Dr. James E. Hansen, a physicist by training, directs the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies. On June 23rd, he addressed the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming; we present his full testimony here. If Hansen's remarks don't get your attention, nothing will.

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory renamed the building which houses the operational staff for the Very Large Array (VLA) radio telescope in honor of retiring NM Senator Pete Domenici. The renaming has not been without its share of controversy. Full video report here.

In the democratic primary for district 2, Las Cruces oil man, Harry Teague, is blanketing the airwaves with ads due to his largely self-funded political campaign (he's loaned his campaign over $700,000 of his own money). Bill McCamley, on the other hand, is getting by on the donations of regular folks making small contributions. While oil money can buy lots of things: fancy cars, fancy houses, and fancy clothes, one thing it should NOT be able to buy is a congressional seat.

With gas rapidly approaching $4.00 per gallon, this is a good time to start thinking about solutions to our oil addiction. Unfortunately, many so-called conservatives are now spouting "solutions" that do nothing to actually address the root of the problem, but instead serve only to further enrich the oil companies and keep us dependent on a commodity that funnels money to dictatorial (and unfriendly) regimes while simultaneously polluting the very air that we and our children breathe.

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), within the U.S. Department of Energy, will come through New Mexico next week to hold public hearings on possible new nuclear weapons production in New Mexico, despite the fact that the U.S. signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty in 1970 (re-ratified in 1995), which obligates the U.S. to disarm. The hearing in Socorro will be Monday, March 10th, at Macey Center, from 6 to 10 p.m.

An old expression asserts that sometimes the only way to get the attention of even the most beloved family mule is to whack him up alongside the head with a board. I’m extending the adage to the mule’s sire, the donkey, and adding a dose of tough love to arrive at a message for that political party we Greens usually consider the lesser of two evils.

A controversy has erupted over an article attributed to Congressman Steve Pearce, of New Mexico's district 2, which ran recently in Socorro's local paper, El Defensor Chieftain. The article also seems to have appeared in Socorro's other local paper, the Mountain Mail. Ironically entitled "Straight Talk", the article was found to be an almost word for word rip-off of a piece published on the web site of the Heritage Foundation, a right-wing "think tank" which espouses many anti-environmental and pro-business positions.

As part of our coverage of the plagiarism scandal involving Congressman Steve Pearce (Republican District 2), we provide links to citizens' comments on this issue. These are letters to the editor regarding Congressman Steve Pearce's plagiarism which appeared in El Defensor Chieftain around the time of the scandal.

Note: these are links to El Defensor Chieftain's editorial pages. In many cases, you will have to scroll through other (unrelated) letters to find the ones related to the plagiarism incident.

New Mexico's Representative for District 2, Congressman Steve Pearce, recently voted in favor of the controversial House energy bill. Critics of the bill argue that it puts too much emphasis on the production of fossil fuels and not enough emphasis on conservation and renewable energy, while proponents of the bill argue that the US should develop all available resources to offset the high price of gasoline. Correspondent S.L. Harrington caught up with Congressman Pearce recently for a phone interview, where they discussed energy policy.

New Mexico's Representative for District 2, Republican Congressman Steve Pearce, recently initiated a state-wide "listening tour" to gauge interest in his chosen stance in favor of President Bush's controversial initiative to privatize Social Security. Critics of the privatization argue that it is a dangerous proposal which will leave many citizens without a safety net when they retire, while proponents of the privatization idea suggest it is a way to alleviate fiscal problems looming on the horizon for the program. Correspondent S.L.