Tag Archives: politics

One would have to be totally unknowing or have a ignorant disregard for wetlands near streams, rivers, and lakes. Wetlands purify our water by removing sediments and other pollutants including chemicals. Wetlands also filter and process excess nutrients that may runoff from agricultural and development sites. Wetlands hold on to the water long enough to allow the sediments and other pollutants to settle out and the purified water then enters...

Alito pretends physics does not exist. Nearby wetlands do not matter unless they have a surface connection to a stream, river, or lake. The notion a wetland can only be linked to streams or lakes by a continuous surface connection—presumably visible to the justices themselves—is fundamentally at odds with hydrology or the science of water. The movement of water beneath the surface (groundwater) connects water bodies in ways that are just as or more...

The second question; Why do Repubs get to pick the judges they wish to appear before? And the third question? Why do Dems get whatever is available? I was thinking about this happenstance on Friday when I read trump would appear in Federal Court in Florida. And yes, trump appointee Judge Aileen Cannon came to mind. Here we are once again . . . How does Judge Cannon get to be the assigned to oversee the classified documents case against former...

Meanwhile, Trump is on the campaign trail busily trying to foment another insurrection/revolution a la Jan 6th. Can’t but still wonder if there isn’t something darker than the documents driving this desperation.

Niagara Falls: Some things never change, Carbon Upfront, Lloyd Alter. In 1882 Oscar Wilde noted that “Niagara will survive any criticism of mine. I must say this, however, that it is the first disappointment in the married life of many Americans who spend their honeymoon there.” (Calling it the second disappointment is a misquote) I recently visited with my daughter Emma’s family, and not much has changed since 1882, or at least since my kids were...

“This success can translate to a more transformative and permanent paradigm shift for US energy policy, but the DOE’s success paves a clear path to future successes.” The SPR strategy being, “how long can the US hold out against a hostile Middle East?” The Saudis appear to favor trump over other US politicians. Maybe appeasing trump is easier than satisfying a real president focused on the nation they represent rather than himself and ego. In any...

The End of Easy Money: Bankruptcy Filings Pile Up at Fastest Rate since 2010, Wolf Street, Wolf Richter. t’s turning into a banner year for corporate bankruptcy filings. Easy Money has caused all kinds of excesses, fueled by yield-chasing investors, in an environment where the Fed had repressed yields with all its might. Those yield-chasing investors kept even the most over-indebted zombies supplied with ever-more fresh money. But that era has...

Akin to “I was just following orders.” Such a reason did not work before and people following the orders or the laws in this instance and other instances did not ask questions. The orders and the law gave an excuse to do otherwise. A story as taken from “Anger as pre-historic stones destroyed for French DIY store,” Le Monde,fr. Around 40 standing stones thought to have been erected by prehistoric humans 7,000 years ago have been destroyed near...

Does AI pose a meaningful existential threat to humanity?  If an existential threat is one that can lead to mass death or human extinction, and a risk of extinction is meaningful if it is (say) at least 10% as large as the risk of a nuclear holocaust, my answer is that I have no idea.   But it seems clear that AI does pose a serious threat to democratic stability.  It will give anti-democratic actors a powerful new tool for spreading political...

Angry Bear had written about the forthcoming state Medicaid-Purge the later part of May. The reason for the purge of many Medicaid enrollees was the ending of Joe Biden’s pandemic Medicaid enrollment program. It was a much needed program during the pandemic if one could not afford healthcare insurance and did not have Medicaid. Not being able to afford healthcare insurance was not the only gain from Medicaid. The extension of Medicaid postpartum care...