A Pandemic and Race War are Ensuing While President Trump Worries about Next Election

Photo: News 4 Jax

The economy has suffered tremendous losses over the last few months.  American people have experienced the loss of their family members -- numbering into the 150,000's due to an ongoing pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus.  Leadership up top (i.e., White House) is completely lacking with an appropriate response.  Federal troops have stormed cities across the U.S. in response to race protests over the unlawful killing of George Floyd (and others).  What is going on here?

Meanwhile, President Trump emerges yesterday at a news conference to discuss the possibility of voter fraud and litigation over the next presidential election this November.  President Trump further asserted that the possibility of delaying the vote while outrageous is not so shocking.  Top Republicans have shot down the idea of postponing the election this November.

Reporting on MSNBC's Morning Joe shows that newspapers across the board (Republican-leaning along with Democratic-leaning) have been honest regarding the outrageous assertion by the president.  Below is an image is taken from reporting on Morning Joe of an excerpt by the WallStreet Journal:

President Trump has always tried to stay in the limelight of the news.  Whether good or bad, the press has been focusing on the president and the administration.  And that is the way reporting should be.  Although, President Trump should rethink the strategy of throwing out unconstitutional ideas, such as delaying an election, while at the White House Press briefing room.  Such press will only serve to weaken the standing among the Republican party.

Nevertheless, the next few months leading up to the election will be full of excitement and sorrow.  The economic tragedies to come on behalf of those who will lose their houses and lives is terrible.  Action by the government seems remote, given the measures already taken to date.  

What are American people left to hope or think about?  Other than holding hope for a new leader -- one who can actually lead.  I had high hopes for President Trump when elected.  I did not vote for him.  Unfortunately, the president has let people like myself down along with other Americans.  The time for him to go has come.

Bill McKibben will Hand the Reigns of 350.org over later this Year!

Photo: 350.org

There quite a few organizations across the world that fight to protect the environment.  Their success is questionable based on a project by project basis.  What is not in question is the decades-long success of the organization 350.org.  Bill McKibben started the organization to advocate on environmental issues across America and the world at large.  He has written numerous books and articles along with being present on the front lines in the fight for climate change.



People have been getting used to having Bill McKibben stand with them on the front lines for climate change.  Unfortunately, Bill has decided to take a back seat in his organization later this year. 



For those readers who are unfamiliar with the organization -- 350.org -- below is an introduction from the Wikipedia page for 350.org:

350.org is an international environmental organization addressing the climate crisis. Its stated goal is to end the use of fossil fuels and transition to renewable energy by building a global, grassroots movement.[2]

The 350 in the name stands for 350 ppm (parts per million) of carbon dioxide,[3] which has been identified as the safe upper limit to avoid a climate tipping point.[4][5] As of 2019, the current level has reached 415 ppm.[6]

Through online campaigns, grassroots organizing, mass public actions, and collaboration with an extensive network of partner groups and organizations, 350.org has mobilized thousands of volunteer organizers in over 188 countries. It is one of the many organizers of the Global Climate Strike from September 20 to 27, 2019 which evolved from the Fridays for Future movement.

                    Origins 

350.org was founded by American environmentalist Bill McKibben and a group of students from Middlebury College in Vermont. Their 2007 "Step It Up" campaign involved 1,400 demonstrations at famous sites across the United States. McKibben credits these activities with making Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama change their energy policies during the 2008 United States presidential campaign. Starting in 2008, 350.org built upon the "Step It Up" campaign and made it into a global organization.

McKibben is an American environmentalist and writer who wrote one of the first books on global warming for the general public, and frequently writes about climate change, alternative energy, and the need for more localized economies.

Rajendra Pachauri, the UN's "top climate scientist" and leader of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has come out, as have others, in favor of reducing atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide to 350 ppm.[67][68][69] McKibben called news of Pachauri's embrace of the 350ppm target "amazing".[70] Some media have indicated that Pachauri's endorsement of the 350 ppm target was a victory for 350.org's activism.[71][72]

The organization had a lift in prominence after McKibben appeared on The Colbert Report television show on Monday August 17, 2009.[73][74][75] McKibben promotes the organization on speaking tours and by writing articles about it for many major newspapers and media, such as the Los Angeles Times[76] and The Guardian.[77] In 2012 the organization was presented with the 2012 Katerva Award for Behavioural Change.[78]

Sadly, Bill has decided to retire and hand over the reins of 350.org to new leadership to carry the torch forward as shown in a parting letter:

Greetings! I write with a small piece of news, which is that as 2020 ends I will transition from active to emeritus status in my work at 350.org, both in my role as ‘senior advisor’ and as a member of the board. This marks a passage for me—it’s a group I helped found, and which I christened, and where I have worked harder, longer, and with more devotion than for any other institution in my life. I am enormously proud of the work that we’ve done together around the world—work I will continue to support however I can.

In some ways this isn’t an enormous change. About five years ago, when I stepped down as chair of the board, I redefined my role as less about leadership and more about support: of 350, and of the broader movement. I’ve spent much of my time trying to amplify and celebrate the work of others: if you read my Twitter feed, I think the most common phrase is probably ‘thank you’ (though admittedly it vies with ‘record-breaking heat wave.’) So in some sense this new move is more formal confirmation than actual change. But I think it’s necessary for a few reasons.

One, in too many cases people still assume I’m in charge—there are still too many news articles referring to “Bill McKibben’s 350.org.” That makes it harder for other voices inside 350 to become as well-known as they should. It’s an organization filled with powerful thinkers and activists, who I love listening to—they deserve a wider audience.

Two, my skills as a strategist are less crucial now. At the beginning, we were making it up as we went along, and I was okay at that: we were right, I think, to build a distributed grassroots global movement when that was unusual; to join the fight against the Keystone pipeline which led to so many other infrastructure battles; and to help launch the divestment movement, and with it the challenge to the finances of the fossil fuel industry. But 350, and the broader climate movement, is far more professional now, with people and processes better equipped to figure out the fights of the future. (At the moment they’re doing particularly profound global work around the idea of a “Just Recovery.”)

Three, the summer of 2020 is one more reminder that different kinds of voices need to be at the forefront. It’s been an enormous pleasure to watch both 350 and the movement diversify in real ways, and that’s been absolutely crucial to its success. Sometimes, though, it’s not just about adding new voices, but also lowering the volume on existing ones so others can be fully heard. This is a way to twist my dial a little to the left. I will continue to write and speak—it’s what I know how to do—but not from an official perch; that authority, and the credibility it can confer, will I hope increasingly devolve to others. 

None of this means that I won’t be available for counsel and for help, or that I’m leaving behind the fight in any way, just that my relationship to it is shifting. I turn 60 this autumn; that seems like a natural moment of passage. I’ve been at work in the climate battle since I published The End of Nature in 1989 at the age of 28; my relationship to that battle has shifted several times over those decades, and this is just one more. Please call on me whenever I can be of use. One other thing:  since I’ve always been a volunteer my change in status won’t free up more badly needed money to keep great organizers employed. So I will keep doing my best as a fundraiser, which is to say: if you’d like to donate, this is the place.

***

It is admittedly a tad hypocritical, given what I’ve just said, but perhaps you won’t mind if I mark this small occasion with a few thoughts about where we’ve been together, and where this fight may be headed.

I’ve had a couple of goals. One was simply to make people understand that climate change represented a great existential threat, the largest challenge that our species has come up against. In the early days—the late 1980s and the 1990s—this was sometimes lonesome work, akin to one of those bad dreams where you can see a monster coming but can’t make anyone else pay attention. I think it’s possible I’ve written more words about the greenhouse effect/global warming/the climate crisis than anyone else in the English language, which is why it has been such a relief in recent years to see so many others taking up this work. We now have large numbers of climate journalists and bloggers and authors and twitterers, musicians and artists, novelists and poets, all bringing their own unique talents to telling the story. Combined with the all-too-powerful educational efforts of Mother Nature, it’s working: the polling indicates that the challenge we face has finally emerged as one of the defining issues of our political life, all over the world. Organizing plays a huge part in this kind of educational effort. When we began 350.org, it was the first iteration of a global grassroots movement; I will never forget our first big day of action in 2009, with 5,200 simultaneous rallies in 181 countries, what CNN called the ‘most widespread day of political action in the planet’s history.’  That it has since been dwarfed by subsequent efforts—most recently the 8 million people who joined in youth-led climate strikes last September—is truly wonderful. I take no credit at all for that explosion in organizing, but I do take great delight in it. It’s precisely what’s needed.

The second goal was to weaken the power of the fossil fuel industry, because it became clear—even before the #ExxonKnew revelations of recent years–that that was the biggest obstacle to taking the science seriously. That goal, in large measure, informed the logic behind our involvement in the Keystone fight and much of what followed: the individual pipelines, frack wells, and coal terminals were all wrongheaded assaults on particular people and places, but defeating them  was also a way to blunt the expansion of an industry that had been growing for three centuries. The divestment campaign flowed from the same logic. 

The success of all this work has depended mostly on extraordinary organizing—by frontline communities, by indigenous activists, and by millions and millions of people on campuses, in churches, at pension funds, and so forth. We’ve seen some of the fruit of this work even in the course of this difficult year—the decisions in recent days that ended the Atlantic Coast Pipeline and damaged prospects for DAPL and KXL feel like the payoff for a decade’s worth of incredible work by vast numbers of people. Meanwhile, in January, before the pandemic, America’s most-watched stock analyst, Jim Cramer, told his millions of viewers to sell their oil stocks because the divestment campaign—now above $14 trillion, and the largest thing of its kind in history–had made them bad investments. All of that has combined with the rapid advances in solar and wind to change the economics, and hence the political power, of the fossil fuel industry; it is a shell of itself, and if Donald Trump can be beaten in the fall, one of its last bulwarks will be gone. The same kind of trend is playing out at different speeds around the world. The fossil fuel industry is not beaten—in particular the work to push banks, asset managers, and insurance companies to break their ties with the industry must keep accelerating–but it is also no longer all-powerful. It can’t prevent the future. 

That means that we are moving to the next phase of this fight, which is where we should have been able to concentrate all along: the effort to overhaul our energy systems and otherwise transform our impact around the planet. Because the oil industry wasted three decades with their disinformation campaign, we must squeeze into ten years what should have happened over 40. Thank heaven there are experts aplenty capable of making this happen, working on everything from building retrofits to changed agriculture to reducing consumption to rapidly building out renewable energy. None of these things are my specialty; with the influence of the fossil fuel industry finally lessened, the experts in all these fields are poised to make real progress. My main recommendations to those involved are: go faster, because this is all about pace, and root your efforts in justice, because that’s both right and effective. The battle is not just to swap out coal for sun; it’s to swap out a poisoned and unfair world for one that works for everyone, now and in the future. 

Of course, no matter what we do now, we’ve waited too long to prevent truly massive trauma. Already we see firestorms without precedent, storms stronger than any on record, Arctic melt that’s occurring decades ahead of schedule. We’re losing whole ecosystems like coral reefs; we have heat waves so horrible that in places they take us to the limits of human survival. Given the momentum of climate change, even if we do everything right from this point on those effects will get much worse in the years ahead, and of course their impacts will be concentrated on those who have done the least to cause them, and are most vulnerable. That means there is another area we need to be working hard: building the kind of world that not only limits the rise in temperature, but also cushions the blow from that which is no longer avoidable. I’d like to have more time to help think through that part of the problem; we’re going to need human solidarity on an unparalleled level, and right now that seems a long ways away. 

The main thing I’d like to say is: thanks. These have not always been easy years for me—though it’s nothing compared to the violence experienced by environmentalists elsewhere, at times, the counter-attack by the fossil fuel industry has felt almost unbearably fierce, especially since they also went after my family. I’m truly grateful for the support of my wife and my daughter. And I’m truly grateful for the friends that I have made these past decades in this fight—they are so many in number, and spread so widely across the earth, that I can’t begin to list them. But they know who they are, the companions in this fight who have done so much, against such great odds. I look forward to supporting them, and those who will emerge, in every way possible in the years ahead. 

On we go—Bill McKibben

Bill McKibben has been a force to be reckoned with in the fight.  We will miss his leadership in the organization.  We look forward to seeing 350.org leadership be turned over to an equal advocate to Bill McKibben.  We will miss you.

Congress Votes To Rewrite History of Military Bases throughout the United States

Photo: Diginomica.com

A few weeks ago, amidst the protests, I was discussing the removal of statues in cities across the U.S. with a friend.  His position was that such statutes remind pedestrians and motorists, along with tourists of the slave trade promoted by the white elitists of our nation.  I suggested why not remove all of the street names too?  He agreed.  That would mean to strip our country of a specific part of history.



I am in favor of such a move. I do wonder how that will transpire looking into the future?  What will future discussions look like with the removal of history?  Especially as generations change over time, and word of mouth is silenced?  I do not pretend to have an answer either way.



Congress passed an economic package for defense spending, which included a large amount of money to remove (rewrite) historical statues or landmarks from military bases.  Recent reporting by Politico Defense briefly outlines the spending:

VETO PROOFING: The Republican-led Senate defied President Donald Trump’s threat of a veto on Thursday and overwhelmingly passed its $741 billion defense policy legislation that would force the removal of Confederate names from Army bases. Connor O’Brien has the details of Thursday’s action.

Senators, voting to adopt the National Defense Authorization Act in an 86-14 blowout, joined the House in passing the bills containing a similar provision with majorities large enough to overcome a veto.

The measure, S. 4049 (116), requires a three-year process to scrub names, monuments and paraphernalia honoring the Confederacy and its leaders from military bases and other assets, while the House version, H.R. 6395 (116), passed Tuesday, would force the renaming of bases within a year.

Looking into the future, changing the names of U.S. military bases along with removing statues across the United States is a good start toward rewriting history.  The larger question is, how will the behavior of Americans toward one another change over time?  Because it is one perspective to change the visual aspect of history (i.e., street names, statues, Base names, etc.), it is quite another make massive change across the more significant part of history -- behavior.



People's behavior is the culprit to the death of George Floyd. Action is the culprit behind people's ignorance.  People's ignorance is due to the inability to understand or change with the changing times in society.  Each of us needs to work together to promote change across the community as a whole.  That is the only way to change over time as a nation.

Vice President Biden Unveils Clean Energy Plan

Photo: Forbes

Any future energy plan proposed by either a politician (alone) or together (in Congress) needs to include a transition toward renewable energy.  To combat climate change, renewable energy will play an enormous role.  Not to mention the transition from fossil fuel to renewable energy involves job growth.  Job growth, which at the moment, sounds very good with millions of workers unemployed.



Reporting from Politico Energy sheds light on the newly unveiled energy plan by the 2020 Presidential Candidate - former Vice President Biden:

BIDEN'S REVAMPED CLEAN ENERGY PLAN: Trump's infrastructure changes come one day after Joe Biden unveiled his revamped clean energy plan, which would invest $2 trillion in four years on clean energy and set specific zero-emission targets, Pro's Zack Colman reports. "This is the single most comprehensive and ambitious climate plan ever advanced by a major presidential nominee," Sam Ricketts, Evergreen Action co-founder and the author of Gov. Jay Inslee's climate plan, said in a statement.

The details: The plan includes a zero-emissions goal for American-made buses by 2030; rebates to swap out older cars for electric, hybrid or hydrogen-fuel vehicles; a clean-electricity standard to neutralize power-sector emissions by 2035; and programs employing 250,000 people to plug abandoned oil and gas wells and reclaim mines. The Biden campaign also released an environmental justice plan that calls for creating an environmental justice and climate division within the Justice Department.

Biden pitched his plan as a job creator. "When Donald Trump thinks about climate change, the only word he can muster is 'hoax,'" he said Tuesday. "When I think about climate change, the word I think of is 'jobs.'"

In a potential preview of the president's line of attack during a Trump-Biden debate, Trump took aim at Biden's zero-emissions targets. "I hope you don't mind cold office space in the winter and warm office space in the summer, because your air conditioning is not the same as the good old days," Trump said Tuesday of Biden's 2030 zero-emissions building target. Biden also "wants no petroleum product," Trump claimed, which he tied to jobs in Texas, Pennsylvania, North Dakota and Oklahoma.

SPEAKING OF ZERO-EMISSIONS: Fifteen states and the District of Columbia said Tuesday they'd work together to speed up the deployment of zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty trucks and buses, setting a target of 100 percent zero-emission sales by 2050, your ME host reports for Pros.

After reading the above reporting, the transition to renewable energy along with combatting climate change might still seem far away.  Especially, since former Vice President Joe Biden is a candidate for the upcoming elections.  Although, reporters from various news sources over the last few years have been writing about the transition.  Which is gaining momentum.



The change of one chamber in Congress was the first sign.  Although, momentum had been building before that over the years.  Now add into the equation grants from silicon valley to support transitions too.  Again, reporting from Politico Energy suggests that the tide is turning from fossil fuels and toward clean energy:

TECH TURNS TO CLIMATE: Tech companies and environmental research organizations are launching a joint effort today to build a computing tool, called Climate TRACE, that uses artificial intelligence to track greenhouse gases, Pro's Zack Colman reports. The effort is designed to create an international inventory of the biggest drivers of climate change so governments and companies can whittle down their emissions.

The partnership was developed in part with a philanthropic grant from Google and aided by the company's computing support. Providing real-time data on emissions will ease fears that countries will cheat on reporting their emissions, said former Vice President Al Gore, whose investment fund Generation Investment Management LLP donated $3 million to developing the effort.

"The real breakthrough here is in artificial intelligence and machine learning and combining dozens of different data streams to derive an accurate number for real-time emissions from every significant source in the world," he told POLITICO.

The momentum building up behind the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy has been growing over the last few years.  Previous blog posts (see below -- Related Blog Posts) have been written about the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy by big oil companies too. 



That in of itself should signal a transition.  How large of a transition or the speed of the transition remains to be seen.  Although, the ship is turning toward the transition -- which is a good sign.  Change is on the front lines toward renewable energy.



Related Blog Posts:


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Environmental Justice Needs To Be Addressed With Race Issues


Parameters: Shells Oil Corporation Invests In Renewable Energy Infrastructure


Parameters: Oil vs. Corn-based Ethanol - A Tug-Of-War between Trump Administration and Congressional Leaders

EPA comes Down in the Middle on Coal Power Plant Emissions

Climate Change Indirectly Hits Farmers: Increasing Crop Insurance Premiums

ARPA-E Should Not Ever Be Shutdown Period.

Ralph Nader: Calls Mounting For Trump to Step Aside From Covid-19 Bungling

Photo: Axios

President Trump is not a true leader.  President Trump has conned the American people into voting to elect him into office.  Now, the American people are seeing the result of electing a person with no professional experience.  What do you get?  The current pandemic on top of a race war is the outcome -- complete chaos.  WOW!




In his weekly newsletter, Ralph Nader calls for President Trump to step aside and let scientists along with doctors deal with the COVID-19 pandemic:

Calls Mounting For Trump to Step Aside From Covid-19 Bungling

Public Citizen’s open letter, co-signed by over twenty nonprofit civic organizations working for the public health, demanded that Trump and Pence immediately give up their disastrous daily mismanagement of the Covid-19 response. Trump’s bungling and ignorance have allowed the Covid-19 virus to spread faster at an alarming rate around the country.

Public Citizen’s letter to Trump and Pence asserted that their “callous disregard for human life during the still-raging coronavirus pandemic is appalling and must cease,” and called for both of them to “immediately step aside from any further role in leading or communicating about the federal response to the pandemic, and to delegate full operating authority over the response to senior professional public health and medical experts within the agencies of the U.S. Public Health Service. (See letter at citizen.org).

Dr. Peter Lurie, President of the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is circulating a sign-on letter to current and former public health officials and professionals to be sent to President Trump defending Dr. Anthony Fauci and calling for science-based policies and the involvement of government scientists as the nation develops its response to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

More Republicans in the Congress are agreeing with this shift to scientific and managerial expertise. Trump’s chaotic, mindless, wrongheaded, ego-obsessed careening week after week is aiding and abetting the spread of the virus. The Trump regime is not leading; it is obstructing the state efforts to combat the virus, over-riding or undermining the scientists and pushing lethal nostrums to desperate citizens.  Trump and his toadies are also failing to provide needed supplies, facilities,  uniform safeguards and clear guidance to the state officials.

Republican Senators, Susan Collins (Rep. Maine) and Shelley Moore Capito (Rep. West Virginia) have publicly declared that Trump should “step back” and let the “health professionals” be in daily operating charge. Many more GOP legislators privately and not so privately agree.  They are seeing their poll numbers drop because of the Trump virus debacle.

The Democrats should take the initiative and draft  a veto-proof bi-partisan bill to establish a special Commission to oversee  the federal government’s management of the pandemic by scientists , public health officials and  management experts. Moreover, members of Congress, whether singly or together, should demand that the giant medical and public health associations in this country speak out and demonstrate the utter urgency of the situation, presently controlled by a ferocious, ignorant fool. (They can use more diplomatic language).

Senators and Representatives must get to work and hold public hearings featuring people who know what they’re talking about. Former heads of the CDC led by Thomas Frieden are ready to testify. Prominent Deans of medical schools and heads of national and state public health associations have much to say and recommend. Nurses have already voiced their concerns by picketing  the White House.

The Trump Administration’s lethal incompetence is unprecedented in American history. The fatalities and sickened are increasing in the pandemic’s surge. The economy is falling apart. Tens of millions are unemployed, facing hunger and eviction. The Pentagon stockpiles nuclear weapons while public health budgets are depleted, and schools beg for funds to safely open in the fall.

At the same time, the Captain Queeg in the White House is actually boasting that he has stopped enforcement of disease-preventing federal protections, and is continuing to push for terminating critical nursing home regulations and pressing to end Obamacare that will leave 23 million more Americans without health insurance. Sheer madness!

Wake up America!  We need to do far more than we have done to force Trump to resign or at least step aside.   Wake up Trump supporters!  This virus is non-partisan and its destruction is insatiable. Our country cannot any longer afford to have a crazy man in the White House.

For the sake of many lives that can be saved, every person should call the White House comment number (202-456-1111) or the White House switchboard (202-456-1414) and tell Trump to step aside for the good of the country.  Your messages tell President’s which way the political winds are blowing. Make this “rumble of the people” speak loud and clear NOW!

Let the professional scientists, medical doctors, and policymakers guide the nation in overcoming the current pandemic taking over the world. This is not a game or a play to see large numbers of TV viewers watch a given message.  A message indicating (directing) the direction that the nation should head toward in mitigating the disaster caused by the coronavirus.



President Trump seems to believe that the large number of viewers watching the daily White House briefing is proportional to his popularity.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  People are waiting in the hope that real leadership emerges from the White House in combating the terrible situation.  Unfortunately, what the American people are receiving daily is garbage.


The time has come to let the real professionals guide the nation through this crisis.  Not amateurs like President Trump.



Related Blog Post:


Bill Nye Educates Fox News Anchor Tucker Carlson on Wearing Masks and Science in Government

Ralph Nader: The Enduring Case for Demanding Trump’s Resignation

Bill Nye Educates Fox News Anchor Tucker Carlson on Wearing Masks and Science in Government

Photo: SF Gate

Wearing a mask to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 is a no brainer.  Or at least it should be.  Regardless, of what non-scientists tell you.  Science backs up the reduction (i.e. the spread) of coronavirus.  Watch Bill Nye in the video below demonstrate the utility of a mask in reducing the spread of the coronavirus.



In a recent video, Bill Nye laid down the facts regarding mask-wearing which Fox News Anchor Tucker Carlson tries to squash in his show:

It is simple folks -- wear a mask -- and help reduce the spread of COVID-19.



Related Blog Posts:


Why Don't People Wear Masks In Public?


Do Masks Protect Against the Coronavirus?


Trump Administration Cuts Coronavirus Research Funding for Wuhan China Research Institute?


Ralph Nader: Donald Trump, Resign Now for America’s Sake

Where Is The U.S. At With The Coronavirus? Part 1: Scared?

Photo: The New York Times

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) has crippled the United States of America over the last few months.  We have well over 30 million unemployed in the U.S.  What about the spread of the coronavirus?  Each day, there is conflicting news circulating.  Politico offers a nightly update on the coronavirus.



Here is an excerpt from the Newsletter on Wednesday night to think about:

FEAR FACTOR — Today’s signs that Covid is far from being contained in the United States: Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt tested positive for Covid; Walmart, the country’s largest retailer, is requiring masks in all its stores; and Maryland's second-largest school district said students won’t return to classrooms until 2021.

Just how scared should we be right now?

The virus isn’t going away — Halfway through July, the situation is actually worse in many parts of the country than at the start of the pandemic. Daily Covid deaths are at their highest levels in Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Texas and other states, according to the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. Last week, Covid Exit Strategy, a group tracking state progress in meeting Covid containment goals added a new shade, “bruised red,” to its color-coded map to signify states where Covid is spreading uncontrollably. Nearly 20 states are now colored deep red.

About 7 to 9 percent of the population, or 23 million people, have been infected to date, estimates Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease researcher at the University of Minnesota. He said transmission won’t slow until at least half of the population becomes infected. If cases continue growing at today’s pace, even with a lower death rate, he projects that about 800,000 people will die before any sort of herd immunity kicks in. Plus, he added, a shortage of crucial drugs like remdesivir and maxed out hospital capacity could start to reverse progress that clinicians make in treating Covid patients. And young people with common underlying health conditions like obesity aren’t immune from the worst effects of the virus.

“It’s like a big giant forest fire that’s looking for human lives to burn,” he said about the virus. “This is going to last for many months and it is going to get worse.”

We are still unprepared — Unlike other countries now comfortably opening businesses and schools, the U.S. wasted valuable time during its lockdown, said Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. The positive test rate is in double digits in many states, a sign that the virus is spreading faster than it can be controlled through testing and contact tracing. “What I am continually seeing in these states is that they keep making the same mistake in not being able to do the core elements of public health,” he said. The problem, in his view: Testing supplies are limited, test results are too slow to be useful in guiding behavior, there are still too few contact tracers and many states don’t have a handle on who is actually infected. Until state or federal officials can fix those problems, hotspots will continue to emerge around the country.

There’s some hope — Some states like Maine, Hawaii and Rhode Island have been able to contain the virus and its fallout.

We know what works, Osterholm said. Physical distancing, avoiding crowds and indoor spaces, and wearing masks all decrease risks of transmission to varying degrees. We also know to be less scared of socializing outside and of catching Covid from surfaces like doorknobs and delivery packages. Essential workers and others may not have the luxury of working from home. But keeping hospitals from overflowing can keep mortality rates lower.

“The message here is that none of us should be scared,” Osterholm said. For Father’s Day last month, he met his five grandchildren in person outdoors. He hugged them each for 30 seconds and gave them a kiss. “I felt that was an acceptable risk,” he said.

There are quite a few people in the US who believe that the coronavirus is just another version of the cold flu.  Which to some extent it is.  But don't take that out of context, please.  The coronavirus is deadly, as shown already, and should be taken very seriously.  The above message should serve as a reminder that the United States is not out of the woods at all.  There is no vaccination.



When I hear people around me complain about being quarantined, I think the following thought.  Where are we at as a nation compared to 3 months or 4 months ago?  What have we learned?  There have been scientific advancements in the front of combating the coronavirus. 



Although, the reality is that NO VACCINATION exists yet.  That leads us to the second reality: opening up the economy now is no different than keeping the economy open when the coronavirus hit initially.  Therefore, opening up the country would only expose a large number of innocent people to a deadly virus.



In a previous blog post, the alarming statistic of masks blew my mind.  Namely, that in Hong Kong, there is a 98% mask compliance (a month ago).  The resulting COVID-19 related deaths in Hong Kong (a month ago) -- 4 total.  What?


Masks work.  Simply stated.  Protect yourself and others with the simple method of reducing the spread of the COVID-19 virus.  Just follow this simple rule!



Related Blog Post:


Why Don't People Wear Masks In Public?

Do Masks Protect Against the Coronavirus?

Trump Changes NEPA Rules to Speed Up Industry Projects on Federal Lands

Photo: Protect NEPA

The United States has millions of acres of land on which projects by corporations are carried out and reap massive profits.  Do those corporations care about destroying the federal property?  Your land? My land?  Not compared to boosting earnings to shareholders of their respective corporations.  This is why news from the Trump administration has potentially increased their share prices.



Reporting from Politico Energy states briefly how the changes to NEPA will help streamline corporate projects on federally owned land:

TRUMP TO ANNOUNCE FINAL NEPA CHANGES: During a visit to a UPS airport hub in Atlanta today, President Donald Trump will unveil final changes to the National Environmental Policy Act — the bedrock permitting law that requires agencies to conduct detailed environmental reviews for major projects. Trump has lined up on the side of industry groups that contend NEPA has been weaponized by greens to sideline pipelines, highways and other infrastructure projects. The new regulations will provide certainty for project sponsors and speed up the environmental review process for U.S. projects spanning roads, bridges and highways, a White House official told ME.

The policy overhaul delivers a major win to the energy industry on the heels of a series of blows to nameplate energy projects that were driven by the 50-year-old environmental law, including court setbacks for the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines, and the cancellation of the Atlantic Coast project.

If the changes hew to the version proposed from January, project proponents can expect strict, short deadlines for environmental impact statements that agencies must conduct before construction can begin, and a broader scope to the types of projects that can be excluded from NEPA reviews altogether, such as those that receive little federal funding.

One of the key anticipated changes surrounds how broadly federal agencies should weigh the effects of things like greenhouse gas emissions. The proposed version suggested that agencies no longer need to consider the "cumulative" impact of permitting decisions — language that environmentalists say would all but eliminate consideration of a project's contribution to climate change.

Expect a fight from green groups and Democrats, who say changes to NEPA would undercut protections for environmental justice communities that are often subject to the effects of the most significant development projects. Democrats from both chambers last week urged Trump to reverse course on the NEPA changes, arguing they "would further endanger the very communities that have faced the greatest burdens of legacy environmental injustice and structural racism."

Environmental groups have challenged rules concocted by the Trump administration over the last few years, which aim to undo Obama era regulations.  The challenges have resulted in numerous court battles -- some of which are still ongoing today.  The Trump administration has had quite a struggle trying to support corporate destruction of environmental laws enacted under the Obama administration, which is good.



Now, some of the existing environmental laws are outdated.  How many compared to those which are still safe and essential?  No idea.  Although, the Trump administration is trying to hide under the veil of 'updating laws' to really help corporate projects such as oil pipelines, oil drilling, large infrastructure projects which are destructive to the environment.



This is why the current changes to the 'environmental review process' could potentially expose the environment to even more destruction.  The changes will end up in court and result in a ruling which protects the environment.  At least, that is the current aim of environmental groups and many members of the Chambers of Congress.  Stay tuned.



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Ralph Nader: The Enduring Case for Demanding Trump’s Resignation

Photo: Common Dreams

The Supreme Court ruled that New York State Attorney General could have access to President Trump's taxes for criminal prosecution.  President Trump thus far has escaped conviction (due to being President) in a court of law.  That protection is fading away as the election nears.  Of course, the case needs to be made to prosecute the President for campaign violations along with other offenses.  Should President Trump continue to lead this country (i.e., be re-elected)??



Ralph Nader makes the case for President Trump's resignation with the ruling of the Supreme Court on obtaining the taxes of the President by New York and Congress:

The Enduring Case for Demanding Trump’s Resignation

Today’s New York Times headline boldly exclaimed, “PRESIDENT IS ‘NOT ABOVE THE LAW,’ JUSTICES DECIDE.” But then the Supreme Court majority found a way not to apply the law to Trump’s defiance of Congress.

Didn’t this question get decided in 1776 and more formally in 1787 by our Founders?

In obtaining information for overseeing the Executive Branch, the plenary power of Congress neither needs affirmation by the courts nor can tolerate years of judicial delays. It is time for the illogical Justices, who find few limits to vast Presidential powers either domestically or in pursuit of undeclared wars of Empire, to stop shredding Congress’s constitutional authority.

The very conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, in his dissent, addressed the futility of Congress employing the courts to obtain information by subpoena for legislation, for example, strengthening the President’s financial disclosure obligations. The maximum congressional strategy for securing presidential documents is through the use of its impeachment authority, he wrote.

An article of impeachment was voted against President Nixon in 1974 for defying a congressional subpoena that was not validated by a court. Trump has defied scores of subpoenas, dozens of formal Congressional demands for information and testimony by Executive Branch officials. Yet, apart from the Ukraine impeachment in December 2019 by the Democratic House, Speaker Nancy Pelosi has kept eleven other serious ongoing impeachable offenses by Trump and his lawless regime on the shelf. You can read these impeachable offenses compiled by constitutional law experts, Bruce Fein, Louis Fisher, and me, and presented by Congressman John Larson (D-CT) in the December 18, 2019, Congressional Record H-12197.

Absent a robust defense of our democracy by the Supreme Court or Congress, the citizenry must mobilize a mass demand for Trump’s resignation – for all of America’s sake. Whether the case is made for the rule of law or against disastrous, dangerous, and delusionary policies from Trump’s Wall Street over Main Street White House, the support should be treated as non-partisan and as the essence of patriotism.

On June 5, 2020, the Portland (Maine) Press Herald called for Trump to resign, urging Trump to ask himself – “Can the country take five more months like the last five?” The editorial asserted that “your shortcomings are unleashing historic levels of suffering on the American people.”

When this staid newspaper took this position, it did not evaluate the prospect of success. That is not its responsibility. Nor should any such prejudgment of Trump’s rejection of resignation inhibit hundreds of Congressional lawmakers, civic group leaders, columnists, and editorial writers, who have made the overwhelming case against corrupt Donald Trump in great documented detail. But, unfortunately, most of these people have failed to reach the obvious conclusion from their convictions.

The case for Trump’s resignation should never be withheld by weighing the odds of that happening. The demand itself is the necessity of our times. Here are some reasons:

1. Trump’s ignorance and ego-driven bungling and obstructions of professional scientific management of the Covid-19 pandemic occur daily and often in open sight. After weeks of delay fatal to tens of thousands of Americans, his continuing abandonment of presidential leadership in assuring supplies, facilities and critical coordination for the states warrant removal of this flailing, failing, careening so-called chief executive. America cannot wait to stop the irreparable destruction that will occur from now until January 20, 2021.

2. The mass resignation demand highlights in an organized way the case for Trump’s removal (supported by 60% of women in a November 26, 2019, CNN poll) that Congress possesses and has failed to pursue in both the House and Senate.

No one so guilty of violating the basic laws of our land, so corruptly selling our government to giant corporations while asking CEOs for campaign contributions should disgrace our White House any longer. Trump’s increasingly shrill bigotry, pressing for selective voter intimidation and suppression, and incitements to violence illustrates what Alexander Hamilton meant by citing the “abuse of the public trust” as an impeachable offense.

3. The widespread discourse and debate pursuant to a mass resignation demand will highlight the specifics of Trump’s damage to our country. He arbitrarily declares another “economic emergency” so as to make corporate crimes worse by literally stopping enforcement of consumer, worker, environmental and economic protections. Big corporations over people again.

The resignation demand highlights his abuses against women over the years, his regime’s leaving young people defenseless against rapacious commercial universities and student loan exploiters, his support for freezing a $7.25 per hour federal minimum wage and other anti-worker slams that are all under-reported.

4. Because Trump doubles down on his many outrageous refusals to “faithfully execute the laws,” spending monies not appropriated by Congress, pursuing nine wars undeclared by Congress, giving his cronies lucrative government contracts, all the while daily distracting with his new-cycle-dominating foul-mouth tweets and personal attacks, the media has become jaded to the larger questions of why this madman is still in the Oval Office.

The reliance on the election in November afflicts many civic groups from pressing for Trump’s eviction now. “Me Too” activists still go after powerful misogynists but have given up on the 800-pound elephant in the room – Trump. Other citizen advocacy organizations cite their condemnatory reports, their press releases, and their lawsuits against Trump. The failed gambling czar laughs at all this, even when the media reports on these meritorious efforts.

Trump will get away with everything until January 20, 2021, unless he is removed from office, whether by impeachment and conviction, or a massive public resignation demand that sinks his poll numbers, leading him to quit because he can’t stand losing the election.

5. Trump himself will nourish community-level resignation demands by his increasing interference with the rights of voters, leading the GOP to daily clashes with election officials, civil rights groups, and the people’s notions of fair play.

Already underway in GOP controlled states are pernicious efforts to obstruct voter registration such as the closing of precincts in minority areas, purging of certain voters, and crazed harassment of low-income voters, such as requiring notarized mail-in votes or launching inappropriate challenges of signatures. There are neither prosecutors nor judges who can stop these and other dictatorial ravages in time for November 3, 2020.

With Trump still in office, prepare for an embroiling election crisis, as he unleashes street violence and harassing lawsuits before favorable judges citing the results as “rigged,” a “hoax,” and “stolen,” no matter his margin of defeat. With the pandemic of Covid-19 still taking casualties, why not try to get him out of the office and in the process inform and arouse the public? Genuine conservatives and current and retired military people are seething against Trump acting in their name and taking them for granted. They are ready to join the effort to protect our democracy and the rule of law.

The history of the Democratic Party, losing repeatedly to the worst Republican Party ever at the national and state levels, is not propitious for the coming months. Are Democratic operatives up to either a pre- or post-election day Trump and his unscrupulous GOP fanatics? The stakes are too high to rely on the Democrats.

It is our obligation as citizens to organize and demand Trump’s resignation and focus millions of voters on turning out the Trumpsters and their four-year Dark Age that is wrecking America.

Well stated Mr. Nader!!

Turns Out That President Trump Is Not Great As He Brags To Be...

Photo: Al Jazeera

Many books have already been written about President Trump and his administration.  A common theme is a chaotic scene inside the White House due to inexperience with operating inside the government.  Politicians are politicians for a reason.  President Trump is clearly not a politician.  Nor is he the honest leader that he leads on to be.



The video below produced by MSNBC introduces the new book by Dr. Mary Trump, a clinical psychologist titled "‘Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man" about President Trump.  Dr. Trump's book differs from others because she is the niece of President Trump.  Which offers an insider portrait of the President.   Watch the video below, and stay informed.

Dr. Mary Trump's book is yet another pillar of evidence of the inexperienced administration (and President) running our nation.  As if we needed more evidence?  This book will certainly solidify the ground of support on which the evidence stands.  Have a great weekend.

Ralph Nader: Trump and Pence – Step Aside for Professional Pandemic Scientists and Managers

Photo: WREG Memphis

The COVID-19 virus has taken over the economy and the world.  On top of that realization, leadership up top (i.e., the White House) is out to lunch at the moment.  Ralph Nader points the obvious out in his weekly newsletter.  That is, the Coronavirus should be run and discussed by scientists -- who are actually running the show and collecting the data.



Ralph Nader points out in his weekly newsletter that scientists should be consulted instead of President Trump and Vice President Pence:

Trump and Pence – Step Aside for Professional Pandemic Scientists and Managers

Major changes in society can be accomplished by a fast-emerging, broad-based civic jolt so obvious and persuasive that it overwhelms the entrenched powers. The most urgent job is for people to organize to get Trump and Pence to step aside from their bungling, making-matters-worse mismanagement of the Covid-19 pandemic. The White House should let a professional pandemic control specialist with public health experience and an appreciation of science replace the current and ongoing Trump horror show.

Many Republican operatives watching the daily Trump virus spectacle are terrified by how the President fabricates, fantasizes, confuses, and endangers the country. As Trump lowers his and their poll numbers, Republicans would welcome such a replacement.

“We the People,” are seeing the failing Donald Trump over-riding his own scientists and paralyzing any federal leadership and coordination of state efforts, as he measures all moves by his delusional ego. The citizenry must quickly mount irresistible pressure for Trump and Pence to step aside. Let Trump focus on the November election, which is all he cares about anyway, apart from watching Fox News for hours each day, lying to the public and endlessly tweeting slanders and insults.

Trump is so cruel and out of touch that he is letting his henchman cut nursing home safety regulations, end health and safety protections for workers, consumers, and communities, and pursue the end of Obamacare by stripping 23 million Americans of their health insurance. Doing this in the middle of a worsening killer pandemic is sheer madness. We have a president at the helm of a careening ship of state acting worse than Captain Queeg.

Would any community tolerate, in Maureen Dowd’s words, such “chaos, cruelty, deception and incompetence,” in their local public safety officials?

To be sure, there have been thousands of articles, columns, editorials, and TV/radio reports of the grotesque delays, perverse actions, quackery, and faking over the grim realities by Trump and Pence. All this takes place against the backdrop of his blundering son-in-law who is overseeing and furthering corrupt corporate bailouts. But, inexplicably, reporters and columnists avoid the conclusions that should stem from their own convictions and writings. One exception is the Washington Post editorial in May 2020, calling for Trump and Pence to step aside and let people who know what they’re doing take the reins.

The country simply cannot wait until Inauguration Day, January 21, 2021. Every day the Trump virus spreads further, while its presidential enabler is making sure sick Americans are left unprotected, and workers are left unemployed. More and more innocents are paying the ultimate price for this public health and economic disaster.

The failed gambling czar, selected to be our fake president by the unelected Electoral College, crazily gives himself a “ten” rating, admits no mistakes, and refuses to learn from other nation’s comparative successes against the virus.

Putting health professionals in charge of the “war” against the Covid-19 pandemic has worked in Taiwan, New Zealand, Thailand, Uruguay, and Canada’s British Columbia and other countries with sane leadership. These countries are showing far, far superior life-saving results and fewer economic convulsions.

Mr. Trump, if you’re not going to resign for America’s sake, at the least, step aside for your own political campaign’s sake. A coordinated civic jolt and a laser-beam demand from the people can make you and the alarmed GOP realize you are not capable of doing the job that needs to be done.  Of course, if Congress wasn’t a rubber stamp, our first branch of government could stop this lethal incompetence by mandating professional pandemic management.

For those doubters of this happening, remember the ringing statement by the demanding abolitionist Frederick Douglass – “Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will”.  Trump is a paper mache figure who hides behind bluffs and snarls. A civic jolt can displace him much like the statutes of slavers. 

Start your “step aside” demand by calling the White House opinion phone number 202-456-1111. Urge your friends to do the same. There is no time to delay.

John Bolton: "The Room Where It Happened" Book Interview - Worth Watching Before The Next Presidential Election!!!!!

Photo: Simon & Schuster

The recent news has been filled with what seems to be constant chaos around the United States.  Why is that the current situation?  How are other countries handling the pandemic sweeping the world?  Yes, the Coronavirus or COVID-19.  We have President Trump, who sounds defeated by the epidemic.  Our Nation is also battling a race issue that has been brewing over time and time again.  Young black Americans are being killed in the streets of America.  America is calling out for police reform.  President Trump sits in the highest office of the land. Alone in the White House running a chaotic nation.  There is no order in the White House.  Just listen to the former National Security Advisor John Bolton below.



Below is the interview of Former National Security Advisor John Bolton by USA Today's Washington Bureau Chief Susan Page, which is just under an hour in length.  Every American should watch the video below before the next Presidential election:

Wow!  Over the past few weeks, Readers will note that the blog posts have been filled mostly with commentary (mostly video) from leaders and generals of the past.  There is a reason that these people have been featured. That is to give a voice to normally silent people of our Nation.  I usually say, because, these high ranking individuals (i.e., Generals, Security Advisors, Chiefs of Staff, etc.) How are American citizens faring at the moment?  Especially amidst the pandemic?  The economic collapse?  The racial injustice protests?



It is important to hear different voices that do not usually speak up to the public.  What do their voices mean? Notably, at a time like this?



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Ralph Nader: Congress Must Hold President Trump Accountable!


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Come To A Presidential Rally -- But -- Assume Your Own Risk And That Of Your Fellow Americans


Environmental Justice Needs To Be Addressed With Race Issues

Jocko Willink: A Message To All People

A Message from General James Mattis Regarding the Use of Military to Police the Streets of Washington D.C.

A Message from President Obama Regarding Recent Tragedies and Pandemics

The Lack of Leadership at the Top Promotes Chaos -- which is unfolding now

Ralph Nader: Congress Must Hold President Trump Accountable!

Photo: Balance SMB

There is no doubt that there is a lack of leadership in the White House at the moment.  We are a nation without leadership.  Or what seems to be.  Further, Congress has chosen to not do anything to correct that deficiency.  Below, Ralph Nader points out the obvious.  That is the number of events recently which disqualifies the Trump administration to lead the Country.



In his recent newsletter, Ralph Nader states that Congress must hold President Trump accountable:

Congress Must Hold President Trump Accountable!

Here is an abridged version of a letter sent on June 22, 2020, by me and two constitutional law experts Bruce Fein and Lou Fisher, to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerald Nadler, and the Committee’s Vice Chairman, Jamie Raskin. It touches on where Congress has not exercised its constitutional authority to hold Trump accountable under the law.

Dear Madam Speaker, Mr. Chairman, and Mr. Vice Chairman:

Former national security adviser and ultra-hawk John Bolton’s disparagement of the articles of impeachment voted against President Donald Trump as “impeachment malpractice” in The Room Where It Happened may be viewed as a rebuke to Congress for failing to discharge its duty and powers to enforce constitutional observance (e.g., impeachment, stiff fines for flouting congressional subpoenas) that has fortified limitless executive power which Mr. Trump recklessly brandishes daily. Impugning Mr. Bolton’s motives does not impeach his impeachment facts or testimony revealing Mr. Trump’s serial impeachable offenses.

We had urged a broader 12-count article of impeachment indicting the full spectrum of Mr. Trump’s alarming extraconstitutional behavior which Congressman John Larson printed in the Congressional Record – H 12197 on December 18, 2018.  Among other things, the proposed article assailed presidential violations of the Declare War Clause, the Treaty Clause, the Appointments Clause, the Take Care Clause, and the Appropriations Clause, in addition to crippling the plenary congressional power of oversight and investigation.

Book excerpts printed in The New York Times reveal credible evidence of several additional impeachable offenses requiring House subpoenas to Mr. Bolton and Mr. Trump to testify in public under oath to unearth the truth.  According to Mr. Bolton, President Trump solicited illegal foreign assistance for his 2020 presidential campaign by asking the President of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, to purchase billions of dollars of wheat and soybeans from American farmers to win their political favor (52 U.S.C. 30121).  Mr. Trump asked for that foreign assistance from President Xi in exchange for Mr. Trump’s desisting from sanctions against Chinese officials under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act because of China’s persecution of Uighurs, which constitutes bribery under 18 U.S.C. 201.

Mr. Trump obstructed justice in interceding to lighten penalties against ZTE for flouting sanctions against North Korea, among other things. These impeachable offenses are probably only the tip of the iceberg.

In our capacity as citizens of the Republic, is it too much to expect the House to enforce constitutional observance though the powers of impeachment, subpoenas, contempt, or otherwise?  At a minimum, the House should subpoena Mr. Bolton and Mr. Trump to testify about the foregoing new impeachable offenses and others if they surface in the interim. Mr. Bolton volunteered to testify before the Senate at Mr. Trump’s impeachment trial but was not called.  He did not agree to testify before the House during its impeachment investigation because of pending litigation. The House inexplicably neglected to subpoena him. The law and precedent are clear. In conducting an impeachment investigation, the House has a right to every person’s evidence whether of the President, of the incumbent or former White House officials, or others.

In 1974, the House Judiciary Committee voted an article of impeachment against President Richard Nixon for flouting a subpoena.  The article would have been approved by the full House absent Mr. Nixon’s resignation precipitated by his anticipated certain conviction in the Senate. (The United States Supreme Court also held that presidential tapes were fair game for the judiciary in the United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683 (1974)). President Gerald Ford testified before the House Judiciary Committee about his pardon of Mr. Nixon to dispel suspicion of a quid pro quo for President Nixon’s resignation.

What your stewardship of the Constitution requires is manifest. With dismay, we have witnessed too many Executive Branch and congressional defectors from the Constitution. You should lead them back. Regular constitutional order must be restored, including curing the multiple violations enumerated in our proposed 12-count impeachment article (H 12197).

“We the People of the United States” deserve leadership, not spectatorship. Our constitutional handiwork is in peril.

House hearings are urgent.

We need a change at the national level.  Simple as that!