California governor signs law banning all plastic shopping bags at grocery stores

Associated Press
Sun, September 22, 2024 

FILE - A plastic bag sits along a roadside in Sacramento, Calif., Oct. 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)


SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — “Paper or plastic” will no longer be a choice at grocery store checkout lines in California under a new law signed Sunday by Gov. Gavin Newsom that bans all plastic shopping bags.

California had already banned thin plastic shopping bags at supermarkets and other stores, but shoppers could purchase bags made with a thicker plastic that purportedly made them reusable and recyclable.

The new measure, approved by state legislators last month, bans all plastic shopping bags starting in 2026. Consumers who don't bring their own bags will now simply be asked if they want a paper bag.


State Sen. Catherine Blakespear, one of the bill's supporters, said people were not reusing or recycling any plastic bags. She pointed to a state study that found that the amount of plastic shopping bags trashed per person grew from 8 pounds (3.6 kilograms) per year in 2004 to 11 pounds (5 kilograms) per year in 2021.

Blakespear, a Democrat from Encinitas, said the previous bag ban passed a decade ago didn't reduce the overall use of plastic.

“We are literally choking our planet with plastic waste,” she said in February.

The environmental nonprofit Oceana applauded Newsom for signing the bill and "safeguarding California’s coastline, marine life, and communities from single-use plastic grocery bags.”

Christy Leavitt, Oceana’s plastics campaign director, said Sunday that the new ban on single-use plastic bags at grocery store checkouts “solidifies California as a leader in tackling the global plastic pollution crisis.”

Twelve states, including California, already have some type of statewide plastic bag ban in place, according to the environmental advocacy group Environment America Research & Policy Center. Hundreds of cities across 28 states also have their own plastic bag bans in place.

The California Legislature passed its statewide ban on plastic bags in 2014. The law was later affirmed by voters in a 2016 referendum.

The California Public Interest Research Group said Sunday that the new law finally meets the intent of the original bag ban.

“Plastic bags create pollution in our environment and break into microplastics that contaminate our drinking water and threaten our health,” said the group’s director Jenn Engstrom. “Californians voted to ban plastic grocery bags in our state almost a decade ago, but the law clearly needed a redo. With the Governor’s signature, California has finally banned plastic bags in grocery checkout lanes once and for all.”

As San Francisco’s mayor in 2007, Newsom signed the nation’s first plastic bag ban.

Authoritarianism Expert Spots New Donald Trump Boast That ‘Sends A Chill Down My Spine’

Lee Moran
Updated Mon, September 23, 2024 at 7:05 AM MDT·3 min read
1.6k

Authoritarianism expert Ruth Ben-Ghiat on Sunday summed up former President Donald Trump’s latest brag as “fascist talk.”

Trump, the Republican nominee, who has repeatedly boasted about his role in overturning Roe v. Wade that ended the constitutional right to abortion, this weekend declared at a campaign rally and also on his Truth Social platform that if he wins the 2024 election, “Women will be happy, healthy, confident and free. You will no longer be thinking about abortion, because it is now where it always had to be, with the states, and with the vote of the people.”

Ben-Ghiat, appearing on MSNBC’s “The Weekend” show, responded, “It sends a chill down my spine when Donald Trump says women won’t have to think about abortion anymore because he also said something similar about voting when he talked to a group of evangelicals.”

“He said, ‘After this election, you will not have to vote anymore,’ as if voting is a kind of burden,” continued the history professor at New York University. “And so this is fascist talk, where the fascist leader says, ‘I will free you from all decision-making. Just trust in me and you will not have to worry about any problems anymore.’”

Watch from the 4:30 mark here:


In a separate interview on MSNBC’s “Ayman” show, Ben-Ghiat drew damning parallels between the “dehumanizing rhetoric” that Trump and his running mate JD Vance are using towards immigrants to that spewed by Nazi German dictator Adolf Hitler.

On Hitler’s ascent to power in 1933, Ben-Ghiat noted that Germans had been hearing him slam and dehumanize Jews for more than a decade.

“One thing about propaganda is that you hear extreme things over and over again then they don’t seem so extreme anymore and they become familiar,” she explained. “Now Americans have been hearing Trump malign immigrants for almost a decade now and so what Trump’s method is, is to slowly introduce more and more extreme ideas.”

Trump and Vance are now “introducing this idea of remigration, which is really scary, because this is an idea that’s very popular with the most extreme far-right people in Europe and it holds that you should be deported and sent back to your country of origin regardless of your citizenship status because if you really want a racial state, a white-ethno state, then whether you’re legal or illegal doesn’t matter,” she said.

It’s been “a journey of language and a journey of concepts that these people have very knowingly taken Americans on” and it’s “really disturbing,” she added.

Watch that interview here:

 

Tugboat powered by ammonia sails for the first time, showing how to cut emissions from shipping

JENNIFER McDERMOTT and MICHAEL HILL
Updated Mon, September 23, 2024 

 

KINGSTON, N.Y. (AP) — On a tributary of the Hudson River, a tugboat powered by ammonia eased away from the shipyard dock and sailed for the first time to show how the maritime industry can slash planet-warming carbon dioxide emissions.

The tugboat used to run on diesel fuel. The New York-based startup company Amogy bought the 67-year-old ship to switch it to cleanly-made ammonia, a new, carbon-free fuel.

The tugboat’s first sail on Sunday night is a milestone in a race to develop zero-emissions propulsion using renewable fuel. Emissions from shipping have increased over the last decade — to about 3% of the global total according to the United Nations — as vessels have gotten much bigger, delivering more cargo per trip and using immense amounts of fuel oil.

CEO Seonghoon Woo said he launched Amogy with three friends to help the world solve a huge, pressing concern: This backbone of the global economy has not started to transition to clean energy yet.

“Without solving the problem, it’s not going to be possible to make the planet sustainable,” he said. “I don’t think this is the problem of the next generation. This is a really big problem for our generation.”

The friends met while studying at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In their free time during the COVID-19 pandemic, they brainstormed how to power heavy industries cleanly. They launched their startup in November 2020 in a small space at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The name Amogy comes from combining the words ammonia and energy.

They looked for a boat and found the tug in the Feeney Shipyard in Kingston, New York, languishing without a mission. It could break ice, but little to no ice has formed on that part of the Hudson River in recent years, so it was available for sale.

“It represents how serious the problem is when it comes to climate change,” Woo said. The project, he said, is "not just demonstrating our technology, it’s really going to be telling the story to the world that we have to fix this problem sooner than later.”

They named the tugboat NH3 Kraken, after the chemical formula for ammonia and their method of “cracking” it into hydrogen and nitrogen. Amogy's system uses ammonia to make hydrogen for a fuel cell, making the tug an electric-powered ship. The International Maritime Organization set a target for international shipping to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by, or close to, 2050.

Shipping needs to cut emissions rapidly and there are no solutions widely available today to fully decarbonize deep-sea shipping, according to the Global Maritime Forum, a nonprofit that works closely with the industry. There is a lot of interest in ammonia as an alternative fuel because the molecule doesn’t contain carbon, said Jesse Fahnestock, who leads the forum’s decarbonization work.

Ammonia is widely used for fertilizer, so there is already infrastructure in place for handling and transporting it. Ton for ton, it can hold more energy than hydrogen, and it can be stored and distributed more easily.

“It certainly has the potential to be a main or even the main fuel,” Fahnestock said. “It has a potentially very friendly greenhouse gas footprint.”

Ammonia does have drawbacks. It's toxic. Nearly all of it currently is made from natural gas in a process that is harmful for the climate. And burning it has to be engineered carefully or it, too, yields traces of a powerful greenhouse gas.

Amogy’s technology is different.

The tugboat ran on green ammonia produced by renewable electricity. A 2,000-gallon tank fits in the old fuel tank space, for a 10-to 12-hour day at sea.

It splits liquid ammonia into its constituents, hydrogen and nitrogen, then funnels the hydrogen into a fuel cell that generates electricity for the vessel without carbon emissions. The process does not burn ammonia like a combustion engine would, so it primarily produces nitrogen in its elemental form and water as emissions. The company says there are trace amounts of nitrogen oxides that it's working to completely eliminate.

Amogy first used ammonia to power a drone in 2021, then a tractor in 2022, a semi-truck in 2023, and now the tugboat to prove the technology. Woo said their system is designed to be used on vessels as small as the tugboat and as large as container ships, and could also make electricity on shore to replace diesel generators for data centers, mining and construction, or other heavy industries.

The company has raised about $220 million. Amazon, an enterprise with immense needs for shipping, is among the investors. Nick Ellis, principal of Amazon’s $2 billion Climate Pledge Fund, said the company is excited and impressed by what Amogy is doing. By investing, Amazon can show ship owners and builders it wants its goods delivered with zero emissions, he added.

“Many folks will now get a chance to see and understand how real and promising this technology is, and that it could actually be in container ships or tugboats in a matter of a few years,” he said. “If you would've asked five years ago, I think a lot of people would have thrown up their hands ... And suddenly we have not only a compelling example, but a commercially-viable example. These types of things don’t come by every day.”

Other companies are developing ammonia-powered ships that still use some diesel.

In Singapore in March, Fortescue's Green Pioneer vessel showed how ammonia could be used in combination with diesel as a marine fuel. An ammonia-powered container ship, the Yara Eyde, will be on water in 2026 with an engine running on green ammonia, according to Yara Clean Ammonia. In Japan, the NYK Group converted the tugboat Sakigake to run on ammonia rather than liquified natural gas.

As a next step, Amogy is working with major shipbuilders to bring ammonia power to the maritime sector. South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean is purchasing its technology. HD Hyundai and Samsung Heavy Industries are working with Amogy on ship designs.

Sangmin Park said that because Amogy has made significant progress in proving ammonia's potential as a clean fuel, “we expect the industry to move towards adoption more quickly.” Park is senior vice president at HD Hyundai subsidiary HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering.

“For the past few years, the industry has recognized the potential of ammonia as a zero-carbon fuel,” Park wrote in an email, “but actually building and sailing the first vessel is a true landmark event.”

___

McDermott reported from Providence, R.I.


Amogy completes first sailing of ammonia-powered vessel

Noah Bovenizer
Tue, September 24, 2024 



Maritime technology company Amogy has conducted the first sailing of its ammonia-powered demonstration vessel in a significant step for the development of its carbon-free solution.

The retrofitted NH3 Kraken tugboat conducted its first sailing with Amogy’s ammonia-to-electrical power system on a tributary of the Hudson River in New York, US in the largest and first maritime application of the technology.

CEO Seonghoon Woo said: “By demonstrating our technology on the water for the first time, we’ve gained invaluable knowledge that will help us move quickly to commercialization and real-world applications.

“The opportunity to decarbonize the maritime industry is within reach, and for Amogy, it’s just the beginning.”

https://twitter.com/amogyinc/status/1838239744242733372

The ‘ammonia-cracking’ technology uses the colourless gas as its primary fuel source before converting it into hydrogen and nitrogen, using the former to power integrated fuel cells.

Amogy previously tested the technology at smaller scales, including a 200kW system used on a class eight truck, but the 1mW scale system used on the NH3 Kraken marks the final demonstration of the solution before the company begins deploying pilot projects.

The company has already seen a wide array of interest in its solutions with investment from major maritime players including Hanwha Ocean, Samsung Heavy Industries, and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries.

https://www.ship-technology.com/interviews/anastasija-kuprijanova-amogy-ammonia-qa/Speaking to Ship Technology earlier this year, Amogy’s director of maritime business development Anastasija Kuprijanova said the business was targeting full 

commercialisation of its technology in mid-2025.

"Amogy completes first sailing of ammonia-powered vessel" was originally created and published by Ship Technology, a GlobalData owned brand.

Climate Solution Ammonia Ship
A worker stands near the NH3 Kraken, a tugboat powered by ammonia, on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Kingston, N.Y. (AP Photo/Alyssa Goodman)

Ukraine's Zelenskyy visits Pennsylvania ammunition plant to thank workers and ask for more

PENN HAS THE SECOND LARGEST UKRAINIAN DIASPORA IN THE USA

THE LARGEST IS CHICAGO

MICHAEL RUBINKAM and TARA COPP
Updated Sun, September 22, 2024


SCRANTON, Pa. (AP) — Under tight security, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday visited a Pennsylvania ammunition factory to thank the workers who are producing one of the most critically needed munitions for his country's fight to fend off Russian ground forces.

Rep. Matt Cartwright, a Democrat who was among those who met with Zelenskyy at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant, said the president had a simple message: “Thank you. And we need more.”

The Scranton plant is one of the few facilities in the country to manufacture 155 mm artillery shells and has increased production over the past year. Ukraine has already received more than 3 million of them from the U.S.

Zelenskyy said he expressed his gratitude to all the employees at the plant.

“It is in places like this where you can truly feel that the democratic world can prevail,” he wrote on X. “Thanks to people like these — in Ukraine, in America, and in all partner countries — who work tirelessly to ensure that life is protected.”

Zelenskyy's visit kicked off a busy week in the United States. He will speak at the U.N. General Assembly annual gathering in New York on Tuesday and Wednesday and then travel to Washington for talks on Thursday with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, as he seeks to shore up support for Ukraine.

The area around the ammunition plant had been sealed off since Sunday morning, with municipal garbage trucks positioned across several roadblocks and a very heavy presence of city, regional and state police, including troopers on horseback.

As Zelenskyy’s large motorcade made its way to the ammunition plant in the afternoon, a small contingent of supporters waving Ukrainian flags assembled nearby to show their appreciation for his visit.

“It’s unfortunate that we need a plant like this, but it’s here, and it’s here to protect the world," said Vera Kowal Krewson, a first-generation Ukrainian American who was among those who greeted Zelenskyy's motorcade. “And I strongly feel that way.”

She said many of her friends’ parents have worked in the ammunition plant, and she called Zelenskyy’s visit “a wonderful thing.”

Laryssa Salak, 60, whose parents also immigrated from Ukraine, aid she was pleased Zelenskyy came to thank the workers. She said it upsets her that funding for Ukraine’s defense has divided Americans and that even some of her friends oppose the support, saying the money should go to help Americans instead.

“But they don’t understand that that money does not directly go to Ukraine," Salak said. ”It goes to American factories that manufacture, like here, like the ammunition. So that money goes to American workers as well. And a lot of people don’t understand that.”

The 155 mm shells made in the Scranton plant are used in howitzer systems, which are towed large guns with long barrels that can fire at various angles. Howitzers can strike targets up to 15 miles to 20 miles (24 kilometers to 32 kilometers) away and are highly valued by ground forces to take out enemy targets from a protected distance.

With the war now well into its third year, Zelenskyy has been pushing the U.S. for permission to use longer range missile systems to fire deeper inside of Russia.

So far he has not persuaded the Pentagon or White House to loosen those restrictions. The Defense Department has emphasized that Ukraine can already hit Moscow with Ukrainian-produced drones, and there is hesitation on the strategic implications of a U.S.-made missile potentially striking the Russian capital.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Russia would be “at war” with the United States and its NATO allies if they allow Ukraine to use the long-range weapons.

At one point in the war, Ukraine was firing between 6,000 and 8,000 of the 155 mm shells per day. That rate started to deplete U.S. stockpiles and drew concern that the level on hand was not enough to sustain U.S. military needs if another major conventional war broke out, such as in a potential conflict over Taiwan.

In response the U.S. has invested in restarting production lines and is now manufacturing more than 40,000 155 mm rounds a month, with plans to hit 100,000 rounds a month.

Two of the Pentagon leaders who have pushed that increased production through — Doug Bush, assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology and Bill LaPlante, the Pentagon's top weapons buyer — were to join Zelenskyy at the plant. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, also joined the Ukrainian president.

The 155 mm rounds are just one of the scores of ammunition, missile, air defense and advanced weapons systems the U.S. has provided Ukraine — everything from small arms bullets to advanced F-16 fighter jets. The U.S. has been the largest donor to Ukraine, providing more than $56 billion of the more than $106 billion NATO and partner countries have collected to aid in its defense.

Even though Ukraine is not a member of NATO, commitment to its defense is seen by many of the European nations as a must to keep Putin from further military aggression that could threaten bordering NATO-member countries and result in a much larger conflict.

—-

Inside Zelenskyy’s visit to Scranton ammunition plant

Julie Dunphy
Mon, September 23, 2024


SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the hundreds of workers who play a vital role in Ukraine’s defense in their war with Russia.

We’re learning more about the conversation between President Zelenskyy and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro. Shapiro expressed his pride in the state’s large Ukrainian heritage.

Zelenskyy is thankful for the workers in this ammunition plant, as he looks for continued support. Under tight security on Sunday, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy visited the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant.

Thanking the workers who are producing one of the most critically needed munitions for his country’s fight to fend off Russian ground forces.

President Zelenskyy also sat down with Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro along with other local leaders.

“We are blessed to have so many Ukrainians living here in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Shapiro said.

Pennsylvania is home to more than 150,000 Ukrainians and Americans of Ukrainian descent, the second largest number in the US.

“We feel a special kinship to them, and all of you in your work to defend Ukraine. We stand with you,” Shapiro explained.

“Thank you governor for such words,” Zelenskyy said.

During the meeting, the parties discussed regional cooperation between Ukraine and the United States.

“Let’s sign the agreement,” Ivan Fedorov said.

“Let’s do it,” Shapiro agreed.

Fedorov, head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional State Administration, a province in southeast Ukraine, and Governor Shapiro signed an agreement to support the region’s efforts to rebuild after the war.

The main areas of cooperation include energy, agriculture, digital technologies, and defense.

“The United States helped us from the very beginning of the full-scale war, but we still count on continuing support,” Zelenskyy explained.

The Scranton plant is one of the few facilities in the country to manufacture 155 mm artillery shells and has increased production over the past year.

Ukraine has already received more than three million of them from the US. Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude to all the employees at the Scranton plant.

“Thank you very much, you helped us to survive against Putin’s invasion,” Zelenskyy added.

Zelenskyy’s visit kicked off a busy week in the United States. He will speak at the United Nations General Assembly annual gathering in New York on Tuesday and Wednesday and then travel to Washington for talks on Thursday with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, as he seeks to shore up support for Ukraine.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.


‘The democratic world can prevail’: Zelensky begins US visit at ammunition factory
Our Foreign Staff

Sun, September 22, 2024 at 8:20 PM MDT·3 min read
16


Volodymyr Zelensky signs a missile on a tour of the Scranton Army Ammunition Plan on Sunday - COMMONWEALTH MEDIA SERVICES/Handout via REUTERS


Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday began a US visit by going to a factory in Pennsylvania that produces badly needed 155mm artillery shells.

“I began my visit to the United States by expressing my gratitude to all the employees at the plant,” Mr Zelensky said Sunday in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

The post included photos of him shaking hands with workers at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant, where he said production had been ramped up.

“It is in places like this where you can truly feel that the democratic world can prevail,” he wrote.

He will next travel to New York and Washington.

Mr Zelensky arrived in the United States for a crucial visit to present Kyiv’s plan to end two and a half years of war with Russia.

He will present his proposals – which he calls a “victory plan” – to President Joe Biden, as well as presidential hopefuls Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, Agence France-Presse reported.

President Joe Biden meets President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office in September last year - Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

The visit comes after a summer of intense fighting, with Moscow advancing fast in eastern Ukraine and Kyiv holding on to swaths of Russia’s Kursk region.

It also comes as Kyiv has for weeks pressed the West to allow it to use long-range weapons to strike targets deep inside Russia – so far to no avail.

When they meet at the White House on Thursday, Mr Zelensky is expected to try to convince Mr Biden to change his mind.

Mr Zelensky said the coming weeks would decide how more than 30 months of fighting that has killed thousands would end.

“It is now being determined what the legacy of the current generation of states leaders will be. Those in the highest offices,” he said.

US Major General John T. Reim Jr, joint program executive officer armaments and ammunition, greets President Zelensky at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant on Sunday - Curt Loter/US Army/AFP via Getty Images

In comments before his trip, Mr Zelensky said the United States and UK have not given Ukraine permission to use the long-range weapons as they fear escalation, but hinted he had not given up hope.

“We have had some decisions in the history of our relationship with Biden - very interesting and difficult dialogues,” Mr Zelensky said earlier this week, adding: “He later changed his point of view.”

Moscow has said it considers such a go-ahead as Nato countries being “at war” with Russia.


Governor Shapiro welcomes Ukrainian President Zelenskyy to Scranton Army Ammunition Plant

FOX 29 Staff
Sun, September 22, 2024



SCRANTON, Pa. - Governor Josh Shapiro and his administration welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the Keystone State during a visit to the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant (SCAAP) in Lackawanna County Sunday.

During the visit, President Zelenskyy spoke with workers at SCAAP and thanked them for their efforts.

According to Shapiro’s office, SCAAP builds 155-millimeter howitzer rounds, some of the most vital equipment for Ukraine’s defense against Russia.

"Pennsylvania is the birthplace of American freedom – and our Commonwealth proudly stands with the people of Ukraine as they fight for their freedom against naked aggression," said Governor Shapiro. "I’m proud to welcome President Zelenskyy and his delegation to Scranton – to visit with the women and men who are fueling his country’s fight for freedom – and sign an agreement with Zaporizhzhia that will strengthen both states and foster collaboration for years to come. Pennsylvania looks forward to building a close relationship with Zaporizhzhia as we continue to stand on the side of freedom."

Governor Shapiro also signed an agreement with the Zaporizhzhia Regional State Military Administration, to leverage the strengths of both regions and support the Southeast Ukraine province’s efforts to rebuild after the war while still providing Pennsylvania businesses with an opportunity to participate in the reconstruction through its Department of Community & Economic Development (DCED).

Due to the agreement, Pennsylvania will work with economic leaders in Zaporizhzhia sharing best practices within multiple industries, including energy, agriculture, digital technologies, workforce development, and defense.

"Today is an exciting day for Zaporizhzhia and Pennsylvania," said DCED Secretary Rick Siger. "This agreement will help support the future economic revitalization of Ukraine, while boosting our economy and creating jobs for Pennsylvanians. Five of the sectors included in the agreement mirror those in our Economic Development Strategy, and we look forward to building a strong partnership with Zaporizhzhia in industries such as energy, agriculture, life sciences, robotics, advanced manufacturing, and more."

Shapiro’s office says defense cooperation for Ukraine is still essential.

The office reports that just this month, more than 150 soldiers from the Pennsylvania National Guard’s (PANG) 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team deployed to Germany to support the Joint Multinational Training Group – Ukraine.

The national guard’s Task Force Independence is currently training Ukrainian forces in combined arms and maneuver training for battalion-sized units.

Back in December 2022, the U.S. Department of Defense announced it was expanding U.S.-led training for the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF).

Therefore, the U.S. program will train up to one Ukrainian battalion per month and will help develop the skills of Ukrainian units in specialized equipment.

"Training is key to Ukraine’s continued success on the battlefield," said Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler, Pennsylvania’s adjutant general and head of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (DMVA). "Our Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers are in Germany, away from their families and loved ones in support of this mission. They, along with more than a thousand other PANG members are currently serving overseas in support of our nation and its responsibility to operations around the globe. We are proud of their commitment and thankful for their service."

U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, PA-08, talks to Ukraine supporters before President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy's motorcade arrives at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton on Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. The plant manufactures artillery ammunition which is used in Ukraine. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson

Russia, battling birth rate dip, is working on 'child-free' ideology ban, says Putin ally

Tue, September 24, 2024 
By Andrew Osborn

(Reuters) - The Russian parliament is working on a law that would ban what the authorities cast as the harmful promotion of a child-free way of life with heavy fines for "childlessness propaganda", a close ally of President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.

Vyacheslav Volodin, the chairman of the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, said parliamentarians had begun to examine legislation to outlaw what he described as propaganda on the internet, in films, in advertising and in the media that encourages "a conscious refusal to have children".


Putin, who has cast Russia as a bastion of "traditional values" locked in an existential struggle with a decadent West, has encouraged women to have at least three children, saying that will help secure the future of Russians.

The issue has taken on greater urgency for the authorities after official data released this month showed that Russia's birth rate had slid to its lowest in a quarter of a century while mortality rates are up, with no end in sight to Moscow's war in Ukraine.

Volodin accused what authorities have described as the "child-free movement" of devaluing the institution of family with an ideology which state officials fret is putting some women off having children.

"Groups and communities on social networks often show disrespect for motherhood and fatherhood and aggression towards pregnant women and children, as well as members of large families," said Volodin.

"A friendly and large family is the basis of a strong state."

Volodin said the draft legislation envisaged fines of up to 400,000 roubles ($4,300) for individuals found guilty of "child-free" propaganda, 800,000-rouble ($8,602) fines for state officials, and fines of up to 5 million roubles ($53,763) for companies.

MIXED RESPONSE

The announcement on his official Telegram channel was welcomed by many Russians. One commentator, Arsen, called the concept of being child-free "an evil from the West".

Some struck a more critical stance.

"There is no such (child-free) movement," said Ilya, another commentator. "And in general it's up to a couple whether or not to have children."

Denis, another commentator, said: "Perhaps worthy living conditions can be created and then you don't need to ban it. There's no certainty about the future of children."

The legislation is modelled on a 2022 law that widened a ban on "LGBT propaganda", effectively banning any public expression of queer life. Materials advocating people change their gender, a procedure prohibited in Russia, are similarly outlawed.

When asked last Friday about a potential ban on "child-free" ideology, Dmitry Peskov, Putin's spokesman, said it was too early to comment, but that Russia needed initiatives to boost the birth rate.

"Increasing the birth rate is one of the top priorities for the entire government and the entire country," said Peskov, who in July called the problem "catastrophic".

($1 = 93.0000 roubles)

(Reporting by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Gareth Jones)

Metals producer backed by Canada province vows to compete with China in rare earths

Illustration shows printed Chinese and Canada flags · Reuters

Updated Tue, September 24, 2024 
By Divya Rajagopal

TORONTO (Reuters) - The Canadian province of Saskatchewan has vowed to compete with China in processing and production of rare earths and become the first North American commercial alternative source for the metals, used to make magnets for electric vehicles and wind turbines.

The Saskatchewan Research Council Rare Earth Processing facility is betting on demand for these magnets to jump in the next couple of years, driven by demand from original equipment manufacturers such as automakers.

The Canadian province, home to copper, potash and uranium mines, is known for its mining prowess.

China controls 95% of the global production and supply of rare earth metals. The near-monopoly allows the country to dictate prices and create uncertainty for end users through export controls.

In the last year, China has placed export controls on some critical metals such as germanium, gallium and antimony, forcing western governments to look for alternatives.

The SRC Rare Earth processing facility has begun production on a commercial scale and expects to hit a production target of 40 tonnes of rare earth metals per month by the end of this year. And it will produce 400 tonnes of the NdPr metals per year, which is enough to produce 500,000 EVs, according to SRC. The facility has already tied up with potential clients in South Korea, Japan and the United States.

"Our focus is to remain competitive within the Asian Metals Price Index," said Muhammad Imran, vice president of the SRC Rare Earth Element. "We are constantly looking to optimise our facility using artificial intelligence applications that would keep our process efficient," Imran said.

The price of rare earth metals such as neodymium praseodymium, known as NdPr, fluctuates between US$65,000 and US$75,000 per tonne, a price determined by the Chinese government.

However, some miners have been asking for a premium price for metals produced outside China, arguing that Chinese metals are produced with low environmental, social and governance standards.

Regardless, Imran said, the market will remain competitive and manufacturers have to be prepared to meet the reference point of the Asian Metals Index.

"This is what the market is telling you the price for rare earth is, if someone can strike a better deal that's great, but premium or no premium the market is going to be competitive," he said.

(Reporting by Divya Rajagopal in Toronto; Editing by Frank McGurty, Chizu Nomiyama and Alan Barona)

Data scientist nails the Trump gaffe that started what looks today like a building Harris landslide

Shawn Tully
Updated Mon, September 23, 2024

Tom Miller just pinpointed the precise moment that, he maintains, the presidential race turned from numbers strongly favoring Donald Trump into a substantial lead for Vice President Kamala Harris that she's kept to this day.

"It was staring me right in the face, but at first I missed it," the Northwestern University data scientist told this reporter by phone on Sunday. "I saw this huge jump in Harris's support on July 31st, but didn't put it together with Trump's appearance at the National Association of Black Journalists convention that day. That event, and not the debate that just made things worse for Trump, marked the decisive turning point in the campaign."

Miller's election forecast is based not on polls, but on the prices for both candidates posted on the PredictIt betting site. He regards the PredictIt odds as far more reliable than polls, which reflect voter preferences that are four to five days old. And since they typically survey 500-1,500 likely voters, polls reflect a great deal of statistical "noise"—hence the wide variability in the numbers posted by the various modelers.

PredictIt is the most liquid betting market, averaging around 37,000 wagers a day, according to Miller. And given that each player is subject to a $850 limit, no single bettor or group of high rollers can artificially inflate the odds for one candidate or the other.
Trump led before the NABJ debacle

The Miller model posits first that the PredicIt odds closely reflect popular vote percentages. Put simply, a candidate given a 55% chance of winning, or priced at 55 cents on PredictIt, is likely to receive a similar share of all ballots cast. Second, Miller shows that historically, the popular voting shares closely track the portion of the 538 electoral votes each contender receives. That relationship, he found, has been extremely stable over every race since 1960.

Miller's homepage, The Virtual Tout, displays a graph showing the share of electoral votes trending towards the Democratic side, overlaid by the events that have significantly moved the odds, and hence the swings in the projected electoral count around the 270 needed to prevail.

Between July 21—the day President Biden left the contest and endorsed Harris—and July 27, her electoral count rose substantially. After that, her numbers went flat for four straight days.

"She was still well behind the former president, and it looked like her electoral numbers had plateaued," Miller says.

But then, Miller contends, a tremor struck that could very well turn into a Harris landslide by November. On July 31, Trump falsely suggested at the NABJ's annual colloquy that Harris had altered the way she characterized her racial heritage, questioned her bi-racial background, and charged the VP of "happening to turn Black" and that Harris "now wants to be known as Black."

Though the incendiary comments raised outrage in the press and among pundits, virtually no one has pegged Trump's NABJ interview as the pivotal juncture in the election. Miller points out that the PredictIt market turned frenzied that day as bettors shifted en masse from Trump to Harris.

"Over 100,000 shares traded that last day of July, three times the usual number," he says. "Literally overnight, the election shifted from leaning Republican, to trending Democratic, as Harris surged to over 270. Trump's statements at the NABJ conference proved a complete disaster for his campaign. It had nothing to do with anything Harris did. The huge shift was all Trump's doing."
Following the NABJ debacle, Trump partly closed the chasm—then came the debate

Miller's chart shows that Harris's electoral count kept climbing in the two weeks that followed, reaching a peak shortly before the start of the Democratic National Convention. But the Windy City extravaganza itself failed to provide an added bump. By early September, her numbers had drifted downwards slightly. And on Sept. 6, news that Trump's hush money trial would be delayed until after the election lifted his numbers. The day before the debate, he trailed by only a narrow margin.

"At that point, though Harris still led, the race was almost a dead heat," says Miller. "It's remarkable that most of the jumps in Trump's numbers come as the result of good news about his legal issues."

Then, the face-off in Philadelphia sent Harris's forecast electoral count up big time. "That increase was the combined result of the debate and Taylor Swift's endorsement of Harris," says Miller.

As of Sept. 22, PredictIt prices suggest Harris's odds of winning stand at 56.3% versus 43.7% for Trump. Those odds, Miller contends, would translate into an overwhelming win for the vice president with 43 days to go.

"Big events can change things, wars that could alter the race are raging, candidates can make big mistakes," he cautions.

But right now, he says, Harris is way ahead, and the polls haven't caught up with the huge win that's probably building—and started building the day Trump made those disastrous comments to Black journalists, and blew the lead that he's never regained.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

Trump listens during a farming event in rural Pennsylvania, then threatens John Deere with tariffs

LAST TIME IT WAS HARLEY DAVIDSON!!

ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON
Updated Mon, September 23, 2024 at 7:43 PM MDT·6 min read
6.2k


Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump listens during a campaign event at a farm, Monday, Sept. 23, 2024, in Smithton, Pa. 

(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

SMITHTON, Pa. (AP) — Donald Trump sat in a large barn in rural Pennsylvania on Monday, asking questions of farmers and offering jokes but, in a rarity for his campaign events, mostly listening.

The bombastic former president was unusually restrained at an event about China's influence on the U.S. economy, a roundtable during which farmers and manufacturers expressed concerns about losing their way of life. Behind Trump were large green tractors and a sign declaring “Protect our food from China."

The event in Smithton, Pennsylvania, gave Trump a chance to drive his economic message against Vice President Kamala Harris, arguing that imposing tariffs and boosting energy production will lower costs. He highlighted Harris' reversal of a previous vow to ban fracking, a method of producing natural gas key to Pennsylvania's economy.

And he noted the tractors behind him were manufactured by John Deere, which announced in June it was moving skid steer and track loader manufacturing to Mexico and working to acquire land there for a new factory. Trump threatened the firm with a 200% tariff should he win back the presidency and it opted to export manufacturing to Mexico.

“If they want to build in the United States, there’s no tariff,” he added.

Trump opened the event with some of his usual themes. He declared that in 2020: "We had an election that didn’t exactly work out too good. And it was a disgrace.”

But he then did something unusual: He let others do most of the talking.

When one farmer said recent decades had seen scores of family farms shut down, Trump asked what that meant for overall production. The response was that, thanks to larger farms now operating, total production is actually up but "we are losing the small family farms.”

“I know that, yes,” Trump responded somberly. Later, he said, "I am not too worried about the people around this table” supporting him on Election Day, while jokingly adding, “But you never know.”

In response to another participant’s concerns about energy production, Trump said he didn’t know that farmers were so energy-dependent. Another farmer talked about Chinese-subsidized businesses, prompting Trump to respond, “That’s why we need tariffs.”

After the same farmer finished her comments by praising him profusely, he intoned: “Amen. I agree.”

Trump has embraced tariffs as he tries to appeal to working-class voters who oppose free-trade deals and the outsourcing of factories and jobs, and the event wasn't all about showing a more personable side.

Later, the former president took questions from reporters and got more customarily combative when asked whether he was concerned that tariffs on manufacturers like John Deere would increase costs for farmers. He said of Harris, “She is not going to be good for Pennsylvania.”

Stopping at a neighborhood market prior to an evening rally in Indiana, Pennsylvania, Trump bought a bag of popcorn and quipped that, if elected, he may send for more from the Oval Office. He also gave a woman paying for groceries a $100 bill, declaring that her total “just went down a hundred bucks.”

The change didn't last long. At his evening rally, Trump reverted to form, using an abrasive message to energize mostly conservative, white, working-class voters.

“She’s a one-woman economic wrecking ball and if she gets four more years, her radical agenda will smash the economy into rubble and grind your financial situation right into the dust,” Trump said of Harris. He claimed, “She wants to take your guns away” even as the vice president has stressed being a gun owner herself.

"She’s coming for your money. She’s coming for your pensions, and she’s coming for your savings," he said.

The former president urged supporters to “get out and vote” but scoffed at the idea of casting early ballots, suggesting without evidence that it allowed more time to commit fraud. Citing unknown sources, he declared, “They said, if we don’t win this election, there may never be another election in this country.”

At one point, the former president caught a glimpse of himself on the big screen and joked about a ”handsome man over there” before concluding, “Oh, it’s Trump.”

He also got especially candid with the rally audience saying, “I don’t like anybody that doesn’t like me, I’ll be honest,” before adding, “sounds childish” but “that’s the way it is ... call it a personality defect.”

It was a starkly different tone from Trump’s first event in Smithton, which was hosted by the Protecting America Initiative, led by Richard Grenell, Trump’s former acting director of national intelligence, and former New York congressman Lee Zeldin.

Grenell told the small group of attendees there, “China is getting into our farmlands, and we have to be able to see China very clearly.”

At the end of 2022, China held nearly 250,000 acres of U.S. land, which is slightly less than 1% of foreign-held acres, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. By comparison, Canada was the largest foreign owner of U.S. land, accounting for 32%, or 14.2 million acres.

Still, the National Agricultural Law Center estimates that 24 states ban or limit foreigners without residency and foreign businesses or governments from owning private farmland. The issue emerged after a Chinese billionaire bought more than 130,000 acres near a U.S. Air Force base in Texas and another Chinese company sought to build a corn plant near an Air Force base in North Dakota.

Rex Murphy, from a nearby rural community who raises cattle and grows corn and hay, said farmers support Trump in this area, and said he wanted fewer taxes and “more freedom.”

“I want him to do everything for the economy,” said Murphy, 48. “If he just becomes president, and he does what he does, he will do more.”

Harris is visiting Pennsylvania on Wednesday. Attending a New York fundraiser on Monday, Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, told a group of about 30 donors focused on climate change that Trump’s energy catchphrase of “drill, baby, drill” is “not a solution to things, and the public knows that it’s a cheap, easy thing.”

Walz, speaking at a midtown Manhattan hotel to an audience that included former presidential candidate Tom Steyer and Hollywood producer Jeffrey Katzenberg, called climate change an “existential threat” but also “an incredible opportunity to grow our economy.” He specifically cited farmers who use their land to generate wind energy in addition to growing crops.

Harris campaign spokesman Joseph Costello said that “despite all his lies and pandering, Donald Trump used the White House to give handouts to wealthy corporations and foreign companies."

Costello said in a statement that those came "at the expense of family farmers, drive farm bankruptcies to record levels, and sacrifice small American farmers as pawns in his failed trade war with China.”

__

Colvin reported from Indiana, Pennsylvania. Weissert reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Didi Tang in Washington and Michelle L. Price in New York contributed to this report.

AMLO Seizes US-Owned Port in Final Week as Mexico’s Leader

NOT THEFT; EXPROPRIATION

Eric Martin
Tue, September 24, 2024 


(Bloomberg) -- Mexico finalized plans to take control of a port and quarry owned by Vulcan Materials Co. on its Caribbean coast, deepening tensions days before the nation’s president leaves office.

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s administration declared the land south of the resort cities of Cancun and Playa del Carmen a natural protected area, according to a filing in the federal gazette published hours after US lawmakers sought to dissuade such a move.

The move prevents the Alabama-based construction company from extracting limestone at a site it has been developing for decades. Its shares fell 1.2% to $249.46 in New York on Tuesday morning.

“The expropriation of our company owned land and port is yet another escalation and is a new violation of Mexico’s commitments under North American trade agreements,” Vulcan said in a statement. “This unlawful measure will have a chilling and long-term effect on US-Mexico trade and investment relations.”

The company previously said that the López Obrador government’s actions are illegal, and that it would add the most recent measures to an ongoing arbitration case.

This week’s expropriation marks another move against business interests by Lopez Obrador, a staunch nationalist who finishes his single six-year term this month. A new congress was sworn in Sept. 1 after June congressional elections gave the president’s party large majorities in both houses. It has since approved a judicial overhaul that’s drawn criticism from international investors.

President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, who takes office Oct. 1, hasn’t commented publicly on the Vulcan issue since her landslide victory. But a year ago she said she hoped the company would accept the government’s offer to purchase the land.

Bloomberg News reported in July that AMLO, as the outgoing president is known, was moving toward the protection designation. Last year, Vulcan sought the Biden administration’s intervention against what it saw as the threat of a government takeover of the Mayan Riviera property. It said a $360 million valuation deeply undervalued the assets.

On Monday, a bipartisan group of US senators proposed legislation to pressure AMLO to back down from the expropriation plan.

Vulcan has been in litigation with Mexico since 2018 under the North American Free Trade Agreement, known as Nafta. The pact was replaced with the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement during the Trump administration.

AMLO had previously alleged environmental damage and sent the Mexican marines to occupy the land. Vulcan’s chief executive officer defended its environmental record, citing international awards and its reforestation efforts.

Vulcan isn’t the only foreign company that has sought legal recourse after a government intervention under AMLO. In December, Mexico took control of operations at a hydrogen processing plant owned by French industrial gas manufacturer Air Liquide. Last year, AMLO announced plans to buy $6 billion worth of energy assets from Iberdrola SA after the Spanish company faced political hostility from Mexico that affected its permits and supply.

AMLO also ordered the cancellation of projects including an airport and a beer plant during his term.

US Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar has warned that companies may lose confidence in Mexico as an investment destination as a result of the judicial reform pushed through Congress this month. The change removes a check on government power by making federal judges democratically elected, including at the Supreme Court.

--With assistance from Maya Averbuch.

(Updates with share move, company statement and context beginning in 3rd paragraph.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

Kremlin says Israeli strikes on Lebanon risk destabilising the Middle East

NO ONE ELSE HAS THE RIGHT TO SELF DEFENSE WHEN ISRAEL STRIKES

Reuters
Tue, September 24, 2024 

Smoke billows over southern Lebanon

MOSCOW (Reuters) -The Kremlin warned on Tuesday that Israeli strikes on Lebanon had the potential to completely destabilise the Middle East and widen the conflict there.

Israel struck Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon and the Iran-backed group attacked military facilities in northern Israel on Tuesday, a day after hundreds were killed in Israeli airstrikes against Hezbollah targets.

Asked about the Israeli strikes, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call: "This is an event that is potentially extremely dangerous when it comes to the expansion of the conflict, to the complete destabilisation of the region. Of course, this is of extreme concern to us."

In a separate statement, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow condemned what she called "indiscriminate" strikes on Lebanon that target civilians.

"It is urgent to stop the spiral of violence before the situation spirals completely out of control. We call for an immediate cessation of hostilities," she said.

"We must do everything possible to prevent the Middle East from plunging into a full-scale armed conflict, the devastating consequences of which will inevitably affect everyone in the region and beyond. We are ready to coordinate with international and regional partners to prevent such a catastrophic scenario."

Russia has deepened ties with Hezbollah patron Iran since the start of its "special military operation" in Ukraine. It has questioned the proportionality of Israel's bombing of Gaza and the number of civilians killed, straining ties with Israel.

(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov, Writing by Felix Light, Editing by Andrew Osborn and Timothy Heritage)

Israel launches more airstrikes after hundreds killed in Lebanon

DPA
Tue, September 24, 2024 

Smoke from heavy Israeli air raids billows from the southern Lebanese village of Taibeh. Powerful air attacks were launched across much of southern Lebanon. Lebanese Health Ministry said 182 people were killed and more than 700 wounded in what would be the deadliest day in Lebanon since the conflict started in October. Marwan Naamani/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa


Beirut/Tel Aviv - Israel is pursuing its bombing campaign in Lebanon, after several hundred people were killed in massive airstrikes targeting the Hezbollah militia on Monday.

The Israeli military said on Tuesday that "over the past few hours, the [Israeli Air Force] struck Hezbollah terror targets in southern Lebanon, including launchers, terrorist infrastructure sites and buildings in which weapons were stored."

Hezbollah, which is based in Lebanon but is backed by Iran, has meanwhile launched further attacks on northern Israel.

The Israeli army reported that more than 50 projectiles had been fired from Lebanon at various areas in northern Israel.

"The majority of the projectiles were intercepted and several fallen projectiles were identified in the area," it said. There were no reports of injuries. Several buildings were damaged.

Hezbollah earlier said it had attacked Israel at least six times since Tuesday morning with Fadi-1 and Fadi-2 rockets.

Among other things, it said it had attacked the Israeli military airfield Megiddo west of the city of Afula and again the Ramat David military base near Haifa.

Deadliest day in Lebanon

Almost 500 people were killed and more than 1,600 injured across southern and eastern Lebanon in the Israeli strikes on Monday, the Lebanese Health Ministry said, in the deadliest such attack in decades.

As the war in Gaza approaches its first anniversary, the long-feared escalation of the Middle Eastern conflict appeared to have arrived, with Lebanese authorities reporting at least 492 people dead, including 35 children, and another 1,645 wounded.

Israel said it had carried out more than 1,300 attacks on targets in Lebanon, including one in the capital Beirut, in what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described as a pre-emptive strike aimed at eliminating Hezbollah's weaponry.

Netanyahu said that Hezbollah had concealed its rockets directed at Israeli cities in private living rooms. "To defend our people against Hezbollah strikes, we must take out these weapons," he said on Monday.

Israeli citizens across the country must prepare for potential counter-attacks from the Hezbollah militia, the army's Homefront Command said on Tuesday.

A spokesman told the online news provider ynet that the country's residents should be prepared to seek shelter in the event of rocket attacks.

The UN observer mission on the Israel-Lebanon border, called the
United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), said it would temporarily suspend its patrols due to the increased danger for its personnel.

The risk posed by the mutual shelling between Israel's army and the Lebanese Hezbollah militia currently makes it necessary for the so-called "Blue Helmets" to remain in their bases, a UN spokesman told journalists on Monday.

Southern Lebanese fear further airstrikes

Thousands of families who fled southern Lebanon after the sudden Israeli bombing campaign have filled hotels across the capital Beirut.

"We escaped with only the clothes on our back and our essentials in a small bag, and my brother who lives abroad booked two rooms for us in a hotel," Fatima Ezzeddine told dpa on Tuesday.

"The airstrikes targeted a building next to our house in Housh, near Tyre, and the house received massive damage and some people were killed and injured in our building," she said.

People escaping the strikes in southern Lebanon were still flocking into the capital on Tuesday, with traffic jams leading into the south of Beirut.

"This is a disaster," Mustafa told dpa. He came from Sidquine, which was badly hit by the airstrikes, and found a room in a Beirut hotel.

"I do not know who to blame, but us citizens are paying a deadly price."

Smoke from heavy Israeli air raids billows from the southern Lebanese village of Arab Salim. Powerful air attacks were launched across much of southern Lebanon. Lebanese Health Ministry said 182 people were killed and more than 700 wounded in what would be the deadliest day in Lebanon since the conflict started in October. Marwan Naamani/ZUMA Press Wire/dpaLess

Smoke from heavy Israeli air raids billows from the southern Lebanese village of Jabal al-Rihan. Powerful air attacks were launched across much of southern Lebanon. Lebanese Health Ministry said 182 people were killed and more than 700 wounded in what would be the deadliest day in Lebanon since the conflict started in October. 

Marwan Naamani/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa