Scott

Wind turbine maker Vestas today announced that it’s figured out how to recycle all wind turbine blades – even ones already sitting in landfills. The Danish company says it has discovered a solution that “renders epoxy-based turbine blades as circular, without the need for changing the design or composition of blade material.” Vestas, Aarhus University, Danish Technological Institute, and epoxy maker Olin have developed a novel process that can chemically break down epoxy resin into virgin-grade materials. https://electrek.co/2023/02/08/wind-turbine-recycle-blades/

I suspect that a fair number of those crossing into the US have a family connection in Canada and that is part of their reason for crossing into the US. It's very difficult to get from Central America to Canada without crossing the US. I suspect that some of those that volunteered to head to northern cities like NYC did so with the intention of going to Canada.

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Ultra-Orthodox lawmaker Haim Biton, a minister within the Education Ministry, told a gathering of education officials on Wednesday that the State of Israel has discriminated against the ultra-Orthodox community and has tried to suppress it but that the community’s high birth rates rendered these alleged efforts meaningless. Biton, of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, and Education Minister Yoav Kish of Likud, were invited to attend the annual conference for education department directors in municipalities and councils across Israel, held this year in the southern port city of Eilat. Many of the 450 or so people at the event walked out in protest of Biton’s remarks. https://www.timesofisrael.com/ultra-orthodox-minister-says-public-should-be-afraid-of-growing-community-size/

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Former Vice President Mike Pence has been subpoenaed by the special counsel overseeing probes into former President Donald Trump, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. It's not immediately clear what information the subpoena from special counsel Jack Smith is seeking, but it follows months of negotiations between federal prosecutors and Pence's legal team. Smith was appointed in November to oversee the investigation into Trump's potential mishandling of classified documents after leaving the presidency and obstructing the government's efforts to retrieve them -- as well as a separate probe into efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election. https://abcnews.go.com/US/mike-pence-subpoenaed-special-counsel-overseeing-trump-probes/story?id=97018886

I spent some time assisting with the Lao/Hmong in the very late 80s and early 90s as well. I was seconded to Phanat Nikhom for a time. I'd have to agree there were some troublesome IO there.

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The president of SpaceX revealed the company has taken active steps to prevent Ukrainian forces from using the critical Starlink satellite technology with Ukrainian drones that are a key component of their fight against Russia. “There are things that we can do to limit their ability to do that,” Gwynne Shotwell told reporters on Wednesday, referencing reports on Starlink and drone use. “There are things that we can do, and have done.” https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/09/politics/spacex-ukrainian-troops-satellite-technology/index.html

You are mixing up some important groups. They are very different. Many, many people who enter the US legally do not enter as permanent residents. For example, the 76,000 Afghani's who were evacuated and brought to the US are here on temporary status under Humanitarian Parole. Temporary immigration status, is set to expire for most evacuees this summer. What happens to them is a matter for Congress to decide. As for refugee numbers in various countries, the country that takes the most refugees in is Turkey. The other leading contenders are: Turkey with 3.7 million, Colombia with 2.5 million Germany with 2.2 million Pakistan with 1.5 million Uganda with 1.5 million https://www.unhcr.org/refugee-statistics/

Burt Bacharach, the acclaimed composer and songwriter behind dozens of mellow pop hits from the 1950s to the 1980s, including “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” “(They Long to Be) Close to You” and the theme from the movie “Arthur,” has died, a family member of Bacharach confirmed to CNN. He was 94. A major figure in 20th century pop music, Bacharach scored major hits in a variety of genres, from Top 40 to country to rhythm and blues and film scores. https://edition.cnn.com/2023/02/09/entertainment/burt-bacharach-death/index.html?utm_term=167595867120184c66c76e94a&utm_source=cnn_Breaking+News&utm_medium=email&bt_ee=vFVZpJV7SS3ck4jipAFdYzb7XzDUK0YH%2B9zvPR8o2O3EOOhLxkmFGBrDlhdU01Kz&bt_ts=1675958671208

In many regards, the system is a little too legalistic. It does not require an immigration judge to hear each case. There are a lot of models that work quite well. In Hong Kong, for example, there was a Special Committee for Unaccompanied Minors and Vulnerable Persons. Professionals were hired to interview children, gather background information and make an assessment to a refugee claim. Vulnerable people were those who were medically or mentally not fit to clearly articulate their claim. Some had experienced serious trauma -- in particular I remember a group of 4 who were the only survivors of a boat that was robbed and had a number of people raped and killed. Their engine was disabled and they floated aimlessly at sea for over a month. They had no food or water. Some parents drowned their children because they couldn't bear to see them suffer. In the end, some bodies were cannibalized. Needless to say, the 4 survivors were physically and mentally not in position to face an in-depth interview. The professionals did the interviews, wrote the reports and made a recommendation on refugee status. That committee could also propose a durable solution of resettlement even if a child was not a refugee. This was rarely used, but in the event that a child was orphaned, for example, they could be resettled. The report went to a small committee, including a legal specialist on refugee law, who generally signed off. It is pretty easy to separate the economic migrants from the legitimate asylum seekers. There are always a handful of cases that complicated or contentious and require more attention and some sort of appeal.

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Many of them do not request asylum in Mexico because it is not a country where they want to be. Mexico took over 45,000 refugees last year, almost double the year before. Mexico also offers a number of options for those from Central America to remain in Mexico temporarily. For those who are purely economic migrants, they will not qualify as a refugee in Mexico and they won't in the US either. I don't think people realize the number of people who are denied asylum. In 2020, 71% of applicants were denied. In the same year, 185,884 people were deported. Many prospective immigrants, when faced with forcible deportation, voluntarily return and avoid a court order that will bar them ever entering the US. The extremely slow process is a large part of the problem. By the time the immigration process is over and someone has been determined not to be eligible to remain in the US, they may have secured long-term employment, married and had a child (who is a US citizen). It starts getting complicated when you start talking about splitting a family up and deporting someone who is a parent and the main provider for a family. https://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/667/

One of the fungal infections that is beginning to be problematic in the US is Valley Fever. Historically, it is a fungal infection that has been limited to the desert Southwest. It has now spread as far north as Washington state. That is quite a leap. Valley fever, also called coccidioidomycosis, is an infection caused by the fungus Coccidioides. The fungus is known to live in the soil in the southwestern United States and parts of Mexico and Central and South America. The fungus was also recently found in south-central Washington. https://www.cdc.gov/fungal/diseases/coccidioidomycosis/index.html

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I spent many years working with refugees and asylum seekers both for the US Department of State, the UN and for more than one foreign government. Much of that time was spent doing screening of asylum seekers. The laws and regulations vary from one country to another. All signatories to the UN conventions agree to the 5 main categories, but they can expand them. In short, a country allow anybody it wants to remain on it's soil. Being a refugee has nothing to do with economics -- you can be rich or you can be poor. Ones economic category doesn't negate your asylum status. Some notable refugees include W. Michael Blumenthal, Former Secretary of Treasury, Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State, Salvador Dali, Artist, Albert Einstein, Nobel Laureate, Gloria Estefan, Singer, Andy Garcia, Actor and Henry Kissinger, just name a few. For the 'unwashed masses' many of them are motivated by economics, but that doesn't mean they might not be refugees. If they have been deprived of the ability to make a living because of one of the 5 main categories for refugees, they may be granted status. For a variety of reasons, including simple economics, if a person who can be classified as a refugee has a relative who can sponsor them (and provide financial support) every effort will be made to have them admitted as an immigrant. This helps keep the number of people entering as refugees as low as possible. The reason for that is that it is never known when there might be a humanitarian crisis or war where those slots might fill up quickly. The standard for being a refugee is high and it's not an easy bar to overcome. During my time in screening refugees, I'd take a very close estimate that 90% I screened were not given refugee status. I saw some absolutely heart-breaking situations, I saw people who most definitely deserved a better life, but they weren't refugees. I also saw, arrogant, butt-holes of humanity that were and they were screened in. If you look at the statistics concerning people at the US/Mexico border, you will see that a huge number of them are not admitted to the US. Some will be allowed to stay because of family connections -- but that is largely dependent on a close relative sponsoring them. If they don't and they aren't a refugee, then will eventually be deported. If they are a refugee and have been admitted as an immigrant, they will not be returned to the country of origin. That is refoulment and is not permitted under the UN refugee protocols. Someone entering the US and claiming asylum is given a pre-screening that makes a preliminary determination whether they have a credible claim or not. If so, they can remain pending a full immigration hearing. Unfortunately for many, the process is slow and cumbersome and in many cases over legalistic. In the meantime, people start living a life and that may include marrying a US citizen or having a child. Now Immigration is in a bind because deporting a husband/father or mother goes against a number of regulations. Immigration hearings need to be quick and fair before people get settled and start a family.

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No, that is not correct. A person seeking asylum is not required to do so in the first country where they are no longer persecuted. As a matter of fact, they are not required to ever request asylum if they don't want to. Some countries, like Thailand, are not signatories to the UN Conventions on Refugees and do not ever accept people as refugees.