70% of Americans do not want to go to war with Venezuela

70% of US Public Opposes Military Attack on Venezuela

Jake Johnson for Common Dreams

New survey results show that Americans strongly oppose US military action against Venezuela as the Trump administration privately weighs options for land strikes against the South American country—as well as possible covert action targeting the government of President Nicolás Maduro.

The CBS News/YouGov survey, published on Sunday, found that 70% of Americans—including 91% of Democrats and 42% of Republicans—are against the “US taking military action in Venezuela,” and a majority don’t believe a direct attack on Venezuela would even achieve the Trump administration’s stated goal of reducing the flow of drugs to the United States.

Van Slyke’s “commitment” to apple pie and motherhood is not enough to make up for fiscal mismanagement.

Van Slyke must answer for CCA’s glaring financial blunders that she helped to create

By Will Collette

Loving animals and nature is not this election's key issue,
but money management is

The Charlestown Citizens Alliance (CCA) retread candidate Bonnita B. Van Slyke in the December 2 town council special election just issued a piece in the CCA blog that reprises her promises to support a broad array of environmental issues, the same ones she covered at length in her big, fancy mailer.

Her two opponents, Democrat Jill Fonnemann and Republican Laura Rom, also believe in protecting our environment – clean water, healthy ponds and streams, dark skies, and all our critters and birds. Jill is especially strong on animal protection. The candidates differ on how to achieve our goals, but don’t differ on the goals themselves.

So let’s stipulate that all the candidates love our town and its beautiful environs. And dogs.

The real difference between Van Slyke and her rivals comes into sharp relief when you look at her record on how to manage the taxpayers’ money. Van Slyke makes two “promises” that are belied by her actions and omissions.

Van Slyke pledges “to provide open, honest, responsible leadership” and commits to “manage our town’s administration and budgets effectively” which she failed to do during her previous time on the Town Council.

Bonnie B. left the Town Council in 2022 at the height of Charlestown’s worst financial scandal in a generation, a crisis where she was one of the key architects and led the cover-up and misinformation campaign.

And in her own writings for this special election, she still is.

In 2022, Charlestown learned that under the total control of the Charlestown Citizens Alliance, Charlestown had not only achieved the dubious distinction of having the highest administrative costs in the state but that this CCA-controlled administration had “lost” (they say “misallocated”) $3 million for two years. The “$3 million oopsie.”

Van Slyke was the CCA’s principal spokesperson leading the cover-up and disinformation campaign to deny there was a problem and, failing that, blame someone else while refusing reasonable requests for an outside, impartial review.

Van Slyke pushed – and still pushes – pumping up the town’s surplus (“Unassigned fund balance”) beyond any reasonable need. The $3 million oopsie grew out of the accumulated pockets of cash the CCA had squirreled away in the town budget often used to finance Planning Commissar Ruth Platner’s shady land deals.

Van Slyke praised and defended ex-Town Administrator Mark Stankiewicz even though he failed at his #1 job which was to take care of the money. Instead, he presided over ending legal public access to records about the town’s finances and shady land deals and allowed the $3 million to get lost. Then Stanky and ex-Budget Commission Chair Dick Sartor did their own self-audit and of course found themselves blameless.

Van Slyke consistently obstructed every effort by then minority Council member Deb Carney to bring in an outside forensic auditor to find out what really happened and to fix it.

And did I mention that according to the RI Public Expenditure Council, Charlestown’s administrative costs peaked as the worst in the state per capita during the final year of CCA's reign? We're right there at the very bottom of the chart. Here's what RIPEC found (and note that the CCA NEVER even acknowledged this data, never mind acted on it):

Voters threw out the CCA in 2022, electing four of five Charlestown Residents United (CRU) candidates, leaving the CCA with only Susan Cooper to wave their flag. Cooper dropped out in 2024 and voters replaced her with another CRU candidate, giving CRU a 5-0 supermajority.

Stonewall Stanky, Charlestown's cover-up king

After the 2022 election, one of the first orders of business was what to do with erstwhile Town Administrator Mark Stankiewicz, executor of the CCA’s clamp down on public records and failed money manager. Right up until Stanky’s exit, Van Slyke praised his feckless performance as masterful and condemned the CRU for driving out this superhero.

The facts showed that Stanky’s only talent was his loyalty to the CCA, but even that turned out to be phony. It turns out Stanky had already lined up a new job in Berkley, MA even before the 2022 election which the CCA was expected to win.

While clueless Van Slyke and the CCA were campaigning to save his job in 2023, Stanky was already out the door and was simply trying to get the biggest severance package he could. Incidentally, Stanky only lasted six weeks at the Berkley job before moving on to mess up Pawtucket’s finances.

Then in 2025, Van Slyke and the CCA repeated the process when the CRU decided not to confirm CCA-aligned Budget Commission chair Dick Sartor – a central figure in the CCA fiscal meltdown – to another term on the Commission. Sartor failed at his job to provide oversight over Charlestown’s finances and teamed with Stankiewicz to run the cover-up of the $3 million oopsie.

The CRU wanted him out but naturally, Van Slyke wanted him retained. Ever the champion of incompetence.

Since the CCA was booted out of office, the CRU-led Town Council has done a great job of cleaning up the mess the CCA left. And to see exactly what the CRU did, see what the state's chief auditor found. 

According to the Rhode Island Auditor General, in their first year in office, the CRU-led Council improved Charlestown’s financial management in the following ways:

Raised more revenue. 

Under the CCA, revenue was $28 million. Under the CRU, this increased to $30 million.

Lowered expenses. 

RIPEC flagged Charlestown’s highest in the state expenses which were $31.2 million, more than the revenue collected. Under the CRU, expenses dropped to $29.8 million.

Increased the town’s savings. 

This is the unassigned fund balance (UFB) that the CCA criticized the CRU for failing to increase. In fact, according to the Auditor General, the CRU raised the UFB by 17% from the CCA’s $5.3 million to $6.2 million.

Improved pension funding. 

Funding to cover future pension costs rose from the CCA’s $8.3 million level to $8.8 million under the CRU.

Reduced Charlestown’s debt by a LOT. 

Under the CCA, Charlestown’s debt was $7.9 million. Under the CRU, debt dropped to $6 million, almost 25% less.

Erased the deficit the CCA left behind. 

According to the Auditor General, the CCA left behind a DEFICIT of $3,266,029. The CRU erased that deficit and ended FY23 with a SURPLUS of $157,666.

This table on page 16 of the Auditor General’s report gives the detail:

Not once has the CCA acknowledged these hard facts, sticking instead to Bonnita Van Slyke's false narrative that the CCA was infallible. Oh, she also loves her dog.

Election started today (November 12)

Early, in-person voting has started at Town Hall. If you plan to vote by mail, ask our Town Clerk Amy Weinreich for a mail ballot application. If you've already applied, your ballot should be on the way.

Generally, special elections like this draw almost exclusively from those who pay attention to politics. Turn out is usually very low, maybe a thousand if we're lucky. A three-way race like this is especially hard to predict. 

The CCA will spend from its huge treasury built on non-resident cash to send you fancy mailers telling you Charlestown needs to go back to the good old days when they ran things. The financial facts shown above tell a very different story. 

Democrat Jill Fonnemann is pledged to support the CRU’s sound financial management for a better, more prosperous Charlestown. Let's move FORWARD, not backwards. 

Putin's puppet sells out Ukraine

Donald Trump's especially crazy Thanksgiving message posted just before midnight

This is the guy who has the nuclear launch codes.

This is another example of the need to invoke this section of Article 25 of the US Constitution:

URI Dec. 3 program: Building climate resilience ‘From the Ground Up’

Jainey Bavishi will explore how local leadership and civic collaboration are reshaping climate action

Peter J. Hanlon

Costly repairs to the Charlestown Breachway are
an example of the price of climate change.
Photo by Will Collette

Jainey Bavishi, former deputy administrator of NOAA and former director of New York City’s Office of Climate Resiliency, will discuss “From the Ground Up: Communities Leading the Next Chapter of Climate Resilience” for the Charles and Marie Fish Lecture hosted by the URI Graduate School of Oceanography. 

The event, scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 3 at 6 p.m., will be presented in-person at the URI Narragansett Bay Campus, Corless Auditorium, 215 South Ferry Road in Narragansett. The lecture is free and open to the public, but registration is requested.

As climate impacts accelerate and uncertainty grows, communities across the country are redefining what it means to be resilient. In a fireside chat, Bavishi will explore how equity, local leadership and civic collaboration form the backbone of effective climate action, even as traditional systems face strain. 

Thank you, Bobby Jr., for reviving Whooping Cough

Waning Immunity and Falling Vaccination Rates Fuel Pertussis Outbreaks

Céline Gounder

Rates of pertussis, also known as whooping cough, are surging in Texas, Florida, California, Oregon, and other states and localities across the country.

The outbreaks are fueled by falling vaccination rates, fading immunity, and delays in public health tracking systems, according to interviews with state and federal health officials. Babies too young to be fully vaccinated are most at risk.

“Pertussis cases increase in a cyclical fashion driven by waning immunity, but the size of the outbreak and the potential for severe outcomes in children who cannot be vaccinated can be mitigated by high coverage and good communication to folks at risk,” said Demetre Daskalakis, a former head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s immunization program, who resigned in August.

Before the first pertussis vaccine became available in the early 1900s, whooping cough was one of the most common childhood diseases and a major cause of childhood death in the United States. Today, children get a series of DTaP shots (full-dose version) starting at 2 months old, and teens and adults receive a Tdap booster (lower-dose version) every 10 years. (Both vaccines target diphtheria and tetanus in addition to pertussis.)

Until recently, 8 in 10 toddlers had received four doses of the DTaP vaccine by age 2, and case rates were controlled. But vaccine coverage has declined since the covid pandemic and increases in state nonmedical exemptions have widened immunity gaps, which is when the proportion of individuals who are immune falls below the level needed to contain spread.

Texas logged 1,928 pertussis cases in 2024. By October 2025, the state had exceeded 3,500. National numbers are just as stark: In the first three months of 2025, the U.S. tallied 6,600 cases — four times last year’s pace and 25 times 2023’s. Several states are posting their highest case totals in a decade, and outbreaks from Louisiana to South Dakota to Idaho make clear this surge isn’t regional. It’s everywhere.

Who wins and who loses as the US retires the penny

It's a toss-up for consumers

Nancy Forster-Holt, University of Rhode Island

The Charlestown Citizens Alliance features
rusty pennies in its budget postings

By now, Americans know the strange math of minting: Each penny costs about 4 cents to make. Chances are you have some in a jar, or scattered among pockets, purses and car ashtrays.

As small as it is, the penny punches above its weight culturally. If it ever disappeared, so too might the simple kindness of “take a penny, leave a penny,” alongside timeless classics like penny loafers and the tradition of tossing a penny in a fountain.

But the penny’s days are indeed numbered. The U.S. Mint pressed the last 1-cent coin on Nov. 12, 2025, following a directive from the White House. While pennies will remain legal tender, old ones will gradually be taken out of circulation.

The impact of this change will reach beyond coin jars. Its ripples will be felt as small, cash-reliant Main Street merchants face another test of adaptability in a system that increasingly favors scale, technology and plastic. It will also be felt by people who rely on cash – often people without bank accounts who have the least room to absorb even tiny shifts in price.

My interest comes from my former lives as the chief financial officer of a large credit union and as a small-business owner. Now, I bridge theory and practice as a professor – or “prac-ademic,” as I like to say – studying the challenges facing Main Street businesses.

When the penny goes away, some will win, some will lose – and for some, it’ll be a coin toss.

New UNH poll shows McKee has only 11% support for his re-election bid

McKee's only hope seems to be the 42% of Democratic voters who remain undecided

By Alexander Castro, Rhode Island Current

Nearly half of likely Democratic voters still aren’t sure who they’d choose in Rhode Island’s 2026 gubernatorial primary, according to the latest Ocean State Poll conducted by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center. 

A sizable 42% of Democratic primary voters considered themselves “undecided” in the survey released Monday. But former CVS executive Helena Buonanno Foulkes holds a slight, early lead in a hypothetical Democratic primary with Rhode Island House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi and incumbent Gov. Dan McKee. 

Of the 359 respondents who are likely to hit the polls in the Democratic primary slated for September 2026, 29% said they would back Foulkes.

Shekarchi, who has not publicly committed to a run but has expressed interest in media interviews, secured 13% of support from the surveyed respondents.

Limping along with slightly lower polling numbers is McKee with support from only 11% of primary voters — his latest dismal showing in a string of polls, especially in concert with the poll’s other numbers for McKee, which demonstrate a broad and more diffuse dissatisfaction with his leadership both within and across party lines.

Sure beats maximum security

Dear Leader's Thanksgiving

Holiday greeting from Rhode Island Energy: PAY us more

Rhode Island Energy proposes increases in customer electric and gas service charges

By Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current

More bad news for Rhode Islanders struggling to pay their energy bills: Hikes are coming.

Rhode Island Energy unveiled its long-anticipated request to increase service charges for gas and electric customers in a press release the day before the Thanksgiving holiday. An application spanning thousands of pages across 21 separate documents was simultaneously submitted to the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission for review.

If approved, the increases would take effect in September 2026.

For the first year, the average residential electric customer would see their monthly bills rise $7.78, or 4.83%, while a typical residential gas customer would pay $343.53 more, a 20.6% increase, according to Rhode Island Energy’s proposal. Charges would rise again in the second year, with another $1.56 added to monthly electric bills, on average, and $89.43 more tacked on to annual gas bills.

Anticipating the fury coming its way, Rhode Island Energy President Greg Cornett had already attempted to justify the proposal by highlighting the benefits for customers. 

Everyday microplastics could be fueling heart disease especially in men

Microplastics may be silently fueling heart disease by damaging the very cells that keep arteries healthy.

University of California - Riverside

Microplastics dramatically intensified plaque buildup in male mice and interfered with the cells lining their arteries. The study points to direct cardiovascular harm from widespread environmental exposure. Credit: Shutterstock

A research team at the University of California, Riverside has found that routine exposure to microplastics -- tiny pieces released from packaging, fabrics, and common consumer plastics -- may speed up the formation of atherosclerosis, the artery-narrowing condition associated with heart attacks and strokes. The effect appeared only in male mice, offering new insight into how microplastics may influence cardiovascular health in people.

"Our findings fit into a broader pattern seen in cardiovascular research, where males and females often respond differently," said lead researcher Changcheng Zhou, a professor of biomedical sciences in the UCR School of Medicine. "Although the precise mechanism isn't yet known, factors like sex chromosomes and hormones, particularly the protective effects of estrogen, may play a role."

How farmers screwed themselves by supporting Trump

Farmers – long Trump backers – bear the costs of new tariffs, restricted immigration and slashed renewable energy subsidies

Kee Hyun Park, Nanyang Technological University; Institute for Humane Studies and Shannon P. Carcelli, University of Maryland

Few political alliances in recent American history have seemed as solid as the one between Donald Trump and the country’s farmers. Through three elections, farmers stood by Trump even as tariffs, trade wars and labor shortages squeezed profits.

But Trump’s second term may be different.

A new round of administration policies now cuts deeper into farmers’ livelihoods – not just squeezing profits but reshaping how farms survive – through renewed tariffs on agricultural products, visa restrictions on farm workers, reduced farm subsidies and open favoritism toward South American agricultural competitors.

In the past, farmers’ loyalty to Trump has overridden economics. In our study of the 2018–19 trade war between the U.S. and China, we found that farmers in Trump-voting counties kept planting soybeans even though the trade war’s effects were clear: Their costs would rise and their profits would fall. Farmers in Democratic-leaning counties, by contrast, shifted acreage toward alternatives such as corn or wheat that were likely to be more profitable. For many pro-Trump farmers, political belief outweighed market logic – at least in the short term.

Today, the economic effects of policies affecting farmers are broader and deeper – and the resolve that carried farmers’ support for Trump through the first trade war may no longer be enough.

Tariffs: The familiar pain returns

The revived U.S.-China trade conflict has again placed soybeans at its center. In March 2025, Beijing suspended import licenses for several major U.S. soybean exporters following new U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods. Trump countered with a new round of reciprocal tariffs, broadening the list of Chinese imports hit and raising rates on already targeted goods.

An October 2025 deal promised China would buy 25 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans a year, but relief has proved mostly symbolic.

Before the 2018-19 trade war, China regularly imported 30 million to 36 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans annually — more than one-third of all American soybean exports. Now, Beijing has signed long-term contracts with Brazil and Argentina, leaving U.S. producers with shrinking overseas demand for their crops.

Is the DOJ Serious About Investigating Beef Price-Fixing?

Or will they just blame immigrants and Democrats?

By Philip Mattera, director of the Corporate Research Project of Good Jobs First, for the Dirt Diggers Digest

This administration must be on drugs

Apparently shaken by the Democratic gains in this month’s elections, Donald Trump has changed his tune on the economy. He still tries to get us to believe everything is marvelous, but at the same time he has rolled out a series of proposals designed to give the impression he is addressing the affordability crisis.

Most of these initiatives do not amount to much. The rollback of tariffs on some food products is easing an aspect of inflation Trump himself caused. The idea of getting banks to offer 50-year home mortgages would result in modest monthly savings for borrowers while causing them to pay much more in interest over the life of the loan and slow the rate at which they build equity in their homes. 

It is unclear whether the deals he has been making with pharmaceutical companies will result in significant cost reductions for consumers. The suggestion that Obamacare subsidies be replaced with payments to health savings accounts would result in the proliferation of junk insurance policies and financial ruin for those with serious health conditions.

What these initiatives also have in common is that they do not challenge corporate interests in any significant way. The one possible exception to this is Trump’s call for a probe of price fixing in the beef industry.

Happy Trumpsgiving

Thanks where it's actually due

Yet another lunatic post by King Donald

This comes from the President of the United States. 

Trump seeks rollback of protections for endangered species

Trump Administration Seeks ESA Regulatory Rollbacks, Risks Accelerating Extinction for America’s Most Vulnerable Wildlife

Defenders of Wildlife

In a move that could accelerate the extinction crisis we face today, the Trump administration proposed significant changes to the regulations implementing the Endangered Species Act, which, for more than 50 years, has served as the backstop to America’s most imperiled wildlife. 

The administration’s proposed revisions to Sections 4, 4(d) and 7 regulations would weaken some of the protections that have helped prevent the extinction of iconic species.

“America’s imperiled wildlife remains at an uncertain crossroads, with one road pointing toward extinction and the other toward recovery. The Trump administration’s proposals announced today seek to undermine critical portions of the Endangered Species Act and will make recovery for many of those species that much more difficult,” said Andrew Bowman, president and CEO at Defenders of Wildlife. 

“These devasting proposals disregard proven science and risk reversing decades of bipartisan progress to protect our shared national heritage and the wildlife that make America so special.”

Trump action became inevitable after this happened

“The ESA is one of the world’s most powerful laws for conservation and is responsible for keeping 99% of listed species from extinction,” said Jane Davenport, senior attorney at Defenders of Wildlife. “But the ESA is only as effective as the regulations that implement it. Rolling back these regulations risks reversing the ESA’s historic success and threatens the wellbeing of plant and animal species that pollinate our crops, generate medicine, keep our waterways clean and support local economies.”

These proposed rollbacks would make it easier for federal agencies to greenlight destructive projects, such as mining, drilling, logging and overdevelopment, without fully assessing their impact on threatened and endangered species or their habitats. The move would also allow economic interests to influence decisions about which species warrant protection and which critical habitat receives federal designation. In addition, automatic protections for some threatened species would be eliminated.

Mayo Clinic says you should stop believing these eight back pain myths

For example, surgery is not the only or best option in all cases

By Mayo Clinic

Back pain is one of the most prevalent health issues globally, affecting up to 80% of individuals at some point in their lives and ranking among the leading causes of disability across all age groups. 

The condition encompasses a broad spectrum of problems involving muscles, ligaments, intervertebral discs, nerves, and the vertebral column itself, making its origins multifactorial and often difficult to pinpoint.

Its impact reaches far beyond individual discomfort—chronic or recurrent back pain contributes to reduced mobility, lost workdays, and diminished quality of life, placing a significant burden on healthcare systems worldwide.

Despite its commonality, several misconceptions about it persist.

Meghan Murphy, M.D., a neurosurgeon with the Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato, outlines eight of the most frequent myths and explains what scientific evidence actually shows.

Myth: Lifting heavy objects is the main cause of back pain.

Fact: Lifting heavy objects with poor form can contribute to back pain, but the major culprits are a sedentary lifestyle, poor posture, obesity, and genetic factors.

Myth: Bed rest will make my back pain better.

Fact: Probably not, but it depends on the cause of your pain. If it’s muscle strain, taking it easy for a few days may help. However, bed rest can also make back pain last longer or even worsen. If your pain is from nerve compression, a disc issue, or joint degeneration, inactivity can cause muscles to tighten, pain to worsen, loss of physical condition, and more debility. In these cases, you should modify your activities, switch to low-impact exercises like walking and swimming, and avoid movements like bending, twisting, or lifting. Maintaining some degree of physical activity can help you heal faster.

Renewable energy is cheaper and healthier – so why isn’t it replacing fossil fuels faster?

One word: Trump

Jay Gulledge, University of Notre Dame; University of Tennessee

You might not know it from the headlines, but there is some good news about the global fight against climate change.

A decade ago, the cheapest way to meet growing demand for electricity was to build more coal or natural gas power plants. Not anymore. Solar and wind power aren’t just better for the climate; they’re also less expensive today than fossil fuels at utility scale, and they’re less harmful to people’s health.

Yet renewable energy projects face headwinds, including in the world’s fast-growing developing countries. I study energy and climate solutions and their impact on society, and I see ways to overcome those challenges and expand renewable energy – but it will require international cooperation.

Stop Pretending Trump Has a Coherent Economic Strategy

Trump's only apparent strategy is to enrich himself, his families and his buds 

He also loves making people, markets and countries jump whenever he tries out some new idea that pops into his head

Dean Baker for Beat the Press

Trump's only strategy is self-enrichment

It is striking that many people feel the need to claim that Donald Trump has some coherent economic plan for the country. It’s understandable that Trump’s team likes to pretend that his random ramblings and angry acts of revenge are all part of some grand strategy, but why would anyone not on his payroll play along with this obvious absurdity?

To anyone paying attention, it should be pretty clear that Donald Trump is clueless about the economy. 

Just to take an obvious example to make the point: Trump has repeatedly promised to lower drug prices by 800, 900, or even 1,500%. As he rightly says, no one thought it was possible.

It wouldn’t be a big deal that he got confused once or twice and forgot that you can’t lower prices by more than 100%, unless you envision drug companies paying people to use their drugs. But Trump has done this repeatedly, over many months.

This tells us two things. First, he really doesn’t have even a basic understanding of arithmetic and percentages. That would be bad in and of itself. After all the president is sometimes directly negotiating deals, and it would be bad if he agreed to something and then had to call back his negotiating partner and tell them he didn’t understand what he had agreed to.

But the other issue is even more serious. Surely people like Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Kevin Hassett, Trump’s national economic adviser, understand percentages. But apparently, they are too scared of Trump to explain how they work. Instead, they let him go out week after week and make a fool of himself by making nonsensical promises on lowering drug prices.

This fact is crucial if we are trying to assess whether Trump has a coherent economic strategy. The point is he is obviously confused about many things when it comes to the economy. He seems to think that other countries pay tariffs and send the US checks. He also seems to think that wind and solar power are very expensive sources of energy. And he seems to think that the economy was collapsing when he took office.

This little piggy

Forget Black Friday

The seemingly never-ending chemtrail "conspiracy"

Why are we still talking about it?

Calum Lister Matheson, University of Pittsburgh

Everyone has looked up at the clouds and seen faces, animals, objects. Human brains are hardwired for this kind of whimsy. But some people – perhaps a surprising number – look to the sky and see government plots and wicked deeds written there. Conspiracy theorists say that contrails – long streaks of condensation left by aircraft – are actually chemtrails, clouds of chemical or biological agents dumped on the unsuspecting public for nefarious purposes. Different motives are ascribed, from weather control to mass poisoning.

The chemtrails theory has circulated since 1996, when conspiracy theorists misinterpreted a U.S. Air Force research paper about weather modification, a valid topic of research. Social media and conservative news outlets have since magnified the conspiracy theory. One recent study notes that X, formerly Twitter, is a particularly active node of this “broad online community of conspiracy.”

I’m a communications researcher who studies conspiracy theories. The thoroughly debunked chemtrails theory provides a textbook example of how conspiracy theories work.

Trump tackles food prices

Didn't Trump say other countries would pay the tariffs?

R.I. must speed up lowering carbon emissions to meet Act on Climate mandates

We need more and better alternatives to cars

By Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current

Rhode Island needs to put the pedal to the metal on its clean energy transition — while reducing its reliance on driving  — if it wants to achieve its own decarbonization mandates, according to a new report by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM).

The 9.52 million metric tons of carbon dioxide produced from travel, buildings, and other human activity across Rhode Island in 2023 marks a 1.4% increase over 2022 level emissions, according to the 41-page analysis published Friday.

Even worse: The long-term pace of progress, while showing modest reductions in emissions, is too slow to meet deadlines set under the state’s Act on Climate law. 

The 2021 decarbonization mandate requires that Rhode Island achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, with incremental progress markers, including a 45% reduction from 1990 levels by 2030. 

If Rhode Island continues to decrease its fossil fuel reliance at the same rate as it has over the last five years, it will miss the 2030 target, while further jeopardizing its 2050 goal, the report warns.

“Significant decarbonization of transportation, electricity consumption, and buildings are instrumental to attain net-zero emissions by mid-century,” the report states.

The warning comes amid major shifts in federal incentives and policies under the Trump administration that are expected to make state clean energy mandates harder to achieve.

“The Trump administration’s rollback of clean-energy initiatives and its cuts to billions of dollars in funding have intentionally undermined the clean-energy future for states across the nation,” Gov. Dan McKee said in a statement Friday. “As federal policies continue to shift, we will keep working with our partners to chart a practical and responsible path forward on reducing emissions.”

Leading the way is the Executive Climate Change Coordinating Council, a consortium of state agencies charged with helping Rhode Island meet its decarbonization mandates.

Initial projections reported by the council suggested the state was poised to fall short of that 2030 milestone, though the 2022 report emphasized that the model was “simple” and “preliminary.” A more detailed report will be published by the end of this year, informed in part by the latest state greenhouse gas emissions.

Terry Gray, DEM director and chair of the council, called the latest emissions results “disappointing,” but noted that it mirrors national trends which saw a rise in travel-related emissions in 2023.

FACTOID: Charlestown remains the only Rhode Island municipality with no RIPTA bus service, except of course Block Island.

The Verdict of History

Trump and his fascist glorification

Robert Reich

Trump has ordered the U.S. Treasury to draft a $1 coin featuring him on both sides, for the purpose of “honoring America’s 250th Birthday and @POTUS,” according to Treasury officials.

Meanwhile, Trump wants the Washington Commanders to name their planned $3.7 billion stadium after him. A senior White House source told ESPN: “It’s what the president wants, and it will probably happen.” Presumably, Trump’s name will be carved into a granite facade at the stadium’s entrance.

The giant $300 million ballroom that Trump is adding to the White House is called “the President Donald J. Trump Ballroom” on the list of donors to the project, and senior administration officials say the name is likely to stick.

Trump is moving to immortalize himself with his name etched into coins, carved into pediments, and inscribed into White House marble. He wants to glorify himself in the most permanent ways possible.

This is what fascist dictators do when in power. Stalin, Hitler, and Mussolini built monuments to glorify themselves so they’d be exalted in history.

Democracies don’t do this. They memorialize their heroes only after they’ve died, and only if the public wants them commemorated.

Trump deserves to be remembered — but not as a hero. To the contrary: It is our solemn duty to ensure he is remembered for all that he has done and may still do to destroy American democracy.

He must be remembered as the president who claimed without evidence that an election was “stolen” from him. Who then instigated a coup that included false electors, threats to state officials, and an assault on the U.S. Capitol that resulted in five deaths and injuries to 174 police officers.

He should be remembered as the president who, after being reelected, tried to erase the nation’s memory of what he had done by pardoning 1,600 rioters who had been criminally convicted for participating in the Capitol attack and 77 people who had conspired with him to carry out the attempted coup. He called them all “patriots.”

He must be remembered as the president who then usurped the powers of Congress. Who denied people due process of law. Who prosecuted his political opponents. Who violated international law by killing people he labeled enemy combatants. Who sent the military into American cities over the objections of their mayors and governors. And who openly and brazenly took bribes.

We must not allow Trump to erase this history with false tributes to himself, etched into silver, marble, or granite.

Instead, after he is gone, a monument should be erected to remind future generations of Trump’s treachery and the treachery of officials who supported him.

It would be a simple building constructed of iron and cement, containing the records of his attacks on democracy and the names of everyone who aided him.

Over its doorway would be the words “Trump’s Treason.”

It would be situated on the White House lawn where the Trump ballroom (since demolished) once stood. It would face Pennsylvania Avenue so that families visiting the nation’s capital — including those commemorating America’s 500th anniversary — have easy access, and will long remember this catastrophe.

The plan for Trump's next parade

R.I.P. Reggae great Jimmy Cliff

 

Bad toys!

Choking hazards, toxic resin and unfiltered AI teddy bears, oh my!

By Christopher Shea, Rhode Island Current

(NY Public Interest Research Group)

A teddy bear. Colorful beads. A Disney princess jewelry kit.

They were displayed on a table at a downtown Providence shop Friday afternoon in a collection of popular toys families might be considering purchasing for their kids this holiday season. 

But they’re also among the most dangerous, according to the latest “Trouble in Toyland” report recently published by the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), a Denver-based consumer rights nonprofit. 

It’s the 40th year the group has published its annual list of toys that could be dangerous to children, Henry Welch, a campaign associate for the Rhode Island chapter, told reporters gathered outside Craftland Friday afternoon.

In the past, Welch said the biggest dangers with toys were choking hazards and lead.

“A lot of the toys that we found that were dangerous are no longer available,” Welch said. “However, some of these dangers are still out there, including some toys that seemed like a dystopian science fiction of the past that are now available.”

Exhibit A among those dystopian toys is that teddy bear on the table. 

Sold for $99 by Singapore-based FoloToy, “Kumma Bear” uses OpenAI models to hold “both friendly chats and deep conversations to stimulate curiosity and learning,” according to its now-gone product page.

But the PIRG report found Kumma’s programming had very few guardrails in place.

Charlestown Dems invite you to event for Council candidate Jill Fonnemann tomorrow night at the General Stanton

 

C-Town Dems News

November 2025

Come to the General Stanton Inn this Tuesday evening to talk with Jill, discuss town issues that concern you, and chat with your fellow neighbors. All are welcome and a donation is appreciated but not required.

“I’m running because I love Charlestown and I want to see it thriving and vibrant for generations to come. I’m happy to accept this endorsement from community members who feel the same way, and I look forward to working with them during the final stretch of this election” —JILL FONNEMANN   A lifelong native of South County, Jill has lived in Charlestown for 11 years. She served on the Charlestown Parks and Recreation Commission since January 2023, and is the beverage director at the Charlestown Rathskeller, where she has worked since 2013.   ___________________________   Along with commitment to the environment, Jill will focus on small business, fair taxes, affordable housing and the economy. _____________________   She will also propose the formation of a task force to address blighted and vacant buildings.   ###########################   WHERE AND WHEN TO VOTE IN THIS SPECIAL ELECTION Early in-person voting is at Charlestown Town Hall, 4540 S County Trail, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each week day through Nov. 26.   Early voting will resume Dec. 1 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.   On election day, Dec. 2, voting will be open at Town Hall from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.   Your voice matters. Help shape the future of Charlestown. Vote.

Call for Volunteers Your Charlestown Democratic Town Committee needs you! We are looking for active participants who want to help support Democratic candidates and causes. If interested, send a note to info@charlestowndemocrats.org. Please consider joining us!

**In America, we don’t do kings.**  For those looking to keep abreast of local and state resistance efforts, we recommend South County Resistance and Indivisible RI to find out what’s going on and to join some like-minded neighbors.​

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The Charlestown Democratic Town Committee manages the affairs of the Democratic Party in the town of Charlestown, RI subject to RI Election Law, State Party rules and its own bylaws. We meet the first Wednesday of every month at 6:00 PM at the Charlestown Police Station. Any Charlestown registered Democrat is welcome to attend.