There’s an intriguing, somewhat dispiriting profile by David Owen in the current New Yorker ($ubscription) of an idealistic, enviro-minded inventor who wants to do good in the world, but is having a hard time overcoming the “limits of innovation.” The subject of the piece is Saul Griffith, who as recently as 2004 was a Ph.D….Continue Reading…
Liberal bloggers are befuddled, enviros are outraged, and the opposition party, as President Obama likely anticipated, is scornful. Most of the conventional analysis is trying to make sense of the Administration’s decision in the context of the Senate’s tortured energy bill negotiations. And because that doesn’t seem to make sense, people are scratching their heads….Continue Reading…
One year ago, Pepe Escobar, a keen observer of global energy politics, wrote this: Forget the mainstream media’s obsession with al-Qaeda, Osama “dead or alive” bin Laden, the Taliban — neo, light or classic — or that “war on terror,” whatever name it goes by. These are diversions compared to the high-stakes, hardcore geopolitical game…Continue Reading…
During George W. Bush’s two terms, environmentalists and archaeologists complained (with justification) that the oil & gas industry was allowed to run roughshod over Western public lands. I wrote a bunch about this for numerous magazines, from Audubon and Mother Jones to High Country News and Archaeology. The same question arose in all these stories:…Continue Reading…
There’s an interesting exchange over at The Oil Drum about the legacy of President Carter’s infamous 1977 energy speech. For my money, this commenter (who also posts essays at The Oil Drum), is spot on: It is almost impossible to quantify the damage that this one speech did to the very real need for a…Continue Reading…
I’ve become increasingly fascinated with the “collapse” meme in environmental and energy circles. It’s really become the secular equivalent of End-Times. I don’t say that to denigrate the peak oil crowd or climate change advocates, because I happen to think the energy/climate intersection is quite serious and may well lead to widespread socio-political turmoil. Still,…Continue Reading…
Germany’s leading magazine, Der Spiegel, has a fascinating interview with Russia’s President Dimitry Medvedev, which includes this exchange: SPIEGEL: In a recent article that you wrote entitled “Go, Russia,” you spoke of your country’s “humiliating” economic “backwardness.” Why hasn’t Russia managed to overcome its dependency on natural resources in the time since the end of…Continue Reading…
Whoa, The Oil Drum is going to burst when it gets hold of this exclusive at The Guardian: The world is much closer to running out of oil than official estimates admit, according to a whistleblower at the International Energy Agency who claims it has been deliberately underplaying a looming shortage for fear of triggering…Continue Reading…
The flip side of climate change coverage is energy. CJR offers a prescription for how to revitalize the beat. Broadly speaking, the authors argue: if energy news is to engage and inform the decisions of politicians, industry executives, and the public, the media must think more strategically about what they cover, how they cover it,…Continue Reading…
Keith Johnson over at Environmental Capital nails it while sorting out the conflicting goals of Obama’s energy policy. Here’s the kicker of his post that should be read in full: This whole debate just serves to highlight one big truth: The three pillars of Western energy policy””energy security, a cleaner environment, and proper markets””are devilishly…Continue Reading…