Earths Pillars Environmental Progress

Site Upgrade 6/23/08

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:00:54 -0500

The upgrade is now complete. Enjoy! The Information Portal will be down on June 23rd because we're upgrading the software on the site. Depending on how easily the upgrade goes (ha!) the site may be down for a day or a few days. Keep checking back often, and we'll be back as soon as possible!

Consolidating Departments

Fri, 04 May 2007 11:36:06 -0500

Because of the extensive programming that has to go into this information portal, in the next few days, we are going to consolidate the departments into one portal. While we liked the idea of having separate departments so you didn't have to be bombarded with information you don't care for, the programming end of it has become too difficult. More time is spent fixing bugs and running updates instead of writing articles! Therefore, in the next few days, the site will be down in order to perform this consolidation. Thank you for your patience! And if you have no patience? Well, that's a personal problem we can't help you with. Call a therapist.

An Inhabited Island Now Underwater

Fri, 29 Dec 2006 19:50:00 -0500

If you want to pretend that Global Warming is a fabrication, tell that to the inhabitants of the island of Lohachara in India's part of the Sunderbans whose home is now under water. Read more about it at http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/122606P.shtml

Go Cameroon! And France Too!

Sat, 24 Jun 2006 10:03:00 -0500

France has agreed to debt forgiveness (in the amount of the US equivalent of $25 million) in exchange for environmental protection of the Congo River Basin that lies in the Republic of Cameroon. Cameroon is the only country that was part of the Yaounde Summit to actually implement an action plan to protect the area. More can be found at http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jun2006/2006-06-23-03.asp

Why Not Let Prisoners Lock Themselves Up

Sat, 24 Jun 2006 09:42:00 -0500

So get this. The EPA has put forth a proposal that would allow factory farms to decide for themselves if the animal waste coming from their farms is a hazard to lakes, rivers, and streams. The factory farm owners could apply for a Clean Water permit if they want to, but if they declare that the waste runoff is simply "agricultural stormwater" they need not apply. Some of these farms are "home" (and I use that term with utter sarcasm and disgust) to over a million animals that produce over 500 million tons of animal waste per year. Gee, I can't see for the life of me why they would consider that pollution. Hell, move in right next to me so I can see a barge of turd-laden sludge pour past my house on a daily basis. Regulate themselves indeed.

Factory farms are an atrocity to begin with. And just when you think they couldn't sink any lower, THE FREAKIN' EPA HELPS THEM OUT!!! Nice.

Northern Hawaiin Islands Protected by Bush????

Mon, 19 Jun 2006 07:46:00 -0500

On June 15, 2006, President Bush signed a proclamation that would designate the Northwestern Hawaiin Islands a national monument. That gives the area immediate and permanent protection, a goal long sought after by environmentalists and Native Hawaiins of the region. No offense, but I'm used to Bush flapping his gums about the environment but really using it to help his cronies. I nearly spit out my drink when I read this. I even looked for the catch. None found yet! Even Ed Case, a Democrat Congressman whose district is in this area, was ecstatic. More information can be found here http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jun2006/2006-06-15-03.asp

Another culture bites the dust...

Thu, 25 May 2006 13:51:15 -0500

I hate reading things like this... Tribal Travels 5/19/2006 The Nukak-Mak� have left the Garden. A group of 80 of them recently emerged naked from the Amazon jungle, where they and their ancestors have lived in primitive splendor for thousands of years, and announced they were ready to join the civilized world. Marxist guerillas and cocaine growers apparently were giving them trouble, and besides, the Nukak have tired of spending all day searching for food�hunting monkeys with curare-tipped blow darts and foraging for nuts and berries. �We do not want to go back,� a Nukak named Ma-be tells Juan Forero of The New York Times. �We want to stay near town.� Near town, they�ve discovered, kindly aid workers from the Colombian government will bestow upon them such modern wonders as shoes and pants, refined sugar and white flour, and cooking oil. �The Nukak don�t know what they�ve gotten themselves into,� said Javier Maldonado, a doctor who�s been helping them. They sure don�t. In short order, I predict, the Nukak will lose their taste for boiled monkey heads, and surrender to the seduction of fried foods, cheeseburgers, and pie. Nukak women who�ve been unselfconsciously naked all their lives will start wondering if they�re fat. Instead of hunting, Nukak men will spend their days shouting at sports events on TV. Nukak teens will begin dressing like hip-hop artists from Los Angeles, refuse to speak Nukak, and lock themselves indoors with a cell phone or an iPod jammed in their ears. Soon, the Nukak will wonder how they ever lived without e-mail, sleeping pills, and Wonder Bras. At the moment, the Nukak have no word for �future.� But unless they quickly return to the jungle, we all know what lies ahead. William Falk Editor-in-chief The Week Magazine

Green Geeks Unite!

Tue, 16 May 2006 19:34:00 -0500

A topic close to my heart...and business! IEEE (Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers) and the EPA have developed a new standard known as IEEE 1680TM, Standard for Environmental Assessment of Personal Computer Products. This will allow companies to make computer purchases that have a lessened impact on the environment. Read more here

Water Water Nowhere

Tue, 16 May 2006 19:25:00 -0500

...and only polluted drops to drink. A plea from Jordanian and Israeli mayors for international help to restore the Jordan River. Pollution and water shortages are crushing this river. Read more here

How to Use this Site

Fri, 12 May 2006 11:11:00 -0500

If you need a little help figuring out this new site will all the bells and whistles and buttons and stuff, read on... First of all, if you want to comment, post to the forum, or join the mailing list, you need to create a login. When you sign up with a login id, you will be emailed a temporary password. Log in with this password, and then you can change it on the left under the heading "User Functions" under "Account Information." You can then fill in more about yourself if you'd like. You do not need to be signed in to read most things, but to interact, you will need a login! Your login will work on all 3 sites, but you will have to sign into each one individually. So if you sign into Environmental Progress and you want to visit Social Progress, you will have to sign in at that page with your same login you used for Environmental. To ease this process, when you're changing your password, there is an option to "remember me for x hours." You can set that to a maximum of 1 month. Most of your functions are available at the top of the page. Using these links, you can access the forum, subscribe to mailing lists, download files or archived newsletters, view the calendar, etc. Only Earth's Pillars Associates are capable of posting a news article or action. If you are really itching to post something, either let us know by emailing us, post it on the forum, or considering volunteering if you often have things you want to contribute. In order to receive our newsletters, you must subscribe yourself to the list of your choosing. Click on Mailing Lists at the top of your screen and the rest is easy. You will need to do this in each department from which you want to receive a newsletter. To keep reminded of major projects or time sensitive actions, view the calendar. Now you don't have to sift through newsletters or articles to find out when something's going on! Web Resources is a fancy name for Links. To view any downloads, or to view/save archived newsletters, click on My Downloads. To view the discussion board, click Forum. Each department has its own forum. To vote on stuff, click polls (thank you Captain Obvious...) And...that's pretty much it! If you have any questions, post it to General Chat of the Forum and we'll help you figure it out...if you buy us chocolate and gummi worms...