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US conservatives stake claim to climate activism with Miami rally

MIAMI (REUTERS) – For Mr Benji Backer, being conservative means believing in limited government, market-based solutions – and the scientists who say carbon emissions must be cut to avoid the worst of climate change. Mr Backer’s non-profit, the American Conservation Coalition (ACC), held what it billed as the country’s first conservative climate rally in Miami, part of an effort by the 23-year-old activist to convince fellow right-leaning Americans they do not have to be liberals to support action on the issue. It included a handful of Republican politicians from south Florida, which faces climate threats including tidal floods from rising seas, stronger hurricanes and health risks from higher temperatures and humidity. “The environment does not have a preferred political party,” Mr Backer said from a podium, overlooking a bay near where the United States Army Corps of Engineers has proposed a US$6 billion (S$8 billion) sea wall. “Today, conservatives are reclaiming our seat at the environmental table.” An avid skier and hiker, Mr Backer began organising ACC while a college freshman and becoming dismayed with then President Donald Trump, who said climate change was a hoax created by the Chinese. The group said it hopes its membership, currently

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Celebrity Cruises Begins Caribbean Comeback With First Sailing From St. Maarten

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten, June 5, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — With celebration and fanfare, Celebrity Cruises’ much-anticipated return to cruising became a reality today, as the new-luxury Celebrity Millennium set sail from the picturesque Caribbean port of Philipsburg, St. Maarten. Both a first for the industry in North America and the first of Celebrity’s fleet to return to sailing, Celebrity Millennium embarks on a seven-night itinerary visiting the treasured islands of Aruba, Barbados and Curacao, thrilling guests who have waited 15 months to experience the wonders of the world by sea.The sailing also represents the first time Celebrity Cruises has homeported in St. Maarten, one of the most beautiful and vibrant Caribbean islands, where the cruise line now begins sailing Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries through August. “Today, we sail, again! This is such a significant moment for our company, our industry and the Caribbean. That this day has finally arrived for our guests and our crew is truly special – beyond words, really,” said Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, President and CEO of Celebrity Cruises. “I am so happy to have our crew back onboard doing what they love and providing amazing vacations and service to our guests. I also am extremely grateful to the leadership

While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, June 6

Apec trade ministers pledge to expedite flow of Covid-19 vaccines and related goods Trade ministers from the 21 economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) on Saturday pledged to expedite the flow and transit of all Covid-19 vaccines and related goods. In a joint statement issued after the Apec Ministers Responsible for Trade meeting, the ministers also agreed to prioritise identifying barriers to trade in services that could hinder the movement of essential goods. These were key outcomes of the virtual meeting, which was chaired by Mr Damien O’Connor, New Zealand’s Minister for Trade and Export Growth, and attended by ministers and senior officials from the 21 Apec economies. They included Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong, who called for Apec economies to work collectively to support regional economic recovery and to deliver concrete initiatives in the light of the Covid-19 pandemic. READ MORE HERE Trump returning to the stage as he flirts with 2024 presidential run Banished from social networks but no less influential among the Republican faithful, Donald Trump was set to return to the stage Saturday for his first speech in months as he flirts ever more openly with a

Cruise ships' return to Venice reignites tensions

VENICE (AFP) – The first cruise ship cast off from Venice on Saturday (June 5) after almost one and a half years’ suspension due to the coronavirus pandemic, re-inflaming a war of words between supporters and opponents of the massive floating hotels. With the MSC Orchestra looming over St Mark’s square, demonstrators in small motorboats waved banners reading “no to cruise ships”. “Cruise ships bring a hit and run tourism that actually brings little benefit to Venice,” demonstrator Lucia Tedesco, 57, told AFP. Concerned for the environment and the city’s cultural heritage, opponents of the ships say they cause large waves that undermine Venice’s foundations and harm the fragile ecosystem of its lagoon. But the Unesco World Heritage site is also home to fans of the massive vessels, many organised in the “Venice at work” movement. They say stop-offs by tourist cruises create jobs in a city dependent on tourism – itself massively undermined by the pandemic. Around 650 people boarded the MSC Orchestra in Venice after showing a negative coronavirus test less than four days old and passing another on the spot. None showed any sign of annoyance at the strict hygiene measures

El Salvador looks to become the world’s first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender

Nayib Bukele, El Salvador’s president, delivers a speech to Congress at the Legislative Assembly building in San Salvador, El Salvador, on Tuesday, June 1, 2021. Photographer: Camilo Freedman/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesBloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesMIAMI — El Salvador is looking to introduce legislation that will make it the world’s first sovereign nation to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, alongside the U.S. dollar.In a video broadcast to Bitcoin 2021, a multiday conference in Miami being billed as the biggest bitcoin event in history, President Nayib Bukele announced El Salvador’s partnership with digital wallet company, Strike, to build the country’s modern financial infrastructure using bitcoin technology.Strike founder and CEO Jack Mallers said this will go down as the “shot heard ’round the world for bitcoin.””What’s transformative here is that bitcoin is both the greatest reserve asset ever created and a superior monetary network. Holding bitcoin provides a way to protect developing economies from potential shocks of fiat currency inflation,” continued Mallers.Speaking from the mainstage, Mallers said the move will help unleash the power and potential of bitcoin for everyday use cases on an open network that benefits individuals, businesses, and public sector services.El Salvador is a largely cash economy, where roughly

El Salvador to make Bitcoin legal tender

Israel domestic security warns of violence as PM Netanyahu faces unseating

JERUSALEM (REUTERS) – The head of Israel’s domestic security service issued a rare warning on Saturday (June 5) of possible violence during one of the most politically charged periods in decades, with the country on the verge of unseating Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, its longest serving leader. Netanyahu is facing the prospect of an end to his 12-year run as premier after Israel’s centrist opposition leader Yair Lapid announced on Wednesday that he had succeeded in forming a governing coalition following a March 23 election. The new government, yet to be sworn in, is an unlikely patchwork of left-wing, liberal, rightist, nationalist and religious parties, as well as – for the first time in Israel’s history – an Arab Islamist party. Netanyahu in online posts has warned the partnership was “a dangerous leftist government.” Some right-wing groups are angry at Naftali Bennett, head of a small ultra-nationalist party who is slated to replace Netanyahu in a power-sharing pact with Lapid, garnering many postings attacking him on social media. Before the election, Bennett had promised he would not join the centrist Lapid, or any Arab party in a coalition. “We have recently identified a rise in increasingly extreme