This Sunday night, you may find yourself crying over global warming. Crying because you're laughing so hard, that is, thanks to Larry David -- co-creator of Seinfeld and creator and star of Curb Your Enthusiasm -- and his eco-activist wife, Laurie David. Larry David. Photo: HBO. At 8 p.m. (7 p.m. Central) on Nov. 20, TBS will air "Earth to America!," a two-hour comedy extravaganza produced by Laurie and starring Larry that is designed to get America laughing -- and, more to the point, learning -- about global warming. They promise it will be an upbeat, non-preachy, gut-splitting TV special …

Oil industry execs caught fibbing; may lose tax break; still filthy rich Last week, while testifying at a Senate hearing, oil industry executives were asked point blank: "Did your company or any representatives of your companies participate in Vice President Cheney's energy task force in 2001?" The answers? Three No's, an "I don't know," and a "not to my knowledge." Turns out these were ... what's the word? ... lies. A document released to The Washington Post shows that officials from at least four of the companies did in fact participate. The execs weren't under oath, but by law, making …

"Conference of Parties" sounds like a contradiction in terms: conferences are dull talkfests punctuated by free booze, and parties are free boozefests punctuated by dull moments of trying to talk over loud music. More of the former than the latter is likely to go on later this month in Montreal, during the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Hey, wanna save the planet? The event is a typical U.N. phenomenon -- a regular meeting of signatory countries to an international agreement, meant to chart progress and hammer out further commitments. But this year's UNFCCC …

Later this month, a mess of world leaders will be gathering in Montreal to discuss climate change. The conference is a rendezvous -- we must use French words when speaking of Quebec -- of COP 11 and MOP 1. And it has to do with the Kyoto Protocol! Isn't that mysterious and intriguing? One of these things just doesn't belong ... to Kyoto. If you're not on the edge of your seat yet, let us spell it out for you: this meeting is quite important, in that future-of-the-earth kind of way. And once we've broken it down for you, you'll …

Nigerian judge orders end to Shell's gas flaring In a surprising victory for activists, a judge in Nigeria has ruled that the practice of gas flaring, wherein oil companies burn off the natural gas produced in oil drilling, violates the human rights of surrounding residents and must be halted immediately. Nigerian activists say the flaring causes respiratory illnesses, reduces crop yields, and produces greenhouse gases -- more than the rest of sub-Saharan sources combined. "It's a thing that goes on 24 hours a day, every day of every year. It causes explosions, constant noise, and great heat. Many people have …

Dear Umbra, Any chance that the most extreme of the peak-oil folks are correct, and that in spite of our thoughtlessness, we just won't have enough oil to totally destroy the ozone layer? Dan WassonPittsburgh, Penn. Dearest Dan, Oil has very little to do with the ozone layer, but it does have to do with global warming. Global warming and ozone depletion are, for our daily purposes, two separate issues. They both involve gaseous, human-generated emissions, mysterious atmospheric phenomena, and wishing we had paid attention in chemistry class, but the similarity stops there. Psst ... remember me? The ozone layer, …

Oil execs defend profits, drink all the beer, leave the place trashed The nation was treated to an exquisite piece of Kabuki theater yesterday, as Big Oil executives trudged to Congress to justify their record profits at a time when pricey gasoline and the looming threat of sky-high home-heating costs have Americans up in arms. The Republican leadership decided to give the oil chieftains a stern talking-to. But not too stern, mind you: Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), who chaired the hearing, refused to have them testify under oath. Despite the deference, the execs didn't do much to provide anxious senators …

Peak-oil enthusiasts and skeptics alike will find much to chew on in this page-one piece from today's Wall Street Journal. By all accounts, China's explosive energy-demand growth over the past several years has strained the ability of OPEC and other oil producers to keep up. Now, the Journal claims, that pressure shows signs of easing: This year, China is on track to account for about 16% of the world's new oil consumption, little more than half last year's share. The Centre for Global Energy Studies estimates that Chinese demand will rise by about 230,000 barrels of oil a day this …

Hillary Clinton has joined a growing claque of both Democrats and Republicans swigging from the cup of clean-energy Kool-Aid as they gear up for the 2006 congressional elections. In the past two months, the New York senator has popped up at a major Arctic Refuge rally, a high-profile global-warming conference, and a clean-technology investor symposium to make fervent calls for cleaner, greener energy policy. In a speech delivered two weeks ago to a group of investors gathered at the Cleantech Venture Forum in Washington, D.C., Clinton staked out her ground, outlining a plan "to get America on track for a …

Prince Charles sends veiled message to White House on climate change Britain's Prince Charles has made it clear he views global warming as the direst problem facing the world community. The $6 million question has been: Would he say as much to the notoriously intransigent George Bush during a state dinner this week at the White House? You could cut the diplomatic tension with a fine silver butter knife! Well, he did -- but in a distinctly British way: slightly veiled, scrupulously polite, but unmistakably sharp. Said Charles at the conclusion of his remarks to the 100 or so assembled …