[✔️] March 27, 2023- Global Warming News Digest | Economic opinion NYT, fossil fuel oligarchy, disinformation, Rebecca Solnit, elite panic,

Mon Mar 27 10:29:35 EDT 2023

/*March 27, 2023*/

/[ NYT opinion ]/
*The Slow Motion Tidal Wave Consuming Our Economy*
March 27, 2023
By Richard Bookstaber
Mr. Bookstaber is the author of “A Demon of Our Own Design,” which in 
2007 warned of the coming financial crisis.

Our economy today has been described variously as “weird,” “really 
weird” and “very, very weird.”

Weird because this is a yo-yo economy where gas prices shot up to more 
than $5 a gallon and then settled back down. The inflation rate for used 
cars dropped, then accelerated at a 40 percent rate before deflating at 
a record rate. Housing has gone from boom to bust, then to boom again. 
Economic indicators have been described as “a Jackson Pollock painting 
of data points and trends.”
- -
There’s weirdness yet to come, and a lot more than run-of-the-mill 
weirdness. We are entering a new epoch of crisis, a slow-motion tidal 
wave of risks that will wash over our economy in the next decades — 
namely climate change, demographics, deglobalization and artificial 
intelligence. Their effects will range somewhere between economic regime 
shift and existential threat to civilization. The risks to the economy, 
to the stability of our society and to civilization are enormous if we 
don’t get the economic models right for what’s coming....

For climate, we already are seeing a glimpse of what is to come: 
drought, floods and far more extreme storms than in the recent past. We 
saw some of the implications over the past year, with supply chains 
broken because rivers were too dry for shipping and hydroelectric and 
nuclear power impaired....
- -
In our time savannas are turning to deserts. The alternative to the 
economist’s model is to take a coarse approach, to be more adaptable — 
leave some short-term fine tuning and optimization by the wayside. Our 
long term might look brighter if we act like cockroaches. An insect fine 
tuned for a jungle may dominate the cockroach in that environment. But 
once the world changes and the jungle disappears, it will as well.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/27/opinion/economy-economic-models-climate-change-demographics-deglobalization-ai.html

/[ must see/hear this Zoom TED talk - dangers of our hydrocarbon 
oligarchy -- 32 min video ]/
*Is Democracy Doomed? The Global Fight for Our Future | Timothy Snyder | 
TED*
TED
22.7M subscribers
110,483 views  Feb 8, 2023 -  #TED #TEDTalks #democracy
If you think democracy is some kind of inevitable, default setting for 
the world, then you aren't going to have it for very long, says 
historian and author Timothy Snyder. From World War I to the Russian 
invasion of Ukraine, Snyder dives into the structures that uplift and 
tear down political systems, offering a historical perspective on the 
current state of democracy around the world as well as the patterns of 
thought that lead to tyranny. Learn more about a new approach to 
democracy that could help create and protect a future of freedom.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YY6LCOJbve8

/[ "Pots calling the kettle black" -- disinformation battles reach out 
for confusion.  ]/
*Republican Rep. Jim Jordan Issues Sweeping Information Requests to 
Universities Researching Disinformation*
In the letters, Jordan asserted that the schools may have contributed to 
the Biden administration’s “censorship regime by advising on so-called 
misinformation.”
by Andrea Bernstein
March 22, 2023

House Republicans have sent letters to at least three universities and a 
think tank requesting a broad range of documents related to what it says 
are the institutions' contributions to the Biden administration’s 
“censorship regime.”

The letters are the latest effort by a House subcommittee set up in 
January to investigate how the federal government, working with social 
media companies, has allegedly been “weaponized” to silence conservative 
and right-wing voices. So far, the committee’s investigations have 
amplified a variety of dubious, outright false and highly misleading 
Republican grievances with law enforcement, many of them espoused by 
former President Donald Trump...
- -
Since the 2016 elections, Stanford, UW, Clemson and others have engaged 
in research, sometimes in partnership with social media platforms, 
government officials and each other, into ways that disinformation can 
pose threats to democracy and how such efforts can be meaningfully 
countered. The role of lies and disinformation leading to the Jan. 6 
attack on the Capitol gave increased prominence to their work.

As ProPublica has previously reported, sustained accusations by 
congressional Republicans and right-wing influencers that the Biden 
administration is stifling dissent have caused the administration to 
back away from its efforts countering disinformation, including 
canceling research contracts and sending messages inside the 
administration that disinformation work is too hot to handle.

Those moves followed a bungled rollout of a clumsily named 
“Disinformation Governance Board” to coordinate efforts to counter what 
the administration had called “dangerous conspiracy theories that can 
provide a gateway to terrorist violence.” Following criticism, the 
administration disbanded the board and accepted the resignation of its 
executive director, Nina Jankowicz.

Jordan has subpoenaed Jankowicz, too. She is scheduled to testify April 
10 and said she will happily testify under oath.

“This sort of inquiry isn’t something that belongs in the United States 
Congress,” said Jankowicz. “But given that this method of bullying has 
caused other institutions to fold to Republican pressure in the past, I 
fear we may see the blunt force of congressional committees continue to 
be used in ways that are in direct opposition to the safety, security 
and free expression of the American people.”

EPA Asks for More Public Input on Asbestos After ProPublica and Others 
Reveal New Information
Stanford did not answer a question about whether it stood by its 
research or make its researchers, the Stanford Internet Observatory’s 
Alex Stamos or Renee DiResta, available for comment. The university 
referred ProPublica to an online fact sheet addressing “inaccurate and 
misleading claims” made in the congressional testimony about Stanford’s 
“projects to analyze rumors and narratives on social media relating to 
U.S. elections and the coronavirus.” The German Marshall fund said it 
was working to address the request and Clemson University’s media 
relations department did not respond to requests for comment.

The University of Washington’s Center for an Informed Public issued a 
statement that said “We’re incredibly proud of our work,” adding that 
“some of the projects CIP researchers have contributed to have become 
the subject of false claims and criticism that mischaracterizes our 
work, a tactic that peer researchers in this space are also 
experiencing.” The statement did not specifically address the House 
requests.

A university spokesperson, Victor Balta, said in an email, “The UW 
stands behind this important research aiming to resist strategic 
misinformation and strengthen our discourse. We have received a request 
for documents and information, and a response is in progress.”

https://www.propublica.org/article/jim-jordan-information-requests-universities-disinformation 

/[ Rebecca Solnit interview Video 70 min ]/
*An Evening with Rebecca Solnit- An energizing case for hope about the 
climate*
Fundraiser
Commonwealth Club of California
Mar 26, 2023  SAN FRANCISCO
Called “the voice of the resistance” by The New York Times, writer, 
historian and activist Rebecca Solnit, the author of 20 books on 
feminism, western and indigenous history, popular power, social change 
and insurrection, hope and disaster, and most recently Not Too Late: 
Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility, will discuss her 
view that the future will be decided by whether we act in the 
present—and she says we must act—to counter institutional inertia, 
fossil fuel interests, and political obstinacy.

Guided by her typical clear-eyed wisdom, Rebecca Solnit will lead our 
audience from discouragement to possibilities, from climate despair to 
climate hope. Solnit will be joined by co-editor and climate activist 
Thelma Young Lutunatabua and native Fijian Fenton Lutunatabua 
(participating virtually), calling on us to rise to the moment with the 
benefit of indigenous wisdom and by telling new stories.

In association with Bioneers 2023.
March 22, 2023
Rebecca Solnit,  Author, Not Too Late, Changing the Climate Story from 
Despair to Possibility
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQ_uBtj29

/[ "Elite Panic" -- with lots of video clips, cultural commentary -  
video 24 min ]/
*Who We Really Are... When Everything Goes Wrong*
Like Stories of Old
1,289,946 views  Dec 19, 2020
This video is available without any ads or sponsors on Nebula. Get free 
access by signing up for CuriosityStream: 
https://curiositystream.com/likestori...

Help me make more videos!
Support this channel: https://www.patreon.com/LikeStoriesofOld
Leave a One-Time Donation: https://www.paypal.me/TomvanderLinden
- -
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LikeStorieso...
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tom.vd.linden
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Tom_LSOO

About this video:
Are we made to take care of each other? Or is it everyone for themselves?

Sources:
Thomas Hobbes – Leviathan: https://amzn.to/3p8k6s0
Rebecca Solnit – A Paradise Built in Hell: https://amzn.to/3nudOlX
Rebecca Solnit – Hope in the Dark: https://amzn.to/34nW2t9
Rutger Bregman – Humankind: A Hopeful History: https://amzn.to/2KjcEve
Rutger Bregman – Utopia for Realists: https://amzn.to/2LSIaAH
Viktor Frankl – Man’s Search for Meaning: https://amzn.to/3nzq709

Like Stories of Old - Complete Reading List: 
https://kit.co/likestoriesofold/readi...

Media included:
2012; Blade Runner 2049; Chernobyl; Children of Men; Cloud Atlas; 
Contagion; Deepwater Horizon; Detroit; Dunkirk; Earthquake; Elysium; 
Hacksaw Ridge; Hours; Independence Day; Joker; Mad Max 2; Men in Black; 
Only the Brave; Schindler’s List; Stronger; Sully; The 33; The Book of 
Eli; The Dark Knight; The Day After Tomorrow; The Impossible; The 
Pianist; The Purge; The Purge: Anarchy; The Road; The Rover; 
Tomorrowland; V for Vendetta; War of the Worlds; When the Levees Broke; 
World Trade Center; World War Z

/[The news archive - looking back at facing misinformationists ]/
/*March 27, 2007*/
March 27, 2007: In a post on CallingAllWingnuts.com about a recent 
confrontation with Competitive Enterprise Institute honcho Myron Ebell, 
blogger Mike Stark observes:

    "Upon reflection, I really think there are a couple of lessons for
    progressives to be found in this five minute exchange.

    "First of all, when arguing with somebody that either has no
    credibility or is not arguing a credible position, don't donate the
    credibility they need to be seen as your equal."

    "You see, by calling his credibility into question immediately - and
    not letting him up for air - well, I've got no proof, but I really
    think that everyone in the room knew that Mr. Ebell had been
    bettered. When we ask policy or science questions of these
    charlatans, we give the impression that we care what they think. We
    don't. We know they are rank liars, we're just wondering if they'll
    be able to spin a sufficient answer. But these guys get millions of
    dollars a year from the largest corporate titans precisely because
    they have the skill to ink up the issue. Why let them show off?

    "Secondly, don't go out of your way to be nice or polite. Hell, I
    won't afford these profit-gandists any respect on my blog, why the
    hell should I do it face to face? A large part of their professional
    career derives from their ability to mock me and the things I
    believe in. The Competitive Enterprise Institute once liked global
    warming to 'being invaded by space aliens' for example. By
    addressing these people with the indignant scorn they deserve, you
    project the moral superiority of your position. To many times it
    seems that Democratic and progressive pundits are more interested in
    being our opponents' friends than we are in vigorously arguing the
    issues. In this media environment - when equal time is given to
    global warming deniers... well, we just can't afford the small talk.

    "In the end, these guys are not good people. This isn't a case of
    principled people disagreeing. At this point in the global warming
    debate, the only principled disagreements to be had revolve around
    what we should be doing to address the crisis. The Myron Ebells of
    the world - the die-hard denialists... well, we need to move them
    off the stage by marginalizing them at every opportunity."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-stark/global-warming-phooey_b_44407.html

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