Friday, March 25, 2011
The price of gasoline at the pump is at the highest level ever for this
time of year. Thats not all bad; raising the price is the only effective
way to reduce consumption, thereby improving the environment and delaying
the dreaded Hubbert peak. There are, however, two ways to raise the price
to the consumer: increase the profit margin of the oil industry, or levy a
large consumption tax. The revenue from a heavy consumption tax would help
to pay the crushing costs of the Bush economy. You will not be surprised,
however, to learn that the Republican Congress overwhelmingly prefers the
first method, which will embodied in the Energy Tax Prevention Act of 2011,
in preparation. But first they had to amend the Clean Air Act to eliminate
the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency over greenhouse
gases. According to an editorial in last week's Nature, the Republican
disdain for climate science was evident in the "anger and distrust directed
at scientists and scientific societies." The widespread melting of snow
and ice, and rising global average sea level, is unequivocal evidence of
global warming,http://bobpark.physics.umd.edu/WN11/wn020411.html.
It's not exactly a work of art, but I recently came across an image taken
from the famous photo of Albert Einstein sticking his tongue out at the
cameraman. A different gesture would be used today. The caption
was, "CAN'T CALL IT A SMART PHONE, IF IT KILLS BRAIN CELLS." I wasnt
amused. It was put out by the Environmental Health Trust, a nonprofit
educational foundation founded by Devra Davis. She is the author
of "Disconnect," a recklessly irresponsible book that falsely claims that
radiation from cell phones causes serious health problems, including
cancer. It is particularly offensive that Einstein's image was used for
such a purpose. It was Einstein who pointed out in 1905 that microwave
radiation is not ionizing, for which he was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize in
Physics. I pointed this out 10 years ago in an editorial I wrote at the
request of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, "Cellular
Telephones and Cancer: How Should Science Respond?" It is too late to
apologize to Dr. Einstein, but I expect a full apology from Dr. Davis.
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