Slate's Bizbox
today's blogs: The latest chatter in cyberspace.

The Fall of Mogadishu

By Christopher Beam
Posted Thursday, Dec. 28, 2006, at 5:37 PM ET

(Continued from page 1)

Liberal blog jobsanger considers the move a deliberate act of aggression: "I have to wonder if Israel really wants peace with the Palestinian people. Israel tries to present itself as the innocent party in the Mideast conflict, even as it is making plans to violate international law."

Pro-Israel blog Smooth Stone makes the case that "settlements are not a violation of international law," citing Jordan and Egypt's previous occupations of the West Bank and Gaza and delving into the terminology of "disputed" vs. "occupied" territories.

Read more about the new Israeli settlements.

Bye polar?: The Bush administration's Interior Department today proposed putting polar bears on the endangered species list as rising temperatures cause Artic ice to melt. Bloggers wonder whether this amounts to an admission of global warming.

Craig Mackintosh, blogging for the environmental online community Celsias, urges readers not to get too excited: "[A]ll the Bush Administration has done is accept the 'proposal' to designate the polar bear as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The administration now has an entire year to study the proposal—and could potentially yet deny the bear his rightful place on the list."

Ken Shreiner at Shreiner's Media Landscape suspects that "looks here might be deceiving," given Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne's history on the environment: "Kempthorne still says oil and gas exploration in Alaska should not stop. In the same statement, Kempthorne says: '(W)e are concerned the polar bear's habitat may literally be melting,' followed by, 'It's very clear that the oil and gas activity in that area does not pose a threat to the polar bears.' Huh? Dirk the Jerk apparently doesn't understand what CAUSES global warming."

At Obsidian Wings, ethics professor "hilzoy" collects details of polar bears' decline and urges Bush to act fast: [W]hile we can try to take steps as individuals, there are steps (like constructing a well-designed system of carbon caps and credits) that require government action. It is, to my mind, appalling that we have wasted so much of what little time remains to us to deal with this problem."

Read more about polar bears.

VIEW AS SINGLE PAGE
Print This ArticlePRINTDiscuss this in The FrayDISCUSSEmail to a FriendE-MAIL
Share on FacebookPost to MySpace!Share with MixxDigg ThisShare with RedditShare with del.icio.usShare with FurlShare with Ma.gnolia.comShare with SphereShare with Stumble Upon
Christopher Beam is a Slate political reporter.
Questions or comments? Please e-mail . (Reader e-mail may be quoted by name unless author stipulates otherwise.)
Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum
What did you think of this article?
POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES
Washington Post
The Washington Post
OPINIONS
The Great Debate
Marcus | Forget Biden. I'd like to see McCain face off against Palin.
Toles: Another McCain SurpriseStumped: Where's Palin's Baby?