Pa. woman heats home this winter for 60 minutes a day over Palestine crisis

So long as the whole of Palestinians confined in Gaza must gamble their survival against the superior might and capacity of a compulsory Israel military, the "Israel-Hamas War" advantages the decimation of a stateless people.

​Israel declared war on Hamas after Hamas fighters breached the border and killed some 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians. They further took 250 people hostage.

​In turn, Israel has killed 25,000 Palestinians, mainly civilians in Gaza, and cut the enclave's supply or transmission of water, fuel, and electricity.​

If assuming 1,700 Israeli deaths so far, the casualty ratio alone is 250:17.

My home is all-electric, so it is the cut to electricity that was part of my inspiration for this peaceful direct action inspired by the autobiography Burglar for Peace. The book had nothing to do with the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict, but I began it just weeks before the Hamas attack on Oct. 7.

​It's been 42 days since I limited the heating of my home in solidarity with ordinary Palestinians in war-weary Gaza. What began as 90 minutes of day became 60 minutes at the start of this year.

​I recall that 750,000 Rohingya, another stateless people, were forced from their native Rakhine state into Bangladesh in 2017. A backdrop to their expulsion by vigilante and military forces was the refusal to regard the religious minority as fellow citizens of Myanmar.

​At the time, it surprised me that Aung San Suu Kyi, an actual Nobel laureate, did not intervene. Maybe it was ahead of an election that she was asked about their return. If they want to, she said, or words to that effect. Ultimately, The Gambia filed a suit against Myanmar for genocide with the International Court of Justice.

On an individual level, the myriad peaceful ways not to standby during bloodletting in faraway lands had not occurred to me till recently. Late last month, South Africa filed a suit against Israel for genocide with The Hague. Regardless, I'll continue to heat my home for 60 minutes a day for the rest of the winter.

I'll provide graphs of my 24-hour household electric use on the coldest days/nights, denoted in red. In the meantime, here's a table of my daily heat use.

Palestinian children await meal from soup kitchen in Rafah, Gaza (© REUTERS | Ibraheem Abu Mustafa)

DATE
Dec. 11, 2023
Dec. 12, 2023
Dec. 13, 2023
Dec. 14, 2023
Dec. 15, 2023
Dec. 16, 2023
Dec. 17, 2023
Dec. 18, 2023
Dec. 19, 2023
Dec. 20, 2023
Dec. 21, 2023
Dec. 22, 2023
Dec. 23, 2023
Dec. 24, 2024
Dec. 25, 2023
Dec. 26, 2023
Dec. 27, 2023
Dec. 28, 2023
Dec. 29, 2023
Dec. 30, 2023
​Dec. 31, 2023
Jan. 1
​Jan. 2
Jan. 3
Jan. 4
Jan. 5
Jan. 6
Jan. 7
Jan. 8
Jan. 9
Jan. 10
Jan. 11
Jan. 12
Jan. 13
Jan. 14
Jan. 15
Jan. 16
Jan. 17
Jan. 18
Jan. 19
Jan. 20
Jan. 21

 ** HIGH/LOW
46/33 °F​
47/28 °F
46/27 °F
45/24 °F
59/25 °F
56/28 °F
55/43 °F
55/39 °F
40/31 °F
47/29 °F
43/32 °F
​39/34 °F
47/34 °F
47/40 °F
55/37 °F
48/35 °F
​52/45 °F
55/44 °F
53/34 °F
47/34 °F
45/37 °F
41/37 °F
43/30 °F
45/28 °F
43/29 °F
38/25 °F
36/24 °F
41/35 °F
46/28 °F
50/30 °F
59/42 °F
50/35 °F
49/28 °F
​49/34 °F
38/24 °F
28/25 °F
28/18 °F
27/14 °F
33/14 °F
28/24 °F
24/18 °F
32/22 °F

HEATING
90 minutes
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes
None
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes​
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes
* 90 minutes
35 minutes
60 minutes
​60 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
54 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
None
60 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
None
60 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
None
​60 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
60 minutes
None
60 minutes

*** HIGH/LOW​
7.8/0.6 °C ​
8.3/-2.2 °C
7.7/-2.8 °C
7.2/-4.4 °C
15/-3.9 °C
13.3/-2.2 °C
12.8/6.1 °C
12.8/3.9 °C
4.4/-0.6 °C
8.3/-1.7 °C
6.1/-1.7 °C
39/1.1 °C
8.3/1.1 °C
8.3/4.4 °C
12.8/1.6 °C
8.9/1.7 °C
11.1/7.2 °C​
​12.8/6.7 °C
11.7/1.1 °C
8.3/1.1 °C
7.2/1.6 °C
5/1.6 °C
​6.1/-1.1 °C
7.5/-2.2 °C
​6.1/-1.7 °C
​3.3/-3.9 °C
​2.2/-4.4 °C
5/1.7 °C
7.8/-2.2 °C
10/-1.1 °C
15/5.6 °C
10/1.7 °C
​9.4/-2.2 °C
9.4/1.1 °C
3.3/-4.4 °C
-2.2/-3.9 °C
-2.2/-7.8 °C
-2.8/-10 °C
0.6/-10 °C
-2.2/-4.4 °C
-4.4/-7.8 °C
-1.7/-5.5 °C

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*** weather.gov. Accessed 22 January 2024.
** Converted with UnitConverters.net.
* Max usage assumed in lieu of notes misplaced or not indicated.

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