Unsettling findings. From e! science news, Feb. 23:

Classic Maya civilization collapse related to modest rainfall reductions
A new study reports that the disintegration of the Maya Civilization may have been related to relatively modest reductions in rainfall. The study was led by Professors Martín Medina-Elizalde of the Yucatan Center for Scientific Research in Mexico and Eelco Rohling of the University of Southampton in the UK. Professor Rohling says: "Our results show rather modest rainfall reductions between times when the Classic Maya Civilization flourished and its collapse — between AD 800-950. These reductions amount to only 25 to 40 per cent in annual rainfall. But they were large enough for evaporation to become dominant over rainfall, and open water availability was rapidly reduced. The data suggest that the main cause was a decrease in summer storm activity."

Lest we forget. From Radio Australia, Feb. 21:

Marine species at risk as oceans acidify
British scientists say the current level of carbon dioxide emissions will wipe out about 30 per cent of the world's marine species by the end of the century. Much of the carbon dioxide put into the atmosphere through fossil fuel burning is being absorbed by the world's oceans, causing them to acidify. Scientists at Plymouth University in England have examined underwater volcanoes, where carbon dioxide bubbles naturally, to see how marine life copes in acidic water.

Your trusty blogger will be in Peru for much of March, on assignment for The Progressive to cover the anti-mining struggle in Cajamarca. So World War 4 Report will be at a reduced level of activity next month, but there will be frequent first-hand accounts from the high Andes. Thanks to some extremely generous readers, we met out minimum $2,000 goal for our winter fund drive. If any readers wish to help sustain our efforts to provide on-the-scene journalism from South America, your small donation will go a long way...

We wish we were joking. First this, from UPI, Feb. 18:

US skies to be opened to drones
WASHINGTON — A new federal law allows commercial drones to fly over the United States by late 2015, officials said. The drone language was included in a funding bill for the Federal Aviation Administration signed Tuesday by President Obama...

It is really, really a drag to have to do this, but we really have no choice. Whatever legitimate reasons there are to oppose Henrique Capriles Radonski, it doesn't let the Hugo Chávez political machine off the hook for the most vulgar Jew-baiting. Once again, the chavistas serve up propaganda ammo on the proverbial silver platter for the corporate media to shoot right back at them. Fools. From Reuters, Feb. 17:

As we have pointed out over and over, a driver's license in New York City is literally a license to kill. Meanwhile, police crack down on the solution. From Transportation Nation, Feb. 15:

NYPD Issued Almost 50,000 Bicycle Tickets in 2011
The NYPD doled out 48,556 summonses to bike riders in 2011. That figure was reported by Executive Officer of the Transportation Bureau, John Cassidy at a hearing held by the NY City Council Wednesday on NYPD policies for traffic investigations.

On the one-year anniversary of the start of the Libyan revolution, the NTC seems to have just lost control of Libya's west to a new federation of militias. From AP, Feb. 13:

Representatives of about 100 militias from western Libya said Monday they had formed a new federation to prevent infighting and allow them to press the country’s new government for further reform. The move was a blow to the Transitional National Council, which helped lead the eight-month uprising against Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi and has sought to govern Libya since. The council has largely failed to decommission or bring under its control the hundreds of militias that fought in the war. The leader of the new federation, Col. Mokhtar Fernana, said the council’s committee in charge of integrating revolutionary fighters was taking in men who had fought for Colonel Qaddafi. "This committee is an attempt to hijack the revolution," Colonel Fernana said. One militia commander, Ibrahim al-Madani, said the fighters would not give up their arms to a corrupt government." [Sic]

In a case that seems to have received virtually no media coverage, the Sacred Land Film Project website reports on the struggle of the Tibetan village of Abin to halt a mining project on Mount Kawagebo, which is sacred to Tibetans and whose summit lies on the border between the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) and Yunnan province. The village and proposed mine are on the western slope of the mountain, within the TAR and along a traditional centuries-old pilgrimage route; the eastern slope, within Yunnan, is protected by the Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan UNESCO World Heritage Site, where the Yangtze, Mekong and Salween rivers plunge down through green gorges from the Tibetan plateau. Citing activist He Ran Gao of the Chinese NGO Green Earth Volunteers, the account states that gold mining began near the village in February 2011, over the protests of the villagers. After repeated attempts at negotiations failed, villagers pushed some $300,000 worth of mining equipment into the Nu River (as Tibetans call the Salween). Harassment, death threats and attacks on villagers predictably followed, and some fled to other villages to escape the violence. But then: