To the Point
Biofuels: Another Look at Alternative Energy
The UN is giving mixed reviews to biofuels that produce energy from agricultural products. They may be counter-productive for the environment. Is it really cleaner and cheaper? What's it doing to the price of food? Also, from the Persian Gulf, a warning to Iran, and Tehran's mad, mad world of high fashion.
By Warren Olney • • 1h 0m ListenThe UN is giving mixed reviews to biofuels that produce energy from agricultural products. They may be counter-productive for the environment. America's corn farmers are reaping a financial harvest from ethanol. Is it really cleaner and cheaper? What is it doing to the price of food? Also, from the Persian Gulf, Vice President Dick Cheney issues a warning to Iran and, on Reporter's Notebook, an Islamic crackdown on public displays and Tehran's mad, mad world of high fashion.
Photo: Scott Olson, Getty Images
In this episode
3 storiesDo Biofuels Cause More Problems than They Solve?
The rush is on for biofuels to end dependence on oil, help solve global warming and create jobs for the rural poor. In America's corn-belt, especially in Iowa, there's a rush to produce ethanol. States and the federal government are providing incentives, including subsidies, for fuels derived from agricultural products. But a new UN…
Read the story1 minIllicit Underground Fashion Show in Tehran
As Iran faces tighter economic sanctions from the UN and big trouble with the US, dissidents are being jailed and there's a public crackdown on men and women showing too much flesh in public. Tehran is an unlikely place for high-fashion shows in front of audiences wearing low-cut dresses, skin-tight T-shirts and acid-washed jeans, but…
Read the story1 minCheney Tries to Retain Support in Iraq on Middle East Tour
From the deck of an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf, Vice President Cheney today had a warning for Iran : the US will rally its regional allies for help in Iraq and to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons and dominating the Middle East. That may be easier said than done, as diplomatic correspondent Robin Wright reports in the …
Read the story1 min