Category: News

The closest I've ever gotten to the Delta is a map. Until last week. While I've immersed myself in the intricacies of the Delta water policy—nothing compares to a visit to the Delta's labyrinth of islands.

Last week I stood on the Delta's dirt levees, and looked down at farms below sea level. I saw red-winged black birds and blue herons. I drove through small towns like Isleton and big suburban developments like Rio Vista. I waited for drawbridges and walked out into the wetlands restoration site at Twitchell Island. I learned about The Nature Conservancy's corn farm on Staten Island that provides habitat to the endangered Sandhill Crane. I passed a farmworker driving a pesticide truck in a hazmat suit and cows grazing next to giant windmills.

I learned that the Delta is more than just the hub of water controversy—more than just a map in my office. It's a one-of-a-kind gem. While I may be back at my computer, I'm re-invigorated to protect this special place.

I look forward to my next visit (hopefully next time, by boat). Check out the photo essay above by my talented colleague, and Delta tour partner, Mathew Grimm.

Director Saam Farahmand, who has worked with the likes of Janet Jackson, These New Puritans, Hercules & Love Affair, and Cheryl Cole has created an ingenious new video for the xx’s track “Islands”. At first glance the video might seem repetitive, but every take depicts the subtle art of the breakup via the dancers movements, as the band sits by watching the drama unfold. Check the video after the jump.

Source: MTVU

Sony Ericsson recently announced that William ‘Bill’ A Glaser, Jr, former Sony Corporation Vice President and Head of Sony Group Risk Office, has joined Sony Ericsson and is appointed Chief Financial Officer effective today. In his new role Bill Glaser will succeed Ulf Lilja, who will return to Ericsson on 31 July. Bill Glaser will report to Sony Ericsson President Bert Nordberg, and he will be based at the company’s global corporate offices in London as well as its offices in Lund, Sweden.

Bill Glaser has over twenty years of experience working in Sony’s diverse electronics, game and entertainment businesses in the US, UK and Japan. In the last ten years he has held senior positions at Sony in Japan and in the US. As Vice President and Head of the Sony Group Risk Office for Sony Corporation since 2006, Bill Glaser was responsible for developing and introducing Sony’s global enterprise risk management programme. Prior to that, he was Senior Vice President and Corporate Controller for Sony Electronics, Sony’s US subsidiary responsible for electronics and information technology products for the consumer and professional markets. He began his career at Price Waterhouse in the US, where he became a Certified Public Accountant.

Bert Nordberg, President, Sony Ericsson, said, “Ulf Lilja joined Sony Ericsson as Chief Financial Officer in 2005 and has witnessed many changes to both the industry and our company over the five years. I wish to thank Ulf for his longstanding contribution to Sony Ericsson and wish him well in the future.” He added, “Bill Glaser joins Sony Ericsson at an important time in our industry. The convergence of technologies across home and mobile devices, coupled with the increasing importance of understanding consumer insight, is something that he has already experienced across Sony’s diverse businesses. We look forward to welcoming him to Sony Ericsson.”

Commenting on today’s announcement, Bill Glaser said, “I am very pleased to be joining Sony Ericsson during these very exciting times for both the mobile handset industry and the company itself. Over the past few months Sony Ericsson has announced one of its strongest product portfolios ever, which has created buzz in the industry. I look forward to applying the experience I have gained at Sony and contributing to Sony Ericsson’s next phase of growth.”

A native of the US, Bill Glaser has a Bachelors of Science Degree in Business and Economics and a Masters of Science Degree in Management Sciences from Lehigh University, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. In addition to postings in the US, UK and Japan, he has lived in Brazil and Belgium. Bill Glaser is 47 years old.

What do we have to show after 40 years?

Editor, The Times:

On April 22, 1970, I participated in Earth Day. The rally on the UW campus was exhilarating —especially for those of us who, for a few years, had been agitating for more care of our environments.

Looking back, we see that much of what we were doing then has become institutionalized, in the hands of large conservation organizations (we belong to many of them) and their effectiveness is a challenge to government and industry alike. But what is missing is the sense of personal involvement and this is felt keenly.

A year or two earlier, I walked into the University District office of the Sierra Club and asked where to start. Brock Evans, then the local representative, told me that I should just pick something. I started working on the confirmation hearings of Walter Hickle, former governor of Alaska and secretary of the interior. That led to subsequent involvement in the North Cascades National Park and Alpine Lakes Wilderness, then to working for the Washington Environmental Council to rationalize the number and location of nuclear power plants in the Pacific Northwest. There were many other issues, but little or no personal effort as we wrote checks and e-mail messages instead of letters and testimony.

Today, despite our successes, we confront a global ecosystem that is badly destabilized, a Puget Sound ecosystem where whales feast on plastics, clothing, rope and other junk, a world with fewer amphibians, songbirds and many species whose habitat is diminishing rapidly or has already evaporated while our own species grows exponentially. I wonder what we would call failure if this is the measure of our success.

Through it all I feel a personal sense of disengagement and loss and I do not know what I can do to ease it. I want to start all over again.

— Earl J. Bell, UW Professor Emeritus, Seattle

Time to reflect on what we’ve done to the planet

When the first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970, the air was festive —and cleaner, too. The population of 3.7 billion has nearly doubled since and terms virtually unknown then now define our age: tipping points, peak oil and climate change.

Fortunately, something else has grown in these four decades: Tremendous knowledge not only of how ecosystems have deteriorated worldwide, but also of their tremendous restorative capacities on which humans could build.

Symbols and celebrations such as the 20th anniversary of Earth Day are times to reflect and reconnect. What would happen if the entire week of April 18-24 was designated as “Earth Days,” as Community Educational Television — KCET in California — has done, full with activities that acknowledge the vital and ethical connections we all have with Earth.

Everyone could encourage Earth Day-related activities in places of learning throughout our community —classrooms and homes, as well as outdoors. The synergies and hope that emerge could in turn move us closer to living as if every day were Earth Day.

— James Loucky, Bellingham

Americans’ actions ironic twist to Earth Day founding

Earth Day, which set off alarm bells in 1970, has now morphed from a wake-up call into a much ballyhooed occasion to go out and pick up litter. As if our lovely, little blue dot in the universe notices.

What Earth does notice is its atmosphere and oceans warming as we continue burning precious fossil fuels. Polar and glacial ice melts, oceans expand, threatening coastlines and small island countries. Deserts expand, too —water shortages already threaten millions of people.

Although Americans started Earth Day, we have strayed farthest from its original message. Per capita, we are still the biggest contributors to the planet’s climate fever, but we have ignored warnings from the world’s scientists and abdicated our leadership responsibilities.

If your mother were sick, wouldn’t you want to help her get well? We must convince Congress to stop polluting energy use and convert to renewable energy by increasing the price of carbon. Most straightforward is taxing the 2,000 coal-, oil- and gas-producing and -importing companies, and distributing this revenue to everyone to cover higher energy prices.

Sen. Maria Cantwell’s Clear Act comes closest to this model. Simpler still is the Carbon Fee and Dividend Act proposed by the Citizens Climate Lobby.

— Andrea Faste, Seattle

It was reported earlier this morning that Maserati is planning a competitor for the BMW 5-Series. According to AutoExpress, the model will be a direct competitor to the E63 AMG, BMW M5 and the upcoming S7 version of the Audi A7.

Technical specs are a bit scarce but it is said that the model will be an entry-level for Maserati with prices starting around €55,000 ($73,637 USD).

Click here to get prices on the 2010 Maserati GranTurismo.

Also in the works is the next-generation Quattroporte with “a completely new style, offering outstanding driving emotions and high-level quality.” The Maserati GranTurismo and GranTurismo Convertible (GranCabrio) will also continue.

– By: Kap Shah

Source: AutoExpress

Working as a legislative assistant, I’m most excited when issues overlap and I get to work closely with and learn from my colleagues. During the health care debate, I teamed up with Rebecca on the divisive issue concerning access to insurance for undocumented immigrants. In the fall, Liz partnered with Sam to address employment discrimination against women in Israel. Today, we face a compelling yet contentious crossover between the issue of gun control and DC voting rights.

April 16th was Emancipation Day in the District of Columbia, commemorating President Abraham Lincoln’s emancipation of approximately 3,100 slaves. In his statement acknowledging this important holiday, President Obama highlighted the plight of DC residents who are denied the right to a vote in Congress and concluded, “I urge Congress to finally pass legislation that provides DC residents with voting representation and to take steps to improve the Home Rule Charter.” These are encouraging words for the Reform Movement, which has played a vital role in the struggle for voting rights for more than a half century — within the very confines of our DC office, Civil Rights leaders drafted the seminal Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965!

The 2005 URJ resolution supporting DC voting rights quotes Rabbi Yitzhak in the Babylonian Talmud, who taught, “A ruler is not to be appointed until the community is first consulted” (B’rachot 55a). In the case of DC residents, that whole “consulting” piece is impaired. Though DC residents may vote for the President (this right was not granted to them until 1961 with the passage of the 23rd amendment!) and elect some local leadership, they do not have representation in the Senate and their delegate in the House of Representatives, Eleanor Holmes Norton, does not have a vote. Ironically, the very body in which DC residents do not have a voice, the US Congress, is granted exclusive jurisdiction over their local affairs by Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution.

Proponents of DC voting rights argue correctly that the close to 600,000 residents of the District, who fulfill all the responsibilities of citizenship by observing the rule of law, paying taxes, and serving in the armed forces, are denied their most basic right to Congressional representation. Despite more than two centuries with little progress in their fight for a legislative voice (the House and Senate approved a constitutional amendment in 1978 giving DC a House vote, but it died after failing to get ratification by three-fourths of the states), hope springs eternal.

Tension has been building up over the last few days in response to a press release published by Del. Norton on April 14th announcing that she expected the DC Voting Rights Act (H.R. 157) to reach the floor of the House of Representatives by this Thursday. On February 26, 2009, the Senate passed the DC House Voting Rights Act (S. 160) in a vote of 61-37 so a House vote is the next step toward finally passing this bill. Unfortunately for DC vote advocates, Minority Leader Steny Hoyer announced yesterday morning that lawmakers will not take up the legislation this week.

The DC Voting Rights Act, while enfranchising district residents, will come at a crippling cost if it passes in its current form. The gun lobby has unfairly hijacked the bill by refusing crucial support unless the district repeals restrictions on semiautomatic weapons, rolls back requirements for registering most guns and drops existing criminal penalties for owners of unregistered firearms. In others words, a congressional voice for DC residents means eliminating strict gun control laws.

Despite her objections to what she called the, “National Rifle Association-drafted gun bill to accompany the voting act,” Norton had decided to move forward due to a confluence of factors that make this the most opportune time to pass the bill, possibly for years to come. Strong reactions from gun control advocates, however, have now scuttled the prospects for a vote. Six of the thirteen members of the DC City Council, including the chairman, announced their opposition to any bill that would weaken gun control laws and the League of Women Voters and DC for Democracy also announced their opposition. Even more powerful, however, the families of four teenage victims of a tragic March 30th shooting in DC testified in front of the City Council and Del. Norton about their opposition to any weakening of gun control laws.

So for now it appears that the safety of DC residents from the threat of gun violence has won out over their enfranchisement in Congress. What do you think? To what extent should we be willing to compromise to secure long overdue voting rights? What price is too high? Of all the crossover issues we’ve faced this year, this is by far the most nuanced. Share your opinions by sending me an email.

 

Whales eating sweatpants and duct tape: a wake-up call

The story “Garbage in stomach of dead whale” [NWTuesday, April 20] should be a wake-up call for people.

Sadly, this is about the thousandth wake-up call that we need to stop throwing our junk into anywhere except the trash can. Imagine how much better it would be if you went to a beach and it was not covered in beer bottles and plastic bags. It would be so much better if we were able to keep our city and eventually our whole country clean.

Sorrowfully, we are far from this goal. In fact, we are so far away from it that whales are eating sweatpants and duct tape. If we could manage to clean up our city’s streets and beaches, it would not only be a better prettier place to live, but it would save the lives of the many animal species that live around Seattle.

— Cole Thomas, Seattle

Time to revive plastic bag fee

The American Chemistry Council, Exxon and other plastic manufacturers are the ones who spent $1.5 million dollars last summer defeating the measure on the Seattle ballot to charge a fee for plastic bags at the grocery store.

Facing more such bans, the plastic industry is now launching a program encouraging us to recycle our plastic bags. While recycling is a good thing, it does not solve the problem.

We use more than 350 million plastic bags a year in Seattle alone. Around the country, charging a fee has been proven to reduce the use of plastic bags by 85 percent or more almost overnight. It is those same plastic bags that end up on our streets, in our waterways and in whales’ stomachs, despite recycling efforts.

It makes me angry that we think our plastic bags are more important than the health of the ocean and marine life. I urge the City Council and city governments everywhere in Washington to follow the lead of Edmonds and take this issue up again.

— Sally Wolf, Seattle

For clean-energy future, try next-generation nukes

No commercial fast reactors currently operating in the United States

The opinion “Next-generation nukes for a clean-energy future” [Opinion, April 20] makes a misleading claim about the efficacy of recycling spent nuclear fuel, stating recycling as practiced in Japan, France and Britain “reuse up to 95 percent of spent uranium.”

Recycling as presently practiced only increases the energy obtained from the original uranium fuel by about 25 percent. Only a different kind of reactor, a “fast” reactor, could significantly exploit the dominant isotope of uranium present in reactor fuel. No commercial fast reactors are in operation in the United States, Britain or Japan; France is phasing out its only fast reactor. The country has also accumulated about 50 tons of excess plutonium from its recycling activities, as its reactors have been unable to use all of the plutonium recovered by recycling. Britain has decided to phase out recycling.

More research and development of fast reactors must be carried out if recycling is to be a practical and significant contributor to solving our need for reduced carbon-emission energy.

The story also claims that small-scale reactors dramatically reduce the amount of waste that needs to be treated or stored. The amount of fission product waste produced per unit energy does not depend on the size of the reactor.

— Robert Vandenbosch, Seattle

Convert Hanford site into power plant fueled by nuclear waste

The Seattle Times special suggests revisiting the nuclear-energy issue considering the flawless safety record since 1979. This record is due to extremely rigorous design and operation standards that were not in place for early reactors.

The story failed to mention the appalling record of coal-fired power plants. Headlines about coal accidents fail to address the thousands of people who die every year from pollution produced by mining and burning coal. The book “Storms of My Grandchildren” by James Hansen contrasts the 200,000-person rally against nuclear energy with the lack of rallies about the dangers of coal energy.

The capability of fourth-generation reactors to consume 95 percent of spent nuclear fuel was mentioned. Otherwise known as fast-neutron reactors, they can also consume material from nuclear weapons, thereby reducing the risk of a nuclear holocaust.

In the 1970s and ’80 s, the blind optimism about nuclear energy was replaced by blind opposition. It is time to replace both with realistic appraisal. Rather than challenging shutdown of Yucca Mountain, our state should consider converting the mothballed Fast Flux Test Facility at the Hanford site to a power plant fueled by nuclear waste stored there.

— Bob Jeffers-Schroder, Seattle

Nuclear energy neither safe nor green

The truth is that nuclear energy is neither safe nor “green.” The mining of uranium emits carbon dioxide as well as many other pollutants.

The cost of producing nuclear energy is so prohibitive, it cannot be done without government subsidies. This means more of our taxes would be going to private industry and more “socialism for the rich.” Also, no insurance company will touch nuclear energy, which led to the Price-Anderson Nuclear Industries Indemnity Act, with more taxpayer money going to the industry if there is an accident.

There is also the issue of terrorists getting ahold of plutonium to produce a dirty bomb, and yet more government money for security. In addition to that, after 60 years of peaceful nuclear energy, they still have not figured out what to do with all the nuclear waste that must be sequestered for hundreds of thousands of years.

— Chris Anderson, Seattle

»  Apple’s early outlook for iAd doesn’t look stellar. [MediaPost]

»  Adobe (NSDQ: ADBE) halts investment in iPhone-specific Flash deveplopment tools and has words with Apple (NSDQ: AAPL). [Engadget]

»  FCC wants to abolish home roaming rules for voice services and move ahead on national broadband plan. [Fierce Wireless]

»  Adobe AIR on the Android platform. [Adobe Featured Blogs]

»  Shoppers are increasingly using apps to compare prices, and retailers are trying to . [WSJ]

»  You may be able to make phone calls from your pacemaker, stent, or defibrillator in the future. [Fortune Brainstorm Tech]

Attack on mayor unwarranted

This is a response to “Mayor’s veto may scuttle measure” [page one, April 20].

When I read about City Councilmember Tim Burgess’ aggressive-panhandling measure, I immediately sent messages protesting the measure to him and City Council President Richard Conlin.

I pointed out that I am a frequent downtown visitor. I shop, visit the art museum, library and Benaroya Hall; eat, attend meetings, visit friends day and night and have not been aggressively panhandled by anyone. I am a5-foot-2 senior citizen with no training in the martial arts.

The attack on Mayor Mike McGinn [“Missteps are mounting for Mayor Mike McGinn,” editorial, Opinion, April 21] was unwarranted, as were comments about City Councilmember Bruce Harrell.

— Jan O’Connor, Seattle

End, not criminalize homelessness

Mayor Mike McGinn is not listening? When Tim Burgess’ aggressive-panhandling bill came up for a vote last week, public comment at the City Council meeting was 2-to-1 against it, according to every account I have heard.

Additionally, a laundry list of human-rights and civil-liberties organizations had come out against the bill, which likely is an unconstitutional restriction on free speech.

Aggressive panhandling is already a criminal offense in Seattle. This bill would only add a civil penalty on top of that, which means cops have to meet a far lower burden of proof and suspects do not have the right to an attorney.

Where does that leave that aggressive panhandler? I think it is safe to assume most do not have an extra $50 lying around to cover the fine. If anything, this encourages even more aggressive panhandling.

Let’s try to solve homelessness instead of criminalizing it.

— Garrett McCulloch, Seattle

No hero to the people, mighty morphin’ taxes

This is a response to “Gates Sr. pushes for state income tax on wealthy” [page one, April 21].

How many times do we need to see a new tax that was originally touted as “just on the wealthy” morph into something very different?

Originally, the U.S. income tax was sold as a tax that only the top 1 percent would ever have to pay. Now look where we are at: When the value added tax was first introduced in Europe, most rates were below 10 percent. Now most rates have more than doubled to nearly 20 percent of purchases.

While the vast majority of us would be nowhere near the tax level now, given time, inflation and modifications to the law by politicians, our children could end up with another claim on their incomes. The last thing we need is another foot in the door for government forcibly spending more of the people’s money.

— Chris Waldorf, Seattle

More taxes would give legislatures pocket to pick to cover ballooned budgets

It was comforting to note that someone still has money to give away. We all know that it is easy to give money away to the IRS just by writing a check to the U.S. Treasury.

Pure and simple, this is another attempt to open the door for a long-term opportunity to invoke an income tax, supplementing our sales tax. Two ways, then, to increase our taxes will be a real boon for our state legislators to “pick and choose” funding of ballooned budgets.

If we approve an income tax, rest assured, we will wind up with both and the floodgates to spending will be open.

— Robert J. Monks, Poulsbo

(This is a guest post from the Crossing Wall Street.)

One of the quick-and-dirty metrics I like to look at is the Morgan Stanley Cyclical Index (^CYC) divided by the S&P 500 (^SPX). The Cyclical Index is composed on stocks that are closely tied to the economic cyclical. This means industries like autos, chemicals and mining.

When we divided these two indexes, we can tell if cyclicals are outperforming or underperforming. The thing about cyclicals is that they, well, move in cycles. Check out the chart below:

As you can see, there’s historically been a consistent up-and-down wave that averages a few years. This usually, but not always, corresponds with how well the economy is doing. Investors favor cyclicals during the good times, and flee them during the rough patches.

I urge you not to place too much faith in this metric, but I want to show you that the market does, in fact, move in cycles. These are powerful and once the market is locked it, the cycle can last for some time. Therefore it’s important for us to understand where we are in a cycle.

On top of that, the cycle has a double-whammy effect since the market generally does much better when cyclicals are outperforming, meaning they’re outperforming a market that’s already doing well (note the bottoms in 1982, 1990 and March 2009).

You can really see how the last 18 months have dramatically impacted cyclicals. The ratio held up fairly well until September 17, 2009. Within six months, that ratio dropped from 0.7 to 0.42. The Cyclical Index dropped from 871 on September 19 to 283 by March 9. Youch, that’s a staggering loss so you can see that the non-cyclicals provided some shelter from the storm (though not as good as cash).

But once the ratio hit bottom, cyclicals put on an explosive rally. Although the Cyclical Index is still well-below its high from 2007, the ratio has surpassed its high and has gone on to make several all-time highs. That’s about the shortest cycle I’ve ever seen. In fact, it was more like a panic mini-cycle. Last Thursday (pre-Fab), the ratio made its most recent all-time high of 0.786.

Picking cycle peaks is a tricky business and I won’t attempt to do so now, but I’m on the lookout for a harsh drop off in the Cyclical Ratio. Once it gets going, it could down, down, down for a few years.

Read more market commentary at CrossingWallStreet >

Join the conversation about this story »

Jeremy Scahill, journalism’s most dogged investigator of the privatized military, reports that the State Department’s Worldwide Personal Protective Services contract is up for bid. Why’s that important? Because the contract — now apparently re-dubbed the Worldwide Protective Services program — is the lucrative mechanism whereby the State Department hires private security companies to protect its diplomats overseas. In the past, it’s relied on three of them: DynCorp, Triple Canopy and Blackwater/Xe Services/US Training Center. All of them have been cited for various sorts of abuses, from improper bookkeeping (DynCorp) to poor embassy security (Triple Canopy) to, uh, killing civilians and using the names of South Park characters to improperly hoard guns (guess).

But maybe not this time.

In August, Stacy DeLuke, a Blackwater spokeswoman, told me the company planned on bidding on WPS when it came up for renewal this year. According to Jeremy, though, they haven’t put in their bid yet:

Among the companies listed as “interested vendors” to bid on the contracts are the predictable list of industry giants: L-3 Services, SAIC, USIS, Northrop Grumman, and DynCorp. Two lesser-known firms in particular that have expressed interest in the contracts jump out: Instinctive Shooting International and Evergreen International Aviation.

Read on for Jeremy’s full report on Instinctive Shooting International. But it’s surprising to see that Blackwater hasn’t offered a bid yet. I called the company but was told that everyone who could speak to me has left for the day. No luck with the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security, which controls the contract, yet either. Hopefully tomorrow will bring clarity on this.

Filed under: Sedan, Performance, Maserati, Luxury

If you’ve had trouble figuring out if the Maserati Quattroporte was a closer rival to the BMW M5 or the 7 Series, the latest news from Modena ought to help. As part of the Fiat Group’s comprehensive five-year plan – which already includes several new Alfa Romeos and no fewer than six new Ferraris – Maserati has revealed plans to build a new sub-Quattroporte sedan.

Targeting the likes of the M5, the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG and the Audi RS6, a new sedan is set to slot in below the existing Quattrporte in both size and price. Reports place the entry price for the new four-door at at less than €55,000 ($74k), significantly less than the $120k starting price for the current Quattroporte.

In addition, plans are also underway for a new full-size Quattroporte, giving buyers in the market for an exotic Italian super-saloon twice the variety to choose from. Expect the next-generation QP, then, to go slightly farther up-market to make way for its upcoming kid brother.

[Source: Auto Express]

Maserati reportedly to build sub-Quattroporte M5 rival originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 21 Apr 2010 16:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Now that the iPad is upon them, Amazon has finally made a deal to unleash their popular Kindle e-reader to the bricks-and-mortar retail market. Amazon has made a deal with Target that will have Kindles in some of their stores as early as this Sunday.

The first stores to get the Kindle will be in south Florida and the chain’s flagship store in downtown Minneapolis. These stores should start selling Kindles on April 25.

Target says it plans on rolling out the device for sale in all its stores, but gave no specific time line as to the whens and wheres.

Says a dude from Target, hopefully with a cool Minnesota accent:

We’re excited to be working with Amazon to help even more readers discover Kindle, in-store only at Target… We strive to enhance our product offerings to include surprising products and services at great values so we’re proud to be the first brick-and-mortar retailer to sell Kindle, allowing our guests to feel how lightweight and easy on the eyes Kindle is.

Is this going to be enough for Kindle to maintain its E-reader market share? Or does its lack of color and it singular use put it at a disadvantage?

Target Stores to Sell Kindle, Amazon’s Revolutionary Wireless Reading Device [MarketWatch]

Earth Day is turning 40 this year. To celebrate, many
businesses are offering consumers free stuff, chances to win valuable prizes, and
some good deals.

Here’s a sampling of Earth Day freebies:

• Gain free admission into all 392 U.S. national parks now through Sunday, April 25.
• Trade in six plastic bottles or soda cans for a free
  hat made from recycled bottles at the Disney
  Store on April 22.
• Babies R Us will give you a free reusable
  tote bag if you bring a
  valid coupon (PDF) into its stores through April 22. Plus, you’ll get a 25
  percent discount off all the clothing and shoes you can fit into the bag.
• Evos is
  giving away free organic milkshakes served in biodegradable cups on Earth Day.
  The healthy fast-food chain has locations in California, Florida, Georgia, and
  North Carolina.
• Origins
  is offering a trade-in program on Earth Day only. Bring one of your current
  skin-care product bottles — empty or full, from any brand — to an Origins counter and
  receive a free full-size cleanser. Choose from Checks
  and Balances Frothy face wash or Perfect
  World antioxidant cleanser with white tea.
• Get a chance to win a $20,000 green home makeover by registering on the Purex website by April 30.
• Enter a sweepstakes
  to win 1 of 10 smart fortwo vehicles by making a pledge to help protect the
  environment on Safeway‘s website through April 27.
• Sign up for the Drive
  Home Green sweepstakes on Target‘s website through the end of the month.
  The grand prize is a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid. You could also win bicycles, electric
  scooters, a national park trip, and other prizes.
• Add a green pledge to the Sierra Club’s Earth Day
  map for a chance to win a trip for two to Hawaii.

 

There are also plenty of opportunities for Earth Day
discounts. Here are few:

• Travelocity is offering up
  to 40 percent off prices at 40 green hotels across the globe.
• Travelzoo is giving discounts on U.S.-based, LEED-certified
  hotels.
• Walgreens will refill
  your printer cartridge for $1 instead of its usual $12 on April 22 only.
  It’s also offering a 22 percent
  discount on its green products through April 30.
• Amazon is
  offering up to 34 percent off some of its Earth Day reads.
• Drugstore.com
  is offering up to 40 percent off products from its “green and natural” store
  through April 23.
• Numi
  Organic Teas is giving a 20% discount on April 22 — just enter Eday40 at checkout.

 

Search for more Earth
Day discounts, freebies,
and deals. Have you heard of other great Earth Day offers? If so, please share them in the comments below.

Check out Yahoo! Green on Twitter and Facebook.

This presentation will show how mold dies are designed using concurrent CFD can help the tooling produce more products by optimizing the die design.

Found under: RSS, News, Application, Nokia, Symbian, ,

RssNews is exactly the kind of app professionals on the go need. RssNews will bring you all the news straight to your Nokia smartphone and any other Symbian device for that matter so youll be able to follow your favorite stories during the day straight from the convenience of your own smartphone. RssNews is basically a news reader which is available in the store for the special price of 3.68 Euro. This special offer is available until May 30 at which point you wont be able to

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Read more in mobile format

Credit Suisse: Since March 2009, retail investors have sold 82 billion USD of equity and bought 93 billion of bonds, and have just now started to buy equities.

Join the conversation about this story »