First, a little background on "fracking". Fracking is media term applied to a process known as Hydraulic Fracturing. It is a process that creates fractures in rocks to force natural gas, water, and oil reserves trapped 5,000 to 20,000 feet below the earth up to the surface. Hydraulic fractures may occur naturally, via volcanic dikes, sills, ice; or they can … Read More
Adventures in Bad Marketing Ideas
UPDATE: Grrrrrr….. it's a hoax! But a good one! Go play! Some idiot at Shell Oil's ad agency is probably looking for a job right now. The problem? Shell Oil wants to open up the Artic and tap its untapped resources. But how do we get the public behind that, in an environmentally-conscious world? The bone-headed solution? Crowd-source the marketing! … Read More
GOP Legislature in Virginia Mimics NC Legislature
Only a couple of weeks ago, I wrote about how the GOP-run North Carolina legislature dealt with the global warming problem by making it illegal to measure the rising sea levels on its coast. And now, the state legislature of Virginia has hopped on the bandwagon: We're not supposed to say "sea level rise." State Del. Chris Stolle, R-Virginia Beach, … Read More
Republicans In NC Legislature Solve Global Warming Problem
North Carolina Republicans have come up with a novel strategy to combat a future threatened by a rise in sea levels, which scientists agree will continue to accelerate thanks to global warming: Pass a law pretending it won't happen: The bill has not yet been introduced, but the language in the version being circulated would make the Division of Coastal Management the only … Read More
Thank You, BP
Remember that oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico? That was nasty, huh? Good thing that's all over and done with. Except not…. Dr. Jim Cowan, with Louisiana State University’s Department of Oceanography, spoke to Al Jazeera recently and described the regular complaints he gets from fishermen, who often warn of deformed sea life like eyeless shrimp, crabs without claws, fish whose hearts … Read More
Global Warming March
How hot was last month? It was so hot that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released some amazing charts and factoids, including: Every state in the nation experienced at least one record warm daily temperature during March. According to preliminary data, there were 15,272 warm temperature records broken (7,755 daytime records, 7,517 nighttime records). Hundreds of locations across the country broke their all-time March records. There … Read More
Does Obama Control The Price Of Gas? Graphic Answers….
Answer: No. The price of gas is contingent on a world market. But surely, if Obama increases oil production here in the United States, that will affect gas prices. I mean, aren't the two related? Answer: No
At The Pump
Can we get one thing straight? The Republican candidates are hoping to make it Obama's fault that gas prices are on the rise. It's ridiculous. Gas prices are on the rise because of the unsettled Middle East. And while Obama hasn't resolved the Middle East conflicts, nobody has in… well, centuries. The other thing the GOp candidates say is that … Read More
The Global Warming Hoax
In last night's debate, Santorum accused both Romney and Gingrich of buying into the "global warming hoax". It's very disturbing that a presidential candidate still cannot buy into clear scientific data. There is room for debate about the extent of global warming, and possibly even the root cause (although that latter point is almost universally closed as well). But to say that … Read More
Short Takes
* Britney Spears – who used to be famous – is engaged. Uh, to be married. Uh, again. She's 16 years old still. * Naughty Republicans — the mayor of Grandaven, Mississippi for 14 years — a guy named Greg Davis — re-ran for mayor in 2008 on a family values platform. You know where this is going, right? He's in … Read More
“The Well-Lubricated Weather Vane”
That's what GOP presidential contender Jim Huntsman says of Mitt Romney, who is becoming famous for brash flip-flops. I mean, it's one thing to have an evolution of your ideas over the span of several decades, but Romney just does complete 180-degree turns in months, even weeks. It's really hurting his campaign and credibility, and yet, here he is today, … Read More
Climate Change Skeptic Scientist Walks It Back Bigtime
Eugeine Robinson at WaPo tells us: Richard Muller, a respected physicist at the University of California, Berkeley, used to dismiss alarmist climate research as being “polluted by political and activist frenzy.” Frustrated at what he considered shoddy science, Muller launched his own comprehensive study to set the record straight. Instead, the record set him straight. “Global warming is real,” Muller wrote last week in The … Read More
Obama Caves Again
Seriously, what is the point? "Hope and change" has brought nothing but "Let's do whatever congressional Republicans want". The latest: Citing the financial burden in a struggling economy and after Republican protests, President Barack Obama on Friday ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to shelve a proposal to tighten smog standards. "I have continued to underscore the importance of reducing regulatory … Read More
More Evidence of Fox News Bias Emerges
About a year ago, Fox News correspondent Wendell Goler delivered a live report from Copenhagen and told viewers the truth. The United Nations' World Meteorological Organization, Goler said, had announced that that 2000-2009 was "on track to be the warmest [decade] on record." Not quite 15 minutes later, another memo was sent by Fox News Washington managing editor Bill Sammon. In the … Read More