truthout--2020-09-22--18-Year-Old Indigenous Climate Activist Fights to Save Arctic Wildlife Refuge

“ Did someone lose their dog ?
” Quannah Chasinghorse jokes , pointing at a large moose in her neighbor ’ s snow-covered yard .
At -40 degrees Fahrenheit , it is a typical winter ’ s day in Fairbanks , Alaska .
Quannah , an 18-year-old Han Gwich ’ in and Oglala Lakota youth , is curled up on the couch , wearing a shirt emblazoned with the slogan “ Protect the Arctic , Defend the Sacred.
” It is a rare moment of rest for Quannah .
In the past year she has traveled coast to coast , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ desecration of oil drilling , with her mother , Jody Potts , who is Han Gwich ’ in and a tribal member of the Native Village of Eagle .
Her mother also serves as the regional director for Native Movement and is a board member with the Alaska Wilderness League .
This mother-daughter duo represents the decades-long fight to protect their state ’ s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge .
The refuge is hailed for its immense ecosystem of nearly 20 million protected acres , with sweeping tundra , glacial-fed rivers , and mountain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ especially the 200,000-strong porcupine caribou herd , as of 2018 .
Before the region was deemed a wilderness refuge by the federal government , in 1960 , it was known by the Gwich ’ in as “ Iizhik Gwats ’ an Gwandaii Goodlit , ” meaning “ the sacred place where life begins.
” This ancestral name refers to the calving grounds for the porcupine caribou on the coastal plain , whose migratory path the once-nomadic Gwich ’ in followed , and still guides the Gwich ’ in today .
This region has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ millennia , and their lives , culture , and identities are inextricably tied to the well-being of the land .
“ What impacts the caribou , impacts the Gwich ’ in , ” says Bernadette Demientieff , who is Gwichyaa Zhee Gwich ’ in , and the executive director of the Gwich ’ in Steering Committee .
The Arctic , dubbed ground zero for climate change , is warming at a rate twice as fast as the rest of the world .
The region is at even greater risk since the unprecedented decision @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to open the refuge ’ s coastal plain to oil and gas development .
In August , the Interior Department formally announced its leasing program to open some 1.57 million acres of the refuge to drilling , NPR reported .
But Gwich ’ in women are leading an intergenerational movement to defend the refuge from oil rigs and wells , all while championing Indigenous rights and justice for missing and murdered Indigenous women .
When Demientieff travels to Washington , DC , to advocate for her people and land , Gwich ’ in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ official Youth Council .
“ Each of them are hunters and fishers , ” she explains , “ and they all know how to survive off the land .
They all have something to share.
” Since she was 17 , Quannah has joined Demientieff to speak with senators on Capitol Hill as a member of the Youth Council .
She credits the teachings of elders and women in her life for her sense of purpose : “ My mom has always taught me to remember who you are and where you come @ @ @ @ @ @ @ poem that she shares with Teen Vogue : “ I ’ m from the beaded moose hide in modern clothes , from the smell of sage and taste of fry bread .
I am from the fireweed trails .
From the birch trees I used to climb , whose limbs I remember as though they were my own .
I ’ m from the mushing , hunting , fishing , and berry picking trips , from the family of traditions .
I ’ m from the potlatches and the legends our elders tell.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ way I am is because my mom , grandma , and aunties have always taught me not to take sh*t from [ any ] one .
To do the best for our people , sticking up for our rights and our lands .
I ’ ve learned a lot from the women in my life , ” says Quannah .
Her mom explains that Quannah was raised in the movement , where over the years , during sweat ceremonies , she heard her mother and the powerful women in her “ auntie squad @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the land .
For four generations , the Gwich ’ in have fought to honor their ancestral vow to care for the porcupine caribou herd and nurture the land for future generations .
“ Our ancestors made a promise to protect this land , so we have to keep that promise and our way of life , ” says Kaila Druck , a 16-year-old member of the Youth Council .
Many youth , like Quannah and Kaila , leave their villages to attend school in Fairbanks , but families continue to return @ @ @ @ @ @ @ times a year .
On a blustery March day , I set out with Quannah ’ s family to their fish camp along the Yukon River .
After a treacherous three-hour drive in winter conditions along the Dalton Highway , we reach a juncture where the journey continues on snowmobiles over the frozen river .
Locals refer to the highway as “ the Haul Road , ” Jody explains , because it opened the remote area for workers to haul oil industry materials up to the oil fields in Prudhoe Bay .
As @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we witness a landscape of mesmerizing Arctic colors : the glacial-blue sky , the ground blanketed in bright snow , ashen gray-black swamp spruce and birch trees dusted in white powder .
Climate change is rapidly altering this landscape .
The locals call the spruce and birch “ drunken trees , ” because of their twisting , toppling forms caused by melting permafrost .
The mountains and sloping hillsides are marked with swaths of tree spires blackened by wildfires that continue to worsen from record-breaking summer heat .
As we near the river @ @ @ @ @ @ @ alongside us — a stark reminder of the fossil fuel industry ’ s threatening presence on the land .
Under an ink-black sky saturated in stars , we unload the snowmobiles and navigate a faint snow trail along the river .
“ My grandmother picked this piece of land during the land allotments because of the cranberry bushes and the river , ” says Jody ’ s partner , Jamey , as we arrive .
“ In 2003 , the wildfires burned the cabin to the ground , and I ’ ve been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bowls of moose stew , Jody shares memories of the village : “ I would come home from my shift at night and that ’ s when I would mush .
It would be -40 , and that ’ s when it ’ s the most quiet .
It ’ s too cold even for wind .
The kids would be in bed and I would be hooking up the dogs out front , when I would hear the door open and Quannah would come running outside to join me .
She was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hide for her .
She would bundle up in the sled and we would talk as the dogs wove through trees .
I get choked up every time I share that story .
I just loved the sound , the crunching of the snow , the dogs breathing .
It is so peaceful , mushing out on the land.
” Endless stories are told at fish camp , often about the greed and exploitation of sport hunters who collect moose and caribous ’ large antlers only , leaving the carcasses to rot .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ which is what hurts us so bad , ” Jody explains .
These everyday encounters of greed and disrespect are also the stories of climate change — the notion that the natural world is for the taking without responsibility or reciprocity .
On our last day , Quannah and I snowshoe across the river .
Crystalized snowflakes shimmer gold in the sunlight , twisting into tendrils that rise with the wind and fall back on the river .
Quannah and I watch in awe .
She talks about the sense of peace she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lived this way , in love with the land , for generations .
“ I walk in two completely different worlds , ” she says .
“ When I ’ m away from the land , I feel like I ’ m hiding a part of myself ; I can ’ t act too Native .
When I ’ m out here , I ’ m more connected to myself .
I ’ m strong on these lands.
” Since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic , living off the land has become @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ in .
Kaila and Bernadette tell me that the pandemic has caused a shortage of flights that usually import food into remote villages .
At the same time , climate change is impacting hunting , fishing , and berry seasons , they say .
Circumstances are dire .
“ I feel like right now we are deprived of our traditions and what we love the most with the pandemic , ” Kaila says .
“ We haven ’ t been able to hunt this year in Fort Yukon ; people were barely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out for weeks and returned only with five fish .
That ’ s all we live off of .
My whole family depends on living off of food from the land ; moose , fish , and berries sustain us all winter .
This year we won ’ t have much.
” She continues , “ Growing up , I was always told we should not destroy the land .
The elders always said we will fully depend on the land one day .
Now , with the pandemic , I can see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overwhelming challenges , the Gwich ’ in continue to protect the Arctic Refuge .
Demientieff , of the Gwich ’ in Steering Committee , has spent the past several years organizing meetings with representatives of major banks to urge them not to finance oil drilling in the Arctic .
Quannah joined her for a meeting in New York City , and says she moved financial executives to tears with her story .
Their efforts paid off : Deutsche Bank , Goldman Sachs , Wells Fargo , Citi , JPMorgan Chase , and Morgan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ banks — have committed to no longer backing Arctic drilling projects .
Republican lawmakers tried to claim that this decision discriminated against Native Alaskans , and even unsuccessfully asked Trump to make Arctic oil funding a condition of pandemic relief .
Still , in June , the Trump administration announced plans to open up 82 % of an Alaska nature reserve for oil and gas leasing .
The Gwich ’ in maintain drilling in the refuge would be akin to cultural genocide as it would devastate the caribou , their primary source of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seismic blasts , oil rigs , oil spills , loud machinery , and migratory routes severed by haul roads and pipelines ?
With a rapidly melting permafrost that collapses the ground and drying tundra that spurs wildfires , the Arctic can not bear the slightest risk of industrial disaster on its already fragile lands .
The Arctic is not simply ground zero for climate change because of record-breaking heat , accelerated permafrost , and glacier melt , it ’ s also a landscape that represents the larger story of climate change .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Indigenous displacement and dispossession , and ongoing colonial violence driven by insatiable corporate greed .
These are the systemic forces driving the climate crisis .
And yet a deep , ancestral love spanning thousands of years fuels the Gwich ’ in in their intergenerational fight to protect the refuge .
“ We need more Indigenous youth to believe in themselves and have people believe in them , ” says Quannah .
“ The more I fought , the more I healed .
Know you have power .
It is connected to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all fighting the same fight.
” The cataclysmic shifts caused by the climate crisis and pandemic can create opportunity for change that is parallel in magnitude .
To paraphrase writer Terry Tempest Williams ’ s book on erosion , our undoing may be our becoming .
The power of the youth vote is reason to hope .
In the upcoming election , 1 in 10 voters will be Gen Z .
The Brookings Institution reported that Gen Z and millenials “ now comprise a greater share of the eligible voting population than has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s about the same share of eligible voters as baby boomers and their elders — generations that voted for Trump in 2016 and for Republican candidates against President Obama.
” It has been reported that by 2030 “ millennials and their juniors will make up more than half [ of ] not just the population , but of all eligible voters.
” At the young age of 18 , Quannah , like many other youth in her community , has already dedicated her life to honoring her ancestors and fighting for future generations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fish camp , she shares what this fight means to her , while Jody braids her hair .
“ I ’ m not an environmentalist ; I ’ m an Indigenous youth trying to stick up for our ways of life , ” Quannah says .
“ They ’ re just tearing up more land , destroying more water , and in the end , when all of the oil is extracted out of Alaska , what are they going to do ?
We need to reconnect and rebuild our relationship to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be destroyed from drilling and oil spills , I don ’ t know how I would feel connected anymore .
I don ’ t want that taken from us.
” Jody looks at her daughter and says , “ And that ’ s why we ’ ll fight , right ?
We are continuing on .
”

“Did someone lose their dog?” Quannah Chasinghorse jokes, pointing at a large moose in her neighbor’s snow-covered yard. At -40 degrees Fahrenheit, it is a typical winter’s day in Fairbanks, Alaska. Quannah, an 18-year-old Han Gwich’in and Oglala Lakota youth, is curled up on the couch, wearing a shirt emblazoned with the slogan “Protect the Arctic, Defend the Sacred.”
It is a rare moment of rest for Quannah. In the past year she has traveled coast to coast, advocating to protect her homelands from the desecration of oil drilling, with her mother, Jody Potts, who is Han Gwich’in and a tribal member of the Native Village of Eagle. Her mother also serves as the regional director for Native Movement and is a board member with the Alaska Wilderness League. This mother-daughter duo represents the decades-long fight to protect their state’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
The refuge is hailed for its immense ecosystem of nearly 20 million protected acres, with sweeping tundra, glacial-fed rivers, and mountain ranges providing a sanctuary for wildlife, especially the 200,000-strong porcupine caribou herd, as of 2018. Before the region was deemed a wilderness refuge by the federal government, in 1960, it was known by the Gwich’in as “Iizhik Gwats’an Gwandaii Goodlit,” meaning “the sacred place where life begins.” This ancestral name refers to the calving grounds for the porcupine caribou on the coastal plain, whose migratory path the once-nomadic Gwich’in followed, and still guides the Gwich’in today. This region has been home to local Indigenous communities for millennia, and their lives, culture, and identities are inextricably tied to the well-being of the land. “What impacts the caribou, impacts the Gwich’in,” says Bernadette Demientieff, who is Gwichyaa Zhee Gwich’in, and the executive director of the Gwich’in Steering Committee.
The Arctic, dubbed ground zero for climate change, is warming at a rate twice as fast as the rest of the world. The region is at even greater risk since the unprecedented decision by the Trump administration and congressional Republicans to open the refuge’s coastal plain to oil and gas development. In August, the Interior Department formally announced its leasing program to open some 1.57 million acres of the refuge to drilling, NPR reported.
But Gwich’in women are leading an intergenerational movement to defend the refuge from oil rigs and wells, all while championing Indigenous rights and justice for missing and murdered Indigenous women. When Demientieff travels to Washington, DC, to advocate for her people and land, Gwich’in youth join her as part of the official Youth Council. “Each of them are hunters and fishers,” she explains, “and they all know how to survive off the land. They all have something to share.”
Since she was 17, Quannah has joined Demientieff to speak with senators on Capitol Hill as a member of the Youth Council. She credits the teachings of elders and women in her life for her sense of purpose: “My mom has always taught me to remember who you are and where you come from.” As Quannah wrote in a poem that she shares with Teen Vogue: “I’m from the beaded moose hide in modern clothes, from the smell of sage and taste of fry bread. I am from the fireweed trails. From the birch trees I used to climb, whose limbs I remember as though they were my own. I’m from the mushing, hunting, fishing, and berry picking trips, from the family of traditions. I’m from the potlatches and the legends our elders tell.”
“The reason I am the way I am is because my mom, grandma, and aunties have always taught me not to take sh*t from [any]one. To do the best for our people, sticking up for our rights and our lands. I’ve learned a lot from the women in my life,” says Quannah. Her mom explains that Quannah was raised in the movement, where over the years, during sweat ceremonies, she heard her mother and the powerful women in her “auntie squad” talk about activism and the fight for the land.
For four generations, the Gwich’in have fought to honor their ancestral vow to care for the porcupine caribou herd and nurture the land for future generations. “Our ancestors made a promise to protect this land, so we have to keep that promise and our way of life,” says Kaila Druck, a 16-year-old member of the Youth Council. Many youth, like Quannah and Kaila, leave their villages to attend school in Fairbanks, but families continue to return to their fish camps and villages several times a year.
On a blustery March day, I set out with Quannah’s family to their fish camp along the Yukon River. After a treacherous three-hour drive in winter conditions along the Dalton Highway, we reach a juncture where the journey continues on snowmobiles over the frozen river. Locals refer to the highway as “the Haul Road,” Jody explains, because it opened the remote area for workers to haul oil industry materials up to the oil fields in Prudhoe Bay. As we weave across the frozen tundra, we witness a landscape of mesmerizing Arctic colors: the glacial-blue sky, the ground blanketed in bright snow, ashen gray-black swamp spruce and birch trees dusted in white powder. Climate change is rapidly altering this landscape. The locals call the spruce and birch “drunken trees,” because of their twisting, toppling forms caused by melting permafrost. The mountains and sloping hillsides are marked with swaths of tree spires blackened by wildfires that continue to worsen from record-breaking summer heat. As we near the river at nightfall, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline snakes alongside us — a stark reminder of the fossil fuel industry’s threatening presence on the land.
Under an ink-black sky saturated in stars, we unload the snowmobiles and navigate a faint snow trail along the river. “My grandmother picked this piece of land during the land allotments because of the cranberry bushes and the river,” says Jody’s partner, Jamey, as we arrive. “In 2003, the wildfires burned the cabin to the ground, and I’ve been rebuilding the place since.”
Over steaming bowls of moose stew, Jody shares memories of the village: “I would come home from my shift at night and that’s when I would mush. It would be -40, and that’s when it’s the most quiet. It’s too cold even for wind. The kids would be in bed and I would be hooking up the dogs out front, when I would hear the door open and Quannah would come running outside to join me. She was nine. I always had a caribou hide for her. She would bundle up in the sled and we would talk as the dogs wove through trees. I get choked up every time I share that story. I just loved the sound, the crunching of the snow, the dogs breathing. It is so peaceful, mushing out on the land.”
Endless stories are told at fish camp, often about the greed and exploitation of sport hunters who collect moose and caribous’ large antlers only, leaving the carcasses to rot. “It’s our food, which is what hurts us so bad,” Jody explains. These everyday encounters of greed and disrespect are also the stories of climate change — the notion that the natural world is for the taking without responsibility or reciprocity.
On our last day, Quannah and I snowshoe across the river. Crystalized snowflakes shimmer gold in the sunlight, twisting into tendrils that rise with the wind and fall back on the river. Quannah and I watch in awe. She talks about the sense of peace she feels here, knowing her family has lived this way, in love with the land, for generations. “I walk in two completely different worlds,” she says. “When I’m away from the land, I feel like I’m hiding a part of myself; I can’t act too Native. When I’m out here, I’m more connected to myself. I’m strong on these lands.”
Since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, living off the land has become more critical than ever for the Gwich’in. Kaila and Bernadette tell me that the pandemic has caused a shortage of flights that usually import food into remote villages. At the same time, climate change is impacting hunting, fishing, and berry seasons, they say. Circumstances are dire. “I feel like right now we are deprived of our traditions and what we love the most with the pandemic,” Kaila says. “We haven’t been able to hunt this year in Fort Yukon; people were barely able to fish. Some people went out for weeks and returned only with five fish. That’s all we live off of. My whole family depends on living off of food from the land; moose, fish, and berries sustain us all winter. This year we won’t have much.” She continues, “Growing up, I was always told we should not destroy the land. The elders always said we will fully depend on the land one day. Now, with the pandemic, I can see what the elders mean.”
Despite these overwhelming challenges, the Gwich’in continue to protect the Arctic Refuge. Demientieff, of the Gwich’in Steering Committee, has spent the past several years organizing meetings with representatives of major banks to urge them not to finance oil drilling in the Arctic. Quannah joined her for a meeting in New York City, and says she moved financial executives to tears with her story. Their efforts paid off: Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, Citi, JPMorgan Chase, and Morgan Stanley — five of the biggest American banks — have committed to no longer backing Arctic drilling projects. Republican lawmakers tried to claim that this decision discriminated against Native Alaskans, and even unsuccessfully asked Trump to make Arctic oil funding a condition of pandemic relief. Still, in June, the Trump administration announced plans to open up 82% of an Alaska nature reserve for oil and gas leasing.
The Gwich’in maintain drilling in the refuge would be akin to cultural genocide as it would devastate the caribou, their primary source of survival. How could the caribou survive seismic blasts, oil rigs, oil spills, loud machinery, and migratory routes severed by haul roads and pipelines? With a rapidly melting permafrost that collapses the ground and drying tundra that spurs wildfires, the Arctic cannot bear the slightest risk of industrial disaster on its already fragile lands. The Arctic is not simply ground zero for climate change because of record-breaking heat, accelerated permafrost, and glacier melt, it’s also a landscape that represents the larger story of climate change. This is a land fraught with a history of Indigenous displacement and dispossession, and ongoing colonial violence driven by insatiable corporate greed. These are the systemic forces driving the climate crisis.
And yet a deep, ancestral love spanning thousands of years fuels the Gwich’in in their intergenerational fight to protect the refuge. “We need more Indigenous youth to believe in themselves and have people believe in them,” says Quannah. “The more I fought, the more I healed. Know you have power. It is connected to the land and ancestors. We’re all fighting the same fight.”
The cataclysmic shifts caused by the climate crisis and pandemic can create opportunity for change that is parallel in magnitude. To paraphrase writer Terry Tempest Williams’s book on erosion, our undoing may be our becoming. The power of the youth vote is reason to hope. In the upcoming election, 1 in 10 voters will be Gen Z. The Brookings Institution reported that Gen Z and millenials “now comprise a greater share of the eligible voting population than has ever been the case. It’s about the same share of eligible voters as baby boomers and their elders — generations that voted for Trump in 2016 and for Republican candidates against President Obama.” It has been reported that by 2030 “millennials and their juniors will make up more than half [of] not just the population, but of all eligible voters.”
At the young age of 18, Quannah, like many other youth in her community, has already dedicated her life to honoring her ancestors and fighting for future generations. As we pack up to leave fish camp, she shares what this fight means to her, while Jody braids her hair. “I’m not an environmentalist; I’m an Indigenous youth trying to stick up for our ways of life,” Quannah says. “They’re just tearing up more land, destroying more water, and in the end, when all of the oil is extracted out of Alaska, what are they going to do? We need to reconnect and rebuild our relationship to the land. If all of this were to be destroyed from drilling and oil spills, I don’t know how I would feel connected anymore. I don’t want that taken from us.”
Jody looks at her daughter and says, “And that’s why we’ll fight, right? We are continuing on.”


truthout--2020-09-22--Climate Anxiety Is Rising in the US — But Not Among Republicans

Polling shows that people in the United States are taking climate change more seriously today than they were five years ago , but views on climate change remain sharply divided along partisan lines as the November elections loom .
Concern about climate change remains higher in dozens of other countries , particularly in nations such as Mexico , Turkey and Vietnam , where people are more likely to feel personally affected by climate change than those living in the U.S. — despite record temperatures , widespread drought and a recent onslaught of climate-fueled disasters across the U.S. Globally , an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 27 major nations say climate change is a “ very serious ” or “ somewhat serious ” issue , and concern about climate change has steadily risen worldwide since 2014 , according to an international survey released this week by GlobeScan .
In the U.S. and Australia , 81 percent of respondents agreed that climate change is at least “ somewhat serious , ” which ranks both countries second to last on the list , just ahead of Russia , where 79 percent of respondents say climate change is “ serious.
” In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. respondents said climate change is “ serious , ” and the U.S. has consistently trailed behind the GlobeScan survey ’ s global average .
On average across the 27 countries surveyed , concern about climate change is particularly strong among women , younger people and those with higher levels of education .
In the U.S. , Generation Z respondents and people living in cities show particularly high levels of concern about climate change .
Meanwhile , last month was the second-warmest August on record globally across land and sea , according to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Oceanic and Atmospheric Association ( NOAA ) .
Last week the federal agency ’ s climate scientists warned that 2020 is on track to be one of the top three hottest years on record and has a nearly 40 percent chance of being the hottest year since scientists began measuring global temperature in 1880 .
Above-average temperatures engulfed much of the U.S. over the summer , NOAA reports , with August being the driest since 2011 in terms of rainfall .
The U.S. saw its third-warmest August on record , with heat waves @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Canada .
Six states — California , Nevada , Utah , New Mexico , Colorado and Arizona — saw a record-warm August .
On the East Coast , Connecticut , Rhode Island and Massachusetts had record-warm summers from June through August .
NOAA estimates that nearly 40 percent of the contiguous U.S. – the land area that makes up the lower 48 states – is currently experiencing drought , including large swaths of the West where drought conditions are categorized as severe or extreme .
About 65 million people are experiencing drought across @ @ @ @ @ @ @ National Drought Mitigation Center .
Earlier this year , scientists studying soil moisture determined that much of the western U.S. is experiencing an emerging “ megadrought ” going back two decades that is unprecedented in modern times , and about half of the drought is the result of human-caused climate change .
Widespread drought conditions are one factor behind the outbreak of deadly wildfires that has devastated large areas of California , Oregon and Washington in recent weeks .
Hundreds of thousands of people have had to evacuate from their homes , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Firefighters continue to battle at least 27 major fires in California , where a record 3.6 million acres have burned so far this year , according to the state ’ s Department of Forestry and Fire Protection .
President Trump and conservative media have attempted to cast doubt on science showing that climate change increases the risk of catastrophic fires and instead blamed forest management and land development practices for the destructive blazes in the West .
According to Sara C. Bronin , an expert on land use and climate change at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ consider land management and development practices alongside the changing climate in order to protect against future disasters .
The biggest climate threat to communities in the U.S. , Bronin said , is political inaction on climate change .
“ Of course , land-use regulation is a climate problem ; the way that we zone and plan across the country is hopelessly outdated , and in order to stem the upcoming frequency of natural disasters , we need to completely change the way that we regulate land , ” Bronin said in an interview @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sprawl , we need our land-use laws to stop subsidizing cars , and we need to make more significant investments in natural infrastructure that will enable the built environment to better withstand weather events.
” Globally , people who live in countries where concern about climate change is highest are more likely to feel personally affected by climate change , including people living in Turkey , Italy , Thailand and , increasingly , India , according to the GlobeScan survey .
Mexico tops the list , where 60 percent of respondents said they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Only 19 percent of U.S. respondents said they feel affected , a higher percentage than in several other wealthy nations , including Canada ( 17 percent ) , Germany ( 15 percent ) , Sweden ( 15 percent ) , the United Kingdom ( 13 percent ) and Japan ( 9 percent ) .
In the U.S. , perceptions about climate change and the science behind it are deeply shaped by geography and politics .
A clear majority of U.S. adults — 63 percent – say they are “ worried ” about climate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coastal areas , large cities and parts of the country impacted by drought , according to the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication .
While 72 percent of U.S. adults agree that climate change is happening , they are divided on what causes climate change — only 57 percent accept the scientific consensus that human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels are the main cause of climate change .
Fueled by billionaires and the fossil fuel lobby , climate denialism has been a potent force in U.S. politics for years , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Trump conveniently ignored the wildfire disasters in the West for weeks before publicly denying the link between climate change and dangerous fire seasons .
From his perch in the White House , Trump lent legitimacy to climate denialism , at least among his followers and the Trump-friendly media .
Trump ’ s impact is reflected in partisan polling .
With fires out West and an unusually active hurricane season impacting the Southeast , climate change is now the top issue among likely Democratic voters , ranking above health care and the coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ poll .
Climate change hardly registered among likely Republican voters , who named the economy , abortion and crime among their top issues .
Polling from April found that a majority of likely voters support public policies aimed at reducing the effects of climate change , including 71 percent of Democrats , but 65 percent of Republicans say such policies make no difference or do more harm than good .
Considering this deep partisan divide in the age of Trump , GlobeScan ’ s survey finding that 81 percent of people in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ somewhat seriously ” is significant .
Indeed , the survey suggests climate change remains a top issue among people all over the world .
Bronin said there ’ s good reason to worry .
Climate systems are reaching dangerous tipping points .
Arctic sea ice is quickly retreating and becoming increasingly unstable , and scientists say the Arctic is currently experiencing an “ abrupt climate change event.
” Bronin said researchers are increasingly finding that many communities along U.S. coastlines are at risk of being impacted by sea level rise .
“ It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or hurricanes in New Orleans , it ’ s sea level rise on the coast and inland areas , as well as heatwaves and … other natural hazards , ” Bronin said .
“ There ’ s no shortage of [ human ] -caused extreme weather events .
”

Part of the Series Covering Climate Now
This story is part of Covering Climate Now , a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.
Polling shows that people in the United States are taking climate change more seriously today than they were five years ago, but views on climate change remain sharply divided along partisan lines as the November elections loom. Concern about climate change remains higher in dozens of other countries, particularly in nations such as Mexico, Turkey and Vietnam, where people are more likely to feel personally affected by climate change than those living in the U.S. — despite record temperatures, widespread drought and a recent onslaught of climate-fueled disasters across the U.S.
Globally, an average 90 percent of people surveyed across 27 major nations say climate change is a “very serious” or “somewhat serious” issue, and concern about climate change has steadily risen worldwide since 2014, according to an international survey released this week by GlobeScan. In the U.S. and Australia, 81 percent of respondents agreed that climate change is at least “somewhat serious,” which ranks both countries second to last on the list, just ahead of Russia, where 79 percent of respondents say climate change is “serious.”
In 2015, less than 65 percent of U.S. respondents said climate change is “serious,” and the U.S. has consistently trailed behind the GlobeScan survey’s global average. On average across the 27 countries surveyed, concern about climate change is particularly strong among women, younger people and those with higher levels of education. In the U.S., Generation Z respondents and people living in cities show particularly high levels of concern about climate change.
Meanwhile, last month was the second-warmest August on record globally across land and sea, according to the latest climate data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA). Last week the federal agency’s climate scientists warned that 2020 is on track to be one of the top three hottest years on record and has a nearly 40 percent chance of being the hottest year since scientists began measuring global temperature in 1880.
Above-average temperatures engulfed much of the U.S. over the summer, NOAA reports, with August being the driest since 2011 in terms of rainfall. The U.S. saw its third-warmest August on record, with heat waves shattering records across the western U.S and Canada. Six states — California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado and Arizona — saw a record-warm August. On the East Coast, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts had record-warm summers from June through August.
NOAA estimates that nearly 40 percent of the contiguous U.S. – the land area that makes up the lower 48 states – is currently experiencing drought, including large swaths of the West where drought conditions are categorized as severe or extreme. About 65 million people are experiencing drought across the entire country, according to the National Drought Mitigation Center. Earlier this year, scientists studying soil moisture determined that much of the western U.S. is experiencing an emerging “megadrought” going back two decades that is unprecedented in modern times, and about half of the drought is the result of human-caused climate change.
Last week climate scientists warned that 2020 is on track to be one of the top three hottest years on record.
Widespread drought conditions are one factor behind the outbreak of deadly wildfires that has devastated large areas of California, Oregon and Washington in recent weeks. Hundreds of thousands of people have had to evacuate from their homes, and entire communities have been engulfed in flames. Firefighters continue to battle at least 27 major fires in California, where a record 3.6 million acres have burned so far this year, according to the state’s Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
President Trump and conservative media have attempted to cast doubt on science showing that climate change increases the risk of catastrophic fires and instead blamed forest management and land development practices for the destructive blazes in the West. According to Sara C. Bronin, an expert on land use and climate change at the University of Connecticut, policymakers must consider land management and development practices alongside the changing climate in order to protect against future disasters. The biggest climate threat to communities in the U.S., Bronin said, is political inaction on climate change.
“Of course, land-use regulation is a climate problem; the way that we zone and plan across the country is hopelessly outdated, and in order to stem the upcoming frequency of natural disasters, we need to completely change the way that we regulate land,” Bronin said in an interview. “We need to stop building sprawl, we need our land-use laws to stop subsidizing cars, and we need to make more significant investments in natural infrastructure that will enable the built environment to better withstand weather events.”
Globally, people who live in countries where concern about climate change is highest are more likely to feel personally affected by climate change, including people living in Turkey, Italy, Thailand and, increasingly, India, according to the GlobeScan survey. Mexico tops the list, where 60 percent of respondents said they feel personally affected by climate change. Only 19 percent of U.S. respondents said they feel affected, a higher percentage than in several other wealthy nations, including Canada (17 percent), Germany (15 percent), Sweden (15 percent), the United Kingdom (13 percent) and Japan (9 percent).
Only 57 percent accept the scientific consensus that human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels are the main cause of climate change.
In the U.S., perceptions about climate change and the science behind it are deeply shaped by geography and politics. A clear majority of U.S. adults — 63 percent – say they are “worried” about climate change, and worry runs higher in coastal areas, large cities and parts of the country impacted by drought, according to the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. While 72 percent of U.S. adults agree that climate change is happening, they are divided on what causes climate change — only 57 percent accept the scientific consensus that human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels are the main cause of climate change.
Fueled by billionaires and the fossil fuel lobby, climate denialism has been a potent force in U.S. politics for years, arguably culminating in Trump’s election. Trump conveniently ignored the wildfire disasters in the West for weeks before publicly denying the link between climate change and dangerous fire seasons. From his perch in the White House, Trump lent legitimacy to climate denialism, at least among his followers and the Trump-friendly media.
Trump’s impact is reflected in partisan polling. With fires out West and an unusually active hurricane season impacting the Southeast, climate change is now the top issue among likely Democratic voters, ranking above health care and the coronavirus, according to the latest NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll. Climate change hardly registered among likely Republican voters, who named the economy, abortion and crime among their top issues. Polling from April found that a majority of likely voters support public policies aimed at reducing the effects of climate change, including 71 percent of Democrats, but 65 percent of Republicans say such policies make no difference or do more harm than good.
Considering this deep partisan divide in the age of Trump, GlobeScan’s survey finding that 81 percent of people in the U.S. take climate change at least “somewhat seriously” is significant. Indeed, the survey suggests climate change remains a top issue among people all over the world.
Bronin said there’s good reason to worry. Climate systems are reaching dangerous tipping points. Arctic sea ice is quickly retreating and becoming increasingly unstable, and scientists say the Arctic is currently experiencing an “abrupt climate change event.” Bronin said researchers are increasingly finding that many communities along U.S. coastlines are at risk of being impacted by sea level rise.
“It’s not just wildfires in California or hurricanes in New Orleans, it’s sea level rise on the coast and inland areas, as well as heatwaves and … other natural hazards,” Bronin said. “There’s no shortage of [human]-caused extreme weather events.”
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
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truthout--2020-09-23--Anthony Fauci Slams Sen. Rand Paul: You Are Not Listening

Anthony Fauci , who serves as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and is a member of the White House ’ s coronavirus task force team , rebuked Sen. Rand Paul ( R-Kentucky ) during Senate testimony on Wednesday regarding the coronavirus pandemic after the lawmaker “ misconstrued ” facts about COVID and the response to it from officials in New York .
Senator Paul expressed misgivings over Fauci ’ s praise for how New York Gov .
Andrew Cuomo , a Democrat , and other officials in the state had responded to the pandemic .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ rate in the world , how can we possibly be jumping up and down and saying , ‘ Oh , Governor Cuomo did a great job , ' ” Paul said to Fauci .
Fauci responded by telling Paul that he was wrong in his comments .
“ No , you ’ ve misconstrued that , senator .
And you ’ ve done that repetitively in the past , ” the infectious diseases expert said .
Fauci elaborated on the actual situation in New York , and why some praise was warranted to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ some mistakes ” were made at the beginning of the crisis , Fauci implied that the way New York officials responded should be emulated elsewhere — particularly since the state has seen lower daily testing rates recently as a result of following guidelines offered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) on how to prevent the spread of COVID-19 .
“ Right now , if you look at what ’ s going on right now , the things that are going on in New York to get their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is because they are looking at the guidelines that we have put together of the task force of the four or five things , of masks , social distancing , outdoors more than indoors , avoiding crowds , and washing hands , ” Fauci said .
Paul interrupted , however , to propose a different theory .
“ Or [ New York residents ] have developed enough community immunity that they ’ re no longer having the pandemic , because they have enough immunity in New York City , ” Paul suggested .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ responded , blasting Paul for “ not listening ” to what CDC Director Robert Redfield had said earlier .
“ In New York , it ’ s about 22 percent , ” Fauci said , referring to the number of New York City residents who are believed to have contracted the disease at some point over the last several months .
“ If you believe 22 percent is herd immunity , I believe you are alone in that.
” Herd immunity for a number of diseases is typically achieved through vaccinations , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have developed antibodies to limit the spreading of an illness .
But absent a vaccination for COVID-19 , some have suggested allowing the disease to run its course in order to achieve herd immunity , a process that some advisers in President Trump ’ s orbit have proposed implementing , but which many critics have likened to being akin to the practice of eugenics .
“ It is hard not to read eugenic implications in this kind of thinking : The ‘ herd ’ will survive , but for that to happen , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ need to be sacrificed , ” anthropologists and professors Vito Laterza and Louis Philippe Romer noted in an opinion article for Al Jazeera .
It ’ s difficult to disagree with that expert opinion on how herd immunity plays out , given that Black , Latino and Indigenous communities have suffered a disproportionate number of COVID-realted deaths .
To date , more than 200,000 Americans have died from coronavirus after only about 1 in 10 have contracted it , according to figures from Redfield , who testified on Wednesday at the same Senate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the population remains susceptible , ” Redfield said to lawmakers , adding that some parts of the country have had higher rates , but none that reach the threshold needed to think the disease can not do more harm by spreading to others .
“ It varies in different geographic parts from states that have less than 1 percent with evidence of previous infection , to some that have more than 15 , 20 and one as high as 24 percent , ” Redfield added .

Anthony Fauci, who serves as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and is a member of the White House’s coronavirus task force team, rebuked Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) during Senate testimony on Wednesday regarding the coronavirus pandemic after the lawmaker “misconstrued” facts about COVID and the response to it from officials in New York.
Senator Paul expressed misgivings over Fauci’s praise for how New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, and other officials in the state had responded to the pandemic.
“New York had the highest death rate in the world, how can we possibly be jumping up and down and saying, ‘Oh, Governor Cuomo did a great job,'” Paul said to Fauci.
Fauci responded by telling Paul that he was wrong in his comments.
“No, you’ve misconstrued that, senator. And you’ve done that repetitively in the past,” the infectious diseases expert said.
"You misconstrued that, Senator. And you've done that repetitively in the past." — Fauci is out of patience with Rand Paul pic.twitter.com/6xRoO19ZYL — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 23, 2020
Fauci elaborated on the actual situation in New York, and why some praise was warranted to political leaders there.
While conceding that “some mistakes” were made at the beginning of the crisis, Fauci implied that the way New York officials responded should be emulated elsewhere — particularly since the state has seen lower daily testing rates recently as a result of following guidelines offered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on how to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“Right now, if you look at what’s going on right now, the things that are going on in New York to get their test positivity 1 percent or less, is because they are looking at the guidelines that we have put together of the task force of the four or five things, of masks, social distancing, outdoors more than indoors, avoiding crowds, and washing hands,” Fauci said.
Paul interrupted, however, to propose a different theory.
“Or [New York residents] have developed enough community immunity that they’re no longer having the pandemic, because they have enough immunity in New York City,” Paul suggested.
“I challenge that,” Fauci responded, blasting Paul for “not listening” to what CDC Director Robert Redfield had said earlier.
“In New York, it’s about 22 percent,” Fauci said, referring to the number of New York City residents who are believed to have contracted the disease at some point over the last several months. “If you believe 22 percent is herd immunity, I believe you are alone in that.”
Herd immunity for a number of diseases is typically achieved through vaccinations, and results when enough people in a community have developed antibodies to limit the spreading of an illness. But absent a vaccination for COVID-19, some have suggested allowing the disease to run its course in order to achieve herd immunity, a process that some advisers in President Trump’s orbit have proposed implementing, but which many critics have likened to being akin to the practice of eugenics.
“It is hard not to read eugenic implications in this kind of thinking: The ‘herd’ will survive, but for that to happen, other ‘weaker’ members of society need to be sacrificed,” anthropologists and professors Vito Laterza and Louis Philippe Romer noted in an opinion article for Al Jazeera.
It’s difficult to disagree with that expert opinion on how herd immunity plays out, given that Black, Latino and Indigenous communities have suffered a disproportionate number of COVID-realted deaths. To date, more than 200,000 Americans have died from coronavirus after only about 1 in 10 have contracted it, according to figures from Redfield, who testified on Wednesday at the same Senate hearing.
“More than 90 percent of the population remains susceptible,” Redfield said to lawmakers, adding that some parts of the country have had higher rates, but none that reach the threshold needed to think the disease cannot do more harm by spreading to others.
“It varies in different geographic parts from states that have less than 1 percent with evidence of previous infection, to some that have more than 15, 20 and one as high as 24 percent,” Redfield added.
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
If you like what you’re reading, please consider making a tax-deductible donation today. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for an investment: Invest in a nonprofit news site that’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers, not afraid to stand up for what’s right, and not afraid to tell it like it is.
Copyright © Truthout. May not be reprinted without permission.


truthout--2020-09-23--Romney Crowns His Hypocrisy by Backing McConnell’s Push to Fill Ginsburg’s Seat

Mitt Romney — a politician who has made a career of bending hypocrisy into bold new shapes — signaled yesterday that he will support Donald Trump ’ s intention to stuff a new far-right Supreme Court nominee on to the still-warm seat of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg .
Romney ’ s decision to allow Mitch McConnell ’ s brazen hypocrisy to stand unchallenged is yet another milestone on a long and winding career road , one that has often crossed over itself or gone straight over a cliff in its hapless quest to be all things to all people .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ power to nominate and the Senate the authority to provide advice and consent on Supreme Court nominees , ” Romney intoned on Tuesday morning .
“ Accordingly , I intend to follow the Constitution and precedent in considering the president ’ s nominee .
If the nominee reaches the Senate floor , I intend to vote based upon their qualifications.
” Yes , yes , Mitt , follow the Constitution , like you did back in December when you voted to impeach Trump for abuse of power because of what he did to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Hunter Biden , and what he did to cover up that meddling .
Trump wants this new justice as a firewall against defeat in November , which means he intends to meddle with yet another election , but go ahead , Mitt .
Please proceed .
“ My liberal friends have over many decades gotten very used to the idea of having a liberal court , but that ’ s not written in the stars , ” said Romney in an attempt to weasel out from under the profound implications of his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ constructed — Wah !
Wah !
The liberals are mad !
— does not obscure the rank hypocrisy of the moment , particularly in regard to Merrick Garland , the Obama nominee quashed by McConnell because he claimed we can ’ t replace Supreme Court justices in an election year… unless , of course , the sitting president is a pliant Republican .
The curtain on that double standard came down fast enough to chop the stage off at the toes .
This is peak Romney , though , the guy I ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to unseat Ted Kennedy from his Massachusetts senate seat .
That year , Romney painted himself as a warm and fuzzy liberal Republican , stoutly in the corner of a woman ’ s right to choose .
After Kennedy beat him like a tin drum — a rare victory in the bleak year of Newt Gingrich ’ s ascendancy — he moved ever so slightly to the right in order to run Jane Swift , the Republican acting governor of Massachusetts , off the road in 2002 .
As governor of Massachusetts , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ moderate ” with “ progressive views.
” So progressive was he , in fact , that he championed the passage of “ Romneycare , ” a bill requiring all Massachusetts residents to get health insurance coverage or face tax penalties .
It was the crowning achievement of his tenure as governor .
Right , yeah , you know what ’ s coming .
In 2008 , Romney decided to try and ride his “ moderate ” street cred as a Massachusetts Republican governor into the White House , but an already radicalized GOP @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the primaries .
Romney folded his campaign tents in late January after Florida and endorsed the eventual nominee , John McCain .
Romney waited by the phone for a call to join the ticket as vice president , but that call was directed to the Palin residence in Alaska for reasons that still confound and dismay .
In 2012 , Romney ran for president again , this time as a fire-breathing conservative , against incumbent President Barack Obama… but more specifically , against his own Massachusetts health care reform bill , which Obama @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Affordable Care Act .
His second presidential attempt resulted in a nomination , followed by a series of rattling humiliations , virtually all of which came because of the time he ’ d spent being for things before he was against them before he was for them .
Watching Romney try to run away from the signature legislation of his governorship was a sad and bewildering experience , and it led to some genuine comedy during the Obama-Romney presidential debates .
“ Please proceed , governor ” will join the ranks of “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” and “ You ’ re no Jack Kennedy ” in the annals of ruthless debate take-downs .
Here we are again today , watching Mitt Romney try to breaststroke through the tangled bowl of wet noodles that is his long , strange policy history .
The former pro-choice governor who as a senator just nine months ago voted to impeach a president for his role in an election-meddling scandal has endorsed Mitch McConnell ’ s galactic hypocrisy by pledging to support a Trump nominee to the high court who will almost certainly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the chance , and will bring down Roe v. Wade if given another chance .
Mitt Romney has become a caricature , a parody of himself and of every weathervane politician who has ever lived .
I met him when he walked into a Manchester , New Hampshire , coffee shop and started working the room in the winter of 2004 .
Shaking hands with him was like shaking hands with sand .
That does pretty much sum him up , now that I think of it .
Mitt ran out of excuses @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Seeking constancy or courage from him has been a fool ’ s errand for more than 25 years .

Mitt Romney — a politician who has made a career of bending hypocrisy into bold new shapes — signaled yesterday that he will support Donald Trump’s intention to stuff a new far-right Supreme Court nominee on to the still-warm seat of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Romney’s decision to allow Mitch McConnell’s brazen hypocrisy to stand unchallenged is yet another milestone on a long and winding career road, one that has often crossed over itself or gone straight over a cliff in its hapless quest to be all things to all people.
“The Constitution gives the president the power to nominate and the Senate the authority to provide advice and consent on Supreme Court nominees,” Romney intoned on Tuesday morning. “Accordingly, I intend to follow the Constitution and precedent in considering the president’s nominee. If the nominee reaches the Senate floor, I intend to vote based upon their qualifications.”
Yes, yes, Mitt, follow the Constitution, like you did back in December when you voted to impeach Trump for abuse of power because of what he did to meddle with the 2020 election by way of Hunter Biden, and what he did to cover up that meddling. Trump wants this new justice as a firewall against defeat in November, which means he intends to meddle with yet another election, but go ahead, Mitt. Please proceed.
“My liberal friends have over many decades gotten very used to the idea of having a liberal court, but that’s not written in the stars,” said Romney in an attempt to weasel out from under the profound implications of his decision.
This little straw man Romney constructed — Wah! Wah! The liberals are mad! — does not obscure the rank hypocrisy of the moment, particularly in regard to Merrick Garland, the Obama nominee quashed by McConnell because he claimed we can’t replace Supreme Court justices in an election year… unless, of course, the sitting president is a pliant Republican. The curtain on that double standard came down fast enough to chop the stage off at the toes.
Here we are again today, watching Mitt Romney try to breaststroke through the tangled bowl of wet noodles that is his long, strange policy history.
This is peak Romney, though, the guy I’ve known since 1994 when he tried to unseat Ted Kennedy from his Massachusetts senate seat. That year, Romney painted himself as a warm and fuzzy liberal Republican, stoutly in the corner of a woman’s right to choose. After Kennedy beat him like a tin drum — a rare victory in the bleak year of Newt Gingrich’s ascendancy — he moved ever so slightly to the right in order to run Jane Swift, the Republican acting governor of Massachusetts, off the road in 2002.
As governor of Massachusetts, Romney again positioned himself as a “moderate” with “progressive views.” So progressive was he, in fact, that he championed the passage of “Romneycare,” a bill requiring all Massachusetts residents to get health insurance coverage or face tax penalties. It was the crowning achievement of his tenure as governor.
Right, yeah, you know what’s coming. In 2008, Romney decided to try and ride his “moderate” street cred as a Massachusetts Republican governor into the White House, but an already radicalized GOP base handed him beating after beating in the primaries. Romney folded his campaign tents in late January after Florida and endorsed the eventual nominee, John McCain. Romney waited by the phone for a call to join the ticket as vice president, but that call was directed to the Palin residence in Alaska for reasons that still confound and dismay.
In 2012, Romney ran for president again, this time as a fire-breathing conservative, against incumbent President Barack Obama… but more specifically, against his own Massachusetts health care reform bill, which Obama had used as the framework for the Affordable Care Act. His second presidential attempt resulted in a nomination, followed by a series of rattling humiliations, virtually all of which came because of the time he’d spent being for things before he was against them before he was for them.
Watching Romney try to run away from the signature legislation of his governorship was a sad and bewildering experience, and it led to some genuine comedy during the Obama-Romney presidential debates. “Please proceed, governor” will join the ranks of “I am paying for this microphone!” and “You’re no Jack Kennedy” in the annals of ruthless debate take-downs.
Mitt Romney has become a caricature, a parody of himself and of every weathervane politician who has ever lived.
Here we are again today, watching Mitt Romney try to breaststroke through the tangled bowl of wet noodles that is his long, strange policy history. The former pro-choice governor who as a senator just nine months ago voted to impeach a president for his role in an election-meddling scandal has endorsed Mitch McConnell’s galactic hypocrisy by pledging to support a Trump nominee to the high court who will almost certainly meddle with the next election if given the chance, and will bring down Roe v. Wade if given another chance.
Mitt Romney has become a caricature, a parody of himself and of every weathervane politician who has ever lived. I met him when he walked into a Manchester, New Hampshire, coffee shop and started working the room in the winter of 2004. Shaking hands with him was like shaking hands with sand. That does pretty much sum him up, now that I think of it.
Mitt ran out of excuses for his many hypocrisies long ago. Seeking constancy or courage from him has been a fool’s errand for more than 25 years.
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
If you like what you’re reading, please consider making a tax-deductible donation today. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for an investment: Invest in a nonprofit news site that’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers, not afraid to stand up for what’s right, and not afraid to tell it like it is.
Copyright © Truthout. May not be reprinted without permission.


truthout--2020-09-23--Breonna Taylor Killing: Only One Police Officer Facing Criminal Charges

A grand jury has determined that criminal proceedings can move forward against one of the three white police officers who shot and killed Breonna Taylor , a Black emergency medical technician , in her Louisville , Kentucky , apartment in the early morning hours of March 13 .
The grand jury ’ s decision , officially released from the office of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron , is not a pronouncement of guilt , but rather means that formal prosecutorial charges can be issued against the officers who shot and killed Taylor .
Brett Hankison , an officer who had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Louisville Metro Police Department ( LMPD ) because he had shot at least 10 rounds into Taylor ’ s apartment , has been indicted on three charges of wanton endangerment .
The charges , however , appear to be unrelated directly to the shooting and killing of Taylor .
Charges from the indictment cite Hankison shooting into three apartments on the night of Taylor ’ s death .
The occupants of the other apartments are only identified by their initials , none of which appear to be “ BT , ” which seems @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were for gunfire that entered into other people ’ s homes , and not for any of the shots that struck and killed Taylor .
According to Kentucky statutes , wanton endangerment is a Class D Felony , which makes it a crime that is punishable by up to five years in prison .
Judge Annie O ’ Connell set a $ 15,000 bond for Hankison .
Criticism of the announcement from the grand jury was swift .
Ben Crump , an attorney for Taylor ’ s family , condemned the decision to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s death as “ outrageous and offensive.
” “ If Brett Hankison ’ s behavior was wanton endangerment to people in neighboring apartments , then it should have been wanton endangerment in Breonna Taylor ’ s apartment too , ” Crump added .
“ In fact , it should have been ruled wanton murder !
” Michael Harriot , senior writer for The Root , noted that Hankison ’ s charges were minimal .
Class D felonies , he pointed out , included crimes , such as “ shoplifting , cultivating marijuana @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who are convicted of such crimes under Class D felonies , Harriot added , “ do no prison time.
” Taylor ’ s sister , Juniyah Palmer , expressed immense sadness over the decision not to recommend any charges related to her sibling ’ s death .
“ Sister , you was failed by a system you worked hard for and I am sorry , ” Palmer wrote in an Instagram story .
“ I love you so so so so so much.
” The grand jury was initially tasked with reviewing the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ determine whether the three officers from the LMPD involved in the incident — Hankison , Jonathan Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove — will be charged criminally .
Hankison was terminated from the department earlier this year .
The grand jury chose not to recommend charges for Mattingly and Cosgrove who had been placed on administrative leave after the shooting .
On the morning of March 13 , the LMPD executed a no-knock search warrant on the apartment where Taylor lived with Walker , on the premise that Taylor had once dated a suspected drug @ @ @ @ @ @ @ battering ram on the door to the dwelling , Walker , a legal gun owner , grabbed his weapon , believing it to be a home invasion .
According to Walker ’ s account , the police never identified themselves .
After the door was broken down , Walker fired his gun , believing his life was in danger , hitting one of the officers in the thigh .
The officers responded by firing several shots into the apartment .
Taylor was shot five times by police and died from her wounds .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In June , Louisville passed an ordinance banning the use of no-knock warrants by LMPD .
Other changes to police practices were agreed to following a civil lawsuit settlement between the city and Taylor ’ s family .

A grand jury has decided not to charge any police officers specifically for the killing of Breonna Taylor, the emergency medical technician whom police shot in her Louisville, Kentucky, apartment in the early morning hours of March 13.
The grand jury announced that criminal proceedings for three counts of “wanton endangerment” may move forward against one officer specifically in relation to some bullets striking the apartments of Taylor’s neighbors. The officer, Brett Hankison, was fired earlier this year by the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) because he had shot at least 10 rounds into Taylor’s apartment.
However, none of the charges recommended for that officer are related in any way to Taylor’s death. Two other officers whom the grand jury was considering recommending charges against for the police-perpetrated killing received none.
Within the indictment documents, the occupants of the apartments for which Hankison is charged over shooting are only identified by their occupants’ initials. None of the initials listed appear to be “BT,” which implies that shots fired inside Taylor’s home, including those that killed her, were deemed by the grand jury as not worth indicting any of the three officers over, including Hankison.
The grand jury’s decision, officially released from the office of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, is not a pronouncement of guilt, but rather means that formal prosecutorial charges can be issued against the officers who shot and killed Taylor. According to Kentucky statutes, wanton endangerment is a Class D Felony, which makes it a crime that is punishable by up to five years in prison. Judge Annie O’Connell set a $15,000 bond for Hankison.
Criticism of the announcement from the grand jury was swift, with much of it focusing on the lack of charges related directly to the killing of Taylor. Ben Crump, an attorney for Taylor’s family, condemned the decision to charge Hankison with crimes unrelated to Taylor’s death as “outrageous and offensive.”
“If Brett Hankison’s behavior was wanton endangerment to people in neighboring apartments, then it should have been wanton endangerment in Breonna Taylor’s apartment too,” Crump added. “In fact, it should have been ruled wanton murder!”
Wednesday night, protests erupted in cities around the country in response to the grand jury announcement. Louisville, Atlanta, New York City, Chicago, Detroit, Milwaukee, Los Angeles, Memphis and more joined in rising up against the judicial system’s injustice. Capturing the sentiment of many who took to the streets, Milwaukee protester Pilar Olvera told The New York Times, “This is not going to end until we challenge the systems.”
Ibram X. Kendi, antiracist author and director of the Center for Antiracist Research at Boston University, tweeted similar sentiments regarding the lack of charges for Taylor’s death.
“To not indict the officers for murder is to claim #BreonnaTaylor killed herself,” Kendi wrote. “Racist America constantly kills Black people and then tells Black people we killed ourselves.”
The African American Policy Forum (AAPF), an organization that seeks to “address a vision of racial justice that embraces the intersections of race, gender, class, and the array of barriers that disempower those who are marginalized in society,” released a statement regarding the indictment, noting that “the most insulting dimension of today’s decision is that after 194 days of demands to Say Her Name, the two-page indictment against Brett Hankison for wanton endangerment does not mention Breonna’s name at all.”
Meanwhile, many abolitionist organizations pointed to the lack of a murder indictment as yet more evidence that the criminal legal system is incapable of delivering justice for Black people. BYP100, a Black youth-led racial justice organization, tweeted, “We will continue to mold sadness into strength to fight for a freedom for a world where Black girls can sleep. A world where Black womxn and GNC folx can be. A world without police. A world without prisons. A world where all Black lives Matter.”
In an email to supporters, Women’s March also blasted the announcement over the decision not to charge any of the officers directly for Taylor’s death.
“The only charge given was for shooting a gun at an apartment building — not for murdering Breonna. Accountability was not and cannot be achieved in a broken system, that’s why we must push forward in our fight to defund the police,” the organization said.
Taylor’s sister, Juniyah Palmer, expressed immense sadness over the decision not to recommend any charges related to her sibling’s death.
“Sister, you was failed by a system you worked hard for and I am sorry,” Palmer wrote in an Instagram story. “I love you so so so so so much.”
The grand jury was initially tasked with reviewing the details of Taylor’s death to determine whether the three officers from the LMPD involved in the incident — Hankison, Jonathan Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove — will be charged criminally.
Hankison was terminated from the department earlier this year. The grand jury chose not to recommend charges for Mattingly and Cosgrove who had been placed on administrative leave after the shooting.
On the morning of March 13, the LMPD executed a no-knock search warrant on the apartment where Taylor lived with her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, on the premise that Taylor had once been involved in a previous relationship with a suspected drug dealer. After the officers used a battering ram on the door to the dwelling, Walker, a legal gun owner, grabbed his weapon, believing it to be a home invasion. According to Walker’s account, the police never identified themselves.
After the door was broken down, Walker fired his gun, believing his life was in danger, hitting one of the officers in the thigh. The officers responded by firing several shots into the apartment. Taylor was shot five times by police and died from her wounds. No drugs were found in the home.
In June, Louisville passed an ordinance banning the use of no-knock warrants by LMPD. Other changes to police practices were agreed to following a civil lawsuit settlement between the city and Taylor’s family.
Note: Updates to this article were made to include more commentary and opinions following the announcement of the indictment, as well as to explain in greater detail that the charges against Hankison were not related to the officers’ shooting and killing Taylor.
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truthout--2020-09-23--Colleges Reopening Fueled 3,000 COVID Cases a Day, Researchers Say

Reopening colleges drove a coronavirus surge of about 3,000 new cases a day in the United States , according to a draft study released Tuesday .
The study , done jointly by researchers at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro , Indiana University , the University of Washington and Davidson College , tracked cellphone data and matched it to reopening schedules at 1,400 schools , along with county infection rates .
“ Our study was looking to see whether we could observe increases both in movement and in case count — so case reports in counties and all over the U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infectious disease expert and assistant professor at Indiana University ’ s School of Public Health .
“ Then we tried to understand if these were different in counties where , of course , there were universities or colleges , and particularly , to see if these increases were larger in magnitude in colleges with face-to-face instruction primarily , ” she said .
Nearly 900 of those schools opened primarily with in-person classes , according to the draft study .
The research examines the period from July 15 to Sept. 13 .
It does @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but researchers found a correlation between schools that attempted in-person instruction and greater disease transmission rates .
Just reopening a university added 1.7 new infections per day per 100,000 people in a county , and teaching classes in person was associated with a 2.4 daily case rise , the study found .
“ No such increase is observed in counties with no colleges , closed colleges or those that opened primarily online , ” the study says .
Factoring in whether students came from places where disease incidence was high added 1.2 daily @ @ @ @ @ @ @ case counts nationwide during the study period ranged from a high of 70,000 to a low of 30,000 , according to data compiled by The New York Times .
The authors are not calling it a mistake for colleges to have opened , considering the many variables each school faced .
But earlier reporting on reopening plans around the country found a welter of chaotic efforts that did not conform to a single standard , suggesting the potential for disaster when students returned .
In fact , numerous reports surfaced around the country @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , often blamed on partying by students .
Even at the University of Illinois , a school lauded for its preparations and robust testing , more than 2,000 cases have been reported on campus since students went back last month .
Cases there peaked about a week after classes began and have fallen since then .
The authors are not faulting irresponsible young people , either , since they studied class instruction methods , not behavior off campus , where some students have acted extremely poorly .
“ I think that it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ say , ‘ Oh , students are congregating and creating these bad behaviors that lead to outbreaks , ’ ” Bento said .
“ I think it ’ s more this idea of when you see a huge influx from all over the country , or from different counties , into a college town that we know had a very low burden of COVID throughout the first months , all of a sudden we have this increased probability of infection , because we have a large community of individuals that were susceptible still.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ said , the idea of the study was to measure the problem and then use that data to better figure out how to respond , which is the subject of a future study .
“ In order for you to open online , hybrid or meet face to face , there needs to be a different combination of strategies that allows you to catch [ cases ] early so you ’ re able to control community spread , which is the biggest problem here , ” Bento said .
The researchers hope to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ well before colleges start spring semesters .
There are some unanswered questions , such as how much of the surge in cases is simply from sick students testing positive when they arrive versus catching COVID-19 after they arrive — and how much students spread the virus to the community or the other way around .
Another is how well specific types of responses mitigated the spread , and whether different local safety measures helped or hurt .
And there is an alarming caveat : The work almost certainly did not capture the full @ @ @ @ @ @ @ While this study estimates around a 3,000 increase in daily cases , we have to take into account that this is actually likely an underestimate , because we still don ’ t see ” people who are asymptomatic , Bento said .

The study almost certainly did not capture the full extent of the campus-linked surge.
Reopening colleges drove a coronavirus surge of about 3,000 new cases a day in the United States, according to a draft study released Tuesday.
The study, done jointly by researchers at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro, Indiana University, the University of Washington and Davidson College, tracked cellphone data and matched it to reopening schedules at 1,400 schools, along with county infection rates.
“Our study was looking to see whether we could observe increases both in movement and in case count — so case reports in counties and all over the U.S.,” said Ana Bento, an infectious disease expert and assistant professor at Indiana University’s School of Public Health.
“Then we tried to understand if these were different in counties where, of course, there were universities or colleges, and particularly, to see if these increases were larger in magnitude in colleges with face-to-face instruction primarily,” she said.
Nearly 900 of those schools opened primarily with in-person classes, according to the draft study.
The research examines the period from July 15 to Sept. 13. It does not name specific institutions or locations, but researchers found a correlation between schools that attempted in-person instruction and greater disease transmission rates.
Just reopening a university added 1.7 new infections per day per 100,000 people in a county, and teaching classes in person was associated with a 2.4 daily case rise, the study found.
“No such increase is observed in counties with no colleges, closed colleges or those that opened primarily online,” the study says.
Factoring in whether students came from places where disease incidence was high added 1.2 daily cases per 100,000 people.
Daily new case counts nationwide during the study period ranged from a high of 70,000 to a low of 30,000, according to data compiled by The New York Times.
The authors are not calling it a mistake for colleges to have opened, considering the many variables each school faced. But earlier reporting on reopening plans around the country found a welter of chaotic efforts that did not conform to a single standard, suggesting the potential for disaster when students returned.
In fact, numerous reports surfaced around the country showing frightening COVID spikes in college towns, often blamed on partying by students. Even at the University of Illinois, a school lauded for its preparations and robust testing, more than 2,000 cases have been reported on campus since students went back last month. Cases there peaked about a week after classes began and have fallen since then.
The authors are not faulting irresponsible young people, either, since they studied class instruction methods, not behavior off campus, where some students have acted extremely poorly.
“I think that it’s slightly unfair, perhaps, to say, ‘Oh, students are congregating and creating these bad behaviors that lead to outbreaks,’” Bento said. “I think it’s more this idea of when you see a huge influx from all over the country, or from different counties, into a college town that we know had a very low burden of COVID throughout the first months, all of a sudden we have this increased probability of infection, because we have a large community of individuals that were susceptible still.”
Rather than lay blame, she said, the idea of the study was to measure the problem and then use that data to better figure out how to respond, which is the subject of a future study.
“In order for you to open online, hybrid or meet face to face, there needs to be a different combination of strategies that allows you to catch [cases] early so you’re able to control community spread, which is the biggest problem here,” Bento said.
The researchers hope to have that work done relatively soon, well before colleges start spring semesters.
There are some unanswered questions, such as how much of the surge in cases is simply from sick students testing positive when they arrive versus catching COVID-19 after they arrive — and how much students spread the virus to the community or the other way around.
Another is how well specific types of responses mitigated the spread, and whether different local safety measures helped or hurt.
And there is an alarming caveat: The work almost certainly did not capture the full extent of the campus-linked surge.
“While this study estimates around a 3,000 increase in daily cases, we have to take into account that this is actually likely an underestimate, because we still don’t see” people who are asymptomatic, Bento said.
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
If you like what you’re reading, please consider making a tax-deductible donation today. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for an investment: Invest in a nonprofit news site that’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers, not afraid to stand up for what’s right, and not afraid to tell it like it is.
This piece was reprinted by Truthout with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.