 Freedom Fries For Mother Earth: Democrats Package Greening As New Superpatriotism
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Jun. 25th, 2008 @ 11:18 am 
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The Greenest Show on Earth:
Democrats Gear Up for Denver
From Organic Fanny Packs to 'Pure' Trash,
Party Planners Face Logistical Nightmare
By STEPHANIE SIMON
June 25, 2008; Page A1
DENVER -- As the Mile High City gears up to host a Democratic bash for 50,000, organizers are discovering the perils of trying to stage a political spectacle that's also politically correct.
Consider the fanny packs.
With biodegradable balloons and organic snacks, Denver Democrats hope to stage the "greenest convention" ever. See examples.
The host committee for the Democratic National Convention wanted 15,000 fanny packs for volunteers. But they had to be made of organic cotton. By unionized labor. In the USA.
Official merchandiser Bob DeMasse scoured the country. His weary conclusion: "That just doesn't exist."
Ditto for the baseball caps. "We have a union cap or an organic cap," Mr. DeMasse says. "But we don't have a union-organic offering."
Much of the hand-wringing can be blamed on Denver's Democratic mayor, John Hickenlooper, who challenged his party and his city to "make this the greenest convention in the history of the planet."
Convention organizers hired the first-ever Director of Greening, longtime environmental activist Andrea Robinson. Her response to the mayor's challenge: "That terrifies me!"
After all, the last time Democrats met in Denver -- to nominate William Jennings Bryan in 1908 -- they dispatched horse-drawn wagons to bring snow from the Rocky Mountains to cool the meeting hall. Ms. Robinson suspected modern-day delegates would prefer air conditioning. So she quickly modified the mayor's goal: She'd supervise "the most sustainable political convention in modern American history."
Now, she must pull it off.
To test whether celebratory balloons advertised as biodegradable actually will decompose, Ms. Robinson buried samples in a steaming compost heap. She hired an Official Carbon Adviser, who will measure the greenhouse-gas emissions of every placard, every plane trip, every appetizer prepared and every coffee cup tossed. The Democrats hope to pay penance for those emissions by investing in renewable energy projects.
Perhaps Ms. Robinson's most audacious goal is to reuse, recycle or compost at least 85% of all waste generated during the convention.
The Trash Brigade
To police the four-day event Aug. 25-28, she's assembling (via paperless online signup) a trash brigade. Decked out in green shirts, 900 volunteers will hover at waste-disposal stations to make sure delegates put each scrap of trash in the proper bin. Lest a fork slip into the wrong container unnoticed, volunteers will paw through every bag before it is hauled away.
[Andrea Robinson]
"That's the only way to make sure it's pure," Ms. Robinson says.
Republicans are pushing conservation, too, as they gear up for their convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul. Like the Democrats, they're cutting down on printing by doing as much work as possible by email; using recycled office furniture; and urging employees to walk or take public transportation to work. The Republicans also encourage vendors to be as environmentally friendly as possible.
But Matt Burns, a spokesman for the Republican convention, looks on with undisguised glee at some of the Democrats' efforts -- such as the "lean 'n' green" catering guidelines.
Among them: No fried food. And, on the theory that nutritious food is more vibrant, each meal should include "at least three of the following colors: red, green, yellow, blue/purple, and white." (Garnishes don't count.) At least 70% of ingredients should be organic or grown locally, to minimize emissions from fuel burned during transportation. "One would think," says Mr. Burns, "that the Democrats in Denver have bigger fish to bake -- they have ruled out frying already -- than mandating color-coordinated pretzel platters."
Democrats say the point is to build habits that will endure long after the convention. To
that end, the city has staged "greening workshops" attended by hundreds of caterers, restaurant owners and hotel managers. "It's the new patriotism," Mayor Hickenlooper says.
And we all know what a great idea a frenzy of commercialized fake patriotism was after 9/11! Everyone, quick, a new way to be acceptable and still be a dour, judgemental American Calvinist! Holier that thou and LIBERAL, baby! Can't stop me now! |
![[User Picture Icon]](http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/31505370/7530277) |
| From: | ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) h_ninja |
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| Date: |
June 26th, 2008 03:49 pm (UTC) |
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Global warming could increase terrorism
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(Link) |
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| From: | h_ninja |
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| Date: |
June 26th, 2008 03:50 pm (UTC) |
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Re: Global warming could increase terrorism
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(Link) |
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See? Good job hating america, byz. =P
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