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This evening's music features blues singer Lee "Shot" Williams. Enjoy!

"It’s been a year. You don’t get to say that Biden or Harris are working tirelessly to end the destruction of Gaza. Clearly they aren’t."

-- Caitlin Johnstone

News and Opinion

Turning People Into Involuntary Suicide Bombers To Fight Terrorism

Israel just turned thousands of Lebanese people into involuntary suicide bombers in the name of fighting terrorism.

At least nine people have been killed and thousands injured in an attack in Lebanon which reportedly involved pagers packed with explosives being remotely detonated around the country, often in civilian areas. An eight year-old girl is reportedly among the dead.

According to The New York Times, unnamed officials from the US and elsewhere are saying that Israel planted the explosive materials in the pagers before they reached Lebanon after Hezbollah ordered them from a Taiwanese manufacturer.

The US is denying any foreknowledge of the attack, but that’s what they always do. We’re always asked to believe that the US never knew anything about attacks conducted by nations like Israel and Ukraine until they read about it in the news, and that their massive intelligence cartel and sprawling surveillance networks never pick up any information and exist for no reason.

Take a look at where people were and who they were surrounded by when their pagers exploded.
Can you see the young child just steps away?
This was an indiscriminate attack by Israel on civilians in Lebanon, and it falls under the West’s supposed definition of terrorism.
We’ve… pic.twitter.com/L68YN6TeZA

— Dr. Sabreena Ghaffar-Siddiqui (@sabreenaGS) September 17, 2024

This was a terror attack by any possible definition. If Hezbollah had detonated a bunch of devices held by Israeli forces in public spaces without knowing who was near them when they went off, every paper in the western world would have called it a terror attack. But because it was Israelis targeting Hezbollah (a political party which is part of the Lebanese government and has many civilian members), it’s only being called “explosions”.

“Hezbollah blames Israel after deadly pager explosions in Lebanon,” reads the headline from the BBC.

“Thousands injured in Lebanon as pagers used by Hezbollah explode,” says The Washington Post.

“Exploding pagers belonging to Hezbollah kill at least 8 and injure more than 2,700 in Lebanon,” says NBC News.

No condemnations from western officials. No thoughts and prayers for the victims. No pledges to bring the terrorists to justice. Just the news media going oh wow, some pagers exploded.

Got that, kids? It’s only terrorism when the Official Bad Guys do it. When the Official Good Guys do it, it’s just giving those Bad Guys a sorely needed exploding.

if Hamas, Hezbollah, or any group or person exploded electronic devices in Israel and killed children, it would be described by the entire Western media class as a horrific act of wanton evil sadistic terrorism. Israel does it and it's seen as an epic based move to be celebrated

— (@zei_squirrel) September 17, 2024

The unprecedented nature and scale of this attack has raised a lot of concerns from a lot of directions. We all use electronic devices in our daily lives, and weaponizing them at mass scale is naturally going to scare people.

“If it were iPhones that were leaving the factory with explosives inside, the media would be a hell of a lot faster to cotton on to what a horrific precedent has been set today. Nothing can justify this. It’s a crime. A crime. And everyone in the world is less safe for it,” tweeted NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.

“What Israel has just done is, via *any* method, reckless. They blew up countless numbers of people who were driving (meaning cars out of control), shopping (your children are in the stroller standing behind him in the checkout line), et cetera. Indistinguishable from terrorism,” Snowden also said.

What strikes me watching all this is how gratuitously creepy it is. Israel is so creepy. Everyone already sees them as rapey genocidal baby killers, and then they have to go and commit this weird terror attack in the creepiest way possible and freak everyone out, to no clear and meaningful strategic gain. They’re so creepy they can’t stop themselves from always choosing the creepiest course of action.

Israel is gross.

Lebanon Pager EXPLOSION With Lebanese Journalist Rania Khalek + Craig Mokhiber On Self Defense

Hezbollah vows retaliation after exploding pagers kill at least nine and hurt almost 3,000

Hezbollah has vowed to retaliate against Israel after pagers used by its members exploded across Lebanon simultaneously, killing at least nine people and wounding almost 3,000 in a dramatic and unprecedented attack at a time of heightened tensions in the Middle East.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the blasts, which came just hours after Israel announced it was broadening its aims in the war sparked by the Hamas attacks on 7 October to include its fight against Hezbollah along the border with Lebanon.

Lebanon’s health minister, Firass Abiad, said the blasts on Tuesday killed a 10-year-old girl, among others. He told a press conference: “About 2,750 people were injured … more than 200 of them critically,” with injuries mostly reported to the face, hands and stomach.

The apparent sabotage attack followed months of targeted assassinations by Israel against senior Hezbollah leaders. It came as US officials try to de-escalate tensions between the two sides and remain concerned that Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, could order a ground invasion of Lebanon. It threatens to derail efforts by the US to prevent Iran, which backs the Lebanese Shia militia, from retaliating against Israel for the July bombing in Tehran that killed the Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh.

The blasts appeared to exploit the low-tech pagers that Hezbollah has adopted in order to prevent the targeted assassinations of its members, who could be tracked by mobile phone signals. Those wounded in the attack include Iran’s ambassador to Beirut, Mojtaba Amani, according to reports. It also ratcheted up tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, interrupting an uneasy calm which had prevailed over the last three weeks when both parties had appeared to step back from the brink of a regional war after a limited Hezbollah response in late August to Israel’s assassination of its top military commander, Fuad Shukur, in Beirut.

Israel Blamed as Pager Explosions in Lebanon Kill 12 & Injure 2,800; Hezbollah Vows to Respond

Pfffftttt!!!

US Insists It Was Unaware of Israel’s Plans To Blow Up Pagers in Lebanon

The US claimed on Tuesday that it was unaware of Israel’s plans to blow up thousands of pagers inside Lebanon, an attack that killed at least nine people and wounded thousands.

State Department spokesman Matt Miller insisted the US “was not aware of this operation and was not involved.” He said the US was still “gathering information” about the coordinated attack.

Later on Tuesday, US officials who were “briefed on the operation” confirmed to The New York Times that Israel was behind the attack. They said Israel planted explosives in pagers that Hezbollah ordered from Taiwan.

Exploding pager attack in Lebanon is another blow for US peace hopes

For American diplomacy in the Middle East, the extraordinary attack in Lebanon that simultaneously detonated hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah members could not have come at a less auspicious moment – and may still spark an escalation that the US had been seeking desperately to avoid.

A day before the coordinated sabotage, Amos Hochstein, a senior adviser to Joe Biden, was in Israel urging Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials against an escalation in Lebanon. The US defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, and the Israeli defence minister, Yoav Gallant, had also warned that time was running out to find a negotiated settlement between Israel and Hezbollah.

What remains to be seen is whether the pager attack is a prelude to a broader operation by Israeli forces that could now take advantage of the hundreds, or perhaps even thousands, of Hezbollah operatives who have been maimed and injured.

The attacks have probably disrupted the organisation’s communications. The pagers were obtained as a low-risk alternative to mobile phones, allowing the group to communicate remotely without opening itself up to drone strikes as part of Israel’s campaign of targeted assassinations of Hezbollah and Hamas leaders. ...

The White House had hoped that a period of quiet around Israel would allow for ceasefire negotiators to achieve a breakthrough, as intermediaries shuttle between Hamas and Israel to thread the needle of both sides’ complex demands regarding a hostage exchange and territorial claims. That period of quiet has now been shattered with a breathtaking act of subterfuge and Hezbollah has vowed to retaliate.

COL. Douglas Macgregor : Can Israel Survive Itself?

Gaza publishes identities of 34,344 Palestinians killed in war with Israel

Gaza’s health ministry has identified 34,344 Palestinians killed by Israeli attacks in the territory, publishing a list of names, ages, gender and ID numbers that cover more than 80% of Palestinians killed in the war so far.

The remaining 7,613 people included in its death toll, which is now above 41,000, are Palestinians whose bodies have been received by hospitals and morgues, but whose identities have not yet been confirmed.

The identified people include 169 babies born after the Hamas attacks of 7 October that began the war, and a man born in 1922 who had survived more than a century of war and upheaval.

The document runs to 649 pages, with the dead listed largely by age. Gaza’s population is youthful, and the register underlines the high toll of Israeli attacks on Palestinian children.

More than 100 pages are filled with the names of victims under 10 years old, and the first adult names do not appear until page 215.

Aaron Maté : Hillary Condemns Free Speech

West Bank Kids Under Growing Assault by Israeli Forces

An average of five children per day have been killed or wounded by Israeli occupation forces and settler-colonists in the West Bank of Palestine, according to a report published Tuesday by Save the Children, which sounded the alarm on what it called a "significant escalation of violence in the past six weeks."

According to the charity, Israeli forces have killed 158 Palestinian children in the West Bank between October 7 and August 14. At least 1,400 other children have been injured. The majority of those killed—115 children—were shot, while others have been killed by Israeli aerial bombing and drone strikes.

Child casualties have increased significantly since Israel launched a major offensive in the northern West Bank on August 28.

One 12-year-old girl from the Tulkarem refugee camp described what it was like to experience an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) raid.

"I felt a lot of fear because of the airstrikes and shootings," she said. "By the third day, I was even more scared because the Israeli forces raided our home. They barged in, screaming, and my mum tried to speak to them, but they swarmed the house and searched every room. We were so afraid of them."

"There is no safety for us," she added. "At any moment they might come back and at any moment they go—we don't know."

The girl's mother told Save the Children that IDF troops "gathered at night, began the raid, and stayed a long time here and raided our home, terrorizing the kids, separating them, frightening them."

"They blew up the door," she continued. "My little girl couldn't control herself and wet herself. [She] was standing, shaking in the corner. They pointed their guns at me."

"The children are constantly afraid, deprived of the simplest things," she added. "Their mental health is deteriorating. These children deserve better. They deserve to be children, not to live in constant fear of raids and shootings."

Save the Children said that "since last October there has been an increase in the arbitrary arrest, detention, and abuse of children in the Israeli military detention system, more forced displacement of families, demolition of homes, and a sharp rise in violent attacks by Israeli settlers."

Jeremy Stoner, the charity's Middle East regional director, stressed that "these actions are not isolated incidents; they are part of a trend of increasing Israeli military operations and use of force that are systematically eroding the safety, security, and fundamental rights of Palestinian children, who are paying the highest price in this escalating violence."

"Every day, children are killed, injured, or left severely distressed, and their families are left grieving unimaginable losses," he continued. "This environment deprives children of essential services and even the basic security of their homes, ripping away their sense of safety when they need it most."

"We must not allow violence against children to become normalized or accepted as inevitable," Stoner added. "We need urgent and decisive action to protect children across the West Bank and to stop this becoming their increasing reality."

Israel's offensive began just weeks after the International Court of Justice (ICJ)—where Israel is also on trial for genocide in Gaza—declared the country's 57-year occupation of the West Bank an illegal form of apartheid that must end immediately. Instead, Israel launched the largest campaign in the territory in decades.

According to the most recent United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs situation report, Israeli soldiers and settlers have killed 546 Palestinians and injured at least 5,669 others in the West Bank since October 7. Since January 2023, 772 West Bank Palestinians have been killed and more than 14,600 were wounded. Over that same period, Palestinians have killed 41 Israelis including eight children and wounded 278 others.

UK wants US directly involved in UKRAINE CONFLICT

Ukrainian Commanders Urged Zelensky Not To Invade Kursk

Some of Ukraine’s top military commanders opposed President Volodymyr Zelensky’s plans to invade Russia’s Kursk Oblast, but he went through with the assault anyway, POLITICO reported on Tuesday.

The report, which cited Ukrainian military officials, said that Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, the former commander-in-chief and current ambassador to the UK, opposed the offensive when Zelensky first broached the idea earlier this year. Zaluzhny opposed the offensive because there was no clear second step once the border was breached. “He never got a clear answer from Zelensky,” one of the Ukrainian officials said. “He felt it was a gamble.”

Another Ukrainian officer who opposed the invasion was Emil Ishkulov, the former commander of Ukraine’s 80th Air Assault Brigade. He was removed from his position in July, which drew protests from senior Ukrainian military officials, who said they didn’t understand why Ishkulov was dismissed.

Kashmir sees first election since 2014 as chance to reject Modi

For the first time in almost 40 years, Bashir Ahmad Thokar, a 75-year-old apple farmer, cannot wait to cast his vote. In the Himalayan valleys and mountains of the Indian region of Kashmir, elections have long been deemed a tainted affair, marred by rigging, boycotts and violence. But as Kashmiris go to the polls on Wednesday to vote for their first regional assembly in a decade, this time there has been a palpable buzz. “This is the first time since 1987 that the people of Kashmir are excited about the elections,” says Thokar.

The election, which will continue in phases until 1 October, is being deemed the most significant in the region for years. It is not only the first time since 2014 that Kashmiris will be able to vote for their own regional representatives, but is also the first vote since the region was stripped of its statehood by prime minister Narendra Modi. It was August 2019 that Modi unilaterally revoked Article 370 – which had given Kashmir its own special form of autonomy since independence – and brought it under the complete control of the central government. A lengthy and oppressive crackdown followed. Thousands of additional troops were brought in; hundreds, including prominent politicians, were jailed; and the internet was cut for over 18 months, the longest blackout ever recorded.

For Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), taking full control of Kashmir had been a central pledge of their Hindu nationalist agenda for years, and it was celebrated by many in the establishment. But while Kashmiris on the ground opposed the move, few were able to protest or openly criticise it. Anyone seen to be involved in dissent was routinely harassed and detained by police, often under draconian anti-terrorism laws, and the freedom of the local press was systematically crushed, with many journalists among those detained.

Voters in the state described the upcoming polls as an opportunity to finally get back their voice, after years of having their democratic rights silenced. The Modi government had resisted holding the polls but it was finally mandated by the supreme court earlier this year, with a September deadline.

The BJP had initially claimed they would “sweep” the election yet widespread resentment has left them contesting less than a third of the 90 assembly seats, mostly focused in the only Hindu-majority area of Jammu, and they are expected to win fewer than in the 2014 polls. “This election is important because there is utter disillusionment amongst people,” said Iltija Mufti, daughter of former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, whose party was once in alliance with the BJP. “We are at a crossroads in our history, people have not felt such deep alienation before. They feel disempowered and dispossessed.”

Justin Trudeau under pressure as his party loses Montreal election

Canada’s ruling Liberal party has lost a once-safe seat in Montreal, a result that is likely to put more pressure on the prime minister, Justin Trudeau, to quit.

Elections Canada said that with 100% of the votes counted in the parliamentary constituency of LaSalle-Émard-Verdun, the separatist Bloc Québécois candidate, Louis-Philippe Sauvé, had beaten the Liberal candidate, Laura Palestini, by a whisker: 28% to 27.2%. The New Democratic party (NDP) candidate received 26.1%.

The election, which was held to replace a Liberal legislator who quit, will put more focus on the political future of Trudeau, who has become increasingly unpopular after almost nine years in office.

Trudeau insists he will lead the party into an election that must be held by the end of October 2025, but some Liberal legislators have broken ranks to call for change at the top.

Georgia Woman's Death Marks First Confirmed Case of Fatal Post-Roe Abortion Denial

Reproductive rights advocates have warned for years that abortion bans and restrictions like those now in place in 22 U.S. states would kill pregnant people, and have been dismissed as "hyperbolic" by right-wing lawmakers and activists.

On Monday, new reporting shed light for the first time on the case of one woman whose "preventable" death was the result of an abortion ban—and as ProPublica reported, "there are almost certainly others."

The outlet reported on the story of Amber Nicole Thurman, a 28-year-old mother of a six-year-old son in Georgia, who realized she was pregnant in July 2022—weeks after the right-wing majority on the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and just as the state's six-week abortion ban was going into effect.

Thurman had just passed the six-week mark in her pregnancy as the ban took effect on July 20, with "exceptions" that Republicans claimed would allow doctors to provide care to pregnant people who were facing life-threatening complications.

Unable to get an abortion in her home state, the medical assistant, who was planning to attend nursing school and had recently been able to move out of her family's home into an apartment with her son, scheduled a dilation and curettage (D&C)—a surgical abortion procedure—at a clinic in North Carolina, about four hours away. Scheduling the appointment required taking the day off work, finding childcare, and borrowing a relative's car.

Thurman hit heavy traffic on the way to the clinic and missed her appointment; with abortion bans going into effect across the Southeast, the facility was overwhelmed with out-of-state patients and was unable to schedule another D&C for her.

Instead, she was prescribed the abortion pills misoprostol and mifepristone, and took the first pill before heading back home with plans to take the second in Georgia.

After taking the second pill, however, Thurman experienced a rare complication, with some of the fetal tissue remaining in her uterus.

Before Georgia's abortion ban went into effect, she would have been able to obtain a D&C, with doctors removing the remaining tissue—a fairly routine procedure, and part of the standard care for a miscarriage.

As ProPublica reported, the year after the Supreme Court handed down the Roe v. Wade ruling in 1973, affirming that abortion care was a constitutional right in the U.S., the new availability of D&Cs for abortion and miscarriages slashed the maternal mortality rate for women of color by up to 40%.

But when Thurman arrived at Piedmont Henry Hospital in the Atlanta suburb of Stockbridge—having experienced increasing pain and heavy bleeding before vomiting blood and fainting—she encountered a medical team that delayed providing her the standard care for roughly 20 hours.

ProPublica noted that the "supposed lifesaving exceptions" in Georgia's six-week abortion ban prohibit doctors from using medical instruments "with the purpose of terminating a pregnancy," and specify that procedures such as a D&C can only be used if fetal tissue needs to be removed due to a "spontaneous abortion"—the medical term for a miscarriage.

Thurman had told the doctors that she had had a medication abortion, which Republican state lawmakers hadn't included in the exceptions—suggesting she shouldn't be provided care since she'd chosen to terminate her pregnancy. Violating the law could result in prosecution and a prison sentence of up to a decade for a doctor.

The morning after Thurman arrived at the hospital at around 9:30 pm on August 18, 2022, with an ultrasound showing fetal tissue remaining in Thurman's body, a doctor diagnosed "acute severe sepsis," but it was still hours before the staff provided care to remove the tissue. ...

The state's maternal mortality review board, which includes 10 physicians, determined that the hospital's decision to delay providing care for nearly an entire day had a "large" impact on Thurman's "preventable" death.

ProPublica identified one other Georgia woman whose death was caused by delayed abortion care resulting from the state's ban, and plans to report on her story in the coming days.

"This is what abortion bans do," said writer and activist Jessica Valenti.

At The New York Times, columnist Michelle Goldberg wrote that "it was only a matter of time" before Americans would learn that an abortion ban had killed a pregnant person.

"The shattering fallout from abortion prohibition was entirely predictable for anyone who has paid attention to such bans in other countries," Goldberg wrote, citing the 2012 case in Ireland of Savita Halappanavar, who died of septicemia after doctors refused to treat her for a miscarriage because her fetus still had a heartbeat.

"In Ireland, the name Savita became a rallying cry" that led voters to overwhelmingly approve a referendum making abortion legal, wrote Goldberg. "The name Amber should be one here." ...

A spokesperson for Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's office dismissed the medical board's finding that Thurman's death could have been prevented if not for the state's abortion ban, telling ProPublica that the law allows doctors to provide care in medical emergencies and calling the outlet's reporting a "fear-mongering campaign."

But Leah Greenberg, co-executive director of progressive advocacy group Indivisible, said Thurman death "was not a tragic mistake."

"It is the logical outcome of the Georgia abortion ban working exactly as intended," said Greenberg, "by horrifically punishing women who try to access abortion care."

JD Souther, Singer-Songwriter Behind Hits for the Eagles, Dies at 78

JD Souther, a singer-songwriter known for writing hits for the Eagles that included "Best of My Love" and "New Kid in Town," has died, his longtime friend and veteran PR executive Larry Solters told TheWrap. Souther, who died in his sleep at his New Mexico home, was 78 years old.

Souther, an inductee to the Songwriters Hall of Fame, wrote and recorded songs with the Eagles and Linda Ronstadt. Souther had two major hits as a solo artist: "You're Only Lonely," his biggest hit, and "Her Town Too," a duet released with his friend James Taylor. "You're Only Lonely," off his 1979 album of the same name, peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100, while "Her Town Too" went to No. 11.

Souther also co-wrote "Heartache Tonight" with Glen Frey and Don Henley of the Eagles and Bob Seger. Souther formed his partnership with the Eagles' Frey after they met in Los Angeles in the late 1960s. The two briefly formed their own brand, Longbranch Pennywhistle, and released an album together. He later teamed with Linda Ronstadt for a duet, "If You Have Crying Eyes," released on his second solo album, "Black Rose." Ronstadt and Souther collaborated on several songs and also dated.

Born John David Souther in Detroit, Michigan, he was raised in Amarillo, Texas and first recorded with local group The Cinders. Buddy Holly's producer shopped their music to Warner Bros., releasing a single under the name "John David and the Cinders." Souther released his self-titled solo debut in 1972, later forming the Souther-Hillman-Furay Band with former Byrds member Chris Hillman and Poco's Richie Furay.

Arizona elections error could affect eligibility of nearly 100,000 voters

Arizona’s top elections official said on Tuesday that a newly identified error in the state’s voter registration process needs to be swiftly resolved, as early ballots are set to go out to some voters as soon as this week.

Election staff in the Maricopa county recorder’s office identified an issue last week, which concerns voters with old driver’s licenses who may never have provided documentary proof of citizenship but were coded as having provided it and therefore were able to vote full ballots. The state has a bifurcated system in which voters who do not provide documentary proof of citizenship cannot vote in local or state elections, only federal ones.

Because of the state’s very close elections and status as a swing state, the issue affecting nearly 100,000 voters will probably be the subject of intense scrutiny and litigation in the coming weeks. Arizona has more than 4.1 million registered voters.

Governor Katie Hobbs directed the motor vehicles division to fix the coding error, which the secretary of state, Adrian Fontes, said was already resolved going forward.

It is not clear if any of these voters have unlawfully cast a ballot or if they have already provided proof of citizenship. People who register to vote check a box on registration forms, under penalty of perjury, declaring they are citizens.

Kamala PRESSED On Economy, Israel At Black Journo Event

The CIA Democrats in the 2024 elections

There are 34 Democrats drawn from the ranks of the military-intelligence apparatus who are running for Congress this year, a continuation of the influx that began in force in 2018. For the fourth consecutive election, the CIA Democrats will grow in influence and numbers, further cementing the ties between this big business party and the most lethal agencies of the capitalist state. The continued influx of military-intelligence Democrats is an essential component of making America “ready for war,” in the language favored by imperialist strategists. It entirely dwarfs the entry of a handful of members of the Democratic Socialists of America and other fake lefts, constituting the heavily publicized “Squad” led by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Indeed, the two processes are moving in opposite directions. While the number of CIA Democrats is steadily increasing, and already dwarfs the “Squad,” two members of the supposed “left” have been purged this year, with Jamaal Bowman of New York and Cori Bush of Missouri both defeated in Democratic primaries because of their tepid criticisms of the Israeli genocide in Gaza. As for Ocasio-Cortez, she has long since dropped any hint of radicalism on US foreign policy, denouncing demonstrations against the Gaza bloodbath as “antisemitic” and voting for massive military aid to both Ukraine and Israel.

Besides the numerical increase, the influx of CIA Democrats is escalating qualitatively. Two of the original class of CIA Democrats who won seats in the House of Representatives in 2018 are now seeking to move up to the Senate. Former CIA agent and Pentagon official Elissa Slotkin is giving up her Michigan House seat to run for the Senate seat left vacant by the retirement of three-term Senator Debbie Stabenow. Former National Security Council official turned congressman Andy Kim is running in New Jersey to replace incumbent Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, who was convicted on corruption charges and resigned. Both are favored to win.

Two other military-intelligence Democrats are seeking statewide office. Jeff Jackson of North Carolina, elected in 2022, is running for state attorney general after he was gerrymandered out of his seat by the Republican-controlled state legislature. He currently has a lead in the polls against his Republican opponent. In Virginia, former CIA agent Abigail Spanberger is not seeking reelection to her House seat, announcing plans instead to run for governor of Virginia next year, when Republican Glenn Youngkin leaves after the single term he is allowed under the state constitution. Spanberger is the heavy favorite to win the Democratic nomination. Spanberger’s replacement in the House is likely to be the most prominent new military-intelligence Democrat: Eugene Vindman, a career military officer born in Ukraine.

Vindman and his twin brother Alexander, also a serving military officer, were detailed by the Pentagon to the National Security Council during the Trump administration, where they had key responsibilities for US policy towards Russia and Ukraine. The Vindman brothers played a central role in the first effort by the Democrats to impeach Trump in 2019.

[Much more info at the link. -js]

80+ Lawmakers IGNORE Ethics Rules By Campaigning W/ Taxpayer Dollars

Global spending on subsidies that harm environment rises to $2.6tn

The world is spending at least $2.6tn (£2tn) a year on subsidies that drive global heating and destroy nature, according to new analysis. Governments continue to provide billions of dollars in tax breaks, subsidies and other spending that directly work against the goals of the 2015 Paris climate agreement and the 2022 Kunming-Montreal agreement to halt biodiversity loss, the research from the organisation Earth Track found, with countries providing direct support for deforestation, water pollution and fossil fuel consumption.

Examples include state support for large fishing vessels that drive overfishing, and government policies that subsidise petrol, synthetic fertilisers and monoculture crop production. The report found that the annual total of environmentally harmful subsidies has increased by more than $800bn – or $500bn when adjusted for inflation – since the authors last published an analysis in 2022. The increase was driven by the consequences of the war in Ukraine, which caused fossil fuel subsidies to increase sharply.

Christiana Figueres, who was UN climate change head during the Paris agreement negotiations, said environmentally harmful subsidies were an existential issue and governments urgently needed to provide policy coherence on the environment. “Two years on from the signing of the landmark biodiversity plan, we continue to finance our own extinction, putting people and our resilience at huge risk. Estimates are higher than previously thought – with at least $2.6tn now funding the destruction of nature, endangering the chances of meeting our nature and climate goals,” she said.

The report’s authors, who are leading experts on subsidies, said a significant proportion of the $2.6tn – which is equivalent to about 2.5% of global GDP – could be repurposed for policies that benefit people and nature. Nearly all the world’s governments pledged to do this as part of the UN Kunming-Montreal biodiversity agreement at Cop15 in December 2022.

‘Every time the planes pass, my eyes burn’: the hidden cost of Costa Rican bananas

For more than 20 years, Lidieth Gomez’s days have been punctuated by the hum of crop-spraying planes. At dawn and dusk, the skies over Matina, capital of Limón province on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast, are filled with aircraft spraying a viscous rain of agrochemicals on to banana plantations. The endless green sea of banana fields surrounding Gomez’s spartan wooden home belongs to Limofrut, part of Grupo Acón, one of the main players in Costa Rica’s banana and pineapple export industry.

Gomez, a single mother of three, is one of 451 women participating in research by the Regional Institute for Studies of Toxic Substances (IRET) at the National University of Costa Rica. For 14 years, this study on pesticide exposure has investigated how chemicals used on banana plantations affect thyroid health and foetal development in pregnant women. “Every time the planes pass by, my eyes start to burn and my arms itch,” says Gomez. Other common symptoms from coming into contact with pesticides include nausea, vomiting, dizziness, fainting, dermatitis and burning eyes.

Among the pesticides found in the blood of women and children, including Gomez, 51, and her son Daniel, 14, are chlorothalonil and mancozeb – two fungicides associated with potential carcinogenic effects – as well as chlorpyrifos, known for its neurotoxic effects on children, and neonicotinoids, a type of insecticide which can hinder neurological development. Many of these agrochemicals are banned in Europe but continue to be produced and exported to countries such as Costa Rica, where they help to meet market demands for the kind of aesthetically perfect bananas sold worldwide.

With more than 83,000 hectares of land cultivated with bananas and pineapples, Costa Rica is the world’s third-largest banana exporter and leading pineapple producer. In 2023, it produced approximately 2m tonnes of bananas and 2.5m tonnes of pineapples, primarily for export to the US and Europe. Between 2000 and 2015, the country’s pineapple production increased by 700%, contributing to the destruction of more than 5,000 hectares (12,400 acres) of forest and leading to severe pesticide-related health issues in local communities.

Also of Interest

Here are some articles of interest, some which defied fair-use abstraction.

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A Little Night Music

Lee Shot Williams - Hello Baby

Lee Shot Williams - You're Welcome To The Club

Lee Shot Williams - I Found A Love

Lee Shot Williams - Love Now Pay Later

Lee Shot Williams - I'm Trying

Lee Shot Williams - When You Move You Lose

Lee Shot Williams - The Millionaire

Lee Shot Williams - Our Thing Is Through

Lee Shot Williams - Mark My Words