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I live in Goldendale Washington and "off the grid" for the last 15 years. Our first place had a small solar system and we currently have a fairly large one (2,100 watts). For 9 months out of the year the solar system provides all of our power needs (including pumping water from our well) and the remaining 3 months we need some help from a generator to charge our batteries. The high cost of installing grid power to our remote location and federal tax credits made it an easy choice for us to be solar powered and to "do the right thing" for the planet.

This is not the case for most households. Power is readily available and fairly cheap in the Paciific Northwest. Because of this, for many people renewable energy is expensive and impractical. Federal and state government must step up and provide incentives to individuals and businesses who want to do the right for the planet and penalize those who don't. Strong cap and trade programs and individual tax credits and rebates for renewable power installations are essential if we are to have any hope of combating the disasteroues effects of global climate change.

posted 3 years, 11 months ago
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Fixing Social Security is easy, there just isn't the political will to do it. All that is necessary is to tax ALL earned income instead of just the first $106,000 an individual earns.

posted 4 years, 1 month ago
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I was most proud to be an American when we landed on the moon. Even as a kid I realized that this was a positive use of our technology that I could be proud of. I was least proud when the Bush administration decided that torture, long prohibited in this country and throughput the world, would part of our foreign policy strategy.

posted 4 years, 11 months ago
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