Monday, May 31, 2010

The Memorial Day Display in Gainesville...








I was honoured to visit the Memorial Day display on 8th Avenue in Gainesville this weekend. It is put together and facilitated by Veterans for Peace with some help from local Code Pink and other peace groups. It was much smaller two years ago when I viewed it and very sad to see the number of the tombstones now, they go as far as the eye can see down this particular stretch of road near the University of Florida campus, along with obelisks representing the planets in our Solar System. The tombstone display has signs to mark where among the deaths we went into a new year or something significant occurred such as President Bush stating MISSION ACCOMPLISHED and when Barack Obama took office. We have had war in Iraq and Afghanistan for almost 10 years. People have forgotten, it is not even much of an issue on the news or a topic of conversation anymore. So many young lives wasted and lost. The meaning of the display really hit home. We need to bring the troops home now. I support the troops, by insisting that our government end the wars and occupations and bring them home! So what did you do on your Memorial Day weekend? Something to honour the troops and spread the message of PEACE?

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Phillippe Cousteau To Bill Maher: Even Before Oil Spill, The Oceans Couldn't Take Any More (VIDEO)


This is so extremely sad and heartbreaking, I just have no words for how I feel...our leaders are to blame for allowing this to happen...there should have NEVER been drilling in the Gulf of Mexico...
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

ABC News Goes Underwater For Special Report On Gulf Oil Spill (VIDEO)


So, if the dispersant is not harmful to humans and animals, why did the media don HAZMAT suits?

Things that make ya go hummmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

BP Oil Spill Live Feed: Company To Cut Video During Top Kill Procedure


There is something going on there that we are not supposed to see...simple as that...
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Corexit: BP Using Dispersants In Gulf Banned In U.K. For Being More Toxic And Less Effective


Almost everyone here keeps blaming this on Cheney, Bush, BP, Haliburton. Let's get REAL folks...any representative that took money from BIG OIL is responsible for this mess...and our leaders allowed 3700 operation oil platforms in the Gulf with no oversight and without researching the risk factors. This is irresponsible and puts money and corporations before the people they are serving. Not to mention, the planet and the flora and fauna that we share the planet with. When will most Americans GET THIS and realize that we will not have CHANGE until we vote the current criminals OUT OF OFFICE and replace them with citizen leaders? We need to take corporate financing out of elections and campaigns for this to work...and we need to support those candidates that are ready to run and serve the people SINCERELY without huge sums of money factoring in...this is a travesty and criminal!
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Monday, May 17, 2010

Oil Spill Florida Keys: Scientists Think Oil Has Entered Loop Current And Poses Grave Threat To Reefs


Michael Franti who is doing his tour dates here in Florida and Alabama this week just put the following comment on Facebook: Gulf Shores Alabama still has beautiful beaches, bright sun, clean water and very affordable accommodations, yet the community is losing money big time due to the oil spill. They would really appreciate anyone coming down there and staying in the many great beach hotels and eating at their many fantastic restaurants. Right now, that may be the best way to support the relief effort. See more at http://www.facebook.com/michaelfranti
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

MAKE YOUR OWN SHAMPOO AND CONDITIONER

And this is much cheaper! Easy on the water supply too!

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Giant Oil Plumes Found In Gulf Depths


It still boils down to this, we can blame BP, we can blame different companies. They will be fined and write it off as the cost of doing business. This is a hard truth, the real blame lies with the American people and our representatives. We as people concerned with our own liberty and freedom-NOT!!! Our own leaders have scammed us and allowed 3700 wells to operate in the Gulf of Mexico because they received BIG MONEY from BIG OIL at campaign time...it is supposed to be PEOPLE before PROFITS and our leaders have sold our environment for a price and we allowed them to do it because we were asleep at the wheel. All the boycotts of BP will not make a difference, they are rich beyond imagining. We need to vote our current representatives OUT OF OFFICE and support and elect representatives that do not take campaign financing from BIG OIL. It is not that revolutionary, folks. It will take some work, but it is time to get off the couch!
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Gulf Oil Spill Beaches: Vacationers Anxious, Southeast Beaches Woo New Customers


Tourism around the Gulf of Mexico will be ruined for a long time. People that still have enough money to take a vacation will spend their money on cruises to the Caribbean and Jamaica, Cozumel, Belize and other places, but not here. The media and this horrible disaster made that happen. The corporations are not the only ones to blame here. Our present leadership, that allowed 3,700 operational oil platforms to begin with in the Gulf are all to blame...we need to vote them out of office...this is not a Republican/Democratic blame game. Most of them from both sides of the aisle took money from BIG OIL...
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Friday, May 7, 2010

Sex, Lies and Oil Spills



Not only does our current and past administrations need to be held responsible, but the representatives that voted us into this mess...they allowed for the 3,700 operational oil platforms to be stationed in the Gulf to do business. And in exchange for that, they took campaign contributions and donations from Big Oil. It is time for Americans to stop voting for the lesser of two evils or for those that speak from both sides of their mouths and research the candidates that they vote for. If the candidates don't uphold responsible energy policies, than why do we want to vote them into office to begin with? And to the ones that are there right now that allowed for this mess, they need to be voted out. We the masses need to be throwing our support to opposition candidates that are responsible, that refuse to take the corporate bribes and have our best interests at the forefront of the policy making. http://www.opednews.com/articles/More-on-the-Oil-Gush--by-Anita-Stewart-100502-286.html
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Sunday, May 2, 2010

More on the Oil Gush...



In the coming days and weeks and decades, we will see the true casualties and the destruction of our once pristine beaches, ecosystems and wildlife.

Floridians and Americans from elsewhere are talking about a boycott of BP and other oil companies. It is important to realize this: BP PAYS for barrels of Dawn dishwashing soap that it donates to the local wildlife sanctuaries for cleanup after accidents such as this latest one in the Gulf of Mexico. It is merely part of the payoff exchange plan for doing business and the unsuspecting public is unaware of these connections. But the problem goes even deeper than that...

We now know that the blame cannot be put squarely on the shoulders of the oil company, BP and others. Our current leadership has acted irresponsibly and candidates and members of our government, representatives, leaders, etc., took money as contributions and donations from these oil companies and contractors in payoffs for legislation to allow for over 3,700 operational oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. And this has been going on for years! See: http://www.cccarto.com/gulf_platforms.html

Texas and Louisiana had legislation voted into place to allow for the oil platforms to operate closer to their shorelines. The latest legislation would have simply lifted the ban near Florida's coast and allow for oil platforms within 3 miles of shorelines. Texas and Louisiana have lost tourists and if the ban was lifted here in Florida, we would have lost them too. Florida's only industry is tourism, to the tune of 65 billion dollars a year! On February 13th, 2010, in a direct action that was statewide, thousands of Floridians joined hands to form a line in the sand and tell Tallahassee a firm and resounding NO to any lifting of the drilling ban. See more at: http://www.handsacrossthesand.com

Over the past 30 to 40 years, our leadership has sold us completely flawed energy policies. It was known back then that there would eventually be a greedy grab for oil from anywhere our leadership could arrange to get it. That is why our government developed alliances with Saudi Arabia and other countries in the Middle East and we included military protection by our own troops with our status of forces agreements, thus, paid for by our tax dollars. But instead of prices being made lower for us at the pump, we paid more and the companies and our representatives and lawmakers exchanged the profits with each other.

Green energy initiatives should have been developed and brought online and operational way back then! The technology existed and it could have been made affordable to us.

And the propaganda continues as even now, Floridians are being assaulted nightly during prime time programming with all kinds of slicked up, expensive ads promoting the pros of natural gas, clean gas, energy that we can get right here, right now! But we now know that natural gas in any form is not clean, not safe and according to the most recent studies, will not lower our prices at the pump! With 3,700 oil rigs operating out there, if the oil is being pumped and is available as the corporations told us in their ads, our prices should have been lowered already! See a pattern here? We, the consumers will always be made to pay the highest costs in the way of jobs, our homes, our livelihoods and our environment.

So now, what do we do about it? First of all, find out where your representatives stand on energy policies. If they have not approved responsible energy policies in the past, VOTE THEM OUT OF OFFICE! Find out what to do and how to get involved in "greening" your neighborhood. Volunteer at a community garden. Buy from local businesses. Promote and hold workshops on Solar, Wind, Geothermal. Learn more about DIY (Do It Yourself). Stop buying useless junk. Use glass instead of plastic. Carpool or ride a bike! Reduce your carbon footprint and reduce your gas cost. Network with others that are doing the same things. Communicate with neighbors, you might learn a lot! Get together and think of solutions and resolutions to bring us all into a new paradigm of energy independence and energy that is safe and does not damage or kill anyone or anything. As a community, support candidates who align with responsible energy policies and promote renewable energy. When we all work together, the possibilities could be endless!

***As an interesting postscript: the FIRST DUDE, Sarah Palin's husband, Todd was a consultant for BP. This fact is not even being mentioned by any of the mainstream media outlets. He worked for them for 18 years! I think Sarah Palin can tell us much about energy policies and how her family has profited from them. See: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/10/03/2009-10-03_todd_palin_resigns_from_oil_job_.html

Anita Stewart
May 2nd, 2010
Tampa, Florida
Candidate for Hillsborough County Soil and Water Conservation Board
http://www.anitastewartsoilandwater.com
anitasoilandwater@gmail.com
anitastewart@gmail.com