27 posts tagged “democrats”
CFLs or Compact fluorescent lights, you know the "curly bulbs" that are all the rage. Legislation was passed that phases out all incandescent lighting by 2012. The problem? You can't just throw them away in some states and I'm sure other states will be passing laws that prohibit public disposal. If so you will need to schedule a Non-Hazardous Waste pickup and a EPA Bill of Lading Manifest will need to be completed before the pickup. Another option is transporting the waste to a local recycling center. Also, did you know if one breaks you are supposed to evacuate the entire room for 15 minutes and close off any ventilation. Wait that's not all... if you live in an apartment building you are supposed to call maintenance to turn off the air conditioning if you break one of those bulbs. I would like to listen in on that phone call. The EPA has dedicated a page to those wonderful new squiggly bulbs and thermometers; as a bonus they also list things you should never do when cleaning up a broken lightbulb.
I'm going to copy and paste from the EPA site their instructions for how to clean up and dispose of a CFL. I'm also posting the information on what never to do. The link to the EPA webpage with the full information is at the bottom of the page and in the link above. This is information that every American should be required to know. If you have children or pets I wouldn't put one in any lamp that could accidently get knocked over.
Fluorescent light bulbs contain a very small amount of mercury sealed within the glass tubing. EPA recommends the following clean-up and disposal below.
Before Clean-up: Air Out the Room
- Have people and pets leave the room, and don't let anyone walk through the breakage area on their way out.
- Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more.
- Shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one.
Clean-Up Steps for Hard Surfaces
- Carefully scoop up glass pieces and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
- Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.
- Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place towels in the glass jar or plastic bag.
- Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces.
Clean-up Steps for Carpeting or Rug
- Carefully pick up glass fragments and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
- Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.
- If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum (? see below what not to do) the area where the bulb was broken.
- Remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister), and put the bag or vacuum debris in a sealed plastic bag.
Clean-up Steps for Clothing, Bedding and Other Soft Materials
- If clothing or bedding materials come in direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from inside the bulb that may stick to the fabric, the clothing or bedding should be thrown away. Do not wash such clothing or bedding because mercury fragments in the clothing may contaminate the machine and/or pollute sewage.
- You can, however, wash clothing or other materials that have been exposed to the mercury vapor from a broken CFL, such as the clothing you are wearing when you cleaned up the broken CFL, as long as that clothing has not come into direct contact with the materials from the broken bulb.
- If shoes come into direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from the bulb, wipe them off with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place the towels or wipes in a glass jar or plastic bag for disposal.
Disposal of Clean-up Materials
- Immediately place all clean-up materials outdoors in a trash container or protected area for the next normal trash pickup. (Unless you live in a state that prohibits public disposal)
- Wash your hands after disposing of the jars or plastic bags containing clean-up materials.
- Check with your local or state government about disposal requirements in your specific area. Some states do not allow such trash disposal. Instead, they require that broken and unbroken mercury-containing bulbs be taken to a local recycling center.
Future Cleaning of Carpeting or Rug: Air Out the Room During and After Vacuuming
- The next several times you vacuum, shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system and open a window before vacuuming.
- Keep the central heating/air conditioning system shut off and the window open for at least 15 minutes after vacuuming is completed.
Now for the instructions on WHAT NOT TO DO.
What Never to Do with a Mercury Spill
-
Never use a vacuum (? see what to do) cleaner to clean up mercury. The vacuum will put mercury into the air and increase exposure.
-
Never use a broom to clean up mercury. It will break the mercury into smaller droplets and spread them.
-
Never pour mercury down a drain. It may lodge in the plumbing and cause future problems during plumbing repairs. If discharged, it can cause pollution of the septic tank or sewage treatment plant.
- Never
wash clothing or other items that have come in direct contact with
mercury in a washing machine, because mercury may contaminate the
machine and/or pollute sewage. Clothing that has come into direct
contact with mercury should be discarded. By "direct contact," we mean
that mercury was (or has been) spilled directly on the clothing. For
example:
- if you broke a mercury thermometer and some of elemental mercury beads came in contact with your clothing, or
- if you broke a compact fluorescent bulb (CFL) so that broken glass and other material from the bulb, including mercury-containing powder, came into contact with your clothing.
You can, however, wash clothing or other materials that have been exposed to the mercury vapor from a broken CFL, like the clothing you happened to be wearing when you cleaned up the broken CFL, as long as that clothing has not come into direct contact with the materials from the broken bulb.
- Never walk around if your shoes might be contaminated with mercury. Contaminated clothing can also spread mercury around.
Here's the Link the full page on the EPA site: Mercury spills, disposal and site cleanup.
Got all that? now go get green and think how lucky we are that Corporate America lobbyist are so environmentally friendly.
Now don't you feel better about what a great job the people in charge are doing about finding things to help us "folks" be green. I hate the word folks, when used by politicians, we are people. (I also hate the word troops they are soldiers, a soldier dies not a troop... but that's another post for another day...
By 2012 everyone will be using these lighs. One broken bulb or one burnt out bulb being disposed of improperly is no big deal but remember by 2012 all incandescent lignting is going to be phased out. Millions of Americans will be disposing of these bulbs minus any kind of regulated control. Think about it.
We have to find a better way. Yea... this is receiving my "I'm Just Saying" tag.
Add it to the list.
White House in climate change "cover up"-Sen Boxer
Tue Jul 8, 2008 2:36pm EDT
By Richard Cowan
WASHINGTON, July 8 (Reuters) - A leading U.S. Senate Democrat accused the Bush administration on Tuesday of a "cover-up" aimed at stopping the Environmental Protection Agency from tackling greenhouse emissions.
"This cover-up is being directed from the White House and the office of the vice president," said Sen. Barbara Boxer, the California Democrat who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.
At issue is a preliminary finding by the EPA last December that "greenhouse gases may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public welfare," according to Jason Burnett, the agency's former associate deputy administrator who appeared at a news conference with Boxer.
Such a finding would be an early step toward government regulation aimed at protecting public health.
Burnett, who resigned on June 9, told Boxer's committee the White House tried pressuring him to retract an e-mail om which he detailed the finding. Burnett said he refused.
Boxer said that unless EPA documents were released, it was likely that within the next two weeks her committee would try to subpoena the material. She did not know whether Republicans on the panel would block the effort...
Most of the headlines are focusing on President Bush signing the new war funding bill and the cost of the war. Rightly so, that is where the focus should be. However, the President did make some compromises by signing the bill.
The package approved by Congress includes a doubling of GI Bill college benefits for troops and veterans. It also provides a 13-week extension of unemployment benefits, $2.7 billion in emergency flood relief for the Midwest, and tens of billions of dollars for food aid, anti-drug enforcement, Louisiana levee repairs and many other items.
The war is going to be funded... no matter what. That is an undeniable truth. President Bush knows that. So give credit where credit is due. The President did compromise and we got unemployment extended, flood relief, food aid, etc.
I still think we are funding the wrong war. (I do believe we are in a war but it's not conventional) I would prefer the larger sum went towards fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan and for social program that will help the communities in the Middle-East. You know... help the people like you and me that just want to live life.
Michelle and Barack Obama are both people of courage. They have earned my respect and my vote.
Michelle Obama says Barack Obama will fight for gay equality
By Samantha Gross – 1 day ago
NEW YORK (AP) — Barack Obama will fight for equal rights for gays just as he fought to help working-class families overcome poverty, the Democratic presidential hopeful's wife told a gay Democratic group Thursday.
Recalling his past work as a community organizer to help struggling families, Michelle Obama said he would take the same approach as president.
"Barack believes that we must fight for the world as it should be, a world where together we work to reverse discriminatory laws," she said at a Manhattan fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee's Gay and Lesbian Leadership Council.
Michelle Obama also drew a connection between the struggles for gay rights and civil rights.
"We are all only here because of those who marched and bled and died, from Selma to Stonewall, in the pursuit of a more perfect union," she said at the event, held days before the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riots between gays and New York police, and the city's annual gay pride parade.
"The world as it is should be, one that rejects discrimination of all kinds," she said.
Touting her husband's record pushing for workplace discrimination legislation as an Illinois state senator and his support of civil unions, Obama noted her husband also had brought a call for equality to conservative groups, telling churchgoers they need to combat homophobia in the black community.
The Illinois senator opposes a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage and says states should make their own decisions on the matter. He has said he's interested in ensuring that same-sex couples in civil unions get federal benefits.
His Republican opponent, Arizona Sen. John McCain, also opposes a federal constitutional amendment but worked to ban gay marriage in his home state. McCain supports the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy, while Obama has called it "counterproductive."
Michelle Obama's speech brought a standing ovation from the crowd of about 200 donors, who raised about $1.3 million, organizers said.
Earlier Thursday, she spoke in Manchester, N.H., and credited Hillary Rodham Clinton, her husband's rival for the Democratic nomination, with bringing the concerns of working families to the forefront of the presidential campaign.
She heard from New Hampshire women juggling such work and family concerns as child care and caring for aging parents. She explained her husband's plans to expand sick time and paid family leave, help parents afford child care and make sure women get equal pay for equal work.
"We are closer to this America than ever before, and that's because of an extraordinary woman who's not in this room but she's traveling with my husband tomorrow, and that woman is Hillary Clinton," Michelle Obama said to sustained applause.
"I know that the folks here in New Hampshire know this better than anyone because you got to know the candidates up close and personal, but because of Hillary Clinton's work the issues of importance to women and working families are front and center."
Clinton and Barack Obama are to make their first public joint appearance Friday in Unity, N.H.
Associated Press writer Holly Ramer in Manchester, N.H., contributed to this report.
"She rocks"
Senator Barack Obama speaking about Senator Hillary Clinton
June 27, 2008
"But on this day and every day going forward, we stand shoulder to shoulder....Our hearts are set on the same destination for America."
Senator Hillary Clinton speaking about Senator Barack Obama
June 27, 2008
Full Story: Thousands Gather In Unity For Rally
McCain descends into double-talk
St. Petersburg Times Editorial
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Sen. John McCain's straight talk is starting to come out of both sides of his mouth. On key economic issues, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee has been telling audiences one thing and policy analysts another.
There are few issues the public cares more about than Social Security and its future. Social Security trustee estimates show that by 2017 the payouts will exceed the taxes coming in, and by 2041 the program's trust fund is expected to be exhausted.
Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic nominee, wants to extend the payroll tax to individuals with incomes over $250,000. The first $102,000 in income is taxed for the purposes of Social Security now, and the Illinois senator would not apply the payroll tax to income between that amount and $250,000. This would be a fair approach that would significantly extend the life of Social Security by taxing those who can most afford it.
McCain, on the other hand, promises everything to everybody. The Arizona senator claims he will secure Social Security "without raising taxes." Then, hedging his bets with average voters, McCain also publicly states that his approach is not a privatization plan.
But a closer look at the details reveals McCain is quite open to the widely unpopular privatization ideas promoted by President Bush. He also told the Wall Street Journal on March 3 that "as part of Social Security reform, I believe that private savings accounts are a part of it — along the lines that President Bush proposed." McCain supports privatization of the Social Security program to some extent, and he should be candid about it.
Then there is McCain's position on the alternative minimum tax, the tax that increasingly is threatening middle-class families but initially was designed to make sure that wealthy taxpayers couldn't avoid paying their fair share of income taxes.
In speeches, McCain says he intends to "abolish" the AMT. Yet that is not exactly what he plans. McCain's campaign told a tax policy group that the AMT would be patched, holding constant the number of households currently subject to it. He would give taxpayers who face a hit from the AMT the option of paying under a new, voluntary, simplified tax structure that would allow them to pay less.
According to estimates by the Tax Policy Center, a similar program offered by Fred Thompson during his short-lived campaign for president would have increased the deficit by about $600-billion annually.
If McCain's idea turns out to be anything close to this, it is out of touch with reality. Even getting rid of the revenue that the AMT provides would cost about $60-billion a year in lost taxes, while letting some very wealthy taxpayers off the hook.
McCain is failing to make clear to voters some awfully big asterisks on popular promises. He is following a tired script so typical of candidates running for president: Tell 'em what they want to hear and worry about the truth later.
Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton to campaign together
By Nedra Pickler – Friday, June 20, 2008
CHICAGO (AP) — Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama's campaign announced Friday that he will campaign with former rival Hillary Rodham Clinton next week, a step toward unifying a fractured Democratic Party after a bruising primary fight.
Obama's campaign said in a brief e-mail that said the two senators and former opponents will campaign together for the first time on Friday, June 27, and more details would be forthcoming.
A day earlier, Obama and Clinton also plan to meet in Washington with some of her top contributors... The former first lady will introduce Obama to her financial backers...
Obama's campaign disclosed the joint appearance...
Clinton ended her campaign on June 7..."I endorse him and throw my full support behind him," she said at the time...
I wanted you to be one of the first to know: on Saturday, I will hold an event in Washington D.C. to thank everyone who has supported my campaign. Over the course of the last 16 months, I have been privileged and touched to witness the incredible dedication and sacrifice of so many people working for our campaign. Every minute you put into helping us win, every dollar you gave to keep up the fight meant more to me than I can ever possibly tell you.
On Saturday, I will extend my congratulations to Senator Obama and my support for his candidacy. This has been a long and hard-fought campaign, but as I have always said, my differences with Senator Obama are small compared to the differences we have with Senator McCain and the Republicans.
I have said throughout the campaign that I would strongly support Senator Obama if he were the Democratic Party's nominee, and I intend to deliver on that promise.
When I decided to run for president, I knew exactly why I was getting into this race: to work hard every day for the millions of Americans who need a voice in the White House.
I made you -- and everyone who supported me -- a promise: to stand up for our shared values and to never back down. I'm going to keep that promise today, tomorrow, and for the rest of my life.
I will be speaking on Saturday about how together we can rally the party behind Senator Obama. The stakes are too high and the task before us too important to do otherwise.
I know as I continue my lifelong work for a stronger America and a better world, I will turn to you for the support, the strength, and the commitment that you have shown me in the past 16 months. And I will always keep faith with the issues and causes that are important to you.
In the past few days, you have shown that support once again with hundreds of thousands of messages to the campaign, and again, I am touched by your thoughtfulness and kindness.
I can never possibly express my gratitude, so let me say simply, thank you.
Sincerely
Hillary
Ilana Goldman, President of the Womens Campaign Forum expresses her gratitude to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Dear Hillary –
I say this to you almost daily, but since it’s normally to you on the TV screen, I thought I should find a way of saying it where you might actually receive the message: Thank you.
Thank you for what you have done. For your sheer tenacity, strength, and stick-to-itiveness. Thank you for working so hard every day when you must have been exhausted. For showing us what leadership looks like: doing something well, with grace, in good times and bad. Most of all, I thank you for not quitting.
Your many supporters will tell you what your race means to them and history will write what it means to the world, but it also means so much to me and to the little world I live in. I thank you on behalf of the women who have been so special in my life:
For my daughter – who is, as of yet, just an idea in my mind. But I imagine her one day reading the story of this historic campaign. I am so grateful that the story she will read will be of a complete campaign, with the biggest numbers possible – states, votes, and delegates. That story will show that our first woman presidential contender was truly competitive – nearly won competitive – and show a little girl her own vast possibilities in this country. Thank you for giving her a history worth reading.
For my mother – who is one of those women who work tirelessly to support her family, worries over rising healthcare costs and frets that her grandchildren may not have social security. She’s always been passionately interested in politics, but never before found a politician who she felt saw and understood her. She’ll be 65 next year and she wrote the first political check of her life to you. Thank you for validating the day-to-day concerns that she faces.
For my grandmother – who was, as it was noted at her memorial, “a woman ahead of her time.” I think of her every time I see one of your senior women supporters who were born before women first got the vote and were out on the streets filled with hope that they would inaugurate one in their lifetimes. Thank you for showing them that their efforts to make women loud and proud actors in American politics created real change.
For my best friend – who would listen to me talk about just about anything in the world for hours – except politics – until you started to run. Little by little, day by day, she became more engaged in your campaign and what it meant to the country and our place in the world. She started out reading your emails and went on to lobbying her husband and friends to change their votes. Thank you for awakening an incredible woman to her role in the political process.
For my former junior staffer– who did not necessarily believe that sexism was still an issue alive and well today. She watched pundit after pundit behave in ways that even she could not deny were … crude. Then she saw it pass as kind of acceptable. And then she saw it happen again and again. Finally, she took up her pen and now Chris Matthews and the MSNBC brass know her name … well. Thank you for reminding her of how much work we all still have to do.
For me – who has been, at times, described as direct, forward, forceful, pushy and a few other choice adjectives. Thank you for helping make the world a little safer for aggressive, ambitious women. Because isn’t aggressive just one way of saying “she gets things done” and isn’t ambition just another word for “dream?” Thank you for pushing for my dream – and that of so many others – to elect a phenomenally talented and capable woman to lead our country and change our world.
As you promised from the outset, you have, and will continue to, make history.
Thank you, for all us.
Sincerely,
Ilana Goldman
President, Women’s Campaign Forum
Congratulations to Senator Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Sasha Obama, and Malia Obama. I'm not sure where this picture came from but I like it.
Senator Barack Obama
Democratic Party Nominee for President of the United States of America 2008
June 03, 2008
St. Paul Minnesota
