India Gets Nukes, Sets Precedence

Well, it's official. On Oct. 8, 2008, the United States-India Nuclear Cooperation Approval and Nonproliferation Enhancement Act passed Congress and was signed into law. This overturns a 30-year agreement that the U.S. would not supply India with nuclear technology, which was signed into place after India's first nuclear test in 1974. "By creating an exception for India," writes California Senator Barbara Boxer, "the United States diminishes its own leverage and credibility in global nonproliferation efforts, undermining decades of gains in restricting the spread of nuclear technology worldwide." Uh-oh. Are you as terrified as I am at the dangerous game we're playing? If you're like me, you're probably wondering, who's next?

Green Add-ons to $700 Bailout Package

By now, you've probably heard that in order to get the $700 billion financial bailout plan to pass through Congress, $150 billion worth of additional costs were added into the package. What you may not know is that in addition to padding the wallets of television and movie producers, wool fabric makers, and rum runners (seriously, this is what's in the package), it also includes a provision that $17 billion go to alternative energy tax credits. This is seen as a victory for greens, who have tried to get the tax credits in place all year. However, was it right to tack it onto the bailout package? All I can say is, I'm glad I'm not a politician.

How Green is Your Mac or PC?

Old computers never die. They slowly fade into the depths of some distant landfill in China, leaching poisonous substances into the ground. Or more often than not, they simply suck the power out of your utility bill.

According to The New York Times in "It Comes in Beige or Black, but You Make It Green", over 90% of all "unwanted electronics" are left to rot in landfills. Luckily, there are ways to mitigate this awful environmental travesty. The major computer manufacturers such as Nokia, Dell and Apple have begun offering recycling programs for their computers. And we need to lean on them to provide even more opportunities to "reduce, recycle and reuse" e-waste. Even though Apple has been pointed out by Greenpeace for offering to reduce or eliminate polyvinyl chloride and brominated flame retardants from its computers and monitors, much more needs to be done for our efforts to begin having a quantifiable effect on the environment.

Be Good and Eat Your Vegetables

All right, I'm just gonna say it: We eat way too much meat and dairy in this country. Yes, this is partly due to population growth, partly due to the fact that third world countries can now afford to import our food products, and partly due to the number of fast food outlets and pre-prepared meal options that have become so popular over the past 30 years. But whatever the cause, we can no longer sustain our current rate of consumption. It's time to cut back, people! That's all I'm saying. It's bad enough that farm animals are confined to inhumanely tight spaces and suffer brutal conditions, but even stories of farm animal waste contaminating local water supplies have become somewhat commonplace. Worse yet, it's gotten so bad that giant factory farms are even polluting our nation's air quality -- and I'm not just talking about the methane produced by farting cows. This has just gotten out of hand, as I'm sure you'll agree. Check out this video in promotion of Prop 2 produced by the Humane Society and you'll see what I mean.

How Sustainable is Your City?

According to SustainLane's list of top 50 cities that provide for environmentally sustainable living, Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle are the places to be. Go West Coast! Oakland made the top 10 (woo-hoo! You go, my sort-of hometown) while Los Angeles dropped from 2006's ranking of 25th to 28th (doh!) leaving definite room for improvement. However, with rankings based on such components as air quality and city commuting, I'm not sure L.A. will be climbing closer to the top of the list anytime soon (sigh). Cleveland, Ohio, and Atlanta, Georgia, however, appear to have greatly improved their sustainability initiatives over the past two years, rising from 28th to 16th and 38th to 19th on the list, respectively.

Renewable Energy Tax Credits May Get the Axe

Our friends on Capitol Hill have been working out a large-scale energy bill for quite some time, and with the way things are going, they may not manage to nail down a package before the election. Why? It's a bit confusing, decidedly, but essentially, the House passed a different energy and tax package from what the Senate proposed. The result? A likely veto from the White House, if the legislative branch can't reach a consensus, which will mean fewer tax incentives for renewable energy companies and individuals. Without these tax incentives, many renewable energy projects may be cost prohibitive, keeping the U.S. dependent on foreign oil for a good long while.

Yes on Prop 2 -- Throw Animal Rights a Bone

Prop 2 is a very simple proposition to get behind. It simply states that farm animals in the state of California should be able to "stand up, turn around, lie down, and extend their wings." That's it. We're not talking a custom-designed outdoor patio for every chicken compartment in the coop or spa days for overworked cows, just the ability for animals in our food supply to achieve a bit more mobility which, in turn, will result in a better quality of life for the animals and a higher yield of usable meat, eggs, and dairy products. C'mon, let's do it.

Just to Set the Record Straight

Just because I went to Pepperdine University to obtain my MBA doesn't mean I agree with Pepperdine University law professor Richard Peterson's stance on Prop 8. In a new ad which began running on Sept. 30, he promotes the constitutional ban on same sex marriage which would overturn the May 15 California Supreme Court decision to allow such unions. His commentary doesn't even make sound legal sense, according to the Mercury News, and I am appalled that my university would allow him to act as a school representative when voicing his opinion. It doesn't do much to promote my alma mater as a caring, socially just, forward-thinking educational institution, and it greatly distresses me that potential employers, upon looking at my resume, may incorrectly lump my political views in with those of Peterson's.