Kay Bailey Hutchison: I'm staying in the Senate

U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison has decided to remain in her senate seat to serve out the remainder of her term, which ends in 2012, a spokeswoman for Hutchison confirmed Wednesday.

Concerns over what she called an unprecedented expansion of the federal government, especially in relation to health care and cap and trade legislation, encouraged the her to forego retirement and finish out her term, Hutchison said in a statement.

Please, not another Copenhagen | John Sauven | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk

Gordon Brown is part of the UN advisory group that must agree to find the $150bn a year needed to combat climate change
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Without new sources of money which operate "off-balance sheet", there is no chance of raising the money we need to tackle climate change, and without this money there is no chance of a global deal.

China spends big to counter severe weather caused by [Marc Morano's cell phone charger] | Environment | The Guardian

China will tomorrow start ramping up preparations for typhoons, dust storms and other extreme weather disasters as part of a 10-year plan to predict and prevent the worst impacts of climate change.

Mongolia's zud: Bitter toll | The Economist

Experts warn that the next four to six weeks will see more cold weather and devastated herds, as ever greater numbers of frozen, emaciated animal carcasses dot the vast Mongolian countryside.
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Drought, cold and snow are the proximate causes of this season’s widespread misery. But weather alone is not to blame for its severity. In the 20 years since Communist rule in Mongolia ended, herding practices have changed drastically. Privatisation meant the dismantling of large collectives, and herders now find themselves missing some of the underappreciated benefits of scale—not to mention, in many cases, access to technical and management expertise of the kind that helped sustain operations through harsh winters.

According to Save the Children, another relief agency active in Mongolia, many distressed herders are advocating a return to the Soviet-style system. But even that would not set things right.