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More of my designs. Click to see larger image. Feedback is appreciated

My design

My green t-shirt design. The text reads "The earth is the general and equal possesion of all humanity and therefore cannot be the property of individuals - Leo Tolstoy"
Tell me what you think of the design
If anyone likes it enough to purchase, just click on it :-))

STOP Animal ID . Org

Attention Organic And Local Food Consumers, Livestock And Horse Owners:
The USDA plans to make every owner of even one horse, cow, pig, goat, sheep, chicken, or pigeon register in a government database and subject their property and animals to constant federal and state government surveillance, and the animal owner will have to PAY for the privilege of owning animals!

Following text from STOPANIMALID.ORG

The National Animal Identification System (NAIS) is a national program to identify and track livestock animals, including poultry, horses, cattle, goats and sheep for the purpose of disease containment. NAIS plans to use RFID and GPS technology to track animals, and requires every farm or “premises” be registered with government agencies, even if that premises houses a single animal. While NAIS’s purported goal of disease containment appears to be beneficial, the requirement for American citizens to register privately-owned property for tracking and monitoring purposes has very serious implications for our privacy, rights and freedoms. StopAnimalID.org is the online manifestation of a grass roots refusal to submit to the latest grasping for control of what was once a government of We The People, but has now become a government of Them, The Agri-Conglomerates. This website is a means for like-minded individuals to band together and discover they are not alone in opposing this abuse of privacy and property rights. Our agenda, perhaps obviously enough, is to stop the National Animal Identification System. We hope to do this by first raising awareness among the public. To do this we will compile a wealth of data regarding the NAIS in an easy to peruse format online. We will also provide printable materials to put the basics of this issue and what it means into places where it will count most, such as feedstores, farm supply stores, farm auctions, etc. Secondly, we will facilitate communication and interaction via our forum, email and contact lists. We will seek to build an online community where like-minded individuals can go to review current events, their current personal and group tactics and actions and analyze both our successes and defeats. Finally, we will provide the information needed to effectively combat the juggernaut that is the NAIS, which bears down on us. From editorials to links to analysis of the law and meetings and public hearings. We will seek to publicize the names and addresses of people in positions that make them important to contact. We will push this data into as many hands as we possibly can and fight this issue at the grass roots, online and if needed eventually in the courts. But to succeed StopAnimalID.org needs the particpation of every single Citizen of these United States who still values freedom and the use of their private and personal property, not to mention their own privacy. Whether you own livestock or not your help is needed. We must have your participation, contribution and effort to succeed in spreading the word, raising consciousness and empowering this movement. Join the fight today. This may be one of the biggest issues of your life.

These Come From Trees

I stumbled upon a thesecomefromtrees.blogspot.com
What a great idea. You can buy these stickers and put them up on as many paper dispensers as you can and help save the trees.

Green Sites

If you have a green blog or website, do let me know. I would love to look at it for possible link exchanges on my main website www.downwithbasics.com
I do not link to sites that are heavily concentrated on ads. I want sites that provide quality content to my visitors. All my contact info can be found on my main site.

Greenest Cars for 2007

First runner up Toyota Camry Hybrid

EPA estimated fuel economy of 40 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway, plus near zero emissions with an AT-PZEV certification. Base price about $26000.

Others are:

2007 Honda Civic GX
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized the natural-gas Civic GX as the cleanest internal-combustion vehicle on Earth. With a modern, aerodynamic exterior, roomy cabin and ergonomic, supportive seats, the GX has everything you'd expect from a Civic. And because it uses compressed natural gas, the GX achieves remarkable fuel-cost savings, and helps decrease the world's dependence on oil. The Civic GX promises to lead the way to the advancement of fuel-cell vehicles, sooner than you might expect. Civic GX owners can purchase their own home-refueling appliance called Phill, which installs easily to a home gas line. With Phill, GX owners fill up when they come home, instead of having to go to a gas station.

Base price about $25000

Lexus GS 450h Hybrid

The GS 450h has an EPA-estimated fuel economy rating of 25 mpg city, 28 highway and 26 combined. Base Price $54,900

Mercedes-Benz E320 BLUETEC

It's the only diesel-powered luxury car sold in the U.S., and it has the highest fuel economy rating in its class (27 city/37 highway). But Mercedes can't sell it in the two biggest markets, California and New York, because it doesn't meet emissions standards and that's a problem.
Base price about $51000

Saturn Vue Green Line Hybrid

MPG 27 city. 32 Hwy

Base Price about $23000

The Real Cost of Free Plastic Bags.

Well over a billion single-use plastic bags are given out for free each day. But as the old adage says, nothing comes for free. Here are some facts to illustrate the actual costs paid by our environment and society for the fleeting convenience of unlimited, free, single-use plastic bags. To see the real costs, we must look at the "cradle to grave" multiple impacts and the effects of each phase of a bag's life.
Phase 1: Production Costs - The production of plastic bags requires petroleum and often natural gas, both non-renewable resources that increase our dependency on foreign suppliers. Additionally, prospecting and drilling for these resources contributes to the destruction of fragile habitats and ecosystems around the world. The toxic chemical ingredients needed to make plastic produces pollution during the manufacturing process. The energy needed to manufacture and transport disposable bags eats up more resources and creates global warming emissions.
Phase 2: Consumption Costs - Annual cost to US retailers alone is estimated at $4 billion. When retailers give away free bags, their costs are passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices.
Phase 3: Disposal and Litter Costs - Hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales and other marine mammals die every year from eating discarded plastic bags mistaken for food. Turtles think the bags are jellyfish, their primary food source. Once swallowed, plastic bags choke animals or block their intestines, leading to an agonizing death. On land, many cows, goats and other animals suffer a similar fate to marine life when they accidentally ingest plastic bags while foraging for food.
In a landfill, plastic bags take up to 1,000 years to degrade. As litter, they breakdown into tiny bits, contaminating our soil and water. When plastic bags breakdown, small plastic particles can pose threats to marine life and contaminate the food web.
A 2001 paper by Japanese researchers reported that plastic debris acts like a sponge for toxic chemicals, soaking up a million fold greater concentration of such deadly compounds as PCBs and DDE (a breakdown product of the notorious insecticide DDT), than the surrounding seawater. These turn into toxic gut bombs for marine animals which frequently mistake these bits for food.
Collection, hauling and disposal of plastic bag waste create an additional environmental impact. An estimated 8 billion pounds of plastic bags, wraps and sacks enter the waste stream every year in the US alone, putting an unnecessary burden on our diminishing landfill space and causing air pollution if incinerated.

Consumption Facts
Each year, an estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide. That comes out to over one million per minute. Billions end up as litter each year.
According to the EPA, over 380 billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps are consumed in the U.S. each year.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually. (Estimated cost to retailers is $4 billion)
According to the industry publication Modern Plastics, Taiwan consumes 20 billion bags a year—900 per person.
According to Australia’s Department of Environment, Australians consume 6.9 billion plastic bags each year—326 per person.
An estimated .7% or 49,600,000 end up as litter each year.

Environmental Impact

Hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales and other marine mammals die every year from eating discarded plastic bags mistaken for food.
Plastic bags don’t biodegrade, they photodegrade—breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic bits contaminating soil and waterways and entering the food web when animals accidentally ingest.
As part of Clean Up Australia Day, in one day nearly 500,000 plastic bags were collected.
Windblown plastic bags are so prevalent in Africa that a cottage industry has sprung up harvesting bags and using them to weave hats, and even bags.
Plastic bags are among the 12 items of debris most often found in coastal cleanups, according to the nonprofit Center for Marine Conservation.
What to do?
CHOOSE TO REUSE!!!