But what does Gaia think?

Environmentalist and futurist James Lovelock thinks that humanity is too stupid to do anything to prevent climate change in the coming decades. And with folks like these running wild it's hard to come up with a rebutal.

Perhaps it is time to consider whether we are an evolutionary dead end....

So just how big is our overdraft?

Today marks the day for 2008 that we humans have exhausted the resources the planet can provide for the year and starts eating into the reserves. Ecological Debt Day comes 17 days earlier than last year. And remember this is a debt that China can't finance for us.

"I told you not to fuck me Tony"

Why, oh why does Ecuador hate freedom so much that they would dare to insist that their national sovereignty outweighs the "right" of Chevron to make ever more obscene profits?

Pro-life irony

The fervently pro-life Bush administration has materially lowered the value of a human life. I shit you not.

For those of you who still doubt that Captain Codpiece is nothing but an immature, spoiled, elitist frat boy...

...I give you his goodbye "joke" to the G8.

Surprise! Surprise!

Captain Codpiece has been lying to us again; I assume that no one is surprised by this. Remember back when he made the specious claim that bio fuels only accounted for 3% or 4% of the rise in world food prices? Well even the World Bank knew he was lying. But as an American client, the term use of the word "world" in the bank's name is just about as appropriate as the use of the same word in "world series", the bank has been keeping it secret for Georgie doesn't get upset.

Well surprise, surprise!!

Captain Codpiece and his evil minion at the Environmental "Protection" Agency, Stephen L. Johnson, have claimed executive privilege rather than release documents relating to how Mr. Johnson relied on oil company talking points his own sound judgement to overrule the recommendations of the scientists who work for him in deciding to not grant the state of California and 17 other states permission to regulation vehicular emissions of greenhouse gases. Apparently the "original intent" of the constitutional drafters to ensure that there were working checks and balances between the branches of government is not applicable to the Imperial Presidency.

Not so fast you two!

Both The Aged One and Captain Codpiece have spoken out to demand the repeal of the ban on off shore oil exploration in the US. After all Americans' God given right to cheap petrol trump the preservation of the planet. At least in the case of the Captain he's being consistent whereas TAO used to be against it!

Nonetheless the two of them shouldn't get carried away as, even if the ban were lifted tomorrow, there aren't enough drilling rigs to go around as it is and the situation won't improve for several years if at all.

If a bandwagon goes "off-shore" does it become a bandboat?

In the blink of an eye after John McCain decided that he only was against off shore drilling if the price of petrol was less than 54p a litre $4.00 a (US) gallon Captain Codpiece decided he wanted a piece of the action and said that he wants to do it too. At least we need to be sure that if this unfortunately comes to pass that we don't actually let Captain Codpiece do the drilling. Because if there was one thing that he proved in his career before politics, other than he couldn't run a business, it was that he couldn't find oil - in Texas.

1,000 reasons John McCain shouldn't be President

Number 54: carefully reversing a position that he had held for at least twenty minutes The Aged One has decided that he is only against off shore oil exploration as long as petrol stays under $4.00 a gallon. Well at least we now know the value he puts on the planet. My God Senator don't you read the papers? Haven't you heard that flip flops are bad for you?

(Is it just me or is he harder to pin down than an epileptic eel coated with Vaseline?)

The precautionary principle at work

New European Union regulations, coming into effect soon, will require manufacturers to demonstrate that a chemical is safe before it enters the market and American companies are worried about its impact. After all the European Union is a huge and affluent marketplace that they can ill afford to lose, especially if the American economy remains in decline.

Because there's no good reason why the owners should have a say

ExxonMobil wants to ban activism by shareholders because anyone who would put forward a motion on social issues bought the stock for illegitimate reasons rather than to get stinking rich by despoiling the planet.

"That's not the library, it's the loo!"

"No, it's the library."

The EPA plans to re-open some of it's shut libraries but in very tiny spaces. They probably just don't want to waste any energy.

So this is the thanks we get

The United States bends over backwards for Israel. We stand steadfastly by their side, even when they are in the wrong, and fund a significant portion of their "defence" spending. So why did the Israeli government allow an Israeli foundation to give a $1 million environment prize to Al Gore for warning us about something that isn't happening?

"Science? We don't need no stinking science!"

In case you had any doubt decisions related to the environment and climate in Captain Codpiece imperial realm are made based on political considerations not science. Surprised? Anyone?

Do you want the good news or the bad news?

The good news is that the US government has finally, in a long over due decision, decided that the polar bear is "threatened" but not "endangered".

The bad news is that the Department of the Interior has carefully worded the finding to ensure that off shore oil and gas drilling in areas of the bears' habitat is not effected, at least until the oil and gas runs out, and is taking steps to prevent the regulation of CO2 and other greenhouses gases because they "don't have the science to do that".

MUST DO BETTER!

Would anyone be surprised to learn that the United States came dead last in a survey comparing environmental consumption patterns in 14 countries? Of course given that the survey was run by that dangerous lunatic fringe group the National Geographic Society we must take the results with a pinch of salt.

You can find out more here You can even calculate your own personal index. I got a 55. How about you?

Yank's Question of the Day (slight return)

Why do polar bears hate my Hummer? After all the real threat here is "more government regulation"!

Did they die for our prawns?

Who knows how high the death toll in Burma will go? It is however clear that the destruction of mangrove forests, largely to prawn and fish farms, exacerbated the disaster. Burma is not alone in this however and other low lying countries, most especially Bangladesh, are also at risk for the same reasons.

"Christ, this tastes like rocket fuel"

"Well it's water, innit?"

Once again aggressively exercising its mandate to protect the environment and the human population the US Environmental "Protection" Agency looks set to refuse to place limits on the toxin perchlorate, a rocket fuel component, in drinking water.