by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, February 2.
- Society isn’t changing fast enough to stop climate change: study
- Solar may cover the world’s electricity demand with 0.3% of its land area
- Few signs that rich countries will help poor ones with climate fund
- Climate change: WMO unveils plans for sustainable monitoring of greenhouse gases
- Global energy industry is at an inflection point, said utility representative
- Yes, we have enough materials to power the world with renewable energy
- Artificial light harms our bodies and souls. It doesn’t have to be this way. (“Cut light pollution for the health of people and the planet.”)
- Jordan Peterson’s ‘zombie’ climate contrarianism follows a well-worn path (“The psychologist has turned his hand to exposing new audiences to old arguments from climate change deniers”)
- Shell’s actual spending on renewables is fraction of what it claims, group alleges
- Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act has left Europe blind-sided. And playing catchup could lead to 2 big mistakes
- In visit to wartime Kyiv, E.U. sells ‘European dream’ that remains distant
- Who’s sending what to Ukraine: A new wave of Western weapons explained
- Ukraine Carries Out Wide Anticorruption Raids Ahead of Visit From E.U. Leaders
- Russian army officer: Our troops tortured Ukrainians (Every one of them should be held accountable for war crimes.)
- Russian missile strike hits eastern Ukrainian city
- Russia’s Shadow Army Accused in Mysterious Teen Abductions (More war crimes.)
- A pro-Russian social media campaign is trying to influence politics in Africa
- Georgia Wants Russia to Leave Its Land in a Ukraine Peace Deal
- Russia planning major offensive to mark first anniversary of war: Ukraine defence minister
- Snubbing the Palestinians, Biden’s Team Opts to Focus on Keeping Israel’s Fragile Democracy Alive
- Czech president-elect says west must accept China is ‘not friendly’
- US, Philippines agree to larger American military presence
- U.S. to Boost Military Role in Philippines as Fear of Taiwan Conflict Grows
- US secures deal on Philippines bases to complete arc around China
- Iran’s legal proceedings against protesters are worse than show trials (“Recent executions of Iranian dissidents by the Islamic Republic have nothing to do with the Islamic law. Or any law for that matter.”)
- New Zealand’s Māori fought for reparations — and won (“The country has leaped far ahead of others on redressing the wrongs of its past. While the program isn’t perfect, it has lessons to teach the US.”)
- Adani Crisis Deepens as Stock Rout Hits $108 Billion, Bonds Sink
- A U.S. Ambassador Finds Himself on Hostile Ground in Hungary (“David Pressman, a gay human rights lawyer, has been accused in Hungary’s media of undermining traditional values and violating diplomatic conventions.”)
- Sex, lies and video cams: Andrew Tate turned women into slaves, prosecutors say (This guy should spend many, many years in jail.)
- Illegal border crossings fell sharply in January, U.S. figures show
- McCarthy describes ‘good’ first meeting with Biden, but ‘no agreements’ on debt ceiling
- Biden-McCarthy meeting yields no debt ceiling deal, but speaker says markets should be encouraged
- Biden and McCarthy hold ‘first good’ meeting on debt ceiling, but ‘no agreements, no promises’
- Fed raises rates by a quarter point, notes lower inflation
- Dangerous Fungi Are Spreading Across U.S. as Temperatures Rise
- Atlanta shooting part of alarming US crackdown on environmental defenders (“Twenty states have enacted laws restricting rights to peaceful protest, as environmentalists are increasingly criminalized” That’s appalling and 100% unacceptable.)
- States file duelling Colorado River plans as water resources rapidly dwindle (“California files competing proposal on cutting water use of the river as hopes of western states reaching consensus fade”)
- Biden Administration Allows Controversial Arctic Oil Project to Proceed (This is a big mistake.)
- Avian flu is really bad for birds. What about for us? (“The H5N1 virus isn’t a major human threat today. Here’s what it’d take to become one.”)
- Why America’s Water Infrastructure Is Crumbling
- Lawmakers Call for Inquiry Into Durham’s Review of Russia Investigation
- Ron DeSantis Successfully Bullies the College Board Into Tailoring AP African American Studies to the Needs of Fragile White People
- College Board’s revised AP African American studies course draws new criticism (WTF is the College Board doing?!?)
- The Cold Calculus Behind the Shrinking GOP Presidential Field (“There’s Trump, DeSantis and a few other would-be hopefuls in case they falter. But an entire generation of Republican stars seem determined to sit this one out.”)
- Donald Trump’s 2024 Campaign Is Anything but “Normal”
- Trump’s Republican opponents are making a painfully obvious mistake (“These GOP leaders don’t realize that Trump has changed over the past eight years — and so have his opponents. They’re wading into a completely new race, yet they’re still preparing themselves for 2016.”)
- The chilling Trump speech on “left-wing gender insanity” came straight from right-wing media (“Former President Donald Trump is telling the world that his second term in office would be devastating to LGBTQ people. Are the mainstream media listening this time?” Nope.)
- The Washington Post is filling its opinion section with anti-LGBTQ figures (“New Washington Post political columnists Ramesh Ponnuru, Ruy Teixeira, and Jim Geraghty have all made anti-LGBTQ statements”)
- The GOP Is Just Obnoxious — It’s why they keep losing elections.
- Eager to Challenge Trump, Republicans Aren’t So Eager to Be the First
- Trump’s Attacks on Early Voting Worry Some in GOP Over Turnout
- Is Donald Trump Losing His Mojo? (“The former President’s political and legal challenges are mounting, even as some polls indicate he still has a lot of support among Republicans.”)
- Trump Is Losing the Grifter Class to DeSantis
- 20 Republican Attorneys General Warn CVS, Walgreens Against Mailing Abortion Pills (Disgusting.)
- Biden approval steady after document discovery: AP-NORC Poll (The media loves this framing.)
- McConnell pulls rival Rick Scott off powerful Commerce Committee
- Eyeing defense spending cuts, House GOP targets military ‘wokeness’ (These people are completely nuts.)
- Democrats and Republicans clash over where lawmakers can carry guns in the Capitol
- Fireworks in House after Democrat says ‘insurrectionists’ should be banned from leading Pledge of Allegiance (The constitution says they should be barred from serving in Congress completely.)
- Hunter Biden asks for criminal probe into Trump allies for ‘theft’ of data from laptop (It’s about time.)
- Hunter Biden’s lawyers, in newly aggressive strategy, target his critics
- Hunter Biden demands investigations and retractions, opening new front against GOP foes
- Emhoff has found his calling in the fight against antisemitism
- Jan. 6 defendant who sprayed line of police sentenced after tearful apology (“A Jan. 6 defendant who sprayed a chemical irritant at about 15 police officers — and later bragged about it in a video interview — was sentenced Wednesday to 68 months in prison.”)
- The GOP Attack on Ilhan Omar Trivializes Antisemitism
- VP Harris at Tyre Nichols’ funeral: He “should have been safe”
- Police killing of double amputee in wheelchair sparks outcry and demand for answers
- Inside George Santos’ transformation from Anthony Devolder into a political figure
- Feds probing Santos’ role in service dog charity scheme
- George Santos Relative Says They Never Gave $5,800 Reported by the Campaign: “I’m Dumbfounded”
- Former ABC News journalist charged in child pornography case (“Federal prosecutors in Virginia have charged a former national security journalist for ABC News with a child pornography offense. — James Gordon Meek, a producer who covered wars, terrorism and major crimes for the network…”)
- Metro employee killed while trying to stop man shooting at D.C. commuters
- Sen. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine Join Colleagues in Bipartisan Measure to Ratify the Equal Rights Amendment
- Virginia Senators join colleagues in efforts to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment
- Kaine introduces legislation to address debt ceiling drama
- Virginia Gov. Youngkin endorses anti-LGBTQ House nominee who calls COVID a ‘cover-up’
- Bob Good wins House committee seats after initially opposing new speaker (This guy’s a fascist and complete nutjob.)
- Virginia Republicans Say No Abortion – and No Contraception Too
- VA House Republicans Uphold MAGA Values Yet Again: Making Our Democracy Less Safe (VA House Dems Leader Don Scott: “This is the MAGA playbook at its finest.”)
- Youngkin cites China concerns on EV plant while critics see presidential ambitions (Ah yes, the old “critics see” formulation. Instead, how about the “news” media actually look into it and inform readers what the actual situation is?)
- Youngkin Administration Error in State Calculation of Funding Negatively Impacts Virginia Public Schools (“… the administration has known about this error for a month, but the General Assembly just learned about it yesterday.”)
- State lawmakers are scrambling to balance the budget following education accounting error
- Frustrated Youngkin asks assembly to use ‘necessary resources’ to fix school aid error
- Youngkin marches for life in a state unchanged by Roe’s demise (This WaPo headline is horrendous, as it completely accepts the right-wing framing that they are “for life,” which they most definitely are not. Of course, it’s the WaPo, so what else would we expect?)
- Virginia abortion-rights opponents march for the first time post-Roe (Unlike the WaPo, the headline on WVTF is accurate, as it says “abortion-rights opponents march” – which is actually what happened.)
- Are Virginia ratepayers and residents subsidizing the data center industry?
- To Kick Off Black History Month Virginia Legislative Black Caucus Held a Press Conference on Environmental Justice (It’s crucial that “Black folks and people of color get the opportunity to join the renewable economy like wind and solar”)
- Despite negotiation impasse, Dominion rate reform bill advances to Senate
- Va. House panel kills watered-down GOP bill on retail marijuana sales (“If we do nothing, we have a problem on our hands”)
- Guest OP-Ed: Cover all kids now, or pay the price later on: my healthcare story – Cover All Kids
- Sunshine bills would streamline public records process
- Delegate Hudson speaks out against Governor Youngkin’s pick for UVA Board of Visitors
- The ‘Norfolk 17’ desegregated the city’s all-white schools 64 years ago. A new book tells the story of one Norview alum.
- Blacksburg, Charlottesville and Lynchburg could be potential tech hubs, studies say
- Lawmakers consider limiting storage of license plate reader data to 30 days
- D.C.-area forecast: Seasonably chilly today before Friday’s Arctic blast
