How long?

El Cabrero's beloved state of West Virginia is one of several places in which the ruling class has a vested interest in denying or minimizing the reality of climate change. I have a feeling that's going to get a bit harder to do as we witness more and more extreme weather events around the world.

I was as shocked as anyone watching the devastation wrought by the giant tornado that hit Joplin, Missouri, and the one before that as well. It's not just human empathy; it's also the uneasy feeling of having dodged one bullet when you know that another one out there might have your name on it.

Still, I wonder what it will take to goad the US into meaningful climate action...and whether it will be too late to do any good...and how people in the future will look at those who tried to block it.

One final thought. I know a person who likes to make jokes about global warming. He has a beautiful child. I have so far restrained my self from saying something like, "Why don't you write that down in a book and give it to your kid and let her see how funny it looks in a few years."


THE RYAN PLAN to gut Medicare has hit a snag or two lately. The fight is about to shift to Medicaid.

JUST CHECK IT. Coal related stories are coming fast and furious in the wake of the publication of the report on the Upper Big Branch mine disaster. The best way to keep up is to keep checking Ken Ward's Coal Tattoo blog.

SCARY LOOKING ANCIENT SEA MONSTER UPDATE here.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED