Terrorism’s Ugly Face

by Paul Larudee / March 22nd, 2024

In August, 2008, Ismail Haniyeh, the elected Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority in Gaza, welcomed me and other members of the Free Gaza Movement to his home in the relatively small al-Shati refugee camp in northern Gaza, not far from the larger Jabalia camp. We had just arrived on the first boats to enter Gaza by sea in 41 years, breaking the Israeli siege, and all of Gaza was celebrating.  The home was very simple, not different from most others in the camp, and the Prime Minister was proud to show it to us.

This was the beginning of my education about Hamas, although I had previously been in touch with Dr. Bassem Naim, who was Minister of Health at the time, to coordinate our arrival. Dr. Naim was not the only MD in the Hamas cabinet. Dr. Mahmoud Zahhar, who was Foreign Minister at the time, also welcomed a small group of us into his house, as well.

My view of Hamas is that they are a national liberation organization, which, like most such organizations, is depicted as terrorists by their oppressors, occupiers and enemies, in this case including Israel, the US and other western allies of Israel. We, who pride ourselves on hearing both sides of an issue, have never sought the Hamas point of view, much less to the same degree as the Israeli side.

I really don’t like the term terrorist any more than I do savage or barbarian, which have been used historically for much the same purpose. It is a pejorative term, almost a racist one, that paints in black and white. Every government and every resistance organization uses weapons, which means that they use fear and intimidation to a greater or lesser degree. Isn’t that the definition of terrorism? And isn’t it the purpose of armed forces?

Hamas, of course, is blamed for extensive use of terrorism on October 7, 2023. But if you look at the facts and the analyses, especially as reported by the Grayzone, the Intercept and the Electronic Intifada, the exact opposite picture emerges. Not a single rape is verified, and not a single instance of deliberate killing of unarmed civilians, although some were obviously “collateral damage” killed in the process of engaging armed combatants.  Others may have been armed civilians or combatants out of uniform, part of a deliberate Israeli policy of creating armed settlements throughout territory that it claims. Many if not most of the civilians appear to have died as a result of the Israeli “Hannibal Directive” to kill everything in sight, while most of those killed by Hamas were soldiers. Furthermore, those who encountered or were taken captive by the Palestinian fighters often said that they were treated with respect and dignity. This is because the resistance forces are highly disciplined and devout Muslims who respect the teachings of Islam with respect to the rules of war, which are roughly the same as those of the Geneva Conventions, if not more stringent.

I am not prepared to say that Hamas has never committed an act that could be called terrorism. The suicide bombings of the Second Intifada come to mind. But they have also used nonviolent resistance on a massive scale, in the Great March of Return, during which more than 9,000 unarmed Palestinian civilians were shot by Israeli soldiers, and 223 killed. Sadly, the world looked the other way.

On the other hand, the following act, the video of which was posted to the Telegram channel of CCHS Resistance News on March 19, 2024 would meet most definitions of terrorism (caution: hard to watch): Jabalia girls school massacre

Israel, true to form, is reportedly doing everything possible to have this video removed from social media. But let’s face it: it’s not that exceptional. We’ve seen many such massacres since October 8, 2023, though not always at a girl’s school housing starving refugees in the Jabalia refugee camp, similar to the one I visited in 2008. It’s what we’ve come to expect as part of the Gaza genocide, despite our efforts to end it.

Is Israel a terrorist state? Apparently, they would be proud to say so. Even before its establishment, the Jabotinsky “Iron Wall” doctrine espoused expulsion and lethal force to clear the land of Palestinians and maintain a Jewish supremacist state. Israel has always explicitly relied upon fear and intimidation to achieve that objective. What Israel is doing in Gaza is not fundamentally different from what it did in 1948 except that its weapons today are vastly more destructive.

In 2006, I visited the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh the day after Israel had bombed it into obliteration. It was nothing more than a pile of rubble, still smoking in some places. Israel gave the name of that suburb to the doctrine that has dominated Zionist policy for the past century even if the name is recent. The Dahiyeh Doctrine became synonymous with the use of disproportionate force and the destruction of civilian infrastructure to achieve military ends. Is it terrorism? It’s certainly an explicit policy to commit war crimes. Is Israel committing terrorism in Gaza? You be the judge. Most of us agree that it is genocide. If there’s a distinction, who cares?

Paul Larudee is a retired academic and current administrator of a nonprofit human rights and humanitarian aid organization. Read other articles by Paul.

MULTICULURALISM IS CANADA

Punjabi music is taking the world by storm and its new sound is based in Canada

Story by The Canadian Press

 • 1d •

Punjabi music is taking the world by storm and its new sound is based in Canada© Provided by The Canadian Press

TORONTO — Ikwinder Singh is too young to remember the last time Punjabi music was on the cusp of breaking into the mainstream in Canada.

The 23-year-old producer was only a baby when rapper Jay-Z joined British-Indian artist Panjabi MC on 2003's “Beware the Boys (Mundian To Bach Ke).” The track drew attention for its distinctive combination of bhangra music and a killer hip-hop bassline, inching up the music charts and offering Indian listeners hope that a new scene was emerging globally.

And then pop radio moved on to the next big sound.

“It’s one of those things no one was ready for,” supposes the Toronto-raised music creator, known as Ikky.

He suggests that North American record executives of that era may have been caught off-guard by the song’s success and that not enough Punjabi artists were primed for crossover careers.

Singh doesn’t waste much time wondering what could’ve been. He’s confident that today the story is different.

Over the past few years, a new generation of Punjabi performers has emerged from Canada with a unique fusion of cross-cultural influences that could've only come from this country.

The Punjabi wave, as some call it, is a blend of the Indo-Aryan language with elements of global hip-hop, R&B and trap music. In Canada, its popularity is led by an array of names including AP Dhillon, Karan Aujla, Gurinder Gill and producer Ikky.

Related video: Punjabi protest songs from 2020-21 shaking up the farmers' protests in 2024 (India Today)  Duration 3:12  View on Watch

These artists, helped by a tight-knit community of music professionals, have scaled India and Canada's charts, launched major tours and left some in the industry wondering if Punjabi music is on the cusp of its breakout moment akin to what "Gangnam Style" and "Despacito" did for Korean and Spanish-language pop music.

This weekend, two rising stars of the Punjabi-Canadian music scene head to Halifax for the Juno Awards, where they vie for the fan choice prize alongside pop's biggest names, including the Weeknd and Tate McRae.

Karan Aujla, whose track "Softly" certified the British Columbia-raised singer as a hitmaker last year, will compete with rapper Shubh, a Brampton, Ont.-based artist known for his streaming hits "One Love" and "Cheques." The fan choice award is handed out at the end of Sunday's CBC Junos broadcast.

This is a pivotal moment for the Punjabi genre, which has never been represented in the marquee Junos category, which aims to capture the zeitgeist. Aujla holds a second Juno nod for breakthrough artist this year.

All of this comes as the genre's profile continues to rise in Canada.

One of the most symbolic moments happened during last year's Junos in Edmonton, where AP Dhillon made history as the first Punjabi music act on the broadcast.

The Victoria-based indie rapper's flashy delivery of his single "Summer High" was designed to usher in a new era for the genre. But it was upstaged by a topless protester who crashed his introduction by Avril Lavigne. Despite the unexpected turn of events, Dhillon's presence signalled how quickly the scene was being taken seriously.

Then last summer, Warner Music Canada announced a partnership with its India division to launch 91 North Records. The Canadian label was designed to foster a generation of local South Asian artists and better link two sides of the world. The label's first release "Making Memories," a collaboration between Aujla and Ikky, debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart.

In February, Punjabi rapper Sidhu Moose Wala debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard Canada Hot 100 chart nearly two years after his shooting death in India. His single "Drippy" became the latest in a run of Punjabi-Canadian chart hits.

Outside the country, the Punjabi music industry has taken notice. Next month, India-based performer Diljit Dosanjh launches an arena and stadium tour that rolls through five Canadian cities, starting in Vancouver and ending in Toronto.

"This is just the tip of the iceberg," said Toronto rapper AR Paisley, who appears on "Drippy."

"With what's happening, we're going to see a lot of young and talented artists on the come up."

Music producer Gagundeep Singh Randhawa said it takes looking back a couple decades to understand how Punjabi-Canadian music reached its current status.

For the longest time, Punjabi artists relied on folk music instruments — such as the tablas and tumbis — for their sound. He said that meant even rap songs such as "Beware the Boys" sounded like traditional music, which often relegated them to Indian weddings and other cultural spaces.

It took the work of people like Jazzy B, a Surrey, B.C.-based performer who found success in the mid-2000s, to fuse electronic and hip-hop elements in a new way that inspired a generation.

"He brought a different flavour," said Randhawa, who works under the name Gminxr (pronounced G-minor).

"He shifted the scene. But after him, it just went back to folk."

Nearly a decade passed before Punjabi music was reinvigorated. He credits Moose Wala's early work for launching the current wave with its blend of the Punjabi language and trap music.

Moose Wala's career got underway around 2017 while he was an international student living in Brampton, Ont., and his reputation spread through online forums.

Randhawa said the rapper's music opened his ears to how Punjabi songs could break barriers and find broader audiences.

Around the same time, an influx of young students was moving from India, which the Victoria-based producer said offered him further motivation.

"Coming from this small city, where it's predominantly white, and all of a sudden seeing Indian people everywhere, it was a big change," Randhawa added.

Meanwhile, other changes were taking place in how people consumed music. More Punjabi music fans were gravitating to paid subscription services instead of solely YouTube, where the genre first thrived.

In response, the streaming platforms began to support more Punjabi-Canadian artists, placing their new songs in prime real estate. Spotify began positioning Dhillon and others on its New Music Friday Canada playlist, exposing their sound to listeners who never heard Punjabi music.

By the time COVID-19 restrictions were easing, those streaming numbers were proving themselves in concert ticket sales. Dhillon's Out of This World Tour kicked off in late 2022, drawing crowds to the 19,000-seat Rogers Arena in Vancouver.

Live Nation promoter Baldeep Randhawa said he's confident Punjabi music can draw far bigger numbers in the coming years. To make that happen, people like him are working to secure the right artists for the biggest venues, offering them technical support that puts them on a level with global stars.

"We’re giving them the same opportunities that someone like Drake would (have)," he said.

"They’re able to play these professional venues (and) do it with a vision they like and want. When the audience is coming to these shows they’re leaving in awe of the level of production."

The Live Nation promoter has already witnessed the positive impact of these massive concerts on the local Punjabi-Canadian community.

"I’m watching so many people come into these rooms for the first time," he said.

"And I remember hearing a kid say ‘I can’t believe someone with a turban is playing this stage.'"

What Canada's Punjabi music wave still needs to thrive is more domestic support from the major record labels, say many who watch the scene.

While Warner has thrown themselves into the mix full force, Universal Music Canada and Sony Music Canada have yet to announce any significant investment in the genre or its performers.

Paisley is confident it's only a matter of time.

"Some people in the industry have taken notice, but I think there's some (who) are still trying to turn a blind eye," he said.

"It's going to take more of an in-your-face moment. We've had a couple, but maybe it's going to take a couple more."

One of those moments may have happened earlier this month at a concert in Mumbai. Pop superstar Ed Sheeran shocked his fans by bringing out Indian star Diljit Dosanjh — the artist who's touring Canada this spring.

Together, they sang Dosanjh's hit "Lover" with Sheeran chiming in to perform the chorus in Punjabi. It was a moment that earned positive attention on social media and suggested that Sheeran has his eye on the burgeoning corner of music.

Paisley said collaborations like these will be key to the Punjabi wave's crossover success. He would like to hear more songs between the genre's stars and big names in Latin and hip-hop music, as long as they feel authentic.

"I think we're stronger together than we are apart," he added.

Producer Ikky agrees. He recently released "Ikky's House," an EP that plays around with genre conventions and introduces the Punjabi language into the pop sphere with help from Punjabi and English artists.

His production work aims to blend his perspective growing up in Canada with positive cultural values established in Punjabi music. It's a concept he's still working on, and something he believes will take time for the rest of the world to catch up to.

"We're still in a very early stage of global domination," he said.

"First to India, we had to prove Canada is the home of Punjabi music. Now that we've succeeded, we have to prove to Canada that this is Canadian music."

"After that, we've got to tell the world."

--

Listen to The Canadian Press playlist of 2024 Juno Award nominees on Spotify: https://bit.ly/Junos2024

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 21, 2024.

David Friend, The Canadian Press

Superhot Rock Geothermal May 'Unlock Vast Amounts of Clean Energy'

Story by Robyn White • 3h • NEWSWEEK


A photo shows the map that pin points where superhot rock geothermal energy may be extracted. It also estimates how much energy could be gained from this source

.© Clean Air Task Force

Scientists have calculated where superhot rock geothermal energy might be extracted, and how much power it might be able to provide.

A map developed by the Clean Air Task Force (CATF) with the University of Twente in the Netherlands pinpoints where we could use this material, and how it could be commercialized.

Superhot rock geothermal is a potential renewable energy source generated from dry rock that's at a temperature of 752 degrees Fahrenheit or more. It can be found all over the planet. According to researchers, there is "vast energy potential" in this material.

"While this modeling is preliminary, our findings suggest an enormous opportunity to unlock vast amounts of clean energy beneath our feet," Terra Rogers, director of Superhot Rock Energy at CATF, said in a statement. "Tapping into just 1% of the world's superhot rock energy potential could generate 63 terawatts of clean firm power, or enough to meet global electricity demand in 2021 nearly eight times over.

"Dozens of wells across the globe have reached superhot conditions, and with the right technical and commercial advances, we could see early commercial-scale plants in years, not decades. Energy security backed by always-available zero-carbon energy isn't a far-off dream—and the people attending events like CERAWeek are uniquely positioned to make that dream a reality."

To gain this energy, researchers would need to use drills to access the superhot conditions deep within the earth. These conditions could then be extracted to provide renewable, carbon-free energy. Using this type of energy would have a smaller land-use footprint than other methods, CATF reports.

Along with its map, the CATF used global heat endowment to estimate "the financial and economic potential that could be unlocked if it were fully commercialized in specific regions, including the U.S."

"Now, it's important for governments and companies to test the extent to which these estimates for superhot rock energy are achievable," Rogers said in the statement.

The most recent research found that just 1 percent of this energy could provide the U.S. with 4.3 terawatts of power. The CATF estimated that this was the same as 21 billion barrels of oil.

They also found that the same amount of superhot rock in Europe could potentially provide 2.1 terawatts of energy.

"Superhot resources are available around the world, with thousands of terawatt-hours on every inhabited continent [i.e., every continent except Antarctica]," a summary of the findings reported. "CATF's preliminary modeling suggests that superhot rock energy at commercial scale would be cost-competitive with current market power prices."

Stellantis lays off about 400 salaried workers to handle uncertainty in electric vehicle transition




DETROIT (AP) — Jeep maker Stellantis is laying off about 400 white-collar workers in the U.S. as it deals with the transition from combustion engines to electric vehicles.

The company formed in the 2021 merger between PSA Peugeot and Fiat Chrysler said the workers are mainly in engineering, technology and software at the headquarters and technical center in Auburn Hills, Michigan, north of Detroit. Affected workers were being notified starting Friday morning.

“As the auto industry continues to face unprecedented uncertainties and heightened competitive pressures around the world, Stellantis continues to make the appropriate structural decisions across the enterprise to improve efficiency and optimize our cost structure,” the company said in a prepared statement Friday.

The cuts, effective March 31, amount to about 2% of Stellantis' U.S. workforce in engineering, technology and software, the statement said. Workers will get a separation package and transition help, the company said.

“While we understand this is difficult news, these actions will better align resources while preserving the critical skills needed to protect our competitive advantage as we remain laser focused on implementing our EV product offensive,” the statement said.

CEO Carlos Tavares repeatedly has said that electric vehicles cost 40% more to make than those that run on gasoline, and that the company will have to cut costs to make EVs affordable for the middle class. He has said the company is continually looking for ways to be more efficient.

Related video: Today marks one year since Stellantis idled its Belvidere plant. Here's what's happened since: (WQRF Rockford)
In December of 2022, Stalantis announced it would idle production.
Duration 1:09   View on Watch

U.S. electric vehicle sales grew 47% last year to a record 1.19 million as EV market share rose from 5.8% in 2022 to 7.6%. But sales growth slowed toward the end of the year. In December, they rose 34%.

Stellantis plans to launch 18 new electric vehicles this year, eight of those in North America, increasing its global EV offerings by 60%. But Tavares told reporters during earnings calls last month that “the job is not done” until prices on electric vehicles come down to the level of combustion engines — something that Chinese manufacturers are already able to achieve through lower labor costs.

“The Chinese offensive is possibly the biggest risk that companies like Tesla and ourselves are facing right now,’’ Tavares told reporters. “We have to work very, very hard to make sure that we bring out consumers better offerings than the Chinese.

Last year Stellantis offered buyout and early retirement packages to about 6,400 nonunion salaried workers, but it has not said how many took the offers.

In 2022 the company announced that it planned to close a factory in Belvidere, Illinois, and lay off 1,350 people in an effort to trim its manufacturing footprint. But during contentious contract talks last year with the United Auto Workers, Stellantis agreed to keep the plant open to make EVs, as well as add a battery factory in Belvidere.

The world’s third-largest carmaker reported net profit of 7.7 billion euros ($8.3 billion) in the second half of last year. That was down from 8.8 billion euros in the same period a year earlier.

The Stellantis workforce reductions come after crosstown rivals Ford and General Motors cut thousands of white-collar jobs, also due to the transition to electric vehicles.

In the summer of 2022, Ford let go of about 4,000 full-time and contract workers in an effort to cut expenses. CEO Jim Farley has said much of Ford’s workforce did not have the right skills as it makes the transition from internal combustion to battery-powered vehicles.

About 5,000 salaried GM workers, many in engineering, took early retirement and buyout offers last spring.

The Associated Press

Ratification votes held for City of Edmonton, Edmonton Public Library CSU 52 members after strike averted

Story by Caley Gibson • 22/03/2024

Global News

Civic Service Union 52 employees outside the City of Edmonton's Clareview 

Recreaction Centre on Monday, March 11, 2024.

Ratification votes are being held this weekend for members of Civic Service Union 52 (CSU 52) employed with the City of Edmonton and Edmonton Public Library after a tentative deal was reached last week between the parties and the union, narrowly avoiding a strike.

The tentative four-year deal includes a retroactive lump-sum payment of $1,000 for 2021, a retroactive 1.25-per cent wage increase for 2022, a retroactive two-per cent wage increase for 2023 and a three-per cent increase for 2024.

The tentative deal was reached in the 11th hour, as members were set to walk off the job Thursday morning. The union said it spent about 18 months negotiating the deal with the city.

Now, union members must approve the deal through a ratification vote, which opened to City of Edmonton CSU 52 members on Friday morning. The ratification vote will be open until noon Monday.

Members employed by EPL will vote on the deal between 8:30 p.m. Sunday and noon Wednesday. While the tentative deal being voted on is the same for both city and library members, EPL members are in a separate bargaining unit.

Video: Tentative deal reached between City of Edmonton, some CSU 52 members

The deal must be approved by at least 50 per cent of members. The union is recommending ratification of both agreements.

Last week, union president Lanny Chudyk said he was pretty certain the agreement will be ratified.

"Both parties compromised a bit at the end of bargaining," he said Friday.

 

Uproar mounts of Northvolt

Story by The Canadian Press

 • 3h •

Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) chief Ross Montour was in Montreal this week alongside environmental groups calling on Quebec to submit the Northvolt mega-lithium battery plant to an environmental assessment process.  

Activists with Greenpeace, Équiterre, the David Suzuki Foundation, and Nature Quebec all gathered at a press conference this Monday. They say public trust is being eroded because citizens and First Nations aren’t being properly consulted about the project and how it could impact the environment.  

“You have to take into account the potential impact of your decisions on the faces that are still in the earth and the faces yet to come, or as some people say, the seven generations,” Montour told the room, mentioning the Great Law of Peace. “If you can’t meet that basic criteria then you really need to think about the kinds of decisions you’re making.” 

The factory for the production of electric car batteries is set to be in operation by 2026 and will be located across 170 hectares of land between Saint-Basile-le-Grand and McMasterville. Nearly 14 hectares of wetlands with at-risk species will be destroyed to make way for the plant, which has been the subject of widespread condemnation ever since the province approved it. Construction is already underway. 

In late January, the MCK launched a legal challenge against Northvolt and the provincial and federal governments in the hope of halting the project – one they were not consulted on and didn’t consent to being on their traditional territory, Montour reminded the room. 

“The mining of lithium, everything I’ve seen and read so far leads me to question if this is a good thing for the environment,” the Council chief said, adding “Your great-grandchildren’s grandchildren won’t be able to eat that money.” 

The environmental activists there say they’re concerned about the Quebec government’s growing tendency to weaken environmental regulations surrounding major industrial projects and how they get approved, one that’s accelerated since the pandemic, when a new law was passed to accelerate infrastructure projects.  

In February, the government also increased the production threshold needed to trigger independent environmental reviews on lithium-ion battery factories in Quebec from 50,000 to 60,000 tons. Northvolt’s application meanwhile proposed a project capable of producing 56,000 tons leading to speculation the province bended the rules with Northvolt in mind. 

“They’re creating a new process for this specific industry, for this specific company,” said Marc-André Viau, director of government relations with Équiterre. “Is the trade-off worth the destruction of wetlands? For this specific case, I don’t know,” he said, adding the public has largely been left in the dark.  

Questions about emissions that will result from the plant, what’s to be released into the neighbouring Richelieu River, and how much the company will need to withdraw from it once it’s in operation are among some that have gone unanswered. 

“We have a lot of questions that we didn’t receive any answer for,” said Jacinthe Villeneuve, a McMasterville resident part of a citizens’ coalition against the project. 

“We are asking the government to respect democratic processes, to be transparent, and to work on restoring public trust,” added Alice-Anne Simard, executive director of Nature Quebec. 

Montour said Northvolt will also be on the agenda at an upcoming meeting with the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador (AFNQL) later this month.  

miriam@easterndoor.com

Miriam Lafontaine, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Eastern Door

E-waste from trashed electric devices is piling up and recycling isn't keeping pace, UN says




NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — U.N. agencies have warned that waste from electronics is piling up worldwide while recycling rates remain low and are likely to fall even further.

The agencies were referring to “e-waste,” which is defined as discarded devices with a plug or battery, including cellphones, electronic toys, TVs, microwave ovens, e-cigarettes, laptop computers and solar panels. It does not include waste from electronic vehicles, which fall into a separate category.

In a report released Wednesday, the U.N.’s International Telecommunications Union and research arm UNITAR said some 62 million tons of “e-waste” was generated in 2022, enough to fill tractor-trailers that could be lined up bumper to bumper around the globe. It’s on track to reach 82 million tons by 2030.

Metals — including copper, gold and iron — made up half of the 62 million tons, worth a total of some $91 billion, the report said. Plastics accounted for 17 million tons and the remaining 14 million tons include substances like composite materials and glass.

The U.N. says 22% of the e-waste mass was properly collected and recycled in 2022. It is expected to fall to 20% by the end of the decade because of “staggering growth" of such waste due to higher consumption, limited repair options, shorter product life cycles, growing “electronification” of society, and inadequate e-waste management infrastructure, the agencies said.

They said some of the discarded electronic devices contained hazardous elements like mercury, as well as rare Earth metals coveted by tech industry manufacturers. Currently, only 1% of the demand for the 17 minerals that make up the rare metals is met through recycling.

About half of all e-waste is generated in Asia, where few countries have laws on e-waste or collection targets, according to the report. Recycling and collection rates top 40% in Europe, where per-capita waste generation is highest: nearly 18 kilograms (39 pounds).

In Africa, which generates the least of any of the five big global regions, recycling and collection rates hover at about 1%, it said.

“The latest research shows that the global challenge posed by e-waste is only going to grow,” said Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava, head of the ITU telecommunication development bureau. “With less than half of the world implementing and enforcing approaches to manage the problem, this raises the alarm for sound regulations to boost collection and recycling.”

For some, e-waste represents a way to earn cash by rummaging through trash in the developing world to find coveted commodities, despite the health risks.

At the Dandora dumpsite where garbage collected from the Kenyan capital of Nairobi ends up — even though a court declared it full over a generation ago — scavengers try to earn a living by picking through rubbish for e-waste that can be sold to businesses as recycled material.

Steve Okoth hopes the flow continues so he can eke out an income, but he knows the risks.

“When the e-waste comes here, it contains some powder which affects my health," he said, adding that when electronic devices heat up, they release gases and he “can’t come to work because of chest problems.”

However, Okoth said they don't have any other options: "We are now used to the smoke because if you don’t go to work you will not eat.”

Recycling plants, like Nairobi’s WEEE center, have collection points across Kenya, where people can safely get rid of old electric equipment.

“We take inventory of the items," said Catherine Wasolia, WEEE's chief operating officer, to check for data on submitted devices and wipe them clean. Then they test each to assess if "it can be reused or repurposed.”

E-waste expert George Masila worries about the impact of electronic waste on soil.

“When you have all this e-waste — either in the dumpsites or mercilessly deposited anywhere else — it could have major effects on the soil," Masila said. "Every year it rains and water flows and attracts all these elements that are deposited into the environment. You have water getting contaminated.”

He said greater recycling and re-use of such materials, "are some of the things we should be considering.”

Report authors acknowledged that many people in the developing world pay their bills through harvesting such e-waste, and called for them to be trained and equipped to make such work safer.

“We must try to support these people trying to find their niche,” said Ruediger Kuehr, senior manager of the sustainable cycles program at UNITAR.

__

Keaten reported from Geneva.

Moses Ndungu And Jamey Keaten, The Associated Press

Ghost Army members who deceived Nazis with battlefield ruses in WWII given Congressional Gold Medal

DALLAS (AP) — With inflatable tanks, radio trickery, costume uniforms and acting, the American military units that became known as the Ghost Army outwitted the enemy during World War II. Their mission was kept secret for decades, but on Thursday the group stepped out of the shadows as they were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal at a ceremony in Washington.

“The actions of the Ghost Army helped change the course of the war for thousands of American and Allied troops and contributed to the liberation of a continent from a terrible evil,” Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth said during the ceremony at the U.S. Capitol.

She said that many of the techniques the Ghost Army pioneered are still used on the battlefield. “Even though technology has changed quite a bit since 1944, our modern techniques build on a lot of what the Ghost Army did and we are still learning from your legacy,” she said.

Three of the seven known surviving members attended the ceremony: Bernard Bluestein, 100, of Hoffman Estates, Illinois; John Christman, 99, of Leesburg, New Jersey; and Seymour Nussenbaum, 100, of Monroe Township, New Jersey.

Their work during the war "was like putting on a big production,” Nussenbaum said in an interview before the ceremony.

“We have had in some cases people impersonating generals, putting on a general's uniform and walking around the streets," he said.

Nussenbaum, who grew up in New York City, was studying art at the Pratt Institute before he joined the Army. Eventually, he joined a unit specializing in camouflage that was part of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops.

“Our mission was to fool the enemy, to put on a big act,” said Nussenbaum, a painter who went on to a career in commercial art.

Sen. Edward Markey of Massachusetts said during the ceremony that the Ghost Army members were “creative, original thinkers, who used engineering, art, architecture and advertising to wage battle with the enemy.”

“Their weapons were unconventional but their patriotism was unquestionable,” he said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said during the ceremony that it’s estimated that between 15,000 to 30,000 lives were saved because of the Ghost Army’s work.

The legislation to honor the military units with the Congressional Gold Medal — Congress' highest honor — was signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2022. That came after almost a decade of work by family members of the soldiers and Rick Beyer, a filmmaker and author who has who helped bring their story to light after their mission was declassified in 1996. Beyer, president of the Ghost Army Legacy Project, produced and directed the 2013 documentary “The Ghost Army" and co-authored the 2015 book “The Ghost Army of World War II.”

“They put themselves in harm’s way wielding imagination, bravado and creativity in order that other soldiers might be able to fight and live,” Beyer told those gathered Thursday.

“This is a day that has been a long time coming but it has been well worth the wait,” Beyer said.

The Ghost Army included about 1,100 soldiers in the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, which carried out about 20 battlefield deceptions in France, Luxembourg, Belgium and Germany, and around 200 soldiers in the 3133rd Signal Company Special, which carried out two deceptions in Italy.

One of the biggest missions, called Operation Viersen, came in March 1945 when the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops' deception drew German units away from the point on the Rhine River where the 9th Army was actually crossing.

“They had hundreds of inflatables set up," Beyer said in an interview before the ceremony. “They had their sound trucks operating for multiple nights. They had other units attached to them. They had set up multiple phony headquarters and staffed them with officers who were pretending to be colonels.”

“This was an all-hands-on-deck affair and it was completely successful," Beyer said. “It fooled the Germans. They moved their troops to the river opposite where the deception was.”

In September 1944, the Ghost Army helped fill a gap in Gen. George Patton's line during an attack on the Germans in the French city of Metz.

“They end up holding this part of the line for eight days, which is really long in terms of doing a deception, trying to keep up appearances,” Beyer said.

Kim Seale of Dallas said that his father's work in the Ghost Army came as a surprise to him. Only about six months after his father's death at the age of 84 in 2001, he was told of the connection by a past member of the Ghost Army who was putting together a reunion.

“I said, ‘What do you mean, Ghost Army?’” Seale said.

“My Dad never talked about it," Seale said. “He kept the oath.”

He said his father, Oscar Seale, who was a captain, had told him that at one point during the war that he had transitioned from a tank division to a position as a courier. Seale said he now thinks that's when his father joined the Ghost Army.

“It’s been a 20-plus year journey of learning about the Ghost Army, learning about what my Dad did, learning about what the men did and just being amazed at that story,” he said.

Jamie Stengle, The Associated Press

Defense expert details the 'theocratic fascist dystopia' that could follow 2024 election

Story by Alex Henderson

 • 2h • ALTERNET

Journalist/author Brynn Tannehill, a former U.S. Navy aviator and defense analyst, has been sounding the alarm about the possible violence and unrest that the United States' 2024 presidential election could bring.

In a disturbing article published by Dame Magazine on February 24, Tannehill detailed the authoritarian actions that GOP nominee Donald Trump — judging from his rhetoric during campaign speeches — could take if he defeats President Joe Biden in November and returns to the White House in January 2025. While that piece detailed some frightening scenarios in a second Trump presidency, a more recent Tannehill article describes four possible scenarios for the November election and the months that follow it.

In a listicle published by The New Republic on March 22, Tannehill explains, "In the coming election, there are four realistic outcomes that depend on who ends up in the White House and how they get there."

READ MORE: Watch: Robert De Niro fears retribution from 'malignant, sociopathic narcissist' Trump if he wins

Those possible outcomes, according to Tannehill, are: (1) "Biden wins the popular vote and Electoral College, and Democrats win the House," (2) "Biden wins the popular vote and Electoral College, and Republicans win the House," (3) "Trump loses the popular vote but wins the Electoral College," and (4) "Trump wins the popular vote and the Electoral College."

Scenario #1, according to Tannehill, would be "the best-case scenario for Democrats and probably the country" and "looks like a repeat of 2020."

"Trump and Republicans will allege fraud and rigged elections," Tannehill explains. "They'll try to block certification at the county, state, and federal levels, resulting in court cases that generally go nowhere…. After chaos that looks a lot like 2020 — only more intense, widespread, and gaining more support from state-level Republicans — Biden gets sworn in on January 20, 2025, to govern a nation where over half the states don't accept his legitimacy."

In Scenario #2, Tannehill warns, it is "very likely" that "Speaker Mike Johnson will refuse to certify the election, invoking the 12th Amendment to decide the election."

READ MORE: 'The fascist nightmare looms': Columnist says Trump’s election may end democracy worldwide

In Scenarios #3 and #4, Trump would return to the White House on January 20, 2025. Tannehill fears that during a second term, Trump would emulate Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and other authoritarians he openly admires.

"No matter how I map it out," Tannehill laments, "the election cycle either ends in chaos and violence, balkanization, or a descent into a modern theocratic fascist dystopia. There is no scenario in which everything turns out 'just fine.' Even in my first scenario, the best case for Democrats (and democrats), nullification of Biden policies by red states is rampant, and the union slowly dissolves."

Tannehill continues, "The only scenario that results in a peaceful transfer of power is the one that leads almost inevitably toward the worst possible long-term outcome: a fascist nation, allied with the globe's worst dictators, governed by religious fundamentalists yearning for Armageddon, while armed with enough strategic nuclear weapons to give God a run for his money."

READ MORE: Ex-Trump lawyer vows to seek political asylum in another country if he wins in 2024: 'I fear for my life'

Read Brynn Tannehill's full New Republic article at this link.

Time for Ottawa to protect Canadians from 'forever chemicals,' toxics experts say

OTTAWA — Nearly a year after Health Canada issued a draft recommendation to designate an entire class of chemicals as toxic, environmental experts say it's time to actually do something about it.

There are now more than 10,000 variations of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, which are used in hundreds of products from waterproof cosmetics and stain repellents to carpeting and non-stick cookware.

Scientifically they are referred to by the acronym PFAS, pronounced like Pea-fass. But many call them "forever chemicals" because they don't break down.

Cassie Barker, the toxics program manager at Environmental Defence, told the House of Commons environment committee Thursday that the chemicals have one of the strongest bonds in organic chemistry, making it nearly impossible for them to break down.

"Instead they persist forever and accumulate in the environment and our bodies for years," Barker said.

Studies have linked them to significant health problems including cancers, hormone disruptions, immune system problems and liver disease.

In May 2023 Health Canada issued a draft recommendation, following a scientific review of available evidence, that said the science meets the requirement to label PFAS as toxic under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

Related video: Calls to ban "forever chemicals" (CityNews)
PFAS as toxic under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act 
Duration 2:09   View on Watch

That designation would then allow regulation of the substances, including an outright ban.

Barker said not only is it time to move to finalize that designation, the regulations must swiftly follow. She said the important thing is to designate the entire class, not just each substance individually.

Canada did designate and ban some versions of PFAS in 2012 but other products simply moved in to take their place and pose similar harm, said Barker. This time, the proposal is to label the full class at the same time.

"We can't just keep playing whack-a-mole here," Barker said.

In a statement, Environment and Climate Change Canada said a final report deciding whether to confirm the toxic designation is expected "in the coming months." If the designation goes ahead, a risk management plan will be published at the same time.

The European Union and several U.S. states have already moved to limit or phase out their use. Europe is phasing out all PFAS except for essential uses where there is no alternative.

California has put limits on the use of the chemicals in food packaging, banned them entirely in products aimed at children under the age of 12 and will ban all PFAS from cosmetics next year.

Last June 3M agreed to settle lawsuits from more than 300 municipalities who found the chemicals in their drinking water. The settlement could reach more than $12.5 billion. The company is also planning to stop making PFAS by 2025.

In 2005, DuPont was fined US$16.5 million by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for failing to report its research that had found potential health risks to PFAS chemicals it made as early as 1981.

The chemicals were unregulated at that point. DuPont also paid more than US$107 million to settle a water-contamination lawsuit by residents who lived near the West Virginia plant.

In Canada, most consumers are currently not even informed if the product they're buying contains forever chemicals, Barker said.

Sébastien Sauvé, a professor of environmental chemistry at the University of Montreal, told the committee he collected nearly 500 drinking water samples in Quebec from 376 different municipalities. All but two contained at least some traces of PFAS.

Health Canada proposed new limits for PFAS in drinking water in February 2023.

"But we're one year later and these recommendations have still not been adopted through our comments, but we're still waiting to see any results," said Sauvé.

Barker said even if there are limits placed on PFAS in drinking water, municipalities are at a loss about how to comply. The technology that would at least capture most of the chemicals is extremely expensive, she said, and municipalities have no power to keep them from entering their waterways in the first place.

Last June, in a letter to Environment and Climate Change Canada responding to the draft toxic designation, the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada asked that PFAS not be designated toxic as an entire class of substances but on a case-by-case basis, based on proven risk.

"These substances impart a wide range of important performance characteristics that are vital for industrial safety and the manufacture and performance of medical devices, cellphones and laptops, telecommunications infrastructure and advanced transportation, aerospace, and defence applications, among many others," the industry wrote.

"Moreover, PFAS currently used by Canadian industry have not been shown to be of high risk."

The association warned that following Europe's lead and widely regulating the category would be a mistake.

"Canada should not follow the example of other jurisdictions, who have proposed sweeping prohibitions of this class of substance and who will likely face economic hardship and significant consequences to a variety of value chains, requiring correction after the fact," the letter said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 22, 2024.

Mia Rabson, The Canadian Press