According to legend, Ernest Hemingway bet his 1920s-era colleagues he could write a complete story in just six words. Hemingway is said to have considered the resulting piece his best work: “For Sale, Baby Shoes, Never Worn.” Making no attempt to keep up with Hemingway, this article provides an overview of the dire climate-change situation in fewer than 300 words. Perhaps … [Read more...]
Papal infallibility comes to climate science
A year ago, I had a good job as a producer at a digital marketing firm. Like many people I was aware of climate change, but it was just another issue in a long list of troubling issues facing the world. Then I saw this TED talk, by Paul Gilding. With most TED talks, the audience is awed by the depth of human ingenuity and filled with positive visions of the future. … [Read more...]
The rust-bucket reactors start to fall
The US fleet of 104 deteriorating atomic reactors is starting to fall. The much-hyped "nuclear renaissance" is now definitively headed in reverse. The announcement that Wisconsin's Kewaunee will shut next year will be remembered as a critical dam break. Opened in 1974, Kewaunee has fallen victim to low gas prices, declining performance, unsolved technical problems and … [Read more...]
Collapse now — it’s all the rage (without the rage)
American Empire provides bread, circuses, and all the toys we (think we) need, stolen from other countries and future generations. I can understand why people are reluctant to abandon the empire. In exchange for inhabiting a cubicle, you get to harvest the fruits of empire while avoiding any steps toward self-reliance. You get to shower in the morning, kibitz at the water … [Read more...]
Battening down the hatches
It's been almost two weeks since the debilitating derecho descended almost stealth-like on half of America, a heat-breathing storm of epic proportions. It came on the heels of several days of equally epic heat engulfing that same wide swath of American terrain. The difference was that the storm came and went whereas the heat lingered on interminably. In the wake of both … [Read more...]