Monthly Archives: February 2020

Thom Hartmann: The War on Voting & Jane Kleeb: Harvest the Vote

In the first segment, we speak with Thom Hartmann, whose latest book in his Hidden History series is: The Hidden History of THE WAR ON VOTING: WHO STOLE YOUR VOTE AND HOW TO GET IT BACK, published by Barrett- Koehler.

In our second segment we speak with Jane Kleeb. Her book, HARVEST THE VOTE: HOW DEMOCRATS CAN WIN AGAIN IN RURAL AMERICA, was just published in January 2020 by Ecco.

The Lost 110 Words of Our Constitution: The 14th Amendment says states that infringe the vote must lose representation in Congress. It’s time to make this happen.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/02/23/the-lost-constitutional-tool-to-protect-voting-rights-116612

Rural America Doesn’t Have to Starve to Death

https://www.thenation.com/article/economy/big-agribusiness-finance-farming/

TC Energy eyes further hurdles, not ready to commit to Keystone XL pipeline

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tc-energy-results/tc-energy-eyes-further-hurdles-not-ready-to-commit-to-keystone-xl-pipeline-idUSKBN2071ND

Democrats are reaching farmers with an exciting message: green agriculture

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/feb/11/democrats-conservation-climate-rural-america

Farm Bankruptcies Soared 20% Amid Trump Trade War. It’s The Highest Rate In 8 Years.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/farm-bankruptcies-trump-trade-war_n_5e34a2d6c5b69a19a4af1ad0

For Democrats, the Road to Victory in 2020 Runs Through Rural America. This Report Offers a Road Map http://inthesetimes.com/rural-america/entry/22279/2020-election-progressive-populism-peoples-action-win-rural-america-report?link_id=7&can_id=26389c9ba4e6ef1db60b08fdce8085f1&source=email-in-his-lies-biden-is-sounding-a-lot-like-trump-10-years-after-we-pledged-to-help-haiti-rebuild-heres-what-happened-2&email_referrer=email_713985&email_subject=medicare-for-all-could-save-transgender-lives-barbara-ehrenreich-on-her-endorsement-of-bernie-sanders

This graphic shows a county-by-county breakdown of the 2016 presidential election results. The counties that went for Donald Trump are colored red and the counties that went for Hillary Clinton are colored blue. Graphic courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Texas closes hundreds of polling sites, making it harder for minorities to vote https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/mar/02/texas-polling-sites-closures-voting

Dr. Arash Babaoff

Dr. Arash Babaoff recently retired from his career at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, where he worked in the Adolescent Medicine Division, Transport team and the Emergency Department since 1993.

Believing that medicine is an international language that should be practiced as such, Dr. Babaoff began his volunteer work abroad in November of 2001. Since then, he has made volunteering a way of life.

In addition to the many medical missions with international organizations such as Operation Smile, which have taken him to such countries as the West Bank of Palestine, Nepal, Chechnya, China, Cambodia, Rwanda, Malawi, Morocco, Myanmar, Mali, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and many others, Dr. Babaoff is the co-founder of an NPO providing healthcare to the people in the Bolivar Province in Central Ecuador.
We met Dr. Babaoff at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, where he was also a volunteer. We found his work so inspiring, we asked him to join us on Ecotones, which he graciously found time to do.

Michael T. Klare All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon’s Perspective on Climate Change

The United States military has been aware of the escalating dangers of catastrophic climate disruption longer than most other branches of government. In spite of Donald Trump’s quick rescinding of Barack Obama’s Executive Order 13653, issued in 2013, “Preparing the US for the Impact of Climate Change,” the military has quietly continued to do just that.

In his latest meticulously researched book, All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon’s Perspective on Climate Change, the Five College Professor Emeritus of Peace and World Security Studies at Hampshire College and senior visitiing fellow at the Arms Control Association, Michael T. Klare, shows that the US military considers climate change a danger on several fronts at once.

With charts and maps he demonstrates that globally and nationally, we are vulnerable to increasing disruptions from climate change:

A map identifying military bases that have reported problems from heavy flooding, extreme temperatures, prolonged drought, and other climate impacts. (from All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon’s Perspective on Climate Change Metropolitan Books)

Increasing water scarcity as the river systems sourced in the glaciers of the Himalayan watershed is a major concern affecting nuclear armed nations China, India and Pakistan. (from All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon’s Perspective on Climate Change Metropolitan Books)

As the Arctic sea ice disappears the geopolitics of the region are in flux as never before in human history with potential of conflict among major powers such as Russia, China and the US. ((from All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon’s Perspective on Climate Change Metropolitan Books)

Articles relating to this interview:

Sea level rise accelerating along US coastline, scientists warn https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/03/sea-level-rise-accelerating-us-coastline-scientists-warn

When it comes to climate hypocrisy, Canada’s leaders have reached a new low https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/feb/05/when-it-comes-to-climate-hypocrisy-canadas-leaders-have-reached-a-new-low

Antarctica’s glaciers are melting so fast, you can swim in them. In a Speedo. https://grist.org/climate/antarcticas-glaciers-are-melting-so-fast-you-can-swim-in-them-in-a-speedo/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=weekly&utm_content=antarcticas-glaciers-are-melting-so-fast-you-can-swim-in-them-in-a-speedo%3Futm_medium%3Demail

Climate crisis fills top five places of World Economic Forum’s risks report https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/jan/15/climate-crisis-environment-top-five-places-world-economic-forum-risks-report

Rising Seas: US Naval Academy, Maryland https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/front-lines-rising-seas-us-naval-academy-maryland

Civilian deaths and atrocities escalate as chaos builds in Sahel https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/10/civilian-deaths-and-atrocities-escalate-as-chaos-builds-in-sahel

World War III’s Newest Battlefield — US Troops Head for the Far North https://truthout.org/articles/world-war-iiis-newest-battlefield-us-troops-head-for-the-far-north/?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=8e0d8072-5f15-4f61-b8e7-36a53b402106