Torres Strait Islander war veterans honoured for World War II service

Prime Minister Tony Abbott presents three Torres Strait Islander veterans with medals to honour their service in World War II.

Almond Eyes (Chashm Badami)

four-hazara-children

Editor’s note: Members of the Hazara ethnic minority were attacked and killed at Afshar, Ghor, and Jalriz. In Ghor province armed Taliban halted a car, separated the occupants into Hazara, Tajik, and Pashtoons, and then killed the Hazaras. In Jalriz, Taliban recently attacked and killed Hazaras.

I am going to puke here!
Every day the sound of gunshots
Every day the sound of death

Gunshots in the city
That spilled the blood of our youth.

Some people cry for the dead,
Others are so deeply shipwrecked
Thinking only of their luxuries
They don’t even think about these people

The bits of foods I eat
Stick like hatred in my throat and 
Tears flow from my eyes
When I see the hatred in my country

People are killing each other.
My heart feels like it is being ripped apart.
Instead of human,
They call me Hazara, Chashm Badami,
“Almond Eyes,” they shout at me!

Afshar repeats here again and again!
Ghor repeats here again and again!
Jalriz repeats here again and again!
And I die
Again and again by the name of Hazara.

For my generation,
The new generation of Almond Eyes —  
Our new Hazara generation —
Nobody cares that our cries stick in our throats

Before being Hazara I am human
I am a proud Hazara woman
You have to respect me as I respect you.

By Zahra H.

Photo by Balazs Gardi

Afghan Women’s Writing Project | Almond Eyes (Chashm Badami)

Editor’s note: Members of the Hazara ethnic minority were attacked and killed at Afshar, Ghor, and Jalriz. In Ghor province armed Taliban halted a car, separated the occupants into Hazara, Tajik, and Pashtoons, and then killed the Hazaras. In Jalriz, Taliban recently attacked and killed Hazaras.

I am going to puke here!

Every day the sound of gunshots

Every day the sound of death

Gunshots in the city

That spilled the blood of our youth.

Some people cry for the dead,

Others are so deeply shipwrecked

Thinking only of their luxuries

They don’t even think about these people

The bits of foods I eat

Stick like hatred in my throat and

Tears flow from my eyes

When I see the hatred in my country

People are killing each other.

My heart feels like it is being ripped apart.

Instead of human,

They call me Hazara, Chashm Badami,

“Almond Eyes,” they shout at me!

Afshar repeats here again and again!

Ghor repeats here again and again!

Jalriz repeats here again and again!

And I die

Again and again by the name of Hazara.

For my generation,

The new generation of Almond Eyes —

Our new Hazara generation —

Nobody cares that our cries stick in our throats

Before being Hazara I am human

I am a proud Hazara woman

You have to respect me as I respect you.

By Zahra H.

via Afghan Women’s Writing Project | Almond Eyes (Chashm Badami).

Report: Federal Weatherization Assistance Program Provides Benefits Four Times Its Costs

Peter Miller, Senior Scientist, San Francisco

The federal Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) provides low-income households with more than $13,000 in energy, health, and safety benefits – four times the cost – according to recently released data that contrasts sharply with a controversial working paper that drew overly broad conclusions about the effectiveness of all residential energy efficiency programs.

Retrofit Baltimore.jpgThe Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) this month released a summary of a set of forthcoming evaluations of the 40-year-old program, which has provided energy services in 7 million low-income homes, including efficiency measures and critical health and safety improvements. The multi-year, comprehensive, peer-reviewed evaluations looked at the impacts of the WAP program on 30,000 homes and found total benefits over four times greater than the costs of the program.

The ORNL evaluations – which the Department of Energy says are nearing completion — stand in contrast to a recent non-peer reviewed working paper by a group of researchers from the E2e project. As reported by my colleagues (here, here, here, and here), that paper about a WAP program in Michigan had a number of flaws and broadly cast doubt on the cost-effectiveness of all residential energy efficiency, even though one of the study authors and the study itself cautioned that it shouldn’t be generalized beyond the Michigan program..

WAP provides more than energy savings

A major flaw of the E2e paper is that it counted the costs but not the benefits of non-energy WAP investments like asbestos removal and mold abatement that improve the health and safety of residents, but don’t save energy. In contrast, the ORNL evaluations summary shows that the WAP program provides energy savings that exceed costs by a factor of 1.4. And the overall benefit to cost ratio rises to 4.1 when health and safety benefits are also included.

A careful comparison shows a number of consistencies between the working paper and the peer-reviewed evaluations and identifies the reasons for the differing conclusions. In particular, the E2e paper covered homes that use less energy than those typically served by WAP and focused solely on the period covered by the Recovery Act, which was also not representative of the program over the long term. Adjusting for these factors, as well as the treatment of the health and safety investments mentioned earlier, shows fairly consistent results. Both studies found that weatherization provides about 10 to 20 percent energy savings and the cost estimates that differed by only 3 percent.

Overall, the ORNL summary once again demonstrates the fact that energy efficiency remains the easiest, cheapest, cleanest, and fastest option to reduce pollution by reducing the need to burn fossil fuels to create energy. It also saves money, improves public health, provides affordable and reliable energy services and creates good, middle-class jobs that benefit the economy.

Photo courtesy Retrofit Baltimore
switchboard_all?d=yIl2AUoC8zA switchboard_all?d=dnMXMwOfBR0 switchboard_all?d=bcOpcFrp8Mo

Second Look Behind the Headlines – News you can use…

Baldacchino di Perla

"Luce di parole, ombra di sogni."

Northern Desert Photography

Living on the Edge of the Sagebrush Ocean

Susana Cabaço

Spiritual Insights & Personal Empowerment

Barbara Picci

Artist & Art Blogger

craft journey

Furnicraft, woodwork, and art

musings corner

reveries and rants

Japão para Românticos

Bem Vindos a este espaço onde compartilhamos um pouco da realidade do Japão à todos aqueles que desejam visitar ou morar no Japão. Aqui neste espaço, mostramos a realidade do Japão e dos imigrantes. O nosso compromisso é com a realidade. Fique por dentro do noticiário dos principais jornais japoneses, tutoriais de Faça você mesmo no Japão e acompanhe a Série Histórias de Imigrantes no Japão. Esperamos que goste de nossos conteúdos, deixe seu like, seu comentário, compartilhe e nos ajudar você e à outras pessoas. Grande abraço, gratidão e volte sempre!

Leben als Mensch

Willkommen auf Elke´s Glücks-Blog

Sharpshot Nature .Com

- Specializing in the great outdoors, capturing nature at its finest!

Diane Ravitch's blog

A site to discuss education and democracy

Expansão e Percepção

Seu Guia de Inspirações e Reflexões Diárias

noga noga.

my-health-and-beauty.com/

Uğurcan'ın Ütopyası

Benim Gezegenime Hoş geldiniz !!!

AKILS

Blog de viajes y lugares

Ed Mooney Photography

The official blog of Ed Mooney Photography. Dad of 3, Photographer, Blogger, Powerlifter. Exploring the historical sites of Ireland.

everything Explored on the earth

It has new aidias,news, about education , motivation, social, historical, culture, marketing creation new aidias education of language science culture and history

Born to die

L'unico modo sensato di vivere è senza regole

Early Morning Memories

by Anuran (A) & Sayoni (S)

My thoughts

Fun for the Brain

Neo Vision College

An exemplary learning community.

Anthony’s Crazy Love and Life Lessons in Empathy

Loves, lamentation, and life through prose, stories, passions, and essays.

Episodic Squalid Rants

public tantrums by a non-two-year-old

The Street Art Directory

Public, street and urban art worldwide

Artie & Stu

all the rules of free form

Everyone read that they fell in love first

<script async src="https://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-2937106805202763" crossorigin="anonymous"></script>

davidscottmoyer

Lapsed Painter, Occasional Photographer, Compulsive Writer

Health & Fitness

Health Blogs

Buildings Tell Tales

Exploring the hidden architectural heritage of Budapest

Divit kalem

Yaşamdan

Roy's Weblog

The third incarnation...

Thought Pukes

More than a thought less than a question

"بوصلة الحياة"

"بوصلة الحياة: مدونة متعددة المجالات، من السياسة إلى الرومانسية، ومن تطوير الذات إلى الأدب وأكثر!" بقلم مشاعر بنت عبدالرحمن

parallax

The view from here ... Or here!

ClearingSpace4Joy

Bringer and seeker of joy

Belladonna’s Flashlight

The One Where She Stumbled Through Her 40's and Faced Her Demons

~ Trivial Music Silliness ~

Baw wit da baw. Just sayin'.

mo mnsoor blog

Website storys

Chronicles of an Anglo Swiss

Welcome to the Anglo Swiss World

gnaddrig ad libitum

Querbeet und ohne Gewähr

Peace & Truth

KINDNESS IS FREE, sprinkle it all over the world, and 😁 smile

Ética de la vida diaria

Nuestra ética de todos los días...

Elizabeth Gauffreau

Fiction Writer in Poet's Clothing