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Crowley on Crichton

Michael Crowly has a rollicking good piece on Michael Crichton today in The New Republic (not sure whether it's behind a sub wall). It starts like this ...

She took a sip of red wine, then set the glass down on the bedside table. Unceremoniously, she pulled her top over her head and dropped her skirt. She was wearing nothing beneath.

Still in her high heels, she walked toward him. ... She was so passionate she seemed almost angry, and her beauty, the physical perfection of her dark body, intimidated him, but not for long.

--State of Fear by Michael Crichton

It may be hard to fathom that someone capable of writing the above passage is also capable of discovering the hidden truth about global warming that has eluded the world's leading scientists.

... and just gets better.

It goes badly wrong, of course, in failing to cite my review of Crichton's book, but otherwise it perfectly captures the anti-elitism that has, ironically, vaulted both Crichton and Bush into the elite.

Wolf millennium

New wolf numbers released this afternoon from U.S. Fish and Wildlife: Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming now host an estimated 1,020 wolves, a stunning 21 percent increase in just a single year. Since reintroduction in the mid-1990s, gray wolf numbers have grown at an astonishing pace, faster even than the most optimistic prognostications. Idaho continues to shelter more wolves than any other state in the West, with about half the total. The rest are split almost evenly between Montana and Wyoming.

Smaller cars make a comeback … kind of.

Great news! According to at least one analyst, sales of subcompact cars in the U.S. are supposed to double in the next five years!

If this gives you visions of nation-wide FUH2 dancing in your head, you may also be one of those folks who believed your friends when they said the word "gullible" wasn't in the dictionary. (Hint: it is.) A doubling of the U.S. subcompact car market would bring small cars' share of the new-vehicle market to a whopping 3 percent. Actually less than 3 percent. Sigh. Why, why would this be? Says another analyst:

I don't think [the subcompact is] a car for the U.S. market ... Those cars look great in Europe, but put them on road here next to a big SUV and they don't look so good anymore.

I'm assuming by "good" he means "pridefully wasteful to compensate for small-manhood syndrome." That being the case, I suppose he has a point.

One-stop data shop

Given that states take the lead on most things electrical, perhaps you are wondering how to find out which state is doing what when it comes to ameliorative policies.

Wonder no more. The good folks at the Interstate Renewable Energy Council have now added energy-efficiency programs to their popular and invaluable database of state renewable-energy incentives. Check it here.

Always Low Vices … Well, Sometimes

Wal-Mart to double organic food selection In the next few weeks, Wal-Mart plans to double its offering of organic foods, expanding its produce and dairy selections and offering dry goods as well. Organic food is one of the fastest-growing segments in the grocery biz, and Wal-Mart is one of many large retailers hoping to capitalize […]

We Knew They Were Price Gouging, But This Is Ridiculous

Lawsuit against Exxon over torture in Indonesia can proceed, judge says A U.S. federal judge declared last week that a lawsuit brought against ExxonMobil on behalf of Indonesian villagers can proceed. In 2001, the D.C.-based International Labor Rights Fund sued the company in a U.S. court on behalf of 11 Indonesians from Aceh province, claiming […]

Stick It Where the Sun Does Shine

Senate panel clears drilling expansion off Florida coast The specter of new drilling in the Gulf of Mexico loomed a little larger yesterday, as the Senate Energy Committee approved a bill to open millions of acres about 100 miles off the Florida coast to oil and gas exploration. Now, please get out your scorecards and […]

Can We Sue Them for Label?

House passes industry-beloved food-labeling bill Yesterday, the House of Representatives stood up to a powerful business lobby to protect public health and safety. Ha ha! Just yanking your chain. Actually, the House approved by 283 to 139 an industry-backed bill that would wipe out over 200 state laws requiring safety and warning labels on foods […]

Tips on seafood consumption from a seafaring wench

Ahoy there, fellow poop-deckers! I hope the fair seas have treated ye well since me last arrrr-ticle. This one, dear mateys, will focus on grub -- that's food to you landlubbers -- specifically seafood. There's been much to-do lately on mercury advisories and the safety of sushi, so how's a seadog to know what's safe to eat, what's caught (or farmed) sustainably, and what's not?

But before I delve into the murky waters of seafood safety, I've a message for any bilge-suckers planning to comment on this post about how "un-environmental" I am for suggesting that seafood is an acceptable food source: I'll swab the deck with you, I will. Don't tempt me. That said, let's weigh anchor.

The Meatrix II: Revolting official launch date and premiere

It is official, The Meatrix II: Revolting will be released on March 30th.

And all you New York area Moopheus fans can attend the premiere at the Bowery Poetry Club in the East Village on March 29th.

If you're one of the few people who haven't watched the original, I direct you here.