by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Tuesday, April 19.
- The Renewable-Energy Revolution Will Need Renewable Storage (“Can gravity, pressure, and other elemental forces save us from becoming a battery-powered civilization?”)
- Climate change will transform how we live, but these tech and policy experts see reason for optimism
- China’s New Carbon Market Is Gridlocked Awaiting Policy Guidance
- “Another lie:” It is time to call out Coalition’s climate modelling con
- In South Asia, Vehicle Exhaust, Agricultural Burning and In-Home Cooking Produce Some of the Most Toxic Air in the World (Switch to clean energy, ASAP.
- The hydrogen energy dream (“Automakers, industries, and governments are betting on hydrogen again. Will it work this time?”)
- Fears Persist That Monday’s Attacks Were Only a Prelude (“Ukraine’s leader declared the battle for Donbas underway after Russia stepped up artillery and rocket attacks along the roughly 300-mile front. But some analysts said an initial Russian bombardment may be just the start of an all-out onslaught. Here’s the latest.”)
- Why ‘Battle For The Donbas’ Is A Significant New Phase Of Russia-Ukraine War
- Ukraine: ‘the major battle’ of the war is underway (“Ukraine says Russian forces have begun a massive assault in the east while video appears to show civilians holed up in Mariupol steel plant”)
- Russia forces attacking along broad east front, Ukraine says
- Ukraine Live Updates: Russian Offensive in East Has Started, Ukraine Says
- Sinking of Russian warship raises tense questions about fate of crew
- In Ukraine’s South, Russian Occupiers Tighten the Screws
- Zelenskyy Accuses Russian Soldiers of Torture (“The Ukrainian president pleaded for Western allies to move more swiftly on new sanctions as Russia attacked the city of Lviv, only about 50 miles from the Polish border.”)
- Russian Orthodox leader backs war in Ukraine, divides faith (That guy represents the absolute worst of religion.)
- Sirens, loss, pain: The war is everywhere and everything in Ukraine
- Ukraine Rushes to Evacuate Civilians in East as Russia’s Offensive Pushes Forward (“The main cities in the Ukrainian-controlled parts of the region have already turned into ghost towns, with almost all stores and businesses closed, streets emptied and only a handful of apartments in each block still inhabited.”)
- The scale of Russian atrocities in Ukraine is staggering
- Russia tries to hold ground in the strategically important southern city of Kherson
- Lethal darts were fired into a Ukrainian neighborhood by the thousands (Pure evil.)
- Images appear to show sinking Russian warship
- Macron lead over Le Pen stabilises as election scrutiny intensifies
- French elections: EU apprehensive of Le Pen ahead of French run-off vote
- UK’s Boris Johnson faces wrath of lawmakers over partygate
- Myanmar’s Health System Is in Collapse, ‘Obliterated’ by the Regime
- In Iran, Russia’s war on Ukraine is a political flash point
- The troublesome U.S. booster gap (“Only about 30 percent of Americans — and half of vaccinated adults — have been boosted, a rate far shy of other Western countries. The reasons are complicated; the potential consequences are troublesome.”)
- This Mask Mandate Decision Makes No Sense Legally
- US judge strikes down Biden mask mandate for planes and trains (“Mizelle is an appointee of Donald Trump. She was rated ‘not qualified’ to serve as a federal judge by the American Bar Association at the time she was nominated. She was confirmed by a Republican-controlled Senate in a party-line vote.”)
- CDC mask mandate for travelers no longer in effect following judge’s ruling, official says
- As Congress returns from break, calls for Covid funding are renewed.
- Jamie Raskin on the climate crisis: ‘We’ve got to save democracy in order to save our species’
- Voters are worried about crime. The White House needs to listen.
- Trump Allies Are Still Feeding the False 2020 Election Narrative
- Republicans Say, ‘Let Them Eat Hate’ (“As I said, I have no idea whether Trump’s endorsement of Vance will matter. What I do know is that the G.O.P. as a whole has turned to hate-based politics. And if you aren’t afraid, you aren’t paying attention.”)
- Rick Scott’s loony-tunes 11-point plan: Classic GOP projection, and a roadmap to theocracy (“No wonder Mitch McConnell is unhappy: Scott’s “batsh*t” plan reveals way too much about what Republicans want”)
- Democrats pressure Biden to back off Title 42 decision
- Biden has told Obama he’s running again
- Supreme Court Rules Against Airman Who Refused Vaccine
- More Than 70 Percent Of Trump’s Endorsees Believe The 2020 Election Was Fraudulent (In other words, they believe a huge lie.)
- Text message trove shows Oath Keepers discussing security details for Trump associates
- Trump attempt at a coup to be a focus of U.S. House hearings, lawmaker Raskin says
- Effort to Remove Marjorie Taylor Greene From Ballot Can Proceed, Judge Says
- American businesses should wise up. Republicans endanger capitalism. (“Republicans used to believe in capitalism. No more.”)
- Republicans Can’t Win on Policy, Governing, or Making the Lives of Americans Better, So Instead They Scream “Groomer” and “Pedophile” at Anyone and Everyone Who Disagrees with Them
- Republicans confront (or sidestep) abuse accusations against midterm candidates
- Biden to hold first road fundraisers of presidency
- OAN’s anti-LGBTQ hatred reaches new lows in the right-wing war against teachers (Heinous.)
- Doug Mastriano and other Republicans are speaking at a conference hosted by antisemitic conspiracy theorists
- Kimberly Guilfoyle meets with January 6 committee
- Elon Musk wants a free speech utopia. Technologists clap back. (It would be a dystopia and completely unusable, for starters.)
- Trump-Endorsed Candidate JD Vance Once Said Trump Might Be ‘America’s Hitler’
- Ohio GOP Senate candidates pull a ludicrous snow job on voters
- Tucker Carlson: Tan Your Balls If You Want To Be A Real Man (“How to address the “end of men?” Carlson wants men to be “open-minded” about shining a bright red laser on their groins.”)
- Why Tucker Carlson wants men to aim lasers at their private parts
- Mike Lee has some explaining to do (“He tried to defy the will of the voters”)
- Florida’s vile ‘groomer’ law may soon blow up in DeSantis’s face
- Complaint filed against Cawthorn by fired staffer
- The Republican Undead Walk Among Us. Just Look at Scott Pruitt.
- Billionaire Peltz draws GOP megadonors to $5,000-a-plate fundraiser for Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin
- Florida Rejects Math Textbooks, Citing ‘Prohibited Topics’
- Mehmet Oz and David McCormick are personally spending millions on their Pa. Senate campaigns
- TAX DAY REMINDER to Virginians: the GOP Wants to Raise Your Taxes (DCCC: “Jen Kiggans’ would-be party bosses are pushing plan to raise taxes on seniors and middle class, sunset Medicare & Social Security”)
- Congressional candidate Parker concedes after losing primary nomination
- GOP candidate’s $400K personal loan gives an edge in Va.’s 7th District (“Four GOP candidates are in a tight fundraising battle in Virginia’s 7th district — one of whom infused her campaign with a $400,000 personal loan.”)
- PolitiFact VA: Wittman mischaracterizes program that tracks undocumented immigrants
- Congressional challenger drops out of Democratic nomination race; GOP forum on April 19 (“Ayyas told the Times-Mirror it was an honor to discuss such issues around health care, jobs, but thought it was best for “unity” and the Democratic Party to use its resources to support Wexton, whom he endorsed.”)
- This Tax Day, Virginia Working Families Are Paying Their Fair Share, But Virginia Billionaires Are Not (“$19 Billion, or 46%, Pandemic Wealth Gain of Virginia’s Nine Billionaires May Well go Untaxed”)
- Democratic Party of Virginia Releases www.youngkinjobsreport.com to Track Governor Youngkin’s Progress On His Own Jobs Pledge (“Tick Tock: Governor Youngkin is only at .6% towards reaching his own projected goal”)
- Youngkin amendment would reduce restitution for wrongfully-convicted man by $1
- Virginia doesn’t specifically regulate ‘self-driving’ cars. Should we?
- Gill lice detected for first time in Virginia trout
- Youngkin orders security review of state mental hospitals after escapes
- Is Virginia at a solar crossroads? (“As utility-scale solar projects spread across central and Southside Virginia, local governments and residents have been wrestling with how to balance the sometimes competing goals of preserving farmland and reducing carbon emissions.”)
- Monthly fee would withhold solar’s financial benefits from Virginia renters
- Virginia 10-Day New COVID-19 Cases Down 95% Compared to 1/19; Hospitalizations Down to 152 From ~4,000 in January
- UVA study compares Pfizer and Moderna vaccines
- Martire: Mountain Valley Pipeline can help energize global democracy (Written by the “vice president and Mid-Atlantic regional manager of the Laborers’ International Union of North America?.” And totally absurd, of course.)
- Montpelier staffers say they were fired for backing descendants group (“Senior staffers at James Madison’s Montpelier say they were fired from the historic estate after speaking up for descendants of the enslaved.”)
- Telling the full history of a Founding Father’s plantation
- ‘Tenants are absolutely being ignored’: Norfolk activists, public housing residents call for millions in funding for home repairs (“Activists are calling for $5 million of the $154 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding Norfolk will receive to go toward upkeep and renovations of public housing. City Manager Chip Filer has said housing is a priority, but the nature of the funding allows the city to make movement on other priorities while funding for housing can still be sourced elsewhere.”)
- In the race for a new Commanders stadium, we see how not to use tax money
- Editorial: Regional network shows promise (“A 119-mile fiber ring linking the five South Hampton Roads cities took another important step closer to fruition this month.”)
- D.C.-area forecast: Some sun today with a windy chill; warmup starts tomorrow
********************************************************
Sign up for the Blue Virginia weekly newsletter
