Abe Lincoln vs. MLK

It occurred to me today that there is something a bit strange in the US (well, there are a lot of things...) - As I looked at my spring calender, I noticed that while I had MLK day off... President's day, the cheap amalgamation of Washington and Lincolns birthday... is barely still a holiday (ie, I'm still going in to work...) How can that be? Don't get me wrong, I think MLK day is well deserved. I just don't understand how we can slowly marginalize ol' Abe and George. Maybe putting GW's face on the dollar coin (brilliant! 3rd time is the charm!) was enough this year...?

GOP strategist Frank Luntz

There are some days that you come across something so upsetting that you just want - well, I shouldn't even say that... - First some history, Luntz became notorious in environmental circles in 2003 for a leaked memo he wrote telling Republicans how to green their image. He told Republicans to "make the lack of scientific certainty a primary issue in the debate" over climate change, because "[s]hould the public come to believe that the scientific issues are settled, their views about global warming will change accordingly."

Yet, in his interview he says...

Q. Do you believe that climate change is real and happening?

A. I believe that it is, uh ... I have no solution to it right now.

Q. But is it real and happening?
A. Yes, I believe that it is an issue.

I've tried to write my opinion in a sane and 'nice' way about 20 times now and have just decided to let it go. All I can say is you are a hypocrite and it is sad that someone such as you can have more influence than a thousand scientists...

181 Things to Do on the Moon

I am constantly asked, why bother going back to the Moon. Haven't we already done that? The only people who really ask that are those that haven't really done their research. Even Mars Overlord Bob Zubrin (who is super cool btw), had to admit that going to the Moon first is a reasonable idea. Well, now we Moonies (or is that taken...) have something to pull out and show - Check out this new document, 181 things to do on the Moon. I'll meet you there - tea is at 3.

Overwhelming evidence of human induced climate change

Well, here it is... the Fourth report - No matter how skeptical you are, you simply cannot ignore this report. 400 authors from 40 countries!!! This is not about politics, it's about having a future. If you don't believe, ask yourself why... Who are you supporting? Is that extra profitiablity next quarter really worth it? It's time for some hard choices - and you can either help create a solution or be held accountable... and believe me, you will be...

The world is getting rapidly hotter, and human actions are the driving force behind global warming. This is the conclusion of a report by The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), released on February 2 in Paris. The fourth assessment of its kind by the IPCC, the study builds on past assessments and six years of research by 400 authors from 40 countries.

The report states in a straightforward manner that "global atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide have increased markedly as a result of human activities since 1750 and now far exceed pre-industrial values." The causes of the increase in carbon dioxide concentration is determined to be due to fossil use and land-use changes. Agriculture takes the blame for increases in nitrous oxide and methane.

Globally both land and sea temperatures are rising at an alarming rate. Because the atmosphere is warming, water vapor content has increased since the 1980s because warmer air can hold more vapor. Melting glaciers and polar ices have caused rising sea levels, and annual average Arctic sea ice has shrunk by 2.7 % per decade, increasing to 7.4% in the summer.