Red Herrings and Sock Puppets
It must be tough being a poor oppressed Puppet working for Art Pope. Not only do you have to make "reports" day-in and day-out, you also have to make up mortal adversaries. That's exactly what's happened in the latest barrage of pseudo-news from Daren Bakst of the John Locke Foundation.
“For many environmental advocates, Earth Day is a special occasion to scare more people into believing air quality is getting worse,” said JLF legal and regulatory policy analyst Daren Bakst, the report’s author. “Unfortunately, the scare tactics have worked. Too many people think that the air in North Carolina is getting dirtier and harder to breathe. The fact is North Carolina’s air is cleaner than ever and only getting better.”
I've scoured the Tubes for evidence of "many environmental advocates" in North Carolina using Earth Day to "scare people into believing air quality is getting worse." I even spent a bunch of time at this site which always has a good overview of green happenings. And guess what? I can't find anyone trying to scare anybody about anything.
For the record, I don't know if North Carolina's air is getting cleaner or not, but I can tell you one thing for darn sure:
It's definitely not cleaner than ever.
Cleaner than ever?
There's a theory for this kind of historical relativism in oceanography called shifting baselines. Just because air may be cleaner in some areas today than it was five years ago means little in comparison to the clean, natural state of air several hundred years ago.
3 rd Rock from the Pope Sun?
Earth Day is a special occasion to scare more people into believing air quality is getting worse,” said JLF legal and regulatory policy analyst Daren Bakst, the report’s author. “Unfortunately, the scare tactics have worked* Daren, Early mythsayer for Art
He's right! He is just confuse about Earth Day and when it occurred. It was Monday in Iraq when we lost 9 Americans and wounded 20. Now that is scary with his neo-con Earth day Empire Halliburton building thinking. I wonder if he knows how many miles per gallon a fully loaded Hummer gets in the desert under combat fire?
If you tell a lie over and over
does it become the truth?
No matter that patriotism is too often the refuge of scoundrels. Dissent, rebellion, and all-around hell-raising remain the true duty of patriots.
Progressive Discussions
Dying Leaves All Around
I spent the day doing research into why all the leaves on my gingko tree, my japanese maple and some elms were just fried to a crisp. It seems that the little nip from Jack Frost we had , when mixed with elevated CO2 levels reduces the ability of trees to withstand cold. Prestochango-dead leaves in the Spring when all should be busting at the seams. We don't even have to wait ten years to see the effects of air pollution and global warming. Just walk outside and look at some really shriveled leaves from just that little bit of cold .
And does anyone else find the extreme irony in Art Pope's name for he is neither artful nor papal in spiritual stature-he's just a mean spirited old goon with a lot of dough. But I guess that is an apt name for him in this Bizarrro Universe.
Where the air is now cleaner meme comes from...
There are many measures of air quality. And as our means of production, etc. shift, the pollution in our air changes. For instance, with improvements in emissions controls designed specifically for ozone, ozone levels are generally down across the country. Since ozone was a big pollutant 20 years ago, the foundation will claim that air quality is better; however, there could be 20 or 30 other pollutants that are at a higher level than they were 20 years ago. Since it takes time to determine what pollutants cause what long term effects, it is impossible to say for certain at this point if we are better off or not in terms of "air quality". For instance, as we all know carbon dioxide levels are much higher now; while that does not cause the same concern as ozone, it does other damage like global warming.
Also, one reason that our air may be slightly better now than it was is that thanks to the freemarketers, our industrial manufacturing base has been relocated to countries with no pollution controls.
Thanks for that analysis.
Come by more often!!!
One man with courage makes a majority.
- Andrew Jackson
Hey Targator, I believe I met your Aunt online
We are hoping that she will visit here more often and post diaries and comments! she and I are trying to set up a meeting.
No matter that patriotism is too often the refuge of scoundrels. Dissent, rebellion, and all-around hell-raising remain the true duty of patriots.
Progressive Discussions