Disaster for the planet

This time last year, few expected the pandemic to last. Yet here we are, infection and deaths rates still soaring.
Worldwide (Map) 
July 1, 2021: 182,133,000 confirmed infections; 3,949,200 deaths
July 30, 2020: 17,096,000 confirmed infections; 668,590 deaths

 
US (Map) 
July 1, 2021: 33,667,000 confirmed infections; 604,720 deaths
July 30, 2020: 4,451,000 confirmed infections; 151,270 deaths

 
SA (Coronavirus portal) 
July 1, 2021: 1,973,980 confirmed infections; 60,647 deaths
July 30, 2020: 471,125 confirmed infections; 7,498 deaths

 
So much happened in one year. Post from this time last year: Handed trash? Make compost 

Healthy planet, anyone?

In a December report, United Nations environmental researchers acknowledge that even as global carbon emissions were expected to decrease by about 7% this year due to coronavirus restrictions on normal activities, they had only “briefly slowed ― but were far from eliminated, adding to the historic and ever-increasing burden of human activity on the Earth’s climate...” In summary,

Historic fires
This year was a record-breaker for fires in California — again. As of last year, four of the five largest wildfires in the fire-prone state happened this decade alone. This year, four of the five largest wildfires in state history happened this year alone.
Record-breaking heat
This year is on track to be one of the two hottest ever on record. The planet had its hottest September and its second hottest July and November ever, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Deadly storms
The 2020 storm season was the most active on record. Subtropical storm Theta in November was the 29th named storm of the Atlantic season — breaking the record for the highest number of storms in a year. For only the second time in history, the predetermined list of 21 storm names ran out, leading scientists to use the Greek alphabet to name subsequent storms.
Dramatic loss of sea ice
This year, the Arctic’s sea ice cover shrank to its second lowest levels since records started being kept in the late 1970s, according to NASA. The 14 smallest ice coverage extents for the region have all occurred in the last 14 years, per the NOAA.
The amount of Arctic sea ice coverage each October has declined about 10% per decade — losing an area about the size of South Carolina each year, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center.

Read “This Year Was A Disaster For The Planet” >> 

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Another disaster for the planet? ExxonMobil.
ExxonMobil is keeping "big oil" alive and well. Now, however, Keith McCoy, a senior ExxonMobil lobbyist on Capitol Hill who has represented the company in its liaison with the U.S. Congress for the last eight years, let the cat out the bag. He named the senators on ExxonMobil’s payroll and doing their biding.
Keith McCoy explained that lobbyists aim to have close relationships with officials.

"You want to be able to go to the chief… and say we need congressman so and so to be able to either introduce this bill, we need him to make a floor statement, we need him to send a letter. You name it, we've asked for everything…."
McCoy said he has 11 U.S. senators who are "crucial" in ExxonMobil's efforts:
"Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Senator Joe Manchin, Senator Kyrsten Sinema, Senator Jon Tester, Senator Maggie Hassan, Senator John Barrasso, Senator John Cornyn, Senator Steve Daines, Senator Chris Coons, Senator Mark Kelly and Senator Marco Rubio," were all cited.
McCoy went on to explain that the last thing they want is to appear in a public hearing before Congress where the American people can see.
"We don't want it to be us, to have these conversations, especially in a hearing. It's getting our associations to step in and have those conversations and answer those tough questions and be for, the lack of a better term, the whipping boy for some of these members of congress," McCoy confessed.

Hmmm. Demotion in McCoy’s future. What about the senators’ futures? 

Read the article >> 

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The Lincoln Project: People are saying…  (0:55 mins)

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

I’m back in the “inner bay” – the cool part of San Francisco Bay Area – to do errands, visit a friend, and spread my wings after the confines of my small houseboat. Living aboard fulltime stimulates the “realistic” area of my brain: yes, I love living so close to the “natural” environment. But my houseboat is small - about 264 sq feet of "private" space (place deck space of about 150 sq feet) and it's no longer in a covered slip, but exposed to full sun, full time, with temperatures over 90 degrees Fahrenheit amost days. And 90 is on the cooler days. 

Can I do this for weeks at a time? 

Do I want to do it for weeks at a time? 

Enquiring minds wanna know….