Daily Archives: July 11, 2022

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Some events to look out for on climate justice, the environment, and the Caribbean

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Petchary's Blog

There are a few rather important dates in the summer calendar to keep in mind related to climate change, extractive industries, and more.

This week, Greenpeace USA will hold a hybrid press briefing in Kingston (Thursday, July 14 at 10:00 a.m. at the AC Marriott Hotel) as the International Seabed Authority (ISA) reaches a critical point in its deliberations on deep sea mining. Members of the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition will also be there. The ISA is set to decide the fate of the world’s oceans behind closed doors by fast-tracking regulations for the launch of the deep sea mining industry by July 2023 at its meeting in Kingston (July 18 – 29).

Now, voices are calling for a moratorium on deep sea mining. World leaders and parliamentarians want urgent actionto prevent deep sea mining (including, most recently, France and Chile as well as several Pacific nations).

A…

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Somber artwork unveiled at LAC + USC Medical Center, an apology for coerced sterilization in 1968-1974 – San Gabriel Valley Tribune

Meaning “to survive and to keep alive,” Huynh described her work, Sobrevivir, as a permanent apology and somber reminder of the coerced sterilizations performed on 240 mostly low-income, Mexican-American immigrant women. They delivered babies between 1968 and 1974 at the county hospital facility and then underwent postpartum sterilization, usually in the form of tubal ligation. Investigations by the county raised serious questions as to whether the women understood what was being asked of them due to language and cultural barriers, and which concluded that the women’s consent may not have been informed. First District Supervisor Hilda Solis, who spearheaded the project, said the story hit her hard, and years later is still relevant. “Many of the 240 women did not even realize until later they had lost their reproductive rights. This was an assault on their freedom, something we are seeing once again with the Supreme Court’s ruling to end the constitutional right to an abortion,” Solis said. Women, community members, doctors, nurses, county officials and the press stood on the artwork’s edge taking pictures and videos of the large work and adjoining plaque. The moment “was a long

Source: Somber artwork unveiled at LAC + USC Medical Center, an apology for coerced sterilization in 1968-1974 – San Gabriel Valley Tribune

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UN: We undervalue nature, overvalue profits to our peril

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Darcy Hitchcock

The UN recently released a damning report about global society. In a nutshell, it said we need to take into account the many benefits of nature, take into account all stakeholders (including indigenous perspectives) and reframe what we think of as the good life.

The problem: a focus on short term profits and economic growth

In the past, people who questioned the assumption of economic growth were ridiculed. It makes me think of the famous quote, “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win,” (which is often mistakenly attributed to Gandhi.) Having representatives from 139 member states of the United Nations say this looks like a win.

[T]he 139 member States of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the Assessment Report on the Diverse Values and Valuation of Nature finds that there is a…

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Uvalde Marches for Transparency and Gun Reform

Hundreds of people march through the Uvalde streets under the hot Texas sun. In the lead are relatives of the victims, holding signs with their names and photos.

On Sunday evening, as temperatures topped out at a withering 104 degrees, some 500 demonstrators gathered in southwest Uvalde at Robb Elementary School—the site, 47 days prior, of the deadliest school shooting in Texas history, which left 19 elementary-age children and two teachers dead. Out front sprawled a memorial to the lives stolen: a collage of weathered stuffed animals, crosses, letters, and flowers.

Vicente Salazar, who lost his 4th-grade granddaughter Layla Salazar—who loved music and the Dallas Cowboys—addressed a throng of reporters. “We have to have change in our Texas government … change the policies, change our representatives and everything,” he said, demanding that the age of purchase for AR-15-style rifles, like that used by the 18-year-old Uvalde killer, be raised from 18 to 21.

 

Source: Uvalde Marches for Transparency and Gun Reform

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Why Is It So Hard to Create Permanent Habits

MiddleMe

Every person has habits they rely on to complete certain activities at their own pace. It is not very hard to forget habits because they are a part of daily life, and we constantly make new ones whenever we face something new.

However, making “permanent” habits is a different story as it can take years before one is fully developed. But why is this so? Here are some reasons why it is tough to create permanent habits:

  1. You do not have an aim you wish to achieve in life
  2. , and there is a lack of self-motivation to develop something new.
  3. Distractions are preventing you from focusing on your efforts to make new habits.
  4. You are surrounded by people who negatively influence your thinking.
  5. Specific memories or current life situations throw a wrench in your efforts to recover and develop new habits.
  6. You are experiencing extreme bouts of procrastination, or…

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Violência Contra a Mulher

Pensamentos.me/VEM comigo!

Na atualidade, mulheres continuam morrendo todos os dias. E, ao contrário do que se imagina, a violência não começa com um tapa, com um empurrão, ou palavras que ofendem a honra dessa mulher. Não, a violência começa por expressões simples como: ” Não use essa roupa” ou “não use esse batom, não saia tarde da noite”. Resistir a não querer enxergar essa situação emblemática, é cooperar para esse quadro de violência contra a mulher .

O silencio mata

O silencio é o maior ato de permissão para as mais variadas formas de violência contra a mulher em nossa sociedade. A grande tragédia relacionada a família, baseia-se em características ainda atual. Estas, atreladas a regras rígidas como controle, o desejo do ato sexual, a dominação dessa mulher de diferentes formas, assim como a subordinação diante de fatores limitantes. Claro- que são resquícios do patriarcado, mas que se traduz todos os dias…

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Jolly {cough, cough} Monday!

Filosofa's Word

Good Monday morning, dear friends!  Yes, Monday has rolled around once again … time to drag out the suits ‘n ties, the briefcases … unless, of course, you’re retired like me and can happily stay in your jammies all day long!  Then Monday doesn’t seem so bad!  So, did you all have a fun weekend?  I stayed in … the air quality is very poor and I have enough trouble catching my breath inside the air-conditioned house, so I think it would be a very bad idea to go out in the heat & humidity and don a mask on top of it all.  I hope the weather is not so oppressive where you are!  Well, Joyful has been in the kitchen for a couple of hours now … she said she promised you guys double bacon today to make up for last Monday … so let’s go see what…

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