By Jenna McLaughlin | theintercept.com | May 26, 2016
A provision snuck into the still-secret text of the Senate’s annual intelligence authorization would give the FBI the ability to demand individuals’ email data and possibly web-surfing history from their service providers without a warrant and in complete secrecy.
If passed, the change would expand the reach of the FBI’s already highly controversial national security letters. The FBI is currently allowed to get certain types of information with NSLs — most commonly, information about the name, address, and call data associated with a phone number or details about a bank account.
Since a 2008 Justice Department legal opinion, the FBI has not been allowed to use NSLs to demand “electronic communication transactional records,” such as email subject lines and other metadata, or URLs visited.
The spy bill passed the Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday, with the provision in it. The lone no vote came from Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who wrote in a statement that one of the bill’s provisions “would allow any FBI field office to demand email records without a court order, a major expansion of federal surveillance powers.”
Wyden did not disclose exactly what the provision would allow, but his spokesperson suggested it might go beyond email records to things like web-surfing histories and other information about online behavior. “Senator Wyden is concerned it could be read that way,” Keith Chu said.
It’s unclear how or when the provision was added, although Sens. Richard Burr, R-N.C., — the committee’s chairman — and Tom Cotton, R-Ark., have both offered bills in the past that would address what the FBI calls a gap and privacy advocates consider a serious threat to civil liberties.
“At this point, it should go without saying that the information the FBI wants to include in the statue is extremely revealing — URLs, for example, may reveal the content of a website that users have visited, their location, and so on,” Andrew Crocker, staff attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, wrote in an email to The Intercept.
“And it’s particularly sneaky because this bill is debated behind closed doors,” Robyn Greene, policy counsel at the Open Technology Institute, said in an interview.
Saturday, July 2, 2016
Friday, June 17, 2016
Socialism for the Uninformed
By Thomas Sowell | nationalreview.com | May 31, 2016
Socialism sounds great. It has always sounded great. And it will probably always continue to sound great. It is only when you go beyond rhetoric, and start looking at hard facts, that socialism turns out to be a big disappointment, if not a disaster.
While throngs of young people are cheering loudly for avowed socialist Bernie Sanders, socialism has turned oil-rich Venezuela into a place where there are shortages of everything from toilet paper to beer, where electricity keeps shutting down, and where there are long lines of people hoping to get food, people complaining that they cannot feed their families.
With national income going down, and prices going up under triple-digit inflation in Venezuela, these complaints are by no means frivolous. But it is doubtful if the young people cheering for Bernie Sanders have even heard of such things, whether in Venezuela or in other countries around the world that have turned their economies over to politicians and bureaucrats to run.
The anti-capitalist policies in Venezuela have worked so well that the number of companies in Venezuela is now a fraction of what it once was. That should certainly reduce capitalist “exploitation,” shouldn’t it?
But people who attribute income inequality to capitalists’ exploiting workers, as Karl Marx claimed, never seem to get around to testing that belief against facts — such as the fact that none of the Marxist regimes around the world has ever had as high a standard of living for working people as there is in many capitalist countries.
Facts are seldom allowed to contaminate the beautiful vision of the Left. What matters to the true believers are the ringing slogans, endlessly repeated.
Socialism sounds great. It has always sounded great. And it will probably always continue to sound great. It is only when you go beyond rhetoric, and start looking at hard facts, that socialism turns out to be a big disappointment, if not a disaster.
While throngs of young people are cheering loudly for avowed socialist Bernie Sanders, socialism has turned oil-rich Venezuela into a place where there are shortages of everything from toilet paper to beer, where electricity keeps shutting down, and where there are long lines of people hoping to get food, people complaining that they cannot feed their families.
With national income going down, and prices going up under triple-digit inflation in Venezuela, these complaints are by no means frivolous. But it is doubtful if the young people cheering for Bernie Sanders have even heard of such things, whether in Venezuela or in other countries around the world that have turned their economies over to politicians and bureaucrats to run.
The anti-capitalist policies in Venezuela have worked so well that the number of companies in Venezuela is now a fraction of what it once was. That should certainly reduce capitalist “exploitation,” shouldn’t it?
But people who attribute income inequality to capitalists’ exploiting workers, as Karl Marx claimed, never seem to get around to testing that belief against facts — such as the fact that none of the Marxist regimes around the world has ever had as high a standard of living for working people as there is in many capitalist countries.
Facts are seldom allowed to contaminate the beautiful vision of the Left. What matters to the true believers are the ringing slogans, endlessly repeated.
Thursday, June 16, 2016
Intruders breach US airport fences every 10 days, report says
By Associated Press | FoxNews.com | May 26, 2016
Under pressure to prevent people from sneaking onto runways and planes at major U.S. airports, authorities are cracking down not on the intruders who slip through perimeter gates or jump over fences, but on the release of information about the breaches.
A year after an Associated Press investigation first revealed persistent problems with airports' outer defenses, breaches remain as frequent as ever about once every 10 days รข€” despite some investments to fortify the nation's airfields. As Americans wait in ever-longer security screening lines inside terminals, new documents show dozens more incidents happening outside perimeters than airports have disclosed.
At the same time, leaders at some airports and the U.S. Transportation Security Administration are saying some of the 345 incidents AP found shouldn't count as security breaches, even when intruders got deep into secure areas.
Was it a perimeter security breach in March 2015 when a woman walked past a vehicle exit gate at San Francisco International Airport and onto the tarmac, where she tried to flag down a jet for a trip home to Guatemala? No it was not, said the airport and TSA officials, who also tried to suppress information about the case.
After discussing intrusions openly at first, officials at several airports and the TSA started withholding details, arguing the release could expose vulnerabilities.
Following a two-year legal struggle with the TSA, AP has now used newly released information to create the most comprehensive public tally of perimeter security breaches. The 345 incidents took place at 31 airports that handle three-quarters of U.S. passenger travel. And that's an undercount, because several airports refused to provide complete information.
The count shows that an intruder broke through the security surrounding one of those airports on average every 13 days from the beginning of 2004 through mid-February; starting in 2012, the average has been every 9.5 days. Many intruders scaled barbed wire-topped fences or walked past vehicle checkpoints. Others crashed cars into chain link and concrete barriers.
Under pressure to prevent people from sneaking onto runways and planes at major U.S. airports, authorities are cracking down not on the intruders who slip through perimeter gates or jump over fences, but on the release of information about the breaches.
A year after an Associated Press investigation first revealed persistent problems with airports' outer defenses, breaches remain as frequent as ever about once every 10 days รข€” despite some investments to fortify the nation's airfields. As Americans wait in ever-longer security screening lines inside terminals, new documents show dozens more incidents happening outside perimeters than airports have disclosed.
At the same time, leaders at some airports and the U.S. Transportation Security Administration are saying some of the 345 incidents AP found shouldn't count as security breaches, even when intruders got deep into secure areas.
Was it a perimeter security breach in March 2015 when a woman walked past a vehicle exit gate at San Francisco International Airport and onto the tarmac, where she tried to flag down a jet for a trip home to Guatemala? No it was not, said the airport and TSA officials, who also tried to suppress information about the case.
After discussing intrusions openly at first, officials at several airports and the TSA started withholding details, arguing the release could expose vulnerabilities.
Following a two-year legal struggle with the TSA, AP has now used newly released information to create the most comprehensive public tally of perimeter security breaches. The 345 incidents took place at 31 airports that handle three-quarters of U.S. passenger travel. And that's an undercount, because several airports refused to provide complete information.
The count shows that an intruder broke through the security surrounding one of those airports on average every 13 days from the beginning of 2004 through mid-February; starting in 2012, the average has been every 9.5 days. Many intruders scaled barbed wire-topped fences or walked past vehicle checkpoints. Others crashed cars into chain link and concrete barriers.
Government spending billions to keep antique computer systems running
By Associated Press | Fox News Politics | May 26, 2016
WASHINGTON – The government is squandering its technology budget maintaining museum-ready computer systems in critical areas from nuclear weapons to Social Security. They're still using floppy disks at the Pentagon.
In a report released Wednesday, nonpartisan congressional investigators found that about three-fourths of the $80 billion budget goes to keep aging technology running, and the increasing cost is shortchanging modernization.
The White House has been pushing to replace workhorse systems that date back more than 50 years in some cases. But the government is expected to spend $7 billion less on modernization in 2017 than in 2010, said the Government Accountability Office.
"Clearly, there are billions wasted," GAO information technology expert David Powner told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee at a hearing.
Although lawmakers of both parties say they are frustrated, it's unclear whether Congress will act. Part of the problem is finding money to invest in a transition to new systems at agencies across the government.
Among the vintage computing platforms highlighted in the report:
WASHINGTON – The government is squandering its technology budget maintaining museum-ready computer systems in critical areas from nuclear weapons to Social Security. They're still using floppy disks at the Pentagon.
In a report released Wednesday, nonpartisan congressional investigators found that about three-fourths of the $80 billion budget goes to keep aging technology running, and the increasing cost is shortchanging modernization.
The White House has been pushing to replace workhorse systems that date back more than 50 years in some cases. But the government is expected to spend $7 billion less on modernization in 2017 than in 2010, said the Government Accountability Office.
"Clearly, there are billions wasted," GAO information technology expert David Powner told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee at a hearing.
Although lawmakers of both parties say they are frustrated, it's unclear whether Congress will act. Part of the problem is finding money to invest in a transition to new systems at agencies across the government.
Among the vintage computing platforms highlighted in the report:
The GOP Establishment Has Learned Nothing From Its Failure
By Kurt Schlichter | Townhall.com | May 19, 2016
You would think that after the complete repudiation of the mainstream GOP establishment by its own voters that it might do some soul-searching. You would think that it might ask itself what it did wrong to facilitate the rise of Donald Trump. And you might also believe in unicorns.
No, instead of learning the lessons from 2016 that might help it avoid pain in the future, the establishment has chosen to learn different lessons, lessons that – shockingly – reinforce the same pre-existing notions that got us into this mess in the first place.
Who in the Republican establishment has stood up and said, “Hey, you know, the base really doesn't want millions of illegal aliens flooding into this country, so we need to stop trying to make amnesty happen.” Is there anyone who doesn’t think we’d have Marco Rubio as our nominee today if he hadn’t decided to ignore the voters and cozy up to Chuck Schumer?
Who in the Republican establishment has stood up and said, “Gee, maybe all these trade deals are great for the giant corporations who write us checks, but our base is made up largely of people who see themselves getting a raw deal.” Don’t fool yourself – Donald’s Trump’s resonance has less to do with him being a reality TV star than with his addressing the economic issues the Chamber of Commerce groupies hand-waved away. Dismissing him as some idiot box novelty bedazzling the proles with his glittering glamour is super-convenient – you both get to feel superior while avoiding having to consider the possibility that you might have to change.
And who in the Republican establishment has stood up and said, “Gosh, maybe we should actually do what we promised our voters we’d do when they sent us to Washington.” Remember that stuff about defunding Obamacare? You didn’t defund Obamacare. And when you get annoyed at your voters for expecting you to do what you promise to do – “But everyone here in Washington knew we didn’t mean it!” – that annoys your voters even more.
The result? About 80% of Republicans supported an outsider, a Trump or a Cruz or a Carson – anyone but one of the squishes you trotted out. Jeb Bush – are you kidding me? This is a guy who supports amnesty, supports Common Core, and hung a medal around Hillary’s wrinkly wattle. And you establishment types seriously thought, “Well, he sounds like the perfect successor to Presidents McCain and Romney!”
You would think that after the complete repudiation of the mainstream GOP establishment by its own voters that it might do some soul-searching. You would think that it might ask itself what it did wrong to facilitate the rise of Donald Trump. And you might also believe in unicorns.
No, instead of learning the lessons from 2016 that might help it avoid pain in the future, the establishment has chosen to learn different lessons, lessons that – shockingly – reinforce the same pre-existing notions that got us into this mess in the first place.
Who in the Republican establishment has stood up and said, “Hey, you know, the base really doesn't want millions of illegal aliens flooding into this country, so we need to stop trying to make amnesty happen.” Is there anyone who doesn’t think we’d have Marco Rubio as our nominee today if he hadn’t decided to ignore the voters and cozy up to Chuck Schumer?
Who in the Republican establishment has stood up and said, “Gee, maybe all these trade deals are great for the giant corporations who write us checks, but our base is made up largely of people who see themselves getting a raw deal.” Don’t fool yourself – Donald’s Trump’s resonance has less to do with him being a reality TV star than with his addressing the economic issues the Chamber of Commerce groupies hand-waved away. Dismissing him as some idiot box novelty bedazzling the proles with his glittering glamour is super-convenient – you both get to feel superior while avoiding having to consider the possibility that you might have to change.
And who in the Republican establishment has stood up and said, “Gosh, maybe we should actually do what we promised our voters we’d do when they sent us to Washington.” Remember that stuff about defunding Obamacare? You didn’t defund Obamacare. And when you get annoyed at your voters for expecting you to do what you promise to do – “But everyone here in Washington knew we didn’t mean it!” – that annoys your voters even more.
The result? About 80% of Republicans supported an outsider, a Trump or a Cruz or a Carson – anyone but one of the squishes you trotted out. Jeb Bush – are you kidding me? This is a guy who supports amnesty, supports Common Core, and hung a medal around Hillary’s wrinkly wattle. And you establishment types seriously thought, “Well, he sounds like the perfect successor to Presidents McCain and Romney!”
House votes to restrict Confederate flag in national cemeteries
By Cristina Marcos | TheHill.com \ May 19, 2016
The House approved a Democratic proposal on Thursday to limit the display of the Confederate flag in national cemeteries.
The amendment to a spending bill for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and military construction projects passed 265-159. A total of 158 Republicans opposed the amendment from Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), while 84 Republicans joined all but one Democrat in supporting it.
Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.), a centrist who is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, was the only Democrat to vote against the amendment. Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.) voted "present."
Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) expressed support for allowing the vote despite opposition from a majority of his conference.
"Last year it stopped the appropriations process in its tracks," he told reporters at a Capitol news conference after the vote.
"What changed is we have to get through these things, and if we're going to have open rules and appropriations, which we have, which is regular order, people are going to have to take tough votes.
And I think people are acknowledging this — this is the kind of conversation we've had all along with our members, which is tough votes happen in open rules.
"People have to get used to that fact. That's the way regular order works," he added. "People realize the last thing we should do is derail our own appropriations process."
Shortly after midnight on Thursday, Huffman offered his amendment to prohibit the large-scale display of the Confederate flag in cemeteries run by the VA, such as flying the banner over mass graves. It would, however, still allow families to place small Confederate flags on individual graves on Memorial Day and Confederate Memorial Day.
The House approved a Democratic proposal on Thursday to limit the display of the Confederate flag in national cemeteries.
The amendment to a spending bill for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and military construction projects passed 265-159. A total of 158 Republicans opposed the amendment from Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), while 84 Republicans joined all but one Democrat in supporting it.
Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.), a centrist who is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, was the only Democrat to vote against the amendment. Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.) voted "present."
Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) expressed support for allowing the vote despite opposition from a majority of his conference.
"Last year it stopped the appropriations process in its tracks," he told reporters at a Capitol news conference after the vote.
"What changed is we have to get through these things, and if we're going to have open rules and appropriations, which we have, which is regular order, people are going to have to take tough votes.
And I think people are acknowledging this — this is the kind of conversation we've had all along with our members, which is tough votes happen in open rules.
"People have to get used to that fact. That's the way regular order works," he added. "People realize the last thing we should do is derail our own appropriations process."
Shortly after midnight on Thursday, Huffman offered his amendment to prohibit the large-scale display of the Confederate flag in cemeteries run by the VA, such as flying the banner over mass graves. It would, however, still allow families to place small Confederate flags on individual graves on Memorial Day and Confederate Memorial Day.
Wednesday, May 18, 2016
Kerry slams Trump's wall, tells grads to prepare for 'borderless world'
By Pete Kasperowicz | the Washington Examiner | May 6, 2014
Secretary of State John Kerry took a shot at Donald Trump during his Friday commencement speech to Northeastern University graduates, by saying no wall is big enough to keep dangerous terrorists out of the United States.
"Many of you were in elementary school when you learned the toughest lesson of all on 9/11," he said in his speech at Boston Garden. "There are no walls big enough to stop people from anywhere, tens of thousands of miles away, who are determined to take their own lives while they target others."
"So I think that everything that we've lived and learn tells us that we will never come out on top if we accept advice from sound-bite salesmen and carnival barkers who pretend the most powerful country on Earth can remain great by looking inward," Kerry added. "And hiding behind walls at a time that technology has made that impossible to do and unwise to even attempt."
Kerry didn't mention Trump by name, but Trump has repeatedly called for a wall on the southern U.S. border, and many Democrats, and some Republicans, have taken to calling him a carnival barker.
Kerry also seemed to dismiss the importance of national borders, and said technology has reshaped the world into one that the U.S. must engage at the risk of being left behind. He said Trump and others who want to look inward are making a mistake, even in the face of rising tension and violence in the world.
"For some people, that is all they need simply to climb under the sheets, close their eyes and push the world away," Kerry said. "And shockingly, we even see this attitude from some who think they ought to be entrusted with the job of managing international affairs."
"The future demands from us something more than a nostalgia for some rose-tinted version of the past that did not really exist in any case," he said. "You're about to graduate into a complex and borderless world."
Secretary of State John Kerry took a shot at Donald Trump during his Friday commencement speech to Northeastern University graduates, by saying no wall is big enough to keep dangerous terrorists out of the United States.
"Many of you were in elementary school when you learned the toughest lesson of all on 9/11," he said in his speech at Boston Garden. "There are no walls big enough to stop people from anywhere, tens of thousands of miles away, who are determined to take their own lives while they target others."
"So I think that everything that we've lived and learn tells us that we will never come out on top if we accept advice from sound-bite salesmen and carnival barkers who pretend the most powerful country on Earth can remain great by looking inward," Kerry added. "And hiding behind walls at a time that technology has made that impossible to do and unwise to even attempt."
Kerry didn't mention Trump by name, but Trump has repeatedly called for a wall on the southern U.S. border, and many Democrats, and some Republicans, have taken to calling him a carnival barker.
Kerry also seemed to dismiss the importance of national borders, and said technology has reshaped the world into one that the U.S. must engage at the risk of being left behind. He said Trump and others who want to look inward are making a mistake, even in the face of rising tension and violence in the world.
"For some people, that is all they need simply to climb under the sheets, close their eyes and push the world away," Kerry said. "And shockingly, we even see this attitude from some who think they ought to be entrusted with the job of managing international affairs."
"The future demands from us something more than a nostalgia for some rose-tinted version of the past that did not really exist in any case," he said. "You're about to graduate into a complex and borderless world."
Monday, May 9, 2016
Simple Patriotism Trumps Ideology
"Then Mr. Trump comes and in his statements radiate the idea that he’s not at all interested in ideology, only in making America great again—through border security and tough trade policy, etc. He’s saying he’s on America’s side, period."
The wind is at Donald Trump’s back, and it’s the kind that doesn’t lessen but build. Last week he won the New York primary with an astounding 60% of the vote to John Kasich’s 25% and Ted Cruz’s 15%. This week he swept the five-state Northeast regional primaries with numbers that neared or surpassed the New York results—54% in Maryland, 57% in Pennsylvania, 58% in Connecticut, 61% in Delaware and 64% in Rhode Island. He beat Mr. Kasich in Greenwich, Conn., the affluent enclave of the old moderate Republicanism. Amazingly, he carried every county in all five states, and every county in New York except Manhattan. With 10 million votes, Mr. Trump is on track to become the biggest primary vote-getter in GOP history. He did well with varied demographic groups, old and young, college graduates, rich and not.
This is the kind of political momentum that tends to grow. A political saying attributed to Haley Barbour is that in politics this is the dynamic: Good gets better and bad gets worse. Very smart analysts and reporters have been translating all these victories into delegate counts, which of course is the key question. But as I look at where we are I think: Get your mind off 1,237; get your mind on the wind at Donald Trump’s back. After all the missteps and embarrassments of the past few months, his support is building.
“I consider myself the presumptive nominee,” Mr. Trump said in his victory remarks. He is.
ICE releases 19,723 criminal illegals, 208 convicted of murder, 900 of sex crimes
By Paul Bedard | Washington Examiner | April 28, 2016
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency in 2015 decided not to deport but release 19,723 criminal illegal immigrants, including 208 convicted of murder, over 900 convicted of sex crimes and 12,307 of drunk driving, according to new government numbers.
Overall, those released into virtually every state and territory of America had a total of 64,197 convictions among them, for an average of 3.25 convictions each, according to an analysis by the Center for Immigration Studies. ICE also said that the group were convicted of 8,234 violent crimes.
Meanwhile, ICE said that it has also slashed the number of criminals arrested in local communities, according to the Center's Director of Policy Studies, Jessica M. Vaughan. "In 2015, ICE made 119,772 arrests, or just half the number of arrests made in 2013, 232,287," she said in her analysis that also included a map of the releases.
The reason: Under President Obama's immigration policy changes, many criminal immigrants are being ignored even though local police and sheriff have urged ICE to take control of criminals in their jails and deport them.
She said that the slash of arrests is why the number of releases by ICE is down. In 2014, 30,000 criminal illegals were released.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Thursday is holding a hearing on the issue of the releases. In a preview of the issues in the hearing, the committee said, "Each year, Immigration and Customs Enforcement releases tens of thousands of criminal aliens eligible for deportation. After release, many go on to commit additional crimes. With new restrictions on immigration enforcement through the president's executive actions, only narrow classes of removable aliens are priorities for arrest, questioning, detention, or removal. Therefore, millions of removable aliens will be able to remain in the country."
ICE for the first time explained why the illegals were released, with more than half ordered free by courts and in over 2,100 cases because their home countries didn't want them back.
The issue of released criminal illegal immigrants has erupted on the presidential campaign trail and in Congress, especially because several have gone on to commit further crimes, including murder. Republican front runner Donald Trump, for example, refers to the 2015 murder of Kate Steinle by a released criminal undocumented immigrant on a popular San Francisco pier.
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency in 2015 decided not to deport but release 19,723 criminal illegal immigrants, including 208 convicted of murder, over 900 convicted of sex crimes and 12,307 of drunk driving, according to new government numbers.
Overall, those released into virtually every state and territory of America had a total of 64,197 convictions among them, for an average of 3.25 convictions each, according to an analysis by the Center for Immigration Studies. ICE also said that the group were convicted of 8,234 violent crimes.
Meanwhile, ICE said that it has also slashed the number of criminals arrested in local communities, according to the Center's Director of Policy Studies, Jessica M. Vaughan. "In 2015, ICE made 119,772 arrests, or just half the number of arrests made in 2013, 232,287," she said in her analysis that also included a map of the releases.
The reason: Under President Obama's immigration policy changes, many criminal immigrants are being ignored even though local police and sheriff have urged ICE to take control of criminals in their jails and deport them.
She said that the slash of arrests is why the number of releases by ICE is down. In 2014, 30,000 criminal illegals were released.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Thursday is holding a hearing on the issue of the releases. In a preview of the issues in the hearing, the committee said, "Each year, Immigration and Customs Enforcement releases tens of thousands of criminal aliens eligible for deportation. After release, many go on to commit additional crimes. With new restrictions on immigration enforcement through the president's executive actions, only narrow classes of removable aliens are priorities for arrest, questioning, detention, or removal. Therefore, millions of removable aliens will be able to remain in the country."
ICE for the first time explained why the illegals were released, with more than half ordered free by courts and in over 2,100 cases because their home countries didn't want them back.
The issue of released criminal illegal immigrants has erupted on the presidential campaign trail and in Congress, especially because several have gone on to commit further crimes, including murder. Republican front runner Donald Trump, for example, refers to the 2015 murder of Kate Steinle by a released criminal undocumented immigrant on a popular San Francisco pier.
Sunday, May 8, 2016
Denmark ethics council calls for tax on red meat to fight 'ethical problem' of climate change
With cattle contributing a tenth of global emissions, people are 'ethically obliged' to change their eating habits, an influential government think tank says
Denmark is considering proposals to introduce a tax on red meat, after a government think tank came to the conclusion that “climate change is an ethical problem”.
The Danish Council of Ethics recommended an initial tax on beef, with a view to extending the regulation to all red meats in future. It said that in the long term, the tax should apply to all foods at varying levels depending on climate impact.
The council voted in favour of the measures by an overwhelming majority, and the proposal will now be put forward for consideration by the government.
In a press release, the ethics council said Denmark was under direct threat from climate change, and it was not enough to rely on the “ethical consumer” to ensure the country meets its UN commitments.
“The Danish way of life is far from climate-sustainable, and if we are to live up to the Paris Agreement target of keeping the global temperature rise 'well' below 2°C, it is necessary both to act quickly and involve food,” the council said.
Cattle alone account for some 10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, while the production of food as a whole makes up between 19 and 29 per cent, the council said.
Danes were “ethically obliged” to change their eating habits, it said, adding that it is “unproblematic” to cut out beef and still enjoy a healthy and nutritious diet.
All you need to know about processed meat and cancer
“For a response to climate-damaging food to be effective, while also contributing to raise awareness of the challenge of climate change, it must be shared,” said council spokesman Mickey Gjerris.
“This requires society to send a clear signal through regulation.”
It has been a tough few months for fans of red meat, with consumption down after the World Health Organisation warned of an associated cancer risk.
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