Monthly Archives: July 2011

No Fence-Sitting Here: Republicans Are Anti-Environment, and That's a Major Difference

So Paul Krugman had a good piece recently about the issue of media fence-sitting, decrying those b.s. ‘journalists’ who repeatedly say, “Washington is broken! Both parties are to blame!” He then details just exactly how wrong the Republican and Tea … Continue reading

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The Bears of Custer County & the Smell of Drought

Here’s an url to an article about bears in this morning’s NY Times: I can vouch for the accuracy of some its statements, especially about bear behavior in drought. Here in the southern mountains of Colorado we’re suffering a drought, … Continue reading

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On Reading Tim Flannery's "Here on Earth" on an iPad

So I’m now reading Tim Flannery’s Here on Earth on my iPad, which is a curious and thrilling experience. Early on he’s discussing the works of Richard Dawkins and memes, of the spread of ideas, of how much faster cultural … Continue reading

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"Tattoos Get You Sex" and Other Observations from the Western Frontier

So you have to be blind not to notice the popularity of tattoos in the West, and it must say something about this moment in time, this world in which we’re living. Basically it seems everyone in Colorado/Wyoming (the two … Continue reading

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On Tim Flannery's "Here on Earth: A Natural History of the Planet," and LinkedIn Is Now Officially the Most Annoying Social Networking Site

So Tim Flannery, author of one of the best books about global warming, The Weather Makers (2006), has a new book out, which sounds like its subtext is environmental disaster—Here on Earth: A Natural History of the Planet. While the … Continue reading

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On Mark Hertsgaard’s “Hot: Living Through the Next Fifty Years on Earth,” and the Forest Fire in My Backyard (Almost)

So I’m continuing in my quest to read every book ever written about Global Warming. (Well, not all of them, but I have read quite a few.) I’m also starting to think only wimps use the term ‘Climate Change,’ which … Continue reading

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An Interview With William Gay, a Great Southern Gothic Mystery

A friend of mine recently turned me on to this link (Thanks, Jess)—an interview with the great Southern Gothic writer William Gay that appears in the Oxford American: http://www.oxfordamerican.org/articles/2011/jun/15/solost-home-william-gay/ I’ve been a fan of Gay’s for years, and some of … Continue reading

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Curb Your Enthusiasm Is Back, and I Can't

So I’m sure if I were some kind of know-everything, Entertainment-Tonight wonk I would have already known this, but Curb Your Enthusiasm is back this Sunday! It’s hits and misses, but when it hits, it hits. The whole season with … Continue reading

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On James Hansen's "Storms of My Grandchildren" & The Folly of Creepers

So I just saw that the temperature reached 118 degrees in Phoenix yesterday (How can they stand it?) and is forecast to be at record levels all across the country, including where I am, in the Southwest, which by some … Continue reading

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Review of Stefan Merrill Block's "The Storm at the Door"

My review of Stefan Merrill Block’s novel The Storm at the Door appeared in the Dallas Morning News last Sunday, and can be found at this url: http://www.dallasnews.com/entertainment/books/20110624-book-review-the-storm-at-the-door-by-stefan-merrill-block.ece It’s an earnest novel about his grandparents’ lives, and at times I … Continue reading

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