Aaron Naparstek

...and why it's so urgent that we work for a better future.

This will be difficult news for those of you who are already reeling from Oprah's retirement, Simon Cowell's abandonment of "American Idol" and Sewell Chan's departure from City Room, but here it is: I am leaving my job as editor-in-chief of Streetsblog.

Kate Sheppard from Grist is Tweeting the heck out of the climate bill debate on the floor of the House of Representatives today (218 votes and counting). Barbara Boxer, who is working on the Senate version of this bill, yesterday reminded sustainable transport advocates that this is probably going to be their only chance in the next 18 months to get something done in Congress.

Watching Ray LaHood's testimony to the Senate EPW committee, Elana Schor tweets that the fat lady is singing for the House of Representatives' effort to get the transportation reauthorization done quickly. And there are lots of other fireworks as well.

OK. I've finally succumbed to Twitter and I'm using it to keep track of interesting quotes, observations and tidbits at the 17th annual Congress for the New Urbanism conference in Denver. There's a lot of great stuff happening here and plenty of interesting people. I'm not sure how much of that I can convey in 140 character text bursts. But I'm a professional haikuist so let's see what I can do.

I've lived in New York City for just about twenty years now but yesterday was my first trip to Times Square.

I'll add a few more impressions to Bobby Cuza's report on yesterday's ABNY breakfast with federal transportation secretary Ray LaHood.

Behind the scenes, we're hearing a lot of sustainable transportation advocates sounding alarms over California Senator Barbara Boxer these days. As chair of the Senate's Environment and Public Works committee, Boxer is going to play a critical role in this year's federal transportation funding effort. Environmentalists want to see transportation policies and funding formulas that encourage reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. But the highway lobby, AASHTO and the EPW committee's ranking Republican and vocal climate change denier, Senator James Inhofe, don't want anything get in the way of their pork-tastic federal highway projects. Environmentalists have come away from meetings and conversations with Boxer and her staff with the sinking sensation that she's going to cave to Inhofe and friends when it comes time to write the transportation bill.

I generally avoid cable news like the plague but I've been tuning in lately hoping to find some interesting discussion of the federal stimulus bill. Despite my low expectations of the medium I've been amazed by the inanity, the lack of substance and the incredible amount of Republican demagoguery being allowed to make it onto the airwaves.

I hate to nitpick at an outstanding and historic speech but it's January 21 and time to start talking about the stimulus bill, so, well, I'll let James Howard Kunstler do the nitpicking...