Dear readers,

Too much to share with you to force you to wait for my nearly completed short story, The Trojan Horse Sisters. So here's miscellaneous stuff that has grabbed my attention. I hope the new year is starting out great for you. I've started it with a fast, completing 18 days on just water on January 14. Had to get some plastics et al out of my system and re-energize myself for another Amtrak Petrocollapse Tour. Let me know if you want me to come through your town. Peak oil awareness is on the rise!

Plastics in car worse than even in your kitchen?
As a driver for many years in sunny L.A., I endured the car interior as a powerful, nasty smelling cage when I opened the door on a hot day. Turns out the plastic components of the dashboard, seats, etc. include extremely toxic phthalates and fire retardants that emit. Whoops, cancer and more for us and our children. The following article (link) is about exactly these issues, but does not address plastics or the error of car dependence! Check this out and pity the poor, status-conscious saps driving Mercedes which are the most loaded toxic-interior death machines warming our globe:
Cars-interior chemicals
Is your car making you sick?
Ecocenter.org study

Our earlier plastics report, with links:
http://culturechange.org/e-letter-plastics.html

Ocean's temperature off Santa Barbara now highest in 1,400 years
Southern California coastal waters have warmed in recent decades to their highest level in 1,400 years, according to a study of fossilized plankton published this week in the journal Science. Hmm, shall we take the car or bike to the store? www.azcentral.com/news

Haikus on Busheroos
From Mark Robinowitz of Oilempire.us comes an awesome set of informative, engaging haikus "about Bush - short summaries of their crimes - complex made simple" - A slew of haikus! www.oilempire.us

Air strikes increasing - anti-war movement's not succeeding yet
Civilian casualties, fire and smoke, a broken land in the hell of civilization's cradle -- all in our name. Are we part of this empire? Is there nothing we can do, besides applauding Cindy Sheehan and Representative Murtha? Why is it that petroleum conservation is barely practiced? Maybe we are just motorized lemmings driving over the ecological cliff. If anyone has any ideas how to stop these air strikes or to build the peace movement, I'd like to see it happen soon or this new year. Do you think stopping driving and getting plastic out of our lives is a reasonable start and rallying point?

"US airstrikes in Iraq have surged this fall, jumping to nearly five times the average monthly rate earlier in the year, according to US military figures. Until the end of August, US warplanes were conducting about 25 strikes a month. The number rose to 62 in September, then to 122 in October and 120 in November." - The Washington Post, Dec. 24, 2005 (distributed by Truthout.org).

For non-imbedded Iraq Dispatches, see dahrjamailiraq.com - I have met Dahr Jamail and was privileged to share a stage with him here in Berkeley.

Peak oil hits L.A.
Among my remarks about coping with petrocollapse in a megalopolis on Jan. 28 in Sherman Oaks, will be: "We are divided. The poor are outta luck and shunned. Society is failing. We only think of ourselves, because that's the survival mode that rewards us. This division has led us into this crisis and looming catastrophe, as the common good is just another discussion topic somewhere below the Dodgers or George Bush's latest shenanigans.

"The good news is that our division will cease when we are forced to make due with dramatically reduced material resources. Community will be a magnet for survivors of the coming shake-out, and we will take to it like a fish to water, because the close tribal community is almost all our species' time to date on Earth."

More announcements:

KHSU - Plastics phone-in radio show with Jan Lundberg and Arcata City Councilwoman Harmony Groves, former Culture Change editor, Jan. 19th, 7:30 PM Pacific Coast Time. Listen live at KHSU.org or in Humboldt on 90.5 FM.

Campaign Against the Plastic Plague - bag fee workshop all day in Newport Beach, California on Jan. 21. More info: CAPP at earthresource.org

Sherman Oaks - Peak oil community forum including screening of "The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil"
Contact 818-906-7757 or via Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Doors open at 6:30 PM - Program starts at 7:00 PM.
Speakers: Jan Lundberg, Ed Begley, Jr., Paul Koretz, state legislator, Mimi Kennedy, actress.
Valley Cities Jewish Community Center, 13164 Burbank Blvd (between Fulton & Coldwater).

Pasadena and South Central L.A. - Petrocollapse and urban farms: Sunday January 29. Screening of Our Synthetic Sea and above Cuba movie in Pasadena: lapostcarbon.org

Hollywood - antiwar rally and march Jan. 31 (part of national the World Can't Wait campaign to unseat Bush), 8pm EST:
"In large cities and town squares across the country, rallies start one hour before Bush's address. 5 PM - Gather at intersection of Hollywood and Highland; 6 PM - Bring the NOISE; march and 7 pm rally in front of CNN news station at Sunset and Cahuenga." www.worldcantwait.net

NYC DVDs - available for Petrocollapse Conference. See http://www.petrocollapse.org Simply send $22 via PayPal or by check to address below, and send us your mailing address.

Our printed Culture Change Newsletter is in production now. Let us know if you want a copy by emailing This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or calling us at 1-215-243-3144

Support Culture Change and petrocollapse conferences, by donating online at http://www.culturechange.org/funding.htm or sending a donation to:

CULTURE CHANG
P.O. Box 4347
Arcata, CA 95518 USA

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