Risks of Coal Power Investment

NEW YORK - Coal-fired power plants are among the top emitters of carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas contributing to global warming. A major owner of coal-fired power plants has agreed to let investors in on the financial costs of global warming. NY Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced Thursday that the energy company Dynegy Inc. has agreed to put detailed information in its financial filings on any material business risks posed by the outcry over climate change. That could include warning investors about looming government regulations that might make it more expensive to emit carbon, or the possibility that the company could be sued over pollution.

"You must disclose the risks that you are taking, and when you're building a coal-fired plant, you are truly creating many issues for years to come," Cuomo said. About the disclosure, he said, "It's not just good public policy, it's the law".

The agreement is the second of its type. Xcel Energy made a similar promise to Cuomo's office in August and the attorney general has pressured three other power firms to follow suit: AES Corporation, Dominion Resources and Peabody Energy.

Environmentalists applauded the deal. Former Vice President Al Gore, who appeared alongside Cuomo as he announced the arrangement in Manhattan, called the disclosure requirement "a new model to combat global warming."
The full reports are here and here.

HEAT is On...PBS Tonight

Tonight on PBS: watch HEAT
For years, big business--from oil and coal companies to electric utilities to car manufacturers--has resisted change to environmental policy and stifled the debate over climate change in America and around the globe. Now, facing rising pressure from governments, green groups and investors alike, big business is reshaping its approach to the environment. With the election looming, FRONTLINE producer Martin Smith investigates what some businesses are doing to fend off new regulations and how others are repositioning themselves to prosper in a radically changed world.

Watch on TV tonight at 9pm-11pm, or watch at PBS.org anytime.
Here is a Preview:

Washington Post: Obama for President

Washington Post -- EDITORIAL -- Friday, October 17, 2008
The nominating process this year produced two unusually talented and qualified presidential candidates. There are few public figures we have respected more over the years than Sen. John McCain. Yet it is without ambivalence that we endorse Sen. Barack Obama for president

Mr. Obama is a man of supple intelligence, with a nuanced grasp of complex issues and evident skill at conciliation and consensus-building. At home, we believe, he would respond to the economic crisis with a healthy respect for markets tempered by justified dismay over rising inequality and an understanding of the need for focused regulation.

Mr. Obama's temperament is unlike anything we've seen on the national stage in many years. He is deliberate but not indecisive; eloquent but a master of substance and detail; preternaturally confident but eager to hear opposing points of view. He has inspired millions of voters of diverse ages and races, no small thing in our often divided and cynical country. We think he is the right man for a perilous moment.

The full text of the endorsement at the Washington Post web site, Click HERE.

Many Americans agree with the endorsement. Today, a record crowd of 100,000 people turned out in St. Louis, MO, to hear Senator Obama speak!
A picture is below, and the full text of the speech is HERE.

[click Image to enlarge]

UPDATE: Sunday, Oct.19, 2008 -- Buffalo News -- EDITORIAL
Obama for president
Voters should seize the chance to elect a transformative leader

The only thing we have to fear, a great president once said, is fear itself. Barack Obama is not afraid. Concerned. Alert. Maybe even a little alarmed. But the Democratic candidate for president of the United States is not afraid and, of perhaps even more importance, he does not seek to be elected by making us afraid.

For the full endorsement, visit BuffaloNews.com.

Obama: Smart AND Humorous

Presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama showed that he not only has the intellect that many would love to see reinstated at the White House, he can also deliver a joke with the best of comedians. Obama spoke at the Annual Charity Dinner sponsored by the Al Smith Memorial Foundation in NYC. Obama roasted opponent John McCain (and vice versa), as well as a number of other politicians present. The event provided a great opportunity for Obama to put aside the pressures of the campaign, display his wit and share some laughs with his opponent.

Some of Senator Obama's best lines:
To Al Smith, IV, Obama said: "I obviously never knew your great-grandfather, but from everything Sen. McCain has told me..."

The housing crisis "has been eight times harder on John McCain."

My middle name, it's not what you think. It's actually "Steve."

"There was a point in my life when I started palling around with a pretty ugly crowd.... no-good punks. That's right, I've been a member of the United States Senate."

"Recently one of John's top advisors told the Daily News that if we keep talking about the economy, McCain's going to loose. So tonight, I'd like to talk about the economy."

To hear these lines, and many more, view Part 1 of the Video, below:


Part 2 of the Video is HERE:

McCain's speech is HERE: