Ryan Bundy the Rubble Rouser

Vinyl - horrible or not so bad?

Ryan — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:16:58 +0000

Hey yall, I haven’t posted anything in quite a while, but I just became intrigued by a claim I recently read that stated that vinyl was the worst plastic made, and horrible to use in your house, whether it be in the form of pvc (which pretty much all modern plumbing uses) or vinyl windows, vinyl siding, or vinyl flooring. This was a very disturbing claim, because, well, the stuff is everywhere. I’ve read a lot of bad stuff about it, mostly coming through greenpeace, and a lot of bloggers seem to have latched onto it pretty fervently. Honestly, if you are trying to have a greener house, it’s hard to blame anyone for freaking out when they read such scary stuff. However, I also read an article that states that a whole lot of this anti-vinyl sentiment is possibly overblown. the article is here:http://www.edcmag.com/Articles/Sustainable_Flooring/ae50bb13fb697010VgnVCM100000f932a8c0____Now, I’ll let you read the article for yourself, but it lines out some fairly convincing arguments. So basically, my point is this. While I am always on the look out for greener building materials, and also on the look out for materials to avoid, I’m not necessarily going to put vinyl into the “nasty” column just yet. I’m going to read more about it before I go gathering up my torch and pitch fork.

Heifer International

Ryan — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 18:38:51 +0000

This is a great non-profit that has many programs aimed at ending world hunger, and they do so via sustainable practices. They have programs such as donating live stock to poor families, to be able to start their own sustainable food production, and teaching farmers how to create value added products to supplement their income. It seems like they recently got a gi-normous (that’s really large, in translation) donation from the Gates Foundation, so hopefully they are gaining a lot of momentum for their programs. Anyway, learn about the nuts and bolts of it at http://www.heifer.org/

Electric Car: Chevrolet Volt

Ryan — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 17:42:03 +0000

This is a new concept car, from chevy, of all companies, that is an electric car, but has a backup gas engine, so that it is much more versatile than pure electric cars. it can do a 40 mile commute on pure electric, and it will get an average of 150 mpg on a 60 mile commute. Not bad.

http://www.chevrolet.com/electriccar/

Geodesic Domes!

Ryan — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 03:54:17 +0000

Geodesic Domes Rock! err, they’re like a rock. A big, round rock. A really space efficient, energy efficient, materials efficient, budget efficient, strength efficient, sweet ass looking rock. I’m sold like a fat turkey on thanksgiving. If I don’t build one of these, would someone please hit me over the head with a big……………….geodesic dome?

buckminster fuller. genius.

climate change

Ryan — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 17:51:38 +0000

if you haven’t already noticed, I just thought that I would let you know that the emerging theme of this blog seems to be climate change, and what we might be able to do about it. I just realized that the potential negative impacts of climate change can be so dire that they pretty much trump all other social, economic and global issues. Not to say that I don’t care about any other issues - I definitely do (I still really like to pick a guitar and a banjo, as well) but seriously, if we don’t start taking some serious steps to curb our impact on good old mother earth, then, none of these other issues are going to matter, in the face of global destabilization. Yeah, it’s pretty freaky.

And, the thing is, you shouldn’t try and curb your impact just because you feel like we should be in harmony with nature, or because you love trees, or anything like that. No - curb your impact because you care about your way of life, and the way of life of your family, and your kids, and their grandkids. Isn’t that the American way? Isn’t that the human way? Survival? Providing for your family? Seems pretty obvious to me. I think the climate issue needs to be cast in a different light.

carbon footprint calculator

Ryan — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 03:20:42 +0000

I’ve checked out a number of these carbon footprint calculators, and the one on the e.p.a. website seems to me like the most reliable. At least, it has some good links to other sites, like the energy star site, where you can figure out why your heat bill is so damn high, and how to emit less carbon with your home. Anyway, here’s the URL:

http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ind_calculator.html

The Story of Stuff

Ryan — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 21:33:55 +0000

Check this out, for a great, informative look at where all of our needless piles of s$%t come from.

http://www.storyofstuff.com/

Please, Please, Watch this video if you care about your way of life.

Ryan — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 21:02:54 +0000

How it All Ends on YouTube

howdy

Ryan — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 20:54:26 +0000

howdy ever’body, and welcome to the new blog, Ryan Bundy the Rubble Rouser. I bet you never would have believed that a blundering bad boy country bumpkin such as Ryan Bundy would have brewed up such a blatantly brown nosing, back woods, blown out of proportion, bared soul brew ha ha as a blog. Well, think again. Here I be.