April 11, 2007
Global warming rallies come to Maine, and lots of other places, this weekend
So you’ve changed your light bulbs and your driving habits, now what?
This Saturday, Mainers across the state will join a virtual nationwide rally happening in more than 1,000 home towns from coast to coast. Large rallies are planned in Portland, Augusta and Bangor. There’ll be events in Bridgton, Belfast, Kennebunk, Caribou and about 20 other towns, too.
The Internet-driven campaign is called “Step it Up 2007” and has been led by author Bill McKibben. McKibben wrote about global warming in his book “The End of Nature” in 1989, and is now a scholar in residence at Middlebury College in Vermont.
McKibben and others say it’ll take more than compact fluorescent bulbs to slow global warming, and what’s needed is a grassroots movement to demand an 80 percent reduction in heat-trapping carbon emissions by 2050.
The Portland rally will include what is called a “New Coast Parade,” starting at 11 a.m. in Post Office Park at the corner of Exchange and Middle streets and ending with a rally in Monument Square with music, speeches, information tables, belly dancers and guerilla tango dancers. (No, I did not make that last part up.)
It’s called “New Coast” because it’ll follow what could be Portland’s new waterfront if all the ice in Greenland melts over the next several hundred years and sea levels rise 20 feet.
Other events include a rally at the polar bear statue and music on the quad at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, a free tire air pressure check in York and a gathering of concerned neighbors in Brownville.
Go to the Step it Up site for more information and click on Maine to get information about the events here.
Posted by at 01:25 PM
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Hope all the snow is melted before the rally!
I wonder if any of these concerned people would be willing to give up their cars to help save the planet?
Posted by
CosmoApril 11, 2007 01:49 PM
A lot of these people mean well but many are from the professional protester mold. Many are left overs from the anti-Veitnam War era and the 1980s nuclear winter scare era.
I saw a guy with a sign in his car that said 'mother earth has a fever' and I asked him why would he be adding to her fever buy driving a car? He called me a few choice names and squealed his tires and raced off!
I wonder if there was no organized civilization around when the last ice age ended, what caused the climate to warm? There were no cars, factories or cities.
Posted by
AndrewApril 11, 2007 01:57 PM
Save the planet - ride a horse!
Posted by tmason-rkd
April 11, 2007 01:59 PM
Am I to believe that if the sea level in Portland were to rise 20 feet in the next "several hundred years" that there wouldn't be some sort of expanded barrier erected to facilitate this? Come on. That makes no sense. The sky is falling. Chicken Little says greenland is melting.
Posted by
RegApril 11, 2007 02:08 PM
"if the sea level in Portland were to rise 20 feet"
What if a glacier formed and covered Maine for the next 1,000 years?
Politics of fear!
I agree with the above statement, if you a so concerned give up your bumper sticker covered cars!
Posted by Joshua
April 11, 2007 03:00 PM
What a bunch of junk science. And anyone who disagrees with the power grabbing, noney chasing, alarmists will be shouted down, shunned and have threats made against them.
The most warming of the 20th century occured in the first third of the century. And that wasn't even one degree. There have been cooling periods all during the earth's life as well as warming. For anyone to think the earth will maintain a constant exact climate forever is naive.
There is actually no way to measure acurately the temp. of the entire earth. Different regions go through their own climate fluctuations. Volcanoes affect the climate severely. The sun affects the climat the most. And on those pretty charts albore likes to use, the rise in temp. is on average about 500 yrs. after the rise in co2.
Posted by
beachmomApril 11, 2007 05:46 PM
Gee, I hope they enjoy the snow! What a bunch a crap!
Posted by snowflake
April 11, 2007 06:46 PM
funny!!
Posted by cici
April 12, 2007 06:26 AM
"...a GRASSROOTS movement to demand an 80 percent reduction in heat-trapping carbon emissions by 2050"
The term implies that the genesis of this latest "green" movement is natural yet spontaneous! About the only thing spontaneous is the knee-jerk reaction which has people all up in arms and has earned Al Gore, of all people, an Oscar (who invented the award I'm told)!
You want to reduce carbon emissions? Stop blocking wind projects in northwestern Maine!
Posted by
April 12, 2007 08:57 AM
The fact is global warning is now big business that involves big money. From John Richardson who presumably earns a living from writing about and therefore promoting global warming to all the climatologits which get scads of grant money whenever global warming is mention in the application to corporate giants like Dow, GE, ADM and all the ethynol distillers who are going to make huge bucks feeding off of the global warming mania.
It is truly amazing to me the gullibility of people to jump on this bandwagon without really researching the facts.
Posted by
airfranApril 12, 2007 09:41 AM
***** SPECIAL NEWS BULLETIN *****
A giant iceberg has broken off from Greenland and is headed for Portland, Me. The iceberg says it's intentions are to float into Portland Harbor, melt and drown the City of Portland. The iceberg also warned, everyone that uses common sense and can think for themselves should seek higher ground and everyone that lives in the world of "Sunshine and Lolly Pops" to stay in Portland and hold their rallies.
Posted by
EricApril 14, 2007 09:27 AM
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