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Ask Umbra on nail polish and its disposal
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, How do I dispose of my formaldehyde-laden nail polish in an environmentally safe fashion? Can I recycle the glass bottle and plastic top in my recycling with the polish inside? JacquiePetaluma, CA Don’t just toe the line! Use less toxic polish.Photo: Maureen LunnA. Dearest Jacquie, What a […]
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Dear Representative Upton: Have you been to China recently?
The House subcommittee voted for Representative Upton’s unlimited carbon pollution bill (otherwise known as the Asthma Aggravation Act of 2011). Before the subcommittee vote, Chairman Upton said: “Those that compete in global markets state that they are losing jobs to nations like China that have no intention of burdening their industries with similar restrictions. And […]
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Will Japan be hit with multiple nuclear meltdowns in wake of tsunami?
The AP reports that 180,000 Japanese are fleeing amid fears of “multiple reactor meltdowns.” In the U.S., Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) says we should “put the brakes” on new nuclear power plants. The estimated death toll from Japan’s disasters climbed past 10,000 Sunday as authorities raced to combat the threat of multiple nuclear reactor meltdowns […]
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How we can save environmentalism — and ourselves
Can somebody throw a line?Photo: AKZOphotoThis is part two of a two-part series, cross-posted from New Deal 2.0. You can read part one here. In my first post, I started to discuss a speech by the founders of the Breakthrough Institute, Ted Nordhaus and Michael Shellenberger (N and S). In this post, I will discuss their presentation […]
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Stephen Colbert is having none of your wimpy girl light bulbs
Right-wingers are now pro-choice, but only for light bulbs. Here’s everyone’s favorite talking head, Stephen Colbert, on their move to save what they’re now calling “traditional” bulbs (ah, yes, our storied national tradition of inefficient lighting! It’s the core of what it means to be an American). The Colbert ReportTags: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor […]
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Why doesn’t Congress give a damn about climate? Hint: it’s not the messaging
The Greenpeace airship spreads the word.Photo: Gus Ruelas/GreenpeaceAmong other truths made completely clear by the showdown in Wisconsin: the outsized role of the Koch brothers in American politics. Charles and David, the third and fourth richest men in America, first gained notoriety this past fall, when a remarkable exposé by Jane Mayer in The New […]
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Is environmentalism still dead?
Sign of the times?Photo: Benny LinThis is part one of a two-part series, cross-posted from New Deal 2.0. You can read part two here. In 2004, Ted Nordhaus and Michael Shellenberger wrote an essay titled “The Death of Environmentalism” that shook the environmental community — although probably not quite enough. Nordhaus and Shellenberger (N and […]
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I’m a rural resident. Where’s my subsidy check?
The view from Washington, D.C., of the rural Midwest: quaint scenery on the way to the West Coast. Photo: Scorpions and CentaursI’ve spent the majority of my life living in cities, albeit mostly small ones in Wisconsin that New Yorkers might not call metropolitan. Before I moved to Lyons, Neb., I lived in Washington, D.C. […]
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As we head toward 7 billion, what does a typical person look like?
Here’s the latest video from National Geographic‘s year-long series on population (set to music that’s got me feeling all jittery and peppy): The gist: The most typical person on the planet is a 28-year-old Han Chinese man; there are more than 9 million such chaps living right now. Here’s what he looks like: Also as […]
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It’s the ‘burbs, stupid: on the Ezra Klein/Tom Vilsack dustup
Carried away: Ezra Klein and Tom Vilsack ride an imaginary “raft of subsidies.” This week, an interesting — and, I think, bizarre — argument broke out between Washington Post political blogger Ezra Klein and USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. The topic was whether rural residents deserve what Klein called a “raft of subsidies,” when in fact, […]
