Latest Articles
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To act not to act
I regularly receive a letter from Ted Glick, the coordinator of the U.S. Climate Emergency Council, who recently was arrested for hanging a banner on the NOAA building to protest their mishandling of climate information. He has joined with others in calling for a fast on September 4th:
We are calling on thousands of Americans to voluntarily give up food for one day on September 4th, 2007. Other participants will fast even longer beginning on that date, some for weeks. Our appeal to you is to consider joining us in this climate initiative called, "So Others Might Eat: The Climate Emergency Fast." ...
What will we be calling for? Three things: no new coal or coal-to-liquid plants; freeze greenhouse gas emissions and move quickly to reduce them; and a down payment of $25 billion for energy conservation, efficiency and renewable energy.Ken Ward has recently posted here about the efficacy of protest.
The problem as I see it is that in the past, direct action and protest have had very clear achievable goals, whereas in the case of global warming, we know we want drastically reduced carbon emission, but the devil is in the details.
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Now you have that song in your head, don’t you?
As the Olympics kick off in Beijing next year, the infamous torch will travel 85,000 miles, the longest relay in Olympic history. Its ascension to the top of Mount Everest will be aided by a brand-new 67-mile highway. Um … China? Methinks this is not the best way to support your claim that you’re trying, […]
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Namely, for someone else to pay for it
Somebody on Gristmill recently mentioned this study, I think. (Who are you, mysterious misremembered person? [‘Twas JMG!]) Anyway, it was a survey done with 1,200 or so adults. They were presented with three climate policy options: 1) “Standards” or “mandates”: The government tells companies exactly how they must generate electricity or manufacture vehicle fuel to […]
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Find a new source of power, dudes
Google got a lot of great press for its new plan to "voluntarily cut or offset all its greenhouse emissions by the end of the year." But was it all deserved?The Boston Globe reported the story as "Google aims to go carbon-neutral by end 2007. " The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) reprinted the story, as did Greenwire and others. Buried in the story was this gem:
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Defends herself at a hill hearing, poorly
You’ve probably heard that ex-EPA chief Christie Todd Whitman was up on the hill on Monday, defending herself against accusations that she misled New Yorkers about the dangers of air pollution following the 9/11 attacks. It was about what you’d expect: despite an EPA Inspector General report containing definitive proof that Whitman was logrolled by […]
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Accuses us of ‘green imperialism’
More or less echoing what I said here, China is telling the West to shove its climate hectoring where the sun don’t shine: Asian business and government leaders have accused rich countries of hypocrisy, saying they run polluting industries with cheap labour in China and then blame the country for worsening climate change. “This is […]
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Take a National Review cruise to find out
Holy mother of something or other, you gotta read this story. Here’s how it begins: I am standing waist-deep in the Pacific Ocean, indulging in the polite chit-chat beloved by vacationing Americans. A sweet elderly lady from Los Angeles is sitting on the rocks nearby, telling me dreamily about her son. “Is he your only […]
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Ethanol: the drunkard’s scourge
OK, ethanol, come on! You effed up the tortillas, you effed up the beer … now you’re effing up the tequila? Is nothing sacred?
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Mixed news
Now that the energy bill has gotten through the Senate, the fight has moved to the House. Here’s an update, from my rapidly dwindling free-trial-period subscription to CongressNow: An expected push by House Democratic lawmakers to raise federal fuel economy standards and create new renewable electricity mandates will likely be deferred until the full House […]
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