Tag: environment
Elon Musk

How Elon Musk Changed Clean Water Into A Dirty Whine

There is nothing quite as pitiful as whiny billionaires. And the whiniest of all is the richest — Elon Musk. This self-entitled bully runs over anyone in his way, then whines when they protest.

Elon's latest high-pitched screech was prompted by public demands that his profiteering schemes obey clean-water and safety regulations. He owns a corporation named (believe it or not) the Boring Company — an underground tunnelling venture based in Bastrop, Texas, digging out tons of soil, chemicals and contaminated groundwater. But where to put all the waste? I'll just dump the stuff in the nearby Colorado River, said Lord Musk. Lots of stuff — 140,000 gallons of wastewater per day!

But that river is our main water source, said local people — you'll need to comply with water treatment and disposal rules. Outrageous, whined Elon, maniacally squealing that "Construction is becoming practically illegal" in America. So, he proceeded to dump his waste without a permit.

Then he encountered Chap Ambrose, a Boring neighbor and former Musk admirer. Chap began asking questions and getting nothing but evasions, lies and disrespect. Musk was messing with Texas, so Ambrose rallied local opposition through a website he named "Keep Bastrop Boring," promoting it on a local billboard. With a drone, he videoed Musk's expanding industrial mess, broadcasting the videos throughout the area. He filed actions with county, state and national regulatory authorities, and got his state senator to hold a hearing, attended by hundreds of residents in this rural county.

Musk can bamboozle powerful officials, but not feisty people like Chap, who recently ridiculed the pouty billionaire. "I'm sorry, neighbor," Ambrose told him. "Development remains legal in Bastrop, but what is illegal is polluting Texas water... You're making this way harder than it has to be."

The fight goes on — and I'm betting on Chap.

The Secretive Presidential Primary That Excludes You

Are you excited by — or do you dread — the upcoming presidential election season? Either way, buckle up, for it's only 12 weeks till the Iowa caucuses, and then (zoom!) there's nonstop voting across America for the rest of 2024. Democracy at work!

Well... unless you don't notice the Plutocratic Primary, where — shhhh! — presidential voting is already taking place. However, this balloting is only open to a teensy number of very exclusive voters: billionaires.

These privileged ones don't have to go to public campaign events; candidates come to them for closed-door tete-a-tetes, making undisclosed promises in exchange for millions of dollars in campaign funds. This secretive primary lets moneyed elites initiate or eliminate policies that candidates obediently support. Moreover, by granting or withholding large donations, billionaires can determine which candidates are considered "viable," letting the superrich have a heavy hand in "choosing the choices" that we commoners will have next year.

The New York Times reports that this flexing of the money muscle was recently exercised at a closed meeting of GOP sugar daddies in Utah. Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Chris Christie and other presidential wannabes were on display, pleading with the donors to choose them as the party's alternative to former President Donald Trump — and to shoo the other Republican contenders out of the race.

Haley bluntly appealed to the rich clique's plutocratic ego: "I think it's up to the donors to decide which candidates should get off the stage." Christie went a step further toward plutocratic rule, asking the elite attendees to decide who would be "the best president."

No one in the room bothered asking the obvious question: Best for whom? Everyone knew he meant best for the rich. No need for messy elections; let the billionaires choose!

To find out more about Jim Hightower and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators webpage at www.creators.com.

Reprinted with permission from Ceators.

Far-Right Eugenics Advocates Warn Of 'Population Collapse'

Far-Right Eugenics Advocates Warn Of 'Population Collapse'

A conference warning that "by the end of the century, nearly every country on earth will have a shrinking population, and economic systems dependent on reliable growth will collapse" is set to be held at an Austin, Texas hotel in December and led by far-right eugenicists, The Guardian reports.

The Guardiannotes:

Broadly, eugenics is a group of beliefs and practices aimed at improving the genetic quality of a human population. It became the basis of a popular movement from the late 19th century, and led to governments around the world adopting policies such as forced sterilization of disabled and mentally ill people. The field was discredited after the second world war due to its association with racial policies in Nazi Germany, and many critics have attacked it as a pseudoscience.

According to the report, Natal conference organizer Kevin Dolan "has a long history as an activist and influencer on the far right," although the conference's website claims the event "has no political or ideological goal other than a world in which our children can have grandchildren."

During a June interview with "the Jolly Heretic podcast, hosted by Edward Dutton, an Englishman who left an academic position in Finland after his university found that a work he co-authored with the self-described 'scientific racist," Dolan suggested "that the pro-natalist and the eugenic positions are very much not in opposition, they're very much aligned."

Additionally, the report notes when asked "why outsiders should be interested in Mormonism, Dolan said, "I think we actually are going to win. I think we're going to inherit the earth."

The Guardian reports the longtime right-wing influencer "pseudonymously promoted conservative Mormon and alt-right talking points" online until "his identity was revealed by antifascist activists and subsequently corroborated by Guardian reporting" in 2021.

Furthermore, he has promoted the conference, which will be held at The Line Hotel, "on the far-right podcast circuit, and has explicitly linked the conference's 'pro-natalist' orientation to eugenics," The Guardian notes.

Some event speakers include "Malcolm and Simone Collins, who have attracted significant coverage on both sides of the Atlantic for their warnings about slowing birthrates in advanced economies and how this will lead to 'catastrophic population collapse,'" as well as "Charles Haywood, the former shampoo magnate who the Guardian revealed as the founder and sponsor of a far-right network of fraternal lodges, the Society for American Civic Renewal, and who has speculated about his own future as a 'warlord' in 'more-or-less open warfare with the federal government' in a post-collapse America."

Global Project on Hate and Extremism co-founder Heidi Beirich told the news outlet, "It's not surprising to see far-right folks, eugenicist types and white nationalists joining forces at a conference like this. They have become bedfellows. The far right has long fretted about a demographic winter, and though they don't necessarily say it openly, what they are referring to most often is a fall in white birthrates."

Reprinted with permission from Alternet.

Climate Envoy Kerry Vows US Will Meet Emissons Goal Despite Court Setback

Climate Envoy Kerry Vows US Will Meet Emissons Goal Despite Court Setback

Washington (AFP) - US climate envoy John Kerry vowed Friday the United States will meet goals it submitted to the United Nations on slashing greenhouse gas emissions, despite a Supreme Court ruling that curtailed the government's powers.

"We are determined to achieve our goals. We can achieve our goals," Kerry told AFP.

"But obviously it would help if we had a majority of the Supreme Court in the United States of America that actually understood the gravity of the situation and was more willing to try to be helpful rather than present a hurdle of one kind or another," he said.

President Joe Biden, after defeating the climate-skeptic Donald Trump, in April last year said the United States would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 to 52 percent by 2030 from 2005 levels, dramatically increasing the climate ambitions of the world's largest economy.

He submitted the so-called nationally determined contribution to the UN climate body in line with the 2015 Paris Agreement, the landmark deal brokered by Kerry when he was secretary of state.

China, the world's largest carbon emitter, called Friday on all nations to live up to Paris commitments, with foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian saying of the United States, "it is not enough to just chant slogans."

Kerry, who has worked with Chinese officials in his climate role despite soaring tensions between Beijing and Washington, said that he was "not surprised by the messaging" from the Asian power.

"We will show China precisely how we're going to get the job done," Kerry said.

Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, called the Supreme Court decision "a setback in our fight against climate change."

Why Biden Proposes Drilling

Despite Biden's pledges to wean the United States off fossil fuels, the Interior Department on Friday released a five-year proposal that would authorize offshore oil and gas drilling in federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska, although it would still ban drilling in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

The proposal comes amid soaring gas prices and as Biden seeks to woo Senator Joe Manchin, a Democrat from coal-producing West Virginia with the crucial vote, to back a package that would also boost clean energy.

Environmentalists see the legislation as a last hope amid expectations that Trump's Republican Party will make advances in November congressional elections.

The Supreme Court, finishing a term in which three justices nominated by Trump pushed it sharply to the right, on Thursday cut the wings off a key way in which the government could have tackled climate change without fresh legislation.

In a 6-3 ruling branded "devastating" by Biden, the top court said the Environmental Protection Agency did not have authority to order sweeping cuts on emissions from coal-fired power plants.

"I am convinced -- and our legal people are looking at it very carefully -- that this decision leaves plenty of latitude for us to be able to do a lot of things that we need to do," Kerry said.

Asked about calls by some lawmakers from his Democratic Party for Biden to declare a climate emergency, Kerry said, "I think the president needs to evaluate every option available."

'Pin Into Balloon'

Coal accounts for around 20 percent of US electricity generation -- still roughly on par with renewables. China, despite investing heavily in wind and solar, has also kept building coal production capacity.

But Kerry said that the marketplace showed that coal is not the future.

"Nobody's going to fund any new coal power in the United States -- no bank, no private lender. Coal is the dirtiest fuel in the world," he said.

Scientists warn that the world is far off track in avoiding the worst ravages of climate change including severe heatwaves, floods, droughts, rising sea levels and storm surges.

The Paris accord set the goal of limiting end-of-century warming to two degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels -- and preferably not beyond 1.5 degrees -- but the planet has already warmed by nearly 1.2 Celsius.

Ruth Greenspan Bell, a climate expert at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, said it was difficult for the United States to show climate leadership while also fighting internally on whether it is a priority.

"It's kind of putting a pin into a balloon. There's a little bit less air in the balloon than there was before," she said of the court decision.

"The times call for a moonshot but imagine trying to pull off a moonshot when you are at the same time in a defensive crouch."

Biden Restores Environmental Safeguards Dumped By Trump

Biden Restores Environmental Safeguards Dumped By Trump

Washington (AFP) - The administration of President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced it would restore safeguards in a cornerstone environmental law weakened under Donald Trump -- including a duty to assess the climate impacts of proposed infrastructure projects.

The changes concern the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which was enacted by Congress in 1969. Rules about how it was applied were tweaked in 2020 by the then Republican president, an ardent supporter of the fossil fuel industry.

"Restoring these basic community safeguards will provide regulatory certainty, reduce conflict, and help ensure that projects get built right the first time," said White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) chair Brenda Mallory in a statement.

"Patching these holes in the environmental review process will help projects get built faster, be more resilient, and provide greater benefits to people who live nearby."

The restorations include a requirement that federal agencies evaluate both the direct and indirect impacts of projects, including by assessing climate change impacts and the consequences of releasing additional pollution in communities already affected by air pollution and dirty water.

It will also allow agencies to work once more with local communities to devise alternate plans to minimize environmental and health harm, and establish NEPA regulations as the floor, rather than the ceiling, for environmental review standards -- paving the way for stricter measures if needed.

The White House said it was also working to further broaden the scope of NEPA and would announce more changes soon.

Reacting to the announcement, Leslie Fields of the environmental group Sierra Club said: "We are encouraged to see the Biden administration take action to restore this bedrock environmental protection.

"NEPA plays a critical role in keeping our communities and our environment healthy and safe, and Donald Trump's attempts to weaken NEPA were clearly nothing more than a handout to corporate polluters."

The move comes days after the Biden administration was slammed by critics for announcing a resumption of oil and gas leasing on public lands, violating the Democrat's campaign promise.

On Friday, the interior department said it would post notices "for significantly reformed onshore lease sales" across roughly 144,000 acres of land.

Experts say steering clear of new fossil fuel projects is vital to meet the goal of limiting long term warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius and averting a climate catastrophe.