Thursday News: “Russia escalates civilian attacks as invasion enters third week”; “Oil and gas companies are looking at a bonanza from the Ukraine war”; “Legal advocacy group eying ethics charges against Reps. Cline and Griffith”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, March 10.

• Climate change fundamentally affecting European birds, study shows
• US says $100 billion soon to help poor nations with climate
• We have the best view yet of Covid-19’s origins. What should we do about it? (” New diseases do naturally jump from animals to humans on occasion, but human action is heightening these risks. Farmers, property developers, miners, and poachers are encroaching into once-isolated wilderness areas, increasing the chances of contracting a novel disease from animals. And the wildlife trade is particularly troublesome.” Exactly, stop ALL that stuff!)
• Oil and gas companies are looking at a bonanza from the Ukraine war
• Britain and US fear Russia could be setting stage to use chemical weapons (Chemical, nuclear or biological weapons use needs to be a “red line.”)
• Russia escalates civilian attacks as invasion enters third week
• Europe’s Plan to Quit Russian Fuel Starts a Global Fight for Gas
• E.U. Expands Sanctions as Russia Moves to Protect Crashing Ruble
• Putin’s Strategic Error (“The Russian leader is creating the very Western alliance he feared”)
• MiGs for Ukraine: Who will send them — and how?
• After Ukraine, Europe Wonders Who’s Next Russian Target (“…analysts warn that even NATO members could be at risk, such as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania on Russia’s doorstep, as well as Montenegro, either from Moscow’s direct military intervention or attempts at political destabilization.”)
• Possible Putin-Zelensky meeting discussed at high-level Ukraine talks
• Ready to Die? Why Most People Flunk the Zelenskyy Test. (“Tyranny has triumphed in recent years because real courage is rare.”)
• Russia, Out to Contain NATO, Instead Reignites the Alliance (“The invasion of Ukraine has given the North Atlantic Treaty Organization renewed focus after three decades of seeking a purpose in the post-Cold War world.”)
• Ukraine and Russia Fail to Make Progress in Talks to End War (A better headline might be: “In talks, Russia refuses to stop its vicious, unprovoked assault on Ukraine”)
• Attack on Ukraine hospital kills 3, wounds 17, officials say (War crime.)
• ‘They were shooting civilians’: Ukraine refugees saw abuses (More war crimes.)
• IMF approves $1.4bn emergency support for Ukraine
• U.S. warns Russia could use chemical weapons in false-flag operation in Ukraine
• Ordinary Ukrainians are resisting Vladimir Putin’s occupying force in Kherson and elsewhere
• Russia’s ‘imminent’ default would be catastrophic. Here’s why.
• Subtle Shifts Raise Hopes for a Cease-fire in Ukraine
• A family’s dash toward safety in Ukraine ends tragically.
• Silicon Valley tech worker was the Ukrainian mom lying dead on street in brutal photo that sparked outrage
• General Mark Hertling: Why the Russians Will Lose
• How the brutal WWII siege of Leningrad explains Putin’s thinking on Ukraine
• Reëxamining Putin’s Military Interventions in the Middle East
• Russia and QAnon have the same false conspiracy theory about Ukraine
• Russia’s Military Prowess in Question as Ukraine Puts Up Resistance
• ‘No one really believed it would happen’: first Jewish Ukrainian refugees arrive in Israel (“Influx of 100,000 refugees from the war zone expected as members of the diaspora exercise the country’s law of return”)
• U.K. Freezes Abramovich Assets, Putting Chelsea Future in Doubt
• U.S.’s Raimondo Warns Chinese Firms on Evading Russia Sanctions
• Two weeks of war have revealed cracks in Putin’s master plan for Ukraine
• Letting Poland send fighter jets to Ukraine would heighten the risks of a wider war
• Ukraine’s torment cannot become just one more media sensation
• China’s Russia Risk
• China is boosting Russian propaganda
• Republicans are still wrong about how to deal with China
• Putin was wrong about everything. But so were U.S. right-wingers.
• South Korean conservative candidate wins close-fought, divisive presidential election (This guy sounds, not surprisingly, horrible…check out his views on women, for instance.)
• Analysis: New S.Korea president may be a nail in the coffin of N.Korea engagement
• Harris meets with Poland’s President after US rejects proposal to get jets to Ukraine
• Right-wing personalities promote Kremlin conspiracy theory about biological research facilities in Ukraine
• Narendra Modi walks diplomacy tightrope with Vladimir Putin on Ukraine (“Analysis: Indian PM is reliant on Putin’s nation for arms and is conscious of shifting relations between Russia and its foe, China”)
• Iran pressures U.S. as Russia obstacle threatens nuclear talks
• Why the Atlantic didn’t press MBS harder on the Khashoggi assassination (This is exactly how journalists should NOT conduct interviews.)
• COVID cases continue to plummet as America moves on (“COVID precautions have already been lifted across most of the country as pandemic fatigue runs deep. The virus will probably be with us for the long term, but these improving metrics show Americans are moving on with their lives more safely.”)
• House passes sweeping $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill
• House Passes $1.5 Trillion Spending Measure With Ukraine Aid
• Another energy crisis is here. The U.S. must be realistic about what’s next. (“The right path forward should be a greener future.”)
• US Bans Russian Oil But Activists Want Broader Break With Fossil Fuels
• Republicans use EV hearing to knock Biden’s clean energy policy as US bans oil and gas imports from Russia (Irresponsible, stupid and shills for the fossil fuel industry.)
• U.S. Inflation Data Expected to Show New Four-Decade High
• Why some crypto fans are praising Joe Biden (“The president’s new executive order is the government’s next step toward regulating crypto.”)
• Republicans have a reimagined view of state power — one without constraint
• A strange new defense of Trump’s coup effort is both wrong and dangerous (“Time to bury the idea that Trump ‘really believed’ the 2020 election was stolen.”)
• Garland says the Jan. 6 investigation won’t end until everyone is held to account
• Guilty verdict in first Capitol riot trial could spell trouble for Trump
• Are Gas Prices Too High? Or Is Your Car Too Big? (“When it comes to oil shocks, we have the memory of goldfish.”)
• The Elite Political Media Will Define Everything Except March Madness Through the Price of Gasoline (“When did we accept that oil companies will charge whatever they want and shovel all the proceeds to shareholders?”)
• 1 in 5 local election officials say they’re likely to quit before 2024 (Not good at all.)
• Sinclair debunks its own pro-fossil fuel talking points, then repeats them anyway (Your periodic reminder NEVER to watch Sinclair “news,” including on WJLA TV 7 in the Washington DC/Northern Virginia area!)
• Trump plane made emergency landing after weekend speech to GOP donors
• Defending Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill, Fox’s Tucker Carlson says teachers who talk to kids about gender identity should “get beaten up” (Why is Carlson on the air?)
• Scoop: RNC to sue Jan. 6 committee over Salesforce subpoena (The RNC has become an extremist, insurrectionist organization.)
• Stephen Miller Sues Over Jan. 6 Subpoena of T-Mobile Family Plan (Beyond parody.)
• Turns Out Family-Separation Architect Stephen Miller Is Still on Mommy and Daddy’s Cell Phone Plan
• The question of Roger Stone’s ties to extremist groups grows more salient
• The right-wing media-verse finds a powerful proponent for its straw men
• Russian Agent Maria Butina Claims Ukrainians Are Bombing Themselves
• The NRA Can’t Erase Its Ties to a Russian Agent Who Targeted Ukraine
• On Fox, Trump Energy Secretary Rick Perry says criticizing the oil and gas industry is “unpatriotic”
• Colorado county elections official Tina Peters is indicted in probe of alleged tampering with voting equipment
• Sidney “Release The Kraken” Powell Is Secretly Funding The Legal Defense Of Oath Keepers
• Texas regulators seek punishment for pro-Trump lawyer Sidney Powell
• How the GOP, horrifically, succeeded with “Don’t say gay”
• Disney Pledges $5 Million to Protect LGBTQ Rights, CEO to Meet With Florida Gov to Discuss ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill (Should have acted a lot earlier.)
• Madison Cawthorn charged with driving with revoked license for 2nd time; court dates set
• The region’s recovery rides on Metro
• CASEY: Legal advocacy group eying ethics charges against Reps. Cline and Griffith (“The new organization is pursing the law licenses of attorneys who helped former President Donald Trump propagate the fiction that the 2020 presidential election was stolen. Oddly, at this time they not going after Del. Wren Williams, who has claimed he served as ‘President Donald J. Trump’s Deputy Legal Counsel in Wisconsin.'”)
• Six Feet Under: Rep. Donald McEachin Aims To Resurrect Black Cemeteries From Oblivion
• Republicans Gear Up To Strip Millions Of Americans Health Care If They Take The Majority In November, Rekindling Conversations Of Repealing The Affordable Care Act
• Audio: VA House Majority Leader Threatens That Youngkin Would Veto Entire Budget “to get more of his tax cuts, more of his agenda” (Note that the recent Wason Center poll found only 38% of Virginians prefer tax cuts to funding education, public safety, etc.)
• On Marriage Equality and Restoration of Voting Rights Constitutional Amendments, “Youngkin had the chance to do the right thing…Instead, he hid. Cowardice”
• Video: In VA State Senate Debate on “Governor’s School” Bill, Opponents Argue We Don’t Live in Color-Blind Society; Proponents Argue that Fairfax County Discriminates Against Asian-American Students (Sen. Ghazala Hashmi: “We are still, sadly, grappling with the concerns of a racial society” Sen. Chap Petersen: “I didn’t break any new ground with this language…Basically, it copies the Civil Rights Act”)
• Va. legislature passes bill banning admissions discrimination
• Lunch debt legislation headed to Youngkin’s desk
• As lawmakers appoint Virginia judges, old questions surround opaque process
• Left-leaning Va. advocacy groups ask Youngkin to keep Northam’s Board of Education nominees (They’re not “left-leaning,” they’re 100% in the center. Why does the WaPo label them as on the “left?”
• One of this year’s biggest solar bills is all about forests and farms (“Virginia lawmakers try to balance conservation and clean energy priorities” It’s tricky, no question.)
• Dominion’s proposed charge for solar program is absurdly high
• Glenn Youngkin column: The General Assembly should give Virginians their money back (Or better yet, we should replace lost revenues so we can continue to fund teachers, public safety, transportation, healthcare, etc, etc.)
• Virginia Retirement System estimates it had about $100M in Russia-linked investments (Ditch those, as well as all fossil-fuel-linked investments.)
• Name, image, likeness legislation on the way to the governor (“Bill codifies rules allowing college athletes to profit”)
• 10-Day New COVID-19 Cases Down 93% Compared to 1/19; Hospitalizations at Lowest Level Since August 2021
• Alexandria was asked to honor abortion providers. Then Catholics and conservatives spoke up.
• Deal, Holland and Fain: COVID’s lingering impact in Southwest Virginia (They still have really low vaccination rates there.)
• D.C.-area forecast: Cool and calm today, but a stormy Saturday lurks