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Where is Everybody Going? |
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Written by Louis Peterson
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Tuesday, 17 November 2009 |
"Where is everybody going?" was a joking shout that rang out from a lone runner among the 25,000 strong crowd gathered at Union Square in San Francisco on Sunday, 18 October 2009, ready to participate in a 42.2 kilometer Marathon Run in the city. This event, by those who appreciate their own health and fitness, was to draw attention to the needs of those suffering from leukemia or lymphoma cancer, those unable to enjoy many of the common benefits that I for one take for granted.
It was an event all the more special to me than many similar worthwhile events, because my daughter Nicole with "Team in Action" from BC (my bragging right!) was one of the thousands of participants who support leukemia and lymphoma research. The timing of the event happened to coincide with a report of a spectacular announcement from Canadian researchers of a dramatic improvement in leukemia/lymphoma treatment, from below 30% to over 80% recovery success - a glorious outcome for the patients and for the dedicated medical researchers.
By increasing awareness within her circle, Nicole has raised a considerable sum of money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada (LLSC). Charitable donations may still be made to recognize and support her effort together with Team in Action to assist the LLSC to further its work, and to augment the $19M that the gathering of thousands in San Francisco has already raised. Donations may be made online at http://my.e2rm.com/personalpage .
"Where is everybody going?" is a clarion call that we might ask of ourselves, our society, our country and the 6.8 billion people on our Planet...... Why? Because "It is Not for Ourselves Alone".
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 17 November 2009 )
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Written by Glen Dennison
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Monday, 09 November 2009 |
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Dear Divers and Lions Bay Village Council,
The Underwater Council of BC (UCBC) has in the past successfully negotiated a conciliatory agreement between divers, and the Lions Bay Village Council to allow diving at Kelvin Grove in a limited fashion. This issue continues to re-circulate and requires constant attention. Previously, small groups of divers were allowed to access the site for diving if, in return, dive shops did not bus in loads of students for training, and also did not operate compressors in the residential neighborhood. With emotions running high and bad feelings escalating, it would be beneficial for the dive community to meet with the Lions Bay community and once again strike up a working agreement regarding the Kevin Grove site for diving. After looking over many e-mails forwarded to me, as well as opinions that have been posted in the local newspapers, I feel that errors have been made on both sides of the argument. Many of the comments coming from anonymous divers have been in the categories of ugly and over-reactive. On the other hand, are the residents sure that all transgressions have been committed by the divers, rather than transient youths partying? Since the beginning of Kelvin Grove, there have been constant problems with out of area cliff divers partying at and around the location. Residents should be careful not to make wide accusations toward all users of the site. Divers as well should be very careful about how they behave when visiting. Facilities, which include washrooms with a small change area, are locked at park closing times to prevent damage. This is fair and protects them for all daytime users (residents and divers alike).
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 02 December 2009 )
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Written by Rafe Mair
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Thursday, 15 October 2009 |
I'm sorry to say this but Peach Akerhielm is clearly over her depth and unfit to govern.
Visitor's ought to be as welcome on our beaches and in our neighbourhoods as they are at the Mayor's cafe and store. This incident over divers has made us look like petty, parochial idiots. Here we are hustling and bustling to look good before the world for the Olympics while we yield to a few yappers in big homes who have just discovered that living ON a beach means that you have to live WITH that beach.
"Loud voices have been raised" says our Councilor!
Indeed they have! In fact over and over and over again! The problem is that the council has listened to noise not facts; to self centred windbags; to NIMBYs of the worst kind. Show up week after week at Council complaining of defecating divers, vicious dogs and near nudity and Council will meekly obey.
I'm pleased that the councilor has dropped the defecating charge and reduced it to mere urinating! Where in the world has she been! Of course it's bad manners to pee where you might be seen but does that mean that all who dive must be restricted if not banned? This is the sort of mind that's running our village?
The reasoning of Ms Peach is puerile. Lump in peeing divers with trespassers on the CN right-of-way and on private property and throw a few scary divers endangering themselves all into the same mix, cluck your tongue and cry out "Visitors. visitors'! The CN and private citizens can look after trespassers just as the rest of us do - or will our strata councils now be expecting one of our three (!!!) by-laws officers to patrol our parking lot and arrest the trespassers that use it as a short cut to the mayor's parking lot which, incidentally, has no parking limitations.
The attempted ban on divers succeeded one thing - it showed up our community as small town hicks before the rest of BC.
It's interesting to note that the first diver to accept my invitation to dive was faced by huffing and puffing Lions Bay-er who couldn't wait to tell him that he was delighted to have him as his personal guest!
I don't ask Councilor Peach to do any more than treat and welcome visitors just as we are treated when we use sea walls, creeks and parks in other communities.
This council has made us all look like fools - they should repeal their diving by law (which hasn't a prayer of standing up in court as they well know), apologize and vow to meet less since the fewer times these nincompoops meet, the better off we'll all be.
Sincerely,
Rafe Mair, citizen
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 15 October 2009 )
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Written by Rafe Mair
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Tuesday, 22 September 2009 |
The Campbell government, in 2002, privately and in secreet meetings
with the private power industry rewrite our longstanding provincial
energy policy to Industry's liking which will allow Corporate America
to reap tens of billions \iof our hard-earned dollars in the process
(I'll tell you how in a moment) . It was not preceded by a “white
paper” or any public consultation Whatsoever but is a
government/industry document that mirrors perfectly what the industry
heavyweights like Alcan, GE, the Dupont family and Accenture (the
reincarnation of Arthur Andersen Consulting of Enron fame) wanted. At
the heart of this policy is that all new renewable energy in BC
henceforth must be produced privately. The exception was allowing BC
Hydro to upgrade its facilities and do Site “C” which the premier
calculated would create enough heat and smoke to obscure the main
consequences of his plan.
What the government has told us about the plan is remarkably consistent
– consistently untrue. Let me follow that path before we get into the
consequences that will flow from this plan.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 28 September 2009 )
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Anthropogenic Carbon Dioxide |
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Written by Grant Prior
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Tuesday, 22 September 2009 |
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The volume of air inhaled and exhaled during normal respiration, the so-called “tidal volume,” is about 500ml.
Adults respire at a rate of about 12 breaths per minute under
normal circumstances. Undertaking strenuous exercise increases the
respiration rate to 45 breaths per minute.
After the gaseous exchange has taken place in the lungs, the exhalation comprises 5% of the exhaled volume as CO2.
Carbon dioxide comprises roughly 0.038% by volume of the air –
for the purposes of these calculations we can consider that to be zero.
Further, in the same light, we can consider the respiratory rate to be
the same regardless of age or physical fitness.
Thus we can say that the average person under normal
circumstances exhales 0.05 X 500 ml = 25 ml of CO2 per exhalation. At
a rate of 12 breaths per minute, that’s 300 ml per minute or 157,788
litres of CO2 per year. At 22.4 litres per mole, that volume represents
7000 moles per year. The atomic weight of carbon is 12 and that of
oxygen is 16 so a mole of CO2 is 44 grams. Thus, a year’s exhalations
produce 310 kg of CO2.
Now the world population is roughly 6.8 billion. Thus do Homo
sapiens exhale 2,100,000,000 tonnes of CO2 annually. Over 2 billion
anthropogenic tonnes!
Does Al Gore know this?
When you consider that strenuous exercise produces a four-fold
increase in carbon dioxide emissions, it is clearly time for us to
initiate a license fee - a carbon tax for joggers, hill-hikers and
anyone named “Dudley.”
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Last Updated ( Friday, 25 September 2009 )
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