(2018-09-03). California Climate Assessment: Heat Waves, Forest Fires, and Floods to Increase Dramatically due to Climate Change. therealnews.com 
The state of California released a climate assessment that points to "apocalyptic" conditions if climate change is not halted or mitigated in the next 30 years. We discuss the report with one of the co-authors and a California EPA deputy director
(2018-09-03). Iran's Oil Exports Slump to 2 1/2 Year Low Before U.S. Sanctions. iranian.com Iran's oil exports are tumbling again as the country's key buyers in Asia take fewer cargoes in the weeks before U.S. sanctions take full effect. The Persian Gulf nation shipped just under 2.1 million barrels a day of crude and condensates in August, ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show. That's the lowest since March 2016. […]
(2018-09-03). Japanese Oil Wholesalers 'Prepare To Suspend' Iranian Imports. iranian.com Japanese news media are reporting that the country's major oil wholesalers are preparing to suspend Iranian crude imports next month. Jiji Press agency and Kyodo on September 3 reported that the action comes in response to U.S. sanctions against Tehran and threats they could be extended to companies doing business with Iran. U.S. President Donald […]
(2018-09-03). 2020 or Bust! Stop Climate Change NOW! indybay.org Opera Plaza Community Room | 601 Van Ness, San Francisco | San Francisco, California 94102…
(2018-09-03). Bills to stop new federal offshore drilling approved, but offshore drilling expands in CA. indybay.org As Bill McKibben, the founder of 350.org, said in the Nation magazine on August 29, 2018, "Brown's administration has approved about 20,000 of them (total oil and gas wells). Offshore, where he has refused to close down existing leases, Sacramento has permitted four times more wells than the federal government has allowed in the deeper waters it controls."
(2018-09-02). Battling Contamination of Water and Environment in Australia: Erin Brockovich Down Under. globalresearch.ca The Australian press have been in a state of drooling ecstasy. Part of it is because Australia can be relevant, however negative it might be, to their monster cousin, defender and …
(2018-09-02). Mulvaney Student Fee Whitewash Benefits Bank of America, US Bank. truthout.org In December 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau produced a study that was useful for the university administrators looking after millions of college students in the United States. | In an annual report to Congress, the agency published an analysis of agreements between credit and debit card issuers and institutes of higher learning—one that included warnings about boilerplate deals enabling banks to ply fees out of students. | "Many general marketing agreements contain features or lack protections that may make them inconsistent with the 'best financial interests' of students," the report warned in boldface text. The agency noted these deals "do not expressly prohibit certain fees," and stressed that "colleges may negotiate…to include additional key consumer protections." | Since the Trump administration took power, however—under the leadership of interim CFPB Director Mick Mulvaney—the tenor of the report changed drastically. Last year's…
(2018-09-02). New Climate Study Warns of Dangerous 'Hothouse Earth' Scenario. therealnews.com 
Climate scientist Will Steffen explains that continued warming of the atmosphere could trigger a cascade of tipping points
(2018-09-02). The Kerala Deluge: Global Warming's Latest Act. asia-pacificresearch.com …
(2018-09-02). China's Maneuver in Oil Market Defies Trump's Boycott of Iran. truthdig.com The Shanghai futures market is trading in the Chinese currency, the yuan, rather than in dollars. The move will allow China to buy Iranian crude till the cows come home, evading U.S. sanctions.
(2018-09-02). Data Overtakes Oil as Leading Global Commodity. Alphabet (Google's parent company), Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, the Most Valuable Listed Firms Worldwide. globalresearch.ca First published Truepublica and Global Research on September 28, 2017 | The oil industry has dominated the global commodity market for a hundred years one way or another. In that time it has also been the cause of considerable geopolitical conflict …
(2018-09-02). First Nations Celebrate Win Against Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion. truthout.org A Federal Court of Appeal on Thursday struck down the Canadian government's approval of the ‪Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain oil pipeline expansion, halting construction of the 1,150-kilometer project indefinitely. | The expansion would have tripled capacity of the existing Trans Mountain pipeline, allowing it to ship up to 890,000 barrels of bitumen oil every day from Alberta's tar sands to a terminal in Vancouver, British Columbia. | The court decision cited the Trudeau government's failure to consult with Canada's First Nations, specifically the government's insufficient treatment of oral traditional evidence, lack of sufficient time given in the consultation process for affected groups to inform themselves well enough to participate, and failure to consult about the environmental assessment. | The decision comes after months of indigenous-led opposition to the pipeline. Efforts suffered a big blow back in May, when the Canadian government
(2018-08-31). Trump's FTC Releases Nearly 500 Pages of Material on Conflicts of Interest — and Redacts It All. theintercept.com 
There are a lot of questions to be asked about Andrew Smith, who was recently installed to head the Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Consumer Protection. Given that Smith previously worked for four years at the law firm Covington & Burling, representing an enormous number of corporate clients, including companies under active investigation by the FTC — including Equifax, Uber, and Facebook — one of those questions is: How will the FTC ensure against conflicts of interest? | Smith's financial disclosure form, obtained by Public Citizen, lists his work on behalf of big banks, payday lenders, pawn shops, credit reporting companies, pharmaceutical firms, and perhaps worst of all, the Dallas Cowboys. | So Public Citizen filed a Freedom of Information Act request for all documents related to Smith's financial disclosure and potential conflicts of interest, as well as how the…
(2018-08-31). Republican Candidates are Paying a Fossil Fuels Conglomerate for Voter Data Mining. counterpunch.org 
Koch Industries is a fossil fuels conglomerate with estimated revenues of more than $100 billion annually and 130,000 employees spread around the globe. It's one of the largest, private corporations in the world with a history of funding nonprofit front groups and political candidates who are climate change skeptics. Typically, political payments go in one direction from this behemoth: from the Koch Industries Super Pac (KochPac) to Republican political candidates or political committees. Now, quietly, political payments are going in both directions, effectively creating an Orwellian campaign finance model.
(2018-08-31). Who is Behind Nicaragua's Turmoil? therealnews.com 
This fourth part of the debate was cut out of the original debate due to length considerations. However we present the cut segment of the debate upon the request of Mary Ellsberg. It deals with the details of an analysis of who is responsible for the death of protesters in Nicaragua. Viewers who saw the…
(2018-08-31). US Military to Train Saudi Pilots on American Soil Despite Outrage Over Yemen "War Crimes" mintpressnews.com There are numerous indications besides the federal procurement request that Mattis' statements of caution to the Saudis were merely public theater aimed at reducing outrage over one of the Saudi-led coalition's latest atrocities.
(2018-08-31). øMuestra la crisis venezolana que el socialismo no funciona? peoplesworld.org 
Hay una gran cantidad de voces en los medios de comunicación que hablan sobre la crisis de hiperinflación en Venezuela y no para mostrar el sufrimiento de millones de venezolanos, sino para atacar la política de izquierda. | Viví en Venezuela entre 1995 y 1996, dos años antes de que Hugo Chávez llegara al poder. En ese tiempo, la inflación estaba al 100% (el FMI estima que el rango de inflación en el 2018 llegará al 1,000,000 por ciento) y la gente era forzada a ir a las tiendas con su sueldo para combatir el crecimiento mensual de precios, vaciando los estantes de mercancías básicas. La crisis económica no es desconocida en Venezuela. | La crisis actual se describe como la peor en toda la historia de Venezuela y, con miles huyendo del país, es difícil debatir tal argumento. Sin importar lo que…
(2018-08-31). Want to know about new FTC head's conflicts of interest? Too bad, that's redacted. rt.com 
Corporate lawyer Andrew Smith's appointment to head the FTC's Bureau of Consumer protection raised some eyebrows earlier this summer. Now, a heavily redacted set of documents have done little to allay this concern. |
(2018-08-31). Pentagon seeking contractors to train Saudi pilots on US soil amid bloody Yemen air campaign. rt.com 
The Pentagon plans to hire private contractors to train Saudi military pilots on US soil, documents show. Human Rights Watch (HRW) called the move disturbing amid outcry over US involvement in Saudi Arabia's air campaign in Yemen.
(2018-08-30). The Trump Administration's Spoiler Foreign Policy. consortiumnews.com U.S. strategy abroad is assuming a curious shape. Whether the president or his minders are running affairs, Patrick Lawrence sees the U.S. being reduced to playing a spoiler role in the Middle East and Northeast Asia. By Patrick Lawrence Special… Read more →
(2018-08-29). Top Student Loan Watchdog Resigns over Trump Admin Doing Bidding of Predatory Lenders. democracynow.org 
As the school year begins this week across the United States, the top student loan watchdog has resigned in protest, accusing the Trump administration of siding with powerful predatory lenders over student loan borrowers. Seth Frotman worked as student loan ombudsman under the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau director, Mick Mulvaney. He wrote that under Mulvaney's leadership, "the Bureau has abandoned the very consumers it is tasked by Congress with protecting." This comes as Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has proposed new rules that would cut an estimated $13 billion in federal student loan relief for peopl…
(2018-08-29). Words of Warning: The Top 10 'Nation' Articles on Climate Change. thenation.com Words of Warning: The Top 10 'Nation' Articles on Climate Change appeared first on The Nation.
(2018-08-29). Hatewatch Headlines 8/30/18. splcenter.org A U.S. Senate candidate will speak alongside extremists; another Trump administration official has ties to white nationalists; climate change and systemic racism, and more.
(2018-08-29). Headlines for August 29, 2018. democracynow.org Puerto Rico Increases Hurricane Death Toll to 2,975, Andrew Gillum, a Black Progressive Backed by Bernie Sanders, Wins Florida Gubernatorial Primary, Trump-Backed Martha McSally Wins Arizona GOP Senate Primary, Trump Warns of "Violence" If Democrats Win Control of Congress, Texas Police Officer Convicted for Killing 15-Year-Old African-American Student, Teachers in Washington State Begin Strike, U.N. Secretary-General: Report on Genocide Targeting Rohingya Needs Serious Consideration, India Carries Out Raids Arresting Critics of Modi Government, France's Environment Minister Resigns On-Air over Climate Change, De…
(2018-08-29). Establishment Candidates Teamed Up Against Zephyr Teachout in New York Attorney General Debate. theintercept.com Why is Sean Patrick Maloney — a sitting House member in a newly competitive New York congressional district that Donald Trump won in 2016 — running to be New York's next attorney general? | After last night's debate in New York City, between Democratic primary contenders Maloney, Letitia "Tish" James, Leecia Eve, and Zephyr Teachout, the answer doesn't seem any clearer — or perhaps it does. | Anybody who presumed that Maloney was in the race as a Teachout spoiler came away from Tuesday's attorney general debate with that impression only solidified. Teachout challenged Gov. Andrew Cuomo in a primary in 2014 and performed especially well in the Hudson Valley, where Maloney is also an elected official. She also ran for Congress two years later in a neighboring district, NY-19, losing to Republican Jon Faso. Cuomo, meanwhile, is backing James, the New York…
(2018-08-28). The Sun Does Not Revolve Around the US. consortiumnews.com While visiting Galileo's house in Florence, Jean Ranc reflected on how America thinks the world revolves around it, as it was once falsely thought the sun revolves around the earth. By Jean Ranc Special to Consortium News On a sunny… Read more →
(2018-08-27). Why Kyrie Irving's Connection to the Standing Rock Sioux Matters. thenation.com Why Kyrie Irving's Connection to the Standing Rock Sioux Matters appeared first on The Nation.
(2018-08-24). Foreign Correspondent: What Has Fifteen Years of U.S. Occupation 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.
(2018-08-22). 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.
(2018-08-21). 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.
(2018-08-14). 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.
(2018-08-05). Venezuela's President Maduro Survives Assassination Attack On Live TV. venezuelanalysis.com Six arrests have already been made in the dramatic foiled terrorist attack.
(2018-07-26). 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). 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.
(2018-07-20). 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.