Wednesday, 22 Mar 2006

As long as the environmental movement neglects the spiritual realm, says longtime activist Rabbi Michael Lerner, it's going to keep losing. It's got to go deeper, to offer a more meaningful vision for why people should reorient their lives in ways that are gentler on the earth. As he argues in his new book The Left Hand of God, the progressive community has surrendered the spiritual sphere to the right. In a conversation with David Roberts, Lerner explains how it can be taken back.

The Sound of One Species Clapping

Humans responsible for fastest rate of extinction since dinosaurs

Human beings continue to dominate "Survivor: Earth," voting other species off the island at a blistering pace. "In effect, we are currently responsible for the sixth major extinction event in the history of earth, and the greatest since the dinosaurs disappeared, 65 million years ago," sums up the new U.N. Global Biodiversity Outlook report. A global goal to significantly reduce biodiversity loss by 2010 appears to be, shall we say, not on track: the current extinction rate is 1,000 times faster than historical rates of loss. The report urged "unprecedented additional efforts" to reduce loss. Presumably this cosmically depressing news will provide fodder for lively conversation among the 6,000 representatives from more than 190 countries currently gathering in Brazil at a meeting on the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity. Outwit, outplay, outlast, fellas!


Here's one of our favorite yolks: Why does a chicken coop have two doors? Because if it had four, it would be a sedan. Ha ha ha! Ha! Of course, if it did have four doors, the poor ol' birds might be able to get out for some fresh air once in a while. That's egg-sactly what a reader hopes his free-range chickens have had the chance to do before he chows down. Unfortunately, advice maven Umbra Fisk says he may have egg on his face.

At Long Last: More of the Same

Bush administration backs industry-friendly chemical-security rules

After years of foot dragging, the Bush administration is now backing federal security regulations to protect the nation's chemical plants from terrorist attacks -- but critics say the new rules may as well have been written by the industry itself. Speaking Tuesday at a forum organized by chemical-industry spokesflacks, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff touted the administration's newfound will to advance "sensible legislation," like rules that would allow plants to establish their own security practices and would not force them to switch from dangerous chemicals to safer alternatives. He also tickled the assembled industry leaders by implying uniform federal standards should supersede state rules, even if state rules are stronger -- perhaps a reference to New Jersey, which last year became the first state to require assessments of chemical-plant security. A staffer to Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) called the Bush administration's stance an "Enron mentality: trust industry and put the public at risk."

Do You CEO What I CEO?

American firms lag on addressing climate-change risks, study finds

Looking for a smart 21st-century investment strategy? Consider how 100 of the world's largest companies are preparing to compete in a "carbon-constrained world." A new report from Ceres, a coalition of environmentalists and institutional investors, concludes that European and Asian firms operating in countries already regulating greenhouse-gas emissions are more prepared than their American counterparts for the financial risks and opportunities posed by global warming. DuPont scored the highest among U.S. companies, having taken steps to green its products and reduce its greenhouse pollution by 72 percent since 1990. BP rated the best among European firms for its greenhouse-gas reduction targets and its plans to invest $8 billion in clean-energy technologies. Unsurprisingly, ExxonMobil scored lowest of all major oil companies. Perhaps Exxon can take solace in its gargantuan piles of cash.