Happy independence day. It is time to declare independence from overlords of energy and finance who degrade commons and remove choices for freedom loving children. Earth's Energy imbalance will take real physical changes to fix, not just gains to exploit in Induced demand. marketing. There will be less energy per freedom loving American. Unless it's Circularized, payments will include choices taken from future payers. (BTW, the EU adopted a week definition for circular economics in the last link, and, the corporate circular washing of Internet searches is going strong.)
Declarations without action are worse than worthless. It takes from real hope and washes over growing consumption. Life isn't a car commercial. Money isn't enough. Freedom takes shared responsibility, hard choices and difficult conversations. The reward is more connected community with more local production, and maybe even increases in resiliency and well-being. We don't need international selections in every choice, do we? Can we do with less anywhere now that can leave more for later?
Today's masters of finance and energy try to get more than their share. Here is an example from solar power. In my area, you can get tax incentives to install solar. Great. However, if you connect it and stay on the grid, the utility companies buy it at a third of the rate they sell it. Since you also have to shut down to prevent feeding into the system while workers deal with blackouts, you also don't have blackout protection. Money masters have ensured solar won't pay for itself in dollars, while solar consumers do what we can to reduce future impacts. FYI, I have spent on portable solar panels and batteries. I have to move heavy batteries a couple times a day, but we can keep the frig on in blackouts.
It's painful, but some of us have to get involved in local government. Republicans are. If you like food, then rural politics will be relevant for the foreseeable future. Caring about every vote in every county worked for Fetterman for Pennsylvania, and it can help across the nation. A few of us see the need for more than polling and donating. Republicans do and have been mobilizing.
I have been joining Missouri Democratic party organizing. Here, we are hoping to break the R supermajority. There is very little hope of my favored policy enactments. I think we should be out in communities more. And, my apostasy against market hegemony probably puts some off. Nevertheless, I'm participating until shown the party door, Republicans stop trading freedom for power, or something better comes along.
This call for action comes more as a warning than direction. The Earth energy imbalance will bring changes. I rarely ask anybody to do anything, and am flawed like most. For one, I eat pretty much meat, and will for at least as long as dog Busta is around. Opportunities to contribute abound nonetheless. There is no one way, but we all will do something as the Earth reacts to our energy extravaganza. I'm for community action and more equitable distribution. Let's take care of as many as possible, rather than each to their own and most to a very few. Government can do it better than a bunch of separate churches, organizations and billionaires.
Some changes are weather related. Here's one. Severe weather hit my area, and the Internet has been out for a day. This was written in a text editor on my phone. Now, I'll try to paste up to DK. Will put in a few links if I can get enough service.
Looks like it worked. Today is just Internet out. Phone and power are on. That's all I can do in my time on a phone.
Have a great Fourth of July