DoomsdaysCW

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to actuallyautistic

@actuallyautistic

Cooperative overlap (i.e., enthusiastic autistic interrupting)

"One thing many autistics frequently do is use a conversation style called cooperative overlap. More often than not, during the interview of my autism assessments, the other person will interrupt me with an excited statement about something I am talking about—if they are autistic. And inevitably, they apologize. But I always tell them, it is fine—it is my way of talking too! We are cooperative overlappers, a term introduced in the book Conversational Style: Analyzing Talk Among Friends (1984) by sociolinguist Deborah Tannen."

https://embrace-autism.com/cooperative-overlap-ie-enthusiastic-autistic-interrupting/

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to humanrights

TODAY! #Supai, #Ute, #Dine', #Lakota Testify on #Uranium #Exploitation before Inter-American Commission on #HumanRights

by Brenda Norrell, #CensoredNews
February 28, 2024

WASHINGTON -- "The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights will hear testimony from Navajo, Ute, and #Oglala Lakota, on the impacts on #IndigenousPeoples' human rights from uranium exploitation in Washington on Feb. 28, 2024.

"'#NahasdzáánShimá — #MotherEarth—provides everything we need to keep us alive—the four things we Navajos talk about —air, water, soil, and light—and it is our home,' said #EdithHood, President, of #RedWaterPondRoadCommunityAssociation.

"'We have been living with this silent killer without knowing the dangers. Once the #mining started, after the drilling, we didn’t realize we were being contaminated.'

"'When we were children playing and herding sheep we didn’t understand we were being exposed to dangerous #radiation,' Hood said.
Hood thanked the commission for the hearing and added, "Our own #Tribalgovernment doesn’t listen to us.'

"The #InterAmericanCommission on Human Rights agreed to hold a thematic hearing on how U.S. uranium exploitation policies have resulted in human rights abuses in Indigenous communities across the country. This coincides with an upsurge in #UraniumMining, said the #NewMexico #EnvironmentalLawCenter.

"'As the United States doubles down on the misguided notion that #NuclearPower is a solution to the #ClimateCrisis, the uranium development industry is beginning to benefit from generous #taxpayer giveaways to the nuclear industry as a whole.'

"'Subsidies from the #Biden administration have spurred uranium mining production to restart in at least 3 mines in the last few months, in #Utah, #Wyoming, and in Arizona near the #GrandCanyon. As has been the case since the dawn of the #AtomicAge, the impacts of uranium mining are largely left out of the debate over nuclear power.'

"#EnergyFuels said it is increasing U.S. uranium production as prices reach a 16-year high. Energy Fuels said in December that it is ramping up uranium production at three mines #PinyonPlain in in the Grand Canyon, and #LaSal and #Pandora uranium mines in southeastern #Utah.

"Ore mined from the three mines during 2024 will be stockpiled at the Energy Fuels #WhiteMesaMill in Utah for processing in 2025. It is also preparing two mines, #Whirlwind in southeastern Utah, and #NicholsRanch in central Wyoming, to begin uranium production within one year, Energy Fuels said.

"Pinyon Plain began uranium mining and is now threatening the water of the #Havasupai in their homeland in the Grand Canyon. The mine is now endangering Navajo, #Hopi, Ute, and southwest residents, on the uranium haul route, from the Grand Canyon to the Energy Fuels mill in southeastern Utah.

"The White Mesa Mill is poisoning the water, land, and air of White Mesa Utes in southeastern Utah. It is now bringing in #radioactive waste from Europe. Nuclear waste at the site was transported here from the Nuclear Test Site in Nevada because it was too deadly to leave there. The Nevada site poisoned the ancestral land of #WesternShoshone."

Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/02/navajo-ute-lakota-to-testify-on-uranium.html

#WaterIsLife #UraniumMining #IndigenousActivism #CulturalGenocide #EnvironmentalRacism #NoNukes #NoNewNukes #RenewablesNow #NoMining

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to Texas

#Wildfire grows into 2nd-largest in #Texas history and briefly shuts down #NuclearWeapons facility

By JIM VERTUNO
Updated 9:50 AM EST, February 28, 2024

"A fast-moving wildfire burning through the Texas Panhandle grew into the second-largest blaze in state history Wednesday, forcing evacuations and triggering power outages as firefighters struggled to contain the widening flames.

"The sprawling blaze was part of a cluster of fires that burned out of control and threatened rural towns, where local officials spent the night shutting down roads and urging residents to leave their homes. The largest of the fires — which grew to nearly 800 square miles — jumped into parts of neighboring Oklahoma and remained completely uncontained as dawn broke, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.

"Authorities have not said what ignited the fires, but strong winds, dry grass and unseasonably warm temperatures have fed the blazes. Near Borger, a community of about 13,000 people, emergency officials at one point late Tuesday answered questions from panicked residents during a Facebook livestream and told them to get ready to leave if they had not already."

Read more:
https://apnews.com/article/texas-panhandle-fire-evacuations-2cad37f14581bac74a3691969aaaf956

#ClimateCrisis #Wildfires #Nuclear #NoNukes #NoWar #ClimateCatastrophe

LeftistLawyer, 3 months ago to random

Ok, I rarely do this, but for the sake of anecdotal #Covid research could you please boost?

1. Are you O negative blood type?
2. Have you had covid?

Please chime in with your experience.

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to random

If you don't like my posts or my style, feel free to NOT follow me. Or communicate with me via DMs. If you just shame and "yell" at me, I will block you.

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to chicago

#SevereStorms with nocturnal #tornado risk to blitz over a dozen states

Millions of people in the central and eastern #UnitedStates are bracing not only for severe storms and tornadoes but also weather whiplash with #temperatures plummeting as much as 60 degrees in less than 24 hours.

By Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist

Published Feb 26, 2024 12:07 PM EST | Updated Feb 26, 2024 3:32 PM EST

"A powerful cold front will mark an end to surging June-like warmth from the Mississippi Valley to the Appalachians at the cost of potentially violent storms that will roar through more than a dozen states from Tuesday afternoon to Wednesday, AccuWeather meteorologists warn.

"The upcoming severe weather eruption, which may affect as many as 50 million people, has been on AccuWeather's radar for at least a week due to a potent storm the team has been tracking since it began its journey well out over the Pacific Ocean. As that storm interacts with a strong jet stream, surging Gulf of Mexico moisture and an increasing temperature difference between unusual warmth and February cold, natural fireworks in the form of powerful thunderstorms will unfold.

"'The first thunderstorms will erupt along the edge of advancing warm air from mid- to late afternoon on Tuesday from northern Illinois and Indiana to southern Wisconsin and Michigan, as well as northwestern Ohio,' AccuWeather Meteorologist Alyssa Glenny said. These storms will become severe toward the end of the day.

"Next, thunderstorms will explode southwestward along the advancing cold front, extending from northern Illinois to Arkansas Tuesday evening. The front and the severe weather it packs will move across the Ohio and middle Mississippi valleys during the overnight hours on Tuesday.

"All modes of #SevereWeather are anticipated with the severe weather. Some of the storms will pack damaging #wind gusts, large #hail and torrential #downpours capable of leading to flash flooding. However, the potential for multiple #tornadoes is also a serious concern with the upcoming severe weather threat.

"'The greatest threat of tornadoes may occur along and in between interstates 70 and 80 in the Midwest, beginning in Illinois and western Indiana late in the day Tuesday and expanding eastward from there Tuesday night,' AccuWeather StormWarning Meteorologist Joseph Bauer said.

"The Tuesday evening and night tornado threat includes the massive #Chicago and SaintLouis metro areas and the cities of #Indianapolis, #SouthBend and #FortWayne, Indiana; #ToledoOhio and #LimaOhio; and #SpringfieldIllinois and #PeoriaIllinois.

"Should the severe thunderstorms organize into a single solid line on Tuesday night, the risk of damaging wind gusts may broaden, but the risk of highly dangerous tornadoes may lower. While a line of storms may form, it may be fragmented and individual discreet thunderstorms, which are most capable of producing tornadoes, may proceed the line.

"AccuWeather meteorologists urge people in the path of the storms to pay attention to severe weather bulletins, including signing up for alerts that may precede the messages when sleeping at night, such as the AccuWeather App.

"The risk of severe thunderstorms, including a few tornadoes, will carry over into Wednesday as the cold front advances to the east and south toward the central and southern #Appalachians. On Wednesday, the severe weather threat will extend from southern #NewYork state to the northern parts of #Mississippi, #Alabama and #Georgia.

"The potential for storms capable of causing property damage and localized power outages on Wednesday will include #NewYorkCity, #Philadephia, #WashingtonDC., #Charlotte and part of the #Atlanta metro area.

"As the powerful cold front presses on toward the mid-Atlantic coast, storms will bring brief downpours and strong wind gusts, as opposed to a tornado threat. In some cases, the squally storms may occur without thunder and lightning by the time the storms reach the coast, Bauer said.
Powerful cold front to mark as much as 60-degree temperature crash

"One of the reasons for the severe weather will be the rapid exchange of warm and cold air. Temperatures more typical of May and early June will precede the cold front, including unusual warmth at night into Tuesday in the Central states and into Wednesday along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.

"Widespread highs in the 60s and 70s across the north and the 70s and 80s across the south are in store ahead of the front. Nighttime lows will be in the 40s and 50s across the north and the 50s and 60s across the south for the first part of this week.

"Temperatures will range from 15-30 degrees Fahrenheit above the historical average in many areas but may reach 40 degrees in some places through Tuesday in the central states and from Tuesday to Wednesday along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.

"In the wake of the front, from Tuesday to Wednesday night, temperatures will crash 40 degrees over a broad area in a matter of hours.

"'For example, at Kansas City, Missouri, temperatures may drop about 60 degrees in 18 hours, which could set a record,' AccuWeather Meteorologist and Social Media Producer Jesse Ferrell stated. The existing record is 56 degrees, set on Jan. 15, 1953.

"In some cases, such as parts of the central Plains, the Upper Midwest, the Appalachians and New England, the blast of cold air will be so rapid as to catch up with the lingering moisture in the wake of the front. This temperature plunge will lead to pockets of accumulating# snow and/or a rapid #freezeup where moisture and slush can freeze into sheets of ice within an hour.

"The #FlashFreeze will spread eastward across the Upper #Midwest Tuesday night and from the central #Appalachians to #NewEngland Wednesday evening and night.

"In most cases along the mid-Atlantic and southern New England coasts, gusty winds will dry off roads and sidewalks Wednesday night, but there may be a few exceptions, and caution is advised."

https://www.accuweather.com/en/severe-weather/severe-storms-with-nocturnal-tornado-risk-to-blitz-over-a-dozen-states/1625378

#ExtremeTemperatures #ClimateChangeWeatherWheel #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to chicago

#FlashFreeze, snow to shock millions following May-like warmth

As quickly as temperatures surge in the central and eastern #UnitedStates this week, they will crash so fast that snow will accumulate in some areas and wet areas may flash freeze in others.

By Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist

Published Feb 26, 2024 2:27 PM EST | Updated Feb 26, 2024 2:31 PM EST

"A temperature crash of 20, 40 and even 60 degrees Fahrenheit in a matter of hours may not only bring a cold shock to more than 100 million people from the #Midwest to the #Northeast but also a winter whiplash and hazardous flash freeze in some areas spanning Monday to Wednesday night, AccuWeather meteorologists caution.

"Shortly after surging to warmth more typical of May and early June, a blast of frigid air associated with a strong cold front and severe #thunderstorms will slash temperatures by leaps and bounds into midweek. Temperatures will nosedive by 20-40 degrees in cities such as Chicago, Pittsburgh, New York City, Nashville and Atlanta to name a few. However, in some places, such as Kansas City, Missouri, the rapid plunge may reach 60 degrees in less than 24 hours.

"Combining temperature, wind, precipitation and other factors, AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures may plummet 60-80 degrees.

"In #Chicago, following a high temperature of 75 degrees on Tuesday, temperatures may fail to climb back to the freezing mark on Wednesday afternoon following a plunge into the upper 20s Wednesday morning.

"This is about the biggest temperature drop you will ever see for the Mississippi Valley area, AccuWeather Meteorologist and Social Media Producer Jesse Ferrell said. Ferrell also pointed out that hundreds of daily highs and warm night records would be set last week.

"'In St. Louis, after a high in the mid-80s on Tuesday, temperatures will crash to 18 degrees by Wednesday morning, which is a drop of about 66 degrees,' Ferrell stated.

"In many cases, the gusty winds will allow paved surfaces to dry off after severe thunderstorms or downpours move through, but that will not be the case everywhere. There are some zones where a flash freeze may occur which would be a serious hazard for motorists and pedestrians.

"#Snow will be flying and accumulating from potions of the Colorado Rockies into Tuesday to the northern tier of Minnesota and Michigan into Tuesday night.

"In the Central states, several inches of snow will pile up over the Colorado Rockies, with 1-3 inches around Denver. Minneapolis will pick up a quick coating to an inch, but enough snow to shovel and plow will fall on International Falls, Minnesota.

"Farther to the east, in portions of the central and northern Appalachians to northern New England, the snow will be more spotty and generally limited to the higher terrain. However, as temperatures drop, roads may not have a chance to dry off in all areas before freezing air sets in.

"From late Wednesday to Wednesday night, motorists and pedestrians from Kentucky to upstate New York should closely monitor temperatures and be on the lookout for icy patches. Surfaces that appear to be wet may be icy, where the temperature has dropped to near or below the freezing mark.

"Along Interstate 80 in western Pennsylvania, following a high in the 60s on Wednesday morning, temperatures will plummet through the 30s and 20s during the evening with periods of snow and the potential for icy travel.

"Stiff winds and dry air should be enough to prevent widespread icy conditions from developing later Wednesday night along I-95 from #WashingtonDC, to #NewYorkCity and #Boston."

https://www.accuweather.com/en/winter-weather/flash-freeze-snow-to-shock-millions-following-may-like-warmth/1625556

#ExtremeTemperatures #ClimateChangeWeatherWheel #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to maine

It seems a bit early for Snowdrop flowers. Crocuses are starting to peek, though they might get nipped when the temperature goes down later this week.
#SnowdropFlowers #Maine #Springtime???

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to random

Human Rights Watch accuses Israel of blocking aid to #Palestinians in violation of a UN court order

By WAFAA SHURAFA, TIA GOLDENBERG and KAREEM CHEHAYEB
Updated 5:50 AM EST, February 26, 2024

RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — "Israel has failed to comply with an order by the United Nations’ top court to provide urgently needed aid to desperate people in the #GazaStrip #HumanRightsWatch said Monday, a month after a landmark ruling in The Hague ordered Israel to moderate its war.

"In a preliminary response to a South African petition accusing Israel of #genocide, the U.N.’s top court ordered Israel to do all it can to prevent death, destruction and any acts of genocide in Gaza. It stopped short of ordering an end to its military offensive that has triggered a humanitarian catastrophe in the tiny Palestinian enclave. Israel vehemently denies the charges against it, saying it is fighting a war in self-defense.

"One month later and nearly five months into the war, preparations are underway for Israel to expand its ground operation into #Rafah, #Gaza’s southernmost town along the border with Egypt, where 1.4 million Palestinians have flooded into in search of safety.

"Early Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin #Netanyahu’s office said the army had presented to the War Cabinet its operational plan for Rafah as well as plans to evacuate civilians from the battle zones. It gave no further details."

https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-02-26-2024-8682b5446e285a7fc641c9f869df9348

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to Futurology

via @arizonamirror

If #Hobbs is serious about protecting #groundwater, she must work to close the #mining loophole

by Russ McSpadden
February 12, 2024

"In her first State of the State address just over a year ago, Gov. #KatieHobbs was unequivocal about her commitment to tackling one of the state’s greatest challenges: our dwindling #water supply.

“Our groundwater should be used to support #Arizonans, not foreign business interests,” she said in that speech, referring to the Saudi Arabian conglomerate #Fondomonte. Over the past few years, Fondomonte has been pumping unlimited amounts of groundwater in La Paz County for alfalfa crops that it ships to feed cows on the other side of the earth.

"Though the Hobbs administration has already canceled one of Fondomonte’s four leases and says it won’t renew the others when they’re up this month, the problem doesn’t end with Saudi agriculture.

"It’s also mining companies that take advantage of loopholes in the state’s water laws to maximize profit at the expense of Arizonans — including mining giants #RioTinto and# BHP.

"Because of intense pressure from #lobbyists, when lawmakers adopted the much-heralded #ArizonaGroundwaterManagementAct in 1980 they exempted #mines from groundwater regulation, even when located in #ActiveManagement Areas — state-designated areas where groundwater pumping is controlled. That means that mines can pump unlimited amounts of water without paying the state a dime.

"This exemption was controversial in 1980. Today it’s existentially dangerous.

#ResolutionCopper, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto and BHP, is a perfect example. Their proposed mine at #OakFlat — about 70 miles east of #Phoenix in the #TontoNationalForest and within the Phoenix Active Management Area — would pump 250 billion gallons of desert groundwater over the life of the project.

"That’s 17 million gallons of water every day for four decades.

"Under current water prices, that equates to $404 million worth of groundwater that Resolution Copper will get for free. Arizona won’t see a cent for it. And it’s more than likely that the copper ore from Oak Flat will be exported to China for smelting, again depriving local communities of economic benefit.

"This limitless pumping would happen even as the #megadrought that has plagued the #AmericanSouthwest for the past two decades is likely to worsen, straining the #ColoradoRiver and #Gila rivers even more and making us all more reliant on groundwater aquifers.

"If left intact, the mining loophole will facilitate construction of Resolution’s massive mine. The extreme water pumping from the #EastSaltRiverValley will lead to groundwater depletion and subsidence, threatening to deplete wells and damage infrastructure.

"The #CenterForBiologicalDiversity, where I work, has been fighting for decades to stop this mine, and Canadian mining company Hudbay’s disastrous plan to mine for copper in the #SantaRita Mountains south of #Tucson (in the Tucson Active Management Area).

"Both projects would devastate surrounding fragile #ecosystems, pushing endangered species like the #MexicanSpottedOwl closer to the brink of #extinction. They would also destroy sacred #TribalLands and gulp down massive amounts of water when other users are being asked to conserve.

"Handing mines unlimited access to Arizona’s precious desert groundwater would be an injustice to Arizona’s #Tribes and every resident of this state.

"Fortunately, Hobbs has the vision and courage to fight for a secure water future for Arizona. It is time for her to work with legislators to close the mining loophole in Arizona water law and subject mines to the same groundwater pumping limits that apply to other entities within the state’s Active Management Areas.

"We’re hopeful she will work to block #ResolutionCopperMine and other terrible mining projects like #Hudbay’s. At the very least, it’s time for mining giants to pay for the water they use just like the rest of us."

https://azmirror.com/2024/02/12/if-hobbs-is-serious-about-protecting-groundwater-she-must-work-to-close-the-mining-loophole/

#WaterIsLife #HumanRightsViolations #CulturalGenocide #CopperMining #Mining #CorporateColonialism #EnvironmentalRacism #IndigenousNews #SaveOakFlat #IndigenousRights #Apache

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to conservative

Mention of @centerforbiodiv ! Follow them here on Mastodon!

Lawmakers need statewide #lithium plan, says #conservation group

By: Jennifer Sollis, Nevada Current
February 20, 2024

"There are more than 80 lithium projects proposed on #Nevada’s public lands as the nation races to power the #GreenEnergy transition. Now conservation groups are looking to state lawmakers to establish a rule-making process that would help reduce the establishment of mines in areas of greatest conflict.

"Despite a growing interest in lithium mining, Nevada has not developed a state-level plan for where lithium production should – and should not – be permitted to avoid impacts on local communities and resources.

"The United States produces less than 1% of global lithium production, all from a single facility, Albemarle Corp.’s Silver Peak mine in Esmeralda County, according to the United States Geological Survey. But that may soon change, making a statewide plan necessary, say conservation groups.

"#Mining on public lands requires federal approval. However, state approval is also required for various permits needed to advance mining operations. States — including Nevada — generally regulate waste management, #groundwater use and impacts, reclamation, surface water use, and air quality operating permits.

"Conservation groups argue that those permit requirements give Nevada an opportunity to help shape the future of lithium development in the state.

"Earlier this month, the #CenterForBiologicalDiversity submitted a letter to the Joint Interim Standing Committee on Natural Resources, asking the committee to put forward a bill establishing a rule-making process that would help reduce the establishment of mines in areas of greatest conflict.

"The letter also includes a request that the bill include funding for a study by the #DesertResearchInstitute and state agencies to evaluate lithium resources in the state and determine which can be extracted with the least impact on communities and the environment.

"Lack of data around natural resources isn’t just an issue in Nevada, but nationwide.

"According to the Association of American State Geologists, the United States lacks an effective process for gathering, organizing, compiling, or publicly sharing geologic data that would help in the identification of valuable mineral deposits.

"Data collection on natural resources — like the one suggested by the Center for Biological Diversity — could improve the identification and development of critical minerals, while also identifying and avoiding sensitive resources that may be adversely affected by exploration or mining, according to a recent report on how to improve mining on public lands by the Department of the Interior.

"State Sen. Julie Pazina, the chairperson of the legislature’s Joint Interim Standing Committee on Natural Resources, said the committee has yet to make any determinations for what bill draft requests they’ll make for the next Legislative session in 2025.

"'Over the next year, we will discuss and vet policy with the goal of protecting Nevada’s air, water and land for generations to come,' Pazina said.

"In Nevada, the clean energy transition has been marred by conflict with numerous projects in high conflict areas attracting litigation and public outcry.

"Earlier this year, federal land managers pulled their approval for a controversial lithium exploration project less than a mile from a treasured #wetland habitat after getting hit with a lawsuit and fierce opposition.

"Other mining projects in the state have faced backlash and delays, due to their proximity to #cultural and #ecologically sensitive areas. In one case, a small wildflower has been a source of conflict between conservationists and an #Australian mining company, seeking to build an #OpenPit lithium mine on the plant’s only known habitat.

"Last year, Washoe County commissioners withdrew a permit for a #geothermal exploration project near #Gerlach, after locals voiced fears the project could negatively impact the town’s #water supply, the structural integrity of their homes, and nearby natural hot springs.

"Permitting roadblocks, like the ones in Nevada, have been a major source of frustration for the #Biden administration.

"The potential for conflict in the state due to lithium mining is only growing. About half of the projects currently proposed in Nevada are in Esmeralda and Nye County, surrounding the town of Tonopah, a sizable population center.

"'We support domestic lithium extraction as well, if it is done in the right places and with the right techniques. We oppose business-as-usual mining, dewatering of open pits, pit lakes, excessive water consumption, #extinction of species or severe #degradation of #habitat, and regulatory shortcuts to permit bad mines faster,' wrote Patrick Donnelly, the Great Basin Director for the Center for Biological Diversity, in the letter."

https://thisisreno.com/2024/02/lawmakers-need-statewide-lithium-plan-says-conservation-group/

#WaterIsLife #LithiumMining #EnvironmentalRacism #EnvironmentalDestruction #Extinction #CulturalGenocide #IndigenousLands

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to Gold

NOT #FederalLand -- #StolenLand !

#Gold, #silver and #lithium #mining on #FederalLand doesn’t bring in any royalties to the US Treasury – because of an 1872 law

Story by Sam Kalen, 2/25/2024

"Today, mining is a high-technology industry, but it is still governed by the Mining Law of 1872. As was true 150 years ago, companies can mine valuable mineral deposits from federal lands without paying any royalties to the U.S. Treasury.

"Even when lands that formerly were available for mining receive new protected status as national parks or monuments, the 1872 mining law protects existing mining claims on those lands. That’s why a company called Energy Fuels Inc. just started mining uranium in January 2024 at a site in Arizona 10 miles from the Grand Canyon and inside a new national monument.

[...]

"Reform advocates support adopting the type of traditional leasing model that is used for most other resources on public lands in the U.S. and elsewhere. As an example, for oil and gas production on federal lands and offshore in federal waters, agencies identify areas with development potential and hold competitive auctions to lease parcels for exploration and development.

"Reformists also favor tighter environmental safeguards that would address issues such as management and disposal of mining wastes. Finally, they argue that mining should be prohibited in areas that are ecologically sensitive or are important to Indigenous peoples or tribal nations."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/gold-silver-and-lithium-mining-on-federal-land-doesn-t-bring-in-any-royalties-to-the-us-treasury-because-of-an-1872-law/ar-BB1ik8FF

#LandBack #StolenLands #IndigenousRights #NoMining #EnvironmentalRacism #CulturalGenocide

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to random

We really need to come up with an alternative to #LithiumBatteries. How are those #HydrogenFuelCells coming along?

French recycling plant on fire housing 900 tonnes of lithium batteries

Reuters, February 19, 2024

"#Lithium batteries are vital in electrical devices from #phones to electric cars (#EVs), but contain combustible materials which, combined with the energy they store, can make them vulnerable to catching fire when exposed to heat - a potential danger given the #toxic materials their burning can emit."

Read more:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/french-recycling-plant-on-fire-housing-900-tonnes-of-lithium-batteries/ar-BB1itX1u

LeftistLawyer, 3 months ago (edited 3 months ago) to climate

Once upon a time a new species evolved that thought itself very intelligent.

But this new smarty pants species had a terrible blind spot. It couldn't figure out how to stop shitting in its own nest.

It wasn't a problem at first, because when the new species filled it's current nest with shit, it would just abandon the shitscape and start someplace new.

But soon enough, the new species covered the globe and had nowhere else to create new shitnests. The species wound up drowning in its own shit and went extinct.

There was much rejoicing from all the other species that had figured out how not to shit in their own nest.

They never thought the new species was very intelligent to begin with.

The End.

#Climate #ClimateCrisis #uspol

autism101, 3 months ago to actuallyautistic

Some autistic people experience meltdowns or shutdowns.

When I get overstimulated I tend to shutdown.

If you experience either of these, or both, which is more prevalent for you?

#AskingAutistics #ActuallyAutistic @actuallyautistic

image: @introvertdoodles
info: Kate Gaster

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to NativeAmerican

Opinion: Why the birthplace of the Western #Apache religion shouldn’t be destroyed by a #CopperMine

by Luke Goodrich
February 6, 2024·

"A federal court is poised to decide whether a #NativeAmerican #sacred site will be destroyed by a massive #copper #mine. Mining proponents claim that destroying the #SacredSite is necessary for the development of #GreenEnergy. That claim is both factually wrong and morally repugnant. And recent polling shows that the vast majority of Americans agree with what the constitution requires: #Native sacred sites deserve the same protection as all other houses of worship.

"Since before European contact, #WesternApache and other Native tribes have lived and honored their #Creator at #OakFlat, or 'Chi’chil Bildagoteel.' The site is the birthplace of Western Apache religion and the site of ancient religious ceremonies that cannot take place anywhere else. Because of its religious and cultural significance, Oak Flat is on the National Register of Historic Places and has been protected from mining and other destructive practices for decades.

"That changed in 2014, when several members of Congress, supported by #corporate #mining #lobbyists, slipped an amendment into a must-pass defense bill authorizing the transfer of Oak Flat to a foreign-owned mining giant. That company, #ResolutionCopper, announced plans to obliterate the sacred ground by swallowing it in a mining crater nearly two miles wide and 1,100-feet deep, ending Apache religious practices forever. That was no surprise given the company’s sordid history dealing with #IndigenousPeoples. The majority owner of Resolution Copper is #RioTinto (the world’s second largest mining company), which sparked international outrage in 2020 when it destroyed a 46,000-year-old rock shelter with some of the most significant #Aboriginal artifacts in all of #Australia.

"The Apache and their allies, represented by my firm, the #BecketFundForReligiousLiberty, have been fighting in court to ensure that such an atrocity won’t repeat itself at Oak Flat. After initial court rulings against the Apache, a full panel of 11 judges at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reheard their appeal last spring. A decision on whether the government can execute the land transfer is expected any day.

"Resolution Copper and its backers want the public to believe that building the mine is essential for developing #renewable energy. Extracting the copper beneath Oak Flat, they say, will help to build batteries necessary for powering #ElectricVehicles and thus fight #ClimateChange. In other words, we have to destroy Oak Flat in order to save the planet.

"These claims, however, are false — and they are specifically designed to obscure the physical and cultural destruction the project would wreak on the land.

"The mine will destroy the #environment, not save it. It is undisputed that the mine will swallow the ecologically diverse landscape of Oak Flat in a massive crater, decimating the local #ecosystem. It will also leave behind approximately 1.37 billion tons of '#tailings,' or #MiningWaste, which, according to the government’s own environmental assessment, will pollute the #groundwater and scar the landscape permanently. And the mine will consume vast quantities of water at the time it is most needed by drought-stricken towns and #farmers.

"Supporters of the mine are also at odds with the majority of Americans. According to this year’s Religious Freedom Index, an annual survey conducted by Becket, 74% of Americans believe that Native sacred sites on federal land should be protected from mining projects, even when the projects are purportedly pro-jobs and pro-environment.

"That conclusion is both sensible and humane. America can transition to renewable energy without blasting the cradle of Western Apache religion into oblivion. And it should. For too long, our nation has made excuses for taking advantage of #IndigenousPeople and their land. Indeed, our nation drove the Western Apache off Oak Flat and surrounding lands in the 1800s precisely to make way for #MiningInterests. It shouldn’t repeat that #injustice again.

"It is past time to protect Indigenous sacred sites from further destruction. Basic fairness and our constitutional commitment to religious freedom require no less. And, happily, most Americans agree."

https://news.yahoo.com/opinion-why-birthplace-western-apache-200000087.html

#SaveOakFlat #IndigenousActivism #CulturalGenocide #EnvironmentalRacism #CorporateColonialism #CopperMining #WaterIsLife

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to Cosmology

ICYMI from 2023: #Biden Moves Forward With #Mining Project That Will Obliterate a Sacred #Apache Religious Site

In court, the feds said #OakFlat would be in the hands of mining giants #RioTinto and #BHP by early summer.

“This is a people matter. This is about the people and their freedom: freedom to be Apache, to be Indigenous, to be Americans.”

by Ryan Devereaux
March 22 2023

"Biden administration attorneys were in court this week to defend a mining project that will obliterate one of the most sacred Apache religious sites in the American Southwest.

"In oral arguments Tuesday, the U.S. Forest Service said it was nearing completion of an environmental impact study that will transfer land east of Phoenix to two of the world’s largest mining companies for the purpose of building one of the largest #copper mines on the planet. The massive project will hinge on the destruction of Chi’chil Biłdagoteel, a plateau otherwise known as Oak Flat, that is sacred to many Native American tribes, particularly the #SanCarlosApache, who consider the area among their most holy of sites.

"In a nearly two-hour hearing, an 11-judge panel on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Pasadena, California, peppered lawyers on both sides of the high-stakes legal fight with an array of complex case law questions raised by the project. Begun nearly two decades ago, the battle for Oak Flat sits at the intersection of Indigenous rights and dispossession, religious liberty, public lands and private sales, and a growing demand for so-called green energy solutions in an era of #ClimateCatastrophe.

"'As the court is aware, this case is not about an agency action. It’s about an act of Congress, in which Congress considered demands on a piece of property, balanced those interests, and made a decision,' said Joan Pepin, an attorney for the Forest Service, the agency that exchanged the land in a controversial deal nearly a decade ago. 'It decided that Oak Flat should be transferred to #ResolutionCopper so the third-largest copper ore deposit in the world can be mined.”

"The legislation in question — the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act — was the product of a proposal then-Arizona Sens. #JohnMcCain and #JeffFlake added to a must-pass defense authorization bill late one night in 2014. The addendum, known as a rider, incurred no congressional debate.

"Described by the San Carlos Apache as a 'midnight backroom deal,' the law transferred Oak Flat to Resolution Copper, a British-Australian concern jointly owned by the extractive giants Rio Tinto and BHP, both of which had sought access to the wildly lucrative ore deposit for years.

"The project centers on a 2,200-acre area known as Oak Flat Campground, part of the #TontoNationalForest, that has served as a centerpiece of Apache #ReligiousCeremony and #cosmology since before settler expansion into the West. To access the ore underneath, Resolution Copper will use a technique known as block cave mining, which over several years will turn the sacred mountain into a two-mile-wide crater deep enough to hide a skyscraper.

"Initiation of construction hinges on the publication of an #EnvironmentalImpact study from the Forest Service, which, under the law passed in 2014, starts a 60-day countdown before the transfer of the land from the federal government to the mining company must happen.

"Luke Goodrich, the lead attorney for Apache Stronghold, an Arizona-based nonprofit that brought the lawsuit to stop the transfer, told the panel of judges that the destruction of Oak Flat was a direct and flagrant violation of the #ReligiousFreedomRestoratioAct. Violation of the statute requires the imposition of a “substantial burden” on a person or group’s ability to practice their faith.

"'A fine is a substantial burden, but here the government is doing something far worse,' Goodrich said, 'not just threatening fines, but authorizing the complete physical destruction of Oak Flat, barring the Apaches from ever accessing it again and ending their core religious exercises forever.'

"In January 2021, five days before leaving office, the administration of President Donald #Trump released a study supporting the creation of the #OakFlatMine. #ApacheStronghold had filed a federal lawsuit seeking a preliminary injunction to stop the project.

"Unsuccessful in the attempt, the group filed an emergency appeal to the 9th Circuit the following month. Six hours before its deadline to respond passed, the Forest Service — by then, in March 2021, under the leadership of President Joe Biden — announced that it was withdrawing the environmental impact study and postponing the land transfer.

"A three-judge panel of 9th Circuit dismissed Apache Stronghold’s case in October 2021 but agreed to hear the case again before a full panel last winter. The unusual decision set the stage for Tuesday’s hearing.

"While the postponement of the project had given opponents of the mine a moment of respite in the long-running battle, the government’s testimony this week confirmed that the Biden administration is moving forward with a new environmental impact study and stands behind the controversial land swap."

Read more:
https://theintercept.com/2023/03/22/oak-flat-mine-arizona-biden/

#HumanRightsViolations #CulturalGenocide #CopperMining #Mining #CorporateColonialism #EnvironmentalRacism #IndigenousNews #SaveOakFlat
#NativeAmericanNews

DoomsdaysCW, 3 months ago to Arizona

Sacred #Apache land 'on death row' in standoff with foreign #mining titans

Tribal members in #Arizona are fighting to protect a piece of land they consider their "#MountSinai."

March 3, 2021
By Christine Romo, Cynthia McFadden, Kit Ramgopal and Rich Schapiro

SUPERIOR, Ariz. – "The rugged patch of land known as #OakFlat sits in the #TontoNationalForest. To the #SanCarlosApache Tribe, the 740-acre swath of oak groves and sheer cliffs is sacred ground, a place where they have gone for centuries to hold religious #ceremonies and communicate with the Creator.

"'No different than Mount Sinai,' said Wendsler Nosie Sr., former chairman of the San Carlos Apache.

"But Oak Flat is on a path to destruction.

"The land is scheduled to be transferred to #ResolutionCopper, a company controlled by two foreign mining giants, and turned into one of the largest copper mines in the country. The transfer was set in motion by an eleventh-hour provision slipped into a 2014 defense bill by Arizona's two Republican senators at the time.

"The poverty-stricken San Carlos Apache Tribe is fighting back in court, alleging the land belongs to the tribe and holds special religious significance. But even they worry the path to victory is slim. Resolution Copper has poured $2 billion into the project and has had the U.S. government on its side.

"The dispute has turned into a David-vs.-Goliath-style standoff, drawing in environmental groups and reviving centuries-old questions over land rights involving American Indians.

"'We're still trying to defend who we are,' said Nosie, who has been camped out at Oak Flat for more than a year as part of his mission to stop the mine.

"He sees the conflict as the latest skirmish in his tribe's long fight to maintain its ancient way of life.

"The San Carlos Apache reservation, about 130 miles east of Phoenix, is among the poorest in the country. Four of every 5 families with children live below the federal poverty line, and the unemployment rate is 30 percent, according to a University of Arizona study.

"The reservation is on the outskirts of Tonto National Forest, which is named for the Tonto band of Apaches who lived in the area until the U.S. Army cavalry forcibly removed them in the 1870s.

"Many Apaches became prisoners of war. An untold number refused to surrender and instead jumped to their deaths at a ridge now known as Apache Leap.

"The Oak Flat area has been considered a holy place for thousands of years, the home of spiritual beings known as Ga'an. Apaches go there to pray, to seek personal cleansing and to hold ceremonies that connect them to their ancestors. It is also a popular campground and hiking destination.

"But Oak Flat has long been prized by mining companies. Beneath its surface lies a fortune — one of the largest #copper deposits in the world.

"Oak Flat has been protected under federal law since 1955, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower decreed the area off-limits to mining. President Richard Nixon's Interior Department renewed the ban in 1971, but it added a loophole that allowed for the area to be mined if it was traded to private interests.

"A bill proposing to trade away the land had repeatedly failed to pass both houses of Congress since it was first introduced in 2005.

"But in December 2014, Sens. #JohnMcCain and Jeff Flake of Arizona slipped a last-minute rider into a must-pass defense spending bill. The move amounted to a bonanza for Resolution Copper, which is jointly owned by two mining titans — the #RioTinto Group of the U.K. and #BHPBillitonLtd. of #Australia.

"The bill transferred 2,400 acres of national forestland, including Oak Flat, to Resolution in exchange for 5,300 acres of private land owned by the mining company.

"Flake declined an interview request. McCain, who died in 2018, touted the project in a 2014 op-ed in The Arizona Republic, saying that the mine would generate jobs and boost the local economy and that the land would remain open to tribal members and others until the company breaks ground.

"The legislation stunned and saddened #NaelynPike, a San Carlos Apache tribal member who first testified before Congress in opposition to the arrangement when she was 13.

"'Our cultural identity is being stripped away from us,' said Pike, 21, who is Nosie's granddaughter.

"'No tree can live without its roots,' she said. 'And we're that tree.'"

Read more:
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/sacred-apache-land-death-row-standoff-foreign-mining-titans-n1259331

#OakFlat #SaveOakFlat #IndigenousActivism #CulturalGenocide #EnvironmentalRacism #CorporateColonialism #CopperMining #Mining