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Merry Fracking Christmas, Governor Quinn
Elves erected a fracking well on Governor Pat Quinn's lawn earlier today in recognition of his enthusiastic advocacy for launching an Illinois fracking boom. No more artificial green for Quinn this...
View ArticleEven a Monkey Wouldn't Allow Fracking. Public Comments from Effingham, IL.
On a dark and foggy night, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources held a public hearing in Effingham to take comments on proposed fracking regulation. It was less well attended than other...
View ArticleThese Rules Won't Make Fracking Safe! More Public Comments From Effingham, IL.
I finally have all the video up from the Effingham public comment hearing on Illinois' proposed fracking rules. Below are the five videos I haven't already posted, and at the end is a playlist of all...
View Article"We are strong and we're here to fight!" Fracking comments from Decatur and...
Since I posted video of the other Illinois fracking hearings I thought I'd do one more for the Decatur and Carbondale hearings. The sound is poor on most of my video from Decatur so I'm only posting...
View ArticleWill Illinois Ban Fracking After Disaster Strikes Or Before?
An Illinois ban on fracking is inevitable. The question is whether it will happen before or after a major fracking disaster.The public comment period on Illinois' draft regulations ended January 3 with...
View ArticleFavorite Comments from the Petition to Ban Fracking in Illinois
The MoveOn.org Fracking Fighter petition to ban fracking in Illinois got off to a fast start! It's just shy of the first 500 signatures. The comments people add are fun to read so here are some of my...
View ArticleVideo: Why Illinois Regulation Won't Make Fracking Safe
A disturbing new video of poisoned water, leaking oil rigs, and lax enforcement at Illinois oil wells highlights why proposed fracking regulation won't protect the state's environment or people. The...
View ArticleIllinois Mine Safety Head Took Thousands in Campaign Contributions from Coal...
Tony Mayville is a candidate for State Representative in southern Illinois and Chairman of the Washington County Democratic Party. He has also supervised the Mine Safety division and served as acting...
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Pat Quinn Gets Fracking Valentine
Cupid delivered a Valentine's Day message about fracking to Governor Pat Quinn.Rising Tide Chicago posted video and pictures of Cupid's visit to Quinn's office with the message that the relationship...
View ArticleDemocratic Congressional Candidates Callis, Gollin, Green Talk Climate...
The three Democrats running in Illinois' 13th Congressional district primary recently answered my questions about climate change and energy issues. It's one of the hottest Congressional races in the...
View ArticleIllinois Coal Campaign Cash Scandal Reveals Culture of Corruption
The Chris Cline coal campaign contribution scandal has grown bigger than I ever expected. CoalGate is getting wide press coverage and resulted in a second acting director of Mines & Minerals being...
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Over 5,000 Ask Illinois Attorney General to Investigate Permit at Peabody...
Over 5,000 people signed a CREDO mobile petition in just a few days asking Attorney General Lisa Madigan to halt logging and review the permit for a Peabody Strip Mine near Equality, Illinois. The...
View ArticleAn Environmental Justice Agenda from Illinois Coal & Fracking Fighters
Illinois is facing an extraction crisis. Expanded coal mining and the looming threat of fracking will create an unprecedented two-pronged threat to southern and central Illinois. Grassroots groups on...
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How Much Fracking Will Remain Unregulated in Illinois?
Fracking has begun in Illinois. Governor Pat Quinn's Department of Natural Resources issued a permit for a test well at a site where oil fracking is planned. The well isn't subject to Illinois fracking...
View ArticleOil Interests Want Illinois To Frack for the Children
In what may be the most shameless in a long line of dishonest appeals, the Illinois oil industry is now asking us to start fracking for the children.The oil industry propaganda website, Energy In Depth...
View ArticleHarry Truman, Obama and Thomas Frank's Disillusionment
Thomas Frank has an interesting column in Salon that typifies the cynical view of Obama by speculating what his Presidential library might look like.Republicans in Congress want to make sure President...
View ArticleIllinois Newspaper Gives Up On Journalism, Bends Over For Fracking Industry
The Southern Illinoisan has a long running competition with the Belleville News-Democrat over which Illinois newspaper has the strongest bias in favor of the coal industry. So I was pleasantly...
View ArticleWho Are The Top Five Fossil Fools in Illinois Politics?
Illinois may be more famous for imprisoned Governors, but as a coal state struggling with its energy future, some of our politicians have wacky things to say about fossil fuels. With the threatened...
View ArticleFracking Industry Uses Tobacco Playbook to Defend Birth Defects
Bloomberg News reviews studies on the link between birth defects and living near fracking sites. It's compelling. Multiple studies show increased rates of congenital heart defects, low birth weight,...
View ArticleProtests, activism, the NYC climate rally, and why big greens can't stop...
The trouble with letting television tell the story of our recent history is that it tends to overemphasize events designed for the camera. For example, the made-for-TV version of the civil rights...
View ArticleCongressman Shimkus faces backlash for facebook fracking support
Illinois' most embarrassing Congressman, John Shimkus, faced an outraged backlash for pro-fracking statements he made on facebook. He's already well known as a climate change denier and conspiracy...
View ArticleMike Bost (IL-12) says fracking is safe but environmentalists want people to die
Illinois Republican Congressional candidate Mike Bost has some unusual beliefs about environmentalists and fracking. In a recent radio interview, Bost said about environmentalists:"...if it was up to...
View ArticleWho will be the climate change candidate in 2016?
Will the climate movement have a serious contender for President in 2016? Now's the time to find someone strong on the most urgent crisis of our time and serious about winning the White House.Should...
View ArticleIllinois Wasting Millions on Another Coal-to-Gas Pork Project
The state of Illinois is throwing millions of taxpayer dollars at another coal-to-gas plant just two years after a similar project ended in failure.The Coal Development Fund has so far given Homeland...
View ArticleSouthern Illinois asks legislative committee to reject weak fracking rules
Yesterday Illinois was facing an environmental and economic crisis from fracking that was greenwashed by a Democratic Governor who told us regulation can make it safe. Voters were asked to choose...
View ArticleAll Illinois Democrats have to do for re-election is govern like Democrats
There's a simple lesson for Illinois Democrats from the Tuesday election. If you want to get re-elected as a Democrat in Illinois all you have to do is govern like a liberal Democrat.It's not...
View ArticleIt doesn't pay to be a fossil fuel Democrat on election day
This was a difficult election for Democrats and it was even worse for Democrats still pushing fossil fuels. The Democratic co-chair of the Congressional Coal Caucus lost his seat along with a slew of...
View ArticleClinton shows she's not the climate leader we need
Hillary Clinton did us a favor. At a recent speech to the League of Conservation Voters, Clinton showed that she doesn't understand what it will take to confront the climate crisis and she's unwilling...
View ArticleMedia Bias is 25 Sports Writers and Zero Environment Reporters
Any news outlet that distributes information unflattering to Republicans or views out of step with conservative ideology will be hounded with cries of "liberal media bias." The badgering will continue...
View ArticleAfter release of torture report, the only thing Ted Cruz condemns is Democrats
After reading a report that included descriptions of horrific acts like "forced rectal feeding," the only thing Senator Ted Cruz chose to condemn is Democrats. In a statement on his website he blames...
View ArticleCan Illinois Learn From New York's Victory Against Fracking?
Illinois environmentalists are cheering the spectacular success of the movement to ban fracking in New York. The victory is justifiably spurring reflection on how it was done. What happened in New York...
View ArticleGovernor Rauner's Environment & Energy Adviser Represents Illinois' Worst...
One of Bruce Rauner's first appointments as Governor is a troubling sign for citizens hoping he'll protect the public and environment from toxic pollutants. Rauner's new Policy Adviser for Environment...
View ArticleHappy Birthday Abraham Lincoln: Enemy of the 1%
Happy birthday Abraham Lincoln!When Lincoln anniversaries come around I sometimes enjoy comparing the views of the first Republican president to the Republican party of today. Tax policies offer a...
View ArticleAmerica's Fracking Mayor: Rahm Emanuel
When Rahm Emanuel became mayor, the city of Chicago was making lists of top green cities in America. During the election he pledged support to a community movement aimed at closing the polluting Fisk...
View ArticleIllinois Poll Shows Strong Opposition to Fracking
Nearly half of Illinois voters oppose fracking, according to a new poll by the Simon Institute. The statewide poll reveals 48.6% oppose fracking while only 31.8% believe it should be encouraged, even...
View ArticleClean Energy Election Victory for Illinois' Largest Public Utility
Illinois'largest public utility will now be overseen by a mayor who pledged to keep renewable energy as part of its energy mix.Springfield's Democratic Mayor-elect Jim Langfelder deserves credit for...
View ArticleIllinois Legislators Face Backlash for Coal Mining Bill
Illinois State Senator Andy Manar is getting pushback from constituents after introducing a bill to help the heavily subsidized state coal mining industry.A coal industry lobbyist with Foresight Energy...
View ArticleHillary Clinton is Taking Democrats Backward on Climate Change
When Barack Obama announced his Presidential campaign in Springfield, Illinois he spoke of climate change. Let's be the generation that finally frees America from the tyranny of oil. We can harness...
View ArticleDemocratic Candidates Agree on Climate Science, Differ on Solutions (IL-18)
The two Democrats running to replace Aaron Schock in Illinois' 18th Congressional district supported action on climate change in a recent debate sponsored by several newsorganizations. Both candidates...
View Article"This Changes Everything" Moves Focus to Communities on Fossil Fuel Frontlines
Naomi Klein and Avi Lewis visited Chicago to host a sold out premier showing of their new documentary film, This Changes Everything.I wasn't expecting to enjoy it. I know the issue well. I've seen...
View ArticleBlockade of Chicago Petcoke Facility Calls for Green Jobs Instead of Toxic...
Seven community members and concerned citizens are blockading entrances to the Koch Carbon Transfer Terminal (KCBX) on Chicago's Southeast side.The blockade began at 8am Monday morning. By 9am they...
View ArticleDo you believe Clinton is unaware of top fossil fuel donors?
Hillary Clinton’s opponents in the Democratic primary pledged to not take donations from the fossil fuel industry. It’s an appropriate response to the fossil fuel industry’s tremendous influence in...
View ArticleWho should Sanders pick as a running mate?
Sanders has some work to do to win the Democratic nomination, but for the sake of entertaining ourselves, there’s no harm in wondering who would make a good vice-presidential running mate.And maybe...
View ArticleNever Forget. 2003 State of the Union.
We must never forget that a President exploited the tragedy of 9/11 to spread fear, lies and war in his State of the Union address. Remembering is the only way to keep it from happening...
View ArticleClinton's Lie Shows She's Afraid of Losing Her Strongest Supporters
Why would Hillary Clinton risk lying when lack of honesty and conviction is her biggest perceived weakness among voters? Looking at who she’s lying to answers the question.Hillary Clinton claimed in...
View ArticleClinton Backs Down From Health Care Fight For Second Time in Her Career
For the second time in her career, Hillary Clinton has signaled retreat on her signature issue, health care.During the Democratic debate, Clinton said she wouldn’t fight for the type of single-payer...
View ArticleBill Clinton endorsed Al Gore 44 days before the Iowa caucus. Why hasn't...
Why hasn’t Barack Obama endorsed his former Secretary of State? There’s precedent. Bill Clinton endorsed and was giving speeches for Gore by this point in the 2000 election.There’s no doubt that...
View ArticleHillary Clinton Declared Winner in Advance of Tonight's Debate
Hillary Clinton is being declared the winner by pundits and campaign surrogates in advance of tonight’s debate. “It’s a struggle to keep on top of post-debate spin when Clinton does poorly,” said one...
View ArticleWill Barack Obama Run For Governor of Illinois?
President Obama’s nostalgic speech in Springfield has local Democrats wondering what he has planned after leaving the White House.“I miss you guys,” Obama said during his address in the Illinois...
View ArticleWhat Convicted Governor Rod Blagojevich Taught Me About Hillary Clinton
With primary season at an end, it appears that Democratic delegates won’t come to their senses and nominate a candidate who can unite the party to defeat Trump. Bernie Sanders supporters who listened...
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