Category: Climate Change

Hail to the Mighty Mushroom plus the Importance of Good Governance and Leadership with George Polisner, Founder of Civ.Works

“There never was a good war or a bad peace.” -Letter to Sir Joseph Banks, president of the Royal Society of London, July 1783

“Pardoning the Bad, is injuring the Good.” Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1748

Benjamin Franklin was a scholar, a thinker, was ambitious, rebellious, persuasive and he helped draft the Declaration of Independence. He tried to make sense out of things while using the art of compromise. He was adept at reading the room. Though I try to make sense of the world these days, I cannot wrap my head around what is going on around me, as very few people seem to be reading the room. I know that there are those who think the same way I do, but I am losing my confidence that even though I think there are more of us who care, those who don’t, those who are bowing to authoritarian leaders, and those who are in it for their version of it’s pay back time, seem to capture the news and the attention of the populous. There are people and companies doing amazing things for the greater good, but they are hidden under the radar. The unsung heroes of science and innovation tend to go unnoticed. In the US, President Biden has accomplished more than the majority of past presidents, and he gets little recognition. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 has climate/clean energy provisions, medicare drug negotiations, provisions to invest in domestic energy production and manufacturing, and reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030, and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) law authorizes $1.2 trillion for transportation and infrastructure spending with $550 billion of that figure going toward “new” investments and programs . In addition to these two major Acts, President Biden has expanded overtime guarantees for millions, made over-the-counter birth control pills available, and he established the Office of Gun Violence Prevention. In 2023, schools were awarded $286 million in federal dollars to support student wellness and school mental health professionals. Renewable power is now the No. 2 source of electricity in the U.S. There is a  sweeping crackdown on “junk fees” and overdraft charges. He is cracking down on cyberattacks, reinvigorating cancer research to lower death rates, making airlines pay up when flights are delayed or canceled and much, much more. He has experience, and yes, he can read the room.  An article in Politico in February 2024 listed the 30 things President Joe Biden has as done you might have missed and I encourage you to read that article at https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/02/02/joe-biden-30-policy-things-you-might-have-missed-00139046

How do we get the word out so that people know what is being done to help them. I don’t think we are paying attention, and the media, the fourth estate, is not doing its job. So on this episode our resident environmentalist, political analyst and curmudgeon, George Polisner, founder of Civ.works, gives us some insight into current events in the political and environmental arenas. We discuss eco innovations regarding mushroom technology, plus issues of governance, leadership, politics, the media, elections 2024, and more. Get more info at Civ.Works and check out the mighty mushroom at https://www.ecovative.com/ For past programs go to HudsonRiverRadio.com, MalcolmPresents.com and themanyshadesofgreen.com. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen and listen to TMSOG podcast on all major podcast apps.

The Many Shades of Green is proud to be number 8 on Feedspot’s List of the 50 Best Environmental podcasts to follow in 2024 https://podcasts.feedspot.com/environmental_podcasts/

#RaiseYourEcoConsciousness

Eco-Tech Innovations (Seaweed, WOTA, Carbon Capture), Women’s History Month, Pisces Rules the Ocean and Water, with Eco-activist, artist and Sexy Astrologist Charlotte Ghiorse

Climate change is here, it’s undeniable, and it affects our lives daily. Extreme weather is in every part of the globe and in our own backyards. It is imperative that action be taken to reduce global warming and carbon emissions. While climate action seems to be lagging behind the pace of climate change, there are new technologies and climate tech innovations being worked on to replace fossil fuels and plastics.  Climate tech is now being deployed at a record pace.  A recent article in Fast Company stated that the world is on track to triple renewable energy by the end of the decade. In 2023, an energy transition began to unfold across the economy. Innovation and science are leading the way with promising technologies to help reduce CO2 emissions. There is a a new factory making jet fuel from CO2, and a cargo ship running on green methanol made from food waste. Some additional new solutions that give us optimism that it’s possible to avoid the worst impacts of climate change include: better batteries for Electronic Vehicles, installation of heat pumps, and carbon renewal using crushed mineral powder. These climate tech solutions are in the works and are making  inroads to clean technology on the local, national and global stage. 

   On this episode, our resident eco-activist, artist and Founder of Sexy Astrology Charlotte Ghiorse, gives us some insight about what work is being done within the scientific community in the climate tech arena regarding carbon capture, water purifying technology, and how seaweed can be converted to a biopolymer as a substitute for plastic. We also touch on Women’s History Month and Charlotte has astrology updates and some notes for Malcolm who is a Pisces, the sign which rules the ocean and water. For more info go to https://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-tech?page=1

Follow Sexy Astrology and House of Choclet on Facebook and on the web at https://www.houseofchoclet.com/ For past shows go to HudsonRiverradio.com, Malcolmpresents.com and themanyshadesofgreen.com. Please give us some feedback via Instagram, Facebook, Threads @tmshadesofgreen, and tune in to TMSOG podcast on Spotify, Amazon, Spreaker.com, Apple, iHeart and more. #RaiseYourEcoConsciousness

TMSOG is proud to be on Feedspot’s top 50 (#8) Environmental podcasts to follow in 2024 https://podcasts.feedspot.com/environmental_podcasts/

Food Scrap programs, Recycle Rangers, and yes, you can recycle used paint cans in NYS, plus more great information on the importance of local community eco-actions with Michelle Sterling and Youth Environmentalist Alexa Troob

The Power of Local community action is essential to empower communities to become resilient. Actions on the local level build a sense of ownership and responsibility and improves the effectiveness of initiatives which promote sustainability. Local governments, schools and organizations must address the climate concerns of the residents in their communities, which helps promote sustainable practices in their towns and villages in order to get green initiatives passed. What happens locally goes global! Our guest on this episode of TMOSG is Michelle Sterling, who has been instrumental in launching sustainability initiatives throughout Scarsdale and Westchester County. She is the co-chair of Scarsdale’s Sustainability committee and is on their Conservation council as well.  Michelle works with her sustainability partner Ron Schulhof, to help Scarsdale Village, as well as all seven Scarsdale Schools and a number of Scarsdale Houses of Worship, launch food scrap recycling and zero waste programs. Their efforts have made a tremendous impact within the community as well as throughout Westchester County, and they have now helped 21 towns within in the county, and several towns outside of Westchester start municipal food scrap recycling programs. We are also joined by Alexa Troob, who is a youth champion of the environment, a journalist and a student member of the Sustainability Advisory Board in the Town of New Castle New York. We discuss the Food Scrap Program in Scarsdale, the EPR Packaging Bill in NYS and the Paint Recycling Program. To reach out to Michelle email her at: [email protected]. Some helpful links are below:

https://dec.ny.gov/environmental-protection/recycling-composting/postconsumer-paint-collection

https://insideclimatenews.org/news/20022024/environmental-groups-eye-potential-win-with-new-york-packaging-bill/

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2023/S4246/amendment/A

For past shows go to HudsonRiverRadio.com, MalcolmPresents.com and themanyshadesofgreen.com. Listen to the podcast on apps via Amazon, Apple, Spotify, Spreaker.com and more. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen. TMSOG is proud to be #8 on Feedspot’s 50 Best Environmental podcasts to follow in 2024 https://podcasts.feedspot.com/environmental_podcasts/

Leap Year, ‘Big Nights’ for Frogs Leaping towards their Vernal Pools and Keystone Plants with Victoria Alzapiedi, Co-founder, New Castle Healthy Yards

We are now in a leap year which happens every four years, and it exists, for the most part to keep the months in sync with annual events, including equinoxes and solstices. According to the JPL (Jet Propulsion Lab), it is a correction to counter the fact that Earth’s orbit isn’t precisely 365 days a year. When we think of a Leap year, we think of presidential elections in the US and the Summer Olympics. Spring is now approaching and everyone is becoming more aware that the climate is changing, and that the seasons are starting earlier. Hibernating animals and insects are getting more confused and are waking from their hibernation earlier. Kermit and his friends are finding it harder to be green. During this time of year ‘Big Nights’ occur when frogs and salamanders wake from hibernation to get to vernal pools to lay eggs and mate. Unfortunately, many are killed by cars as they cross roads. The NY DEC (dec.ny.gov) has a volunteer training programs which trains people to help the frogs and salamanders cross roadways get to their vernal pools. This program can also be used for people in other states to help save the lives of these precious amphibians. Our resident garden, wildlife and healthy yards guru Victoria Alzapiedi, gives us great info about Big Nights, and she also talks about the importance of Keystone plants, and what we can do to preserve ecosystems in the coming months. For more info check out New Castle Healthy Yards on Facebook. Go to Scenic Hudson for additional information:

https://www.scenichudson.org/viewfinder/gearing-up-for-amphibians-big-night and https://dec.ny.gov/nature/waterbodies/oceans-estuaries/hudson-river-estuary-program/conservation-and-land-use-program/amphibian-migrations-and-road-crossings and https://www.vernalpool.org/

Link to program NYDEC https://meetny.webex.com/recordingservice/sites/meetny/recording/dbb3114db3fb103cbfbe005056816f6f/playback

https://dec.ny.gov/nature/waterbodies/oceans-estuaries/hudson-river-estuary-program/conservation-and-land-use-program/amphibian-migrations-and-road-crossings

For past TMSOG shows go to https://hudsonriverradio.com/the-many-shades-of-green.html, Malcolmpresents.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen. Listen to The Many Shades of Green on all major podcast apps (Apple, Amazon, Spotify, Spreaker.com and more). TMSOG is proud to be on Feedspots list of the 50 Best Environmental podcasts to follow in 2024 @ #8 https://podcasts.feedspot.com/environmental_podcasts/

#Raise Your Eco-Consciousness

The Million Dollar Hockey Stick, Climate Scientists Fight Back + The Controversy over Frozen Eggs, with George Polisner, Founder of Civ.Works

My job can’t just be- to calmly document the end of the world.” Rose Abramoff, Earth Scientist.

Peter Kalmus, a climate scientist, is in constant freak out mode, as he is plagued by the increasing certainty that, “if we continue burning fossil fuels at this pace, that will render large parts of the planet uninhabitable.” He further went on to say that “policymakers in general are not responding appropriately to the science that we’ve been giving them.” At the 2023 American Geophysical Union Conference in San Francisco, Rose Abramoff, an earth scientist and Peter Kalmus leapt onto the stage and unfurled a banner for Scientist Rebellion. Kalmus yelled, “As scientists we have tremendous leverage, but we need to use it.” Rose Abramoff pleaded, “Please. Please. Find a way to take action.” They were both taken offstage and banned from the conference. Another climate scientist, Dr. Michael Mann, has been in court for over ten years fighting  to clear his name after the Competitive Enterprise Institute, which has said that it “questions global warming alarmism,” and compared Dr. Mann on a blog hosted by the institute, to a convicted sex offender “Instead of molesting children,” the post read, “he has molested and tortured data in the service of politicized science.” Then a conservative writer republished parts of that post on a blog hosted by National Review and added that Dr. Mann was “behind the fraudulent climate-change ‘hockey stick’ graph.” After ten years in court, a jury in Washington DC recently found both writers were liable for defamation and Dr. Mann was awarded one million dollars in punitive damages. We all know that the climate is warming, polar ice is melting, glaciers are receding, the chemistry of the ocean is becoming dangerously acidic and sea levels are rising. Yet the scientists researching the fallout from those facts which were established more than 100 years ago, continue to face attacks that threaten their research, reputations and livelihoods. Science, yes science, and facts, yes, facts must be used to determine how climate affects the environment. We must support scientists and facts over lies and conspiracy theories. Dr. Mann fought for his right to not be harassed, and Peter Kalmus and Rose Abramoff will not let extremism replace the research that clearly points to the fact that the extraction and burning of fossil fuels by the oil and gas industries, is one of the leading causes of climate change. Our resident environmentalist, political analyst and curmudgeon George Polisner, founder of Civ.works, gives us some insight into climate science, and we discuss how Climate Scientists are fighting back in court. We also touch on the latest blow to women’s reproductive rights, as a controversial Alabama Supreme Court decision stopped IVF treatments, stating that frozen embryos, whether they are within or outside a uterus, are considered children.

For past shows go to HudsonRiverRadio.com, Malcolmpresents.com and themanyshadesofgreen.com. Follow TMSOG on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen and tune into TMSOG podcast on Apple, Amazon, Spreaker.com, Spotify and more. #RaiseYourEcoConsciousness.

The Many Shades of Green is proud to be on Feedspot’s list of the 50 Best Environmental podcasts to follow in 2024 (at number 8). https://podcasts.feedspot.com/environmental_podcasts/

Plastic in the Clouds, Pluto in Aquarius and more with Artist, Eco-Activist and Sexy Astrologist, Charlotte Ghiorse

Plastic is everywhere. In our blood, in our food (beer, honey, salt) and more. A one liter of bottle of water contains 240,000 detectable plastic fragments. Microplastics are even in clouds! Joni Mitchell did not in a million years think that plastic would be inside clouds when she wrote the lyrics to her iconic tune “Both Sides Now” Joni wrote about the clouds and said:

But now they only block the sun

They rain and they snow on everyone

So many things I would have done

But clouds got in my way

I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now

From up and down and still somehow

It’s cloud illusions I recall

I really don’t know clouds at all

Plastic in clouds is not an illusion, so maybe the lyric needs to be updated to say:

Now microplastics are in the air

within the clouds and everywhere, 

now scientists are really scared 

they know what must be done, 

We have to work to clear the skies 

and wipe the plastic from our eyes,

from tears and rain we cannot hide

plastic cannot rule the way 

On this episode we focus on how plastic winds up in clouds. Researchers recently collected 28 samples of liquid from clouds at the top of Mount Tai in eastern China. They found microplastic fibers—from clothing, packaging, and tires—in their samples. Lower altitude and denser clouds contained greater amounts of microplastics. Plastic is now part of the Earth’s geology as it is in rocks, reefs, and shells, soil and more. It now has a geologic name: plastistones. We discuss how plastic is infiltrating the environment and getting into the clouds, and we delve into astrology-Pluto in Aquarius, with our resident eco-activist, artist, and sexy Astrologist, Charlotte Ghiorse. For more info about plastic/chemicals in our environment go to asc.org. Get more info about Charlotte via HouseofChoclet.com and Sexy Astrology on YouTube. Find more shows on HudsonRiverRadio.com, Malcolmpresents.com, and TMSOG – themanyshadesofgreen.com. Follow us and Like us on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen, and listen and share TMSOG podcast on Apple, Amazon, Spotify, iHeart (Spreaker.com) and more. #RaiseYourEcoConsciousness

The Many Shades of Green is proud to be on Feedspot’s list of environmental podcasts to follow in 2024 (@ #8) https://podcasts.feedspot.com/environmental_podcasts/

Groundhog Day, Climate Change, PETA and Purple Haze with Rusti Wolintz

It’s official: spring is right around the corner.Punxsutawney Phil DID NOT SEE HIS SHADOW in front of thousands of spectators at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, part of the annual Groundhog Day tradition celebrated in the U.S. and Canada. That means, according to the legend, we’re in for an early spring. Phil predicted an early spring for the 21st time since records were kept. (USA Today 2.2.24) The question arises as to how climate change will affect future Groundhog Day predictions.

Having attended the Groundhog festivities on 02.02.02, with my guest and BFF Rusti Wolintz, on this episode we discuss our Bucket List adventure to Punxsutawney, which was quite the time. As the crowd screamed PHIL! PHIL! PHIL! in frigid temperatures, we watched the ceremony unfold as the Groundhog Inner Circle took Phil out of his hollow tree stump to predict the weather. We are now in 2024, and while most people depend on the more advanced methods of their favorite meteorologist, we still wake up on Groundhog Day to the tune of ‘I Got You Babe’ and travel in our minds to the **Tip Top Cafe in the Groundhog Day movie (that’s for you Mr. Murray), to find out if the prediction of the groundhog, through some telepathic connection with humans, will determine if there will be six more weeks of winter, or if spring will come early. If he sees his shadow after coming out of his hollow, there will be six more weeks of winter, and if he does not see his shadow, people can expect spring to be around the corner. In essence we put Phil, Staten Island Chuck, and General Beauregard Lee the premier groundhog prognosticators, in the limelight to predict the weather, which as we all know has been more extreme. So in addition to predicting the shifting of seasons, Phil and company now have another challenge: climate change. We already know that across the U.S., spring is getting warmer and it is starting an average of three days earlier too. Spring is usually upon us when small leaves begin to sprout on trees, but in recent years, spring leaf out arrived in the Southeast over three weeks earlier than the long-term average (1981-2010) in some locations. Austin, TX is 10 days early, Jackson, MS and Charleston, SC are 17 days early, and Wilmington, NC is 22 days early. Warmer springs can cause plants to bloom earlier, impact migrating species and hibernating animals, and increase the amount of seasonal insects. We must address global warming and take action to reduce greenhouse gases. To get more info go to NASA.gov, nationalgeographic.org, NOAA at climate.gov and groundhog.org,

For past shows go to HudsonRiverRadio.com, Malcolmpresents.com, plus themanyshadesofgreen.com. Follow TMSOG on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen. Listen to the TMSOG podcast on Spotify, Apple, Amazon, iHeart, Spreaker.com and more. #RaiseYourEcoConsciousness. The Many Shades of Green is honored to be on the Feedspot list of top environmental podcasts at number 8: https://podcasts.feedspot.com/environmental_podcasts/

**Correction, during the episode it was stated that the Groundhog Day movie had the Tik Tok Diner, when it was the Tip Top Cafe.

Behavioral Crisis: Unmasking the Root Cause of Climate Breakdown

We are in a climate crisis, and we seem to be blinded by what is happening right before our eyes. Weather events have become more extreme, yet people continue to look the other way, because they think if they don’t acknowledge it, the problem will go away. Well, time is not on your side, so it would be beneficial if you look up from your screens, and take some responsibility for the current climate crisis. Human behavior has to come to grips with what is going on. Climate change is an immense challenge. Human behavior is crucial in climate change mitigation, and in tackling the arising consequences. The ‘human factor’ has not always received much attention in key research areas, such as climate modeling.  Temperatures are rising and immediate and significant climate action is needed. There is a tremendous amount of work to be done.

 The fight against climate change is a collective endeavor and requires large scale solutions. Collective action, and collective will has to start with individuals acting as change agents who raise awareness, and are the driving force of needed action. A super change agent and our resident environmentalist, political analyst, civic activist and curmudgeon George Polisner, founder of Civ.works, gives us some insight into the need for human behavior to tackle global warming. We also discuss the Chevron Doctrine and the impending case before SCOTUS, the generational economic despair on both sides of the political spectrum, and more. For additional information go to Civ.works. For past shows go to HudsonRiverRadio.com and Malcolmpresents.com. Follow The Many Shades of Green on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen. Subscribe to TMSOG podcast on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, Spreaker.com and more. #RaiseYourEcoConsciousness

TMSOG Podcast

The Woolly Bear Caterpillar and other Winter Wildlife with Victoria Alzapiedi, Co-Founder of New Castle Healthy Yards (S12 E1)

Bears have tucked themselves away as winter is upon us. When the weather outside is frightful, most of us choose to spend most of our time indoors. Animals, however, don’t exactly have a choice. So what do our furry and non-furry friends do when it is frigid and snowy? Some animals migrate to warmer climates, particularly birds, while others have to adapt and get through the bad weather. Some animals, like Da bears, hibernate, and go into a very  deep sleep.  Other animals like Chipmunks (ALVIN!) eat a lot in the fall to store fat in their bodies and intermittently slow down their breathing. Survival is not easy, but many animals adapt and manage to get through the frigid winter months (chipmunks, bears and skunks). Then there is the Woolly Bear Caterpillar, which has even been known to survive an entire winter completely frozen in an ice cube. As far as the woolly bear caterpillar’s travel goes, they are simply moving about in search for that perfect spot to curl up and spend the winter. With climate change and warmer temperatures, animals will have to readjust, adapt and create new habits and habitats. We need to be proactive in creating habitats in our own backyards to support the needs of wildlife.  Victoria Alzapiedi our resident garden, wildlife and healthy yards guru gives us great info about winter wildlife and what we can do to preserve ecosystems in the winter. Victoria is a co-founder of New Castle Healthy Yards, and is a member of Friends of Buttonhook, which is working to save a 20.3 acre forrest in the Town of New Castle. She is also the founder of My Native Garden Oasis which provides ecosystem garden coaching and consulting to create habitat for pollinators, birds and wildlife. Follow New Castle Healthy Yards and My Native Garden Oasis on Facebook. For more TMSOG podcasts go to HudsonRiverRadio.com and Malcolmpresents.com. Subscribe to TMSOG on all major podcast apps, and check us out on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen. #RaiseYourEcoConsciousness

It’s A Wrap 2023 with the Fab 4 George Polisner, Neil Richter, Rusti Wolintz and Malcolm Burman

The lyric of the chorus of the song California Reggae Debate/ You’ve Got the Power, written and performed by my Token Bro now in Rock n Roll Heaven, Mitch Margo, points to the power we have, which we must use our highest potential. We must create a world where the collective will thrives, to keep the planet from imploding. Collective will is crucial to perpetuate the greater good! There were many things to be happy about in 2023, and many things that were truly horrible. While words are important, actions in most cases, speak louder than words, and we need be more proactive in making the planet a greener and safer place to live and thrive. The lyrics below of California Reggae Debate are great words to follow:

You’ve go the power, I’ve seen you use it

You think you don’t have it, that’s how you lose it!

The Fab 4, George Polisner, Neil Richter, Rusti Wolintz and Malcolm Burman join me (Maxine Margo Rubin), in discussing what made us happy, what pissed us off in 2023, and what we hope to see in the coming New Year. There are more of us doing good and making a difference. The Press, seems to hightlight the evil, and that has to change. For more info go to Civ.Works, and for current and past shows go to HudsonRiverRadio.com and Malcolmpresents.com. Follow The Many Shades of Green (TMSOG) on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen. Please subscribe to TMSOG podcast on Spotify, Apple, Amazon, iHeart, Spreaker.com and more. You’ve Got The Power, I’ve Seen You Use It, You Think You Don’t Have It, That’s How You Lost it! SO USE THE POWER YOU HAVE #RaiseYourEcoConsciousness

Hopeful Solutions to Plastic Pollution with Eco-Activist, Artist and Sexy Astrologist Charlotte Ghiorse

According to earth.org plastic pollution is leaving behind impacts for generations to come. If our current rate of pollution continues, experts predict that there will be MORE PLASTIC THAN FISH IN THE OCEAN BY 2050. We need solutions, and there is ongoing research and many promising innovations on the horizon, as well as new discoveries which are happening daily to help reduce plastic pollution. There are scientists working on solutions from NASA Satellite Technology which finds micro-plastics in the ocean, and the mighty fungi has yet another important function, eating plastic, hail to the mushroom! Japanese Scientist and Inventor Akinori Ito invented a machine to recycle plastic bags into usable fuel oil. We simultaneously need to tackle the problem of plastic which is already in the water, as well as what to do with the plastic that is recycled and what needs to be done to reduce manufacturing of single use plastic. Corporations must do better in producing containers made with more sustainable materials at the point of production, that will not leave plastics in the earth for centuries.

On this episode, the shade of green is phthalo (a mixture of yellow ochre and a little cool green viridian), and we get some insight about what work is being done within the scientific community to help reduce plastic pollution and waste, with our resident eco-activist, artist and Sexy Astrologist Charlotte Ghiorse. We also intertwine astrology connections to the environment within the discussion (Mars in Sagittarius and Pluto in Capricorn). For more info go to houseofchoclet.com and visit Sexy Astrology on Facebook and YouTube. Visit Earth.org for eco news and for past TMSOG podcasts go to HudsonRiverRadio.com and Malcolmpresents.com. Please subscribe to The Many Shades of Green podcast on Spotify, Apple, Amazon, iHeart, Spreaker.com and more. Follow TMSOG on Facebook, Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen. #RaiseYourEcoConsciousness

Whistleblowers, The Cost of Clean Air, and Misdirection of the Media with George Polisner, Founder of Civ.Works

This quote by Lionel Fisher is dedicated to my MudgeBro Phil Margo who was the ultimate Curmudgeon….“Curmudgeons speak up because they have to, because it’s become critically important for them to tell the truth as they see it. Telling the truth is as natural to them once more as it was when they were children. The fact that no one cares to listen is inconsequential. Curmudgeons speak up, raise their voices, stand for something too right to be silent about anymore, whatever the cost, despite a world that deals with what it doesn’t want to hear by crucifying the messenger. Increasingly these days, they’re being called by another name: whistleblower.”

 Let’s face it, we live in a topsy turvy world, and times are difficult. We don’t know who or what to trust, and we rely on those on the inside to speak up when something goes awry. People who stand up to report wrongdoing within government, industry and institutions are called whistleblowers. According to the Government Accountability Project a common legal definition of a whistleblower is someone, typically an employee, who discloses information, either internally (to managers, organizational hotlines, etc.) or externally (to lawmakers, regulators, the media, watchdog organizations, etc.), that he or she reasonably believes is a violation of law, rule or regulation; gross mismanagement, as well as a gross waste of funds; abuse of authority; or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety made according to the law or in protection of the public interest. Some famous Whistleblowers include Daniel Ellsberg, who leaked the  Pentagon Papers to NYT, Karen Silkwood, who outed the nuclear plant Kerr-McGee for plutonium leaks and a unsafe work conditions, as well as Col. Alexander Vindman and John Schilling who both spoke up to call out the wrongs they witnessed. We should all be grateful to the whistleblowers who have the inner strength to speak out and give info that they believe must be reported to disclose wrongdoing. George Polisner, our resident political, economic, environmental and social justice expert, gives us some insight into whistleblowers and delves into the new EPA rules about reducing harmful particulate matter which is being scrutinized by the oil, gas and manufacturing industries as being too costly. We will also touch on the international misdirection of the media. For more info go to Civ.Works and whistlebloweraid.org. For past shows go to HudsonRiverRadio.com and Malcolmpresents.com. Follow TMSOG on Instagram and Threads @tmshadesofgreen, and on FaceBook. Subscribe to The Many Shades of Green on all major podcast apps. #RaiseYourEcoConsciousness