Why we’re underestimating American collapse – The strange new pathologies of the world’s first rich failed state

By Umair Hague 25 January 2018 (Eudaimonia & Co.) – You might say, having read some of my recent essays, “Umair! Don’t worry! Everything will be fine! It’s not that bad!” I would look at you politely, and then say gently, “To tell you the truth, I don’t think we’re taking collapse nearly seriously enough.” […]

Image of the Day: Map of terrorist events committed by Nazis, white supremacists, and white nationalists in the U.S. since 2001

29 January 2018 (FashMaps) – This map is a collection of terrorist events committed by Nazis/White Supremacists/White Nationalists since 2001, in which their acts were motivated by their violent ideologies. It lists the events, number of people killed, and the narrative of the event.The Nazi/White Supremacist/White Nationalist ideology promotes violence against all people not seen […]

Without firm action on gender equality and women’s empowerment, world may miss sustainable development targets

14 February 2018 (UN News) – “This is an urgent signal for action, and the report recommends the directions to follow,” Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, the Executive Director of UN Women, said on the launch of the new report, Turning promises into action: Gender Equality in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.Speaking to reporters at UN Headquarters […]

U.S. urged to protect rights defenders as activist Maru Mora Villalpando faces deportation case – “Giving people notice of deportation proceedings appears to be a part of an increasing pattern of intimidation and retaliation against people defending migrants’ rights in the U.S.”

GENEVA, 14 February 2018 (UNHCR) – The United States Government must respect the rights of human rights defenders, a group of UN experts* has said, amid concern over action being taken against a Mexican woman who campaigns to protect migrants’ rights.  Maru Mora Villalpando, who has been in the US since 1996, is facing deportation […]

He predicted the 2016 fake news crisis, and now he’s worried about an information apocalypse – “What happens when anyone can make it appear as if anything has happened, regardless of whether or not it did?”

By Charlie Warzel 11 February 2018 (BuzzFeed News) – In mid-2016, Aviv Ovadya realized there was something fundamentally wrong with the internet — so wrong that he abandoned his work and sounded an alarm. A few weeks before the 2016 election, he presented his concerns to technologists in San Francisco’s Bay Area and warned of […]

If you live in Florida, doctors say climate change is already affecting your health – “I see it right now on a day-to-day basis”

By Alex Harris 9 February 2018 (Miami Herald) – When most people think about climate change — if they do at all — what usually comes to mind is melting glaciers, starving polar bears and flood waters lapping at the doors of Miami Beach condo buildings. The popular thought is that the future impacts of […]

Trump’s EPA head isn’t the first to argue global warming may not be “a bad thing”

By Dino Grandoni 8 February 2018 (The Washington Post) – Scott Pruitt has repeatedly questioned the scientific consensus that rising levels of carbon dioxide from human-fueled activity are warming the planet during his year in the job as Environmental Protection Agency chief. The examples began piling up almost from the start. Just a month into […]

Rat infestation spoils food, donated supplies never sent to Puerto Rico – “This is government negligence”

By Bianca Padró Ocasio 6 February 2018 (Orlando Sentinel) – A rat infestation closed down a government office in Kissimmee that was storing donations destined for Puerto Rico, contaminating boxes of supplies that were never sent to the island. The office of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration “does not have the budget to finance […]

A pet crayfish can clone itself, and it’s spreading around the world – “We’re being invaded by an army of clones”

By Sarah Zhang 5 February 2018 (The Atlantic) – No one knows exactly when the clones first appeared, but humans only became aware of them in the early 2000s. It was a German aquarium owner who first brought it to scientists’ attention. In 1995, he had acquired a bag of “Texas crayfish” from an American […]

Closed-door policies imperil climate migrants – “There are areas of the world that are getting degraded, and if we do nothing, they will become uninhabitable”

By Justine Calma 5 February 2018 (Grist) – The unprecedented brutality of the 2017 hurricane season showed the potential that natural disasters have to destroy livelihoods, displace families, and uproot entire communities. The most recent example, of course, is the situation in Puerto Rico post-Maria. Experts estimate the U.S. territory will lose close to 500,000 […]

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