Home › Blog › Page 441

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

In its quest to generate and retain our attention, the American news media continues to remind us that Trump could be re-elected U.S. president in 2024.  As proof they offer the fact that he’s far ahead in the polls taken of Republicans.

But what threat does he actually pose to win the general election–even supposing that his legal situation doesn’t continue to bring him closer to prison? I agree with the analysis of the former governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger, who believes, in essence, that we need to consider that Democrats form a (slight) majority of voters, and, on top of that, we must add in all the third-party registrants and independents, as well as a significant number of Republicans who will refuse to vote for a career criminal who clearly tried to overthrow the government.

It’s just not possible.

Tagged with:

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

We commonly hear that the two major American political parties are virtually indistinguishable from one another, and perhaps that was true a few decades ago when centrism was the rule of the day.

But, as illustrated in the meme here, this is most definitely no longer the case.

There is a limit to what Democrats can achieve, even if they control the White House and both chambers of congress, due to the power of the lobbies. If that weren’t the case, within a few months, we’d have common sense gun laws, women’s right, universal healthcare, quality education, and a plan in place that moves this country in the direction of environmental sustainability.

Tagged with: , , , , ,

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Sadly, no.  If I had to take a guess as to the percentage of the world’s people, 10 years old and up, who “hate” Trump in some sense, I would say:

Americans: 65%

Those living in other developed countries: 85%

Those living in developing countries who have access to world news: 90%

 

Tagged with:

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Being a fake human being is certainly not what we want in a U.S. president.

Yet the reason we need Trump out of our lives and behind bars isn’t his spray-tan, but rather his criminality.

Tagged with: ,

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

The judge here makes an excellent point, which raises the question: Why were these documents so valuable to Trump that he would force the Justice Department to indict him?

I’m not given to make speculations that I cannot prove, but the only theory I can come up with here actually came (I believe) from Robert Reich: these documents are worth a fortune to certain foreign governments.  Imagine you know that you’re soon to be charged and convicted of attempting to overthrow the U.S. government, which will result in a lengthy prison sentence.  But before you’re detained without bail, you’re planning to leave the country in favor of a place where you’ll be safe, and free to live the rest of your life in luxury.  You’re in possession of something of incalculable value to the leaders of these nations, e.g., Saudi Arabia and Russia.

This is what makes me believe that Trump represents a huge flight risk.

Tagged with: ,

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

I’ll take a stab at answering yet another rhetorical question, this one posed by Lawrence O’Donnell.

He’s a pathological liar for whom lying is as natural as breathing for you and me.

Lying has taken Trump to the very top of the food chain in terms of money and power.  It’s a way of life that he has never thought to question, nor has he had the reason to.

It works because there have always been, regardless of how things may be going for Trump at any given moment, tens of millions of Americans who are intellectually incapable of distinguishing truth from lies.

Fortunately, this is all in the process of coming crashing down, as some of even the dullest minds are gradually catching on, and quietly disappearing from the ranks of his support base. How many hateful idiots showed up to support Trump while he was being arraigned in Miami?  About 1500.

Tagged with:

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

Here’s a fabulous article, in  which senior transportation analyst Paul Gipe speculates as to what is going so incredibly wrong inside Toyota.

I’ve often wondered about many of the points Gipe brings up here.  A decade ago, I theorized that Toyota was resting on its laurels following its introduction of the Prius decades ago, while it profited far more greatly from its hot-selling trucks that get, on a good day, one-third of the gas mileage of the breakthrough hybrid.

But now, this is getting truly strange.  Toyota is making noise about a hydrogen-fueled vehicle that it may launch a few years down the road, a concept that has as much chance for success as a line of covered wagons.

I would be surprised to learn that there is no malicious collaboration with the auto giant and big oil.  If Toyota cared a whit for the environment, they would be in a far different place right now.

 

Tagged with:

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

U.S. Representative Ken Buck (R-CO) was elected to his congressional seat in one of the deepest red regions of the country on the basis that he is as extreme in his conservative positions as anyone could possibly be.

But even he, bless his heart, has drawn the line on Trump. As he says here, he can’t support a convicted felon.  So good to hear.

I don’t mean to be condescending.  There are plenty of people in Buck’s place, i.e., Republicans in similar parts of the country, who will support Trump long past the point that he’s sentenced to die in prison, on the basis that the criminal justice apparatus in the United States is tilted against Trump and towards the woke liberal socialists.  At least Buck has the integrity to stand up against that level of pure crap.

 

Tagged with:

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Re: the meme here, a reader notes: Republicans, if you care as deeply about this nation as you claim you do, you’ll dismount the dead horse myth of Trump’s patriotism and Hillary’s treason—and you’ll stand on your own two feet.

To be sure, she’s owed an apology, insofar as essentially everything she warned us about Trump turned out to be completely true, and, true to form, Trump turned those accusations around immediately at aimed them at his foe.

That said, what would have been the problem with Clinton’s saying, instead of describing her opponent’s supporters as “deplorables,” If you elect me as your next president, regardless of how much or how little money you have, your government will respect you and do its best for you.  I stand for the rights of all Americans, the wealthy and the poor, the strong and the weak.  

She would have been elected in a landslide, and this whole abortion that is American politics today would have been averted.

Tagged with:

by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Fossil Fuels

When I talk to  people about “investment” opportunities like this, I caution them about three things:

a) Scam/fraud.  How confident are you that these people are actually using your capital for oil/gas extraction, as opposed to luxury vacations and offshore bank accounts?

b) Loss. Even if these people are essentially honest, are they aware of the fact that Mercedes Benz built 6 million gas- and diesel-powered cars and trucks in 2022, and will build zero in 2025, as they transition their entire fleet to electric?

c) Duty.  Even neglecting a) and b) above, do you really want to be part of an industry that is ruining the planet?

Tagged with: