Without Major Interventions, the Orca’s Days Are Numbered By Dahr Jamail | Truthout November 30, 2016 No one is certain of the total number of orcas (otherwise known as “killer whales”) that exist in the wild. However, estimates are now around 100,000, and populations are dwindling. In Washington State’s Puget Sound and San Juan Islands, the once-large population of orcas has declined to around 80 whales, and the Puget Sound orcas are on the US government’s endangered species list. ...

Trump’s election has sabotaged any prospect of reigning in the global warming crisis by Max Wilbert / Deep Green Resistance – On Tuesday night, the American people decided to elect Donald J. Trump, a billionaire business mogul and reality TV star who has been accused of raping or otherwise sexually assaulting twenty-three women, who has called for banning immigration to the United States, and who has built a campaign on virulent racism. ...

Yesterday, Deep Green Resistance members Kyle Lee and Dave Hyde had their charges dropped in Whatcom County District Court. They were originally charged with trespassing, resisting arrest, and obstructing a train in connection with a 12-hour coal train blockade that took place on August 27th. The blockade was an attempt to directly interfere with and halt the extraction, transportation, and burning of coal, and utilized knowledge of the land, terrain, and other tactical advantages to be as effective as possible. ...

October 19th, 2016 The burning of coal is warming the climate and contributing to a major planetary emergency. On August 27th, activists in Bellingham used non-violent action to delay a mile-long coal train headed to Vancouver for 12 hours. I, along with two other members of Deep Green Resistance, was arrested. We are very concerned that nothing is being done to keep coal in the ground. Unfortunately, with laws written by legislators who are beholden to corporate money, what options do we have? ...

Sakej (James Ward) belongs to the wolf clan. He is Mi’kmaw (Mi’kmaq Nation) from the community of Esgenoopetitj (Burnt Church First Nation, New Brunswick). He is the father of nine children, four grandchildren. He resides in Shxw’owhamel First Nation, B.C. with his wife Melody Andrews and their children. He is a veteran of both the Canadian and American militaries. He finished his military career at the rank of Sergeant in an elite Airborne unit. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science with a specialization in International Relations and a Master’s of Arts Degree in Indigenous Governance. ...

The planet needs commandos It wasn’t until the 1940’s that what we think of as the “commando” or special forces units were standardized by the British Army. With the goal of disrupting German forces in western France and later in the Mediterranean and North Africa, the first commando units were modeled on small groups of Arab fighters who had great success pinning down much larger British Army units during the uprisings in Palestine in the 1930’s. ...

One week ago, three activists from Deep Green Resistance blocked a coal train in Bellingham, Washington. One climbed a tripod on the tracks, and when he was taken down two others locked onto the train further down the line. All told, the blockade held for 12 hours. With only three arrests, this is one of the most strategic and longest-lasting train blockades we’ve ever heard of. ...

On Saturday August 27th, activists for ecological defense blocked a northbound BNSF coal train for twelve hours at the Chuckanut Bay railroad bridge south of Bellingham, Wash. in an effort to directly halt the transportation of coal on-route for shipment overseas. The activists, many who represent the organization Deep Green Resistance, initially blocked the open-faced train with a tripod set up on a rail trestle beginning at around 4pm Saturday. When the activist in the tripod was finally extracted by law enforcement eight hours later, a second group of activists locked themselves in an undisclosed location somewhere along the halted mile-and-a-half long train. It was around 3am when the two additional locked-down activists were finally discovered and cut out of their devices. All three activists were charged with trespassing, resisting arrest and obstruction of a train. ...

Sick to the stomach. That’s how I felt after reading this story. But surprised? No. The USFS and other government agencies commonly ignore regulations and prioritize the economy over the natural world. That’s been their way for more than 150 years. The insanity is clear. Mick Lamar, chief of the local fire crew, defended the line as ’less damaging to the forest’ than a fire would have been. “Nobody wants a vacation home on a blacked-out hillside,” he said. Does he not understand that fire is natural and essential to many forests? That vacation homes are less important than endangered species? That burned forests contain more biodiversity than logged forests? Of the cut, one biologist said that “trees larger than allowed were cut, streamside buffers ignored, and operating just ran all over the place compacting soils.” Another said, “Why don’t we STOP and THINK and PLAN?!” That wasn’t going to happen. We invite you to read this Seattle Times article and come to your own conclusions about the effectiveness of forest policy and the priorities of this culture when it comes to destroying the planet vs. protecting the economy. ...

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