SAVE president Danielle Jordan posted on SAVE’s facebook page about an hour ago:
BIG WIN, SAVE!
The faculty senate voted, unanimously, to support our divestment campaign. They also voted to condemn and reject the BOT response letter.
Way to go, everyone! We’re making progress!
In which we discover one candidate works for the City of Valdosta
and opposes SPLOST.
Candidates took questions directly from the
audience and answered them, unlike at later candidate forums.
Candidates from the smaller cities started their tradition of
not showing up for forums outside their cities.
Here’s the list of
qualified candidates.
See also the videos of the
30 Club forum 2013-10-21
and the videos of the
AAUW forum 2013-10-15.
Movie actor Taro Yamamoto,
who broke a taboo when he spoke out about Fukushima,
and another when he was elected to the Japanese upper house in July,
yesterday broke an even bigger one when he personally presented a request
to Emperor Akihito about the health effects of the disaster
at nuclear Fukushima Dai-Ichi.
Some reaction in Japan was negative, because the Emperor supposedly
plays only a symbolic role.
However, Yamamoto’s request worked very well as PR,
getting massive worldwide publicity.
Here is a petition to the Japanese Diet to support Taro Yamamoto’s action. Let’s not forget that Plant Hatch on the Altamaha River is the same design as Fukushima.
Here’s video from Euronews, yesterday on YouTube, Japanese politician breaks taboo by giving letter to Emperor about Fukishima fears,
Continue reading
The candidates were almost unanimous on
SPLOST VII and
how to prevent JK situations,
but more varied on other questions.
Roy Copeland, billed as “Valdosta attorney”
(but perhaps known better to LAKE readers as VLCIA board member and former Chairman)
was the moderator,
assisted by
Valdosta Fire Chief and
Thirty Club member
J.D. Rice.
They took questions from the audience and recognized their host,
Pastor Floyd Rose of Serenity Church.
You may wonder as I do why city council candidates were answering
about graduation rates.
Matthew Woody wrote for the VDT 21 October 2013, ‘Let the games begin’. Here’s the list of qualified candidates. As usual, nobody showed up from the smaller cities, although at least one Valdosta candidate, Richard Miller, spoke up for the smaller cities about SPLOST.
The VSU Foundation knows more than 98% of climate scientists,
and also sneers at former divestment from tobacco and apartheid companies.
Nevermind that
fossil fuel divestment is going faster than either of those.
Is it good fiduciary responsibility to stay invested in the stranded investments
of fossil fuel stocks while
solar stocks are skyrocketing?
Is this really how to encourage people to
give to VSU?
Is that how
the alumni
want their investments used?
Seen today on S.A.V.E.’s facebook page, VSU Foundation’s response to S.A.V.E.’s fossil fuel divestment request:
October 29, 2013
Danielle Jordan, President
S.A.V.E.
Valdosta State UniversityDear Ms. Jordan,
The Investment Committee of the VSU Foundation Board of Trustees has reviewed the request from your organization that securities issued by companies engaged in the production of fossil fuel energy be excluded from the foundation’s endowment portfolios. Compliance with your well-intentioned request is impractical for a number of reasons and perhaps even a breach of the fiduciary responsibility that all of our trustees take very seriously.
The various VSU Foundation endowment portfolios are managed Continue reading
Utility backers in the Georgia legislature tried scare tactics to stop HB 657 (or anything else) from requiring more solar power from Georgia Power. Still no solar tax, said citizens in Savannah, Columbus, Gainesville, Athens, and now Atlanta.
Walter C. Jones wrote for the Florida Times-Union 31 October 2013,
Outlook for solar bill isn’t bright in Georgia.
Not sure why
this picture of me illustrates this story on facebook
(I wasn’t at the hearing in Atlanta),
but hey, why not.
Claudia Collier with Green Georgia drove from Savannah to speak at the hearing.
“This bill will give us direct choice in where our electricity comes from,” she said.
Rep. Mike Dudgeon, R-Johns Creek, pointed to the amount of solar generation the Public Service Commission ordered Georgia Power to acquire this year.
“It looks like the PSC is already managing the situation,” he said.
As
Southern Company CEO Tom Fanning and Georgia Power CEO Paul Bowers
well know, Continue reading
Andrea Grover of Sabal Trail Transmission has been telling Florida
landowners about another proposed pipeline route that completely
bypasses Georgia.
Received yesterday on
Request pipeline town hall –Tim Bland to LCC:
For those that are against having the pipeline run through their property, go to Ocala Star Banner on the web where there is a map with the proposed route for the pipeline from Alabama to Florida. This route barely touches the southwest corner
of Georgia (if at all). Why did Sabal change the route? I don’t either. The newspaper is dated October 24, 2013.
-Ronald Kicklighter
Contracts for natural gas pipeline through Florida get initial OK, by Morgan Watkins for Ocala StarBanner picked up a story first run in the Gainesville Sun,
A $3.5 billion, 600-mile natural-gas pipeline system that will stretch from Alabama into Florida is still in the planning stages, but homeowners near the Ichetucknee and Santa Fe rivers are concerned because the routes being proposed might run through their neighborhoods.
Landowners in Georgia don’t want it crossing their land or the Flint or Withlacoochee Rivers, either.
Florida Power & Light selected Continue reading
Received yesterday.
Good first step. Will the Commission also have Spectra speak at the Regular
Session, like they did ADS back in February?
Will it make that a public hearing?
Update 11:30 AM:
Pipeline meeting set:
Commissioner gathers opposing views by Matthew Woody, front page of the VDT this morning. -jsq
From: Demarcus Marshall <marshall at lowndescounty.com>
Date: Friday, October 25, 2013 7:51 AM
To: Tim Bland
Cc: Matthew Woody
Subject: Sabal Trail PipelineTim and Residents along the Proposed Sabal Trail Pipeline,
Brian Fahrenthold of Sabal Trail Pipeline contacted me yesterday and requested an audience with the Lowndes County Commissioners. I have submitted to the chairman a slot for him to address the commissioners at our December 09, 2013 work session.
I am writing you to ask Continue reading
Spectra said “more rural” “lessens stakeholder impact”.
What do you think about that, rural landowners whose land Spectra wants?
County Chairman Bill Slaughter said
the most positive thing he’s said so far,
“we’re going to be looking out for the citizens of Lowndes County”,
about this
natural gas pipeline potentially ripping a 100 foot right of way
through this county and many others in Georgia, Florida, and Alabama
for the benefit of Florida Power and Light.
And Valdosta, you’re not for sure out of the pipeline path:
remember
FERC could choose that Option B through Valdosta that is Spectra’s
alternate route.
James Buechele wrote for WCTV yesterday, Pipeline Would Cut Through Florida & Georgia, Continue reading
Water was a popular topic, as you can see in these
videos of the
Candidates’s Forum by AAUW.
Same location (VSU Continuing Education Building)
as the one
Chamber held,
but this time the audience got to ask questions.
Yes, Virginia, they do all live in their districts, and some of them have widely divergent views about what cities or school boards should do.
Local AAUW President Diane Holliman gave a welcome, and then Dr. Luke Fowler moderated. Here’s the list of qualified candidates. Here’s Matthew Woody’s writeup in the VDT.
John Hogan pointed out that a road issue could really be a drainage issue, so it’s necessary to look at context.
Calvin Graham Sr. said he was retired military, lived in the district, and had been spending a lot of time volunteering. He indicated the Continue reading