Here is a link to a website that can help prepare you for the rocky economic times ahead. Since 2003, my friend, Chris Martenson, has presented extremely compelling insights regarding the declining dollar, the insolvency of the US, peak oil, and the global economic crisis we now face. Please visit the website and take 'the crash course'. Sounds like a pitch, but I personally guarantee that if you visit the site and digest the material, it will change your perspective and your life.

http://www.chrismartenson.com/

Environmentalists Demand Certificate of 'No-Good' For Vermont Yankee
Demanding the closure of Vermont Yankee, A group calling themselves Green Mountain EarthFirst! challenged the Vermont Public Service board at their State Street office in Montpelier Monday morning. Dressed as elves and Santa Claus, the group entered the office insisting that the Public Service Board (PSB) revoke Entergy Vermont Yankee's certificate of the public good and instead sign a large cardboard certificate of the "public bad". "We've talked with Santa Claus and clearly Entergy Nuclear has been up to no good." Said one of the elves entering the office. The group held photographs of Vermont Yankee's 2007 cooling tower collapse and 2004 transformer fire as well as giant banner reading 'Do the public a service, close VT. Yankee!'

While the Vermont Public Service Board considers granting Entergy Nuclear a Certificate of the Public Good to continue operating the 30-year-old Vernon reactor until 2032, many Vermonters question the reliability, safety and costs associated with clean up. " Due to accidents, leaks and decay Entergy is regularly having to power down, decontaminate workers and scramble to keep a clean image in the media. They want to keep this kind of behavior going for another 25 years! We say no way!" exclaimed Bill Smith, an impassioned Vermonter at the demonstration.

In an effort to receive a twenty-year license extension, Entergy is claiming that it will not have the money to pay to pay for decommissioning the plant until 2026. According to Green Mt. Earthfirst!er Erik Gillard " Entergy is leading us on. They haven't given a penny to the decommissioning fund since they bought the place, yet they're promising $60 million twenty years down the road. They're trying to bribe the state to renew the license." Earlier this month, Entergy said the decommissioning fund was valued at $397 million, that's $43 million short of where the fund stood before the stock market fell in

The Public Service Board refused to sign the group's 'certificate of public no good' and was met with a blizzard of 'styrofoam snow'. "Bad decisions around this issue have brought the PSB an early and cold nuclear winter." said one demonstrator. Concerned about possible toxicity the PSB called the Fire Department to clean up the fake snow. "if they are worried about potentially hazardous substances they ought to close VT Yankee. That place dumps radioactive waste on Vermont land daily." said Gillard.

When asked about the event, the man posing as Santa Claus responded, "Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee is dangerous, dirty and out of control. They've been lying and cheating Vermont for years. They are on the bad list and deserve a certificate of the public no-good. The PSB needs to know-ho-ho this."

Vermont Senate Majority Leader, Gubernatorial Candidates, Energy Experts and Popular Entertainers Slated to Participate in Festivities Celebrating Clean, Green Energy Future

15 October 2008, Brattleboro, VT -- The Safe & Green Campaign invites the public to celebrate the opportunity to make history and lead New England and the U.S. toward a clean, green energy future by participating in a Nuclear Free Jubilee on Saturday, October 25, 2008. A procession through downtown Brattleboro, led by the internationally renowned Bread & Puppet Theater, and festivities on the Brattleboro Common will highlight broad public support for retiring the 35-year old Entergy/Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor in 2012 as mandated in its original license prior to the Vermont Legislature's vote in 2009, which will determine the plant's future.

The public is encouraged to take part in the procession by carrying banners and wearing costumes that reinforce the message that Vermonters want the legislature to vote to shut down Entergy/Vermont Yankee as scheduled in 2012, and, thereby, fuel the drive toward sustainable alternative energy sources and "green collar" jobs and industries.

Confirmed Jubilee speakers include Vermont State Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin, gubernatorial candidates Gaye Symington and Anthony Pollina, internationally recognized nuclear energy expert Harvey Wasserman, and Citizen Awareness Network's Director Deb Katz, among others.

"The Jubilee is a great way for citizens to show the Vermont legislature and the Public Service Board their opposition to permitting the second oldest nuclear reactor in the U.S. to operate for two decades beyond the original date slated for its closure," noted Safe & Green's Co-Campaign Coordinator Randy Kehler. "The Jubilee's Green Energy Fair also will allow people to investigate and celebrate the real options that exist now to build a better energy future," added Safe & Green Campaign member Elizabeth Williams.

Shumlin Says Entergy Vote May be 'Most Crucial Choice Legislators Make in This Biennium'
"The vote on whether or not to permit Entergy/Vermont Yankee to extend its operation may well be the most crucial choice legislators make in the upcoming biennium," stated Vermont Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin. "Currently," he added, "when Entergy says jump, Governor Douglas says, How high? As Entergy attempts to walk away from the promises it made to Vermonters to cover Vermont Yankee's decommissioning costs by spinning off the plant to a new, junk bond rated company, Vermonters' voices must be heard."

Notably, a series of mishaps at Vermont Yankee, an accumulation of unanticipated radioactive waste on the banks of the Connecticut River and an inadequate decommissioning fund ­ exacerbated by the plummeting stock market -- have raised questions regarding whether the plant's owner and operator, Louisiana-based Entergy Corporation can be relied on to act in Vermonters' best interests. Entergy plans to spin-off operations and obligations for the decommissioning and cleanup of its aging reactors, including Vermont Yankee, to a new corporation -- of its own creation-- named Enexus Energy Company. As a result, the potential long-term down sides for Vermonters of such a business deal are now being more widely discussed.

Cuomo Calls Sister Reactor in New York 'A Catastrophe Waiting to Happen'
Entergy is also seeking an extension for Vermont Yankee's sister reactors, the Indian Point II and III plants in New York, which are supposed to close in 2013 and 2015, respectively. New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is leading the fight to shut down Indian Point, calling it "a catastrophe waiting to happen." Cuomo has voiced concern about Entergy's plan to spin off these aging reactors to a new shell corporation that may lack the financial resources to operate safely and pay for the eventual cleanup of radioactive waste currently building-up at these sites. Cuomo also has challenged the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) safety assessment oversight and criteria. In spite of increasing calls by public citizens nation-wide for local, independent safety assessments, the NRC alone has the power to determine whether or not the 104 nuclear power plants in the U.S. are operating safely

The Green Mountain State's vote is being closely monitored nationally because the Vermont Legislature has the unique ability to weigh-in on the closure of a nuclear reactor. Although the NRC has the power to issue a license that would enable the aging power plant to run at expanded output for two more decades, the Vermont Public Service Board cannot issue the Certificate of Public Good necessary for the plant to operate without the legislature's approval.

Jubilee's Green Energy Fair Will Highlight Renewable Energy Resources
The Nuclear Free Jubilee will kick-off at 10:30 am with a procession starting at Elm and Flat Streets. The Bread & Puppet Theater will lead marching bands, entertainers and community members along Main Street in downtown Brattleboro. The procession will culminate at the Brattleboro Common where there will be a performance by Bread and Puppet Theater, a Green Energy Fair, speakers and music. Bread & Puppet Theater's founder, Peter Schumann, will kick off the festivities at the Common with a performance of "Insurrection Mass" at approximately 11:30 am. Entertainment also will be provided by the notorious Reverend Billy of the Church of Stop Shopping, Nerissa and Katryna Nields, the MacArthur Family and Charlie King, among others. Bread & Puppet Theater needs thirty volunteers to help build puppets and participate in the procession's theatrical piece. For more information call: 802-348-9818.

The Green Energy Fair on the Common will include a wide variety of interactive displays by renewable energy businesses and community groups. There also will be information on organizations and initiatives working to promote a clean, renewable energy future. For more information about the Green Energy Fair, or to find out how your organization can get involved or have a booth, call: 802-257-5725.

The Nuclear-Free Jubilee is sponsored by Safe & Green, a grassroots campaign in the 20-mile zone surrounding Entergy Corporation's Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor. For more information about Safe & Green, contact Randy Kehler at rkehler@crocker.com. For more information about the Nuclear Free Jubilee, contact Bob Bady at 802-254-9098 or bobbady@gmail.com. www.nuclearfreejubilee.org
Contact: Valerie A. Stuart, Cell phone: (802) 338-6578

A New Community Gardens in Williamsville, Vermont

This is the year to start gardening!
Amazing Planet! Farm, located at 218 Depot Road in Williamsville, invites you to join our brand new, spring 2008, community gardens!

Yes, we are a new farm and we want to share the land with our friends and neighbors (priority given to people who live, work or spend time in the Newfane, South Newfane and Williamsville area).

With the increasing price of food and fuel, it is essential to invest in food security. Community gardens are a great way to share vital resources, knowledge, skills and most importantly community spirit! Let's grow organic vegetables, fruits and flowers together!

We are offering 15 plots (10x20 ft. each).
The cost is $25 for the growing season (May-October)
We are accepting people immediately and we will make the space available by the third week in May. We encourage you to spread the word to your friends and neighbors.

Amazing Planet ! Farm & Justice Center is:

A new cooperative eco-friendly farm and activist center, committed to sustainable living and revolutionary change, is emerging in southern Vermont.

Simultaneously working with the forces of nature and the movement for global justice is a winning combination. Given the state of the world, it is reassuring to learn how to grow our own food and to depend on our neighbors for both the necessities of life and invaluable community spirit.

We hope this space will facilitate problem-solving on planetary, community and personal levels. Come visit, experience progressive rural Vermont, and help honor this amazing planet!

We are open to input in regards to needs and requests from the local community. What would you like to see happen with the land? How could the community benefit from this farm? In what ways could this farm supplement as a community gathering space?

Please contact Sam or Slug via email - info@amazingplanetfarm.com or call 802-348-9818 or swing by the farm for more information.