George W. Bush Makes Last-Ditch Effort to Improve His Legacy

President (for a little while longer) George W. Bush has established three marine monuments in the Pacific Ocean in what’s being hailed as the largest marine conservation effort in history. This is on the heels of recent actions taken by Bush against the environment including approving gas drilling in Montana, selling off scenic parcels of land to oil companies in Utah and making it easier for forests to be converted into suburban housing divisions.

The three areas to be protected total over 195,000 square miles including the Mariana Trench and the waters and coral surrounding three uninhabited islands in the Northern Mariana Islands, Rose Atoll in American Samoa and seven islands along the equator.

From The Huffington Post:

Each location harbors unique species and some of the rarest geological formations on Earth _ from the world’s largest land crab to a bird that incubates its eggs in the heat of underwater volcanoes.

All will be protected as national monuments _ the same status afforded to statues and cultural sites _ under the 1906 Antiquities Act. The law allows the government to immediately phase out commercial fishing and other extractive uses.

However, recreational fishing, tourism and scientific research with a federal permit could still occur inside the three areas. The designations will also not conflict with U.S. military activities or freedom of navigation, White House officials said.

“These locations are truly among the last pristine areas in the marine environment on Earth,” said James Connaughton, chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, who added the resources the administration wanted preserved would be fully protected.

Bush has never cared about the environment, and he doesn’t now. Undoubtedly, designating these areas as national monuments doesn’t harm any of the corporations that he’s such good friends with, so he figured it wouldn’t hurt.

Sorry Dubya, but this act isn’t going to erase your many sins and missteps in the minds of the people. It simply comes off as a last revisionist act in the hopes of rescuing your reputation, which has lain in the gutter for many years now.

Link [The Huffington Post]

Obama Might Be Able to Overturn Bush’s Environmental Measures, After All

President Bush has been all too eager to use his last few months in office to get in as many favors for industry buddies as he can. He’s been pushing forth measures left and right that compromise our water quality, open national parks to destructive drilling and invade the habitats of endangered species. It’s been looking as though Bush’s final desperate moves would be difficult for Obama to quickly reverse, leading many conservationists to feel as if years of work have been lost. But, Congressional Democrats might just have found a way to roll back Bush’s midnight regulations, including ones that have already taken effect.

From Politico:

“Fortunately, [the White House] made a mistake,” said a top Senate Democratic aide.

Last May, White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten instructed federal agency heads to make sure any new regulations were finalized by Nov. 1. The memo didn’t spell it out, but the thinking behind the directive was obvious. As Myron Ebell of the conservative Competitive Enterprise Institute put it: “We’re not going to make the same mistakes the Clinton administration did.”

President Bill Clinton finalized regulations within 60 days of the 2001 inauguration, meaning Bush could come in and easily reverse them.

It could take Obama years to undo climate rules finalized more than 60 days before he takes office — the advantage the White House sought by getting them done by Nov. 1. But that strategy doesn’t account for the Congressional Review Act of 1996.

The law contains a clause determining that any regulation finalized within 60 legislative days of congressional adjournment is considered to have been legally finalized on the 15th legislative day of the new Congress, likely sometime in February. Congress then has 60 days to review it and reverse it with a joint resolution that can’t be filibustered in the Senate.

In other words, any regulation finalized in the last half-year of the Bush administration could be wiped out with a simple party-line vote in the Democrat-controlled Congress.

Despite the fact that the Congressional Review Act can’t be filibustered, Congress could still run into difficulty overturning Bush’s midnight regulations. But Jerry Brito, a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University thinks the Obama administration can simply package all the Bush regulations it wants overturned into one large vehicle to be voted up or down. That will limit the special pleading that’s sure to come from the people who stood to benefit from Bush’s moves.

What a relief. There’s hope after all! Imagine the mess Obama would have had to wade through trying to fight these final desperate acts of Bush’s while also dealing with the economic mess. That’s probably what Bush was counting on. If Congress can overturn all f these business-first, environment-last regulations, it’ll be a huge victory for anyone who cares about the earth.

Link [Politico]

Bush Admin Wants To Open Thousands Of Acres Near National Parks For Drilling

In yet another act seemingly bent on cementing the Bush Administration’s reputation as worst ever on the environment, the Bureau of Land Management is giving even more land over to oil and gas companies for drilling. And this time, it will include tens of thousands of acres on or near the boundaries of three national parks.

From The New York Times:

National Park Service officials say that the decision to open lands close to Arches National Park and Dinosaur National Monument and within eyeshot of Canyonlands National Park was made without the kind of consultation that had previously been routine.

The inclusion of the new lease tracts angered environmental groups, which were already critical of the bureau’s original lease proposal, made public this fall, because they said it could lead to industrial activity in empty areas of the state, some prized for their sweeping vistas, like Desolation Canyon, and others for their ancient petroglyphs, like Nine Mile Canyon.

The bureau’s new maps, made public on Election Day, show not just those empty areas but 40 to 45 new areas where leasing will also be allowed.

Park managers are concerned about how the proximity of industrial activity might affect the air, water and wildlife within the parks. The Park Service was not given time to comment on the leases. The tracts will be sold at auction on December 19th, the final lease sale before Bush leaves office. If any leases are sold that day and delivered to buyers before Inauguration Day, Obama’s new administration may not be able to reverse the decisions.

Bush sure does love oil, doesn’t he? We’ve been so happy about the fact that he is about to leave office, but it seems as if he’s cramming another 4 years of bad decisions into these last few months. Bush is doing all he can to give his buddies in the industry a few last favors before Obama takes over, since Obama will be unlikely to put their needs above those of the environment and the people.  Sickening, but not surprising at all.

Link [The New York Times]

George W. Bush Sewage Plant Proposition Fails

Sadly, there will be no sewage treatment plant in California named after George W. Bush. Backers of the proposition gathered in excitement awaiting the results, only to be crushed to learn that it had been defeated by a 70-30 margin. Especially sad were Bob Katz, who flew in all the way from Florida for what he thought would be a Proposition R victory party, and Peaches Christ, the proposition’s “basket-ball player sized drag queen” spokesperson. Reality is so often stranger than fiction.

From The Snitch:

Not all of the folks gathered near the Abe Lincoln statue voted for the proposition — or even knew about it. Barbara Coleman said Bush didn’t deserve the honor of having anything named after him.

“He done fucked the country up. What I want is for him to pack up his shit and get his ass out of the White House so Barack Obama can move in — tonight!”

Jacinto and McConnell quietly puffed on cigarettes and sipped from clandestine beers in the shadow of city hall. “We gave it the college try,” noted Jacinto, a city planner when he’s not writing ballot propositions. “We got our message out far and wide to get people thinking about George W. Bush’s legacy.”

Check out one of the group’s campaign ads:

“Pansy” from Brian M on Vimeo.

Ah, San Francisco.

Link [The Snitch]

10 Green Things Even George Bush Could Do

For the eco novice who wants to do better but is sort of intimidated by the whole ‘green movement’, finding a good way to get started can be tough. It seems like there are so many ways in which you need to change, and you’re not sure where to start. Well, we’re here to tell you that getting onboard the green train is actually really easy, as long as you’ve got a nice list of simple green things you can accomplish on a daily basis. In fact, these 10 ways to green your life are so simple, even a nitwit like George W. Bush could do them.

1. Unplug it. Even when you’ve got your electronics turned off, they’re still drawing power from the outlets. In fact, the Playstation 3 is such an energy hog that just leaving it plugged in uses five times more electricity in a year than the average mid-sized refrigerator. Phone chargers, televisions and stereo systems are other major culprits. An easy way to accomplish this is to plug these items into power strips, and simply turn off the power strip when the items aren’t in use. Pressing a button: so easy, even Dubya can do it.

2. Buy local food. Think about this: the typical produce item from your grocery store travels up to 1,500 miles before it ends up in your refrigerator. Why buy food that came from so far away, when you likely have local farmers growing it right down the road? All that traveling wastes resources, and the trucks emit pollution into the air. Buying local means you’re supporting small farms and cutting back on pollution in one fell swoop.

3. Change a light bulb. There are half a dozen jokes out there about Bush changing a light bulb, but we think he can handle it, so long as someone puts the right replacement bulb in his hand. Switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs), which consume 75% less energy than conventional incandescents. CFLs convert most of the energy they draw into light rather than heat. They’ll save you money, too – they last much longer.

4. Do full loads of laundry and dishes, and use cold water. Every time you do a small load, you waste water and energy – why not wait another day or two until you’ve accumulated more dirty laundry or dishes? Plus, you can save a ton of energy by using cold water – most of the energy consumed by washers is used to heat the water. Choose short cycles when you’ve got anything less than a full load. Throwing a few more items into the washing machine – so easy, that if George W. Bush actually did his own laundry or washed dishes, he could do it.

5. Replace your air conditioning filter. When the filter’s dirty, your A/C has to work a lot harder to cool down your home. So, if you keep it clean, it won’t have to run nearly as often – saving you a ton of money on your electric bill. As a nice bonus, a clean filter will also help remove smoke, pollen, moisture, airborne bacteria and other pollutants from the air in your home. Changing the filter is as easy as sliding the old one out and putting the new one in place. It doesn’t get much easier than that. Image via Reader’s Digest

6. Buy Energy Star® appliances. Appliances with the Energy Star® rating can save you about 30% in energy, water and sewer costs annually. They use 10-50% less water than conventional appliances, and they don’t cost too much more. Choosing energy efficient appliances is an incredibly easy way to go green, since you only have to think about it once, and after that they do all the work for you.

7. Get a tune-up. Just like Barack Obama said before the McCain camp mistakenly ridiculed him for it, tuning up your car and keeping your tires inflated can save you a ton of gas, helping both your wallet and the environment. A faulty energy sensor, worn spark plugs or dirty air filters can add up to a big reduction in miles per gallon. Plus, tune-ups can lengthen the life of your car, giving it that much longer before it makes its final journey to the scrap heap. The Republicans may have had a hard time grasping this one at first, but experts have all agreed: tune-ups and proper tire pressure are an easy way to go green.

8. Ride your bike. A moron, a monkey or a 4-year-old child could do it, which means George W. Bush can, too, as evidenced by the many photos of him cruising around his Texas ranch. Even just occasionally choosing to ride a bike instead of drive is a great step toward living a more environmentally responsible life. You’ll save gas money, get some exercise and fresh air and see your community up-close and personal.

9. Borrow, don’t buy. So, you’ve discovered that you’re temporarily in need of an item you don’t have around the house. Maybe it’s a gravy boat for that dinner you’re making for the in-laws, a feather boa for your friend’s themed bachelorette party or an obscure type of wrench for that damn IKEA bookcase. Don’t automatically run out to the store to buy it – you’re most likely only going to use it this once. What a waste of money, materials and packaging – and it’ll probably end up in the trash soon, too. See if a friend has one, or post a want ad in Craigslist or your local Freecycle.

10. Become tap conscious. Everyone knows by now to turn off the water while you’re brushing your teeth, but why not take it a few steps further? Turn on the tap only when the cup is under the spout. Don’t use hot water for small things like a quick hand rinse. Don’t leave the water running when it’s not needed and think about opening up the water just a bit- do you really need to blast your toothbrush with full-bore pressure every time? A little bit adds up to a whole lot if you can change your long-term habits.

Bush Breaks Promise to Protect Hawaiian Islands from Pollution

There are very few instances in which Bush has done something genuinely good for America and for the world. Back in 2006 when he declared a remote chain of islands in Hawaii the biggest, most environmentally protected area of the ocean in the world, it was to much fanfare and praise from conservationists. But, if you visit this supposedly clean, protected area today, you’ll see a reality that’s far from what Bush promised.

From The Huffington Post:

His proclamation featured some of the strictest measures ever placed on a marine environment. Any material that might injure the area’s sensitive coral reefs and 7,000 rare species _ a fourth of them found nowhere else in the world _ would be prohibited, even if the debris drifted in from thousands of miles away.

Ocean currents are still bringing an estimated 57 tons of garbage and discarded fishing gear to the 10 islands and the waters surrounding them each year. Endangered monk seals are still being snared and coral reefs smothered by discarded fishing nets. Albatrosses are still feeding on indigestible plastic and feeding it to their young.

So, what happened? It’s simple: it got pushed to the back burner. The Bush administration cut the budget back by a whopping 80%. The photo above shows Kamilo Beach in September of last year, covered in trash again. But, is anyone surprised? Bush is a foe of the environment. Trash on a beach in Hawaii is the last thing on his mind, or that of anyone else in his administration.

Is it 2009 yet?

Link [The Huffington Post]

Photo credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Carey Morishige

Bush Vows to Veto a U.S. Climate Change Bill

George W. Bush is a hypocrite. There’s no denying that Bush has his hands in the pockets of untold numbers of corporations. It’s all about lobbyists and bribes; protecting buddies and fellow members of his administration. Though, that may be giving him too much credit – perhaps Bush really is one of those amazing people who genuinely believe that climate change isn’t real.

Bush has vowed to veto a U.S. climate change bill that’s currently making its way across the Senate floor. The Bush administration opposes economy-wide measures to limit carbon emissions.

From Reuters:

The legislation the Senate will debate could cut total U.S. global warming emissions by 66 percent by 2050, according to a summary of the measure.

U.S. greenhouse gas emissions would drop by about 2 percent per year between 2012 and 2050, based on 2005 emission levels, under the measure.

The bill would cap carbon emissions from 86 percent of U.S. facilities, and emissions from those would be 19 percent below current levels by 2020 and 71 percent below current levels by 2050, according to a summary of the bill’s details released by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

It’s been said before and it’s worth saying again: the disconnect in logic between the Bush administration’s reasoning for starting the Iraq War and their hesitance to do anything about the impending climate crisis is astounding. Case in point: Bush and Co. argued that the possibility that Saddam Hussein had WMDs was reason enough to invade Iraq despite not having proof, because the possible outcome was just too dangerous. That argument worked for them then, and yet applying the same argument to climate change – which has plenty of scientific data to back it up – apparently doesn’t work.

Furthermore, Bush had no problem running up an outrageous bill to fund the unpopular, pointless war in Iraq, but hypocritically speaks out against spending too much on a climate change plan:

“I urge the Congress to be very careful about running up enormous costs for future generations of Americans,” Bush said at a White House meeting on the economy and taxes. “We’ll work with the Congress, but the idea of a huge spending bill fueled by tax increases isn’t the right way to proceed.”

The bill’s supporters, particularly Senator Barbara Boxer of California, have angrily lashed out at Bush for his resistance to climate change legislation, noting his connection to Big Oil and that he had financial incentives to prevent such bills from passing.

Even if the bill passed in the Senate, it wouldn’t become law while Bush is still in office, so maybe we’ll get to see the next president give it a chance. Obama FTW!

Link [Reuters]

Big Shocker: EPA Chairman is Just a White House Puppet

Wow, this is so totally shocking. I mean, who knew that the White House pressures and at times, completely overrides the heads of various government agencies in favor of their own twisted agendas? Who would have thought that the United States government isn’t as democratic as it claims to be? I just fell out of my chair in shock.

From MSNBC:

The head of the Environmental Protection Agency [Stephen Johnson] came under sharp attack at a House hearing Tuesday, with Democratic lawmakers accusing him of repeatedly caving in to White House pressure on environmental issues such as global warming and a recently enacted health standard for smog.

Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., the committee chairman, said depositions provided by senior EPA staff members suggest that Johnson had been overruled or heavily influenced by the White House on recent EPA decisions on the smog standard, its rejected of a waiver for California on global warming regulations, and the EPA ongoing deliberations on whether to regulate carbon dioxide.

“You have essentially become a figurehead,” Waxman told Johnson. “… In each case, you backed down.”

Crazy, man. What are we going to learn next – that our leaders take money from corporations to enact legislation that works in their favor? That they give large government contracts to companies they’re personally associated with, for their own financial gain? My confidence in the dedication of our government to protect and further the interests of the people is truly shaken.

Link [MSNBC]
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons & Wikimedia Commons

Bush Isn’t the Only Leader Stupidly Stuck on Oil; UK Chancellor is, Too

The food crisis and pressure from consumers about high gas prices as led George W. Bush to once again call for drilling in what few pristine wilderness areas America has left, to the yawns and rolling eyes of thousands. I am Jack’s complete lack of surprise.

Americans are undoubtedly used to Bush pushing the oil agenda whenever possible, even when it’s totally inappropriate and mind-bogglingly stupid to do so. I mean, this is the guy who will go down in history as the worst thing that ever happened to our country, so it’s no wonder we’re not shocked when he says something dumb. Somehow, though, we expect more from Britain. Maybe it’s those accents that make them all sound like professors (except for the Cockney version, sorry) but especially in a post-Tony Blair era, we’d hope for a bit more intelligence than what our country’s leader displays.

Alas, here’s what UK Chancellor Alistair Darling told the BBC recently:

One of the big priorities has got to be for governments all over the world to try and get oil production increased, and also to tackle this problem that was pushing up food prices that was diverting corn into biofuels in a way that is not sustainable.

Meanwhile, here’s a quote about oil from Obama:

Change is an energy policy that doesn’t rely on buddying up to the Saudi royal family and then begging them for oil, an energy policy. Change is an energy policy that puts a price on pollution and makes the oil companies invest their record profits in clean, renewable sources of energy that will create millions of new jobs and leave our children a safer planet. That’s what change is, Iowa.

Is it 2009 yet?

Link [Celsias] + [Gristmill]
Photo credit: Flickr user Boris from Vienna

McCain Makes Big Crazy Promises About What He’d Accomplish in His First Term

Showing that the apple doesn’t fall far from the Bush, John McCain predicted yesterday that within 4 years of him as president, the war in Iraq would be over and Osama Bin Laden would be dead. He also promised rainbows every day of the week, chocolate rivers, marshmallow mushrooms and hugs from unicorns for all.

From MSNBC:

McCain, running in the November election to succeed Bush in 2009, described a scenario he thought he could achieve within his first four-year term.

“By January 2013, America has welcomed home most of the servicemen and women who have sacrificed terribly so that America might be secure in her freedom,” McCain said in prepared remarks he was to deliver in Columbus, Ohio.

“The Iraq war has been won. Iraq is a functioning democracy, although still suffering from the lingering effects of decades of tyranny and centuries of sectarian tension. Violence still occurs, but it is spasmodic and much reduced,” McCain said.

McCain also predicted that al Qaida leader Osama bin Laden would be captured or killed within four years and the militant group’s presence in Afghanistan would be reduced to remnants.

Gee, Mr. McCain, don’t devalue yourself and your abilities, here. You can do so much more. I mean, if you’re capable of all that, why not go for the gold? You might as well also promise that you’ll bring the dodo bird back from extinction and find a way to live forever.

Go ahead and hold up a ‘Mission Accomplished!!!’ sign while you’re at it, since you’re so confident that all of this will happen. You know, to get your base psyched up for the election. We all know that conservative voters like to live in a world where global warming isn’t real and drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge will solve all of our oil problems, so why not throw these promises into the equation as well?

Link [MSNBC]
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

San Franciscans Hope to Name Sewage Plant after George W. Bush

What better memorial to commemorate George W. Bush’s presidency than a sewage treatment plant? That’s what a group of people in San Francisco hope to accomplish after organizing a petition to rename the Oceanside Wastewater Treatment Facility.

From SFist:

The local grassroots movement, helmed by “Wayne Pickering,” is proposing an ordinance initiative for the November 2008 San Francisco ballot in order to get the poop/pee/vomit plant’s title changed. Why? To honor our current leader of the free world with an “appropriate and enduring legacy, for no other president in modern American history has accomplished so much in such a short time.

They held a signature drive last Friday, and we can only hope that they got enough to make this happen. While we may not ever be able to repair the damage Bush has done on this country, and will be left with the scars of his presidency for decades into the future, the least the American people deserve is a cesspool of shit officially named after him. They say that laughter is the best medicine, and as sick as we all are of the assclown that’s currently the head of our country, we need some healing. It would go great with George W. Bush toilet paper…

Link [SFist]

Photo credit: Prank Place