"It is unserious to talk about renewables and not nuclear." <-- This is precisely why I cannot take climate alarmists seriously. For the past 20 years I've been hearing "Warmists" screaming about how we'll all die if we don't do something RIGHT NOW! But they persistently reject nuclear energy, despite the fact that it is the only short-term-feasible replacement for fossil fuels when it comes to generating on-demand electricity.
It's like saying you'll do ANYTHING to survive cancer...but you won't go through chemo, despite the fact that it's a proven treatment for your type of cancer. If you just take enough vitamins....
Yeah, but let's be serious, here - nuclear is a proven technology that hucksters can't wheedle hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars out of our government for specious research into pie-in-the-sky ideas.
It's a technology that is controlled by established utilities and not new enough to create the entirely new economic sector controlled by John Kerry, Al Gore, Ed Markey, AOC, and all of their Chablis-swilling pals on Nantucket, the Vineyard, the Hamptons, and Montecito.
THAT's why nuclear is not acceptable to these folks...
We have a Bingo! Most of our major problems today are based on Mega industries and governments (China) trying to push public policy in a way that isn't in the best interests of the citizens, but is in the best interests of the Elite, or China specifically.
I assume that much of the strategy and financial backing for the Climate movement is coming from China. They win twice: Their major enemy takes on policies that cripple it's economy, and their enemy also become a major consumer of solar panels and rare earth minerals, both of which China own the markets of. This is the new version of war.
Jon...not sure about "council", but between the News Media and China, you can find the Nest.
Been warming, long before man got here. China with 600 huge coal plants and plans for 120 more J. Bridger coal plants, now building 3 new plants.
Cargo ship "Felicity"(?) , Atlantic Ocean, goes under with 3800 new cars, EV batteries aboard. Very little news, but the crew evacuated and my guess, they could not put out the fire, because of the EV (lithium) batteries.
So true. We are transforming our electric grid to rely on unreliable wind and solar. This is madness and cannot end well. Worse, we are adding to the electricity demand by turning to electricity to heat homes and phasing our gas and oil, and to transforming our gasoline and diesel vehicles to electric vehicles. So, at the same time we are drastically increasing demand we are looking to fill that demand with unreliable sources. It is not hyperbole to say that people - maybe many people - will pay a terrible price in being unable to afford the transformation and then sickness and death when the grid fails.
And the grid WILL fail, make no mistake. It's barely functioning as it is, held together with bailing wire and boogers. That America's linemen and women keep it together as well as they do is a testament to the hard workers on power poles in the middle of twisters and storms. But we can't keep adding demand to the grid and not expect it to collapse if we don't rebuild and harden it.
Putting all our energy eggs in one basket--be it electric, fossil, wind, whatever--is foolish. We should generate from a lot of sources and replace older technology with newer as it becomes proven. No reason to not use everything we know now while looking for good supplementary and replacement generation systems.
And may I add, it is also folly not to harden our grid against EMP, whether naturally caused or by a malevolent actor or actors. Regardless of political views, as Bill and I show, reasonable people can still solve 95% of our problems by agreeing on the facts.
Yes. The liberal-center-conservative spectrum is, by and large, agreeable on most issues. Not all, but enough to make our society a whole lot better than the fractured granite it is now. The wings of right and left, amplified by media and social media, cause a LOT of rage without offering any good solutions.
Me, I just want a society that's fixing its problems, loving its present and future, and not screaming at The Other till their veins pop. That doesn't make us better, it only puts money in the pocket of the clicks-and-likes brigade.
Your last sentence, William, is pure gold. We all need to understand that our rage changes nothing except the profits made by the most strident outlets.
Wonder how much of the Infrastructure Bill went for that. Just asking, as have *no* idea. If I were to guess, probably none. Rebuilding and hardening *too* good an idea.
Yeah on second paragraph. Nuclear proven. New generations being built as we speak. Mebbe another *too* good an idea. WSS.
Answer - very little. We have an antiquated grid, coupled with rising demand and increasingly unreliable generation. In other words, a recipe for disaster.
But why are we allowing this surely to God we aren’t the only people on this forum who realize this President Trump told us how many times in the run up to 2020 that Democrats will go back to the green new deal he told us that migrants will be crossing in bus loads at the southern border just two things which have proved correct and in spite of all his warnings we voted Joe Biden in before we can go up we have to get out of this mess how we do that is anyone’s guess but we have got to do something and quickly
This is just one person's guess. But I would think the best bet would be to vote in numbers in '22. And then put forth an ELECTABLE Republican in '24. I don't see that as being Trump. Sure, ICBW. But looking at Repubs, Dems, AND Independents, I just don't see Trump as "a happenin' thang."
That's how I feel. At this point, I'd like to see DeSantis, with Nikki Haley as the VP candidate. Although I wouldn't at all object to Nikki Haley as the presidential candidate in her own right.
I think Melania will tell him to go to hell if he says he wants to run again. Why would she stand for four more years of the absolute crap she and Baran took. I mean Trump can handle what comes his way, but M & B are collateral damage and that might just put her over the cliff. I don't think he'll run....he'll just be king maker.
Maybe not but we need a seriously strong Republican male to take on Big Tech and the corporations I don’t see anybody else emerging at this stage but politics is very strange who would have predicted Trumps first win and then predicted a Biden win with a female as the Veep
I thought Trump was a great President (based on policies not personality necessarily) but I think he will motivate the opposition either to turn out in droves or to rig another election.
You always make me smile. But this time I'm laughin' AT You, not WITH You. Seriously, tho, it isn't so much that I don't want it to happen. It's that it'll hurt the Repubs in the long run.
Say You're right and Trump wins. Wanna bet what happens four years later? Pendulum swings the other way. You want someone who'll push the pendulum in one direction and HOLD it there, right? Trump makes as many enemies as he does friends, right?
jt...i could not figure, till now. makes sense. That is very close to the way i felt(for a while) while walking to place my ballot, 2016, i was going to vote Hillary. Peeps would hate her so much , For Good Reason, we would not have Shumor, Pilosi, Biden, Shiffty et al.
Trunpty is not the only one, but he Did show his abilities.
I disagree with you on the swing of the pendulum if you don’t have Trump from 2024 - 2028 the power will swing back to the Dems if you have Trump and a decent Veep 2028 - 2032 will remain in Republican hands Trump’s a maverick and his Veep would have had 4 years to understand his plan to carry on the implementation of it I think you will see a different Presidency to how he governed as 45 he won’t take the same shit and I presume he will have the majority in the senate and the house but like I said politics is a strange game and maybe it will be Kamala which means it will be a tough time for the US!
But what You're counting on is that there will be more Dems crossing over than Repubs running away from Trump. Do I *know*? Nup.
Do I think the crossover will make up for all the Independents than run *away* from Trump. My estimate is no way, Jose. Also consider that 1/3 of Trump's own *party* doesn't believe the election was stolen, and that Trump is the acknowledged master of spreading, to quote his OWN WORDS, "disinformation."
A lot can happen between now and November 2024. There's more information coming out all the time, such as the recent cell phone tracking data on the "mules" stuffing ballot boxes. Right now, the stolen-election school of thought is gaining popularity.
I was talking to friends about this last night. We all know people who actually WOULD cast a vote for Biden again in 24. Even knowing about the cognitive decline and all the messes they would still vote for him if it meant not voting for Trump. Insanity.
If we can’t break the grip of the morons running this country, you’d better tell your grandkids to learn Mandarin and how to do the laundry of their future overlords.
Because you can’t locate a solar or wind farm in the middle of a city, where energy demand is greatest. Longer transmission lines = greater energy loss.
What, is it possible that they're not really interested in what they say they're interested in? Is it possible that there are industries simply trying to make money off of a cause? Thank God that's not happening with the race/gender/COVID causes.
In British Columbia environmentalists are also opposed to our large Hydro project - the only other way to have zero carbon industrial scale energy. It really doesn’t make sense if they are truly scared of global warming. My view is that Big Green now exists mostly to pay its leaders large salaries and numerous other perks which requires a lot of fundraising. Fundraising needs enemies to be opposed to.
The envirowackos have been opposing hydro at every turn for decades, always on the theory that it will kill some sub-species of fish or frog that is somehow irreplaceable. And yet that species is more important than the whole planet (as they claim)?
Funny thing is the goal ever *is* reached, they don't disband but go out and find *another* cause. "Fundraising needs enemies to be opposed to." Big salaries, as opposed to anything approaching common horse-sense, right?
Since when? I mean it's possible that a turn has come about in the past several months but let's be real. Climate activism and no-nuclear energy activists have been one and the same.
I think it was Ike as well... Funny how the "most educated" used to mock W for being a dimmwit and a mere puppet in the hands of Dick Vader. They still mock W, but somehow cane to like Dick...
The costs are not useful as the nuclear costs are based on the current 1950s tech dinosaurs. New gen nukes are smaller (400 MW or so), don't need complicated ECCS's, and can be standardized and stacked. Not remotely comparable to the siting nightmares of the old nukes. The new designs reduce the cost, the environmental impact and the security concerns.
Bruce, I understand there is research been done on nuclear reactors, unless I missed something, at this point it’s not much more than a pig in a poke! Do you know something I don’t?
I was gonna come back and tell Ya how I've been at the computer for about 14 hours now, and didn't get my walk in, which makes me irritable. Nor had lunch.
And then I was gonna apologize for being short, and calmly explaining what I *know* about what's been going on that You weren't aware of.
But You're such a snot-nosed snarky individual, that I'm glad I saw Your other comment before I did ANY-a that, but You don't deserve to be talked to with ANY respect, Just me.
Troll! You here again! Why don't You answer Your own questions, and then juxtapose them against the costs for renewables. And don't forget land mass it'll take to house all those bazillion renewable in Your analysis.
IOW, if You don't have anything of account to post here, why don't You take Your pretend-questions to somebody who will listen to Your tripe.
I'm trying to recall how old You are, Just me. Oh yeah, young enough that You wanna pretend age doesn't matter.
I think You mistake me for someone who's concerned, at ALL, about what other people think of me. I'm not like YOU, Just me. I grew UP a long time ago. Before You were born.
Most of what you cite as obstacles are regulatory issues other countries have long since dealt with. Cost is generally higher than subsidized renewables , but reliable baseload power is vital, and recycling issues are much more manageable with nuclear, as is initial carbon footprint.
But if you are telling us that climate change will kill us all -why would you care about costs. Private investors can risk their money - again why do you care.
I asked the questions to see if you were for nuclear energy because the tree-hugging leftists were against it, or you understood the pros and cons of nuclear power. I want to see if your comment was rational or emotional! Your reply makes it clear it wasn’t a thinking comment but an emotional comment.
Amen Theo. I'm one of those guys. We'll probably be in nursing homes before the nit-wit class gets even a hint about the wrongs they have foisted upon all of us.
If we don’t make them own up for their wrongs they will continue to grift us and our children their children and our great great grandchildren if there will be anything left for them to steal we have to change the dynamics now if we have any chance of making things right
I'll offer you a wry smile, Michele, for your comment. I'm far too old to become a major force for change in our culture and society.
All I have to offer is 8 decades of observing the origins of how such values as fellowship, personal responsibility, and belief in a higher power fell by the wayside.
I have witnessed the genesis of the civil rights movement in the 50s, including the police and citizens who used billy clubs and rocks to beat down peaceful marchers.
During the 60s I saw the race riots and the beginnings of a wide spread malaise in our nation.
The 70s were even worse for the soul of our country in terms of losing trust in government institutions, shortages of gasoline and diesel fuel, and a feeling of helplessness.
The 80s brought back a rebirth of optimism, and by the end of the decade most of us realized our bumbling peanut farmer was far more talented at helping people build homes for those who were down and out. He was a class act in retirement!
Since then, I've stood idlely by as academics, school administrators and even our churches adopted ideas that exhibited an innate disdain towards the ideals I was taught as a boy and a young adult.
I see elements of such disdain in the left as well as the right wings of our political system.
All I can do is pray that my grandchildren will inherit a better society.
8 decades of wisdom for which I thank you Dennis it’s people like you who will always make a difference to all of us there must be millions of us out there like you who may not have 8 decades under their belts but who truly believe that we can be and are a great nation please God it will be good again 🇺🇸🇺🇸
I remember that back in the 70s it was a new ice age they were warning about. I suspect those of us who are old enough to remember that have always had a bit more skepticism about "global warming."
I'd add the UPenn water buffalo incident (1993). The Toronto Star pondered then: "What Race Is a Water Buffalo?" Perhaps the beginning of the Victimhood Olympics: Who's gonna take the gold, black women sorority or Israeli studying student? Somehow "It's Wednesday at midnight so STFU", was seriously balanced by 'they said mean things.'
The sociologist Roy F. Baumeister was a big fan of the self-esteem movement. Like all-a them. But then he looked at the results of it. Sure, the kids thought *very* well of themselves. But on comparing the U.S. with other nations? Performance DEcreased. Which, if You think about it, just stands to reason.
Stands to reason we have so many namby-pamby adults with no resilience in their bones. No, not single cause, but a big one.
Indeed! Who started that bullshit anyway? My now college age kids were in hockey and Irish dance. In hockey you won or lost....no trophies if you lost. In Irish dance (totally subjective), the judge either awarded your dance or didn't. Thank goodness my kids were in sports where they didn't get those participation trophies. It's absolutely what is so wrong with our young adults now.
While I do generally agree with some statements in this article, there are many where I completely disagree. US technological prowess still shines in some areas, but has completely despaired in others.
Before I come to these points that I disagree, everyone should look around them and try to find one thing that is not "Made in China". For majority of people this will be impossible. Every one of these things that was Made in China, there is Chinse company behind it, that didn't exist 30 years before. So notion, that US is somehow special with regard of new and revolutionary companies might have been on point 30 years ago but not now.
Yes USA has Tesla, but China has in same period, yielded Nio, Xpeng, Li Auto, GAC, BYD and many more new car manufactures. Same goes for many other industries, Baidu, Tencent, Alibaba, Maituan, Huawei, Xiaomi, CATL, ZTE, OPPO, Lenovo, Haier, TikTok I could literally go whole day, all these companies are leaders in their own field and all were foundend in last 30 years.
US might have exceptional large number of Software unicorns, but in China, there were even larger number of manufacturing and software unicorns that have shown up in last 30 years, and many of those were build, on outsourcing of American jobs to China.
If US is to compete with China and win, it should also start manufacture again, yes US has "drive to build things", but it should have "drive to manufacture in US".
US is to lead the world with its technological prowess, we should avoid doing what we did in last 30 years, where some stuff was "Designed in USA" but in the end completely Manufactured in China. Because very soon more and more stuff will be Designed and Manufactured in China.
This means fixing US education, getting ideology out of universities (especially STEM) and also finally fixing US failing infrastructure. in the 1960 infrastructure was best in the world. Today it is still stucked in 1960.
One of the most difficult challenges when creating new businesses now is access to capital. VC/PE/Angels hold/control much of the investment capital and the first two quesions they ask are; how quickly can I exit, and how many multiples of my investment can I sxpect. If it's not 2 and 10, they pass.
Also, tech has extracted massive amounts of money from from municipalities. Uber/Lyft send 30% of all fares back to Silicon Valley. Grubhub, DoorDash and Uber Eats send 30+% of the cost of the meals they deliver back to SV. Don't even get me started on Amazon. Not that what they're extracting isn't bad enough, but most of them don't make a profit for their investors. When locals start to develop better local alternatives, there's no capital to help. I've had success on a national basis developing local restaurant owned delivery co-ops, but can't find the capital to compete in a meaningful way.
While I'm at it, I believe the most meaningful reform needs to happen on the student loan front. It's not only resulted in out of control tuition costs that will never be paid back, but's it's also (imho) the number one cause for the liberal arts programs becoming indoctrination centers. Who can actually make a case that spending $100K on a 'Studies' program will provide any ROI for the student? Forgive the debt (I know, lots of reasons not too, especially from parents like me who personally paid for our kids) and sever future government funding. It's worth the price to get the schools out of the indoctrination business. Let the schools take the risk on loans and see how much they'll risk on a "whatever' studies degree.
While I love the tone of the article, we have some serious infrastructure changes needed before we can facilitate the next generation of innovation and culture change.
I am European living and working in China married to American. When I see what kind of state of the art infrastructure in China has been built in last 20 years, I get nervus for future of US and Europe.
I always say to my wife, when we visit my family in Europe, we take travel machine and arrive in early 1990 with regard topics of infrastructure. When we go to visit her family in US, it is like traveling to 1960. When we are back in China, we are in 21 century. And this is not only for high speed rail and ports and airports, but for simple roads and bridges.
West needs to get itself together and start fixing its basic infrastructure, if not, it will fall so far behind, that it wound be feasible to catch up. And all new innovations will be coming from elsewhere.
Re China in the 21st century: Is it just a stereotype that China still struggles with basic sanitary habits? (Genuinely asking; not being snarky.) My husband has traveled there frequently for work and reports seeing people literally defecating in the streets. And what about all those schools that collapse in a moderate or above earthquake because of shoddy construction and corruption? Germy wet markets that spread disease (I remember reading that the avian flu was spread by high pressure water hoses blasting chicken manure everywhere)
You live there, not me, but just asking for more info re the “China is so advanced” thing 🤔
Answer can be best given with german word - Jain => meaning Yes and No.
Up to 2017 it was completely normal to see people defecating on the streets (partly caused by lack off public toilets and party by simply not wanting to use public toilets). This was followed by public outrage and numerous videos on Chinese social media of people relifing themselves on public spaces (streets, even planes).
In 2017/2018 there was huge public campaign followed with building huge number of public toilets and crack down on people going to toilet on the streets or other public places.
Since then this has been largely stamped out, so you have "normal" amount of people doing it on the streets (mostly small kids and males who had to much to drink).
This might be true, but when you look at state of LA, NYC, Chicago and other large US cities (homeless issues, opioid epidemic, woke ideology in public schools...).
CCP cant limit China to that extent, that woke policies can destroy USA.
China has a certain advantage on infrastructure, policies for corporations, and visions on where they want to be headed as a sovereign state. Sidestepping any ethical content, the advantage of unopposed majorities is the ability to move ahead. Even a doomed project like the Tower of Babel could be built with unity and destroyed once that unity disappears. In our successful American corporations and in our less successful medical infrastructure, there is no ambiguity about who has authority to proceed. That has not been the case in America where your doctor cannot even get you the right treatment without asking somebody else's permission. If your processes impede the simple, the more complex undertakings begin at a great handicap.
You are correct up to a point about innovation by Chinese companies. But a great deal of the technology underlying such innovation was stolen from the US by spies and hackers; people don’t realize how many Chinese spies operate here and report back. And a great many Chinese scientists and engineers have gone to the US for STEM education.
Did the US education system make us ship manufacturing out of the United States? The same goes for infrastructure; how did that make us ship manufacturing overseas?
“Build PCR tests so that a nasal swab stops the nation from closing businesses at the mere sight of Covid case increases.”
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No we don’t need that shit. There’s already a surplus of shystering in this area. They just came out with a COVID breathalyzer FFS I’m not kidding.
What we need is psychiatric care for the children whose psychotic parents turned them into Bill Murray’s character in ‘What About Bob’……actually never mind because the Democrat ‘mental health professional’ will probably just parlay the hypochondria into an opportunity to convince the kid they are trans.
I agree. Being forever shocked at the drama and machinations of obvious grifters is senseless. A huge part of their power exists because we continue to give ours away.
“It is unserious to prioritize the old over the young, to shut down public schools for two years in the name of safety”
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I’ve actually shifted my position on this. Now that it’s evident that Democrats were using public schools to ask 12-year-olds who can’t read if they like being choked during sex, I think we should keep the schools closed.
It's been a while since I had my finger on the pulse of the home-schooling community, but I sincerely hope that the school shutdowns prompted more parents to look in that direction. I homeschooled each of my three kids through a period of time when their schools had nothing to offer them. Best choice we ever made.
we homeschool in very blue Silicon Valley, and have for the last 4 years. The community has exploded! It's been really nice to see. HOWEVER, the pushback from the districts (and therefore the State) is stifling. We fully anticipate the state to go after homeschoolers, using one bad example to ruin it for the rest of us. They see lost $$$ from their bloated budgets, and don't care for the student's education. For example the SFUSD lost 14k students over the last 2 years. Not all to homeschooling of course, some to charter and private or moving out of the district for a better school system, but the District officials are warning of a major deficit (on top of their already huge one) and of teacher/staff firings and school closures due to lack of funds...as if bad education wasn't the reason for the kids removal from the district smh
From parents and concerned locals, sure. But I don't think i've ever heard a CA education person ever talk about improving the quality of education, at least in the past 5 years. I've been hearing a lot about ensuring equity by lowering testing and scoring standards, eliminating standardized testing from places like Lowell HS which used to be a merit based school you got into by your academics, renaming schools like Abraham Lincoln to something else due to racism. That sort of thing. But no, nothing about improving test scores, improving reading comprehension (60 percent of CA students can't read at an 8th grade level according to the SF Chronicle) etc from those actually in charge. I have a friend whose kid is in what's considered a 10/10 school, and she's realized that her kid's academics are so poor, she's got to supplement at home with workbooks I've given her. But hey, at least the kid has a group of friends, ammiright?
Me? I think one part, mebbe the *biggest* part, has to do with the teacher's unions. It finally came out during the pandemic for everybody to see what has long been the *fact* of the matter. The unions support the teachers, first, last, and foremost. Kids? Not much.
I was fortunate to begin homeschooling in a district in Iowa that had a Home-School Assistance Program. The district still got a portion of the funding for each student, and we had access to textbooks, testing, and a "supervising teacher" (she was an art teacher, so she gave the kids an art lesson each month when she visited) at no cost to us. Clearly the district had figured out that some money was better than no money, especially when it came with minimal costs compared to a student in the classroom.
But that was 17 years ago. And I would imagine that in districts run by people who are fixated on indoctrinating students, they would do everything possible to make sure kids are forced to be in the classroom.
Home school is great when parents are organized and on top. Horrible when parents are doing it to fit in with crowd. No way out for kids when parents are lazy/otherwise occupied.
But it is great when parents are engaged and smart.
I don't think I've ever met any homeschooling families who were doing it to fit in with a crowd. I've heard a few horror stories about parents whose main aim was to isolate their children from anyone outside their family, but those were all second-hand stories.
I know of one first-hand (plus a couple of second/third) where family was part of a traditional circle with many home school families. Dad left it to mom. Mom had other priorities. Kids got little to no schooling. Not abuse per se. More dereliction of duty.
I was thinking along the lines of Hunter on the Prowl LLC - best recommendation letters money can buy! Or Hunter in the Dark - a Burisma for your Schizma
A rising crime rate. Increased use of illicit drugs. Open borders. Increased control of information in fewer hands. Attacks on free speech by those who control the flow of information. The death of journalism. False claims of systemic racism. Demands for instant satisfaction. And a President who is seriously cognitively impaired and corrupt and worse than a bad joke. (He claimed he was running to restore decency to the White House and yet he and his Press Secretary viciously attack the best White House reporter, a young man who respectfully asks embarrassing questions that need to be asked). The evidence of America’s decline is overwhelming.
I think absurd is a better description of the cause of what ails America rather than unseriousness.
It is absurd to impose solutions without having taken the time to investigate the problem - i. e. CAGW, which is absurdly referred to as Climate Change.
It is absurd to release those already on bail when they are arrested for allegedly committing new crimes. And it is absurd to describe this practice of universal bail as no bail.
It is absurd to allow people to enter America without understanding who they are and why they should be admitted.
It is absurd to claim that America is systemically racist when those with the highest incomes are Asian immigrants who obviously work harder than native born Americans.
It is absurd to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a liberal arts education when one can be obtained for free at your local library or online.
It is absurd for people to expect to have a good standard of living if they are uneducated or haven’t learned a trade, or are lazy or do drugs.
It is absurd to deny that today’s deficits are tomorrow’s inflation and/or taxes and that balancing budgets are economic and ethical imperatives.
It is absurd to think that you can have free and fair elections without a fair and competent media.
It is absurd to think that honesty is no longer the best policy.
It is absurd to claim that there are more than two genders. And it is absurd to allow biological males to compete with females.
It is absurd to think that you can create a democracy in a country without the essential requirements of freedom of speech, freedom of and from religion, gender equality and equality of citizenship. And It is absurd to claim that Afghanistan suddenly collapsed.
Finally, I love technology, but it is absurd to claim that technology can rescue America unless the above absurdities are addressed.
When you think of it is it not the Silicon Valley technology Ms. Boyle lauds so highly that if not outright created, then aided and abetted, those absurdities? I think the town square needs to be put back in the real world. I was galled when she was discussing the on the ground realities of America's shining example of technology and innovation. How can she not see the connection?
The first order of business would be to get the establishment out of the establishment; just as there is a minimum age to serve in Congress there should be a maximum age as well. If you can't steal or vote, or heaven forbid earn enough to retire by age 70, then Washington is not your town.
Make me the king. I don't want to be president; I want to be king, so what I say happens. But only king for 24 hours; any longer than that and I might start liking it.
First order of business: 28th Amendment. "Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and/or Representatives; and, Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and/or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States."
Second: Term limits with no re-election until sitting out two terms between.
Third: Disassemble the Deep State. The employment of all federal employees shall be terminated at the end of every presidency and must go through the same re-hire procedure as a new applicant.
Fourth: No federal employee shall for a period of twenty years power after termination or retirement from federal employment be employed by any entity that does business with the federal government, nor any foreign entity or power.
Fifth: All government accounting shall be done according to Generally Recognized Accounting Principles.
Sixth: There shall be no commitment of any military troops or assets to any foreign conflict without a formal declaration of war by Congress, at which time there shall be a lottery and ten percent of Congressmen shall serve in the military until said conflict is resolved and peace restored.
Seventh: All federal, state, and local taxes of any kind must never exceed 20% of the GDP, as calculated by Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Federal taxes capped at 10%.
Eighth: Any elected official convicted of graft or corruption shall serve twice the sentence imposed on a citizen for the same crime.
That should be a good start. My 24 hours over, the Republic may now be reconstituted.
Term limits. Three terms Congress. Two terms Senate. Much reduced administrative state. Push all decisions and actions to the lowest level possible. Farm DC out, spread the various departments across the land.
If you have terms limits you will create an even stronger administrative state by default.
Instead reverse the court decisions that inoculate the admin state from challenges ( Chevron doctrine) ; eliminate administrative courts which allow the agencies to govern themselves.
Stop finding student loans to slow the cost of tuition and reduce the “everyone goes to college nonsense”
Elected officials get no pensions, just 401k, no lifetime health care and cannot tap their fundraising accounts upon leaving office. Only living and breathing individuals ( humans not “persons” ) may donate to a campaign BUT ONLY if they have the ability to vote for the candidate. ( the must live in the district or state … ergo no union/ business/ think tank/ PAC and more importantly elected officials giving money to other potentials electeds to buy loyalty)
Campaigns must divest unused funds back to donors pro- rata 60 days after the date of the election. No campaign war chests!
Take the massive profit out of becoming a Senator and the grifters may stop running.
Nothing against old people, or rather older people, I count a great many of them as friends. We still have much to contribute, but contributions are suggestions, not edicts or manifestos. Trying to bring back or live in the past doesn't really work anymore than leaving the younger generations out of planning for their future. There is a reason graveyards are quiet.
If the younger generations had even *one lick* of common sense, which most-a them *don't, I still would be inclined to say the older people should be given a place at the table. No, not suggesting *all* the places.
They can only work with what they are given, but that is a whole other discussion another time. Suffice it to say, there are sensible young people but we don't necessarily notice them as they quietly go about their lives. These more sober minded younger adults are not engaged in the sorts of antics that would sell much copy in the corporate medisphere.
I am not sure about the statement about 'the most educated generation in America'.. Educated in what? Is the auhor counting the overall number of handed college degrees?
One of our problems lies in the proliferation of liberal education with supposedly accredited colleges doling out degrees in subjects that are not leading to a profession or vocation creating a vicious cycle of more people without any particular knowledge or skill. Hence, the army of low wage millennial and others not able to find well-paying jobs and remain miserable blaming the entire country for their misfortune. Their parents generation made a huge mistake of deciding that social justice, ethnic studies, etc. could become a profession and employed Hollywood and media to perpetuate the myth. America is now paying the price.
Just me if I didn't already know how you are I'd ask if you're kidding. Gender Studies, Ethnic Studies? How will someone earn a decent living after wasting 4 years on these topics and not something useful?
Skeptical, below you will find a partial list of jobs done by people with degrees in gender and ethnic studies. Here’s a partial list of words that describe you: illiberal, intolerant, narrow-minded, small-minded, insular, parochial, biased; I could go on, but I think you get the point!
Gender Studies:
University/college administration, Market research, Human resources, Nonprofit organizations, News correspondent, Grant writer.
Seven insults in response to my zero insult toward you. That is an interesting contrast between us.
If my children decided to pursue a degree that wasn't going to pay off financially that would be their business but I'd want to video them date stamped admitting that they understand they will be earning low wages in the future with the choices they make today. Buying a home in a safe neighborhood, travel for leisure, dependable cars etc may not be attainable due to unwise degree decisions. It's totally fine if people choose these paths but doesn't sound so smart to complain later that you don't have any money. Or worse BLAME those that made different choices that ARE paying off. Just an alternate and polite way of looking at it.
Couple of follow ups.. who funds the checks for Community Organization workers and why would a claims adjuster need ethnic studies?
“It is unserious to watch the most educated generation in American history not be able to afford a starter home.”
———————————————-
Meh. Really only ‘most educated’ in the way that Hillary was ‘most qualified’. If you spend 4 hours a day at the gym are you ‘most physically fit’? It depends if you go to the gym to smoke crack and eat donuts. College in 2022 is crack and donuts for most people receiving an ‘education’.
(Again, I will insist we should discharge most student debt by suing schools the way Trump University got sued for worthless degrees)
My parents are a really bad example but still they proudly use their Social Security money to pay some of their property taxes. Homes are expensive because nobody who *stops working* is forced to downsize. Other reasons too, obv. We need to delete the New Deal.
Asking simple history/civics/literature questions to Ivy League graduated surgical residents is revealing. They know nothing. I start with “easy” questions and rarely get to my hard ones.
"It is unserious to watch the most educated generation in American history not be able to afford a starter home." I'm sorry, but most people I worked with were buying nice starter homes in their twenties. Now, they were mostly Indians and Chinese who had learned valuable STEM skills. If America was serious, it would stop squandering money on school levies. Bangalore is doing a good enough job managing that for us. America teaches non-serious topics, the sum of which should not be confused with education. To call this generation the most educated in history is both hyperbolic and misleading, yielding unmerited self-pity.
"It is unserious to pour six trillion dollars into failed nation-building—more than three times what has gone into American venture-backed technology companies in the same two decades—only to let a nation collapse in a jumbled weekend withdrawal."
Katherine, are you suggesting America First policies? You know those same policies the media elite call racist, xenophobic, anti-semantic. You are aware that advocating for America is simply code for fascism aren't you?
I agree with Boyle’s take; but isn’t this more or less if not exactly President Trump’s agenda?
Is it a coincidence that Trump is a builder?
So following Boyle’s points would be directly counter to the Democratic vision for the country, of big-government retrenchment.
I feel that Bari dances around the fact that the voices which excite her are essentially populist Republican, because to declare that allegiance would ruin her brand of moderate reformer of the liberal bloc.
But sooner or later, maybe 2024, she’ll have to take a stand.
Bari, Nellie, and other old-school liberals have largely adopted populist economic positions. That's not a big step -- populist economics is more Teddy Roosevelt than Ronald Reagan. However, the social issues (abortion, gay marriage, etc...) are still a roadblock to their full populist embrace. They're liberals -- they accept the "maximal individual autonomy" position of Locke or Mill.
I respect Bari greatly, but I have no pretensions about her ideological loyalties. She and Nellie are part of the uber-educated, liberal establishment; they may play nice with us plebs, but they still think we're deplorables. And I fear that once we help them defeat the woke, they will turn on us in a heartbeat.
So I don't see it as such a zero-sum game, in that there are nuances in today's Republican coalition. Post-globalism, I don't think that Reagan's Republicanism would jibe for most Trump supporters.
I also think working-class Republicans today are pretty liberal about old-school liberal values: gay marriage, civil rights, abortion but with sane limits, and of course, free speech. Equality of opportunity, not outcome. Respect for law enforcement, but no police overreach. Guns might be a more dividing issue.
On the whole, I think that Republicans have moved to occupy the old live-and-let-live moderate left on social issues (abandoned by the Progressives) while fighting against the growth of the regulatory state. I don't believe that the Christian Right represents the future of the party.
So I feel that if Bari and Nelli were to tabulate up all the issues by party, it would be pretty clear which side of the line they'd fall. Of course I know that Bari argues against this binary political vision, but good luck with that...
Many Republicans are small-L libertarians at heart. The support for Ron Paul showed that. Unfortunately, the RINOs were in complete control of the party leadership at that point--a monopoly that it took Trump to break (with massive help from the media, who wanted him to be the candidate so Hillary would have someone she could easily beat).
I hope very much that the shotgun wedding of libertarianism and Christianity can get annulled. I'm tired of voting for people who say they're conservative only to have them spend all the focus on tax cuts. Trump did the same thing; his only actual legislative accomplishment was a tax cut. But unlike the others, he also took SCOTUS, trade, and immigration seriously with EOs.
I take it back. We don't need an annulment; we just need a new breadwinner.
Let's spend the next 50 years making the libertarian wing of the party vote for candidates who promise tax cuts, only to pass some token measure and spend all their time on working class and cultural issues. Now that would be fun.
In my experience, a lot of libertarians are atheists or agnostics. Evangelical Christians are decidedly NOT libertarian, since that requires people to be willing to "live and let live."
While libertarians do like tax cuts, the main thing they want is smaller government, along with a big rollback of federalism. Less government interference in almost everything.
Despite what you may have been told, libertarians are basically classical liberals: firm on Enlightenment principles and the Constitution.
If you're sad because libertarian-leaning Republicans are not interested in banning all abortions, repealing gay marriage, and making Evangelical Christianity the State religion, I don't have much sympathy.
Got partway through it. Interesting, and seems pretty accurate. No surprise YouTube banned author of the video of Cruz. (I assume that's what that was.)
I am reminded of two quotes from two centuries apart:
Alexis de Tocqueville: "The strength of free peoples resides in the local community. Local institutions are to liberty what primary schools are to science: they put it within the people's reach"
Newt Gingrich: "December 7th 1941 to August 14th, 1945 is less than 4 years. In less than 4 years, we defeated Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Imperial Japan. Today it takes 23 years to add a 5th runway to the Atlanta airport. We are simply not prepared, today, to be a serious country."
How do we bring the spirit of the young, agarian America (that deTocqueville celebrated) into the 21st century to combat the aging imperial decadence (that Gingrich laments) which we now find ourselves in? I suspect the answer lies in decentralization and federalism (deTocqueville thought that too), but our roads all lead in the opposite direction today.
"The top six companies by market capitalization in the U.S. are technology companies. The prevailing trend of this century is that technology will continue to improve civic functions in this country"
Considering the anti-social and anti-democratic behavior of these same companies over the last 5 years, the confidence expressed here appears misplaced. Regardless, this was a good perspective, and a great example of why I subscribe here.
Bingo. Getting $hit done in the name of bettering the lives of the vast majority of our CITIZENS used to be the sine qua non of America. Today, the left has put so many spanners in the gears that we can't even clean the crap off our streets any more. Welcome to the 18th century!
We have given to much power to the Tech companies they are in total control of everything our votes our lives our very existence this is the question how do we turn it off how do we get rid of this cancer when we do that we will all be reborn and be human again (also get rid of Amazon it’s killing mom and pop operations)
Stop using them. That would be a great first step.
Next steps: get rid of your smartphone, turn off Amazon Prime, delete your Facebook and Twitter profiles, then go somewhere and do things with real people.
Yes, there are lots of political things that need doing too, but (as Aristotle, Augustine and Madison have all said) self-government begins with learning to govern yourself. If you want the world to change, start by changing the piece of it you have control over.
To that I would add volunteer during the elections at your local election administrator. 1) it is about the only truly local thing left; and 2) it is very much real world involvement with real world people.
You are exactly right take back our control take back our lives go off your smart phone use it only when necessary go off Twitter go off Facebook don’t shop at Amazon and don’t Google you don’t need the info 24/7 and take your children and grandchildren off instagram and Tik Tok get them into community projects get them into real life tell them it’s not only about them it’s about all of us start small we can grow a movement (in Bernie’s words) we can do it!!!
You can get 4G flip phones on eBay for less than $50 easily, and US Wireless or RedPocket both have cheap (no data) plans.
I didn't mention kids, but I concur 100% about keeping them off social media. However, that comes across as hypocrisy if they see their parents addicted to it. It was enforcing our ban on smartphones / social media for our teens that forced me to adopt similar rules for myself.
*Great* quotes, Sir. And I would say *seriously* misplaced.
Road ahead? Ignoramoose. Dunno who said that the voters end up getting the government they want. The voters want two parties that don't amount to, seriously, squat. IMHO, of course.
JT, I have a substack related question for you. How did you get your "Writes inciteful experiences" tag to show up on all your comments? I can't figure out how to do that with my own.
"Building is a political philosophy. It is neither red nor blue, progressive nor conservative."
Wrong. One camp (so called "progressives") has repeatedly put barriers in the way of economic growth ("we invented fracking") in the name of climate change or equity or harm reduction or safe spaces or yadda yadda yadda. The left has always been the party of chaos and destruction, and to argue otherwise is...how should I say...not serious.
If "seriousness" is defined as focus and will, then the U.S. military fails on both counts. First it was humanitarian efforts and nation building. Today it's diversity, equity, inclusion and fulfillment (whatever that means) of the individual soldier. Our military leaders (such as they are) are steadily destroying the most basic capabilities of recognizing, confronting and killing the enemy.
"It is unserious to talk about renewables and not nuclear." <-- This is precisely why I cannot take climate alarmists seriously. For the past 20 years I've been hearing "Warmists" screaming about how we'll all die if we don't do something RIGHT NOW! But they persistently reject nuclear energy, despite the fact that it is the only short-term-feasible replacement for fossil fuels when it comes to generating on-demand electricity.
It's like saying you'll do ANYTHING to survive cancer...but you won't go through chemo, despite the fact that it's a proven treatment for your type of cancer. If you just take enough vitamins....
Yeah, but let's be serious, here - nuclear is a proven technology that hucksters can't wheedle hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars out of our government for specious research into pie-in-the-sky ideas.
It's a technology that is controlled by established utilities and not new enough to create the entirely new economic sector controlled by John Kerry, Al Gore, Ed Markey, AOC, and all of their Chablis-swilling pals on Nantucket, the Vineyard, the Hamptons, and Montecito.
THAT's why nuclear is not acceptable to these folks...
We have a Bingo! Most of our major problems today are based on Mega industries and governments (China) trying to push public policy in a way that isn't in the best interests of the citizens, but is in the best interests of the Elite, or China specifically.
I assume that much of the strategy and financial backing for the Climate movement is coming from China. They win twice: Their major enemy takes on policies that cripple it's economy, and their enemy also become a major consumer of solar panels and rare earth minerals, both of which China own the markets of. This is the new version of war.
Jon...not sure about "council", but between the News Media and China, you can find the Nest.
Been warming, long before man got here. China with 600 huge coal plants and plans for 120 more J. Bridger coal plants, now building 3 new plants.
Cargo ship "Felicity"(?) , Atlantic Ocean, goes under with 3800 new cars, EV batteries aboard. Very little news, but the crew evacuated and my guess, they could not put out the fire, because of the EV (lithium) batteries.
Major Problems being covered...Lies.
"Electrification" means tripling the installed grid. Currently wind and solar provide 3% of the primary energy used in the usa.
3%.
After $trillions spent.
As electrification with renewables can only occur with magic batteries, right now its costed at ~$400 Trillion.
And that is probably low.
BOOM
So true. We are transforming our electric grid to rely on unreliable wind and solar. This is madness and cannot end well. Worse, we are adding to the electricity demand by turning to electricity to heat homes and phasing our gas and oil, and to transforming our gasoline and diesel vehicles to electric vehicles. So, at the same time we are drastically increasing demand we are looking to fill that demand with unreliable sources. It is not hyperbole to say that people - maybe many people - will pay a terrible price in being unable to afford the transformation and then sickness and death when the grid fails.
And the grid WILL fail, make no mistake. It's barely functioning as it is, held together with bailing wire and boogers. That America's linemen and women keep it together as well as they do is a testament to the hard workers on power poles in the middle of twisters and storms. But we can't keep adding demand to the grid and not expect it to collapse if we don't rebuild and harden it.
Putting all our energy eggs in one basket--be it electric, fossil, wind, whatever--is foolish. We should generate from a lot of sources and replace older technology with newer as it becomes proven. No reason to not use everything we know now while looking for good supplementary and replacement generation systems.
And may I add, it is also folly not to harden our grid against EMP, whether naturally caused or by a malevolent actor or actors. Regardless of political views, as Bill and I show, reasonable people can still solve 95% of our problems by agreeing on the facts.
Yes. The liberal-center-conservative spectrum is, by and large, agreeable on most issues. Not all, but enough to make our society a whole lot better than the fractured granite it is now. The wings of right and left, amplified by media and social media, cause a LOT of rage without offering any good solutions.
Me, I just want a society that's fixing its problems, loving its present and future, and not screaming at The Other till their veins pop. That doesn't make us better, it only puts money in the pocket of the clicks-and-likes brigade.
Your last sentence, William, is pure gold. We all need to understand that our rage changes nothing except the profits made by the most strident outlets.
Thank you, Dennis. We are the product, they make all the money!
Love "clicks-and-likes brigade".
Thanks, Lynne! I have my moments :-)
You both make excellent points!
All of the above is China’s energy policy. We could do a lot worse, but they don’t waste time listening to uninformed climate hand-wringers.
Wonder how much of the Infrastructure Bill went for that. Just asking, as have *no* idea. If I were to guess, probably none. Rebuilding and hardening *too* good an idea.
Yeah on second paragraph. Nuclear proven. New generations being built as we speak. Mebbe another *too* good an idea. WSS.
Answer - very little. We have an antiquated grid, coupled with rising demand and increasingly unreliable generation. In other words, a recipe for disaster.
I live in Texas and the snowpocalypse of 2021 was very eye-opening.
Yes. I see no signs that Abbott & Co. have done anything to prevent a repeat, either. Have you see any signs of ice-proofing the terminals, etc.?
Some of the infrastructure bill was designated for grid improvements. But not enough to be very useful.
Exactly. The proverbial cart is well ahead of the horse. Plus what works in one area of the country will not work well in others.
But why are we allowing this surely to God we aren’t the only people on this forum who realize this President Trump told us how many times in the run up to 2020 that Democrats will go back to the green new deal he told us that migrants will be crossing in bus loads at the southern border just two things which have proved correct and in spite of all his warnings we voted Joe Biden in before we can go up we have to get out of this mess how we do that is anyone’s guess but we have got to do something and quickly
This is just one person's guess. But I would think the best bet would be to vote in numbers in '22. And then put forth an ELECTABLE Republican in '24. I don't see that as being Trump. Sure, ICBW. But looking at Repubs, Dems, AND Independents, I just don't see Trump as "a happenin' thang."
Agree jt. Trump needs to step back if he really cares about our country. His policies are sound, but his personality is toxic.
That's how I feel. At this point, I'd like to see DeSantis, with Nikki Haley as the VP candidate. Although I wouldn't at all object to Nikki Haley as the presidential candidate in her own right.
I agree. That’s a strong ticket.
Sounds perfect!
I'd be *amazed* if that even came into his consideration whether to run or not. Beyond smackgobbed.
I think Melania will tell him to go to hell if he says he wants to run again. Why would she stand for four more years of the absolute crap she and Baran took. I mean Trump can handle what comes his way, but M & B are collateral damage and that might just put her over the cliff. I don't think he'll run....he'll just be king maker.
Maybe not but we need a seriously strong Republican male to take on Big Tech and the corporations I don’t see anybody else emerging at this stage but politics is very strange who would have predicted Trumps first win and then predicted a Biden win with a female as the Veep
I thought Trump was a great President (based on policies not personality necessarily) but I think he will motivate the opposition either to turn out in droves or to rig another election.
For sure! It can't be Trump.
jt...without a second coming, next Pres. election will be a runaway...guess who?
No other option, get your cymbals ready for celebration, you can do.
You always make me smile. But this time I'm laughin' AT You, not WITH You. Seriously, tho, it isn't so much that I don't want it to happen. It's that it'll hurt the Repubs in the long run.
Say You're right and Trump wins. Wanna bet what happens four years later? Pendulum swings the other way. You want someone who'll push the pendulum in one direction and HOLD it there, right? Trump makes as many enemies as he does friends, right?
jt...i could not figure, till now. makes sense. That is very close to the way i felt(for a while) while walking to place my ballot, 2016, i was going to vote Hillary. Peeps would hate her so much , For Good Reason, we would not have Shumor, Pilosi, Biden, Shiffty et al.
Trunpty is not the only one, but he Did show his abilities.
I disagree with you on the swing of the pendulum if you don’t have Trump from 2024 - 2028 the power will swing back to the Dems if you have Trump and a decent Veep 2028 - 2032 will remain in Republican hands Trump’s a maverick and his Veep would have had 4 years to understand his plan to carry on the implementation of it I think you will see a different Presidency to how he governed as 45 he won’t take the same shit and I presume he will have the majority in the senate and the house but like I said politics is a strange game and maybe it will be Kamala which means it will be a tough time for the US!
Trump has 75 million votes in the bag, and that's not counting the disaffected Democrats who have buyer's remorse right now.
You're a dreamer. I can be too.
But what You're counting on is that there will be more Dems crossing over than Repubs running away from Trump. Do I *know*? Nup.
Do I think the crossover will make up for all the Independents than run *away* from Trump. My estimate is no way, Jose. Also consider that 1/3 of Trump's own *party* doesn't believe the election was stolen, and that Trump is the acknowledged master of spreading, to quote his OWN WORDS, "disinformation."
A lot can happen between now and November 2024. There's more information coming out all the time, such as the recent cell phone tracking data on the "mules" stuffing ballot boxes. Right now, the stolen-election school of thought is gaining popularity.
Trump is a no-go for me. Dear Lord we need a third party.
Agree. It can't be Trump. Too divisive. The Dems are like a jilted spouse / lover who never lets it go and won't stop talking about it.
I was talking to friends about this last night. We all know people who actually WOULD cast a vote for Biden again in 24. Even knowing about the cognitive decline and all the messes they would still vote for him if it meant not voting for Trump. Insanity.
Total insanity! Beyond belief in fact just to keep President 45 out
"We" kemosabe?
If we can’t break the grip of the morons running this country, you’d better tell your grandkids to learn Mandarin and how to do the laundry of their future overlords.
We see how it is playing out in that bastion of green, California - rolling blackouts.
As a lifelong native, what is going on in California is nothing less than Kafkaesque. Newsom has managed the impossible- to be a parody of himself.
They can't transmit it effectively.
Right, Lynne. Power loss over transmission lines from wind and solar is very substantial.
Because you can’t locate a solar or wind farm in the middle of a city, where energy demand is greatest. Longer transmission lines = greater energy loss.
Wind farms are often a great distance from the place where the power will be used. AC current does not carry well over long distance.
What, is it possible that they're not really interested in what they say they're interested in? Is it possible that there are industries simply trying to make money off of a cause? Thank God that's not happening with the race/gender/COVID causes.
Or, maybe not causes as much as businesses.
Yeah. Grifter, Inc.
In British Columbia environmentalists are also opposed to our large Hydro project - the only other way to have zero carbon industrial scale energy. It really doesn’t make sense if they are truly scared of global warming. My view is that Big Green now exists mostly to pay its leaders large salaries and numerous other perks which requires a lot of fundraising. Fundraising needs enemies to be opposed to.
And that fundraising comes from Al Gore's bosses, the wind energy/solar panels and China.
The envirowackos have been opposing hydro at every turn for decades, always on the theory that it will kill some sub-species of fish or frog that is somehow irreplaceable. And yet that species is more important than the whole planet (as they claim)?
Funny thing is the goal ever *is* reached, they don't disband but go out and find *another* cause. "Fundraising needs enemies to be opposed to." Big salaries, as opposed to anything approaching common horse-sense, right?
WELL-said, M. Celia!
Totally agree, Celia. They’re just not serious people.
Most climate activists are on board with some type of nuclear.
Since when? I mean it's possible that a turn has come about in the past several months but let's be real. Climate activism and no-nuclear energy activists have been one and the same.
No. They're not. Some? Maybe. Most? I disagree.
Strange that we never hear them pushing for it. Who is keeping their support for it out of the media?
Not true, Matt. But they should be.
Name one.
Corey Booker
https://www.factcheck.org/2019/11/what-does-science-say-about-the-need-for-nuclear/
For every one You mention, can You name three don't back nuclear? Or ten. Or ... That's what I thought.
Don't even get me started on nucular!
I think it was Ike as well... Funny how the "most educated" used to mock W for being a dimmwit and a mere puppet in the hands of Dick Vader. They still mock W, but somehow cane to like Dick...
Because his daughter is kissing their, well you know.
Celia, do you know:
Construction cost and lead time for nuclear and renewable?
Cost per MWh of power for nuclear and renewables?
And what about NIMBY and nuclear waste?
The costs are not useful as the nuclear costs are based on the current 1950s tech dinosaurs. New gen nukes are smaller (400 MW or so), don't need complicated ECCS's, and can be standardized and stacked. Not remotely comparable to the siting nightmares of the old nukes. The new designs reduce the cost, the environmental impact and the security concerns.
Bruce, I understand there is research been done on nuclear reactors, unless I missed something, at this point it’s not much more than a pig in a poke! Do you know something I don’t?
Just me, what You know amounts to a thimble full. You're just too full-a Yourself to know it.
There are at least ONE, and I believe TWO of these reactors BEING BUILT, FOOL.
Try to look at things as they are. Not the way You WISH they were.
I was gonna come back and tell Ya how I've been at the computer for about 14 hours now, and didn't get my walk in, which makes me irritable. Nor had lunch.
And then I was gonna apologize for being short, and calmly explaining what I *know* about what's been going on that You weren't aware of.
But You're such a snot-nosed snarky individual, that I'm glad I saw Your other comment before I did ANY-a that, but You don't deserve to be talked to with ANY respect, Just me.
Troll! You here again! Why don't You answer Your own questions, and then juxtapose them against the costs for renewables. And don't forget land mass it'll take to house all those bazillion renewable in Your analysis.
IOW, if You don't have anything of account to post here, why don't You take Your pretend-questions to somebody who will listen to Your tripe.
jt, your immaturity keeps shining through!
I'm trying to recall how old You are, Just me. Oh yeah, young enough that You wanna pretend age doesn't matter.
I think You mistake me for someone who's concerned, at ALL, about what other people think of me. I'm not like YOU, Just me. I grew UP a long time ago. Before You were born.
OK you two, calm down. Go take your GMO puppies for a walk, hydrate, then go back at it like new.
Lol. I'm done with Just me. But *next* time I'm takin' the kid gloves off!
Most of what you cite as obstacles are regulatory issues other countries have long since dealt with. Cost is generally higher than subsidized renewables , but reliable baseload power is vital, and recycling issues are much more manageable with nuclear, as is initial carbon footprint.
But if you are telling us that climate change will kill us all -why would you care about costs. Private investors can risk their money - again why do you care.
Pops, I’m telling you nothing, merely asking questions that apparently upset some.
Do you? If it's a question of saving the planet, does it matter?
I asked the questions to see if you were for nuclear energy because the tree-hugging leftists were against it, or you understood the pros and cons of nuclear power. I want to see if your comment was rational or emotional! Your reply makes it clear it wasn’t a thinking comment but an emotional comment.
Amen Theo. I'm one of those guys. We'll probably be in nursing homes before the nit-wit class gets even a hint about the wrongs they have foisted upon all of us.
If we don’t make them own up for their wrongs they will continue to grift us and our children their children and our great great grandchildren if there will be anything left for them to steal we have to change the dynamics now if we have any chance of making things right
I'll offer you a wry smile, Michele, for your comment. I'm far too old to become a major force for change in our culture and society.
All I have to offer is 8 decades of observing the origins of how such values as fellowship, personal responsibility, and belief in a higher power fell by the wayside.
I have witnessed the genesis of the civil rights movement in the 50s, including the police and citizens who used billy clubs and rocks to beat down peaceful marchers.
During the 60s I saw the race riots and the beginnings of a wide spread malaise in our nation.
The 70s were even worse for the soul of our country in terms of losing trust in government institutions, shortages of gasoline and diesel fuel, and a feeling of helplessness.
The 80s brought back a rebirth of optimism, and by the end of the decade most of us realized our bumbling peanut farmer was far more talented at helping people build homes for those who were down and out. He was a class act in retirement!
Since then, I've stood idlely by as academics, school administrators and even our churches adopted ideas that exhibited an innate disdain towards the ideals I was taught as a boy and a young adult.
I see elements of such disdain in the left as well as the right wings of our political system.
All I can do is pray that my grandchildren will inherit a better society.
Thank you for your insightful comment Michele.
8 decades of wisdom for which I thank you Dennis it’s people like you who will always make a difference to all of us there must be millions of us out there like you who may not have 8 decades under their belts but who truly believe that we can be and are a great nation please God it will be good again 🇺🇸🇺🇸
Thank you Michele for your kind response to my mini-essay.
I remember that back in the 70s it was a new ice age they were warning about. I suspect those of us who are old enough to remember that have always had a bit more skepticism about "global warming."
Everything went to shit after the first participation trophy was handed out.
One of the best comments ever!!
Hard to identify the straw that broke the camels back. This is one-a the contenders, no doubt, among many,
I'd add the UPenn water buffalo incident (1993). The Toronto Star pondered then: "What Race Is a Water Buffalo?" Perhaps the beginning of the Victimhood Olympics: Who's gonna take the gold, black women sorority or Israeli studying student? Somehow "It's Wednesday at midnight so STFU", was seriously balanced by 'they said mean things.'
It is unserious to attribute complex problems to a single cause, especially if that cause plays into one's own pet ideological commitments.
The sociologist Roy F. Baumeister was a big fan of the self-esteem movement. Like all-a them. But then he looked at the results of it. Sure, the kids thought *very* well of themselves. But on comparing the U.S. with other nations? Performance DEcreased. Which, if You think about it, just stands to reason.
Stands to reason we have so many namby-pamby adults with no resilience in their bones. No, not single cause, but a big one.
I don't think he is saying it is a single cause, but participation trophies are a cause of the unserious movement.
This.
Indeed! Who started that bullshit anyway? My now college age kids were in hockey and Irish dance. In hockey you won or lost....no trophies if you lost. In Irish dance (totally subjective), the judge either awarded your dance or didn't. Thank goodness my kids were in sports where they didn't get those participation trophies. It's absolutely what is so wrong with our young adults now.
but the orange slices were delicious
Pablo Antonio, are you serious?
Sure
Here's a participation trophy for you, for figuring shit out
I want one too!
While I do generally agree with some statements in this article, there are many where I completely disagree. US technological prowess still shines in some areas, but has completely despaired in others.
Before I come to these points that I disagree, everyone should look around them and try to find one thing that is not "Made in China". For majority of people this will be impossible. Every one of these things that was Made in China, there is Chinse company behind it, that didn't exist 30 years before. So notion, that US is somehow special with regard of new and revolutionary companies might have been on point 30 years ago but not now.
Yes USA has Tesla, but China has in same period, yielded Nio, Xpeng, Li Auto, GAC, BYD and many more new car manufactures. Same goes for many other industries, Baidu, Tencent, Alibaba, Maituan, Huawei, Xiaomi, CATL, ZTE, OPPO, Lenovo, Haier, TikTok I could literally go whole day, all these companies are leaders in their own field and all were foundend in last 30 years.
US might have exceptional large number of Software unicorns, but in China, there were even larger number of manufacturing and software unicorns that have shown up in last 30 years, and many of those were build, on outsourcing of American jobs to China.
If US is to compete with China and win, it should also start manufacture again, yes US has "drive to build things", but it should have "drive to manufacture in US".
US is to lead the world with its technological prowess, we should avoid doing what we did in last 30 years, where some stuff was "Designed in USA" but in the end completely Manufactured in China. Because very soon more and more stuff will be Designed and Manufactured in China.
This means fixing US education, getting ideology out of universities (especially STEM) and also finally fixing US failing infrastructure. in the 1960 infrastructure was best in the world. Today it is still stucked in 1960.
One of the most difficult challenges when creating new businesses now is access to capital. VC/PE/Angels hold/control much of the investment capital and the first two quesions they ask are; how quickly can I exit, and how many multiples of my investment can I sxpect. If it's not 2 and 10, they pass.
Also, tech has extracted massive amounts of money from from municipalities. Uber/Lyft send 30% of all fares back to Silicon Valley. Grubhub, DoorDash and Uber Eats send 30+% of the cost of the meals they deliver back to SV. Don't even get me started on Amazon. Not that what they're extracting isn't bad enough, but most of them don't make a profit for their investors. When locals start to develop better local alternatives, there's no capital to help. I've had success on a national basis developing local restaurant owned delivery co-ops, but can't find the capital to compete in a meaningful way.
While I'm at it, I believe the most meaningful reform needs to happen on the student loan front. It's not only resulted in out of control tuition costs that will never be paid back, but's it's also (imho) the number one cause for the liberal arts programs becoming indoctrination centers. Who can actually make a case that spending $100K on a 'Studies' program will provide any ROI for the student? Forgive the debt (I know, lots of reasons not too, especially from parents like me who personally paid for our kids) and sever future government funding. It's worth the price to get the schools out of the indoctrination business. Let the schools take the risk on loans and see how much they'll risk on a "whatever' studies degree.
While I love the tone of the article, we have some serious infrastructure changes needed before we can facilitate the next generation of innovation and culture change.
I fully agree.
I am European living and working in China married to American. When I see what kind of state of the art infrastructure in China has been built in last 20 years, I get nervus for future of US and Europe.
I always say to my wife, when we visit my family in Europe, we take travel machine and arrive in early 1990 with regard topics of infrastructure. When we go to visit her family in US, it is like traveling to 1960. When we are back in China, we are in 21 century. And this is not only for high speed rail and ports and airports, but for simple roads and bridges.
West needs to get itself together and start fixing its basic infrastructure, if not, it will fall so far behind, that it wound be feasible to catch up. And all new innovations will be coming from elsewhere.
Re China in the 21st century: Is it just a stereotype that China still struggles with basic sanitary habits? (Genuinely asking; not being snarky.) My husband has traveled there frequently for work and reports seeing people literally defecating in the streets. And what about all those schools that collapse in a moderate or above earthquake because of shoddy construction and corruption? Germy wet markets that spread disease (I remember reading that the avian flu was spread by high pressure water hoses blasting chicken manure everywhere)
You live there, not me, but just asking for more info re the “China is so advanced” thing 🤔
Answer can be best given with german word - Jain => meaning Yes and No.
Up to 2017 it was completely normal to see people defecating on the streets (partly caused by lack off public toilets and party by simply not wanting to use public toilets). This was followed by public outrage and numerous videos on Chinese social media of people relifing themselves on public spaces (streets, even planes).
In 2017/2018 there was huge public campaign followed with building huge number of public toilets and crack down on people going to toilet on the streets or other public places.
Since then this has been largely stamped out, so you have "normal" amount of people doing it on the streets (mostly small kids and males who had to much to drink).
This might be true, but when you look at state of LA, NYC, Chicago and other large US cities (homeless issues, opioid epidemic, woke ideology in public schools...).
CCP cant limit China to that extent, that woke policies can destroy USA.
I wonder about China. About woke policies? I don't think many here would disagree with Ya, M. Raziel.
We don't send money to Silicon Valley, we send it to Wall Street via people like this author.
What? Don’t give up your day job Michael.
China has a certain advantage on infrastructure, policies for corporations, and visions on where they want to be headed as a sovereign state. Sidestepping any ethical content, the advantage of unopposed majorities is the ability to move ahead. Even a doomed project like the Tower of Babel could be built with unity and destroyed once that unity disappears. In our successful American corporations and in our less successful medical infrastructure, there is no ambiguity about who has authority to proceed. That has not been the case in America where your doctor cannot even get you the right treatment without asking somebody else's permission. If your processes impede the simple, the more complex undertakings begin at a great handicap.
You're absolutely right. Well said!
You are correct up to a point about innovation by Chinese companies. But a great deal of the technology underlying such innovation was stolen from the US by spies and hackers; people don’t realize how many Chinese spies operate here and report back. And a great many Chinese scientists and engineers have gone to the US for STEM education.
Did the US education system make us ship manufacturing out of the United States? The same goes for infrastructure; how did that make us ship manufacturing overseas?
China is leader in all of these fields. Majority of world industry robots are manufactured and utilized in China.
Same goes for all forms of automations, machine learning.
Renewables => solar, wind, battery technologies are all developed in China and China is leader in these fields.
China is uncontested leader in 5G.
Raziel...China also leads in Coal plants, with plans for 120 more...how dumb?
I think it should also be considered how much of that IP China is stealing from the U.S.
“Build PCR tests so that a nasal swab stops the nation from closing businesses at the mere sight of Covid case increases.”
————————————————
No we don’t need that shit. There’s already a surplus of shystering in this area. They just came out with a COVID breathalyzer FFS I’m not kidding.
What we need is psychiatric care for the children whose psychotic parents turned them into Bill Murray’s character in ‘What About Bob’……actually never mind because the Democrat ‘mental health professional’ will probably just parlay the hypochondria into an opportunity to convince the kid they are trans.
We need to move on declare victory and live
Based on how our society reacted I think we should declare defeat, but I agree we should move on to something that is less profitable for Democrats.
I agree. Being forever shocked at the drama and machinations of obvious grifters is senseless. A huge part of their power exists because we continue to give ours away.
“It is unserious to prioritize the old over the young, to shut down public schools for two years in the name of safety”
——————————————
I’ve actually shifted my position on this. Now that it’s evident that Democrats were using public schools to ask 12-year-olds who can’t read if they like being choked during sex, I think we should keep the schools closed.
The public schools are a cesspool. School choice/vouchers
It's been a while since I had my finger on the pulse of the home-schooling community, but I sincerely hope that the school shutdowns prompted more parents to look in that direction. I homeschooled each of my three kids through a period of time when their schools had nothing to offer them. Best choice we ever made.
Agreed. It was great. Brought the family closer
we homeschool in very blue Silicon Valley, and have for the last 4 years. The community has exploded! It's been really nice to see. HOWEVER, the pushback from the districts (and therefore the State) is stifling. We fully anticipate the state to go after homeschoolers, using one bad example to ruin it for the rest of us. They see lost $$$ from their bloated budgets, and don't care for the student's education. For example the SFUSD lost 14k students over the last 2 years. Not all to homeschooling of course, some to charter and private or moving out of the district for a better school system, but the District officials are warning of a major deficit (on top of their already huge one) and of teacher/staff firings and school closures due to lack of funds...as if bad education wasn't the reason for the kids removal from the district smh
Interesting that the district’s concern is about losing staff. Did you hear anything about improving quality of education to keep students?
From parents and concerned locals, sure. But I don't think i've ever heard a CA education person ever talk about improving the quality of education, at least in the past 5 years. I've been hearing a lot about ensuring equity by lowering testing and scoring standards, eliminating standardized testing from places like Lowell HS which used to be a merit based school you got into by your academics, renaming schools like Abraham Lincoln to something else due to racism. That sort of thing. But no, nothing about improving test scores, improving reading comprehension (60 percent of CA students can't read at an 8th grade level according to the SF Chronicle) etc from those actually in charge. I have a friend whose kid is in what's considered a 10/10 school, and she's realized that her kid's academics are so poor, she's got to supplement at home with workbooks I've given her. But hey, at least the kid has a group of friends, ammiright?
Me? I think one part, mebbe the *biggest* part, has to do with the teacher's unions. It finally came out during the pandemic for everybody to see what has long been the *fact* of the matter. The unions support the teachers, first, last, and foremost. Kids? Not much.
I was fortunate to begin homeschooling in a district in Iowa that had a Home-School Assistance Program. The district still got a portion of the funding for each student, and we had access to textbooks, testing, and a "supervising teacher" (she was an art teacher, so she gave the kids an art lesson each month when she visited) at no cost to us. Clearly the district had figured out that some money was better than no money, especially when it came with minimal costs compared to a student in the classroom.
But that was 17 years ago. And I would imagine that in districts run by people who are fixated on indoctrinating students, they would do everything possible to make sure kids are forced to be in the classroom.
There was a huge increase in homeschooling during covid, but it is still a small percentage of all children.
Home school is great when parents are organized and on top. Horrible when parents are doing it to fit in with crowd. No way out for kids when parents are lazy/otherwise occupied.
But it is great when parents are engaged and smart.
I don't think I've ever met any homeschooling families who were doing it to fit in with a crowd. I've heard a few horror stories about parents whose main aim was to isolate their children from anyone outside their family, but those were all second-hand stories.
I know of one first-hand (plus a couple of second/third) where family was part of a traditional circle with many home school families. Dad left it to mom. Mom had other priorities. Kids got little to no schooling. Not abuse per se. More dereliction of duty.
The question is, is that typical of homeschooling families or just a blip in the data?
Even more, religious groups need to get serious about founding and funding schools. They can keep government from dictating curriculum.
I think Your idea is *great,* M. Weems. Dovetails right in with Madjack's and Celia's, all three of 'em!
Right again!
🤣🤣🤣you right the kids better off at home under those circumstances
KD... i am all for that closure stuff, they tried to teach me the Alphabutt...
‘Marquis de Sod’ is the best landscaping company name I’ve seen
Biden’s Delaware-based holding company is Marquis de Fraud LLC
You can't follow Marquis se Sod with this shit. you have a standard to uphold!
Your feedback is important to us. I will run this by the team back at the pun factory.
😂😂
Should I please continue to hold?
I was thinking along the lines of Hunter on the Prowl LLC - best recommendation letters money can buy! Or Hunter in the Dark - a Burisma for your Schizma
A rising crime rate. Increased use of illicit drugs. Open borders. Increased control of information in fewer hands. Attacks on free speech by those who control the flow of information. The death of journalism. False claims of systemic racism. Demands for instant satisfaction. And a President who is seriously cognitively impaired and corrupt and worse than a bad joke. (He claimed he was running to restore decency to the White House and yet he and his Press Secretary viciously attack the best White House reporter, a young man who respectfully asks embarrassing questions that need to be asked). The evidence of America’s decline is overwhelming.
I think absurd is a better description of the cause of what ails America rather than unseriousness.
It is absurd to impose solutions without having taken the time to investigate the problem - i. e. CAGW, which is absurdly referred to as Climate Change.
It is absurd to release those already on bail when they are arrested for allegedly committing new crimes. And it is absurd to describe this practice of universal bail as no bail.
It is absurd to allow people to enter America without understanding who they are and why they should be admitted.
It is absurd to claim that America is systemically racist when those with the highest incomes are Asian immigrants who obviously work harder than native born Americans.
It is absurd to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a liberal arts education when one can be obtained for free at your local library or online.
It is absurd for people to expect to have a good standard of living if they are uneducated or haven’t learned a trade, or are lazy or do drugs.
It is absurd to deny that today’s deficits are tomorrow’s inflation and/or taxes and that balancing budgets are economic and ethical imperatives.
It is absurd to think that you can have free and fair elections without a fair and competent media.
It is absurd to think that honesty is no longer the best policy.
It is absurd to claim that there are more than two genders. And it is absurd to allow biological males to compete with females.
It is absurd to think that you can create a democracy in a country without the essential requirements of freedom of speech, freedom of and from religion, gender equality and equality of citizenship. And It is absurd to claim that Afghanistan suddenly collapsed.
Finally, I love technology, but it is absurd to claim that technology can rescue America unless the above absurdities are addressed.
When you think of it is it not the Silicon Valley technology Ms. Boyle lauds so highly that if not outright created, then aided and abetted, those absurdities? I think the town square needs to be put back in the real world. I was galled when she was discussing the on the ground realities of America's shining example of technology and innovation. How can she not see the connection?
The first order of business would be to get the establishment out of the establishment; just as there is a minimum age to serve in Congress there should be a maximum age as well. If you can't steal or vote, or heaven forbid earn enough to retire by age 70, then Washington is not your town.
Make me the king. I don't want to be president; I want to be king, so what I say happens. But only king for 24 hours; any longer than that and I might start liking it.
First order of business: 28th Amendment. "Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and/or Representatives; and, Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and/or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States."
Second: Term limits with no re-election until sitting out two terms between.
Third: Disassemble the Deep State. The employment of all federal employees shall be terminated at the end of every presidency and must go through the same re-hire procedure as a new applicant.
Fourth: No federal employee shall for a period of twenty years power after termination or retirement from federal employment be employed by any entity that does business with the federal government, nor any foreign entity or power.
Fifth: All government accounting shall be done according to Generally Recognized Accounting Principles.
Sixth: There shall be no commitment of any military troops or assets to any foreign conflict without a formal declaration of war by Congress, at which time there shall be a lottery and ten percent of Congressmen shall serve in the military until said conflict is resolved and peace restored.
Seventh: All federal, state, and local taxes of any kind must never exceed 20% of the GDP, as calculated by Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Federal taxes capped at 10%.
Eighth: Any elected official convicted of graft or corruption shall serve twice the sentence imposed on a citizen for the same crime.
That should be a good start. My 24 hours over, the Republic may now be reconstituted.
Great suggestions!! I’d vote for you as king!!😎
Correction: Generally Accepted Accounting Principles - GAAP
This is fabulous!
Convention of States to propose amendments to the Constitution. Has your state legislature voted forward a call for convention?
Mandatory service in the armed forces…every able body. No exceptions You have my vote Jim.
Add that, Jim, and You got a royal flush.
I love it I would vote for you to be President Jim not king you make a lot of sense
You can be King if I can be High Priest!
This may be the best comment I’ve read on any website ever
Term limits. Three terms Congress. Two terms Senate. Much reduced administrative state. Push all decisions and actions to the lowest level possible. Farm DC out, spread the various departments across the land.
If you have terms limits you will create an even stronger administrative state by default.
Instead reverse the court decisions that inoculate the admin state from challenges ( Chevron doctrine) ; eliminate administrative courts which allow the agencies to govern themselves.
Stop finding student loans to slow the cost of tuition and reduce the “everyone goes to college nonsense”
Good luck with all of that!!!
I will add to the list:
Elected officials get no pensions, just 401k, no lifetime health care and cannot tap their fundraising accounts upon leaving office. Only living and breathing individuals ( humans not “persons” ) may donate to a campaign BUT ONLY if they have the ability to vote for the candidate. ( the must live in the district or state … ergo no union/ business/ think tank/ PAC and more importantly elected officials giving money to other potentials electeds to buy loyalty)
Campaigns must divest unused funds back to donors pro- rata 60 days after the date of the election. No campaign war chests!
Take the massive profit out of becoming a Senator and the grifters may stop running.
Yes
Agree
Great add.
Good suggestions!! I know it all seems so impossible. One can hope!!
Sounds good to me. Actually, *great!* Not 110% sure about six years for Reps. No matter.
Just curious: How old are You?
Old enough to have watched President Eisenhower on black and white television.
You got me beat by a few. So what You got against old people? I don't *seriously* wish we'd RAISE the required ages.
Nothing against old people, or rather older people, I count a great many of them as friends. We still have much to contribute, but contributions are suggestions, not edicts or manifestos. Trying to bring back or live in the past doesn't really work anymore than leaving the younger generations out of planning for their future. There is a reason graveyards are quiet.
Yeah, that's a good reason to be quiet. But, no.
If the younger generations had even *one lick* of common sense, which most-a them *don't, I still would be inclined to say the older people should be given a place at the table. No, not suggesting *all* the places.
They can only work with what they are given, but that is a whole other discussion another time. Suffice it to say, there are sensible young people but we don't necessarily notice them as they quietly go about their lives. These more sober minded younger adults are not engaged in the sorts of antics that would sell much copy in the corporate medisphere.
I am not sure about the statement about 'the most educated generation in America'.. Educated in what? Is the auhor counting the overall number of handed college degrees?
One of our problems lies in the proliferation of liberal education with supposedly accredited colleges doling out degrees in subjects that are not leading to a profession or vocation creating a vicious cycle of more people without any particular knowledge or skill. Hence, the army of low wage millennial and others not able to find well-paying jobs and remain miserable blaming the entire country for their misfortune. Their parents generation made a huge mistake of deciding that social justice, ethnic studies, etc. could become a profession and employed Hollywood and media to perpetuate the myth. America is now paying the price.
And then those who actually do will pay off the loans these morons took on and don’t expect to have to pay back.
Was just reading today how the loan forgiveness is one-a the most *regressive* articles out there. Benefits the rich, mostly. Like they need it!
Preach
AK, tell me what percentage of people are getting degrees “…in subjects that are not leading to a profession or vocation …”?
Just me if I didn't already know how you are I'd ask if you're kidding. Gender Studies, Ethnic Studies? How will someone earn a decent living after wasting 4 years on these topics and not something useful?
Skeptical, below you will find a partial list of jobs done by people with degrees in gender and ethnic studies. Here’s a partial list of words that describe you: illiberal, intolerant, narrow-minded, small-minded, insular, parochial, biased; I could go on, but I think you get the point!
Gender Studies:
University/college administration, Market research, Human resources, Nonprofit organizations, News correspondent, Grant writer.
Ethnic Studies:
Administrative Analysts, Advertising Agent, Bilingual Education Consultant, Claims Adjuster, Community Organization Worker, Customs/Immigration Inspector, Grant/Proposal Writer.
Seven insults in response to my zero insult toward you. That is an interesting contrast between us.
If my children decided to pursue a degree that wasn't going to pay off financially that would be their business but I'd want to video them date stamped admitting that they understand they will be earning low wages in the future with the choices they make today. Buying a home in a safe neighborhood, travel for leisure, dependable cars etc may not be attainable due to unwise degree decisions. It's totally fine if people choose these paths but doesn't sound so smart to complain later that you don't have any money. Or worse BLAME those that made different choices that ARE paying off. Just an alternate and polite way of looking at it.
Couple of follow ups.. who funds the checks for Community Organization workers and why would a claims adjuster need ethnic studies?
“It is unserious to watch the most educated generation in American history not be able to afford a starter home.”
———————————————-
Meh. Really only ‘most educated’ in the way that Hillary was ‘most qualified’. If you spend 4 hours a day at the gym are you ‘most physically fit’? It depends if you go to the gym to smoke crack and eat donuts. College in 2022 is crack and donuts for most people receiving an ‘education’.
(Again, I will insist we should discharge most student debt by suing schools the way Trump University got sued for worthless degrees)
My parents are a really bad example but still they proudly use their Social Security money to pay some of their property taxes. Homes are expensive because nobody who *stops working* is forced to downsize. Other reasons too, obv. We need to delete the New Deal.
Asking simple history/civics/literature questions to Ivy League graduated surgical residents is revealing. They know nothing. I start with “easy” questions and rarely get to my hard ones.
Most poorly educated is more accurate.
Huge tuitions and yet the schools find $50,000 all the time to hire race baiting "speakers".
"It is unserious to watch the most educated generation in American history not be able to afford a starter home." I'm sorry, but most people I worked with were buying nice starter homes in their twenties. Now, they were mostly Indians and Chinese who had learned valuable STEM skills. If America was serious, it would stop squandering money on school levies. Bangalore is doing a good enough job managing that for us. America teaches non-serious topics, the sum of which should not be confused with education. To call this generation the most educated in history is both hyperbolic and misleading, yielding unmerited self-pity.
"It is unserious to pour six trillion dollars into failed nation-building—more than three times what has gone into American venture-backed technology companies in the same two decades—only to let a nation collapse in a jumbled weekend withdrawal."
Katherine, are you suggesting America First policies? You know those same policies the media elite call racist, xenophobic, anti-semantic. You are aware that advocating for America is simply code for fascism aren't you?
I agree with Boyle’s take; but isn’t this more or less if not exactly President Trump’s agenda?
Is it a coincidence that Trump is a builder?
So following Boyle’s points would be directly counter to the Democratic vision for the country, of big-government retrenchment.
I feel that Bari dances around the fact that the voices which excite her are essentially populist Republican, because to declare that allegiance would ruin her brand of moderate reformer of the liberal bloc.
But sooner or later, maybe 2024, she’ll have to take a stand.
Bari, Nellie, and other old-school liberals have largely adopted populist economic positions. That's not a big step -- populist economics is more Teddy Roosevelt than Ronald Reagan. However, the social issues (abortion, gay marriage, etc...) are still a roadblock to their full populist embrace. They're liberals -- they accept the "maximal individual autonomy" position of Locke or Mill.
I respect Bari greatly, but I have no pretensions about her ideological loyalties. She and Nellie are part of the uber-educated, liberal establishment; they may play nice with us plebs, but they still think we're deplorables. And I fear that once we help them defeat the woke, they will turn on us in a heartbeat.
So I don't see it as such a zero-sum game, in that there are nuances in today's Republican coalition. Post-globalism, I don't think that Reagan's Republicanism would jibe for most Trump supporters.
I also think working-class Republicans today are pretty liberal about old-school liberal values: gay marriage, civil rights, abortion but with sane limits, and of course, free speech. Equality of opportunity, not outcome. Respect for law enforcement, but no police overreach. Guns might be a more dividing issue.
On the whole, I think that Republicans have moved to occupy the old live-and-let-live moderate left on social issues (abandoned by the Progressives) while fighting against the growth of the regulatory state. I don't believe that the Christian Right represents the future of the party.
So I feel that if Bari and Nelli were to tabulate up all the issues by party, it would be pretty clear which side of the line they'd fall. Of course I know that Bari argues against this binary political vision, but good luck with that...
Many Republicans are small-L libertarians at heart. The support for Ron Paul showed that. Unfortunately, the RINOs were in complete control of the party leadership at that point--a monopoly that it took Trump to break (with massive help from the media, who wanted him to be the candidate so Hillary would have someone she could easily beat).
I hope very much that the shotgun wedding of libertarianism and Christianity can get annulled. I'm tired of voting for people who say they're conservative only to have them spend all the focus on tax cuts. Trump did the same thing; his only actual legislative accomplishment was a tax cut. But unlike the others, he also took SCOTUS, trade, and immigration seriously with EOs.
I take it back. We don't need an annulment; we just need a new breadwinner.
Let's spend the next 50 years making the libertarian wing of the party vote for candidates who promise tax cuts, only to pass some token measure and spend all their time on working class and cultural issues. Now that would be fun.
In my experience, a lot of libertarians are atheists or agnostics. Evangelical Christians are decidedly NOT libertarian, since that requires people to be willing to "live and let live."
While libertarians do like tax cuts, the main thing they want is smaller government, along with a big rollback of federalism. Less government interference in almost everything.
Despite what you may have been told, libertarians are basically classical liberals: firm on Enlightenment principles and the Constitution.
If you're sad because libertarian-leaning Republicans are not interested in banning all abortions, repealing gay marriage, and making Evangelical Christianity the State religion, I don't have much sympathy.
Excellent point. Add Nellie to that. Her TGIF is customarily highlighting a panoply of leftist idiocies.
America has gotten soft. That is the crux of the issue.
https://euphoricrecall.substack.com/p/has-america-gotten-soft?s=w
Got partway through it. Interesting, and seems pretty accurate. No surprise YouTube banned author of the video of Cruz. (I assume that's what that was.)
Thank you, I really appreciate it. And yeah, that was indeed the video 🙄
I am reminded of two quotes from two centuries apart:
Alexis de Tocqueville: "The strength of free peoples resides in the local community. Local institutions are to liberty what primary schools are to science: they put it within the people's reach"
Newt Gingrich: "December 7th 1941 to August 14th, 1945 is less than 4 years. In less than 4 years, we defeated Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Imperial Japan. Today it takes 23 years to add a 5th runway to the Atlanta airport. We are simply not prepared, today, to be a serious country."
How do we bring the spirit of the young, agarian America (that deTocqueville celebrated) into the 21st century to combat the aging imperial decadence (that Gingrich laments) which we now find ourselves in? I suspect the answer lies in decentralization and federalism (deTocqueville thought that too), but our roads all lead in the opposite direction today.
"The top six companies by market capitalization in the U.S. are technology companies. The prevailing trend of this century is that technology will continue to improve civic functions in this country"
Considering the anti-social and anti-democratic behavior of these same companies over the last 5 years, the confidence expressed here appears misplaced. Regardless, this was a good perspective, and a great example of why I subscribe here.
Bingo. Getting $hit done in the name of bettering the lives of the vast majority of our CITIZENS used to be the sine qua non of America. Today, the left has put so many spanners in the gears that we can't even clean the crap off our streets any more. Welcome to the 18th century!
We have given to much power to the Tech companies they are in total control of everything our votes our lives our very existence this is the question how do we turn it off how do we get rid of this cancer when we do that we will all be reborn and be human again (also get rid of Amazon it’s killing mom and pop operations)
Stop using them. That would be a great first step.
Next steps: get rid of your smartphone, turn off Amazon Prime, delete your Facebook and Twitter profiles, then go somewhere and do things with real people.
Yes, there are lots of political things that need doing too, but (as Aristotle, Augustine and Madison have all said) self-government begins with learning to govern yourself. If you want the world to change, start by changing the piece of it you have control over.
To that I would add volunteer during the elections at your local election administrator. 1) it is about the only truly local thing left; and 2) it is very much real world involvement with real world people.
You are exactly right take back our control take back our lives go off your smart phone use it only when necessary go off Twitter go off Facebook don’t shop at Amazon and don’t Google you don’t need the info 24/7 and take your children and grandchildren off instagram and Tik Tok get them into community projects get them into real life tell them it’s not only about them it’s about all of us start small we can grow a movement (in Bernie’s words) we can do it!!!
You can get 4G flip phones on eBay for less than $50 easily, and US Wireless or RedPocket both have cheap (no data) plans.
I didn't mention kids, but I concur 100% about keeping them off social media. However, that comes across as hypocrisy if they see their parents addicted to it. It was enforcing our ban on smartphones / social media for our teens that forced me to adopt similar rules for myself.
*Great* quotes, Sir. And I would say *seriously* misplaced.
Road ahead? Ignoramoose. Dunno who said that the voters end up getting the government they want. The voters want two parties that don't amount to, seriously, squat. IMHO, of course.
JT, I have a substack related question for you. How did you get your "Writes inciteful experiences" tag to show up on all your comments? I can't figure out how to do that with my own.
Ignoramoose again, Sir Brian. Sorry. It just shows up. (If You look at my Substack, You can SEE I never do anything with the Substack. ;)
Thinkin... But comin' up blanks. Sorry again.
"Building is a political philosophy. It is neither red nor blue, progressive nor conservative."
Wrong. One camp (so called "progressives") has repeatedly put barriers in the way of economic growth ("we invented fracking") in the name of climate change or equity or harm reduction or safe spaces or yadda yadda yadda. The left has always been the party of chaos and destruction, and to argue otherwise is...how should I say...not serious.
If "seriousness" is defined as focus and will, then the U.S. military fails on both counts. First it was humanitarian efforts and nation building. Today it's diversity, equity, inclusion and fulfillment (whatever that means) of the individual soldier. Our military leaders (such as they are) are steadily destroying the most basic capabilities of recognizing, confronting and killing the enemy.
yeah. and they've bought into the UNtested idea that technology will save the day.