Writing this on St. Pat’s Day, the holiday that turns thoughts to subjects green. And isn’t green all the rage! My friend and colleague Terry Winckler just sent around an email that allows you to order your TV viewing habits by green content, should that be appealing.

On a slightly related note, I just received a note from the Internal Revenue Service that says in a few months we’ll be receiving a few hundred dollars as part of the government’s attempt to stimulate the economy. I tend to be of the opinion that a growing economy is a large contributor to what has led us to this climate mess we’re in, not to mention many other environmental problems, that a steady-state economy is what we should aim at, but one doesn’t say such things in public. Still, the government has decided that it needs to go another $150 billion into debt in order to give most taxpayers $600 they can spend and get the economy rocketing along again.

Got me to thinking—how about a quick campaign to get people to spend their six large on green stuff? You can get a pretty good, efficient dishwasher for $600. A couple could score a new fridge. Six hundred will get you a very fine bicycle. You could undoubtedly outfit your house with compact-fluorescent lightbulbs and have plenty left over for thermal underwear. Or, if you’re really feeling like a splurge, you could go to the website of the Environmental Media Association (which promotes green content on TV and in the movies; see the first item above), and score an all-bamboo t-shirt, "soft as silk," for a mere $98.