Comment Archives
Re: “Parents and environmental activists concerned about sewage sludge fields near schools”
It is important to note that Class A biosolids application locations are not tracked by DENR. The map only shows the locations of Class B application areas.
Re: “The Comedy of Errors”
I saw it this weekend. Phenomenal performances integrating theatre with circus. Beautiful setting, LaFarm bakery and a creperie food trucks make it insanely great. Bring a jacket, lawn chairs and blanket and celebrate the best NC has to offer. You won't be disappointed.
Re: “McCrory's education budget is deceptive”
How are schools expected to provide the type of individualized instruction our students need to become successful in our globally competitive society if the budget cuts lower the number of teachers and assistants while, at the same time, the student population continues to grow. Budget cuts are realistically necessary but can we look for other areas to cut. I have not heard of any cuts in areas higher up in NC government, or have I missed something.
Re: “War and NASCAR: America-F&#$-Yeah”
Wow! Went to Wiki and found all the medals this patriot has been awarded. On the board of the NRA as well. I hope my kids grow up as good as him..Your story should have said "He was wrongly convicted of three felonies, that were later dismissed"..
Re: “Growing kiwis in North Carolina”
I have a male and female kiwi plants that I potted last year. They are growing beautifully but I am still not sure where I want to put them. How long can I leave them in pots and can I transfer them to bigger pots and let them grow in that?
Thanks,
Judy
Re: “In Raleigh: Hitler used ovens, Obama will use hospice to kill people like me.”
WARNING ABOUT UNC HOSPICE, CHAPEL HILL, NC.
My 90 year old mother innocently agreed to be placed in hospice three months ago. She was happy that she could get "extra help in the house" from them. She had no idea that three months later she'd be dying from medical neglect that appears to be legal.
I was told by my brother, Tom O., that my mother was being placed in Hospice (in the home) because they needed more people in the house so he and wife Mary could go to work, and Hospice would provide free nursing care. That she qualified based on her age. That if she became ill they'd provide full medical care. I questioned all of this, it seemed suspicious. Now, three months later, my mother, who had been well and was not terminally ill, and had been treated for a stomach bacteria (at my suggestion), now IS dying. It is due to medical neglect. About 5 days ago (Monday) my mother began to experience a pain in her side. She did not have any tests until Thursday, and only then, a urinalysis. The results on Fri. were inconclusive. No other tests were ordered. My brother was told she is dying, Friday. She was in so much "electric shock" type pain that they put her on morphine. No CT scans, no xrays. They don't even care to find out what is wrong with her. If this was done to a child of the age of 10, the parents would be put in jail. If this was done to a person who is middle-aged, the doctor would lose his license. But Hospice gets its clutches on you and it is suddenly legal to allow someone to die when you don't even have a current diagnosis of what is causing this downturn. No treatment. No nothing. My mother is in such pain now that she wants to die. The morphine isn't correcting it all. My brother and sister-in-law are in full agreement with "a peaceful death". I don't see a peaceful death. I see a 90 year old woman who deserves diagnostic tests and treatment who is not getting it.
This condition had never been seen before in her and yet not even an interest in ordering tests. I believe that Dr. Y and Hospice have a financial incentive not to pay for tests for my mother. I wanted outpatient or inpatient tests. They would not order these. They claim that my brother wouldn't allow it. My brother said he asked for these tests and they were denied. Someone is lying. I demand a full investigation of this. I am horrified that my mother is being medically neglected and killed under his "care". Investigate immediately so my mother has a chance, if she is still alive.
I called Adult Protective Services - no help there. I called the Chapel Hill police and they went to the house and were given excuses like "she has arteriosclerosis, failure to thrive, and blood pressure problems". None of the above explains the severe pain in her side. I was told the failure to thrive was a wrong diagnosis and that the correct one was bacteria overgrowth in the stomach, which was corrected by a specialist. The police could do nothing. They were bamboozled. Their social worker went right along with what the hospice nurse and family said. A killing in progress and they do nothing.
"Do no harm" does not mean killing the elderly. Never trust your medical care or give power of atty to someone who will benefit financially from your death. Especially if they have a history of violence ! That is a no-brainer but when you become elderly you can be talked into quite a bit.
I am disabled and cannot travel. I offered my home but was not there when Dad died and black sheep brother was. I am just appalled. This is a sign that America truly is a sick country that would allow this.
Re: “The Comedy of Errors”
Hilarious n entertaining. Biggest surprise was the excellent physical comedy. The lead actress in particular was so funny! The circus performers and actors who became circus performers add a whole other layer to the show. Super-fun!
Re: “Parents and environmental activists concerned about sewage sludge fields near schools”
Urban biosolids contain industrial pollutants removed from sewage. Thousands. Most that did not even exist before 1950. Some highly toxic and persistent and magnified in the food chain. After a one-time notification, every industry, every entity connected to a sewer can legally discharge any amount of acute hazardous waste into sewage treatment plants. Here these, together with other pollutants, including pathogens, are removed from the sewage and end up in the resulting biosolids. No wonder hundreds of sludge-exposed residents have reported serious, chronic, and life threatening health symptoms. Some have died. Hundreds of cattle sickened and died after ingesting forage grown on land that had repeatedly been treated with toxics-containing biosolids. Wells are impacted. Soil permanently poisoned.
Fifteen years ago internationally renowned soil scientists at the Cornell Waste Management Institute warned that the US regulations that govern the use of biosolids do not protect human health, agriculture, or the environment. At the same time, research microbiologist, David Lewis, then a high ranking scientist at EPA, began to publish ground breaking research linking sludge-exposure to serious life threatening illnesses, including several deaths. Yet despite these warnings and increasing data that land application is not safe, EPA and state agencies are not tightening the current rules.
Absent any credible science, those promoting biosolids rely on the totally bizarre perspective of a few researchers, who-- either for personal or financial reasons-- claim that treated sewage sludge is a completely safe, organic, natural, and nutrient rich fertilizer that improves the health of plants and soil. On the contrary, biosolids is probably the most pollutant-rich material created in the 21st century. A 2008 Nature editorial calls the US biosolids program “an institutional failure spanning more than three decades.”
Yet a network of powerful "gatekeepers, " top managers from USDA, EPA, together with regional lobbying groups, such as the North East Biosolids and Residuals Association, and the biosolids industry, ignore or discredit data that does not support their agenda and harass those scientists who work to protect human health, agriculture, and the environment.
For documentation , visit www.sludgefacts.org
Re: “The Pig”
We do carry out regularly from Pig. Southern BBQ at its finest although I'm from Hawaii. Still there is a common thread and that is pulled pork. These folks buy their meat directly from the farmer who treats his animals kindly so you know you are getting quality meat. Collards, pickles, cole slaw, hush puppies and their vinegar sauce are all wonderful for this island boy. If I were to make one complaint it would be that sometimes they go a little over board with the salt. Anytime we have visitors this is one of the first places we take them to. Oh yeah, the staff are very friendly and the price is quite reasonable.
Re: “Parents and environmental activists concerned about sewage sludge fields near schools”
In this article it is stated:
"Approximately 88,500 dry tons of the sludge was spread in North Carolina in 2008, the report says."......"John Kiviniemi, of OWASA, spreading about 700 dry tons"
Notice that the only numbers shown were in TONS.... WHY IS THAT?... This is the "industry" ploy to confuse the public.... How many people can visualize or relate to or know what A TON OF SLUDGE LOOKS LIKE....??? WHY DIDN'T THEY USE "GALLONS"... ?? hmmmmm .. I wonder.... The public can relate to ---and know what a gallon of sludge looks like:
Here are facts IN GALLONS: 25,OOO,OOO PLUS GALLONS OF SLUDGE ARE SPREAD ON EACH OF THE 3 COUNTIES OF ALAMANCE, CHATHAM AND ORANGE PER YEAR... for a grand total of 75,000,000 gallons..
100,000,000 gallons of toxic sewage sludge are spread IN THE WATERSHED OF JORDAN LAKE... EACH YEAR!!!! and 'they' wonder why it is a cesspool....
50,000,000 gallons of sewage sludge are spread in the WATERSHED OF FALLS LAKE .... EACH YEAR!!! and they wonder why they have to close beaches every summer because of bacterial contamination....
really?????????????
Re: “Parents and environmental activists concerned about sewage sludge fields near schools”
What's to think. All of the above are serious public health challenges. The public must be organized ala the very successful Presidential type political examples in the recent past several years!
Respectfully,
John M. Ackerman, M.D.
johnmackerman@gmail.com
Re: “Public Schools First NC is sounding the alarm”
Where the heck is the Great NC education lottery money going? Quit robbing programs to enhance others if it fails cut it. If you don't have the frigging money don't spend it. We as a people need to wake up and realize most politicians are crooks they rob our hard earned money and gamble on stupid crap. 14,000,000 to fund research on snails. That was just a random made up example, but makes you think of some of the stupid crap they spend money on, while robbing our kids of an education. I am a non party person, but my beliefs are to quit paying our politicians so much give it to our soldiers and teachers. Kick them all out of office and start from scratch.
Re: “Parents and environmental activists concerned about sewage sludge fields near schools”
I will compliment the author on catching his mistake about Durham, however let me point out that though Durham county has no spray fields listed on the DENR 2009 data sheets the city of Durham does spray 1115.3 acres of land in neighboring Orange county withe their sewage-industrial waste.
There is another sleight of hand you have to look for, besides city vs. county or Class A vs. class B; don't be fooled when "sludge" is sprayed on a field and you are asked to explain why it doesn't smell... the material pulled out of a water treatment plant is also called "sludge" but of course it is not any where near the level of contamination as the "sludge" from a sewage facility, and is of course of little concern by comparison.
Re: “Parents and environmental activists concerned about sewage sludge fields near schools”
Dear Indy Editors: Please let me retract my hasty suggestion that y'all had given these two arguments, Kids health vs. Self serving conflict of interest equal time;
the same damming charge oft laid at the feet of main-stream journalism, a tidy little trick of corporate control that proposes debate on an issue that is cut and dry...
you do not spray sewage waste from a city near a school...
there is no countervailing opinion.
My retraction is given after having more carefully parsed the form of this article, looking at direct quotes attribute to supporters of potentially harming children vs those wanting to prevent harm to children, and to indirect quotes where the author simply says "According to DENR,..." or "as critics note".
Here is the data on the unintentional bias in this article, once it is parsed and served with a dollop of ire:
Those working to prevent sewage waste spray near schools got 5 direct quotes vs. those who would put children in Harms Way, with 7.
Preventing harm: number of total words in direct quotes: 85 words
Allowing continued sewage waste spraying near schools: 145... almost twice as many words in direct quotes.
Preventing harm: Number of words in indirect quotes: 185
Allowing continued sewage waste spraying near schools: 225... only 20% greater.
Re: “This week in disappointment: the budget, fracking again”
It is a crime that the Wright School was removed from the Senate budget and threatens to make this invaluable and unique service to families -- and to our State -- unavailble. Shame on our Senators. I hope the House does better. Kudos to the Indy for reporting this. Lisa's article is the only media analysis of the Senate budget I can find that mentions the Wright School
Re: “Parents and environmental activists concerned about sewage sludge fields near schools”
This article states: "Biosolids are broken down into Class A and Class B designations, with the former a higher-treatment option eliminating 99 percent of pathogens and bacteria."
These "labels" of Class A or B are another form of mis-information generated by the industry to quell the fears of the public... OWASA claims they only spread Class A, .... If sludge ends up being Class B rather than A, due to the failure of the "treatment process", then it is spread ANYWAY, with no notice to the neighborhood NOR THE FARMER THAT OWNS THE LAND... The farmer is not even given the option to decline the "FREE FERTILIZER" .... OWASA's fields have permits for both Class A or B! OWASA ...STOP LYING...
Secondly, CLASS A SLUDGE CAN BE SPREAD THICKER, WITH SMALLER BUFFERS..... there is loads of research, even by the sludge industry WERF, to show that these pathogens RE-EMERGE in the field.... Class A may kill pathogens, but the stronger, more virulent, more dangerous pathogens survive.....AND OTHER PATHOGENS RE-EMERGE AS THE TEMPERATURE AND pH NORMALIZES!....... THIS FACT IS DOCUMENTED IN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH!
Re: “Parents and environmental activists concerned about sewage sludge fields near schools”
411: In many cases, toxic sewage sludge is not offered for free... but farmers are PAID to take it.... they receive money for the use of their 'driveways' or 'right-a-ways" ......or they are paid to spread it for the WWTP, in the case of OWASA.... the farmer can take the crop off of OWASA land and sell it.... so they get a "free" product to sell.... often the WWTP will BUY land from the farmers after the wells are poisoned in the case of OWASA..... many farmers are paid out right, under the table... so, "FARMERS GET SLUDGE FOR FREE".... IS NOT ALWAYS THE CASE... and again... THIS IS AN INDUSTRY LIE....
Re: “Parents and environmental activists concerned about sewage sludge fields near schools”
Rubin says. "Well, you don't know what's in the food you eat, but you still eat it." This "line" must be the NEW INDUSTRY LINE he made up.... because I heard it Tuesday night from him..... I think Rubin has been breathing in too many sludge fumes in order to come up with convoluted logic such as this... I challenge Rubin to eat sewage sludge since "HE DOES NOT KNOW WHAT IS IN IT" ...go for it... RIGHT?? Really Rubin.... you expect people with a brain to buy this.... ? People demand to have 'ingredients' printed on the box of their cereal boxes, and the government complied... and consumers are quick to NOT buy something with a reported contamination.... AND BELIEVE ME... IF THEY KNEW THEIR CEREAL CONTAINED GRAINS GROWN IN SLUDGE... OR THE COW THEIR HAMBURGER CAME FROM, GRAZED ON TOXIC SEWAGE SLUDGE....... they would not buy it... otherwise, why is Organic food so popular...... DROP THAT LINE, RUBIN... IT ONLY MAKES YOU LOOK SILLY...
Myra Dotson, Chair
www.sewagesludgeactionnetwork.com
Re: “Public Schools First NC is sounding the alarm”
I would challenge the statement that North Carolina ranks 48th in the nation in education. Every time I hear a statistical fact like that, the first things that come to mind are, "According to who?" and "Based on what criteria?"
In this case, it seems folks are looking to the NEA for data. Even by the NEA's own data, the assertion is still wrong. The report is here: http://www.nea.org/assets/img/content/NEA_…
The report is a work of the NEA, "the voice of education professionals." AKA, the people to most like benefit from greater spending on education. The report itself is a measure of one thing and one thing only: Government spending on education.
"The data presented in this combined report―Rankings & Estimates―provide facts about the extent to which local, state, and national governments commit resources to public education. As one might expect in a nation as diverse as the United States—with respect to economics, geography, and politics—the level of commitment to education varies on a state-by-state basis. Regardless of these variations, improvements in public education can be measured by summary statistics. Thus, NEA Research offers this report to its state and local affiliates as well as to researchers, policymakers, and the public as a tool to examine public education programs and services."
Interesting that people keep drawing a strong correlation between money spent per student and quality of education when in fact there is a weak correlation, not a strong one. (SOURCE: http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2… )
A better measure is to look at outcomes and efficiencies. In terms of outcomes, North Carolina is above average, but still not that good. NC ranks 21st in the 17th edition of Education Week's Quality Counts report (Jan 4, 2013) Retrieved from http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2013/01/…
The Center for Applied Economic Research in Montana State University, Billings "Quality Rankings of Education in the Fifty States" takes an even more holistic approach to rankings. Their approach compares Teacher Quality, Education Input (spending), Education Output (test scores), Education Social Impact (a problematic score related to population average education and per capita income), and Education Efficiency (cost per student performing above average). Here North Carolina ranks 5th (above average teachers), 27th (below average spending), 25th (average achievement levels), 41st (below average social impact due to poverty levels), and 9th in overall efficiency.
So spending more money on eduction isn't necessarily the best means of achieving better education outcomes. Part of the problem lies in the fundamental basis for the definition of success in eduction outcomes. Today our primary and secondary education systems are largely based on the assumption of preparing children to become employees in an industrial society. The U.S. is no longer an industrial society, instead focused on services and applied sciences. It turns out we aren't the only country struggling to adapt our education system to deal with shifts in the nature of our economy and changes in workforce skills demanded by Globalization. See this TedTalk for more details: http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_chan…
What I would like to see is a report that breaks-down the Montana State University report by school district in North Carolina so that specific school district problems can be addressed and performance improved. But the protesters don't seem interested in that, per se. I think they would all do well to go read some Milton Friedman essays.