Green Music

originally published March 21, 2007

I like Gordon Lamb’s weekly threats and promises, and I have no idea who Perpetual Groove is. But chastising a band because they wrongly claim their album to be the first major release to have “zero negative impact on our environment” should be a side note, not a focus (even if it did allow for a segue into one more absolutely necessary obscure piece of R.E.M. trivia) [Threats & Promises, Mar. 14]. Despite Greenpeace’s 1994 album, the recording industry continues to be a wasteful business of wall-to-wall plastic and excessive energy use. A more suitable threat on your part would be geared towards the thousands of musicians, especially ones on major labels, who don’t make an honest effort to produce a record with as little negative environmental impact as possible.

Caroline Weathers

Athens

Official Protest

originally published March 21, 2007

This letter serves as a Notice of Official Protest:

The Committee Organized for the Maintenance of Proper Order, Athens Trust has issued a formal protest against the appearance of Knight Seeker on Mar. 24, 2007 at the Caledonia Lounge in the west-end corner of downtown Athens. While the Caledonia has always featured musical entertainment in the past, we feel it is important to draw the clear distinction between other more appropriate “musical entertainment acts” previously featured there and “Knight Seeker.” This “band” has a long and well-documented history of inciting behavior we feel is incompatible with the values and standards the west-end corner of downtown Athens has come to exemplify in the local area. The Athens Business District has developed a reputation for its refined yet casual atmosphere, and we believe “Knight Seeker” to be utterly out of place here. We wish to be clear that we do not advocate censorship or placing limits on artistic expression - we simply believe that “Knight Seeker” does not rise to the level of “art.” Given their excessive volume and mindless disregard for community standards, we simply feel they would be more appropriately presented in a less special location.

We feel strongly that our community standards, the welfare of our children, and our property values are at risk if an “act” such as “Knight Seeker” is allowed to appear here in the west-end corner of downtown Athens. Look for petitions to be circulated in the coming weeks - make your voice heard to “draw a line in the sand” and keep “Knight Seeker” out of the west-end corner of downtown Athens!

T. Ballard Lesemann, III

The Committee Organized for the Maintenance of Proper Order (Charleston Chapter)

Algae For Biofuel!

originally published March 21, 2007

Algae multiplies so quickly and produces so much oxygen per square foot that ponds with a total surface area five times the size of Colorado would be enough to start to reverse our growing CO₂ problem. Algae triples in volume every day. Corn, with one crop per year, nets approximately 81 gallons biodiesel per acre (soy nets 40). Algae yields as high as 15,000 gallons per acre. Enough biodiesel to replace all petroleum transportation fuels could be grown in approximately 9.5 million acres - far less than the 450 million acres used for crop farming in the United States, and the over 500 million acres of animal grazing land. Hydrogen is dangerous/ explosive, extremely expensive and nets zero energy, i.e. it uses more energy than it creates. Algae converts CO₂ to O₂; is 30–50 percent oil; and converts easily to biofuel. Conservation reduces present and future production of CO₂. The government needs to quit looking at corn and begin massive and wholesale funding and grants for algae. A new state agribusiness of algae farms? Or grants for ocean farming? 

Algae, pond scum that’s also a planet saver? Yes, if we take action!

Tami Freedman

Ooltewah, TN