USA – Things Are Good

Your City Could Improve Thanks to World War Oil

The American/Israel bombing of Iran and the subsequent closing of the Strait of Hormuz has sent shockwaves around the world, particularly to places that consume fossil fuels. Indeed, the energy disruption is so severe that a global recession is inevitable and that countries the world over are rethinking their commitment to burning fossil fuels.

Not Just Bikes takes a look at the current, and growing, oil shortage through the lens of how cities improve when the costs of oil increases. He looks at the last major oil crisis in the 1970s and how different parts of the world reacted. Spoiler: modern Amsterdam exists in part thanks to the high cost of oil. Governments change policies and laws to reduce reliance on oil and promote good urban design that puts people as the priority rather than cars.

There are things you can do right now to reduce your oil consumption to save money and the planet, and maybe even reduce the American desire to invade countries for oil. You can ride a bike, get solar panels, use an electric stove, and so much more!

Of course, if governments allocated subsidies to renewables and away from fossil fuels then we wouldn’t be in this position at all. People don’t go to war over sunshine.

Canada Continues to Defend Sovereignty with “Elbows Up”

Peace Tower at Parliament Hill in Ottawa

America openly threatened Canadian sovereignty last year and has engaged in a planned economic destruction of the nation. The Republican Party views the entire hemisphere as theirs and is actively invading or influencing political operations in sovereign countries. Canadians do not like the stance that their ally has taken; and to make their concerns heard they have launched a boycott of the USA. It’s working. The American economy is being hurt by Canadians not buying their booze and not visiting the nation.

Where’s the good news in this? It’s working. Canadians have made it clear to the American government that we are not to be trifled with and that sovereignty is important to us. Canadians are not giving up either.

The shift has affected everything from what brands Canadians buy to where they vacation to how they vote. There are economic implications on both sides of the border that policymakers are taking into account. Polling suggests the altered behavior won’t change anytime soon.
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“We’ve always seen the U.S. as a very strong and reliable ally,” said Michael Devereux, an economics professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. “That has really been undermined in the last year.”

Canadians began moving their food purchases away from the U.S. starting in early 2025, a data analysis released last month from the Bank of Canada found. Domestic brands gained wallet share as retailers and liquor stores encouraged shoppers to instead buy Canadian

198 Methods of Nonviolent Action

protest

More than 7 million Americans hit the streets to protest the authoritarian Trump regime in the USA, they rallied under the banner No Kings. Unsurprisingly, the protests were peaceful and looked nothing like the pro-Trump attempted Jan 6 insurrection from years ago. It’s a good thing to see Americans out on the streets expressing their discontent with their federal leadership. In a thriving democracy protests are connected and intertwined with adjacent efforts to change whatever problem there is (in America’s case it’s the rise of authoritarianism), plus individuals can make their own difference in their workplace or community. The Albert Einstein Institution has a list of 198 methods of nonviolent actions that people can take to ensure that we continue to live in democracies.

Undoubtedly, a large number of additional methods have already been used but have not been classified, and a multitude of additional methods will be invented in the future that have the characteristics of the three classes of methods: nonviolent protest and persuasion, noncooperation and nonviolent intervention.

It must be clearly understood that the greatest effectiveness is possible when individual methods to be used are selected to implement the previously adopted strategy. It is necessary to know what kind of pressures are to be used before one chooses the precise forms of action that will best apply those pressures

Read the list.

Time to Move Away from Suburbia

the suburbs — Generic car focussed housing development.

The future is 15 minutes away and it’s high time we get there. With the climate crisis in full swing we need to rethink unsustainable lifestyles and restructure unsustainable urban design into sustainable living. The concept of the 15 minutes city has gained popularity and captures the core idea of what we need to do. Even if we don’t build 15 minute cities it is abundantly clear that we need to move away from low density high energy suburban development. In the car-dominated USA they are looking into ways to increase livability of communities by decreasing car dependency.

Some proponents of new urban developments imagine a future where cars are obsolete. It is just as feasible, however, to implement city designs that allow for vehicle use without becoming dependent on it. In Utah, plans for a new 15-minute-city include 40,000 parking spots, all inside or underground, out of view from pedestrians. This leaves space available for wider paths, outdoor dining, and greenways that enhance community. Without having to make space for cars, all city amenities are within close proximity and enjoyable to walk between.

Federal legislation is also contributing to a growing acceptance of alternatives to car-centric transportation systems. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee highway bill increases pedestrian safety provisions and increases funding to bike sharing and mass transit. Unfortunately, it falls short of addressing the heart of the issue (cars). In fact, it grants $220 billion to highway development programs. It also fails to include any provisions for metro system carbon emission targets.

Canada Implements Handgun Ban

Mass shootings in the USA have tripled in the last few decades with mass shootings becoming an almost daily occurrence. Canadians are no strangers to mass shoutings either, with too many happening within the country. Obviously, that’s not good. The Canadian government has responded to this dangerous increase in firearm usage by banning certain guns, limiting others, eliminating toy guns that look like real ones, and to try and reduce the inflow of guns smuggled into the country from the States.

It’s good to see Canada acting to enforce existing laws while increasing limits on who can legally use a gun. In this case it’s a clear example of policy before police.

Canada’s government introduced legislation Monday to implement a “national freeze” on the sale and purchase of handguns as part of a gun control package that would also limit magazine capacities and ban some toys that look like guns.

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Authorities do not expect a run on handguns in anticipation of the freeze, in part because they are so heavily regulated already, an official said in a briefing.