Articles by David Roberts

Deep thought

Reliance on oil brings a stream of calls to "break our addiction" and find "alternative sources." Reliance on coal brings a stream of paeans to the importance of coal.

FOX News continues quest to endumben viewers

If crime rates are rising, how come I didn't get mugged today?

P.S. from Grist's Russ Walker: Given the example above, it's not hard to see why so many Americans don't believe human activities are causing global warming. Some grim polling data here from Rasmussen (though the survey questions aren't exactly written in such a way to reflect the true complexity of the issue...)

What the Obama presidency means

For several days I've been pondering how to write something interesting or insightful about Obama and What It All Means -- something that hasn't been written a hundred other places. (The internets are choked with Obama-related profundity right now.)

In the end, though, profundity is not what's needed. Obama did plenty of that on the trail, and the very fact of his ascension to office speaks for itself.

Instead, what's called for is some bluntness. The Obama presidency is in a political vise grip, squeezed between two facts:

1. The dire situation described by the fourth IPCC report is, by all indications, an underestimate. We are careening toward catastrophe, and to avoid it we'll likely have to virtually eliminate U.S. carbon emissions by 2050, while also engineering a whole range of difficult international agreements. If we don't, it's not exaggerating to say that unprecedented human misery will result, potentially putting at risk the very preconditions of human civilization.


2. There is nothing close to the public or political support necessary to pass the kind of sweeping policies necessary to eliminate America's emissions. The U.S. political class, to say nothing of the public, is nowhere near understanding or internalizing the implications of fact No. 1. By and large climate change is still viewed as a nagging, marginal, far-off problem to be addressed to the extent (and only to the extent) that it doesn't cause any economic dislocation.

This is just another way of rephrasing Gore's famous warning that the politically possible falls well short of what's necessary. The politically possible has moved forward considerably with Obama taking office, Pelosi running the House, Waxman running the Energy Committee, Markey running the Energy Subcommittee, and competent professionals in charge of executive branch agencies. But it is still far, far short. Even many people in the green world don't really get the existential urgency involved.

Over the next four/eight years, Obama (with help from many others) will bridge that gap, and we'll have a shot at a prosperous green future. Or he won't, and our children and grandchildren will inherit a world filled with unthinkable suffering.

That's it.

Wherein life teaches a journalist a lesson

I'll write something on the larger themes and context soon, but for now, I'm exhausted, my feet hurt, my back hurts, and all I've got in me is an account of my own experience, which turned out to be not at all what I expected.

Grist had one press pass to the swearing-in ceremony. Since Kate got to go to the green ball (more on that from her soon), I got the pass. Great, right? A chance to see history up close, surrounded by other privileged and important members of the media.

Because I assumed I'd basically cruise in past the crowds, as we did on Sunday for the concert, I didn't leave the house until about 10am. The ceremony started at 11:30 and I had about a half-hour walk ... I thought. On the Obama site's media guide, it said that the press entrance is "TBA." (Kinda wondering when they're going to announce it.) Anyway, I tacked toward the Capitol, assuming I'd be close to the proceedings, and approached a cop at the first entrance point.

"Where's the media entrance?"

"I don't know, but you can't come in here, it's for ticket holders."

Hm. Okay. Next entrance point, slightly farther away.

"Where's the media entrance?"

"Oh, it's on 15th and H, I think."

"Are you sure? That's the other way, away from the ceremony."

"That's what I heard."

Grr. Fine. I schlep through the packed crowds, eight or nine blocks to 15th and H, glancing nervously at my watch.

Finally get there. "Is this the media entrance?"

"This is for Lafayette media pass holders. You have a national mall media pass. You want to go a a couple blocks over."

Fine.

"Is this the media entrance?"

"No, that's at 15th and H."