Editorials
Make every day Earth Day
Saturday's celebration of Earth Day has sent us looking for ways to celebrate and make every day Earth Day. Mother Earth News, a 35-year-old popular magazine for those who want to sustain and enjoy the planet, shares a few of their ideas with readers in their April-May issue. We pass along a few of them.
Instead of buying a hybrid, how about considering a motorcycle? Mother Earth News publisher Bryan Welch bought a $3,000, used BMW that gets about 60 miles per gallon. Check your air pressure when you fill up. If every driver kept their tires inflated, we could save up to 2 billion gallons of gasoline per year.
Use grass clippings and kitchen scraps as mulch and nutrient rich soil for gardens and don't mow your grass too short. Reduce your unwanted mail by registering your name with the Mail Preference Service sponsored by the Direct Marketing Association. It'll help reduce the amount of mail sent to you.
Program your furnace to save money. Set a programmable thermostat to hit target temperatures when you're home and to pull back by 8 to 10 degrees while you're away or sleeping. It'll save 10 percent on fuel costs in a typical home. Replace your standard incandescent light bulbs with superefficient compact fluorescent light bulbs. The bulbs cost more but can last up to 13 times longer and use a quarter of the electricity.
The average American meal travels 1,500 to 2,500 miles before consumption. Patronize farmers' markets and eliminate that fuel and environmental costs. Clean out the closet and reduce land fill waste by joining the Freecycle Network and convert your junk into someone's treasure. Finally, the magazine recommends e-trash be recycled. Find a home for your old computers, cell phones, televisions and other electronics.
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It’s easier to be green
Oklahoma’s ranking as a green state got a nice boost Wednesday, and it had nothing to do with St. Patrick’s Day celebration.
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Oklahomans hit harder by gasoline price hikes
A steady price increase at the gasoline pumps is painful for any driver. But the cost has been steadily increasing in recent weeks and is harder on Oklahomans, a new report said.
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Unemployment up while Census jobs go unfilled
Our mailboxes were stuffed with Census forms this week as the government begins its nationwide headcount. Officials ask that the fo
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Oh, those joking freshmen
State Rep. Lewis Moore, a Republican lawmaker from Arcadia, thought it would be funny to swap the portraits of President Barack Obama and Gov. Brad Henry that hang in the House chamber.
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Congratulations, Selmon family
Every year, we await the announcement of Norman’s ’89er Day Parade Marshal. It’s a top-secret announcement that surprises us every
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Lawmakers’ ploy just an election year stunt
The Senate’s, and soon to be House’s, passage of SB 1328 to remove the state’s tax on groceries is nothing short of an election-year parlor trick to appeal to voters and needs to be killed.
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Problems will continue long after funds cut
Lawmakers and mental health workers who are worrying aloud about the loss of inpatient beds and dozens of employees at Norman’s Griffin Hospital say the recent service cuts will lead to long-term community problems.
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GM-Fed relationship new territory
The Toyota recall mess has produced some strange bedfellows. Toyota is struggling to regain consumer confidence at the same time General Motors has ramped up its sales efforts.
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Founding Fathers demanded government transparency
Every American citizen, young and old, recognizes the opening line of the Declaration of Independence. It begins, “When in the cour
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An army of many
Fort Sill graduated two gender-integrated batteries of soldiers this past week. It’s the first in a decade. Echo Battery, 1st Battalion, 40th Field Artillery graduated first. Charlie Battery, 3rd Battalion, 378th Infantry graduated later.
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It’s easier to be green
