Billions Aren’t So Lucky

17 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by in Uncategorized, Water

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Here is an intensely relevant and thought provoking moral question. The World Food Organization person for Zimbabwe said they were now feeding two million people and expects to add at least another two million in a few weeks. The reasons for the need to feed those millions were originally political mismanagement. Now the reason is climate change causing prolonged droughts in Africa.

Multiple catastrophes will continue to increase the numbers of climate refugees and those will need to be fed. As these refugees move to better places they will be reproducing at the same time. As the world’s population increases there will be a need to feed millions more each year. At what point can the output from the viable farmland fail to provide enough food to feed us all? At what point do the haves decide the don’t-haves aren’t going to get anymore substance from the haves.

Almost one-third of the world’s population already has a problem with too little drinking water. The wealthy always have water. It’s the poor who die of thirst or fight for it. Civil wars and regional wars will happen. A good example is the water from the Colorado River is used up before it reaches Mexico causing those people and towns to find water elsewhere. Many of them move across the border to live.

The Syrian Civil War, Central Americans coming to our country, and Africans trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea are three examples of what is in our planet’s future. Joliet residents should be glad they are surrounded by surface water as its wells dry up. Billions aren’t that lucky.

ICC Decision

17 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by in Pipe Line Permit, Uncategorized

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The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) is being asked to approve an increase in the amount of Bakken oil and its chemical additives to be pumped through an existing pipeline. Energy Transfer Partners (ETP) owns the pipeline – I own a few feet – and the pumps which push the oil along. The ICC is being told the increase in pressure won’t add an additional risk for leaks. To increase the pressure more, pumps will be required and a few additional maintenance people will be hired plus some additional real estate taxes in pump areas.

I worked in the oil fields in my first work life so my experience is leaks occur as the line is first activated and with age. Whatever product is put through a pipeline will erode some of it away. Any place where the flow is diverted wears faster so any bend underground or at pumps is at a greater risk. Increasing flow means faster and greater wear with age. Also, my experience is just because it didn’t leak at one pressure doesn’t mean it won’t leak at a higher one.

ETP says its sensors will detect a leak and shut down the pumps immediately. I believe that is correct on a huge leak or a rupture but I doubt it will on fifty gallons each day. That’s why a visual inspection of the route is done periodically. A more usual way is some landowner making an irate call. ETP would then send someone out to look at the soggy mess. This might take two or several hours depending on the location before the call to shut the pumps off and closing valves.

Repair of the line would begin as soon as possible and ideally clean-up would immediately take place without permanent damage to the environment. My experience tells me if I believe that, my next purchase should be swamp land. I think the ICC should tell ETP NO!

GPS in Danger

11 Saturday Jan 2020

Posted by in National Security

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Being a news junkie and a science buff, I am often both confused and upset when connecting the dots. This is one of those times. The December, 2019 issue of Scientific American has an article about GPS’s importance and how it works. I don’t pretend to know how it works but the article cites previous examples of how the GPS system has been taken over by those wanting to control the system.

In 2004, the government was directed to build a ground based GPS system which could be used as a back-up in case the space based system was hacked or destroyed. Most advanced countries have one including Russia, China, and Iran. As usual, in the U.S., nothing was done because it isn’t something showy.

Now connect the dots to today’s geopolitical situation with Iran, North Korea, China, Russia, Venezuela, Cuba, and a few others. All of those countries plus numerous terrorist groups have or can buy, $5,000, the simple technology to bring a part or the whole system down. Maybe they just take down the part that controls the thousand or so airliners that are in the air that depend on GPS to find the airport and correct runway. Apparently jets don’t have compasses anymore.

Apparently a laptop with spoofing software near an airport can cause pilots huge problems especially at night. Somehow the same program could damage our financial system. You don’t have to understand how GPS interacts with almost all technology, just know we would be in a real mess and not know who or why it was done. Even my flip phone would be affected. Tell your Representative and Senator to fast-track the ground based GPS as a National Emergency, because it is!

Thoughtful Similarities

10 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by in Politics

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I was once deeply involved in an organization where the leader was in power for a single year. Because the term is only one year, that person must be very experienced before hand or most of the year is spent in learning, not leading.

Because of internal politics, an inexperienced person who wasn’t able to go out to inspire the people or know the organization was elected to lead. Few people want to work with the person because of the leader’s personality, inexperience, lack of knowledge, and paranoia. Some were able to take necessary positions and to put the organization over their distaste of the leader and the constant conflicts with that leader. One of the conflicts was the group leader had come from wealth and could not understand how the great majority of the people in the organization aren’t wealthy.

The next leader wasn’t an inspiring person but did his best to halt the slide and allow the next person to set the stage for the coming year. The next leader was the most experienced person the organization had produced in years and was able by appointing dedicated people to many positions and by sheer willpower, excited the people to do good things.

The above strikes me as what is happening in the White House. The current leader is inexperienced, paranoid, has thoughts of grandeur, and hard to work for. The country has fallen into a moral decay. I believe the next president should not be one who wants to do great things but one who can halt the slide and calm the people. The one after that might be elected to inspire and put our country on a greater path. Obviously I think Joe Biden is the calming person with Amy Klobuchar as his vice-president. Both are the moderates we so desperately need at this time.

Iran versus Iraq

08 Wednesday Jan 2020

Posted by in Iran, Uncategorized

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Far too many people think Iran would be a pushover like Iraq in the two wars we had with Saddam. They share a common border and a common religion sect controlling the current governments. Both are large oil producers but Iran has other businesses.

The difference between the two is stability. Iraq has little stability and Iran may have problems with their elected people but not with their religious elite. When we invaded Iraq, Saddam was a maniacal, paranoid Sunni leader who had kept control of the 66% of the country who were Shia.

In 1980 Saddam attacked Iran with our help. The war lasted 8 years costing his military several thousand troops. Iran lost about a million people. Saddam sued for peace after the last battle where his dug-in army ran out of artillery, mortar shells and ammunition after human waves by kids walking through the minefields. Behind the kids were militias followed by regular army, followed by elite guards units. They mowed them down and blew them apart but they kept coming. That is what their religion requires them to do to reach heaven.

Iran is 94% Shia and 5 % Sunni and does not have the weak military Saddam attacked. Iran has advanced high-speed silkworm missiles which might be able to overwhelm our Navy in the little Persian Gulf. They have purchased and upgraded their advanced air defense system with modern anti-aircraft guns and missiles.

Iran has 83 million people in the country and tens of thousands outside the country willing to die to defend their religious leader and country. Thanks to Trump’s bullying and prodding, few if any country will join us because they see him starting the conflict. If we are kicked out of Iraq, we lose a land base and Iran may gain additional supplies, financing, and troops.

Iran will not be a pushover or a short war.

Pessimistic for the Future

08 Wednesday Jan 2020

Posted by in New Year, Uncategorized

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The New Year is supposed to be a time for optimism but the only optimistic thing I can hope for is for people to get out of their silos, open their eyes, and work together on solving problems facing humanity. People in office only want to stay in office so they only do things that will keep them in office. Changing that will require courage.

Here is a list of problems that need solving. The world’s population is nearing eight billion and will be over ten billion by 2050. We are currently adding a billion each decade but the time in between each billion is growing shorter so eighteen billion is probable by 2100 unless we have a massive destructive war, world epidemic, or we suddenly decide one child or no children is required.

Think about how much trash we bury or dump in the oceans each day. Much of it will be there forever because it doesn’t break down. Think of all the chemicals we make which are dumped into the environment. A few decades ago we fixed things and now we just throw them away and buy new, creating more mountains of waste.

Think about how we narrowly avoided a complete financial meltdown twelve years ago when debt was found worthless. Now the world including America is drowning in debt. Soon nobody will buy any debt private, corporate or national debt.

America’s new nationalism policies are in line with many other countries. Some are supposedly allies and others are enemies. Nationalism has spawned hundreds of wars. World Wars I and II, Korea, Viet Nam, and the first Iraq are just the few we were involved in.

I can’t see any real hope of stopping global warming and its effects.

No, I don’t see anything to be optimistic about.

Suspicious Event

08 Wednesday Jan 2020

Posted by in Iran

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I always wonder when America acts against another country where the intelligence came from and why the administration believed it. We blew up a powdered milk factory and the workers inside it because Israel said it was a chemical weapons factory. The administration went after Saddam Hussein because Vice President Cheney leaned on CIA analysis people to make a report saying Iraq had chemical and biologic weapons and was trying to build nuclear ones. None of it was true and some of the American media showed it wasn’t true. The European intelligence agencies said Iraq didn’t have any such weapons. The only country agreeing with the analysis was Israel who had been upset since Desert Storm didn’t do regime change.

Remember the students being mistreated and held as hostage in Grenada? The students weren’t aware of problems until our troops landed, so where did Reagan get the information? Over 3,000 bronze stars were given to people in the Pentagon who never left the building. Why? Was it to keep them quiet? I never heard any intelligence agency saying that the students were in danger, only White House speakers. Was it a coincidence that the invasion occurred immediately after 250 troops were killed in Lebanon?

So where did Trump suddenly get information he acted on to kill a man who is like Iran’s Secretary of Defense on the eve of his impeachment trial? It benefits Putin who gains influence in Syria, Iraq, and Iran.

Everything Donald Trump has done in his life is to make him look good or to divert attention from something bad he has done. He has the greatest ego, is the biggest liar, and the most paranoid of any President we have ever had, so we are justified in wondering why now. Secretary of State Pompeo was on the Sunday Morning shows and would only say we have information but he wouldn’t say what it is. Sounds suspicious to me.

Journalism’s Responsibility

08 Wednesday Jan 2020

Posted by in Journalism

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The non-news junkies probably missed the item concerning Joe Biden, who Donald Trump believes is his greatest threat. A video was released showing Biden is anti-black. Biden has almost complete support with black voters so efforts to reduce that support are an obvious need for Trump.

The video portrays Biden making racist statements. It was 9 seconds out of a 10 minute answer to an audience question. Who has the capability to put out such a professional looking video? Lots of groups, companies, and individuals do. Who did it and spread it? Did Putin’s people do it? Were they involved in getting it spread to gullible Americans? We know they did this type of thing in 2016.

The problem is millions of Americans believe what they see on social media and not what they see on live television and from reputable journalists. Millions of voters are gullible enough to be led by the nose to vote as the Russians and others want them to vote. The Russians have interfered with elections in over fifty other countries. Putting Trump in office wasn’t their greatest achievement. BREXIT is. Others are getting several Nationalists elected to some European Union countries in an effort to divide it and NATO.

Looks like the same deceptions are being used again with fake posts on Facebook and fake tweets to Trump’s 40 million gullible followers. He often says he heard something which he uses in his daily diatribes at the front gate of the White House.

The real media — not the Fox talking heads — should call lies lies and not let Trump or any other person get away with promoting lies. Isn’t presenting the truth the job of a free press? It is a person’s right to lie but it is journalism’s right and responsibility to present the truth.

America Must Change

30 Monday Dec 2019

Posted by in Gun Control

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A man started shooting people in the West Freeway Church of Christ and was shot by security guards and perhaps some of the people. A relative of one of the members said “some good guys shot a bad guy”. The relative just doesn’t get it.

We didn’t have this problem a few decades ago. Why? Two reasons are the most obvious. One is the proliferation of guns and we now have the gun lobby and the Supreme Court to thank for the availability of guns. Our country has more guns per person than Israel where it is mandatory for most Israelis. Americans have become brainwashed by the gun lobbies into believing racial war is imminent or civil unrest is going to happen. A friend of ours has several assault style weapons to protect her and property from the militias she fears.

The other obvious reason is the social media where much of those fears originate. The gun lobby, American anarchists, and Russian disinformation are the primary sources. The gullible people pass along the propaganda and lies to other gullible people. Our political leaders aren’t brave enough to confront this menace to our culture.

Guns are a clear and present danger to America and the lack of real laws with teeth in them are needed. Hunters know shotgun barrel lengths and three round magazines and are afraid of being caught with a short barrel or unplugged magazines. Even though hundreds of rounds were shot in Las Vegas or in all the school, mall and church shootings, nothing is being done. Why? What needs to be done by sane Americans to put a stop to this insanity?

Permanent Shorts and Short Sleeves

20 Friday Dec 2019

Posted by in Climate Change

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I am fairly convinced that we will lose the battle with global warming. The goal is to stop the rise at no more than 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit. We are already almost half that rise with little sign of slowing. Current efforts to reduce the amounts of carbon dioxide and methane entering the atmosphere will not be sufficient to cut the rise.

The Trump administration, fossil fuel companies and those who are duped into believing it isn’t happening are keeping America from leading the effort to saving humanity. The President says fossil fuel jobs are more important. The companies consider profits are more critical. Well, the deniers are just duped by those people who use bad science for ego and profit. In a few years all deniers will be pilloried for their belief and inaction.

We are all contributing to the destruction of humanity as we know it. Some more than others are responsible for our crisis. It is easy to see and feel the effects so why do some people deny what they can easily know.

Individually we can do little to help save future generations. We must support organizations that will have a larger voice and vote for people who want to work on solutions. We can try to cut omissions as best as we can, but our greatest contribution is to stand with others who know we are in trouble. When tens of millions of us stand together perhaps we can make something change but it starts with leadership in the oval office. If it doesn’t happen in 2020 then don’t worry about future generations needing heavy jackets for the winter.