#fund administration solution

[smsfoutsourcingservice]

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[batboyblog]

Things the Biden-Harris Administration Did This Week #38

Oct 11-18 2024

President Biden announced that this Administration had forgiven the student loan debt of 1 million public sector workers. The cancellation of the student loan debts of 60,000 teachers, firefighters, EMTs, nurses and other public sector workers brings the total number of people who's debts have been erased by the Biden-Harris Administration using the Public Service Loan Forgiveness to 1 million. the PSLF was passed in 2007 but before President Biden took office only 7,000 people had ever had their debts forgiven through it. The Biden-Harris team have through different programs managed to bring debt relief to 5 million Americans and counting despite on going legal fights against Republican state Attorneys General.

The Federal Trade Commission finalizes its "one-click to cancel" rule. The new rule requires businesses to make it as easy to cancel a subscription as it was to sign up for it. It also requires more up front information to be shared before offering billing information.

The Department of Transportation announced that since the start of the Biden-Harris Administration there are 1.7 million more construction and manufacturing jobs and 700,000 more jobs in the transportation sector. There are now 400,000 more union workers than in 2021. 60,000 Infrastructure projects across the nation have been funded by the Biden-Harris Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Under this Administration 16 million jobs have been added, including 1.7 construction and manufacturing jobs, construction employment is the highest ever recorded since records started in 1939. 172,000 manufacturing jobs were lost during the Trump administration.

The Department of Energy announced $2 billion to protect the U.S. power grid against growing threats of extreme weather. This money will go to 38 projects across 42 states and Washington DC. It'll upgrade nearly 1,000 miles worth of transmission lines. The upgrades will allow 7.5 gigawatts of new grid capacity while also generating new union jobs across the country.

The EPA announced $125 million to help upgrade older diesel engines to low or zero-emission solutions. The EPA has selected 70 projects to use the funds on. They range from replacing school buses, to port equipment, to construction equipment. More than half of the selected projects will be replacing equipment with zero-emissions, such as all electric school buses.

The Department of The Interior and State of California broke ground on the Salton Sea Species Conservation Habitat Project. The Salton Sea is California's largest lake at over 300 miles of Surface area. An earlier project worked to conserve and restore shallow water habitats in over 4,000 acres on the southern end of the lake, this week over 700 acres were added bring the total to 5,000 acres of protected land. The Biden-Harris Administration is investing $250 million in the project along side California's $500 million. Part of the Administration's effort to restore wild life habitat and protect water resources.

The Department of Energy announced $900 Million in investment in next generation nuclear power. The money will help the development of Generation III+ Light-Water Small Modular Reactors, smaller lighter reactors which in theory should be easier to deploy. DoE estimates the U.S. will need approximately 700-900 GW of additional clean, firm power generation capacity to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. Currently half of America's clean energy comes from nuclear power, so lengthening the life space of current nuclear reactors and exploring the next generation is key to fighting climate change.

The federal government took two big steps to increase the rights of Alaska natives. The Departments of The Interior and Agricultural finalized an agreement to strengthen Alaska Tribal representation on the Federal Subsistence Board. The FSB oversees fish and wildlife resources for subsistence purposes on federal lands and waters in Alaska. The changes add 3 new members to the board appointed by the Alaska Native Tribes, as well as requiring the board's chair to have experience with Alaska rural subsistence. The Department of The Interior also signed 3 landmark co-stewardship agreements with Alaska Native Tribes.

The Department of Energy announced $860 million to help support solar energy in Puerto Rico. The project will remove 2.7 million tons of CO2 per year, or about the same as taking 533,000 cars off the road. It serves as an important step on the path to getting Puerto Rico to 100% renewable by 2050.

The Department of the Interior announced a major step forward in geothermal energy on public lands. The DoI announced it had approved the Fervo Cape Geothermal Power Project in Beaver County, Utah. When finished it'll generate 2 gigawatts of power, enough for 2 million homes. The BLM has now green lit 32 gigawatts of clean energy projects on public lands. A major step toward the Biden-Harris Administration's goal of a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035.

Bonus: President Biden meets with a Kindergarten Teacher who's student loans were forgiven this week

[randomperson54321]

i’ve got some tough news: This morning, Senators Blackburn and Blumenthal reintroduced the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA).1

After successfully killing this pro-censorship and surveillance bill last session, it’s back, and we’re jumping into action to stop it again.

Can you rush an urgent donation to Fight for the Future today to jump start our stop KOSA fight?

DONATE TO STOP KOSA

It is honestly unfathomable that in the current political climate lawmakers are putting forward legislation that would give the Trump administration more tools to silence perspectives they don’t like. Over the past five months they have disappeared, deported, and defunded people and organizations who have exercised their first amendment rights.2,3,4

The fact that lawmakers are watching all this happen, and are still willing to support KOSA, is unconscionable.

If KOSA passes, Trump’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) would be able to say that any topic they want to stop people from talking about causes “harm” to kids, and force platforms to censor it. And we don’t have to guess what they would target, since FTC Chair Andrew Fergusson said if confirmed he’d fight the “trans agenda.”5

It’s unfortunately not surprising that Senator Blumenthal, the Democratic sponsor of the bill, doesn’t seem to care about the harm his bill would cause. Sen. Blumenthal has consistently ignored the hundreds of organizations that have raised concerns about how KOSA would impact the LGBTQ+ community, access to information on reproductive rights, and everyone's free expression online.

But we do think there is a good opportunity to strip other lawmakers’ support for KOSA in the face of Trump’s attack on human rights. We have a plan to continue working with our anti-censorship coalition, the hundreds of thousands of parents, young people, and activists who have already helped stop KOSA, and to kill this dangerous bill again.

Your support made all this organizing possible over the last few years, and it’s what will keep fueling this fight now. Please make a gift today to fight against KOSA and to support real solutions that will help keep everyone safe online.

Lawmakers are trying to pass the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), a dangerous bill that would give the government unprecedented control over the internet and force platforms to spy on youth.

90+ rights groups agree KOSA won’t make kids more safe. Instead, it’ll put youth in danger by subjecting them to surveillance and preventing them from accessing resources they need.

Believe in a free and open internet? Join me and take action: https://stopkosa.com/?source=email&

Together, we can stop KOSA again,

Caitlin and the team at Fight for the Future

P.S. If you’ve been with us for a bit, you know this is a long-term fight. Yes, we need to stop KOSA today, but there will be more bad bills. And we know we need to keep building an organized movement against censorship and surveillance. So if you can, consider starting a monthly donation today. This will help us know we can keep fighting, month-after-month, no matter what.

Footnotes:

1. Blumenthal Press Release: https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-blackburn-thune-and-schumer-introduce-the-kids-online-safety-act

2. The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/28/trump-immigration-people-detained-deported-cases

3. New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/article/trump-university-college.html

4. CNN: https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/08/politics/universities-medical-research-funding-frozen-trump-diversity-purge

5. The Verge: https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/10/24318388/trump-ftc-chair-pick-andrew-ferguson-censorship-tech-companies

[reasonsforhope]

Holy crap, I didn't think Biden would be able to get the Climate Corps established without Congress. This is SUCH fantastic news.

--

"After being thwarted by Congress, President Joe Biden will use his executive authority to create a New Deal-style American Climate Corps that will serve as a major green jobs training program.

In an announcement Wednesday, the White House said the program will employ more than 20,000 young adults who will build trails, plant trees, help install solar panels and do other work to boost conservation and help prevent catastrophic wildfires.

The climate corps had been proposed in early versions of the sweeping climate law approved last year but was jettisoned amid strong opposition from Republicans and concerns about cost.

Democrats and environmental advocacy groups never gave up on the plan and pushed Biden in recent weeks to issue an executive order authorizing what the White House now calls the American Climate Corps.

“After years of demonstrating and fighting for a Climate Corps, we turned a generational rallying cry into a real jobs program that will put a new generation to work stopping the climate crisis,” said Varshini Prakash, executive director of the Sunrise Movement, an environmental group that has led the push for a climate corps.

With the new corps “and the historic climate investments won by our broader movement, the path towards a Green New Deal is beginning to become visible,” Prakash said...

...Environmental activists hailed the new jobs program, which is modeled after the Civilian Conservation Corps, created in the 1930s by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat, as part of the New Deal...

Lawmakers Weigh In

More than 50 Democratic lawmakers, including Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, had also encouraged Biden to create a climate corps, saying in a letter on Monday that “the climate crisis demands a whole-of-government response at an unprecedented scale.”

The lawmakers cited deadly heat waves in the Southwest and across the nation, as well as dangerous floods in New England and devastating wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui, among recent examples of climate-related disasters.

Democrats called creation of the climate corps “historic” and the first step toward fulfilling the vision of the Green New Deal.

“Today President Biden listened to the (environmental) movement, and he delivered with an American Climate Corps,” a beaming Markey said at a celebratory news conference outside the Capitol.

“We are starting to turn the green dream into a green reality,” added Ocasio-Cortez, who co-sponsored the Green New Deal legislation with Markey four years ago.

“You all are changing the world,” she told young activists.

Program Details and Grant Deadlines

The initiative will provide job training and service opportunities to work on a wide range of projects, including restoring coastal wetlands to protect communities from storm surges and flooding; clean energy projects such as wind and solar power; managing forests to prevent catastrophic wildfires; and energy efficient solutions to cut energy bills for consumers, the White House said.

Creation of the climate corps comes as the Environmental Protection Agency launches a $4.6 billion grant competition for states, municipalities and tribes to cut climate pollution and advance environmental justice. The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants are funded by the 2022 climate law and are intended to drive community-driven solutions to slow climate change.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the grants will help “communities so they can chart their own paths toward the clean energy future.”

The deadline for states and municipalities to apply is April 1, with grants expected in late 2024. Tribes and territories must apply by May 1, with grants expected by early 2025."

-via Boston.com, September 21, 2023

[dandelionsresilience]

Dandelion News - January 15-21

Like these weekly compilations? Tip me at $kaybarr1735 or check out my Dandelion Doodles!

1. Landmark debt swap to protect Indonesia’s coral reefs

“The government of Indonesia announced this week a deal to redirect more than US$ 35 million it owes to the United States into the conservation of coral reefs in the most biodiverse ocean area on Earth.”

2. [FWS] Provides Over $1.3 Billion to Support Fish and Wildlife Conservation and Outdoor Access

“Through these combined funds, agencies have supported monitoring and management of over 500 species of wild mammals and birds, annual stocking of over 1 billion fish, operations of fish and wildlife disease laboratories around the country, and provided hunter and aquatic education to millions of students.”

3. Philippine Indigenous communities restore a mountain forest to prevent urban flooding

“Indigenous knowledge systems and practices are considered in the project design, and its leaders and members have been involved throughout the process, from agreeing to participate to identifying suitable land and selecting plant species that naturally grow in the area.”

4. Responsible Offshore Wind Development is a Clear Win for Birds, the U.S. Economy, and our Climate

“[T]he total feasible offshore wind capacity along U.S. coasts is more than three times the total electricity generated nationwide in 2023. […] Proven strategies, such as reducing visible lights on turbines and using perching deterrents on turbines, have been effective in addressing bird impacts.”

5. Illinois awards $100M for electric truck charging corridor, Tesla to get $40M

“The project will facilitate the construction of 345 electric truck charging ports and pull-through truck charging stalls across 14 sites throughout Illinois[…. E]lectrifying [the 30,000 daily long-haul] trucks would make a huge impact in the public health and quality of life along the heavily populated roadways.”

6. Reinventing the South Florida seawall to help marine life, buffer rising seas

“[The new seawall] features raised areas inspired by mangrove roots that are intended to both provide nooks and crannies for fish and crabs and other marine creatures and also better absorb some of the impact from waves and storm surges.”

7. Long Beach Commits to 100% All-Electric Garbage Trucks

“[Diesel garbage trucks] produce around a quarter of all diesel pollution in California and contribute to 1,400 premature deaths every year. Electric options, on the other hand, are quieter than their diesel counterparts and produce zero tailpipe emissions.”

8. ‘This Is a Victory': Biden Affirms ERA Has Been 'Ratified' and Law of the Land

“President Joe Biden on Friday announced his administration's official opinion that the amendment is ratified and its protections against sex-based discrimination are enshrined in the U.S. Constitution.”

9. A Little-Known Clean Energy Solution Could Soon Reach ‘Liftoff’

“Ground source heat pumps could heat and cool the equivalent of 7 million homes by 2035—up from just over 1 million today[…. G]eothermal energy is generally considered to be more popular among Republicans than other forms of clean energy, such as wind and solar.”

10. Researchers combine citizens' help and cutting-edge tech to track biodiversity

“Researchers in the project, which runs from 2022 to 2026, are experimenting with tools like drones, cameras and sensors to collect detailed data on different species, [… and] Observation.org, a global biodiversity platform where people submit pictures of animals and plants, helping to identify and monitor them.”

January 8-14 news here | (all credit for images and written material can be found at the source linked; I don’t claim credit for anything but curating.)

[globalnewscollective]

The U.S. Is Now Sending Nonviolent Migrants to Guantanamo Bay—This Should Alarm You

What’s Happening?

It’s happening. The United States is no longer just sending violent criminals to Guantanamo Bay—low-risk, nonviolent migrants are now being detained there as well.

Despite publicly claiming that only the “worst of the worst” would be held in Guantanamo, the Trump administration has quietly begun transferring nonviolent asylum seekers and undocumented immigrants to the facility. According to CBS News, AP News, and The New York Times, many of these migrants have little to no criminal history. Some don’t even have any legal offenses beyond simply being undocumented—which, under U.S. law, is a civil violation, not a crime.

Guantanamo Bay, infamous for housing alleged 9/11 conspirators and suspected terrorists, is now being repurposed as a detention center for innocent people fleeing violence and poverty. And this is only the beginning—more transfers are already scheduled.

Why This Should Terrify You

The detention of nonviolent migrants in Guantanamo Bay is a dangerous escalation of anti-immigration policies, and here’s why:

A Legal and Ethical Nightmare: Guantanamo Bay operates under different legal standards than the mainland U.S., meaning detained migrants may face indefinite detention without due process.

A Dark Expansion of Executive Power: This sets a precedent for mass detention of vulnerable populations under the guise of “national security.” If migrants can be sent to Guantanamo today, who will be next?

A Humanitarian Crisis in the Making: Guantanamo Bay is notorious for human rights abuses, and keeping asylum seekers in such a facility is both cruel and unnecessary.

A Step Toward Normalizing Mass Incarceration of Migrants: The U.S. already detains thousands of asylum seekers in ICE facilities—now, the government is pushing the boundaries even further.

This isn’t just about immigration. It’s about human rights, unchecked government power, and the erosion of democratic values.

Why This Matters to You

If you’re a young person, a woman, or part of a marginalized community, you should pay attention. This isn’t just about “border control”—this is about setting legal precedents that could affect all of us.

Today, it’s migrants. Tomorrow, it could be activists, journalists, or political opponents. Expanding detention policies under the banner of “security” historically leads to broader repression.

This is a test run for more authoritarian policies. The government is seeing how far it can go without public backlash. If we don’t push back, they’ll keep going.

Your tax dollars are funding human rights violations. The U.S. is spending millions to expand Guantanamo’s detention capabilities instead of investing in humane immigration solutions.

The Bigger Picture

The detention of nonviolent migrants in Guantanamo is part of a much larger trend: the global rise of authoritarian policies disguised as national security measures. This is not just about Trump—it’s about the broader shift towards an America where human rights and civil liberties are secondary to political power.

Internationally, we’ve seen this playbook before. Governments begin with demonizing a vulnerable group, then expand repression tactics under the guise of “keeping the country safe.” It’s happening here, now.

What Can You Do?

Spread the word. Most Americans don’t even know this is happening. Share this information, talk about it, and demand media coverage.

Pressure lawmakers. Contact your representatives and demand action against the inhumane detention of migrants.

Support organizations fighting for migrant rights. Groups like the ACLU, RAICES, and Human Rights Watch are actively working to hold the government accountable.

Stay informed. The situation is evolving, and silence only helps those in power. Follow updates from trusted sources and keep the conversation going.

We are witnessing history, and not the kind we want to tell future generations about. If we don’t act now, we risk normalizing an era where Guantanamo Bay isn’t just for accused terrorists—it’s for anyone the government deems inconvenient.

The time to speak out is now.

[crows-are-gathering]

We need your voice. Right now, the future of salmon and steelhead in the Columbia and Snake Rivers is on the line.

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council (NPCC) is reviewing and revising its Fish and Wildlife Plan, a process that determines how the region protects salmon impacted by dams. But once again, Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) — the entity that operates and sells power from the lower Snake River dams — is attempting to gut recovery efforts.

BPA is trying to walk away from its legal responsibilities. BPA has proposed eliminating NPCC’s long-held goal of 5 million salmon returning annually to the Columbia River Basin and claims it has no legal obligation to meet any salmon recovery targets at all. This directly contradicts BPA’s mandate under the Northwest Power Act “to protect, mitigate, and enhance salmon populations to the extent they are affected by the federal hydrosystem.” (Learn more)

On the other hand, for the first time ever, NPCC staff are recommending modeling dam breach and “fish-first” scenarios for dam operations. This is a crucial step toward developing solutions that support both abundant salmon and affordable, reliable energy — and it reflects the recommendations of state and Tribal fish and wildlife experts across the region.

This is a critical moment. With the Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement now dissolved and federal threats to the Endangered Species Act growing, the NPCC’s decisions matter more than ever.

We cannot allow BPA to move the goalposts. We must demand that NPCC hold the line — and act swiftly for fish, Tribes, and the people of the Northwest.

Take action by July 3:

Submit a public comment telling NPCC to reject BPA’s reckless recommendations and to include dam breaching and fish-first modeling in its updated plans.

Sample Comment:

Dear Chair Milburn and Council Members,

As a resident, taxpayer, and energy customer in the Northwest, I am deeply concerned about the crisis facing salmon and steelhead in the Columbia Basin. I strongly urge the Council to reject the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA)’s proposal to lower salmon recovery goals and instead adopt recommendations from state and Tribal experts to include modelling for dam breach and “fish first” hydro operations in the Council’s 2026 Fish and Wildlife Program and Power Plan.

BPA’s proposal to eliminate the 5 million salmon return goal and adult return benchmarks would undermine recovery efforts – attempting to redefine the problem rather than solve it. These goals are essential for accountability, funding, and meaningful progress on fish recovery. BPA’s stance that it has no legal obligation to meet these goals directly contradicts its mandate under the Northwest Power Act “to protect, mitigate, and enhance salmon populations to the extent they are affected by the federal hydrosystem.”

I also support including dam breach and “fish first” scenarios in program modeling. Understanding the impact of these scenarios on energy production is critical to developing solutions that support both healthy salmon runs and affordable, reliable energy – which is the core of the Council’s mission.

Energy is replaceable. Our region’s wild salmon and steelhead are not. I strongly urge you to maintain these important goals and benchmarks as you finalize the 2026 Fish and Wildlife Program, and ensure BPA meets its obligations to salmon, Tribes, and our entire region.

Thank you for your consideration.

[YOUR NAME]

[YOUR CITY, STATE]

[eugenedebs1920]

As of Monday afternoon the wildfires in California had consumed over 36,000 acres leaving a death toll of 24. When asked in an interview regarding funding for disaster relief, Alabama senator Tommy Tubervill said this “We shouldn’t be [funding California]. They got 30 million people in that state they vote in these imbeciles in to office” former collage football coach and by far the dumbest senator continued, “you go in to California you run in to a lot of Republicans, a lot of good people and I hate it for them. But they are just overwhelmed by these inner city woke policies with people who vote for them. Those people don’t deserve anything unless they show that they’re going to make some changes”.

Notwithstanding the not so subtle racism of ‘inner city woke’ comment, exactly what is the senator from the state ranked 44th out of 50 for living standards, health, education, opportunity, natural environment, ect, saying?

Alabama’s GDP grosses $300 billion, with a population of a little over 5.1 million people, they are the 14th highest recipient of federal welfare assistance, they are 45th in education and 44th in overall health. Over 360,000 residents receive rental assistance and nutritional assistance.

Yes. California ranks number one for dollar amount federal assistance. Although upon further analysis the percentages are far less unbalanced as the numbers would suggest.

California is the WORLDS 5th largest economy, grossing $3,862 billion annually, with a population of nearly 40 million. That is over 10 times the annual revenue Alabama takes in, with almost 10 times the population as well.

Does California have its share of difficult circumstances it deals with, with some questionable solutions to do so? Yes. Yet seeing as it’s the top contributor to federal tax revenue they obviously are functioning beyond the norm.

Overall the states that fund this nation the most are, California, New York, New Jersey, Texas, Pennsylvania and Florida. States such as the Dakotas, Wyoming, Mississippi, Kentucky, and yes, Alabama, contribute a dismal amount in contrast.

Let’s look back to late summer of last year. When two hurricanes devastated the the lower southeastern states, Helene causing monumental destruction and incredible loss of life. Did the Biden administration use these disasters as a political tool? Did he suggest that they shouldn’t get funding until they remedy their bigoted, unconstitutional voter suppression and gerrymandering? No. He said that the United States government is here for you. While right wing politicians and media plastered the victims with false statements and misinformation, confusing and misleading the afflicted Americans, FEMA and the Biden administration begged the survivors to reach out for help. The politically motivated lies even spurred FEMA to create a specific website combating the false claims and offering assistance.

There’s the old saying, Rome wasn’t made in a day, the recovery from these massive events unfortunately takes time also. Yet NEVER did Democrats or Biden lead folks astray, exploit their vulnerability, or abandon them. I know, I reside in a county that was declared a disaster area after Helene. The federal response was quick, and thorough.

What did the right do? Lie. Mislead. Frighten. Contrive a self serving narrative. Enrage those impacted and scrambling to piece their lives back together.

The void of compassion, the insufficiency of truth, the lack of maturity from much of the right is astounding. When did we begin using the suffering of Americans as a tool to advance your political agenda? When did it become the status quo to segregate assistance to only those who align with your political views? What was the moment when helping your fellow American out in a time of need was tethered to conditions?

In my just over 40 years on this earth I’ve seen the GOP go from being a party of fiscal responsibility, “Christian family values”, the party of law and order, and the party of high moral standards, to now where over a quarter of the current deficit was created in one Republican presidential term, a party of nominating, elected and confirming sexual assailants and predators (not just Trump), a party that not only backs and supports a felonious insurrectionist, but tiptoes, if not flat out violates the Constitution and rule of law, and a party that has no self awareness of its own misgivings.

Personally. I want leaders who are far more intelligent and far more qualified than me to be in charge. I want leaders who harbor self restraint and possess an extraordinary sense of moral fortitude. I want leaders with grace and maturity running the various aspects of this country. I want leaders who care and hold reverence to their values and to the oath of office they swear to.

Can we go back to a time where those who represent us were adults? Can we go back to a time where government was beholden to you as an American citizen regardless if you reside in a blue state or red state? Can we go back to a time where leadership wasn’t a popularity, tribalist, culture war crusade?

We are all humans. We all feel pain. We all feel joy. We all bleed red. Most importantly we are all citizens of the United States of America, key word united.

This shouldn’t be this hard. It shouldn’t be this controversial or complicated. We are one nation, we all want to see it flourish. We all do better when we are all doing better.

So please! Let’s return to decency. To compassion. To respect. To some mild form of social adhesion.

[autisticadvocacy]

HHS, under the direction of RFK Jr., has hired known conspiracy theorist and quack David Geier to run a planned study which will investigate the thoroughly disproven idea of a link between childhood vaccinations and autism. David Geier and his father Mark have a scandalous past of subjecting autistic children to unproven medical treatments for their own financial gain. They have published multiple fake studies claiming a link between vaccines and autism. Hiring David Geier is a clear indication that the Trump administration plans to rig the upcoming study and claim that it proves vaccines cause autism. This will set public health back decades at a time when vaccine hesitancy and infectious disease are both spreading at alarming rates. This plan will harm autistic people and the health of all Americans. We urge members of Congress to demand accountability from HHS for this dangerous and destructive decision.

Fake studies

In papers that one public health researcher described as “riddled with basic flaws,” David Geier and his father Mark Geier have repeatedly claimed that there is a link between vaccines and autism. The Geiers, who have profited from promoting junk science about vaccines and autism to both courts and patients, did not declare all of their financial conflicts of interest in their papers. For one of their “studies,” rather than seeking approval from an institutional review board (IRB) the Geiers simply created their own “sham” IRB made up of their family members and business associates. This and other issues led to the paper being withdrawn by the journal.

There is every reason to believe that in his role at HHS, David Geier will continue to do what he has always done: use flawed and unethical methodology to ensure the result that will benefit him the most.

Fake cures

The Geiers argued that autism was caused by mercury poisoning from vaccines, a lie that has been disproven again and again. They said that the “mercury” raised testosterone levels in autistic children. They claimed that the solution was lowering testosterone in autistic children with high doses of the prostate cancer drug Lupron, with Mark Geier claiming that “Lupron is the miracle drug” for autism. Lupron did nothing to help the many autistic children whose families were duped by the Geiers. It can, however, cause serious side effects including pain and osteoporosis. The Geiers charged families $5,000 to $6,000 a month (in 2009) for Lupron “treatments”. 

Because of this fake “cure”, Mark Geier’s medical license was revoked in 9 states. David Geier, who has no medical degree, was fined for practicing medicine without a license. Anyone who would fleece families with fake cures should not be trusted to interpret a scientific study, let alone conduct one.

Real consequences

Vaccines save lives. Vaccine hesitancy leads to deaths from vaccine-preventable diseases. By even announcing that they will study a disproven link between vaccines and autism, the Trump administration will further erode public confidence that vaccines are safe and effective. If David Geier is allowed to cherry-pick the study’s “results,” even fewer families will choose to vaccinate their children. 

The news of Geier’s new role comes at a time when measles is spreading across the country, uptake of COVID vaccines is low, and avian flu threatens to become a pandemic. If vaccine levels continue to drop, we could see the resurgence of yet more infectious diseases. This could cause hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths and serious injuries, and force disabled and immunocompromised people out of public life.

The Trump administration is cutting research funding across the board, including for studies on autism. Millions of dollars to help autistic students find careers in STEM were cut, as was research on making autism diagnosis practices better (ASAN was a partner on that study). This administration is not interested in expanding autism research to address the most critical quality-of-life issues facing autistic people. Instead, they choose to spend taxpayer money paying a con artist to rig a vaccine “study.”

In hiring David Geier, the Trump administration has abandoned its responsibility to safeguard public health and promote science. This move towards conspiracy theories and junk science puts all our lives at risk. We deserve better from our government. ASAN will do all we can to oppose this planned “study,” and will let you know if there are opportunities for action.

[stjohnstarling]

At some point between 2019-2021, the internet conquered mainstream media, viral content replaced traditional corporate entertainment, and Republicans have first mover’s advantage. This is their victory lap after all the shameless years they spent posting Pepe the Frog memes and setting up YouTube channels to brainwash children. But I am surprised by how thoroughly the Democrats and, more generally, leftists and liberals have ceded internet culture, as a whole, to the right. Every meme, every format, every platform is fertile ground for an adversarial regime that knows how to spin them into cheap and easy propaganda and there is no line they aren’t willing to cross. You can quibble, and say that conservatives are better funded or less squeamish about being cringe or care less about telling the truth. But none of that really changes the fact that social media, the machine that now decides what pop culture looks like, is now an inherently right-wing space. And regardless of what explanation you subscribe to as to how we got to this point, that is a huge cultural loss for the left. And one without a clear solution in sight. And, no, sorry, telling people to log off is not an effective response when we’re talking about democratic action. Even if you, personally, don’t like using the internet anymore, it is more popular and more influential than ever before. We’re not going back. But it’s not all doom and gloom here. We’re seeing the beginnings of our first internet-led protest movement of the second Trump administration. Which is heartening. It was responsible for organizing many of the marches earlier this week in cities across America. It’s calling itself 50501 and it’s primarily organizing on Reddit. It’s the first real sign that maybe the opposition can let go of their millennial luddism and embrace technology to push back. Though, they are currently arguing over what their actual message is. So, I guess we’ll have to wait and see how things play out.

Garbage Day

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Prem Thakker at Zeteo:

An overwhelming share of likely Democratic primary voters – 71% – say the US should restrict military aid to Israel until it stops attacking civilians in Gaza, supports Palestinian rights, and commits to a long-term peace process, according to a recent Data for Progress–Zeteo poll of likely Democratic primary voters. As the Democratic Party faces an identity crisis following its 2024 loss, the new data point is yet another indicator that Democratic voters want to depart from the party establishment consensus in favor of something more progressive.

And it’s not just Israel-Palestine. The voters surveyed were asked to choose between a more progressive and a more moderate approach to six issues: the Israel-Palestine conflict, transgender sports policy, economic policy, healthcare, climate policy, and immigration. On nearly every issue, the poll found likely Democratic primary voters clearly favored a more progressive approach. The dynamic was strongest in the case of Israel-Palestine. While 71% of respondents preferred the US condition military aid to Israel, just 20% chose the more moderate option: continuing to support Israel and “its right to defend itself,” while “encouraging efforts to reduce civilian harm and promote long-term peace” – the Biden administration’s posture.

Voters under the age of 45 felt even stronger – with 80% favoring restricting aid and just 13% supporting the status quo posture. Such numbers were striking, given how the Kamala Harris campaign refused to diverge from the Biden administration on several issues, infamously on Israel and Palestine. That stubborn refusal contributed to Harris’ eventual loss – and in the months since Donald Trump took power, the world has witnessed an even more severe ramp-up of violence against Palestinians and repression of their supporters in the US. The new polling underscores that Democratic voters have coalesced on an opinion starkly different from what the Biden-Harris administration maintained during the final year of its presidency.

Other Key Issues

The Democratic primary voters surveyed were more split on immigration – with 49% favoring a progressive approach that includes reducing deportations, expanding asylum access, and providing a pathway to citizenship for all undocumented immigrants, while 48% favored the Democratic status quo position of increasing border security while creating a legal pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants with long-term ties to the US. Voters were less split when it came to healthcare: 60% of respondents favored a Medicare for All system that would replace most private insurance with a government-funded plan. Conversely, 37% preferred the more moderate approach: improving and expanding the Affordable Care Act, while maintaining private insurance as the main option for most Americans. Those under 45 felt strongly: 70% supported Medicare for All, and 28% favored the latter. Climate has taken a backseat in the US discourse, but the effects have not: 2023 was the hottest recorded year on Earth – and then that record was broken again last year. Some 54% of likely Democratic voters preferred a Green New Deal, while 41% favored the Biden administration’s approach: investing in clean energy and reducing fossil fuel use over time through “market-driven solutions.” While some pundits and lawmakers fixate on “Kamala is for they/them” as the reason Democrats lost in 2024 (and not other possibilities, like unconditionally supporting a genocide, appearing as Diet Republicans, or refusing to distinguish themselves from a previously losing ticket) respondents were less cautious on the matter of transgender people. Some 63% preferred an approach that opposed federal transgender sports bans and supported allowing local school districts and athletic organizations to set participation policies. About 27% supported a federal ban to “reduce political conflict over this issue.” And on economic policy, 62% favored enforcing strong public standards and limiting corporate influence on development and building, while 31% supported focusing on building more housing and infrastructure, even if that meant less government oversight and regulation and fewer restrictions on developers.

According to Data For Progress/Zeteo poll conducted between April 9th and 14th, 71% of likely Democratic primary voters prefer that military aid to Israel be restricted.

On non-Palestine/Israel issues, the progressive side won out, and even immigration was a push.

[batboyblog]

Things the Biden-Harris Administration Did This Week #28

July 19-26 2024

The EPA announced the award of $4.3 billion in Climate Pollution Reduction Grants. The grants support community-driven solutions to fight climate change, and accelerate America’s clean energy transition. The grants will go to 25 projects across 30 states, and one tribal community. When combined the projects will reduce greenhouse gas pollution by as much as 971 million metric tons of CO2, roughly the output of 5 million American homes over 25 years. Major projects include $396 million for Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection as it tries to curb greenhouse gas emissions from industrial production, and $500 million for transportation and freight decarbonization at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

The Biden-Harris Administration announced a plan to phase out the federal government's use of single use plastics. The plan calls for the federal government to stop using single use plastics in food service operations, events, and packaging by 2027, and from all federal operations by 2035. The US government is the single largest employer in the country and the world’s largest purchaser of goods and services. Its move away from plastics will redefine the global market.

The White House hosted a summit on super pollutants with the goals of better measuring them and dramatically reducing them. Roughly half of today's climate change is caused by so called super pollutants, methane, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and nitrous oxide (N2O). Public-private partnerships between NOAA and United Airlines, The State Department and NASA, and the non-profit Carbon Mapper Coalition will all help collect important data on these pollutants. While private firms announced with the White House plans that by early next year will reduce overall U.S. industrial emissions of nitrous oxide by over 50% from 2020 numbers. The summit also highlighted the EPA's new rule to reduce methane from oil and gas by 80%.

The EPA announced $325 million in grants for climate justice. The Community Change Grants Program, powered by President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act will ultimately bring $2 billion dollars to disadvantaged communities and help them combat climate change. Some of the projects funded in this first round of grant were: $20 million for Midwest Tribal Energy Resources Association, which will help weatherize and energy efficiency upgrade homes for 35 tribes in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, $14 million to install onsite wastewater treatment systems throughout 17 Black Belt counties in Alabama, and $14 million to urban forestry, expanding tree canopy in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

The Department of Interior approved 3 new solar projects on public land. The 3 projects, two in Nevada and one in Arizona, once finished could generate enough to power 2 million homes. This comes on top of DoI already having beaten its goal of 25 gigawatts of clean energy projects by the end of 2025, in April 2024. This is all part of President Biden’s goal of creating a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035. 

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen pledged $667 million to global Pandemic Fund. The fund set up in 2022 seeks to support Pandemic prevention, and readiness in low income nations who can't do it on their own. At the G20 meeting Yellen pushed other nations of the 20 largest economies to double their pledges to the $2 billion dollar fund. Yellen highlighted the importance of the fund by saying "President Biden and I believe that a fully-resourced Pandemic Fund will enable us to better prevent, prepare for, and respond to pandemics – protecting Americans and people around the world from the devastating human and economic costs of infectious disease threats,"

The Departments of the Interior and Commerce today announced a $240 million investment in tribal fisheries in the Pacific Northwest. This is in line with an Executive Order President Biden signed in 2023 during the White House Tribal Nations Summit to mpower Tribal sovereignty and self-determination. An initial $54 million for hatchery maintenance and modernization will be made available for 27 tribes in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. The rest will be invested in longer term fishery projects in the coming years.

The IRS announced that thanks to funding from President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, it'll be able to digitize much of its operations. This means tax payers will be able to retrieve all their tax related information from one source, including Wage & Income, Account, Record of Account, and Return transcripts, using on-line Individual Online Account.

The IRS also announced that New Jersey will be joining the direct file program in 2025. The direct file program ran as a pilot in 12 states in 2024, allowing tax-payers in those states to file simple tax returns using a free online filing tool directly with the IRS. In 2024 140,000 Americans were able to file this way, they collectively saved $5.6 million in tax preparation fees, claiming $90 million in returns. The average American spends $270 and 13 hours filing their taxes. More than a million people in New Jersey alone will qualify for direct file next year. Oregon opted to join last month. Republicans in Congress lead by Congressmen Adrian Smith of Nebraska and Chuck Edwards of North Carolina have put forward legislation to do away with direct file.

Bonus: American law enforcement arrested co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada. El Mayo co-founded the cartel in the 1980s along side Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán. Since El Chapo's incarceration in the United States in 2019, El Mayo has been sole head of the Sinaloa Cartel. Authorities also arrested El Chapo's son, Joaquin Guzman Lopez. The Sinaloa Cartel has been a major player in the cross border drug trade, and has often used extreme violence to further their aims.

[specialagentartemis]

Re. your post on AI with no sources (which I'm going to reblog; but I wanted to note this outside of the tags): I work in higher ed too, in administration. As it happens, my program is having a meeting next week, required by the office for undergrad education, to talk about "what we're going to do about Grade Inflation". *SCREAMING* I've been in this job for 24 years. I've seen past attempts to deal with grade inflation! I've seen past attempts to deal with honors inflation! They haven't figured out a solution YET. But what's especially NOT a solution is pushing it down on all of the individual depts. Because all you'll get in that case is inconsistent amounts of change (if any), and all that happens then is that those depts that DO try to address the issue find their enrollments plummeting. It absolutely HAS to be an across-the-university push all at the same time, or nothing is going to work. But yeah, sure, we'll sit around a table next week and talk about how we can grade more harshly. An idea that, as things stand, is basically asking the instructors to kill their enrollments and thus kill their student evaluations, which are examined by the administration when it comes time to renew their job appointment. I do NOT know the solution to all of this. Because there's all that on the one hand, and there's the "college as commodity" issue that you mentioned on the other hand. How do we get to a point where we can get the students to focus on the learning opportunity in front of them, rather than on the distant post-graduation job market? I just don't know, because the whole mindset is so foreign to me. And I think for a lot of teachers, too (which I am not), there's this same issue of... we weren't the ones in that mindset when we were IN college, so it's very hard to understand it now. It's not hard to understand the *fear*, or the pressure. It's just hard to understand the not-caring at all. Anyway. Just wanted to say: solidarity. This is such a big problem. AI is exacerbating it, making it worse, but the problem really was already there.

oooof yeah. Good luck and I’m really sorry about that :(

as one of the reblogs of my post said: the solution to this is UBI. Unfortunately, the solution to quite a lot of things is UBI.

Because that’s the problem, right? It’s not so much that AI exists, it’s that it makes it exponentially easier to just give up and fall into the attitude that is already pervasive anyway. I’ve never had to talk about great inflation but ugh yeah. If college is a commodity, and you need a good grades, and if college is a business, you need to keep coming and paying for those good grades… you have to revamp basically the entire economy to get out of the hole that’s been dug, both by us and for us!

Like, what, we need “college does not cost thousands of dollars” AND ALSO “4-year college is not a requirement for getting a ‘respectable’ job where you can support yourself and survive comfortably” AND ALSO “community college gets respect and support” AND ALSO “professors shouldn’t be expected to teach, research, and do administrative work all at once, all the time” AND ALSO “get rid of the publish or perish model for real” AND ALSO “teaching and public outreach are institutionally valued” AND ALSO “college professors actually get taught how to teach, like get taught education theory and pedagogy” AND ALSO “not have students’ housing or scholarship depend on their grades” AND ALSO “not have a grade school culture of teaching to the test and standardized tests that instills in you for your entire childhood that grades are everything” BUT THAT WOULD MEAN “not funding grade schools/high schools based on student test scores, just actually funding them all for real” AND ALSO “hiring more teachers” BUT THAT WOULD MEAN “making teaching at a school a task that isn’t horribly thankless and burns people out real fast” BUT THAT WOULD ALSO MEAN “making school not a miserable place to be a child” WITH A SIDE OF “make sure everyone is teaching phonics again for real so from a young age, students learn how to read well and don’t struggle with reading and writing in a way that encourages them to give up and use ChatGPT” AND ALSO “generally having a culture that values learning and knowledge rather than money”… it is all SO MUCH and it will be hard to do and also expensive so nobody with the power to fix it really wants to try that hard to do so!!

and yeah, I definitely think you’re right that because all the professors and TAs are the people who liked school enough to keep doing it forever it’s just, incredibly hard to grok the students who don’t care. But the mess of a culture we’re in makes it all so hard to challenge because it feels like we need to untangle EVERYTHING to fix ANYTHING.

UBI would be a great start though.

[reasonsforhope]

"On a blustery day in early March, the who’s who of methane research gathered at Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara, California. Dozens of people crammed into a NASA mission control center. Others watched from cars pulled alongside roads just outside the sprawling facility. Many more followed a livestream. They came from across the country to witness the launch of an oven-sized satellite capable of detecting the potent planet-warming gas from space. 

The amount of methane, the primary component in natural gas, in the atmosphere has been rising steadily over the last few decades, reaching nearly three times as much as preindustrial times. About a third of methane emissions in the United States occur during the extraction of fossil fuels as the gas seeps from wellheads, pipelines, and other equipment. The rest come from agricultural operations, landfills, coal mining, and other sources. Some of these leaks are large enough to be seen from orbit. Others are miniscule, yet contribute to a growing problem.

Identifying and repairing them is a relatively straightforward climate solution. Methane has a warming potential about 80 times higher than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period, so reducing its levels in the atmosphere can help curb global temperature rise. And unlike other industries where the technology to decarbonize is still relatively new, oil and gas companies have long had the tools and know-how to fix these leaks.

MethaneSAT, the gas-detecting device launched in March, is the latest in a growing armada of satellites designed to detect methane. Led by the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund, or EDF, and more than six years in the making, the satellite has the ability to circle the globe 15 times a day and monitor regions where 80 percent of the world’s oil and gas is produced. Along with other satellites in orbit, it is expected to dramatically change how regulators and watchdogs police the oil and gas industry...

A couple hours after the rocket blasted off, Wofsy, Hamburg, and his colleagues watched on a television at a hotel about two miles away as their creation was ejected into orbit. It was a jubilant moment for members of the team, many of whom had traveled to Vandenberg with their partners, parents, and children. “Everybody spontaneously broke into a cheer,” Wofsy said. “You [would’ve] thought that your team scored a touchdown during overtime.”

The data the satellite generates in the coming months will be publicly accessible — available for environmental advocates, oil and gas companies, and regulators alike. Each has an interest in the information MethaneSAT will beam home. Climate advocates hope to use it to push for more stringent regulations governing methane emissions and to hold negligent operators accountable. Fossil fuel companies, many of which do their own monitoring, could use the information to pinpoint and repair leaks, avoiding penalties and recouping a resource they can sell. Regulators could use the data to identify hotspots, develop targeted policies, and catch polluters. For the first time, the Environmental Protection Agency is taking steps to be able to use third-party data to enforce its air quality regulations, developing guidelines for using the intelligence satellites like MethaneSAT will provide. The satellite is so important to the agency’s efforts that EPA Administrator Michael Regan was in Santa Barbara for the launch as was a congressional lawmaker. Activists hailed the satellite as a much-needed tool to address climate change. 

“This is going to radically change the amount of empirically observed data that we have and vastly increase our understanding of the amount of methane emissions that are currently happening and what needs to be done to reduce them,” said Dakota Raynes, a research and policy manager at the environmental nonprofit Earthworks. “I’m hopeful that gaining that understanding is going to help continue to shift the narrative towards [the] phase down of fossil fuels.”

With the satellite safely orbiting 370 miles above the Earth’s surface, the mission enters a critical second phase. In the coming months, EDF researchers will calibrate equipment and ensure the satellite works as planned. By next year [2025], it is expected to transmit reams of information from around the world."

-via Grist, April 7, 2024

[tomorrowusa]

Trump's response to the air disaster over the Potomac River which he indirectly contributed to is typical. He evades responsibility while spewing outright lies to distract attention.

Trump’s Racist Rants Conceal the Right’s Air Safety Failures

The number of air traffic controllers declined in each year of Trump’s first presidency. Then Trump plunged air traffic controllers (and other federal workers) into uncertainty during the 2018–19 government shutdown, which forced controllers to work without pay—a major blow to their already battered morale. That shutdown only ended, it should be remembered, when enough New York area controllers called in sick to ground flights on the East Coast. The Biden years saw a slow rebuild of controller ranks. But warning signs of a systemic crisis were growing. Training of new controllers was disrupted by the Covid pandemic, and staffing shortages continued. A spate of near-misses led the FAA to convene a unusual “safety summit” on March 23, 2023, to discuss solutions, and the office of Department of Transportation Inspector General Eric J. Soskin completed a 2023 audit that found that 20 of the FAA most critical facilities 26 (77 percent) were below the 85 percent minimum staffing levels and supervisors were mandating overtime and six-day work weeks to cover staff shortages. Biden’s FAA hired 1,811 controllers in 2024, and his 2025 budget sought funding to hire 2,000 more. Trump’s return to the presidency has already been a setback for air safety. He fired DOT Inspector General Soskin, who illuminated the extent of the FAA’s staffing problems. Trump’s White House alter ego Elon Musk succeeded in driving Biden’s FAA administrator, Mike Whitaker, from office even before Trump was sworn in, because Whitaker’s FAA had the temerity to fine SpaceX for safety violations. Musk even went so far as to claim that “humanity will forever be confined to Earth unless there is radical reform at the FAA!” That Trump’s FAA intends radical changes seems clear. Astonishingly, his letter encouraging federal workers to resign their positions and find private sector jobs went to air traffic controllers despite the continued staffing crisis at the nation’s airports. [ ... ] Trump’s “deep state” conspiracy theories and obsession with DEI are doing far graver harm, reducing the right’s anti-government discourse to authoritarian theater and farce. Make no mistake, these recent events are a harbinger of what is to come. Trump’s effort to deflect attention to DEI should not avert our eyes from the larger collision that threatens the very functioning of our government unless we make a course correction.

If you can avoid flying during the next few years, please wait.

A reminder of the true DEI...

^^^ Copy and use frequently!