Latest Articles

A little weekend humor

In case you missed this hilarious letter that made the email rounds early this year poking fun at bizarre agricultural subsidies ... it gets to carbon credits midway through, naturally:

The U.N. summit and Clinton Global Initiative are over, and where did they get us?

This week's New York Climate Change Bonanza has come to an end. It's always a good thing when powerful people hold high-profile event after high-profile event dedicated to amplifying the profile of the climate change crisis and then solving it, as they did this week with the U.N.'s climate summit and the Clinton Global Initiative. But there's still the question of efficacy.

On Monday, for instance, I sat and watched as literally dozens of world leaders -- who had flown in from around the globe to spend five minutes on an international stage -- called for global action on climate change. They hailed mostly from countries that have contributed a pittance to the near-critical mass of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and yet that will suffer the worst of the effects. Many hadn't had much of a voice until that moment -- and when they finally spoke, it fell for the most part upon deaf ears.

George W. Bush, of course, thumbed his nose at the summit, then held his own.

Friday music blogging: Band of Horses

I’m not sure I’ve ever witnessed an album embraced so unreservedly and immediately by so many indie fans as Everything All the Time, the 2006 Sub Pop debut from Band of Horses. Three of the founding members — Ben Bridwell, Matt Brooke, and Creighton Barrett — were in the “quiet core” band Carissa’s Wierd, but […]

U.S. summit concludes with no progress to speak of

At the conclusion of a two-day U.S.-hosted climate summit of the world’s major emitters, George W. Bush announced that he’s been faking his climate-change laggardness all along, and signed on to reduce greenhouse gases in various planet-saving-while-still-economy-boosting ways. Ha ha ha! Sob. No, just as expected, Bush said what he always says — voluntary measures […]

California bans in-home ozone air purifiers

In-home air purifiers that emit more than a tiny amount of ozone will be banned under a new California regulation. While manufacturers of ozone air purifiers claim that their products can relieve asthma and other respiratory symptoms, thousands of studies have shown that ozone exposure can actually worsen such conditions. “There are reports of ozone […]

From Ball Game to Bubble Gum

Going to bat for the planet The home of the Green Monster has a new game plan. Fenway’s stepping up to the plate with a roster of green initiatives, ranging from a fifth-inning recycling stretch to biodegradable beer cups. Throw in an organic ballpark frank and you’ve got a grand slam. Photo: Kingdafy Definition accomplished […]

Press struggles to write something interesting about vacuous Bush speech

Well, Bush gave a speech on climate change today, in conjunction with his Major Economies Meeting. "What I’m telling you is, we’ve got a strategy,” the man said. That’s one way of putting it. As expected, Bush said nothing new, just some banalities about how we all recognize the problem and we all have to […]

Thoughts on surviving life after Brood Awakenings

The perfect ending is a gorgeous thing, all the loose ends neatly knotted, all the confusion gone. It’s a motionless bird on a wire — calm, brightly plumed, contented, with no need to fly off or find a worm or do anything but sit in the sun and enjoy the day. Illustration: Keri Rosebraugh If […]

EPA delays approval of nasty pesticide

Delightfully defying our dire predictions, the U.S. EPA will (again) delay approval of nasty pesticide methyl iodide, after 54 scientists wrote a letter expressing shock that the agency was even considering giving such a toxic chemical the thumbs-up for agricultural use.

On climate nightmares, the Ursula problem, and planning ahead

      A couple of weeks ago, Wroth — as we affectionately call our story editor and chief punster — gave me a call. “Sonja, I’d like some pictures of your kids for our parenting series slideshow.” Not skipping a beat, I replied, “Piercings and all?” I wasn’t sure my two teenagers quite fit […]