#House of Representatives | Senate

[xtruss]

Behind Maui Wildfires: US is Never a Positive Agent in Climate Change Fight

— Anthony Moretti | August 16, 2023

Illustration: Xia Qing/Global Times

Maui, one of the most awe-inspiring places on Earth, has been devastated. Horrible fires - exacerbated by increasing temperatures and drought associated with climate change - have turned this paradise into something resembling a war zone. The pictures do not lie.

Fair or not, because climate change showed up in such a brutal way on Maui, a place the rich (and perhaps not so rich) consider one of their playgrounds, the challenge to re-create paradise will be carefully watched. Much like the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, damaged by fire more than four years ago, it has to be repaired perfectly - because global audiences are demanding it - Maui will have to be made perfect, or as close to it, because global eyes are watching.

This is the short-term problem: Make Maui great again. And compared to the long-term problem, it will be the easier one to handle. The more vexing, time-consuming and difficult challenge is combating climate change, and there is legitimate worry across the globe that the US is not committed to addressing it.

Unfortunately, President Joe Biden and his administration are not doing enough to be a force for good as burning wildfires and intense heat continue to define the summer of 2023. Yes, his administration has committed $370 billion to clean energy and other climate-supporting projects, which have also spurred job growth. On top of that, one of the more symbolic, but important, steps the White House recently took was sending climate envoy John Kerry to China. There, he examined with Chinese officials a variety of ways the two countries can ensure a safer climate for decades to come.

Yet, Biden has not used his so-called Bully Pulpit, the power that comes with being president and therefore framing the narrative on specific issues, to spur oil companies to do the right thing. A recent New York Times editorial called out big oil for "prioritizing dividends, share buybacks and continued fossil fuel production over increasing their clean energy investments" as this fact "suggests they are unable or unwilling to power the transition forward." Audiences must ask if those words "unable or unwilling" also apply to the president: Why is he not saying forcefully and often that oil companies must champion newer and cleaner energies? If he will not demand more, then who will? And if he will not do it now, then what will the ramifications be in the years to come?

And remember that there are darker clouds on the horizon. On the one hand, results from a recent Pew Research Center poll indicate Americans are aware of the problems associated with climate change and the opportunities the US could take to address it. However, almost one-in-three respondents still wanted the US to continue investing in what can be described in 20th century energy sources such as oil and coal.

Let's take these somewhat sanitary data and summarize them this way: Should Republicans are given the majority in the House of Representatives and Senate in 2024, the US will not be at the epicenter in the fight for a healthier, greener and sustainable planet.

With Republicans running Washington, the aforementioned climate envoy John Kerry will be sent into retirement. The global community, including organizations such as the United Nations, will be laughed at when it calls on the US to engage in meaningful conversations about the climate.

Not possible? It is definitely possible. Forget for a moment whether Donald Trump is the Republican presidential nominee in 2024. Keep in mind that he maintains a vise-like hold on the party; even if someone else is chosen to challenge President Biden in the general election, no Republican who hopes to maintain his or her political power can stray from Trump's beliefs. And one of those beliefs is that climate change is nonsense.

Despite the overwhelming evidence that climate change is real and is causing havoc across the globe and despite America clinging to an outdated idea that it is a place of "exceptionalism," there is no promise that political elites will lead on the issue. Closely related to this, there is no certainty that the public will rally to the cause. If the world's current No.1 economy draws a conclusion that it can remain in that spot by ignoring climate change, then the world can forget about the US being a positive agent in the fight against climate change.

— The author is an Associate Professor at the Department of Communication and Organizational Leadership at Robert Morris University.

[thatgirlinthesweater]

introduced in August??? Why hasn't it moved through yet??

[remindertoclick]

Here's your daily reminder to click for Palestine!!!

U.S. residents, take 5 minutes and use this link to pressure your members of Congress to stop sending weapons to the Israeli military!!

(Letter variants you can copy/paste under the cut!!)

Original letter written by Jewish Voice for Peace:

I am writing as your constituent to ask that you do everything in your power to press the Biden administration to suspend all weapons shipments to the Israeli military, and oppose all future military funding to Israel. The Israeli government has vowed to push forward with a large-scale military operation in Rafah, even though President Biden has repeatedly said such an operation would be a "red line." On May 7, the Israeli military seized the Rafah border crossing, a crucial passage for humanitarian aid, and ordered 100,000 Palestinians in eastern Rafah to evacuate. The 1.3 million displaced Palestinians sheltering in Rafah will have nowhere to flee should a full invasion commence. Millions of Palestinian lives now hang in the balance. I urge you to do everything in your power to stop this unfolding catastrophe before it's too late. Thank you.

Slight variations I created (so that emails don't get marked as spam for being identical to each other)

Variation 1:

I'm writing to you as your constituent to ask you to do everything you can to pressure the Biden administration into suspending all weapons shipments to the Israeli military and opposing any and all future military funding to Israel! The Israeli government is pushing forward with a large-scale military operation in Rafah. President Biden has repeatedly said such an operation would be a "red line," yet his administration is still supporting this operation. On May 7th 2024, the Israeli military seized the Rafah border crossing, a crucial passage for humanitarian aid, and forced 100,000 Palestinians in eastern Rafah to abandon their homes. 1.3 million Palestinians have been displaced. Those sheltering in Rafah have nowhere to flee during a full invasion. Millions of Palestinian lives now hang in the balance. Their fate lies in the hands on Congress, in your hands. I urge you to do everything in your power to stop this unfolding catastrophe before it's too late. Thank you.

Variation 2:

I'm writing you today to ask that you do everything in your power to convince the Biden administration to stop funding Israel. We have to telk them to stop all shipments of weapons to the Israeli military and oppose all future military funding to Israel. The Israeli government has vowed to push forward with a large-scale military operation in Rafah... President Biden made it clear that such an operation would be a "red line," and yet he continues to fund them. On May 7th of this year, the Israeli military seized the Rafah border crossing, a crucial passage for humanitarian aid, and forced 100,000 Palestinians to flee their own home of Eastern Rafah. Should a full invasion commence, 1.3 million displaced Palestinians sheltering in Rafah will have nowhere safe to go. Millions of Palestinian lives now hang in the balance. I am begging you now, as your constituent, to do everything in your power to stop this unfolding catastrophe before it's too late... Thank you

[nodynasty4us]

Remember to vote down-ballot

If you live in the United States, you haven't been able to escape hearing about the presidential contest between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.

But don't forget that there are other races on your ballot too. Research them before you go to the polls and decide how you are going to vote. You can find out who is running in your area on a local government website or at Ballotpedia.

Everywhere in the United States, you can vote on who to send to the House of Representatives.

In two thirds of the states, you can vote for a Senator.

In some states, various state and local officials are on the ballot. (In other states these contests are held in non-presidential years.)

Some states are holding referendums. You can vote for or against an amendment to your state's constitution, or for or against a law that the legislature has sent to an election.

In some localities you can vote on a bond issue that would authorize a local government to levy taxes for a special project.

If it's too much to remember, you can bring notes with you into the voting booth about who and what you want to vote for.

Some of you are not planning to vote because you hate both Harris and Trump. But you might find the other races to be meaningful to you. Get out and vote even if you leave the top of the ballot blank.

[cavalierzee]

Guilty Of Genocide

I will never back down in speaking truth to power.

The apartheid government of Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians.

Palestinians will not be erased.

Solidarity with all those outside of these walls in the streets protesting and exercising their right to dissent.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib

During Netanyahu’s address to the U.S. Congress and Senate, 7/24/24

[welcometoqueer]

U.S. programs and services in danger of being diminished or fully cut:

Social Security

Department of Education

Department of Labor

Department of Transportation

Medicaid

Medicare

Obamacare

FDA

CDC

USDA

FAFSA

FEMA

ACA

SNAP

EPA

FTC

FEC

HUD

HHS

NOAA

SCHIP

FAA

National Weather Service

Hurricane and other disaster warnings

Unemployment services

Student loans

Pell grants

Libraries

Fluoride treatment in our water

Meat and food inspections

National Parks

Other concerns:

(International relations)

Loss of U.S. membership in NATO

Potential UN ramifications

Tariffs

Support of Israel winning the war

Putin and Russian relations

(Loss of Rights)

Voting rights

Miranda rights

LGBTQ+, POC, and other minority rights

Reproductive rights

Protection against pre-existing conditions

Protection against assault and harassment

Child labor protections

(Daily living)

Prescription prices skyrocketing

No rent control

Little to no reproductive or health care access

Legalized police brutality

Diminished or cut protections and rights for minority groups

Restrictions on gender affirming care or legal services

Increased taxes and cost of living for the non-wealthy

No more $35 insulin

No labor laws - 40+ hour work weeks, no mandatory breaks, no paid sick or vacation leave

[charlesoberonn]

So just today there were two different physical altercations in the US congress (both by Republicans because of course)

You doing okay, America? (rhetorical)

[notes-app-psychologist]

Hey

not only is the president up for election this year,

so is every member of the US House of Representatives and 1/3 of the Senate.

If you don't know who your congresspeople are, find out on the US congress website:

the congress we vote in is vitally important. If Harris wins the presidency, having a democratic congress will allow her to make the moves we want to see. If trump wins the presidency, a democratic congress will be all that can protect citizens against him. vote. vote blue. protect yourself and protect your community.

edit: 1/3 of the senate not 1/2

[megalynnan]

US citizens!

Please call your representatives and ask them to appose any recess appointments for this coming administration.

The tldr is trump wants to get his cabinet members in without congressional approval so he wants approval for recess appointments which circumvent the normal vetting process. It's a process for when there is a sudden vacancy that needs to be immediately filed during a congressional recess....not for your entire cabinet straight out of the gate.

Our favorite con man is also not following through on legal requirements to help transition power (shocking I know).

But we can voice our opinions to our representatives that we want congressional approval on cabinet members.

Here is a link to fund your congress people:

And i get not wanting to make a phone call. Beleive me. But it's not that bad.

You say: hi my name is ____ I am a constituent of senator/representative ______ and I am calling because president elect trump is seeking to make cabinet picks with recess appointments, I strongly oppose this and feel the next administration should have the same process as the previous one, including congressional approval. Thank you.

[eugenedebs1920]

One of the beautiful things about how our representative democratic constitutional republic works is the varying opinions. The array of views and theories, the proposals and approaches, from the patchwork of ideology America has attracted, gives us the opportunity to select the peak ideas of so many backgrounds and cultures. Many of the founders, Washington in particular, were against the formation of political parties. Because of such contrasting views this was unavoidable.

There used to be a dozen or more political parties in the U.S. Wigs, federalist, socialists, labor and others brought their perspectives and that of their constituency to Congress. This enabled a more zoomed in viewpoint of the issues across the nation.

Our Population in this country, and the planet as a whole, has BOOMED! With it, so have perspectives, concerns and opinions. It becomes harder and harder to address everyone’s needs when the diversity and size of those you’re representing is so vast. This becomes even more burdensome when there’s red and blue to choose from. The puppet on the left or the puppet on the right.

I’ll have to do more research into why exactly but some time between the beginning on the twentieth century and 1940’s the cluster of political parties that had existed before pretty much consolidated in the two that dominate now. Sure, there are other parties out there, but not with much influence, or power as there was before the Second World War.

From a business perspective this makes sense, you buy out your rival for less competition so you can set market value to your liking. But this is not a business, some will argue the federal government is the largest business on earth. It goes beyond the financial side to the personal level. These are policies and practices that have real world implications. That affect real people lives in droves.

This “big tent” approach sounds wonderful in theory, but when you start looking at the details it becomes much more complicated. The extremes of both sides tend to be the loudest voices while representing the smallest fraction of the party.

It has proven to be detrimental to the functioning or our democracy! With just the two sides, when one side is unhealthy, unhappy and unwilling to compromise the system bogs. This last House term being an excellent example. These MAGA obstructionist sinking the ship. Making an ass out of themselves and the entire Republican Party. A party that used to be a proud, noble group, resorted to lacking leadership for months, failed vote counts and the title as the least productive Congress in this century. The “big tent” approach for the Republican Party has the loudest voices being heard while the mature, responsible, more centered Republicans are lumped in with them.

The same can be true of the left to an extent. Dems will kick those with unacceptable behavior words or conduct to the curb though, which is a huge difference. Yet there are extremes on the left that don’t necessarily reflect the views of most Democrats.

This, winner take all grasp for power has lessened the effectiveness and stature of the political spheres in this country. So it’s down to the puppet on the left or the puppet in the right. A brown paper bag with a name on it.

So we have the two parties with the two extremes. One party despite its downfalls wants to govern. Wants to see progress. Wants to enact change.

The other is fighting culture wars, denying science, and tiptoeing a line on bigotry that is stepped over habitually. Their method as the “party of no” which they labeled themselves during the Obama years does NOTHING for the citizens of this country. The obstructionist approach of saying no because the other side proposed it is not helpful, if you’d call it governing at all! The “war on woke” and this owning the libs thing is some childish, useless sh*t! Cutting off your nose to spite your face. Can we have representatives who actually work together and find compromise to accomplish SOMETHING!!!?

Anyway… There’s only one healthy party in America right now. And it sure ain’t the Republican MAGA Party…

[limerence-leftovers]

They laugh at our tears and see us as weak. They believe themselves the heroes. They think they’re brave.

We rebuke them.

We rebuke them for our tears are born from love, and they’re braver than the laughter of their hate.

We love our LGBTQIA+ family and will fight to protect their rights. We will continue to shout Black Lives Matter for we love and will protect our black brothers, sisters, and people. We love and will protect both legal and illegal immigrants for we know they’re people just like us, and are the true workers who built this nation. We love and will protect the Trans community, adults and children alike. We love women and we will fight for their rights to their own bodies, and we will protect them from the evil of men.

For our tears are brave. We know what’s coming. We will be the wall the Trump administration wants to build and we will protect our family and friends. And we will do so with our fists held high.

We will have tears in our eyes, yes. Our kindness holds no shelter for the weakness of hate.

For our tears are brave.

｡ﾟﾟ･｡･ﾟﾟ｡ ﾟ。 — Limerence Leftovers

ﾟ･｡･ﾟ

[cormancatacombs]

[Image ID: A screenshot of a Blue Sky post by user Max Berger @ maxberger.bsky.social. It reads,

“Elections matter a great deal in semi-authoritarian regimes—especially the early ones before the authoritarian has destroyed legal institutions and free elections.

The 2026 election is going to matter an enormous amount.”

End of description.]

[remindertoclick]

This is your reminder to Click for Palestine today!

And donate directly to UNRWA you have the means!

[thegirlinmask]

Democracy is just a hairs breath from ending, but that doesn't mean you can't have fun at tomorrow's debate!

[longwuzhere]

Some motivation for those of us on here. If Batman can do it so can we.

Batman #18 (2017)

W: Tom King, P: David Finch, I: Danny Miki, C: Jordie Bellaire, L: John Workman

[dontmean2bepoliticalbut]