Pollution-based environmental damages vs A Carbon Tax

Is the planet getting hotter ? Is it caused by us ? Are fossil fuels to blame ? Does recycling help ?

is it just me or is it getting hotter outside in the winter ?

All of these sorts of questions are today considered part of 'environmentalism'. This movement has existed to varying degrees since, at least, the time of Thomas Jefferson in the 1700's, but examples can also be cited earlier. In the cases of the early environmentalists they were very often those who were, by-and-large, already considered to be 'natural philosophers', mathemetitians, statistitians, 'natural scientists', alchemists, managers of ports or civic works, etc. The percentage of the populations employed in these vocations was small. 

just look at all that profit on the wind !

The very great majority of people were of a more peasantly stock and so had very little such concern. Even among the aristocracy, until the renaissance, very little lay-science was made available outside personal erudition or invitational conferences. The World Expo's, begun in earnest around the 1840's, was the beginning of wider public scientific awareness. Please take a moment and reflect on that... the public has only been exposed to 'modern science' for 150 years. At the onset, virtually nothing of science was concerned with 'environmentalism' as we conceive of it today. Quite the opposite. This was the age of industrialization. The greatest mechanical advances usually had quite dire environmental consequences for the people and the planet, but the awareness of chemistry and pollution as concepts was very little possessed by the people. 

I'm pretty sure the poop in the water is making people sick.... hmmm...

We might do well again to consider that it was until even more recently that we were able to argue against science even when it came to things like cigarettes, which effectively pollute the body. There were clear, visible and scientific links between smoking and throat irritation, for example, but we see that the profit motive and the general lack of scientific awareness in the public (meaning citizens, judges, doctors even, etc.,) allowed smoking to continue under a cloak of 'is it or isn't it bad for you??' for many more years than today seems appropriate. I am not arguing against a persons right to choose to smoke, only that we cannot pretend that our lung-butter is unrelated... scientifically.

take two of these with some alcohol, call me tonight, sugar-tits !

I feel the situation with environmental awareness is somewhat similar. One of the greatest tactics of distraction I have noticed, is the usage of the terms 'global warming' and 'climate change'. Both of these are keywords - neurologically designed and deployed - to cause confusion and distraction from the cornerstone issue of POLLUTION. 

Is the planet getting warmer ? Maybe, but who cares? What does that give or take away from the already substantial arguments against the poisoning of our people and planet for financial gain of a small few ? 

Is global warming man made ? Who cares ? Maybe the planet has cool and warm periods... how are we doing on the whole "combating pollution" thing ? 

You see, by framing the discussion in terms of 'everyones fault' or 'global cycles' they seem to be laying the roadwork for a non-corporate-liable 'carbon tax' whereby you and I pay an extra environmental fee on just about everything. It seems this will take the guise of a global levy. I don't want to digress too far here, but basically they are very skillfully changing the narrative of these issues completely. Instead of working hard to enact binding pollution controls of profit-producing corporations that operate in our nations and/or around the globe; we are getting ready to make the victims pay the surcharge for pollution-based environmental damages. 

but I already paid to pay ! :<

Imagine a medieval Lord. He provides food for your family. At some point the people, in public, discover that the food provided is causing ailment. Naturally, one would hope for a free remedy as this has happened out of ones control, against ones self and family... instead the Lord continues to supply the rotten goods, but also starts charging money for a placebo-based cure for the condition they have themselves created. Additional levy may also here be made against the people to help with additional costs of removing their dead, etc, which the state must bear during this 'crisis'.

While I am sure something akin to this likely happened in history, in a democracy - even one run through representatives - the government obviously should not take this path. In a democracy, we assume, the people discover this issue and the state works to quickly find a different source of food, as well as providing cures to the population at no or minimal cost. Additionally, in a well-run democracy, the citizens might make levy on the gov't for reparations where fault may be found and recompense due.

I ask you, should we not remove the poop from out the waters ?

I apologize for the voyage to a cruder time, but it seems a most apt example here. In this democratic western world we inhabit, it seems outrageous to me that corporations and mining operations, (etc.,) all so easily evade appropriate payment for their substantial gains. These corporations have ruined significant sections of the world and have paid the very least of damages. Entire cities, peoples and ecosystems are destroyed and fines are given. Fines which are not damaging or effective deterrence for these types of offences. We know this because all the worst offenders still exist and still drive massive profits. 

At this point, we are already buying 30% of our own garbage back through recycling programs - which generally have very little environmental impact but help boost bottom-lines for corporations very significantly. We have virtually no jobs in production left because instead of investing in cleaner technologies 40 years ago, we decided to invest in the capitalists pocket-lining instead. 

or you could buy one nice glass bottle and do a little planning with your life.

Environmental hazards now abound. We are told we will have to pay much more for foods in the coming years because of environmental anomalies, which we assume are caused by POLLUTION. WE pay pay pay and the issues are no closer to being resolved, wealth inequality grows, opportunities diminish and the corporations get bigger and badder and richer every day.

Is the planet getting hotter ? Take some time today and calculate out what pollution-based environmental damages exist in your own area. Consider well that there are few jobs and well paying unions today because those jobs are all moved to areas where pollution is more easily produced and afforded by the companies that we prop up every day with our dollar-votes. If you do a proper tally you can pretty quickly see that the amount of environmental damages against you is close to the amount you owe in fines for pirating media content... 

I guess they got ya coming and going...

Pondering the kindness of Putin

I noticed in my news-feed today that 3 more astronauts have returned to Earth this morning aboard the trusty ol' Soyuz. As pleased as I am with the safe return of these heroes and the ongoing long-term radiation experiments of the NASA twins, something more pressing struck me about the missions today...

Putin says you may proceed with your genetic space experiment, comrades.

Since the end of the Space Shuttle program around 2010 (something that I, as well as many others including the venerable Dr. Armstrong, strongly opposed) The USA has been completely dependent upon their former-rival-turned-partner Russia for manned launch capability. At the time, although this measure was adopted with seeming ease, there was yet some hawkish concern about depending on another nation for anything this important. Indeed, although at the time I thought Mitt was mad, Russia has turned out to be a far greater 'threat' to America than any other single nation. This was not at all the tone of relations between the two SuperPowers when we scuttled the shuttle. The devolution of relations has been severe and steady for several years now. First over the encroachment of NATO into The Ukraine and now over the sovereignty and terrorist issues in Syria. While I have always been a little soft on the hatred of Russia and hard on the USA, I think this is fitting as all to often the victors skew the narrative against the vanquished - and also the highest of figures should be held to the highest of account. I only make this digression to help show that I am not strictly sympathetic to the Russian side of things here. I very much appreciate and admire the gift of liberty that America has given to the world; yet I remain unconvinced that it is a valuable market commodity, as such.

Trust the Russians, you say ?

Our perception of Russia is always as the aggressor, an instigator of malcontent. Has our partnership over the ISS bourne this out ? It is an interesting thing to consider. It seems almost obvious to me that if the shoe was on the other foot; if Russia had dropped it's manned launch capability in 2010, there would be no Russians presently on-board the ISS. The fact that Roscosmos has not halted the transportation of Americans (and also other EU members) to the ISS, speaks very clearly to me about who the aggressors are in our current global environ. 

Should we truly imagine that the hard-lined Putin is graciously extending these services for the betterment of mankind ? If this is the case, then he is a more compassionate and considerate leader than what has been produced by the plurality of our institutions. I believe that the war-minded Republican houses would quickly leave Russians 'pissing in the solar winds', if they had their way. Obama, wanting to give the democrats a veneer of muscle, would likewise have quickly given space co-operation the axe in my opinion. This would have made him 'look tough' on Russia while still avoiding open armed conflict. 

Such a nobel fellow :P

I do not wish herein to portray Russia as some great bastion of moral supremacy on the matter. I believe that the Russian government would, by right and inclination, also enact these prohibitions. The difference is, in my opinion, that Russians fear direct American reprisal where America would not. 

I believe that any move by Russia to now prohibit the transit of astronauts would be viewed as an act of territorial aggression against the US, vis; purposfully obstructing the USA from transit to and from it's rightful territorial assets., etc. 

Notionally, I believe this is viewed in law similarly to a naval blockade. Let us say that there was a small island within Russian coastal waters. Then, let us say that the USA has been transiting passengers to-and-from the island using a declared neutral drop-point on another small island in international waters. So the USA brings people to the international island, then they board a Russian ship for passage to the island located within Russian territory. Declining to take people to the ISS would be viewed the same as refusing to transport vital passengers to the inter-Russian island in our example. 

This is a good visual for Putin trying to stop American space access, like, imagine that's
just a stick with a light that he has there...

In the water, the USA would have the option, of course, of sending their own boat through the international sphere, into Russian waters and to the island. We might infer here that Russia would view the transit as an incursion against the territorial sovereignty of their waters - and rightly so. In space that option (send their own unit) is not presently available, and so the potential damage to the colony in space could be that much more severe. 

Several issues come to mind in both examples; first-off, how did an American settlement end-up in such an obviously Russian-controlled sphere - why assume these risks and liabilities to begin with? Likewise, why put your space-transit abilities in the hands of another -often antagonistic- nation ?Supremacy of force and a desire to disseminate it can be the only reasonable assumption. Obviously the USA would be unwise to claim a dependent island in such waters - equally unwise to put ones faith in a potential enemy for something so important as space transit. It must have been assumed, basically, at the time the shuttle program was dissolving; if Russia says they won't take our guys they better be ready to face the full force of American Fury. A proposition which Putin has obviously not been eager to fulfill. 

Distasteful and perhaps harsh, but still a nasty tinge of truth as well...

No, I do not think kindness is a main proponent of Putin's platform in general, nor related to space-faring accommodation. I am pretty-well convinced that these space-transits are occurring only thanks to a gun at the head of Russia. With all the other tensions already encircling these two giants of war - would Putin honestly even consider to spark the conflict with something as trivial as the non-space based space station transits where so little is to be gained from such termination (except ones own possible destruction) ? Is publicly making a joke of the US space program worth a million Russian lives ? I think not. What I find most troubling is that America seems too keen these days to get that gun up to as many heads as it wants, thinks or cares to. 

When a country so important that has stood for so much good in the world at times, is degraded to holding the world ransom over any issue it needs resolved ... it becomes an example of the tyranny it once struggled to shrug off. One must at times wonder how long the tree of liberty can stand without being watered. 

I honestly hope that the tensions in Crimea, the wider Ukraine, Georgia, Syria and elsewhere can be resolved without any further escalation of armed conflict. Either way, I expect the shared-space program will endure until the bitter end - being viewed as absolutely inconsequential in every regard except seat-ticket sales revenue. If Russia was to take a stand on this issue, they would be attacked almost instantly. The entire Russian problem, to me, seems to center around their taking complete advantage of every moral cavity we have recently vacated... and for so little gain to ourselves, at that. 

Those who would give up liberty for security lose both, also I just invented electricity.
How can you argue with any of that ?

Either we owe Putin our sincere thanks for sustaining the space program through this phase, or we owe the deepest of apologies for turning an organization and it's instruments of peace, into a hostage situation. Either way, I fear we are quickly losing moral high-ground in the etherial relams. As above, so below ?

So we're thinking of expanding NATO to your door, but also like, can we ask you to
keep sending our guys to space, pretty pleeeease ?? :>

The Right Stigma

I wanted to post this before the laws change too much here. If they constitute some sort of violation in the future I do apologize, but also hope that such an event itself will help to herein justify my assumptions and peaceful protests against said mechanisms of time and "justice".

There are several issues which are happening in such fine orchestration and with such diabolical intent that one who is aware and read-enough to observe the trajectory can not help but be guffawed.

THE ENEMY WITHOUT

We are presently witnessing a level of hostility on the world stage not seen in about a hundred years. Perhaps it is, and has ever been, the role of the earlier-generational components of centuries that they are to be whistfully thrown upon the altar of war and death for the later blessings of peace and progress. It is striking that we have already been at war for a decade. Open, large scale war. So one could observe; the early 2000's was a component of the (American) Middle-East Wars, early 1900's: WWI and II. And 1812 was, well, the war of 1812 period. In each instance the nature and substance of 'the nation' was threatened from 'abroad' or a 'foreign interest'.

What strikes me as extraordinarily juvenile of mind about all this is that who really cares about a foreign interest? What does that even mean (besides some sort of xeno-phobic kinship violation)? For the common citizen of any such culture; fair work, fair wage, fair legal systems and enough satisfactory personal time is all that can really be desired. These can vary by geography and religious preference somewhat, but in the main; the simple desire of a peaceful home, a happy spouse and a seeming purpose are quite sufficient. Indeed the entire pretext of the struggle of man so far is a desire to work up to these achievements. The closest thing we can recall of an idealized 'golden-aged people' are the 1% of ancient greece, rome and egypt who were free to fetter their time away in debate, good company and good wine. The simple desire for freedom and peace is so palpable that it is only when such is threatened by the aggression and violence of another that any violence seems justified whatsoever.

So who are these enemies from without ? Here in the west that ticket has largely been filled by the faceless rage of islam. but what is the source of this hatred ? Is fighting fire with fire the best way to stop your kitchen from burning down ? Is it that they perhaps believe our God is evil ? That seems to be the premise that is vended. But Islam has the same God of Abraham that any Jew or Christian does. Basically all faiths recognize the prophets of each other faith... So then it is fanatics ?  So now the percentage of people who are out to get us drops dramatically and we see what many understand; Islamic adherents are no more dangerous than Christian or Jewish practitioners... yet each group also posesses fanatics. Interestingly enough the fanatics of all sides seem to be at their worst when they are all trying to tempt God to reveal his plans and helpers... but I digress.

From their side; the problem is also OUR fanatics then. Most people HERE also desire simple peace and life and liberty and to serve their community and their God, but some among us manage to wrangle millions in preference to the causes of violent overthrow, armmament, attack and prejudice. This is a strange contemplation; to us they are the enemy but to them we are.... largely for the same reasons. Bill Maher may have said it best in WHEN YOU RIDE ALONE; they hate us because we don't know why they hate us. The fact that we have continually exploited their resources and people as we do our own has never seemed to factor into the equation. Here it is "ok" (even i must concede) because it is our peopole and our laws made by our ministers, but when we foist these views on people of other regions it is a tenuous argument for our moral superiority; especially in North America where we all so stridently argued for direct self-representation due to geological, religious or other preferences we deemed fit under the laws of all people.

In the USA the constitution is a document written in the hopes of an awakening for all mankind. We often forget that the revolutionary spirit in france that produced napoleon also produced washington. It represents the first time that men not specifically born to the task held political sway... it was a noble experiment, but perhaps only possible because of several strong personalities being born into a time that was ready to support and encourage them. Maybe America was a great idea for the founders, but not so much their decendants... The civil liberties won after confrontation with a great 'foreign' power are being discarded in the face of protecting us all from another one... when considered in this light the enemy without is largely baseless and senseless... but that does not mean there are not enemies, only that they are among us.


THE ENEMY WITHIN

On september 10th 2001 if you had tried to put forward an piece of nazi-fied rubbish called the PATRIOT ACT (especially considering the then-fresh revelation of a missing $3Trillion in ALREADY-EXISTING operations) you may have been impeached from office for gross incompetence and a sheer misunderstanding of what your job was. As they say, the next day everything changed.

After years of policy deepening and widening the trough of immigrants from ever newer and more exotic locations around the globe; we were told they, those people HERE were the 'foreign threat' now. While they shared our geography, they were hostile aliens. Traditions of community and kin, of being a part of the nation they are in - were all completely undone. Our own shores were not safe. A sort of soft invasion was already well underway. The only way to protect from an inborn foreign threat like this was to do away with some civil liberties. None of the ones that are essential for the avoidance of a complete police state, but just enough to establish the principals of the erosion of rights, the creation of an inter-agency force and the accumulation of more powers of foreign lands not a party to any such agreements or legal processes.

Osama bin Laden or Obama sin Laden.
The only difference is B/S

Because of all this unpleasantness, the strain of perpetual war and the tangling of the legal system in the additional task of undoing and repair itself more constantly than usual - the people lose their essentials. The right to fair wage is gone, we must make cuts to fund the war. The right to peace is gone, the gov't has flooded the streets here and abroad with potential violence and conflict through efforts that have very little benefit for the majority of citizens. It is almost like they are using us as open collateral at this point. While the role and sincere efforts of government go into producing the best standards of living for their citizens, there is another type in open operation now that works to dismantle the things people like at home to destroy other things abroad. It's a total moral outrage, but it goes on. The legal system that should provide oversight is so completely overwhelmed by these counter-productive efforts, that again; the people lose their rights to natural justice. While scores of highly paid people work themselves and others tirelessly to alter the definitions of such terms, the jobs, money and lives are all spent in such pursuits rather than the provision of good and simple living conductive to a good society. When a man is happy, at peace and in his home, the bawdyhouse owner is the one left to bemoan his fate. In my town the proprietors of good times as such are beginning to seek office. WE begin to look to them for wisdom and guidance (or tolerate them enough that they think we might) because they are without scruples in business and we need that to get anything done now.

Without opportunity, representation, fair wages and sensible rules a people are likely to become restless. IF you had revealed in July 2001 that the gov't had been waterboarding and giving tanks directly to police people would have lost it, the fact that we accept all this in law today is a great testiment to the persistence success of these people. Now that the citizens are restless they police and military are trained on THEM. If anyone had said in November 2001 that terror laws would be used against natural born citizens of the nation there would have been no support for the measures whatsoever. Everyone that warned of a slippery slope in these matters has resoundingly been proven right on all counts. While our corporate tyrant kings enjoy every pleasure, todays Nobel laureates live in chains...

WE are our own worst enemies through our simple lack of observation. People are so glued to their phones and their 'security' in the world (in all it's forms) that the actually world where people live and work and build kin and truly love one another as so cliche as to almost be as reminisced as that golden age of white marble towers and fine long-robes. At least they let us keep the wine so far.