Latest Articles

Got weeds? Reach for the food processor, not the lawnmower

Around this time of year, all the foodies in my neck of the woods are, well, in the woods. Spring and fall are the best wild food foraging times around here, and as if ol’ Mother Nature knew our food prices were going through the roof and transportation costs skyrocketing, she’s brought us a cornucopia […]

Recycling sewer water into drinking water growing more popular

Cities and counties across the United States have increasingly been turning to recycled sewer water as one way to meet growing drinking-water demand. Recycling sewer water, or turning toilet water into drinking water via purification, has often repulsed opponents due to the high costs of treatment and the drinking-former-toilet-water gag factor. However, despite sometimes vocal […]

McCain outlines priorities for first term; climate and energy make the cut

John McCain is in Ohio today, where he gave a speech this morning about what he plans to accomplish by 2013. Progress on climate and energy is part of his vision for a better world at the end of his first term: The United States is well on the way to independence from foreign sources […]

Chicago overturns 2-year old ordinance banning foie gras

In The New York Times Dining section yesterday, I read this:

Chicagoans can feast on foie gras once more. The Chicago City Council just repealed the ban on its sale that it put in place two years ago.

Now I know that many of my vegan friends will go ballistic on me when I say that this is a good thing, but this is a good thing. The animal rights groups who supported this measure did so because they saw it as a layup -- an easy target. Who would oppose a ban on something only rich, snobby, hoity-toity gourmands consume?

Besides the measure being silly government intervention, it reminded me of the folks who say they won't eat veal because they heard it was cruel ... as they pull up to the KFC drive thru.

Banning foie gras saves a few ducks and geese. Wanna make a difference? Ban CAFOs. You needn't stop eating meat (unless of course you want to, that's entirely up to you), just stop eating feedlot meat. Get your beef, pork, and chicken from the farmer down the road, from the farmers market, from a CSA. Trust the source, and you'll trust the food.

Climate change messing with ecology worldwide, study says

Climate change is messing with ecology worldwide right now, according to a comprehensive new study in the journal Nature. Researchers examined data on shifts in over 28,000 plant and animal systems and over 800 environmental changes across all the world’s continents for the past 30 years. In 90 percent of the cases of change in […]

Polar bear is endangered, but ‘Rule will allow continuation of vital energy production in Alaska’

The Department of Interior suffers from a rare form of bipolar disorder called bye-polar disorder. There is one major symptom of this disorder: You list the polar bear as "threatened" because of its melting polar sea ice habitat, but then do nothing to actually protect that polar habitat from its primary threat, greenhouse-gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion.

The disorder is accompanied by an occasional burst of logic, as when the DOI noted:

Snippets from the news

• Sea lions died of overheating, not gunshots. • Accountants see a bubble in renewable energy. • Juneau is a role model for reducing electricity use. • Starbucks struggles to go green. • Detroit builds condos out of shipping containers.

John Edwards endorses Barack Obama

Former presidential hopeful John Edwards has at long last endorsed a candidate: Barack Obama. Edwards, whose strong stances on the environment pushed his Democratic rivals to toughen their green proposals, said of his choice, “Democratic voters in America have made their choice and so have I.” Hillary Clinton‘s campaign, which had also pursued Edwards’ endorsement, […]

Bush admin to list polar bears as threatened; advocates pledge to continue the fight

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne was flanked by two large television screens rolling video of polar bears as he discussed his department’s decision Wednesday to declare the bears “threatened.” The video bears — and the bears in the many photos on display at the press conference — were fat and happy, wrestling on solid ice floes […]

Obama talks up green while courting manufacturers

Barack Obama courted manufacturers in Michigan Wednesday, touting proposals to boost both green energy and the auto industry. He talked up a plan to auction carbon credits and use the funds to boost clean technology (and, in turn, green jobs), and said he would help the U.S. auto industry get back on its feet while […]