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DW.com provides graphics and explanation of key parts of the climate change crisis, which is very useful information to understand the climate change crisis facing the world today. It taken into account income of countries to put CO2 in perspective. It shows the impact of climate change locally when the 1 degree celsius of climate warming globally that has already happened can produce 30 degree centigrade temperatures in Portland, Oregon, and vary temperatures by large numbers locally in Asia, Europe and America. It looks at deforestation's impact and many other aspects of the climate change crisis in a useful manner.

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The US booster vaccine drive is lagging behind as only 30% of Americans fully vaccinated have taken the booster vaccine, according to CDC. Only half of Americans over ager 65 have taken the booster shot. In New York City only 1.5 million Americans out of 8 million have taken the booster vaccine. This report in NYT shows Dr. Oshita's 3 urgent care clinics in Sacramento, California, and no rush of people to get the booster vaccine. It is scary, he says, of the lack of a rush of people into the vaccine centers. This is happening as the new omicron variant is spreading.

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After over a decade under the Christian Democrats and Merkel and the influence of older voters in elections, NYT says younger voters and candidates are coming into prominence in the 2021 elections. The SPD under Olaf Scolz is fielding 80 candidates under age 35 for parliamentary elections to form a new government. Digitization, child care, poverty and social mobility, and the need for a rising tide that lifts all boats are issues in this election.

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As Australia lacks its own strategic petroleum reserves and with shipping security in the Persian Gulf threatened, Australia has to find a way to meet a oil supply shock. Australia is the only country in the 30 member International Energy Agency that does not have enough storage for 3 months of oil imports. The U.S. is considering opening its emergency oil reserves to Australia as the country plays a larger role in security in the region.

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The US has not yet approved the Astra Zeneca vaccine. Yet the US sits on large supplies of the Astra Zeneca vaccine. Europe badly needs the vaccine with its failure to procure enough vaccine doses. This is one of the paradoxes of the situation today. Italy faces a lockdown by Easter. 70% of cases in France are now variants, says the Health Minister Olivier Veran, and ICU's are 80% full. In Germany there are fears of a third wave. Yet vaccine supplies remain low and vaccination drives in Europe are slow, creating much frustration for the people.

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Masks will be mandatory in more public spaces in Britain starting August 8. Prime minister Boris Johnson says it is time "to squeeze the brake pedal" as cases jump to 4200 a day July 30, as provided by ONS. Northern England has more cases and new restrictions. Face coverings will be mandatory in more indoor spaces such as cinemas. Standing next to Mr. Johnson at a briefing, Prof. Chris Whitty, England chief medical officer said the "idea that we can open everything and keep the virus under control is wrong."

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The Stimson Center looks at the closing of an era of Conservative politics in Japan which ended in 2025 after the death of Shinzo Abe and the 2 year premiership of Kishida. Interview is conducted by the Stimson Center of a senior Japanese political figure with 30 years of experience in the Foreign Service, and the author of the only English language book on Shinzo Abe, reflecting the paucity of research on Japan. Shinzo Abe was premier for a short time in 2005-2006 and for a full term in 2012. He made changes to Japan's SDF, its partnership with India, Australia in the Quad, and his economic policy which increased women's participation in the economy. For the first time in post war Japan there was a new sensde of confidence under Abe and he is missed sorely in Japan today. Yet as this senior Japanese politician says, Japan has changed the way the US and Europe have changed, and nationalist politics are replacing old Conservative politics of the LDP. In a way also how the deindustrialization of US, Europe and Japan has also taken place discrediting that era. Takaichi Sanae is itself a representative of the new era, as she did not hesitate to say Japan would get involved if China attacked Taiwan. Her popularity is at 62% and she has called a snap election, as she came in to replace Shigeru Ishiba in October 2025 and was not directly elected PM. Yet in the long view this is also a misconception because neither the Stimson Center or the interview participants had a keen sense of who Abe really was and Abe's grasp of the history of the Kamakura period of Buddhist Japan and China, India, of the 12th century before the foreign invasions from the north. One of Shinzo Abe's biggest legacies is the relationship that was close to his heart, the relationship with India and prime minister Modi. This week chancellor Merz of the Federal Republic of Germany was at the kite festival with PM Modi in Ahmedabad and at the Sabarmati Ashram of Gandhiji. The same degree of warmth shown by the German leader and Modi reflecting Vivekananda's time in Germany, was seen long time back between Modi and Abe. The bullet train project Mumbai to Ahmedabad and the ones that follow across India are a testimony to the warmth shown by Abe for India, and his knowledge of history from the Buddhist period in India when by the 12th century in Japan in Dogen's time Tenjiku (India) was the sacred homeland of Buddhism. Today India has revived the Buddhist traditions and centers of Buddhism, the universities and research centers for Buddhism from that period in Indian history. Buddhism started in India near Nepal in what is now Bihar state at Sarnath and Kushinagar, and spread through China to Japan and Korea. The whole continent of Asia would reflect Buddhist ideals and ideas without the intervening period of Vedic culture in India and China's Mongolian and Manchurian northern invasions, and the periods of European colonialism. Today Buddhism and The Bhagavad Gita are itself strung like pearls on a string as the Gita itself says, part of the long spiritual traditions of three nations- India, China and Japan, and of the many others Vietnam and Korea. ("All these worlds have their rest in me as many pearls on a string." -Mascaro tr. of Bhagavad Gita, Penguin). As Asian nations and peoples come to their own inner selves, find their inmost self, this is the culture that really pervades all of Asia. ...

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Mariano Rajoy, leader of the Partido Popular, becomes the new prime minister of Spain, as his party wins 186 seats in the 350 member parliament. The Socialist party of outgoing prime minister Zapatero won 110 seats, which is down from the 169 seats it had in the previous parliament. The Socialists won elections in 2004 and 2008, when the Spanish economy was growing at 3%. This gives Rajoy and the Partido Popular an absolute majority in parliament; which it will need to take stronger measures than were taken by the Zapatero administration to resolve the debt situation with the cajas savings banks, and make other changes to get the economy growing again. Rajoy told the Spanish people that Spain needed to make a "common effort" to face the "most difficult economic situation that Spain has faced in the past 30 years." Referring to the general feeling in Spain that in the waning days of the Zapatero administration Spain had appeared to have no voice in the EU negotiations, Rajoy said: Spain's voice "needs to be respected in Brussels. We will stop being a problem and instead form part of the solution." ...

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Because of pervasive corruption, low oil prices, and the effects of years of sanctions on the Iranian economy, experts now see the Iranian economy recovering only slowly in 2016-2017. The low oil prices below $30 a barrel in Jan. 2016 could cancel out the effects from unfreezing of about $50 billion in Iranian assets and removal of sanctions. Another severe problem is the way the Iranian economy is now structured with benefits going to businesses and groups close to the military and government, some of the benefits lost through corruption, taking it even longer for benefits to be seen for ordinary Iranians. This could even lead to Rouhani losing some of the credibility with the public that he had gained during the negotiations, says Warrick of the Washington Post.

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WIth China reluctant to make concessions on agricultural imports at a recent Shanghai meeting of Mr. Lighthizer with Chinese trade representatives, the trade dispute with China has escalated. Mr. Lighthizer had little to show Mr. Trump at a meeting in the WHite House. After a 2 hour meeting Mr. Trump told his advisers that his patience was wearing thin. His response on what the U.S. should do- "tariffs." A tweet was prepared saying U.S. would place import duties of 10% on imports of additional $300 billion in Chinese goods. China responded by lowering its currency value to 7 to the dollar to offset the import duties. China also said it was suspending all agricultural imports of U.S. farm products. The U.S. designating China as a currency manipulator.  The situation today is that there is a level of mistrust between president Xi and his advisers and Mr. Trump and his team. The situation has taken a new turn with China saying the U.S. is supporting protests in Hong Kong. President Trump has stated China is waiting it out to deal with a new administration in Washington. Both sides do not see any solutions till after the U.S. elections in 2020. For China there is also the upcoming 70th anniversary of the People's Republic. ...

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A new internet speed record of 44 terabits per second has been set by a team from three Australian Universities. This is a million times faster than the 44 Mbps average speed in Australia. The average speed is 133 Mbps in U.S. and 67 Mbps in UK.The team used a micro-comb, a small optical chip that replaces 80 separate infrared lasers. It used normal cable technology to do the test, so that it has potential for use on current broadband networks.

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 U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, views China's response in trade negotiations as one of conducting extended negotiations that lead to little change. This has continued says Lighthizer for over a decade putting the U.S. at a serious disadvantage in trade. At a White House meeting in August 2017 Lighthizer convinced president Trump that China was in his words "tap, tap, tapping us along."  This confirmed president Trump's own instincts about the U.S. trading relationship with China. Lighthizer is a veteran of trade negotiations, having experience in the Reagan administration as the Deputy Trade Representative in 1983 in negotiations with Japan, when Japan was in a similar situation that China is today. At the time trade negotiations with Japan were getting nowhere. Lighthizer is said to have turned one Japanese response in negotiations into a paper plane and sent it flying right back. Lighthizer does not seek the limelight but is serious about his role having published op-eds in the NYT and WSJ since 2000 about how U.S. trading relationships were putting the U.S. and U.S. workers at an unfair advantage. Many of these op-eds are in the Lyrarc archive and a Search with the term "Lighthizer" would bring up these articles. This report in NYT shows how the role of Lighthizer was not anticipated by China when it sent Liu He to Washington in November 2017 to negotiate with the U.S. President Trump made certain Liu He and other Chinese leaders would have to talk to Lighthizer first. In a session with president Jinping laid out U.S. views that the past negotiations had accomplished little and new negotiations had to be undertaken very differently from negotiations in the past. Earlier in July trade negotiations conducted by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross were "shut down" by president Trump because China continued to repackage earleir offers which meant little to the U.S. As a lawyer at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher LLP Lighhizer represented steel industry clients hurt by subsidized Chinese steel industry imports. Mr. Trump and Lighhizer have bonded well because their instincts have been the same- that the U.S. had not been well represented in earlier negotiations by lawyers who saw themselves as speaking for American exporters.  Lighthizer is also a seasoned trade negotiator and has waited for the right time and situation to tackle the unbalanced trading relationship with China. For 30 years Lighhizer represented American manufacturers as he practiced trade law at the Skadden law firm. His strategy has been to get the administration to unite behind a clear trade strategy. He says "I try to be friendly in trade negotiations. I am not the theatrical type. The art of persuasion is about knowing where the leverage is." At this time the leverage lies in the huge trade surplus of about $300 billion China has with the U.S. The U.S. goal is to bring this down by $100 billion through this new negotiating strategy as earlier negotiations have failed. ...

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Climate policy changes lead to $1.3 trillion savings according to analysis from DJT administration and EPA's Zeldin, with $1.1 trillion in savings from lower vehicle prices which addresses unaffordability of cars. Using the average price of a new basic Toyota Corolla the price in 2020 was $19,000 which has gone up to $23,000 a price increase of 21% by 2025 over a 5 year period. The cost in 2026 of operating a Gas powered vehicle is on average about $2500, for EV car about $1000 with $1500 in savings per year for EV's that need to be figured into the equation at gas prices that prevailed in 2024 of $4-$5 per gallon . At prices of $3 per gallon the gas costs come down to $1200 when driven 12,000 miles at 30 mpg for 400 gallons of gasoline consumed. This makes the difference between gas and EV yearly savings on gasoline costs down to about $200 from $1500. This makes gasoline powered cars attractive as car companies can reduce EV investments and pass on some of these savings in lower car prices in 2027 in exchange for favorable rules on emissions and EV transition dates.  Are there losses through the emissions and climate change? The DJT/Zeldin EPA analysis points to global climate emissions from China and India (the coal powered plants) continuing at a pace that would determine the overall change in climate for 2026-2027. In this kind of approach the goal is to make cars affordable over a 2-3 year period for US and European carmakers who would be expected to cut prices. It is about flexibility in fighting the Cost of Cars a big component in the Cost of living with housing as the next large component. It is not a long term strategy, simply one that offers a flexible approach. Will the US, Europe and Japan fall behind in EV's technology? Hybrids a focus of Japanese cars will continue to advance that technology which is becoming a preference where it is affordable for customers. Toyota for instance will have a wide lead in hybrids technology by 2030. Much of the Chinese market will have EV's and the EV's technology will advance in China in 2026-2027, and tariffs will be needed to protect European and American carmakers for 2026-2028. It is a strategy tradeoff to deal with the cost of living crisis in US, Europe and Japan answering call for a flexible approach that was also heeded by the Biden administration in relaxing carbon emissions rule changes. It will require automakers to step up and cut prices for gasoline models for buyers at the entry and lower range for affordability by 2026-2027. What about climate action? The strategy is based on the idea that climate action requires India and China (coal powered plants) on board to make a real difference so that over 2-3 years to 2027 the US, Europe and Japan need to address affordability for the lower end entry cars. There is an element of denial of climate change in parts of the DJT administration in the US but not in Europe and Japan. It is also true that leading DJT administration officials Secretary Bessent see the problem of climate as real and one that needs to be addressed yet leaving room for flexibility to tackle affordability crisis for ordinary workers with low incomes struggling to make a living. Bessent and others in the DJT administration are calling for using all of the resources to address needs of people struggling to make a living, and for a strategy for the US to get back its manufacturing capacity from China and for rebuilding the US economy after deindustrialization (caused by Clinton's huge US economy shattering failure to provide safeguards for abuse of the trading system by China in signing a poorly drafted agreement for China's entry into WTO at the end of his term in 1999-2000 just when he had fought impeachment.  ...

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This NHK video report says the epidemics of previous periods in history were no different than today. It points to the Nara period (710-794) when smallpox killed 20 to 30% of the population. This was a period of international exchange and large roads were built bringing people from all parts of Japan to Nara and increasing the risk of infection. In fact the Great Buddha at Nara was built by the Emperor at the time to entrust the peace of Japan to the Buddha.

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Everyone over 50 years is to be given the vaccine in just a few months of 2021 by the NHS. A massive logistics and training effort is underway. The government changed the law to let student doctors, physiotherapists, and dental workers to give the vaccine. Retired doctors and nurses are called in. Britain has a war effort to counter antivaccine propaganda unlike other countries such as France and Germany. Compare that 79% of Britons are seeking the vaccine, 54% in France and 64% in the U.S. showing that the UK is doing a much better job. Vaccination starts next week for over 80 year old people. The world is watching.

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China has banned coal imports from Australia in response to Australian request for an investigation into the origins of the coronavirus and criticism of China's handling of Hong Kong protests. 

China imports about a quarter of its coal imports from Australia. Yet this has impacted China because of a rebound in the economy and a very cold winter in 2020. This means there is a shortage of electricity in some parts of China. 

China imports 80% of its iron ore, with 60% coming from Australia and prices of iron ore have almost doubled in the past year. Last year China imported over 1 billion tons of iron ore.

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U.S. imports exceeded exports by a record $914 billion in 2018, increasing from $859 billion in 2017, according to the Commerce Department. The trade deficit is now 16% larger than when Mr. Trump took office. President Trump's tax policies with large fiscal deficits acted as a large stimulus to imports. Companies imported more. 

The dollar strengthened as the U.S. fiscal stimulus came at a time when the rest of the world economy was slowing. As a result the U.S. imported more. 

The tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese goods had one benefit - it brought the Chinese to the negotiating table to cut imports. Yet the trade deficit has not narrowed as the president planned. 

 

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The airlines are hit hard by the coronavirus crisis. Reservations have declined as fewer people travel. There is a sense that a recovery will take time, several months. Delta is cutting international capacity by about 25% and domestic flights by 15%. It is also offering voluntary leave options to employees.

Southwest CEO Kelly says the severity of the decline is being felt with loss of $300 million in revenue in March. One piece of good news for airlines that offsets the severe demand decline is the fall in oil prices. American Airlines estimates the cost savings as much as $3 billion. A decade of industry profits have put the airlines in a better position to tackle the crisis. Other cost savings moves are reducing capital expenditures and managing cash flows efficiently.

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Bangladesh is seriously affected by climate change. Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina has plans to get 30% of its energy from renewables by 2030. DW.com looks at Bangladesh's plan for controlling climate change by 2030.

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With vaccine hesitancy in the US the goal of vaccinating a large part of the US population is still elusive. Less than half of the US population is fully vaccinated as of July 30. The vaccination rates in the US are now much slower than India even taking into account the population difference. The vaccination in India is at the rate of 4 to 5 million a day for the past week in India. In the US this report in The Guardian shows 4.7 million vaccinated in the past 2 weeks. On July 30 856,000 people were vaccinated in the US compared to over 5 million in India.  Newspaper reporting that encourages vaccine hesitancy people to delay getting vaccinated because of poorly reported headlines is adding to vaccine hesitancy in the US. This has led to much frustration at the White House. The threat of the Delta variant is making more people to take vaccination. Southern states are seeing a jump in vaccinations. Many prominent Republicans are now endorsing vaccination.  One of the problems in tackling the Delta variant is the confusing nature of the CDC guidance on masks. On May 13 CDC issued guidance saying masks were not necessary indoors and outdoors. Now 3 months later in July the CDC says the threat of Delta variant means mask wearing is essential particularly indoors because of the higher transmissibility of the delta variant.  ...

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The Republican tax bill that passed the House and Senate in Dec. 2017 is likely to increase the deficit in the range of about $516 billion according to Tax Foundation or $ 1trillion according to the Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation, after boost to growth is included. This time in an effort to get a win Republicans cast aside doubts about the effects on the deficit to get it passed. During the Obama years tax legislation failed to get Republican support because of impact on deficits. The reluctance of president Obama to touch the deductions as proposed by the Simpson-Bowles Commission showed the politically cautious approach taken by Obama.  The new bill was examined by the NYT for its impact on various income groups. For people making over $50,000 over 80% get a cut in taxes, about 10% see no difference and the rest see increase in taxes. This goes up by a few percentage points to 84-85% in cuts for people making over 200,000 to $ 1 million, and drops to 80% for over $1 million incomes. About 20% see an increase in taxes for incomes over $1 million.  As evidence of how the tax bill impacts in greater detail this is not provided by the NYT, and shows that the impact of the bill is still not fully understood.     ...

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DJT wants to see good relations with Russia and Russia to join the G-7 to make it G-8 nations as it was before Obama-Merkel. He sees Zelensky as an obstacle to peace early in the second term, that has changed now that Russia and Putin continue the war. By July 8 after calls to Putin and Zelensky, he now sees Russia as an obstacle to a negotiated settlement and the need for defensive shipments to Ukraine.

As this happens in the US Congress Lindsey Graham, senior Senator from South Carolina leads an effort supported by 80 senators to place sanctions on countries that support Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

 

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New Delhi home to 30 million people is seeing a spike in coronavirus cases in a second wave with 7000 cases daily and 100 deaths. The Diwali holiday could result in more cases. The drop in air quality comes with winter and thick smog over Delhi at tis time of the year. People with asthma are having a harder time. Doctors and scientists say the combination of poor air quality with the virus increases risk of respiratory illness. 

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Toyota plans to spend $1 billion on a marketing and advertising plan, spending that is 30-40% more than normal, to ramp up production and fill out inventory. It includes money to subsidize lease and loan rates, customer incentives and dealer ads. One aim is to raise the projected resale value of its vehicles used in calculating montly lease payments. Akio Toyoda is also giving more decisionmaking power to local executives for the markets they are more familiar with.

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The English Bible in the Texas K-12th grade schools curriculum for children in 2025. Critical for young children is an understanding of how the Christian faith was critical in the struggle against the evil of slavery, and how it was Abraham Lincoln's faith in Christianity that sustained him through the long and difficult struggle to end slavery in the Union, and to preserve the Union. How millions gave up their lives to end the evil of slavery in the Civil War. One passage from the new curriculum for Texas children says- "Even as the use of slave labor grew, opposition to slavery also grew, driven by colonists morally opposed to the practice, often based on their beliefs as Christians." Lyrarc.com has Lincoln's devotional- with parts of the New Testament from a British publisher in the 1840's that show how Lincoln's faith preserved the Union, and created the society in which all men are created equal envisioned by Washington and Jefferson in the 1770's and 1780's, right upto the French Revolution's rallying cry of Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite that was heard in America in 1800. It is strange that it is forgotten that for most of the period from 1600 to the 1950's there was never any doubt for 350 years that the US derived it's unique identity and ideals from it's Christian faith, just as China and India have derived their unique identity and ideals from the Buddhist scriptures and the Bhagavad Gita. The novel idea that the Bhagavad Gita and the Buddha should have the same level of understanding for America's children as Christian faith of countless generations since the settlement of North America from 1600 is hard to grasp. ...