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Animal terrorism

First there was the pack of squirrels that attacked and killed a dog in Russia. Now there's a group of "urban" raccoons taking out house cats in Olympia, WA. Apparently they even managed to carry off a small dog, although it survived the encounter.

What's next? Serpents that infest a jet airliner and viciously attack the passengers with poison fangs? (Woops, didn't mean to spoil any movie plots ...)

In other news, a Celebrity Cruises ship arrived in Seward, Alaska, last weekend with a dead humpback whale pinned to the bow.

The latest transmission from Mongo

Yesterday, Sen. James Inhofe (R-Mongo) reiterated his skepticism about climate change. He claimed that the purported concern over global warming is a front for international economic movements (I'm assuming of the socialist variety). Relatedly, Inhofe said that the U.N. is trying to impose a "global tax" and that the U.S. should cut off its funding.

And then there's this:

U.S. involvement in Iraq has been incredibly successful and developments there have been "nothing short of a miracle," Sen. James Inhofe said Monday.

Fear and environmentalism: more

(Second in a series; first part here.)

The brain's alarm circuits are clustered in an almond-shaped neural structure called the amygdala, known colloquially as the "lizard brain." When it receives warning that a threat may be present, it sends a chemical fight-or-flight signal.

The prefrontal cortex, source of higher cognitive functions, assesses whether the threat signals (which are frequent, as the amygdala operates on a bit of a hair-trigger) are worthy of attention. It acts as a check; it has to, or complex thought would be impossible. We'd always be fighting or flighting.

This simplifies things quite a bit, obviously. But it's no mere metaphor to say that fear (flight) and anger (fight) are pre-rational -- or if you prefer, arational. They are the deepest and most fundamental dispositions, what we share with every creature, amoeba and up. We humans flatter ourselves about our intellectual powers, but in the end we are animals, and hormonal danger signals can quite easily overwhelm all rational thought. Fear and anger are prior; reasons, justifications, and evidence are posterior.

The most inconvenient truth

When many environmentalists discuss the costs of significantly reducing CO2 emissions in the near-to-medium future, there is a degree of unreality clouding the discourse. There is plenty of talk of new technologies and improvements in energy efficiency, but insufficient discussion of the projected demands for energy in the future.

The reality is that there are billions of people in less developed countries who have been waiting a long time to enjoy the comforts and luxuries we take for granted in the developed nations, and they are not going to put aside their material aspirations for the sake of global warming, no matter how convincing the evidence.

Adieu, Advisinator

Environmental adviser to Schwarzenegger steps down Terry Tamminen, influential environmental adviser to California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, is leaving his post, taking with him some of the green — ethos, that is. Tamminen, a Democrat, was part of the Governator’s inner circle and an outspoken voice for environmental protection. Republicans in the California legislature won’t miss […]

Like Blight on Rice

U.S. commercial rice crop contaminated with GM strain The U.S. government admitted last week that its commercial supply of long-grain rice has been contaminated by an illegal, untested, genetically modified strain with the warm-and-fuzzy name of LLRICE 601. The European Union, the biggest importer of U.S. long-grain rice, may decide to delay or ban imports; […]

Radioinactive

Nuclear industry will move forward, but not significantly The much-heralded revival of the U.S. nuclear industry is moving at a less-than-explosive pace (ha ha!). The slow growth isn’t for lack of trying by the Bush administration, whose 2005 energy bill juices the industry with tax credits, insurance, loan guarantees, a ceiling on accident liability damages, […]

Austin City Limits: zero energy code

The city of Austin, already host to the granddaddy of all green building programs, is stepping it up further: They are looking into "adopting a series of code changes that will make all new single-family homes built in the City's building code jurisdiction 'Zero-Energy Capable Homes' by the year 2015."

Go Austin!

Old amusement parks don’t die, they just … become condos

Mat Lindstedt was a typical 12-year-old growing up in San Jose during the 1970s. He spent his summers braving the runaway mine ride, paddling the Indian war canoes, and riding the lazy burros at Frontier Village amusement park. Riding an endangered species. Photo: iStockphoto But Lindstedt’s summers changed in 1980, when the owners of Frontier […]

Terry Tamminen leaving post in Schwarzenegger administration

Terry Tamminen, influential environmental advisor to California gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, is stepping down.

Ostensibly, Tamminen is quitting to campaign for Arnie and remind voters of the governor's green record (after which he will take a post in the private sector and publish a book).

Somewhat ironically, though, Tamminen's departure casts serious doubt on whether a second Arnie term would be as green as the first.

"Terry's departure leaves a big void in the governor's office," said Bill Magavern, senior representative for Sierra Club of California. "There now is nobody with experience in the environmental movement, and you have to think that's going to make a difference when they have their internal tug of war between the business interests and the environmental promises that the governor has made."

Don't believe Tamminen made a difference in that tug of war? Listen to this (and remember to use your Corporatist Decoder Ring to translate):