Elephant seal makes ‘epic’ trek back after Canadian officials relocate him Guardian
Widespread 911 outages reported in at least 3 states, officials say FOX
Climate
The economic commitment of climate change Nature. From the Abstract: “Using an empirical approach that provides a robust lower bound on the persistence of impacts on economic growth, we find that the world economy is committed to an income reduction of 19% within the next 26 years independent of future emission choices (relative to a baseline without climate impacts, likely range of 11–29% accounting for physical climate and empirical uncertainty).” That 19% will be evenly distributed, I assume.
‘Human-induced’ climate change caused deadly Sahel heatwave, says study France24
World faces ‘deathly silence’ of nature as wildlife disappears, warn experts Guardian
* * *
Tsunami alert after a volcano in Indonesia has several big eruptions and thousands are told to leave AP. Commentary:
An explosive eruption of the Ruang volcano occurred just hours ago in Indonesia.
Himawari-9 captured a view of the powerful eruption. pic.twitter.com/swap7hG1Lz
— CIRA (@CIRA_CSU) April 17, 2024
* * *
Coral reefs are experiencing mass bleaching amid record ocean heat, scientists warn France24
‘Worst I have seen’: 75% of Great Barrier Reef suffers coral bleaching Pearls & Irritations. Commentary:
The Australian government has quietly released the map of mass coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef this summer, confirming that the 5th event in just 8 years is the most severe & the most widespread ever.
This time, only the far north has escaped.https://t.co/QM01HPP8gl pic.twitter.com/9XmujdjxqM
— Terry Hughes (@ProfTerryHughes) April 16, 2024
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Dubai airport chaos as UAE and Oman reel from deadly storms BBC
My 24 Hours in the Flooded Crypto Apocalypse of Dubai Decrypt
No, Dubai’s Floods Weren’t Caused by Cloud Seeding Wired
Water
California farming area placed on probation over declining groundwater and sinking land LA Times
Pandemics
USDA scientists weigh avian flu vaccine for cows; virus may be spreading from cattle to poultry Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy
What Is Long COVID? Understanding the Pandemic’s Mysterious Fallout Yale Medicine. A useful explainer, though focused on Yale.
Mysterieuze oversterfte levert honderden miljoenen op, waar moet dat geld naartoe? AD.nl. Oddly, I can’t get Google to translate the link, but here’s an alternative:
🚨Just so you know, as background to this story:⚠️When the nazis methodically eliminated sick people, gay people, disabled people, Jewish people, GRT people, communist people, opposition people, any people, they stripped their assets and kept them for the state. pic.twitter.com/QWFx5kQUvx
— tern (@1goodtern) April 17, 2024
Not sure tern1’s analogy is correct in detail (as opposed to directionally).
China?
Officials promote China-led cyber governance to Belt and Road members during the Digital Silk Road forum in Xian South China Morning Post
Behold China’s consumer paradise Asia Times. Commentary:
This is an excellent read on a recent and huge transformation in China that’s rarely talked about: the level of service you receive as a consumer is now absolutely world class.https://t.co/C6NKSQhvPi
I remember when I first came to China about 17 years ago, service was pretty…
— Arnaud Bertrand (@RnaudBertrand) April 18, 2024
China’s micro-drama boom takes viewers by storm both at home and abroad Channel News Asia
Vietnam mounts $24 billion rescue plan for bank engulfed in giant fraud Business Standard. That’s a lot!
Myanmar
In a rebel-held Myanmar town, fragile unity pushes junta to the brink Channel News Asia
Syraqistan
Leaked Cables Show Biden Admin Opposes Palestinian Statehood Ken Klipperstein
‘We had enormous success in defeating Iran’s attack’: US defense chief Anadolu Agency
US ‘deeply concerned’ by UN agency’s report detailing staffers subjected to ‘ill-treatment’ by Israel Anadalolu Agency. Oh.
Google fires 28 employees after sit-in protest over Israel cloud contract The Verge
European Disunion
Majority of EU states object to capital markets reform push FT
Dear Old Blighty
The UK’s missing companies Funding the Future
New Not-So-Cold War
Russia is bombing Ukraine into darkness — and leaving Europe short of power Politico. Vassal states don’t need power….
Russia destroys almost all thermal power generation in Ukraine, attacks on its nuclear power plants possible – Zelenskyy Ukrainska Pravda
No illegal Russian weapons in Zaporozhye, IAEA reports Infobrics
Poland would defend Lithuania, I cannot imagine any other way – interview with President Duda LRT
* * *
Ukraine’s Intelligence Chief unveils plan in Russia: More raids by Russian volunteers and drone strikes Ukrainska Pravda
Crude, cheap and deadly: Russian glide bombs are pounding Ukraine into surrender Telegraph. What makes them “crude”? Lack of gold plating? Bad table manners?
* * *
Ukraine warns of WW3 ahead of long-stalled Congress aid vote BBC
The Talks That Could Have Ended the War in Ukraine Foreign Affairs. The deck: “A Hidden History of Diplomacy That Came Up Short—but Holds Lessons for Future Negotiations.” The article gives a lot of detail that softens some of the hard edges, but to hose who were paying attention at the time, the basic outline was hardly “hidden.”
* * *
* * *Nord Stream insurers say policies did not cover war risks, Kommersant reports Reuters
Georgia against the ‘foreign agents law’, day three, 100 thousand protesters. What happened, videos, photos JAM. Then again, NGOs staging color revolutions aren’t everyone’s cup of tea.
Foreign investor in Ukraine accuses officials of corruption FT. Will wonders never cease?
South of the Border
Why Musk Folded in Brazil Compact
Woman, seeking loan, wheels corpse into Brazilian bank Al Jazeera
Global Elections
Billionaire Families Lose Hope for Tax Cut After Korean Vote Bloomberg
Croatian election results: Populist wins chance to steer Zagreb away from pro-EU, pro-Ukraine path Politico
India election 2024 phase 1: Who votes and what’s at stake? Al Jazeera
IMF calls for fiscal restraint in year with most elections ever Reuters
The Caribbean
Investigation: Are there really rising cases of cannibalism in Haiti or is it fake news? France24. Cannibalism seems to be in the zeitgeist just now, I can’t think why.
The Supremes
The Supreme Court’s Big Gun Rights Decision Is a Waking Nightmare For Federal Judges Balls and Strikes
Spook Country
Senate Can Stop Expansion of Government Surveillance RealClearPolitics
Wyden vows to ‘do everything in my power’ to stop bill expanding warrantless government surveillance KTVZ. Brief, worth a read. Hey, remember when Senator [genuflects] Obama was going to filibuster the bill that gave the telcos retroactive immunity for Bush’s program of warrantless surveillance? Good times.
Will a FISA lapse cause a disaster? It depends on who you ask The Hill
Psst, hey. It’s the NSA. You want some AI security advice? The Register. The deck: “You can trust us, we’re the good guys.”
Digital Watch
Hatsune Miku is playing Coachella, but she’s not human. Why brands are working with digital avatars Los Angeles Times. Not “she.” “It.”
Why the Short-Lived Calvin and Hobbes Is Still One of the Most Beloved & Influential Comic Strips Open Culture
Book Nook
The making of Icehenge (interview) Kim Stanley Robinson, Crooked Timber
The Final Frontier
The great commercial takeover of low Earth orbit MIT Technology Review
Boeing
Boeing engineer says safety concerns are ignored inside plane maker FT. Not just that; a manager threatened to kill him. No doubt the Charleston Police are interviewing him now?
Boeing unlikely to meet FAA’s 90-day deadline for new safety program Leeham News & Analysis
How to make a map of smell Aeon
David Dunning: Overcoming Overconfidence Open Mind. That Dunning.
Is society caught up in a Death Spiral? Modeling societal demise and its reversal Frontiers in Sociology (Flora). Interesting!
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.