Opposing the World

THE CONTRAST between the searing heat in Australia, where it was one hundred and twenty degress yesterday, and the frigid cold in the American south, where nighttime temperatures descended to nearly zero degrees highlights the true nature of climate change. It seems nearly impossible to convince climate science deniers that global warming is a bit more complicated than the weather becoming hotter. But try explaining ths to your average American climate science denying conservative. Carbon traps more heat, and more heat means more movement within the atmosphere. More movement of air means more volatility, which in turn means more turbulence, more wind, more storms, stronger, more severee storms. Would anyone care to explain basic atmospheric science, basic thermodynamics, basic high school chemistry to any "garden variety" right winger. One wonders whether there are any climae deniers in America,or anywhere else, who have ever taken a chemistry class. The guy who repaired my heating and airconditiong unittoldme that he has taken several chemistry classes, and further stipulated that climate change is a "hoax". AS to whether the gentleman actually studied and passed chemistry istomequestionable. Liek Festus Haggen said on "Gunsmoke", I have my doubtfuls. They may as well assert that the laws of hature are themselves a hoax, that the simple pyhsical reality that carbon absorbs more heat then nitrogen and oxygen is a hoax, that science itself is a hoax. Are they willing to believe that carbon and oxygen combine to form carbon dioxide, that carbon dioxide traps heat, and that the more CO2 weinject into the ecosystem, the more solar radiation is tapped and the more slowly the heat of a hot summer day is dissipated into outer space, so that more remians trapped in the atmosphere? Carl Sagan,in his seminal monograph "The Demon Haunted World", gives lavish praise to the American people for their intelligence, and ability to learn. However, he gives low marks for our willingess to become sufficiently well educated to understand and accept the unavoidable reality of a warming atmosphere and planet. We have no shortage of intelligence. What we have is a severe shortage of adequately educated people in history and science. Climate change denial is a tragic phenonemon, driven purely by perceived political self interet. After all, if there is no climae change, if human activity had no adverse impact on nature, then well, we have no need to reform our economy and our way of life with regard to energy use, no need for progress or progressive politics. Without acknowledge of climate science, the capitalist system, according to which everything is for sale and all things are rife for exploitation for profit. Conservatism is resistance to change, which is necessary for progress, but hateful to status quo oriented conservatism. Like Goethe said: "The world advances only because of those who oppose it." Then too, there are quite well educated people who deny climate science, even though they know better. When one's self esteem is tied to one's long held rigidly held political ideology, or one's deeply held religious beliefs, one's mind is no more capable of opening to new information and realities than it is of rewriting the laws of nature.Climate denial is subsiding, as more people, with societal pressure building, begin to grudgingly accept reailty. When acceptance of reality threatens one's comfortable entrenched beliefs, reality takes a back seat. The tragedy is that our rapidly diminshing opportunity to effectively address our dire situation is being thrown away by those who would rather curse the darkness than light a single candle, their own.

Tearing Down the Pillars of Prosperity

OF THE SIX PILLARS of merican prosperity enumerated in the previous essay (Organizing For Prosperity), Donald Trump has and continues to undermine them all, and threatens to utterly destroy them. Trump's anti-immigrant attitude is well documented, as is his unrepentant racism, It was Trump who clearly expressed his desire that immmigrants come to the United States from Norway, which is the example he used. Presumably he would happily accept them from any Scandanavian country, except perhaps Denmark, whose people have outdone themselves in ridiculing that which is ridiculous, all things Trump. The common denominator, unspoken, is of course sking color. Aside from the fact that nobody fortunate enough to live in northern Europe has any motivation to reocate in a demographically third wofld country with a steady storm of mass murders, extreme poverty is virtually nonexistant in Europe, and is rampant in the U.S. Then too, most european countries have a higher standard of living than Americans. For the foreseeable future, the land of liberty must be content to either receive an influx of darkly pigmented impoverished immigrants, or to let its abundant agricultural harvest rot on the vine. The federal government support for education is drying up under Trump, at his direction. Too much liberal indoctrination in America's public schools, such as teaching kids to acccept everyone of all religions, sexual orientations, and political affiliations. The third pillar, broad based global access to American markets, if being drastically truncated by Trump's needless, economically stifling tariff regimen. Only a few economists favor tariff barriers anywhere at any time. Ravi Batra, in his book "The Pooring of America", points to tariffs as destructive to American national prosperity by raisng consumer prices. Its a balancing act; tariffs help protect domestic industry from foreign competition, but give consumers less choice. Certainly American exporters do not desire to run up against high tariffs in foreign markets. They want open, easily accessed foreign markets. Political stability is vital to a healthy, functioning national economy. The fact that the rule of law is a basic feature of American society, with a relatively stable political system, is not onlly beneficial to American prosperity, but essential. No politician in American history, arguably, has been more destructive to the rule of law than the current president, whose extensive criminal activity is well documented and known, but, evidently, of no importance to his cult of supporters. International trade is impossible without an international system of mutual security and cooperation. Trump, with his xenophobic policies and "America First-America alone" ideology, has undone decades of alliance building and cooperative international economics. Allies mean nothing to Trump, unless they are subservient to his positions and interests. He has alienated America's former allies. The final pillar, a politically independent and fiscally prudent monetary policy and supply is the primary purpose of the Federal reserve banking system, giving it credibility by freeing it and insulating it from all fleeting, ephemeral political considerations. Trump is the first American president, and one hopes the last one, to openly, unabashadly interfere with the fed by commenting on its monetary policies and threatening its objectivity, independence, and ultimately its effectiveness. Trump is, as the ancient saying goes, burning down teh city to rule over the ashes.For hism, simply being of service to his countty is of no value to him personaly, and therefore,quite unthinkable.

Organizing For Prosperity

SCHOLARS HAVE IDENTIFIED six principle forces, six pillars of prosperity responsible for the historical and current prosperity of the United States. They are, in no particular order: 1) Imimigration. The relatively esay access of immigrants to the United States, including foreign students who come to the U.S. to study in the world class American system of higher education. In a nation of immigrants, modern immigration keeps the fresh blood flowing, injecting American society, culture, and its economy with a constant infusion of energetice new human talent. 2) The steady and rich support by the federal government of education and basic research in many fields, including medicine, science, and technology. 3) Braod access to U.S. consumer markets for importers and their goods and services, which helps keep consumer prices lower, and gives American consumers much more choice. 4) An unwavering adherance in the United States to the rule of law, providing a stable environment for investment and economi growth.5) A firm network of geo-politica global alliances which help enhance political and thus economic stbility, both vital to prosperous economic activity. 6) A politically independent and fiscally prudent monetary policy and supply, bolsterd by the Federal Reserve banking system. Each of these vital ndconstructive features of American economic life contributes an almost immeasurable assitin ensuring the continuing economic success of the American experiemnt, such that it is. Perhaps the greatest asset of all in protection and nurturing broad based American prosperity merits mention; socialism. Social Security, perhaps the kingpin of American socialism, has liftedmillions of older people out of poverty, keeps them uout of poverty, and keeps them in the game economically, as spenders and consumers of American manufactured goods. When prosperity is widely shared, when even the poorest of the poor have some discretionary income. The wealthiest one percnt are only going to spend so much in the free market. No matter how wealthy, one only needs so much food,clothing, consumer goods and services, and shelter. Most of the concentrated wealth in the United States is being hoarded, not invested, and this does nothing to stimulate economic activity. The more widely distributed the nation's money supply is, the greater the consumer demand for goods and services, the more televisions and refirgerators ares bought and sold. When a vast amount of national wealth is concentrated in only a few extremely wealthy hands, as is currenly the case to a larger extent than at any time since the Gilded Age of the alte nineteenth century. The true economic power of America is being bottlenecked at the very top of the sociological pyramid stifling the kind of production and consumption which would unleash the greatest era of prosperity even enjoye by teh human species, at any time or place. Capitalism causes wealth to concentrate, invariably, inevitably, unless it is modified by a few fundamental socialistic measures, including a progressive taxaation system, and government action in favor of the poor, minimum wage and laborlaws, among other measures. A large impoverished underclass, such as that which exists in the U.S. consists of the working poor, and is a drag on economic growth and prosperity. Poor people don't spend, and do not help raise consumer demand for goods. Getting money into the hands of the bottom of the economic pyramid is vital, since teh bottom sis always the largest part of the whole structure. What must never be ignored is the reality that in any economic system, capitalism, socialism, or other, society can eitehr be uplifted or dragged down by the people on the bottom, on whose misery the wealthy elite often profit. We would do well to bear constantly in mind that all societies rest upon the foundation of its people, rich and poor, and that the stronger the foundation, the more likely the edifice to long endure.

Selectively Supporting Police

FROM THE BEGINNING it seemed apparent that we the American people would not take kindly to having our cities oppcupied by parading well armed federal troops, showing their power, and Trump's power, to the public. And indeed polls indicate that only about one third of Americans support the policy. Seventy eight percent of Republican support it, and an amazingly low four percent of Democrats approve. Trump may indeed be a complete moron, as most of his detractors allege, but he aint nobody's fool; he knows when to cut and run, when not to push a good thing too far. when to cut his losses. That the American people would protest vehemently against this blatant misuse of federal government presidential power was certianly predictable, in a country where most people don't want to be told what to do, including to have a good day. And that is precisely why we the American people badly need to ,indeed must keep getting out an protesting not only a particular crime committed by I.C.E., for there will doubtless be many more. Nor should we get out on teh streets and portes the very existence of I.C.E. If we are going to go to all the trouble of bundling up and freeaing our collective arses off for hours in the cold winter wind, snow, and slttet to make a point,let's mae a big one. the point we want to make, and must for the sake of America must make, is not merely that Trump has turned the I.C.E. agency into his personal Gestapo a murderous gang of thugs under his criminal control, but that the entire Trump administration is an illegal fascist regime in which all the important leaders in government are nothing ore than adoring, pandering sycophants of their icon hero, Herr Trump. When millions of us,all across America's fruited plain, from sea to shing sea,take to the streets to protest a specific crime of teh Trump administration, we might as well protest the entire criminal enterprise, the entire organized criminal movement. As is being and has been repeatedly pointed out, Trump's immediate inner circle of associates, his political party, and the entire Trump supporting conservative movement in America, most especially the religious evangelical conservative demographic, is as much responsble for America's devolution into fascism as is their fuhrer himself.That four fifths of Republicans favor the aggressive policing of the I.C.E. aremed forces is perhaps discouraging, but the fact fully one fifth of Republicans evidenly do not supprot Trump's policy may be regarded as no less encouraging. We can be sure that an overwheliming percentage of Americans,probably one hundred percent, do not want to to live in an America in which the federal government and in particular the chief executive are free to impose military martial law upon the population without very serious, very demonstrable reasons for doing so. Europeans,who have known real tyrany, are sometimes amuzed at how intolerant Americans are of the power of their own government, and at how quickly we are to push back against any form of perceived deprivation of liberty. Ex Congress person Marjorie Taylor Greene questioned whether conservatives would be so approving of how I.C.E treated the progressive Alex Pretti, with a bullet to the brain, had he turned out to be a MAGAt. It may be that in the word of Trumpland, it is perfectly acceptable for federal police to blow away far left liberal lunatics, but not good Trump loving American Christians. Kyle Rittenhouse showed up at a right wing protest with an automatic rifle and killed somebody with it. He was exonerated and regarde by conservatives as a hero. Ales Pretti carried a legally owned concealed handgun, never brandished it, and is being demonized by the right wing for somehow having caused his own death by carrying a deadly weapon. Incredible, the hypocrisy. If conservatives truly approve of Trump "going after" his enemies,as he openly does without the slighest hesitation or compunction,their approval of heavy handed presidens might take a deep dive when the next Democrat takes office, in three years.

MAGA, Coming To Terms

WORLD WAR TWO buffs are more likely than most to be aware that when the American army entered Germany in the winter of 1945 and took control of all the infamous concentration camps, Auschwitz, Dauchal, Buchenwald, Belsen, and the rest, they were so appalled by the conditions there that it inflamed their hatred Hitler and the Germans, and under General Eisenhower's orders they went door to door in town after town, searching private homes for German soldiers, and forcing the occupants to "please come with us". Thousands upon thousands of German civilians, nobody knows exactly how many, were force marched to the various camps and given a mandatory tour of the most gruesome, grizzly sights. They were, by all accounts, shocked and appalled. Eisenhower also invited and brought in every media source he could find, trying to flood the scene with journalists to accurately and thououghly document, beyond any deniability, what had actually taken place in these horror camps. Knowing the human capacity to deny and rewrite history for political and ideological purposes, and being a student of history himself, the five star general and future American president wanted to leave future generations no doubt that the nightmares of the Hitler era were very real, By the time the war ended, a high percentage of the German population had either list confidence in Hitler, or had come to despise him. But, there remained a significant part of the German people who stayed loyal to the end, and beyond. It has been suggested that when Trump is gone, as he someday will day (although it may not seem like it right now), there will be a vast outpouring of retribuation towards all those who enabled and support him, somewhat akin to the world's attitude towards NAZIs following the defeat and death of Hitler. And, to a certain extent, something like that may indeed happen. MAGA folk will never, we hope, be paraded past concentration camps, although they might be. They will no doubt, however, remain stubborn loyal to their iconic cult leadder forever, or will come to terms with their role as accmplices to turmoil, chaos, and social division and strife. They will have to come to terms, eventually, with the inevitability of the historical profession's unpleasant future descriptions of Trump. Trump is alienating an ever larger segment of the American people at a rapid pace, on a daily basis. For instance, the more he doubles down on ICE and military unites patrolling American city streets, the more the pushbaek, the greater the resentment among increasing numbers of American citizens. If all this ere being done by a Democrtic president, and trust me, Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton are as warmongering as the next politician, the equal in potential tyranny to any Republican who ever lived or governed- conservative Amerca would be pitching a tizzy, so to speak, in an uproar, spilling into the streets screaming for impeachment and removal. Bank on it. But these Gestapo are "enforcing" a conservative, right wing extremist agenda, not a progressive liberal one, and therefore are replacing democray with fascism for all teh right reasons, for the only right reason; the establishment of a far right wing nationalistic expansionist government, intolerant of opposition, which is inevitably, conveniently labeled "treason" and "terrorism". The terrorists, of course, are in plain view. They are Trump, his adminsitration, and his entire MAGA support base,the insurrectionsists of twenty twenty. Since they cannot implement Trump's fascist far right agenda nor remain in power long by legal, democratic means, they will do what Hitler and the NAZIs did, which, once in power, consists of destroying and radically alterning existing institutions and norms to suit the right wing fascist agena, and to ensure its invulverability to opposition or any threats to its power. The conspiratorial sounding claim that Trump will never surrender power nor leave office willingly seems less far fetched by the moment.

Defying the King

TRUMP'S GESTAPO, the I.C.E. agency, was created decades ago, under Bush or somebody, and has merely been placed on steroids by El Trumpo. The fact is, European caucasians have tried to slam and keep the door to American shut behind them from the git go, American immigration policy, like tariff policy, has roller coastered up and down since their inception. Dark skinned people from other races are only welcome in America if they come here to be slaves, or cheap labor, which is essentially he same thing. Donald Trump the great racist, is not alone in his expressed preference for immigrants from , for example, Norway, the land of lilly white tall good looking people. The country with the tallest people in the world on average is the Netherlands. They are always welcome. There is no waiting line of people from Canada or Europe seeking entrance into these United States of Arrogance. For the most part, people coming here, from anywhere in the world, are either desperately escapng circumstances so intolerable that going anywhere would be an improvement, or coming here looking for drugs and sex. They certainly know where to look... Generally the Earth's caucasians enjoy a high standard of living,the Orientals a rapidly rising level of affluence, and the dark skinned humans are being left behind, Racism is certainly not a uniquely American cultural characteristic, although it takes it to a new level. On this planet, heretofore, it has been effacacious, so to speak, to have a lightly pigmented epidermis. And, being tall helps. Tall people tend to rise higher in the social hierarchy, economically,and so forth. I recall a statistic indicating that with every one inch increase in height, on average, people earned thousands of dollras more income annually, on average. We similarly reward good looks, physical attractiveness. Anyone who doubts the deeply imbedded pettiness of human beings in general, in human nature generally, needn't, shouldn't. People who say that this ICE occupation thong is not about immigration are quite correct. It is about Donald Trump turninng fascist,or manifesting his inherent fascist tendencies, by going after his opponents, whom he correctly percieves as enemies. Donald Trump has an extraordinary,nearly unique ablity to turns his opponents into enemies, with their willing cooperation. Glaringly obvious is that this entire charade, involving the National Guard and ICE has absolutely nothing to do with immigration per se, although indeed that is part of it. More importantly, it is Trump's way of testing both hhis supporters and the sixty percent of Americans who dispiese him to determine precisely how far he can go in exercising authoritarian powers. He is counting on his supporters either quietly acquiescing to or approving of his Hitlerian actions attacking democracy.Early incications are that they are doing precisly that, these conservative champions of free expression and individual liberty, eager to mistake the protestors against fascism for "radical terrorists", meaning anyone who opposes Trump and the new Republican fascism. Fascism is precisely what it is, and what the G.O.P. now climbs into bed with, in support of Trump's ongoing illegal, fascist seizure of personal power. Calling out the troops show off executive power,and and shows Trump standing up to and owning the libs. As an unintended consequence, it may well also inspire the libs to take to the streets on ever greater numbers, in defiance of the king, just like their ideological ancestors, Patrick Henry, Thomas Paine, Thomas Jefferson and the gang.

The Air, Getting Violent

ACCORDING TO MY FATHER,when I was a pre toddler,I was sitting in my "high chair" (Do they still have those, or have they vanished off the market for being top heavy) one fine morning,eating my bowl of Malto O Meal, flinging it ll overthe room with my little yellow plastic spoon, when my mom noticed that I was staring out the kitchen window, utterly transfixed with enraptured fasciaation, eyes wide with apparent amazement. Mom asked dad: "what's that kid so interested in?". Dad,a lawyer accustomed to weighing evidenceand drawing conclusions, resposnded: "Its raining. He's amazed at the rain. he's never seen it before." I don't remember the incident,but knowing me,I an imagine being amazed and confused by rainfall. I stll am, in a way, seventy years later. Mom, a nurse,was utterly fascinsted by the weather. It was her favorite topic of conversation,any time,with anybody, as everyoe who knew herwas aware. Every day she watched the news on TV, but turned the volume and focused her full attention on the boob tube when the weather report was being given. She enjoyed talking about the weather as much as I enjoy talking sports, politics, and religion. I can recall getting frustrated with her sometimes,and trying to change the subject, However, now that I am a senior citizen, I notice that I have,over the years,gradually become more inerested in the weather. I've always been profoundly impacted by it, since so many of my favorite activites are outdoors. The mere fact that I am old enough to have seen the drastic climate change ofthe past fifty years. Every living person over the age of say, fifty, has personally experienced climate change, and will tell you so. Conservative old people easily relegate it to the category of "naturally occcuring", refusing to acknowledge the obvious, that climate change is at least partly, probably mostly, and perhaps exclusively caused by human activity. Of course we can not say hat the climate wouldn't be changing without human beings; you can never prove that something doesn't exist, only that it does. Rush Limbaugh used to say that nature itself is so huge, so powerful, and that we humans are such small, unimportant little creatures in the braoder context of the universe, that we couldn't possibly have real impact on this planet and its environment. As usual,Limbaugh was wrong. Huge indeed is the universe, but not so much is this planet, which in our modern era of communication and transportation seeems increasigly small. I remember awakening in the middle of the night when I was in ninth grade, and seeing four inches of snow on top of the garage, with snow pouring down in a torrent. We ended up with a foot of snow, and missed school for four days. I loved every moment,but started getting restless about missing too much school. My largest snowfall is little over two feet, which I have experienced twice, I waled outside one day when the temerature was one hundred and ten, and one morning when it was minus twenty. On both occasions I was aamzed at how briefly I was able to endure these extremes. I lived in Aspen for one full year, includinga winter, but that particular winter there was a winter drought in the Rockies, and surprisingly little snow. In a few days when our current snow, which might top out at about one foot, start to melt, we will quite likely return to the drought we were having until it fell. All forms of extreme weather will eventuate from now on. In time climate change deniers will understand that climate chnge is real,an that it will minifest in extreme weather of all kinds; hot, cold, dry, wet, violent, extreme. The more carbon, the more heat, the more heat, the more violent the atmospheric motion. I fear we haven't seen anything yet.

Drinking Trump's Kool Aid

I MUST ADMIT that I am a bit obsessed with climate change. Trumptards would probably derisively, cleverly describe my condition as "climate change derangement syndrome", or worse, since they believe that climate change does not exist, and is either deliberate hoax intended to facilitate the concentration of political and economic power in the hands of liberals, or something like that, somehow or other. Mentally ill people often think themselves quite sane, and all others the truly ill. Nonetheles, I think about it a great deal, probably every few minutes, and I talk about it whenever I can. I can, of course, anytime I want, but one must be careful. People, at least Americans, don't seem to like talking about it. Either it bores them, or they say that since we can't do anything about it, why talk about it? The answer is, of course, that we might very well indeed be able to do something about it, but only if we talk about it, or at least talk about precisely what to do. I often tell people that I can understand why my sixth grade teacher admonished our class to never discuss two topics with anyone: religion, and politics. That might work for religion, but in a country in which we the people are tasked with the heavy burden of governing ourselves, how are we to govern ourselves if we never talk about governing? Good question, I think. In the United States, governning democratically means talking about it. It seems like more often than not I quote Goethe in these essays. Goethe said, paraphrased: "It is not enough to merlely cite a problem. One must offer a solution." Now, I kind fo agree with that,kind of don't. Its the only Goethe quote I can think of that I might not fully agree with. It seems a bit idealistic and needless to me,to require that everyone who identifies a problem offer a solution to it. Anyone who is old enough enough to remember several decades of climate know that it has indeed changed. They have lived, are living through it. They know that climate change is real, whether they attribute it to human activity, nature, or God, as religious folks tend to redundantly do. (Since everything is caused by God, including human beings, their thoughts, and their deeds, sure, climate change is caused by God). But if they've spent their lives working and caring for a family, they've been busy, and cannot possibly be expected to offer any valid, informed opinion concerning what to do about it. We cannot all, after, earn doctorates in climate science. There is more evidence, much more, proving that cliamte change is real and that we are causing it than there is proving that the holocaust happened. The debate is over,and has been for a long time. People who deny climate change at this point are no less willfully self deluded than those who still claim that Trump won the election of 2020. It is observable that these tend to be the same people, people who believe in an anthropomorphic god in the sky, elaborate, make believe conspiracies, and whatever easily discredited nonsense such folks embrace for the sole purpose of seeking confirmation of their personal biases. We Americans are most accomplished at twisting reality to suit our political purposes. Trump supporters have taken this art to new height of refinement, with no end in sight. The Trump administration is more like a drunken, abusive uncle than a big brother, spewing irrational justifications for irational actions. Anybody who believes that a huge frozen island in the arctic is vital to the survival of the United States or that America's cities desperaely need extra help policing themselves is drinking the party Kool Aid, unaware that it might very well be full of poison.

Planting Trees

THE COLORADO RIVER originates high and tiny, as all rivers do, and gathers togerther significant water as it wends its way towards the Pacific. It look like many different rivers in one as it proceeds. At some points its slow and deep, at others, rapaciously rapid kayaking. The problem is that we humans are sucking it dry, and by the time it flows into the sea, is but barely a trickle of its former self. The imposition of neolithic "civilization" upon a dry barren bioregion, and the consequent enormous expansion of cities and populations throughout the American west Rain has probably been at a premium for at least thousands of years in this part of North America, and more so now, as climate change raises average temperatures, increases wind speed, and lowers annual rainfall. If climate change is a hoax, it is impressive in its ability to make the weather look much different now, on an evidently permanent basis. The two main water reservoirs in the area,Lakes Meade and Powell, are now both one third full. They have been shrinking gradually and steadily for twenty years, as they receive progressively less inflow. One theory is that when the current extended drought ends, they will return to their prior normal levels. Nobody can offer any evidence to support this presumption, for their is none. The more likely scenario is that the drought, which has lasted wenty two years, will continue, that future annual rainfall will not relturn to previous levels. Since the global amount of fossil fuel emissions is still increasing by about two and a half percent per year, despite the rapidly slowing rate of increase, since the world leaders and industrialists still seems intent on basically doing business as usual, our precarious circumstance only becomes more dire by the day. The good news is that many of the world's cities are breathing claner air as internal combustion engines are rapidly being replaced by Electric Vehicles. The bad news is that rapid as the conversion to solar and wind energy is, as many E.V.s as are already on the road, the billionaires and millionaires who make the decisions in the fossil fuel businesses are fighting tooth and nail to retain teh current energy system as long as possible, until they can squeeze every last dollar out of it before reluctantly abandoning it. One thing these dicisions making coorporate executives know full well is that they and they people they care about will be long dead by the time the entire bill comes due, and mother nature on Earth, in Earth's ecosystem, falls deathly ill. Talking and writing about climate change and the death sentence it gives life on Earth will accomplish nothng. Only drastic,fundamental changes to our energy and economic systems will save us. In Ethiopia there is aproject ongong to plant one trillion trees. the actual number may be five trillion. It is estimated that there were "roughly" seven trillion trees on Earth at the dawn of humanity, and that we have cut down about half of them. Many of the saplings in Ethiopia are already in the ground, with thousands of workers planting more every day. Why not do this in every country in the world? Although we will not be able to tree plant our way out of the climate crisis, it is indeed one of the many measures which must be taken to reverse the decline and avoid the death of the ecesystem. People as individuals, all over the planet, can undertake similar projects. How many millions of Americans, for example, have plenty of room in their spacious, grassy lawns for a few trees? The dread of leaf raking is no excuse. When I planted doens of saplings in my yard, my mother told me that the day might come when I regretted it. Although I could see her points, the day never came, and seeminly never will. I love my forested front and back lawn, leaf covered and all. If you just leave leaves alone, they break down, and nourish the soil. And besides, any excuse to avoid yard work will do.

Changing Course

THE TRANSFER PORTAL has closed, and all the players have presumably landed where they want to be, or think they want to be, at least for the next year. It is now possible, under certain conditions, to play six years of college football to play until you are in your mid twenties, and make millions of dollars. The pandemic forced the decision to make up for playing time and games lost, financially. College athletics is now professional athletics but newly so, and so far,there are no rules on exactly how the system is going to work. For the time being, it works completely chaotically. Small college athletic departments do not generally rake in the millions of dollars of revenue that major universities do, and their future survival, financially, seems in doubt. Everyone hates teh current situation, and everyone agrees that it is unsustainable, and will have to be replaced bysome organization system. A high school classmate of mine fifty years ago played college ball, then played a little while in the NFL, and I told him that if he played today, he could make at least five million dollars a years in college, for at least four years. Conservative eonomics would suggest that doing nothing, simply leaving the situation alone, and let free market forces drive intercollegiate athletics economically is the best course of action, because, like every other segment of the economy, the free market always corrects itself, always naturally balances itself, and distribuet wealth where it should. Simply allow money to change hands between universities and student-athletes atlete-studensts?) however it chooses, and it will all come out in the wash. Wealthy people are wealthy for good reasons, says classic capitalist theory, and wealth is ultimately distributed fairly, in ways best for everybody. The other day the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have replaced the Yankees as the evil empire with ulimited money power, signed a very good ball player to a contract worth two hundred and forty million dollars for four years, sixty million dollars a year, to play baseball. Professional and collegiate sports is more popular and lucrative now that ever before. Of course the money in college athletics is not distributed equally. The million dollar quarterback superstar shares the same locker room with the penniless back up kicker. Offensive linemen have so far not gotten the same wealth as the quarterback,but without them, the quarterback wouldn't have a chance. But that is starting to change. If capitalism distributed money fairly and appropriately, arguably, then one percent of the population wouldn't oossess thwenty percent of the national wealth, etc. Conservatives might claim that socialism,government meddling in the economy of America, a growing trend, is the root of the problem of inequality of wealth. They also might claim that without government interfernece in wage and labor laws stifles economic growth and initiative. A more realistic analysis is that just the opposite is true. Government involvement tends to distribute the wealth more widely and fairly, and to prevent wealth and power from being even more concentrated than it already is. It wouldn't do anybody ay good if one person, say, an Elon Musk type, eventually accumulated all the wealth in he world, which is exactly what will happen if current trends continue, which they cannot. We cannot allow them to.

Nourishing Liberty With Blood

A HIGH SCHOOL CLASSMATE of mine, whom I consider a lifeling friend, said to me, paraphrazed: "Who would have thought that violent barbarians would ever attack law enforcement officers for doing their job,upholding the contitution." I instantly volunteered myself as an example of someone who indeed would have thought it, and did. Anybody who knows history and understands people would have to, but I didn't say this to my friend. Instead I pointed out that we the American people have a long history of violent opposition to perceived government tyranny, going all the way back to the Boston Tea Party, if not earlier.I mentioned several instances, inclluding the draft riots of 1862, the Bonus marchers of 1932, and eh Viet Nam War protestors, among others. In a democratic country where people know they have tp assembly and peacefully protest, they asssemble and peacefully protest. Problem is, there are bad apples in every basket, including protestors and police. After all, the event which created the United States of America was a violent revolutionay rebellion by the American people against their government. It merits mention that, in the grand scheme of things, by comparison with most overseas colonies owned by European nations, that the British colonial rule over the American colonies was relatively lenient, somewhat hands off, not entirely repressive. Of course, the rebels themselves, all ginned up on propaganda from rabble rousers like Thomas Paine, were for the most part, ready to go to the mat by April 1775, when the war actually began, and were in full uprising mode after January 1776, by which time Paine's mini book "Common Sense", ahd sold half a million copies throughout the colonies, ginning up the folks. According to my dear friend's criteria, most of America's liberty loving heroes were violent barbarians. I have two complaints about my beloved Christian conservative Trump loving, and I mean "loving" full cult member high school classmate: When we were in high school, teh only thing he talked about with me was how many of our female classmates he had had sex with. Ever since, at every class reunion, he talks to me about all of our classmates with whom he allegedly used to have sex. Whether its all true, part true, or complete B. S., I don't know and I don't care. TMI, either way. The main tehing I have against hi is that he is a far right wing Trump loving Christian conservative. I don't like thsoe people generally, but many of my good friends are among them, and rather than end friendships, I choose to give them a pass, a "Pardon" if you will,and to avoid all talk about politics with them. Sometimes, this strategy works, sometimes, not so much. Well, and then, at least I try. I'm glad I didn't all my buddy a fascist or anything like that. If an American president signs an executive order on his first day in office anouncing a change to the constitution, I complain about it. If he keeps stealing powers he does not legally have, I turn it up a notch,the complaining. I consider anyone who claims that the election of 2020 was stolen from Trump a liar and a traitor. Period. If our Christian conservative Republican countrymen want the military and federal police in the streets of American cities, knock yourself out. Go ahead and try running for office on that fascist agenda. In fact, in during this administration, there has not been a single reason, anywhere, to activate and call out either the National Guard or the I.C.E officers and deploy them in large numbers on main street. Not one single reason. Trump and his MAGA supporters offer only nonsensical excuses which make their fascist proclivites eminently transparent,invented, fabricated, imaginary emergencies, phantom, invisible mobs of radical liberal anti-Trumpers attacking good Christian conservative Americans and destroying the country. Fascist propaganda, fully supported by Trump's fascist leaning cult. It is vital to call out and aggressively fact check every utterance by our temporary fascist masters. even more vital is to resist Trump's fascist leaning adminstration, and get out in the streets in huge numbers, peacefully but asserively protesting,as often and for as long as it takes. Like Jefferson said: "The tree of liberty will from time to time require the nourishment of the blood of patriots and tyrants".

America, Resisting Occupation

I AGREE WITH President Trump that the people protesting in the streets in Iran are on the right side,that the Iranian government should be overthrow and replaced, and that the United States should support the uprising,and should openly say so,should declare our allegiance to it. The harsh, brutal theocratic government of Iran responded by calling Trump a "criminal",which is of course quite correct, but not something we need or want to hear from the criminals who oppress Iran in the false name of religion, just as our Amcerican version of religious fanatical politics, the Christna nationalists, sek to reduce our beloved Americaunder the uoke of religious tyranny, seemingly. The Iranian uuprising is evidently going to fail, putting the United States at even greater odds with Iran, and it will be interesting to see how Trump deals with Iran. It seems possible and even likely that he will soon unleash considerable military firepower on them, and it will be interesting to observe the reaction of MAGA, and of is staunchest supporters. Keeping the United Staets out of these kinds of foreign military entanglements is precisely why Trump got the support of America first conservatives. Donald Trump, champion of popular resistance to government tyranny. Go figure. Its a considerably different story in the United States, where Trump hates criticism and opposition so much that he labels opponents of his administration and policies "traitors", and threatens to take action against them,almost like what a fascist dictator would do, one of which Trump is, with increasing frequency, being accused of being. It will be "interesting" to observe what Trump does with both the National Guard and the I.C.E. agency, the twins tools of tyranny very much at his immediate disposal. Whether or not he requires Congressional consent to do this or do that is beginning to not matter, because Congressional Republicans appear content to let Trump usurp their legislative power. There are a few rumblings of discontent among Repblican politicians who know damned good and well that Trump is hugely overstepping his authority, but not only are afraid to do anything about it for fear of losing the next election, but who actually agree with Trump's policies, notwithstanding the fact that he implements many of them illegally, without Congressional consent. And that, of course, is the crux of Trump's continuing support, and always has been. His supporters largely agree with his policies, especially on topics like immigration and issues like LGBTQ rights and social issues. There is a limit to how much military the American people will tolerate in the streets of its cities. Opposition to this will coefromboth teh left and the right. f I.C.E.and the National Guard present too heavy a presence for too long a time anywhere in the country, a majority of the local population will grow first uneasy, then alarmed, and finally will demand a return to normal life.There is a limit to which Trump can play this militaristic game, and get away with it. It is not likely to help improve his approval ratings, which might be beyond repair, since they have never been high. Sixty percent of Americans do not merely opppose Donald Trump, they despise him. Trump is one of those "love him or hate him" people, and the love is in the minority. Assuming he seesteh trap he's in, Trump will eventually be forced to declare the streets of America safe,a dn withdraw his troops. The American people do not want their cities to be occupied by oppressors.

Enjoying the Trump Clown Show

THERE ARE, as many know, a million reasons to despise Donald Trump, and they generally fall into two or three main categories. One can despise him politically, for his horrible policy positions. One can despise him morally, for his evident complete lack of morality.. You can despise him for his stupidity, humorous though it is juxtaposed against his self proclaimed genius. If we who despise him for all one million reasons are honest, we'll admit that we actually like his stupidity, that we enjoy it not only because of the ammunition it gives us, but for the sheer its sheer hilarity and entertainment value. We who pay attention and keep track of Trump inanities all have our personal favorite examples. My all time number one favorite Trump stupid statement might still be his remark in a speech on the Fourth of July 2019 that Geroge Washington's army captured every airport in America during the Revolutionary War. He later claimed that he had misread the telepromtor. Uh huh, sure. That excuse only goes so far,which is nowhere. On onohe roccasion he gave credit to the Covid19 viruse for ending World war Two, in 1917. While the pandemic was raging during hi sfirst term, he said that if we stop testing people for the virus it would stop spreading. You couldn't make that up. An anti-vaxxer, his suggested cure for Covidwas inject bleach and horse dewormer into humans.This witch doctor remedy actually gained some degree of pupularity among his cult followers. Donald Trump,the self proclaimed "stable genius" gave humankind the ultimate means by which to disrupt and destroy powerful hurricanes and tornadoes; drop atomic bombas on them. We must hope that the never issues an executive order to drop a nuke into the eye of a storm. The president seems to have no more aptitude for geography than he dos for meteorology. Once, during a meeting with the Premier of China, Trump mentioned to his fellow head of state that China and India do not possess a common border. One might justifiably wonder precisely what, if anything, the stable genius thinks separates the two countries. Similarly,he wonders, he said, why on Earth we can't just call Great Britain "England", and leave it at that. Ever the transactionist, The Donald never missed an opportunity to upgrade, particularly when it comes to size: he suggested making a trade, Puerto Rico for Greenland. Whether he made this offer directly to the government of Denmark in Copenhagen, or he tweeted it on "X", or something, is unclear. Suffice to say, the offer, no doubt, still stands. Maybe teh Danish shuld give it some thought. Nor does American history seem to suit Trump's special kind of stable genius. He mde a few remakrs about the great abolitionist Frederick Douglas, all of the remarks in the present tense. It soon became obvious that the stable one was under the false impression that Frederick Douglas is still alive. That, of course, it true only in a spiritual sense. Trummp is well knwon for being a non drinker and non smoker, much to his credit. On the other hand, maybe he could us a few drinks. He is also a non exerciser, which is far different from booze and cigarettes, We all need exercise, as we all know. But not Trump. He believes, apparently sincerely, that the human body only has so much energy in it, that exercise shortens life by using up the body's energy faster than it should. So far no fitness guru has written a book promoting this point of view. It may be that those who do promote it are either dead, or upublished. But as we all know so well, our president is not one to rely upon the expertise of anyone other than himself. So, its settled. What I hate about Trump,above all else, is his alley cat morality. His politics is a close second. But I have to admit that I have grown rather fond of his stupidity, because for all the frustration associated with it Trump's stupidity does have the endearing quality of being consistently hilarious.

Getting Greenland

PRESIDENT TRUMP appears to be poised upon the precipace of doing two things that I never would have thought any American president, even and including the Donald, would ever do, or even consider doing. To attack, occupy, and sieze control of Greenland for possession by the United States, and to flood the cities of the United States with military troops. Obviously, I have been naive. The potential acquisition of Greenland has been discusses before; its one of those ideas which floats around every couple of generations or so, attracts some attention, and then just sort of blows over and away as folks lose interest in talking about it and nothing gets done. It has never actually taken place, the seizure of Greenland by the U.S., primarliy because it would be a bad idea,and, deep down, whether or not it wants to admit it, it, the United States, knows it. For one thing, its the same argument you hear against opening the border and letting in all the immigrants who want and try to enter the country; we can't seem to even take care of all the people we already have here, so, why should we encourage more to come here? The roughly fifty seven thosuand isolated souls who live in Greenland overwhelmingly do not want to become part of the United States, and have made that abundantly clear. That fact actually matters, or should. The fact that Greenland's patron nation Denmark is sending armed forces across the North Atlantic and landing them in Greenland in defensive formations should tell us something. The Danes want to maintain the status quo, and are willing to fight to do so. You wouldn't normally think that it would be possible for anybody to get into a war with Denamrk, but if anybody can, leave it to Donroe the Prevaricator. With Trump, all bizarre things are possible. A quick glance at ye olde globe tells us that if any foreign country should "own" Greenland, if Greenland, with its small population and huge land mass to govern and monitor should be a part of any other country and benefit from said mambership, that country should be Canada. Nobody seems to be discussing or exploring this option. It amy be that the current Canadian government is content with the already enormous terrority for which it is responsible. To maintain a thriving economy and a high standard of living for Greenland's meager population requires considrable economic intercourse with other countries, most notably the United States, Canada, and Europe. Trump, for now, seems to be painting himself into a corner. He has openly committed to getting Greenland, but is faced with major obstacles, including in Congress and among American voters. It has been pointed out, and bears repeating, that under existing agreements between Denmark, Greenland, and the United States, the United States has access to everything it wants and needs from the huge resource rich island, including several military bases on its soil, where they have been for decades. Corporate industrial America wants Venezuela and Greenland for their natural rresources, and the history has been that what America wants, America gets. The Trump-Republican argument that the U.S, needs Greenland for security purposes is pure fiction, of course. For security purposes, we already have Greenland. No naion has been a better friend and ally to the United Stats than Denmark. Taking Europe into considration, Trump threatens to destroy N.A.T.O,just as his threats to occupy American cities which vote for Democrats with the military. The fascist government which only recently seemed so unlikely has come to America, perhaps to stay.

Taking My Chances With Civility, Being Nice To I.C.E.

I HAVE ONLY HAD a few encounters of any kind with police officers, and for that I should perhpas praise God, or praise myself, for good behavior, or at least good enough to keep me out of jail, with the exception of that one unfortunate incident involving alcohol and poor judgment. The encounters that I have had have tended to be rather pleasant. Nowadays, and for the past few years, I have made a point of thanking each and every officer for merely doing what they do. They seem to be glad to hear it. One thing I am sure of; If I ever get stopped dead in my tracks, so to speak, either on foot or in a car, by an officer of the notorious "I.C.E." agency, I would instantly smile at the officer and treat him or her in the friendliest possible manner, and cooperate fully with the entire process,since I have a birth certificate and nothing to hide. That might not guarantee me a favorable outcome, but it would help, I should think. I remember the time I got pulled over by a nice young officer for doing forty in a thirty, and I smiled at him in my rear view mirror as he approached the car. He smiled back, and let me off with a warning. And hell, I aint even a good looking young lady...Niceness has benefits...If I were an illegal alien apprehended by ICE, I would, on the spot, on my way to the detention center, again in court if I got the chance, or while being excorted out of the country, make the point that I have spent the last few years working as a farm laborer, a vital job with a shortage of workers, have paid taxs, and broken no laws. The United States is desperate for agricultural and industrial workers. Without immigrants, we'd really be in a pickle, so to speak. If we kick all illegal immigrants out of the countyr, the American economy and perhaps teh world economy collapses,point blank. The harm to this country, in financial fraud, theft, malfeasance, and the like, is being done not by the often stigmatized working poor or illegal immigrants, but rather, by the wealthy elite top one percent, flat out, no question. An I am oh so sorry to burst your delusional right wing bubble concerning the virtue of succeeding according to the "gospel of wealth", with money as Christ's reward for spreading the faith, living the good life, and voting republican. A good friend of mine, a fellow anti-Trumper, praised me for being, as he said, more conciliatory than he. Thinking of my attacks on Trump on this website, I almost replied that if I am "conciliatory", then I'd hate to see myself if I actually become belligerent. But indeed I am conciliatory, or try to be, including with Trump and his MAGA insurrectionist mob. Why? Its the only way to be, in my book. Also, being conciliatory does not, repeat does not preclude one from or stifles or impede in any way one's capacity and opportunities for strong self expression. it merely ameliorates any anger somewhat, and gives one the high ground by maintaining civility and decency in verbal debate, a subtle form of combat. I can remind folks that Trump is a convicted felon and confirmed liar, and that his words and deeds are always suspect, factually, without any added unneeded acrimmony. Let them raise their voices. I can be civil towards them, no matter how vile their politics. I personally would feel "weird" supporting a politician who tried to overthrow the government and has been convicted of thirty four felonies and , many more, but, hell, maybe that's just me. Meanwhile, I'll take the side which doesn't have to defend a convicted criminal, and take my chances.

Acknowledging Reality

THE GOOD NEWS is that for the first time in twenty five years, the great heavily democratic state of California is not officially in a drought. Rather, is officially not in a drought. The bad news is that last year (2025) the world injected two point four percent more greenhouse gasses, mostly carbon, into the atmosphere than the previous year (2024). Unfortunately, the bad news far outweighs the good. The question regarding California is: how long will it remain adequately hydrated, before once again getting into another, perhaps even more prolonged drought primarily due to climate change? If this was a one thousand year droughts, as some have suggested, it may be awhile. Or so we hope. The ravaging wildfires which have plagued the Golden State for the past several decades with ever increasing severity and frequency seem for the time being to have died out as well, knock on wood. May the trend continue, but it won't. The drought and the wildfires will return, because climate change is getting worse fast. It also seems evident that most people have absolutely idea how fast, although even politically conservative old people will acknowledge that the climate has changed drastically during their lifetime. Conservatives, however, even those who acknowledge climate change, refuse to accept the glaringly transparent reality that global warming, climate change is not only very real and getting worse fast, but that it is at least partly, and maybe entirely caused by we humans and our materialistic style of living. We are the main cause of global warming. For one thing, we act like we automatically own all the land on Earth, and that other animals own none of it. How incredibly arrogant and self deceptive. The rate of the annual increase in carbon emissions is slowing down, down to "only" two point five percent last from much higher rates in previous years, and that is encouraging. Gradually, grudgigly, we seem to be weening ourselves off fossil fuels. Obviously the most harmful, horrible event that has impacted the attempt to limit global warming is the Trump administration, and the political movement and culture which engendered and sustains it. It almost seemsas if you can engage any intelligent, reasonably well educated Trump conservative in a conversation, and make them understand that climate change is realand thatthe cause is human carbon emissions. With careful, patience guidance, they can be educated. There are two kinds of peole in the world: tho ewho took high school chemistry, and those who did not. Generally speaking, the former kind accepts the reality of climate change, and the latter does not. We don't teach enough chemistry in America. "The priest dreads the advance of science like the witch dreads the approaching dawn" said Jefferson, correctly. Today no less than in Jefferson's day, conservatives, traditional thinkers have a strong tendency to suspect and often totally dismiss science and the scientific method. The search for knowledge descends into the sort of religious superstition and dogma which has plagued the word for centuries, still does, and seems poised to conetinue doing well into the future. This bizarre right wing denial and rewriting of reality that characterizes the entire MAGA movement, just as it characterizes all fascist movements, must be directly confronted and defeated, because denial of reality, no matter how appealing to the weak human mind, is, in the final analysis, harmful to human progress.

Tipping

A RESPECTED SPORTSCASTER made an astute observation, as respected sportscasters are prone to do. He said that under the current "system" of college athletics, major universities, hoping to compete at the highest and most finanfically lucrative level, are now engaged in trying to suck, squeeze, exhort every last dollar out of the people who root for the schools sports teams to pay for the best possible athletic talent, mostly football and basketball but other sports as well. There are no rules. Now that athletes are allowed to make money from their athletic talent, now that they are allowed to transfer from one university to another whenever they choose, they are getting paid by their higher education employers, big money, because as we all know it takes money to make money. The purpose of intercollegiate athletics, seemingly, is to manke money, presumbaly first and foremost for administrators and billionaire donors. Who else? The kids themselves, playing the games they are good at, are incidental, hired hands, mere cogs in a great monstrosity of the emerging college athletic industrial complex. Many folks have their hands out, sports agents included. College football and basketball, cash cows both, must keep their revenue flowing by appealing to their fans by doing the only thing that really matters, winning. Major universities discovered the potential for profit from their sports teams a hundred years ago, when one hundred thousand seat football stadiums were filling up to watch Army play Navy, Harvard play Princetion, Ohio St. play Michigan. Ticket sales and the new technology of radiso fuiled the industry. Most middle aged adults can remember when college footbll ticket prices were reasonable. When I started teaching at a major uniersity in the eighties, I paid three dollars a ticket for division one football, and most spectators paid about fifteen dollars. Now individual game tickets go for hundreds of dollars, with no end in sight. Major athletic departments have annual revenues and bdgets of hundreds of millions of dollars. Sadly, the average working class American is getting, has already gotten priced out of the market; attending high level college sports games is a luxury of America's wealthy elite. And they send me letters, asking me for money. I live on Social Security, thank you. The same, of course, has happend in all professional sports as well. The money squeeze. Almost everyody concerned agrees that the current situation is chaotic, unsustainable, and cannot be allowed to endure. Once again, as always, unregulated free market cpitalism consumes itself, or theatens to, requiring desperate profit seekers to implement unwanted but necessary rstraints. Although as P.T. Barnum astutely said nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people, even we the people have limits to our sheepish manipulatable stupidity. They, our corporate owners and masters, are only going to milk us so much..aren't they? Well, not unless we stop it. The other day I went through a fast food place and ordered a cheesburger and fries. The pimply kid in the window handed me my burger sack with nary a grunt or a grin, and promptly stuck a tip jar with the label "tip jar" in my face,nearly through my car window. What temerity! A tip? For handing food through a drive thru window?? What??? For doing what? I smiled sweetly and drove on. I have my limits. Our tip happy culture will soon have us all tipping each other for merely speaking to each other. I must remember to start carrying my personal tip jar when I leave the house. Hell, my words of wisdom and charming, witty conversation are worth something, no?

Protesting

I LOVE PROTESTS, always have. I was just a kid when all the angry protests against the Viet Nam war were going on on college campuses and in the streets of America. I secretly agreed with them, but dared not reveal this to my prents, conservative, patriotic people who,one way or another, would not have put up with it. They probably would have said: "Even if you think the war is a bad idea, you have to support your country". Which is true, to a point, and not true, past that point. History hath shown that teh anti-war protestors were morally,politically, and militarily quite correct. Viet Nam is now a united, communist-capitalist country, and an ally of the United States, and could have jsut as easily been all that without the violence and death. I once made the comment,maybe on this website, that I never met a protest that I didn't like. That turned out to be untrue. When mobs of conservatives and "Proud Boys" or whatever were out in mobs protesting mask wearing mandates during the pandemic, I thought, and still think,they were crazy. Ditto the "Protest" January 6 by the Trump mob at the Capitol. But anti-war, gay rights, women's rights, and Black Lives Matter, count me in. And that spirit I, and I assume most of the world, supports the current protests in Iran, with more than five hundred protestors dead at the hands of a bloody, repressive, theocratic fascist regime. Trump and I agree on this. Where Trump and I disagree is concerning the current protests going on all across America's fruited plain over murder of that nice, harmless, innocent, gay lady in Minneapolis. And, of course, the recurrent "No Kings" movement, which has already had one extrenely successsful day of protest, with more scheduled. Thomas Jefferson said it best: "The tree of liberty shall from time to time require the nourishment of the blood of patriots and tyrants." Unfortunately, this is true, much as we might wish it were not. I was too young to actually attend any Viet Nam protests, even though I did in facr sneak out of the house in high chool and attend a local, rather lame one. I can confess that now that my parenst are dead. I entered early adulthood wondering whether I would actually ever have an opportunity to get out among protestors and try to stop some unjust, wicked war of American imperialism. I hoped not, of course, but suspected that I might. And indeed I got my chance, in January of 1991, when George Bush attacked Saddam Hussein and Iraq, after deceitfully luring Saddam into aggressive military action to justify American aggression. In this the United States was an evil empire, and Bush the first a war criminal, straight up. I was teaching a a major university, and walking through college town with five hundred other people, wearing an American flag like a cape and carrying a sign which said: "No War For Oil". The sidewalks were lined with people unfavorable to our behavior, war wongers, as I called them then, and still call them. As usual, Republicans supporting an an American war of imperialistic aggression. I heard some fascist dude call me a "traitor", and I walked towards him, ready to fight. One of my students, I swear to God, stepped in and stopped the fight, stopped me from losing my job. If Trump goes ahead with his plan to attack one weak country after another just for fun as he put it, and to conquer the entire western hemisphere for the American empire, I strongly suspect that I will be spending a lot of time back out in the streets with the other radical left wing scum and vermin, complaining vehemently and vociferously. Its fun trying to get rid of Trump, however vain the attempt, and I hope and trust I shall henceforth have ample opportunities to do precisely that.

Commemorating Infamy

TRUMP'S INSURRECTION will go down, is going down in American history as among the most infamous of all events, ranking right up there in this dubious category with such tragedies as the assassination of Presidents Lincoln and Kennedy and the Challenger space shuttle disasters. It is fitting and proper that the fifth anniversry of the trajedy was properly commemorated, with acknowledgment in the media, a ceremony on Capitol Hill,and the like. Arguably, however, this momentous anniversary received much less attention than it should have. It will surely be treated as an importan event by future historians and history books. Noteworthily absent was any participation in any of these commemorations by any American conservative or Republican, who in any event don't consider the deadly riot an attack on the nation's Capitol by Trump supporters to have been any big deal. The only response by Trump supporters was an incredibly lame revisionist explanation of the events of that horrible day, something to the effect that the violent insurrection, which nearly succeeded, was actually nothing other than a political campaign rally that got a bit out of control, or, even lamer, that it was actually a self guided tour of the Capitol building by an impromptu group of patriotic Americans which turned a tad rowdy. As they say, gimme a break. Revisionist explanations of observable phenominon surrounding Trump come fast and furious from the Karoline Leavitt-Joesph Goebbels ministry of propaganda.; Trump does and says a lot that has to be clarified, qualified, spun, respun, downplayed, and denied. You wondered how the regime would spin it the first time some poor good but unlucky American citizen got shot dead by some ultra right wing white suprecemacist gung ho punk member of Trump's I.C.E. gestapo. Now, you know, and its exactly what you suspected and feared from the start. A dangerous, violent terrorist woman was harassing law abiding law enforceing police officers, posint a clear and present danger.Out of sheer desperation and self defense, one of the intrepid American patriots sot and killed the terrorist, thus saving America from more harm. That's a lot of spin for a reality in which a lovely, productive,creative wife and mother of three was brutally, capriciously, senselessly murdered by the American government, also know as the Trump regime, or infmormally as the MAGA mafia. This is straight out of the fascist handbook. State police, pride and joy of the great and beloved leader, apprehending and disposing of a troublesome, insufficiently obedient and loyal recalcitrant pseudo citizen. Big Brother has taken the necessary action. Brave New World, Nineteen eighty Four, or both, reincarnated in temporal reality. Notice that you don't hear Trump, or Trump supporters for that matter, railing against the looming threat of comprehensive government surveillance of the American citizenry, or shooting out cameras in public places, warning us about future microchips in our brains, and such. As long as Trump is in power, and continues to represent their perceived personal interests, his supporters don't care how he got there, what he does in his spare time, or what methods he uses to remain perpetually in power and enforce his and the far right wing agenda. Said agenda includes kicking people of color out of he country, starting with the ones illegally living here, encouraging the immigration of Scandavanians, especially Norwegians, into an America which by their standards is chaotic, lawless, cut throat rat race with a low standard of living. It includes dismantling anything in America which smacks of dread socialism, including the government safety net for the poor. America under Trump has become precisely what Europeans and decent people generally despise and loathe to behold here in the supposedly shining city on a hill, a corporate security state with a propped up petty tyrant for a fuhrer.

Kidnapping Just For Fun

GIVE TRUMP CREDIT. He called off any further strikes against Venezuela. Or at least he said he did. But you know how things go with Trump,in terms of sheer honesty and reliability of word. Thus, only the kidnapping of Madura, this time around, at least for now. Smoke was rising from several different places in Caracus, according to the network video. And, evidently, fire sas exchanged, and some Venezuelans were killed. Official sccounts given by the Trump administration are of course vague, murcky, and impossible to take at face value. Such is Trump. It was more than a mere kidnapping. It was an attack. From any logical perspective, the raidand kidnapping acomplished nothing; the entire rest of the Maduro regime remains intact ,from the Vice President, who now becomes president, down through the ranks to all the bureaucrats, who presumably remainin place. Everybody just moves up one notch, and Venezuela carries on. This new president lady certainly does not look like someone who would be an easy patsy for the United States to push around and give orders to. She looks tough and smart, like someone who has attended a few rodeos,so to speak, which she probably has, having somehow risen to the top of the Venezuelan political power structure. In terms od attempting to regimechange in various and sundry countries, teh United States, variably,needs to be careful what it wishes for. The prime example is the CIA, under Eisenhower, helping Castro come to power in Cuba in 1959 by running the cruel dictator Baptista out fo the counrty. Its fairto say that this little adventure in regime change nation building didn't work out at all like the American corporate plutocracy planned. Castro turned communist socialist and got in bed with the Russians and the young girls, and all that. The rest, as they say,is hsitory. Decade after decade of Castro as a huge thorn in the American corporate capitalistic side, namely. Overall, however,the signs are ominous. LittleMarco,on network television, made it abundantly clear that these United States under Trump insist on complete cooperation from the post Maduro Maduro government, meaning that Venezuela will be expected to comply with all instructions handed down by the Trump junta, with serious consequences for failing to do so. Perpetually scowling Vice President Vance went further, went back to the Monroe Doctrine, now the "Donroe Docrine" (cute, eh?): this is our hempisphere. You'd have to figure that fishing boats leaving Venezuelan ports and venturing out into the larger Caribbean to do some deep sea fishing will if it hasn't already become something of a lost art. Other that that, we can probably look forward to a few more sucker punches from old bones spurs on other weak, third world countries, the list of possible targets including Colombia, as well as a couple in North Africa. Donroe himself said flat out that he got his rocks off hitting Caracus. Another sources of spiritual orgasm for the Predator-in-Chief seems to be brutality visited upon average, upstanding, upstanding American citizens by the I.C.E. agency, which has morphed into Trump's personal Gestapo under the command of his version of Himmler, the sexy, seductive Kristi Noem. If this regime can spin a video recorded stright up murder of an innocent wife and mother by the govenment into an heroic elimination of an attacking terrorist, then it can and will spin anything into anything. That's how Trump's insurrrection, the anniversary of which we just "celebrated", became, in the Trump fun house,a harmless pep rally gone a bit overboard.

Denying Climate Change

ITS EARLY JANUARY, and spring is just around the corner, amazingly. The big trees in my yard have buds, as if the leaves are ready to pop out. Pop out they will, well before March first. Fifty years ago in my locale the trees were still barren on March twenty. Irises could spring up out of the ground at any time. Last year at about this time it did exactly that, and promptly got burned on a freezing night. The climate has changed drastically in the past fifty years, and everyone my age (seventy) or older agrees. It is becoming difficult, neary impossible to deny climate change, so conservatives are now much more prone to acknowledge it. They still have the option of refusing to attribute it to human industry, which they invariably utilize, in their desperate need to deny any need to make fundamental changes to society politically, and economically. I plan to take a short but scenic road trip when the first blush of iight green yellowish color spreads across the tree covered hills of the Ozark Mountain biosphere. My best guess as to when this will take place is early to mid March. Nowadays you just never know. Last year spring sprang late,in late March, just like back in teh old days. Who knows? Maybe climate change is reversing itself, and the climate is going back to the wa it used to be, as President Trump, in all his wisdom, promised us it would do. He didn't specify when. Its a hoax, says the prevaricating president, but if it exists,its only because nature wanted it that way, we had nothing to do with it, and, in any event, it'll soo get back to normal. the sea level will stop rising suddenly, for no apparent reason,the atmosphere will cleanse itself of a trillion tons of carbon, and the immense amount of heat energy that has been trapped in the atmosphere in recent years shall magically, mysteriously radiate harmlessly away into outer space, of its own volition. As is so often the case, H.L. Mencken's famous quote applies here: "The fools would be humorous were they not in such deadly earnest." As always, the great tragedy is not only that a presumed reasonably intelligent group of people, the American people, would actually choose as their head of state a perosn who would actually utter such nonsense, but that those same people seem perfectly willing and content to believe it. Of all the pernicious, harmful policy positions embraced by Trump and MAGA, none is as pernicious and harmful to humanity as climate denial. Not the racism, not the aggressive, angry foreign policy, not the cruelty towards the poor, the verbal abuse of those to dare depart from the fuhrer and his fscism. Of all the numerous vile, disgusting aspects of Trumpism, climate change denial is by far the mostevil, the most harmful. Climate change, according to the D.O.D., is the greatest threat to American national security. Neither China, nor Russia, nor gay people, nor liberalism. Global warming, climate change, which, for the benefit of conservatives, are the same thing. The conservative approach to climate change, pretending that either it does nto exist or that if it doe sit is unimportant, is insane, suicide. There are a million reasons to get rid of Trump and to defeat his MAGA mob, and that is going to happen. The entire agenda is poison. But the argument which the Democrats must make above all, and must make it early, often, and incessantly, is that cliamte change is real, and that Trump, the Republican party, and conservative America generally, by refusing to take strong action against it, are contributing to the destruction of the United States and the extinction of the human species.

Denying Science, For Oil

I LIKE QUOTES. Especially the particularly witty or profound kind often issued by peple such as Mark Twain, Abraham Lincoln, Einstein, and so forth. Thomas Jefferson is a great source, and I often encounter wonderful quotes by Jefferson whih are new to me. Yesterday on Facebook I saw one, which, roughly paraphrased, is this: "Priests dread the advance of science like witches dread the approach of daylight." Like all great quotes, its great because it articulates a great, sweeping truth; it applies to just about everybody, clearly points out a msjor characteristic of all religion: religions resist new knowledge which contradicts their basic beliefs. Like many of Jefferson's best quotes, this one was evidently written in a personal letter. Jefferson assumed that the letters he wrote would be lost to history, but were not, much to our benefit. Jefferson loved science, but not religion, which in one letter he referred to as "superstition". The Jefferson quote also applies to us today, as is obvious in the various of the so called "culture wars" raging in the good ole U.S. of A. The Trump administration, even as we speak, has waged and continues to wage a vindictive war against science and education in 'murca, beyond doubt merely because Trump, and conservatives in general, do not like what science and education have to say about the world and reality, as well as Trump and MAGA. The reductions in federal assistance to science and education are drastic, and disastrous. Experts are warning that if these Trump policies are allowed to stand for very long, the United States could lose its current position as a world leader in scientific and technological innovation and development. Thomas Jefferson spent the final years of his life supervising the establishment of the University of Virginia. He said it was the best thing he ever did, better than serving as president or writing the Declaration of Independence. During his first term, Trump, by totally mismanaging the Covid epidemic, was arguably responsible for hundreds of thousands of American deaths. His general denial of and refusal to take action against the deadly virus was perfectly acceptable to his cult followers, who now constitute about thirty percent of the American population, still, amazingly, and who seem as antithetical to scientific reality as their cult icon. To deny climate change, for example, is as delusional as trying to explain nature with primitive religious beliefs rather than modern science. Climate change denial is a manifestation of anti-science bias. The same Americans who wish to insinuate their personal religion into the United States government are perfectly willing to pretend that global warming is a hoax in service to their conservative views, which include allegiance and addiction to a fossil fuel capitalistic economy. One of the inconvenient facts about solar energy is that nobody will be able to use it as leverage in international political, economic, or military warfare. Sunlight is so abundant in nature that it has no value at all. Everybdoy can havea much fo it as anyone could possibly want, for free. That fact must surely frustrate our fossil fuel corporate capitalistic elite billionaire class, who will continue to resist the inevitable clean energy future to achieve their sacred cause; sucking as much personal profit out of the dying planet as possible, no matter how many people die in so doing. We wee preciely who the enemy of humanity is, merely by watching Trump and his governing mafia mob rip apart and suck poor hapless Venezuela bone dry. Our only hope is that science vanquishes the witches.

Kidnapping Trump

THE NUMBER of indisputable reasons why Trump's kidnapping of Madura, his attack of Venezuela, is and shall forver be regarded by historians as idiotic is greater than the number of elementary particles of matter in the known universe, and the accounting has but barely begun. They are at once philosophical, moral, and pragmatic. For one, regime change, as a rule, doesn't work. Almost invariably the negative, undesirable results and consequences thereof outweigh the benefits by a considerable margin. You don't just invade another country, kidnap its head of state and hold him or her captive, without expeiencing some bad karma, unintended consequences, and repurcussions, We know that Trump has, without doubt, brought about deteriorating relationships with most if not all of the some two hundred nations on Earth, that he has helped end wars and bring about peace nowhere, despite his flagrant lies to the contrary, and we know that everything Trump does regarding Venezuela will do only in his perceived personal best interests. Such, as they way, is the nature of the beast. American fuel companies are already, it is reported,being invited by the Trump administration to come swooping in, assume control fo Venezuela's oil producing infrastructure, which we are told is in very bad repair, refurbish it at a cost of billions, and proceed to enhance their already record shattering profits. As always, the American corporate oligarchy triumphs over all. Unless, of coures, Trump signs, say, an executive order mandating that all proceeds from the regifted oil fields of Venezuela, which produce seventeen percent of the world's oil, be distributed among the world's poorest people and countries. Fat chance of that. Give credit where due. Rather neat, extracting the head of state, leaving all else intact, including the Venezuelan government, and just have everyone move up a notch, the lady Vice President now assuming the presiency. The likelihood that she will merely continue to pursue Maduro's policies notwithstanding, Trump's United States shall doubtless remain stationed nearby or in country in large enough numbers to ensure compliance with the almighty Yankee Norde Americanos As always, we the American people si tidly by, twiddling our thumbs, gaing at our collective navels, passively accepting our beloved United States of Aggression in its role as "owner of the western hemisphere" as Trump says it, applauding our coporate masters and their bursting billfolds. This thing ob kidnapping another country's head of state, incarcerating him or her, trying, convicting, and sentencing, then licking up for life has merit, and a substantial part of the American public, as much as sixty percent thereof, are asking: "Why can't somebody come over here and do that for us?" Why do we always miss out on all the fun? You can imagine it now.In a meticulously orchestrated conspiracy, larger even than that which managed to steal the twenty twenty election right out from under Trump's nose, helicopters swoop into the nation's capitol under the radar, land on the newly paved rose garden, a nice place to land a chopper,and in a lightening quick operation, escort Trump from the White House. or maybe better to pull off this daring hypothetical raid at Mara Lago, where Trump is much more likely to be distracted by young ladies, or whatever,and unguarded. A "Go Fund Me' account to pay any willing foreign power to render the American majority this invaluable service could never grow too big, like a lottery. Sound crazy? If nothing else, its certainly worth fantasizing about.

Controlling the Climate

IN MY NECK OF THE WOODS, in the lower midwestern mid south part of the United States, we are currently knee deep in a very serious drought. It rained not at all during December, and we had a few sprinkles, and nothing more, a couple of days ago. Meanwhile a drenching avalanche of an atmospheric river is dumping unwanted billions of tons of fresh water all over California, too much of a good thing. If only we could move some molecules around a bit, and redistribute all this hydro wealth, using human technology. That will likely be possible within a hundred years, famed scientist Michio Kaku said about a quarter century ago. The thought of the human species having complete control over the Earth's atmosphere, hence weather and climate,is at once awe inspiring and frightening. The "image" of waring countries using fabricated violent weather to destroy each other comes to mind. Over the past couple of decades our tendency here in lower mid America has been to have at least one, and sometimes too prolonged droughs each summer, but spring, fall,and winter have usually been adequately and reliably wet. A super dry December is new territory,as far as I can recall.In my neck of the woods, it is utterlly amazing hwo much the climate has changed over the course of my seventy year and counting lifetime. Around here, October used to be a cold weather month. Now, October is late summer, with temperatures in the mid eighties most days. It used to snow where I live, at least two or three times each winter, in amounts ranging from a fraction of an inch to two feet, snow which would usually melt rapidly and be gone within a few days, a feature particularly appealing to me. Now, it never snows, or hardly ever, and it seems to most of us that if probably never will again, or if so, only infrequently. I have started telling people that I predict that within my lifetime we will experience a summer in which the temperature rises to one hundred degrees on Memorial Day, and remains there until Labor Day. I am standing by that prediction while praying that it is wrong. We already have, as a matter of course, weeks on end of temperatures well into the nineties, so, we don't really have far to go. Those almost daily pop up showers in mid summer which used to briefly interupt our neighborhood whiffleball games are seemingly a thing of the past; now, when it rains, it pours, for days, and often, it doesn't rain for weeks, like now. The rain would stop, we'd have a few minutes of twig races in the flowing street gutters until the sun dried out the back yard ball field, then, back to baseball. Hopeful signs are that the world is becoming constantly more aware of and concerned about doing something about global warming, all except our beloved but recalcitrant United States of Amnesia. The world is converting to solar and wind energy at a break neck pace, thank heavens. Solar energy panels are flowing out of China and unto every human inhabited nook and cranny on Earth, while Trump's America ignores and tries to destroy this best hope for future economic prosperity. Take heart. Trump and his ridiculous cult movement will be gone not soon enough, but soon, and the U.S. can become, or will at least have a chance to become, a responsible partner in restoring the health of the planetary ecosystem. Its too late to prevent climate change made by humanity, but not too late to prevent its most disastrous consequences. As for now, we could, as usual, use a litttle rain.

Tending Our Gardens

THE ATTACK of Venezuela is perfectly in keeping with United States foreign policy towards Latin America since the earliest days of the American plutocratic republic. The Monroe Doctrine of 1823 made it "perfectly clear", as Nixon might say, that the United States would henceforth and forevermore regard all areas south of its southern border as de facto subject to American control, as a purely American sphere of influence. No other nations, especially European nations, would be allowed to exert any sort of influence or control of any kind in the western hemisphere. This ambitious, imperialistic declaration of continental suzzerainty by a rather fledgling United States has from its inception been largely ignored and disrespected by not only European powers, but in particualr by China, whose influence we see today. The Chinese are engaged in the construction of infrastructure and trading relations in Latin America, none of it with the approval of the powerless United States, powerless, that is, to enforce the breast thumping early 19th century declaration of imperialist intent. Since 1823 the United States has invaded Latin American countries regularly, dozens of times, early and often. A simple list of American invasions can easily be googled; the list is long and impressive, and includes something like twenty two separate occupations of Haiti.A seminal if slightly outdated monograph by historiam=n William Appleman Williams, titled "The Traddgy of American Diplomacy" details this history from the early nineteenth century to the nineteen sixties. Consider teh arrogance,let alone the aggressive underlying attitude, of a nation willing to prolcaim that the door to China is "open" in the "Open Door Policy" of 1900, without consulting China, and no less willing to consider itself the rightful overlord of the entire western hemishpere from the early 19th century until....today. Ther is absolutely no moral imperative or justification behind this attitude, only raw economic and military power, and the willingness and even latent desire to exploit it for the enhancement of the pwrsonal wealth and power of the plutocrats who govern the Unoted States, and always have. Ironic, in a way, that this latest American violation of international law and moral decency took place thirty six years to the day after a simliar exploit in Panama, with another of those third world petty dictators our neighbors to the south seem so adept at producing.Latin Ameria is a good lesson for lovesr of demoracy everywhere: you can expand voting rights as far and wide as you choose, but there is never any guarantee that we the people will not willingly elect a "atrong leader" who will, upon gaining power, soon morph into the sort of brutal, cruel dictator we now see so many of, staining the fabric of human civilization with their culturally suffocating suppression. In Latin America voters elect strong leaders who become dictators. In the United States we have elected a demagogue who is attempting to become a dictator, by governing by decree rather than by legislative and executive due process. Ultimately it is the people of any nation who must keep and defend their freedom and democracy, not some foreign power. We Americans can talk about the necessity of defending and supporting democracy all over the world all we want, even while supporting the petty tyrants of our choice but while doing so. It might not hurt us to think carefully about the current, evident threat to our own democratic system here at home, currently holding power. As Voltaire said: "We must tend our gardens."

Keeping the Faith

I HAVEN'T BEEN Up and attem at midnight on New Year's Eve since, probably, I was about thirty five, if not longer. I recall 1985, I think, when I actually had a date, which fizzled like Roman candles in rain. Seldom am I asleep at the ball drops, but always horizontal. This year I cruised into the new year ready to kick butt, as usual, enthusiastic and optimistic, even though the world I inhabit bears nothing in common with one the one I thought, when i was a kid, I might live in when I reached the age of seventy, in the far distant future year of twenty twenty five. One year ago at this time I was dreading the forthcoming second Trump administration and swearing to almighty whomever that I would dedicate my energies to opposing it. I kept my promise in my own meager way, and now, with Trump's approval rating well below forty percent and most of his agenda stalled out, I feel a certain sense of vindicaation, and empowerment. Although there is no feasible way to remove Trump from the presidency until 2029 without seriously doing damage to all of us, we who oppose him can, are, and will continue to get in the way of the MAGA fascist agenda and, lord willing and the creek don't rise, bring it to a complete standstill. To reduce the Trump presidency to the status of lame duck is the best we can realistically expect at this point. We do not want to allow the whimsical invasion and occupation of our cities by our own armed forces, nor do we want to seriously disrupt the economy by deporting millions of agricultural and blue collar workers. It is hard to imagine forcing millions of people off of Medicaid by cutting its funding will endear the Republican platform to voters at the bottom fo the economic pyramid going into the 2026 midterms. This, notwithstanding the obvious, demonstrated historical willingness of poor Americans to support billionaire politicians such as Trump who have not the slightest conern for their well being. Precisely why anyone would possibly believe that a billionaire olitician would give the slightest consideration to the plight of the poor and impoverished is nearly beyond the comprehension of any reasonably intelligent person. When he wrote most of the constitution, Madison assuemd that the wealthy elite, to whom he gave all real political power, would naturally manifest their inherent "noblesse oblige" and look after those at the bottom of society. Within five years after the document took effect, he realized that there was no way this was going to happen, and he regretted what he had written, regretted that he had not listened to his mentor Jefferson, who had advocated for more restraints to the power of the aristocracy, and more guarantees of protected power for the common people, whom Madison called "the lesser sort." Madison's system won out, Jefferson's vanished, and here we are today. It is neither unfair nor innacurate to call Trump a fascist, and the Trump movement a fascist movement. His obvious intent to govern by presidential decree, and the submissive willingness of the Republican caucus to accede to this usurpation of its own constitutional powers in deference to their cult leader clearly evinces the fascist approach. A strong man, leading the country with an iron hand, with the support of a tightly knit well organized political machine. Fascism, pure and simple, invited into America by America's extremist right wing fascist movement. 2026 will be a very good year to continue to ANTIFA campaign to defeat Trump-MAGA fascism, and to return the country to sanity and basic decency.