Saturday, April 25, 2015

Koch Group Sends Envoy To Rome To Convince Pope To Shut Up About Climate Change

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2015/04/24/koch-group-sends-envoy-to-rome-to-convince-pope-to-shut-up-about-climate-change/
"You read that right: A group of wealthy energy industry businessmen think they can preach the gospel of climate denialism to the pope. This should be fun to watch.
The pope caught the ire of the libertarian-leaning Heartland Institute when the Vatican announced that he would be holding meetings with United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon and other experts to discuss what policymakers and religious leaders can do to better combat the worst effects of climate change. Heartland Institute’s subsequent freak out was captured in the hurriedly released statement announcing they would be sending their own experts to the meeting to intervene."

Pope Francis To Tackle Climate Change

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

How Eco-Friendly is Your State?

http://www.alternet.org/environment/how-eco-friendly-your-state
"For the new report "2015’s Most & Least Eco-Friendly States," WalletHub compared each state across 14 key metrics to assess current environmental health."

Adidas Wants To Make Shoes And Clothing Using Plastic Garbage From The Ocean

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/04/20/3648820/adidas-marine-plastic-material/
"In an effort to bolster its commitment to sustainability, Adidas announced on Monday that it would begin developing materials out of plastic ocean waste to ultimately use in its products."

On Earth Day, Congress Targets America’s Public Lands and Waters

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/04/22/3650183/earth-day-lwcf-funding/
"Funded through revenues from offshore oil and gas development fees, the budget-neutral LWCF has attracted broad bipartisan support in the past. However, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) is among a group of members in Congress who are arguing for significant changes to its structure, including diverting and placing restrictions on funding for the program."

Banking Giant Warns Clients Of Fossil Fuel Investment Risks

Banking Giant Warns Clients Of Fossil Fuel Investment Risks

"Global banking giant HSBC has warned investors of the growing risk of their fossil fuel assets becoming useless, in a private report seen by Newsweek.

In the report, titled ‘Stranded assets: what next?’, analysts warn of the growing likelihood that fossil fuel companies may become “economically non-viable”, as people move away from carbon energy and fossil fuels are left in the ground."

Green Energy Job Growth Outpaces Losses in Coal Industry

http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/30360-green-energy-job-growth-outpaces-losses-in-coal-industry
"Far more jobs have been created in wind and solar in recent years than lost in the collapse of the coal industry, and renewable energy is poised for record growth in the United States this year."

Big Insurance Companies Are Warning The U.S. To Prepare For Climate Change

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/04/21/3649244/insurance-climate-change-disaster-relief/
"A coalition of big insurance companies, consumer groups, and environmental advocates are urging the United States to overhaul its disaster policies in the face of increasingly extreme weather due to human-caused climate change."

Nestlé Caught Stealing Water From California's National Forests

Angry Commenters Force Koch Ties Disclosure In Newsweek Op-Ed

Angry Commenters Force Koch Ties Disclosure In Newsweek Op-Ed

"You should call these shills out every time you see them. Our Glorious Corporate Media won't do these things unless we make it too uncomfortable for them."

The Three Biggest Threats to the Environment from the 114th Congress

Monday, April 20, 2015

Koch Funding of Universities Shrouded in Secrecy

Koch Funding of Universities Shrouded in Secrecy

"But that’s not all the money buys. As students at Florida State University and Clemson University discovered in 2011, grant agreements (Memorandums of Understanding, or "MOUs") between universities and the Charles Koch Foundation often give the Kochs influence over the hiring of professors and development of course curriculum. In other words, on top of reshaping scientific studies to further their bottom line, the Kochs are also trying to reshape public education to match their libertarian ideology."

Friday, April 17, 2015

Tesla Will Pay Its Factory Workers $25 An Hour Despite GOP Trying To Kill The Company

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2015/04/15/tesla-will-pay-its-factory-workers-25-an-hour-despite-gop-trying-to-kill-the-company/
"Free Market. Industry. Small government. These are all things Republicans love to say when trying to get elected, but clearly don’t mean. For instance, just look at how emerging high-tech company Tesla has struggled to survive under constant attacks by state lawmakers eager to watch it fail."

Thursday, April 16, 2015

Even For A Robot, Fukushima Is Too Much To Handle

Even For A Robot, Fukushima Is Too Much To Handle

"So TEPCO sent in a robot that was supposed to be able to function in such high levels of radiation to inspect the No. 1 reactor and help them figure out how to extract the melted fuel, but that didn't work -- probably because they're flying blind and no one is willing to admit it"

Friday, April 3, 2015

A Rebuttal to Ted Cruz’s ‘Flat Earth’ Comment

http://www.liberalamerica.org/2015/03/31/a-rebuttal-to-ted-cruzs-flat-earth-comment/
"It may be that conservatives like Cruz really know better, but choose for political reasons to pander to their highly-fundamentalist, science-averse base."

Mitch McConnell Goes Tom Cotton – Undermines Obama’s U.N. Negotiations

http://samuel-warde.com/2015/04/mitch-mcconnell-goes-tom-cotton-undermines-obamas-u-n-negotiations/
"Much like Tom Cotton’s Open Letter to Iran, signed by 46 GOP senators last month, this is yet another way for Republicans to sabotage international negotiations and to undermine President Obama."

Republicans Write Letter To U.N. Encouraging Countries To Ignore Obama. Sound Familiar?

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2015/04/01/republicans-write-letter-to-u-n-encouraging-countries-to-ignore-obama-sound-familiar/
"It’s no secret that the Republican Party loathes President Obama with a seething anger. He demolished their candidates in two separate elections. He has managed to accomplish a great deal during his terms despite their avowed goal of obstruction. But perhaps worst of all, he has become increasingly popular over the years as his agenda gets realized. Republicans look like the spoiled brat throwing a temper tantrum – and they know it.
In a new odious tactic that circumvents having to actually beat Obama politically (which they can’t do) or win over the public (which they also can’t do), Republicans have taken to the radical approach of undermining the president by going behind his back and insisting to other world leaders that the president is not important, not to be trusted, and safely ignored. According to an exclusive report by Reuters, Republican congressional leaders have sent a letter to the United Nations, asking that member countries back away from any climate deal that Obama might offer."

Mitch McConnell Undermines Obama’s Climate Plan With Other Countries

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/04/01/3641594/mcconnells-inner-tom-cotton/
"The Majority Leader’s tactic is similar to a recent and slightly more aggressive effort by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) to undermine international negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program."

Mitch McConnell Tries To Tank International Climate Change Accord

Mitch McConnell Tries To Tank International Climate Change Accord

"If there was any doubt left in your mind about what a Koch whore Mitch McConnell is, you should definitely lose those last shards with this news."

Thursday, April 2, 2015

The ALEC-Backed War on Local Democracy

The ALEC-Backed War on Local Democracy

"After the town of Denton, Texas passed a ballot initiative banning fracking in November 2014, the oil and gas industry reacted with outrage and swiftly filed suit."