Uncategorized

Farm subsidies, or, I told you so

Last month, when Bush first released his 2006 budget and made a big show of saying he would cut farm subsidies (so brave! so fiscally conservative!), I called bullshit on it. One theory going around was that in cutting the USDA's budget, Bush knew that powerful backers would preserve farm subsidies, and what would end up getting the ax? Food stamps.

Over at Tapped, Sam Rosenfeld finds evidence that this is exactly what's happening, from the Congressional Quarterly (not online) and this AP story. Read it and weep puke:

Senior Republicans in both the House and Senate are open to small reductions in farm subsidies, but they adamantly oppose the deep cuts sought by Bush to hold down future federal deficits.

...

Instead, Republican committee chairmen are looking to carve savings from nutrition and land conservation programs that are also run by the Agriculture Department. The government is projected to spend $52 billion this year on nutrition programs like food stamps, school lunches and special aid to low-income pregnant women and children. Farm subsidies will total less than half that, $24 billion.

Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., said the $36 billion food stamp program is a good place to look for savings.

"There's not the waste, fraud and abuse in food stamps that we used to see. ... That number is down to a little over 6 percent now," he said. "But there is a way, just by utilizing the president's numbers, that we can come up with a significant number there."

Taking food out of the mouths of low-income pregnant women and children to preserve corporate welfare for millionaires. It warms the heart.

The Death of Something Other Than Environmentalism

Monarch butterfly populations see sharp decline this season Cold, wet weather in the U.S., illegal deforestation in Mexico, and strong herbicides used on genetically altered crops in the U.S. and Canada are, warn scientists, threatening the survival of the monarch butterfly. Researchers say the number of monarchs that made it to their forested, hilly wintering […]

You Published Kenny!

Activist Ken Ward opines on what the green movement really needs Gristmill — Grist‘s leafy green blog — this week is publishing a five-part response by longtime green activist Ken Ward to the essay “The Death of Environmentalism.” He starts out by agreeing with aspects of its diagnosis, but later this week he’ll be diverging […]

Ichi, Ni, Son!

Japanese town to pay cash to women who bear third child Even as world population balloons (6,424,599,962 and counting), some countries that have been experiencing declining birthrates, such as Italy and Japan, are worried — and not just about loneliness. The elderly worry new generations will be too small to support them, and the business […]

Cap and Betrayed

Bush administration releases weak mercury rules The U.S. EPA is releasing its plan to reduce mercury emissions today, and even jaded environmentalists are appalled. “This is … the most dangerous, dishonest, and illegal air-pollution rule I have ever seen come out of the agency,” said ex-EPA official and Natural Resources Defense Council attorney John Walke. […]

Elevator Pitch Contest finalists — vote!

Our Elevator Pitch Contest brought in over 150 entries -- a number I'll happily refer to as "whopping." I know I said I'd pick the winner but ... it's just too dang hard. So I'm going to let you, dear readers, vote for your favorite. Voting will stay open until, well, people stop voting -- say a week?

Have at it!

Gum control …

... has become a sticky issue for many big cities, Time magazine reports in its latest issue. And no, that's not a typo -- we're talking gum pollution, as in those blobs of gooey stickiness attached to city sidewalks and the shoes of unfortunate city dwellers -- and it's a bigger issue than you might think. Reps from several British cities met in London last month for a summit on the stuff, and they say cleanup costs are costing the U.K. some $290 million a year. If they have their way, a new bill may fine bubble-gum litterBrits $145.

Toronto officials counted gobs of the stuff for a 2004 litter audit and found that for every piece of other litter, there were 10 pieces of gum littering one stretch of sidewalk. Contrary to popular belief, the gooey bits won't biodegrade, but U.S. researchers say they may be able to change that with a new biodegradable variety of chewy goodness made with a corn derivative. The stuff is expensive to produce, but won't stick to surfaces. Chew on that!

Response to “Death”: Part II

Today we present Part II of Ken Ward's response to "The Death of Environmentalism," in which he argues that greens should reject the political position embedded in Lakoff's framing analysis -- namely, that environmentalism is just one more single-issue liberal group. Rather, the green movement should preserve its ability to speak across the left/right divide and focus on mobilizing and energizing its core supporters.

Don't forget to read Part I, and Part III, Part IV, and Part V.

Low-energy indoor composter

Thanks to frequent Gristmill commentor Mike Capone, I came across this very cool product on Treehugger: Naturemill Low-energy Indoor Composter. While I'll stick with my green cone, since I have a yard, this would have been awesome while living in an apartment building in New York City.

Unfortunately, there is a waiting list.

Nothing but flowers

Behold, I bring you sunny tidings: Thanks to all the freakish weather in California this winter, Death Valley is now a riot of color. Giddy botanists and park rangers -- relishing the sight of the 156-mile long stretch of desert bursting with wildflower blooms -- say it's a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Of course, the overdose of rain has had nastier effects on the state's other crops, including almonds and strawberries. Then there's the sad fate of mudslide victims, and the millions of dollars in damages to houses and roads.

But flowers. Are pretty. And we'll take what we can get.