How six Americans changed their minds about global warming – “I liken it to a religious conversion, and not just because I saw something I’d never seen before — I felt a deep sense of repentance”

By Livia Albeck-Ripka 21 February 2018 (The New York Times) – The Rev. Richard Cizik used to believe climate change was a myth. The science had to be rigged, he thought; those who believed in it were just tree-huggers. But in 2002, a friend convinced Mr. Cizik to go to a conference about climate change, […]

Trump administration targets Obama-era effort to limit methane – “Gutting the rule would allow unchecked waste of natural gas”

By Lisa Friedman 12 February 2018 (The New York Times) – The Trump administration on Monday moved to repeal one of the last unchallenged climate-change regulations rushed into place in the waning days of the Obama presidency — a rule restricting the release of planet-warming methane into the atmosphere. The rule, which applied to companies […]

Trump EPA head says he needs to fly first class because people are mean to him in coach

By Michael Biesecker 14 February 2018 WASHINGTON (AP) – The head of the Environmental Protection Agency has broken months of silence about his frequent premium-class flights at taxpayer expense, saying he needs to fly first class because of unpleasant interactions with other travelers.EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt spoke about his flight costs on Tuesday in a […]

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.” […]

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 […]

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 […]

Philippine strongman Duterte tells soldiers to shoot female rebels in their genitals – “We won’t kill you. We will just shoot your vagina. If there is no vagina, it would be useless.”

By Lindsay Murdoch 13 February 2018 (The Sydney Morning Herald) – Women’s groups and human rights advocates have condemned Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for encouraging soldiers to shoot female rebels in their genitals, the latest in a series of violent, misogynist remarks. Duterte, a former provincial mayor, told a group of former communist rebels to […]

Democratic senators demand Trump EPA administrator recuse himself from rewriting Clean Power Plan – As attorney general of Oklahoma, Pruitt sued EPA 14 times

By Dino Grandoni 7 February 2018 (The Washington Post) – A group of Democratic senators is demanding that Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt recuse himself from  repealing one of President Obama’s signature environmental rules, which is intended to curb the release of greenhouse gases from the nation’s power plants.Late Tuesday, the four senators — […]

A televangelist’s flu-season advice: “Inoculate yourself with the word of God”

By Marwa Eltagouri 6 February 2018 (The Washington Post) – At least 53 children across the country have died during a nasty flu outbreak that is already one of the worst on record, even though the season typically peaks in February.But Texas televangelist Gloria Copeland thinks there’s nothing to worry about. In fact, the minister […]

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