Ban plastic bags? I've got a better idea...

Plastic bags, or better yet, all disposable bags should be TAXED not banned.

Both plastic and paper bags (all disposable bags) are bad for the environment. It is unclear which is worse. They both seem equally bad. Yet both are sometimes needed. So rather than out right banning one or the other, it would be better to use strong economic incentives to reduce their use and encourage reuse/recycling. Plus we could use the extra money to balance our state budget.

If it cost 5 cents for each disposable bag and you could get 2 cents back for each one turned in, I bet there would be close to zero bags blowing around.

For more see the San Jose Mercury News article (July 29, 2008) at:
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_10039462

Just Imagine What Positive Work We Could Do With...

Just Imagine What Positive Work We Could Do With...

4000 living young American men and women,
1001 living American contractors,
29,000 unwounded young American men and women,
90,000 living Iraqi Civilians,
500 Billion US dollars,
and 5 Years...

With those resources we could have reduced global warming, saved millions of lives, fed billions, and ended illiteracy worldwide. ( http://icasualties.org/ , http://iraqbodycount.org/ , http://costofwar.com/ , http://www.heifer.org/site/c.edJRKQNiFiG/b.3584667/ )

Instead, this is what President Bush and his supporters chose to spend starting and waging war in Iraq. And the war is not over. The United States is likely to spend many more years, countless more lives, and around 2 trillion US dollars, perhaps more, on this war.

What a horrendous waste of resources.

What do you think works better to reduce terrorism?
1) Killing the friends and families of others? Or,
2) Educating others so they can live decently with their friends and family?

Tonight I spent 2 hours with 50 other peace loving patriots at a vigil in Mountain View, California to honor the 4000 American soldiers who have died so far in Iraq. We spent 30 minutes reading aloud each name of the over 400 Californian soldiers who have died in the past 5 years.

This evening I met Karen Meredith whose only son Ken Ballard died on May 20, 2004. Please read more about Ken at http://www.ltkenballard.com/

Five years ago my father, an ardent peace activist, died just as the war began. Please read what I said during his memorial service on March 23, 2003 at http://oeyweb.com/sunny/MemServTim.htm

Finally, Greg Mortenson worked in Afghanistan and Pakistan, could see a catastrophe about to happen, and saw the best way to prevent terrorism permanently. To learn more about his work please read the book "Three Cups of Tea" http://threecupsoftea.com/

Just imagine what Greg could have done with the resources that have been wasted on the war in Iraq. He could have really ended terrorism instead of creating conditions that generate more terrorism.

I hope each of you who read my message here will do your own small part to end this war, save lives, and save our world.

Thank you.

Sincerely,
Tim Oey
http://timoey.blogspot.com/

freecycle, let me count the ways...

Why should freecycle be free? Let me count the ways...

1) freecycle is a great new word that accurately describes a popular activity (to reuse/recycle by giving trash away to someone who actually wants it and can use it rather than putting it in a landfill)
2) freecycle is either a compound word combining "free" and "cycle" or it is a portmanteau combining "free" and "recycle"
3) no other word accurately describes the act of freecycling and words by their very nature must be free for all to use
4) giving, is just giving and has no connotation of environmentalism or recycling, freecycling is a specialized form of giving
5) recycling is recycling -- reusing materials, freecycling is a variation on recycling
6) reusing is reusing -- and does not necessarily mean giving away for reuse
7) gifting is usually associated with purchasing and giving something valuable to someone special, it has no connotations regarding recycling or environmentalism or that you have trash you will dump if no one wants it
8) regiving is not a regular "official" word and also implies giving again -- when you have purchased something you could then freecycle it but regiving makes less sense
9) regifting is a popular well known activity -- after you've received a gift you don't need or don't like -- but this does not capture what freecycling is really about
10) freesharing, freeusing, etc are all new constructs that do not have the same ring or popularity as freecycling and also do not as naturally capture the nature and spirit of freecycling
11) freecycle was freely given away hundreds of thousands of times by the people who created it and popularized it and when you give something away, you should be generous and allow people to keep the gift, right?
12) the New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, San Jose Mercury News, Grist, and many other news organizations have all used "freecycle" as a word and if they can, why not everyone else?
13) Goodwill Industries feels no need to corner the market on goodwill, so why should The Freecycle Network be the only group that can engage in freecycling?
14) the very nature of freecycling encourages the word to be freely freecycled too, right? does it hurt if there are as many freecyclers in the world as possible? isn't that the whole point of the freecycling grassroots movement?

(A word to the wise: If you want to trademark something, don't invent a new word and expect to control it. Rather invent a new word and let it be free. Then pick a separate mark that can be protected by being a trademark. This is why drug companies ALWAYS have a generic name in addition to a brand name for their medications. Otherwise your "mark" will just go the way of yo-yo, escalator, etc)


How many ways are there to freecycle stuff? Let me count the ways...

1) leave stuff on the curb with/or without a "free" sign -- this is a classic method.
2) give stuff away to neighbors or relatives (although you usually don't give them the really trashy stuff)
3) freecycle with a free post on Craigslist
4) freecycle with a free post in the local freetrader (paper or electronic)
5) freecycle by dropping stuff off at Goodwill or Salvation Army and not bother with a tax receipt
6) freecycle by dropping off at your favorite local charity who can use it
7) freecycle by leaving something in the freecycle zone at a dump
8) freecycle by posting to a neighborhood or city email list
9) freecycle through the groups or services listed at http://freesharing.org
10) and http://sharingisgiving.org/
11) and http://fullcircles.org/
12) and http://freecycle.org.au/
13) and http://freecycling.com
14) and http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/WorldwideFreeShare/
15) and http://freesourcesrn.org/
16) and http://freeuse.org/
17) and http://reuses.com/
18) and http://aroundagain.org/
19) and http://recycle4free.com/
20) and http://reuseitnetwork.org/
21) and http://freemesa.org/
22) and http://freecycleamerica.org/
23) and http://free.localdataplace.com/
24) and http://realcycle.co.uk/
25) and http://freecycleearth.org/
26) and http://giftofgiving.net/
27) and http://grrn.org/
28) and http://dontdumpthat.com/
29) and http://free2collect.co.uk/
30) and http://freeuse.co.uk/
31) and http://giveortake.org/
32) and http://texasrecyclenetwork.org/
33) and http://freedomcycle.org/
34) and http://iwastenot.com/


Wow! There sure are a lot of ways, aren't there?

Enjoy!
Tim

I believe in cycles

I believe in cycles -- in the power of cycles and in the value of understanding cycles.

Everywhere I look I see cycles. From wheels and bicycles, to vibrating atoms and the seasons, to my own life and the birth and death of stars. Water and food cycle in and out of me. Blood courses through my veins. I wake up, eat, work, relax, and go to sleep only to wake up again. I was born, I live, I will die, and my elements will go back to mother earth. "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust." I am made of cycles and I am a part of cycles.

Cycles are powerful. They make the world go round. They are natural forces that shape the environment around me. Get on the right side of a positive cycle and I can do anything. Get on the wrong side of a negative cycle and watch my dreams go down in flames.

To make the most of cycles, I observe and try to understand them. It is hard to figure out what cycles to ride to success and which to avoid. It is work to influence cycles so they accomplish positive results instead of negative ones. Cycles don't care. They just exist. But I care.

Reduce, reuse, recycle is a mantra I follow because it helps me make efficient use of many of the cycles around me. In following it, I hope to leave this world a better place for my children and my fellow mankind.

There are two large cycles that especially worry me today.

One is the carbon cycle. Mankind is moving large amounts of carbon from the earth into the air in the form of carbon dioxide. The change in this cycle is warming our earth and will cause major changes in cycles our lives depend on. Glaciers will melt. Farmlands will become deserts. Coastal areas will be submerged. Mankind changed this cycle, and mankind has the knowledge, power, and responsibility to restore its balance.

The other large worrisome cycle is the cycle of hate. "What goes around comes around." Making war on others encourages them to make war on us. I need your help to break this cycle by spinning it a different way. Practicing peace is hard but provides a far better role model. "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." It is hard, very hard, but I personally work on this cycle by trying to help others, even when others hurt me.

I believe in cycles. I hope that all of you will join me to build a cycle of balance in our environment, and a cycle of peace in our world.


--------------------
Reflections:

It was easy and it was hard to write this essay. It was easy because it came out of a chat I had with my youngest son during a car ride to our recycling center. I wanted him to learn some of what I had learned. I wanted him to learn about cycles -- especially the cycle of hurt -- so he could learn how to stop this cycle from occurring (especially with his brother) and so he would understand more about why I spent so much time and energy recycling things. After this talk, I remembered listening to some of the "This I Believe" essays, particularly the one about believing in the rule of law. I decided to write down my own beliefs about cycles. It was hard because fitting it succinctly into less than 500 words was a challenge. Also I did this somewhat late at night on Christmas eve. But I finished it, read it to my family, and now here it is.