Fossil fuel investment in Africa dwarfs clean air funding

Patrick GALEY
Tue, September 6, 2022 


Foreign governments are spending more than 30 times more on fossil fuel projects in Africa than on initiatives to lessen the impacts of the continent's second-biggest killer, air pollution, research showed Wednesday.

The report, released on the International Day of Clean Air, showed how little donor nations spend on improving air quality while ploughing money into dirty energy and infrastructure projects across Africa.

The United Nations estimates that air pollution kills around nine million people globally each year, with fossil fuels accounting for two-thirds of the levels of harmful particulates humans are exposed to.

The financial benefits of improving air quality alone would far exceed the costs of slashing emissions to meet the Paris Agreement temperature goals, according to a landmark United Nations climate science assessment this year.

Yet, as Wednesday's analysis by the Clean Air Fund shows, US, European and Asian governments are still going ahead with fossil fuel-based development projects that will likely worsen already poor air quality in cities and along highways across Africa.

The fund found that just 0.3 percent of African countries' development assistance received between 2015-2021 had been specifically earmarked for air quality projects, despite pollution being responsible for some one in five deaths continent-wide.

During the same period, donor nations provided 36 times more funding for prolonging fossil fuel use in Africa.

"That difference alone is extremely startling," Dennis Appiah, head of the fund's Ghana office and a co-author of the report.

"I think it's also highlighted that most often governments are not paying attention to the issue of air pollution," he told AFP.

"Either they are not conscious of the impact of it, or they do not see it as a problem."

Appiah called air pollution a "silent killer" as its effects are far harder to see and message to communities compared with other climate-linked phenomena such as flooding.

- 'Death sentence' -

An ongoing population boom means Africa will be -- on current birth rates -- home to some 2.5 billion people by 2050, with the UN estimating that 26 countries will double their populations by then.

The vast majority of population growth will occur in urban areas, with much of the infrastructure needed to support increases yet to be built.

The continent is virtually blameless for climate change yet continues to be a hotspot for extreme events linked to global heating.

Appiah said that while Africa's development needs were huge, governments needed to prioritise sustainable ways of electrifying and connecting communities.

"Policymakers are stuck in going through the same traditional chain for development that we see in the West, and also in some of the Asian countries that are now suffering the consequences of some of those decisions," he said.

"I think Africa is positioned to take advantage of some of the technology which exists. We don't have to go through the same process (as developed countries), we can leapfrog to new technologies."

With renewable energy such as wind and solar already frequently cheaper than oil and fossil gas per kilowatt hour, the hope is that African governments can factor in the economic benefits of avoiding air pollution into their development plans.

In a preface to Wednesday's report, Ugandan activist Vanessa Nakate said that policies featuring new fossil fuel infrastructure in Africa were "a death sentence for people in communities like mine".

"It's time for governments to hear the voices of people all around the world who are calling for leaders to clean up our air and protect our health," she said.

pg/klm/lth

Extreme wildfires pollute the air people breathe

Drought and heatwaves are fueling a widening global fire front that is choking the air we breathe. A new report labels the pollution a 'climate penalty.'

Through the haze: The connection between climate change, wildfires

 and air pollution is becoming clearer

Longer droughts and more frequent heatwaves driven by global heating are fueling wildfires that worsen air quality, according to a new report by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

The wide-ranging consequences for both human health and ecosystems have been labeled a "climate penalty."

Polluted air could impact a quarter of world's population

"As the globe warms, wildfires and associated air pollution are expected to increase, even under a low-emissions scenario," said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas. "In addition to human health impacts, this will also affect ecosystems as air pollutants settle from the atmosphere to Earth's surface."

"This is a foretaste of the future because we expect a further increase in the frequency, intensity and duration of heatwaves, which could lead to even worse air quality, a phenomenon known as the 'climate penalty'," he said.

This penalty refers in part to how climate change amplifies the production of ground-level ozone.

This kind of ozone differs from high-altitude ozone, which shields the Earth from the sun's rays. Ground-level or surface ozone is a harmful pollutant that fouls the air people breathe.

The WMO report focuses on wildfire smoke in 2021, when wildfires across western North America and Siberia increased levels of particulate small matter, or PM2.5 (particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or smaller) that is harmful to human health.

Wildfires were still burning out of control in Spain in late August

Climate change and air pollution interconnected 

Air quality and climate are interconnected because the chemicals that degrade air quality are most often emitted together with greenhouse gases, according to the WMO. When forests or fossil fuels are burned and release carbon dioxide, they also emit nitrogen oxide, which can react with sunlight to create harmful ozone and nitrate aerosols.

These pollutants also impact natural ecosystems, negatively affecting clean water, biodiversity, carbon storage and crop yields.

The regions with the greatest projected climate penalty are predominantly in Asia and are home to around 25% of the world's population.

If global temperatures rise by 3 degrees Celcius (by 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit) from preindustrial levels by the end of the century, which is in line with current projected emissions, surface ozone levels are expected to increase across heavily polluted areas.

This includes a 20% rise across Pakistan, northern India and Bangladesh, and a 10% rise across eastern China.

Most of the ozone increase will be due to growing emissions from fossil fuel combustion, but around 20% will come from climate change impacts including increasing numbers of heatwaves.

A global, cross-border crisis

The WMO report was published ahead of the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies on September 7. 

This year's theme is The Air We Share, which focuses on the transboundary nature of air pollution.

An estimated 9 out of 10 people around the world breathe air that doesn't meet World Health Organization air quality guidelines, according to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) that organizes the event.

Stressing the need for collective accountability and action, UNEP highlights the need for international and regional cooperation to enact mitigation policies that tackle air pollution.

As the WMO report notes, mitigating climate change through worldwide carbon neutrality will be key to reducing heatwaves and the wildfires that accompany them.

While the total burned area worldwide has declined in the last 20 years — in part as forest and grassland areas recede — it has increased in parts of North America, the Amazon and Australia as the planet heats up.

As the world heats, fires will increasingly cause pollution in Asia 

like this heavy smog in New Delhi, India

Governments fund fossil fuels over air quality

Less than 1% of global government aid budgets allocated between 2015-2021 were devoted to projects tackling outdoor air pollution around the world.

Rather, four times as much was pumped into projects that prolong fossil fuel use, according to the Clean Air Fund, a London-based initiative that tackles air pollution.

African nations received just 0.3% of development assistance for air pollution between 2015 and 2021, despite poor air quality being the continent's second largest killer after HIV/AIDS, finds a new report published by the initiative on Wednesday.

As governments prepare to meet in Egypt for COP27, campaigners are calling for greater funding and policy commitments for alternative, low-carbon energy solutions that tackle air pollution and climate change.

"We have to cut support for fossil fuel projects," said Clean Air Fund Executive Director Jane Burston.

"Funding air pollution reduction makes good sense. It's a joined up approach to improving human health and tackling climate change at the same time."

CLIMATE CRISIS: A WORLD LACKING WATER
Famine risk on the Horn of Africa
Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are currently experiencing their worst drought in over 40 years after successive failed rainy seasons. The dry conditions have led to a severe food security issue in the region, with 22 million people at risk of starvation. More than 1 million people have been forced to leave their homes during the drought, which is expected to continue for months.
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Edited by: Kate Hairsine

Clean Air Day: U.N. warns 'the air that keeps us alive is making us sick'

United Nations scientists warn more needs to be done to curb air pollution as the world bodymarks the third "International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies" on Wednesday.

 Terry Schmitt/UPI | License Photo

Sept. 7 (UPI) -- United Nations scientists are warning "the air that keeps us alive is making us sick," as the UN marked the third "International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies" on Wednesday.

"Air pollution has often been seen as a very local, national problem," Martina Otto, head of the Secretariat for the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, said in an interview with U.N. News.

"Since pollutants are traveling in the air, and often for long distances, we can't solve this by isolated measures. It's the air we share, and that means we also have to share the solutions," Otto said.

The U.N. General Assembly adopted a resolution in 2019 designating Sept. 7 as the "International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies" to raise awareness and push for action to improve air quality.

The World Health Organization has warned over the last several years that almost all of the air we breathe is polluted. WHO scientists say polluted air kills around 7 million people every year. About 90% of those deaths take place in low and middle-income countries.

"The populations there have particular vulnerabilities, linked to the technologies they use for cooking, for heating their homes, for transportation and the kind of energy that is often used," said Nathan Borgford-Parnell, coordinator of Science Affairs for the Climate and Clean Air Coalition.

Borgford-Parnell warned it is vital for more people to recognize the link between pollution and climate change.

"Wildfires are human driven, yet some people try to act as if they're natural occurrences," Borgford-Parnell said.

"But the precipitous increase in wildfires in recent years, and the modeling that says that we're going to continue to see them increasing all over the world ... shows us that climate change will directly impact the burden of disease from air pollution caused by the wildfires," he said.

Scientists say solutions exist that can help reduce air pollution if implemented on a wide scale. Those include banning the open burning of waste, which allows methane to escape, city redesigns to reduce the need for transportation, and alternative fuels.

RELATED Natural gas from cooking stoves contains hazardous air pollutants

"It's no longer a blame game. It's about looking together at solutions, which lie in cooperation," Otto said. "It's a sustainable development issue: the very thing that keeps all of us alive breathing makes us sick, as well."

Middle-class Americans could be priced out of assisted living

By Dennis Thompson, HealthDay News
SEPT. 7, 2022 

The number of middle-income seniors in the United States is expected to nearly double by 2033, with 16 million people 75 or older making too much to qualify for government assistance but too little to afford comfortable living, a recent study found. 

Photo by Sabine van Erp/Pixabay

America's middle-income seniors could face a time of financial reckoning within the next decade, with the rising costs of healthcare and assisted living overwhelming their meager savings, a new study reports.

The number of middle-income seniors in the United States is expected to nearly double by 2033, with 16 million people 75 or older making too much to qualify for government assistance but too little to afford comfortable living, according to an analysis by NORC at the University of Chicago.

Three-quarters of seniors in the "Forgotten Middle" -- 11.5 million seniors -- won't be able to pay for private assisted living unless they have a house to sell, the study concludes.

And nearly 40% of those with a house won't be able to afford assisted living anyway, the researchers added.

RELATED  Staffing crisis leads to shortage of nursing home beds in U.S.

"Not everyone is going to want assisted living, but middle-income seniors may not be able to pay for even many of the other paid intensive caregiving services" that could help keep them in their homes, said report lead author Caroline Pearson, senior vice president at NORC.

"We really have no long-term care system in this country that is going to appropriately support middle-income older adults," Pearson said. "And so particularly as the baby boomers begin to age and have more health needs, we're going to see a growing number of folks that aren't able to live fully independently and may not have the financial resources to pay for the housing or care that they need."

The new study in Health Affairs is an update of the 2019 "Forgotten Middle" report that drew attention to the squeeze that middle-income seniors will face as they enter what should be their golden years. That first report projected out to 2029, while this new study projects to 2033.

RELATED Study finds hospice improves quality of life for dementia patients

For the new report, researchers at NORC looked at people aged 60 and older in 2018, since they will by 75 or older in 2033. The researchers assessed that group's expected health problems and financial resources, to characterize the challenges they might face as they age.

Who is 'middle income'? THE WORKING CLASS

Middle-income seniors are characterized as having an annual income between $26,500 and $79,000 in 2018 dollars for those 75 to 84, including assets. For those 85 or older, the income range is $26,000 and $101,000 a year.


Between 53% and 55% of middle-income seniors are expected to have three or more chronic health problems by 2033, while between 50% and 68% will have mobility limitations, the researchers project. Between 27% and 40% will be suffering some form of cognitive impairment.

These are the folks for whom assisted living could be desirable, but they'll need an average $65,000 annually to pay for it, Pearson said. The average Social Security benefit currently is just over $19,000 a year.

"Now that's actually 2018 dollars, so it probably gets closer to $70,000 by the time we get to 2033," Pearson said, "but that's $65,000 a year just to sort of get the housing and healthcare required."

Further, Pearson warns these are likely to be "optimistic estimates," and that even some apparently well-off seniors could find themselves struggling to afford care and housing.

"We have projected based on historical economic trends, and the period of historical financial performance has been relatively prosperous," Pearson said. "If you believe that our financial outlook is about to turn, then actually more people who fall into the higher income groups may see their savings growth diminished in a way that would actually also make them vulnerable to the Forgotten Middle problem.

Ramsey Alwin, president and CEO of the National Council on Aging, said the findings are "not surprising at all, and that's what is so heart-wrenching."

Safety net is fully stretched

"It really is an illustration of how the existing social safety net has been stretched as far as it can," Alwin said. "Social Security was never intended to be the sole source of income in old age. Medicare is an important foundational piece of the puzzle, but it, too, has holes. And Medicaid has such a low, low income eligibility level that many of the people we're talking about in the middle, they're just not going to qualify."

The only option for many of these middle-income seniors will be to drain their savings to the point where they qualify for Medicaid, which pays for assisted living for low-income Americans, Pearson said.

People get by with what they can, Pearson said. "A lot of these people rely on unpaid caregiving from family members and friends. If that is insufficient, then ultimately they begin to pay for care and deplete their financial resources, and eventually they may qualify for Medicaid," she added.

Each state has a network of social programs that can help seniors with such things as food, utilities and property taxes, but these can be difficult to find and access, Alwin said.

"That can put hundreds to thousands of dollars back into their wallet if they're eligible, but they really do have to navigate those eligibility limits," Alwin said of these assistance programs. "And in many cases, those eligibility guidelines are benchmarked against the very antiquated federal poverty measure that was created in the 1960s."

Pearson and Alwin agreed that federal social insurance programs need to be re-evaluated and strengthened, taking into account the needs of these middle-income seniors.

But there's also room for innovation outside government, particularly when it comes to in-home care for seniors, Pearson said.

"Today, getting a diversity of in-home supports requires a lot of management. You've got to talk to the home health agency. You've got to get a home care provider. You potentially need people to do services just taking care of the physical property. You need meals delivered. There's this whole set of different needs that someone has to stitch together for the older adults," Pearson said.

"And I think there's a lot of opportunity there to offer packages of support where it's a one-stop shop," Pearson continued. "People can go be assessed for the kinds of support services that they need, and then someone else is making sure that those services get to the home and to the older adults."

More information

The University of Massachusetts, Boston, has an Elder Index that projects the income you need to remain independent based on where you live. The National Council on Aging's benefits check-up site can help you locate benefits programs in your area.

Copyright © 2022 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

THE MIDDLE CLASS IS A MYTH

THERE IS THE WORKING CLASS WHO EARNS WHAT SOCIOLOGISTS CALL A MIDDLE INCOME, ABOVE POVERTY TO BELOW $100,000, NOW INCLUDING AS THOSE EARNING $100,000-$400,000(UNION WORKERS)

THE OTHER MYTH FROM THE SOCIOLOGISTS OF THE SIXTIES IS CONSUMERISM TRUMPS BLUE COLLAR WORK

(THE BEGINING OF THE SERVICE ECONOMY) 

IN FACT CONSUMERS ARE JUST ANOTHER NAME FOR WORKERS WITH PAYCHECKS.

TIME OFF MONTHLY IS A UNION ISSUE

Nearly two-thirds of women experience premenstrual mood swings, anxiety

By HealthDay News

Just over 85% of the women surveyed about their menstrual cycle said they had food cravings, about 64% reported mood swings or anxiety and 57% felt fatigue. 

File Photo by StockSnap/Pixabay

A majority of women experience premenstrual mood swings and anxiety, making it a "key public health issue globally," a new study finds.

Researchers found that 64% of women experience these symptoms, which disrupt their daily lives.

"Our study demonstrates that premenstrual mood symptoms are incredibly common worldwide," said senior study author Dr. Jennifer Payne, director of the Reproductive Psychiatry Research Program at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. "More important, a majority of women reported that their premenstrual symptoms interfered with their everyday life at least some of the time."

For the study, the researchers analyzed more than 238,000 survey responses from women aged 18 to 55 in 140 countries using an app called Flo, which helps women track their menstrual cycle, mood and physical symptoms.

RELATED Shorter menstrual cycles linked to earlier menopause, more symptoms

Just over 85% of the women surveyed said they had food cravings, about 64% reported mood swings or anxiety and 57% felt fatigue. Nearly 29% of participants said their premenstrual symptoms interfered with their everyday life during every menstrual cycle, while about 35% said these symptoms interfered sometimes.

"The incidence of reported premenstrual mood and anxiety symptoms varied significantly by country, from a low of 35.1% in Congo to a high of 68.6% in Egypt," Payne said in a university news release. "Understanding whether differences in biology or culture underlie the country level rates will be an important future research direction."

Older respondents were more likely to report absentmindedness, low libido, sleep changes, gastrointestinal symptoms, weight gain, headaches, sweating or hot flashes, fatigue, hair changes, rashes and swelling. This "makes sense," the researchers said, because many of these symptoms are also associated with perimenopause, a time in which women experience symptoms including irregular menstrual cycles as they transition toward menopause.

RELATED 'Medical gaslighting' is common, especially among women

Payne hopes the findings, published online recently in the Archives of Women's Mental Health, will help women get better care by helping healthcare providers become more aware of how frequently women are experiencing these symptoms.

"There are a number of treatment strategies that are available to treat premenstrual symptoms that interfere with a woman's every day functioning," she said. "Increasing awareness of how common these symptoms are, and that if they impact functioning that there are treatments available, will help women improve their quality of life."

More information

The Office on Women's Health has more on premenstrual syndrome.

Copyright © 2022 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

10 protesters arrested after dousing British Parliament gates with paint

Sept. 7 (UPI) -- Police in London arrested nearly a dozen animal-rights protesters on Wednesday when they doused the gates of British Parliament with white paint.

Authorities said that 10 demonstrators were arrested for the stunt, which happened out front of the Palace of Westminster.

The group to which the protesters belong, Animal Rebellion, said the white paint represented milk and was intended to draw attention to the "destruction and cruelty" of the dairy industry.

The group also blocked a road outside Parliament Square.



Animal Rebellion also said the protest called on new British Prime Minister Liz Truss to ban meat consumption.

Truss succeeded Boris Johnson as prime minister on Tuesday and she already faces multiple crises, ranging from the war in Ukraine to rising energy prices to shortages of healthcare workers.

Two Animal Rebellion protesters glued themselves to each other and another was hauled away after sitting in the middle of the road in Parliament Square.

"Animal Rebellion is calling on the government and [Truss] to support farming and fishing communities to move away from animal farming and fishing as part of an urgent transition to a plant-based food system and then re-wild the freed-up land as a result," Animal Rebellion said in a tweet Wednesday.

"The road has been blocked just in front of Big Ben. The landmark also just got a new coat of white paint to represent the destruction and cruelty of the dairy industry. This follows four days of disruptive action as part of the plant-based future campaign."

British livestock veterinarian Alice Brough supports Animal Rebellion and has questioned Truss' appointment of Ranil Jayawardena as environment secretary.

"[Their] attitude of prioritizing free trade, no matter the cost, has shown shocking neglect for British farmers," Brough said according to The Telegraph.

"And therefore the rest of us struggling with the cost-of-living crisis."

U.S. bars firms with CHIPS funding from building leading-edge China factories

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told reporters Tuesday that they are implementing so-called guardrails to its CHIPS act in order to prevent taxpayer money from compromising national security. Photo by Yuri Gripas/UPI | License Photo


Sept. 7 (UPI) -- U.S. companies that receive funding from a bill that aims to boost domestic manufacturing of semiconductor chips will be prohibited for a decade from building advanced technology facilities in China, the Biden administration said, citing national security concerns.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo announced the condition Tuesday during a White House press conference discussing the implementation strategy for the $50 billion CHIPS and Science Act that President Joe Biden signed into law last month.

The act provides tens of billion of dollars worth of federal grants for domestic semiconductor manufacturing and research, and comes amid a global shortage of the electronic component.

Raimondo described the China prohibition as one of the many taxpayer protections and guardrails that are part of the act's implementation strategy to prevent companies that receive funds from compromising U.S. national security.

"They're not allowed to use this money to invest in China. They can't develop leading-edge technologies in China. They can't send latest technology overseas," she said.

Companies that receive CHIPS funding will only be able to expand their so-called mature node factories in the Asian country that serve only the Chinese market, she said.

Other taxpayer protections include prohibitions on using CHIPS funding on stock buybacks as well as the hiring of experts who will be charged with negotiating deals for the funds with the private companies that will need to prove the money they request is "absolutely necessary," she said.

"They're not going to get any more than necessary to make these investments," she said.

The Commerce Department expects to be able to receive applications for CHIPS funding no later than February, Raimondo added.

Biden had promoted the CHIPS Act as an important tool in securing national and economic security.

In late July as lawmakers were still contemplating how to cast ballots on the act, Biden argued that despite having invented the semiconductor, the United States now relies on Taiwan and China for the crucial technological component, which puts U.S. industries, including its defense industry, in a "fragile" position.

"Should China decided to withhold its production or inhibit Taiwan from exporting its chips or building them, we would have a serious economic and, eventually, national security issue on hands," he said during the teleconference.

During her press conference in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, Raimondo said that the past year has shown the impact the chip shortage has had on families.

Rising car prices have driven a third of inflation due to the dearth in supply for the electronic components, she said, adding that it has also resulted in factory workers laid off and bare shelves where once appliances for sale sat.

"With this funding, we're going to make sure that the United States is never again in a position where our national security interests are compromised or key industries are immobilized due to our inability to produce essential semiconductors here at home," she said.

F-35 deliveries suspended after materials from China discovered

The Pentagon halted delivery of F-35 jets Wednesday after a component used in the jet's engine was found to have come from China. File Photo by Lance Cpl. Tyler Harmon/U.S. Marine Corps

Sept. 7 (UPI) -- The Pentagon on Wednesday halted delivery of F-35 fighter jets to the military branches and international customers after it was discovered that a metal component used in the jet's engines came from China.

The Defense Contract Management Agency notified the F-35 Joint Program office Aug. 19 that an alloy used in magnets contained in the jets turbomachine pumps was of Chinese origin.

Lockheed Martin makes the aircraft, but the turbomachine is made by Honeywell. A spokesperson for the F-35 Joint Program Office said there was no security risk.

"We have confirmed that the magnet does not transmit information or harm the integrity of the aircraft and there are no performance, quality, safety or security risks associated with this issue, and flight operations for the F-35 in-service fleet will continue as normal," F-35 Joint Program Office spokesman Russell Goemaere said in a statement to Politico.

The problem was discovered after Honeywell learned from one of its suppliers that another supplier had used alloy sourced from China. Honeywell then reported it to Lockheed Martin.

"We are working with our partners and the DoD to ensure contractual compliance within the supply chain," Lockheed Martin spokesperson Laura Siebert said in a statement.

"The magnet has no visibility or access to any sensitive program information. The F-35 remains safe for flight, and we are working with the DoD to resolve the issue as quickly as possible to resume deliveries."

The F-35 is flown by the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps, along with 10 other countries. Lockheed said that it has delivered 88 F-35s this year and it is on track to deliver 148-153.

Appeals court upholds Washington State's conversion therapy ban


Sept. 7 (UPI) -- A three-judge panel has dismissed a challenge to Washington State's ban on so-called conversion therapy, ruling state legislators who passed the law were right to prevent licensed healthcare providers from performing the controversial practice on minors.

The 66-page ruling on Tuesday comes in a challenge brought last year by licensed marriage and family therapist Robert Tingley against the state's 2018 law that bans healthcare professionals from performing conversion therapy on those under 18 years of age under threat of disciplinary action.




Tingley claimed the law chilled his speech and caused him to self-censor in violation of his First Amendment rights, while also arguing the ban was unconstitutional vague, and in contravention the 14th Amendment.

While the three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit viewed Tingley had standing for them to view the case, they unanimously ruled Tuesday that the Washington State legislature "rationally acted" by amending its regulatory scheme for licensed healthcare providers to add that performing conversion therapy on minors to its list of unprofessional conduct.

"States do not lose the power to regulate the safety of medical treatments performed under the authority of a state license merely because those treatments are implemented through speech rather than through scalpel," Judge Ronald Gould wrote in the ruling.

"The Washington legislature acted rationally when it decided to protect the 'physical and psychological well-being' of its minors by preventing state-licensed healthcare providers from practicing conversion therapy on them."

Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a brief statement that Tuesday's ruling "protects LGBTQ+ youth."

"We must keep fighting to defend freedom and uphold science from those seeking to deny identity and take rights away," he said.

So-called conversion therapy is psychological interventions that seek to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity, and has been widely panned by medical organizations.

Washington State is one of more than 20 in the nation to have implemented laws that prevent minors from being subjected to the controversial practice, and the judges on Tuesday said the state relied upon scientific evidence to prohibit the practice on children, regardless of religious beliefs.

Tingley had argued the law violated one's freedom of religion and freedom of exercise under the First Amendment, stating the legislature knew that most people sought conversion therapy for religious reasons.

However, the three-judge panel rejected this argument on the grounds that the legislature was aware people seek conversion therapy also for secular reasons, including social stigma, family rejection and societal intolerance for sexual minorities.

"Affirming the dismissal of Tingley's challenge under the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment, the panel held that the law was a neutral law targeted at preventing the harms associated with conversion therapy, and not at the religious exercise of those who wish to practice this type of therapy on minors," Gould wrote.

The judges also rejected Tingley's claim that the law was unconstitutionally vague, specifically due to its use of the terms "sexual orientation" and gender identity."

"Neither term is unconstitutionally vague," Gould said. "'Sexual orientation' and 'gender identity' have common meanings that are clear to a reasonable person -- let alone a licensed mental health provider."

Mathew Shurka, cofounder of Born Perfect, a campaign to end conversion therapy by the National Center for Lesbian Rights, said laws such as the one passed by Washington State are critical to protecting minors from unethical therapists.

"As a survivor of more than five years of conversion therapy, I know firsthand how damaging these practices are to young people and their families," Shurka said in a statement emailed to UPI. "The medical community has rejected these practices because they are harmful, ineffective and unnecessary.


"Being LGBTQ is not a mental health disorder. Trying to change such a fundamental aspect of a person's identity not only impossible, it is profoundly dangerous and cases serious, lasting harm."

Read Gov. Wolf signs EO to ban conversion therapy in Pennsylvania

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M
Three Pa. Dunkin' Donuts locations fined $24,000 for child work violations


Three Dunkin' Donuts locations in Pennsylvania have been fined more than $24,000 in child labor law violations for allowing teenagers to work longer and later hours. 

File photo by JStone/Shutterstock.com

Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Three Pennsylvania Dunkin' Donuts locations have been fined more than $24,000 for allowing teenagers to work longer and later hours, according to the Labor Department.

A federal investigation found that franchisee Akshar Ashish LLC, who owns the Dunkin' Donuts locations Hershey, Hummelstown and Palmyra, violated child labor laws in the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Labor Department said 14-and-15-year-old employees were allowed to work more than three hours a day on a school day. They also worked past 7 p.m. on a school night and worked more than 18 hours a week during a regular school week.

The Labor Department also found the 39 underaged teens worked more than eight hours on a non-school day and worked past 9 p.m. during summer break.

Akshar Ashish LLC paid $24,332 due to the "willful nature of the violations," according to the department.

"Employers who choose to hire young workers have a legal responsibility to know and abide by the federal laws that govern their employment," said Alfonso Gristina, wage and hour district director in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. "These obligations include ensuring minors only work during permitted hours, so employment does not interfere with their education, health and well-being."

Besides the fine, the Dunkin' Donuts locations will have to conduct child labor training with managers and provide child labor publications to minors under the age of 16 and their guardians. The donut shops have also agreed to require minors to wear different colored name tags so managers can easily identify them as under the age of 16.

Other fast-food chains have faced similar child labor violations for overworking younger teenage employees. A Chick-fil-A in Tampa paid more than $12,000 in fines in August and a Jersey Mike's paid more than $24,000 in June for violations at 10 locations in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Oregon.

CRIMINAL KAPITALI$M

FTC orders Credit Karma to pay consumers $3M in settlement

The Federal Trade Commission is ordering credit monitoring company Credit Karma to pay a collective $3 million back to its prospective customers, Bureau of Consumer Protection Director Samuel Levine confirmed on Tuesday. 

Photo by Anna Moneymaker


Sept. 6 (UPI) -- The Federal Trade Commission is ordering credit monitoring company Credit Karma to pay a collective $3 million back to its prospective customers, the commission confirmed in a news release Tuesday.

The deal between the FTC and the San Francisco credit monitoring company is to settle claims the company misled consumers with false promises of pre-approval for credit offers.

"The FTC alleges that the company used claims that consumers were 'pre-approved' and had '90% odds' to entice them to apply for offers that, in many instances, they ultimately did not qualify for," the commission said in a news release.

The commission's order requires the company to send $3 million to consumers who spent time applying for credit cards. It also forces Credit Karma to "stop making these types of deceptive claims."

Nearly a third of users who applied for credit cards labeled as pre-approved were later denied after a credit check. The credit checks ultimately had a negative impact on consumers' credit scores, according to the FTC complaint.

Credit Karma's tools allow consumers to monitor their credit scores and reports.

To use the company's services, consumers must provide a host of personal information, allowing the company to collect more than 2,500 data points per person, including credit and income information.

"Credit Karma's false claims of 'pre-approval' cost consumers time and subjected them to unnecessary credit checks," Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection said in a statement.

"The FTC will continue its crackdown on digital dark patterns that harm consumers and pollute online commerce."

While acknowledging the settlement, the company disagreed with the allegations.

"We fundamentally disagree with the FTC's allegations about marketing terms that aren't even in use anymore, but ultimately we reached this agreement to avoid disruption to our mission and maintain our focus on helping our members find the financial products that are right for them," Credit Karma Chief Legal Officer Susannah Wright said in a statement.

"Our industry-leading technology provides the transparency our members need to shop for financial products with more confidence."