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Public works and investment must be part of the solution to global warming

As I've said before, certain types of goods -- public goods -- simply cannot be allocated efficiently through market mechanisms alone, even if we get prices right. Now this is not a "government good/private sector bad" post. It is a suggestion, as was my original post on this subject, that a market system requires not only regulation but large-scale public investment, and that one of the places we are making way too few public investments is energy infrastructure.

Again, this is not to say that public investment is the way to run everything; just as there are public goods, there are private goods. But we are trying to meet needs that are clearly public goods via private means. Full social pricing, though needed, will not change that.

Before focusing on energy, consider health insurance. The U.S. spends more on healthcare than any other nation, and gets worse results. There are various reasons for this, but one is that a competitive market in health insurance tends to provide more insurance and less healthcare than public insurance mechanisms. (When I gave this example back in October, biodiversivist argued that our healthcare system "does not resemble any free market I know of." That does not change the fact that our healthcare system is less regulated than healthcare systems in any other rich nation.)

Every intervention that can be cited as possible government over-involvement in our medical system can be found in other systems that spend much less on healthcare and get far better results. If I have to, I'll do a whole post on healthcare -- but the bottom line is that moving a large part of the health insurance system from private to public spending would improve efficiency. Note that we are talking health insurance, not health care.

A major part of fighting global warming will consist of switching from polluting to clean energy. That is largely a matter of major infrastructure, and infrastructure, at least since the fall of feudalism, has always required large public investment, not just regulation.

Grist scheduled to appear on Today show tomorrow — not like last time (we hope)

Ah, the fickleness of live television. One day you're slated to be on TV, the next you're unceremoniously booted off before you even get to meet Matt Lauer. (Oh, the humanity!)

But that was yesterday -- Today is tomorrow. Which is to say, Grist's Katharine Wroth is making her way back to the Today show studios for a guest appearance tomorrow morning. Be sure to tune in for a Grist-alicious good time. Katharine's segment is scheduled to air at 8:19 a.m., no matter what time zone you're in.

Green groups sue over eased restrictions on wolf kills

Seven green groups have sued over a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plan that would loosen restrictions on killing gray wolves in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming.

Sheryl Crow chats about TP, Rove, and the price of oil

In an interview with the New York Times Magazine, Sheryl Crow talks about the One-Square Scandal: Last spring, you were held up as a parody of environmental correctness when you proposed restricting the use of toilet paper to one square per bathroom visit. What was that about? I think it’s a fantastic and eye-opening example […]

Further data on the environmental movement’s diversity challenge

Hot on the heels of a recent Gristmill feature by Marcelo Bonta of the Center for Diversity and the Environment on this issue, an article on the environmental movement's lack of diversity appeared in The Oregonian this weekend, which dug into the details close to home:

The 115 staff members for the Oregon League of Conservation Voters, Oregon Environmental Council, Ecotrust, Oregon Wild and the Audubon Society of Portland include two Latinos, two Asian Americans, one Native American and no African Americans, their leaders say.

So yes, green groups can do better in terms of hiring. But Bonta, who's interviewed, makes the case again that these groups need to go beyond recruiting to engage in dialogue on the issue. They'll be very likely to find, and surveys back this up, that people of color are just as committed to conservation as they are.

Umbra on choosing a college

Dear Umbra, I am a high school junior this school year. I am currently researching what college to attend. One major decision in your school choice should be choosing a college that is strong in the field of your study. I am interested in college majors that will translate into green jobs. I know about […]

Boston Gullible

Via Autoblog Green, it looks like the widely discredited study showing that Hummers beat Priuses has now reached prime time: For Gristmillian debunkings of the study, see biodiversivist and Joe Romm.

Battlefield earth

In a piece in Foreign Policy, Jamais Cascio goes straight at one of the things that scares me most about "geoengineering" — the potential, should such techniques be developed, that they will be used for less-than-benign ends. Nuclear war scares the hell out of us, right? Why would it not scare us to think that […]

John Edwards drops out of presidential race

Democrat John Edwards is expected to drop out of the presidential race today following poor finishes in recent state primaries. Edwards played a key role in pressuring the other leading Dems to toughen their environmental stances early on and he stood out among the frontrunners for his opposition to nuclear power, among other things. For […]

Edwards out

As you’ve probably already heard (damn you west coast time!), John Edwards is expected to drop out of the presidential race today. Now all Edwards chatter will turn to the subject of a possible endorsement.