It is official so it seems. September is here and the last days of summer are here. I am going to have a ton of shit coming up in the next few weeks... mostly fun stuff though. I am going to quit work (6 more days, I am in the midst of working a nine day streak, [overtime??]). Mariel is going to come to visit (9 days). Jill and two friends are going to stay with me while they go to a queer women of color conference (7 days). I am going to take a bus to san francisco to hang out with friends (12 days). The day after I get back from the bay area Sharin is coming to visit (16 days). Right after she leaves I have an appointment with my advisor and I have to go to a campus wide workshop for teaching assistants. School starts and then it will all be over. My first weekend of school I am going camping with a bunch of other grad students from the department somewhere on the ventura county coast. I am happy to make the most out of these last days. If all goes to plan my life will be about 99% school oriented for the next two years at least so I might as well.

I am kind of obsessed with impending natural disasters lately, whether it is ecological collapse and large scale flooding from global warming (see: Flood Maps), the potential for tropical cyclones in southern california, or the imminent event on the eastern extent of the san andreas which will likely reduce the los angeles basin to rubble. Just when I though I had heard it all I was talking to my ex-boyfriend on the phone and we were having our normal geeky conversation when he started talking about the New Madrid Fault. My mind is blown. The fault runs along the mississippi basin. Yes, and it's centered right over Memphis. There was a large event in 1812 that rang church bells in Boston. The thing about an intercontinental fault line like New Madrid is that the event could be felt throughout the continental plate (easily 90% of the continental U.S., whereas Pacific coast earthquakes take place on smaller plates and hence have more of a localized extent. To make matters even more pseudo apocalyptic there is no infrastructure to manage such an event in the areas that would be most affected. Lots of old houses with basements.

It is a very interesting time to be alive if only for the fact that we as humans can surmise on the unexpected more than ever before. Environmental changes that are perceivable, anthropogenically forced and quantifiable. There is some pretty horrid shit masquerading as environmentalism these days. It's pretty awful. The worst would have to be this carbon capture technology bullshit that has been hinted at throughout the media lately. At best it is still in its most nascent of stages at worst it is just a shiny distraction and a window of opportunity for a new coal boom. From the mouth of George Bush we receive new phrases like, "clean coal technology". China and India are both on the brink of an industrial revolution, (India more so), and the only major hurdle to a complete and total transformation aside from cultural factors is increased power production. Both india and China are building coal plants at breakneck speed. Clearances are even being made for new coal plants in the U.S. and U.K. (goodbye Kyoto, what a commitment!). The greenwashing has already began, the plants are being put online and the technology to make them "green" is always forthcoming. Forget emissions from combustion for a moment. What about extraction what about the carbon reserves that are released from extraction alone?! The new coal plants are being rushed into completion while a cooperative government is still a guarantee. Guilianni is already making the media circuit telling the American people that, "we need to increase our reliance on coal".

It is all horribly irresponsible and short-sighted. Oh well what effect does two hundred more coal plants have on the world really? It's amazing to me that the same attitude that disables individuals from taking personal responsibility for their lifestyle choices can be effective on such a large scale. What difference can one nation of only 300 million make while India and China are just beginning to catch up. Just a drop in the bucket... I wonder how long we can disable ourselves from making any sort of significant progress? Will I be an old and grey muttering angrily about Leonardo DiCaprio's private jet. I hope not.