Fracking Protest on the North Shore today (how much, homes)

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by hinsey86

Simply disagree.

A New Marijuana Plant Without the High? It Could Be Good Medicine | TIME.com

Marijuana That Doesn't Get You Stoned : Discovery News

Google the Stanley Brothers in Colorado. They've had great success with low THC strains.

Medicinal marijuana stops seizures, brings hope to a little Black Forest girl

[Yac]

Soo... fracking or pot ? I hate to be the one to once again spoil your fun, but the thread has a topic you should follow There's a chat thread in case you forgot.
Yac.

[hinsey86]

Originally Posted by Hopes

A New Marijuana Plant Without the High? It Could Be Good Medicine | TIME.com

Marijuana That Doesn't Get You Stoned : Discovery News

Google the Stanley Brothers in Colorado. They've had great success with low THC strains.

Medicinal marijuana stops seizures, brings hope to a little Black Forest girl

Not what I was disagreeing with. Yes it can be manipulated but the evidence I am familiar with does not indicat in general street levels are lower..the opposite. And I am for legalization....and on the fence about fracking.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by JimboPGH

While I generally agree with the cause of renewable energy/exposing the gas industry for the hell beast that it is, protests like this tend to do little but make the participants feel better about themselves and annoy people who may otherwise be sympathetic.

Activism that can actually have an impact tends to be quiet and tedious, and rarely catches a headline.

Great post--I very much agree with all your points. So true that the most productive activism takes place behind the scenes. One thing I learned from getting involved in protests back in the 60s and 70s was that, in the end, protests don't accomplish all that much. They make people "feel" they've done something, but in my observation they tend to backfire more often than not. Yes, they draw attention, but they also tend annoy the people you really want to persuade, those people who are sympathetic but on the fence.

Annoying people is a bad idea--it makes them start to sympathize with the other side.

I hear a lot of talk about "continuing the conversation." It's the trendy justification--"sure, our event didn't accomplish anything, but it mattered because we continued the conversation." OWS viewed itself as a success because it "continued the conversation." The tea party thinks the shut down was a success because it "continued the conversation."

Oy.

Conversation? We have more than enough conversation going on 24/7. That's all people do nowadays is converse and converse and converse. You can't take a peaceful hike in the woods, or stand in line at a store, or sit on the bus, or even sit in church without hearing conversation. And fracking isn't some new topic that nobody is talking about--you can hear the the pros and cons via internet, tweets, talk shows, 24-hour news programs, texts, you name it. No need to hold a protest if all you get from it is "we started a conversation." You want real change, stop trying to "start a conversation" and instead go out and do something.

[Ghostrider275452]

Originally Posted by jay5835

I haven't smoked pot in decades, literally. All it ever did was make me thirsty and paranoid, sometimes really scary paranoid. It cost $20/oz. for the good $#!^ the last time I smoked it. What seems funny to me now is how dealers in the '70s would tell you one batch was especially wonderful because of the (what I now know are) pesticides or herbicides used to grow it. "Paraquat" was a highly sought-after variant, c.1970.

20 bucks will get you 1/8 oz if your lucky, thanks to the war on drugs. Weed hasn't been $20 an oz since the 70's.

[Ghostrider275452]

Originally Posted by airwave09

Wow, tell us how you really feel. Way to stereotype the crap out of people without a shred of evidence behind it.

And how is mining another fossil fuel that pollutes everything it touches considered "progress"?

Talk about delusional.

So, what is your solution? Do you drive, use lights at home, take showers? All uses fossil fuels and until a viable, affordable solution is found, we will have to live with it.

[airwave09]

So, what is your solution? Do you drive, use lights at home, take showers? All uses fossil fuels and until a viable, affordable solution is found, we will have to live with it.

There are many options, and it only takes a few minutes of research to figure out. People need to start thinking for themselves and not let the fossil fuel propaganda machine dictate their thought process on energy production.

The region is becoming a green technology leader in construction, so we should start thinking like one across the board.

For one, we should be exploring more hydro-electric options since we have so many dams in the area. Many of them are in bad need of repair and/or a complete overhaul, so now would be the perfect time to start working on adding an energy production component.

Solar is getting to the point now where it is cost-effective to install without a green energy subsidy. This will only get better as the technology improves.

[SammyKhalifa]

Originally Posted by airwave09

There are many options, and it only takes a few minutes of research to figure out. People need to start thinking for themselves and not let the fossil fuel propaganda machine dictate their thought process on energy production.

The region is becoming a green technology leader in construction, so we should start thinking like one across the board.

For one, we should be exploring more hydro-electric options since we have so many dams in the area. Many of them are in bad need of repair and/or a complete overhaul, so now would be the perfect time to start working on adding an energy production component.

Solar is getting to the point now where it is cost-effective to install without a green energy subsidy. This will only get better as the technology improves.

While I like hydro-electric in principle, it has its own set of environmental problems as well. Not far from us at all is one example of people doing the right thing and actually wrecking down these dams.

http://blog.cleveland.com/pdextra/20..._dam_as_c.html

What prompted the EPA to act now is a proposal by the investment group Advanced Hydro Solutions LLC of Fairlawn, which wants to refurbish the Gorge Park Dam to produce electricity again.

[Johnny C]

There is more hydro capacity to be had - maybe even as much as 50% increase by some bloated estimates:

Factoid #17: U.S. Hydropower Can Be Increased By At Least 50 Percent: - NIRS

The problem is that hydro only makes up around 6% of our grid right now, so even a 50% increase wouldn't be enough to make a huge difference or simply allow us to walk away from fossil fuel or nuclear.

Solar is very limited as well until scientists can come up with more efficient panels, cheaper manufacturing techniques,and a distribution system that can also save the stored energy when the sun isn't shining. Solar also has issues with large quantities of waste materials containing cadmium and lead that have to be disposed of after the 25ish year lifespan of the panels.

I think that "renewables" like solar, wind, and hydro are important pieces of the energy mix, and they will continue to be more feasible as technology advances. That being said, anyone fantasizing that these sources completely replace fossil fuels anytime soon isn't living in the real world. We need energy now, and are fortunate enough to have some of it directly under our feet. Let's use it now in a safe and responsible manner for a few decades until the other technologies mature.

[JimboPGH]

Originally Posted by Caladium

Conversation? We have more than enough conversation going on 24/7. That's all people do nowadays is converse and converse and converse. You can't take a peaceful hike in the woods, or stand in line at a store, or sit on the bus, or even sit in church without hearing conversation. And fracking isn't some new topic that nobody is talking about--you can hear the the pros and cons via internet, tweets, talk shows, 24-hour news programs, texts, you name it. No need to hold a protest if all you get from it is "we started a conversation." You want real change, stop trying to "start a conversation" and instead go out and do something.

Agreed.

And if anti-fracking activists want to really "continue the conversation," then go to areas where fracking is taking place, and talk to the people in those communities directly: canvass, go to town meetings, participate in the daily tedium of local democracy. Making a lot of noise in a crowded urban center, removed from the trenches of the gas industry, isn't the best way to be heard.