All posts by nedhamson

Activist, writer, researcher, addicted to sharing information and facts.

Alaska governor vetoes expanded birth control access as a judge strikes down abortion limits – Los Angeles Times

In competing developments about reproductive rights in the nation’s largest state, Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed a bill to expand birth control access while a judge struck down decades-old restrictions on who could perform abortions.

The Republican governor’s veto Wednesday stunned supporters of the measure, which would have forced insurance companies to cover up to a year’s supply of birth control at a time, something considered especially important in providing access in distant rural communities.

The bill overwhelmingly passed the state Legislature this year: 29-11 in the Republican-controlled House and 16-3 in the Senate, which has bipartisan leadership. It was not opposed by insurance companies, supporters noted.

Source: Alaska governor vetoes expanded birth control access as a judge strikes down abortion limits – Los Angeles Times

Netanyahu derailed a potential Gaza hostage deal in July, Israeli newspaper reports – Egypt Independent

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in July effectively spiked a draft hostage and ceasefire deal by introducing a raft of new, 11th-hour demands, according to a report by the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth citing a document it obtained.

Source: Netanyahu derailed a potential Gaza hostage deal in July, Israeli newspaper reports – Egypt Independent

Republican candidate for governor Mark Robinson is losing the ad war in North Carolina | North Carolina | The Guardian

The North Carolina gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson’s campaign ad spending appears to have completely collapsed in the wake of the Republican’s mounting scandals and increasingly dire poll numbers.

The lieutenant governor’s apparent shortfall comes despite changes to North Carolina’s campaign finance laws, which would make it easier for national donors to contribute to his campaign without leaving fingerprints on their money.

Source: Republican candidate for governor Mark Robinson is losing the ad war in North Carolina | North Carolina | The Guardian

Maldives drops plan to reopen longline tuna fishing following protests – Conservation news

Longline fishing for tuna will remain closed in the Maldives, the island country’s president announced on Aug. 29. The decision came after local fishers, conservation NGOs and scientists protested against plans by the administration of President Mohamed Muizzu to reopen longline fisheries for yellowfin tuna and bigeye tuna. Longline fishing has been banned in the Maldives since 2019.

“I am quite relieved by the decision and hope that the Government will uphold it,” Shaha Hashim, chairperson of conservation NGO Maldives Resilient Reefs, told Mongabay over a message. “This decision will not only safeguard the livelihoods of fishers and the tourism industry but also protect our marine biodiversity.”

Fishers in the Maldives have traditionally used pole-and-line fishing to catch tuna like skipjack (Katsuwonus pelamis) and yellowfin (Thunnus albacares). But since 1985, the Maldivian government has alternated between allowing and restricting longline fishing to increase catches of yellowfin and bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus). Longline fishing involves placing a long horizontal drag line that can stretch for kilometers, with thousands of baited hooks suspended in the water for several hours.

“While they are very good at catching tuna, they also catch and inflict immense collateral damage, entangling and drowning seabirds, turtles, manta rays, sharks, many of them endangered,” Callum Roberts, a marine conservation biologist with the University of Exeter, U.K., told Mongabay.

Source: Maldives drops plan to reopen longline tuna fishing following protests – Conservation news