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The Third Biennial Update Report at COP26 Glasgow shows where India stands on renewable energy, solar, forest cover enhancement, and improving carbon intensity in its climate change efforts so far.  For instance a 17 times increase in solar in the last 7 years to 45 gigawatts, with target of 450 gigawatts by 2030. In carbon intensity 24% improvement between 2005-2014. Scientist Bhatt presented the report for India's Environment Ministry saying India represented 17% of the world's population and historically 4% of world carbon emissions, today 5%. Improvements of carbon intensity per unit of GDP planned under Mod's plan for 2030 require 45% reduction in carbon intensity by 2030. This suggests the trajectory of China will be avoided where highly polluting parts of industries such as steel and cement were left unregulated and lacking strict supervision leading to rampant pollution in 2000-2021. Mr. Birol, head of the Renewables Energy Agency said on BBC's "Hard Talk" program recently that if you combine all of China's steel and cement factory carbon emissions, that alone would equal the total sum of carbon emissions of the whole European Union today. A quick look at a graph of global carbon emissions trajectories shows three fold increase of China's carbon emissions from about 4 billion tons to 12 billion tons between 2000-2021, the period and the explosion of carbon that is the one activity that singlehandedly created the crisis of climate change today. By comparison US remains at about 6 billion tons of emissions, and EU, US, Britain Japan show flat trajectories. Business, globalization interests, US and European financial interests, and local governments in China that financed this explosion in steel and cement ignored the implications of so much pollution in so short a time through unregulated activities- writing a chapter of failure with most of the world's people left to bear the results of such a failure.  It is this that India plans to correct with a 45% improvement in carbon intensity per unit of GDP by 2030, and nothing could be more important in the government's plan than this. New technologies will be key for this. Modi and India realize how vulnerable India is to floods, drought stricken areas, shortages of water, and climate extremes, and see these plans as critical for healthy growth that benefits all of India's people and regions, It is a long term vision like no other today and sets a new direction for all developing regions of Asia, Latin America and Africa. As India leads the way in new technologies and ambitious programs such as one solar, one world, one grid, these technologies will also break open new paths for the regions of the world that need this most from Brazil to Indonesia.  China too suffers from the impact of so much pollution. Even as early as 2010 reports showed the higher pollution had lowered life expectancy in northern region of China compared to its southern region. Yet the most polluting factories were not removed and only recently is the activity being conducted seriously leading to the shortages of fuel from so much overexpansion in the boom years, and making adjustments done abruptly today more difficult.   ...

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Senator Chuck Schumer in the US Congress after the passage of the US Debt Ceiling Agreement on June 1, 2023. It is a historic day when president Biden helped preserve most of what has been accomplished by the Inflation Reduction Act and other spending programs for US workers and families, for US infrastructure, and world leadership in science and technology.

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India's 945 million voters today compares with 174 million in 1951, and 214 million in 1962. Not till 1962 was election turnout at over 50%. In 2014 and 2019 election turnout was at 66%. The Election Commission of India wants to see turnout at 75% by helping migrants and youth to vote. 

 

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US farm incomes will increase in 2023 with higher demand and higher food prices, the rebound of China after Covid. The Ukraine war created shortages leading to higher prices. After several years of lower farm income before the Covid period farm incomes remain strong and farmers are better able to pay the higher price of inputs including seed and fertilizer.

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Andrew Kramer, Tyler Hicks for photographs, and Maria Varenikova reporting from Lyman, show skirmishes between small groups of soldiers along the frontlines between Russia and Ukraine. New recruits with little training are seen by Ukrainians on the front lines. This is the situation in Feb 2023 as the Russian offensive is seen as bogged down in many places.

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Republicans won 218 seats to 211 for Democrats in a strongly contested election for the House with 6 Congressional races not yet called. Republicans unexpectedly gained 3 seats in New York to gain the majority. The NYT gives this visual presentation of where and what happened as seats switched on both sides in 2022 US Congressional midterms.

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A warmer than expected winter and lower inflation is helping European stocks in Jan 2023, says this report in the WSJ. European indexes are also not weighed down by the decline in tech stocks as in the US. Germany's DAX and France's CAC have risen by 16% compared to 6.9% in the US for last 3 months.

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As the world changes in 2021 after tensions in world trade, climate change and the health pandemic companies that are out of favor include Alibaba in China and Softbank in Japan. Some of these companies were overvalued and  capital markets  that supported these companies ignored the major needs in climate change, health, education, and infrastructure building. 

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London has fewer deaths than in a normal week in mid June 2020. This means that London is the first region in the UK to emerge from the coronavirus pandemic. The figures from the Office of National Statistics show that London now has fewer deaths per week than in a normal week before the pandemic, about 3% lower.

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The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory May 2020 study cited here in the WSJ, was conducted to find how the coronavirus originated. This US government lab based in California has considerable experience on biological issues and looked at the genetic makeup of the coronavirus. It concluded that a lab accident was plausible, says this report in the WSJ. 

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The Liberal Party is falling behind the Conservatives by double digits because of cost of living and housing concerns. Mr. Trudeau's popularity is dimming. His government is a minority government that depends on the New Democrats for key votes in parliament. Mr. Trudeau talks about personal sacrifices on this job. Canada will elect a new government in 2025.

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DW.com looks at the increasing demand for Indonesian coal from Germany and other European nations, and the surge in coal prices. There is also a surge in demand of LNG from Malaysia. Germany is now the largest destination for Indonesian coal after China and India. The prohibition of Russian coal by the EU went into effect in August 2022.

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The aid package in August 2022 from US to Ukraine includes much needed air defense systems and radars that would help protect the cities and towns of Ukraine under constant bombardment leading to endless stream of refugees and displaced women and children. This and the damage to buildings and homes is the worst aspect of the war.

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March 2022 was the hottest month in India for 122 years since records began. It was also extremely dry. Scientists say such a heat wave with temperatures reaching 50 degrees centigrade in April and May in India, "would have been extraordinarily rare without the climate crisis." They say it has a 1% chance even with current global warming.

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Inflation in the US eased from 8.5% to 8.3% in July according to the Labor Department consumer price index. This reflected declines in gasoline costs, airfares, and slower growth in cost of groceries. Climbing housing costs are a problem. They now make up 25% of the August 2022 inflation rate, up from 20% in February.

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Foreign investment at high rates helped China build its middle class. In the first quarter of 2023 it dropped to $20 billion from $100 billion a year earlier. This means about $80 billion will be going elsewhere to increase incomes and the middle class through investments in the US itself, and in countries such as India and Vietnam.

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The new Charlapalli Rail Terminal for the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad was opened by PM Modi on Jan. 6 2025. It will connect to the Outer Ring Road and accelerate the development of the region. It has 9 platforms, lifts, escalators, solar powered operations and will handle 20 long distance trains, reducing congestion on other terminals.

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In 2024 gender has receded into the background it is all about how to help ordinary Americans, workers and families, and children, and seniors. Harris is all about the Way Forward and the opportunity Economy, tackling the cost of living and jobs, higher wages.

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Both Harris and Trump favor increasing Border Security in October 2024. A tough approach being taken by Harris as well as Trump and in Mexico by president Claudfia Sheinbaum in her first 100 days to fight the crime and cartels at the Southern Border.

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These pictures of empty streets in squares and shopping streets in Berlin, Hamburg, Dresden, Freiburg, and Munich show how Xmas in Germany in 2020 is different. Germany is under lockdown after second wave daily cases reached 30,000.

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The G7 countries including the US, France and Germany  and the European Union now support setting a oil price cap of $60 per barrel for Russian oil. This price cap of $60 goes into effect December 5, 2022, and require western companies that do most of the shipping and distributing for Russian oil worldwide to comply. The US favored oil price cap of $65 set at what Russia earned historically on oil exports. Eastern European countries such as Poland wanted to set the price cap on Russian oil much lower at $30 what it costs Russia to produce oil so that it would crimp Russia's ability to wage war in Eastern Europe that has brought millions of refugees to Poland in 2022.  There were also other prices of between $65 and $70 that were proposed by the European Commission. The US wanted to give Russia some incentive to continue its oil exports which it had threatened to stop if the oil price cap was set -and avoid a situation in which oil prices that hit $120 a barrel early in 2022 would not jump to hit $140 a barrel.  Poland has called for a review every 2 months of the oil price cap so that it is close to the market cap. In November 2022 Russian oil is being sold at about $48 per barrel discounted from Brent crude at $86. The $12 difference between $48 and $60 is the US saying to Russia that it is working with moderation just as it had supported Ukraine with air defenses but acted with restraint to limit that to avoid provocative attacks on Russian soil. What does a cap on Russian oil price mean and how is it possible? Western shipping companies ship the oil out of Russia and distribute it around the world. This advantage of the G7 countries is what it intends to now use to bring an early end to the war in Ukraine by cutting into Russian oil generated funding for the war. Shipping an insurance companies that insure shipping based mostly in the west are now required to comply and not carry supplies bearing a price higher than $60.  ...

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The International Energy Agency lowers its global oil demand forecasts on Dec. 11, 2014, leading to further drop in the price of oil with oil futures in electronic trading for WTI at $58.89 on New York Mercantile Exchange, and Brent crude at $62.83 on ICE in London, for January 2015. The price of WTI U.S. oil dropped to $59.95 on Dec. 11, 2014.

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Water levels were expected to rise one and a half feet with the full moon. Engineers used this increase in tidal waters from the high tides to free the Japanese ship blocking the Suez Canal on March 29, 2021.

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Barcelona football club faces police investigation relating to a smear campaign in 2020 against current and former players critical of the club, according to this report in FR24. Barcelona club's reputation has suffered in recent years.

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NYT Magazine on Kamala Harris, US Vice President. It says Harris was chosen as a governing partner for president Biden in the 2020 election. Harris's journey to the Vice Presidency is shown in this report.