Another Anniversary

March 31st, 1987. I was preparing to leave for my Great Lakes Bicycle Ride. I was about to depart on a ride of over 4,280 miles to let people around the Great Lakes know about cheap and simple things they could do to protect the Earth, water and air quality. I left armed with dozens of solutions to everyday problems and was constantly sharing techniques designed to increase efficiency, cut the cost of living and add to quality of life, while encouraging those living in the region to live more lightly on the planet.

These things have not changed. I continue on that path, although the ride took place over two and a half months, (80 days to be exact) my effort to improve the lives and environmental quality of this refion has continued for nearly three decades. Each year I take stock of the tools and techniques that are available to me and redouble my efforts to share important information with others about possible ways forward. From my posts and blogs as Saladman at Paganspace.net, sharing with over 50,000 pagans, to my wordpress blog, Permaculture, ECO-Ethics, Trees...from this blog, to the other blogger dot com blog that I write as: ECO-Tours of Wisconsin Inc. the messages are always the same. We can and often do better with less. The most valuable and revered things in life are not things, they are relationships.

If I had not grown up in poverty, perhaps I would not know about the real costs of anything. I probably would not understand the real value of anything either. The tenacity that difficulties and hardship can instill in people may be worth it in the end, but living through absence and lack is not as much fun as one might imagine. We live in a nation that continues to blame the victims of poverty, even though it is not their fault that they are poor. Demagogues frequently portray minorities as the problem because it is easier than solving the very real issues that we face. It seems that at every turn, there are faceless corporate interests that are intent on picking our pockets, however, these actions don't capture the press or attention of the masses. The high cost of advertising assures that money saving ideas rarely make it into the public eye. Unless you have to spend a large amount to save a small amount, then, you will not see the ads.

It has been nearly thirty years since that fateful day. The day I struck out, into the relative unknown. The years of study about the Great Lakes Region familiarized me with the geology, hydrology, forests and agricultural practices across the region. I had ample knowledge about the roads and cities that I would be seeing along the route. My focus, with a little help from Citizens for a Better Environment and Pollution Probe on ecological mayhem that followed in the wake of industrialization made me acutely aware of the types of hazards that we face from unbridled capitalism and in my heart of hearts I believed that when people heard the truth about how to live better for less, they would respond.

Many did and still do respond with deep respect and appreciation, most do understand that even tiny improvements, multiplied by millions of individual decisions can yield huge results, however, what we often lack is the motivation to make those decisions. This is where my life history figures so greatly into the perspectives I bring to my work. It has only been the last decade or so that the majority of people are beginning to realize that punishing the poor, although it is extremely easy because they rarely stand up for themselves, has been at the heart of the Republican revolution for decades. Shaming those who believe, either that they are worthy of more than they are getting or that they are contributing to the greater good through their personal sacrifices has become a way of life that is supported at every level by the oligarchy.

In my own experience, the ridicule and hate that was heaped upon me in the form of bullying was most often because my pants had holes, or my shirts were out of style, my holey shoes or long hair. All of which were the result of the triple-edged sword that was cutting into the heart of our family. Poverty, misogyny and corporate welfare tripled the odds against us and most other families headed by single mothers. Luckily, my mom took the time to teach my sister and I that we are worthwhile individuals and that no bully can take away our self respect...that is something we have to abandon for our selves. My father, who became a millionaire, probably several times over, had a commitment to our family (his two children) of $82.50 per month. Knowing that my worth, as calculated by the courts, was $41.25 per month, both confused and appalled me. Money, and my fathers own infatuation with it made him blind to our poverty. To keep our family together, and alive, my mom went to college to attempt to get us out of poverty, but as her income grew, costs stripped her gains away almost as soon as they accrued.

Giving to others has been a way of life in most of our family for generations. In spite of the ridicule, the hate and outward signs that we continue to get that we should be more ruthless, more authoritarian and more greedy, evidence to the contrary continues to mount. Just as I saw as a child, bullies don't care about anything but distracting themselves from the pain they are feeling inside. This is a fact of life. The only way forward, that I can see, is to confront bullying, power and control issues and misogyny, every single time we see it, in the most straight forward manner possible. These are the social aspects of environmentalism. I will continue to work for the betterment of all in whatever capacity I can. My current run for the U.S. house of Representatives from Wisconsin's 8th District, is a continuation of my life long effort to heal the rift between humankind and nature. We can do these things...we have the tools and technologies at our disposal, what we often lack is the will.

Not In Jail?

The way I was taught growing up, inciting violence or riot is against the law. The fact that Donald trump has not been arrested and brought to trial for his activities convinces me that our justice system has nothing to do with justice, but rather protection of the oligarchs and their excesses. Cases point to this all around our great nation. In the Frack-over territories, where toxic legacies are buried, just waiting to find fissures or cracked well casings that lead to our potable water are located. Scientists have determined that each and every bore hole (used for exploration) not to mention the high pressure well holes, through which vast amounts of energy are introduced, to hydraulically fracture bedrock are conduits for surface runoff to penetrate. Ironically, only recently, they found that they work in reverse as well, allowing toxic materials injected deep under the aquifer to bubble up into the best source of drinking and agricultural water available. How many of these folks bear the burden of the damage they cause when wells become unusable? We have seen the more than four moon venting of methane that took place in California. Homes that could not be occupied, sickness and lost time from work caused by an "accident", but who ever thought it was a good idea to create a man-made,  pressurized bubble of the stuff below the region? How much pressure had they put on the bedrock to force their penetrations to be breached? questions that some legal chicanery might make "classified" forever. flagrant violation of the rights of all of us are still able to create vast fortunes. Resorting to "the law" seems not to even be an option, or if it is, it can only act like a cloudy rear-view mirror.

I do not get easily taken in by conspiracy theories, however, I frequently see stupid all around me and it bears out complete and utter lack of understanding of basic physics, science and logic. There may not even be good record keeping about such information as how much pressure the well was under on a day to day basis. If there was, the corporation will claim that it is a protected trade secret.
The prestige that we grant offensive corporate groups, so wealthy that they can literally buy candidates, by funding campaigns. The oligarchy and their power and control over the media, investments, banking, insurance and militarism must end. We need to re-think security. Desperate people resort to desperate measures...we need to address desperation.

Ask everyone you meet, why is he not in jail?

Less Than Two Weeks...

This year, Wisconsin's Spring Election will be held April 5th. We have a choice between a hand-picked appointee of a Governor who is now experiencing less than a 37% approval rating and an experienced judge who has consistently exhibited the highest level of public service. The bulk of the oligarchs money has been spent propping up a State Supreme Court Justice, the same Chief Justice who submitted blank pages for two and a half years of appointments she was required to make available to the public. What can you expect from an appointee made by someone whose policies have consistently put the ship of state on the rocks? Those who are following the Governor of Wisconsin, and his reign estimate that even decades after he has left office, there will be repercussions and structural elements that will never be recovered.

There has been a great shift with the internet and the ability to network people far beyond the boundary of space and time, let us hope the fire catches enough, that we can install both Bernie Sanders to the White House and 469 Congressional leaders are sent to Washington who have caught the fire as well. WE THE PEOPLE! Have the right to govern our own affairs! Without the restrictions of traditional "bankers", the insurance and investment firms and their parasitic absorption of capital if for no other reason than to trade away our money as well as their own...The writing has been on the wall for decades, the big lie has overgrown the structure of our democracy and we need to prune back the bramble and get money out of politics!

A well known billionaire, who shall remain nameless has squandered most of about eight Billion dollars, trying to be posh enough as to b considered relevant. Fortunes were made and bigger fortunes were lost at this man's hand in the past. as a nation, are we to not consider the multiple failures his decisions have led to? are we to overlook the countless hopes and fortunes that have been dashed along with his own? This has got to be like when the little boy said "The Emperor wears no clothes!" in the old folk tale. We all see it right? When the frackers shunt three BTUs of energy into the Earth, to get five out, are there not better ways to spend that energy? Any candidate for public office that does not squarely honor the issues has got to go! In my District, Wisconsin's 8th, I am running as a strong supporter of Bernie Sanders, for the U.S. House of Representatives; those who would want to see Bernie win should love me! I have followed his career for all of these years and most people I have spoken with are either already on fire, or just as interested as you would expect, because Bernie makes sense!

If you know anyone living in Wisconsin's 8th District, Northeast Wisconsin, please, let them know I am running. To send money to the campaign, send to: Saladino 4 District 8 1446 Porlier street, Green Bay WI 54301 USA. I would love to discuss my values and why I am running for office at a campfire gathering. If you know anyone in Northeast Wisconsin, who is having a fire pit party, let me know, I would love to attend!

I have canoed most of the rivers in the district. It is where I left from and came home to on my Bicycle ride around the Great Lakes in 1987. The message people like Bernie and I have stays the same, the times change to meet us eventually. Bernie Sanders and i have both been talking the same talk, walking the same walk for three decades. History proves us right.

Within the circle, we are all one. We are each the locus of a dance of energy with the world around us. Those of us who openly accept that Bernie Sanders is the best choice, not only for America, but for the world, have got to do everything in our power to not only get him elected, but to get the Congress to shift as well, away from the money and to basic issues like universal healthcare, justice reform, free education and significant reductions in ridiculous military expenditures. Thrift has gone out of the conservatives lexicon, true conservation means investing in things that you know work. Austerity, as it is billed today is just a twist of the knife into our culture and economy that the crash of 2006 was. Punitive measures against those who cannot fight back is tyranny and We The People will not stand still for it!

Luckily, I knew how to live on nothing, because in 2006, I pretty much had to do it again, after all,
I was all in on real estate, but because my pockets were thin, I had three mortgages to pay, and barely cash flowing. It seemed that almost overnight, the home values dropped and continued until my investment was worth way less than I had into it. When I realized that three times 1/3 (30% loss) meant I only had two houses of value, but three mortgages to pay. I was shoveling the snow in front of the house we had planned to flip when I realized. Of course, old houses, you know, have more problems than solutions and we barely made it out with our only thing lost was a year of fixing it up as our side job. Not a penny for all those hours, but the house stands and is beautiful today for the work we did to it, so that is worth a lot.

The year prior to my taking my Great Lakes bicycle ride around the Great Lakes, I helped to restore a building that would have been condemned. That house still stands in the district, providing healthier habitat for hopefully healthier inhabitants! Our lives touch those of others in infinite ways, culture depends on that. I believe in the power of the give away. Too often, our culture allows the rich to take from the poor in more poignant ways than just fleecing them for the cash. (although, they do that too.)

In less than two weeks, we get to vote for campaign finance and tax reform, or we are sold to the highest bidder, that seems to be our choice. Find your local Bernie Sanders supporting candidate and do whatever you can to get them elected!

Age Of Illeism

Speaking in tongues, to some extent determines some of your thinking patterns, some bases of ideation and some blind spots. In the theater, we have a language of our own and there are fun poems written about them. One of my own favorites is that backstage is the only place you can strike the baby and kill the blonde. Baby is a lighting instrument and so is a blonde, striking it just means "put it away." We speak a certain tongue backstage. How we talk rules how we think, or at least hems in what we think we have competency over.  Things we are willing to think about and integrate.

We as a people, the human beings of this planet, need to grow exponentially if we are to survive as a species. No longer can we live under the oppressive reign of people who inherited the world and are intent on leaving it a lifeless cinder. Being able to speak with one voice on this matter requires that we all use the same language, or at least understand the terms, we all have to understand the same stuff and have words to talk about it.

When Nixon famously said, "You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore, it was meant to be an attack, and sounded like a three year old child disassociating from the part of himself that felt regret or shame over what he had done. (some believe to this day that he had no shame) His paranoia that led him to tape his office conversations ultimately backfired and got people looking into what kind of man he was.

Bob Dole did it and had to hire a speech coach to help him rid himself of the issue. Although it may not affected the way he thought about himself, it did mostly change the way he speaks about himself.

Julius Caesar did it and wasn't he supposed to be somehow endowed by the gods themselves to exert his power? The other J.C. has been revered by history as a great military leader, but people who had to work with him apparently disagreed. He was one of history's greatest narcissists. In his day, perhaps, it was a form of early branding.

Charles De Gaulle did it. As more of a way of formalizing a radio broadcast as if to verify that it was indeed him. I don't think that he was differentiating himself from himself, after all, radio was still in infancy during his formative years. Later,  he did stand up to many economic thinkers of his day and helped create the Trente Gloriouses through use of dirigist economic policies, in part because of his charisma and influence.  That requires humility and great leaders give the victories up to all those who helped accomplish them.

A handful of sports greats have exploited the marketability aspect of naming yourself, like a trademark. Bo Jackson, who had a hard time saying "I", Rickey Henderson, Pele and the Rock are are known far and wide by their image, and the cash flow baby because you're looking at 'em! So Pretentious that Salvador Dali used Illism to differentiate between the man himself and his persona. The person he wanted to be seen. Dali was highly influenced by psychology and rhetoricysms that were meant to be played with, purposefully.

I could have thrown Geraldo Rivera into the sports group because the passion that you see played out on the field or pitch is embodied in the way Geraldo reflects through his journalism. In his defense, have heard someone say that a third someone had been Geraldo Riveaed, so maybe he was referring to that guy.It is hard to say...

Jimmy (from Seinfeld) was an illistic creeper, meant to scare people

Elmo is scary until you understand that he's supposed to be three

Now The Donald and The Hillary. I'm sure there are a few rappers out there who are doin' a double take! One mo' ting crackers gotta be right on up in here stealin' frum us! Sheeite! Ain' NO WAY homey gonna play that!

I'm right yo! Feel it! It ain't right yo! B-live it!

If we understand that Trump has squandered nearly six billions to make as much of a name for himself as he has and with only 2.2 Billion left, how much longer will he be able to afford to remain relevant? It disgusts me to think that a man who knows that he's just a brand, could be followed by the sixty percent of Republicans who are voting for him. (13.8 % of the populace) In states where primaries remain, the people are on to him. Inciting riot and mayhem cannot be tolerated by major parties. I'm still not sure if you can say, categorically that referring to yourself in the third person is the reflection of associative disorders or narcissistic tendencies, but the likelihood goes way up! That's all I'm sayin'.

Recent Teathuglican Activity

When I was homeless, I frequently slept in my car. another misguided Republican wants to make "food stamp" recipients unable to own cars. Now, when I was homeless, I never got food stamps, but I know that punitive measures against those least able to protect themselves is assault! This is another prime example of why I am running for U.S. House of Representatives! In my opinion, running the government like a mean business is completely backward and indefensible on moral grounds. With true security (not the weaponized kind) and a bit of support, we can all thrive. "Austerity" is the new name for trickle down economics. The oligarchy is on the ropes and they are counting on us not realizing until too late that "The Emperor Wears No Clothes." Privatized profit and socialized costs are not going to fly under the radar any more! Turn off your tee vees and study before you get indignant, understand that war against the weakest is only winnable if you are the bully. Practicing genocide against the needy only proves that humanity has been completely lost. There are those in both X-tianity and Islam who pray for Armageddon. Lucky for us, prayer does not work. Since the dawn of time, there have been those that preached, and prayed for end-times. Again, what makes our age special? The Lord and Lady, Creator or whatever you like to call it, scoff at that sort of "prayer". If you really need to pray to a folkloric deity, go for Odin. His entire quest and reason for being was to beat back and forestall end times, "He", is anti-entrophic. Remember, the last human trait, that had to be coaxed out of Pandora's Box, was hope. When we beat hope out of the needy, all humanity is lost.

Saladino 4 District 8, my facebook page is dedicated to my campaign. Please contribute what you can to my election fund. Fouteen-forty six Porlier street. G.B. WI 54301

One Kilo Per Cubic Meter

Or, for the folks on this side of the pond about 2 pounds per square yard, is the recommended application rate for char. The International Biochar Initiative (www.biochar-international.org/) has been working to not only spread the word about this important material, but has been researching the effectiveness of different application rates, ways to treat and enhance it and setting standards for char producers across the globe. The five years of research and development that I have put into char making and use has led me to understand many of the characteristics of the material. The way I make it is in a retort. Many other char producers use a TLUD (Top Lit Up Draft) burner. This allows some oxygen to enter the char burner and because this method produces lower quality char quickly, many like it for the obvious benefits of both speed and relative ease of making the char.

Many TULD units burn in less than an hour...the retort that I use takes at least three hours to convert the char to nearly pure carbon. In the retort system, no oxygen at all is allowed into the vessel and only volatile gasses are allowed to leave

The three main parts of the retort. Flameproof container Vent and Access Port.

The retort is a vessel that is nearly completely sealed from outside air. Other than venting the volatile gasses that are released by the dry organic matter, there are no places that air can be introduced to the vessel. Somewhat like a still, the retort contains the roasting material in  a container of some sort. The easiest, cheapest and most available retorts that I have found are simple cookie or cracker tins. I'm sure that virtually every second-hand store has them, steel tins are about as ubiquitous as any used, but useful item you can name. When using them to create char, you will need to punch a few holes in the lid, fill it with dry organic matter, then put it right in your fire pit, fire place or bonfire. Heating the material inside until it is hot enough to glow in the absence of oxygen is what transforms it to char. The retort I use holds five gallons of material, however, when it is reduced to char, it loses half the volume. No flame ever occurs inside the retort. As the volatile gasses escape through the vent or gaps around the access port, it burns off. The best indication of when the char is finished is that there will be no more flammable gasses escaping through the vent.

Because char is a natural product, some variation occurs, but the resulting char is roughly two and a half gallons once finished and it weighs about a kilo. This material is super light weight but has tremendous power to transform soils, healing them, and when the char is moisturized, mineralized, has nitrogen added and inoculated with healthy soil organisms, it is a powerful tool for restoration. In addition to sequestering carbon, biochar holds six times it's weight in water, sequesters carbon and slows the nutrient cycles withing the soil, providing habitat for billions of soil organisms. It is perhaps, hard to imagine, but char has sixteen acres of surface area per handful and the organisms that colonize these surfaces hold even more water in their cellular structure. Organisms, like us, are mostly water and their waste products are food for a cascade of other organisms, which can and do bring life to the soil.

Energy

When I was a child, it was interesting to learn about energy. It seemed to me that there was more talking done about energies like the evil eye and whether or not someone had good vibes about them or either being an old soul or a wizened elder than about what we took for granted by then, the electrons flowing through wire. The first time I read about energy that I remember was the playful bounding kind that children do. I think there was a strong motivation in many children's books to echo what children did already, so the bounding joyful energy was well-known before I understood the electric energy flow of electrons. Lightening, I suppose, made itself known to me, but to grasp that the Earth and Sky were discharging electrons came much later. I remember reading intently about hydro-power and understanding that by using turbines or water wheels, you can do work, but that sort of energy is under many more laws than the energetic fields of human organisms. Any organism for that matter.

The diagram that we all know, of the Sun in the center and elliptical orbits of the planets forgets that the Sun itself is hurling through the universe at mind-numbing speed, our orbits actually follow a path more like a corkscrew, eschewing through a time signature of far more sublime nature. Each has an energy of their own, cycling, we can be sure, in harmonics as yet un-quantified. Just because we do not have tools to detect certain energies does not mean that they are not there. Frequently, I am amazed at the time some people spend, for instance, on ghost hunting, mediums and hunting for haunted places. Perhaps it seems so normal to honor the spirits of place for me, that disembodied spirits are just not attracted to me. How we reflect and respond to energies that surround us, of time, of place, of relationship, these mediate tempo and depth that we allow our senses to bring to our attention. Have you ever noticed how much more often you lose your keys the faster you run through life. Just too busy to put them in the same place every time is just asking for trouble, especially when you heap on a busy schedule and being overbooked. Each relationship we make with the world echoes out across the fabric of time and space, often in ways that we do not understand or honor with our awareness.

How we relate to the electricity  and other fossil energy that flows through our society has got to be reckoned with before our species floods coasts worldwide and makes life on Earth untenable. I used to serve on the not-for-profit board of Wisconsin's Demand-Side Demonstrations (WDSD) It was our job, as determined by the courts to spend 64 million dollars of overcharges that the public utilities had systematically charged residential rate payers in the years covered under a settlement back in the 1980's. The problem was, that the commercial rate payers whose overcharges were less than those of residential customers (because of their high use and ability to capitalize on cheap energy at night) had representatives to the board as well as the public interest groups who had representatives there. When we would convene, 42 members sat, twenty representing the public, twenty representing (of all groups), the very corporations that did the overcharging in the first place, and two from DNR, who always, when confronted by a tie, would side with industry.

We  (WDSD)were able to prove that without a doubt we could eliminate several base load electric generating stations by implementing off the shelf technology for conservation. We (WDSD) funded such brainiac programs as spraying water on rooftops of commercial buildings to augment air conditioning expenses, reducing electricity costs. We funded some of the first bicycles in Wisconsin designed to demonstrate the energy required to make different lights and appliances work. I think we spent less than a million dollars on three bicycles and were able to tour them around the state for years for a few hundred thousand. I think when we got our final results, about 2.2 million of the 64 million went to what could be considered to be public programs and efficiency, whose benefits flow to the homeowner, those who were unduly burdened by the initial overcharges. About five times as much, just under 11 million, was spent on medium to large business conservation.

The argument always went back to the same thing, having the biggest bang for the buck. Picking the low hanging fruit as we frequently said. We  (WDSD) gave away nearly a million dollars worth of high efficiency light bulbs, because it was easy. The though being that people would put the bulbs in right away and that some would turn up in the most used locations. After we started doing some research and tracking, we would find that one of two things happened. Because the bulbs lasted longer, people would install them in the hardest spot to change them and often, in a spot where it would be the least used, like basements and attics. Some folks took cases of CFL bulbs and stored them because to buy one at the store during that early period of their introduction would have been expensive, so they took more than the would ever install. Side note: these were frequently the same relatively wealthy opportunistic sorts of people who overcharged customers for years.

The industry reps on the board reminded us that the public, miraculously, would be served by reducing emissions from coal burning facilities, so by applying what we knew would work, as far as conservation should be put on at the largest users facilities to make the most of the 64 million, but the homeowners took it in the shorts when the high efficiency motor standards for home appliances were discussed. I remember an argument from an industry rep who said that because homeowners only use their appliances occasionally, making them high efficiency would barely make a difference, whereas, the industrial user would gain much more because they ran their motors pretty much continually. This is true, but why did the public fund benefits for the corporations, rather than their own quality or standard of living? Because We the People did not know until it was too late to stop the madness of letting the very corporations who had to pay 64 million dollars if fines be represented on the board that decided how to spend those dollars. "It is too hard to give it (the 64 million) back to the rate payers, they have all moved away..." is what the electric service providers said. I remember looking at some of the last documents as my involvement wound down, over half would be spent on long term studies of all the projects we funded. Over half the money would be spent studying the effects of the programs we funded and the lion's share of what remained went to overhead and staff.

Anyone who tries to tell you that the energy giants (or even the little guys) are not subsidized, laugh in their face. This was exactly the same scheme as we have seen throughout the "economic recovery". there has been a systematic shift of money, power, control and influence up the socioeconomic ladder. The higher roller you are, the more privileges you enjoy.  Even as the public side representatives worked to get the best programs for citizens generally, our efforts were stifled and when push came to shove, we were nearly always overruled. "What?" they would say, "You can't require a higher SEER air conditioner for the entire state of Wisconsin, that would be the end of smaller companies that can't afford it", "but our friend who has eight acres of hot roof that he has to air condition could save as much energy as your program at less than half the cost." These guys were dealing from the Devil's deck from the start. They would let you talk, listen, understand what you were proposing. Occasionally they would agree with the public side representatives, but in the end, when the votes would be cast, the suits would all heave together and do what, I assume old rich white men will always do, vote together to screw the rest of us, especially if it means that it will favor themselves.

Far removed from the bucolic imagery of Richard Scary's  What Do People Do All Day, things are not as simple as a hydro-electric dam where everything is clean and bright and beautiful. In the world of fossil energy, there are some pretty dark, and remote places. Geographically, psychologically, economically, culturally, etc. Each of those has an energy as well. For instance, the centuries of geologic heat and pressure required to make coal cannot be honored nor sanctified when it is flowing by on conveyor belt, or trainload. likewise the photons and energy that fed and nourished the organic matter making the coal or oil, or natural gas cannot be understood until we realize that it is a geologic battery, storing energy from before humans even became a unique species. Perhaps our very existence requires leaving that in the ground. We have options, what we lack is will.