Joe Levi presents Greener Living through Technology

Utah S.B. 78 Second Substitute Protection of Constitutionally Guaranteed Activities in Certain Private Venues (Madsen, M.) was signed by the Governor on March 31st, 2009.

This bill protects employees and customers who keep a firearm for self-defense by allowing them to keep their sidearm in their locked vehicle on company property. In September 2000 three AOL employees were fired for violating AOL corporate policy by having firearms in their locked vehicles in the AOL leased parking lot. The employees went to court, twice, and lost, twice. Finally the Utah State Legislature (thanks mostly to the determination of Senator Madsen) has affirmed what most gun-owners have always known: an employers property rights do not supersede a person’s life-rights.

There are a few exemptions in the bill, but for the most part, as soon as this bill becomes law, (more…)

Utah’s H.B. 357 Substitute Firearms Amendments (Sandstrom, S.) was signed by the Governor yesterday, 03/30/2009.

This bill modifies provisions of the Utah Criminal Code related to firearms. It

• modifies the criminal penalties exception provisions related to carrying a concealed firearm to apply to a vehicle in a person’s lawful possession and to a vehicle in the lawful possession of another, with the consent of that person;
• allows a person to carry a loaded firearm in a vehicle in the person’s lawful possession or in a vehicle with the consent of the person lawfully in possession of the vehicle;
• allows for the possession of a loaded firearm on a person’s real property; and
• makes certain technical changes.

In plain English, this bill says that after the effective date you can carry a loaded or unloaded firearm in a vehicle that you are driving, or in a vehicle with the consent of the person driving it, or on your “real property” (which is legal speak for your “land”). (more…)

I consider myself to be fairly fortunate, for the purposes of this post, it’s because I had parents that grew up during the Great Depression. Both parents were very young during the depression, but the memories stuck (they were born in the late 20’s and early 30’s).

My dad and I were talking about our gardens yesterday. As long as I can remember my dad has always had a garden, and not a small garden. He grows much, much more than he can use in a season, and he’s still picking carrots and red beets from what he planted last year.

What he doesn’t use gets given to his kids, his neighbors, his friends, anyone that can help talk some of the bounty off his hands. Of course he stores what he can. He hangs onions in his root cellar and garage, he digs his potatoes and stores them. He leaves his red beets and carrots in the ground over the winter. My mom cans and juices tomatoes and grapes. Everything that they can’t store, can’t give away, or can’t eat goes into the compost pile, which gets spread back over the garden as soon as it has cooked.

I asked him why he had such a large garden, “when I was a little boy that’s what we ate.” He said food was scarce, and it was expensive… and work, when his dad could get any, (more…)