I’ve said all along that US Energy Secretary Steven Chu is a smart guy. He’s got a Nobel Prize in Physics to prove it. (That’s why I say he’s too smart to be taken in by the ongoing boondoggle that is nuclear power.) Here he is talking about a new study from DOE on white […]
(Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid with Senator John Kerry and Director of the White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy Carol Browner during a media conference in Washington. Photo: AP) If you follow the climate and energy story, I’m not telling you something you don’t know – or couldn’t have predicted: the US […]
An important story as been hanging out in the news for the past couple months and it’s time I wrote about it. Barney Frank is on a serious campaign to get the U.S. to curb military spending. Earlier this year he convened a Sustainable Defense Task Force to find ways to do it. Read their […]
For the moment, please refer to my comment on Joe Romm’s tirade about President Obama’s “failed presidency” in light of the decision by the Senate Democratic leadership’s to punt on climate change and energy. If Obama had tried harder, Romm opines, we’d have cap-and-trade. I have enormous respect for Romm’s perspectives and his energy, but […]
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress on Wednesday that the outlook for the economy remains “unusually uncertain” as the US gauge of future economic activity dropped in June, the second decline in past 3 months, suggesting the economic recovery is weakening.
There is a muted but ongoing debate about whether a country can be democratic and fight corruption at the same time (see Success stories). A related debate concerns economic development. Thus, can the undemocratic Chinese government achieve the economic growth it aspires to without increasing accountability? Some people hold up China’s stellar performance as evidence […]
As Russia fights to protect land sown with wheat, barley and other crops from record high temperatures, seventeen regions have declared emergencies because of the severe heat and drought. Summer heat may destroy crops in Russia With temperatures likely to remain as high as 36° Celsius (96.8° degrees Fahrenheit) for days to come, Russia’s Agricultural […]
In talking about the limitless potential for renewables last week, I mentioned the letter from three key ministers from France, Germany and the UK calling for more GHG reductions in Europe than are now in law. I also mentioned the backlash from some business interests. An article in the FT today describes a letter from […]
Yesterday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Islamabad to start a two-day visit aimed at improving U.S./Pakistan relations and to solidify Pakistan’s support of U.S. efforts in Afghanistan. A major part of Secretary Clinton’s strategy is a $500 million package in economic and development aid, particularly for hospitals, hydroelectric plants, and clean drinking water […]
Indonesia is brining a case against the United States over the ban on clove cigarettes. The Americans claim the ban is meant to improve the health of young people. The Indonesians claim it is discriminatory as the ban specifically does not cover menthol cigarettes. This might have something to do with the strong tobacco lobby […]
Last month the WTO ruled against Airbus, stating that they had illegally received loans from European governments, giving them an unfair advantage over Boeing. This decision was obviously celebrated by the Americans. As with most legal cases however, this is not the end. The Europeans will appeal the case and say they will not stop […]
Bipartisan legislation that would protect journalists from libel suits filed abroad, authored by Senators Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), passed the U.S. Senate last week. S. 3518 the Securing the Protection of our Enduring and Established Constitutional Heritage Act or SPEECH Act, would prohibit a domestic court from recognizing or enforcing a foreign […]
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