Chemical Industry - Pesticides Use in Europe: EU To 'Completely Ban' Outdoor Use Of Neonicotinoids, Blamed For Devastating Bees

Citing concerns for food production, the environment and biodiversity, the European Union is set to "completely ban" the outdoor use of neonicotinoid insecticides that have been blamed for killing bees, and for keeping other bees from laying eggs.

"All outdoor use of the three substances will be banned and the neonicotinoids in question will only be allowed in permanent greenhouses where no contact with bees is expected," the EU announced on Friday.

An EU committee approved the plan to tightly restrict use of the insecticides, acting upon scientific advice from the European Food Safety Authority to tighten existing restrictions and protect bees, crucial pollinators.

The EFSA said in February that it had confirmed risks to both honeybees and to wild bees such as bumblebees posed by neonicotinoid pesticides.

"There is variability in the conclusions, due to factors such as the bee species, the intended use of the pesticide and the route of exposure," the head of EFSA's pesticides unit, Jose Tarazona, said at the time. "Some low risks have been identified, but overall the risk to the three types of bees we have assessed is confirmed."

Reacting to Friday's decision, Bayer CropScience, the biggest seller of neonicotinoids, called it "a sad day for farmers and a bad deal for Europe." Bayer added that the new rules "will not improve the lot of bees or other pollinators."

Bayer and another pesticide company have already challenged the EU's existing restrictions on neonicotinoids that were enacted in 2013. A verdict in that case is due next month.

 Read more: EU To 'Completely Ban' Outdoor Use Of Neonicotinoids, Blamed For Devastating Bee : The Two-Way : NPR

Global Warming: 'We're doomed': Mayer Hillman on the climate reality no one else will dare mention - by Patrick Barkham

e’re doomed,” says Mayer Hillman with such a beaming smile that it takes a moment for the words to sink in. “The outcome is death, and it’s the end of most life on the planet because we’re so dependent on the burning of fossil fuels. There are no means of reversing the process which is melting the polar ice caps. And very few appear to be prepared to say so.”

Hillman, an 86-year-old social scientist and senior fellow emeritus of the Policy Studies Institute, does say so. His bleak forecast of the consequence of runaway climate change, he says without fanfare, is his “last will and testament”. His last intervention in public life. “I’m not going to write anymore because there’s nothing more that can be said,” he says when I first hear him speak to a stunned audience at the University of East Anglia late last year.

From Malthus to the Millennium Bug, apocalyptic thinking has a poor track record. But when it issues from Hillman, it may be worth paying attention. Over nearly 60 years, his research has used factual data to challenge policymakers’ conventional wisdom.

 In 1972, he criticised out-of-town shopping centres more than 20 years before the government changed planning rules to stop their spread. In 1980, he recommended halting the closure of branch line railways – only now are some closed lines reopening. In 1984, he proposed energy ratings for houses – finally adopted as government policy in 2007. And, more than 40 years ago, he presciently challenged society’s pursuit of economic growth.

When we meet at his converted coach house in London, his classic Dawes racer still parked hopefully in the hallway (a stroke and a triple heart bypass mean he is – currently – forbidden from cycling), Hillman is anxious we are not side-tracked by his best-known research, which challenged the supremacy of the car.

“With doom ahead, making a case for cycling as the primary mode of transport is almost irrelevant,” he says. “We’ve got to stop burning fossil fuels. So many aspects of life depend on fossil fuels, except for music and love and education and happiness. These things, which hardly use fossil fuels, are what we must focus on.”

Read more: 'We're doomed': Mayer Hillman on the climate reality no one else will dare mention | Environment | The Guardian

France - US Relations: French President Emmanuel Macron rocks US Congress with great speech

French President Emmanuel Macron hit on the issues of climate change, nationalism, trade and the 2015 Iran nuclear deal in his speech to a joint session of US Congress, calling on the United States to engage more with the world.

After what has been seen as a friendly state visit to Washington, Macron's speech laid out a view of global leadership starkly different from US President Donald Trump's "America First."

What Macron said

• The United States and France have a long history together
• He criticized Trump's isolationist principles
• Climate change is real. We have no Planet B
• Macron is sure the US will someday come back to to the Paris Agreement
• We must fight against fake news
• Iran will never have nuclear weapons nuclear weapons
• At a press conference later, Macron said he believed Trump would pull the US out of the Iran nuclear deal

"We have disagreements between the United States and France. It may happen, like in all families," Macron said.

Read more: French President Emmanuel Macron rocks US Congress with speech | News | DW | 25.04.2018

France-US Relations:Trump touts ‘wonderful friendship’ with Macron at ceremony "as he brushes Macron's dandruff from his jacket" - by Yaron Steinbuch

Donald Trump inspect Emmanuel Macron for dandruff

Hosting his first state visit, President Trump on Tuesday morning welcomed his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron to the White House during a formal arrival ceremony on the South Lawn.

The president and First Lady Melania Trump greeted Macron and his wife, Brigitte, amid heavy pomp as almost 500 service members from all five branches of the military stood at attention for a “Review of the Troops.”

Vice President Mike Pence, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Chief of Staff John Kelly were among those in attendance to shake hands with the two leaders and their spouses.

Trump and Macron both sent their condolences to the families of the victims of the deadly van attack Monday in Toronto, as well as to the Bush family after the death of former First Lady Barbara Bush.
Former President George H.W. Bush has since been hospitalized with a blood infection.

Speaking in French, Macron said he wished to “express our deepest sympathy to President Bush and his family,” adding that at this time, “We stand together.”

In his remarks, Trump hailed France for its role in helping to respond to a chemical attack on civilians in the Damascus enclave of Douma in Syria.

“Along with our British friends, the United States and France recently took decisive action in response to the Syrian regime’s use of chemical weapons,” Trump said.

The two leaders are meeting on a number of issues, including the future of the Iran nuclear deal and the crisis in Syria.

On Tuesday evening, Macron will be honored with Trump’s first state dinner, where about 150 guests will dine on rack of lamb and nectarine tart before enjoying a performance by the Washington National Opera

Note EU-Digest: Even though the US President tried to be on his best behavior during the Macron welcoming ceremony, he was not able to contain himself to show his "macho side",  when, while speaking about his good relationship with Macron he leaned over to him and brushed away some imaginary dandruff, and said: I like him a lot, so much so, that I even brushed off the dandruff he had on his jacket.

As Herbert Read, a famous British art historian, poet, literary critic and philosopher wrote: "The worth of a civilization or a culture is not valued in the terms of its material wealth or military power, but by the quality and achievements of its representative individuals - its philosophers, its poets and its artists. Unfortunately the President of the US, Donald Trump possesses none of these qualities. 

EU-Digest

EU ASYLUM LAW: EU granted 500,000 people asylum protection in 2017

EU member states as well as Norway, Iceland and Switzerland granted protection status to 538,000 asylum seekers in 2017, according to new data released by Eurostat recently.

Another 24,000 refugees were resettled in the region last year.

Last year's asylum seeker figures represent a 25% drop from 2016, when 710,000 asylum seekers qualified for international protection in the bloc.

Two forms of protection are offered under EU law: refugee status — for people fleeing persecution, and subsidiary protection — for those who face serious harm if they return to their country of origin, and who don’t qualify as refugees. But protection may also be given for humanitarian reasons, such as on grounds of ill health or if the person is an unaccompanied minor.

Around a third of such asylum seekers in Europe came from Syria last year, followed by Afghan citizens (19%) and Iraqis (12%).

Note EU-Digest:The Eurostat figures in this report are not very clear. 

According to the data listed in this re, a third (33.%) of asylum seekers come from Syria, followed by Afghanistan with 19% and Iraq with 12%. Added together 64%. 

Where do the rest of the asylum seekers (36%) come from? 

Probably a large number of them from Africa, who come to Libya by illegal means to make the crossing to Europe. In our  opinion, these are mainly "economic migrants" and not asylum seekers, just as most of them from Afghanistan and Iraq. It is also striking that many of the asylum seekers are young and able men . The EU and the governments of the Member States must, as far as their migrants and asylum policies are concerned do a far better job, Right now it can only be qualified as being barely functional.

READ MORE: EU granted 500,000 people asylum protection in 2017 | Euronews

Global Conflict: throughout the ages has been caused by Nationalism, Religion, Revenge, Economic and Territorial gain and will eventually destroy this planet if we don't do something about it

Mankind is digging it's own grave

Wars have been a part of human history for thousands of years, becoming increasingly destructive with industrialization and the subsequent advances in technology.

Typically a war is fought by a country, or group of countries, against an opposing country with the aim of achieving an objective through the use of force.

Wars can also be fought as Proxy Wars, or within a country, however, in the form of a civil war, or in a revolutionary war.

Of course, the causes of a war beginning are often numerous and several reasons for war can be intertwined in a complicated way, rather than there being just one single, clear cause. The ego's of some world leaders can also play an important part.

Many theories have been put forward over the years for why wars happen and some of the greatest minds have offered their ideas.

The main reasons why wars usually start were given as being the result of:  Nationalism, Religion, Revenge, Economic and Territorial gain

This phenomena unfortunately begins already at a very basic local level, were most people in the world still show to have a very nationalistic, tribal, territorial viewpoint, specially when it comes to how they identify themselves.

When a Dutchman visit another country, he or she will usually identify herself or himself as " I am Peter/Anna and I am from Holland".

This goes for just about any nationality visiting another country.

Maybe it would be better, if we all  would adhere to what one wise man once said: "the world is mine and wherever I can live in peace and harmony I will call home.

Yes indeed aren't we all citizens of this planet we call earth, regardless of were we were born or what religion we profess?.

At least if we could all agree on that, it would be far easier to deal with all those other causes of war

EU-Digest 

Turkish EU relations minister slams Netherlands, Austria for undemocratic move over election campaign

Turkish EU Relations Minister U Minister Ömer Çelik criticized the
"It is evident that Austrian Chancellor [Sebastian Kurz] and Dutch [Prime Minister Mark Rutte] do not base such decisions on democratic values and greet anti-Turkey and racist political movements," Çelik said, adding that these leaders contribute to the growth of racist groups which oppose European values.

The minister urged the Netherlands and Austria to act using commonsense and refrain from damaging democratic values, which threatens the rise of populism and animosity in the political sphere.

Netherlands' "undemocratic" decision to follow Austria's lead to ban Turkish politicians from campaigning for the upcoming snap elections in Turkey, accusing both countries of hypocrisy for being in favor of democracy in Europe but the opposite outside of the bloc.

In a statement posted on his official Twitter account, Çelik said that the leaders of both countries welcome anti-Turkey and xenophobic political movements.

He criticized the hypocritical stance of both countries by saying that they should not defend democracy solely for the bloc but should defend the same principles when it comes to countries outside of the bloc.

"If they really want their words regarding democracy to be credible, they should make decisions without the influence of anti-Turkey sentiment" he added.

Austrian Prime Minister Kurz announced Friday that his country will ban Turkish politicians from holding meetings in the country, which has a sizeable Turkish minority.

The Dutch PM followed Kurz's lead and also said any campaign event regarding the snap elections would not be welcome in his country.

Relations between Turkey and some European countries, including the Netherlands, Austria and Germany were significantly damaged last year during the constitutional referendum. Turkish ministers and politicians in favor of a "yes" vote for the referendum were banned from holding rallies, while those in favor of the "no" vote freely hytelany interference.

Note EU-Digest: If President Erdogan likes it or not, it is high time the EU Commission launches a law which prohibits foreign immigrants, who have become European citizens, to vote in elections of their country of origin, and prohibits foreign politicians to campaign in the EU on behalf of their own local campaigns. This is not only a question of Democracy, but also one which guarantees the sovereignty of nations without foreign intervention on any level.

Read more: EU minister slams Netherlands, Austria for undemocratic move over election campaign - Daily Sabah