Aggregated News & Opinion
Recent posts in bigger type.
Recent posts in bigger type.
Obama's ACA didn't fix this:
The US wastes $1.8 Trillion per year on health care spending compared to the average of 2017 total per capita costs of comparable yet profit-controlled advanced countries. Let's end price gouging and adopt profit-control practices too. To the point, 2017 US out-of-control per capita health care spending was $5322 more per person than in France, the highest rated system based on patient outcomes.
New measures to enforce stay-at-home order with hospitals ‘bursting at the seams’ but civil liberties campaigners cry foul
Leyland Cecco in Toronto | The Guardian | 21.04.17
World’s most populous nation records almost 235,000 infections as new wave takes hold
Staff and agency | The Guardian | 21.04.17
Climate change EMERGENCY: ‘This is it. If we don’t amp up, we’re goners’: the last chance to confront the climate crisis?
When it comes to addressing the climate emergency, there have been hopeful moments before that ultimately led to nothing. Now, hope rises again
Jeff Goodell | The Guardian | 21.04.17
Environment: Whitest-ever paint could help cool heating Earth, study shows [Could solar panel islands this color replace our melting arctic icecap?]
New paint reflects 98% of sunlight as well as radiating infrared heat into space, reducing need for air conditioning
Damian Carrington Environment editor | The Guardian | 21.04.16
Environment: How Texas’s zombie oil wells are creating an environmental disaster zone [California, the Dakotas and Oklahoma too, and many still leak methane.... ]
Thousands of abandoned oil wells dot the Permian Basin in west Texas and New Mexico, endangering humans and wildlife. With oil costs plummeting, they’re likely to proliferate. Who is going to cover the cleanup costs?
Clayton Aldern, Christopher Collins, and Naveena Sadasivam | The Guardian | 21.04.15
Vaccines and immunisation: Single Pfizer or AstraZeneca dose produces strong antibody response
Scientists say AstraZeneca vaccine has greater effect when it comes to cellular response
Sarah Boseley Health editor | The Guardian | 21.04.15
America's race to zero emissions: Advances mean all new US vehicles can be electric by 2035, study finds
- Cost of batteries to fall and recharge points to increase
- Rapid electrification could save drivers $2.7tn by 2050
Oliver Milman | The Guardian | 21.04.15
Environment: Just 3% of world’s ecosystems remain intact, study suggests [Mommy mommy, what’s killing the world?]
Pristine areas in the Amazon and Siberia may expand with animal reintroductions, scientists say
Damian Carrington Environment editor | The Guardian | 21.04.15
Rising levels of microplastic pollution raise questions about the impact on human health, experts say
Damian Carrington Environment editor | The Guardian | 21.04.15
UK study to examine if vaccines can be safely mixed; French PM says P.1 variant is partly to blame for fuelling third wave in France
- UK study on mixing Covid vaccines between jabs to be expanded
- A tsunami of cases’: desperation as Covid second wave batters India
- Australia should make vaccine rollout ‘top priority’, Anthony Fauci says
- A gold nose pin, eggs, a tax rebate: vaccine incentives around the world
- What four months as a vaccinator has taught me
Jedidajah Otte (now); Martin Belam and Helen Sullivan (earlier) | The Guardian | 21.04.14
Climate change EMERGENCY: Climate crisis: Boris Johnson ‘too cosy’ with vested interests to take serious action [Dependably unfit for the job.]
Report author calls for thorough clean-up of political donations, directorships and embedded interns
Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent | The Guardian | 21.04.14
Climate change EMERGENCY: ‘We cannot drink oil’: campaigners condemn east African pipeline project [Does the highest bribe always win?]
Activists say the ‘heart of Africa’ line shipping crude from Uganda to Tanzania is unnecessary and poses a huge environmental risk
Samuel Okiror in Kampala | The Guardian | 21.04.14
PANDEMIC: Top WHO Epidemiologist Warns Coronavirus Pandemic 'Growing Exponentially' Around the World [The pandemic is worsening for the unvaccinated!]
"It is the time right now where everyone has to take stock and have a reality check of what we need to be doing."
by Brett Wilkins, staff writer | Common Dreams | 21.04.13
Environmental groups and neighbours condemn plan to release more than 1m tonnes of contaminated water in two years’ time
Justin McCurry in Tokyo and agencies | The Guardian | 21.04.13
Howling to coerce better journalism!
BOB SOMERBY in Baltimore | The DailyHowler
| Arts & Education Events: |
| Civic Events: |
| Republican democrats: Progressives Fume as Democrats Eye Smaller Corporate Tax Hike to Appease Centrists [For some politicians it's the size of corporate "donations" or "insider trading tips" that are most important] "Saying 'corporations must pay their fair share' should mean that pre-Trump rates are the starting point."  Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) speaks with reporters outside the Senate side of the U.S. Capitol Building on Tuesday, April 13, 2021 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) by Jake Johnson, staff writer | Common Dreams | 21.04.19
Corporate media: 'Divisive': How Corporate Media Dismiss Ideas Unpopular With Elites The next time you hear your favorite political proposals being labeled as too "divisive," "contentious," or "polarizing" to work, check the polls first.  “The idea of Medicare for All is immensely contentious,” says the New York Times (3/18/19). by Alan MacLeod | Common Dreams | 21.04.19
Indianapolis: Indianapolis shooting: gunman bought two rifles after police seized his shotgun [Half-the-cost EU single-payer healthcare systems also cover mental healthcare...] Brandon Hole bought assault weapons he used in attack months after his shotgun was confiscated over mental health concerns  Friends, family and community members hold up their phones during a candlelight vigil held in Krannert Park in Indianapolis, Indiana, to remember the victims of a mass shooting at a local FedEx facility. Photograph: Jeff Dean/AFP/Getty Images Richard Luscombe | The Guardian | 21.04.19
Climate change EMERGENCY: Joe Biden to reveal US emissions pledge in key climate crisis moment President will also call on major economies to join him in bold action at virtual summit of 40 world leaders  Joe Biden has made the climate emergency one of his administration’s top priorities. Photograph: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent | The Guardian | 21.04.19
 A house burns during the Woolsey Fire on November 9, 2018 in Malibu, California. (Photo: David McNew/Getty Images) Climate change EMERGENCY: Rescuing the Planet Is Still Possible: The Case for a Global Green New Deal It is irrational to rely on capitalist solutions to global warming when it is capitalism itself that has led us towards the current path of a climate catastrophe. C.J. Polychroniou | Common Dreams | 21.04.19
Climate change EMERGENCY: New Wind and Solar Up 50% Globally in 2020, as China Beats US by Over 4 to 1 [The Trump regression...] The United States was lying down on the job.  The DOE/Sandia Scaled Wind Farm Technology (SWiFT) facility at the Reese Technology Center in Lubbock, Texas allows for rapid, cost-efficient testing and development of transformative wind energy technology, with specific emphasis on improving wind plant performance. (Photo: Lloyd Wilson/Sandia Labs/Flickr/cc) Juan Cole | Common Dreams | 21.04.19
Radioactive pollution of the oceans: Biden Must Urge Japan to Abandon Dangerous Fukushima Wastewater Plan [This can't be the best solution!] The era of intentionally dumping toxic waste in our one global ocean is, or should be, over.  Storage tanks for radioactive water stand at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s (TEPCO) Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant on January 29, 2020 in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. TEPCO hosted a media tour to the nuclear plant wrecked by an earthquake and tsunami in 2011. (Photo: Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images) Rick Steiner | Common Dreams | 21.04.19
| George Bush: George W Bush is back – but not all appreciate his new progressive image [Trying to remake history...] The 43rd president’s tour to promote his new book hasn’t been well received for those who remember his ‘war on terror’ days  George W Bush will go on tour to promote his new book. Photograph: AP David Smith in Washington | The Guardian | 21.04.19
Robert Habeck or Annalena Baerbock will be named as party’s candidate for chancellorship  Germany’s Green party co-leaders, Robert Habeck and Annalena Baerbock, in 2019. Photograph: Leon Kuegeler/Reuters Philip Oltermann in Berlin | The Guardian | 21.04.19
Alexei Navalny: Alexei Navalny moved to hospital as fears grow for life of Putin critic [Is death better than life under Putin?] Doctors say opposition leader, who is on hunger strike, is in danger of a heart attack or kidney failure  Alexei Navalny during a court hearing in Moscow in February. Photograph: Moscow City Court press service/AFP/Getty Images Andrew Roth in Moscow | The Guardian | 21.04.19
Russia v. Ukraine: ‘What do they want from us?’ As Russian forces amass, a Ukraine frontier town feels fear and despair [Why doesn't Russia pursue positive changes to make the future better?] Caught on the frontline between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists, Marinka is a town forgotten by the world  Vera Basova at her home in Marinka. She has survived the second world war and eight years of fighting between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russia separatists. Photograph: Anastasia Vlasova/The Guardian Oksana Grytsenko Marinka, Ukraine | The Guardian | 21.04.19
The Brazilian state has seen nearly 800 police-caused deaths in nine months, with poor city communities raided almost daily  In this file photo taken on 23 September 2017 a woman walks with her baby past a militarized police soldier in the Rocinha favela in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Photograph: Carl de Souza/AFP/Getty Images Flávia Milhorance in Rio de Janeiro | The Guardian | 21.04.19
The future is here! Watch robots build houses at incredible speed. 3D printing meets AI. [13:34 video] 3D printed houses are rising around the world. They're cheaper, smarter, better for the environment and promise to help tackle homelessness.
The future is here! A vertical axis wind turbine without the wind! How do they do that? [13:21 video] Wind turbines are everywhere nowadays, and they do a great job of harnessing all that free energy. But as a restless species constantly on the move, we humans also cause many other air flows through our activities. And most of it just goes to waste. What if we could scoop that air up and do something useful with it? Just Have a Think Channel | YouTube | 21.04.19
|
Briana Flin, Josh Landis, Alastair Gee, Frida Garza, Laurence Topham and Charlie Phillips, Source: Nexus Media News | The Guardian | 21.04.18
Nancy Pelosi: Nancy Pelosi’s disdain for the Squad is not a good look for a leader [Pelosi solicits the corrupting influence of corporate bribery to the detriment of progressive priorities.] A new book records the House speaker making yet more disparaging remarks about congressional progressives Arwa Mahdawi | The Guardian | 21.04.18
Al Franken Channel | YouTube | 21.04.18
Opinion re. US domestic policy: Biden is poised to transform how America treats industry. He must follow through From climate to healthcare, fundamental challenges demand the US change with the times Robert Reich | The Guardian | 21.04.18
Reversing Republican damage! 'Watershed Moment' as Haaland Revokes Trump-Era Orders, Creates Climate Task Force [An agenda befitting her agency's purpose!] "Today's orders make certain that the Interior Department is no longer going to serve as a rubber-stamp for the coal and oil and gas industries." by Jessica Corbett, staff writer | Common Dreams | 21.04.17
| Opinion re. Scotland: An independent Scotland could turn to Denmark for inspiration Instead of looking south, campaigners are looking north, to the egalitarian models of small Nordic nations Ian Jack | The Guardian | 21.04.18
Pursuing a better life: ‘It’s a day off’: wiretaps show Mediterranean migrants were left to die [Inhumane dereliction of duty!] Exclusive: Transcripts of conversations between Italian officials and Libyan coastguard contained in leaked file by Lorenzo Tondo in Palermo | The Guardian | 21.04.17
Immigration: After Refugee Directive Sparks Backlash, White House Vows to Increase Cap in May [Governments abstaining immigrant acceptance admit a lack of caring or imagination to solve ignored problems to improve society.] "As a candidate, Biden promised humanity and relief for refugees fleeing persecution," said an ACLU attorney. "We will be watching to see if President Biden fulfills his promises.” by Jessica Corbett, staff writer | Common Dreams | 21.04.17
Cuba: End of an Era as Raúl Castro Steps Down as Cuba's Leader [Hopefully sanctions and tariffs harming the economy and innocent public can be removed.] The longtime first secretary's resignation means Cuba will be led by someone whose name is not Castro for the first time in over 60 years. by Brett Wilkins, staff writer | Common Dreams | 21.04.17
| Justice!? A beach town seized a Black couple’s land in the 1920s. Now their family could get it back Los Angeles officials have announced an effort to return the valuable Manhattan Beach property to the descendants of Willa and Charles Bruce Sam Levin in Manhattan Beach, California | The Guardian | 21.04.18
Thousands marched in Chicago where 13-year-old Adam Toledo was killed while about 100 arrested in Brooklyn Center Oliver Laughland in Minneapolis and Jason Wilson in Portland | The Guardian | 21.04.18
Virtual Nations [An editorial promoting an anti-despot/fascist ideal] Instead of NATION-STATE-POLITICIANS essentially owning and controlling people (and their descendants ad infinitum) in "their" Nation State, wouldn't it be better if adults world-wide could contract with UN-certified professional agencies to perform nation-level fiduciary functions (certifications being updated at least annually).
— State, City and county governments would continue unchanged —
Marc Cherbonnier | The Baltimore Chronicle | Ref.
|