SCROLL DOWN FOR TRANSCANADA XL PIPELINE UPDATE. News items, new letters to Lincoln Journal Star, and contact information for needed communication with specific elected officials are included, following Green Notes by Congressional District.
STOP THE WALL: MAKE APARTHEID HISTORY. November 9 through the 16th, 2010, is the Eighth Week of Action Against the Palestinian Grassroots Apartheid Wall. Learn about a Stop the Wall campaign, and actions you can take, here.
Lincoln area: Congressional District 1
CONGRATULATIONS TO STEVE LARRICK for re-election to the Natural Resources District Lower Platte South, Subdistrict 5, with 60.14% of the vote! From Steve: “Thanks to all for supporting efforts to green our political system. I look forward to pushing for more green infrastructure to reduce soil erosion and flooding downstream, while improving water quantity and quality in our watershed.”
VIGIL AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY . . . Every Monday, from noon to 1:00pm, Nebraskans for abolition of the death penalty meet in front of the governor’s mansion, 1425 H Street, Lincoln. The lunch-hour presence reminds the governor of a constituency that does not want state killings. Weekly vigils have taken place year-round since July, 1991. All abolitionists are welcome to participate for a few minutes, or the hour. For information about Nebraskans Against the Death Penalty, click here.
AUTHOR AT UN-L . . . Joan Hecht, author of “The Journey of the Lost Boys,” will speak at UN-L’s Nebraska Union Auditorium, 14th & R Streets, Tuesday, November 9, 2010, 7:30pm. Watch a 2:11 minute video of Hecht introducing the story of The Lost Boys here.
LINCOLN PEACE VIGILS . . . Lincoln peace vigils continue at the Federal Building, 15th and O streets, every Wednesday from 5:00 to 6:00pm. Contact Mark at 402.499.6672 or e-mail mark [at] weddleton [dot] com for more information.
OPEN HARVEST CELEBRATION . . . Open Harvest, Lincoln’s 30 year old natural and organic food market, will celebrate the launch of a new 2010 edition Open Harvest Cooks on Wednesday, November 10, 2010, 5:00 to 6:00pm, at Indigo Bridge Books, 701 P Street, in the Lincoln Haymarket. Meet contributors, and sample recipes from the 350 cookbook offerings at the event.
AUDUBON ANNUAL MEETING . . . The Wachiska Audubon Annual Meeting will be Thursday, November 11, 2010, at the Union College Dick Administration Building auditorium, Room 03 lower level, 3800 South 48th Street, Lincoln, 7:00pm. Raptor Recovery Nebraska will introduce live birds of prey. Learn about Nebraska’s raptors and then witness several species in person. Because of continuing construction on South 48th Street, take the detour one block east and wind around the north side of campus. The large building to the south and west is the Dick Building. Look for Audubon signs on the doors. The public is invited to this free presentation after which refreshments will be served.
ABENDMUSIK SWEATER DRIVE UPDATE . . . . Abendmusik Lincoln is sponsoring a drive for new or gently-used winter-wear until November 20, 2010, followed by a special “Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” Concert featuring music of Mr. Rogers’Neighborhood on Sunday, November 21, 2010, 4:00pm, at First-Plymouth Church, 2000 D Street. Admission will be free, but a sweater donation is encouraged. 300 sweaters have been collected so far. Drop off sweaters at West Gate Banks at Hiway 2 & Old Cheney, 27th & Old Cheney, 17th & South, 27th & Cornhusker Hiway, 50th & O Street, 84 & Holdrege, West O & Capitol Beach; Runza Drive-ins at 27th & Superior, 33rd & Hiway 2, 56th & Holdrege, 70th & Van Dorn, 40th & Yankee Hill; and First-Plymouth.
Omaha area: Congressional District 2
OMAHA PEACE VIGILS . . . Omaha peacemakers vigil every Wednesday, 4:30-5:30pm, at StratCom/UN-O, 6801 Pine Street, east of the Scott Technology Center on the UN-O campus. Free parking is available at the NE Corner of 67th Street and Pine in a student lot. For more information, phone Jerry Ebner, 402.502.5887. Every Saturday, 1:00-2:00pm, there is an Anti-War and Peace Vigil at 72nd and Dodge Streets. Contact Steve Horn at 402.426.9068.
OMAHA PEOPLE’S FILM FESTIVAL . . . There is a People’s Film Festival every Wednesday evening, 7:00pm, at McFoster’s Natural Kind Cafe, 38th and Harney in Omaha. The event is always free and open to the public. This week’s film is “Good Hair.” Chris Rock explores the wonders of African-American hairstyles. Watch the trailer here. For more information, click here. The People’s Film Festival – Expanding Political Consciousness Since 2004.
PRO-CHOICE COALITION MEETING . . . There will be a Pro-Choice Coalition Legislative Preparation Meeting on Thursday, November 11, 2010, 6:30pm, at Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, 4610 South 133rd Street, Suite 101, Omaha. Contact Tyler Richard at ACLU Nebraska, 402.476.8091, for more information.
NORTH OMAHA:MOVING FORWARD . . . Saturday, November 13, 2010, the North Omaha Empowerment Network Monthly Community Meeting “MOVING FORWARD!” will be at Omaha North High Magnet School Viking Center, 4410 North 36 Street. There will be an 8:45am Breakfast with networking, information displays and booths; 9:30am Interactive Community Meeting; and 11:30am Family Housing Advisory Services Housing Forum. Transforming the Community, Block by Block. For more information, click here or call 402.502.5153.
The Housing and Financial Stability Forum, from 11:30am to 3:00pm, will address housing and financial issues in North Omaha. The event is free and open to the public. Lunch will be provided by NeighborWorks Omaha. For more information, click here [pdf] or call Michael Robinson, 402.934.6727. Rsvp’s are requested by November 10th.
OVERNIGHT SIERRA BACKPACK TRIP . . . Saturday, November 13, to Sunday, November 14, 2010, hike in Stephens State Forest, Iowa, camp overnight, and return to Omaha Sunday afternoon. Stephens State Forest is 15,170 acres covering the largest geographical area of any state forest in Iowa. For details, and to rsvp, e-mail John Calandra, johndcal [at] cox [dot] net or phone 402.312.4672.
PEACEFUL DEMONSTRATION FOR SUDAN . . . The Sudanese Civil Society of Nebraska will host a peaceful demonstration in support of a free and fair referendum to pave the way for Self-Determination in Southern Sudan on Saturday, November 13, 2010, 11:00am to 3:00pm, at Memorial Park, 5700 Dodge Street, in Omaha. For more information, phone James Guek, 402.812.5330, or John Badeng, 402.699.0837.
NEBRASKA SIERRA ANNUAL . . . The Annual Banquet of the Sierra Club-Nebraska Chapter will be November 13, 2010, at the Garden Cafe, 108 & West Center Road, Omaha. Social hour will begin at 5:30 and dinner at 6:30pm. The MoValley Group Sierra will hold a silent auction in conjunction with the banquet.
PROGRESSIVE OMAHA MEETING . . . All are welcome at the next Progressive Omaha meeting on Saturday, November 13, 2010, at 4924 Chicago, in Dundee. The speaker will be Ollie Perryman, founder of PFrontline, Inc., an Omaha gang prevention and intervention agency. Potluck supper is from 6:00 to 7:00pm, 7:00 to 8:00 is for the Speaker, then meeting business and social time lasts until 9:00pm or after. Contact Karen Abrams, kabrams123 [at] cox [dot] net for more information.
Greater Nebraska: Congressional District 3
NEBRASKA WIND POWER 2010 CONFERENCE . . . The third annual Nebraska Wind Power 2010 Conference is Tuesday and Wednesday, November 9 and 10, 2010, at the New Younes Conference Center, Kearney, Nebraska. Click here for more information.
MONEY SMART NEBRASKA . . . November 8 through 14, 2010, Money Smart Nebraska will host workshops, seminars, programs and events providing improved financial literacy throughout the state. Click here for a searchable calendar of statewide events.
BUY FRESH. BUY LOCAL . . . . Farmers, gardeners, and craftspeople meet through The Nebraska Food Cooperative, an on-line, year-round farmers’ market and local food distribution service offering the best in local freshness. For ordering and pickup schedules, refer to the calendar here. Click here for products and prices from North Star Neighbors, a Cooperative member that doesn’t therapeutically medicate or unduly confine animals. Click here for Tomato Tomäto, Omaha’s year-round indoor Farmer’s Market at 156th & West Center. Shop for fresh foods grown in or very near your own community at Open Harvest, Lincoln’s member-owned natural foods retail cooperative at 1618 South Street. Buying local grows family farming, grows the local economy, and is thousands of miles fresher.
KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE UPDATE . . . The Thursday, November 5, 2010 Lincoln Journal Star published “Environmental groups want Hillary Clinton’s recusal from pipeline review,” reporting that Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace USA, Plains Justice, Public Citizen, the Center for Biological Diversity, Center for International Environmental Law and Indigenous Environmental Network have called for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton “to recuse herself from the review of a $7 billion oil pipeline project because of comments she made last month suggesting support for it.” TransCanada sent its own letter to Secretary Clinton this week, arguing that a draft environmental impact analysis of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline already “fully takes into account all reasonable alternatives and satisfies the Department’s obligations and the public’s interests.” New letters to the LJS editor are here and here. Click here and scroll down the Green Notes Index to follow the TransCanada tar sands pipeline issue since May 30, 2010.
The Natural Resources Defense Council calls tar sands “the dirtiest, most destructive oil on the face of the Earth.” The Keystone XL pipeline would threaten Nebraska’s underground source of fresh water, the 175,000-square-mile High Plains Aquifer, that provides water to 1.9 million people and irrigation for thousands of square miles of farmland throughout eight states. Nebraska’s geologically unique Sand Hills, where many bird species rest during migration, would also be threatened.
A Proposed Dirty Oil Pipeline Would Put Americans at Risk for Cancer and Asthma–Why Are Senators Pushing For Its Hasty Approval? was published by AlterNet on September 23, 2010. ” …We know the Keystone XL pipeline would put American health at risk. In addition to threatening drinking water, processing tar sands oil releases pollutants directly linked to asthma, emphysema and birth defects. Refining tar sands crude from the pipeline would create far more air pollution in American communities that are already burdened with cancer and poor air quality as a result of the oil industry. We also know the pipeline would cross the most important source of agricultural water in the United States, the Ogallala aquifer. And we know pipeline disasters happen.” Read Ken Winston’s November 4, 2010 Tar Sands Pipeline Update for Nebraska Sierra here.
Nebraska has no legislation on the books for regulating the current Keystone I pipeline, nor the proposed XL sand tars pipeline. Nebraska’s Congressional delegation and the governor need to receive letters, e-mails and phone calls from constituents demanding regulation on the existing pipeline, expressing concern about more TransCanada construction in our state. Contact information for Nebraska Congressional Representatives is as follows: Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, CD-1, 1517 Longworth House Office Bldg., Washington, D.C. 20515, 202.225.4806, 402.438.1598 (Lincoln); Rep. Lee Terry, CD-2, 1524 Longworth HOB, Washington, DC 20515, 202.225.4155, 402.397.9944 (Omaha); Rep. Adrian Smith, CD-3, 503 Cannon House Office Bldg., Washington, DC 20515, 202.225.6435, 888.ADRIAN7 (Toll Free); and Governor Dave Heineman, PO Box 94848, State Capitol Bldg., Lincoln, NE 68509, 402.471.2244. Senator Mike Johanns is at 202.224.4224, 402.476.1400 in Lincoln; and Senator Ben Nelson is at 202.224.6551, 402.441.4600 in Lincoln. Please tell them all that oil pipeline regulations need to be in place, not only to govern the existing pipeline, but also any future pipeline proposed by TransCanada or other environmental exploiters.
Click here to tell Secretary Clinton NOT to grant a permit to TransCanda, tell Gov. Heineman to put forth laws that protect our resources and economic activity and tell President Obama to live up to his promise of clean energy and energy independence. Click here for a Bold Nebraska XL Pipeline Action page with resources and background information. E-mail actions [at] boldnebraska [dot] org to get yard signs, bumper stickers and t-shirts, or stop by Bold Nebraska at 1141 H Street, 3rd Floor, Lincoln, 10:00am to 6:00pm, Monday through Friday.
Remember, every man-made by-product of the petroleum industry could be replaced by hemp. “Help Save the Earth, Time to Subsitute Hemp for Oil.“
HELP NEBRASKA GREENS WITH GOODSEARCH . . . Each time you search the Internet (or shop online at a participating store), a donation can be made to Nebraska Green Party at no cost to you! To help NGP in this way, enter Nebraska Green Party where it says WHO DO YOU GOODSEARCH FOR? here. Bookmark the GoodSearch Homepage, or make it your own Home Page. Enter the url you want in the GoodSearch search box. Each time you do, one penny will be donated to Nebraska Greens. THANK YOU for your support!
We are no longer the alternative; we are the imperative. –Rosa Clemente