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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

The other day, I had a lunch meeting with two folks from a start-up that distributes an array of eco-friendly products.  As we were finishing up, one asked me, “Are you optimistic?”

I knew he wasn’t asking me about my general personality, but rather about my take on the probability that humankind can avert the catastrophic effects of climate change and other forms of environmental degradation.

I always answer questions like this in the affirmative.

I’m not in love with Gandhi’s argument at left.  Just because a certain type of disaster has never happened in the past doesn’t mean that it won’t in the future.

But there is no reason to believe that the entire human race is just going to sit around and listen to the greenwashing of the fossil fuel industry while the planet slowly bakes.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

As we make our way toward Christmas and some of us consider how we can refashion our lives so as to better conform with the teachings of Jesus, it’s worth noting what Harriet Beecher Stowe said here.

Unbridled capitalism has smashed its jackboots in the faces of the powerless.  Thus our rising rates of homelessness, child hunger, incarceration, infant mortality, asylum seeking, and a huge population of terrified and desperate people living paycheck-to-paycheck.

The ways to help the weakest people on Earth are virtually endless, but I have chosen to support the Turimiquire Foundation.  These folks help the poorest families in Eastern Venezuela control their fertility, educate their children, build community, and gain access to life-changing medical and humanitarian aid–and they do it by making sure that more than 96 cents out of every dollar donated goes directly to the service of those most in need.

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

From the ad at left: American energy independence needs coal power. Sign the petition to keep local coal plants open and protect our economy.

This was written to appeal to people who know absolutely nothing about our energy markets and the impact of coal consumption on our environment and the health of the human race in particular.

Of course, it makes the MAGA crowd ecstatic, as it simultaneously a) owns the libs, b) enables billionaires to become multibillionaires, and c) rejects science.  It’s a win-win-win for the least educated people in our nation.

I sometimes wonder how I would feel if one of my children had made a career out of promoting cigarette smoking, selling heroin, or destroying our planet for profit. What if I had put all that effort into raising a kid, only to find that he had become one of the most disgusting people on Earth? Fortunately, I don’t have to deal with that moral catastrophe.

It’s hard not to feel sorry for the relatives of those with no ethical sensibilities whatsoever.  “Oh, my kid?  He lives in Greenwich, CT and runs a fossil fuel hedge fund. He’s taking a personal role in engineering the end days of human civilization, and living like royalty. I couldn’t be more proud.”

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Fossil Fuels

A reader sent me this meme, to which I reply:  I hear you, but being on a list is not a crime.

I’m happy to live in a country where being found guilty of a crime by a jury of my peers is the only route to my being deprived of life, liberty, or property.  You should feel that way too.

I got a call one day from a guy who told me that he almost never reaches out to people under these circumstances, but that within a few hours, he had read one of my articles, and participated on a conference call led by the chairman of Shell Oil in which someone mentioned “Craig Shields of 2GreenEnergy.”

He said, “I had never heard of you once when I got of out bed this morning.  Now here I am, a huge stockholder in Shell btw, hearing your name twice before lunch.  Do you mind telling me: exactly who are you?”

I laughed, and tried to explain myself, but all the while I was thinking, “OK. I’m on somebody’s list.  And that’s not a good thing.”

The truth, of course, is that the name of anyone who seriously tries to make a difference is on one, one hundred, or one thousand enemies’ lists.  Don’t let it deter you.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability
(Here’s a photo of) the children’s section in Patmos Library in Jamestown, Michigan. Local citizens voted to defund it in Nov., after it refused to ban all LGBTQ+ books. Now a local politician has suggested shutting down the library “by force.”
As sad and frightening as this is, there is an element of humor to it.  Shutting down a library by force?  How much actual force does that require? Are librarians typically armed?  Are they normally trained in the martial arts?
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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Former Republican strategist Steve Schmidt makes an interesting conjecture here.

Someone pointed out that Andrew Jackson was about as vile a human being as can possibly be imagined, and no-one’s removed his portrait from the White House.

True, but he didn’t commit treason.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

A friend sent me the good wishes at left, which I happily share with all 2GreenEnergy readers.

Keep in mind that, strange though it may be, not everyone feels this way; this is something of a controversial statement.  Think of all the people who want to “own the libs,”  force 10-year-old rape victims to bear the child, and abandon the Constitution so as to reinstate Trump as the U.S. president.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

At left is a concept about ending racism.

Unfortunately, its logic is flawed.  Pretending a malady doesn’t exist doesn’t make it go away.  My dentist’s office features a sign that reads: Ignore your teeth and they’ll go away. Most of his patients, I’m sure, get the joke.

Apparently the author of the meme here isn’t quite bright enough to follow this.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Strictly speaking, the three-ring circus that is America didn’t absolutely need Elon Musk to come along with a new wave of outrageous behavior to provide us the latest in shock…and amusement.

But now that he’s here, let’s give him credit for doing such a stellar job.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

My wife will get a smile out of this, but, as previously mentioned, I think it’s vitally important that this country go through a process of, call it what you will: healing, purging, catharsis, sanitization/cleansing, revelation/epiphany, and/or contrition/atonement — and not a single one of these can occur without justice.

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