First of all, thank you to Dan and the rest of the Environmental Action team for inviting me to blog here while Dan is on vacation. I hope you all enjoy my posts as much as Dan's.

As you've probably seen or heard already, the "father of the hybrid car," David Hermance, died in a plane crash on Saturday. The condolences of the entire Environmental Action team go out to his friends and family. Dave was the Executive Engineer for Advanced Technology Vehicles for Toyota, and oversaw the development and launch of the Prius.

But let's talk about David's legacy, and what hybrid cars are doing for our country (besides reducing pollution and using less gas).

In an interview with Alan Alda (yes, that Alan Alda) for the PBS program "Scientific American Frontiers" in 2004, David Hermance was asked, "If [the Prius] is so good, why don't you just say to them, here's the car for you, and this is the one you're going to get because this gets the best mileage, it performs just like the car you've been driving, only this is better. Costs about the same and so now that's the car that you can buy. Why offer them others that are not as good?"

Dave's response shows just how far we've come since 2004: "Well, in the US, sad to say, folks don't largely value fuel economy. Most of the population of the US is not convinced that global warming is real or that cars have anything to do with it."

You can read the rest of this transcript here, if you're interested.

Since this interview, sales of hybrid cars in the US (lead by the Prius) have skyrocketed (Jan. 2006 report, Top Ten Hybrids of 2006), and global warming has taken center stage as the environmental issue facing our country and our world in the minds of a growing number of Americans.

This sea change shows no sign of slowing, and it is the result of countless hours of work by scientists, activists like you and me, and even an ex-Vice President to spread the word about global warming and the dangers it poses to our planet.

The fact that hybrid cars were introduced and marketed as green alternatives over six years ago is also an important reason why global warming, energy independence, and fuel efficiency loom larger on the radar screens of many Americans today. Dave's legacy is one not only of technological innovation, but also one of raising awareness of probably the biggest challenge to ever confront us as a species.

Thanks to innovators like David Hermance, we are in a better position today to stop global warming before we feel its worst effects. Dave understood that sometimes you have to introduce the change before the "market researchers" say we're ready for it. He didn't wait until global warming was making headlines to do something about it, and we need more leaders like him in both our government and energy and transportation industries. The time to create real change is now. Hybrid cars were the beginning, but we need to go much further.

Dave's sudden death is tragic. He was 59, and the engine in his small plane apparently just stopped running while he was flying off the coast of California. It is comforting, however, to know that he lived long enough to see the early success of his work.

Dave, we'll miss you, but we promise to pick up where you left off. Thanks.

A couple of days ago, I wrote about a spat between members of the Maryland Assembly and Gov. Ehrlich. It was real cloak and dagger stuff. A mysteriously locked door. Dubious alibis. And of course, lots of lawyers.

At issue was the toughest power plant cleanup bill in the nation, championed by a majority of the Assembly but dismissed by Ehrlich as unnecessary. In the latest stick-in-his-opponents'-eyes, Ehrlich suddenly reversed course and signed the bill.

But he didn't invite the bill's Democratic champions to the signing.

So did they rise above the insult like grown-ups? Did they talk to the press instead about how tens of thousands of Marylanders will be healthier and safer thanks to the Assembly's hard work?

Not so much.

From the Post's coverage: "Guess what, governor -- none of my members were invited," an upset Democratic Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller said after the signing.

And so that became the story.

In Maryland last week, the General Assembly approved the strongest power plant cleanup bill in the nation. The members moved fast to get the bill through in the closing days of the session - but not fast enough.

Assembly leaders went upstairs to deliver the bill to the governor's office at 4:50 that afternoon. But the office was already locked, apparently at the direction of the governor's crafty legislative director. The messengers were reduced to sliding a copy under the door, like a college kid who missed the due date on her term paper.

Why lock up early? If Gov. Ehrlich officially received the bill last Friday, the timing was such that he would have been required to act on it before the Assembly adjourned for the session. The endgame: he'd veto the bill but the Assembly would still be around to override him.

But if his staff ducked receipt until Monday - say, by locking the office and going down the fire escape like someone dodging a subpoena - the clock wouldn't start running for another 3 days. And, conveniently, that would push the deadline for action off just beyond the day when the Assembly will adjourn for good. That means Ehrlich could still act on (read: veto) the bill after the Assembly has gone home -- and the threat of an override is gone too.