[ The podcast link for this episode is HERE]
Greetings Earthlings. Do any of you remember The Two Flags Enviro Show back in 2019? Back then we asked: "Have you ever noticed the Massachusetts state flag? Chances are if you happen to be Native American you are well aware of the colonial sword over the head of the indigenous man on the shield. David Detmold returns to the show to talk about Change The Mass Flag." Here we are seven years later and some progress, but not enough, has been made. With that in mind David returns again to the show along with Katherine Harrelson to talk about a cross-State Walk to Change the Flag & Seal. The Walk also aims to raise awareness in solidarity with Community Land and Water Coalition's ongoing campaign (of which we are longtime supporters) to halt sand mining operations in the fragile ecosystem of the sand barrens around Carver/Plymouth sacred to the Herring Pond Wampanoag (See Billboard below). OK, that's a lot but we'll still introduce you to this week's Fool-on-the-Hill, "Who Left the Door Open", "Those Whose Brains Were small" and more, but first it's time for........Revenge of the Critters! Another photog gets Buffaloed
Our Fool-on-the-Hill is "Representative Mike Lawler of New York [who] teamed up with Rep. Jared Golden of Maine to introduce H.R. 9436, legislation that would block the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from developing science-based measures to protect North Atlantic Right Whales from entanglement in commercial fishing gear until 2035. The North Atlantic Right Whale is one of the most endangered marine mammals on Earth. With fewer than 400 individuals remaining, every whale matters." The Endangered Species Coalition is asking us to push back HERE.
We have a bit of irony this time when ask "Who Left the Door Open?" 'cuz certain MAGA freaks want to slam the door on those and their kids seeking refuge from Lady Liberty. We quote this Dem fundraiser for more: Repugs... "are throwing an absolute hissy fit over the Supreme Court’s recent birthright citizenship decision. They have laid bare their dangerous agenda of white nationalism and white supremacy. Trump lickspittle Rep. Troy Nehls even suggested smothering Lady Liberty with a bed sheet and replacing the torch of the mighty Mother of Exiles with a stop sign. Our country was built because huddled masses followed Lady Liberty’s glowing, world-wide welcoming flame. They arrived at our shores and found a home where they could finally breathe free. Now, dangerous MAGA bigots, who conveniently forgot their own immigrant roots to embrace a white supremacist vision of America, are trying to slam shut the golden door, erase our legacy, and steal America's future for themselves." To which we say.....STOP trying to rewrite history!
We're pretty sure we nominated Elon and his DOGE groupies for "Their Brains Were small And They Died" even though they have yet to. As of last week "More than 50,000 everyday people have signed the DOGE Accountability petition to Members of Congress, urging them to lead hearings and investigations into right wing extremist Elon Musk and DOGE officials." You can do that too. That said, Tesla's Boy Idiot should share this nomination with Pete Hegseth, who after all has a lot in common with the dinosaurs of old, and especially due to his latest swaggering "effort to annually screen service members’ testosterone levels and offer testosterone replacement therapy, framing it as a way to keep troops on the “leading edge of lethality.” One can only wonder what other drugs Hegseth and his ilk hope to pump into their unsuspecting warriors but regarding testosterone " Some studies, such as those from the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, note that in patients with... excessive circulating testosterone can be linked to cognitive impairment and potential brain damage." That might explain a lot about our "Secretary of War"!
Speaking of potential brain damage let's move on to The Mad King (#NoKings) himself. Following the ICE murder of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine Daily Kos reports His Malignancy "made it clear.. that he fully supports the actions of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency as more and more innocent people are being killed by the agency’s agents. “The men and women of ICE are doing a GREAT job, one that has to be done,” [He] wrote on his Truth Social [and] added that “we cannot give up” on ICE’s use of traffic stops, which he characterized as one of the agency’s “most important and effective Crime Fighting tools.” His Malignancy said, "to pause using these stops would be “playing right into the criminal’s hands” and that the “radical left would like to see this done.” To which we say, "Radical Left? Try the vast majority of U.S. citizens you fucking monster." Maybe His Malignancy can add his sanitized version of ICE killings to his new so-called "Freedom Trucks" which get fast and loose with U.S. history as they stop at public schools and events across the nation to launder news old and recent. Think of them as Memory Hole Mobiles. More than likely the fake news on wheels will fail to mention all the election tampering by the Administration as the so-called "Department of Justice announced plans to send “election monitors” to six states—Arizona, Michigan, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, and Virginia—before their primary elections this summer. That means there could be MAGA minions at the polls It’s also a clear sign that [he] intends to disrupt the election and suppress the vote not just in the South, but in the purple states and deep blue districts we need to win in order to flip the midterms. This is the “slow steal” of our democracy that precedes a “fast steal” in the fall where [His Malignancy] may claim elections were rigged, seize or refuse to count ballots, and/or asks his MAGA minions not to seat duly elected representatives." Also, how about troops at the polls? Finally, did you catch The Mad King (#NoKings) on the screen last Thursday and his Cavalcade of Lies? Please push back HERE. Your country needs you!
Another Air Quality Alert/Another Bullshit Alert from His Malignancy who refuses to understand that "It's the Climate Crisis, Stupid!" As monstrous forest fires burn out of control up north on both sides of the border once again, as the smoke and particulate matter drift down and turn our skies into poisonous endtime haze, worsened by increasing heatwaves, we again marvel at MAGA and The Mad King's (#NoKings) utter lack of compassion, not to mention action to confront the climate emergency. Like the 3 Monkeys who see, hear & speak no evil, they refuse to acknowledge THE Crisis of our times: "The interior department said it wants to loosen two Biden-era regulations governing oil and gas drilling on national public lands. One would dramatically lower the fees that firms must pay for future cleanup costs before drilling; the second could allow companies to release more methane, a potent planet-warming pollutant." Elsewhere "The president said tech companies can use whichever type of energy they want to use [to power massive AI projects]—he specifically mentioned only nuclear, oil and gas—except wind. “We don’t allow wind,” [he] said. “Wind is terrible, it just doesn’t work.” More bullshit and ignorance in a time of crisis. Look out the window at the pollution. Look to The White House for even more.
Enough! It's time for our Critter of the Week. You've no doubt heard about the proverbial "Wise Owl". Given the lack of wisdom we've been covering here it is our pleasure to look to the Barred Owl "a nocturnal dweller of mature forests in the United States and Canada, [who] has deep, dark eyes and rich, chocolate-brown and cream-colored plumage. This large bird can easily evade detection in the daytime, as it blends in with the tree bark, flies on silent wings, and is quite sedentary. But there’s no mistaking its haunting, hooting song." We feel compelled to add a word to the wise here: "Although Barred Owls are fairly common in many areas and the species’ range continues to expand in the West, many of these birds are injured and killed by collisions with cars and fencing, or are poisoned after eating prey that have ingested rodenticides. Additionally, Barred Owls often rely on mature forests, which provide large dead and dying trees for nesting and roosting. As such, this species is also vulnerable to habitat loss."
In the Enviro Show Echo Chamber we are pleased to rerun WGBH's news: "Citizens Bank ends relationship with ICE prison companies after months of protest". Here in WMass there have been weekly standouts in Northampton out in front the bank located inside a supermarket. "This decision also comes on the heels of the city of Montclair, New Jersey withdrawing nearly $91 million from Citizens Bank. Jersey City also announced plans to pull out more than $265 million from the bank.......Citizens Bank explained its reasoning in the statement, suggesting it was purely a business decision." We guess.
Our Quote of the Week is from the late John Peters Slow Turtle of the Mashpee Wampanoag, spiritual leader and former Massachusetts Commissioner on Indian Affairs:
"Most of my involvement is with the Indian people and their purpose in life. I think the intentions of my people are entirely different from what mainstream society promotes. We're not here for private gain, but to find a solution to preserve the Earth Mother for all generations to come."
First Here's Indivisible Northampton — Swing Left Western Mass's complete daily listing of all the pro-democracy events in WMass: https://in-slwm.org/wp-content/uploads/Calendar/cal.html. If you're looking for an easy weekday way to jump into the climate movement, you'll love the State House Stand Out! We gather at the Massachusetts State House in Boston between 10 am and 2 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Volunteers stand together for 2-hour "shifts," either outside or inside depending on weather, and talk with visitors and State House staff about the Climate Crisis. Wednesdays and Thursdays, 3 – 4pm.: Indivisible's What's the Plan with Leah and Ezra. Go HERE. Fridays, 1:30 to 3pm: De-ICE Hanscom Airfield Stand Outs, Hanscom Rotary, Lincoln, MA. Go HERE. ALSO:
12 to 1pm. Send Citizens Bank a clear message: financing private prison and immigration detention facility operators The GEO Group and CoreCivic is bad for business. We'll stand out on the public sidewalks on King Street Northampton, MA in front of Stop and Shop Plaza (Citizens Bank has a branch inside Stop and Shop). Saturdays, 11am to 1pm: No Fear w/Street Theatre, Burlington ICE Facility, Burlington Mall Rd. @ District Ave., Burlington, MA Go HERE .
The Walk for a New Dawn will step off at 9am Friday, July 24 from the Route 2 border crossing between Petersburg, New York and Williamstown, Massachusetts. The community, walkers, supporters and media are invited to gather for the opening of the Walk, and accompany the walkers for a mile or more on the side of Route 2, heading north to the center of Williamstown. Support vehicles can assist in transporting walkers back to their parked vehicles. The walk will stop to rally and then rest on the green of the Congregational Church, 906 Main Street, Williamstown from 1:30-3 pm. This walk also aims to raise awareness in solidarity with Community Land and Water Coalition’s ongoing campaign to halt sand mining operations in the fragile ecosystem of the sand barrens around Carver/Plymouth sacred to the Herring Pond Wampanoag – – will be shared soon. Use the contact button on the homepage of changethemassflag.com to communicate with organizers about the upcoming walk.
Sunday July 26, 5:30 to 6:30pm. New National Parks for New England with Michael Kellett and Susan Masino. Free and open to the public. 7:00 PM Dinner RVSP Call: 413-743-1591 or email: mail@bascomlodge.net. July Dinner Menu: https://www.bascomlodge.
