Musical interlude

Bob Moses - I Ain't Gonna Be The First To Cry

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Andrew Phillips discusses how the Trump administration is looking to rewrite history in dealing with North American trade. And Thor Benson interviews David Roberts about the absolute nonsense being relied upon as the U.S.' excuse for scrapping any climate policy, while Paris Marx points out the haze of misinformation obstructing Canada's ability to respond to wildfires. 

- Alexander Kaufman highlights how Trump's edict that nobody transition away from dirty power will cost the U.S. immense amounts of money in addition to leaving it as a technological laggard, while Rachel Melta notes that an investment in energy storage alongside a push toward renewables would save consumers billions in the central U.S. alone. And Katye Altieri and Dave Jones discuss why it's important that far too many governments are refusing to commit to developing clean energy, while Jo Lauder notes that China is one of the few major countries on track to become an electrostate in the near future. 

- Steph Kwetásel’wet Wood discusses how drought is becoming an increasingly regular and severe problem in Canada, with both the climate crisis and an obsession with data centres looming as obvious causes. And Ben Martynoga reports on new research showing that microbes being released by melting ice can exacerbate the effects of climate change in polar regions. 

- Finally, the Canadian Press reports on a new survey showing that over a third of Canadian renters are having to spend over half of their income on housing. And Simon Enoch calls out Scott Moe for his ideological refusal to consider rent controls as the Sask Party looks to serve landlords rather than workers. 

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Hamilton Nolan discusses how the Trump regime is going far out of its way to build the U.S.' economy on scams and corruption. And Lisa Needham discusses how the deployment of military troops to cities is plainly based at intimidating minorities rather than public safety (particularly as mass shootings and serial assassination attempts directed at public servants have been ignored), while Bill Kristol writes about Trump's pattern of giving the worst people the most power. And Lawrence Lessig highlights the dangers of complicity in the face of extortion. 

- On that front, Charlie Angus rightly warns Mark Carney not to play along with Trump's "golden shield" plans to tether us (at massive expense) to the U.S.' military even more tightly. And David Zipper discusses resesrch showing that Canada and the U.S. are headed in starkly opposed directions when it comes to traffic safety. 

- Damian Carrington reports on the record heat wave which hit Nordic countries in July as an example of the inability of anybody to escape the costs of a climate breakdown. And Alexandra Mae Jones reports on what continues to be the second-worst wildfire season on record in Canada - even as Kent Mundle points out the need for us to be prepared to take in climate refugees facing even worse around the globe. 

- Isaac Phan Nay interviews Jasmine Ramze Rezaee about the well-established flaws in Mark Carney's trickle-down theory. 

- Finally, Brian Shearer reports on Washington, D.C.'s success building large amounts of housing through direct public investment - in contrast to the Carney strategy of trying (at the behest of greedy developers) to hand freebies and concessions to rich people in the hope that they'll meet social needs rather than merely extracting more wealth for themselves. 

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Nick Turse highlights how Donald Trump's use of military force to control domestic civilians is unprecedented, while Asawin Suebsaeng and Ryan Bort warn that it stands to get far worse as it gets normalized. And Jamelle Bouie discusses why Trump wants to keep the U.S. in a state of perpetual crisis, while Marcy Wheeler points out that the basis for claiming the authority to rule by fiat is based on little more than blackmail and hostage-taking. 

- Meanwhile, Kelly Hayes discusses what needs to be included in the movement opposing to Trump's fascism - including the commitment to support and care for all of his victims. And Choose Democracy offers some suggestions for activists demonstrating their resistance based on Free DC's example. 

- John Michael McGrath discusses how even the most rabid anti-democratic zealots are having trouble pretending it's possible to get by without state capacity. And Jessie Blaeser examines the growing body of evidence that DOGE (which remains an example for Canada's right-wing politicians) has left a trail of destruction while utterly failing to save money. 

- The Guardian's editorial board writes that Mark Carney's attempt to tie climate progress to voluntary financial commitments has proven an utter failure, while Gillian Steward warns that Carney looks to be abandoning any interest in meaningful climate policy now that he holds power. And while Tim Palmer writes about the importance of basic research in responding the the climate crisi, Ryan Cropp reports that Australia's government is suppressing a study showing the dire consequences of the climate breakdown. 

- But Kristian Knibutat points out that for those willing to look at real data, clean technology has turned into both the safest and highest-upside investment. And David Fenton offers the framing of a "pollution blanket" as indicating both the reality of carbon pollution, and the possibilities for amelioration.

- Eric Wilkerson discusses the futility of trying to negotiate trade deals with a Trump regime which will neither bargain in good faith nor respect any outcomes. 

- Finally, Fred Wilson writes about the need for the Canadian labour movement to engage in mass organizing and systemic opposition to the capital class. And Emma Arkell highlights how legislative victories in British Columbia are translating into the ability to organize precarious workers. 

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

Curled-up cat.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Chance Phillips is rightly outraged that the corporate media is letting the Trump regime hand immense power to white supremacists without even calling attention to that fact. And Paul Waldman highlights how Trump's systematic misogyny is exacerbating rather than remedying the sense of dissatisfaction which has been cultivated by the right. 

- Jessica Wildfire discusses how to approach the recognition of imminent social collapse. Brian Beutler points out the importance of fighting against injustice even where victory is far from assured - both due to the possibility of succeeding, and the need to build capacity for ongoing conflicts. Jonathan Last offers his take on how to make good trouble, while pointing out how it's succeeded in reversing some of the Trump regime's abuses. And Hamilton Nolan worries that the American labour movement is crumbling due to a failure to organize broadly.  

- Cory Doctorow highlights how it's impossible to fight enshittification at the individual level, but entirely possible to do so through collective policy choices. And Brian Merchant notes that GPT-5 (among other much-hyped AI releases) is purely bait for investors rather than anything which could possibly hold value for users. 

- Garrett Graff writes that Trump's anti-science bent is destroying a multi-generation culture of research that formed the basis for the U.S.' economic success. And Arcella Martin reports on the reuse of electric vehicle batteries for grid stabilization as an example of the type of innovation and responsible resource use that's possible when governments aren't actively obstructing progress.  

- Roy Edroso explains and calls out the right's war on cities as reflecting their distate for diversity and inclusion. And Bill Fulton points out that most households could thrive with one less vehicle than they're currently paying to operate and maintain. 

- Finally, Megan Rose and Debbie Cenziper report on both the U.S.' general acquiescence in the importing of medications from banned facilities, and the process resulting in its accepting drugs from one Indian supplier with a grim safety record.

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Stephen Marche writes that Canada is finding its voice in response to the U.S.' threats and bad faith under the Trump regime - at least as long as our corporate overlords don't insist on acquiescing. And Katia Dmitrieva and Philip Heijmans discuss how Donald Trump is making pay-to-play his government's standard modus operandi even where it's flagrantly illegal. 

- Devi Sridhar notes that the U.S.' elimination of vaccine research poses immense risks for people around the globe. And Robinson Meyer highlights how Trump's favouritism toward dirty energy donors is effectively handing the future of energy development to China.

- Campbell Clark discusses how the Libs are letting their promise of a foreign interference registry lapse even as our largest trading partner is operating as a protection racket. And John Woodside reports on their concurrent failure to appoint a Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise to deal with abuses by resource companies operating internationally. 

- Finally, Steven Henke reports on yet another basic income pilot project showing how recipients benefit in terms of housing stability, mental health, education and overall well-being. But Georgie Smith reports that instead of acting on the overwhelming body of research showing that a basic income produces benefits far beyond its costs, we're continuing to force people to fend for themselves - including by sorting trash in order to scrape by.