Feb 17, 2023

A full-blown environmental catastrophe continues to unfold in East Palestine, Ohio, where a Norfolk Southern freight train carrying toxic materials derailed, leading to a controlled explosion, evacuations and what appears to be the release of highly hazardous chemicals into local air and water supply. Unsurprisingly, this type of safety issue is the type rail workers and unions have warned about for years, and Norfolk Southern previously “helped convince government officials to repeal brake rules — and corporate lobbyists watered down hazmat safety regs.” More coverage in The Lever and The New Republic. From on the ground (Wheeling WVA TV): “We basically nuked a town with chemicals so we could get a railroad open,” said Sil Caggiano, a hazardous materials specialist.

Big Oil’s trade group allies outspent clean energy groups by a whopping 27x, with billions in ads and lobbying to keep fossil fuels flowing. Researchers “found that trade associations historically opposed to climate policies spent $2 billion in the decade from 2008 to 2018 on political activities, such as advertising, lobbying and political contributions. Together, they outspent climate-supporting industry groups 27 to 1. The oil and gas sector was the largest, spending $1.3 billion.” From The Conversation.

And a little-known 1998 treaty giving fossil power legal — and financial — leverage against national climate policies is drawing fire and the threat of a mass exit by EU nations. The US has “observer status” to the treaty as a signatory of the 1991 European Energy Charter. From Climate Home News via Popular Resistance.

The indispensable Sarah Jaffe (Work Won’t Love You Back) walks us through the history and perils of family formation and the romance (or not) that was supposed to precede it — with the help of Engels and Gramsci. We’re a few days late for Valentine’s Day here, but Jaffe’s assertion that “we’re in another sort of [Gramsci-like] interregnum, one of romance, sexuality and gender itself” is year-round. Traditional and new approaches alike to love and family founder on the fact that “material circumstances matter — even when it comes to romance…” — a read both sobering and delightful, from In These Times via Portside.

From the Washington Post: “[DC Housing Authority] doesn’t check to ensure rents it pays on behalf of low-income voucher holders are in line with market prices, as required by local and federal regulations. As a result, the agency overpays landlords by millions of dollars every year… Paying above-market rates means fewer people are helped by the troubled housing authority, which is charged with administering more than 15,000 vouchers held by low-income households across the District, while a waiting list runs more than 30,000 people long.”

Check out the latest pieces from After the Storm — Get inspired by a queer historical ’70s romance in “Phoenix” and consider a dystopian take on motherhood in “Pride and Joy.” Also, the long-awaited first chapter of the socialist comic Industrial Heartbreak: The Return of Marx is live! All of these stories present an opportunity to imagine new futures.