The Head of the Snake: The Unintended Consequence of Israel’s Decapitation Policy

by Jim Fitzgerald Posted onOctober 21, 2024

Since September 11, 2001, and the global war on terror that ensued, leadership decapitation has been the preferred method of dealing with groups designated as terrorist organizations. The theory behind decapitation is simple. In order to kill the snake you must first cut off its head.

Twenty-three years later, Israel has seen no reason to abandon this counterterrorism policy in its conflict with Hamas and Hezbollah. Since October 7, 2023, Israel has assassinated no less than 16 leaders within the Hamas, and Hezbollah organizations. The most recent, and certainly the most significant from Israel’s perspective, is the elimination of Yahya Sinwar on October 17. Sinwar, who was the leader of Hamas in Gaza was considered by Israel to be the mastermind behind Hamas’s attack on October 7.

In addition to Sinwar, Israel has managed to terminate several other high value leaders such as the Chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, and the Secretary General of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah.

One wonders what the outcome of all these decapitations will mean for the war in general, and for Hamas and Hezbollah in particular? Will it result in the degrading or collapsing of these organizations?

After more than two decades of this leadership targeting policy many researches and analysts have concluded that “decapitation does not increase the likelihood of organizational collapse?” Ironically, “organizations that have not experienced decapitation are more likely to cease activity than those that have faced leadership targeting.”

Of course, the ability of an organization to withstand the decapitation of its leadership depends on many factors. According to Jenna Jordan, the data suggests that organizational resilience is related to the size, age, and religious makeup of a group. For example, groups with 500 or more members become remarkably resilient. And those organizations that have been in existence for 20 or more years become extremely difficult to destabilize. Moreover, religious groups are much more resistant to the adverse effects of leadership decapitation than groups that are purely ideological.

Furthermore, Jordan observed that bureaucracy and organizational architecture may significantly contribute to a group’s ability to withstand decapitation. Highly bureaucratic organizations are far more resilient against the effects of targeted killing than decentralized groups. Another factor that contributes to an organization’s ability to survive decapitation is the level of popular support the group receives.

When applying this data and criteria to Hamas and Hezbollah it appears that Israel’s decapitation strategy is unlikely to succeed in weakening either of these groups or causing them to slide into organizational collapse.

If anything, the data suggest that these organizations will not only survive, but they will likely grow stronger as a result of Israel’s decapitation policy. As Jordan observes, within two years after the assassination of  Sheikh Yassin, the founder of Hamas, and his successor, Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi, “Hamas went on to win the majority of seats in the Palestinian Legislative Council in 2006.” Furthermore, Israel has been targeting Hamas leaders since 1988 and yet the group continues to be both popular and operationally active.

There is, of course, a danger in leadership targeting. It can have a boomerang effect. On Saturday, October 19, Israeli media reported that Hezbollah attempted to assassinate Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu. A drone which was launched from Lebanon struck a home near the PM’s house in Caesarea. The Netanyahu residence was clearly the target. However, neither Netanyahu nor his wife were home at the time of the attempted assassination according to Israeli media. Yet, when it comes to leadership targeting it appears that the principle of sowing and reaping applies.

Despite the fact that leadership decapitation appears to accomplish little when targeting groups like Hamas and Hezbollah, Israel will likely continue the policy. From the Israeli point of view, decapitation is efficient, relatively inexpensive, and plays extremely well to the domestic audience.

However, the elimination of Sinwar will reveal something that heretofore has been hidden from most casual observers. It will no doubt anger them to learn that it was Netanyahu, not Sinwar, who was the biggest obstacle to returning the hostages and ending the war. The killing of Sinwar will now put this reality on full display for the whole world to see.

As it turns out, neither the policy of leadership decapitation, nor Netanyahu, can escape the law of unintended consequences.

Jim Fitzgerald is a minister in the Presbyterian Church in America and a missionary in the Middle East and North Africa. His articles have appeared in American Greatness, American Thinker, Antiwar.com, and the Aquila Report.

 

Kamala’s Growing Flock of GOP Hawks

by Ted Galen Carpenter Posted onOctober 21, 2024

An especially notable feature of the 2024 presidential campaign has been the number of prominent Republicans who have endorsed Democratic Party nominee Kamala Harris. The latest convert is former congressman Mickey Edwards, a 6-term representative from Oklahoma, who had been a member of the GOP’s leadership in the House of Representatives.

Some Republican defectors have been even more prominent. The biggest coup of all for the Harris campaign was the decision by former Vice President Dick Cheney – along with his daughter, former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) – to support Harris.

Republican apostates invariably cite two reasons for refusing to support their party’s nominee, Donald Trump. With regard to domestic policy, they charge that Trump is a closet authoritarian who supported the “insurrection” on January 6, 2021, and poses a continuing threat to democracy.  With respect to foreign policy, they allege that Trump would (at a minimum) be “soft” on autocratic rulers, such as Russia’s Vladimir Putin or North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, while failing to support America’s venerable system of military alliances with other democracies.

Such allegations are exaggerated at best and entirely fictional at worst.  Trump’s policy toward Iran, for example, has never suggested a willingness to appease an autocratic regime.  Washington’s assassination of General Qasem Soleimani on Trump’s watch confirmed that point.  Likewise, the numerous policy initiatives Trump took to undermine Russia’s interests discredits the case that he was cozy with Putin.

Even as they highlight Trump’s alleged authoritarian tendencies, Harris and the leaders of her campaign conveniently ignore the dreadful civil liberties track records of their new political allies.  It was bitterly ironic, for example, for Harris to proclaim that she was “honored” to have the support of Dick and Liz Cheney.  It wasn’t that many years ago that Democrats and their allies in the news media routinely asserted that both members of the Cheney family were shameless authoritarians who posed a threat to civil liberties.  Now, the Cheneys are supposedly champions of democratic values.

The principal reason why establishment Republicans are so attracted to Harris is that she seems to be a more reliable tool for continuing, without change or even reflection, the excessively meddlesome and aggressive foreign policy that the United States has pursued for decades.  It is no coincidence that the roster of Harris supporters reads like a “who’s who” of the warfare state. The Harris camp is heavily populated by former leaders of the Pentagon, and the intelligence agencies.  Such supporters include former C.I.A. directors Michael V. Hayden and William H. Webster; a former director of national intelligence, John D. Negroponte, and former Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen.

Ironically, the notion that Trump threatens the vested interests of the national security state because he embraces “isolationism” is a myth.  As I pointed out several years ago, Trump did not favor even a badly needed new foreign policy based on realism and restraint, much less did he endorse the isolationist caricature.

But to zealous hawks, he was – and remain – a foreign policy loose cannon.  Indeed, many in the knee-jerk interventionist camp embrace even the most absurd anti-Trump myths.  Mickey Edwards typifies the nervous hawkish establishment perspective. “Trump is supportive of Vladimir Putin because he thinks Putin likes him.  He is in thrall to Kim Jong Un for the same reason. Putin is a former KGB agent; spy services, including our own, specialize in analyzing the best approach to turn a target — threat, temptation, and in a case like Trump’s, overweening flattery.  When Trump purports to represent the United States, our allies roll their eyes and our enemies wink and smirk. They see the little man with the big ego and rub their hands together in joy.”

Hawks like Edwards do not wish to take any chances regarding a new Trump presidency, especially when the alternative of a reliable global interventionist tool such as Kamala Harris is readily available.  Edwards states bluntly: “The United States needs someone who will stand up to bullies, not snuggle up to them.  Harris is someone Western leaders will acknowledge as a peer.”  The corrupt leaders of the national security apparatus have dug in their heels. That development means that there is little hope for a constructive change in Washington’s foreign policy even if Trump wins, and virtually no hope at all for such a change if Kamala’s hawkish boosters prevail.

Ted Galen Carpenter is a senior fellow at the Randolph Bourne Institute and a senior fellow at the Libertarian Institute. He also served in several senior positions during a 37-year career at the Cato Institute.  Dr. Carpenter is the author of 13 books and more than 1,300 articles on foreign policy, national security, and civil liberties topics.  His latest book is Unreliable Watchdog: The News Media and U.S. Foreign Policy (2022).

'Monkey on a Stick': From drug smuggling to murder, a gripping exposé of crime in the Hare Krishna movement

"It's about this human nature and our tendency to want leadership and to want to put our faith in authority figures," filmmaker Jason Lapeyre said

Elisabetta Bianchini
Updated Fri, October 18, 2024 


Adapted from the bestselling book co-authored by John Hubner and Lindsey Gruson, Canadian filmmaker Jason Lapeyre's documentary Monkey on a Stick looks at the criminal activity in the Hare Krishna movement, particularly in North America in the 1970s and 1980s. From drug smuggling to child sexual abuse and murder, the film dives into the shocking realities of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).

Lapeyre initially read the novel in the early 2000s and it was immediately something he knew would be a great on-screen adaptation. Initially his idea was for the novel to inspire a dramatic feature and when he optioned the book in 2016, the intention transition to a series format. But ultimately a documentary materialized.

The film begins with the story of how Swami Prabhupada established this spiritual movement in New York City in 1965, quite quickly resulting in this "explosion" of devotees, with many attributing its success to the way Prabhupada was able to connect with individuals during the hippie era of culture.

Things got progressively worse in ISKCON after Prabhupada's death in 1977, when leadership was in the hands of 11 gurus from different temples.

"Instead of 11 bishops they got 11 popes trying to turn their temple into the Vatican," as it's described in the film.

At this point Lapeyre leads us through a variety of transgressions from these gurus, with titles like "The LSD Guru" and "The Rock 'n' Roll Guru," using dramatized sequences to depict what was happening. The brilliant setup of these sequences by Lapeyre will make you feel like you've stepped into a horror film.

Nori Muster in "Monkey on a Stick" (Sphere Media)

As Lapeyre stressed, the guiding light for this film is Nori Muster, who was a Los Angeles-based devotee in the '70s and '80s, who worked in the public relations department of ISKCON. She's also written her own book titled "Betrayal of the Spirit: My Life behind the Headlines of the Hare Krishna Movement."

"Nori, who is someone who was right at the heart of the story for the entire time period that we're talking about, she was someone who helped me put together the list of interview subjects. She was someone who did outreach with me," Lapeyre told Yahoo Canada. "She was literally sitting beside me when we interviewed people. She would sometimes take over the interview, I would invite her [to]."

"During the editing process I was sending cuts to Nori and asking for feedback. ... I had final cut of the film, but she was someone that I really wanted to feel ownership over the final product."

In terms of getting Muster's trust to be such an active participate in this film, Lapeyre really just established with her that they shared the same agenda.

"From the moment she left the movement, she's pretty ardently devoted her life to trying to get the story out," Lapeyre said. "At one point I said to her, 'Hey by the way, if you have any old footage, like VHS tapes or films of your time in ISKCON, that's something that might be great for the documentary.' And she was like, 'Oh, I'm so sorry, Jason, I don't have anything like that. All I have is hundreds of hours of recorded interviews with all the gurus and power players in the system.' My head exploded."

"Her journalistic impulses and her archival and historical impulses to keep all that stuff became really one of the key elements of the film. And this idea of history bearing witness and the testimony, the historical evidence of the criminal activity of the gurus in the organization, was something that we really wanted to literally show on camera. So once she understood that that's what we wanted to do, I think she was all in."

Monkey on a Stick (Dustin Rabin)
'It's a plea to interrogate that desire for leadership and authority'

There's a particularly interesting conversation that Muster has with Lapeyre at the end of the film where she says, "I was an adult. I let myself be brainwashed." But we hear Lapeyre pushback a bit on how much she's almost blaming herself for her involvement in the movement.

"I wanted to include that because I don't know what the right answer is," Lapeyre said. "You can hear me sort of arguing with her, but I watch that now and I'm like, 'Am I right, or is she right?'"

"I don't know that that's a question that has a great answer, and that's ultimately what I wanted to do with the film is maybe, hopefully, have people come out of the theatre talking about that. One of the things we say about the film a lot is that it's not about Krishna Consciousness, it's about this human nature and our tendency to want leadership and to want to put our faith in authority figures. But if the film is a plea for anything, it's a plea for critical thinking and it's a plea to interrogate that desire for leadership and authority."

Something that wasn't as fleshed out in the novel, but Lapeyre really wanted to bring forward in Monkey on a Stick, is the impact of early guidance in ISKCON that women had to be submissive to men. As Muster explains in the film, women were seen and temptations for men to "fall off the spiritual path." There was also a belief that women's brains and "smaller."

"If you had to point to one thing that caused almost everything else that happened, it's this decision at the very beginning of the movement that women are inferior to men," Lapeyre said. "In 2024, fortunately we've been educated a little bit, we have a little bit more of a sense that this is a power dynamic that can just easily cause abuse, and it's something that we're just starting ... to be able to recognize, but you maybe couldn't recognize in the late '70s and early 80s."

"When you make that decision that there's going to be a fundamental power dynamic based on gender in their organization, it's going to lead to almost every other abuse you see in the film. That was something that Nori recognized immediately and so hopefully it informs almost every one of the different abuses that we see in the film."

Monkey on a Stick (Dustin Rabin)

While it can be easy for viewers sitting at home to be judgemental about people not seeing the problematic signs in a movement like Hare Krishna and ISKCON, through a brilliant selection of participates who really open up about their experiences, whether born into the movement or people who are just deeply spiritual human beings, it's a comprehensive look at the need for critical thinking.

"I don't want people to go, 'Oh God what a freak show. What a bunch of idiots,'' Lapeyre said. "John has this amazing line in the film where he says people had invested so much of themselves into the idea that this was going to work, and I think this is a dynamic that I see myself, and I think it's something we see in online behaviour so much, which is really just behaviour now in 2024."

"I hope people come out of the film acknowledging that when you are that invested in an idea or a leader or a movement of any kind, whether it's artistic or bureaucratic or governmental or political, it is really, really hard to have that critical thinking moment of admitting that you were wrong."

Monkey on a Stick is now in select Toronto theatres, with release dates in additional markets to come

The 'Texas two-step' is back as J&J tries to shed talc lawsuits for a third time


Alexis Keenan · Senior Legal Reporter
Sun, October 20, 2024 at 9:00 AM MDT 6 min read

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is taking a controversial legal argument to court for a third time in hopes of containing a barrage of lawsuits alleging its baby powder caused cancer.

Judges have denied J&J’s previous attempts to resolve such claims using a maneuver known as the "Texas two-step," where a company tries to use the bankruptcy of an affiliate or subsidiary to settle mass liabilities.

J&J's third attempt at bankruptcy protection involves a subsidiary called Red River Talc that would cap settlement damages at $8 billion. The company maintains that none of the talc-related claims against it have merit.

J&J’s CFO Joseph Wolk told Yahoo Finance this time the bankruptcy court result should be different, in part because a large majority of talc claimants signed on to the company's settlement offer.

“The difference this time … I'd say, is 83% of the claimants actually support the current offer that's on the table,” Wolk said. “So we think that's something that was not present in the prior filings.”

The current proposal seeks to resolve all current and future claims related to ovarian cancer alleged to be caused by the company's cosmetic talc.

But a plaintiffs' lawyer who represents 11,434 of approximately J&J's roughly 100,000 talc claimants said the company's figure is inflated, and its latest bankruptcy petition is "fraught with problems."

The lawyer, Andy Birchfield of Beasley Allen, said J&J "stuffed the ballot box" in a tally held to determine the percentage of plaintiffs on board with J&J's latest settlement proposal.

A container of Johnson & Johnson baby powder is displayed in 2023 in San Anselmo, Calif. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) · Justin Sullivan via Getty Images

Birchfield said in addition to counting no votes as votes in support of the deal, J&J counted votes from claimants who should not have been included because they have not been diagnosed with disease and therefore have only non-compensable claims.

The lawyer said 69 of his clients voted in favor, and his firm has asked the court for a re-tabulation.

"We're confident that J&J’s 83% number that it floated … that that's wrong," Birchfield said. "Once those [inaccurate votes] are sifted out, I don't know where it will be, but it'll be significantly less than 70%."


The claims being made by both sides set up a new legal battle that will now unfold inside a Houston bankruptcy court.

J&J's worldwide vice president of litigation Erik Haas told Yahoo Finance that Beasley Allen "misstates the record in a failed attempt to explain away the blatantly false certification submitted by its partner Andy Birchfield."


Haas said Birchfield falsely certified under oath that he contacted and secured informed consent to oppose the plan from claimants who affirmatively voted in favor of the deal that was certified by an independent claims administrator.

"We look forward to the full discovery of this malfeasance before the Bankruptcy Court in Houston,” Hass said.

Earning the support of at least 75% of claimants may be an important threshold for J&J.

Bankruptcy courts have permitted companies to move forward with resolving large numbers of injury claims through bankruptcy when at least 75% of the outstanding creditors, including claimants, agree to the deal.
How it works

The "Texas two-step" strategy takes advantage of state laws that allow for the transfer of liabilities through a so-called divisive merger, which is a way to separate a company's operations into discreet business entities.

Texas was the first state to allow this, in 2006, which helps explain why the strategy came to be known as the "Texas two-step."

The first step is the division. The second is that the liability-retaining entity gets limited funding from its solvent parent, files for bankruptcy, and then manages mass tort litigation with the limited funds.


The benefits are that further litigation is paused, capping costs, and the assets of the solvent company are walled off from the reach of plaintiffs. The hope is that the solvent parent can also absolve itself of secondary liability for the claims.

But critics of the strategy see it as a subversion of the US Bankruptcy Code. Courts have become increasingly skeptical of attempts by companies to use bankruptcy court law to protect assets from plaintiffs.

Aden McCracken Tyrone of Pennsylvania holds a sign in honor of his parents outside of the Supreme Court in December as the Supreme Court heard arguments regarding a nationwide settlement with Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin. (Michael A. McCoy/For The Washington Post via Getty Images) · The Washington Post via Getty Images

In June, the US Supreme Court took a step that will make it more difficult for companies to do so in the future.

In a 5-4 decision, the court held that billionaire members of the Sackler family, longtime owners of the now-bankrupt opioid maker Purdue Pharma, could not shield their personal assets from opioid claims using the corporation's bankruptcy proceedings.

The Sacklers, the court said, engaged in a "milking program" by withdrawing from Purdue approximately $11 billion — roughly 75% of the firm’s total assets.


The court said that no provision within the US Bankruptcy Code permits the type of agreement that the Sacklers and the company tried to reach by limiting plaintiff recoveries to a $6 billion settlement fund.

Other attempts by companies like 3M, Avon, and Georgia Pacific to use the two-step strategy have had varying outcomes. Those inconsistent court decisions are leading some legal experts to predict that the US Supreme Court may review the tactic's legality.
'No financial distress'

In J&J's latest attempt at the two-step, it is asking for the latest vote from claimants to support a “channeling injunction.”

That would cap its liability for all existing and future talc claims at the $8 billion it agreed to place in a settlement trust. J&J agreed to fund the proposed settlement trust over 25 years.

Birchfield expects J&J's latest bankruptcy attempt could run into roadblocks no matter how many claimants vote in favor of a broad settlement because the two-step would strip especially future claimants from their constitutional rights to demand that J&J face jury trials.

"Our view is J&J isn’t entitled to bankruptcy relief because there is no financial distress,” he said. “They’re a $400 billion company."


“If they would pay reasonable compensation and do it on reasonable terms, they could put this behind them,” Birchfield added.

J&J's Wolk said its proposed bankruptcy would provide more recourse to claimants and more quickly resolve cases that would take years to be adjudicated.

Juries have handed down multimillion-dollar awards related to talc litigation risks.

On Tuesday, a Connecticut jury returned a $15 million verdict in favor of a man who said the company's talc-based powder caused him to develop mesothelioma, a cancer that impacts lung and other tissue.

The jury also held that J&J should pay punitive damages to punish it for including talc in its products.

Yahoo Finance Senior healthcare reporter Anjalee Khemlani contributed to this report.

Alexis Keenan is a legal reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow Alexis on X @alexiskweed.

Women's soccer players slam FIFA's partnership with Saudi Aramco over human rights, environmental concerns

CBC
Sun, October 20, 2024

Jessie Fleming takes a penalty kick but the ball hits the post during stoppage time during the second half of the CONCACAF W Gold Cup match against Paraguay, on Feb. 25 in Houston. Fleming is one of the Canadian signatories of the open letter to FIFA. (Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle/The Canadian Press - image credit)


More than a hundred international women's soccer players are calling on FIFA to reconsider its sponsorship by Saudi Arabian oil company Saudi Aramco, which is majority state-owned, in an open letter to FIFA's president.

Calling it a "middle finger to women's soccer," the 106 players who signed the letter say Saudi Arabia's human rights violations, particularly against women and members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community, go against the sport's values of equality and inclusion.

The athletes' letter, sent to CBC News in advance of its official release, emphasizes that gay players, "many of whom are heroes of our sport," are particularly at risk of persecution in Saudi Arabia, where homosexuality is considered a crime.


The players also raise concerns about the oil company's environmental impact.

Saudi Aramco is the largest oil producer in the world. It is 98.5 per cent owned by Saudi Arabia.

FIFA's deal with Saudi Aramco, announced in April, lasts until 2027. It includes sponsorship of both the men and women's World Cups in 2026 and 2027.

FIFA's other major partners include companies such as Adidas, Coca-Cola and Visa.

In response to the letter, FIFA said it stands by the sponsorship.

"FIFA values its partnership with Aramco and its many other commercial and rights partners," the organization sent in a statement.

Saudi Aramco has not yet responded to requests for comment from CBC News.

Sponsorship is 'absurd'

Among the signatories are current Team Canada captain Jessie Fleming and former Team Canada goaltender Erin McLeod.

"[Saudi Arabia] has the 2034 World Cup bid and thinking of someone like myself, even travelling to go watch those games would not be an option," McLeod told CBC News.

Team Canada's goalkeeper Erin McLeod makes a save during a practice session in Edmonton, Alta., on Friday June 5, 2015. Canada takes on China in their first World Cup match on Saturday June 6, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson

Team Canada goalkeeper Erin McLeod makes a save during a practice session in Edmonton on June 5, 2015. McLeod, who is openly gay, says FIFA has a responsibility to uphold its position on human rights. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press)

McLeod, who is openly gay, is married to Icelandic soccer player Gunny Jónsdóttir. The couple just welcomed a newborn into the family.

"I think it comes back to FIFA being an extremely powerful organization. What responsibility do they have to uphold what they've said? They've said very publicly where they stand on human rights," McLeod said.

Danish national team player Sofie Junge Pedersen, one of the letter's three main signatories, reached out to women soccer players around the world about the issue.

"We think that it's quite absurd that we, as female football players, are asked to promote on our shirt, Saudi Aramco as a sponsor," Junge Pedersen told CBC News.

"The human rights violation there, the discrimination against women that the Saudi authorities stand for," she said from her home in Milan, where she currently plays for Inter Milan.

"It's just absurd and very shocking for me that we are asked to do that when these are not our values and also not FIFA's own values."

Justify sponsorship, players ask FIFA

In the open letter, the signatories ask FIFA to drop the sponsorship and explain how the governing body can justify its initial decision to sign the deal.

"In taking Aramco's sponsorship, FIFA is choosing money over women's safety and the safety of the planet and that's something we as players are standing against, together," current Team Canada Jessie Fleming writes.

The third concern for the players is the impact of Saudi Aramco on the environment.

In the letter, the players write: "This sponsorship is much worse than an own goal for football: FIFA might as well pour oil on the pitch and set it alight."

Soccer Football - Women's Euro 2022 - Group B - Denmark v Finland - Stadium MK, Milton Keynes, Britain - July 12, 2022 Denmark's Sofie Pedersen Junge REUTERS/Peter Cziborra

Denmark's Sofie Junge Pedersen, shown in a 2022 match between her team and Finland, reached out to women's soccer players worldwide about the oil company's sponsorship. (Peter Cziborra/Reuters)

The players are also asking FIFA to respond to their request to create a review committee with player representation concerning sponsorship decisions.

FIFA did not respond to those demands, instead noting "sponsorship revenues generated by FIFA are reinvested back into the game at all levels and investment in women's football continues to increase."

The soccer organization says on its website that it is "committed to respecting all internationally recognized human rights and shall strive to promote the protection of these rights."

British gas giant unveils plans for 60-mile ‘blue hydrogen’ pipeline

MADE WITH NAT GAS

Matt Oliver
Sat 19 October 2024 

Mr Miliband has announced funding for a green technology that has been criticised as ‘expensive’ and ‘unproven’ - Anthony Devlin/Bloomberg


One of Britain’s biggest gas companies has unveiled plans for a 60-mile “blue hydrogen” pipeline in the north of England amid a row with environmentalists over the technology.

Cadent Gas, owned by a consortium led by investment bank Macquarie, said the “Hynet” underground pipeline will run from a hydrogen production plant near Ellesmere Port out into Cheshire to nearby factories and power plants.

It will be the first scheme of its kind in the UK and is billed by Cadent as “the first building block in a wider network of hydrogen pipelines across our regions”.

Customers are set to include Heineken, Kraft Heinz, Tata Chemicals, cement maker Heidelberg Materials and glass maker Pilkington.

The company launched a public consultation on the plans just days after Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, pledged £22bn of government funding towards carbon capture projects, including one that is connected to the Hynet scheme.

Under the proposals, factories in North Wales, Merseyside and Cheshire will be connected to a network that will whisk away their carbon dioxide emissions and store them in depleted gas fields under the Irish Sea.

At the same time, these sites will be able to receive hydrogen through a parallel network served, initially, by a plant producing blue hydrogen in Stanlow, near Ellesmere Port.

However, the scheme already faces opposition from some locals as well as campaigners at Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace, who are against blue hydrogen production and carbon capture because both involve the continued use of fossil fuels.

Blue hydrogen is made through a process where natural gas is combined with steam, with carbon dioxide created as a byproduct. The CO2 from the Stanlow plant will also be captured and stored.

Mike Childs, head of science and policy at Friends of the Earth, said: “Making it using gas is not a clean process. There are carbon emissions when you extract the gas and you also cannot capture all of the emissions from manufacturing. So we are not in favour

Both Macquarie and Cadent, which owns gas distribution networks in the North West, West Midlands, East Midlands, East of England and north London, have bet on hydrogen as a major line of future business.

Macquarie also owns National Gas, the former National Grid subsidiary that is leading “Project Union”, a proposal to build a so-called backbone of hydrogen transmission pipelines across the country to connect major industrial clusters.

It would be done by repurposing some existing gas pipelines as well as building some new ones.

Cadent’s dream of piping the gas into millions of homes was dealt a blow last year when a trial in Whitby, Ellesmere Port, was dropped in the face of fierce public opposition.

While there is resistance to using hydrogen to heat homes, it is seen by many experts as critical to the net zero transition because it could potentially be used to decarbonise heavy industry that cannot easily be electrified.

However, there remains significant debate about how big a role the gas should play and the pros and cons of different processes used to make it.

On Friday, Angela Needle, of Cadent, said: “Hynet will serve as a blueprint for industrial decarbonisation, enabling growth across the manufacturing heartlands of the North West and supporting the Government to achieve its clean power 2030 mission.

“The project was formed to meet the demands of industry who seek to decarbonise as they deliver their products and continue to compete in the global economy.

“We need to support these essential industries in their efforts to ensure it is decarbonisation, not de-industrialisation that happens, and Hynet does this.”

 Sydney beaches reopen as composition of 'mystery' balls revealed

Sky News
Updated Sat 19 October 2024



Bondi Beach has reopened for swimmers after around 2,000 black balls washed ashore in Sydney this week.

The tar-like spheres started appearing on Tuesday and multiple beaches were shut due to fears they could be highly toxic.

Workers in orange boiler suits and face masks have been collecting the balls over the last few days.

They were initially believed to be tar balls, formed when oil comes into contact with debris and water, often as a result of oil spills or seepage.

Authorities said this weekend tests were ongoing and the source remained "somewhat of a mystery" - but they now know what's in them.

"Based on advice from the Environment Protection Authority, we can now confirm the balls are made up of fatty acids, chemicals consistent with those found in cleaning and cosmetic products, mixed with some fuel oil," said New South Wales maritime boss Mark Hutchings.

He said they were still washing up on Friday but in fewer numbers.

The balls are not believed to be harmful when left on the sand but the public are still advised not to touch them.

The spillage had forced councils to close beaches including Bondi, Bronte, Maroubra, Clovelly, Tamarama, Gordon's Bay and Coogee as a precaution.

Sydney is renowned for its beaches and has more than 100 in its harbour and along the oceanfront.

Snakes are living in attics and walls of UK homes and laying eggs

Edward Burnett
Sun 20 October 2024 


Snakes are in the attics of Uk homes (stock image). (Image: Unsplash)

Two-metre-long snakes are living in the walls and attics of UK homes according to scientists.

The Aesculapian species grow up to seven feet long and are one of Europe’s largest types of snakes but they are not native to the United Kingdom.

Despite disappearing from British shores in the last Ice Age, researchers have now warned that the invasive species are surviving in the warmer areas of the country.

These snakes were accidentally introduced to Colwyn Bay in North Wales after some escaped from the Welsh Mountain Zoo during the 1970s.

READ MORE: Large spiders coming into Oxfordshire homes as UK tarantulas confirmed

Snakes are in the walls of UK homes (stock image). (Image: Pexels)

Older research found that the reptiles were also living around the London Zoo area of Regent’s Park as well as close to Bridgend in South Wales.

But as a cold-blooded species, snakes usually need warm climates to survive, so their presence in these areas raised questions about how they were surviving.

A study was conducted in the UK with researchers performing the daily tracking of 13 male snakes and eight females over two active seasons between 2021 and 2022.

The New Scientist reports that the data found snakes to be using “human features” including “attics and wall cavities of houses” to find warmth.

“We observed Aesculapian snakes actively seeking and returning to use inhabited buildings and were observed climbing large structures to access the attics and wall cavities of houses,” said scientists.

READ MORE: Household items to scare away large spiders coming into Oxfordshire homes

Male snakes seemed to have a “distinct preference” for buildings whereas the females of the species flocked to woodland areas.

The Oxford Mail has approached Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) for a comment and further information.

Fungi finding: mushroom hunters seek new species and recognition

Huw GRIFFITH
Sun 20 October 2024

There is a burgeoning awareness of the importance of fungi, whose role is to be discussed at the COP16 conference in Colombia (Robyn Beck) (Robyn Beck/AFP/AFP)


You can't walk very far through a forest in this part of the United States without stumbling upon a mushroom, an eruption from a vast fungal kingdom that all life depends on, but about which we know very little.

Some are tall and thin with a helmet top, others are great flourishes of brain-like folds; some seem like they should be sheltering fairies in a storybook.

Many look like they could be delicious in the hands of a skilled chef; others... decidedly not.


But the dozens of species that enthusiasts and experts collected on a recent morning represent just a tiny fraction of life that is neither flora nor fauna.

"Mushrooms are not plants," said Amy Honan, who teaches mycology and fungal ecology at Oregon University.

"Fungi are more closely related to animals than they are to plants."

Plants make their own food through photosynthesis, but mushrooms have to eat something else.

"They spit out different enzymes, so they break down their food outside of their body, and they slurp it up like a smoothie," Honan said.

- 'Essential' -

Of the at least 2.5 million species of fungus thought to exist on Earth, scientists have described around 150,000 -- six percent -- Honan told AFP during a field trip near Port Angeles in Washington state.

Compared with what we know about plants and animals, that's practically nothing.

"We know about 98 percent of the vertebrates that are on the planet," she said. "We know about 85 percent of plants that exist on the planet. We know about 20 percent of invertebrates."

This paucity of fungal knowledge is troubling because of the vital -- and largely unseen -- role that they play.

Fungi evolved before plants and created the conditions to allow vegetation to move from the sea to the land.

"Fungi are essential for all terrestrial ecosystems. They confer all kinds of benefits to plants, from salt tolerance, heavy metal tolerance, disease resistance," Honan said.

"Basically, without fungi... plants would not exist. We need plants for oxygen, so the world would not exist in its current state."

It would also be chock-full of dead things.

"Fungi break down all dead organic material, so they recycle all that carbon and other nutrients," facilitating the life cycle of plants and animals.

- COP16 focus -

There is a burgeoning awareness of the importance of fungi, whose role is set to come up for discussion at the UN Convention on Biological Diversity COP16 meeting in Colombia, which kicks off on Monday.

The Guardian newspaper reported last week that a joint proposal by Chile and the United Kingdom could see fungi recognised as "an independent kingdom of life in legislation, policies and agreements, in order to advance their conservation and to adopt concrete measures that allow for maintaining their benefits to ecosystems and people."

Greater protections would be good news, said mycologist Graham Steinruck, who, along with Honan, is leading a study into fungal biodiversity at a site that was underwater until the removal of a dam a few years ago.

As part of the Olympic Peninsula Fungi Festival, he and Honan have taken participants out into the field to show them how to find species of mushroom, and how to record what they are seeing.

"I think the more fungi that we go out and discover and document not only tells us about our biodiversity, but also can tell us about ways we can steward the land better," Steinruck said.

Knowing more about these mysterious organisms could also bring benefits to lots of areas of human life.

Mushrooms can help us "heal ourselves, and maybe even potentially (help) other things like industries," he said.

For participants on the mushroom hunt, the opportunity to find new fungal life was eye-opening.

Naomi Ruelle had traveled from New York with her mushroom-enthusiast partner, and was taking part in her first organized hunt.

"I've learned so much," she beamed, showing off a collection that included a huge, fleshy shelf-like specimen, yellow parasol-style mushrooms and spindly stalked fungi that had found root in a dead pine cone.

"It was so interesting to see the different species. They're obviously going to take them to the lab and I'm kind of curious to understand a bit more about them."


UK dog owners issued mushroom warning as autumn arrives

KEEP THEM OUT OF THE SOUP POT TOO

Elizabeth Birt
Fri 18 October 2024 

A number of mushrooms that grow in the UK are toxic to dogs (Image: Pexels)

Dog owners are being warned about the dangers of fungi and mushrooms as the UK enters peak mushroom season.

The period between September and November is when mushrooms are most common, and while they may be a pretty sight during a winter walk, some can be fatal to dogs.

Kennel Store, a pet care expert, explained the risks associated with dogs consuming mushrooms.

Wild mushrooms are prevalent in autumn and can often be found in parks, woodlands, and gardens.

Certain types of these mushrooms can be toxic to dogs and can rapidly grow in mild, wet conditions, making them easy for pets to encounter.

Some of the common poisonous mushrooms in the UK include Fly Agaric, known for its distinctive fairy-tale appearance with a red cap and white spots; Death Cap; Deadly Webcap; Funeral Bell; Destroying Angel; Fool’s Funnel; Panther Cap and Angel’s Wings.

The symptoms of mushroom poisoning in dogs can vary depending on the type of mushroom ingested.

However, pet owners should be vigilant for signs such as vomiting, stomach pain, diarrhoea, lethargy, excessive drooling, loss of balance, yellowing of the eyes, skin and gums, seizures, loss of motor control, collapse, organ failure, or coma.

If a dog owner suspects that their pet has eaten a poisonous mushroom, it is critical to seek veterinary attention immediately.

Taking a photograph or a sample of the ingested mushroom can help the vet determine the appropriate treatment.

Pet owners should also be aware that their dog may not necessarily be seen eating a mushroom.

If a dog exhibits unusual behaviour following a walk, such as neurological signs, agitation, or unusual vocalisation, it is advisable to visit the vet.

Half of UK workforce lack access to workplace health support, report finds

Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent

THE GUARDIAN
Sun 20 October 2024 

A common type of health check used by employers is an NHS-run programme that checks for signs of conditions such as cardiovascular disease.Photograph: Adrian Sherratt for the Guardian


Almost half of the UK workforce lack access to workplace health support including winter flu vaccinations and checks for cardiovascular diseases, a report has found.

The analysis, by the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH), looked at data from the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (DBEIS) and found that more than 10 million UK workers lack access to services including basic health checks, vaccinations, and smoking or weight loss support, provided by their employer.

The report found that the UK’s current workplace health system could further exacerbate existing health inequalities, given that people in lower paid industries, such as hospitality and agriculture, are even less likely to have access to health protection interventions at work.


A common type of health check used by employers is an NHS-run programme that checks for signs of conditions such as cardiovascular diseases such as heart disease and diabetes.

The paper calls for the government to establish a national health and work standard that would establish a minimum level of support, to which employees should be entitled. It says that encouraging better welfare and health practices within workplaces would help to reduce the economic cost of ill health, which is estimated to be around £100bn a year.

William Roberts, the chief executive of the RSPH, said: “We are at a critical time for our nation’s health. Millions of people are leaving the workforce due to ill-health. It costs us tens of billions every year. It also puts an additional strain on our health service leaving people languishing on waiting lists.

“The employment rights bill is a big step in the right direction, but we need to go further and quicker. We spend a great deal of our adult lives in and around the workplace. We need to think about how we use our workplaces to build health, keep people well, and prevent people being signed off sick.

“As it stands, our workplaces are exacerbating health inequalities. This means that millions of people that would most benefit from workplace health support are missing out. We know that businesses want to do more to build healthy workplaces and support their employees. This report sets out a clear and actionable set of recommendations that will make a real impact if implemented by policymakers.”

The Department of Health and Social Care has been approached for comment.