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Nissan to Go All-Electric by 2030 Despite Gasoline Ban Delay (Maria)
The author writes, “Nissan will accelerate plans towards electrification by committing that all vehicles sold in Europe will be electric by 2030. The announcement comes despite the UK postponing its 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars to 2035. Nissan’s boss said the firm’s move was ‘the right thing to do.’ Nissan will also introduce new battery technology by the end of the decade that it said will reduce both the charging time and cost of electric vehicles (EVs).”
See Who Would Get Furloughed in a Shutdown This Year (Sean)
From Government Executive: “With lawmakers struggling to come up with a plan to fund the government past Sept. 30, agencies are dusting off their shutdown plans. In conjunction with the Office of Management and Budget, every agency in government maintains a contingency plan for a lapse in appropriations. That includes exactly which work it will continue to conduct despite not receiving annual funding, as well as which employees it will require to continue working to carry it out. … The rest of employees are sent home on furlough without pay, though, following the record-setting 35-day shutdown in 2018 and 2019, those workers are now also guaranteed backpay. Different administrations have taken varying approaches in determining who gets furloughed and who works.”
Neo-Nazi Fight Clubs Are Growing Rapidly, New Research Shows (Mili)
From Vice: “Active Clubs — neo-Nazi clubs that focus on fitness and martial arts training — are growing at a rapid pace and not just in the United States. From Denmark, to France, and Canada, semi-autonomous white supremacist groups have been popping up across the globe and recruiting young white men to come train. According to a new report by the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) that was shared with VICE News, ‘since the creation of the first Active Club in late 2020, at least 100 Active Clubs have been created in the U.S, Canada, and Europe.’”
Katie Porter and the Politics of Real Life (Russ)
From The Washington Post: “The California Democrat, famous for her viral confrontations, is admired by fans and resented by some ex-employees. Now she’s running for Senate.”
Kroger, Albertsons Say Merger Preserves WA Stores. History Says Otherwise (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “When Kroger and Albertsons announced plans this month to sell 413 grocery stores, including 104 in Washington, as part of their proposed merger, the two retailers offered reassuring words for workers, shoppers and regulators. If regulators approve the sale of the stores — to New Hampshire-based C&S Wholesale Grocers — the deal ‘ensures no stores will close as a result of the merger and that all frontline associates will remain employed,’ according to a Sept. 8 statement by Kroger, which owns QFC and Fred Meyer, and Albertsons, which owns Safeway. Fred Meyer stores are not part of the sale. But the fate of the 413 stores, whose locations haven’t been disclosed, isn’t so straightforward, experts say.”
Earth ‘Well Outside Safe Operating Space for Humanity,’ Scientists Find (Laura)
The author writes, “Earth’s life support systems have been so damaged that the planet is ‘well outside the safe operating space for humanity,’ scientists have warned. Their assessment found that six out of nine ‘planetary boundaries’ had been broken because of human-caused pollution and destruction of the natural world. The planetary boundaries are the limits of key global systems — such as climate, water and wildlife diversity — beyond which their ability to maintain a healthy planet is in danger of failing.”
A NASA Spacecraft Comes Home With an Asteroid Gift for Earth (DonkeyHotey)
The author writes, “A brown-and-white capsule that spent the last seven years swooping through the solar system — and sojourning at an asteroid — has finally come home. And it has brought a cosmic souvenir: a cache of space rock that scientists are hungry to get their hands on. … The capsule’s landing is a major win for a NASA mission called Osiris-Rex, which stands for Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resources Identification and Security-Regolith Explorer. The spacecraft set out in 2016 to retrieve material from Bennu, a carbon-rich asteroid about 190 feet wider than the height of the Empire State Building. Researchers hope this pristine space dirt will reveal clues about the birth of our solar system and the genesis of life on Earth.”
