Life is changing exponentially. Does anything change except who gets ahead and who gets behind? Continue reading
Blog Posts and Writings Tagged: environment
Blog 126. The uncommon commons
We have commonly-held assumptions regarding common people, the common good, and especially the common ground. These ideas are drifting away. Even common-law marriage has morphed into being “hooked up.” Continue reading
Blog 122. What’s driving us crazy?
I hear folks complain that the overload of information and change is driving us crazy. A phone call used to be a rare interruption. Now, even robo calls “reach out and touch someone.” Continue reading
Blog 119. Arctic ice, blue lies, and echo chambers
Why does climate denial flourish despite the evident facts of melting polar ice and the increasing blanket of greenhouse gases? Logic isn’t the answer.
Blog 110. Climate in one picture
The present temperature is not the key index to predicting the future climate any more than the current temperature in a cold room tells how warm it will be if you add insulation to the walls. It’s knowing the insulation that’s important for prediction. Below is a drawing that explains earth’s energy budget—as affected by the insulation of the atmosphere— in one glance. Continue reading
Blog 109. Is clean coal clean?
The concept of “clean coal” has been newsworthy for a decade or more. In 2009, Senators John Kerry (D-MS) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) co-authored an op-ed in the New York Times, promoting renewable energy, nuclear energy, and “clean coal.” Presidential candidate Trump touted “clean coal” during a debate. Can coal, the dirtiest of fossil fuels, ever be made clean? That’s seems as likely as senators of opposing parties learning to talk to each other again. Continue reading
Blog 108. Can a system have integrity?
The notion of integrity—being what you say you are—remained unwritten but implicit in a recent magazine column* entitled “Issue of the week: Too wealthy to pay taxes?” Continue reading
Blog 107. Hanging the laundry
It occurred to me as I lifted the load from the washer, up into the dryer. Why don’t we hang out the laundry any more? Continue reading