I lived just north of Asheville for 14 years and now, of all places I live in central Fla. for 8 years now, with Milton picking up speed and heading my way.
It worries me, but so does right wing politics, greed, violence, social media, AI, climate change and the ignorance and apathy of oh so many of our citizens.
I am just grateful I’m old and have no offspring to worry about. But I cry for the earth and only can hope once man is gone, the earth will heal and life will flourish once more and hopefully, without humans.
Sorry to be gloomy, I would just say living in reality is a difficult place to be, one that most can't see and run from if they get a glimpse. I've actually been known to be quite funny in a previous life, but the only humor I can conjure in this situation is quite dark. Not that I can compare myself to the brilliance of George Carlin, but I feel like him in some ways. His humor got quite serious towards the end, how I miss his brilliant observations.
I dropped out of the news cycle the last couple of days to focus on this article, guess I had better bone up on Milton. I hope it skips by you, Mary. And ditto on that list of worries.
I have an elderly aunt in Port Riley, about six miles in from the coast. So far, she has been spared the worst consequences of these storms. I hope that is the case for you.
Really enjoyed your analysis, and your previous post, too, about the disappearing Permian basin oil. Also, some gratitude for not taking the position that our broken political system means we should sit out the election. Letting Trump in will be checkmate.
I suspect Kamala is simply playing for votes in Pennsylvania. I learned a very long time ago not to take what a presidential candidate says on the stump seriously. Biden's actual policies have been the closest to FDR's since FDR, but that's not how he campaigned. If he had, he probably would have been clobbered, because Americans, even though they support the majority of the leftish policies he's enacted, don't seem to realize that they do, so they veer hard to the middle every election.
Trump is an anomaly in that regard, of course, as he has no policy other than deranged levels of grief politics.
Kamala spoke out against fracking when she first ran in 2020. She's also young enough to have kids she must be worried about. The door will at least be open to change. I hope so. If not, Trump will in prison and we can safely show her the door in the next primaries.
One minor footnote. The dock strike is over. They reportedly accepted a 61% (or so) pay increase. I would argue that Biden's comments were probably directed at the employers, rather than striking workers, especially given that the longshoreman's union credited Pete Buttigieg with helping push an agreement through that they could sign off on.
The strike is officially postponed until January, after the inauguration, so even if they hit snags tightening up the terms of the contract, it won't affect the election. Frankly, I'm breathing a sigh of relief, because Americans are much more concerned about the cost of their toilet paper than the general welfare of the country. Your readers and readers of similar substacks excepted of course.
So a strike could have done real damage to Kamala's candidacy.
Good observations and I am glad my work resonates with you. Even if we are in the minority of understanding what's going on, it helps not to be alone in this knowledge.
Kamala doesn't have children, but she does have nieces. Being not much older than I am and a reasonably good track record on the environment as California's AG, I'm hoping she understands the importance of halting the burning of FFs. I realize that's a massive task, but Helene and what's to come will break the economy and society. Radical change is needed now. We have no time for less. People actually believe EVs are helpful. That is not the case. We need vision, not just policy.
I understood Biden's problem when he passed IRA, a greatly watered down version of the Green New Deal, but even the Green New Deal fell short. It doesn't recognize FFs are bound to become economically unfeasible to extract. It promised a future of unfettered capitalism. Without FFs there are no wind turbines, solar arrays or batteries to smooth energy delivery. Whatever we manage to build now, we won't be able to maintain when oil is economically unviable to extract. At best, this is bridge technology to a low energy world. Needless to say, this inevitability is unacceptable politically or socially to those worried about the cost of their toilet paper.
I was aware the dock strike ended, and of course aware Biden was making the comment in regard to the potential impact on Helene's victims. However, the irony is the devastation of Helene would have not occurred without our mindless consumption of the world. When will leadership see and have the courage to tell the truth (if they see it)?
Even if Kamala wins and has vision and courage, she's going to need both houses to affect change. She will also need to expand the Supreme Court. We need miracles on many levels now. Should we get them, we're still in for a rough ride. I think we have exceeded too many tipping points, but I keep writing for whatever chance we have. Thank you for your comments, Charles.
Agreed on all points except the Kamala child thing. They're step children but she made it a point during the debate that they are as dear to her as if they were here :-). I should have been clearer.
As for when will leadership show courage? They have been out of time for awhile, so hopefully soon.
This is why I'm saying we need a petrocommunist movement. We cannot allow criminals to control the production and sale of fossil fuels any longer. No matter what, it will get worse before it gets better, but if we do want it to get better some day, we must seize the means of the production of energy.
I don't think the principles of communism are bad. I don't think the principles of socialism are bad, or democracy for that matter. It really comes down to behavior, to me, greed that ruins any political and social structure. At the core, we have a terrible behavioral problem.
If you mean seizing the production of energy to halt it as quickly as possible, I agree, but it's also like weaning an addict off a drug. Cold turkey would result in much violence and death. I'm a believer in Degrowth, a concept around since 1970. It's tragic that kind of thinking didn't take hold then, but for the most part the world is not run by enlightened people.
My own opinion is we passed the point of no return 30 to 40 years ago to have any kind of civil transition. The government should have started a Manhattan or Apollo type project then to address the problem. The government and the oil companies knew.
There has been nothing in the news about how many people are out of work, no home, still stranded, dead etc. It seems to me that the entire south eastern seaboard states have been destroyed and FEMA is already pleading poverty. How long will it take to recover? And another storm is already on the way.
Unfortunately, I agree we likely passed that point decades ago, One of the reasons I wrote The Greenland Ice Sheet is Already Gone. We did need a galvanized effort decades ago.
This storm has as you point out caused lasting economic damage, with a projected Cat 3 bearing down on Florida again. There will come a point when we are physically and financially unable to recover. Insurance is quickly becoming unaffordable or unavailable as well.
FEMA has $20bn in its coffers from the recent supplemental spending bill. That's supposed to hold them until November 5. If Senators want to hold their seats in these states, they will approve more funds. Even Scott, Rubio and Graham are clamoring.
However, at some point, as you say, we will be on or own. Halting weapons to Israel would be a good place to start adjusting the budget.
It is rare for me to find someone who shares my fears for Mother Earth, our children’s future and also understands the maniacal driving forces behind it all, so well.
Wish that everyone would read your post, Geoffrey. Your ability to see through the bullshit is so refreshing.
Thank you, Walter. I have lived outside the madness, in large part because of my father's fine library of his generation and the previous one. I also observed how poorly he was treated as a person of conscience, integrity and fairness. It didn't always go well. I understood human nature from a very young age.
What seems obvious to us, others are oblivious to, blinded by 24/7 brainwashing, divide and conquer strategy and poor education.
Your last line… “If Harris wins, don’t be surprised by ensuing chaos and violence. There is a seething, exploited minority in this country ready to explode.”
The election won’t be over until the inauguration has taken place, and there may well be widespread violence continuing after that. No one watching the events in the US unfold from a distance can believe that the polls are close. How can there be ANY support for a convicted felon running for President? But the white nativists are on the march and will never accept a woman of colour as their leader, sad to say.
Oh my such gloom and I agree with all of it.
I lived just north of Asheville for 14 years and now, of all places I live in central Fla. for 8 years now, with Milton picking up speed and heading my way.
It worries me, but so does right wing politics, greed, violence, social media, AI, climate change and the ignorance and apathy of oh so many of our citizens.
I am just grateful I’m old and have no offspring to worry about. But I cry for the earth and only can hope once man is gone, the earth will heal and life will flourish once more and hopefully, without humans.
Sorry to be gloomy, I would just say living in reality is a difficult place to be, one that most can't see and run from if they get a glimpse. I've actually been known to be quite funny in a previous life, but the only humor I can conjure in this situation is quite dark. Not that I can compare myself to the brilliance of George Carlin, but I feel like him in some ways. His humor got quite serious towards the end, how I miss his brilliant observations.
I dropped out of the news cycle the last couple of days to focus on this article, guess I had better bone up on Milton. I hope it skips by you, Mary. And ditto on that list of worries.
Oh I’m all for reality😊
Yeah, I’m in central FL as well. Milton isn’t looking good. Especially for the Tampa/St Pete area that just took a pummeling.
I have an elderly aunt in Port Riley, about six miles in from the coast. So far, she has been spared the worst consequences of these storms. I hope that is the case for you.
Really enjoyed your analysis, and your previous post, too, about the disappearing Permian basin oil. Also, some gratitude for not taking the position that our broken political system means we should sit out the election. Letting Trump in will be checkmate.
I suspect Kamala is simply playing for votes in Pennsylvania. I learned a very long time ago not to take what a presidential candidate says on the stump seriously. Biden's actual policies have been the closest to FDR's since FDR, but that's not how he campaigned. If he had, he probably would have been clobbered, because Americans, even though they support the majority of the leftish policies he's enacted, don't seem to realize that they do, so they veer hard to the middle every election.
Trump is an anomaly in that regard, of course, as he has no policy other than deranged levels of grief politics.
Kamala spoke out against fracking when she first ran in 2020. She's also young enough to have kids she must be worried about. The door will at least be open to change. I hope so. If not, Trump will in prison and we can safely show her the door in the next primaries.
One minor footnote. The dock strike is over. They reportedly accepted a 61% (or so) pay increase. I would argue that Biden's comments were probably directed at the employers, rather than striking workers, especially given that the longshoreman's union credited Pete Buttigieg with helping push an agreement through that they could sign off on.
The strike is officially postponed until January, after the inauguration, so even if they hit snags tightening up the terms of the contract, it won't affect the election. Frankly, I'm breathing a sigh of relief, because Americans are much more concerned about the cost of their toilet paper than the general welfare of the country. Your readers and readers of similar substacks excepted of course.
So a strike could have done real damage to Kamala's candidacy.
Good observations and I am glad my work resonates with you. Even if we are in the minority of understanding what's going on, it helps not to be alone in this knowledge.
Kamala doesn't have children, but she does have nieces. Being not much older than I am and a reasonably good track record on the environment as California's AG, I'm hoping she understands the importance of halting the burning of FFs. I realize that's a massive task, but Helene and what's to come will break the economy and society. Radical change is needed now. We have no time for less. People actually believe EVs are helpful. That is not the case. We need vision, not just policy.
I understood Biden's problem when he passed IRA, a greatly watered down version of the Green New Deal, but even the Green New Deal fell short. It doesn't recognize FFs are bound to become economically unfeasible to extract. It promised a future of unfettered capitalism. Without FFs there are no wind turbines, solar arrays or batteries to smooth energy delivery. Whatever we manage to build now, we won't be able to maintain when oil is economically unviable to extract. At best, this is bridge technology to a low energy world. Needless to say, this inevitability is unacceptable politically or socially to those worried about the cost of their toilet paper.
I was aware the dock strike ended, and of course aware Biden was making the comment in regard to the potential impact on Helene's victims. However, the irony is the devastation of Helene would have not occurred without our mindless consumption of the world. When will leadership see and have the courage to tell the truth (if they see it)?
Even if Kamala wins and has vision and courage, she's going to need both houses to affect change. She will also need to expand the Supreme Court. We need miracles on many levels now. Should we get them, we're still in for a rough ride. I think we have exceeded too many tipping points, but I keep writing for whatever chance we have. Thank you for your comments, Charles.
Agreed on all points except the Kamala child thing. They're step children but she made it a point during the debate that they are as dear to her as if they were here :-). I should have been clearer.
As for when will leadership show courage? They have been out of time for awhile, so hopefully soon.
You're right. I was thinking of her nieces at the convention. Courage to all of us. We at the bottom have to do our share as well.
You definitely are!
This is why I'm saying we need a petrocommunist movement. We cannot allow criminals to control the production and sale of fossil fuels any longer. No matter what, it will get worse before it gets better, but if we do want it to get better some day, we must seize the means of the production of energy.
I don't think the principles of communism are bad. I don't think the principles of socialism are bad, or democracy for that matter. It really comes down to behavior, to me, greed that ruins any political and social structure. At the core, we have a terrible behavioral problem.
If you mean seizing the production of energy to halt it as quickly as possible, I agree, but it's also like weaning an addict off a drug. Cold turkey would result in much violence and death. I'm a believer in Degrowth, a concept around since 1970. It's tragic that kind of thinking didn't take hold then, but for the most part the world is not run by enlightened people.
https://geoffreydeihl.substack.com/p/degrowth-the-vision-we-must-demand
My own opinion is we passed the point of no return 30 to 40 years ago to have any kind of civil transition. The government should have started a Manhattan or Apollo type project then to address the problem. The government and the oil companies knew.
There has been nothing in the news about how many people are out of work, no home, still stranded, dead etc. It seems to me that the entire south eastern seaboard states have been destroyed and FEMA is already pleading poverty. How long will it take to recover? And another storm is already on the way.
From here on forward we're on our own.
Unfortunately, I agree we likely passed that point decades ago, One of the reasons I wrote The Greenland Ice Sheet is Already Gone. We did need a galvanized effort decades ago.
This storm has as you point out caused lasting economic damage, with a projected Cat 3 bearing down on Florida again. There will come a point when we are physically and financially unable to recover. Insurance is quickly becoming unaffordable or unavailable as well.
FEMA has $20bn in its coffers from the recent supplemental spending bill. That's supposed to hold them until November 5. If Senators want to hold their seats in these states, they will approve more funds. Even Scott, Rubio and Graham are clamoring.
However, at some point, as you say, we will be on or own. Halting weapons to Israel would be a good place to start adjusting the budget.
It is rare for me to find someone who shares my fears for Mother Earth, our children’s future and also understands the maniacal driving forces behind it all, so well.
Wish that everyone would read your post, Geoffrey. Your ability to see through the bullshit is so refreshing.
Thank you, Walter. I have lived outside the madness, in large part because of my father's fine library of his generation and the previous one. I also observed how poorly he was treated as a person of conscience, integrity and fairness. It didn't always go well. I understood human nature from a very young age.
What seems obvious to us, others are oblivious to, blinded by 24/7 brainwashing, divide and conquer strategy and poor education.
Your last line… “If Harris wins, don’t be surprised by ensuing chaos and violence. There is a seething, exploited minority in this country ready to explode.”
The election won’t be over until the inauguration has taken place, and there may well be widespread violence continuing after that. No one watching the events in the US unfold from a distance can believe that the polls are close. How can there be ANY support for a convicted felon running for President? But the white nativists are on the march and will never accept a woman of colour as their leader, sad to say.