climatedepot--2020-04-28--Al Gore: ‘Climate Crisis and the COVID-19 Pandemic Are Linked’

According to former Vice President Al Gore , there is a link between global warming and the current coronavirus pandemic .
Gore , during an interview with MSNBC ’ s Chris Hayes , argued other emissions from fossil fuels besides carbon dioxide , were responsible for “ preconditions ” that are increasing the risk of the COVID-19 virus .
GORE : Well , as someone has said , we ’ re in a kind of chrysalis .
We are continuing to navigate according to the coordinates of a world that has radically changed , and it ’ s a challenge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is going to look like .
No doubt , there will be many similarities .
But , you know , you mentioned the oil bailout proposal at the beginning of your comments .
This climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic are linked in some ways , the preconditions that raise the death rate from COVID-19 , a great many of them are accentuated , made worse , by the fossil fuel pollution .
Not the CO2 , which causes the climate crisis , but the particulates , the soot .
And , of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ use this crisis as an opportunity to turn the valves wide open for more pollution .
And we also see it with the horrendous differential mortality rates among African-Americans and to some extent , Hispanic Americans and Native Americans , as well .
This crisis has exposed some long-standing witnesses in our president , but some long-standing weaknesses in our country .
If we — just to pick one example that existed before this began , the death rate for African-American children from asthma is ten times the death rate for Caucasian children @ @ @ @ @ @ @ increase in death rates from COVID-19 .
And there are many factors that cause it .
And you know them , Chris .
You wrote that book , ‘ A Colony in a Country , ’ and you spelled this out — inadequate access to health care , unequal economics , poor housing , and environmental injustice .
Because communities of color , because they ’ ve had a legacy of being deprived of the same political and economic power to defend themselves , are way more likely to be downwind from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ downstream from the hazardous waste flows adjacent to the coal ash and hazardous chemical waste sites , and this is now being manifested in these horrendous death rates .
But we can get through this .
And on the other side of it , we can build a new energy system , a new transportation system , a new approach to health care , and habitat and housing .
You know , this happens at a time when the oil industry and the fossil fuel industry as a whole is kind of on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at all of the new electricity generation built last year in the world , 72 percent was renewable , mostly wind and solar .
And we ’ re seeing it cheaper as a source of electricity in two-third , quarters of the world than fossil fuel , and soon , in a few years , in 100 percent of the world — EVs are taking off , within two years , they are going to be significantly cheaper than internal combustion engines — regenerative agriculture , and I won ’ t go through @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are very large .


climatedepot--2020-04-28--New Northern Hemisphere Temperature Reconstructions Are Devoid Of Michael Mann-Like Hockey Sticks

New paleoclimate records from Europe , Scandinavia-Russia , China , and the northeastern USA indicate there has been no unusual modern warming .
Instead , these newly published reconstructions show warmer periods and more rapid centennial-scale warming events occurred in past centuries , or when CO2 concentrations were much lower than they are now .
In the late 1990s Dr. Michael Mann heavily weighted tree ring evidence from North American bristlecone pines to construct the notorious hockey stick temperature graph featuring a sharp uptick in modern warming .
A new 2,500-year tree ring reconstruction ( 411 B.C.E .
to 2016 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ States shows no unusual climate changes in recent decades have occurred in this region ( Pearl et al.
, 2020 ) .
The authors suggest the tree species used , Atlantic white cedar , is “ significantly correlated ” with this region ’ s temperature .
Another new dendroclimatology study ( Shi et al.
, 2020 ) affirms Northern Eurasia ( Sweden , Yamal ) warmed 3 to 6 times faster during the 4th , 15th and 19th centuries than during the 1900s-2000s .
For example , the temperature record suggests it warmed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
During the Roman and Medieval warm periods as well as the 19th century , regional temperatures rose at much faster rates of 1.37°C to 3.31°C per century .
Further , the record shows regional temperatures were warmer during the first millennium than during the last century .
Using ice cores , tree rings , lake sediments , and stalagmites from 28 proxy temperature reconstructions from throughout the “ whole country ” of China , Hao et al.
, ( 2020 ) find the “ longest warm period on the centennial scale ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , or during the Medieval Warm Period ( MWP ) .
The two warmest 30-year periods during the MWP are also “ comparable ” to the warmth of the most recent decades .
None of these Northern Hemisphere temperature reconstructions indicate there has been any unusual modern warming relative to the natural temperature variations of the last few millennia .

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climatedepot--2020-04-28--Climate scientist Alan Betts loves virus lockdowns: ‘We can delight in the benefits from the large e

Climate scientist Alan Betts loves virus lockdowns: ‘We can delight in the benefits from the large economic downturn. Decline in the pollution from air travel and less driving helps Earth’

Vermont climate scientist Alan Betts : `` We can also delight in the benefits from the large economic downturn .
Decline in the pollution from air travel and less driving helps Earth .
The big drop in global air pollution from the reduced burning of fossil fuels benefits the planet . ''
- `` Now is a perfect time to add a fossil carbon tax , when the price of oil is low , to fund the transition to an efficient society powered by renewable energy .
The public would not notice , but what is obvious to us is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ industry , which demands instead subsidies to protect profits as usual . ''
- `` Remember to find time this spring as the world slows down to sit outside and rejoin the living natural world . ''
Flashback 2015 : ‘ Bring them to court ’ : Warmist scientist Alan Betts wants RICO prosecutions of climate change opponents Climate economist ‘ delights in the benefits ’ of economic downturn In a recent opinion piece , Vermont “ climate scientist ” Alan Betts rejoiced at the world ’ s financial troubles , beginning with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crumbles.
” Hundreds of millions of people face imminent starvation globally , but Mr. Betts ( an expert in “ atmospheric research ” ) gloats that “ reality has intruded on sacred ‘ free-market ’ theology.
” To Betts , all of the world ’ s problems were created by cruel , unnamed capitalists who manipulated the poor while toxifying the environment .
He lambasts these horrible antagonists : Ironically , Mr. Betts has not “ historically considered ” the state from whence he is shrieking .
Vermont , which boasts a history @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has long been sustained on that capitalism he disdains as unjust ( long before fossil fuel dependency ) .
But for him , Vermont must be delivered from capitalist injustice through the unnamed virtues of socialism , by embracing more local production and control .
This “ simple reality ” must be the one Betts suggested hadn ’ t “ intruded on sacred free-market theology.
” But Betts ’ s “ simple reality ” points to “ the consumer economy.
” Is that the fault of the mysterious capitalists ?
Mr. Betts blames @ @ @ @ @ @ @ goods — is he Marxist or bourgeois ?
Mr. Betts promises undisclosed socialist panaceas to rescue the planet ’ s future from the totalitarian grip of the capitalist past .
His sole ( atmospheric ? )
policy prescription is a regressive tax on gasoline : Betts wishes to use what he calls the “ clueless central government ” to take money from low-income drivers ( while they “ won ’ t notice ” ) to transfer ( as subsidies ) to the rich and powerful renewable energy industry , in the name of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Presumably , the money siphoned off those poor-slob car-drivers would “ fund the transition ” to throw away that throwaway culture and manufacture a new Shangri-La .
But Betts hasn ’ t asked for consumption to be thrown away .
He also hasn ’ t told readers where to throw away the tens of millions of people facing starvation due to the “ global economic crumbling ” he chortles over .
He has thrown away capitalism with Vermont history , discarded self-reliance with self-respect , and cast common sense to the wind @ @ @ @ @ @ @ away economics : Mr. Betts proposes to 1 ) use a collapsing economy and gas prices to 2 ) take money from working-class people to 3 ) finance renewable energy projects and electric vehicles that benefit the wealthy , while 4 ) blaming wealthy capitalists and 5 ) saving all life on planet Earth .
Families are struggling financially , with food security threatened for some — even in Vermont .
The government faces fiscal crisis .
But with gasoline consumption the lowest since the Vietnam War , Mr. Betts and other progressive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a fuel tax will reduce consumption and are simply grabbing for a tax .
There is a big difference between an existential futuristic threat of global climate change and the very real and present harm to humanity of seismic economic collapse .
There is also a huge gulf between dreading and delighting in that economic downturn , which may yet claim vastly more lives than were taken by COVID-19 ( or saved by that “ big drop in air pollution ” ) .
It is surreal to delight in the face of mass @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tax on cheap gas to “ transition to an efficient society.
” Human morality is crumbling faster than the global economy .
What is this new sacred theology that is replacing the free market ?
‘ Bring them to court ’ : Warmist scientist Alan Betts wants RICO prosecutions of climate change opponents


climatedepot--2020-04-28--No, Antarctica Is Not ‘Rapidly Melting’

No, Antarctica Is Not ‘Rapidly Melting’

The BBC , which in September 2018 announced its decision to censor any reports by climate skeptics , continues to propagandize for climate alarmists .
On March 12 , BBC “ Science Correspondent ” Jonathan Amos published an alarming article entitled “ Greenland and Antarctica ice loss accelerating.
” According to Amos , “ Earth ’ s great ice sheets , Greenland and Antarctica , are now losing mass six times faster than they were in the 1990s thanks to warming conditions.
” The BBC was not alone , of course .
Generic journalist NPCs around the world ran with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ version came with a predictably terrifying subhead : “ Losses of ice from Greenland and Antarctica are tracking the worst-case climate scenario , scientists warn.
” USA Today offered its version on March 16 , with a story headlined , “ Greenland and Antarctica are now melting six times faster than in the 1990s , accelerating sea-level rise.
” The source of these dire statistics was a report in the journal Nature , published late last year and released online on March 12 .
The key findings were summarized by NASA and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to certain quantitative assertions that invite skeptical analysis .
Perhaps the most alarming sounding statistic was the following , quoting from NASA/JPL : This sounds like a lot of ice , “ 6.4 trillion tons.
” But it ’ s not .
This equates to 6,400 billion tons , which may also be referred to as 6,400 gigatons , which is 6,400 cubic kilometers .
That would be an ice cube 18.5 kilometers on a side , or , to revert to the imperial system of measures , an ice cube 11.5 miles @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this ice cube in the world ’ s oceans and let it melt , it would raise the level of the oceans by 18 millimeters—that ’ s 9/16ths of one inch .
To focus on Antarctica , the report in Nature claimed Antarctica is losing , in recent years , 190 gigatons of ice per year , an amount that supposedly portends an ominous future for coastal cities around the world .
But the total ice mass of Antarctica is generally estimated at 26.5 million gigatons .
This means that the participating scientists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the total ice mass of Antarctica of one seven millionths per year .
You can ’ t even make an easily comprehensible fraction for an amount this infinitesimal .
Expressed using decimals , it ’ s .000007 .
It doesn ’ t take a scientist to wonder if these scientists aren ’ t jumping to conclusions .
This amount of change is way below the noise level .
How on earth—using satellite-based imagers screaming through a polar orbit at nearly 20,000 miles per hour , observing a continent 5.4 million miles in area @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is up to three miles thick—can these scientists claim with confidence that they ’ re detecting an annual change in the total ice mass of .0007 percent—and , worse , announce this to the world as if it ’ s terrifying ?
This is the sort of reasoning that the BBC openly censors .
But thank God for the blogosphere to debunk alarmist reports about the cryosphere .
A good anthology of links and summaries of contrarian , non-alarmist findings can be found on the indefatigable Marc Morano ’ s Climate Depot website @ @ @ @ @ @ @ articles by NASA glaciologist Jay Zwally claiming Antarctica is actually gaining ice .
One of the biggest obstacles to accurately measuring the volume of an ice sheet is that the underlying terrain itself changes , uplifting , or subsiding depending on tectonic shifts and other geologic variables .
Available online , from the Journal of Marine Science Research and Oceanography , is an article titled “ The Views of Three Sea Level Specialists.
” The observations by meteorologist Thomas Wysmuller , formerly with NASA , are particularly helpful in understanding the difficulties with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as well as sea-level trends .
With respect to sea-level rise , Wysmuller explains that “ the most influential driver of local sea level trend happens to be local tectonics , ” and therefore the most accurate long-term measurements of sea level can only be found in places that are “ tectonically inert.
” He cites these areas as reporting a 1 millimeter to 1.2-millimeter rate of annual sea-level rise over the last century , with scant evidence of acceleration .
Wysmuller provides an excellent example of how sea level data is manipulated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from NOAA depicting mean sea level at Seward , Alaska .
The trend line of the long-term tide gauges shows a supposed rapid rise in sea level , but when you observe the actual year over year data , it is clear that sea level was stable both before and after the Alaskan earthquake in 1964 .
At a magnitude of 9.3 , this devastating quake caused the coastal land to fall by 0.9 meters .
But what is reported is the long-term trend line ( red on the chart below ) , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ green ) helpfully superimposed .
It is impossible to refute every argument made by climate alarmists , because there is a perpetual onslaught of propaganda connecting virtually any topic to climate change .
But voters and politicians have an obligation to look past the hype and perform their own critical reasoning .
Six-point-four-trillion-tons .
That sounds like so much , but in fact it ’ s just a drop in the ocean .
And as for Greenland , why is it called Greenland ?
Because in “ Old Greenland , ” back in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hundred years thereafter , parts of this harsh land were green .
To this day there are ruins of churches , anchoring settlements where thousands lived until the little ice age drove them out .
And what about “ thermal expansion ” of the oceans ?
Then why is there no indisputable evidence of sea levels rising ?
And why wouldn ’ t increased evaporation in a thermally expanded , warmer ocean , offset the thermal expansion ?
These questions deserve discussion and answers .
But the BBC , along with most other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and suppress answers with which they do not agree .
Former presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg , when talking about his policy positions , was fond of prefacing a remark with the phrase “ science says .
.
.
” But using the words “ science says ” as a way to gain credibility and stifle debate is not scientific .
The lifeblood of science is skepticism .
It is supposed to be the lifeblood of journalism as well .
And when it comes to climate change , “ science ” knows a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It ’ s easy to wonder if the sheer volume of panic being spread on the issue of climate change is a conspiracy .
But it doesn ’ t have to be a conspiracy to be this pervasive , it just has to fit the world view of a critical mass of special interests .
And that it does .
Anyone who believes in socialism , or just in bigger government , will favor the climate alarmist narrative .
Anyone who believes in globalism and the withering away of national sovereignty will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ As for private opportunists , from rent-seeking multinational corporations to local environmental impact consultants , climate alarmism is a gold mine .
Worst of all is not just the censorship of skeptical voices , but the demonization of skeptics .
For example , a Google search on Thomas Wysmuller reveals links to several websites devoted to nothing but smearing and defaming him and everybody like him .
But it is the documented facts and logical integrity of Wysmuller ’ s arguments that must be considered , not the attacks on his character made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to these left-wing , slime-slinging websites is the best way to quickly learn who ’ s willing to tell the other side of the story ; perhaps it ’ s where we find the good guys .


climatedepot--2020-04-28--Statistician Dr. Matt Briggs: ‘Coronavirus models treated like global warming models’ – ‘Robbing The

Statistician Dr. Matt Briggs: ‘Coronavirus models treated like global warming models’ – ‘Robbing The Cemeteries To Pad Virus Death Totals’

Briggs : `` I predicted coronavirus models would be treated like global warming models .
In them , the modelers are always “ discovering ” new lower temperatures in the past ( to make our times hotter ) .
In the same way , and in order not to admit model failure , they ’ d have to make up the corona body deficit .
Models said around median 175 thousand dead in the US even with full lockdowns ... Now 'excess deaths ' are calculated via statistical modeling , as we saw .
These are statistical deaths .
Not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , they ’ re mining history to dig up old deaths .
Now the forecasts won ’ t look as bad .
The man in charge of Pennsylvania ’ s health system got caught juicing coronavirus death numbers .
… I predicted coronavirus models would be treated like global warming models .
In them , the modelers are always “ discovering ” new lower temperatures in the past ( to make our times hotter ) .
In the same way , and in order not to admit model failure , they ’ d @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deficit .
Models said around median 175 thousand dead in the US even with full lockdowns .
I ’ ll repeat that : even with full lockdowns .
I predicted that since you can ’ t make up dead bodies , like you can with Chicago voters , for total all-death counts , they ’ d have to reclassify some older deaths as COVID .
Headline : U.S. deaths soared in early weeks of pandemic , far exceeding number attributed to covid-19 ( long quote ) In the early weeks of the coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ estimated 15,400 excess deaths , nearly two times as many as were publicly attributed to covid-19 at the time , according to an analysis of federal data conducted for The Washington Post by a research team led by the Yale School of Public Health .
The excess deaths – the number beyond what would normally be expected for that time of year – occurred during March and through April 4 , a time when 8,128 coronavirus deaths were reported .
The excess deaths are not necessarily attributable directly to covid-19 , the disease @ @ @ @ @ @ @ include people who died because of the epidemic but not from the disease , such as those who were afraid to seek medical treatment for unrelated illnesses , as well as some number of deaths that are part of the ordinary variation in the death rate .
The count is also affected by increases or decreases in other categories of deaths , such as suicides , homicides and motor vehicle accidents .
Now “ excess deaths ” are calculated via statistical modeling , as we saw .
These are statistical deaths .
Not @ @ @


climatedepot--2020-04-29--UN Chief: Only Green Companies Should Be Saved

Governments should not use taxpayer cash to rescue fossil fuel companies and carbon-intensive industries , but should devote economic rescue packages for the coronavirus crisis to businesses that cut greenhouse gas emissions and create green jobs , the UN secretary general has urged .
“ Where taxpayers ’ money is used to rescue businesses , it must be creating green jobs and sustainable and inclusive growth , ” said António Guterres , speaking at the Petersberg Climate Dialogue , a virtual meeting of more than 30 governments on the climate crisis , which concluded on Tuesday .
“ It must @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , carbon-intensive industries.
” António Guterres calls for coronavirus aid to be directed at firms with green credentials Governments should not use taxpayer cash to rescue fossil fuel companies and carbon-intensive industries , but should devote economic rescue packages for the coronavirus crisis to businesses that cut greenhouse gas emissions and create green jobs , the UN secretary general has urged .
“ Where taxpayers ’ money is used to rescue businesses , it must be creating green jobs and sustainable and inclusive growth , ” said António Guterres , speaking at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of more than 30 governments on the climate crisis , which concluded on Tuesday .
“ It must not be bailing out outdated , polluting , carbon-intensive industries.
” His call was echoed by Angela Merkel , the German chancellor , who led the meeting , which was also attended by the UK and China .
“ The coronavirus shows us that international cooperation is crucial and that the wellbeing of one nation always depends on the wellbeing of others , ” she said .
“ There will be a difficult debate about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is important that recovery programmes always keep an eye on the climate .
We must not sideline climate , but invest in climate technologies.
” [ … ] Campaigners and experts have been calling for economic rescue packages to be directed towards environmentally sustainable ends and for sectoral stimulus cash to come with green strings attached.Advertisement Dominic Raab , the UK ’ s foreign secretary , said : “ It will be the duty of every responsible government to see that our economies are revived and rebuilt in a way that will stand @ @ @ @ @ @ @ investing in industries and infrastructure that can turn the tide on climate change and doing all we can to boost resilience by shaping economies that can withstand everything nature throws at us .
”


climatedepot--2020-04-29--Financiers of misery – Part 2 – Green eco-imperialism preventing development in poor nations

It ’ s easy to farm organically in the wealthy , advanced EU and USA , where consumers can afford much more expensive organic meats , eggs , fruits and vegetables .
It ’ s much harder if you have to deal with the insects and crop diseases that plague African farmers on constant massive levels and locusts that bring true catastrophes every few decades – and then sell your meager crop yields to impoverished families .
That modern pesticides might save billions of dollars of crops every year and stop locusts before they can swarm by the tens of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ feed more people , from less land , with less water , with greater resistance to insects , with less need for chemical pesticides ( natural or manmade ) – never seems to occur , or matter , to those who demand nothing but organic for Africa .
Many African farmers are women , who today have almost no “ right to choose ” when it comes to which crops they will plant .
They labor sunup to sundown on mostly 2 to 5-acre plats , yet rarely have enough produce to feed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for extra money .
Millions live on a few dollars a day .
A 2005 Congress of Racial Equality biotechnology conference in the United Nations General Assembly hall and a related video documentary , “ Voices from Africa : Biotechnology and the subsistence farmer , ” dramatically highlighted the difficulties facing the continent ’ s farmers – and the ways GM/biotech crops can improve their lives , especially crops enhanced with Bacillus thuringiensis ( Bt ) genes that enable plants to kill insects that feed on the crops , while leaving beneficial insects @ @ @ @ @ @ @ much of Africa ’ s most important crop .
But because of drought , poor soil , multiple plant diseases , voracious insects , and lack of modern fertilizers , irrigation and mechanized equipment , average yields per acre in Sub-Saharan Africa are about the lowest in the world .
Other crops suffer similar fates .
“ I grow maize on a half hectare ” ( 1.25 acres ) , South Africa ’ s Elizabeth Ajele explained in the video .
“ The old plants would be destroyed by insects , but not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ profits I get from the new Bt maize , I can grow onions , spinach and tomatoes , and sell them for extra money to buy fertilizer .
We were struggling to keep hunger out of our house .
Now the future looks good .
If someone came and said we should stop using the new maize , I would cry.
” Countryman Richard Sithole shared her excitement .
“ Now I don ’ t have to buy chemical pesticides .
With the old maize , I got 100 bags from my 15 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1,000 bags .
Now I have money to buy better food and send my children and grandchildren to school and even university.
” It was the same story with cotton .
“ With the new Bt cotton , I only spray pesticides two times , instead of six .
At the end of the day , we know the crop won ’ t be destroyed and we will have a harvest and money , ” South African widow , school principal and mother of five Thandi Myeni explained .
“ I sprayed five @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sometimes the insects still destroyed my entire crop , ” Kenyan Alice Wambuii said .
“ We would get pesticides all over our bodies .
Last year , I got 3,000 shillings for my cotton , but I had to spend 5,000 shillings for sprays.
” Bt cotton changed that for her , too .
Biotech maize and cotton enabled these South African farmers to triple their profits , cut their pesticide use up to 75 % and save 35-49 days per season working in fields – mostly spraying pesticides by hand .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Life looked much better .
But then the cabal of anti-biotech , anti-pesticide , agro-ecology pressure groups launched new attacks , aided by the growing network of ideologically like-minded donors that helped magnify anti-technology programs and messages – often while insulating the big financiers from direct connections to the radical , callous , eco-imperialist pressure groups .
The hopes and dreams , livelihoods and farming preferences of these African farmers mean nothing to the cabal .
The Swift Foundation was founded by an heir to a major stockholder in United Parcel Service , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Endowed with over $ 60 million , it awards grants of over $ 2 million a year and has been a major supporter of pro-organic , anti-agricultural technology organizations in the USA and abroad .
They include : Greenpeace , the Pesticide Action Network , the Center for Food Safety ( long a promoter of radical anti-GMO activist Vandana Shiva ) , and AgroEcology Fund ( AEF ) .
The Christensen Fund was created in 1957 by heirs of a wealthy industrial engineer .
Its $ 300 million in assets support “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its Rift Valley Program , which funds “ stewards ” ( subsistence farmers ) who want to “ maintain culture-based livelihoods on their ancestral lands and adapt their resource management systems in innovative ways that advance food sovereignty and resilience.
” ( Resilience until they are confronted by droughts , locusts and other insects . )
The New Field Foundation ( NFF ) was founded in 2002 with money from San Francisco based real estate developers Barbara and D. Thomson Sargent .
It claims to support the efforts of rural women to overcome @ @ @ @ @ @ @ communities .
But it opposes biotech crops and other modern agricultural technologies , and gives hefty sums to La Via Campesina and other activists in Africa .
The NFF supports and works with the AEF and is a grantor to the Tides Center/Foundation .
With assets of nearly $ 200 million , Tides helps philanthropies “ manage and direct ” their giving , but has been described as behaving “ less like a philanthropy and more like a money laundering enterprise.
” The Center also receives funding and support from major US foundations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fund , Charles Stewart Mott Foundation , Rockefeller Brothers Fund , and David and Lucille Packard Foundation .
The Schmidt Family Foundation ( SFF ) was established in 2006 by Wendy and Eric Schmidt , former executive chairman of Google .
Its estimated assets of $ 178 million , including Google stock primarily help finance advancing “ the wiser use of energy and natural resources to support efforts worldwide that empower communities to build resilient systems for food , water and human resources.
” ( Resilience again . )
The SFF has donated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ groups like the Center for Biological Diversity , Center for Food Safety , Environmental Working Group , Friends of the Earth , Pesticide Action Network – and Greenpeace , an implacable opponent of Golden Rice .
This miracle rice could prevent some 500,000 children from going blind and save 250,000 lives every year from Vitamin A deficiency and malnutrition .
But opposition to Golden Rice caused the loss of at least 1,424,680 life years in India alone just between 2003 and 2013 .
Greenpeace couldn ’ t care less .
To date , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1 ) has provided more than $ 6 million dollars to organizations that promote subsistence farming as a supposed alternative to far more productive modern farming technologies and methods .
This includes over $ 500,000 over the years to the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa , as well as $ 200,000 to La Via Campesina and GroundSwell International .
In the USA , AEF and NFF donors and advisors have included the Packard Foundation , Ben & Jerry Foundation , Swift Foundation , Wallace Global Fund and many others around the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pesticide Action Network Asia sits on AEF ’ s advisory board , and the global network of financiers finds ways to support PANA and many other ultra-radical groups .
Other callous foundations supporting Friends of the Earth ( a core member of AFSA , along with La Via Campesina ) has come from the Packard Foundation ( $ 600,000 ) , Foundation for the Carolinas ( $ 5,000,000 ) , Charles Stewart Mott Foundation ( $ 500,000 ) , Ford Foundation ( $ 328,500 ) , Rockefeller Brothers Fund ( $ 300,000 ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
These financiers and the radical organizations they support perpetuate what many would justifiably call crimes against humanity .
They use their tax-exempt status and clever terminology ( like agro-ecology , sustainability and food sovereignty ) to advance programs that deny people access to modern agricultural technologies that would improve crop yields , increase family wealth , prevent blindness and save lives .
They should be condemned and deprived of their tax-exempt status , for eco-imperialism and making false and ultimately lethal claims about the farming methods they promote and the modern methods @ @ @ @ @ @ @ American farmers from practicing .


climatedepot--2020-04-29--The real climate change deniers

The real climate change deniers

Fifty years ago , I helped organize Earth Day # 1 programs on my college campus , calling attention to serious pollution problems that afflicted much of the USA .
Over the ensuing decades , laws , regulations , and changed attitudes , practices and technologies reduced most of that pollution , often dramatically .
I didn ’ t buy the 1970 end-is-nigh , doom-and-gloom , billions-will-die hysteria that Ron Stein and Ron Bailey recapture so deliciously , including the manmade global cooling crisis .
I don ’ t buy it today , either – certainly not this year ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ manmade global warming crisis , also blamed on emissions of carbon dioxide and water vapor , the same gases that humans and animals exhale , and plants use to grow .
We ’ re told the crisis is unprecedented , and poses existential threats to humanity and planet .
What I find fascinating in all this is the steadfast , often nasty determination of scientists , politicians and interest groups promoting alarmist themes – and profiting immensely from them – to reject and deny any science , history and evidence that undermines their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ before .
The “ highest ever ” temperatures may be just a few tenths or even hundredths of a degree above previous records set many decades ago .
The United States may have enjoyed a record 12-year respite from Category 3-5 hurricanes , ended finally by Harvey and Irma in 2017 .
Violent tornadoes may be far fewer during the last 35 years than during the 35 years before that , and the complete absence of violent twisters in 2018 may have been truly unprecedented .
Modern day floods and droughts may be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ multi-decade droughts that devastated Anasazi , Mayan and other civilizations .
However , alarmists insist , Earth ’ s climate and weather were stable and unchanging until humans began using coal , oil and natural gas .
We must eradicate fossil fuels now , they say , regardless of what biofuel , battery , wind and solar replacements ( and mining for raw materials to manufacture them ) might have on wildlife , scenery , environmental values or human rights .
The disconnect from reality is truly amazing .
Equally fascinating is the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It amounts to asserting that everything was just peachy until American , European and Greenland glaciers started melting a few decades ago , threatening us with catastrophic sea level rise .
It amounts to claiming the glacial epochs never happened ; their mile-high ice sheets never blanketed a third of the Northern Hemisphere , multiple times , with balmy periods in between ; and seas haven ’ t risen some 400 feet since the Pleistocene ice age .
It amounts to claiming the Roman and Medieval Warm Periods never happened , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ice Age , when priests performed exorcisms , asking God to keep glaciers from inundating villages in the Alps of Europe .
It ’ s as though we couldn ’ t possibly be finding what we are finding today .
In the latest example , government and university researchers recently found numerous Viking-era artifacts along a Norwegian mountain pass that had been heavily traveled for at least 700 years , but then was buried beneath the ice and lost to history for 1,000 years .
Locals used the rough 2,200-foot-long pass to travel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ long-distance trekkers used it as a trade route .
Among the treasure trove were tunics , mittens , horse shoes and bits , remnants of sleds used to haul food and gear over winter snow , a small shelter , and even the remains of a dog with a collar and leash .
They all came to light because the glacial ice is again receding , as Earth continues its post Little Ice Age warming .
Alarmists insist the warming is due to fossil fuels , and deny that it is just part @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evidence of past warming and cooling periods has also come to light in recent years .
In 1991 , German hikers found the incredible mummified and heavily tattooed remains of “ Oetzi the Ice Man ” sticking out of the ice in the Oetzal Alps near the Italian-Austrian border , at an altitude of some 10,000 feet .
A partial longbow , bearskin hat and other artifacts were found nearby .
He had died about 5,300 years ago from an arrow wound and had the blood of four different people on his clothes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of human habitation in these alpine areas during past warm periods .
Tourists and archeological teams have also discovered parts of shoes , leather clothing , fragments of a wooden bowl and numerous other items from 3000 to 4500 BC ( BCE ) that have emerged from the alpine ice .
They are among the oldest objects ever found in the Alps .
A Bronze Age pin , Roman coins and early Medieval artifacts have also been found .
They show how these mountain passes and trails , impassible during cold , more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ routes in periodic warmer centuries .
Norwegian ice fields show shrinkage and growth patterns similar to those of the alpine glaciers , says Norwegian glacial scientist Atle Nesje .
The archaeological findings “ seem to fit quite nicely with our glacier reconstructions , ” he adds , which helps us understand past , present and future climate changes .
Years of research by Swiss and other scientists have produced similar findings – sometimes human artifacts , but also plant and animal remains , in areas of newly melted ice .
In one location @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Berne geology professor Christian Schluechter found pieces of wood 12-24 inches thick and the remains of a moor .
Melting waters had flushed them out from under the glacier .
That means the ice there is hardly “ perpetual , ” he says .
There were multiple periods of warmer weather and less ice .
In fact , carbon-14 dating shows ten “ clearly definable time windows ” over the last 10,000 years – times when glaciers were limited to regions up to 1,000 feet higher in the Alps than today .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of time , “ the Alps were greener than they are today , ” Schluechter concludes .
Inca children sacrificed 500 years ago in Argentina ’ s Andes have also emerged from melting glaciers .
Off the Florida coast , the Mel and Deo Fisher archeological diving team didn ’ t just find the famous Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha , which sank during a ferocious 1622 hurricane , or only the British slave ship Henrietta Marie , which went down during a 1700 hurricane , after leaving 190 Africans in Jamaica @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They also found charred tree branches , pine cones and other remnants from a forest fire 8,400 years ago , when this vast ocean area was still well above present day sea levels !
Even an entire forest has been discovered , protruding from the melting Mendenhall Glacier near Juneau , Alaska – an area I visited several years ago .
Roots , stumps and large segments of entire upright spruce or hemlock trees have been found across several acres already .
They are the remains of a forest that thrived there for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it was buried by glacial ice around 1,000 years ago .
The chronicle of amazing discoveries yielded by melting glaciers goes on and on .
Their most important lesson is that our current climate is but a snapshot in time , on a vibrant planet where climate change and extreme weather have been “ real ” since time began .
Only a science-denying climate alarmist would refuse to recognize this .
Simply put , there is nothing “ unprecedented ” about what we are seeing today .
Now it may be that carbon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ snorting horses , oxen and humans – laboring at the edge of exhaustion doing what our fossil-fuel-powered vehicles and equipment do for us today – caused these past climate changes .
But it ’ s far more likely that they were due to a complex and still poorly understood combination of solar and other powerful natural forces .
Climate alarmists may not want to recognize or discuss these natural fluctuations .
But the rest of us should .
Improving our knowledge of what these forces are and how they work together will enable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and adapt to future climate changes .
Continuing to focus on carbon dioxide and other “ greenhouse gases , ” as the primary or sole cause of climate changes and weather events , will ensure that we never get beyond the politically driven battles in which we are now engaged .


climatedepot--2020-04-29--Tale of two panics — Covid & Climate

Tale of two panics — Covid & Climate

While they are occurring on vastly different time scales , the Covid-19 panic and the climate change panic are remarkably similar .
Perhaps there are certain basic social panic mechanisms that always occur , which are yet to be discovered .
Yet in any case the striking similarities between these two are worth exploring a bit .
To begin with , each panic began with runaway computer models .
In the Covid case the U.S. death count was projected to be around 2,000,000 , clearly calling for draconian government action , which soon followed .
That number now stands at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a bad flu year , but the damage is well underway .
Claims that the ruinous actions brought the numbers down are belied by the countries that fared just as well without them .
Nor do we know what made the model so “ hot ” as it has not been analyzed , or even properly documented and released for analysis .
In the climate case the hot models take a benign increase in atmospheric CO2 and turn it into a coming catastrophe .
We actually know how they do this using massive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from water vapor and clouds .
That these models have clearly been falsified by observation is ignored by their masters .
In both cases the speculative terror to come was heartily embraced by the mainstream media , accompanied by relentless cries for action .
Predictably the public responded with fear , giving the government ample room for action .
In both cases the result has been mandates for economically destructive abstinence .
In the Covid case the mandate is to hide thy self away .
Don ’ t go out , don ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t go to school .
That the economy is rapidly collapsing is no surprise .
In the climate case the mandate is to stop using our primary source of energy — fossil fuels .
Don ’ t drive .
Don ’ t fly .
Don ’ t eat meat .
Build millions of windmills and solar collectors .
Commit to zero carbon suicide .
That the economy is slowly collapsing is no surprise .
Energy prices rise and rise .
In both cases the ridiculous bandaid that is applied to catastrophic collapse is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are out of work so they get just over a thousand dollars .
Windmills and solar panels do not work as needed so they get subsidies .
And still the government feeds the fear .
What is really needed in both cases is freedom and reality .
Freedom from computer driven fear , freedom from fear driven mandates , and the reality that the problem being solved by collapse never existed in the first place .
These are both panics , pure and simple .
Recovery will not be easy because fear , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Children were already having nightmares fueled by climate fear , now they are afraid to go outside and play .
In both cases the worst may be yet to come because the fear mongers are relentless .
Still we will wallow out of this pit , despite the governments that put us into it .
The bigger challenge is how to prevent catastrophic panics in future ?
In communication science this sort of thing is called a “ cascade ” .
The model results trigger the press , who trigger the people , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is an amplifier , whereby a hot model hurts hundreds of millions of people .
Maybe the model is the place to start .
Perhaps presenting catastrophic conjectures as established facts should be punishable , so people do not do it .
Giving a false alarm that causes great harm is wrong .
Calling the false alarm science does not change this fact .
If anything it makes it worse .
Scientists are supposed to be very careful about their claims .
Of course we also need to fight the virus , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a workable virus prevention and protection system , especially one that prevents panic .
A good way to fund this system is by redirecting money slated for foolishly fighting CO2 .


Question climate ‘authority’

A growing number of Americans are getting fed up with state coronavirus lock-downs that are keeping their businesses closed and destroying their livelihoods .
They are rightly questioning the rationale and science that influenced these government edicts , including by protest , as the economically destructive effects are increasingly unacceptable and not sustainable .
Americans should do the same for political climate science that exerts pervasive influence in society to reorder our lifestyles and economy over time , since it is unwarranted .
Both coronavirus and climate policies imposed by governments in the United States and worldwide are attempting massive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ important difference is that coronavirus policies were imposed suddenly and swiftly out of genuine fear that millions of people were vulnerable to imminent death .
Understandably , elected officials accepted and acted on advice from public health experts to lock down the economy with stay-at-home orders and closure of “ non-essential ” businesses to save lives .
It likely is no coincidence that growing impatience from Americans over coronavirus lockdowns comes simultaneous with the drastic reduction in projected deaths from the virus models and “ flattening the curve ” of infections .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recent studies that indicate millions of people were infected with coronavirus , thus reducing the death rate closer to recurring influenza levels .
If true , enduring this highly contagious virus is becoming preferable to remaining cloistered , losing economic livelihoods , waiting in food lines , and becoming wards of the state .
The analogies between the legitimate coronavirus scare and the illegitimate climate change scare are uncanny , except the latter is more long-term and gradual , with society being the metaphorical frog being slowly boiled to submission .
Politicians , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have claimed for decades there is “ scientific consensus ” about man-made global warming that is getting inexorably hotter to the point where the planet itself faces an “ existential threat , ” now within three decades .
The culprit supposedly is more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere from too many people and too much production and use of fossil fuels like oil , coal and natural gas that will result in arctic ice melt , flooded coastal cities , extinction of animal species , and humankind itself doomed .
You ’ ve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we fight this man-made climate change by changing our lifestyles and our economic system .
Sound familiar ?
We ’ ve been hearing the same message about the coronavirus , which was warranted in the short-term , but not indefinitely .
Climate has indeed warmed by about half a degree in the last 40 years , and has been warming overall since the late 1800 ’ s , upon the end of the “ Little Ice Age.
” No denying that .
In fact , climate has warmed and cooled by several degrees @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the planet escape from ice ages and begin to warm ?
Not from using carbon-emitting fossil fuels , which were still underground .
To warm out of an “ ice age ” also is to acknowledge the planet ’ s climate got cooler to begin one .
The climate effect of carbon dioxide emissions also must be properly understood .
As CFACT reported , carbon from fossil fuels comprises less than one-fifth of the planet ’ s CO2 emissions in the atmosphere .
Importantly , the share of all CO2 in the atmosphere @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of a percent ( 0.04 % ) .
If fossil fuel use worldwide ceased , the temperature would drop only one-tenth of one degree Celsius by 2050 , using climate data and models maintained by the National Center for Atmospheric Science , a federal agency .
Eliminating fossil fuels on a global scale accomplishes effectively nothing from a climate standpoint .
If you stood outside and the temperature changed by one degree—much less , a tenth of a degree—you wouldn ’ t notice ; nor would polar bears .
But we should destroy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fuels , regardless ?
Assuming this were possible in 30 years , it is neither practical nor necessary .
This carbon scientific reality makes the costly efforts of states like California , Virginia and New York to “ fight climate change ” more pointless , as they are mere specks on a planetary scale .
Americans should question every climate alarmist who demands we reduce our lifestyle and our oil-based economies to reduce carbon to “ fight climate change.
” The do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do wealthy climate alarmists such as former Vice President Al Gore , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and the British House of Windsor ( i.e.
, Charles and Harry ) , are not changing their opulent lifestyles any time soon to reduce their massive carbon footprints .
Neither should the rest of us .


climatedepot--2020-04-29--Imagine our Covid-19 response running on wind and solar power

Until the Pandemic struck the world , the desire of the progressive political movement in the United States and much of the world that was focused on ridding the planet of fossil fuels , said to be negatively altering the planet ’ s climate .
These folks are fully convinced that the world , at its present state of technological advance , could be run entirely on renewable refuels lead by solar and wind power .
They have always ignored the intermittency of these sources when the wind does not blow and the sun does not shine .
While they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ store such energy , they assume one will come along .
It has been futile yet interesting to continue such a debate in the face of a calm period where conjecture was but an intellectual exercise .
Then reality hit us all in the face with a disaster never seen in our life times .
Where would the two million Covid-19 afflicted people be today who depended on ventilators run by electricity from coal and natural gas if they were powered from the wind and the sun ?
The obvious answer is that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not much good will come from this world wide tragedy , perhaps more of the people deluded by the climate change fear mongering will come to their senses .
Eliminating fossil fuels to produce electricity or power automobiles would not support life as we know it today but only life as we knew it a century and a half ago .
It may also be time to rename the electric cars , beloved by many , to what they really are , coal , natural gas or nuclear powered cars .
It is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ car owners believe their power comes magically out of a wall socket at home or a charging station on the road .
The power really comes from a nearby power plant all of which burn coal , natural gas or obtain heat from nuclear fuel .
Even if the plant gets some energy from local wind turbines or solar photovoltaic cells this amount is minimal .
If we really want a huge increase in the number of electric automobiles on the road we must build more fossil fuel burning power plants , not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a little history of the electrification of our nation is in order .
It was the development of our fossil fuels that made possible the greatest contribution to health and prosperity which was to make electricity affordable everywhere .
In 2000 the U.S. National Academy of Engineering ( NAE ) announced “ the 20 engineering achievements that have had the greatest impact on the quality of life in the 20th century ” .
The achievements were nominated by 29 professional engineering societies and ranked by a distinguished panel of the nation ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the number one achievement .
It powered almost every pursuit and enterprise in modern society .
Aside from lighting the world , it impacted countless areas of daily life including food production and processing , air conditioning , heating , refrigeration , entertainment , transportation , communication , health care and eventually computers .
In the NAE announcement regarding electrification it stated : “ One hundred years ago life was a constant struggle against disease , pollution , deforestation , treacherous working conditions and enormous cultural divides …… .
By the end of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ become a healthier , safer and more productive place , primarily because of this engineering achievement ” .
Fossil fuels brought electricity to the homes and workplaces of billions of people around the world .
Wind and solar power in anyone ’ s wildest dreams can never support what electricity provided us in these past 148 years since Thomas Edison built the world ’ s first coal fired generating plant on Pearl Street in New York City in 1882 .
Part of our collective problem as to energy and electricity is that technology @ @ @ @ @ @ @ once understood how an automobile engine worked , how a home was wired , and what was a fuse .
When computers , GPS and smart phones came along , most of us gave up trying to understand .
Many believe there really is a cloud up there keeping our data safe .
So why not think electric cars reap the magic from the wall socket , the wind and sun can keep us doing all that we do .
That scientists have high tech crystal balls to tell us the climate decades @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as technology advanced beyond the average persons ability to comprehend , we have actually become dumber .
Perhaps being rationally ignorant of things we do not need to know is okay .
Unfortunately people in leadership positions are then able to lead us astray .
The elimination of fossil fuels is a poor path to follow .
Isn ’ t it a little strange that a century ago electrification and its fossil fuel source was revered and now so many despise the source but think they can just keep the electricity .
No @ @ @ @ @ @ @ your cake and eat it too , or that there are no free lunches .
Note : Portions of this article were excerpted from ( CCRII : Fossil Fuels ) , produced by the ( NIPCC ) published by The Heartland Institute , with permission of the editors Joseph Bast and Diane Bast .
The authors strongly recommend the book for a complete exposé of the fallacies behind the climate delusion .


climatedepot--2020-04-29--Al Gore Falsely Claims Fossil Fuels Raise Coronavirus Death Rate

Al Gore falsely attempted to blame fossil fuels for raising the coronavirus death rate during a February 27 MSNBC interview .
In reality , economic prosperity brought by the use of abundant , affordable fossil fuels results in lower death rates from viruses and epidemics .
Also , viruses like influenza and COVID-19 thrive in cold climate conditions and are inhibited by warmer temperatures .
“ This climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic are linked in some ways , ” Gore said on MSNBC , as reported by The Hill .
“ The preconditions that raise the death rate from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , are accentuated , made worse by the fossil fuel pollution.
” Scientists have long known that cold temperatures are a key factor in the annual death toll for influenza , which kills an average of approximately 36,000 Americans per year .
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control ( CDC ) documents that flu season ramps up when the weather turns cold , and then peters out when warm temperatures return .
According to CDC , “ influenza activity often begins to increase in October .
Most of the time flu activity peaks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can last as late as May.
” According to Harvard University researchers , “ In the southern hemisphere , however , where winter comes during our summer months , the flu season falls between June and September .
In other words , wherever there is winter , there is flu .
In fact , even its name , “ influenza ” may be a reference to its original Italian name , influenza di freddo , meaning “ influence of the cold ” .
“ [ A ] t least in regions that have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ survives longer in cold , dry air , so it has a greater chance of infecting another person , ” the Harvard researchers added .
Scientists are still learning about COVID-19 , but preliminary evidence indicates warmer temperatures have either minor or significant impacts reducing the spread and harm of coronavirus .
Warmer temperatures certainly do not make COVID-19 worse .
According to a publication released by Harvard Medical School , a recent study by the National Academies of Sciences “ found that in laboratory settings , higher temperatures and higher levels of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” The scientists are currently attempting to determine whether this will also be the case in natural environments outside the laboratory .
In fact , cold temperatures kill many more people – for a variety of reasons – than warm or hot temperatures .
In an article published in the Southern Medical Journal in 2004 , W. R. Keatinge and G. C. Donaldson noted , “ Cold-related deaths are far more numerous than heat-related deaths in the United States , Europe , and almost all countries outside the tropics , and almost all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that are increased by cold.
” More recently in a study published in the Lancet in 2015 , researchers examined health data from 384 locations in 13 countries , accounting for more than 74 million deaths , and found cold weather , directly or indirectly , killed 1,700 % more people than warm or hot weather .
In his MSNBC interview , Gore doubled down on his reckless assertions .
He attempted to link fossil fuels to high asthma rates , which he claimed are made worse by the coronavirus .
However , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ States has consistently and sharply declined since the 1970s , asthma rates have increased substantially .
This contradicts the assertion that air pollution causes asthma .
As explained by researcher Joel Schwartz in his paper , “ Facts Not Fear on Air Pollution , ” the incidence of asthma rose 75 percent from 1980 to 1996 , and nearly doubled for children .
However , the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency documents that air pollution has declined 74 percent since the 1970 ’ s , over the same time period that asthma worsened .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ neither causing nor exacerbating any identifiable illness or disease , be it COVID-19 or anything else .
To the extent a modestly warming planet may impact COVID-19 , the impact is almost certainly to reduce the spread of the disease and save many human lives .


climatedepot--2020-04-29--UN was too busy pushing global warming ‘to see pandemic threat’

Instead of preparing the world for the next global health crisis after the 2003 SARS pandemic , the United Nations @ @ @ @ @ the “ myth of global warming ” according to Sky News host Rowan Dean .


climatedepot--2020-04-29--EU Between Green Deal And Survival

EU Between Green Deal And Survival

The coronavirus crisis risks becoming an existential crisis for the European Union , say diplomats and analysts , as the EU struggles to coordinate a financial response to the pandemic .
Last week , the EU ’ s national leaders struck an interim agreement on a recovery deal with an emergency fund of about $ 581 million ( a half-billion euros ) , which the hardest hit member states can tap into for immediate assistance .
But the wrangling over how to cope with the economic impact of the pandemic is far from over , and the overall $ 2 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the national leaders includes the budget costs of the EU itself for the next seven years .
In fact , no final numbers , aside from the emergency fund , have yet been agreed upon , according to analysts .
Members states already were at loggerheads over money before the coronavirus appeared , with sharp arguments between them about how to make up for the loss of Britain ’ s financial contribution to the EU .
The emergency relief package came after an ill-natured squabble and warnings by Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte @ @ @ @ @ @ @ jeopardy unless the wealthier northern states help bail out their poorer southern neighbors .
It also has left unresolved whether aid from the emergency fund to countries like Italy and Spain will be in the form of loans , which must be paid back , or grants , which won ’ t .
Another key issue is whether the eurozone countries will eventually have to mutualize their debt by issuing jointly so-called “ coronabonds ” to meet health-care costs and mitigate the impact of a deep economic slump , one that could rival @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
As the behind-scenes quarreling continues over money , euro-skepticism , which before the pandemic appeared to be ebbing , is rising once again .
It ’ s being fueled by southern Europeans smarting over what they see as an absence of solidarity by the more affluent nations , reminiscent , they say , of the debt crisis following the 2008 financial crash that nearly tore the EU apart .
The pandemic is opening up the wounds of that crisis , which also saw a sharp split between the north and south .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the ultimate acid test of its resilience as a community based on solidarity and common values , ” according to Stefan Lehne of Carnegie Europe , a think tank based in Brussels .
In a posted commentary , he wrote : “ The mindset of everybody for itself , which is so tempting under the acute stress of the crisis , must be countered by stepping up cooperation and mutual assistance among the member states .
Otherwise , the EU will be in great danger .
”


climatedepot--2020-04-29--Claim: RIP climate alarmism: 20 reasons why the Wuhan Flu is the final nail in the climate alarmists

Claim: RIP climate alarmism: 20 reasons why the Wuhan Flu is the final nail in the climate alarmists’ coffin

Reason No.1 : The complete collapse in trust in the United Nations and its associated organisations The World Health Organisation and the International Panel on Climate Change are both specialised agencies of the United Nations .
The collapse in trust in the W.H.O and the United Nations resulting from their conduct during the COVID-19 pandemic will also result in a collapse in trust in the IPCC .
The WHO is headed by Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus , a member of the Ethiopian Marxist terror group , the Tigray ’ s Peoples Liberation Front .
As Director-General of the World Health Organization @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stooge for the Chinese Communist Party , misleading the global community and costing lives .
Tedros ’ s first step as head of the WHO was to propose that the butcher of Zimbabwe , the dictator and fellow Marxist , Robert Mugabe become a WHO goodwill ambassador .
January 14 this year , Tedros echoed China ’ s false claim that the virus had no human-to-human transmission .
However , the World Health Organisation didn ’ t find any because they simply didn ’ t look .
Tedros simply chanted China ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were filling and bodies piling up in cemeteries in China , and the Chinese had imposed domestic travel restrictions within China , Tedros stated there was no need to impose international travel restrictions on China .
The disgraceful leadership of Tedros was further apparent as late as March 9 when he denied the China virus had become a pandemic .
And last week , Tedros supported the China Communist Party ’ s decision to reopen live animal markets , ignoring decades of scientific warnings that these markets risk spreading coronavirus from animals to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s lies , people died .
The world lost vital weeks in fighting the pandemic , conduct that has cost over 100,000 lives and widespread economic ruin .
Such conduct by the head of the WHO should have resulted in strong condemnation by the United Nations .
Instead , we had the General Secretary of United Nations , the Portuguese socialist Antonio Gutterres covering up for World Health Organisation ’ s dangerous epidemic of misinformation .
As some have noted ; we had a Portuguese socialist covering up for the Ethiopian Marxist ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Party ’ s cover-up of the outbreak of the virus .
Given the public can no longer trust the UN agency the World Health Organisation , likewise trust will also collapse other UN agencies , including the International Panel on Climate Change .
Graig Kelly is the Liberal Member for Hughes .


climatedepot--2020-04-29--Warmist Eric Holthaus envisions Earth Day 2070: ‘A world not focused on growth, but on life.  A worl

Warmist Eric Holthaus envisions Earth Day 2070: ‘A world not focused on growth, but on life.  A world not focused on ownership, but on solidarity’

What could the world look like 50 years from today , on the 100th anniversary of Earth Day ?
What will our generation ’ s Earthrise photo be ?
For 2070 , author Emma Marris has a vision of an ecological society , one that has transformed its core set of values : “ Borders will be softer ; backyards messier .
Wilderness corridors will thread through farmlands and cities ; floodplains will store carbon , produce food , and control floods .
Kids will climb trees in schoolyard orchards to pick fruit , ” she told National Geographic in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Geographic with Emma Marris .
The world in 2070 will not be a utopia .
We ’ ve already locked in enough climate change to melt the Arctic , no matter what we choose from here .
But we will have a world that works for everyone in a way that it just doesn ’ t right now – that , in the words of Joanna Macy , is “ the work that reconnects ” .
That is our shared goal now .
A world not focused on growth , but on life @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but on solidarity .
A world not focused on competition , but on connection .
Those might sound like wishy-washy socialist utopian dreams , but they must be true for our civilisation to survive .
So , I believe that they will become true , and it will happen in the next 50 years .
Right now , we are suffering with our world .
But that suffering isn ’ t inevitable .
Over the next 50 years we will be tearing down , building up , and finding meaning in it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the first time in our species ’ history .


climatedepot--2020-04-29--Watch: AOC urges people to stay unemployed even after the lockdowns end: ‘People should just say no

Watch: AOC urges people to stay unemployed even after the lockdowns end: ‘People should just say no – we’re not going back to that’

AOC : `` When we talk about this idea about reopening society ...
I think a lot of people should just NO .
We are not going back to that .
We are not going back to working 70 hour weeks just so that we can put food on the table & not even feel any sort of semblance of security in our lives '' Excerpt : New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ( AOC ) says she ’ s thrilled by the crash of the oil industry , which has cost hundreds of thousands of jobs and could put many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ You absolutely love to see it , ” she tweeted .
“ This along with record low interest rates means it ’ s the right time for a worker-led , mass investment in green infrastructure to save our planet.
” Well , this should go over big in the oil and gas patch , including states that have prospered via fracking , such as Pennsylvania , Ohio , Texas , West Virginia and North Dakota .
AOC ’ s lurch into green insanity was promptly deleted .
But it was only the latest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Marxist wing of the Democratic Party , which has taken over its host .
Last Wednesday , on the new Vice TV talk show “ Seat at the Table ” featuring author Anand Giridharadas , AOC urged people to stay unemployed even after the lockdowns end .
“ When we talk about this idea of reopening society you know , only in America does the president — when the president tweets about ‘ liberation ’ — does he mean ‘ go back to work , ’ ” she said .
“ When @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or reopening , I think a lot of people should just say no — we ’ re not going back to that .
”


climatedepot--2020-04-29--IMF chief echoes AOC on using pandemic as ‘great opportunity’ to push green agenda

International Monetary Fund head Kristalina Georgieva echoed Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ’ s Twitter feed on Monday by framing the coronavirus pandemic is a “ great opportunity ” to push green initiatives .
The Bulgarian economist told the Atlantic Council via videoconference that “ Mother Nature ” would continue warning the world about embracing green policies whether citizens liked it or not .
“ A crisis [ is ] never to be missed as an opportunity to do better , ” Ms. Georgieva said , the Washington Examiner reported .
“ Look , Mother Nature is not going to let us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ risk to the well-being of people and the well-being of economies , ” she said .
“ Right now , we are concentrated on the immediate emergency , and rightly so , but as we deal with COVID-19 and we restart economies , it is a great opportunity to see what are the policies that we can put in place and even accelerate so we can [ see ] climate-friendly growth in the future .
… So what are the areas we can pursue ?
Well , oil prices are very low — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ subsidies , taking advantage of these low oil prices.
” Ms. Ocasio-Cortez — a stalwart advocate for the Green New Deal — came under fire on April 20 for cheering oil industry chaos caused by the contagion .
“ You absolutely love to see it , ” she said in a now-deleted tweet .
“ This along with record low-interest rates means it ’ s the right time for a worker-led , mass investment in green infrastructure to save our planet.
” A follow-up tweet in line with Ms. Georgieva ’ s current @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time to create millions of good jobs building out the infrastructure and clean energy necessary to save our planet for future generations , ” Ms. Ocasio-Cortez wrote .
“ For our economy , our planet , and our future , we need a # GreenNewDeal .
”


climatedepot--2020-04-29--Claim: Mankind will suffer worse pandemics than coronavirus if we do not protect the environment and

Claim: Mankind will suffer worse pandemics than coronavirus if we do not protect the environment and halt deforestation, scientists warn

Government fund recovery packages to bolster failing economies must be used to strengthen environmental protection .
Relaxing environmental standards 'without requiring urgent and fundamental change essentially subsidises the emergence of future pandemics ' , they said .
The scientists warned that we have a small window of opportunity in overcoming the challenges of the current crisis 'to avoid sowing the seeds of future ones ' .
`` The report , written for the science-policy website IPBES , said : 'Rampant deforestation , uncontrolled expansion of agriculture , intensive farming , mining and infrastructure development , as well as the exploitation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ storm ' for the spillover of diseases . '
`` Oh no ?
!
Who could have seen this coming !
Quick 10 years of a mandated climate lockdown !
Mankind to suffer worse pandemics than coronavirus if environment not protected , warn scientists | Daily Mail Online – https : //t.co/Df6uf27Ii1 Humans are to blame for coronavirus and even deadlier pandemics will follow unless the environment is protected , scientists have warned .
Scientists said in a report published this week : ‘ There is a single species responsible for the Covid-19 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are a direct consequence of human activity , particularly our global financial and economic systems that prize economic growth at any cost.
’ The report was published by IBPES , an international platform that informs policy through science , and co-authored by experts Professors Josef Settele , Sandra Díaz , Eduardo Brondizio and Dr Peter Daszak .
Up to 1.7 million unidentified viruses known to infect humans are thought to exist in mammals and water birds , they warned , and ‘ Any one of these could be the next “ Disease X @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lethal than COVID-19 ’ .
The report , written for the science-policy website IPBES , said : ‘ Rampant deforestation , uncontrolled expansion of agriculture , intensive farming , mining and infrastructure development , as well as the exploitation of wild species have created a ‘ perfect storm ’ for the spillover of diseases.
’ The scientists said activities like these cause pandemics by bringing increasing numbers of people into direct contact with animals that carry the pathogens , where 70 per cent of emerging diseases originate from .
The explosive growth of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a harmless virus in Asian bats to bring ‘ untold human suffering and halt economies and societies around the world , ’ they said .
‘ This is the human hand in pandemic emergence .
Yet this may be only the beginning.
’ They added that ‘ Future pandemics are likely to happen more frequently , spread more rapidly , have greater economic impact and kill more people if we are not extremely careful about the possible impacts of the choices we make today.
’ The scientists warned that we have a small @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the current crisis ‘ to avoid sowing the seeds of future ones ’ .
They said a global ‘ One Health ’ approach must be developed to recognise the ‘ complex interconnections among the health of people , animals , plants and our shared environment ’ .
Government fund recovery packages to bolster failing economies must be used to strengthen environmental protection .
Relaxing environmental standards ‘ without requiring urgent and fundamental change essentially subsidises the emergence of future pandemics ’ , they said .
Health services must also be funded properly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemics to protect the ‘ health of the most vulnerable ’ .
They said : ‘ This is not simple altruism – it is vital investment in the interests of all to prevent future global outbreaks.
’ The article comes following a landmark 2019 report when the scientists led the most comprehensive planetary health check and concluded human society was at risk from earth ’ s rapidly declining resources .
Report co-author Dr Peter Daszak told The Guardian that ‘ The programmes we ’ re talking about will cost tens of billions of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ get one pandemic , even just one a century , that costs trillions , so you still come out with an incredibly good return on investment.
’ He added that business as usual is ‘ not a good strategy ’ and that ‘ we need to deal with the underlying drivers .
The UN ’ s environment chief , Inger Andersen , said in March that ‘ nature is sending us a message ’ with the coronavirus pandemic and the ongoing climate crisis .
And last week the UN secretary general António Guterres @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an unprecedented wake-up call ’ and ‘ we need to do things right for the future.
’ The outbreak has seen more than three million confirmed cases of coronavirus worldwide and 211,000 deaths as the pandemic continues to cause widespread devastation .
Strict lockdown measures have been implemented in most countries to slow its spread as scientists race to create a vaccine , though some countries have begun to ease rules .
The World Health Organisation chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said ‘ the world should have listened ’ when it first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Monday he said : ‘ We can only give advice to countries .
We don ’ t have any mandate to force countries to implement what we advise them .
‘ The world should have listened to the WHO carefully .
We advised the whole world to implement a comprehensive public health approach – find , test , contact tracing and so on .
’


climatedepot--2020-05-01--You knew this was coming: ‘How a Warming Climate Could Affect the Spread of Diseases Similar to COVI

You knew this was coming: ‘How a Warming Climate Could Affect the Spread of Diseases Similar to COVID-19’

Claim : `` Some scientists are concerned that climate change could alter the relationship between our body ’ s defenses and such pathogens .
These modifications could include the adaptation of microbes to a warming world , changes in how viruses and bacteria interact with their animal hosts , and a weakened human immune response . ''
`` A warming world could also have an effect on humans ’ other defense mechanism : the immune system . ''
“ A hotter planet could change the relationship among infectious agents , their hosts and the human body ’ s defense mechanisms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rise in average global temperatures is expanding the geographical presence of vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever , because the animals that transmit them are adapting to more widespread areas .
The link between respiratory illnesses , including influenza and COVID-19 , and a warming planet is less clear .
But some scientists are concerned that climate change could alter the relationship between our body ’ s defenses and such pathogens .
These modifications could include the adaptation of microbes to a warming world , changes in how viruses and bacteria @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a weakened human immune response .
The immune system is our natural defense against harmful substances .
When a respiratory pathogen—such as the new SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19—enters the body through the airways , it damages cells by taking over their machinery and making more copies of itself .
The injured cells release signaling proteins called cytokines that communicate with other parts of the body to activate an immune response against the foreign invaders .
Mammals have evolved another , more basic defense against pathogens : an elevated body temperature relative to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ result of this change , many microbes that are adapted to cooler temperatures are unable to endure a warm mammalian body .
“ A lot of organisms in the environment can not survive [ at ] 37 degrees ” Celsius , the standard for normal human body temperature , says Arturo Casadevall , chair of molecular microbiology and immunology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health .
“ So our temperature is almost like a thermal barrier that protects us against many organisms.
” The higher ambient temperatures expected with a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pathogens that will be more difficult for people ’ s body to fight .
In a paper published in mBIO in 2019 , Casadevall and his colleagues described a drug-resistant fungus—Candida auris—that was first isolated from a person in 2009 and emerged on three different continents in the past decade .
The common denominator for these emergence events was temperature , the researchers say .
The finding , they note , may be the first example of a fungus adapting to a higher temperature and breaching humans ’ thermal barrier .
But a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ replicate—is very different than a virus , such as SARS-CoV-2 .
That virus is thought to have jumped from bats to humans—both warm-blooded hosts—potentially via an intermediate animal .
If cold-blooded creatures start to adapt to warmer conditions , they could unleash a slew of new pathogens to which humans may not have immunity .
“ Imagine that the world is hotter and that lizards adapt to live in temperatures very close to yours .
Then their viruses adapt to higher temperatures , ” Casadevall says .
“ We have two pillars of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In a warming world , we may lose the pillar of temperature if the [ pathogens ] adapt to be close to our temperature.
” This issue could be exacerbated as species move to historically cooler climates and higher elevations while the world warms .
In a 2017 study published in Science , researchers estimated that , on average , land species are shifting toward the poles at a rate of 17 kilometers per decade , while marine species are doing so at 72 kilometers per decade .
Such a reshuffling of species @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that host unique disease-causing microorganisms will live side by side with those that would not normally host them , creating new transmission pathways .
A warming world could also have an effect on humans ’ other defense mechanism : the immune system .
Researchers have been aware for years that factors such as a lack of sleep and stress could weaken it .
Last year , in a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA , scientists in Tokyo also discovered that heat reduced mice ’ s immune @ @ @ @ @ @ @ researchers infected otherwise healthy , young adult female mice with the influenza A virus , one of two types that cause seasonal flu epidemics in humans .
The mice were housed for seven days in one of three temperature-controlled spaces : at four , 22 and 36 degrees C , respectively .
The study authors found the immune systems of the mice exposed to the highest ambient temperature did not fight the virus as effectively as the other two groups .
Specifically , the researchers noted that the mice in the hottest room @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rooms and lost 10 percent of their body weight in the first 24 hours of being exposed to higher temperatures .
“ People often lose their appetite when they feel sick , ” said study author Takeshi Ichinohe , an associate professor at the University of Tokyo , in a press release .
“ If someone stops eating long enough to develop a nutritional deficit , that may weaken the immune system and increase the likelihood of getting sick again.
” When Ichinohe and his colleague Miyu Moriyama , then at the University @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s diet with sugar or short-chain fatty acids ( which are commonly produced by intestinal bacteria ) , those animals were able to mount a normal immune response .
Ellen F. Foxman , an assistant professor of laboratory medicine and immunobiology at the Yale School of Medicine , who was not involved in the study , expresses caution about making a direct link between heat and the mice ’ s immune response .
“ The temperature had an effect on the animals ’ behavior , which had an effect on immunity , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ form as good of an antiviral immune response in this particular type of flu infection , ” she says .
In contrast , Foxman ’ s own 2015 PNAS study showed that the very first steps of the immune response to fight a cold virus were , in fact , boosted by higher temperatures and depressed by lower ones .
The University of Tokyo researchers question if the weakened immune response seen in their study is the result of a nutritional deficit or the fact that the immune system is hampered by heat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And they say further experiments are needed .
Nevertheless , climate change could potentially disrupt the human immune response—either directly via higher temperature or indirectly via its effects on global food security—a scenario suggested by a 2019 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report .
Foxman , who acknowledges the validity of the Tokyo mouse study , believes it is a leap to conclude from its results that warming makes humans more directly susceptible to viral infections .
But she acknowledges that changes in climate could alter the number of host animals , their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ I think that climate change disrupts a lot of patterns—of human behavior , of insect vectors and even [ of ] bats ” —from which the COVID-19 virus and other deadly coronaviruses likely originated , Foxman says .
The disruptions could indirectly alter the interactions between diseases and human defenses in ways scientists have yet to fully understand .


climatedepot--2020-05-01--We Disagree with You, So Shut Up: Michael Moore’s film faces censorship – ‘A cage fight has recently

We Disagree with You, So Shut Up: Michael Moore’s film faces censorship – ‘A cage fight has recently erupted among the Environmental Left’

A cage fight has recently erupted among the Environmental Left .
It pits those who want to eliminate affordable energy against those who want to eliminate all energy ( and , while they are at it , eliminate people , too ) .
Famous radical documentarian , Michael Moore , has co-produced an exposé on renewable energy with the director and ardent environmentalist , Jeff Gibbs .
The Planet of the Humans pulls the curtain back on the environmental impact and value of wind , solar , and biomass energies .
In a big non-surprise to those of us who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ these energies , the reward for Moore and Gibbs has been a vicious attack by the flag-bearers of the climate-industrial complex .
For climate alarmists , it is not enough simply to argue a case against their opponents .
The purveyors of a climate apocalypse ( one that is avoidable only by international treaties , subsidies , and wealth transfers ) do not tolerate dissent .
For them , the too-frequent response is to deny their opponents any voice at all .
Nevertheless , it is ironic to the extreme that fellow documentarian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ campaign to force the creators and distributors of Planet of the Humans to retract the film and apologize .
Fox claims the film “ employs specious techniques of misinformation.
” That Josh Fox makes this accusation is laughable .
An analysis of his film , Gasland , found a misrepresentation about every six minutes .
The most memorable was a scene where a man puts a match to his kitchen faucet and lights a flame .
The movie blames nearby gas wells .
An investigation determined the phenomenon was unrelated to the gas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coal beds through which the man ’ s water well was drilled .
More despicably deceitful was a scene from the sequel , Gasland , Part II .
This scene purports to show another case of gas infiltrating a person ’ s water supply .
Dramatic footage shows a flame coming out of a garden hose .
That there was no water at all coming from the hose should have been a tipoff to the viewers , but most ate it up .
It turns out that for the purpose of the film @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gas vent .
If that is not a specious technique of misinformation , then , in addition to sounding really pompous , “ specious technique of misinformation ” has no meaning .
For sure , Planet of the Humans has plenty of scenes to discomfit the green-energy believers , but they are not misinformation .
Films deal in visuals and not so much in numbers and for the most part that theme holds , here .
For instance , the minerals needed for solar panels , batteries , motors , and generators critical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not grow on trees and sourcing them is often done with gross-human rights and environmental abuses .
One of the elements needed to make renewable energy work is cobalt .
Roughly 60 percent of all cobalt comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo where it is estimated that 35,000 children work in horrid conditions .
The film ’ s disturbing clips of such mines are not fictitious .
Nor are the scenes of machines grinding up yucca plants ( some were estimated to be 500 years old ) to make way for a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the most memorable part , the film does have some numbers , numbers that are neither specious nor misinformed .
For instance , a wind turbine in Michigan requires 800 cubic yards of ( surprisingly ) carbon-intensive concrete , and hundreds of tons of steel—all of which require fossil fuels .
Another number is 95 as in 95 percent coal .
When Gibbs attends an unveiling of a GM electric car , he asks about the source of the electricity charging the car ’ s batteries .
Kristin Zimmerman of GM initially misunderstands @ @ @ @ @ @ @ comes from the building with the electric outlet .
To her credit , she quickly catches on , but does not know the answer .
Nearby is a board member of the local electric utility .
He estimates that coal generates 95 percent of the power charging the car .
Further , he states it is unlikely that renewables will provide all the charging power any time soon .
So , be a friend of coal and buy an electric car .
The film is most fun when it exposes “ we are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
We see diesel generators behind the stage of a 100-percent-renewable-powered “ green concert ” and the substantial grid connections for Tesla ’ s 100-percent-renewable Gigafactory .
Then there is a clip of Apple ’ s VP for environmental initiatives and former EPA Administrator , Lisa Jackson , proudly declaring that Apple gets 100 percent of its energy for all of its facilities from renewables .
While noting that Apple did “ chop down a forest to put up solar panels ” for a North Carolina plant , the film shows the grid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Duke Energy official saying Apple is still connected to the grid .
Oops , Apple needs and uses traditionally fueled electricity to run their “ 100-percent-renewables ” factory .
And one more number : Billion as in billionaire—a perennial favorite target of Moore .
Though many of us do not view every billionaire as a policy failure , we still resent subsidizing them .
It is the film ’ s link between the climate movement and money that is most compelling for some and most upsetting for others .
There is big money @ @ @ @ @ @ @ money being made in the climate industry .
The film does not pull many punches in this area and is hard on Bill McKibben whose 350.org promotes the Green Century Funds—a set of investment funds that do not seem especially focused on any new-energy economy .
Gibbs also goes after my top choice of projects that should never have been subsidized .
That is the Ivanpah gas-powered solar plant in California .
In addition to fraudulently ( though legally ) discounting the large amount of natural gas needed to operate the plant , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s who of who does not need a subsidy—including Chevron , BP , Statoil , Morgan Stanley and Google .
However , it is in its coverage of the Ivanpah mess that Gibbs does mislead .
Because one part of Koch Industries sold the glass that went into Ivanpah ’ s mirrors , Gibbs implies the Koch Brothers ( David was still alive when the film was made ) are part of the cabal pushing the renewable-energy scheme .
Nothing could be farther from the truth .
Virtually every organization supported by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ opponent of green energy mandates and subsidies .
Though Moore and Gibbs do a service in exposing hypocrisy and self-dealing , in the end they fail with their conclusion .
They fall back on the old 1960s Malthusian overpopulation claptrap , where the only solution to climate and other environmental problems is depopulation .
This inhuman solution might have been debatable 50 years ago , but time has shown these Malthusian predictions fail virtually every test .
The Planet of the Humans offers warmed-over population-bomb doom from the 1960s and 1970s despite the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wrong .
Instead of the predicted starvation , poverty and general decline , the trend in virtually every significant measure of wellbeing has been positive .
Yes , the world population has doubled since the 1960s , but while this happened , human welfare dramatically improved .
People across the globe live longer , are better fed , have more education , and higher standards of living .
In developed democracies , people also enjoy much cleaner air and water than in the 1960s .
Without a doubt , the documentary is controversial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The problem is that the climate activists do not debate , they shut down dissenters instead .
For that reason alone , Moore and Gibbs should be supported as they fight Josh Fox and those who would censor them for ground truthing the impact of renewable energy .


climatedepot--2020-05-01--Emma Thompson’s Extinction Rebellion film reveals her delusions of radicalism: ‘The only thing the f

Emma Thompson’s Extinction Rebellion film reveals her delusions of radicalism: ‘The only thing the film accurately represents is that eco-warriors are overwhelmingly posh’

Now , on behalf of XR , Thompson has starred in a new short film called Rebellion .
Much has been made in the press about the film ’ s use of all-vegan costumes .
But what ’ s really remarkable about it is how clearly it shows her and other activists ’ delusions of radicalism ...
Extinction Rebellion activists like Thompson delude themselves into thinking they are rebellious outsiders , raging against the system .
But even the capitalist class share their anti-human tendencies .
Environmentalism is well-represented every year at Davos , the exclusive gathering of the global @ @ @ @ @ @ @ addresses there on multiple occasions , and last year even spokespeople for Extinction Rebellion were invited on to panels .
The problem for those of us who want to live free and fulfilling lives is that Extinction Rebellion ’ s ideas are actually incredibly mainstream .
It is only a matter of degree and flamboyancy that makes XR stand out from the rest .
Emma Thompson and the other eco-zealots have much more in common with a drab Tory MP than they would care to admit .
What we need is a rebellion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the filthy rich and uber-famous are among the most carbon-intensive imaginable .
But that has never stopped them from finger-wagging to the rest of us about how we are overusing our own meagre share of the planet ’ s resources .
Emma Thompson is perhaps the most extreme eco-luvvie .
Last year , she infamously flew from LA to London to join in a roadblock with the doomsday cultists of Extinction Rebellion ( XR ) .
XR is truly the maddest green group among a mad bunch .
Its central claim is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we decide as a species to revert to a semi-feudal , carbon-free lifestyle by 2025 .
Now , on behalf of XR , Thompson has starred in a new short film called Rebellion .
Much has been made in the press about the film ’ s use of all-vegan costumes .
But what ’ s really remarkable about it is how clearly it shows her and other activists ’ delusions of radicalism .
The film opens with a quote from Naomi Klein about people feeling ‘ threatened ’ about the subject of climate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s days of ‘ rebellion ’ .
In the meantime , a posh XR activist is waiting to start a negotiation with a posh Tory politician and his posh adviser .
The XR activist is waiting for another posh ( albeit dressed-down ) activist to arrive before putting the government in its place .
When posh Emma Thompson finally arrives , it becomes clear that the only thing the film accurately represents is that eco-warriors are overwhelmingly posh .
Unsurprisingly , the characters trot out the unconvincing XR lines about humanity facing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ truth ’ about the climate crisis .
When the nasty politician says he won ’ t overturn the global capitalist system at the behest of a few activists , everyone explodes into uncontrollable shouting .
At one point , Emma Thompson screams that she has been ‘ putting up for 40 years with this patriarchal BULLSHIT !
’ .
Rebellion , like so much eco-propaganda , positions the environmentalist as the rebellious antagonist to the established order .
But of course nothing could be further from the truth .
The film was deliberately @ @ @ @ @ @ @ parliament declaring a climate emergency .
And yet a recurring complaint of the film ’ s characters is that the UK is doing nothing about climate change .
Far from doing nothing about climate change , unless the pandemic blows it off course , the Conservative government has committed the UK to a ‘ Net Zero ’ target for carbon emissions .
This will be the most expensive and far-reaching policy in our history .
The opposition parties wanted to go even further , pledging Net Zero targets by 2030 at the last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of 2025 is certainly more stringent ( and utterly mental ) but its attachment to eco-austerity is shared by the whole of the political class .
Extinction Rebellion activists like Thompson delude themselves into thinking they are rebellious outsiders , raging against the system .
But even the capitalist class share their anti-human tendencies .
Environmentalism is well-represented every year at Davos , the exclusive gathering of the global elites .
Greta Thunberg has given keynote addresses there on multiple occasions , and last year even spokespeople for Extinction Rebellion were invited on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of us who want to live free and fulfilling lives is that Extinction Rebellion ’ s ideas are actually incredibly mainstream .
It is only a matter of degree and flamboyancy that makes XR stand out from the rest .
Emma Thompson and the other eco-zealots have much more in common with a drab Tory MP than they would care to admit .
What we need is a rebellion against the posh eco-luvvies .


climatedepot--2020-05-01--Robert Redford: Virus Lockdowns Provide ‘Pleasant Surprises’ – ‘We have gotten a very real glimpse o

Robert Redford: Virus Lockdowns Provide ‘Pleasant Surprises’ – ‘We have gotten a very real glimpse of the potential for global environmental repair’ – ‘A remarkable decline in’ CO2

Robert Redford & his son James Redford : “ There have also been some pleasant surprises , ” the pair continued .
“ As many of the world ’ s transportation and industrial sectors have reduced operations , there has been a remarkable decline in global levels of carbon dioxide emissions .
Of course , the cost in life and livelihood negates any celebration .
Nonetheless , there is no denying that we have gotten a very real glimpse of the potential for global environmental repair .
… Clearly , inertia [ on green activism ] is unacceptable.
” Mr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of collective action ” must be applied because “ global entities unwilling to adjust their profits for the greater good ” are a continued obstacle to environmentalists .
“ [ We need ] to wrest control of environmental policies held hostage by stakeholders desperately clinging to their profits and power , ” he said .
“ If we come together to do what we can , we can and will blunt the curve of climate change and create a better world for the many generations to come.
” Hollywood icon Robert Redford says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of “ pleasant surprises ” for environmentalists who are faced with the “ daunting ” task of saving the planet from climate change .
The long-time activist penned an NBC op-ed with his son James on the green lessons Americans can learn from the deadly contagion .
“ What has the scourge of COVID-19 revealed to us ?
” he asked Thursday .
“ Will any of these hard-won lessons help us as we turn to face the potential calamity of climate change that looms on the horizon ?
” The actor pointed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ failed leadership ” before pivoting to a global economic shutdown ’ s effect on the environment .
“ There have also been some pleasant surprises , ” the pair continued .
“ As many of the world ’ s transportation and industrial sectors have reduced operations , there has been a remarkable decline in global levels of carbon dioxide emissions .
Of course , the cost in life and livelihood negates any celebration .
Nonetheless , there is no denying that we have gotten a very real glimpse of the potential for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ inertia [ on green activism ] is unacceptable.
” Mr. Redford then said that “ the power of collective action ” must be applied because “ global entities unwilling to adjust their profits for the greater good ” are a continued obstacle to environmentalists .
“ [ We need ] to wrest control of environmental policies held hostage by stakeholders desperately clinging to their profits and power , ” he said .
“ If we come together to do what we can , we can and will blunt the curve of climate change @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many generations to come.
” There have also been some pleasant surprises .
As many of the world ’ s transportation and industrial sectors have reduced operations , there has been a remarkable decline in global levels of carbon dioxide emissions .
Of course , the cost in life and livelihood negates any celebration .
Nonetheless , there is no denying that we have gotten a very real glimpse of the potential for global environmental repair .
Make no mistake , the worst of climate change awaits us in the near future .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ change has not thus far motivated the sort of rapid response we have seen with COVID-19 .
Where does this leave us ?
Do we wait until the predicted droughts lead to global famine ?
Do we turn our backs on nations forced to uproot millions from coastal areas ?
Clearly , inertia is unacceptable .
COVID-19 has shown us the power of sound science , true leadership and early action .
We must honor this knowledge if we want to avoid what is coming .