Stars n Moons 4/04/07
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
By Planet User
Supreme Court does the right thing with CO2 ruling
Is it possible for me to dole out two stars? If so, this one’s a
winner. On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a 5-4 decision,
ruling “that the Environmental Protection Agency has the authority to
regulate heat-trapping gases in automobile emissions … [and] ruled that
the agency could not sidestep its authority to regulate the greenhouse
gases that contribute to global climate change unless it could provide
a scientific basis for its refusal,” according to The New York Times.
Carbon dioxide, a heat-trapping greenhouse gas, is thought to be the primary contributor to global warming.
The decision will influence countless other cases around the country,
such as the regulation of carbon dioxide from power plants. But in the
most immediate sense, the ruling will affect American automakers, who
will now have to make cars that meet tougher carbon dioxide emission
standards in states that have strong regulations.
Lucky for those of us who live in states without top-tier emissions
laws, American automakers aren’t likely to make a clean and dirty
version of the same car and we’ll all benefit.
Justice David Souter noted that “by any standard, U.S. motor-vehicle
emissions make a meaningful contribution to greenhouse gas
concentrations.” Seems obvious given America’s dependence on the auto
for just about everything and American automakers reluctance to clean
up their fleets.
— Melanie Stein
Immigration case could affect Jackson
Last summer Mayor Lour Barletta of Hazelton, Pa., population 30,000,
imposed a city ordinance penalizing landlords who rented to illegal
immigrants and businesses that hired them. Between 2000 and 2006 the
town received an influx of 10,000 Hispanic immigrants.
Barletta believes the immigrants have ruined the town’s quality of life
and drained the municipal treasury. Barletta has managed to drive
much of the Hispanic population out of town.
Right now the American Civil Liberties Union, along with many local
businesses and landlords, is suing the town claiming that the
ordinance violates the federal government’s power to regulate
immigration, deprives residents of their constitutional rights to equal
protection and due process, and violates state and federal
housing law.
The ordinance that Hazelton has imposed has been emulated in towns
across America. I hope the town of Jackson, who relies on the influx of
immigrants, legal or otherwise, keeps an eye on this case as it
develops.
The outcome will likely change immigration laws nationwide and
therefore affect our town. Does anyone remember when the INS was
rumored to be in town last summer? At least one fast-food establishment
closed for the day.
— Sam PetriPERMALINK:
Stars n Moons 4/04/07 | Planet JH News Article: Stars & Moons
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