Better not to run a marathon with these running shoes

Quality issues in China can be both puzzling and disappointing.
Puzzling because it is hard to believe a brand like ASICS has such poor quality. I bought those in an “official shop” in Beijing but one can wonder: are they real or fake?
The model, here pictured, is ASICS TN238, “Made in China”. Fortunately I use those exclusively in the gym. The sole parts have been falling of several times. As it happened in the gym I was able to find them and glue them back myself. See here the latest one to fall of. Seems the glue they used must have a serious quality problem. Otherwise the running shoes are fine.


Now just imagine you are running a race with those, like a marathon. That would be a near disaster.

The impact of Global Warming: the Arctic and a Swiss village

The article Arctic ice melt an ‘economic time bomb’, 26 July 2013 – The Guardian – is one of the telling indicators.
Scientists say rapid melting of summer sea ice in the Arctic may release a “pulse” of methane, with dire implications for the global economy. See the full text:
http://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/1290611/arctic-ice-melt-economic-time-bomb#comment-30702
Says the article:
“ … the release of a single giant “pulse” of methane from thawing Arctic permafrost beneath the East Siberian sea “could come with a US$60 trillion global price tag”, according to the researchers who have for the first time quantified the effects on the global economy. Even the slow emission of a much smaller proportion of the vast quantities of methane locked up in the Arctic permafrost and offshore waters could trigger catastrophic climate change and “steep” economic losses, according to the study published in the journal Nature. The Arctic sea ice, which largely melts and reforms each year, is declining at an unprecedented rate. In 2013, it collapsed to under 3.5 million square kilometres by mid September, just 40 per cent of its usual extent in the 1970s. Because the ice is also losing its thickness, some scientists expect the Arctic to be largely free of summer ice by 2020.”
In my book Toxic Capitalism, published last year, this issue was already mentioned as one of the major threats to our climate. This is just a confirmation.
Another impact mentioned in my book comes out again: see what is happening in places like Switzerland. Still, people, blinded by ignorance, refuse to admit what is going on.
See: Grindelwald Journal – As Glaciers Melt, Alpine Mountains Lose Their Glue, Threatening Swiss Village, article by Jogn Tagliabue, New York Times, published: 29 May 2013:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/30/world/europe/in-swiss-alps-glacial-melting-unglues-mountains.html?_r=0
Mountaineers are witness to the changes and fear the consequences when climbing.
 

Chinese herbs contaminated by pesticides

Now, in the saga that you can’t trust anything anymore that you eat and drink in China, this story is very disturbing:
Traditional Chinese herbs are being contaminated with a toxic cocktail of pesticides that poses a threat to health and the environment, Greenpeace said. Its tests revealed that up to 48 of 65 samples purchased from nine pharmacies tested positive for pesticide residue, including banned substances. Some residue levels were hundreds of times higher than EU food safety standards, Greenpeace East Asia reported. The group found 51 different types of pesticide residue, and 26 of the samples contained pesticides that are banned in China. The samples included some from renowned producers such as Tongrentang, a Beijing-based pharmaceutical company founded in 1669 and the largest producer of traditional Chinese medicine. “Chinese herbs should heal, not harm people and must be pesticide free,” said Wang Jing of Greenpeace East Asia. “The current industrial agriculture system is heavily reliant on toxic chemicals at the expense of human and environmental health,” Wang said.
Dried sanqi flowers contained up to 39 kinds of pesticide, chrysanthemum up to 35 and honeysuckle flowers up to 21. Ten pesticides classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as extremely or highly hazardous and six banned for use on Chinese herbs were found. Even leading traditional Chinese medicine makers don’t set standards or carry out tests for pesticide residue, Greenpeace claimed. Pesticide abuse in herb growing is only part of much bigger problem, which was the general failure of chemical-intensive agriculture to feed people safely while preventing environmental degradation, Greenpeace concluded, as reported in the Shanghai Daily.
(Source: FCCC Newsletter No 323, 1 July 2013)
Bad news for all of us. I do actually use TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) on a regular base and recently I have been drinking chrysanthemum tea. What can we still trust here?

CFL in China: the good and bad

Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLs) can help you save money, use less energy, reduce light bulb changes, and lower greenhouse gas emissions, which lead to climate change.
In China they have become very popular and now the old type light bulbs are disappearing at a fast pace.
However we face here a serious problem, the same as for the batteries, printer and copier cartridges: there is virually nothing in place for safe recycling. Most people simply put it all in the trash with considerable dangers for the environment.
Worse, in case a CFP breaks do expect our Chinese friends (especially the maids) to do everything they should NOT do. Reason: mercury poisoning. One more item on the list of ignorance here. What is the government doing about it? Nothing.
Ever seen a collection point in supermarkets for used batteries and CFL? Obviously never I guess.
Read more:
http://www2.epa.gov/cfl
http://worldtruth.tv/understanding-the-dangers-of-fluorescent-light-bulbs/
Being green and protecting the environment is often done in the wrong way – CFLs and electric bikes are some of the (bad) examples. This is also mentioned in my book Toxic Capitalism.

Man Invents Machine To Convert Plastic Into Oil

As discussed in my book, we waste tons of plastics that pollute our soil, the rivers, lakes and oceans. The problem is that those plastics now enter the food chain (enjoy your fish!) but also use oil. See here two slides of my book presentation, talking about plastics in a dead albatross and more.


But some people show the way – there are solutions, not only to waste less but to recycle.
In an efficient and safe effort to save us from the ill-effects of plastic waste, Akinori Ito has developed a machine which converts plastic back into oil.
See the clip in Japanese with English subtitles.
http://www.flixxy.com/convert-plastic-to-oil.htm
The machine produced in various sizes, for both industrial and home uses, can easily transform a kilogram of plastic waste into a liter of oil, using about 1 kWh of electricity but without emitting CO2 in the process. The machine uses a temperature controlling electric heater instead of flames, processing anything from polyethylene or polystyrene to polypropylene (numbers 2-4).  Comment: 1 kg of plastic produces one liter of oil, which costs $1.50. This process uses only about 1 kWh of electricity, which costs less than 20 cents! (as mentioned on flixxy)