tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-123590582009-03-01T06:58:51.620-05:00BAD AIR. BAD WATER. BAD POLITICS. BAD BUSINESS. BAD ETHICS. BAD ATTITUDE.leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-77148331362972260992007-09-05T14:24:00.000-04:002007-09-05T14:25:01.980-04:00

Oh, this tired old thing? Hmph.

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1159306007746853742006-09-26T17:17:00.000-04:002006-09-26T17:28:05.236-04:00

Amidst news of more circumstantial evidence of the continued existence of the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker is conclusive proof of the continued idiocy of humanity as residents of a coastal North Carolina town rush to destroy the habitat of the red cockaded woodpecker in a frantic effort to avoid becoming designated as home to the endangered species. It makes a certain sense, "If you raze it, they

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1152554246486577742006-07-10T13:32:00.000-04:002006-07-10T13:57:26.516-04:00

Image from CDC website on emerging infectious diseaseAlso via boingboing today, news regarding a fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) that is killing frogs and other amphibians around the world. The fungus causes severe skin infections in every amphibian species it attacks, and the high mortality rate may lead to extinction for many species. Of course, the more mundane threats to amphibian

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1152552717604351692006-07-10T13:27:00.000-04:002006-07-10T13:31:57.616-04:00

Reported on boingboing today:In Wisconsin, the mayflies are so thick that they are actually showing up on local weather radar as a rainstorm.

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1146185957261490072006-04-27T20:37:00.000-04:002006-04-27T20:59:17.273-04:00

Hey everybody, Tennessee Senator Bill Frist (R, natch) is offering you a "bold package that will give consumers some relief"! (His words, not mine.) Move over Bob Dole, there's a new man in town. Hot on the heels of Bush's equally brilliant announcement that he would like to waive Clean Air provisions with regard to gasoline fuel additives in an effort to reduce soaring gas prices, Senate

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1145456474403290062006-04-19T10:09:00.000-04:002006-04-19T10:21:14.413-04:00

It was revealed this past Monday (4/17) that the United States produced more greenhouse gases in 2004 than at any time in history. How much of an increase is that? +110 million tons of CO2-- now that's impressive! But not as impressive as the total output of 6,300 million tons. What percentage of the world's total do we emit? Oh, about a quarter. 25%-- burn, baby, burn! Disco inferno!

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1143852600702891872006-03-31T19:27:00.000-05:002006-03-31T19:52:56.676-05:00

Add this to the steadily accumulating pile of concrete evidence that the Bush Administration consists almost entirely of scholars of Doublespeak.Outgoing Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton has proudly announced -- without a hint of irony -- that there has been a massive gain in US wetlands between 1998 and 2004. At first glance, that's excellent news. Unfortunately, most will stop at the first

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1136511305904086732006-01-05T20:28:00.000-05:002006-03-31T19:54:24.056-05:00

"We expect the sale of We to be on the same level of demand as a priceless art object," he said.Read more about the two-headed, one-stomached albino rat snake here.

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1136303890347620372006-01-03T10:52:00.000-05:002006-01-03T10:58:10.366-05:00

"It seems that liberals and godless tax-raisers are trying to make me look bad by using such things as 'facts' and 'scientific data.'"Will Ferrell does a hilarious send-up of Bush on global warming at TransBuddha.com. Watch it here."We just need to get nature to cooperate with us. We don't need to listen to nature, nature needs to listen to us."

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1135268094199150392005-12-22T11:11:00.000-05:002006-03-31T20:00:04.463-05:00

Clarence Olberding, 57, wasn't just telling a fisherman's fib when he called over another angler to look at the two-mouthed trout. It weighed in at about a pound.The second mouth didn't appear to be functional, Olberding said. He has plans for the fish, which don't included mounting."I'm going to smoke it up and eat it," he said.The above quote was from an AP report -- unfortunately, the original

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1131664186700486332005-11-10T17:35:00.000-05:002005-11-10T18:09:46.716-05:00

Common sense-- and perhaps true "conservatives"-- won out in Congress today (following section excerpted from Yahoo! News report):Conservation-minded lawmakers cheered a US House of Representatives decision to scrap a plan allowing oil drilling in Alaska's environmentally-sensitive Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).Negotiators wrangling over a House budget bill late Wednesday removed a

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1131662027041535182005-11-10T17:29:00.000-05:002005-11-10T17:33:47.083-05:00

Fresh from Japan and just in time for winter, it's another way to keep global warming close to your chest. For the woman who wants to stay both warm and environmentally conscious this winter -- and isn't bothered by extra bulk under her shirt -- a lingerie maker unveiled a thick bra that can be heated in a microwave.Triumph International modeled the bra in Japan which has launched a "Warm Biz"

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1131573496161660962005-11-09T16:53:00.000-05:002005-11-09T16:58:16.180-05:00

From today's AP wire:The Army Corps of Engineers and the state of Louisiana lack an overall plan for restoring coastal wetlands, a National Academy of Sciences panel said Wednesday."Federal, state and local officials, with the public's involvement, need to take a broader look," said Robert Dean, a University of Florida engineering professor in Gainesville who chaired a panel on the restoration

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1130433052153092562005-10-27T13:04:00.000-04:002005-10-27T13:10:52.180-04:00

Really not holding my breath now that this internal Wal-Mart memo has been leaked. Wal-Mart, champions of externalizing costs: we bring you low prices for cheap goods on the backs of a global workforce desperate to keep its collective head above water. I realize that arguments from analogy are generally quite weak, but to publicly announce that your company is focusing efforts on treating

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1130277009971101872005-10-25T17:38:00.000-04:002005-10-25T17:50:09.986-04:00

While deflecting the responsibility for paying its employees a living wage to Congress (where WM will probably spend lots of cash lobbying against it), Wal-Mart has announced its intent to be a "good steward for the environment." This sounds a lot like Bush's phrasing during the Presidential debates last fall. It also smacks of conservative Christian Bible talk (see example). Stewards manage

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1129910991856638632005-10-21T12:08:00.000-04:002005-10-21T12:09:51.863-04:00

Geez, what happened to my blog? Guess it's about time to do a little soapboxing.

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1125603674527176032005-09-01T14:52:00.000-04:002005-09-01T15:41:14.540-04:00

No, not the FFC film starring Gene Hackman. The Katrina Conversation.Yesterday I wondered what would happen to the Katrina Conversation. Here's where it's going today:Sidney Blumenthal points a finger at the Bush Administration in the German press (Spiegel online) and at Salon.com for cutting funding to New Orleans flood control funding and encouraging development of wetlands. According to

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1125524659186118982005-08-31T16:38:00.000-04:002005-08-31T17:44:19.203-04:00

I'm taking an environmental sociology course this semester, and it seems that it will be quite interesting. I'm set to learn a lot from the instructor and the subject matter as well as from my classmates, who so far seem to be an incredibly well-informed, well-traveled, and reasonable bunch of folks.Today's class was something of a free-for-all, and discussion was wide-ranging, but there was one

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1125004207934846492005-08-25T15:53:00.000-04:002005-08-25T17:10:07.953-04:00

Just another example of the intersection of class (and inevitably race & gender) issues with environmental issues:A recent study by researchers at the University of California-Davis reported that U.S. shoppers who consistently choose healthy foods spend nearly 20 percent more on groceries. The study also said the higher price of these healthier choices can consume 35 to 40 percent of a low-income

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1122995527529542852005-08-02T11:05:00.000-04:002005-08-02T11:12:07.536-04:00

Associate Professor Mark DeKay and Lecturer Ted Shelton of the University of Tennessee College of Architecture and Design have been chosen by The American Institute of Architects as one of three grant-winning teams for ecological literacy in architecture education. Read More

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1122410048421724282005-07-26T15:47:00.000-04:002005-07-26T16:35:23.966-04:00

Scooping the poop in the Tuesday raw sewage roundup:Two employees at the Mt. Pleasant (Middle Tennessee) wastewater plant have been indicted for falsifying records regarding wastewater testing. They had been following "incorrect procedure" regarding reporting the amount of fecal coliform in the water, and were not in compliance with environmental standards. This isn't the first time they've

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1122398672584903312005-07-26T12:52:00.000-04:002005-07-26T13:24:32.593-04:00

It's damn hot outside -- heat index is hovering around 100 degrees Fahrenheit, humidity is near 60% (actually kind of low for East TN). And no doubt someone somewhere has attributed the current heatwave to climate change. It's unseasonably hot, so isn't that evidence of global warming? Not necessarily. Nor would a cold day in July signal that global warming is a myth. Claims like these make a

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1122065807496151002005-07-22T16:32:00.000-04:002005-07-22T17:10:37.396-04:00

Southern Alliance for Clean Energy has information on how to give Sen. Lamar Alexander comments r.e. his reluctance to embrace the windmill: linkLearn about the National Energy Bill at SACE: linkThere's a Global Warming / Climate Change Bill in the works in North Carolina: linkAn Act to establish the Legislative commission on global climate change and to direct the commission to study issues

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1121882454460258302005-07-20T13:50:00.000-04:002005-07-20T14:00:54.466-04:00

The venerable South Knox Bubba blog, forums, and Rocky Top Brigade hosting have been pulled suddenly and without advance warning by the man himself, SKB, for reasons still unknown. This was the hub of a virtual community unlike others, considering its local focus as well as the level of interaction among members in both virtual and "meat" space. While it does little to no good to speculate

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12359058.post-1121356055316907592005-07-14T11:38:00.000-04:002005-07-14T11:47:35.320-04:00

Add this to my rapidly growing list of leaf-blower related frustrations:There is a guy, outside my apartment, right now, in the rain, wielding a freaking gas-powered leaf blower (I guess the electric kind don't work well in the rain). He's blowing soggy grass clippings against the curb. It's not enough that they're already caught up in the little river of rainwater that's heading downhill

leighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07656120982456976384noreply@blogger.com1