(2018-08-26). Children Separated Under Trump's "Zero Tolerance" Policy Say Their Trauma Continues. theintercept.com 
On August 9, several reporters took a government-led tour through America's largest detention facility for immigrant parents and their children: the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas. Sprawling over 50 acres of a repurposed oilfield workers' camp, Dilley, as the center is colloquially known, has room for 2,400 detainees. It currently holds about 1,500 people — all mothers and their children, including babies. | No interviews with the detainees were allowed, so reporters were left to record random sounds and observations: phalanxes of baby strollers, a salad bar in the cafeteria, and, as the Wall Street Journal noted, "a speaker blasting a Jimmy Buffett song." But The Intercept has been in contact with some of the occupants of Dilley by phone — many of them children — and the circumstances they're enduring are decidedly less sanguine than Buffett's tunes. | Ninety…
(2018-08-26). Fishermen, tribal members and conservationists push for increased flows on San Joaquin River. indybay.org "We must restore our rivers if we are going to have clean water and fish into the future," said Morning Star Gali, Tribal Organizer for Save California Salmon and Pit River tribal member. "Large fires and lack of water supply are caused by climate change and wasteful water use practices, not environmental laws. Appropriate flows are needed for the health of our sacred rivers, to restore the health of our communities, and to protect the quality of California's water supply."
(2018-08-25). Will Climate Change Make Family Separations the Norm? truthout.org Activists and historians note that the recent US policy of separating families at the Mexico border continues a centuries-old tradition of family separation. Numerous Indigenous and Black children, they point out, were torn apart from their parents and enslaved, raped, killed and "civilized" in boarding schools. Awareness of this past is important for understanding and confronting the racism and poverty that so many Indigenous and Black families still face today. Yet just as important, and much less discussed, is the intensification of family separation that will likely result from capitalist-induced climate chaos. | Many millions of people, overwhelmingly poor and nonwhite, are already displaced each year due to climate disasters. Only the most dramatic cases make the news, like the nearly half a million Puerto Ricans displaced by Hurricane María in 2017, or the 4.4 million Filipinos displaced by…
(2018-08-25). How a DuPont Spinoff Lobbied the EPA to Stave Off the Use of Environmentally Friendly Coolants. theintercept.com 
Chemours asks in letter to the EPA for help promoting its HFO refrigerants, to stave off natural coolants that cause far less global warming.
(2018-08-25). Iran: Some OPEC Members Act In Accordance With US Policy. iranian.com Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said some members of oil producer group OPEC were acting in accordance with US policies, Iran's Khaneye Mellat news agency reported on Friday. "Some members are interpreting the latest OPEC decision on oil output differently … and are acting in accordance with the policies of the US," the agency quoted Zanganeh as saying. […]
(2018-08-25). New Trump coal regulations will kill as many as 1,400 Americans annually by 2030. wsws.org According a report by the US Environmental Protection Agency, the agency's recent rule change will lead to 1,400 more premature deaths by 2030.
(2018-08-25). Earth, fire & water: NASA maps atmospheric aerosols in psychedelic image. rt.com 
A new NASA image outlining the various types of aerosols in the air shows that we may be getting more than we bargained for with every intake of breath.
(2018-08-24). Some Call It Forest Management, I Call It Racketeering. counterpunch.org 
When government agencies like the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management produce the danger, the propaganda hyping the danger, and the protection against it at a price, that's racketeering. The definition of a racketeer is someone who creates a threat and then charges for its reduction. War is just a racket. A racket More
(2018-08-24). Recreating the Wilderness. counterpunch.org The science gets ever more dire. The politics runs the other way. We've claimed hold of the planet, but cluelessly, like the sorcerer's apprentice. Welcomed to the Anthropocene: the age of humanity intertwined with nature. "Climate change is not a problem we have to make go away, in a sense that you don't make adolescence More
(2018-08-24). Foreign Correspondent: What Fifteen Years of U.S. Occupation Has Produced? Angry Iraqis. progressive.org As militant protests roil the city of Basra in Iraq, two summer films give a fuller sense of what U.S. occupation there has wrought.
(2018-08-24). Egotopia. counterpunch.org 
Imagine Milton Friedman and Robinson Crusoe together, reminiscing about Burning Man, on a remodeled off-shore oil rig. Like the image? Welcome to seasteading. The latest in a long line of libertarian exit strategists, seasteaders aim to create self-governed, private floating platforms on the ocean. In an era of Silicon Valley excess, techno-libertarian optimism, and mainstream More
(2018-08-24). Video: ISIS Attacks US-occupied Oil Fields in Euphrates Valley. globalresearch.ca On August 22, an IED blast hit a vehicle of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) near the village of al-Hawaji west of the Omar oil fields on the eastern bank …
(2018-08-24). Abandoned KFC served as front for drug-smuggling tunnel from Mexico to Arizona (VIDEO). rt.com 
US federal authorities have unearthed a secret drug-smuggling tunnel that stretched from a house in Mexico to an abandoned KFC restaurant in the state of Arizona.
(2018-08-23). Big oil asks government to save it from climate change. peoplesworld.org 
PORT ARTHUR, Texas (AP)—As the nation plans new defenses against the more powerful storms and higher tides expected from climate change, one project stands out: an ambitious proposal to build a nearly 60-mile "spine" of concrete seawalls, earthen barriers, floating gates, and steel levees on the Texas Gulf Coast…
(2018-08-23). Debate: Who Is Behind Nicaragua's Turmoil? (Pt 3/3). therealnews.com 
Recent months of deadly unrest in Nicaragua have fractured splits in the Sandinista movement, with critics accusing President Daniel Ortega of autocratic rule, and supporters accusing the opposition of attempting a US-backed soft coup. We host a debate between Dr. Mary Ellsberg of George Washington University and Max Blumenthal of the Grayzone Project
(2018-08-23). Debate: Who Is Behind Nicaragua's Turmoil? (Pt 1/3). therealnews.com 
Recent months of deadly unrest in Nicaragua have fractured splits in the Sandinista movement, with critics accusing President Daniel Ortega of autocratic rule, and supporters accusing the opposition of attempting a US-backed soft coup. We host a debate between Dr. Mary Ellsberg of George Washington University and Max Blumenthal of the Grayzone Project
(2018-08-23). Debate: Who Is Behind Nicaragua's Turmoil? (Pt 2/3). therealnews.com 
Recent months of deadly unrest in Nicaragua have fractured splits in the Sandinista movement, with critics accusing President Daniel Ortega of autocratic rule, and supporters accusing the opposition of attempting a US-backed soft coup. We host a debate between Dr. Mary Ellsberg of George Washington University and Max Blumenthal of the Grayzone Project
(2018-08-23). Australian prime minister faces ouster by extreme-right faction. wsws.org Whatever the immediate outcome of this turmoil, the schism tearing apart the ruling Liberal-National Coalition will worsen.
(2018-08-23). Musicians' group calls for shutdown of the German secret service. wsws.org On Tuesday, the musicians group' "Lebenslaute" concluded a two-day protest against the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), as the German secret service is called.
(2018-08-22). Trump Administration Admits 1,400+ More People Will Die Each Year Following Coal Plant Deregulation. democracynow.org 
President Trump rallied supporters Tuesday night in West Virginia to announce a massive rollback of Obama-era environmental regulations on coal-fired power plants and carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to climate change. Trump's "Affordable Clean Energy" proposal would allow individual states to decide whether to curb emissions. The Environmental Protection Agency's own data shows the plan could cause up to 1,400 more premature deaths a year by 2030. The Washington Post reports the deregulation would also lead to the release of at least 12 times more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere over the next decade.
(2018-08-22). Large Earthquake Off Northern Venezuelan Coast. venezuelanalysis.com According to the Venezuelan Foundation of Seismological Research, the quake registered at 6.9 on the Richter Scale and left parts of Trinidad and Tobago without electricity.
(2018-08-22). Recent Arrests Under New Anti-Protest Law Spotlight Risks That Off-Duty Cops Pose to Pipeline Opponents. theintercept.com 
Law enforcement officers hired by a private security company are enforcing a new Louisiana law which makes trespassing near oil pipelines a felony.
(2018-08-21). Headlines for August 21, 2018. democracynow.org In Historic Letter, Pope Condemns Catholic Church Sex Abuse and Cover-Up, Trump to Announce Massive Rollback of Obama-Era Coal Regulations, In Racist Comment, Trump Says Hispanic Border Agent "Speaks Perfect English", Taliban Fires Rockets at Afghan Presidential Palace, India: Death Toll Rises to 400 in Kerala's Historic Flooding, French Oil Company Total Withdraws from Iran in Wake of U.S. Sanctions, Microsoft: Russian Hackers Targeting Conservative Think Tanks, Michigan Health Director Faces Involuntary Manslaughter Trial over Flint Water Crisis, NYT: #MeToo Leader Asia Argento Paid Off Her Sexual Assault Accus…
(2018-08-20). As Trump Favors Asbestos, People Die. progressive.org Donald Trump has been rolling back protections against exposure to asbestos, which kills an estimated 15,000 people each year in the United States alone.
(2018-08-20). Global warming deniers partly responsible for Aretha Franklin's cancer, says Stevie Wonder (VIDEO). rt.com 
The deadly form of pancreatic cancer that killed Aretha Franklin can be attributed at least in part to those who don't believe in global warming, according to Motown legend Stevie Wonder.
(2018-08-16). Headlines for August 16, 2018. democracynow.org Violence Roils Afghanistan as Taliban Cracks Down on Red Cross, Trump Revokes Security Clearance of Ex-CIA Director, a Major Critic, Security Clearance Flap Comes Amid Mounting White House Scandals, Trump's Lawyer Prepared to "Unload" on Mueller "Like a Ton of Bricks", Hundreds of Media Outlets Condemn Trump's Attacks on the Free Press, Turkish Court Releases Jailed Amnesty International Chair, Brazil: Lula Registers from Prison as Presidential Candidate, Malta Allows Migrant Ship to Dock After 5 Days Stranded at Sea, ACLU Says ICE "Trapped" Immigrant Spouses at Green Card Interviews, CDC Says Record 72,000 Ameri…
(2018-08-14). AP Investigation: Behind the Scenes in Yemen, U.S.-Backed Saudi Coalition Is Working with al-Qaeda. democracynow.org 
The U.S.-backed, Saudi-led coalition in Yemen has repeatedly cut secret deals with al-Qaeda, even paying its fighters to retreat from towns or join the coalition, a bombshell Associated Press investigation has revealed. The AP probe accuses the United States of being aligned with al-Qaeda in the fight against Yemen's Houthi rebels, despite claiming to be fighting the extremist group in the region. One senior tribal leader told the AP, "Al-Qaeda wasn't defeated. It didn't fight in the first place." We speak with Maggie Michael, one of the three reporters for the Associated Press who broke the story, headlined "U.S…
(2018-08-14). What the 'Sensible Middle' Doesn't Get About Education. progressive.org There is no middle between facts and the story that the earth is flat.
(2018-08-13). Meet the Two Protesters Who Confronted Interior Sec. Ryan Zinke over Corruption & Climate Change. democracynow.org 
We go to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, to speak with Sallie Holmes and Jesse Brucato, who interrupted a speech by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Friday. Zinke has faced 14 federal misconduct investigations since joining President Trump's Cabinet. The protesters asked Zinke about his alleged ethical lapses and questioned why he refuses to acknowledge the role of climate change in the wildfires raging across the western United States. We are also joined by Politico reporter Ben Lefebvre, who broke the stories linking Zinke to a real estate deal with energy giant Halliburton's chairperson David Lesar.
(2018-08-13). Interior Sec. Zinke Blames "Radical Environmentalists," Not Climate Change, as 100+ Wildfires Rage. democracynow.org 
As more than 100 fires rage in the western United States, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke wrote an op-ed last week in USA Today about forest management on public lands that blamed "radical environmentalists" for the fires. "Most Americans get it, that climate change is no longer something that they can just wish away in this administration," responds Joel Clement, who served as director of the Office of Policy Analysis at the U.S. Interior Department until July of 2017 and worked at the Interior Department for seven years. We also speak with Ben Lefebvre, an energy reporter for Politico who has done a series of sto…
(2018-08-05). Venezuela's President Maduro Survives Assassination Attack On Live TV. venezuelanalysis.com Six arrests have already been made in the dramatic foiled terrorist attack.
(2018-08-04). Fighting for a Way of Life in the Arctic. progressive.org The coastal plain, opened for oil drilling by the Trump Administration, is the birthplace and nursery for the Porcupine caribou herd, and land that the Gwich'in call, "The Sacred Place Where Life Begins."
(2018-07-26). Venezuela: Maduro Announces Economic Reforms Including Monetary Reconversion, Tax Breaks & Currency Control Changes. venezuelanalysis.com The measures also transfer an entire oilfield from PDVSA to the Central Bank.
(2018-07-20). Glimmers of Economic Recovery amid Mixed Reports about Venezuelan Oil Production. venezuelanalysis.com Lower levels of oil production have been reportedly offset by rising prices and reduced domestic consumption.
(2018-07-20). Trump Admin Closes Venezuela Sanctions Loophole in Favour of US Bondholders. venezuelanalysis.com The measure opens the way for seizures of Venezuela's US-based oil assets should the Maduro government default on PDVSA bond payments.
(2018-07-12). Venezuela's Defunct National Assembly Attempts to Privatise Oil Industry. venezuelanalysis.com Grassroots movements have frequently denounced de facto back-door privatisation in PDVSA.