North Korea will have a genuine nuclear threat capability. In the nuclear triad, it has to develop and miniaturize a nuclear weapon, have the means to deliver it, preferably by a ballistic missile, and, in the case of a missile, perfect a re-entry vehicle that can withstand the intense heat and vibration of a re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere.
North Korea has clearly developed a nuclear capability, but can it miniaturize a nuclear device? That is the crucial question. The DPRK’s development of an ICBM that can hit the US mainland seems, considering its recent ballistic missile tests, a foregone conclusion. And developing the re-entry technology, while formidable, should be within North Korea’s reach, considering its other technological achievements. So North Korea should have a nuclear warhead mountable on a missile, the means of its delivery, and the technology to ensure that the warhead can survive a re-entry and detonate.
The real question is: Does North Korea, namely, Kim Jong Un, have the will to use its nuclear arsenal? How can Kim Jong Un convince the world he is crazy enough to use a nuclear weapon?
The first thing he has to do is demonstrate to the world that North Korea actually does have a functioning ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear weapon. Kim Jong Un might decide to do that by launching a nuclear-tipped missile towards a remote target in, say, the South Pacific and detonating a nuclear explosion. Why not? The United States did the same thing in the Marshall Islands in the late 1940s, 1950s, and early 1960s. Such a demonstration by North Korea would rain down international condemnation on it, but would probably not trigger an attack against it since no country (i.e., the United States) was targeted. The end result: North Korea shows that it has a genuine nuclear capability.
Still the question is whether North Korea has the will to use its nuclear capability. But does it really have to show that it has the will? If confronted with a belligerent, for example, a robber, pointing a loaded weapon at you, are you really going to need to know whether he has the will to pull the trigger? I will take him at his word. The United States — media and government — has already painted Kim Jong Un as “a madman,” “irrational” and so on, concluding that, will or no, he could be unhinged enough to launch a nuclear-tipped missile at the United States. Thus, with the stakes so high, the only real option is to tacitly recognize the DPRK as a nuclear power and negotiate a freeze of its program. If Donald Trump doesn’t recognize that, then he is the really insane one.
Graham Allison’s prognostications about a future war between China and the United States are like those of earthquake predictors. In his much-discussed book, Destined for War: Can America and China Escape Thucydides’s Trap? Allison states that a US-China war is “more probable” than usually considered but not “inevitable.” You can’t lose with a prediction like that: “The chances are that a big earthquake will happen soon but it may be delayed for another 100, 10,000, or 1,000,000 years”; in other words, well after the predictor is dead. In the case of earthquake predictors, they may use a time scale of 300 years to develop their probabilities; Allison uses a time scale of 500 years and examines 16 historical cases, 12 of which prove his thesis.
The original Thucydides’ Trap of course happened when the rising Athens frightened Sparta into thinking they were threatened, which led them to start the Peloponnesian War. The theory holds that a rising power will often come into conflict with a dominant, established one.
Xi Jinping has already said there is no such thing as a Thucydides’ Trap. And according to Prof. Arthur Waldron of the University of Pennsylvania, the two greatest American classicists of the 20th century, Prof. Donald Kagan of Yale and the late Prof. Ernst Badian of Harvard, showed that the idea of a Thucydides’ Trap does not actually exist in Thucydides’ text on the Peloponnesian War. What argues best against China falling into the Thucydides’ Trap and provoking war with America is the scourge that Thucydides himself could never have imagined: nuclear weapons.
Allison concludes that America can respond in four ways to the rising China: accommodate it, undermine it, make a long-term (30 years) treaty with the PRC, or define a new relationship with the Chinese. A new relationship means working with China to deal with other global problems like terrorism and, most importantly, climate change.
But why even suggest China is idiotic enough to start an Armageddonic war with America? To jump on the anti-China bandwagon and sell books? To have a complete misreading of China’s intentions? I suspect the latter. One thing that is very striking about Allison’s book is the references. He constantly refers to pronouncements by Henry Kissinger, certainly a major figure in US diplomacy towards China but not, despite a slim book on Chinese history, a true China scholar. Lee Kuan Yew gets quoted several times, but, incredibly, so does Whitaker Chambers (of Alger Hiss fame) for his views on Communism. In other words, Allison is clearly not an expert on China. In fact, reading over the long list of names in the Acknowledgement section of the book, I could not find one Chinese name. A strange omission for a book dealing with a very serious issue about China.
Once seemingly invincible in opinion polls, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s popularity among voters has plunged, his Cabinet’s approval ratings falling to 36% according to a recent Mainichi Shimbun poll.
Aside from the faltering economy, a string of recent controversies centering on Abe himself has triggered the plunge. It started with the Moritomo Gakuen scandal, which revealed Abe to be a supporter of very nationalistic, “moral” education, which, in turn, led government officials to sell public land to Moritomo Gakuen for 14% of the land’s real value.
Then came the presumed influence-peddling Kake Gakuin scandal. Documents, at first dismissed as false, kept turning up that showed Abe likely used his influence to win approval for the opening of a new veterinary science department at a university run by a close friend. Interspersed between the scandals was Abe’s ramming a conspiracy bill, the validity of which was questioned by a United Nations special rapporteur, through the parliament without going through usual legislative protocols. Abe’s authoritarian streak also showed itself when he lambasted protestors at a campaign stump speech just before the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election in July, in which Abe’s LDP party suffered an embarrassing landslide defeat.
As an unexpected sidelight, Abe’s wife, Akie, was also the focus of news, coming not long after her role in the Moritomo Gakuen scandal. In a New York Times interview, President Donald Trump said that he had been seated next to Akie Abe at a G-20 Summit dinner but had a tough time making conversation with her because she has no English — “Like, not ‘hello.’” Some have said she speaks serviceable English but feigned inability because she wanted to avoid speaking to Trump. Possible, but very unlikely in my opinion, considering the importance Prime Minister Abe has invested in building a strong relationship with Trump. In any event, Akie’s apparent lack of English ability created major geopolitical repercussions. It was a long dinner, and likely bored trying to make conversation with Akie, Trump looked for an exit and happened to espy Vladimir Putin. POTUS walked over to Putin, and they started their infamous hour-long conversation, which disturbed other leaders who saw the closeness, and potential ramifications, of their dialogue.
What could save Abe? Look to North Korea and Kim Jong Un’s repeated ballistic missile tests. Both Abe and Trump, who has his own Russiagate problems, could play up the threat and use North Korea as a diversion from their domestic woes.
Donald Trump is not going to be impeached. And he could very well win re-election in 2020. Think of it: eight years of Donald Trump as president (with Ivanka Trump waiting in the wings to succeed him). There are two reasons why Trump could be re-elected: the lack of a strong opposition party challenger to Trump and the unfairness of America’s Electoral College system.
The first question is who the Democrats are going to pick to run against Trump. The Democrats have a small band of reliable warhorses: Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden, and maybe even Hillary Clinton again. The most popular politician in America according to polls, Sanders brings good old-fashioned New Deal–Socialist Truth, Warren passion and smarts, and Biden reliability. But they are all stalked by Father Time; Sanders will be 79 in 2020, and the others are not far behind.
The Democrats are like a once prosperous company that let its finances go; in this case, they coasted too long on Barack Obama’s coattails. But one Democrat is starting to emerge: Sen. Kamala Harris from California. Apparently not as left-leaning as Sanders nor with as much intellectual heft as Warren and Hillary, Harris is tough and charismatic. As a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Harris attracted attention at recent hearings by aggressively questioning Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and then being interrupted and silenced by Senior Male members of the committee.
A former district attorney of San Francisco and attorney general of California, Harris is prosecutorial in her approach, and her tough style and sass could decimate Donald Trump in debates. She has demographic strengths, being a sure magnet for female voters and having an equally certain lock on minority voters because of her Jamaican and Indian ancestry. And she is very telegenic, a particular requisite in the glitzy era of Trumpism. In short, Kamala Harris would crush Trump in the popular vote.
But is that enough? Because of America’s peculiar presidential voting system, Harris would have to win substantial numbers of swing voters and even some Trump supporters in conservative states like Ohio and Florida. That is where her West Coast, Berkeley upbringing could be a liability unless she figures out a way to package herself differently. Not a household name now, but if she can get an opportunity to launch herself the way Obama did with his keynote speech at the Democratic Convention in 2004, she will be on her way to challenge Trump in the presidential election.
Think of memorable summit meetings in modern history (at least from the Western perspective): Hitler and Chamberlain in Munich in 1939; the Yalta and Potsdam summits/conferences in 1945; the Nixon-Khrushchev “kitchen debates” in 1959; Kennedy and Khrushchev in 1961; Nixon and Mao in 1972. Aside from the individual results of each — Chamberlain bowing to Hitler, the Big Three dividing up the post-war world, Nixon and Kennedy confronting the Russian bear, and Nixon “opening up” China — they were all significant in bringing adversaries together (Stalin could be called an adversary, I think) or a leader to meet the Other.
They also had in common the fact that the contents of the discussions were fairly reliably recorded for later confirmation; indeed, the Nixon-Khrushchev encounters were filmed by television cameras. Naturally, a lot is unknown, and in previous summits leading up to World War I, nothing is known publicly because all the European leaders were related to each other. When Kaiser Wilhelm went to England for the yacht races to compete against Uncle Bertie (later King Edward VII), presumably they chatted about the relations between Germany and England, but there were no official records. However, as Europe democratized, summit meetings certainly became more open.
Fast forward to today, and the much ballyhooed summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin. Billed as a possible opportunity for Trump to confront Putin on Russia’s election meddling and annexation of Crimea, it did not meet expectations. Or did it? No one knows because, excluding two interpreters, there were only four people in the room: Trump, Putin, T. Rex Tillerson, and Sergey Lavrov, a wolf in sheep’s clothing if there ever was one. Tillerson and Lavrov gave differing post-summit accounts of Trump’s questioning of Putin about the election, and there was talk of a Syria ceasefire agreement, but who knows for certain? Looking at who was at that meeting, does anyone think that a factual account of what was discussed will ever emerge? Compared to past big-time summits, this one was hermetically sealed.
As mentioned above, another characteristic of notable summits has been the bringing together of adversarial opposites — Kennedy vs. Khrushchev, Nixon vs. Mao — in character, temperament, and ideology. Trump and Putin, though, seem to be very kindred spirits. Both like and are good at making money, though Putin is reportedly around ten times richer than Trump. Both are secretive, have a flexible grasp of the truth, and are very cunning. (That of course could be said about a lot of leaders.) No one would argue that better relations between the two biggest nuclear powers are not wanted, but consider how different this summit is from others, past and present.
These days we often focus on the destruction going on around planet Earth and we seem to forget that which is being preserved. Naturally, destruction makes a better and more dramatic news story, while preservation is somewhat tame by comparison. A story of wonderful preservation that needs to be told is the designation of the Altai (Altay) mountain range in western Asia as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which began on the Russian side in 1998.
The Altai Mountains extend from northwest to southeast. They are 1650 km long and 130-200 km wide and abut on four countries: Russia, China Kazakhstan and Mongolia. They are the source of the Irtysh and Ob rivers and home to many spectacularly beautiful lakes. The highest mountain, Youyi tops out at 4,374m.
Rugged beauty and breath-taking scenery, while certainly important weren’t, the main reasons that UNESCO chose the Altai as a World-Heritage Site. No, what makes the Altai unique and well-worth preserving are its unique flora and fauna–plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth.
The Altai have mixed vegetation zones that include:
Steppe
Forest steppe
Mixed forest
Subalpine vegetation
Alpine vegetation
Glaciers
Wetlands
Because the Altai have had a stable climate since the Ice Age, the area still contains Ice Age fauna including:
Siberian ibex
Deer
Boar
Snow leopard
Altai Argali
Lynx
Brown bear
UNESCO has already designated the Russian North Slope ecosystem as the Golden Mountains of Altai. This area includes the Altai and Katun Nature reserves, Lake Teletskoye, Mt. Beluka and the Ukok Plateau. On the Chinese side the Chinese National Nature Reserve and the Provincial Nature reserves have been UNESCO-nominated. Together the Russian and Chinese sections represent the north and south slope ecosystems of the Altai.
There is tourism in the Altai, particularly on the Russian side. However, travel there at present is for the hardy and fit. Mass tourism has yet to arrive, and there is no Altai Disneyland or theme parks.
But all is not well in paradise, as there is a standing plan to build a gas pipeline from southern Siberia to northwest China through Altai that would cross the Ukok Plateau, home of the endangered Snow Leopard.
So when would be a good time to visit these mountains? Probably as soon as possible, for even in a protected UNESCO designated area change is both inevitable and ongoing.
Would you like to visit this region? Give us your thoughts.
“…we’ll build and strengthen relationships around the world to protect the planet from devastating climate risks.” Climate Mayors, June 1, 2017
On June 1, 2017, 340 mayors of United States cities issued a statement in response to Donald Trump’s withdrawing the country form the historic Paris Agreement on climate. The mayors reaffirmed their commitment to support the agreement and to work toward the goals outlined in the agreement with regard to the use of renewables and the commitment to the 1.5C climate cap.
While individual cities cannot join the Paris Agreement, they can lend their support. Show below is their letter complete with signatures.
STATEMENT FROM THE CLIMATE MAYORS IN RESPONSE TO PRESIDENT TRUMP’S WITHDRAWAL FROM THE PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT
Thursday, June 1st 2017
The President’s denial of global warming is getting a cold reception from America’s cities.
As 340 US Mayors representing 65 million Americans, we will adopt, honor, and uphold the commitments to the goals enshrined in the Paris Agreement. We will intensify efforts to meet each of our cities’ current climate goals, push for new action to meet the 1.5 degrees Celsius target, and work together to create a 21st century clean energy economy.
We will continue to lead. We are increasing investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency. We will buy and create more demand for electric cars and trucks. We will increase our efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions, create a clean energy economy, and stand for environmental justice. And if the President wants to break the promises made to our allies enshrined in the historic Paris Agreement, we’ll build and strengthen relationships around the world to protect the planet from devastating climate risks.
The world cannot wait — and neither will we.
*Map updated as of June 26, 2017
Signed,
Mayor Eric Garcetti City of Los Angeles, CA
Mayor Martin J Walsh City of Boston, MA
Mayor Bill de Blasio New York City, NY
Mayor Sylvester Turner City of Houston, TX
Mayor Madeline Rogero City of Knoxville, TN
Mayor Rahm Emanuel City of Chicago, IL
Mayor Ed Murray City of Seattle, WA
Mayor Jim Kenney City of Philadelphia, PA
Mayor Kasim Reed City of Atlanta, GA
Mayor Lioneld Jordan City of Fayetteville, AR
Mayor Trish Herrera Spencer City of Alameda, CA
Mayor Peggy McQuaid City of Albany, CA
Mayor Kathy Sheehan City of Albany, NY
Mayor Sharon Konopa City of Albany , OR
Mayor Allison Silberberg City of Alexandria, VA
Mayor Ed Pawlowski City of Allentown, PA
Mayor Jeanne Sorg City of Ambler, PA
Mayor Gary Goosman City of Amesville, OH
Mayor Ethan Berkowitz City of Anchorage, AK
Mayor Terence Roberts City of Anderson, SC
Mayor Christopher Taylor City of Ann Arbor, MI
Mayor Van W Johnson City of Apalachicola, FL
Mayor Susan Ornelas City of Arcata, CA
Mayor Peter R Porcino City of Ardsley, NY
Mayor Esther Manheimer City of Asheville, NC
Mayor Steve Skadron City of Aspen, CO
Mayor Steve Patterson City of Athens, OH
Mayor Steve Adler City of Austin, TX
Mayor Catherine E Pugh City of Baltimore , MD
Mayor Gordon T Ringberg City of Bayfield, WI
Mayor Denny Dole City of Beaverton, OR
Mayor Christopher Koch City of Bellevue, ID
Mayor Kelli Linville City of Bellingham, WA
Mayor Jesse Arreguin City of Berkeley, CA
Mayor Robert Donchez City of Bethlehem, PA
Mayor Michael P Cahill City of Beverly, MA
Mayor Ben Kessler City of Bexley, OH
Mayor Richard C David City of Binghamton, NY
Mayor William Bell City of Birmingham, AL
Mayor Ron Rordam City of Blacksburg, VA
Mayor Tari Ranner City of Bloomington, IL
Mayor John Hamilton City of Bloomington, IN
Mayor Dave Bieter City of Boise, ID
Mayor Suzanne Jones City of Boulder, CO
Mayor Carson Taylor City of Bozeman, MT
Mayor Eric Mamula City of Breckenridge, CO
Mayor Joseph P. Ganim City of Bridgeport, CT
Mayor William W Moehle City of Brighton, NY
Mayor Lori S Liu City of Brisbane, CA
Mayor Brenda Hess City of Buchanan, MI
Mayor Byron W Brown City of Buffalo, NY
Mayor Miro Weinberger City of Burlington, VT
Mayor Elizabeth B Kautz City of Burnsville, MN
Mayor E Denise Simmons City of Cambridge, MA
Mayor Edwin Garcia City of Camuy, PR
Mayor Robert Moffatt City of Cape May Point, NJ
Mayor Jim Brainard City of Carmel, IN
Mayor Lydia E Lavelle City of Carrboro, NC
Mayor Mike Webb City of Carver, MN
Mayor Deborah Frank Feinen City of Champaign, IL
Mayor Pam Hemminger City of Chapel Hill, NC
Mayor John J Tecklenburg City of Charleston, SC
Mayor Jennifer Roberts City of Charlotte, NC
Mayor Mike Signer City of Charlottesville, VA
Mayor Andy Berke City of Chattanooga, TN
Mayor Chuck Cahn City of Cherry Hill, NJ
Mayor Mary Casillas Salas City of Chula Vista, CA
Mayor John Cranley City of Cincinnati, OH
Mayor Larry Schroeder City of Claremont, CA
Mayor Ted Terry City of Clarkston, GA
Mayor Frank G Jackson City of Cleveland, OH
Mayor Rebecca Tooley City of Coconut Creek, FL
Mayor Patrick Wojahn City of College Park, MD
Mayor Brian Treece City of Columbia, MO
Mayor Stephen K Benjamin City of Columbia, SC
Mayor Andrew Ginther City of Columbus, OH
Mayor Jeff Katz City of Cooperstown, NY
Mayor Jim Cason City of Coral Gables, FL
Mayor Diane Furst City of Corte Madera, CA
Mayor Brian Tobin City of Cortland, NY
Mayor Biff Traber City of Corvallis, OR
Mayor Jeffrey Cooper Culver City, CA
Mayor Savita Vaidhyanathan City of Cupertino, CA
Mayor Michael S Rawlings City of Dallas, TX
Mayor Robb Davis City of Davis, CA
Mayor Cary Glickstein City of Delray Beach, FL
Mayor Michael Hancock City of Denver, CO
Mayor T M Franklin Cownie City of Des Moines, IA
Mayor Mike Duggan City of Detroit, MI
Mayor Josh Maxwell City of Downingtown, PA
Mayor David Haubert City of Dublin, CA
Mayor Roy D Buol City of Dubuque, IA
Mayor Emily Larson City of Duluth, MN
Mayor William V Bell City of Durham, NC
Mayor Mark Meadows City of East Lansing, MI
Mayor Nancy Tyra-Lukens City of Eden Prairie, MN
Mayor Kris Teegardin City of Edgewater, CO
Mayor Dave Earling City of Edmonds, WA
Mayor Janet Abelson City of El Cerrito, CA
Mayor André Quintero City of El Monte, CA
Mayor David Kaptain City of Elgin, IL
Mayor Catherine Blakespear City of Encinitas, CA
Mayor Lucy Vinis City of Eugene, OR
Mayor Stephen H Hagerty City of Evanston, IL
Mayor Ray Stephanson City of Everett, WA
Mayor Edward Malloy City of Fairfield, IA
Mayor Peter Lindstrom City of Falcon Heights, MN
Mayor David Tarter City of Falls Church, VA
Mayor Colleen Mahr City of Fanwood, NJ
Mayor David Coulter City of Ferndale, MI
Mayor Coral J Evans City of Flagstaff, AZ
Mayor Karen Weaver City of Flint, MI
Mayor Wade Troxell City of Fort Collins, CO
Mayor Jack Seiler City of Fort Lauderdale, FL
Mayor Tom Henry City of Fort Wayne, IN
Mayor Bob Scott City of Franklin, NC
Mayor Lily Mei City of Fremont, CA
Mayor Lee Brand City of Fresno, CA
Mayor Gary Wilkinson City of Frisco, CO
Mayor Kachen Kimmell City of Gambier, OH
Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson City of Gary, IN
Mayor Tammy Stempel City of Gladstone, OR
Mayor Bruce J Packer City of Glen Rock, NJ
Mayor Bryan Kennedy City of Glendale, WI
Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken City of Gloucester, MA
Mayor Rosalynn Bliss City of Grand Rapids, MI
Mayor Emmett V Jordan City of Greenbelt, MD
Mayor Nancy Vaughan City of Greensboro, NC
Mayor Knox H White City of Greenville, SC
Mayor Samuel Henderson City of Gulfport, FL
Mayor Debbie Ruddock City of Half Moon Bay, CA
Mayor Joy Cooper City of Hallandale Beach, FL
Mayor Karen Majewski City of Hamtramck, MI
Mayor Luke Bronin City of Hartford, CT
Mayor Peter Swiderski City of Hastings-on-Hudson, NY
Mayor Harry Kim City and County of Hawai’i , HI
Mayor Barbara Halliday City of Hayward, CA
Mayor Shaun McCaffery City of Healdsburg, CA
Mayor Nancy R Rotering City of Highland Park, IL
Mayor Gayle Brill Mittler City of Highland Park, NJ
Mayor Patrick Taylor City of Highlands, NC
Mayor Tom Stevens City of Hillsborough, NC
Mayor Dawn Zimmer City of Hoboken, NJ
Mayor Josh Levy City of Hollywood, FL
Mayor Alex B Morse City of Holyoke, MA
Mayor Kirk Caldwell County of Honolulu, HI
Mayor Paul Blackburn City of Hood River, OR
Mayor Tiffany Martin Hamilton City of Hudson , NY
Mayor Candace B Hollingsworth City of Hyattsville, MD
Mayor Jim Throgmorton Iowa City , IA
Mayor Svante Myrick City of Ithaca, NY
Mayor Pete Muldoon City of Jackson , WY
Mayor Steven M Fulop Jersey City, NJ
Mayor Bobby J Hopewell City of Kalamazoo, MI
Mayor Sly James Kansas City, MO
Mayor Bernard P Carvalho City of Kauai, HI
Mayor John Antaramian City of Kenosha, WI
Mayor Nina Jonas City of Ketchum, ID
Mayor Steven T Noble City of Kingston, NY
Mayor Jose Alvarez City of Kissimmee, FL
Mayor Tim Kabat City of La Crosse, WI
Mayor Christine Berg City of Lafayette, CO
Mayor Adam Paul City of Lakewood, CO
Mayor Michael Summers City of Lakewood, OH
Mayor J Richard Gray City of Lancaster, PA
Mayor Virg Bernero City of Lansing, MI
Mayor William Sprague City of Lapeer, MI
Mayor Ken Miyagishima City of Las Cruces, NM
Mayor Richard J Kaplan City of Lauderhill, FL
Mayor Leslie Soden City of Lawrence, KS
Mayor Theodore W Becker City of Lewes, DE
Mayor Mark Stodola City of Little Rock, AR
Mayor Robert Garcia City of Long Beach, CA
Mayor Adam Schneider City of Long Branch, NJ
Mayor Dennis Coombs City of Longmont, CO
Mayor Mary Prochnow City of Los Altos, CA
Mayor Gary Waldeck City of Los Altos Hills, CA
Mayor Marico Sayoc City of Los Gatos, CA
Mayor Greg Fischer City of Louisville, KY
Mayor Robert Reichert City of Macon-Bibb County, GA
Mayor Paul R Soglin City of Madison, WI
Mayor Gary Christenson City of Malden, MA
Mayor Skylar Peak City of Malibu, CA
Mayor David J Lesser City of Manhattan Beach, CA
Mayor Barry Greenberg City of Maplewood , MO
Mayor Alan M Arakawa City of Maui, HI
Mayor Stephanie M Burke City of Medford, MA
Mayor Kirsten Keith City of Menlo Park, CA
Mayor Tomas Regalado City of Miami, FL
Mayor Philip Levine City of Miami Beach, FL
Mayor Gurdip Brar City of Middleton, WI
Mayor Daniel Drew City of Middletown, CT
Mayor Sean Strub City of Milford, PA
Mayor Benjamin G Blake City of Milford , CT
Mayor Reuben D Holober City of Millbrae, CA
Mayor Jeff Silvestrini City of Millcreek, UT
Mayor Tom Barrett City of Milwaukee, WI
Mayor Mark Gamba City of Milwaukie, OR
Mayor Betsy Hodges City of Minneapolis, MN
Mayor Wayne Messam City of Miramar, FL
Mayor John Engen City of Missoula, MT
Mayor Mary O’Connor City of Monona, WI
Mayor John Hollar City of Montpelier, VT
Mayor Timothy Dougherty City of Morristown, NJ
Mayor Jamie Irons City of Morro Bay , CA
Mayor Arlene Burns City of Mosier, OR
Mayor Fred Courtright City of Mount Pocono, PA
Mayor Ken Rosenberg City of Mountain View, CA
Mayor Jill Techel City of Napa, CA
Mayor Jim Donchess City of Nashua, NH
Mayor Megan Barry City of Nashville, TN
Mayor Jon Mitchell City of New Bedford, MA
Mayor Toni N Harp City of New Haven, CT
Mayor Mitch Landrieu City of New Orleans, LA
Mayor Tim Rogers City of New Paltz, NY
Mayor Ras J Baraka City of Newark, NJ
Mayor Donna D Holaday City of Newburyport, MA
Mayor Setti Warren City of Newton, MA
Mayor Paul Dyster City of Niagara Falls, NY
Mayor Chris Koos City of Normal, IL
Mayor Connie Leon-Kreps City of North Bay Village, FL
Mayor Francis M Womack City of North Brunswick, NJ
Mayor Smith Joseph City of North Miami, FL
Mayor David J Narkewicz City of Northampton, MA
Mayor Jennifer White City of Nyack, NY
Mayor Libby Schaaf City of Oakland, CA
Mayor Cheryl Selby City of Olympia, WA
Mayor Buddy Dyer City of Orlando, FL
Mayor Victoria Gearity City of Ossining, NY
Mayor Greg Scharff City of Palo Alto, CA
Mayor Jack Thomas Park City, UT
Mayor Donald Grebien City of Pawtucket, RI
Mayor Frank C. Ortis City of Pembroke Pines, FL
Mayor David Glass City of Petaluma, CA
Mayor Greg Stanton City of Phoenix, AZ
Mayor Cindy S Perry City of Pittsboro, NC
Mayor William Peduto City of Pittsburgh, PA
Mayor Kurt R Metzger City of Pleasant Ridge, MI
Mayor Lamar Fisher City of Pompano Beach, FL
Mayor Ethan Strimling City of Portland, ME
Mayor Ted Wheeler City of Portland, OR
Mayor Jack Blalock City of Portsmouth, NH
Mayor Liz Lempert City of Princeton, NJ
Mayor Jorge O Elorza City of Providence, RI
Mayor Nancy McFarlane City of Raleigh, NC
Mayor Donald Terry City of Rancho Cordova, CA
Mayor John Marchione City of Redmond, WA
Mayor John Seybert Redwood City, CA
Mayor Hillary Schieve City of Reno, NV
Mayor Tom Butt City of Richmond, CA
Mayor Levar Stoney City of Richmond, VA
Mayor Lovely Warren City of Rochester, NY
Mayor Daniel Guzzi City of Rockwood, MI
Mayor Joanne Aagaard City of Rockaway Beach, OR
Mayor Jake Mackenzie City of Rohnert Park, CA
Mayor Mike Fournier City of Royal Oak, MI
Mayor Darrell Steinberg City of Sacramento, CA
Mayor Alan Galbraith City of Saint Helena, CA
Mayor Christopher Coleman City of Saint Paul, MN
Mayor Kim Driscoll City of Salem, MA
Mayor Chuck Bennett City of Salem, OR
Mayor Jacob Day City of Salisbury, MD
Mayor Jackie Biskupski Salt Lake City, UT
Mayor Ron Nirenberg City of San Antonio, TX
Mayor Bob Grassilli City of San Carlos, CA
Mayor Kevin Faulconer City of San Diego, CA
Mayor Ed Lee City of San Francisco, CA
Mayor Sam Liccardo City of San Jose, CA
Mayor Pauline Russo Cutter City of San Leandro, CA
Mayor Heidi Harmon City of San Luis Obispo, CA
Mayor John Thomaides City of San Marcos, TX
Mayor David Lim City of San Mateo, CA
Mayor Miguel Pulido City of Santa Ana, CA
Mayor Helene Schneider City of Santa Barbara, CA
Mayor Lisa M Gillmor City of Santa Clara, CA
Mayor Javier M Gonzales City of Santa Fe, NM
Mayor Ted Winterer City of Santa Monica, CA
Mayor Chris Coursey City of Santa Rosa, CA
Mayor Shelli Freeland Eddie City of Sarasota, FL
Mayor Joanne D Yepsen City of Saratoga Springs, NY
Mayor Frank P. Catino City of Satellite Beach, FL
Mayor Chris Lain City of Savanna, IL
Mayor Michael J Gonnelli City of Secaucus, NJ
Mayor George Van Dusen City of Skokie, IL
Mayor Scott A Saunders City of Smithville, TX
Mayor Matt Larson City of Snoqualmie, WA
Mayor Jeffrey Z Slavin City of Somerset, MD
Mayor Joe Curtatone City of Somerville, MA
Mayor Pete Buttigieg City of South Bend, IN
Mayor Philip K Stoddard City of South Miami, FL
Mayor Sheena Collum City of South Orange Village, NJ
Mayor Domenic J Sarno City of Springfield, MA
Mayor Lyda Krewson City of St Louis, MO
Mayor Len Pagano City of St Peters, MO
Mayor Rick Kriseman City of St Petersburg, FL
Mayor David Martin City of Stamford, CT
Mayor Elizabeth Goreham City of State College, PA
Mayor Michael Tubbs City of Stockton, CA
Mayor Glenn Hendricks City of Sunnyvale, CA
Mayor Michael J Ryan City of Sunrise, FL
Mayor Daniel E Dietch City of Surfside, FL
Mayor Timothy P Kearney City of Swarthmore, PA
Mayor Thomas Fromm City of Swedesboro, NJ
Mayor Stephanie A Miner City of Syracuse, NY
Mayor Marilyn Strickland City of Tacoma, WA
Mayor Kate Stewart City of Takoma Park, MD
Mayor Andrew Gillum City of Tallahassee, FL
Mayor Bob Buckhorn City of Tampa, FL
Mayor Drew Fixell City of Tarrytown, NY
Mayor Sean Murphy City of Telluride, CO
Mayor Mark Mitchell City of Tempe, AZ
Mayor Paula Hicks-Hudson City of Toledo, OH
Mayor Patrick J. Furey City of Torrance, CA
Mayor Jim Carruthers Traverse City, MI
Mayor Eric E Jackson City of Trenton, NJ
Mayor Jonathan Rothschild City of Tucson, AZ
Mayor Allan Ekberg City of Tukwila, WA
Mayor Brian Stack Union City, NJ
Mayor Shelley Welsch University City, MO
Mayor Diane W Marlin City of Urbana, IL
Mayor Dave Chapin City of Vail, CO
Mayor Timothy D. Leavitt City of Vancouver, WA
Mayor Robert Blais City of Village of Lake George, NY
Mayor Muriel Bowser City of Washington, D.C.
Mayor Oscar Rios City of Watsonville, CA
Mayor Shari G Cantor City of West Hartford, CT
Mayor Edward O’Brien City of West Haven, CT
Mayor John Heilman City of West Hollywood, CA
Mayor John Dennis City of West Lafayette, IN
Mayor Felix E Roque City of West New York, NJ
Mayor Jeri Muoio City of West Palm Beach, FL
Mayor Christopher Cabaldon City of West Sacramento, CA
Mayor Daniel Corona City of West Wendover, NV
Mayor Daniel J Stermer City of Weston, FL
Mayor Joyce Jay City of Wheat Ridge , CO
Mayor Thomas M Roach City of White Plains, NY
Mayor John Muhlfeld City of Whitefish, MT
Mayor Ryan Reynolds City of Whitney Point, NY
Mayor Debora Fudge City of Windsor, CA
Mayor Diana Willits City of Windsor Heights, IA
Mayor Allen Joines City of Winston Salem, NC
Mayor Angel Barajas City of Woodland, CA
Mayor Joseph M Petty City of Worcester, MA
Mayor Mike Spano City of Yonkers, NY
Mayor Amanda Maria Edmonds City of Ypsilanti, MI
Updated signatories as of 4:30 pm PT on June 30, 2017
Climate Mayors (aka, Mayors National Climate Action Agenda, or MNCAA) is a network of 340 U.S. mayors — representing 65 million Americans in red states and blue states — working together to strengthen local efforts for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and supporting efforts for binding federal and global-level policy making. Climate Mayors recently released an open letter to President Trump to oppose his actions thus far against climate action. In January, 30 Climate Mayors issued an EV RFI to show automakers and manufacturers that 114,000 of their cities’ cars and trucks could be electrified.
If you would like to sign this statement, or require further information about the Climate Mayors (MNCAA) and its activities please email info@climate-mayors.org or visit our website http://www.climatemayors.org.
Photo: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center via flickr
Well, just about everyone loves a birthday party, and Canada had a big one last weekend. There were all kinds of events held to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Canada’s federation, when Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick joined to form a dominion (basically a country) on July 1, 1867. In truth, Canada didn’t get real independence till 1931, with some finishing touches in 1982.
However, Queen Elizabeth II is still the sovereign of Canada. (And Australia and New Zealand as well as the United Kingdom.) It was fitting then that Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall make their appearance at celebrations held this past weekend.
Canada Day festivities were held on Parliament Hill, Ottawa. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke his message of inclusiveness:
“We don’t care where you’re from or what religion you practice, or whom you love–you’re all welcome in Canada.”
Not everyone was prepared to have a good time. Many Indigenous people felt the celebrations were not for them and declined to participate. There were also rumblings about the construction of an oil pipeline. However Saturday and Sunday’s 150-year celebrations, despite rainy weather, seemed to be something that most Canadians chose to support and celebrate.
To cap it off, Donald Trump, head of state of Canada’s southern neighbor Tweeted:
“Happy Canada Day to all the great people of Canada and to your Prime Minister and my new found friend @ Justin Trudeau #Canada 150”
So what more could one ask for? Happy 150 Canada! Here’s wishing you another great 150!
( Does Canada really have a bright future? Log in and let us know what you think.)
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Donald Trump have something in common: brewing scandals. Abe’s has to do with possible influence peddling and Trump’s with the Russian interference in the US elections. The common thread between them is that it is difficult to prove actual direct involvement by either of them.
In Japan the Abe scandals center on what is called sontaku seiji (忖度政治). In the dictionary definition of the word, sontaku means “to suppose, to conjecture, to assume.” But in this context, sontaku means to try to curry favor with higher-ups by anticipating what you think they want and acting proactively without waiting for instructions. The fishy and creepy nursery school operator, Yasunori Kagoike, who is at the center of the Moritomo Gakuen scandal, accused bureaucrats of being the cause of the sweetheart land deal that saw him acquire land for a nursery school at a cut rate because they were trying to please, and thus curry favor with, Abe, who supported Kagoike. Sontaku is supposed by Japanese to be a uniquely Japanese (or Chinese, since the word first appears in a Chinese poem) practice, probably because of the suggestion of unspoken communication.
But we can see a good example of sontaku in America. The Trump election team is suspected of being involved in some sort of collusion with the Russians, yet no hard evidence has so far surfaced to substantiate the claim. And none likely will. We can very easily see sontaku at work here as Trump underlings, trying to anticipate Trump’s wishes and thus curry favor with him, contacting the Russians to collude in their election hacking. Trump never ordered them to work with the Russians, so his hands are clean, and he will never be implicated.
By the way, despite liberals’ fantasies, Trump will probably be never impeached. Even if he were, he would never satisfy liberals’ fervent wish to see him reflect on his transgressions, or to show any remorse for his transgressions. It would be a very unsatisfying scene. Trump would likely just shrug, and say, “So I was impeached. Life goes on. Being president wasn’t such a great gig anyway. I’m going to build some golf courses.” Any bets on Trump winning a second term?
Twenty years ago on a very rainy July 1, 1997 the British Union Jack was run down the flagpole, up went the red banner of the People’s Republic and the Governor General and English prince sailed away.
Many in Hong Kong feared for the worst and left before the handover. Others established residences overseas, “just in case.” Well, the worst did not happen. It was pretty much business as usual on July 2, 1997. The “one country, two systems” model laid out by China’s government seems to have worked–if not to everyone’s satisfaction.
Things have changed in Hong Kong due to influences from without and within. Many have pointed out that Hong Kong was unique economically in 1997, and hence very valuable to the PRC. But, times have changed. China itself has risen up economically, and what was unique and valuable then is not so much so now. The rivalry from nearby Shenzhen and the growing Pearl River Delta megapolis has made Hong Kong part of the transformation but not the leader.
Citizens of Hong Kong are now burdened by a high cost of living and the ever-increasing price of housing. Economic opportunity seems less of an achievable dream as time goes by.
Politically, there is dissatisfaction with Beijing in some quarters, particularly among the young. The 2014 Umbrella Movement by young people was a manifestation of continuing unrest and dissatisfaction. In addition, many young people see themselves as Hong Kongers of Chinese ethnicity rather than Chinese. (This mirrors the situation in Taiwan where many people see themselves as Taiwanese and not Chinese.)
So, what about Beijing’s take on the situation? President Xi Jinping will visit the Hong Kong SAR from June 29 to July 1 to officiate at a number of ceremonies and to swear in Carrie Lam as the new chief executive. In addition, China’s first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, will make a port call to “increase patriotism.”
Here we are at the bottom line. And that is? Just this: life goes on and life has gone on in Hong Kong for 20 years now. Beijing has in fact kept its promise so far and has handled the SAR in a rather deft manner. The future will bring changes, probably more organic and evolutionary than revolutionary. In 30 years, new realities will have emerged and today’s problems will be long forgotten. Congratulations Hong Kong on your “first” 20 years!
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