Climate scientists who have studied the Southwest largely agree that the vast region — which includes Southern California — has been in drought almost since the beginning of the 21st century. It’s a historic megadrought — meaning a drought of twenty years or more — with the driest soils in the West in at leastContinue reading “Storm vs. Drought: After weeks of flooding, how can CA still be in drought?”
Category Archives: press issues
The twenty-first century martyr
Extraordinary times deserve extraordinary writing. Elizabeth Breunig rises to the occasion, speaking of the two heroic young men, Riley Howell and Kendrick Castiloo, who died attacking school shooters, saving lives, living up to their moment. From the Washington Post: You can determine the excesses of an era by its martyrs. Essential to the story ofContinue reading “The twenty-first century martyr”
“a very strange argument” for global warming
From David Wallace-Wells’ just published The Uninhabitable Earth: “Over the last few years, as the planet’s own environmental rhythms have seemed to grow more fatalistic, skeptics have found themselves arguing not that climate change isn’t happening, since extreme weather has made that undeniable, but that its causes are unclear — suggesting that the changes weContinue reading ““a very strange argument” for global warming”
“a permanent loss of normal”: CA climate today
A couple of years ago I worked hard on a story about a hugely important study from Daniel Swain et al on the all-too-likely re-occurence of the Great California Flood. For personal reasons nothing came of my story, but eventually the news did break in a big (Los Angeles Times) and accessible (Science Friday) sortContinue reading ““a permanent loss of normal”: CA climate today”
Stunt journalism scores again (in the Guardian)
A terrific story today in the Guardian puts the infamous all-beef diet extolled by Jordan Peterson and his clan to the test. This could be described as a stunt journalism, much like Supersize Me, but given that we’re talking about food; yes, it’s fair. It’s reporting. Gabbatt does talk to a medical expert, who sharplyContinue reading “Stunt journalism scores again (in the Guardian)”
Ta-Nehisi Coates: Not an optimist. Not on Twitter
The writer, journalist, and thinker Ta-Nehisi Coates has been embroiled in controversy for years now. Seemingly his every move attracts controversy, (for reasons mysterious to small-town hick yours truly). Near as I can tell Coates has not been doing anything another prominent and successful writer wouldn’t like to do, such as moving to Paris forContinue reading “Ta-Nehisi Coates: Not an optimist. Not on Twitter”
TEN EXCELLENT CLIMATE STORIES/LINKS
A New York Times primer on the 17 biggest questions people ask about climate change: A New York magazine story about climate change and the dangers of extreme heat. http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/07/climate-change-earth-too-hot-for-humans.html A Vanity Fair article about climate change and the danger of extreme heat. https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/06/extreme-heat-global-warming A Scientific American story about the great California megaflood. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/atmospheric-rivers-california-megaflood-lessons-from-forgotten-catastrophe/ AContinue reading “TEN EXCELLENT CLIMATE STORIES/LINKS”
Free falling from disgrace: team Trump
The New York Times hired a new right-wing columnist about six months ago, and a couple of weeks of weeks back added a new leftist for the first time in a while, Michelle Goldberg, and what can I say but wow. She throws down almost as well as the recent Newsweek cover: So here’s where weContinue reading “Free falling from disgrace: team Trump”
Extreme hiking in Sierra and The Guardian
We’re seeing more and better coverage of hiking in the media, I think that’s fair to say. Here are today’s examples. From Sierra (magazine) a sponsored content story about two hikers, young women, working their way up the length of the Americas. 20,000 miles. Which will take years. The hikers’ next challenge is to makeContinue reading “Extreme hiking in Sierra and The Guardian”
Blaming the media turns vicious: May 2017
If there’s one fact in a tempestuous and confusing political scene that the vast majority of Americans agree about, it’s this: You can’t trust the media. According to Gallup, about 3/4ths of Americans disrespect the media. Among Republicans only 14 percent trust the media. Folks, it’s not daring and rebellious to blame the media forContinue reading “Blaming the media turns vicious: May 2017”
Kit Stolz 