All Hail the Glorious Frankenfish!
There are times when people who have no idea what they’re talking about can really be infuriating. Then, there are other times when their overblown level of ill-placed self-confidence, and the astronomic scale of their own ignorance combines in such a way that it actually turns into comic relief. Case in point – the latest boil on the behind of the internet, The Northern Right blog (which is so thin on intelligent commentary you can actually see through it) has given a platform to one Mr. Alex Gimarc. Mr. Gimarc is not effusing about the usual right wing talking points…
“Occupy The Tundra,” Post-Fame
A few months ago, Diane McEachern’s “Occupy the Tundra” photo went viral and received national coverage from the LA Times to Salon. A resident of Bethel, Alaska, McEachern was in Anchorage on a recent visit and sat down with The Mudflats at a downtown watering hole. What is your assessment of the Occupy movement since you and your sign went viral? It kind of put the vocabulary into the public domain. Politicians are now referring to the 1 percent and 99 percent. What is it you do in Bethel, Alaska? I’m a University of Alaska professor in rural human services…
All Hands On Deck! EPA Public Hearing TODAY at 5:00 PM
by Jeanne Devon and Linda Kellen Biegel Today is the day. The EPA findings tell us that Pebble Mine is an unacceptable risk to thousands of sustainable jobs, and the last great wild salmon fishery on earth. With the stroke of a pen, the EPA can assure that this special place remains safe from development, and intact for generations to come. One of the most, if not THE most important meetings there will ever be on mining in the Bristol Bay Watershed will be held today at the Wendy Williamson Auditorium on the UAA Campus. The EPA will be hearing…
EPA Warns Pebble Mine Could Affect Sustainability of Bristol Bay Fishery
~Image by Alaskan artist Ray Troll On Friday, the EPA released the results of their long-awaited draft environmental impact statement on potential large scale mining operations in the Bristol Bay watershed. Their conclusion was not a surprise to anyone who has gone beyond a superficial look at the controversial issue of mining in this sensitive and highly seismic region. The notion of a 700 foot tall earthen dam that would need to remain intact forever, while sitting atop one of the most seismically active regions in the world is one of those things you don’t need to be a scientist…
School Board Candidate Wants to Outsource Orchestra Program? **UPDATE**
By Linda Kellen Biegel Observant earwigs noticed a little story in last Sunday’s Alaska Ear talking about a rather big boo boo perpetrated by the Municipal Clerk’s Office. That office works with the Anchorage Assembly and directly for the Chair, Debbie Ossiander. (She’s one of the Mayor’s “yes” men/women on the Assembly…the group I’ve nicknamed “Team Sully.”) WHAT’S IN A NAME … The muni clerk’s office is apparently confused about which of Starr Marsett’s names is her first name. Looks like it guessed, and got it wrong — at least on the ballot Ear got: Marsett is a candidate for School Board….
Exxon Valdez Oil Spill – A Cautionary Tale for Arctic Ocean Drilling
~A footprint fills with oil on Knight Island in Prince William Sound more than 20 years after the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Photo J. Devon By Richard Steiner As the Obama administration prepares to issue final permits for exploratory oil drilling on the outer continental shelf off Alaska’s Arctic coast this summer, the public is hearing some familiar promises from industry and government – the risk of a catastrophic oil spill is small, best available technology will be used to prevent spills, any oil spill will be effectively contained and cleaned up, government will keep a vigilant eye on industry,…
The Exxon Valdez Gets Its Death Sentence
The artist tanker formerly known as the Exxon Valdez has gotten its death sentence. It has been sold for scrap for about $16 million. The tanker, which was only a shiny new three year old in 1989 when it slammed into Bligh Reef, causing devastation of people, marine life, and the economy in Prince William Sound, has had an odd history which is almost at an end. The Dallas Morning News reports: Twenty-three years after the oil supertanker became synonymous with what its Irving-based owner at the time calls “one of the lowest points in ExxonMobil’s 125-year history,” the ship is…
Lisa Murkowski’s Chemical Attraction
Has anyone else noticed the glut of TV ads for Lisa Murkowski? “But she’s not running in 2012,” you say. And, after noting that you are an astute observer of Alaska’s political landscape, I tell you that they are not actually campaign ads. “But they sure look and sound like campaign ads,” you say. “True,” I say. But in this case, if it looks like a duck, and walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it’s an independent expenditure issue ad. Check it out. Coincidentally, the ad space was bought on the very day an interview was printed…
Voices from the Flats – Salmon, Trees, and We: The Tongass
By Tele Aadsen This photo was taken in Sitka, but could be almost anywhere in Southeast Alaska. The Tongass National Forest blankets most of our region, a crazy quilt of western red cedar, Sitka spruce, and western hemlock that covers almost 17 million acres. Not only is the Tongass the largest national forest in the US, it’s also the largest temperate rainforest remaining in the world. About 70,000 people call the Tongass home – as do 30,000 bears. This rare ecosystem also supports deer, wolves, over 300 species of birds, and all 5 species of salmon: chinook, coho,…