Author: Roland Mcconnell

Brussel, Frankfurt (16/11 – 23) A levying of embargoes and export bans, the imposition of sanctions, erection of fearsome “license” (= restriction) protocol: there’s nothing new about this back-and-forth in world trade, in the eternal jousting for advantage among markets and nations. The clever Chinese imagined they had the world tea market all locked up until an earnest Scottish botanist carrying the telling name of “Robert Fortune” snuck into the Middle Kingdom to observe their agriculture, steal tea plants, and pick up tricks of tea processing. The Chinese global tea monopoly was busted wide open. The fortunate Mr. Fortune was…

The street-corner wire bin is on its way out, and its replacement is better in almost every functional way. It stacks for transport as its predecessor did not, and it’s sleek and crisp-looking (for a garbage can). The old one weighs 34 pounds empty and a lot more when full, making it a fine means of sending sanitation workers into midlife rotator-cuff surgery; the new one has a lightweight plastic liner that is a far easier lift. But let us offer a little aesthetic appreciation, at least, for the visual toughness and purity of the departing steel-mesh basket, a version of…

The Connecticut NAACP celebrated on Sunday to recognize the organization’s work helping people who were formerly incarcerated find jobs. “When people pay their debt to society, they need to have the opportunity to get back into the mainstream,” said Scot Esdaile, the president of the Connecticut NAACP. “If you block them out, all they can do is stay in the type of behavior that wherein got them into jail. So, we’re striving to create opportunities so that revolving door is shut down.” The Million Jobs Campaign was recognized at the Connecticut NAACP’s annual holiday brunch. The program, which was launched…

A new round of plans for energy efficiency programs in New Hampshire is set to take effect after two years of controversy. The state’s Public Utilities Commission approved small changes to the $250 million program that helps Granite Staters with things like putting insulation in their home, or buying energy efficient appliances. Energy efficiency is widely accepted as a way to reduce energy bills and fight climate change. But two of the three commissioners, Daniel Goldner and Pradip Chattopadhyay, said in a majority opinion they were not ruling on the plan as a whole based on their interpretation of a…

The Governor of New Jersey is looking to restart his state’s offshore wind programs reiterating that they remain committed to offshore wind as a key component of the state’s renewable energy program. The state said the governor’s action reaffirmed its overall commitment to achieving 100 percent clean energy by 2035 and developing the economy by building the industry and its supporting supply chain. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) was directed by the governor to accelerate the timeline of the state’s fourth offshore wind solicitation. Originally scheduled for the summer of 2024, Governor Phil Murphy on November 29…

Toronto, Frankfurt (2/11 – 42) World media are jumping all over the conflagration in Gaza following the 7 October attack, killing 1400 Israelis and kidnapping several hundred others – followed by an all-too-predictable retaliatory response from Israel, with indiscriminate bombardment and gunfire into Gaza. The number dead and injured in the Palestinian zone will likely never be known but it is currently estimated at over 5,000 – many of whom are women and children caught in the crossfire. Is Hamas sorry about those who voted for them and support their cause being machine-gunned or trapped by crumbling concrete in a…

Juliana Bergeron of Keene said Wednesday she won’t continue as a member of the Republican National Committee after the party’s 2024 national convention. She has decided not to run for another four-year term as an RNC committeewoman next year, which would have been her 12th in that position. “I think everything in our party should go to a younger person, particularly the presidency, so I shouldn’t go around thinking I’m going to keep this position forever,” Bergeron, 70, said in an interview. “It was a hard decision, but I do think it should be someone else’s turn.” Source : NHPR

The University of Delaware is adding a women’s hockey program that will join the College Hockey America conference and will begin playing in the 2025-26 season, the school said Friday. Delaware now becomes the latest school to add a women’s collegiate program. Five schools — Assumption, Long Island University, Robert Morris, Stonehill College and the University of St. Thomas — have added a women’s program since 2019 with, Robert Morris reinstating both its men’s and women’s programs this year after financial challenges led to both teams being shuttered in May 2021. Earlier this year, Tennessee State announced it would become…

London (07/11 – 71) For ten years now, the authorities of Tajikistan have been engaged in forced assimilation of the ethnic Pamiri people, giving away the heartlands to China for debts,” Orzu M. shared with RFI – Radio France Internationale is a French news and current affairs public radio station that broadcasts worldwide. RFI met with Orzu in Paris, sharing the fact that more and more Pamiris are leaving their native homes in Gorno-Badakhshan Mountainous Autonomous (GBAO) Region of Tajikistan; they are driven into exile by the persecution of the authorities, who are displacing indigenous peoples. RFI: How did it…

The Delaware Electric Cooperative (DEC) board of directors has voted to give back more than $5 million in credits to Cooperative members this December. According to DEC, the Cooperative expects to provide checks or billing credits to over 75,000 members over the holidays. Because the DEC is not-for-profit, capital credit refunds, or the Cooperative’s profits, are returned to DEC members. Individuals must have been a DEC member in 2011 to receive these billing credits, DEC says. All eligible current members are set to receive a credit on their December bill, and those who are no longer active can expect a…