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Kay Bradley

US foreign aid is worth defending now more than ever - 0 views

www.brookings.edu/...h-defending-now-more-than-ever

shared by Kay Bradley on 19 Nov 19 - No Cached
  • he U.S. government is giving short shrift to international development goals and American values, China appears poised to eclipse America’s economic dominance, and the climate crisis is now an existential threat to us all.
  • current U.S. administration will almost assuredly continue to favor transactional deals and brinksmanship over preserving America’s role as a transformational leader in foreign assistance.
  • we need a new narrative.
  • ...12 more annotations...
  • With U.S. leadership adrift and progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) halting at best, what can motivate the community of nations to redouble their efforts to realize a better world?
  • aid delivery is being reshaped thanks to citizen-driven social movements, multinational companies motivated to be socially responsible, and powerful foundations backing experimental approaches.
  • The climate crisis, which is hitting developing countries hard, was a central topic at our roundtable, since its effects are already transforming development prospects and confounding those who track long-term environmental and social trends
  • Thus, climate-based migration may soon create one of the greatest sources of insecurity and conflict in the latter part of the 21st century.
  • Developing countries also face a youth bulge; unless we equip youth for the workforce of the future, unemployment will skyrocket and an entire generation will lack purpose and hope for the future, making them particularly vulnerable to radicalization strategies of extremist movements.
  • These individuals need both soft skills and competency in science, technology, engineering, and math if they are to be successful in the economy of tomorrow.
  • Today, China oversees major financial assets and development via the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), its ambitious strategy to broaden and deepen its economic relationships and build and fund infrastructure worldwide.
  • Chinese focus on infrastructure lending presents an alternative to grant aid offered by the U.S. and like-minded donors who traditionally promoted human rights and democratic governance.
  • policymakers would do well to find areas around which they can cooperate—for example, on pollution reduction, anti-poverty programs in South Asia, or the prevention of health pandemics
  • Opinion polls clearly highlight that Americans care deeply about doing good in the world.
  • Put simply, American values are alive and well, despite increasing U.S. government disengagement on these issues.
  • The city of Pittsburgh just signed a partnership agreement with Aarhus, Denmark, to work together to transform their old industrial areas into thriving and equitable urban spaces running on clean energy. Another example is Hawaii—a U.S. state that is sharing its experiences in creating innovative partnerships to advance sustainable development with islands such as Palau,
Kay Bradley

COP26: Key Outcomes From the UN Climate Talks in Glasgow  | World Resources I... - 0 views

www.wri.org/...comes-un-climate-talks-glasgow

shared by Kay Bradley on 01 Dec 21 - No Cached
  • The world still remains off track to beat back the climate crisis.  
  • ministers from all over the world agreed that countries should come back next year to submit stronger 2030 emissions reduction targets with the aim of closing the gap to limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees
  • Ministers also agreed that developed countries should urgently deliver more resources to help climate-vulnerable countries adapt to the dangerous and costly consequences of climate change that they are feeling already —
  • ...46 more annotations...
  • curb methane emissions,
  • halt and reverse forest loss,
  • align the finance sector with net-zero by 2050
  • ditch the internal combustion engine
  • accelerate the phase-out of coal,
  • end international financing for fossil fuels,
  • “Not nearly enough” to the first question, “yes” to the second. 
  • 151 countries had submitted new climate plans (known as nationally determined contributions, or NDCs)
  • To keep the goal of limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees C within reach, we need to cut global emissions in half by the end of this decade.
  • these plans, as they stand, put the world on track for 2.5 degrees C of warming by the end of the century.
  • If you take into account countries’ commitments to reach net-zero emissions by around mid-century, analysis shows temperature rise could be kept to around 1.8 or 1.9 degrees C.
  • some major emitters’ 2030 targets are so weak (particularly those from Australia, China, Saudi Arabia, Brazil and Russia) that they don’t offer credible pathways to achieve their net-zero targets.
  • a major “credibility gap”
  • To fix this problem, these countries’ must strengthen their 2030 emissions reduction targets to at least align with their net-zero commitments. 
  • as well as ramping up ambition
  • the pact asks nations to consider further actions to curb potent non-CO2 gases, such as methane, and includes language emphasizing the need to “phase down unabated coal” and “phase-out fossil fuel subsidies.”
  • This marked the first time negotiators have explicitly referenced shifting away from coal and phasing out fossil fuel subsidies in COP decision text.  
  • this COP finally recognized the importance of nature for both reducing emissions and building resilience to the impacts of climate change,
  • Did Developing Countries Get the Finance and Support They Need? 
  • In 2009, rich nations committed to mobilize $100 billion a year by 2020 and through 2025 to support climate efforts in developing countries
  • developed countries failed to meet that goal in 2020 (recent OECD estimates show that total climate finance reached $79.6 billion in 2019).
  • The Adaptation Fund reached unprecedented levels of contributions, with new pledges for $356 million that represent almost three times its mobilization target for 2022. The Least Developed Countries Fund, which supports climate change adaptation in the world’s least developed countries, also received a record $413 million in new contributions.
  • COP26 also took steps to help developing countries access good quality finance options.
  • For example, encouraging multilateral institutions to further consider the links between climate vulnerabilities and the need for concessional financial resources for developing countries — such as securing grants rather than loans to avoid increasing their debt burden. 
  • COP26 finally put the critical issue of loss and damage squarely on the main stage
  • Climate change is already causing devastating losses of lives, land and livelihoods. Some damages are permanent — from communities that are wiped out, to islands disappearing beneath the waves, to water resources that are drying up.
  • Countries also agreed to operationalize and fund the Santiago Network on Loss and Damage, established at COP25 in Madrid, and to catalyze the technical assistance developing countries need to address loss and damage in a robust and effective manner.  
  • International Carbon Markets.
  • negotiators agreed to avoid double-counting, in which more than one country could claim the same emissions reductions as counting toward their own climate commitments.
  • his is critical to make real progress on reducing emissions.
  • Common Time Frames. In Glasgow, countries were encouraged to use common timeframes for their national climate commitments. This means that new NDCs that countries put forward in 2025 should have an end-date of 2035, in 2030 they will put forward commitments with a 2040 end-date, and so on.
  • Transparency. In Glasgow, all countries agreed to submit information about their emissions and financial, technological and capacity-building support using a common and standardized set of formats and tables.
  • 100 high-level announcements during the “World Leaders Summit"
  • including a bold commitment from India to reach net-zero emissions by 2070 that is backed up with near-term targets (including ambitious renewable energy targets for 2030), 109 countries signing up to the Global Methane Pledge to slash emissions by 30% by 2030, and a pledge by 141 countries (as of November 10) to halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation by 2030 (backed by $18 billion in funding, including $1.7 billion dedicated to support indigenous peoples).  
  • Glasgow Breakthroughs, a set of global targets meant to dramatically accelerate the innovation and use of clean technologies in five emissions-heavy sectors:
  • power, road transport, steel, hydrogen and agriculture.
  • 46 countries, including the U.K., Canada, Poland and Vietnam made commitments to phase out domestic coal,
  • 29 countries including the U.K., Canada, Germany and Italy committed to end new direct international public support for unabated fossil fuels by the end of 2022
  • Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance, led by Costa Rica and Denmark — with core members France, Greenland, Ireland, Quebec, Sweden and Wales — pledged to end new licensing rounds for oil and gas exploration and production and set an end date that is aligned with Paris Agreement objectives
  • Efforts were also made to scale up solar investment
  • new Solar Investment Action Agenda by WRI, the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and Bloomberg Philanthropies that identifies high-impact opportunities to speed up investment and reach ISA’s goal of mobilizing $1 trillion in solar investment by 2030.
  • Non-state actors including investors, businesses, cities and subnational regions also joined collective action initiatives aimed at driving economic transformation.
  • Over 400 financial firms which control over $130 trillion in assets committed to aligning their portfolios to net-zero by 2030
  • banks, asset managers and asset owners fully recognize the business case for climate action and the significant risks of investing in the high-carbon, polluting economy of that past.
  • 11 major automakers agreed to work toward selling only zero-emission vehicles globally by 2040, and by no later than 2035 in leading markets.  
  • In the year ahead, major emitters need to ramp up their 2030 emissions reduction targets to align with 1.5 degrees C, more robust approaches are needed to hold all actors accountable for the many commitments made in Glasgow, and much more attention is needed on how to meet the urgent needs of climate-vulnerable countries to help them deal with climate impacts and transition to net-zero economies.
alisimons

How Developing Nations Can Leapfrog Developed Countries with the Sharing Economy - 1 views

www.huffingtonpost.com/...sharing-economy_b_8419960.html

shared by alisimons on 04 Nov 15 - No Cached
  • alisimons on 04 Nov 15
     
    The lack of infrastructure in the developing world is both a liability and a potential asset. We are already witnessing a surge of activity in the introduction of solar, wind and other renewable energy technologies that will boost the development trajectories of countries with enormous potential.
madeirat

Russia and United States to Host New Diplomatic Meeting on Syria - The New York Times - 2 views

www.nytimes.com/...plomatic-meeting-on-syria.html

russia cease-fire syria

shared by madeirat on 12 Oct 16 - No Cached
  • madeirat on 12 Oct 16
     
    Further development in the relationship between the US and Russia in Syria. John Kerry will meet with Russia's Sergey Lavrov in Lausanne, Switzerland on Saturday along with foreign ministers from a few other countries that support the rebels and possibly Iran (which supports Assad). PS: This article is way more interesting than my first one so I recommend this one more unless you're in the mood to question humanity and be sad.
  • sophiabrakeman on 13 Oct 16
     
    I read this article and Aleisha's article about the Syrian civil war, and I was surprised at how complicated the conflict is. I also was not aware of the growing tension between the United States and Russia, so it was interesting reading about the power dynamic happening again. The CNN article, published just one day before the NYT article, portrays US involvement very differently, so I'm interested to see how that develops.
miriambachman

Ebola Drug Could Save a Few Lives. But Whose? - 5 views

www.nytimes.com/...uld-get-experimental-drug.html

Ebola

shared by miriambachman on 02 Sep 14 - No Cached
  • miriambachman on 02 Sep 14
     
    This article not only touches upon the dangerous and negative effects of the Ebola outbreak, but calls into questions an ethical controversy regarding preferential treatment when it comes to medical care. As the need for a cure escalates, the time allotted for the testing and developing of an anti-Ebola drug diminishes. Thus, medicine that has not been thoroughly tested has been distributed to two white Americans infected with the virus. This begs the question: Why these two? Does it have to do with their race or anti-African biases? And once the drug is fully developed, who will receive the treatment first? Who will be prioritized? Additionally, this contentious matter has added to the already distrustful African view of Western pharmaceuticals and relief efforts.
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  • Karan Rai on 04 Sep 14
     
    I think this article really shows how the US can't really win in the eyes of other countries. If they had tested people from Africa before treating the American citzens who had been infected, then America would have been accused of using the Africans as guinea pigs. Instead, the CDC is now being accused of racism and valuing the lives of Americans over Africans.
  • bonnie_ko on 04 Sep 14
     
    Fascinating article! Like Karan mentioned, countries developing vaccines are in a bit of a Catch-22 bind. I personally think that offering the drugs to those it could benefit most would be the most helpful to both research and those it could save, but the hesitance on the companies part is understandable. I think interesting questions to ask is "Where is the line between justified and unjustified fear?", and "are possible lives saved worth the risk that it may end some?" I certainly am in the boat that all participants should be warned outright of negative side effects and possible failure as a part of experimental treatment. But the most fascinating part of this article is how it never mentions polling the people of the affected countries. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the only people whose opinion is really concerned is country heads and ethicists. What do the people think of getting a fighting chance?
  • dredd15 on 04 Sep 14
     
    I found it interesting that not only did the article touch on the ethical questions of who to give the first available drugs to, from a standpoint of where it would be most effective rather than just where it would be most convenient. The part of the article where acceptance of the drug came into question was another touchy matter. The attempt to administer the drug as a solution to the Ebola break out is difficult because of the nature of the illness and the apprehension towards Western Medicine. Even though the medicine is available there's no telling if this quick fix will actually contain and solve the crisis just as Arthur Kaplan says at the end of the article.
  • aaron_godinez on 04 Sep 14
     
    The article brings to light interesting conflicts between African countries and the western industries of medicine. I feel like it would be effective to offer medical education to the local inhabitants in the infected african countries. That way their knowledge can help them avoid getting the disease. Furthermore, they would have more knowledge to help them decide whether or not they would like to take the drug that is possibly a functioning vaccination, rather than just not giving the sick African patients the option. The complexity of this problem is interesting because it deals with issues of ethics and trust.
slavatalanov

COP27: China calls for UN climate summit to address concerns of developing nations - 1 views

www.scmp.com/...ss-concerns-developing-nations

shared by slavatalanov on 03 Nov 22 - No Cached
  • slavatalanov on 03 Nov 22
     
    The program China adopts coming out of COP27 is probably the most important possible change to global emissions. It's good to see that the Chinese delegation is vocal about the need to adopt sustainable practices, but it's to be seen if a mass export economy like China can afford them.
  • nicksandford on 03 Nov 22
     
    China is stepping up as a world leader on climate change, damages Western standing among developing countries and the rest of the world since they have lost the initiative in terms of global climate issues.
Jasper Arasteh

IMF urges Europe to act on debt crisis - 0 views

www.nytimes.com/...to-act-decisively-on-debt.html

debt crisis

shared by Jasper Arasteh on 15 Oct 12 - No Cached
  • Jasper Arasteh on 15 Oct 12
     
    In Tokyo the IMF called on the US and Europe to try and resolve their debt crisis. The IMF believes that debt in richer western countries is actually bad for developing countries and damages the world economy as a whole. It is also mentioned that Asia is the most dynamic region right now economically and that with the west falling behind Asia can't be expected to pull the economy. This addresses the debt crisis in all of the west not just greece and spain.
  • Kay Bradley on 15 Oct 12
     
    Very interesting article, Jasper, why would "The IMF believes that debt in richer western countries is actually bad for developing countries and damages the world economy as a whole?" I hope we get to discuss this in class
miriambachman

Opposition in Syria Is Skeptical of Strikes - 0 views

www.nytimes.com/...a-is-skeptical-of-strikes.html

Syria

shared by miriambachman on 30 Sep 14 - No Cached
  • miriambachman on 30 Sep 14
     
    This article is interesting in that it explains the US condoned airstrikes and military presence in Syria from the point of view of Syrian citizens. We've discussed in class how the US has developed a mentality where we assume a) that we are a well-liked global super power and b) that we are morally obligated to get involved in any conflict given our national power/influence. However, this article shows that some Syrian citizens are deeply disturbed by the presence of the United States, as air strikes have destroyed several communities of non-ISIS supporters and have caused numerous casualties. Additionally, the constant air strikes seem to have had the opposite effect of what was intended: many Syrians have developed anti-American attitudes and have begun to identify with ISIS. So, basically, the very actions we have taken to eliminate ISIS have increased public support of the Islamic State. That is not to say that every (or even the majority of) Syrians now support ISIS, but it is interesting to take a look at the repercussions of our actions in the eyes of a nation that is directly affected.
anishakaul

India Replaces China as Next Big Frontier for U.S. Tech Companies - The New York Times - 12 views

www.nytimes.com/...ier-for-us-tech-companies.html

shared by anishakaul on 28 Sep 15 - No Cached
  • topiarey on 29 Sep 15
     
    Really cool representation of India's rise, but also the inequality when the article mentions the "unconnected billion"
  • ...3 more comments...
  • quinnlewis on 29 Sep 15
     
    I found it interesting that they talked about reaching out to India to make internet widespread as a goal. Nobody seemed to question whether this was the right thing to do. Is internet and technology going to actually improve these peoples' way of life? Does technology make people happier? The assumption that technology is inherently a good thing could be damaging as India rushes into the adaptations they are making.
  • kylerussell on 29 Sep 15
     
    It will be interesting to see how India develops because its large population and liberalized economy are very different from Chinas. The growth we saw/see in China will be different from the growth we see in India due to the lack of Indian regulations. As noted in this paper, the massive population can only stimulate the economy by plugging into the industrialized workforce, however this development might likely lead to a drastic gap between the uneducated rural country side and the wealthiest tech CEOs.
  • alisimons on 29 Sep 15
     
    I found it interesting that China's strict regulations have made them less desirable for American technology companies. The article states, "Blocked from China itself or frustrated by the onerous demands of its government, companies like Facebook, Google and Twitter, as well as start-ups and investors, see India as the next best thing." It just goes to show that the government's role in the economy can influence the success of the economy.
  • charlesleesohn on 29 Sep 15
     
    It will be interesting to see what type of role India plays diplomatically as the United States begins to favor the Indian economy.
  • smowat on 29 Sep 15
     
    Interesting to see how globalization has affected indian society. From what we learned about their protective economy to their shift to a more liberalized one.
charlesleesohn

How Singapore can secure its economic future, Economy News & Top Stories - The Straits ... - 2 views

www.straitstimes.com/...can-secure-its-economic-future

shared by charlesleesohn on 29 Sep 15 - No Cached
  • Technicians with highly specialised skills
  • REMAIN ATTRACTIVE TO COMPANIES
  • awyers and businessmen negotiate deals spanning multiple countries across the region
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • We have to keep the environment conducive for allowing different industries to come and go... Singapore must remain an attractive place to do business for highly specialised, high value-added companies... There's no way of knowing what kind of industries they will be in. MR SONG SENG WUN, CIMB Private Bank economist
  • charlesleesohn on 29 Sep 15
     
    Really cool ideas being shared on how a modern city-state can develop its economy.
  • smowat on 29 Sep 15
     
    Interesting to see how just the geography of a country can shape its economic growth and international trades importance. Also how improving internal infrastructures affect international trade and domestic econmies.
quinnlewis

China's economy is stumbling, but by how much? - BBC News - 5 views

www.bbc.com/...business-34340936

shared by quinnlewis on 28 Sep 15 - No Cached
  • quinnlewis on 28 Sep 15
     
    After the devaluing of the Chinese currency we now see exactly how much the Chinese economy has faltered- and who this effects.
  • ...3 more comments...
  • topiarey on 29 Sep 15
     
    Definitely really interesting, article could likely make clearer predictions as to what would happen if China's economy went into a recession
  • anishakaul on 29 Sep 15
     
    The idea that their economy's slowed growth is considered a positive thing and is considered "more stable" by the IMF is very interesting and not exactly something people say about many economies. While I had not considered it before, it is entirely logical that China should (almost intentionally) slow down in preparation for the work force to shrink and avoid a financial crash.
  • jacquelinec56 on 29 Sep 15
     
    I think that the article bring up the interesting point that even if China enters a recession, it may not be a bad event especially if the growth is more stable.
  • samoshay on 29 Sep 15
     
    I think the boom that was attributed to China's huge population has reached its near endpoint; the marginal output from each new worker is now so low (not contributing much) or negative (reducing productivity) that China's huge historic growth rate can only be further sustained by greater education and an increase in the human capital aspect.
  • Kako Ito on 29 Sep 15
     
    It's interesting to look at China as a case study of a country of super rapid development and growth that has the ability to affect the global economy. The fact that China's growth is slowing down and stabilizing means that it is catching up to its earlier developed counterparts. Having read the cap and trade article first, I wonder how the policies of that sector (and the sector itself) will affect China's overall economy and to a more general extent the global economy. Will China's become like Germany? Who can say.
Kay Bradley

Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills Are Killing Us | TIME - 0 views

time.com/...y-medical-bills-are-killing-us

shared by Kay Bradley on 01 Oct 15 - No Cached
  • MD Anderson’s clinical billing and collection practices are similar to those of other major hospitals and academic medical centers.”
  • The hospital’s hard-nosed approach pays off. Although it is officially a nonprofit unit of the University of Texas, MD Anderson has revenue that exceeds the cost of the world-class care it provides by so much that its operating profit for the fiscal year 2010, the most recent annual report it filed with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, was $531 million. That’s a profit margin of 26% on revenue of $2.05 billion, an astounding result for such a service-intensive enterprise.1
  • Ronald DePinho’s total compensation last year was $1,845,000. That does not count outside earnings derived from a much publicized waiver he received from the university that, according to the Houston Chronicle, allows him to maintain unspecified “financial ties with his three principal pharmaceutical companie
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  • I got the idea for this article when I was visiting Rice University last year. As I was leaving the campus, which is just outside the central business district of Houston, I noticed a group of glass skyscrapers about a mile away lighting up the evening sky. The scene looked like Dubai. I was looking at the Texas Medical Center, a nearly 1,300-acre, 280-building complex of hospitals and related medical facilities, of which MD Anderson is the lead brand name. Medicine had obviously become a huge business. In fact, of Houston’s top 10 employers, five are hospitals, including MD Anderson with 19,000 employees; three, led by ExxonMobil with 14,000 employees, are energy companie
  • n the U.S., people spend almost 20% of the gross domestic product on health care, compared with about half that in most developed countries. Yet in every measurable way, the results our health care system produces are no better and often worse than the outcomes in those countries.
  • nting doctors, hospitals, nursing homes, health services and HMOs, have spent $5.36 billion since 1998 on lobbying in Washington. That dwarfs the $1.53 billion spent by the defense and aerospa
  • When Obamacare was being debated, Republicans pushed this kind of commonsense malpractice-tort reform. But the stranglehold that plaintiffs’ lawyers have traditionally had on Democrats prevailed, and neither a safe-harbor provision nor any other malpractice reform was included.
  • We’re likely to spend $2.8 trillion this year on health care. That $2.8 trillion is likely to be $750 billion, or 27%, more than we would spend if we spent the same per capita as other developed countries, even after adjusting for the relatively high per capita income in the U.S. vs. those other countries.
Kay Bradley

In Pictures: Floods in Pakistan caused by heavy Rains | Yasir Imran Mirza - 2 views

yasirimran.wordpress.com/...pakistan-caused-by-heavy-rains

Pakistan

shared by Kay Bradley on 08 Sep 10 - No Cached
  • Kay Bradley on 08 Sep 10
     
    This is a blog written by a Pakistani graphic designer and web developer living in Saudi Arabia.
Kay Bradley

The Female Factor - A Woman Rises in Brazil - NYTimes.com - 2 views

www.nytimes.com/...29iht-letter.html

Brazil Less Developed World:

shared by Kay Bradley on 01 Oct 10 - No Cached
  • Catherine Binder on 02 Oct 10
     
    It's really cool that the women referred to in the article (Dilma Rousseff, Michelle Bachelet, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, and Keiko Fujimori) are taking their countries by storm. These countries are obviously very forward-thinking, and I admire them for it.
  • Shalina O on 04 Oct 10
     
    It's amazing how much power women can have in countries that Americans often think of as less developed than the US. These women are really taking control, when here in America we have yet to elect a female president or vice-president.
  • Rebecca Heller on 04 Oct 10
     
    I want to echo Shalina's point. It's surprising that in the United States we still have not had a female President or Vice President, whereas countries that we often consider inferior to ours, such as Argentina and Peru, have already had female leaders. Though not mentioned in the article, another influential country that has already had a female leader is England- which first had a female Prime Minister over thirty years ago!
Arshia Surti

Push on Talks With Taliban Confirmed by NATO Officials - 2 views

www.nytimes.com/...15nato.html

NATO Taliban Pakistan Karzai

shared by Arshia Surti on 14 Oct 10 - No Cached
  • Arshia Surti on 14 Oct 10
     
    Interesting new development. It seems that the US and NATO have been pursuing peace much more seriously than previously thought. Also, the Taliban denies that any peace talks have been taking place.
  • Matthew Schweitzer on 17 Oct 10
     
    This recent development is a clear indicator of the difference between Bush-era foreign policy and that of the Obama administration. It remains unclear whether this new approach to Middle East peace will prove effective, but given the failures of the last administration, it will be interesting to see where such discussions with the enemy, who we have long considered to be a terrorist group, will lead. President Obama has made significant strides in terms of the conflicts in the Middle East, withdrawing combat troops from Iraq, but the effectiveness of these actions have yet to be proven; what distinguishes this strategy, and perhaps leads to the optimism surrounding it, is that a renewed effort to negotiate peace and draw down American presence in the Middle East is so radically different than before: different, yes; effective, maybe; we will have to wait and see.
Heather Anderson

Chevron Toxic Waste Pit in Ecuador: Designed to Pollute - 2 views

chevrontoxico.com/?utm_source=Amazon+Watch+Newsletter+and+Updates&utm_campaign=a49a3acb83-Chevron_Oct_15_2010&utm_medium=email

Chevron Less Developed World:

shared by Heather Anderson on 16 Oct 10 - No Cached
Kay Bradley liked it
  • Heather Anderson on 16 Oct 10
     
    This is video evidence on the toxic pollution caused by Texaco, bought by Chevron, which now refuses to take responsibility to clean it up. A family friend used to be a geologist and work examining soil quality. The company she worked at got most of their business from (I think) Chevron. Chevron (or some other company) would finish with well sites and then neglect to clean them up/ make them safe. When environmental agencies requested that Chevron examine and clean up their left over sites, Chevron made our friend's company file a report saying that they were "monitoring" the site to see what happens. Basically, instead of working to help the environment, they were helping a big petroleum company squirm out of taking responsibility. She eventually quit her job because 1) it wasn't what she had hoped it would be, and 2) there was nothing to do all day, since one of their only jobs was to report that sites were being "monitored" and meanwhile do nothing. NOTE: take this story with a grain of salt, because I don't remember the conversation perfectly, nor do I know the details of her job, the company, the situation, etc... this is just my general recollection.
  • ...2 more comments...
  • Kay Bradley on 17 Oct 10
     
    Wow. That's quite a story, Heather. Two years ago in Ethics we did a case study on this--a Head-Royce Alum who is a biologist and photographer participated in the making of a documentary about this story called "Crude."
  • anonymous on 18 Oct 10
     
    Quite the video, too. It's sad how people get so upset over the BP oil spill, but when I bring up the chevron issue (and talk about what we studied toward the end of last year) to my friends, they typically have no idea this went on (and still is, since it seems the old sites are only being "monitored").
  • Gregory Freiberg on 18 Oct 10
     
    Yeah I sort of feel ignorant right now because i honestly had no idea that that was going on. I am shocked at how blatant that is. When i first saw the oil on the ground i was like wow that horrible but then i was even further horrified with i realized that it was so blatant they even put a pipe connecting it to the rest of the forest for drainage purposes. It is unbelievable what huge corporations do to the world and make a huge profit by polluting someone else's backyard. :( awesome video though Heather. Thank you for educating me
  • Amara Plaza-Jennings on 19 Oct 10
     
    Last year Latino Club went to see "Crude" (Heather, I think you went too) and it only built off of what you see in this video here. The rivers that he was saying would get contaminated are used by different villages and many people developed cancer and other health problems from the oil in their water. It's appalling what Chevron did and, as you all said, how few people know about it.
Jenna Mowat

Arab League speaks out on human rights abuse, positive development of Arab Spring - 9 views

I think it is interesting that the Arab states took a strong stance in condemning Syria when the neighboring states had no direct conflict with Syria. I question why the government decided to chang...

Arab spring Libya Syria League Human Rights

started by Nicholas Hirsch on 07 Sep 11 2 follow-ups, last by Jenna Mowat on 08 Sep 11
Kay Bradley

Francis Fukuyama - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - 1 views

en.wikipedia.org/...Francis_Fukuyama

clash of civilizations terrorism

shared by Kay Bradley on 11 Sep 11 - Cached
Kay Bradley liked it
  • He is best known for his book The End of History and the Last Man (1992), which argued that the worldwide spread of liberal democracies may signal the end point of humanity's sociocultural evolution and become the final form of human government.
  • also associated with the rise of the neoconservative movement,[2] from which he has since distanced himself.
  • Bachelor of Arts degree in classics from Cornell University, where he studied political philosophy under Allan Bloom.[5][8] He initially pursued graduate studies in comparative literature at Yale University, going to Paris for six months to study under Roland Barthes and Jacques Derrida, but became disillusioned and switched to political science at Harvard University.[5
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • He is now Olivier Nomellini Senior Fellow and resident in the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University.[
  • Fukuyama is best known as the author of The End of History and the Last Man, in which he argued that the progression of human history as a struggle between ideologies is largely at an end, with the world settling on liberal democracy after the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Fukuyama predicted the eventual global triumph of political and economic liberalism:[citation needed]
  • As a key Reagan Administration contributor to the formulation of the Reagan Doctrine, Fukuyama is an important figure in the rise of neoconservatism, although his works came out years after Irving Kristol's 1972 book
  • In a New York Times article of February 2006, Fukuyama, in considering the ongoing Iraq War, stated: "What American foreign policy needs is not a return to a narrow and cynical realism, but rather the formulation of a 'realistic Wilsonianism' that better matches means to ends."[14] In regard to neoconservatism he went on to say: "What is needed now are new ideas, neither neoconservative nor realist, for how America is to relate to the rest of the world — ideas that retain the neoconservative belief in the universality of human rights, but without its illusions about the efficacy of American power and hegemony to bring these ends about
  • Fukuyama began to distance himself from the neoconservative agenda of the Bush administration, citing its overly militaristic basis and embrace of unilateral armed intervention, particularly in the Middle East. By late 2003, Fukuyama had voiced his growing opposition to the Iraq War[15] and called for Donald Rumsfeld's resignation as Secretary of Defense.[16]
  • Kay Bradley on 11 Sep 11
     
    Disagrees with Samuel P. Huntington's thesis
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