Assorted content to end your week.
- Jonathan Watts reports on the Earth Commission's work showing how any path to avert climate breakdown needs to break down the concentration of wealth and power. And the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research notes that while the poorest people bear the most immediate existential risk from the climate crisis, wealthier people face substantial economic risks from climate impacts.
- John O'Donnell reports on the Tax Justice Network's observation that the destructive extraction and burning of fossil fuels is largely financed through tax havens in order to further extract immediate wealth at public expense. And Jeremy Appel reports on Carbon Capture Canada's continued efforts to delay any transition to a cleaner energy supply.
- Julia Simone-Rutgers reports on the Manitoba PCs' delayed public disclosure of the safety issues which caused the shutdown of Imperial Oil's main pipeline into the province - with a lack of regulatory capacity serving as a major factor in the lack of a response in the public interest. And Matt Simmons reports on the latest environmental violations by Coastal GasLink - even as the total fine amount for repeated violations pales in comparison to the amount of public subsidies poured into the pipeline.
- Bronwyn Bragg and Jennifer Hyndman report on the Alberta meat industry's exploitation of temporary foreign workers. Cas Mudde and Gabriela Greilinger call out the dishonesty of hard-right parties seeking to present a facade of concern for workers over policies intended to further entrench the control of capitalists. And Sophie Binet writes that France's recent elections provide an example as to how the promise to focus on local economic development can help win voters over to the left - though it should be noted that Emmanuel Macron's subsequent decision to appoint a hard-right prime minister also offers a cautionary tale as to how the corporate centre will favour the alt-right after running against it.
- Finally, John Michael McGrath discusses how the Ford PCs are rejecting any options to build housing with any meaningful density (with the effect of favouring developer-friendly sprawl which does nothing to alleviate the housing crisis).
There's no question that even our best efforts to avert climate catastrophe will come to nothing unless we adopt some principles of equality. The developed world created this blight and the poorest nations are the hardest hit.
ReplyDelete