Author Archives: Kit Stolz

Karl Malden: The Greatest Mitch Ever Rests in Peace

News just in that Karl Malden, who is apparently remembered by most people for some dumb TV show and advertisement, has died. For yours truly he will always be Mitch in A Streetcar Named Desire, perhaps the best work of fiction ever produced by an American. He won an Academy Award for the movie role,Continue reading “Karl Malden: The Greatest Mitch Ever Rests in Peace”

DDT: The Chemical Disaster That Won’t Go Away

Not all herbicides and pesticides concentrate in the ecosystem, but some do, and among the prime offenders is DDT, which (contrary to right-wing propaganda) is still a problem in the United States today, decades after the corporation that made it in Southern California stopped manufacturing it. In a first-rate story from a week ago inContinue reading “DDT: The Chemical Disaster That Won’t Go Away”

Sarah Palin Makes Fun of an Old Man

From an interview with Sarah Palin in Runner's World: "I used to joke around with John McCain during the campaign about coming jogging with me. And once I asked him what his favorite exercise was, and he said, 'I go wading.' Wading. He lives on a creek in Arizona, so he goes wading. That crackedContinue reading “Sarah Palin Makes Fun of an Old Man”

“She Smoked Like a Coal-Fired Power Plant…”

For the last couple of weeks, I've been mentioning the newly-released report on global warming in our country from the US Global Change Research Program. I've been reading reports from various scientific agencies, including the IPCC, for some time now, and I have never read one this dire. But even among my tough-minded readers, thisContinue reading ““She Smoked Like a Coal-Fired Power Plant…””

Politics as Usual Betrays the Planet

Paul Krugman, throwing down the gauntlet. Seems unfair that this guy writes better on climate than nearly any other lefty commentator around — and it's not even his field. Is it fair to call climate denial a form of treason? Isn’t it politics as usual? Yes, it is — and that’s why it’s unforgivable. DoContinue reading “Politics as Usual Betrays the Planet”

On Hypocritical Philandering Right-Wing Politicians

Such as Nevada senator John Ensign; well, I'm with Matt Taibbi.  [pic of the Senator with Miss Nevada USA for 2006, Tiffany, from 2006 Nevada Queens] He had an affair with a campaign aide, not Tiffany, but as Taibbi said: I am going to really enjoy the inevitable media fragging Senator John Ensign is goingContinue reading “On Hypocritical Philandering Right-Wing Politicians”

Wilco (the show) (at the Wiltern)(on Tuesday 6/23)

Wilco has a new record out at the end of this month, called Wilco (the album) which includes Wilco (the song). In their show at the Wiltern Theater last night in Los Angeles, lead singer Jeff Tweedy aggressively hawked "the merch booth," and especially the "awesome program." Couldn't tell if he was being ironic orContinue reading “Wilco (the show) (at the Wiltern)(on Tuesday 6/23)”

An Army of Clouds — Janisse Ray on Global Warming in Georgia

Janisse Ray, a wonderful writer from the South, has a story about an experience she had with climate change in a gorgeous new interactive book just released by the Union of Concerned Scientists, called Thoreau's Legacy: American Stories about Global Warming. Well worth a look… I never saw a spring so stormy. Spring is supposedContinue reading “An Army of Clouds — Janisse Ray on Global Warming in Georgia”

Republican Nonsense in Climate Protection Debate

The US Global Change Research Program, which has been studying climate change since the early 1990's, issued an unusually blunt, cogent report this week, with numerous alarming points, such as: 1. Global warming is unequivocal and primarily human-induced. 2. Climate changes are underway in the United States and are projected to grow.3. Widespread climate-related impactsContinue reading “Republican Nonsense in Climate Protection Debate”