News roundup, 7 Oct 2024

- The US Supreme Court has refused to preemptively block new EPA rules concerning methane and mercury, asking for the plaintiffs to file their claims in U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia first. This is somewhat promising, though if the case does land on their desks after going through the lower court there is no guarantee that they will uphold the rules.

- While natural gas has been promoted as a somewhat cleaner alternative to coal, a recent study has concluded that the climate impact of leakage during the transportation of liquefied natural gas is actually worse, largely due to the inevitable leakage of methane (the main constituent of the fuel).

- Bubba Pollock, the man who posted a selfie with a woman's dying father in order to harass her after getting into an online debate with her, was sentenced to 60 days in jail. He has a history of other criminal activity, including bribing homeless people to steal Pride flags and to pull fire alarms in libraries where drag-related events were being held. This is on top of more mundane (but equally disturbing) convictions such as sharing intimate images without consent.

- Physicians in Manitoba are getting tired of having to waste time signing sick notes demanded by employers. The province is one of three that have no restrictions as to when an employer can demand one; Doctors Manitoba is calling for this to be changed, saying that this can open up more time for actually useful patient visits.

- The chances of averting a healthcare strike in Manitoba are quickly fading; the unions say they are nowhere near a deal as tomorrow's strike deadline approaches.

- A child in the Brantford area has died of rabies, after having apparently contracted the disease from a bat while on vacation in Timiskaming District. Disconcertingly, there was no visible sign of a bite from the animal; experts are recommending that anyone who has been in contact with bats to get immediate medical attention.

News roundup, 24 March 2024

- A total of 137 people have been confirmed dead in the mass shooting in a Moscow suburb the other day. The Islamic State/ISIS/Daesh/whatever has claimed responsibility, though Putin apparently did not mention this fact in his video address in response to the attack. He did apparently claim that the suspects in the attack tried to flee to Ukraine.

- The US Congress has kicked the can down the road once again, averting a government shutdown until September at least (which will be an interesting time for brinksmanship, incidentally). Even though the bill had been negotiated by Republicans, many of the more hardline folks in that party voted against it; it only passed with Democratic support.

- Sixteen American states are suing the federal government for its moratorium on export permits for liquefied natural gas.

- The federal and provincial governments have each promised $20 million for a search of the Prairie Green Landfill north of Winnipeg.

- Two adults have been charged for a shoplifting spree; what is notable is that they're accused of having brought a child with them for some of their activities. The child is apparently not theirs; in any case, I don't think they're setting a good example.

- Some travellers are cancelling or rebooking flights to avoid having to ride on a Boeing airplane. It's worth noting that after a disaster in 1979 there were a bunch of people wanting to avoid the DC-10; here, though, the unease is not about a specific aircraft type but an entire company. I still can't help but wonder if Boeing is fated to join Lockheed-Martin, Convair, etc. on the list of "military contractors that used to make airliners" and leave the commercial industry to Airbus and Embraer.

- The Tennessee state senate has passed a bill banning "chemtrails" (it has yet to pass in the lower house):

The bill claims it is "documented the federal government or other entities acting on the federal government's behalf or at the federal government's request may conduct geoengineering experiments by intentionally dispersing chemicals into the atmosphere, and those activities may occur within the State of Tennessee," according to the bill.

The legislation would ban the practice in Tennessee.

"The intentional injection, release, or dispersion, by any means, of chemicals, chemical compounds, substances, or apparatus within the borders of this state into the atmosphere with the express purpose of affecting temperature, weather, or the intensity of the sunlight is prohibited," the bill reads.

The funny thing is, jet contrails do contain chemicals that affect temperature - specifically carbon dioxide and water vapour. And yet the people who believe in the "chemtrails" conspiracy theory tend not to believe that - go figure. They have, however, been careful enough to include the phrase "with the express purpose", to make sure their bill couldn't be weaponized against carbon emitters.