From this week’s news on: the climate crisis, environmental issues, and nuclear threats [Note: Content Warning - links to distressing reports on this topic. Reader discretion is advised]

Note: CONTENT WARNING - some of this content is about upsetting, disturbing or triggering events & attitudes. Seek competent help - including professional - if you need it. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that linked articles may contains names and/or images of deceased people. READER CAUTION IS RECOMMENDED! For anyone distressed by anything in this post, or for any other reason considering seeking support, resources are available in Australia here, here, and here. In other nations, you will have to do an Internet search using terms such as “mental health support - <your nation>” (which, for instance, may lead to this, this, and this, in the USA, or this, this, and this, in France [biased towards English-language - my apologies]), or perhaps try https://www.befrienders.org/. 

Note: in my “from the news” posts, quotes are shown italicised and blue, my comments are in a different shade of blue, and “good” items are shown in green. I have loosely grouped the posts where such seemed reasonable, but that is subjective (i.e., my opinion - others are free to disagree), and challenging, as some posts belong in multiple “groups”.

From this week’s news on the climate crisis, environmental issues, and nuclear threats (note: I may continue to add links for a few days, possibly up to a week, after these are published):

• “How effective are climate protests at swaying policy — and what could make a difference?”   https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-03721-z   This research lacks, in my opinion, the sort of understanding and nuance of work done by people such Erica Chenoweth and Maria Stephens   

• “COP28 talks open in Dubai with breakthrough deal on loss and damage fund”   https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/11/1144162    

• “COP28: UAE planned to use climate talks to make oil deals - BBC News”   https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-67508331   

• “Air pollution from fossil fuels ‘kills 5 million people a year’”   https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/nov/29/air-pollution-from-fossil-fuels-kills-5-million-people-a-year   “Of more than 8 million deaths worldwide from outdoor air pollution, 61% linked to fossil fuels, finds study”  
  

 

• “Who cares about national security?”   https://australiainstitute.org.au/post/who-cares-about-security/   “The claim that supporting the gas industry is about ‘national security’ is both wrong and dangerous. ... This narrative is not new. ... This narrative is insidious”    

• “Protesters take to the water and shut down Newcastle coal ships”   https://www.thenewdaily.com.au/news/state/nsw/2023/11/25/coal-protest-halts-newcastle-ships   concerning (extremist) language from the CEO of the NSW Minerals Council (do they accept the reality of the climate crisis?) is reviewed by me here. In addition, note that the right to protest is a first generation right; the right to a clean environment is an equal value second generation right; overseas development (and equal third generation right) power needs can be met by other means - i.e., renewables, which many (if not most) want, so ensuring power needs are met is not an issue. I consider many would see the language as that of the profiteer - a company akin to the East India Company placing profits above nations - and exactly the sort of troubling (lack of) values that is setting how future voters will vote, as discussed here   and   “Newcastle port: more than 100 arrested after climate protesters continue blockade past agreed deadline”   https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/nov/26/newcastle-port-arrests-made-after-climate-protesters-continue-blockade-past-agreed-deadline  
  

• “Why Are So Many Gray Whales Washing Up On Shore?”   https://youtu.be/gWyxY_Bhrt4?si=nzf2QNjA-jX7wvVw   The problem is that changes to sea ice have reduced the food available in the normal grey whale feeding grounds - the whales that died did so out of starvation. However, the grey whales have adapted previously, and show signs of doing so again - but will be smaller afterwards  

 

Assumptions / basis 

In writing this, I have assumed / started from the following: 

• this blog states quite clearly that it is about political and human rights matters, including lived experience of problems, and thus I will assume readers are reasonable people who have noted the content warning in the post header;

Possible flaws 

Where I can, I will try to highlight possible flaws / issues you should consider:

• there may be flawed logical arguments in the above: to find out more about such flaws and thinking generally, I recommend Brendan  Myers’ free online course “Clear and Present Thinking”; 
  
• I could be wrong - so keep your thinking caps on, and make up your own minds for yourself.
  

 

If they are of any use of interest, the activism information links from my former news posts are available in this post. 

 

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Remember: we need to be more human being rather than human doing, and all misgendering is an act of active transphobia/transmisia that puts trans+ lives at risk.