Private "police foundations" buy controversial massive surveillance equipment and donate it to thug departments across the US, bypassing democratic decisionmaking about what these systems should do.

Europe Needs to Fix Or Ditch Its Emissions-Trading Scheme.

A carbon tax would be better. One of the problems with the European emissions-trading scheme is that it is too easily gamed: companies can get credit for industries that have simply failed, for instance, and emissions credits are so cheap that nobody really needs to conserve.

A Tory minister called for paying the disabled less than minimum wage, stating explicitly the right-wing goal of reducing the weak to desperation.

The same goal is at work in making prisoners work for companies that pay them a pittance. This reduces jobs and wages for people outside prison, and more of them will end up in prison, making a vicious cycle.

If a lot of natural gas is obtained by fracking, it will squeeze out renewable energy and likely result in more greenhouse gas emissions.

Australia's government proposes massive biometrics capture, but may not succeed in imposing it.