contaminant level in the third quarter of 2007 and a warning that it can cause adverse health effects, liver or kidney problems, or nervous effects, and increased risk of getting cancer. The residents of Inez cannot even drink their own water due to the contaminants.

There are massive moral issues with continuing to use coal to power our cities. There are far too many consequences created by coal than it creates. The government has given the rights to companies to destroy our land and poison our people. Allowing people to live anywhere near a power plant that emits toxic carcinogens is wrong in every possible view. Our government cannot allow corporations to put profit before people!

For my community in Idaho we do not have much, if any, reliance on coal energy. Most of our energy is derived from hydro-dams. Because of that I have not seen a coal factory in person, but there are several older homes in the area originally had oil and coal burning furnaces which is about as efficient and toxic as coal burning factories. With our hydro-dams, we have several other problems with environmental impacts, such as migratory fish. With coal not being very readily available anywhere near where we are located it is unlike that coal will ever be used as a power source. We do have some wind farms around the area though, so our state is making a migration toward clean energy.

With the improvement of technologies there is no reason to even need coal for supplying power, heating homes, or production of products. According to Greenpeace, There are options such as solar power, geothermal technology, and wind can provide 96% of our electrical needs as well as 98% of our heating needs. The two energy needs account for almost all of our needs. If this were true why would our government even allow coal mining operations such as the one in Inez, KY operate? The problems that the coal mining is creating for those people is completely immoral, not to mention letting anyone live near a coal plant that emits toxic fumes. The government is allowing corporations to poison people without any consequences. This cannot be allowed any more. It is time that we say enough is enough and start moving toward clean energy. Contact your local politician and let them know you are tired of having coal kill!

Gas Prices

Very recently there was a group on Facebook that was trying to lower gas prices by having a boycott on them for a day. A DAY!? Are you kidding me?! How ignorant are people getting these days? Does no one understand the basics of economics anymore? Let met spell the core concept out for you:

Demand vs. Supply

That's it, it's a direct correlation. Yes it does get more complicated than that but it is simple. The reason for the recent increase in cost is a direct relation of a possible loss of supply. Therefor the suspicion of possible loss drove the price up while demand has stayed the same, possibly even dropped some. The impact of a small group of people not buying gas for one day is not going to impact demand as much as to cause a drop in prices that they all expect. Not to mention even if I was just a mindless freak about joining stupid causes like this that I did join and decided to be a part of the group, it wouldn't have mattered an ounce. I had bought fuel 3 days before. I don't know about everyone else out there but I do not buy gas on a daily or even a weekly basis. I buy gas when the tank is low, that means I buy gas on average of every 10-15 days. Obviously that is dependent on fuel consumption. A more worthwhile cause would have been to say "lets boycott fuel for a week" even at that, with the right timing anyone could easily achieve that by fueling up just before that week and going right through that week without ever needing to buy gas.

I guess the point I am trying to make is that gas is not a commodity for American society. It is a necessity, people buy it as they need it not as they want it. Granted some people need gas to do the things they want to do but that does not mean everyone does. The way people can change the gas prices is by eliminating their gas guzzling vehicles, using high efficiency vehicles such as motorcycles and other small vehicles, cutting out excessive trips using a vehicle, start walking places within reach, if not within walking distance then bike, if possible commute with other people from work, or even use public transportation.

In the future please think about what you are doing before you create something stupid like this day boycott against fuel. You are only making yourself and others look incredibly stupid doing so.

Emergency Room Visit

So this past Tuesday I ended up in the emergency room after getting a prescription for my sinus infection. The funny thing about going to the emergency room was not the actual trip. But rather that the first time my girlfriend and I end up going to the emergency room was for me rather than her. And to even top it off it was because of an allergic reaction. The thing that makes this so amusing is that she is allergic to anything with a milk based product in it. Knowing that I figured our first trip together would have been because she got sick from something she ate or drank. But no, in all my glory I found out that I am allergic to penicillin. And I learned the hard way.

The thing I appreciated the most was that she was there for me, I cannot possibly express how much it meant to me that she was there for me through all of it. It is truly beyond words to express my gratitude. She had dinner and everything planned out for us but I got sick instead and she dropped everything to feed me drugs, drive me there, sit beside me the entire time, buy me dinner at McDonald's, drive me somewhere to attempt to get my prescription filled, find out they were over an hours wait getting it filled, drive me home, and take care of me for the rest of the evening. She is such an amazing woman and I am so thankful to have her in my life.

Thank you my darling.

Lesson Learned, another old poem of mine

Now, life throws me a curve ball, it feels like 2 tons, un-expecting it, all the weight lands on my chest.

Under the pressure, moral values break, life or death is a constant mental battle.

As the pressure is slowly chipped and worked away by friend's words, I find myself in a desert.

This vast desert plane lacks any presence but my own, in which I am finding myself needing guidance but alas, none shows.

The only things I come across is the constant yellow and brown sand.

Constantly mocking me are mirages, memories, and faded oasis'.

These mirages and memories comfort and kill my soul at the same time.

But I must move on through the desert, seeking the next oasis of comfort, and sometimes joy.

As I wonder through the desert, I look back on my life, and realize that this desert is nothing new.

I have always been wondering through it.

I see my smaller foot prints scattered around me, as if I had been there before.

The foot prints are common here, closer to the oasis they are near, but none lead to the same oasis.

I see the oasis of past delights, I want desperately to visit them, but alas, my feet will not take me in that direction.

Another piece of my soul is chipped away.

So I must, as it were, continue through this desert and try and find the next oasis.



As I continue to look back I see that the oasis I loved the most, is but a puddle now, destroyed by another treading on my dreams.

I long so much to stay in its comfort no matter how much the pain hurts me.

But I am not wanted in this place of serenity.

Exiled, I try to move on, looking back, sometimes crying, and sometimes just moping forth through the desert.

The destruction of this oasis hurts the most.

I had hints of its destruction before, but things were looking better, but how would I really have known, I was blinded by love and ignorance.



It seems as if God had placed it there for me to live off of and then destroy me with, almost as a way of punishment for some unknown crime.

The oasis shows me the potential of return in its reflection, however, it is far from ready, and I still am not wanted, so I must move on.

As I stumble through the desert, still blinded by the pain and the tears in eyes, I see no more oasis's ahead of me, or any that I can revisit.

My canteen is running dry, and I fear my knife is become more of a friend every day I travel on without an oasis.

I shall fight till the end, but it is a losing battle, and the victor is near.

Epic Battle, an old poem of mine

Shimmering light flickers off steel blades.
As I and I stand, the night fades.
I see myself and myself sees I.
I don't want to fight for this lie.
How is it that I fight and lose but win?

Why do we, myself and I , need to fight?
The reason of which has long since faded from sight.
Why should I choose to fight myself in this battle?
Why must I try to fight myself in this battle?
If I win will I loose, or simply die here and now?

Fearing death I do not want to lose nor win.
So I shall be in this stailmate till the end.
Or at least as long as I will last
What caused this battle, what memory from the past?
As I and I grow weaker and tired, what shall be the end?

who can answer these questions of mine?
Why are these amature moves so precise and fine?
As I colapse and I swing the blade enters me.
With my final breath and energy I want to flee.
Wih my colapse and I's colapse it is over and darkness sets in.

This is my end, pure darkness and solitude.

My First Protest

So today I went to my first protest. It was a fun experience, mainly because we were the first four there. Us being my girlfriend, her mom, her dad, and myself. Thankfully people slowly started to trickle in after we got there and after about an hour or so there were hundreds of us there. They even setup a podium with a loud speaker for people to voice their opinions. I, of course, did do any speeches. I did however get interviewed by the news and will likely end up on my local news as they showed up before the masses of people decided to make their way from another building where they were making their signs. The only problem with protesting with signs, is if it is raining, like it was, it makes it really difficult to protest and get a clear message across. Overall though, I had fun protesting.