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Baloney. Tom is correct. Generating electrical power where it is needed is the future. The problem with nukes is their waste - splitting atoms to boil water is crazy when sunlight (solar thermal) would do the same thing without the risk of a nuclear meltdown. Nuke, coai and oil power are old technology. If a tornado destoryed by 2KW solar power grid, it could be repaire or replaced in two days or less and at a comparably inexpensive cost compared to repairing and replacing miles of powerlines from the local centralized grid. Where I live in NE Washington state, a terrible wind storm struck in late July 2013, snapping off trees, downing powerlines, closing highways. Folks rushed to gas stations to get fuel to run gas powered electrical generators, but gas stations were without power and couldn't pump gas - until gas generators were hooked to up to run gas pumps. Powerlines took weeks to repair. That storm blew down 2 acres of trees around my home, but my solar grid never faltered.
I know the third hour is a rerun, but I'll comment on it anyway. A caller likened trade deals (which should be treaties) to undeclared wars.
The problem on war is that the Constitution doesn't define it. And now I'm aware that it doesn't define "treaty" either. In neither case is there a consequence for Congress or the executive branch engaging in either under a different name in order to avoid the Constitutional restrictions.
To enforce a definition of war, I would include a provision that soldiers may not be ordered onto foreign land without either a declaration of war against that land or permission of the government of that land. I could probably add on something about airspace.
Treaties vary a lot more than wars, so I don't have any ideas for that yet, but I'll be keeping it in mind, and I'd love some suggestions.
A tornado would have little effect on a nuclear power plant, except the external transmission & distribution apparatus if directly hit, as for any large generating plant, gas, hydro, nuclear, oil or coal. Wind or solar farms would be devasted by a tornado. NPPs are designed to survive airplane impacts.
Thom may know politics, but obviously knows zip about power generation & distribution or energy for that matter. The entire article is replete with falsehoods & fantasy pipe dreams that ONLY ensure the status quo = burn, baby, burn.
In fact the vast majority of renewable energy is highly centralized electricity generation. Located in isolated rural areas far from major load centers, whereby expensive, ugly, vulnerable long distance transmission lines must be used to move the intermittent energy to cities. And that transmission must be oversized by 3-10X in order to carry the high peaks that wind & solar generate. A prime example of energy inefficiency.
And solar is toast when we get a major volcanic eruption, two in the 1800's.
After 25 yrs of all-out effort, Germany has managed a meagre 5.6% solar electricity (2014), and that comes with MAJOR caveats. Like the need to export much of it, or just wasted since they can't spin down or shutdown their coal power plants in the time period the solar is peaking. And that solar energy is only during ~8hrs on ~sunny days. An expensive fantasy. They are now building filthy coal power plants like there is no tomorrow. Why aren't they building solar or wind instead?
Per capita energy consumption in the USA is at a 24/7 rate of 10kw. For a family of four that's 40kw. Add two retirees/convicts/disabled etc non-productive demographic and you get each working family needs to supply energy at a rate of 60 kw continuous 24/7. In Canada that would be 90 kw. Tell us how this household can supply that continuous energy night/day, cloudy/sunny, north/south, winter/summer, calm/windy with wind & solar. And that can only be using 10% max of household income/effort. Work the numbers, show us the cost. You won't because you can't. Flatly impossible.
A silly fantasy that GUARANTEES unrestrainted GHG emissions will continue, runaway global warming a specter for the next generation, and massive profits for Big Oil & their Bankster overseers. That is why Big oil is the biggest promoter and investor in the Renewable energy Bait-And-Switch scam. Banksters & Oil Barons have a seething hatred for Nuclear power since they know very well it is the ONLY alternative to their total energy hegemony.
Chuckle8: Hi there! Nice to see you again! Actually, I wouldn't want to use that N word because I think it is demeaning and disgusting which is why I find it so confusing why they'd use it in RAP music. Why do listeners enjoy listening to that word so much if it it disgusting and demeaning?
Hey, why not? And here I thought you were anti-free speech!
You can't really "stand for free speech" if you try to ban it.... no matter what is said or displayed or shown on TV, in the movies, or on the internet. So, unless you agree that displaying the swastica or the confederate flag or the jolly roger or Obama's bare a$$, you're really not for freedom of speech. You are for limited freedom of speech, perhaps. But "limited freespeech" is a lie a misnomer...it is not really free because it is limited. And where does that take you? They censor a little here, and a little there, and pretty soon you have nothing resembling freedom of speech. Everyone says they are for freedom of speech but they really aren't. They always have their limitations. And to enforce those limitations takes a police state.
With Freedom of Speech you have the Freedom of not Listening or watching. It used to be, with broadcast TV (and still is, I guess), that if an actor said a "bad" word they would be fined. Then they used a delay and the censors would bleep out the word. Now, we have paid cable TV and they do and say just about anything and everything. You have the freedom of choosing to watch and listen or not. But there are those people who still want to censor things. And they still do censor things. So, we still don't have total freespeech. But some people just cannot get that through their heads. They always want to limit what others can say, or display. It is a form of mind control and they control you... what you think and believe... they manipulate you. It is not true freedom of speech. They are Hippocrites that depend upon a police state to monitor and limit what people can say and view. See, you're not so "liberal" after all are you?
Aliceinwonderland wrote:
"But Dr. E, these mass shooters invading schools, churches and movie theaters are all young white guys. Try explaining that."
You should read the shooter's document. He said that he was surprised when he found out all the crimes blacks did to whites. Why was he surprised? Why didn't the black history month at his school or the black studies day or whatever talk about crime rates? Why doesn't the media talk about it?
OK, but your wrong about Hilter and the Japanese emporer. You are confusing propaganda with what people actually thought.
Reply to #9: Steve, the Confederate flag is tantamount to a terrorist flag. Hey, let’s display one with a big-ass swastica and see how what kind of impression that makes! Because the Confederate flag to black folks is equivalent to the swastica for Jews. It’s all about hate. Wanna live in the Hate State? Is that what "free speech" is to you conservatives; promoting terror and hate?!
Gay pride is all about loving whomever you choose, making a family with whomever you choose. That was a lousy comparison, Steve, for it is the very antithesis of hate.
steve6408 -- Freedom of speech does not mean we are forced to say things we do not want to say.
kilosqrd -- I think it should stopped wherever the democratic process says it stops. Your contribution to that democratic process is gratefully accepted.
Pal -- Where have you been? I haven't seen you here for some time.
You seem to be speaking of racial awareness. Racism should be reserved to describe government actions based on race. It is not reserved for that, but I think it should be. White people can say the N-word whenever they want, and the government will not do anything to them for saying it.
There are lots of instances of burning the American flag. Most of them occurred in the '60's.
American Exceptionalism = American Arrogance.
It all comes down to taking money out of politics. If that doesn't happen, then very little of substance will ever happen.
Proposed Bernie Sanders campaign motto: Can You Stand The Truth?
Ok so the Liberal is now saying we should censor free speech.... The displaying of any flag is a form of free speech... Just like the burning of a flag... The idea that anyone can just say "that's offensive" and remove something from the public is Wrong in this case. So the "N" word is offensive but can freely be used in music ?! Or how about if someone finds the gay pride rainbow offensive and exclusive should we then outlaw that symbol? NO!!!!
Free Speech does not mean popular speech! If someone calls themselves racist, nazi, or a raincoat it's their Right under the Constition of these United States 1st amendment to do so... So long as they respect the law of the land; IE hang any flag on a public building but do not bar access to anyone. It is after all just a piece of cloth and carries no weight or value to prohibit or hinder people in any way.
Steve
Come to think of it, an empty flagpole is a much more appropriate symbol for the SC war monument.
Thomas, I agree about this rogue, corporatized government. However I don't believe anyone is trying to "ban" guns. Licensing & insuring firearms seems like basic common sense, just like licensing & insuring motor vehicles. Anything with the capacity to kill human beings should be registered, licensed and insured. Interpreting such efforts in that direction as "banning" the object of controversy is just paranoid BS.
IStandWith.com is giving me nothing but stuff about India.
I guess Thom misspoke; it's ISideWith.com
All the Confederacy's participant in the Civil War were essentially pardoned, so I don't think we should worry about the names of individuals everywhere.
The prime directive of capitalism is maximization of profit. Another way of stating this principle is "maximum extraction for minimum investment." Followed to its logical, unrestricted outcome, both the environment and the customer base will be impoverished without limit until the system collapses.
I suggest capitalism is the true death cult we face. Slavery was/is just one example of a capitalist system. As for an alternative go to YouTube and listen to rdwolff describe worker cooperatives.
Hi Thom!
I appreciated your comparison of the Republicans/Right Wing/White Supremacist to a Cult. I think it is very apt.
But where does it start? To me it starts with the outrageous notion of "American Exceptionalism". Even President Obama subscribes to that and is proud to do so.
"American Exceptionalism" is the first step toward the notion that some humans are superior to others, and therefore are justified to do anything...where did American Exceptionalism come from? And how can we deprogram it??
Thank you so much for your show!
Martine in San Francisco.
The old spirituality of religious belief has encouraged us to have dominion over the Earth ,they have interpreted this as to mean domination so with this imagination ownership came into play .ownership of people,places and stuff that we call assets or wealth .So from this understanding the more things you own the more power you have or were given and the wealthier you are .
This guiding principle has to be replaced with a new guiding principle one that works for the survival of life on Earth all people's and a sustainable future .I call it for the highest good of all !
We can move from an ownership society to a usership economy where people do not need to own all the stuff of life that we call good but can get use of it and have access to it .So we need to move from a possession and ownership model to a use and happiness model .
Share the bounty of the planet without trying to grow the economy so everyone has there own copy of everything but only uses the stuff a tiny % of the time .
We could reduce the economy ,that would be better for the Ecology less stuff to landfill and make things last much longer better build quality yeah more expensive to make but 10 times longer lasting and 10 times more people getting access to using the stuff .
Just my 2 cents worth .
Thom, I think the question you should be asking is:
Where does this stop?
http://nypost.com/2015/06/24/gone-with-the-wind-should-go-the-way-of-the-confederate-flag/
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-confederate-monument-lake-eola-petition-20150624-story.html
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/culture/la-et-cm-thomas-jefferson-confederate-statues-20150624-story.html
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/06/lee_circle_statue_robert_e_lee.html
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2015/06/24/271082/first-the-confederate-flag-whats.html
http://www.breitbart.com/video/2015/06/24/farrakhan-i-dont-get-debate-over-confederate-flag-we-need-to-put-the-american-flag-down/
And what about all those graves in Arlington National Cemetary? You know, on ground that used to belong to Gen. Robert E. Lee.
It’s for US that the Bells Toll
[About the TPP’s damage]
. . . .
A devastating shift in the paradigm:
Nations’ sovereignty is not worth a dime
while multi-nationals perpetrate their crime.
For democracy, the death-bells toll their chime.
. . . . . . .
Does that apply to black racists as well? The elephant in the room that is always conveniently overlooked is the fact that there are black racists (a lot of them) as well as white racists, as well as yellow, brown, and maybe even green racists. Maybe even orange racists if you drink a lot of carrot juice. Yes, if you drink enough of it every day your skin will turn orange.
And why can't a white person use the N word if the blacks use it all the time... like in their rap music? Since they are quite fond of using that word, perhaps it should not be seen as the verboten derogatory word that they want to lord over our heads as a politically incorrect term. They also feel quite free in using the C word (Cracker) and the H word (Honky) which I, personally find rather amusing...funny, actually!
Unpatriotic? Get out of town! Does anyone really care if they are called "unpatriotic" anymore? Our "beloved" country has a long history of murdering many people, illegally invades and occupies, steals other country's resouces, not to mention 9/11 was an inside job? Maybe we should burn the US Flag because it stands for so much more murder and mayhem and greed and exploitation than the Confederate Flag has ever stood for.
Thom,
There's a bit more here about "southern heritage" that needs to be dealt with.
The following self-explanatory letter was sent to the WaPo, NYT and Newsday:
"To the Editor:
The rush to remove the Confederate flag from our midst, leaves in place the honor bestowed on the memories of military men who fought against the United States in the current naming of military installations where our men and women train to serve the United States.
Today, we have military facilities in the names of Fort A P Hill in Virginia named for a Confederate Lieutenant General at Gettysburg and many other major battles and Fort Gordon, GA in honor of John Brown Gordon, who was a Major General in the Confederate army, a Georgia governor, a U.S. senator, and a businessman. Fort Benning, Georgia is named for Henry L Benning, a Confederate general, lawyer, and politician who supported slavery. Also on the list is the world's most populous military facility with 45,414 assigned soldiers and 8,900 civilian employees, as of April 2014. Fort Hood, Texas is named for Confederate General John Bell Hood, who gained recognition during the Civil War as the commander of Hood's Texas Brigade. We also have Robert E Lee, whose name is easier to find and who also has a military installation named for him in Virginia.
If we are wiping the slate clean, we might just rinse out the rag and continue wiping. "
/s/
What I neglected to add is that each of these men had somewhat distinguished careers with the US Army before they became traitors. Yet, each of them is honored 150 years later. We had another very good general in the US Army before he turned traitor. There are no facilities named for Benedict Arnold. Why the difference?
Thom predicted that the TPA would be voted on at a particular time in order to evade the news cycle. News organizations need to strategize against this.
Jon Stewart has ridiculed cable news channels for wasting time standing around in weather or anticipating court verdicts; why don't they stake out Congress in the same way? At least there'd be nicer architecture in the background.