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  • Sorry, we can’t cook: D.C. schools say ‘no’ to more veggies

    Cheer up, kid — the chicken nuggets and tater tots are sticking around. In a move that could signal a serious fault line in the argument for more vegetables as a tonic for childhood obesity, drafters of “Healthy Schools” legislation pending before the D.C. Council have scuttled a push for additional produce in school meals […]

  • Stop Government Funding of Coal

    This post was co-written by Mark Kresowik, Corporate Accountability and Finance Representative for the Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign. “How good will the business judgment of companies that make high-carbon choices now look in five, 10, 20 years, when it becomes clear that heavily polluting infrastructure has become deadly and must be phased out before […]

  • Nations now free to fish bluefin tuna to extinction

    Well, bluefin tuna, it was nice knowing you: A proposal to ban the export of Atlantic bluefin tuna prized in sushi has been rejected by a U.N. wildlife meeting. Thursday’s decision occurred after Japan, Canada and scores of poor nations opposed the measure on the grounds that it would devastate fishing economies. Monaco introduced the […]

  • Christian Coalition backs Sen. Graham on climate legislation

    Since coming out in support of climate legislation in October, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina has faced a lot of vitriol from groups on the right, including Tea Party activists in Charleston. This criticism culminated in a formal censure from Charleston County that lambasted Graham for subverting “Republican leadership and party solidarity for […]

  • If it does matter where CO2 is released, cities are in trouble

    There’s some fascinating new research about “CO2 domes,” invisible clouds of carbon pollution that hover above urban areas. Bradford Plumer at The New Republic does a great job setting the context: Does it matter where carbon dioxide is emitted? From a climate perspective, at least, the standard answer has always been, “Not really.” Carbon dioxide […]

  • Is Senator Graham looking for an excuse to bail on climate legislation?

    Kate Sheppard asks if the passage of health care legislation will hurt or hinder progress on climate legislation. But the underlying question is whether or not Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is looking for an excuse to bail on climate negotiations. The answer to that question might just be yes. His rhetoric hints at the possibility, […]

  • Un-democracy and the US Senate

    This series is about flawed institutions of governance. Notice the word “governance”—not “government.” It’s not about inadequate or wrong-headed laws and policies. Nor is it about heroic, passable, or ineffectual leadership. Such things are the normal stuff of public debate, and we write scores of posts each year about them here at the Daily Score. […]

  • Can we stop obesity without taxes?

    Michelle Obama went before the Grocery Manufacturers Association today seeking its support for her “Let’s Move” anti-obesity initiative. The GMA, which counts food companies like Kraft, General Mills, and Coca-Cola among its membership, isn’t necessarily friendly territory for Michelle Obama. But if the standing ovation she received is any indication, Big Food is trying hard […]

  • Howell Raines: "Why has our profession… helped Fox legitimize a style of journalism that is dishon

    For the first time since the yellow journalism of a century ago, the United States hasa major news organization devoted to the promotion of one political party….  In a bygone era of fact-based commentary typified, left to right, by my late colleagues Scotty Reston and Bill Safire, these deceptions would have been given their proper […]

  • EIA FAQ on CO2 emissions

    I came across these answers to frequently asked questions from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.  There’s some good information on emissions and conversion factors:   How much carbon dioxide (CO2) is produced when different fuels are burned? How much CO2 does the United States emit? Is it more than other countries? What are the largest sources of total greenhouse […]