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More detail on environment in National Security Strategy

Back in March I wrote about how the Bush White House issued a new National Security Strategy (NSS) that included environmental issues, something they had taken out of their 2002 version. In short, Hurricane Katrina put the environment back on the U.S. security agenda when it overwhelmed our civilian and military capacities.

We have done more in-depth analysis of this NSS, now available on the Woodrow Wilson Center's website. The Stanley Foundation has also written a well-argued critique of the 2006 NSS, although it is not specifically focused on the environment.

Pombo’s staff v. Connecticut

Rep. Richard "Dick" Pombo (R-Calif.) is a big proponent of drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. So, apparently, are his staffers. When an editorial appeared in a Connecticut paper opposing the latest effort to drill the Refuge, senior Pombo advisor Daniel Kish had this to say:

Connecticut should have its statehood taken away from it. The foolishness of its pampered residents should be demonstrated to others by a government program to bulldoze the entire state, salt the land and construct a windfarm to supply NYC with electricity. And its residents should be relocated to Guantanamo Bay where they can take a number behind the 3 who hung themselves this weekend, since they seem so intent on suicide.

Lovely.

(via Stakeholder)

Update [2006-8-2 12:53:37 by David Roberts]: The Roll Call story is subscription-only, so here's the full bit from today's gossip column:

It’s tough living in a post-Katrina world

What happens when a hurricane wrecks your city, the feds fail to respond, and then the whole country kinda forgets about you? This. Not exactly surprising, but makes a sad story even more so.

Confusing capitalism with industrialization

In conversations with many environmentalists (and others) I often hear the comment that capitalism (and market-based economics more generally) is leading to the destruction of the planet. After a little prodding, I realize that what most of these people are referring to is not capitalism, but industrialization: the development of industry on an extensive scale.

DDT Time

DDT poised for a comeback to fight malaria in Africa Hoping to gain ground in the fight against malaria, the World Health Organization will soon endorse the spraying of DDT […]

Wind powder

The NYT reports today that Colorado ski resort giant Vail Resorts is investing heavily in wind, "buying enough credits to offset all the power needed for its resorts, retail stores and office buildings."

Vail Resort's purchase makes them the second largest purchaser of wind credit after Whole Foods. The article states that Vail Resorts accounts for "10% of all skier visits in the nation last year." This makes their commitment a pretty significant splash on the ski scene.

Climate Bill

Clinton turns to climate change:

Oil is a feminist issue

So proclaims the cover of the latest issue of Ms., touting an article by Martha Burk: "Crude Awakening: U.S. Policies in Afghanistan and Iraq Sell Out Women in Favor of Oil." Alas, there's only a teaser online, not the full article.

In sum:

Whether supporting gender apartheid abroad, or sacrificing feeding programs for U.S. women and children so that ExxonMobil can get a tax break, or simply standing by while the company reaps record profits at the expense of women who must drive to work and heat their houses, U.S. priorities are consistent: Oil wins over women's rights hands down.

Appropriately, Burk focuses most of her attention abroad -- from pre-9/11 Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, where the Clinton admin overlooked gross abuses of women's rights as it tried to grease the wheels for a Unocal pipeline, to oppressive Saudi Arabia, to increasingly woman-unfriendly Iraq, back to present-day Afghanistan, where things are looking nearly as grim for women and girls as they did when the Taliban reigned. (The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission reports that more than 300 girls' schools have been burned or bombed in the country in recent years, Burk writes.)

Burk doesn't touch on any traditionally "environmental" threads in the piece, but it's an interesting, if cursory, look at how oil politics and gender politics collide.

Happy 25th Birthday, MTV

The MSM is awash with stories hyping the quarter-century milestone, so I figured I'd jump aboard the bandwagon and use it as an opportunity to point out that MTV.com's environment section highlights news from your favorite green mag.

(BTW, did you know that Martha Quinn now has a weekly '80s show on Sirius Satellite Radio? Still cute as a button!)

A rundown of global sports organizations.

So, maybe you don't like soccer or biking. Maybe you're just saying, "Hey! Enough with the specifics! Give me something broad to sink my teeth into!"

Well, friend, you're in luck. Today we'll be overviewing the variety of committees, confederations, groups, and forums that focus on environment and sport. Because really, who knew there were so many?

The United Nations deemed 2005 the International Year of Sport and Physical Education, so I'm a year late on this blog post, but bear with me. We'll start off with the United Nations Environment Programme's Sport and Environment section, which pretty much says it all:

Sport is intimately connected to nature. A healthy environment is necessary for healthy sport. For many athletes, it is this intimacy with nature that motivates and inspires them.

Sports facilities, events, activities and the manufacture of sporting goods have an impact on the environment. Energy consumption, air pollution, emissions of greehouse gases and ozone-depleting substances, waste disposal, wastes use and impacts on biological diversity are all issues for the sporting world to address.

Go team!