Steve Cohens Blog

I made the mistake of watching some of the T.V. coverage of the Presidential campaign last night—I guess that's what happens when the Yankees have the night off and I'm too tired to do anything else. Listening to the commentary is mind numbing and most of it ranges from misleading to out and out inaccurate.

As I watched these candidates move around in the security and media bubble of the modern Presidential campaign I was thinking that they must feel as if they've been abducted by aliens. Poor Barack Obama-he's going to travel to Iraq so he mentioned that while he was there he might listen to what the military folks have to say.  read more »

On March 17, 2008, Lieutenant Governor and former State Senator David Paterson was suddenly placed in the center of Albany's storm and assumed the Office of Governor. While it may seem premature, we decided to review the environmental record of his first 100 days. New York State's League of Conservation Voters is known for their thoughtful representation of the electorate's interest, so we asked them for their view of our accidental governor's environmental record. Marcia Bystryn, president of the New York League of Conservation Voters observed that:

"In the course of his first 100 days, Governor Paterson has shown that he can work effectively with the Legislature and that he understands the importance of an environmental agenda.  read more »

I'm on vacation this week, enjoying the sun, surf and sand here in Long Beach New York, where we've had a small summer home since 1987. I'm on the West End of town, where the biggest problem over the last few years has been the proliferation of second and third cars and the difficulty of parking on the narrow and crowded streets: Until this summer. This summer the big news is the price of gasoline. In the last year and a half, the price of gasoline has doubled. In January, 2007 gasoline was less than $2.20 a gallon, today it is well over $4.  read more »

According to the June 25, 2008 edition of the DesMoines Register, many of the people who have lost their homes and farms in the recent flooding there do not have federal flood insurance:

"David Maurstab, an assistant administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency whose duties include overseeing the flood insurance program, conceded Tuesday that few Iowans have purchased coverage. FEMA reported that as of September 2007 there were 10,649 policies in force statewide.

"That is troubling to all of us," Maurstab said. "We have a remarkably low number of insureds in the affected areas."

The state of Iowa is in excellent fiscal condition and has a $620 million reserve fund that the state government appears reluctant to send on emergency relief.  read more »

There is a small town America that is idealized in myth and literature, but even in the internet age thrives outside our largest cities. In these places community spirit and what used to be called civic virtue (or values) is nurtured through local schools, churches, little league, scouts and a wide variety of community based organizations. The force of economic power is as present in these places as in large cities, and I do not want to leave the impression that all is light and joy in these places, but community is always present and taken for granted.

Here in New York City community must be nurtured in the face of big anonymous institutions and the speed and intensity that is always present and taken for granted.  read more »

In 1990, the first Bush Administration banned off shore oil exploration and yesterday the current President Bush decided to ask Congress to end the ban. This is the same policy now being pushed by Senator John McCain in his effort to show he cares about rising gasoline prices. According to Sheryl Stolberg in The New York Times on June 18:

The Congressional moratorium was first enacted in 1982, and has been renewed every year since. It prohibits oil and gas leasing on most of the outer continental shelf, 3 miles to 200 miles offshore. Since 1990, it has been supplemented by the first President Bush’s executive order, which directed the  read more »

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The good news is that more and more people want to reduce their ecological footprint- the impact that we all have on this fragile and interconnected planet. The bad news is that some companies care much more about looking green than being green. Companies have learned that people care about the environment and are willing to pay for green goods and services. Advertisers and marketing folks are busy painting the world green. Some of this is real and useful and some of this can be silly or even deceptive. Fortunately consumer groups and the Federal Trade Commission have started to pay attention to corporate claims of sustainability.  read more »

When congestion pricing was defeated earlier in the spring, it looked dead forever, but it’s becoming clear that the idea may make a comeback. The reason for the revival is actually the reason Mayor Bloomberg proposed it- we need the money for mass transit, and we need to reduce the volume of vehicles in lower Manhattan. As time goes by, it becomes clearer that the main reason for the fee is to raise money. The absence of the fee is contributing to a fiscal crisis for the city’s mass transit system.

The New York City region has the best mass transit system in the county, but the system that is in danger of going through the same decline it went through during the fiscal crisis of the 1970. It is an understatement to say that this would be a disaster for the city’s environment and economy.

According to a joint press release of the Straphangers Campaign and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group: “Public transportation in metropolitan New York saved 1.8 billion gallons of oil in 2006, a savings that amounted to $4.6 billion for the region. By taking cars off the road and reducing congestion, transit also prevented emission of 13,973,040 metric tons of global warming pollution.”

A decade of increased deficit financing of mass transit during the Pataki years has culminated in the long-predicted mass transit fiscal crisis. Mass transit has been underfunded for many years, and the lack of funding has finally caught up with us. As the Straphanger campaign release notes: “With the projected income from congestion pricing gone, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority faces a $17.5 billion deficit in its proposed $29.5 billion five-year capital program.”

Governor Patterson recognizes the problem and has brought back Richard Ravitch, the guy who rebuilt the mass transit system in the 1980’s, to do it again. Ravitch is heading a newly formed Commission on Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Financing. According to the Governor’s office:  read more »

While most of the people in New York City live in apartment buildings most of the land in New York City sits under single family homes. While New York is nearly completely built up, there are places within the city where there is enough land to grow some crops. While we are certainly surrounded by concrete and asphalt, the natural world is never far away in New York City.  From small plots to multi-acre urban farms, New York City’s community gardens turn abandoned lots into urban oases, feed city residents, and provide community spaces for birthdays, barbeques, and informal get-togethers.
 
In addition to benefits such as fostering community and offering green spaces in neighborhoods lacking sufficient park land, community gardens also have a positive impact on the environment.  Unpaved garden surfaces absorb rainwater and reduce stress on the city’s sewage system, and many gardens partner with schools to provide outdoor classrooms for ecology and biology lessons.  

Community gardens help cool the city and reduce the urban heat island effect, caused when the city’s dark surfaces trap heat and make it hotter than surrounding areas.  Green spaces offered by community gardens can even reduce the amount of energy used to cool buildings. According to the EPA’s website, “Widespread planting in a city can decrease local surface and air temperatures. Strategic planting…directly cools the interior of homes and buildings, decreasing air conditioning costs and peak energy demand.”

While most of our food travels an average of 1,019 miles by the time it reaches grocery shelves, community gardens are a source of fresh, affordable produce for city residents which can be transported to the dinner table without the use of fossil fuels.  read more »

Now that the Democratic Party’s Presidential nominating process has ended, it is time to compare the records and positions of the two remaining major party candidates. For a Republican, Senator John McCain has shown some signs that he understands the issues of sustainability. He and Senator Joseph Lieberman have sponsored climate change bills that have almost been enacted. He is making noises like he might select the environment as the issue to show people that he is not George W. Bush. However, the League of Conservation Voters, a group that monitors Congress’ environmental records gave him a score of 0 percent in 2007 and 24 percent life time. In contrast, Senator Barak Obama Sen. Obama scored 67% in 2007 and 86% lifetime. Most of Obama’s decline last year was due to missed votes related to his campaign schedule. The average score for Members of Congress in 2007 was 53%.  read more »