Ethanol, Dumb Government, and Corn Syrup

Government is usually faulted for moving too slowly, taking too long to catch up to the will of its citizens. The mandated ethanol production targets are an example of government moving too quickly, before the science of ethanol - as it related to global warming - was really understood. Now that it is better understood, this is a giant screw-up that has more serious ramifications than just massive give-aways to industrial agriculture. The problem is leaking into our food supply, and does anyone really expect the feds to move quickly (or to move at all) to correct their error, especially in an election year?

[A food/health aside: The farmer quoted in the Post article argues that food costs as a proportion of the average household budget is much less than it used to be. That's true, but that's because so much of the food Americans eat is processed food which is the end result of the industrialization of agriculture; back in the 1950's, food cost more because it was real food. Now so much of what we eat and drink contains some kind of corn-based chemical concoction that's cheaper than the real food alternative. As long as we continue to ramp up corn-based ethanol production, those processed food-like items are bound to get more expensive. So maybe this ethanol thing isn't all bad, if it means that real food becomes more of a part of the national diet once again?]

Here's another food prices / ethanol article on the front page of today's Sun.

Rethinking City Streets

New York City's congestion pricing traffic/infrastructure plan was shot down by Albany the other day. No surprise there, since there's a long history of acrimony between the State and the City. But there was barely any support for London's congestion pricing plan before it was implemented, and now most Londoners seem to dig it.

This New York Times article from earlier this week presents various re-imaginings of city streets, and is worth a read if you live in a city (who lives in a city and doesn't have urban-planning impulses occasionally?) or just find this kind of thing interesting. My favorite idea is probably the woonerf, although I'll be honest, I'm not sure if it's because I like the concept or because it sounds like it should be the name of an IKEA sofa. The soy-made packs of smart-as-a-horse cars are also...intriguing. Not so crazy about urban acupuncture; "the alpha mode is the shoe"? What does that even mean? Do quotes like that really help bring in the grant money?!?