Chinese Herbs Are Taking Over Western Minds

For thousands of years, natural Chinese herbal remedies and herbs have been used to improve health, vitality, and overall life expectancy. The effectiveness of these herbs is continually proven as they are used to restore body functions to normal and to treat numerous illnesses.

Used to restore normal body functions and to treat sickness, Chinese medicines and herbs have been used for thousands of years and are recognized for their abilities to improve health, vitality, and life expectancy. These herbs often have few or no side effects in contrast to commercial drugs.

Differing dramatically from scientific medicine, Chinese medicine focuses on treating the entire body to promote health. The emotional and spiritual health of a patient, in addition to total wellness, are considered when treating and diagnosing conditions and problems. When illness or disease is present, the condition is considered a symptom of the person being out of balance.

Holistic and homeopathic treatments are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine including massage, stress-reduction, acupuncture, exercise, cupping, lifestyle change, moxibustion, and herbal medicine.

Ashwagandha
Dong Quai
Echinacea
Fo Ti
Garlic
Ginger
Ginkgo Biloba
Ginseng
Green Tea
Kava Kava
Licorice
Reishi
Saw Palmetto
Yohimbe

Martial Arts Benefits For Your Health

When a parent is considering enrolling their child or children into a martial arts school, they have to consider both their motivation and the motivations of their child. In order for a child to learn to love and stick with martial arts training over a long period of time, they have to share common goals with their parents, and most of all, the parents and child all have to enjoy it. If a parent’s goals aren’t being met, then they may feel they aren’t getting their money’s worth. If a child’s goals are not being met, then they will feel like they are being forced to train, and will never give 100%. The following are some of the most common reasons given for joining a children’s martial arts class. Consider why you want your child to train, and have a talk with your child about whether they really are interested in classes, and what they hope to learn or do in class.

Childhood obesity rates are climbing, and more and more children are spending a lot more time in front of the television, playing video games and using a computer. However, even among more active children, martial arts is still attractive since it is seen as a very good source of exercise that also teaches skills. Martial arts can help improve cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, balance, strength and overall energy levels.
Life Skills

Another popular reason for enrolling children in the martial arts is to develop “life skills”. These skills include discipline, self control, patience, confidence, courage etc. The idea with these classes and this motivation is to reinforce what is already being taught at home. Martial arts classes can be a valuable tool for helping to really drive home the points you make at home in a very real way.

Self Defense

Self defense is the most obvious reason that should come to mind when considering enrolling a child in the martial arts. The focus of a good children’s martial arts class, while still teaching self defense movements, should be on conflict resolution, personal responsibility and avoidance. In that respect, attending a good martial arts class would benefit both the bully by teaching to respect others as well as your own power, and the bullied, by teaching how to calm a situation or defend oneself if need be.

Behavior Issues

Many parents turn to the martial arts when their children are acting out in school and at home. This is tied in to the life skills reason, but is very specific in what the desired outcome is,. These parents are looking for help improving attention span, respect, demeanor and self control. The structure of many martial arts classes can greatly aid in these areas, however results will really vary and depend on the relationship that is built between the child and the instructor. If the instructor has a good method of communicating with the child, is firm but friendly, and most importantly, is very consistent, then the child can really get a lot of out martial arts training.

Safe, after school activity

Many parents are just seeking a safe, wholesome, useful activity for their child to occupy some of their free time. These parents don’t want their child to sit at home all evening, or want them to get involved in something that makes them set and follow through on goals. Martial arts training will certainly help in that respect. A good martial arts school can become a second home for many children. The relationships built between classmates and with an instructor can last a lifetime and have a huge positive impact on a child’s life

Whatever reasons you have for enrolling your child in a martial arts class, be sure to discuss your goals with your child, and come to an understanding that will make both of you happy. A one sided arrangement in something with such a large investment of time, energy and money really will not work out to anyone’s benefit.

We Are Change Confronts NAU We Are Change Confronts NAU Minion Vicente FoxMinion Vicente Fox

In this interview with Mexico’s former president, Vicente Fox, conducted by Luke Rudkwowski of We Are Change, we get more hum and haw about the inevitability of the North American Union. Fox insists little to nothing is happening in regard to the original the Security and Prosperity Partnership game plan, initiated by Bush, Fox, and former Canadian Premier Paul Martin in 2005. Bush considers Americans concerned about the SPP and the NAU as little more than conspiracy nuts, never mind those transnational highways going in all over Texas.

Rudkwowski mentioned these highways to Vicente Fox and the former president of Coca-Cola in Latin America waved his hands dismissively. Nothing to do with Mexico or any grand conspiracy, declared Fox, never mind TxDOT (Texas Department of Transportation) met with Mexican transportation officials to discuss corridor connections and extensions into Mexico (see a map of the routes here). If we are to believe Fox, he is clueless about NASCO, the North America SuperCorridor Coalition Inc., Kansas City SmartPort Inc., or the fact TxDOT is overseeing the Trans-Texas Corridor as the first leg of the NAFTA Super Highway. Fox would have us believe he is unaware of the documented fact the KCSmartPort facility will by necessity be considered Mexican territory, as revealed by Joyce Mucci, the founder of the Mid-America Immigration Reform Coalition, under the provisions of the Missouri Sunshine Law from the City of Kansas City, Mo., and from the Missouri Department of Economic Development.

Of course, Fox was playing a disingenuous game with Luke. In his recently published book, Revolution of Hope, Fox relates a statement he made to President Bush and then Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien: “I proposed a… plan to… move us toward a single continental economic union, modeled on the European example.”

John Vinson, editor of American for Immigration Control, adds: “He then related that ‘Bush shot the idea down.’ Was it because he disagreed with it? Apparently not, as more information will show. Fox added that, the White House informed him (in Fox’s words) that ‘life would be easier’ if he stopped ‘raising hackles’ by discussing a North American Union.”

And just what did Bush and Fox agree upon? During an interview on CNN’s Larry King Live [see video below], Fox stated, “Long term, very long term, what we proposed together, President Bush and myself, [was] a trade union for all the Americas.” King then asked if this union, of not just North America, but presumably South America too, would have a common currency “like the euro” the currency of the European Union. Fox replied, “Well, that would be long, long term.” He then added that progress toward that goal would have to be incremental steps.

What Fox described sounds quite similar to the strategy that brought about the European Union. Its proponents at first stressed that they were only seeking more cooperation in trade and other matters. Not until much later did they reveal their agenda for a common parliament and a common currency.

Without a doubt, powerful interests want greater integration of the three countries. The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) in New York City accurately describes its membership as leaders in key sectors of American society. In 2005, at almost exactly the same time as the SPP unveiling, the CFR, published a document entitled, “Building a North American Community.” In testimony before Congress, a key author of that document, Professor Robert Pastor of American University, stated that the U.S., Canada and Mexico must move beyond “an outdated conception of sovereignty.”

As Jerome Corsi notes, Fox would have used a microphone to broadcast the plan. “Evidently, George Bush forgot to brief Vicente Fox before he began his book tour,” Corsi told WorldNetDaily. “Just give Vicente Fox a microphone. That’s the best way to bring the SPP out of the shadows and expose the real conspirators, George Bush and Vicente Fox, not those of us who are pointing to government websites and asking questions,” the latter little more than conspiracy nuts, according to Bush.

“In his book, Fox is open in his support for globalism and his determination to create a North American Union, Corsi said, pointing out he portrays Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez as the villain who blocked the North American Union plan,” concludes WND.

On page 317 of his book, Fox writes: “At summits I took every opportunity to advocate clearly for free-market policies; showing what sound economics could do to fund social justice; arguing for globalism, NAFTA and the Free Trade Area of the Americas.”

Now? Fox is reticent, especially with a determined We Are Change on the case. Change is essentially a flea in the mix and, as Bush and the globalists would have it, little more than a noisome conspiracy mental case bothering a great man during one of his many important events.

Of course in Bushzarro world and that of the ruling elite — who are determined to reduce the planet to a slave labor gulag based on the China model — people who know the truth and have the cajones to speak it are to be swiped aside as crackpots. It is a tactic that works far less effectively than it did a mere three or four years ago, before the popularity of YouTube and the easy availability if online video.

Fox’s lies, likely a response to Bush’s admonition, will not fly — not with Luke Rudkwowski and We Are Change around and this video to be soon enough linked and archived all over the internet.

50,000 First Responders Need Donations, Dignity and True Respect

As many of our readers know, long after the dust settled at ground zero, our nation’s first responders are still feeling the toxic effects of that dust– as some 70% of 9/11 rescue workers are sick and dying.Now 1stResponders1st. com is trying to generate money and support for those heroes in a “money bomb” on February 16th.

An estimated 50,000 fire fighters, police, EMTs, national guard, military and other volunteers are suffering from exposure to ground zero– and stand to be forgotten by the country they aided in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.

Lung problems, leukemia & other cancers, including asbestosis have caused too many of our heroes to become deathly ill. On top of that, many 9/11 heroes have been too sick to work and have received NO benefits or other help from either local or national government efforts.

The FealGoodFoundation.com donated about $100,000 to first responders last year, but it needs even more money this year. WeAreChange.org raised more than $14,000 for responders last year and has spent a lot of time spreading the word about their needs.

Police and Fire Fighters, how can your brothers be allowed to slip through the cracks?

Americans, how can the heroes who heeded the call on the day of 9/11 be now allowed to be forgotten and forsaken?

People of the world, nearly 3,000 unfortunate people perished in the collapse of the Twin Towers, but now 50,000 will die from the fallout and continued aftermath of 9/11– can we really stand be while so many die from neglect and abandon?

Create change… because real change starts with you.

Raise awareness, help pay medical bills and save our heroes’ lives. Please donate at www.1stResponders1st.com on February 16th. Then spread the word to everyone you know, because surely, their struggle has only begun.

Swidish Message Thearpy And What It Does For You

Massage Therapy is a hands-on manipulation of the soft tissues of the body including muscles, connective tissue, tendons, ligaments and joints.  It is also an alternative health option to help alleviate the soft tissue discomfort associated with everyday and occupational stresses, muscular overuse and many chronic pain syndromes. It can also greatly reduce the development of painful muscular patterning, if employed early enough after accidents involving trauma and injury.

Massage therapists work to improve the circulation of blood through the body and to speed the removal of metabolic waste products from muscles. Their skilled kneading increases the flexibility of muscles, ligaments, and other soft tissues. Some people visit a massage therapist to relieve pain or to warm up before a sporting event. Others want to relax and reduce stress.

Types of Massage

Craniosacral Therapy - Via a gentle, noninvasive manipulative technique, this encourages your own natural mechanisms to improve the functioning of your brain and spinal cord to dissipate the negative effects of stress, promote good health, and enhance resistance to disease.

Deep Tissue Massage - is used to release chronic muscle tension through slower strokes and more direct pressure or friction applied across the grain of the muscles. This invigorating experience is a process of detection of stiff or painful areas by determining the quality and texture of the deeper layers of musculature, and slowly working into the deep layers of muscle tissue. Specific hand positions and strokes are then used to respond to various tissue qualities. Techniques employing breath and movement are also used for releasing muscular congestion.

Esalen Massage - is Swedish massage combined with the influence of early Esalen leaders, Charlotte Selver and Bernie Gunther who taught sensory reawakening. What sets Esalen Massage apart from other types of massage is the philosophical approach. For the massage therapist, the work is a meditation, a time to quiet the mind, and attend to his or her intuition, and to be fully present in the moment with the client.

Erotic massage - is really a sexual foreplay technique, rather than a form of massage. Massage focuses on muscles, whereas erotic massage focuses primarily on skin. It’s been said that 95% of erotic (or sensual) massage is the same as other massage. This is not an accepted form of bodywork and therefore not something that you should expect from a Registered MT.

Shiatsu - Shiatsu is a traditional hands-on Japanese healing therapy. It can help in a wide range of conditions - from specific injuries to more general symptoms of poor health. Shiatsu is a deeply relaxing experience and regular Shiatsu sessions help to prevent the build up of stress in our daily lives.

Common conditions helped by Shiatsu include:

How Does Acupunture Work?

What is acupuncture?

Acupuncture literally means ‘needle piercing,” the practice of inserting very fine needles into the skin to stimulate specific anatomic points in the body (called acupoints or acupuncture points) for therapeutic purposes. Along with the usual method of puncturing the skin with the fine needles, the practitioners of acupuncture also use heat, pressure, friction, suction, or impulses of electromagnetic energy to stimulate the points. The acupoints (acupuncture points) are stimulated to balance the movement of energy (qi) in the body to restore health.

Acupuncture involves stimulating. In the past 40 years acupuncture has become a well-known, reasonably available treatment in developed and developing countries. Acupuncture is used to regulate or correct the flow of qi to restore health.

To really understand how acupuncture works, it is necessary to become familiar with the basics of Chinese philosophy. The philosophies of the Dao or Tao, yin and yang, the eight principles, the three treasures and the five elements are all fundamental to traditional Chinese acupuncture and its specific role in helping to maintain good health and a person’s well-being.

Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine:
The Philosophy of the Dao

Dao is often described as “the path” or “the way of life” in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and acupuncture,  just as its counterpart in ancient India, Ayurveda. The laws of the Dao advocate moderation, living in harmony with nature and striving for balance. Ancient Chinese believed that moderation in all areas of life is essential to a long and fruitful life. We are “fueled” by three treasures: Qi or Chi (pronounced chee), Shen, and Jing. Chi is energy or vital substance, Shen is the spirit, and Jing is our essence. Qi is both the life force (or vital substance) and the organizing principle flowing through all things and establishing their interconnectedness. Chinese believe that every living thing (both human and non-human) has qi. In the body, qi is found in the heart and lungs in circulating blood and oxygen. Shen is the treasure that gives brightness to life and is responsible for consciousness and mental abilities. Sometimes it is compared to soul. Within the individual shen is manifested in personality, thought, sensory perception, and the awareness of self. Jing is responsible for growth, development and reproduction. Jing represents a person’s potential for development. (comparable to western concept of genetical inheritance). Chinese believed that everyone is born with a finite amount of Jing. As we go through life, we lose or consume our Jing little by little. Once we lose Jing, it cannot be replaced. It is gone for ever. We lose Jing if we live a wrong or careless living. But Jing can be preserved if we live in moderation. Acupuncture can reduce the loss of Jing.
Role of Acupuncturist in Traditional Chinese Medicine

According to the philosophy of Dao, the role of the acupuncturist is to restore your health and enable you to live a little closer to the Dao, thus preserving your Jing and living to a ripe old age. A number of factors can contribute to the depletion of Jing. Living a life of excess, drinking too much, excessive emotional reactions, working too hard, inappropriate sexual behavior, etc. all were believed to result in the depletion of Jing. Balance in all things was considered the key to good health and long life.

In order to increase their understanding of the Dao, the Chinese developed two concepts that together form the basis of Chinese thought: yin and yang and the more detailed system of the five elements.

Traditionally, yin is dark, passive, feminine, cold and negative; yang is light, active, male, warm and positive. Another simpler way of looking at yin and yang is that there are two sides to everything - happy and sad, tired and energetic, cold and hot. Yin and yang are the opposites that make the whole. They cannot exist without each other and nothing is ever completely one or the other. There are varying degrees of each within everything and everybody. The tai chi symbol, shown above, illustrates how they flow into each other with a little yin always within yang and a little yang always within yin. In the world, sun and fire are yang, while earth and water are yin. Life is possible only because of the interplay between these forces. All of these forces are required for the life to exist. See the table below to understand the relationship between yin and yang.

The yin and yang is like a candle. Yin represents the wax in the candle. The flame represents the yang. Yin (wax) nourishes and supports the yang (flame). Flame needs the wax for its existence. Yang consumes yin and, in the process, burns brightly. When the wax (yin) is gone, the flame is gone too. Ying is also gone at that time. So, one can see how yin and yang depend on each other for their existence. You cannot have one without the other.

The body, mind and emotions are all subject to the influences of yin and yang. When the two opposing forces are in balance we feel good, but if one force dominates the other, it brings about an imbalance that can result in ill health.

One can compare the concept of yin and yang to the corresponding principle of tridoshas in Ayurveda, the ancient remedy from India. Ayurveda proposes that every person has vata, pitta and kapha. When these are balanced, there is the state of perfect health. When there are imbalances then there is disease.

One of the main aims of the acupuncturist is to maintain a balance of yin and yang within the whole person to prevent illness occurring and to restore existing health. Acupuncture is a yang therapy because it moves from the exterior to the interior. Herbal and nutritional therapies, on the other hand, are yin therapies, as they move from the interior throughout the body. Many of the major organs of the body are classified as yin-yang pairs that exchange healthy and unhealthy influences.

Yin and yang are also part of the eight principles of traditional Chinese medicine. The other six are: cold and heat, internal and external, deficiency and excess. These principles allow the practitioner to use yin and yang more precisely in order to bring more detail into his diagnosis.

The  yin and yang philosophy was further refined into the system of the five elements to gain a deeper understanding of how the body, mind and spirit work and acupuncture.

The microcosm of the body is linked to the universe and is affected by the daily and seasonal cycles of nature. (Think about the seasonal affective disorder which manifests itself in winter or when the light is not sufficient). The individual and the world are changing all the time. But Chinese believe that these changes are occurring in certain order and in cycles. (We can think about these like our economic cycles or agricultural cycles. A period of growth is always followed by a period of stagnation or unemployment. In the stock market, a bull market is always followed by a bear market etc.) In the same way, a seed planted in spring blooms in summer, seeds itself in late summer to autumn, dies in winter, and a new seed grows again in spring. It is part of a never-ending cycle and each phase has its role to play in maintaining the balance of nature. The same process of change occurs within the body. Cells grow and die to make way for new cells, and body systems depend upon each other in a similar way to the seasons, working together to ensure the balanced functioning of the body, mind and spirit and the healthy flow of life through the whole person.

What Is Karma?

There is a word  “Karma”, passed on from the past, but nowadays it is rare to find someone who knows correctly what Karma is. What do we call Karma and what is Karma ? Karma is something that exists in the source which moves oneself, lets have a look carefully how the Karma which is in the source, is made. The Karma is made by things that happened to you. Then how can things that happened to you make this Karma ? it is important to understand that. This means that something you did is saved in your consciousness. Now we have to look at nature in more detail.

Every phenomenon which appears in nature, everything that happened in them is saved in their seed. Human being is a subject with a consciousness. Human beings save everything what they did in their consciousness. This consciousness works as a spirit and when the spirit comes to meet death it remains independent by separating from the body. When this consciousness which was in the spirit disappears it will be reborn as life soon. But because the consciousness disappeared it does not mean things what happened in the past will disappear. Even if the consciousness disappeared, everything which happened to you will be latent in that. So these complex things which are latent in you will continuously cause reaction. The habit of Karma is trying to keep repeatedly things that happened to you forever, and that is Karma. There are two meanings which allow everything to exist in the world. The world exists by these two meanings. The first one is reincarnation.

Reincarnation means that everything is repeated. Something which exists continuously causes the phenomenon of repetition, past present and future are spinning endlessly. So our life exists by this law and every creature is repeatedly being born and dying by the law of cause and effect. If something was born in the world but does not disappear by itself but tries to keep itself to exist. Something that happened to you has same meaning. So if something is saved in your consciousness it does not disappear but it continuously acts by receiving the influence of it. According to what happened to you, present and future life will be different. So things in yourself which will stay forever will be different, that’s why to make a relationship is something that people must be very careful of. When a person makes a relationship with a bad thing that will produce a bad thing but when a person makes a relationship with a good thing that will produce a good thing. This is also the Law of Cause and Effect. Karma will exist in you by the cause and effect. As long as this Karma exists a human cannot be able to be free from the control of this Karma.

If someone has a big Karma and if the person tries to live good life and to do good things rather than not becoming a good self will ruin others as well. And by doing things to become a good self will always make oneself distressed. Because there should be a good source in yourself but if there is not that good source it is rare to occur good things in you. At this point only Enlightenment can influence you. Without Enlightenment you cannot disobey the direction of Karma which is in you. We can see phenomenon like this from our surroundings easily and it is very important for the life of human being. Therefore nobody can get out of these phenomenon without Enlightenment. The law of nature is strict. In mathematics two plus two cannot be one or five, things which exist are not changeable in truth as well as mathematics it never changes. That is why people say that the most important thing for living all our period of life is Enlightenment.

If someone does a good thing and makes a good result of 60% but makes a mistake of 40% with ignorance while the person was not aware, in this situation the person can control emotions and wrong temper and can fix something which is wrong if the person tries. But if someone makes Karma which is the result of ignorance by making mistake of 60 % but good Karma of 40% in this situation it is very hard to do a good thing because the power of big Karma interferes rather than good self when the person is doing something. The reason why there are many problems that appear in our society is because the society doesn’t accept about how Karma is made by things what happened to someone in the past. How does Karma appear ?

Karma appears by things in you. How is Karma made ? Karma is made by words and actions, Karma can be made by actions and words. What kind of Karma is made by words. When someone says things that the person doesn’t know then that will be the Karma. Telling lies is something that ruins oneself and others too. This is Karma which is made by words. That is why disciples who were taught rightly by Buddha wrote at the beginning of the script “I heard like this”

Herbal Product

Also called: Botanicals, Phytotherapy

An herb is a plant or plant part used for its scent, flavor or therapeutic properties. Herbal medicine products are dietary supplements that people take to improve their health. Many herbs have been used for a long time for claimed health benefits. They are sold as tablets, capsules, powders, teas, extracts and fresh or dried plants. However, some can cause health problems, some are not effective and some may interact with other drugs you are taking.

To use an herbal product as safely as possible

* Consult your doctor first
* Do not take a bigger dose than the label recommends
* Take it under the guidance of a trained medical professional
* Be especially cautious if you are pregnant or nursing

ut while the extract is available over the counter, people with chronic heart failure must consult their physician before taking it, the study’s lead researcher told Reuters Health.

“That’s one of the problems that you have with hawthorn; on the one hand there is evidence that it does something for chronic heart failure, but chronic heart failure is not a self-diagnosed condition,” Dr. Max H. Pittler of Peninsula Medical School in Exeter, UK, explained.

Hawthorn extract is used around the world to treat chronic heart failure, in which the heart becomes less and less able to pump blood throughout the body. However, research on the herbal medicine’s effectiveness has been mixed.

To assess existing evidence, Pittler and his team reviewed 14 studies comparing hawthorn extract to placebo in heart failure patients, pooling data from 10 of the studies.

Their findings are reported in the Cochrane Library, which is published by the Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates medical research.

Most studies focused on maximal workload and exercise tolerance, or how much energy a person can expend while working out on an exercise bike, and how long they were able to sustain this level of activity. Hawthorn extract significantly improved both measures of heart function, the researchers found, while it also reduced shortness of breath and fatigue compared to placebo.

Side effects were “infrequent, mild, and transient,” and included dizziness and nosebleeds, the researchers report. Nevertheless, Pittler noted, the study was not specifically designed to address the safety of the extract — only its effectiveness. “To be completely sure you need to do a slightly different sort of review and assess safety using that slightly different methodology,” he said.

Self-medication of chronic heart failure with hawthorn extract is a bad idea, he added, both because it could interact with other medications a person is taking and because people with the condition should be under a doctor’s care.

Although the analysis didn’t address how the herbal medicine works, Pittler said, it appears to be boosting the strength of the heart muscle’s contractions.

More research is necessary, he and his colleagues conclude, to determine if hawthorn extract could improve heart failure patients’ prognosis.

SOURCE: The Cochrane Library 2008.

How To Green Your Car

What’s the Big Deal?
Cars are one of the great mixed bags of our time. They are at once wonders of engineering and a threat to life on Earth. They create convenience and comfort and also snarled traffic and sprawling suburbs. In the US, about 20% of all greenhouse gas emissions come from cars and light trucks like SUVs, contributing to climate change, air pollution, and disease. If you are truly trying to lighten your environmental footprint, the first thing to do is ask if you do in fact need a car. If the answer is yes, there are many things you can do to make your driving life greener.

1. Drive a green car

There are now hybrids to match almost any need: two-door, four-door, SUV, luxury sedan. They get better mileage than their conventional counterparts, have cleaner emissions, and save money on gas. If a hybrid isn’t in your future, try for a car with the best MPG you can find; and remember that hybrids aren’t always the most efficient option, either. Biodiesel can now be found in almost any state in the US. This clean, domestic, veggie-based, carbon-neutral fuel will run in any diesel car or truck with little or no modification to the engine. Straight vegetable oil is an option for the more ambitious green driver and can make fueling up almost free. Another veggie fuel is ethanol, and there are between 5-6 million flex-fuel vehicles already on the road—you may even be driving one and not know it. Also, affordable, practical electric cars and plug-in hybrids aren’t too far off, either. But whether or not you drive a hybrid or alternative-fuel vehicle, there’s lots you can do to green your car right now.

2. Best practices

Driving technique has a lot to do with your fuel economy. Avoid sudden starts and stops and go the speed limit.Not only does speeding and herky-jerky driving kill your MPG, it’s dangerous. And even if no one gets hurt in a fender bender, how green is it to get a new bumper or have your car re-painted? As a general rule of thumb, keep your engine speeds between 1,200—3,000 RPMs, and up-shift between 2,000—2500 RPMs. Also, drive wise and minimize unnecessary miles by doing errands in one trip, getting good directions, and calling ahead.

3. Stay in tune

Getting regular tune-ups, maintenance, and having clean air filters will help you burn less gas, pollute less, and prevent car trouble down the line. Pump up: if every American’s tires were properly inflated we could save around 2 billion gallons of gas each year! (Check your manual for optimal pressure). Lastly, get the junk out of the trunk! All that extra weight is sapping your fuel economy.

4. Car minus the carbon

There are many services out there now that can help you calculate your yearly emissions from driving and offset those greenhouse gasses through various means. Check below for a few carbon offset opportunities.

5. Carpool

Of course. Find coworkers, neighbors, and fellow students headed the same direction. Start with one shared trip per week. Also look into car sharing programs like FlexCar and ZipCar.

6. Leave the car at home.

For shorter adventures, walk, take public transit, ride your bike (regular, electric-assisted, or something fancier [http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/10/bluevelo_velomo.php]), skateboard, rollerblades, or even look into an electric scooter. Carrying groceries or other bulky stuff can still be done on a bike with a backpack or some slick modifications. Check out the Xtracycle, for example.

7. Drive part of the way

If getting where you’re going by bike or public transit alone isn’t going to happen, consider driving part of the way and then jumping on public transit or your bike (a folder would be perfect). A great way to beat traffic!

8. Easy on the AC

Use the windows to help keep the car cool. Or try an electric or solar fan. Parking in the shade and using a reflective windshield shade can keep your car cooler when parked, meaning it takes less to cool it off when you get back in. If you car is new, however, let it air out. That new car smell is not friendly stuff.

9. Telecommuting

Drive less with the wonders of working from home (or internet café, treehouse, Mojave desert, etc.) With instant messaging, video chat, teleconferencing, and other world-flattening technologies, making the rush-hour trek to work and back might not be that necessary. Ask your boss or offer your employees a teleconferencing day once a week. Hey, it works for TreeHuggers and 44 million Americans.

10. Aspire to carlessness

Not everyone is going to be able to do it, at least not cold carkey. It will probably entail a shift in thinking and some time, but living carfree might be more within reach than you think. Living closer to work and school is a big part of it. Walking, biking, public transport, car sharing, car borrowing, and teleconferencing are a strong arsenal of tools to help reduce the need for a car. Give it some thought.

Green Earth Fuels

Green Earth Fuels hosts the Official Opening Ceremony of its Galena Park processing and distribution facility.

Texas Governor Rick Perry Joins Project Officials and Guests for Official Grand Opening

Green Earth Fuels hosts the Official Opening Ceremony of its Galena Park processing and distribution facility today at 2:30 p.m. The biodiesel facility is located within the Galena Park Liquids Terminal, owned by Kinder Morgan Energy Partners, L.P.

Greg Bafalis, Green Earth Fuels president and chief executive officer, remarked, As the nations newest leader in helping energy companies integrate renewable, environmentally clean, and high-value biodiesel into existing distillate product offerings, we are delighted to officially open this facility - one of the nations largest biodiesel production plants.”

Biodiesel is derived from select natural plant oils and animal fats. Compared to petroleum-based diesel, biodiesel significantly reduces air emissions, complies with strict low sulfur mandates, and can be used in diesel blends with no modifications or infrastructure changes. Biodiesel supports the U.S. farm economy, improves regional and national energy security, expands tight fuel inventories, and reduces America’s foreign oil dependence.

Typically blended with petroleum diesel for use in diesel vehicles, biodiesel is the fastest growing alternative fuel in America. U.S. biodiesel production more than doubled last year to an estimated 225 million gallons. According to the National Biodiesel Board, the industry intends to replace five percent, or three billion gallons, of the country’s petroleum diesel by 2015.

Green Earth Fuels is unique to the industry in its dedication to supporting a national biodiesel infrastructure that is safe, sustainable, progressive, and commercially viable - all critical components to widespread adoption of alternative fuel sources,” remarked Governor Perry. “I am pleased to support the maturing biodiesel industry and this state-of-the-art facility, particularly as biofuels play a progressively critical role in protecting America’s agricultural economy and national energy security.”

To date, the Green Earth Fuels facility in Houston has produced and shipped more than 2.4 million gallons of fuel, with all of it meeting stringent ASTM (American Society of Testing and Materials) specifications. The company has expansion plans for three additional refineries underway at sites in key coastal locations.

The quality and ratability of our biodiesel production have solidified Green Earth Fuels leadership role in the U.S. renewable fuels marketplace,” said Bafalis. With our Houston facility up and running in full production, new processing facility projects currently underway in bi-coastal locations, and a vertically integrated business model that represents end-to-end production of environmentally clean biodiesel, our team is fully committed to continuing to meet the rigorous scale, quality, and logistics requirements of our energy industry customers and becoming an integral and vital link in their renewable fuel strategies.”

Construction on Green Earth Fuels 90 million gallons-per-year (mmgpy) Galena Park project began in 2006. Green Earth Fuels first process line, capable of producing 45 million gallons per year of quality biodiesel, went into commercial operation on July 24; the second process line moved into production October 1.

The facility utilizes Green Earths proprietary design which focuses on producing ratable and high-quality biodiesel. A $100,000 on-site fuel-testing lab, managed by highly experienced Green Earth technicians, closely monitors biodiesel quality throughout every step of processing to ensure that all of the product will meet ASTM requirements before third-party certifications are performed, and that only high quality biodiesel is allowed to exit the plant.

Green Earth Fuels also invests in the development and production of new feedstock crops, and adheres to best practices farming of current crops to promote feedstock sustainability, maximize processing benefits, and minimize environmental impacts.

Next Page »