#keystone xl project

[overlyemotionalbreakfastcereal]

ok with all the good things biden's administration has been doing or tried to do yall americans BETTER fucking not pull out that same motherfucking 'both sides are equally bad' bullshit when voting comes around.

[probablyasocialecologist]

According to documents obtained by Grist and Type Investigations through a Freedom of Information Act request, the FBI’s Minneapolis office opened a counterterrorism assessment in February 2012, focusing on actions in South Dakota, that continued for at least a year and may have led to the opening of additional investigations. These documents reveal that the FBI was monitoring activists involved in the Keystone XL campaign about a year earlier than previously known.  Their contents suggest that, long before the Keystone and Dakota Access pipelines became national flashpoints, the federal government was already developing a sweeping law enforcement strategy to counter any acts of civil disobedience aimed at preventing fossil fuel extraction. And young, Native activists were among its first targets. “The threat emerging … is evolving into one based on opposition to energy exploration related to any extractions from the earth, rather than merely targeting one project and/or one company,” the FBI noted in its description of the Wanblee blockade. The 15-page file, which is heavily redacted, also describes Native American groups as a potentially dangerous threat and likens them to “environmental extremists” whose actions, according to the FBI, could lead to violence. The FBI acknowledged that Native American groups were engaging in constitutionally protected activity, including attending public hearings, but emphasized that this sort of civic participation might spawn criminal activity.  To back up its claims, the FBI cited a 2011 State Department hearing on the pipeline in Pierre, South Dakota, attended by a small group of Native activists. The FBI said the individuals were dressed in camouflage and had covered their faces with red bandanas, “train robber style.” According to the report, they were also carrying walking sticks and shaking sage, claiming to be “Wounded Knee Security of/for Mother Earth.” “The Bureau is uncertain how the NA group(s) will act initially or subsequently if the project is approved,” the agency wrote.  The FBI also singled out the “Native Youth Movement,” which it described as a mix between a “radical militia and a survivalist group.” In doing so, it appeared to conflate a specific activist group originally founded in Canada in the 1990s with the broader array of young Native activists who opposed the pipeline decades later. Young activists would play an important role in the Keystone XL campaign and later on during protests against the Dakota Access pipeline at Standing Rock, but the movement had little in common with militias or survivalists, terms typically used to describe far-right groups or those seeking to disengage from society.  The FBI declined to respond to questions for this story. In an emailed statement, a spokesperson for the Minneapolis field office said the agency does not typically comment on FOIA releases and “lets the information contained in the files speak for itself.”

[...]

Environmental activists and attorneys who reviewed the new documents told Grist and Type Investigations that law enforcement’s approach to the Keystone XL campaign looked like a template for the increasingly militarized response to subsequent environmental and social justice campaigns — from efforts to block the Dakota Access pipeline at Standing Rock to the ongoing protests against the police training center dubbed “Cop City” in Atlanta, Georgia, which would require razing at least 85 acres of urban forest.  The FBI’s working thesis, outlined in the new documents, that “most environmental extremist groups” have historically moved from peaceful protest to violence has served as the basis for subsequent investigations. “It’s astonishing to me how such a broad concept basically paints every activist and protester as a future terrorist,” said Mike German, a former FBI special agent who is now a fellow at the nonprofit Brennan Center for Justice.

[kp777]

By JON QUEALLY

Common Dreams

Sep 09, 2023

"The Corps' covering for the pipeline company's outrageous safety record and the reviewer's serious conflict of interest have now resulted in a failed effort," said Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Chairwoman Janet Alkire. "They need to start over with adult supervision."

Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Chairwoman Janet Alkire is leading a fresh demand that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers throw out an ongoing environmental review process of the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline and start again from scratch alongside a superseding call for the pipeline to be shuttered completely.

Following Friday's release of a revised Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), ordered by a federal court, the tribe said the document reveals the entire process has been a failure and that the pipeline—currently operating across their land without consent in what they consider an "illegal" manner by the Energy Transfer company—should be shut down once and for all.

"We're furious that the Army Corps has addressed none of our major concerns during the review process," Chairwoman Alkire said in a statement.

"The pipeline is an imminent threat to the Missouri River, sensitive habitat, and sacred burial sites along the riverbank," she continued. "The oil company's emergency response plans are inadequate, its safety track record is horrendous, and there's been a stunning lack of transparency with Standing Rock throughout the environmental review process, including inaccurate characterizations of tribal consultation."

The Army Corps did not make any recommendations or indicate preferences among the alternatives presented in the new EIS report, which included keeping it in operation, possible rerouting, removing the pipeline by excavation, or abandoning it in place. The Corps said its final recommendations will accompany a final report once the review process is complete, but the Standing Rock Sioux said the process has been seriously flawed.

The tribe said the draft EIS fails to "account for the existence of criminal charges and a host of fines and serious citations" from regulators faced by Energy Transfer. Alkire accused the Corps of "doing all it can to ignore the company’s poor safety record and the high risk" of the pipeline. According to the statement by the tribe:

the entirety of the environmental review process hasn't been taken seriously and is compromised because the Corps selected a company with a clear conflict of interest to prepare the just-released draft EIS. Environmental Resources Management — which also produced a sparkling environmental review for the Keystone XL pipeline, later shelved due to environmental concerns — is a member of the American Petroleum Institute. That organization previously filed a legal brief in support of DAPL in Standing Rock’s suit against the Army Corps. Moreover, Environmental Resources Management has contracted with at least five separate companies with an ownership interest in DAPL.

The release of the EIS triggers a 45-day public comment period and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is now requesting public support in opposition of the project.

"The Corps' covering for the pipeline company's outrageous safety record and the reviewer's serious conflict of interest have now resulted in a failed effort," said Alkire of the current process. "They need to start over with adult supervision."

Amy Mall, senior advocate at NRDC, said her group stands "in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in opposing this dirty and dangerous pipeline that harms the climate and threatens the primary water source for the Tribe."

"The Army Corps must consider all of the risks of this pipeline, make all significant environmental information available without redactions, and honor the Tribe’s treaty rights," Mall added. "We call on the Corps to shut it down."

Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.

JON QUEALLY Jon Queally is managing editor of Common Dreams. Full Bio >

[workingclasshistory]

On this day, 9 June 2021, it was announced that the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline, which would have carried petroleum over 1000 miles from tar sands in Canada to Nebraska, was to be scrapped. First Nations peoples in Canada had resisted oil extraction in the region for years, and were joined by Native Americans in the United States in opposing the pipeline. These included the Sicangu Lakota Oyate, Assiniboine, Aaniiih and Nez Perce peoples. Native American protests also inspired resistance from other environmentalists, who began a campaign of civil disobedience against the project. The pipeline was first scrapped by the administration of Barack Obama, but then resurrected by later president, Donald Trump. Following renewed protests, the project was finally scrapped by the administration of Joe Biden. The campaign was one of many Indigenous struggles over land, sovereignty, and the environment which has contributed significantly to the fight against climate change. One study found that Indigenous resistance in United States and Canada has helped prevent 12% of the combined carbon dioxide equivalent pollution of the countries. Learn more about Native American resistance in this book: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/products/500-years-of-indigenous-resistance-gord-hill To access this hyperlink, click our link in bio then click this photo https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=641244214715464&set=a.602588028581083&type=3

[insert-witty-user-name-here]

50+ Good Things from the Biden Administration

Just a list of 50+ good things the Biden Administration has done in the last 4 years because I’ve been hearing too much rhetoric that it doesn’t matter who you vote for. It does make a difference. 

Increased access to healthcare and specifically codified protections for LGBTQ+ patients against discrimination. (x) 

Strengthened women's reproductive rights by increasing access to reproductive health care, improving confidentiality to protect against criminalization for patients receiving reproductive care, and revoked Medicaid waivers from states that would exclude providers like Planned Parenthood, and more. (x)

Expanded healthcare and benefits for veterans through the PACT Act (x)

Cemented protections for pregnant and postpartum workers through the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act. 

Improved access to nursing homes for those who receive Medicaid services and established, for the first time, a national minimum staffing requirement for nursing homes to ensure those in their care receive sufficient support.  (x) 

Lowered healthcare costs for those with Medicare which capped insulin for seniors at $35 a month, made vaccines free, and capped seniors’ out of pocket expenses at the pharmacy through the Inflation Reduction Act. 

Fully vaccinated 79% of American adults against COVID-19 (I know this is old news now this is a big deal) 

Banned unfair practices that hide housing fees from renters and homebuyers when moving into a new home (x) 

Reduced the mortgage insurance premium for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgages and clarified that inflated rents caused by algorithmic use of sensitive nonpublic pricing and supply information violate antitrust laws. (x) 

Increased protections for those saving for retirement from predatory practices. (x)

Helped millions of households gain access to the internet through the Affordable Connectivity Program. (x) 

Restored net neutrality (net neutrality is a standard which ensures broadband internet service is essential and prohibits interna providers from blocking, engaging in paid prioritization, and more.) (x)

Increased protections for loan holders as well as increased access to loans (x)

Cut fees that banks charge consumers for overdrawing on their accounts. (x)

Reaffirmed HUD’s commitment to remedy housing discrimination under the Fair Housing Act (which was– surprise, surprise– halted under the Trump administration). (x)

Rejoined the Paris Climate Accords.  

Listed more than 24 million acres of public lands across the country as environmentally protected and has channeled more than $18 billion dollars toward conservation projects. (And revoked the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline amongst others). 

Invested $369 billion to reduce greenhouse emissions and promote clean energy technologies through the Inflation Reduction Act. Through the tax incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act, renewable energy (such as wind, solar, and hydropower) has surpassed coal-fired generation in the electric power sector for the first time, making it the second-biggest source of energy behind natural gas. (x)

Strengthened protections against workplace assault through the Speak Out Act. (x) 

Increased protections for workers during the union bargaining process (x)

Is making it easier for passengers to obtain refunds when airlines cancel or significantly change their flights, significantly delay their bags, or fail to provide extra services when purchased. (x)  

Invested $1.2 trillion into roads, waterlines, broadband networks, airports and more allowing for more bridges, railroads, tunnels, roads, and more through the Inflation Reduction Act (which also added 670,000 jobs). (idk about you but I like driving on well maintained roads and having more rail options).  

Strengthened overtime protections for federal employees (x)

Raised the minimum wage for federal workers and contractors to $15. (x)

Strengthened protections for farmworkers by expanding the activities protected from retaliation by the National Labor Relations Act and more. (Previously anti-retaliation provisions under the National Labor Relations Act applies mostly to only U.S. citizens) (x)

Invested $80 billion for the Internal Revenue Service to hire new agents, audit the wealth, modernize its technology, and more. Additionally, created $300 billion in new revenue through corporate tax increases. (x) 

Lowered the unemployment rate to 3.5% — the lowest in 50 years. 

Canceled over $140B of student debt for nearly 40 million borrowers. (x)

Strengthened protections for sexual assault survivors, pregnant and parenting students, and LGBTQ+ students in schools through an updated Title IX rule. This updated rule strengthens sexual assault survivors rights to investigation– something that had been gutted under the Trump administration, strengthens requirements that schools provide modifications for students based on pregnancy, prohibits harassment based on sexual orientation or gender identity, and more. (x)

Revoked an order that limited diversity and inclusion training. (x)

Cracked down on for profit colleges. (x)

Reaffirmed students’ federal civil rights protections for non-discrimination based on race, national origin, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender in schools. Specifically, the Department of Education made clear students with disabilities’ right to school, limiting the use of out of school suspensions and expulsions against them. (x) (x) 

Enhanced the Civil Rights Data Collection, a national survey that captures data on students’ equal access to educational opportunities. These changes will improve the tracking of civil rights violations for students, critical for advocates to respond to instances of discrimination. 

Provided guidance on how colleges and universities can still uphold racial diversity in higher education following the Supreme Court decision overturning affirmative action. (x) 

Issued a federal pardon to all prior Federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana. Additionally, the DEA is taking steps to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III substance instead of a Schedule I, limiting punishment for possession in the future. (x) 

Changed drug charges related to crack offenses, now charging crack offenses as powder cocaine offenses. This is a big step towards ending the racial disparity that punishes crack offenses with greater severity than offenses involving the same amount of powder cocaine. (x) 

Lowered the cost of local calls for incarcerated people through the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act as well as increased access for video calls (especially impactful for incarcerated people with disabilities). (x) 

Enacted policing reforms that banned chokeholds, restricted no-knock entries, and restricted the transfer of military equipment to local police departments. (x)

Established the National Law Enforcement Accountability Database (NLEAD) which will better track police officer misconduct. This database will vet federal law enforcement candidates who have a history of misconduct from being rehired and will make it easier and faster to charge police officers under the Death in Custody Reporting Act. (x) 

Added disability as a protected characteristic alongside race, gender, religion, and sexual orientation. Under the law, police officers are prohibited from profiling people based on these characteristics. …It sadly happens anyway but now there’s an added legal protection which means a mechanism to convict police officers should they break the law. (x) 

Required federal prisons to place incarcerated individuals consistent with their chosen pronouns and gender identity. (x) 

Expanded gun background checks by narrowing the “boyfriend” loophole to keep guns out of the hands of convicted dating partners, strengthening requirements for registering as a licensed gun dealer (closing the “gun show loophole”), and more through the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.  (x) 

Increased mental health programs within police departments to support officers experiencing substance use disorders, mental health issues, or trauma from their duties. (x)

Lifted Trump era restrictions on the use of consent decrees. The Justice Department uses consent decrees to force local government agencies (like police departments) to eliminate bad practices (such as widespread abuse and misconduct) that infringe on peoples’ civil rights. (x) 

Improved reporting of hate crimes through the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act (x) 

Nominated the first Black woman to sit on the Supreme Court 

Confirmed 200 lifetime judges to federal courts, confirming historic numbers of women, people of color, and other judges who have long been excluded from our federal court system. (64% are women, 63% are people of color) 

Designated Temporary Protected Status (TPS) status for immigrants from Cameroon, Haiti, ​​El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, Sudan, and more. (x) 

Ended the discriminatory Muslim and African bans (x). 

Provided a pathway to citizenship for spouses of U.S. citizens that have been living in the country without documentation. (x) 

Expanded healthcare to DACA recipients (x) 

This one is… barely a win but not by fault of the Biden Administration. The Department of Homeland Security as of Feb 2023 has reunited nearly 700 immigrant children that were separated from their families under Trump’s Zero Tolerance Policy. From 2017-2021, 3,881 children were separated from their families. About 74% of those have been reunited with their families: 2,176 before the task force was created and 689 afterward. But that still leaves nearly 1,000 children who remain tragically separated from their families from under the Trump Administration. (x)

(okay this one is maybe only exciting for me who’s a census nerd) Revised federal standards for the collection of race and ethnicity data, allowing for federal data that better reflect the country’s diversity. Now, government forms will include a Middle Eastern/ North African category (when previously those individuals would check “white”). Additionally, forms will now have combined the race & ethnicity question allowing for individuals to check “Latino/a” as their race (previously Latine individuals would be encouraged to check “Latino” for ethnicity and “white” for race… which doesn’t really resonate with many folks). (x) (I know this sounds boring but let me tell you this is BIG when it comes to better data collection– and better advocacy!).

Rescinded a Trump order that would have excluded undocumented immigrants from the 2020 Census which would have taken away critical funds from those communities. 

Required the U.S. federal government and all U.S. states and territories to recognize the validity of same-sex and interracial civil marriages by passing the Respect for Marriage Act, repealing the Defense of Marriage Act.

Reversed Trump’stransgender military ban. 

Proposed investments in a lot of programs including universal pre-k, green energy, mental health programs across all sectors, a national medical leave program for all workers and more. (x) 

Last… let’s also not forget all the truly terrible things Trump did when he was in office. If you need a reminder, scroll this list, this one mostly for giggles + horror, for actual horror about what a Trump presidency has in store, learn about ‘Project 2025’ from the Heritage Foundation. I know this post is about reasons to vote FOR Biden but let’s not forget the many, many reasons to vote for him over Trump. 

So, there it is, 50+ reasons to vote for Biden in the 2024 Election. 

Check your voter registration here, make a plan to vote, and encourage your friends to vote as well. 

All in all, yeah… there’s a lot of shitty things still happening. There’s always going to be shit but things aren’t going to change on their own. And that change starts (it certainly doesn’t end) with voting. 

Go vote in November. 

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and right-wing Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia on Thursday introduced legislation that would prevent a federal agency from banning gas stoves.

Cruz and Manchin's bill to preempt the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) from banning gas stoves—titled the Gas Stove Protection and Freedom Act and described by progressive advocacy group Food & Water Watch as "absurd"—comes even though the agency says it has no plans to implement such a prohibition.

Climate and public health advocates celebrated last month after CPSC Commissioner Richard Trumka Jr. told Bloomberg News that gas stoves are "a hidden hazard" and suggested that new ones should be banned.

However, as Reuters reported Thursday, Trumka "walked back those comments after conservatives and energy industry groups seized on them as a way to criticize the Biden administration for allegedly overreaching with its climate and environmental policy agenda."

Food & Water Watch observed that while "there is currently no plan" to ban gas stoves, "there is substantial research documenting the hazards associated with the air pollution" the methane-powered appliances create.

A widely shared recent study found that 12.7% of childhood asthma cases in the U.S. can be tied to indoor air pollution caused by gas stoves. The findings bolstered calls from environmental justice advocates and public health experts to prohibit the sale of new gas stoves and expedite the switch to cleaner and safer electric ones, but the CPSC has yet to propose regulatory action.

"Manchin is doing his part to fuel the ridiculous right-wing panic over a nonexistent war on gas stoves," Food & Water Watch policy director Jim Walsh said Thursday. "But his intent behind this legislation is serious: to inhibit climate action and undermine agencies charged with protecting public health and safety—all in the interest of propping up his fossil fuel funders."

"As state and local governments are increasingly looking to turn away from gas in new construction—moves that will improve air quality and public health, and reduce climate pollution—Sen. Manchin continues looking backward," said Walsh.

Manchin is the top congressional recipient of cash from the fossil fuel industry, which has fought aggressively against increasingly popular campaigns to outlaw gas stoves at the state and local levels.

However, the coal baron who leads the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is far from alone in his defense of planet-heating and illness-inducing gas stoves.

As The Washington Post reported Thursday, Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future—a nonprofit group founded by a half-dozen gas companies—"has enlisted prominent Democratic politicians and pollsters to help enhance gas' reputation among liberal voters."

Former Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) and former Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) are among those going to bat for the fracking and gas utility industries.

"Natural Allies is backed by TC Energy, the Canadian pipeline giant behind the controversial Keystone XL project, and Southern Company, one of the biggest U.S. utilities," the Post reported. "Launched shortly before the 2020 election, the group is led by Susan Waller, a former executive at the pipeline firm Enbridge."

[nostalgebraist-autoresponder]

Was there any discussion in the White House for what the blowback would be for approving the Willow Oil project? Because people have gotten quite upset about it. I think there's some protesters outside right now.

I have no idea what the "Willow Oil" thing is, but I don't think there was any discussion of it. As far as I know the White House staff were not involved in that decision (except possibly for whatever communications with the EPA they may or may not have been involved in).

The plan to approve Keystone XL has become a big symbolic issue and everyone will be looking at how President Obama handles it over the coming weeks / months. If he does something like deny permission just before leaving office on an upbeat note about his legacy, or even a few days earlier than that so people can claim he did it out of spite, then this will create a lot of bad PR for him that will likely last through 2016. So my guess is that he'll delay the decision until after February.

[lumbarphilosophies-blog]

What do I think Of Biden, Now, As President? (A Question I Accidently deleted)

1st of all, I am sorry to whoever asked this as I accidently deleted your question, hopefully you will see this... Once again I hate talking politics so instead of going down a laundry list of things of why I think Biden is the worst President we've had in the last 20 or so years. I'm just going to start with one topic.

GAS PRICES

I believe Biden directly controls the gas prices by the policies he pushes. Such as shuttering the pipeline, reducing refinery capacity and sanctioning 43% of the world's natural gas and oil supply.

They claimed gas prices were high because of Russia right? Wrong. The majority of the gas price hikes took place before russia.

They claimed the President has no control over Gas Prices. This statement is also incorrect. It is actually one of the issues where they have more control than most people. This is because the oil business is all about projection rather than supply and demand. Future Earnings and determining whether or when you’re going to drill or pull back. You will sometimes see gas prices drop depending on when someone comes into office just because of policies that may not be enacted for another year or two because they’re willing to invest knowing they’ll recoup it. 

Now if you worked for a fossil fuel company what would you do if someone came into office threatening to shut down your company and claimed to enact policies that would greatly affect you, your profits, etc.

May 15th 2020

June 11th 2019

September 6th 2019 “I guarantee you, we are going to end Fossil Fuel!!!”

Biden has taken over 80 actions impacting or what would impact gas prices/fossil fuels. Largely against them. Most of them are executive orders.

Paris Climate Accord

He revoked the Keystone XL Pipeline (Keystone XL is different from Keystone)

He supported increases of $230,000,000,000 in taxes on oil

He reinstated the social cost of carbon metric

The Climate Change Order

Climate Financing 

 Climate Financial risk   

That’s to name a few, I’ll leave a link listing all the policies, executive orders, taken against fossil fuel. 

Another false claim is that it is the result or “Bounce back” from Covid. Meaning more people are driving now than during Covid… The problem with that statement is there is no data to suggest that this is even remotely true. Again, if you look at the prices on that chart you will see the before and after Covid and it remained hovering around $2.50 a gallon. Look at when the steep increase took place

There is a false claim that under President Joe Biden there is actually more domestic drilling than President Trump. Really? The truth is Biden did approve more drilling permits at a whopping number of 4,881 in 2021 than Trump’s 4,631 permits issued in 2020. However, the permits issued under Biden are for leases sold mostly under Trump… See what I’m saying? It rolled over, they’re rollover leases. If this piece of information doesn’t matter to you then maybe this will…. The Biden Administration slashed the approvals of drilling in August 2021.

Permits Slashed: “The data suggest the administration wants to show it’s meeting its obligation to issue permits for existing leases.”

YOU HAVE YOUR ANSWER

Look, this is just one of his many failings but I've spent to long typing this out on just one topic that to disect his entire presidency and everything I believe he has done wrong would take me days and weeks to describe on this platform. That being said I'll speak briefly on inflation.

INFLATION

The CPI (Instrument to measure Inflation) went up 7.9% through february of 2022 which is the highest inflation rate for a quarter or month in 40 years.

If you do the math it is exactly 40 years since the embarrassment of Jimmy Carter where the CPI rose 13.5% in 1980. That number (13.5%) included the rising cost of housing. (Don’t know if you’ve noticed but that’s still kind of a problem today too) The numbers under Joe Biden (7.9%) does not include the rising cost of housing, so the inflation rate is actually 11%. These numbers are old and guaranteed to have risen at this time on December 30th 2022.

I DO NOT BEGRUDGE ANYONE WHO VOTED FOR HIM, I DO HOWEVER BELIEVE WE WERE BETTER OFF WITH TRUMP!

GOD BLESS!

[greenprophet]

We need to reach your networks! Dear friend and climate change enthusiast greenprophet, we are passionately moving forward to tell the story of the fight against the Keystone XL Pipeline but we still need your help! If you can, please take a look at and share our recent diagram about what we will need to movie forward. Thanks for your love and support! More info and VIDEOS about our project can be found on our Kickstarter page.

Yes email us karin@greenprophet.com

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from Inside Climate News:

Before the sun set on his inauguration day, Joe Biden reversed a raft of his predecessor’s deregulation policies with the stroke of a pen. Among them was an order revoking the permit for the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline. 

Canceling the project was a campaign pledge to address the climate crisis. But looming over that decision was the risk that an obscure but powerful international legal system could force the United States to pay billions of dollars to Keystone XL’s Canadian developer, TC Energy. 

That system—embedded in thousands of trade and investment treaties—allows corporations to drag governments before panels of arbitrators, usually behind closed doors. Governments have been ordered to pay billions of dollars in damages to oil and mining companies for violating those treaties. While the system was intended to protect foreign investors from unfair treatment or asset seizure, many environmental advocates, lawyers and politicians say it is now being used to win awards from governments that enact new environmental regulations or raise taxes on polluting industries.

Increasingly, these critics warn the system threatens climate action by punishing governments that phase out fossil fuels. 

The $15 billion claim TC Energy brought against the United States was one of the largest-ever in response to a climate policy. The company lost earlier this month, but the case was dismissed on a technicality and its outcome says nothing about other pending cases around the world.

Australia, Canada, Colombia and Slovenia are facing tens of billions of dollars in claims from companies for phasing out coal power plants, rejecting mining licenses or disallowing liquefied natural gas permits. In 2022, Italy was ordered to pay a British oil company roughly $200 million after offshore drilling restrictions upended the firm’s development plans. 

In other countries, the system set up for these claims—investor-state dispute settlement, or ISDS—has driven up costs of closing coal power plants, prevented governments from canceling oil and gas licenses or otherwise impeded efforts to reduce fossil fuel use, government ministers and researchers say. Companies even win awards despite leaving behind environmental contamination, violating human rights or breaking national laws.

The ISDS system is uniquely daunting for governments because arbitrators overseeing the cases can award compensation not just for real losses but also for unearned, expected future profits. It’s a key reason awards can balloon into the billions of dollars. 

Governments already face numerous practical and political obstacles as they attempt to move away from fossil fuels, said Canadian lawyer and professor Gus Van Harten, who has studied ISDS’s evolution for decades. “This system is providing an unwarranted and unexpected further minefield.” 

As Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland, put it in a speech this year: “I cannot overstate just how perverse this is.”

[plethoraworldatlas]

President Joe Biden lost a lot of support, especially among young voters and climate voters, when he approved the foolish Willow Project. The Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) was equally unpopular with those groups but they rightfully placed most of the blame for that project on Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V).

What a lot of people, including reporters, don’t realize is that Pete Buttigieg, as Secretary of Transportation, had (and still has) the power to stop MVP. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) reports to Buttigieg and PHMSA, as its name implies, has the authority and responsibility to ensure the pipelines are built and operated safely. But the MVP was not built—nor is it operating—safely. That is not an opinion pulled out of thin air by a climate activist. Rather it is the conclusion of a study done by TC Energy (formerly TransCanada), the company that wanted to build the Keystone XL Pipeline (KXL). That study was the subject of an article (pg 16) in the Jan/Feb 2020 issue of Corrosion Management, a journal of the Institute of Corrosion.

This topic has been written about extensively for over a year. If reporters and other readers want to understand the particulars they can find them here. The long and short of it is that the TC Energy/KXL study proved that MVP’s corrosion-proof coating is “no longer fit for purpose.” That’s a pretty damning indictment, especially given the enormous diameter (42 inches) of MVP and the extremely high pressure it will be operating under. It’s particularly scary for all those who live within MVP’s blast zone.

MVP is made of thick steel. It isn’t going to corrode extensively tomorrow or anytime right away. But pipelines like MVP are built with the intention that they will operate for many, many decades, which is why legally they MUST have an adequate corrosion-proof coating. Otherwise they will corrode prematurely which could lead to a massive explosion. Delaney Tercero was 3 when a 10 inch gas pipeline exploded near her home because defective coating allowed the pipe to corrode. She died 2 days later in a hospital burn unit. Again, MVP is 42 inches.

The National Association of Pipe Coating Applicators (NAPCA) recommends that the pipe coating that was applied to MVP pipe should not be exposed to the harmful rays of the sun for more than 6 months. MVP pipe sat out in the sun for 6-7 years. A KXL pipeline manager, speaking at an oil and gas forum in Canada, said that when the coating has deteriorated to such a degree it either needs to be replaced or sent back to the factory for stripping, cleaning and recoating. He said this is a problem that can’t be remedied in the field. MVP pipe was neither replaced nor properly recoated. It was just quickly buried and covered up, as if that would make the problem go away.

[kmc6024]

Trump’s 2016 Failed Promises:

Place a Lifetime ban on White House officials lobbying for foreign governments  Failed

Approve the Keystone XL project and reap profits  Failed

Close parts of the internet where ISIS is  Failed

Open up libel laws  Failed

Place lifetime ban on foreign lobbyists raising money for American elections  Failed

Create a health savings account  Failed

Invest $550 billion in infrastructure and create an infrastructure fund  Failed

Bring back manufacturing  Failed

Make no cuts to Medicaid  Failed

Grow the economy by 4 percent a year  Failed

Guarantee 6-week paid leave  Failed

Appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Hillary Clinton  Failed

Get Congress to allow health insurance across state lines  Failed

Repeal Obamacare  Failed

Renegotiate the Iran deal  Failed

Rebuild the Marine Corps to 36 battalions  Failed

Add additional federal investment of $20 billion toward School Coice  Failed

Change the vaccination schedule for children  Failed

Adopt a penny plan  Failed

Expand national rights to carry to all states  Failed

Cancel all funding to sanctuary cities  Failed

Dramatically scale back the US Education Department  Failed

Eliminate Common Core  Failed

Remove all undocumented immigrants  Failed

Eliminate gun-free zones at schools and military bases  Failed

Stop the AT&T Time Warner Merger  Failed

Triple Ice enforcement  Failed

Eliminate wasteful spending in every department  Failed

Build a wall, and make Mexico pay for it  Failed

Reverse China’s entry into the World Trade Organization  Failed

End birthright citizenship  Failed

Enact 5-year ban on White House and congressional officials from lobbying  Failed

Impose a hiring freeze on federal employees  Failed

Have mandatory minimum sentences for criminals caught trying to re-enter the United States illegally  Failed

Impose death penalty for cop killers  Failed

Establish a commission on radical Islam  Failed

Replace J-1 Visa with Inner City Resume Bank  Failed

Increase the size of the U.S. Army to 540,000 active soldiers  Failed

Increase Visa fees  Failed

Build a safe zone for Syrian refugees  Failed

[justheretokilltimesblog]

Trump’s 2016 Failed Promises:

Place a Lifetime ban on White House officials lobbying for foreign governments Failed

Approve the Keystone XL project and reap profits Failed

Close parts of the internet where ISIS is Failed

Open up libel laws Failed

Place lifetime ban on foreign lobbyists raising money for American elections Failed

Create a health savings account Failed

Invest $550 billion in infrastructure and create an infrastructure fund Failed

Bring back manufacturing Failed

Make no cuts to Medicaid Failed

Grow the economy by 4 percent a year Failed

Guarantee 6-week paid leave Failed

Appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Hillary Clinton Failed

Get Congress to allow health insurance across state lines Failed

Repeal Obamacare Failed

Renegotiate the Iran deal Failed

Rebuild the Marine Corps to 36 battalions Failed

Add additional federal investment of $20 billion toward School Coice Failed

Change the vaccination schedule for children Failed

Adopt a penny plan Failed

Expand national rights to carry to all states Failed

Cancel all funding to sanctuary cities Failed

Dramatically scale back the US Education Department Failed

Eliminate Common Core Failed

Remove all undocumented immigrants Failed

Eliminate gun-free zones at schools and military bases Failed

Stop the AT&T Time Warner Merger Failed

Triple Ice enforcement Failed

Eliminate wasteful spending in every department Failed

Build a wall, and make Mexico pay for it Failed

Reverse China’s entry into the World Trade Organization Failed

End birthright citizenship Failed

Enact 5-year ban on White House and congressional officials from lobbying Failed

Impose a hiring freeze on federal employees Failed

Have mandatory minimum sentences for criminals caught trying to re-enter the United States illegally Failed

Impose death penalty for cop killers Failed

Establish a commission on radical Islam Failed

Replace J-1 Visa with Inner City Resume Bank Failed

Increase the size of the U.S. Army to 540,000 active soldiers Failed

Increase Visa fees Failed

Build a safe zone for Syrian refugees Failed

[usnewsper-politics]

Governor Banished: Native American Tribe Stands Up for Land and Rights #consultationprocess #culturalpreservation #executiveorder #indigenousrights #justiceforNativeAmericans. #KeystoneXLpipeline #landrights #NativeAmericanreservation #OglalaSiouxTribe #PineRidgeReservation #SouthDakotaGovernorKristiNoem #systemicracism #taskforce #tribalsovereignty

[insert-witty-user-name-here]

10+ Good Things Biden has Done: Climate & Labor Edition

Just a list of 10+ good things Biden has done in the last 4 years because I’ve been hearing too much rhetoric that it doesn’t matter who you vote for. It does make a difference. 

Find more 10+ good things here, here and here.

Rejoined the Paris Climate Accords.  

Listed more than 24 million acres of public lands across the country as environmentally protected and has channeled more than $18 billion dollars toward conservation projects. (And revoked the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline amongst others). (x)

Invested $369 billion to reduce greenhouse emissions and promote clean energy technologies through the Inflation Reduction Act. Through the tax incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act, renewable energy (such as wind, solar, and hydropower) has surpassed coal-fired generation in the electric power sector for the first time, making it the second-biggest source of energy behind natural gas. (x)

Strengthened protections against workplace assault through the Speak Out Act. (x) 

Increased protections for workers during the union bargaining process (x)

Is making it easier for passengers to obtain refunds when airlines cancel or significantly change their flights, significantly delay their bags, or fail to provide extra services when purchased. (x)  

Invested $1.2 trillion into roads, waterlines, broadband networks, airports and more allowing for more bridges, railroads, tunnels, roads, and more through the Inflation Reduction Act (which also added 670,000 jobs). (idk about you but I like driving on well maintained roads and having more rail options).  

Strengthened overtime protections for federal employees (x)

Raised the minimum wage for federal workers and contractors to $15. (x)

Strengthened protections for farmworkers by expanding the activities protected from retaliation by the National Labor Relations Act and more. (Previously anti-retaliation provisions under the National Labor Relations Act applies mostly to only U.S. citizens) (x)

Invested $80 billion for the Internal Revenue Service to hire new agents, audit the wealth, modernize its technology, and more. Additionally, created $300 billion in new revenue through corporate tax increases. (x) 

Lowered the unemployment rate to 3.5% — the lowest in 50 years.

Proposed investments in a lot of programs including universal pre-k, green energy, mental health programs across all sectors, a national medical leave program for all workers and more. (x) 

Last… let’s also not forget all the truly terrible things Trump did when he was in office. If you need a reminder, scroll this list, this one mostly for giggles + horror, for actual horror about what a Trump presidency has in store, learn about ‘Project 2025’ from the Heritage Foundation. I know this post is about reasons to vote FOR Biden but let’s not forget the many, many reasons to vote for him over Trump.

Looking for more?

10+ good things Biden has done in education and immigration and

10+ good things Biden has done in healthcare and housing

10+ good things Biden has done in the justice and courts system

A few other notes

Voting for Biden or Trump shouldn’t be the only reason you vote. You know what elections have more power over your life? LOCAL elections. If you’re not feeling jazzed about Biden… vote for someone really cool running for mayor, or your rep, or on your school board and then begrudgingly vote for Biden. 

A reminder that if someone online is trying to discourage you to vote there’s a good chance they are a paid actor to do so. Voter suppression was a well-documented tactic during the 2016 election and I’m sure the trolls are out in force again. 

Check your voter registration here, make a plan to vote, and encourage your friends to vote as well. 

All in all, yeah… there’s a lot of shitty things still happening. There’s always going to be shit but things aren’t going to change on their own. And that change starts (it certainly doesn’t end) with voting. 

Go vote in November.

[dertaglichedan]

"Who Is Biden Working For?" Admin Under Fire For 'Illegal, Reckless' Cancellation Of Alaska Oil Leases

Did someone pay Bidens to weaken the United States?

After canceling the Keystone XL pipeline project, draining the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to dangerously low levels (some of which was sold to a Hunter Biden-linked Chinese energy giant), and vowing "no more oil drilling" on US soil while America's geopolitical adversaries - two of whom paid his family handsomely - beef up their own energy independence, the Biden administration has done it again.