It turns out the special purpose grand jury of Fulton County, Georgia, created in May 2022 to investigate the attempt to disrupt the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, recommended criminal charges against more people than the 19 the traditional grand jury indicted in August.
"She (Harris) said the government must 'pay attention to 10, 20, 30 years down the line, and what we are developing now that will be to the benefit of our country then.' ”
If we don't start attending to the huge income and wealth gap in this country, nothing we do, 10, 20, 30 years down the line by way of trade agreements is going to matter, as we will have elected a dictator.
Robert Reich's posting today is the best and most concise explanation of what has happened to this country over the last 40 years that I have ever read. I urge everyone to read it. (I'll go fetch a link).
I absolutely agree with you on income disparity and Robert Reich's posting. I've recommended it broadly. I'm so looking forward to his sequel which will discuss what we can and should do about and supporting the common good. President Biden has a vision and is making it happen. We must give him our votes and the Congress that will support him.
What Robert Reich wrote should not be news to anyone who has read HCR's 'How the South Won the Civil War,' which traces the problem back to the founding of the nation and brings it up to date. There are solutions, and as HCR points out today, it would be a shame if the growing legal troubles of the Trump conspirators overshadow the work of the Biden administration, not only on the global stage but domestically as well. Democrats must cite specific benefits all Americans are receiving from their programs, with anecdotal examples, rather than just talk about Bidenomics, a label that just flies over the public's attention.
Locally it hard to explain the benefits of a road up grade and a water sewer expansion. Reason these two projects were designed to employ local construction workers over a number of years. This results in torn up roads in the middle of a small county with less that 11,000 that just seem to go on for ever. Before retirement to this beautiful area in the mountains of western North Carolina I supervised heavy industrial construction. The lowest cost way to get a job done was to get in and get out. Very different than trying to support a smaller but stable work force. Based on letters to the local paper many see this as a waste of their tax dollars because of the pain of driving around the construction over multiple years.
I don't have a good answer, damned if you do, damned if you don't.
Forgetting the pros and cons of the job creation aspect of such projects, the important thing is to make the voting public aware that their existence is made possible by legislation coming out of a Democratic administration in Washington. Road upgrades and sewer expansion they understand. Bidenomics they might not.
I agree, Jack Lippman.. And, again, we need clear messaging that contrasts the benefits of new infrastructure with the real consequences of not upgrading roads and sewage treatment. Specific local examples resonate better with voters.
Dave Smucker: I live in an area that's been upended by these infrastructure jobs. Mine is a red state and I hear much bitching and moaning about the inconvenience. I also note that our Republican Governor is happy to take credit for anything that's positive about better roads. If you sat down one of his right wing constituents and explained in third grade terms that "if you neglect your teeth for too long, you will experience much pain and suffering in the future", it might be possible to break this cycle of recriminations. I don't know how to do that, however, with Fox News locked on to everyone's TV.
Dave, where are you in the Western Carolinas? I was born and raised in Lenoir, NC which is surrounded by the Pisgah Nat’l Forest. It’s also the gateway to Blowing Rock.
We are on 40 acres of mixed hardwoods in Brasstown, NC. About half way between Hayesville and Murphy. We retired here because of the John C Campbell Folk School, best craft and mountain music school in the country. I am a hobbyist blacksmith and taught at the school for 14 years. My technical background is the metal's industry.
I'm wondering if all appealed verdicts can ultimately end up at the corrupt, reactionary, semi-kangaroo SCOTUS, as long as the defendant has the funds and the court is willing to take the case?
If you watch closely, I think you'll see that cases are curated; sometimes for 'agenda' purposes. SCOTUS, especially this one, must be watched closer by more folks of good intent.
I am 100% behind Biden. He has done some outstanding work so far. I think that what is missing is a simple motto (like "Build the wall").... the majority of the people are too lazy and/or ignorant to read about what he is really doing. They need something that they can chant.
Guess "Lock Him Up" has already been used.☺ Slogans I'd like to see go viral are "No Forced Births!" | "Don't Elect A Felon!" | "Stop Stealing Dem Votes!" & "Hands Off My Ballot."
Thanks. There were very good reasons why generations of public sentiment and lawmakers placed post Gilded Age restraints on the influence of concentrated money. It was "fool me twice" (at least) when we got suckered into letting go of them. Now we have decades of progress to make up, and a lot less time to do it in.
Those who lived through the Depression and WWII are passing away at a rapid pace. And with them go individual memories of hard times but also institutional memories. Those who stood in the breach for democracy and the rule of law are either gone or too frail to do it anymore. The bought out legally bribed Republicans are trying to return us to the Gilded Age when the robber barons tromped all over everyone else. Social Darwinism at its finest. Huge wealth gaps lead to instability like we are experiencing.
There are a few of us left. After marching against the Vietnam War and most recently for the SEIU, now mostly writing GOTV postcards, at 89, I can only urge all of you, many of whom know some of all we’ve survived, to vote blue and get everyone who cared about children on the planet, to do likewise. Nancy Pelosi “it’s for the children,” running for Congress again at 82 is an example to all of US who know the at supply side economics was a disaster.
And frankly, the number of 80-90 year olds already in Congress is not that much of a good thing. Nancy Pelosi has done much good in the years she has served, but maybe its time for a younger generation to step up. We have far too many elderly men (mostly) & women in the House and the Senate. I'm not looking at this from a young person's perspective - I'm 85 and honestly would not feel sharp enough & strong enough to put myself in their position!
As another example - look honestly at the current ability to "serve" by Diane Feinstein! She should not be there, and there are several others in the same "boat" she is.
Diane Feinstein is keeping Gavin Newsome from having to put one of the three well-qualified Californians running for her seat in her place. It’s a nightmare for all concerned. I only wonder why she didn’t have shots for shingles. As for other 80-90 year-olds, I always think of Konrad Adenauer. He became head of the new German government after WWII at the age of 85 and served until he was 91. Age hits everyone differently. I am 89. Most 60-year olds seem to me to have quit thinking.
Our collective memory is being replaced by history that has been edited, rewritten and replaced by propaganda as good as Goebbel’s. Money has sided with the cretins although it is the old money (Rupert, Koch’s, etc) that diss the lessons of the past. And then, there is Musk.
And then there is Musk....throwing a wrench into Ukraine's use of drones in the Black Sea. He shouldn't be allowed to tilt the progress of a war against tyranny among other things. His arrogance and hubris knows no bounds. May karma come for him soon.
"The bought out legally bribed Republicans are trying to return us to the Gilded Age when the robber barons tromped all over everyone else. " is close to a concise definition of "Reaganomics", unless the real goal was full out feudalism. "Democracy is a failure and the ultra-wealthy had it right all along" was the subtext. Along with reenergizing (this time with the role of parties switched) the Civil War. How much was that war fomented by the veiled hand of plutocrats?
My dad worked for a company taken over by vampires who treated employees line crap, sold off assets and pulled benefits like inclusion of retirees in company picnics. One commentator attributed the trend (this was the '80s) to bosses who had experienced the trials of the Great Depression being replaced by modern MBAs. I see a role for robust private enterprise, as well as a robust public sector, doing what they do best, but in the end it's supposed to be governance of, by and for the people, and don't we have the right to define what the responsibilities of businesses are vis a vis the community? Bought off Republicans have made this heresy; but it was not always so.
Also important I would think was WWII which must have been very scary for my parent's generation. A few wealthy businessmen continued to service Hitler, and there was a cadre of admirers in the US, but I think for the most part we knew which side were on.
Thanks Virginia. This ordering of comments in substack, is a problem for a couple of reasons and I wish they would make it purely chronological with a convenient way to organize and isolate threads and other good tools to navigate the stack. Comments do get buried in so much volume. Anyway, thanks for your polite consideration :-)
I agree. I'm saying "we" as a society. That said is seems to me that we, myself included, who looked behind the curtain, have been too disorganized about calling them out.
Reich's diagnosis could not be clearer or more correct. His reminder of the common good, likewise.
Trouble is, once a structure has become extraordinarily top-heavy, it must collapse.
The process has already begun, worldwide.
*
In these Letters and in White House policy statements, we keep seeing positive, even celebratory, references to "growth".
"Growth is good" seems to be replacing "Greed is good".
Of course growth is good, it is natural. Natural, even when "growth" means "tumor" and we call it "malignant". Even then, the malignancy is part of a natural process in which the body, confused by factors that promote imbalance, is struggling to restore balance.
Trouble is, in Nature we see constant cycles of birth, growth, eventual decline, death, then new birth and development.
In the unnatural abstractions that are most economic models, there is growth, more growth -- and, of course, various symptoms such as stagnation, inflation, deflation, all of which involve damage to and destruction of economic and social actors -- countries, corporations, cities, entire economic sectors... and, of course, human beings, individuals, groups, millions.
And under our iron economic "laws", successive generations of flesh and blood human beings (together with all life forms) find themselves imprisoned in close, painful company with something that is born, grows... but knows no death: DEBT.
*
Such a phenomenon of deathlessness is to be found nowhere in Nature.
And since resources are finite, debt can become a box, a casket. Even an Iron Maiden. A thing of death for the living.
Does it not follow that economic and social arrangements -- specifically financial ones -- that promote global survival must be modeled on the life cycles of Nature?
There is even a Biblical model. According to the text, every 50 years all debt was cancelled and all land returned to the families assigned it when the tribes entered the land. Although we have no evidence outside traditional texts that this was actually done, the idea is there.
Joan Friedman (MA, from NY) - "There is even a Biblical model. According to the text, every 50 years all debt was cancelled and all land returned to the families assigned it when the tribes entered the land."
Deuteronomy 15:
1. At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts.
2. This is how it is to be done: Every creditor shall cancel any loan they have made to a fellow Israelite. They shall not require payment from anyone among their own people, because the Lord’s time for canceling debts has been proclaimed.
3. You may require payment from a foreigner, but you must cancel any debt your fellow Israelite owes you.
4. However, there need be no poor people among you...
Leviticus 25 details the Jubilee (every fifty) Year commandments to Moses at Mount Sinai.
The Prophet Mohamed also recommended that if a man should not be able to pay the debt he owes you, you should forgive the debt rather than cause him or his family hardship. Islam still forbids charging interest on loans.
A Dutchman, Aloy Soppe, has developed the idea just proposed here.
Others surely will.
Western thinking has, for too long, been confined to boxes, without taking proper account of the universe beyond each idea-box.
Once, men of genius who'd understood this were killed in the most horrible ways for having seen the truth and its implications. Men like Giordano Bruno.
This post by Peter Burnett is excellent. Put a little more concisely: unending growth, overcrowded, finite, heating planet, catastrophe. Civilization, such as it is, is on a suicidal course. Instead of fighting with or otherwise competing with each other, nations should be cooperating to solve these problems. Same idea within countries such as the U.S. A utopian vision. Have a nice day.
Mr. Burnett, Wonderful observations on nature and the death of human systems. You should write a book on that topic, if you haven't already done so! I'm sure it would be weighty.
Thank you, but while I have translated books, including tomes both dense and weighty, I've written none. If I should succeed in writing the one I want to, it may have content but I'd be most surprised if it should turn out to be much more than featherweight...
The only thing that counts is to share the good things we gain.
Many thanks for the reference to Reich's writing. It was a very fascinating read and, although I already have his perspective, it is always good to see it written so well and clearly. .
I also found the below link, related, which, lines up with what I thought AT THE TIME, when Jack Welch first began destroying America while GLOWINGLY featured, for firing workers, in the Harvard Business Review sometime in the 80's (I had access to that and read it routinely at UT Austin). I have long held the perspective that Welch was a yahoo clown and incompetent UNLIKE the Harvard Business Review.
In fact, the Harvard Business Review's lauding of managers that were firing Americans was where I acquired my great and ongoing utter disdain for Harvard. My daughter could have gone there, but, I highly discouraged her from doing so. She went to Cornell instead, which, has an Ag school as a component, moderating the school's tendency to be stupid. Unlike Harvard.
In Texas, Texas A&M SUPPORTS the concept that there is a link between hiring and having good manage management that HIRE, NOT FIRE their engineers.
As it should be.
At any rate, thanks LeMoine. Reich is worth reading as you say.
Jack Welch was an uber oligarch who masqueraded as a brilliant businessman. Even after creating the behemoth GE conglomerate that poor Jeff had to dismantle, he made big money peddling his phony reputation with his fellow con artist Suzie.
But it was worse than that. He gave birth to a slew of executives who were recruited by other major companies. If they had done well with firing people and spouting 6 sigma nonsense...and chanted the praises of "Neutron Jack"...they got juicy CEO jobs.
I probably mentioned in other comments that we experienced one of those CEO bozos when I was at Home Depot. "General Bob" Nardelli left GE (building jet engines) to a job running HD as the founders departed to billionaire land. He negotiated a termination package and then jumped on the home improvement wagon with his knowledge of how to fire jet engine workers. It took him just months to destroy the incredible HD culture by firing knowledgeable full timers and hiring part time dullards. "Cut that payroll! Reduce the cost of health insurance! I can make one of the most profitable retailers in the country even more productive!"
Customer service plummeted. Merchandise out of stocks exploded. The "General" departed quickly with a $100 million severance package. Capitalism at its worst. A legendary home improvement retail concept wiped out by a guy who didn't know a hammer from a paint brush.
I was at a meeting, when near the end of his tenure, Bernie Marcus said to us: "Beware the bean counters. Arthur and I will be leaving. It's up to you guys to hold them off."
WTF? Us? Bernie stepped away, handed the company to Bob, built an aquarium in Atlanta, and then proceeded to become a fascist supporter of Trump. A brilliant retailer turned traitor... to his company and the nation. BTW, Bob got the job because Bernie worshiped Jack the Jerk.
It’s Milton Friedman we have to thank for the Jack Welch’s in business. He said stakeholder capitalism—in the 40’s and 50’s; take care of workers, the US economy, shareholders—was inefficient, and shareholder capitalism would create more jobs/drivers of economy if the owners/shareholders had maximized return on investment. Add that to globalization, and Firing workers is the fastest way in lower costs and increase shareholder value.
Wasn't Friedman also the creator of "trickle down economics?" If so, between that and what you said, the Nobel should take back his Prize for Economics.
Yes, but Friedman didn’t call it that. Maximizing shareholder (owner) income would “naturally” cause them to reinvest the increased profits in their businesses, creating more jobs.
Very late in his life, he admitted he hadn’t foreseen that shareholders would take the profits and run; hadn’t foreseen the human cost of his theory.
"he admitted he hadn’t foreseen that shareholders would take the profits and run; hadn’t foreseen the human cost of his theory."
Indeed yes. Computer modeling so dominates modern economics that human behavior becomes secondary to the math. More than one professorial theory has bitten the dust because humans don't always behave rationally or in their own best interests.
Reich's essay is a good summary. I have yet to read the whole series. I suspect that elsewhere he talks about what happened roughly 40 years ago (apart from the Powell letter and policy changes) that has left so many Americans holding the (empty) bag, yet cleaving to their tormentors.
Sorry, but most of the Reich comments were maligning Rachel Maddow, Hillary Clinton, every major news outlet including NPR, etc… thus driving the stake, dividing Progressives… Still waisting energy picking at the scab that Bernie lost & implying that Hillary, in essence, stole the primary. Practically no one was moving forward trying to figure out how to find a way to have constructive conversations with others in support of democracy over authoritarian fascism.
Bernie made sure Hillary was no different than a Mitt Romney, only more crooked for taking exorbitant speaking fees from corporations. Look at the number of votes Jill Stein got in critical states from former Bernie followers—Bernie gave us Trump as much as Trump voters did.
What I don't understand is why the Religious Right accepts greed--a "deadly sin"--in their heroes. Or in Trump's case, the many sins of adultery, lies, gluttony. Yes, Jesus did forgive but also said "go and sin no more."
Thank you for sharing article I was aware of the discrepancy between the rich and the rest but did not understand how trump benefited from their anger and pain. If both parties do nothing for the common man/woman we could end up with someone if not trump, like trump.
I'll concede that Democrats had to support the awful policies of the last 40 years or get voted out of office, but I do hope you aren't including the current administration under the umbrella when you say "both parties." Take a good look at everything we accomplished in the first two years of this term with the most razor-thin of majorities, and take a look at the other hard-fought battles that could have been successful with stronger majorities. Take a look at the messaging the Biden team promotes, about building an economy that works for ordinary Americans, and recognize their tireless efforts to make good on their promises. I'll need to go look for the source, but I recently read that the actions of the Biden team during the first half of his term reversed 25% of the ballooning inequality of the last 40 years.
While I agree with Reich on the wealth gap, it does not account for trumpism. In my swarth of humanity, the trump diehards are men, they tend to be big, self-sufficient and have risen from a low economic status. They feel that as they have made it (relatively), why can't everyone else who has any ambition do it w/o a government hand out. They just want to be left alone, low taxes, and limited law. Not too different from the wealthy who are outside of my circle. I feel that those left behind are too busy trying to survive, to have any interest or understanding of politics. They have been short changed on education and opportunity.
I would say that if we don't look to the future, there won't be one in terms of a livable planet. And also we must vote D to prevent Rs from destroying the government built slowly over the years and see to it that it functions for ordinary citizens. Otherwise, we are looking at an autocratic theocratic government which, among other things, will hasten even more, the climate crisis.
Utterly rude of me to comment about another blogger's post, but blaming economic trends for the "diner vote" in favor of Trump misses the bigger reality - that Trump's devotees are actually upper middle class and wealthy. They are the ones ponying up for his campaign and lawyer fees. And it's not about the economy. It's about racism, misogyny, and authoritarianism. These people are a cult.
Not rude at all, Marycat. Exchanging and discussing ideas is what, we're here for, right? But I do take mild exception to your view "that Trump's devotees are actually upper middle class and wealthy." I would say that a relative few of his upper middle class supporters are actually his self indulging "enablers", while his supporters among the "great unwashed" would best be described by your term "devotees".
"But the definition of “working class” and similar terms is fuzzy, and narratives like these risk obscuring an important and perhaps counterintuitive fact about Trump’s voters: As compared with most Americans, Trump’s voters are better off. The median household income of a Trump voter so far in the primaries is about $72,000, based on estimates derived from exit polls and Census Bureau data. That’s lower than the $91,000 median for Kasich voters. But it’s well above the national median household income of about $56,000. It’s also higher than the median income for Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders supporters, which is around $61,000 for both."
The media has given us the misleading trope of the rednecks sitting in diners in some obscure little burg in the midwest. It's the trope Trump weaponizes as part of his image, that being the rich guy who cares about the "little people." It's a cliche, not a fact. Look how many of his followers could afford to show up at the Capitol on Jan. 6th.
Marycat, These “studies” you cite are absolute corporate media drivel. First off, think about it: who were the people that showed up at the Capitol on Jan 6? Just GETTING to DC to participate in the revelry, and maybe a little insurrection, which would mean springing for transportation, hotel accommodations and taking time off from a low paying blue collar job, would skew the status of that group seriously upward on the economic scale. So arguing that the “typical” Trump supporter is represented by this subset of his supporters is ludicrous. And the polls cited talk about the amount of money contributed by the (limited) spectrum of those polled, not the relative wealth across the numbers. To put it simply, if you polled 1000 people, one of which was a billionaire who contributed $999, and 999 of which were “average” folks that each contributed a dollar, could you conclude that trump’s financial support was provided by an equal number of wealthy and average folks? No. You could say that his financial support flowed equally from both rich and average folks, which would be true, but a total non sequitur. This is the kind of logically fallacious argument widely exploited by those with an agenda, including the corporate media, all the time. As for exit polls, I’m not convinced that this is reliable data, and I’m not certain that census data is either (do they even ask on the same form who you voted for and what your income is?). So I’m going to have to disagree with you, my friend, but I do like your picture. It appears that we are both “cat people” :-)
Most interesting bits from Reich, "Most of the income gains have gone to the top. The 2016 Wall Street bonus pool was larger than the annual year-round earnings of all 3.3 million Americans working full-time at the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour."
And "Average weekly nonsupervisory wages, a measure of blue-collar earnings, were higher in 1969 (adjusted for inflation) than they are now."
Given Harris is thinking 20 to 30 years down the road, you think that she's optimistic about Climate Change? I'd like to know what that could be based on.
Climate change is the big elephant in the room, which we are still not given the needed priority, but I still appreciate current steps being taken by this administration to sew seeds for future public benefit. That's exactly what Republicans do not do and have not done, from ignoring warnings of increased Al Quaeda activity, or of the already known potential of the mess made by Katrina, Trump dismantling pandemic preparedness, etc, etc,etc. So it's refreshing to see that kind of thought being exercised again. Biden in doing a lot of things sensibly, but I am waiting for a an articulated plan/vision of an all hands on deck approach to addressing the ongoing threat to climate. Rs are sure to deliver the opposite.
These Fascist Rethugs now and their terroristic threats reminds me a lot of the Al Quaeda with many of their followers bragging about their AR 15 rifles and how they want to start conflicts and Civil war and their Domestic terrorism on innocent citizens here. These wingnuts have the potential to be very dangerous.
Good point, however hunters I know have recently commented that various ammunition is in short supply, and that may affect the AR15 brigade. Evidently, manufacturers are restocking military supplies and fulfilling contracts for Ukrainian orders. But as usual, I could be misinformed.
Oh yes, i have heard that various ammunitions were in short supply, at the time i really didn't pay much attention to it at the time. The only firearm i have even owned was stolen from me quite a few years ago, i have never purchased another rifle since then. My nutty and deluded MAGA neighbors own many AR type rifles and i hope that ammunition is such short supply that they can't find any to buy. These people are full on MAGA TUMP worshipers and i already feel uncomfortable living in close proximity to them. They are nutty as a fruit cake.
John , What You have stated, is an absolute UNDERSTATMENT! RTHUGG Team, is So DESPIRATE, At this Time, & Season, ALL Are ITICHING ! , to get Their AR-15 s & AK-47s Barrels, ! ,,,, * RED HOTT ! * HAWK OUT, ,,,,,The PUSHERS ! Wearing Their cute AR-15 LAPPEL PINS !
Physics is indifferent to human folly. It does what it does. We are making choices that will lead to people dying, as well a wide swath of other species. Some primitive extremophiles are surprisingly tough and it seems like roaches were around forever, so come kind of equilibrium is likely pending cataclysmic cosmic events. If we escape near-term extinction, we are still fouling our own nest.
I hope The Plan you hope for becomes a reality in Term II. Finishing up Term I agenda should be a priority. Me thinks Bid3n-Harris are laying a foundation with climate change, Bidenomics, and infrastructure they they should to voters as the foundation upon which a 20 or 30 year vision would be built. All that gives us hope that our government won't be guided by quarter P&L statements, but by material progress for the vast plurality of middle, lower, and mid to upper class Americans (in that priority).
What I want to see is is more description of goals around which support can gather. A focused alternative to the ugly world of "GOP" despotism. Words that will be emblematic of Biden when he's gone (even Nixon had them; "I am not a crook"). I agree that real "steal" going on in our society is identified by Robert Reich in links above, and Democrats have been far too passive or complicit for years. And we have wasted opportunities to justly give 'em hell, as well as offer cogent, defensible alternatives. Musk etc. are becoming tyrants and government of, by and for the people is under attack.
“There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root.” - Thoreau
I too want coherence, a real plan, not merely legislation that is a cobbling of popular/anti-Democrat needs and wants ... which gets some name put on it that sounds good for one Congressional term. Coherence is my root, which we have to protect from the wandering political vagrant who hacks the branches to make a fire for a night or a leantoo for a season.
The Biden administration thinks of the climate disaster as a political problem. They think the solution is to be "even-handed". That's why they like the slogan "Net zero" so much.
Mind you, I'm still voting for Biden next year. As poor as he's been on the climate, he's the closest we've come to a "climate president". But when you're in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging!
The Climate side of Biden & Kerry & the administration need their asses kicked by American citizens to do much more to address Climate Change here and to work with the following countries:
Top 10 polluters
China, with more than 10,065 million tons of CO2 released.
United States, with 5,416 million tons of CO2.
India, with 2,654 million tons of CO2.
Russia, with 1,711 million tons of CO2.
Japan, 1,162 million tons of CO2.
Germany, 759 million tons of CO2.
Iran, 720 million tons of CO2.
'Fossil fuels – coal, oil and gas – are by far the largest contributor to global climate change, accounting for over 75 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90 per cent of all carbon dioxide emissions. As greenhouse gas emissions blanket the Earth, they trap the sun's heat.' (UN)
IF we all stop driving our gas cars, then, there will be less oil drilling and use.
It is not Biden's fault that we are all (well most of us) stopping at the gas pump so we can fill up to go to the grocery store or take a "Sunday drive".
We (like me, I drive a Ford Focus that gets 39 mpg), are the origins of climate change. Not Biden and his administration.
We are the one's who have to change. And? We don't show much sign of doing so.
Just look: The Pickup Truck is THE new American love for cars. A vehicle absolutely nobody needs unless they are about to head out to haul hay into a barn. A V8 engine under the hood.
We are the problem Fern. Government cannot solve the climate crisis.
*raises hand* Mike, I’m going to defend trucks, sort of. I can afford one vehicle & I am a gardener & DIYer & need to haul stuff, lots of stuff! I’ve driven a light 4x4, manual-tranny truck since 1990 (4 cyl as they are cheaper to work on)….well, if you don’t count the 1949 Studebaker truck I drove back in the mid-70’s. My current truck is 20 yrs old. I absolutely hate the current truck iterations & are a pet peeve of mine. Too big & heavy(why?) & too many unnecessary bells & whistles; many seem to be “for show” and, like some of the newer SUVs, the height of the hood is way too high & can be dangerous to pedestrians/bicyclists/drivers of small cars. I even wrote to Toyota Corp years ago asking them to stop super-sizing their trucks & that, to me, current truck designs are like the “Transformers” in the Sci-fi movies—ginormous. They responded that’s what people want….um, no, not buying it (literally), it’s what they are selling/advertising particularly for the American market. I don’t understand why someone would buy/drive a truck if you didn’t NEED a truck! I could go on & on about it, but don’t want to hijack the comments, but wanted to give a shout-out to fellow dirt-dusted gardeners with truck beds full of compost, wood chips, gravel, lumber or heaped with green waste to haul.
And I recently bought a Japanese Kei truck, with 660cc engine and tiny outside dimensions yet a bed almost as big as a typical American pickup. It's great! But I had to buy a 25-year-old used truck with steep import duties. American import duties and safety regulations are keeping us from being able to buy the small practical trucks that are used in the rest of the world. I'm all for road safety, but our current rules are misguided and favor the safety of the driver at the expense of the safety and environment of everybody else.
I’ve had a 1971 VW crewcab since 1986 (second owner) we use for gardening and keeping up a 3 acre property. In two weeks, it will come back from the shop, transformed into an electric vehicle with a 150 mile range. The cost is about the same as buying a new truck, but this should give it another 40 years of “green” life. There are a few small electric pickups in early stages of design (e.g. Canoo), and we’ll see if there is, indeed, an appetite for them. (I believe yes.)
Mike, that’s a simplistic assessment. For sure, a bit less than 25% of greenhouse gasses comes from transportation. But when almost 80% of our electricity is generated by burning fossil fuels, switching to an electric vehicle won’t do much to help. And I say this as someone married to a professor who has spent his entire career researching and promoting alternative fuels for the transportation sector.
We need to invest in public transportation and rezone suburbs to make them more walkable. But we also need to acknowledge that industry and agriculture contribute more to climate change than individuals do, and that can’t be fixed by the choices we individuals make. That requires government policy changes, subsidies, commitment to change. The choices we make in the ballot box matter more than the choices we make to conserve.
Mike S, thank you for writing what I think every day as I check the air before leaving home (mask for outdoors in the heat?) then dodge crazy traffic, a lot of which could be prevented if people rode ample public transportation in Chicago. It’s far from perfect, but if enough people rode it and complained enough, it could be improved with Biden funds. That’s only the beginning, however. Diet is our next problem. If we can’t stop endless car “affair,” how can we eat less meat? In short, how do we become part of the solution instead of exacerbating the problem?
Mike S came up with a slogan, 'We are the problem', so he believes that he's got the solution for Climate Change Mike S sounds proud of himself because he has a perfect answer for 'leaders,' such as Biden who approved the Willows Project and cannot understand why so many of us are so angry about his betrayal. What is the responsibility of our president, Mike S?
'Joe Biden declared climate change the “number one issue facing humanity” and vowed a national transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy that could create millions of new jobs.'
“It’s the number one issue facing humanity. And it’s the number one issue for me,” Biden said of climate change during an episode of Pod Save America released Saturday. He was interviewed by Dan Pfeiffer, a former senior advisor to President Barack Obama.'
“Climate change is the existential threat to humanity,” the former vice president said. “Unchecked, it is going to actually bake this planet. This is not hyperbole. It’s real. And we have a moral obligation.” (CNBC) See line below.
'The Bureau of Land Management estimates that Willow could produce 576 million barrels of oil over 30 years.'
'Initial gravel mining and road construction work has already started for the development, which will have a total footprint of 499 acres, according to the administration’s final decision. For comparison, that is two and a half times the area the Washington Commanders recently acquired to build a new football stadium. Willow’s plan includes hundreds of miles of roads and pipelines, airstrips, a gravel mine, and a new processing facility in the middle of pristine Arctic tundra and wetland.'
'Burning Willow’s oil would also put into the atmosphere an estimated 239 million metric tons of carbon dioxide during the project’s 30-year lifetime — or the equivalent of driving 1.7 million gasoline-powered cars a year. That number assumes that, if the ConocoPhillips project didn’t go forward, no other oil producers would pick up the slack.'
'Under estimates from the Biden administration, even if Willow doesn’t get built, the United States and the rest of the world will still burn a large amount of fossil fuels. Cleaner options, the estimates said, would only account for roughly half of the energy demand Willow would have met.'
'Willow going forward would create about 70 million metric tons of additional CO2 from the project in U.S. emissions — and another 60 million tons internationally — equivalent to just 0.03 percent of U.S. emissions in 2021, according to the estimates.'
'Supporters say new oil from Alaska will help ensure the U.S. has a reliable, domestic supply of energy. That is important for limiting the country’s and its allies’ reliance on oil suppliers often run under authoritarian regimes and weak environmental regulation. Willow is also estimated to produce billions of dollars of economic activity and tax revenue in Alaska, where state leaders and many Alaska Natives say they need a boost to a flagging economy.'
'But access to oil like that could also help prolong the country’s reliance on fossil fuels, with no guarantee the technology will be in place to stop their contribution to climate change. Because the Biden administration approved it, the project may also undermine the president’s credibility in pushing other countries to develop cleaner alternatives instead of oil and natural gas. And many locals are less enthused about the oil revenue and more concerned the project may harm local animal populations that are key to the community, degrade the region’s air quality, and lead to spills, leaks and blowouts that can come with major oil development.' (WAPO) Sorry that the link below could not be gifted.'
At least in Norway, the state owns the oil and gas industry and the profits go to build renewable energy projects across the country. They seem to be very serious about switching to EVs which means they export their oil to other European countries.
I visited Norway, Sweden and Denmark last year and felt like we live in a 2nd world country compared to Scandinavia.
It’s called “robbing Peter to pay Paul”, Fern. Let’s not forget that Biden negotiated with Manchin also. Climate enhancements must push ahead, despite these concessions.
I'll just tack this on here as a reminder to Fern and others who are seeing things through too narrow a lens. USA (and to a lesser extent other "western" countries) have a huge back debt to pay where global warming is concerned. Those with wealth heedlessly (and knowingly through denial) created the problem, externalizing the costs to non-industrialized nations, to the poor, and to future generations. We benefited from what we did, and now are expecting the rest of the world to pay our debts, and denying them the ability to achieve the kind of wealth we have. The same is true of mining: we imposed our material needs on the world, and now everyone is paying the price, while we argue that "they are not paying their share". 'Scuse me, I find this offensive.
This is even true of water. People holding "water rights" gotten by white men making an agreement that excluded indigenous people, are still excluding the indigenous people the water they need to survive on the land they still hold. To rub salt in that wound, now mining interests are seeking to take over water by buying up rights so they can use the water for mining (common practice) and making it unfit for use, poisoning the land as well- everyplace in the world that they think they might find the rare earths we desire.
We don't need EVs. Their main purpose is to make rich people richer while salving their consciences. d We need to learn how to live within our means. I get what Barbara said (I don't know if my post will be above or below hers), so I am referring to her reference to pickup trucks. I used to have a small pickup that got better mileage than most of the so-called "high mpg" cars of today. My car is retiring at the end of this month because it has entered the repair more than maintenance part of its life (It is 20 years old). I can't make car payments right now, so will be Carless in Vermont. This is not an easy state to be carless in. I am looking at the various transportation options and think that I've got a plan worked out. Eventually I will get a vehicle, and guess what? I'm going to look for a second hand pickup truck. I no longer do cross-country trips, and my family needs a pick up for certain things, so my truck will be a family pickup. My family provides a lot of essential transportation for me already, and there are options for other things, like getting to and from medical appts.
But my biggie is that I am going to get an electric trike (3 wheeled cycle). I get some exercise with assist on the hills, and have enough range to run most errands (big cargo area for groceries, or convert to seat for a passenger), go for rides on back roads to get out of town (a must for me), go birding, and even go a couple towns down to visit my daughter and her family. I can even get a small trailer for my dog. Just might have to wait until Spring, though, because this years' stock of ebikes and especially etrikes is low - huge deman. But I am so looking forward to this! Not a perfect solution, but way better than the short-sighted solutions that we've bought into in an effort to maintain the way we've been doing things.
Are folks aware of the climate protest on Sunday 9/17 in NYC in front of the UN where the first ever “Climate Ambition Summit” is convening. Here is a link to more info, and buses leaving from Metro Boston: https://350mass.betterfutureproject.org/march_to_end_fossil_fuels_nyc
I would like to see a stronger focus on the Climate Crisis as well. But I think we forget how little a president can really do. Yes, he/she could tweak around the edges with things like drilling permits. But Congress sets the pace with funding.
The Climate issue is just like the immigration nightmare. Until Congress decides to act responsibly, we are fumbling the ball all through the game.
And despite the fact that we agree that we should have a more aggressive approach, lets acknowledge that more has been done in Biden's first couple of years on climate than all other presidencies combined. Not nearly enough. But real.
Hi Bill. I believe that you won't mind that I speak for myself. Many, unlike you and I, scientists and experts in the field report that 'we,' including the US, while taking steps, are not doing nearly enough to address Climate Change. All of us can learn much more about where we are and what needs to be done about our Climate this month and in the months ahead.
'To accelerate action by governments, business, finance, local authorities and civil society, and hear from “first movers and doers,” the United Nations Secretary-General is convening a Climate Ambition Summit at United Nations Headquarters in New York on 20 September 2023.
'Join us at the march to end fossil fuels on September 17th in NYC · The United Nations is calling on world leaders to take real steps to lead us off fossil fuels ...
March · Get Involved · Travel · FAQs'
'U.N. climate report warns of 'rapidly narrowing window' to ...' (WAPO) See gifted link below.
' Climate Change 2023: Synthesis Report is based on years of work by hundreds of scientists during the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) sixth assessment cycle which began in 2015.' See link below.
Listening after more than 45 years of knowing and accomplishing WHAT? 'It would impose a permanent ban on oil and gas development for 10.6 million acres of the reserve but would not block ConocoPhillips’ Willow project, which Biden approved there earlier this year and is poised to produce 576 million barrels of oil over the next three decades.'
Some of us don't live in NYC and don't have public transportation alternatives. We were weaned on petroleum products, which exist in every aspect of our lives.
There are two "problems" which cannot easliy be laid at Biden's feet:
The rest of the world valuing increased capitalist goals, and the fact that the largest consumer of petroleum worldwide happens to be the U.S. Military.
Perhaps you could address those formidable issues before attacking the best president in my long life.
You probably saw the story a few years ago about the billionaire in MT who has paid for capping the largest abandoned methane polluting wells in the state.
I wonder if there are laws to fine the companies that abandon these old wells or whether we all get stuck with the tab. That is, unless someone else pays for it. I assume that private individuals don't pay to cap wells and the oil companies aren't about to do it unless they are fined if they don't.
The oil/gas companies are pathetic stewards of our land and natural resources.
Mines are responsible for CO2 and methane emissions and they also put stress on the water supply.
I'm sure you are well aware of all of this, but at least something is being done about methane emissions.
As I faintly recall, methane emissions are worse for the atmospheric health than CO2 by a factor of 10. (?) Does that sound about right ? Or is it greater ? I've bit_ _ _ _ about that for decades now - just the times 10 factor is startling enough, especially when one considers that nearly every single well drilled, emits free clouds of methane.
In 2018, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated 3.2 million inactive oil and gas wells in the US, 2.0 million of which are unplugged or improperly plugged. In recent years there has been an increase in both drilling and well operator bankruptcies, possibly adding more wells at risk of becoming orphaned than the BLM currently identifies.
• Using state-level well site locations and production data, we identified 8,050 inactive oil and gas wells either orphaned or at risk of being orphaned on federal lands in Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. The at-risk wells were found in 88 counties across the five states but concentrated within several counties, most notably Campbell County, Wyoming.
We rarely here about methane leaks or the poisonous chemicals that the oil and gas Industry pumps into the ground when they frack or transport oil. These chemicals are considered proprietary and we are not allowed to know what they are using.
Hundreds of oil and gas wells have rendered groundwater unusable especially in PA.
I disagree with your statement. President Biden and his administration have made an a gallant effort to address the seriousness of the climate crisis in this country. This has nothing to do with politics. The climate crisis is a threat to humanity and the planet. It's tragic that he doesn't have the support of the Republicans to help him. Our planet is burning up by the minute. There is nothing political about this.
I was at a lecture this week given by Dr Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of Braiding Sweetgrass. During the Q & A she was asked that same question. She is optimistic as long as the steps that are being taken continue. We are , ofcourse, not where we should be in the healing process of the earth, but she is seeing affirmation on all levels to seek the greater good.
By the nature of our presence here every day, we have become far more illuminated as to the nature, scope, and labor intensive business of management of our beloved country. We see just how lazy and inefficient trump was as he simply drove his little ego-filled clown car around with his crew of lackeys in tow. Biden is working, while trump was jerking. Fanni Willis for Time Person Of The Year, I say !
Trump is a sociopathic playboy. He is wealthy enough to consider the world his toybox. Powell Memo billionaires bought the tattered soul of the Republican Party in exchange for the power of money. President Trump was a manifestation of that. Trumps is particularly useless, affecting a lazy cosplay of careers, from his "university" to casino entrepreneur. Robert Reich claims Trump would be richer had he dumped his inheritance in an index fund. I assume that does not include the "money pouring in from Russia,” Trump’s son, Donald Jr., said at a real estate conference in 2008, according to a trade publication, eTurboNews. "The Trump-Russia links beneath the surface are even more extensive,” Max Boot wrote in the Los Angeles Times. 'Trump has sought and received funding from Russian investors for his business ventures, especially after most American banks stopped lending to him following his multiple bankruptcies.' ” https://time.com/4433880/donald-trump-ties-to-russia/
Way too often and increasingly under Republicans we see sharply contrasting treatment of the wealthy and powerful in the deference and impunity they enjoy from "our" government, and it's got to stop if government of, by and for the people is not to perish from the earth.
Back in the 1970s, when I let go of fiction and started reading analyses of the human condition, one of the first insights I recorded in my notebook cynically defined democracy as "the unhampered looting by finance capitalists." It was a few years later that I realized that capitalism is amoral.
cannot capitalism be well-regulated? It is a benefit, if not a privilege, to participate in the US economy and tax is the cost of that benefit, like any other cost of doing business. After all, capitalism requires a strong rule of law to flourish, a stable flow of materials, a stable monetary system, and of course an educated healthy workforce. The US government provides all the conditions and is a cost of doing business.
Under Eisenhower, following the many changes and regulations put in place by FDR, we DID have a well regulated Capitalistic system. But, those in that system who were constrained also had big money.
So, they bought up as many politicians as they could and now?
Capitalism is as amoral as Football. With proper rules, regulations, guardrails and enforcements it is a good game. If well played, it is one that grows our economy fairly. The amoral bought the game, stole the capital (and the capitol), and left the rest of us with the bill.
Capitalism resists regulation by its nature: to be capitalist is to work toward the accumulation of wealth, which requires exploitation of resources to power continuous growth. Which, given a finite planet with finite resources, is a recipe for irreparable environmental destruction.
Capitalism as defined by the "Chicago School" is proudly amoral/immoral. Private enterprise and a "square deal" works for me if we, the people get to make the rules for it's conduct. The notion that profit trumps all is insane.
"I am concerned that the size of some of these institutions becomes so large that ... if you do prosecute, if you do bring a criminal charge, it will have a negative impact on the national economy, perhaps even the world economy. " -Eric Holder
Alas part of the quick fix was to make them even bigger.
Many years ago Michio Suzuki, founder of Suzuki Motors Corp., was a guest speaker at an international business conference. An American asked Mr. Suzuki what he considered to be the difference between the Japanese business model and the American business model? Mr. Suzuki replied, "In America you plan ahead for five years. In Japan, we plan ahead for five generations."
I have heard that the Indigenous Peoples had a system which gave thought to "7 Generations" when undertaking actions. Seems like looking to anticipate how actions today will have impact in future generations is the way to go.
Except for the fact that such duty and responsibilty would "mess with" the momentary bottom line. To hell with the kids. Let them fend for themselves. >Sarcasm, just in case.< That is, of course, if there is anything left to fend for.
The sovereign duty to the people has failed, at least on half of the political theater. Right-wingers would save a fetus (a non-viable not-yet-human "baby") over the successful fate of actual living beings. There is rampant and dangerous psychopathy taking hold of our country.
There were and are so many different bands, but I heard long ago that when native people were seeking uncommon plants, they would leave the first ones they found be. It makes sense that they would.
Yes, some for survival, some for additional comforts and some in order to dominate; like Elon Musk. Somehow innovation and industry thrived in the US before massive deregulation, and it seemed it seemed that the public conversation was not so dominated by those with ginormous holdings. "Living wages" and "upward mobility" were more broadly accessible. Manufacturing was not moved off to, often despotic countries, to make billionaires rich.
But, and I'm not sure what to do about it, it's going to have to be a collaborative response, as self-government requires some level of engagement to BE self-government. I'm not sure it's enough to take in ads and for what now passes for debates, and having cast a vote for the one we think will "fix it" that the "of, by and for" criteria are satisfied. How much choice is picking from a menu prepared by others? Who crafts the agenda our fiduciaries theoretically execute? Especially when money has a proportional impact?
Perhaps our education need to train us from the get-go to be informed, just and competent citizen/managers of our own society, so we that we look head, and don't easily "become the fit subjects of the first cunning tyrant who rises."
Thank you for taking a world perspective today, Heather. For the next thirty days I'm not watching the media's Trump clown show on any network and will depend on being informed through the substack newsletters that you, Robert Hubbell, Robert Reich, and Simon Rosenberg write. As you've shown this evening and many times before there are more important things to cover than the shenanigans of DT and co-defendants.
And Heather once again finding and reporting on what’s most salient in the March of time. Our president and vice president are not only repairing the international relationships torn apart by the former ‘rump conspiratorials’ but
also thoughtfully looking ahead to challenges this planet is facing.
'Cash-Strapped DeSantis Forced to Sell Beloved Go-Go Boots'
September 8, 2023
'TALLAHASSEE (The Borowitz Report)—Faced with mounting campaign bills and dwindling donations, Ron DeSantis revealed on Friday that he had been forced to sell his beloved white go-go boots.'
'The Florida governor appeared anguished by the loss of his go-go boots, which aides disclosed were by far the most cherished footwear he owned.' (Oh, I wish you could see these high-heeled, luxurious leather to the knees, white beauties!)
'DeSantis said that he had tried to make cuts elsewhere to preserve his ownership of the boots but that,' “in the end, the numbers didn’t add up.”
“In a perfect world, I could run for President and own white go-go boots,” he said. “Sadly, we do not live in that world.” (Satire, NEWYORKER)
Fern ! ,, DID Those * BOOTS * ! get Manufactured, by the SAME Leather - works COMPANY, As Nancy Sanatra s *
walkin ' BOOTS , Came From ?? IF ! , they DID, ,,,,,, he SHOULDA' did a WALK ! Right Down ! , to the EVERGLADES !, Walked ON !,,,,, & Said " HI ! " , to his BELOVED GATORS !!
FERN !, Just Saw, Your REPLY ! ,,,,, Absolutely SPOT ON ! Everybodys MUGS ! , in the reMUGlican CLOWN SHOW ! Need !, To get AQUAINTED! , *With the CAJUN KINGS * AWAITING, ALL of Them !, AT the Buyou ( SPL?) WATERLINE ! ( YUM YUM !, EAT EM UP !)
P S , FERN ! , THANX ! , for the LINKS ! to some of The SONGS !, of MY PAST ! MUSIC, * is My BALM !* The TUBE, Is Hardly in use, before Me, BUT ! My EARS ! GLEAN , The POWER, ,,, of Harmonious Notes ! ( I NEEDED !, All I could GET , Serving in VIET -NAM ...........)
For years my wife has read me Borowitz. I'm so gullible it usually took me 2 or 3 paragraphs to figure out it was Borowitz.
If you haven't read his book - "Profiles in Ignorance: How America's Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber" it is worth a read. Unless you scare easily by how dumb our politicians are.
Thank for the great recommendation of Borowitz's last book, Gary. I don't scare easily but, at this time, I'm furious at most politicians, with a modicum of control!
While President Biden's important work to rebuild the reputation of the United States with our economic partners, allies and potential allies, the work of the Biden/Harris Administration is overshadowed by the indictments and corruption of the former Administration.
If the Trump/MAGA cult is successful in 2024, there will be no worry about projecting an American form of economic and political influence in the world. The American experiment will be over.
YESSS ! , MlMinET ! ,,,,,, UNDER Two, Thick, DOUBLED, Brown Paper BAGS !! . ( The second Set,, ,,,,, is IN CASE !, The FIRST Set Tears !) ( YOU Know WHOS, * MUG !* , NEEDS ! , to Be COVERED ! , ,,,,FOREVERMORE !!
What’s going on with Xi? He has relentlessly constructed a power pyramid in China in which he has almost as much personal power as Mao, who misused it in the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution [50-60+/-million dead Chinese].
Xi had wanted to flaunt Chinese superiority abroad. The BRICS conference was one such occasion. Xi attended, but he had a flunky give his speech. Was he physically indisposed?
The G 20 conference was another major Xi event. In the image joisting between Xi and India’s Modi, Xi’s appearance at G 20 would have challenged Modi’s day in the sun. Xi didn’t attend.
Things are going badly for China internally. The economy has displayed some dangerous fissures, the capital intensive housing sector is in danger of major bankruptcy, and urban youth unemployment is well over 20%.
Might Xi be caught up in the shortcomings of his personal power leadership? Might there be ‘limited’ internal debates about how to revitalize China’s previous robust economic growth?
My fear is that, were China to stumble internally, some foreign adventure might capitalize on nationalist fervor. Taiwan? That foreign devil the United States?
Xi was dangerous when things in China were going well. He can be more dangerous, if things start to go badly under his imperial leadership.
The Middle Kingdom has had its ups and downs over millennia, hasn’t it, Keith?
When we were in China in 2017, we noticed a number of things: the people were friendly and welcoming; there seemed to be a great deal of personal freedom and prosperity everywhere we visited... particularly, even in the countryside around the famous karsts of Guilin and the Li River. Beijing was a metropolis several times the size of New York City and it was thriving. Major roads were seemingly everywhere. Air travel was a snap. China reminded me in many, many ways of the United States. Taiwan is a beautiful and interesting place to visit...many antiquities and very modern. So, why all the distrust and saber rattling? It’s a good and very important question.
My thought is that the Chinese want more of what western countries have achieved for their citizens but they want to do it their way which ultimately, is incompatible with democratic systems of government that can sustain the gains they’ve made for the Chinese people since Deng’s era. The Emperor decides things and the people must follow...it’s an archaic system that doesn’t work anymore for first world countries. Most people ultimately, forcefully reject it.
The fledgling moves towards real democratic government are anathema to the mandarins in charge... that’s really a sad mistake. Confronting the United States also means confronting NATO which Putin gambled on and has already lost. Xi spent quality time in our heartland. If I can see the parallels between our two hard working and talented peoples he can, too. He’ll never win his gamble if he confronts the first world countries of the West. Everything China has managed to accomplish for its people will be thrown into decades long chaos. They risk outsmarting themselves... time to wise up.
The huge population of largely sel-sufficient peasant farmer communities was the stable base of Chinese wealth for Millenia. Mao disrupted that with the Great Leap Forward, which attempted to communize the naturally conservative peasant population with modern agricultural practices, and many millions of people starved to death as a result. The administrative class of government officials was destroyed and replaced by Communist party operatives. “Progress was made, infrastructure was built, the economy boomed, millions more peasants were removed from their land and now live in government high rise apartments, dependent on some sort of government dole as the housing bubble and the consumer economy in China that it fed, is starting to collapse. It is hard to forecast what will happen next in China. What will the leaders do? Where will all those people go? What will they do? I met someone who had spent her teen years breaking rocks for roads, after her University parents were seized and disappeared. She made her was to the US as rapidly as she could and was a graduate student in a biochemistry department when I knew her. When asked why she had come to the US, she shrugged and said, I am an intellectual. What future is there for me in China?” I wish I had stayed in touch with her. In Russia, non-politicians turned to alcohol. I wonder about the Chinese youth.
Notes Through Eisenhower Fellowships, I have met many dozen Chinese since our Harriman (President H. W. Bush, who had been our first representative in China) arranged the first all-Chinese program in 1994. I spent considerable time with a female army colonel, whose parents had been sent to the provinces during the ‘cultural revolution.’
There was a significant difference between the first Chinese Fellows, who were more involved with the communist party hierarchy and the later Fellows, who were more relaxed in having dialogues.
My current concern (I stepped down at EF trustee in 2017) is that some of the smartest Chinese serving in finance and elsewhere in government are being stifled by Xi’s imperial political control. This clearly has been evidence in economics. I wouldn’t want to report accurately to the hierarchy about what really is happening with the Chinese economy.
I number of young Chinese have studied in the US or UK and tried to stay there. Some of their parents have been targeted by Xi’s political cops. I wonder how many Chinese, once they have experienced the West, relish going back into the dangerous, controlledChinese environment.
I encountered a similar situation with a Russian Fellow in 2013. Tuff personal situations.
The next election we have here in the USA will determine our future. Hard left or hard right. My mother used to say "play attention" when we engaged in board or card games, very good advice. Political decisions are not a game, they determine the health, strength and direction of our democracy, our hard won and defended democracy. Let's keep the beacon of freedom lit, so many have paid the price for our freedom.
The contrast between the populists running for cover from their own acts of blatant criminality and the responsible leaders intent on moving our democracy forward in concert with other democratic nations that share our values and aspire to peace and freedom for all people, is a crystal clear one. The majority of American people who vote, perceive the difference as clearly as day from night; they will act accordingly.
We are a country based on the rule of law. The Justice Department and the various judges are doing their jobs faithfully. They’re not perfect....we’re not perfect. We strive to pay attention to, and learn from our mistakes...most of the time. We have made some terrible mistakes over the last two centuries; what country hasn’t? We’ll make new ones in the future. We’ve also accomplished incredible things and many more are anticipated in our near and long term future. We face incredibly tough challenges ahead both domestically and internationally that will require us to work harder, to work together. Electing smart, experienced people with strong democratic values and a demonstrated ability to get things done for the benefit of the people is critically important; we can readily see what happens when we fail to make the right choices. We can do this and we will. As Biden likes to say: “ this is the United States of America, we can accomplish anything when we set our minds to it”.
Hang in there, Marj …there’s always a wild card in play. This is the United States; ultimately, it’s better that way. Fence sitters can easily see what a mess unhinged populists create and will remember that long enough for Biden to get re-elected. To keep the ball rolling several new Dems need to emerge from the Senate to keep things moving forward in 2028. The Republicans are so discombobulated that it will take at least 3 more presidential election cycles for the party to settle itself. By then, we’ll be well on our way to addressing the worst of climate change and to be moving forward on multiple fronts to help the American people and the world.
Don’t expect a quick answer to your question, Marj. The issue is far too alive for that, too dynamic—and what’s alive does not lend itself readily to being defined, any more than the most beautiful butterflies seek the net, the killing jar, the pinning to a board.
Maybe this is an appropriate way to launch into the topic of liberty.
As for the two words, the central meaning’s the same, the one, liberty, comes down to us from old French and ultimately Latin (liber, free) while freedom is a Germanic word.
The plural words “liberties” and “freedoms” have varying connotations, connected with different cultures.
*
Yes, you asked me for definitions, and I don’t want to give you any; for freedom’s like air, like the wind…
There’s the Christian image for Spirit…
“The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.” [John 3:8]
*
Some Japanese verses… The first one may not get through to many minds except those of musicians…
*
What is the Heart?
It can feel the sound of wind through a pine on a calligraphy.
It cannot be seen, only felt.
*
The second, by the Meiji Emperor:
*
The wind blowing in the sky is felt
only when it touches something.
*
And one even more subtle, by nun Ryo Nan:
*
Sixty-six times, my eyes have looked upon
The changing scenes of autumn,
I have talked enough of moonlight
Ask me no more,
But hearken to the voice of the pines and the cedars
when the wind falls silent.
*
My apologies for dodging your question.
But isn’t freedom going to be something very personal?
What you or I seek—and find—at any given moment, what we hope will find a home in us, and we in it.
Thank you, Marj, for your patience with me when I didn't do what you asked me.
I don't think there is much to add. It's just that precise definitions have their uses, but when we come to words for, say, freedom, love, God, life, Nature (including "human nature"), good, evil, faith... and many other immensities, don't we need to give thought to what they mean -- and do not mean -- to us? And then, to others...
What I find right about your adversity to presenting exact definitions, Peter, is that we are too quick to name, label, define and get caught in our own presumptive reflexes. These two terms require thought, meaningful conversations, and dynamics to provide not just a list of attributes that suggest what they are to you or Fern or JD or me, but can have meaning for the pluralistic of the US in we. I think we need ambiguity, discernment, discomfort, and thought to understand, come to grasp the heart of them, as well as the evidence upon which to conclude truth of their existence. The outcome, I would hope for is for important pieces of what we hold in common with each other gain a foothold in our national consciouness; concepts, principles, divergences acceptable, bonds arrived at, and the portent that the US in we can evolve without dissolution, and emerge in new commonalities. We are answer driven, I think too much sometimes, bound too much to what we once knew or had consensus upon, while the world around us changed while being locked in evidence less commonly relevant but cherished for the time when it may have united us, rather than divided. The portent of this great conversation many give real meaning to the assertion that are "truths we hold in common"
Of course, clear definitions have their uses, even when it comes to archetypes and ideas as vast as love, freedom, God, intelligence or wisdom; but aren’t we likely here to be coming up against borders, the limits beyond which love or freedom cease to be and become other?
Here, however, I’m going to recommend a wonderful little book that exploits Euclidean definitions to caricature aspects of the human psyche: Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, written by Edwin A. Abbott, an English schoolmaster and published in 1884.
Try, for example, reading the chapter in which the author endeavors in vain to explain to the King of the Straight Line the nature of Flatland.
“Behold me," says the Monarch, "I am a Line, the longest in Lineland, over six inches of Space—” “Of Length,” I ventured to suggest. “Fool,” said he, “Space is Length. Interrupt me again, and I have done.”
A perfect dialogue of the deaf. A failed dialogue that could prove invaluable when trying to understand the impossibility of meaningful communication with a large body of one’s compatriots... or with certain ultra-exceptional individuals…
“It seemed that this poor ignorant Monarch - as he called himself - was persuaded that the Straight Line which he called his Kingdom, and in which he passed his existence, constituted the whole of the world, and indeed the whole of Space. Not being able either to move or to see, save in his Straight Line, he had no conception of anything out of it.”
I wrote a composition in high school 50 years ago explaining the difference between freedom and liberty. The dictionary was no help. Figure it out for yourself because "sometimes words have two meanings."
The old party lines have crumbled. The actual political line these days is perception of reality. On the one side, rational thinkers, supporting democracy with a long view of history, and on the other, a variety of religiously bound, personality disordered, and cognitively impaired individuals who seek personal gain at the expense of others, by any means necessary.
As a person who voted for Hilary Clinton and Joe Biden (and Lyndon Johnson), who writes voter postcards most days, I think Clifford has a valid point. US politics have moved so far to the right that our current apparent center maps to right-of-center parties in Europe today or in this country twenty years ago. I hope to live long enough to see the current Republican Party collapse into a *tiny* set of fringe fanatics, after which the current Dems split into two major parties, one center-right with current leadership ideas and one center-left led by people like AOC and Sen. Ed Markey.
When I read the 1956 Republican Party Platform, I realized I was an Eisenhower Republican. I maintain that Barak Obama was the best Republican president since Eisenhower.
Exactly. Personally, I'm an Ed Markey Democrat. It's been a pleasure voting for him all these years. Unlike many less progressive Democrats, for whom I work and vote only because they are better than the alternative.
I love the quote from Stephenson in 1956 when a lady told him that he would win because all of the thinking people are voting for you. Stephenson replied, "Madam, that's not enough. I need a majority."
I've been thinking about your comment about Eisenhower and you're definitely on to something. Unfortunately there is no Republican Party unless you want to count the Democrats because they have shifted so far right since 1984. I am very comfortable claiming to be a Democrat when I was a Republican for more years than I care to admit.
Yes , I definitely agree, we should be focusing about our democracy and about motivating people to vote in 24. Forget about the negativity you hear about polls and President Bidens age and his son Hunter Biden. We all know Republicans are using this for their political gain.
So refreshing to hear about the incredible, detailed work being done by the Biden administration. There could not be q clearest contrast — the Trump period of continuos chaos on a platform of lies, all of which hurt the country and the world versus the ongoing work being done by Biden and his experienced people.
It would be great if main steam media reported on this contrast regularly. We need to keep sharing this truth via social media.
Judge Jones’ opinion in the Meadows removal notice doesn’t present much of a target for reversal on appeal for two strong reasons:
1. the criminal act charged is that Meadows associated himself with an enterprise that attempted illegally to alter the vote tabulation
2. the overt acts alleged are not themselves criminal charges and, even if they were they all, save one, campaign related and the executive has no role, as such, in the conduct of state elections, which is reserved to the states unless specifically preempted by Congress. Essentially, it was none of the business of a president to become involved in the count and certification by the state. If it is not in the president’s scope of duties it necessarily not in his Chief of Staff’s.
Ever since Marburg v. Madison jurisdiction, which is the issue here, is something that the courts take extremely seriously as a core principle that safeguards the integrity of the judicial process and helps to maintain independence from the political branches. Assuming jurisdiction in a doubtful case is never the default assumption, and there is a highly robust Constitutional doctrine to navigate. If a SCOTUS majority had a special soft spot in its heart for Trump and his co-defendants that inclined toward motivated reasoning it has had many opportunities to show it before now in all the 2020 cases Trump brought to it.
Biden and Harris are certainly the right team at the right time to bolster America's standing in the world. We no longer have to cringe in shame when the rude, clumsy, churl made his presence known. I was so happy about Mark Meadows being told no. I have high hopes for justice being served.
It would have been very interesting to see Lindsay Graham bloviate ad nauseam had he been indicted. If the grand jury recommended 3 US Senators be indicted then the evidence must exist.
If all 19 are found guilty of 1 or more crimes in GA then maybe Fani will go for it. I'm not sure when the statute of limitation runs, but I'm guessing Lindsay knows.
I’m afraid everything good Biden has done will be taken over by the exploding activity in all the tfg cases. But there’s still hope for Aileen Cannon to obstinately question everything and delay.
On another note, I said I’d mention this when it happened: One of the “Tennessee Three,” Gloria Johnson, has challenged Marsha Blackburn, a tfg big-time sycophant for US Senate. Marsha predictably called her a “radical-left, woke socialist.” We have no intelligent life in the TN House or delegation. Www.votegloriajohnson.com
She is determined. She says even Marsha’s party isn’t crazy about her. Gloria was a special ed teacher at Central HS when Ryan McDonald was shot by another student in, I think, 2007. She has chops. Feel free to donate to her campaign and watch her progress.
So Biden and Harris are doing actual politics, instead of screaming and stomping around. Quite refreshing, the Rethuglicans could learn something from them, but the orange clown and his cultists are too dumb and narcissistic for that. Big money likes to keep it that way. I do wonder, though… Trump is most certainly in Putin’s back pocket, but I wonder if Musk is, too. Or is he simply a dictator fan boy?
"She (Harris) said the government must 'pay attention to 10, 20, 30 years down the line, and what we are developing now that will be to the benefit of our country then.' ”
(Gasp) Foresight? It's coming back into fashion.
If we don't start attending to the huge income and wealth gap in this country, nothing we do, 10, 20, 30 years down the line by way of trade agreements is going to matter, as we will have elected a dictator.
Robert Reich's posting today is the best and most concise explanation of what has happened to this country over the last 40 years that I have ever read. I urge everyone to read it. (I'll go fetch a link).
Here: https://open.substack.com/pub/robertreich/p/the-common-good-chapter-6-the-decline?r=cbvi1&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
I absolutely agree with you on income disparity and Robert Reich's posting. I've recommended it broadly. I'm so looking forward to his sequel which will discuss what we can and should do about and supporting the common good. President Biden has a vision and is making it happen. We must give him our votes and the Congress that will support him.
What Robert Reich wrote should not be news to anyone who has read HCR's 'How the South Won the Civil War,' which traces the problem back to the founding of the nation and brings it up to date. There are solutions, and as HCR points out today, it would be a shame if the growing legal troubles of the Trump conspirators overshadow the work of the Biden administration, not only on the global stage but domestically as well. Democrats must cite specific benefits all Americans are receiving from their programs, with anecdotal examples, rather than just talk about Bidenomics, a label that just flies over the public's attention.
Locally it hard to explain the benefits of a road up grade and a water sewer expansion. Reason these two projects were designed to employ local construction workers over a number of years. This results in torn up roads in the middle of a small county with less that 11,000 that just seem to go on for ever. Before retirement to this beautiful area in the mountains of western North Carolina I supervised heavy industrial construction. The lowest cost way to get a job done was to get in and get out. Very different than trying to support a smaller but stable work force. Based on letters to the local paper many see this as a waste of their tax dollars because of the pain of driving around the construction over multiple years.
I don't have a good answer, damned if you do, damned if you don't.
Forgetting the pros and cons of the job creation aspect of such projects, the important thing is to make the voting public aware that their existence is made possible by legislation coming out of a Democratic administration in Washington. Road upgrades and sewer expansion they understand. Bidenomics they might not.
I agree, Jack Lippman.. And, again, we need clear messaging that contrasts the benefits of new infrastructure with the real consequences of not upgrading roads and sewage treatment. Specific local examples resonate better with voters.
Dave Smucker: I live in an area that's been upended by these infrastructure jobs. Mine is a red state and I hear much bitching and moaning about the inconvenience. I also note that our Republican Governor is happy to take credit for anything that's positive about better roads. If you sat down one of his right wing constituents and explained in third grade terms that "if you neglect your teeth for too long, you will experience much pain and suffering in the future", it might be possible to break this cycle of recriminations. I don't know how to do that, however, with Fox News locked on to everyone's TV.
Dave, where are you in the Western Carolinas? I was born and raised in Lenoir, NC which is surrounded by the Pisgah Nat’l Forest. It’s also the gateway to Blowing Rock.
We are on 40 acres of mixed hardwoods in Brasstown, NC. About half way between Hayesville and Murphy. We retired here because of the John C Campbell Folk School, best craft and mountain music school in the country. I am a hobbyist blacksmith and taught at the school for 14 years. My technical background is the metal's industry.
I'm wondering if all appealed verdicts can ultimately end up at the corrupt, reactionary, semi-kangaroo SCOTUS, as long as the defendant has the funds and the court is willing to take the case?
I think we all worry about that, Lisa.
I was actually hoping someone would say not all cases can be pursued to the highest level. Now a total joke.
If you watch closely, I think you'll see that cases are curated; sometimes for 'agenda' purposes. SCOTUS, especially this one, must be watched closer by more folks of good intent.
I am 100% behind Biden. He has done some outstanding work so far. I think that what is missing is a simple motto (like "Build the wall").... the majority of the people are too lazy and/or ignorant to read about what he is really doing. They need something that they can chant.
Guess "Lock Him Up" has already been used.☺ Slogans I'd like to see go viral are "No Forced Births!" | "Don't Elect A Felon!" | "Stop Stealing Dem Votes!" & "Hands Off My Ballot."
Thanks. There were very good reasons why generations of public sentiment and lawmakers placed post Gilded Age restraints on the influence of concentrated money. It was "fool me twice" (at least) when we got suckered into letting go of them. Now we have decades of progress to make up, and a lot less time to do it in.
Those who lived through the Depression and WWII are passing away at a rapid pace. And with them go individual memories of hard times but also institutional memories. Those who stood in the breach for democracy and the rule of law are either gone or too frail to do it anymore. The bought out legally bribed Republicans are trying to return us to the Gilded Age when the robber barons tromped all over everyone else. Social Darwinism at its finest. Huge wealth gaps lead to instability like we are experiencing.
There are a few of us left. After marching against the Vietnam War and most recently for the SEIU, now mostly writing GOTV postcards, at 89, I can only urge all of you, many of whom know some of all we’ve survived, to vote blue and get everyone who cared about children on the planet, to do likewise. Nancy Pelosi “it’s for the children,” running for Congress again at 82 is an example to all of US who know the at supply side economics was a disaster.
You rock, Virginia 👍
Thanks, Sheila. All positive comments energize!
And frankly, the number of 80-90 year olds already in Congress is not that much of a good thing. Nancy Pelosi has done much good in the years she has served, but maybe its time for a younger generation to step up. We have far too many elderly men (mostly) & women in the House and the Senate. I'm not looking at this from a young person's perspective - I'm 85 and honestly would not feel sharp enough & strong enough to put myself in their position!
As another example - look honestly at the current ability to "serve" by Diane Feinstein! She should not be there, and there are several others in the same "boat" she is.
Diane Feinstein is keeping Gavin Newsome from having to put one of the three well-qualified Californians running for her seat in her place. It’s a nightmare for all concerned. I only wonder why she didn’t have shots for shingles. As for other 80-90 year-olds, I always think of Konrad Adenauer. He became head of the new German government after WWII at the age of 85 and served until he was 91. Age hits everyone differently. I am 89. Most 60-year olds seem to me to have quit thinking.
Our collective memory is being replaced by history that has been edited, rewritten and replaced by propaganda as good as Goebbel’s. Money has sided with the cretins although it is the old money (Rupert, Koch’s, etc) that diss the lessons of the past. And then, there is Musk.
And then there is Musk....throwing a wrench into Ukraine's use of drones in the Black Sea. He shouldn't be allowed to tilt the progress of a war against tyranny among other things. His arrogance and hubris knows no bounds. May karma come for him soon.
With friends like him... well, enough said. I think some are already regretting their alliance with the spoiled brat.
I want to know what idiot in the US handed Musk skyline without creating one he couldn’t control.
Amen, Michelle! Sooner rather than later.
"The bought out legally bribed Republicans are trying to return us to the Gilded Age when the robber barons tromped all over everyone else. " is close to a concise definition of "Reaganomics", unless the real goal was full out feudalism. "Democracy is a failure and the ultra-wealthy had it right all along" was the subtext. Along with reenergizing (this time with the role of parties switched) the Civil War. How much was that war fomented by the veiled hand of plutocrats?
My dad worked for a company taken over by vampires who treated employees line crap, sold off assets and pulled benefits like inclusion of retirees in company picnics. One commentator attributed the trend (this was the '80s) to bosses who had experienced the trials of the Great Depression being replaced by modern MBAs. I see a role for robust private enterprise, as well as a robust public sector, doing what they do best, but in the end it's supposed to be governance of, by and for the people, and don't we have the right to define what the responsibilities of businesses are vis a vis the community? Bought off Republicans have made this heresy; but it was not always so.
Pretty much on the mark JL. I can closely identify with your family history. We shall talk.
Also important I would think was WWII which must have been very scary for my parent's generation. A few wealthy businessmen continued to service Hitler, and there was a cadre of admirers in the US, but I think for the most part we knew which side were on.
Well said, Jeri Chilcutt! And disinformation thrives with MAGAts rewriting history and dumbing down our schools
Amen!
Your “amen” was for Jeri Chilcutt. I would like to add a second amen and let you know that the machine put me in ahead of yours. I’m sorry.
Thanks Virginia. This ordering of comments in substack, is a problem for a couple of reasons and I wish they would make it purely chronological with a convenient way to organize and isolate threads and other good tools to navigate the stack. Comments do get buried in so much volume. Anyway, thanks for your polite consideration :-)
Yes, I answer someone and then find it much further below. So I have tried to include a name in my post.
A search feature would be appreciated too!
lol ~
What’s that “we got suckered”? Everyone paying attention knew exactly what Reagan was doing.
I agree. I'm saying "we" as a society. That said is seems to me that we, myself included, who looked behind the curtain, have been too disorganized about calling them out.
Reich's diagnosis could not be clearer or more correct. His reminder of the common good, likewise.
Trouble is, once a structure has become extraordinarily top-heavy, it must collapse.
The process has already begun, worldwide.
*
In these Letters and in White House policy statements, we keep seeing positive, even celebratory, references to "growth".
"Growth is good" seems to be replacing "Greed is good".
Of course growth is good, it is natural. Natural, even when "growth" means "tumor" and we call it "malignant". Even then, the malignancy is part of a natural process in which the body, confused by factors that promote imbalance, is struggling to restore balance.
Trouble is, in Nature we see constant cycles of birth, growth, eventual decline, death, then new birth and development.
In the unnatural abstractions that are most economic models, there is growth, more growth -- and, of course, various symptoms such as stagnation, inflation, deflation, all of which involve damage to and destruction of economic and social actors -- countries, corporations, cities, entire economic sectors... and, of course, human beings, individuals, groups, millions.
And under our iron economic "laws", successive generations of flesh and blood human beings (together with all life forms) find themselves imprisoned in close, painful company with something that is born, grows... but knows no death: DEBT.
*
Such a phenomenon of deathlessness is to be found nowhere in Nature.
And since resources are finite, debt can become a box, a casket. Even an Iron Maiden. A thing of death for the living.
Does it not follow that economic and social arrangements -- specifically financial ones -- that promote global survival must be modeled on the life cycles of Nature?
There is even a Biblical model. According to the text, every 50 years all debt was cancelled and all land returned to the families assigned it when the tribes entered the land. Although we have no evidence outside traditional texts that this was actually done, the idea is there.
Joan Friedman (MA, from NY) - "There is even a Biblical model. According to the text, every 50 years all debt was cancelled and all land returned to the families assigned it when the tribes entered the land."
Deuteronomy 15:
1. At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts.
2. This is how it is to be done: Every creditor shall cancel any loan they have made to a fellow Israelite. They shall not require payment from anyone among their own people, because the Lord’s time for canceling debts has been proclaimed.
3. You may require payment from a foreigner, but you must cancel any debt your fellow Israelite owes you.
4. However, there need be no poor people among you...
Leviticus 25 details the Jubilee (every fifty) Year commandments to Moses at Mount Sinai.
Ron, thank you for the correction. You are right. Debts were to be cancelled every 7 years. Land was to be returned every 50.
Thank you for bringing this up.
Was debt forgiveness not once an aspect of the Catholic Church's Jubilee Years?
The Prophet Mohamed also recommended that if a man should not be able to pay the debt he owes you, you should forgive the debt rather than cause him or his family hardship. Islam still forbids charging interest on loans.
A Dutchman, Aloy Soppe, has developed the idea just proposed here.
Others surely will.
Western thinking has, for too long, been confined to boxes, without taking proper account of the universe beyond each idea-box.
Once, men of genius who'd understood this were killed in the most horrible ways for having seen the truth and its implications. Men like Giordano Bruno.
Now, we and all posterity are endangered.
Peter Burnett - "Men like Giordano Bruno."
Giordano Bruno was sentenced to be burned to death by the Roman Inquisition for his heretical ideas, which he refused to recant.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Giordano-Bruno
This post by Peter Burnett is excellent. Put a little more concisely: unending growth, overcrowded, finite, heating planet, catastrophe. Civilization, such as it is, is on a suicidal course. Instead of fighting with or otherwise competing with each other, nations should be cooperating to solve these problems. Same idea within countries such as the U.S. A utopian vision. Have a nice day.
Mr. Burnett, Wonderful observations on nature and the death of human systems. You should write a book on that topic, if you haven't already done so! I'm sure it would be weighty.
Thank you, but while I have translated books, including tomes both dense and weighty, I've written none. If I should succeed in writing the one I want to, it may have content but I'd be most surprised if it should turn out to be much more than featherweight...
The only thing that counts is to share the good things we gain.
Excellent observations.
LeMoine,
Many thanks for the reference to Reich's writing. It was a very fascinating read and, although I already have his perspective, it is always good to see it written so well and clearly. .
I also found the below link, related, which, lines up with what I thought AT THE TIME, when Jack Welch first began destroying America while GLOWINGLY featured, for firing workers, in the Harvard Business Review sometime in the 80's (I had access to that and read it routinely at UT Austin). I have long held the perspective that Welch was a yahoo clown and incompetent UNLIKE the Harvard Business Review.
https://robertreich.substack.com/p/jack-welch-and-the-end-of-stakeholder
In fact, the Harvard Business Review's lauding of managers that were firing Americans was where I acquired my great and ongoing utter disdain for Harvard. My daughter could have gone there, but, I highly discouraged her from doing so. She went to Cornell instead, which, has an Ag school as a component, moderating the school's tendency to be stupid. Unlike Harvard.
In Texas, Texas A&M SUPPORTS the concept that there is a link between hiring and having good manage management that HIRE, NOT FIRE their engineers.
As it should be.
At any rate, thanks LeMoine. Reich is worth reading as you say.
Jack Welch was an uber oligarch who masqueraded as a brilliant businessman. Even after creating the behemoth GE conglomerate that poor Jeff had to dismantle, he made big money peddling his phony reputation with his fellow con artist Suzie.
But it was worse than that. He gave birth to a slew of executives who were recruited by other major companies. If they had done well with firing people and spouting 6 sigma nonsense...and chanted the praises of "Neutron Jack"...they got juicy CEO jobs.
I probably mentioned in other comments that we experienced one of those CEO bozos when I was at Home Depot. "General Bob" Nardelli left GE (building jet engines) to a job running HD as the founders departed to billionaire land. He negotiated a termination package and then jumped on the home improvement wagon with his knowledge of how to fire jet engine workers. It took him just months to destroy the incredible HD culture by firing knowledgeable full timers and hiring part time dullards. "Cut that payroll! Reduce the cost of health insurance! I can make one of the most profitable retailers in the country even more productive!"
Customer service plummeted. Merchandise out of stocks exploded. The "General" departed quickly with a $100 million severance package. Capitalism at its worst. A legendary home improvement retail concept wiped out by a guy who didn't know a hammer from a paint brush.
I was at a meeting, when near the end of his tenure, Bernie Marcus said to us: "Beware the bean counters. Arthur and I will be leaving. It's up to you guys to hold them off."
WTF? Us? Bernie stepped away, handed the company to Bob, built an aquarium in Atlanta, and then proceeded to become a fascist supporter of Trump. A brilliant retailer turned traitor... to his company and the nation. BTW, Bob got the job because Bernie worshiped Jack the Jerk.
"Jack Welch was an uber oligarch who masqueraded as a brilliant businessman."
A wonderfully written sentence Bill!!
And, yes, the HD founders are both budding fascists whose success made themselves think they were geniuses instead of lucky.
LOVE !!!
It’s Milton Friedman we have to thank for the Jack Welch’s in business. He said stakeholder capitalism—in the 40’s and 50’s; take care of workers, the US economy, shareholders—was inefficient, and shareholder capitalism would create more jobs/drivers of economy if the owners/shareholders had maximized return on investment. Add that to globalization, and Firing workers is the fastest way in lower costs and increase shareholder value.
Wasn't Friedman also the creator of "trickle down economics?" If so, between that and what you said, the Nobel should take back his Prize for Economics.
Yes, but Friedman didn’t call it that. Maximizing shareholder (owner) income would “naturally” cause them to reinvest the increased profits in their businesses, creating more jobs.
Very late in his life, he admitted he hadn’t foreseen that shareholders would take the profits and run; hadn’t foreseen the human cost of his theory.
"he admitted he hadn’t foreseen that shareholders would take the profits and run; hadn’t foreseen the human cost of his theory."
Indeed yes. Computer modeling so dominates modern economics that human behavior becomes secondary to the math. More than one professorial theory has bitten the dust because humans don't always behave rationally or in their own best interests.
Link to Reich's essay: https://open.substack.com/pub/robertreich/p/the-common-good-chapter-6-the-decline?r=cbvi1&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Reich's essay is a good summary. I have yet to read the whole series. I suspect that elsewhere he talks about what happened roughly 40 years ago (apart from the Powell letter and policy changes) that has left so many Americans holding the (empty) bag, yet cleaving to their tormentors.
“Holding the empty bag, yet cleaving to their tormentors.” A picture of us today
Thank you - it's a solid read.
Sorry, but most of the Reich comments were maligning Rachel Maddow, Hillary Clinton, every major news outlet including NPR, etc… thus driving the stake, dividing Progressives… Still waisting energy picking at the scab that Bernie lost & implying that Hillary, in essence, stole the primary. Practically no one was moving forward trying to figure out how to find a way to have constructive conversations with others in support of democracy over authoritarian fascism.
Bernie made sure Hillary was no different than a Mitt Romney, only more crooked for taking exorbitant speaking fees from corporations. Look at the number of votes Jill Stein got in critical states from former Bernie followers—Bernie gave us Trump as much as Trump voters did.
What I don't understand is why the Religious Right accepts greed--a "deadly sin"--in their heroes. Or in Trump's case, the many sins of adultery, lies, gluttony. Yes, Jesus did forgive but also said "go and sin no more."
The appeal of almighty demagogues.
Thank you for sharing article I was aware of the discrepancy between the rich and the rest but did not understand how trump benefited from their anger and pain. If both parties do nothing for the common man/woman we could end up with someone if not trump, like trump.
I'll concede that Democrats had to support the awful policies of the last 40 years or get voted out of office, but I do hope you aren't including the current administration under the umbrella when you say "both parties." Take a good look at everything we accomplished in the first two years of this term with the most razor-thin of majorities, and take a look at the other hard-fought battles that could have been successful with stronger majorities. Take a look at the messaging the Biden team promotes, about building an economy that works for ordinary Americans, and recognize their tireless efforts to make good on their promises. I'll need to go look for the source, but I recently read that the actions of the Biden team during the first half of his term reversed 25% of the ballooning inequality of the last 40 years.
That's the stuff that deserves attention.
While I agree with Reich on the wealth gap, it does not account for trumpism. In my swarth of humanity, the trump diehards are men, they tend to be big, self-sufficient and have risen from a low economic status. They feel that as they have made it (relatively), why can't everyone else who has any ambition do it w/o a government hand out. They just want to be left alone, low taxes, and limited law. Not too different from the wealthy who are outside of my circle. I feel that those left behind are too busy trying to survive, to have any interest or understanding of politics. They have been short changed on education and opportunity.
I would say that if we don't look to the future, there won't be one in terms of a livable planet. And also we must vote D to prevent Rs from destroying the government built slowly over the years and see to it that it functions for ordinary citizens. Otherwise, we are looking at an autocratic theocratic government which, among other things, will hasten even more, the climate crisis.
Utterly rude of me to comment about another blogger's post, but blaming economic trends for the "diner vote" in favor of Trump misses the bigger reality - that Trump's devotees are actually upper middle class and wealthy. They are the ones ponying up for his campaign and lawyer fees. And it's not about the economy. It's about racism, misogyny, and authoritarianism. These people are a cult.
Not rude at all, Marycat. Exchanging and discussing ideas is what, we're here for, right? But I do take mild exception to your view "that Trump's devotees are actually upper middle class and wealthy." I would say that a relative few of his upper middle class supporters are actually his self indulging "enablers", while his supporters among the "great unwashed" would best be described by your term "devotees".
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/06/05/its-time-to-bust-the-myth-most-trump-voters-were-not-working-class/
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-mythology-of-trumps-working-class-support/
"But the definition of “working class” and similar terms is fuzzy, and narratives like these risk obscuring an important and perhaps counterintuitive fact about Trump’s voters: As compared with most Americans, Trump’s voters are better off. The median household income of a Trump voter so far in the primaries is about $72,000, based on estimates derived from exit polls and Census Bureau data. That’s lower than the $91,000 median for Kasich voters. But it’s well above the national median household income of about $56,000. It’s also higher than the median income for Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders supporters, which is around $61,000 for both."
The media has given us the misleading trope of the rednecks sitting in diners in some obscure little burg in the midwest. It's the trope Trump weaponizes as part of his image, that being the rich guy who cares about the "little people." It's a cliche, not a fact. Look how many of his followers could afford to show up at the Capitol on Jan. 6th.
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/january-6-busts-key-myth-about-trump-supporters-rioters-ncna1287105
Marycat, These “studies” you cite are absolute corporate media drivel. First off, think about it: who were the people that showed up at the Capitol on Jan 6? Just GETTING to DC to participate in the revelry, and maybe a little insurrection, which would mean springing for transportation, hotel accommodations and taking time off from a low paying blue collar job, would skew the status of that group seriously upward on the economic scale. So arguing that the “typical” Trump supporter is represented by this subset of his supporters is ludicrous. And the polls cited talk about the amount of money contributed by the (limited) spectrum of those polled, not the relative wealth across the numbers. To put it simply, if you polled 1000 people, one of which was a billionaire who contributed $999, and 999 of which were “average” folks that each contributed a dollar, could you conclude that trump’s financial support was provided by an equal number of wealthy and average folks? No. You could say that his financial support flowed equally from both rich and average folks, which would be true, but a total non sequitur. This is the kind of logically fallacious argument widely exploited by those with an agenda, including the corporate media, all the time. As for exit polls, I’m not convinced that this is reliable data, and I’m not certain that census data is either (do they even ask on the same form who you voted for and what your income is?). So I’m going to have to disagree with you, my friend, but I do like your picture. It appears that we are both “cat people” :-)
So this is how you spend your Saturday? On pedantic drivel simply because you need so badly to be right?
LeMoine Surlamont
Good comment! Bravo also to Robert Reich who speaks truth *about* power and *to* power (including his former WH boss).
Reich is spot on. Democrats,with few exceptions, abandoned working Americans. Clinton pushed NAFTA. Reich quit him.
I read, identified closely with, and commented at that essay. It was dead accurate.
Thanks for the handy link, much appreciated.
Thanks for Reich’s commentary. Depressing as hell. Trump knows how to work the crowd. People see him as the second coming!
Most interesting bits from Reich, "Most of the income gains have gone to the top. The 2016 Wall Street bonus pool was larger than the annual year-round earnings of all 3.3 million Americans working full-time at the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour."
And "Average weekly nonsupervisory wages, a measure of blue-collar earnings, were higher in 1969 (adjusted for inflation) than they are now."
Given Harris is thinking 20 to 30 years down the road, you think that she's optimistic about Climate Change? I'd like to know what that could be based on.
Climate change is the big elephant in the room, which we are still not given the needed priority, but I still appreciate current steps being taken by this administration to sew seeds for future public benefit. That's exactly what Republicans do not do and have not done, from ignoring warnings of increased Al Quaeda activity, or of the already known potential of the mess made by Katrina, Trump dismantling pandemic preparedness, etc, etc,etc. So it's refreshing to see that kind of thought being exercised again. Biden in doing a lot of things sensibly, but I am waiting for a an articulated plan/vision of an all hands on deck approach to addressing the ongoing threat to climate. Rs are sure to deliver the opposite.
And someone must have told them that if they want the youth vote, they'd better put forward something stronger on climate change (and gun control).
These Fascist Rethugs now and their terroristic threats reminds me a lot of the Al Quaeda with many of their followers bragging about their AR 15 rifles and how they want to start conflicts and Civil war and their Domestic terrorism on innocent citizens here. These wingnuts have the potential to be very dangerous.
Good point, however hunters I know have recently commented that various ammunition is in short supply, and that may affect the AR15 brigade. Evidently, manufacturers are restocking military supplies and fulfilling contracts for Ukrainian orders. But as usual, I could be misinformed.
Oh yes, i have heard that various ammunitions were in short supply, at the time i really didn't pay much attention to it at the time. The only firearm i have even owned was stolen from me quite a few years ago, i have never purchased another rifle since then. My nutty and deluded MAGA neighbors own many AR type rifles and i hope that ammunition is such short supply that they can't find any to buy. These people are full on MAGA TUMP worshipers and i already feel uncomfortable living in close proximity to them. They are nutty as a fruit cake.
John , What You have stated, is an absolute UNDERSTATMENT! RTHUGG Team, is So DESPIRATE, At this Time, & Season, ALL Are ITICHING ! , to get Their AR-15 s & AK-47s Barrels, ! ,,,, * RED HOTT ! * HAWK OUT, ,,,,,The PUSHERS ! Wearing Their cute AR-15 LAPPEL PINS !
"Climate change is the big elephant in the room . . . " The big dying elephant in the room.
Physics is indifferent to human folly. It does what it does. We are making choices that will lead to people dying, as well a wide swath of other species. Some primitive extremophiles are surprisingly tough and it seems like roaches were around forever, so come kind of equilibrium is likely pending cataclysmic cosmic events. If we escape near-term extinction, we are still fouling our own nest.
I hope The Plan you hope for becomes a reality in Term II. Finishing up Term I agenda should be a priority. Me thinks Bid3n-Harris are laying a foundation with climate change, Bidenomics, and infrastructure they they should to voters as the foundation upon which a 20 or 30 year vision would be built. All that gives us hope that our government won't be guided by quarter P&L statements, but by material progress for the vast plurality of middle, lower, and mid to upper class Americans (in that priority).
What I want to see is is more description of goals around which support can gather. A focused alternative to the ugly world of "GOP" despotism. Words that will be emblematic of Biden when he's gone (even Nixon had them; "I am not a crook"). I agree that real "steal" going on in our society is identified by Robert Reich in links above, and Democrats have been far too passive or complicit for years. And we have wasted opportunities to justly give 'em hell, as well as offer cogent, defensible alternatives. Musk etc. are becoming tyrants and government of, by and for the people is under attack.
“There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root.” - Thoreau
I too want coherence, a real plan, not merely legislation that is a cobbling of popular/anti-Democrat needs and wants ... which gets some name put on it that sounds good for one Congressional term. Coherence is my root, which we have to protect from the wandering political vagrant who hacks the branches to make a fire for a night or a leantoo for a season.
The Biden administration thinks of the climate disaster as a political problem. They think the solution is to be "even-handed". That's why they like the slogan "Net zero" so much.
Mind you, I'm still voting for Biden next year. As poor as he's been on the climate, he's the closest we've come to a "climate president". But when you're in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging!
The Climate side of Biden & Kerry & the administration need their asses kicked by American citizens to do much more to address Climate Change here and to work with the following countries:
Top 10 polluters
China, with more than 10,065 million tons of CO2 released.
United States, with 5,416 million tons of CO2.
India, with 2,654 million tons of CO2.
Russia, with 1,711 million tons of CO2.
Japan, 1,162 million tons of CO2.
Germany, 759 million tons of CO2.
Iran, 720 million tons of CO2.
'Fossil fuels – coal, oil and gas – are by far the largest contributor to global climate change, accounting for over 75 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90 per cent of all carbon dioxide emissions. As greenhouse gas emissions blanket the Earth, they trap the sun's heat.' (UN)
Fern,
IF we all stop driving our gas cars, then, there will be less oil drilling and use.
It is not Biden's fault that we are all (well most of us) stopping at the gas pump so we can fill up to go to the grocery store or take a "Sunday drive".
We (like me, I drive a Ford Focus that gets 39 mpg), are the origins of climate change. Not Biden and his administration.
We are the one's who have to change. And? We don't show much sign of doing so.
Just look: The Pickup Truck is THE new American love for cars. A vehicle absolutely nobody needs unless they are about to head out to haul hay into a barn. A V8 engine under the hood.
We are the problem Fern. Government cannot solve the climate crisis.
We can.
*raises hand* Mike, I’m going to defend trucks, sort of. I can afford one vehicle & I am a gardener & DIYer & need to haul stuff, lots of stuff! I’ve driven a light 4x4, manual-tranny truck since 1990 (4 cyl as they are cheaper to work on)….well, if you don’t count the 1949 Studebaker truck I drove back in the mid-70’s. My current truck is 20 yrs old. I absolutely hate the current truck iterations & are a pet peeve of mine. Too big & heavy(why?) & too many unnecessary bells & whistles; many seem to be “for show” and, like some of the newer SUVs, the height of the hood is way too high & can be dangerous to pedestrians/bicyclists/drivers of small cars. I even wrote to Toyota Corp years ago asking them to stop super-sizing their trucks & that, to me, current truck designs are like the “Transformers” in the Sci-fi movies—ginormous. They responded that’s what people want….um, no, not buying it (literally), it’s what they are selling/advertising particularly for the American market. I don’t understand why someone would buy/drive a truck if you didn’t NEED a truck! I could go on & on about it, but don’t want to hijack the comments, but wanted to give a shout-out to fellow dirt-dusted gardeners with truck beds full of compost, wood chips, gravel, lumber or heaped with green waste to haul.
And I recently bought a Japanese Kei truck, with 660cc engine and tiny outside dimensions yet a bed almost as big as a typical American pickup. It's great! But I had to buy a 25-year-old used truck with steep import duties. American import duties and safety regulations are keeping us from being able to buy the small practical trucks that are used in the rest of the world. I'm all for road safety, but our current rules are misguided and favor the safety of the driver at the expense of the safety and environment of everybody else.
Barbara,
Of course, if you need a truck to do a real truck job, well, that makes complete sense.
But, if you buy it because you next door neighbor has one and you both drive it back and forth to the car wash, well, .....
:-)
I’ve had a 1971 VW crewcab since 1986 (second owner) we use for gardening and keeping up a 3 acre property. In two weeks, it will come back from the shop, transformed into an electric vehicle with a 150 mile range. The cost is about the same as buying a new truck, but this should give it another 40 years of “green” life. There are a few small electric pickups in early stages of design (e.g. Canoo), and we’ll see if there is, indeed, an appetite for them. (I believe yes.)
Mike, that’s a simplistic assessment. For sure, a bit less than 25% of greenhouse gasses comes from transportation. But when almost 80% of our electricity is generated by burning fossil fuels, switching to an electric vehicle won’t do much to help. And I say this as someone married to a professor who has spent his entire career researching and promoting alternative fuels for the transportation sector.
We need to invest in public transportation and rezone suburbs to make them more walkable. But we also need to acknowledge that industry and agriculture contribute more to climate change than individuals do, and that can’t be fixed by the choices we individuals make. That requires government policy changes, subsidies, commitment to change. The choices we make in the ballot box matter more than the choices we make to conserve.
KR, yes and thank you for your good clarification.
But, we are all complicit in our current Lemming run to the cliff. We all have to change to avoid going off that cliff.
Mike S, thank you for writing what I think every day as I check the air before leaving home (mask for outdoors in the heat?) then dodge crazy traffic, a lot of which could be prevented if people rode ample public transportation in Chicago. It’s far from perfect, but if enough people rode it and complained enough, it could be improved with Biden funds. That’s only the beginning, however. Diet is our next problem. If we can’t stop endless car “affair,” how can we eat less meat? In short, how do we become part of the solution instead of exacerbating the problem?
Exactly. Where can each of us have impact.
If each of us priorities our own change, then, all of society will change.
Mike S came up with a slogan, 'We are the problem', so he believes that he's got the solution for Climate Change Mike S sounds proud of himself because he has a perfect answer for 'leaders,' such as Biden who approved the Willows Project and cannot understand why so many of us are so angry about his betrayal. What is the responsibility of our president, Mike S?
'Joe Biden declared climate change the “number one issue facing humanity” and vowed a national transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy that could create millions of new jobs.'
“It’s the number one issue facing humanity. And it’s the number one issue for me,” Biden said of climate change during an episode of Pod Save America released Saturday. He was interviewed by Dan Pfeiffer, a former senior advisor to President Barack Obama.'
“Climate change is the existential threat to humanity,” the former vice president said. “Unchecked, it is going to actually bake this planet. This is not hyperbole. It’s real. And we have a moral obligation.” (CNBC) See line below.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/24/joe-biden-climate-change-is-number-one-issue-facing-humanity.html
'What is Willow going to do?'
'The Bureau of Land Management estimates that Willow could produce 576 million barrels of oil over 30 years.'
'Initial gravel mining and road construction work has already started for the development, which will have a total footprint of 499 acres, according to the administration’s final decision. For comparison, that is two and a half times the area the Washington Commanders recently acquired to build a new football stadium. Willow’s plan includes hundreds of miles of roads and pipelines, airstrips, a gravel mine, and a new processing facility in the middle of pristine Arctic tundra and wetland.'
'Burning Willow’s oil would also put into the atmosphere an estimated 239 million metric tons of carbon dioxide during the project’s 30-year lifetime — or the equivalent of driving 1.7 million gasoline-powered cars a year. That number assumes that, if the ConocoPhillips project didn’t go forward, no other oil producers would pick up the slack.'
'Under estimates from the Biden administration, even if Willow doesn’t get built, the United States and the rest of the world will still burn a large amount of fossil fuels. Cleaner options, the estimates said, would only account for roughly half of the energy demand Willow would have met.'
'Willow going forward would create about 70 million metric tons of additional CO2 from the project in U.S. emissions — and another 60 million tons internationally — equivalent to just 0.03 percent of U.S. emissions in 2021, according to the estimates.'
'Supporters say new oil from Alaska will help ensure the U.S. has a reliable, domestic supply of energy. That is important for limiting the country’s and its allies’ reliance on oil suppliers often run under authoritarian regimes and weak environmental regulation. Willow is also estimated to produce billions of dollars of economic activity and tax revenue in Alaska, where state leaders and many Alaska Natives say they need a boost to a flagging economy.'
'But access to oil like that could also help prolong the country’s reliance on fossil fuels, with no guarantee the technology will be in place to stop their contribution to climate change. Because the Biden administration approved it, the project may also undermine the president’s credibility in pushing other countries to develop cleaner alternatives instead of oil and natural gas. And many locals are less enthused about the oil revenue and more concerned the project may harm local animal populations that are key to the community, degrade the region’s air quality, and lead to spills, leaks and blowouts that can come with major oil development.' (WAPO) Sorry that the link below could not be gifted.'
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/03/17/willow-project-alaska-oil-drilling-explained/
At least in Norway, the state owns the oil and gas industry and the profits go to build renewable energy projects across the country. They seem to be very serious about switching to EVs which means they export their oil to other European countries.
I visited Norway, Sweden and Denmark last year and felt like we live in a 2nd world country compared to Scandinavia.
It’s called “robbing Peter to pay Paul”, Fern. Let’s not forget that Biden negotiated with Manchin also. Climate enhancements must push ahead, despite these concessions.
Fern, of course government can help.
But. Are you driving a car?
WE can ALL make the changes needed. It is not easy but it may be possible.
Ripping on the gov is sort of the easy way. I don’t have to change and I can point at something else.
If someday ELSE just solves the problem all will be well.
Fern, definitely, we, humanity, are the problem.
I'll just tack this on here as a reminder to Fern and others who are seeing things through too narrow a lens. USA (and to a lesser extent other "western" countries) have a huge back debt to pay where global warming is concerned. Those with wealth heedlessly (and knowingly through denial) created the problem, externalizing the costs to non-industrialized nations, to the poor, and to future generations. We benefited from what we did, and now are expecting the rest of the world to pay our debts, and denying them the ability to achieve the kind of wealth we have. The same is true of mining: we imposed our material needs on the world, and now everyone is paying the price, while we argue that "they are not paying their share". 'Scuse me, I find this offensive.
This is even true of water. People holding "water rights" gotten by white men making an agreement that excluded indigenous people, are still excluding the indigenous people the water they need to survive on the land they still hold. To rub salt in that wound, now mining interests are seeking to take over water by buying up rights so they can use the water for mining (common practice) and making it unfit for use, poisoning the land as well- everyplace in the world that they think they might find the rare earths we desire.
We don't need EVs. Their main purpose is to make rich people richer while salving their consciences. d We need to learn how to live within our means. I get what Barbara said (I don't know if my post will be above or below hers), so I am referring to her reference to pickup trucks. I used to have a small pickup that got better mileage than most of the so-called "high mpg" cars of today. My car is retiring at the end of this month because it has entered the repair more than maintenance part of its life (It is 20 years old). I can't make car payments right now, so will be Carless in Vermont. This is not an easy state to be carless in. I am looking at the various transportation options and think that I've got a plan worked out. Eventually I will get a vehicle, and guess what? I'm going to look for a second hand pickup truck. I no longer do cross-country trips, and my family needs a pick up for certain things, so my truck will be a family pickup. My family provides a lot of essential transportation for me already, and there are options for other things, like getting to and from medical appts.
But my biggie is that I am going to get an electric trike (3 wheeled cycle). I get some exercise with assist on the hills, and have enough range to run most errands (big cargo area for groceries, or convert to seat for a passenger), go for rides on back roads to get out of town (a must for me), go birding, and even go a couple towns down to visit my daughter and her family. I can even get a small trailer for my dog. Just might have to wait until Spring, though, because this years' stock of ebikes and especially etrikes is low - huge deman. But I am so looking forward to this! Not a perfect solution, but way better than the short-sighted solutions that we've bought into in an effort to maintain the way we've been doing things.
Are folks aware of the climate protest on Sunday 9/17 in NYC in front of the UN where the first ever “Climate Ambition Summit” is convening. Here is a link to more info, and buses leaving from Metro Boston: https://350mass.betterfutureproject.org/march_to_end_fossil_fuels_nyc
Thank you.
I would like to see a stronger focus on the Climate Crisis as well. But I think we forget how little a president can really do. Yes, he/she could tweak around the edges with things like drilling permits. But Congress sets the pace with funding.
The Climate issue is just like the immigration nightmare. Until Congress decides to act responsibly, we are fumbling the ball all through the game.
And despite the fact that we agree that we should have a more aggressive approach, lets acknowledge that more has been done in Biden's first couple of years on climate than all other presidencies combined. Not nearly enough. But real.
Hi Bill. I believe that you won't mind that I speak for myself. Many, unlike you and I, scientists and experts in the field report that 'we,' including the US, while taking steps, are not doing nearly enough to address Climate Change. All of us can learn much more about where we are and what needs to be done about our Climate this month and in the months ahead.
'To accelerate action by governments, business, finance, local authorities and civil society, and hear from “first movers and doers,” the United Nations Secretary-General is convening a Climate Ambition Summit at United Nations Headquarters in New York on 20 September 2023.
https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/climate-ambition-summit#:~:text=To%20accelerate%20action%20by%20governments,York%20on%2020%20September%202023.
And for all of us, please note the March to End Fossil Fuels
https://www.endfossilfuels.us
'Join us at the march to end fossil fuels on September 17th in NYC · The United Nations is calling on world leaders to take real steps to lead us off fossil fuels ...
March · Get Involved · Travel · FAQs'
'U.N. climate report warns of 'rapidly narrowing window' to ...' (WAPO) See gifted link below.
https://wapo.st/44MeVlG
' Climate Change 2023: Synthesis Report is based on years of work by hundreds of scientists during the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) sixth assessment cycle which began in 2015.' See link below.
https://www.unep.org/resources/report/climate-change-2023-synthesis-report
Well, they did claw back some drilling permits in Alaska. I'm not sure what that's worth, but it indicates they are listening.
Listening after more than 45 years of knowing and accomplishing WHAT? 'It would impose a permanent ban on oil and gas development for 10.6 million acres of the reserve but would not block ConocoPhillips’ Willow project, which Biden approved there earlier this year and is poised to produce 576 million barrels of oil over the next three decades.'
Some of us don't live in NYC and don't have public transportation alternatives. We were weaned on petroleum products, which exist in every aspect of our lives.
There are two "problems" which cannot easliy be laid at Biden's feet:
The rest of the world valuing increased capitalist goals, and the fact that the largest consumer of petroleum worldwide happens to be the U.S. Military.
Perhaps you could address those formidable issues before attacking the best president in my long life.
I hear you. What I meant by "listening" is that there must have been enough blow back to cause a response.
There are several groups/projects that cap abandoned wells and mines to stop methane emissions.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/01/31/fact-sheet-biden-administration-tackles-super-polluting-methane-emissions/
You probably saw the story a few years ago about the billionaire in MT who has paid for capping the largest abandoned methane polluting wells in the state.
I wonder if there are laws to fine the companies that abandon these old wells or whether we all get stuck with the tab. That is, unless someone else pays for it. I assume that private individuals don't pay to cap wells and the oil companies aren't about to do it unless they are fined if they don't.
The oil/gas companies are pathetic stewards of our land and natural resources.
Mines are responsible for CO2 and methane emissions and they also put stress on the water supply.
I'm sure you are well aware of all of this, but at least something is being done about methane emissions.
As I faintly recall, methane emissions are worse for the atmospheric health than CO2 by a factor of 10. (?) Does that sound about right ? Or is it greater ? I've bit_ _ _ _ about that for decades now - just the times 10 factor is startling enough, especially when one considers that nearly every single well drilled, emits free clouds of methane.
I just found this study online - https://www.nwf.org/-/media/Documents/PDFs/Press-Releases/2021/03-17-21_Inactive-Oil-and-Gas-Wells-on-Federal-Lands-and-Minerals-Report
These two points are from the executive summary:
In 2018, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated 3.2 million inactive oil and gas wells in the US, 2.0 million of which are unplugged or improperly plugged. In recent years there has been an increase in both drilling and well operator bankruptcies, possibly adding more wells at risk of becoming orphaned than the BLM currently identifies.
• Using state-level well site locations and production data, we identified 8,050 inactive oil and gas wells either orphaned or at risk of being orphaned on federal lands in Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. The at-risk wells were found in 88 counties across the five states but concentrated within several counties, most notably Campbell County, Wyoming.
We rarely here about methane leaks or the poisonous chemicals that the oil and gas Industry pumps into the ground when they frack or transport oil. These chemicals are considered proprietary and we are not allowed to know what they are using.
Hundreds of oil and gas wells have rendered groundwater unusable especially in PA.
SPOT, ,,,ON ! , Clifford ! BLESSSINGS !
I disagree with your statement. President Biden and his administration have made an a gallant effort to address the seriousness of the climate crisis in this country. This has nothing to do with politics. The climate crisis is a threat to humanity and the planet. It's tragic that he doesn't have the support of the Republicans to help him. Our planet is burning up by the minute. There is nothing political about this.
Fern, good question.
I was at a lecture this week given by Dr Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of Braiding Sweetgrass. During the Q & A she was asked that same question. She is optimistic as long as the steps that are being taken continue. We are , ofcourse, not where we should be in the healing process of the earth, but she is seeing affirmation on all levels to seek the greater good.
As Churchill said, of what use is it to be anything else…
By the nature of our presence here every day, we have become far more illuminated as to the nature, scope, and labor intensive business of management of our beloved country. We see just how lazy and inefficient trump was as he simply drove his little ego-filled clown car around with his crew of lackeys in tow. Biden is working, while trump was jerking. Fanni Willis for Time Person Of The Year, I say !
Yes!!! She is as brave as she is thorough and articulate. What a job well done!
A pillar of the republic America is SUPPOSED to be.
Trump is a sociopathic playboy. He is wealthy enough to consider the world his toybox. Powell Memo billionaires bought the tattered soul of the Republican Party in exchange for the power of money. President Trump was a manifestation of that. Trumps is particularly useless, affecting a lazy cosplay of careers, from his "university" to casino entrepreneur. Robert Reich claims Trump would be richer had he dumped his inheritance in an index fund. I assume that does not include the "money pouring in from Russia,” Trump’s son, Donald Jr., said at a real estate conference in 2008, according to a trade publication, eTurboNews. "The Trump-Russia links beneath the surface are even more extensive,” Max Boot wrote in the Los Angeles Times. 'Trump has sought and received funding from Russian investors for his business ventures, especially after most American banks stopped lending to him following his multiple bankruptcies.' ” https://time.com/4433880/donald-trump-ties-to-russia/
Way too often and increasingly under Republicans we see sharply contrasting treatment of the wealthy and powerful in the deference and impunity they enjoy from "our" government, and it's got to stop if government of, by and for the people is not to perish from the earth.
Back in the 1970s, when I let go of fiction and started reading analyses of the human condition, one of the first insights I recorded in my notebook cynically defined democracy as "the unhampered looting by finance capitalists." It was a few years later that I realized that capitalism is amoral.
We need to read Tony Judt on Social Democracy. It’s a good guide. Timothy Snyder, who everyone knows by now, was his good friend.
cannot capitalism be well-regulated? It is a benefit, if not a privilege, to participate in the US economy and tax is the cost of that benefit, like any other cost of doing business. After all, capitalism requires a strong rule of law to flourish, a stable flow of materials, a stable monetary system, and of course an educated healthy workforce. The US government provides all the conditions and is a cost of doing business.
Under Eisenhower, following the many changes and regulations put in place by FDR, we DID have a well regulated Capitalistic system. But, those in that system who were constrained also had big money.
So, they bought up as many politicians as they could and now?
We have what we have.
But we let defacto bribery become a fact of life. They don't even hide it anymore.
The "Supremes" said we can't *look there. A kindergartener would have drawn a better decision than "Citizens United".
Capitalism is as amoral as Football. With proper rules, regulations, guardrails and enforcements it is a good game. If well played, it is one that grows our economy fairly. The amoral bought the game, stole the capital (and the capitol), and left the rest of us with the bill.
Capitalism resists regulation by its nature: to be capitalist is to work toward the accumulation of wealth, which requires exploitation of resources to power continuous growth. Which, given a finite planet with finite resources, is a recipe for irreparable environmental destruction.
Nobody stole the game. It's rigged.
Capitalism as defined by the "Chicago School" is proudly amoral/immoral. Private enterprise and a "square deal" works for me if we, the people get to make the rules for it's conduct. The notion that profit trumps all is insane.
"It was a few years later that I realized that capitalism is amoral."
Greg, heresy to the Milton Friedman crowd where Capitalism SHOULD be amoral.
"Greed is good". Amurca since Ronald Reagan. Well, at least until Biden. No, not Obama. He spent trillions bailing out banks.
"I am concerned that the size of some of these institutions becomes so large that ... if you do prosecute, if you do bring a criminal charge, it will have a negative impact on the national economy, perhaps even the world economy. " -Eric Holder
Alas part of the quick fix was to make them even bigger.
And most especially "crony capitalism" being the worst perpetrator.
Many years ago Michio Suzuki, founder of Suzuki Motors Corp., was a guest speaker at an international business conference. An American asked Mr. Suzuki what he considered to be the difference between the Japanese business model and the American business model? Mr. Suzuki replied, "In America you plan ahead for five years. In Japan, we plan ahead for five generations."
I have heard that the Indigenous Peoples had a system which gave thought to "7 Generations" when undertaking actions. Seems like looking to anticipate how actions today will have impact in future generations is the way to go.
I love that. So sad that we learned so little from the Native Americans that roamed the New World for thousands of years.
And likely still could.
Except for the fact that such duty and responsibilty would "mess with" the momentary bottom line. To hell with the kids. Let them fend for themselves. >Sarcasm, just in case.< That is, of course, if there is anything left to fend for.
Well sarcasm if we call Franklin's "We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately." sarcasm.
"O beautiful for patriot dream that sees beyond the years is what real patriotism" is about.
The sovereign duty to the people has failed, at least on half of the political theater. Right-wingers would save a fetus (a non-viable not-yet-human "baby") over the successful fate of actual living beings. There is rampant and dangerous psychopathy taking hold of our country.
There were and are so many different bands, but I heard long ago that when native people were seeking uncommon plants, they would leave the first ones they found be. It makes sense that they would.
We're so busy making money, it leaves no time for making sense...
Yes, some for survival, some for additional comforts and some in order to dominate; like Elon Musk. Somehow innovation and industry thrived in the US before massive deregulation, and it seemed it seemed that the public conversation was not so dominated by those with ginormous holdings. "Living wages" and "upward mobility" were more broadly accessible. Manufacturing was not moved off to, often despotic countries, to make billionaires rich.
But, and I'm not sure what to do about it, it's going to have to be a collaborative response, as self-government requires some level of engagement to BE self-government. I'm not sure it's enough to take in ads and for what now passes for debates, and having cast a vote for the one we think will "fix it" that the "of, by and for" criteria are satisfied. How much choice is picking from a menu prepared by others? Who crafts the agenda our fiduciaries theoretically execute? Especially when money has a proportional impact?
Perhaps our education need to train us from the get-go to be informed, just and competent citizen/managers of our own society, so we that we look head, and don't easily "become the fit subjects of the first cunning tyrant who rises."
Hmm..... I think we should invent and institutionalize a nationwide 'Civics' course study; required for HS graduation standards. * (again)
LOL!!! I mean it; JL Graham. I'm sitting here laughing out loud at your perfectly framed observation. Great start to Saturday morning! thank you!!
Yes..... imagine that.
And it's a welcome trend!
Thank you for taking a world perspective today, Heather. For the next thirty days I'm not watching the media's Trump clown show on any network and will depend on being informed through the substack newsletters that you, Robert Hubbell, Robert Reich, and Simon Rosenberg write. As you've shown this evening and many times before there are more important things to cover than the shenanigans of DT and co-defendants.
Trouble is that too many Americans _will_ watch the shit show circus and think they are “informed” by it…
Thanks HCR for reminding us all of those things so much more important than the fg's clown car.
And clown plane. And clown convoy to the Fulton County Jail.
Thank you for your pov Cathy!
And Heather once again finding and reporting on what’s most salient in the March of time. Our president and vice president are not only repairing the international relationships torn apart by the former ‘rump conspiratorials’ but
also thoughtfully looking ahead to challenges this planet is facing.
I definitely agree.
Boy, if THAT isn’t a band name!
'Cash-Strapped DeSantis Forced to Sell Beloved Go-Go Boots'
September 8, 2023
'TALLAHASSEE (The Borowitz Report)—Faced with mounting campaign bills and dwindling donations, Ron DeSantis revealed on Friday that he had been forced to sell his beloved white go-go boots.'
'The Florida governor appeared anguished by the loss of his go-go boots, which aides disclosed were by far the most cherished footwear he owned.' (Oh, I wish you could see these high-heeled, luxurious leather to the knees, white beauties!)
'DeSantis said that he had tried to make cuts elsewhere to preserve his ownership of the boots but that,' “in the end, the numbers didn’t add up.”
“In a perfect world, I could run for President and own white go-go boots,” he said. “Sadly, we do not live in that world.” (Satire, NEWYORKER)
I am so sorry to hear Ron lost his boots. I have some steel toe work boots, size 12, I can lend him. Let me know how I can send them
Great riposte, Charles! It brought a very early morning laugh -- between you and Andy -- good start to the day.
Here I was thinking of sending him my worn out size 10 muck boots, black.
I love when you post Andy. He is SO clever!
☺️
Fern ! ,, DID Those * BOOTS * ! get Manufactured, by the SAME Leather - works COMPANY, As Nancy Sanatra s *
walkin ' BOOTS , Came From ?? IF ! , they DID, ,,,,,, he SHOULDA' did a WALK ! Right Down ! , to the EVERGLADES !, Walked ON !,,,,, & Said " HI ! " , to his BELOVED GATORS !!
Mark ! DON'T SKIP WALK #2. the choreography --- just perfect for DeSantis or Trump or Cruz.
I'd most like to see Trump do it. Josh Hawley or Tommy Tuberville for these boots. Actually, Tuberville would be perfect, dressed in uniform!
Nancy Sinatra - These Boots Are Made For Walkin' (Official Music Video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GM1kzbAgo_E&pp=ygUtdGhlc2UgYm9vdHMgYXJlIG1hZGUgZm9yIHdhbGtpbiBuYW5jeSBzaW5hdHJh
Dionne Warwick - Walk On By
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9M744rDd40&pp=ygUZd2FsayBvbiBieSBkaW9ubmUgd2Fyd2ljaw%3D%3D
FERN !, Just Saw, Your REPLY ! ,,,,, Absolutely SPOT ON ! Everybodys MUGS ! , in the reMUGlican CLOWN SHOW ! Need !, To get AQUAINTED! , *With the CAJUN KINGS * AWAITING, ALL of Them !, AT the Buyou ( SPL?) WATERLINE ! ( YUM YUM !, EAT EM UP !)
P S , FERN ! , THANX ! , for the LINKS ! to some of The SONGS !, of MY PAST ! MUSIC, * is My BALM !* The TUBE, Is Hardly in use, before Me, BUT ! My EARS ! GLEAN , The POWER, ,,, of Harmonious Notes ! ( I NEEDED !, All I could GET , Serving in VIET -NAM ...........)
For years my wife has read me Borowitz. I'm so gullible it usually took me 2 or 3 paragraphs to figure out it was Borowitz.
If you haven't read his book - "Profiles in Ignorance: How America's Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber" it is worth a read. Unless you scare easily by how dumb our politicians are.
Thank for the great recommendation of Borowitz's last book, Gary. I don't scare easily but, at this time, I'm furious at most politicians, with a modicum of control!
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Thank you Heather.
While President Biden's important work to rebuild the reputation of the United States with our economic partners, allies and potential allies, the work of the Biden/Harris Administration is overshadowed by the indictments and corruption of the former Administration.
If the Trump/MAGA cult is successful in 2024, there will be no worry about projecting an American form of economic and political influence in the world. The American experiment will be over.
I don't "like". I endorse.
Agreed, times two.
uckerburg is/was short sighted in developing emojis. There needs to be a wider choice.
"Russia’s crashed."
'Nuff said.
Ah, you beat me to it!
Is there such a thing as “useless beauty”? Just wondering…
YESSS ! , MlMinET ! ,,,,,, UNDER Two, Thick, DOUBLED, Brown Paper BAGS !! . ( The second Set,, ,,,,, is IN CASE !, The FIRST Set Tears !) ( YOU Know WHOS, * MUG !* , NEEDS ! , to Be COVERED ! , ,,,,FOREVERMORE !!
Ha ha ha! No, beauty is it’s own justification. It’s the useful part that needs to be modified. Many things that are considered useful are very ugly.
Truth is (real) beauty, beauty truth?
PRESIDENT XI NOT SO ZIPPY
What’s going on with Xi? He has relentlessly constructed a power pyramid in China in which he has almost as much personal power as Mao, who misused it in the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution [50-60+/-million dead Chinese].
Xi had wanted to flaunt Chinese superiority abroad. The BRICS conference was one such occasion. Xi attended, but he had a flunky give his speech. Was he physically indisposed?
The G 20 conference was another major Xi event. In the image joisting between Xi and India’s Modi, Xi’s appearance at G 20 would have challenged Modi’s day in the sun. Xi didn’t attend.
Things are going badly for China internally. The economy has displayed some dangerous fissures, the capital intensive housing sector is in danger of major bankruptcy, and urban youth unemployment is well over 20%.
Might Xi be caught up in the shortcomings of his personal power leadership? Might there be ‘limited’ internal debates about how to revitalize China’s previous robust economic growth?
My fear is that, were China to stumble internally, some foreign adventure might capitalize on nationalist fervor. Taiwan? That foreign devil the United States?
Xi was dangerous when things in China were going well. He can be more dangerous, if things start to go badly under his imperial leadership.
The Middle Kingdom has had its ups and downs over millennia, hasn’t it, Keith?
When we were in China in 2017, we noticed a number of things: the people were friendly and welcoming; there seemed to be a great deal of personal freedom and prosperity everywhere we visited... particularly, even in the countryside around the famous karsts of Guilin and the Li River. Beijing was a metropolis several times the size of New York City and it was thriving. Major roads were seemingly everywhere. Air travel was a snap. China reminded me in many, many ways of the United States. Taiwan is a beautiful and interesting place to visit...many antiquities and very modern. So, why all the distrust and saber rattling? It’s a good and very important question.
My thought is that the Chinese want more of what western countries have achieved for their citizens but they want to do it their way which ultimately, is incompatible with democratic systems of government that can sustain the gains they’ve made for the Chinese people since Deng’s era. The Emperor decides things and the people must follow...it’s an archaic system that doesn’t work anymore for first world countries. Most people ultimately, forcefully reject it.
The fledgling moves towards real democratic government are anathema to the mandarins in charge... that’s really a sad mistake. Confronting the United States also means confronting NATO which Putin gambled on and has already lost. Xi spent quality time in our heartland. If I can see the parallels between our two hard working and talented peoples he can, too. He’ll never win his gamble if he confronts the first world countries of the West. Everything China has managed to accomplish for its people will be thrown into decades long chaos. They risk outsmarting themselves... time to wise up.
Keith,
Thanks for the warning about underpinning an entire nation under the judgement of one person.
Heck, I don't even let my book club be governed by one personality.
One person is always the lowest common denominator.
The huge population of largely sel-sufficient peasant farmer communities was the stable base of Chinese wealth for Millenia. Mao disrupted that with the Great Leap Forward, which attempted to communize the naturally conservative peasant population with modern agricultural practices, and many millions of people starved to death as a result. The administrative class of government officials was destroyed and replaced by Communist party operatives. “Progress was made, infrastructure was built, the economy boomed, millions more peasants were removed from their land and now live in government high rise apartments, dependent on some sort of government dole as the housing bubble and the consumer economy in China that it fed, is starting to collapse. It is hard to forecast what will happen next in China. What will the leaders do? Where will all those people go? What will they do? I met someone who had spent her teen years breaking rocks for roads, after her University parents were seized and disappeared. She made her was to the US as rapidly as she could and was a graduate student in a biochemistry department when I knew her. When asked why she had come to the US, she shrugged and said, I am an intellectual. What future is there for me in China?” I wish I had stayed in touch with her. In Russia, non-politicians turned to alcohol. I wonder about the Chinese youth.
Notes Through Eisenhower Fellowships, I have met many dozen Chinese since our Harriman (President H. W. Bush, who had been our first representative in China) arranged the first all-Chinese program in 1994. I spent considerable time with a female army colonel, whose parents had been sent to the provinces during the ‘cultural revolution.’
There was a significant difference between the first Chinese Fellows, who were more involved with the communist party hierarchy and the later Fellows, who were more relaxed in having dialogues.
My current concern (I stepped down at EF trustee in 2017) is that some of the smartest Chinese serving in finance and elsewhere in government are being stifled by Xi’s imperial political control. This clearly has been evidence in economics. I wouldn’t want to report accurately to the hierarchy about what really is happening with the Chinese economy.
I number of young Chinese have studied in the US or UK and tried to stay there. Some of their parents have been targeted by Xi’s political cops. I wonder how many Chinese, once they have experienced the West, relish going back into the dangerous, controlledChinese environment.
I encountered a similar situation with a Russian Fellow in 2013. Tuff personal situations.
Most of my husband’s Chinese PhD students do try to stay here, and most are able to.
KR Smart students!
The next election we have here in the USA will determine our future. Hard left or hard right. My mother used to say "play attention" when we engaged in board or card games, very good advice. Political decisions are not a game, they determine the health, strength and direction of our democracy, our hard won and defended democracy. Let's keep the beacon of freedom lit, so many have paid the price for our freedom.
The contrast between the populists running for cover from their own acts of blatant criminality and the responsible leaders intent on moving our democracy forward in concert with other democratic nations that share our values and aspire to peace and freedom for all people, is a crystal clear one. The majority of American people who vote, perceive the difference as clearly as day from night; they will act accordingly.
We are a country based on the rule of law. The Justice Department and the various judges are doing their jobs faithfully. They’re not perfect....we’re not perfect. We strive to pay attention to, and learn from our mistakes...most of the time. We have made some terrible mistakes over the last two centuries; what country hasn’t? We’ll make new ones in the future. We’ve also accomplished incredible things and many more are anticipated in our near and long term future. We face incredibly tough challenges ahead both domestically and internationally that will require us to work harder, to work together. Electing smart, experienced people with strong democratic values and a demonstrated ability to get things done for the benefit of the people is critically important; we can readily see what happens when we fail to make the right choices. We can do this and we will. As Biden likes to say: “ this is the United States of America, we can accomplish anything when we set our minds to it”.
I am hoping taking women's abortion rights away will drive people to the polls to vote for Biden.
I am extremely nervous about the wild card - No Labels though. That group may take enough votes to tank Biden's reelection, and this terrifies me.
Hang in there, Marj …there’s always a wild card in play. This is the United States; ultimately, it’s better that way. Fence sitters can easily see what a mess unhinged populists create and will remember that long enough for Biden to get re-elected. To keep the ball rolling several new Dems need to emerge from the Senate to keep things moving forward in 2028. The Republicans are so discombobulated that it will take at least 3 more presidential election cycles for the party to settle itself. By then, we’ll be well on our way to addressing the worst of climate change and to be moving forward on multiple fronts to help the American people and the world.
Trouble is, most of us keep excitedly mouthing the words "FREEDOM", "LIBERTY" but haven't a clue what freedom means.
What's simple isn't so easy to understand, let alone to be guided by in our lives.
We're seeing too much of the Muskian monopoly version, which allows no space, no oxygen, no freedom, no life for other beings.
"Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose"
" A Man, Hears, what He Wants, to Hear, ,,, AND DISREGARDS ! , The REST !! " . ( THE BOXER ----Simon & Garfunkel ) ! Thanks ! , Ally !
Please tell me, in your opinion, the definitions of both words freedom and liberty. Thank you.
Don’t expect a quick answer to your question, Marj. The issue is far too alive for that, too dynamic—and what’s alive does not lend itself readily to being defined, any more than the most beautiful butterflies seek the net, the killing jar, the pinning to a board.
Maybe this is an appropriate way to launch into the topic of liberty.
As for the two words, the central meaning’s the same, the one, liberty, comes down to us from old French and ultimately Latin (liber, free) while freedom is a Germanic word.
The plural words “liberties” and “freedoms” have varying connotations, connected with different cultures.
*
Yes, you asked me for definitions, and I don’t want to give you any; for freedom’s like air, like the wind…
There’s the Christian image for Spirit…
“The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.” [John 3:8]
*
Some Japanese verses… The first one may not get through to many minds except those of musicians…
*
What is the Heart?
It can feel the sound of wind through a pine on a calligraphy.
It cannot be seen, only felt.
*
The second, by the Meiji Emperor:
*
The wind blowing in the sky is felt
only when it touches something.
*
And one even more subtle, by nun Ryo Nan:
*
Sixty-six times, my eyes have looked upon
The changing scenes of autumn,
I have talked enough of moonlight
Ask me no more,
But hearken to the voice of the pines and the cedars
when the wind falls silent.
*
My apologies for dodging your question.
But isn’t freedom going to be something very personal?
What you or I seek—and find—at any given moment, what we hope will find a home in us, and we in it.
So interesting. I want to learn more about this. Thank you.
Thank you, Marj, for your patience with me when I didn't do what you asked me.
I don't think there is much to add. It's just that precise definitions have their uses, but when we come to words for, say, freedom, love, God, life, Nature (including "human nature"), good, evil, faith... and many other immensities, don't we need to give thought to what they mean -- and do not mean -- to us? And then, to others...
What I find right about your adversity to presenting exact definitions, Peter, is that we are too quick to name, label, define and get caught in our own presumptive reflexes. These two terms require thought, meaningful conversations, and dynamics to provide not just a list of attributes that suggest what they are to you or Fern or JD or me, but can have meaning for the pluralistic of the US in we. I think we need ambiguity, discernment, discomfort, and thought to understand, come to grasp the heart of them, as well as the evidence upon which to conclude truth of their existence. The outcome, I would hope for is for important pieces of what we hold in common with each other gain a foothold in our national consciouness; concepts, principles, divergences acceptable, bonds arrived at, and the portent that the US in we can evolve without dissolution, and emerge in new commonalities. We are answer driven, I think too much sometimes, bound too much to what we once knew or had consensus upon, while the world around us changed while being locked in evidence less commonly relevant but cherished for the time when it may have united us, rather than divided. The portent of this great conversation many give real meaning to the assertion that are "truths we hold in common"
Of course, clear definitions have their uses, even when it comes to archetypes and ideas as vast as love, freedom, God, intelligence or wisdom; but aren’t we likely here to be coming up against borders, the limits beyond which love or freedom cease to be and become other?
Here, however, I’m going to recommend a wonderful little book that exploits Euclidean definitions to caricature aspects of the human psyche: Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, written by Edwin A. Abbott, an English schoolmaster and published in 1884.
Try, for example, reading the chapter in which the author endeavors in vain to explain to the King of the Straight Line the nature of Flatland.
“Behold me," says the Monarch, "I am a Line, the longest in Lineland, over six inches of Space—” “Of Length,” I ventured to suggest. “Fool,” said he, “Space is Length. Interrupt me again, and I have done.”
A perfect dialogue of the deaf. A failed dialogue that could prove invaluable when trying to understand the impossibility of meaningful communication with a large body of one’s compatriots... or with certain ultra-exceptional individuals…
“It seemed that this poor ignorant Monarch - as he called himself - was persuaded that the Straight Line which he called his Kingdom, and in which he passed his existence, constituted the whole of the world, and indeed the whole of Space. Not being able either to move or to see, save in his Straight Line, he had no conception of anything out of it.”
Defining "Freedom" demands context: Freedom to... Freedom from...?
I wrote a composition in high school 50 years ago explaining the difference between freedom and liberty. The dictionary was no help. Figure it out for yourself because "sometimes words have two meanings."
The left has no chance. The two major-party candidates, soft right and screaming monster looney right, are the only plausible winners.
The old party lines have crumbled. The actual political line these days is perception of reality. On the one side, rational thinkers, supporting democracy with a long view of history, and on the other, a variety of religiously bound, personality disordered, and cognitively impaired individuals who seek personal gain at the expense of others, by any means necessary.
Sure, go with that.
Using the words "the left" is a tell.
Are you one of those butt hurt Bernie boys?
As a person who voted for Hilary Clinton and Joe Biden (and Lyndon Johnson), who writes voter postcards most days, I think Clifford has a valid point. US politics have moved so far to the right that our current apparent center maps to right-of-center parties in Europe today or in this country twenty years ago. I hope to live long enough to see the current Republican Party collapse into a *tiny* set of fringe fanatics, after which the current Dems split into two major parties, one center-right with current leadership ideas and one center-left led by people like AOC and Sen. Ed Markey.
When I read the 1956 Republican Party Platform, I realized I was an Eisenhower Republican. I maintain that Barak Obama was the best Republican president since Eisenhower.
Exactly. Personally, I'm an Ed Markey Democrat. It's been a pleasure voting for him all these years. Unlike many less progressive Democrats, for whom I work and vote only because they are better than the alternative.
I love the quote from Stephenson in 1956 when a lady told him that he would win because all of the thinking people are voting for you. Stephenson replied, "Madam, that's not enough. I need a majority."
I've been thinking about your comment about Eisenhower and you're definitely on to something. Unfortunately there is no Republican Party unless you want to count the Democrats because they have shifted so far right since 1984. I am very comfortable claiming to be a Democrat when I was a Republican for more years than I care to admit.
No "hard left" anywhere. We have a right of center vs the screaming meemies of the reactionary right (aka the KlownKarKawkus).
Yes , I definitely agree, we should be focusing about our democracy and about motivating people to vote in 24. Forget about the negativity you hear about polls and President Bidens age and his son Hunter Biden. We all know Republicans are using this for their political gain.
So refreshing to hear about the incredible, detailed work being done by the Biden administration. There could not be q clearest contrast — the Trump period of continuos chaos on a platform of lies, all of which hurt the country and the world versus the ongoing work being done by Biden and his experienced people.
It would be great if main steam media reported on this contrast regularly. We need to keep sharing this truth via social media.
Big Friday news day Professor. ⭐ Your letter helps keep it all graspable. Many thanks.
Judge Jones’ opinion in the Meadows removal notice doesn’t present much of a target for reversal on appeal for two strong reasons:
1. the criminal act charged is that Meadows associated himself with an enterprise that attempted illegally to alter the vote tabulation
2. the overt acts alleged are not themselves criminal charges and, even if they were they all, save one, campaign related and the executive has no role, as such, in the conduct of state elections, which is reserved to the states unless specifically preempted by Congress. Essentially, it was none of the business of a president to become involved in the count and certification by the state. If it is not in the president’s scope of duties it necessarily not in his Chief of Staff’s.
Ever since Marburg v. Madison jurisdiction, which is the issue here, is something that the courts take extremely seriously as a core principle that safeguards the integrity of the judicial process and helps to maintain independence from the political branches. Assuming jurisdiction in a doubtful case is never the default assumption, and there is a highly robust Constitutional doctrine to navigate. If a SCOTUS majority had a special soft spot in its heart for Trump and his co-defendants that inclined toward motivated reasoning it has had many opportunities to show it before now in all the 2020 cases Trump brought to it.
Marbury, not Marburg.
Blush
Yet another example of why I am not an editor. I read "Marbury". I saw your comment, and thought it had been edited. It hasn't.
Biden and Harris are certainly the right team at the right time to bolster America's standing in the world. We no longer have to cringe in shame when the rude, clumsy, churl made his presence known. I was so happy about Mark Meadows being told no. I have high hopes for justice being served.
It would have been very interesting to see Lindsay Graham bloviate ad nauseam had he been indicted. If the grand jury recommended 3 US Senators be indicted then the evidence must exist.
If all 19 are found guilty of 1 or more crimes in GA then maybe Fani will go for it. I'm not sure when the statute of limitation runs, but I'm guessing Lindsay knows.
Keep up the great work Fani, you're my hero!
Lindsey escaped indictment—so far—but he did bloviate.
I’m afraid everything good Biden has done will be taken over by the exploding activity in all the tfg cases. But there’s still hope for Aileen Cannon to obstinately question everything and delay.
On another note, I said I’d mention this when it happened: One of the “Tennessee Three,” Gloria Johnson, has challenged Marsha Blackburn, a tfg big-time sycophant for US Senate. Marsha predictably called her a “radical-left, woke socialist.” We have no intelligent life in the TN House or delegation. Www.votegloriajohnson.com
Love Gloria Johnson! She stands at 6’ 3” and is ready to punch Marsha out the door. Her campaign ad was by far, one of the very best! https://www.meidastouch.com/.amp/:section/gloria-johnson-campaign-ad
She is determined. She says even Marsha’s party isn’t crazy about her. Gloria was a special ed teacher at Central HS when Ryan McDonald was shot by another student in, I think, 2007. She has chops. Feel free to donate to her campaign and watch her progress.
I have...twice, and I will!
Thanks for sharing the link to that ad. I agree! It IS great. I will enjoy helping Gloria take down Marsha.
So Biden and Harris are doing actual politics, instead of screaming and stomping around. Quite refreshing, the Rethuglicans could learn something from them, but the orange clown and his cultists are too dumb and narcissistic for that. Big money likes to keep it that way. I do wonder, though… Trump is most certainly in Putin’s back pocket, but I wonder if Musk is, too. Or is he simply a dictator fan boy?
Good questions Dutch but, neurologically, I think Musk has the same Prognosis as Rudy G.
Ha! The killer last line! I smile as I go off to cook a meal.
Putin crashed.
LOL!!! "Russia's crashed." That was brilliant! Thanks for the smackdown of Russia.