As participants arrive in Montreal to negotiate this decade’s targets for protecting biodiversity, two themes are getting the lion’s share of attentionAfter more than two years of delays, Cop15, the once-in-decade global biodiversity summit, is about to begin. More than 10,000 participants from across the planet will start arriving in Montreal at the weekend to negotiate crucial goals for protecting biodiversity.There has been a coordinated push behind some targets, namely from a group of countries that want to protect 30% of land and sea for nature (30×30) by the end of the decade. The idea of “nature positive” is another……
cloudtales
Endless debates about soup and paintings serve those who’d prefer we ignore the climate crisis
Opponents of meaningful action are trying to sidestep the immediacy of the threat to our planetExpert opinion is settled and public opinion united on the urgency of climate action. If our politics or our discourse were in any way functional, there would be no confusion, no debate. We would simply be proceeding from one bold practical action to the next, following the blueprints laid out by the Climate Change Committee.Instead, we have energy policies stitched together from reheated cliches, which on the one hand doesn’t matter, since no prime minister has been stable or focused enough to iterate them since……
Revealed: Key UN climate campaign being advised by a Big Oil PR firm
Brunswick, an adviser to UN ‘climate champions’, has been accused of ‘enabling the fossil fuel industry’s deception’ Source: OpenDemocracy: Revealed: Key UN climate campaign being advised by a Big Oil PR firm
Revealed: Key UN climate campaign being advised by a Big Oil PR firm
Brunswick, an adviser to UN ‘climate champions’, has been accused of ‘enabling the fossil fuel industry’s deception’
Entire UK government breaks ministerial code by failing to declare interests
Rishi Sunak’s failure to appoint ethics adviser means ministers are unable to comply with twice-yearly requirement Source: OpenDemocracy: Entire UK government breaks ministerial code by failing to declare interests
Let Them Know: San Francisco Shouldn’t Arm Robots
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Nov. 29 voted 8 to 3 to approve on first reading a policy that would formally authorize the San Francisco Police Department to deploy deadly force via remote-controlled robots. The majority fell down the rabbit hole of security theater: doing anything to appear to be fighting crime, regardless of whether or not it has any tangible effect on public safety. These San Francisco supervisors seem not only willing to approve dangerously broad language about when police may deploy robots equipped with explosives as deadly force, but they are also willing to smear those…
Lawmakers Set to Propose Record $847B for Defense, $45B Over Biden’s Request
The United States’s already colossal and record-breaking defense budget is about to get even bigger, with congressional negotiators slated to propose a staggering $847 billion for defense for 2023, new reporting finds — a $45 billion increase over President Joe Biden’s already massive defense budget request. Four people familiar with negotiations told Politico that House and Senate lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have come to a “compromise” on the budget, which could balloon as high as $858 billion when programs outside of the congressional armed services committees are included. $847 billion is equal to the Senate Armed Services…
San Francisco City Board Approves Use of Police Robots to Kill Suspects
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted by a margin of 8-3 on Tuesday to grant the city’s police department the legal authority to use remotely controlled robots to attack and kill suspects in certain circumstances. The measure was widely condemned by civil liberty and police oversight organizations. City officials and members of the board who voted against the authorization said that the move would further militarize a police force that already enacts violence against poor and marginalized communities. “Most law enforcement weapons are used against people of color. I’m really just stunned that we’re here talking about this,” San…
Overweight women may be at highest risk of long COVID – new research
Overweight women may be at highest risk of long COVID – new research Rostislav_Sedlacek/Shutterstock While hundreds of thousands of people are still getting COVID every day across the globe, reassuringly, the number of people dying as a result of the infection has dropped significantly thanks to effective vaccines and treatments. Yet for many people, the consequences of COVID continue well beyond the initial infection, in the form of long COVID. We wanted to understand what factors might make people more or less susceptible to ongoing symptoms. In a new study we found that women who are overweight are at highest…
Overweight women may be at highest risk of long COVID – new research
Rostislav_Sedlacek/Shutterstock While hundreds of thousands of people are still getting COVID every day across the globe, reassuringly, the number of people dying as a result of the infection has dropped significantly thanks to effective vaccines and treatments. Yet for many people, the consequences of COVID continue well beyond the initial infection, in the form of long COVID. We wanted to understand what factors might make people more or less susceptible to ongoing symptoms. In a new study we found that women who are overweight are at highest risk of developing long COVID. Long COVID can include symptoms such as fatigue,…
The Fed’s Response to Rising Inflation Protects the Wealthy at Workers’ Expense
The specter of inflation is haunting the world’s economies. Surging prices since 2020, especially in food and energy, have eroded global living standards, though inflation varies considerably across countries. However, inflation is hitting the working class and lower-income people harder than wealthier households, triggering protests around the world, especially in countries with strong trade… Source Source / Read More: The Fed’s Response to Rising Inflation Protects the Wealthy at Workers’ Expense