Category: United States of America

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United States of America

July 17, 1968 – Scoop Jackson’s colloquium

Fifty seven years ago, on this day, July 17th, 1968, a Democratic Senator with Presidential ambitions organises a chat-fest.

on July 17, 1968, Jackson organized a Joint House-Senate colloquium in order to hash out the environmental challenges facing the country. Although it was ignored completely by the press, it was an influential event on Capitol Hill. Half of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s cabinet members attended.

“Out of that colloquium grew Jackson’s idea for a National Environmental Policy Act — a sweeping idea that, when it was enacted into law 18 months later, forced the federal government to examine the environmental consequences of almost every one of its actions, whether it was to build a supersonic transport or to carve a barge canal,” said William W. Prochnau and Richard W. Larsen in a biography of Jackson published four years later (Prochnau and Larsen, p. 68-69). https://www.historylink.org/File/9903

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was 323ppm. As of 2025, when this post was published, it is 430ppm. This matters because the more carbon dioxide in the air, the more heat gets trapped. The more heat, the more extreme weather events. You can make it more complicated than that if you want, but really, it’s not. Fwiw, I have a tattoo of the Keeling Curve on my left forearm.

The broader context was that environmental concerns had been growing over the 1950s and 1960s getting a significant boost with the publication of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring in 1962. 

The specific context was that there had been repeated efforts by Democrats – especially Gaylord Nelson and Jackson – to get environmental legislation through, against the usual opposition. But pressures were slowly growing, and colloquia like this was part of that slow boring of hard boards (as per Max Weber).

What I think we can learn from this is that they sentence you to at LEAST twenty years of boredom for trying to change the system from within. Twenty should be considered a very light sentence…

What happened next – after the Santa Barbara Oil Spill of January 1969, things got a bit “easier” – Nelson suggested and got his “Earth Day”. Scoop Jackson, the Senator for Boeing, never got to be president…

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.

Also on this day: 

July 17, 1912 – Braidwood Dispatch and Mining Journal on climate change

July 17, 2006 – Australian Prime Minister shits on renewables, blah blah “realistic”

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United States of America

July 11, 1995 – Chicago heatwave gets going

Thirty years ago, on this day, July 11th, 1995,

The July 1995 Chicago heat wave led to 739 heat-related deaths in Chicago over a period of five days.[1] Most of the victims of the heat wave were elderly poor residents of the city, who did not have air conditioning, or had air conditioning but could not afford to turn it on, and did not open windows or sleep outside for fear of crime.[2] The heat wave also heavily impacted the wider Midwestern region, with additional deaths in both St. Louis, Missouri[3] and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.[4]

1995 Chicago heat wave – Wikipedia

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was 361ppm. As of 2025, when this post was published, it is 430ppm. This matters because the more carbon dioxide in the air, the more heat gets trapped. The more heat, the more extreme weather events. You can make it more complicated than that if you want, but really, it’s not. Fwiw, I have a tattoo of the Keeling Curve on my left forearm.

The broader context was that poor people are always on the pointy end of “natural” disasters, be they floods, heatwaves, pandemics etc.

The specific context was that 1995 was the year the second assessment report of the IPCC came out. It included the fateful words that there was already a “discernible” impact of human activity, which drove the denialists to new heights (depths) of venality and stupidity.

What I think we can learn from this. We’ve had a lot of warnings about what is coming. But on each step of the way there will be people who want/need to dismiss the warnings – “there have always been heat waves” etc., And then it gets into a sterile attribution debate, and the denialists are happy…

What happened next The emissions kept climbing, and these sorts of one-in-a-hundred year events started happening more frequently.

There is a book about the social dynamics of the mortality risk, btw. I haven’t read it, but someone whose intellect I respect raved about it.

Eric Klinenberg, 2002 Heat Wave: A Social Autopsy of Disaster in Chicago, 

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.

Also on this day: 

July 11, 1968 – The UN Secretary-General, U Thant, delivers report on Human Environment that mentions carbon dioxide and climate change

July 11, 1994 – Australian Environment Minister admits not clear if Australia hitting targets (spoilers, it wasn’t) 

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Coal United States of America

July 2, 2001 – NRDC blasts “Bush” plan to increase reliance on coal

Twenty four  years ago, on this day, July 2nd, 2001, 

NRDC Blasts Bush Plan to Increase Reliance on Coal; Group Says Increased Coal Burning Will Accelerate Global Warming

WASHINGTON (July 2, 2001) – Responding to Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham’s appearance today at a groundbreaking ceremony for a new Kentucky coal power plant, NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) blasted the Bush administration for its plan to increase U.S. reliance on coal to generate electricity.

“The Bush administration wants to allow dirty coal-fired power plants to increase their pollution dramatically,” said David Hawkins, director of NRDC’s Climate Center. “That would accelerate global warming, poison more of our water, scar more of our landscape, and kill more of our citizens with particulate air pollution.”

http://www.nrdc.org/media/pressreleases/010702a.asp

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was 371ppm.  As of 2025, when this post was published, it is  430ppm. This matters because the more carbon dioxide in the air, the more heat gets trapped. The more heat, the more extreme weather events. You can make it more complicated than that if you want, but really, it’s not. Fwiw, I have a tattoo of the Keeling Curve on my left forearm.

The broader context was that the US had decided, under Bush’s dad (George Herbert Hoover – sorry, Walker) not to do anything about climate change. They threatened to boycott the 1992 Earth Summit  if the UNFCCC draft text included targets and timetables for emissions reductions by rich countries. And the proponents of that, well, they blinked.

The specific context was that “Dubya” on the campaign trail in 2000 had said that he would regulate carbon dioxide emissions.  And then, once President Cheney – sorry, Bush – took office he said “nah” and also pulled out of the Kyoto Protocol.  Just plain evil.  

What I think we can learn from this. Politicians will say WHATEVER they think you want to hear to get into office. 

What happened next Bush/Cheney’s plan to build hundreds of coal-fired power stations didn’t work out so well, in part because Michael Bloomberg funded the Sierra Club to stop it all. 

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United States of America

July 1, 1959 – Gilbert Plass article on climate change published in Scientific American

Sixty six years ago, on this day, July 1st, 1959, Canadian physicist Gilbert Plass has an article in Scientific American about … carbon dioxide build-up.

During the past century a new geological force has begun to exert its effect upon the carbon dioxide equilibrium of the earth]. By burning fossil fuels man dumps approximately six billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year [as of 2025 it’s about 40 billion tons]. His agricultural activities release two billion tons more. Grain fields and pastures store much smaller quantities of carbon dioxide than the forests they replace, and the cultivation of the soil permits the vast quantities of carbon dioxide produced by bacteria to escape into the air.

And 

We shall be able to test the carbon dioxide theory against other theories of climatic change quite conclusively during the next half-century. Since we now can measure the sun’s energy output independent of the distorting influence of the atmosphere, we shall see whether the earth’s temperature trend correlates with measured fluctuations in solar radiation. If volcanic dust is the more important factor, then we may observe the earth’s temperature following fluctuations in the number of large volcanic eruptions. But if carbon dioxide is the most important factor, long-term temperature records will rise continuously as long as man consumes the earth’s reserves of fossil fuels.

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was 315ppm.  As of 2025, when this post was published, it is  430ppm. This matters because the more carbon dioxide in the air, the more heat gets trapped. The more heat, the more extreme weather events. You can make it more complicated than that if you want, but really, it’s not. Fwiw, I have a tattoo of the Keeling Curve on my left forearm.

The broader context was that the idea that carbon dioxide build-up would heat the earth can be dated back to the 1890s (it’s slightly more complex than that, but this will do for now), from work by Svante Arrhenius, the Swedish scientist who later won a Nobel Prize (for other work).

But Arrhenius’ proposal had been shot down, thanks to arrogance about knowing how carbon dioxide operates in the stratosphere, and Guy Callendar’s 1938 lecture to the Royal Meteorological Society hadn’t changed that.

The specific context was that Plass had been banging on about carbon dioxide build-up since May 1953, and had had various articles published in specialist journals and also in more “Popular” ones like American Scientist and Scientific American.

What I think we can learn from this is that UK elites will have been well-informed. Scientific American was advertised and sold in the UK…

What happened next – Plass was present at a couple more meetings – e.g. New York in January 1961 and again in March 1963, but wasn’t particularly “into” climate – it wasn’t his thing.

And the carbon dioxide kept accumulating, obvs.

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Coal United States of America

June 27, 2013 – Judge versus climate

Twelve years ago, on this day, June 27th, 2013,  

U.S. District Court judge ruled against the expansion of Arch Coal’s West Elk mine in Colorado for failure of federal regulators to consider the social cost of carbon [3] in their environmental review.

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/06/30/3454764/court-blocks-arch-mine-coal-expansion/

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 398.8ppm. As of 2025 it is 430ppm, but check here for daily measures. 

The context was that one of the favoured tools for liberal opponents of climate change is the court system.  And sometimes there are, it seems, some “victories”.  Often reversed, but well, what are you gonna do? 

What I think we can learn from this.  “They make the laws to chain us well”…

What happened next. The courts get stacked with dickhead judges, cases get dismissed and the emissions climb….

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.

Also on this day: 

June 27, 2000 – crazy but well-connected #climate denialists schmooze politicians – All Our Yesterdays

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Denial United States of America

June 25, 1996 – Wall Street Journal pretends to be a newspaper

Twenty nine  years ago, on this day, June 25th, 1996 the Wall Street Journal pretended to be a newspaper. 

“Santer immediately drafted a letter to the [Wall Street] Journal, which forty of the other IPCC lead authors signed. Santer explained what had happened, how he had been instructed by Houghton to make the changes, and why the changes were late in coming. At first the Journal wouldn’t publish it. After three tries, Santer finally got a call from the Journal’s letters editor and the letter was finally published on June 25. Santer’s reply had been heavily edited, and the names of the forty other cosigners deleted.

Oreskes and Conway, 2010 Page 208

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 362ppm. As of 2025 it is 430ppm, but check here for daily measures. 

The context was that the second Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment report had said that there was already a discernible impact of human activity on the earth’s climate (It’s hard to remember now, but this was a Big Deal back then). The denialist attack dogs were predictably out for blood, and they had latched onto what they perceived to be a vulnerable scientist, Ben Santer.

What I think we can learn from this:  Assholes like the Global Climate Coalition and the so-called “George Marshall Institute” goons were amplified by “newspapers” like the Wall Street Journal, who were happy to publish hatchet jobs and then refuse significant right of reply.

What happened next  The denialists found a new object of hate – Michael E. Mann.  And the caravan kept rolling on.  The emissions climbed, the concentrations climbed, the consequences climbed. 

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.

Also on this day: 

June 25, 2002, 2003 and 2008 – CCS’s first hype cycle builds – All Our Yesterdays

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United States of America

June 23, 1969 – Cuyahoga river catches fire. Again

Fifty six years ago, on this day, June 23rd, 1969,the Cuyahoga river in Ohio caught fire again.

As per Wikipedia –

As Cleveland emerged as a major manufacturing center, the river became heavily affected by industrial pollution, so much so that it caught fire at least 14 times. When it did so on June 22, 1969, news coverage of the event helped to spur the American environmental movement.[8][9] For many Americans, the Cuyahoga’s burning helped connect urban decay with the environmental crisis at the time in many American cities.[10] Since then, the river has been extensively cleaned up through the efforts of Cleveland’s city government and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA).[11] In 2019, the American Rivers conservation association named the Cuyahoga “River of the Year” in honor of “50 years of environmental resurgence”.

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 324.6ppm. As of 2025 it is 430ppm, but check here for daily measures. 

The context was the river had actually caught fire before, at least 14 times, but this time it was captured on camera and came six months after the pivotal Santa Barbara Oil Spill.

What I think we can learn from this is that an “event” on its own is neither here nor there – it’s how it is mobilised/can fit into an existing set of concerns and understandings.

What happened next is that the first big wave of global environmental concern gathered pace, cresting and breaking in 1972. Lots of nice legislation and some local improvements (depending on where you live – if you’re in one of the sacrifice zones, not so much…).  But the big ones – plastics, carbon, growth, they were not tackled, can’t be tackled within the logics of our systems. We are all going to die, quite pitiable deaths. It didn’t have to be this way, but now, well, it’s pretty much baked in, isn’t it?

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.

Also on this day: 

June 23, 1997 – Australian Prime Minister skips climate meeting to fanboy Thatcher #auspol – All Our Yesterdays

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Activism United States of America

June 21, 1964 – Goodman, Chaney and Schwerner murdered

Sixty years ago, on this day, June 21st, 1964,

Three civil rights workers, Andrew Goodman, James Chaney and Mickey Schwerner, are murdered in Neshoba County, Mississippi, United States, by members of the Ku Klux Klan.

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 319ppm. As of 2025 it is 430ppm, but check here for daily measures. 

The broader context was that black people had been resisting Jim Crow (the name given to the apartheid system in the Southern United States) as best they could, since its inception. But the “massive resistance” of the Southern States was only going to be broken with outside help – both the Federal Government and brave brave people trying to desegregate schools, buses etc.

The specific context was that Ella Baker had managed to protect students and young black people from being swallowed up into other people’s campaigns, and so the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was formed. It had had some success with education/outreach/voter registration, but decided (it was a contentious issue) that it needed more (Northern) hands on deck and so began the “Freedom Summer” in 1964, where white and black volunteers from the North would join those efforts. At the very beginning of that summer, these three volunteers were murdered.

What I think we can learn from this is that the defenders of the status quo are perfectly okay with murder to defend that status quo. Change costs lives.

What happened next  The Freedom Summer happened. It opened an enormous can of worms, and second wave feminism, queer rights, ecology movements sprang from the ferment of the second half of the sixties.  The Black Civil Rights Movement was the initiator movement, in academic terms.

Oh, and on August 3 1980 Republican candidate Ronald Reagan gave a “states rights” speech in Neshoba County. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink, dog whistle, dog whistle.

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.

Also on this day: 

June 21, 2007 – ABC unleashes “Carbon Cops” on the world. ACAB – All Climate Activists Barf… – All Our Yesterdays

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Scientists United States of America

June 20, 2005 – RIP Charles Keeling

Twenty years ago, on this day, June 20th, Charles Keeling (known as Dave) died.

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 382ppm. As of 2025 it is 430ppm, but check here for daily measures. 

The context was Keeling had first measured atmospheric carbon dioxide levels for a Californian body funded by oil companies (see the great work of Rebecca John). He’d then done it for Roger Revelle as part of the International Geophysical Year. He spent the rest of his life measuring CO2 and warning people about the implications of the build-up.

See 1969 speech- April 25, 1969 –  Keeling says pressured not to talk bluntly about “what is to be done?” – All Our Yesterdays

What I think we can learn from this – the scientists did their job.  The media, the politicians, the “leaders” of social movement organisations?  Not so much.

What happened next – the emissions have kept on climbing, of course. 

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.

Also on this day: 

June 20, 1977- “Alternative Three” – An early Climate Hoax  – All Our Yesterdays

June 20, 1979 – Jimmy Carter installed solar panels on the White House – All Our Yesterdays

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United States of America

June 19, 1989 – George Brown speech to Student Pugwash

Thirty six years ago, on this day, June 19th, 1989  Senator George Brown gave a speech to Student Pugwash, and reminisced about his 1976 hearings.

“Faced with these conflicting predictions, in 1976, as Chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Environment and the Atmosphere, I convened the first congressional hearings ever to discuss the issue of climate research. Over the course of two weeks, our Subcommittee received testimony of relevance to a bill that some of my colleagues and I had introduced to coordinate and improve national climate research efforts. In large part as a result of those hearings, we succeeded in passing in 1977 the National Climate Program Act. Passage of that legislation was a classic example of how politicians tend to deal with scientific uncertainty: we initiate efforts to study the problem further.”

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 353ppm. As of 2025 it is 430ppm, but check here for daily measures. 

The broader context was that the Greenhouse Effect had been “discovered” by the media and was omni-present. There were these sorts of “inter-generational” efforts going on…

What I think we can learn from this is that explaining the broad sweep, the patterns and the repetitions, is really hard, especially when we all want a simple victory narrative with us near the centre…

What happened next  The wave of concern crested by 1992, and the defeat of the proposal for targets and timetables in the text of the UNFCCC was, in retrospect, the last nail in the coffin for our species and so so many others. Oh well.

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.

Also on this day: 

June 19, 1997/2009 – children of colour used as propaganda tools by #climate wreckers/greens do “motherhood” – All Our Yesterdays