A holy Earth Day to you

My apologies for my brief absence from my blog. I was traveling last week and have been under the weather the past couple of days, but it's good to be back home and ensconced behind my keyboard. And just in time for the holiest day on the calendar for millions of Americans.

No, I'm not talking about Passover or Orthodox Easter, days that are set aside by pious believers to worship God and recall His actions to intervene in human history. Rather, I mean a day set aside to worship creation and advocate the suppression of human freedom in the name of a greater good. Or, as most of us call it, Earth Day.

Everyone in the publishing industry (except WND Books, it would seem) is observing the solemn day with proper piety. Publishers Weekly dedicated their daily newsletter to the topic and treated us to important stories such as "Random Reviews its Green Progress" and "Penguin Classics Goes Green With Nature Conservancy." Of course, there is a certain degree of irony for a business built around the destruction of trees to call itself green, but it's also an industry that tilts to the left, so no doubt these enviro-efforts are more penance than PR.

Since the Pope has gone back home to the Vatican, allow me to be your guide to some of the sacred Earth Day observances from around the Web:

• We're treated to a special Google holiday logo for this sacred day. Only very important days, such as Alexander Graham Bell's Birthday on March 3, make the list of holiday logos. (Pedestrian events like Easter need not apply.)



• Major League Baseball boasts a number of Earth Day observances, including the Seattle Mariners' decision to stage "the first carbon neutral game in MLB history." Fans attending the Reds-Dodgers game in Cincy will receive free night lights. (If this will help the batters in Torre's lineup who are hitting under .200 to see the ball, then I support it.)


• The U.S. government has an official Earth Day website. The Feds may not be able to guard our borders, but they do provide us with an indispensable eco-liturgy such as "use the microwave to cook small meals" and "sweep outside instead of using a hose." Thank you, Saint George.

In other news, there is no word how Al Gore and his penguin army intend to spend the holy day.