In case you didn’t know, Bernie’s the chairman of the new Subcommittee on Green Jobs and New Economy. And in the new DOD appropriations bill, he’s secured 5 million dollars for a massive solar project for the VT National Guard. From his office:  

Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today announced a $5 million grant for the Vermont National Guard that could result in the largest solar energy project in the state and one of the largest in New England.

“This project will not only help the Vermont National Guard reduce its electric bill and carbon footprint, but will be a major step forward in moving our state toward a greener economy which relies more and more on sustainable energy,” Sanders said.

“There is little doubt in my mind that in the years to come the energy mix in this state will be very different than it is today – with a far greater reliance on sustainable energy.  I hope that this project becomes a model for what can be done and a catalyst for further action,” he added.

[snip]

Although the project is still in the design phase, it is likely that the centerpiece will be a large array of solar photovoltaic cells at the Vermont Air Guard’s facilities at the Burlington  Airport to generate a significant amount of the facility’s electric power.

Hopefully, this will create some decent jobs as well as be an exemplary green energy project. Hats off to Senator Sanders.

I remember reading about this a few weeks ago, but it seems like more places are picking up on this. Dick Cheney will be the guest of honor at the American Museum of Fly Fishing in Manchester, VT this spring fall. Yeah, that Dick Cheney, the guy whose idea of “hunting” involves throwing a bunch of birds into a field and firing away (sorta like Gov. Douglas' ideas of fishing involves having a toadie bait his hook for him). That same one behind one of the biggest fish kills in the west. The man just breathes anti-environmentalism, perhaps because not even nature could create something so toxic. 

Apparently, it's pissing quite a few people off:

“The entire fly fishing community is appalled and disgusted,” said Ted Williams, conservation editor at Fly Rod & Reel magazine.

“We all need money, but to apply green lipstick to this Darth Vader of fish and wildlife is whoring – it's grotesque,” Williams said. “It's as if the Holocaust museum held a dinner to honor [Nazi war criminal] Klaus Barbie.”

Steve Wright, a former commissioner of the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department, blasted the invitation, calling Cheney “one of the great enemies of healthy fish and wildlife conservation in the U.S. over the last eight years.”

Cathi Comar, executive director of the Vermont-based museum, said some of the critics “sent me nasty e-mails, calling me names, pretty inappropriate names, I have to say.”

One board member also resigned in protest.

Apparently, the museum is sticking with it for now, as they are not a “conservation or environmental organization.” Forget the fact that if things kept going following Cheney's line of thinking, fly fishing would indeed eventualyl be just that – a museum piece. And Cheney can supposedly “raise them a lot of money”. From who? Greenwash groups? Jim Douglas? I have a hunch this isn't going to happen, and if it does, we won't even know about it until Cheney has long returned to his underground lair.

When has Hamas attacked the United States or been caught spying on us?

Answer: Best as I can tell … never.

Next question: When has Israel attacked the United States or been caught spying on us?

Answer: USS Liberty, do a google search for “israeli spies in the us”.

Question: Why is Obama parroting the neo-con foreign policy that says all things Israel are fantastic and the rest of that part of the world is made up of sub-humans?

Answer: Best as I can tell it’s because he believes it too.

Israel is a terrorist nation with nuclear weapons.

From the Times-Argus:

Looking long-term, Smith said he has ordered several legislative committees to begin reviewing how state government can possibly restructure itself in a sustainable fashion, building on his and Shumlin’s proposal from earlier this month to reorganize the Agency of Commerce and Community Development.

Smith said areas of possible restructuring the committees will investigate include health care programs, state corrections, energy efficiency, the court system and the state’s revenue system.

The Democrats’ plan was championed Thursday by the Vermont State Employees Association, the union that represents state workers, in a statement released from Director Jes Kraus.

“VSEA also appreciates that Rep. Smith and Sen. Shumlin are outlining a forward-looking plan to address Vermont’s serious fiscal concerns,” Kraus said. “To date, the governor has still not offered any real plan beyond a body count.”

Good for the Dems . . . they should take a look at public safety in general (including police, fire & EMT), public transportation, and secondary education, too.  We need to plan on a more regional basis.  Not just for service that state employees provide directly, but for all public services we pay for through federal, state and local taxes . . . because they ultimately are interconnected.  

I don’t know the ideal geographic or population base (50,000?)to work from, but we could certainly look at things from a more regional planning perspective and still have greater “local” control than just about anywhere else in the country.  The question is how local do we want it to be, and how much are we willing to pay for?  

Perhaps small counties — like Grand Isle and Essex — could even be aborbed into neighboring counties.  Again, the relative distance has changed tremendously since our state was established in the 1700’s.      

County              Population       Area (sq mi)

Addison (Middlebury)      35,974            770

Bennington (Bennington)   36,994            676

Caledonia (St. J)         29,702            651

Chittenden (Burl)        146,571            539

Essex (Isl. Pond)          6,459            665

Franklin (St.Albans)      45,417            637

Grand Isle (Alburg)        6,901             83

Lamoille (Stowe/Morris)   23,233            461

Orange (Randolph/Bradfo)  28,226            689

Orleans (Newport)         26,277            697

Rutland (Rutland)         63,400            932

Washington(Barre/Mont)    58,039            690

Windham (Brattleboro)     44,216            789

Windsor (WRJ/Spfd)        57,418            971