Thursday, December 17, 2020

MN Legislators Visited Line 3 Construction Area Sunday to Express Solidarity With Pipeline Opponents

Palisade, MN - Six Minnesota legislators who oppose the pipeline in Northern Minnesota, five of them newly elected, will visit a construction area near Palisade.

Their visit demonstrates support for water protectors fighting to halt construction on a pipeline that violates Indigenous treaties and ignores tribal sovereignty. Honor the Earth leaders recently built a traditional lodge on the site. Legislators will meet with Honor the Earth Executive Director Winona LaDuke.

The Line 3 pipeline also is a climate catastrophe; it would be responsible for more carbon pollution that the entire state of Minnesota.

WHEN: Noon on Sunday, Dec. 13

WHERE: 59057 Great River Road in Palisade, MN

WHO:

Winona LaDuke of Honor the Earth
Rep.-elect Heather Keeler, District 4A, Moorhead
Sen.-elect Mary Kunesh, District 41, New Brighton
Sen. John Marty, District 66, Roseville
Sen.-elect Jen McEwen, District 7, Duluth
Sen.-elect Erin Murphy, District 64, St. Paul
Sen.-elect Lindsey Port, District 56, Burnsville

QUOTES:

“Approval of this pipeline despite years of opposition from Native communities is nothing less than yet another assault on Indigenous sovereignty. Spending thousands of pipeline workers into Northern Minnesota to build the pipeline in the middle of a pandemic is careless in a time when we should be trying to protect our communities. I join with my relatives in calling on Gov. Walz to order a halt to construction.” — Rep.-elect Heather Keeler, Moorhead

“I am pleased to meet with, and give my support to, Honor the Earth in their efforts to stop this destructive pipeline. Honor the Earth is speaking out for many whose voices have not been heard, despite the long permitting process. The perspectives of the Red Lake and White Earth Nations, who have rights to treaty lands through which this new pipeline will run, have not been taken into account. The Public Utilities Commission acknowledged that they omitted discussion of treaties from the order, believing they did not need to. The long history of abuse and mistreatment of Native communities and the unwillingness to respond to their grievances has gone on far too long.” -- Sen. John Marty, Roseville

[The growing involvement by legislators] "represents a shift in the way that we’re thinking about the climate crisis and the way we’re thinking about energy. Climate scientists have told us we have 10 years -- 10 years to remake our systems to create a clean energy-based economy. If we want to have a livable planet for our future and the generations to come, we simply cannot build new fossil fuel infrastructure. That ship has sailed. Most people understand this. The only reason the Line 3 expansion is moving forward is because a small group of powerful, wealthy interests wants to cash in before the fossil fuel industry tanks." -- Sen.-elect Jen McEwen, Duluth

###

CAIR Condemns Senate’s Failure to Block ‘Corrupt and Dangerous’ UAE Arms Deal, Calls on President-Elect Biden to Block Sale

WASHINGTON - The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today condemned the U.S. Senate's decision to permit the Trump administration's "corrupt and dangerous" 23-billion-dollar arms sale to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and called on the incoming Biden administration to cancel the sale upon taking office.

Last night, the Senate blocked two separate procedural bipartisan attempts to stop President Trump's arms sale to the UAE, failing to win a simple majority, 46-50 and 47-49 votes, respectively. The first resolution would have banned drones and munitions sales, while the second would have prevented the sale of F-35 fighter jets. The opposing pair of resolutions to the arms sale were introduced by Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Rand Paul (R-KY).

The arms sale is part of the larger National Defense Authorization Act, which was approved by the House of Representatives on Tuesday. Senate leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has said he expects the bill will pass the Senate before the end of the year.

The Hill: Senate rejects attempt to block Trump's UAE arms sale

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/529553-senate-rejects-attempt-to-block-trumps-uae-arms-sale

NBC News: Senate bid to block UAE arms sales falls short

In a statement, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said:

"Our government should not sell a single bullet to the UAE, much less billions of dollars in deadly military equipment. The UAE has committed war crimes in Yemen, bolstered dictators and suppressed democracy in the broader Arab world, and smeared Americans who dare to speak up against such human rights abuses.

"Now that the Senate has failed to block the Trump administration's corrupt and dangerous arms deal, the incoming Biden administration should support peace, democracy and human rights overseas by cancelling the sale upon taking office."

CAIR has previously called on the government to stop supporting other foreign governments that use American military to violate human rights, including Burma, Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and India.

SEE: CAIR Says Obama Must Act Against Massacre of Pro-Democracy Protesters in Egypt

SEE: CAIR Action Alert: Tell U.S. Senate ‘No Military Aid to Burma’ Because of Genocide of Rohingya Muslims

SEE: CAIR Action Alert: Support the ‘Promoting Human Rights by Ending Israeli Military Detention of Palestinian Children Act’

SEE: CAIR Welcomes Passage of Senate Bill Ending U.S. Military Involvement in Yemen

'Abuse of the court': Judge tosses lawsuit over Edmonton COVID-19 mask bylaw

A judge has tossed a lawsuit over the City of Edmonton’s COVID-19 mask bylaw, calling it an “abuse” of the court process.

BLUES ON WHYTE COMMERCIAL HOTEL

In August, Edmonton resident Glenn Miller filed a $565-million lawsuit against the city in an effort to overturn its mandatory face mask bylaw. Miller’s statement of claim made a variety of unsupported allegations, including that COVID-19 is a “hoax” and that Edmonton is acting as a “puppet” of “various world agencies.”

He later admitted he claimed the staggering sum to get the city’s attention, rather than to address any specific damages.

Court of Queen’s Bench Associate Chief Justice Kenneth Nielsen terminated the lawsuit Wednesday and left open the door for the City of Edmonton to apply to have Miller deemed a vexatious litigant.

“Mr. Miller sought a disproportionate or impossible remedy,” Neilsen wrote.

“His $565-million claim has no basis in law. Even if I were to accept Mr. Miller now indicating he never sought to obtain that amount, and that aspect of his lawsuit was ‘an attention-getting tactic,’ then Mr. Miller’s lawsuit was litigation for an improper purpose, and an abuse of the court.”

City council passed a bylaw this summer requiring face coverings in all publicly accessible indoor spaces including stores, restaurants and transit facilities. The bylaw was renewed in November and will be in place until the end of 2021 .

Miller filed his statement of claim on Aug. 24, alleging the mask bylaw created a “nuisance” and that the “real health crisis” is “the accumulation in litter caused by the discarding of unsanitary used face masks” in public places.

A clerk flagged the lawsuit as “apparently vexatious” and referred it to Neilsen, the Edmonton judge charged with screening potentially abusive court filings.

In response to a series of questions from Neilsen, Miller, who was not represented by a lawyer, claimed the mask bylaw violated his Charter protections against unreasonable search and seizure.

He went on to call the bylaw a “wanton act of nonsense, depravity, and illegal abuse,” and said “we may very well see another mandatory bylaw enacted by Edmonton council stating that all Jews must wear yellow stars.”
The City of Edmonton replied that Miller’s filing was “frivolous, vexatious, and an abuse of process” and asked it be struck.

Neilsen agreed, adding that “Mr. Miller does not deny that he is litigating not for himself but for a broader social purpose.”

“He is candid about the reason for his lawsuit: he is a self-declared community advocate who sued to alter policy decisions by political actors. That is a further reason why Mr. Miller’s lawsuit against Edmonton is an abuse of the court.”

Neilsen left the door open for the city to apply to have Miller deemed a vexatious litigant, which would present him from filing certain types of applications without the court’s approval.

The judge stopped short of ordering Miller to pay the city’s legal costs.

— With files from Dustin Cook

Iran jails British-Iranian researcher for nine years for subversion: report

DUBAI (Reuters) - A court in Iran has handed a nine-year jail sentence to British-Iranian anthropologist Kameel Ahmady, after convicting him of conducting “subversive” research work, the semi-official news agency Tasnim said on Sunday.

Ahmady was also fined 600,000 euros ($727,000) - the sum Iranian authorities said he received for his research from institutions accused of seeking to topple Iran’s Islamic government, Tasnim reported.

There was no immediate official comment on the sentence, which was also reported by other Iranian news agencies and a human rights groups, as well as by Ahmady’s lawyer, who said that he would appeal.

“Ahmady was accused of acquiring illicit property from his cooperation in implementing subversive institutions’ projects in the country,” Tasnim said.

Ahmady, an ethnic Kurd who had researched controversial issues such as child marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM) in Iran, was detained in August 2019 but released on bail three months later, according to human rights groups.

Ahmady said on Twitter he had been denied access to a lawyer during his detention.

“Contrary to all...hope for a fair trial, I was sentenced after being denied access to a lawyer during 100 days of detention and extrajudicial interrogations, and after two unprofessional trial sessions full of judicial violations,” Ahmady tweeted.

Ahmady’s lawyer, Amir Raesian, said his client had received an eight-year sentence for “collaborating with a hostile government”.

“We will present an appeal request against this ruling and we are still hopeful,” Raesian said on Twitter.

The reason for the apparent discrepancy about the length of Ahmady’s sentence was not immediately clear.

After Ahmady’s arrest, his wife told the New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran that his work was independent and published with government approval.

Rights activists have accused Iran of arresting dozens of dual nationals to try to win concessions from other countries - a charge that the Islamic republic has regularly dismissed.

Reporting by Dubai newsroom; Editing by Frances Kerry and Bernadette Baum

Wednesday, December 16, 2020

More than 130 anti-Lukashenko protesters detained in Belarus - rights group

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Police in Belarus detained 135 demonstrators at a Sunday march, the Belarusian rights group Viasna-96 (Spring-96) said, as weekly protests demanding the resignation of veteran President Alexander Lukashenko continued.

Belarus, a country of 9.5 million that Russia sees as a security buffer against NATO, has been rocked by mass protests since an Aug. 9 presidential election that Lukashenko said he won. His opponents say the vote was rigged.

More than 120 marches took place in the Belarus capital Minsk and other cities on Sunday, with numbers at each ranging from dozens to several hundred, according to local news outlet Nasha Niva. Police regularly arrest participants, issuing numbers of detainees on Mondays.

Some protesters marched in outlying residential areas of Minsk, waving white flags with a red stripe in the middle, a symbol of the opposition, and shouting “long live Belarus”.

More than 30,000 people have been detained in Belarus since the start of the protests in August, according to opposition leaders.

Lukashenko has been in power for 26 years. The European Union imposed travel bans and asset freezes on almost 50 Belarusian officials in protest over the election the West says was rigged and over Lukashenko’s crackdown on opponents.

Bloomberg News Chinese staff member detained in Beijing

By Yew Lun Tian, Tony Munroe

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese authorities have detained a Chinese national working for the Bloomberg News bureau in Beijing on suspicion of endangering national security, the news agency and China’s foreign ministry said on Friday.

According to a Bloomberg report, Haze Fan was seen being escorted from her apartment building by plain-clothes security officials on Monday, shortly after she had been in contact with one of her editors.

“Chinese citizen Ms. Fan has been detained by the Beijing National Security Bureau according to relevant Chinese law on suspicion of engaging in criminal activities that jeopardize national security,” the Chinese foreign ministry said in response to a Reuters query.

“The case is currently under investigation. Ms. Fan’s legitimate rights have been fully ensured and her family has been notified,” the ministry said.

The Beijing National Security Bureau could not immediately be reached for comment.

“We are very concerned for her, and have been actively speaking to Chinese authorities to better understand the situation,” a spokeswoman for New York-based Bloomberg said in an emailed statement to Reuters. “We are continuing to do everything we can to support her while we seek more information.”

Bloomberg editor-in-chief John Micklethwait and other senior editors told China-based staff that Chinese authorities had said Fan had not been detained in relation to her work, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed sources.

Fan has been at Bloomberg since 2017 and previously worked for Reuters, as well as for CNBC, Al Jazeera and CBS News, according to her LinkedIn profile.

China has expelled more than a dozen foreign journalists at U.S. media organizations this year by cancelling their press credentials as its relations with Washington have worsened.

QUEBEC INC.

Series of gaps allowed massive Desjardins data breach, privacy watchdog says

OTTAWA — A series of technological and administrative gaps caused a high-profile data breach at Desjardins — the largest to date in the Canadian financial services sector, the federal privacy watchdog has found.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien said Monday that Desjardins did not demonstrate the level of attention needed to protect the sensitive personal information entrusted to its care.

The incident compromised the data of nearly 9.7 million Canadians, the commissioner's report says.

"Canadians expect banking information to have a high level of protection, given its sensitivity," Therrien told a news conference..

"We recognize that's easier said than done for a financial institution given the amount of personal data it owns and the level of complexity of its systems. However, an organization such as Desjardins has the means to comply with the law."

For at least 26 months, a rogue employee was siphoning sensitive personal information collected by Desjardins from customers who had purchased or received products through the organization, Therrien found.

For some, the data included first and last names, dates of birth, social insurance numbers, street addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses and transaction histories.

"Such data elements can be considered sensitive on their own," the report said. "When combined, they can also be exploited by malicious individuals to steal the identities of the persons concerned."

This information was originally stored in two data warehouses to which the employee in question had limited access, the commissioner said.

However, other employees, in the course of their work, would regularly copy that information onto a shared computer drive. As a result, employees who would not usually have the required clearance or need to access some of the confidential data were able to do so, Therrien found.

Desjardins had recognized some of the security weaknesses that ultimately led to the breach and had developed a plan to remedy them, but did not put it in place in time to prevent what happened, Therrien noted.

The breach occurred over more than a two-year period before Desjardins became aware of it, and then only after the organization had been notified by police, he added.

The commissioner said his investigation sheds light on the risks posed by internal threats, whether they are intentional or not.

The probe revealed that Desjardins failed to meet several of its obligations under the federal privacy law governing companies. Therrien found:

— Desjardins did not ensure proper implementation of its policies and procedures for managing personal information, some of which were inadequate;

— The access controls and data segregation of the company's databases and directories were lacking;

— Employee training and awareness were inadequate, considering the sensitive nature of the personal information;

— Desjardins did not have proper procedures regarding the periodic destruction of personal information.

Desjardins agreed to recommendations to improve information security and the protection of personal data, Therrien said.

The company has committed to provide progress reports every six months as well as hire external auditors to assess and certify its programs.

"Ultimately, we are satisfied with the overall mitigation scheme that Desjardins is providing to affected individuals, which goes beyond what we have seen from other organizations," Therrien said.

In a statement, Desjardins said its investigation suggests 4.2 million people who had active accounts might have had their data disclosed; not the 9.7 million that includes people with inactive accounts as well.

But the institution said it has tightened controls. Desjardins created a 900-person security office with a budget starting at $150 million in 2019 and it's to expand its data-protection capabilities substantially in 2021.

"Desjardins has made great strides in information security over the past 18 months and will continue to apply international best practices," the statement said.

"Over the next few years, Desjardins will continue to work with other partners to create a digital identity platform for Canadians. This will allow information to be shared more securely and give people more control over their own information."

Therrien's office and the Commission d’accès à l’information du Québec, which also published a report Monday on the breach, agreed last year to co-ordinate their respective probes.

Diane Poitras, head of the Quebec commission, said the consequences of the lapse, the largest to occur in the province, "should convince any organization to implement all appropriate measures to prevent this type of incident from happening, something Desjardins failed to do."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 14, 2020.

Quebec's la Caisse and Desjardins pump $50m into fintech fund

https://www.finextra.com/newsarticle/31180/quebecs-la-caisse-and...

2017-10-11 · Quebec-based credit union association Desjardins Group and local pension fund la Caisse have created a fintech investment fund of up to $75 million. Desjardins and la Caisse …

GREEN CAPITALI$M

French blue-chips back climate risk disclosure code

PARIS (Reuters) - France’s blue-chip CAC-40 companies threw their support behind global recommendations on climate risk disclosures, a major Paris business organisation said on Saturday.

All 40 companies on the benchmark index endorsed the code developed by the international Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), Paris Europlace said.

The pledge came as President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson co-hosted an online U.N. event marking the fifth anniversary of the adoption of the Paris Agreement on climate change.

“We have very little time before us,” Macron told the meeting. “We need immediate action.”

The TCFD, established by the global Financial Stability Board, in 2017 published voluntary disclosure principles designed to inform investors of climate-related financial risk.

Despite supportive corporate statements, however, the level of climate risk disclosure in practice remains inadequate, the task force recently warned.

Reporting by Laurence Frost. Additional reporting by Elizabeth Pineau. Editing by Mark Potter

Apple CEO calls for stricter corporate, government climate goals at U.N. summit

(Reuters) - Apple Inc Chief Executive Tim Cook on Saturday called on governments and businesses to implement stronger climate targets starting next year, during remarks at the United Nations’ Climate Ambition Summit.

“We call on companies and governments around the world to do all we can to make 2021 the year we turn the corner for good,” Cook said, according to prepared remarks seen by Reuters.

Cook did not call for specific goals during his remarks but disclosed that Apple is assisting 95 of its suppliers to transition to renewable energy, up from a figure of 70 disclosed in July. The iPhone maker earlier this year said it has become carbon-neutral for its corporate operations and set out plans to make its full supply chain and product lineup carbon-neutral by 2030.

The summit is being held on the fifth anniversary of the international Paris climate agreement and ahead of U.N. talks next year in Glasgow, Scotland.

President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the Paris Agreement in 2017. Cook publicly criticized the withdrawal as “wrong for our planet,” though he did not name Trump in his criticism

GREEN CAPITALI$M

Amazon's autonomous vehicle startup Zoox just unveiled a robotaxi EV without a steering wheel that can go 16 hours without charging - see what it looks like

Amazon-owned autonomous-taxi company Zoox unveiled its first vehicle Monday.
Zoox designed the vehicle for cramped city streets, giving it the ability to drive in both directions and steer with all four wheels.

The electric vehicle can travel 16 hours between charging, Zoox said.

After six years in business, Zoox - Amazon's autonomous vehicle company - unveiled its first self-driving taxi.

The firm on Monday took the wraps off of an electric "purpose-built robotaxi" that it developed for its future ride-hailing service. The "carriage-style" vehicle has two bench seats that face one another and accommodates up to four passengers. It's designed to be fully self-driving and doesn't have a steering wheel.

© Zoox The firm's new vehicle will be deployed as part of a future ride-hailing service.

Zoox developed the vehicle to shuttle passengers around in dense urban environments. As such, it's only 143 inches long - shorter than a Mini Cooper. It also has bidirectional-driving capabilities and four-wheel steering, which enables it to maneuver in small spaces and change directions without needing to reverse.

The taxi has a top speed of 75 mph and can travel up to 16 hours on a full charge of its 133 kWh battery.

© Zoox The taxi seats four passengers.

With a system of lidar, radar, and cameras mounted at all four corners, Zoox said its vehicle eliminates "typical blind spots" and allows for a 270-degree view at each corner.

Zoox hasn't revealed when it will launch its ride-hailing service but confirmed to Bloomberg that it won't be in 2021. The company is currently testing its technology in Las Vegas, San Francisco, and Foster City

© Zoox is currently testing its technology in San Francisco, Foster City, and Las Vegas.

Zoox is one of several companies sprinting to bring autonomous vehicles to city streets. This year, Waymo and GM's Cruise announced plans to begin testing fully driverless cars to the streets of Phoenix and San Francisco, respectively.

And Cruise revealed its own dedicated, autonomous six-passenger vehicle called the Origin in January. But many major players integrate their automated-driving technology into existing cars - so Zoox's new taxi sets the company apart in that respect.

© Zoox said its system of radar, lidar, and cameras gets rid of typical blind spots.

The vehicle's debut comes as the autonomous-vehicle space has started to consolidate - the industry is coming to terms with how challenging it is to develop driverless cars without immense financial resources.

Amazon bought Zoox for a reported $1.2 billion earlier this year, and Aurora Innovation announced it would acquire Uber's self-driving division, Uber ATG, this month.

Read the original article on Business Insider

GREEN CAPITALI$M
Aptera has taken more than 3,000 orders for a new solar-powered EV arriving in 2021 that it says never needs to be charged

tlevin@businessinsider.com (Tim Levin)

Electric-vehicle startup Aptera has taken more than 3,000 orders for the futuristic, three-wheeled EV it launched this month.

Aptera claims it has built the first "never-charge solar vehicle," and says the vehicle's integrated solar panels can deliver thousands of miles of driving range each year.

The startup plans to start production in 2021 and deliver the first vehicles the same year.

Aptera launched its new solar-powered electric vehicle earlier this month, and after one week it has taken thousands of preorders.

The startup announced Friday that it accepted more than 3,000 reservations for its efficient three-wheeler from US and international customers, totaling to more than $100 million in sales. Within 24 hours after its December 4 launch, Aptera allocated all 330 reservations for its Paradigm and Paradigm Plus models, which it will build first once production begins.

However, seeing as one can reserve an Aptera vehicle with a refundable $100 deposit, the startup is still far from realizing that $100 million sales figure. As production nears, many of those preorder holders may give up their reservation for one reason or another.

© Aptera Motors Aptera's vehicles will cost $25,900 to $46,900 USD. Aptera Motors

Aptera was founded in 2005 and ran out of money in 2011, but reformed in 2019. This month, the startup debuted its new EV, a lightweight two-seater that it claims will offer up to a 1,000-mile range. There will also be lower-range models that can go 250, 400, and 600 miles on a charge, according to Aptera, and the lineup ranges in price from $25,900 to $46,900.

Aptera's bold "never-charge" claim stems from the 700W of integrated solar panels that it says can provide up to 45 miles of driving range per day or up to 11,000 miles per year. But the jury is still out on just how useful Aptera's solar capability will be - the mileage a buyer can expect will depend heavily on where they live, where they park, and the weather on a given day.

© Aptera Motors The vehicle's solar panels can provide 11.6-40.9 miles per day in the US, according to the firm's estimates. Aptera Motors

Aptera does recognize that and offers a solar calculator on its website that tells prospective buyers how much juice they can derive from the sun depending on their location. According to Aptera's calculations, most US drivers could drive an Aptera vehicle between 11.6 and 40.9 miles per day on solar power - but it's not clear yet how realistic those predictions are.

The company plans to start production in 2021 in San Diego and to begin delivering vehicles in 2021 and early 2022.