Blog Feed: Ecopolitical Economics

The latest Public Policy Polling poll of Colorado, released on October 25, shows that Coloradans support Amendment 64 by a 10-point margin and that support is trending upward. According to PPP: Colorado’s amendment to legalize marijuana continu

Does it strike anyone else as odd that we use fresh water to flush our toilets?

Published on 2012-09-03 23:13:56

People who have lived in Colorado their entire lives, such as myself, often take the water resources in this state for granted. We water our lawns at noon, run the tap while we’re waiting for the water to cool down or while we’re brushing our teeth, and generally take all the fresh water we use [...]

I’m still here, I promise!

Published on 2012-09-03 22:22:54

Hi everyone. If you follow this blog, you’ve probably realized that I haven’t posted anything for close to three weeks now. This is the longest I’ve ever gone without writing a post, and I’m sorry to keep you all hanging. I started my graduate program in Natural Resource and Environmental Economics two weeks ago, and [...]

Michael Wara, climate scientist-turned-legal scholar, interviewed by Jens Lund Snee

Published on 2012-08-19 15:16:42

I just listened to my brother, Jens Lund Snee, interview Stanford Professor Michael Wara, a climate scientist-turned-legal scholar, for Standford’s Generation Anthropocene podcast. See below for Michael’s and Jens’ backgrounds, and for notable quotes from the interview. Click the link below to listen to the full interview. Michael Wara Interview

Yesterday’s Fox News, CNN polls show Obama with significant lead

Published on 2012-08-10 13:41:36

Colorado PPP poll shows growing support for legal, regulated marijuana

Published on 2012-08-09 01:52:23

According to today’s Public Policy Poll of Colorado, support for Amendment 64 has grown since the June poll. The amendment, which will be on the Colorado ballot in November, proposes to legalize and regulate growth, possession, and usage of marijuana. Support has grown by five points to 47-38 from 46-42 in June this year. Independents [...]

Romney Campaign: Wind energy subsidies are excessive government interference in the marketplace. Oil subsidies are fine, though.

Published on 2012-08-08 16:39:09

I admit I’m a little behind the curve on this one, but it was just too ridiculous to pass up.

Can Wikipedia tell us who Romney’s VP pick is? [Update 2]

Published on 2012-08-07 11:47:14

Update: As of 1:20PM ET, the well-cited ”Controvercies” section has been restored to Sen. Portman’s page – see revision history. There’s an interesting article on NPR.org today titled “One Clue To Romney’s Veep Pick: Whose Page Is Getting The Most Edits?“ In the article, NPR notes, In 2008, as The Washington Post wrote at the time, [...]

Karl Rove’s latest ad is cynical, even for him

Published on 2012-08-02 01:31:02

Karl Rove’s super PAC, American Crossroads, has just released a new add claiming “this is the worst economic recovery America has ever had.” I can think of at least one that was worse. This is cynical, even for him. But I guess this is the sort of advertising you get when you allow unlimited, anonymous [...]

Your PAC’s dollars at work: In 40 minutes of Olympics coverage, four times as many Romney ads

Published on 2012-08-01 12:40:08

I live in Colorado, which is a swing state in the upcoming Presidential Election. On Friday, I was watching the Olympics opening ceremony with a friend, and we were amazed at how many pro-Romney ads we saw during the ceremony. So yesterday (July 31), I decided to count how many pro-Romney and pr0-Obama ads were run [...]

Romney’s conspicuous silence on Bachmann’s allegations against Huma Abedin

Published on 2012-07-25 10:37:33

Last week, US Representative Michele Bachmann’s penchant for offensive absurdity exploded into a national media circus when she and four other representatives alleged that Huma Abedin, aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, had infiltrated the State Department on behalf of the Muslim Brotherhood. Probably noticing how dangerous such allegations are for [...]

[Update] Michele Bachmann and the Tea Party: they’re making a list, and checking it twice; gonna find out who’s ‘Muslim or nice’

Published on 2012-07-19 16:12:36

Update: John McCain’s speech defending Huma Abedin added to bottom of post. Last week, Senator Michele Bachmann (R-MN) and four other members of Congress (Reps. Gohmert R-TX, Franks R-AZ, Rooney R-FL, and Westmoreland R-GA, who, with the exception of Rooney, are all members of the Tea Party Caucus) sent a letter to top US intelligence and [...]

If green energy subsidies are communist, does that mean Mitt Romney is too?

Published on 2012-07-17 17:03:17

This morning, I had CNN’s Starting Point on in the background as I got ready for work. On it was an interview between CNN’s Soledad O’Brien and one of Mitt Romney’s top surrogates, Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin. I usually tune interviews like this out, because of the nuttiness that is increasingly common from those [...]

2012 Texas Republican platform suspiciously resembles Ron Paul’s

Published on 2012-07-10 12:25:06

Recently, it’s been next to impossible to browse news sites without running across a story about the 2012 Texas Republican Party platform’s Orwellian opposition to the teaching of critical thinking in schools. While peculiar, that’s far from the only interesting aspect of the Texas GOP platform. As I read through the platform, I was struck [...]

Why don’t we have buildings like this in Denver?

Published on 2012-07-06 10:30:42

I was visiting Portland, Oregon, last weekend, and I came across this building while wandering around near Powell’s Books. This is the Indigo Tower at Twelve West in Portland’s West End. This building is certified LEED Platinum, and you can see wind turbines and solar panels on the roof. Why don’t we have buildings like this [...]

Fox News poll shows large Obama lead overall and on economy

Published on 2012-06-28 22:39:03

A recent Fox News poll of 912 registered voters conducted on June 24-26, before the Supreme Court’s healthcare ruling, shows President Barack Obama leading challenger Mitt Romney 45-40, with 10% undecided. In addition, the poll found that 47% of respondents thought Obama “will do a better job looking out for you and your family during tough [...]

Supreme Court upholds Obamacare; Republicans distort

Published on 2012-06-28 12:38:33

As everyone is no doubt aware by now, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld nearly every provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) earlier today in a 5-4 ruling. Despite many predictions to the contrary, the Supreme Court upheld the individual mandate. The Court ruled that the mandate is constitutional as a [...]

Coloradans overwhelmingly support legal, regulated marijuana

Published on 2012-06-20 18:35:34

The recent June 9 Rasmussen Reports poll, released four months before the election, shows that 61% of likely voters in Colorado support Amendment 64, also known as the Regulate Marijuana like Alcohol Act of 2012. Only 27% of Colorado likely voters are opposed, while 12% are undecided. To put this in perspective, a poll conducted [...]

Is there any place for natural gas in a renewable energy economy?

Published on 2012-06-15 18:19:16

I read in the Denver Post earlier that the head of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Dan Arvizu, said at a conference recently, “if we don’t start phasing out even a scale-up of natural gas by 2040, 2050, we will not achieve any of the carbon loading goals we have set for ourselves. On a related [...]

New Romney campaign slogan? “He puts his money where his heart lies”

Published on 2012-06-08 15:06:21

I got an email from the Romney campaign last night, crowing about how the Romney campaign out-raised the Obama campaign for the first time in May. There was one part that I thought was especially fitting. I’ve suppressed my gag reflex and copied the email below: Friend, Thanks to supporters like you, the Romney Victory effort has [...]

The only reason Walker won the Wisconsin recall election

Published on 2012-06-05 22:28:00

The New York Times reports that Governor Scott Walker and Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch survived the recall election. Wisconsin Speaker of the House Jeff Fitzgerald has also survived. As I write this, no other results have been announced. The political left and right will look high and low for ways to spin these results to [...]

If Solyndra is ‘corporate cronyism’, what was Silverado?

Published on 2012-06-04 19:53:24

On Thursday, May 31, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney stood outside the abandoned headquarters of Solyndra, a bankrupt solar company that was backed by some $500 million in federal loan guarantees, and said, “free enterprise to the president means taking money from the taxpayers and giving it freely to his friends.” What he didn’t say [...]

Drone strikes: what have they accomplished?

Published on 2012-06-01 16:48:16

Earlier today, I read “Learning to Kill: President Obama’s Evolution in the War on Terror“, a post by fellow blogger and Coloradan newsofthetimes that really got me thinking. The post below was originally going to be a comment on that blog, but it got a little long, so I decided to put it here instead. I’ll admit [...]

Is the Gallup environmental survey misleading?

Published on 2012-05-31 21:04:10

The Gallup annual environmental survey, released March 29, 2012, shows that 49% of Americans prioritize economic growth over environmental protection, while 41% of Americans value protection over growth. That’s an 8-point margin in favor of growth, down from last year’s 18-point margin. During times of economic hardship it’s understandable that people, especially those that are [...]

Sunshine Award – what did I do to earn this?

Published on 2012-05-29 20:36:25

I’m a brand new blogger (literally, I haven’t even been blogging for a month), so imagine my surprise when I was nominated for the Sunshine Award by fellow blogger and Coloradan newsofthetimes, whose posts are thoughtful, informed, powerful, and beautiful. Please take a look at her blog when you get a second. I feel incredibly [...]

Poll shows Obama with 4-point lead in Colorado; 27-point lead among independents

Published on 2012-05-29 12:55:24

According to the May 29 Project New America/Keating poll, the latest presidential polling done in Colorado, President Obama currently has a 4-point lead over Mitt Romney in Colorado. Based on the 4% margin of error, this is a statistical tie. The most surprising aspect of the poll was that the significant lead the President has among independent [...]

Mr. Romney, we’ve seen your budget proposals, “and we’re not stupid”

Published on 2012-05-24 16:30:58

When discussing Mitt Romney’s record on the economy, one of the most important things to examine is his budget. What are his plans for the federal budget if he’s elected? How does he intend to address the stagnating economy or reduce the deficit? Is it possible for Romney to bring back the budget surplus last [...]

“Let Detroit Go Bankrupt”: Provocative, but what was Romney actually saying?

Published on 2012-05-22 19:23:01

I know I’m not the first person to write about Mitt Romney’s opinion regarding the auto bailouts, and I’m sure I won’t be the last. In the interest of an informed political discussion, I thought we might benefit from a review of what Romney actually wrote in his 2008 New York Times op-ed “Let Detroit [...]

Mr. Romney, we’ve seen your record on the economy, “and we’re not stupid”. Part 1 – Foreclosure

Published on 2012-05-21 19:28:32

In the latest USA Today/Gallup poll, conducted May 10-May 13, 55% of respondents say that the economy will be better in a year if Mitt Romney is elected president, compared to 46% who say the economy will be better if President Obama is reelected. These results are far from surprising. Nearly every poll since Romney [...]

Mr. Romney, we’ve seen your record on the economy, “and we’re not stupid”. Part 1 – Foreclosure

Published on 2012-05-21 19:28:32

Fossil fuel subsidies: bad for taxpayers, bad for the economy

Published on 2012-05-19 09:01:51

In 2011, the top five oil companies (BP, Chevron, Conoco, Shell, Exxon Mobil) posted a combined profit of $137 billion. In the first quarter of 2012, these companies earned a combined $33.5 billion. These windfall profits were enough to put Exxon and Chevron in the first and second spots, respectively, of the Fortune 500 most [...]

Fossil fuel subsidies: bad for taxpayers, bad for the economy

Published on 2012-05-19 09:01:51

Latest Fox News poll shows Obama with significant lead

Published on 2012-05-17 08:54:41

Even though the last post I wrote about polling basically said that we should ignore the national polls and really only pay attention to the state polls, I just found an interesting tidbit that I would like to share with the class. The 5/16 Fox News poll of 913 registered voters showed President Obama leading [...]

Latest Fox News poll shows Obama with significant lead

Published on 2012-05-17 08:54:41

Latest Fox News poll shows Obama with significant lead

Published on 2012-05-17 08:54:41

National presidential polling – it may not be as close as it seems

Published on 2012-05-15 17:42:12

Political campaigns and the news media always make a fuss about the latest national polling numbers. Just look at today’s release by the Obama campaign complaining about the methodology of the latest CBS News/NYT poll. But is it really such a big deal? These polls generally indicate which presidential candidate has the support of more [...]

National presidential polling – it may not be as close as it seems

Published on 2012-05-15 17:42:12

Update: The RCP average today (5/16) now shows Romney leading Obama by 1 point in Wisconsin. Rasmussen showed Romney up by 8, but PPP showed Obama up by 1, so it could be a little skewed. Go figure. Political campaigns and the news media always make a fuss about the latest national polling numbers. Just look [...]

National presidential polling – it may not be as close as it seems

Published on 2012-05-15 17:42:12

Speaker McNulty didn’t just betray same-sex couples, he betrayed Colorado

Published on 2012-05-14 23:21:53

Earlier today, Colorado Speaker of the House Frank McNulty and Republican House leadership defied the will of their own party and the will of most Coloradans by killing the civil unions bill. When the bill was first introduced in the House, McNulty promised it would get a fair hearing. Senate Bill 2, allowing civil unions, [...]

Speaker McNulty didn’t just betray same-sex couples, he betrayed Colorado

Published on 2012-05-14 23:21:53

Speaker McNulty didn’t just betray same-sex couples, he betrayed Colorado

Published on 2012-05-14 23:21:53

10 cheap (and easy) ways to reduce summer energy costs

Published on 2012-05-14 17:59:21

This spring, it seems like every time I turn on the news there’s a story about how temperature records are being set all over the world. If this trend continues (and I’m sure it will) record breaking summer temperatures will undoubtedly take a toll on your wallet. There are plenty of expensive ways available to [...]

11 cheap (and easy) ways to reduce summer energy costs

Published on 2012-05-14 17:59:21

11 cheap (and easy) ways to reduce summer energy costs

Published on 2012-05-14 17:59:21

What is HAMP and why do we need it?

Published on 2012-05-12 19:56:11

About two weeks ago, one of my co-workers brought up the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), complaining about how it was passed by the Obama administration merely as a populist, partisan trick. According to this co-worker, HAMP has no practical purpose other than to make the President appear supportive of the many unlucky homeowners who [...]

How HAMP will help get the economy back on track

Published on 2012-05-12 19:56:11

How HAMP will help get the economy back on track

Published on 2012-05-12 19:56:11

Romney’s Apology: Evidence of a Malleable Relationship with History

Published on 2012-05-12 00:53:43

Anyone who has turned on the TV or the computer in the past two days has probably heard about the Romney bullying story originally reported in the Washington Post. For anyone who doesn’t know, the article was an in-depth investigative piece about the “pranks” Mitt Romney pulled when he was in high school. The most glaring [...]

Romney’s Apology: Evidence of a Malleable Relationship with History

Published on 2012-05-12 00:53:43

Romney’s Apology: Evidence of a Malleable Relationship with History

Published on 2012-05-12 00:53:43

Why do Rasmussen Reports and Gallup have such different poll results?

Published on 2012-05-11 00:27:40

Anyone following the 2012 election polling has undoubtedly noticed that there has been a significant divergence between the results of some of the more notable polls released recently. As of today, Rasmussen Reports is showing an approval rating of 44 percent for President Obama and 55 percent disapproval, while Gallup shows a 49/45 approval/disapproval rating. [...]

Why do Rasmussen Reports and Gallup have such different poll results?

Published on 2012-05-11 00:27:40

Why do Rasmussen Reports and Gallup have such different poll results?

Published on 2012-05-11 00:27:40

Economics, Politics, and the Environment

Published on 2012-05-10 00:11:23

Welcome to Economics, Politics, and the Environment, where I will pontificate at length on issues that I think are important. You have no doubt already guessed what many of those topics will be. A little about me: I have a bachelor’s degree in Economics with a minor in environmental science and (almost) one in politics. [...]

Economics, Politics, and the Environment

Published on 2012-05-10 00:11:23

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