… on a quiet day, I can hear her breathing

Author: dizzy

  • Morning Star: It’s Labour’s conservatism that is out of touch in our crisis-ridden world

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    Image of Keir Starmer sucking up to the rich and powerful at the World Economic Forum, Davos
    Image of Keir Starmer sucking up to the rich and powerful at the World Economic Forum, Davos

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/e/its-labours-conservatism-out-touch-our-crisis-ridden-world

    KEIR STARMER says that “if we simply patch up and keep going, then we won’t fix the fundamentals and that’s why reform is so important.”

    It’s ironic that this line is deployed not to propose far-reaching change, but to reject it.

    Starmer has broken so many pledges he must be running out, but he managed to sacrifice another commitment as an offering to the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg yesterday, saying Labour will not end the two-child benefit cap.

    Anger at Labour’s abstention when the Tories introduced this revolting policy, which punishes innocent children for being born into large families, was a watershed in Jeremy Corbyn’s run for the Labour leadership in 2015.

    Seen as a sign that Labour had lost its soul, it infuriated activists and helped mobilise the campaign for a leader who actually cared about ending child poverty and standing up for the vulnerable. Starmer’s latest betrayal should motivate the left to fight again today: campaigns for the policy changes we need must be built from the grassroots, since nobody at Westminster is putting them forward.

    …

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/e/its-labours-conservatism-out-touch-our-crisis-ridden-world

  • Big oil quietly walks back on climate pledges as global heat records tumble

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    https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jul/16/big-oil-climate-pledges-extreme-heat-fossil-fuel

    Energy firms have made record profits by increasing production of oil and gas, far from their promises of rolling back emissions

    Extinction Rebellion protests at BP
    Extinction Rebellion protests at BP. Banner reads big profits before planet

    …

    Oil majors have, over the past several years, rolled out pledges to decrease oil and gas production and slash their emissions, citing concerns about the climate crisis. But more recently, many have walked those plans back.

    Amid record-shattering warmth this February, BP scaled back an earlier goal of lowering its emissions by 35% by 2030, saying it will aim for a 20 to 30% cut instead. ExxonMobil quietly withdrew funding for a heavily publicized effort to use algae to create low-carbon fuel. And Shell announced that it would not increase its investments in renewable energy this year, despite earlier promises to dramatically slash its emissions.

    Climate-fueled extreme weather persisted through spring and summer. But fossil fuel companies have only doubled down on their oil- and gas-filled business models. Shell promised to cut oil production by 20% by 2030, but then this year said it already met that goal by selling off some operations to another oil company –thereby not reducing emissions in the atmosphere. BP has also expanded gas drilling. And Exxon’s CEO, Darren Woods, told an industry conference last month that his company plans to double the amount of oil produced from its US shale holdings within the next five years.

    …

    https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jul/16/big-oil-climate-pledges-extreme-heat-fossil-fuel

  • Young people stage climate protest at Starmer’s office: ‘stop breaking promises’

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    Original article republished from the Skwawkbox for non-commercial use.

    Anti-environmentalist Starmer finds climate-change protesters on his doorstep

    Green New Deal protest Keir Starmer's office 14 July 2023.
    Green New Deal Rising protest Keir Starmer’s office 14 July 2023.

    ‘Tree-hugger hater’ Starmer – who posed as climate-friendly as part of his con to get Labour members to vote him in as party leader then u-turned to enable the government to pass laws that will criminalise climate and other protesters and even said he hates ‘tree-huggers’ – had a little surprise on his constituency office doorstep yesterday.

    Dozens of young ‘Green New Deal’ activists pitched up outside his office to demand that he stop breaking promises – Starmer has shown that his aren’t worth the air he emits to pronounce them – and decorated his office window to remind him they were there, as they explained on their Twitter feed:

    The activists also staged protests at the offices of deputy leader Angela Rayner and the appalling Ian Murray in Scotland.

    Tory-enabler Starmer has repeatedly fled from climate change protesters and reacted like an awkward robot when they protested at his speech last week.

    But while the protest was good-natured, there is nothing remotely funny about Starmer’s contempt for protest, democratic and civil rights – and the environment. Unfit to run a tombola, let alone a political party or, worse still, a country.

    Original article republished from the Skwawkbox for non-commercial use.

    Hehe, “Unfit to run a tombola …”

    Green New Deal Rising Events

    Event nameEvent typeDateTimeLocationSign up
    Keir Starmer Sit OutActionsEvery FridayLunch breakKeir Starmer’s Office, London, NW1 1TURegister at this link
    Angela Rayner Sit OutActionsEvery FridayLunch breakAngela Rayner’s Constituency Office, Ashton-under-Lyne, OL6 7JURegister at this link
    Ian Murray Sit OutActionsEvery FridayLunch breakMinto street constituency office, Edinburgh, EH9 2BTRegister at this link
    Rachel Reeves Sit OutActionsEvery FridayLunch breakRachel Reeves’ Constituency Office, Leeds, LS13 2ETRegister at this link
    Peter Kyle Sit OutActionsEvery FridayLunch breakCafe Nero, Hove, Brighton and Hove, BN3 2BARegister at this link
    Pat McFadden Sit OutActionsStarts Friday 21stTBCCrescent House, Bilston, WV14 0BZRegister at this link
    Jo Stevens Sit OutActionsStarts Friday 21stTBCJo Stevens’ Office, Cardiff, CF24 3RURegister at this link
    Thangam Debbonaire Sit OutActionsStarts Friday 28thTBCBS32 0BQ

  • Cerberus heatwave: Why is it so hot in Europe and how long will it last?

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    https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/07/13/cerberus-heatwave-why-is-it-so-hot-in-europe-and-how-long-will-it-last

    Why is it so hot in Europe?

    Extreme temperatures have hit Europe this year as the world swelters through the El Niño weather pattern, and greenhouse gas emissions warm our climate.

    But the latest highs have been made worse by an anticyclone dubbed ‘Cerberus’. This area of high pressure started in the Sahara before moving across northern Africa and into the Mediterranean.

    The heatwave was named by the Italian Meteorological Society after the fiery-eyed, three-headed dog that guards the gates of the underworld in Greek mythology.

    How hot will Europe get?

    The Italian islands of Sardinia and Sicily could simmer in 48°C in the coming days, potentially reaching “the hottest temperatures ever recorded in Europe,” according to the European Space Agency (ESA).

    In August 2021, Sicily hit 48.8°C – the current record.

    Rome, Bologna and Florence are among the 10 Italian cities currently under red alert for extreme heat.

    Spain’s weather service said thermometers could potentially hit 45°C southeastern areas of the Iberian Peninsula, which are also under an alert for extreme heat. The temperature of the ground in parts of the country has hit more than 60°C.

    …

    https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/07/13/cerberus-heatwave-why-is-it-so-hot-in-europe-and-how-long-will-it-last

  • Floods, tornadoes, heat: more extreme weather predicted across US

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    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/13/more-extreme-weather-across-us

    Over a third of Americans under extreme heat warnings as Vermont, still recovering from historic flooding, prepares for more storms

    The US is bracing for more extreme weather from coast to coast, with a heatwave hitting California, tornadoes in the midwest and the east expecting more rain as it continues to reel from historic flooding.

    Residents of Vermont, still suffering from an onslaught of dangerous weather in recent days, are preparing for another round of severe storms in the area beginning as early as Thursday night.

    Historic flooding in the state has damaged thousands of homes, businesses and roads, and has left some residents stranded. One death was confirmed by the state department of health, a 63-year-old man who drowned in his home. More than 200 rescues and 100 evacuations have taken place as a result of the extreme storms.

    Across the US, more than a third of Americans were under extreme heat advisories, watches and warnings as the heatwave baking the nation spread further into California. The sweltering conditions were expected to build on Friday and through the weekend in central and southern California, where many residents were told to prepare for the hottest weather of the year by the National Weather Service.

    …

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/13/more-extreme-weather-across-us