marcus goodfellow’s Recent Comments

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  two sides of the same coin

  Seems like the key phrases in the critique and Dan Engber's rebuttal are "in the same environment" and "in a given population". So some people in America will be fatter than others and that will be due to heritable DNA oriented differences. Comparing obesity levels between our American population and most other populations on the planet would pretty obviously show that our mean level of fatness is higher than most of the other populations. Given the dramatic shift towards chubbiness and beyond over the last few decades it would be hard to say it's DNA driven. We eat more, and much of what we eat is crap.  On The link between obesity and the environment posted 1 year, 3 months ago 16 Responses

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  still in a fog

  I'm with mohoshe, how come 1-4 people in a car makes no difference in carbon emissions, but each additional person in a plane raises the carbon footprint for the flight? I know my car uses more gas when I drive from Portland to Seattle with 4 people in it, albeit far less than 4 cars with one person would, and I am sure a full plane would require more fuel than an empty one, but it seems like the change between one additional plane passenger would be a negligible increase in the overall weight of the flight. Also, it seems like this is also a question of infrastructure as well, if everyone suddenly quit flying from any city within a 300 mile radius of Boston, the resulting traffic jams would considerably increase the caron footprint of the drive. So a few of us can feel better about our own carbon footprints but it doesn't seem to be a real solution. It would seem that the train is by far the best option overall. On Umbra on driving versus flying posted 1 year, 4 months ago 10 Responses

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  Bigger isn't always better

  In regards to the size of the conventional bananas vs. organic bananas it might be helpful to consider size in a different way. Organic fruit usually has a "bigger" flavor. I work in the wine industry, a unique sector of the agricultural industry, because we are trying to produce more flavor, rather than more fruit. Most of the clonal selections we have in the vineyard are, at least partially, oriented towards smaller berries, since these have a better skin to juice ratio, but also better flavor in the grapes in general. I never buy conventional bananas anymore, because all too often they are bland and tasteless, regardless of how big and beautiful the fruit looks. On Umbra on organic bananas posted 1 year, 8 months ago 22 Responses

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  Thanks Wolverine

  Thanks for the clue to a bank that is worth getting a credit card from. I don't want many of the "green cards" that are becoming available because they are still supporting big business and banks that are only interested in squeezing more money out of people and pulling ridiculous financial highjinks.
  Some basic math, credit cards offer a 1% "green" reward, then charge the business 2+% in fees, then charge you interest on your account, unless you pay it off monthly (in which case you're in the vast minority of Americans these days.)Probably it would be better just to buy your own carbon offset and try to use a credit card as little as possible. Most of the 1% rewards are just lures that cost you and the businesses forced to accept  your choice of a credit card form of payment more money in the long run. While I don't harbor any love fo Walmart, I don't shop there, and don't care how much chase or cit gouge them for. I don't feel the same way about my choices in green companies.
  If you you're thinking of getting any credit card, green or otherwise, also look to see what the penalties are. Do the interest rates jump from 9% to 28% if you miss a payment? Is the late fee approaching $40? While "life takes VISA" these days it seems VISA does not put up with much from life. If my interest rate jumps 10% will my carbon offset "reward" increase too? Sad, since we are the customers. Small and local will almost always be a better bet, even if the local bank doesn't send a pretty 4 page, 4 color flyer junk mailer to your door on a monthly basis to tell you about the new "green" card.  
  Green choices are often pricier alternatives than conventional choices and using a credit card at all forces those prices higher because of the service fees charged by even the greenest of banks. Most small companies still accept CASH!(Sigh, remember when cash was king.) I like to pay for things these days with my "green"backs...Sorry, couldn't help myself. On Range of green credit cards offer carbon offsets for purchases posted 1 year, 9 months ago 7 Responses