Muted, but STILL another shabby debate performance by a toxic narcissist

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXKSg8KXaQw

He was tragic, pathetic, ridiculous, & laughable in one 90-minute fell swoop.  Trump truly appears to be utterly delusional.  The top-level Repubs supporting him are making a monumental mistake.  A Party which long ago stood for honor, integrity, and the common people now is completely off the rails.

In addition, DJT's tariff increase proposal (which is more of an increase than any other in U.S. history) would increase price INFLATION - which now is declining - beyond the pale.  He's lying when he claims China would be paying for tariffs.  Consumers here would be doing it.

Finally, a reminder:  I'm not for Harris either, but she's orders of magnitude better than Trump.  [I don't care for her Gaza policy, her fossil fuel policy, or her lack of understanding of Sustainability.]  Neither major candidate is what we need to successfully navigate through the Meta-Crisis we're currently facing.  Clearly, though, Trump is the worst choice.  No doubt about it.

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Not only my opinion.  Be Well

An MD explains why the USA has the least effective healthcare system among the wealthy countries in the world

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CxGhEuXcG8&list=WL&index=67&t=2s

Usually I summarize the key points of a link's content.  Not this time.  The doctor is so well-spoken and his presentation so brilliant, I want to try and make sure each reader here watches the clip rather than relying on a summary.

He also talks about what could be done to fix our broken system and restore ethics (relative to patient CARE) in the medical profession.  The number of doctors in that profession is decreasing rapidly.  It's not burnout from overwork.  Instead, in most cases it's being demoralized with the state of the system.  Such can and must be corrected ASAP.

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Not only my opinion.  Take Care

Why Big Biz Backs Trump, and why Sustainability is feared by them all

Robert Reich explains it in a clip under three minutes long---

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LEnI9THvLA

One might guess it's about tax cuts and tax avoidance.  Yes, but it's also about blocking the path to Sustainability.  Many years ago, the Titans of Mega Biz realized they had to start talking-the-talk in regard to renewable energy, but walking-the-walk largely could be avoided IF they spent big bucks on politicians friendly to the economic status quo.  A bit later, they recognized that Sustainability involved a lot more than just transitioning to renewables.  It also meant reducing our energy use, being accountable for pollution, treating workers and consumers fairly, eliminating corporate welfare, increasing the social safety net, and more.

In the view of Mega Biz, the economic status quo was being threatened as never before.  So, both individually and collectively, the Titans decided to essentially buy more and more political influence.  They selected, groomed, and financed the majority of national political candidates.  Their degree of success in getting candidates friendly to their view varied, but almost always was at least somewhat on the mark...even with Democrats.

So, what was (and still is for the most part) the "economic status quo" back then?  Here it is in a nutshell:

1)  neoliberal capitalism (which is NOT Adam Smith capitalism); 

2)  deregulation, corporate globalization, & corporate welfare;

3)  bailouts for mega biz;

4)  banks too big to fail, or jail;

5)  reduced benefits for employees;

6)  reduced services to customers;

7)  job insecurity;

8)  treating pollutants as "externalities" (and not the responsibility of Big Biz);

9)  austerity for Main Street; and

10)  anything else which benefits Mega Biz at the expense of Main Street.

The status quo is pretty much the exact opposite of a sustainable economy and lifestyle.

The influence of the Titans has been massive, and has reached all the way to the Supreme Court of the USA.  The majority on that Court now are anti-healthcare, anti-EHS (environmental, health, & safety), anti-democracy, and anti-sustainability.  Whether that majority knows it or not, they are supporting Fascism - the marriage of the power of the State to the power of Mega Biz.

All the above is precisely why Big Biz backs the candidate who is the biggest embarrassment and danger in the history of the USA.

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Not only my opinion.  Be Well

Democrats and the Meta-Crisis

Senator Warnock (Dem from Georgia) gave a great speech at the Dem National Convention in Chicago.  Parts of it touched me deeply.  Nevertheless, I've seen nothing anywhere which convinces me that mainstream Democrats (Biden, Obama, Harris, Schumer, Walz, Pelosi, etc.) fully understand the ongoing Meta-Crisis or how to address it.  The very few Dems who do (still not fully, but way above the mainstreamers) are not mainstream, and have been marginalized to the hilt (Sanders, Warren, AOC, Omar, Jayapal, Barbara Lee, Ro Khanna, etc.).  And time is running out.

Do the Democrats understand the Crisis (in general) better than the Republicans?  Yes, apparently so.  Despite that, their grasp of the Crisis falls short of what's needed to navigate through it.  Such is the case mostly because of what appears to be a lack of Systems thinking on their part.  They tend to put each of the various aspects of our predicament into a separate "silo" (so to speak).  Deeply connected parts of the Crisis thus become separated when "solutions" are considered.  [An example is in the next paragraph.]  Most likely, the result will be a series of incomplete (or failed) responses.

Currently, the "Big Kahuna" being dealt with (barely) is Climate Change, a symptom of Ecological Overshoot.  For the most part, it has been placed in its own "silo".  Biodiversity Loss, also a symptom of Eco-Overshoot, is in another silo and is being given short shrift.  Its connection to climate disruption, soil degradation, preventing the spread of disease (pandemics) and more doesn't appear to be under consideration.  There's a lack of holistic thinking and synthesis in such a "silo-ing" approach.  Biodiversity Loss is every bit as important as Climate Change when it comes to responding to the human predicament.

The Green Party fully understands the Meta-Crisis, all aspects of it - sociological, ecological, economic, and ethical.  Those candidates should be elected, but won't be... mostly because Americans (in general) are ecologically illiterate.  [That statement is not an insult; it's an observation.  I'm illiterate about lots of things:  medical surgery, business management, particle physics, auto mechanics, etc.; there's no reason to be insulted about that:]  Plus, there's the unrelenting propaganda from most Republicans, Oligarchs, and Plutocrats.  

C'est la vie

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Not only my opinion.  Be Well

MORE idiocy, mostly from politicians

1.  As the Biden Admin bemoans the continuing excessive killing of civilians by the Far-Right Israeli Leadership, $20 billion more in military hardware for Israel has been authorized...with no conditions attached.  [It's true some of that hardware - F-16 fighter jets - won't be available until 2026; however, bombs-missiles-and other munitions probably will be shipped in less than a month from now.]

2.  Trump appears to be melting down.  His gaslighting tactics - lying, accusing his opponent of actions which apply to him, constantly changing the subject when backed into a corner by logic & truth, egregiously insulting people, making unsubstantiated claims, etc. - are not having any significant effect on his opponents.  He seems to be baffled by that, and as a result, when speaking publicly he rambles, whining about different things and spewing out topics which have little-to-no connection to one another.  He's now the confused, old man in the race.

 

3.  Spokesmen for the Israeli military claim everything is being done to avoid civilian deaths in Gaza.  "Everything" includes evacuation orders.  The problem is:  every place refugees evacuate to is attacked, and often without warning.  In a recent bombing of a school, over 100 people were killed.  Many of them were blown into so many pieces they were unidentifiable.  [Source:  the independent news show, Democracy Now!]  Israel says 31 Hamas members were killed in the attack.  Do the math: over two-thirds of the victims were civilians...including CHILDREN.

4.  Not too long ago, Elon Musk claimed Earth could support 80 billion people.  Such thinking is completely devoid of ecological knowledge, and is both delusional and idiotic.

https://www.unilad.com/news/elon-musk-believes-earth-could-hold-80-billion-people-799394-20231031

5.  Most of the top Democrats in DC oppose the Far-Right Trump Crew in the USA, but back the Far-Right Extremist Netanyahu in Israel.  That's idiocy.

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Not only my opinion.  Be Well

There is no Planet B

It's nothing but fantasy to believe any significant number of us on Earth will be moving to Mars.  The people planning and working toward a human colony on Mars (or anywhere else) are NOT thinking about transporting eight billion people to another planet.  Such a task would be impossible, and completely so.

Most likely, what is being sought is to eventually establish a small colony of people with special skills.  Over time, those colonists would reproduce more humans; and that's how our species would leave Earth.  Even those people, though, would have a rough time.  They might not even survive.  Here's why---

1.  Although the temperature on Mars can get up to 70 degrees F, that rarely happens.  The average temperature on Mars is about minus 80 degrees F.  Most of the time, temperatures range from minus 14 degrees F to minus 120 degrees F.

2.  Large, regional dust storms on Mars often last for weeks.  The winds of such storms are up to seventy miles per hour.  Once in awhile, dust storms are not just regional.  Instead, they are planet-wide.  Try to imagine being in such a situation.

3.  Because of the above points - and much more - most of the time colonists would be inside some structure or another.  Yes, they probably would have some version of A.I.' s  "augmented reality" gizmo to aid in avoiding cabin fever; however, I suspect that only can take a person so far.  After that, no one knows what might happen to a person's mind.

4.  Whether indoors, or outdoors in a pressurized & oxygenized suit, there is no room for error.  Chances are, if you make only one mistake related to air pressure, oxygen, storms, etc., you're dead.

BOTTOM LINE---

I've seen comments online which go something like this:  if we totally wreck Earth, we'll just move to Mars or somewhere else in the solar system.  No, we won't.  For about 99.99999% of us, there is no Planet B.  ASAP, we must stop "wrecking" Mother Earth, and start rehabilitating Her.  If we are to survive and thrive, there's no other reasonable option.  We must (more and more) show our appreciation of the magnificent gift of Earth we've been given.  It's not too late to begin treating the natural world as sacred.

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Not only my opinion.  Take Care

Brief review of some of the idiocy being promulgated primarily by various politicians

Politics is basically a flawed profession.  Why?  It often enables too much corruption, lying, and deceit.  It plays to the dark side of individuals who seek power above all else.  Finally, it too often utilizes propaganda which benefits Oligarchs/Plutocrats at the expense of Main Street.  While it's true we (all around the world) do have some politicians who are honest and ethical, unfortunately it seems they are far and few between, or perhaps reticent to speak out against the characteristics described above.

By any measure of common sense, I would think the scenarios below - brought about by various "Leaders" - are idiotic---

A Few Examples

1.  The current Israeli Leadership still is bombing/attacking structures in Gaza where CHILDREN are being sheltered, thus killing or maiming some of those innocent children.  Israel apparently believes such action is justified because Hamas people supposedly are in the same schools, houses, refugee shelters, etc.  These war crimes are being aided by munitions from the USA.

2.  The Biden Administration and probably most Republicans seem to believe Israel is NOT committing war crimes.  I believe most of the world (including me) disagrees.  The reasons for such disagreement should be blatantly obvious.  Yes, Hamas also commits war crimes; however, that's not an ethical justification for doing the same.  There is no justification whatsoever for war crimes.

3.  ALL governments which produce and maintain (or host) nuclear weapons are dangerous idiots.  Past posts on this blog have explained why.  Here's only one of them:

Public Awareness of ‘Nuclear Winter’ is Too Low Given Current Risks

Here's another:

The Ecological Ignorance of U.S. Presidents REDUX

4.  Due to adherence to the secular "religion" of neoliberalism (the Market will handle any problems), most humans on Earth now have PFAS (the "forever chemicals"), micro- and nano-plastics, and other toxic substances in their blood.  PFAS, in particular, have been linked to various health problems (including cancer) and the altering of reproductive hormones, as well as other hormones.  This all has been reported in scientific studies published in professional journals.

All the above is part of Ecological Overshoot, the main cause of our current Meta-Crisis.  Too many politicians everywhere seem to NOT be paying enough attention to this complex issue.  Those who are appear to be focused on only one of the symptoms of Overshoot:  Climate Change.  Other interconnected symptoms - biodiversity loss, soil degradation, toxic pollution, water availability problems, shrinking forests, overharvesting of fish, etc. - receive scant concern.

So, What Can Be Done?

A common sense response to the above-described human predicament would be to vote politicians out-of-office who promote the idiocy.  Exercise some due diligence and vote into office those people who at least favor the elimination of Eco-Overshoot.

Given the power of Edward Bernays style Propaganda and how dogmatic most voters seem to be, the above response doesn't appear to be likely.  But here's the thing:  NO ONE can predict the future with 100% accuracy every time.  In other words, we should not quit promoting common sense just because the implementation of it seems unlikely.  History shows that many proposed scenarios which were deemed to be "hopeless" eventually took root and came to fruition.  Such is especially true in the political arena.  Without "hope" for a better future, we're just marking time.

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Not only my opinion.  Happy Trails