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Help the economy and the environment

California is already seeing a “solar boom”

Listening to a commentary on Marketplace yesterday evening, I was reminded of the conflict between consumerism and — let’s call it — “environmental restraint”. The basic premise of a stimulus package is to give consumers more cash to spend: consumers buy stuff; demand for stuff increases; jobs are created to make more stuff; more people have more jobs, earning more money and want to buy yet more stuff.

While more “stuff” may be good for the economy, it’s rarely a positive thing for the environment. Stuff takes energy to produce, energy to transport, and energy to discard at the end of its useful lifetime.

And so with the natural wariness of someone that doesn’t want to see the country dive into recession, I pondered the tension between economic stimulus and sound ecological responsibility.

Turns out I’m not the only one. In this week’s Businessweek magazine, Pallavi Gogoi explores some similar themes. The article notes a growing awareness of the environmental effects of consumerism. Gogoi concludes:

The growing environmental awareness, and tougher economic times, could even influence the effectiveness of economic stimulus plans now being weighed by the Bush Administration and Congress. The kind of free spending the government hopes consumers will revert to might be difficult in this new mood.

But economic stimulus need not be bad for the environment. And, as the Sierra Club’s Josh Dorner writes for Grist this week, some legislators are doing their best to give the environment some stimulus along with the economy. A range of credits and investment bonds has been approved for inclusion in the Senate stimulus package. Now it’s down to the voting…

It can be possible to consume and be environmentally responsible (Smart Strip, anybody?), but it’s not always easy. So a question for our readers: how do you do your consumer’s duty to your country and your economy while also being a good environmentalist?

Photo available under Creative Commons license from Flickr user remintola.

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Harris high pick-up 2" brush

Catalogue Number: 212-2055

Harris high pick-up 2

  • Synthetic and Nature bristle mix for maximum paint pick up and release.
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This 2" Harris high pick-up paintbrush features advanced synthetic bristles with excellent paint holding capacity. The paintbrush has a black wooden handle and the bristles are secured by a stainless steel ferrule. This brush can be used for all paints and varnishes.

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The Resurrection
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Common Female Masturbation Techniques: How Women Give Themselves Pleasure

Woman Masturbating While Looking at ComputerThe following are methods of masturbation women have reported using, as presented in the book The Hite Report, by Shere Hite. The data was collected between 1972 and 1976.

While the methods of masturbation utilized by women probably haven't changed, the number of women who utilize a particular technique may have, since women's attitudes towards masturbation and their body have changed with time. In addition, women have much easier access to sexual aids like vibrators and dildos than they did forty years ago.

The methods described may help guide women in the process of learning how to masturbate, and those women seeking to explore new ways of reaching orgasm during solo sex. It may also help women who feel they are the only one who masturbates in a particularly unusual, or at least less talked about, way to feel "normal". If nothing else, we get to see the enormous amount of diversity that exists.

Type 1A, Indirect Clitoral Stimulation:

"To masturbate, fantasizing, or getting into an aroused state mentally is important. Also, for me, being alone is important. I use the tips of my fingers for actual stimulation, but it's better to start with patting motions or light rubbing motions over the general area. As excitement increases I began stroking above the clitoris and finally reached a climax with a rapid, jerky circular motion over the clitoral hood. Usually my legs are apart, and occasionally I also stimulate my nipples with the other hand."

"If I'm in a hurry (pressed for time), I use the vibrator on the base of the clitoris, with my legs open. But usually I use my fingers rubbing around the base of my clitoris, and when I'm near orgasm, I move my fingers to a circular motion on top of my clitoris. My legs are always apart, and I alternate hands because one gets tired. My other hand will caress my breasts or just rest. And I move my body a lot when I have the orgasm."

"Wow! What a question! Usually I lie on my back, my legs apart. I almost always have my panties on, as rubbing the clitoris itself directly is just annoying. I use one hand, two fingers together, rubbing up and down in short strokes right over my clitoris. As I get closer to climax, my legs tend to spread apart and my pelvis tilts up more. I don't move around too much, but sometimes during climax I roll from side to side."

"I use my hands and my imagination, and have probably tried every imaginable position and motion - the basic simulation remains the same. I use my finger to stimulate the clitoris, sometimes inserting another finger into my vagina at the same time. I touch only my genital area when I masturbate, because I am not stimulated by touching my body in general, as I am if my partner touches me all over."

"I stimulate the clitoris on either side with my legs apart, and do not move any other part of my body. It is as though I allow myself very efficient masturbation without guilt because anything else (touching myself all over, etc.) would be sick."

"When I masturbate I simply think locally stimulating thoughts, then a brief touch of fingers and it's over. Ha! Sneaky, isn't it!"

"I use a simple battery-operated vibrator. I usually apply it to the right side of my clitoris, using a slight circular motion. I start with my legs apart, but they usually come together involuntarily. I really think what goes on in my mind (just who I am fantasizing I am with) is more important than the mechanical aspects."

Type 1A, Direct Clitoral Stimulation:

"I use my third finger, moistened, to stroke and rub on and around my clitoris. My other hand pulls back the lips, keeping a gentle tension on the clitoral area. I alternate the rapid clitoral rubbing with a slower rub of the vaginal entrance. (Actually, 'rub' is hardly the right word, since it is a very light touch until just before orgasm, by which time I am very wet.) My legs are wide apart, my knees up-not much torso motion until orgasm, when there are strong spasms in my torso and pelvis"

"I masturbate with one hand only - mostly around the head of my clitoris, then gradually switching onto the head - always with a rubbing, back and forth motion. My other hand helps to hold the skin so firm contact can be gained. I alternately have my legs together and apart."

"I lie on my back with my legs together tightly. I use my left hand to pull the top of my genitals tight and apart so I can use my right hand to stroke my clitoris. I use a circular motion starting slow with a light pressure, and then increase the pressure until I start to come. The I slow down according to the sensation I wish until the orgasm is completed. If I want to come again I start over."

"I masturbate with an electric toothbrush. I put a dampened washcloth over the toothbrush and lubricate my clitoris with lotion. I lie on my back with my legs spread. With my left hand, I spread the labia to expose the clitoris, and I hold the vibrator with my right hand and gently press it on my clitoris. Sometimes I move it up and down, sometimes I leave it in one spot, depending on what feels good. But I never really get excited until I start fantasizing. I do not move my hips. The action is all with the hand/vibrator and my clitoris."

"I use my fingers only. My left hand holds the outer lips of my vagina open, and my right forefinger and second finger rubs the right side of my clitoris. Sometimes I rub up and down, but usually I rub in slow circular motions. My legs are closed, strained and straight out. Sometimes I will do this lying on my stomach, but not usually. It's a lot harder - I usually do that after I've masturbated a few times and I'm still frustrated. I don't move very much, in contrast with having orgasm with a partner, and I also make much less noise."

Type 1A1, Clitoral Stimulation and Occasional Vaginal Penetration:

"I usually masturbate by gentle stroking of the clitoral region, not the clitoris directly, but on the skin above and around it; then I place the fingers around the clitoris and move them back and forth rhythmically and with a bit of pressure. Thus, to achieve orgasm, pressure is one factor, rhythmic movement another, and protection of the clitoris from direct stimulation is another. This last one is achieved by using the surrounding skin to stimulate the clitoris. Finally, tightening my asshole and concentrating on having an orgasm helps bring it on. Sometimes I stick my finger in my vagina as this seems to stabilize the clitoris and is a bit exciting. My legs are apart. I don't move very much."

"I usually start out rubbing my clitoris on the side of it, with my finger. Sometimes I use a mirror and watch - I used to stand up in front of a large mirror. Then, usually because my finger doesn't really turn me on much, I get out the vibrator. Sometimes I read pornography, sometimes I fantasize. Sometimes I get out the baby oil and rub my breasts and stomach. I move the vibrator up and down along the slit between my legs. One leg is usually with the knee in the air, the other, opened, on the bed. I move my lower body up to meet the downward motion of the vibrator. Sometimes I lick my fingers and wet my tit, and just manipulate it, shake it around. Sometimes is tick the vibrator in and out of my vagina, like screwing"

"My earliest masturbation was with tub water, and later with my hand, which is what I still do. I use the middle finger of my right hand in vigorous up and down motions which speed me up even more toward climax. Sometimes I put a finger deep inside my vagina with my thumb maintaining clitoral contact. Recently, since reading the literature, I have tried contracting my vaginal muscles, which does seem to enhance the act. Sometimes I will thrust my whole body up, moving with my feet under my behind, ending up with my chest and torso and sexual area pushing up and facing the sky. My greatest release is with my legs pushed way apart to give the sensation of the greatest opening. I once tried a cucumber, and also a vibrator, but that gave me the feeling I was out of myself a little - not just me, that is."

Type 1A2, Clitoral Stimulation and Vaginal Penetration Always:

"I put one finger on my clitoris and with the other I move a bottle in and out of my vagina (a plastic bottle). I have my legs apart at first until I orgasm, and then I put them together. First I rub my clitoris and then insert the bottle. When I come I close my legs with the bottle in me as far as it will go."

"I use my fingers first to penetrate my vagina, for purposes of enlarging the sensation in the general area, but then for orgasm I lightly and then more firmly rub my clitoris in a circular or up and down motions. With my other hand (left hand0, I'm generally turning the pages of the pornography book I'm reading. Yes, it's awkward. Legs apart."

"I fantasize first until I am lubricated. Often I tease myself and hold off touching until I am quite aroused. Sometimes I rub my whole body on the bed, lying on my stomach, and occasionally come that way, but usually I am on my back. First I caress the outer labia, then around the clitoris, using a circular motion, then I insert a finger in my vagina, while laying on my back or side, and move with it. I can come very quickly if my legs are together, but there is a better orgasm when my legs are apart and I work harder for it"

"I begin with manual stimulation of my clitoris. Then simultaneous stimulation of both clitoris and vagina,. Sometimes I use the finger/fingers (first and second or just second) of the other hand for vaginal stimulation. Sometimes I use an object - usually the nicely rounded, smooth handle of my hairbrush (no spiked dildoes for this me, thank you) for vaginal stimulation. I am defensive about mentioning that I use something other than my hand. Among all my associates there seems to be an unspoken taboo against all such 'unnatural' things. I have no object fetishes. I am not into hurting myself. It's just easier - it's hard to reach inside one's own vagina. My wrist gets tired, especially if I'm slow in coming. Also I guess I find needing vaginal stimulation is also unfashionable and I'm somewhat sensitive about that too."

Type 1A3, Clitoral Stimulation with Vaginal Penetration at Orgasm:

"When I was a child, I would masturbate by holding both hands between my legs very tightly and gently bouncing my whole body. Now I usually use my fingers to rub the whole genital area in a circular movement. The I usually put one or two fingers inside my vagina before orgasm to feel the contractions."

"Just after I climax I often put a few fingers just inside the mouth of my vagina to feel the contractions - not just to see if they happen; it is very satisfying sexually."

Type 1A4, Palm Over Clitoris, Fingers Inside Vagina:

"I hold my hand palm flat on the clitoral area, and fingers inserted in my vagina about one inch or so, and just massage gently."

"I begin stroking the vaginal opening, then insert two fingers in my vagina and stimulate my clitoris with the palm of my hand with very rapid patting motions. My legs are together."

"I use one hand and clutch the mons, vibrate my hand over it until I get a warm feeling, then open my labia with a finger, and make it wet up and down, then insert a finger into my vagina and move it up and down very fast while the palm vibrates the mons. My legs are wide apart."

"I caress my nipples to get started, and look at pornography. Then I gently massage my mound until I am generally aroused, then insert my fingers into the vagina and at the same time rub my clitoris with my palm. Sometimes I suck on a rubber penis."

Type 1A, Clitoral Stimulation and Anal Penetration:

"Upon thinking certain sexy thoughts my blood pressure feels like it's increasing, my heartbeat instantly becomes quick and hard. My clitoris tickles and within a few seconds my vagina gets slippery. I rub my clitoris with my left index finger. I penetrate my vagina and/or rectum with the index and/or middle finger of my right hand and move them in and out at whatever speed I wish. My genitals reach two or three stages of tickling intensity - each tickling more than the one before. I rub my clitoris in a back and forth motion. Sometimes I use household items which have the shape of a penis, for penetration."

"I masturbate in a darkened room. I sometimes read erotic literature, especially anal-oriented. I stimulate myself with lubricated fingers or a vaginal foam applicator or a douche or enema tip. I usually make circular motions on my pubic area with one hand and touch my anus with the other hand, sometimes inserting my finger or an object into my rectum. It does not matter if my legs are together or apart. I move very little."

"Sometimes I use my fingers on my clitoris with one inside my vagina, one on the anal area, or just on the clitoris. Usually I use one of two sizes of vibrators - a small one for my anus and a large for my vagina. One hand is used for the clitoris, the other holds the two vibrators in place. Legs are usually apart. Circular motions."

Type 1B, Clitoral and Vulvar Stimulation:

"Dig this. I use the side of my electric woman's razor to masturbate. I rub up and down and sideways and usually use the other hand to stimulate the rim of my vagina meanwhile."

"I use my fingers primarily. I begin by softly caressing my body and breasts, and genital organs. Sometimes I use two hands on my genitals, but not always. I try to wait until I feel moist before touching myself, because if I am not moist I usually have difficulty in achieving orgasm. So I rub and stroke my external organs, gently, and raise my legs into the air (wide apart) and then rub a little more vigorously - which leads to orgasm or orgasms. It seems necessary to raise my legs or I don't come. I often wonder if other women are the same."

Type 2A, Clitoral Stimulation while Laying on Stomach:

"I use my forefinger. I lie on my stomach and hug a pillow with my other hand. I use a circular and up-and-down motion on my clitoris and usually keep my legs a little apart, but as I get closer to orgasm, I bring them tight together. Sometimes I move a lot and other times just a little."

"I masturbate mainly on my stomach and use my right hand to stimulate my clitoris in a hard up-and-down movement, using my middle finger, index, and ring fingers. My left hand fondles my breasts. I move a lot in a rotating motion and up and down. I mmmmm a lot and say 'fuck'. I keep my legs open in the beginning and as I feel myself coming to an orgasm I close my legs and pull my body up off the floor, bed, whatever. Sometimes I masturbate standing up and use the same motion and move quite a bit. Occasionally I masturbate on my back and find it hard to reach orgasm that way."

"When masturbating, I lie on my stomach with my legs slightly apart, using both hands, the knuckles of the right hand providing direct pressure to the mons, with the left hand adding more pressure to the right hand. The motion of a moderately rapid front-to-back movement provides the clitoral friction I need."

"Sequence: I put a towel on the bed, put the vibrator on the towel with the pulsator pointed up (the pulsator has a rubber cup of about 1 inch in diameter). I usually wet the pulsator before starting. Then I lie completely quiet on my stomach with my arms and legs making a wide V, with the pulsator working the mons area. I don't use my hands until orgasm approaches, when I move the vibrator slightly with the left hand so that it is at exactly the right place. Just before orgasm, my hands and neck become rigid and my hands wise into the air a bit just before I move my left one to manipulate the vibrator at the critical time."

"I masturbate on my stomach with my right hand between my legs and gently and circularly massage my clitoris. I rarely touch my breasts or the rest of my body because I've found that physically that does little for me."

Type 2A1, Laying on Stomach with Occasional Vaginal Penetration:

"I masturbate on my stomach with my legs together, pressing on my clitoris with the fingers of both hands (index and middle fingers), one on top of the other. Sometimes I fondle my breasts or buttocks with one hand, or insert my fingers into my vagina, but not usually. I move much less than in intercourse."

"I am on my stomach lying with a pillow between my legs, either rubbing against the pillow or also using my fingers. My body is rigid and stiff as I rub my clitoris in a circular motion. My other hand is on my nipple, squeezing it, and sometimes I have a vibrator in either my vagina or ass. Legs vary."

Type 2A2, Laying on Stomach with Vaginal Penetration:

"I lie on my stomach with my legs as far apart as possible and put about three pillows under me to further arch my back. I massage my body at the genital region and insert the middle finger of one hand up my vagina and press my other hand hard against it , at the region of my clitoris. This way I can strongly stimulate both my clitoris and cervix (which is often sensitive but not as much as the clitoris). My breath becomes short and gasping and my body starts pulsating and contracting violently, as my body comes down on the finger and the hand behind it. I have tried using two or three fingers, but this had the disadvantages that then it doesn't extend up as far as one finger."

"I use my hands beginning with a general overall rubbing of myself to warm my hands and my body. Then I move to my crotch and slowly apply pressure with the tips of all four fingers, Then I turn onto my stomach. I begin to use a circular motion with two fingers on my clitoris and occasionally an up and down motion with my clitoris between my fingers. With my right hand I check to see if my vagina is wet, and fantasize. I continue to stimulate my clitoris with my left hand and then insert two fingers into my vagina. I love the folds and crevasses. It is amazing to feel the inside of oneself. I also sometimes stimulate the opening of the urethra, but that can be painful. My legs are usually closed, but sometimes open. If I haven't orgasmed by then, then I flex all my muscles in my legs and ass, and sometimes begin to move my whole body up and down, or maybe just move my hands. I often enjoy having my ass out from under the covers - cool air stimulates it or perhaps it's a desire to be exposed, I really can't say. Anyhow, turning on my stomach really improves my ability to reach my fingers deep into my vagina."

Type 2B, Clitoral/Vulvar Stimulation while Laying on Stomach:

"On my stomach with both hands (one over the other) cupping my outer genital area, lips remaining closed. I gently squeeze the area with a finger pushing against the back curve of the lips and the palm of my hand pushing pressure on the front and the pubic bone. Legs together. I have been doing this every day since I was for or five. When my partner joins me he simply lies on my back and helps me squeeze."

"I use the curved plastic back, not the pad, of a small vibrator. I prefer this because I very seldom have long periods of time alone to use the manual methods, which I find to slow and not as interesting and more fatiguing. I kind of hold the vibrator more or less steady under me as I lie face down, and move my body on and around it. I use it pretty exclusively against my clitoris and vaginal lips. I like my legs together. That way, with my ankles crossed, I can use my legs to control the amount of contact with the vibrator. Sometimes I move a great deal, sometimes very little. The more aroused, the more movement."

"I lie on my stomach with a pillow between my legs starting at my waist and kinda bunched up in the middle. My hands are under the pillow just under the clitoral region, and I hump the pillow rhythmically. Then I put my vibrator just above my clitoris, and while it remains stationary, I rub against it for a few moments, until I am so gluttonous I have to turn it on, at which time my left hand steadies it or plays with my clitoris or my vaginal area. Anyway its mere presence is erotic. It is important that my right hand keep it from vibrating too much (the reason for the pillow). Sometimes the vibrator points toward the left, sometimes toward the anus. My legs are tight together, and I fantasize. Sometimes I tap the muffled vibrator in a special way."

Type 2B1, Clitoral/Vulvar Stimulation while Laying on Stomach with Penetration:

"I place my vibrator on my clitoris and labia minora and vaginal entrance, plus sometimes a candle in my vagina. Legs together is easier, especially with ankles crossed (it makes muscular tension greater and satisfies a reflex desire to press my knees together). I used to touch my breasts and stomach, but it seemed redundant. And I used to move my hands more than me, now I move me more."

Type 3, Thrusting into a Pillow or other Soft Object:

"When I masturbate, I usually lie face down on the bed with some cloth, like a blanket or spread, pulled together so there is a mound I rub back and forth on."

"I lie on my stomach with some material pulled firmly between my thighs and pressing against my entire mons area, then bounce gently until orgasm.

"Yes I enjoy masturbation. I have masturbated since babyhood and don't see any reason to stop ever. However, I prefer sex with a partner because I like company. I always have an orgasm and usually several of them, depending on the mood I'm in. I don't masturbate like anybody else I ever heard of. I make a clump in the bedding about the size of a fist (I used to use the head of my poor teddy bear, but since I became to old to sleep with a teddy bear, a wad of the sheets has to suffice) and then lie on my stomach on top of it so that it exerts pressure on my clitoris. I then move my hips in a circular motion until I climax - very simple. it works with legs apart or together - either one, although when I am in a particularly frenzied state, together sometimes feels better. I usually end up sort of with my weight on my knees and elbows, so I can't do to much with my hands."

"I cross my legs, thrust my pelvis against a soft object (a pillow is best) and fantasize. This is the tried and true way. I do enjoy touching myself, but it's just not as good as this. I really move very little; only when ready for orgasm do I get into any real action."

"Masturbation: I usually 'hump' a pillow or a rolled-up robe or even a laundry bag - I ride it like a horse, pressing down and easing up repeatedly - pressing harder and harder. With or without cloths on."

Type 3, Thrusting into a Pillow or other Soft Object with Vaginal Penetration:

"Lying on my stomach with something small (like a Tampax) in my vagina and a pillow clamped between my legs, I move up and down slowly, then faster and harder. The sequence is like this - I insert the object, roll over on the pillow, then move rhythmically to orgasm."

Type 3, Thrusting Against an Object while Suspended:

"I stand on a chair with a protruding but low wing back and rub first against it, then raise myself so I am above it, and stroke downward. This method allows much freedom of movement for my body, which I like. I first learned it as a child while playing on a chair my mother had."

"I draw myself up slowly against a bathroom sink, and press my mons against it very hard. The sink is stimulating because it is cold. Sometimes I revolve my legs to press harder, and sometimes 'flap' them to vibrate the vulva."

"I usually suspend myself against a piece of furniture and rub myself against it in an up and down, slow, circular motion. I never heard of it being done like this before and I don't know where I picked it up, but at an early age it gave me a quick orgasm, or several. it's a good way, only it gives you calluses on the palms of your hands."

Type 4, Crossing Legs and Tightening Thigh and Pelvic Muscles:

"I lie on my back, with my legs together, and move quite a bit until right before I come; then I am pretty rigid, squeezing my vagina on the inside, moving slowly. But it's the clitoral stimulation and squeezing inside that makes me come. I squeeze the whole pelvic area that way and the cheeks of my ass are very tight."

"I masturbate by rubbing my thighs together, usually lying down, but it can be done sitting up ( in an office, on a bus, etc. ). I rub them rhythmically, putting subtle pressure on the clitoris. The tension gradually builds to an orgasm."

"I lie flat on the bed, lock my ankles together, rhythmically squeezing my thighs together, fantasize and occasionally touch my nipples if I have difficulty reaching orgasm by thigh-squeezing alone."

"I cross my legs twice - that is, cross them and tuck an ankle around the other leg, which creates a pressure on the clitoral area. I never use my hands or touch myself - don't have to. I squeeze my legs until I achieve orgasm, moving only slightly. I have very easy orgasms."

"I lie down ( mostly when I bathe ) and cross my legs; I caress my breasts and lightly bounce up and down as the stimulation builds. I keep squeezing my breasts and then I have an orgasm."

Type 4, with pillow, towel, or other object held between their legs:

"Initially, I get stimulated either from the outside, or tell myself stories or I fantasize, then I lie down and put my right arm through my crotch with my wrist or lower arm on my labia and clitoris (I can be either clothed or naked ) and my hand or my ankle or calf, and cloths my thighs on my arm. My left hand may support me ( if I lie on my side ), or else play with my nipples. I rock my hips or pelvis for friction. Occasionally I use my fingers or hand for my labia, on my clitoris, or up my vagina."

"I bunch up a blanket or sheet, place part of it between my legs, which are tightly pressed together, and then I rub the sheet into and on my cunt, especially my clitoris, using no hands, just hip and leg movements. I begin to fantasize a situation and come in minutes."

"My legs are crossed as I tightly squeeze some object which touches my clitoris and the entrance to my vagina - like any slightly elongated object. Usually I keep it on the outside of my underwear. I rarely use my hands, I just press my uppermost thighs together against the labia. My masturbation is just basically the placing of objects and rocking of my pelvic region, with pressure on my uppermost thighs against the labia."

"When I masturbate, I usually press my legs hard together ( or wind them around each other ) and use a towel, pulling it against my clitoris rhythmically until I come."

"I use a pillow or some other object that is firm but soft. I hold it between my legs and rub it up and down or squeeze it with my thighs. I can get stimulated somewhat by rubbing my fingers directly on my genitals, but can't touch my clitoris, as it is too sensitive. In fact, I'm better off wearing pants so I don't become too directly stimulated. My legs have to be clasped on the pillow, they can't be apart. I move quite a lot but don't need to therefore I prefer it out of the covers, with my ass and feet, especially, exposed."

Type 5, Water Massage:

"I masturbate with shower water only. I aim it at my clitoris, legs spread apart. Sometimes I hook up a hose and sit on the side of the tub, and use a nice steady stream of water. Or I lie down on the tub, and let the shower water strike my clitoris if it is hard enough."

"I lie in the tub on my back with a stream of very water on my vagina, mons, and clitoris. The harder the pressure and hotter the water, the quicker the orgasm."

"I remove the head from my shower to allow a steady stream of water to come out. I open the vaginal lips exposing my clitoris. The water can be slightly hot for more stimulation, and hips can be moved slightly to tantalize and prolong the enjoyment. I usually do it standing up. Lying down is more beautiful, but you get your hair and face wet. This orgasm tops them all for me, and can be multiple."

"I masturbate with water, preferably a half-inch stream that is arched so my butt does not stop the drain. My feet are braced on the wall about two feet apart, and I am lying on my back."

"Occasionally I bring myself to orgasm in the bathtub. First I excite myself with fingers, then I let the water on and get into an acrobatic position so my vagina is directly under the faucet. I start with the water warm or cool and at a low pressure on my clitoris. When I have gotten excited I run the water harder and lift myself closer to the water and let it pound into my vagina and then I come and it's the most fantastic feeling."

Type 6, Vaginal Insertion Alone:

"I usually masturbate with my finger and touch my breasts with my other hand, but not always. Sometimes when I'm lying in the sun in my swimming suit and I'll start to feel sexy, I end up going inside to masturbate ( when I'm alone in the house ). I usually use a back and forth movement in my vagina, or just hold my fingers there a while. My legs are quite wide apart with my knees up near me. Sometimes I move a lot, depending on the intensity of my feelings at the time."

This article was first published between October 17, 1998 and November 27, 1999


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Ed C Smith & Brothers Funeral Directors

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Check with Ed C Smith & Brothers Funeral Directors about which type of funeral services and products the funeral home, mortuary or memorial chapel provide at their Dallas, Texas location.

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The Ed C Smith & Brothers Funeral Directors is one of the funeral homes in Dallas, Texas. Listed below are other funeral homes, memorial chapels, mortuaries, and funeral service providers in Dallas, Texas and Dallas County.

Dallas, Texas Obituaries and News
Thelma Dudley August 27, 2015

Services are under the direction of Autry Funeral Home ... husband, Edward Dudley; son, Bobby Joe Dudley; daughter, Mary Lynn Messer Harper; grandsons, Travis Mark Messer and Billy Dean Messer; sisters, Beatrice Davis and Opal Martin; brothers, Cleo ... (Jacksonville Daily Progress)

Betty Jane (Thomas) Morton August 27, 2015

Besides her husband she is survived by two daughters; Leslie Tucker (Robert) of Dallas, Texas ... Aug. 28 at the funeral home. Serving as pallbearers will be Theo Krause, Tim Krause, Alex Morton, Kenny Thomas and Ed Underwood. Burial will be in Memorial ... (sedalianewsjournal.com)

Obituaries for Aug. 27 August 26, 2015

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his brothers ... Sanford, N.C. 27331-2642. Condolences may be made at www.rogerspickard.com. Arrangements were by Rogers-Pickard Funeral Home. ADDALEIGH BROOKS HAMILTON HOUSTON, Texas — Addaleigh ... (Sanford Herald)

Robert L. Hansen August 25, 2015

Memorial services will be 11 a.m. Friday at Morningside Chapel, Christy-Smith Funeral Home. Bob was born ... sisters and brothers, Dorothy of Gretna, Neb., Joan of Alamo, Texas, Karen of Council Bluffs, Ed of Mondamin, Iowa, Donna of Hartley, Iowa, and ... (Sioux City Journal)

Topic matches for carolyn trueblood August 24, 2015

Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Brumley-Mills Funeral Home of Hartshorne. Born July 20, 1951, in Shawnee, he was the son of T. C. and Syble (Johnson ... She later worked for Texas Instruments in Dallas and retired from the Zale Corp ... (McAlester News-Capital)

Featured Blogs

"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal. From an Irish headstone"- Richard Puz, The Carolinian You've been asked to deliver the Eulogy at your loved ones funeral. Where do you begin? Start with the purpose and definition of a eulogy. A eulogy is a short speec...

Over the years I've pondered the meaning of trials and sorrow that my loved ones or I have endured. Some believe there are lessons to learn from hardship. I agree. In many instances we learn compassion, empathy, faith, trust, and humility. Our own choices will often lead to natural consequences that...

Funeral Home Reviews
Harlingen, Texas
they got my e-mail and never once informed our family of any written documents from any insurance agency and then began to charge us more than what they said would be the final price. we need proof before we pay legal proof.

Aubrey, Texas
I have tried for days to sign a guestbook for my friend that passed away. I have gone to every site available and Slay Memorial Funeral Ctr. has no such guestbook available. I called and the director said he would take my name and give to the family.

Longview, Texas
when my aunt in law passed, my mother in law had the services there. since day on it has been hell with these people. its been over 2 months and my mother in law is still having to fight with these people. she passed in houma Louisiana and was transported to here. they charge my mother in law for the transport and said they would pay the funeral home that transported her. over 2 months later they still haven't paid for transport. the book marks they done are the worst ones I ever seen. the bookmarks were late and then all the dates were wrong. I would want my body throw in the garbage before I would want my family to deal with these people. stay clear.

San Antonio, Texas
Affordable, good service, I would recommend Brooks Funeral Home to anyone.

Kerrville, Texas
I find that your list of obituaries is very unreliable. You were handling the details of the death of Justin Miller who passed away on 12/26. I called Grimes to learn of the details of the service and was told arrangements hadn't been made yet, but your website would be updated immediately when finalized. The service happened on 12/29 in Harper. I was told by a family member that the time was 3:00pm. I still returned to your website up until the time we left from home to attend. We traveled 2 hours, from Bastrop, to attend and when we arrived learned the service began @ 2:00 instead. What is the purpose of your website if it is not to supply accurate and updated details. I think it is very irresponsible not to have this information available. Therefore I rate your funeral services rating 1 star.


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Description: Burton Traction Snowboard Jacket

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The Nutshell

» culture and policy

Daily News Roundup

Most Recent

image: Elsevier Hacked, Papers Retracted

Elsevier Hacked, Papers Retracted

By | December 12, 2012

Fake peer reviews were submitted to Elsevier due to a glitch in the publisher's security system, resulting in the retraction of 11 papers.

1 Comment

image: NYU Still Recovering from Sandy

NYU Still Recovering from Sandy

By | December 7, 2012

NYU’s Langone Medical Center continues to struggle from the lasting impact of the 15-foot storm surge that accompanied the recent hurricane.

image: Hand Signs for Science

Hand Signs for Science

By | December 5, 2012

Organizations are calling for a common set of sign language for scientific terms.

image: NIH To Enforce OA Policy

NIH To Enforce OA Policy

By | November 20, 2012

The National Institutes of Health will get tough on grantees who fail to comply with its open-access funding rule.

image: European Research Spends on Errors

European Research Spends on Errors

By | November 14, 2012

An estimated 360 million Euros from the coffers of EU research funding was spent mistakenly; auditors blame overly complicated funding rules.

image: Sandy’s Impact on Science

Sandy’s Impact on Science

By | November 5, 2012

More stories surface about how last week’s super storm is affecting research up and down the coast—and how science is fighting back.

image: AAAS: Don't Label GM Foods

AAAS: Don't Label GM Foods

By | October 30, 2012

The American Association for the Advancement of Science says labeling genetically modified food products would be misleading.

image: Skimping on Research Funds

Skimping on Research Funds

By | October 26, 2012

Research spending dropped $4 billion dollars in 2011, and could continue to drop, according to a new report.

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image: Further Dismissal of GM Corn Study

Further Dismissal of GM Corn Study

By | October 25, 2012

A handful of French science academies and government agencies add to a growing chorus of doubts that genetically modified corn causes tumors and early death in rats.

image: Biologist Ruffles Feathers on Facebook

Biologist Ruffles Feathers on Facebook

By | October 19, 2012

The blogosphere voices widespread condemnation for a sexist comment made by a researcher attending this week’s annual Society for Neuroscience conference.

Popular Now

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    The Nutshell Censored Professor Quits

    Alice Dreger is resigning from the faculty of Northwestern University, claiming that the administration censored her work in a faculty journal.

  4. Influential Cancer Biologist Dies
Life Technologies


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Climate Crisis, Inc. has become a $1.5 trillion industry by Paul Driessen,

No warming in 18 years, no category 3-5 hurricane hitting the USA in ten years, seas rising at barely six inches a century: computer models and hysteria are consistently contradicted by Real World experiences.

So how do White House, EPA, UN, EU, Big Green, Big Wind, liberal media, and even Google, GE and Defense Department officials justify their fixation on climate change as the greatest crisis facing humanity? How do they excuse saying government must control our energy system, our economy and nearly every aspect of our lives – deciding which jobs will be protected and which ones destroyed, even who will live and who will die – in the name of saving the planet? What drives their intense ideology?

The answer is simple. The annual revue Climate Crisis & Renewable Energy Industry has become a $1.5-trillion-a-year business! That’s equal to the annual economic activity generated by the entire US nonprofit sector, or all savings over the past ten years from consumers switching to generic drugs. By comparison, revues for much-vilified Koch Industries are about $115 billion, for ExxonMobil around $365 billion.

According to a 200-page analysis by the Climate Change Business Journal, this Climate Industrial Complex can be divided into nine segments: low carbon and renewable power; carbon capture and storage; energy storage, like batteries; energy efficiency; green buildings; transportation; carbon trading; climate change adaptation; and consulting and research. Consulting alone is a $27-billion-per-year industry that handles “reputation management” for companies and tries to link weather events, food shortages and other problems to climate change. Research includes engineering R&D and climate studies.

The $1.5-trillion price tag appears to exclude most of the Big Green environmentalism industry, a $13.4-billion-per-year business in the USA alone. The MacArthur Foundation just gave another $50 million to global warming alarmist groups. Ex-NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Chesapeake Energy gave the Sierra Club $105 million to wage war on coal (shortly before the Club began waging war on natural gas and Chesapeake Energy, in what some see as poetic justice). Warren Buffett, numerous “progressive” foundations, Vladimir Putin cronies and countless companies also give endless millions to Big Green.

Our hard-earned tax dollars are likewise only partially included in the CCBJ tally. As professor, author and columnist Larry Bell notes in his new book, Scared Witless: Prophets and profits of climate doom, the U.S. government spent over $185 billion between 2003 and 2010 on climate change items – and this wild spending spree has gotten even worse in the ensuing Obama years. We are paying for questionable to fraudulent global warming studies, climate-related technology research, loans and tax breaks for Solyndra and other companies that go bankrupt, and “climate adaptation” foreign aid to poor countries.

Also not included: the salaries and pensions of thousands of EPA, NOAA, Interior, Energy and other federal bureaucrats who devote endless hours to devising and imposing regulations for Clean Power Plans, drilling and mining bans, renewable energy installations, and countless Climate Crisis, Inc. handouts. A significant part of the $1.9 trillion per year that American businesses and families pay to comply with mountains of federal regulations is also based on climate chaos claims.

Add in the state and local equivalents of these federal programs, bureaucrats, regulations and restrictions, and we’re talking serious money. There are also consumer costs, including the far higher electricity prices families and businesses must pay, especially in states that want to prove their climate credentials. The impacts on companies and jobs outside the Climate Crisis Industry are enormous, and growing. For every job created in the climate and renewable sectors, two to four jobs are eliminated in other parts of the economy, studies in Spain, Scotland and other countries have found.

The effects on people’s health and welfare, and on overall environmental quality, are likewise huge and widespread. But all these adverse effects are studiously ignored by Climate Crisis profiteers – and by the false prophets of planetary doom who manipulate data, exaggerate and fabricate looming catastrophes, and create the pseudo-scientific basis for regulating carbon-based energy and industries into oblivion.

Meanwhile, the regulators blatantly ignore laws that might penalize their favored constituencies.

In one glaring example, a person who merely possesses a single bald eagle feather can be fined up to $100,000 and jailed for a year. But operators of the wind turbine that killed the eagle get off scot-free. Even worse, the US Fish & Wildlife Service actively helps Big Wind hide and minimize its slaughter of millions of raptors, other birds and bats every year. It has given industrial wind operators a five-year blanket exemption from the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, Migratory Birds Treaty Act and Endangered Species Act. The FWS even proposed giving Big Wind a 30-year exemption.

Thankfully, the US District Court in San Jose, CA recently ruled that the FWS and Interior Department violated the National Environmental Policy Act and other laws, when they issued regulations granting these companies a 30-year license to kill bald and golden eagles. But the death tolls continue to climb.

Professor Bell’s perceptive, provocative, extensively researched book reviews the attempted power grab by Big Green, Big Government and Climate Crisis, Inc. In 19 short chapters, he examines the phony scientific consensus on global warming, the secretive and speculative science and computer models used to “prove” we face a cataclysm, ongoing collusion and deceit by regulators and activists, carbon tax mania, and many of the most prominent but phony climate crises: melting glaciers, rising sea levels, ocean acidification, disappearing species and declining biodiversity. His articles and essays do likewise.

Scared Witless also lays bare the real reasons for climate fanaticism, aside from lining pockets. As one prominent politician and UN or EPA bureaucrat after another has proudly and openly said, their “true ambition” is to institute “a new global order” … “ global governance” … “redistribution of the world’s resources” … an end to “hegemonic” capitalism … and “a profound transformation” of “attitudes and lifestyles,” energy systems and “the global economic development model.”

In other words, these unelected, unaccountable US, EU and UN bureaucrats want complete control over our industries; over everything we make, grow, ship, eat and do; and over every aspect of our lives, livelihoods, living standards and liberties. And they intend to “ride the global warming issue” all the way to this complete control, “even if the theory of global warming is wrong” … “even if there is no scientific evidence to back the greenhouse effect” … “even if the science of global warming is all phony.”

If millions of people lose their jobs in the process, if millions of retirees die from hypothermia because they cannot afford to heat their homes properly, if millions of Africans and Asians die because they are denied access to reliable, affordable carbon-based electricity – so be it. Climate Crisis, Inc. doesn’t care.

This global warming industry survives and thrives only because of secretive, fraudulent climate science; constant collusion between regulators and pressure groups; and a steady stream of government policies, regulations, preferences, subsidies and mandates – and taxes and penalties on its competitors. CCI gives lavishly to politicians who keep the gravy train on track, while its well-funded attack dogs respond quickly, aggressively and viciously to anyone who dares to challenge its orthodoxies or funding.

Climate change has been “real” throughout Earth and human history – periodically significant, sometimes sudden, sometimes destructive, driven by the sun and other powerful, complex, interacting natural forces that we still do not fully understand … and certainly cannot control. It has little or nothing to do with the carbon dioxide that makes plants grow faster and better, and is emitted as a result of using fossil fuels that have brought countless wondrous improvements to our environment and human condition.

Climate Crisis, Inc. is a wealthy, nasty behemoth. But it is a house of cards. Become informed. Get involved. Fight back.

Paul Driessen is senior policy advisor for CFACT and author of Cracking Big Green and Eco-Imperialism: Green Power – Black Death.

The Agency That Contaminated the Animas River is About to Start Regulating Water That May be in Your Backyard by Marita Noon

Unless a federal judge issues a preliminary injunction, the definition of the “Waters of the U.S.” will change on August 28—giving the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the authority to regulate the water in your backyard (even the water that might be in your backyard due to a heavy rain). Even, according to West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey: “any area where agencies believe water may flow once every 100 years.”

Thirty-one states, in four districts, have filed motions with the federal courts to block the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) from beginning to enforce the new “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) rule—which represents a new interpretation of the Clean Water Act (CWA). The Federal Register calls the new rule “definitional” and states: “The rule will ensure protection for the nation’s public health and aquatic resources, and increase CWA program predictability and consistency by clarifying the scope of ‘waters of the United States’ protected under the Act.”

WOTUS was published in the Federal Register on June 29 and will become effective on August 28.

The interpretation is important. The CWA used to apply to “navigable waters” to now, as Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton recently said: “include almost any piece of land that gets wet and puddles.”

Morrisey calls the rule “regulatory lunacy.” He’s hosted town-hall meetings where he’s heard from citizens concerned that “this rule would infringe on their property rights and force them to pay thousands of dollars to do basic work around their homes, farms and workplaces.” Morrisey adds: “This rule expands a scheme whereby property owners have to ask the EPA for permission to do yardwork.” He claims: “Failure to comply with the new regulations could result in fines of up to $37,500 a day.”

While the word “navigable” hasn’t been removed from CWA—as that would require an act of Congress—the EPA has expanded that definition to include any water that has a “significant nexus” with navigable waters. This is where water in your back yard could be impacted. Regarding the final rule, Paxton explains: it “is so broad and open to interpretation that everything from ditches and dry creek beds, to gullies, to isolated ponds formed after a big rain could be considered a ‘water of the United States.’”

The CWA’s single word, “navigable,” has, for decades, been contentious with those who want to expand government control and limit industrial activity such as oil and gas development, mining, ranching, and farming. Former Representative Jim Oberstar (D-MN) fought hard to have the word navigable removed from the CWA and to expand its control to any waters. Despite repeated bites at the apple, prior Congresses refused to pass his legislation.

EPA, once again, uses rulemaking to do what its proponents couldn’t do through legislation—a hallmark of the Obama administration.

A July 28, 2015 letter signed by officials from 31 states, sent to EPA and ACOE by North Dakota Assistant Attorney General Margaret Olson, requesting a minimum nine month extension of the WOTUS effective date, states: “the new regulation will also have a significant impact on agricultural, homebuilding, oil and gas and mining operations as they try to navigate between established state regulatory programs and the EPA’s and ACOE’s new burdensome and conflicting federal requirements. This uncertainty especially threatens those states that rely on revenues from industrial development to fund a wide variety of state programs for the benefit of their respective citizens.”

On August 11, thirteen states—including oil and gas “heavyweights,” as Natural Gas Intelligence (NGI) calls them, Alaska, Colorado, North Dakota, and New Mexico—became the latest to ask a federal judge to block the controversial rule from taking effect. The states have asked for a hearing on the motion during the week of August 24. NGI states: “The oil and gas industry is opposed to the regulations because they believe it could stifle development.” A statement from the Independent Petroleum Association of America supports this assertion: “The 297-page rulemaking would require a federal permit for any activity that results in a discharge into any body of water covered by the new definition of ‘waters of the United States,’ including small streams and wetlands.”

The Texas Railroad Commission, which overseas oil and gas activity in the state joined the multi-agency multi-state lawsuit because “the rule redefines navigable waters as used in the CWA, allowing the EPA and ACOE to regulate private land anywhere in the United States where water can conceivably flow—even dry creek beds and manmade ditches. The Texas economy is a proud beneficiary of shale drilling, and some of the water used in this process would move under the jurisdiction of the EPA with the implementation of this rule change.”

Luke Popovich, spokesman for the National Mining Association told me: “This rule embodies all that is wrong with EPA’s overall regulatory approach: its costs will far outweigh any benefits, it violates both the spirit and intent of Congress in the Clean Water Act, and it has been sold as a benign attempt to add ‘clarity’ and ‘certainty’ to the marketplace when in fact it only clarifies and makes certain the threat EPA poses to a wide swath of the economy—from mining and farming to home building and construction.”

Jason Bostic, Vice President of the West Virginia Coal Association adds: “It’s no longer about water or discharges. It’s about regulating the landscape.”

The lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia filed on June 28, on behalf of 9 Southeastern states (now 11, including Indiana and North Carolina), received an expedited briefing and oral arguments were heard on August 12. Morrisey’s office told me they are hopeful for a decision by August 28.

North Dakota’s Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem believes the States are entitled to an injunction “because implementation of the Rule will cause immediate and irreparable harm and deprive the States of the opportunity to present the merits of their case prior to this unprecedented jurisdictional over-reach taking effect.”

In addition to the 31 states, on July 2, a coalition of a dozen industry groups—from agriculture to manufacturers to mining—filed a complaint against the EPA and ACOE over the WOTUS rule.

The goal of the litigations is to delay or defeat the regulations before they go into effect.

Morrisey, in a statement, explains: “While the Clean Water Act gave the EPA and Corps authority to regulate ‘navigable waters’—defined as ‘waters of the United States’—Congress made sure that states would retain their constitutional, sovereign responsibility over non-navigable, intrastate lands and waters. The U.S. Supreme Court has twice rejected the agencies’ attempts to expand their authority (in Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County v. Army Corps of Engineers and Rapanos v. United States). However, this latest rule written by the two administrative agencies gives them virtually limitless power over these waters.”

Rules like WOTUS, and the recently announced Clean Power Plan, are lauded by environmental groups who are the likely impetus for the regulatory overreach. Senator David Vitters (R-LA), Chairman of the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, sent a letter to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy regarding “reports that the Agency inappropriately coordinated with outside organizations during the WOTUS rulemaking process.” His statement on the matter offers this reprimand: “For decades, the Department of Justice has recommended that federal agencies do not lobby the general public to build political support for policies promoted by the Executive Branch. In 2014, the EPA embarked on an unprecedented public relations campaign, which may have violated anti-lobbying laws, to promote the WOTUS rule by working closely with outside organizations including the Sierra Club and Organizing for Action, which is closely affiliated with President Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign.”

Apparently, the EPA—which allowed millions of gallons of toxic waste to spill into the Animas River—and its “far-left environmental allies,” believe it can do a better job of protecting waterways, streams and wetlands than the states. A wide majority of states and industry disagree. The coalition hopes the lawsuits—which are expected to be combined into one—will overturn the rule and prove that the EPA has gone beyond it jurisdiction with this expansion of regulatory authority.

Source: Heartland Institute

EPA’s gross negligence at Gold King by Paul Driessen

On August 5, an Environmental Restoration company crew, supervised by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials, used a backhoe to dig away tons of rock and debris that were blocking the entrance portal of Colorado’s Gold King Mine, which had been largely abandoned since 1923. Water had been seeping into the mine and out of its portal for decades, and the officials knew (or should have known) the water was acidic (pH 4.0-4.5), backed up far into the mine, and laced with heavy metals.

But they kept digging – until the greatly weakened dam burst open, unleashing a 3-million-gallon (or more) toxic flood that soon contaminated the Animas and San Juan Rivers, all the way to Lake Powell in Utah. To compound the disaster, the EPA then waited an entire day before notifying downstream mayors, health officials, families, farmers, ranchers, fishermen and kayakers that the water they were drinking, using for crops or livestock or paddling in was contaminated by lead, cadmium, mercury and arsenic.

Three million gallons of turmeric-orange poisonous water and sludge is enough to fill a pool the size of a football field (360×160 feet) seven feet deep. Backed up hundreds of feet above the portal into mine adits, stopes, rooms and other passageways that begin at 11,458 feet above sea level, the flash-flooding water had enough power to rip out a road and propel its toxic muck hundreds of miles downstream. (You can review EPA’s incompetence and gross negligence in these project photos and post-disaster images.)

Anyone who follows mining, oil spill, and power plant accidents knows the EPA,the Obama White House, and Big Green animas2environmentalist rhetoric: There is no safe threshold for chemicals. They are toxic and carcinogenic at parts per billion. The water will be unsafe for years or even decades. Wildlife will die. Corporate polluters are criminals and must pay major fines. We will keep our boots on their necks.

This time the White House was silent, and Democrats and eco-activists rushed to defend EPA and shift the blame to mining and mining companies. EPA officials made statements they would never use if a private company had caused the blowout. EPA had simply “miscalculated” how much water had backed up. It was just trying to stick a pipe into the top of the mine to safely pump liquid out for treatment. We were “very careful.” Contaminants “are flowing too fast to be an immediate health threat.” The river is already “restoring itself,” EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy insisted.

The evidence strongly suggests that the EPA never studied or calculated anything, had no operations plan vetted and approved by state officials or mining experts, was not trying to install a pipe – and was grossly careless and negligent. Toxic sludge was carried and deposited along hundreds of miles, contaminating water and riverbeds, where it will be stirred up for years during every heavy rainfall and snowmelt.

Mining engineers told me the prudent approach would have been to push or drill a 4-inch pipe through the rubble into the mine, to determine the water pressure, toxicity, and extent of water backup in the mine – and then build a strong cofferdam below the portal – before proceeding. Simply removing the debris was stupid, dangerous and negligent, they said. It will take years now to correct the damage and assess costs.

A week after the great flood, EPA finally built a series of retention ponds to contain and filter out heavy metals and chemicals. But the August 5 surge and continuing outflow are still contaminating Colorado, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico rivers, in arid regions where water is scarce and precious. The Navajo Tribal Unity Authority says meeting EPA standards for clean drinking water could double the tribe’s costs for building a new treatment plant and cost millions more in testing and operating expenses.

The EPA says it will pay for testing, property damage, human injuries, and hauling safe drinking water. But will it pay to truck in safe water for livestock and irrigation, and pay for crops and livestock lost because there is no water in the meantime, and millions in lost incomes for outfitters and hotel operators during what would have been their peak tourist seasons? Exxon paid such costs after the Valdez spill in Alaska; BP did likewise after its Macondo spill in the Gulf of Mexico; so have other companies.

Shouldn’t the EPA do likewise, instead of asserting “sovereign immunity” despite its gross negligence? Shouldn’t it cover these costs out of the millions of dollars it uses for employee bonuses and to pay environmental activists and public relations firms to promote its image and agenda – instead of sticking taxpayers with the tab via special appropriations? Will EPA reimburse state and local governments and private charities for assistance they have already rendered? Will it fire the irresponsible officials, or at least demote and discipline them? Will Environmental Restoration pay its fair share?

Under standards that EPA and environmentalists apply to the private sector, Gold King was a disaster. However, the accident could also GoldKingbe an impetus for reflection and responsible regulatory reform.

Anti-mining pressure groups and factions within the EPA will use this accident to press for new layers of mining rules, bonds, payments, and liabilities. They are unnecessary – and will only restrict the jobs, expertise, and revenues needed to ensure that exploration, mining, reclamation, and repair of abandoned (orphan) mines are done properly. Modern mining, processing, and pollution prevention methods are vastly superior to those employed even 50 years ago, and do not cause the exaggerated impacts alleged by Earthwatch and others. Moreover, the metals and minerals are essential for the wondrous technologies and living standards, the health, housing, transportation, and recreational pursuits that we enjoy today.

The Gold King blowout was predictable and preventable. The mine was leaking slightly polluted water, but the problem was not serious and was being addressed, and the former mining town of Silverton, CO, had repeatedly asked the EPA not to intervene or make Gold King a Superfund site. Mining engineers and other experts were available, and some had offered their insights and expertise. The EPA ignored them.

The EPA – and all government agencies – should end their We-know-best and We-know-what-we’re-doing attitudes … and seek outside advice from real experts in the trenches. They should also develop careful operating plans, assess worst-case scenarios, and take steps to ensure that the worst doesn’t happen. Sometimes they just need to do nothing, get out of the way, and let the private sector handle problems.

The EPA’s new view that these pollutants are not as toxic as previously claimed – and that nature can and does clean things up – is refreshing, even if self-serving. (My use of “toxic” in this article reflects currently prevailing agency, activist and public health industry attitudes and safety standards.) The agency should also take another look at its thresholds for bio-accumulation of toxics in the tissues of fish and shellfish, up the food chain to eagles or humans that eat the stream and bottom dwellers.

Standards for maximum contaminant levels and maximum safe exposures are often absurdly low, and the concept of “linear no threshold” (that there is no safe exposure or blood level for lead, cadmium, arsenic and other metals) is outdated and wrong, Dr. Edward Calabrese and other experts argue.

Not only are pollution, exposure and blood levels often safe at significantly higher levels than regulations currently allow. Low levels of exposure to radiation and many chemicals can actually provide protection from cancer, disease, and other pollutants. While this concept of hormesis is generally ignored by current regulations, we know that a little alcohol improves heart functions, whereas a lot causes multiple problems; an 80 mg aspirin can prevent strokes, but a bottleful can kill; and many vaccinations inject disease strains that cause a person’s immune system to produce antibodies and prevent the disease.

The Obama EPA is already using WOTUS rules on water and a Clean Power Plan on electricity generation and climate change to control virtually everything we make, grow, and do. Congressional committees, presidential candidates, businesses, and citizens need to get involved, debate these issues, ask tough questions, and demand that appropriate reforms be implemented. Our courts and Congress must not allow another collusive sue-and-settle lawsuit – or a new regime of government controls and mine closures that would drive yet another nail into the coffin of western state and local economies.

Gold King presents a teachable moment. Let’s make sure we learn the correct lessons.

EPA’s punitive, fraudulent clean power plan

The Environmental Protection Agency’s new Clean Power Plan (CPP) requires that states reduce their electric utility sector carbon dioxide emissions an average of 32% below 2005 levels by 2030. Over 1,560 pages dictate returning CO2 emissions almost to 1975 levels, while our population grows by 40 million.

Some 30 states will have to slash their power plant CO2 emissions by more than 32% and at least 12 will have to implement 40-48% reductions. That is a tall order, since all those states now get 50-96% of their electricity from coal, and all of them depend on coal plus natural gas for nearly all their electric power. Imposing that transition and a conversion to 20% or more expensive and unreliable wind and solar energy by 2030 will be disastrous. It will bankrupt families, businesses, industries, communities and even states.

Electricity rates will rise not merely to the 15-17 cents/kWh in “green energy” states like California, from the 8-9 cents per kilowatt-hour currently paid in coal-reliant states. They could skyrocket to the 36-40 cents/kWh now paid in Denmark and Germany (70-80 cents when taxpayer subsidies are included).

That will hammer everything we make, grow, ship, eat and do. It will impair our livelihoods, living standards, liberties and life spans. And these destructive rules are being imposed by callous, imperious, unelected, unaccountable federal bureaucrats who are circumventing our laws and Constitution; disregarding the clear will of Congress, which has rejected nearly 700 climate bills; and colluding regularly with radical Big Green pressure groups on sue-and-settle lawsuits and new regulatory edicts.

Under the CPP, everything business owners, workers, families and communities strived for their entire lives will be at risk. Millions of workers will lose their jobs, leaving more families destitute and welfare dependent, their sense of self-worth destroyed. Many will have to choose between buying food and gasoline, paying the rent or mortgage, going to the doctor, giving to their church, or saving for retirement.

Families will face severe sleep deprivation, greater stress and depression, and more drug and alcohol abuse, spousal and child abuse, theft and robbery. Nutrition and medical care will suffer. More people will have strokes and heart attacks. More will die prematurely or commit suicide. More elderly people will perish from hypothermia, because they cannot affordto heat their homes properly.

Instead of acknowledging any of this, EPA employs a“social cost of carbon” scheme that places arbitrary inflated costs on damages it claims result from alleged climate risks from using carbon-based fuels. It includes every imaginable and imaginary cost of using fossil fuels – even absurd claims that its anti-energy plan will reduce asthma rates, which have been increasing while pollution rates are going down.

Meanwhile, the EPA and White House ignore even the most obvious benefits of using fossil fuels.

EPA keeps its questionable data and analyses secret, refusing to share them even with Congress or governors. It ignores the fact that global temperatures haven’t budged in 18 years, and no category 3-5 hurricane has hit the USA in a record 9-3/4 years – contrary to all climate alarm predictions. About the only thing EPA does admit is that slashing America’s CO2 emissions, and causing all this economic havoc, will prevent less than 0.03 degrees F of global warming 85 years from now.

These green dictators refuse to debate any of this.Indeed, they do not want anyone to talk about it.

The intolerant Left is “killing free speech,” says liberal commentator Kirsten Powers. It is committed to tolerance, pluralism and reasoned debate only for itself, and only to advance its agenda. Otherwise, it applies “authoritarian demands for intellectual conformity,” and relentlessly vilifies and tries to silence anyone who speaks up, asks inconvenient questions or challenges the “progressive” worldview.

“Free speech,” says George Will, “has never been … more comprehensively, aggressively and dangerously threatened than it is now. Today they are attacking the theory of free speech … the desirability of free speech … and indeed the very possibility of free speech….”

As if on cue, the IRS targeted numerous conservative groups – and the Milwaukee prosecutor and police monitored emails, invaded homes, seized computers and records, and threatened jail for anyone who disclosed these abuses, to intimidate and silence Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s supporters.

Their actions destroy our fundamental First Amendment rights of free speech, assembly, association and debate. Worse, they severely impair the unalienable rights of people to enjoy affordable, reliable energy and the quality jobs, living standards, health and welfare it brings.

“The ruling class demonizes any questioning of its demands,” says Boston University professor emeritus Angelo Codevilla.“The pretexts differ” from issue to issue,” he notes. “But the reality is the same: Bow or be persecuted.… Consequently, if we wish to remain who we are in the face of threats and declamations meant to force us to honor intellectual and moral falsehoods, we have no alternative but clearly and loudly to distinguish between true and false, and fully make the case for what we believe to be right.”

We must not mince words regarding the evils that energy and climate totalitarianism inflict on families, industries, communities and nations. We must confront the deceit and deceivers, abuses and abusers – and present the hard, ugly realities of what life would be under conditions imposed by the eco-extremists.

Right now, we have too many taxes and regulations, too much secrecy and fraud, too many extremists, and far too little accountability in EPA. There is too much eco-religious fervor, too little science and humanity. Poor and minority families are hurt most of all. Our governors, state and federal legislators, attorneys general, courts, next president, and citizen, industry and scientific groups need to take action.
•Gain access to thus far secret EPA, NOAA, IPCC and other data, computer codes, models and studies – and subject them to full review by independent experts, to determine which assertions, policies and regulations are valid, and which are based on serious error, deceptive claims or outright fraud.
•During the review process, suspend and defund implementation of regulations and programs that raise serious questions about their honesty and validity. Terminate rules and programs found to be based on fraud, junk science, doctored data or concocted evidence – and penalize or terminate agency personnel who have engaged in deceptive or fraudulent practices.
•Curb the excessive power and representation of environmentalists and bureaucrats in our government. End the sue-and-settle lawsuits between government agencies and radical environmentalist pressure groups. Cut agency budgets, especially the billions of dollars that EPA and other agencies give to anti-energy advocacy organizations and biased advisory panels.
•Ensure that regulatory agencies and their advisory councils are honest and transparent; that they represent a broader spectrum of expertise, viewpoints and interests than they do now; and that they fully assess evidence for and against proposed regulations, as well as their true benefits and costs.
•Restore federalism and the separation of powers for Congress and state governments, and end the deference that courts too often give to agency discretion and authority for even outrageous actions and power grabs by federal agencies.
•Present true stories of workers and families whose jobs and businesses have been threatened or destroyed by EPA and other government policies, programs and diktats; how these citizens have fought back; and their victories over energy, environmental and economic totalitarianism.

These vital actions will almost certainly be opposed by President Obama, Democrats, environmentalist pressure groups, and other members of the Climate Crisis and Renewable Energy Complex. But they are absolutely essential if the United States is going to have an economic and employment revival, and poor, minority and blue-collar families are to be protected from fraud, regulatory excess and ruling elites.

Paul Driessen is senior policy advisor for CFACT and author of Cracking Big Green and Eco-Imperialism: Green Power – Black Death.

Take a Bow for the New Revolution By Paul Driessen

From the outset, President Obama directed his powerful government agencies and congressional allies to help him “fundamentally transform” the United States. Too many of them were eager to nationalize the nation’s healthcare system, ignore or rewrite inconvenient laws, control the Internet and political speech, implement new regulations that imposed enormous costs for few or illusory benefits, and shut down oil, gas and coal in favor of expensive, unreliable, heavily subsidized wind, solar and biofuel energy.

We voters and citizens were supposed to “tip our hats to the new Constitution” and “take a bow for the new revolution,” as The Who put it in their classic song, “Won’t Get Fooled Again.”

But now people seem less inclined to “smile and grin at the change all around.” They increasingly grasp the enormous costs of this ruling class totalitarian anarchy, refuse to get fooled again, and are telling Mr. Obama, “Your states and your citizens are beyond your command,” as Bob Dylan might say. Perhaps “the times are a-changing” once again, and “the losers now will be later to win” – in 2016 and beyond.

Pervasive signs certainly portend a newer revolution. Indeed, the reactions of some previous cheerleaders respond to the disdain the president often seems to show for their jobs and well-being. The energy and environment arena is only part of the total picture, but it’s a vitally important one.

Ozone. EPA is determined to implement stringent new ozone regulations – even though US ozone levels and overall air quality have improved steadily for decades, and the already tough 2008 ozone standards have not yet been fully implemented. This action would turn hundreds of cities and counties into nonattainment areas, impair manufacturing and transportation, cost up to $140 billion per year, and increase unemployment – for health benefits that are inflated or even fabricated.

A Small Business Entrepreneurship Council study found that EPA’s proposed rules would put numerous jobs at risk in a six-county Chicago area that is home to 65% of Illinois’ population, over 60% of its Latinos and 80% of its blacks, 73% of its GDP and 70% of its employment. With the unemployment rate already at 12% for Latinos and 25% for blacks, elected officials and business owners are alarmed.

The US Conference of Mayors, National League of Cities, National Association of Counties, National Association of Regional Councils – Democrats and Republicans representing 19,000 cities, 3,000 counties and 500 councils – have all expressed deep concern and asked EPA to retain the 2008 ozone standards. So have the National and Illinois Black Chambers of Commerce, US Chamber of Commerce and National Association of Manufacturers.

They worry that the new rules would stifle economic growth and investment, and cause major job losses across the country. The rules set ozone standards lower than naturally occurring in many national parks. Thus far, EPA is ignoring the pleas, though Inside EPA says the agency may grant a one-year extension for some areas to comply with the 2008 standards, before slapping them with the newer diktats.

Coal-fueled electricity generation. The Obama EPA’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) will force still more coal mines and power plants to close, imposing higher electricity costs on businesses and families, and causing lost jobs, lower incomes, higher poverty rates, reduced living standards, and diminished health and welfare. It will hit blacks and Hispanics especially hard and require families to pay $1,225 more per year for electricity, heating and air conditioning in 2030 than in 2012.

A dozen states have already sued EPA to prevent it from implementing the plan. They and other experts note that the CPP will bring no climate benefits, even if carbon dioxide actually is a major factor in global warming. In fact, even EPA admits it would prevent merely 0.03 degrees F of warming – because China, India, Germany and other countries are planning or building nearly 2,200 coal-fired power plants. That and increasing natural gas and gasoline use worldwide will raise atmospheric CO2 levels still higher.

Impacts on people. EPA’s rules are devastating coal-reliant communities. By 2020, they will cost 75,000 direct jobs in coal mines, power plants and railroads, a union study estimates; by 2035, job losses will reach 152,000. When secondary employment is included, the total impact will be some 485,000 lost jobs. This will also affect state tax revenues and funding for company pensions and retirement health care benefits, putting hundreds of thousands of current and future retirees in harm’s way.

EPA ignores the huge toll that job losses have on people’s health and welfare. Unemployed families find it harder to buy food, pay for doctor visits and medicine, give to churches and charities, save for college and retirement, and make mortgage, rent and car payments. They face less sleep, worse nutrition and more stress, depression, drug and alcohol abuse, spousal and child abuse, strokes and heart attacks.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) says “a lot of people on the lower end of the socioeconomic spectrum are going to die,” because of the CPP. Liberal constitutional scholar Laurence Tribe (who once hired Barack Obama as a legal research assistant) says the EPA plan is unconstitutional. National Black Chamber of Commerce President Harry Alford calls it “a slap in the face to poor and minority families.”

Trade unions. Once strong supporters of President Obama, the United Mine Workers of America, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and other unions have come out in strong opposition to the administration’s job-killing actions on the Keystone XL pipeline and other initiatives.

Wind power. States are reducing or terminating Renewable Portfolio Standards and programs. Kansas, West Virginia and Indiana repealed their mandate, Ohio froze its standard at 2.5% renewable electricity, and North Carolina may freeze its RPS. Wildlife groups are finally recognizing and objecting to the serious habitat destruction and bird and bat slaughter that is a hallmark of wind and solar facilities.

Collusion. There is growing concern about the cozy ties and private meetings between EPA officials and eco-activists, their sue-and-settle deals, and EPA payments to advisory committees and environmental pressure groups that propagandize for agency actions. Far too many regulations have their origins in collusion, collaboration, and secretive input and “reports” from radical anti-hydrocarbon groups.

The Secret Science Reform Act would compel EPA to develop regulations and scientific studies in the open, and allow truly independent experts to examine and challenge data, evidence and studies that supposedly support EPA dictates that could cost billions of dollars and millions of jobs. It is long overdue.

The Supremes. Even if it must ignore the clear intent or language of laws like ObamaCare, the US Supreme Court has often been another reliable Obama rubberstamp. Yet it recently ruled in Michigan v. EPA that EPA violated the law by failing to consider monetary costs in deciding to regulate air pollution from power plants. The agency’s refusal to recognize the damage its regulations inflict on human health and welfare is a far more serious offense, and the agency must not be allowed to continue doing that.

Dwindling overseas support. Countries once enamored with “renewable” energy are now reexamining those policies, as they realize wind and solar energy kills four to six jobs for every “green” job created via unsustainable subsidies – and the electricity costs families and businesses up to 36-40 cents per kilowatt-hour (without counting taxpayer subsidies), compared to 8-9 cents per kWh in coal-reliant US states.

The African Development Bank says it will no longer tolerate policies that prevent construction of coal-fired power plants needed to bring electricity to 730 million Africans who do not yet enjoy the countless blessings that this miracle energy brings. About the only reason poor countries support a new climate treaty is that they (or at least their ruling elites) expect to share in the $100 billion per year that they claim developed nations must pay them for supposed global warming “reparation, mitigation and prevention.”

Far too many EPA and other environmental regulations are wrong for workers, families, states and the overall “quality of the human environment.” That’s why “there’s a battle outside raging.” Free, responsible citizens do not want or need to be “fundamentally transformed” by deceit, collusion and decree.

Paul Driessen is senior policy analyst for the Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow ( and coauthor of Cracking Big Green: Saving the world from the Save-the-Earth money machine.


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Baby bonus tempts teens, claims Labor

By Michelle Grattan, Kenneth Nguyen
May 27, 2004

The Opposition yesterday stirred fears that the Federal Government's $3000 lump sum maternity payment would send a signal to teenage girls to become pregnant.

Labor leader Mark Latham quoted in Parliament a 2003 cabinet submission, recently leaked, that suggested fortnightly payments rather than lump sums might be a better form of payment for teenage mothers.

While Labor argues that a fortnightly payment is better, it is also trying to "wedge" John Howard on an issue likely to touch a nerve among some conservative voters and in some working-class electorates.

But Mr Howard told Parliament the issue of teenage pregnancy was exaggerated.

Backbencher Roger Price, who led Labor's attack after Mr Latham put his stamp on it with a cautiously worded question, said that for people in his and many other electorates, the $3000 lump sum was "temptation".

"Why should we have a Government policy on the Coalition side sending a market signal to teenage women that, if you get pregnant, you get a lump sum of $3000?" Mr Price said.

He quoted Glenn Sergeant, principal of Plumpton High School in his NSW electorate, which runs a program encouraging teenage mothers to continue at school, saying that $3000 was enough to induce some teenagers to have a baby.

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But Mr Howard told Parliament there was a "misbelief" about teenage pregnancies.

"The reality is that fewer than 2 per cent of Australian teenagers have a child in any year - and the long-term trend is downwards, not upwards," he said.

This compared with about 5 per cent in the United States and 3 per cent in the United Kingdom. Teenage birthrates in Australia were low despite relatively generous welfare and family assistance schemes, Mr Howard said.

"The common view held by, I think, too many Australians that single mothers are typified by teenagers who go out and get pregnant in order to get social security benefits is just plain wrong," he said.

"The overwhelming majority of single mothers in this country were previously married or in stable relationships. I have not met many single mothers who are single mothers by design."

Labor's baby-payment scheme proposes fortnightly payments for 14 weeks to 12 months.

Mr Howard said Labor had tried to design a baby-care payment that looked as much as possible like paid maternity leave without being paid maternity leave.

When Treasurer Peter Costello was quizzed after the budget about the potential effect of the scheme on teen pregnancy rates, he said it would have to be carefully administered.

The Government scheme has provision for the $3000 to be delivered in six fortnightly payments to a first-time mother if a social worker believes she is at risk of financial problems. There is also a provision for six payments if any mother specifically requests it.

Welfare groups expressed outrage at Labor's suggestion, with many pointing to 2002 research by the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling that estimates the cost of raising a child at $183 a week.

"Let me tell you, it costs you an awful lot more than $3000 to have a baby," Salvation Army director John Dalziel said.

Council of Single Mothers and their Children project officer Shannon Keebaugh said: "It is amazing that the Labor Party would come out with something like that. I'm shocked and appalled."

She said teenagers most at risk of pregnancy did not research their welfare entitlements in detail before pregnancy. "They are generally unplanned," Ms Keebaugh said.

However, Mr Latham's suggestion that maternity payments should be paid fortnightly won a warmer reception. The Uniting Church said it would help develop financial planning skills.