He spoke about peace. He spoke about the middle class. He spoke about health care. And he also came out strong about the environment. Could we be looking at a major shift in President Obama’s second term? He spoke about putting the nation’s interests before party and reasonable compromise – although I doubt he expected […]
(Note: There is nothing green whatsoever in this speech. If you’re looking for a shred of environmentalism from Rand Paul, don’t waist your time – go watch Stephen Colbert instead.) More state of the Union coverage: The Green elements of the SOTU (a LOT!) SOTU Reactions (plus Drinking Game!) Obama’s full speach (text + video) Rubio’s GOP response (text […]
GOP State of the Union Response by Senator Marco Rubio, as Prepared for Delivery Watch the speech, then read the full text… More state of the Union coverage: The Green elements of the SOTU (a LOT!) SOTU Reactions (plus Drinking Game!) Obama’s full speach (text + video) Rand Paul’s Tea Party tap dance (text + video) Good evening. I’m […]
For the first time in memory, President Obama has appointed an environmentalist – REI’s Sally Jewell – to head the Interior Department. For as long as I can remember, whether Democrats or Republicans have been in power, the Department of the Interior has been pretty much owned by the extraction industries it’s supposed to regulate. With […]
We live on a giant molten rock hurtling through space. At this time, we do not have any control over the speed or direction of this rock, nor do we even have any significant degree of control over the rock’s inherent characteristics. We are able to live because the outer edge of the rock […]
They say that green is the new black, but that doesn’t mean you have to get all emo about it. It’s possible to be joyful and celebratory – and smart. As we officially enter the season of holiday cheer, holiday shopping and holiday excess, we can all think about the planet, too… Getting There – Thanksgiving […]
Two years isn’t a long time. But its enough time to inflict some serious damage if you’re the new party in power in the House of Representatives. The Republicans, riding the lunatic fringe Tea Party wave in the 2010 election, seized a sizable majority of the House of Representatives and started their reign of terror […]
It’s very confusing when supposed free-market capitalists fail to understand the basic functions of markets and economics. But that’s what seems to be going on with the right wing and the Chevy Volt – well, that and outright lying. As part of their campaign to fear the future and hate anything whatsoever that Democrats and […]
By David Brin Last time I made it clear whom I blame for 90% of the tragic collapse of American political discourse, and especially the War on Science. Indeed, I will finish (in a bit) by quoting one of the most eloquent calls that I have seen, for a return to confidence in our future-oriented nation. (See: […]
While there wasn’t much talk about climate change at the Democratic Convention Wednesday, there were other environmental issues that came up – particularly clean energy. And the central theme appeared to be putting the country back to work – not by dumping more tax breaks on the richest 1 percent, but by leveling the playing […]
Welcome to Bizarro-World. Poor, poor Mitt. Just when you think you’ve got it all figured out, that everything you say is red meat to your Republican base, that all your hard work courting the far right of your party has paid off, you end up on the wrong side of the fence. We all know […]
By David Brin Do you wish it were possible to transform American politics enough to calm down the “war on science” and transform it – instead – into a debate about science? That’s one goal of the good folks at Science Debate, who urge that matters of science and technology and the future be put on […]
By William deBuys (This is an excerpt from William deBuys‘ new book, A Great Aridness: Climate Change and the Future of the American Southwest.) Dire fire conditions, like the inferno of heat, turbulence, and fuel that recently turned 346 homes in Colorado Springs to ash, are now common in the West. A lethal combination of drought, insect plagues, windstorms, and […]
George Mason University announced today the formation of the Energy and Enterprise Initiative (E&EI), a nationwide public engagement campaign led by former Congressman Bob Inglis that will explore and promote conservative solutions to America’s energy and climate challenges. E&EI will operate from Mason’s Center for Climate Change Communication (4C). The initiative, according to its mission, will […]
No matter how much Big Coal tries to reassure us that they’re perfectly safe, this week it became clear that coal trains – to export US coal to China! – should not be part of our clean energy future. Three derailments happened this past week, including one that caused at least two deaths. Why now? […]