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been fit instruments to make slaves of the rest. I come not here armed at all points, with law cases and acts of Parliament, with the statute book doubled down in dog's-ears, to defend the cause of liberty: if I |
had, I myself would have cited the two cases of Chester and Durham. I would have cited them, to have shown that even under former arbitrary reigns, Parliaments were ashamed of taxing a people without their consent, and allowed them |
representatives. Why did the gentleman confine himself to Chester and Durham? He might have taken a higher example in Wales; Wales, that never was taxed by Parliament till it was incorporated. I would not debate a particular point of law |
with the gentleman. I know his abilities. I have been obliged to his diligent researches: but, for the defense of liberty, upon a general principle, upon a constitutional principle, it is a ground on which I stand firm; on which |
I dare meet any man. The gentleman tells us of many who are taxed, and are not represented. The India Company, merchants, stock-holders, manufacturers. Surely many of these are represented in other capacities, as owners of land, or as freemen |
of boroughs. It is a misfortune that more are not equally represented: but they are all inhabitants, and as such, are they not virtually represented? . . . They have connections with those that elect, and they have influence over |
them. The gentleman mentioned the stockholders: I hope he does not reckon the debts of the nation as a part of the national estate. Since the accession of King William, many ministers, some of great, others of more moderate abilities, |
have taken the lead of government. None of these thought, or ever dreamed, of robbing the colonies of their constitutional rights. That was to mark the era of the late administration: not that there were wanting some, when I had |
the honour to serve his Majesty, to propose to me to burn my fingers with an American Stamp-Act. With the enemy at their back, with our bayonets at their breasts, in the day of their distress, perhaps the Americans would |
have submitted to the imposition: but it would have been taking an ungenerous and unjust advantage. The gentleman boasts of his bounties to America. Are not those bounties intended finally for the benefit of this kingdom? If they are not, |
he has misapplied the national treasures. I am no courtier of America; I stand up for this kingdom. I maintain, that the parliament has a right to bind, to restrain America. Our legislative power over the colonies is sovereign and |
supreme. When it ceases to be sovereign and supreme, I would advise every gentleman to sell his lands, if he can, and embark for that country. When two countries are connected together, like England and her colonies, without being incorporated, |
the one must necessarily govern; the greater must rule the less; but so rule it, as not to contradict the fundamental principles that are common to both. If the gentleman does not understand the difference between external and internal taxes, |
I cannot help it; but there is a plain distinction between taxes levied for the purpose of raising a revenue, and duties imposed for the regulation of trade, for the accommodation of the subject; although, in the consequences, some revenue |
might incidentally arise from the latter. The gentleman asks, when were the colonies emancipated? But I desire to know, when were they made slaves. But I dwell not upon words. When I had the honour of serving his Majesty, I |
availed myself of the means of information which I derived from my office: I speak, therefore, from knowledge. My materials were good; I was at pains to collect, to digest, to consider them; and I will be bold to affirm, |
that the profits to Great Britain from the trade of the colonies, through all its branches, is two millions a year. This is the fund that carried you triumphantly through the last war.... You owe this to America: this is |
the price America pays you for her protection. And shall a miserable financier come with a boast, that he can bring a pepper-corn into the exchequer, to the loss of millions to the nation? I dare not say, how much |
higher these profits may be augmented. Omitting the immense increase of people by natural population, and the emigration from every part of Europe, I am convinced the whole commercial system of America may be altered to advantage. You have prohibited |
where you ought to have encouraged, encouraged where you ought to have prohibited. Improper restraints have been laid on the continent, in favour of the islands. You have but two nations to trade with in America. Would you had twenty! |
Let acts of parliament in consequence of treaties remain, but let not an English minister become a custom-house officer for Spain, or for any foreign power. Much is wrong; much may be amended for the general good of the whole.... |
The gentleman must not wonder he was not contradicted, when, as minister, he asserted the right of Parliament to tax America. I know not how it is, but there is a modesty in this House, which does not choose to |
contradict a minister. I wish gentlemen would get the better of this modesty. Even that chair, Sir, sometimes looks towards St. James's. If they do not, perhaps the collective body may begin to abate of its respect for the representative... |
A great deal has been said without doors of the power, of the strength of America. It is a topic that ought to be cautiously meddled with. In a good cause, on a sound bottom, the force of this country |
can crush America to atoms. I know the valour of your troops. I know the skill of your officers. There is not a company of foot that has served in America out of which you may not pick a man |
of sufficient knowledge and experience to make him governor of a colony there. But on this ground, on the Stamp Act, when so many here will think a crying injustice, I am one who will lift up my hands against |
it. In such a cause, your success would be hazardous. America, if she fell, would fall like a strong man. She would embrace the pillars of the state, and pull down the constitution along with her. Is this your boasted |
peace? Not to sheathe the sword in it scabbard, but to sheathe it in the bowels of your countrymen? Will you quarrel with yourselves, now the whole House of Bourbon is united against you... The Americans have not acted in |
all things with prudence and temper. They have been wronged. They have been driven to madness by injustice. Will you punish them for the madness you have occasioned? Rather let prudence and temper come first from this side. I will |
undertake for America, that she will follow the example. There are two lines in a ballad of Prior's, of a man's behaviour to his wife, so applicable to you and your colonies, that I cannot help repeating them: "Be to |
her faults a little blind Be to her virtues very kind." Upon the whole, I will beg leave to tell the House what is really my opinion. It is, that the Stamp Act be repealed absolutely, totally, and immediately; that |
the reason for the repeal should be assigned, because it was founded on an erroneous principle. At the same time, let the sovereign authority of this country over the colonies be asserted in as strong terms as can be devised, |
and be made to extend every point of legislation whatsoever: that we may bind their trade, confine their manufactures, and exercise every power whatsoever - except that of taking money out of their pockets without their consent. Source: The American |
Revolution - an HTML project by Dep. Alfa-Informatica, University of Groningen. Copying for non-commercial purposes allowed, if proper citation is given. (c) 1995 on the HTML-version by Dep. Alfa-Informatica University of Groningen. |
Ladies and Gentlemen, Today in Europe, we face enormous challenges. In a time of climate change, the challenge of managing energy resources. In a time of economic crisis, the challenge of doing things more efficiently. But we also have one |
great opportunity: the amazing power of new information and communications technology. And today I would like to talk to you about how such ICT systems can help achieve our energy and climate goals. Particularly in our cities, where 70% of |
energy consumption happens. There are three things in particular I'd like to talk about today. About how ICT can make our world smarter, work better together with other sectors like energy and transport, and how the ICT sector itself can |
cut its own carbon footprint. But first, let me remind you how ICT can help us smarten up our cities and our electricity networks. With smarter cities, we could cut resource use; put easy-to-use tools into everyone's hands; and improve |
quality of life. Imagine innovations like street lights that know when there's people around - and adjust accordingly. Home heating systems that respond to their environment, and that you can control remotely. Electric vehicles that are fully integrated with the |
grid. And better information, empowering people to take smart, green decisions in everything they do. That's the kind of smart world ICT can deliver. ICT can also give us a smarter two-directional power grid, especially at the retail level: getting |
real-time information on time and quantity of energy consumption; and allowing households to become energy suppliers to the grid. This would be enabled: first, by existing communications infrastructure building links across the energy distribution chain; second, by advanced control of |
the grid; and third, by decentralised energy storage. In short, we can do a lot to cut carbon. And make it much easier for people to choose more sustainable lifestyles. The second thing we need to see more of is |
for the different sectors - ICT, transport and energy - to work together. By breaking through sectoral barriers, we can find ways to collaborate: on infrastructure, on services, on business models. There are many synergies between these sectors waiting to |
be exploited. For instance, telecoms companies have great expertise in billing and pricing. It's easy to see how that knowledge can help other utilities improve their performance in this area. Also, those businesses with expertise in processing real–time, huge quantities |
of data can offer tremendous value to the roll out and management of smart grids. But synergies also exist in more down-to-earth areas - like rolling out infrastructure. Often different networks - energy, telecoms, water and transport - needlessly duplicate |
"passive infrastructure": things like ducts for carrying cables. That's a waste! If we got better at planning, allowing access, re-use and sharing of those assets, then everyone could save. Most importantly, it could cut the cost of new high-speed broadband |
networks. Remember that, without those networks, we couldn't get started on smart grids or smart cities in the first place! The convergence of formerly distinct sectors is an irreversible trend, with many opportunities for new businesses and services. Those who |
acknowledge this and think ahead will be the winners of tomorrow. Stagnation is simply not an option. So it is in all our interests to make this convergence easier. The European Council has asked us to look at measures to |
exploit these synergies. I hope you'll join in the consultation we just launched, ahead of a proposal by early next year. And let me be clear about my intentions. As you might be aware, I do not believe in defending |
anti-competitive behaviour. I do believe in removing barriers to new market entrants. And the third thing ICT can do is to itself become a greener sector. ICT already consumes 8 to 10% of the EU's electricity and by 2020 that |
may double; with data centres in Western Europe consuming up to 100 billion kilowatt hours a year. That's more or less the total electricity consumption of The Netherlands. To better understand and manage these impacts, we need to agree on |
a way to measure them. Together with leading standards organisations we have now agreed common, transparent standards for measuring ICT's environmental footprint. I am very pleased that many companies are now "road testing" these standards in real life. With an |
agreed standard it will be possible to improve the industry's performance based on sound evidence. Having said all this, I am aware how difficult it is to change entrenched systems and bring smart ideas to market. The Commission is willing |
and able to provide financial support, as well as identify and address regulatory barriers. To give a strong signal, along with my fellow Commissioners Siim Kallas and Guenther Oettinger, we are developing a Smart Cities and Communities Initiative, which will |
be launched in July. The Partnership will work on those bottlenecks, pool the Commission's resources, and trigger cooperation between public and private actors, and between energy, transport and ICT sectors. And indeed I hope many of you will be actively |
involved. Ladies and gentlemen, Europe faces many economic challenges right now. But there are bright spots on the horizon: and for me, none is brighter than the potential of ICT. Let's get Europe smart tools that deliver for the environment, |
EMAIL SIGN UP! Most Popular This Week Today's Top News Deadly Risk to Bees Ignored, Say British MPs Regulators ignored "data on the danger that one of the world's biggest selling pesticides could pose to bees and other pollinators," says committee chair Regulators are ignoring evidence that the world's most |
used pesticide is killing bees and other insects, Members of Parliament in the UK say. The Guardian's Damian Carrington reported Wednesday on findings from an inquiry by the Parliament's Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) that scrutinized the pesticide, and wrote that MPs are "accusing regulators of 'turning a blind eye' to |
the risk for bees." The questions surround the Bayer-made imidacloprid, a systemic insecticide and neonicotinoid, a kind of pesticide that has been implicated in many studies to a decline in bees and other pollinators. "European regulators seem to have turned a blind eye to data on the danger that one |
of the world's biggest selling pesticides could pose to bees and other pollinators," said Joan Walley MP, chair of the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC). "Evidence seen by the committee raises serious questions about the integrity, transparency and effectiveness of EU pesticides regulation. Data available in the regulators' own assessment report |
shows it could be 10 times more persistent in soils than the European safety limit." [...] The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which assesses the risks of pesticides accepted earlier in 2012 that current "simplistic" regulations contain "major weaknesses". But the UK government has failed to follow countries including France, |
Germany, Italy and Slovenia in suspending the use of some neonicotinoids, although it has accelerated its research on the issue. [...] Even the National Farmers Union (NFU), which argues that there is no need for a change of approach to neonicitinoids, told MPs: "It is very well known that the |
current pesticide risk assessment systems for bees were not developed to assess systemic pesticides." Soil Association, a UK group that campaigns for healthy food and farm systems and whose Keep Britain Buzzing campaign is working to ban neonicitinoids, presented evidence to MPs at the inquiry in November. The group told |
the inquiry: - The UK Government is ignoring the strong and quickly growing body of scientific evidence which points to the damaging impact of neonicotinoid pesticides on pollinating insects, including bumblebees and honey bees. - Defra [Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs] has made commitments to put in place |
new research to explore further the impacts of neonicotinoids on bumblebees, and have acknowledged that the risks of pesticides to bees needs to be updated, but these plans ignore the weight of existing evidence, and will delay the action that the Government should take now. - Scientists have established that |
very, very small doses of neonicotinoids, well below what European governments consider a ‘safe’ level of toxic chemical, can disrupt bee behaviour in ways likely to contribute to the collapse in numbers of honeybees, bumble bees and other pollinating insects. - The European Food Standards Agency has admitted that neonicotinoid |
and other systemic insecticides have not been properly evaluated ever since their introduction and use of some neonicotinoids has been either banned or suspended in the USA, Germany and France. Italy banned neonicotinoid insecticide use on maize and this led to a halving of winter honey bees deaths over three |
years. - Banning neonicotinoid pesticides need not adversely affect farmers’ profits as Italian government research showed. - UK and EU pesticide safety testing is not of an acceptable standard. First, it relies not on science but on industry data, which is not subject to scientific peer-review and publication. Second, there |
is no requirement for companies to publish all the research they conduct, with the risk that cherry-picked, favourable studies are used to obtain regulatory approval. Third, no safety testing which looks at the impact of repeated, very low doses (below accepted ‘safe’ levels) of pesticide are required. Fourth, little or |
no research is done on the impact of likely combinations of pesticides (the cocktail effect) that insects like honey bees and other insects will actually encounter on farms. Environmental group Buglife, which works for the conservation of all invertebrates, also offered testimony highlighting the dangers of inaction on neonicitinoids "The |
use of these indiscriminate pesticides must be suspended before it is too late to halt the alarming decline in wild pollinators," said Buglife CEO Matt Shardlow. "Italy, Germany, France and Serbia are among the nations to have already suspended the use of these killers. It is time the Government realised |
that the public have no wish for the UK to be considered the dirty old man of Europe." Despite the statements and studies outlining the risks of the accumulation of the pesticide in the soil to pollinators, environment minister Lord De Mauley's comments on Wednesday to the EAC offer little |
hope of change. "The advice to government has been and remains that there are no unacceptable effects. If new work gives rise to a change in advice, we will take it," the Guardian reports De Mauley as saying. "At the moment, I am satisfied that [European regulatory system] is working |
According to the Scottish Wildlife Trust, neonicotinoids have been linked to a 10 to 15% decline in bee numbers, reports The Scotsman. In 2011, several thousand British black bees stolen from Dundee Centre for Neurosciences at Dundee University medical school, were never recovered, impacting on a £2m multidisciplinary research effort |
into the effect of miticides and pesticides on the nervous systems of bees, then underway in conjunction with Newcastle and London Royal Holloway Universities, and to run to 2015. However, last year research at the University of Stirling, published in "Science" focused on bumble bee nests, and confirmed one global |
cause of bee decline. The neonicotinoid insecticides used as a seed dressing to protect against pests are systemic, travelling through plants, with low levels being found in nectar and pollen. Researchers found bumblebee nests, even exposed to such low-levels for just two weeks, grew more slowly, showing an 85% reduction |
in the number of new queens produced. Sadly, bumble-bee work does not appear to constitute research that should justify action. The Stirling research follows on US analysis work on bees found dead in and around hives from several apiaries two years previously in Indiana, andd that also howed the presence |
of neo-nicotinoid insecticides used to coat corn and soybean seeds before planting being present in the dead bees. Richard Lochhead (left) is now being asked by Scottish Wildlife Trust, RSPB, Friends of the Earth, Buglife and Butterfly Conservation Scotland to lobby his coalition government counterpart Owen Paterson to back the |
implementation of the ban on 15 March. The move follows the publication of a scientific review from the European Food Safety Authority which identified a “high, acute risk to honey bees” from three varieties of neonicotinoids believed to interfere with nerve impulse transmission in insects, leading to strong muscle contractions |
and death. The groups write in a letter to the minister: “Evidence continues to grow that neonicotinoid use poses a significant risk to pollinating insects. Bees and other pollinating insects play a vital role in food production, worth approximately £43 million a year to our economy, as well as being |
an integral part of natural ecosystems.” France, the Netherlands, and Poland support a ban: other member states, UK, Spain and Germany, are believed to be oppose it presently, as clearly do the pesticide companies. A Scottish Government spokesman said: “We have asked the Advisory Committee on Pesticides (ACP) for further |
Who could imagine our modern society without batteries of any kind? As a storage medium for electricity they guarantee backup power for our devices and mobility. Unfortunately, batteries are heavy and quite energy inefficient compared to electric current from the |
grid. The most available storage medium for energy is water! Hot water can be produced by solar energy and stored. Some countries are lucky to have abundant cold water when snow falls in winter. Both, hot and cold water, can |
be used in heat exchangers to warm up or to cool down buildings - this is the activity which consumes most energy at home. The city hospital in Sundsvall, Sweden, uses snow for its cooling needs. The snow is collected |
and stored from streets, roofs and parking lots in winter. A simple pipeline system leads the melting snow through a series of heat exchangers, which makes it possible to power 90 per cent of the cooling needs at the hospital |
even if most of your devices need direct current? Computers, electric motors and even refrigerators need to have converters installed. This means not only a loss of power due to the production of waste heat, but also the requirement of |
additional features to cool the device. In most of the cases, renewable energy is harvested as direct current. This could be used directly in energy independent buildings without any need of conversion into alternating current and back. Even power supplies |
with little voltage could be used in an economically reasonable way, for example electricity from the tap (see Case 42) or piezo-electricity. In order to avoid energy loss in existing devices and infrastructures, Prof. Umesh Mishra, an expert in physics |
in California, has developed computer chips which convert AC into DC without producing waste heat. This saves energy in two ways: by using the energy supplied to an optimum and by eliminating ventilation and/or air conditioning. If this technology is |
foundation of quantum theory. He holds a Ph.D. in physics from the University of Liverpool. For many years he was associated with physicist and philosopher David Bohm. While living in Canada Peat organized discussion circles between Western scientists and Native |
most recent book is “A Flickering Reality: Cinema and the Nature of Reality“. He has written on the subjects of science, art, and spirituality. He is also director of the Pari Center for New Learning, which is located in the |
David speaks with Joanna about beauty, synchronicity, “Bohmian dialogue” as an experiment in holistic communication, change and complexity, his views about the sacred, the crucial role of the merry trickster… To listen to the full interview, please visit the site |
Impressions from Taktse by Michael Baldwin, co-founder of The Marion Institute May 20, 2011 What is it about Takste that gets one so fired up, as we ALL did? Is it the dedication of the Lauenstein-Denjongpa family; Maria, Sonam, Pintso, |
and, from afar, Aka; who have devoted themselves so selflessly to this educational cause? Is it the endless contributions of their co-trustees, Lok Babu and Aga Pema? Is it the creativity of the Sikkimese teachers as they invent a dynamic |
new educational model blending the best of East and West? Or is it the enthusiasm of the students themselves who come to school every day eager to stretch their limits? Perhaps they are inspired by their love of Sikkim, their |
teacher, H.H. Dodrup Chen Rimpoche, and, even, the inspiration of the ultimate teacher, Guru Rimpoche, who brought Buddhism to Tibet and Sikkim and called Sikkim "The Hidden Land", with a degree of reverence that is awesome. Not sure, but their |
devotion and enthusiasm oozes impactfully all the time! Motivated by the blatant shortcomings of an educational system well-entrenched, a few Sikkimese people with very limited means of their own, and no assurance that enough funds could be raised, embarked upon |
the creation of a new school. They believed that teachers would be found who could teach in more dynamic ways, that money could be raised, that infrastructure could be built, and that, most of all, parents could be persuaded to |
offer their children a chance at learning in a more meaningful way. This expression of hope for a better future is mind-boggling in its audacity, yet it is coming true at Taktse! Of course, many challenges remain, such as finishing |
the new building, adding 11th and 12th grades, raising teachers salaries to a more competitive level, paving the access road, funding scholarships, and the list goes on. But for a school that is only in its sixth year, the progress |
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