Open Thread for December 30, 2021

 Posted by at 6:44 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Dec 302021
 

Yesterday, I got in touch with BlueHost (It requires both BlueHost and WordPress to run PoliticsPlus) The passwortd TC had given me had been reset, so I got directions on what to send to whom at BlueHost to get credentials of my own, amd sent it all off off. I may not need help from BLueHost to update the comment system, but eventuually I will need them, and I value their advice. So progress is being made (even if it looks a little like sausage is being made,) Thanks to everyone for your feedback. We will get where we are going – and we’re not suffering all that much in the interim, which is a great comfort. Oh, and I also took out trash and recyclables. What with the holiday I don’t even know for sure whether there will be pickup tomorrow, but I have no problem leaving the polycarts/ wheeliebins/whatever they are called out until the contents are collected.

Cartoon –

Short Takes

Law & Crime – Federal Jury Convicts Ghislaine Maxwell of Sex Trafficking and Enticing Minors for Jeffrey Epstein’s Abuse
Quote – After a whirlwind trial slated for six weeks wrapped up in half of that time, a federal jury on Wednesday found Ghislaine Maxwell guilty of sex trafficking and conspiring to entice minors for years of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse. Maxwell stood trial for six federal offenses for conduct spanning from 1994 to 2004, roughly breaking down into alleged violations of the Mann Act and a distinct federal anti-sex trafficking statute. She was convicted of five of them, adding up to the possibility of several decades imprisonment for Maxwell, who turned 60 years old on Christmas Day.
Click through for details. Is it just ne, or is it easier to get an convicion on a woman than it is on a man? (Not tht she isn’t guilty, but that there are so many men who are guilty and still at liberty.)

Reuters – Russia shuts Memorial Human Rights Centre in ‘one-two punch’
Quote – Russia’s Memorial Human Rights Centre was ordered to shut by a Moscow court on Wednesday, a day after its sister organisation – Russia’s oldest human rights group – was forced to close. The Human Rights Centre [kept] a running list of individuals it classifies as political prisoners, including Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny. The list includes Jehovah’s Witnesses and Muslims convicted of terrorism that Memorial says were victims of “unproven charges based on fabricated evidence because of their religious affiliation”.
Click through for the story. Autocrats are not even pretending any more.

AP News – Judge refuses to dismiss alleged Proud Boys leaders’ charges
Quote – “Defendants are not, as they argue, charged with anything like burning flags, wearing black armbands, or participating in mere sit-ins or protests,” Kelly wrote in his 43-page ruling. “Moreover, even if the charged conduct had some expressive aspect, it lost whatever First Amendment protection it may have had.”
Click through for more. I don’t know anything about Judge Kelly (like, for instance, who appointed him), but he appears to understand the First Amendment very well.

Food For Thought:

 

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Open Thread for December 6, 2021

 Posted by at 7:08 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Dec 062021
 

Yesterday was quiet, but I got a late start, so didn’t do a whole lot. Which is fine. I did assemble the next two weeks meds (a day late.)

Cartoon –

Short Takes

The Conversation – What the public doesn’t get: Anti-CRT lawmakers are passing pro-CRT laws
Quote – [A Wisconsin] bill … includes a ban against teaching that “[o]ne race or sex is inherently superior to another race or sex.” …. Now imagine a 10th grade social studies class begins a unit on corporate America. The teacher opens with basic facts about Fortune 500 CEOs…. In effect, this story suggests that white men are inherently superior – the precise message that Wisconsin’s bill prohibits.
Click through for the complete case. This would be funny if it weren’t so sad. Dunning and Kruger would be facepalming.

The New Yorker – A Son Sends Josephine Baker to the Panthéon
Quote – The panthéonisation was a go, making Baker the sixth woman, and the first woman of color, to be so recognized. Born in St. Louis in 1906, she is also the first American-born person (she became a French citizen in 1937) to be honored alongside the likes of Voltaire and Hugo.
Click through. I thought I had a fair idea of what Baker did for humanity … but I vastly overestimated ny knowledge. She certainly deseerves this honor. If you are paywalled, I’ll be happy to send a pdf.

Crooks and Liars – BOGO: Koch Industries Buys An AZ Senate Candidate’s…Company
Quote – Republican Jim Lamon was the founder and owner of DEPCOM Power, a solar power company headquartered in Arizona. Lamon’s company was acquired by a division of Koch Industries, just in time to give Lamon a huge cash infusion with which to challenge Mark Kelly, who is running for re-election in 2022.
Click through for details. I believe this is called “plausible deniability” – which is seldom, and in this case not, plausible.

Food for Thought –

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Open Thread for November 26, 2021

 Posted by at 7:21 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Nov 262021
 

Yesterday was, of course, Thanksgiving Day in the United States. I hope everyone had a wonderful day whether or not you are in the United States. Tomorrow, I will be going to see Virgil. I think I’m ready.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

The New Yorker – Could One Shot Kill the Flu?
Quote – For decades, scientists have dreamed of what some call a “universal” flu vaccine—one that could target many strains of the virus. A universal vaccine would save countless lives not just this year but every year; as those numbers add up, it would become one of the greatest medical breakthroughs in history. Until recently, it’s been beyond the reach of molecular biology. But new technologies are extending our abilities, and researchers are learning how to see through the flu’s disguises. Without knowing it, we’re living on the cusp of a remarkable scientific achievement. One of the world’s longest pandemics could soon be coming to an end.
Click through for complications. It’s not a certainty – but it is a possibiity -and that is progress. If you re paywalled out, feel free to email me and I’ll send a pdf.

Crooks and Liars – Justice For Ahmaud Arbery: ALL 3 Defendants Found GUILTY
Quote – The jury was not representative of the community, with 11 white and only 1 Black member, which was a concern that even the judge raised. They deliberated for roughly 10 hours and there was concern that this could be a Kyle Rittenhouse or George Zimmerman repeat. But JUSTICE PREVAILED.
Click through for details. I put up a tag Wednesday when this was announced, but I wanted to featureit also. It’s important.

The New Yorker – Peng Shuai and the High Stakes of Business in China
Quote – The post was up for about ten minutes before the state’s well-oiled machinery of censorship kicked into gear and took it down. Comments on Peng’s account were locked. Screenshots of her sixteen-hundred-word post, which were spreading, were scrubbed. Her name disappeared from Internet searches. Emojis and words related to the case did, too. For a while, even the word “tennis” was blocked. Behind the state’s erasure of Peng’s presence on the Chinese Internet was another urgent and troubling question: What would happen to her?
Click through for the story which is not at all simple. I never expected to be looking to “The Sporting Scene” for a short take, but pf coourse, she’s not the first sports woman, and will not be the last, whose life clashes in some way with authoritarian leadership.

Food for Thought –

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As Seen from Afar 11/12/2021

 Posted by at 5:53 pm  Politics
Nov 122021
 

COP26 Day 12 | It’s finally crunch time

 

Euronews Green delivers a Special COP26 email to my mailbox every day during the two weeks it is running (01-12 November 2021). I’ll publish it in its entirety for those who are interested. This is the ninth in the series.


Today’s takeaway

COP26 was due to wrap at 7pm CET today but there is still no white smoke for a final agreement as this newsletter goes to publication. If the almost 200 countries involved in the talks are unable to strike a deal this evening, it is likely COP26 will go into overtime.

A new draft decision published early this morning appeared to water down the language from the previous text calling to end all use of coal and phase out fossil fuel subsidies completely. While the change has sparked criticism from climate activists, some conceded that the draft text at least had the merit of retaining a mention to fossil fuels for the first time in decades of UN climate talks.

The draft cover deal has also retained a core request for countries to set more ambitious climate targets next year. But this request appears to use weaker language than the previous draft, saying the upgraded pledges should take into account “different national circumstances.”

On the positive side, many observers find the new text stronger on climate finance. “We’ve moved from richer nations largely ignoring the pleas of developing countries for promised finance to tackle climate change, to the start of recognition that their calls should be met,” said Greenpeace chief Jennifer Morgan.

“A small number of key issues remain which require our urgent collective attention,” said COP26 chairman Alok Sharma this afternoon as he urged “a final injection of can-do spirit” to deliver on an ambitious climate deal.

Looking ahead, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates will host the next COPs in 2022 and 2023 respectively, following announcements in Glasgow yesterday. An Egyptian official said the North African country would hold the next climate talks “on behalf of Africa.”

In case you weren’t able to follow along on Thursday, here are five key takeaways from Day 11.

At a glance

Latest draft of COP26 deal ‘waters down’ language on ending coal use

The change in wording suggests a shift away from unconditional demands that some fossil fuel exporting nations have objected to.
Read more

What is ecocide and why is it so important that we enshrine it into law?

Ecocide can literally be translated as “home-kill,” making clear its violence and absurdity. It refers to the destruction humans knowingly do to the environment, from deforestation to ocean plastic pollution. So why is it legal?
Read more

Meet the filmmaker who swapped a London flat for an off-grid boat

In the third episode of Euronews Green’s new video series Low Impact Living, we speak with adventurer and filmmaker James Levelle about being a ‘river nomad’.
Read more

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As Seen from Afar 11/11/2021

 Posted by at 4:27 pm  Politics
Nov 112021
 

COP26 Day 11 | ‘Not there yet’

 

Euronews Green delivers a Special COP26 email to my mailbox every day during the two weeks it is running (01-12 November 2021). I’ll publish it in its entirety for those who are interested. This is the eighth in the series.


Today’s takeaway

Waves of tentative optimism were sweeping through COP26 today after the US and China announced a bilateral deal to redouble their climate efforts.

The joint statement issued by Washington and Beijing called for “enhanced climate action in the 2020s”, including a new, stronger emission cuts target in 2025 and a pledge by China to follow the US lead in slashing methane emissions.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and others hailed it as “an important step in the right direction.” But some analysts thought the deal “lacked meat” on concrete commitments besides those on methane.

Whether or not this spirit of cooperation will be reflected in the final agreement of COP26 is another story. Difficult negotiations involving almost 200 countries continued in Glasgow after a draft cover deal was released yesterday.

“We’re not there yet. There is still much more work to be done,” said COP26 chairman Alok Sharma as he briefed delegates on the progress of the talks, urging another “gear shift” in the final hours of the summit.

The UK presidency said it planned on publishing the next draft of the cover deal overnight, with a new meeting of ministers planned for tomorrow morning.

COP26 is due to end on Friday evening, but an extension has not been ruled out.

In other news, Denmark and Costa Rica launched an ambitious alliance today to phase out coal and gas. Six full members, France, Greenland, Ireland, Quebec, Sweden and Wales also joined the group known as the ‘Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance‘.

Campaigners hailed the move as a “turning point” while urging more countries to join.

“The creation of this alliance puts to shame claims of climate leadership among countries like the United Kingdom, Norway, the United States, and Canada, all of which have yet to answer this simple question: Where is your plan to stop producing the fossil fuels that are driving the climate crisis?” asked Romain Ioualalen of Oil Change International.

In case you weren’t able to follow along on Wednesday, here are five takeaways from Day 10.

Some additional bad and good news

Deforestation in Australia: a wanton assault on wildlife – in pictures

More than 100 nations including Australia have signed up to stop or reverse deforestation by 2030. The pact, hailed as one of the main achievements of COP26, put the spotlight on an issue that combines carbon emissions and threatened species. These images reveal some of the shocking impacts of deforestation.

(From: The Canopy, Greenpeace Australia Pacific)

At a glance

Major European countries pledge to phase out oil and gas

A “first of its kind” alliance of governments has committed to phasing out the production of oil and gas. Led by Costa Rica and Denmark, the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance (BOGA) saw six members join.
Read more

Local councils trusted more than world leaders on climate, poll finds

British people trust local councils more than the government when it comes to taking action on climate change, a new survey has revealed.
Read more

Frustrated doctor diagnoses woman with ‘climate change’ in world first

A Canadian woman has become the first patient in the world to be diagnosed as suffering from ‘climate change’, after she developed breathing difficulties following a historic heatwave. But what are her symptoms?
Read more

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As Seen from Afar 11/10/2021

 Posted by at 5:18 pm  Politics
Nov 102021
 

COP26 Day 10 | The beginning of the end

 

Euronews Green delivers a Special COP26 email to my mailbox every day during the two weeks it is running (01-12 November 2021). I’ll publish it in its entirety for those who are interested. This is the seventh in the series.


Today’s takeaway

COP26 entered a new phase of negotiations on Wednesday after a first draft of the summit’s final decision was circulated early this morning.

​​The seven-page document urges countries to strengthen their climate plans by the end of next year and, for the first time, calls for the phasing out of coal and fossil fuel subsidies.

This draft text isn’t the end of the story yet in Glasgow but it marks the beginning of the end for the summit.

Diplomats from the nearly 200 countries represented at COP26 have now begun to negotiate the text hoping to strike a final deal before proceedings are meant to come to a close on Friday.

But the draft deal has had mixed reviews so far – especially from climate activists. A Greenpeace executive compared it to a “polite request that countries maybe, possibly, do more next year.” That’s “not good enough,” she said.

The COP26 Chairman expects a “near-final text to be published overnight,” as negotiations continue.

Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson made the trip to Glasgow to press negotiators to find a compromise. “We know what needs to be done but we just need the courage to get on and do it,” he said.

Today was also Transport Day at COP26 and there was a raft of announcements about zero-emissions vehicles.

A group of countries and companies signed a pledge to switch to emissions-free cars by 2040 and by no later than 2035 in leading auto markets.

Critics pointed out that large countries including the US, Germany, China and Japan stayed out of the deal, along with some of the world’s biggest car manufacturers.

The International Energy Agency says that 60 per cent of new car sales need to be battery-electric by 2030 and internal combustion engine cars need to be phased out by 2035 to keep below 1.5C. Many believe this pledge is not ambitious enough to achieve that.

If you weren’t able to follow along on Tuesday, here are five takeaways from COP26 Gender Day.

Some additional bad news

Australia among nations trying to soften COP26 declaration

Australia has joined a coalition of countries working to water down a key proposal from the Glasgow climate summit which would pressure the Morrison government to overturn its opposition to a more ambitious 2030 emissions reductions target. (From: The Canopy, Greenpeace Australia Pacific)

Some additional good news

‘Existential crisis’: United States and China stun COP26 with joint climate change pact

China and the United States have made a shock joint statement at the Glasgow climate talks, declaring climate change to be an existential crisis demanding co-operation between the superpowers.
(From: The Canopy, Greenpeace Australia Pacific)

At a glance

UPDATED: First draft of COP26 climate deal is released

The seven-page document is the first version of the agreement that will outline how countries plan to cut emissions and keep global warming below 1.5°C.
So what does it say?
Read more

Meet the climate group who have published a guide on how to sue Shell – and win

Their victory was the first judgement where a multinational corporation was held responsible for its contribution to climate change.
Read more

This cheeky 12-year-old activist is the perfect antidote to COP26 doom and gloom

Francisco Vera is not your ordinary kid. The Colombian primary school student is among the foremost climate activists at COP26, where he is calling for world leaders to include young people in the ongoing talks and negotiations.
Read more

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As Seen from Afar 11/09/2021

 Posted by at 6:18 pm  Politics
Nov 092021
 

COP 26 Day 9 | ‘Climate change is sexist’

 

Euronews Green delivers a Special COP26 email to my mailbox every day during the two weeks it is running (01-12 November 2021). I’ll publish it in its entirety for those who are interested. This is the sixth in the series.


Today’s takeaway

On Gender Day, COP26 turned its focus to the disproportionate climate impacts suffered by women and girls across the world.

“Climate change is sexist,” a US government official put it on Tuesday. 80 per cent of people displaced by climate change are women and children, according to UNFCC.

“But women and girls are also leading efforts to tackle climate change in communities around the world,” said COP26 chairman Alok Sharma as he outlined pledges for gender-responsive climate finance.

The puppet of a 10-year-old Syrian girl known as Little Amal made the journey to Glasgow to “represent all girls who could not be here,” at COP26, said Samoan activist Brianna Fruean as she opened the Gender Day lead event with Amal.

Meanwhile, the hard work on the summit’s cover decision continued in negotiation rooms. The UK presidency said it will publish a first draft of the summit’s final decision overnight. New texts have been tabled on time frames, transparency, finance and adaptation so far.

“We still have a mountain to climb,” warned Sharma as the clock ticked to strike a deal that will help limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

New forecasts released on Tuesday suggest the world is still far off that number. Think tank Climate Action Tracker said current climate policies put us on track to a scary 2.7 degrees Celsius warming – or 2.4 C if all governments met their 2030 targets.

If you weren’t able to follow along on Monday, here are five takeaways from Day 8.

At a glance

Five reasons climate change affects women more than men

Women and girls experience violence and a lack of access to education as a direct result of the climate crisis.

Read more

What is land inequality and how does it threaten women?

Land inequality is directly threatening 1.4 billion of the world’s poorest people including women, according to a recent report.
Read more

COP26: Why has a speech by Tuvalu’s Foreign Minister gone viral?

Tuvalu’s Foreign Minister Simon Kofe spoke to Euronews after a video of his speech at COP26 showing him standing knee-deep in seawater took the internet by storm.
Read more

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As Seen from Afar 11/03/2021

 Posted by at 6:39 pm  Politics
Nov 032021
 

COP 26 Day 3 | Who’s paying for it?

 

Euronews Green delivers a Special COP26 email to my mailbox every day during the two weeks it is running (01-12 November 2021). I’ll publish it in its entirety for those who are interested. This is the second in the series.


Today’s takeaway

With world leaders gone and their big speeches delivered, COP26 negotiators turned their focus to money on Tuesday.

Cash pledges from both governments and the private sector poured in as COP26 Finance Day wrapped up.

The UK presidency said that wealthy countries would deliver on their promise to provide $100 billion a year (€86 billion) to finance climate-related projects in the developing world, after failing to meet the initial 2020 target.

And in one of today’s most discussed announcements, the world’s largest financial players pledged a massive $130 trillion (​​€112 trillion) of private capital to decarbonise the economy, while the UK vowed to become “the world’s first net-zero aligned financial centre.”

But climate activists were calling for scrutiny of investors’ motives, warning that the same financial players who profited from fossil fuels were now posing as green champions.

If you weren’t able to follow along on Tuesday, here are the six key takeaways from day 2 of COP26.

At a glance

Don’t blame the climate crisis on India and China, campaigners urge

The Indian Prime Minister’s announcement that the country will reach net zero emissions by 2070 has been met with mixed reactions from COP-watchers. But environmental campaigners say it is “deeply unfair” to blame middle-income countries for the climate crisis.
Read more

What is the ‘carbon budget’, the latest term coming out of COP26 talks?

“Carbon budgets” is one of the most-often mentioned terms at the COP26 talks in Glasgow, but many are wondering who set them and what role they play in fighting climate change.
Read more

These countries are forcing banks to reveal their climate impact

New Zealand has introduced a new law that forces its financial institutions to disclose their climate impact. These other countries have already taken similar steps
Read more

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