autism-goblin

[autism-goblin]

[autism-goblin]

all right I do need to be an annoying anarchist for a minute because once again, I am seeing a worrying trend of a specific phrase being co-opted out of its original context and worse yet, being framed as being in direct opposition of the political framework that created it. i'm making this my own post and not screenshotting as not to shame anyone because I think this is an ignorance issue and not a maliciousness issue, but that doesn't make it any less insidious.

that phrase is harm reduction.

harm reduction, at least as I can best describe it, refers to community-based programs designed to address public health issues, primarily in reference to drug use but it can also be applied to sexual health and other health issues, that gives people access to safe and informed care without fear of punishment nor expectations of abstinence. one of the most famous examples of this are needle exchange programs, which are extremely effective in preventing the negative consequence of heroin use like infections and overdose and even lessen heroin use all while giving heroin users clean syringes to (presumably) do heroin with. it gives people the choice and accepts some will choose to continue their usage and those who do still deserve to live as safely and supported by their community as possible.

whatever you personally want to use harm reduction to mean, it cannot be separated from its original context of being an anti-carceral approach to public health issues particularly those that are criminalized that comes from anti-carceral far-left activism. in order to understand harm reduction, you must understand that while not every single person who works in harm reduction comes into it as a full prison abolitionist, it still goes hand-in-hand with the long-term goal of prison abolition, and because of the US carceral system being so heavily steeped in racist and specifically anti-black policies, both of harm reduction and prison abolition cannot be removed from the even broader context of racial justice. to pretend otherwise is ahistoric.

it is not the same as reformism. it should not be used as a synonym for reformism. we can quibble about the usefulness of reformism and how much of an end goal it should be at a separate time, but that is a wholly separate conversation. this is about a specific type of activism and the tradition it comes out of. this is about the people who have done and continue to do this much needed work. these are not things you can just wave away because you want to make a point about how people on the internet are annoying you. this is what "harm reduction" means. it is not a buzzword to be taken lightly lest you seek to erase the very real people who engage with these programs and the very real history of these programs.

so when I see "harm reduction" being used as an alternative to or even an antonym for abolitionism (also I'd like anyone saying this to specify what kind of abolitionism they're talking about because that's sketchy as all fuck), it becomes very clear that at best, you don't understand what you are saying and at worst, don't care you're saying some privileged and frankly anti-black bullshit and just want to dunk on people further left than you. harm reduction programs and prison abolition are so closely tied that the more you engage with one the more likely you are to become the other. even if you come to them as both, a better understanding of one naturally informs the other that's how frankly inseparable they are.

this is important to understand because we are currently living through a period where we can so transparently see the carceral system at work. not broken or manipulated by bad actors, but work exactly as intended. it has always been a machine meant to cage, exploit, and execute society's "undesirables." it has simply gone mask off, as they say. you need to understand that before you try to tell me your heavily sanitized and misapplied concept of "harm reduction" is a preferable alternative to "abolition," that what you are arguing is that we simply put the mask back on the machine. that it is okay to sacrifice others to that machine so long as you do not have to fear being on the chopping block, that perhaps there are undesirables and as long as they are the ones suffering, it is an acceptable loss. then you have the audacity to call those who believe in abolition purists for saying there are no undesirables and that none are free until the machine is gone.

of course, I think most of you would agree with me when you stop to think about it, and that is exactly what I mean when I call this rhetoric insidious. it takes long established leftist ideology and action and reframes it into something vague and easily digested and uses it to discredit and demonize those who understand its true meaning. this is what i mean when I call it reactionary liberal bullshit. it is the desperate justifications of centrists who are so afraid of fascists that they will feed them living, breathing people so long as those people are strangers they have thoroughly dehumanized. I truly believe you can always change your mind, but in order to do so, and I know I keep saying this again and again but it keeps bearing repetition, you need to learn how to recognize what kind of rhetoric you are falling for and repeating and consider who benefits from it. because when you're using "abolitionist (derogatory)," something has gone very, very wrong along the line.

[autism-goblin]

[autism-goblin]

The World's Forests Are Doing Much Better Than We Think

You might be surprised to discover... that many of the world’s woodlands are in a surprisingly good condition. The destruction of tropical forests gets so much (justified) attention that we’re at risk of missing how much progress we’re making in cooler climates.

That’s a mistake. The slow recovery of temperate and polar forests won’t be enough to offset global warming, without radical reductions in carbon emissions. Even so, it’s evidence that we’re capable of reversing the damage from the oldest form of human-induced climate change — and can do the same again.

Take England. Forest coverage now is greater than at any time since the Black Death nearly 700 years ago, with some 1.33 million hectares of the country covered in woodlands. The UK as a whole has nearly three times as much forest as it did at the start of the 20th century.

That’s not by a long way the most impressive performance. China’s forests have increased by about 607,000 square kilometers since 1992, a region the size of Ukraine. The European Union has added an area equivalent to Cambodia to its woodlands, while the US and India have together planted forests that would cover Bangladesh in an unbroken canopy of leaves.

Logging in the tropics means that the world as a whole is still losing trees. Brazil alone removed enough woodland since 1992 to counteract all the growth in China, the EU and US put together. Even so, the planet’s forests as a whole may no longer be contributing to the warming of the planet. On net, they probably sucked about 200 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere each year between 2011 and 2020, according to a 2021 study. The CO2 taken up by trees narrowly exceeded the amount released by deforestation. That’s a drop in the ocean next to the 53.8 billion tons of greenhouse gases emitted in 2022 — but it’s a sign that not every climate indicator is pointing toward doom...

More than a quarter of Japan is covered with planted forests that in many cases are so old they’re barely recognized as such. Forest cover reached its lowest extent during World War II, when trees were felled by the million to provide fuel for a resource-poor nation’s war machine. Akita prefecture in the north of Honshu island was so denuded in the early 19th century that it needed to import firewood. These days, its lush woodlands are a major draw for tourists.

It’s a similar picture in Scandinavia and Central Europe, where the spread of forests onto unproductive agricultural land, combined with the decline of wood-based industries and better management of remaining stands, has resulted in extensive regrowth since the mid-20th century. Forests cover about 15% of Denmark, compared to 2% to 3% at the start of the 19th century.

Even tropical deforestation has slowed drastically since the 1990s, possibly because the rise of plantation timber is cutting the need to clear primary forests. Still, political incentives to turn a blind eye to logging, combined with historically high prices for products grown and mined on cleared tropical woodlands such as soybeans, palm oil and nickel, mean that recent gains are fragile.

There’s no cause for complacency in any of this. The carbon benefits from forests aren’t sufficient to offset more than a sliver of our greenhouse pollution. The idea that they’ll be sufficient to cancel out gross emissions and get the world to net zero by the middle of this century depends on extraordinarily optimistic assumptions on both sides of the equation.

Still, we should celebrate our success in slowing a pattern of human deforestation that’s been going on for nearly 100,000 years. Nothing about the damage we do to our planet is inevitable. With effort, it may even be reversible.

-via Bloomburg, January 28, 2024

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lest this be lost in the bellicose noise of the day

[autism-goblin]

If you're in NYC and you haven't voted yet I'm gonna need you to go tomorrow and rank Zohran Mamdani #1. Tomorrow is the last day for early voting and then you won't get a chance again until Tuesday. It's extremely important that we elect Zohran.

His platform centers the following:

Affordable housing

Freezing the rent

Fast and free busses

Department of Community safety

No cost childcare

City owned grocery stores

Taxing corporations and the wealthy to pay for all of this

Here is a direct link to the platform with more details.

DO NOT RANK CUOMO.

Andrew Cuomo is a rapist. He's a Zionist who is literally on Netanyahu's defense team against the ICC. And his primary interest is upholding the status quo. He's backed by billionaires and landlords. NYC cannot afford a mayor like this.

If you are registered to vote in NYC I'm begging you to do so. We have a real chance here

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I can't access the whole article but um. The US just bombed Iran

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For all of the northerners that stood up for Texas during our freeze and said, "Don't make fun of them, they've never dealt with this before. Their infrastructure isn't made for snow and freezing."

This one is for you.

Where I live 108°F with 80% humidity with no wind is normal.

Pacific North West is dealing historic best waves 35-40°C or 95-105°F.

First of all. Don't make fun of them for bitching about the heat. Just like Texas isn't built for a freeze and our pipes burst, Pacific North West isn't built for heat and a lot of their homes don't have AC.

If you live somewhere with a high humidity like 80+ HUMIDITY IS NOT YOUR FRIEND. The "humidity makes it feel cooler" is a lie once it gets beyond a point.

If you live somewhere with a lower humidity, misters are nice to cool off outside.

Once you get over 90°F (32°C) a fan will not help you. It's just pushing around hot air. (I mean if you can't afford a small AC unit because they're expensive as hell, by all means a fan is better than nothing).

Window AC units will let mosquitoes or other small bugs in. Sucks, but that's life.

Now is not the time to me modest. If you have to cover for religious reasons, by all means. If you don't, I've seen people wear short shorts and a swim top. It's not trashy if it keeps you from getting heat stroke.

If you do have to cover up for religious reasons, look for elephant pants or something similar. They're made with a breathable material.

Shade is better than no shade, but that shit it just diet sun after some point. Don't think shade will save you from heat stroke.

I know the "drink your water" is a fun meme now, but if you're sweating excessively you need electrolytes. Drink Gatorade, Powerade, or Pedialite PLEASE. I don't care if you're fucking sitting in one spot all day. That shit WILL save you from heat stroke.

Most importantly. RESEARCH THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HEAT STROKE AND HEAT EXHAUSTION PLEASE!

If you're diabetic and can't drink Gatorade, mix water, fruit juice, and either lite salt or pink salt

If you can afford it, cover windows with thick curtains to insulate the house

If you have tile floors, lay on them with skin to tile contact. If you don't, laying your head on cool counters works too.

If the temperature where you're at is hotter than your body temperature, don't wear heat wicking clothing. Moisture wicking is safe though.

Check your medication labels. Many make you more susceptible to sun and heat

-Room temperature water will get into your body faster. This is something I learned doing marching band in high summer in Georgia, and it saved all of our asses. Sip it, don't gulp it, especially if you're getting into the red; same goes for whatever fluid you're drinking. And just in general drink during the day.

-If you are moving from an air conditioned space to an un-air conditioned space, if at all possible try to make the shift gradual. When my dad and I were working outside and in un-ac houses a few years ago, he'd turn the air down to low in the truck about ten-fifteen minutes before we got where we were going. This way your body doesn't go from low low temps to high temps. S'bad for you.

-If you can, keep your lights off during the day. Light bulbs may not generate a lot of heat, but the difference is noticeable when it gets hot enough. I literally only turn my bedroom light on in the evening when it gets too dark.

Don't be afraid to just like... pour water on yourself if you need to. The evaporation will cool you off.

Put your hand to the cement for 15 seconds. If you can't handle the heat, it'll burn your dog's paws. Don't let them walk on it.

Dogs with flat faces are more prone to heat stroke. Don't leave them out unsupervised.

Frozen fruit is delicious in water.

Wet/Cold hat/handkerchief on your head/neck will help you stay cool.

Pickle juice is great for electrolytes! You can even make pickle juice Popsicles!

Heat exhaustion is more, "drink water and get you cooled off." Heat stroke is more "Oh my god call 911."

Image Description provided by @loveize

[Image description: an infographic showing the difference between heat exhaustion and heat stroke. The graphic is labeled "Heat Dangers: First Warning." Signs of heat exhaustion: faint or dizzy, excessive sweating, cool, pale, clammy skin, rapid, weak pulse, muscle cramps. If you think you or someone else may be experiencing heat exhaustion, get to a cool, air-conditioned place, drink water if conscious, and take a cool shower or use cold compress. Signs of heat stroke: throbbing headache, no sweating, red, hot, dry skin, rapid, strong pulse, may lose consciousness. If you think you or someone else may be experiencing heat stroke, call 911. End description]

Be safe.

-fae

[autism-goblin]

The Technology We Have Already

Today I want to talk about one Solarpunk-thingie, that kinda annoys me - and has to do with a lot with how real-life politians deal with talking about technology and especially energy technologies.

And this is the following fact:

We already have the technology! This is not some SciFi shit!

See, the issue within the politics tends to be, that a lot of folks go: "Oh, yeah, we would LOVE to go renewable. But right it is not possible! Once the technology gets there, we will totally go 100% renewable!"

And basically a lot of Solarpunks online are also waiting for the technology to get there. Again, there is sadly a big group of folks who technically love the aesthetics of Solarpunk and also generally the idea of a Solarpunk future, but do not engage with it over it. And they usually will also wait for technology to get there.

But it already is.

Let me talk about it.

We can produce enough renewable energy

In a way I get it. If you are not working in any fields related to this - and do not follow science news - you might just not know how fast the renewable energy field is moving right now. 10 years ago, yes, a lot of countries would have been able to go 100% renewable, but not all. It depended basically on the climate and environment. Partly because the photovoltaic (what most people call solar, but us engineers use solar for something a bit different) cells were just not as efficient in certain climates. And while the mix of wind and hydro power could do A LOT for many countries, it could not for all.

However, that was mainly before China really pulled all the stops for their research. No, it is not only China, but holy shit, China's research in terms of photovoltaic is insane. If you follow this, you basically will see a new breakthrough - often from China - every couple months. And by now, the efficiency of photovoltaic is insane. Sure, it might not make sense as the only source of energy in places were you basically do not get any sunlight for half the year, but outside of that? It is so darn good.

Other than that, we are really darn good with wind energy (which to my opinion is still the best way of producing energy) and hydro energy.

Don't get me wrong: We can totally improve those things further and further. But we can absolutely power the world on renewables right now. We do not need fossile fuels right now!

We can build climate-friendly transport!

I will remind y'all once more: Electric cars are definitely better than gas powered cars, for those people and situations in which cars are needed. (Read: For emergency services, certain forms of service work who need to transport stuff outside of the rail network, and probably also some people who live very isolated for certain reasons.) However, they are still cars and suck for this reason, if you do not REALLY need them.

Still, we are fucking good by now in building electric cars and for those scenarios where they are needed. Heck, by now in my city pretty much all public transport runs electric, including the busses. And no, they are not tram busses.

And yeah, turns out, we figured out how to build railways more than 200 years ago, and we figured out how to electricize them in 1881. Yes. 1881. 18 in the front. Almost 150 years ago. Sure, back then we were not that good with it, but we managed to build one for intracity transport that worked - and worked for long.

Yes, admittedly, there are some forms of transport that right now we might indeed need fossil fuels for. Right now, we have no method to fly planes and helicopters in a way that is both mass-producable and renewable. And the same is with transcontinental transport via the ocean.

Yeah, sure. We can technically just go fully low tech and just sail. That works. Heck, while it is about half as quick as modern ways to transport over the ocean, it is feasible. However, we just cannot move the amounts of cargo we might need to move with sailing. There are people figuring this out (partly through creating much better sails that work for MUCH BIGGER ships) but yeah, we are not there yet.

Still, a) a lot of the intercontinental stuff we technically do not need to transport (most of it is using cheap quasi-slave labor to save money), and b) that should not stop us from just doing sustainable on-land transport which we can do.

We also know how to build a better society

Now, a lot of the folks going for the Solarpunk aesthetics rather than philosophy are quite often very mistrustful of both anarchism and communism - or heck, just socialism. They often have drunken the capitalist cool-aid of capitalism being the "only system that works". But here is the thing: It doesn't.

Sure, there are versions of capitalism that would work a whole lot better than the Chicago-flavored one, but it will never really work - especially in regards to saving the environment. I talked about that a lot before.

But here is the thing. We know how it works better. We know how to build a better society. We know how to make economics work better. We know how to make better schools. We know how to build better cities. We know how to prevent at least a lot of wars. We know how to make society safer for kids. We know how to make healthier families. We know how to make medicine as a system work better. We know it all.

Heck, we have known how to make schools that are better in every way since the early 20th century - so more than a hundred years. This proposed school system since has been proofen time and time again in studies to be better for kids, and better in terms of education. But do we use them? No.

Again, politicians love to go: "We would love to change things, but we do not have a better system." But it is not true. We know how to do it better.

Same with the police and prison and stuff. We know how to do it better.

But right now, a) a lot of the stuff works in the favor of those who hold most power (aka the billionaires), b) a lot of people just do not like the idea of changing stuff majorly (which makes politicians who want change unpopular), and c) politicians also would need to fund the change - and that is going to be hard.

So, yeah. Change would be hard.

But it is not because we do not know how to do better.

And I really just wish people would stop propagating this idea that we do not know better. We do. But folks right now profit from things staying the same. And it sucks.

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[autism-goblin]

Resistance is a rose bush, and I am a torn. -rebekkah Lyneigh

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Earlier this week Stephen Miller was screaming inside the White House about ICE only going after criminals instead of raiding “7-11’s and Home Depot’s” where the working class is.

Today ICE rolled up to a Home Depot in Los Angeles in military vehicles tossing flash bang grenades to scare off the public. In Los Angeles the police and county sheriffs as a matter of policy refuse to cooperate with ICE so the storm troopers were on their own. Wolf got out and the people of LA mobilized into two very large protests and marched on ICE HQ from two different directions and merged into one massive protest. Parts of the city were shut down as several thousand angry citizens protested in a very loud manner while the ICE Gestapo hid inside their building.

An estimated 10% or one million people in LA County are believed to be undocumented and most work, pay taxes, and are good people. They helped battle the wildfires in large numbers. To illustrate the cruelty and injustice of ICE storm troopers they abducted the mother of a decorated member of the LA fire department who has been here for thirty years and promptly deported her.

First it was Minneapolis and the citizens battled them in the streets and forced them to retreat, then it was San Diego, and today it is Los Angeles. We the people are sick and tired of fascist Trump and his Gestapo and we are finally fighting back.

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protests in LA against unlawful deportations being called an insurrection after one single day of unrest. martial law is next. the playbook is not hard to read.

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does anyone have that quote that goes something like 'white germans under the nazis lived just fine as long as they were loyal to the state, gave their children to the army, and paid their taxes, and in this sense many americans would be comfortable living under fascism' trying to find who said it but google is giving me jack shit

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Reminder: