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Umbra on used cars

Dear Umbra, With rising — OK, skyrocketing — gas prices, I would like to invest in a car that gets good mileage and is reliable. However, I can’t afford a new Toyota Prius. Do you have any suggestions for environmentally friendly used cars that those of us on a budget might be able to invest […]

The best thing greens can do is convince the public that eco-friendly lifestyles are healthier

Cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 cause of death in the U.S. and most European countries. In the latest issue of Newsweek there's a story about it called "Designing Heart-Healthy Communities." Here's how it starts:

Forecasting heart disease is becoming an ever-finer art, as researchers learn more about the risk factors. But here's a predictor you may not have heard about: street address. In a study published last year, scientists at the RAND Corp. scored 38 metropolitan areas on the "sprawl index" -- basically a measure of their dependence on cars. When the researchers tallied disease rates for the same areas, an interesting pattern emerged. Other risk factors aside, people in densely populated places graced with sidewalks and shops had the lowest rates of diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and stroke. ... Without even trying, the folks in those more-compact communities were apparently exercising enough to ward off chronic illness. As the RAND team deduced, "suburban design may be an important new avenue for health promotion."

To their credit , Newsweek teases out the more general point:

Japanese fishermen slaughter their competition

All over the world people are feeling the effects of overfishing. While I would personally advocate not eating fish to begin with, others have come up with alternative solutions, from establishing sustainably managed fisheries to launching campaigns educating the public on what fish to consume.

And then there is this:

In the Japanese fishing village of Taiji, fishermen are rounding up and slaughtering hundreds and even thousands of dolphins right now.

After driving pods of dolphins into shallow coves, the fishermen kill the dolphins, slashing their throats with knives or stabbing them with spears. Thrashing about, the dolphins take as long as six minutes to die. The water turns red with their blood and the air fills with their screams.

This brutal massacre -- the largest scale dolphin kill in the world -- goes on for six months of every year. Even more shocking, the captive dolphin industry is an accomplice to the kill.

Way to go fellas -- violence and murder is always the easiest solution, isn't it? Who's next after you wipe out all of your non-human competition?

If you would like to do something, One Voice, the Earth Island Institute, and the Elsa Nature Conservancy have a few options on their website.

Call for submissions

It looks like I'm not the only one who thinks Current TV needs more green. In fact, Current TV agrees! What are you waiting for, people? Send them your videos!

And thanks to Current TV blogga Robin for linking to Grist from their blog.

is an industry effort to shut down threats to their bottom line

This Alternet piece on the new "eco-terrorism" hype covers ground mostly familiar to Grist readers. But it's got some important details.

The piece identifies two specific groups behind the recent hype: the American Legislative Exchange Council, a group of conservative lawmakers, and -- behind them -- the Center for Consumer Freedom, a group that shills for the alcohol, tobacco, and restaurant industries. CCF is one of many front groups for Berman & Co., a lobbying firm owned by Rick Berman, a former restaurant industry executive. Berman is legendary as a ruthless fighter against any regulation or taxes that might hamper his industry friends. He's also known for close ties to Republican lawmakers.

He once told Chain Leader Magazine, a restaurant trade publication, "Our offensive strategy is to shoot the messenger. We've got to attack [activists'] credibility as spokespersons."

The strategy isn't difficult to discern: Hype the threat from "eco-terrorists," lobby friendly lawmakers to pass draconian laws, and then work hard to tie these "terrorists" to activist groups that hinder your clients' interests. From the Alternet piece:

David Martosko, a CCF official, told the House Ways and Means Committee in March that the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), the United States Humane Society (USHS), and the Rainforest Action Network (RAN) have, to varying degrees, supported known eco-terrorists.

"I urge this committee to fully investigate the connections between individuals who commit crimes in the name of the ALF [Animal Liberation Front], ELF [Earth Liberation Front], or similar phantom groups, and the above-ground individuals and organizations that give them aid and comfort," Martosko testified. "I would also urge members of this Committee to prevail upon their colleagues to re-examine the tax-exempt status of groups that have helped to fund, directly or indirectly, these domestic terrorists."

There's the nut: "re-examine the tax-exempt status." It's an overt attempt to shut down particular activist groups.

For industry, it's a way of destroying threats to their financial interests. For Republicans, it's a way to damage political enemies. For the mouth-breathing, talk-radio-listening Republican base, it's another focus for their spittle-flecked hatred. Everybody wins.

Don't get distracted. This whole kerfuffle about eco-terrorism isn't about objectively weighing threats to our country. Don't start arguing about what really is or really isn't terrorism. Don't feel pressured to incant the line, "Of course I disavow the tactics of those groups, but ..." The merits of the case against "eco-terrorism" are a total distraction. The people waging this war could give a rat's ass about the merits.

Call it what it is.

Rebuilding: more from AtKisson

More intriguing thoughts on rebuilding New Orleans from WC's Alan AtKisson.

Indian government on the cusp of allowing the Asiatic lion to go extinct

These pictures were taken at Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo. I hate zoos. They are rapidly becoming last ditch repositories for animals on the endangered species list. Of course, there are those who don't believe we are in the middle of the sixth great extinction event, or even care, so what's new.

While the Indian bureaucracy is flailing about, the Bengal tiger population drops to a new low. Adding gas to the fire was the poisoning of three of the last 300 remaining Asiatic lions in the Gir forest.

The other kind of population problem

France is paying women to have babies.

From Booty to Biodiesel

“Hey baby, recycle here often?” OK, we’ve heard enough about steamy flings starting at Green Drinks: It’s now officially a Trend. Middle America may think it’s all patchouli and Birkenstocks when enviros mingle, but what we see is brainy, committed hotties … leaving together. Alternative lifestyle Whole Foods, where eco-conscious gourmets flock to demonstrate their […]

Readers talk back about kitty doo-doo, autumn leaves, and more

  Re: Litter Bugged Dear Editor: There’s some concern among sea-otter researchers in California that toxoplasmosis from cat feces may be infecting and killing the state’s threatened sea-otter population. Toxoplasma gondii is a cat parasite, and the otters may catch Toxoplasma cysts from sea water contaminated by cat feces. This disease could be decreased by […]