Maine's sparrows are being wiped out by mercury and climate change

Sam Schipani, Bangor Daily News, Maine

Tue, December 21, 2021

Dec. 21—Pollution and sea-level rise are putting Maine's most unique birds in jeopardy.

Tidal marsh songbird offspring are less likely to survive long enough to leave the nest when the mother bird has high levels of mercury in its blood, according to new research from the University of Maine. Even so, the birds, which have already seen extreme declines over the past two decades, are more sensitive to sea level rise.

The tidal marsh is a unique habitat, situated at the border of land and sea. The birds that live there — particularly the native saltmarsh sparrow and its closely related sister species, the Acadian Nelson's sparrow — have uniquely adapted to survive there.

"They're one of relatively few terrestrial or land species that live in tidal marsh," Kate Ruskin, a UMaine lecturer in ecology and environmental sciences who led the study.

The birds are also in danger. The saltmarsh sparrow, a native Maine species, is slated to be considered for Endangered Species protection in 2024 and predicted to be extinct by 2060. Previous studies from the University of Maine showed that saltmarsh sparrow populations are declining 9 percent annually across the northeastern U.S., while Acadian Nelson's sparrows are declining 4.2 percent annually.

"Those numbers are pretty huge," Ruskin said. "I remember thinking it wasn't quite that bad when I heard it, but from year one to year two, that's from 100,000 to 91,000 [birds], and by year 10, that's down to 39,000 birds."

Scientists thought that this may be because tidal marshes are also breeding grounds for mercury, which can impede bird reproduction. Mercury floats through the air over to Maine from coal fired power plants from even as far away as the Midwest, but it takes the special bacteria like the kinds found in tidal marsh to convert mercury into a form organisms can consume.

Ruskin and her fellow researchers set out to find out if mercury was to blame for the decline in these special sparrows. Over the course of three breeding seasons, the researchers sampled more than 100 birds to determine whether mercury was accumulating in their blood and, if it was, whether that correlated to their offspring not making it out of the nest.

The study yielded a number of interesting results. First, though the birds from Maine had the lowest total mercury concentrations in their blood, Ruskin said the variability between plots that were only a few miles away from each other was vast.

"It's variable on a small spatial scale and that's a good takeaway for conservation," Ruskin said. "That suggests small conservation action can make a difference."

The levels of mercury in the birds' blood also changed so much over the course of the years that the researchers determined that the toxic substance wasn't bioaccumulating, or staying in the birds' systems to build up over time.

However, when the birds did have high levels of mercury in their blood, the researchers saw that the baby birds were less likely to live long enough to leave the nest.

A more pressing concern, though, was flooding caused by sea level rise in these sensitive intertidal areas. Nests were at least twice as sensitive — and at most, 17 times more sensitive — to flooding than they were to mercury exposure. The researchers even found that study plots where the mercury was highest had relatively high nest survival — and happened to have some of the lowest nest flooding levels.

Doug Hitchcox, staff naturalist at Maine Audubon, said that knowing which factors are contributing to the species decline — and how important they are compared with one another — is essential to saving them.

"While we know mercury levels in many of Maine's birds, including our iconic Common Loon, can negatively affect nesting success, this study shows that these sparrows nesting in tidal marshes are at a greater threat to increasing sea level rise from climate change, a threat that we need to act as soon as possible to slow," Hitchcox said.

Losing the saltmarsh sparrow could send a ripple throughout the ecosystems of Maine in a way that will affect more than just birdwatchers. Hitchcox pointed to the fact that saltmarsh sparrows feed on pesky, biting greenhead flies during the summer.

"Without those sparrows, some of our favorite summer outdoor activities may become much less enjoyable," Hitchcox said.

Ruskin hopes that her research will be useful — and hopeful — to conservationists looking to preserve the unique ecosystems of Maine.

"We found some negative effects from mercury but addressing that is not going to prevent them from going extinct this century," Ruskin said. "Making sure they have a place to live where the nests aren't getting flooded, that's the key to survival in the next century."

Research shows Permian Basin air pollution on the rise as EPA works to finalize new rules




Adrian Hedden, 

Carlsbad Current-Argus

Tue, December 21, 2021

Methane emissions continued to rise in the Permian Basin this fall, and environmentalists used their own research on the matter to advocate for stricter federal air pollution controls on the oil and gas industry.

The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) last week released the results of an aerial survey of 900 oil and gas sites in the Permian Basin, which spans southeast New Mexico and West Texas, finding “significant plumes” of methane coming from 40 percent of the sites.

About 14 percent of the emissions were from malfunctioning flares, the report read, while 30 percent of the surveyed pipelines were releasing methane into the air and about half of all midstream facilities studied also had emissions.

Methane is a greenhouse gas known to be a byproduct of oil and gas production and can lead to respiratory illness or cancer after long-term exposure to people.

The study conducted between Nov. 12 and Nov. 21 and released Dec. 14 was the eighth as part of the EDF’s broader PermianMAP project to track emissions in the region – the U.S.’ most active oilfields.

Researchers attached infrared cameras to a helicopter to study emissions at sites previously observed in past PermianMAP studies, allegedly finding about half of the measured sites had reoccurring releases of methane.

The study also looked at specifically smaller-producing sites and the reoccurrence of emissions within a week, finding a third of such facilities had emissions that continued for days.

Dave Lyon, senior scientist with the EDF said the research indicated stronger policy was needed to reduce emissions and thus air pollution from oil and gas operations.

He said requirements to increase inspection frequency and repair leaks and malfunctioning equipment was an important step to mitigating the industry’s contributions to climate change.

More: 'The time is now': New Mexico taking action on oil and gas-induced earthquakes

“There are dozens of reasons why a site might be emitting high levels of methane. The only way to know what’s going on and to ensure things are operating properly is to regularly check sites for problems that lead to massive pollution,” Lyon said.

“Our research has consistently shown that leaks can and do happen at all types of facilities – including smaller, leak-prone wells – and the best way to control emissions is to find and fix them.”

Jon Goldstein, senior director of regulatory and legislative affairs said the federal government must take action to ensure oil companies in all states operate under adequate pollution controls.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was developing new rules targeting methane emissions, seeking to expand the regulatory applicability to not only newly-built oil and gas facilities but existing sites throughout the U.S.

The EPA recently extended a public comment period for the drafted rules, which include added leak detection and repair requirement, to Jan. 31, 2022, contending that when enacted the proposal would cut nationwide methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030.

“The EPA has a real opportunity to change the game and make a meaningful dent in our methane pollution,” Goldstein said. “This research makes clear that the agency must tackle frequent, large emissions from smaller wells if we’re going to have a shot at achieving our climate goals and protecting communities from air pollution.”

More: Smaller 'independent' oil and gas producers leading Permian Basin growth, study says

EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the regulations would ensure “long-lasting” pollution reductions while also encouraging technological advancement within the industry aimed at addressing environmental concerns.

The Agency’s data showed the oil and gas industry was the U.S.’ largest emitter of methane emissions, and that a third of greenhouse gasses, which cause global warming, were generated by human activities.

The industry in the U.S. emits more methane and greenhouse gas than 164 countries combine, per the EPA, also including volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other pollutants.

More: Benefits of oil and gas debated in Congress as feds ready to lease more land in New Mexico

The EPA estimated its proposed rules would prevent the release of 41 million tons of methane from 2023 to 2035, and also recover up to $49 billion in natural gas that would otherwise go to waste during that timeframe.

“With this historic action, EPA is addressing existing sources from the oil and natural gas industry nationwide, in addition to updating rules for new sources, to ensure robust and lasting cuts in pollution across the country,” Regan said.

“By building on existing technologies and encouraging innovative new solutions, we are committed to a durable final rule that is anchored in science and the law, that protects communities living near oil and natural gas facilities, and that advances our nation’s climate goals under the Paris Agreement.”

More: Interior's proposed fossil fuel reforms criticized by industry, New Mexico environmentalists

But the proposal drew concern from oil and gas industry leaders who said the cost of compliance with such rules could threaten economic prosperity brought on by fossil fuel development.

In public testimony given by Kevin O’Scannlain, vice president of upstream policy with the American Petroleum Institute, he argued the EPA must take into account the cost and availability of equipment that would need to be retrofitted at oil and gas sites to comply with the rules.

He said the Institute – of the industry’s largest, national trade groups, support federal regulation of methane but that the rules must reflect the needs of the industry along with environmental protection.

“With respect to rule implementation, we urge EPA to carefully consider the availability and cost of equipment, labor and other required resources needed to comply with the proposed standards,” O’Scannlain wrote in his submitted testimony.

“These aspects are especially critical in setting workable implementation timelines, given the hundreds of thousands of existing sources that may require retrofit, and current well-documented supply chain shortages.”

Adrian Hedden  achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: Research shows Permian Basin oil and gas air pollution on the rise

Three House Democrats ask watchdog to probe 'peaker' power plant pollution

Tue, December 21, 2021

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Three House Democrats from New York on Tuesday called on a federal watchdog to investigate pollution generated by "peaker" power plants, or those that only generate electricity during periods of high demand.

House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) joined Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) in calling on the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate the effects of such plants on local communities.

The lawmakers noted that the plants are both less energy-efficient than standard power plants and are frequently located in lower-income or predominantly minority neighborhoods.

"Addressing the use of peaker plants, which can emit twice the carbon and up to 20 times the nitrous oxides of a typical plant while operating significantly less efficiently, represents a high-impact opportunity to reduce climate risks and tackle a life-threatening environmental justice issue," they wrote. "We request GAO's assistance in reporting on key data to assess damage, uncover health burdens, calculate economic costs, and identify alternative solutions to the use of peaker power plants."

There are 89 peaker plants in New York City alone, including 28 in or near Maloney's district and 16 in Ocasio-Cortez's district. An area in western Queens with a number of such plants has become known as "Asthma Alley" due to its disproportionate rates of the respiratory condition.

Earlier this year, Clarke joined three other New York Democrats - Reps. Jerrold Nadler and Nydia Velazquez and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand - in introducing bicameral legislation to replace and upgrade the plants. The bill was referred to the Senate Finance Committee in May but no action on it has been taken since.

The Biden administration has repeatedly emphasized a commitment to environmental justice, or addressing environmental hazards that disproportionately affect low-income communities and people of color. Last year, the Environmental Protection Agency announced it would use $1 billion in initial funds from the bipartisan infrastructure bill to take action on 49 unfunded Superfund sites.

Nuclear energy is the best solution for combatting climate change | Opinion

Natalia M. Best
Tue, December 21, 2021, 6:01 AM·3 min read

As an East Tennessean now residing just outside of Washington DC, I’m very proud of my home state’s contributions to clean energy.

Tennessee is the home of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory— also known as the Tennessee Valley Authority — and plenty of outstanding institutions of higher education that are leading the way to create sustainable, zero emission energy.

Partnerships between these institutions enabled the development and distribution of nuclear fission as a clean and sustainable energy source. These partnerships continue to produce technology and drive innovation from which the entire world will benefit.

The significance of these contributions were brought into focus this month at the United Nations’ Climate Change Conference, COP26, in Glasgow. The U.N. Secretary-General admitted that nuclear power will be apart of the solution.

The White House and the State Department delivered some other long overdue announcements that strongly support nuclear energy’s value proposition in the fight against climate change.

The impact that nuclear energy can have on climate change

Tennesseans are no strangers to the risks posed by climate change: the 17 inches Hurricane Ida dumped on the state in August and the heart wrenching losses from April’s record flooding in Nashville are just a few reminders that we will all be impacted by the effects of climate change.

If nations and states do not increasingly commit to resilient, zero emissions energy alternatives like nuclear fission, extreme weather events like these could become more frequent, more severe or both.

While California and New York close and dismantle their nuclear power plants and increasingly turn to fragile, less reliable and less sustainable forms of clean energy like solar and wind, Tennessee’s two nuclear plants contributed 47% of the state’s electricity in 2020.

Natalia Best

This enabled the state to increasingly phase out other forms of energy with high carbon emissions while balancing renewable energy inputs.

Admittedly, nuclear energy is not a silver bullet for ensuring clean and reliable energy or solving climate change. Nuclear energy is expensive and is associated with unfortunate but preventable accidents caused by human errors.

We are still in search for a solution to long-term waste storage and disposal. However, when compared with all the existing clean energy alternatives, nuclear is the best, the most reliable and the safest large-scale clean energy solution we have for now. At least until the Oakridge National Laboratory develops a better solution.

Given nuclear energy’s overdue recognition coming out of COP26, I’m hopeful more states will follow Tennessee’s lead by prioritizing and incorporating nuclear energy into their electric grids. I applaud my home state for resolutely forging the path for clean energy.

Natalia M. Best is a commander in the U.S. Coast Guard Officer currently enrolled as a
graduate student at National War College in Washington, D.C. She is from Englewood, Tennessee.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: How nuclear energy could help solve climate crisis

Racial division in rural Alabama: Here are the biggest gaps and commonalities in opinions

Hadley Hitson, Montgomery Advertiser
Tue, December 21, 2021

John Lewis, center, of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, 

during Bloody Sunday on March 7, 1965, Selma, Ala.

Alabama carries a deep history of racial violence and division, especially in Selma and other places that were central to the Civil Rights Movement.

More than 56 years ago, John Lewis and hundreds of peaceful protesters marched for Black voting rights only to be met with brutal police attacks on the other side of the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Today, Selma and surrounding areas still face problems of racial division, only in much different ways.

The Black Belt Community Foundation and the Selma Center for Nonviolence, Truth and Reconciliation have partnered on a project to provide “racial healing” in these areas. They recently published a study examining the divisions and commonalities of public opinion among racial groups in Dallas County and surrounding areas.

The lead researchers, who represent the National Conference of Black Political Scientists, were Sekou Franklin, Camille Burge and Princess Williams.

They surveyed 300 people in Dallas County and 200 people in surrounding counties that include Lowndes, Perry, Greene, Choctaw, Macon, Sumter, Wilcox, Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Crenshaw, Hale, Marengo, Pickens, Pike and Russell.

Here are the topics that racial groups were most divided on and those where they found common ground.

Division: Causes of violence in the community

Dallas County’s crime rate is higher than the U.S. average, and this year, Selma has seen more homicides than it did in 2020 or 2019.

When it comes to the root cause of violence in Dallas County, Black respondents tended to point to systemic factors like poverty (41.4%) and a lack of community resources (13.5%), while white respondents were more likely to identify individual elements like laziness (43.4%), no family support (10.8%), and hopelessness (12%).

When asked whether the city or county should focus resources on crime prevention or on punishing crime, there was also a gap in opinion, based on race. 46% of Black respondents and 41% of white respondents said prevention.

“Blacks were more supportive of prevention strategies. But there was enough support among whites to build commonality around preventative strategies,” head researcher Franklin said.
Commonality: Distrust of local government

A feeling of distrust in local government and political leaders abounded in a majority of respondents, regardless of race.

Among respondents, 65% of both Black and white residents “believe they cannot trust government officials to do what is right,” and over 80% of both groups agree or somewhat agree that “political leaders neglect the interests of people who live in rural areas.”

A majority of people also say that they don’t feel like they have a voice in local government.

Franklin said this point of commonality shows an opportunity for people to come together in support of “good government” reforms, or efforts to increase inclusion and public engagement with local government.

Division: Race relations and the Black Lives Matter movement

Race relations are an especially polarizing topic, with Black people being much more likely to believe that they are treated worse in any given area than white people.

“Blacks and whites have fundamentally different perceptions about the treatment of Blacks and validity of racism. There are even minor, though noticeable differences, in how the racial groups view the treatment of Blacks when they are shopping and voting,” the study reads.

There was also contrast in each cohort’s feelings toward Black Lives Matter: 87% of Black respondents said they support the movement, compared to 40% of white respondents. In Selma and Dallas County, specifically, just 26% of white respondents said they support BLM.

Commonality: Racially segregated schools

Across all counties and races, most people surveyed said schools in their areas are segregated today.

55% of white respondents and 59% of Black respondents said they strongly or somewhat agree with the statement "Schools in my area are racially segregated."

The study does not include an explanation of how or why, but the Black Belt Community Foundation and the Selma Center recognize segregation as a persisting problem they aim to resolve.

Division: COVID’s impact

Rural Alabama, particularly the Black Belt, was hit hard with COVID-19. By the end of June 2020, a quarter of all COVID-related deaths had been Black Belt residents, though the area only housed about 11% of the state’s population at the time.

The survey asked respondents why they think COVID has disproportionately impacted Black people, and there were disparities in why they believe that's the case.

A majority of Black respondents said the major reasons were due to their work in high-risk industries, lack of health care, or it was “beyond their control.” Among white respondents, 31% or fewer agreed that these were major reasons why Black people experienced higher COVID infection rates.

Commonality: Living wages

Franklin said one of the most shocking findings from the study was a vast support across racial groups for increasing city and county employees wages to meet a living wage.

When asked how much they "would support or oppose a city or county policy that required the city to pay a living wage to all city employees," a majority of both groups said they either strongly supported or somewhat supported it.

A living wage is the theoretical income level it would take an individual or family to pay for necessities. This number varies by state and family size, but the estimated living wage for a single adult in Alabama ranges from $11 to $13.77 an hour.

“Although African-Americans definitely supported living wages and those kinds of things much more than whites, even among whites, there's considerable support there to possibly build bridges between the groups,” Franklin said.

Ultimately, he said doesn't think most people have an accurate perception of rural Alabama, and this study is one step toward changing that.

About the study

Download this PDF
The expressed goal of the Black Belt Community Foundation and the Selma Center in publishing this study was to address the deficit research on Southern, rural communities and challenge assumptions about race. The initiative is sponsored by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

The central component of the study, named the Dallas County Area Study, is a 500-person telephone and online survey administered by New South Research in December 2020.

New South Research conducted a random sample of Blacks and Whites in the requested counties, including an oversample of Blacks. Each participant was offered a $5 amazon e-gift card to complete the survey. The completed survey is comprised 156 Whites, 341 Blacks, and 3 individuals of mixed race. The survey contained 299 women and 201 men.

Input sessions and meetings generated a 43-question survey that was co-produced by academicians and community advocates. The survey and input sessions were approved by Middle Tennessee State University’s Institutional Review Board.

The study measures racial differences using bivariate cross-tabulations. It highlights the results that are statistically significant, and statistical significance indicates that a finding is not due to chance.

Hadley Hitson covers the rural South for the Montgomery Advertiser and Report for America. She can be reached at hhitson@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Study finds racial division in how rural Alabamians think about issues

Sharks are newly on the menu for hungry leopard seals in New Zealand, study finds



Alison Cutler
Tue, December 21, 2021

The hunter has become the hunted off the shores of New Zealand, a new study shows. Leopard seals have added sharks to their menu of seafood snacks, researchers found.

Scientists identified remnants of ghost sharks, spiny dogfish, and elephant fish eaten by seals, which are all classified as sharks, or chondrichthyan species.

The study, which can be found in the Frontiers in Marine Science Journal on Dec. 16, was the first published study to record leopard seals eating any type of shark.

“We were blown away to find that sharks were on the menu, but then we also found Elephant fish and Ghost sharks were also being hunted by the leopard seals,” Krista van der Linde from the World Wildlife Fund for Nature New Zealand and a co-author in the study told Newsweek.

Data collection and examination for the study included:

geographic records of where Leopard seals hunted off the coasts of New Zealand

observed predation where researchers would identify a seal and photograph it’s prey for visual identification

fecal matter (scat) from Leopard seals

The study leveraged the work of citizen scientists as well as researchers from Leopardseals.org. In total, the study observed 39 incidences of predation. Nine of the 39 were predation on sharks, the study said.

Nine fecal samples also showed that leopard seals were preying on sharks.

According to the observations, seals were found to prey on shark species more often in the spring and the winter. Adding sharks to the leopard seal palate could pose a prey competition between orcas and leopard seals.

Dangers of shark hunting

Hunting sharks doesn’t come without consequences though, scientists say.

“These fish have large spines to help protect them from predators and sure enough there were wounds on the leopard seals, sometimes even big spines embedded in their faces, one leopard seal had at least 14 such wounds,” van der Linde told Newsweek.

Injuries may be expected out of an inexperienced group of seals, like juveniles who haven’t learned their lesson about what and what not to target, but the data indicates the injuries weren’t just a lack of hunting knowledge among the seals.

Out of all the seals recorded to hunt the sharks, 11 were reported as adults, and 6 as juveniles. Data also noted that when sex could be identified in the study, 11 females were documented hunting sharks, and 3 males were identified.

The study examined how deep each shark typically resided in the waters, which indicated that leopard seals could be diving deeper than normal to target certain sharks, specifically the ghost shark. It also noted that leopard seals might steal shark remains from other seal species, like the Antarctic Fur Seal, which is known to eat sharks.

Yet another possibility, researchers offer, is that leopard seals are scavenging commercial fishery discards for sharks.

Why hunt sharks?

But why? Leopard seals are known for their maneuverability and wide prey selection, from krill to fish to birds and even penguins, which some may know from the anxiety-inducing scene involving the leopard-seal antagonist in the 2006 film “Happy Feet.” So what’s the motivation from killing prey, to predators — to the point that they would risk dozens of wounds and infection to finish one off?

“While this is the first published record of leopard seals feeding on chondrichthyans, the relatively high frequency of occurrence within our NZ records indicates that.... these species could constitute a substantial, or important, part of the diet for some leopard seals in this region,” researchers wrote.

For future examination, the scientists noted that environmental conditions, including changes in human population, interaction and pollution, should be taken into consideration when theorizing why animals hunt the creatures they do, and how it impacts predator-to-prey relationships.

Leopard seals have been in New Zealand since the 1860s, according Leopardseals.org, and are protected by law under the Antarctic Treaty.

It is an offense under the Marine Mammals Protection Act of 1978 to “disturb, harass, harm, injure or kill” a leopard seal, and offenders could face up to two years in prison, or be fined up to $250,000.

How Trump Stole Christmas—And Why Evangelicals Rally to Their Savior

Samuel L. Perry
Mon, December 20, 2021

TrumpChurch-8
A Dallas Police Mounted Unit stand outside of the old First Dallas Baptist church as Trump supporters and members wait in line for Sunday morning service with former President Donald Trump, on Sunday, Dec. 19, 2021 in downtown Dallas. 

Credit - Ben Torres

Before Donald Trump had spoken a word Sunday, Dec. 19, at First Baptist Dallas it would’ve been understandable if those in attendance had trouble remembering the “reason for the season.” Jesus was celebrated, yes. But the entire Christmas service was built around Trump’s advent: lines wrapped around the building starting 3 hours before the event; security screening for everyone in the main sanctuary; Trump’s smiling face on every program. The former President was introduced or acknowledged four separate times during the service, each one to thunderous applause.

Senior Pastor Robert Jeffress, frequent Fox News guest and longtime Trump advocate, gushed with adulation for his “good friend,” a friendship he proudly counted as “one of the greatest privileges of my life.” He twice called President Trump “the most pro-life, pro-religious liberty, pro-Israel President in the history of our great country” and dubbed him “the most consequential President since Abraham Lincoln.” Trump even found his way into Jeffress’s sermon as an analogy for God himself. When Jeffress wanted to illustrate what it meant for God to pardon sin through Christ, he recalled Trump pardoning Alice Johnson in the Oval Office.

And finally, there was in Jeffress’s own words, “the climax of the service,” Trump’s “Christmas Greeting” that turned into a MAGA rally. The delivery and content were classic Trump, alternating between off-the-cuff rambling about the nation’s dystopic situation and remarks about Christmas that he confessed were written for him. He concluded with his signature “Make America Great Again” sign off and even began a chant for “USA! USA!”

A program from the What If There Were No Chrismas?

 event on Sunday December 19, 2021.Courtesy Samuel Perry

Attending the event in person allowed me to appreciate how central Trump remains to white evangelicalism. Not just for Robert Jeffress, Trump’s most loyal “court evangelical.” Not just for First Baptist Dallas, the church that once wrote and performed a hymn for Trump entitled “Make America Great Again.” In fact, it would be a mistake for readers to roll their eyes at an event like this and dismiss it as “wacky” or “fringe.” On the contrary, what I observed in person Sunday morning, as well as what we can see from national survey data, make clear how Trump has conformed white evangelicalism to his own image, and why so many evangelicals await his second advent.

Standing in line 2.5 hours before the event, I chatted with a group of five elderly women who all came together. All were committed churchgoers in the Dallas area, but none were members at First Baptist. They simply came to see Trump. And they were planning to all get tickets for the event with Bill O’Reilly at the American Airlines Center later that afternoon where Trump would also be speaking.

There was Bill, a repairman who had taken public transportation to get to First Baptist. He was not a member either, but had always been a huge fan of Trump and was eager to see him in person. He is unvaccinated because he didn’t trust the science, heard the vaccines caused blood clots, and read somewhere the Omicron variant wasn’t that bad anyway. He was also convinced the election was stolen and said he would vote for Trump again in 2024.

And there was Carlos. Like Bill, Carlos was visiting First Baptist from elsewhere in the city along with a friend. And also like Bill, Carlos was certain the election had been stolen from Trump. But Carlos didn’t think Americans should wait for the 2024 election. Speaking to his friend loud enough for all to hear, Carlos explained “Trump should be reinstated and made President for life. Because he should be for life.”

Trump’s appeal Sunday morning extends far beyond the First Baptist faithful. Evangelical visitors from around the city had come to cheer for their President. They were convinced he’d been treated unfairly. And they pined to see him back in office.

National data show us this is not a fringe view among white evangelicals. In survey data my colleagues and I collected in August 2021 and are currently analyzing, over two-thirds of white evangelicals felt the 2020 election had been stolen from Trump. And 63% believe the liberal media wildly exaggerated the threat of COVID-19 to damage Trump’s chances at re-election. Nor do white evangelicals blame Trump for the attempted insurrection at the Capitol Building on January 6th. As of August 2021, a full 70% disagree that Trump held any responsibility for the event.

For the vast majority of white evangelicals in the U.S., like those visiting First Baptist Dallas on Sunday, Trump is still their warrior. And his promises are still the same as those he made as a candidate in 2016: that he would fight for Christians like them.

Former President Donald Trump enters a loading dock entrance riding in the back seat of a secret service armored SUV for morning church services at First Baptist Dallas, on Sunday, Dec. 19, 2021 in downtown Dallas.

Introducing the former President, Jeffress recounted what initially attracted him to Trump as a candidate in 2015 was that Trump passionately defended the Christmas holiday and promised to make it politically correct to say “Merry Christmas” again. The narrative of a politically correct “war on Christmas” is a farcical right-wing trope that goes back decades, but Trump was able to leverage this narrative to present himself as a candidate who would fight for Christian culture.\

That’s how he presented himself on Sunday. Recalling how Jeffress first described him to others, Trump paraphrased Jeffress: “[Trump] may not know the Bible as well as all of us, but he loves God, he loves Jesus, and he’s a leader, and he’s going to lead us into great things, in helping and saving Christianity.”

What did he mean by “saving Christianity”? He means rescuing Christianity’s influence, and more specifically the cultural and political influence of white conservative Christians. Trump’s appeal to white evangelicals at First Baptist church and around the country is primarily the result of what we call “Christian nationalism,” the belief that America has been and should always be for “Christians like us.” Trump reassured listeners Sunday of the centrality of Christianity to America’s story and his commitment to defend that centrality.

Reading his remarks, Trump exclaimed, “It’s impossible to think of the life of our own country without the influence of [Jesus’] example and of his teachings. Our miraculous founding, overcoming civil war, abolishing slavery, defeating communism and fascism, reaching boundless heights of science and discovering so many incredible things…And the United States ultimately becoming a truly great nation and we’re gonna keep it that way. We’re not going to let it go.”

That is the promise of MAGA. It’s the reason the vast majority of white evangelicals elevate Trump and what his possible return as President means for the future of the country.

As Trump slowly walked off stage, he began a chant of “USA! USA!” throughout the First Baptist audience. What viewers online could not hear was the small group of attendees next to me in the back of the sanctuary who changed the chant into, “We love you! We love you! We love you!” They weren’t chanting to Jesus. They were chanting to their savior.

The suspicious disappearance and return of Peng Shuai is straight out of China's playbook for forcing rogue celebrities into submission

Bill Bostock

Mon, December 20, 2021

From left to right: Alibaba founder Jack Ma, the tennis player Peng Shuai, and the actor Fan Bingbing.Clive Brunskill/Costfoto/Barcroft Media/CG/VCG via Getty Images

• Peng Shuai vanished then changed her story after accusing a former Chinese official of sexual assault.

• It's common for China's elites to disappear after displeasing or criticizing the government.

• This ruthlessness shows that in China, no one is above the law or — more importantly — the Communist Party.

The tennis star Peng Shuai, "X-Men" actress Fan Bingbing, and Alibaba founder Jack Ma were darlings of the Chinese state, symbols that Beijing's reach extended to Hollywood and Wall Street.

What the trio also have in common is that they vanished without notice after defying Beijing or embarrassing the nation.

This tactic — which comes alongside a mass, unopposed crackdown on lawyers, activists, and state critics — appears to be Beijing's go-to strategy to tackle disloyalty and prevent rebellion.

Fan vanished for three months in 2018 following revelations that she dodged millions of dollars in tax, only to return with a grovelling apology. Ma vanished for the same period in late 2020 after he criticized China's reluctance to innovate, coming back to say he had been "studying and thinking."

Peng, meanwhile, disappeared from public view for weeks after she accused the former vice premier Zhang Gaoli of sexually assaulting her on November 2.

After a long silence, Chinese state media outlets published footage of Peng making public appearances to indicate she was safe,

On Sunday, Peng gave her first interview to foreign media since she vanished — one in which she denied ever accusing anyone of sexual assault.

"I have never said that anyone has sexually assaulted me. This point must be emphasized clearly," Peng told Lianhe Zaobao, a Chinese-language newspaper in Singapore. It appeared to complete her cycle of punishment.

Peng Shuai at the Wuhan Open tennis tournament in 2019.Getty/Wang He

These cases, and many others like it, follow the same arc: A high-profile individual brings China into disrepute, then vanishes. They then either reemerge to repent or never return.

"They keep these people and they try to find some sort of arrangement," Konstantinos Tsimonis, a lecturer in Chinese society at the Lau China Institute at King's College London, told Insider after Peng first disappeared.

"I think that's what we had with Jack Ma and I think that's what we're going to get with Peng Shuai," he said, adding that the Chinese government is likely thinking: "We want to make sure you don't talk anymore, so we don't have a reemergence of the #MeToo movement in the public sphere."

Tsimonis also cited the 2011 disappearance of the dissident artist Ai Weiwei, who was detained for 81 days without charge.

"They made up some charges. The message was clear, and they only let him go when he agreed to stop talking," Tsimonis said. "This [trend] is worrying." (Ai left China in 2015 and has since openly criticized the Chinese government.)

Ai Weiwei waves from the entrance of his studio after being released on bail in Beijing.David Gray/Reuters

'This is the norm, not the exception'

China can get away with doing this to celebrities, and countless others, thanks to the vagaries of its legal system, and its power to suppress information on the internet.

"Proximity to the top levels of power — fame, money, power, a Nobel peace prize — do not buy you any added protection," Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch, told Insider last month.

"This case has laid bare for yet another large global audience the truly arbitrary nature of power the Chinese government and party wield," she said, referring to Peng. "This happens all the time, this is the norm, not the exception."

Then-Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli, whom Peng accused of sexual assault, photographed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in August 2017.Bandar Algaloud/Courtesy of Saudi Royal Court/Handout via Reuters

In a way, Peng and Ma's disappearances weren't surprising, as criticism of the country and its officials are effectively attacks on the Communist Party.

"The state protects its own at the end of the day," Roderic Wye, a former British Embassy official in Beijing, told Insider. "Accusing a senior state official is verging on, or is actually seen as, a serious crime against state security."

Steve Tsang, director of the China Institute at London's School of African and Oriental Studies, agreed in his remarks.

"For a young female celebrity accusing a former PBSC of a sexual crime is just unacceptable, as it could set a precedent for others to be so challenged," he said, referring to the Communist Party's powerful Politburo Standing Committee.

How it ends

Peng is well known internationally, so, like with Ma and Fan, it is not surprising that she reemerged in public.

Her fame "makes it more difficult for her to be completely disappeared or dealt with. There will be people asking questions" Wye said in November.

"She would have to make some sort of fulsome retraction" to return to public life, he said.

Peng's remarks in late December, in which she denied accusing anyone of sexual assault, is just the sort of retraction that disappeared celebrities have made in the past. Another of those who apologized to win back their freedom is Fan.

After China made Fan repay 479 million yuan ($70 million) in 2019, she issued a groveling apology on the microblogging site Weibo in which she said she was "deeply ashamed." Then, in an interview with The New York Times, she practically thanked Beijing for vanishing her.

Since then, her social media posts have carried a nationalist tinge.

Fan Bingbing at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2018, two months before her disappearance.Eric Gaillard/Reuters

That said, some disappearances in China remain a mystery.

In August, the actress Zhao Wei vanished abruptly, and Chinese streaming sites pulled down her TV shows and films. Though no reason was given for her disappearance, Chinese state media — which can be considered an extension of the state — said she was "surrounded with lawsuits" and noted she was banned in 2017 from trading in China's securities markets for unspecified "market violations."

Another member of China's elite who vanished is Ren Zhiqiang, the former chairman of the property behemoth Huayuan.

In a March 2020 essay, Ren launched a thinly-veiled attack on Chinese President Xi Jinping, comparing him to "a clown who stripped naked and insisted on continuing being emperor." The Chinese Communist Party expelled Ren as a member in June and he was subsequently sentenced to 18 years in prison over corruption charges.

After Peng first made her allegation, the Chinese state broadcaster CGTN published an English-language email claiming to be from Peng, which retracted the allegation against Zhang and said she was safe.

The email has not been verified and, instead of alleviating people's fears, it only increased concerns for Peng's safety.

Steve Simon, the chairman of the Women's Tennis Association, said in a statement shortly after: "Her allegation of sexual assault must be respected, investigated with full transparency and without censorship."

"The voices of women need to be heard and respected, not censored nor dictated to."

GOOD NEWS

Wisconsin winter wolf hunt may not be held this season

Michael Hollan
Mon, December 20, 2021

There may not be a winter wolf hunt in Wisconsin this year.

Wolf hunting in Wisconsin is on hold after a judge issued an injunction last month. According to new reports, the court schedule reveals it’s unlikely a decision will be made before 2021 ends.

The state held a wolf hunt earlier this year after the gray wolf was removed from the endangered species list, Fox 6 reports. During that hunt, 218 wolves were harvested in the state.

Since then, however, a lawsuit has been filed by a coalition of animal advocacy groups claiming that a state law requiring the wolf should be invalidated.

MAINE SEES BEST DEER HUNT IN OVER 5 DECADES

A judge issued an injunction against the hunt, stating that while he believed the state law was constitutional, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) had not created the necessary permanent regulations for the hunt. The injunction will reportedly remain in place until the DNR can show that it has updated and implemented regulations regarding quotas, licenses and a new management plan for population goals.

According to a new report from Public News Service, a decision on the injunction won’t be made until next spring. That would mean no wolf hunt would be held this winter.

Earlier this year, Fox News reported that gray wolves were officially removed from the federal Endangered Species List on Jan. 4, giving states the leeway to determine how to manage local populations. Wisconsin mandates that the DNR open a wolf hunt from early November to late February when the wolves are not listed as endangered or threatened.

At the time, hunting advocacy group Hunter Nation successfully sued the state to hold a wolf hunt. Prior to this year, the most recent wolf hunt in Wisconsin was in 2014.

Fox News' Janine Puhak contributed to this report.

Report claims Colorado's first wolf kill of livestock in more than 70 years

SHOWS HOW RARE WOLF ATTACKS ARE


Miles Blumhardt, Fort Collins Coloradoan
Tue, December 21, 2021

Colorado's first reported wolf kill of livestock in more than 70 years has state wildlife officials investigating the killing of a cow near Walden.

The Colorado Cattlemen’s Association stated in a Monday afternoon news release that a 500-pound heifer cow was confirmed to be killed by a wolf or wolves believed to be from a known pack living in the area.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson Rebecca Ferrell said the agency is aware of the report and is investigating the claim, which she said was received Sunday.

The kill was believed to have taken place Saturday night near the landowner's home and cattle facility, according to the cattlemen's association.

"If it is determined to be caused by the wolves that have naturally migrated into the state, we will compensate the landowner through our current game damage program,'' Ferrell said.

The Arvada-based Colorado Cattlemen's Association said in the release the kill was confirmed to be from wolves and that it was the first in the state in more than 70 years.

"On behalf of the livestock producer, who is a member of the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, as well as Colorado Parks and Wildlife, we ask that the public refrain from disturbing the area and individuals associated with this wolf attack,'' Steve Wooten, association president, said in the release.

Wolves in Rocky Mountain National Park?: Some believe it should be a release site

The pack of two adult males and six pups was confirmed by Chris Chirichetti II, an archery elk hunter who shot video of the pack north of Walden in September. He showed the video to Colorado Parks and Wildlife staff. The video was the first of wolf pups born in the state in 80 years.

"It doesn't surprise me at all because they were stalking cattle when I saw them,'' Chirichetti said Monday when informed of the kill. The traveling nurse working in Greeley shot his video in September and posted it on Facebook in October.

Wildlife officials had been keeping tabs on two adult wolves, including an adult male they captured via helicopter and tagged with a GPS collar in February in the area. It was with a collared female, and the two were later seen exhibiting denning behavior and in early June had pups. The pack is located just miles from the western border of Larimer County.

Other sightings of wolves have taken place in the area. A pack that was living in extreme northwest Colorado is no longer in the state and its existence is unknown, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife has an existing fund that pays landowners for damages caused by wildlife, including predators like wolves, bears and mountain lions as well as elk, deer and moose.

Proposition 114, the ballot initiative that narrowly passed last year, requires the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission to develop a plan to introduce gray wolves west of the Continental Divide, with wolves on the ground no later than the end of 2023.

The measure includes compensating livestock owners for confirmed kills by wolves.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife is working on a wolf reintroduction plan through public open houses, stakeholder groups and wildlife expert meetings.

Wolves were recently delisted as endangered federally but still are designated as a state endangered animal and are protected under state law. Illegally killing a wolf can result in a fine and prison time.

The cattlemen's association said the kill is "unfortunate'' and "this wolf kill further brings to light issues that must be addressed'' by the state's wolf reintroduction plan.

It specifically mentioned a guaranteed funding source to fairly provide needed tools for prevention and compensation from wolf impacts.

"(We) strongly encourage the members of the Wolf Restoration and Management Plan working groups and the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission to consider this wolf attack and the widespread impacts as a sentinel example of how livestock can be impacted by wolf introduction,'' the release read. 

KEEP YOUR CATTLE OFF FEDERAL LANDS (PARKLAND)  YOU GRAZE WITHOUT PAYMENT

Lynx reintroduction: Colorado's first predator brought back

Reporter Miles Blumhardt looks for stories that impact your life. Be it news, outdoors, sports — you name it, he wants to report it. Have a story idea? Contact him at milesblumhardt@coloradoan.com or on Twitter @MilesBlumhardt. Support his work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado's first wolf kill of livestock in 70 years reported