Fri 29 Aug 2014
Letter #441 (From France!)
Wm. Morris, Apple, 1877
Dear President Obama,
The next card #7 asks how high will temperatures rise if global warming continues – and the links here delve into the very interesting topic of “climate sensitivity”. https://www.vox.com/cards/global-warming/how-high-will-temperatures-rise-if-global-warming-continues
It’s not something we know a lot about, so conclusions are difficult but we probably don’t want to send the planet off on a warming binge hotter than we’ve seen in the last 6 or 7 ice ages! – We may not survive it very well. We do best when the climate doesn’t vary too much! So please Stop the Keystone XL Pipeline! I’m worried we’ve started a trend that will be hard to stop. Check out the links on this card. Thank you.
Susan Ringler, Let’s Keep Global Warming to a Minimum!
Sat 30 Aug 2014
Letter #442
Dear President Obama,
We come here to the beach every summer – Lacanau Ocean – a village of 3000 people in the winter. This winter they had a series of very bad storms and the beach eroded more than it has in a single year for the past 50 years or more! Climate disruption is very real here on the Atlantic coast!
Please stop the KXL. The French villages here will thank you. I thank you too.
En toute amitiés,
Susan Ringler, J’aime la Plage
Wed 3 Sept 2014
Letter #443
Dear President Obama,
Thank you to Polly Guth in Dublin, NH for taking the trouble and spending the money to make her estate Stonlea near net zero in carbon emissions. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/07/garden/greening-the-gilded-age.html
She put up 16 large solar panels in a field and dug 16 geothermal wells – and took on this project at 82 years old. If millions of Americans had her vision we would be much quicker at reducing our carbon pollution. Since we each should do what we can do to fight climate change, please Stop the Keystone XL Pipeline now! That’s what you can do! And a few solar panels on the White House lawn would look great too! Thank you.
Susan Ringler, Hats off to Polly Guth
Note: I put 13 solar panels on my roof in March 2017. Have not paid for electricity since then!
Thurs 4 Sept 2014
Letter #444
Dear President Obama,
Well Gov. Chris Christie is in Mexico touting a “North American energy renaissance” that sounds like a speech written for him by Big Oil. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/04/us/politics/in-speech-on-mexico-trip-gov-christie-lays-out-vision-for-energy-renaissance.html
Well it probably was. His ideas about exporting crude to help the US economy prove he can see no farther than the end of his nose. And yet he brought his son Andrew with him to meet some important people. What sort of world climate does Mr. Christie think his son will live in in 40 years? What will 6 degrees of global warming do to the planet? I shudder to think! And Christie’s claim that the Keystone XL Pipeline would lower US energy prices is simply untrue. That oil is destined for export to Asia to enrich Canada – nothing more! So please show your wisdom and understanding of the dangers of climate change, and show your enduring love of your daughters and the world they will live in after we are gone! Please Stop the Keystone XL Pipeline right NOW! When we say a leader has vision, we mean long-sighted, someone who can see things clearly that are still a long way off. Show us your vision! Stop KXL. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Value Long-sighted Vision
Fri 5 Sept 2014
Letter #445
Dear President Obama,
BP is guilty of gross negligence in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/05/business/bp-negligent-in-2010-oil-spill-us-judge-rules.html
I applaud our justice system and Judge Carl J. Barbier for the ruling. But the real lesson here is that Big Oil is frequently reckless, motivated by profit and refuses to police itself. In this era of capitalism run amok, the only solution is government regulation. We need to prevent disasters, not mop up after them! Do not allow more oil drilling offshore and please Stop the Keystone XL Pipeline! We do not need these dirty and dangerous projects. We need to quickly wean ourselves from fossil fuels. The oil industry cuts corners to maximize profit and takes huge risks only to say afterwards “gee, I didn’t know!” Time and again they choose huge profit over environmental damage. The pattern is very clear. We count on you and other government officials to rein them in. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, BP is grossly Negligent!
Sat 6 Sept 2014
Letter #446
Dear President Obama,
A few weeks ago Alaska tried to repeal a sweetheart set of tax breaks for Big Oil. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/us/politics/sarah-palins-attack-on-sean-parnells-oil-plan-creates-odd-wedge-for-alaskan-voters.html
Even Sarah Palin thought it should be repealed – as giving away too much to oil companies. But Big oil campaigned hard in the usual way: we’ll create lots of jobs and if you don’t let us have this money we’ll go drill elsewhere – and once again money talked and big oil kept their tax breaks. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/us/alaskans-uphold-tax-system-for-oil-companies.html
It was close – but the bad guys won. More carbon pollution is on its way! We just can’t go on like this, ignoring the damage to the climate as it relentlessly mounts! Please Stop the Keystone XL Pipeline. We don’t need it and we need to keep that oil in the ground. What will future generations say of us? Say of your leadership? Why is carbon pollution not on everyone’s mind, on the tip of every tongue? There are plenty of other ways to get energy to power our lives – we just need to invest in them. Please help us turn US energy policy around. NO to fossil fuels, YES to Renewable Energy. Thank you.
Susan Ringler, Sad that Alaska Referendum Failed
Sunday 7 Sept 2014
Letter #447
Dear President Obama,
I loved the article in June about rooftop solar investments for renters and such. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/20/business/energy-environment/buying-into-solar-power-no-roof-access-needed.html
Community solar projects on local industrial buildings are good for everyone. I just found out that Cambridge has a new company in this domain: Potluck Energy. https://potluckenergy.com/ I wish them luck and I hope to see lots of community rooftop solar projects sprouting up around town.
Meanwhile please say NO to the Keystone XL Pipeline! It’s important that you take a firm stand on carbon pollution. The US has been way too slow in cutting our dependence on fossil fuels. Let’s get going much faster towards renewables!
Thank you.
Susan Ringler, Love Community Solar Projects
Mon 8 Sep 2014
Letter #448
Dear President Obama,
Today in Fall River, MA Ken Ward and Jay O’Hara were on trial for their lobster boat action last May 15th when they blocked 40,000 tons of coal from being unloaded at Brayton Point Power Station. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/09/us/charges-dropped-against-climate-activists.html
They risked prison to stand up and protect our climate and about 100 people came to their trial this morning to support them. The good news is the case was quickly dismissed with just a fine of $200 to cover police expense. The bad news is shutting Brayton Point by 2017 isn’t soon enough. We need to be reducing emissions 10 times faster than currently! That’s huge. We need you to take charge and lead the way. Please Stop the Keystone XL Pipeline today as a sign of your commitment to quickly reducing carbon emissions. Thank you.
Susan Ringler, Honoring Ken Ward and Jay O’Hara
Tuesday 9 Sept 2014
Letter #449
Dear President Obama,
I was delighted to see this morning that DA Sam Sutter’s dismissal of the lobster boat trial yesterday made front page news in the Boston Globe! https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/09/08/activists-drops-charges-case-blocked-coal-shipment-power-plant/sUpBpGxzxAz3E2Vr5RFQQM/story.html
They ran a photo of DA Sutter clutching a copy of a Bill Mckibben article as he left the courthouse. Sutter made a statement to the press: “Climate change is one of the gravest crises our planet has ever faced. In my humble opinion, the political leadership on this issue has been sorely lacking.“ Please take Mr. Sutter’s actions and words to heart. Please Stop the Keystone XL Pipeline immediately! We need to move much faster towards reducing our use of fossil fuels. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Admire DA Sam Sutter
P.s. It is rare for a DA to speak of a case in any but the narrowest of legal contexts. Mr. Sutter is unusual and courageous.
Tuesday 9 Sept 2014
Letter #450 (2nd Letter today)
Dear President Obama,
I read with sadness the article about Katherine Weymouth, the last member of the venerable Graham family, leaving the Washington Post. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/03/business/Katharine-Weymouth-publisher-of-The-Washington-Post-will-resign.html
Mr. Bezos certainly knows about marketing, but he seems to know little about the great social good that newspapers have performed for centuries. Bezos’ answer to shrinking readership is to focus on “the user and future user and how, where, and how often they engage.” Internet users engage most often with stupid cat videos, or salacious celebrity photos. This will sell ads, but does nothing to inform the public. The climate deniers in this country must be thrilled at this new degradation of the Washington Post. So before they achieve even more power, please STOP the Keystone XL Pipeline! Stop it right now. Great leaders can perform great social good too! Here is your chance. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Admire Great Newspapers
