Monday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Bruce Boccardy writes about the continued centrality of class struggle. Melissa Ryan comments on the realities that "Epstein class" is by far the most apt description of the people currently in charge of the U.S. (and far too much else). And Nick Chater and George Loewenstein highlight how self-serving corporations and billionaires are trying to force individuals to bear the responsibility and consequences for systemic ills. 

- Meanwhile, Jason Koebler writes that the gamification of war crimes in Iran has turned into just another appalling example of the depravity economy. And Rana Foroohar discusses how the U.S.' increasing adherence to petrostate logic is making everybody worse off (other than a tiny number of the most exploitative tycoons).

- The Economic Security Project examines how we could be ensuring a dignified life for everybody - even while helping individual recipients' employment prospects - through a readily-affordable guaranteed income. 

- Finally, Isaac Callan and Colin D'Mello report on the Ford PCs' decision to just stop informing the public of the measured consequences of their policies. 

Saturday Afternoon Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Will Snell points out the connection between extreme wealth and unconscionable impunity as epitomized by Jeffrey Epstein and his elite co-conspirators.  And Joan Wallach Scott writes that the Republican war on gender studies and other social sciences reflects the Epstein class' priority of dehumanizing every other than its own coterie of rich white men. 

- Karl Nerenberg offers a reminder as to why he (and many other Canadians) sees travel to the U.S. as both contrary to principle and intolerably risky. And Karen Pauls reports on polling highlighting how anxious Canadians are about our relationship with the dictatorship next door. 

- Nohemie Bokuma writes about Canada's continued lack of any meaningful AI regulation - even as the Carney Libs focus primarily on cheerleading for artificial intelligence rather than assessing and managing its dangers. And Gabriel Rojas Hruska points out how we can learn from Europe in developing and protecting a Canadian online public square. 

- Danyaal Raza highlights how the problems with Canada's public health care system are already the result of underfunding - meaning that the right's push to direct money into corporate health services is a sure way to make matters worse. And Jack Hauen reports on pain crisis caused by the Ford PCs' slashing and mismanagement of long-term care and home care services. 

 [Edit: deleted Elizabeth Bruenig link.] 

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Brian Beutler discusses how U.S. Democrats need to respond to Donald Trump's attempt to end democracy and human rights with something more than complaints about higher prices - a point which applies equally to other countries. Tom Scocca and Joe MacLeod note that Trump's power grab now includes trying to take sole control over the disbursement of public funds - even where the result is to deliberately leave people destitute or destroy vital institutions. And Adam Barnett maps out Trump's anti-environmental network seeking to keep carbon spewing and the planet burning. 

- Gil Duran writes about the "strict father" framework which represents the attempt to attach some (abusive) model of morality to Trump's actions. And David Moscrop offers some perspective and advice on carrying on dealing with the death of a seemingly vanished order.  

- Tom Parkin examines how Doug Ford is seeking to be rewarded for making life worse for Ontarians, while John Michael McGrath focuses in on the massive sums of public money Ford has wasted trying to get voters drunk. And Inori Roy points out how anti-immigrant policy is preventing Canada from making up ground in dealing with a housing deficit. 

- Finally, Claire Turner discusses new research showing the sustained cognitive and physical effects of long COVID. Heidi Ledford writes about some of the lessons COVID-19 has taught scientists about the immune system. And CBC News reports on the award of a $24 million grant to the University of Saskatchewan to research vaccines which could address multiple coronaviruses. 

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- William Hunter reports on a warning from scientists that the Arctic's sea ice may melt completely as soon as 2027. And David Spratt examines (PDF) the devastating implications if we continue along the path toward 3 degrees Celsius of global warming. But Robert Kopp et al. warn (PDF) of the dangers of oversimplifying complex climate effects into "tipping points" - particularly when they serve as an excuse for inaction. 

- Fieldnotes reports on the fossil fuel sector's role in installing Donald Trump back in power - as well as its plans once he retakes it. And Isaac Slevin et al. study the shadowy corporate forces at work trying to block offshore wind power projects - with "information subsidies" representing the most important pollution of the public discourse.  

- John Lorinc implores Ontario to learn from the ample evidence that public-private partnerships serve only to enrich the latter at the expense of the former - though of course for the Ford PCs, that's precisely the point. And Emma McIntosh reports on the first set of reports from Ontario's new Auditor General Shelley Spence, which include fully-anticipated findings that Ford is wasting billions of public dollars to enrich a few developer cronies. 

- Adam King discusses how the Trudeau Libs' failure to benefit the material conditions of workers has allowed the Cons' demagoguery to resonate far more than it should. 

- Finally, Alvin Finkel writes about the historical pattern of oppressors and popular revolt. Jason Sattler sets out a declaration of independence from the control of billionaires. And Nathan Robinson notes that the plutocrats in Trump's inner circle in particular are conspicuously unconstrained by reality and reason in seeking to seize ever more power for themselves. 

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Carbon Brief examines the results of the COP29 climate summit - with the main takeaway being a familiar combination of barely-existent commitments and watered-down aspirations. Sofia Gonzales-Zuniga, Danial Riaz and Mia Moisio highlight the hypocrisy of Canada and other petrostates who are ramping up exported carbon pollution while trying to claim to be meeting emission reduction targets. 

- Andrew Nikiforuk reports on the sham referendum being used as an excuse for dangerous coal mining in Ranchland, Alberta. And Emma McIntosh exposes the reality that Doug Ford's government was well aware there's no rational basis for systematically destroying cycling infrastructure before ramming through a bill to do just that. 

- Meanwhile, Carl Meyer notes that cross-party cooperation played a crucial role in applying a minimal standard of accuracy to petropropaganda. 

- Stéphane Leman-Langlois, Aurélie Campana and Samuel Tanner warn that the violent far right has been emboldened in Canada - with little apparent response from governments or law enforcement. And Max Fawcett notes that our institutional conservative parties are eager to surrender Canada to Donald Trump and his brand of fascism. 

- Finally, Tannara Yelland and Martin Lukacs report on the Competition Bureau's investigation into rantel price-fixing by corporate landlords. 

Tuesday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Avery Lotz reports on Al Gore's latest reminder that the fossil fuel sector is far better at capturing politicians than carbon pollution. And Max Fawcett discusses how the UCP continues to make polluter-paid its primary operating principle in dealing with the oil and gas sector. 

- Marietje Scheeka points out the dangers of treating "innovation" (defined as corporate impunity) as the sole end to be pursued through economic policy. And Pauline Gerrard writes about the need to keep plastics out of our fresh water.  

- Alex Hemingway rightly questions why municipalities are banning small, liveable apartment buildings while complaining about a housing crisis. 

- Kendal David and Hannah Owczar note that Leah Gazan's basic income bill offers an immediate chance to move toward eradicating poverty in Canada. 

- Finally, Randy Robinson points out how the Ford PCs use big headline numbers to paper over real cuts to public services - and it's well worth noting the similar pattern of the Moe government as it pretends not to have starved Saskatchewan's health and education systems. 

Friday Afternoon Links

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). 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Robert Rohde surveys yet another month of record-high temperatures from July 2024. And Richard Heinberg examines what a real energy transition would look like - including a meaningful effort to stop using energy unnecessarily as well as a shit to clean energy sources. 

- Jim Stanford points out that price controls can be one mechanism to ensure that corporate profiteering doesn't cut into the affordability of basic necessities. 

- But Jason Hickel writes about the main barrier to that effort, as our key economic decisions are made by capitalists acting unilaterally to keep up their resource profits rather than by any government or other structure with any meaningful capacity to determine and act in the public interest. And Prem Sikka likewise discusses how wealthy individuals and corporations have hijacked any democracy. 

- Linda McQuaig notes that Doug Ford is going far out of his way to ensure Ontarians don't know how factory farms are abusing animals. Jake Johnson discusses how the meat industry is yet another sector where corporate collusion and price-fixing are increasing the cost of living for consumers. And Sara Moniuszko and Meg Oliver report on new research showing that the majority of baby food sold in the U.S. falls short of WHO health standard. 

- Scott Martin discusses how Ford (and other premiers focused on harm maximization as policy) can only be seen as choosing a legacy of social murder. And David Climenhaga notes that Danielle Smith is adding gross cronyism to the mix, as anybody seeking addiction services in Alberta is required to disclose sensitive personal health information to a politically-connected provider. 

- Finally, Matt Motta and Kathryn Haglin find that the benefits of Alaska's basic income include greater use of primary and preventative health services. 

Monday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- William Becker rightly argues that the U.S.' practice of prioritizing fossil fuel donor profits over the health of the public and the planet represents the biggest energy scam in its history. Norm Farrell discusses how Canada is similarly one of the world's biggest climate laggards, due largely to the subsidies and carveouts handed to the oil sector. And Jeffrey Simon reports on the nascent efforts to ensure that fossil fuel companies pay at least part of the cost of the harms they've inflicted - with particular reference to the effect of the 2021 heat dome on an Oregon county. 

- Meanwhile, Anders Wijkman discusses the need to stop emphasizing material consumption if we're ever going to rein in the climate crisis (among other environmental catastrophes in progress).

- Asher McShane reports on the need to prioritize sustainability over cheapness in food production. But Martin Lukacs examines how Canadian food policy continues to be dictated by a few giant grocery corporations whose owners have seeded the Libs and Cons alike with massive donations. 

- Allison Jones reports on Ontario's need for tens of thousands of additional health care workers over the next few years - even as the Ford PCs' top priority is to conceal the problem. 

- Finally, Charlie Angus calls out Pierre Poilievre's politics of intimidation, including both his choice to ally himself with the likes of Alex Jones and the Diagolon extremists, and his choice to build a violent rag machine for his own purposes. 

Monday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Nandini Gautam discusses the World Health Organization's research showing how COVID-19 damages the human immune system. And Adam Kucharski takes a look at historic accounts of the 1918-19 influenza pandemic as a grim foreshadowing of how history books will look back on the public policy response to COVID. 

- Doug Cuthand calls out the Moe government as falling squarely into the group of obstructionist governments looking to derail COP28 and any other work to avert a climate breakdown, while Jeremy Appel examines the idiocy of Danielle Smith's invocation of a Sovereignty Act to try to avoid any path to reducing emissions from the power sector. Chris Kruszewski and David Ellis point out how the wealthiest and greediest few are the only people who benefit from false solutions and delay. And Arielle Samuelson documents some of the fossil fuel lobbyists who are being allowed to set global climate policy, while Jon Queally points out the particular absurdity of a fossil fuel-sector greenwashing effort based on gradually reducing only the carbon pollution caused by the extracting of fuel intended to release massive amounts of CO2 into atmosphere when it's burned. 

- Clarrie Feinstein reports on the reality that condo construction in Toronto is doing nothing to alleviate the housing crisis when half of the units are being snapped up as investment properties. And Liam Casey reports on the Ford PCs' conclusion that it's far too inconvenient for construction firms to face an investigation into *every single fatality* on their work sites, such that deaths will be lumped together as part of what's apparently expected to be a regular inquest process. 

- Finally, Dylan Matthews discusses the results of a large-scale basic income experiment in Kenya - with multiple payment structures producing economic benefits, but long-term security in monthly payments also creating gains in well-being and mental health. 

Tuesday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Cory Doctorow discusses how the concentration of wealth and power in corporate hands represents a threat to individual freedoms and the pursuit of social justice. And Pete Evans reports on new Statistics Canada showing that the gap between the wealthy few and the rest of us continues to grow - due to both escalating incomes at the top of the spectrum, and outright losses at the bottom.  

- Michael Mann discusses how there's still an opportunity to avoid the worst-case climate scenarios - but only by actually reducing the carbon pollution we spew into the atmosphere. Will Greaves and Yvonne Su write that we can't afford to keep treating regular and predictable climate calamities as unanticipated events. And Scott McGrane and Christopher White examine the causes and consequences of the hottest autumn in recorded history. 

- Joseph Winters examines how the costs of excessive plastic consumption are being dumped onto the developing world. 

- Finally, Andre Picard rightly notes that Danielle Smith's plans for Alberta's health system appear to be aimed more at exacting vengeance than at ensuring the provision of care. And Mike Crawley reports on the Ford PCs' choice to shower politically-connected for-profit clinics with far more money than public-sector providers for the performance of the same services. 

Tuesday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Peter Zimonjic reports on the latest audit from the federal environment commissioner showing that Canada is falling far short of meeting its greenhouse gas emission reduction commitments. And Brendan Haley discusses how a focus on a transition to heat pumps could provide a needed push in the right direction, while Max Fawcett points out the flaws in the attempts by petropoliticians to prevent the use of any clean heating options. 

- Dave Cournoyer discusses how Danielle Smith's UCP is more a hard-right call-in show than a political party. And Robson Fletcher writes about Nate Horner's musings about converting Alberta to using heating oil as an indication that there's just as much ill-thought-out blubbering coming from the cabinet as from the membership. 

- Don Mitchell reports on the Ontario Living Wage Network's latest study showing that workers' pay is falling ever further behind a reasonable standard of living. And Charles R. Davis reports on the transformative effects of a basic income in a Baltimore pilot project (among so many other examples). 

- Freddy Brewster examines how U.S. banks are able to trap customers and prevent them from seeking out better options elsewhere. 

- Finally, Samantha Beattie reports on the Ford PCs' practice of copying and pasting from developer wishlists, while Isaac Callan and Colin D'Mello reveal how they rushed through a zoning order which would have allowed a skyscraper in the middle of Pearson International Airport's flight path. Which naturally means it's time for Ford to start complaining that others aren't letting him unilaterally dictate what housing is built and where. 

Friday Afternoon Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Rebecca Leber highlights how drilling in the Arctic and other high-cost fossil fuel extraction plans are based on a sociopathic bet against any prospect of limiting the harm from a climate breakdown. Carl Meyer reports on new research showing that 90% of Saskatchewan's heavy oil sites aren't bothering to measure methane emissions, instead taking license to spew as much carbon pollution as they can get away with while launching vicious attacks on anybody who suggests they might have some responsibility to humanity at large. And Nina Lakhani discusses how private equity is seeking to extracts profits both from dirty energy, and from cleaning up the damage it causes. 

- Meanwhile, Martin Bush discusses why we need to be focused on renewable energy and power storage, rather than buying into the high cost and massive delay involved in nuclear power. 

- Tatiana Walk-Morris writes about the latest financial industry scam of "earned wage access", in which employers team up with corporations to force people to pay to receive the wages they've earned. 

- Martin Regg Cohn notes that the Greenbelt scandal represents a new low even for a Ford government steeped in corruption and cronyism.

- Finally, Jonathan Sas offers a warning about the politics of resentment and abandonment being pushed by Pierre Poilievre and his party. And Nick Seebruch points out how the Cons are taking a brief break from claiming to be free speech warriors to threaten journalists with jail time for daring to report on their convention. 

Friday Afternoon Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Scott Dance reports on the scientific recognition that the Earth's oceans are warming far faster than previously feared, while Sid Perkins discusses the particularly large temperature increases in parts of the north Atlantic. And the American Geophysical Union points out that humanity's unanticipated effects on the planet include pumping so much groundwater as to have altered the Earth's rotational axis. 

- Damian Carrington reports on the World Bank's recognition that massive fossil fuel and agricultural subsidies are major contributors to environmental damage. And George Monbiot writes about the connection between fascist politics and climate change denial.

- But lest anybody think the problem lies solely in right-wing parties, Alex Ballingall reports on how the Trudeau Libs have failed to spend billions in promised climate funding. And Markham Hislop laments the state of Alberta's climate politics on all sides, while Martin Lukacs points out how fossil fuel lobbyists are largely dictating the direction of the provincial NDP in multiple provinces. 

- David Moscrop discusses how the Ford government is using glaringly inaccurate budget estimates to justify a failure to fund public services. 

- Lauren Weber, Caitlin Gilbert and Taylor Lorenz report on the systematic development of astroturf groups intended to establish naked reactionary bigotry as the basis for health policy. 

- Finally, Anand Giridharadas' commencement speech to Sidwell Friends School offers a compelling call to young people to work on fixing the institutions which are so profoundly broken. 

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- The Canadian Press reports that the Ford PCs' COVID negligence includes shutting down a rapid test program still distributing hundreds of thousands of tests each week.

- Denise Balkissoon writes about the need for Toronto (like other cities) to elect representatives who recognize the severity of the climate crisis, while lamenting that most of its mayoral candidates are barely paying lip service to the great challenge of our time. And Imperial College London warns that we can't meet our climate goals without all current net-zero pledges being met in full - even as 90% appear to be based on little more than wishcasting.

- Irina Ivanova reports on new research showing how a climate breakdown is driving up the cost of food. Michelle Gamage discusses how wildfire smoke is making people sick. And the University of Reading explores how climate change is also causing increased airplane turbulence - in case mild inconvenience for the wealthy is a better driver of motivation to change than loss of the necessities of life for everybody else.

- P.E. Moskovitz discusses how the suburbanization of the U.S. has proven to be a breeding ground for fascism in taking away community venues while encouraging messages about excluding outsiders from isolated communities.

- Finally, Beth Mole reports on new research estimating the death count from just three of the U.S. Supreme Court's more antisocial decisions - with a conservative estimate suggesting that the partisan actions of half a dozen Republican hacks will personally cause 6,000 deaths over the next decade.

Thursday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- David Wallace-Wells writes that the U.S.' neoliberal political consensus may finally have dissolved - though that possibility is of little comfort when the party continuing to push it is able to block change. 

- Ian Hudson examines how income inequality is worsening in Manitoba. And Richard Burgon discusses how inflation has mostly been driven by corporate profiteering in the UK just like in Canada. 

- David Moscrop points out how Doug Ford's plan to pave over prime agricultural land to funnel money to his developer cronies threatens Ontario's food supply. 

- Carl Meyer reports on the federal government's choice to suppress the fact that a TD-led consortium was pouring money into the Trans Mountain pipeline to deal with escalating construction costs. And Matt Simmons documents how the Coastal GasLink pipeline is dumping sediment into vital waterways before even being completed. 

- Finally, Erin Reed discusses how the willingness of major corporations to give in to hate campaigns demonstrates the emptiness of corporate LGBTQ+ branding as a substitute for movement-building. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your Monday reading.

- Fiona Harvey reports on the World Meteorological Organization's warnings that we're more likely than not to breach 1.5 degrees of global warming over the next five years. And Alex Wigglesworth reports on new research concluding that 40% of the land burned by wildfires in western Canada and the U.S. is the direct result of fossil fuel production and use.  

- Meanwhile, David Thurton reports on the recognition by Health Canada and Environment Canada that "forever chemicals" are making their way into Canadians' bodies, and the first steps to start regulating their spread.

- Severin Carrell reports on the increased concentration of land ownership in Scotland as an expected driver of worsening inequality. And Lauren Klein reports on the development of Rate The Landlord as  an important means for tenants to share information - though the effectiveness of mere reporting figures to be limited when rental housing is increasingly concentrated in a limited number of corporate hands.

- Finally, Len Gillis offers a warning for Ontario as to what it can expect from privatized surgical care based on Alberta's experience.

Friday Afternoon Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Dave Davies interviews Jason C. Jackson about the widespread damage from long COVID - and the lack of remotely sufficient efforts either to prevent its spread, or respond to its effects. And Crawford Kilian weighs in on what we've failed to learn while normalizing avoidable harm to large numbers of people.  

- Manpreet Gill discusses how hallway medicine dehumanizes patients - and how the UCP has chosen to force health care workers to make it the norm. And the Canadian Press reports on the Ford PCs' legislated push to divert public health care resources toward private surgical providers. 

- Jeff Lagerquist reports on Suncor's plans to slash its workforce no matter how many policy concessions it takes or how much windfall profit it accumulates. Diane Orihel, Chloe Robinson and Chris Elvidge report on the harm caused by Imperial Oil's hidden tailings pond leaks - along with the virtual certainty that there are many more similar incidents that have remained concealed from public view. And Emma Jackson writes about the desperate need for political vision to put an end to the damage caused by dirty energy operators, even as Alberta goes through a provincial election where the spectrum of positions on the wanton destruction of our planet ranges from "friendly acquiescence" to "championing with religious zeal".  

- Finally, Andrew Perez exposes how pension fund money is being used to buy and operate facilities using child labour. And Anjeanette Damon, Byard Duncan and Mollie Simon report on the manipulative and deceptive business model used by home flippers to exploit seniors. 

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Hayden Klein reports on new research suggesting a connection between COVID-19 infection and increased cancer rates (particularly in younger people). And the Trade Union Council and Long COVID Support survey how workers with long COVID have been treated by employers - finding that one in seven has lost their job, and two-thirds have faced employment discrimination for having the temerity to suffer from a disability.  

- Greg Jericho offers a reminder that allowing workers' pay to keep up with price increases shouldn't be treated as an affront to the economy. Valerie Tarasuk and Tim Li point out how the Trudeau Libs' short-term "grocery rebate" falls far short of the secure access to essential goods. And Armine Yalnizyan discusses how the Libs' budget falls far short of any self-proclaimed feminism in doing nothing to respond to the immediate needs of women who have been disproportionately hit by both a wave of inflation and stingy monetary policy. 

- Adam Radwanski and Hadrian Mertins-Kirkwood each point out the problems with Libs' reliance on the corporate sector to dictate the terms of any climate progress. Merran Smith and Trevor Melanson point out the reality that fossil fuel jobs are disappearing based on forces far beyond the control of any Canadian government, making it thoroughly counterproductive to put off a transition to clean energy which will actually provide good long-term employment opportunities. And Alastair Marsh reports on new analysis showing that thanks to plummeting prices, there's effectively no cost to a shift to clean energy alternatives. 

- Finally, John Michael McGrath weighs in on the Ford PCs' callous decision to strip health care away from people without current proof of insurance. 

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Linda McQuaig discusses how the Biden administration is providing the Trudeau Libs with an example to follow in ensuring that the ultra-wealthy contribute something closer to their fair share of the cost of a functional society. And Alexandria Nassopoulos highlights the realities facing Canadians trying to survive on grossly insufficient social supports, while Steve Paikin writes about the absurdity of the Ford PCs pouring more money into subsidizing electricity use than major public priorities including long-term care. 

- Kelly Crowe exposes how Statistics Canada took funding from big pharma to produce a propaganda piece under the control of industry representatives.  

- Rebecca Solnit discusses the urgent need to start reducing fossil fuel use immediately, rather than kicking the can down the road based on implausible and self-serving claims about geoengineering and carbon capture as an excuse to keep burning oil and gas. Ayesha Tandon reports on new research showing a surge in methane emissions from wetlands as yet another feedback loop which is leading to an even faster breakdown than anticipated. And Paul Abela warns about the disastrous consequences of approaching the climate crisis with an optimism bias.    

- Finally, Andrew Nikiforuk reports on the Alberta's belated recognition - following a previous denial - of the reality that the province's largest earthquake ever was likely caused by tar sands wastewater disposal. And Charles Rusnell reports that Laurie Pushor is giving his previous high-water mark for villainy of "ripping off nuns" a run for its money by covering up a toxic leak into drinking water at the behest of the UCP's fossil fuel paymasters.