Lawless Planet

When Elon Musk’s Data Center Came to Town

When Elon Musk’s xAI opened a data center called Colossus in South Memphis for its chatbot, Grok, local politicians and business leaders hailed it as the first step towards turning Greater Memphis into “America’s Digital Delta.” But residents soon noticed they were getting sick – and blamed the data center’s methane gas turbines, installed without permits to support the center’s massive electricity needs. Now South Memphis has become a flashpoint in the growing debate over the human and environmental costs of powering AI.Audible subscribers can listen to all episodes ad-free right now. Join Audible today by downloading the Audible app.Featured in this episode:KeShaun PearsonSources:Reporting by the Memphis Commercial AppealTime’s “We Are the Last of the Forgotten: Inside the Memphis Community Battling Elon Musk’s xAI” https://time.com/7308925/elon-musk-memphis-ai-data-center/ The Wall Street Journal’s “Elon Musk Gambles Billions in Memphis to Catch Up on AI”https://www.wsj.com/tech/elon-musk-xai-memphis-tennessee-power-dec4c70d The Natural Resources Defense Council’s “The AI Boom Is Stressing the Grid—But It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way”https://www.nrdc.org/stories/ai-boom-stressing-grid-it-doesnt-have-be-waySee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

'Field of Schemes': Organic Farming’s Epic Fraud

When it comes to organic food, can we really trust what’s on our plate? Do we understand how it was grown or raised? The organic food industry is largely built on the honor system. More than a decade ago, a mild-mannered Missouri farmer exploited that system, raking in millions of dollars and leading a double life in Las Vegas. As it turns out, that wasn’t the only secret he was hiding.Featured in this episode: Glen BorgerdingJacob SchunkTony Morfitt Sources:Ian Parker’s reporting in The New Yorker https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/11/15/the-great-organic-food-fraudMike Hendricks’ reporting in The Kansas City Star https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article239079858.htmlTrial documents from the Department of Justice’s case U.S. v. Randy Constanthttps://www.justice.gov/usao-ndia/pr/field-schemes-fraud-results-over-decade-federal-prison-leader-largest-organic-fraudSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Battle Over Burn Pits, a Military Practice That’s Making Veterans Sick

When Jessey Baca returned from Balad Air Base in Iraq, he began experiencing strange health symptoms: fevers, chills, headaches, difficulty breathing. The VA tried to write off his condition as PTSD, but Jessey and his wife Maria would eventually learn that the likely cause was exposure to burn pits, where the military was incinerating trash with jet fuel. And they weren’t alone. Thousands of veterans were sick and dying from burn pit exposure. Featured in this episode:Kelly KennedyJessey and Maria BacaSources:Kelly Kennedy’s reporting for The Military Times (https://www.militarytimes.com/) and The War Horse (https://thewarhorse.org/)The New Republic’s “The Things They Burned”: https://newrepublic.com/article/138058/things-burned The New York Times’ “The Soldiers Came Home Sick. The Government Denied It Was Responsible”: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/11/magazine/military-burn-pits.htmlSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Bundy Family’s Bloody War over Federal Land

The tug-of-war over undeveloped land in the U.S. is nothing new, but in 2014 Cliven and Ammon Bundy escalated their dispute over cattle grazing permits in Nevada to another level. Their clash against the federal Bureau of Land Management would galvanize a movement – and set the stage for one of the largest armed uprisings against the government in American history, with lasting consequences for the environment.Featured in this episode: Betsy Gaines QuammenSources:Betsy Gaines Quammen's book American Zion: Cliven Bundy, God and Public Lands in the WestPBS’s Frontline’s documentary American Patriot.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Who Hired Hackers to Target Climate Activists?

In 2015, news broke that Exxon’s own scientists had known for decades that burning fossil fuels was causing global warming. To raise awareness, climate activists launched a campaign called “Exxon Knew.” But almost immediately, they noticed something strange: their private emails seemed to be getting leaked to the press. They were getting hacked – but by who? Featured in this episode:Kert Davies, Center for Climate IntegrityJohn Scott Railton, The Citizen LabSources:The Citzen Lab’s “Dark Basin: Uncovering a Massive Hack-for-Hire Operation”: https://citizenlab.ca/research/dark-basin-uncovering-a-massive-hack-for-hire-operation/ Inside Climate News’s “Exxon: The Road Not Taken”: https://insideclimatenews.org/project/exxon-the-road-not-taken/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.