THE HEADLINES

Map of record temperatures in Antarctica (Image: Nature Geoscience)

HOT TIME AT THE OLD BYRD RESEARCH STATION.

Temperature readings at this oceanographic station in southwest Antarctica indicates that the ice cap is heating at twice the rate that climatologists had predicted, raising the image of likely melting that could raise ocean levels by a disastrous ten feet within a few years.

(Common Dreams)

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IN THE U.S., WHO’S AFRAID OF THE BIG BAD LABOR UNION?

With union membership down to 7% of workers in private employment, playwright David Macaray raises this question and notes a discouraging part of the answer. Working people themselves tend to dislike the unions, seeing them as an infringement on their “freedom” to determine for themselves the conditions of their employment. This of course is exactly how corporate owners want them to feel, as it effectively prevents any working class solidarity that could challenge the income distribution so much in their favor that the owning class enjoys.

(Counterpunch)

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IN BRITAIN, CHURCH OF ENGLAND MEMBERS SAY “OKAY” TO SAME SEX MARRIAGES BUT LEADERS IN PULPITS SAY “NO WAY.”

UK Independent poll shows, that by 2-1 margin, most church members say their ministers should be allowed to conduct such marriage ceremonies. Still, Christmas messages of Church clergy tended to include vigorous denunciations of same sex marriage ceremonies being conducted by the Church.

(UK Independent)

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POORER SCHOOLS AND THOSE WITH MANY ETHNIC MINORITIES MAY BE GETTING A BREAK FROM NEW SCHOOL BUDGETS IN CALIFORNIA.

As fiscal situation of schools improves with economic recovery and voter-approved school tax increases, Governor Jerry Brown pushes for a distribution formula that will give a larger chuck of the revenue pie to support schools in districts with larger numbers of children on reduced lunches and those designated as “English learners.”

(Sacramento Bee)

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IF THEY PUT GPS VEHICLE TRACKERS ON POLICE CARS, WHERE’S A POOR MIAMI BEACH COP GOING TO “COOP?”

After a citizen complaint that a police car had been seen “parked under a tree all day,” the city undertook a half-million dollar project to prevent such “cooping” by making it possible for dispatchers to locate every police vehicle at any time. While such devices have been installed, few of them have even been turned on, as police union representatives claim that they question the “trust” that police officers will not abuse the privileges of those allowed to take police cars home, and might put them in danger if information about their home addresses fell into the “wrong hands.”

(Miami New Times)

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Quote of the day…

What if, when Adam Lanza started shooting his way into Sandy Hook Elementary School last Friday, he’d been confronted by qualified, armed security? Will you at least admit it’s possible that 26 little kids, that 26 innocent lives might have been spared that day?

Wayne LaPierre, executive vice-president of National Rifle Association as NRA begins push for placement of armed security guards in all schools.

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