Supreme Court deals a blow to climate change fight

The Supreme Court has ruled on the Environmental Protection Agency's authority to regulate carbon emissions from existing power plants. CNN's Jessica Schneider reports. #CNN #News

73 comments

    1. @Bonnie An infant is a developing human being. A teenager is a developing human being. Are they not humans?

    2. @Bonnie It’s impossible to take away a right that didn’t exist in the first place.

  1. Why not, the SCOTUS majority believes that the earth is just 6,000 years old. So God can just etch-a-sketch it and start all over no problemo.

    1. @bluzzjazz In evolutionary theory, *adaptation* is the biological mechanism by which organisms adjust to new environments or to changes in their current environment. The adjustment is NOT individual but encompasses the entire group. Some within the group may have features that allow them to survive on less drinking water while others are highly dependent on abundant drinking water due to subtle variations in their gene make up resulting in physiological differences. When weather patterns change resulting in extended period of low rainfall, those members able to survive on less water live longer and have more offspring whose characteristics are expressed in subsequent generations of that species. Natural selection is the process through which populations of living organisms adapt and change. Individuals in a population are naturally variable, meaning that they are all different in some ways. This variation means that some individuals have traits better suited to the environment than others. THAT is how a species adapts. The process over time results in speciation which collectively produces the overarching phenomenon known as EVOLUTION!

      Articulating opposable thumbs is an adaptation that made Apes better equipped to make and utilize tools. That’s an adaption that took place over the course of millennia. And natural selection operates in such a way that certain variations result in better survivability and procreation (resulting in the passage of those variations through progeny) of certain members due to changes in the environment. All of that together in total is the THEORY of EVOLUTION.

      What you refer to as intelligent design implies some intent towards specific traits that somehow directs these changes. Evolution theory is supported by examination of:
      Anatomy: Species may share similar physical features because the feature was present in a common ancestor (homologous structures).

      Molecular biology. DNA and the genetic code reflect the shared ancestry of life. …

      Biogeography: the study of the geographical distribution of organisms, provides information about how and when species may have evolved.

      Fossils: Fossils provide evidence for the evolutionary change through now extinct forms that led to modern species. For example, there is a rich fossil record that shows the evolutionary transitions from horse ancestors to modern horses that document intermediate forms and a gradual adaptation to changing ecosystems

      Direct observation: .Direct observation of microevolution occurs when evidence for evolution can be seen as it is taking place around us! Important modern-day examples of evolution include the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria and pesticide-resistant insects.

      Intelligent Design simply infers, WITHOUT evidence, some conscious intention behind all these processes.

    2. @SagePerception They are welcome to do whatever they want until it affects me.

      And religious people in government does.

      It will be a while before anyone can run for public office without making some pretense of piety while campaigning.

    3. @Robert Franz Illhan Omar is “religious”.there are plenty of religious people in govt that know how to do their job. There are a group of fundamentalist evangelicals that people view when they think Religious and I agree they are more dangerous than good. Hungry for power and use religion for cultural appeal to the fundies of America . However in reality they are not representative of the thousands of people that practice their faith and serve in govt.

  2. “We came here to create a dystopian future and chew bubble gum. And we’re all out of bubble gum!” ~SCOTUS

    1. @Charles Finnegan so you’re fine with the “government” stipulating teaching, religion, woman’s ability to determine whether they carry a pregnancy to term, who choose to have sex with, who you marry and so on and so forth? As long as it’s done by gerrymandered state legislatures it’s all cool?

  3. One devastating blow after another. Let’s force unwanted pregnancies and then not protect our planet so that it is not clean and safe for those children.

    1. @Roe your boat down your tearsI’m actually not seeing your point 🤷‍♀️ where did I say anything about people needing to totally stop using electricity? Are you saying that because I think we should be trying to work towards having a cleaner environment and making sure we leave a healthy planet for our children and their children? I’m not sure how anyone, that’s not a money hungry oil executive would disagree with that. But go ahead make some childish outlandish and unrealistic comment.

  4. The Koch backed Federalist Society judges should’ve recused themselves. They are giving the fossil fuel industry their return on investment.

    1. @Waldemar Marchesi not to mention the public worker unions which are the top donors to political campaigns every year.

    2. Envy is a sour taste in your mouth, when you can’t afford your Al Gore Memorial Utility Bill.

  5. The environmental protection agency doesn’t have broad authority to regulate air & water? Seems counterintuitive. 🤔

    1. @robert hicks honestly I think it is admirable that you have such a dedication to this country, but it seems like your anger is misplaced.

    2. @Bonnie EPA is unelected bureaucrats setting policy, that is congresses job. Can you vote out anyone at the EPA?? Didn’t think so.

    3. @American Human Of course they delegate their authority. Do you know how many aides/assistants they have that they delegate their authority to???

  6. Anyone else feel like we have front row seats to the end of the world, and the people who are cheering it on are only doing so to score a cheap rhetorical victory?

    1. Every time I hear news about the Supreme Court in the US from here in the UK, it feels like it continuously. And absolute bloody disaster which makes no sense. So the Supreme Court in the US is allowed to be politicised like this on issues that shouldn’t even be political, it’s just bloody ridiculous.

    2. @Daniel Whyatt people don’t understand what it is for. It made it so Congress has to decide. Otherwise people that were never elected get to decide what happens instead of the people. Our government is supposed to work for us not the other way. We the People.

    1. @amber fuchscia Oh the horror, a unelected bureaucrat won’t be able to make rules according to their ideological viewpoint….oh the humanity.

  7. How can those who claim to care so much about bringing a human life into the world care so little about the quality of life of those brought into the world and the environment in which they are to live?

    1. @Warren bang. Around the corner to grocery store?? Dude , you live in a city, not that way for everybody. Besides that, how does the groceries get to the store around the corner? Do you think the store makes groceries there ? Do the truckers become Walkers and walk the goods from farms around the next corner to the store?

    2. @Deborah, the farmers could buy electric tractors, just like Tesla cars. The cost of those tractors is just like Tesla cars, expensive. If you are willing to pay double or triple for your food, then electric tractors could happen. Next, farmers got the new tractors, now to charge them… ok , hope you like when current peak power outage times occur, like when people get up in morning and shower and cook, afternoon when ac s turn on, evening when TVs lights cooking etc… because the power to charge a tractor to work is way way more, waaaaay more than a car. The power outage would last pretty much all summer. So if your good with that, good for you. But the rest of us are not. There is nowhere near enough electric generating capacity to support this switch over to green now and won’t be for many years. The climate has been changing because of mother nature for billions of years, all onit’s own. We can affect certain environment aspects, but mother nature has the climate controls and the ultimate say.

  8. I am beginning to wonder that maybe the courts are the biggest threat to our democracy not politicians. Politicians can be voted out of office. Supreme Court Justices cannot. So maybe we need term limits here as well?

    1. @V for Wombat The EPA was *independent* of government and therefore not subject to political bias. Giving the power to government means decisions will be made according to *party* values . A strongly pro business party will water down environmental laws. Also, it makes environmental protection a party political issue. America is already so politically divided that the U might as well be left out of the country’s name. The more issues that become party political, the more disunited America will become.

    2. @gary quarty The EPA is a statutory body. Statutory meaning it can only regulate and carry out laws *already made by congress*
      This decision limits the power of the EPA to regulate power plants.
      In other words, it is *political interference* in an independent body’s ability to operate.

  9. “Only when the last tree has been cut down, only after the last river has been poisoned, only when the last fish has been caught, only then will you find that money cannot be eaten. ” Cree First Nation Prophecy
    Greed and stupidity again have prevailed over common sense and morality!

    1. Unfortunately with how many people live on earth now it’s forced people to live in very hot climates. Something that would have never happend without Aircon

  10. It’s supposed to be government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish – not government by the courts for religious zealots.

    1. It’s religious zealots who came up with your first statement fleeing monarchy rule in the old country 🤔.

    2. @Robert Marmaduke One would have to be either a willful ignoramus or an idiot to think, let alone repeat, what Bob here just posted.

  11. The court seems to be checking off GOP talking points, religious motives, campaign promises and goals. This court is politically motivated when it should only be acting with strict jurisprudence.

    1. @Ryan Elliott Don’t respond to this Brandon Chaney dude, he appears to be a troll trying to change the subject, divert the conversation away from an argument that he is loosing.

    2. @Paul Wilson how is taking away out rights giving us back rights? If anything we out going back to the past i’m sorry that i want to live in the future not the passed.

    3. @John Freedman do you really believe they will pass those savings onto the consumer? Thats just more money for ceo’s.

    4. @Michael DuBray It’s possible. That would actually land them more money overall, but due to the current political climate a bunch seem like they are trying to leave the industry. One of the largest diesel plans is being refitted to do recyclable plastic polymers instead for example.

  12. In all my 69 years did I ever hear so much about the rulings from the Supreme Court than i have these past 5 years . And to think they have the power to change our lives , but not in a good way.

    1. @9 Foot Cumshot Of course not. But they have the power to interpret the Constitution so that they can *limit or overturn laws*. Given that the Constitution is very loosely worded it leaves a lot of room for ideological rather than strictly judicial interpretations,

  13. This isn’t a blow to “climate change” this is a direct blow to regulatory (non elected) bodies creating law / rules that carry the same weight as law. In a Democracy we vote for our representatives.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.