By Brian Mahar

Senator Robert Byrd passed away early this morning, just days after a study showing that coal is a money loser for his home state of West Virginia.

After 9/11, Americans were forced to recognize the reality of global terrorism – a reality that other countries had been wrestling with for decades.

Trying to answer the troubling questions about how the BP Oil Disaster was allowed to happen keeps turning up the same catastrophic mixture of lies, mismanagement, corner cutting, and recklessness. It’s clear now that the oil companies know how to get oil from deep underwater, but have no idea how to prevent or stop a disaster with any reliability.

On the heels of President Obama’s renewed call for clean energy technologies in last night’s Oval Office speech, we’re particularly baffled by this piece in The Examiner detailing how the US Air Force is now testing a coal-based jet fuel.

The deluge of oil in the BP Gulf disaster is matched only by the gush of stories it’s generated. Making sense of it all can be tough, but the occasional commentary makes the long-term picture clear.

Ft. Lauderdale, EnergyOcean Conference –