Environment and Health
The Nuclear Industry’s Meltdown
The first thing to remember about nuclear power is that it’s not safe. Just ask Japan. The second thing to remember is that nuclear power isn't cheap. Connecticut draws half its juice from nuclear reactors and has the second-highest rates in the country, after Hawaii....
Getting Mother Nature’s Drift
My father was an early member of a group now known disparagingly as "ultra-lawn people." "High," as everyone called him, was dedicated, body and soul, to the Sisyphean task of trying to maintain a lawn full of lush St. Augustine grass in hot, dry Texas. He planted,...
America the Wild and Beautiful
In late August, I was lucky enough to celebrate in person the fifth anniversary of the Wild Sky Wilderness area in Washington's Cascade Mountains. This 106,577-acre region is home to rugged mountains, beautiful stretches of pine forests, miles and miles of hiking...
Scott Walker’s Sick Leadership
To paraphrase an old bumper sticker: "When the people lead, leaders will follow. Or not." Not when the "leaders" are in the pocket of corporate interests that don't like where the people are leading. Take Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, a conservative Republican who...
The Medical-Industrial Complex
Getting well Takes lots of pluck, With health guys out To make a buck. As the Obama administration struggles to keep rolling out its landmark Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act amid partisan squabbling, the shortcomings of American health care are more evident...
Patients vs Profits
Kiss of Death
Sharron Camaratta bites her lips. She never thought of this as a major problem until 2007. That's when she read that certain brands of lipsticks contain lead, a substance that can cause brain and nervous system damage. So she stopped wearing the problematic brands —...
As the World Drowns
Warming doesn't Bother me, Just turn up The old A/C. Expensive news, everyone: The worldwide cost of the melting Arctic ice may total up to $60 trillion dollars, according to a University of Cambridge study. That's nearly a year's worth of global economic output we'll...
Reproductive Rights Get Gutted Again
Despite the reproductive rights uprising inspired by Wendy Davis' heroic filibuster, lame-duck Texas Governor Rick Perry has continued his anti-choice rampage. By signing a contentious measure into law, Perry has made it much more difficult for Texan women —...
What’s Driving America’s Flagging Vital Signs?
Let's talk life expectancy. The stats first. They tell a shocking story: Americans now live shorter lives than men and women in most of the rest of the developed world. And that gap is growing. Back in 1990, shouts a new study just published in the Journal of the...
