Editor's Take: October 10, 2008
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The Economic Solution: Fixing Climate Change
It’s been hard to see past the tough economic news this week. But environmental policy experts claim to see a light at the end of the tunnel: addressing climate change. And with 8 out of 10 American claiming stress due to economic turmoil, it might be time to look for unconventional solutions to the world’s woes. Maybe that’s why Victoria’s feeling a little optimistic.
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Your editor today is Eric Hess | View All Today's News
Good Week, Bad Week for Solar Industry
San Francisco Chronicle
10/09/2008
It was a home run, a grand slam, a dream come true or the biggest birthday present ever for the solar industry, depending on who you spoke with. But these are not normal times and the reality of the global economy collided with what should have been a day in the sun for solar companies.
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Ron Sims' Maverick Phase
Crosscut
10/10/2008
I recently had a talk with Sims and asked him if he was "casting about," as many think. Not at all, he replied, and went into a long speech about his worldwide efforts at combating global warming, cutting-edge work in water quality in Thailand, and battling workplace depression by letting people work in satellite centers that cut down stressful commuting. Through his long public career, Sims has always been a fount of visionary ideas, but now he's a true geyser.
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US Climate Fix Could Help Solve Financial Crisis
New Scientist
10/10/2008
If the US focused on curbing climate change as soon as a new president took office - or sooner - it could help pull the world from the financial brink, according to environmental policy experts.
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Victoria Shrugs Off Pessimism
Victoria Times Colonist
10/10/2008
If pessimism is growing among Canadian small business owners, it's happening beyond the borders of Greater Victoria, according to local business leaders.
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8 out of 10 Blaming Economy for Stress
Press Democrat
10/10/2008
More than eight in 10 Americans blame the economy for much of the stress in their lives, according to a national study released this week by the American Psychological Association.
Crisis hot lines are hearing the anguish, while psychologists and other therapists say they are seeing personal woes tied to the faltering economy.
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BLM Wants to Increase Logging in Oregon
Oregonian
10/10/2008
Federal officials said Thursday that they want to double logging allowed on 2.6 million acres of forests in western Oregon, a move that would doom more old-growth trees but boost timber-related payments to 18 rural Oregon counties and create an estimated 1,200 new jobs.
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English Ivy is Poison to Portland's Forest Park
Oregonian
10/10/2008
Forest Park -- the 5,000-acre gem a city planner once said is as important to Portland as the Hudson River is to New York City -- turns 60 this year and is showing signs of age. The park faces pressure from residential development, increased use of the 75 miles of trails and a steady invasion of non-native weeds, primarily English ivy.
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Nonprofits, Charities Brace for the Worst
San Francisco Chronicle
10/10/2008
The economic downturn is hitting Bay Area foundations and social service providers hard. Charities are faced with cutting services at the same time people need more help. And, the grim economic news - including a global credit crunch, the slide in the Dow Jones industrial average, rising unemployment and a housing collapse - couldn't come at a worse time. Most philanthropic donations are made toward the end of the year.
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Health Insurance Coverage Varies Within Region
Oregon Public Broadcasting
10/09/2008
The U.S. Census reports more people lacking health insurance than Oregon and Washington found when the states did their own surveys. A state demographer in Olympia is suspicious of the data for thinly settled counties because the sample sizes are very small. The Census says more than 18 percent of Oregonians lack health insurance.
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Views: Employees Should Have Free Union Choice
Oregonian
10/10/2008
If you listen to America's workers, one of the keys to digging ourselves out of the economic hole we're in is employees' ability to join a union. Polls show between 25 and 60 million Americans who are not now union members say they wish they had a union in their workplace.
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