Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Paper or Plastic?

First we had to choose between paper or plastic in the grocery store. Now we apparently have to choose between paper or plastic for lawn bags. I've noticed bags like those in the picture below in a few different neighborhoods. Honestly, I have not seen many of them. However, there is at least some interest in them. I assume this interest is motivated by a desire to be environmentally sensitive. Let's discuss that a little bit.




Your view of what I'm going to share here will be colored by your stance on the environment. You likely fall into one of three categories, preservation, conservation, or utilitarian. I don't believe you can support a preservationist view biblically. I also think it is a stretch to support it logically unless you truly believe that the planet itself is more important than human beings. I'm going to assume that most people value human life above the planet and even above other organisms.

I'm hoping that most folks would be either in the conservation camp or the utilitarian camp. Conservationists believe in wise use of resources. Utilitarians believe that resources are here for our own benefit and are therefore think more liberally about them. But even they would realize, I hope, that using resources wantonly will eventually destroy them so that they would no longer benefit anyone.  I'm also hoping that either of those groups would find what I want to share here beneficial.

Back to the bags. The purposes, best I know, for using paper bags are that they are biodegradable and therefore a renewable resource; and that they are not made from petroleum products. What's the beef with petroleum products? Well, preservationists and conservationists might say that getting petroleum products out of the ground degrades the environment too much (I disagree). They also might be scared of running out of fossil fuels and would therefore seek to minimize their consumption. While utilitarians might say that petroleum quantities are limited and we need to use them for more worthwhile things like gasoline. Although they would be least likely to have a problem with using fossil fuels for anything.

Once upon a time the environmental police convinced the nation that  it was bad to use paper bags because too many trees are cut down to make paper (newsflash, trees grow back if you plan it right). Now that using fossil fuels has been vilified for various reasons, the environmental police want us to stop using plastic bags and use cloth. But cloth is obviously not practical for lawn trimmings so they have apparently pushed for paper bags (likely constructed from recycles paper). And people who want to take care of the environment are starting to buy into the notion. You see the result in the picture: large bags full of grass, leaves, sticks, and flowers waiting to go to the landfill.

At last, I'll get to the point. I trust you'll see the irony. In my opinion sending that much biomass to the landfill is way more harmful to the environment than not sending it regardless of what it is packaged in. Here's why. Lawn trimmings are rich organic matter. They contain loads of carbon, nitrogen, potassium and other materials that serve as nutrients in living systems. In a landfill they will remain largely in their present form. They will not decompose for hundreds of years due to the anaerobic environment inside the "dump". The more lawn waste we send to landfills, in paper or plastic, the more nutrients we are taking out of the natural cycles.

What's the solution? It is really very simple. Studies have shown that when done correctly cutting grass with a mulching mower can result in a healthy lawn. This also cuts down on the need for added fertilizers because you are returning nutrients to the lawn. Other lawn wastes can be composted. Finished compost makes great fertilizer for your lawn or garden. Larger items will eventually compost too. But if you don't have time for that you can have them chopped into mulch. You could even use them for firewood; that's not a great option but I like it better than the landfill.

So, there ya go. If you really want to be  nice to the environment, don't throw your yard away. But if you are going to throw it away, it really doesn't matter too much what kind of  bag you use.

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Time Flies

Everyone says that time flies when you are having fun. Apparently, it also flies when you're not. The last couple months have been very hard, but wow did they go by fast. I suppose there is a lesson in that, but it might take me a while to figure out what it is.

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Is This A Good Subculture That We've Created?

Please go on a hypothetical journey with me. I'm talking mostly to dads right now, but this will work for moms as well. I'd like you to put yourself into the scenario described below. Ready? Here we go.

Imagine that you have taken your son (or daughter) to school. He is in somewhere around 3rd to 6th grade (although it could be higher or lower); you pick. For some reason (you pick again) you don't have to be at work yet so you are just enjoying the morning. Your spouse contacts you to say that Junior has left an important item in his room and ask if you would mind dropping it by the school.

{At this point we could get into a discussion about whether or not you should bail your child out. But that is not what this blurb is about today. So please just bear with me and don't get sidetracked by that issue.}

You decide to help out so you retrieve the item and head back to the school. Normally, you would just drop the item at the office and school personnel would make sure your student receives it. However, you have heard some stories on the radio about public schools not allowing Christian parents on campus. This bothers you. In fact, you remember your elementary teachers telling your parents that they were always welcome in their classroom. You also remember that it is your tax dollars that fund the school. In a way, you are part owner of the place. Mostly though, you remember that this is your child- -not the school's. You can see him anytime you want. And you decide you want to see your son.

Of course the school's receptionist does not want to allow you down the hall as that "might disrupt the educational environment". However, you manage to persuade her and she issues you a visitor pass. As you approach your son's classroom you notice that students are at the whiteboard working math problems. Your son is one of them and you decide to be a fly on the wall and see how he does.

As you are peeking through the crack in the door the teacher suddenly starts screaming at your child. "Eddy, what is wrong with you? You know that's not how to do that problem. We did problems just like this yesterday. You should be able to get it right. You weren't paying attention. That's the sorriest excuse for a solution I've seen all day. My grandmother could do better than that and she has dementia." Blah, blah, blah.

What would you do? I'm guessing that most of you would be upset. Many of you would confront the teacher. Many of you would go to the administration demanding that the teacher be reprimanded or that your son be moved to a different class. Some of you might even take it all the way to the school board asking that the teacher be dismissed. Right?

Why would that be a problem? Because here in the west, we desire to live in a civilized society. We believe in the rule of law. Beyond that we want our culture ordered by certain morals, ethics, norms, and mores. The teacher's behavior is considered unacceptable according to those things by which we order our society. We do not believe that adults should treat one another like that and we definitely do not feel that adults should treat children like that.

O, but wait a minute. I suspect that you have just revealed a double standard that you are okay with. You probably would not allow a teacher to treat your child like that, unless the learning environment were a field or a court and the teacher was called "coach".  You see, we have created a subculture called youth sports in which many, if not most, of the values of a civilized society do not apply.

In this subculture parents let adults treat their children like second class citizens. Parents let their children treat other children like second class citizens. Parents let their children's worth be measured by how well they perform in this subculture. Parents send the message to their kids that as long as you are in this parallel world that we call sports, then you can act differently than you can in the other areas of your life. Of course, that message eventually becomes, you can act differently than other people in any part of life because people who are good at sports are special.

We have created this world. Yet, we act surprised when athletes beat up their girlfriends or yell obscenities in public buildings. Then, we want to act shocked and morally superior when authorities do not punish these athletes to our satisfaction. How on earth can we be surprised at behaviors like this when we have nurtured them within the sports subculture from the time our children start playing ball at the age of four or five?

What am I suggesting? Teach your kids to follow the golden rule in every aspect of their lives. Don't put up with coaches or other parents yelling at or demeaning kids in any venue. If it is not okay in your home or in a classroom or in your place of worship, then it is not okay on a playing field.  If you coach kids, give them the respect they deserve. Don't scream at them. Don't demean them. Remember that most of them will be done with their athletic careers by the time they leave high school or sooner. However, the lessons you teach them with your actions will stay with them their whole lives.

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

If you live in the Waco area you have a fun chance to support World Hunger Relief, Inc. this weekend. They are having the Ride for Relief in conjunction with their Farm Day on Saturday. You can support the Ride for Relief by riding, walking, running, or giving. It would be great if you would support them via our BMBC team. Here's the link:  https://whr.ejoinme.org/MyEvents/RideforRelief2014/SIGNUPFundraising/tabid/518696/Default.aspx?joinme=32265. The special code to join the team is "ute". Thanks!