Archive for April, 2008

1.Drive Smart!
A well-tuned car with properly inflated tires burns less gasoline—cutting pollution and saving you money at the pump. If you have two cars, drive the one with better gas mileage whenever possible. Better yet, skip the drive and take public transit, walk, or bicycle when you can.

2.Buy Local and Organic
Did you know the average American meal travels more than 1,500 miles from the farm to your plate? Think of all the energy wasted and pollution added to the atmosphere – not to mention all the pesticides and chemicals used to grow most produce! So go to your local organic farmer to get your fruits and veggies.

3.Support clean, renewable energy.
Renewable energy solutions, such as wind and solar power, can reduce our reliance on coal-burning power plants, the largest source of global warming pollution in the United States. Call your local utility and sign up for renewable energy. If they don’t offer it, ask them why not?

4.Also, support a national renewable electricity standard (RES). The Energy Bill signed in 2007 lacked key components that address our energy security and global warming emissions: a renewable electricity standard of 15% by 2020 and a tax package that will provide investment incentives for clean energy alternatives. Use our action center to urge your members of congress to support the renewable electricity standard and tax package!

5.Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs.
Especially those that burn the longest each day. Compact fluorescents produce the same amount of light as normal bulbs, but use about a quarter of the electricity and last ten times as long. Each switch you make helps clean the air today, curb global warming, and save you money on your electricity bill.

6.Saving energy at home is good for the environment and for your wallet.
Start with caulking and weather-stripping on doorways and windows. Then adjust your thermostat and start saving. For each degree you lower your thermostat in the winter, you can cut your energy bills by 3 percent. Finally, ask your utility company to do a free energy audit of your home to show you how to save even more money.

7.Become a smart water consumer.
Install low-flow showerheads and faucets and you’ll use half the water without decreasing performance. Then turn your hot water heater down to 120°F and see hot-water costs go down by as much as 50 percent.

8.Buy energy-efficient electronics and appliances.
Replacing an old refrigerator or an air conditioner with an energy-efficient model will save you money on your electricity bill and cut global warming pollution. Look for the Energy Star label on new appliances or visit their website at www.energystar.gov to find the most energy-efficient products.

9.Plant a Tree, protect a forest.
Protecting forests is a big step on the road to curbing global warming. Trees “breathe in” carbon dioxide, but slash-and-burn farming practices, intensive livestock production, and logging have destroyed 90 percent of the native forests in the United States. And you can take action in your own backyard — planting shade trees around your house will absorb CO2, and slash your summer air-conditioning bills.

10.Reduce! Reuse! Recycle!
Producing new paper, glass, and metal products from recycled materials saves 70 to 90percent of the energy and pollution, including CO2, that would result if the product came from virgin materials. Recycling a stack of newspapers only 4 feet high will save a good-sized tree. Please buy recycled products!

Gossip prevention rests with two people – the person speaking it, and the person listening to it. The best way to stop gossip is to:

1. Demonstrate loyalty and friendship by refusing to listen to or spread it—simply do not permit insinuations or negative discussion at all.

2. Should someone begin to repeat a story about someone else, politely say that you would prefer to talk about that person when they is are present.

3. If not, you have to listen politely (without any comment), and change the subject as soon as possible — do not repeat the information to anyone else.

4. If someone confides personal information to you, keep it to yourself.

5. Sometimes rumors get started despite the best prevention methods. So, the very last best way to defuse gossip is to ignore it.

6. If gossip is directed at you, behave as if the rumors are not affecting you; otherwise, you may be perceived as weak.

7. Instead of lashing out defensively, continue with your life and disregard the talk—ultimately your deeds and actions will overcome any gossip—your behavior, what you do (and don’t do) will speak for itself. Actions are always stronger than words.

8. Decide whether using confrontation make them go away or cause you to waste time answering accusations. If you decide to face the accusations, you need to ascertain if you should confront a group or just the source.

As upset as it can be, don’t let gossip waste your time and energy when you need to be focusing on more important issues concerning your life. The best way to handle gossip after all is to avoid it as much as you can and then ignore the rest.

Alice L. Walton (born October 7, 1949) is the daughter of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton and Helen Walton. She and her mother each have an estimated net worth of about $18 billion and are the richest women in the world.

She is a graduate of Trinity University and lives in Mineral Wells, Texas on The Rocking W Ranch.

She was the 20th largest individual contributor to 527 committees in the U.S. presidential election, 2004, donating 2.6 million dollars (US) to the right-wing Progress for America group.

Ms. Walton was also convicted of drunk driving in January 1998. When pulled over, she reportedly asked the police “Do you know who I am?”

Helen Robson Kemper Walton (b. [Dec.3,1919] in Claremore, Oklahoma) is the widow of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. She is one of the wealthiest persons in the world with an estimated net worth of $18 billion.

Robson was the valedictorian of her high school class and a graduate of the University of Oklahoma at Norman with a degree in business. She was the daughter of L.S. Robson, a prosperous banker and rancher. She and Sam were married February 14, 1943.

Sam Walton left his ownership in Wal-Mart to his wife and their children: S. Robson Walton (Rob), John T. Walton (d.2005), Jim Walton, and Alice Walton. Rob Walton chairs the board of directors of Wal-Mart, on which John served until his death. The others are not directly involved in the company except through their voting power as shareholders. The Walton family holds 4 spots in the top 15 richest people in the United States.