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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

As all politicians know, language is a powerful thing, and there is no law that says that the meaning of words can’t be twisted so as to favor a certain person, party, etc.

Aristotle wrote his book “On Rhetoric” on the art of persuasion, somewhere during the 4th century BCE.  We’ve been at this for a long time.

When the phrase “fake news” was coined soon after Trump was elected in 2016, it originally applied to the torrent of lies that were spewing forth from the president.  Unfortunately, Trump was able to subvert this to mean the precise opposite, i.e., everything that was coming from the mainstream media.

As expressed in the meme here, Republicans have redefined the word “radical” to apply to everyone with even moderately progressive ideas: common-sense gun laws, a woman’s right to an abortion, quality public education, etc.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Of the many things that make another Trump presidency most dangerous is the fact that he’s completely open about his intention to use the justice system to assemble an authoritarian nation in which rules with an iron fist.

Where most people around the world are terrified of this scenario, some welcome it, and demand that it be put into place.

I wonder where I am on the list of “vermin” to be “rooted out.”

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

The ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation “wants you to join the fight for free and fair elections by completing our National Survey on Election Fraud.”

Personally, I’m unconcerned, for a great number of reasons, including:

• Each of 60+ courts that heard claims surrounding the 2020 election found no evidence of significant voter fraud.

• Fox News publicly apologized for lying to its viewers for spreading the “Big Lie,” that the election was rigged.

• In a text to his chief of staff Mark Meadows, Trump acknowledged that he lost the election.

• Two different grand juries were presented sufficient evidence to recommend indictments against Trump on charges that he attempted to overturn the results of a free and fair election.

Of course, we have to expect that this will never end.  Fifty years from now, decades after Trump is convicted on these charges and has been released from prison, there will still be hate groups on the lunatic fringe like the Heritage Foundation continuing to make baseless claims about the 2020 election.

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics
The meme here is from David Cay Johnson, Co-founder Emeritus at DCReport.org and works at Distinquished Visiting Lecturer at Syracuse University College of Law.  Past: Daily Beast and Newsweek.
About it he writes: Different hats, same message of hate, violence, and stealing freedom.
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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Here’s what Katie Porter would like to get done as a U.S. senator, which would, if enacted, bring the United States in line with the rest of the developed countries on Earth.

Is this realistic?

Well, let’s look at the first item: ending corporate influence in Washington.  This requires Congress to completely abandon the method by which they get filthy rich.

Would that have worked at any time in the past?  That’s debatable.

Is it a possibility in today’s environment of limitless corruption?  It’s a toughie, to be sure.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

It will be interesting to see how today’s Trump supporters will come to be regarded by history, provided, of course, that Trumpism is eventually revealed to be anti-democratic authoritarianism and is ultimately rejected as a valid form of government in America.

Regardless of what happens, however, the worst that happens to today’s Trumpers is that they are remembered by future conservatives as having supported “a bad man with good ideas.”  There will be very little shame in this, and “stink” is a terrible word to use here.

The concepts of tight borders, environmental deregulation, denying healthcare to those who can’t afford it, bans on abortion, Christianity in schools and government, two genders, the opposition to wokeism, and the superiority of the white race is bound to have enduring appeal to a significant number of people–regardless of what happens to the former president in his criminal prosecution and political career.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

What Trump says here is correct; it was his capacity to add three conservatives to the U.S. Supreme Court that brought an end to a woman’s right to choose an abortion.

Trump bragged about this, but it’s unclear what effect it will have on his electability, especially when voters view this in the context of his status as a criminally convicted felon.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Republicans have impeded everything the Democrats have proposed. Isn’t that “something?” In fact, isn’t that their calling?

We now have lousier public education, unlimited gun rights, abortion bans, and all but halted climate change mitigation policies. There are dozens of other examples in which the GOP has impeded progress in terms of everything Americans care about.

In particular, they’ve stood behind criminal sociopath Donald Trump, for which they are adored by about 40% of the U.S. electorate.

Please don’t try to tell me that Republicans have done nothing. Wish it were true, but it isn’t.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business
Sky Quarry asks prospective investors:
Did you know millions of tons of shingles end up in landfills every year? It’s an environmental problem. But we have a solution!  At Sky Quarry, we get paid to collect and dispose of asphalt shingles, and here’s the real magic – we transform them into valuable, resellable asphalt bitumen. 
Our business plan is simple – we turn waste into wealth!
We’re on a mission to reduce, recycle, and reuse shingle waste.
Ultimately, we’re doing well while doing good and looking for like-minded investors to join us. 

Is there a cost associated with separating asphalt shingles from the other substances that are going into landfills? Does that cost make this proposition completely asinine, even if there were a potential business model in selling asphalt bitumen?

Think for yourselves.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

And precisely what is this “edifice” to which MLK was referring?

I would simply say trickle-down economics.  Lowering the top federal tax bracket from 90% to 28%, while taxing Social Security benefits and handing out huge additional tax breaks for the top 1% has left us with an edifice in which schools and  other public programs are grossly under-funded.

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