wall street journal

For 49 weeks, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse has spoken on the Senate floor about climate change. Last week he spoke about “manufactured doubt” and “the role of the media in all of this,” he said.

“We count in America on the press to report faithfully and accurately our changing world and to awaken the public to apparent mounting threats.”

“But what happens when the press fails in this role? What happens when the press stops being independent, when it becomes the bedfellow of special interests? …Who will watch the watchmen themselves becomes then the question? The press are supposed to scrutinize all of us, who watches them when they fail at their independent role?”

Speaking of a “very specific example,” Sheldon takes aim at the Wall Street Journal editorial page and lays out what he calls the climate “deniers playbook.” He says the editorial page misinforms readers about “harmful industrial pollutants … all to help the industry to help the campaign to manufacture doubt and delay action.”

“The pattern is a simple one: deny the science, question the motives, exaggerate the costs. Call it the polluting industry 1,2,3.”

Worth watching:

downtown from providence river — Downtown Providence from the Providence River. (Photo by Bob Plain)

The Democratic National Convention kicks off tonight and the question Rhode Island should be asking when will Gov. Chafee addresses the convention is not when will our independent governor become a Democrat; the question is why would he. Two reasons he won’t: Angel Taveras and Gina Raimondo. Great piece by Dan McGowan.

Speaking of the convention, here’s a link to the Democrats platform for 2012.

The Wall Street Journal editorial board, one of the most conservative groups of writers around, thinks more Democrats should act like Gina Raimondo. Or, in other words, they think more Democrats should act like Republicans. In other news, the editorial board at The Granma (the state run newspaper in Cuba) thinks Democrats should act more like Hugo Chavez.

Forget, for a moment, Paul Ryan’s draconian economic plan that would crush the middle class or his bigoted social policies, the worst thing about the GOP candidate for vice president is that he’s apparently a giant liar. Here’s a list of some of his bigger fibs from the convention.

How did Central Falls fare in bankruptcy? From Reuters: “…the plan for Central Falls reassured the credit markets, but scarred the city. The smallest city in Rhode Island and the only one ever to file for bankruptcy will emerge with powerless elected officials, property owners facing tax hikes every year and retired public employees irate about having their pensions slashed.” Bond investors 1, local residents 0.

More on the North Kingstown strike to fight for economic justice for the school janitors: “It’s an understatement to say that the pressure is building. But it’s hard to avoid the metaphor when you see the bursts of steam. You can still hear the lid rattling, and you know it’s going to erupt. The only question is when. That latest burst of steam in Rhode Island came on August 28, when North Kingstown Schools did not open on schedule.”

It’s organized labor vs. Super PACs in swing state Ohio. The presidency might hang in the balance.

On this day in 1886, Geronimo surrenders.

Tag: wall street journal

Sheldon takes aim at Wall St. Journal editorial page

Progress Report: Chafee Not a Democrat, Nor Should He Be; WSJ Loves Raimondo, Bond Markets: 1, Central Falls: 0