G8 leaders take up eurozone crisis
BREAKING: NAACP Endorses Marriage Equality
The board of the NAACP, the “nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization,” endorsed marriage equality at a meeting this afternoon. The move comes 10 days after President Obama announced his support of same-sex marriage.
The NAACP’s move comes as attitudes about gays and lesbians in the African American community are changing rapidly. A recent poll found that 54% of African Americans supported President Obama’s recent decision.
Maxim Thorne, formerly of the NAACP, broke the news over Twitter:
The NAACP Board of Directors has just endorsed marriage equality unequivocally. Only two opposed! An historic moment.
— Maxim Thorne (@Maximthorne) May 19, 2012
Since Obama’s announcement, numerous influential political figures — including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid and House Assistant Minority Leader James Clyburn — have joined him in supporting marriage equality.
The NAACP confirms their decision with the New York Times: “We have and will oppose efforts to codify discrimination into law.”
April 2012: Earth’s 5th Warmest On Record And La Niña Officially Ends, So The Heat Is On.
JR: It’s remarkable how warm it was globally in April considering that we were only just coming out of a double dip La Niña. If we don’t triple dip, we’ll set more temperature records soon. Indeed, NOAA models predict a good chance of an El Niño forming in the late summer, which would make it quite likely next year would be the hottest on record. As for April, you’ll note it was hot in the ‘wrong’ places again — over much of the tundra, which is a carbon time bomb.
UPDATE: Tropical Storm Alberto, the first named storm of the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season, has arrived. Details here.
Figure 1. Departure of temperature from average for April 2012. The most notable extremes were the warmth observed across Russia, the United States, Alaska, and parts of the Middle East and eastern Europe. There were no land areas with large-scale cold conditions of note. Image credit: National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) .
– Jeff Masters via Wunderground
April 2012 was the globe’s 5th warmest April on record, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Climatic Data Center (NCDC). NASA rated April 2012 as the 4th warmest April on record. April 2012 global land temperatures were the 2nd warmest on record, and the Northern Hemisphere land surface temperature was 1.74°C (3.13°F) above the 20th century average, marking the warmest April since records began in 1880. Global ocean temperatures were the 11th warmest on record, and April 2012 was the 427th consecutive month with ocean temperatures warmer than the 20th century average.
The last time the ocean temperatures were below average was September 1976. The increase in global temperatures relative to average compared to March 2012 (16th warmest March on record) was due, in part, to warming waters in the Eastern Pacific, due to the La Niña event that ended in April. Global satellite-measured temperatures for the lowest 8 km of the atmosphere were 6th or 4th warmest in the 34-year record, according to Remote Sensing Systems and the University of Alabama Huntsville (UAH). April temperatures in the stratosphere were the 1st to 4th coldest on record. We expect cold temperatures there due to the greenhouse effect and to destruction of ozone due to CFC pollution. Northern Hemisphere snow cover during April was 4th smallest in the 46-year record.
Wunderground’s weather historian, Christopher C. Burt, has a comprehensive post on the notable weather events of April in his April 2012 Global Weather Extremes Summary. Notably, national heat records (for warmest April temperature on record) occurred in the United States (a tie), Germany, Austria, Poland, Belarus, Lithuania, Moldova, Hungry, Croatia, Ukraine, and Slovakia as well as the cities of Moscow and Munich.
La Niña officially ends
According to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center (CPC), La Niña conditions are no longer present in the equatorial Pacific, where sea surface temperatures were approximately average as of May 13. The threshold for a La Niña is for these temperatures to be 0.5°C below average or cooler. CPC forecasts that neutral conditions will persist though the summer, with a 41% chance of an El Niño event developing in time for the August – September – October peak of hurricane season. El Niño conditions tend to decrease Atlantic hurricane activity, by increasing wind shear over the tropical Atlantic.
Figure 2. Arctic sea ice extent in 2012 (blue line) compared to the average (thick grey line.) The record low year of 2007 (dashed green line) is also shown. Arctic sea ice was near average during April, but has fallen well below average during the first half of May. Image credit: National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC).
April Arctic sea ice extent near average
Arctic sea ice extent was near average in April 2012, the 17th lowest (18th greatest) extent in the 35-year satellite record, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). This was the largest April Arctic sea ice extent since 2001. However, ice in the Arctic is increasingly young, thin ice, which will make it easy for this year’s ice to melt away to near-record low levels this summer, if warmer than average weather occurs in the Arctic.
– Jeff Masters co-founded the Weather Underground in 1995 while working on his Ph.D. He flew with the NOAA Hurricane Hunters from 1986-1990. This piece was originally published at the WunderBlog and is reprinted with permission.
Congressmen seek to ‘legalize the use of propaganda on American audiences.’
BuzzFeed reports that Rep. Mark Thornberry (R-TX) and Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) have inserted a provision into the latest defense authorization bill that would “‘strike the current ban on domestic dissemination’ of propaganda material produced by the State Department and the Pentagon.” The proposal would “give sweeping powers to the State Department and Pentagon to push television, radio, newspaper, and social media onto the U.S. public.”
Meet Joe Ricketts: Billionaire Has Millions To Smear Obama, Demands Massive Taxpayer Subsidy For Baseball Stadium
Ricketts moved quickly to publicly reject the plan after it leaked. His spokesman said it “reflects an approach to politics that Mr. Ricketts rejects and it was never a plan to be accepted but only a suggestion.” (The statement seems somewhat disingenuous as the Ricketts had already given “preliminary approval” for the $10 million concept after seeing a separate ad about Jeremiah Wright.) Nevertheless, Ricketts’ spokesman confirmed his intention spend money attacking Obama through an organization he controls called “Ending Spending Political Action Fund.”
There is one area, however, where Ricketts is much more open to government spending. He’s seeking a massive government subsidy for the Chicago Cubs, which he owns with his family, to renovate Wrigley Field. Here is the deal the Ricketts family is seeking, via Crain’s Chicago Business:
That means $300 million is needed for the ballpark proper.
Half would come from the team, presumably in increased revenue from more signage inside Wrigley and retail and other entertainment in what amounts to a game-day carnival on Waveland Avenue on Wrigley’s north side and Sheffield Avenue to the east.
And half would come from $150 million or so in bonds to be retired with increased revenue from the existing city and Cook County amusement taxes on ticket sales. Specifically, debt service would get the first 6 percent in growth above a base level of around $15 million a year now.
But it’s a little more complicated than that.
The team also wants a 50 percent cut of any increase in amusement tax revenue growth above 6 percent. And unlike the bonds, which would be retired in 30 or 35 years, that would be forever.
So Joe Ricketts and his family not only want a $150 million subsidy directly from taxpayers but also a large chunk of tax revenue from the city in perpetuity. In other words, taxes from the City of Chicago would no longer go to roads, schools and police officers but also into Joe Ricketts pocket. Without this taxpayer welfare, the family will presumably let Cubs, which they acquired in a highly competitive bidding process in 2009, play in a stadium that is falling into disrepair.
Ricketts negotiating position seems completely at odds with his public stated political views. In a video posted by another organization he controls, Taxpayers Against Earmarks, Ricketts says “I think it’s a crime for our elected officials to borrow money today, to spend money today and push the repayment of that loan out into the future on people who are not even born yet.” Of course, that’s what he is attempting force the taxpayers of Chicago to do for the benefit of his team and his family.
At the same time, Joe Ricketts has plenty of disposable income available to attack Obama. A Ricketts spokesperson said future attacks on Obama would “be focused entirely on questions of fiscal policy.” Joe Ricketts, however, may want to focus on the fiscal policy of his baseball team. In 2011, the Cubs were “one of nine franchises in violation of MLB’s debt service rules.”
Connecting The Dots: The Clean Energy Solutions Center Is Making A Difference For Policymakers
by Adam James
Ever hear the one about the Icelandic geothermal systems engineer and the Kenyan project developer who walk into a bar? As interesting this meeting might be, it’s unlikely to happen anywhere but in a bad renewable energy joke. Or at a geothermal conference.
Enter the Clean Energy Solutions Center, a new website designed to make it easier for these kind of encounters to happen — helping spread valuable experience to emerging clean energy markets around the world.
Serving as a clearinghouse for clean energy information, the Solutions Center offers stakeholders a wide range of tools, including over 1,300 resources (reports, presentations, and models), webinars and online training, and sharing experiences.
The Solutions Center one of the eleven initiatives launched by the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) and the UN Energy Mechanism. Boasting 10,000 users in over 150 countries, the clearinghouse seems to have corrected the mistakes of many of its predecessors by maintaining regularly updated files and offering interactive experiences with experts. And it couldn’t have come at a better time. With the launch of the Sustainable Energy for All initiative and the 21st Century Power Partnership, there is a serious need for a platform to connect interested parties and offer interdisciplinary solutions to problems with complex regional and geographic variables.
Playing Matchmaker to Reduce Emissions
A report, prepared by the Energy Information Agency for the most recent CEM meeting, shows that members represent 80 percent of global energy consumption, and two-thirds of the growth in demand in the next ten years. These countries could cut 29 Gt of CO2 by 2050 — equaling a 50 percent reduction from 2010 levels — by crafting national clean energy goals and engaging in international collaboration.
The Solutions Center addresses both of these objectives in a pragmatic way. By sharing information on various national policies and supporting data, policymakers can develop strategies for their countries or regions to reflect the newest developments and network with experts. This lays the foundation for increased collaboration at the international level as stakeholders have a forum to make connections and participate in larger efforts.
Three Ways the Solutions Center Can Make a Difference
The IEA report urges ministers to commit to “national actions that aim to appropriately reflect the true cost of energy production and consumption,” follow through on the 2009 G20 commitments to phase out fossil fuel subsidies, step up energy efficiency, and invest much more in research and development. While the report concludes that we are not currently on track to achieve needed emissions reductions, there are some encouraging takeaways:
- Renewable power has had a 13 percent annual growth over the last ten years — with 2011 showing global investment in new renewable power plants ($240 billion) outpacing fossil fuel plants ($219 billion) for the first time.
- Over 80 countries have renewable energy policies in place; including feed-in-tariffs, tradeable green certificates, tenders, tax incentives, and grants.
If the Clean Energy Solutions Center works as planned, it could help spread that success further.
For example, solar PV has grown tremendously — 40 percent between 2000 and 2011 alone. However, this has been focused in Germany, Italy, the U.S., and Japan. Regions with high solar potential like Africa and Asia need to scale up their use of this technology as well. The Solutions Center can help bridge informational gaps by offering cost-free resources to policymakers in these regions to encourage technology transfer and best practices.
Additionally, those 80 countries with renewable energy policies need to be able to adapt to changing market conditions. As the IEA report notes: “These policies must… be designed to effectively keep pace with technology cost reductions, to keep policy costs to governments moderate and maintain investor confidence, all while helping renewables compete.” The Solutions Center can help policymakers keep a pulse on what other governments and regions are doing, while tracking changes in the economics of different technologies.
The Clean Energy Solutions Center is the right idea at the right time — and has the potential to be a very powerful tool for policymakers.
Adam James is a Special Assistant for Energy Policy at the Center for American Progress.
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On Wednesday, the Alabama legislature passed a bill preserving most of the harshest provisions of that state’s anti-immigrant law, including the provision that unconstitutionally drove many Latino students from attending schools. Yesterday, Gov. Robert Bentley (R-AL) objected to this bill, noting in particular that the schools provision should be removed or substantially changed. Today, he caved, signing the bill into law.
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Billion Dollar ‘The Avengers’ Received Millions In Subsidies From New Mexico
The box office smash The Avengers has officially made more than $1 billion worldwide, after setting the record for largest opening in film history. This revenue dwarfs the film’s $220 million budget, and makes one wonder why the state of New Mexico felt the need to subsidize the movie to the tune of $22 million:
Marvel’s The Avengers has already raked in $1 billion worldwide, but News 13 has learned the state shelled out some serious cash to shoot the movie in New Mexico.
According to the Taxation and Revenue Department, the state paid $22,413,469 in credits to Marvel Worldwide, Inc., the company that produced The Avengers.
“This was spent on a movie production project that is now gone. It was here temporarily,” said New Mexico state Rep. Dennis Kintigh (R). “We could have spent that $22 million on all kinds of things like education for our children, we could have spent it on roads.”
New Mexico is far from the only state that provides film and television subsidies, but as the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found, they are wasteful and ineffective, subsidizing activity that would have happened anyway:
State film subsidies are a wasteful, ineffective, and unfair instrument of economic development. While they appear to be a “quick fix” that provides jobs and business to state residents with only a short lag, in reality they benefit mostly non-residents, especially well-paid non-resident film and TV professionals. Some residents benefit from these subsidies, but most end up paying for them in the form of fewer services — such as education, healthcare, and police and fire protection — or higher taxes elsewhere. The benefits to the few are highly visible; the costs to the majority are hidden because they are spread so widely and detached from the subsidies.
43 states currently subsidize film and television production, to the tune of $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2010. Meanwhile, “the revenue generated by economic activity induced by film subsidies falls far short of the subsidies’ direct costs to the state.”
Teacher Who Wrote Anti-Gay Comments On Facebook Considers Retiring To Avoid Penalties
New Jersey special education teacher Viki Knox should have been in tenure proceedings this week over comments she put on her Facebook profile that said homosexuality is a “perverted sin” that “breeds like cancer.” Instead, the Newark Star-Ledger reports, “Knox filed a motion earlier this month asking that it be delayed while she seeks a disability pension due to both a back injury and ‘psychological grounds.’” In court documents, Knox has indicated that, “If I can retire then there is no need for me to go through this unpleasant experience.” Essentially, Knox is trying to avoid her tenure trial by simply dropping off the map. A a spokesman for the NJ Treasury Department has said the trial will go on anyway, but there is no indication of when it will now begin.
Grow up, Congress -- make a deal on debt
Oklahoma Students Shown A Movie Comparing Abortion To The Holocaust
Scene from the movie, "180"
The principal agreed to hand out the anti-abortion film, titled 180, if students obtained parental consent first, but the copies were handed out before parents were notified. One parent told Fox 23 heard about it from her stepdaughter:
“She said that she had seen a DVD in school that basically said that if you have an abortion then you are no better than the Nazis and you will go to hell,” says concerned parent, Marty Angus.
Angus was furious after his stepdaughter came home and told him she had seen it in class.
“She said well, we went to our lockers on break and there was a note that said come pick up your free DVD,” says Angus.
Officials confiscated the movies after realizing how graphic the movie was, but two classrooms saw it first. “I thought it was graphic and a clear violation between church and state and it was just awful to be shown to a high school student,” Marty Angus, whose stepdaughter saw the movie in class, told Fox 23.
The Christian ministry Living Waters produced the movie. When it was released in 2011, the Anti-Defamation League called the fillm “one of the most offensive and outrageous abuses of the memory of the Holocaust we have seen in years.”
Quote:
“The subjects of every state ought to contribute towards the support of the government, as nearly as possible, in proportion to their respective abilities; that is, in proportion to the revenue which they respectively enjoy under the protection of the state."
- The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith, 1776
Did You Know?
In 2011, Americans will devote 2 hours and 13 minutes of every eight-hour workday, over a quarter of their working hours, to paying taxes. In a nine-to-five workday, it takes until 11:13 a.m. to earn enough to pay that day's share of taxes at the federal, state and local level. If we add the federal deficit to the picture—that is, if the federal government were planning to collect enough in taxes during 2011 to finance all of its spending—Americans would work until lunchtime for the government.
Source: The Tax Foundation
By The Way...
| 36 | have been accused of spousal abuse. | |
| 7 | have been arrested for fraud. | |
| 19 | have been accused of writing bad checks. | |
| 117 | have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses. | |
| 3 | have done time for assault. | |
| 71 | cannot get a credit card due to bad credit. | |
| 14 | have been arrested on drug-related charges. | |
| 8 | have been arrested for shoplifting. | |
| 21 | currently are defendants in lawsuits. | |
| 84 | have been arrested for drunk driving in the last year. | |
| NBA or NFL? | ||
| Neither. | ||
| It's the 535 members of the United States Congress! | ||
Barack Obama Accepts the Democratic Party Nomination
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