Benjamin Madley— As the sun rose on July 7, 1846, four U.S. warships rode at anchor in Monterey Bay. Ashore, the Mexican tricolor cracked over the adobe walls and red-tiled roofs of California’s capitol for the last time. At 7:30 a.m., Commodore John Sloat sent Captain William Mervine ashore “to
James Robert Allison III— The American coal industry is on life support. Since the turn of the twenty-first century, less than 7% of the 200 or so proposed new coal-fired power plants have received government approval. None have even dared run the regulatory gauntlet since the 2007 economic collapse. More
Joshua Reid— This last March, the National Marine Fisheries Service invited public input on a recently released draft environmental impact statement that evaluates the Makah Nation’s request to resume hunting gray whales off the coast of Washington State. Most of the feedback on the government website that is collecting this