The Pendulum

Alarmists vs. Deniers: Global Warming Bill’s Chances

pendulum — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 20:00:45 +0000

vs.

Kimberley Strassel’s The Climate Change Climate Change

Media Squabbles…Neat!

pendulum — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:05:24 +0000

The issue is over HuffPo reporter Nico Pitney’s being called upon for a question at President Obama’s press conference yesterday. Was he unfairly favored, having been alerted earlier that he might be chosen to pose his question? Is it a sign of the Obama administration’s control over certain facets of the press?

New York Times’ The Caucus: HuffPo’s Question at Obama News Conference Sparks a Media Flap

vs.

Huffington Post’s: Media Playground: Obama Calls on HuffPost, Michael Calderone Pouts, Ben Smith Calls Us Names, Dana Milbank Gets His Facts All Wrong

New York Times columnist David Brooks on the problems with Health Care Reform

pendulum — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 17:21:10 +0000

“…There is a great deal of talk about the need to restrain costs…Some senators and advisers suggest cutting back on universal coverage. Others have come up with a bunch of little cuts in hopes of getting closer to the trillion-dollar tab. The administration has ambitious plans to slash Medicare spending. But there is almost nothing that gets to the core of the problem. Under the leading approaches, health care providers would still have powerful incentives to provide more and more services and use more expensive technology…

…This would be bad enough in normal times. But the country is already careening toward fiscal ruin. We’ve already passed a nearly $800 billion stimulus package. The public debt is already projected to double over the next 10 years. Health care reform is important, but it is not worth bankrupting the country over.”

Read Brooks’ column here: Something for Nothing

Berkeley vs. Wharton: Professors Duel Over Health Care

pendulum — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 17:12:39 +0000

Professor Robert Reich’s Why We Need a Public Health-Care Plan

vs.

Professor Scott Harrington’s The ‘Public Plan’ Would Be the Only Plan

Health Care Legislation Concerns: Left and Right

pendulum — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:08:36 +0000

Who has the better grip on the reality of health care reform?

Senator Chris Dodd’s A Strong Public Option

vs.

Daniel Henninger’s ‘Public Option’: Son of Medicaid

Alternative Energy Across the Political Spectrum

pendulum — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:29:38 +0000

Independent of one’s political stance, the issue of ENERGY is one that is all too pertinent to the future of the American economy, and the world economy. The following articles, one for the liberal-leaning stopglobalwarming.org and one from the libertarian, Mad Max -leaning whiskeyandgunpowder.com offer their respective takes on how the new Executive administration under Barack Obama will approach the matter. Their views on alternative energy (from wind and solar to nuclear) present the opposite ends of the spectrum, so opposite in fact, they might be on the same side. What do the share in common? A belief in the coming apocalypse.

Philip Elliott and Mike Glover’s Obama talks up wind power, green jobs on Earth Day

vs.

Byron King’s The Direction of Energy Policy

I Could Not Have Said It Any Better Myself…

pendulum — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:52:44 +0000

…false modesty aside, Steven Tracton’s “The Sureness of Global Warming Skeptics” for the Washington Post is a hilarious look at the shenanigans inside the Third International Conference on Climate Change, June 3rd in Washington, D.C. His observations of the gleefully snarky remarks of global warming disbelievers (you’ve got to love it) are, as TBS would say, very funny.

Recently Released Reports on Global Warming

pendulum — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:24:56 +0000

For your consideration: The executive summary from the Global Change Research Program’s recently released report on global warming. Arguably the most authoritative source, the Global Change Research Program is the biggest influence on the U.S. government’s shaping of policy on climate change and energy use. The opposition, the executive summary of the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change leading the skeptical charge against the theory of man-made global warming. They’re both brief. Both worth reading. Both extremely relevant.

Global Change’s Executive Summary

vs.

NIPCC’s Executive Summary

Cat Fight

pendulum — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:15:55 +0000

Both articles are three years old but the subject of climate science is as blazin’ as ever, and perhaps even more relevant with the recent publication of the Global Change report that will surely influence the policy decisions of Congress and the Obama administration, and the recent NIPCC conference that will undoubtedly add more (fossil)fuel to the fire? (A’thank you.) The following articles for your digestion:

Laurie David’s Richard Lindzen, Global Warming Shill

vs.

Professor Richard Lindzen’s Climate of Fear

The Earth in an ice-bath? Go on…

pendulum — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:34:13 +0000

Ridiculous!

It’s an extremely hot (score.) topic because the policy-decisions surrounding it have the potential to create revolutionary changes. Those changes could have either a beneficial effect or catastrophically stupid effect. Five years ago the science confirming “global warming” seemed to be unchallenged. Today, dissenting voices who say the numbers are wrong are emerging louder and stronger. Before we attempt to “manage” Earth’s temperature as Jamais Cascio suggests by implementing a “global cooling” contraption (ideas?), shouldn’t we at least be certain that the data is not “worse than fiction?” Both articles are published in the Wall Street Journal:

It’s Time to Cool the Planet

vs.

‘Worse Than Fiction’