Economy

Many at risk of being homeless in Hawaii

andrea — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 23:41:19 -0800

Posted on: Tuesday, January 6, 2009
http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20090106/NEWS01/901060343
Many at risk of being homeless in Hawaii
State urged to do more as families struggle amid gloomy economy

By Mary Vorsino
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer

The state should prepare for a "wave" of new homeless if more isn't done to keep struggling families in their homes, social-service advocates warned lawmakers yesterday.
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"In Hawai'i, we're facing very hard times to come," Kathleen Hasegawa, executive director of Hawai'i Habitat for Humanity, told members of the state House committees on housing and human services. The bleak economy could "result in a new wave of homeless," she added.

That wave doesn't appear to have started yet, advocates say, probably because the families suffering layoffs or cutbacks in work hours have a small financial cushion, either in the form of savings or with credit cards.

Still, homeless service providers say they are getting more and more calls from people asking for help on rent payments or looking for options should they be forced into homelessness. Advocates also pointed out that many in the Islands live paycheck-to-paycheck — and even before the economic downturn, thousands were teetering close to homelessness.

Kaua'i's Unprepared Water-Energy Situation

kauaibrad — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:42:58 -0800

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Kaua'i's Unprepared Water-Energy Situation David Ward has done much research on the Water situation on Kauai. This is his most recent summary report from http://www.islandbreath.org/:

"Kauai Water and Power"
INDEX: Agriculture, Energy, Sustainability
POSTED: 1/05/2009
EDITOR: David Ward

Hawaii's Place in The National Intelligence Council's 2025 Global Trends Report

kauaibrad — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 00:09:45 -0800

Monday, January 5, 2009

Comment on Highlights of The National Intelligence Council's 2025 Report Highlight of a good report carried by Hawaii Reporter today. Below link to the report worth reading directly. My comments to Dr. Prevedouros' highlights at bottom:

From: Hawaii Reporter
"National Intelligence Council’s Global Trends 2025:
Highlights and Some Lessons for Hawaii" 1/5/2009
By Panos D. Prevedouros, PhD, UH

SOURCE: The National Intelligence Council's Global Trends 2025 Final Report (See: http://www.dni.gov/nic/NIC_2025_project.html)

Dr. Wirth Presents Good Evidence of Peak Oil 2008

kauaibrad — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 22:24:51 -0800

Monday, January 5, 2009

Dr. Wirth Presents Good Evidence of Peak Oil 2008 In a comment to this blog Clifford J. Wirth, Ph.D. said...

"The top story of the year is that global crude oil production peaked in 2008.

The media, governments, world leaders, and public should focus on this issue.

Global crude oil production had been rising briskly until 2004, then plateaued for four years. Because oil producers were extracting at maximum effort to profit from high oil prices, this plateau is a clear indication of Peak Oil.

Peak Oil 2006: Economy Declines as Oil Production Declines

kauaibrad — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 11:20:01 -0800

Monday, January 5, 2009

Peak Oil 2006: Economy Declines as Oil Production Declines 1:1 and vice-versa From: http://www.drmillslmu.com/peakoil.htm

Web-Surfing Some Big Wave Peak Oil Posts

kauaibrad — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 01:07:51 -0800

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Web-Surfing Some Big Wave Peak Oil Posts From: http://www.drmillslmu.com/peakoil.htm

"Should the oil markets themselves begin to 'connect these dots' then all our lives are going to be impacted violently and immediately. ...as soon as Peak Oil is recognized that for all practical purposes the situation is already upon us, then a fast and vicious "resource grab" will be initiated. The price of oil in the markets will begin to rise dramatically. This will initiate a circular hedging hoarding mentality in large end-users, governments, and multi-nationals. This will then have a myriad of devastating effects..." --Steven Lagavulin

From: http://deconsumption.typepad.com/deconsumption/2005/03/the_most_import.html
March 16, 2005
"The Most Important Thing You Don't Know About 'Peak Oil'"

Our Energy and CO2 Problem is Singularly the Automobile

kauaibrad — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 19:24:34 -0800

Saturday, January 3, 2009

Our Energy and CO2 Problem is Singularly the Automobile Was reading this: http://www.drmillslmu.com/peakoil.htm
And in that came across this: http://www.afstrinity.com/worldoil.htm
And the following illuminating chart:

Unconventional Forecast for 2009

kauaibrad — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 14:53:40 -0800

From: http://jameshowardkunstler.typepad.com/clusterfuck_nation/2008/12/forecast-for-2009.html#comments

Green Stimulus

andrea — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 14:34:42 -0800

Published on Wednesday, December 31, 2008 by American Forum
Green Stimulus
http://realwomenbackstory.blogspot.com/2008/12/green-stimulus.html

by Kathleen Rogers

A massive stimulus package of nearly $600 billion holds promise for the economy, and could mean more federal spending on infrastructure and energy efficiency projects. An estimated $400 billion in that bill will repair lots of bridges and roads, but what will they all lead to? Nothing -- unless we first start building bridges and roads between our economic, climate, and education concerns, and start appreciating the way they're all connected.

New policy and stimulus needs to take into account that we're not just trying to save our economy with roads, bridges, and buildings: We're trying to save ourselves.

Few other national topics are as timely as a discussion of how to build a new green economy nationwide. During his campaign Obama promised to create 5 million green jobs. It is this way of thinking that should shape our country's future.

One way we can stimulate the economy while going green is to create new, personal carbon savings accounts. These would be tax-free, interest-bearing green energy savings accounts that could be leveraged to help weatherize or green-up one's home or sold to companies that need carbon credits. It would encourage energy efficiency while allowing a personal stake in emissions reductions.

Economic Stimulus Projects

andrea — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 10:44:57 -0800

Government, industry work together to create jobs
http://kauaiworld.com/articles/2008/12/24/opinion/kauai/doc4951d72909f21...

Published: Wednesday, December 24, 2008 1:10 AM HST
Special to The Garden Island

The current economic climate is affecting people across the U.S. and here at home. Many have lost their jobs and find themselves in an anxious period of uncertainty, especially during this holiday season.

With people’s livelihoods on the line, it is incumbent upon us to work together and take charge of our own destiny. This means a heightened focus on those areas of our economy that are within our sphere of influence.

The State has made accelerating capital improvement projects (CIPs) one of five action steps to help our economy during this difficult time. This is an area over which we, as state and county government, construction industry executives and labor leaders, can exercise a large measure of control.

Investing in construction has a well-documented multiplier effect that benefits a variety of industries and directly supports our goal of getting people back on the job.

By making sure our architects, engineers, construction workers, suppliers and those businesses that are tied to the construction industry have work, we are not only helping them sustain their families, but also infusing money into our economy and addressing the concerns of residents statewide by implementing needed upgrades to our infrastructure.