en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/287955 Comments by salamander http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12997076 If we're thinking about the most useful thing to do with rooftops, I think green roofs are a very important option. They decrease pollution, help with temperature moderation, and can even supply local food in the middle of cities. It's probably easier to ship in energy than food. Tue, 23 Dec 2008 04:46:25 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12997076 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12996963 About copyrights, you're correct that their existence is very important, but the US has a bad habit of extending them. Apparently, every few years the copyright on Mickey Mouse comes close to expiring, and Disney convinces Congress to tack another decade onto copyright. It's probably not just Disney, but that was they company in terms of which the problem was explained to me. Past the lifespan of the artist, copyright is no longer fair. It's for artists' benefit, not companies'. But of course, everything in America is for companies' benefit these days. Silly me! Tue, 23 Dec 2008 04:37:19 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12996963 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12996905 A lot of the time when people talk about a shift to public transport they mention the retooling that auto companies did for WWII. They managed some major shifts in production lines then, to the benefit of them and our economy. I don't know much about the topic, but it sounds like the kind of manufacturing shift we'd need to go from cars to rail is not impossible. Tue, 23 Dec 2008 04:32:34 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12996905 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12996795 I hadn't hear the noise objection as regards to wind power before. It seems odd. You have to be fairly close to a turbine to hear it, don't you? I think people make up objections sometimes. I've heard people put up the unsightly objection when they'd barely be able to see the turbines! I really don't know what's wrong with some people. Tue, 23 Dec 2008 04:23:58 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12996795 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12996658 Someone probably replied to the one that happened 36 minutes ago. New comments bump threads back to the top. Tue, 23 Dec 2008 04:13:35 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12996658 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12986350 We ARE part of the Civil Rights movement. The movement for gay marriage is a movement to give a minority a civil right. Also, that "choosing to sin" think is wrong. Do you choose to fall in love? Do you think I do? Do you think I choose to nearly get whiplash every time I walk by someone with the same hair as someone I'm in love with? She has beautiful hair, long and blond, and I want to see her so much that every time I walk by someone a little bit like her I nearly get whiplash because for a moment I imagine it's her. Do you think I choose this? Do you really think it hurts anyone? Aside from my neck, occasionally. Tue, 23 Dec 2008 01:05:20 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12986350 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12986310 I think a lot of the hurt you're seeing is not because people think it's African Americans' fault that Prop 8 passed, but that we're sad to see people who struggled so hard for civil rights not have sympathy for other people struggling for their civil rights. Tue, 23 Dec 2008 01:01:39 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12986310 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12986184 I believe you're right, and I think that Obama chose Warren on the basis of the same calculation. You sound awfully hostile about it, though. It's a misfortune for everyone that we're getting kicked to the curb because of electoral math, not a sign that us minorities should shut up and stop whining. Do you realize that? Tue, 23 Dec 2008 00:52:13 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12986184 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12986139 They've only just put it up, I assume they'll go through it and correct the numerous bugs in a few days. Right, website editors? RIGHT? Tue, 23 Dec 2008 00:49:22 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12986139 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12985904 There's a difference between legitimate but differing opinions and unreasoning hatred. Being a hateful, bigoted, cruel person is not a legitimate differing viewpoint, it is a pathology of the human mind that the Civil Rights movement has been fighting for decades. Tue, 23 Dec 2008 00:30:02 +0000 http://change.gov/page/content/GeneralDiscussion/#IDComment12985904 http://change.gov/newsroom/entry/building_the_community_a_guide_to_comments/#IDComment12877793 I believe Obama has said that he's read The Omnivore's Dilemma. That book describes, concisely and clearly, some major problems with our agricultural subsidies. They enrich corporations at the expense of farmers, eaters, and our environment. I suppose farmers could get another job (a lot of them have, even the ones who still have farms), and many eaters could get food at a farmer's market or avoid processed food, but the environment kind of has to sit there and take the blows. This really has to change. Food prices will probably fluctuate a bit and freak people out, but I think it's worth it. We need to protect our environment. We need to support our farmers. We need to keep ourselves healthy! Sun, 21 Dec 2008 18:38:13 +0000 http://change.gov/newsroom/entry/building_the_community_a_guide_to_comments/#IDComment12877793