'They ain't seen nothing yet': President Biden’s feud with oil companies heats up again as the industry fires back. But could it end up just burning you?

Sigrid Forberg

MONEYWISE.COM
Mon, January 16, 2023 at 5:00 AM MST·5 min read

'They ain't seen nothing yet': President Biden’s feud with oil companies heats up again as the industry fires back. But could it end up just burning you?

It may be a new year, but President Joe Biden’s feud with the country’s major gas companies is raging on.

Biden has taken issue with oil juggernauts like Chevron and Exxon Mobil that have been raking in profits this last year — especially in the wake of scorching inflation and Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Now, the oil and gas industry is turning up the heat on the situation.

In his annual address in Washington on Jan. 11, American Petroleum Institute President Mike Sommers blamed the “barrage of negative rhetoric” from the White House for slowing domestic oil and gas production.

With gas prices still elevated, and many households muddling through an expensive winter, the strained relationship between Biden and the country’s oil companies could mean the situation will only get worse over the next few months.

Biden hasn’t minced his words

Biden has been waging a battle with oil companies since before he even took office, but he escalated it last November when he called their record profits "a windfall of war," not the result of anything "new or innovative."

He went on, exhorting them to “act beyond their narrow self-interest,” and “invest in America by increasing production and refining capacity” on behalf of “their consumers, their community and their country.”

And if they don’t? Biden warns they’re going to face “a higher tax on their excess profits and … higher restrictions.”

Shortly after that, Amos Hochstein, a special presidential coordinator for Biden, told the Financial Times it was “un-American” and “unfair to the … public” that companies didn’t use those record profits to invest in increased production.

What Biden appears to be proposing is a “windfall” tax, which would redistribute profits to American consumers still paying out the nose at the pump.

“It’s time for these companies to stop war profiteering, meet their responsibilities in this country and give the American people a break,” Biden added.

Oil companies fire back

While gas has dropped from a record high of over $5/gallon in June, it’s still currently hovering around $3.28. And that, along with a dangerously low oil supply and a dwindling diesel stockpile is clearly weighing on Biden.

But oil companies argue they’re already contributing to the cause. Exxon Mobil’s CEO Darren Woods took a moment during the company’s third-quarter earnings call on Oct. 28 to address Biden.

“There has been discussion in the U.S. about our industry returning some of our profits directly to the American people,” Woods said. “That’s exactly what we’re doing in the form of our quarterly dividend."

The president didn’t take kindly to that, tweeting his response a few hours later: “Can’t believe I have to say this but giving profits to shareholders is not the same as bringing prices down for American families.”

Read more: [Over 65% of Americans don't shop around for a better car insurance deal — and that could be costing you $500 a month

The issue has become political

But all this back-and-forth could only be aggravating the situation. A blog post from the Institute for Energy Research accused the Energy Department of asking them to “undersell their product” and accused Biden of using the country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve “as a political tool to lower gasoline prices.”

And in an interview with Bloomberg, Sommers from the American Petroleum Institute said the signals Biden is sending discourage investment in the oil and gas industry “does harm to capital.”

“If the government signals support for American energy, it would boost investor confidence in future projects to unleash needed supplies and strengthen infrastructure,” Sommers says.

Biden does seem prepared to compromise, though. According to another report in Bloomberg, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm addressed oil and gas executives in Washington in mid-December at a meeting of the National Petroleum Council, an outside federal advisory group with members from Exxon Mobil Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell Plc.

“We are eager to work with you,” Granholm said, adding that fossil fuels are likely to be around for a while.

She also acknowledged the administration has "butted heads" with the industry, referring to it as the “elephant in the room." And with growing demand and a shortage of diesel in the northeast, she says the administration is aware fossil fuel production will need to increase soon.

Don’t expect Biden to capitulate

Still, the president isn’t likely to cave entirely.

Just a few short months ago in November, Exxon and Chevron, two of the country’s biggest oil companies, reported hefty profits for the fourth consecutive quarter. That same day, in a briefing from the White House, Biden pointed out that six of the largest companies “made $70 billion in profit” in just 90 days.

Appalled that all that money was going back to their shareholders and executives, Biden issued a promise: “I’m going to keep harping on it. [These companies] talk about me picking on them, they ain’t seen nothing yet. I mean it. It outrages me.”

Runaway W. Antarctic ice sheet collapse not 'inevitable': study


Kelly MACNAMARA
Mon, January 16, 2023 


The runaway collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet -- which would trigger catastrophic sea level rise -- is not "inevitable", scientists said Monday following research that tracked the region's recent response to climate change.

As global temperatures rise, there is mounting concern that warming could trigger so-called tipping points that set off irreversible melting of the world's massive ice sheets and ultimately lift oceans enough to drastically redraw the world map.

New research published Monday suggests a complex interaction of factors affecting the melting of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, which is home to the enormous and unstable Pine Island and Thwaites glaciers -- nicknamed the "Doomsday glacier" -- that together could raise global sea levels by more than three metres (10 feet).

Using satellite imagery as well as ocean and climate records between 2003 and 2015, an international team of researchers found that while the West Antarctic Ice Sheet continued to retreat, the pace of ice loss slowed across a vulnerable region of the coastline.

Their study, published in the journal Nature Communications, concluded that this slowdown was caused by changes in ocean temperatures that were caused by offshore winds, with pronounced differences in the impact depending on the region.

Researchers said that this raises questions about how rising temperatures will affect the Antarctic, with ocean and atmospheric conditions playing a key role.

"That means that ice-sheet collapse is not inevitable," said co-author Professor Eric Steig from the University of Washington in Seattle.

"It depends on how climate changes over the next few decades, which we could influence in a positive way by reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

The researchers observed that while in one region, in the Bellingshausen Sea, the pace of ice retreat accelerated after 2003, it slowed in the Amundsen Sea.

- 'Blink of an eye' -

They concluded that this was down to changes in the strength and direction of offshore surface winds, which can change the ocean currents and disturb the layer of cold water around Antarctica and flush relatively warmer water towards the ice.

Both the North and South pole regions have warmed by roughly three degrees Celsius compared to late 19th-century levels, nearly three times the global average.

Scientists are increasingly concerned that the Pine Island and Thwaites glaciers have reached a "tipping point" that could see irreversible melting irrespective of cuts to greenhouse gas emissions.

Anders Levermann, a climate scientist at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research who was not connected to the latest study, welcomed the approach of bringing together multiple observations and records, although the study period was "the blink of an eye in ice terms".

"I think we still have to live and plan and do our sea level projections and coastal planning with a hypothesis that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is destabilised and we will get three and a half meters of sea level rise just from this area of the planet alone," he said, adding however that this would happen "over centuries to millennia".

The United Nation's science advisory panel for climate change, the IPCC, has forecast that oceans will rise up to a metre by the end of the century, and even more after that.

Hundreds of millions of people live within a few metres of sea level.

While cutting planet-warming emissions is seen as the first and most important way to halt the melting of the West Antarctic ice sheet, scientists have also come up with an array of hi-tech suggestions for saving the gargantuan ice shelf and staving off.

Levermann has researched ideas including using snow cannons to pump trillions of tons of ice back on top of the frozen region.

Other suggestions have included constructing Eiffel Tower-sized columns on the seabed to prop it up from below, and a 100m-tall, 100-kilometre-long berm to block warm water flowing underneath.

klm/mh/ea

Top Democrat opposes Biden administration plan to sell warplanes to Turkey


Senator Bob Menendez, a Democrat from New Jersey, has long opposed the F-16 fighter jet sale to Turkey.

Brie Stimson
Sat, January 14, 2023

Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Friday he plans to continue blocking the Biden administration's plan to sell military aircraft to Turkey.

"As I have repeatedly made clear, I strongly oppose the Biden administration’s proposed sale of new F-16 aircraft to Turkey," Menendez said in a statement.

"President Erdogan continues to undermine international law, disregard human rights and democratic norms, and engage in alarming and destabilizing behavior in Turkey and against neighboring NATO allies."

The Democrat added that he would continue to oppose the deal – still in review – "until Erdogan ceases his threats, improves his human rights record at home — including by releasing journalists and political opposition — and begins to act like a trusted ally should."

The $20 billion deal would require congressional approval, which would also be contingent on Turkey approving of Sweden and Finland’s applications to join NATO in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.

The State Department advised Congress on Thursday of its intent to go through with deal, according to the Wall Street Journal.

A spokesperson for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed that Washington demands over the warplane deal are "endless."

Turkey made the request for the warplanes a little more than a year ago.

Menendez said he does approve of a proposed sale of 40 F-55s to Greece.

On Saturday, an Erdogan spokesperson called U.S. demands related to the potential sale "endless."

"If they keep pushing Turkey in other directions with F-16 (and) F-35 sanctions, and then Turkey reacts, they blame Turkey again, then that's not a fair game," he said. "It looks like their list of demands is endless. There's always something."

Reuters contributed to this report.

POLITCAL APPROPRIATION OF PAGAN SYMBOLISM

Amazon removes Nazi and neo-Nazi items after human-rights group protests

Jordan Hart
Sat, January 14, 2023

SLAVONIC PAGAN SYMBOLS

Though several of the items the SWC pointed out have been removed from Amazon, many similar items remain available for purchase.Simon Wiesenthal Center

Amazon is once again under fire for allowing offensive items to be sold on its site.


The SWC says it isn't the first — or second — time it's called out the retailer for Nazi propaganda.


Amazon has since removed the items, but more related products remain, Gizmodo reported.

An international Jewish human-rights organization is once again calling out Amazon for purported Nazi-related content.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center blasted Amazon for "monetizing Nazi and Neo-Nazi paraphernalia" on its website in a Thursday blog post. According to the post, the SWC reached out to the e-commerce giant via email on Wednesday requesting the company "immediately put in place systems that will end the monetization of hateful products."

The human-rights organization said Amazon allowed various businesses to market and sell items associated with neo-Nazis, including swastika necklaces and face masks. They included screenshots of some of these items in a letter to Amazon.

Though Amazon has since removed several of the items, there are still similar items listed for sale on the retailer's site, the tech-news outlet Gizmodo reported.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center

"Amazon is the nation's go-to online store for every imaginable product," Rabbi Abraham Cooper, the associate dean and director of global social action at the SWC, said in a statement.

"In an era when 63% of all religious-based hate crimes in America target America's Jews—2.4% of the US population, at a time when Blacks are again the number one target of race-based hate crimes, Amazon should not be using its business model to market hateful symbols and neo-Nazi paraphernalia," Cooper continued.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center

Cooper went on to note a letter the SWC sent to Amazon in 2022 for featuring 30 films the organization deemed as Nazi propaganda on Amazon Prime.

It wasn't the first time consumers have slammed the tech giant for reportedly carrying antisemitic items. In 2019, Amazon removed Christmas ornaments featuring the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz, according to a report from Insider.

In 2020, the company came under fire for profiting from the sale of "vicious antisemitic Nazi propaganda" by the Auschwitz Memorial Museum in a tweet, Insider's Charlie Wood reported.

"It's simply not acceptable for the biggest economic giant on the block to play games of Whac-A-Mole rather than fix things," Cooper said, according to Gizmodo.

Amazon didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, but a representative directed the New York Post to the company's policy on "potentially offensive products."

"Our technology continuously scans all products listed for sale looking for text and images that we have determined violate our policies, and immediately removes them," the policy reads.

"The realm of potentially offensive products is nuanced and diverse, and we review thousands of products every day against our policies to ensure compliance."

Read the original article on Business Insider

AUTHORITY IS ABUSE

How the 'Romeo and Juliet' lawsuit could force Hollywood to reckon with its history of child abuse

Alexis Hampton
Sun, January 15, 2023 

Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey as the teen lovers in the 1968 production of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" directed by Franco Zeffirelli.Bettmann/Getty Images

"Romeo and Juliet" actors Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting are suing Paramount for child abuse.

The suit could spark a deeper look into the inhumane treatment of children in Hollywood.

From Judy Garland to Raven-Symoné, stars have been sharing their stories of mistreatment and abuse for decades.

The 1968 movie "Romeo and Juliet" has come back into public consciousness as stars Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting filed a lawsuit against Paramount Pictures.

Leonard Whiting, as Romeo, and Olivia Hussey as Juliet, in 'Romeo And Juliet', directed by Franco Zeffirelli, 1968.

Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images

In the 1960s, 15-year-old Olivia Hussey and 16-year-old Leonard Whiting secured career-making roles in a film that retells the iconic love story of "Romeo and Juliet," the first film to use actors that were similar in age to the characters in the play.

These young actors went on to beautifully depict the Shakespearean classic, but their performance became overshadowed by controversy. They were legally children when they were filmed in the nude together; the performance can now be found on sites meant for pornography.

Fifty-five years later, Hussey, now 71, and Whiting, now 72, are suing Paramount Pictures for child abuse. They claim that "Romeo and Juliet" director Franco Zefirelli assured the actors that they would be wearing flesh colored garments and would not be physically nude in the scene.

This allegedly changed in the last days of filming when Zefirelli asked the actors to do the scene fully nude with makeup, according to the lawsuit. Even then, they were told that the positioning of the camera would not capture the full extent of their nudity, which was later revealed to be false.

Hussey and Whiting's experience is not the only time that the industry took advantage of young stars in the last half century. From the age of New Hollywood to modern day child stars, here are six former child stars who lost their youth while working in the entertainment industry.

Before Hussey and Whiting, there was Judy Garland.

Judy Garland as Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz”Herbert Dorfman/Getty Images

Garland scored a contract with MGM in 1935, simultaneously securing her status as a household name and beginning the end of her career. According to Express UK, Garland was forced to take barbiturates and other drugs and live on a death-defying diet while working with the studio.

In Paul Donnelley's 2007 biography on Garland, he quotes actress Lauren Bacall as saying, "From childhood Judy was placed on drugs — to lose weight or to go to sleep or to wake up." By the time she booked the role of Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz" at the age of 16, Garland was addicted.

While maintaining a "girl-next-door" image, Garland wrote in an unpublished autobiography that she was constantly molested behind the scenes by older men, including Louis B. Mayer, the producer and cofounder of MGM.

Mayer allegedly had people spy on Garland to ensure that she stuck to her diet of cigarettes, coffee, and chicken soup. In addition to this regimen, her breasts were bound by tape and she wore a special corset to flatten out her curves while filming to keep her looking "innocent."

Garland died at the age of 47 of an accidental barbiturate overdose. According to the Daily Mail, Garland intended to write a memoir detailing her experience as a child star with MGM, but she was never able to dedicate the time she needed to finish it.

Mickey Rooney suffered under the same MGM umbrella as Judy Garland.

Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland promoting “Love Finds Andy Hardy.”

Hulton Archive/Stringer/Getty Images

Mickey Rooney was a good friend of Garland's. He made his big break as Andy Hardy at 16 years old in the MGM film "A Family Affair." After the success of the film, the studio went on to make 15 more — 14 of which were made within the span of a decade.

This meant a new and heavier workload for Rooney. MGM would often film new movies back-to-back, only separating them by as little as a few days and sometimes hours.

Some of the younger talent, including Rooney, were reportedly given pills and even adrenaline shots to keep them awake and working, according to Express UK. According to Garland, they'd also be given sleeping pills to knock them out when they couldn't sleep.

"They'd take us to the studio hospital and knock us out with sleeping pills — Mickey sprawled out on one bed and me on another," Garland was quoted as saying in Paul Donnelley' biography of her. "Then after four hours they'd wake us up and give us the pep pills again so we could work 72 hours in a row."

But the industry practice of drugging children didn't stop there. Hayden Panettiere said she was given "happy pills" to keep her energy up before interviews and red carpets.

Hayden Panettiere at the Los Angeles premiere of “Raising Helen.”

Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images

Panettiere started doing commercials at just 11 months old. She was cast on the soap opera, "One Life to Live," at 4 years old and got her big break seven years later in "Remember the Titans." She has since opened up about the toll growing up in the industry has taken on her.

"Being a child actor is — it's horrible. I would never wish it on my worst enemy," Panettiere told People last July.

Panettiere recounts that at the age of 13, she was served alcohol without having to ask for it. She also said she was given "happy pills" by someone in her inner circle when she was 15 years old. Though she admits that she was not very knowledgeable about drugs, she now believes that the pills were "a form of Adderall."

"I know that when I was given one and I was sent down a red carpet, I was lively and totally down to answer the questions and a chatterbox," Panettiere said in an interview with ABC News.

She said she didn't realize it at the time, but this would open her up to a cycle of "self-destruction" that led her to an addiction to drugs and alcohol.

Alyson Stoner was made to act out a rape scene when she was only 6 years old.

Alyson Stoner at the premiere of “Step Up.”Michael Buckner/Getty Images

Stoner got her start as a co-host for Disney Channel's "Mike's Super Short Show." From there, she went on to star in music videos for Missy Elliot and blockbusters like "Cheaper by the Dozen" and "Step Up."

In a People op-ed, the actress detailed an audition experience where she had to act out a rape scene.

"At 6 years old, I enter a sterile white room where a stranger stands apathetically behind a camcorder on a tripod. On cue, I perform the scene. This morning, I'm being kidnapped and raped," Stoner wrote.

In the op-ed, she continued breaking down her thought process after the audition.

"To clarify, I'll be paid to recreate kidnapping and rape repeatedly on set with a crew of more strangers. If I'm especially believable, I may even get an Oscar and the praise of America," Stoner wrote.

The actress also talked about how she developed eating disorders — among other health problems — due to stress and a busy work schedule that caused her to skip meals.

"Adding to this, zero productions acknowledge that after their shoot, I will go to another, record an interview during my lunch break, train for multiple hours, skip dinner, and meet for a late-night rehearsal," Stoner wrote.

Raven-Symoné said she was body-shamed on the set of "The Cosby Show."

Raven Symoné at the Starlight Children’s Foundation Gala.Ron Galella/Getty Images

Symoné started acting at the age of 4 on "The Cosby Show." It was during her time on the show that she would first be introduced to the cruel nature of the industry.

In a 2015 episode of "The View," the actress recalled a time where she was body-shamed on set as a child.

"I remember not being able to have the bagel or anything at — we would call it crafty, where it's just a table of food, ready for you to eat whatever you want. And I remember people would be like, 'You can't eat that. You're getting fat!' I'm like, 'I'm 7! I'm hungry!'" Symoné said during the episode.

Symoné has also spoken out about how being body shamed so young caused a lot of mental issues for her. She even went as far as to say that she wishes she grew up in a more body-positive time, like today.

Alexa Nikolas said she was emotionally abused by "Zoey 101" creator Dan Schneider.

Alexa Nikolas on "Zoey 101."Nickelodeon

Nikolas started acting when she was just 7 years old, but her breakout role was on Nickelodeon's "Zoey 101" as Nicole Bristow. Since then, Nikolas has been vocal about her traumatic experience working on the show.

The actress has spoken openly in interviews about mistreatment by creator Dan Schneider, alleging that he used to be present for all of her wardrobe fittings and would ask for Polaroids taken of the outfits. She also alleges that while she worked for Nickelodeon, Schneider used to "go around with money and ask to take photos of kids' feet."

On a podcast with Christy Carlson Romano in November, Nikolas recalled some instances where she was bullied by other cast members and emotionally abused by executives.

"I started crying and I said, 'I really don't want to be a problem for anybody and I don't want anyone to not like me,' and Dan was like 'No one likes you.' You know. He just screamed it," said Nikolas.

She also claimed no one in production cared about her mental health while she was working with "Zoey 101."

"I know people are going to focus on Dan Schneider, but really the accountability lies with Nickelodeon," Nikolas said.

While Schneider has not made a public statement about Nikolas' allegations, he left Nickelodeon in 2018 following an internal investigation that found that he was "verbally abusive" with coworkers. The investigation found no evidence of sexual misconduct.

Since her time with Nickelodeon, Nikolas has started an organization called Eat Predators that focuses on making the music industry safe for women.

Insider

All-ages drag brunch in Calgary met with protestors, counter-protestors for 2nd time in less than a month

Sun, January 15, 2023 at 6:38 p.m. MST·2 min read

Counter-protestors turned up in support of a drag brunch in Calgary this Sunday.

 (Tom Ross/CBC - image credit)

More than 100 counter-protestors gathered outside the Rec Room in northeast Calgary to support an all-ages drag brunch in the face of protestors on Sunday.

It's the second time in less than a month that a drag event in Calgary has been met with this opposition. In December, a drag brunch in Inglewood was met with protests, while another brunch was cancelled, citing threatening phone calls.

Protests have happened at all-ages drag events elsewhere, including in several U.S. states where drag story readings have been disrupted.

Some people, like community advocate for LGBTQ issues Anna Murphy, anticipate these protests becoming a pattern in Calgary — but said the counter-protestors on Sunday gave her hope.

She says it's important to continue to show up and "demonstrate who we truly are as Calgarians, which is a community that is safe, welcoming and affirming."

She also wants to see politicians and community organizations demonstrating allyship and affirming trans and queer people in order to show that "spreading misinformation, ignorance and hate … is not who we are as a community."

Tom Ross/CBC

Signs held by protestors on Sunday had messages against exposing kids to "adult entertainers," and some conflated drag shows with pedophilia. Some also carried signs saying "Jesus is Lord."

Some far right groups have alleged that all-ages drag events sexualize children or set them up to be groomed by sexual predators.

A performer who goes by the name Comrad Borscht said that, in reality, all-ages drag events are a safe, comforting space for queer children, and that organizers and performers consider their audience and make the art appropriate for kids.

"They do their best to make sure that it's just silly dancing to silly songs or or rhinestones, big hair, crazy stuff."

A larger police presence was noticeable at the protest outside the Rec Room on Sunday compared to the one in Inglewood in December, but there was no physical violence.

By early afternoon, only a handful of protestors remained.

Opinion: Focusing only on LGBTQ 'groomers' is what puts kids at risk for sexual abuse

Pat Brothwell

Asheville Citizen-Times
Sun, January 15, 2023 

Guest opinion columnist Pat Brothwell

Last weekend, I watched “Keep This Between Us” on Hulu, a four-part docuseries initially airing on the Freeform network. According to the show’s news release, the series “exposes an epidemic of widespread grooming —manipulative and coercive behavior by abusers to gain access to potential victims — in U.S. high schools.” It’s a timely topic, as accusations of grooming dominate recent headlines, aimed almost exclusively at LGBTQ people and curricula.

What’s notable about this series — and why I wanted to highlight it — is that it examines filmmaker Cheryl Nichol’s experience being groomed by a straight male high school teacher, not the demographic most currently associated with the term “groomer,” but statistically, the demographic most likely to sexually abuse children, a crime that’s rarely meaningfully addressed by pundits or legislatures, even though it’s disgustingly common. Putting the bulk of the blame on the LGBTQ community allows scores of adult groomers to continue their behavior unchecked and puts kids at risk.

The CDC reports that 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 13 boys in the U.S. experience child sexual abuse. These statistics are appalling when you consider the amount of lip service and rhetoric we devote to “saving children,” and when you consider these statistics are based on reported data, I’d imagine the actual numbers are larger.

I’m not suggesting that LGBTQ adults don’t groom children — I was unfortunately acquainted with a gay guidance counselor who used his position of power to assault minors — but A) being a member of the LGBTQ community is unequivocally not synonymous with grooming, and B) statistically it’s adults who identify as straight who abuse the most children.

There just aren’t enough LGBTQ adults living in the United States to perpetrate such a widespread crime. While Gallup reports that Americans consistently overestimate the gay population in the U.S. — American adults estimate that 1 in 4 Americans (23.6%) are gay — just 7.1% of U.S. adults identify as being part of the LGBTQ community. (Now sure, the LGBTQ population is probably larger, as again, stats are only as good as what people will admit to, and plenty of Americans are still closeted and/or coming to terms with their sexuality, but it’s the out and visible LGBTQ population consistently misaligned as “groomers.”)

Secondly, the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network reports that males perpetrate 88% of sexual abuse claims reported to Child Protective Services. Breaking down the 7.1% of LGBTQ Americans further, less than 2% of the population are gay men. The Tucker Carlsons, Laura Ingrams and Ron DeSantises of the world can shout “groomer” at gay people all they want, but the numbers don’t add up.

How did this narrative start? It’s a pretty widespread tactic. Blame an easily vilified minority for the sins of the majority. It’s been pushed so long it’s even evangelized by the population it hurts the most. Last summer I was introduced to an Instagram account with 175,000 followers by a fellow gay man I met on a dating app (talk about … indoctrination).

This “groomer” narrative misplaces blame for heinous behavior and has allowed the grooming and abuse of minors to thrive unchecked. If you care about saving kids and ending what I feel comfortable considering an unnamed epidemic, you’ll quit equating the LGBTQ community with child sexual abuse and start examining the many behaviors society has conditioned us to be unproblematic as long as it’s straight people perpetuating them.

Last August, I wrote a piece for the Citizen-Times where I shared how I was cautioned against being open about my sexuality when I worked as a high school teacher. A well-meaning colleague warned it might result in a groomer narrative in the district where I taught, an affluent, conservative part of Pennsylvania that loved touting its family values.

Meanwhile, I had a colleague — a popular, middle-aged straight male teacher — who pretty openly texted female students late at night and on weekends, not about school work, but just to chat. I’m not suggesting anything more than texts happened, but it’s interesting to note how I, a gay man, was counseled to conceal my sexuality while this straight teacher felt very comfortable conducting inappropriate behavior openly, without fear of a besmirching narrative following him.

We’ve been groomed as a society to focus on a false-grooming narrative, and all that does is protect actual groomers and allow an alarming number of young people to be abused.

Pat Brothwell is a former high school teacher, and current writer and marketing professional living and working in Asheville.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Groomers who most often sexually abuse children are not LGBTQ

SCHOOL AS  SOCIAL FACTORY
School meal programs struggle to serve growing number of students in need as food prices climb

Mon, January 16, 2023 

ALL INSTITUITIONS (SOCIAL FACTORIES) 

SERVE FOOD THE SAME MASS WAY
After weathering nearly three tumultuous years of adapting to restrictions and lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic, school nutrition programs in Canada are now struggling with another crisis: ever-rising food costs coupled with a surge in the number of students in need. 

(Shutterstock/Africa Studio - image credit)

As food prices in Canada continue to soar, putting pressure on families as they buy groceries, pay the rent and try to make ends meet, school nutrition programs across the country say they're struggling to provide meals to a growing number of students in need.

One national program, the Breakfast Club of Canada, which reaches more than 580,000 children, says an average of 30 to 40 per cent of students participate in the meal programs it supports in more than 3,500 schools.

With food prices remaining stubbornly high, "some averages are closer to 60 and 75 per cent of the whole school population," Judith Barry, co-founder of the breakfast organization, said in Montreal.

Grocery prices have an impact on school nutrition programs, since operators "can't get the same value and the same amount of food" they need, said Barry, who is also the group's director of government relations.

Some are forced to make tough choices, such as reducing the food items they're offering or how often a program can run.

After weathering nearly three tumultuous years of adapting to restrictions and lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic, school nutrition programs across the country are now struggling with another crisis: ever-rising food costs coupled with a surge in the number of students who need a daily meal.

For program operators, an anticipated national school food program pledged by the federal government can't come soon enough.

"All over the world, people know that kids can't learn unless they are well fed," said Debbie Field, co-ordinator of the Coalition for Healthy School Food, a national group of non-profit organizations working to increase student access to nutritious school meals.

"School food is an essential service."

Field, who is also an associate member of the Centre for Studies in Food Security at Toronto Metropolitan University, noted that when in-person classes closed down at different points earlier in the pandemic, it underlined just how important school breakfast, lunch and snack programs are for many students.

Doug Husby/CBC

Although provincial, territorial and some municipal governments have helped fund school nutrition programs, and Canada has "a lot of creative people running food programs across the country," Field said the system needs more.

"As the food prices go up, core funding to school food programs needs to be increased," she said.

Evan Mitsui/CBC

In Toronto, John Yan, executive director of the Angel Foundation for Learning, has been busy with ongoing fundraising discussions and new initiatives in hopes of boosting the support the charity provides to more than 180 student nutrition programs, which feed 61,000 students each school day.

The foundation collects financial contributions from a variety of sources, including levels of governments, private donors and fundraising campaigns with corporate partners — such as grocery retailers running the forthcoming Toonies for Tummies appeal — and turns over that funding to in-school programs.

Some schools have seen participants in food programs double, Yan said, and since these operations focus on fresh, healthy offerings and are required to follow specific nutritional guidelines, staff may have no choice but to pay higher food prices.

"In many of the schools ... that single snack or meal may be the only nutritious food that student or child gets that day," he said.

CBC

Last week, the foundation released $60,000 in emergency funds to 12 school food programs in the city. Before the pandemic, Yan said, top-up funding requests typically arrived close to the end of the school year.

"If we're already topping up emergency funds in January, I can't imagine what it's going to be like when we hit May and June."

Need is growing, principal says

Whether welcoming new families or helping serve pizza subs at lunch, Edmonton principal Maureen Matthews sees first-hand the increased need for the free snack-and-lunch program at Norwood School, a public school near the city's downtown.

"Last year, we had just over 180 students accessing our school nutrition program, and this year we're well over 220," she said.

CBC

There's also been a rise in "families who — when they come in to register their students with us — ask about whether or not we have a lunch program," Matthews said. "I see first-hand the relief on their faces when I say, 'You know what? We do offer that.'"

Norwood's program, offered through the support of Edmonton-based non-profit charitable organization E4C, operates on a "take what you need" model. On one day, 225 students might be accessing food; on the next, it might be 200 students needing a snack, lunch or both.

"We don't want to stigmatize people who are experiencing food insecurity. Food is a basic right, and it's essential to children's success," said Kelly Bickford, E4C's manager of community and school-based programs.

"If [students] need just some fruits or vegetables because their family can't afford to buy those, they can access that. Or if they need to access the whole meal, they can do that.... We just build that capacity and understanding with [the students] to know that when and if they need it, they can access it in the way that they need."

Samuel Martin/CBC

Searching for more revenue sources

In Newfoundland and Labrador, the School Lunch Association, based in St. John's, has expanded this month to serving more than 7,000 nutritious midday meals every school day. It's boosted service to 41 locations — with more seeking to join — under its pay-what-you-can model (with a modest suggested price of $4 per lunch).

Yet while more students are signing up for lunch, the group is also seeing a rise in the proportion of participants unable to pay for it, according to executive director John Finn.

Jeremy Eaton/CBC

"There's a lot of parents who reach out ... and they'll send a personal email that says: 'Hey I don't get paid until next week. I'll contribute when I can' or 'I just lost my job and times are tough. I normally pay the full amount,'" he said.

Before the pandemic, about 90 per cent of the revenue the association needs to operate came from sales, with the rest covered by donations and a provincial grant.

This school year, sales are representing 78 to 80 per cent, leaving a gap in funds at the same time that the association has seen food and supply cost increases of 11 per cent and 17 per cent, respectively. This comes after food costs had already risen 20 per cent, and supply costs were up 25 per cent, over the 2021-22 school year.

"It's a bit of a double-edged sword," Finn said. Enrolment is up, but it comes as "we're absorbing additional food costs and supply costs and then, on the opposite side, we're actually seeing a decrease in the amount of revenue we would normally achieve [from families paying]."

Jeremy Eaton/CBC

Recent efforts to pare down the association's operational costs include slight tweaks to menu items, finding new vendors and more price negotiating with existing ones.

Staff are exploring additional revenue sources: new donors, further government grants or perhaps a charitable lottery licence. Finn said he also hopes to see movement on a national school food program in this year's federal budget — as are his school nutrition peers across Canada.

Recent consultations on national program

"We have a patchwork of programs supported by individuals, the private and community sector, and that is great ... but we need more as well," said Breakfast Club co-founder Barry.

"A national school food policy would help us really build on what exists — the existing ecosystem — and would help us reach more students and more communities."

More than 5,000 participants — program organizers, parents, volunteers, teachers and more — joined consultations on a national school food program that wrapped up in December, said Karina Gould, the federal minister of families, children and social development, who was tasked with investigating a program alongside Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau.

A report gathering the information is next, with an eye to developing a program "that will work right across the country, responding to the unique needs in each province and territory," Gould told CBC News, adding that it must also be presented to her colleagues in Ottawa.

Gould said she sees this as a natural followup to the daycare program adopted across Canada last year and believes the success of that recent partnership can spark confidence for similar joint efforts across governments.

"I really see school food as an additional pillar to make sure that we're setting up all of our children for success in Canada."

Trains, buses and trucks: How 2023 could be pivotal for hydrogen technology in Canada

Mon, January 16, 2023 

Building a network of hydrogen fuelling stations is one of the biggest obstacles to growth in the sector. There is momentum in Canada, but some experts warn that the most critical question in 2023 is not so much about the technology itself but how willing governments are to support the industry. 

(Sean Gallup/Getty Images - image credit)

As the Canadian Pacific Railway locomotive moves along the tracks in Calgary, something is clearly amiss.

It's the typical size and look that you'd expect, but what's absent is the low rumbling noise of the diesel engine.

Instead, this locomotive is powered by hydrogen fuel cell and battery technology as part of a trial by the railway to explore whether the low-emission vehicles are strong enough and reliable enough to potentially one day revolutionize operations at the company.

Over the last several years, there has been an increased focus on the potential for hydrogen to decarbonize many industries and help countries reach their climate goals, while revamping energy systems along the way.

The next 12 months will be critical, experts say, in understanding whether that vision could plausibly become a reality in the near future or remain part of the imagination for decades to come.

There is excitement in the Canadian industry about what 2023 will bring as several demonstration projects are set to take place, while construction will also begin on a massive new hydrogen production facility.

Testing underway

For CP Rail, the hydrogen locomotive completed its first "revenue trip" a few months ago with the expectation to have the trains operating in Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary by the end of 2023. The next step will be testing out the technology through the Rocky Mountains.

"It's a perfect test bed. If you can operate there: heavy haul, cold temperatures, the most challenging operational conditions I've ever experienced in my career. And if it works there, it will work everywhere," CP's chief executive, Keith Creel, said during a speech at the RailTrends 2022 conference in November.

"If this proves its mettle and it shakes out through the very tough validation test we'll give it, [it will] truly be transformational for this industry."

Relying on hydrogen as a fuel source isn't a new concept, but technology is advancing to improve performance, at the same time as there is an increased focus on climate change around the world.

Julia Wong/CBC

This year will mark the start of a few other experiments as hydrogen-powered buses and semi-trucks hit the road.

A pair of transit buses will transport passengers in Edmonton and nearby Strathcona County as part of a one-year pilot project.

New production plant

Meanwhile, a hydrogen fuelling station is under construction in Edmonton to allow the Alberta Motor Transport Association to test out semi-trucks on the province's highways. The organization is looking to offer up to four different truck models this year for local companies to try out.

"I think the next 12 months is largely a proof of concept," said David Layzell, an energy systems architect with the Transition Accelerator — a non-profit organization set up to help Canada reach its climate goals — and professor emeritus in biological sciences at the University of Calgary.

CESAR

"We can actually make hydrogen cheaper than diesel fuel today," he said, although the challenge is the much higher cost of transporting hydrogen and constructing the fuelling station.

"We are only going to get those prices down by getting to scale," Layzell said.

Hydrogen has been around for a long time, but there is renewed enthusiasm for the sector as a way to jump-start the transition to a world reliant on low-carbon energy.

Hydrogen is an energy carrier, and experts say it can be used primarily for heating and as a fuel for transportation.

The amount of pollution associated with hydrogen depends on how it's made. For instance, if solar or wind facilities — rather than a coal power plant — produce the electricity that is used to create hydrogen, the emissions are relatively low.

Construction has just begun in northeast Edmonton on the largest hydrogen plant in the world by Air Products Canada. The $1.6-billion facility will use natural gas to produce hydrogen with the goal of sequestering 95 per cent of the emissions and store them underground.

Janet French/CBC

"The challenge with hydrogen is a little bit of the chicken-or-the-egg challenge," said Kevin Krausert, chief executive of Avatar Innovations Inc., a Calgary-based firm that helps develop energy transition technologies.

"Who's going to build a major hydrogen facility if there's no demand for it, and who's going to build a whole bunch of hydrogen trucks or trains if there's no hydrogen to supply it? So you've got this sort of supply-demand challenge."

Construction of the Air Products facility, he said, begins to overcome that problem.

'Too little, too late'

There is momentum in the hydrogen sector in Canada, but some experts warn that the most critical question in the next 12 months is not so much about the technology itself but how willing governments are to support the industry.

"That is relative to what's going on to the south of us with the United States' policy supports that are very strong and very attractive and could take all the capital [investment] that we might spend up here and divert it southward," said Ed Whittingham, an Alberta-based public policy consultant.

CBC

The U.S. government's Inflation Reduction Act [IRA] includes significant subsidies to not only offset the cost of constructing a hydrogen facility but to subsidize its operations, among other funding programs.

In some cases, Whittingham said, up to 75 per cent of the cost to produce low-carbon hydrogen could be covered by the U.S. government.

"What really is going to determine whether hydrogen stays niche and stays small scale in Canada or whether it goes mainstream and Canada really becomes a serious competitor is our response to what the U.S. has done," he said.

"And it could be a case, frankly, of too little, too late."

The federal government is proposing a clean hydrogen investment tax credit to entice companies to develop new clean hydrogen projects. The tax credit will be worth at least 40 per cent for projects that meet certain labour and low-emission requirements.

In its 2022 fall economic statement, the federal government warned that the subsidies offered in the United States were more generous and increase the challenge to attract investment north of the border.

"Canada will need to do even more to secure our competitive advantage and continue creating opportunities for Canadian workers," the report said. "Without new measures to keep pace with the IRA, Canada risks being left behind."

Ottawa is currently accepting feedback on its proposed hydrogen tax credit.

The $1.6-billion Air Products facility under development in Edmonton is receiving $300 million from the federal government toward construction and an additional $161.5 million from the Alberta government once the plant is operational.

NO CAN DO

Canadian Armed Forces to resume live-fire training off coast of Vancouver Island following marine mammal study


CBC
Sat, January 14, 2023 

A southern resident killer whale swims in the Salish Sea in 2018. An endangered species, this population of just over 70 individuals lives year-round off the coasts of Oregon, Washington and British Columbia. (Joe Gaydos, UC Davis - image credit)

The Canadian Armed Forces says training involving firing guns from ships and planes will resume off the southwest coast of Vancouver Island in B.C., following a three-year pause to study its effects on marine life — which it has determined are negligible.

However, the CAF is advised to conduct further studies during training to see how in-air gunfire affects marine animals as not enough is known about the issue, according to the study.

The training area, known as "Whiskey Hotel," is in the Salish Sea along the Canadian and U.S. maritime border. It's about 295 square kilometres, roughly between Shirley, B.C. — about an hour's drive west from Victoria — and Sombrio Beach, further west. The area has been used as a range since the Second World War.

The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) says the operations were paused "out of an abundance of caution … to undertake a comprehensive third-party evaluation of

 potential impacts to marine mammals, including Southern Resident Killer Whales."

Google Maps

The Salish Sea off Vancouver Island and north of Washington State's Olympic Peninsula is habitat for many marine mammals such as killer whales, humpback whales, minke whales, grey whales, porpoises, seals, sea lions and sea otters.

Human activities in the area, such as shipping, transportation, and tourism can affect the animals. The federal government has spent millions of dollars to study marine noise levels and to patrol the waters, to try and limit harm to species such as the Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKW), which are listed as endangered under Canada's Species at Risk Act.

"Surface gunnery is a noisy activity and we had a gap in our knowledge with regards to noise and the possible interaction with the marine mammals in the area," said Capt. Jean Stéphane Ouellet, who oversees all CAF's maritime Pacific operations.

Researching how loud noises can harm animals

Andrew Trites, head of marine mammal research at the University of British Columbia, said loud noises, such as weapon fire, has the potential to harm the animals.

"Lots of people have expressed concerns over the effect that explosions have on the behaviour of the marine mammals," he said.

Royal Canadian Navy/Twitter

CAF worked with Fisheries and Oceans Canada over the issue and hired a third party, Vancouver's Golder Associates Ltd., to look at how small-arms munitions affect marine mammals in the area.

Its study found that the noise was most likely to affect marine mammals known to often forage in the area, but that "masking of underwater communications is expected to be limited due to the lack of overlap in frequency of small arms activities (dominant frequencies) and the vocalizations of SRKW and harbour porpoises and the expected low densities of humpback and grey whales."

Nonetheless, it found that there has not been enough study of the effects of in-air gunfire on marine mammals, and CAF should seek to conduct further studies during training activities to record marine mammal behaviour, especially when they are at the surface.

The CAF says all vessels and aircraft, including those of allied nations, conducting gunnery in the area are required to comply with "stringent mitigation procedures," aimed at protecting marine mammals.

They include sharing information with the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG), so that its Marine Mammal Desk can alert CAF ships and aircraft when there is marine mammal activity in the Whiskey Hotel area and firing activities can be halted.

No firing if mammal is within 250 metres

Changes following the study include no firing if a marine mammal is within 250 metres of a vessel, and a longer observation period before firing — 30 minutes — to try and detect marine mammals in the area.

Trites says he credits the military for hiring a third-party to study the issue.

He says the report from Golder is extensive and allows the military to determine things like how far it needs to be away from marine mammals, so as not to harm their hearing with weapon fire.

"They've done their due diligence," he said.

"It doesn't mean there might not be a risk, that an animal might not pop its head up in the wrong spot at the wrong time but it is very clear that the military is very aware of the potential for them to cause harm."

HINDUISM IS NOT HINDUTVA

In India, deity decorating a calling for Hindu temple artist

Mon, January 16, 2023 



CHENNAI, India (AP) — The former computer professional — now a very specialized type of artist — locked his gaze on the deity before him.

On a recent afternoon, 33-year-old S. Goutham was perched on a ladder at the altar of the goddess Durga at the Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Temple in Chennai, India. Goutham — his hand moving steadily — was pleating a green silk sari to adorn the deity.

“You cannot get tense when you are doing this work,” he says. “You can’t do this if you are not patient. You need to become one with her.”

A computer science graduate, Goutham quit his job nearly a decade ago to pursue his calling. He has since followed in the footsteps of his ancestors as a fifth-generation decorator of temple deities.

In Hindu temples, idols are mostly made of materials such as black granite, white marble or five-metal alloys that have sacred significance. These deities are worshipped as physical, tangible representations of god (Brahman) who is believed to be infinite, omnipresent and beyond comprehension. Worship in a Hindu temple includes bathing these deities in milk, decorating them with colorful clothes, flowers, perfumes such as sandalwood, jewelry, and even weapons such as swords, clubs and tridents. Oil lamps are lit at the altar, and sacred chants and foods are offered to the gods.

Decorating the deities is a millennia-old practice that is described in the Hindu epic Ramayana, and Goutham has been learning the art since he was a toddler. He crafted his first formal decoration when he was 13 — at the very altar where he stood 20 years later on a day in November.

He has done thousands of decorations, ranging from relatively simple ones that take an hour or two to complete, to others that are more complex and take several days.

Goutham said he became interested in decorating deities as a child because of his father.

“When you are little, your father is your hero,” he said. “I wanted to be just like him.”

The first lesson Goutham got from his dad was about the weapons each god would hold. He heard stories about the power of each weapon and how gods would wield them.

“The personality of the deity and the story of the god or goddess could change depending on their weapons, the clothes they wear, the expression on their face or the position in which they are sitting or standing,” he said.

When he sets out to decorate a deity, Goutham says he has a concept of what to do, but doesn’t start out with a sketch. He goes step by step — placing the deity's hands, feet and weapons. Then, he moves on to the clothes and jewelry. Gradually, the god's form manifests.

There are rules about the types of materials that can be used on deities.

“The human body is made up of earth, water, fire, air and space, and everything you see naturally occurring on Earth is made of these elements,” Goutham said. “To show this, we decorate deities using things that occur in nature and are a representation of these elements, like copper, cloth, coconut fibers and so on.”

He says decorating a deity combines elements from art, dance and yoga, in terms of the hand gestures and postures the deities assume. Man-made materials such as plastic are prohibited. Goutham says he uses little pins to hold fabric together, but makes sure the pins don’t directly touch the idol.

He sources the deities’ arms and legs, mostly made from copper or brass, as well as the weapons and jewelry, from artisans.

He has also created an app and website for those who wish to learn more about this art and dreams of establishing an institution to train artists who can maintain the sacred tradition. While most deity decorators are men, he sees no reason why women cannot learn and practice it.

“Everyone is equal under god,” he said.

Storytelling is an important part of what he does. One of his favorite installations depicts the friendship between Lord Krishna, an incarnation of Vishnu, and Kuchela.

“It shows Krishna washing the feet of Kuchela, a poor man, conveying the message that humility is a virtue — whether you are a human being or god,” Goutham said.

The term “idol worship” may have negative connotations in some faiths. But for Hindus, deities -- which are kept in temples, homes, shops and offices -- serve as focal points “for to us channel our devotions, our actions and serve as a reminder of all the positive values that are associated with those deities,” said Suhag Shukla, executive director of the Hindu American Foundation.

Shukla says this form of worship is a way for her to connect with her ancestors.

“As a second-generation Hindu American, I didn’t grow up with all these things around me where I could absorb through osmosis,” she said. “But just knowing that I’m part of a tradition that has been passed down from generation to generation is personally powerful for me.”

In U.S. Hindu temples, community members come together to help create the costumes for the deities, and it is an act of devotion, Shukla said.

“No one has to sit there and embroider a skirt or sari for a goddess, but they do it as a display of love,” she said. “It’s humbling and empowering.”

Goutham says he doesn’t view his job as a vocation.

“You can call it service because it brings pure joy to so many and plays a role in our spiritual awakening,” he said. “But in my view, it’s much more than that. It has the power to transform people.”

Goutham has decorated deities in temples abroad as he has in tiny Indian villages and little-known temples. He remembers stopping once at a village tea shop and hearing the locals praise his decoration of their temple deity.

“It really warmed my heart,” he said.

As Goutham placed a crown and garland on the deity at the temple in Chennai, neighbor Sucharithra Surendrababu watched awestruck, snapping images of the decorated goddess on her cell phone.

“I love seeing mother Durga whether or not she is decorated,” she said. “But, when I do see her all decked up and looking gorgeous, it makes me so happy. It’s uplifting and empowering."

There are some decorations which bring tears even to the artist’s eyes.

“It’s not just something that is pretty to look at,” Goutham said. “It’s about love and faith. When you touch the deities, clothe them and decorate them, you think of them as your friends or parents. You need skill and vision to do this. But above all, it takes heart.”

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Deepa Bharath, The Associated Press

DURGA AND KALI ARE ONE