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Thoughts on Van Jones’ resignation

Van Jones had to resign. It became inevitable when Gibbs offered no support. Much of the blame for this incident lies squarely on the White House. The information used against Jones was freely available on the web. All it took was a search. I thought by hiring Jones they intended to take a chance on […]

EPA’s failure to publicize drinking water data prompts rethinking in agency, Congress

This story was written by Danielle Ivory. There is some evidence that Congress — and the Environmental Protection Agency — are rethinking their policies on a commonly used weed-killer after disclosures that the EPA failed to notify the public about high levels of the herbicide in drinking water. As the Investigative Fund revealed last week, […]

Going back to school? Here’s a green cheat sheet

OliBac via flickrAh, back-to-school season. The rustling of leaves, the squeak of new sneakers, the reassuring sound of chalk on a blackboard. Wait, does anyone still use chalk? And if they do, is it emitting some sort of toxic dust that’s dooming our children to a life of bad health and environmental despair? School, once […]

Friday music blogging: The Low Anthem

The Low Anthem originally released their debut, Oh My God, Charlie Darwin, last year. It’s been a sleeper hit (as these things go), gradually spreading by word-of-mouth to the point that label Nonesuch felt compelled to re-release it this year. It’s a really special album — been steadily growing on me for a while. I’ll […]

In dark times, back to the garden

While climate change rages ahead, the climate bill is flat on its back and the most progressive green on President Obama’s staff looks on the verge of being forced out of office for silly reasons. Let’s not talk about healthcare reform or Afghanistan.  But … there’s an organic veggie garden! On the White House lawn! […]

A stunt or not a stunt? That is not the question

Last week, Elizabeth Kolbert, a respected New Yorker journalist who writes admirably about our climate catastrophe and the environment, wrote a scathing attack on my book, No Impact Man. Sadly, casualties on the battlefield of Kolbert’s wrath included not only me, but also the work of James MacKinnon and Alisa Smith (authors of 100 Mile […]

‘Localwashing’ in pictures — bogus marketing at its finest

Local food, local goods, local everything is in, as you’ve no doubt heard. Local is fresher. Local burns less shipping fuel. Local keeps the wealth nearby. Naturally, there’s money to be made off local, so big businesses are muscling into the game. The emerging term is localwashing—a variation on greenwashing wherein businesses claim to be […]

Shake-ups at high-profile coal industry group

This post was originally published on the blog of the Center for Public Integrity and is reposted on Grist with CPI’s kind permission. With its hefty bankroll and polished messaging, the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity looked like a juggernaut going into the climate change debate on Capitol Hill. But ever since the House […]

Van Jones seeks a ‘healing for our politics’

Cross-posted from Wonk Room. White House green jobs advisor Van Jones is under attack from Fox News as an “avowed radical revolutionary communist” and from ABC News as a “truther” with a “history of incendiary and provocative remarks.” In an attempt to assassinate the character of Van Jones, the right-wing media are distorting his past […]

Big Oil creates phony climate denial site, lies about it

A friend just alerted me to the website PlantsNeedCO2.org, which is running ads on NYTimes.com. From the site’s “about us” page: Our mission is to educate the public on the positive effects of additional atmospheric CO2 and help prevent the inadvertent negative impact to human, plant and animal life if we reduce CO2. Plants Need […]