A Conference of the Parties (COP) is held regularly to assess the effects of the measures taken by Parties and the progress made in dealing with climate change. Dubai, most populated city of the world’s seventh largest oil producer, will host COP27 in December 2023. Leaders of the top five
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Accidental Deliberations: Friday Afternoon Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Cory Doctorow examines how private equity systematically loots both the pension funds which provide capital for its acquisitions, and the businesses which it purchases in order to extract transaction and management fees. And Nancy Fraser discusses how capitalism in any guise – not
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Unextractables
Most Canadian politicians are blithe to climate science. The federal government is building or assisting construction of fossil fuel pipelines worth $45 billion. In the last few days, BC Premier David Eby joined Alberta Premier Danielle Smith at a Vancouver conference promoting production and consumption of fossil gas.
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Alberta sacrifices agriculture for oil
There is panic on the prairies. The greatest fear of farmers and ranchers alike is stalking the land—drought. Drought has always been a part of prairie life, of course, but droughts today are different from those of history. Today they are increasingly fuelled by global warming and will get nothing
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Andrew Dessler writes about the non-linear nature of the environmental effects of carbon pollution – with the result that we’re seeing cascading effects with each additional increase in temperature. And Sarah Kaplan discusses how we should be recognizing extreme weather events as alarm
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Uncooperative fossil fuel companies and enablers should be treated as criminals
Individuals in government, industry, and media stand in the way of actions to protect humanity from climate change. It is time to treat them as criminals, and to treat defenders of life as heroes.
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Daniel Altmann et al. examine the myriad forms of long COVID even as governments have gone out of their way to pretend there’s no longer a problem to be addressed. And the Star’s editorial board offers a reminder that we shouldn’t take
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Record setting wildfire burns
As of July 17, BC Wildfire Service is calling 2023 the worst year ever for land damaged by fire. More land has burned in BC since July 1 than in 12 of the preceding 15 years. Almost 400 wildfires are burning today, 22 of them out-of-control.
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Afternoon Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week. – Neil Shaw reports on the demands by Scottish doctors that their government reinstate COVID -19protections in health care facilities. And Tia Ewing reports on new research showing the devastating and lasting effects of long COVID. – AFP reports on what’s already a record-breaking
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Afternoon Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Qiulu Ding and HanJun Zhao study the long-term effects of COVID-19 on the brain, including lasting effects on function and memory. Ida Mogensen et al. find that the younger people who were so frequently declared to be “low-risk” are entirely vulnerable to long
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Afternoon Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Sabina Vohra-Miller discusses the ample body of research showing how COVID-19 vaccinations produce superior health outcomes in the course of a pregnancy. And Nature examines the limited effectiveness of rapid tests in identifying asymptomatic cases (which are responsible for half of COVID transmission). –
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: The new abnormal
As climate disasters become more common, motivations to address underlying causes will decline as the general public accepts them as normal. Add the normal inclination to diminish gradually deteriorating situations and we are unlikely to save humanity from extinction.
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Afternoon Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Heidi Ledford discusses new research which is helping to identify genetic risk factors for long COVID – though the fact that new COVID-19 variants are being allowed to run wild while that work is in its infancy means that people will be exposed
Continue readingA Puff of Absurdity: What Do We Tell the Kids?
A couple weeks ago, Obama, interviewed by Hasan Minaj, explained his thoughts on climate change (at 5:37 and 10:25, and 15:29): “If you’re not stressed about climate change at a time when we’re seeing record forest fires and haze floating right here in DC coming from the north and flooding
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Afternoon Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Joseph Puthussery et al. study the feasibility of real-time, location-based air sampling to identify the presence of COVID-19, while Jennifer La Grassa reports on the efforts of scientists to ensure the powers that be don’t scrap what few remaining monitoring efforts are
Continue readingA Puff of Absurdity: Intersecting Crises: The Winning Mindset
An article from a year ago came my way, about how the super-rich ‘preppers’ are planning to save themselves from the apocalypse. Douglas Rushkoff was hired by some über rich men to field questions about, basically, what they need to do to survive in a bunker. One of their biggest
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: U.N. “climate change is out of control”
Regardless of science, the corporate world and governments in Canada remain determined to increase fossil fuel production and consumption. Under the NDP, British Columbia continues to provide direct and indirect subsidies to ensure increased output of products that threaten the survival of future generations. . .
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Homicide charges for those contributing to climate change?
Canadian politicians have been spending tens of billions of public dollars to accelerate fossil fuel production. Along with oil and gas executives, they are collectively guilty of committing and plotting homicide.
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Afternoon Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Emma Goldberg et al. study how the end of COVID-19 protections in China predictably gave rise to a swift and extensive outbreak. And Michelle Gamage reports on the push to ensure kids in British Columbia schools aren’t avoidably exposed this fall, while Mark
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Politicians suspend knowledge and common sense, scientists do not
Provincial and federal politicians talk about Canada being carbon neutral at some distant time, but continue using direct and indirect subsidies to promote higher production of fossil fuels. They pretend that this country’s oil, gas, and coal may impact global climate if consumed here, but will not if burned elsewhere.
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