The bad news keeps rolling in for the “nuclear renaissance” that has been much touted in recent years. The relentless, heedless proponents of more nuclear have tried to bull their way forward, even in the aftermath of Fukushima. Well, thankfully, and perhaps predictably, the democracies, at least, are saying no more, thank you, it’s well […]
That’s how I imagine Variety would have headlined last week’s very big news that Japan’s prime minister, Naoto Kan, is abandoning any push for new nuclear power and will make a concerted effort to promote renewables. I lauded Germany’s Chancellor, Angela Merkel, when she made essentially the same decision in March. A panel of experts […]
I wrote here recently that the Germans, in the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster, are seeking the right path: phasing out nuclear power. What is astonishing to me, and gratifying beyond my fondest wishes, is that the whole country is embracing it. That means the public, and the Chancellor and her ministers, including the environment […]
(Poster in front reads: Fukushima warns: Pull the Plug on all Nuclear Power Plants. White banner behind reads : ‘Solidarity with the people in Japan.’ AP Photo/dapd/Roberto Pfeil) ************ I wrote last Fall about how the Germans get it: that nuclear power, in a sane society, should not long endure. Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor […]
The events of the past several days in Japan are in many ways beyond the scope of the mind to comprehend. Thousands of lives were swept away in an instant. I walked around the World Trade Center on September 12, 2001 and had a very hard time then being able to grasp the enormity of […]
Germans were out in force this past weekend in Berlin to give vocal and visible protest to Chancellor Merkel’s plan to extend the life of nuclear power plants beyond their statutorily mandated closure dates. The World From Berlin – “Most Germans Don’t Want Nuclear Power” was the headline from Der Spiegel. Between 100,000 and 40,000 […]
The Petersberg Climate Dialogue took place near Bonn this week. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Mexican President Felipe Calderón brought together environment and climate ministers from 45 countries to “discuss what concrete steps should be taken” prior to the next UNFCCC “Conference of the Parties” (COP) in Cancún in December. Merkel said prior to these […]
If you know me or have been reading this blog with any regularity, you know I’m a skeptic. Not about climate change but about China. I made an analysis several years back that, in retrospect, seems mistaken. I perceived that the economic and political pressures of the liberal democracies would push and pull China toward […]
AP had this late tonight. The deal “…requires industrial countries to list their individual targets and developing countries to list the actions they will take to cut global warming pollution by specific amounts. Obama called that an ‘unprecedented breakthrough.’” AP further reported “German Chancellor Angela Merkel, a leading proponent of strong action to confront global […]
I read a really good book by Steve Schlesinger a few years back called Act of Creation. It’s about the San Francisco conference at which the United Nations was born. There was a lot of intrigue and high drama, with plenty at stake. There are stories of heroes, too, like Edward Stettinius, the unsung Secretary […]
We were away for several days (see post below), otherwise I would’ve further deluged you with information on the passage of the landmark American Clean Energy and Security Act (H.R. 2454), aka ACES, beyond what you may already have been experiencing. I should, of course, weigh in with my humble opinion. My first impulse, given […]
… what about these people? California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) from a speech yesterday at the Council on Foreign Relations , “I can tell you, mainstream scientists are convinced, mainstream CEOs are convinced, and if you look at the surveys, mainstream Americans are convinced, that global warming and climate change is real, and that we […]
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