With no big news items on Trump or Brexit, an opportunity to pick up on two items seen in the past week on related items.
The first is evidence of the way in which inconvenient truths can be sidelined - by re-posting employees not toeing the party line to jobs that would most likely cause them to resign. In the case of Joel Clement, now former director of the Office of Policy Analysis at the U.S. Interior Department, this did not quite go to plan. He turned Whistleblower and went public to the Washington Post (https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/im-a-scientist-the-trump-administration-reassigned-me-for-speaking-up-about-climate-change/2017/07/19/389b8dce-6b12-11e7-9c15-177740635e83_story.html?tid=ss_fb&utm_term=.8e1165461f22). Joe helped endangered communities in Alaska prepare for and adapt to a changing climate. He had been raising the difficult situation they were in several times. In his own words:
"The Alaska Native villages of Kivalina, Shishmaref and Shaktoolik are perilously close to melting into the Arctic Ocean. In a region that is warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet, the land upon which citizens’ homes and schools stand is newly vulnerable to storms, floods and waves. As permafrost melts and protective sea ice recedes, these Alaska Native villages are one superstorm from being washed away, displacing hundreds of Americans and potentially costing lives. The members of these communities could soon become refugees in their own country."
Sadly for the Alaskans, a population of 741,894 (2016), two Senators and 1 Congressman, any complaints or environmental concerns will be a minor irritation, lost in the melee of US politics.
The second was a well informed rant by Jay Rayner in an open letter to Environment Minister Michael Gove. Jay's concerns were about food security and sustainability with Brexit (http://www.jayrayner.co.uk/news/michael-gove-asked-me-to-a-meeting-to-share-my-expertise-i-declined-instead-ive-given-him-a-piece-of-my-mind/). It was scattered with facts such as the UK only produced 50% of it food supply it consumes at present, in contrast to 70% back in the 1990's; with a higher demand for protein in Asia, it could be more difficult to maintain imports at low costs to the UK. With Brexit, food inflation is likely to enter double digits for the years to come.
Where I perhaps diverge from Jay is in his view, that with sustainability and quality issues, educating the public will lead to an acceptance of possible food price rises. If food prices rise, those with ever decreasing income in the UK might find that when confronted with hunger, cheaper chlorinated chicken or hormone-fed beef from the US becomes a simple survival choice.
One way to save at present is of course to forgo a holiday abroad. The pound has plummeted to €1.11. Expect costs of other imported goods to rise.
We took a trip out to Wicken, away from these worries, to visit artists active in Open Studios this weekend (https://www.camopenstudios.co.uk/).
Our first stop was at the joint studios of abstract printer/painter Terry Beard and potter Stephen Murfitt. Terry was my mentor when I started out in 2004. Our conversation shifted with Terry showing me how she worked, Stephen giving Jane an explanation on his techniques and how we researched and developed our ideas for a work.
We then went on to see multimedia artist with dreamy landscapes, Janene Elise Pike and Lindy Jane Rainbow who made gently shaded needle quilted pictures, further worked with stitching. I could see potential for book illustrations there.
The disappointment of the day - my strawberry jam has not set, though it is thickened. Improvement planned.
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