OPEN ARMS.

After almost two years of international isolation due to Covid-19 restrictions, the United States is prepared to welcome travelers from around the world. Per the Associated Press, “The U.S. lifted restrictions Monday on travel from a long list of countries including Mexico, Canada and most of Europe, allowing tourists to make long-delayed trips and family members to reconnect with loved ones after more than a year and a half apart because of the pandemic. ‘I’m going to jump into his arms, kiss him, touch him,’ Gaye Camara said of the husband in New York she has not seen since before COVID-19 brought the fly-here-there-and-everywhere world to a halt.” https://bit.ly/309Eceu

THE GLOVES COME OFF.

Singapore is taking away aid it has provided citizens who are hospitalized for Covid-19 infection. According to Channel News Asia, “From Dec 8, all COVID-19 patients who are unvaccinated “by choice” will have to pay their own medical bills if they are admitted to hospitals or COVID-19 treatment facilities, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Monday (Nov 8). The Government is currently footing the full COVID-19 medical bills of all Singaporeans, permanent residents and long-term pass holders, other than for those who test positive soon after returning from overseas travel.” The kid gloves are coming off around the world. Expect to hear victim-moaning from people who refuse vaccination. https://bit.ly/3o24R4Q

ANGELA MERKEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE.

Deutsche Welle interviewed outgoing chancellor Angela Merkel about a number of topics spanning from the refugee issues plaguing Europe to her legacy. They also touched on the climate change crisis. According to Chancellor Merkel, “’We have to pay heed to the scientific estimates again, and that means sticking to global warming of 1.5 degrees [Celsius/2.7 degrees Fahrenheit]. [The COP26 climate conference in] Glasgow has already yielded a number of results. But this is still going too slowly from young people’s understandable perspective,’ she said.” https://bit.ly/3kjjkbE

TURBINE SYNDROME IS A THING.

In a world first, France has recognized potential harms of living in close proximity to wind farms. Per the Guardian, “A French court has recognised ‘turbine syndrome’ after a couple complained their health was damaged by living near a wind farm. In what is believed to be the first judgment of its kind in France, Belgians Christel and Luc Fockaert were awarded more than €100,000 in compensation by the judge in Toulouse. The couple claimed they experienced a range of health problems including headaches, insomnia, heart irregularities, depression and nausea for more than two years, insisting these were caused by six wind turbines set up 700 metres from their home at Fontrieu in the Tarn, southern France.” Expect more lawsuits to begin flowing around the world. It’s also a potential weapon for anti-sustainability activists, aka the oil and gas industry. https://bit.ly/3mVAYUt

OIL AND GAS ON THE OFFENSIVE.

While we’re on the topic of the oil and gas industry going on the offensive, an official government report in Canada chastises the government for funding environmental groups and their public outreach programs. Per the Globe and Mail, “The commissioner of a widely criticized Alberta public inquiry into the funding of environmentalists says his report should be a wake-up call for the province’s government and oil sector that they are losing the public-relations fight over resource development… Mr. Allan said in an interview that the oil industry should take lessons from the environmental movement, which he noted has been effective at opposing development in Alberta’s oil sands.” Clearly, Toronto is concerned about losing one of its cash cows, regardless of the long term damage the resource-heavy extraction process inflicts on the environment. https://tgam.ca/3kjPJ1w

Thanks for reading. Let’s be careful out there.