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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

There are two things that can be said about this.

One is that self-accountability, while it’s a good thing overall, is taken to extreme in conservative politics.  There are victims in this world, victims of systemic and oppressive conditions, racism being among them.  If that seems controversial, realize that the average net worth of white American families is eight times that of black families.

More importantly, the fact that life is not fair is not an excuse to sit around and do nothing about demonstrably unfair situations. That’s why good people involve themselves in women’s rights, persecution of LGBTQs, universal healthcare, quality education, wealth inequality, as well as social and environmental justice.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

This needed to happen.

It will reduce costs by driving down the inmate population.

But more importantly, it’s the right thing to do. It would hard to point to any area of criminal law where “justice” has been administered more unevenly and unfairly.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

There is something about this photo of a snake luxuriating in the rain that gives one a feeling of the commonality of all life forms.

It seems to be saying that we’re all capable of taking delight from the very simplest of pleasures.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

A reader notes:  My very old car. Year of model 1981……no longer working.

I can’t see the whole thing, but that really looks like the early 80s for its nondescript exterior design.

In any case, please consider donating it your local NPR affiliate. It’s easy, you’d get a tax deduction, and you’d be supporting public radio.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

The rhetoric of Congressional Republicans has reflected the sharp, steady decline in their voters’ capacity to reason.  Tens of millions of Republicans believe their jobs are being stolen by illegal immigrants, that COVID vaccines are often lethal, that climate change is a hoax, and that the 2020 presidential election was rigged.  Given that, can you blame the GOP in Congress from reflecting that ignorance back onto those who elected them?

Here’s the problem: how is all this going to work out in a general election where the MAGA crowd finds itself in the minority?

Even more to the point: how is the proposal to ban abortion in all cases going to play with 80+ million women voters?

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Science

When we think about the limitations of science, we normally contemplate things like dark energy or cures for dread diseases.

Often, though, we come across eye-openers like the one shown here.  No one knows why trees grow like this in Poland’s aptly named “Curved Forest.”

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

From Robert Reich:  The right wing is dominating on TV and social media, reaching tens of millions of people and feeding them baseless conspiracy theories and propaganda. Stay informed so you can debunk these lies in real time, and beat back right-wing disinformation.

I suppose if you have a communications platform as wide-reaching as Reich’s, this makes sense.

My megaphone is many orders of magnitude smaller, and thus, I don’t “debunk lies in real time,” nor do I “beat back right-wing disinformation.”

And that’s not only because of the relatively tiny stature of 2GreenEnergy; it’s mainly due to my policy: don’t argue with idiots and lunatics.

The MAGA crowd has very little interest in opening their minds to a world that is of full of facts and based purely on rational discussion.

I wish I could change other peoples’ minds in statistically meaningful ways, but I cant.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

Interesting thought here, but it’s one that I dispute.

For simplicity, let’s say that there are two types of people: good and bad.

There is no way for good people, those of conscience and decency, to have “easy lives” on a planet that is baking itself, in a country where a former president is trying to overthrow its democracy.

There is no way for bad people to have “easy lives” period, as they create their own hells in which they are condemned to live.

The only path to happiness is a commitment to making the world a better place.

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

In an earlier post Are Republicans Jumping Ship? I suggested that the idea that Republicans are leaving the GOP in droves out of frustration with the Trump/MAGA ultra-right might be wishful thinking.

Speaking of which, please check out the piece of photoshop at left.

On the other hand, we can only speculate on the number of efforts that must be underway “as we speak” to take Putin out, from both without as well as within his own inner-circle.

 

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

As despicable a human being as Lindsey Graham is, it’s nonsense to suggest that what he said here constitutes inciting a riot.  Predicting and inciting to two different things.

Besides, what he says here is correct.  Regardless of how carefully we prepare the MAGA world for indictments against Trump, there are going to be riots that might dwarf January 6th, with armed rednecks taking to the streets in cities all around the country.

They will, however, find themselves walking into a wall of 1.3 million members of law enforcement, and assisted, if necessary, by 1.1. million active-duty personnel, armed with billions of dollars of weapons designed to kill people by the thousands.

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