Comments swozniak has made

  • Divine and Dagoba

    I'd like to recommend Divine Chocolate, too. http://www.divinechocolateusa.com/

    Also, Dagoba has been bought by Hershey's and Green and Black by Cadbury Schweppes. On A review of six eco-chocolate brands, for your Valentine's pleasure posted 1 year, 9 months ago 9 Responses

  • Rainforests and carbon offsets

    #23 (because it's a cool number!).

    More people will contribute to carbon offsets, but overlook news that only re-planting  tropical rainforests (not Northern Hemisphere forests) will help capture excess CO2.

    So adopt an acre from Nature Conservancy.

    Shawn http://thegoodthebadandthegreen.com

    On Every one destined to be 100% correct posted 2 years, 11 months ago 25 Responses

  • I have an idea.

    And, if you've the means, feel free to capitalize on it.

    Why don't we push the automakers to work the price of carbon offsets into the purchase/lease of a new vehicle?

    Shawn http://thegoodthebadandthegreen.com

    On American automakers stuck with unsold gas-guzzlers posted 2 years, 11 months ago 5 Responses

  • Good advice

    Don't feed the trolls. Brilliant.

    Tolerance ceases to be tolerance when it crosses its bounds. We can't change everybody's minds, just be the best we can be and hope they like our example.

    Shawn http://thegoodthebadandthegreen.com

    On Ignore them posted 2 years, 11 months ago 21 Responses

  • Which probably translates to:

    "Don't attack our industry too much and 'hinder our economic progress' and we'll work with you on the environment."On Bush tacitly acknowledges he's lost on the environment posted 2 years, 12 months ago 4 Responses

  • Taking a line from any economics professor,

    classical, Keynesian, or Friedman-influenced...

    "If it's not profitable, you must close the business."

    My microeconomics professor was going over (last week) that the 'big bad oil companies' (his sarcasm, not mine) contribute something 41% of their profits to gov't taxes. In essence, they get these back through these tax cuts. So we're subsidizing, with our tax dollars, the largest corporation in the world, who essentially screws us over by generously inflating oil futures on Wall Street. $36 billion in profits, and they're hurting?

    Wish I had $36 billion in profits. I might be able to buy myself some lobbyists to debunk their lobbyists and scientists on Capitol Hill so we can finally get these guys in line on global warming.

    Shawn
    http://thegoodthebadandthegreen.comOn What a jerk posted 2 years, 12 months ago 3 Responses

  • Eh

    I'm all for anybody who can influence anybody else to support the environment to continue to do so. Hollywood is made up of people, the same as us (with higher pay grades, sure) and we shouldn't discount people supporting the common good, regardless of occupation.

    Good on you for saying this bit:

    "Movement conservatism has spent the last 30 years consciously and strategically demonizing powerful progressive constituencies: unions, lawyers, the entertainment industry, academia, and the entire city of San Francisco. It has been extraordinarily successful in this effort, establishing a number of narratives and stereotypes so ubiquitous that even progressives have come to internalize them."

    Brilliant and true. And it's really exhausting coming up with 'excuses' for the people who use this as their dogma to debunk what progressives say, support, and do. It's a good effort, one that needs to be undertaken, but it's a step backward all the time when our efforts could be spent elsewhere. Stupid movement conservatism - it's brilliant at distracting us from our true goals for a moment.On Let's posted 2 years, 12 months ago 15 Responses

  • Re; Biofuels from GMOs

    I presume a lot. The move toward sustainable and organic agriculture is slow in the larger commercials farms that supply a lot of the feedstocks for biofuels. Corn is damaging to the soil as grown in American conventional agriculture, especially when laden with large amounts of pesticides and herbicides.

    I had a meeting with a group of ethanol supporters last year, one of whom was on the board of the Ethanol Coalition of America, and they view those who support organic agriculture as hippies and unrealistic. He was also not open to the idea of using other, more efficient feedstocks for ethanol, such as cellulosic ethanol from switchgrass or from wood residues.On Get ready for a special series posted 2 years, 12 months ago 3 Responses

  • I don't believe you, Kingston.

    "It would be good if we could get a few things done on the way out the door and show people that ... we really can govern," Kingston said.

    More like screw the world over on the way out and reap profits for their corporate buddies. On 'Govern', that is posted 2 years, 12 months ago 5 Responses

  • My hope...

    is that all this talk leads to action before it's too late to do anything. There's a lot of talk going on in governments, but the majority of actions I've seen have come from ordinary citizens changing their lives. It's a beautiful thing, but we need to capture the bigger polluters into this scheme.

    Shawn
    http://www.thegoodthebadandthegreen.comOn The happenings -- or lack thereof -- at the climate summit in Nairobi posted 3 years ago 6 Responses

  • But they have no problem..

    When a church does it. I'm sickened when my bishops endorse candidates by name or by issue when it's clearly obvious who they're supporting.

    Damn the man.On Enviro group settles on campaign finance violation posted 3 years ago 2 Responses

  • Ugh

    As if the corn lobby needs subsidies. ADM doesn't need any subsidies. If corn ethanol isn't cost-efficient, switch to another (and more efficient) feedstock. Corn is a horrible choice as a feedstock for ethanol. It ruins the soil and takes tons of pesticides to grow en masse. We need ag economists and other such folks to work with farmers in this country to diversify crops and to grow these feedstocks sustainably, and soon.

    Shawn
    http://www.thegoodthebadandthegreen.com/On What the Democrats' win means for the sustainable-food movement posted 3 years ago 3 Responses

  • Good breakdown.

    These are good talking points for any conversation about global warming. Good job.

    Here's a study I found that talks a lot about us being responsible for the surge in greenhouse gases.

    Shawn
    http://www.thegoodthebadandthegreen.com/On Here's why the scientific community thinks so posted 3 years ago 4 Responses

  • The football game should not take precedence

    I don't care that they're both undefeated. It's our country we're talking about. Go Kilroy!On Final count in Ohio may take a while posted 3 years ago 2 Responses

  • Here's an action

    Here's an action to take if you'd like to see fewer sharks killed for food purposes. I think we're killing off all the biodiversity at an alarming rate, and that it's not being checked because we're not paying attention. We need sharks. On Shark finning divisive issue posted 3 years ago 10 Responses

  • Bullshit indeed

    One such solution is anaerobic digesters. Methane from animal dung (especially cows) in this country is one of the largest (and most underrated) contributors to GHGs. Digesters, whether on-farm or community, as in Europe, are a viable alternative. On He would have us accept disaster posted 3 years ago 11 Responses

  • Awesome!

    I never thought this would gain steam, but it just goes to show what reason will do for people. I hope this catches on, maybe via the mayors' initiative to endorse Kyoto standards.On City passes municipal carbon tax posted 3 years ago 2 Responses

  • I'm rooting for Pelosi's plan

    Ann Arbor is the hotbed of progressivism in Michigan...except for Dingell. He's a career Democrat, and not very progressive at all. But he's been in a while, has voted on a few good bills, makes his photo-ops, and has Democrat next to his name in a district that'd love to avoid a Republican at all costs.

    We REALLY need something like Pelosi's proposed plan, which itself is even long overdue. On Mixed reports posted 3 years ago 5 Responses

  • These protestors are hardcore

    I really admire them for putting themselves out there like that. On If global warming is an emergency, then let's act like it posted 3 years ago 7 Responses

  • These protestors are hardcore

    I really admire them for putting themselves out there like that. On Direct-action protesters in the U.K. are focusing on climate change posted 3 years ago 7 Responses

  • I am so sick of the politics

    2 more years, right? And then maybe we can get some realism on the issue from our elected leaders here in the States? It's a problem. A big problem, as seen again here.
    On 'There is no consensus'--If this is not consensus, what would consensus look like? posted 3 years ago 109 Responses

  • Woooohoooo!

    Yes! Hurray - maybe now we can let their populations rebound and flourish. The commercial fishing industry doesn't get enough criticism. On Sea bass smuggler cops a plea in Miami posted 3 years ago 3 Responses

  • Yay for Local Ag!

    This is one of the best ways to cut down on fuel consumption.

    Sadly, Michigan passed a law recently that took away local governments' power to regulate seeds, which opens them up to the Monsantos and Con-Agras and their corruption. I've moved from there, but the farmers I'm in touch with aren't liking it at all.

    We've got farmer's markets and CSAs down here in NC, and we're the better for it. They're thriving, too. Check out Local Harvest to find local good near you.

    Buy local this Thanksgiving!On Calls the Mounties -- someone's enjoying locally raised meat in rural Ontario posted 3 years ago 28 Responses

  • Right down there...

    With the other human rights offenders. Why am I not surprised? Here's hoping the next 2 years are a turn-around for the world.On Snow says Bush has made climate a priority. Yeah, right. posted 3 years ago 4 Responses

  • Ugh

    If only NEPA could be our minimum standard, and all the corporate interests try to exceed it for integrity's (not profit's) sake. On Climate change lawsuits under NEPA posted 3 years ago 2 Responses

  • Sequestering?

    Is there an environmentally friendly way, for the short-term, that we might capture the methane and use it for energy, such as in a digester? On Dams squeeze methane out of river water posted 3 years ago 11 Responses

  • Re: But does it taste good?

    I wrote a column about Fair Trade and pointed out a few of its deficiencies. It's a great system, and one that I'm more than proud to campaign for as a part of the movement, and should be adopted by all coffee companies as a minimum standard. Equal Exchange gets a good deal of well-deserved praise for their efforts these past 20 years. I'd also like to praise the folks affiliated with Cooperative Coffees for their efforts to also adopt the cooperative model in

    As for the quality issue, it's part of the certification process to improve the quality of the coffee to meet and, in many cases, exceed the standards set by the Speciality Coffee Association of America and other such groups. These standards differentiate a Folger's cup of coffee from a more favorable cup, the minimum standard of which might be a cup of Starbuck's. It's increasingly becoming a method of international development, as seen by the PEARL project at Michigan State University and the CAN project at UC-Santa Cruz.

    Farmers and development practitioners do this through a variety of methods, such as pulling out unripe cherries at washing stations, using organic agricultural methods, roasting at the point of brewing and sale instead of at the point of being picked, etc. There's a lengthy packet available from the Fair Trade Labelling Organization which will tell you the standards farmers have to meet to become Fair Trade Certified.

    Hope that helps, and I really hope to see Fair Trade grow even more. It's been amazing thus far.On The ethical and environmental dilemma of coffee posted 3 years ago 11 Responses