"The Obama campaign is running a virulently pro-coal ad in Ohio coal country that attacks Mitt Romney for his past coal industry criticisms. ...On Wednesday the progressive group Credo Action called on Obama to take down the ad, launching a web petition pressuring the president’s campaign to drop the coal attacks on Romney." Evan McMorris-Santoro reports for TalkingPointsMemo August 8, 2012
"In case you had any doubt that California’s Prop 37 – which would require labeling of food containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) — poses a significant threat to the food industry, a top food lobby has now made it perfectly clear that it does. In a recent speech to the American Soybean Association (most soy grown in the U.S. is GMO), Pamela Bailey, president of the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA), said that defeating the initiative 'is the single highest priority for GMA this year.'" Michele Simon reports for Grist July 31, 2012.
"A conservative advocacy group says it’s spending almost $1 million on ads to corral support for an upcoming Senate effort to overturn Environmental Protection Agency rules that require cuts in toxic emissions from coal-fired power plants."
"Canadian politics has traditionally avoided the religion factor. By common agreement, belief has been deemed a private matter, a facet of a candidate's qualifications for election that is not relevant to his or her ability to represent voters in parliament or to function as prime minister. The media has generally been respectful of this sensitivity and has averted coverage and commentary that touches on personal religious beliefs. This may be changing."
"Natural gas company Range Resources Corp. is suing a Texas landowner and environmental consultant for $3 million in damages, and may be coming after a blogger as well for damaging its reputation.
In 2010, Texas landowner Steven Lipsky made a video (see above) that showed a garden hose shooting out fire, which he blamed on nearby natural gas extraction. He sent the video to Texas blogger Sharon Wilson, who posted it online, and he hired environmental consultant Alisa Rich to come test the water and send the results to the EPA.
Bloomberg reports that Range is accusing Lipsky and Rich of a 'conspiracy to harm its reputation' in the suit, and demanding information from Wilson to prove it:
"Chicago commuters have all the fun. Two weeks ago, there was the Heartland Institute’s Unabomber billboard likening a belief in climate change to psychopathy. This week, those stuck in traffic missed out on one larger-than-life retort to the Heartland campaign but will get to view another."
Maldives President Mohammad Nasheed recently made a despairing comment about the UNFCCC climate talks being "of no use." "News-hungry media feast on comments like these. With prospects remote for a game-changing breakthrough in Durban, we can probably look forward to more headlines like this one from Time magazine: "The Kyoto Accords -- and Hope -- Are Expiring." The unfortunate conclusion many readers will draw: The negotiations are a waste of time, and worse, a failure in Durban spells failure for climate action more generally. Both conclusions are incorrect." Kelly Rigg, Executive Director of the GCCA writes for Huffington Post November 22, 2011.
