Henry Waxman also deserves credit for his work in the 1990's for a safe indoor climate -- against big tobacco.  I'll always remember the way he put the big tobbacco execs on the hot seat.  

Global warming is harder.  A lot harder.  

But a generation ago anyone who talked about the activities of the tobacco lobby and anyone who sought to do something about it was labeled a far out wacko control freak.  

We have come a long way, baby.

It's time to get moms on our side. The same people who made tobacco unacceptable now need to get behind the effort to stop the health consequences of global warming.  Waxman is a real leader.

I agree.  Let us see if Obama and his staff will transform Obama's words, laregely written by his staff, into actual legislation.  I am so glad real leaders such as Waxman are in Congress.  Perhaps Waxman should move to ILlinois.

I see global warming as the single greatest threat to American security by a mile. The environmental and economic devastation are bad enough, but I also see a great potential for civil breakdown. When our most valuable real estate is swallowed by the ocean, and production systems collapses, piracy and anarchy  take over. I see a blood bath of biblical proportions.

The Safe Climate Act achieves these targets through a flexible economy-wide cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gas emissions, along with measures to advance technology and reduce emissions through renewable energy, energy efficiency, and cleaner cars.

What do you think about cap-and-trade?  I'm not an expert but I hear in Europe that because the whole program was based on dishonest information from industry, it's not working at all.  I would expect the same thing to happen here.  

This report evaluates the use of Industrial Hemp (Cannabis Sativa) as a feedstock in the production of energy.

Included in this report are:
    *     An explanation of what biomass is.
    *     The potential of biomass for various applications.
    *     The economics of using hemp as a source of biomass
    *     The Fuel and Fiber Company approach to using hemp as a source of biomass

Biomass is any plant or tree matter in large quantity. It is used in a variety of ways as a feedstock for numerous industrial processes now. These include food processing, papermaking, electricity generation, building materials and pharmaceuticals to name a few.

The knowledge base regarding these production systems and their feedstocks is large and sophisticated with stakeholders at every level of our society. Industrial hemp suffers from 60 years of banning and is not routinely considered at all among upper level planners and policymakers. Technologists can only wonder about the potentials of it. Therefore, hard data is elusive and frequently colored by emotive expressions of idealism, from both sides of the controversy.

It is technically feasible to produce energy from hemp. The challenges are in the areas of economics and politics.
    *     To produce biodiesel using hempseed oil is estimated to cost $3.66 or more per gallon in the most optimistic scenario.
    *     Anaerobic digestion would produce methane, which can be converted to methanol. These are both highly toxic and corrosive, which presents problems to existing energy distribution and consumption, but is highly suitable for some applications.
    *     Hemp biomass can also be converted under high heat (Gasification, Pyrolysis, Destructive Distillation) into "bio-oils" and synthetic gas using any of several commercially available systems.
    *     Hemp is rich in cellulose and has less lignin than wood. Technology under development would convert this cellulose into sugars to be fermented into ethanol. Ethanol is a non-toxic organic used to oxygenate gasoline and has a ready market nationwide. Current costs to convert cellulose are estimated at $1.37 gallon, with efficiency improvements expected to lower this to .90¢ gallon. This allows a $35 per ton credit for feedstock.

One method would support the business model by processing the high value fiber separately, which would command premium prices in the specialty paper and composites industries. A scenario is presented in which the fiber finds a market in volumes of 68,000 & 170,000 tons per year and at a selling price of .35 - .55¢ per lb. Such a system would produce 10-20 million gallons of ethanol per year.

In any case, it is readily apparent that energy from hemp biomass is feasible when combined with other processes that add value to the bast fiber, or some fraction of the plant.

You asked about other Members who are talking about global warming.  I think you should really look at Jeff Bingaman (D-NM).  He's the most senior Democrat on the Senate Energy Committee and he's been doing some real solid work to address this issue in the Congress.  

Some of his achievements this year include getting the Senate to go on the record in support of mandatory measures to reduce global warming by passing an important resolution, getting the Energy Committee to hold hearings on climate change science and engaging giant corporations like GE, Shell and Wal-Mart at a Climate Conference this past April.

He was also the only Member of Congress to attend the annual United Nations Conference on Global Warming.

Check him out.  He's been really great on this issue.

Bingaman also spoke out strongly against the sneaky moves of Ted Stevens and Ted Kennedy when they tried to kill the Cape Wind Farm project with an amendment to the Coast Guard Reauthorization Bill (still pending).

I think its great that Waxman has put this forward. If done correctly, Democrats could use global warming as a campaign issue in '06. It would depend on the district, but the Dems should take Gore's lead and stop being so careful about making global warming a real policy issue. The Republicans are so obviously in industry pockets on this issue that a well planned  stratagy on the part of the Dems could be a big boost.