Even though he strongly supported high speed rail (HSR) in his recent State of the State speech, Gov. Jerry Brown is now hedging that support. He says the cost will not be anywhere near $100 billion and that alternative forms of funding can be found. However, he’s not given much in the way of details as to how this might be accomplished.

The Canadian Tar Sands have become a hot topic on the campaign trail this year especially since President Obama rejected the proposed Keystone Oil Pipeline extension.  Yes, I said extension because there already exists one Keystone Oil Pipeline running from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, but because of increased production, there now needs to be a second pipeline.  But this extension has environmentalists raising their voices, and even some throughout the country not so sure about it.  The issue, though, is more than just about the environment.

As most of the GOP presidential candidates will be rallying the party base at next week’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), Texas Congressman Ron Paul won’t be present at what’s billed as "the largest annual gathering of conservative activists." Instead, he’s hitting the campaign trail in the independent voter-populated state of Maine.

Romney’s not concerned about the poor, Obama prays, and other news on the campaign trail at IVN.us.

According to the Annenberg Learner, the United States generates approximately 230 million tons of trash per year and gaining. This averages out to about 4.6 pounds of trash per person per day. With many of the nation’s landfills reaching capacity, the problem of reducing waste in America is daily gaining importance.

This year’s light snowfall throughout the nation may enrich a number of Wall St. firms who essentially have bet against a good ski season. Hedge funds sell derivatives in which you can bet on the put or take side of snowfall amounts. Because most people based this year’s bet on last year’s snow-rich season, the Wall St. firms picked up the opposite bet (it’s just like shorting a stock, where you bet that the stock price will fall).