Latest Articles

Some big whales no longer in trouble

There’s bad news and good news from the world of marine megafauna. The bad: Almost a quarter of the 80 types of whales, dolphins, and porpoises are in trouble, with nine listed as “endangered” or “critically endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Entanglement in fishing gear poses the main threat. The good: […]

Republicans too sissy to shut down federal government over drilling

Congressional Republicans — and Newt Gingrich (wtf?) — continue to threaten to shut down the federal government if Pelosi won’t allow them an isolated up-or-down vote on oil drilling. I say: yes! Please, please, pleeease organize Congressional Republicans to stomp their feet and completely shut down the federal government because the majority leader won’t give […]

Stopping MTR

“Now there is an increasingly powerful and vocal national movement to stop mountaintop removal [mining]. I’m saying we’re going to have it stopped by the end of next year … the end of 2009.” — Matt Wasson, director of programs for Appalachian Voices

Toward the post-oil society

This is the fourth in a series on how we can build an energy future based on our best science and no longer critically dependent upon exhaustible and polluting fossil fuels. The tripartite approach allows our society to cut oil demand and dependence substantially within a decade, much more quickly than a sole reliance on […]

U.S. economy shifting to — gasp! — efficiency

When it comes to urging environment-mindedness, high oil prices have proven much more persuasive than green groups ever did. The U.S. economy, built on cheap, plentiful energy, is shifting into a new mode. Americans are driving less, riding transit more, ditching SUVs, and moving back into city centers. We’re seeking energy efficiency in our appliances […]

Galbraith on ‘the free market’

TPM Cafe is hosting a roundtable on economist James Galbraith’s new book The Predator State: How Conservatives Abandoned the Free Market and Why Liberals Should Too. Here’s a bit from Galbraith’s introductory post: The judicial coup of December 2000 that installed Bush and Cheney brought back some of Reagan’s men and his most extreme policies […]

Re: the Russia-Georgia unpleasantness

Let’s not forget that recent fossil fuel prices have boosted Russia’s power considerably, and without any of the messy work required to empower an independent judiciary or build democratic institutions. Let’s also not forget that Georgia houses two large oil pipelines. If John McCain really wants to constrain Russia, he’ll help lead America and the […]

Va. Senator doesn’t get that the emissions are the crisis

Originally posted at the Wonk Room. Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) told the Politico last week that “environmentalists will be forced to compromise next year and support the development of clean coal, nuclear power and other alternative fuels”: We need to be able to address a national energy strategy and then try to work on environmental […]

The limits of consumption-based food movements

In “Dispatches From the Fields,” Ariane Lotti and Stephanie Ogburn, who are working on small farms in Iowa and Colorado this season, share their thoughts on producing real food in the midst of America’s agro-industrial landscape. This Olathe Sweet Corn is regionally renowned, entirely local, and grown entirely conventionally and industrially, meaning farmers use large […]

Head of CCX endorses McCain’s cap-and-trade program, reveals misunderstanding of climate policy

Over on Huffington Post, Frank Carlson has a story revealing that Richard Sandor, the founder of the Chicago Climate Exchange, supports McCain’s cap-and-trade system over Obama’s — that is to say, he supports giving pollution permits away rather than auctioning them. The story reveals that neither Carlson nor Sandor understands the difference very well. Here’s […]