The Charlotte Chamber of Commerce has announced this year's Green Award winner. And, the winner is CPCC's Center for Sustainability. Ernie McLaney, executive director of the center, will formally accept the award Oct. 21 at the chamber's forth annual Green Conference at Pine Island Country Club.
"This particular award means we are doing a lot of things right," says McLankey, "We're really excited about it."
As well they should be. In a time when the city and the Chamber is working to re-brand itself as a green energy hub, at least in the Southeast if not nationally, training the workforce for the jobs that will power those industries is essential.
"We're the college people go to when they've lost their jobs," McLankey says, "when they need to retrain for a new job." He sees the center's focus on green jobs as an important to helping the city maintain its focus where renewable energy, sustainability and the environment are concerned.
In the press release, the Chamber's chief operating officer, Blair Stanford, explains why the center was chosen: "Now more than ever it's important for us as a chamber to promote responsibility and sustainable growth for our environment and our economy. We felt the Center for Sustainability at CPCC does that."
The center was selected from six finalists by members of the chamber's Green Works Committee. The center nominated itself.
More than 100 attendees are expected at this year's green conference, which begins with networking and a chance to mingle at sponsors' tables. Lunch is included. The Catawba River District and ReVenture will be the focus of the agenda.
Here's a 2008 video from CPCC explaining what its Center for Sustainability is all about:
Lowe's, the Mooresville-based home improvement titan, has agreed to a settlement in a class-action lawsuit in Georgia over tainted drywall. But, if you you're one of the people who bought the stuff, don't expect a full refund. It's more likely you'll get a gift card, but only if you keep great records and opt into the class action lawsuit by Nov. 19. And, don't expect anyone to notify you of the suit by mail, as is done with most class action law suits.
It's also important to know Lowe's isn't the only Charlotte-area company snagged by the controversial building material. National Gypsum, located just over the Catawba River, is also implicated.
Critics claim Lowe's settlement may make it difficult to pursue other tainted drywall claims in the U.S., even though there is abundant speculation that people are dying because of tainted drywall. They say the settlement is intended to insulate the companies from liability, and it's definitely not intended to protect consumers.
The maximum payout under the settlement is $2,500 in cash and a $2,000 gift certificate to Lowe's, but you'll only get that if you've done a terrific job documenting your claim from the moment you purchased the drywall. Didn't keep good records? You may get a $50 gift certificate. Maybe.
There are also indications the lawyers involved are pressuring their clients to drop their claims, in some cases even dropping lawsuits without their client's permission.
This is important to note, especially in a time when the coal industry claims adding coal ash waste by products which may or may not soon be considered hazardous waste to products like concrete, asphalt and, you guessed it, dry wall is perfectly safe.
From a representative of National Gypsum:
Byproduct gypsum -- which is also called FGD (flue gas desulphurization) gypsum, synthetic gypsum, or manufactured gypsum - has nothing to do with coal ash. It is produced in a separate manufacturing process. Flue gases contain sulfur dioxide which can cause acid rain if it goes into the atmosphere. These flue gases are fed through a limestone slurry to remove the sulfur dioxide and the "byproduct" is calcium sulfate, the chemical name for gypsum. It is the same as gypsum rock which is mined or quarried, except it has higher purity. The byproduct is washed to make wallboard grade gypsum. It is then shipped to wallboard plants.Wallboard made from byproduct gypsum is "green." The core of the board is made with calcium sulfate which would otherwise go to a landfill. The wallboard facing paper is made from recycled paper stock at National Gypsum plants. Consequently, wallboard made with FGD gypsum is preferred for commercial projects in order to generate LEED score points. Also our products, including FGD gypsum wallboard, are GREENGUARD Certified. This means they have met the highest air quality standards.
Read all about the settlement from our friends at ProPublica:
Lowes Companies Inc., the nations No. 2 home improvement chain, has set off a legal firestorm by agreeing to a national settlement over tainted drywall in a class-action suit being decided in a Georgia state court.The $6.5 million settlement would pay relatively small amounts to individuals who had the tainted drywall in their homes. But the handful of attorneys who quietly negotiated the deal will receive a separate payment of $2.1 million. Victims will be compensated mostly in Lowes gift cards, offered in the amounts of $50, $250 or $2,000, depending on the level of documentation they can provide. Those who can prove theyve suffered more than $2,000 in damages may also receive up to $2,500 in cash.
Customers would not necessarily receive full refunds for the defective product they purchased. For example, someone who spent $10,000 on drywall would still only qualify for a maximum of $4,500 in cash and gift cards.
Under the agreement, individuals would waive all legal rights to sue the North Carolina-based company for property damage or medical claims related to the drywall.
The figures involved are small compared with what the federal courts have established as the general cost of repairing a home contaminated by defective drywall, which emits large amounts of sulfur gases that can corrode electrical wiring and trigger respiratory problems. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says the only way to repair such homes is to remove the drywall and electrical wiring, a job that can cost $100,000 or more. A Miami jury recently awarded $2.5 million in damages to the owners of a home built using drywall from a South Florida supplier.
Our state definitely isn't being as aggressive on the renewable energy front as it could be when compared to other states and in light of the monumental task at hand. So, what's the problem?
The Independent Weekly takes a look. Here's a snip:
The North Carolina studies comport with an analysis by the World Resources Institute of "clean power opportunities" in the southeastern United States. In North Carolina, the institute study found, renewables could supply 40 percent of the state's electricity by 2025. Costs would be comparable to those of conventional power sourcescoal, nuclear, natural gasbut with major advantages in air quality, reduced water consumption and zero "climate impacts," it said.The institute analysis didn't include energy-efficiency programs. But a 2009 scorecard from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy did. It rated North Carolina 26th of the 50 states for efficiency, including state building codes and utility-sponsored incentive programs. With more aggressive policies, the council study found, North Carolina could reduce electricity usage by almost one-fourth by 2025. In the next 20 years, renewables (40 percent) combined with energy-efficiency (24 percent) could account for nearly two-thirds of the state's electric-power needs.
Today, renewables account for just 3 percent of the state's electricity, with nearly all coming from biofuels and hydropower. Coal accounts for nearly two-thirds, nuclear for 31 percent.
To reach these goals, however, advocates of renewable power will again need to grapple with nuclear power. When SB 3 was enacted, the state's investor-owned utilitiesDuke Energy and Progress Energyinsisted that the Legislature include a provision guaranteeing that any money the companies spend on nuclear plants, no matter how much, must be compensated with higher rates.
The CWIP provision (for construction work in progress) assured that the utilities would recover nuclear plant costs in any rate case. But now, Duke Energy is lobbying for SB 3 to be changed so that utilities are compensated for CWIP costs as they're incurred, without an overall rate review.
For utility customers, rate increases related to nuclear plant construction costs would come sooner; any savings resulting from the actual production of nuclear power would come later.
Duke Energy officials (but not Progress Energy) pitched the CWIP change in a recent meeting with legislative leaders and a few "legislative skeptics," says state Rep. Pricey Harrison, D-Guilford, a self-described "skeptic."
"When they were arguing for SB 3," Harrison said, "the utility lobbyists would say the CWIP provision they were after was better [for ratepayers] than the ones in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. Now they're back asking for what they have in the other states."
Harrison worries that if the Legislature reopens SB 3, including the 12.5 percent target, it will have to consider the CWIP rule, too. "It's very frustrating," she adds, "because, as a veteran of these utility debates, I can tell you the utilities always win."
Read the entire article, by Bob Geary, here.
Of course, it's ironic that the state's largest city, Charlotte, is working diligently to re-brand itself as a green energy capital. Also ironic, Duke Energy is headquartered in the Q.C. The company, of course, got its start in the early 1900s just west of the city on the Catawba River.
Here's more on Charlotte's quest to become a renewable energy hub from UNC TV:
In fact, some people love their local BP stations and the the operators that run them. Here's more from The Mecklenburg Times:
Across the country, many people have been fuming over the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico by holding protests and boycotting their local BP gas stations.Not so much in Charlotte.
BP station owners here say their customers have been loyal even after the largest oil spill in United States history.
Todd Bonner of Columbia, S.C., said he didnt consider the brand name when stopping for gasoline at a Fort Mill, S.C., BP station owned by Times Oil Corp. Friday morning while on his way into Charlotte for work.
Bonner said he holds the government and companies Halliburton, one of the worlds largest oilfield corporations headquartered in Houston, and Switzerland-based Transocean, the worlds largest offshore drilling company, as responsible as BP for the oil spill.
Gary Sopcheck, who also was fueling up at the Fort Mill station Friday morning, said BPs gasoline gives his vehicles better fuel economy. Sopcheck, who was returning to his home on the east coast of Florida after vacationing in Charlotte, said BP is doing the best it can to stop the leak and help the Gulf Coast residents.
Neither of the men said they considered boycotting BP.
Station owners say that that sentiment holds true throughout Mecklenburg County area.
Read the rest of this article, by Tara Ramsey, here.
What do you think? Boycott BP or not?
I can tell you that, in my neck of the woods, the BP station is only slightly less busy while the Shell station down the road is beyond capacity. But is that company's oil really more politically correct? No, it's not.
Instead of boycotting, reduce the amount of petroleum you consume like oil, gas and plastic, then encourage others to do the same. Until we reduce our enormous need for foreign oil, we're really not going to make much of an impact. This is where it's important to remember that companies will usually supply what we demand. So, if you continue to expect everything to come wrapped in shrink wrap, encased in plastic, further encased in cardboard and then, for good measure, hauled in a plastic bag or that your gas and oil consumption doesn't matter then, I hate to tell you, you're part of the problem.
Here's a few reasons to boycott other gas stations:
Dell's got a new product, and I'm interested. It's called the Dell Streak. It's smaller than an iPad, larger than a smart phone and it offers similar features. Like the iPhone, to get special pricing ($299.99 v. $549.99), you have to sign up for a two-year contract with AT&T*. The Streak is officially on sale Friday, but, as with all other fancy new gadgets these days, there's a pre-sale for obsessed tech fans tomorrow.
As for myself, until a couple years ago, I was always a free-phone-with-contract kinda gal. Then my husband brought home an iPhone ... and I'd take it away from him as soon as he walked in the door so I could play. Soon after, I decided I needed one for my business since I'm frequently on the go. I've been attached to it, sometimes literally, ever since. It's as important to me as my wallet.
I purchased the 8GB version, in part because I'm cheap and in part because I never thought I would fill up that much storage space. Well, I was wrong. Now I'm saving my pennies for a new 32GB iPhone and (maybe) an iPad ... but the news about Dell's new tablet-phone hybrid practically gave me whiplash.
One of the things that attracts me to the Streak is the fact that you can use memory cards, so running out of memory isn't a problem. It can also be used as a phone without feeling like you're holding a laptop to your head. That leads me to the other thing that's attractive about the Streak: It's size. It's got a 5 inch screen, compared to the iPad's 9.7 inch screen and the iPhone's 3.5 inch screen. It has two cameras one in the front and another in the back. Like its competitors, the Streak offers applications that can do damn near anything, making it yet another pocket-sized computer that also happens to be phone.
One of the few negative things I've heard about the Streak is that the screen is too small to be an e-reader. I'm going to have to disagree. I downloaded Amazon's free Kindle app to my iPhone several months ago and find it's my preferred e-reader. I've since read several books on the tiny screen and find no need to buy a separate e-reader because of it. On the flip side, the screen size which is a nice medium between Apple's products is being touted as just right for other uses, like surfing the 'Net.
The Streak uses Google's Android operating system, which I'm obviously not as familiar with as I am with Apple's programs. By all accounts, it rocks though. And, like other Android enabled products, it's able to multi-task. The fact that my two-year-old iPhone can't is, and always has been, quite annoying.
Now, after all this blathering, I should tell you that I'm not a big fan of jumping on the next tech gadget just because it's available. When I switched to the iPhone, I did so because I realized it was an all-in-one gadget for me, like a pocket knife. I can use it to record interviews, make phone calls, play games, do a little research, keep up with my clients, read books ... and so much more. It's super cool, and the fact that I can use one electronic device instead of an army of them appeals to my less-is-more stance on consumerism. That's precisely why I haven't upgraded my iPhone and also why I haven't bought an iPad. I'm not going to upgrade until the gadget I already own either stops working or runs out of memory. And when I do, I'm donating my old iPhone to our troops instead of tossing it into the trash. (Click here to find out how to donate your old phone.)
All the same, I've maxed my iPhone's memory which makes it slow and, thus, infinitely less cool. Fortunately, my contract is up with AT&T so it's time to decide on my next gadget purchase. The Dell Streak is an interesting option, its service is with the same cell phone carrier I've already got and it's a nice mix of today's best technology. Plus, the price is roughly the same as the iPhone and quite a bit less than the iPad. (The iPhone4's 32GB option is $299 and the iPad's 32GB option is $599, though the 64GB option is $699. If you want to call someone on your iPad or take advantage of 3G technology, add $130.)
The people who tell me I should get an iPad always talk about it as if will replace my computer. I'm not interested in that, though. Call me old fashioned, and maybe I am, but I like the fact that I don't have to hold my computer's screen up with my hands or buy anything extra to hold it up, and I like sitting at my desk when I work. So, that's not an effective sale's pitch for me. The desktop stays.
Anyway, I doubt I'll be in line at the pre-sale or for opening day for anything (I prefer to wait for companies to work their glitches out before I buy), but the Streak is definitely a contender for my technology dollars. What's really got my attention about it is the ability to exchange individual 32GB memory cards. (I tend to fill my electronic memory space with music from my antiquated music CD collection.) In my mind, that feature could extend the life of the product far beyond a two-year contract, which is very appealing to someone like me who actually spends time worrying about e-waste and it's impact on the environment.
Last thing, the fact that the Streak is a little too big for my pocket isn't a bother since I'm a chick and usually carry a purse. I could see why guys wouldn't like it, though; it's pretty bulky for a pants pocket. Of course, I've not heard anyone complaining about whether or not an iPad is pocket-friendly. So, there's that.
What do you think? Are you forever on team Apple, or will you give the Streak a chance?
Here's a video from Dell about their new product:
Here's a third-party review:
*Full disclosure: My husband works in the cell phone industry's geekery department and AT&T is one of his company's biggest clients. (Though, I usually hear something akin to Charlie Brown's teacher when he starts talking shop.) It should also be noted that I regularly complain about AT&T dropping calls and it's lack of 3G in places like Mooresville on Twitter, even though my iPhone is practically a new limb. Anyhoo, thought you should know. You should also know I never accept money or products from companies whose products I write about.
This is bad news. When the fish start going belly up, there's something bad-wrong beneath the surface.
The Charlotte Business Journal's John Downey explains:
State officials say more than 7,000 striped bass have died in what is the largest reported fish kill at Lake Norman since Duke Energy started keeping records there more than 20 years ago.But Ryan McRae with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission says the mass deaths, which began July 20, appear to be ending. More than 900 fish were found dead July 31 at the peak of the deaths. On Friday there were 127 dead fish found in the lake and on Saturday just 23.
The fish were not counted on Sunday and the Monday figures were unavailable when the Charlotte Business Journal talked to McRae.
We think we are about at the end of it today, he said.
Read the rest of this article here.
To sum up: It's hot. Because it's hot we're running our air conditioners more which ups our demand for electricity. In order to meet our demand, Duke Energy has to increase their supply. In order to do that, they have to pull more water from the lakes created to cool the company's power plants, not for your pleasure. When it gets hot, like it is now, and the temperature of the water's surface rises, the electric company has to suck water from lower, colder areas of the lake precisely where the fish have fled because hot water contains less oxygen which, like us, they need to survive.
But, who needs fish when we've got electricity? Right? It's all about us, the conquerors in the never ending struggle of Man vs. Nature. We win again! And, these are our spoils ... literally.
Here's an example of a fish kill, though this video is not from one of Charlotte's lakes:
Don't worry: You don't have to get good grades in business school, and you may not even have to pay work things right you can get the government to pay your tuition. And, for you trust-fund babies, just hire someone else to do your homework to get you through. Heck, it will be good practice for the corporate world where you'll be expected to weasel and back-stab your way to the top of the corporate ladder. Bonus to those who can look sincere on camera while glossing over the truth. *wink*
Don't worry once you're hired at some big corporate firm, either. You'll need little more than glitter and bullshit to get your "job" done. If you fuck up? Surprise! Lottery-winning-like severance pay. And definitely don't worry where the money's coming from the schmucks beneath your feet can pool their resources to make sure your pathetic life is sweet as candy for the remainder.
The Daily Beast outlines the top 20 CEO golden parachutes, and the stunts that earned them. Here's a snippet:
Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Mark Hurd may be hurting from the media swirl around his alleged relationship with a contractor and false expense reports, but his wallet will stay fat thanks to a severance package valued at $34.6 million in cash and stock.And hows the man Hurd succeeded as Americas favorite entitlement whipping boy, BP CEO Tony Hayward? He was exiled to Siberia and will leave his post in Octoberbut not without a severance and pension package reportedly worth $17 million.
But Hurd and Hayward are hardly the best-paid paragons of questionable ethics and mismanagement. The Daily Beast inspected news reports and Securities & Exchange Commission filings spanning more than 25 years to find the 20 titans of industry who, despite very public professional failings, walked away with tens, even hundreds of millions in cash and stock.
To come up with our list of 20, we separated the leaders of industry into two groupsthose who resigned or were fired under the taint of ethics scandals, and those who left because of professional failings. We then combined the 10 highest paid from each groupreflecting the total value of the exit packagesinto our final list of 20.
See pictures of the big winners um, the CEOs who got the ax here. I guarantee you'll be surprised at the antics that can earn you a long life of luxury from corporate America's best-known firms. Just click the picture in the middle of The Beast's story to start the slideshow.
If you haven't already, watch the documentary The Corporation. Here's the trailer:
I hate foursquare, and I've made that clear in the past. Why people feel the need to broadcast their position on the planet every few minutes, announcing their home is empty, is beyond me. But, in my defense, within the first six months of living in this fine state, a meth addict who also happened to be my across-the-street neighbor stole my wallet, broke into my home while I was sleeping and then, while I was away, stole everything he could grab (including the bacon from my freezer). So, maybe I'm a little more paranoid than most.
But still, I'm not the only person who thinks broadcasting your location on multiple online public forums is less than brilliant ... and, for what? Badges? Virtual points? The possibility of maybe getting a discount? Please. Get a grip.
The folks at The Daily Beast ran into a lady who's stalker used foursquare to track her down at a restaurant. Guess what she did? That's right. She stopped using foursquare.
Here's a snip:
In the world of social networking, Carri Bugbee is hardly a novice. The social-media marketing strategist from Portland, Oregon has 7,164 followers on Twitter, 1,197 Facebook friends, and more than 500 connections on LinkedIn. But when she ventured into the world of geotaggingthe technology behind many of the social networks that broadcast your location to the Internetshe received an unsettling wake-up call.One evening last February, she picked up her phone and "checked-in" to a local restaurant on foursquare, the popular location-based social network that lets others know where you are in real-time. Foursquare posted her location to her feed and Bugbee went back to chatting with her friends over the menu. That's when the hostess came over to the table and told her she had a call on the restaurant telephone.
Bugbee didn't recognize the male voice on the other end of the line, and the voice didn't offer to introduce itself. It told her she shouldn't use foursquare because if she did, certain people might find out where she lived. She nervously laughed off the creepy comment, telling the caller it was pretty hard to find her house. That set him off. "You stupid bitch," he said, an opening to a string of insults. She quickly hung up, rattled.
The caller had tracked down Bugbee through PleaseRobMe.com, a website designed to warn people about the risks of geotagging by aggregating and publicizing updates from foursquare. In Bugbee's case, the warning was effective.
"I was totally creeped out," she recalls. "I just didn't ever think it would happen to me." That night she had a friend come home with her while she checked out the place to make sure no one was there. "I slept with all the lights on that night." She also immediately quit foursquare and hired a house sitter. She says she felt that someone "basically stalked me," and she's become, as she put it, a "geotagging curmudgeon."
"I think that a lot of people have drunk the Kool-Aid without actually thinking that hard about" location-based technologies, says Bugbee. "At some point, some tragedy will occur."
PleaseRobMe.com shut down last spring after a string of incidents like Bugbee's suggested it might be a little too helpful to would-be criminals. Nevertheless, its founders said they had accomplished their goal of educating users about the risks of broadcasting their location to the world. And even without PleaseRobMe, it's often easy enough to find someone's location on foursquare itself, especially since many people cross-post their check-ins on Twitter and other websites.
Read the rest of this article, by Lisa Riordan Seville, here.
Beyond all that, why not give your cell phone a rest? I know it's cool and makes lots of pretty colors right there in your hand, but there is definitely something to be said for unplugging for a while ... and on a regular basis. Once you detach your face from your screen of choice, you can rediscover some really wonderful things like books, hikes and looking people in the eye when you communicate with them.
And, for chrissake, stop telling everyone where you're at. First of all, no one cares. I repeat: No one cares. Second, when you do that you're offering the companies you're visiting free advertising, which cheapens you. Finally, do you really think it's in your best interest to announce your location every time you make a move thereby announcing where you're not, like at home? Really?
Check out ICanStalkU.com and answer again.
This video does a great job explaining how stupid foursquare is:
Finally! Unfortunately, it took the Great Recession to convince people the crap they buy at NASCAR events is a total waste of money. Kinda like how driving around in circles for hours or, worse, watching other people drive around in circles for hours while waiting for them to crash and burn is a waste of time, which is more valuable than money. Don't even get me started on how gross it is to stand around waiting for someone to wreck or how wasteful the entire industry is. I mean, aren't NASCAR people concerned, at all, about our addiction to foreign oil? Not even a little bit? They suck for that.
Sunday, The New York Times covered NASCAR's empty seats.
After years of jam-packed races, sky-high television ratings and record merchandise sales, Nascar has seen attendance at nearly every track slip this year as recession-weary fans continue to cut costs.The Behler family could see that firsthand while sitting atop their old school bus in the infield at Pocono Raceway for last weeks race in Long Pond, Pa. From that perch, they saw empty patches of grass with untrampled dandelions that in years past were covered by other spectators cars, campers and trailers.
Fans like the Behlers who are showing up to races are spending less, too.
Everybodys still coming, but no ones spending, said Susan Behler, who arrived last Sunday, race day, instead of Friday night to save money. Three years ago, I used to spend $200 or $300 every time I came here. Now, its a question: do I need it?
Other sports leagues have been hurt the past two years. But Nascar with its heavier reliance on working-class fans, low fuel prices and the beleaguered auto industry has suffered disproportionately, racing industry executives say. Ratings on television, sales of licensed goods and sponsorships, the lifeblood of the sport, are also suffering. Several racing teams have merged in the last three years.
Nascar compounded matters, the executives say, by changing its rules in ways that made the racing safer but stripped the sport of some of the spontaneity that made it compelling. Under pressure, Nascar has reversed some of those moves, helping to rejuvenate competition on the track this season. With the economy on the mend, Nascar and its teams, sponsors, track owners and broadcasters seem confident that the worst is over.
The larger question, though, is whether in the coming years, the sport will return to its glory of the early 2000s as a money-printing juggernaut, a barometer of Middle American tastes and a political bellwether, or whether it will become a more modest, streamlined version of itself.
Read the rest of this article, by Ken Belson and Dave Caldwell, here.
I know, I know. If you live in Charlotte you're not supposed to say that NASCAR is idiotic. Thing is, I'm not from 'round these parts. Where I come from, actual sports like football are what get people into the stands.
Interestingly, while searching for a video for this post, the words "drunk" and "redneck" kept coming up when I typed in "NASCAR." In fact, in a couple videos, Charlotte was referred to as "the most redneck place ever." That's nice. And, it's pretty impressive to beat out Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Alabama for that honor. Really says something about our city, don't you think?
Here's one I found that I had to pass along. And, it's one more reason why you'll never find me at a race. Umm: Drunk, hairy, sweaty, shirtless rednecks and lots of them in one place making fun of other drunk people? Yeah. I'll pass ... but you kids have fun with the state's only moonshine-inspired sport.
Further reading from The New York Times Magazine: Can Dale Earnhardt, Jr. outrace his father's influence?
Well, not all of them ... but a lot of them plan to give away their fortunes. Which, really, is appropriate. Who do you think made them so rich? The little folks, like us that's who. Now the uber-rich business men and women get buzzed by giving their money away. Good for them.
Only thing is, there are a few billionaires Oprah, everyone's looking at you who didn't sign up with the 40 billionaires who took their philanthropy project public yesterday. What does that mean? Who knows! Maybe they already have charitable plans for their cash reserves. (Oprah isn't known for being a Grinch, after all.) Maybe they dream of enriching some snotty teenager so we can watch them crash and burn on TMZ.com.
But, let's not focus on them. Let's focus on the more than three dozen rich folks who want to give away a combined $230 million.
The Daily Beast's Benjamin Sarlin explains ... here's a snip:
The origins of a pledge by Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and 38 other billionaires to donate more than half their wealth to charity began last year in New York, at a clandestine meeting of the mega-rich.The very existence of such an event, organized by Buffett, Gates, and David Rockefeller and featuring such names as Michael Bloomberg, Ted Turner, Oprah Winfrey, and George Soros, touched off a frenzy of speculation in the press when it was revealed almost two weeks after the fact by IrishCentral.com. Pete Peterson, who attended the meeting and has pledged his own fortune to raising awareness of Americas budget deficit, told The Daily Beast that it was there the group planted the seeds of Wednesdays Giving Pledge announcement.
I regard it as a repayment of a debt to the country that has been so generous to my family and me, Carlyle Group founder David Rubenstein, who signed on to the pledge, said in a statement. I hope that the attention the pledge receives will encourage all Americansnot just a select fewto consider increasing their own giving to worthy organizations and causes. If that occurs, the pledge will have really achieved its most important aim.
Read the entire article here.
Oil baron John D. Rockefeller was a high school dropout and America's first billionaire. He was also quite charitable.