Ex-skeptic... global warming real; caused by humans

Richard Mueller, a physics professor at the University of California, Berkeley, has been a very prominent skeptic about the human causes of climate change.

Until Monday.

On July 30, 2012 Mueller, a member of the Berkeley Earth Surface Temperature team said the "evidence has changed my mind." He continued, "Last year, following an intensive research effort involving a dozen scientists, I concluded that global warming was real and that the prior estimates of the rate of warming were correct... I'm now going a step further: Humans are almost entirely the cause."

So what does this have to do with the Shenandoah Valley and Virginia - the focus points of this blog? Everything, ya dumb cluck.

If we are going to slow human caused global warming it will take political initiative, commitment, and concrete actions right here in the commonwealth as well as around the world. One small step is to tell Virginia senators Mark Warner and Jim Webb to show leadership by supporting renewal of the production tax credit for wind power. It will mean jobs for Virginians, cleaner air over the commonwealth, and fewer greenhouse gasses cranking up global temperatures.

Warner/Webb on the wrong side of coal

CCC is extremely disappointed that Senator Mark Warner and Senator Jim Webb both voted for Senate Joint Resolution 37 that would have overridden Environmental Protection Agency actions to limit mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants. You could expect a dirty coal shills like Bobblehead Bob or George "Macaca" Allen to cozy up with the dark polluted side, but both Warner and Webb usually exercise some independent judgement and keep constituents in mind. I can only conclude that, in this case, the big PAC donations or the sweet talk of industry lobbyists trumped good health and environmental policy. Shame on you!

Fortunately, that lamebrain resolution failed but there is no excuse for our senators putting the interests of King Coal and Dominion Resources and Appalachian Power so far ahead of the health of residents and the environment of the Commonwealth. The industry boasts of "clean coal," an oxymoron if there ever was one. But, these EPA standards would require clean(er) uses of coal and that is a big step in the right direction. Contact Virginia's senators today and share your disappointment in their shortsighted vote for Senate Joint Resolution 37. Or call Sen. Mark Warner: 202-224-2023 and Sen. Jim Webb: 202-224-4024.

Hey Mark. Hey Jim. Virginians will be watching your vote on student loan interest

Take a moment this evening to remind Senator Mark Warner and Senator Jim Webb to stand with Virginia families and students by supporting the "Stop Student Loan Interest Rate Hike Act" to stop the scheduled rate hike in July.

The average student graduates from college with $25,000 in debt, a burden on young families that drains their purchasing power and collectively has a negative impact on the American economy. Yet Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and his conservative allies want the double the interest rate on Stafford loans.

Contact senators Warner and Webb and tell them to do the right thing and support the "Stop the Student Loan Interest Rate Hike Act."

Call Minority Leader McConnell and tell him to keep rates on Stafford loans at a more affordable 3.4% by supporting the "Stop the Student Loan Interest Rate Hike Act."

Coal Ash - it is TOXIC

Recently the three men who represent the Shenandoah Valley in Congress, Senator Mark Warner, Senator Jim Webb, and Representative Bob Goodlatte signed factually inaccurate letters pressuring EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson to regulate toxic coal ash the same way as household trash, leaving communities at risk as arsenic, lead and mercury seep into our drinking water.

Coal and coal ash is dirty stuff and our "representatives" are siding with King Coal against our families' and communities' health. I sent the following email to each:

I am disappointed that you added your name to a factually inaccurate letter that puts coal company profits before the health of our families and our communities. Americans across the country are exposed to heavy metals such as arsenic, lead and mercury that seep into our drinking water, rivers and streams from coal ash disposal sites. There is an increased risk of cancer, learning disabilities, birth defects and other illnesses.


But the disposal of coal ash is less strictly controlled than household garbage. The letter that Senator Warner, Senator Webb, and Representative Goodlatte signed interferes with the EPA's ability to protect our health by pressuring the agency to reject plans for a strong, federally enforceable standard. The letter urges the agency to adopt guidelines that allow coal companies to continue putting our communities at risk.


The letter you signed makes false claims: that states have effectively regulated coal ash despite the fact that coal ash has contaminated surface water or groundwater in at least 23 states, that EPA documents calling for additional measures to protect public health say further regulation is unnecessary, and that strong regulation would stigmatize coal ash recycling when even the U.S. Green Building Council said there would be no stigma. The facts are that coal ash is a toxic material, and it's time for the EPA to treat it as such. Please support EPA's efforts to protect public health and water quality by removing your name from this letter.

 

For more information visit the Sierra Club. Please contact Senator Warner, Senator Webb, and Representative Goodlatte and tell them to reject the dirty dogs that run in the pack with King Coal.

Senators Warner and Webb - don't listen to the hypocrites

Senator Mark Warner and Senator Jim Webb - it is time to show political courage and join with other Democrats and vote for healthcare reform. Your colleagues from the other side of the aisle are surely leaning on you, but their shrill arguments are based in blatant falsehoods and hypocrisy. Senate Republicans will say anything, repeat any lie, make up any distortion, attack the very rules of the chamber that they've used in the past, while in the death throes of their opposition.

It is time to stand up for healthcare reform. It is time to vote.

Using reconciliation to pass healthcare reform is not only legitimate, it is the moral thing to do.

Senator Webb, Senator Warner - VOTE NO!

Like many other Virginians, I support meaningful healthcare reform - ideally, "Medicare for all." Short of that, a robust public option that will bring competition to the markets. Elimination of discrimination against people with preexisting conditions. Lower costs while improving delivery of healthcare services. Real choice for Americans.

The bill before the Senate is a sellout to the insurance companies - their control over the industry will widen and millions of taxpayer dollars will flow into their coffers. Companies will be able to charge older Americans two, even three, times the rates charged to younger ones... age is a preexisting condition! Americans won't get any more choices, but they will get a fine if they don't sign-up with an insurance company. Neither competition nor other steps are taken to end the excessive CEO salaries and administrative waste in the private companies.

There are some good things in the Senate bill - more emphasis on preventative programs, some expansion of Medicare, help for small businesses struggling with health costs and for parents with adult children continuing their education well into their 20s, and more. But, the good doesn't come close to outweighing the bad.

There is lots of blame to go around: Republicans who have never offered any meaningful reform, just obstacles; the insurance companies and their front groups like 60Plus who have spent millions every day and deployed hundreds of lobbyists and slick ad agencies to spread lies and fear; and a media obsessed with headlines promoting conflict rather than consensus. But the real blame falls on Senate Democrats themselves - when given the opportunity to lead they descended into a family feud characterized by fights over side issues, over-sized egos, turf wars, and cowardice.

Senator Jim Webb and Senator Mark Warner.... vote NO! A bad bill that fails to offer real reform should be killed - in this case, any bill is not better than no bill.

Battlefield Preservation

The Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT) today applauded members of the U.S. House and Senate for including the largest ever single-year allocation for the federal Civil War Battlefield Preservation Program in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2010 Interior Appropriations Act Conference Report. The conference report includes $9 million for the Civil War Battlefield Preservation Program, a mechanism that utilizes government matching grants and private funds to permanently protect historic Civil War battlefields throughout the nation. "This is tremendous news that could not come at a more critical time," said CWPT President James Lighthizer. Each day 30 acres of hallowed Civil War battlefield ground are paved over and lost forever. This money will allow us to preserve historic land that would otherwise be lost to development and urban sprawl."

The CWPT thanked a number of legislators for their hard work and support in getting this measure passed, among them Virginia Senator Jim Webb, who stated:

"It is welcome news that our $9 million funding request for battlefield preservation was accepted in the Interior Appropriations bill. As America prepares for the 150th anniversary commemoration of the Civil War, it is more important than ever that we preserve these landmarks for future generations to learn about the history of our nation."

Conscience and Spine

[Senator Jim] Webb has called our prison system a "national disgrace,” and he’s right: the U.S. incarcerates 2.3 million people (25 percent of the planet’s prisoners), and monitors another 5 million on probation or parole (more than 60 percent of whom will end up back in the clink).

The Atlantic profiles Senator Webb in its Brave Thinkers series commending his "conscience and spine" for taking on an unpopular and forgotten problem in his freshman term.

Senator Webb's Born Fighing PAC.

Jailbirds

Senator Jim Webb of Virginia has introduced a bill to set up a bipartisan blue ribbon commission to study, evaluate, and make recommendations for reforming America's criminal justice system, The National Criminal Justice Act of 2009. In his floor speech introducing the bill, Senator Webb said

"America's criminal justice system has deteriorated to the point that it is a national disgrace. With five percent of the world's population, our country houses twenty-five percent of the world's prison population. Incarcerated drug offenders have soared 1200% since 1980. And four times as many mentally ill people are in prisons than in mental health hospitals. Our neighborhoods are at risk from gang violence, including transnational gang violence. We should be devoting precious law enforcement capabilities toward making our communities safer.

There is great appreciation from most in this country that we are doing something drastically wrong. And I am committed to getting this legislation passed and enacted into law this year."

Senator Arlen Spector (R-PA) is the principal Republican cosponsor. Senator Webb will be hitting the media this weekend to discuss the need for a top to bottom review and overhaul of our criminal justice system. He will be on NPR's All Things Considered at 5:00 pm on Sunday and authored Parade's cover story, "What's Wrong With Our Prisons?"

Or, maybe we should ask, what's right with our prisons?

Full text and fact sheet on The National Criminal Justice Act of 2009.