But before the topic of the day, I should mention that today is the most confusing Federal holiday we have, Juneteenth National Independence Day, commemorating the end of slavery in the country. - In 1863 Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation ending slavery.
- Juneteenth is a portmaneau of the words June and nineteenth, as it was on June 19, 1865, when Texas ended the Civil War between the Union and seceding south, and officially, slavery in these states.
- Although, from that day to December 6, 1865--when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified--there were still slaves in the states that never left the Union.
- This day was recognized as a Federal holiday in 2021 when President Biden signed the Juneteenth act into law.
- Juneteenth is the first new holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983.
- So is today a paid holiday for workers?
- Yes, if you are employed by the Federal government.
- Yes, if you are in one of the 29 states and DC that made it a paid worker holiday. This number keeps increasing each year.
- Yes, if you are among the 41% of large companies honoring this day as such.
- But FedEx and UPS are open, and so are many stores. The stock market and banks are closed.
- These states have NOT made Juneteenth official, so no state holiday:
- According to the most recent data from Pew Research Center, the following states have not made Juneteenth official: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Vermont, Wisconsin, Wyoming. Then there are those blue states that seem to be in some state of transition, and Illinois only provides a day off if it falls on a weekday.
- There are also other names for today, depending on where you are, like Emancipation Day, Freedom Day and Jubilee Day.
- How do communities celebrate this day? Parades, parties, concerts, educational workshops and cultural events centered on art and cuisine.
- This was the score of the annual Congressional Baseball Game, which began in 1909, and is currently played in the Washington National's major league ballpark.
- In 1926 Republicans paraded in with a live elephant.
There have been postponements, for nuisances such as the Great Depression and World War II. Speaker Sam Rayburn ended the series in 1958 because he said it was too physically straining members, and causing injuries.- But the competition continued in 1959, and there has been a game every year but 2020 because of COVID-19.
- In 2017, a 66-year old James Hodgkinson opened fire on Republican members of Congress who were just practicing, 6 were shot and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise was badly injured. Capital Police killed him.
In 1979 Rep. Ron Paul was the first to ever to hit a home run over the wall. They wear the uniform of their state major league or college team. He's a medical doctor who ran for president three times. Son Rand is a current U.S. Senator from Kentucky.- Want to see the 2024 31-11 massacre, which included 8 protesters storming the field during game? Click here. Sold 25,000 $10 tickets, and combined with other activities, made $2 million for charities this year.
Oh, there is also a Congressional Women's Softball Game. Women in Congress versus the DC press corps.
- Last year, the Bad News Babes beat Congress, 15-9, and raised $588,000 for charity.
- This year, the 16th annual game, is on June 26 at the Watkins Recreational Center.
Did you know that June 2 was Global Heat Action Day?
- CO2 emissions in the atmosphere are increasing. Average CO2 emissions in May were 426.7 ppm, an increase of 2.92 ppm over May 2023's measurement of 423.78 ppm. The accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere is increasing at the fastest rate ever, far above any experienced during human existence.
- CDR (carbon dioxide removal): Technology-based carbon dioxide removal is surging, led by rapid development of methodologies to verify carbon crediting and CDR certification. Although most of these methodologies are being revised, the field has been reduced to the final seven, all of which are considered reliable: two are private, while five are part of independent standards endorsed by the International Carbon Reduction and Offset Alliance.
Europe: It appears that Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine was a strategic blunder. Among other unintended consequences:
- Russia's net economy is smaller than that of Texas.
- China does not appear as interested in connecting to Russia's natural gas pipelines.
- Gazprom, Russia's largest nationalized oil company, had been profitable every year for more than 20 consecutive years, until the war in Ukraine.
- For the first time, the US has surpassed Russia in sales of natural gas to the EU.
- An old quote: "Russia: a gas station masquerading as a country.”- The late Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.)
- Another: "$104 for groceries sounds like a bargain ... until you realize Russians earn less than $200 a week."- John Stewart of the Daily Show, on the state of the Russian economy
A popular joke in Ukraine:
A Russian mуж (husband) catches a hare.
He brings it to his wife: “Roast it!”
She: “No gas!”
He: “Then use the microwave.”
She: “No electricity!”
He: “Well, chop some wood, light the stove.”
She: “No wood!”
The mуж then throws the hare out the window in a fit of anger. The hare gets up, shakes himself, and shouts, “Long live Ukraine!”"
- Fifty years ago, "Tornado Alley" in the United States was Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and parts of Texas. The new modern-day Tornado Alley is the Deep South and Tennessee Valley.
- Did you know that heat kills three times more people than hurricanes?
- Heard of Heat Katrina?
- Some years ago, I was at my brother's home in Las Vegas. It was 113 F outside. A sudden brownout. No electricity. Problem? Nope. We drove to a nearby casino and waited until it was safe. All casino have their own power generators.
- From This is Not Cool.
Last year, researchers at Georgia Institute of Technology, Arizona State University and the University of Michigan published a study looking at the consequences of a major blackout during an extreme heat wave in three cities: Phoenix, Detroit and Atlanta. In the study, the cause of the blackout was unspecified. The researchers modeled the health consequences for residents in a two-day, citywide blackout during a heat wave, with electricity gradually restored over the next three days.
The results were shocking: In Phoenix, about 800,000 people — roughly half the population — would need emergency medical treatment for heatstroke and other illnesses. The flood of people seeking care would overwhelm the city’s hospitals. More than 13,000 people would die.
- Phoenix will likely experience two Heat Katrina days this summer.
- In his must-read book The Heat Will Kill You First, author Jeff Goodell talks to an Arizona State University infrastructure expert about the likelihood of a “Hurricane Katrina of extreme heat,” an event in which a power failure during a heat wave kills thousands of people, with government authorities dangerously unprepared.
- But what truly makes Phoenix’s slow-motion heat disaster so deadly is the government’s struggle to protect vulnerable citizens. Most residents exist in “air-conditioned bubbles” from April to October, as author Andrew Needham noted last year. They only experience extreme heat in the brief moments when they are forced to move from one bubble to another — from the SUV to the Safeway, say.
- $215 Trillion to Save Planet Is a Bargain: Gongloff & Denning.
- It’s Hotter Than Anytime Since the Birth of Jesus: F.D. Flam.
- Related, this is India's longest-lasting heatwave — 100+ degrees (reaching 113) for 24 consecutive days, and counting.
- Know what is geoengineering of climate change? I wrote about it more than 16 years ago in the Huffington Post.
- Yellow regions will be at the greatest risk of electricity supply shortfall this summer.
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