What does our era of extreme heat mean for America’s most iconic national parks?This week in OtherWords, columnist Farrah Hassen reflects on the bracing beauty of the Southern California desert — an ecosystem under dire threat from rising temperatures, droughts, and wildfires. From the extinction threat facing the eponymous trees of Joshua Tree National Park to the vanishing glaciers of Glacier National Park, Farrah writes, climate change is threatening iconic landscapes across the country.
As we press politicians to respond to the bigger climate crisis, Farrah argues, we’ll need to rethink what preserving these national treasures actually requires.
Also this week, Sarah Anderson explains how Congress, President Biden, and unions can fight back against CEO’s who’ve shafted their workers during the pandemic and inflation. Mitchell Zimmerman imagines an all-too-plausible near future of extremist anti-abortion legislation. And Jim Hightower reports on the authoritarian impulses of rising GOP star Ron DeSantis.
New This Week…
Climate Change Threatens the Most Iconic U.S. Landscapes | Farrah Hassen
Joshua trees are disappearing, glaciers are melting, wetlands are flooding. Can the threat to our parks — and the wonder they inspire — lead to action?
It’s Time to Crack Down on Excessive CEO Pay | Sarah Anderson
The pay gap between workers and CEOs at America’s largest low-wage employers is now 670 to 1. That’s obscene.
Like Bad Science Fiction: The Growing Danger of Anti-Abortion Extremism | Mitchell Zimmerman
Contraceptives banned. Miscarriages prosecuted. Pregnant people under surveillance. Is this the future Americans want?
The Far Right Hates ‘Woke’ Society Because They Want One That’s Asleep | Jim Hightower
Florida governor and rising GOP star Ron DeSantis has made a favorite hobby of censoring speech and thought.
Longing for Nuclear Winter | Khalil Bendib
Is this our leaders’ real climate plan?
In Case You Missed It…
Selfishness Fuels the War on Abortion | Sonali Kolhatkar
Stories abound of conservative women who picket out front of clinics quietly coming in the back to get their own abortions.
Medical Debt Is a Rip-Off | Jim Hightower
Health care giants aren’t just making care more expensive. They’re putting Americans in debt bondage.
To Defend Our Rights, Defend Our Democracy | Sulma Arias
The attack on abortion rights is part of a bigger campaign against democracy. The late John Lewis offers a model to overcome it.
Most Americans Support Abortion Rights. Do Your Leaders? | Martha Burk
Now’s a good time to search out their position. If they oppose your fundamental rights, then it’s your right to send them packing
