Author-activist tapped as White House 'green' jobs adviser

The Obama administration recently appointed author and activist Van Jones as a special While House advisor for “green” jobs, enterprise and innovation, according to an April 4th Times article. I thought that this new position was especially interesting when taking into consideration the “White House is Going Green” post by Comm327 msnbc last week, which discusses Obama’s wish to conserve energy in the presidential mansion. Obama seems to be demonstrating some great initiative to make an impact in the global energy crisis.

I’m currently taking an Earth and Environmental Science course, and in class we’ve discussed how it is extremely difficult to gain political support of “green” initiatives unless substantial economic value is assigned to the proposal. This relates directly to the position that Jones was just appointed to. Jones, who among other accomplishments has written “The Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems,” aims to create “green-collar” jobs such as installing solar panels and updating inefficient buildings, especially in economically depressed areas. This initiative will not only help the environment; it has a direct positive influence on the economy by creating jobs, which in turn contributes to increased cash flows.

This article also made me wonder if there was previously a significant presence of environmental advisors in the White House dedicated to the green movement. The only reference to such a task force was a reference to Joe Romm, the former assistant energy secretary during the Clinton administration, found at the end of the article. Romm brought up an important point: it is hard to “sell” these sorts initiatives. Yet he called Jones a “tireless” advocate whose “candor and talent for firing up audiences will help in his new job.” Hopefully the enthusiasm Romm has for Jones’ initiatives will be shared by the majority of the administration, since this is clearly an important global issue.

Fighting for the environment should always be a prevalent cause, yet we are all aware that our impact often comes second to more pressing issues such as health care, the economy, and our national security. Hopefully the appointment of individuals such as Jones will help prove that the United States can tackle both ecological and economic concerns simultaneously in new, innovative ways.

On a completely unrelated note, I found it interesting that Romm called Jones’ work a “bully pulpit” job. I had never heard this saying before, and assumed that the word “bully” was used as the noun, meaning a harasser, and that pulpit referred to the platform used as a preacher—thus deducting that the phrase implied an abuse of power. This seemed like a strange thing to call Jones, especially considering that the source is also a supporter of ecological initiatives. So I looked up the origin of this term, and it turns out, this term was coined by President Teddy Roosevelt, who referred to the American presidency as a “bully pulpit,” meaning a terrific platform from which to advocate an agenda (c-span.org). Thus, the “bully” is used as an adjective meaning “superb” or “wonderful.” Maybe I only find this interesting because of my journalism major, but I figured it was notable.

Article Found at:
http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2009/03/10/10greenwire-authoractivist-tapped-as-green-jobs-adviser-10055.html?scp=1&sq=white%20house%20green%20jobs&st=cse