Light News Dump

The Afghanistan war has gone on so long that people born after 9/11 can now enlist
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2018/09/12/afghanistan-war-has-gone-so-long-people-born-after-sept-can-now-enlist/

Restoring forests may be our most powerful weapon in fighting climate change. Adding 2.2 billion acres of tree cover would capture two-thirds of man-made carbon emissions, a new study found.
https://www.vox.com/2019/7/4/20681331/climate-change-solutions-trees-deforestation-reforestation

Irish greyhound racing faces backlash after the slaughter of 6000 dogs per year revealed in documentary
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/jul/03/irish-greyhound-racing-faces-backlash-over-killing-of-dogs

How Can We Celebrate “Freedom” While Kids Are in Concentration Camps?
https://truthout.org/articles/how-can-we-celebrate-freedom-while-kids-are-in-concentration-camps/

A federal appeals court in San Francisco on Wednesday upheld a block on President Trump’s attempt to use $2.5 billion from the Department of Defense to construct a wall along the southwestern border, impeding the delivery of one of his signature campaign promises.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/03/us/politics/border-wall-funds-ruling.html

Border agency knew about secret Facebook group for years. Border Patrol leadership knew about photos posted to the group as far back as 2016, when agents reported them, according to a DHS official.
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/07/03/border-agency-secret-facebook-group-1569572

Trump considers executive order on citizenship question
https://www.axios.com/scoop-trump-considers-executive-order-on-citizenship-question-5c9dfdb5-facd-46ed-b1fd-fdda7eb2aa15.html
https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/trump-is-reportedly-considering-an-executive-order-in-response-to-supreme-court-census-decision/

Insects could die out ‘in worst extinction since the dinosaurs’, experts warn | The total mass of insects on our planet is dropping by 2.5% a year - meaning that insects could be wiped out altogether within a century.
https://news.yahoo.com/insects-could-die-out-in-worst-extinction-since-the-dinosaurs-experts-warn-190908623.html

ABC, CBS, and NBC announce they will snub President Trump 'Salute to America' celebration
https://www.theblaze.com/news/networks-will-snub-trump-salute-to-america

Trump says he purged homeless from DC streets so foreign dignitaries wouldn't see them
http://wjla.com/news/local/trump-purged-homeless-dc-streets

Bitcoin uses as much energy as the whole of Switzerland, a new online tool from the University of Cambridge shows - using around seven gigawatts of electricity, equal to 0.21% of the world's supply; as much power as would be generated by seven Dungeness nuclear power plants at once.
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-48853230

Oregon Democrats demand investigation into Republican state senator who threatened to kill a police officer
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/oregon-brian-boquist-republican-state-senate-police-death-threat-democrats-a8983116.html

A firm donated $750,000 of fireworks to Trump's Fourth of July show — and Trump scrapped fireworks tariffs the same day. On the same day Phantom Fireworks donated $750,000 worth of sparklers and bottle rockets to the US government, Trump scrapped plans to impose tariffs of 25% on virtually all Chinese goods including fireworks.
https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/trump-received-750000-of-fourth-of-july-fireworks-scrapped-tariffs-2019-7-1028330506

‘Never again;’ 1,000 activists stop traffic in Boston protesting ICE detention centers; 18 people arrested
https://www.masslive.com/boston/2019/07/never-again-1000-activists-stop-traffic-in-boston-protesting-ice-detention-centers-18-people-arrested.html

The former environment minister Melissa Price acknowledged that approval of a uranium mine in Western Australia could lead to the extinction of up to 12 native species but went ahead with the decision anyway
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jul/04/melissa-price-approved-uranium-mine-knowing-it-could-lead-to-extinction-of-12-species

Alzheimer’s research is getting a reboot at small companies focused on the immune system
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/alzheimers-research-is-getting-a-reboot-at-small-companies-focused-on-the-immune-system/2019/07/03/974d8854-91e9-11e9-b58a-a6a9afaa0e3e_story.html

Charlottesville Scraps Thomas Jefferson Holiday For Day Observing End Of Slavery
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/charlottesville-scraps-holiday-of-thomas-jeffersons-birthday-for-day-observing-emancipation-of-slaves_n_5d1cce06e4b04c48140db2fa

Brazil deforestation exceeds 88% in June under Bolsonaro
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brazil-environment/brazil-deforestation-exceeds-88-in-june-under-bolsonaro-idUSKCN1TY1VU

Vintage EPA photos reveal what US waterways looked like before pollution was regulated
https://www.businessinsider.com/vintage-epa-photos-reveal-us-waterways-before-pollution-was-regulated-2019-6

11% of destroyed moist tropical forests could be restored to boost climate, environment: "Restoring tropical forests is fundamental to the planet's health, now and for generations to come," said lead author Pedro Brancalion, from the University of São Paulo, Brazil.
https://phys.org/news/2019-07-moist-tropical-forests-boost-climate.html

It’s been a good few months for the plant-based meat movement — so good that opponents of the fledgling industry are starting to mobilize. This week, a new law went into effect in Mississippi. The state now bans plant-based meat providers from using labels like “veggie burger” or “vegan hot dog” on their products. Such labels are potentially punishable with jail time. Words like “burger” and “hot dog” would be permitted only for products from slaughtered livestock. | The makers of meat alternatives are suing. In a lawsuit filed on July 2, they argue that since their products are already labeled “vegan,” no consumers are confused. If anything, the requirement that they avoid product descriptions like “veggie burger” makes things more confusing.
https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2019/7/3/20680731/mississippi-veggie-burgers-illegal-meatless-meat
https://ij.org/press-release/new-lawsuit-challenges-mississippi-labeling-law-that-makes-selling-veggie-burgers-a-crime/

President Vladimir Putin has signed a bill suspending Russia's participation in a pivotal nuclear arms treaty. Putin's decree, released on Wednesday, formalizes Russia's departure from the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces treaty with the United States following Washington's withdrawal from the pact. The U.S. gave notice of its intention to withdraw from the INF in February, setting the stage for it to terminate in six months unless Moscow returns to compliance. Russia has denied any breaches, and accused the U.S. of violating the pact. Moscow followed Washington's example in February, also suspending its obligations under the treaty.
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/putin-signs-bill-suspending-participation-nuclear-treaty-64108238

Tree planting 'has mind-blowing potential' to tackle climate crisis
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jul/04/planting-billions-trees-best-tackle-climate-crisis-scientists-canopy-emissions

Research shows Planting trees could remove 2/3 of emissions in the atmosphere
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jul/04/planting-billions-trees-best-tackle-climate-crisis-scientists-canopy-emissions

There’s a mass of seaweed in the Atlantic Ocean that last year, at its peak, was so large it stretched all the way from the Gulf of Mexico to West Africa. It’s the biggest bloom of seaweed ever recorded, according to a new paper published in Science. And it’s likely another example of how human activity is radically changing the surface of the planet. The giant seaweed mass is both expansive and heavy, weighing a whopping 20 million tons last year. It’s comprised of a macroalgae species called sargassum, a brown seaweed that forms little bubbles that look a bit like grapes. Large volumes of it washing ashore can be a pain for beach tourism. Those bubbles allow the seaweed to float on the surface, which in turn lets scientists track its distribution over time. The brown hue of the seaweed on the surface of the water can be seen by satellites. Satellite images have revealed that over the past 20 years, the mass of sargassum on the surface of the Atlantic has exploded dramatically. The following chart shows the density of sargassum in the Atlantic every July (the month when sargassum blooms peak) from 2011 on. You can see in July 2018, it was the densest, stretching clear across the ocean. The study authors call it the great Atlantic Sargassum belt, and suspect it’s likely the result of more nutrients, mainly nitrogen and phosphorus, running off the West Africa coast into the ocean in the winter. The belt is also being fed by the same nutrients, from fertilizer runoff and deforestation, running off into the Amazon River and into the ocean in the summer. The sargassum responds to those extra nutrients like many plants would: It eats them, and grows. The bloom sizes also continue to grow every year because there are sargassum seeds left over from the previous summer.
https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2019/7/4/20681064/sargassum-science-seaweed-atlantic-study
https://science.sciencemag.org/cgi/doi/10.1126/science.aaw7912
https://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/huge-sargassum-arrival-blankets-beaches/

How Plastics Are Clogging the Ocean, Even Before You Toss that Bottle Away. “Nurdles” are washing up everywhere, posing a huge environmental threat to places like the Gulf Coast of Texas. Last September, Jace Tunnell discovered a layer of tiny, round plastic pellets covering a beach on Padre Island off the southern coast of Texas. There were “millions of them,” he recalled, “and it went on for miles.” Tunnell, a marine biologist, knew exactly what the pellets were, but says he had never actually seen them before. They’re called nurdles, and they’re the pre-production building blocks for nearly all plastic goods, from soft drink bottles to oil pipelines. But as essential as they are for consumer products, nurdles that become lost during transit or manufacturing are also an environmental hazard. In the ocean and along coastal waterways, they absorb toxic chemicals and are often mistaken for food by animals. They also wash up by the millions on beaches, leaving coastal communities to deal with the ramifications. Researchers say nurdles—which weigh approximately 20 milligrams each—are found virtually everywhere. It is estimated that more than 250,000 tons enter the ocean annually. In February, Fidra, an environmental group based in Scotland, reported nurdle pollution in 28 of the 32 countries they surveyed, from Ecuador to South Africa. “Pellets have been around and have been lost since plastic started to be produced,” says Madeleine Berg, a project manager for Fidra, which is working to reduce plastic waste and chemical pollution. And as plastic production continues to rise, researchers worry that the threat to beaches and coastal regions is growing worse.
https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/07/how-plastics-are-clogging-the-ocean-even-before-you-toss-that-bottle-away/

Activist arrested for giving migrants food and shelter faces retrial
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jul/02/activist-helped-migrants-retrial-scott-warren

Email Show Border Patrol agents allegedly tried to shame a migrant by making him hold a sign reading 'I like men,'
https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/04/us/honduran-migrant-shamed-border-patrol/index.html

Gov. Steve Bullock, after missing out on June Democratic debate, qualifies for July face-off.
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/gov-steve-bullock-missing-june-democratic-debate-qualifies/story?id=63785068

Chinese tourists break into eco park, strip it of all its lotus flowers
https://www.thestar.com.my/news/regional/2019/07/04/chinese-tourists-break-into-eco-park-strip-it-of-all-its-lotus-flowers/

Mummified bodies, cannibalism and living in faeces: Shocking footage exposes a French fur farm as animal rights campaigners call for it to be closed down
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7209617/Shocking-video-exposes-French-fur-farm-cruelty-animal-rights-campaigners-call-closure.html

Anchorage Has Never Reached 90 Degrees. That Could Change This Week. In more than 100 years of Anchorage history, weather stations have never recorded a single 90-degree reading. If current forecasts hold, it could happen multiple times in the coming days. With the combined forces of climate change that has disrupted temperature trends around the state, a remarkable dearth of ice in the Bering Sea and weather patterns generating a general heat wave, Alaska is facing a Fourth of July unlike any before. Anchorage has canceled its fireworks display because of wildfire concerns, city officials are worrying about air quality and forecasters expect temperatures to rival those in Miami. By any measure, the numbers are unusual. Alaska had its warmest March on record — in some places 20 degrees above normal. Once all the data is tabulated, it is likely to be the second-warmest June on record. The highest temperature ever recorded at Anchorage’s official station was 85 degrees, while other stations in the area have gone a couple of degrees higher. Bob Clay, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said forecasters expected a high-pressure system to push temperatures well into the 80s starting on Thursday and potentially reach the 90-degree threshold in parts of the Anchorage area on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/04/us/alaska-heat-anchorage-fireworks.html
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/04/09/climate/alaska-abnormally-hot-march.html