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May 22, 2013

John Thorne: They launched the 'Arab Spring' but now yearn for the good old days of a strongman

John Rosemond: 'Disciplinary math' adds up to parental successl

Warren Richey: Are prayers before public meetings OK? Supreme Court to decide
Rick Montgomery: Use of ADHD drugs as study aid raises concern on campuses

Brierley Wright, M.S., R.D.: 6 convincing reasons you should keep carbs in your diet

Eoin O'Carroll: Scientists examine nothing, find something

The Kosher Gourmet by Carole Kotkin: This soup is made from one of the great pleasures of spring: A wonderful pairing of rosy color and earthy tang

May 20, 2013

Richard A. Serrano: Is Meir Kahane's assassin now a changed man?

Hannan Adely: Town raises Palestinian flag at City Hall

Melissa Healy: Genetic copies of living people from embryos no longer science fiction
Morgan Housel: When smart investors do stupid things

Sharon Saloman, M.S., R.D.: Hunger games: Eat more, weigh less, without starving

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Jews Inducted into Rock Hall of Fame; Anton Yelchin co-stars in New "Trek" film; Kutcher (but not Kunis) visits Israel; Jewish TV Star Praises Jewish Rap Star

The Kosher Gourmet by Cathy Pollak: WARNING: This WALNUT CAKE WITH PRALINE FROSTING, perfect for afternoon coffee, is addicting

May 13, 2013

Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Why the giving of the document that would permanently change the world could only be done in desolation

David G. Savage: Church-state, literally? Supreme Court weighing public school graduation in a church

Emily Alpert: Recession dragged down birth rates for less-educated women
Morgan Housel: The deep downside of home ownership

Peter Teffer: Will Dutch police soon be stalking cybercriminals on your computer?

Heidi McIndoo, M.S., R.D.: Meatless 'meat' can have its own set of problems

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: Celebrate! This must-try appetizer is delicate yet has depth of flavor: Corn-Leek Cakes with Caviar, Smoked Salmon and Creme Fraiche

May 10, 2013

Rabbi Berel Wein: Be all that you should be

Caroline B. Glick: The dirty little secret about Israel's Arabs

Mona Charen: Hawking's Moral Calculus: The man and the movement he embraces
Morgan Housel: The biggest retirement myth ever told

Sandi Doughton: Eyes may provide new insight into brain problems

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : The Great Gatsby's Jewish Ties; Jews in the "Time 100 list" List; People's Most Beautiful Women

The Kosher Gourmet by Linda Gassenheimer: A sweet-hot meal: Pear salsa spices up salmon

May 8, 2013

Peter Ford: Why China is welcoming both Israel's Netanyahu and Palestinians' Abbas

Warren Richey: Obama administration quietly backs out of appeal over new contraceptive mandate

Fred Weir: At Kerry-Putin meeting, US-Russia relations thaw --- a tad
Amanda Paulson: Study reveals sad truths about community colleges

Harvard Health Letters: Evidence weak that zinc, echinacea are beneficial

The Kosher Gourmet by Leela Cyd Ross : Almost too pretty to eat, this colorful salad with Sicilian inspiration will tickle the taste buds and delight your visual sensibility

May 6, 2013

Edmund Sanders and Patrick J. McDonnell: Think Israel's objective in Syria is to weaken Assad or embolden the rebels? Think again

Brian Bennett: Israeli airstrikes may show weakness in Syrian defense

Michael Ollove: Millions of ex-felons, parolees and those on probation are about to be entitled to tax-payer paid health coverage
Karen Kaplan: Most men can skip PSA test for prostate cancer, urologists say

Kimberly Lankford: How to track down a lost life insurance policy

Dream of Mars exploration achievable, experts say

The Kosher Gourmet by Susan M. Selasky: EGGPLANT WRAPS are an easy, sumptuous and scrumptious meal

May 3, 2013

Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Human Courage and the Unavoidable, Disturbing Text

Steven Emerson: Attorney General Fights CAIR in Court, Lauds it in Public

Mediterranean diet helps beat dementia: study
Harvard Health Letters: When to be screened for a hearing problem

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Iron Man's Jewish Connections; Marc Maron's New TV Show; Martin Landau Grows Up with Israel; Shalom, Allan Arbus

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: A sweet surprise for Mother's Day dessert

May 1, 2013

Jonathan Rosenblum: An Improbable Journey to Orthodoxy

Jonathan Tobin: Blame Obama, Not Israel for Syria Push

Kids, kittens the Same? With employee perks at struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo! it's hard to tell
Halena M. Gazelka, M.D.: Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: What you need to know about implanted pain relief devices

Sandy Kleffman: Artificial kidney offers hope to patients tethered to a dialysis machine

Jessica Shugart: When it comes to math, MRIs may be better than IQs

The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: The celebrated chef on how high-maintenance ASPARAGUS RISOTTO need not be

April 29, 2013

Roy Gutman: Poland's new Jewish museum celebrates life, doesn't revisit Holocaust

Mark Clayton: Terrorism in America: Is US missing a chance to learn from failed plots?

Kim Murphy: Boston Bomber's 'Svengali' Revealed
Morgan Housel: He's rich, smart and old: Listen to him

Thomas Salinas, D.D.S.: Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: The safety of amalgam fillings

Harvard Health Letters: Tomatoes and stroke protection

Pete Spotts: Tiny satellites + cellphones = cheaper 'eyes in the sky' for NASA

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: Swing into spring with lemon cream pie

April 26, 2013

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: The world is a mirror

Caroline B. Glick: Time to confront Obama

Clifford D. May: Defense in the Age of Jihadist Terrorism
Kimberly Lankford: New strategies ease pain of paying for long-term care insurance

Howard LeWine, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Too much ibuprofen?

Sharon Palmer, R.D.: How to feel your best -- with plenty of energy, a healthy weight and optimal mental and physical function -- without driving yourself batty

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Jewish Major Leaguers, 2013; New Movies and Comedy Show; Shalom, 'Lumpy' (Leave it to Beaver)

The Kosher Gourmet by Emily Ho : A bright and cheerful salad to herald the warmer months ahead

April 24, 2013

Steven Emerson: Boston Bomber Exposes Islamist Secret

Morgan Housel Admit it: No one has any idea what's going on
Harvard Health Letters: Can you get headaches from headache medication?

Kerri-Ann Jennings, M.S., R.D.: How to easily get more Omega-3s in your diet

Melissa Healy: Pot in a pill: All the pain relief without the smoke

The Kosher Gourmet by Susan Russo: Chipotle Chili Butternut Squash Soup is bold, zesty, hot

April 22, 2013

Ken Dilanian: Counterterrorism's future is unclear

US man departing country arrested on terror charges
Barbara Williams: An unorthodox but growing treatment in a 9-year-old's battle against cancer

P.J. Skerrett, M.D.: How to recognize a good whole grain product

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Teen actor Jonah Bobo in New Flick: Hunky James Wolk on Mad Men; Erich Segal's Daughter Writes Prize-Winning Jewish Novel


Jewish World Review May 7, 2008 / 2 Iyar 5768

Why are we doing something so maliciously stupid?

By Jack Kelly

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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | World food prices have risen 83 percent in the last three years, the World Bank says. Food riots could endanger stability of governments in 33 countries, estimated the World Bank's president, Robert Zoellick.


This burgeoning global catastrophe has many causes. Rising populations and incomes in China and India have increased demand for food. A drought in Australia has sent the price of wheat soaring. Our weak dollar has caused nations which hold lots of them to buy up commodities, which hold their value.


But the two biggest culprits, says the International Food Policy Research Institute, are soaring prices of oil and petroleum based fertilizer, which increase the cost of growing and transporting food, and biofuels. The IFPR says biofuels are responsible for a quarter to a third of the rise in food prices.


That proportion soon will increase. Congress has ordered a 500 percent increase in biofuels by 2022. The European Union has mandated that 5.75 percent of all gasoline and diesel fuel must come from biofuels by 2010.


It is economically, environmentally, and morally insane to use food for fuel. Corn-based ethanol, the principal U.S. biofuel, is the worst offender. Even with oil priced at more than $110 a barrel, it takes a 51 cent a gallon subsidy to make corn ethanol competitive with gasoline. And even with the subsidy, gasoline mixed with ethanol costs drivers 20 to 30 cents a gallon more than regular gasoline, the American Automobile Association said, because ethanol has one third less energy per gallon than regular gas.


It takes 29 percent more fossil energy to produce corn ethanol than the ethanol will provide, according to a 2005 study conducted principally by Cornell University ecologist David Pimentel.


Because of its tendency to absorb water, ethanol cannot be transported by metal pipeline, as most gasoline and diesel fuel is.


Ethanol increases two of the most dangerous air pollutants — volatile organic compounds (VOC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) by four to seven percent over gasoline, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Together, VOC and NOx cause thousands of premature deaths each year, the EPA said.


I'm skeptical about man-made global warming. But if it's a problem, ethanol production exacerbates it. NOx is a greenhouse gas with 296 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide. A study led by Nobel laureate Paul Crutzon estimates that NOx emissions from corn production cause up to 50 percent more warming than the substitution of ethanol for gasoline avoids.


The problem worsens if land is cleared for planting of fuel crops, because nothing soaks up carbon dioxide like trees. Deforestation isn't a concern in the U.S., but it's a major problem in Brazil and Indonesia.


Let's sum up. Corn-based ethanol costs much more than petroleum does, even at present prices. About as much energy is used in its production as it provides. It harms the environment. Diverting food crops to ethanol sends food prices soaring. Why are we doing something so maliciously stupid?


Politics, of course. Corn is grown in Iowa. Iowa is a swing state, and holds the nation's first presidential nominating contest.


The favors our politicians do for the corn ethanol producers goes beyond subsidies and mandates. Corn-based ethanol is a terrible idea, but there is something to be said for ethanol made from sugar cane. Sugar ethanol provides eight times the energy of the fossil fuel required to make it, and emits fewer greenhouse gases than corn ethanol. And though sugar is a food, it isn't a staple, so sugar ethanol doesn't exert the upward pressure on food prices that corn ethanol does. Yet we've slapped a 54 cent a gallon tariff on sugar ethanol imports from Brazil, the world's largest producer.


We should end all subsidies and mandates for corn ethanol production. If ethanol can't compete with oil when oil is $110 a barrel, it shouldn't be part of our energy mix. And we should repeal the tariff on sugar ethanol.


Last week Sen. John McCain and 23 other GOP senators asked the EPA to loosen congressional ethanol mandates. Sen. Barack Obama indicated he's rethinking his position.


"My top priority is making sure people get enough to eat," Sen. Obama said Sunday. "If it turns out we need to make changes in our ethanol policy to help people get something to eat, that has got to be the step we take."

Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.

JWR contributor Jack Kelly, a former Marine and Green Beret, was a deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force in the Reagan administration. Comment by clicking here.

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