Christmas lights more efficient nowdays

Christmas lights galore. This house along one of my favorite bike routes across town.

I remember government officials asking people, back in the 1970s, to have less Christmas lights.

Now there is less guilt, partially due to light emitting diodes. They use much less power for same amount of light.

Inventor of light emitting diode was recently on NPR Science Friday show. He was discussing the art of invention. Started working with the concept in 1962.

I remember "sterio light" would come on in a hifi amplifier of the 1970s. That was my first experience of light emmitting diodes. Now thay come in many colors.

If we can't change our consumptive ways, maybe technology can patch the problem for us.

Don't worry, be happy.

Actually, I like technology and innovation. It is what saves us as world circumstances change.

Miniblinds in space to combat global warming?

Bicycle Shadow.

This is the shadow of me riding my bike holding a camera.
Friends were just over looking through many of my photos. Someone said, "why don't you put this one on-line?"

Picture taken on a road south of Washtucna, Washington in 2001.

Problems Funding Local Government In This Narcissistic Society

Today's news says, median price for a single family home in King County (where Seattle, WA. is located) tops $3000,000.

Meanwhile a lot of industry and jobs have evaporated. As industry goes overseas, the source of wealth, for American cities, has shifted.

It is now "home ownership."

This makes it harder to fund local government because industry is easier to tax, politically.

It is easier to tax "the other guy."

The "big bad industrial monster" is easier to tax than homeowners who vote.

Home ownership has become the wealth machine driving urban economies on the west coast.

Appreciation in home value has been so intense that people can earn more, just sitting in a lawn chair and watching their home values climb by, say, $30,000 per year, than working. Industry is no longer the machine for creating wealth that it used to be.

Local government is needing to shift some of the tax burden to home owners, but it isn't easy to do politically. It's "taxing voters." Industry is easier to tax.

With industry in decline, but house values continuing to explode one wonders where this economy might lead.

A topple tower?

What keeps house values so artificially high?

In Bellingham, many new residents have recently sold their California homes and bought up here. They often have enough left over money to retire early. That keeps consumer spending up so our malls and stores look prosperous. Local government finds it harder to tax this wealth than the "old factory" wealth of past decades.

An economy based on Narcissism.

Yet as housing and health care costs continue to go up, the cost of providing government services rises.

Bellingham Peace Vigil each Friday.

Federal Building is now owned by city of Bellingham. It is a historic building still housing a postal substation and some other offices.

A pedestrian oriented substation as parking is limited in that area.

Good.

People should be less addicted to oil anyway.

Someone got me to hold his sign about oil while he snapped pictures of the vigil several months back.

Health Care a Right or a Privilege ?

Title of a community forum I attended yesterday.

Health care becoming too much of a market commodity?

Statistics flashed onto the screen. I don't remember all the details, but some compelling points were made.

Amount spent on administration alone, by doctors offices, just keeping track of all the convoluted insurance plans. Close to 1/3 of doctor's budget? Something like that. Office staff, paperwork.

Over 700 different insurance plans to keep track of, just serving Seattle alone.

How about administration of insurance companies? Something like 26% of premium dollar?

Administration of government run Medicare program only accounts for 3% of expenditure on Medicare. While medicare isn't perfect, it seems less top heavy than private insurance companies.

Advertising eats up nearly 40% of US pharmaceutical company budgets. Amazing.

I don't remember the exact figures, but got the general impression.

Reform to a "single payer" plan sounds like a good idea.

Then there is the idea proposed by President Bush for having medical savings accounts, rather than insurance, for some of these things.

Something like 10% of the population uses something like 70% of the medical dollars!

In other words savings wouldn't really work. Many of the people needing medical care are not in any position to have savings. In some cases, they have been battling their medical problems for much of their lives and wouldn't have had a chance to build up savings.

I guess some people do a poor job choosing their parents and grandparents. A poor job choosing which genes they inherit.

Wait a minute, do we really get to choose our grandparents?

I guess the concept of personal responsibility only goes so far.

It does play a role and no it wasn't talked about that much at this forum.

Wasn't touched on except for indirectly. Driving a car can be hazardous to ones health.

Accident and I-5 Traffic Delays Start of Forum

A principle speaker was late on arrival. Coming up from Seattle, he was held up in traffic. Seems there was a big accident on I-5 holding up traffic.

That's better than being "dead on arrival."

Yes, the interconnectedness of issues.

Think of all the health care costs associated with our automobile dependent transportation system!

Sedentary lifestyles, accidents, you name it.

I say that solving the health care crisis will depend on two things.

Promoting healthier lifestyles and reforming our convoluted and wasteful health insurance system.

Single payer seems to have many merits.

The thing I remember most, that flashed up on the screen, was a quote. It went something like:

"Cockroaches and rats can live by competition and laws of scarcity." "Human beings have a choice to live by higher things such as compassion."

I don't have this quote exact, but the general idea is here.

I favor "single payer" with a big emphasis on healthy lifestyles.

Also it would be better to avoid I-5 traffic. Use the train? Walk more, use the bicycle, wear a helmet.

It was a visit to a doctor that got me wearing a helmet.

Back in 1984, when bicycle helmets were less common, my doctor strongly suggested it when I went in for a regular check up.

I went out and bought one.

Have ridden thousands of trouble free miles since.

If only health insurance could be that easy.