Every year since 2011, the TSAP has been giving our annual State of the Planet Address in mid-to-late January. Yes, we know it is a bit of a downer to say the least. So sit down, take off your rose-colored glasses, and read on:
Our planet is in grave danger, and has been for quite some time now. We face several serious long term problems: climate change, deforestation, desertification, loss of biodiversity, overharvesting, energy crises, and of course pollution of many kinds. Polar ice caps are melting. Rainforests have been shrinking by 50 acres per minute. Numerous species are going extinct every year. Soil is eroding rapidly. Food shortages have occurred in several countries in recent years. Weather has been getting crazier each year thanks to climate change. We have had numerous wildfires, floods followed by long periods of drought, and a "storm of the century" at least once a year for the past few years. And it is only getting worse every year. In fact, 2016 has been the hottest year on record, and 2017 was the hottest year without an El Nino. Look no further than the three record-breaking storms in the past dozen years: Katrina (2005, highest storm surge), Sandy (2012, largest diameter), and now Harvey (2017, a 1000-year flood, and overall worst hurricane on record), followed by Irma and Maria which devastated Puerto Rico, for a taste of the not-too-distant future.
In fact, on the other side of the world, the worst monsoon season in recent memory has recently displaced 41 million people due to record flooding. Thus for many, the future is sadly already here to one degree or another.
None of this is an accident of course. These problems are man-made, and their solutions must also begin and end with humans. We cannot afford to sit idly by any longer, lest we face hell and high water in the not-too-distant future. Our unsustainable scorched-earth policy towards the planet has to end. Yesterday.
While we do not invoke the precautionary principle for all issues, we unequivocally do for the issue of climate change and any other environmental issues of comparable magnitude. In fact, for something as dire as climate change, as of 2015 we now support a strong "no regrets" approach. With no apologies to hardcore libertarians or paleoconservatives, in fact. We are not fazed one bit by the naysayers' pseudoscience as it does not really "debunk" the scientific consensus on anthropogenic global warming. The only serious debate is about how fast it will happen, and when the tipping point (or points) will occur. It is not a matter of if, but when. And the less precarious position is to assume it is a real and urgent problem. We need to reduce CO2 emissions to the point where the CO2 concentration is at or below 350 ppm, ASAP. And it is currently at an unsustainably high level of 400+ ppm, and growing.
Solving the problem of climate change will also help to solve the other ecological crises we are facing, for they all ultimately have the same root causes, not least of which is our insatiable addiction to dirty energy. However, there is a right way to solve it, and several wrong ways. Technology is important, but it won't be decisive on its own (economics geeks may recall Jevons Paradox). The real problem is the paradigm that our society has been following, and that system is based on wetiko, the parasite of the mind and cancer of the soul. It often seems that the only difference between capitalism and cannibalism is the spelling.
The TSAP endorses the ideas embodied in Steve Stoft's new book Carbonomics, most notably a tax-and-dividend system that would tax carbon (i.e. fossil fuels) at the source, and give all Americans an equal share of the revenue generated from this tax. (Note that our proposal to tax natural resources and pay out an Alaska-like citizen's dividend already includes this.) Yes, prices for various things would undoubtedly rise due to this tax, all else being equal, but the dividend will allow Americans to pay for this increase. The average American would in fact break even, but those who (directly or indirectly) use less energy than average will effectively pay less tax, while the energy hogs will effectively be taxed more, as they should be. Thus it is certainly not a regressive tax, and may even be mildly progressive. This is both the simplest and most equitable way to reduce carbon emissions as well as other forms of pollution, not to mention waste of dwindling non-renewable resources. The real challenge is getting the feds to accept something that won't directly benefit them (in the short term). Carbonomics also includes other good ideas, such as improving how fuel economy standards are done, and crafting a better verison of the Kyoto treaty.
In addition to the ideas in Carbonomics, we also support several other measures to help us end our addiction to fossil fuels once and for all. Our Great American Phase-Out plan would phase out all fossil fuels by 2030 at the latest, via alternative energy, efficiency, and conservation. One good idea to further the development of alternative energy would be the use of feed-in tariffs for renewable power sources.
We support ending net deforestation completely, and putting carbon back in the ground through carbon sequestration. One method is known as biochar, a type of charcoal made from plants that remove carbon dioxide from the air, that is subsequently buried. This is also an ancient method of soil fertilization and conservation, originally called terra preta. It also helps preserve biodiversity. Another crucial method would be regenerative organic farming, which also turns the soil into an effective carbon sink as well.
We've said this before, and we'll say it again. Our ultimate goal is 100% renewable energy by 2030, but we need to hedge our bets. We can phase out fossil fuels, or we can phase out nuclear power, but we can't do both at the same time--and fossil fuels need to be phased out first, and quickly. Nuclear is doing a pretty good job of phasing itself out as it is. So let's not get rid of it prematurely.
But the biggest elephant in the room (make that the elephant in the Volkswagen) is overpopulation. It does not make for pleasant dinner conversation, but it must be addressed or else all other causes become lost causes in the long run. We absolutely need to have fewer kids, or nature will reduce our population for us, and the latter will NOT be pleasant to say the least. The TSAP believes in voluntarily reducing the total fertility rate (TFR) to 1.5-1.9 children per woman to do so, but let us be clear that we do NOT support draconian and/or coercive measures of population control (like China has used). We believe that more liberty is the answer, not less. In fact, the two most effective means of reducing the birthrate are poverty reduction and female empowerment. Fortunately, America's TFR has recently dropped to below 1.9, with no indication of rising back above replacement rate in the near term. But clearly we cannot keep growing and growing, that's for sure (in fact, we need to shrink). And our insatiable addiction to economic growth (despite being decoupled from well-being) is also every bit as harmful as overpopulation as well, if not more so. Growth for the sake of growth, the ideology of the cancer cell, is clearly one of the most asinine obsessions our nation (and world) has ever had. We clearly need to transition to a steady-state economy, most likely following a period of what Naomi Klein calls "selective degrowth" as well. And to do that, we need a radical paradigm shift to happen yesterday. Put another way, we need to leave room for Nature, lest Nature not leave room for us. We have been warned, decades ago in fact. Unfortunately, such warnings have largely fallen of deaf ears until very recently.
Last but not least, the TSAP now believes that as long as men remain in charge, we are all merely rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. Let's face it, it ain't gonna be us fellas who will save the world, as the past 7000 years or so have shown. We paved paradise and put up a parking lot, we created a desert and called it peace. We devoured and suffocated our own empire, and our proverbial 15 minutes of fame is almost up. Only when women finally take over and reclaim their rightful position as the new leaders of the free world--and they will--will there be any real permanent solution.
Bottom line: we need to take the environment much more seriously than we do now. We ignore it at our own peril. And while the current administration in DC clearly doesn't care, We the People must act nonetheless. With no apologies to the deniosaurs or Big Oil or Big Gas, or Dirty Coal.
Oh, by the way, wanna hear a joke? Peak Oil. Not saying it won't happen, of course--it will eventually peak and decline at some point--but climate change kinda supersedes it. While conventional oil most likely has already peaked, there is more than enough total oil (including unconventional) to deep-fry the Earth--and most of which needs to stay in the ground if we wish to avoid catastrophic climate change. Fossil fuels are, after all, what Buckminster Fuller referred to as our planet's "energy savings account", which we need to wean ourselves off of and save just in case of a planetary emergency--and he first said this in 1941!
So quibble all you want, but the truth must be faced head-on. We have a planet to save. So let's roll!
Showing posts with label trump. Show all posts
Showing posts with label trump. Show all posts
Monday, January 29, 2018
Saturday, January 20, 2018
Dear Congress (and Trump): YOU'RE FIRED!
It's official. The much-feared government shutdown has now begun as of midnight on January 20, 2018--exactly one year after Trump was inaugurated. All because Congress couldn't get their act together and pass even a very brief stopgap funding bill in time, let alone come to a longer-term budget deal.
Like the previous shutdown in 2013, the blame lies primarily with Republicans. This time around, it was their refusal to negotiate with Democrats about several pressing issues, most notably DACA, in the past several weeks that led to the current impasse. Granted with a Republican president this time, the roles of offense and defense have been reversed, but Trump has clearly sent mixed signals and has essentially been engaging in chaos manufacture all this time. And while the Democrats are not entirely blameless (after all, they did overwhelmingly block the stopgap funding measure), the lion's share of the blame clearly goes to the party that controls not only both houses of Congress, but in fact controls all three branches of government--REPUBLICANS.
That said, the TSAP hereby gives virtually all 535 members of this most dysfunctional Congress in history, especially (but not limited to) Republicans, a vote of "no confidence", and we will take their government shutdown to imply the resignation of such members. We also do the same for Trump as well, obviously. We thus encourage every reader of this blog to sign the following petitions:
Dear Congress: We Accept Your Resignation
No Pay for Congress During Shutdown
No Budget, No Pay
Minimum Wage for Congress
Impeach Donald Trump Now
Let them know that We the People have had ENOUGH of the gridlock, grandstanding, backstabbing, corruption, venality, follies, lies, recklessness, childishness, and otherwise outrageous behavior of Congress, along with the mendacity, recklessness, instability, incompetence, hate, chaos manufacture, grift, graft, and scandals of the orange menace in the White House. If we weren't clear, we'll say it again:
YOU'RE FIRED!!!
So what's the opposite of "progress" again? You guessed it.
Like the previous shutdown in 2013, the blame lies primarily with Republicans. This time around, it was their refusal to negotiate with Democrats about several pressing issues, most notably DACA, in the past several weeks that led to the current impasse. Granted with a Republican president this time, the roles of offense and defense have been reversed, but Trump has clearly sent mixed signals and has essentially been engaging in chaos manufacture all this time. And while the Democrats are not entirely blameless (after all, they did overwhelmingly block the stopgap funding measure), the lion's share of the blame clearly goes to the party that controls not only both houses of Congress, but in fact controls all three branches of government--REPUBLICANS.
That said, the TSAP hereby gives virtually all 535 members of this most dysfunctional Congress in history, especially (but not limited to) Republicans, a vote of "no confidence", and we will take their government shutdown to imply the resignation of such members. We also do the same for Trump as well, obviously. We thus encourage every reader of this blog to sign the following petitions:
Dear Congress: We Accept Your Resignation
No Pay for Congress During Shutdown
No Budget, No Pay
Minimum Wage for Congress
Impeach Donald Trump Now
Let them know that We the People have had ENOUGH of the gridlock, grandstanding, backstabbing, corruption, venality, follies, lies, recklessness, childishness, and otherwise outrageous behavior of Congress, along with the mendacity, recklessness, instability, incompetence, hate, chaos manufacture, grift, graft, and scandals of the orange menace in the White House. If we weren't clear, we'll say it again:
YOU'RE FIRED!!!
So what's the opposite of "progress" again? You guessed it.
Saturday, December 23, 2017
America's Going Out of Business Sale Has Begun
Well, it's official now. The Republican Tax Scam has now been signed into law on December 22, 2017. The TL;DR version: It is basically reverse Robin Hood economics--rob from the poor, give to the rich, and torpedo what's left of the middle class. In other words, it's Reaganomics on steroids.
The lion's share of the tax cuts will go to the rich and mega-corporations, while the bottom 99% will get little or nothing, or even a tax hike depending on the exact vicissitudes of where one falls in the tax code. Small businesses, or at least many of them, will likely get a swift kick in the margins, while large corporations make out like bandits. And the price tag? Over $1 TRILLION added to the national debt over the next ten years. So much for the GOP being the party of fiscal responsibility, right? Which will trigger automatic spending cuts to Medicare among other programs, unless Congress chooses to waive such cuts. And it will also provide the perfect cover for Paul Ryan and his buddies pushing further cuts to the programs that they have had in their sights since forever, most notably Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, among several others as well.
If that wasn't bad enough, the Tax Scam also contains a bit of chaos manufacture in regards to Obamacare. It effectively repeals the individual mandate for Obamacare, without replacing it with anything or doing anything whatsoever to stabilize the markets. Granted, the TSAP has long advocated (until we get single-payer healthcare) replacing the mandate with more positive incentives (such as increased subsidies), more stringent rules for special enrollment, and perhaps a surcharge as well for those try to game the system by dropping coverage and getting back in later. Even the greedy insurance industry would be fine with such a replacement mechanism to prevent adverse selection. But this bill contains no such mechanism, so unless something else is done soon, the result will indeed be chaos.
Oh, and to top it off, the bill also opens up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for "Drill, baby, drill!" Because we really, really need to rape and plunder one of the very few remaining pristine areas of the Earth, because GROOOOWWWWTH! Or something.
So overall, this is a very bad deal, and is essentially America's going out of business sale. But hey, at least we will all get cheaper booze from this, right?
The lion's share of the tax cuts will go to the rich and mega-corporations, while the bottom 99% will get little or nothing, or even a tax hike depending on the exact vicissitudes of where one falls in the tax code. Small businesses, or at least many of them, will likely get a swift kick in the margins, while large corporations make out like bandits. And the price tag? Over $1 TRILLION added to the national debt over the next ten years. So much for the GOP being the party of fiscal responsibility, right? Which will trigger automatic spending cuts to Medicare among other programs, unless Congress chooses to waive such cuts. And it will also provide the perfect cover for Paul Ryan and his buddies pushing further cuts to the programs that they have had in their sights since forever, most notably Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, among several others as well.
If that wasn't bad enough, the Tax Scam also contains a bit of chaos manufacture in regards to Obamacare. It effectively repeals the individual mandate for Obamacare, without replacing it with anything or doing anything whatsoever to stabilize the markets. Granted, the TSAP has long advocated (until we get single-payer healthcare) replacing the mandate with more positive incentives (such as increased subsidies), more stringent rules for special enrollment, and perhaps a surcharge as well for those try to game the system by dropping coverage and getting back in later. Even the greedy insurance industry would be fine with such a replacement mechanism to prevent adverse selection. But this bill contains no such mechanism, so unless something else is done soon, the result will indeed be chaos.
Oh, and to top it off, the bill also opens up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for "Drill, baby, drill!" Because we really, really need to rape and plunder one of the very few remaining pristine areas of the Earth, because GROOOOWWWWTH! Or something.
So overall, this is a very bad deal, and is essentially America's going out of business sale. But hey, at least we will all get cheaper booze from this, right?
Wednesday, November 1, 2017
The Donald Is Going Down
First, the TSAP would like to give our deepest condolences to the victims of the horrible terrorist attack in downtown Manhattan (NYC) on October 31. Regardless of what was going through his head when he did it, the monster who did such a cowardly and despicable act needs to be brought to justice.
As for Trump, he basically did what he does best--exploit a tragedy for his own gain and/or to push his toxic and racist agenda. Yes, this attack was an act of radical Islamic terrorism (by a "lone wolf" inspired by what's left of ISIL aka the Daesh-bags), and the first known one on US soil since the Donald was inaugurated in January. But this was NOT the first terrorist attack that occurred on his watch. There were indeed several other attacks, some of them extremely deadly (Las Vegas shooting, hello!), committed largely (and predictably) by white American males. And many of these attacks were done by white supremacists to one degree or another. But Trump was predictably silent about these attacks for the most part, and sometimes even seemed to be praising (or at least tacitly condoning) the Alt-Reich terrorists. And he practically goes out of his way to NOT use the word "terrorism" to describe such heinous acts, as long as they are committed by white, non-Muslim Americans. Seriously.
Fortunately for us all, if there is any sort of silver lining to be found in such a horrible tragedy, the Manhattan terrorist attack occurred after the ignominious indictments of his buddies Paul Manafort and Rick Gates, as well as George Papadopoulos' infamous guilty plea. That is, what would have likely been a major rallying point for Trump's base, and even many fence-sitters, essentially came two days too late for him. And at this point, there is really no salvaging his presidency, no matter how hard he tries in vain to "wag the dog" or sweep the ever-growing Russiagate scandal under the rug.
He has already had his Benghazi (twice), his Katrina (three times), and now his 9/11 (in the same city no less, albeit on a much smaller scale). And what will ultimately go down in history as his own personal Watergate on steroids will make even the original Tricky Dick himself look like a saint by comparison. And his first year isn't even done yet.
The jig is up, Donald. Please do us all a YUUUUGE favor and RESIGN. Yesterday.
As for Trump, he basically did what he does best--exploit a tragedy for his own gain and/or to push his toxic and racist agenda. Yes, this attack was an act of radical Islamic terrorism (by a "lone wolf" inspired by what's left of ISIL aka the Daesh-bags), and the first known one on US soil since the Donald was inaugurated in January. But this was NOT the first terrorist attack that occurred on his watch. There were indeed several other attacks, some of them extremely deadly (Las Vegas shooting, hello!), committed largely (and predictably) by white American males. And many of these attacks were done by white supremacists to one degree or another. But Trump was predictably silent about these attacks for the most part, and sometimes even seemed to be praising (or at least tacitly condoning) the Alt-Reich terrorists. And he practically goes out of his way to NOT use the word "terrorism" to describe such heinous acts, as long as they are committed by white, non-Muslim Americans. Seriously.
Fortunately for us all, if there is any sort of silver lining to be found in such a horrible tragedy, the Manhattan terrorist attack occurred after the ignominious indictments of his buddies Paul Manafort and Rick Gates, as well as George Papadopoulos' infamous guilty plea. That is, what would have likely been a major rallying point for Trump's base, and even many fence-sitters, essentially came two days too late for him. And at this point, there is really no salvaging his presidency, no matter how hard he tries in vain to "wag the dog" or sweep the ever-growing Russiagate scandal under the rug.
He has already had his Benghazi (twice), his Katrina (three times), and now his 9/11 (in the same city no less, albeit on a much smaller scale). And what will ultimately go down in history as his own personal Watergate on steroids will make even the original Tricky Dick himself look like a saint by comparison. And his first year isn't even done yet.
The jig is up, Donald. Please do us all a YUUUUGE favor and RESIGN. Yesterday.
Monday, October 30, 2017
The Beginning of the End for Trump
The Donald had a really, really bad day today, and just in time for Halloween too. Two of his associates, the ever-shady former campaign manager Paul Manafort and former aide Rick Gates, have now been indicted on charges of conspiracy against the United States, money laundering, unregistered foreign agent, and making false statements, and another former aide, George Papadopoulos, has pled guilty earlier this month to lying to FBI agents about contacts with Russian agents. Specifically, such contacts involved attempting to set up a meeting between said agents and the Trump campaign, as well as attempting to get "dirt" on Hillary. Thus, in other words, there is really no denying collusion between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin at this point, no matter how much Trump tries to "wag the dog" and sweep it under the rug. And to top it off, Trump's outrageous ban on transgender people in the military was struck down by the courts. All before 3pm today.
And Mueller's investigation of the ever-growing Russiagate scandal is just getting started. No wonder the entire White House recently lawyered up, because it's clear that there really IS a "there", there. Get your popcorn ready, because this is essentially the beginning of the end for Trump and his basket of deplorables in his administration.
So who will be the next domino to fall?
So who will be the next domino to fall?
Tuesday, August 15, 2017
We Must Condemn the Alt-Reich (Or, What Hath Trump Wrought?)
First, let's be brutally honest about what the so-called "alt-right" really is: they are a repackaged and rebranded collection of white supremacists, neo-Nazis, and KKK, with some neo-reactionaries, neo-Confederates, and fellow-travelers thrown in for good measure. Even the term "white nationalist" is a euphemism for what these racist, hate-mongering deplorables really are. Let's get that straight first.
Further emboldened, some neo-Nazis even vandalized the Boston Holocaust Memorial shortly after, the second time this summer after 22 straight years of no such incidents. The broken glass was clearly an echo of the infamous Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938, and there were swastikas and anti-Semitic graffiti everywhere. So much for a "post-racial society". It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that hate crimes have accelerated since the Trump campaign and especially since the election.
Second, let's be brutally honest about what really happened in Charlottesville, VA on August 12-13, 2017. A group of the aforementioned Alt-Reich white supremacist hatemongers descended on the town of Charlottesville to protest the taking down of a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. And that protest quickly got out of hand. What started as marching through town with citronella Tiki torches (end-of-summer sale at Walmart, what else) ended in violence and bloodshed when the increasingly angry and restless (and armed) crowd of modern-day brownshirts clashed with the counter-protestors who opposed them. One of the white supremacists, James Alex Fields, Jr., even used his accelerating car as a weapon and drove through a crowd of counter-protestors, killing Heather Heyer and injuring at least 19 others. And yes, that is premeditated murder--it was planned and he exhibited what is known as "universal malice" when he deliberately used his car as a deadly weapon against his targets. In fact, it is clearly an act of domestic terrorism. And the black man that was brutally beaten with poles by a group of white supremacists in a parking garage? He was the victim of a modern-day lynching.
Then Un-President Trump, ever careful not to offend his deplorable base that voted for him, blamed the violence on "both sides", drawing the ultimate false equivalency--a dog whistle that was not lost on the neo-Nazis. Then, two days after it happened and after much criticism, he then finally named the problem--racism, white supremacists, KKK, neo-Nazis--but then almost in the same breath implied that we should all "unite" (!) with them. Then, in his next speech, he even had the GALL to blame the violence on the "alt-left", whatever that is. Sounds like more "alt-facts" as usual, Donald. Sadly, this comes as no surprise.
Further emboldened, some neo-Nazis even vandalized the Boston Holocaust Memorial shortly after, the second time this summer after 22 straight years of no such incidents. The broken glass was clearly an echo of the infamous Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938, and there were swastikas and anti-Semitic graffiti everywhere. So much for a "post-racial society". It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that hate crimes have accelerated since the Trump campaign and especially since the election.
It should be painfully obvious now that Trump in fact created, or at least unleashed, this monster, or at least its latest incarnation which he keeps enabling. And he utterly failed his biggest moral test yet by not immediately and unequivocally naming and condemning this monster. Worse, he even once referred to them collectively as "fine people".
To all those who voted for Trump, how does it feel to be on the wrong side of history? Because we wouldn't know anything about that. Believe me.
Friday, August 11, 2017
Trump Is "Wagging the Dog"--But Will He Get Us All Killed?
As the Russiagate scandal is closing in on the Trump administration and it is becoming increasingly clear that the jig is up, Trump is getting increasingly bold in his attempts to "wag the dog", that is, to distract the American people from the ever-growing scandal. His latest attempt to do so is to apparently provoke a war--even a potential nuclear war(!)--with North Korea. And the (other) already-unhinged dictator, Kim Jong Un, is making threats against the USA in response to Trump's reckless "fire and fury" and "locked and loaded" threats against North Korea. Clearly, he is playing a very dangerous game to say the least.
In other words, Trump is perfectly willing to literally risk getting us all KILLED for no other reasons than 1) so he can temporarily distract us from the Russiagate scandal, 2) to possibly extract favorable deals from China, and 3) to get to play "war" and "tough guy" (with other people's lives) at the same time. This comedy of errors is clearly NOT funny anymore, if it ever really was. I hate to say it, but suddenly the idea of a President Pence (shudder!) doesn't really look quite so scary anymore by comparison.
Bottom line: The Donald absolutely MUST be impeached or forced to resign, yesterday. Otherwise, there may not even be a tomorrow.
Friday, May 26, 2017
Impeachment Or Resignation: It's Only A Matter of Time
Looks like any day now, Trump (and hopefully Pence and the rest of the administration) will be "Out Like Flynn". In fact, former NSA head Michael Flynn apparently decided to "plead the Fifth" about the burgeoning Trump-Russia scandal. But that's not all.
Just when you thought that Trump's really, really messed-up week (in which he fired former FBI director James Comey) was his worst, the past two got even worse still. Most notably, Trump discussed classified information about a terrorist plot in a closed-door meeting with the Russian ambassador and foreign minister, Sergey Kislyak and Sergey Lavrov, respectively. That's right, he literally gave sensitive secrets to the Russians, and willingly. And now, justifiably, Israel won't share intelligence with the USA anymore--especially since they were the source of the intelligence that Trump shared with Russia. Oh, and an independent special prosecutor has been appointed to oversee the Trump-Russia investigation. Just in time for recent revelations (from Kislyak himself) that Jared Kushner wanted a secret communications channel with the Kremlin. I swear, you really can't make this stuff up!
But Trump didn't stop there, no. On his recent trip to Europe, he just had to go and insult our NATO allies, especially Germany. He just had to shove the Prime Minister of Montenegro out of the way just to get a quick photo-op. If there were any doubts left that Trump was Putin's puppet on a string, those doubts are basically gone. Ditto for anyone who still thought that he had any sort of class or decorum at all.
And the European intelligence community is supposedly prepared to leak some serious dirt on Trump in the very near future. Whether that dirt is incriminating or merely very embarrassing, either way it does not look good for a president and administration that is already imploding at warp-speed. There is already enough evidence to impeach him for obstruction of justice, abuse of power, conflicts of interest, and perhaps misuse of classified information as well. Will these next leaks be enough to add TREASON to this list as well?
UPDATE: As of May 30, it looks like Michael Flynn is finally ready to break his silence and basically roll over on his former boss. Not like Trump needs any help self-destructing, as he seems to be doing a pretty good job of that already. BIGLY. Believe me.
Just when you thought that Trump's really, really messed-up week (in which he fired former FBI director James Comey) was his worst, the past two got even worse still. Most notably, Trump discussed classified information about a terrorist plot in a closed-door meeting with the Russian ambassador and foreign minister, Sergey Kislyak and Sergey Lavrov, respectively. That's right, he literally gave sensitive secrets to the Russians, and willingly. And now, justifiably, Israel won't share intelligence with the USA anymore--especially since they were the source of the intelligence that Trump shared with Russia. Oh, and an independent special prosecutor has been appointed to oversee the Trump-Russia investigation. Just in time for recent revelations (from Kislyak himself) that Jared Kushner wanted a secret communications channel with the Kremlin. I swear, you really can't make this stuff up!
But Trump didn't stop there, no. On his recent trip to Europe, he just had to go and insult our NATO allies, especially Germany. He just had to shove the Prime Minister of Montenegro out of the way just to get a quick photo-op. If there were any doubts left that Trump was Putin's puppet on a string, those doubts are basically gone. Ditto for anyone who still thought that he had any sort of class or decorum at all.
And the European intelligence community is supposedly prepared to leak some serious dirt on Trump in the very near future. Whether that dirt is incriminating or merely very embarrassing, either way it does not look good for a president and administration that is already imploding at warp-speed. There is already enough evidence to impeach him for obstruction of justice, abuse of power, conflicts of interest, and perhaps misuse of classified information as well. Will these next leaks be enough to add TREASON to this list as well?
UPDATE: As of May 30, it looks like Michael Flynn is finally ready to break his silence and basically roll over on his former boss. Not like Trump needs any help self-destructing, as he seems to be doing a pretty good job of that already. BIGLY. Believe me.
Wednesday, May 10, 2017
As the Russiagate Scandal Is Exploding, the Trump Administration is Imploding.
It's been a really, really messed-up week for the Trump administration, believe me. And the week hasn't even ended yet!
Let's see: Sally Yates (who Trump previously fired ostensibly for opposing the Muslim Ban, but more likely for knowing too much) and James Clapper both testify about the Russiagate scandal. James Comey, director of the FBI, had requested more resources for the burgeoning Trump-Russia investigation, and the FBI very recently issued grand jury subpoenas for Michael Flynn and his associates in regards to potential collusion with Russia. Trump abruptly fires Comey from his position as head of the FBI, and apparently Attorney General Jeff Sessions recommended that Trump do so. And of course Trump, Pence and others in the administration doggedly deny that the firing had anything to do with the Russiagate investigation (riiiight)--not that that stopped Trump from lawyering up. Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer goes into hiding (literally in the bushes!) and refuses to talk to any media other than Faux Noise. He has Sarah Huckabee Sanders stand-in for him and hold a press conference in his place, and it was a total disaster. Move along, nothing to see here folks....
All this in a matter of just three days, and no sign that this will go away anytime soon. It's only a matter of time before Trump, Pence, and perhaps even the entire administration are "Out Like Flynn".
I swear, you really can't make this stuff up!
UPDATE: On Thursday, two days after firing Comey, Trump finally admits that it was because of the Russiagate scandal--which of course he still claims is a "made-up story" and "fake news". Riiiiiiight.
Let's see: Sally Yates (who Trump previously fired ostensibly for opposing the Muslim Ban, but more likely for knowing too much) and James Clapper both testify about the Russiagate scandal. James Comey, director of the FBI, had requested more resources for the burgeoning Trump-Russia investigation, and the FBI very recently issued grand jury subpoenas for Michael Flynn and his associates in regards to potential collusion with Russia. Trump abruptly fires Comey from his position as head of the FBI, and apparently Attorney General Jeff Sessions recommended that Trump do so. And of course Trump, Pence and others in the administration doggedly deny that the firing had anything to do with the Russiagate investigation (riiiight)--not that that stopped Trump from lawyering up. Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer goes into hiding (literally in the bushes!) and refuses to talk to any media other than Faux Noise. He has Sarah Huckabee Sanders stand-in for him and hold a press conference in his place, and it was a total disaster. Move along, nothing to see here folks....
All this in a matter of just three days, and no sign that this will go away anytime soon. It's only a matter of time before Trump, Pence, and perhaps even the entire administration are "Out Like Flynn".
I swear, you really can't make this stuff up!
UPDATE: On Thursday, two days after firing Comey, Trump finally admits that it was because of the Russiagate scandal--which of course he still claims is a "made-up story" and "fake news". Riiiiiiight.
Friday, April 7, 2017
Trump Just Bombed Syria, Because Syria Bombed Syria. Or Something.
Well, it finally happened. Trump ordered an airstrike of 59 Tomahawk missiles on a Syrian Air Force base on the night of April 6, 2017. Ostensibly in retaliation for the horrific sarin gas attack by the Assad regime against their own civilians, this marks the first time the United States directly attacked any targets of the Assad regime, as prior to this, we were solely attacking ISIL and al-Qaeda affiliates' targets, effectively as grudging and uneasy "co-belligerents" with the regime as well as Russia. So unless this is just a one-off for show, this marks a major shift in foreign policy and military strategy in the region.
Of course, this may very well just be a way of "wagging the dog", distracting us from the ever-growing Russiagate scandal. And while the Putin regime predictably condemned the airstrike, it is very telling that Trump told Russia about his plan before he even told Congress. And it's not like the attack was particularly effective: it didn't really do much damage to Syria's Air Force, and in fact the very next morning they launched another poison gas attack (this time with chlorine gas) against civilians in another town. And even the initial sarin attack came just days after the Trump administration gave what can be interpreted as a not-so-subtle green light of sorts for the Assad regime to do as they please with impunity--kinda like Trump appeared to do with Putin just before the final Aleppo massacre in November.
Oh, and did you know that those same Tomahawk missiles used in the airstrike were manufactured by Raytheon, whose stock price jumped dramatically the day after the attack? And which plutocratic potentate owns stock in that exact same company? You guessed it. As Maj. Gen. Smedley Butler once famously said, "War is a Racket". And his 1935 book of the same name should be required reading for everyone.
It is funny how Trump supporters who voted for him because they feared Hillary would attack Syria, now have face the fact that Trump just did exactly that. And yes, Hillary most likely would have done so. Not to condone Hillary's plan for Syria, but at least Putin was afraid of her, and she could have used such leverage to keep Russia and Syria from getting too out of control. And we all would have seen big, tough, macho Putin begging a powerful Woman for mercy. And that would have been priceless in itself. Of course, Bernie would have been better, but alas that was not to be.
While the TSAP unequivocally condemns the brutal chemical (and conventional) attacks on civilians by the evil and genocidal Assad regime, we do not belive that Trump is taking the right path in his reckless and impulsive unilateral attack on Syria. If we do intervene, we must do so along with the international community, and pursue diplomatic measures to bring the Syrian civil war to as quick an end as possible. History has shown that, military action, should we even pursue it at all, should be a very last resort and should be well-planned and coordinated with our allies, with a clear exit strategy and a plan to actually win the peace. Otherwise, we risk WWIII, or at the very least another Middle Eastern quagmire akin to the worst of Libya and Iraq combined, on steroids.
We ignore history at our own peril. The song "2 Minutes to Midnight" by Iron Maiden comes to mind. Which is basically where the Doomsday Clock is set now, thanks primarily to the drunken Darth Vader wannabe and his orange ventriloquist dummy in the White House.
Of course, this may very well just be a way of "wagging the dog", distracting us from the ever-growing Russiagate scandal. And while the Putin regime predictably condemned the airstrike, it is very telling that Trump told Russia about his plan before he even told Congress. And it's not like the attack was particularly effective: it didn't really do much damage to Syria's Air Force, and in fact the very next morning they launched another poison gas attack (this time with chlorine gas) against civilians in another town. And even the initial sarin attack came just days after the Trump administration gave what can be interpreted as a not-so-subtle green light of sorts for the Assad regime to do as they please with impunity--kinda like Trump appeared to do with Putin just before the final Aleppo massacre in November.
Oh, and did you know that those same Tomahawk missiles used in the airstrike were manufactured by Raytheon, whose stock price jumped dramatically the day after the attack? And which plutocratic potentate owns stock in that exact same company? You guessed it. As Maj. Gen. Smedley Butler once famously said, "War is a Racket". And his 1935 book of the same name should be required reading for everyone.
It is funny how Trump supporters who voted for him because they feared Hillary would attack Syria, now have face the fact that Trump just did exactly that. And yes, Hillary most likely would have done so. Not to condone Hillary's plan for Syria, but at least Putin was afraid of her, and she could have used such leverage to keep Russia and Syria from getting too out of control. And we all would have seen big, tough, macho Putin begging a powerful Woman for mercy. And that would have been priceless in itself. Of course, Bernie would have been better, but alas that was not to be.
While the TSAP unequivocally condemns the brutal chemical (and conventional) attacks on civilians by the evil and genocidal Assad regime, we do not belive that Trump is taking the right path in his reckless and impulsive unilateral attack on Syria. If we do intervene, we must do so along with the international community, and pursue diplomatic measures to bring the Syrian civil war to as quick an end as possible. History has shown that, military action, should we even pursue it at all, should be a very last resort and should be well-planned and coordinated with our allies, with a clear exit strategy and a plan to actually win the peace. Otherwise, we risk WWIII, or at the very least another Middle Eastern quagmire akin to the worst of Libya and Iraq combined, on steroids.
We ignore history at our own peril. The song "2 Minutes to Midnight" by Iron Maiden comes to mind. Which is basically where the Doomsday Clock is set now, thanks primarily to the drunken Darth Vader wannabe and his orange ventriloquist dummy in the White House.
Friday, March 24, 2017
Ruh Roh. Trumpcare/Ryancare Just Failed, BIGLY. Believe me.
Looks like Mr. "Art of the Deal" couldn't even negotiate his way out of a paper bag. That is, he couldn't get Obamacare repealed and replaced even with both houses of Congress controlled by Republicans. Yes, really.
On March 24, 2017, exactly seven years after Obamacare passed in 2010, Trump gave Congressional Republicans an ultimatum. Either vote on the Trumpcare bill today, or he will take his marbles and go home, and forget about repealing Obamacare at all for a while at least. And it backfired, bigly. Thing is, the last-minute changes made to the bill to appease the arch-conservative Republicans, which actually made it even WORSE, would have ended up alienating too many moderates, and thus they still didn't have enough votes to pass it. Thus, to avoid further embarassment, Trump and the Republicans decided to kill the bill before it was brought to the floor for the vote, pulling the bill indefinitely while they focus on othet priorities. And now both Trump and the Republicans have egg on their faces. Bigly. Believe me.
Meanwhile, the Russia scandal isn't going away anytime soon, nor are any of his other numerous scandals. Even Wall Street is apparently getting impatient with him. The honeymoon is officially over, and it really doesn't look good for him. Sad.
On March 24, 2017, exactly seven years after Obamacare passed in 2010, Trump gave Congressional Republicans an ultimatum. Either vote on the Trumpcare bill today, or he will take his marbles and go home, and forget about repealing Obamacare at all for a while at least. And it backfired, bigly. Thing is, the last-minute changes made to the bill to appease the arch-conservative Republicans, which actually made it even WORSE, would have ended up alienating too many moderates, and thus they still didn't have enough votes to pass it. Thus, to avoid further embarassment, Trump and the Republicans decided to kill the bill before it was brought to the floor for the vote, pulling the bill indefinitely while they focus on othet priorities. And now both Trump and the Republicans have egg on their faces. Bigly. Believe me.
Meanwhile, the Russia scandal isn't going away anytime soon, nor are any of his other numerous scandals. Even Wall Street is apparently getting impatient with him. The honeymoon is officially over, and it really doesn't look good for him. Sad.
Sunday, March 5, 2017
One Weird Trick to Rescue Economy, Defeat Oligarchy, and Pre-empt Fascism--Banksters HATE This!
As the classic clickbait-y title implies,what if there was a way to accomplish such a thing at little to no cost, and would also result in lower taxes for the masses as well? What if that option has always existed, but knowledge of it has been suppressed by the elites for decades out of fear of losing their power?
Well, it's actually true, believe it or not. It's so simple that people tend to overlook it, and it's called public banking. To wit, the government would print/create its own money interest-free, independently of the banks. And thus the FERAL Reserve (which is about as "federal" as Federal Express, given how it is privately owned by the big banks) would become truly federal for once, with banks serving We the People, not the other way around. National debt would become a non-problem overnight. (This idea can also be implemented at the state and local levels as well.) Of course, the banksters would absolutely HATE that. For example, both JFK and Lincoln tried to do such a thing in fact, and we all know what eventually happened to them. But the fact remains that We the People, through our elected representatives in Congress, nonetheless have to power to do exactly that. We essentially gave the banksters their power, and we can also take it away--were it not for their venal and cowardly puppets in Congress today, that is.
Ellen Brown, author of Web of Debt (2007) and The Public Bank Solution (2013), has a lot to say about such an idea. She brilliantly illustrates just how important the democratization of money is to a free society, and the history of just how much the bankster oligarchy has been ripping us all off for centuries. For example, did you know that nearly HALF of the taxes we pay essentially go towards servicing the massive government debt to the banksters? Did you know that nearly HALF of the price of practically everything we buy is a result of cumulative compound interest and/or hidden taxes embedded within such prices? Did you know that infrastructure costs can also be cut in HALF simply by financing them with public banking? And did you know that private banks actually create money out of thin air via a perfectly legal and centuries-old racket known as "fractional reserve banking"? And that interest charged, not the expansion of the money supply, is the real cause of nearly all of the "inflation" that we see? And for decades now, wages have not only lagged behind productivity gains, but haven't even kept up with such inflation? Meanwhile the top 1%, and especially top 0.01%, have made out like bandits at the expense of the bottom 99%, with resulting inequality (which hurts the economy) soaring to levels not seen since the 1920s or even the Gilded Age. If that doesn't make you feel RIPPED OFF, check your pulse 'cause you might be dead!
So what does all of this have to do with fascism? Well, it appears that a certain little painter from Austria decided to exploit a rather similar situation in 1930s Germany after taking over. In fact, rescuing the ailing economy, especially reducing or abolishing unemployment, was one of Hitler's biggest campaign promises. And he did in fact succeed in doing so, and did so better than FDR despite Germany starting out in much worse shape than the United States was in 1933. So how did the Nazis manage to pull it off? By thinking outside the box and having their government essentially create their own money independently of the banks. Their country was literally bankrupt from the aftermath of losing WWI as well as being hit particularly hard by the Great Depression, but by creating their own money and spending it to "prime the pump", they were able to transcend their economic woes, and were thus able to restore full employment within a few short years. In fact, their unemployment rate dropped by HALF within a year! Contrast this with Austria, whose unemployment rate remained stubbornly high and barely even budged from 1932-1937, only dropping significantly in 1938 after Hitler annexed their country as part of the Third Reich. Prior to that, the Austro-fascist regime was essentially following the outdated Austrian School austerity policies that Ludwig von Mises himself would have likely approved of. The point of this discussion is NOT to praise Hitler or the Nazis in any way, but rather to show what opportunists they were and how to prevent such an evil authoritarian regime from ever rising again--if only the (erstwhile) free world had the foresight to get their economic policies right in the first place. Because then, there would be essentially no legitimate grievances large enough for such a regime to exploit.
Of course, we would be remiss if we didn't also note that Hitler's "economic miracle" came with a serious dark side as well, even before the Holocaust began in earnest. At least part of the drop in unemployment was the result of 1) removing Jews from the workforce after revoking their citizenship, replacing them with ethnic Germans, 2) removing women from the workforce (i.e. by firing many of them and also paying mothers to stay home), replacing them with men, and no longer counting women in the statistics, 3) bringing back the draft, and 4) spending ludicrous amounts of money on the military, financed by debt. But since none of these things occurred until 1935 or even later, one could safely conclude that at least the first two years of the "economic miracle" can be easily traced to the pump-priming that resulted from their independent money creation. The point is, there is no logical reason why that policy cannot be replicated minus the dark side, as fascism/racism/sexism/militarism is NOT a prerequisite for sound fiscal and monetary policy, any more so than it is for making the trains run on time like Mussolini did.
And just in case you thought that this "one weird trick" was peculiar to fascism, keep in mind that Hitler in fact got the idea from--wait for it--ABRAHAM LINCOLN. Yes, really. Meanwhile, fascist Austria did the opposite under Dolfuss and Schuschnigg, and they messed the economy up so badly that the Austrian people actually eagerly welcomed the Nazis when they eventually took over in 1938.
Bottom line: we know now what economic policies really work in practice, as opposed to half-baked voodoo economic theories and crank science. As the saying goes, "it's the economy, stupid!" So how long till we finally get it right?
Well, it's actually true, believe it or not. It's so simple that people tend to overlook it, and it's called public banking. To wit, the government would print/create its own money interest-free, independently of the banks. And thus the FERAL Reserve (which is about as "federal" as Federal Express, given how it is privately owned by the big banks) would become truly federal for once, with banks serving We the People, not the other way around. National debt would become a non-problem overnight. (This idea can also be implemented at the state and local levels as well.) Of course, the banksters would absolutely HATE that. For example, both JFK and Lincoln tried to do such a thing in fact, and we all know what eventually happened to them. But the fact remains that We the People, through our elected representatives in Congress, nonetheless have to power to do exactly that. We essentially gave the banksters their power, and we can also take it away--were it not for their venal and cowardly puppets in Congress today, that is.
Ellen Brown, author of Web of Debt (2007) and The Public Bank Solution (2013), has a lot to say about such an idea. She brilliantly illustrates just how important the democratization of money is to a free society, and the history of just how much the bankster oligarchy has been ripping us all off for centuries. For example, did you know that nearly HALF of the taxes we pay essentially go towards servicing the massive government debt to the banksters? Did you know that nearly HALF of the price of practically everything we buy is a result of cumulative compound interest and/or hidden taxes embedded within such prices? Did you know that infrastructure costs can also be cut in HALF simply by financing them with public banking? And did you know that private banks actually create money out of thin air via a perfectly legal and centuries-old racket known as "fractional reserve banking"? And that interest charged, not the expansion of the money supply, is the real cause of nearly all of the "inflation" that we see? And for decades now, wages have not only lagged behind productivity gains, but haven't even kept up with such inflation? Meanwhile the top 1%, and especially top 0.01%, have made out like bandits at the expense of the bottom 99%, with resulting inequality (which hurts the economy) soaring to levels not seen since the 1920s or even the Gilded Age. If that doesn't make you feel RIPPED OFF, check your pulse 'cause you might be dead!
So what does all of this have to do with fascism? Well, it appears that a certain little painter from Austria decided to exploit a rather similar situation in 1930s Germany after taking over. In fact, rescuing the ailing economy, especially reducing or abolishing unemployment, was one of Hitler's biggest campaign promises. And he did in fact succeed in doing so, and did so better than FDR despite Germany starting out in much worse shape than the United States was in 1933. So how did the Nazis manage to pull it off? By thinking outside the box and having their government essentially create their own money independently of the banks. Their country was literally bankrupt from the aftermath of losing WWI as well as being hit particularly hard by the Great Depression, but by creating their own money and spending it to "prime the pump", they were able to transcend their economic woes, and were thus able to restore full employment within a few short years. In fact, their unemployment rate dropped by HALF within a year! Contrast this with Austria, whose unemployment rate remained stubbornly high and barely even budged from 1932-1937, only dropping significantly in 1938 after Hitler annexed their country as part of the Third Reich. Prior to that, the Austro-fascist regime was essentially following the outdated Austrian School austerity policies that Ludwig von Mises himself would have likely approved of. The point of this discussion is NOT to praise Hitler or the Nazis in any way, but rather to show what opportunists they were and how to prevent such an evil authoritarian regime from ever rising again--if only the (erstwhile) free world had the foresight to get their economic policies right in the first place. Because then, there would be essentially no legitimate grievances large enough for such a regime to exploit.
Of course, we would be remiss if we didn't also note that Hitler's "economic miracle" came with a serious dark side as well, even before the Holocaust began in earnest. At least part of the drop in unemployment was the result of 1) removing Jews from the workforce after revoking their citizenship, replacing them with ethnic Germans, 2) removing women from the workforce (i.e. by firing many of them and also paying mothers to stay home), replacing them with men, and no longer counting women in the statistics, 3) bringing back the draft, and 4) spending ludicrous amounts of money on the military, financed by debt. But since none of these things occurred until 1935 or even later, one could safely conclude that at least the first two years of the "economic miracle" can be easily traced to the pump-priming that resulted from their independent money creation. The point is, there is no logical reason why that policy cannot be replicated minus the dark side, as fascism/racism/sexism/militarism is NOT a prerequisite for sound fiscal and monetary policy, any more so than it is for making the trains run on time like Mussolini did.
And just in case you thought that this "one weird trick" was peculiar to fascism, keep in mind that Hitler in fact got the idea from--wait for it--ABRAHAM LINCOLN. Yes, really. Meanwhile, fascist Austria did the opposite under Dolfuss and Schuschnigg, and they messed the economy up so badly that the Austrian people actually eagerly welcomed the Nazis when they eventually took over in 1938.
Bottom line: we know now what economic policies really work in practice, as opposed to half-baked voodoo economic theories and crank science. As the saying goes, "it's the economy, stupid!" So how long till we finally get it right?
Friday, February 24, 2017
State of the Planet Address 2017
Every year since 2011, the TSAP has been giving our annual State of the
Planet Address in mid-January. This year, because of all the madness going on in Washington recently, we have delayed it to February. Yes, we know it is a bit of a downer
to say the least. So sit down, take off your rose-colored glasses, and
read on:
Our planet is in grave danger, and has been for quite some time now. We face several serious long term problems: climate change, deforestation, desertification, loss of biodiversity, overharvesting, energy crises, and of course pollution of many kinds. Polar ice caps are melting. Rainforests have been shrinking by 50 acres per minute. Numerous species are going extinct every year. Soil is eroding rapidly. Food shortages have occurred in several countries in recent years. Weather has been getting crazier each year thanks to climate change. We have had numerous wildfires, floods followed by long periods of drought, and a "storm of the century" at least once a year for the past few years. And it is only getting worse every year. In fact, 2016 has been the hottest year on record, and the third straight record year.
None of this is an accident of course. These problems are man-made, and their solutions must also begin and end with humans. We cannot afford to sit idly by any longer, lest we face hell and high water in the not-too-distant future. Our unsustainable scorched-earth policy towards the planet has to end. Yesterday.
While we do not invoke the precautionary principle for all issues, we unequivocally do for the issue of climate change and any other environmental issues of comparable magnitude. In fact, for something as dire as climate change, as of 2015 we now support a strong "no regrets" approach. With no apologies to hardcore libertarians or paleoconservatives, in fact. We are not fazed one bit by the naysayers' pseudoscience as it does not really "debunk" the scientific consensus on anthropogenic global warming. The only serious debate is about how fast it will happen, and when the tipping point (or points) will occur. It is not a matter of if, but when. And the less precarious position is to assume it is a real and urgent problem. We need to reduce CO2 emissions to the point where the CO2 concentration is at or below 350 ppm, ASAP. And it is currently at an unsustainably high level of 400+ ppm, and growing.
Solving the problem of climate change will also help to solve the other ecological crises we are facing, for they all ultimately have the same root causes, not least of which is our insatiable addiction to dirty energy. However, there is a right way to solve it, and several wrong ways. Technology is important, but it won't be decisive on its own (economics geeks may recall Jevons Paradox). The real problem is the paradigm that our society has been following, and that system is based on wetiko, the parasite of the mind and cancer of the soul. It often seems that the only difference between capitalism and cannibalism is the spelling.
The TSAP endorses the ideas embodied in Steve Stoft's new book Carbonomics, most notably a tax-and-dividend system that would tax carbon (i.e. fossil fuels) at the source, and give all Americans an equal share of the revenue generated from this tax. (Note that our proposal to tax natural resources and pay out an Alaska-like citizen's dividend already includes this.) Yes, prices for various things would undoubtedly rise due to this tax, all else being equal, but the dividend will allow Americans to pay for this increase. The average American would in fact break even, but those who (directly or indirectly) use less energy than average will effectively pay less tax, while the energy hogs will effectively be taxed more, as they should be. Thus it is certainly not a regressive tax, and may even be mildly progressive. This is both the simplest and most equitable way to reduce carbon emissions as well as other forms of pollution, not to mention waste of dwindling non-renewable resources. The real challenge is getting the feds to accept something that won't directly benefit them (in the short term). Carbonomics also includes other good ideas, such as improving how fuel economy standards are done, and crafting a better verison of the Kyoto treaty.
In addition to the ideas in Carbonomics, we also support several other measures to help us end our addiction to fossil fuels once and for all. Our Great American Phase-Out plan would phase out all fossil fuels by 2030 at the latest, via alternative energy, efficiency, and conservation. One good idea to further the development of alternative energy would be the use of feed-in tariffs for renewable power sources.
We support ending net deforestation completely, and putting carbon back in the ground through carbon sequestration. One method is known as biochar, a type of charcoal made from plants that remove carbon dioxide from the air, that is subsequently buried. This is also an ancient method of soil fertilization and conservation, originally called terra preta. It also helps preserve biodiversity. Another crucial method would be regenerative organic farming, which also turns the soil into an effective carbon sink as well.
We've said this before, and we'll say it again. Our ultimate goal is 100% renewable energy by 2030, but we need to hedge our bets. We can phase out fossil fuels, or we can phase out nuclear power, but we can't do both at the same time--and fossil fuels need to be phased out first, and quickly. Nuclear is doing a pretty good job of phasing itself out as it is. So let's not get rid of it prematurely.
But the biggest elephant in the room (make that the elephant in the Volkswagen) is overpopulation. It does not make for pleasant dinner conversation, but it must be addressed or else all other causes become lost causes in the long run. We absolutely need to have fewer kids, or nature will reduce our population for us, and the latter will NOT be pleasant to say the least. The TSAP believes in voluntarily reducing the total fertility rate (TFR) to 1.5-1.9 children per woman to do so, along with reducing immigration dramatically, but let us be clear that we do NOT support draconian and/or coercive measures of population control (like China has used). We believe that more liberty is the answer, not less. In fact, the two most effective means of reducing the birthrate are poverty reduction and female empowerment. Fortunately, America's TFR has recently dropped to below 1.9, with no indication of rising back above replacement rate in the near term. But clearly we cannot keep growing and growing, that's for sure (in fact, we need to shrink). And our insatiable addiction to economic growth (despite being decoupled from well-being) is also every bit as harmful as overpopulation as well, if not more so. Growth for the sake of growth, the ideology of the cancer cell, is clearly one of the most asinine obsessions our nation (and world) has ever had. We clearly need to transition to a steady-state economy, most likely following a period of what Naomi Klein calls "selective degrowth" as well. And to do that, we need a radical paradigm shift to happen yesterday. Put another way, we need to leave room for Nature, lest Nature not leave room for us. We have been warned, decades ago in fact. Unfortunately, such warnings have largely fallen of deaf ears until very recently.
Last but not least, the TSAP now believes that as long as men remain in charge, we are all merely rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. Let's face it, it ain't gonna be us fellas who will save the world, as the past 7000 years or so have shown. We paved paradise and put up a parking lot, we created a desert and called it peace. We devoured and suffocated our own empire, and our proverbial 15 minutes of fame is almost up. Only when women finally take over and reclaim their rightful position as the new leaders of the free world--and they will--will there be any real permanent solution.
Bottom line: we need to take the environment much more seriously than we do now. We ignore it at our own peril. And while the current administration in DC clearly doesn't care, We the People must act nonetheless.
Oh, by the way, wanna hear a joke? Peak Oil. Not saying it won't happen, of course--it will eventually peak and decline at some point--but climate change kinda supersedes it. While conventional oil most likely has already peaked, there is more than enough total oil (including unconventional) to deep-fry the Earth--and most of which needs to stay in the ground if we wish to avoid catastrophic climate change. Fossil fuels are, after all, what Buckminster Fuller referred to as our planet's "energy savings account", which we need to wean ourselves off of and save just in case of a planetary emergency--and he first said this in 1941!
Our planet is in grave danger, and has been for quite some time now. We face several serious long term problems: climate change, deforestation, desertification, loss of biodiversity, overharvesting, energy crises, and of course pollution of many kinds. Polar ice caps are melting. Rainforests have been shrinking by 50 acres per minute. Numerous species are going extinct every year. Soil is eroding rapidly. Food shortages have occurred in several countries in recent years. Weather has been getting crazier each year thanks to climate change. We have had numerous wildfires, floods followed by long periods of drought, and a "storm of the century" at least once a year for the past few years. And it is only getting worse every year. In fact, 2016 has been the hottest year on record, and the third straight record year.
None of this is an accident of course. These problems are man-made, and their solutions must also begin and end with humans. We cannot afford to sit idly by any longer, lest we face hell and high water in the not-too-distant future. Our unsustainable scorched-earth policy towards the planet has to end. Yesterday.
While we do not invoke the precautionary principle for all issues, we unequivocally do for the issue of climate change and any other environmental issues of comparable magnitude. In fact, for something as dire as climate change, as of 2015 we now support a strong "no regrets" approach. With no apologies to hardcore libertarians or paleoconservatives, in fact. We are not fazed one bit by the naysayers' pseudoscience as it does not really "debunk" the scientific consensus on anthropogenic global warming. The only serious debate is about how fast it will happen, and when the tipping point (or points) will occur. It is not a matter of if, but when. And the less precarious position is to assume it is a real and urgent problem. We need to reduce CO2 emissions to the point where the CO2 concentration is at or below 350 ppm, ASAP. And it is currently at an unsustainably high level of 400+ ppm, and growing.
Solving the problem of climate change will also help to solve the other ecological crises we are facing, for they all ultimately have the same root causes, not least of which is our insatiable addiction to dirty energy. However, there is a right way to solve it, and several wrong ways. Technology is important, but it won't be decisive on its own (economics geeks may recall Jevons Paradox). The real problem is the paradigm that our society has been following, and that system is based on wetiko, the parasite of the mind and cancer of the soul. It often seems that the only difference between capitalism and cannibalism is the spelling.
The TSAP endorses the ideas embodied in Steve Stoft's new book Carbonomics, most notably a tax-and-dividend system that would tax carbon (i.e. fossil fuels) at the source, and give all Americans an equal share of the revenue generated from this tax. (Note that our proposal to tax natural resources and pay out an Alaska-like citizen's dividend already includes this.) Yes, prices for various things would undoubtedly rise due to this tax, all else being equal, but the dividend will allow Americans to pay for this increase. The average American would in fact break even, but those who (directly or indirectly) use less energy than average will effectively pay less tax, while the energy hogs will effectively be taxed more, as they should be. Thus it is certainly not a regressive tax, and may even be mildly progressive. This is both the simplest and most equitable way to reduce carbon emissions as well as other forms of pollution, not to mention waste of dwindling non-renewable resources. The real challenge is getting the feds to accept something that won't directly benefit them (in the short term). Carbonomics also includes other good ideas, such as improving how fuel economy standards are done, and crafting a better verison of the Kyoto treaty.
In addition to the ideas in Carbonomics, we also support several other measures to help us end our addiction to fossil fuels once and for all. Our Great American Phase-Out plan would phase out all fossil fuels by 2030 at the latest, via alternative energy, efficiency, and conservation. One good idea to further the development of alternative energy would be the use of feed-in tariffs for renewable power sources.
We support ending net deforestation completely, and putting carbon back in the ground through carbon sequestration. One method is known as biochar, a type of charcoal made from plants that remove carbon dioxide from the air, that is subsequently buried. This is also an ancient method of soil fertilization and conservation, originally called terra preta. It also helps preserve biodiversity. Another crucial method would be regenerative organic farming, which also turns the soil into an effective carbon sink as well.
We've said this before, and we'll say it again. Our ultimate goal is 100% renewable energy by 2030, but we need to hedge our bets. We can phase out fossil fuels, or we can phase out nuclear power, but we can't do both at the same time--and fossil fuels need to be phased out first, and quickly. Nuclear is doing a pretty good job of phasing itself out as it is. So let's not get rid of it prematurely.
But the biggest elephant in the room (make that the elephant in the Volkswagen) is overpopulation. It does not make for pleasant dinner conversation, but it must be addressed or else all other causes become lost causes in the long run. We absolutely need to have fewer kids, or nature will reduce our population for us, and the latter will NOT be pleasant to say the least. The TSAP believes in voluntarily reducing the total fertility rate (TFR) to 1.5-1.9 children per woman to do so, along with reducing immigration dramatically, but let us be clear that we do NOT support draconian and/or coercive measures of population control (like China has used). We believe that more liberty is the answer, not less. In fact, the two most effective means of reducing the birthrate are poverty reduction and female empowerment. Fortunately, America's TFR has recently dropped to below 1.9, with no indication of rising back above replacement rate in the near term. But clearly we cannot keep growing and growing, that's for sure (in fact, we need to shrink). And our insatiable addiction to economic growth (despite being decoupled from well-being) is also every bit as harmful as overpopulation as well, if not more so. Growth for the sake of growth, the ideology of the cancer cell, is clearly one of the most asinine obsessions our nation (and world) has ever had. We clearly need to transition to a steady-state economy, most likely following a period of what Naomi Klein calls "selective degrowth" as well. And to do that, we need a radical paradigm shift to happen yesterday. Put another way, we need to leave room for Nature, lest Nature not leave room for us. We have been warned, decades ago in fact. Unfortunately, such warnings have largely fallen of deaf ears until very recently.
Last but not least, the TSAP now believes that as long as men remain in charge, we are all merely rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. Let's face it, it ain't gonna be us fellas who will save the world, as the past 7000 years or so have shown. We paved paradise and put up a parking lot, we created a desert and called it peace. We devoured and suffocated our own empire, and our proverbial 15 minutes of fame is almost up. Only when women finally take over and reclaim their rightful position as the new leaders of the free world--and they will--will there be any real permanent solution.
Bottom line: we need to take the environment much more seriously than we do now. We ignore it at our own peril. And while the current administration in DC clearly doesn't care, We the People must act nonetheless.
Oh, by the way, wanna hear a joke? Peak Oil. Not saying it won't happen, of course--it will eventually peak and decline at some point--but climate change kinda supersedes it. While conventional oil most likely has already peaked, there is more than enough total oil (including unconventional) to deep-fry the Earth--and most of which needs to stay in the ground if we wish to avoid catastrophic climate change. Fossil fuels are, after all, what Buckminster Fuller referred to as our planet's "energy savings account", which we need to wean ourselves off of and save just in case of a planetary emergency--and he first said this in 1941!
Thursday, February 16, 2017
Welcome to Necrotizing Fascism
A recent article confirms what we have already known all long: too much inequality is bad for the economy, and extreme inequality (like we currently have in the USA as well as globally) can eventually lead to economic collapse. This occurs because of the "science of flow". To wit, just like a living organism needs good circulation, so too does an economic system. And when circulation gets cut off, that results in necrosis--the death of tissue that eventually overwhelms the whole system. Inequality, and the hoarding at the top that causes it, indeed cuts off the circulation of money, and it is very telling that nearly every major economic crash or depression has been preceded by relatively extreme economic inequality.
We should also note that, as history has shown, such resulting economic crises tend to breed authoritarian political systems, most notably fascism, when such crises are not resolved within short order. And austerity policies only worsen recessions and depressions, making fascism even more likely. Look no further than Nazi Germany in the 1930s, the Golden Dawn party in Greece in the 2010s, and of course the Tea Party followed by Trump in the USA as well. And the resulting fascism only makes inequality even worse in the long run, despite any initial short-term benefits that may occur. And the vicious cycle continues.
Thus, when such necrosis breeds fascism, and that in turn breeds further inequality and necrosis, we have coined a new term for it. We call it, "Necrotizing Fascism", named after the flesh-eating disease "necrotizing fasciitis". And that is basically what we have now under the Trump regime. Believe me.
Monday, February 13, 2017
Trump's Immigration Policy is Cruel, Callous, and Counterproductive
One issue on which the TSAP has changed considerably over the years for the better, especially more recently, has been immigration policy, which we have recently updated in our party platform. And not coincidentally, that very issue is emerging as one of the most controversial issues concerning the new Trump regime, who is currently displaying a very angry, paranoid, hard-line, nativist, racist, xenophobic, and Islamophobic character. Such toxic and regressive attitudes toward immigrants and immigration clearly do far more harm than good overall. Because like it or not, America has always been a nation of immigrants, and we always will be, believe me.
National security is an important issue, no doubt about that. But Trump's method of dealing with such concerns, most notably the draconian Muslim Ban that was recently struck down by the courts, is far too crude and extreme, and ultimately makes us less safe on balance. Most Muslims are good people, only a tiny fraction are jihadists, and we have more to worry about from reich-wing extremists in this country than we do from jihadists nowadays. In fact, you are statistically more likely to be struck by lightning than killed by a terrorist of any kind. And slamming the door on refugees (who are fleeing unimaginable horrors due in part to American foreign policy blunders, and were already being vigorously vetted under Obama) is downright cruel and un-American. Besides, such draconian and xenophobic policies only alienate more people in the Muslim world, and are thus a yuuuge propaganda victory for ISIL and their fellow-travelers.
"Building the wall" along our border with Mexico would also not be a particularly wise idea on balance. Especially Trump's idea of demanding that Mexico pay for it or reimburse us for it (or slapping a tariff on goods from Mexico to pay for it), all $15-25 billion dollars of it. That is practically the definition of chutzpah! And it would be wasteful. We already have a fairly large fence in place along most of the land border, and the rest of the border's terrain is really not very suitable for building a wall there. And it would still have to be patrolled, wall or no wall, so investing more in patrols and technology would make more sense if border security were really the goal. In practice, it is starting to sound less like the Great Wall of China (which ultimately failed to keep out Genghis Khan and his Mongol hordes, by the way), and more and more like the infamous Berlin Wall (which effectively kept half of Europe prisoner for decades). Now, if only Gorbachev would tell him, "Mr. Trump, tear down this wall!" (The irony.)
What about all those mass deportations that Trump has promised, and have apparently already begun to some extent? Well, those who support such an idea apparently haven't exactly thought that one through. First of all, it would be a logistical nightmare in practice to round them all up. Secondly, deporting all or most of the currently undocumented immigrants in this country, or causing them to "self-deport", would basically blow a YUUUUGE hole in the economy, particularly in agriculture where they are a YUUUUGE part of the workforce, and the resulting labor shortage would cause food prices to go up. BIGLY. When Alabama tried such a crackdown a few years back, that was exactly what happened, so imagine that happening nationwide. (As for the old chestnut, "dey turk ur jerbs", most of those "jerbs" are ones that very few native-born Americans are willing to do at current wages and conditions.) And last but not least, doing so would be downright cruel and callous indeed, and would break up countless families with children.
And about all that crime that immigrants supposedly bring to this country with them? Well, the best studies find that more immigration actually tends to reduce crime overall. And sanctuary cities also tend to have lower crime rates (and better economies as well) compared with similarly-matched non-sanctuary cities. Another myth bites the dust.
What we really need to do is pass comprehensive immigration reform like Obama and Congressional Democrats had tried a few years ago, but Republicans had severely obstructed. The system is clearly broken as it is, and so many problems can literally be solved with the stroke of a pen. We need to make it easier to enter legally, and also easier to become a naturalized U.S. citizen, as the current process is ridiculous. We need amnesty and a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who are currently here, we need to pass the DREAM Act yesterday, and we need to speed up the ridiculously long backlog of people waiting years to get in legally. After that, of course, we should still reduce the quotas so going forward we let in no more immigrants than the previous year's emigration rate (around 200,000 per year) in order to fight overpopulation. Note that this last bit is still part of our party platform, and has been since 2009, though we should note that the very high immigration rates (both legal and illegal) that prevailed under Bush have actually plummeted under Obama for a variety of reasons. And finally, we need to focus on the "push" factors in the sending countries, not just the "pull" factors.
Anything less would be uncivilized. Believe me.
National security is an important issue, no doubt about that. But Trump's method of dealing with such concerns, most notably the draconian Muslim Ban that was recently struck down by the courts, is far too crude and extreme, and ultimately makes us less safe on balance. Most Muslims are good people, only a tiny fraction are jihadists, and we have more to worry about from reich-wing extremists in this country than we do from jihadists nowadays. In fact, you are statistically more likely to be struck by lightning than killed by a terrorist of any kind. And slamming the door on refugees (who are fleeing unimaginable horrors due in part to American foreign policy blunders, and were already being vigorously vetted under Obama) is downright cruel and un-American. Besides, such draconian and xenophobic policies only alienate more people in the Muslim world, and are thus a yuuuge propaganda victory for ISIL and their fellow-travelers.
"Building the wall" along our border with Mexico would also not be a particularly wise idea on balance. Especially Trump's idea of demanding that Mexico pay for it or reimburse us for it (or slapping a tariff on goods from Mexico to pay for it), all $15-25 billion dollars of it. That is practically the definition of chutzpah! And it would be wasteful. We already have a fairly large fence in place along most of the land border, and the rest of the border's terrain is really not very suitable for building a wall there. And it would still have to be patrolled, wall or no wall, so investing more in patrols and technology would make more sense if border security were really the goal. In practice, it is starting to sound less like the Great Wall of China (which ultimately failed to keep out Genghis Khan and his Mongol hordes, by the way), and more and more like the infamous Berlin Wall (which effectively kept half of Europe prisoner for decades). Now, if only Gorbachev would tell him, "Mr. Trump, tear down this wall!" (The irony.)
What about all those mass deportations that Trump has promised, and have apparently already begun to some extent? Well, those who support such an idea apparently haven't exactly thought that one through. First of all, it would be a logistical nightmare in practice to round them all up. Secondly, deporting all or most of the currently undocumented immigrants in this country, or causing them to "self-deport", would basically blow a YUUUUGE hole in the economy, particularly in agriculture where they are a YUUUUGE part of the workforce, and the resulting labor shortage would cause food prices to go up. BIGLY. When Alabama tried such a crackdown a few years back, that was exactly what happened, so imagine that happening nationwide. (As for the old chestnut, "dey turk ur jerbs", most of those "jerbs" are ones that very few native-born Americans are willing to do at current wages and conditions.) And last but not least, doing so would be downright cruel and callous indeed, and would break up countless families with children.
And about all that crime that immigrants supposedly bring to this country with them? Well, the best studies find that more immigration actually tends to reduce crime overall. And sanctuary cities also tend to have lower crime rates (and better economies as well) compared with similarly-matched non-sanctuary cities. Another myth bites the dust.
What we really need to do is pass comprehensive immigration reform like Obama and Congressional Democrats had tried a few years ago, but Republicans had severely obstructed. The system is clearly broken as it is, and so many problems can literally be solved with the stroke of a pen. We need to make it easier to enter legally, and also easier to become a naturalized U.S. citizen, as the current process is ridiculous. We need amnesty and a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who are currently here, we need to pass the DREAM Act yesterday, and we need to speed up the ridiculously long backlog of people waiting years to get in legally. After that, of course, we should still reduce the quotas so going forward we let in no more immigrants than the previous year's emigration rate (around 200,000 per year) in order to fight overpopulation. Note that this last bit is still part of our party platform, and has been since 2009, though we should note that the very high immigration rates (both legal and illegal) that prevailed under Bush have actually plummeted under Obama for a variety of reasons. And finally, we need to focus on the "push" factors in the sending countries, not just the "pull" factors.
Anything less would be uncivilized. Believe me.
Sunday, February 12, 2017
Drug Policy Discussions Have Moved
Since the ingnominious 2016 election has concluded, the True Spirit of America Party has essentially moved all new drug (and alcohol) policy related posts and discussions to our other blog, Twenty-One Debunked. Except of course for those drug policy issues directly related to the Trump administration, which will likely be significant. Please keep following that other blog as well.
Sunday, February 5, 2017
A Vote of No Confidence for Trump
Well, it's official. It's been only two weeks now and Trump has already done more damage than most presidents have done in eight years. And his second week turned out to be even worse than the first.
It should come as no surprise now that his approval rating is at a record low and his disapproval rating is at a record high already compared with previous incoming presidents. It took a mere eight days to reach over 50% disapproval, something that normally takes at least 500 days if it ever even reaches that high at all. Let that sink in for a moment. And the protests are just getting warmed up!
So Donald, take a hint already. We the People hereby give you a vote of "no confidence". BIGLY. Believe me. When you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging. Put simply, YOU'RE FIRED!
It should come as no surprise now that his approval rating is at a record low and his disapproval rating is at a record high already compared with previous incoming presidents. It took a mere eight days to reach over 50% disapproval, something that normally takes at least 500 days if it ever even reaches that high at all. Let that sink in for a moment. And the protests are just getting warmed up!
So Donald, take a hint already. We the People hereby give you a vote of "no confidence". BIGLY. Believe me. When you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging. Put simply, YOU'RE FIRED!
Sunday, January 29, 2017
"President" Trump: More Damage in One Week than Most Presidents Do in Eight Years
Well, it's official. The Donald has managed to do more damage in his first week in the White House, than most presidents have done in eight years. And that is truly "unpresidented" indeed!
Let's see. In his first week on the job, he 1) threw a hissy fit over the size of his innauseation...er...inauguration crowd, 2) implicitly threatened martial law in Chicago, 3) passed a record number of 17 executive orders in one week, 4) put a gag order on EPA and USDA scientists, 5) manufactured chaos in rolling back Obamacare by executive fiat, 6) ordered the commencement of his signature plan to build a border wall on Mexico, 7) angered Mexico by demanding they pay for the wall or else get zinged with a 20% tariff on Mexican imports, 8) angered China (for the gazillionth time), 9) angered North Korea (albeit before the inauguration), 10) cozied up to Putin (yet again), 11) ordered stepped-up deportations and the blocking of federal grants to sanctuary cities, 12) instituted a federal hiring freeze, which also includes a large number of Veterans, 13) re-instituted the "global gag rule" on abortion, 14) froze all new federal regulations, 15) sped up approval of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines, and 16) arbitrarily blocked all refugees, immigrants, and visitors from seven countries, most notably Iraq and Syria, while curiously leaving out the counties he does business in, such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia. (This latter executive order as written, is basically a de-facto Muslim ban from the specified countries, though a federal court did put a temporary injunction on this ban for those who were already in transit or detained at the time thanks to massive protests at JFK International Airport and elsewhere). Note that there were other executive orders, proclamations, and outbursts as well, this is just a list of the most damaging ones thus far.
Also, Trump's relentless verbal attacks on the media and journalists who disagree with him may not be just bluster after all, especially considering how two journalists covering the inauguration protests were arrested and even face felony riot charges, carrying up to 10 years in prison. Yes, you read that right. Remember, the very first people that authoritarian and totalitarian regimes always go after is the journalists. And couple that with his recent purge (sorry, "resignation") of the State Department and his blithely ignoring the recent court ruling, we have the makings for exactly that kind of regime right now.
Oh, and he still flat out refuses to divest from his numerous conflicts of interest, including his foreign ones that run afoul of the Emolunents Clause, and now says he won't even release his tax returns as he once promised he would. This is #NotNormal!
Looks like Der Trumpenfuehrer is really batting 1000 by unhinged fascist standards. And his approval rating is quickly approaching Nickelback territory at warp speed. Or should we say, 3 Doors Down territory? Those who still support him and his agenda, how does it feel to be on the wrong side of history? Because honestly, we wouldn't know anything about that.
Let's see. In his first week on the job, he 1) threw a hissy fit over the size of his innauseation...er...inauguration crowd, 2) implicitly threatened martial law in Chicago, 3) passed a record number of 17 executive orders in one week, 4) put a gag order on EPA and USDA scientists, 5) manufactured chaos in rolling back Obamacare by executive fiat, 6) ordered the commencement of his signature plan to build a border wall on Mexico, 7) angered Mexico by demanding they pay for the wall or else get zinged with a 20% tariff on Mexican imports, 8) angered China (for the gazillionth time), 9) angered North Korea (albeit before the inauguration), 10) cozied up to Putin (yet again), 11) ordered stepped-up deportations and the blocking of federal grants to sanctuary cities, 12) instituted a federal hiring freeze, which also includes a large number of Veterans, 13) re-instituted the "global gag rule" on abortion, 14) froze all new federal regulations, 15) sped up approval of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines, and 16) arbitrarily blocked all refugees, immigrants, and visitors from seven countries, most notably Iraq and Syria, while curiously leaving out the counties he does business in, such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia. (This latter executive order as written, is basically a de-facto Muslim ban from the specified countries, though a federal court did put a temporary injunction on this ban for those who were already in transit or detained at the time thanks to massive protests at JFK International Airport and elsewhere). Note that there were other executive orders, proclamations, and outbursts as well, this is just a list of the most damaging ones thus far.
Also, Trump's relentless verbal attacks on the media and journalists who disagree with him may not be just bluster after all, especially considering how two journalists covering the inauguration protests were arrested and even face felony riot charges, carrying up to 10 years in prison. Yes, you read that right. Remember, the very first people that authoritarian and totalitarian regimes always go after is the journalists. And couple that with his recent purge (sorry, "resignation") of the State Department and his blithely ignoring the recent court ruling, we have the makings for exactly that kind of regime right now.
Oh, and he still flat out refuses to divest from his numerous conflicts of interest, including his foreign ones that run afoul of the Emolunents Clause, and now says he won't even release his tax returns as he once promised he would. This is #NotNormal!
Looks like Der Trumpenfuehrer is really batting 1000 by unhinged fascist standards. And his approval rating is quickly approaching Nickelback territory at warp speed. Or should we say, 3 Doors Down territory? Those who still support him and his agenda, how does it feel to be on the wrong side of history? Because honestly, we wouldn't know anything about that.
Sunday, January 22, 2017
The Women's March Was A YUUGE Success!
The Women's March on Washington, along with it's sister marches all over the globe, was more successful
than anyone could have imagined. It broke all records as the largest
protest march in all of history, with at least half a million in DC
alone and nearly 3 million nationwide.
Some estimates are even higher than that. And it took place on all
seven continents around the world, including Antarctica of all places.
Yes, really. And it was a highly diverse crowd of mostly Women (and male
allies).
The peaceful protest march, which took place the day after the innauseation--er, inauguration--of Donald Trump, also boasts another great statistic: ZERO ARRESTS. Of course, the vast majority of participants were Women. Contrast that to the over 200 arrests the previous day, nearly all of whom were men. Even though the protests during the inauguration were mostly peaceful, that really says something. And I am not surprised, as Women are far less likely to commit acts of violence, vandalism, or rioting than men, especially political violence.
Of course, going forward, much more needs to be done as well. A day or two of protesting, while good, is clearly far from enough. Women, along with their male allies, need to continue to resist Der Trumpenfuehrer and his racist, misogynistic, xenophopbic, homophobic, plutocratic, right-wing authoritarian agenda. Sustained protests and direct action by Women did work to remove the corrupt Silvio Berlusconi from power in Italy, after all. This particular march may have ended, but now is NOT the time to abandon our efforts! Failure is simply not an option anymore considering what is at stake these days.
VIVE LA FEMME! VIVE LE DIFFERENCE!
The peaceful protest march, which took place the day after the innauseation--er, inauguration--of Donald Trump, also boasts another great statistic: ZERO ARRESTS. Of course, the vast majority of participants were Women. Contrast that to the over 200 arrests the previous day, nearly all of whom were men. Even though the protests during the inauguration were mostly peaceful, that really says something. And I am not surprised, as Women are far less likely to commit acts of violence, vandalism, or rioting than men, especially political violence.
Of course, going forward, much more needs to be done as well. A day or two of protesting, while good, is clearly far from enough. Women, along with their male allies, need to continue to resist Der Trumpenfuehrer and his racist, misogynistic, xenophopbic, homophobic, plutocratic, right-wing authoritarian agenda. Sustained protests and direct action by Women did work to remove the corrupt Silvio Berlusconi from power in Italy, after all. This particular march may have ended, but now is NOT the time to abandon our efforts! Failure is simply not an option anymore considering what is at stake these days.
VIVE LA FEMME! VIVE LE DIFFERENCE!
Monday, January 2, 2017
How To Humanely Euthanize Capitalism For Good (Updated Post-2016 Edition)
With all of the latest articles about how climate change is likely worse
than we thought, and how our fragile biosphere that we all depend on is
in increasingly grave danger, it is becoming increasingly clear how
unsustainable our current system really is. We are bumping up against
the limits to growth, and only a fool or an economist (same difference)
could believe that infinite growth on a finite world is possible. And
make no mistake, capitalism cannot exist without growth, so capitalism
must die--or the whole planet dies including us. So which choice will
we make? The TSAP has already outlined several means of solving the
world's vast and interconnected problems in our party platform as well
as in our annual State of the Planet Address. Most notably, we need to
phase out the use of fossil fuels as quickly as possible before we
irreversibly burn up planet, and we need to end our addiction to growth
for the sake of growth, the ideology of the cancer cell which eventually
kills its host. But the prospects are looking increasingly bleak that
our recommendations will actually be put into practice given the current
leadership in Washington who continue to blithely fiddle while the
Earth burns. In fact, with climate-denier Donald Trump becoming POTUS, and thus the Trump-Putin-Exxon Axis of Evil effectively ruling the world, it is even worse than we thought. So what can be done instead?
Enter this seemingly crazy idea. While it may seem like a sop to the fossil fool industry at first glance, it will actually be giving them the rope for them to hang themselves with. And not only will it kill Big Oil and Dirty Coal, but it will also humanely euthanize capitalism in general via the one thing that capitalism simply cannot survive--ABUNDANCE. That's right, capitalism needs scarcity to function, and it has done a marvelous job of creating artificial scarcity for the past 500 years or so. But uncontrolled abundance, whether of resources, energy, or capital, is basically a fatal overdose for the system of capitalism. And thanks to the current exponential growth of renewable energy and related technologies, such abundance is very possible in the near future. And it will be decentralized, so the system can't readily control or stop it once it gets going. All of this dovetails rather nicely with Buckminster Fuller's vision of a pragmatic utopian future.
If we go that route, it actually would be possible to simultaneously implement the carbon tax-and-dividend idea in Steve Stoft's Carbonomics, provided that 100% of the revenue is refunded to We the People, and that the tax rate starts out low so as not to front-load it too quickly. The timing is very important. But any other type of carbon tax scheme would be out of the question, as would most other future restrictions on fossil fuels (especially oil) until the cost solar and wind energy drops below that of such fossil fuels. Not like the Trump-Putin-Exxon Axis of Evil would allow that anyway.
Another idea that the TSAP had once laughed at can also be given a chance as well: the Capital Homestead Act. While it may seem like a pro-capitalist sop to Big Business on the surface, it will actually kill capitalism in the long run as well due to an overabundance of capital and the fact that the workers and owners would essentially become one and the same. Combine it with the Universal Exchange Tax and a Universal Basic Income Guarantee, and the overall impact will be maximized and accelerated.
Of course, capitalism is not the only problem. The 7000 year old War on Women, often known by its euphemistic name "patriarchy", is every bit as much a cause of our world's problems, and the two are basically joined at the hip. While patriarchy can exist without capitalism, capitalism cannot exist without patriarchy. And both evil systems are killing this planet and need to end, yesterday. Let's face it, it ain't gonna be us fellas who will save the world, that's for sure. Fortunately, women have been making huge strides (while men are becoming increasingly redundant), and if current trends continue it seems likely that women will become the new leaders of the free world in the not-too-distant future, as Buckminster Fuller himself once predicted. In fact, that is one of the few things that the futurists are virtually unanimous about.
At least we hope that will be the case. But timing is everything, and we have a very narrow window of opportunity. So what are we waiting for?
Enter this seemingly crazy idea. While it may seem like a sop to the fossil fool industry at first glance, it will actually be giving them the rope for them to hang themselves with. And not only will it kill Big Oil and Dirty Coal, but it will also humanely euthanize capitalism in general via the one thing that capitalism simply cannot survive--ABUNDANCE. That's right, capitalism needs scarcity to function, and it has done a marvelous job of creating artificial scarcity for the past 500 years or so. But uncontrolled abundance, whether of resources, energy, or capital, is basically a fatal overdose for the system of capitalism. And thanks to the current exponential growth of renewable energy and related technologies, such abundance is very possible in the near future. And it will be decentralized, so the system can't readily control or stop it once it gets going. All of this dovetails rather nicely with Buckminster Fuller's vision of a pragmatic utopian future.
If we go that route, it actually would be possible to simultaneously implement the carbon tax-and-dividend idea in Steve Stoft's Carbonomics, provided that 100% of the revenue is refunded to We the People, and that the tax rate starts out low so as not to front-load it too quickly. The timing is very important. But any other type of carbon tax scheme would be out of the question, as would most other future restrictions on fossil fuels (especially oil) until the cost solar and wind energy drops below that of such fossil fuels. Not like the Trump-Putin-Exxon Axis of Evil would allow that anyway.
Another idea that the TSAP had once laughed at can also be given a chance as well: the Capital Homestead Act. While it may seem like a pro-capitalist sop to Big Business on the surface, it will actually kill capitalism in the long run as well due to an overabundance of capital and the fact that the workers and owners would essentially become one and the same. Combine it with the Universal Exchange Tax and a Universal Basic Income Guarantee, and the overall impact will be maximized and accelerated.
Of course, capitalism is not the only problem. The 7000 year old War on Women, often known by its euphemistic name "patriarchy", is every bit as much a cause of our world's problems, and the two are basically joined at the hip. While patriarchy can exist without capitalism, capitalism cannot exist without patriarchy. And both evil systems are killing this planet and need to end, yesterday. Let's face it, it ain't gonna be us fellas who will save the world, that's for sure. Fortunately, women have been making huge strides (while men are becoming increasingly redundant), and if current trends continue it seems likely that women will become the new leaders of the free world in the not-too-distant future, as Buckminster Fuller himself once predicted. In fact, that is one of the few things that the futurists are virtually unanimous about.
At least we hope that will be the case. But timing is everything, and we have a very narrow window of opportunity. So what are we waiting for?
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