Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Don Moynihan discusses how the systematic erosion of American democracy includes the elimination of the belief among Republicans that the public service should be qualified and non-partisan rather than controlled from on high for political purposes. And Jonathan Last writes about the needed response to a ruling party which has jettisoned morality and ethics in favour of an unfettered will to power. 

- Zain Haq argues that the climate crisis is also a product of moral corruption (encouraged by the people whose wealth and power derives from harming others). Paul Palmer and Liang Feng discuss the record-breaking carbon dioxide readings being delivered by a NASA satellite which may soon succumb to the Trump war on reality. Oliver Milman reports on a new study finding the U.S. suffered record climate damage this year. And James Murray weighs in on the latest State of Climate Action report which shows humanity falling short of combating a climte breakdown by every possible standard. 

- Meanwhile, the State of Global Air 2025 report finds that the death toll from air pollution continues to be in the high seven figures, while over a third of the world's population is exposed to excessive pollution levels. 

- Paul Mozur, Adam Satariano and Emiliano Rodríguez Mega report on the justified public backlash against AI data facilities which are gobbling up desperately-needed water and power supplies at the expense of public health and well-being. And Caroline Haskins reports on some of the complaints people have made to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission about the direct harms caused by AI.

- Finally, Julia Lurie reports on the latest examples of Amazon's abuse of employees - including its driving a pregnant worker to homelessness by refusing to accommodate her with a place to sit.