Avain Flu Reaches Humans

Avian flu devastating poultry flocks in the Midwest has finally reached a human in the USA.  An unnamed Colorado inmate is the first human to test positive for the H5N1 avian flu virus.  Public health officials insist the risk of transmission from birds to humans is low.  The inmate is currently asymptomatic and in quarantine. He was working in a pre-release program on a poultry farm in Montrose County.  The affected flock was euthanized.  The inmate is the second recorded person to have contracted the virus.  A UK person contracted the disease in January. A boy in Hunan, China was infected with the H3N8 strain this month.  Humans are advised to avoid contact with birds and carcasses as well as surfaces with fecal material such as when cleaning bird cages.

A new study published in Nature finds climate change increases the risk of cross-species transmission of viral infections termed zoonotic spillover.  Now, about ten thousand viruses have the capacity to infect humans, but that will increase in number as previously geographically isolated animals come into closer contact with human populations.  This situation will be especially enhanced in Asia and Africa, two of the most densely populated regions on Earth.  Bats are a good example of vectors harboring potentially deadly viral decease. SARS CoV-2 is thought to have originated in bats. The study esitmates that species congregating in areas of high human density caused by climate change and habitat loss will drive the risk of zoonotic spillover four thousand times. 

Weekend Music: Dylan & Cash

Often musicians change their musical forms as their art progresses.Certainly that is the case with Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash whose genres developed in opposite directions. Cash started out in rockabilly, a rival of Elvis, but moved into gospel and folk forms by the time US Person stood next to him in an NCO club.  Dylan started as a folk singer, a contemporary of Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie, but later plugged in at the '65 Newport Folk Festival to become a rocker. How much of these migrations were due to commercial considerations is debatable. Nevertheless, in this beautiful folk ballad they join their authentic ternor and baritone voices:

TWIT: Taking It Seriously

credit: M. Davies, Newsday

Latest:  Judge Engoron let his contempt citation stand after a hasty meeting in court on Friday.  He told the gathered lawyers that he was not satisfied with the unspecific affidavit submitted by Trumpillini.  So while the fascist incarnation of Benito Mussolini [photo below] trundles off to Nebraska for another hate-filled rally [CANCELED], the fine of $10,000 a day will continue to mount.  On another legal front, the January 6th Committee is preparing for public hearings to begin on June 9th.  They will again invite former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows to appear before the panel. Recently released text messages show he was at the nexus of conspirators' harebrained legal theories for overthrowing the duly elected administration. Meadows schemed with a clique of far-right representatives that included US Reps. Scott Perry, Jim Jordan and Louie Gohmert.  The group’s role was to identify and amplify election fraud conspiracy theories. He was referred to the Justice Department by the US House for his refusal to comply with a subpoena for documents and testimony. The Department of Justice has yet to act on the criminal referral. More documents detailing the conspiracy that penetrated Congress are on their way.

The New York Supreme Court judge told Trumpillini he takes his work seriously-- then banged his gavel down on a civil contempt citation.  Apparently, Trumpillini does not take his business seriously because he is being fined $10,000 a day until he personally swears in an affidavit he has no more documents to turn over in a financial fraud investigation of his organization undertaken by the New York Attorney General.  The AG has complained that so far the Trump Organization has turned over only ten documents, and he has turned over zero personal documents that have been demanded since December, 2021 So far the bill is $40,000.  He probably considers that chump change. Of course he has filed an appeal of Judge Engoron's citation to the New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court.  Trump's lawyers predictably called the case against his company, "politcal". The AG's office said Trump's delay tactics have been seen before and will not thwart its investigation.

US Person certainly takes democracy seriously, the question is does Merritt Garland?  Still no indictment of the only president in our history to plot an autogolpe.

New Plan for Lynx

The US Fish & Wildlife Service was sued by environmental group for its Canadian Lynx Lynx canadensis) recovery plan for being anemic in scope. It excluded suitable 40,000 square miles of potential habitat in the Northern Rockies as being "not essential" to the species recovery. A federal court judge ruled in favor of conservationists. requring the agency to reconisder its plans for the wild feline. She pointed out a breeding population in Colorado as one reason the agency's plan wrongly excluded so much territory in its 2014 designation of critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act. On Monday the Montana judge, Dana Christensen, issued an order approving a settlement between the parties. USFWS has until 2024 to come up with a revised recovery plan for the illusive, forest dwelling animal. [a lynx released in Michigan's Upper Peninsula in 2019; photo credit: Michigan Department of Natural Resources]

Several hundred endangered lynx are believe to roam the Rockies. Colorado reintroduced them in the late 1990's and are also found in Minnesota, Maine, Washington and occassionally in Michigan. They were listed as endangered in 2000, but the Trump regime wanted to de-list the wildcat to prevent more forests being designated critical habitat and thus more difficult to exploit commercially. Federal biologists have predicted that global warming will impact the species with some populations disappearing by 2100. Higher temperatures melt their snowy habitat and reduce the amount of prey. They shortened the time span for considering climate impacts from 2100 to 2050. IN the shorter time frame, computer models showed Colorado and Maine populations increasing. The Biden administration has reversed the previous pro-exploitation policy.

England Welcomes Return of Bison

Ancient woodlands in southern England will be re-wilded with a heard of bison (Bison bonasus), a species that oncee roamed all over Europe but has been absent from the island for centuries. No doubt hunted to extinction by man, he is spending $1.4 million to bring them back to their native land. The European bison is smaller than his plains dwelling North American cousin and inhabits woodlands. Although Blean Woods is a 1257 acre oasis of Nature, the absence of biodiversity in the forest is noticeable for its silence. Bison are able to penetrate dense growth and expose the forest floor to sunlight, which promotes growth and diversity. They also fertilze the soil and provide food for insects with their droppings. By eating bark and wallowing they create deadwood, a home for a host of invertebrates and fungi. [photo credit; D. Wright]

European bison almost went extinct after the devastation of WWI. Only 54 remained alive in zoos. Now, re-wilding projects are springing up all over Europe. The Blean team also plans to introduce feral Exmoor ponies and wild pigs, but the bison are expected to make the biggest difference to the health of the forest. To evaluate the effectiveness of their re-wilding program, the woods will be divided in three sections with one reserved for bison, one for longhorn cattle, and one managed by man with his chainsaw. The animals will be tracked with GPS collars to understand how they manage the forest on their own.  Eventually the public will be able to observe the bison up close on walks in Blean Wood, a short drive from Canterbury.  Welcome home bison! [photo credit: Wildwood Trust

Weekend Music: What's that Sound?

An early Canadian-American band that formed in Los Angles (1966) Buffalo Springfield only had one US top ten record, the one that is posted here, but it became something of anthem for the anti-war movement.  In reality the lyrics relate to a street riot over the closing of the Panadora's Box night club on Sunset Blvd. They were influential in the early development of folk-song, a genre US Person appreciates. Personnel included Stephen Stills, Neil Young, Richie Furay, and Jim Messina, all talented performers who gained fame with their own groups. Buffalo--the name came from a steamroller parked outside the house--only made three albums and some singles before disbanding in 1968, but while they performed together, the band rivaled their contemporaries, the Byrds and the Doors. One of their big hits was "Mr. Soul", a song written and sung by Neil Young. So for "What Its Worth" (1967) here is their only gold single recording originally performed at another legendary LA night spot, Whiskey a Go Go, but still relevant today:

'Toontime: TWIT

credit: P. Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune

In keeping with the penchant au courant, today's acronym stands for This Week in Trump.  Readers must admit it is a bit of rébus too.  Herr Trumpillini's stonewall is beginning to show some cracks just like his folly on the southern boarder.  His inner circle of coup plotters and crime family have seen the writing on the wall and are testifying voluntarily. The latest to agree to give testimony is Donald Trump Jr. The Commitee spent eight hours interrogating Stephen Miller, former White House domestic advisor and speechwriter. People with knowledge of the proceeding told the NY Times that the interrogation was often heated, with Miller involking executive privilege in response to some questions. He helped draft Trumpillini's incindiary Elipse speech that sent the insurrectionist mob to the Capitol where it proceeded to storm the building and beat cops. Miller still maintains that the election was fraudulent. He appeared before the House Select panel only after months of negotiation over his November 2021 subpoena. 

Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland promises the public hearings in June will "blow the roof off the house". Better yet, will it blow DOJ off its hindquarters? He told interviewers, "This was not a coup directed at the president, it was a coup directed by the president against the vice president and against the Congress." He said the Committee will present evidence connecting the former guy to coordinating the rioters on January 6th. This is the vital piece of the puzzle necessary to sustain criminal charges against Trumpillini. The plan was coordinated, "most tightly by Trump and his inner circle," Raskin said, adding that the committee faced the most difficulty in this aspect of its probe. The panel has interviewed more than 800 witnesses but,  "The closer you get to Trump, the more they refuse to testify." 

Speaking of being close, House minority leader, Kevin McCarthy told colleagues he would suggest Trump resign in a phone call before the Inauguration of Joe Biden.  Meadows later denied he ever suggested such resignation, but his lie is revealed by a taped phone call with Rep. Liz Cheney.  He has told the House Select Committee he will not voluntarily testify before them.  Another significant sign of the investigation's progress, is Alex Jone's effort to obtain immunity from prosecution in return for testimony about January 6th,  Jone's is the bombastic host of a conspiracy-laden podcast, "Infowars", and a die hard Trumpist.  Nevertheless, his request of the Justice Department is a hard sell, even though he led rioters on their march to the Capitol.

Oregon Wolves Hold Their Own

Despite continued persecution, mass poisonings and vehicle collisions, Oregon's gray wolves managed to increase their numbers by 2 in 2021 to 175 according to the ODFW's 2021 report released Tuesday. The number of packs remained the same, 22.  The number of breeding pairs decreased from 19 in 2019 to only 16.  The annual increase in wolves is less than 2%--far removed from the expected 30% feared by agriculturalists and their state government supporters.  According to the report,"depredations of livestock continue to trend lower than the wolf population and most packs did not depredate in 2020."  A conservationist with the Center for Biological Diversity said wolf populations have hit a "troubling plateau" in their full recovery. [photo credit: M. Males]

Twenty-six wolves died in 2020, twenty-one deaths caused by humans. In February 2021 eight wolves, which included the entire Catherine Pack, were killed in Union County, apparent victims of mass poisoning.  The case is under investigation and no charges have been filed.  A $50,000 reward has been posted for information leading to arrests.  The state exterminated the entire Lookout Mountain Pack due to repeated predation of livestock.  All but three wolf packs are concentrated in the northeastern corner of the state, a mere fraction of their former range.  Western Oregon wolves got a break recently, as the federal government resumed its protection of the species under the Endangered Species Act in the western third of the state.  Wolves in eastern Oregon are subject to Oregon's wolf management plan that favors livestock owners.  A conservation organization spokesperson said wolves in Oregon need federal protection, statewide.

Young Poacher Receives Felony Conviction

A young man in Idaho killed a grizzly bear with a pistol, shooting the sow with twelve bullets.  Not a terribly unusual incident, but the killing ended with Justin Baum of Ashton, Idaho chalking up a felony conviciton.  In his plea deal, Baum was sentenced to three years probation and thirty days in jail for his felony.  The bear he shot was wearing a research radio collar, which emitted a mortality signal that alerted authorities in Fremont County.  They found the mother bear half submerged in the Little Warm River.  Later, deputies located her den and the dead male cub inside, another victim of his senseless killing.  Authorities found Baum after subpoenaing  Google for records of electronic devices used in the same area as the dead mother.  According to the records, Baum was there on March 16, 2021 two days after mother bear was seen leaving her den and cub by a video cam.  Authorities offered a $40,000 reward for information about the illegal killing. His father Rex agreed not to talk about the incident. 

Bullets found inside her body matched shell casings from Baum's Ruger 57 automatic pistol.   Baum threw his and his father's pistol into a pond after seeing a news bulletin about the authorities looking for the person or persons responsible.  His father pleaded to a misdemeanor charge for his part in the attempted cover-up of his son's crime.  Justin Baum also received a life-time ban on hunting that is enforceable in forty-eight states plus $12,500 in fines and cost.  Rex Baum is banned from hunting for ten years. This will be a bear hunt they will never forget.

Avian Flu Hits US Birds Hard

Millions of birds in the US have been killed by the deadly Avian flu virus including thirty-six bald eagles in fourteen states and an estimated 24 million poultry birds.  There is low risk posed to humans the Department of Agriculture says.  The virus is passed from wild, mostly migratory birds, as they fly south, which do not exhibit symptoms.  Farmed poultry is highly susceptible to the virus.  As a result egg prices have increased.  Eleven million egg-laying chickens have died in Iowa alone, the state that produces the most eggs.  Midwest zoos have moved their exotic birds indoors for protection.

The outbreak is the first since 2015.  The impact on the domestic poultry industry has been so severe that the US will import egg products from the Netherlands for the first time in more than a decade.  Up until now only Canada's liquid egg products have been certified for sale in the US.  The DOA's Food Safety Inspection Service has determined the Netherland's food safety system is equivalent to the United States and is able to insure product standards meet US regulations.  Consumers have responded to the egg shortages by buying more expensive organic and cage-free eggs, which is also better for the chickens.

'Extinct' Wildflower Rediscovered

This one lives in Ecuador. Even its name causes one to think that it was extinct, Gasteranthus extinctus Biologists found it still living in the foothills of the Andes and in remnant forest of the Centinela region. Extensive deforestation caused scientists to assume it was exterminated by man. About 97% of western Ecuador, including the Centinela Ridge, has been converted to farmland in the 20th century. Scientists have begun to scan satelite photos of the Centinela Ridge, looking for remnant primary forest patches that can be saved when they located the flower. [photo: R. Fortier]

They expected to see devastation when they entered Centinela, but were pleasantly surprised.  They found the plant within a few hours of searching, using drawings and dried specimens for comparison.  As you can see the flower has a beautiful neon-orange flower and deeply veined leaves.  The plant has a pouch on the leaf underside that allows pollinators to enter and exit.  A botanist at Chicago's Field Museum when asked for comment on the re-discovery said, the plant shows it is worth saving what remains of wild Nature, as it can turn around even the worse cases of bio-diversity destruction.  G. extinctus will keep its misleading name, while researchers look for ways to preserve its habitat.

'Toontime: This Week in Trump

credit: J. Ohman, Sacremento Bee
BC Idonwanna sez: It's where he fits in!

US Person still wants to know what is keeping the US Justice Department from indicting the most dangerous man to democracy in America. Perhaps Attorney General Garland is waiting until Herr Trumpillini refuses to cooperate with the January 6th Committee. A request for his testimony is probably forthcoming shortly, but it will not be in the form of a subpoena, but a voluntary request. Congressional investigators don't want to give the litigious crime boss another issue to litigate. The former guy knows no bounds of propriety--he reminds US of former Senator Joe McCarthy. He told reporters on Wednesday that his Attorney General did not want to take responsibility for the coup. He complained, "Look, we also had a chance, but Bill Barr, the attorney general, didn't want to be impeached....I said, 'Look, get impeached. I went up at lot in the polls when I got impeached. You have to get impeached, maybe.' But he was so afraid of getting impeached he refused to do his job," Why this one-man wrecking crew gets a free pass from Swamp politicos is a mystery not beyond US Person. Perhaps it is that no one in office there is willing to serve their country above and beyond their own personal interests?

Committee members who do not support a referral say it would have no legal standing with the Department of Justice.  Maybe not, but such a referral would make it clear to the public that Donald Trump is a criminal grifter and a danger to the Republic. It would also place tremendous pressure on a highly reluctant Attorney General to move forward with a criminal indictment.The crimes involved--conspiracy to defraud the United States and attempting to obstruct an official proceeding--are inherently political, so any criticism of a referral on that ground is superfluous. Foregoing a referral on political grounds will not stop his anti-democratic supporters in Congress (e.g. Mo Brooks, Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar) from crying foul even if the DOJ brings an indictment on its own.  Right now, that development looks unlikely.  Once again, the Democrats choke when it counts the most. If Trump gets away with shooting democracy on Capital Hill, then democracy is dead in this country.  The date of death: January 6, 202; sorry Superman, so much for "truth, justice and the American way".

Rare Rhino Born in Captivity

Rosa and her calf

Indonesia has a captive breeding program for the highly endangered Sumatran rhinoceros, Dicerorhinus sumatrensis.A female calfwas born March 24 at the Way Kambas NP sanctuary, the offspring of captive parents, father Andalu and mother Rosa. [photo left]  The breeding program is a extreme effort to save the species from extinction. Experts welcomed the news and renewed hope that breeding the aniamls in captivity will be an effective method of saving the Miocene species. Also known as hairy rhinos, the species has been particularly difficult to breed successfully. Attempts in the US beginning in the 80s were mostly failures. As a result the program became the subject of controversy. Much research and observation of reproduction in Sumatran rhinos finally led to success at the Cincinati Zoo in September 2001. A cow named Emi gave birth to a healthy male, Andalas. It was the first successful captive birth in 112 years! [photo courtesy Indonesia Ministry of Environment & Forestry].

Andalas was sent back to Sumatra from the Los Angeles Zoo to breed with captive females in Indonesia, which he did successfully; he is the father of Andatu. He is the father or grandfather of all the calves born at Way Kambas. His brother, Harapan, was the last rhino to leave the Western Hemisphere for Indonesia in 2015. Conservationists continue to question the value of an artifical and expensive program that removes the animals from their natural environments. However, what remains of their habitat is declining fast as forests are degradated or cleared. Malaysia lost its last rhino in 2019, when Iman, a captive cow died of cancer. The wild population is estimated to be no more than eighty individuals living in small, fragmented forests. 

Sumatra's captive population has incresed to eight counting the newborn. The unamed female is the third calf to be born at Way Kambas NP sanctuary and the sixth since efforts began three decades ago. The species once ranged throughout Southeast Asia--from the Himalayas in Bhutan and India to Southern China and down the Malay Pennisula. The Sumatran rhino has experienced a low reproductive rate in modern times, perhaps exacerbated by their isolation in scattered habitat, leading to the scientific consensus that without human intervention, they will go extinct. Mother Rosa endured eight miscarrages between 2017 and 2020 before giving birth successfully.

COTW: Power Transitions

The last time the world went through a transition from one form of power to another was during the Industrial Revolution when muscle and biomass gave way to steam and coal.  This chart graphically illustrates that transition and the one we must go through now to save the planet from catastrophe:

Prior to the 19th century people relied on animal power (including their own) and wood or peat burning.  Consequently the cost of firewood skyrocketed in the 17th century as it became increasing scarce in Europe.  As England industrialized in the mid 1800s, coal became the fuel.  Coal use went from 4.9% of the energy mix in the 1840s to 47.2% by 1900.  Coal was partially replaced by oil in the 20th century, with the advent of the internal combustion engine. It lost the transportation and heating markets to oil.  Coal still accounts for a third of electricity production.  The chart shows the increasing share of natural gas and renewables, currently.  Renewables are still a minor share of the energy portfolio, accounting for about 11%, but are increasing fast.  Fossil fuel burning still accounts for 78% of energy consumed in the world.  We have a long way to go in a very short time.

Pilgrim's Wasteful Legacy

Want more proof that nuclear power is the wrong answer for the climate crisis?  Promoters continuously overlooked the cost of decommissioning a nuclear power that has reached the end of its operational life, in their public relations campaigns to make nuclear power "too cheap to meter",  Decommissioning costs more than dollar and cents as the owners of Fukushima are finding out. TEPCO wants to dump millions of radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean from its ruined reactors in the spring of 2023, and is meeting stiff resistance to their proposal.  What to do with radioactive waste products from nuclear power plants are proving to be a major, expensive headache.  Another case in point: Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station on Cape Cod Bay,  The generating station closed in 2019 after producing power for nearly fifty years.  A boiling water reactor (BWR), it continuously circulated water inside the reactor vessel to be turned into steam that spun turbines to produce electricity.  That water became intensely radioactive.  Holtec International, which is decommissioning the plant, wants to treat the radioactive water and dump it into Cape Cod Bay.  Understandably, locals including shell fishers, are opposed to the idea.  Just like the people in Japan. [photo credit: AP]

Allowing Holtec to do so could set a precedent in the USA since decommissioning is in its infancy.  Most nuclear plants here were built between 1970 and 1990.  The oldest are now reaching the end of their operational life. Holtec has made a business out of acquiring old plants like Oyster Creek in New Jersey, Indian Point in New York, and Palisades on Lake Michigan and dismantling them for profit.  Obviously Cape Cod is not an isolated "national sacrifice zone" like Hanford, Washington; it is a tourist Mecca.  The though of contaminating seafood and seawater with radioactive waste is a hard sell.  Holtec says discharging the water into the bay is nothing new.  The plant did it regularly with no noticeable environmental effects under its operating license from the Nuclear Regulatory Agency, which received regular reports about the discharges.  In recent years, Pilgrim discharged the largest volumes in 2011 and 2013, totaling about a half million gallons.  The discharges were well below federal exposure limits.   There are other, more expensive options for dealing with the waste water.  One is shipping it elsewhere for treatment and disposal, which is what happened at Vermont Yankee when it shut down in 2014.  NorthStar, a competitor of Holtec, is dismantling that plant. 

Cape Cod Bay is home to a $5.1 million oyster farming industry.  An industry representative said dumping the radioactive waste water in the bay would devastate local economies.  Tribal leaders, real estate agents, fishers, and local officials have all expressed opposition to the idea. “We can’t change [previous discharges], but we can change what’s happening in the future,” said a state lawmaker. “It’s the first time it has ever been decommissioned, so to compare this to the past is a convenient excuse. ‘Well, we did it in the past,’ that sounds like my kid.”  Holtec needs to obtain EPA permission before dumping into the bay can occur if the waste water contains contaminates other than nucleotides produced in the plant's operation, such as heavy metals.  No additional approval is required from the NRC.  Holtec has not characterized the contents of the water associated with decommissioning for the New England region of EPA.  Holtec told the press it is examine the water for pollutants, but test results are not available yet.  Meanwhile, state officials, including the Attorney General's office, which would "take any Clean Water Act violations seriously."  

'Toontime: Up to Speed

credit: RJ Matson
BC Idonwanna sez: Look away!

Allow US Person to bring you up to speed on this week in Trump.  The J6 Committee interviewed Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner by video link. Details on what was disclosed have not been revealed, but it is assumed the Committee wants details on Trumpillini's activities during the assault on the Capitol.  Kushner was not in the country when it happened, but the Committee spent eight hours with his wife and daughter of the former president.  Reports are that she attempted to get her father to intervene to stop the riot in progress.  The question now is: will the Committee seek testimony from the man at the top of the coup conspiracy?

The Manhattan District Attorney Alva Bragg was obliged to tell the press that the investigation of Trump for financial fraud was still on-going after his office received numerous inquiries about the status of the investigation from the media. Apparently, the district attorney is ready to proceed if additional evidence is uncovered, or an insider flips on the white collar crime boss. Bragg told the press his attorneys, "are reviewing new evidence."

John Eastman finally turned over his communication records previously withheld on grounds of attorney-client privilege after loosing his court case on the issue.  New York Attorney General Letitia James wants Trump held in civil contempt for failing to turn over documents to her investigators.  New York Superior Court  Judge Arthur Engoron ruled in February that he had to release documents relevant to the Attorney General's investigation.  He also rule that Ivanka and Trump must testify in a deposition.  They are appealing that ruling.  His attorneys did not turn over any documents despite given extra time to comply, instead they raised sixteen objections to the subpoena. They also presented an affidavit from one of his attorneys claiming Trump could not locate the documents sought, if they exist at all.   It is clear Trump will go down fighting tooth and nail in true gangster style, making a criminal referral for his coup attempt all the more necessary and appropriate.  James asked the court to fine Trump $10,000 for each day of non-compliance in order to coerce him to produce.

credit: D. Cagle

Wind Energy Company Kills 150 Eagles in USA

Wind generators have their drawbacks too, although there are  designs without blades on the market, these are not suitable for commercial energy generation.  A US company pleaded guilty to killing 150 eagles in violation of the Migratory Bird Act.  ESI Energy, a subsidiary of NexEra Energy was ordered to pay $8 million in fines and restitution and sentenced to five years probation for killing the protected raptors on its wind farms in eight states.  NexEra advertises itself as the world's largest utility company.  Besides wind generation, it operates nuclear, solar and natural gas facilities. Prosecutors said the birds were killed by the rotating blades and more than the 150 were probably killed as carcasses are not alway founds. They said failure to obtain permits and take steps to minimize the number of bird deaths gave the company a competitive advantage over supplier who take such precautions. The company said it didn't think it needed to apply for permits for accidental deaths.

Under the Trump regime, prosecutions for accidental violations of the Migratory Bird Act were halted. Under the Biden administration, prosecutions for any taking without a permit are subject to prosecution. Most of the eagles killed by ESI were golden eagles.  [photo left: S. Heaps] There are an estimated 31,800 golden eagles in the western US; an estimated 2200 are killed every year by humans. Eagle deaths are likely to increase in the future because of the emphasis on deploying more alternative power generators. The ESI ignored federal wildlife officials' advice on how to minimize bird deaths for its farms in Wyoming and New Mexico. The company's plea deal with the government included spending up to $27 million during its probation on measures to minimize eagle deaths including shutting down when eagles are more likely to be in the vicinity. When an eagle is killed by its operations, ESI will have to pay $29,623 per eagle. The company's CEO said she disagrees with the federal enforcement policy since some collisions are unavoidable and should not be criminalized.

IPCC Says Now, or Not at All

As if to emphasize the point US Person made in his previous post about Europe embargoing Russian petroleum, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issued a bleak warning:  its now or never to reduce carbon emissions if the catastrophic effects of climate changer are to be avoided. The panel, made up of the world's leading climate scientists, said climate change is already disrupting lives and devastating the natural world, making many areas unlivable.  A report co-chair wrote, "Any further delay in concerted global action will miss a brief and rapidly closing window to secure a livable future.” However, current CO₂ emissions are on a trend to exceed the agreed upon limit of 1.5C over pre-industrial levels to escape a global climate catastrophe.

The report catalogues the dire effects of climate change ranging from increased and intensified storms, rising sea levels, drought, wildfires, starvation, and mass extinction of species.  Some countries have agreed in principle to reserving 30% of Earth's surface for Nature, but scientists now say that up to 50% maybe necessary to allow natural systems to recover from the damage man has inflicted on the planet. Big corporate emitters and their investors seem unmoved by repeated scientific warnings as emissions increase, instead of decrease. Now, emissions must be halved by 2030 at the latest. But when the big news is Elon Musk buying a controlling share of Twitter, Earth is simply running out of time. Climate change in the words of one climate scientist, and ultimately shake the very pillars of human civilization.”  Even if global warming is kept below 1.6C by 2100, humanity will lose 8% of its farmland due to climate change.  

COTW: Cutting His Supply

 

This chart shows why it was relatively easy for Joe Biden to cut petroleum imports from Russia, which make up only 7-8% of the US imports.  Canada has become the largest single supplier in place of OPEC, consistent with the decades long effort to become "energy independent".  What it does not explain is the profiteering going on at the pump.  Biden should impose price controls to alleviate the predatory behavior of the oil companies. 

The same embargo is not as easy for Europe, that imports large amounts of Russian oil and gas, especially gas. [chart below]  Poland, to its credit, has slapped an import ban on Russian petroleum by the end of the year.  The Polish president called it the "most radical in Europe"  Its geographic proximity to Russia on a largely open plain, and previous occupation during WWII has a lot to do with its decision, but LNG imports and a new gas pipeline from Norway set to open by then also plays a role.  Countries like Hungary and Germany need to follow Poland's example and the Baltic states' example.  A European ban would accomplish two salutary ends: strangle Putin's war machine, and put the EU firmly on the path of reducing global warming caused by fossil fuels.  After what happened in Bucha, European leader ought to have plenty of motivation to embargo Russia's most valuable product.

 

Weekend Music : Hello!

Close readers of PNG know that US Person's popular music appreciation is rooted in the sixties and seventies.  So many talented bands and individual performers were active then!  Sometimes he overlooked an influential group like the Doors, infected as he was by 'Beatle mania'. The Doors were part of the vibrant sixties music scene in LA that produced  groups like The Beach Boys, Mamas & Papas, Steppenwolf, and the Stone Ponies with Linda Ronstadt. Lead singer Jim Morrison became a legend in his own time, another rockstar victim of excess, who died in 1971 and is buried in Paris. This number one hit has great lyrics and a psychedelic bridge, so here is "Hello, I love you" to the 'Queen of the Angels'....

'Toontime: This Week in Trump--the Longest Gap

credit: D. Whammond
Wackydoodle sez:  'Nother hole in one!

US Person takes cold comfort from a factual finding by a California federal judge. In case concerning John Eastman's withholding of evidence from the January 6th Committee on the grouds of attorney-client privilege, he found that it was "more likely than not" Herr Trumpillini and Eastman committed federal crimes when he led a coup against the US government. US Person has been publicly stating that for almost a year now. Of course, such a finding, not just obiter dicta, is significant. The crime or fraud exception to the privilge is now clearly inapplicatble to plotters' claims of privilege. The district court judge was explicit in his findings, laying out the crucial elements of obstructing an official proceeding (electoral vote count in Congress) and fraud against the United States. Judge David O. Carter wrote in his opinion released Monday that "their campaign was not confined to the ivory tower--it was a coup in search of a legal theory." Eastman, as close readers will recall, authored the ingenuine coup blueprint, calling upon the Vice President to refuse to count votes from states in which there were unfounded allegations of vote fraud. His efforts were eagerly sponsored by the desperate Trumpillini clinging to power.

To show his corrupt intent, Judge Carter properly referred to Trumpillini's own arrogant words in his phone call to the Georgia Secretary of state demanding he find 11,780 more votes so he could win the state. This cynical president was repeatedly told by senior officials and aides, including the Attorney General, that there was no significant vote fraud in the election of Joe Biden. Another development this week may produce even more evidence of Trump's corruption. As noted here previously, there is a significant gap in the White House communication logs of about seven hours prior to the insurrection on Capital Hill. Former Attorney General Bill Barr told reporters that his former boss was familiar with "burner phones"--disposable cell phones often used by drug dealers and mobsters--that would allow circumvention of the White House communications surveillance system. Of course, when he saw that statement in the press, Trump denied he even knows what a burner phone is--fat chance! The Committee is now asking communication companies to search their records for evidence that these communications took place.  Following the facts is a good thing, ignoring them is malfeasance in office.