Editor's Take: April 28, 2008
Credit: Thinking Genuine/Flickr
A Good Idea for That Tax Rebate
With Tax Day over, Americans will soon find rebates in our mail boxes. Rep. Brian Baird (D-Wash.) suggests we spend our checks on energy-efficient products, from light bulbs to washing machines. Our government, however, isn’t offering incentives to invest in conservation. What are you going to do with your money? Living on Earth found most people are buying more stuff.
Editor's Top Picks
Your editor today is Kristin Kolb | View All Today's News
Spending the Stimulus
Living on Earth
04/28/2008
More than 130 million taxpayers will get an economic stimulus check beginning in May. Congressman Brian Baird wants Americans to use their economic stimulus checks to benefit the environment. What will people do with the money? Living on Earth hit the street to find out.
Go to article.
How Will Oregonians Use the Tax Rebate?
Oregonian
04/28/2008
Economists have theories, but some money will go to video poker, if the Oregon kicker is an indication.
Go to article.
Small-town America's Green Lifeline
Mother Jones Magazine
04/28/2008
These small towns were dying. Then alternative power reenergized them. Take Aberbeen, Wash., for example.
Go to article.
Oregon's U.S. Senate Hopefuls Debate
Oregonian
04/28/2008
The four candidates for Sen. Gordon Smith's seat focus on war, immigration and economics.
Go to article.
Does Seattle Still Work?
Crosscut
04/28/2008
A former mayor takes a critical look at Seattle's political culture, its past triumphs, and why it's so much harder today to make good decisions. One problem: We chew but do not swallow.
Go to article.
Ghosts of the Selkirks
Coeur d'Alene Press
04/28/2008
Idaho Fish and Game biologists try to unravel mystery behind shrinking Mountain Caribou population.
Go to article.
Tacoma Can Be Foot-friendly, Architect Says
Tacoma News Tribune
04/28/2008
In order to attract people, Genzoe emphasized the need to put people -- rather than buildings and spaces -- at the forefront of city planning.
Go to article.
BC Really Needs to Plant Trees
The Tyee
04/28/2008
Our forests have turned from a net carbon sink into a net carbon source that will emit 990 megatons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere by 2020.
Yet, at a time when we need it most, planting is expected to decrease next year -- by as many as 70 million seedlings -- as forestry companies curtail silviculture along with other operational expenses. That will be the lowest in two decades.
Go to article.
Climate Changes Oregon Lakes to Ice
Oregonian
04/28/2008
Wallowa Lake is still a bank-to-bank sheet of translucent ice. And despite huge snowpacks in the nearby Eagle Cap Wilderness, the gemlike northeastern Oregon lake's water level remains unusually low for late April.
The condition of this glacial lake at a 4,300 feet elevation typifies something that worries farmers, ranchers and county officials across much of eastern Oregon: Snowpacks aren't melting, storage reservoirs aren't refilling, and chilly spring temperatures have delayed the growing season.
Go to article.
Home Prices Drop Most in Areas with Long Commute
NPR
04/21/2008
Economists say home prices are nowhere near hitting bottom. But even in regions that have taken a beating, some neighborhoods remain practically unscathed. And a pattern is emerging as to which neighborhoods those are.
The ones with short commutes are faring better than places with long drives into the city. Some analysts see a pause in what has long been inexorable -- urban sprawl.
Go to article.
