http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/donald-trump-s-lack-of-respect-for-science-is-alarming/
"one of the two major party candidates for the highest office in the land has repeatedly and resoundingly demonstrated a disregard, if not outright contempt, for science. Donald Trump also has shown an authoritarian tendency to base policy arguments on questionable assertions of fact and a cult of personality."
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
Sunday, August 28, 2016
Scientific American sounds alarm on Trump: He ‘takes antiscience to previously unexplored terrain’
Scientific American sounds alarm on Trump: He ‘takes antiscience to previously unexplored terrain’
"Scientific American broke with tradition and spoke out against the Republican Party’s presidential nominee over concerns that he is violating “the nation’s founding principles of truth and evidence"."
"Scientific American broke with tradition and spoke out against the Republican Party’s presidential nominee over concerns that he is violating “the nation’s founding principles of truth and evidence"."
Friday, August 19, 2016
Chief NC scientist resigns, accuses GOP administration of misleading the public about water quality
Chief NC scientist resigns, accuses GOP administration of misleading the public about water quality
"Megan Davies, North Carolina’s chief epidemiologist, resigned this week in the latest bit of drama over drinking water safety — drama that involves the state’s biggest utility and the administration of Republican Gov. Pat McCrory. Davies, who accused state officials of deliberately misleading residents, gives up her post of seven years and an $188,000 annual salary. The story begins in 2014, when a Duke Energy power plant spilled 40,000 tons of toxic coal ash and 27 million gallons of wastewater into the Dan River. The ash is a byproduct of burning coal, and it’s harmful to people and ecosystems, containing silica, mercury, cadmium, and arsenic. In the aftermath of the spill, public concern grew over Duke’s 32 coal ash storage sites around the state. Many of them were revealed to be unprotected, sitting in unlined basins — just heaps of coal ash in giant pits, leaching toxic elements and a carcinogen called hexavalent chromium into the water table. Soon after, hundreds of households near the storage sites were told by state officials not to drink from their wells due to concerns over water quality. In April 2015, Duke Energy began providing bottled water to those homes. The do-not-drink order, however, didn’t last. A year after warning residents that their well water wasn’t safe, representatives from the state’s Department of Environmental Quality and the Department of Health and Human Services changed their minds, writing to the impacted households that their water was actually fine. Testing, however, showed that well water near the coal ash sites still had levels of hexavalent chromium higher than in the municipal water supply. And Duke Energy, it turned out, had lobbied the state to reverse the do-not-drink order, even though nothing about most of the storage sites had changed. There were still unlined coal ash sites dotting the state, and there were still toxins in the water."
"Megan Davies, North Carolina’s chief epidemiologist, resigned this week in the latest bit of drama over drinking water safety — drama that involves the state’s biggest utility and the administration of Republican Gov. Pat McCrory. Davies, who accused state officials of deliberately misleading residents, gives up her post of seven years and an $188,000 annual salary. The story begins in 2014, when a Duke Energy power plant spilled 40,000 tons of toxic coal ash and 27 million gallons of wastewater into the Dan River. The ash is a byproduct of burning coal, and it’s harmful to people and ecosystems, containing silica, mercury, cadmium, and arsenic. In the aftermath of the spill, public concern grew over Duke’s 32 coal ash storage sites around the state. Many of them were revealed to be unprotected, sitting in unlined basins — just heaps of coal ash in giant pits, leaching toxic elements and a carcinogen called hexavalent chromium into the water table. Soon after, hundreds of households near the storage sites were told by state officials not to drink from their wells due to concerns over water quality. In April 2015, Duke Energy began providing bottled water to those homes. The do-not-drink order, however, didn’t last. A year after warning residents that their well water wasn’t safe, representatives from the state’s Department of Environmental Quality and the Department of Health and Human Services changed their minds, writing to the impacted households that their water was actually fine. Testing, however, showed that well water near the coal ash sites still had levels of hexavalent chromium higher than in the municipal water supply. And Duke Energy, it turned out, had lobbied the state to reverse the do-not-drink order, even though nothing about most of the storage sites had changed. There were still unlined coal ash sites dotting the state, and there were still toxins in the water."
Trump shows that he has absolutely no understanding of energy
http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/8/11/1558498/-Trump-shows-that-he-has-absolutely-no-understanding-of-energy
"Asked about the nation’s energy situation, Donald Trump got it wrong on almost every point."
"Asked about the nation’s energy situation, Donald Trump got it wrong on almost every point."
Thursday, August 11, 2016
Trump’s New Agriculture Adviser Has Some Very Backwards Ideas
https://thinkprogress.org/trumps-new-agriculture-adviser-has-some-very-backwards-ideas-1892085378af#.hmliv1ray
"Miller has engaged in some eyebrowing-raising conduct during his tenures as commissioner and as a former state representative. He defended suggesting that the United States nuke the Muslim world and compared refugees to snakes. Asked at a conservative policy forum about what keeps him up at night, Miller responded that he was concerned that the country would turn into a “Muslim country.” He has been accused of using state funds to take a trip to Oklahoma to get a “Jesus shot,” a medical cure-all for his chronic pain (he later reimbursed the funds to the state). And Miller also allegedly used state funds to compete in a rodeo. Other odd behaviors included granting “amnesty” to cupcakes and lifting a ban on deep fryers and soda machines in Texas public schools."
"Miller has engaged in some eyebrowing-raising conduct during his tenures as commissioner and as a former state representative. He defended suggesting that the United States nuke the Muslim world and compared refugees to snakes. Asked at a conservative policy forum about what keeps him up at night, Miller responded that he was concerned that the country would turn into a “Muslim country.” He has been accused of using state funds to take a trip to Oklahoma to get a “Jesus shot,” a medical cure-all for his chronic pain (he later reimbursed the funds to the state). And Miller also allegedly used state funds to compete in a rodeo. Other odd behaviors included granting “amnesty” to cupcakes and lifting a ban on deep fryers and soda machines in Texas public schools."
Saturday, August 6, 2016
The Kochs, Big Oil Are Taking Their War With The EPA To The Ballot Box
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2016/08/04/3803911/who-is-behind-pro-fossil-fuel-ags/
"So where did RAGA get its money? More than $2.4 million — about 13 percent — came from Koch Industries, Murray Energy, the American Petroleum Institute, Exxon Mobil, the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, and other fossil fuel interests. Another nearly $1.4 million came from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which receives a significant amount of its funds from fossil fuel companies and Koch-backed nonprofits. Attorney general elections don’t garner big headlines. Most Americans likely can’t even name their state attorney general. But these people play a major role in enforcing — or fighting — environmental laws."
"So where did RAGA get its money? More than $2.4 million — about 13 percent — came from Koch Industries, Murray Energy, the American Petroleum Institute, Exxon Mobil, the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, and other fossil fuel interests. Another nearly $1.4 million came from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which receives a significant amount of its funds from fossil fuel companies and Koch-backed nonprofits. Attorney general elections don’t garner big headlines. Most Americans likely can’t even name their state attorney general. But these people play a major role in enforcing — or fighting — environmental laws."
The Koch Brothers Are Behind a Plot to Open Up the Grand Canyon Watershed to Toxic Uranium Mining @alternet
The Koch Brothers Are Behind a Plot to Open Up the Grand Canyon Watershed to Toxic Uranium Mining @alternet:
"Unsurprisingly, the issue at hand involves revenue, big power brokers, ramifications of Citizens United, and a familiar actor in the anti-environmental space—the Koch brothers."
"Unsurprisingly, the issue at hand involves revenue, big power brokers, ramifications of Citizens United, and a familiar actor in the anti-environmental space—the Koch brothers."
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