On the pretense of teaching critical thinking skills and promoting “balance” the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is promoting an “Environmental Literacy Act,” which is a thinly disguised bill to support climate denial. ALEC has been a very powerful lobbying organization for corporate energy. However, most recently companies have been withdrawing from ALEC. Corporations that have terminated membership include Amazon, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Kraft, Wendy’s, Mars, Inc., Arizona Public Service, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Scantron, The National Association of Charter School Authorizers, Kaplan, Procter & Gamble, Yum! Brands,five Pennsylvania legislators, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Reed Elsevier, American Traffic Solutions,Intuit, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Kudos to these companies for recognizing the urgency of mitigating and adapting to climate change rather than continuing to argue over the very sound science. Skepticism is productive in any science. Denial is not.

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• Source: Alternet

There is “capitalism” and then there is “really existing capitalism.” The term “capitalism” is commonly used to refer to the U.S. economic system, with substantial state intervention ranging from subsidies for creative innovation to the “too-big-to-fail” government insurance policy for banks.

Read more at: www.alternet.org

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• Source: Motherjones

Some plastics are worse than others for the marine life that accidentally or intentionally eat them. That’s because not only are the plastics themselves toxic but some also act as sponges for other toxins. Unfortunately the most commonly produced plastics also absorb the most chemicals.

Read more at: www.motherjones.com

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• Source: Earthisland

Reduced Freshwater Inflow to Florida Panhandle to Blame for Oyster Die-off Low catch adds to woes of oyestermen struggling to stay afloat in a tough economy When oystermen in Apalachicola Bay pulled up bags from their winter harvest grounds last year, 95 percent of the oysters were already dead.

Read more at: www.earthisland.org