USA News and Discussions

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caltrek
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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The Supreme Court’s EPA Decision Heralds a Broad Assault on Democracy
by Adam Sobel
July 1, 2022

Introduction:
(The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists) “The Court appoints itself — instead of Congress or the expert agency — the decision maker on climate policy. I cannot think of many things more frightening.” Justice Elena Kagan wrote that, in her dissent from the Supreme Court majority’s ruling in West Virginia v Environmental Protection Agency. I agree—but I can easily think of a few things that are about equally frightening. Namely, the Supreme Court decisions that immediately preceded it, and the ones that are likely to come soon after.

In the EPA ruling, the court’s majority argued that the Clean Air Act didn’t give the EPA the authority to make broad regulations limiting greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. Only Congress has that power, they argued. The court acknowledged that modern life is sufficiently complex that the historical practice, in which Congress makes laws expressing broad intent and federal agencies work out the details required to implement them, is to some extent necessary in our complex modern age but ruled that it isn’t enough in the case of “major questions.” This is apparently a new legal theory, just invented to justify the court’s decision.

If one wants to see an upside, the ruling is not as broad as those of us who want a functioning government had feared. Because it affects only a specific EPA rule, it doesn’t yet invalidate the entire “administrative state” that, in practice, allows the United States to exist as a modern country, and that gives citizens some protection from corporate power.

But the ruling puts everyone on notice. Anything any federal agency does that the new far-right majority on the court doesn’t like can apparently be declared a “major question,” so that no action can be taken by the agency unless Congress explicitly approves the specific rule in question—even when (as in the case of the Clean Air Act) Congress has already instructed the Agency to implement a law with clear intent.
Read more here: https://thebulletin.org/2022/07/the-su ... t-heading
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caltrek
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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For Supreme Court Watchers, Judicial Restraint Has Left the Building
by Kelsey Reichmann
July 6, 2022

Introduction:
WASHINGTON (Courthouse News) — The conservative majority of the Supreme Court is making broad changes to American law on a tight timeline in moves that are giving the public, and even several justices, pause.

“I would call the majority restless,” Lawrence Gostin, faculty director of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law and Georgetown Law, said in a phone interview. “It’s not only wanting to have a very firm conservative stamp on the court, but it is impatient and won’t wait for the right cases to do that and won’t use an incremental approach.”

Just a week after the court threw out New York’s concealed-carry restrictions last month, it voted 6-3 to limit the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate pollutants that contribute to climate change. While doing so, the majority made it a point to endorse a controversial doctrine that hamstrings the authority of the administrative state. Experts were critical of this EPA decision both because of its breadth and because of its basis on an outdated regulation the government has no intention of using again
Further extract:
“The Court’s docket is discretionary, and because no one is now subject to the Clean Power Plan’s terms, there was no reason to reach out to decide this case,” Justice Elena Kagan wrote in dissent to the EPA ruling.

Kagan noted that, not only was there no in-use regulation for the court to rule on in the case, but the government was set to release an updated regulation in just weeks.

“The Court today issues what is really an advisory opinion on the proper scope of the new rule EPA is considering,” Kagan wrote. “That new rule will be subject anyway to immediate, pre-enforcement judicial review. But this Court could not wait — even to see what the new rule says — to constrain EPA’s efforts to address climate change.”
The article further makes comments on the overruling of Roe v Wade.

Read more here: https://www.courthousenews.com/for-sco ... building/
Don't mourn, organize.

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caltrek
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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Trust In News Collapses to Historic Low
by Sara Fischer
July 8, 2022

Introduction:
(Axios) Americans' confidence in newspapers and television news has plummeted to an all-time low, according to the latest annual Gallup survey of trust in U.S. institutions.

Why it matters: The erosion of trust in media is one of the most significant signs of deepening polarization in America.

• Political party affiliation has become the primary driver of opinions about the media's trustworthiness, as Gallup has noted.

• A 2021 poll from Pew Research Center found that Republicans are far less likely to trust media sources that are considered "mainstream."
Details: Television news is today considered the second-least trusted institution in the country, following Congress, according to the poll.
Read more here: https://www.axios.com/2022/07/08/news ... isanship
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weatheriscool
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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caltrek wrote: Fri Jul 08, 2022 2:42 pm Trust In News Collapses to Historic Low
by Sara Fischer
July 8, 2022

Introduction:
(Axios) Americans' confidence in newspapers and television news has plummeted to an all-time low, according to the latest annual Gallup survey of trust in U.S. institutions.

Why it matters: The erosion of trust in media is one of the most significant signs of deepening polarization in America.

• Political party affiliation has become the primary driver of opinions about the media's trustworthiness, as Gallup has noted.

• A 2021 poll from Pew Research Center found that Republicans are far less likely to trust media sources that are considered "mainstream."
Details: Television news is today considered the second-least trusted institution in the country, following Congress, according to the poll.
Read more here: https://www.axios.com/2022/07/08/news ... isanship
Well, no shit Caltrek. The news sadly is so partisan that it literally makes shit up and when people find out that what they're being fed is pure horseshit they tend to lose trust in it. It doesn't fly with the majority of society anymore. Maybe the media should bring back the old standard of leaving politics and belief at the door and following a method of facts,evidence and data.

Lets be honest....Leaving out the reality that the bad guy has a gun out of the story to make the bad guy look like the victim is very bad for our society.
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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weatheriscool wrote: Mon Jul 04, 2022 8:16 pm Honestly, I think it would be a good thing to get more republicans and conservatives into science and education. It would allow for healing and real debate of ideas.
You mean like how they've been given the data regarding evolution and climate change? So tell me, just how's that worked out so far? What's there left to "debate" exactly? Regarding education, which they love to defund whenever the chance arises or use to push outdated concepts like creationism? Or lets just further handwave the First Nations genocide and how America was truly founded why don't we?
The left is stuck in its narrow lane bs that it is destroying this country and making life hell on good people. We need to force society more towards logical and thought out concepts instead of idiocy.
I somehow don't think turning back the clock on a person's civil rights nor destroying what's currently our only home in the galaxy is quite logical, but that's just me. As far as burning buldings are concerned, funny thing about that is they can always be rebuilt. The environment, on the other hand, cannot. I don't support that style of violence, but the priorities here seem a bit skewed as to what's exactly "destroying" America.
Science isn't a snowflake thing.
And yet the religious right are so easily triggered by basic data procurred via the scientific method.

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wjfox
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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weatheriscool wrote: Mon Jul 04, 2022 8:16 pm
Honestly, I think it would be a good thing to get more republicans and conservatives into science and education.
How do you propose this be done?

Wouldn't the separation of church and state be a good start? Instead of, for example, removing classroom textbooks on evolution and replacing them with literal creationism, as some states have attempted.

And wouldn't it be a good idea to prevent the corrupting influence of vested financial interests in education – such as learning materials on the environment sponsored and published by fossil fuel interests:

https://globalreports.columbia.edu/books/miseducation/
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joe00uk
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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You don't even need to go to any special effort to "get" more conservatives into science and education - many already are. All you need to do is remove any systems of censorship or politically motivated reward, where these can be found. When that happens, you'll naturally find people of all different viewpoints and persuasions sharing and debating their ideas.
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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joe00uk wrote: Sat Jul 09, 2022 3:26 pm
systems of censorship or politically motivated reward
Examples?
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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wjfox wrote: Sat Jul 09, 2022 3:56 pm
joe00uk wrote: Sat Jul 09, 2022 3:26 pm
systems of censorship or politically motivated reward
Examples?
Lots of examples come up with just one quick google search of "censorship in science" or "politicisation of science", but here's the first article I found which contains a few helpful examples.
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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Does this view on censoship also extend to how the U.S. right also likes to censor/ban books it doesn't like? Or ideologies it claims are "socialistic" in nature? I don't mind if someone is principled enough on all fronts regarding censorship, as they are at least being honest, but the number in this country doesn't appear to be that high. Maybe it's different in the U.K. due to the multi-party system, which at least allows for a greater range of critical thinking.

Don't believe that fundamentalism is also as big of an issue there, either, but I could be wrong. Only bring that up bc it might be slightly different for @Joe and @Wjfox. To use another example, if we attempted to do what Italy did regarding compulsory teaching climate change in schools, in good ole America that would be regarded as some politically motivated brainwashing attempted. It's the same with UHS, even though it's practiced in neighboring countries such as Canada, and the statistical data proves its superiority in health outcomes when compared to our archaic system, people will still fall for the same talking points and their own general ignorance.

Really, at this point, I just don't see what much could be done anymore.
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