The Oil Drum

This is a photo of the "Walk for Democracy" folks who walked 16 miles, the length of Staten Island, from the Conference House to Borough Hall to raise awareness about participating in the democratic process. Hats off to them, including my Dad on the right holding the "Veterans for Democracy" sign. Democracy is not a spectator sport - participate today.

It should be an interesting night here in NY State and around the country. This could be a real turning point in getting back on the path to addressing our city's, state's and nation's energy dilemma.

If you don't know where your polling site is, click here.

Definitely depressing: "Environment High in Personal Values, Low in Political Priorities for U.S. Voters"

All I have to do is leave you with the following quote:

"There is a clear disconnect here," said William K. Reilly, former head of the US Environmental Protection Agency and chair of the advisory board of the Nicholas Institute. "Seventy-four percent of Republicans and 85 percent of Democrats say they support stronger environmental standards. Yet, when it comes time to vote, they rank the environment low on their list of priorities."

In focus groups, the environment ranked last out of nine leading political issues, trailing the economy and jobs, health care, Iraq, Social Security, terrorism, education, moral values, and taxes--in that order. Only 10 percent of voters identified the environment as one of their top concerns, compared to 34 percent for the economy and jobs.