(2019-01-02). Proposed Florida law would stop local governments from removing racist Confederate monuments. fightbacknews.org Jacksonville, FL – Pensacola State Representative Mike Hill has introduced a bill in the state legislature, House Bill 97, titled the Soldiers' and Heroes' Monuments and Memorials Protection Act, that would stop local authorities from removing racist confederate monuments. Hill is an African American Republican. Hill acknowledges his lack of support in the Black community. | Todd Wells, an African American member of Take Em Down Jax, a group devoted to removing these monuments to the cause of white supremacy, stated, "The struggle for the removal of Confederate statues has been ongoing since they were e…
(2019-01-02). Border Agents' Latest Tear Gassing Prompts Call for Investigation. truthdig.com In what human rights groups condemned as a " cruel and inhumane" act that must be independently investigated, agents with President Donald Trump's Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Tuesday reportedly hit women, children, and journalists near the U.S.-Mexico border with tear gas, smoke, and pepper spray. | According to an Associated Press photographer present a…
(2019-01-02). The New Congress and the Rolling Catastrophe of the US Body Politic. counterpunch.org Bathed in the soothing waters of the Blue Wave, such that it was, a new US Congress will be baptized on January 3rd. But what portends when "Mad Dog" Mattis, arch racist Jeff Sessions, and deep state spooks are canonized by self-identified liberals and leftists as bulwarks against fascism? When all mainstream "opposition" politics can be reduced to a single issue: Trump. And when the midterm elections ignored deepening impoverishment at home, endless wars abroad, and climate calamity — let alone the tax cut for the super-rich — and instead focused on the "threat" posed by (take your pick) immigrants o…
(2019-01-02). The Gathering Climate Storm and the Media Cover-up. globalresearch.ca "Earth is now substantially out of energy balance. The amount of solar energy that Earth absorbs exceeds the energy radiated back to space. The principal manifestations of this energy imbalance are continued global warming on decadal time scales and continued …
(2019-01-02). Greta "Joan of Arc" Thunberg Shames Leaders at COP24. counterpunch.org In 1429 Joan of Arc (17) led French troops to victory over English forces at the Siege of Orleans after she had a vision. Today, eco warrior Greta Thunberg (15) is leading the battle against the ravages of climate change. Greta has vision. She's taken the leadership mantle from Joan of Arc whether she knows More
(2019-01-02). Bolsonaro Gives Agriculture Ministry Power Over Indigenous Land. telesurenglish.net Brazil's newly-inaugurated president issued an executive order Wednesday making the Ministry of Agriculture responsible for deciding on lands inhabited by Indigenous peoples. The move will allow vested interests to exploit the Indigenous population and bring environmental disaster to its Amazon region. | ANALYSIS: | Grim Neoliberalism, Militarism Await Brazil and Region as Bolsonaro Takes Office | During his presidential campaign, then-far-right candidate Jair B…
(2019-01-02). China Is Starting to Grasp the Cost of Climate Change. truthdig.com As the Earth warms humans will reach for the air conditioning, meaning more electricity demand and higher household bills in China's cities.
(2019-01-02). China's first e-commerce law offers consumers more protection. aljazeera.com China's new e-commerce laws will be effective in wiping out counterfeit goods from the online marketplace.
(2019-01-02). US Border Patrol Hits Women, Children, and Journalists in Mexico With Tear Gas. theantimedia.com 
(CD) — In what human rights groups condemned as a "cruel and inhumane" act that must be independently investigated, agents with President Donald Trump's Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Tuesday reportedly hit women, children, and journalists near the U.S.-Mexico border with tear gas, smoke, and pepper spray. According to an Associated Press photographer present at the scene, CBP agents fired …
(2019-01-02). Central Coast Amah Mutsun Tribal Relearning Program. indybay.org Live oak Grange 1900 17th Ave, Santa Cruz…
(2019-01-02). US Border Patrol Unleashes Tear Gas Against Children in Mexico. truthout.org In what human rights groups condemned as a " cruel and inhumane" act that must be independently investigated, agents with President Donald Trump's Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Tuesday reportedly hit women, children, and journalists near the U.S.-Mexico border with tear gas, smoke, and pepper spray. | According to an Associated Press photographer presen…
(2019-01-02). Applause as Warren Shows Support for Green New Deal—the Plan 'Every Serious Presidential Contender Should Embrace'. commondreams.org After garnering some criticism from progressives for leaving her plans to combat the climate crisis out of her announcement regarding a potential 2020 presidential run, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) indicated Wednesday that she broadly supports the Green New Deal. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/warren_2_0.jpg…
(2019-01-02). 'Cruel and Inhumane': Trump Border Patrol Hits Women, Children, and Journalists in Mexico With Tear Gas. commondreams.org In what human rights groups denounced as a "cruel and inhumane" act that must be fully and independently investigated, agents with President Donald Trump's Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Tuesday reportedly hit women, children, and journalists on the Mexican side of the border with tear gas, smoke, and pepper spray. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/teargas1.jpg…
(2019-01-01). A Bold, Progressive Agenda for a Happier and Healthier New Year. commondreams.org A bird lands on then Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders podium as he spoke on March 25, 2016 in Portland, Oregon. Sanders spoke to a crowd of more than eleven thousand about a wide range of issues, including getting big money out of politics, his plan to make public colleges and universities tuition-free, combating climate change and ensuring universal health care. (Photo: Natalie Behring/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/birdie_sanders_2020.jpg…
(2019-01-01). From Me to We. My New Year's Resolution. commondreams.org More than 200,000 people demonstrated together in Washington, DC in 2017 for the People's Climate March. (Photo: Eman Mohammed/Survival Media Agency) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/peoples-climate_0.png…
(2019-01-01). Thanks to Green New Deal Push, Progressives Have Forced Corporate Media to Put Focus on Climate Crisis. commondreams.org Michael Bloomberg and moderator Chuck Todd appear in a pre-taped interview on Meet the Press in Washington on 20 December. (Photo: NBC NewsWire/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/meet_the_press_climate.jpg…
(2019-01-01). US And Israel Quit UNESCO, Citing 'Anti-Israel' Bias. telesurenglish.net UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova expressed her disappointment in a statement to Reuters, saying "At the time when conflicts continue to tear apart societies across the world, it is deeply regrettable for the United States to withdraw from the United Nations agency promoting education for peace and protecting culture under attack." | RELATED: | Israel Rattled By UNESCO's Palestinian Protection Pledges | Israel followed its political ally in quitting the heritage agency at the stroke…
(2018-12-31). Noam Chomsky: The Future of Organized Human Life Is At Risk Thanks to GOP's Climate Change Denial. democracynow.org 
As the death toll from the climate change-fueled Camp Fire in California continues to rise and hundreds remain missing, we rebroadcast our conversation about climate change with world-renowned political dissident, linguist and author Noam Chomsky from October. He says Republican Party leaders are dedicated to "enriching themselves and their friends" at the cost of the planet, and warns: "We have to make decisions now which will literally determine whether organized human life can survive in any decent form."
(2018-12-30). How an Undercover Oil Industry Mercenary Tricked Pipeline Opponents Into Believing He Was One of Them. theintercept.com 
A former Marine working for the private security firm TigerSwan infiltrated an array of anti-Dakota Access pipeline groups at Standing Rock and beyond.
(2018-12-30). Climate Crisis Is "Existential Threat," House Democrats Say — but Protecting Turf Comes First. theintercept.com Rep. Nancy Pelosi in her statement deemed the climate crisis an "existential threat," but her new committee will not have the power to issue subpoenas.
(2018-12-30). Canada's Barbaric Policies Toward Native Peoples (2/2). therealnews.com 
MP Niki Ashton tells Paul Jay that Canadian government policy in Indigenous communities must be premised on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, including the principle of respect for free, prior, and informed consent in cases of land development
(2018-12-29). Climate Change Refugees Share Stories of Escaping Wildfires, Floods, and Droughts. theintercept.com 
Tens of thousands of U.S. residents were displaced by climate change-fueled disasters in 2018. California saw a string of massive wildfires — from the Mendocino Complex in July, which became the state's largest wildfire on record, to the Camp fire in November, which was the deadliest. Meanwhile, Hurricane Florence, the second rainiest storm in 70 years of U.S. record-keeping, was quickly forgotten as Hurricane Michael slammed into the Gulf Coast, the third strongest ever to make landfall in the U.S. | The survivors of the disasters have resorted to camping in tents in retail parking lots, sleeping on friend…
(2018-12-27). How Curators Are Finding the Climate in Art History. thenation.com How Curators Are Finding the Climate in Art History…
(2018-12-26). 8-Year-Old Guatemalan Boy Dies in Border Patrol Custody Days After High Court Rejects Asylum Ban. democracynow.org 
For the second time this month, a Guatemalan child has died in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Eight-year-old Felipe Gómez Alonzo died in New Mexico on Christmas Eve, after being detained since December 18. This follows the death of a 7-year-old indigenous Guatemalan girl, Jakelin Caal Maquín, who died on December 8, two days after she and her father presented themselves at the border in a bid for asylum. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has rejected President Trump's asylum ban, which attempted to deny asylum to anyone entering the country from outside of a legal port of entry. Supreme Court Chief…
(2018-12-25). TRNN Doesn't Have Stances, but the Reporters Do — Q&A with Paul Jay. therealnews.com 
Paul Jay and Dharna Noor respond to viewer comments that ask the Real News to engage with a wider variety of political opinion and question climate science
(2018-12-25). 2018: A Year of Climate Devastation and Resistance. therealnews.com 
TRNN revisits the the apocalyptic extreme weather, dire reports, and resistance to climate inaction we saw in 2018. Help us make real climate news in 2019
(2018-12-24). A "Massive Outlaw" zcomm.org Interview on Single Payer, Climate Devastation, Impeachment…
(2018-12-21). Willowbrook, Ill. residents call for closure of polluting Sterigenics plant. peoplesworld.org 
CHICAGO—Controversy arose this week in Willowbrook, Ill., after the residents of Chicago's southwest suburb discovered that the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has known about the cancer risk from the Willowbrook Sterigenics plant for decades. Community members are demanding accountability and the immediate closure of Sterigenics International. Demonstrators gathered around the medical supply headquarters this week …
(2018-12-20). ANC Deputy Julio Escalona: 'The People are Angry Because They Consider that We Aren't Doing Our Job'. venezuelanalysis.com The revolutionary's criticisms came during the passing of 2019's budget, 75% of which is destined for "social protection."
(2018-12-20). 'Domestic Workers Don't Have Protections Against Discrimination and Harassment' – CounterSpin interview with Mariana Viturro on Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. fair.org 
Janine Jackson interviewed Mariana Viturro about the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights for the December 14, 2018, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript. | Media…
(2018-12-18). How to Feel Good about the Climate in 2019. progressive.org Despite national schizophrenia on the issue, a growing number of Americans are on board with accepting human-caused climate change—and doing something about it.
(2018-12-18). Maldives: New Government Should Promote Rights. hrw.org 
| | Ibrahim Mohamed Solih interacts with supporters during a gathering in Malé, Maldives, September 24, 2018. | © 2018 Eranga Jayawardena/AP Photo | (New York) — The Maldives' new government should make human rights protections a top priority, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih made public today. Solih, who was elected p…
(2018-12-10). Climate movement attracts new generation of activists. greenleft.org.au 
The latter part of 2018 will be remembered for the re-emergence of climate action on the national agenda. | Independent Kerryn Phelps' win in the Wentworth byelection promising "meaningful environmental action" and Labor's subsequent adoption of a 50% renewable energy policy by 2030 has come in the midst of researcher Rebecca Huntley's findings that "climate and environmental concerns" have increasingly become "a test of leadership" for voters. | These centrist platforms, however, have been rightly superseded by the newest base of the climate movement: high school students. | Tired of the "dinosaurs in parliament…
(2018-12-08). Reviving the Nuclear Disarmament Movement: A Practical Proposal. zcomm.org In late November 2018, Noam Chomsky, the world-renowned public intellectual, remarked that "humanity faces two imminent existential threats: environmental catastrophe and nuclear war." Curiously, although a widespread environmental movement has developed to save the planet from accelerating climate change, no counterpart has emerged to take on the rising danger of nuclear disaster. Indeed, this danger‚Äïexemplified Read more…
(2018-12-06). The fightback against Adani and Aurizon steps up. greenleft.org.au 
Adani CEO Lucas Dow's November 29 declaration that work on a scaled-down coalmine in Queensland's Galilee Basin would begin before Christmas was met with one of the most powerful nationwide protests against it so far as primary and high school students walking out of class the next day for the Student Strike 4 Climate Action. | A reported 20,000 students, many of them with their parents and grandparents in tow, took to the streets with a powerful message to Adani and policymakers: ignore us at your peril. | This was followed by a sit-in at Parliament House in Canberra on December 5. | Another round of #StopA…
(2018-12-04). Sorry To Bother You offers rich lessons in seeking radical social change. greenleft.org.au 
Sorry to Bother You
| Written & directed by Boots Riley
| In cinemas now | This review includes mild spoilers. | As an Australian living abroad, incidents of Australians being racist and/or misogynistisic that attract attention from international media outlets are frequently forwarded to me in anticipation of a seething refrain. | My response is typically motivated by a mix of rage and embarrassment, as well as a deep concern for how racial capitalism has been almost completely normalised. I am deeply concerned by the fact that not only is our social and political climate ill-equipped to address racism, i…
(2018-12-03). NSW law will 'lead to a new stolen generation'. greenleft.org.au 
Another stolen generation appears certain to be created in NSW, after the Coalition government passed a new adoption law making it easier for a child to be adopted by a foster family without parental consent. | The new adoption law, Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Amendment Bill, passed on November 22 despite fierce opposition, imposes a two-year limit on fostering a child. The Children's Court now has the power to decide whether a birth parent should be rei…
(2018-12-02). Debunking the Times on Bush I:s foreign policy record. zcomm.org Below is a list of the most blatant pieces of deception concerning George H.W. Bush's foreign policy record, reported in Adam Nagourney's commemorative NYT piece. Nagourney writes that "Environmental groups praised Mr. Bush's record on climate change and the environment. As president, he signed the United States to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Read more…
(2018-12-01). Eight new books for ecosocialists. greenleft.org.au 
Climate and Capitalism editor Ian Angus offers up eight new books as recommended reading for ecosocialists. Inclusion does not imply agreement with a book's contents. | ***
1. The Biofuels Deception: Going Hungry on the Green Carbon Diet
| By Okbazghi Yohannes
| Monthly Review Press, 2018 | Eliminating fossil fuels is essential, but biofuels have far more to do with sating profit-hungry corporations than saving the Earth. Combining meticulous scientific narrative with devastating economic analy…
(2018-12-01). A true people's artist. greenleft.org.au 
Rock & Roll Harbour
| Exhibition by The Shop Gallery
| 112 Glebe Point Road, Glebe
| Thurs January 3 — Wed Jan 9 | Peter Gow is the people's artist. | His ouvre is driven by his down-to-earth, inner-city environment such as boathouses and the heritage-listed Sydney Harbour Bridge in various attitudes, all of which feature prominently in this exhibition. | Gow is a qualified electrician and builder as well, very handy for making the frames in his spare time that embrace his art. | His deep, rich, contrasting colours leap from his palette onto the canvas. His short brush strokes create a palindrom…
(2018-11-30). "No Deal" Brexit predictions, GDP, average incomes, austerity and the CLIMATE CRISIS. zcomm.org If Bill Gates walks into a room full of factory workers then the average income of everybody in the room skyrockets. It would skyrocket even if everybody else in the room were going bankrupt as Gates entered. Similarly, the average income of the people in the room would plummet as Gates walked out the door even Read more…
(2018-11-22). Elected Constituent Assembly in Venezuela provoked International Outrage, not the illegal handpicked one in Ecuador. zcomm.org "CONAIE and CREO direct the new National Electoral Council" announces a headline yesterday in the rightwing Ecuadorian newspaper El Universo. CONAIE is a self-declared "left" federation representing indigenous peoples in Ecuador. CREO is the party of the "defeated" right wing presidential candidate in 2017. I put "defeated" in quotes because CREO's electoral defeat — which they stupidly Read more…
(2018-10-18). Nuclear Power & Climate. zcomm.org The great environmental challenge of our time is to understand that the many sources of biodestruction are interconnected and must be confronted simultaneously, rather than disparaging one danger to focus on another…