Apprently some folks are very emotionally involved in this issue. I simply have not seen any evidence that tree species are suffering from GW. I do in fact read alot of forestry journals (I am a faculty member in a foretry department at a large research university). That isn't to say that papers haven't been published that claim this to be true. Rather, the data they present doesn't actually support their hypotheses. I challenge the "doomsdayers" to show me a study that proves that tree species are suffering from human-caused GW. If you do this, I will retract my statements. As for your childish rant on my typo, I am pretty certain you knew what I meant by "impirical evidence". In any case, provide a citation for some "pirmicale, I mean empirical evidence" then. Its amazing how much hatred there is for anyone that disagrees with those who claim to "know the facts" and are enlightened on the subject of climate change. It becomes pretty obvious to any actual academic researcher that these folks are thinking with their emotions when they won't even answer the basic questions being asked and begin to make petty comments about the intelligence and/or social status of those challenging them.

time to move this down

This is a cut and paste, so I hope Al does not get too upset. We did make mention of is name so that should make him very happy. When marketing a product, one expects a bit of hype. The idea is to show that the product is the best over the competitor's line of product. That is the trade of advertisers and the history of marketing. Some tactics used to sell can be humorous or as serious as the competition between manufacturers. Marketing tactics that play on fears of the general public can be a very powerful tool. In the present day, there's a very popular angle of "green." This is prevalent everywhere in the media. So what happens when you mix a scare tactic under the guise of environmental concern? Buildclean found the answer to that question. The premise seems of the nonprofit organization seems to be admirable but the fact that the "awareness campaign" that Buildclean is currently using seems to be curiously slanted. In fact, the target seems to be the natural stone industry. When Sara Selber of BuildClean was asked how she got involved in natural stone and radon, she explained how she was approached by the owner of C&C North America, a company that produces two products granite and a quartz product called Silestone®. "C&C North America then recruited a quartz company called Cambria, after they learned quartz was an issue, she further explained that the two companies hired her to test quartz, granite and other surfaces for radon emission. Both companies are testing their products through BuildClean, and they contracted two labs one in New York and one in Israel. We have looked all over the C&C website but cannot find any mention of natural stone. When ask what granites emit radon, Sara Selber said; "Not all granites emit radon or radiation. There are some that clearly do. There are some that absolutely don't. We don't know," she said. They're being set up as a non-profit, and they're funded with two large donations. The first is $250,000 from the makers of 'Silestone.' They manufacture quartz countertops, which is a direct competitor to granite. Silestone finance records show that they started out in April of 1998 with a an initial investment of $410K, made there first million in 1998, sales in 2002 was over $70M, and sales in 2006 was well over $260M. it is not hard to see that they have the money to invest $250,000 in a new advertising campaign. BuildClean is also getting money from Cambria, another quartz manufacturer. In fact, Cambria's marketing director is on BuildClean's board of directors. When asked about the funding Sara responds: I don't believe the issue is who our founders are. And I'm not going to have that debate." That answer seems to be clear enough. In a recent interview Mrs. Selber mentions teaming up with Al Gerhart who has some interest in the granite \radon scare. Al Gerhart is a carpenter whohappens to own a website called the Solid Surface Alliance .org. He educated himself, regarding materials he works with that may expose him to harmful elements." Upon further review it seems this "personality" is well known for his view of natural stone. All one has to do is look at the website to get the gist of his viewpoint. Coincidentally, there also seems to be a new business venture for Solid Surface Alliance as the website now sells Geiger counters to detect radiation His debates have earned him quite a place online in forums discussing the subject. After a certain debate on a well known residential forum, a renowned geoscientist in the industry concluded: "Al attempts to hijack debates by choking the system with verbal diarrhea. The problem appears to be that he has a bit of knowledge about some things but not enough sense and understanding of the subjects. In that debate on the Garden Forum he threw in so many fabrications (plain made up lies) that his credibility just plummeted to zero. Anyone who operates this way (by including a number of facts to gain an element of credibility in the eyes of a generally uninformed audience, twisting facts deliberately or because of his lack of understanding, and then throwing in a number of lies) does not deserve extended airtime. Many years ago when doing science psychology I still remember my professor giving the advice to his students that you should never engage a nutter in debate. You can never win an argument with such people. I recognized this early in the forum and that is why I would not engage him in "debate". One of his major problems is that he does not know what the numbers mean and how they are derived." In response to the buildclean tactics, The Marble Institute of America is in the process of doing their own independent study: "The Marble Institute of America (MIA) is grateful for the preliminary response from the members to the newly established Truth About Granite Fund. Based on this positive response, it's clear that their colleagues share their commitment to protect consumers from needless fear mongering by establishing standards for the testing of granite so consumers can safely and comfortably enjoy the beauty, durability and practicality of this natural stone." When we asked the MIA why Sara Speer Selber consider The Truth About Granite Fund as a draconian move that is being waged against BuildClean(TM), they simple responded: "The Truth About Granite Fund was established to help raise funds to develop unbiased, scientific standards for the granite industry, including the testing of granite for radon. No such standards currently exist in the natural stone industry. Previous tests of granite samples have found they are safe. However, the Truth in Granite Fund aims to take advantage of new, advanced scientific instruments that make testing both more practical and more accurate. Our goal is to make sure testing follows consistent protocols, so that future studies are meaningful and based on consistent, approved science not isolated methodologies or unapproved instruments. Ultimately, our goal is to make sure the granite we sell is safe." This latest sales tactic received the attention of an independent group called the Natural Stone Restoration Alliance (NSRA). The NSRA saw Radon testing as an added service that their members could provide to the homeowners along with all their other services for natural stone. Josveek Huligar, one of the lead testers and trainer for the NSRA , invited times Members of the Solid Surface Alliance dot org to discuss and provide proof of this threat to the home owners. The Solid Surface Alliance dot org agreed to provide an alleged radiation producing granite sample that they claim to have in their possession to do independent testing. After an initial agreement between the two groups it seems the Solid Surface Alliance dot org has reneged on the delivery of the alleged material. Mr Huligar was disappointed of the outcome. The NSRA than requested the name of the company that Mr. Gerhart claimed to just have rejected over 10k worth of radon producing granite. When the information was not provided, Huligar ask if he could purchase the next slab that Mr. Gerhart rejected. But for some reason Mr. Gerhart could no longer find a sample for testing. Mr. Huligar went on to say: "All we care about at this point. As for whether are not Stone adds a measurable amount of "radon" in a home, Mr. Gerhart had agreed to come to NY and pick out a hot slab that I would place in my own home after testing my home for radon. Once the granite was installed I would test my home again as described by the EPA and have it tested by someone approved by the EPA. Not only would we do the short and long term test, we would also video tape the whole event, the selection, the creation, the install, and than setting up cameras for anyone to view the stone and meters on the net. I was looking forward to do this, but at this time it appears that Mr. Gerhart has no plans on doing as he said which is a big disappointment." The NSRA plans to push for this simple test, they feel that the consumers only care about one thing; "whether or not adding granite in your home would significantly change the radon levels in a home". At present, the most prudent consumer should watch the outcome of this debate and make an informed decision, not taken in by a scare tactic by advertisers. EPA Confirms That Granite Countertops Pose No Significant Health Risk http://nsraweb.com/index.php/Latest/EPA_Confirms_That_Granite_Countertops_Pose_No_Significant_Health_Risk.html

For those who can't open it, here is the text portion: Color Their World Tim and Elaine Ryan in their foyer. By CELIA BARBOUR Published: November 18, 2007 APATHY comes in many forms. But to Elaine Ryan, it comes in just one color beige though it may use dangerously seductive aliases: vanilla, mocha, crème caramel. To her, these shades represent nothing short of a renunciation of the inalienable right to happiness in home décor. Ms. Ryan likes to cook, and food influences her choice of paint colors. So theres papaya in the foyer, and celery in master bedroom. The Ryans bought the house as it was being built, and Ms. Ryan added her own details. "People deny to themselves that they need color," said Ms. Ryan, an interior designer and author, most recently, of "Color Your Life: How to Design Your Home With Colors From Your Heart" (St. Martins Griffin, 2007). "Color is vital to our spirit. It isnt just that color is nice. Our spirits soar when we walk into a room that has color." Her fervor is evident the moment you turn into the driveway of the house in Woodbury, Conn., just west of Waterbury, where she lives with her husband, Tim, a retired estate planner and a committed environmental advocate. Their two-year-old colonial is yellow pure, intense and bright as lemon peel. Anyone left indifferent by the houses exterior will surely be knocked flat by the foyer. This room is entirely papaya, the ceiling as well as the walls, offset by bright white trim. The Ryans she is 63, he 70 moved to Connecticut from Arizona two years ago, essentially retiring in reverse, from south to north. "We had a very rich life in Arizona," said Ms. Ryan, who grew up in Brooklyn. "We had wonderful, wonderful clients. We were well known in the community. But whenever fall came and ballet season opened, or another show opened at the Metropolitan Museum of Art that I was longing to see ... "Let me put it this way: I lived in Arizona, but my heart was in New York." Mr. Ryan, meanwhile, had started to "burn out," as he put it, on estate planning and spent the 15 years before their move studying Arizona ecosystems and leading hikes for the Sierra Club he guided 72 groups through the Grand Canyon. The environmental movement "dragged me in," he said. "I didnt plan to get so involved, but I did, and really enjoyed it." Nonetheless, Mr. Ryan had no objections to the relocation. The son of a Navy admiral, he had grown up moving from place to place. "Tim is the kind of person whos really very happy wherever he is," Ms. Ryan said. "As long as he has his chair and good light, hes comfortable." Indeed, so easygoing was Mr. Ryan about the whole process that he didnt even come to see the house unfinished when his wife made an offer before they bought it. "I said to Tim, What if you dont like the house?" Ms. Ryan recalled. "He said, If you like it, Ill like it." Admittedly, there are some aspects of the house that Ms. Ryan finds frustrating. For starters, it is 1,700 square feet smaller than their Arizona house. But she doesnt look back: "What can I say? I love this house more and more." Even the fact that the house was unfinished was a plus; it allowed her to reconfigure parts of the interior to suit her needs, adding a screened porch in back, for example, and a walk-in china closet. "Im an interior designer, but I do a lot of architecture," Ms. Ryan said. The rooms are filled with a remarkable assortment of antiques and decorative objects, displayed in combinations that attest to Ms. Ryans self-confidence as a designer. In her dining room, for example, a bowl of Mexican folk-art papier-mâché bread and fruit coexists with an 18th-century English sideboard and a 17th-century chest. "Clients always ask, Will it go?" Ms. Ryan said. "Everything that is of good quality will go together, just like good people go together." Further illustrations of this philosophy turn up through every doorway. In the sitting room, for example, an Italian gilt mirror hangs above a wall-mounted flat-screen television. "The Samsung is good, and the mirror is good, so they go together," Ms. Ryan said. In the kitchen, she points out a Baccarat chandelier suspended above her "little, teensy" butcher-block island. "Good, and good," she said with a laugh. Her design talents arent the only thing she displays in the kitchen. Ms. Ryan also has the reputation of being a very good cook. "Some people eat to live," she said. "I cook to live. Or live to cook. Cooking makes me feel whole and in harmony." Not surprisingly, her next book will be about color and food. Food certainly influences her choice of paint colors. In addition to the papaya in the foyer, theres celery in master bedroom and cantaloupe in the sitting room. "The reason I love cantaloupe the color is because I love cantaloupe the fruit," Ms. Ryan said. To Ms. Ryan, a strong paint color would never limit other design choices. "All colors are neutral to each other," she said. "Anything beautiful against beige is also beautiful against cantaloupe." But she realizes that most people are less bold in choosing and mixing colors. Her current book attempts to help them break through this resistance by offering psychological guidance along with practical decorating tips. "It speaks to the reader about the link between their interior self and interior design of their homes," Ms. Ryan said. Numerous workbook pages are filled with questions like "Can you remember the colors you loved as a child?" to help readers uncover the colors that will resonate for them. For readers who are reluctant to embark on what could be a life-altering quest, the books final pages are a set of 64 tear-out "color bars" that will do the thinking for them. The system is simple all the even-numbered colors go together and all the odd-numbered colors go together. Ms. Ryan swears its foolproof. "This is truth," she said. "There are 1,000 tones of every color. How can I be positively sure that this green will go with this blue?" The answers, which Ms. Ryan discovered through eight years of trial and error, are depicted on the color bars. She was never tempted to turn to optical science to back up her instincts. "No, no!" she said, clutching her forehead. "I did it all with this head."