Equal Time with Anthony Pollina, Carl Etnier, & Traven

September 6, 2010: Labor Day Edition

The Labor Day theme show combines a reprise of an interview relevant to labor movements' work for greater equality and a new interview about ways to save energy and money commuting to work.

Kate Pickett is co-author of The Spirit Level: Why Greater Equality Makes Societies Stronger, and the book asks, Which is more important for a strong society--high overall levels of wealth, or equal distribution of wealth? The authors argue that more equal countries and US states have greater longevity, fewer homicides, more trust, and other better outcomes, but average wealth doesn't matter much. The interview is edited from her appearance on the show on February 1, 2010.

Ross MacDonald, manager of the Go Vermont carpool and vanpool service for the Agency of Transportation, talks about the many tools they have to help people find a carpool or vanpool partner.

Carl Etnier hosts.

Mike Prokosch, campaign coordinator for 25% Solution, explains why communities are organizing to cut the $700 billion annual “defense” budget, arguing that real security comes with strong communities with adequate resources for health, welfare, education, housing and environmental protection. Mike calls for an immediate 25% cut in military spending to be achieved by withdrawing from Iraq and Afghanistan, cutting weapons systems and closing half of the 800 foreign military bases the U.S. maintains.

Jeffrey Thompson, PERI Research Professor, author a new study: Prioritizing Approaches to Economic Development in New England: Skills, Infrastructure, and Tax Incentives, explains that investing in areas at the core of the public sector mission — providing education and maintaining infrastructure — are effective at creating jobs in the short term and building prosperous economies over the long term; that the tax cuts and business-subsidies approach to economic development, on the other hand, does little to create jobs in the short run, and is not the most effective approach to generating growth over the long term.

Part 1: A retrospective on the Aug. 14-22 Village-building Convergence in central Vermont, with organizers Gail England and Jennifer Steckler. For more information on completing the cob garden shed in Barre, or on planning next year's event, check the web site or call 223-1730.

The five panel discussions were filmed by Onion River Community Access (ORCA). If you'd like your community access channel to broadcast them, ask them to contact ORCA.

Part 2: Annie McCleary, director of Wisdom of the Herbs School in Woodbury, on what wild edibles are free for the harvesting right now. The books she recommends are Newcomb's Wildflower Guide, as well as Samuel Thayer's Forager's Harvest and Nature's Garden.

Annie's recipe for a pint of pickled wild roots: Dig burdock root (Arctium spp.), dandelion root (Taraxacum officinale) and/or evening primrose root (Oenothera biennis). Wash and chop wild root into thin slices, enough to fill a pint jar. Steam the roots until soft but still crunchy and save the cooking water. Make brine combining using 1/3 C. tamari, 1/3 C. apple cider vinegar, and 1/3 C. of the water the roots were steamed in, and bring to a boil. Place 3 whole cloves garlic and 4 slices of ginger root in a pint jar, pack in the steamed roots slices, and cover with the boiling brine. Refrigerate, let sit a few days before eating. Keeps well in a cool place for many months.

Carl Etnier hosted. Audio to follow.

Author Richard Heinberg's nine books include The Party's Over: Oil, War and the Fate of Industrial Societies and Peak Everything: Waking Up to the Century of Declines. He discusses what we know about peak oil, as well as its connection to the end of economic growth. His views are explained in his chapter in the forthcoming Post Carbon Reader, some chapters of which are already available for free download.

Heinberg also mentioned Searching for a Miracle, a recent report from the Post Carbon Institute available for free download at the link. It examines the question, "Can any combination of known energy sources successfully supply society’s energy needs at least up to the year 2100?"

The audio of Tom Bower is excerpted from a podcast of The Mark Johnson Show from July 2010.

In the second part of the show, organizer Ben Graham describes the Village-building Convergence, a week-long, community-wide celebration of sustainable living, practical homesteading skills, and visions of a more resilient local community, Aug. 14-22, 2010 in central Vermont. He describes what they've done so far building a root cellar, a garden shed in Barre, and what the upcoming week looks like.

Peak Oil Check-In: When to Expect the Next Oil Price Shock? (Rebroadcast from August 2009)

Carl Etnier hosts.

Aired August 2, 2010

Robert Costanza is professor of ecological economics at the University of Vermont and director of the Gund Institute of Ecological Economics. He talks about the things most economists overlook, like the fact that growth can't continue forever on a finite planet, and the ways our well-being is not connected with how much money we have.

To solve real-world problems, he and his colleagues have found The Solutions Journal, a free, on-line journal. In recent article for the journal, they argue that a simple (in concept) regulatory change could prevent future BP-type oil gushers in the gulf. It requires knowing how much the services of the Gulf ecosystems are worth--and one of Costanza's colleagues has calculated that the Mississippi River Delta alone provides $12-47 billion or more in benefits to people each year.

Peak Oil Check-In: Subsidies to Fossil Fuels Make Our Addiction Worse (Part 1)

Carl Etnier hosted.

Prof. Gerald Epstein, Co-director of the Political Economy Research Institute and Professor of Economics at UMAss Amherst, explains why the Wall Street Accountability Act lacks the power to curb Wall St., but contains potential useful regulation with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau depending on who administers it.

Robert Pollin, Professor of Economics and Co-Director of the Political Economy Research Institute at UMass, Amherst, discusses the dangers of the global elite's proposed austerity measures, explains the roots of the current global slump, and advocates alternative policies for job creation and economic revival.

Donny Osman discusses why he's running for Washington County State Senate, and what he means by fighting for the things that matter most to Washington County’s working families, meeting Vermont’s challenges in this Great Recession

Dr. Jack Rasmus, author of Epic Recession: Prelude To Global Depression offers an account of the current economic crisis, its similarities and differences from prior depressions and recessions, his critique of Bush and Obama recovery programs, and a comprehensive program for recovery.