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Elevator Pitch Contest finalists — vote!

Our Elevator Pitch Contest brought in over 150 entries -- a number I'll happily refer to as "whopping." I know I said I'd pick the winner but ... it's just too dang hard. So I'm going to let you, dear readers, vote for your favorite. Voting will stay open until, well, people stop voting -- say a week?

Have at it!

Gum control …

... has become a sticky issue for many big cities, Time magazine reports in its latest issue. And no, that's not a typo -- we're talking gum pollution, as in those blobs of gooey stickiness attached to city sidewalks and the shoes of unfortunate city dwellers -- and it's a bigger issue than you might think. Reps from several British cities met in London last month for a summit on the stuff, and they say cleanup costs are costing the U.K. some $290 million a year. If they have their way, a new bill may fine bubble-gum litterBrits $145.

Toronto officials counted gobs of the stuff for a 2004 litter audit and found that for every piece of other litter, there were 10 pieces of gum littering one stretch of sidewalk. Contrary to popular belief, the gooey bits won't biodegrade, but U.S. researchers say they may be able to change that with a new biodegradable variety of chewy goodness made with a corn derivative. The stuff is expensive to produce, but won't stick to surfaces. Chew on that!

Response to “Death”: Part II

Today we present Part II of Ken Ward's response to "The Death of Environmentalism," in which he argues that greens should reject the political position embedded in Lakoff's framing analysis -- namely, that environmentalism is just one more single-issue liberal group. Rather, the green movement should preserve its ability to speak across the left/right divide and focus on mobilizing and energizing its core supporters.

Don't forget to read Part I, and Part III, Part IV, and Part V.

Low-energy indoor composter

Thanks to frequent Gristmill commentor Mike Capone, I came across this very cool product on Treehugger: Naturemill Low-energy Indoor Composter. While I'll stick with my green cone, since I have a yard, this would have been awesome while living in an apartment building in New York City.

Unfortunately, there is a waiting list.

Nothing but flowers

Behold, I bring you sunny tidings: Thanks to all the freakish weather in California this winter, Death Valley is now a riot of color. Giddy botanists and park rangers -- relishing the sight of the 156-mile long stretch of desert bursting with wildflower blooms -- say it's a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Of course, the overdose of rain has had nastier effects on the state's other crops, including almonds and strawberries. Then there's the sad fate of mudslide victims, and the millions of dollars in damages to houses and roads.

But flowers. Are pretty. And we'll take what we can get.

More Marburger

I'd highly recommend this public presentation by and interview with White House science advisor John Marburger. Roger Pielke Jr.'s got some excerpts. Marburger's a bit of an enigma to me -- the interview is alternately thoughtful, thought-provoking, and maddening. Here's one excerpt:

Upcoming mercury policy

When the history of the Bush administration environmental record is written, there will be plenty of dark chapters. With the exception of its inaction on climate change, however, none will be so dark as its treatment of mercury.

We know that its handmaidens in Congress have distorted the science on mercury emissions. But there has also been a steady trickle of stories about its attempts to bias the policy-making process in favor of industry. In short: the Bushies favor a weak cap-and-trade program over the more traditional "maximum achievable control technology" approach. In endeavoring to justify this preference -- that is, to give it some justification other than "industry contributors favor it" -- they have done economic assessments that both the GAO and the EPA's own inspector general have found wanting.

Chris Mooney sums up the sordid episode. Go read it.

Let's be clear about what's happening. Later this week the Bush administration will announce a new cap-and-trade program to limit mercury emissions. That program will be based on economic analyses that have been publicly exposed as fraudulent. Power plants will save some money in the short-term; the economy as a whole will lose money in the long-term.

But more to the point: children will suffer unnecessarily.

So tell me -- I don't want to be "alarmist" -- what is the "reasonable" thing to say about this?

The argument

How did Dave Pollard get in my dome?

Acronym Soup

Oh yes, he’ll be back

Cali Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (whose name, bizarrely, I now know how to spell from memory) has his first challenger in the 2006 gubernatorial race.

This is so naive it's cute:

But some political observers say the question of whether Angelides, or any Democrat, can unseat Schwarzenegger in 2006 will turn on the events of the rest of this year.

Yes, if there's one thing the 2004 election showed, it's that "events" make or break a candidate!

First 2006 political prediction: Arnold is a lock.