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We cannot save the world by playing by the rules

We are at war. It's a hot war

Author

Brad Johnson
July 25, 2023

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Record-shattering, fossil-fueled heat is ravaging the Mediterranean. Wildfires in Algeria have killed at least 34 people; as the fires spread, Tunisians along the border are fleeing. Northern Italy has been struck by deadly torrents of rain and hail while Sicily burns. Greece is on fire: thousands have evacuated Rhodes and Corfu; in Evia, a firefighting plane crashed into the smoldering hillsides today, killing both pilots.

“We are at war— completely focused on the fires,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said. “Over the coming days and weeks, we must remain on constant alert.”

House Republicans abhor the Northern long-eared bat

Greta Thunberg has been fined by a Swedish court for disobeying a police order to stop blocking the road for oil trucks in Malmö. The court did not accept her necessity defense. At the trial, Thunberg said:

“My actions are justifiable. I believe that we are in an emergency that threatens life, health and property. Countless people and communities are at risk both in the short term and in the long term.”

“The sentencing appeared to have little effect on her determination,” David Keyton writes. “Just a few hours later, Thunberg and activists from the Reclaim the Future movement returned to an oil terminal in the southern Swedish city of Malmö to stage to another roadblock. A photo then showed her being carried away by police officers.”

Asked about the verdict, Thunberg replied, “We cannot save the world by playing by the rules.”

House Republicans also hate the Lesser prairie chicken.

So maybe we have to change the rules. A lot of folks are trying!

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and ten other California representatives have written a letter to the Treasury’s Federal Insurance Office, calling on them “to investigate how climate change is impacting insurance coverage options for homeowners.” The lawmakers also “request that the FIO require insurers with more than $100 million in annual premiums disclose their investments in fossil fuels.”

UPS workers have called off their strike after the shipping company agreed to pay increases and, critically, air conditioning in the trucks. Amazon’s drivers are still out in the furnace. Climate Forward’s David Gelles and Manuela Andreoni wrote a great post about how extreme heat is making life impossible for those who have to work outside.

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland is rolling out $120 million in funding to support Tribes with climate adaptation, and has announced much higher royalties for oil and gas drilling on federal lands, with stronger protections for ecosystems and cultural sites.

Congratulations to Lauren Gifford, the new Associate Director of the Soil Carbon Solutions Center at Colorado State University.

The Green New Deal Network is holding its monthly happy hour tonight. While it’s always a great event, this is a special one, as one of the special guest is Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), the co-sponsor of the original Green New Deal resolution. Participants will discuss the “importance of union, environmental, and racial justice organizers uniting to overpower corporate greed.” The happy hour and rally will start at 6 pm at Metrobar in Northeast DC.

At 8 pm, Greenpeace is holding a critically important virtual town hall on protecting activists from abusive lawsuits. Energy Transfer, the company behind the Dakota Access pipeline, is suing Greenpeace as the supposed orchestrator of the Standing Rock protests. SLAPP suits like this are a global threat to public protest, and a favorite tactic of corporate polluters to suppress climate activism.

House Republicans are planning to bring to the floor resolutions to disapprove of the Biden administration’s listing of the Lesser Prairie-Chicken and the Northern Long-Eared Bat as endangered species; the Rules Committee hearing setting up the votes on S.J. Resolutions 9 (chicken) and 24 (bat) began at 3 pm today. They’re also establishing the floor rules for the $317 billion military construction and veterans affairs appropriations bill (H.R. 4366).

Hearings on the Hill:

Climate Action Today:

Thanks for subscribing and spreading the word. Connect with me—@[email protected] and@climatebrad.hillheat.com on BlueSky

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