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TODAY Thursday 3 July 1997 Each weekday. Conn Nugent on what's new in the world, on the site. |
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TODAY Thursday 3 July 1997 Each weekday. Conn Nugent on what's new in the world, on the site. |
TODAY IN THE WORLD: Three-Dot Environmentalism...
On the eve of the 221st birthday of the republic, the day after the death of James Stewart, two days after the death of Robert Mitchum (the best man and the coolest guy), environmental news has come right behind Hollywood in terms of public salience. There were an even dozen big enviro stories in the local paper over the last couple of days, enough for the ghost of Herb Caen, the late boulevardier of the San Francisco Chronicle and self-described practitioner of three-dot journalism...
GOP WOOS GREENS... NY Times says Repubs worried that Dems get free ride with soccer moms re enviro concerns. '96 exit polling brutal. New GOP positioning as pro-conservation. Duh. Lib Tree sues for shameless plagiarism ("Sherry Boelhert, Republican"; "Forests for the Trees")... CHRYSLER TO INTRO BATTLE TANK ... Big Three automaker puts happy face on 4 percent sales drop by announcing fall debut of Dodge Durango, house-sized competitor to Ford Expedition. Huge sport/utes popular with upward-mobiles, indispensable for profit margins, burn fuel like gangbusters. Who's complaining? Al Gore drives around Iowa in a Chevy Suburban... CARS MOST AFFORDABLE IN YEARS... Speaking of every American's birthright, it now takes an average family (only!) 25 weeks of gross income to buy a new car...Back in '92 it was 30 weeks... Low prices on new cars pushed by low prices on used cars, all pushed by not-ending-anytime-soon overcapacity of auto industry... Lib Tree would sue for plagiarism again ("Cheap Oil, Bargain Cars"), but we stole from The Economist in first place...
SLICK TOKYO... Japanese oil tanker (registered in Panama, natch) runs aground in Tokyo Bay, makes eleven-mile-wide slick... Single-hulled ship, of course... Great visuals with Mt. Fuji... NO LEUK FROM POWER ... Good news / Bad news... Big National Cancer Institute study backs up Nat'l Acad Sciences study that said no linkage between childhood leukemia and electrical power lines... Hard to take for many enviros seduced by Paul Brodeur... Possible still that "Zapping of America" dangerous to health?... Dunno, low curiosity here... ASTHMA NOSE SPRTIZERS BAD FOR EYES?... Steroids inhaled thru nostrils by asthma sufferers may cause cataracts in elderly, study in New England Journal of Medicine says... Scary since number of asthma cases skyrocketing, and nobody really knows why (Science, 13 June)...Allergies way up, too... Immune system prob? Air pollution? Dust mites?... Theories abound, may be some of that synergy stuff...
And in local news... DUPONT SHELLS OUT BIG BUCKS... Chemical manufacturer pledges $38.5 million to 427 current and former residents of New Jersey hamlet built by company for workers in nearby factory... Money in exchange for dropping litigation threats re health dangers from toxic chem dumping into stream... Locals call it Acid Brook... That's about 90k per, BTW... WESTCHESTER BEACHES REOPEN... "Small" leak in NYC sewage system causes "fecal matter" to drift east to ritzy suburban beaches... Local health departments close 'em down... Would-be bathers irate, resist regional identity beyond rooting for same ball teams... MANSION RAZED... Over ineffective protests of historic-prezzy types, Victorian mansion of inventor of Stop sign comes down... big ornate beauty built by William Phelps Enos, traffic-signal genius who came up with idea of conspicuous octagon... new owner says tough luck, wants big windows, walk-in closets...
SO WHAT DO WE DO NOW?... "Air Rules Leave Residue of Confusion," says Times Business Day... New limits on smog and soot announced by Clinton last week not yet translated into local applications... Not to worry, says Peter Passell, "oceans of time to adjust."... Probably like asking for an extension on your term paper from liberal professor in early '70s... HUMAN INTEREST...Cool artist woman in 40s moves to Idaho , says lead story in Home Section, designs and builds her own house... Really builds, as in carries all lumber, hammers all nails... Evelyn Sooter spends $50,000 for everything (land, plumbing, elec, etc.)... Looks great (her and house)... AND FINALLY... Nature's-No-Sweetheart-Department... Montserrat volcano erupts, destroys... some vulcanologists now theorize there's a really bigger-than-big, earth-changing eruption every 50,000 years or so... Head for office as radio reports tornado slams into Detroit and suburbs... nation in mourning for Jimmy Stewart...
TODAY ON THE SITE
Getcha Grove heah! That's right, a new issue of The Grove, Liberty Tree's free newsletter, was delivered to your local cyber-kiosk just three days ago. Catch up with Donella Meadows as she and her friends get serious and put up real money for their new community. Get inside info on current and upcoming features.
Recent "Today" columns:
7/02: Bothersome Science
7/01: Forest for the Trees
6/30: Investing in Pessimism
6/27: Good Speech (Keep it Quiet)
6/26: Bleeping Joan of Arc
6/25: The World at 42nd Street
6/24: Il Faut Que Get a Grip
6/23: The Emily Dickenson Parking Garage
6/19: Stormy Weather
6/18: Nostalgia
To access "Today" columns from previous weeks, click "Archives" below.