Author Archives: admin

2019-01-16: Social Media Postees

China can't save the world from climate change by itself
Ian Goodrum | peoplesworld.org | 2019-01-16
With all the problems in the world–trade tensions, political instability, traffic–it's easy to forget about the mother of all threats, climate change. Sure, other grievances can seem insurmountable, but it's unlikely any of those carry the potential to wipe out humanity as we know it. So how are things looking on the climate front? Previous …
peoplesworld.org/article/china-cant-save-the-world-from-climate-change-by-itself/

The U.S. Oil and Gas Industry Is Drilling Us Towards Climate Disaster
Kelly Trout | commondreams.org | 2019-01-16
The United States is now the world's largest oil and gas producer and, increasingly, dumping our excess oil and gas into global markets, which drives down prices and undermines policies aimed at reducing demand for fossil fuels.(Photo: Joe Brusky/Flickr/cc) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/system.jpeg
commondreams.org/views/2019/01/16/us-oil-and-gas-industry-drilling-us-towards-climate-disaster?cd-origin=rss

EPA's Wheeler: Climate Change 'Not a Crisis'
commondreams | commondreams.org | 2019-01-16
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commondreams.org/newswire/2019/01/16/epas-wheeler-climate-change-not-crisis?cd-origin=rss

Report: U.S. Oil and Gas Expansion Threatens to Unleash Climate Pollution Equivalent to nearly 1,000 Coal Plants
commondreams | commondreams.org | 2019-01-16
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commondreams.org/newswire/2019/01/16/report-us-oil-and-gas-expansion-threatens-unleash-climate-pollution-equivalent?cd-origin=rss

Scorched earth: capitalism, climate change and Australia's bushfire threat
Eds. | mronline.org | 2019-01-16
Bushfires have always been part of Australia. Even before the first human settlers arrived around 50,000 years ago, fires sparked by lightning strikes were a feature of the landscape for at least 30 million years. | Source…
mronline.org/2019/01/16/scorched-earth-capitalism-climate-change-and-australias-bushfire-threat/

'Zebra' Tribal Body Paint Cuts Fly Bites 10-Fold: Study
teleSUR | telesurenglish.net | 2019-01-16
Traditional white-striped bodypainting practiced by Indigenous communities mimics zebra stripes to reduce the number of potentially harmful horsefly bites a person receives by up to 10-fold, according to new research published Wednesday. | RELATED: | Romeo the Frog Finds Love, Saves His Species From Extinction | Tribes in Africa, Australia and southeast Asia have practiced bodypainting in cultural ceremonies for generations. Traditionally mixed from clay, chalk, ash and cattle dung,…
telesurenglish.net/news/Zebra-Tribal-Body-Paint-Cuts-Fly-Bites-10-Fold-Study-20190116-0028.html

Markets as a Fetish, Globalization and Dissent Management
Joachim Hirsch, Rainer Mausfeld, and W Raza | indybay.org | 2019-01-16
Economic inequality must be reduced and democratic participation regained. Resisting tax avoidance, financial market regulation, climate policy, and globally combating poverty must be priorities. Unlike apples and bananas, financial products are not visible but hidden. Rainer Mausfeld explains how emancipative needs for change are neutralized. Opinion management is a vital technique of control.
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/01/14/18820362.php

UK's Labour Party Ready To Negotiate Brexit Deal With May
teleSUR | telesurenglish.net | 2019-01-16
British Prime Minister Theresa May could eventually get a Brexit deal through parliament if she negotiated a compromise with the opposition Labour Party, the second most powerful man in the party told Reuters Wednesday. | RELATED: | UK: Jeremy Corbyn Calls for No-Confidence Vote Against May | May's Brexit deal suffered a crushing defeat in parliament Tuesday, trigge…
telesurenglish.net/news/UKs-Labour-Party-Would-Negotiate-Support-Brexit-Deal-If-It-Includes-Worker-Protections-20190116-0020.html

'A Disgrace': Bernie Sanders Takes Trump EPA Pick to Task for Claiming Climate Change Not 'Greatest Crisis' Facing Planet
Jake Johnson, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2019-01-16
The acting EPA chief repeatedly downplayed the threat of the climate crisis and brushed aside scientific evidence during his Senate confirmation hearing | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/epa_wheeler_sanders.png
commondreams.org/news/2019/01/16/disgrace-bernie-sanders-takes-trump-epa-pick-task-claiming-climate-change-not?cd-origin=rss

In Hoax Letter Calling Out Climate Inaction, Pranksters Urge Asset Manager Behemoth to Ditch 'Zombie Funds of the Apocalypse'
Andrea Germanos, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2019-01-16
Because "generating sustainable returns into the future requires that we have a future," the head of the world's biggest money manager, BlackRock, sent a letter Wednesday to investors saying it would start to consider as "sin stock" companies that fail to align their business models with the goals of the Paris climate accord. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/blackrock-letter-hoax.jpg
commondreams.org/news/2019/01/16/hoax-letter-calling-out-climate-inaction-pranksters-urge-asset-manager-behemoth?cd-origin=rss

Studies Show Ice Melting and Ocean Warming Both Happening Much Faster Than Previously Thought
Julia Conley, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2019-01-16
A multitude of new climate studies have painted a picture of the numerous factors that are simultaneously leading to rising sea levels, which could increase by more than 10 feet by the end of the century. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/antarctica_1.jpg
commondreams.org/news/2019/01/16/studies-show-ice-melting-and-ocean-warming-both-happening-much-faster-previously?cd-origin=rss

To Those Who Think We Can Reform Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis
Ben Ehrenreich | thenation.com | 2019-01-15
To Those Who Think We Can Reform Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis…
thenation.com/article/climate-change-fossil-fuel-capitalism-divorce/

Climate Disaster Is Upon Us
Dahr Jamail | thenation.com | 2019-01-15
Climate Disaster Is Upon Us…
thenation.com/article/climate-disaster-is-upon-us/

In North Carolina, Domestic Violence Laws Still Discriminate Against LGBTQ People
ACLU | aclu.org | 2019-01-15
Not all LGBTQ people can get a protective order for domestic violence under North Carolina law. | Same-sex couples in North Carolina won the freedom to marry in 2014, but LGBTQ people continue to be denied equal protection under the law in many other areas of life. | North Carolina is currently the only state in the nation that prevents those in same-sex relationships from accessing protective orders for domestic violence. The ACLU of North Carolina and attorney Amily McCool of the Scharff Law Firm are challenging that unequal policy in court on behalf of a survivor of domestic violence who was denied a protectiv…
aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/lgbt-relationships/north-carolina-domestic-violence-laws-still-discriminate-against

Colombie: Une femme a été agressée parce qu'elle demande justice pour son fils
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-01-15
Vendredi 11 janvier, deux inconnus à moto ont fait feu à trois reprises sur la voiture où se trouvait Alfamir Castillo, dans une zone rurale de la municipalité de Pradera (département du Valle del Cauca, dans le sud de la Colombie). Alfamir Castillo était avec son époux et deux gardes du corps relevant de l'Unité nationale de protection, et personne n'a été blessé. Alfamir Castillo est victime de menaces et d'agressions depuis des années car elle demande justice pour l'homicide illégal de son fils par des membres des forces colombiennes armée…
amnesty.org/en/documents/amr23/9694/2019/fr/

Colombia: Further information: Woman attacked for seeking justice for son: Alfamir Castillo
amnesty | amnesty.org | 2019-01-15
On 11 January, two unidentified men in a motorbike shot three times at the car in which Alfamir Castillo was in a rural area of the municipality of Pradera, Valle del Cauca Department, southern Colombia. Alfamir Castillo was with her husband and two bodyguards granted by the National Protection Unit and were not injured. Alfamir Castillo has faced several threats and attacks for years as she is seeking justice for the unlawful killing of her son by members of the Colombian armed forces.
amnesty.org/en/documents/amr23/9694/2019/en/

Jay Inslee's Climate Change Gambit
James Nickerson | progressive.org | 2019-01-14
The issue of climate change was barely even mentioned during the last presidential race. Hopefully, Inslee's presence as a candidate will keep that from happening again.
progressive.org/op-eds/jay-inslee-climate-change-gambit-nickerson-190114/

Facing Mass Deportation, Haitians Sue Trump to Preserve Temporary Protected Status
Democracy Now! | democracynow.org | 2019-01-10
A New York City trial is challenging the Trump administration's attempt to end temporary protected status–known as TPS–for more than 50,000 Haitians living in the U.S. Tens of thousands of Haitians were granted TPS after an earthquake devastated their country nine years ago this week. In November 2017, the Trump administration announced it would revoke TPS for Haitians, sparking protests and multiple lawsuits around the country. We speak with Marleine Bastien, executive director the Family Action Network Movement, or FANM, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. She testified on Wednesday as a witness i…
www.democracynow.org/2019/1/10/facing_mass_deportation_haitians_sue_trump

NSW government to blame for Walgett water crisis
pip.hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2019-01-10
The New South Wales government is robbing communities of precious water by siphoning it off for cotton farms and coal and gas mines. It is doing so as the climate gets warmer and drought becomes more frequent. | These rotten priorities are being played out in Walgett, a town in the state's north-west that is home to more than 2000 people. Already affected by the long-running drought, Walgett is now suffering from a human-made disaster with residents having to truck in water after the town's bore system broke down. | In the local Gamilaroi language, Walgett means "a meeting of two rivers". Right now, the Namoi and…
greenleft.org.au/content/nsw-government-blame-walgett-water-crisis

Nathan Damigo, founder of white nationalist group Identity Evropa, files for bankruptcy protection
splcenter | splcenter.org | 2019-01-07
The founder of the white nationalist group Identity Evropa is seeking federal bankruptcy protection in what appears to be a pre-emptive move stemming from a lawsuit over "Unite the Right."
splcenter.org/hatewatch/2019/01/08/nathan-damigo-founder-white-nationalist-group-identity-evropa-files-bankruptcy-protection

Make 2019 the year of action on climate change
kathy_f | greenleft.org.au | 2019-01-07
Australia is sweltering through another summer heatwave, with disastrous consequences for many vulnerable people. | Walgett, in north-western NSW, ran out of water and catastrophic fires are threatening communities in Victoria and Tasmania. | As we make a plan for a new year of activism, we can take some heart from the growing student movement for real climate action. They are responding to the science and showing an awareness of the scale of the pending climate catastrophe. They know what needs to be done and are demonstrating that leadership comes from those who act. | Students 4 Climate Action have already agr…
greenleft.org.au/content/make-2019-year-action-climate-change

A "Massive Outlaw"
Ralph Nader | zcomm.org | 2018-12-24
Interview on Single Payer, Climate Devastation, Impeachment…
zcomm.org/zvideo/a-massive-outlaw/

ANC Deputy Julio Escalona: 'The People are Angry Because They Consider that We Aren't Doing Our Job'
Paul Dobson | venezuelanalysis.com | 2018-12-20
The revolutionary's criticisms came during the passing of 2019's budget, 75% of which is destined for "social protection."
venezuelanalysis.com/news/14195

2019-01-15: News Headlines

Ben Ehrenreich (2019-01-15). To Those Who Think We Can Reform Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis. thenation.com To Those Who Think We Can Reform Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis…

Jonah Raskin (2019-01-15). Love in a Cold War Climate. counterpunch.org It's not a Hollywood movie. That's clear from the start. Cold War (2018), the feature film made by the Polish-born director, Pawel Pawlikowski, is in black-and-white. The characters have names like Wiktor, Kaczmarek and Mazurek, and the actors include Joanna Kulig, Tomasz Kot and Borys Szyc to give just a few from a large cast of characters. More

STAFF (2019-01-15). EPA Criminal Action Against Polluters Hits 30-Year Low. truthdig.com WASHINGTON—The Environmental Protection Agency hit a 30-year low in 2018 in the number of pollution cases it referred for criminal prosecution, Justice Department data show. | The EPA said in a statement that it is directing "its resources to the most significant and impactful cases." | But the 166 cases referred for prosecution in the last fiscal year is the lowest number since 1988, when Ronald Reagan was president and 151 cases were referred, according to Justice Department data obtained by the nonprofit Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility advocacy group and released Tuesday. | "You don't g…

teleSUR (2019-01-15). 200 Indigenous Mexicans Violently Forced out of Vacant Lot. telesurenglish.net A rights group denounced the eviction of more than 200 displaced indigenous people from an empty lot in the municipality of Tlapa, Mexico, by a legal representative of the owner's property. | RELATED: | Mexico: Indigenous Chol Community Denounces Eviction Attempt | Constancio Sanchez Campos, the legal representative, showed up with two bulldozers and threa…

Joachim Hirsch, Rainer Mausfeld, and W Raza (2019-01-15). Markets as a Fetish, Globalization and Dissent Management. indybay.org Economic inequality must be reduced and democratic participation regained. Resisting tax avoidance, financial market regulation, climate policy, and globally combating poverty must be priorities. Unlike apples and bananas, financial products are not visible but hidden. Rainer Mausfeld explains how emancipative needs for change are neutralized. Opinion management is a vital technique of control.

Shared by Merula Furtado (2019-01-15). A Farewell to Glaciers, Coral Reefs and Rainforests. truthout.org Dahr Jamail, staff writer at Truthout, has been writing about the global emergency of climate change for nearly a decade. In his new book, The End of Ice: Bearing Witness and Finding Meaning in the Path of Climate Destruction, which is being released today, Jamail shares his firsthand accounts of returning to beloved spaces in the natural world. He observes the drastic ways in which they've been destroyed due to humanity's relentless burning of fossil fuels, and mourns over how many of them are unlikely to recover over the duration of human existence. | Anton Woronczuk: In bearing witness to the destruction of…

Jake Johnson, staff writer (2019-01-15). As Senate Hearings Begin, Calls to Block 'Trump Enabler' William Barr From Becoming Next AG. commondreams.org "Barr may be the kind of enabler Trump desires to further skirt Congress and, through emergency decree or executive action, fund a border wall, continue to gut asylum protections, and keep rounding up, detaining, and deporting tens of thousands of migrants." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/william_barr_0.jpg

teleSUR (2019-01-14). Chilean Patagonia: an Open-air Lab to Study Global Warming. telesurenglish.net In one of the most inhospitable places on Earth, the southernmost part of Chile's Patagonia region, scientists are studying whales, dolphins and algae in order to help predict how global warming will affect the world's oceans. | RELATED: | Chile Increases Protected Natural Areas by 81% | The fjord currently produces the kind of conditions that should be seen in other marine systems in the next few decades, when dramatic changes are expected in the environment due to increased carbon dioxide emis…

Blake Skylar (2019-01-14). Trump's wall: A death sentence for wildlife. peoplesworld.org President Trump's dream of a border wall is a nightmare for the U.S. Most agree it's a dangerous idea rooted in xenophobia, but should it be built, endangered wildlife might be among its first casualties. It would also pose a significant threat to the climate. In a nation already being ravaged by global warming, it …

Julia Stein (2019-01-14). California Needs a 10-Year Green New Deal. counterpunch.org As global warming makes California warmer and drier, its wildfires worsen and more people have died. California has the biggest economy in the United States and now has the 5th largest economy in the world. What California does affects the globe. For three years the New York state assembly had passed the Climate and Community Protection More

James Nickerson (2019-01-14). Jay Inslee's Climate Change Gambit. progressive.org The issue of climate change was barely even mentioned during the last presidential race. Hopefully, Inslee's presence as a candidate will keep that from happening again.

Richard Moser (2019-01-11). Neoliberalism: Free Market Fundamentalism or Corporate Power? counterpunch.org I've been hearing about neoliberalism for a long time now and never could make much sense of it. It turns out the story we tell about neoliberalism is as contradictory as neoliberalism itself. Two currents within the critique of neoliberalism offer different analyses of the current economy and suggest different strategies for dealing with the gross exploitation, wealth inequality, climate destruction and dictatorial governance of the modern corporate order. More

ACLU (2019-01-10). Pennsylvanians Should Know How the State Police Is Monitoring Social Media. aclu.org The Pennsylvania State Police is blocking access to its social-media-monitoring policy by claiming it could harm "public safety." | "Sunshine is the best disinfectant.", , That's a line that is used so much that it's become almost trite. But it's oft-repeated because it is so true. And here in the Keystone State, the Pennsylvania State Police is doing everything in its power to block access to its policy on monitoring social media. So we're headed to the state Supreme Court to get it. | The ACLU of Pennsylvania's attempt to obtain the st…

pip.hinman (2019-01-10). NSW government to blame for Walgett water crisis. greenleft.org.au The New South Wales government is robbing communities of precious water by siphoning it off for cotton farms and coal and gas mines. It is doing so as the climate gets warmer and drought becomes more frequent. | These rotten priorities are being played out in Walgett, a town in the state's north-west that is home to more than 2000 people. Already affected by the long-running drought, Walgett is now suffering from a human-made disaster with residents having to truck in water after the town's bore system broke down. | In the local Gamilaroi language, Walgett means "a meeting of two rivers". Right now, the Namoi and…

Sam Biddle (2019-01-10). For Owners of Amazon's Ring Security Cameras, Strangers May Have Been Watching Too. theintercept.com The "smart home" of the 21st century isn't just supposed to be a monument to convenience, we're told, but also to protection, a Tony Stark-like bubble of vigilant algorithms and internet-connected sensors working ceaselessly to watch over us. But for some who've welcomed in Amazon's Ring security cameras, there have been more than just algorithms watching through the lens, according to sources alarmed by Ring's dismal privacy practices. | Ring has a history of lax, sloppy oversight when it comes to deciding who has access to some of the most precious, intimate data belonging to any person: a live, high-definition…

Shared by Jocelyn Dombroski (2019-01-10). Bill McKibben: The Fossil Fuel Industry Has Money, But We Have Movements. therealnews.com At the Sanders Institute Gathering, Bill McKibben says that a Green New Deal must address climate change, immigration, and unemployment, or we're headed "if not to Hell, then to a place with a very similar temperature."

splcenter (2019-01-07). Nathan Damigo, founder of white nationalist group Identity Evropa, files for bankruptcy protection. splcenter.org The founder of the white nationalist group Identity Evropa is seeking federal bankruptcy protection in what appears to be a pre-emptive move stemming from a lawsuit over "Unite the Right."

kathy_f (2019-01-07). Make 2019 the year of action on climate change. greenleft.org.au Australia is sweltering through another summer heatwave, with disastrous consequences for many vulnerable people. Walgett, in north-west NSW, ran out of water and catastrophic fires are threatening communities in Victoria and Tasmania. | As we make a plan for a new year of activism, we can take some heart from the growing student movement for real climate action. They are responding to the science and showing an awareness of the scale of the pending climate catastrophe. They know what needs to be done and are demonstrating that leadership comes from those who act. | Students 4 Climate Action have already agreed t…

Ralph Nader (2018-12-24). A "Massive Outlaw" zcomm.org Interview on Single Payer, Climate Devastation, Impeachment…

Paul Dobson (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."

kathy_f (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…

pip.hinman (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…

Don Fitz (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…