By Civic Media Observatory | – ( Globalvoices.org ) – Whether on a date or at a family gathering, one topic of conversation is on everyone’s lips in Turkey: the country’s deepening economic crisis. There are several angles to the story. While Erdoğan’s government argues that the country is in an “economic war” against enemies, […]
Archives for September 2022
2022’s supercharged Summer of Climate Extremes from Pakistan to USA: How global warming and La Niña fueled Unprecedented Disasters
By Kevin Trenberth, University of Auckland | – There’s an old joke about the fellow who has his left foot in a bucket of ice water and the right in a bucket of hot water, so that his overall temperature is average. That seemed to apply to the climate during 2022’s northern summer of extremes. […]
Germany to turbocharge Rooftop Solar by Slashing Taxes, Red Tape amid Ukraine War Energy Crisis
By Sören Amelang | – dpa / Süddeutsche Zeitung / Clean Energy Wire. ( Clean Energy Wire ) – The German government is introducing tax breaks for the operation of small-scale photovoltaic systems and removing other bureaucratic hurdles to speed up the rollout of renewables. Income from systems with a capacity of up to 30 […]
Iran, seeking Counter to US Sanctions, is Joining Shanghai Cooperation Organization and Warming up to Russia
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Iran’s foreign minister, attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) conference in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, has signed key membership papers to formalize its entry into the Eurasian security body led by China and Russia. Although Iran is now considered by the US State Department to be in what it calls the “Middle […]
All the Victims of the Ukraine War
“They will beat their swords into plowshares . . . Nor will they train for war anymore.” Isaiah2:3-4. Greenfield, Mass. (Special to Informed Comment) – What’s wrong, so profoundly wrong with war that compelled Isaiah to implore for peace (without debate over just and unjust war) almost 3,000 years ago? War breeds a plague of […]
On the 29th Anniversary of the Oslo Peace Accords, it is clear that Israel used them to Disadvantage the Palestinians
By Adnan Abu Amer | – ( Middle East Monitor) – On 13 September, 1993, Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organisation signed the Oslo Accords, which set a historical precedent in Palestinian recognition of the occupation state, giving it a measure of legitimacy in a concession that Israelis had never imagined could happen. Not in […]
America as a Sacrifice Zone
( Tomdispatch.com ) – In the American ethos, sacrifice is often hailed as the chief ingredient for overcoming hardship and seizing opportunity. To be successful, we’re assured, college students must make personal sacrifices by going deep into debt for a future degree and the earnings that may come with it. Small business owners must sacrifice […]
How 3 Gigawatts of Battery Power Plus Solar Saved California from Electricity Blackouts during the Heat Dome this Month
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – In August 2020, California consumers suffered through a severe heat wave, responding by blasting their air conditioners. California had put in so much solar that by then that 34% of the state’s power came from wind and solar, and another 13.9% came from hydro. Nuclear still provided around 10% of […]
The Revolt of the Rational: Women and other Mainstream Americans rise against the Forced-Birth Republicans and MAGA Fascism
Chicago (Special to Informed Comment) – Fury at the MAGA majority on the Supreme Court and disgust at the lunatic extremism of MAGA candidates have helped make abortion the central issue of the 2022 midterms and have improved the odds of defeating the fascist Trumpists. The economy is improving and gas prices are dropping, even […]