On Wind Power, the Green Movement, and the NFB Springs Chapter

Yesterday I agreed to purchase wind power through CSU when/if they are able to get a wind farm going locally. This is a small volentary way for me to help out with promoting renewable energy, and if you are interested in seeing renewables continue to grow please consider joining me in agreeing to this program. You don't have to supplament all your electricity, and agreeing to 100mws will only add $2-4 to your monthly bill. Thank you for your consideration.

Additionally I have been doing some reading in the green movement. Some of the things I have found are helpful- writings on nature's beauty, how to practically live a greener lifestyle without wearing a green hair shirt, and how to invest in green companies. Basically spokespeople who don't want to go back to the dark ages before the idustrial revolution or who think profits are evil. The second type, and far more the prodominant type, consist of these latter individuals. People who think that the earth is on par with human life, who think profits and capitalism are evil, and who wish to make a totalitarian society where far from being volentary people are forced to be green for their and the planet's own "good". Needless to say I find these thoughts most disturbing and illogical. They seem to miss the point that volentary partisipation is far more effective, as is capitalism for protecting the environment. Communism was absolutely horrible for the environment because people had no buy in to their economy or their environment. Additionally the industrial revolution has brought millions and millions of people out of poverty. To simply throw all that away seems unreasonable to me without strong and solidly proven facts. Also having a discussion on the matter of climate change and having ad hononim attacks flung about instead of a reasonable discussion puts me on edge as to the reality and reasonableness of the climate change position. Even granted the issue it is not at all clear to me that involving the government to fix the problem is the best way- they do such a great job with everything else.

Alas these ideas seem to go over most greens' heads. Hopefully a colentary capitalistic method of being more green will continue to develop. I look at companies like Whole Foods, Starbucks," Apple, and Coca-cola and am given hope.

Finally our local chapter of the NFB here in the Springs continues to grow. We recently joined the Green Cities Coalition in order to have a greater involvement in the community and have a positive impact on the local environment. Our coffee fundraiser program has started up again, and this time we are selling fair trade coffee from Pike's Perk. In addition to these steps I am looking at ways we can purchase renewable energy to cover our meetings and other activities so we can be as green a group as possible.

Along with this our work continues. We are developing a web site for our chapter, involving our members in the work of the NFB, and we are hosting a transit meeting at the Penrose library in downtown Colorado Springs on Tuesday 2-23 from 6-7:30pm. The meeting will focus on where the transit system in Colorado Springs currently stands, how we as blind people can be activly involved in advocating for a better system, and how we can best independently travel with the system as is. Please feel free to join us at this meeting, or any of our monthly chapter meetings.