Whales À la carte

June 24th, 2010 | Bulldog Blog | | Leave a comment
Photo: AFP
Photo: AFP
Although courageous diners sink their teeth into a variety of sea creatures, most sushi menus in the U.S. are limited: crispy eel, tuna nigiri, salmon sashimi – but what about the Moby Dick roll? Earlier this year, investigators discovered a Santa Monica Japanese restaurant, the Hump, was serving an endangered whale, Sei, as sushi after agents and environmentalists pocketed the meat for testing, says an article in The New York Times. And due to discord among members of the International Whaling Commission, some people wonder if these mammals will continue to make it to the plates of sushi lovers.

The International Whaling Commission, the 88-member government agency responsible for conserving whale stocks, met this week in Morocco. The agency considered lifting a nearly 25-year ban on commercial whaling – a compromise that some proponents argued would save the lives of whales.
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America’s Secret Prisons

June 21st, 2010 | Bulldog Blog | | Leave a comment

Communications Management Units (CMUs), nicknamed “Little Gitmo” by the inmates for the resemblance to the Guantanamo Bay prison, are coming under criticism for their controversial policies, constitutionality, and secrecy. Prisoners assigned to these units cover a broad interpretation of the “War on Terror,” from Muslim men thought to have extreme leanings to radical environmental and animal rights activists.

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California plastic carryout bag ban movement gaining ground

June 16th, 2010 | Bulldog Blog | | One comment
Photo: Zainub / Flickr
Photo: Zainub / Flickr
Earlier this month, the California State Assembly passed a bill that attempts to scale back the enormous quantity of plastic carryout bags that are provided to customers every year. In an effort to reduce waste and encourage customers to bring their own reusable shopping bags, Assembly Bill 1998 prohibits supermarkets and pharmacies from providing single-use carryout bags effective January 1, 2012. It extends the ban to convenience stores and other outlets where groceries are sold a year and a half later. Stores may offer recyclable paper bags for a minimum fee of five cents. AB 1998 is now awaiting consideration in the state Senate.

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Geoengineering Unmonitored

June 9th, 2010 | Bulldog Blog | | One comment
Photo: SketchUpper / wikicommons
Photo: SketchUpper / wikicommons
In our hurried activities, most of us don’t look up at the sky like we used to as children, back when we might have tried to decipher what animal each fluffy white cloud resembled. But most of us have a clear memory of what the sky looked like: sometimes piercingly white cumulus clouds against a crystal blue backdrop or thin, wispy cirrus clouds of ice crystals whisked across the sky haphazardly or the rounded mounds of altocumulus, a staccato of light and shade with only peek-a-boo blue.

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