Latest Articles
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One simple change that could vastly improve Waxman-Markey
Certainly the weakest part of Waxman-Markey is the 2 billion rip-offsets that polluters are allowed to purchase each year in place of reducing their own greenhouse gas emissions. After all, total U.S. GHGs in 2005 were about 7.2 billion tons. Rip-offsets deserve to be called rip-offsets because it is far from clear how many of […]
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Obama’s first 100 days make — and may remake — history
The media just keeps missing — or messing up — the story of the century. Future historians will inevitably judge all 21st-century presidents on just two issues: global warming and the clean energy transition. If the world doesn’t stop catastrophic climate change — Hell and High Water — then all presidents, indeed, all of us, […]
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Charles and Benedict chat about climate
Earlier today, Prince Charles and Pope Benedict XVI met to discuss their shared environmental concerns, with Camilla looking on. With press reports so far scant on details, we are left to imagine the proceedings. We couldn’t find a free photo of the prince shaking hands with His Holiness, so we’re settling for a Flickr shot […]
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OMG, it’s DIY GMOs
I learned of a newly popular hobby for the masses thanks to a recent edition of Food Chain Radio podcast: amateur gene tinkerers. It’s such an obvious plot for a Michael Crichton book, featuring an innocent experiment wiping the planet’s motherboard. Why let corporations and academics in their ivory towers have all the fun? Just […]
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McCain wants a climate policy that benefits the rich
I see John McCain is upset by the fact that Obama wants to auction 100% of cap-and-trade permits. He wants the vast bulk of the permits to be given away to businesses. There are lots of complicated, obscure issues around carbon policy, but this is not one of them. Let’s be very very clear about […]
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60 Minutes on coal: Dancing around the question
60 Minutes had a long segment on the problem of coal this weekend. Watch: A couple thoughts on this. First, it’s worth stepping back and noting how far the discussion has come. The coal industry probably views this segment as disastrous — it takes for granted that climate change is happening and that coal is […]
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Ask Umbra on light timers
Q. Dear Umbra, So I’ve gotten a lot better at turning out the lights when I’m not in the room. I’ve still got some work to do in terms of turning off power strips when I’m not using appliances though. I was thinking about this last night and I remembered this contraption at my grandparents’ […]
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Officials in three states pin water woes on gas drilling
This article was written by ProPublica’s Abrahm Lustgarten. Pat Farnelli, top left, Ronald Carter, bottom left, Richard Seymour, top right, and Norma Fiorentino, bottom right, live in Dimock, Pa. A year after Cabot Oil & Gas landmen knocked on their doors to sign drilling leases, they are finding that their drinking water now contains methane, […]
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Internet Debate 101
(Photo credit: patries71 photo stream Flickr) Several years ago, the Easter Bunny brought my youngest daughter a pet rabbit. She immediately jumped on the Internet to learn about care and feeding. One site told her that rabbits were social animals and that they should be kept warm and dry in the house, preferably in the […]
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Quit arguing with douchebags that everyone hates, part two
Following up a bit on my previous post, let’s make some more specific points. Point number one: Newt Gingrich is a douchebag and everyone hates him. Few figures in American politics (beyond Dick Cheney) are as discredited and unpopular as the bilious windbag Newt, whose renewed prominence as an “intellectual” on the right side of […]
