Here’s a comedic video that addresses the dysfunctionality of the U.S. lawmaking processes.
It’s more like something that would be funny if it weren’t so tragic. We’re asking politicians to get money out of politics. It’s like asking alligators to become vegetarians.
Here’s another good statement on science and the limits of our understanding.
Whatever the proportion of known to unknown may be, one thing is certain: it’s always improving.
FWIW, I don’t believe the content of the meme here at all. I think there are certain lies we’re stuck with, if only because “the history books are written by the victors.”
In other cases, cover-ups are simply too difficult to penetrate, e.g., the JFK assassination.
What is happening here and now with Donald Trump is perhaps the highest level con job in all of world history. We all hope the Justice Department will be able to shine a light onto the entirety of the coup attempt, and that every actor will be fully exposed and held accountable, but there are no guarantees.
Based on our current trajectory, my guess is that Trump will be held accountable for his attempt to overthrow the U.S. government, and will be regarded by history accordingly.
No one expects this to be smooth, but I for one believe it’s inexorable.
Most people don’t realize how far wrong this could have gone. America’s reputation on the world stage was temporarily dashed to pieces, but it will return intact. Our handling of the pandemic was butchered, but most of us will recover. Racial tension has risen to a level not seen in the last 100 years, but it will subside. A coup was attempted, but it failed, and it appears that those responsible are being held accountable.
Had a person with Trump’s character but higher intelligence come along, the entire world could have been rendered a shambles.
The photo here (that I altered) reminds me of the Earth Day celebration in Santa Barbara a few years ago. As a band had just finished up and was leaving the stage, the lead singer took the mic and said, “Thanks for comin’ out, everyone. Happy Earth Day. Hope you’re having a good time, and, of course, f*** Trump!”
Now, we’re talking about Earth Day. That guy was surrounded by a few hundred environmentalists who thought this was the funniest goddamn thing they had ever heard in their lives.
The dude in the car, by contrast, is taking his life in his hands.
Robert Reich notes: Today the House voted to reinstate the federal assault weapons ban that lapsed nearly 20 years ago. Think of all the countless lives that could have been saved had the ban stayed in place. Democrats in the Senate must work around the filibuster and get this bill to the President’s desk, and soon.
Is it just my imagination, or are things actually looking up?
My response to the reader who sent me the meme here: You need to stick with subject matter that doesn’t involve math or science. The average price of electricity in the U.S. is $0.11/kWh. The range of an EV with a 100-kWh battery is about 400 miles, or $0.0275per mile, just under 3 cents.
When you think about it, the meme here makes the exact opposite point it’s intended to. In all four cases, business created and marketed a product, only to have science come along and study it, determine it was dangerous, and submit its finding leading to a ban being imposed on it.
As I like to point out, science isn’t always right; in fact, it’s almost never right. Almost nothing we think we know about the world today will likely hold true in another couple of hundreds of years.
But it’s the best we have. Alternatives include superstition, QAnon, Alex Jones, the opinions of Trump supporters, and Fox News. I’ll take science any day.
Here’s something that should have happened 100 years ago: barring congresspeople from buying and selling stock while they hold office.
No wonder it has bipartisan support; no one wants to enable his opponent to say that he voted against the anti-corruption bill.
