The Blue State

Renovations to the Gores home

After listening to Sean Hannity's (among other's) constantattempts at smearing Al Gore and trying to get everyone in the phone bookto say he is a hypocrite, I can't express how pleased I was when AssociatedPress Writer Erik Schelzig interviewedAl Gore about his 'green' lifestyle and his TN home's "green-ness".This information has been out for a couple of week, but is a great"at-a-glance" reference and worthy of having on hand.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Al Gore, the environmental activist stung by criticismover his house's energy efficiency, said Friday that renovations are nearlycomplete to make it a model "green" home

"This plan has been in the works for a long time," the former vicepresident said in an interview with The Associated Press. "The only thingthat has changed is that we're more public about it because of the misleadingattack by a global-warming denier group."

Earlier this year, a conservative group criticized Gore, citing electricbills that were far more than the typical Nashville home. Utility records
showed the Gore family paid an average monthly electric bill of about $1,200last year for its 10,000-square-foot home.

Gore's renovation project, which he said has been in the works for months,seeks to meet the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED,standards established by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Once his upscale neighborhood changed zoning laws earlier this year, Gore wasable to place solar panels on his roof, and he's now preparing to
install a geothermal system that will, among other things, drastically reducethe cost of heating his pool.

Gore is also upgrading windows and ductwork, installing more energy-efficientlight bulbs and creating a rainwater collection system for
irrigation and water management

The home houses offices for Gore and his wife, Tipper, as well as acommercial kitchen for formal events.

Drew Johnson, president of the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, thegroup that initially criticized Gore, said the "renovations areobviously in direct response to our finding that he's a hypocrite on the issueof global warming." Read on...

WhenHannity tried to get Arnold Schwarzenegger to buy into his "Gore's a hypocrite"theory-smear on 'Hannity's America', the governor responded to Hannity's long winded sales pitch:

Thegovernor diplomatically brought it up himself. Schwarzenegger said focusing onhow much a public figure contributes to global warming is fair game. "But Idon't think you should crucify someone like that, because if he does so muchgood and inspiring people and changes millions and millions of people to drivewith clean cars and inspires millions of people to use less energy, less waterand all of those things but in the meantime maybe he drives the bigger car, Ithink it is some what of an unfair thing to go and attack him. Yes there is ahypocrisy, absolutely."

On a global warming note: In lastnight's 'BlueNightowl Clips' post, we featured a video titled 'TheMost Terrifying Video You'll Ever See', where a rather knowledgeable H.S.science teacher  simplifies the global warming issue using common sense,and in a very humble way. His 3 follow-up videos titled 'PatchingHoles' (1,2 & 3) are more than worthy of viewing.

(Video) Unfair and Unbalanced: Hannity, Gingrich and North vs Colmes

Last night on Hannity & Colmes, Sean Hannity, Newt Gingrich and Oliver North spent three minutes bashing Clinton and Obama for voting against the war funding bill, while giving less than one minute to Alan Colmes in the Fox studio.

Props to Newshounds for putting this video up.

What the Soldiers Feel, That We Never Will

As I was looking through the blogs to see what was out there to add in a 'BlueBlogs' post (what other blogs are posting), I came across   'Whatthe war is doing to our soldiers' at ThinkProgress. The story is from Captain Jeff Leonard's FresnoBeehive Blog, titled 'Just staring at the wall really'.Capt. Leorand is an Army counselor in Iraq, and with a team of 6 they "helpsoldiers deal with the trauma of combat."

Maj. Johns and I had been at the patrol base to the west for several days. Wetook up residence on two adjacent cots in the far corner of a plywood structurewhich, by size comparisons, was much like the other Army tents it was builtamong. There were no walls to divide the space within the structure. Cots linedthe long side walls with space for a walkway in the middle. There were about 20cots in all and transient soldiers came and went, mostly as they left for, orreturned from, their leaves home. During the daytime, the structure would shakeand breathe in the hot winds and the thin lines of light where plywood panelsmet on the walls, and at the meeting of the walls and the ceiling, would swelland widen broadening bright luminous fissures in the dark space. Small graylizards would crawl though these cracks and take refuge from the heat on theplywood ceiling between the beams.

Soldiers getting ready to go on leave would talk about things they planned todo at home with tones of relief and elation. Soldiers returning to their unitswould move about anxiously and hope for delays in their returns back to theline. When details of their returns were received, and when all hope of delayhad been exhausted, their muscles visibly tightened and their movements becamejolted, almost angry, and they began to speak of their hopelessness, the friendsthey had seen killed. They began to question and criticize the war, late intothe night on their cots in the darkness. In the morning, they would be gone,their empty cots a reminder of them, and of where they would be by now. Oftenwhen we spoke to them, we wondered secretly if they would become one more ofthose we had talked with who might later appear on a memorial flier before us,an inverted rifle and bayonet, a Kevlar, a pair of boots, and dog tags, a typedmessage naming who they left behind back home.

The major and I took up shop in a metal storage trailer during the daytime.It had no windows but had been fitted with lights and an air conditioner.Command, knowing he and I were coming, had detained or sent in several soldiersthey wanted us to see. The recent decision to extend all of the soldiers hadmade our job harder and those who lived day to day had begun to digest andabsorb the mental impact of 90 more days they would need to survive.

"No, sir, I don't really sleep. Well, maybe an hour or two, then I getup. I don't want to dream," the soldier said to us. His name was Staff Sgt.Johnson. He was a good soldier, and you could tell when you spoke to him. He wasa man of honor. He was ashamed to be speaking with us, but his leaders hadinsisted. He had served three combat tours as a squad leader in a line unit. Hisbody and his hands shook during pauses in his speaking and he stared at us, andsometimes past us, with a wide-eyed look of hyper alertness. He had justreturned from leave and two guys in his squad were killed days before hisreturn. Readon...

It's a quick read so hurry back then continue on...I'llwait....

Will Staff Sgt. Johnson be considered an "anti-war lefty thatsympathizes with al-Qaeda" by the conservative war mongers if he can't ordoesn't want to go back after three tours in Iraq? Melanie Morgan's display ofthis behavior was disgusting enough to get her banned from 'TheNews Hour with Jim Lehrer' (with video). Sean Hannity had the balls tostick up for her also with video.

Melanie Morgan was referring to VoteVets .org, which is jammed packed with war vets and heroes. Hannity andMorgan are part of that group where if you don't support the war, you are somesort of "terrorist sympathizer" (or close to it). I'd love to see themtossed into one of these infantry squads and see how long it takes before adiaper change is necessary. Fuc* Hannity and Morgan, and anyone that thinksspeaking out against "A" war is anti patriotic.

Rocky v. Hannity Debate on Bush Impeachment

The topic of the debate Friday night between Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson and talk show host Sean Hannity was:

"Isthe policy of the U.S. in Iraq producing successful results, or is itfailing? And, is President George W. Bush discharging the duties of hisoffice in a capable fashion, or should he be impeached?"

Anderson and Hannity each gave 30-minute speeches. KUED host Ken Verdoia moderated the debate:

You can listen from the web-page or download the audio file by "clicking" the down arrow. Click on image on left to enlarge which will show the download instructions.

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Mayor Rocky Anderson makes his case and explains why be believes Bush should be Impeached. Rocky acts respectfully throughout the initial 30 minute speech as well throughout the debate. While on the other hand, his opponent, Sean Hannity starts in  with name calling from the get go, and continues to do so through his 30 minute speech and it only gets worse during the debate. Whenever someone opposes Bush or the war, Hannity always uses the term "our brave men and women fighting for our country" as if to show how patriotic he is and unpatriotic his opponent/guest/media etc. is, and accuses them of not supporting the troops.

Opposing views about the debate: 'Why Hannity Trounced Anderson' & 'Rocky KOs Self'

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Here are a couple of "Bonus" videos of Bill O'Reilly being Fair & Balanced, and not a Kook.

O'Reilly berates and ridicules Salt Lake City Mayor Click for News Hounds Article

Rocky Anderson to O'Reilly on NIE Oct 2002 Click for News Hounds Article

Pentagon: Extended Tours Taking Toll on Soldiers

After dodging roadside bombs, IED's and snipers, our troops step into an increaseof mental health problems, suicides and divorce mainly due to the newly imposedtour extensions says pentagon study.

Soldiers and Marines who have served multiple deployments in Iraq aresuffering more mental health problems, suicides and divorces, according to aPentagon study released Friday that studied troops who served overseas lastyear.

Army soldiers show a higher rate of mental health and family problems thanMarines, but that is due to their longer tours of duty, according to the ArmySurgeon General's Mental Health Advisory Team, which has conducted threeperiodic reviews of troop morale, concerns and mental health issues since thewar in Iraq began in 2003.

Our military has been stretched sothin, that the results have become just as (if not more) stressful to thesoldiers than serving in combat.

Asked about the effect of deployment on their marriages, more soldiersreported unhappy marriages (30 percent) than in previous surveys. Similarly, 20percent of soldiers surveyed last year reported they were getting divorced, upfrom 15 percent among soldiers in Iraq in 2005.

The suicide rate for soldiers deployed to Iraq was 30 percent higher, 16 per100,000 people, than in the Army in general, which had a rate of 11 per 100,000people.

As for overall morale, about 20 percent of soldiers reported high or veryhigh morale and about 45 percent reported low or very low morale. Thatrepresented a slight decline and the study suggested that the length and pace ofdeployments was a factor. The study described overall morale for both soldiersand Marines as low.

So next time you hear one of the pro-warconservatives talk about how the soldiers are behind the war, tell them to turn Foxnews off and GOOGLEthe truth.

Related article - Long War Taxing Troops: StressExperts Urge Longer Breaks From `Mortal Danger'

Sean Hannity Being an Idiot

RE: Blue Radar post: President Bush did not appear on Time Magazine's 100 most influential people.  But Condoleezza Rice is on the list -- as are Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Sean Hannity gets his panties in a ruffle and whines that Bush isn't one of the "100 most" list. His guests spell it out for him, but he continues to stomp his feet.

UnFair & UnBalanced

FOX really has no shame, (which isn't a secret), and they certainly aren'tFair & Balanced. during the week of 4/2-4/6 Hannity & Colmes spoke aboutthe Democrat's controversies, but as usual ignored the ones about theRepublicans, and THERE were Plenty of them.

TheNews Hounds, click the link below for the full story.

InWeek of 4/2-4/6, Hannity & Colmes Debated Controversies Over Democrats,Only, And Ignored Those About Republicans

Facts That The Gores Live Green

This post is the first of more to come as more informationbecomes available. This information was obtained through the CommunicationsDirector of the Office of Al Gore and Mrs. Tipper Gore.

Global Warming information is readily available and will bepart of future posts, but this is directed towards the people that can notsay  Al Gore without following it up with the word Hypocrite.

 

  As of April 1, the city of Belle Meade (the city withinthe city of Nashville) made it legal for the Gores to put solar panels on theirhouse.  We are just waiting for the zoning commission to OK their specificplan now.

Former Vice President and Tipper Gore have worked for thirty years to try tosolve the climate crisis.  Their efforts include:

  24 years of public service including Former Vice President Gore’s work tofind agreement on the Kyoto Protocol, the global warming treaty, which mandatescuts in global warming pollution.

  Helping to create the Academy Award winning documentary film and writing thecompanion book “An Inconvenient Truth” which has educated millions ofAmericans, as well as people around the world.  The Gores donated all oftheir profits from these efforts to a new non-profit organization, the Alliancefor Climate Protection, to continue their educational mission about globalwarming.

  Giving the slideshow, which serves as the basis for the book and film, over1,000 times in the U.S. and around the world.

  Helping to establish and serving as the lead trainer for The Climate Project, anon-profit organization that already has trained 1,000 people in the U.S. andoverseas on the slideshow that serves as the basis for “An InconvenientTruth.”  The trainees agree to give the slideshow in their respectivecommunities to help educate people about the climate crisis.  Mrs. Goresells her photography through Mitchell Gold Bob Williams with all proceedsgoing to fund The Climate Project.

   Donating more than $1 million to non-profit organizations dedicated to climatechange awareness efforts.   

Establishing two new companies—Current TV and Generation InvestmentManagement—both of which are carbon neutral. 

In addition, the Gores take many steps in their own life to reduce their carbonfootprint.  These include:

-Owning and driving hybrid-electric vehicles
-Purchasing green power (solar, wind, and methane gas through the local utility)to power their home.
-Undertaking a complete home renovation to retrofit their residence and homeoffices to become more energy efficient.  This has involved: installing newfloor radiant heating and solar venting systems, new efficient furnaces andwindows, thermostats, and light switches as well as compact fluorescent bulbs,and solar panels.  This renovation is scheduled to be completed by May2007.
-Living a carbon neutral life.


**What does it mean to live carbon neutral? The Gore’s participate in a carbonneutral program whereby offsets are purchased with organizations that work toreduce carbon emissions through renewable energy initiatives, such as thedevelopment of solar and wind power. These carbon-offset purchases are evaluatedby a third-party firm to ensure that the Gores have effectively neutralized theimpact of their own carbon emissions.

After all the Gore's do in order to live"Green", anyone that continues to call them hypocrites, either haveinvestments where admitting  Global Warming exists would hurt themfinancially, they extremely dislike the Gore's, or they are simplyignorant.   

What seems to be night after night, Sean Hannitygrills his guests on Gore and whether he is a hypocrite or not, and usually getsto his "yes or no" bullying. In the following videos (there are manymore) even guests that disagree with everything Gore says or stands for, refuseto agree with Hannity that he is a hypocrite. When he does have someone"bad-mouth" Gore, it's usually a made up sarcastic remark. Hannitywill often run the names of people that oppose Global Warming on the crawl.

Fox Smears Al Gore Part's1 & 2                                                                                                   

And Yet Another Fine Display by Hannity

Sean Hannity has got to be one of the most despicable commentators of all thenews channels. He continuously brow beats, bullies and antagonizes his guests.He'll be speaking to a respected individual that has a different view than hedoes, and his attempt at showing his other right wing guests (and America) thathe is the Almightiest Patriot of them all, displays nothing shy of disrespect.His repeated taunts of "answer yes or no" have gotten to the point of amusement.The guest will try and answer Hannity's question in an educated thoughtful way,and that will simply not do for Mr. Hannity. This is evident in the video.

 

If a guest disagrees with him, he goes right into his normal behavior andvery rarely will you see him act in a professional manner as the majority of commentatorsdo. Losing your composure once in a while is normal, but with Hannity his unprofessionalbehavior seems to be HIS norm. He comes across as not being very knowledgeableand often plays off of his "teams" comments. If he continues to refuseto treat guests with dignity and respect, then why have them on at all?

As far as Hannity is concerned, we should not speak to any of our enemies.Diplomacy is not an option. I suppose in Hannity's world, it's "OurWay" or the "Bombs Way". He is a closed minded, militant warmonger. He also partakes in berating his co-host (Alan Colmes) every chance he gets.

All this comes at a time when Iran just released the 13 British sailors.

(Video) Two conservatives vs one semi-liberal on Fox News

This is your typical debate on the Fox News show HANNITY & colmes.  They bring in a conservative guest to make it two conservatives vs one liberal.  The two conservatives then use that chance to take cheap pot shots at anyone that disagrees with them, while the semi-liberal colmes just sits there and takes it.  Last night, former Cheney aide Mary Matalin joined the debate:

HANNITY: I will tell you what is outrageous, Mary.  And that is stabbing our troops in the back, slow bleed, cutting off their equipment, and emboldening our enemies, and having a policy of retreat and defeat -- that is outrageous.  Good to see you, Mary.

Actually Sean, it is this Administration that is sending our forces into battle without the proper equipment.  The Washington Post reported about it this disgrace last January.