Moving Elephants to New Habitat

This video may upset some animal advocates, because moving elephants is dangerous and difficult. Threats to elephants call for drastic intervention to save them. Elephant families are rounded up by helicopter, quicklysedated and transferred to trucks.  They are loaded upside down to aid their breathing while sedated.  These 263 elephants now have a better future in Kasungu National Park, Malawi.  Kasungu has been secured from poachers, and the native elephant population has grown from 50 to about 120. Kusungu NP is four times bigger than Liwonde, so the elephants will have room to roam With the addition of the  elephants translocated from Liwonde Natiobnal Park, Kasungu population is now conserved into the future thanks to the support of IFAW and other conservation organizations..

TWIT: The Amazing Self-Incrimination of Donald Trump

The more he protests his innocence or attempts to delay his inevitable prosecution for multiple crimes, the more Il Douche incriminates himself.The latest example comes in the Justice Department's response to his request for a special master to examine the document in question in camera based on a defunct claim of executive privilege.The request is pending before a Trump-appointed judge, but the filing gave federal attorneys an opening to reveal yet more negative information about his mishandling, and even deliberate concealment, of national defense information.

The DOJ asserts that Trumpillini, who was subpoenaed in May to turn over all government papers in his possession, concealed documents from federal agents by moving them from the storage room in the basement to other parts of the resort compound including the so-called "45 Office". But a search warrant was not deemed necessary until Trumps' lawyers certified that all the protected documents had been turned over in June. That certification proved false, probably because an insider tipped the FBI that classified material still remained on the premises and told them where it could be found. On August 8th the FBI executed a warrant after showing probable cause that crimes had been committed. Twice as many documents were found at Mar-a-Lago then had been previously surrendered. Some classified documents were found in his unlocked desk drawer commingled with personal mementos of his time grifting at the Oval. Trumpillini continues to falsely claim he 'declassified' the documents before taking them out of the White House to excuse his reckless treatment of the nation's most secret secrets. Declassification is simply another lie issued by a compulsive liar.

Classification is a highly regulated process that was not followed by the former guy--waiving your hand over the papers and uttering "Declasifimundus" is NOT sufficient. In the first place classification is not even relevant to some of the potential charges alleged.  Beyond that, his attempt to claim declassification defense is barred by the Nixon Tapes Supreme Court case involving the Watergate tapes and former president Richard Nixon, who is now only the penultimate scofflaw in US history.

In 1994, the National Security Act was amended to allow for the promulgation of regulations governing government classification of government secrets that would be binding on all "executive agencies". The current executive order implementing the statute was issued by President Obama in 2009.  The order placed authority to declassify information relating to sources, methods and activities of US intelligence with the Director of National Intelligence. That person must consult with the agency that originally classified the information. Such information includes human intelligence sources, and nuclear weapon secrets. None of this occurred before Trump decamped to his Florida resort. The Supreme Court ruled in the Nixon Tapes case that a president is bound by executive regulations (in this case the rules establishing the Watergate Special Prosecutor) while they are still in force. Following this precedent, a federal appeals court wrote in New York Times v, CIA,“Declassification cannot occur unless designated officials follow specified procedures ...Because declassification, even by the President, must follow established procedures.” [Emphases added]

There is no need for a special master in Trump's case because the DOJ has already filtered out documents that might be protected under an evidentiary privilege like attorney-client. Even that fails if the privilege communications takes place in the commission of a crime.  Appointing a master would also hold up the assessment of damage by the Intelligence Community. His late request is only another delaying tactic by a dangerous man.

credit: Darcy, Cleveland Plain Dealer
"Oh Vlad, about that Moscow hotel we talked about..."

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COTW: A Tale of Two Charts

The state of play is summed up in these two charts:

Inflation is at its highest level in decades and so are corporate profits as shown above.  Corporate profit margins are at their highest since the 1950's.  Perhaps motivated by the extra chump change given to consumers during the pandemic, corporations have raised their prices and successfully passed on the increased costs of production to consumers, a variation of the old "bait and switch'.  Proof that smart shoppers shop at Target Corp., the company saw inventories swell, so prices were discounted to clear the shelves.

Meanwhile™the climate continues to get weirder.  China is in the middle of the worst drought recorded in global history (red represent areas of extreme temperatures during a 70 day heatwave). In Somalia it has not rained in more than two years.

 

via Counterpunch.org

Dallas-Ft Worth has experienced the fifth one thousand year rain event in less than four weeks causing catastrophic flooding.  The others: Death Valley, Kentucky, St. Lous, Illinois. One third of global warming can be attributed to methane.  The highest release of methane into the atmosphere hit the highest levels ever recorded in 2020.  That record was broken in 2021.  Somebody tell the football player/politician: yes, we do need more trees.

TWIT: Mar-a-Lago A Go-Go

credit: J. Matson 

The heavily redacted thirty-eight page affidavit that supported a finding of probable cause for a search warrant of Mar-a-Lago was released today.  As we already know, it presented more than enough probable cause that crimes were being committed at the resort, including obstruction of justice, for the federal magistrate to allow the search to take place, despite the frantic railings of the Perp-In-Chief.What US wants to know--and the affidavit will not help here--is why he was deliberately holding on to classified government papers he knew belonged in the National Archives. How? Because his White House Counsel told him so. Was his deliberate withholding a symptom of his sociopathic personality disorder? Archivists and the DOJ wrangled for months to get him to return the classified material. The reasons, no doubt related to his relentlessly exploitive personality, are of course legally irrelevant. What is relevant is that he was in actual possession of national defense information that he could not legally possess or alter. He even went through the trove himself when requested to return the papers he took out of the White House.

Three salient points are now public knowledge after the big reveal: Il Douche was in actual possession of protected national defense information (25 out of 184 where classified as Top Secret); he was on notice from the government to return the documents for safekeeping; and, he attempted to conceal them in various places throughout his insecure resort compound up until the FBI executed the warrant. But ask yourself this important question: Which is the bigger crime: subverting American democracy by an attempting a coup and inciting a violent insurrection, or keeping love letters from the Rocket Man (also classified)? The latter crime is admittedly easier to prove in court. If the Danger Man is not indicted soon, we will also all know another important thing: our federal government is hopelessly corrupt.

Bottom line: LOCK HIM UP!

Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station Taken Off-line

Ukrainian power authorities said the giant nuclear powered generating facility has been shut down. The last two reactors were taken off-line after fires broke out in ash pits of a near-by coal plant.  Located on the east bank of the Dnieper River, Russian troops have occupied the facility since early in their invasion of eastern Ukraine.  Russia says it plants to connect Europe's largest nuclear power station to its grid, a plan Ernegoatom said that is "wishful thinking". The disconnect is the first in the plant's operating history. 

Concerns remain that errant shelling may damage the containment buildings that could lead to a  Chernobyl-size radiation release. After Putin relented and agreed to international inspection of the plant's safety and operation,  IAEA inspectors are set to go in within days. The map shows the location of Ukraine's other nuclear facilities.  Its 15 reactors supply about half of Ukraine's electricty, a situation that has become highly problematic given that two of its plants Chernobyl and Zaporizhzhia have become military targets.  International safety experts want Zaporizhzhia to be demilitarized immediately to insure safe operation.

For now experts say the situation is fragile but stable. Russian forces shelled the plant on March 3rd and then took it over without damaging the reactors.  Russia wants Ukraine to pay for power from Zaporizhzhia.  Ukraine authorities have said 'fat chance', and 'no deal' with the occupiers. Slava Ukraini!

radioactive steam rises from destroyed Chernobyl #4

Greenland Is the Destination for Rare Earths

Trumpillini was not entirely stupid when he asked Denmark to sell Greenland to the USA. The world's largest island at 660,000 square miles (Australia is a continent, not an island) it is rich in minerals included rare earths that are needed for a green power production.  Rare earths are used in battery production, electronic circuits and wind generators to name only a few applications. One of the only companies outside of China that processes these minerals have bought an exploration lease in Greenland to begin mining in a few years.  As Greenland warms and the ice cap melts, year around operations become more feasible. [AP file photo]

Toronto based, Neo Performance Materials, plans to exploit the Sarfartoq deposit in southwest Greenland. it will crush ore in Greenland and send it to Estonia for further chemical processing.  Previously, applications to begin mining were rebuffed by the Greenland government over concerns of the environmental impact of industrial mining operations. Once concern that killed another project was the high levels of uranium associated with the desire minerals.  Neo says the Sarfartoq site can be mined within EU exposure limits.  In recent years, both the United States and Japan have expressed concern over China's domination of the market, calling it a "security risk" and seeking to diversify supply.

Myanmar has been the beneficiary economically, of the global search for exploitable rare earth deposits.  But Myanmar's mines have a downside too.  Lack of government oversight, corruption, and environmental destruction make the mines a dirty secret.  AP traced the mineral to 78 different companies including major auto makers and giant electronic firms.  Companies are willing to pay more for minerals mined in a sustainable way in stable, transparent countries.

TWIT: The First Soldier Falls

credit: J. Sorensen

This week saw the first loyal Trump soldier receive a jail tern rather than rat on the Boss.  Alan Weisselburg pled to fifteen felony counts of tax evasion.  He got just 100 days in jail with time served--a sweet deal.  Not only that, he does not have to testify against Trump himself, only his company. Trump Org is charged with an alleged scheme stretching back to 2005 “to compensate Weisselberg and other Trump Organization executives in a way that was off the books." With his testimony, The Trump Organization will almost certainly be found guilty of fraud in its trial scheduled for October.

The New York judge in his case told him he will delay sentencing until after the trial of Trump Org, and that if he does not comply with his plea agreement, he would be able to sentences him for a period of 5-15 years.  Rarely do first time tax frauds get jail time, but Weisselberg received five months for his not paying $1.7 million in taxes on perks he received from Trump's company, Trump's chief accountant, who also  worked for Trump's father Fred, has to pay $2 million in back taxes, interest and penalties and waive his right to appeal his plea. Weisselberg will likely serve his 100 days on Rikers Island. 

Another Trump soldier, Rudy Guilliani, complied with the subpoena from the Fulton County special grand jury and appeared to testify in Atlanta on Wednesday.  He testified for six hours, but it probably took him that long to respond to questions put to him by pleading his right against self-incrimination. He was informed by prosecutors that he is a target of their investigation,  The grand jury is investigating interference by the Trump campaign in Georgia's 2020 election.  Perhaps the most disgusting fact about the Guilliani prosecution is that this man made his name as US Attorney for the Southern District of New York (Manhattan) busting organized crime.  It seems some of their traits rubbed off on the former law and order mayor.

credit: D. Whamond

The Nuclear Card

Update: French president Macron's office told the press on Friday that Vladimir Putin has agreed to allow international inspectors inside the Zahporizhzhia nuclear power station. The announcement came after a visit by Turkish leader Erdogan to Lviv for a meeting with President Zelenskyy and UN General Secretary Guterres.  Fighting has flared near the plant, with missile strikes coming close to radioactive waste storage. Guterres urged that the plant continue to produce electricity.  Energoatom, Ukraine's energy company that owns Zaporizhzhia, said Russia threatened to take the station off-line.  Secretary Guterres in Odessa commented to the press,"Obviously, the electricity from Zaporizhzhia is Ukrainian electricity. This principle must be fully respected".

The governor of Zahporizhzhia Oblast said the the power station provides energy to the city's heating system.  Turning it off would leave 700,000 without heat during the cold winter.  A Conservative MP in the UK warned that any deliberate damage to the plant causing a radiation leak "would be a breach of NATO's Article 5" referring to the treaty provision that calls for group defense in the event a treaty member is attacked. Ukraine is not a member of NATO, but a major radiation leak would impact neighboring member states.

{04.08.22}The UN's nuclear chief told AP hat the Zaproizhia nuclear power plant is "out of control" and pleaded that IAEA nspectors be allowed into the facility to determine its status. He said that "every principle" of nuclear safety had been violated in a "grave and serious" situation in which the sprawling station is in the middle of a war zone. The plant is controlled by Russia, but operated by Ukranians. Supplies to the plant have been interupted and contact with operators is "patchy". International inspections are urgently needed according to Director General Rafael Grossi. Putin said recently that nuclear war was "unwindable" and that everything should be done to avoid nuclear war, but that sentiment does not stop his troops from using Europe's biggest nuclear reactor as an artillery platform. Russians are shelling Nikopol, a town across the Dnipro River from the Zaporizhzia nuclear power plant.  Another reason nuclear plants are a bad idea for solving the energy crisis.  They become targets of opportunity for terrorists, eager to inflict heavy damage with relatively little cost. and belligerent nations can use them as tactical cover in war.  Russia captured the facility in March, and have been firing from it since mid-July. Ukrainian forces are reluctant to attack the artillery for fear of hitting a reactor or nuclear waste storage.Its a target begging for a commando raid upriver, but so far Ukraine's military leaders have avoided that risky a venture.

A resident of Nikopol told reporters,“We are like condemned prisoners who must just stand still and be shot at. They shoot at us, and there is nothing we can do.”  The plant is a major obstacle to Ukraine's publicized counter-attack to take Kherson, its second biggest city, from the Russians who are intent on hanging on to their territorial gains.  Taking back Kherson would put Ukraine in a better bargaining position at a negotiation for peace.  The Russian shelling is proving problematic for Ukrainian forces as it pushes to capture the last remaining crossing point for Russian re-supply, the Nova Khakovka dam.

When the Russians took the plant, combat ignited a fire that alarmed the world.  Shrapnel hit Reactor #1, but did not breach the containment structure.  Three of the six reactors are operational, others are shut down for repairs   A direct strike with a power munition could cause a meltdown according to the exiled mayor of Enerhodar and former engineer at the plant.  That is why a more precision strike by special forces is needed.  Ukrainian operators are reported under duress from Russian mistreatment.  The occupiers have allowed supplies to cross lines as well as nuclear regulators.  Rosatom, the Russian nuclear agency has also sent in engineers to monitor the situation.  Still, the plant is in a dangerous nuclear limbo in the middle of a war zone.  A disastrous accident could occur at any time. [photo credit: NYT]

Ancient Trees in Danger

Araucaria araucana, commonly known as the monkey-puzzle tree has outlived the dinosaurs in its southern South America habitat.  It can grow up to 160 feet and live for a thousand years, but the IUCN  says the tree is endangered.  A variety of factors have contributed to the shrinking of the temperate forests on the Andean slopes of Patagonia.  Its seeds are a prized food source for the southern most parrot in the Americas, the austral parrot. The birds only eat a part of the seed and spread the fertile kernel in their droppings, which allows the tree to spread out. The pine nuts are also a favorite of the Mapuche indigenous people of the region, who grind the nuts into flour.  Harvesting by humans is controlled except by the Mapuche, who have a culture of arboreal care.

The bond the Mapuche have for their tree was almost broken by industrial loggers who stripped the land in the 1990s.  Mapuche clashed with the loggers and the Chilean government, but they won protection for their precious resource.  Monkey puzzle trees are now protected across Patagonia.  The tribe, more specifically the Quinquén community,  is now replanting Araucaria trees and rediscovering their ancient cultivation practices.  A community of 52 families, has a green house nursery funded by the UN where it can germinate seeds and tend young trees to be planted in nature when they are mature enough.  Today in Chile there are 14.6 million hectares of native forests that absorb the majority of Chile's carbon dioxide emissions through photosynthesis.  With the help of a strong ally like the Mapuche and government funding, the survivor from the Jurassic  monkey puzzle will survive into the next geologic era.

Earth Needs the Oceans Treaty

Leaders at the UN are making another attempt to pass a world oceans treaty after ten years of negotiations. If finally passed it will protect a third of Earth's seas from exploitation. As Earth plunges ever deeper into the climate crisis, the oceans are are exhibiting more effects of global warming. Currrently less than two percent of internaitonal waters, known as "high seas" are protected from overfishing and other forms of exploitation. The squid fishing industry off Argentina's two hundred mile territorial limit is a good example of such exploitation. Dozens of long line fishing vessels, as big as a freighters, haul thousands of tons of squid out of the ocean every day, 24/7 for shipment to Asia. Research funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) found that between 10 and 15% of marine species are at risk of extinction. Fragmented administration and lack of political will has prevented passage of a comprehensive treaty to protect the oceans from man. [photo credit: Getty Images]

Overfishing, acidification and warming are just a few adverse impacts. Deep sea mining for minerals like cobalt used in electronics is becoming an increasing threat to marine health. The international autority which regulates these activities issued 31 contracts as of March 2022. Countries agreed to hold a fifth and perhaps final session to try and pass an agreement by the end of the year. Reaching agreements among Earth's nations is not hopeless, as the Paris Climate Accords showed. Leading countries like the United States and Europe should insist on reaching a necessary framework if man is to avoid planetary collapse.

COTW: US Greehouse Gases

Joe Biden got his much delayed and highly reduced bill to begin addressing the US contribution to the global warming crisis.  It is significant to note that the deceptively named "Inflation Reduction Act" come forty years after Al Gore held the first congressional hearing on climate change.  Unfortunately the bill continues to incentivize the fossil fuel industry, which is not surprising considering Joe Manchin was finally convinced to support the legislation. Still, a weaker climate bill is better than no bill at all.  This week's chart shows the enormity of the problem facing the Untied States and other developed countries:

Electricity generation continues to be a large portion of US carbon emissions. The country spewed out almost 6 billion metric tons of carbon equivalent emissions in 2020, a rise of 6.1%.  The Biden Administration has set a goal of 100% clean power generation by 2035. But the bulk of power generation (60%) is still produced by fossil fuel combustion. Strides are being made, however. Coal, the most polluting fuel, has its emission share drop by 21%.If this trend continue, electricity generation can make a huge difference in decarbonization in time to save the planet.

TWIT: When History is Made

credit: B.Englehart,Daily Freeman
BC Idonwanna sez: Orangeman need better lock!

Breaking:Trump supporters, perhaps hoping that the search of Mar-a-Lago was merely an exercise in document retrieval, were sorely disabused of that fanciful notion by DOJ's court filing on Monday that opposes releasing the underlying affidavit. DOJ made it clear that releasing the affidavit would jeopardize an on-going criminal investigation with national security implications. That affidavit allowed a federal magistrate to find probable cause that evidence of crimes would be found at Trump's home. Trumpillini attempted to distract from the seriousness of the crimes by claiming the FBI took his two expired passports and an active one during the search for classified documents. The warrant covered classified documents and records "co-mingled" with them. The passports have been returned. DOJ lawyers handling the matter wrote,"If disclosed, the affidavit would serve as a road map to the government's ongoing investigation, providing specific details about its direction and likely course, in a manner that is highly likely to compromise future investigative steps," Considering the gravity of the department's representations in court it is unlikely a judge will order the affidavit released. Several news organizations had asked for release of the document.

Latest: One of the records subpoenaed by the federal grand jury is surveillance footage showing boxes of records being removed from the Mar-a-Lago basement room after they were were requested to be returned by federal officials, increasing their concerns that the classified national security documents were not secure and could be disseminated for influence or profit. There is even public speculation that some of the material was destroyed based on the criminal count of obstruction (Sec 1519) cited in the search warrant that found probable cause for the FBI search conducted Monday. Recall that the DOJ decided to resort to a search warrant after an insider informed them classified documents remained at the insecure Mar-a-Lago resort. Jay Bratt, the top counterintelligence official in DOJ’s national security division, visited Mar-a-Lago in June. Bratt and his team left with additional material marked classified, and obtained a written declaration from a Trump lawyer attesting that all the classified material had been turned over.

This story is rapidly becoming the straw that broke the perp's back. For a person who hates to read and flushes presidential records down his toilet, to retain highly classified material in his insecure Florida compound does not have an innocent explanation. Legal pundits are beginning to question why he is not already indicted and under arrest for intentionally mishandling national defense secrets. The only thing protecting him now is the possible violent reaction of his insane supporters, if he is finally arrested. Interestingly, if Trump were convicted of violating Sec.2071 relating to willful concealment or destruction of government documents, the statute contains a disqualification from public office clause similar to that contained in the 14th Amendment.

Incredible 'law and order' defenders of the out-of-bounds former guy continue to claim that Trump 'declassified' the records before illegally taking them to his camp in south Florida.  A wave of his hand may be good enough in Trumpworld, but that is not how it works in the real world.  Besides, whether the records were declassified or NOT is irrelevant to the national defense crimes for which he is being investigated.  Democratic leaders in Congress have asked for an assessment by security experts of the implications of Trump's illegal national security breach.

Update: Thank god for the "Radical Left Democrats" who insist on justice being done in the dismal case of Donald J. Trumpilini, et al. v. the United States of America, which has reached an astounding new low this week. Perhaps prompted by bitter Repugnant denigration of the integrity of DOJ officials, AG Garland, in an atypical bold stroke, moved to unseal the search warrant and supporting information in federal court.  In a typical display of self-immolating bravado Herr Trumpillini called for the unsealing. At least that is what he is saying in public.  Regardless,  details about the search are already beginning to reach the press.  The bombshell: Trump is under investigation for violation of the Espionage Act, 18 USC 793.  Yes, that is right folks!  

Let that sink in a moment, then ask yourself why would self-acclaimed patriot and honest businessperson hang on to highly classified government documents he knew did not belong to him?  In the twenty boxes of records the FBI removed from Mar-a-Lago, they found 11 sets of classified government documents raging from confidential to the highest category--top secret SCI,  WaPo first reported that the documents included nuclear weapon secrets.  If that is accurate reporting then these types of highly classified materials can only be view in compartmentalized government locations, not in the basement of a West Palm Beach mansion.  That is why, according to the affidavit supporting the warrant, Trump is being investigated for criminal mishandling of government secrets.  Trump is facing huge business debts coming due, and he has not shown any compunction about profiting from the occupation the highest public office in the land.  He has demonstrated a particular predilection for smoozing with highly-placed Russians. He did business with the Russian mob in New York when he was a casino owner. In the parlance of crime investigation, he has both motive and opportunity.  Depending on the nature of the secrets involved, they are extremely valuable to the wrong people or even bank managers.  Official Washington is clearly not accustomed to dealing with a criminal sociopath as President.

It turns out he was subpoenaed this Spring for the documents by the federal grand jury investigating the 'migration' of government papers to Mar-a-Lago. Despite the subpoena, he still did not give up all of his cache.  The DOJ finally resorted to a search warrant after other avenues failed. Why would an honest former president go to such lengths to illegally retain possession of government property?  His only non-sensical justification so far: Obama kept more documents than he did.  A ridiculous claim quickly discredited by the National Archives. 'Merica needs a timeout from the cultivated insanity of the man who would be Boss.  Where was the 25th Amendment when the nation needed it the most?

{8.11.2022}The Donald made history twice this week. He became the first former president to involk the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination in a civil action against him. He became the first former presient to have a seach warrant executed at his private residence. Not exactly accomplishments most presidents in our history for which they would want to be known. Let's take a closer look at these historic developments.

In the civil case brought against his company,Trump Organization, by the New York Attorney General for falsifying asset valuations in financial filings, Herr Donald responded to questioning in a deposition by refusing to answer on grounds of self-incrimination. Apparently he was following the adivce of his legal counsel who have good reason to think any statements by the garolous tycoon could be used against him in potential criminal prosecutions in Georgia and Washington, DC. Every US citizen has this privilge, but it comes with a cost. Taking the Fifth allows a negative factual inference to be made against the party relying on it. In the New York civil case, a verdict is based on a preponderance of the evidence. All other evidence against the Trump Organization being equal in the scales of justice, the inference goes a long way towards proving the state's case. 

US Person hardly thinks the FBI was looking for old White House dinner menus when it took the unprecedented step of searching Mar-a-Lago on Monday. Knowing the cautious professional conduct of Meritt Garland so far, the search was signed off on after careful consideration of the political ramafications. Not only that, but the FBI had to convince a federal magistrate that the specific materials they were looking could be found at Mar-a-Lago and that there is probable cause a crime has been committed. What crime you ask? Remember almost a year ago the National Archives was looking for missing presidential documents?  Donald had removed documents belonging to the United States government pursuant to the Presidential Records Act when he left the White House. What is law to the Donald--rules to be followed by political enemies like Hilary Clinton! Eventually 15 boxes of official records were returned to the Archives. When Archive staff found classified papers in those boxes, they asked the DOJ to investigate the matter.

According to reports, the DOJ negotiated for the return of yet more documents,   Those negotiations got nowhere, unsurprisingly, but culminated in a visit from DOJ officials including the head of the counter-intelligence section, Jay Bratt. Acting on an insider's information that more classified material was stashed at Mar-a-Lago, and out of concern for possible compromise of those materials, the DOJ decided they had to act to get those records back where they belonged. Hardly a trivial matter given the Donald's cavalier treatment of classified information in the past. You will recall he shared classified information with the Russian ambassador and foreign minister. We will not know what exactly the FBI took in their search because the DOJ is following its long standing practice of not discussing search warrants publicly. We can hope the warrant and inventory are leaked to the press or unsealed by a judge. Of course, there is one man who knows, and is not so constrained, Herr Trumpillini, the perp who took the Fifth. Don't count on him, because he is too busy spinning the witch hunt lie to raise funds.

credit: de Adder, Washington Post
Wackdoodle sez:  First'un done gets a cheeseburger!

Chimps Observed Digging Water Holes

Climate change increases the severity of droughts as humans are finding out to their dismay. Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) in an Ugandan group have taken up a learned behavior brought in by a female immigrant named "Onoyofi". Primate researcher Catherine Hobaiter of St. Andrews University in the UK watched as Onoyofi dug a small hole and waited for ground water to fill it. Rewarded for her efforts, she tne drank from the well. This was unusual behavior in a rainforest where surface water is common. Well digging has been observed in more arid habitats, like savannas. This Budongo rainforest group did not dig waterholes before Onoyofi joined the Waibara group in 2014. It was not until 2017 that observers saw them digging for water. The researchers findings are published in the journal Primates.

Knowng the origin of a learned or cultural behavior is rare. But the hypothesis that immigrante females pass along new behaviors is becomimg more accepted among primatologists. An expirament was conducted in Guinea, West Africa where a unfamiliar nuts were introduced to a group by researchers. One immigrant female readily cracked open the new nut, suggesting she was familiar with it from her birth community.

Chimps do not readily adopt new behaviors. Betweem 2013 and 2019 56 instances of well digging by twenty different Waibara members were observed, mostly by females. Onoyofi was the most prolific with 14 waterholes to her credit. Caputred videos show other Waibara members observing Onoyofi carefully as she dug her 'magic' waterholes. Well-digging took place in the dry season when the chimps rely heavily on a water source that is seasonal in the middle of their home territory. Currently the Waibara chimps do not have to concern themselves with droughts, bu the new behavior may help them adapt to drier forest conditions in the future. Scientists are making plans for long-term observation of this clever group of primates. Watch the action on this Mongabay.com video

Australia Records more Coral on the Barrier Reef

Researchers from Australia's Institute of Marine Sciences surveyed 87 reefs. Their recently released report says corals increased by one-third in the northern and central regions of the Great Barrier. The agency began monitoring the reef system thirty-six years ago. the southern region is not faring as well as bleaching events have taken their toll of corals, The most recent bleaching occurred in March. When water temperatures become too high, coral eject thier symbiotic algea that photosynthesize and produce nutrients for their hosts. When this happens, coral loose their coloration. Hard corals cover increased by 36 and 33 percent for the norther and central regions respectively. However the south coral cover dropped to 34%. Most of the increase was attributable to fast growing Acropora coral that is vulnerable to storm surge and wave action; nevertheless, the increases are a sign of hope for the beleagured reef, the largest in the world. [photo credit: Nat Geo]

Scientist attribute increased and more severe bleaching events to climate change. In 2016 and 2017 heat waves triggered bleaching so severe scientists worried that the reef would not be able to recover again. The state of the reef's health has become something of a political football between the UN and Australian governments. The UN's World Heritage Committee has proposed downgrading the reef's status to "in danger", a move opposed by Australia becuase it would create a role for the international body to take steps to protect it, and reduce tourism revenue The network of 2500 reefs has been designated a World Heritage Site since 1981. Conservationists have supported the UN's concern, saying Australia has not done enough to protect the reef from human encroachment and the effects of global warming. Whether the latest government survey is an attempt to alay fears for the reef's future is a legitimate question.

TWIT: "Cover Up"

credit: J. Matson, Roll Call
BC Idonwanna sez: Fastest fingers in DC!

Its official, Congressional leaders are calling the very Secret Service deletion of communications relating to the Insurrection a "Cover-up".  In a letter to Homeland Security's IG, Joseph V, Cuffari, the chair of the House oversight committee said she had grave concerns about the lack of transparency concerning the deletion of communications in a "routine migration" of data to new devices. She was joined by the chair of the Select Committee investigating the January 6th attempted coup. Cuffari is a Trump appointee.

The letter also said the IG,“secretly abandoned efforts to collect text messages from the Secret Service more than a year ago.”   Cuffari knew in May 2021 that the Service had deleted messages, seven months earlier than previously known, and more than a year before he told the January 6th Committee Amid the storm of congressional interest in the matter and a criminal investigation launched by Cuffari's office, the agency has stopped trying to recover the messages that were deleted. The legislators have asked the independent Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency to remove Cuffari from his probe into the Secret Service's handling of records required to be preserved under the Federal Records Act, and deleted despite legitimate requests for the records from Congress and others.

COTW: War is Good Bidness

The majors are raking it in, and the Biden Administration seems powerless to stop the gouging.  This chart tells the all too predictable story:

Major exploration and production companies are reporting record setting profits in the first quarter of 2022.  Of course the war in Ukraine is a good excuse to raise prices even if the actual effect on the global market is constrained by offsets from other producing countries.  Brent Crude is now selling at $117 and a barrel can reach $130 in the USA.  Exxon-Mobil reported a three year high in earnings at the end of 2021of $8.8 billon.  You might reasonably ask if the company intends to spend its flush cash on more clean energy projects.NOT! The company plans a $30 billion stock buy-back program that will increase its stock price even more. Capitalism in action.

Nepal Loves Tigers!

As one of the thirteen range states, Nepal pledged to double its tiger population by 2022, the current year of the Tiger on the Chinese calendar.  Nepal not only doubled the population, but tripled it!  There are now officially 355 wild tigers living in Nepal, up from 121 in 2010.  Nepal is on the only range state to come close to exceeding its 2010 pledge.

The population increase may put the country close to the maximum number of big cats (Panthera tigris) it can support in protected habitat. That estimated number is around 400, Their success was made possible by unwavering support from conservation organizations and the Nepalese government.  Local communities, that live along side the carnivore, also supported the idea of re-establishing the animal in the wild.  A key component to continuing the success is teaching local people best practices when living close to Nature.  In the last fiscal year, three people have been killed every month on average in encounters with tigers. Tigers will eat humans, if they are hungry enough, but usually prefer wild prey. Carrying capacity is not a fixed number say conservationists, and capacity can be improved by better management practices and more habitat protection. GREEN KUDOS go to Nepal! [photo: at home in Chitwan NP]

Land Iguanas Come Back to Santiago Island

Once endemic on Santiago Island in the Galapagos Archipelago,  the land iguana Conolophus subcristatus disappeared from the island in the early 20th century.  An expedition in 1903-06 from the California Academy of Sciences did not find any of the species still living there.  The Ecuadorian government relocated three thousand from a nearby island to restore ecological balance on Santiago.  In 1835 Darwin recorded a huge numbers of the terrestrial lizard during his visit.

The director of Ecuador's park system said that the relocation effort has been a success with a healthy number of iguanas of all ages.  Director Danny Rueda said, "It's a great conservation success story and strengthens our hopes of restoration on islands that have been affected by introduced species." [photo credit: R. Buendia]