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class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Kate Sheppard">Kate Sheppard</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Katharine Wroth">Katharine Wroth</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Russ Walker">Russ Walker</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Sara Barz">Sara Barz</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Sarah van Schagen">Sarah van Schagen</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Tom Philpott">Tom Philpott</a><br/> <br/></div></div>  <div class="left_box">Guest Contributors</div> <div style="padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 10px;"> <div class="menugroup"><a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Adam Browning">Adam Browning</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Adam Stein">Adam Stein</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Andrew Dessler">Andrew Dessler</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Andrew Sharpless">Andrew Sharpless</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Anna Fahey">Anna Fahey</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Anna Lappe">Anna Lappe</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Ben Tuxworth">Ben Tuxworth</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/biodiversivist">biodiversivist</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Brad Johnson">Brad Johnson</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Bruce Nilles">Bruce Nilles</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Charles Komanoff">Charles Komanoff</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Clark Williams-Derry">Clark Williams-Derry</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/David Murphy">David Murphy</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Eric de Place">Eric de Place</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Erik Hoffner">Erik Hoffner</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Frank O" donnell'>Frank O'Donnell</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Gar Lipow">Gar Lipow</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Glenn Hurowitz">Glenn Hurowitz</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Guest author">Guest author</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Janet Wilson">Janet Wilson</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Jason D Scorse">Jason D Scorse</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Jeff Biggers">Jeff Biggers</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Jim Goodman">Jim Goodman</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/JMG">JMG</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/John McGrath">John McGrath</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Jon Rynn">Jon Rynn</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Jonathan Hiskes">Jonathan Hiskes</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Joseph Romm">Joseph Romm</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Ken Johnson">Ken Johnson</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Ken Meter">Ken Meter</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Ken Ward">Ken Ward</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Kit Stolz">Kit Stolz</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Lester Brown">Lester Brown</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Lisa Selin Davis">Lisa Selin Davis</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Lou Bendrick">Lou Bendrick</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Maywa Montenegro">Maywa Montenegro</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Meredith Niles">Meredith Niles</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Michael Moynihan">Michael Moynihan</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Miles Grant">Miles Grant</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Nate Berg">Nate Berg</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Patrick Mazza">Patrick Mazza</a><br/> <a class="leftmenu" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Peter B. 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href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/27/161646/002?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/27/161646/002">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F161646%2F002&title=Friday%20music%20blogging%3A%20%3Cem%3EDark%20Was%20The%20Night%3C%2Fem%3E&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F161646%2F002&title=Friday%20music%20blogging%3A%20%3Cem%3EDark%20Was%20The%20Night%3C%2Fem%3E">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F161646%2F002&title=Friday%20music%20blogging%3A%20%3Cem%3EDark%20Was%20The%20Night%3C%2Fem%3E">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F161646%2F002&title=Friday%20music%20blogging%3A%20%3Cem%3EDark%20Was%20The%20Night%3C%2Fem%3E">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <div class="right-box"> <div style="background-color: #ccc;" class="samevein"> <span style="background-color: #999;" class="boxhead">Listen</span> <div class="boxitem"><strong>Play "Hey, Snow White," by The New Pornographers</strong> </div> <div class="boxitem"> <object vspace width="100%" align="bottom" classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" height="15" border hspace codebase="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125oe_/http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=7,0,0,0"> <param value="sameDomain" name="allowScriptAccess"> <param value="http://www.grist.org/podcast/xspf_player_slim.swf?song_title=Hey, Snow White&http://grist.s3.amazonaws.com/misc/musicblog/the new pornographers - hey snow white.mp3&player_title=PlayHey, Snow Whitefrom%20OThe New Pornographers" name="movie"> <param value="high" name="quality"> <param value="#E6E6E6" name="bgcolor"> <embed width="100%" allowscriptaccess="sameDomain" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125oe_/http://www.grist.org/podcast/xspf_player_slim.swf?song_title=Hey, Snow White&song_url=http://grist.s3.amazonaws.com/misc/musicblog/the new pornographers - hey snow white.mp3&player_title=PlayHey, Snow Whitefrom%20The New Pornographers" name="xspf_player" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" height="15" bgcolor="#E6E6E6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" quality="high"> </embed> </object> </div> </div></div> <p>The <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.redhot.org/">Red Hot Organization</a> is a nonprofit devoted to battling AIDS by mobilizing pop culture. Among other things, this has meant a <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.redhot.org/projects/index.html">long series of music compilations</a> featuring popular artists. </p> <p>Most pop music compilations tend to be less exciting than they sound at first blush, but Red Hot's have been unusually high quality, certainly well above the genre's average.</p> <p><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://astore.amazon.com/gristmagazine/detail/B001KVW574"><img width="210" alt="Dark Was the Night" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125im_/http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61AQVTRSYUL._SL210_.jpg" class="blog2" height="210"></a>The latest is <em><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://astore.amazon.com/gristmagazine/detail/B001KVW574">Dark Was the Night</a></em>, a compilation of cover songs and unreleased tracks from a <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.darkwasthenight.com/">who's who of indie luminaries</a>, from The National to Iron and Wine, The Decemberists, Feist, Sufjan Stevens, Arcade Fire, and on and on. It's excellent.</p> <p>Tough to pick a track, but what the hell, here's The New Pornographers covering a song by Destroyer, a band led by Canadian artist Dan Bejar, also known as a prominent member of ... The New Pornographers.</p> </div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/161646/002">Link and Discuss</a> </div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/05910/5827" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Why not medium-speed rail?</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/JMG">JMG</a> (Guest Contributor) at 4:40 PM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/public_transportation">public transportation</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/trains">trains</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/economic_stimulus">economic stimulus</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/27/05910/5827?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/27/05910/5827">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F05910%2F5827&title=Why%20not%20medium-speed%20rail%3F&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F05910%2F5827&title=Why%20not%20medium-speed%20rail%3F">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F05910%2F5827&title=Why%20not%20medium-speed%20rail%3F">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F05910%2F5827&title=Why%20not%20medium-speed%20rail%3F">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>The always-excellent Sam Smith, a keen observer of politics and society as a journalist for over 50 years, introduces an outstanding <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://prorev.com/2009/02/high-speed-high-cost-high-income-rail.html">long piece on the high-speed rail</a> money in the stimulus:</p> <blockquote>There's nothing wrong with high speed rail except that when your country is really hurting, when your rail system largely falls behind other countries' because of lack of tracks rather than lack of velocity, and when high speed rail appeals more to bankers than to folks scared of foreclosing homes, it's a strange transit program to feature in something called a stimulus bill.<br><br>One might even call it an $8 billion earmark.</blockquote></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/05910/5827">Link and Discuss</a> (5 Comments)</div> <p>   <div id="ad300x250" style="margin: 5px 0px 20px 0px; padding: 5px 0px 10px 0px; border-top: 1px solid #666; border-bottom: 1px solid #666; text-align: center; clear: both;"> <div class="adFlagCenter"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/about/advertising/">ADVERTISING POLICY</a></div>  <script language="JavaScript"> var zflag_nid="459"; var zflag_cid="30/14/9"; var zflag_sid="0"; var zflag_width="300"; var zflag_height="250"; var zflag_sz="9"; if(typeof kwd == 'undefined')kwd = ''; var zflag_kw=kwd; </script> <script language="JavaScript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125js_/http://c5.zedo.com/jsc/c5/fo.js"></script>  </div> <a name="continues" id="continues"></a>  <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/135042/753" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">A representative's best friend</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">There are four climate lobbyists for every member of Congress</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Joseph%20Romm">Joseph Romm</a> (Guest Contributor) at 4:17 PM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/lobbying">lobbying</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/climate">climate</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/26/135042/753?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/26/135042/753">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F135042%2F753&title=A%20representative%27s%20best%20friend&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F135042%2F753&title=A%20representative%27s%20best%20friend">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F135042%2F753&title=A%20representative%27s%20best%20friend">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F135042%2F753&title=A%20representative%27s%20best%20friend">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>Given that climate legislation will touch every sector of the economy -- and ultimately generate hundreds of billions of dollars from the sale of emissions allowances -- it is no surprise that everyone is bringing on hired guns.</p> <p>But Washington, D.C. is turning into the Wild West, into <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deadwood_%28TV_series%29">Deadwood</a>, as an important new Center for Public Integrity analysis (see <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.publicintegrity.org/investigations/climate_change/articles/entry/1171/">here</a>) of Senate lobbying disclosure forms makes clear:</p> <blockquote><strong>More than 770 companies and interest groups hired an estimated 2,340 lobbyists</strong> to influence federal policy on climate change in the past year, as the issue gathered momentum and came to a vote on Capitol Hill. That's an increase of more than 300 percent in the number of lobbyists on climate change in just five years, and means that Washington can now boast more than four climate lobbyists for every member of Congress. It also means that<strong> 15 percent of all Washington lobbyists spent at least some of their time on global warming in 2008</strong>.</blockquote> <p>The Center for Public Integrity has a great chart that breaks down the lobbyists by sector (see <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.publicintegrity.org/investigations/climate_change/assets/img/climate-change-chart.gif">here</a>). <p>And many of these 2,340 lobbyists are quite senior and influential:</p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/135042/753">Read More</a> </div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/14469/8559" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Joe knows</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Biden's Middle Class Task Forces asks some tough questions about green jobs</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Kate%20Sheppard">Kate Sheppard</a> at 3:13 PM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Muckraker">Muckraker</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/news">news</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/politics">politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Joe_Biden">Joe Biden</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Obama_administration">Obama administration</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/green_jobs">green jobs</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/economic_stimulus">economic stimulus</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/economy">economy</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Hilda_Solis">Hilda Solis</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Steven_Chu">Steven Chu</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Department_of_Energy">Department of Energy</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/27/14469/8559?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/27/14469/8559">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F14469%2F8559&title=Joe%20knows&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F14469%2F8559&title=Joe%20knows">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F14469%2F8559&title=Joe%20knows">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F14469%2F8559&title=Joe%20knows">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <img width="456" alt="Biden and LaHood" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125im_/http://gristmill.grist.org/images/user/6337/bidenLaHood.jpg" style="blog1" height="342"> <p>At the first meeting of the Middle Class Task Force on Friday, Vice President Joe Biden celebrated the progress on a new, green economy kicked off by the stimulus package, and called for continued efforts to create more jobs that "keep up with 21st century needs and lower energy costs." But his cabinet members also came with some tough questions about what it will take to create good, green jobs.</p> <p>"We're making unprecedented investments in economic recovery in this country, and unprecedented investments in green energy," said Biden, who emphasized that these "green jobs" benefit more than just the people who will get them. "More green jobs mean more money in the wallet of everyone in America ... It lowers your monthly bill and lowers the strain on your budget."</p> <p>He was joined at today's meeting by Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, Secretary of Agriculture Thomas Vilsack, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan, Labor Secretary-designate Hilda Solis, and director of the White House Domestic Policy Council Melody Barnes. (One notable absence was White House Energy and Climate adviser Carol Browner, who was listed as a speaker but was nowhere to be seen.)</p> <p>The summit was also, in part, aimed at showing the public that the agencies are coordinating on efforts to follow through on green jobs promises.</p> <p>One such inter-agency partnership was announced at today's summit, between the Department of Energy and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The two departments are working together to streamline and coordinate federal weatherization efforts with a high-level interagency task force, making it easier to access the $16 billion for the weatherization of low-income homes included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.</p> <p>"This partnership will help build an industry and save or create thousands of jobs," said Donovan. "In addition to saving and creating jobs, we have an opportunity to make our affordable housing stock, as well as all housing, energy efficient with the funds provided through the president's recovery plan."</p> <p>While attendees at the summit spent plenty of time talking up the virtues of the stimulus package and the idea of green jobs for the middle class, much of it focused on addressing some of the challenges to creating and sustaining those jobs, and making sure they're good jobs. Biden sought to emphasize that point. "This is not just something we're throwing money at," he said. "This is a serious, serious undertaking."</p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/14469/8559">Read More</a> </div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/132758/016" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Switching subsidies</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">The president's budget hints at a coming battle over one kind of ag subsidy</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Tom%20Laskawy">Tom Laskawy</a> (Guest Contributor) at 2:37 PM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/agriculture">agriculture</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/food">food</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/ag_subsidies">ag subsidies</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Department_of_Agriculture">Department of Agriculture</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Tom_Vilsack">Tom Vilsack</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/26/132758/016?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/26/132758/016">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F132758%2F016&title=Switching%20subsidies&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F132758%2F016&title=Switching%20subsidies">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F132758%2F016&title=Switching%20subsidies">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F132758%2F016&title=Switching%20subsidies">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>When President Barack Obama said during his recent address to Congress that "in this budget, we will... end direct payments to large agribusinesses that don't need them," he set off a <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.farmpolicy.com/?p=1009">firestorm</a> of speculation. Now that the budget outline has been published, we finally have an understanding of what he meant. Yes, as we <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://obamafoodorama.blogspot.com/2009/02/is-obama-seeding-change-in-agriculture.html">suspected</a>, he was indeed referring to a specific subsidy program called "direct payments." Jill Richardson <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.lavidalocavore.org/showDiary.do?diaryId=1060">explains</a>:</p> <blockquote>Direct payments are a result of the 1996 farm bill. Prior to that, subsidies were given based on need. If you couldn't sell your crops at a price the government thought was fair, you got a subsidy to make up the difference...<br><br>If you own land where commodities were grown (by you or someone else) in the past, you get a direct payment whether you grow anything or not. You could do nothing, potentially, and still receive a direct payment. Does that sound stupid? I think so too. <br><br>Your direct payment is calculated on your "base acres." They keep a running average of how much you grew on your land (or how much somebody grew on your land if it wasn't you), and that yield determines how much you get in government cash. During the past farm bill debate, grain prices were high and farmers were doing well, but the direct payments kept flowing in.</blockquote> <p>Meanwhile, the budget language looks like this [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.gpoaccess.gov/usbudget/fy10/pdf/fy10-newera.pdf">PDF</a>]:</p> <blockquote>As part of an effort to transition large farms from direct payments provided to owners of base acres to increased income from revenue derived from emerging markets for environmental services, the President's Budget phases out direct payments over three years to farmers with sales revenue of more than $500,000 annually... Large farmers are well positioned to replace those payments with alternate sources of income from emerging markets for environmental services, such as carbon sequestration, renewable energy production, and providing clean air, clean water, and wildlife habitat.</blockquote></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/132758/016">Read More</a> (1 Comment)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/25/15472/7834" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Media me</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Takin' it to the streets ... of NPR</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/David%20Roberts">David Roberts</a> at 1:26 PM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/shameless_self-promotion">shameless self-promotion</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/politics">politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/economic_stimulus">economic stimulus</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/radio">radio</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/25/15472/7834?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/25/15472/7834">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F25%2F15472%2F7834&title=Media%20me&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F25%2F15472%2F7834&title=Media%20me">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F25%2F15472%2F7834&title=Media%20me">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F25%2F15472%2F7834&title=Media%20me">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>I was on NPR's "News & Notes" program last week, talking about Obama's green stimulus. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=100928065">Listen if you dare.</a></p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/25/15472/7834">Link and Discuss</a> (1 Comment)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/24/234142/506" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Public education: done and done!</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/David%20Roberts">David Roberts</a> at 1:10 PM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/energy_efficiency">energy efficiency</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/video">video</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Chicago">Chicago</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/24/234142/506?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/24/234142/506">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F24%2F234142%2F506&title=Public%20education%3A%20done%20and%20done%21&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F24%2F234142%2F506&title=Public%20education%3A%20done%20and%20done%21">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F24%2F234142%2F506&title=Public%20education%3A%20done%20and%20done%21">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F24%2F234142%2F506&title=Public%20education%3A%20done%20and%20done%21">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>This was done in Chicago, allegedly one of America's greenest cities:</p> <p><object width="480" height="295"><param value="http://www.youtube.com/v/q_GVBBVBi88&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" name="movie"></param><param value="true" name="allowFullScreen"></param><param value="always" name="allowscriptaccess"></param><embed width="480" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125oe_/http://www.youtube.com/v/q_GVBBVBi88&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="295"></embed></object></p> <p>It's from Johnson Controls, which has some <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.johnsoncontrols.com/publish/us/en/products/building_efficiency/efficiencynow.html?WT.mc_id=123566">great stuff on efficiency</a> on its website.</p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/24/234142/506">Link and Discuss</a> </div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/11951/0172" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Planet f&%#ers</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Electronics industry takes own temperature at Greener Gadgets</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Lisa%20Selin%20Davis">Lisa Selin Davis</a> (Guest Contributor) at 12:13 PM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/business">business</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/greening_biz_operations">greening biz operations</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/greenish_companies">greenish companies</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/green_products">green products</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/recycling">recycling</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/e-waste">e-waste</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/27/11951/0172?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/27/11951/0172">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F11951%2F0172&title=Planet%20f%26%25%23ers&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F11951%2F0172&title=Planet%20f%26%25%23ers">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F11951%2F0172&title=Planet%20f%26%25%23ers">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F11951%2F0172&title=Planet%20f%26%25%23ers">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>Hm. Where are all the gadgets at the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.greenergadgets.com/">Greener Gadgets</a> conference, a one-day acronym festival -- EPEAT, ROHS, LCA, anyone? -- covering topics from e-waste recycling to the economic benefits of going green. I was expecting to see cell phones crafted of discarded water bottles or a smog-powered BlackBerry. At least they've got the photovoltaic backpacks.</p> <p>Mostly, the exhibitors' hall and panels include an odd amalgam of entrepreneurs and industry analysts, makers and regulators, who are far less focused on the gadget itself than on where it comes from and where it goes on its cradle-to-cradle journey through the world. "We need to focus on the system, and not just on the gadget," said Intel's Director of Environment and Energy Policy Stephen Harper.</p> <p>They're just as focused on where the gadget goes to die, an integral part of said system. As keynote speaker Saul Griffith, co-founder of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.squid-labs.com/">Squid Labs</a> and <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.makanipower.com/home.html">Makani Power</a>, told us, "There's no 'away' to throw something anymore -- we know where everything goes."</p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/11951/0172">Read More</a> </div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/105943/882" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Carrots and sticks-in-the-mud</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Michelle Obama loves her veggies, cue George Will rant about value of fast food</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Kate%20Sheppard">Kate Sheppard</a> at 11:51 AM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Muckraker">Muckraker</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/news">news</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/politics">politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/climate_grades">climate grades</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/climate">climate</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/27/105943/882?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/27/105943/882">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F105943%2F882&title=Carrots%20and%20sticks-in-the-mud&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F105943%2F882&title=Carrots%20and%20sticks-in-the-mud">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F105943%2F882&title=Carrots%20and%20sticks-in-the-mud">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F105943%2F882&title=Carrots%20and%20sticks-in-the-mud">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <img width="120" alt="Good Job!" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125im_/http://www2.grist.org/images/icons/climate-kudos_s120.jpg" style="float: left; padding-right: 5px; padding-bottom: 5px;" height="120"> <p>Climate kudos this week go to the more than 10,000 yoots descending on Washington, D.C., today for <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.powershift09.org/">Power Shift</a>, the largest national youth conference on climate change to date. These young advocates for climate action will spend the weekend strategizing on how to bring about a green energy future, then they'll pound the halls of Congress for their lobbying day on Monday. Ah, if only we could harness them as a renewable energy source ...</p> <p>A green thumb also goes to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid for <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/123015/558">kicking coal to the curb</a> at the U.S. Capitol Power Plant. The pair sent a letter to the Acting Architect of the Capitol asking that the plant be converted to 100 percent natural gas by the end of the year. The move comes as several thousand folks gear up for a protest at the plant on Monday, which organizers project will be the largest act of civil disobedience against coal in history. (Bill McKibben says <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/95235/5097">the protest is still on</a>, by the way, only it'll be more like a party.)</p> <p>Yet another green thumbs up for Michelle Obama for extolling the virtues of the locally grown carrot. The First Lady <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/24/143310/198">got in touch with her inner locavore</a>, telling reporters gathered in the White House kitchen that food grown nearby is just tastier. "My kids are more inclined to try different vegetables if they are fresh and local and delicious." If we didn't already have a ginormous crush on you, Michelle, we do now.</p> <img width="120" alt="Polar Bear Says FU" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125im_/http://www2.grist.org/images/icons/climate-finger_s120.jpg" style="float: right; padding-left: 5px; padding-bottom: 5px;" height="120"> <p>Speaking of veggies, we'd like to revoke <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/12/17570/4360">that green thumb</a> we gave to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack a few weeks ago and give him a double-middle-finger-shakey-fist for <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/22/19354/4800">not actually intending to grow food</a> in his "People's Garden," and not really having many plans at all beyond digging a hole.</p> <p>We were also going to give a finger to conservative bloviator George F. Will this week for <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/26/AR2009022602906.html">continuing to repeat</a> false information about climate science, stirring up the ongoing tempest over an <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/13/AR2009021302514.html">earlier column</a> he wrote on the topic. To be fair, it's pretty much Will's job to promote a conservative ideology, even when the facts are against it. So instead, Grist awards the finger to <em>Washington Post</em> editorial page chief Fred Hiatt, who agreed to publish Will's misleading screeds, and then, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.cjr.org/the_observatory/the_george_will_affair.php">in an interview</a> with the <em>Columbia Journalism Review</em>, defended the decision to run Will's columns despite their blatant misrepresentations of science. Fred, watch out for lawsuits from the <em>Wall Street Journal</em> and <em>Washington Times</em> opinion editors for infringing on their turf...</p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/105943/882">Link and Discuss</a> </div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/25/0516/47191" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Question for the day</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/David%20Roberts">David Roberts</a> at 11:31 AM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/economy">economy</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/25/0516/47191?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/25/0516/47191">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F25%2F0516%2F47191&title=Question%20for%20the%20day&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F25%2F0516%2F47191&title=Question%20for%20the%20day">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F25%2F0516%2F47191&title=Question%20for%20the%20day">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F25%2F0516%2F47191&title=Question%20for%20the%20day">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>Say I have 10 dog turds on my lawn. I want them all off.</p> <p>One neighborhood teen says he'll scoop up all my turds, at $10 bucks an hour. I calculate it will take him about 5 hours to do it, so roughly $5 a turd, though I can't be certain about the exact per-turd cost.</p> <p>Another teen says he'll scoop turds for $4 a piece, but he only has three or four hours to spare, so my rough estimate is that he'll get to 6-8 turds, though I can't be certain about the exact number of turds that will be removed.</p> <p>Which is the more efficient turd-removal strategy?</p> </div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/25/0516/47191">Link and Discuss</a> (13 Comments)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/9549/79465" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Lunchroom brawl!</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">For the first time in decades, a healthy school-lunch debate opens</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Tom%20Philpott">Tom Philpott</a> at 10:43 AM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/food">food</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/politics">politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Alice_Waters">Alice Waters</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/27/9549/79465?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/27/9549/79465">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F9549%2F79465&title=Lunchroom%20brawl%21&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F9549%2F79465&title=Lunchroom%20brawl%21">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F9549%2F79465&title=Lunchroom%20brawl%21">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F9549%2F79465&title=Lunchroom%20brawl%21">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>First it was the 2008 (nee 2007) Farm Bill. Then it was Obama's choices for the top USDA posts. Now it's the National School Lunch Program.</p><p>Food issues once lived at the margins of U.S. political discourse, where agribusiness and food-industry interests could control them. Now they're inching toward the center. A new era has dawned: U.S. politicians can no longer grin, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/indus.php">take the cash</a>, and do the bidding of agribiz while mouthing platitudes about farmers as the "backbone of our country" and school lunches as "critical to our nation's most important resource, our children." </p><p>The latest manifestation of the new age: a group of young, highly specialized DC-area policy writers -- the kind of folks who usually drill down into the details of, say, healthcare legislation -- have launched a fun and increasingly <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/24/AR2009022400818.html?sub=AR">famous</a> food blog called <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://internetfoodassociation.com/">The Internet Food Association</a>. In it, they share cooking experiences, obsess about a cooking show, and dabble in food-policy analysis. </p><p>As Congress gears up to reauthorize the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.frac.org/html/federal_food_programs/cnreauthor/cnrc.htm">Chid Nutrition and WIC Act</a>, which encompasses the School Lunch program, several of them have trained their analytical skills on the school-lunch debate. When I take them to task below the fold, it's very much in the spirit of, welcome aboard! </p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/9549/79465">Read More</a> (4 Comments)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/95235/5097" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Power for the people</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Anti-coal campaign gets some good news, but battle is far from won</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Bill%20McKibben">Bill McKibben</a> (Guest Contributor) at 9:54 AM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/coal">coal</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/climate">climate</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/congress">congress</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Bill_McKibben">Bill McKibben</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/27/95235/5097?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/27/95235/5097">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F95235%2F5097&title=Power%20for%20the%20people&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F95235%2F5097&title=Power%20for%20the%20people">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F95235%2F5097&title=Power%20for%20the%20people">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F95235%2F5097&title=Power%20for%20the%20people">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>We'll <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.capitolclimateaction.org/">still be protesting</a> on Monday in D.C., but it looks like the protest may be half victory party too!</p> <p> Late Thursday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://speaker.gov/newsroom/pressreleases?id=1028">sent a letter off</a> to the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.aoc.gov/">Capitol Architect</a> -- the guy in charge of buildings and grounds, as well as the century-old, mainly-coal-fired power plant that Congress owns and which is located just a few blocks from the fancy dome and the National Mall. The two leaders told him to stop shoveling coal into the power plant's boiler and finish the switch to natural gas.</p> <p>Now, it just so happens that this is the same coal plant targeted for the first mass civil disobedience in the history of the American climate movement. When <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/12/10/104251/55">Wendell Berry and I</a> sent out one of many invitations to this gathering last fall, we stressed that it was going to be a Very Serious Event; among other things, everyone was supposed to wear dress clothes. That was mostly, I think, because we wanted the home viewing audience to be reminded of something important: the crazies and loons and nutballs are not the people in the streets demanding an end to the carbon age. We're the sane ones, the conservatives seeking to preserve a planet something like the one we were born on to. The radicals are the guys who want to double the carbon content of the atmosphere and see what happens.</p> <p> But now our sobriety will be sorely tested. It didn't take much of a push to convince Congress that the time for change had come. It's an almost giddy feeling -- sort of like what most of America felt on election night when the voters actually chose to elect the smart guy. It feels like the system is working (sort of) the way it's supposed to.</p> <p>Not, of course, that Reid's and Pelosi's decision accomplishes all that much by itself. This is one small power plant. We need to start shutting down the whole vast coal archipelago that provides half the nation's electricity. That's going to be a tough, grinding job that requires a huge movement. And it's somehow going to have to stretch around the world, to China and India and everywhere else where coal is commonplace. (That's why we've got <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.350.org/">350.org</a> up and running; we're not going to solve this one city at a time).</p> <p>But hey, starting Opening Day with a no-hitter is pretty darned good. Shutting down a coal-fired power plant before you even have a protest should give us some momentum to build on. Come on down Monday for the party; it's going to be a good one.</p> <p><em><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.billmckibben.com/">Bill McKibben</a> is co-founder of 350.org, and author most recently of Deep Economy.</em></p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/95235/5097">Link and Discuss</a> (4 Comments)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/145636/154" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">See you in jail: It's not symbolism when you live in D.C.</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Why I'm joining 2,000 people for a global warming mass arrest on Monday</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Mike%20Tidwell">Mike Tidwell</a> (Guest Contributor) at 9:38 AM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/grassroots_activism">grassroots activism</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/environmental_movement">environmental movement</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Washington_DC">Washington DC</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/climate">climate</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/coal">coal</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/26/145636/154?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/26/145636/154">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F145636%2F154&title=See%20you%20in%20jail%3A%20It%27s%20not%20symbolism%20when%20you%20live%20in%20D.C.&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F145636%2F154&title=See%20you%20in%20jail%3A%20It%27s%20not%20symbolism%20when%20you%20live%20in%20D.C.">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F145636%2F154&title=See%20you%20in%20jail%3A%20It%27s%20not%20symbolism%20when%20you%20live%20in%20D.C.">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F145636%2F154&title=See%20you%20in%20jail%3A%20It%27s%20not%20symbolism%20when%20you%20live%20in%20D.C.">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>On Monday, I'm going to get arrested just two blocks from the U.S. Capitol building. I'll peacefully block the entrance to an energy plant that burns raw coal to partially power Congress. My motivation is global warming. My colleagues in civil disobedience will include the poet Wendell Berry, country western signer Kathy Mattea, and Yale University dean Gus Speth. </p> <p> Up to 2,000 other people from across the country will risk arrest, too. We'll all be demanding strong federal action to phase out coal combustion and other fossil fuels nationwide that threaten our vulnerable climate. </p> <p> This mass arrest might seem symbolic and radical to many Americans. Symbolic because it's purposefully organized amid the iconic images of Washington, D.C. And radical because, well, isn't getting locked up kind of out there? And isn't global warming kind of vague and distant?</p> <p> But I live five subway stops from the U.S. Capitol. My home is right here. There's nothing symbolic -- for me -- about trying to keep the tidal Potomac River out of my living room and off the National Mall where my son takes school trips. There's nothing symbolic about fighting for homeowner's insurance in a region where Allstate and other insurers have <em>already</em> begun to pull out due to bigger Atlantic hurricanes. And what's vague about the local plant species like deadnettles and Bluebells that now bloom four to six weeks earlier in D.C.-area gardens thanks to dramatic warming. </p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/145636/154">Read More</a> (2 Comments)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/114342/409" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">After the green economy, green security </a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">How to build resilient communities in a chaotic world</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Guest%20author">Guest author</a> (Guest Contributor) at 9:11 AM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/energy">energy</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/national_security">national security</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/severe_weather">severe weather</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/politics">politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/local_politics">local politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/food">food</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/economy">economy</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/26/114342/409?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/26/114342/409">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F114342%2F409&title=After%20the%20green%20economy%2C%20green%20security%20&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F114342%2F409&title=After%20the%20green%20economy%2C%20green%20security%20">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F114342%2F409&title=After%20the%20green%20economy%2C%20green%20security%20">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F114342%2F409&title=After%20the%20green%20economy%2C%20green%20security%20">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p> <em>This is a guest essay by Chip Ward, a former grassroots organizer/activist who has led several successful campaigns to hold polluters accountable. He described his political adventures in</em> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://astore.amazon.com/gristmagazine/detail/1859843212/102-1183543-3665742">Canaries on the Rim: Living Downwind in the West</a> <em>and</em> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://astore.amazon.com/gristmagazine/detail/1559639776/102-1183543-3665742">Hope's Horizon: Three Visions for Healing the American Land</a><em>. This post was originally published at <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.tomdispatch.com/post/175039">TomDispatch</a>, and it is republished here with Tom's kind permission.</em></p> <p>-----</p> <p> Now that we've <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.newsweek.com/id/166859">decided</a> to "green" the economy, why not green homeland security, too? I'm not talking about interrogators questioning suspects under the glow of compact fluorescent light bulbs, or cops wearing recycled Kevlar recharging their Tasers via solar panels. What I mean is: Shouldn't we finally start rethinking the very notion of homeland security on a sinking planet? </p> <p> Now that Dennis Blair, the new Director of National Intelligence, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/13/washington/13intel.html">claims</a> that global insecurity is more of a danger to us than terrorism, isn't it time to release the idea of "security" from its top-down, business-as-usual, terrorism-oriented shackles? Isn't it, in fact, time for the Obama administration to begin building security we can believe in; that is, a bottom-up movement that will start us down the road to the kind of resilient American communities that could effectively recover from the disasters -- manmade or natural (if there's still a difference) -- that will surely characterize this emerging age of financial and climate chaos? In the long run, if we don't start pursuing security that actually focuses on the foremost challenges of our moment, that emphasizes recovery rather than what passes for "defense," that builds communities rather than just more SWAT teams, we're in trouble. </p> <p> Today, "homeland security" and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), that unwieldy amalgam of 13 agencies created by the Bush administration in 2002, continue to <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.thenation.com/doc/20050411/tirman">express</a> the potent, all-encompassing fears and assumptions of our last president's Global War on Terror. Foreign enemies may indeed be plotting to attack us, but, believe it or not (and increasing numbers of people, watching their homes, money, and jobs melt away are coming to believe it), that's probably neither the worst, nor the most dangerous thing in store for us. </p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/114342/409">Read More</a> (1 Comment)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/63647/7643" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Green jobs in the City of Brotherly Love</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Joe Biden's Middle Class Task Force hosts summit on green jobs</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Kate%20Sheppard">Kate Sheppard</a> at 7:36 AM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Muckraker">Muckraker</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/news">news</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/politics">politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Obama_administration">Obama administration</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Joe_Biden">Joe Biden</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/green_jobs">green jobs</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/economy">economy</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/economic_stimulus">economic stimulus</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/27/63647/7643?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/27/63647/7643">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F63647%2F7643&title=Green%20jobs%20in%20the%20City%20of%20Brotherly%20Love&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F63647%2F7643&title=Green%20jobs%20in%20the%20City%20of%20Brotherly%20Love">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F63647%2F7643&title=Green%20jobs%20in%20the%20City%20of%20Brotherly%20Love">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F27%2F63647%2F7643&title=Green%20jobs%20in%20the%20City%20of%20Brotherly%20Love">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <img width="120" alt="Muckraker: Grist on Politics" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125im_/http://www.grist.org/images/muckraker-politicsMag-s120.jpg" style="padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 5px; float: left;" height="120"> <p>Joe Biden will host the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/1/30/83211/1700">first meeting</a> of his <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.whitehouse.gov/strongmiddleclass/">Middle Class Task Force</a> on Friday at the University of Pennsylvania, focusing on the potential for green jobs to create a pathway to economic stability.</p> <p>The panelists gathered in Philadelphia -- including greens, labor leaders, and the president's top advisors -- will explore several main questions: What are green jobs, how can they help the middle class, and what are the roles of various stakeholders in making that happen?</p> <p>Biden <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.philly.com/inquirer/opinion/40409617.html">penned an op-ed</a> in Friday's <em>Philadelphia Inquirer</em> on the meeting and the prospects for green jobs. "Investing in green jobs also means keeping up with the modern economy," he writes. "At a time when good jobs at good wages are harder and harder to come by, we must find new, innovative opportunities."</p> <p>Speaking on the panels today:</p> </div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/27/63647/7643">Read More</a> </div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/21263/4226" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Pasta goes green! </a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">A new low-carbon (if not low-carb) way to cook the Italian staple</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Tom%20Philpott">Tom Philpott</a> at 6:07 AM on 27 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/food">food</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/green_living">green living</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/recipes">recipes</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/26/21263/4226?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/26/21263/4226">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F21263%2F4226&title=Pasta%20goes%20green%21%20&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F21263%2F4226&title=Pasta%20goes%20green%21%20">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F21263%2F4226&title=Pasta%20goes%20green%21%20">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F21263%2F4226&title=Pasta%20goes%20green%21%20">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>When it comes to Italian cooking, I'm very Church of<a> Marcella Hazan</a>, orthodox sect. </p><p>What the exacting doyenne of Italian food tells me to do in her<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://astore.amazon.com/gristmagazine/detail/039458404X/102-1183543-3665742"> <em>Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking</em></a>, I do. No questions asked. In her celebrated chapter on pasta -- which I revere like Christians revere the Gospels -- Hazan had this to say about the role of water: </p> <blockquote>Pasta needs lots of water to move around in, or it becomes gummy. Four quarts of water are required for a pound of pasta. Never use less than three quarts, even for a small amount of pasta. </blockquote> <p>She also laid down the law on salt in pasta cookery. </p> <blockquote>For every pound of pasta, put in no less than 1 1/2 tablespoons of salt... Add the salt when the water comes to a boil.</blockquote><p>For about 15 years, through literally hundreds of pounds of pasta (I conservatively estimate 650 pounds), I followed these instructions. The great results I got were like worldly riches to a Calvinist -- proof that I had chosen the right path. </p><p>Now everything has changed. Reality has been overturned. In a recent <em>New York Times</em> article, the eminent food-science writer Harold McGee <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/25/dining/25curi.html">issued</a> a decree tantamount to a papal renunciation of the Immaculate Conception. </p><p>Turns out, you don't need "lots of water" for pasta -- two quarts will do. As for salt, two teaspoons is enough. (Although, in terms of salt-per-water, McGee's suggestion is only a little less than Hazan's.) Moreover -- this is the part that really sent a cold chill of apostasy down my spine -- you can put the pasta in the water before it boils; <em>while it's cold, in fact. </em></p><p>For the non-food-obsessed, there is a green angle here. </p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/21263/4226">Read More</a> (3 Comments)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/185641/361" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Van Hollen at ya</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Van Hollen to introduce cap-and-dividend bill</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Kate%20Sheppard">Kate Sheppard</a> at 9:19 PM on 26 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Muckraker">Muckraker</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/news">news</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/politics">politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Congress">Congress</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/legislation">legislation</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/cap-and-dividend">cap-and-dividend</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/carbon_pricing">carbon pricing</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/26/185641/361?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/26/185641/361">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F185641%2F361&title=Van%20Hollen%20at%20ya&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F185641%2F361&title=Van%20Hollen%20at%20ya">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F185641%2F361&title=Van%20Hollen%20at%20ya">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F185641%2F361&title=Van%20Hollen%20at%20ya">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <img width="120" alt="Muckraker: Grist on Politics" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125im_/http://www.grist.org/images/muckraker-politicsMag-s120.jpg" style="padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 5px; float: left;" height="120"> <p>Fans of carbon-pricing schemes that would return the vast majority of tax or carbon auction revenue to consumers think there's increasing political momentum for their proposals in Congress these days.</p> <p>Proponents of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.capanddividend.org/">cap-and-dividend</a> -- a carbon-pricing plan that would auction off pollution credits to industries and send roughly 90 percent of the resulting revenue to the public in the form of rebates -- have been bolstered in the past days both by the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/91856/9757">president's budget plan</a> and a proposal from Rep. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://vanhollen.house.gov/HoR/MD08/Home">Chris Van Hollen</a> (D-Md.) in the House.</p> <p>Van Hollen's "Cap and Dividend Act of 2009," due out next week, would put a cap on carbon emissions in 2012, and aim to reduce emissions at least 80 percent by 2050. According to a letter he addressed to colleagues in the House on Wednesday, all pollution permits under the cap would be auctioned, and they would be available to "upstream" industries -- that is, the first sellers of fossil fuels, like oil refineries and coal mines. He says that at least 90 percent of the total auction proceeds would be returned in the form of a flat rebate to "every American with a Social Security number."</p> <p>"At its core, any successful climate change bill must deliver scientifically based emissions reductions while enjoying broad popular support from the American people -- and it must continue to do both for at least forty years," said Van Hollen in his letter. "In that regard, I believe there is one approach that offers the best chance to get the job done: Cap and Dividend."</p> <p>Peter Barnes, arguably the country's <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.capanddividend.org/">leading proponent</a> of cap-and-dividend and a <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/cgi-bin/search.pl?query=%22Peter+Barnes%22">familiar name</a> on Gristmill, called Van Hollen's bill "beautiful."</p><p>"That's how I think it should be done," Barnes, who was in D.C. this week pitching the idea to other legislators, told Grist. "We're going to rally behind the Van Hollen bill and push it as hard as we can."</p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/185641/361">Read More</a> (1 Comment)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/141458/894" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Checkout Line: Organic chemistry</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Why isn't 'organic pesticide' an oxymoron? </h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Lou%20Bendrick">Lou Bendrick</a> (Guest Contributor) at 4:55 PM on 26 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Checkout_Line">Checkout Line</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/advice">advice</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/food">food</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/organic_food">organic food</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/shopping">shopping</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/local_food">local food</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/Big_Ag">Big Ag</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/toxics">toxics</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/26/141458/894?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/26/141458/894">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F141458%2F894&title=Checkout%20Line%3A%20Organic%20chemistry&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F141458%2F894&title=Checkout%20Line%3A%20Organic%20chemistry">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F141458%2F894&title=Checkout%20Line%3A%20Organic%20chemistry">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F141458%2F894&title=Checkout%20Line%3A%20Organic%20chemistry">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p><em>In <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://grist.org/cgi-bin/search.pl?query=&gristtitle=Checkout+Line&gristauthor=&dr_o=12&dr_s_mon=8&dr_s_day=14&dr_s_year=2008&dr_e_mon=8&dr_e_day=14&dr_e_year=2008&gristcat=Search+All&sort=gristdate&reverse=on&submit=Search">Checkout Line</a>, Lou Bendrick cooks up answers to reader questions about how to green their food choices and other diet-related quandaries. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/mailto:groceries@grist.org">Lettuce know</a> </em><em>what food worries keep you up at night.</em></p> <div style="width: 540px; clear: both;"> <img width="540" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125im_/http://www2.grist.org/images/home/2009/02/27/pesticide-warning_h540.jpg" height="357" alt="Pesticide warning" border="0"/> <div class="photo-caption" style="padding-left: 5px;"></div> </div> <p><strong>Ms. Bendrick,</strong></p> <p><strong>I have a question about pesticides and organic food. I buy organic both to encourage the right kind of farming and to avoid eating nasty chemicals. I was listening to the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.metrofarm.com/assets/podcasts/2008-08-10_599dorganic.mp3">Food Chain Radio podcast</a> (MP3) and suffice it to say that this show's guest expert questioned whether the pesticides organic growers are allowed to use (!) are any better for us than the ones conventional farmers use. He said that Rotenone and others are just as toxic and noxious, and that in the supermarket where you can't ask the farmer, it's probably just as well to buy conventional and save the buck.</strong></p> <p><strong>Where do you stand on this slippery slope?</strong></p> <p><strong>With best wishes,<br/>More Toxic Than I'd Like to Be</strong></p> <p>Dear Mr. (or Ms.) More Toxic,</p> <p>Please, call me Lou. Thanks for the great question. I can see by your use of punctuation (!) that you might be shocked that organic produce isn't pesticide-free. Pesticides are allowed under <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/!ut/p/_s.7_0_A/7_0_1OB?navid=ORGANIC_CERTIFICATIO&parentnav=AGRICULTURE&navtype=RT">USDA organic standards</a>, given that they are from organic (i.e., naturally occurring) substances rather than synthetic (lab-made) ones.</p> <p>Is industrial organic produce -- the stuff from large-scale operations, which some critics say is to small-scale organic as Twinkies is to homemade cupcakes -- just as bad as the conventional stuff when it comes to pesticides? Well, that is a slippery question indeed.</p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/141458/894">Read More</a> (7 Comments)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/9464/79373" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Dear PowerShift attendees:</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Send us your responses to our questionnaire on climate action</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Ken%20Ward">Ken Ward</a> (Guest Contributor) at 3:56 PM on 26 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/environmental_movment">environmental movment</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/grassroots_activism">grassroots activism</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/politics">politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/energy">energy</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/climate">climate</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/26/9464/79373?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/26/9464/79373">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F9464%2F79373&title=Dear%20PowerShift%20attendees%3A&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F9464%2F79373&title=Dear%20PowerShift%20attendees%3A">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F9464%2F79373&title=Dear%20PowerShift%20attendees%3A">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F9464%2F79373&title=Dear%20PowerShift%20attendees%3A">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <div style="float:right; width:250px;"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/images/admin/workshopcoupon.jpg"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125im_/http://gristmill.grist.org/images/admin/workshopcoupon_240.jpg" height="304" width="240" border="0" alt="response coupon"></a><div class="photo-caption">A questionnaire for Powershifters -- click for larger version</div></div><p> It is a strange but not uncommon experience for youth to hear veterans of the 1960s disparage protest. Youthful protest, it is implied, can never hope to achieve the cultural and political breakthroughs of the civil rights and anti-Vietnam era; it's nothing more than nostalgic play-acting by those too young to know what the '60s were all about and too naive to understand a changed and nuanced world, where simplistic slogans and confrontational tactics are at best a waste of time and probably do more harm than good. </p><p>This is hogwash. </p> <p>What power environmentalists do have was wrested from a complacent society by determined, principled confrontation, and this is spent rather than increased by polite advocacy. It is also worth noting that the peak of environmental protest was the surge of Greenpeace USA led actions in the early 1980s. </p><p> The strength of public commitment to environmental action and climate crisis intervention (as opposed to the breadth of public opinion, a fickle product of ADD mass-media news cycles) is directly proportional to our conviction and moral clarity -- for which protest, or the lack thereof, serves as a convenient civic barometer. Without thinking about it, most Americans gauge how bad things are by whether there are people in the streets (or Zodiacs). </p></div> <div id="readmore"><a class="light" href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/9464/79373">Read More</a> (2 Comments)</div> <p> <h2 class="dgHeadline"><a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/26/145646/341" style="text-decoration: none; color: #000;">Obama's budget, III</a></h2> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">What percentage of auction revenue is rebated?</h3> <h3 class="dgSubtitle">Posted by <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/user/David%20Roberts">David Roberts</a> at 2:56 PM on 26 Feb 2009</h3> <div class="tagsTop"><strong>Read more about:</strong> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/climate">climate</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/politics">politics</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/economy">economy</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/carbon_trading">carbon trading</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.grist.org/topic/environmental_justice">environmental justice</a></div> <div class="tools"><strong>Tools:</strong> <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/print/2009/2/26/145646/341?show_comments=no">print</a> | <a href="/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/email/2009/2/26/145646/341">email</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F145646%2F341&title=Obama%27s%20budget%2C%20III&topic=environment">+ digg</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://del.icio.us/post?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F145646%2F341&title=Obama%27s%20budget%2C%20III">+ del.icio.us</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F145646%2F341&title=Obama%27s%20budget%2C%20III">+ reddit</a> | <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgristmill.grist.org%2Fstory%2F2009%2F2%2F26%2F145646%2F341&title=Obama%27s%20budget%2C%20III">+ stumbleupon</a></div> <div class="blogintro"> <p>In my <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/22/235714/974">original post about Obama's budget</a>, I looked at the issue of how much of the auction revenue ought to be rebated directly to taxpayers and how much should be devoted to investments in green infrastructure, etc. </p> <p>The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.cbpp.org/2-19-09climate2.htm">found</a> that with 55 percent of auction revenue, those in the bottom 60 percent of incomes in the U.S. could have their increased energy costs entirely offset. That's pretty much all of lower-income and middle-class taxpayers.</p> <p>So what is Obama proposing to do with the revenue?</p> <p>The short answer is: $15 billion a year goes to green investments and the rest goes to "Making Work Pay," i.e., offsetting payroll taxes. (See p. 3 of the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/asset.aspx?AssetId=764">Summary Tables</a> [PDF].) That stays true over the next ten years, which means that the percentage of revenue rebated rises steadily. </p> <p>So, in the first year, out of $78.7b in revenue, $63.7b is rebated -- roughly 81 percent. In 2019, out of $83b in projected revenue, $68b is rebated -- about 82%. But it's important to note that the $15b in investments is held steady, regardless of total revenue. If revenue rises faster and farther than these projections -- and these are <em>extremely</em> conservative projections -- then the percentage rebated could get up to 85, 90, 95 percent. </p> <p>That is, in my humble opinion, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090228062125/http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2009/2/22/235714/974">bad policy</a>. 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