Where Did the Carter White House's Solar Panels Go?

Where Did the Carter White House's Solar Panels Go?

Starving the Beast

Starving the Beast

What's the trick to keep grids humming along on solar, wind and…

What's the trick to keep grids humming along on solar, wind and…

The ABCs of Big Oil: Why the Fossil Fuel Industry Infiltrated Schools

The ABCs of Big Oil: Why the Fossil Fuel Industry Infiltrated Schools

Biden bends to the nuclear bureaucracy – Responsible Statecraft

Biden bends to the nuclear bureaucracy – Responsible Statecraft

The Corruption of the Afghan Presidency

The Corruption of the Afghan Presidency

Part of the reason the Taliban have popular support is because the guy we propped up was so corrupt. (Like most of the regimes we prop up)

The Profits of War | Costs of War

The Profits of War | Costs of War

Weapons manufacturers make more money from the US government than the budgets of the State Department and US Agency for International Development combined

President Biden Must Match Rhetoric and Reality in Pledge to Avoid a New Cold War

President Biden Must Match Rhetoric and Reality in Pledge to Avoid a New Cold War

Congress Should Cut US Military Ties With Saudi Arabia

Congress Should Cut US Military Ties With Saudi Arabia

Expanding the Military Draft Is Not Feminism. Abolishing Draft Registration Is.

Expanding the Military Draft Is Not Feminism. Abolishing Draft Registration Is.

In the past year alone, nearly 3 million women in the United States have been forced out of the workforce due to coronavirus-related issues. Across the country, women are being pushed into crushing poverty as homelessness and mass incarceration rise among women and children at alarming rates, and health care, voting and reproductive rights continue to be under assault.

What’s the government’s response? Passing expanded paid family leave? No. Continuing expanded unemployment benefits? Absolutely not. Unwilling to provide solutions to the very real issues that everyday people are facing, Congress has instead found a way to suck more resources into the war machine: expanding the draft to include women.

In a nation that has the world’s largest military budget and more than 800 overseas military bases, we refuse to let our bodies be a source of endless cannon fodder and exploitation: One in four women in the U.S. military have reported experiencing sexual assault and more than half have experienced some form of harassment. Requiring women to register for the draft would endanger them in more than one way should they ever need to be selected.

The carbon capture boondoggle

The carbon capture boondoggle

Kayaking to Cut Coal Fired Power Plants: 2,341 Miles Down the Missouri River

Kayaking to Cut Coal Fired Power Plants: 2,341 Miles Down the Missouri River

One of the plants is at Labadie, just west of St Louis.  Coal fired electricity plants are bad for air, humans, and water.  Natural gas fired plants are not the answer.  The answer is wind and solar.

This Powerful Democrat Linked to Fossil Fuels Will Craft the U.S. Climate Plan

This Powerful Democrat Linked to Fossil Fuels Will Craft the U.S. Climate Plan

Great interview with Spencer Ackerman, author of "Reign of Terror: How 9/11 Era Destabilized America and Produced Trump" in Jewish Currents

Read the whole interview here: Mainlining Fear and Hatred

"SA: I’m very grateful for the opportunity. In the book I try to explain that the forces defining the post-9/11 era were nothing new in American history—that 9/11 was a circumstance that gave the most violent, nativist, and racist aspects of American history a new rationale in an era of righteous, patriotic urgency. The War on Terror was an inflection point, and it had yet to be properly contextualized that way. We’ve had so many explanations on offer for Trump, many of which are very good and persuasive. My close friend Adam Serwer, for instance, has demonstrated how rooted Trump is in white supremacy and nativism that have been present throughout US history. But I wanted to demonstrate that the War on Terror is crucial context for all of the other explanations.

Birtherism, for instance—which was how Trump really launched his political ascension—was not just anti-Black racism; it was also part of the culture of the War on Terror. It said Barack Obama was America’s enemy not just because he was supposedly secretly Kenyan, but specifically because he was supposedly a Kenyan Muslim, and that people like him were responsible for the attacks. The atmosphere of emergency post-9/11 allowed these things to fuse together and grow in intensity. I wrote Reign of Terror because I had grown frustrated with how all of the other explanations for Trump left out how by 2016 we had experienced 15 years of an agonizing, inconclusive war against a non-white enemy, from a religion that most Americans are unfamiliar with and regard as something to be feared. That was present in Trump’s own words, and he surrounded himself with some of the most vicious and exploitative proponents of that culture—including Mike Flynn, John Kelly, Erik Prince, Jeff Sessions, and Rudy Giuliani, among others.

Now we have all this gauzy bullshit rhetoric about how America was united, which it never truly was. America was mobilized against an enemy, both internally and abroad. That’s not unity or solidarity, it’s predation. We need to always remember that. Unfortunately, as we can see from how so much of the media and the Washington establishment responded to Biden’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, no lessons have been learned."

Wash U Law Professor Greg Magarian: Taking down the flags might have been an infringement of speech, but chancellor's response caused even more harm than that

 https://gatewayjr.org/wash-u-chancellor-harms-free-speech-by-embracing-college-republicans-9-11-message-while-ignoring-hateful-attacks-on-student-protester/

The Distributed Empire of the War on Terror

The Distributed Empire of the War on Terror

Oil Industry Tax Breaks Preserved in House Democrats’ Proposal

Oil Industry Tax Breaks Preserved in House Democrats’ Proposal

Who do they think they are? Israel tells US to ease off Saudi, Egypt human rights – Responsible Statecraft

Who do they think they are? Israel tells US to ease off Saudi, Egypt human rights – Responsible Statecraft

also:

https://apnews.com/article/iran-asia-afghanistan-dubai-middle-east-b6aaf30d689d0a8e45901e51f0457381

https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2021/09/chinese-operated-port-opens-israel-despite-american-concerns

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi-releases-first-911-document-after-biden-order-cnn-2021-09-12/

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/04/the-obama-doctrine/471525/

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-officials-cautioned-biden-against-heavy-criticism-of-egypt-saudi-arabia/

The Squad Visits Line 3 - These powerful women are at the frontlines for all of us - pipeline struggles

The Squad Visits Line 3

Iran and I.A.E.A. Reach Last-Minute Deal on Nuclear Monitoring

Iran and I.A.E.A. Reach Last-Minute Deal on Nuclear Monitoring

We'll be discussing - here's more back story: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/06/world/europe/iran-nuclear-deal.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article

We'll be talking about the rising violence against environmentalists...for the moment, here's Greta

 Here's the story: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-58508001

Times Investigation: In U.S. Drone Strike, Evidence Suggests No ISIS Bomb

Times Investigation: In U.S. Drone Strike, Evidence Suggests No ISIS Bomb

Letter from Harvard University President Lawrence Bacow: They are basically divesting from fossil fuels. Why doesn't WUSTL jump on board too?

 

Dear Members of the Harvard Community, Climate change is the most consequential threat facing humanity. The last several months have laid at our feet undeniable evidence of the world to come—massive fires that consume entire towns, unprecedented flooding that inundates major urban areas, record heat waves and drought that devastate food supplies and increase water scarcity. Few, if any, parts of the globe are being spared as livelihoods are dashed, lives are lost, and regions are rendered unlivable. Moreover, as the latest report of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change suggests, without concerted action, this dire situation is only going to get worse. We must act now as citizens, as scholars, and as an institution to address this crisis on as many fronts as we have at our disposal. I write today to describe what Harvard has done—and will do—to ensure that our community is fully engaged in the critical work ahead. Investment Strategy For some time now, Harvard Management Company (HMC) has been reducing its exposure to fossil fuels. As we reported last June, HMC has no direct investments in companies that explore for or develop further reserves of fossil fuels. Moreover, HMC does not intend to make such investments in the future. Given the need to decarbonize the economy and our responsibility as fiduciaries to make long-term investment decisions that support our teaching and research mission, we do not believe such investments are prudent. HMC has legacy investments as a limited partner in a number of private equity funds with holdings in the fossil fuel industry. These indirect investments constitute less than two percent of the endowment, a number that continues to decline. HMC has not made any new commitments to these limited partnerships since 2019 and has no intention to do so going forward.i These legacy investments are in runoff mode and will end as these partnerships are liquidated. HMC is building a portfolio of investments in funds that support the transition to a green economy. In addition, the University has made investments alongside MIT in The Engine, a fund that, among other things, seeks to accelerate the development of technologies that promise to address the challenges posed by climate change. HMC was the first endowment in the country to commit to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions across the entire investment portfolio by 2050. Since we announced this commitment, a number of other endowments have followed our lead. We will work with them and others to achieve greater transparency in the greenhouse gas footprint of all of our investment managers, along with the development of protocols for assessing and reducing the footprint for entire investment portfolios. We must continue to work with our investment managers and with industry if we are to bring about the transformation of our economy that climate change demands. Finally, HMC has pledged to render its own operations greenhouse gas neutral by June 30, 2022. It will also continue its work with organizations like Climate Action 100+, Principles for Responsible Investment, and CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project), all of which seek to engage other institutional investors in helping to speed change towards a decarbonized economy. Research and Teaching The principal way we influence the world is through our research and teaching. We are fortunate to have enormous strength in environmental science, medicine, public health, engineering, policy, ethics, business, and law at Harvard. Through efforts such as the Harvard University Center for the Environment and the Climate Change Solutions Fund, we have made important progress toward connecting and amplifying distributed efforts, but we must do more if we hope to move with the speed and focus that the moment demands. Earlier this week, we announced the appointment of our first-ever Vice Provost for Climate and Sustainability. Professor James Stock will work across University boundaries to accelerate and coordinate research and education, and to accelerate our University-wide strategy with the potential to transform Harvard’s capacity to produce crucial new knowledge on climate and sustainability. I have provided significant resources to seed this effort and have pledged to work with Jim and our faculty to raise substantial incremental resources to support our work on climate change. Harvard must stand among world leaders in addressing this challenge. On-Campus Sustainability Efforts We must look not only to our work but also to every aspect of our lives as we chart a path forward, and we will continue to scrutinize our own campus activities. Harvard was also one of the first organizations to announce in 2018 a goal to eliminate the use of all fossil fuels to heat, cool, and power buildings and vehicles on our campus by 2050 along with a short-term goal to be fossil fuel-neutral by 2026. This unique approach, informed by input from faculty, students, and staff, aims to reduce emissions and address health impacts. In 2019, I created a Presidential Committee on Sustainability—currently co-chaired by Professors Jody Freeman and Mike Toffel with Executive Vice President Katie Lapp and managed by the Office for Sustainability—to inform our sustainability priorities and advise how the University achieves our goals and generates transformational solutions. To that end, Harvard’s campus serves as a testbed for experimentation that evolves with our knowledge of climate change and sustainable development. From the construction and maintenance of our buildings; to the design of our transportation systems, including new EV buses; to the sourcing and preparation of our food; and more, Harvard uses our strengths to translate research and teaching into practice to pilot, prove, and implement solutions that can be replicated and scaled locally and globally. The University is also leveraging our faculty and research to translate public health and building materials research to help drive market transformation through the Harvard Healthier Building Academy (HHBA). The HHBA has collaborated on more than 40 capital projects representing three million square feet to generate transparency for building material ingredients and worked with hundreds of manufacturers to optimize products for health. The University has more than 140 LEED-certified buildings, including the new Harvard Science and Engineering Complex (SEC). LEED Platinum certified, it is the largest building—and the first research building—in the world to achieve Living Building Challenge Materials Petal Certification. None of us will be spared the realities of climate change, which means we are all in this together. Global progress will depend on a collective effort to see one another not as adversaries but as partners, not as caricatures but as people. It used to be that this was easier said than done—now it seems easier thought than said—but we must find a way to work side by side to have any hope of changing behaviors, adopting policies, and decarbonizing the economy. After a career among some of the most creative and talented individuals in the world, I believe that any problem caused by people can be solved by people too. If that seems overly optimistic, so be it. We are going to need a little optimism to preserve life on Earth as we know and cherish it today. All the best, Larry   i Under the terms of some of these partnerships, HMC is legally obligated to fund capital calls if requested by the general partner up to the maximum capital committed at the time of the investment.

© 2021 The President and Fellows of Harvard College | Harvard.edu Harvard University | Massachusetts Hall | Cambridge, MA 02138

What if the US didn’t go to war in Afghanistan after 9/11? – Responsible Statecraft

What if the US didn’t go to war in Afghanistan after 9/11? – Responsible Statecraft

The Bush administration’s reaction to the 9/11 attacks, as Robert Kagan has recently recalled, was a mixture of panic, confusion, fear, and guilt. Moreover, “Bush personally wanted vengeance,” and he cites an on-the-record reflection by Secretary of State Colin Powell as published in early 2002: Bush “wanted to kill somebody.”

The more I learn about the oil and gas business - and fracking in particular - the more I am convinced we are right: It is a dirty toxic socio-technical infrastructure that should be banned. Ohio bills call for a ‘radioactive subsidy’ for one company’s oil and gas byproduct, critics say - Energy News Network

Ohio bills call for a ‘radioactive subsidy’ for one company’s oil and gas byproduct, critics say - Energy News Network

They want to use salty, radioactive water discharged from oil and gas wells to de-ice the roads.  Bad idea all around.

How US-Funded Abuses Led to Failure in Afghanistan (More on this in Week 3)

How US-Funded Abuses Led to Failure in Afghanistan

The War on Terror Is Still Alive and Well (We'll be discussing this in Week 3)

The War on Terror Is Still Alive and Well

"Biden’s powerful rejoinder to their call for continuing a “low-risk war” indicts the entire strategy: “There’s nothing low-grade or low=risk or low-cost about any war.… We can see that in the statistic that should give pause to anyone who thinks war can ever be low-grade…18 veterans, on average, who die by suicide every single day in America.”

Waging forever wars across the world has had poisonous effects on America, even beyond the cost in lives and money. The executive now asserts the right to dispatch troops and drones across the world, to target assassinations—even against an American citizen—preemptively. Or when, in the words of Obama’s lawyers, “elongated imminence” of a threat can justify the use of force."

Over 200 medical journals warn climate crisis is the "greatest threat to public health"

Over 200 medical journals warn climate crisis is the "greatest threat to public health"

As DOE ramps up Hydrogen Shot initiative, debate about means of production begins

As DOE ramps up Hydrogen Shot initiative, debate about means of production begins

Hydrogen is being pushed by the fossil fuel industries, because they do not want to let go of carbon-centric infrastructure and inputs.

I don't think we need it, but we will discuss.

Pipelines bring new forms of violence against women, especially sexual violence. Indigenous Peoples and some brave people in congress trying to stop them: "Trades group accuses Line 3 foes of ‘gaslighting’ workers"

And the men, of course, respond by accusing the victims of gaslighting.  

Trades group accuses Line 3 foes of ‘gaslighting’ workers

"A 2020 report to the Minnesota Legislature, the “Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Task Force,” noted the “risks on Indigenous women associated with Line 3 and other projects of this nature and predicted that construction would lead to more violence against Indigenous women,” according to the lawmakers’ letter."

EPA just detailed all the ways climate change will hit U.S. racial minorities the hardest. It’s a long list.

Some people used to say that climate activism was a "white" issue.  It's not.

EPA just detailed all the ways climate change will hit U.S. racial minorities the hardest. It’s a long list.

The new analysis, which comes four days after Hurricane Ida destroyed homes of low-income and Black residents in Louisiana and Mississippi, examined the effects of the global temperature rising 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) compared with preindustrial levels. It found that American Indians and Alaska Natives are 48 percent more likely than other groups to live in areas that will be inundated by flooding from sea-level rise under that scenario, Latinos are 43 percent more likely to live in communities that will lose work hours because of intense heat, and Black people will suffer significantly higher mortality rates.

Carbon capture and storage, once again is (A) a bad idea and (B) an effort by the fossil fuel industry to keep burning fossil fuels and using old fossil infrastructures Oil and gas pipeline industry tries to reinvent itself with carbon capture plans

Oil and gas pipeline industry tries to reinvent itself with carbon capture plans