Schreiner’s Media Landscape

Thanks to the incompetence, arrogance and lack of caring by the Bush Regime and then Republican-led Congress, Gustav rides into New Orleans looking more like John Wayne then the black-hatted villain. I’m sure the Republicans don’t feel that way. They thought all along THEY were the good guys. Now that Bush, Cheney and other top right-wing knuckleheads have conceded defeat at the hands of Nature, perhaps the inappropriately, self-titled “conservative” element of American society understands better that the environment is an ISSUE and not just something they can kiss off, hand over to the oil, mining and real estate industries and expect everything to turn out okey-dokey.

But given their track record and moral learning curve involved, my guess is they understand- not. Don’t let W’s standby mode in Texas fool you. This is about APPEARANCES NOT ACTUAL ACTION. WAY-HAYYYYYY TO LATE (apologies to Dr. Perry Cox), Bush doesn’t want to appear again like an incompetent, arrogant loser and Cheney- well, Cheney DOESN’T WANT TO APPEAR AT ALL. BTW: anyone see Cheney lately?

The good news is that even if Gustav isn’t as destructive as feared, he’s still done his job on America’s Radical Right. Bush and his ilk may not “get it”- but they’re getting it anyway.

It’s tragically but tantalizingly ironic that the once-mighty Republican Party is cowering in the shadows of an approaching storm, not terrorists, oil companies or even the Chinese. Bush and Cheney have canceled their last chance to say something good about their horrendous nightmare of an administration. The GOPhers are talking about cutting the convention short: more worried about being seen partying during a national disaster (isn’t that what they’ve been doing the last seven years?) than actually doing anything to help.

What the Republicans fear most is America watching John McCain give his acceptance speech in split screen with live video of bodies floating in the streets of New Orleans. Especially after Obama’s triumphant Denver address that was more like the Jacksons’ Victory tour. But that’s the Republicans’ karma. They created the PR nightmare that is approaching our southern coast, not Nature. And hopefully, many of them are thinking what Robert Preston’s character Big Ed Bookman, faced with divine retribution for his corruption, confessed so eloquently in “Semi-Tough”: “Lord, I’m a sinner and now you’re gonna f**k me.”

Keeping up appearances is a 24/7 gig when all you’ve got is the APPEARANCE OF CARING OR ACCOMPLISHMENT, not any kind of record of it. But after seven years of monumental gaffes and dismal failures- 9/11, Iraq, energy prices, the federal deficit, Social Security, the housing crisis, one ill-fated debacle after another- it is Hurricane Gustav and Nature that frighten our pillars of strength and integrity more than Osama bin Laden, Barack Obama, protesters- even Janet Jackson. You think the GOP considered curtailing its little bash in the face of threats of violence, $4/gallon gasoline, and crippling recession?

Bush, Cheney and the Republicans have led an all-out assault on Nature during their reign of error. Now, their endless, senseless campaigns of destruction make any hurricane, wildfire, even a bear attack or other act of Nature seem like justifiable revenge against an evil overlord. I feel for the people of New Orleans and hope Gustav and his younger sister Hanna who’s yet to come are not as bad as everyone fears. But I also hope that Bush and his partying party finally get the message:

YOU MESS WITH NATURE- NATURE MESSES WITH YOU. Party on, fellas. Don’t bother cleaning up when you leave. We’ll pick up. Just go.

I was in O’Hare Airport waiting for a flight to Grand Rapids, Michigan when Barack Obama was scheduled to speak to the Democratic Convention in Denver. He was the drawing card for the whole thing. Not that Hillary and Bill, Gore, Michelle and the gang were not interesting but, let’s face it, they’re not THE MAN. I didn’t watch it anyway because I was in the air but I heard it was good.

On the other hand, the only reason to watch the Republican convention is gone. Bush and Cheney have bowed out citing Hurricane Gustav.  I understand why Bush wouldn’t show. First, he’s got nothing good to say about the last seven, awful years. Second, he’s a terrible speaker but therefore extremely entertainging. Third, he screwed up so badly by ignoring Hurricane Katrina for political appearances that even he won’t make that mistake again.

I really was looking forward to watching W’s swan song. What was he going to talk about? How could he possibly inspire his fellow right-wingers with that record of failure? Yeah, I guess I can see it his way. But I don’t know why Cheney should not appear. Isn’t that his job- to handle stuff the president can’t? Oh yeah, I forgot. Cheney’s not like a normal vice-president. He not only does what he wants but he doesn’t have to do what his boss tells him.

I can relate to Cheney though. I haven’t done anything that Bush has told me to do either. As for other possible, alternative attractions at the GOP gathering, instead of John McCain and his new running mate- you know, the beauty pageant winner, ex-sportscaster and outdoors store owner (White House qualifications for sure)- I suggest goat sacrifices, free beer, and a special appearance of Ronald Reagan in casket.

Now THAT I would watch.

It didn’t start out as a challenge to myself. Ultimately, that’s how it evolved but not why it succeeded. I’m talking about NOT running our central air conditioning units the entire summer. In fact, I didn’t even take the winter covers off (pix below). This despite the fifth hottest July on record in Salt Lake this year, a hotter-than-average June, and 2007’s being the hottest summer here EVER.

The reason? Were were out of town for a couple of weeks during that time. But the major reasons were our solar PV electrical system and our evaporative or, as popularly known in the west, “swamp” cooler (pix left). Its principle is quite simple: a ferris wheel in a box on your roof blows naturally cooling mist using water from your home into your house keeping the temperature down and acting as a ceiling fan/giant spray bottle.

Ol’ Swampy kept our house 15-20 degrees cooler than outside even on the hottest days. Luckily, the humidity during this time was low (10-25%) which is how the swamp cooler works its magic. Above 25%, it doesn’t work very well which is why you don’t see them much outside of semi-arid climates like Utah’s. What’s more, swamp coolers use about 75% less electricity than central air conditioners and an “advanced ducted” system (we don’t have one of those) can save up to $10,000 in operating costs over the 15-year life of the system.

I can’t tell you what our total savings over last summer are yet. I have some more number-crunching to do. But 2007 was hotter than this one and we mostly ran the AC. I can tell you that combined with our solar panels, our electric bill for mid-June-mid-July this year was $28.20. Last year during that period, we spent $122.40. From mid-May-mid-June 2007 (a scorcher), we experimented with our then-new solar system, ran totally off-grid and paid $8.20 (the hot tub’s on 220v). That same period this year, we were grid-tied and net-metered and paid $34.07. July-August 2007 was $122.40. We haven’t gotten the bill for that period this year yet.

Swamp coolers use water but not nearly as much as you’d think. And with routine maintenance, not enough to make much of a difference in your water bill. From June 8-July 11, 2007, the hottest month on record in Salt Lake, we spent $68.03 on water. This year during the same period (slightly cooler), we spent $62.19. The water bill from July 12-August 9, 2007 jumped to $151.75. We haven’t gotten our bill yet for that period this year but I’m expecting it to be similar or less. I’ll let you know.

At a glance, the combination of the solar panels and the swamp cooler is a massive economic and environmental savings. There are some critics of swamp coolers who point out that swamp coolers suck in pollutants from the outside air that can cause you problems. But central, car and industrial air conditioners, especially the older ones, give off HCFC (hydrochloroflurocarbons) that deplete the ozone layer, aggravating the problem even more. As for sacrificing comfort, if it’s 100 degrees outside and 80 degrees inside and you can’t feel and live with the difference, you need your blood pressure, not your air conditioning checked.

The question is: which do you want? More ozone in your home or creating more ozone that will eventually get into your home anyway? Not an easy choice. But because airborne ozone and pollutants vary in intensity from day to day, and an air conditioning unit gives off HCFCs all the time, it makes more sense to run the swamp cooler from a personal, and environmental and a neighborly standpoint.

Bottom line: if you live in the western U.S. in a semi-arid or desert climate, there’s no reason not to have an evaporative cooler. They’re cheaper to buy, install, operate, are much lower maintenance, use 25% the electricity of an air conditioner, don’t use much water, have far less impact on the environment at large and maybe equal the health impact inside your house as AC. When Nature gives you heat and drought- don’t whine. Get a swamp cooler, some solar panels and laugh all the way to the bank.

If you were one of the 4,000 people who lost power during Sunday night’s storm in the Salt Lake area and elsewhere, ask yourself: WHAT IF THE POWER DIDN’T COME BACK? Sound crazy? Ask the people Quebec and New England who lost power for more than one month at the height of winter back in 1996 after one of the worst ice storms in history. One of the kept promises of distributive, renewable energy is that it provides as much back-up power for your house through battery storage as you can afford as well as restoring those batteries during the day, whether it’s solar, wind, geothermal or whatever. So you can go on living normally regardless of the failings of the local utility.

When there’s a power outage at our house, we find out about it by looking out at our neighbors’ darkened windows or by email alert from our solar/utility integration unit, Gridpoint. We typically carry 30-40 hours of back-up power in our batteries which will power virtually the entire house for that time, longer if we cut back on a few things. The batteries are then replenished when the sun comes out.

Talk about security and independence. We’re happier now because we don’t worry about the power going out. We don’t curse the power company nearly as much as we used to. Not that they don’t deserve it.

It’s July 11 and I haven’t even taken the covers off the air conditioners yet. Temperatures in July and August in Utah are the hottest of the year and this summer’s no exception. It’ll be well into the 90s or close to 100 today as it has been the past month or so. But my home studio stays below 80 all day and the upstairs as well even though it’s totally above ground with a broad southern and western exposure (Note: passive solar characteristics cut both ways, making your house warmer in the winter but the same in summer). No protection from trees or other vegetation. At night, we simply open the windows and sleep like babies until the construction crew building the new house down the street shows up. How do we do it?

Like solving America’s entire energy crisis, we acccomplish this through a combination of solutions including understanding our unique local conditions. First, we don’t use our two air conditioners (one for each floor) unless the temperature’s above 100 degrees or the humidity more than 25% (even then we’ll only use the upstairs one and let the cool air flow down. The other was needlessly installed by the previous owners). We almost exclusively use our evaporative or “swamp” cooler, a popular appliance throughout the west. They sit on your roof, connected to your water system, and blow mist into your house which cools the interior naturally as water blowing through the air does. They work best when the humidity’s low (10-30%)which it usually is in semi-arid climates like Utah, Arizona and most parts of the intermountain region.

I turn it on when the temperature hits 85 and the humidity 25% which is remarkably consistent during the summer. I turn it off when the temperture and humidity go below/above those levels at night. I leave it on low during the day when I spend little time upstairs and go to high when we occupy the upstairs at night. Shades are manually deployed when and where the sun bombards the house during the hottest part of the day between 2-8 p.m.

Another esthetic reason swamp coolers make sense is you don’t close the entire house like a tomb for them to work. You must crack windows in the parts of the house where you want the cool air to come through. The air must escape somewhere or the house just builds up with humidity making it actually less comfortable. More than anything, swamp coolers use about one-seventh the electricity of an air conditioner and don’t release harmful CFCs as AC, even in your car, does. Most older homes in Utah have them because AC wasn’t always cheap. Newer homes and buildings don’t have them because cheap coal power made swamp coolers “unnecessary” much the way cars made sidewalks obsolete. And with all the blazing sunshine and long days, the solar panels cover our consumption.

The swamp cooler helps cool my studio downstairs only a little. It’s essential that I keep my computer equipment cool because heat destroys it. I shut off the downstairs in the morning after leaving the windows open all night (don’t worry- we have a great security system). Because the downstairs is partly underground, it stays cool all day, temperatures varying only between 72 and 78. By the time the hottest part of the day rolls around about 6 p.m., I’m done for the day anyway. When night falls, the windows are opened again to allow the cooler breeze to come in again.

Obviously, not everyone works at home, lives in the west or has a passive solar home. But there are a number of ways to keep your home cooler without blasting the AC at 68 from Arbor Day to Labor Day. Keeping our energy bills down, keeping CFCs out of the air and maintaining an open feel to our home are the imperatives here and we meet them all. If we can make it through this long, hot summer without using the air conditioners at all, I’ll use all the money we save to throw a party. Outdoors in September when it’s a lot cooler, of course.

The Bush Regime is famous for ignoring facts, creating fake ones and using those to justify their decisions. There was lots of evidence showing that ethanol is not a good answer to America’s renewable energy troubles: high gas prices, dwindling supplies, air pollution and greenhouse gases. The only thing it was sure to do was exactly what the Regime has fought during its endlessly destructive reign: make wealthy, government subsidized farmers even more government subsidized and wealthier. But the irony doesn’t end there.

Bush’s ethanol policy has created a number of different problems without solving the one it was supposed to. Corn prices shot up causing food prices to do the same, corn was taken out of the food supply to make fuel causing food shortages, and it’s making our air dirtier while doing nothing to ease gas prices or shortages. Now, with floods drowning much of the midwestern corn crop, it will make matters even worse.

If we could only get our president and his minions to just stop doing anything it will be easier to reverse the damage. But like Iowa’s floodwaters, it’s going to take a long time. And we won’t see all the damage until Bush, Cheney and these masters of disaster have receded entirely.

In preparing to be guide for The Nature Conservancy at their Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve, I had to study about wetlands. The subject was not totally new to me, having grown up in the Chicago suburbs where wetlands were everywhere- at least in the 1960s. Then the developers came in, filled in all the wetlands with dirt, covered them with cement and built what has become the suburban wasteland people now live in. Corporate farms finished the job by plowing under the prairie replacing it with hard, flat fields that don’t absorb nearly as much water as a wetland.

Not only did the wetlands disappear, so did the birds, natural prairie grass and, now even more tragically, natural protection from flooding. Wetlands are natural reservoirs that fill up in times of heavy precipitation. As we see yearly at Great Salt Lake, the level rises and falls seasonally as the mountain snow melt runs down into the valley. If you take away the lake and the wetlands surrounding it, the water’s still going to come down. But where does it go? That’s right: into your basement.

So that’s what people in the midwest are finally realizing is happening. Sadly, the same thing happened in 1993 along the Mississippi, in the south during Hurricane Katrina, and it keeps on happening as developers indiscriminately destroy wetlands and don’t adequately replace them. Guess what happens when you don’t learn from history? That’s right. You end up on Page One again and again and again…

It started out slowly, but the 2007-08 ski season here turned out to be another record for attendance. When you keep getting snow like we have been the last few years, you’ll draw a crowd. The best news is that we’re still getting great snow despite climate change and over-development of the Heber Valley, home of the Park City area resorts. Skiing is environmentally unfriendly, you say. Yeah, but sitting on your duff all winter doing nothing is even unhealthier. FYI: the pic is my friend Rick Sallinger, a Denver TV reporter, at Alta. Two of my former home states, Colorado and Vermont, finished first and fourth in total skier days while Utah was third. I’m just a powder whore.

I’ve driven through Baraboo and the Wisconsin Dells many times in my life: while visiting relatives and vacationing in northern Wisconsin as a kid and living in Minnesota in the 1990s. To think of the Tommy Bartlett Show having its stage drained from underneath it is unthinkable. But it’s a strong indicator of how tenuous the works of humans are and how easy it is for Nature to simply wipe them all away whenever she does what comes- well, naturally.

We’ve seen it happen time and again with Hurricane Katrina, wildfires and other “disasters” and we will see it more as human-induced climate change accelerates. Nature goes where it will, not where we tell it to go. When we mess with Nature, we pay for it. And our God of goodness and compassion will not stop it because- even according to His unflappable followers- He created it. Would you want someone messing with your creation?