'Monumental victory for the ocean': Norway halts plans for deep-sea mining

Olivia Rosane, 

Common Dreams
December 2, 2024 

Kirsti Bergstø, leader of the Socialist Left Party, speaks at a protest against deep-sea mining outside Norwegian Parliament. (Photo: Greenpeace)

Environmental organizations cheered as Norway's controversial plans to move forward with deep-sea mining in the vulnerable Arctic Ocean were iced on Sunday.

The pause was won in Norway's parliament by the small Socialist Left (SV) Party in exchange for its support in passing the government's 2025 budget.

"Today marks a monumental victory for the ocean, as the SV Party in Norway has successfully blocked the controversial plan to issue deep-sea mining licenses for the country's extended continental shelf in the Arctic," Steve Trent, CEO and founder of the Environmental Justice Foundation, said in a statement. "This decision is a testament to the power of principled, courageous political action, and it is a moment to celebrate for environmental advocates, ocean ecosystems, and future generations alike."

"Today, thanks to the SV Party and all those around the world who spoke up against this decision, the ocean has won. Now, let's ensure this victory lasts."

Norway sparked outrage in January when its parliament voted to allow deep-sea mining exploration in a swath of its Arctic waters larger than the United Kingdom. Scientists have warned that mining the Arctic seabed could disturb unique hydrothermal vent ecosystems and even drive species to extinction before scientists have a chance to study them. It would also put additional pressure on all levels of Arctic Ocean life—from plankton to marine mammals—at a time when they are already feeling the impacts of rising temperatures and ocean acidification due to the burning of fossil fuels.

"The Arctic Ocean is one of the last pristine frontiers on Earth, and its fragile ecosystems are already under significant stress from the climate crisis," Trent said. "The idea of subjecting these waters to the destructive, needless practice of deep-sea mining was a grave threat, not only to the marine life depending on them but to the global community as a whole."

"Thankfully, this shortsighted and harmful plan has been halted, marking a clear victory in the ongoing fight to protect our planet's blue beating heart," Trent continued.

In June, Norway announced that it would grant the first exploratory mining licenses in early 2025. However, this has been put on hold by the agreement with the SV Party.

"This puts a stop to the plans to start deep-sea mining until the end of the government's term,” party leader Kirsti Bergstø said, as The Guardian reported.

Norway next holds parliamentary elections in September 2025, so no licenses will be approved before then.

The move comes amid widespread opposition to deep-sea mining in Norway and beyond. A total of 32 countries and 911 marine scientists have called for a global moratorium on the practice. More than 100 E.U. parliamentarians wrote a letter opposing Norway's plans specifically, and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has sued to stop them.

"This is a major and important environmental victory!" WWF-Norway CEO Karoline Andaur said in a statement. "SV has stopped the process for deep seabed mining, giving Norway a unique opportunity to save its international ocean reputation and gain the necessary knowledge before we even consider mining the planet's last untouched wilderness."

Haldis Tjeldflaat Helle, the deep-sea mining campaigner at Greenpeace Nordic, called the decision "a huge win."

"After hard work from activists, environmentalists, scientists, and fishermen, we have secured a historic win for ocean protection, as the opening process for deep-sea mining in Norway has been stopped," Helle said in a statement. "The wave of protests against deep-sea mining is growing. We will not let this industry destroy the unique life in the deep sea, not in the Arctic nor anywhere else."

However, Norway's Arctic waters are not entirely safe yet.

Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, of the Labour Party, toldTV2, on Sunday, "This will be a postponement."

The government said that other work to begin the process of deep-sea mining, such as drafting regulations and conducting environmental impact surveys, would move forward. Norway is currently governed by the Labour and Center parties. The two parties leading in polls for September's elections—the Conservatives and Progress Party—also both back deep-sea mining, according toReuters.


"If a new government attempts to reopen the licensing round we will fight relentlessly against it," Frode Pleym, who leads Greenpeace Norway, told Reuters.

Other environmental groups tempered their celebrations with calls for further action.

Trent of the Environmental Justice Foundation said that "while today is a cause for celebration, this victory must not be seen as the end of the struggle."

"We urge Norway's government, and all responsible global actors, to make this a lasting victory by enshrining protections for the Arctic Ocean and its ecosystems into law, and coming out in favor of a moratorium or ban on deep-sea mining," Trent added. "It is only through a collective commitment to sustainability and long-term stewardship of our oceans that we can ensure the health of the marine environment for generations to come."

Trent concluded: "Today, thanks to the SV Party and all those around the world who spoke up against this decision, the ocean has won. Now, let's ensure this victory lasts."

Andaur of WWF said that this was a "pivotal moment" for Norway to "demonstrate global leadership by prioritizing ocean health over destructive industry."

As WWF called on Norway to abandon its mining plans, it also urged the nation to reconsider its exploitation of the ocean for oil and gas.


"Unfortunately, we have not seen similar efforts to curtail the Norwegian oil industry, which is still getting new licenses to operate in Norwegian waters, including very vulnerable parts of the Arctic," Andaur said. "Norway needs to explore new ways to make money without extracting fossil fuels and destroying nature."

Greenpeace also pointed to the role Norway's pause could play in bolstering global opposition to deep-sea mining.

"Millions of people across the world are calling on governments to resist the dire threat of deep-sea mining to safeguard oceans worldwide," Greenpeace International Stop Deep-Sea Mining campaigner Louisa Casson said. "This is a huge step forward to protect the Arctic, and now it is time for Norway to join over 30 nations calling for a moratorium and be a true ocean champion."

DESANTISLAND

Florida Republican seeks ban on 'weather modification' tech amid right-wing conspiracies

Matthew Chapman
December 2, 2024 
RAW ST0R7

Storm. Photo credit: Ball SivaPhoto / Shutterstock

A Florida state senator is introducing a bill to ban "weather modification" technology, The Independent reported Monday.

The proposed legislation, by Republican state Sen. Ileana Garcia, says that “the injection, release, or dispersion, by any means, of a chemical, a chemical compound, a substance, or an apparatus into the atmosphere within the borders of this state for the express purpose of affecting the temperature, the weather, or the intensity of sunlight is prohibited.”

The bill is referring to stratospheric aerosol injection, a proposed "geoengineering" technology to counteract the effects of global warming by dispersing small amounts of reflective chemicals at high altitudes, to alter how much sunlight the earth absorbs and reducing temperatures. A similar effect on the atmosphere is observed from large volcanic eruptions.

This proposal, which has a number of variants in terms of what chemicals to use or how to disperse them, is controversial and, at present, completely hypothetical.

However, the existence of the idea has fed into long-running conspiracy theories prevalent online that contrails — the condensed trails of water vapor that form behind jet aircraft in certain weather conditions — are a chemical spray used by the government for sinister purposes, like weather — or even mind — control.

The most notorious weather conspiracy theory in recent years was popularized by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), who suggested that a Jewish space laser could have ignited wildfires across the American West. She has since sought to disavow and downplay her promotion of this.

Garcia was notably elected as the result of a "ghost candidate" scheme, where Republican operatives illegally paid someone with the same last name as former Democratic state Sen. Jose Javier Rodriguez to run a fake campaign for the same seat, splitting the vote just enough to unseat him in favor of the GOP. That scheme ultimately led to several investigations and criminal prosecutions.

How America was not founded as 'a Christian country' based on 'Judeo-Christian' values

MANY FOUNDERS WERE DEISTIC   FREEMASONS

George Washington crossing the Delaware River
By Emanuel Leutze - The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Public Domain,

 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9520770

Mia Brett

November 30, 2024
ALTERNET


A common rallying cry of the right in America, to justify regressive morality laws, is often to say that "America was founded as a Christian country" with "Judeo-Christian values" while the common response from the left is to declare that the United States was founded as an explicitly secular country with a separation of church and state.

Would it surprise you to learn both are wrong?

First of all, "Judeo-Christian values" is a dog whistle that erases Jewish values by subsuming Judaism into Christianity. It also excludes other religions, particularly Islam. When politicians claim "Judeo-Christian values" they're almost always describing Christian values but want to pretend they are being inclusive of Jews.

Initially, in the 19th century the phrase referred to Jewish people who converted to Christianity. It wasn't intended to be inclusive of Jews at all. The current meaning of the term was an invention of American politics in the 1930s, as a phrase to show opposition to Hitler and communism. "Judeo-Christian values" is often used by politicians to proclaim common opposition to atheism, abortion and LGBT issues.

Basically, there's no such thing as a "Judeo-Christian values."

Except Judaism and Christianity don't have a common value system on those issues. While it is hard to declare a universal Jewish value—there are many sects of Judaism and one of our core tenets is argument—most Jewish rabbis acknowledge that abortion should be allowed at least in certain circumstances. Jewish law dictates that life begins at first breath, not conception. Additionally, many Jews consider themselves atheists and consider Jewish practice to be through behavior and attitude, not belief. Unfortunately the acceptance of LGBT people in Judaism is more complicated, depending on the sect, but Reform and Conservative Judaism are publicly accepting of LGBT people. Basically, there's no such thing as a "Judeo-Christian values."

The United States was founded with an attempt at secularism as well as freedom of religion. As opposed to monarchies, democracies in general are less Christian-based, as rulers are not justified on the "divine right of kings." Practically, "freedom of religion" often meant the freedom to practice whichever sect of Christianity, or sometimes even Protestantism, a person chose. Considering a number of colonies were founded based on disagreements over which Protestant sect was "correct," even this level of legally inscribed religious freedom was progressive for the late 18th century.

However, when considering religious freedom in early America, we must look beyond federal law and beyond the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights was not applied to the states, except to declare the citizenship of formerly enslaved people, until the Incorporation Doctrine was applied to incorporate the Bill of Rights to the states through the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment. This doctrine has been traced to Gitlow v. New York in 1925, when the Supreme Court held that states were required to protect freedom of speech, partially incorporating the First Amendment.

The relevant text of the First Amendment states that, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." This text is meant to prevent an established state religion but also to protect religious practice from government interference. While protection from a theocracy is important, it is hard to argue that this text is meant to enforce secularism. Additionally, the phrase "separation of church and state" is actually paraphrased from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson in 1802. It was not interpreted as part of the intent of the First Amendment until Reynolds v. United States in 1878.

It's tempting to push back by declaring the United States was founded as a secular country. Unfortunately, that claim would ignore a long history of the privileging of Christianity.

Most early colonies supported religious action with taxes. Many established state religions. While some disestablished with early state constitutions, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maryland, Rhode Island and North Carolina didn't. The Massachusetts Constitution limited office to Protestants until 1821. Non-Protestants couldn't hold office in New Hampshire until 1876.1 Maryland, Rhode Island, North Carolina and New Hampshire did not allow non-Christian voting until well into the 19th century when the franchise expanded in 1826, 1842, 1868, and 1877, respectively.

At the federal level, religion became relevant to citizenship when coupled with questions of "whiteness." Naturalization required an immigrant be "white" or of African descent after the Civil War until 1952. This requirement led to a number of cases, dubbed "prerequisite cases," brought by immigrants to prove their "whiteness." One consideration for the courts was the "racial performance" of immigrants to determine how successfully they would assimilate. Courts often used an immigrant's lack of Christianity as a detriment to assimilation and therefore to whiteness.

There were also forms of state-sponsored discrimination against non-Christians that did not require explicit privileging of Christianity over other religions. Consider the ubiquity of "Sunday Laws," which prohibited people from working Sundays. Jews had to work on the sabbath (Saturday), lose two days of work over the weekend or risk prosecution. These laws resurged in 1880s New York with the arrival of more Jews.

Non-Christians, particularly Jews, faced discrimination in court. Courts often required people to appear on Saturdays and would forbid a "religious exemption" for Jews. Many also considered a belief in Jesus Christ as a requisite for swearability on the witness stand. Not until 1857 did a New York court ruled a Jewish witness must be sworn to testify according to the "peculiar ceremonies of his religion," specifically a Hebrew Bible and with his head covered. Jewish witnesses got legal protections in 1871. A Jewish plaintiff was questioned about his belief in Jesus Christ to impeach his honor under oath in a property dispute. When appealed, a Georgia court said a "want of belief in Jesus Christ as the Saviour" was not grounds for exclusion of a witness, and that while some courts have used a belief in Jesus as necessary to render a witness competent, the court clearly ruled that "a Jew is competent at common law."

It's tempting to push back against politicians justifying their regressive morality laws by way of the "Judeo-Christian values" of the founding. It's tempting to push back by simply pointing to the First Amendment and declaring the United States was always founded as a secular country. Unfortunately, that claim would ignore a long history of discrimination against minority religions and the privileging of Christianity.

In order to fight for a truly religiously inclusive society, we must acknowledge the ways in which Christianity is embedded in the laws and culture of our society. Luckily the founders provided the First Amendment, an important tool in this fight.

How to fix MSNBC

D. Earl Stephens
December 2, 2024 

Morning Joe co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski (Screenshot)

I want to borrow some of your valuable time today to explain how I would not only save the faltering MSNBC, but also help it positively thrive, all while putting Republicans’ ongoing attack on America and our flickering Democracy on the front burner of the national discussion

I admit that I come to all this as an unlikely savior.

As a curmudgeonly newspaperman, I have not been a fan of 24/7 cable news ever since it so unfortunately came into existence. I mean, what in the hell prompted us to think we needed “BREAKING NEWS” shoveled at us all day via these oh-so-sweet and handsome television toothies to further complicate our busy lives?

Much better newspaper professionals packaged all you needed to know in a neat, tight bundle delivered at your doorstep so you could process it all with your coffee in the morning, or an extra-dry martini after work. And if you needed a stiff chaser, there was always Walter Cronkite kicking around to serve it to you straight.

When it was clear the never-ending news blaring from our TV sets was here to stay, I let go this stellar quote in the newsroom one gloomy afternoon: “Turn that shit off. Nobody has time to watch this amateur crap all day.”

Well, it turns out I was wrong about all that, and I’ll spare you what I said about the Internet when it barged into our lives, because chances are you’d quit reading right here and now.

(I did think the Beatles would be a major hit when they came long, so occasionally my predictions hit in spectacular fashion.)

Ever since the latest godawful election night in America, MSNBC’s ratings have been in the toilet, with some parts of their programming dropping audience share by nearly 50 percent. Turns out, many viewers aren’t happy with their appeasement of the American-attacking Trump in some parts of their 24/7 programming, or their attempt at “fair and balanced” news coverage that preceded the election by normalizing a hardcore racist who writes love letters to dictators. Then there was the not-so-subtle banging on the Democratic Party by some of their mouthy, daytime anchors, who just couldn’t acknowledge the party was correct on nearly every single major issue, but ironically lacked the bandwidth to tout their stellar work.

There’s speculation that MSNBC’s ratings dive will slow when the America-attacking Trump is sworn in on January 20th, and all the terrible things he ran on officially become all too real. Good people are just tired right now, and trying to claim the next two months for themselves, before all the blood righteously pumps from their hearts with a gush straight into their exploding heads.


Fox News went through a similar down cycle after Joe Biden beat the America-attacker in 2020. The right-wing propaganda station lost lots of its viewers, but they all returned in time.

I am not sure that will be the case here — my shaky history of predictions aside.

The gods at Comcast, who own MSNBC, have announced they have plans to “spin off” the network, along with some other channels in their vast catalog into a separate company. Nobody knows what in the hell all this means, but in researching this writing, I can tell you there are a s----ton of “media insiders” who aren’t shy about making semi-educated guesses.

Some have speculated whatever it is that is spun will be sold to the highest bidder — maybe even Fox’s Rupert Murdoch. Others say the place will just look a little different, but remain under current ownership.

Only one thing seems crystal clear: America has never needed reliable, left-leaning news programming more than it does right now.

The notorious messaging problem wasn’t as prevalent for Democrats this past election cycle, but platforming their message was. They (we) simply no longer have the bandwidth to compete with the Republican’s myriad industrial pollutants that poison the air with their lies. They are literally everywhere. They control the radio airways, our TV channels, and the digital media. Billionaires like the grotesque Elon Musk are throwing their money and their allegiances to fascists like Vladimir Putin to help finish off America for good with their odious, never-ending lies.

Our corporate media is now officially disgraceful, and failed to do its job by giving the greatest internal threat to America since the Civil War the attention it deserved. Democracy and our rights as Americans are hanging precariously by a thread, and these incompetent, bought-off boobs in the working press are in large part to blame for it. Regular visitors to this space will know how I feel about all this and them, so for the sake of time, I’ll just leave it at that for now.

The communications landscape has been turned completely on its head, and liberals’ rigid, straight-up approach to reaching people is honorable in its intent and embarrassing in its execution and results. Unless and until this is fixed, and pronto, Democrats and left-leaners in this country are in deep, deep, trouble.

We are losing the communications battle, but if MSNBC would just get the hell out of its own way, we could start to reclaim the high ground.

Here’s how that happens:Start listening to your audience, MSNBC. They hate you right now. They believe you have failed and betrayed them. Stop trying to be some “both-sides-do-it” news organization, and start capturing the millions of people who are starving for truth, and know a revolting racist when they see and hear one. Stop trying to be too many different things to too many different audiences. Immediately dump the half-baked garbage on your station — like, Morning Joe, for instance. Seriously, what is it that the show supposed to be doing? What crucial niche is it fulfilling? Is showcasing two lily-white people kissing the two-ton ass of a dictator that important? Their stupid show bleeds into a significant problem I’ll delve into a bit more shortly: What the hell is your penchant for recruiting Republican refugees as headliners on your station? It’s disgusting. Start listening to what your audience wants immediately. Start giving them what they want instead of what you think they should want. It’s haughty as hell. They, not you, are all that matters.

Screw it, let’s deal with this Republican problem right now. The station is littered with them. Do these people really think their noxious party is coming back from the America-attacking Trump? Is being a part of the gruesome Tea Party movement something to be proud of and looked back on with reverence? Are trying to kill abortion rights and Obamacare a badge of honor? Were things “great” for them when they had the House and Senate back then? And former staffers for the hideous George W. Bush are everywhere. Here’s a bulletin: He is a terrible, terrible man. A damn war criminal. A complete idiot. I mean, what the hell am I supposed to make of all this, people? Look, I’m not here to entirely wipe ‘em out, but how is it they have ascended to such loud platforms in the Democratic communications ranks? The Lincoln Project, despite some pretty significant hiccups, has done some good work, but nobody deserves extra credit for simply doing the right thing and turning away from a revolting political party that falls at the fat, little feet of a complete lying racist, deviant, who assaults women and our country and brags about it. But MSNBC can’t seem to get enough of these old, white Republican men, and as an old, white liberal man I find it really creepy and disturbing. Here’s what I’d like to hear them all say, “We were wrong. The party we supported is terrible, it really is. Turns out the folks on the Left were right about us all these years. I fervently hope they will accept our apologies.” Otherwise, they can hit the road, and shouldn’t be trusted. I have warned before that many of them are just dying to do the wrong thing again, and go back to their revolting party.

Don’t be shy about letting your audience know that you are direct counter-programing to the ghastly Fox network, and in fact are taking them and their bulls--- head-on. Make a point of destroying them. Belittle them. Fact-check the hell out of them. This will be delightfully easy to do and so much damn fun to watch. WE NEED SOME FUN, DAMMIT. Say what you will about Murdoch’s odious network, but it has succeeded beyond the ancient man’s wildest dreams. There is no America-attacking Trump without Fox. Period. They are ratings stalwarts that traffic in lies and are expert at exploiting what is buried in their audience’s cold, white hearts. They are proof as Mark Twain once quipped, that “a lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.” Call them out on this 24/7.

Focus. Make it clear as day you are 100 percent, left-leaning programming that proudly and unswervingly stands for women’s right, human rights, voters’ rights, environmental rights, workers’ rights, healthcare rights, and Social Security and Medicare rights. In other words, all the things the Democrats have stood for during the past 100 years. Except too many Americans don’t know that in 2024, because the message and that fact have been completely stolen. This horses--- that Republicans are running with the idea that they care about working-class Americans is grand larceny and should NEVER have been allowed to happen. By their dirty deeds, Republicans actually HATE working-class Americans. This has been a massive messaging problem for the Democratic Party, yes. But the pathetic mainstream media, with your help, MSNBC, helped people buy into this. Stop trying to do too many things half-decently, and home in on doing one thing great: spreading the truth.

Give Pete Buttigieg a big, fat contract and as much airtime as he wants. I’m being partial here, but the dude might be the best communicator I have ever heard. Maybe even consider some Crossfire variant where he calmly smashes a conservative lackey to smithereens on a weekly basis. Again: WE NEED SOME DAMN FUN.

Enough already with all these double-talking “legal experts” on your shows. This should need no explaining after what happened first with Bill Barr and the Mueller Report, and then Merrick Garland and the attack on America he ignored. It took forever to hear a single criticism of Garland from any of these on-air lawyers. Some still haven’t gotten there yet. They have been wrong about almost everything, but have proven the legal system in this country is in a complete shambles. The notion of law and order, and that nobody is above the law in the United States is a pathetic joke. Our Supreme Court is the most gory example of this. Give me legal people who say what needs saying in plain, non-lawyered terms, and will be critical of other lawyers, and keep the rest of them the hell off the air.

Create the biggest, ever-expanding, liberal, pro-Democracy bubble in history, and don’t apologize for it. If the worst thing that happens is that your growing audience is stuffed full of righteous, good-hearted people, while all hell comes raining down from the White House during the next four years, things could be worse. You have a real opportunity here, MSNBC. Tens of millions of us, are looking for a place we can trust to hang our hats while the storm rages. I suggest you get the hell out of your own way and just take it.


D. Earl Stephens is the author of “Toxic Tales: A Caustic Collection of Donald J. Trump’s Very Important Letters” and finished up a 30-year career in journalism as the Managing Editor of Stars and Stripes. You can find all his work here.

Many student loans bills could double under Trump: report

Student loans remain the only debt that cannot be forgiven in a bankruptcy proceeding.

Sarah K. Burris
December 2, 2024 

RAW STORY 

First-generation college students face uneven prospects well after college. Nirat.pix/www.shutterstock.com

Many student loan borrowers could see their bills double under Donald Trump's second term if his administration chooses not to defend the SAVE plan in court, or if Republicans in Congress eliminate the plan, according to a report.

President Joe Biden's student loan repayment plan capped the monthly payment requirements at 5% of the borrower's income, which is half of what they were under the REPAYE plan. But President-elect Trump can change that.

CNBC reported that of the 8 million student loans, 4 million are enrolled in the SAVE program, which helps those making less than $15 an hour, by reducing their payments to $0. Biden's plan also cuts the repayment period from 20 to 25 years down to 10.

Business Insider previously estimated that Biden has used several programs to cancel $175 billion in student loan debt for approximately 5 million students. Trump has objected to this, calling it "vile" during the 2024 campaign. When he was in the debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump called the program "a total catastrophe."

ALSO READ: The real reason Republicans oppose efforts to cancel student debt

Trump has also advocated killing the entire Department of Education, which manages $1.6 trillion in federal student loan debt. Education Week reported that a bill has already been filed.

Salon pointed out that over the past four years, Republican-led states have attacked the SAVE plan, even going so far as to sue the Biden administration to stop it.

Bob Eitel, senior counselor to the secretary of education, told CBS News that he expects everything will be rolled back.

"The Trump administration may pursue different avenues of loan relief, but it will not be the mass, blanket types of forgiveness that the current administration has pursued," Eitel said.

Currently, the SAVE program is on pause after many legal challenges.

"When Trump returns to the White House in January, borrowers enrolled in SAVE should be prepared for that forbearance to come to an end," CNBC cited consumer bankruptcy lawyer Malissa Giles.

Student loans remain the only debt that cannot be forgiven in a bankruptcy proceeding.

Read the full report here.

Trump privatization plan will add thousands a year to typical mortgage: expert

Matthew Chapman
December 2, 2024 

RAW STORY

Donald Trump. (Photo credit: Gage Skidmore)

A proposed deregulation of the home loan market that Donald Trump is widely expected to pursue could have massive consequences for new homebuyers — particularly those with low incomes, reported CNN on Monday.

Specifically, Trump is likely to try to privatize Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage-backing giants that the federal government took a stake in following the 2008 financial crisis. He attempted to do this in his last term, but was unsuccessful.

Fannie and Freddie's function is to repackage existing mortgages to investors in order to ensure stable cash flow and allow loans to be issued affordably to people with lower incomes. They were brought under government conservatorship in order to stabilize the housing market during a period when the market had severely misjudged the risk of subprime loans.

The federal government's stake in these programs is worth billions of dollars, so re-privatizing them would be an immediate windfall — but it would also introduce significant new complexities into the mortgage market and, according to some economists, would result in homebuyers paying a lot more.

If the spinoff is not handled carefully, it could also scare off bondholders into seeing mortgages as riskier investments, driving up the price of 30-year fixed home loans for everyone.

Mark Zandi, who heads up economic analysis at Moody's, "estimated that full privatization of Fannie and Freddie would cost the typical American taking out a new mortgage $1,200 annually." However, home prices and interest rates were lower back then — adjusted for today, it would be "between $1,800 and $2,800 per year for a typical mortgage holder, Zandi told CNN after updating his original paper’s calculations" — with the heaviest cost falling on people with lower incomes and credit scores.

Republicans have sought to privatize Fannie and Freddie for years, noting that the federal conservatorship was never intended to be permanent. They have also blamed these institutions, and their mandate of making home loans more accessible to lower-income people, for causing the 2008 financial crisis in the first place. This is not true, as Fannie and Freddie's share of the highest-risk category of mortgages actually decreased during the housing bubble.

Trump's re-election already injected new uncertainty into mortgage markets with, rates seeing a sharp uptick to 6.8 percent.

Trump's $20M-per-mile border wall can be bypassed with simple power tools: report

MEXICO STILL HAS NOT PAID FOR IT!

Sarah K. Burris
December 2, 2024 
RAW ST0RY

President Donald J. Trump arrives at a border wall site near the Texas-Mexico border near Alamo, Texas, Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021, and is greeted by border patrol agents and guests. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)

Immigrants seeking to cross the U.S.-Mexico border wall — which cost an estimated $20 million per mile to build — can wield simple power tools to saw their way through.

That's according to a new article in the Independent, which added that in some southern Arizona sections, severed pillars of the famous border wall can be pushed open by hand. In other sections of the state, the terrain is too rugged to build and the wall stands unconnected.

During Donald Trump's 2024 campaign, his favorite slogan, "Build the wall," never came up. Now, there's a question about whether he's giving up the cause.

The Independent recalled the longest government shutdown in history, triggered by Trump's demand for funding for his border wall. Ultimately, he got it. Still, the "wall" he promised hasn't been built. But it doesn't mean he will return to ensure the structure is built.

Instead of the wall, "Trump now wants a "bloody" mass deportation operation immediately removing millions of people, including by potentially reviving family separation," the report quoted.

ALSO READ: Trump planning ‘largest mass deportation operation’ — on day one

The report pointed to a local advocacy group in the Rio Grand Valley that says the "wall" has taken away the residents' little green space. Michelle Serrano, who runs Voces Unidas RGV, noted that another problem is that the "wall" has made local flooding worse and terrified its large Latino community with around-the-clock surveillance.

“This is like a rights-free area,” she told The Independent. “We’re talking about an area where they freely racially profile us. It feels like a separate but equal situation.”

The Republican Party still has building the wall as a key piece of its platform, but the topic isn't surfacing amid discussions about immigration.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden pledged not to build any more of the wall, but the efforts on the border continued. A court then told the White House they must spend the money allocated in 2019-20 on building the wall. There was then a problem with environmental disasters that the Biden White House tried to side-step, only to be told by the courts that they had to do the environmental cleanup prior to building the wall.

Also Read: People expecting Trump voters to turn on him are fooling themselves

While Trump wasn't in the White House, GOP governors funded their projects to build Trump's promised wall. In Texas, that's 50 miles of state-funded wall.

"It’s an incredible amount of effort and spending for a piece of border policy that hasn’t been shown to make any meaningful difference in reducing migration overall," the report continued.

Trump's new plan is to orchestrate the deportation of 11 million documentary immigrants. The Trump team claims they'll start with criminals. Crossing the border illegally is a crime, however. So, Trump's team will be able to argue that anyone who crossed without claiming asylum or beginning the immigration process is technically a "criminal."

Given the mass deportations are part of his flagship 2024 campaign promise, Trump could request funding for that over the wall when making his pitch to Congress.

Read the full report here.

AMERIKA

'Shame on you': Critics blast far-right lawmaker for demanding abolition of gay marriage

Matthew Chapman
December 2, 2024 

RAW STORY

The pride flag flies above Indiana's state flag. Maxim Studio / Shutters

A far-right state lawmaker in Michigan called for the abolition of same-sex marriage on Monday immediately after returning from the holidays — and caught significant backlash on social media.

State Rep. Josh Schriver, who previously filed a lawsuit to restrict voting rights in Michigan and was stripped of his committee assignment after posting content promoting the white supremacist "great replacement theory," posted on X, "Make gay marriage illegal again. This is not remotely controversial, nor extreme."

He followed up with a second post reading, "20 years ago, Barack Obama was more conservative on marriage than many Republicans today. America only 'accepted' gay marriage after it was thrusted into her by a perverted Supreme Court ruling. America 2124 doesn’t have to be as dysfunctional as America 2024."

Commenters responding to his post were less than on board.

"A fellow representative is saying my marriage to the man I love should be illegal," wrote Michigan Democratic Party vice chair Jason Morgan. "This is definitely both controversial and extreme, along with anti-family. I grew up believing I'd never be able to get married and I'm not going back."

"Please explain how dissolving my marriage, or that of the hundreds of thousands of other same-sex couples living in America, provides a benefit to your constituents or anyone else," wrote Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. "You’re not interested in helping Michiganders. You want only to hurt those you hate. Shame on you."

"Make bigotry illegal. That solves the issue," wrote author Joyce Carol.

Schriver's remark also found its way onto the competing social media platform Bluesky, where it faced a similarly harsh reception.

"This is what he came back with after a week with his family and God — destroying other peoples’ families," wrote political commentator Brian Tyler Cohen, noting that his post just before that one vowed to turn off "all my devices for 7 days" and spend the holiday praying with family.

"Michigan Republican state Rep. Josh Schriver is giving away the game," wrote The Advocate reporter Christopher Wiggins.

This Michigan lawmaker wants to 'make gay marriage illegal again'

Michigan State Rep. Josh Schriver (R), Image via Gage Skidmore/Flickr.

David Badash

December 02, 2024

Republican state lawmaker Josh Schriver, who calls himself “Michigan’s most conservative state representative” and a “White rapper,” said Monday he wants to “Make gay marriage illegal again.”

Rep. Schriver insists ripping apart the families of millions of Americans and stripping them of their civil and constitutional rights is “not remotely controversial, nor extreme.” Nearly seven out of ten Americans (69%) say same-sex marriage should be legal—which it has been nationwide in the United States for nearly a decade.

He followed that up just hours later by declaring, “20 years ago, Barack Obama was more conservative on marriage than many Republicans today. America only ‘accepted’ gay marriage after it was thrusted into her by a perverted Supreme Court ruling. America 2124 doesn’t have to be as dysfunctional as America 2024. ORDER! ORDER!”

READ MORE: ‘Two Things Could Be True’: White House Reveals Why Hunter Pardon Might Not Have Happened

(In 2015, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have the same constitutional rights and responsibilities to marriage as different-sex couples, the majority of the country was already in support of marriage equality.)

In addition to calling for a ban on same-sex marriage, Schriver has suggested the “endgame” for Republicans should be banning transgender medical care for everyone, as The Advocate reported in January. He also says not allowing conscience exemptions for DMV employees to discriminate against transgender Michiganders “is going to lead to (more) Christian persecution.”

Michigan Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel on Monday responded to Rep. Schriver, asking: “Please explain how dissolving my marriage, or that of the hundreds of thousands of other same-sex couples living in America, provides a benefit to your constituents or anyone else. You’re not interested in helping Michiganders. You want only to hurt those you hate. Shame on you.”

The Daily Beast in February called Schriver a “far-right lawmaker, who is also a Christian rapper.” It reported that Schriver says “God called me” to his seat as a state lawmaker.





Controversy broke out after Schriver had “shared a racist conspiracy theory online.” He “wasted no time doubling down on his rhetoric—even after losing his state House committee and staff as a result.”

“’I’m a White rapper and most conservative voting Representative in Michigan,’ Rep. Schriver, who rhymes about his voting record and Jesus, wrote … on X. ‘I guess it was only a matter of time before I was falsely labeled a ‘raaacist!’ ‘”

“I’m a Christian…not a racist,” he also proclaimed.

“There is an anti-White agenda,” Schriver has also said, according to The Daily Beast. He said there is also a “racist plan to replace Whites with non-Whites through illegal immigration to irreversibly warp America’s demographics, voting citizens, and national identity to keep power in the hands of a godless regime.”

Schriver’s voting record was also covered by The Daily Beast, which reported the far-right Republican has “voted against legislation banning child marriage; prohibiting sexual contact under the pretext of medical treatment; designating Juneteenth as a state holiday; and making race-based discrimination based on someone’s hair texture or style illegal.”

Last year, Schriver called President Abraham Lincoln one of the “architects of the U.S. Constitution.”

UK

Low rates of flu vaccine take-up: Concerns for the season ahead


By Dr. Tim Sandle
December 2, 2024
DIGITAL JOURNAL

Danish drugmaker Bavarian Nordic said last week that it was ready to supply up to 10 million doses of its vaccine targeting mpox by the end of 2025 

- Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP Ian Willms

As those in the northern hemisphere brace themselves for colder temperatures during the winter months, cases for cold and flu are, as expected, rising. Click Pharmacy has been reviewing cold and flu cases across England, revealing more than two thirds of adults (aged under 65 years) eligible for their flu jab have not taken up the offer.

Jana Abelovska, Superintendent Pharmacist at Click Pharmacy, tells Digital Journal that ‘real flu’ (as opposed to the common cold) is unpleasant and sometimes dangerous.

Abelovska states: “While for most people seasonal flu is an unpleasant condition that can be treated at home, for some people it can be very dangerous. It can make conditions like asthma and heart disease worse. Flu can also put vulnerable people at risk of developing complications like pneumonia, or inflammatory conditions like myocarditis and encephalitis.”

In the UK vaccines against influenza are commonly available, yet the take-up in 2024 is relatively low. Abelovska observes: “The NHS Seasonal Vaccination Programme makes the flu vaccine available for free to these people who are at additional risk – it was concerning to see that as of 4 November, fewer than a third of adults under 65, pregnant women and toddlers aged 2-3 had been in to get their free vaccine yet. While flu cases look quite low at present according to government and NHS data, we might see cases rise higher in the winter – we would urge everyone who is eligible for a flu jab to make that appointment.”

Flu cases

In terms of prevalence, 3.3 percent of flu tests have been declared positive on 10 November 2024. On the same date a year ago, only 1.3 percent tests came out positive. This suggests an increase in cases.

Click Pharmacy has compared positive flu tests by age group over the past four months. Once again using the 10th as the date, the age group showing the highest likelihood of testing positive in November was children aged 5-14, 9.5 percent of whose tests were positive – over twice as high as the month before. The group second most likely to test positive was teenagers and young people aged 15-24, at 6.3 percent. In third place, 5.4 percent of people aged 25-44 tested positive.

The research also looked at the number of people hospitalised with the flu in November using information from the Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) surveillance scheme. In the week ending 4 November 2024, the number of people hospitalised per 100,000 trust catchment population was 1.23.

London had the highest number of hospital admissions at 1.8 per 100,000. The region with the lowest number of hospital admissions for flu is the South of England at 0.8 per 100,000.The North of England and the Midlands and East of England have very similar numbers at 1.1 and 1.2 per 100,000 respectively.

Flu vaccines

The region that has received the highest number of flu vaccines through the NHS Seasonal Vaccination Programme is the Midlands, where 2,733,620 people have been vaccinated. The South East had received the second highest number of flu vaccines at 2,460,425, and the North East and Yorkshire was in third place, at 2,311,060. The data also compared the numbers of people who had received a free vaccine in the following three categories. Those aged over 65 had received the highest number of flu vaccines at 7,764,619, followed by children aged 2-3 at 4,31,892. School aged children from reception to Year 11 received 2,094,967 vaccinations.

The research also found that as of 4 November, 66.6 percent of those aged 65 and over had received their flu vaccine. However, in other eligible groups the uptake was lower, with 28.7 percent of pregnant women, 31.5 percent of eligible adults under 65 and 25.4 percent of toddlers aged 2-3 attending an appointment to receive their free vaccine.

The flu vaccine is available for free to people who belong to certain categories, including the age groups and categories mentioned above; frontline health and social care workers; and people with conditions including diabetes, asthma, kidney disease, or a lowered immune system. However, many high street pharmacies also make the vaccine available for everyone else too, as a paid for service.
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Read more: https://www.digitaljournal.com/life/low-rates-of-flu-vaccine-take-up-concerns-for-the-season-ahead/article#ixzz8tLEli1LU

Venezuela’s ‘Pearl of the Caribbean’ loses its luster


By AFP
December 2, 2024

A man fishes at Juan Griego bay in Margarita Island, a Caribbean paradise in decline after a years-long economic and political crisis 

- Copyright AFP Juan BARRETO

Margioni BERMÚDEZ

One of the five stars that used to adorn the facade of the Margarita hotel on the Venezuelan paradise island of the same name has fallen off.

Not that there are any guests to notice.

The hotel is abandoned, its peeling facade a symbol of the decline of an island once dubbed the “Pearl of the Caribbean” that has been robbed of its shine by a severe economic crisis.

A short drive away by car, a herd of cows grazes in front of another vacant former five-star hostelry, Lagunamar.

It looks as if an earthquake ripped through here, tearing the roof off a pool-side pavilion, tossing lamps and toilets around the garden and leaving mounds of rubble.

The damage is, in fact, the work of vandals, who steal scrap metal to sell at a profit or to build shacks.

Margarita, a major source of pearls in the 15th and 16th centuries, used to be a playground for American tourists, drawn to its palm-fringed white-sand beaches and turquoise waters.

But Venezuela’s economic collapse, high crime rates and growing international isolation in the wake of bitterly disputed elections have caught up with the island of 500,000 people.

The signs of decline are everywhere.

Several clothes and souvenir shops along the main shopping drag, Santiago Marino, stand empty.

And power outages are frequent. An explosion last month at a gas facility in the nearby state of Monagas led to blackouts of up to 20 hours at a time.

“This is not the Margarita of the past,” Jose Padobani, a 26-year-old barman, told AFP.



– ‘All my friends have left’ –



An 80-percent drop in GDP over a decade of increasingly repressive rule by strongman President Nicolas Maduro between 2013 and 2023 pushed more than seven million Venezuelans — almost a quarter of the population — to seek a better life elsewhere.

Many had hoped to return after July 2024 elections, in which polls showed an easy win for the opposition.

But those hopes were shattered when Maduro claimed victory — despite results published by the opposition showing their man, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, winning by a landslide.

“All my friends have left, but I don’t want to leave,” says Juan Caiman, a 44-year-old furniture maker, whose Colombian father immigrated to Venezuela in the 1980s to escape the violence unleashed by drug kingpin Pablo Escobar.

Caiman, who makes luxury furniture in an workshop near the abandoned Margarita hotel, is one of a group of business people determined to tough it out on the island.

Fadwa Hage, 55, owner of an adjacent sports shop on Santiago Marino, said those who had stayed behind did so to protect their businesses from looting.

But she also sees tentative signs of a recovery.

“This year, just on this one block, three new businesses have already opened,” she said.

“We have beaches, mountains and lots of activities in which to invest. This island is unique!”



– Signs in Russian, Turkish, Chinese –



In the near absence of Western tourists, the government has launched campaigns to attract visitors from Venezuela ally Russia, Cuba and Poland.

Some 40,000 Russians have visited Margarita since 2023, according to official figures, lured by all-inclusive packages, including limitless alcohol, in hotels with generators that keep the lights and air-conditioning on.

Signs posted around the island welcome visitors in Russian, Turkish, Polish and Chinese, and kite-surfing lessons are also offered in those languages.

But many islanders complain they are not benefitting from the new revenue streams.

“We depend on Venezuelan tourists because Russian tourists don’t spend a thing,” Demetria, a masseuse who has been offering treatments on the beach for 16 years, told AFP.

Peter, a 44-year-old Russian IT specialist who was on his first visit to Venezuela this year, said he was surprised to find hotels, shops and restaurants abandoned.

“It’s as if they were built for ten times more tourists,” he said.



– ‘The art of coping’ –



In the low-income neighborhood of Las Maritas, Crismar Lopez uses two candles and her cellphone flashlight to illuminate the kitchen where she makes hot dogs to sell on the street for $1.50 a pair.

The recent power cuts put Lopez and her husband out of business for two weeks because they could not refrigerate food.

But the 47-year-old mother of three says she is used to muddling through.

“Venezuelans are masters in the art of coping,” she said.

From China woes to EV troubles, VW faces rocky road


By AFP
December 2, 2024

Volkswagen is seeking to make major cost cuts as it faces myriad headwinds - Copyright AFP Bertrand GUAY

As Volkswagen seeks to push through a drastic restructuring with billions of euros in cuts, workers nationwide on Monday kicked off what could be a long wave of industrial action.

From high costs to management missteps and slowdowns in key markets, here are some of the key challenges facing the German car giant:

– High costs –

Europe’s biggest carmaker has repeatedly stressed that its costs are excessive and profit margins too low, particularly at its core VW brand.

Production costs in Germany are “clearly too high”, said a leaflet from VW’s management distributed to the workforce ahead of the first round of talks between executives and unions in September.

All areas would be examined — from development, to manufacturing and distribution — when it comes to cost-cutting, VW group CEO Oliver Blume told public broadcaster ZDF in an interview.

High electricity prices, which have risen since the energy crisis triggered by the Ukraine war, as well as elevated labour costs are a significant challenge for the 10-brand group in its home market.

Worker representatives say VW’s management now want to shutter at least three plants in Germany and cut tens of thousands of jobs.

Unions are fiercely resisting the plans. They began their industrial action Monday with so-called “warning strikes” — short walkouts typically used during ongoing negotiations.

But the powerful IG Metall Union has threatened strikes on a scale not seen in Germany for decades unless management dumps its most drastic plans.

They put forward their own proposals last month to make savings without the need for factory closures but the carmaker’s management rejected them.

Talks continue, with the next round due on December 9.

Stefan Bratzel, a German automotive expert, told AFP that VW needs to become “much leaner”, as the company has “too many employees who don’t work hard enough and too many committees”.



– China challenge –



Volkswagen — whose brands range from Skoda and Seat to Porsche and Audi — makes around a third of its sales in China, the world’s biggest auto market, but has been losing ground in recent times.

It has three joint ventures in the world’s second biggest economy, about 90,000 employees and more than 30 plants manufacturing vehicles and components.

But it has been hit hard by China’s economic slowdown coupled with fierce competition from local rivals, particularly when it comes to electric vehicles.

Chinese EV manufacturers, such as BYD, have captured market share with top-selling models packed with technology that appeal to local customers while VW has struggled with a troubled transition to electric cars.



– Strong links to the state –



Politics have played a key role at Volkswagen for decades. The state of Lower Saxony — home to VW’s historic Wolfsburg headquarters and several factories — holds 20 percent of the group’s voting shares.

This means it has a blocking minority, allowing it to stop key decisions.

This “hampers the company’s ability to adapt” and means it functions as “a state-owned company”, said automotive expert Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer.

In addition employee representatives sit on the supervisory board, and wield a veto over the creation and relocation of production sites.

It is also almost impossible to close plants against their will.



– Troubled electric transition –



VW has poured huge sums into its EV shift but the transition has been troubled.

It has launched the ID range of cars, such as the ID.3, but the vehicles have experienced problems with their software.

Former VW CEO Herbert Diess has been criticised for the development of software in-house via subsidiary Cariad, with observers saying the project was costly and botched, and has left the German group lagging behind.

It is hoping to turn around its fortunes with a $5.8-billion investment in US electric vehicle maker Rivian to create a joint venture, a deal that was announced in June.

Stellantis says goodbye to ‘performance psychopath’ CEO


By AFP
December 2, 2024

Carlos Tavares drove profits for years by cutting costs but the strategy recently failed for him at Stellantis - Copyright AFP/File JULIEN DE ROSA

Taimaz SZIRNIKS

Carlos Tavares, a self-proclaimed “performance psychopath” who drove auto giant Stellantis with aggressive cost-cutting and high car prices, reached the end of the road as CEO when his strategy hit a dead end.

Tavares engineered one of the most ambitious mergers in automotive history in 2021 when more than a dozen brands, including Jeep, Fiat, Chrysler, Peugeot and Citroen, were put under the same roof.

The Portuguese executive, who headed French group Peugeot-Citroen at the time, was appointed chief executive of the newly created French-Italian-American behemoth dubbed Stellantis.

His three-year tenure was marked by high profit margins that were the envy of its rivals in the auto industry, but the good times ended this year as sales plummeted in the United States, the group’s key market.

Stellantis announced his abrupt departure in a statement Sunday night that hinted at tensions in the boardroom.

Henri de Castries, an independent director on the Stellantis board, said in the statement that “different views have emerged” in recent weeks which led to the decision.

Tavares, 66, brought to Stellantis the same strategy that he had enforced at Peugeot-Citroen, which he had headed since 2014 when he took over at the French auto group.

He was demanding with his teams and his cost management included cutting jobs, closing factories and tough negotiations that exasperated parts suppliers.

Tavares championed a “pricing power” strategy for Stellantis brands, putting high prices on models and putting an end to discounts that weighed on margins.

After a series of record quarterly earnings, Stellantis cut its annual profit outlook in late September, citing a “deterioration” in the global car sector and problems in the American market.

The situation with Dodge cars and Ram trucks was particularly worrying for Stellantis executives and financial markets, with new vehicles piling up on dealer lots as high prices and quality concerns turned off customers.



– Stellantis ‘squeezed’ –



In Europe, the Fiat, Citroen and Maserati brands were penalised by the late arrival of new models, sometimes due to software problems.

“This is the end of the road for the strategy of cost cutting,” said German car analyst Matthias Schmidt.

“All the juice has been squeezed” in what has become a “very weak market” that refuses to return to pre-covid levels.

Stellantis, like Volkswagen, also tried to produce as many models as possible on the same platform.

But customers of its premium brands like DS, Alfa Romeo or Jeep were increasingly unwilling to pay a premium price for cars that weren’t all that different from Stellantis mass market brands.

“It became obvious that the vehicles were only rebadged Peugeots,” said Schmidt.

“You can only go so far in commanding a price premium,” he added.

The move upmarket by Korean and Chinese manufacturers also lured customers away from Stellantis premium brands.

For Schmidt, it was somewhat ironic given his past that Tavares “didn’t restructure even more in a weak market environment.”

The group recently announced the closure of a factory in Britain but spared factories in France and Italy that are operating below capacity.

Stellantis also ran out of road with its tight management of human resources, losing several senior managers in recent months, including three who jumped to work for Chinese giant BYD in Europe.

Stellantis announced in September it had begun looking for a successor to Tavares, who had been due to stand down when his current five-year contract expired in early 2026.

But with the problems piling up Stellantis’s board on Sunday unanimously accepted his immediate resignation.

The move failed to reassure investors, with the company’s shares falling around seven percent on Monday.

30-strong Japan A-bomb delegation to collect Nobel prize


By AFP
December 2, 2024

Terumi Tanaka (2nd R), co-chair of Japanese atomic bomb survivors' group Nihon Hidankyo, will join a delegation headed to Oslo to collect their Nobel Peace Prize - Copyright AFP/File Yuichi YAMAZAKI

Japanese atomic bomb survivors’ group Nihon Hidankyo said Monday a 30-strong delegation will collect its Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo after a crowd-funding campaign to pay their travel costs.

Those going to the December 10 ceremony will include group co-chair Terumi Tanaka, 92, who witnessed the 1945 Nagasaki bombing as a child, as well as other survivors and their children.

With money provided by the Nobel Committee not enough to cover the travel expenses of such a large delegation, the group launched a crowd-funding campaign, which has so far raised over 36 million yen ($240,000).

Hidankyo member Jiro Hamasumi, 78, told reporters on Monday that the group was “very surprised” that the campaign raised 10 million yen on the first day alone.

“I’m delighted to say that our delegation will be able to go,” Hamasumi said.

He was in his mother’s womb when the United States dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945.

His father, who was at work just a few hundred metres (yards) from the epicentre, was killed.

“I hope I can speak from my own experience (in Oslo) about our desire not to see another victim, and that nuclear weapons must never be used,” Hamasumi said.

The grassroots anti-nuclear organisation was established in 1956 and is the only nationwide association of A-bomb survivors, who are known as hibakusha.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee nominated Nihon Hidankyo “for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again”.

Around 140,000 people died in Hiroshima and 74,000 others in Nagasaki three days later on August 9, 1945.

Survivors suffered from radiation sickness and longer-term effects including elevated risks of cancer.

The bombings, the only times nuclear weapons have been used in history, were the final blow to imperial Japan and its brutal rampage across Asia. It surrendered on August 15, 1945.