At Long Last, a Donkey Family Tree New York Times
Climate/Environment
Albania designates Europe’s last ‘wild river’ as a national park Ekathimerini
Pentagon to halt use of firefighting foam that contains PFAS as cleanup costs mount Maryland Matters
System Reboot Amy Westervelt, Orion Magazine. The deck: Addressing the climate crisis requires shifting the power structure, not just the power source.
Water
Officials monitoring contaminated water leak at Monticello Nuclear Plant, leak contained KSTP. Leak was confirmed in November 2022 but only revealed to public this week.
Regulators: Nuclear plant leak didn’t require public notice AP
Minnesota nuclear power reactor seeks 20-year license extension Reuters. From March 10.
#COVID-19
Covid-19 threat expected to become on par with flu this year, says WHO New Scientist
Report says long COVID could impact economy and be ‘mass disabling event’ in Canada CityNews Toronto
Long COVID can cause brain fog and cognitive dysfunction, which can contribute to reading and writing errors. https://t.co/scWnqK688r
— Amanda Hu (@amandalhu) March 18, 2023
Bird Flu
Bird flu cases are expected to surge as birds migrate in coming weeks New Scientist
Syraqistan
Uranium reported missing by IAEA in Libya ‘recovered’ Al Jazeera
Syria, Russia to sign 40 investment deals after Assad’s visit Al-Monitor
HOW IRAN WON THE U.S. WAR IN IRAQ The Intercept
Old Blighty
China?
China flexes muscles over Internet subsea cables across South China Sea Data Center Dynamics
FT chart showing how thickly woven the South China Sea is with undersea internet cables, carrying data not just within the region but also beyond. Dotted red line denotes China’s territorial claims on SCS. pic.twitter.com/ISxBJWwlmf
— Robert Ward (@RobertAlanWard) March 16, 2023
1/4
Important changes. Caixin notes that the Financial Stability and Development Committee, which is being absorbed into the new Central Financial Commission “was constrained in carrying out its responsibilities especially at local levels.”https://t.co/vFWhOXsxrB— Michael Pettis (@michaelxpettis) March 17, 2023
La belle France
Emmanuel Macron: the weakling autocrat brought to power by American meddling Gilbert Doctorow
Has Emmanuel Macron broken France? Politico EU
New Not-So-Cold War
Regime change in Moscow ‘definitely’ the goal, Joly says, as Canada bans Russian steel, aluminum imports National Post
IMF Changes Lending Rules, Paving Way for Billions for Ukraine Bloomberg
‘Satisfied with the Banderization of Ukraine’ Bandera Lobby Blog
***
Backlash Of Sanction On Russia Must Not Lead To Sanctions On Everyone Moon of Alabama
China and Russia capitals connected on New Silk Road for first time Rail Freight
***
Russia – Africa Relations and the Emerging New World Order Russia In Global Affairs (MT)
Blinken Warns African Nations That Wagner Group Endangers Them Bloomberg
Mali Gets Warplanes From Russia, Drones From Turkey The Defense Post
Turkish TAI TF-X fighter jet is on the runway for taxiing tests Bulgarian Military
Biden Administration
Biden denies China-linked payments to family members despite bank records Washington Examiner
Millions of People Could Lose Medicaid Starting in April MedPage Today
2024
Trump says he expects to be arrested next week in Stormy Daniels investigation Washington Examiner
Get ready for Manhattan DA’s made-for-TV Trump prosecution: high on ratings, but short on the law The Hill
DeSanctimonious v. DeLoser Art Cullen’s Notebook
Imperial Collapse Watch
US MEDIA’S IRAQ WAR PUSHERS 20 YEARS ON: WHERE ARE THEY NOW? RICH AND INFLUENTIAL. The Real news Network
Americans Don’t Care About the Iraqi Dead. They Don’t Even Care About Their Own. The Intercept. The American elite.
Healthcare
An emergency for emergency medicine? Inside Medicine
Abortion
Wyoming becomes first US state to outlaw use of abortion pills The Guardian
SVB
Learning from Silicon Valley Bank’s apologists Cory Doctorow, Pluralistic (LS). Original title in the url: Mon Dieu Les Guillotines.
Oops. How the FDIC Guaranteed the Deposits of SVB Financial Group Credit Slips
Silicon Valley Bank UK arm hands out £15m in bonuses days after £1 rescue. Between £15m and £20m in bonus payments were made to staff at SVB UK this week after being signed off by the bank’s new owner, HSBC, Sky News learns. https://t.co/veb07fWun4 pic.twitter.com/xsNTgex1I4
— Politico Digital UK (@PoliDigitalUK) March 18, 2023
Rotten Banks
BlackRock’s Hildebrand reportedly taking part in UBS, Credit Suisse talks Reuters
Charles Schwab CEO and other insiders scoop up nearly $7 million in stock amid selloff Market Watch
US bank failures prompt rush to hedge rates International Financing Review
Fed to stay the course with 25 bps rate hike on March 22: Reuters poll Reuters
US Fed to consider pause in rate hikes as fallout from SVB roils markets Bloomberg
The Bezzle
This Week in Coins: Bitcoin, Ethereum Post Mega Rallies After Banking Intervention Decrypt
Norfolk Southern Chemical Bomb
Pro-Moscow Voices Tried to Steer Ohio Train Disaster Debate AP. Of course.
2/ attract new employees. However, this is not a sustainable solution, as many seasoned workers are departing from the industry, a situation that has been foreseen for years due to the issues RWU has been highlighting.
— Railroad Workers United ✊ (@railroadworkers) March 17, 2023
Guillotine Watch
His parents died. Then Amazon fired him for seeking time off, a worker’s suit alleges Los Angeles Times
Class Warfare
Healthcare exec charged with fixing wages of Las Vegas nurses KOLO
Visa, MasterCard $5.6 bln settlement with retailers is upheld Reuters. Fixing fees.
Wealthy Executives Make Millions Trading Competitors’ Stock With Remarkable Timing ProPublica
State agency alleges eight minors illegally employed by Minnesota meatpacker, seeks court injunction The Star Tribune
Minnesota becomes fourth state to offer universal free school meals Duluth News Tribune
It’s a New Day in the United Auto Workers Labor Notes
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
