Your Questions About Recycling

The Expert answers:

Admittedly I have never taken a debate class but a persuasive speech shouldn’t include your “feelings”; it should include facts.
I’d delete “at least think about it” because that’s not very persuasive. And a clean, neat community IS more appealing to visitors and the community, it doesn’t “sound” more appealing.
Recycling can create jobs, generate revenue, reduce emissions, and ultimately mitigate harming the planet for future generations. It could also improve tourism as there are many “green” or “eco friendly” communities which attract tourists.
I know it’s a first draft and you clearly have good ideas but I think you need to work on this a bit more, add some more facts and statistics and remember to keep your own feelings and opinions out of it. Good luck!

The Expert answers:

If you want this to be a storefront and a fulltime job, you need to hire a advertising firm to make this name and logo for you. Remember BRANDING is the most important thing you can do for a business. Without it you are nothing.

I have started 6 businesses in the past 6 years, 4 are still running, the 2 that are not are ones I made the names for 🙂

The Expert answers:

By giving us the facts, thats the only way you can fix the problem..and each person knows the consequences and much has been done in some place to fix the problem in some areas, and then some quit, and don’t make the recycling bins available anymore, and shut down recycling centers, so its an on again off again relationship we have with mother earth, and to suffer the consequences of losing the land is not what we want, but it is what will happen if we don’t do everything for the love of all things good and learn to get along to get along and save what we have, and fix everything that is broken and go easy on her, and build her back up again…and you can only lead by example, and hope others will follow your lead and help so if you have any ideas that could speed up the process let the right people know, because they could be clueless on what to do, and to keep repeating the same mistakes gets us the same results, and personally i think going back to the glass, returnable bottles would show great improvement and create more jobs locally and to cut out the use of plastic and aluminium , right? And some plants are still sitting that could be renovated and opened again, and not use green land to do it..because now is the time to stop using the greenland we have left and save that for farming, so we will be able to afford to eat, and that their will be food available for our country and to trade with other countries..and that’s another issue i have about how our land is used for strip malls and left empty only to build another next too it, and it’s a waste of land, when renovation would have made more sense..and more housing additions when homes are sitting empty and available to be lived in..don’t you agree, that it is out of hand, and the list goes on..

The Expert answers:

What is your source please? I was under the impression that the only places that can make paper, whether recycled or not is paper mills. There is a paper mill in Snowflake AZ that is completely re-tooled to make paper out of recycled paper. I have been there. I have also been to most of the paper mills in the western states and they all recycle to make paper. I think that the problem that closed down some paper mills was the lack of raw materials and the increased efficiency of making paper from paper instead of wood. The cellulose breakdown has already occurred with the first making of paper, so you don’t need as much processing to turn it in to paper the second time. The unions had a lot to do with making the old mills unproductive too. I blame them as much as I blame the environmental stupidity that destroyed so many jobs.

I was part of the mass exodus from Oregon in 1990 when hundreds of thousands of workers in the wood products industry lost their jobs. I lived it.

Does recycled toilet paper have little chunks of peanuts and corn in it?

The Expert answers:

Yes it is not a allegation it is a fact and China is violating WTO rules by placing banking tariffs to raise the exchange.

The fact is that of the money China lent us only 200 billion is in bonds and has to be paid back!

Food Workers Cost over seas $6 to $500 per outsourced job price here $20,000 to $70,000 Unfair

Steel workers Cost over seas $8 to $1500 per outsourced job price here $25,000 to $80,000 Unfair

Lab Research Cost over seas $50 to $15,000 per outsourced job price here $45,000 to $150,000 Unfair

Engineering Cost over seas $40 to $10,000 per outsourced job price here $40,000 to $120,000 Unfair

Auto Workers Cost over seas $10 to $8,000 per outsourced job price here $25,000 to $67,000 Unfair

Jobs stolen in the last 15 years over 11.5 million and that is why a poll shows 91% of real Americans support Buy American.

We Import 80% of house hold goods and in 1929 we imported 3% this is unsustainable.

The Expert answers:

Switching everything you do and/or eat over to Organic all at once will be expensive and is an overwhelming task!

Take it one step at a time and you will find that it really isn’t that much more expensive, in fact it the long run it is less expensive. Some times it’s easier to take an “all natural” approach rather than everything-must-be-100%-organic.

Try cooking with more real ingredients like fresh veggies instead of canned or boxed. One tip is to shop around the perimeter of the store. Packaged goods are more expensive and loaded with refined sugar, preservatives and chemically altered ingredients.

There are less expensive natural alternatives to toxic cleaners too, if that is something you are also interested in changing. It is just as important to eliminate free-radicals in the air as well as from the foods you eat.

Sure, not all of us can afford to drive hybrid cars or buy Energy Star appliances, but don’t throw your arms up in the air and say “I’m too poor to save the planet”. There are little things that you *can* afford to do and be *proud of* for doing your part. Like using common sense about how you use electric will actually save you money. Taking reusable bags to the the grocery store instead of using plastic. Recycling anything that doesn’t need to go into the trash. Going to yard sales, thrift stores, even Freecycling… Instead of buying everything new. There are tons of ways to be green and thrifty!

I certainly don’t claim to be an expert on the subject and I am still in the process of making small changes myself, but what I can say is that changing my family’s menu options and living a greener lifestyle has definitely been worth it for our well being. And we certainly aren’t “well off” by any means either, but we do what we can and that’s all we can do. I just want you to know that it can be done if you truly are willing to make that change, it just takes time.

Good Luck!

The Expert answers:

Of course your plan is already in effect in most major urban centers. It is an ill conceived plan, in my opinion. We currently pay deposit and environmental levies on a variety of plastic containers and tetra packs. In addition we pay fees for recyclable collection and for the recycling itself. The plan falls apart because of “free enterprise” (see later). The contribution by the person doing the sorting, you and me, is substantial and is not included as a cost in the full cycle economics of the process. It is dubious whether, even without the hidden and unaccounted cost, that there is any economics in recycling as a stand alone contrast to landfill. Otherwise, no government levies or subsidies would be required.
The argument put forth by environmental advocates is that “new” end products are created by the recycled plastic, rubber and other items. The facts appear however to be different. There is no doubt that paper products are truly recycled. We see them every day in the products we use such as flyers, stationary or even paper towels. Please note however, that most of these products are virtually un-necessary in any event. So was the process of recycling then even necessary or desirable?
I saw a TV story about 2 years ago on recycled plastics in the US. I believe it was ABC News. According to the piece, about 30% of US recyclable plastic ends up in China! They showed pictures of the place and it looked like a bad version of a moonscape! Plastic bags hanging from trees, open toxic sewage and so on. The plastic is recycled in China and resold to Americans as cheap processed goods such as golf club covers. On all the TV ads in Canada, the recycled plastics show up as processed plastic “beads” which are “made into a variety of useful everyday household products”. According to the news piece, this is a bit of an exaggeration! If it is cheaper to export the problem, beyond your countries shores, and pocket the various forms of subsidies, THEN the economics are favorable, not before. This is the nature of a “free market” solution, with government socialistic policies as a driver. This would never be tolerated in a wholly free enterprise solution!
The second major issue that is apparent in the recyclable issue is the environmental friendliness of the process. Advocates point to the reduction in landfill gases such as Methane, as a noble reason for eliminating landfill waste. Only problem is that Methane is generated for the most part by the decomposition of ORGANIC waste such as table scraps, fruits and vegetables and animal and human waste (read diapers) and bacterial decomposition of wood products (very slow process). This stuff still continues to go to the landfill! Plastics take such a long time to decompose, that the Methane release rate is virtually negligible!
What is NOT negligible however, is the CO2 and emissions from the diesel truck that picks up the “blue box” then drives it to a sorting plant which generates its own emissions, then a train or a variety of different trains with a variety of end destinations (with more diesel missions) picks it up from the sorting plant, then another truck unloads it from the train and drives it to a variety of recycling plants where it is either made into a variety of recycling “feedstock” such a plastic beads or pulp mash. Then, whatever the recycling broker can pawn off on a third party, may end up being loaded on a barge, which again burns bunker “c” oil and generates emissions so that another plant in a third world country, can burn more fuel in order to reprocess either raw recyclable or feedstock into a useless item which will be purchased back in the US.
If people are so concerned about environment and conservation, they should attempt to look beyond the mythology of the process of recycling and demand actual FACTS about the process and its economies and environmental sustainability on a “full cycle” basis! I suspect that the energy usage alone, regardless of emissions problems, is enormous and inefficient on a cost basis. The problem, as I see it, is that like most things being produced in the modern era, about 70 % of costs associated with production are energy costs that are incurred either directly or indirectly. Please remember, that even salaries and fixed capital costs have a very large energy related component since most of those monies will be expended on additional energy related items such as food or subsequent transportation and so on.
I demanded a copy of the full cycle environmental and economic audit that should have been performed prior to my city instituting recycling, the politicians thought I was nuts or did either did not follow through on delivery and the engineers that I was referred to, did not return my calls.
The bottom line is probably this: Where there is ready access to landfill sites, such as where I live, it is probably not necessary nor is desirable to recycle. In cities where there is very little landfill availability

The Expert answers:

Improve PC Performance Tip #1:
CLEAN UP YOUR WINDOWS REGISTRY (Frequency = Daily)

This is an essential, but often overlooked, task to improve PC performance. In fact most PC users are unaware of the necessity to regularly clean the Registry as Microsoft does not include a cleanup tool in any version of Windows.

Every time a program is installed it makes changes to the Windows Registry – a huge internal database of Windows’ settings. Virtually all Windows programs, and Windows itself, store a massive array of information inside the database. These thousands of entries control the behavior and appearance of virtually everything on your system.

Changes to your PC system are not always handled correctly in the Registry, leading to conflicts and the slowing down of your PC. Over time this leads to a bloated and possibly, corrupted Registry. Reasons for this include:

– frequently installing or uninstalling programs
– removing a program which leaves traces behind
– leftover entries from a hardware uninstall
– unused drivers on your system
– Spyware or similar programs that reappear every time you reboot

You can edit the Registry manually using a Windows program called Regedit, but this is really a job best left for hardened PC experts.

Thankfully, programs are available that can clean up your Registry automatically to help improve PC performance, such as “Registry Optimizer ’06”. This scans your Registry, looks for entries that are redundant or invalid and lists them so that they can be corrected with one mouse click. As an added bonus, to improve PC performance, it runs automatically in the background every time you start your PC. You even get a complimentary PC Windows Health Check.

Improve PC Performance Tip #2:
EMPTY THE RECYCLE BIN (Frequency = Weekly)

Regularly empty Windows’ Recycle Bin.

This will release hard drive space and help improve PC performance.

When you choose to delete a file, rather than removing it completely from your computer, Windows first puts it into the Recycle Bin. This gives you a second chance, as it means you can restore flies from the Recycle Bin back to their original place on your computer.

To ensure optimum PC performance, empty your Recycle Bin weekly (or even daily). To do so, right-click the Recycle Bin icon on your desktop, and choose Empty Recycle Bin.

Improve PC Performance Tip #3:
REMOVE PROGRAMS (Frequency = Monthly)

Installing programs is easy – but once you have, it’s just as easy to end up leaving them languishing, forgotten, on your hard disk.

Most programs come with their own uninstaller. You’ll find this under the program’s entry in All Programs, from the Start menu.

If the program doesn’t come with its own uninstaller, open Control Panel from the Start menu, and double-click Add/Remove Programs. Your PC will pause briefly while it gathers a list of all the programs you have installed.

Once it has done so, find the program you’d like to get rid of, click it and then select Change/Remove.

Be aware that some programs leave uninstalled traces all over the Windows Registry! Therefore, to improve PC performance after an uninstall, it’s essential to clean the Registry.

Improve PC Performance Tip #4:
RUN DISK CLEAN UP (Frequency = Monthly)

Windows’ Disk Clean Up is a fantastic built-in utility that automates regular maintenance tasks to improve PC performance, such as deleting Temporary Internet files, Setup log files, etc.

To start Disk Clean Up, double-click My Computer, right click on your ‘C:’ drive and then select Properties. Now click Disk Cleanup. Your computer will then spend a few moments analysing itself.

When it has completed the audit Windows will give you a list of areas where it has found files to cleanup. To clean an area, put a tick in the box next to it. To leave something intact, such as Temporary files, just remove the tick next to the item and click OK.

Your computer will then begin the removal process to improve PC performance – this can take some time.

Improve PC Performance Tip #5:
DISK DEFRAGMENTATION (Frequency = Quarterly)

When Windows stores programs on your PC hard disk it saves fragments of files in the nearest empty spaces.

This slows down your PC as it has to spend time hunting down the fragments and piecing files together.

There is a simple cure – running the Windows program Disk Defragmenter. This gathers together the fragments of programs and puts them back in the right order.

This makes it far easier for your hard disk to find what it’s looking for, enabling programs and files to load more quickly – a sure-fired way for improving PC performance.

To defragment your hard disk click Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools and then Disk Defragment. When the program has loaded, click Defragment.

The process can take well over an hour. Because defragmenting your hard disk takes such a long time, you really don’t want to go through the process too often.

Defragment your hard disk every 3 months or so – this way you’ll get the best results and optimize the performance of your PC.

Improve PC Performance Tip #6:
EMPTY THE PREFETCH CACHE (Frequency = Quarterly)

To improve the time it takes to load programs, Windows guesses which files are likely to be needed next and loads them into a pool or ‘cache’.

This process is called prefetching, and it generally works well. Overtime, though, the prefetch cache can become clogged with files you no longer need – and that can slow down Windows’ startup.

To clear Prefetch, choose Run from the Start menu, and enter Prefetch into the text box that appears. When you’ve done that, you’ll be confronted by a window filled with icons. Press Alt+A to select them all and press Delete.

The cache will quickly refill with links and files that Windows really needs. As a result, your system will feel more responsive and benefit from a PC performance speed up.

So there you have it, 6 sure-fired PC performance tips to revitalize your PC. Now you know how to improve PC performance – simply follow these steps and repeat them regularly.

The Expert answers:

“Anyway, if I signed the paper it would mean I could no longer back out of DEP, and considering I have no jobs guaranteed it is something I don’t want to sign”

One thing recruiters never tell you. You CAN back out of DEP at any point before you ship. They wont just let you back out. It is a pain to do. But you CAN do it. In fact, you can back out while in boot camp. Again, they make it as hard as possible. But you can do it.

Heck, if they make such a fuss about you getting out, you go back to meps before you ship. Come up with something else to dq you. Gain or lose a ton of weight to not make rank. Umm, the list goes on. Tell them you are a conscientious objector. You ‘found’ a new faith while in DEP. But regardless, all you really have to do is say I want out and you can get out while in DEP.

Shit, if you make it to boot camp and they wont let you out. FAIL PT so bad they recycle you. Granted, you will get recycled and redo some stuff. Fail enough and you are out. Break a leg, or an arm and you are out. Shin splints and you are out. Come ‘out of the closet’. While the military has the ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ policy coming out gets you an honorable discharge. You may have to sort of show you are gay. But they can only ask for so much proof.

See if you can get your eyes waived. Think about you other job options. If you are okay with that or not. What are your reasons for joining the military? Can you put up with a job you don’t want?

Like I said, you can get out at any point before boot camp. You can still get out at boot camp but its much harder to accomplish. They don’t want to tell you this, because they don’t want to let you go after all the work they invested to getting you. But you can. Just push for it.

In the end, make sure you do what you want.

Perhaps try talking to a different recruiter. You can call a recruiter from another state. Or another area in your state. I know someone where his recruiter was 2 states away because his local recruiter wasn’t doing a good job.