Big Oil, Floods, TikTok’s Ban, & A Not-So-Superbloom
April 22, 2024
Hello, readers – happy Monday! Today, we’re talking about LSU’s interesting approach to the oil industry, Ecuador’s referendums, China’s floods, TikTok’s defense, RFK Jr.’s campaign, and California’s underwhelming superbloom.
Here’s some good news: The White House announced that it will restrict new oil and gas leasing in a federal petroleum reserve in Alaska. The move will help protect wildlife, including polar bears and caribou. Speaking of saving wildlife, San Francisco is set to get two panda bears from China. It will be San Francisco’s first time hosting the animals long-term.
“Let us be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.” – Marcel Proust
Oiling The Wheels Of Academia
According to a new report by the Guardian and the Lens, a non-profit newsroom in New Orleans, Louisiana State University will let oil companies influence faculty research projects for the low price of $5 million. Big Oil can also participate in LSU research studies for just $100,000, giving the corporations “robust” reviewing powers over the results and access to any resulting intellectual property.
Those prices were outlined in a document shared by the university’s fundraising department with LSU oil majors and certain chemical companies. Other documents show that ExxonMobil paid LSU $2 million to become a “strategic partner-level donor” with the institution, and Shell shelled out even more to gain a seat on the advisory board for LSU’s Institute for Energy Innovation.
Critics say that the oil money is tainting the university’s academic integrity. “I have a hard time seeing a faculty member engaged in legitimate research being eager for an oil company or representative of a chemical company to vote on his or her research agenda,” said Robert Mann, a former LSU journalism professor. “That is an egregious violation of academic freedom.”
A Slap On The Wrist And $26 Billion
For the first time ever, the U.S. is preparing sanctions against the Israel Defense Forces. The sanctions will target the IDF’s Netzah Yehuda battalion, which operates in the occupied West Bank. The battalion has been accused of committing serious human rights violations against Palestinians, including torture and mistreatment of prisoners. According to ProPublica, the U.S. State Department has received a dossier full of such abuses by multiple Israeli military and police units, but Secretary of State Antony Blinken has declined to take action on that information.
While one part of the U.S. government worked on preparing those sanctions, the House passed a $95 billion foreign aid bill that had been stuck in the lower legislature for weeks. $26 billion of the aid will go to Israel, though 37 left-wing Democrats opposed the funding because there were no conditions on how Israel should use the money. On Sunday, just one day after the House passed the funding bill, Israeli airstrikes pounded the southern Gaza city of Rafah, killing 22 people including 18 children, according to the local health ministry.
Save The Environment From The Comfort Of Home
- It’s Earth Day, so let’s celebrate with Planet Wild. They’re a nature protection organization that connects people who want to financially contribute to saving nature with projects that know how to do it efficiently.
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- Become a digital nature conservationist and help nature heal. You’ll get to see exactly where your contribution has gone and where they hope to use it next. In honor of Earth Day, Daily Pnut readers can get their first month for free!
Ecuador’s Extenuating Circumstances
- Yesterday, Ecuadorians voted on a historic referendum that would empower the country’s armed forces to an unprecedented level. Voting on the referendum took place as Ecuador is experiencing record levels of violence caused by organized crime – the homicide rate has increased eight times over the past six years.
- Here are the three most impactful measures: one would allow the military to patrol alongside police during a state of emergency (which can last up to 90 days), another would amend the constitution to allow the extradition of Ecuadorians, and the third would increase the prison sentences for violent crimes.
- While Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has enjoyed high approval ratings for his commitment to security measures, his recent order to invade a Mexican embassy and the mishandling of an electricity shortage last week might hurt the referendums’ chances of passing.
April Showers Bring Historic Flooding
- The province of Guangdong, located in China’s southeast, is facing the threat of massive floods as a spike in rainfall has threatened to overwhelm local dams and reservoirs. The region has been pounded by heavy rainfall over the past week, with one neighborhood in the provincial capital of Guangzhou experiencing four inches of rain in just five hours. Today, some areas are predicted to see 10 inches of rain over 24 hours.
- Local officials have called the situation “grim.” Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated in the face of floods at the time of writing, and nine rivers are currently at risk of overflowing their banks. 1.16 million households in the region have had their power cut off so far, and over 1,100 schools have canceled classes today.
More Mixed Nuts
- The US military will begin plans to withdraw troops from Niger (ABC)
- 2 Japanese navy helicopters crash in the Pacific Ocean — 1 dead and 7 missing (NPR)
- Haitians scramble to seek food, water and safety as gang violence chokes the capital (ABC)
- Togo constitution: Parliament passes reforms likened to coup (BBC)
- Vote to Resume U.S. Military Aid Is Met With Relief in Ukraine (NYT, $)
Middle East Mixed Nuts
- How the Israel-Gaza Protests Could Hurt the Democratic Party (NYT, $)
- Palestinians in Khan Younis unearth graves in search for loved ones buried in makeshift cemetery (AP)
- Israeli Weapon Damaged Iranian Air Defenses Without Being Detected, Officials Say (NYT, $)
- Israel’s foreign minister says Erdoğan ‘should be ashamed’ of meeting with Hamas chief (Guardian)
ByteDance Takes A Big Blow
- Over the weekend, the House voted to ban TikTok if ByteDance, the app’s owner, does not cut its ties with China. U.S. officials are concerned that the app is potentially funneling user data back to China, despite the platform’s repeated assurances that it is not. If the bill becomes law, ByteDance will have nine months to sell its stake.
- TikTok is, unsurprisingly, not pleased with the development. A spokesperson for the platform said on Sunday the bill “would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans, devastate seven million businesses, and shutter a platform that contributes $24bn (£19.4bn) to the U.S. economy annually.”
Third-Party Candidates Make First-Rate Spoilers
- According to a new poll from NBC, third-party candidates – specifically RFK Jr. – hurt former President Trump’s chances in the 2024 election more than they hurt incumbent President Biden’s. The news is likely welcomed by President Biden’s camp, as most national polls lately haven’t been all too kind to him.
- Trump leads Biden by 2 percentage points in a head-to-head matchup, 46% to 44%, but when other candidates are thrown in the mix, that changes. Biden is the one with a 2-point advantage in that scenario, with the president at 39%, Trump 37%, Kennedy 13%, Jill Stein 3%, and Cornel West 2%.
More Nuts In America
- House passes $95 billion in aid for Ukraine and Israel (AP)
- 15 injured in tram accident at Universal Studios (NBC)
- The man who set himself on fire outside the courthouse where Trump is on trial dies of his injuries (AP)
- Lindsey Graham slams J.D. Vance’s Ukraine math, challenges him to visit (Politico)
- Columbia University protests expected for 5th day as pro-Palestinian demonstrators call for cease-fire (CBS)
The Not-So-Superbloom
- California has become increasingly known for its ‘superblooms,’ events that occur when winter rains lead to fields of vibrant wildflowers sprouting up across the state. While this winter saw enough rain to let some flowers peek their heads up through the desert sands, researchers say that California won’t technically experience a superbloom this spring.
- “When I think of superblooms, I think of a bloom that is so extraordinary, that’s a once-in-a-lifetime event,” said Naomi Fraga, director of conservation programs at the California Botanic Garden. Compared to last year’s bona fide superbloom, this year’s wildflower bloom lacks density and diversity, she said, though she added that the spring flowers still make “a beautiful show.”
More Loose Nuts
- A video shows people trying to pull 2 black bear cubs from trees in North Carolina (NPR)
- Historical markers are everywhere in America. Some get history wrong (NPR)
- This ancient snake in India might have been longer than a school bus and weighed a ton (AP)
- 11-year-old’s fossil discovery reveals ancient creature larger than a blue whale (CNN)
- Taylor Swift’s ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ breaks multiple single-day records, Spotify says (ABC)