Free Republic

Today, we have a fascinating interview with Jeannette Cooper, a mom who lost custody of her child three years ago for not fully, unquestioningly accepting her daughter's claim that she was transgender. We discuss Jeannette's experience, and she talks about how she believes there is a social aspect to the sudden surge in kids who claim not to be the gender they were born as and what it was like to have to basically be excised from her daughter's life over this issue. Jeannette also tells us how she's been working over the past three years to raise awareness about...

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York state is banning natural gas stoves and heating systems in most new buildings, a policy that’s part of a national movement aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The law negotiated by Gov. Kathy Hochul and her fellow Democrats in the Legislature is part of the state budget and puts New York in the forefront of states targeting emissions from buildings. When the phase-in starts in 2026, newly constructed buildings will have to forego fossil fuel equipment in favor of devices like induction ranges and heat pumps that run on electricity. The state mandate applies...

California suffers from a homelessness crisis, a drug epidemic, high taxes, and affordability issues, but there’s one thing the state’s residents won’t have to worry about in the future: diesel trucks. That’s because state regulators on Friday approved a rule that would forbid the sales of diesel vehicles by 2036 and require all trucks to be zero emissions by 2042.The California Air Resources Board also unanimously approved the Advanced Clean Fleets rule which will require delivery and garbage trucks to be electric.From the Associated Press:The rule cannot be implemented without approval by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. But it’s related...

Democrats’ highly expensive environmental policies have been developed without any meaningful strategic thinking or analyses about raw materials and geopolitics.Ford Motor Company recently announced it’s set to lose more than $6 billion on its latest electric vehicle plants while it gets them running, with the company CEO saying “we cannot continue to import batteries and rare earth from overseas.”“We can build all the plants, but what’s the good if we’re importing batteries?” he continued, highlighting U.S. mine closures and global shortages of the rare earths required for the batteries that power these cars.Joe Biden declared war on fossil fuels on...

California is taking action to curb locomotive emissions operating within its borders as part of the state's sweeping climate agenda. On Thursday, the California Air Resource Board (CARB), a state agency tasked with protecting air quality and reducing harmful pollution, announced that it would pursue aggressive regulations to limit freight train emissions. The so-called In-Use Locomotive Regulation makes California the first state to tackle freight train emissions which represent just 0.5% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to federal data.

Americans can’t afford to buy food, so Biden decided that they also shouldn’t be able to heat their homes during the winter. After an “environmental” measure that would prevent a majority of the country from being able to afford new cars, Biden is now going after their power bills. The latest EPA proposal would mandate ‘carbon capture’ at power plants. A study by MIT showed that carbon capture raises the cost of electricity from 30% to 50% depending on the type of plant. Another study by Australia’s Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis however showed that prices could actually...

New York state leaders led by Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul reached an agreement late Thursday on the state's 2024 budget which includes a future ban on natural gas hookups in new building construction. Under the budget deal, natural gas hookups will be banned in small buildings beginning in 2025 and large buildings beginning in 2028, according to Hochul. The governor said in remarks that the budget insulates households from "exorbitant energy bills" while helping the state build a "more sustainable future." "Everyone knows we've seen the effects of climate change — the storms, the hurricanes coming to New York, record...