CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M VATICAN INC.
Historic Vatican fraud trial to expose London secrets

Issued on: 25/07/2021

Ex-cardinal Angelo Becciu has been charged with crimes including embezzlement and abuse of office Andreas SOLARO AFP/File

Vatican City (AFP)

A once-powerful Catholic cardinal and nine others stand trial at the Vatican this week in an embezzlement scandal that allegedly saw charity funds used in a ruinous London property venture.

Ex-cardinal Angelo Becciu, who served as the equivalent of a papal chief of staff for Pope Francis before being fired last year, has been charged with crimes including embezzlement and abuse of office.

It is the first time a cardinal has been indicted by Vatican criminal prosecutors and Becciu, 73, will be the headliner of a trial set to last months.

The defendants face jail time or stiff fines if found guilty.

The alleged graft will have enraged Francis, 84, who has vowed all-out war on corruption and has increased oversight of the Vatican's finances, dogged for decades by scandal.

Tuesday's hearing is expected to be purely technical and the trial, held in a makeshift courtroom in the Vatican Museums, may be adjourned to after the summer break.

It was not clear whether Becciu, stripped of his red biretta, will be present.

It follows a two-year probe into how the Secretariat of State -- the key department in the Vatican's central administration -- managed its vast asset portfolio and, in particular, who knew what about a disastrous 350-million-euro ($415 million) London investment.

- 'Substantial losses' -

Two London-based Italian financiers were involved in buying the 17,000-sq metre building -- a former Harrods warehouse in Chelsea intended for conversion into luxury apartments.

Gianluigi Torzi and Raffaele Mincione are charged with embezzlement, fraud and money laundering.

The building's purchase at an inflated price meant "substantial losses for the Vatican, and dipped into resources intended for the Holy Father's personal charitable work", the Holy See said before the trial.

The first part of the purchase happened while Becciu was No. 2 at the Secretariat of State, and in charge of the purse strings.

Between 2013 and 2014, the Secretariat of State borrowed over 200 million dollars, mainly from Credit Suisse, to invest in Mincione's Luxembourg fund. Half went to buying part of the London property.

The rest was for stock market investments, but Mincione used it for high-risk ventures. The Holy See, which had no control over where the money went, tried to pull out in 2018.

- Taking control -

Torzi was brought in and tasked with brokering the purchase of the rest of the building and cutting ties with Mincione -- but he instead allegedly joined forces with him.

He arranged for the Holy See to give Mincione £40 million (48 million euros; $55 million) for the shares in the part of the London building it did not already own.

But Torzi then allegedly inserted a clause into the paperwork which gave himself control of the property. He is accused of demanding 15 million euros to relinquish control.

Mincione and Torzi were helped, prosecutors claim, by Enrico Crasso, a former Vatican investment manager, and employee Fabrizio Tirabassi, both of whom face a series of charges including fraud.

Embarrassingly for Francis, among those standing trial are two men previously tasked with regulating Holy See finances, including the former head of its financial regulator, Swiss lawyer Rene Bruelhart.

- 'The Cardinal's lady' -

Becciu has been charged with embezzlement and abuse of office over the purchase of the London property.

He has also been charged in relation to donations totalling over 800,000 euros he is accused of making to a charity run by his brother.

Becciu is also linked to defendant Cecilia Marogna -- dubbed "the Cardinal's lady" by the Italian press -- accused of pocketing money earmarked for freeing captive priests and nuns abroad.

Prosecutors claim the top hierarchy in the Vatican -- including pope ally Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Becciu's boss -- were in favour of the London venture, without realising what was going on.

Becciu, who has denied any wrongdoing, says he is the victim of a plot.

© 2021 AFP

#TAXTHECHURCH VATICAN INC.
Vatican details worldwide property holdings for first time

The Vatican has revealed its worldwide property holdings, but did not include budgets for Vatican City, the Vatican Museums and the Vatican Bank.



The Vatican revealed it owns more than 5,000 properties worldwide

For the first time in its history, the Vatican released detailed disclosure forms Saturday showing the Holy See owns more than 5,000 properties worldwide. The move comes ahead of a major trial that is set to open in Vatican City next week and involves a London investment deal gone awry. Ten have been charged with financial crimes, including a prominent cardinal.

The 2020 budget of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See (APSA), which manages Vatican properties and investments, showed the Vatican owns 4,051 properties in Italy and 1,120 globally including in London, Paris, Geneva, and Lausanne – many as investments in posh districts.
What is the trial about?

The process revolves around a former Harrods warehouse in the London neighborhood of South Kensington, which had been purchased to be converted into luxury apartments. Charges include embezzlement, money laundering, fraud, extortion, and abuse of office.

The Vatican's Secretariat of State bought the building more than ten years ago, resulting in a huge financial loss. As a result, Pope Francis transferred control of the Vatican's investments to APSA.


Pope Francis has launched a push against corruption and for greater transparency of church finances

Father Juan Antonio Guerrero Alves, chief of the Vatican's Secretariat for the Economy, told Reuters the building would be sold soon and the process was a "turning point" for how the Vatican handled its finances.

"We come from a culture of secrecy, but we have learned that in economic matters transparency protects us more than secrecy," he said.
What do we now know about Vatican finances?

Due to the pandemic, in 2020 the Vatican cut expenses and focused on meeting salaries, on providing funds for churches and on charity. To save money, the Vatican cut events and activities by 75% and tightened the budgets for its diplomats globally.

Many Vatican tourist sites were closed or only partially open due to the pandemic, depriving the Catholic Church of revenue

While the disclosures were extensive, they failed to include budgets for Vatican City and the Vatican Bank, as well as museums in the city state.

Last year, the Vatican had a budget shortfall of €66.3 million ($78 million), which was better than the €68 million ($80 million) to €146 million ($172 million) previously projected.

About €50 million ($59 million) of the Vatican's operating budget came from Peter's Pence, a fund solicited from Catholic parishioners to provide for Vatican charities that the Vatican can also draw from to keep its bureaucracy running. The Catholic Church manages religious affairs of 1.3 billion Catholics worldwide.

Of the properties the Vatican across the globe, 14% are rented at market rates to fund the Vatican and its charity work while the rest are either rented below market or used by Catholic cardinals or current and retired Vatican officials.

ar/dj (AFP, AP, Reuters)

30,000 in Budapest, Hungary, celebrate Pride, protest anti-LGBTQ law


An estimated 30,000 people took to the streets of Budapest, Hungary, on Saturday,

 July 24, 2021, to celebrate Pride and protest against the Hungarian government's

 new anti-LGBTQ law. Photo by Zoltan Balough/HUNGARY OUT/EPA-EFE

July 24 (UPI) -- An estimated 30,000 people took to the streets of Budapest, Hungary, to celebrate the capital's annual Pride event and protest the country's recent passing of an anti-LGBTQ law.

Participants and speakers at the Pride event, which had been held virtually in 2020, spoke out against the Prime Minister Viktor Orban-backed law, which bars schools from discussing LGBTQ issues or teaching books with LGBTQ representation or themes.

The law also prohibits TV stations from showing programs with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer representation in the daytime or early evening hours.

Speakers at the event included Budapest Mayor Gergely Karacsony, who called on Hungarians to show solidarity with LGBTQ citizens, Roma groups and other minorities.

The Pride parade was met with about 80 counterprotesters, who were kept behind a cordon. The group was heard shouting homophobic and pro-Nazi statements. Observers said there were no violent incidents between the groups.

Orban previously responded to international criticism of the new law, including from the European Union, which counts Hungary as a member, by proposing a five-question referendum on whether the public supports the "promotion" of LGBTQ content to children

The referendum suggestion was criticized by some at Saturday's march who said it was made up of leading questions.

RELATEDHungary PM Viktor Orban orders 5-question referendum on LGBTQ ban

"Even if you support LGBT rights, you wouldn't automatically say yes to these questions," LGBTQ activist Akos Modolo, 26, told CNN. "The government is using this as a political tool."

Modolo said the government's strategy is to "always look for an enemy to blame" so it can "appeal to the anger of the voters."

"It's important to have a discussion," Modolo said. "But this is not a discussion -- it's a hate campaign."

Record Budapest Pride stands up to anti-LGBTQ laws

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has threatened to refuse EU coronavirus aid after the bloc moved against his laws. LGBTQ people expressed fear at the direction the country was going.



Thousands of people took part in a gay pride parade in Budapest, Hungary

Record numbers of Hungarians took part in the annual Budapest Pride Saturday to protest against right-wing government attacks on LGBTQ rights that have drawn outrage from the European Union.

Organizers of the Pride march told protestors to stand up to the hatred of "power-hungry politicians" that were "using laws to make members of the LGBTQ community outcasts in their own country."

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has even threatened to turn down EU coronavirus aid if it is dependent on him backtracking over his proposed laws against the LGBTQ community. Hungary is due to receive €7.2 billion ($8.4 billion) from the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility

Watch video04:32 Hungary's LGTBQ community feels intimidated: DW's Fanny Facsar reports

What was the message from Budapest Pride?

The thousands of people who turned out for Budapest Pride were keen to show they would not be intimidated by the government's rhetoric and laws.

"The recent past has been very demanding, distressing and frightening for the LGBTQ community," its organizers said in a statement.

Budapest Pride spokesperson Jojo Majercsik told the Associated Press News agency that lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer people are "afraid" of Orbanꞌs policies.

LGBTQ marchers have slammed Victor Orban for his latest laws

"A lot of LGBTQ people don't feel like they have a place or a future in this country anymore," he added.

Mira Nagy, 16, told Associated Press said that as a member of the LGBTQ community her situation was "pretty bad" and "if things get worse, I will leave Hungary."
What has the international community said?

Earlier this week, over 40 foreign cultural institutions and embassies including the United States, Britain and Germany published a joint statement in support of the Budapest Pride Festival.

"Concerned by recent developments that threaten the principle of non-discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity, we encourage steps in every country to ensure the equality and dignity of all human beings," they said.


This year's Pride march had record attendance

Last week,the European Commission launched legal action against Hungary for what it sees as discriminatory laws.

The new bill put limits on young people's access to information on LGBTQ rights and gender identities other than those assigned at birth. Orban has pledged a referendum on the law to get feedback from the public before elections next year.

jc/dj (AP, Reuters, dpa)

 https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2021/07/hungarys-lgbtq-community-we-are-afraid.html

Mexican president calls Cuba ‘example of resistance,’ wants OAS replaced

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador speaks during a ceremony marking the third anniversary of his presidential election at the National Palace in Mexico City, Thursday, July 1, 2021. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)


MEXICO CITY (AP) — President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Saturday that Cuba is an “example of resistance,” and proposed the entire country should be declared a World Heritage site.

While much of Cuba seems stuck technologically in the middle of the last century, López Obrador did not appear to be speaking ironically when he proposed the world heritage designation, which is usually used by the United Nations to honor historical sites.

The Mexican leader praised Cuba’s ability to stand up to U.S. hostility since 1959. López Obrador did not mention recent street protests that were violently repressed by the Cuban government.

López Obrador has in the past stated his opposition to U.S. sanctions that limit commerce with the island, and said they should be ended.

López Obrador also said the Organization of American States should be replaced “by a body that is truly autonomous, not anybody’s lackey.”

Mexico has publicly disagreed with the OAS leadership over its role in the political situation in countries like Bolivia.

López Obrador spoke Saturday at a ceremony attended by Cuba’s foreign minister to mark the 238th birthday of Simón Bolívar, who led the fight to liberate several South American countries from Spanish rule in the early 1800s.

The Mexican government has said it is sending two navy ships to Cuba with food and medical aid on Sunday.

The Foreign Relations Department said the ships will will carry oxygen tanks, needles and syringes, and basic food items like rice and beans.

The announcement came on Thursday, the same day that the U.S. government tightened the sanctions on some Cuban officials after they violently put down rare street protests earlier this month. The new sanctions target a Cuban official and a government special brigade the United States says was involved in human rights abuses during the government crackdown.

Groups urge state to protect last wild Atlantic salmon in US

FILE - In this April 2, 2012 file photo, a 4-year-old Atlantic salmon is held at the National Fish Hatchery in Nashua, N.H. Maine is home to the last wild Atlantic salmon populations in the U.S., but a new push to protect the fish is unlikely to land them on the state's endangered list. (AP Photo/Jim Cole, File)

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine is home to the last wild Atlantic salmon populations in the U.S., but a new push to protect the fish at the state level is unlikely to land them on the endangered list.

Atlantic salmon once teemed in U.S. rivers, but now return from the sea to only a handful of rivers in eastern and central Maine. The fish are protected at the federal level under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, but a coalition of environmental groups and scientists said the fish could be afforded more protections if they were added to Maine’s own list of endangered and threatened species.

State law allows Maine Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher to make that recommendation, but his office told The Associated Press he does not intend to do it. The department has done extensive work to conserve and restore the fish, and the commissioner “does not believe a listing at the state level would afford additional conservation benefits or protections,” said Jeff Nichols, a department spokesperson.

The environmentalists who want to see the fish on the state list said they’re going to keep pushing for it and other protections. Adding the fish to the state endangered list would mean conservation of salmon would be treated as a bigger concern in state permitting processes, said John Burrows, executive director for U.S. operations for the Atlantic Salmon Federation.

“The state of Maine and a handful of our rivers are the only places in the country that still have wild Atlantic salmon,” Burrows said. “It’s something that should happen, and should have happened.”

Atlantic salmon have disappeared from U.S. rivers because of damming, pollution and others environmental challenges, and they also face the looming threat of climate change. Nevertheless, there have been some positive signs in Maine rivers in recent years.

More than 1,400 salmon returned to the Penobscot River in 2020. That was the highest number since 2011, the Maine marine resources department found. The Penobscot is the most productive river for the salmon. It averaged only about 700 fish per year from 2012 to 2019.

Attempts to repopulate Atlantic salmon in other states have stalled. The federal government ended an attempt to restore Atlantic salmon in the Connecticut River basin in 2012 after several decades because of lack of success.

Getting the fish listed on the Maine endangered list has long been a goal of many environmental groups. The Maine Endangered Species Act includes 26 endangered species and 25 threatened ones. The list includes two fish: the endangered redfin pickerel and the threatened swamp darter.

The list is designed to provide state-level protection to jeopardized species and is a complement to the U.S. Endangered Species Act. A few species, including the piping plover, are listed on both.

Environmentalists supported a bill in the Maine Legislature earlier this year that would have required the marine resources commissioner to recommend a state listing for any species that is federally listed as endangered or threatened. The proposal died in committee in June.

A group of 19 organizations and 10 scientists and conservationists sent a letter to the state that said Maine is one of the few states that doesn’t mandate or recommend state-level listing of federally listed species. Dwayne Shaw, director of the Downeast Salmon Federation, said wildlife advocates will continue pushing for salmon protections.

“There would be great symbolism in this, but there would also be direct implications, positive implications for the species,” Shaw said.

Extreme Flooding Weighs On China’s Energy Supply Chain

By Haley Zaremba - Jul 24, 2021, 12:00 PM CDT

An entire year’s worth of rain fell in the span of just a few days in central China, devastating the city of Zhengzhou, with a population of about 5 million, and leaving dozens dead as floodwaters inundated Henan province. The flash flood halted at least 10 trains holding a cumulative 10,000 passengers. Three of those trains were left on the tracks, with no escape for the passengers, for 40 hours, and 12 of those train passengers are now deceased. Meanwhile, the heavy rains continue to fall and the death toll continues to rise in the region. The Chinese government has resorted to blasting a dam in the area to divert the flooding and to relieve the pressure caused by the mounting waters.

The terror and tragedy experienced by the people directly impacted by the severe flooding can’t be overstated and is far and away from the greatest concern, but it is just one part of the story. Indeed, the devastation and disruption caused by the torrential rains extend far beyond the borders of the Henan province. “The floods drenching central China and submerging swathes of a major economic and transport hub are threatening supply chains for goods ranging from cars and electronics to pigs, peanuts and coal,” Reuters reported on Thursday. 

The economic fallout from this slowdown will further burden the people of central China who have already grappled with days of power loss, lack of transportation, and other challenges from the flooding. “Power had been partly restored and some trains and flights were running on Thursday,” the Reuters report continued, “but analysts said disruption could last for several days, pushing up prices and slowing business across densely populated Henan and neighbouring provinces.”

One of the most severely impacted sectors is the coal sector, which China still relies on for the majority of its energy mix, even as it attempts to phase out the high-polluting fossil fuel. What’s more, the interruption to the coal supply chain is occurring at a moment of peak demand as consumers use up more energy trying to beat the summer heat. 

Related: The Renewable Energy Waste Crisis Is Much Worse Than You Think

While the flooding in central China is historic, it’s likely going to become more and more of a common sight in coming years, as will these kinds of disruptions to supply chains caused by an increased incidence of severe weather patterns around the world thanks to the advance of global warming. “China routinely experiences flooding in the summer months,” the Guardian reported this week, “but rapid urbanisation, and conversion of farmland, as well as the worsening climate crisis, has exacerbated the impact of such events.

China is far from alone. All over the world, countries’ energy security is threatened by global warming and ever-more-frequent natural disasters, and powerful storm systems. Earlier this year we saw the devastation that an extreme cold snap caused in Texas when abnormally freezing temperatures plus a massive grid failure caused hundreds of deaths. Experts have also warned that the United States’ aging nuclear fleet is unprepared for global warming and the results could be disastrous if industry and political leaders are not proactive.  

In an era that is so deeply defined by globalization and ever longer and more complex supply chains, incidents like this week’s flooding in China are shedding a light on the importance of either making these supply chains far more resilient or diversifying and shoring up local markets. Storms like the one continuing to pound Zhengzhou are growing more common and more severe all the time, and they have the power to cripple essential supply chains that impact people's access to food and power overnight. Energy security and sovereignty has never been more important. 

By Haley Zaremba for Oilprice.com

Water level in Utah's Great Salt Lake falls to historic low


The U.S. Geological Survey announced the water level in the southern portion of Utah's Great Salt Lake receded to a historic low on Friday, July 23, 2021. 

Photo courtesy of Andrew Freel/USGS

July 24 (UPI) -- The U.S. Geological Survey announced Saturday the southern portion of the Great Salt Lake in Utah reached it's lowest water level in recorded history.

The USGS released a statement Saturday saying information collected at the SaltAir gauge location found the water level on Friday averaged about an inch lower than the previous record of 4,191.4 feet, which was recorded in 1963.

The USGS said its records of Great Salt Lake elevations date back to 1847.

USGS Utah Water Science Center data chief Ryan Rowland said Friday's elevation is not likely to remain a record for long.

"Based on current trends and historical data, the USGS anticipates water levels may decline an additional foot over the next several months," Rowland said in the USGS statement. "This information is critical in helping resource managers make informed decisions on Great Salt Lake resources. You can't manage what you don't measure."

Researchers attributed the historic low to conditions including the low snowpack from last winter and the current hot and dry summer.

"While the Great Salt Lake has been gradually declining for some time, current drought conditions have accelerated its fall to this new historic low," said Brian Steed, executive director of the Utah Department of Natural Resources. "We must find ways to balance Utah's growth with maintaining a healthy lake. Ecological, environmental and economical balance can be found by working together as elected leaders, agencies, industry, stakeholders and citizens working together."

U.S. Geological Survey hydrologic technician Travis Gibson confirms Great Salt Lake water levels at the SaltAire gauge. The USGS said the lake's water level on Friday, July 23, 2021, was the lowest in recorded history. Photo courtesy of Andrew Freel/USGS

CCS BS

Carbon-capture pipelines offer climate aid; activists wary

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Two companies seeking to build thousands of miles of pipeline across the Midwest are promising the effort will aid rather than hinder the fight against climate change, though some environmental groups remain skeptical.

The pipelines would stretch from North Dakota to Illinois, potentially transforming the Corn Belt into one of the world’s largest corridors for a technology called carbon capture and storage.

Environmental activists and landowners have hindered other proposed pipelines in the region that pump oil, carrying carbon that was buried in the earth to engines or plants where it is burned and emitted. The new projects would essentially do the opposite by capturing carbon dioxide at ethanol refineries and transporting it to sites where it could be buried thousands of feet underground.

Both companies planning the pipelines appear eager to tout their environmental benefits. Their websites feature clear blue skies and images of green fields and describe how the projects could have the same climatic impact as removing millions of cars from the road every year.

However, some conservationists and landowners are already wary of the pipelines’ environmental benefits and safety, raising the chances of another pitched battle as the projects seek construction permits.

“It seems like they are running a casino of risk and we are going to pay for it,” said Carolyn Raffensperger, the director of the Science and Environmental Health Network, expressing fears about a leak that could put North Dakota landowners like herself at risk. "We need to think this through very carefully, and I do not see the players in place to do that.”

The pipelines could fall into a longstanding divide among environmentalists. President Joe Biden and many Republicans are pushing a strategy for tackling climate change that offers a financial boon to industries that use carbon capture and storage to reduce their emissions. But others, such as Greenpeace and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, argue the focus should be completely on developing renewable energy sources and that carbon capture just prolongs dependence on fossil fuels.

Navigator CO2 Ventures, which is planning a pipeline that will stretch over 1,200 miles (1,931 kilometers) through Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota and Illinois, says it is offering “carbon capture solutions for a greener planet.” While Summit Carbon Solutions, whose pipeline will connect refineries in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and South Dakota to a sequestration site in North Dakota, says it plans to build the world’s largest carbon capture and storage project. Both hope to start some operations by 2024.

“There’s so much societal momentum that says this is something we want to do — should do, need to do — for the public’s benefit,” said Matt Vining, the CEO of Navigator CO2 Ventures. “My project and many others will get done and should get done.”


Video: Carbon Transfer from Clean, Rich West to Developing World is Major Risk (Bloomberg)

Supporters say the pipelines are a much-needed win for both agricultural businesses and the environment. The two projects are expected to run into the billions of dollars, spurring construction jobs. And they advance a technology crucial to achieving a 2050 goal of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions — in which every gram of emissions is accounted for by providing a way to eventually suck it back out of the atmosphere.

“All sides win. You significantly reduce carbon emissions, but you can also maintain those industries that are the lifeblood of different regions of the country,” said Brad Crabtree, who oversees carbon management policy at the Great Plains Institute, a Minnesota-based organization that works with energy companies to develop environmental sustainability.

Crabtree, who also directs a group called Carbon Capture Coalition, sees it as a way to bridge partisan divides as the country addresses climate change. As evidence, he points to one high-profile Republican backer — North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum — who is pushing a plan to make the state carbon-neutral by 2030, “through innovation not regulation.”

The federal government set off the scurry of pipeline plans by increasing, by 2026, tax credits to $50 for every metric ton of carbon dioxide a company sequesters. California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard has sweetened the deal by requiring that distributors in that state buy only ethanol with a low carbon emissions impact; companies that produce such ethanol can get a higher price.

While the practice of storing carbon dioxide in rock formations has been around for almost 50 years, developing technology that captures carbon emissions has proven to be expensive and struggled to gain widespread use.

Ethanol refineries could represent the low-hanging fruit that helps push the technology forward into widespread use. Plants such as corn are natural sponges of carbon dioxide, absorbing the gas and storing carbon as they grow through the spring and summer. When those crops ferment into ethanol, which is eventually mixed with gasoline, it produces a steady, easily-captured stream of carbon dioxide.

“These early plants are relatively easy and that’s a good place to start,” said Greg Nemet, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who specializes in the development of climate-friendly energy technology. “As that gets shown and proven, you get some transportation networks, then it gets easier to do the harder stuff later.”

Achieving that harder stuff — sucking carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere or catching emissions at power plants — will almost certainly be crucial to beating back global temperature increases. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reached that conclusion in 2018 as it laid out a path to halting temperature increases to 1.5 C (2.7 F).

Despite concerns from Raffensperger and others about potential leaks from the pipelines or storage sites, the Environmental Protection Agency has concluded that storing carbon dioxide is safe as long as companies do it carefully. It is injected in a liquefied state into porous rock formations, where it eventually dissolves or hardens into minerals.

Crabtree said there has not been a single human fatality or serious injury in the United States from transporting or storing captured carbon dioxide. He thinks that as long as companies act responsibly, landowners will be convinced the pipelines are safe and can benefit from them.

But Raffensperger still has a range of concerns, including whether a technology that was developed by oil and coal companies can be trusted to make a transformative difference in curbing greenhouse gas emissions. Raffensperger’s organization joined over 500 other environmental organizations in an open letter to Biden denouncing carbon capture and storage as a climate solution.

“We don’t need to fix fossil fuels; we need to ditch them,” the group wrote in a Washington Post ad. “Instead of capturing carbon to pump it back underground, we should keep fossil fuels in the ground in the first place.”

Stephen Groves, The Associated Press

Can Israel criminalise Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in the US?

Israel threatens legal attack using anti-BDS laws passed by many US states, Palestinian advocates see pivotal moment.

Ben Cohen, left, and Jerry Greenfield, co-founders of Ben & Jerry's ice cream, are known for promoting social causes  [File: Patrick Semansky/AP Photo]

By William Roberts
23 Jul 2021

Ben & Jerry’s decision to stop selling ice cream in Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories may prove a pivotal moment in the campaign against Israel’s apartheid system, Palestinian rights advocates say.

The United States-based ice cream maker, known for its creative, chunky flavours and progressive social stances, is already facing a punishing blowback by the Israeli government and rabbinical organisations worldwide.

KEEP READING

Ben & Jerry’s parent firm Unilever ‘firmly committed’ to Israel

Ben & Jerry’s to stop sales in occupied Palestinian territories

Israel will ‘act aggressively’ over Ben & Jerry’s ban, PM says

Palestinians not counting on change as Bennett replaces Netanyahu

Will Ben & Jerry’s, and its parent corporation Unilever, withstand the pressure and maintain its principled stand, or be forced to cave in? The questions will be a closely watched political and legal battle as Palestinian activists press US companies to boycott Israel.

“Ben and Jerry’s made a very courageous decision, and a risky decision,” said James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute in Washington, DC.

“It’s really significant to focus on the calculation. Businesses don’t usually do stuff like that. This was a big deal,” Zogby told Al Jazeera.

But Alan Jope, the chief executive of Unilever, on Thursday distanced himself from Ben & Jerry’s decision, telling investors “that Unilever remains fully committed to our business in Israel”.

Jope, however, pointed out that Unilever, when it bought the ice cream company in 2000, agreed to allow Ben & Jerry’s and its independent board to continue their social justice activism.

The Israeli government is now threatening to use controversial anti-boycott laws that pro-Israel advocates have won in more than 30 US states to try to punish the ice cream maker for its decision.

If Israel fails in criminalising Ben & Jerry’s actions, that is likely to set a crucial precedent as the world increasingly views Israel as an apartheid state subject to boycotts like South Africa in the 1980s.

“It becomes a political struggle,” Zogby said. “This will be a big test to see whether or not Ben and Jerry’s can get away with it.”
Israel’s reaction

Ben & Jerry’s announced its decision on July 19, saying in a statement posted on its website that continuing sales in occupied Palestinian territories are “inconsistent with our values” and acknowledging “concerns shared with us by our fans and trusted partners”.


Ben & Jerry’s said it intends to stay in Israel, but not the settlements which are widely deemed illegal in international law, although Israel disputes that.

The Israeli government’s reaction was swift. Israel Prime Minister Naftali Bennett telephoned the CEO of Unilever and warned of “severe consequences”. Israel would move “aggressively against any boycott”, Bennett said.

Israel Foreign Minister Yair Lapid issued a tweet threatening to invoke anti-boycott laws in the US to take enforcement action against the ice cream maker.

Gilad Erdan, Israel’s Ambassador to the US and the United Nations, followed up on July 20 announcing he had sent letters demanding action against Ben & Jerry’s to the governors of 35 US states seeking to reverse the company’s decision through economic pressure.

“We view this decision very severely as it is the de-facto adoption of antisemitic practices and advancement of the de-legitimisation of the Jewish state and the de-humanisation of the Jewish people,” Erdan said in the letter.
Anti-BDS laws

In the US, dozens of states and localities have passed so-called anti-BDS laws – a reference to the pro-Palestinian Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) Movement.

The laws vary from state to state but generally seek to empower local governments to ban or cancel contracts with companies – like Ben & Jerry’s – that come out in support of boycotts, sanctions, or divestment from Israel.

Many of these anti-boycott laws have been ruled unconstitutional by courts as infringements of the right to free speech, which is protected under US and state constitutions.

“It’s disturbing that we have foreign officials here trying to enlist US lawmakers in cracking down on one of our country’s most time-honoured constitutional rights, in order to suppress growing dissent against Israel’s violation of Palestinian rights,” said Amira Mattar, a lawyer at Palestine Legal, which tracks anti-BDS legislation across the US.

“With public scrutiny comes action, and Ben & Jerry’s decision shows companies are listening and when they take a stand, it shakes the Israel lobby,” Mattar told Al Jazeera.


“It’s no surprise. Ben & Jerry’s is under tremendous pressure and I am sure there are calls to backtrack their support for Palestinian rights,” she said.

In 2019, the online accommodation service Airbnb, under fierce legal and political pressure from Israel and its supporters, reversed a decision to delist properties in Israeli settlements.
Biden against BDS, Congress divided

The official position of the US government and the Biden administration is to oppose any moves to boycott Israel.

“We firmly reject the BDS movement, which unfairly singles out Israel,” US State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters this week.

In the US Senate, a bipartisan pair of senators have re-introduced anti-BDS legislation that has failed to gain sufficient support in the past.

“The boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement is the single most destructive campaign of economic warfare facing the Jewish state of Israel today,” Senator Marco Rubio, a Republican, said in June.

The bill seeks to address court decisions striking down state laws by attempting to give states a right to prevent business transactions with participants in the BDS movement. Courts in Texas, Maryland, Arkansas and Georgia have overturned anti-BDS state laws.

BDS gains momentum

Ben & Jerry’s move gives more credence to the worldwide BDS movement and the issue will complicate Bennett’s upcoming visit to the US in August, Palestinian advocates say.

“What has become clear is that Israel is committing the crime of apartheid,” said Huwaida Arraf, a Palestinian-American activist and lawyer.

A United Nations list of more than 100 firms operating in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank is a “warning to them of their complicity”, she told Al Jazeera.

On July 21, the Movement for Black Lives joined with the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights and the Adalah Justice Project to issue a joint statement in support of Ben & Jerry’s decision.

Israel’s anti-BDS drive against Ben & Jerry’s is likely to “backfire”, said Ahmad Abuznaid, executive director of the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights.

“A lot of activists are working on campaigns across the country targeting different corporations and they are taking notice,” Abuznaid told Al Jazeera.

SOURCE: AL JAZEERA

Illegal Aliens

Instead of worrying about Latino migrant workers Americans should worry about real illegal aliens. 

  It looks like a combination between a raccoon and a monkey, has a long tail and a taste for chicken. It has popped up around south Argyle, having been seen near Pleasant Valley Infirmary, North Road and near Route 40 in recent weeks. It’s apparently a coatimundi, a small mammal native to Central and South America that somehow has made it to the wilds of Washington County. Coatimundi look similar to monkeys, and Daniels said what he saw was swinging its arms as a monkey does. "I’m a hunter, and I’ve seen a lot of animals in the woods, but I’ve never seen anything like this before," he said. Ash said coatimundi eat mainly fruit, with some meat and eggs, but he said the ones he’s had haven’t targeted live animals. "They’re basically raccoons with a long nose and longer tail," he said. Ash said it’s ironic that the state does not allow residents to own native animals like raccoons or skunk, but residents can own a non-native species like a coatimundi without a permit. He said he’s aware of "three or four" other people in the area who have them.