Pacific Views

Good Reads

In finding the full text of Al Gore's third speech with MoveOn, it's notable that he began by talking about the environment, and the efforts to discredit legitimate concerns about its health:

...Yet in spite of the clear evidence available all around us, there are many who still do not believe that Global Warming is a problem at all. And it’s no wonder: because they are the targets of a massive and well-organized campaign of disinformation lavishly funded by polluters who are determined to prevent any action to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming, out of a fear that their profits might be affected if they had to stop dumping so much pollution into the atmosphere.

And wealthy right-wing ideologues have joined with the most cynical and irresponsible companies in the oil, coal and mining industries to contribute large sums of money to finance pseudo-scientific front groups that specialize in sowing confusion in the public’s mind about global warming. They issue one misleading “report” after another, pretending that there is significant disagreement in the legitimate scientific community in areas where there is actually a broad-based consensus.

The techniques they use were pioneered years earlier by the tobacco industry in its long campaign to create uncertainty in the public’s mind about the health risks caused by tobacco smoke. Indeed, some of the very same scientific camp-followers who took money from the tobacco companies during that effort are now taking money from coal and oil companies in return for their willingness to say that global warming is not real.

...In preparing this series of speeches, I have noticed a troubling pattern that characterizes the Bush/Cheney Administration’s approach to almost all issues. In almost every policy area, the Administration’s consistent goal has been to eliminate any constraints on their exercise of raw power, whether by law, regulation, alliance or treaty – and in the process they have in each case caused America to be seen by the other nations of the world as showing disdain for the international community.

In each case they devise their policies with as much secrecy as possible and in close cooperation with the most powerful special interests that have a monetary stake in what happens. In each case the public interest is not only ignored but actively undermined. In each case they devote considerable attention to a clever strategy of deception that appears designed to prevent the American people from discerning what it is they are actually doing. Indeed, they often use Orwellian language to disguise their true purposes. For example, a policy that opens national forests to destructive logging of old-growth trees is labeled “The Healthy Forest Initiative.” A policy that vastly increases the amount of pollution that can be dumped into the air is called the “Clear Skies Initiative.” ...

There's much more, and it's a powerful indictment of Bush administration environmental policies that are threatening our health. This might be a good time to remind readers that even toxins present in levels near or below recommended safety guidelines can be hazardous. There are two reasons for this. The first is that many toxins (like mercury), don't clear out of the body immediately and may be prone to accumulate in the fatty tissue, the nervous system, or our endocrine regulatory system. The second is that by eating animals who may consume contaminated food or water, we may get concentrated levels of pollutants accumulated over time in their bodies.

Atrios finds an article questioning Bush's request for a new driver's license number when he was governor, and the possibility that his driving and flying records combined could provide evidence of perjury.

CalPundit asks what Novak knew, and when he knew it, spurred by a revelation that indicates the Plame story isn't going away any time soon. Also, members of the Guard unit Bush was supposed to have served with can't remember ever seeing him, in spite of having been on the lookout for an incoming Texan rumored to have good connections.

Al-Muhajabah posted a much more detailed description of her WA state caucus experience than I did.

Ruminate This posts another disturbing deportation story. Read it, and tell me how much safer you feel.

At Pandagon, Jesse points to a Republican who thinks he's discovered the moron vote, and Ezra notes that Joe Trippi has a blog, Change for America. In this post, Trippi explains his compensation contract, and makes the following key point:

...My partner Steve McMahon had handled Governor Dean's media for over 12 years. And Trippi McMahon & Squier were hired as the media firm long before I volunteered to run the campaign when not many would. This is important -- because this fact means that as a 1/3 partner in my firm -- I would have made the $165,000 in 2003 if I had gone golfing in Fiji for the entire year instead of going sleepless in Burlington. ...

At Body and Soul, Jeanne explains why she's willing to put up with waiting at the grocery store and forgoing Walmart in a piece about voting with your wallet.

Digby brings our attention to the foreign policy firepower in the Kerry camp. I'm glad it's on our side, by which I mean Democrats.

Over on Wampum, we get to see what conservatives mean when they talk about fair hiring practices. The shorter version: Hiring Democrats is bad, bad, bad.

I don't remember now who else pointed to it, because I've been sulking about presidential politics for days now, but the Nation does post an article that makes a good case recommending Edwards to progressives. I don't dislike Edwards, wouldn't mind helping his campaign, and I wouldn't even have to hold my nose to vote for him. I never really thought he had a chance, though, and the Iraq thing is a big issue for me. But out of the two that seem to have a shot right now, I guess I'd rather it be Edwards. I also get the impression that he'll be far less of a pill to swallow for fellow Dean supporters, though I hope we can continue to get enough delegates that we can get our platform listened to.

And anyway, some of the bloggers that I admire most think well of him. If they like him, he'll probably do just fine. (Though, dammit, I still want Dean.)

Orcinus looks at what Bush was doing in Alabama when he skipped out on that physical.

Skippy notes that the economy is doing so well that the Bush administration is delighted to see that Americans are spending money on food and clothing.

Max takes down the theory that self-employment is up, and has a graph to show just how wrong the Bush prognosticators have been on job growth.