Month: January 2023

It is not surprising that the consequences for us all of the higher temperatures now and, frighteningly, of those to come should span the range of issues in our lives. Physiologically, economically and sociologically, climate affects all that we do, from suffering kidney stones, being unable to work outdoors and dictating where we live. Of course, we could decarbonise across the economy and in great measure to our collective advantage – and to that of other species.https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/a-hotter-planet-takes-another-toll-on-human-health

Not for nothing is economics, as it is mostly practised, known as ‘the dismal science’. Among the many follies that characterise our chosen system of distributing goods and services pointed out in this article is this one: “Mainstream economists are ecology-blind”. And the later we wake up to this reality the fewer choices we will have left to us.https://johnmenadue.com/economics-the-top-10-mistakes/

We’ve wrecked almost every other environment on and around Earth, so why not include one, the deep seabed, that has been overlooked thus far. There’s money to be made, in …

“But we’ll be burnt to a crisp if we don’t break our fossil fuel addiction”. Offsets provide the addiction some cover, and currently they’re pretty dodgy. The confusing world of …

George Pell and his acolytes, Tony Abbott, Greg Sheridan, Andrew Bolt and Gerard Henderson among them, seemed to have been asleep through the Enlightenment. We are all paying the cost …

Off list today, and this article gives an analysis that fits the data regarding issues facing right/populist parties and what they might do to become viable. An Opposition keeps a good government on its mettle so we do need an effective Opposition that does much more than oppose. We don’t appear to have this, at state or federal level.https://theaimn.com/the-liberal-party-is-dead-can-it-be-revived/

To say that land-clearing and habitat destruction kills more native animals than do cats is to agree that, in absolute terms, cats kill wildlife. If you must have a cat, …

Many articles on today’s list are worrying and this one is chief among them. After 600 fossil-fuel lobbyists attended COP27 in Egypt to protect their interests, we now have a …

It is now 1.15 degrees warmer than pre-industrial levels and of course there is a decent lag effect so strap in folks, we’re in for a scary ride on Planet Earth. And there’s greenwashing, political posturing and protecting shareholder value to keep us from the main games of emission reduction and research into effective carbon drawdown.https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/12/2022-hottest-global-temperatures-past-eight-years-climate-crisis

Is there an example where industry self-regulation has been a success, for protecting consumers, that is? I’m sure the food growers would say that their testing has been a success, for their own continuing pesticide use. This research was conducted in 2013 and the Coalition shelved the study. And this is for the food we put in our bodies!https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/12/australias-self-regulating-pesticide-monitoring-system-picked-up-far-fewer-violations-than-government-study