Saturday, January 19, 2019

Cultural Heroes, by Category

American Cultural Heroes,
by Category


America has an impressive array of cultural
heroes, yet their ideas aren’t widely reflected in
our political dialogue. We should include these
voices, as has been done in this public interest
platform, which would benefit the nation or
“promote the general welfare” as the preamble
says.


These people (below) are from a variety of
professions including: Naturalist, Author,
Astronaut, Poet, Physicist, Economist,
Educator, Journalist, Actor/Actress, Professional
Athlete, Politician, Lawyer, Environmentalist,
Whistleblower, and Member of  the US Military.
Of course there are many others who
could be included, but these people are those
cited for ideas appearing in elements of the platform.

Click on  the initials  following the individual’s
name to see their wikipedia or other biographical
entry.


Journalists who serve the Public Interest and
Whistle-blowers


David               Edward                Matt
Begnaud (DB)     Snowden (EJS)      Taibbi (MCT)

Ray  (RM)             Kathleen             Coleen
     McGovern             Parker (KP)       Rowley (CR)


Champions of Social Justice

     Angela Y.               Colin (CRK)      Bryan (BAS)           
     Davis (AYD)       Kaepernick     Stevenson           


      
Proponents of Sound Economic
Policy

  Hunter                     Alan   Dr. Ron   
Lovins (LHL)      Krueger ( ABK)       Paul (REP)  



Humanitarians
   Paul                        Warren Aaron  
  Farmer (PEF)          Buffet (WEB)      Jackson (AJ)


Proponents of Responsible
Healthcare Policy

       Dr. Atul    Jeff               Luis (LJR)
Gawande  (AG     Volek (JV)      Rodriguez
                                                       
Public Officials who have shown
High Principles and Effectiveness

     
   Hannah-Beth        Sen. Roy Rep. Barbara
   Jackson (HBJ)      Blunt (RDB)       Lee (BJL)

Heroes of Environmental Preservation


Dr. Sylvia   Prof. E.O. Paul
Earle (SAE)   Wilson (EOW) Watson (PFW)                   


Americans Who Promote Responsible
Foreign Policy

       Dennis                  Noam Col. Ann
   Rodman (DKR)  Chomsky (ANC)   Wright (MAW)    


 Educators,  and Space
Exploration
Prof. Peggy      Prof. Deborah    Col. Edwin “Buzz”     
Whitson  (PAW)     Meier (DM)         Aldrin (EEA)         

   


Friday, January 18, 2019

Preamble Based Platform

Public Interest Platform - Domestic and Foreign Policy Goals

 This collection of domestic and foreign policy goals is based on the six items foundational to the Preamble of the US Constitution The preamble is the only document by which consent of the governed is given, a social contract for our collective national interest.

 To form a More Perfect Union
 Establish Justice
 Provide for Common Defense
 Promote the General Welfare
 Ensure Domestic Tranquility
 Secure Liberty for ourselves today and in the future

 All items in this platform are gleaned from writings of living American authors and public figures.

 1.   Economy

 Establish a Minimum wage based on ( local) Cost of Living Index, standardized at $20.00 per hour for average 2016 Cost-of-living levels. All wages currently above existing minimum wage to be raised proportionally to reflect skill level or regional differences in cost of living. Lower the definition of full time jobs to 28-32 hours per week to promote zero unemployment.

 End the Fed. Substitute a backed currency that includes a mix of strategic minerals (Coltan, Thorium, Uranium, Lithium, REEs) precious and non-precious metals, stabilized agricultural commodities, building materials, liquid fuels and industrial solvents. Assets maintained in multiple locations, with levels proportional to usage and market price of commodities.

 Support a National Fair Pay Act (pay equity for women) based on the 2016 version of the California Fair Pay Act.


 2. Education

  Adopt Coalition of Essential Schools model for public education - Cultivate critical thinking skills, portfolio-based assessment, community service component, parental involvement.


 3. Energy/Environment

 Promote use of TMSRs (Thorium Molten Salt Reactors) - developed and demonstrated at ORNL and the Shippingport reactor (see paragraph 4 of wiki article) - safer and less expensive alternative to the light water reactors now common (Fukushima, 3 Mile Island). TMSRs greatly reduce the amount of nuclear waste produced (from (95% to 10% of fuel used) and radiotoxicity (from requiring 10,000 yrs to requiring 200 yrs of sequestration). There are sufficient reserves of thorium and spent nuclear fuel rods (which contain 95% of original fissile potential) to provide our energy needs for centuries. Support Climate Coalition goals for CO2 emissions reduction, phasing out of fossil fuels and promoting next generation nuclear along with responsible hydro and deep earth geothermal, reserving solar and wind power for individual and non-utility use.

 Support E.O. Wilson's "Half Earth" book's proposal - half of land area devoted to nature preserves. Oppose programs which bring about Negative Environmental Impact of Technology and Human Overuse of Resources - The debate over whether or not Global Warming, or Climate Change are occurring simply distracts from the reality that blind profiteering based in technology and resource overuse are causing harm to human health and extinctions or habitat loss that will lead to extinctions.

 Support Dr. Sylvia Earle’s Marine Protected Area program to prevent ocean death from overharvest, ocean acidification and oil spills. Southern Ocean Fertilization Initiative - Restore iron/nitrogen pump by reestablishing Sperm Whale populations to pre-whaling levels, target increase in Sperm Whale population of 1.2 million initially, additional increases as needed to sequester CO2 from fossil fuel burning.


 4. Foreign Policy

Disallow any war of aggression by the US and recall any elected officials who propose or support such wars by abdication of Congressional authority such as AUMF. see proposed legislation.

Disallow proxy war or any military action without a declaration of war by the US.

Support Palestinian Statehood. End US arms sales to foreign countries. End foreign aid except in humanitarian relief for natural disasters.

End black budget and black operations portfolio for US intelligence agencies. No US-Mexico border wall, substituting MAICCME.

 5. Health Care

 Means-tested Medicare provided for all citizens who prefer that to having private health insurance.

All covered treatments will be outcome-based, not fee-for-service based. A co-pay will be required for those who choose to pursue lifestyle choices that correlate Statistically with negative health outcomes.

Remove the income cap on (7.5%) withholding on soc. sec. payroll deductions. This idea is promoted by Warren Buffett.


 6. Housing 

Implement HAP project on a national basis to eliminate homelessness and insure affordable housing.

 7. Military

Give budget priority to and expand Humanitarian Mission of the Navy.

Advance Non-lethal combat strategies for US military. In places where defensive armed conflict can’t be avoided, employ technologies and tactics that optimize for live capture of enemy combatants, housing them in non-punitive environments, and including their input in the negotiations that lead to cessation of hostilities.

 8. Race Relations * Law Enforcement Reform * Prison Reform

 Support the recommendations of Black Lives Matter regarding reform of law enforcement procedures and standards:

 1) End Broken Windows Policing,
 2) Community Oversight,
3) Limit Use of Force,
4) Independently Investigate & Prosecute,
5) Community Representation,
6) Body Cameras,
7) Training,
8) End for-profit policing,
9) Demilitarization,
10) Fair police union contracts. http://reason.com/blog/2015/08/21/black-lives-matter-activists-release-pol 

End for-profit prisons, establish colleges and/or trade schools as components of all existing prisons. All labor performed by prisoners will be reimbursed at prevailing wage standards.

 9. Public Health

Eliminate BPA in food packaging. Eliminate use of Roundup, neonicotinoids and any herbicides or insecticides known to have negative health impacts on humans, bees, or other vulnerable species in the our Ecosystem. Eliminate thimerosal, other mercury-containing compounds, aluminum or other known toxins from vaccines. Eliminate multiple dose human vaccines which are known or suspected to cause negative health consequences, including Autism Spectrum Disorders.

 10. Space exploration 

Resume a robust space program with Buzz Aldrin’s “A Unified Space Vision” as a blueprint. This includes goals of lunar colonies including recreational facilities anticipating space tourism, and inter-orbital cycler vehicles to facilitate staging of interplanetary missions. Maintain the International cooperation that has characterized the International Space Station’s operation. No programs will initiate or serve military or private weapons systems or capability.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Constructive, pertinent responses welcome. No snide comments please.(Yes, you.)

Here is the breakdown of project types:
2) Inventions that are socially beneficial
4) Massive planet engineering schemes
8) Recreational/exercise devices (some projects are both 2 and 8)
9) Education and public service
13) Farming

The numbers I left out are projects that are not really innovative concepts or inventions, such as Sarah Tonin and the Mood Swings, which is simply a concept for a band.

Project of the day: Portable Homeless Shelter/ entertainment/retail guild.
Problem area: Homeless people not having a place to call their own, begging at stoplights with no skill to barter. While the urban campground idea previously posted overlaps this somewhat, this would be a more social, interactive and portable solution. So the homeless people would be given this sort of a covered rickshaw (where they could sleep, but with a microbathroom incl.)and they could sell things from it (at the stoplight, off ramp, venue of choice) . Each contractor (Homeless individual) would have to write a brief biography which, along with a tasteful line drawing, would become a homeless trading card (collect all 600!). These they could sell for 50 cents ea. They would also be allowed an assortment of chimichangas, Edith-goes-south oatmeal molasses cookies, the daily paper, zines on approval. There would be a platform on which, for a dollar, they could perform folk songs, interpretive dance or other tasteful exhibits. This project would be a pyramid scheme of sorts, with successful participants being given the chance to "advance" into the construction, distribution, grantwriting or administrative areas of the project (you can only guess!).

Project of 5 wks ago(I forgot to post this one): Secret Nude Frisbee Golfathon Anti-war Fundraiser.
This is pretty much self-explanatory except that it would be widely publicized, the "secret" part being entirely facetious. And it would be promoted by a totally self-serving publicity stunt lawsuit based on the (predicted) unwillingness of the authorities to grant a parade permit for the event. Anyway, I already have the frisbee golf goals, which were barely used at the first peace festival, so it seemed like an obvious followup. Without some headliner like this, a peace festival is basically a pathetic, useless, self-congratulatory smugfest. Mea maxima bonehead culpa, etc.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Saturday, September 09, 2006

There were originally 15 ideas that I started this blog about. Here are 10 of them.

1. Redesign New Orleans - That is, from the bedrock up. Existing silt would be transported to other areas for agricultural use. Stone or gravel fill would be brought in (I'm thinking by barge) to raise entire areas to be developed to 10 meters above sea level.Neighborhoods would be built around a hexagonal mound system connected by elevated bike/pedestrian/light elec veh. paths .
Historic neighborhoods could be jacked up to the new level or surrounded by dikes that are backed by new construction rather than canals.

2. Sidewinder. This is a smoking replacement/detoxification nicotine delivery system. Instead of smoke, hot, flavored inhalable steam (no carbon monoxide, tar, etc) would be delivered via a flexible tube (that's where "sidewinder" comes from, besides being a western rattlesnake and also, marketing ploy) connected to belt pack holding compressed gas and flavoring components.

3. House tree. See original post, with links.

4. Green Canyon. See Line-of-sight tunnel post. Connecting NYC to Chicago, and creating offshore Islands on Eastern seaboard continental shelf, emergency flood drainage for Passaic River in NJ and utility corridor for housing and industry.

5. Euglena tattoo. In the world of microorganisms, the Euglena is unique in that it moves like an animal, but has chloroplasts and so can photosynthesize. Would it work to infect animal cells with the type of chloroplasts that are in Euglena and thereby allow animals to derive part of their energy from the sun? Similarly, would the ability of nitrogen-fixing bacteria to absorb atmospheric nitrogen be attainable by animals?

6. Hydrogen Algae. This is a proven process rather than a new idea. The production og hydrogen by algae is a way to denitrify waste water effluent while claiming the energy in hydrogen gas as a byproduct.

7. Polar orbit satellite. Free energy from Earth's magnetic field is available if conducting cables are dragged through it, as satellite cassini demonstrated. By placing a satellite in a polar position , it would be possible to beam this energy, converted to microwaves, to a receptor dish at the pole, thereby eliminating the need for petroleum fuels. . It could also be the source of a laser "gun" to power interplanetary flight or return missions to the moon.

8. Laundry cart. Based on the life story of Conan the Barbarian and the idea that clothes laundering and exercise are both things that people need, this is a device that would be a pushable, human powered washing machine. The wheels turning would turn the drum. Gearing could be altered to give more or less resistance depending on the user's strength and speed. The full body workout would nicely coincide with the time it takes to wash, rinse and spin a large load of laundry.

9. Heads-up Helmet.This idea is a combination wi-fi connection pc built into a safety helmet with both integral AC and on-demand repiratory protection.

10. Wildebeeste. Human physiognomy is based on the plan of a brachiator - swinging through trees - as opposed to quadrupedal, like dogs or knucklewalking, like chimps. Our adaption to bipedal locomotion, though advantageous in an evolutionary sense, has drawbacks compared to the range of muscle groups that brachiation accesses. Wildebeeste is a framework that a person steps into and straps on that duplicates the leap and swing pattern of our simian ancestors (or tree shrew, if the relatedness to monkeys bothers you). It eliminates the jarring impact on knee and spine that cause runner's injuries and allows stetching and contraction for spinal, quad, ab, glute, bicep, tricep and lat. Can be fitted with helium balloons to simulate Martian gravity.



What's this about?
All of these ideas are based on the possibility of changes in the way people view the future as having beneficial impacts on the present also. Thanks to Em for having a blog which is how I accidentally got sucked into this (all I meant to do was comment on her site, but my incompetence got me all the way here) (or maybe it was serendipity).
posted by da # 12:10 PM 5 comments



What's this about?
All of these ideas are based on the possibility of changes in the way people view the future as having beneficial impacts on the present also. Thanks to Em for having a blog which is how I accidentally got sucked into this (all I meant to do was comment on her site, but my incompetence got me all the way here) (or maybe it was serendipity).
posted by da # 12:10 PM 5 comments

Sunday, July 02, 2006

Projects to ensure the economic survival, disaster recovery, and healthy lifestyles of Floridians:

Elevated Bike/pedestrian/ltwt electric mass transit paths. These would be weather-proof paths connecting common major destinations within Pensacola (Libraries, schools and colleges, downtown, neighborhoods, beaches, hospitals, churches and malls). Several bicycle-auto and pedestrian-auto deaths have occurred in the short time I have lived in FL. Crossing town by car often takes longer than the same trip would by bicycle at 20 mph. If school children had a safe pathway, they could ride bikes to school and counter some the sedentary lifestyle habits that automobile/bus-based transp. encourage them to adopt. The link below shows an elevated bikeway in the Los Angeles area. Thanks to E. Robinson for the link. http://www.metropolismag.com/html/content_0600/ob.htm

Urban campgrounds- The purpose of these city developments would be to provide temporary housing for newcomers, vacationers, travelling students, emergency and hurricane repair volunteers. Units would be based on a "microtel" design - tiny, minimalist, but would be far more affordable ($5-15 per night) than the $60 typ for a motel/microtel. Some of the ideas for units are lean-tos based on cement culvert, sod roof huts, and yurts. Fees would be on a sliding scale with Social service agencies being offered units to temporarily displaced residents or any clients with temporary housing needs.

Seawater mist global warming amelioration.(Near shore or off-shore) See the NYT Science section for Tues, June 27 for the details on this. This would offer some protection from heat and UV related health risks for the Pensacola area.

Xeriscape and green design initiatives. Tax incentives could be provided to retrofit existing or design new commercial and residential properties with xeriscape to reduce water us for irrigation and low energy-use features such as ground temperature coils for heat pumps, solar hot water to reduce unnecessary waste of power.

Line-of-sight high speed tunnel trains from Pensacola to Mobile, New Orleans, Orlando, Atlanta.
The significant feature of line-of-sight tunnels is that they are subsurface and provide free (gravity) acceleration during the first half and braking during the last half of the trip. When coupled with maglev and vacuum tunnel design, this makes for a very low energy cost design which could be non-dependent on fossil fuels.The tunnel feature obviates the need for disruption of surface activites except for the terminals or access ports. Excavated materials would be helpful in providing near-coastal fill to protect against storm surge and replace eroded beach materials.

I hope you find these ideas useful. Please let me know if there is a compilation of suggestions that have been made so far available for review. Thanks.

Best Regards,
Mark Robinson
435-6807


This idea is one in the "50 goals for my life if I live forever" idea. This is instead of "50 ...Before I die" which seemed to put the emphasis on aging and mortality:

Growing hollow trees (biotech) to replace houses made from other materials. http://query.nytimes.com/search/query?d=nytdsection%2b&o=e%2b&v=Science%2b&c=a%2b&query=anthony+atala&date_select=full
see the NYT article link above to see a parallel now being used in medicine (growing bladders in the lab for transplantation into humans -successfully accomplished.

Thursday, June 22, 2006

What's this about?

All of these ideas are based on the possibility of changes in the way people view the future as having beneficial impacts on the present also. Thanks to Em for having a blog which is how I accidentally got sucked into this (all I meant to do was comment on her site, but my incompetence got me all the way here) (or maybe it was serendipity).