Thinking Green, Speaking Green

Why not Ohio? Let's Stop New Nuke Plants in the Buckeye State

Tue, 9 Mar 2010 00:01:00 -0500

In an article from Green Options:

==================================================

Vermont Senate Rejects Relicensure for Yankee Nuclear Plant

In what some view as a harbinger of the difficult political task of relicensing the aging stock of 1970s era nuclear reactors nationwide, Vermont’s state Senate exercised its uniquely-held state relicensing authority to reject a plan to keep the Vermont Yankee plant open beyond 2012.

The vote came at a time of controversy for the plant itself, after recent concerns about tritium leaks have gone public and as activists, protestors and lawmakers expressed concerns over the plant’s safety. By contrast, the vote came just one week after President Obama announced the first $8 billion in an expected $50 billion of government-guaranteed loans for new nuclear reactors, a plan the White House said was essential to help meet America’s growing energy needs from sources that do not emit carbon dioxide.

Others, however, continue to vehemently oppose the idea of expanding nulcear power (or even relicensing the existing stock) on several fronts: safety of plant operation, national security, proliferation risk, unsolved waste disposal issues, and now, the financial gamble of guaranteeing loans to an industry that has a history of cost overruns and project delays.

==================================================

Ted Strickland is on record saying he wants more Nuclear Plants for Ohio.

Can we and our children afford to have unsafe nuclear plants be the goal of any future governor? I oppose building any new Nuclear Plants in Ohio.

Ted Strickland doesn't. Who is looking out for your children and family?

Dennis Spisak-Green Party candidate for Governor

Http://www.votespisak.org/governor/

Http://www.dennisspisak.com

Vote in the Ohio Green Party Primary on May 4th!

for more info: contact 330-503-1407

Ted Strickland and his Nuke Plants Must Go!

Tue, 2 Mar 2010 13:46:40 -0500

It's time for Ohio to just say no to Ted Strickland and his nuclear energy program. Ted Strickland and the nuclear lobby thinks that the public has forgotten about Chernobyl and Three Mile Island. And it doesn't want you to hear about the recent incident in Vermont, where radioactive tritium -- a cancer-causing carcinogen -- leaked from a reactor and polluted groundwater.

The nuclear danger is real for all Americans -- even those of us who don't live near a reactor. Dealing with nuclear waste means transporting it by train across the country. One derailment in a heavily populated area could have catastrophic consequences. It's our job to remind the public about these risks and why we've had a 30-year moratorium on new reactors.

Ted Strickland and the corporations angling to profit from new reactors are some of the wealthiest in the country. So why are they asking for our tax money? Because Wall Street banks won't risk investing in new reactors unless the government backs them up with a pre-emptive bailout. It's no wonder. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the risk of default on new nuclear loans is "well above 50 percent." If Wall Street doesn't want to take the risk, why should taxpayers?

It's time for Ted Strickland to stop selling Nuclear Power to the people of Ohio. It's time for Ohio to stop Ted Strickland from ever placing another Nuke Plant in Ohio. It's time for Ohio to Move Foward and Remove Ted Strickland from the Governor's office in November!

Dennis Spisak-Green Party Candidate for Ohio Governor

Vote in the Green Party Primary in Ohio on May 4th!

Http://www.votespisak.org/governor/

Http://www.dennisspisak.com

for more info: contact 330-503-1407.

Just Say No to Ted Strickland and His Nuclear Plants!

Sun, 7 Mar 2010 00:01:00 -0500

Ted Strickland want to build more Nuclear plants for Ohio. What does that mean? If the costly new nuclear plants aren't finished, then taxpayers cover the huge financial loss.

If they are built, then we're stuck with power plants that generate overpriced electricity and create deadly radioactive waste that will remain toxic for thousands of years.

Either way, the nuclear industry wins, and we lose.

Nuclear power creates deadly radioactive waste, from the mining process onwards. It's got a scary history: think Chernobyl and Three Mile Island.

Just recently, a nuclear plant in Vermont was ordered shut down after radioactive tritium, which is linked to cancer, leaked from the plant into local water supplies.

Nuclear power is so financially risky that even Wall Street won't bet on it. It's a public health and financial disaster waiting to happen.

Instead, our government should promote energy efficiency and a decentralized power system based on safe, clean, renewable energy.

Dennis Spisak-Green Party candidate for Ohio Governor!

Vote in the Green Party Primary on May 4th!

Http://www.votespisak.org/governor/

Http://www.dennisspisak.com

for more info: contact 330-503-1407

High Speed Rail More Attractive than Four Lane Highways

Sat, 6 Mar 2010 00:01:00 -0500

As Green Party Governor of Ohio, I would advocate smaller high speed rail plans for Ohio than Ted Strickland's monsterous 3-C project. By doing smaller projects such as a Cleveland-Youngstown-Pittsburgh and a Columbus-Pittsburgh model, we could test the benefits of high speed rail before committing to a huge cross-state project.

High Speed Rail would be more attractive than more highways because:

Less use of land space.
Cost of a mass rail transit system would cost ¼ of what it would be to build another 4-lane highway.
Faster travel.
Less maintenance costs (no orange barrels out every 6 months)
Less cars on the road. Less pollution in the air.

Dennis Spisak-Green Party Candidate for Ohio Governor

Ask for a Green Party Primary Ballot and vote in the Green Primary on May 4th!

Http://www.votespisak.org/governor/

Http://www.dennisspisak.com

For more info, contact 330-503-1407

Ted Strickland and Jean Schmidt: Kissing Cousins when it comes to Nuclear Power Plants

Fri, 5 Mar 2010 00:01:00 -0500

Ted Strickland and Jean Schmidt: Kissing Cousins when it comes to Nuclear Power Plants

Last June, WCPO-TV in Cincinnati reported on the story of state and federal officials gathering in Piketon, Ohio to support a nuclear plant site there. Ted Strickland was holding hands with GOP queen Jean Schmidt praising nuclear power:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Officials made a step forward Thursday concerning the future of energy production in the Buckeye state.

Ohio Governor Ted Strickland and Congresswoman Jean Schmidt were among the leaders who gathered in Piketon, Ohio to announce plans to explore the option of a nuclear power plant there.

Piketon is about 100 miles east of Cincinnati.

The announcement took place at 10 a.m. at the former uranium enrichment plant which is the site possibly intended for the new energy plant. It has the necessary infrastructure for a nuclear plant.

The plant would take 10 years to build. It would employ about 4,000 people during construction and about 800 people when the plant is complete.

Duke Energy would reportedly be a partner in the plant along with a French firm. As of now, officials have not decided to move forward with the nuclear plant. They have only announced a group to explore the possibility of a plant in Piketon.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now we know why Duke Energy is a huge contributor in financial donations to the Strickland Campaign: They have a Nuke Plant puppet in Ted Strickland!

Is this the type of Governor you want running Ohio for your children's safety? Do you want a glowing Nuke plant in your backyard? You may get one if Ted Strickland is re-elected Governor of Ohio! How progressive is Ted Strickland if he cuddles up to Mean Jean Schmidt when it comes to Nuke Plants?

Dennis Spisak_Green Party Candidate for Ohio Governor

Ask for a Green Party Ballot and Vote in the Ohio Green Party Primary on May 4th!

Http://www.votespisak.org/governor/

Http://www.dennisspisak.com

For more info: contact 330-503-1407

Edit this Post | Delete this Post

Ted Strickland: The Dirty Coal Supporting Governor

Thu, 4 Mar 2010 00:01:00 -0500

While Ted Strickland like to portray himself as the "Green Renewable Power" Governor, He is in reality the number one supporter of dirty coal and nuke power plants in Ohio.

His campaign contributions are heavy in pro dirty coal and nuke power backers, the UMW, Duke Energy, and Dayton Power and Light.

Plus, Ted Strickland comes right out and tell the press he supports dirty coal. When the AMP Plant fell through in Meigs County, TEd Strickland released the following press statement to the Pomeroy newspaper:

"Gov. Ted Strickland, a supporter of the project, released the following statement through spokesperson Allison Kolodziaj, “Creating jobs and producing homegrown energy was a hallmark of this project. While we’re very disappointed to learn of this news, we respect the decision of the member communities to look at other options for the site in Meigs County. The Strickland administration continues to work with AMP through these next steps.”

Ohio needs clean,renewable, and alternative energy in the 21st Century.

That's why Ohio needs Green Party Candidate Dennis Spisak as Governor in 2010!

Dennis Spisak-Green Party Candidate for Governor

Ask for and vote in the Ohio Green Party Primary on May 4th!

Http://www.votespisak.org/governor/

Http://www.dennisspisak.com

for more info: contact 330-503-1407

What to Say to Those Who Think Single Payer Advocates Are Wacko

Wed, 3 Mar 2010 00:01:00 -0500

What to Say to Those Who Think Single Payer Advocates Are Wacko

Published on Monday, February 8, 2010 by CommonDreams.org

by Paul Hochfeld

What do we say to our more conservative friends, who genuinely think that the Single Payer solution to our health care crisis would be a disaster? Try what follows. In the end, you may simply agree to disagree. That’s O.K., but what follows may give them pause to think.

Already, 60% of all our health care dollars come directly or indirectly (because employers insurance premiums are tax deductible) from the taxpayer. The care of our oldest neighbors are financed by Medicare, i.e. the taxpayers. The care of our disabled neighbors is financed by Medicaid. Ditto the care of our poorest neighbors who, because health follows wealth, are also at greater risk of high expense. Fourteen hundred insurance companies, at significant expense, stratify the rest of the population by “risk”. Their top-secret formula results in them covering the employed people, small groups, and individuals who can prove that they are at low risk. What about the others? When those who can’t afford the premiums get sick, go bankrupt, and can’t pay their bills, “we” all pay for it in higher charges. Furthermore, employer-paid premiums are tax deductible which means insurance company profits are subsidized by the taxpayer.

As near as I can tell, this is a big taxpayer rip-off. Additionally, our non-system is fraught with numerous perverse incentives that result in more care, but not necessarily better care. Physicians must share a significant part of the blame here, but that’s a different, though important, discussion. Addressing these perversities is problematic because we don’t have a Health Care System we have For-Profit Sick Care Non-System that, to extent that it has any design at all, is designed to serve the for-profit insurance and the pharmaceutical industries. Perverse incentives work for those who profit from them. They don’t work for patients or those who pay the bills, i.e., taxpayers.

Single payer means one risk pool. You’ve heard the slogan. Everyone in. Nobody out. We gather all the money that employers and individuals are currently paying for health care. It’s not more money. It’s the same money, already being spent on health care, but by pooling it, we can save 20% right off the top. Providers won’t have negotiate fee schedules with all the different payers. Providers will only have to send bills, electronically, to one place. Furthermore, substantial savings accrue as the system matures. When an ER Doctor in Oregon sees a patient passing through town, he will access her electronic medical record in Iowa, resulting in, not just less expensive care, but better care. None of this is going to be accomplished until we have Public Health Authorities administering a health care system with the goal of health, financed publicly and delivered privately.

This isn’t pie in the sky. Check out what the other developed countries are doing, but please don’t respond with anecdotes. We have 45,000 new anecdotes every year that illuminate how real or perceived financial barriers to timely, appropriate care cause unnecessary death.

The real question is whose “system” produces the least number of unnecessary deaths and the least suffering for the dollars being spent? Yes, other countries are struggling because of limited resources, but they are dealing with the problems maturely, they are making difficult decisions, and, by recognizing that health is a human right, they are getting a healthier population for less cost.

Is access to appropriate health care a human right? If not, we can agree to disagree. If so, it is a legitimate function of our government to make sure that nobody falls through the cracks. Also, doesn’t the government have a fiduciary responsibility to make sure the taxpayer is getting value for its health care dollars? Insurance company CEO’s have a fiduciary responsibility to maximize profits even if it means investing large sums of money in manipulating public policy… and that’s exactly what they’ve been doing. It’s unfathomable to me that some people distrust “The United States” more than United Health Care. That may be where we end up agreeing to disagree.

In any case, the taxpayer is being ripped off, big time.

How to Create Green Energy Jobs for Ohio

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 18:44:44 -0500

From the Apollo Alliance:

===================================================

Amid growing concerns about the U.S. losing clean energy manufacturing jobs to other countries, a new report released this week by Policy Matters Ohio, the Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) and the Apollo Alliance documents how one clean energy investment proposal, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown’s Investments for Manufacturing Progress and Clean Technology (IMPACT) Act, would help create and retain clean energy manufacturing jobs in Ohio.

The Impact of IMPACT: Creating Jobs in Ohio finds that the IMPACT Act, which is contained in the proposed Senate clean energy and climate bill, would create between 41,063 and 52,214 new jobs across Ohio.

The IMPACT Act would establish a two-year $30 billion revolving loan fund to assist small- and medium-sized manufacturers retool to produce clean energy component parts and become more energy efficient. It would also increase long-term funding for the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership program to help manufacturers access clean energy markets and adopt innovative, energy-efficient manufacturing technologies. Provisions that are nearly identical to those in IMPACT were included in the American Clean Energy and Security (ACES) Act passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in June 2009.

“PERI’s analysis finds that investing in the retooling and conversion of small and medium-sized manufacturing firms in Ohio would create a robust engine of job growth for the state,” said Heidi Garrett-Peltier, the economist who conducted the analysis. “We find that the investments from IMPACT would not only retain current jobs, but they would also create new jobs that utilize the skills of the workers of Ohio. These investments are a potentially powerful way to revitalize the manufacturing sector in the state.”

The findings of the report are relevant to other manufacturing states and to anyone who wants to ensure that comprehensive federal clean energy and climate measures create the economic benefits that American workers are expecting. To read the report, visit the Policy Matters Ohio website.

====================================================

I will work to see that Green Jobs are the number one priority in my administration, not coal and nuke plants like Ted Strickland supports!

Dennis Spisak-Green Party Candidate for Ohio Governor

Http://www.votespisak.org/governor/

Http://www.dennisspisak.com

Pick up a ballot and vote in the Green Primary on May 4th!

for mroe info: contact 330-503-1407.

Ted Strickland, Nuclear subsidies put taxpayers at risk

Mon, 1 Mar 2010 00:01:00 -0500

An article last week in the Boston Globe reports:

==============================================

President Obama's plan to kick-start the construction of nuclear power plants in the United States comes with a big catch: Because private banks won't lend to an industry viewed as financially risky, taxpayers would be accountable for billions in government-guaranteed loans if plant developers default.

``There is a huge potential risk for taxpayers,'' said Autumn Hanna, who analyzes federal loan guarantees at Taxpayers for Common Sense, a nonparti san group. She said the risk could be in the tens of billions of dollars and said the public shouldn't be asked to assume responsibility banks are unwilling to take.

Banks have been reluctant to lend money for new nuclear projects due to a combination of concerns about cost overruns, past defaults, and the uncertain regulatory climate and political hostility that have shadowed the industry since the Three Mile Island accident in 1979.

But there are significant uncertainties. The Washington Public Power Supply System, which sought to build nuclear reactors financed with municipal bonds, defaulted on those bonds in 1983 in a case that still hangs over the financing of such projects. In addition, the problem of where to put spent fuel, which remains highly radioactive, has not been resolved.

The Nuclear Energy Institute estimates that there are 28 proposed nuclear projects around the country that might seek the guaranteed loans. None of the proposals is for New England, where opposition to nuclear power has been stronger than in other regions such as the South. Among companies that are interested in new nuclear power plants are Entergy Corp. (NYSE:ETR) , Exelon Corp. (NYSE:EXC) , and Duke Energy Corp. (NYSE:DUK PRA) (NYSE:DUK)

=================================================

Duke Energy has been very active contributing to Ted Strickland's re-election campaign for the last year. Ted Strickland wants to put more nuke plants in Ohio based on his energy plan for the future. It seems Strickland will do this despite what it may end up costing Ohio taxpayers.

As the Green Party candidate for Ohio Governor, I will see to it that no new nuke plants will go on-line here in the state of Ohio in the future.

Dennis Spisak-Green Party Candidate for Governor

Ask vote a Green Party Ballot and vote in the Green Party primary on May 4th!

Http://www.votespisak.org/governor/

Http://www.dennisspisak.com

for more info contact 330-503-1407.

We Need a Green New Deal for Ohio

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 00:01:00 -0500

With unemployment so high, it's time for a Green New Deal to tackle economic and ecological problems at the same time.

We should put Americans back to work with living-wage green jobs: retrofitting homes for energy efficiency, building modern mass transit systems, installing renewable energy technology, and conserving our irreplaceable ecosystems.

Dennis Spisak-Green Party Candidate for Ohio Governor

Ask for a Green ballot and Vote in the Green Party Primary on May 4th!

Http://www.votespisask.org/governor/

Http://www.dennisspisak.com

for more info contact 330-503-1407