Blog Archives

Ministry of Truth - UPDATE

4/30/2022

Holy Cow! I wrote the previous post only 10 hours ago and the Web-o-sphere is going bonkers. I LOVE it!

First up... Lauren Boebert has already introduced legislation to terminate the Disinformation Governance Board.

The Musk-man himself has also chimed in.

Wow!... Tulsi Gabbard is calling the Biden Administration out. Worth watching!
twitter.com/tulsigabbard/status/1520003460787163136

Brett Cooper. Entertaining as always.

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Freedom Of Speech - The Ministry Of Truth Is Born

4/30/2022

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Disinformation Governance Board
Friends, this is the most disturbing report I've written in a long time.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has just created the Disinformation Governance Board (DGB) to officially infringe on the 1st Amendment. It is right out of 1984.

The head of the new Ministry Of Truth is Nina Jankowicz, who is totally jazzed about her new power to censor Conservatives on behalf of the Biden Administration. Here she is, celebrating her new role with a Mary Poppins rendition.

All I can say is WTF And the Biden Administration thinks this is a good idea!

She sings pretty fast... so here are the words to her inspiring song :

Information laundering is really quite ferocious
It's when some huckster takes some lies
And makes them sound precocious

By saying them in Congress or a mainstream outlet
So the dis-information origins are slightly less atrocious

It's how you hide a little
hide a little lie

When Rudy Giuliani
Shared bad intel from Ukraine
Or when TikTok influencers
Said COVID can't cause pain.

They're laundering dis-info
and we really should take note
and not support their lies
with our wallet, voice or vote!

If you imagine that she/her is an unbiased arbiter of Truth and a supporter of the 1st Amendment... SORRY! If you thought censorship at Facebook and Twitter was bad, wait till this arrogant lunatic has the power to arrest people.

I wonder if she will censor the continuous lies and dis-information spewing from her Boss?? Probably not.

I suggest we not support
Democrats or wokes
with our wallet, voice or votes.

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Water Scarcity

4/29/2022

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Water Crisis Out West
In the past, I've written about genuine environmental issues that are being ignored to 'Save The Climate'. One of the most urgent issues is a genuine shortage of fresh water in many areas due to relentless population growth.

The current drought in California (and other Western states) is the worst in 100 years. Hydroelectric plants have been shut down due to extremely low water levels. Water conservation measures have been issued in Southern California.

“We don’t have enough water supplies right now to meet normal demand. The water is not there,” MWD spokeswoman Rebecca Kimitch said. “This is unprecedented territory. We’ve never done anything like this before.” www.theepochtimes.com/t-water-shortage

Running Out of Water
The so called 'Climate Scientists' are claiming this is the worst drought EVER. Yes, this drought is BAD, but the Native Americans didn't have rain gauges or keep any records so comparisons are just propaganda.

The Climate Hysterians will then say 'This is the first time in HISTORY that the level in Lake Meade has dropped below the Level 1 Pumping Station". This is a true statement. But they are dishonest... the Hoover Dam wasn't built until 1935 and didn't reach capacity until the Dust Bowl drought was over.

So, this is the worst drought in the 85 year history of the Hoover Dam, but all honest scientists know that the last Great Drought started more than a decade before the dam was built.

The Dust Bowl
The Great Drought began in the late 1920's and continued until around 1941. It lasted for at least 11 years and is regarded as the 'drought of record' for the United States.

Dust storms destroyed entire towns.

Population Increase
When we talk about shortages or scarcity we must consider both supply and demand. There is, indeed, an extreme water shortage in the Southwest. But I see no evidence that it's due to 'Climate Change'.

The population of California was about 5.7 million in 1930's (when the Hoover Dam was built) and it is almost 40 million today. The population increases in Arizona and Nevada are even more dramatic.

Arizona 435,573 -- 7,151,391
Nevada 91,058 -- 3,104,614

Overall, the population of the region increased by about 800%. The demand/consumption of water has increased even more. However, Mother Nature is not a capitalist and has made no effort to increase the supply of rain.

Without any increase in supply, a water crisis was inevitable and it has now arrived.

Capitalism does have a solution to this inevitable supply problem... it is called desalinization.

A Self-Inflicted Crisis
In related news, while CA is in the worst drought of modern times, the California Coastal Commission has again rejected plans to build a seawater desalinization plant that would provide about 50 Million gallons of fresh water per day.

The Poseidon Water project, which would convert seawater to drinkable water, was first proposed in the early 2000’s. It has been opposed by 'environmentalists' and has been the subject of seven lawsuits and dozens of local efforts to stop the plant since 2005.

Poseidon has spent $100 Million over the past two decades attempting to get approval for a project that would provide desperately needed fresh water.

I'm waiting for the dire reports of wildfires and rolling power blackouts this summer. The dishonest media will blame it on Climate Change, but it is just another self-inflicted California Crisis.
www.zerohedge.com/news/2022-04-27/california-coastal-commission-opposes-desalinization-fish-1-people-0

On the bright side, once they run out of water they won't be able to hose the poop off the streets. YAY!!

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EVs - Promise and Problems Part 2

4/25/2022

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In the previous post I talked about the inevitable transition from ICE to Electric vehicles. In this segment we'll talk about how the US grid will handle the transition. There is a bit of Math and Science and Logic... but y'all are Conservatives so I think you can handle it!

Let's Go!

How Much Energy Do Cars Use?
The US consumed about 146.29 Billion gallons of gasoline in 2019, the last year when we had a functioning economy. (We consumed only 128 Billion during the COVID lock downs of 2020).

One gallon of gas delivers 120,286 BTUs (it's Science). So, the total energy consumed in the form of gasoline was 17,600,000,000,000,000 BTUs (that is a BIGLY number).

A BTU is a really tiny amount of energy so let's convert into equivalent kilowatt-hours (kWh) which is more familiar and convenient measure. One kWh is equivalent to 3,412.14 BTUs (honest, it's Science).

To understand how tiny a BTU is, the average household in Illinois (2,186 square feet) consumes 129 Million BTU per year (mostly for heating, hot water and gas dryers).

So, the amount of energy consumed as gasoline in 2019 was 5,157,068,273,869 kWh. This number is still too big to deal with so let’s express it in TeraWatt-hours as 5,157 TWh.

Only about 30% of the thermal energy (I.e. BTUs) is converted to mechanical energy by an ICE and the other 70% is wasted (as heat through the radiator and exhaust). If we assume that an EV is 100% efficient then it will ‘only’ require about 1,547 TWh to operate 270+ million cars in America.

How Much Electricity Does the US Produce?
OK, we have a rough idea of how much electricity we would need to power all our cars. How does this compare to how much electricity we can produce?

The United States produces the 2nd greatest amount of electricity in the world (We are surpassed only by China).

The US produced/consumed roughly 4,000 TWh at our peak in 2018 and slightly less in 2019, 2020 and 2021. Please note that our production has been flat since 2010.... many new natural gas (NG) plants have been built but coal-fired plants have been retired. There has been NO expansion of capacity in 12 years.

The total production/distribution capacity within the United States is roughly 1 terawatt. In other words, we can produce about 1 TWh per hour if everything is running at full capacity. Of course this is impossible... solar produces no energy at night, wind only works when it's windy, and so forth.

Can The Grid Handle EVs?
This is somewhat open to speculation and debate.

To power 100% EVs we will need to increase our current production from 4,000 TWh to 5,547 TWh... which is a 39% increase over the next 15 years. I will again point out that we have had ZERO increase over the past 12 years.

Sidebar - As a sanity check I looked at other authorities and Forbes claims it would only require 1,106.6 TWh to run all 270+ Million cars in America per year. I assume they are ignoring vans, trucks and other heavy vehicles. Also, the author is a Brit... so I’m going to stick with my number, which is about 40% higher... why would anyone trust a Brit?

The Brit at Forbes contends that the existing grid can handle a 39% increase in load. To be fair, if I wasn't an electrical engineer, I might be tempted to agree. You see, 5,547 TWh per year is only 15.3 TWh per day... or .64 TWh per hour. This is, indeed, less than our current maximum capacity of 1 TWh per hour.

So, if everything is perfect... if the sun is shining... if the wind is blowing... if there are no storms... and if nothing ever has to be shut down for maintenance... then the Brit is correct. (Perhaps that's why the Brits are freezing their arses off and rationing food... God Save The Queen).

OK, What Will It Take?
I'm glad you asked.

I really like the fact that our grid has a substantial 'safety factor'. I am concerned that the Green New Deal transition to unreliable renewables (sun, wind, unicorn farts) will reduce this safety factor (recall the California rolling blackouts and the grid collapse in Texas due to snow).

To make a transition to EVs AND a greater reliance on unreliable renewables we MUST expand our electric generation capacity by at least 39% over the next 15 years (and that assumes there is zero economic growth... just a transition to EVs and renewables). BTW, the experts at Statista calculate that we will need to increase power capacity by 36% by 2035... and they are Unicorn Fart Progressives.

There are currently 11,070 utility-scale power plants in the US, so increasing capacity by 39% is possible but it will be a substantial undertaking and cost Billions of $$

Here's a map of ALL the power plants in the United States.

According to government studies (which are always underestimated) a 1000 MW NG-fired power plant will cost about $1B (i.e. about $1/Watt). If we assume the need for 1000 – 2000 new plants then the cost would be approximately $2 Trillion. This is certainly achievable over 15 years with a $20 Trillion/year economy (although we haven't done shit over the past 12 years).

Of course the Climate Change Hysterians will not be happy about replacing evil gasoline with evil NG. Large scale solar facilities cost roughly twice as much as equivalent NG facilities so the cost would be on the order of $4 Trillion (and it would be unreliable).

Please note that replacing gasoline (which we have in abundance) does not make transportation faster, safer or more comfortable. It is $2T - $4T spent for virtue signaling and to make billionaires, like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, even more billions.

What About Charging?
In the previous post I talked briefly about charging stations.

There are currently about 110,000 service stations in America and they employ about 900,000 people. As I mentioned in the previous report, in the future many people will have charging stations at their residence or where they work. We might see 20,000 - 40,000 urban/town service stations go out of business (maybe they will all become Dope Dispensaries, Payday Loan stores or Body Armor Outlets).

On the other hand, every service station along the highways and Interstates will need to have dozens of Superchargers and a substation to deliver the power. The Service Station of the future will look like this. Invest in Siemens.

In the next post, let's talk about the negative environmental impact of this 'Green' transition.

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EVs - Promise and Problems Part 1

4/25/2022

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This is a very long post but I think it is worth it.

To start off, I am in favor of Electric Vehicles (EVs) and I believe they will eventually replace Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles. However, government mandates to push EVs before they become cost competitive with ICE interferes with the free market and reduces prosperity.

Let's go!

EV Advantages
EVs have many technical advantages.

Electric motors produce maximum torque at stall when it's needed most. ICE engines require complex transmissions to develop torque when the vehicle isn't moving.
Electric motors are very simple with few moving parts. ICE engines (and their associated transmissions) are composed of hundreds (or even thousands) of parts.
Consequently, electric motors are exceptionally durable and low maintenance.
EVs don't have an exhaust system
EVs utilize regenerative braking which improves efficiency and reduces wear on the brakes.
EVs remove pollution from dense cities and transfer the pollution to rural power plants.

A Couple of Anti-EV Myths
The anti-EV folks claim that the batteries only last 8-10 years and then the cost of replacement is so great that you have to throw the vehicle away. This is a great exaggeration.

The life of a Lithium-xx battery is determined more by the number of charge cycles (i.e. miles) than the number of years. Consequently, it would be more precise to say that an EV battery will last for some number of miles. (Tesla, for example, warrants their batteries for 150,000 miles with at least 70% of original capacity). www.tesla.com/support/vehicle-warranty

This wouldn't be acceptable for someone in the far-flung burbs who drives 40k miles/year (like I did). But it is very acceptable for an urban person who drives 8-10k per year.

Secondly, it is true that present EV batteries are prohibitively expensive to replace... but they will go down in price as tech improves and alternatives to lithium, nickle and cobalt are discovered. I also think that the batteries will have salvage/recycle value... considering the high cost of the primary materials.

Let's agree that EVs are impractical for high-mileage drivers who will consume their batteries before economical replacements come to market. But let's also acknowledge that EVs already make sense for people who have relatively short commutes and access to overnight charging stations.

EV Disadvantages
The primary disadvantage of EVs is that they are simply not cost competitive (yet). They receive huge government subsidies at the taxpayer's expense and still cost more than comparable ICE vehicles.

Joe and AOC can get away with the tax-credit scam when only 1-2% are buying EVs. How the hell will this work if they get to their goal of 100% ?? (270 million cars times $10k tax credit = $$2.7 Trillion). Of course this can't happen... and the tax credits are all structured to expire after a few hundred thousand cars are sold. The credits are only for the wealthy early adopters and everyone else will get little or nothing.

The second disadvantage is lack of range. Current EVs are completely acceptable for people with short commutes but most models don't work for people who drive longer distances. (There are a couple of models that get 400 miles per charge). This will eventually be solved but the EVs aren't quite there yet.

The third disadvantage is charging time/inconvenience. Here again, this is NOT an issue for someone who drives moderate distances and has the ability to recharge overnight (i.e. people with a private charging station or who have curbside charging out on the street... which is becoming more widespread in cities).

Sidebar - When we built neoTerra we installed a circuit for a Level 2 charger (7kW) in the carport. We don't have an EV... but eventually we will. Plan ahead!

A Couple of Pro-EV Myths
EV owners like to brag about how much money they're saving on gas. This isn't exactly a myth but it is temporary.

Much of the savings comes from the fact that gasoline is taxed to pay for roads and bridges, while electricity isn't. In essence, the current EV owners are getting a free ride at the expense of everyone else (in addition to the giant up-front tax credit that the rest of us paid for).

Several states have already figured this out and are heavily taxing EVs for their annual license plates. Even worse, the Biden Build Back Better plan includes provisions to track EVERYONE'S driving so they can be taxed by the mile. www.forbes.com/sites/zackfriedman/2021/08/11/infrastructure-package-includes-vehicle-mileage-tax-program/?sh=1e9aa44331c6

Sidebar - It seems that the Green New Deal is more about government tracking, social credit and socialist control than saving Terra. But that's a topic for another day.

Secondly, EV advocates will try to convince you that charging isn't a problem. The myth says that once the benevolent government invests Billion$ in Tesla Superchargers along the Interstates you can get an 80% charge (about 200 miles) in only 15 minutes. Seriously? When I'm traveling I expect to get a 100% charge of gasoline (350-400 miles) in five minutes. Please don't tell me to lower my expectations...

BTW, here's how long it takes to charge a Tesla: mechanicbase.com/electric/how-long-does-it-take-to-fully-charge-a-tesla/

Level 1 (120 V): 20 to 40 hours
Level 2 (240 V): 8 to 12 hours
Level 3 (480 V): 15 to 25 minutes

We can assume that Progressive lawmakers will rediscover the National Maximum Speed Limit to distract us from how long it takes to charge.

Many of y'all are too young to remember the 'double-nickel'... the National Maximum Speed Limit of 55 MPH enacted in 1974 to save us all from the imminent end of oil.
Several Blue states enacted even lower 50 MPH limits. Rhode Island, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Vermont, and Washington

Consider the Progressive logic for a moment. Assume, you must stop for 15 minutes every 200 miles to recharge. At 80 MPH (a proper manly speed) you have to stop every 2.5 hours.

However, with a virtuous 50 MPH National Maximum Speed Limit you will only stop every 4 hours. MUCH BETTER. You can enjoy a bug-burger and some soy-fries while you watch the electrons trickle into your EV (and you'll have time to post the experience on Instagram as part of your slow-mo adventure across the fly-over states).

As an aside, this isn't fantasy... Hillary Clinton proposed a return to the double-nickle when she was a Senator. (Click the Pic).

Wrap Up
EVs will eventually be less expensive and more reliable than ICE. The main obstacle is battery technology that relies on expensive materials that are primarily controlled by China. There is no immediate solution, however intense R&D efforts are underway around the globe.

In the next segment I'll talk about the 'elephant in the room'. The energy has to come from somewhere... renewables won't cut it and the grid can't handle the demand.

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Clown World

4/24/2022

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My favorite segment. Bob Hope in The Ghost Breakers... 1940. Some things never change

The Easter Bunny In Chief
OMG, the Easter Bunny got between Joe and reporters when he started talking about A-Stan. Bunny waves his/her/they/thems arms frantically to get Joe's attention and chases him away. Our country is being managed by mythical stuffed animals!

Joe Is Going To Run In 2024
In related news, President Biden, who has some of the lowest approval ratings ever, has indicated he intends to run again in 2024. A picture is worth 1,000 words.

Reality Check
The picture on the left is a rally hosted this week by Joe Biden, the most voted for President in history. It appears that about 50 (yes 50) people showed up.

The picture on the right is a recent rally held by private citizen Donald Trump in Commerce, Ga. About 50,000 people showed up.

    See Joe run (for President)
    Run Joe, run (in 2024)
    See Bunny run
    See Jill run
    Oh, what fun

Climate Friendly Military
Joe gets more ridiculous with each passing day. He just stated "In the US military, every vehicle is going to be climate-friendly. We're spending billions of dollars to do it."

Joe, buddy, pal, I don't want the military to be climate-friendly... I want the military to be enemy-deadly. How about spending those Billion$ to make our troops more effective (and more safe).

The worst part is all the woke morons applauding. Where the hell is the Easter Bunny??

Climate Defense
In a related story, it is hard to believe that anyone could top Joe's climate-friendly bombs and missiles but AOC has risen to the occasion. "shift our foreign policy to not just be militarily and defense based, but to also be climate defense based..."
twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1517511206596235265

It seems that the neoTerran voodoo is wearing off. I will have to dip her in fresh Chick-fil-A sauce.

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Happy Birthday George

4/23/2022

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OMG... do you think we can get back to having normal happy lives with normal happy families by 2062?

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The Changing World Order

4/23/2022

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A little over a month ago I started a segment called The Changing World Order. Thus far, I have only covered Elitism, the first of three topics. neoterra.us/blog/sustaining-liberty-the-changing-world-order

The Next Civil War
One of the books referenced in the original post is The Next Civil War - Dispatches from the American Future - by Stephen Marche 2022.

The most amazing thing about this book is that it's written by a Progressive Canadian who seems to have no grasp on reality.

Of course the 'insurgents' and 'terrorists' are rural white hicks who are exterminated by the military that remains loyal to the Progressive Urban Socialist (PUS) Leadership. BARF.

Sidebar - One of his scenarios has no civil war. Rapidly rising sea levels makes New York (and other coastal cities) uninhabitable and the nation collapses into a backwards rural morass. I suppose the author sees this as just punishment for ignoring the existential threat of Climate Change. DOUBLE BARF

The Democratic Socialists
The Democratic Socialists are on a mission to destroy capitalism and imagine that they are entitled to rule. VERY SCARY. Please watch this short video so you can understand what we're up against.

Hey Comrade he/him, when your glorious revolution comes I promise I won't clap or shout gendered pronouns. I have other ways to make load noises.

DON'T PANIC

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More Shortages

4/23/2022

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Last Monday, I promised another segment on the self-inflicted shortages. So here ya' go.

Smelly Germans
OMG... in the spirit of "you will own nothing and be happy", the German government is calling upon citizens to stop taking showers. You can't make this shit up!

In an article titled 'It's enough to wash these four body parts', the German Economy Minister claims that skipping showers will make you smell better!. It claims that avoiding showers for three weeks makes, “the odors disappear".

I don't know about the rest of y'all, but I'm not giving up hot showers to save the planet.
summit.news/2022/04/19/germans-told-to-take-fewer-showers-as-energy-costs-bite/

Bad News for Rice
Soaring fertilizer prices and unavailability of fertilizer threatens to cut global rice production by 10% this year; further exacerbating the imminent shortage of wheat. The reductions will be especially severe in India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Vietnam and China (though China is already hoarding both rice and fertilizer).

The United States produces plenty of its own rice so no one is going to starve.... but massive exports will drive up prices. Also, India will be hit particularly hard. If you prefer Basmati rice you should stock up now. I bought a 20 lb bag of Royal Basmati (my fav) at Walmart on Wednesday for $18. That's a little over 40 cups which should last us for several months.

Cooking Oil
Supermarkets in the UK are now rationing cooking oil. Some countries, such as Indonesia, are now banning the export of cooking oils and hoarding supplies for their own citizens.

Inflation
No shortage on inflation... and it's going to get worse.

Infographic: U.S. Inflation Surges to a 4-Decade High | Statista

You will find more infographics at Statista

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Earth Day

4/22/2022

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In spite of my rants against (dishonest) Climate Hysteria, I am an environmentalist. I strongly support legitimate environmental concerns for clean air, clean water and expansion of forests, parks and wilderness areas.

When we were designing neoTerra one of the goals was to reduce our energy consumption by 80%.

Prior to adding our solar panels we achieved a reduction of 77%, proving that it is possible to make substantial reductions in energy consumption while sustaining a very comfortable lifestyle. There is no need to give up hot showers, cold beer or live in a doghouse to save planet Earth!

America has abundant land and amazingly diverse climates. There is no requirement to live in urban hives or accept the Progressive's demand that we should own nothing and be happy. That is The Road To Serfdom.

I suggest that it's better to own land and be happy.
I suggest that its better to own land and take some responsibility for the environment.

The deer are abundant (much to the distress of my gardens), the Eastern Bluebirds returned in time for Easter and the hostas are sprouting.

We have more trillium than ever this year and, for the first time, we have a yellow trillium which is rare in our area.

The Mayapples are prolific this year. I wish the deer would eat these instead of hostas, azaleas and hollies.... but they don't. Mayapples are toxic (except for the tiny ripe fruit). It has medicinal uses but is best left to professionals. I suppose that's why the deer leave them alone.

HAPPY EARTH DAY !!

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