Mind Boggling Waste

Edward Humes: Total Garbage

We waste 40% of our food.

The Average American is responsible for 1.5 tons of garbage each year.

EPA States on Waste

EPA estimated that each year, U.S. food loss and waste embodies 170 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (million MTCO2e) GHG emissions (excluding landfill emissions) – equal to the annual CO2 emissions of 42 coal-fired power plants.

Humes also asserts, we waste 60% of our energy.

6 billion gallons

Vehicles idling combine to waste nearly 6 billion gallons of fuel per year, and cost owners more than $20 billion. That's a billion with a B. And idling consumes fuel without moving the vehicle, which means you're wasting both energy and money without doing any work. -gpstracker

Traffic congestion increases vehicle emissions and degrades ambient air quality, and recent studies have shown excess morbidity and mortality for drivers, commuters and individuals living near major roadways. Presently, our understanding of the air pollution impacts from congestion on roads is very limited

- nih.

Plastics

We produce 400 million tons of plastic waste per year attendant to food packaging, disposable bottles and the synthetics woven into our clothing


Headlines from the World Bank

First, rapid urbanization, population growth, and economic development will push global waste generation to increase by 70% over the next 30 years.

Second, in low-income countries, over 90% of waste is mismanaged – it is either openly dumped or burned.

Third, plastics are a profoundly difficult and complex problem.

Word Wildlife Fund points out

Micro-Plastic is in everything. We eat the equivalent of a credit card per week.

There's a solution - Consume less. 

As a part of a society known for it conspicuous consumption, the answer is pretty simple really. Once we are finished with  goods and products, they usually end up in a landfill as waste. The less we consume, the less damage we will do to the environment. Reducing our consumption is a great way to reduce our carbon footprint and take a political stance by rejecting our consumerist culture. (From on-line sources)

COVID Mitigation Worked

 

Without a Plan

The impact of vaccines and behavior on US cumulative deaths from COVID-19

 America’s improvised strategy to fight COVID-19—public and private behavioral changes to slow transmission until vaccines could be deployed—prevented close to 800,000 deaths in the country. The ad hoc effort’s effectiveness is surprising because public health officials could not precisely target mitigation as they lacked precise information on the routes and mechanisms of the disease’s transmission.  -Brookings

What Worked?

Hand Washing

Masking

Social Distancing

Isolating

Testing

Lockdowns

Ad hoc measures to keep us safe were the best things we could do with no plan in place until the vaccine was developed. Research suggests without the ad hoc measures, COVID would have cost over two million lives instead of one million. It is estimated that vaccine hesitancy cost an additional 273 thousand lives.

There were two forces at work. The first group, people who had a a good idea of what needed to be done, forged ahead with solutions. 

The second group, people who were blown away by the enormity of the task, spent an inordinate amount of energy looking for somebody to blame. They looked for conspiracies from the CDC and HIH. They blamed the World Health Organization. They blamed China for deliberately releasing the virus as a form of warfare. Another conspiracy theory claimed it was a plot by the establishment to deny the president in his bid for reelection. None of this was supported by the facts. All of it got in the way, and put all of us at risk.

Thank God the first group persevered. 

What Immigrants Built

The Transcontinental Railroad

The National Archive tells us, Beginning in 1863, the Union Pacific, employing more than 8,000 Irish, German, and Italian immigrants, built west from Omaha, Nebraska; the Central Pacific, whose workforce included over 10,000 Chinese laborers, built eastward from Sacramento, California.

And why were Chinese workers chosen to build the railroad? They were excellent workers and it was cheaper to bring Chinese workers across the ocean than other workers across the continent. -the Folsom Cordova Unified School District.

They Built This City

When I worked third shift in a machine shop in Milwaukee, I worked side by side with people who were immigrants from Europe, Central and South America, Mexico, Asia and Blacks who were part of the great migration.  Their contributions don't end there. The American Immigration Council recently completed a study that points out, “The United States was built, in part, by immigrants—and the nation has long been the beneficiary of the energy and ingenuity that immigrants bring. Today, 13.6 percent of the nation’s residents are foreign-born, more than half of whom are naturalized citizens. Immigrants support the U.S. economy in many ways, accounting for 22.2 percent of entrepreneurs, 22.8 percent of STEM workers, and 15.2 percent of nurses. As workers, business owners, taxpayers, and neighbors, immigrants are an integral part of the country’s diverse and thriving communities and make extensive contributions that benefit all.”

The Immigration Council has come up with a really cool interactive map. The 2023 Map, showcases the contributions of immigrants in the country, all 50 states, and industry sectors across the economy. It also features hundreds of stories and videos from local leaders talking about why immigration matters to them.

I clicked on the map to find out how immigrants are contributing to Connecticut. There are 551,000 immigrants, They make up 15% of the population. They pay $8,1 billion in taxes, Immigrants have  $19.2 billion in spending power. There are nearly 41,000 immigrant entrepreneurs in Connecticut. And, just over 290,000 eligible voters.

Why do immigrants want to come here? Why do they persist despite long odds, bias and bigotry? According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, The predominant reasons immigrants say they came to the U.S. are for better work and educational opportunities, a better future for their children, and more rights and freedoms. Smaller but still sizeable shares cite other factors such as joining family members or escaping unsafe or violent conditions.

What can I do?

“When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.”  Leviticus 19:33-34 

Meanwhile, in a cruel twist, 68 percent of white evangelicals say America has no responsibility to house refugees. (Pew Research) I guess they missed that part of the Bible.

Is It Possible to be All Things to All People?

 

Not on the Radio

Bonnie Gillespie Quote: “When you try to be everything to everyone, you accomplish being nothing to anyone.”

It's a lesson learned a long time ago in public radio. The phenomenal growth of the system in the 90's and early 2000's was because we knew our audience and we served them with programming strategies aimed at that specific audience.

If we want to diversify our audience, we have to think about who that audience might be. And it is likely, people from that demographic will be running the show.

Thinking in terms of programming for one big diverse audience is foolishness. There are many audiences left unserved, and to serve them will take consistency in appeal of the programming.

Remember Afropop Worldwide? The original effort was to seek a more diverse audience for public radio. Did it work? Not really. Afropop brings African pop music to a mostly white audience. The idea that a one hour program is going to serve an African American audience is wishful thinking. It can't even come close to covering the cultural diversity of Africa. One hour a week is not going to make difference.

John Sutton's recent essay in Current has it right. Choose your demographic, and serve that demographic with consistent appeal and programs that resonates with your targeted core audience. (Why Public Radio's Efforts to Reach New Audiences Aren't Moving the Needle)

Public radio's audience is driven by two programs, Morning Edition and All Things Considered. To reach another audience means another programming stream.

This does not have to be a one or the other proposition. Stations have found work arounds before by finding different streams for different formats. The same could be done in this instance. Would something like the differing formats of the streaming services be a viable option?

So, why are we learning this again?

Land of the Free

Constitutional Freedoms

The First Amendment guarantees the freedoms of religion, speech, assembly, and the press.

FDR'S Four Freedoms 

His "four essential human freedoms" included some phrases already familiar to Americans from the Bill of Rights, as well as some new phrases: freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear.

God Given Freedoms

The three “God-given” rights are in the Declaration of Independence - the right to ““life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” That was written in 1776, a year after the war had started.

Trump's Take

White Christian Nationalism, Truth Social and conspiracy theories, the January Sixth insurrection, and the press is the enemy of the people. 

So, what's happening? Revenge and Retribution. Demonizing opponents. The dismantling of our democracy.

I’m holding on to my freedom / Can’t take it from me / I was born into it / It comes naturally

- Jill Scott, “Golden” (2004)

You might not know...

 I Raced Bicycles

Not road races or motocross or mountain bikes. I raced on an oval track. Sprints! I was competitive. Over course of seven summers I won multiple sprints. I also learned there are certain athletes that are world-class. People like Major Taylor, The Worcester Whirlwind. I never raced against Taylor. He was before my time at the turn of 19th and early 20th centuries.

According to sources quoted in Wikipedia, "Marshall Walter "Major" Taylor (November 26, 1878 – June 21, 1932) was an American professional cyclist. Even by modern cycling standards, Taylor could be considered the greatest American sprinter of all time." He held several world records. In this country he beat the mostly white racers so soundly, he was banned from track racing in Indiana. He was allowed to race elsewhere, including Madison Square Garden, if "he didn't act all uppity" after his victories. A superlative athlete, he was a draw. His presence filled the seats at the velodrome.

Sad Notes

He died alone and penniless in Chicago in the early 30s. He was put in a pauper's grave, but he wasn't forgotten. He had innumerable fans. Bike racing was a popular sport then, and he was responsible for filling up the Garden every time he raced.

The owner of Schwinn Bicycles stepped forward to change the outcome. Walter became more than a sad footnote. In 1948, Frank Schwinn  had his body exhumed, and then put in a proper grave where his accomplishments could be celebrated. He's remembered in Worcester, too. They have a museum in his honor.

One More Twist

My bike was super light weight. It was manufactured by Frejus. According to the website Vintage-Steel, "Frejus is a rare masterpiece of craftsmanship, a piece of the Italian cycling heritage." The brand was founded in 1896 in Turin by Emmo Ghelfi and then acquired by Emilio Bozzi. The latter was kidnapped and assassinated in the mid-1970s by the Brigate Rosse or BR, an Italian terrorist group. The company then closed.

There's a new documentary about Major Taylor from WTIU, the PBS station in Indianapolis. It airs Monday February 26th. It will also be available on the PBS app.

Radical Thinking

But none of us can be erased if we refuse it. The idea of love, justice, and freedom do not belong to the powerful alone. It also belongs to us.

- Danté Stewart

Radical Love.  Radical Thinking. 

It's in the Bible and it's in the Declaration of Independence.

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

- Matthew 5:6

The Declaration of Independence included these three major ideas: People have certain Inalienable Rights including Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness. All Men are created equal. Individuals have a civic duty to defend these rights for themselves and others. ushistory.org

What's so radical about this? The words are meant to apply to everybody. No exceptions. No exclusions. There are no barriers. 

It's the basis of our democracy and it is not about Christian Nationalism, because the invitation is, come as you are, all are welcome.