Featured stories in this issue...

The Context of Our Work: Slow Economic Growth, Part 2 Here we pick up the thread from last week, examining the consequences of three decades of decelerating economic growth. The system's responses to slowed economic growth explain much of what passes for "the news" each day.

You've got to love Wal-Mart.  Those guys won't rest until they're sitting in a castle filled with expensive air and water while all the rest of us burn in a hell they created

When Jerry Seinfeld complained about the miseries of visiting a bank in a classic piece of stand-up, he wondered where the term "laughing all the way to the bank" came from exactly. Unable to imagine a person who could enjoy such a tedious errand, he asked, who could this satisfied customer possibly be? Seinfeld obviously hadn't taken the time to consider rich corporations and their many, many schemes.

Like kids in a candy store, Wal-Mart executives may have eyes bigger than their stomachs. Do they really think they can manage a major expansion of organic food sales while driving organic prices down to within 10 per cent of conventional foods?

The strategy now being attempted in U.S. stores and bound to appear soon north of the border may have unintended consequences. By throwing its weight around on the organic block, Wal-Mart may just provoke the politicization of North America's organic food business.

In what might signal a turning point in environmental sentiment in America, a new poll of hunters and fishermen finds the majority think the country is on the wrong track with its energy policy and should be a leader in combating global warming.

In the poll of licensed hunters and anglers, 76 percent said global warming is occurring and 73 percent believe it is impacting or will impact hunting and fishing conditions. A full 78 percent said the solutions should involve conserving more energy, developing fuel-efficient vehicles and expanding the use of renewable sources.