I know, I know, this documentary has been out for a while now and it already won an Oscar. Well, I just had the opportunity to watch it because they were airing it on Showtime last night. Here’s a nice short review for those that don’t wan’t to read any further: I was very impressed.

Now, on to the real content of this post. I’ve always been concious of the looming climate issues, but this really opened up my eyes to how fast it is happening and how far beyond regular climate change it is going. I understand his point that this is something that every person can have an impact on, but to really make a difference, this is something where the government needs to step in and really press for change. I think that the absolute first thing that the government can do to really show that it is serious about this issue and is taking the right first steps is to sign the Kyoto Protocol treaty. It absolutely amazes me that this is not something the US would sign, yet at the same time it is not surprising, knowing the current administration. It seems almost ridiculous that our government would be unwilling to sign a treaty that serves no purpose other than to preserve the Earth for our children, their children, and future generations.

Beyond Kyoto, American car companies need to get their act together. We have the technology to really excel and lead the way in the development of low and zero emissions cars, yet all they are doing is dragging their feet with hybrids, hydrogen fuel cells, and electric cars while they watch their companies circle the drain and wonder what makes them different from their profitable foreign competitors. With technology advancing the way it has been in the last few decades, cars that run on gasoline should already be a minority.

I’d also like to touch on energy sources. Alternative “green” energy sources really need to start being put in to place. Specifically, wind and solar. Wind energy is really only feasible in certain parts of the world, where the land is relatively flat and wind speeds get higher, but the Sun is easily the most untapped energy source in the world. Solar panels are expensive at this point, which is why many frown upon their use and don’t see the the long-term benefit, but this is only only because people like George W. Bush feel that our countries tax dollars are betters spent blowing up foreign peoples instead of advancing the scientists and research being held in the United States.

Until we are able to get our act together and start pushing the advances that can help balance out the climate again, I’m scared to see what the climate will be like by the end of my lifetime.

I don’t know if many people are really familiar with this term yet, but Net Neutrality is essentially the reason that the Internet is currently the free place that we know and love. To put it simply, net neutrality forbids your ISP from restricting what you access. They can’t say you can’t access a certain website or something similar just because they don’t like it or, worse off, that website didn’t pay them some sort of fee. All data gets an equal share with net neutrality.

Here’s where it gets nasty: The major telecom companies and a decent chunk of congress are looking to pass an act called the Communications Opportunity, Promotion and Enhancement Act (COPE). COPE demolishes net neutrality within the US. With the COPE act, whoever your internet service provider is would be allowed to charge fees to webhosts/websites to allow access. Say, for example, that your ISP is contacted with MSN and not Yahoo, but you prefer Yahoo. Because Yahoo didn’t pay your ISP their fee, it would be perfectly legal for them to lower data transmission priority to Yahoo, which means you might have trouble accessing Yahoo, you might not be able to access it at all, or it might even route you automatically to MSN. Pretty disturbing, right? Well, it gets worse. What if your bank and/or credit card company doesn’t pay a fee to your ISP? Or you use a certain site to get severe weather alerts and they don’t pay the fee? Worse yet, what if you need to find the nearest hospital, but the one that’s around the corner that you don’t know about isn’t on your ISP’s approved list? It even goes beyond just the web. Access can easily be restricted to certain chat rooms, or you might not get emails from friends because they use a competitor’s internet service.

Are you disgusted with the telecom companies and certain (primarily Republican) members of the Congress yet? I am.

Here’s what you can do about it:

SaveTheInternet.com - Sign their petition!
House of Representatives - Contact your congressman!
Declare Yourself - Elect someone who will fight for net neutrality!

Does anyone else watch this show?

I have no idea when it actually airs live, but Jessie and I set up a DVR series recording for it so we get it each week and I gotta say, I love it. It’s intelligent, he has great guests, it’s on HBO so he can get away with way more than he would on standard cable or *gasp* network television, and best of all: it’s hillarious. In my completely unsubstantiated opinion, it’s the best political talkshow on television. Partly because its very left-wing and anti-Bush, but also largely because of how open the show is because of the freedom it gets from being on HBO.

Also, did I mention how awesome the “New Rules” segment is? Because its truely awesome. Here two of my favorites:

1. New Rule: Nobody can use the phrase “our greatest problem” anymore unless you’re talking about global warming. President Bush has been saying we’re in a war on terror, and now I get it. He’s not saying “terror,” he’s saying “terra” as in “terra firma,” as in the Earth. George Bush is an alien sent here to destroy the Earth! I know it sounds crazy, but it made perfect sense when Tom Cruise explained it to me last week.
2. New Rule: You can’t be as tired as we are of you. The latest excuse for Bush Administration foul-ups is that top members of the White House staff are physically and emotionally exhausted. ["aw" from the audience] Hmm. If there was just some sort of stress-relieving activity that could be performed right there in the Oval Office…

   RICHARD BELZER: Great job.

   MAHER: Yeah, well, I’d suggest a nice vacation out in the country, but the last time that happened, somebody got shot.

I was watching the president blow hot air out his ass on TV the other night (which, by the way, was somehow worth delaying the airing of a new Family Guy!) and all I could think of was the following quote:

“Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.”

In case you weren’t aware, I regularly check Google News as my primary source for national and international news. In recent months an everpresent topic is the nuclear situation in Iran, as I’m sure you’ve already noticed if you read or watch the news from virtually any of the nations news sources. There is literally a constant barrage of articles about the latest attempts by the UN to inspect Iran’s nuclear program, Iran resisting, rinse, and repeat. I can’t help but think that the more the US and UN provoke and taunt Iran in regards to their Nuclear program, the faster they will actually develop a Nuclear weapon. Well, it’s finally starting to happen. Unfortunately, my theories were proven correct today when I checked the news and, low and behold, there’s an article claiming that Iran has attained a blueprint detailing how to build the core of a nuclear warhead. Given, this doesn’t mean that they have the means to build the entire weapon yet, but they are sure getting close.

Does this worry anyone other than me? I was hoping to live out my life without having to see World War III, but it’s looking less and less like that is going to happen (especially with our current administration), but only time will tell. One thing I can guarantee you, is that if there does end up being a nuclear war, the entire world is going to be a completely different place when its over. At least this time Germany might actually be on our side.