The debate over climate change and energy independence is often divisive and polarizing.  First we must confront the apathetic and the nay-sayers, which has not been easy in the USA with the purported "Climate-gate" bruhaha and our concern over 10% unemployment.  The Obama Administration has not been very helpful with its "green jobs" rhetoric--I think every week we have heard of the push for "home weatherization" schemes, which leaves me with the image of former Avon salespeople tapping our walls to make sure they are properly insulated (is this really the best Obama & Co. can do?).  Then you've got the debate over who should lead . . . corporations, or government?  Well, what about non-profits?  One organization with a stellar "green" record is the American Jewish Committee (AJC), a 103-year-old advocacy group with 32 chapters in the United States. (more...)

Last week's posting on raising funds through LinkedIn really hit a nerve.  I got an overwhelming response, most of them in the context of "Wow, I had no idea," and these were from professionals of impressive backgrounds.  As I have stated, I think the flock of "I need $3 mil" postings on LinkedIn is because funds are limited while ideas are aplenty.

 

The WSJ has a great article on the Department of Energy's (DOE) role as a business incubator and investor.  (more...)

Just about every news wire is talking about--SURPRISE--that countless pickup trucks were traded in for . . . pickup trucks.  In fact, about 15% of the new cars that owners drove off the lots thanks to this program got less that 20 mpg.  You may not think this was an egregious amount, but when you consider that buying a new car is the equivalent of putting FIVE years worth of carbon in the air, the program's a flop.  What started out as a way to improve the environment and air quality is now a program that a desperate Obama Administration wants to tout as a way in which it is  "saving" the economy.  What any credible economist will tell you is that cash for clunkers did nothing but "pull demand forward," i.e., throw a bone to those that most likely would have purchased a new vehicle soon anyway. (more...)

Driving in a taxi from one of New York's airports to Manhattan (or in our case, downtown Brooklyn) is always a feast for the eyes.  The skyline in the distance, the billboards, the brownstones, the endless stream of taxis . . . it all just adds to the excitement when visiting one of the world's true great cities.  As we arrived closer to our hotel, one billboard in particular caught my attention.  I took my eyes off the view of Manhattan, only cause I rolled them up to the top of my head.  There it was:  a billboard advertising green storage.  Naturally I was dubious. (more...)

I'm very disappointed with Van Jones' decision to resign as White House environmental adviser over the weekend.  I just started reading The Green Collar Economy and while I do not agree with all of his ideas, his book is an excellent read that explains how creating jobs and saving the environment are not mutually exclusive. (more...)

"Oil of coal, of course, is a fungible commodity and they don't flag, ya know, the molecules where, where it's going to, where it's not, but and in the, in the sense of the Congress today they know our very, very hungry domestic markets that need that oil first."

 

No that wasn't Tina Fey, but it could have been.  It was VP nominee Sarah Palin at a Michigan town hall meeting last year during the presidential campaign. (more...)