User profile: Rosalinde

I can just see it now. The invasion of the Paparazzi!
Leave well enough alone. We like it quiet!

How sad a commentary on this society, that we can impeach a President for lying about a sexual affair which killed no one and should have concerned no one but his wife, yet we cannot muster the strength to even begin the impeachment process against a President and his cronies, who lied and started a war, which has cost the lives and futures of 10s of thousands of people, both here and in Iraq.

You guys should all watch "WASTED" on the Green Planet Channel. Just turning off a light bulb or two, turning off your tv (not just sleep mode), riding a bike to work or public transport, even not taking a shower every day unless absolutely nessecary (like weekends when you don't go anywhere), will help lower the consumption of fuel and water.

For those who think that all life is impossible without fossil fuels, there are ways to reduce its consumption. How about tankless water heaters? How about getting rid of those huge gas-guzzlers (SUV's and trucks) when you drive in the city? What could possibly be the justification for that? A small sub-compact that get's 35-40 mph is a much more sensible alternative. Better yet, stop building huge Casino's and gigantic condo's, and invest that money into a tram and light rail system. Everyone benefits from that. Metal wheels last a lot longer that rubber tires. And with hydro-electric power from Hoover Dam (so long as it has water!), it has a reasonably clean energy source. The dam is already there, no need to build a new one. So maybe the lights of Las Vegas will not glow so brightly. Better than not at all!

Without a plan to utilize renewable energy, we will be facing a shortage sooner than later. We have become a fossil-fuel energy based society, and without the supplement of renewable recources, this planet's standards of living will not survive much longer.

With better management of the fossil fuels, and the addition of solar and wind power, and each person taking more responsibility for his or her own personal lifestyle, we may be able to leave our grand-children a planet worth living on.

And for NVMakz, there is a LOT of difference between Socialism and Communism. In Communism, the government owns everything. In Socialism, the government works FOR the good of the people (what a concept!). In a Socialistic country, you may pay more taxes, but you get good roads, good public transport, free health care, including the drugs that are needed, and free education for everyone. They are more concerned about their own people (which is as it should be), than going abroad to make others into our clones. Can you imagine the whole world consuming the amount of energy that we do, all at once?

The short sightedness of our politicians never ceases to amaze me. First, they allow all our jobs to be exported to other countries, and then, they try to put a stop to an industry that could put us in the fore-front again.

Maybe it's time to start thinking along another line of transport. We have become so dependent on gasoline powered, personal travel, many people are overlooking the obvious:

Trains, trams and light rail.

A friend of a friend recently came to visit Las Vegas from England, and had to rely on public transport. He called it "a joke". Expensive taxi's from the airport to the hotel; the bus down the strip, traveling at the same flow as the thousands of cars that were also on the road, did not make for the "pleasent" vacation he had hoped for.

The "strip" has a very wide center island along most of it's length. It is very under utilized. It could very easily be converted into a tram system, that could be expanded across the entire valley. If San Diego can do it, under budget, and before it's deadline, why can't we? Light rails could be built to all the outlying comunities, like Pahrump and Coyote Springs. The amount of traffic on the roads, as well as the amount of pollution, would be greatly reduced. We have the space to do this. All of the major roads in Las Vegas have been made wide enough to be able accomidate this form of transport.

What with the Earth's dwindeling recources, the price of fuel, and the environmental concerns, this would now be a pefect time to start these projects. The building of high rises, and more gigantic casinos seems ludicrus, if there is no decent way to transport the people from point A to point B. If they can't afford the price of fuel, how are they going to get to these places.

It's time to put "petty politics" aside, and to start thinking about what is best for the people and the environment.