I was having one of those conversations yesterday, in the warm January air, about global warming, the endless war in Iraq, the lack of health care, et cetera, et cetera. My conversational partner expressed the incredulity we’ve all come to live with: “How can these people be so blind? How can they think that all […]
Not all the numbers, but some significant ones. As we ring out the year, the price of gas averages $2.98 per gallon in the US, up 64 cents from a year ago. The price of oil is $96.93 per barrel, up from $55.95 at the end of 2006. Gold is selling for $840 an ounce, […]
“As the days grow longer, the cold grows stronger.” That’s the old Vermont weather adage that refers to the fact that every year just after winter solstice, the thermometer heads toward zero. Vermont has always had white Christmases and New Year’s Eve is usually unutterably cold. Good night to stay inside. This year, we had […]
The planet’s warming, Al Gore’s winning Oscars and Nobel prizes for his inconvenient truth film and Greenland lost 13 billion more tons of ice last summer than in any previous recorded summer, That’s an impressive quantity of ice, but who ever skated on it. The speed skating oval at Catamount Family Center – near my […]
This is why we’re doomed when it comes to global warming. The science in clear and abundant, sensible options for reducing emissions of carbon dioxide are many and available – although each will require some inconvenience and cost. Our leaders, however, who can see no interest beyond their own terms of office, will only commit […]
Cambridge Energy Research Associates is likely to release the 2008 edition of its “Gasoline and the American People” report soon. Before they do, I’d like to call attention a telling statistic from the 2007 edition: Number of cars per thousand of population: United States: – 1,148 India – 11 China – 9 It’ll be interesting […]
The Far Side of Apocalypse
This week’s news is dominated by the war debate in Washington, where the president and his generals urge the Congress to pour more lives and money into the Pit of No Progress. Elsewhere in the news, Russia’s Vladimir Putin fired his prime minister and legislature, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced his resignation after months […]