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Any effort to retain coal as an energy option must not only be based on reducing carbon emissions; but must also include a radical change in current mining practices.  

Coal is relatively cheap now in part because the Bush administration allowed "strip & run" methods such as "mountaintop removal" and failed to enforce safety regulations at the mines.

The true price of coal must include the cost of strict safety compliance and "lowest-impact" mining technology; which would include the full reclamation of mining sites.

"Clean coal" (if such can exist) must be defined from mine site, to the smoke-stack and finally the ash pile.  Carbon emissions are not the only issue.

posted 4 years, 1 month ago
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I was "downsized" in January, but didn't register for unemployment until last week.  

Part of the reason was a naive belief that I could get a new job quickly (my skills are specialized); and part was the mis-information I had (from a labor lawyer no less), that I could collect from the date of unemployment (minus the waiting week) regardless of when I filed.

Now I understand that those first two months (mid-January to mid-March) are lost to me.  Is there anyway I can collect at least 1/2 or 1/3rd of that amount, or am I out of luck?

posted 4 years, 1 month ago
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I'm 49 and have never planned to retire.  

I graduated into the recession of the early 80's, and since then I've watched private companies lay-off workers and gut their pension plans, while the government has either dithered over fixing Social Security, or else has tried to destroy it via privatization.  

So basically, I figure I'll always have to take care of myself, and therefore I plan to work until I drop; as did my Father before me.  

My Dad was a young man during the previous Great Depression, and he warned me to never completely trust any institution, from Banks to the Government.  

So far his pessimism has been validated; so I expect to work until I die.

posted 4 years, 2 months ago
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The question of Chinese competition in the green tech field can be partially addressed in 2 ways:

1) Work through international organizations to eliminate subsidies to national flag ocean carriers (such as COSCO or Chinese Ocean Shipping Co.)  This would raise the relative cost of international shipping to something approaching a free market cost.

2) Consider imposing a "tariff" (import tax) on imports of green-tech products.  Currently all solar cells (for example) are duty-free.  The tax would not be very high, say 5%, so as to avoid a WTO challenge; but it could help to off-set the unfair advantage of low-wage labor from authoritarian regimes such as China.

posted 4 years, 2 months ago
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