Forward Facing

February, originally uploaded by carl.setzer. Is it really still February?

I came across this video at The World According To Chuck. It's a bit disturbing when you consider the damage done in this accident. I'm not sure why this bus doesn't even slow down, whether inattention, a medical issue with the driver, or an equipment malfunction. It is a reminder, though, of the incredible power our vehicles harbor. I've long felt that people who drive while applying make-up, texting, reading, ad naseum, fail to respect the power of their cars. Distracted by their inflated id, I presume.

I've long loved the comic Piled Higher and Deeper (Aaron, I believe you introduced this to me). Mixing it with Lewis Carroll...priceless!

iPhone? Blackberry? Meh! Now THIS is a phone!



(I originally posted this back in 2005...)

iLCP February 2010 Newsletter | blog.artwolfe.com

I'm a long-time fan of Art Wolfe's work. It has been a critical component of my evolution as an environmentalist. His work taught me to appreciate the wild places, the wild things. With that appreciation came a desire to preserve. It delights me, then, to learn that he is part of a group, The International League of Conservation Photographers. Interesting, really, that this org, which encompasses two of my core passions, had completely escaped my awareness. My world is now richer.

I just finished up “Greasy Rider”, by Greg Melville. The premise captured me: two guys (dudes per the cover) driving across the country (from Burlington, Vermont to Berkeley, California) in a veggie-oil powered car. That, to me, sounds awesome. A nice book, more than just a travelog. Melville takes a pretty good (if not in-geeky-depth) look at the alternative fuels industry, it’s players and their motivations. He also side-trips, so to speak, into other areas of the green-movement (such as green building).

He has one observation that I agree with wholeheartedly: America, as a society, has lost (to a large degree) it’s ability to sacrifice. People do seem to want their solutions handed to them, in pretty packaging. Those of us who try to see things at a larger level, who try to live with some kind of higher calling tend to be regarded with ridicule and contempt. The greatest irony is the worst of the contempt-mongers delight in cloaking themselves in a shroud of morality. Sad, disturb…

A view of heaven, originally uploaded by carl.setzer. I love books.

I can't help being liberal, and wouldn't if I could. That's the heart I've been given. Compassion is my core directive. It's where I try to focus. I often fail, but the call remains. I'm weary, though, of those "conservatives" somehow deciding compassion is a moral weakness. That demanding equality for all is "ungodly". Expecting all people to be treated with dignity is evil. What is wrong with them?