Do monopolies undermine the environment?

For many skeptics of the environmental benefits of market economies, the fear of monopoly control over natural resources is one of their greatest concerns. The reality is actually much more complicated; here's why.

Assault on the free press: a parable

To illustrate a point, let me tell a quick story:

On June 23 , The New York Times ran a story on SWIFT, the Bush Treasury Department's terror finance tracking program. Most of the information had been revealed in other publications, and insiders knew that the program was no longer producing much. The Wall Street Journal and the L.A. Times also ran stories on SWIFT.

Nonetheless, needing to change the headlines, Bush and his agents attacked the NYT. The official rhetoric was merely stern, citing unspecified damage to our national security. But Bush's most popular and enthusiastic defenders were not so circumspect. Charges of "treason" bounced around the conservative cable tv and blog circuit (again). You mean treason, like the high crime punishable by death? Says radio talk show host Melanie Morgan: "I would have no problem with [NYT editor Bill Keller] being sent to the gas chamber."

So, the NYT was accused of deliberately helping terrorists. Freaky enough. Then things took a turn for the Super Freaky.

Walton Ford brings testosterone to nature painting

Walton Ford. Photo: Jason Houston They, whoever the hell they are, say that great paintings work on many levels, and...

Our ongoing environmental and economic setbacks are the successes of the current administration’s co

Anyone who's been following the systematic dismantling of environmental protection occurring in this country knows that the Bush administration is anything but incompetent. The people in power have very specific goals, and a lack of competence wouldn't have gotten them as far as they are today. Over on AlterNet, George Lakoff explains the philosophy that has brought about our recent failures and setbacks:

The conservative vision for government is to shrink it - to "starve the beast" in Conservative Grover Norquist's words. The conservative tagline for this rationale is that "you can spend your money better than the government can." Social programs are considered unnecessary or "discretionary" since the primary role of government is to defend the country's border and police its interior. Stewardship of the commons, such as allocation of healthcare or energy policy, is left to people's own initiative within the free market. Where profits cannot be made -- conservation, healthcare for the poor -- charity is meant to replace justice and the government should not be involved.

So the federal response to Katrina was actually a success:

Jason Wentworth, eco-friendly laundromat owner, answers questions

Jason Wentworth. What work do you do? I am the owner, along with my wife Sandrine, of the Washboard Eco...

Alt fuels comparison

Check out this incredibly thorough, fair-minded comparison of various alternative vehicle fuels from, of all places, Popular Mechanics. You can also download a comparison chart (PDF). Nice work.

A “simple remedy” for global warming

Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth has been criticized for not offering enough ideas to solve global warming. But his documentary has not only far exceeded box office expectations, grossing three times the early estimates already; it has also brought in waves of new ideas from well-known thinkers in a variety of fields.

As long as global warming was thought to be a murky scientific controversy, so-called opinion leaders could safely ignore the subject. But now that -- as science reporter Eugene Linden remarked in an interview a couple of months ago -- "the naysayers and deniers are starting to look more and more like idiots," the experts are scrambling for unclaimed ground on which to plant their flag and show their smarts.

Umbra on old clothes

Dear Umbra, I promise that I searched the archives before emailing you, so hopefully you haven’t already answered this question....

From Iowa to I Owe Ya

Sometimes a basin is just a basin Personally, we don’t see anything unusual about the shape of this Des Moines,...