Stephan: Although I know that millions of women do vote Republican, I frankly do not understand how any rational woman can possibly vote Republican. The MAGAt party is so blatantly racist and male dominant that I can only conclude that there are large numbers of women who prefer traditional female subordination and second class status to equality. That is certainly how they vote.
MAGAt senators Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley Credit: Jonathan Newton and Greg Nash/Getty
Women are set to make unprecedented gains in leadership positions on President Biden’s foreign policy and national security teams, but their confirmations for key appointments are being held up in the Senate.
Republican Sens. Ted Cruz (Texas) and Josh Hawley (Mo.) have placed holds on a number of Biden’s nominees. They say the holds are to demonstrate their objections to Biden’s policies, not specific people, but Democrats and some Republicans are growing frustrated over the slow pace of confirmations — and particularly what it means for women awaiting a vote.
The delays are particularly aggravating to advocates who have worked behind the scenes to help qualified women overcome barriers, both overt and unconscious, to achieve gender parity.
The goal of equal representation doesn’t just benefit women, advocates say. Research shows that women’s participation in conflict resolution yields more durable solutions and contributes to diversity of thought.
Biden has so far appointed and nominated a record-breaking number of women for senior roles and positions requiring Senate […]
Stephan: Today, at one of the major crossings of the only road that runs north south the length of our island there, once again, was a group of MAGAt covid-suicide cultists. No one was wearing a mask, they were either holding signs against getting vaccinated or wearing a mask, or waving American flags. They appear regularly and seeing them has compelled me to recognize we have a community of willfully ignorant non-rational people -- all White, of course -- on our rural island.
But how do you get this stupid? What is it about these people? This essay and the study it reports on offers some insights.
MAGAt covid-suicide cultists Credit: screengrab
A new study explains how a number of dark personality traits are connected to the ideology of conspiracy theories. According to PsyPost, a study recently published by Personality and Individual Differences was conducted by Sara Hughes and Laura Machan. It indicates that “Machiavellianism, primary psychopathy, and collective narcissism” are traits that appear to coincide with the beliefs of those who buy into conspiracy theories.
Science Direct reports that the study, which focused on 406 participants from the United Kingdom, was based on an assessment of a number of personality measures. It also delved into individuals’ “susceptibility to conspiracy beliefs and the mediating role of Covid related conspiracy beliefs on links between personality and intentional dissemination of Covid-19 conspiracies and willingness to obtain a Covid-19 vaccine.”
The study focused on the characteristics of those who possess the dark triad traits and how they have a tendency to hold more hostility toward other groups. Participants completed a questionnaire to assess conspiracist […]
Stephan: My regular readers know I have been talking about climate change migrations for years. Now I am beginning to see articles on this subject, this report being one example. These migrations are going to radically transform the United States, as they will many other countries in the world.
Clyde Shew, of Snoqualmie, Wash., checks out a section of road that was closed due to high-water conditions from the Snoqualmie River on Nov. 12. Credit: Ted S. Warren/AP
This week, parts of the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia found themselves underwater after an “atmospheric river” dumped inches of rain within hours, caused power outages and devastating floods, and forced the evacuations of thousands. It was hard to look at pictures from the region and not imagine people thinking: Maybe we should leave for good.
But as weather events like that in the Pacific Northwest show, the president’s Build Back Better agenda is already deeply at risk from climate change. So it’s crucial, as the United States deploys tremendous new spending to rehabilitate infrastructure, that […]
Kat McGowan, Climate Accountability Campaign Director at the Union of Concerned Scientists - Grist
Stephan: Something very interesting, and promising of good news, is going on amongst stock investors. They are beginning to wake up to the threat of climate change and are demanding that the corporations in which they have invested recognize and prepare for this threat. Exxon-Mobil is a good example of what is going on.
Image by Grace Abe
Long-suffering environmental activists cheered last month when an organized investor revolt forced ExxonMobil to add three climate-conscious directors to its corporate board. Despite nearly a generation of shareholder activism, nothing like it had ever happened. It seemed like a historic comeuppance for the petroleum powerhouse.
But those who pay close attention to the tension between fossil fuel companies and their investors offer a more nuanced take. Don’t expect the Exxon oil tanker to turn around overnight, they say. Instead, consider the move the beginning of a cultural shift, one of those fuzzy, hard-to-recognize but essential-in-retrospect moments when everything starts to change. In coming years, similar tactics could be leveraged against other stubborn, carbon-loving corporations. And, in a page from the Big Tobacco playbook, investors could join forces with legislators, plaintiff’s attorneys, and others to finally put the whole industry on its heels.
“It’s a real sign that investors are impatient, fed up,” says Kathy Mulvey of the Union of Concerned Scientists. “It’s a strong indication that there’s going to […]
Stephan: I absolutely agree with Thom Hartmann and Beto O-Rourke. It is time to talk about America's obessive gun psychosis and the murders and suicides it has engendered. The Founders, if one knows anything beyond the superficial about American history, would be appalled at what the 2nd Amendment has come to mean. The fact that a not yet 18 year boy could roam the streets of a city during a demonstration, carrying a military weapon specifically designed to cause maximum death, and just randomly murder two people is how absurd murder weapon usage has become in the United States. As regular readers know I have been writing about this for years, watching it get worse year by year. (See SR archives, search on: America's Obsessive Gun Psychosis.)
Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke Credit: Gage Skidmore
Expect the gun control debate in America to really get hot over the next 12 months as Beto O’Rourke runs for governor of Texas. O’Rourke said, when running for president in 2019, “Hell yes, we’re going to take your AR-15, your AK-47!”
And it’s entirely time for this debate. America has just a bit more than 4 percent of the world’s population, but, with more guns than people in our country, we have more than 40 percent of all the guns in civilian hands in the world.
Specifically, as a Swiss-based research group found, there are “approximately 857 million civilian-held firearms in the world’s 230 countries and territories” and, as ABC News points out, in America there are “over 393 million firearms in civilian possession” as of 2017. About ten million more have been sold in the US since then: we are the only nation in the world with more guns than people.
When asked recently if Beto O’Rourke stands by his position […]
